#everyone say thank you rose for the original outfit

[cronchytoast]

gave my cr sona a new outfit and finally designed stars pet!! its been so long..

[hollywoodroses]

Could you do somethjng about being izzy's sister and liking steven for a while and you end up hooking up in a after party and izzy finds out and is pissed 😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨 lmao i love family drama THANK YOUUUU 🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶

warning: smut, language and mention of drugs

minors please don’t interact

That’s My Sister

You are currently on summer vacation from university and decide to visit your twin brother Izzy in Los Angeles. Izzy had just released an album with his band, Guns N’ Roses.

You originally met his band when they were in your hometown doing a concert. Meeting them back-stage you developed feelings for the drummer, Steven. He looked so cute and innocent but your brother was near you like a shadow. You never got a chance to speak to Steven and soon went your own way while the band continued their tour.

Now was your chance to see your crush again. You are so excited as the plane was ready to land at LAX. You wondered if Izzy would pick you up personally so if he’d send a really posh driver and limo.

Once you get through customs, you exit into the lobby of the arrivals lounge and see Izzy.

“Izzy”. You call out to him.

You run towards him and when you get close to him you give him a hug.

“I missed you, twin”. You say in delight.

“Hey kiddo. The guys are excited to see you”.

You walk out of the airport with your twin brother and see a limo waiting for you with a personal driver. You didn’t even know how popular Guns N’ Roses were. You preferred New Kids on the Block.

The driver welcomes you to California and opens the limo door for you. You are greeted with an array of food and drinks. You quickly grab a soda and some water.

Izzy explained that he would take you to a hotel to dress as he was going to take you to a night-club. The club was going to celebrate the release of Appetite for Destruction album. You can’t wait to see everyone but you are hoping that Steven didn’t forget you after all those years of meeting him for the first time.

*****

You decided to wear a plaid skirt and crop-top with thigh-high socks and ankle boots. Even though Izzy was originally against your outfit choice, you convinced him that you wanted to make an statement. Izzy understood has he knew your parents were a little protective of you.

Once you entered the party, you saw who you were looking for. Steven was right there, with glassy eyes you knew he was possibly on some drug. When you noticed Izzy was no longer in sight, you walk up to Steven and just go for it and sit in his lap.

“Hey baby, remember me?” You asked.

“Y/N, of course I remember. How can I forget.”

While getting comfortable with Steven, you feel your clothed pussy rub against him. You roll your eyes back and moan.

“I want you.” You whisper in his ear.

You get up from Steven’s lap and take his hand. You see that your twin brother is busy with a groupie he met at the party.

You drag Steven to the women’s rest room. Locking the door, you turn to him and take his shirt in your hands. Pushing him towards the sink, you kiss him hungrily. Licking his tongue, you start to feel yourself dripping through your panties. You kiss him until your lips are swollen and wet with spit.

You are horny so you lift your skirt and move your panties to the side and begin to finger yourself. Steven smiled as he could see how desperate you were. When you climaxed, you collect your cum and lick your fingers clean. You kiss Steven again, mixing your cum and your saliva in his mouth.

You want him inside you but you suddenly hear the rest room door unlock. To your horror, Izzy walks into the scene with anger.

“What the fuck are you doing”. He yells.

He runs up to you and grabs you out of Steven’s arms. You walk out with him in embarrassment as you mouthed ‘sorry’ to Steven but you did wink at him so he was definitely satisfied.

You walked towards the party with Izzy following close behind you. When you got in-front of everyone Izzy made a scene.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH STEVEN?” He yelled towards you.

“What do you mean?” You ask innocently.

“I know what Steven and my band-mates are like. I know how they treat women. I don’t want you to get hurt.” He admits to you.

“Izzy, I am your twin sister. You should know nobody can mess with me. Besides, I am an adult not a child”.

Izzy started to calm down when he realized what you said.

“Be careful, I don’t want to be an uncle just yet”. He explained.

You wink at your brother and he laughs as he hugs you. His band-mates including Steven breathe a sigh of relief.

It seemed like everything turned out the way it should. You began to date Steven exclusively and he was loyal to you, never looking at the groupies. He only had eyes for you.

the end

[dragonoffantasyandreality]

Kamen Rider Thunderbirds Chapter 5: Anything Goes! - Prologue

Heya guys! ^^

This is the start of the next chapter of KRTB series! While it has taken a bit long, it is slowly picking up steam! Thank you everyone for the support!

Now, let's start the fun! >:3

@uniwolfcorn @teapotteringabout @skymaiden32 @knyee @janetm74 @the-original-sineater @thundergeek59 @riallasheng @katblu42 @mariashades @room-on-broom @yarol2075 @llamawrites @etrnlvoid @cosmic-orchaid

-0-0-0-

Deep within the temple, screams of agony echoed through its dimly lit hallways. The flames on the torches flickered with unease.

“Kyrano!” the Hood’s voice boomed through the temple, “Give me the information I need!”

A whimpering cry echoed, though nobody heard what it said.

The screams increased, shaking the place to the core. Like sent of blood, it rose interest of the Elemental Masters.

The horrid sounds gave Terratroll a kick as he was hopping with amusement.

Aquarien lay on a chair made of rich red silk and expensive wood while licking her lips, at one point murmured in wishful thinking about adding more cruelty to the torture.

Pyrohimera was combing his flaming mane with intrigue, throwing a glance at the Master of Air who had the opposite reaction to all of them.

He was about to say something until the Hood barged the door open and entered the room, sweat covered his bald head and frustrated face. So much so his thick eyebrows were glimmering.

“My despicable half-brother!” the Hood growled under his breath, “Still haven’t told me the secrets to International Rescue, despite my continuous discipline!”

“Ooooohhh. He is with International Rescue?” Aquarien rose a bit from her chair, her clawed hand waved her fingers till they woven around her chin, “Why can’t you just slowly choke him, until he foams in his mouth? You’ll get the secrets drained out of him easily!”

“I would have, if my powers could reach his throat, foolish creature!”

“How lame… Should’ve told him he was going to die anyways. His kind are nothing more than sub-human,” she huffed, getting up from her prestige seat and walked away with an air of disappointment.

The Hood huffed, grumbled, growled, and waved his fists in the air in utter annoyance as he stomped around the room.

He then spotted the Master of Air, simply standing there watching him with a pensive aura. The bald maniac sagged his shoulders and shouted.

“Do you have nothing to say?!”

Pyrohimera stepped in at his full loyal and formal frame next to his Summoner.

“Just now, he mentioned about how this whole commotion you were doing were getting into his nerves…”

“He- He wants ME to shup up!?”

“I don’t understand his standing, either,” The Master of Fire quickly replied.

The Hood threw a deathly glare the offending monster, his eyes glowed with a terrible light with desire to torture him with the same treatment as he did with Kyrano and every victim that came across him!

The Master of Air, unaffected and unbothered, let out a huff and slowly walked away, with dust kicked aside from his crow-like feet and tattered cloth.

“Maybe, we should focus on our mission to conquer International Rescue!” Terratroll stepped in next to Pyrohimera, who’s face immediately dropped into utter annoyance, “I heard of a little… information that dropped off that sub-human’s tongue…”

“Right…” The Hood took a deep breath as he fixed his collar of his jewelled outfit and hastily walked to the alter. The two Elemental Masters followed him, standing opposite of him.

“I want you to send your troops to the NY-P Children’s Hospital in New York City!” he pointed at the mentioned spot on the map of the huge city, "Cause as much destruction as you can. And let them come! The rest you know what to do..."

The Master of Fire leaned in and frowned. He took note of place where the new target was, and the place where he first unleashed his horde.

“There’s a problem, Summoner,” he objected, “I’m still not sure if the Kamen Riders were still in this area. There’s a possibility they haven’t left their post…”

“Oh, how about I’ll help you with that…” the Earth Kaijin threw a side-eye with a nasty grin on his rocky face.

“What do you offer now, Terratroll?”

“I’ll send a battalion of my Monopods, and a Brute Commander. For the latter, I suggest infusing some of your power into him,” Terratroll calmly explained.

Pyrohimera rubbed his chin mane with a thoughtful expression.

“Very well, I’ll take your offer,” he slowly nodded. Then he immediately pointed a serious finger at his colleague, “But if this plan fails, then I will be disappointed!”

“No, I will be disappointed!” hissed the Master of Earth.

The Master of Fire let out an annoyed growl. Slowly raising his dragon head that acted as left his arm, and blew fire at him. Huffing, Terratroll’s hand transformed into a cannon to return the disrespect his flaming fellow was about to receive.

But the impending fight was quickly interrupted by the Hood! Who threw a dagger in between them, jabbing it into the wall.

“Do your mission already!” he yelled, spooking them both.

His glowing eyes burned bright with boiling hot anger, his booming voice shook the Kaijins and the temple.

“I will make them PAY! I will make them weep as I burn what they care about!”

From the corner of the room, the Master of Air turned around and quietly muttered in the driest of tones, “Fools...”

[azlan-snow]

Broadcast Husbands

Chapter Fourteen: Two to Tango

(Told from Vox’s POV)

That night, I talk to Al about the new info I received. “Al,” I call out, not finding where he was. “In the tower, mon cher,” I hear, his voice staticy and coming from his radio.

As I walk, I wonder if asking Charlie to free Al would be a good idea. Al would probably oppose such a thing, but it would be nice. But we don’t know who owns it. Not even me. And no matter how many times I’ve asked, I’ve always received the same answer: “Soon, my dear. Soon.” When the fuck is soon?

Entering the tower, I see Al signing off on his show, playing some classical jazz to signal his finale. “Hello, my dear. How can I be of assistance?” “I have info and a question.”

“Oh? Pray tell.”

“Charlie has the ability to break soul chains.”

“Really?” This piqued his interest. His signature smile with an eyebrow raised was displayed on his face, now fully engaged. 

“But Lucifer said her soul is too pure. She could destroy Heaven and Hell if she wanted, but can’t because of it.” He hummed at the statement, thinking about how to proceed with such info. 

“Do you think she’d be up to free you?” His radio noise cut off with a resounding screech, now looking rather annoyed.

“Vox. You know how I feel about this.

“I know, which is why I am asking instead of instantly doing it.”

“Vox. Do not ask the Princess to free me.”

“Why? That’s the one thing you want: Freedom. From her.”

“VOX.” The static in his voice rose exponentially, indicating that he was frustrated. 

“Please, Al. You aren’t the only one who wants you free. I do.”

“I know, but I don’t wish to bring such wrath upon this place. Seeing everyone here, happy disgusts me, but like you did, warms my dead black heart.”

“You don’t see it as just entertainment anymore. That’s good.”

“Don’t change the subject, Vox.” I laugh at his scowl, knowing how adorable it is. 

“Okay, okay. I won’t ask. But under one condition. You have to try.”

“Try what?”

“To be considerate. I know you hate people, but maybe getting other overlords on board with the hotel won’t be a bad idea.”

“Others? She has the strongest here to support her!”

“I know. You’re among us, babe. But talk to Rosie. Take Charlie and Husk with you. I have Overlord business to attend to with Carmilla. Okay?”

“Ugh. Fine, I will try.”

“Thank you. Goodnight, beloved.”

“Goodnight, mon cher.”

That morning, II wake up to the sound of arguments and explosions. Rushing down, I see Lucifer and Alastor fighting over who’s going to cook.

“I’m cooking ! Go away!” The King shouts at Al, but doesn’t display any signs of annoyance. 

“My liege, it is MY duty to cook for our patrons, which is something you need to accept!” Al wraps a tendril around Lucifer’s slim waist and throws his ass out into a chair in the main room. 

“Vox! Please help!” Charlie pulls at the sleeve of my pajamas to catch my attention, and in turn, accidentally shocking herself.  She yelps at the shock and sucks her finger. 

“Sorry! I haven’t been able to disperse any excess electricity yet. But okay.”  I enter the kitchen, seeing my husband seething, before standing on my tippy toes and kissing him like the teenager I am, causing his brain to overload. He stands there, processing what just happened, then begins to straighten his outfit, seeing as Lucifer messed up his most casual suit. 

“Al. Let the man cook for his daughter. Please.” He groans excessively and loudly, letting everyone know how annoyed this made him feel.

“Fine. Then I’ll do something else.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re not welcome.”

“Wouldn’t be the first.”

He teleports away, leaving me in a battered kitchen. 

“Clean your mess, Al!” And everything returned to its original condition.

“Thanks Vox!” Charlie hugs me, shocking herself again, the shock frizzing up her hair.

“Welcome Charlie.” I return to my room, exhaustion still within me as I plop back down on the bed. 

“You know it’s time to get up, right?” Alastor’s voice through the radio says, staticy and bright.

“Shut up, Al. I’m tired.”

“From what? What extraneous activity did you do?”

“I have to meet with the other Overlords today.”

“And you told me not to worry about that last night, didn’t you?”

“Yeah. BUt I still don’t want to do it.”

“Suck it up, Vox. Unless you want me to kill someone.”

“Ha! I know.”

“Good. Now, get dressed. I’ll see you off.”

“Tell Husk the same thing. He’s required to attend also.”

“He’s not going to be happy about that.”

“I don’t care. Carmilla said that I needed to bring him.”

“Interesting. Farewell.”

“See you soon.” I get out the bed again, and place my hands on the electric absorber to get rid of any excess electricity I had, and put on my Overlord suit that Rosie had made for me for my anniversary with Al, before heading downstairs and seeing Al and Husk by the door.

“Ya finally ready?” Husk gulps down a large amount of whiskey, knowing he’s not allowed to bring any with him.

“Yep. Let’s go.” 

“See you later, darling.”

“Bye Al.” We head out the door, and walk in the direction of Carmilla’s estate. As we walk, we chat and tell jokes, keeping the mood up before we’re at  the elevator, going up. We instantly are faced with Rosie, who is happy that I wore the suit she made me, but sad I didn’t bring Al to make things interesting. Once done with me, she takes Husk and drags him with her without another word to me. I laugh before taking my seat two chairs away from Rosie, being as the empty seat’s Al’s. Carmilla looks at me, a frustrated neutral look on her face, then disgust as Valentino and Velvette walk in, turning everyone’s mood sour, especially Carmilla’s.

“Welcome all, to this meeting. Thank you for all being in attendance. This year has been rather difficult for us, with deaths of sinners rising each extermination, not to mention the feuds between territories. I do hope this meeting will be beneficial to resolving such issues. With that, who has a complaint?”  

Valentino raises his hand, blowing out smoke before he speaks. “Miss Carmilla, if I may,” he says, accent prominent and voice sultry.

“Go ahead.” Her face looked like she was going to regret this.

“If Vox and Alastor, who isn’t present, were to give us the territory, it would make all of this easier.”

“Last time I checked, you attacked first, am I correct?”

“That’s correct, Carmilla,” I say, inserting myself into the debate. 

“Then why should he? He’s resisted all efforts from you, displaying his fortifications suitable for combat and heavy artillery.” Valentino looked at his partner, Velvette, who didn’t have any input.

“Then it’s decided. You shall cease all attacks on the two’s territory. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“Good. Now, Vox, I hear you and Alastor have a new piece of territory. Is that correct?”

“It is, along with Husk. All three of us are managing that section of the pentagram,” I say pointing to the location of the hotel on the map Carmilla has displayed. Husk looks up, meeting eyes with Carmilla, nodding, then returning to his cat nap. 

“Very well. Does anyone have anything else to add, or shall we close this up?” No one answered, so she took that as no one had anything left to say. “Then this meeting is concluded. You may all leave.” Everyone leaves in an orderly fashion except Zestial, which is normal.

“That went well, right?”

[ambulancevsambulance]

It’s been Twelve Years since Danger Days came out.

It’s been Twelve Years since the death of the Fab Four, the OG Killjoys. Or at least, that’s what the comics tell us.

It’s funny, really. The original tour was supposed to kick off in 2020. But with it being postponed until 2022, MCR set themselves right in the path of the comic, on an anniversary that was marked in those pages. 

Cause Killjoys never die, right?

I found myself thinking about that, recently, after the tour ended, seeing the resurgence of art, of cosplay, of fandom, of the explosion of MCR all over the internet and in person the past year. 

Some people have been around this whole time, yes, and fuck yes to them...but it’s been amazing to see so many people waking up from their slumbers, and coming back to the fandom, the band, the community after all this time. 

Hell, there are a ton of new Killjoys too, who found the band during the hiatus, when there was no new music to be had, no tours, nothing but the back catalogue and old posts to troll through. 

Those of us, especially those that were around in the old days, kept faith. Or maybe we didn’t. That’s okay, too. There is never one way to be a fan.

I can say for myself, I genuinely haven’t felt on fire for MCR like this in years. 

Truly inspired. 

I’m making a costume I have put off for years, I’m currently 15K words into a writing project inspired by the KJs. There are so many other things, too, but I just feel like a flame got re-ignited. 

I saw them at one of the LA shows, and not only did they put on an amazing show, but I genuinely can’t remember the last time I felt a kinship with everyone in a stadium. 

