#feel anything. i feel the same way when i go to the zoo or something. like im supposed to feel something but its not there. im forming

[bombuni]

contains: poly!ateez x gn!reader, soft ateez taking care of u, non-verbal and self-isolating reader, implied depressed/chronically ill reader

you: babies i think it’s better if you don’t come over tonight

joong: Everything ok?

minmin: but im hungry and u said u’d make dinner :(

woo: WE’RE HUNGRY!!! OM NOM NOM

you: just not feeling it tonight. sorry

You shut your phone off with guilt weighing in your heart. You had promised your boys a nice home-made dinner after a hard week full of non-stop practicing. You knew they’d been looking forward to it the entire week, the stress-free time they’d get to spend with you, but, there’s a pit in your stomach that’s been growing the past week and now it’s big enough to stop you from doing anything else but wallow in your thoughts. Now the guilt just adds to it.

There’s times when you don’t have energy for anything. Not even for your favorite people on Earth and it’s simply your body’s fault. At least you try to tell yourself that.

There’s no response to your last message and you sent it an hour ago. Usually you’d be suspicious about the lack of whining and bickering, but you’re just too tired to worry as fatigue fogs your senses. You’re set for a night of self-pity when your front door unlocks, myriads of voices barging in and breaking the calm of your apartment. You already feel a headache coming on as Wooyoung, like usual, argues about whatever hill he’s chosen to die on.

You want to get up to greet them, but somethings stopping you. The pit in your stomach almost weighs you down, your limbs too heavy to move now. You sigh and surrender to your body’s fatigue.

Seonghwa watches you with a sad look on his face. He knows all the tell-tale signs of your sad ruts by now, the most obvious of all being when you go out of your way to isolate yourself. It hurts him because he wants to help you, but he‘s not quite sure how to do it right with you.

“Sweet thing,” he coos quietly and lays a gentle hand atop yours, “how do you feel?”

His attention turns a switch on in you, feeling yourself melt against his soft touch and caring voice. You shrug, feeling a loss of words. You don’t really have any to describe how you feel. Or rather, there’s a boulder in your throat stopping you from even attempting to say anything.

Hongjoong and San walk over, the latter immediately scooping you up into his arms despite Seonghwa’s protests. Hongjoong leans over the back of the couch, carding his fingers through your hair and tutting at the state you’re in.

“You’re not getting rid of us that easy, you know,” he mumbles.

San looks right at you even if you won’t meet his eyes, trying his best to communicate the worry he has because he knows words don’t work with you when you’re like this. Seonghwa flicks San’s forehead, pulling a loud noise of protest out of him, “Aren’t you supposed to be helping in the kitchen?”

San responds by pulling you tightly against him and closing his eyes in bliss. Seonghwa grumbles something about disrespect, but walks away to help in the kitchen himself. It’s starting to feel a little warm with San’s irresistible need to touch you and Hongjoong’s eyes not once leaving your form. It gets unbearably hot when you feel Mingi’s lips against the crown of your head, Wooyoung doing the same and immediately jumping into gently scolding you for pushing them away.

Hongjoong wants to agree but he knows it’s not what you need right now. He shushes Wooyoung, “Did you take your meds yet?”

You shake your head. Yunho walks up to you, bending down to hand you your medicine with a kind smile on his face. He takes your hand in his when you swallow your pills, kissing each of your knuckles gently, as if he fears scaring you away.

“Here.” Yeosang passes you a glass of water. There’s eight pairs of eyes on you and you can feel each one. It’s like they’re watching a zoo animal on display and you’d laugh at the thought in any other circumstance.

Jongho stands across you, intently staring you down, “You know you can’t just expect us to leave you alone, right?”

San pulls your head into his chest and throws protective arms over you as if you’re a kid getting a scolding, “Don’t be mean.”

Jongho is about to retort before Seonghwa stops him, “Ok! Ok, what Jongho means,” he kneels down next to Yunho with a gentle expression aimed at you, “Is that we want to help you, sweetheart. And it’s hard to do that when you don’t allow us to,”

Yeosang scratches at his neck as he finds the words, “We know it’s hard for you to do that, but…”

Hongjoong continues for him, “We’re just asking that you try at least. Okay?”

You hesitantly nod into San’s chest and you feel him let out a sigh of relief. Wooyoung speaks up from behind you, “You’re hogging ‘em, Sannie,”

He shakes his head violently and hugs you tighter, “No ‘m not.”

Mingi grimaces, “You totally are.”

It’s all-out war again and your body shakes between theirs as each one tries to take you for themselves. San’s still got a good grip on you as Yunho, Seonghwa, and Jongho fight to pull him off of you. Wooyoung and Mingi stand back and argue with San, really the only thing they’re good for. Hongjoong and Yeosang grimace and watch the events unfold, only waiting to step in if they notice you get overwhelmed.

But you don’t. You feel warm and loved and happy, and there’s a bubble of laughter forming in your throat and surpassing the boulder that was stuck in you before. You’ll take it one step at a time, and they’ll take that step with you.

bom note: this is for the gays with chronic fear of being emotionally vulnerable. i tried to make readers issues as vague as possible for u. Also realistically i would not want 8 men all up in my space when im in one of these moods but it’s fantasy ok shhh

[ivegotyourbackbuddie]

I would love if there’s an episode of season 8 called “The Buzz” which of course starts with a bee emergency. But the thing about the emergency that gets to everyone is that a man was beekeeping for several years in the shed in his backyard, but he never told his partner.

So, when said partner finally went to check out what was so important in the tool shed or maybe they needed something, they panicked when they discovered the bees and started swatting at them. Long story short… lots of bee stings and 911 is called.