Everyone screaming their lungs out, dancing and jumping around, interacting joyfully with complete strangers. (Shout out to the girls who kept turning around to me and @gravytape​ to sing along and dance with us, to every person who came up to me to grab a MCR pin through my silly Vampire Cowboy game, to every person who came up to me and Junior to compliment our outfits as we were complimenting theirs.) 

I keep joking that this is about Community, but it truly is. It’s not perfect, because no Community is. But I walked out of that show feeling so filled with love for MCR and every damn soul in that building. And after that, every livestream, screaming on MCRTumblr with fans...

...its been beautiful. 

They’ve gotten older, but so have I. (Thank all that’s unholy that we have. It’s a gift to grow older, and is important to remember in the darkest of nights. )

Coming back to them after all this time, as they came back to it, after all this time...it’s been something truly transcendent.

I’ve sorted myself out, figured out my sexuality, my gender (and hilarious how MCR factored into that), and figured out the sort of person I want to be. 

Things aren’t always great, but I’m happy with the person I am. And to look at all of them on stage, together, at all those shows over the tour, having a fucking blast, also clearly happy with who they are, and how far they’ve come...

...how can you feel anything but a deep sense of fellowship with My Chemical Romance? 

It doesn’t matter which album is your favorite. 

(Though I’ll always say Danger Days and Conventional Weapons continue to be criminally underrated and fuck so hard it makes me a dangerous driver.) 

It doesn’t matter if you have been here since 2002, or found them in 2022, there is a place for you out here in the Zones. 

In cities that are sadly has become more like fucking BL/Ind than ever, and a world that is looking more like the Zones than we would like it too...we’re still here.

They are still here. 

Twelve years on from the death of the Fabulous Killjoys, they rose from the dead to show us all so much love. 

I just hope they know how damn loved they are, too.  

[luneesv]

can't get rid of you - peeta mellark

peeta mellark x male!reader

after you volunteered for prim, you're now the new tribute of district twelve, with Peeta. you were in love with him since you were a child.. now you had to fight him on the arena of the 74th Hunger Games

[english isn't my first language]

this story was originally posted on wattpad

part 2 - the forest (click here !)

part 3 - the fire (this one)

part 4 - the eyes (in progress)

-

You were walking with Peeta and Effie while the people were all looking at you. You felt weird. It wasn't right. You felt like a fucking rat who was trapped. Peeta noticed it, and he took your hand. You looked at him. You didn't think he would do that. Especially in front of everyone. You were wondering what he had in mind. But you didn't care. His hand was so warm. For the first time today, you felt okay. It was starting to get dark.

After some time of walking, you arrived at some place where they asked you to take off your clothes and to sleep. You didn't argue because you were so tired after that day.

When you wake up, you heard some voices. You couldn't really understand what they were saying. But it was about you. When you get up, you were surprised to see your body without body hair, without scars and without without dirt. You felt like a baby. The people have noticed the fact that you are up.

- oh you're up, we'll call Cinna, oh and by the way maybe you should take more care into your body because you smelled.

- oh. you said.

They left as you checked yourself. Now you smelled like chemicals and stuff. Maybe they tried to make you smell like roses but it was just worse than before.

You stand up from the "bed" and you checked the room. It was full of cosmetics that you never saw before. Not many people at district twelve could afford all of this. After a few minutes, a man open the door and came. He was so different than the other people that you met. He was tall, and he was wearing black clothes. So different than Effie, by exemple. The only thing special about him is the gold eyeliner he has on his eyelids.

- hey, i'm Cinna, your stylist. he said as he give me a shirt and some pants to wear.

- thanks..

You said while putting them on. After that he handed me the clothes, he walkes around me, checking me. Like a piece of meat. It was weird.

- i'm new by the way so don't be too stressed.

- and they gave you the district twelve ?

- no i asked to be assigned to this district.

After that he started to take measurements on your body. You must have been blushing too hard because when he looks at your head he stopped.

- you must hate us, don't you ?

- what ?

- it doesn't matter, well if you don't know it's my friend Portia who will take care of Peeta. Do you have an idea on how we're gonna dress you two ?

You knew that the tributes had to wear outifts that shows typical things from the districts. Tributes of district twelve are all wearing coal themed dresses or costumes. One time, they were naked and covered in coal.

- I have some ideas.. please don't make me go in front of everyone naked.

Cinna laughed as he caressed your hair.

- no, of course not. we wanted to go in a slightly different direction.

- what do.. you mean ?

- do you know what do we with coal ? we burn it. complete Cinna, you're not scared of fire y/n ?

Now you're in a full black costume. It looks majestic. You never looked so pretty.

After that, Cinna takes you to the bottom of the building. The two of you joined Peeta with Portia. You were happy to see Peeta with the same outfit as you. Yours was slightly different thought.

- you look so pretty, said Peeta.

- thanks, you too.

Cinna and Portia, then, explained to you how the two of you will parade in front of the public in fire. You said to yourself that Peeta would be used to fire since he was a baker but he looks scared.

- are you okay ? you asked nicely

- um, i'm a bit scared of fire, would you take of my cape if i'm burning ?

- only if you take off mine, you laughed.

- no problem, where is Haymitch by the way, shouldn't he be there ? to protect us, you know..

- thanks god he's not here, can you imagine if he'd be next to the fire ?

And you two burst out laughing. You felt good with him. You hoped he felt the same.

The ceremony music started as the first tributes set off in a cart. You kinda like how they looked. Especially the boy. He was pretty. You didn't catch his name thought, the public is so loud..

The public seems to love them, after them it's the district two that set off in their cart. A few seconds passed until it's our turn.

You started to breath heavily as you get on the black cart, Cinna approaches us with his torch, as he set on fire your capes.

- it's your turn, he said, don't forget, hold your head high !

Cinna get off the cart when he turn to us and say something that you didnt catch.

- what did he say ? you asked to Peeta who looked majestic with the fire. You hoped you looked good too.

- I don't know ! I think it's our hands !

As he said that, he takes your hand and puts it on top for all the audience to see.

And it works, the public is on fire, litteraly. They all scream your name while you parade in front of them. You even blow some kisses to people who trow roses at you two.

When you arrived at the destination, you try to free my hand of Peeta but when you tried he looks worried.

- please don't let go of my hand, i'm scared that i fell..

- okay i'm sorry, you apologized.

The tributes descend from their carts while Peeta takes off his cape.

- it wasn't that bad..

- yea i kinda liked it, you laughed while taking off your cape.

Effie and Haymitch came to you, they looked so happy.

- you did so great my boys ! cried Effie while hugging both of you.

- she's right, you did good, said Haymitch, smiling.

You walked away from Effie, when you saw the boy from district one looking at you. It wasn't like the other tributes who were jealous of your success, it was different. You even found him cute when he smiled at you.

- who are you watching, said Peeta.

- no one, don't worry.

Peeta and you walked in direction of the training center where Effie showed both of you, your rooms.

It was even bigger than your rooms in the train. You lie down in your bed as you look in the window the dark sky. It's already night. You try to close your eyes, but you can't get the image of Peeta out of your head. You try to think of something else, but then you imagine Prim and Katniss alonew worrying about you. For the first time you think about your home. Other than your room and stuff, you realised that you were so scared. You didnt know how you're gonna win. After seeing the other tributes, you're strenght isn't that special. The male from district 2 is as strong as you.

You stand up as you sighed. You're dead. All your hopes are getting crashed. You decided to take off your outift which smell like burned coal now.

You go into the bathroom of you room, open the water, which this time is hot. You understand what Peeta means by feeling so good. The water trickled down your skin as you rub your skin with the product that smelled the best. The water was so hot, that it burned your skin. But you didn't care. You felt like home, like under the covers of your bed. You cried, you cried because you will never felt that feeling of confort anymore. It's over.

You turn off the water, and you dry yourself with some tissue. You take some clothes of a drawer and you find the pin with the mockingjay. You put in your shirt. It looks good on you. You smile, as you thought that it could make you feeling like home. In some ways.

You walk towards the biggest room where Effie, Haymitch and Peeta are talking while eating. Cinna and Portia are talking but in the couch, the biggest one you've ever seen. You sit next to Peeta who smiled at you while he gave you a salad bowl with somes vegetables.

- you want some ?

- yes, thanks Peeta, you thanked, taking the salad bowl, your hands touched, and it was so hot. Maybe it was just okay.

- you did such a good job my boys !! exclaimed Effie while eating a piece of meat that you didn't recognize.

Haymitch smiled and congratulated us too. Than it was Cinna and Portia's turn before you could eat in peace. They were talking about sponsors and stuff, but you didn't care. After the little breakdown of the bathroom, it's like you didn't care about everything. Maybe Peeta. He's the only one. At this moment you asked yourself if he remembered the day he gave me the bread.

You finished eating when you stood up to go to your room.

- No y/n please stay we need to talk about something really important. said Haymitch.

- really ? i'm really tired you know..

- please.

- okay, you sighed while you sit back down.

Haymitch finished drinking the last drop of his drink before looking at you and Peeta.

- what talents do you have ? what makes you special compared to the other tributes ?

- um nothing special, said quietly Peeta.

- don't lie Peeta, you mumbled, he can lift huge sacks of flour, he's super strong.

- and what ? i'm not gonna throw sacks of flour towards our enemies ?! exclaimed Peeta coldly.

- no but it makes you special !

- and you ? you're really great at hunting, the animals that you give to my dad are always on very good conditions ! and then you know how to fight, i know you beat my brother and.. and you're so much better than me ! you know what my dad said to me ? that you'll be there to protect me. do you know how hurtful it is to know that your own dad doesn't believe in you ? my mom said that for once the district twelve has a chance of winning, but she wasn't talking to to me, she was talking about you. you'll win. not me.

You didn't know what to say. He was right, you know how to hunt, how to shoot with a bow, how to fight, you didn't even know that you had beated his brother, but you didn't know that it was so painfull to him. Knowing that his own parents don't believe in him.

- well you don't need them to believe in you, i'm here and i know you'll win. i know you better than yourself. you're kind, you're strong. who cares about what your dad thinks, you'll win. if i have to die in that arena i want you to win.

Haymitch and Effie looked at you like some old couples that were arguing.

- i'll be in my room, said Peeta.

And he left the room for his. You didn't know what to say.

- you can go to sleep too, but remember that you'll have to show your talents to the judges. Effie talked to you about the ratings that you get after the training ? it's really important for the sponsors.

- yea yea.. g'night. you answered.

Now you walked to your room, Peeta's is just next to yours. You wanted to enter in his room and apologized or something like that. You wanted to be with him. He's the only memory of home that you had.

You lie down on bed, searching for a good position to sleep. But you couldn't sleep.

So you went to the balcony of the big room. It's so dark, you could see the moon. But it was not like the moon at home. It was different. At the bottom of the building you could see a boy who was training. You recognize the boy from district one. You remembered his name now, Marvel. He was cute from the top.

You jumped up when Peeta came to see you in the balcony. He was wearing some baggy pants and a shirt that was not fully buttoned, you could only blush to see him with his messy hair but it made him so handsome.

- what are you doing here y/n ?

- i wanted to feel the air, i can't sleep.

- i can't sleep either, he mumbled.

He looked at you and sit, you decided to do the same, as he puts his hand on your hair.

- i never realised how long are they compared to mine.

- they're not that long.. you replied.

- i know, but im used to people with shaved head, he laughed as he looks in the eyes.

- you have such pretty eyes Peeta..

He laughed, and he turned his head towards the moon.

- it's not like at home.

- i thought the same.

He smiled at you.

- i think we should get some sleep, don't you think ?

- maybe you're right..

- goodnight y/n, sweat dreams.

You nodded at him, you stayed a moment after he left the room, you peeked at the bottom of the building to see for a last time the boy from district one. But this time he looked back at you.

He waved his hand, and you did the same.

You decided it was time to sleep so you leave the balcony for your room. You sit in your bed thinking about Peeta's eyes. But you couldn't stop stress for tomorrow.

Tomorrow you will have to train with the other tributes. Haymitch advised you to make friends with others but it would be complicated.

You finally fall asleep, rubbing the pin with the bird in your hand.

-

thank you so much for reading this story, if you want more check my wattpad account !

[pico-digital-studios]

Into, Across and Beyond! Cast: Amy Rouge

Replaces: Jessica Drew / Spider-Woman Origin: A mod for Sonic Adventure 2

(Art by Nico--Neko)

"As much as I look the charmer, charming... isn't really my thing nowadays. The thievery skills I inherited from one of my halves are only going to be for the good of those around me, not for my own gain!"

Amy Rouge; a nowadays popular character in the community, having stemmed from that one Sonic Adventure 2 mod where everyone wore Rouge's outfit. People sure had fun with that idea, eh?

This version of her comes from Dimension EV-2019, and was a biological creation made by Toxinfect from the DNA of both Amy Rose and Rouge, henceforth making her her own person. For a time, she served under the monster and tried to hinder progress on the heroes' side as best as she could.

Thing is, her relationship with Toxinfect was... sour, to say the least. And before you say anything, yes, THAT happened, but I will not mention it here. In fact, that's going to be a key staple of Into, Across and Beyond!; no mature or sexual themes WHATSOEVER. For any characters only seen for THOSE purposes, this AU aims to highlight them as characters that aren't solely confined to that mindset.

An issue with the work relationship I will say about, however, is that Toxinfect was so damn hard to impress, and Amy Rouge was trying her utmost best to do her job right. It came to a head when her attempt to kill Nitro had her double back on herself, and she was thrown out a window in disgust by Toxinfect, the monster having lost it with her repeated failures.

The young woman was utterly ashamed of herself for everything that happened, though got a confidence boost thanks to EV!Sonic and Nitro being there to highlight her strengths. From there, she used the knowledge she gained from Toxinfect against him, bypassing security and helping ensure the monster was taken out.

After that day, she has since stayed over at Nitro's home as a place for some much-needed shelter. After her experiences, she lost her confidence in going outside on her own, due to the all-too-real risk of a male (or group of) aiming to hit on her for... obvious reasons. As such, whenever she wished to go outside, she needed somebody accompanying her who could keep her safe from such advances.

While her royal cape she has on occasion may be just for show, she also cleverly uses it as a way to conceal her outfit whenever she can, in part since she's unable to actually take it off or have any other uniform she's comfortable with. Fortunately, she is able to take it off for when she needs to shower or wearing pyjamas for a good night's rest.

After enough time, she was elected as a member of the Quill Society, due to her resolving to use her thievery skills for the purposes of stopping crime rather than committing it. Seeing fellow heroes that have had their own struggles had also helped her feel more comfortable with spending time alone or with new friends while in Dimension TNL-2015.

Through the "canon event" criteria LM!Sonic is obsessed with, Amy Rouge would class under the "meeting Sonic", "love interest kiss" and "EXE encounter" criteria, and isn't at all happy when she hears about it from OMT!Tails, being one of those actively involved in chasing down and apprehending the villainous blue blur.

[mimiatmidnight]

I posted 865 times in 2022

That's 576 more posts than 2021!

338 posts created (39%)

527 posts reblogged (61%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@jechristine

@harryandmeghansussex

@mmarkle

@theiconicmeghanmarkle

@gallarie

I tagged 624 of my posts in 2022

Only 28% of my posts had no tags

#✨️.zip - 101 posts

#fashun - 89 posts

#taylor - 35 posts

#meghan markle - 33 posts

#🎃.spk - 27 posts

#met gala - 19 posts

#interiors - 15 posts

#oscars - 13 posts

#prince harry - 11 posts

#cannes - 11 posts

Longest Tag: 139 characters

#just kidding i will be using their hydrating cleanser until i die 🥰 i love you la roche posay 🥰 i never spoke ill of you la roche posay🥰

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

She looked stunning and fresh in this gown 😭😍 so pretty!

Fresh is totally the right word. She looks like she rose straight from the natal seas of Aphrodite herself. Christopher John Rogers's design is PHENOMENAL

See the full post

73 notes - Posted February 27, 2022

#4

Your post about Kim's failure to wear that dress reminds me of the usual convo around perfection and how looking flawlessly perfect is boring. But even then that dress was iconic because of Marilyn, Kim looked like a fashion nova sponsored influencer from ugly tacky heels to horrible hair color and style. Idc that idiots want to act dumb to defend rich people doing whatever they want but preserving fashion *is* important and spoiled brats shouldn't risk ruining pieces because they want attention

Yes, I very briefly touched on those topics in my original tags. I didn't expect that post to get quite as much reach as it's getting right now, but if I had, I would have explored those ideas more fully within the post itself. Regardless, you are so right that there is so much more to making a look work than just the dress itself. They had NOTHING interesting going on in her makeup, and just as boring was the same old tired slicked back bun (and am I correct in understanding she was not blonde before this event? Meaning this was her lackluster attempt at some sort of homage to Marilyn? Jesus.) I believe the statement they believed they would be making is that it's all about Kim's silhouette. Let her curves do the talking, and what not. Nevermind that we've been staring at that same silhouette, willingly or unwillingly, for well over a decade at this point, and it's been copied in several hundreds of other celebrities and influencers alike. She needed . . . so much more. I took her shoe choice as a personal insult, I must say. Absolutely atrocious. Also, I suppose this can't be helped, but the color of the dress was also totally wrong against Kim's skin tone (well, it can be helped by leaving the dress to only be worn by the woman for whom it was specifically created).