After the 118 treats the spouse, they ask the husband, “Why did you keep this from your partner for so long?”

And the man simply answers, “Everyone keeps secrets from their partner. If they say they don’t, they’re just lying.”

When they get back, it sits uneasy with everyone and unfortunately for all of them, their shift is very very quiet. So much so that Bobby secretly goes off and whispers “quiet,” to try and keep everyone from going stir crazy. It does not work.

Of course, the stir crazy leads to 118 asking what’s the worst thing they kept from their partner and if they ever kept a secret from each other. And when they ask Buck, Eddie laughs and says, “No, he’s horrible at keeping secrets. He’s never kept anything from me for too long.”

And Buck kind of looks around uncomfortably and says, “Uh… actually I have.”

Chimney then turns to Hen and asks if she’s kept anything from him, but Hen gets distracted by Buck abruptly getting up and leaving, offering them an awkward excuse about something he needs to do.

As soon as he’s gone, Chimney, Hen, and Ravi all start gossiping about what it is that Buck could be keeping from Eddie which generates a lot of buzz. But the main rumor that takes Eddie off guard is the possibility that Buck had a crush on him when he first joined the 118.

Of course, at the end of their shift, after many crazy accusations - including one about Buck secretly being British - Eddie finally asks Buck what he kept from him.

Buck blushes a bit before finally mumbling, “I don’t actually like video games that much. Yeah! I love playing them with you and Chris but on my own… I don’t know.”

And Eddie lets out a huge breath of relief and confesses, “I didn’t really like them until Christopher, but hey, we can always switch it up a bit and play more board games.”

Buck just kind of smiles at the answer but then narrows his eyes at Eddie. “What did you think I was going to say? Obviously you had something else in mind.”

Eddie just laughs and shakes his head while grabbing his stuff out of his locker. “I don’t know. Honestly, we were theorizing about it all day.”

“And what was the main theory?” Buck asks, leaning against his locker with his arms crossed, a curious smile on his face.

Eddie sends him a nervous glance and shrugs. “That you had a crush on me when I first got here, but I know that’s ridiculous.”

Only, Buck doesn’t laugh in the way he does when he finds something ridiculous. He merely gets a pinched look on his face, the same look he’d have when he helped Chris with math - pre lightning incident.

Some clarity washes over his face, then Buck laughs and says, “You know, I thought I was jealous of you, but the crush kind of makes sense. I mean, it explains why I was so obsessed with you, always showing off in front of you, watching your every move on the job and back at the station. I even got this fluttery feeling in my chest when I first saw you, but I thought that was like… my heart skipping a beat in jealousy. Which is really dumb.” And Buck just flushes a little and laughs again as if this confession isn’t literally sending Eddie spiraling. “I guess I did have a crush on you when you joined. Just didn’t know I was keeping it a secret from you.”

Eddie just stares at him and swallows hard. He tries to get some words out, but he doesn’t even know what to say.

Then, Buck puts on his coat and grabs his stuff asking, “We’re still good for the zoo tomorrow at nine?”

And all Eddie can do is nod and plaster on a smile, performing as always.

“Great. I’ll see you then.”

Then, Buck’s gone, and Eddie is left reeling in the confession. He suddenly understands why partners keep stuff from each other.

Later when Buck texts hey I forgot to ask. have you ever kept something from me? something I never found out about?

Eddie quickly replies I’m sure I have, but nothing too life altering.

But he’s absolutely lying because he’s pretty sure his own feelings for Buck that he’s always kept under the surface are, in fact, very life altering.

[junkissed]

enha surprise adopting a kitten

member — enhypen hyung line (heeseung, jay, jake, sunghoon) x gn reader genre — fluff, sfw word count — 1.6k warnings — kissing, pet names (baby, babe, beautiful, etc.) that's about it notes — requested by @onlymingyus — thank you sm for the request my lovely mars !! this is my first time posting for a group besides svt so i hope yall enjoy reading :) if you did please feel free to reblog or send an ask, it is super encouraging and helps me keep writing <3 enjoy!

heeseung . . . might be confused why it had to be a surprise, because he would’ve said yes anyway, but he would ultimately accept it pretty easily. it's not the weirdest thing you've ever brought home, and he's been thinking about getting a pet anyway, so this is honestly a win all around. he’s flexible and he’ll adapt to pretty much anything you throw at him, so fitting a cat into your daily lives won’t be difficult on his part.

"where did you find that?" he asks nonchalantly when you walk in the door, strolling out of the living room to greet you.

"no idea, he just followed me home. maybe we're being stalked." you giggle as you lean in to give him a kiss, the same way you do every single day when you get home, and he grins at how ordinary this is for you. only you could show up with a kitten unannounced and act like it's the most normal thing in the world. but he loves your normal.

you hand the tiny kitten off to him as you shut the door behind you and slip off your shoes, and you miss the tender look in his eyes while you're digging through your purse in search of something. "obviously i adopted him," you admit, looking up at him as you finally find what you were looking for.

"well, i can never tell with you, baby. the other explanation worked too," heeseung laughs, carefully stroking his index finger over the kitten’s head. you can already tell it’s going to be impossible to get the two of them apart, already forming an instant, inseparable bond.

you hold out the small stack of papers for him to glance at. "the shelter was having an adoption event, and i saw it on my way home from work. and besides, i felt like we needed a little guy running around here. you'll get lonely without me all day."

your reasoning makes the corners of his mouth turn up in a smirk, because it's such a you thing to do. your spontaneity is one of the things he loves most about you, the fact that you could adopt a kitten on a whim because you think he needs a reminder of you. what you don't realize is that everything already does remind him of you, but… he supposes a furry little friend couldn't hurt, too. "you know me so well, beautiful. can't live without you."

you beam at him, and he can't help but think that he'd let you surprise him with a zoo full of kittens if it means he gets to see you smile like that all the time. "so… you like him?"

"of course i do." he leans in to give you a kiss, and you laugh when the tiniest, softest mew springs up from between you.

"good," you say, kissing him back. "because i think he already likes you."

jay . . . obviously can't have a real cat, but i think he’d still enjoy your surprise. he always indulges in your surprise endeavors, and although he has his reservations you always manage to make him smile in ways he doesn’t expect.

"i got you a surprise," you grin as you walk into the kitchen, clutching something behind your back.

"what is it this time?" he turns and looks up from the pan on the stove where he’s started making dinner, cocking an eyebrow at you. try as he might, he never knows what you’re going to bring home with you next, but he’s gotten used to it.

"a kitten."

his eyes narrow in lighthearted suspicion, and he points his spatula at you warily. you’ve had this conversation before, and as much as he would love to own a house full of cats, he just can’t. even the hypoallergenic breeds don’t make much of a difference, so for now he’s content with cat videos on the internet and the occasional trip to volunteer at the animal shelter, as long as he stocks up on allergy medicine beforehand. "babe, you know—"

but before he can finish his sentence you pull your arms around to reveal what you've been hiding: a stuffed toy cat with a bow around its neck.

"cute," he concedes, his expression softening. he should’ve guessed it would be something like this. you know him too well and love him too much to ever purposely do something he wouldn’t be able to enjoy.

"you really thought i brought you a real cat?" you grin playfully at his reaction, because it was exactly the response you’d been hoping for. your boyfriend is too much fun to tease, and you can never resist the opportunity to string him along for the sake of a little fun.

jay pointedly ignores your question and turns back to his cooking, but he doesn’t try to hide the small smile on his face. "dinner’s on in 10. will our… new friend, be joining us?"

you wrap your arms around him from behind and kiss him on the cheek. "of course. i’ll be sure to set out an extra plate."

jake . . . is a dog person through and through, but that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t enjoy having a cat, too. he would be excited at the idea of it at first, but he’d get more nervous as time goes on. it’s a lot of responsibility owning a pet, and although he’s an experienced dog dad he doesn’t know much about taking care of a cat.

"are you sure? what if she, like, bites?"

you shrug with a smile, still cupping the kitten in the palms of your hands and holding her out for him to look at. "i don’t know, jake, it’s just a kitten. she’s not going to murder you in your sleep. she’s probably just as scared of you as you are of her."

he lets out a chuckle at that, because he knows you’re right. he knows it’s an irrational thing to be afraid of, and it’s really not even a fear in the first place, but he’s can’t help that he’s just awkward around cats. he’s more used to dogs; what do you even do with a cat?

but it isn’t long before he’s playing with the kitten just as enthusiastically as he plays with layla, and there’s been more than a couple times when you’ve come home and found the three of them playing fetch together. at first he’d been worried about whether a kitten would be able to fit into your routine, but although he had his doubts he quickly comes to love your new friend. he's a fast learner when it comes to taking care of things, and before long he'd be a natural at it.

sunghoon . . . might be hesitant, but not for long. his reaction would be like when dads say they don't want a pet but then a week later you find him explaining the rules of football to them. he’s more easily won over than he thinks: he swears up and down that he only likes dogs, but then you see him being so attentive to your new kitten and you can’t help but laugh because his soft spot is so obvious even though he always tries to deny it. that kitten is going to be his new best friend, whether he likes it or not (spoiler: he likes it.)

"did you get more cat treats when you went to the store the other day?" he asks casually, not looking up from his phone where he’s sitting on the couch. the newest member of your family sits curled up on his lap, sleeping soundly as he runs his fingers gently over the soft fur of her back.

you hum curiously in reply. "no? there was half a bag left last time i checked. are they gone already?"

sunghoon doesn't reply, which is an admission in itself, and you can't help but roll your eyes and smile.

"you know you're only supposed to give cats a couple of those a day, at most?"

"well, it's her fault, not mine." he makes a huffing noise in disagreement, and it's so endearing you can't actually be mad at him, as much as you'd like to scold him. "she was giving me that look. she deserved those treats. i couldn't deny her."

you find it endlessly adorable how in love he is with this kitten, despite his insistence otherwise. on the outside he seems quiet, but he's really just thinking of the things he still has to do. have the toys he ordered online shipped yet? did he remember to change the litter box? has he spent enough time cuddling today— with both you and the kitten? these are all vital questions that he has to make sure are addressed, and the current order of business on his list is the lack of cat treats. luckily for him, he's not the only one in the house who has a soft spot: you have one for him, too.

i hope you enjoyed this!! if you did, consider reblogging or leaving a comment or an ask :) it shows me this is something people want to see more of, and knowing people like this makes me want to write more of it! thanks for reading!! this is also my first time (officially) writing for enhypen so pls let me know how you liked it, feedback is super appreciated <3

if you want to be notified when i post a new fic, you can join my taglist here!

taglist — located in the replies (i will be tagging those who selected "yes, tag me for everything" on my taglist form, but if you'd like me to remove you please lmk! i probably will not be posting many non-svt fics like this so don't worry lol)

[hassianlovebot]

and actually,,, i Think a big reason why i liked the chapaa chase at the beginning was because there was nothing else to do at the first one. but then the hotpot happened,, and now the shooting game,,, it's like they keep releasing other minigames that are Way more fun, rewarding, and fair. and most importantly (for me at least), aren't overstimulating and/or stressful as hell.

comparing the chapaa chase to those two and it's like? no wonder i'm finding it more annoying. i feel like i was able to overlook a lot of the issues with the game at first because i had nothing to compare it against. but now we have Two amazing examples of minigames that people love and don't find stressful. one of which was so popular they added it to the game full time!! there's no way they'd be able to do that with the chapaa chase aljdhg

i feel like every time the maji market happens, i like the chapaa chase less and less.....