And most insulting of all, of course, are the greater implications of the stunt. This self-declaration that she is the Marilyn Monroe of our time. Because all Kim understands Marilyn as is that she was a sex symbol. And so she thinks she's naturally got that covered. As if Marilyn herself was not deeply disturbed by the reduction of her personhood to the mere appearance of her body. It's a sickening dishonor to her memory. I don't know this woman or her family personally, but my impression of them is that they are a deeply uncurious people. That video of Kourtney being asked about her outfit and what the gala's theme means to her, and her replying "I honestly didn't really think about it." Like 😐 Ok thank you for being honest I guess, now please never come back here again. And of course, how this whole thing has displayed the utter lack of respect for the sanctity of historical artifacts and the appalling entitlement to our culture's shared heirlooms. The whole thing is just so . . . upsetting.

81 notes - Posted May 5, 2022

#3

I would like everyone to know that this tweet was how I found out the news.

96 notes - Posted September 8, 2022

#2

Class reductionism is so funny because it will bring you a socialist saying full-heartedly, "Stop defending that Black woman from racism. Don't you know there are people who are underpaid!!" Like I'm dead this woman actually said, "Guys this is Not A Good Look™ 😕"

Grace, my comrade . . . people have the ability to care about two things at once. And no, economic violence against poor white women is not any more important than racist violence against wealthy Black women.

Disrespectfully, shut the fuck up <3

112 notes - Posted September 22, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

It's so true like they really just don't compare, but I can't really explain to myself why? Like the dress just looks so uninteresting on kim, but it was so different in the original on MM

Besides all the complex intertwining external factors we've been discussing, purely on an aesthetic level, I think the difference you're feeling is the effect of shapewear. Part of the Kardashians' whole brand is pushing the limits reality to achieve their definition of (or really, the illusion of their definition of) perfection. I think of Khloe's infamous breakdown a little while ago when a candid photo leaked of her looking human in a bathing suit. She was thrown into an actual panic. It was honestly devastating to watch. And here, with Kim's look, she has her body so smoothed and corseted and shapewear-ed into an image of some alien figure that just looks . . . like nothing. I look at her and I feel absolutely nothing.

The magic of Marilyn's look was that she was not trying to hide ANYTHING. You could practically see her entire body beneath the dress. She was showing off every single dip and sag and roll and dimple. You look at her and for a split second you think she's standing in front of you completely naked, until you look again and you notice she's actually covered in crystals. Like . . . that is so iconic I can't even fully verbalize it. She is unapologetically imperfect and you cannot take your eyes off of her. Like I talked about before, everything Marilyn wore was about how she looked in it, never how it looked on her. And that is something you simply cannot replicate.

233 notes - Posted May 4, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[kaiserthread]

happy valentine’s day

what the bllk boys buy you for valentine’s day! characters: aiku, barou, sae, reo, kaiser content: established relationship, gn!reader shorter than usual bc of midterms srry!!!! flower meanings taken from google i hope it’s accurate, happy vday everyone mwah

OLIVER AIKU - teddy bear

was originally going to have one custom ordered but stumbled upon a build a bear workshop when y’all were out

dragged you into the store and y’all spent an hour in there laughing together about creating your “child”

gets a little jersey that matches his and puts it on the bear

BAROU SHOEI - chocolates

passes you an extravagantly wrapped box of chocolates while you’re making your drink of choice for the winter morning

heart shaped, red ribbon, the works

before you ask, yes he made these himself thank you very much 

took notes of the chocolates you preferred and went to town, dark, milk, white, hazelnut, praline, coffee, chocolate covered strawberries? whatever you wanted he made sure he had your faves downnnn 

ITOSHI SAE - edible arrangement

def got the idea last minute and scrambled to get a rush order in

ofc the fruit ones are nice but he’ll have it customized to your taste

sushi boat, chicken nugget bouquet, chocolate covered strawberry assortment? say less he’s got this

MIKAGE REO - flowers 

you thought he was getting you a dozen fresh red roses?

think again! he custom ordered you a bouquet that consisted of a hundred roses, half made from white silk, the other half sculpted from gold 

both of which symbolize love and loyalty, two things reo will always give you

MICHAEL KAISER - extravagant date night

wants to show off his beautiful partner

he's so busy all the time and he takes every excuse to take you out and spend time with you

even better if he can gift you an expensive outfit and whisk you away to a very expensive, very romantic rooftop dinner

[nxrthmizu]

kill em’ with kindness

fandom | miraculous ladybug 

genre | lila salt, so much salt 

summary | marinette takes the high road to a better life. 

w.c | 8.1k 

author’s note | had this idea for a few days after i wrote victory tastes bitter, which really blew up on ao3 (thanks for all the support <3). always wondered what it would be like if marinette just. played nice. so here she is, being an absolute badass. 

author’s note.2 | okay so since i did not write this in one sitting, i get that the story probably doesn’t flow as properly as it should. will edit if i ever find the will to do it. 

Marinette was done. They wanted her to be a model student? Fine. They wanted her to stop being mean? Fine. They wanted her to be friends with Lila? Fine.

Luckily for Hawkmoth, no akuma plagued the sky of the previous night, or she would rain hell on him. There was no more tolerance left inside her to spare, and she certainly wouldn’t go out of her way to make some for the manipulative pest problem Paris has had for way too long.

She looked up into the mirror, having exchanged her pigtails for a low ponytail, strands curled to frame her face. Bluebell eyes glistened with a fire that burned brighter than hope— Hope that her ‘friends’ would see sense. Hope that Adrien would be there for her. Hope that the good guy would always get the happy ending. No more being patient, no more being passive, no more putting up with things she didn’t have to.

If Lila Rossi wanted a battle, then fine, a battle she would get. Marinette was lowering her white flag, replacing it with a battle emblem that scorched red, redder than blood and redder than the anger her friends would feel when she was finished. No more peace negotiations. Rossi wanted a fight, Rossi wanted a challenge. Who was Marinette to deny her from what she wanted?

They didn’t know what was coming for them.

The power of makeup was truly one that reigned apex among the world. A few touches of her makeup brush was all it took to erase her dark eyes from existence, give her skin a more radiant glow (She promised that she’d take time to give it a natural glow after she was done being nice), and ease a cherry-pink blush onto her cheeks, making her freckles stand out more in contrast. Marinette Dupain-Cheng meant business, and when she meant business—

“Good morning, Marinette! You look great today!” The head of the student council, a sensible, down-to-Earth blonde by the name of Noelle smiled, speeding up slightly to catch the bluenette on the steps of Francois Dupont. “Love the new look.”

Ah yes. The new look— A royal blue blazer, detailed with golden embroidery of cherry blossoms bursting at the sleeves and the collar, accompanied by a classy-looking silk blouse tapered with a soft, black felt. The pleated black skirt (Made from heavy cloth so that it wouldn’t flap about in the wind) was lined with a beautiful scarlet at all the edges to complete the look. Knee-high black socks trailed all the way into the slight heels that Marinette had added flower adornments on, just so she could tap a little of her own touch on it.

“Thank you,” Responded the bluenette with a smile.

“Woah! Someone looks like they got a good night of rest.” Madeline, the president of the Art Club teased, flocking to the other side of the girl. “That mascara looks sharp enough to kill, girl!”

Sharp enough to kill?

Oh, that wouldn’t be necessary, Marinette mused to herself, sending out thanks to those who had complimented her on her way to class. Nothing sharp was going to be required for the liar’s downfall— No, no. That would just be too messy, and she wouldn’t even think of staining her new outfit. Of course, the ensemble was crafted from her own hands, as stated by the classic MDC that graced the inside of her blazer, the collar of her blouse, and one of the pleats of her skirt. Besides… Lila wasn’t worth getting her hands dirty.

She was going to do things the right way.

The kind way.

“Good morning, everyone.” She greeted, walking into the classroom, garnering their attention with her punctuality. Every set of eyes in the room were attracted to her, like iron fillings to magnets. Some of the gazes were malicious, hateful; Some were doubtful, wary; One was pleading, as if spelling out ‘Please keep taking the high road!’— And then there was Chloe, who was entirely uninterested.

Good, Lila was already present.

“I’d just like to take a minute of your time. Won’t be too long, I promise.” She took a deep breath, ignoring the imploring gaze that dug at her side, courtesy of a blonde that sat in the front row (And no, it wasn’t Chloe she was referring to). “I’d just like to say…”

The class watched with bated breath.

“I’m sorry.”

Alya blinked. So did everyone else in the room. Stunned faces greeted Marinette’s apologetic one, including Lila’s— She didn’t even have to fake her reaction. What on Earth was Marinette trying to pull off? What kind of stunt was this?

“I realise that I’ve not really been the best version of me lately,” She admitted sorrowfully. I haven’t been the best version of me because I was being boycotted and isolated, “It wasn’t fair to put you all through this,” It wasn’t fair that you idiots had to lose all your reputations because of the words of one liar, “And people got hurt as a consequence,” Me. I was the one who got hurt. “I realise that things haven’t been all smooth-sailing in our class lately, so I’d like to apologise to everyone.” I’d like to apologise for not being able to save you from a liar who only sees her own personal gain.

A practiced breath escaped Marinette’s throat as she waited for her cue— The school bell— And set her bag on the teacher’s desk. Good, everything was unfolding right on time. Not quite far away, there was a distinct clack-clack-clack of someone’s heels— An auburn teacher, perhaps? Marinette reached into her backpack and drew out a package she had meticulously wrapped in brown paper and tied in golden ribbon. Sitting passively on top of the package was a small note, decorated in hand-drawn flowers and a hummingbird in the corner.

“Here,” Marinette strode up the steps of the class, stopping right in front of her former seat— Now Lila’s— Internally taking pleasure in the first time she’d seen the Italian’s true expression. “For you, as a token of my apology. I understand if you don’t want to forgive me,” Marinette swallowed painfully, biting her lip, as if she was trying not to cry, “But I just want to make things right.”

Lila blinked.

What the hell was happening?

The silence was broken by a quiet sob, one that did not originate from Marinette. Instead, Mlle. Caline Bustier stood in the doorway of the class, clutching her books and notes for the day’s lesson, wiping away a tear that dropped from her eye. “Oh, Marinette,” The teacher sobbed, “I’m so proud of you.”

“That’s so sweet of you, Marinette.” Rose sniffed, wiping away a few tears of her own that had started dripping during the bluenette’s speech. Juleka patted her girlfriend’s back, trying to calm the emotional blonde before she cried out a tsunami on top of her textbooks, giving Marinette a thumbs up to show her approval.

Alya beamed, seemingly proud of her former best friend, who had (In her opinion) finally started to see sense. “I’m so proud of you, girl!”

(Adrien was too shocked to form any words.)

“Could you… Open it?” Marinette asked hopefully, ignoring the teacher for the favour of the liar who ruined her life. “I… Just want to know if you like it.”

The Italian could do nothing more than grit her teeth when Alya urged her to open it. What kind of trick was Mari-Brat up to? Never mind— She’d just spin it into something stupid and the class would take to it like starved animals. With no other choice, she tore apart the brown paper, discarding the golden ribbon on her desk. The class gasped, oohs and aahs echoing all around as the package unfolded to reveal a pretty, beige-coloured cardigan, hand-stitched with murals of foxes, jumping livelily among berry bushes.

Stitched into the inside of the cardigan in pastel blue were the words ‘Lila Rossi’, done in an exquisite cursive that could no doubt only come from Marinette’s hand.

“I made it for you myself,” Marinette sniffed humbly. “I know you’re a really great model and you’ve probably seen clothes that are much better than this one, but I poured all my feelings into it. I spent every night of last week working on it, and—” She hiccuped rather loudly, instantly covering her mouth with her hand in embarrassment. “I just hope you like it.”

“I…” Lila was at a loss for words. She had an itinerary full of the lies and stories she would spin that day (“Marinette texted me mean things last night,” she would weep tearfully to Alya, sniffing and wiping away tears on Alya’s shirt sleeve, “I just want to be friends but she just keeps… Attacking me!”) but no matter. A smirk danced along the Italian’s lips. “Did you design this yourself?” 

Judging by the smirk that Marinette could practically hear in the other girl’s tone, the liar already had a trick up her sleeve. If Marinette had to guess... 

Something along the lines of she stole this design from [random designer], who just coincidentally had the time to be Lila’s friend. Or maybe the friend of Lila’s grandmother. Whichever didn’t matter much, because Marinette was prepared. 

Marinette crossed the room in mere seconds, returning back to Lila’s seat with a sketchbook that she’d pulled from her bag. “Here!” She chirped, flipping open the page with an exercised movement, not even having to shuffle through the pages to find the correct sketch. “I brought the original sketch, just in case you wanted to see it so you could get a professional to redo it for you.” 

Lila opened and closed her mouth like a gaping fish out of water. Beside her, Alya’s eyes sparkled, envy still glowing in her eyes at the sight of the intricate foxes, coloured in hazel, gold, and orange threads. 

“Thank you, Marinette.” Lila gritted through her teeth, basically seething at the thought of having to thank the girl in front of her, who was smiling like an innocent sunshine child. 

The bluenette then turned her attention to her homeroom teacher. “Sorry for interrupting and taking up class time, Mlle. Bustier.” 

“It’s not a problem, Marinette,” Mlle. Bustier wiped at her eyes, slightly embarrassed now that the whole class was watching her cry at the sight of her ‘model student’ correcting her wrongs. “E— Excuse me.” She mumbled, clearing her throat. “Let’s pick off from where we stopped yesterday. Open your textbooks to page 63, please.” 

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

The rest of the day went along smoothly. Marinette sat at the back of class, as usual, sighing in boredom as class was derailed off course, whisked off by another one of Lila’s tall tales. Honestly, they were already weeks off schedule— How the hell were they expected to sit for the final exam, at this rate? 

She huffed quietly to herself, watching Bustier trying (and failing) to act like she wasn’t interested in Lila’s story. The woman— An actual adult— Fell for Lila’s usual tricks like a fool, taking in every single word in drunken thirst. Did Mlle. Bustier really have nothing better to do than get absorbed in a teenage girl’s wild fantasies (in a way it was like that). At that thought, Marinette sat up straighter in her chair, an idea going off like a lightbulb above her brain. 

Was it...? 

After further thought, Marinette settled back into her chair, humming thoughtfully as she drummed her fingers against her table quietly. Yes... Yes, perhaps. 

Perhaps it was possible. 

The rest of the lesson passed in wasted time as the class took a major detour to go on a warped journey through Lila’s lies, and before Bustier knew it, the lunch bell had rung. Students chattered animatedly as everyone got up, Mlle. Bustier’s announcement of ‘please go home and study this chapter by yourselves, everyone’ was pathetically drowned out by the rest of the noise. 

Marinette collected her things quickly, needing her exit from the classroom to go off without a hitch, exactly the way she planned it. “I’ve got to go back to my parents’ bakery for lunch,” She said shyly, shrinking into herself as her classmates turned to look at her. “I... Was thinking of bringing some macarons back later. Before I go, though... Lila, is there anything you’re allergic to?” 

“What?” The girl being asked snapped back as a reply, the words leaving her mouth too fast for her to register. Before she knew it, the whole class was staring at her, mouths agape. “I... I mean.” Clearing her throat, the liar plastered on a sweet smile. “What was it, Marinette?” 

“I wanted to bring some macarons back for everyone.” Shyly, the bluenette repeated her plans. “And... Since I’ve been in class with everyone else here for a while, I know their allergies, but not yours. Is there anything you’re allergic to that could be in baked goods?” 

The Italian cursed under her breath— Mari-Brat really wasn’t letting up. The bluenette had made sure to cover any ground that the Italian could use and turn back against her. “As far as I’m concerned, I’m not allergic to anything.” 

Brightening visibly, Marinette nodded, shooting the Italian a smile. “I know things between us aren’t going to get better immediately, but I promise to do my best in fixing things! See you guys after lunch.” 

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

Lila was getting really, really fed up. For the whole morning, she wasn’t able to come up with any reason to blame Marinette. If things kept going at the rate that they were, the class would be fully convinced that the bluenette was a changed woman, and that couldn’t happen. There was, in the end, a downside to having such a gullible bunch of classmates— Sure, they swayed easily to her side, but that meant that they swayed back to Marinette’s just as easily. 

Hissing under her breath, Lila looked up to catch Alya and Nino’s concerned looks. 

No. 

She was Lila Rossi. She was resourceful. She had Gabriel Agreste behind her back. She was powerful. She was not going to let Mari-Brat halt her plans in their tracks ever again. 

“I’m going to go use the bathroom real quick,” She said, excusing herself from the lunch table. Perfect! Now all she had to do was come back in tears, saying that Marinette confronted and mocked her in the bathroom, and the class would be all hers, once again. 

Little did she know that Dupain-Cheng was one teensy step ahead. 

As soon as Lila rounded the corner of the cafeteria, Marinette appeared, having just had a lovely chat with Rose (And Juleka, although it was Rose who did most of the talking). The two were at the front steps of Francois Dupont, having a lovely couple moment that Marinette hated to interrupt— But she needed to have at least a word with them. 