[some-triangles]

I've been on tumblr since 2011, and this is technically a sideblog. My creative focus shifted over here, to - I guess what could loosely be referred to as fandom space? It was Homestuck's fault - many years ago, and I more or less consciously decided to shift the original blog's purpose from writing little bits of poetry about weird birds to finding bird videos on other platforms that I thought could go viral and reposting (stealing) them. (Always credited, of course. I'm not a monster.) This worked pretty well, and now I have 6000+ followers over there. Since I never use it to promote anything or for any purpose beyond birdposting I feel OK about this as an experiment. I mostly use it to people-watch.

The latest video I have gaining traction over there is one my friend Rat sent me (one of many friends who either found me through birds or Homestuck and each is equally plausible) in which a pelican at a petting zoo is forced to cough up the gosling it was attempting to swallow by a handler who has clearly had to deal with this many times before. She then frogmarches (birdmarches?) it away by its beak. Good stuff, and very on brand, as I've been warning people about the horrors of pelican vore for ages. (I even got my very own pervert for a while, an anon who kept badgering various bird blogs to write about what it might be like to be swallowed.) When something I post starts doing numbers I like to watch the notes and tags, because it fascinates me how people like to make the same jokes, over and over and over. Not even their own jokes. I have never fully understood this but it's undeniably foundational to the way the internet works. Like, I get dropping References in conversation - social glue and all that, fun and funny - but in a public forum? Where you could literally check and see how many people have said the same thing before you got to it? Baffling. Universal.

Anyway. We started slow with this one, and we had some discerning folks doing Democracy Manifest bits - succulent avian meal, and all that. As references go it's a pretty good one, as it has its own wikipedia page and everything, and it's timely with Jack Karlson's recent passing. There were a few I am Forcibly Escorted From tags, which is nice, since you don't hear that one much these days. A bunch of quotidian "she's so done" or "like a toddler being dragged by his ear" observations, mostly uninspiring, although the specificity of one person's "my mom dragging me into the church bathroom to whoop my ass" was worth sharing. A little bit of the classic concern trolling you get with any animal video - why indeed is this bird being kept in the same place as all these edible little guys? But, inevitably, because it is the perfect time to use it, most people went with "put baby in pelican mouth."

And the thing about this is that I know the person who wrote the original "put baby in pelican mouth" post. We met through tumblr. She was absolutely inspired by my pelican posting to write that piece, and I know that because we ended up dating. It ended badly, and I still have regrets about it, and now, every time I make a pelican post, I am treated to a choir of strangers - literally hundreds of them - repeating a joke which was written by my ex-girlfriend. It's straight from the ironic punishment division, really. But birdpost I must, and tagwatch I must.

Anyway, Nikki, if you're out there, hope you're doing well.

[nogenderbee]

♡˗ˏ✎*ೃ˚ 𝔼𝕞𝕠𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟𝕝𝕖𝕤𝕤 ₊˚ˑ༄

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ anon request: I SAW UR REQUEST HAVING ONE SPACE OPEN SO IM TYPING THIS AA FAST AS I COULD.

urm CAN I HAVE akito, tsukasa, shizuku and minori with n25! reader, who's similar to mafuyu but the difference is she doesn't like fake a cheerful exterior like mafu???

😺😺😺😺😺😺😺 pls

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ Yes ofc!! Also, I saw second ask of yours abt making it platonic so dw it is ^^

Also why it felt like I was being bribed with cats- /j

Anyway!! Hope you like it!

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ platonic, TW: small swear in Akito's part

✧ when Minori saw you, she quickly got reminded about how she used to be before she saw Haruka in TV

✧ so she thought that if she wants to be a good idol, she should make you smile too! Though it turned to be way harder task than she thought it'll be...

✧ she tried approaching you every day and making little puns or just sillying around, showing pictures of cute animals... Anything to get reaction out of you!

✧ but when she always saw that same emotionless face... she was honestly at the verge of giving up one time... but she didn't in the end!

✧ you honestly may see her as annoying, but she doesn't mind! Because she's determined to help you, even if she'll need to have little heart to heart conversation

"I... I don't want to see you so sad about life. I know how it is so... please let me help you!! At least allow me to keep trying, because I don't want to give up yet!"

✧ she honestly kinda likes the fact you're not masking your emotions, because that means the smile she'll see one day on your face will be genuine and not forced one

﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌

@bleachtheidiot @ravenmoon903 @yulikesminori - come get your Haruka fan!

✧ Shizuku was a bit concerned when she saw how emotionless you seemed to be... and she can't really let it go, no?

✧ she first approaches you asking a bunch of questions what's wrong, bothering you or so on...

✧ and when you said you're just like this she honestly gets even more concerned...

✧ she doesn't really want to bother you too much so she simply approaches you every now and then, whenever she sees you

✧ she doesn't really know how to help you... she just wants you to be happy...

"Are you... happy like this? Do you enjoy not caring about so much?"

"I can't feel anything."

✧ she probably tried to get what you like out of you... and if she can't? She probably goes with giving you sweets randomly and seeing how you react on them!

✧ probably also took you out to many cute or fun places like: penguin cafe or amusement park, zoos... everything to see you enjoying yourself

✧ but even when everything fails... she might give up for a while but never forever! She'll come back after a week or so of break~

﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌

@bleachtheidiot @ravenmoon903 @qwnelisa @miya-akane @miguelito-maruti-blog - come get your beautiful model~

✧ Akito honestly couldn't care less about a stranger... maybe you're just in bad mood or have resting bitch face or something. He doesn't care

✧ he knows how annoying it is to be constantly asked about why you're like this

✧ the situation changes when you're already friends... he'll ask you why you're always so emotionless and may even get a bit frustrated with your attitude sometimes

✧ he doesn't like to force help so he'll just ask you straight and take actions depending on your answer

"Do you even want to feel anything? Happiness? Anger? Whatever?"

✧ if you say you don't, he'll just shrug it off and let you live your life!

✧ but if you say you'd like to try... he'd also try to make you feel something

✧ his first idea is to move your heart with music! But when that doesn't work he just uses his friends to help him figure something out

✧ after no results though, he'll probably give up a little bit... he'll still try but definitely won't be as determined as he used to be about it

﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌

@bleachtheidiot @akitosheart @yulikesminori @miya-akane @hayillaaaaaaa @stellas-starry-stories13 @hakulivesformusic @luhvashh @akiritoz @sucodelaranja86 @aluvslink - come get your pancakes lover!

✧ at first Tsuaksa was sure you were just in bad mood... and he can't really let anyone be like that as a star, right?!

✧ so he immidietly approached you with loud greeting hoping to get a reaction out of you

"HEY! I'M THE STAR OF THIS WORLD! TSUAKSA! Now... WHY ARE YOU SO DOWN, MY FRIEND?!"

"... Just because."

✧ he literally had Akito's "Miku?!" pikachu face when you just walked away from him so nonchalantly

✧ it honestly only made him more determined to go after you and get you to smile!

✧ so ever since that day, he became the biggest nuisance to you and kept approaching you every day in hopes to see any kind of emotion other than not caring one

✧ at this point he'll even take frustration as success to be honest... he's just so tired of seeing you so emotionless, he wants to see if you can feel ANYTHING else!

✧ he'll probably invite you to many of his shows or even do some private ones for you just to end up getting thumbs up and being frustrated himself...

﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌

@bleachtheidiot @akitosheart @wholesaleboi @yulikesminori @alicewinterway18 @hakulivesformusic @sucodelaranja86 - come get your future star!

[importantgalaxyrunaway]

Between the bars (Coriolanus Snow x reader)

AUTHORS NOTE 📝 : yall im so proud of this one i think its my best one yet would you want a part two bc i would be interested please comment and o worked Really really hard on this one especially a little longer than normal got a little carried away.

WARNINGS: pining, my post concussion writing, suggestive but no lemon, hardcore making out, fluff and slight angst w/ coryo family, tried my best for snow to be in character, were basically Lucy gray

My hands wrapped around the cold metal bars of the monkey house where I was enclosed in. I couldn’t sleep no, not a wink so I decided to watch over my district parter. It was cold at night, they didn’t give us any blankets. It’s barbaric the way they treat us, just because we’re district doesn’t mean we’re not human. And just since most of us are going to our death you’d think that we’d be entitled to a least a little dignity.

you’d think….

Suddenly I hear footsteps and peer out the bars of the monkey cage into the empty zoo. Well…..not empty anymore. There approaching me is the one person who has treated me fairly since coming here. He handles me like I was a true lady of the capital.

Coriolanus snow walked up to the bars where I was.

“hello y/n….I’ve brought you something” he hands me an intricate compact “it was my mothers I thought it would remind you of me in the arena and…….” He pauses and looks around though no one is there “there’s poison in it. I know, but only in self defense in that arena your going to things you’re not proud of”

I nod “I understand” I say knowing I’ll have to use it at some point “it’s beautiful…thank you” I run my fingers over the delicate and fancy design.

he smiles. That smile that stupid smirk. When I first met Coriolanus I had to admit I was struck by how attractive he was. Paired with holding out a rose for me to take from his hand and saying that he would take care of me….well it’s enough to have any girl blushing like a fool. I tried my best to keep it together but I knew some of the blush was showing on my face when he held out the rose. Whenever I look at him I get butterflies in my stomach. Little did I know at the time he felt almost the exact same way about me and my appearance when he first saw me. But it was my spirit at the reaping and going foreward that truly made him fall for her. In fact the was one of the things that prompted him to arrive with the rose at the train station. When I was reaped I didn’t cry or scream or anything but….well I sung. I’ve always been a performer at heart and though my song was very short it showed that they couldn’t break my spirit.

now he leans down and brings his face close to mine. Closer than ever before.

“Coryo, I don’t know if I’ll ever see you again…but I wanted to thank you, you’ve treated me well like an equal and that’s rare. If I die in that arena it won’t be your fault-“

“I’m going you out of there y/n. You’re not just a tribute to me. You’re going to survive”he shocks even himself by saying it. He had never spoken about his feelings to y/n. Not even to Tigris. But with the games tomorrow there was no chance other than now. He was enchanted by her beauty and her charm when they first met, her realness. And though it was hard to admit her survival in that arena now meant much more to him than just getting the plinthe prize. He cared about her. Love was a feeling that was all too foreign to the young Coriolanus snow. He had only ever possibly experimented with a girl or two and that was nothing special just a fling. He was an orphan he never knew love from his parents all he had was Tigris, the grandma’m and now y/n.