“Rose, Juleka!” Marinette greeted, box of macarons held carefully in her arms, as if it were a box of important jewelry instead of just a box of pastries. “Oh— Rose, is that a new watch? I’ve never seen you wear it before!” 

“Yep, it is!” Rose beamed, delighted that someone (Besides Juleka) had finally noticed it. “Isn’t it pretty?” Indeed it was. The watch in question was a pretty, intricate-looking thing done in rose-gold metal, with a pastel pink leather strap holding it down. The background of the watch face was a white background with a thin film of rose-gold metal, cut to resemble a wall of precious rose vines. 

“It is!” Agreeing wholeheartedly, Marinette offered her classmate a smile. “Oh by the way, what time is it?” 

Rose peered at the watchface, returning the answer with an equally-bright smile. “11.47.” 

“Thank you.” Marinette thanked, continuing her way through the school until she reached the cafeteria. Just before she fell into line of sight, though, she hid behind a wall, peering over the corner until she spotted the table she was looking for. 

Perfect— Lila just walked away. Marinette thanked the gods for all the luck that she was having— Okay, maybe she thanked one god in particular more than the others. Gently, she patted the secret pocket that was sewn into the lining of her blazer— Tikki, who had magic powers, managed to create a miniature ‘room’ inside the secret pocket, with the pocket itself acting as a portal of sorts to the room. After a few seconds, she felt the pocket tap back, managing a small smile of gratitude for her kwami’s constant love and support. 

“Hey, Alya, Nino.” Marinette greeted shyly, box of macarons propped up against her hip. “Where’s... Lila?” She hesitated slightly with her question, acting as if it was a little out-of-place to ask about the Italian girl. 

“She went to the bathroom.” Nino provided, mouth still full of unchewed food. This gifted him with a smack from his girlfriend (“Don’t talk with your mouth full!” she scolded,). 

“Oh, I see.” I definitely see. I know what she’s going to try and pull later— I have to time this properly. Timing is everything. 

Marinette continued to make small talk with the two, whom she had not talked to for a very long time. Much to her surprise, they were very warm and accepting, quite unlike the people who slung slurs and accused her baselessly a few days ago. One morning made all the difference to people who believed anything, she supposed. 

All of a sudden, something in her chest buzzed, as if it were a fire alarm, vibrating in warning— She had to go. “It was nice talking to you guys again.” She admitted, having briefly dipped into a pool of what their friendship used to be like. “But I have to go. I promised Kagami I’d meet her for a few minutes before lunch ended.”

Alya’s eyebrows jumped up comically in surprise. “I didn’t know you still talked to her. I thought you two were… Love rivals.”

“So what if we were love rivals?” Marinette shrugged with a simple smile. “Adrien is… As much as it’s odd to admit, he’s just a boy. Neither of us let him get in between us. He’s just a boy, and it’d be stupid for us to not get along just because we like the same boy. It doesn’t bother Kagami that we used to like the same boy, so why should I let it bother me? Besides,” Marinette tilted her head slightly. “It’d be stupid to give up a great friendship just because of a boy.”

With her last words still hanging in the air, Marinette turned tail and left, walking faster than usual. She had little time left— As she neared the wall that would shield her from the view of the cafeteria, she sped up her footsteps, practically half-sprinting just so she could get out of sight before Lila Rossi returned, looking like someone just killed a puppy in front of her very eyes.

“Oh my god, what’s wrong?” Alya jumped to her feet instantly, reaching out to comfort her best friend, who was moments away from having tears stream down her cheeks.

“I… I thought she’d changed.” Lila sniffled, biting her lip to appear as if she was desperately trying not to cry.

Alya frowned. “Who?”

“Marinette.” Lila stated as if it were obvious, faltering for a moment— Why had Alya bothered to ask? Shouldn’t it come pretty obvious? The liar dismissed the thoughts and continued in her performance. “She threatened me in the bathroom. She… She confronted me and mocked me, saying… Saying that all of you… All of you are idiots for believing that she’s changed. She… She said everything was an act to turn you all against me.”

Nino’s jaw dropped so far that it touched the floor. “Uh… Dudette, are you sure it was Marinette?”

“Yes!” Lila spun to look at him so fast that it was a wonder she didn’t break her neck. “Are… Are you doubting me? Oh my god, it’s working. She’s turning you guys against me. I just want to have friends, I don’t get why she hates me so—”

“You’re… Absolutely sure it was Marinette? You saw her face?” Alya repeated her boyfriend’s words, emphasising each and everyone of them as she looked Lila in the eyes.

“Alya, not you too.” Lila sniffled, tears basically dropping out of her eyes like big, fat droplets of salt water. “It was her— I saw her blazer, it had MDC stitched onto it.”

An uncomfortable silence settled in between the girl and her boyfriend, neither quite knowing what to say. “Oh. I… I see.” Alya said at last, turning back to her food. “Well… Lunch is almost over. Let’s… Let’s get back to class.”

“Marinette just threatened me in the bathroom!” Lila puffed up, clearly upset now. “She mocked me! She called you guys stupid for believing her act!”

“Dudette.” Nino shattered the ice-cold silence at their lunch table, swallowing heavily. “Marinette was with us the whole time you were in the bathroom.”

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

The tension inside the room was so thick that Adrien could cut it with his bare hands. God, what had happened? The day had started off so well— Marinette agreed to be friends with Lila, god bless the girl— But as it turned out, one hurdle folded over only to be towered over by a taller one. 

“Alya—” Lila began tearfully, her pitiful look attracting the sympathy of those who still didn’t know what was going on. 

“You claimed that Marinette threatened you in the bathroom.” Alya interrupted. “While she was with us the whole time in the cafeteria.” 

Faltering, the Italian struggled to find a way to squeeze herself out of the tight spot. “M— Maybe it was someone else.” Reluctantly, she backed out one trap into another one. 

“You said that you were sure! You said that she was wearing a blazer with MDC stitched on it. Marinette was wearing that blazer during lunch!” The reporter shot back, Nino at her side, trying to extinguish the conflicted fire blazing inside Alya’s heart. 

The seeds of doubt had been sewn, and Lila was going to have a tough time weeding them out. “I... I’m sorry!” She burst out into tears, sobbing pitifully in front of the class, most of which were already in attendance. “My lying disease is acting up again. I... I can’t help it. I didn’t mean to hurt anyone!” 

“Uh... Is this a bad time to ask if anyone wants macarons?” Marinette cleared her throat awkwardly, standing at the front of the room. Her royal blue blazer had been shed, and it now hung over her arm, properly folded into half. Earlier, she had asked Rose for the time to make sure that she had a witness in case Lila tried to pull another act— But as it seemed, the Italian was determined to dig her own grave and all the work had been done. 

The students of Mlle. Bustier’s class shared looks. 

“I’ll... I’ll have one.” Mylene cleared her throat, hoping that it would diffuse the situation. 

“Me too.” Kim followed, not missing the way Marinette flinched slightly at his words. Most of the words he had said to her of late had not been nice at all— But he justified that with the fact that she was being a bully to Lila, like Chloe had been to Marinette herself. 

“Great!” Marinette cleared her throat awkwardly, slapping on a strained smile. She passed the box to the front row, where Sabrina and Chloe were, gesturing for them to pass the box along until everyone got their fill. 

Internally, Lila seethed, anger burning like a wildfire that tore down every lush sign of life in her path. The girl had never felt that livid in her entire life— Who did Dupain-Cheng think she was, having a change of heart out of nowhere, pretending to play along with those oh-so-innocent eyes of hers? 

“I... I think I know why my disease acted up again,” Lila sniffled, loud enough to gather attention again. Unsure glances passed around like an object that no one wanted, carried from hand to hand forcefully as no one wanted to hold onto it for too long. “It... It must’ve been because of... Of the cardigan that Marinette made me! You must’ve known that...” The Italian squinted at the cardigan on her desk, “... Cotton triggers my lying disease!” 

The bluenette, still passing around macarons, stopped in her tracks. Inside her mind, Marinette was shaking her head, an amused smile on her cheeks. She had to give Lila credit for that one— She would’ve never anticipated that lie from her nemesis. “That’s terrible!” She sucked in a breath, putting on a dismayed look. “I’m really sorry, Lila! I know it seems like I did this on purpose, but I promise I didn’t! To make it up to you, I’ll make you another one.” 

Is she serious right now? Lila scoffed mentally. How long does she plan to keep this going? No matter— She’ll eventually drain herself out and I won’t even have to meddle in this matter. 

Marinette sniffled, collecting the cardigan pitifully from Lila’s desk. “But to prevent future incidents, Lila, I just want you to know that this isn’t made of cotton... It’s made from the highest-quality of star silk, which is incredibly difficult to produce and is rather expensive. It’s such a pity... I thought that only the best of materials would be deserving to be used to make an apology present... I guess you can’t wear it. I’ll just make another copy of the cardigan with some normal-range silk.” Sighing, the bluenette pretended to mull in sadness for a few seconds before an idea struck her. “Alya! You aren’t allergic to star silk, right?” 

The flow of conversation redirected suddenly, with the reporter snapping to attention and nodding eagerly as she realised what was about to happen. 

“Then... Since I’ve spent so long on this, I don’t want it to go to waste... Why don’t you have it, instead?” Offered Marinette with a sweet, shy smile on her face. 

Lila, still caught up in shock by the reveal of the material— Was then slammed with a wall of flaming anger as Alya squealed, coddling the soft, fluffy material that made the cardigan the exquisite product it was. 

“Marinette’s right,” Adrien chipped in with his own two cents, “Father can rarely get his hands on that material— It costs a fortune, and if hand-made... It takes forever.” 

“Oh, I wove the silk by myself,” Marinette added shyly after Adrien’s contribution, “So I apologise if it’s not up to the quality of industry-level star silk.” 

The reporter gushed, still cooing and running her hands over the gorgeous threads of fabric that made up the cloud-like base of the cardigan, eyes sparkling and the details of the embroidery. 

Marinette smiled, returning to her seat without a fuss. The rest of the class continued to pass the pastries around, the perfect description of ‘ignorance is bliss’ as they pretended as if they couldn’t see the way Lila was shaking in anger. Alya, on the other hand, could see nothing but the garment in her hands, her ‘best friend’ having become invisible for the time being. 

Just as well that it turned out this way, Marinette hummed, twirling her pen in hand, Let that be my departing gift to Rena Rouge. 

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

Tomorrow arrived like clockwork, never late and always on time. The crowd of students clamouring by the front of Francois Dupont hushed to silence as they parted for two dark-haired women, both of which were giving off waves of confidence. Simple conversation flowed between the two, who were perfect examples of elegance and grace, their traditional-inspired attire complementing the royal-like aura they had. 

“This dress is really lovely, Marinette,” Kagami smiled gently, admiring the way the fabric flowed around her. The designer had gifted her friend with a maroon-coloured hanfu-inspired dress, complete with hand-sewn embroidery of a golden dragon curled around Kagami’s waist and neck. The dress was completed with a pleated skirt that went all the way to the heels. At first, the fencer was reluctant about the skirt due to the limited maneuverability, but then Marinette revealed that the skirt was very simple to take off as it was just tied around the waist. 

“You look gorgeous in it. It suits you.” Marinette replied, dressed in a similar looking dress. Her hanfu-inspired dress was light pink in colour, with silver threads depicting cranes flying about freely. The pleated skirt was grey in colour, lined with a soft circle of white. 

Kagami blushed slightly. “Thank you.” Briefly, the Japanese girl wondered why on Earth Marinette would go and embroider a dragon onto her dress— Was it purely a coincidence, or...? 

“I’m really glad you decided to transfer here,” Marinette smiled softly, her dark blue bangs framing her face as the rest of it was gathered into a braid that Kagami had helped weave. “It’s going to be nice! I’ll get to see you a lot more often.” 

“We’re in different classes, though.” Frowning, Kagami wondered if she should request a change of homeroom. 

“For now.” The designer winked playfully. “Oh, I have to get to class. See you during lunch?” 

Without waiting for a reply, the blue-eyed girl moved away gracefully, leaving Kagami in confusion. 

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

“Good morning,” Marinette greeted gracefully, sweeping into the classroom with her bag over her shoulder and a package in her hands. This package was clearly not as exquisitely-wrapped as the one from the day before, as it was just brown paper and some rough string. 

Alya brightened at the sight of her friend, shrinking away slightly whenever Lila tried to say anything. Sure, the reporter did shake off the initial reaction and respond to whatever her ‘best friend’ said, but the damage had been done. 

“Here’s your new cardigan. It’s made from the same material as your shirt,” Marinette smiled warmly, placing the package on Lila’s table. “It’s a little different from the one I brought yesterday, but I still poured in all my emotions when I made it, so I hope you’ll accept it.” 

Through a gritted smile, the Italian thanked the designer, clenching her fists under the table. That was the second time in two days she had to thank Mari-brat! She swore that if she had to do it again a third time, she was going to slap someone. 

“Oh, Marinette!” Alya called out excitedly, wearing the cardigan that was originally supposed to be Lila’s. “This cardigan is so soft! It’s really amazing to wear! As expected of you, girl!” 

The bluenette stared back at the reporter, wavering for a bit. She had a feeling that Alya wanted something from her... 

“So... I was wondering...” The reporter’s expression turned sheepish, with Marinette’s internal thought-train going ah, there it comes— “Could you remove this and put my name instead?” Alya picked up the corner of the cardigan, pointing to the inside of the garment, where ‘Lila Rossi’ was embroidered on. 

“Ah...” Marinette didn’t even have to fake her nervousness. We already agreed on this, She told herself, No more doing free stuff for people. No more. “Sorry, Alya. My parents need a lot of help in the bakery recently,.. You know how it is! Family always comes first. I’ve already taken out a lot of time to make the cardigan for Lila... And I promised Kagami I’d go out with her this weekend. I’m afraid I don’t have time...” 

There was no missing the way Alya’s face fell instantly. “Couldn’t you put off Kagami for me? Aren’t we best friends?” 

“I thought Lila was your best friend,” Feigning an expression of innocence, Marinette tilted her head slightly. “You shouldn’t go around saying things like that, Alya. You might hurt Lila’s feelings. Besides, a promise is a promise. I wouldn’t want to hurt Kagami’s feelings either. Not to mention— I gave you that cardigan for free. That was two weeks’ worth of hard work. I’m afraid I don’t have the ability to take time out to alter it for free either. If you really want to get it done, you could ask an external tailor to do it for you. I know a few who can do really good embroidery.” 

Alya faltered. “But... We used to be best friends...” 

Snorting mentally, Marinette continued to hold her calm composure. “Like I said, you really shouldn’t say that, Alya. Lila might get upset and we don’t want to hurt her feelings— Right, Adrien?” 

The blonde jumped when the conversation turned to him out of nowhere. All of a sudden, every eye in the classroom was fixed on him. “R— Right, of course.” He said, forcing out each word. 

Satisfied, Marinette nodded, still wearing her ever-so-kind smile. “Exactly.” 

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

“Hey, why don’t we all go out and have a picnic outside during lunch?” Alya suggested loudly, jumping up as soon as the lunch bell rang. “Marinette, you can come along too!” Something inside the reporter’s chest was stirring, and with the events of the past few days, Alya felt like she just had to quench that unsettling feeling— And the first step to that was to mend things with Marinette, even though it was the bluenette’s fault for always having been biased to Lila. Alya smiled, proud of herself. She would be the bigger person, she would forgive Marinette, she would integrate the designer back into the class again. 

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Marinette replied just as quickly, “We don’t know what Lila might be allergic to— She could easily trigger a reaction if we go out, especially since it’s spring.” 

A collective choir of groans rounded the class. 

“Well, I’m going to go back to the hotel to have a first-class meal,” Chloe turned her nose up at her classmates. “... Dupain-Cheng, would you like to come?” 

Shock painted the faces of the whole classroom. Did Chloe just... Ask Marinette something... Politely? 

“I’d love to take that offer, Chloe.” Responded the bluenette, graceful and flawless as ever. “Perhaps tomorrow?” 

“Suit yourself. They’re serving lobster today.” Chloe huffed. “If you’re really that busy, then fine. We can discuss...” The Mayor’s daughter trailed off as she blushed. 

The bluenette giggled knowingly. “You’d like to commission a dress from me, right?” 

“... No.” 

“...” 

“... Maybe.” 

“Alright.” Marinette nodded. “Then maybe it’ll be more convenient if I head over to the hotel after school. I’ll need to take your measurements and we can discuss the prices after.” 

“Whatever.” Chloe waved her away haughtily, a poor effort to cover up her embarrassment. “Sabrina. Let’s go.” 

“Chloe?” Alya guffawed. “Why are you commissioning something from Marinette?” 

Rolling her eyes as if Alya had just asked the stupidest question ever, Chloe answered plainly. “Because she’s one of the up-and-rising designers in the industry? Have you seen what Dupain-Cheng is wearing today? Celebrities are already fighting for spots in her commission list. Even my mother and Gabriel Agreste acknowledge her talent. I’m not dumb, Cesaire. I can recognise a future fashion queen when I see one.” 