I let my fingers slip in between the the bars that separated us and caress the side of his soft cheek. Letting myself give in to the temptation that has plagued me ever since we met. His eyes lock onto mine and me gaze at each other for a while lost in our own thoughts. as I stroke his cheek he leans into my touch so heavily as though he has never felt real love in his life. My other hand goes to cup his other cheek from the side so I’m holding his head in my hands now. He looks up at me and I slide one of my hands down to his neck. He was so clearly touch starved, I could see the desperation and hunger in his eyes.

and we’re both wondering the same thing. is this it? Is this the last time l’ll ever see them?

“Y/n l/n” he breathed like it was a desperate plea.

“coryo…”

and then he leans in close and we are in between the bars. He kisses me at first gently, soft and pure like driven snow. I can smell the roses on him a sweet scent that fills my lungs and takes me away. And we both forget about everything. The arena, the tributes, the fact I might be facing my death tomorrow. Because all I can feel is his lips upon mine. His lips are warm and soft, unlike the cold crisp air around us. We’re almost gasping for air. The kiss turns hot and heavy. More rough as it goes on. Like he was holding back before, now he had given up the fight with control. I gasp as I feel his hand snake around to the back off my head and pulling impossibly closer to him in the kiss. When I gasp he takes advantage of that and and deepens the kiss even further if possible. It was never a fight for dominance he took control. A small groan of pleasure escapes Coriolanus’s lips. I hum in response showing that I’m enjoying it as much as he is. Eventually we break and put our foreheads together.

And there stands Coriolanus snow one of the finest men in the capital, panting uniform messed up, and face as red as a beet. All because of the tribute y/n l/n from district 12. She had more than just affect on him. That was an understatement

not that she was any better…

Our foreheads touching both of us panting for our lives, tomato faced. I gaze once again into those beautiful blue irises that remind me of crystals

“Coryo…I won’t let you down in that arena I’ll survive for us…you’ve given me something to fight for” I breathe out

”and you’ve given me someone to root for. I’ll be waiting for you y/n” he almost whispers the last sentence

[gunnrblze]

Random Elias headcannons (pre ODIN/death(?) idk)

➤homebody when he’s off duty

➤ambivert^would rather spend his time relaxing when he can, but does like spending time with the ghosts/Hesh & Logan especially

➤has trouble relaxing though, a little high strung. feels the need to always be doing something

➤likes to garden, did it a lot with Miss Mama Walker

➤type of fella to eat cornflakes for breakfast lol. Raisin Bran ass old man

➤paces a lot for various reasons. “shh, I’m thinking” he’ll say if you try to interrupt

➤relatively chill but will go from 0 to 100 very quickly. levelheaded enough to rarely get out of control though. temper, but he knows how to tame it

➤takes his coffee black with a little creamer, no sugar

➤closeted. even to himself a bit, like he just does not really clock the fact that he likes men in a serious way

➤lovedddd Miss Mama Walker with his whole heart and soul, and i think she knew he was a lil queer and just kinda let it be, cause he was devoted to her regardless and they were locked in

➤sudoku king

➤very hard worker (capricorn energy lol), had that quality instilled in him by his father, and did the same thing with Hesh and Logan

➤regularly wears those ridiculously tight t-shirts as seen above (zoo wee mama thank you) cause he’s a little oddly proportioned. his shoulders are so wide that shirts just always fit a lil weird

➤history buff. ask him anything and he can probably tell you a great deal about any given major event. type of guy that has “fun facts” that you actually might not have known (at least, they’re fun to him lol)

➤would quiz Hesh and Logan as kids on military history/general history. he’s not so secretly a bit of a nerd, so every once in a while Hesh and Logan will also just be like “did you know the first ever living creature in space was a dog-“

➤loves lemonade. complains when it gives him acid reflux. still drinks it

➤gives the best side eye/glares. the wordless type that definitely make you start acting right

[wooahaes]

late night chats

pairing: non-idol!bang chan x fem!reader

genre: fluff. silly lil fluff.

warnings: food. its just a silly lil fic abt making plans w chris. mentions of past panic attacks and a not great ex-best friend.

word count: ~1.2k

daisy's notes: oh to go see the tigers with someone i love......

Chris turned over to wish you a happy birthday right at midnight, for once in bed… Only to find that you weren’t there.

He pushed the blankets off, stretching as he sat up before slipping into his house slippers. For once, he was half-asleep (the things he did for you), and pushed himself up. With a slight sway, he rubbed at his eyes before groping around for where he’d thrown his hoodie… Only to find that it was missing, too. No doubt your doing. Not that it bothered him: you liked stealing his hoodies. You told him once that you liked the smell of his cologne, and hugging or draping his hoodies around your shoulders often made you feel closer to him. Sure, sometimes you’d wear his larger ones, but you liked draping them over your shoulders the same way he would sometimes while you were working. 

Easily enough, he found you in the kitchen, standing over a pot of ramen, a pan sitting next to it with nothing in it at the moment. You had tied the sleeves of his hoodie so that it hung around your shoulders, some video essay playing off of your phone. The carton of eggs sat next to you, and you reached over to pop it open.

“Birthday ramen?” He said, trying to make a joke out of it. Except you jerked back, a sharp gasp escaping you as you turned to face Chris.

Instantly, you were relieved, even though you likely knew how silly it was to be startled by him. “You can go back to sleep, Chris,” you said after a moment, turning back to your ramen. “I’m just hungry.”

“Nah.” He made his way over, leaning against the counter. “I’m not tired.” He paused, glancing down at your ramen. “... Do you wanna share?”

With a sigh of relief, you bumped your shoulder against his. “I don’t think I could finish this alone. You want an egg?”

Chris then watched as you cracked a few eggs into the pan—one for him, one for yourself—before changing the topic. “So… Any plans for the day?”

You shrugged. “I dunno. Bare minimum was taking the day off, and since I did get it…” You chewed at the inside of your cheek for a moment. “Didn’t think ahead past a vague ‘enjoy freedom.’”

He nodded along, arms folded across his chest. “We could… go to the aquarium.” 

“We went a few weeks ago,” you said. “With Felix and Jeongin.”

Ah. Right. It’d been your idea to invite the two. Chris hummed to himself. “Amusement park?”

“Ehhh.” 

“Oh.” He looked at you again, “Right, you don’t like roller coasters.”

“It’s not that I don’t like them—”

He shook his head. “No, I remember the story you told me. High school best friend forced you onto a ride you didn’t want to go on, and you had a panic attack afterward.” Chris frowned at the thought. You’d laughed off the story when you first told it to him, but it was half-hearted. He’d held your hand and promised he’d never push you into anything you were completely sure you didn’t want to do (and he’d keep holding your hand if you decided you wanted to try something). “Still can’t believe she fucking laughed at you.”

You shrugged it off, not meeting his gaze as you pressed your lips together for a minute. A few seconds later, you forced a smile. “Eh. It is what it is.” 

Except you deserved better than that, he wanted to say. Sometimes Chris imagined how different certain situations in your life could have gone if he had been there to hold your hand and speak up where you were too afraid to. He would have told her that it wasn’t funny. He would have split a funnel cake with you and called you cute. Maybe next time some of his friends wanted to go, he’d get you to go with him and he’d split one with you there and keep you company when they wanted to go on rides you didn’t like. 

Something stuck out in his mind, though. “... Zoo?”

Immediately, your head jerked up. “Hm?” But he could see the look in your eyes, a new idea planted right then and there in your brain. 

He giggled. “You’re like Berry when I ask her if she wants to go for a walk.”

With a snort, you rolled your eyes and turned back to the ramen. “Still…”

“If you wanna go to the zoo, we can go to the zoo.” He smiled to himself, already planning out the trail the two of you could take. He knew one of them was called the tiger trail, and, well… If the tiger plushies that littered your bedroom weren’t proof enough of your love of the big cat, everything he knew about you did. He shimmied his shoulders playfully as he moved his way over to you, “We could see the tiiigers—”

In the tiniest voice, you spoke up shyly, “... Could we?”

He just pulled you into his arms with a laugh. “If that’s what you wanna do! It’s your birthday,” he kissed the side of your neck before nuzzling his nose against it. “If you wanna see the tigers, we’ll go see the tigers.” Chris could feel the way your skin warmed up, and he just giggled again at how flustered you’d become. “Baby?” He turned you around to face him, caging you in between himself and the oven. “Say it.”

You buried your face into your hands. “You’re embarrassing.”

“I’m not gonna make fun of you,” he said, poking your sides just to see you jolt. “I just wanna hear you say it.”

Even after dating him for this long, you were still so shy sometimes. “Chris?” You peeked at him from between your fingers. “I wanna go see the tigers.”

He pulled your hands away from your face all too easily, peppering your face with kisses. “Then we’ll go see the tigers!” He held your face in his hands. “You’re so cute.”

You averted your gaze, and then finally spoke up after a few seconds, “takes one to know one.”

Fine. He’d let you get that one for today. Other days, he’d deny it and try to paint you as the cutest one in this relationship (truly, there was no competition in his eyes), but for today? He’d let you win. He just kissed you, warm and sweet, before drawing back. “Happy birthday,” he said. And then he pinched your cheeks one last time. “Gonna go see the tigers with my baby…”

You finally let out a groan, yet it was clear how much you still loved him. He might be a dorky mess of a partner, but he was yours. “We can go see your family, too, y’know,” you turned back to the stovetop to make sure nothing had stuck over overcooked. “There’s kangaroos.”

He just laughed, wrapping his arms around you. “Whatever you wanna do,” he said. “I’ll be right there with you.”

taglist: @twancingyunhao @weird-bookworm @bangchansbae @jinnie-ret @cheesemonky

[a-sunset-outside-my-window]

fic recs of the month

This is just a collection of my fic recs for the month of march, have fun <3

The Lab

by @de-sire-blog (de_sire) on Ao3

“I don’t get it,” Sirius says truthfully. “Remus is such a nice person, why does everyone pretend like he’s some kind of wicked stepmother?”

James laughs joyfully and winks at Sirius. “Are we even talking about the same person?” He holds out his hand above his head. “Big guy, about this tall, curly hair? Temper like a sleeping dragon? Smart, but a bit full of himself? Can kill you with his eyes?”

Sirius raises his eyebrows and laughs as well. “No, I don’t think we are talking about the same person at all.”  

A love story about healing, new beginnings and growing up. Academia! Romance! Shared cigarettes, cute cats, lots of coffee and the most amorous business trip you have ever seen.

the hare and the hound

by @steelycunt (aeridi0nis) on Ao3

‘He’ll never have to do it again, Remus realises. He can just keep being good, if he just behaves, he’ll never have to do it again, never with the dark and the bleeding and the crying. He just can’t give them reason to be angry at him, and he won’t, he hasn’t. And his mum is right – the drink does make him feel a little better.’

or:

Remus is a terribly behaved five-year-old. He doesn’t really think so himself, but his parents lock him in the cellar every month, so he must be doing something to deserve it. Well, not anymore. He’s got a plan, see, sort of. He’ll never go downstairs again.

Dusk

by @theresthesnitch on Ao3

“That’s not fair.” Sirius was crying now, and Remus swiped his tears away with his thumb. “This isn’t fair. We haven’t had enough time. It’s not fair.” 