Wow, Marinette breathed, looking at the stunned faces around the room, Chloe sure knows how to create an impression. 

“W— Well.” Stuttered the reporter after Chloe made her big exit. “Then... What about going to the bakery for lunch?” 

“Didn’t Lila say she saw a rat in the bakery the last time she visited it?” Marinette pointed out. “The health officer checked the surveillance and the claim was dismissed, of course, because my parents make sure the bakery is as hygienic as possible— But I’m sure Lila is traumatised from that incident. I wouldn’t want to force her to come along to the bakery— And we wouldn’t want to leave her out either, right?” 

This elicited another round of groans. 

Oh, I am enjoying myself way too much, Marinette chuckled mentally. 

“Then— Then...” Alya struggled visibly before she was put out of her misery. 

“It’s fine, Alya.” The designer reassured her. “I wouldn’t want to bother Lila. I’m sure she’s still upset at me. You guys go ahead. I have to go back to the bakery to help my parents out. See you guys after!” 

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

Slam! 

Lila fumed, hand still pressed on her locker door. What. The. Hell. Was Mari-brat trying to do? She didn’t miss the way some of her classmates sent her unsatisfactory looks after that pre-lunch stunt that Marinette had pulled. 

And what was the thing about high-and-mighty Chloe commissioning from Marinette? 

Sure, Lila would admit that the cardigan that the designer made was indeed gorgeous, and the fabric was smooth and velvety, a quality unlike any of the clothing that Lila had ever had the privilege to touch— But surely a lowly brat like Dupain-Cheng couldn’t be that popular... Right? 

Dammit, hissed the Italian girl, Maybe I should’ve tried being friends with Mari-brat instead of Cesaire. 

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

“Is that... Marinette and Kagami?” Nino gaped, prompting Alya to turn around. It was true— Walking up the steps of Francois Dupont together were the two blue-haired girls, a gentle smile dancing on Kagami’s lips as Marinette talked animatedly, her hands waving around quickly to further elaborate her point. 

Students lounging around the entrance for lunch couldn’t tear their eyes off the two and their matching dresses. Sure, the two girls had walked into school the same way that morning— But now that the afternoon sun was high up in the sky, the golden and silver embroidery was glinting luminously, revealing the true caliber of Marinette’s craft. 

“But... They’re rivals.” Stuttered Alya. She just couldn’t understand... Weren’t they supposed to hate each other? 

“They both like Adrien but they can still get along,” Nino remarked thoughtfully, taking a bite from his sandwich. “So Marinette wasn’t lying about going to meet Kagami yesterday.” 

Alya was silent. 

“Alya? What’s wrong?” Worried, Nino put a hand around his girlfriend’s shoulder, care and concern shining through his honest eyes. 

“If... If Marinette doesn’t get jealous or biased over someone who also likes Adrien...” Alya started quietly, eyes still fixed on the two girls, “Then why was she so against Lila?” 

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

“Mlle. Bustier?” The teacher looked up at the voice of her favourite student. Fondly, she smiled. Marinette had finally seen the light and changed her ways, becoming the helpful, generous, kind Marinette that served as a great example for her peers. “May I make an announcement before class ends?” 

“Of course, dear.” Mlle. Bustier gave permission instantly— Marinette was taking up the reins of leadership again! The teacher couldn’t help but do a happy dance internally. 

“I have an announcement to make, so if everyone could listen, I’d be really thankful.” Marinette started, her clear blue eyes meeting those of her classmates. 

She took a deep breath. This is it. I’ve done what I needed to do, now it’s time to finish the job. 

“These past two days... Have been great,” Marinette started wistfully. “I really missed hanging around everyone, just like we did before,” Before you all turned your backs on me and stabbed me when I wasn’t looking, “But I can’t deny— And neither can you— That the things that have happened... They had a really deep impact. And I’ve realised that I can’t just ignore that damage that has been done.” The damage that has been done to me. “So, for the better of everyone— I’ve decided that I... Will transfer classes.” 

It was as if an explosion had gone off in Mlle. Bustier’s classroom. 

“Girl! You can’t do that!” Alya exclaimed in dismay, “We can fix things! Everything has been going well these few days, haven’t they?” 

“Dudette! Honestly, we forgive you.” Nino sighed, “Things just aren’t the same if you’re not here anymore.” 

Adrien didn’t say a word, but the imploring gaze he wore said enough. Please don’t leave me here alone. We promised we’d fight together, right? As long as both of us know... 

Marinette held her hand up to silence them, and the classroom, just as swiftly, became the deadly silence that followed post-disaster. “I understand. But once again, this is for the better,” — Of my mental health, “I’ve talked to Mlle. Mendeliev, and she’s agreed to take me in. I believe that once the changes have taken place, we can all grow more freely without restrictions.” 

In the corner, Mlle. Bustier was tearing up and dabbing at her eyes with her sleeve. 

“Mlle. Bustier,” Marinette turned to her teacher, no malice in her eyes. “I’ll be under Mlle. Mendeliev’s care now.” 

“Marinette...” The teacher sobbed quietly, with Chloe shooting her a look of disgust from the front row. 

“It’s not going to be easy for any of us,” Marinette turned back to the class, “But with time, I’m sure we will all prosper. Especially since you will now be under the care of our one and only Lila Rossi.” 

Adrien looked like someone had just killed a puppy in front of him. 

“Since I am the current class president, I thought I’d pass on the duties onto the most capable person in our class.” Marinette explained warmly, never moving her gaze away from the bewildered Lila. “Lila has the most connections in our class out of all of us, and she’s met so many CEOs and entrepreneurs that she must know a lot about organising and planning. I’m sure you can do it, Lila, but...” She paused. “You can handle it, right?” 

“Y— Yeah. Of course.” Lila stuttered. 

“You promised the class that you’d get BTS to perform for the year-end fundraiser since you were supposed to be in an arranged marriage with their youngest member, Jungkook.” Marinette continued, God I am enjoying myself too much honestly, but I ain’t going to stop now, “And you said you could convince your godfather, Bruce Wayne, to allow the class to go to Wayne Enterprises for this year’s class trip.” 

“She said she could convince Tony Hawk to give me an internship, too!” Alix chipped in. 

“And that she’d bring me along the next time Prince Ali asks for her help for a charity cause!” Rose smiled. 

“She said she’d introduce me to the CEO of Graham Films!” Nino’s eyes shone at the idea. 

The class continued to talk all over one another until Marinette silenced them once more. “Now, now. Let’s not overwhelm Lila. We wouldn’t want her to be overworked or to feel like the expectations are set too high, right?” 

The class agreed, nodding along. 

Marinette made eye contact with Lila, offering her a sweet smile as she did so. Lila, on the other hand, had no taste for such politeness. Instead, she straight-out glared at the former class president. 

This is your problem now. 

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

“Marinette! I was hoping to catch you before you went home,” Alya panted, having been able to find the bluenette in the locker room before the designer slipped out of her reach. “You... You’re really serious about leaving?” 

“Yeah.” Smiled Marinette, organising her textbooks into her bag, dusting down her skirt. Noticing Alya’s crestfallen expression, she took the initiative to continue the conversation. “Is there anything else, Alya?” 

“Did you... Did you really hate Lila because she liked Adrien, too?” The reporter asked somewhat timidly. 

Marinette giggled. Normally, when the girl giggled, you could hear a gentle tinkling of wind chimes— But at that moment, Alya heard the freezing winds on Mount Everest instead. “Don’t be silly, Alya. All this over a boy? Besides, I’m over him.” 

“Then...” Alya swallowed difficulty. “Lila... Really was lying this whole time?” 

The gaze that swept across the reporter was stone cold, and it made Alya feel as if she was dangling over a valley of jagged rocks. “What do you think, Alya?” Even so, the bluenette maintained a sweet smile. 

“She was. She was lying the whole time.” Alya suddenly felt as if she had a shortness of air. “This whole time—” 

“Oh, good for you. You finally learned how to see further than one feet in front of you.” Marinette hummed. “I’m proud of you, really. But I’m afraid that I don’t have the time to listen to you slowly come to conclusions after I’ve tried making you see sense for the past half a year. I tried to stop you from ruining your futures, but I guess determination was always one of your good traits.” 

Alya slipped to the floor, having lost the feeling in her legs. She placed one hand against the lockers for support as she shook, weakly looking up at the girl who she was once so proud to call her ‘best friend’. 

“Marinette?” Kagami’s voice rang through the room, indicating that the girl was waiting at the doorway. “You said you were heading to Bourgeois’s hotel after school— Would you like a ride?” 

“That’d be nice, Kagami. A moment.” The designer looked down at her friend and smiled, albeit a little sadly this time— And then she lowered her voice. 

“Determination was always one of your good traits.” 

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

“Marinette,” Adrien perked up at the sight of the bluenette leaving the school doors— Side by side with Kagami, who looked ready to draw a sword and start a duel then and there. 

“This’ll just take a minute, ‘Gami.” Marinette reassured, gently patting her friend’s arm. “Why don’t you get in the car first? It looks like it’s going to rain.” 

Reluctantly, Kagami nodded. “Alright.” Warily, the fencer stepped down the stairs and into the car— But even as she sat in the vehicle, she watched over her fellow bluenette like a hawk, ready to jump out and challenge the blonde if the situation called for it. 

Adrien rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, not quite knowing what to say. Luckily for him, the designer decided to start the conversation. 

“I just wanted to say thank you.” Marinette smiled softly. A few months ago, when she looked at Adrien, she would see the kind, generous, pure-hearted boy with the finest golden hair and the brightest green eyes. Now? All she saw was a spineless, sheltered, passive child that was afraid of confrontations. 

“For what?” Adrien looked at Marinette, and no longer did he see the cute, pigtail-adorning girl that would blush fiercely everytime he tried to talk to her. Instead, he saw a beautiful, young woman, a rock that had pulled through all the odds to become a vibrant, iridescent diamond. 

Marinette was glowing with confidence, her presence diffusing into the air around her and triggering eyes to look up every time she walked by. There was something about the way she held herself that just made the woman demand awe and respect from those that crossed her path. The old ‘Clumsinette’ had been shed like an old snake skin to reveal a treasure, a better version of the bluenette that had always been waiting for her time to come. 

Bluebell eyes met green ones just as rain began to patter down onto the streets of Paris. Marinette glanced up slightly, not at all bothered as she smoothly retrieved an umbrella from her bag, holding it out for the blonde to take. A flush of deja vu burst through Adrien’s veins and through his skin as he took it with a mumbled thanks, eyes blown wide as Marinette let loose her hair from her ponytail, pulling her blazer over her head to avoid getting her head wet. 

Adrien could only gape as Marinette uttered familiar words back to him, a knowing smile dancing across her lips as she ran off into the rain as if an invisible weight had been lifted off her shoulders. The bluenette looked lighter, brighter, ready to take flight and soar towards the success that her crops of hard work had finally started to bear. Before the blonde model knew it, Marinette Dupain-Cheng had slipped out of his grip, already spreading her multi-coloured wings to land among the stars. 

“Thank you for telling me to take the high road.”  

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

this was both satisfying and tiring to write... 

[beom1e]

SOUL WATCH

everybody had the soul watch app, because everybody was curious to meet their soulmate. it was an app that told you when or how and gave you hints, but never who. and due to all the pressure, you downloaded the app too... just to find out you didn’t even have a soulmate after all.

PAIRING yang jungwon x gn! reader

THEMES soulmates au, highschool au, fluff, humour

matching jewellery was a trend among soulmates when it came to being a highschool student. those that had found theirs wanted to show it off, basically shoving it into the faces of those that were still searching. walking down the corridors was a constant reminder that you didn’t have a soulmate for yourself, as matched couples would walk hand-in-hand with shiny bracelets or be seen wearing those missing piece style necklaces.

mondays. after freeing yourself from the couple-filled hallways, you sat down at your desk and placed your books onto the table with a huff. trying to block out your classmate bragging about meeting their soulmate over the weekend, you noisily checked around in your bag for your pencil case.

then came the clicking of your teacher’s heels as she entered the classroom, and there was a rush of students finding their seats. the squeaking of chair legs and quiet chatter only made you more annoyed at the world. to say discovering you were soulmate-less a few weeks prior had put you in a permanent bad mood would be an understatement.

but everything lit up as soon as yang jungwon appeared in the doorway. he apologised for being late, cheeks flushed and hair windswept. heat rose to your own cheeks at the sight of his sorry smile.

much to your dismay, he was a few seats to the back and to the right of you. he disappeared from your sight, making you slump sadly in your seat.

‘today is international soulmate day,�� your teacher smiled, setting her powerpoint up behind her. ‘as you all may know. there are many types of soulmate links out there, but i want to know about yours. so research and write about it — its origin, its rarity — and hand it in at the end of class.’

not sure what to do, you raised your hand. ‘what if you don’t have a soulmate?’ at the sound of your voice, jungwon looked up from his notebook. he didn’t have a soulmate either.

‘everybody has a soulmate, y/n,’ she reminded you. ‘maybe you entered your details into soul watch incorrectly.’

‘i don’t have a soulmate either,’ jungwon spoke up. you turned in your seat. ‘so what do we do instead?’

‘this is the first time i’m hearing of people being soulmate-less,’ she chuckled awkwardly, slightly panicked. ‘well, you’re both part of the student board aren’t you? just head down to the main hall and help the others set up for the soulmate dance.’

the soulmate dance. just the thought of it made you roll your eyes. you’d never attended, because you didn’t show interest in finding out until those few weeks ago, but you knew how cheesy it was. it was like every other kind of dance, totally cliché and super boring. except, you got to bring your soulmate.

you packed up your things as quickly as possible. as horrible it would be having to decorate for a stupid highschool dance that you wouldn’t even attend, at least jungwon would be at your side. and he must’ve understood your suffering, especially during international soulmate week on international soulmate day that just happened to fall on a monday.

you slung your bag onto your shoulder and followed jungwon out of the door. he walked slightly ahead of you, holding open each door for you which you quietly thanked him for.

when you made it to the main hall, the bright pink colour palette made your eyes burn. ‘this is going to be a long week,’ jungwon sighed, dropping his bag and leaving you at the door. mentally agreeing, you placed your own bag down beside his.

you sort of felt bad for jungwon. it was depressing to know that you weren’t ‘destined’ for anyone, and that you’d have to find someone the old way. he seemed even less of a fan of soulmate week than you were, but he did seem really down about not having a soulmate of his own.

it was wednesday morning and you’d missed your bus. annoyed with yourself, you had to run to the nearest bus stop in hopes another bus would arrive soon. that was where you saw jungwon and his friends, all of them being upperclassmen.

trying not to be seen, you awkwardly leaned against the outside of the shelter and looked off to the side. ‘it’s not like i like them,’ jungwon argued, which earned a few laughs from the boys. ‘why would i ask them to the soulmate dance if we’re not soulmates?’

‘because you don’t want to spend saturday studying alone in your room?’ sunoo teased, ‘if they’re not matched, then you can ask them. no big deal.’

the bus pulled up in front of them. you waited for them to get on before following, avoiding eye contact and taking a seat at the back. ‘good morning, y/n,’ jake turned around to face you. ‘i didn’t know you take this bus.’

‘i don’t,’ you awkwardly replied. ‘i was late and missed my own bus.’

‘are you going to the dance on saturday?’ sunoo also joined in, smiling brightly at you.

‘oh, uh,’ you nervously fiddled with the straps of your bag. ‘no, i don’t have a soulmate.’

‘well, we were just telling little wonie here that you don’t need a soulmate to go,’ jay patted jungwon’s head, making the younger boy complain about him messing up his hair. ‘you could come with us.’

‘thank you...’ shifting uncomfortably in your seat, you looked between all of the boys who were staring eagerly at you. ‘for the offer... but i don’t want to go. it means a lot, i just don’t do school dances.’

the bus conversation was probably the most awkward thing that happened to you that day. or during lunch time, when you took a seat on a bench facing the sports field. there was jungwon once again, playing around with the same friends. you watched as jake gave up on running around and collapsed to the floor, with everyone mirroring his actions seconds later.

you’d always had a crush on jungwon. he was always so sweet and polite, with the perfect balance between humour and seriousness. you saw him as someone you could easily rely on and trust, despite never being close to him. his cheeks always had this natural blush and his laugh was addictive, and he looked so serious whenever he was concentrating. you felt your heart racing whenever he was around, but you never had the courage to confess to him.

as you got lost in your thoughts, you made eye contact with him across the field. panicked, you began packing your things away and into your bag. then you left, trying not to move too quickly so that it didn’t look suspicious.

after classes, you were called into the main hall once again. knowing today you’d have to be painting, you grabbed your change of clothes from your locker and headed into the changing rooms. coming back into the hall, you were met with jake and sunghoon covering each other in the baby pink paint.

you slipped past them and looked around for something to do. and then someone tapped on your shoulder. it was sunoo, who asked if you could help him with painting the banner. jungwon passed by you, sending you a soft smile before hurrying off towards jay. how did he seem to be everywhere?

on friday afternoon, as you were exhausted from all the decorating you’d been doing, you were so glad to be able to go home and enjoy your weekend. the whole week had been a complete disaster, and you now had a strong dislike towards the colour pink. but much to your dismay, the head of the student board asked you to attend the soulmate dance in order to keep an eye on the students. why he chose you specifically, you had no idea.

so on saturday morning, you tried your best to drag yourself out of bed. though you really didn’t want to dress up for a highschool dance, there was an outfit you had in mind. things weren’t going to change, you weren’t going to randomly get a soulmate, but you stupidly had hope things could change.

you spent most of the day considering backing out, but gave in because you didn’t want to disappoint your classmate. you arrived at the main hall an hour and a half before the event, ready to set things up.

a few students were around, moving tables to either side of the hall. a large red carpet was being rolled through the centre of the room, leading out onto the school gardens. you turned around at the sound of your name, bumping into the source. they reached for your hand, preventing you from toppling over.

a shock of electricity shot through your arm, forcing you to snatch your hand back. ‘i’m so sorry,’ the voice spoke, and much to your dismay, it was jungwon.

you felt your heart racing again, heat rising to your cheeks in an instant. ‘it’s ok,’ you reassured him. ‘it was my fault, so i’m the one that’s sorry.’

‘well,’ he smiled. ‘i guess i’ll see you around.’

honestly, you felt like an idiot. he heard loud and clear just a few days ago that you didn’t want to go to the soulmate dance, but here you were. maybe he would realise you were being forced into it, but if he didn’t, then that would be humiliating.

you shook your head to clear yourself of all the thoughts. ‘y/n,’ turning on the spot, you were met with the sight of jay coming towards you. ‘you’re looking lost. i thought you weren’t coming.’

‘change of plan,’ you simply replied. ‘i was asked to help set up some things.’

‘well, i need help carrying some things in from the truck outside,’ he offered. ‘if you’d like to help.’ nodding, you followed behind him at a distance.

the sky was clear — not a single cloud in sight — and the sun was shining brightly. the back doors of the truck were open, workers from the catering company lowering large bottles of drinks onto the ground. jay gestured towards the cluster of fruit juice bottles before grabbing one for himself.

they were heavy, but you managed. walking at jay’s side, you couldn’t think of a conversation starter to make it all a little less awkward. but thankfully, or maybe not, he spoke up first. ‘you do know that jungwon has a crush on you, right?’

the bottle fell from your grip. panicked, you reached forward to catch it again. clearly the universe was on your side in that moment, because it didn’t split.

‘uh, no,’ you forced out a laugh, feeling your entire body heat up. ‘i did not know that.’

‘he denies it,’ jay shrugged, helping you lift the heavy bottle back up from the ground. ‘but we all see the way he looks at you. after he found out you were soulmate-less too, he wanted to ask you to the dance tonight. but when you said you weren’t going, he gave up on that idea.’

what were you supposed to say to that? as you placed the bottles beside the snack table, jay pushed them under it. turning around to see jungwon on the other side of the hall, you felt yourself swallowing your words before leaving to the outside again.

but avoiding jungwon wasn’t as easy as you had hoped. he seemed to be in your line of sight at all times and in all honesty, you weren’t even sure why you were avoiding him. after all, if what jay said was true, then the feelings were mutual. still, you couldn’t shift your mind away from the shock you had felt at his touch. you thought maybe you were going crazy and had imagined it, until your phone buzzed with a notification.

leaving jay to bring in the rest of the drinks, you leaned against the exterior wall and pulled out your phone. a notification from soul watch lit up your phone, 0 days until you meet your soulmate. eyes wide, you looked around the area, hoping to see someone checking their phone in that same moment. was that even possible?

you weren’t sure what to do. search for your soulmate? or would they just come naturally to you? did this mean jay was your soulmate? it was a possibility, considering you were with him when the notification came through.

‘you coming inside?’ speak of the devil. you quickly hid you phone, putting on a fake smile and nodding. ‘people will start arriving soon.’

as soon as the hall began to fill up with people, you wished you had never came back inside. you really needed some time and space to think everything through. there was that electricity when jungwon had helped you up, but then you should’ve gotten the notification in that moment, right?

you grabbed your phone from your bag, going out into an empty corridor. sliding down the wall beside the door and pulling up the soul watch app, you searched your profile for details. but all the information it had was about your soulmate link, which happened to be a countdown. and now that the countdown was over, there were no more hints?

you were in complete disbelief, but the soulmate dance wasn’t the place to be researching this.

‘i guess you got it too,’ you looked up to see jungwon. ‘you’ve been avoiding me all day, so you must’ve.’

‘i have not been avoiding you,’ but the redness of your cheeks suggested otherwise. ‘and got what? i don’t know what you’re talking about.’

‘a sudden notification that you’ve possibly met your soulmate...?’ he sat down beside you.

‘well actually,’ you could’ve laughed at how stupid you were about to sound. ‘i was avoiding you because of what jay said earlier. and i thought there was no way you could be my soulmate otherwise i would’ve received the notification after we bumped into each other.’

‘who else could possibly be your soulmate?’

‘what’s that supposed to mean?’ you turned your head to make eye contact. he quickly looked away and down at the floor, wishing he hadn’t been so bold with his last statement. jungwon was never this forward with people he wasn’t yet close to.

‘i know jay told you that i like you,’ he admitted. ‘and i’ve always known that you like me back. i just never thought to bring it up because i didn’t have a soulmate, and i thought you would have one.’

‘but you have a soulmate now,’ you reminded him, a smile lighting up your features. ‘or... however that works. do you think it has to do with us touching for the first time back then?’

‘you felt that too?!’ his eyes widened as he stared back at you. ‘i thought i was going crazy.’

‘do you want to go back inside?’ you gestured to the door into the main hall. jungwon shook his head, standing up and holding his hand out to you.

‘we could...’ he trailed off, looking behind himself at the exit. ‘or we could ditch this snooze fest and do something fun instead... like go to an arcade?’

‘sounds like a plan,’ you took his hand, letting him pull you up from the ground. he checked if the coast was clear before running towards the exit, the sound of your laughter filling the empty corridor.

[myfavoriteinvestment]

rowaelin month day 1 - can’t help falling in love

prompt: "I just realized I'm desperately in love with you"

-

Meeting Aelin for the first time, Rowan begrudged that she was beautiful. Arrogant as he could be and incessantly swaggering, but she was beautiful. There was something sweet, and yet so sharp, about her features. His eyes traced them greedily the first, the second, the third time he met her, and even today, as she set her bag next to his in the library and took a seat across from him he couldn't help it. He absorbed every bit of her; golden hair and aquamarine eyes ringed with gold. The small nose, sharp but softened by the sun kissed freckles scattered along it. The cheekbones that framed her face and lips painted a threatening shade of red.

"So, Rowan, what'll it be today?" Aelin asked, pulling out her notebook and flipping her hair over one shoulder. He didn't know it yet, but it was a nervous tic.

"The same as yesterday, Aelin. Calculus." He gave her a long suffering look and pinched the bridge of his nose. She was beautiful, but it didn't make tutoring her any easier.

"No originality." She sighed. "How disappointing."

"Let's just start."

So they began, and Rowan questioned not for the first time why she had bothered asking their teacher for a peer tutor. She was clearly skilled. She knew what she was doing. He worked up the courage and asked for the first time.

"I'm pretty busy," She explained. "I just want to make sure that I'm understanding everything and that I know what I'm doing, you know? Sometimes I'm so tired in class and I just want to make sure I'm getting everything. Sorry if that makes this seem like a waste of time." Rowan shook his head. He admired her dedication to her education. He certainly cared for his own, but not this much.

"No, I don't mind at all. I have hockey, but that doesn't really start for a while."

"Right, right, you're on the hockey team! You just don't seem like it when we're sitting in the library and you're teaching me math, you know?"

"And you don't seem like the type to be aspiring for Julliard, but here we are."

"Shhh!" Aelin exaggerated. "That's a secret!" Rowan looked at her pointedly.

As he opened his mouth to say something, another boy walked up to the table they were sitting at. Rowan recognized him. He was a year younger, in Aelin's grade.

"Chaol! What're you doing here? I'd expect Dorian at the library, but you're usually at the gym." Chaol. That was his name. And Aelin seemed to know him, seemed to be very familiar with him in fact. And who was Dorian. Rowan found that these questions rose no matter how hard he tried to tamp them down.

Chaol's cheeks were coated in a slight blush. "Could I talk to you, just the two of us?"

Did he plan on asking Aelin out? Rowan couldn't deny that no matter how much he ignored it, a part of him hoped that wouldn't happen.

"What do you say tutor? Can the two of us finish for the day?"

The other part knew that was stupid, because that was it really. He was her tutor, and maybe they were friends. Acquaintances probably. It wasn't something he wanted to think too much about. So he mumbled a yes and hoped Aelin heard him, beginning to pack his things.

And he froze, because Aelin kissed him on the cheek. Then ran off with Chaol, behind the bookshelves.

Fuck this, he thought. Fuck the searing heat in the spot her lips had pressed against his skin, fuck the fluttering in his stomach, fuck his uneven heartbeat. Fuck the lipstick smudge on his cheek. Still, he bit his lip hard enough to hurt to hold back he didn't know what. A smile? Maybe.

He stood from their table and then Aelin and Chaol popped back out of the bookshelves. "Guess who has a date?" She sing songed. The lightness in his chest turned sticky and heavy like tar and it became hard to breathe. "Me, stupid. God, don't look at me like that, it's not that confusing!"

"That's- it's nice."

"It's very nice, Rowan, thank you very much. See you tomorrow? I'll tell you all about it after you teach me fancy math, I promise." Aelin smiled and whirled around, walking out of the library with Chaol.

After that, Rowan had no choice but to come to terms with his feelings for Aelin. He didn't just think she was beautiful, she was funny and her wit and swagger was captivating. Conversations with her were entertaining and he noticed the small things she did, like the way she narrowed her eyes when she concentrated or sighed under her breath when she didn't understand.

Tutoring sessions were his time with her, but they became almost unbearable. Chaol stopped by every day within the first hour of their two hour session, dropping off a coffee that he could tell was too bitter and kissing Aelin before going about his own business.

In March, when colleges were sending acceptance letters out, Rowan would be lying if he said Aelin wasn't the first person texted when Yale sent him the letter saying he got it. The next day, Rowan found Aelin at their table, books and papers out, two cups of steaming liquid. She looked up as he set his things down and smiled wide at him.

"How does it feel to know you're going to an Ivy?" She asked, and passed him a cup. He pried off the lid and smiled when the sweet smell of jasmine tea wafted up to him. He preferred it to coffee. Aelin, though was drinking coffee, and he suspected it had far too much sugar for it to be healthy.

"It feels great. And nerve wracking, honestly." He replied. She nodded.

"Yeah, I can see how. I'd be freaked out too if I got into such a prestigious college."

"And maybe you will." He raised his brows. "Julliard?"

She sighed exaggeratedly. "I don't think I'm good enough for Julliard, truthfully."

"Well, apply next year. If only so you can come visit me at Yale." Aelin's face brightened with a mischievous smile.

"If you say so."

They settled into comfortable silence for a bit, and then Rowan started their review for the day. When it had been an hour and a half and Chaol hadn't stopped by yet, he had to ask. "Where's the boyfriend?"

"No longer my boyfriend. Looks like I have to buy my own coffee from now own." She sighed in that dramatic way of hers again. Rowan couldn't help the overwhelming relief that slammed through him. Now he could-

He could what? He could ask her out? Tell her that he knew Chaol had never bothered to properly learn her coffee order because he noticed the way she winced when she sipped the too bitter liquid? Tell her that he knew she was brilliant on the piano, though he'd only heard her play once? That she was beautiful and smart and funny and so, so brilliant, and they'd only have a year together before he left?

He couldn't do it. Or maybe you're afraid, that awful voice everyone had in their head mocked him. Rowan didn't want to admit to that either.

So all he said was, "Oh, I'm sorry." Aelin flashed a smile at him, and it twisted a knife through his gut because it wasn't her swaggering grin. It was gone sooner than it had come. They continued with their session until two hours came to an end and Aelin stood abruptly, leaving the library faster than she did before.

On May 3rd, Aelin turned 17, and Rowan remembered it. He carried her present with him all through the day. It was tucked into a small black box, her name written in gold marker in his quick scrawl. When he sat at their table at the library, he felt like the wait for her had been broken down into each separate millisecond. It was torture on his stomach, his heartbeat pulsing and fluttering in and out of it.

After what felt like decades, Aelin sat down across from him. "Hey Rowan," She smiled at him. In all the time they'd spent together, he had learned all her different smiles. There were the ones that curled at the left side of her mouth and made her shoulders pull back arrogantly. She was sure to start teasing him when her smile pulled slowly, eyes glinting mischievously. When she smiled like that, he couldn't help but grin himself.

But this smile, the one that was pure happiness, simple joy, it was his favorite. She looked at him from across the table and her eyes gleamed with it, sparkling, the shades of turquoise and gold even more vibrant. Aelin furrowed her brows and he realized he'd been staring.

"Happy birthday!" Rowan blurted out.

Aelin's brows rose and she laughed into that beautiful smile of hers and he was knocked breathless again. "Thank you, Rowan."

He reached over into his bag and pulled out the flat black box. "I got you- I don't know if- I figured-"

"Thank you, Rowan," She said again, smiling wider and coming to his side of the table and kneeling next to him so she was just a bit shorter. "Now let me see what's in her."

She traced her fingers over the box, her smile growing softer. "I love your handwriting, you know. I know you think it's messy, and it is, but it's the pretty kind of messy, you know?" She looked over at him and blushed a little. "I love your handwriting." She traced the five letters of her name written in his scrawl again.

And then Aelin opened the box, and she gasped a little. It was simple, he knew that, but most of Aelin's necklaces were, to his notice. It was something she'd be able to wear with most outfits. She pulled the gold chain out of the crushed velveteen it was laid on and looked closer at the turquoise gemstone pendant.

"I- The color, it reminded me of your eyes, so you know..." He trailed off.

She turned to look at him. "I love it, Rowan," and Aelin threw her arms around his neck, red lipstick blurring in the quickness. It was his raging pulse, it was a fiery inferno, it was his urge to kiss her. She was so near, so close to him, lavender and lemon verbena intoxicating him.

And why not? There was nothing to lose.

He pulled back from where his head was pressed to her neck, arms holding her tightly. Rowan wasn't sure whether he moved first or she did. But their mouths were upon each other, softer than he'd thought he would kiss her. But it was soft, it was sweet, it was everything he had wanted to do after sitting across from her all year long.

When Aelin pulled back from his mouth, she huffed a little laugh and rubbed his lips lightly with her thumb. “You’ve got lipstick on your lips now.” She smiled, pressing her forehead into his neck.

Holding her against his body, red lipstick smudged against his lips, standing in the school library, Rowan had never felt so calm. So warm. So happy. And he realized, with a desperate suddenness, he loved the girl in his arms.

“I love you.” He whispered against her hair. And it was peaceful.

[amerrierworld]

Not a total frickin’ idiot

For the request: R x Daphne Kluger. R being a part of the original Heist Crew and also being the one Daphne approaches. They’re super flirty w/ each other and everyone knows that they like each other except themselves.

Summary: You thought you had gone unnoticed at the Met, but Miss Kluger never forgets a face.

Characters: Daphne Kluger x fem!reader, the Ocean’s team

Word Count: 1,657

Warnings: swearing!? Do i still have to put a warning for that? idk

If you had learned anything about diva actress Daphne Kluger from Rose, it was that you don’t speak unless spoken to first. 

And considering she didn’t talk to you at all during the heist, you were able to get around the entire night never uttering a single word to her, fulfilling your role on the team without any kind of hiccup.

So you were quite surprised when she had slid into your booth at your favourite coffee shop, giant sunglasses and a fashionable sunhat masking her face. You looked up from your phone and were about to comment about your booth being taken until you recognized her.

Your mouth hung open a little bit as she took off the hat and glasses. Her lips were painted a deep red and her outfit was impeccable, as always.

“Say..” she immediately said, pearly whites nearly blinding you as she smiled, “you were at the Met, weren't you?”

“I- I’m sorry?” you began. “I don’t know-”

“Oh my god! You totally were! You were wearing that adorable dress. Gosh, you looked so good.”

You were blushing hard, because in a matter of barely a minute, Daphne Kluger, gorgeous movie star, had called you adorable and good-looking all in the same sentence.

“I was there too- well, obviously you know that,” she chuckled, “and I was wearing that beautiful diamond necklace, don’t you remember? It was all over the news. Especially when I supposedly lost it.”

“O-oh? Right, y-yes I remember reading about it in the news..”

“And you know.. I couldn’t help but wonder how weird my designer was acting all night. And that lady in the black from the staff, who found my necklace? You’d almost think they were acting.”

You were almost as pale as a sheet at this point, gripping your cup in shaking fingers.

“And you know what’s funny? I saw you talking to both of them during the night. I mean, how couldn’t I notice? You looked so gorgeous, almost like you were asking me to see you.”

You gulped, “I do not know what you’re talking about, Miss Kluger-”

“Just call me Daphne,” she leaned forward, lips spread in a feline smile, elbows resting on the table and propping her head up on her hands.

“Y/N, right? I asked for your name from the guest list, I hope you don’t mind. They let me in on those sorts of things anyways.”

“That’s me,” you replied. 

“Do you know Debbie Ocean? Of course you do, you two also seemed pretty close all night, hm? You’re lucky I was the only one who noticed.”

“What?”

“I’ve been approached by an investigator who seems really interested in her because the uh, necklace turned out to be a fake.”

You tried to pretend to be surprised at the news, but you couldn’t muster it, and Daphne looked at you knowingly.

“Luckily, I didn’t tell  him any  of your names, because I wasn’t sure if I was right. But you just confirmed all my suspicions anyways, so..”

“Are you threatening me?” you narrowed your eyes at her, and she gasped in mock offence.

“Of course not!” she leaned forward, giving you ample view of her cleavage, hand trailing over yours,

“I’m seducing you, Y/N.”

You didn’t know what to say as she looked at you with those deep, telling eyes. Her own eyes flickered appreciatively over your features, and you wondered if she was checking you out or if she was simply acting.

A small group of fans approached the table, chittering and blushing at the sight of Daphne Kluger in a meagre coffee shop such as this one. She smiled amicably, accepting their compliments and giving them autographs, before saying,

“You’re all so sweet, but do you think you’d be able to let my girlfriend and I have some privacy for the rest of our date? Thaanks,” she waved as the fans rushed off, gasping and gossiping amongst themselves at the prospect of the Daphne Kluger having a girlfriend. 

“Girlfriend?” you asked once you found your voice again. She only grinned and winked at you.

“Oh, don’t be like that baby. Now, are you gonna tell me about the necklace, or what?” she sipped your drink and your mouth went dry.

-

“Chilly,” Daphne remarked at the glances given by the rest of the group, “what about, ‘Hi Daph, welcome to the team. Let’s not all high five at once.’”

You chewed your lip, bounced your leg, avoided her gaze altogether, and tried very hard not to look at how good she looked in her black dress. You were sitting across from the couch where she had plopped down, hunched in the metal framed chair.

“Why’d y’let her get to you, Y/N. I told you not to draw attention to yourself!” Rose said to you, after you and Debbie had explained how Daphne had found you, recognized you and called out the plan. You, being the newbie in the ways of criminality, could barely think of a cover up and ended up bringing her to Debbie with a spluttering confession.

“She didn’t,” Daphne’s eyes were locked on yours, “I just noticed her myself.”

You blushed a little and looked away. Debbie looked at you apologetically, knowing you felt put on the spot.

“Plus,” Daphne continued, “I am the one who is saving your asses from insurance fraud, okay?”

The team burst into shock, responses flying left and right.

“I-I was gonna get to that,” you said hastily, eyeing Debbie, who stepped in,

“It seems that they’ve assigned an insurance investigator-”

“Who’s about to look up your asses with a flashlight,” Daphne pointed out.

“Who?” 

"Oh, this little Columbo dude, everything but the trench coat, totally on to you.”

“His name is John Frasier,” Debbie said.

"Wha- you know him?” Amita spluttered in disbelief.

“Yes, he busted my father twice, my brother once.”

“He’s family,” Lou added.

“Lest we forget, this entire enterprise was to keep me out of jail,” Rose interrupted, worry etched on her face.

“No one is going to jail,” Lou assured her.

“We expected this, we prepared for this,” said Debbie. Not many of the team seemed to believe her, with Nineball adding,

“Yup... that’s clear.”

“We will not be the prime suspect,” Debbie said sternly.

"Then who will be?”

“Well,” you added, “we’ve got the security guys, the busboys-”

“...The shady guy who put you away,” Tammy sighed, arching an eyebrow at Debbie, who could barely contain the smirk on her face. Daphne stared at her incredulously,

“..the boyfriend.”

"Mhm,” Debbie replied, “they were gonna be looking for somebody, just had to make sure it wasn’t one of us.”

Lou nodded in approval, adding a faint, “that’s nice.”

"Thanks.”

“Wow... that is amazing,” Daphne grinned, chewing her gum in delight, “the precision, right? It’s always the attention to detail and the little grace notes that really make something sing.”

A short silence followed. Glances were cast between the rest of you, wondering what on earth had gotten into Daphne’s head.

“...Why are you doing this?” Tammy asked, clearly dumbfounded by this multi-millionaire actress dropping into their party. Daphne stilled for a moment, her eyes flickering to you for a second before saying,

“I.. don’t have that many close female friendships. Plus bookclubs are the worst, so I just thought y’know... could be something fun to share?”

“You’re becoming a criminal because you’re lonely?”

“...Who isn’t sometimes, right?”

"Are you an only child?” you asked her. Her silence told you enough.

The team seemed to accept at that point that Daph was there to stay, so they went about their usual business. 

“Beer?” Lou offered you, which you immediately said yes to, feeling a little woozy after that whole experience.

Tammy went to the kitchen and opened another pizza box, and you went to grab a slice for yourself before calculating your next move carefully, hoping your brain wouldn’t short circuit as you grabbed another slice and headed to where Daphne was sitting by herself.

You sat next to her, very very awkwardly, and offered her the paper plate.

“Aw, thanks,” she smiled, cheering up a little, “you know you don’t have to do that.”

“Do what?”

“Be nice to me because you feel bad for me. Look, I’m sorry I cornered you the other day. I didn’t mean to seem desperate or whatever.”

“You- you didn’t seem desperate,” you frowned, “and I don’t feel bad for you. Whatever gave you that idea?”

She looked at you with a mouthful of pizza, and made an exasperated gesture to your whole surroundings, indicating the events that had just occurred. She also didn’t want you to know how she had been dying for your attention the minute she had seen you at the Met. 

“Oh, well, I mean, I think your reasoning was perfectly justified,” you cocked your head at her and smiled. Then you lifted your pizza and said,

“to crime!”

The rest of the group cheered and replied with the same phrase, lifting their beers or pizza with glee. Daphne blushed at the exclamation.

“Now you,” you said, nodding encouragingly. 

“What?”

“Do it! If you’re gonna be a part of the Ocean’s team, you gotta get with the rituals.”

“Rituals?” Daphne scoffed. But then she saw your dopey smile and sparkling eyes, and her insides melted. She delicately lifted the pizza and said,

“to crime!”

You laughed and sipped your beer.

“Ten bucks says they’re dating by next week,” Nineball said in the kitchen, peering into the fridge.

“I say by the weekend,” Constance offered. 

“Idiots,” Rose shook her head. “If tonight is gonna keep up like this, I say by the morning.”

They eyed you and Daphne chatting away on the couch, completely forgetting about everyone else.

“Not so lonely anymore I guess,” Tammy smiled.

“Told you, crime’s good for many things,” Debbie nudged her and smiled at Lou, who rolled her eyes playfully.

[mistihayesfix]

I originally posted this blurb on Twitter, then as an ask to share it with @aduckinahat, so if it looks familiar, that's why. But I should have it here to expand on it easily. I've added more to the brief original. Let's see what comes of this, hmmm. Welcome to Queen Irene. 👸🏻👑💗💜

Sana had been paged.

She ran as fast as her feet would carry her through the great hall to the lower salon. Though she was wearing pants and a corset instead of robes & a bustle laden with petticoats and skirt layers she still felt heavy.

Guilt had a way of weighing one down. She slowed as she rounded the corner to the foyer. Doing her best to compose herself before presenting to the queen.

Irene should be busy with merchants this day, not paging Sana, whose daily duties required her to meet with the Ministry of Education. It was perhaps one of her favorite quarterly gatherings. They chose to meet under the Grand Arches of the yew trees west of the royal compound. This explained her more casual dress for the day and why she was able to so quickly mount her black arabian and reach the palace.

Sana took a deep breath.

"Are you prepared, My Queen?" her attendant questioned.

"If our Great Queen is ready to receive me, I am prepared to meet her," Sana flashed her ever-kind, welcoming smile to her attendants and the guards.

With a flourish, the doors to the sun-soaked salon opened revealing High Queen Irene in all her regal splendor. Sana could not help the flush that arose in her face at the sight of her. Irene was indeed gorgeous and she possessed a powerful, authoritative aura. It made people want to please her, to see her happy.

If one were blessed by the gods to witness her smile, they would surely spend the rest of their life doing everything possible to see it again. To say she was radiant did not encompass it. When she was happy or satisfied, she exuded it; not expressively, that was more Sana. Irene became joy in those moments, thus like the sun, she shone it upon everyone just by existing.

At the moment, however, the salon was not filled with joy, but it was not melancholy nor anger either. Most people would not sense it because other than her joy, Queen Irene did not share her emotions. But from Sana, she could not hide. They were wives after all, and Sana knew her wife was confused, she simply did not know why.

"Her Royal Majesty, Queen Sana, has arrived, as you requested, Our Great High Queen." Sergeant-at-arms Byun announced.

Sana genuflected before her, keeping her gaze down, as she now worried about her wife. The irritation she felt at being interrupted, gone. Irene was not one easily confused. Her position required her to have vast, diverse knowledge, to be skilled in several arts and sciences, and to be prepared for battles of wit or war at all times. Confusion was beyond her.

"Yes, yes, thank you Sergeant. My love, please come forward. I do so appreciate your speedy arrival as I know you are meeting with the Educators today. I wish to return you to them quickly, but I require your higher skills in this matter."

Sana looked up, taking in Irene's beautiful form, covered in a white, off-the-shoulder, long-sleeved, rouched dress, which reached her knees. She completed her ensemble with knee-high white boots, a white leather belt, accented with platinum and diamonds, and a matching platinum and diamond icicle necklace. Sana did so love their queendom for the freedom of expression Irene brought to it.

Who would believe a queen to dress like so? Yet she remained elegant and emanated confidence. Her blush deepened especially as she thought on Irene's euphemistic apology for calling for her while she was in a meeting.

She looked up to find Irene's eyes on her form, outfitted in all black, in contrast. She rose and approached the seating platform. The sweet scent of honeysuckle enveloped her the closer she moved to the queen who placed a parchment in her hands.

"I received this. While I understand most of it, I believe the dialect to be one with which you are more familiar."

Sana reviewed the documents; they were written in her native tongue. Irene was correct, the dialect was region specific, and incredibly familiar to Sana. The High Queen's confusion became hers as she reviewed the letter again. She sat upon her throne next to her wife, her queen.

"My darling," Sana began.

"I will not allow it, my beloved queen," Irene reached for Sana's free hand. "This is not our agreement."

Sana did not notice the tears in her eyes until Irene brought up a pocket square to clean her face.

"Sergeant, clear the room and secure this area, and our borders. Protect our young queen, and our people at all costs."

"Ma'am!" Byun harked with a salute as he ushered almost everyone out with him, leaving his most trusted knights of the interior along with the queens' attendants.

"Are you all prepared?" He asked those in the hall outside the salon.

"We shall defend them with our lives," came the honorable, expected reply.

Inside the salon, Sana made her way into Irene's lap, where the elder held her close. Irene cradled Sana to her, confusion filling the nearly empty room.

"This is not allowed. You will not leave m-- us," she soothed. "I will protect you with my own life."

Those words were immediately tested as the sound of a high-velocity projectile became clear.

[6rookie-writer0110]

Don't tell the Massiah we are in love

Hope Mikaelson x Male Reader/Tribrid

Request - Could you do Hope Mikaelson x male!reader where R is a tribrid like hope and is a new student of the Salvatore School and was found by Caroline in Europe.

Caroline Forbes is in Leipzig, Germany on a mission. Caroline has found out there is a black market exploiting people who are supernatural beings. She did save everyone from being sold or being forced to fight and she walked towards you.

“What is your name?” Caroline asked.

You don't answer her and you looked away.

“Okay. You are not the only Tribrid alive. I know someone like you. There is a school in America where you can be yourself, they will teach you how to control your abilities. I promise you and the others it will be a safe place” Caroline said.

“Why should I believe you?” You asked.

“I know it can be hard to trust someone, I know. But I trust those people and I hope you would give them a chance. You shouldn't go through this life alone, you wouldn't want that kind of life” Caroline said.

You don't know what to say. You never trusted anyone. You never met your family and you have been on your own for a long time.

“Okay” You whispered but she did hear you.

---

Caroline called Alaric and told him about you. He didn't tell Hope just yet, he is in shock because he and everyone thought Hope is the only one who is a Tribrid. Alaric told everyone there will be new students arriving at the school.

Lizzie and Josie asked Hope to help with the student orientation. Hope did say yes and Alaric is happy new students will arrive.

You are standing outside the Salvatore School with Caroline.

“Nervous?” Caroline asked.

“I don't know if I will fit in,” you said.

“You will be okay here. You won't feel left out, this will be your new home. I will come by now and then to check on you” Caroline said.

“My name is y/n,” You said.

“Nice to meet you, y/n. Let's go in” Caroline said.

You walk inside the school. She introduced you to Alaric then he introduced you to his daughters and Hope.

“What is your name?” Hope asked.

You didn't say anything. Before meeting Caroline, you can only speak if your owner would let you. You think that Caroline owns and would be mad if you speak without her permission.

“His name is y/n. He had a tough life, being sold to anyone and he would have to follow orders or he would be punished. Y/n, you don't need my permission to speak. You are your own person and no one can't control you anymore” Caroline said.

“Girls, show him and the other students around the school. I will talk to Caroline” Alaric said.

“Okay, dad,” Josie said.

You look at Caroline and you follow the girls.

“Hope, I need to tell you something about y/n,” Alaric said.

“What about him?” Hope said.

“He is a Tribrid like you. You will need to help him control his urges when he needs to feed” Alaric said.

“I-I thought I was the only one,” Hope said in disbelief.

“Everyone thought the same thing. It will take him a to get used to being in a place like this” Alaric said.

“I-I will try my best to help him. Do you know who are his parents?” Hope said.

“No. He didn't tell Caroline anything about his family tree. I can't narrow it down” Alaric said.

“Okay,” Hope said.

✬ ✯ ✫ ✯

Hope went to see you and you are sitting alone on your bed. She walks in and she smiled at you.

“Hey y/n, why you are not downstairs eating breakfast?” Hope asked.

“I-I,” You stuttered.

She noticed blood under your bed. She gets down the floor and noticed a dead rabbit. She stands up and looks at you.

“You could have asked for blood,” Hope said.

“I’m sorry,” You said.

“Don’t do it again. Come with me and I have a lot to teach you” Hope said.

You just nod.

You go to all your classes with Hope. It felt strange in a classroom, usually, they would have you tied up then force you to fight. You are starting to like being around Hope.

You and Hope sit by the lake and eat lunch together.

“I used to feel alone before I came to his school. I actually thought I was the only one who is a Tribrid and no one would know how that feels” Hope said.

“There was someone else who was a Tribrid like us, but he died. They would make me fight and that's all I knew. I still feel alone” You said.

“That would change, y/n. No one can make you fight if you don't want to. Enjoying the food” Hope said.

“The food isn't bad,” You said.

She smiled and you like her smile.

---

You do get along with Hope’s friends. You are still getting used to being somewhere nice, having your own room, and going to class.

You are walking in the hallway and see Lizzie putting up posters.

“Lizzie, what is a school dance?” You asked.

“It is when two people go to the dance and have a good time. You should go to the school dance” Lizzie said.

“With who?” You asked.

“Y/N, I see the way you look at Hope. Ask her out” Lizzie said.

“Ask her out?” You asked.

She nods “Ask her to the school dance and when she says yes then I will help you pick out an outfit. I know you like a lot because of the way you look at her”

“I-I don't know Lizzie,” You said.

“It's okay to be nervous. I will help you, y/n. Come with me because we need to do a lot” Lizzie said.

She grabbed your arm and you walk with her. MG, Josie, and Lizzie will teach you how to ask Hope out.

---

Hope is reading a book and you are holding a rose. You are feeling very nervous and you look at Lizzie and the others.

“Go ask her,” MG said.

You nod and walked towards Hope.

“Hey y/n,” Hope said.

She smiled and your heart starts to race.

“This is for you,” You said.

You gave her the rose and she smiled again.

“Thank you. But why did you give me a rose?” Hope said.

“Lizzie said to ask you to the school dance because she thinks it's cute, you will be my first date to the dance. And I don't know how to dance” You said.

Lizzie and the others can't believe what you just said.

Hope couldn't help to laugh.

“Is this your way of asking me to the dance?” Hope asked.

“Yes,” You said.

“Okay, I will go with you, and thanks for the rose” Hope said.

You turned around and gave them a thumbs up. MG tried to give you a high five but you just stare at him.

“Don’t leave me hanging” MG said.

“What?” You said.

“You have to give me a high five when my hand is up,” MG said.

“I will show you,” Josie said.

Josie grabbed your hand and you high five MG.

✬ ✯ ✫ ✯

It's the school dance tonight. It's been weeks since you saw Caroline, she came back to check on you. And you're happy to see her.

“Nice suit,” Caroline said.

“It's my first school dance and I'm going with Hope,” You said.

“That’s cute. Here let me fix your bow tie. How are you liking the school?” Caroline said.

“I like it. I made friends and I don't have to fight. Hope is teaching me how to control my abilities” You said.

“That is good, I am happy for you. Go have fun” Caroline said.

“Thank you for saving me, Caroline,” You said.

She hugged you.

---

“Hope, you look very beautiful,” You said.

Hope blushed.

“Thank you, y/n. And you look handsome tonight. Ready to dance?” Hope said.

“Yes, I want to dance with you” You said.

Hope showed you where to put your hands, she puts her arms around your neck.

You and Hope start to dance. She stares into your eyes and you are having a good time.

“You are a good dancer,” Hope said.

“So are you” You said.

You keep dancing with Hope.

“Can I kiss you? I really like you” You said.

“I like you too. I wanted to kiss you for a while” Hope said.

You and Hope keep staring at each other. You slowly move in and you kiss her, she places her hand on your cheek and she kisses you back.

✬ ✯ ✫ ✯

The school is under attack, Hope and the others watched you transform into a wolf. You start to attack the enemies and Hope is helping you. Josie and Hope use their magic to attack. The enemies are defeated and you start to howl.

“Aww, he is so cute,” Lizzie said.

“He is cute in his wolf form,” Josie said.

“Can i pet him!?” Pedro asked.

“W-what is going on,” Hope said.

Pedro and Lizzie start to pet you.

“So, is y/n your boyfriend?” Josie asked.

“Yeah, he asked me last night and it was cute. He said ‘do you want to be my boyfriend? Sorry I meant girlfriend. I never did this before’ it's cute when he is nervous” Hope said.

“You deserve to be happy, you and y/n,” Josie said.

“Thanks,” Hope said.

Lizzie and Pedro are playing fetch with you.

---

When it comes to magic, you're weak and don't know any spells. Hope, Lizzie, and Josie are helping you learn magic spells. Hope is teaching you how to use your hands. You are struggling to hold the magic longer than 5 seconds. Hope won't let you give up and you want to give up. They encourage you to keep learning and you keep trying.

----

You are feeling excited about joining the "Super Squad" with Hope, MG, Kaleb, and Landon respectively. Each day you are finding out new abilities you can do and you're still practicing your magic.

But you noticed everyone is missing, you haven't seen them all day. You start to search for them. You start to use your nose and but you smell something else. You know is not a human. You start to follow the smell into an abandoned house. You see Hope and the others tied up in a web.

“Y/N!” They muffled.

“What happened?” You asked.

You rip the web off Hope’s mouth and the others. Kaleb, MG, Lizzie, Pedro, Josie, and Kaleb.

“It's an Arachne that did this to us. We have to help us” MG said.

“A what!?” You said.

“An Arachne is a huge spider with fangs that liquefy their prey and can steal bodies. was originally human that was cursed by a jealous god. Therefore, all it wants is to be human and wears the skin of its prey to pass” Hope said.

“Oh, I get it,” You said.

The Arachne arrived and you tried to fight but the Arachne has speed. The spider is going to attack Hope but you can't let that happen.

Your eyes turned red and your body started to transform. Inside you, the special demon power triggers your transformation. Everyone watched you change into... demonic form. You look completely different now you have... large ram-like horns with a second smaller set extending from the top. The last thing, you have spikes in your forearms.

“Y/N, you look badass!! What-how!?!?” Kaleb yelled.

“I am half-demon?,” You said.

Your voice is much deeper now. The fire appears now you have a sword. You attacked the spider but managed to dodge your attack.

“Y/N kick her ass!!” Hope cheered for you.

You used your sword to fight back and you're faster. Your sword lights up with fire the monster tries to attack, then you stabbed the monster with your sword. They did cheer for you and they are impressed with what you did. Then you used your sword to cut them out of the web.

“How can you do that, transform into this” Hope said.

“I was told my dad is a demon, which is a lie. I never met my parents. I think they were toying with me so I can fight” You said.

“I get it. But this form is awesome” Hope said.

“Thanks,” You said.

Later, you transformed back into your human form. Hope kissed your cheek and you smiled.

[immaturityofthomasastruc]

IOTA Reviews: Truth

Hey. Hey guys. Remember when I said I was feeling optimistic about this season? God, that was funny, wasn't it?

Let's just... Let's just get into the actual first episode of Miraculous Ladybug's fourth season: Truth.

We start off with Gabriel repairing the damaged Peacock Miraculous, which also restores Duusu's sanity, before he quickly gives it a test run by transforming with both it and the Butterfly Miraculous.

And good lord, the result looks atrocious. This is the design for the new and improved Hawkmoth? First off, the peacock feather eyepatch looks stupid. Is he trying to be the Phantom of the Opera? When Mayura had the same thing, it didn't completely cover her eye and matched her color scheme. It just doesn't match with this new design here. Other than the feather, the peacock aesthetic is barely visible here. The most we get is a peacock feather pattern on the back of his jacket. And then there's the popped collar and coattails, which only look more ridiculous than menacing. What made the original Hawkmoth design work was how sleek it was. It was simplistic, which reflected Gabriel's no-nonense personality. This just looks gaudy and unnecessary. How was this right after the amazing suit the animators gave Dragonbug?

So after Gabriel designs another stupid looking outfit, we cut to Marinette, who's still trying to figure out how the Miracle Ball works. She accidentally opens it, letting the Kwamis out, who wreak havoc on her room because Marinette suffering is going to be a big part of this episode. This just raises the question: Why can't Marinette simply order them back into the box like Su-Han did, or rather, is going to do? It's still not established what gives the Guardians authority over the Kwamis in the first place.

Two of the Kwamis accidentally start a video chat with her friends, leading to some more Unfunny Marinette Slapstick. But Alya thinks something's up with her friend.

Has Marinette even told Alya she's already in a relationship? Like, at all? It feels like all Alya is there for now is to remind the audience that Marinette and Adrien are “meant to be”, even if they're both in relationships right now. It's either that, or teasing Marinette over her crush and doing nothing to help her anxiety.

Marinette accidentally ends the call, before Luka calls to thank her for the pictures of Adrien one of the Kwamis accidentally sent him. Yeah, even though he barely appears in this episode (barring his scenes at Cat Noir), they're going to talk about Adrien a lot. Marinette continues to stammer around Luka (once again making fun of people who have speech issues), but Luka, being the ray of sunshine in any abysmal episode he's in, is completely understanding of it. He also sets up a pretty funny joke.

Apparently, Marinette missed her last date with Luka yesterday to see a movie that was re-released, Crocodile Heart, that was actually Jagged Stone's first movie. I wonder if it's connected to Crocodile Dundee.

While walking to the movie, Luka and Marinette play a game finishing the lyrics of a Jagged Stone song, establishing the former as a huge fan of the rock star. Before we can actually get an on-screen kiss for Lukanette, Mr. Pigeon attacks yet again, because I guess he's the first villain Hawkmoth wants to use in his new form.

Cat Noir sneaks up on Ladybug, causing her to accidentally throw him off a building before catching him, chastising him for the stupid jokes, yet Ladybug has to apologize for missing patrol with her partner, who casually acknowledges her new status as Guardian before the two go and fight Mr. Pigeon.

By the time they defeat him, the movie ends as Marinette gets back, disappointing Luka. We then get a montage of Marinette bailing on Luka multiple times to stop Akumas and Sentimonsters. To his credit, Luka is seriously torn up by all the times Marinette leaves him, showing he isn't just a calm soul.

After Marinette gets back, Luka takes her underneath a bridge to listen to the echoing sound of the water. Luka says that he never knew his father, and he would always go here to relax whenever he got stressed. He uses this to segue into asking Marinette where she constantly disappears to. He doesn't pressure her or anything like Alya, and he even says that if she still loves Adrien, he'll understand. He only asks for the truth. Unfortunately, Marinette can't tell him the truth, which just breaks the poor boy's heart.

Hawkmoth, now calling himself Shadowmoth, sends out an Akuma and an Amok for Luka at the same time, corrupting a guitar pick signed by Jagged Stone that Marinette gave him. And again, to Luka's credit, he fights back against Shadowmoth's influence at first, saying he trusts Marinette, but the temptation of knowing the truth is too good to pass up. He tells Marinette to run before being akumatized into Truth, assisted by the Sentimonster Pharro.

Truth's design is... pretty forgettable. The guitar pick being prominent around his neck is a nice touch, but it's just a generic black bodysuit with light blue highlights, and he has a third eye instead of a visible mouth. Pharro is also pretty boring, just a giant eye that freezes people in place so Truth can use his powers to make them tell the truth.

So Truth goes back to where everyone else was hanging out before he was akumatized and asks Alya to tell him the truth about Marinette.

Yeah, he's right, Alya. That's what you believe. We're supposed to treat Alya saying Marinette loves Adrien as an unbiased source. Truth asks Rose, Mylene, Tom, and Sabine what Marinette's secret is in this episode, and they all say she's in love with Adrien. That isn't actually the truth. It's like asking an atheist if there is a God. You know what they believe is the truth, but you don't know if that answer is actually the truth. Why not have them reveal other secrets about Marinette, giving the audience subtle character details? Like the writers could make someone say stuff like she still sleeps with a nightlight on, or that she secretly gets cookies from another bakery.

You know what also would have worked? Instead, have Truth catch Marinette before she transforms into Ladybug, ask who she actually loved, and then she'll blurt out Adrien's name, shocking both her and Luka. This could also make Ladybug's confidence in herself waver throughout the episode, wondering if she actually loved Luka at all. That would have been much better drama than what we're going to get instead.

Ladybug charges in to stop Truth, but is zapped by his truth ray, meaning she'll be forced to tell the truth when asked any question. Before she can admit her identity, Cat Noir saves her by retreating with her into the Seine, before reassuring Ladybug that he wouldn't force her to tell the truth by force. It's a nice bit that does show he respects Ladybug's secret, a far cry from his behavior in episodes like “Syren” and “Frozer”. Truth turns his attention to his mother Anarka, and asks who his father is.

Yes. Seriously. This is happening. Luka's father is actually Jagged Stone. I have... mixed feelings regarding this development, but my biggest question is, well... they're doing this now? They couldn't save this for another episode? I mean, was focusing on Luka and Marinette's relationship (something that had been established since Season 2) not good enough of a plot for the writers? Why shoehorn in this plot development? Why not save this part as a teaser for a future episode? You know, have Luka walk home, and remember what he made his mother say as Truth, setting up an episode focusing on his relationship with Jagged Stone.

But no! Instead, we're just supposed to go along with the plot taking a detour. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I don't want Jagged Stone to appear in this episode.

Truth heads over to the hotel where Jagged Stone lives and asks him if he's actually his father, the latter admitting that Anarka was right. Truth naturally isn't happy.

Well, to be fair, it's still a better title than his first drafts, like “It's Not My Fault the Condom Broke”, or “Up Yours, I'm Not Paying the Child Support, Bitch”.

Honestly, I can get what the writers are going for, and I like the idea of them trying to give some depth to a character who was mostly used for comic relief in earlier episodes. The problem is, as much as they want to portray Jagged as regretful for walking out on his family, it still doesn't excuse him for never even bothering to check in on his children and their mother while writing a song about it. He doesn't even bother to give some money to the person he knocked up.

I'm not saying a conflicted relationship like this can't work in animation (a decent example being Steven Universe slowly growing to resent his mother for her time as Pink Diamond and believing his birth was an excuse for her to avoid responsibility), but you need to put more emotion into this. I don't come from a broken home, but if it turned out my dad was, let's say, “Weird Al” Yankovic, even if I enjoy his music, I wouldn't be happy that he decided to come back now of all times without so much as a “hello”.

Truth goes to Marinette's house/bakery, and starts looking for Marinette's diary to find out her secrets. It's almost like the minor plotline that he has a deadbeat dad was only there to eat up airtime. Ladybug is still affected by Truth's powers, and not long after she summons her Lucky Charm, Cat Noir is zapped too, so he starts asking questions that basically amount to complimenting certain qualities he and Ladybug have. When Ladybug asks him what he thinks about her being Guardian, Cat Noir says nothing's changed between them. It's a nice strategy, very reminiscent of when they had to talk in rhyme when fighting Frightengale. I'm also glad they aren't trying to play up Cat Noir not feeling as important immediately now that his partner has access to top secret information.

Cat Noir Cataclysms Pharro, but rather than destroying the Sentimonster, it causes it to go out of control, accidentally paralyzing Truth with some manipulation from her and Cat Noir. Ladybug then de-evilizes both the Akuma and Amok, defeating Truth.

Marinette struggles to find the words to explain things to Luka, but he says that he'll be waiting for her when she's ready. While walking back to his houseboat, Luka runs into Jagged Stone, who promises to write a song together with him. Because I guess Shadowmoth was kind enough of him to not erase that part of his memory. And of course, Luka just accepts this despite the fact that Jagged was absent from his entire life.

So according to this show, you shouldn't bother to give mean people a second chance, but it's okay to give your deadbeat dad a second chance without harboring any negative feelings? I'm sorry, but I just don't see the point of shoving in this subplot if you're barely going to do anything with it before coming to a resolution. If there was more detail put into it, like if Luka just angrily lashed out at Jagged for abandoning his mom, I would have been more open to it. But in the end, this major character revelation is nothing more than filler the episode doesn't need.

We cut to what I'm surprised doesn't happen at the end of every episode given how much crap she gets, Marinette crying in her bed, saying it's too dangerous to have a boyfriend thanks to Shadowmoth. One of the Kwamis apparently doesn't know what crying is, so Marinette asks them to give her a hug, and the showrunners really need to find another song to play at the end, because the upbeat song playing doesn't go with Marinette crying at all. Imagine if this song played at the end of Deep Space Nine's “In the Pale Moonlight” when Captain Sisko confessed to basically being an accessory to the murder of an alien ambassador. It'd be tonally jarring, wouldn't it?

Even the ending image doesn't feature Luka and Marinette together. Instead, he's hugging it out with Deadbeat Stone like everything's okay.

So yeah, that's how the episode ends. In case you couldn't tell, I thought it was awful.

Remember in my New York Special review, where I theorized that Astruc rewrote it to focus more on Adrienette to stop people from shipping Lukanette? I have another theory that I also want to be taken with a grain of salt. I think this episode might have also been rewritten a little to follow up on that. I mean, why else would Astruc spend two seasons building up Luka's relationship with Marinette only to rip it away the episode after they officially get together? It would also explain why it feels like there's two separate episodes going on with how shoehorned in Jagged Stone is.

But other than that, this episode managed to screw up the one thing I was actually looking forward to about this season, seeing Marinette together with Luka. Even if they were going to break up, I was hoping there would at least be a character arc for Marinette where she realizes what she truly wants in a relationship isn't with Luka, leading into a relationship with Adrien where she feels more confident in herself. I was at least hoping their relationship would last more than A SINGLE EPISODE.

In fact, remember that tweet Astruc made soon after the New York Special, defending Marinette and Adrien essentially cheating on Luka and Kagami respectively?

What exactly was so complicated about Season 4 when you're immediately going to break up a couple you spent two seasons building up? Astruc's predictions are about as accurate as Uri Geller.

And then there's the fact that all everyone talks about this episode is Adrien. Marinette's wall is covered with pictures of him, Alya thinks her friend's abnormal behavior is because Adrien's in the room with her, Luka somehow knows Marinette loves Adrien and is actually cool with it, and everyone else thinks that it's her biggest secret. How convenient is it that all of this happens when barring his scenes as Cat Noir, Adrien doesn't appear in this episode barring a five second cameo?

When I was writing this episode, I saw a tweet Astruc made addressing a question someone posed, asking why Adrien didn't get as much screentime in the recent Shanghai Special. He said that “history does not revolve around him”.

For the love of God, writers, just give Marinette a plotline that doesn't revolve around her feelings for Adrien for once. People already started to get sick of it halfway through last season. Either have her confess and make the Love Square canon, or stop letting it dominate the main story for once. Why can't the writers just let her move on from Adrien for more than a single episode? Give her a goddamn break already.

I once again have to ask: what was the point of building up a relationship between Luka and Marinette since Season 2, if you're just going to break them up the second they get together? Why make a big deal about Marinette's conflicted feelings for both Adrien and Luka if you're just going to ignore her feelings for the latter in favor of the former? And remember, chronologically, this was right after the end of Chloe's “damnation arc”, another plotline that had been built up since Season 2 only to be aborted in favor of “sUbVeRtInG tHe AuDiEnCe'S eXpEcTaTiOnS”. It feels like the writers are trying to punish people for getting emotionally invested in any storyline that doesn't relate to the holy pairing that is the Love Square.

This episode is just frustrating to watch. Part of me knew Marinette and Luka were going to break up, but I didn't think it would be this bad, and it would be so soon. I'm glad they're on somewhat good terms, and I liked the buildup to Luka realizing Marinette might not trust him, but the timing of this episode is what baffles me the most. Is it any wonder I think Astruc may have rewritten this episode?

If any Lukanette shippers need to recover, I'd recommend checking out @mc-lukanette​. They have some wholesome one-shots and fix-it fics for some of the weaker episodes of the series. In fact, she already wrote a fix-it to this abysmal episode that’s so much better than what we got.