“I know, love.” Remus leaned in for a kiss, and wondered if it would be the last. “I have loved you for sixty-two years, and it’s nowhere near enough.” 

Or

Sirius loses his memories.

Lupine

by @wolfstarbuxks (BayleyWinchester) on Ao3

Lupine adjective lu·pine | \ ˈlü-ˌpīn \ Definition of lupine : WOLFISH

Teddy is Remus' everything in life. He'd do anything for his son - including going to the same zoo, twice a week for a year so that his son could see the wolves that he had fallen in love with.

And if that meant that Remus got to met a sexy zookeeper, who was he to complain?

CONSTANT VIGILANCE and COMMON SENSE

by darkbluedark on Ao3

In which Alastor not-yet-"Mad-Eye"-but-still-quite-Mad Moody does as Alastor "Just Mad" Moody does, and brings a sneakoscope to an Order meeting.

~The kind of fix-it that makes so much sense that the fact that it isn't canon should be considered a plot hole in itself~

A Brief History of Dragons

by @eyra on Ao3

It's lovely up here; all meadows dotted with wildflowers, wind-beaten tracks criss-crossing this way and that through the fields, weaving inland to the pinewoods. The sun's hot on his back as he passes ramshackle stone walls, long since crumbled to piles of ancient rubble and scree, and then the path winds downwards, still following the line of the coast until Sirius finds himself outside an old white cottage, tucked away behind the hill with a rose garden that faces out to the sea.

Sirius moves to Cornwall for the summer and meets a rude, beautiful boy who is writing a book that may or may not be about dragons.

The Phoenix Agency

by LupinsChocolatePraline on Ao3

Sirius Black is excited to start his first full-time job after Uni, but this life change doesn’t sit well with his boyfriend who is difficult to live with on a good day, abusive on all other days. Sirius is good at pretending that everything is alright, he can even convince himself, but sometimes he wishes things were different. The problem is – Fabian is all Sirius has. Or so they both think.

Remus Lupin is a senior copywriter at an advertising agency, currently single by choice, and very comfortable with his unchanging daily routine, his familiar colleagues and his company-issued ergonomic chair that’s been his for three years now. When his favourite graphic designer is replaced by a twitchy, fresh-out-of-university Sirius Black, his peaceful routine takes an unexpected hit.

[intimidating-fettuccine]

Silly light headcanons because I really need them

I've been going through a very tough time and today I really need some fluff to distract myself. I hope you enjoy.

BEN teaches the older creeps that are bad with electronics how to play video games. They have creep family game nights, and the older creeps usually don't participate because they aren't as good, so BEN has been taking them aside and teaching them how to play so they can feel more confident in participating too. He never laughs or judges them for their skills, and he reminds them that the others would be happy if they participated too.

There's a game of tag that has been going on in the mansion for several years. They keep switching who the one person that's It is, but to the point that people will forget who is It. Jeff was once It for seven months, to the point nobody could remember, and he tagged Toby in the middle of dinner which caused absolute chaos. They can choose to tag someone immediately, or hold onto it and wait for a moment of surprise, but you can't tag someone who was just It on the same day, and you can't tag people when they're asleep or working. Everyone in the mansion has been It at least probably 10 times, but they keep it going because it's so amusing. Tim is currently It, and he's been It for three months. He wants to get Slender, but Slender knows this and has been careful to avoid physical contact with Tim. Tim is a patient man. He will win this.

When someone can't fall asleep due to nightmares or bad memories haunting them, they're allowed to go to Slender, and he'll play piano for them. He'll sit with them, and play whatever song they'd like so long as he knows it or can see the sheet music for it. Sometimes they'll sit there for hours, the creep leaning sleepily against Slender as he plays for them. He'll even make a delicious warm drink for them first if they request it or he feels they could benefit from it. Slender doesn't mind missing out on his own sleep, as he likes to put the residents first and foremost. When they're calmed down and drowsy enough he'll walk them back to their room, give them a hug and a pat on the head, and send them off to bed. He'll always stay awake a little while longer in case they come back to him.

Sally has started sneaking people candy. Lately, she's been using her allowance money on others, as she feels it's one of the few ways she can help out. If someone has been very down lately, she'll ask someone to run her into town, and she'll go to her favorite candy store and pick out the creep's favorite candy if she knows it, and a few things she thinks they'd like. Once home, she'll grab some stickers from her collection, and put the stickers and the candy in the creeps room for them to find later. She does this purely to try and give them a little something to brighten their days and doesn't need anything in return, although the creeps that receive these little gifts always return the favor and get something for Sally to repay her. Her gifts have often made a few of them quite emotional, and it makes them all feel quite special.

There is a shared mansion Minecraft world. They have a rule that you can't destroy things someone else builds which everyone respects, and it's become common for people to play together. Sometimes it's the whole mansion, sometimes it's just a group of them, but they all have a lot of fun exploring the world together. BEN has built the most and often volunteers to build cool houses for everyone. Jeff helps people with mining the most and if someone asks him to get a certain amount of things for them he's happy to do it. Toby and Sally are making a zoo together, collecting a bunch of animals, and making beautiful and nice places for the animals to live in. Some of the creeps play more than others, but they try at least once a month for everyone to play together, in the same room or on a call, and it always devolves into happy chaos as everyone plays in their own special ways.

[slaymitchabernathy]

The Nanny

“Looks like you survived the first day.”

Soarynn can only nod and blink while she follows Eudora through more hallways of the Mansion. She had gone straight to bed last night after she got home, too tired to do anything else.

But this morning she made sure to wake up with enough time to shower, style her hair and prepare for another long day of running after the children. She had thought of maybe taking them to the zoo, but she supposed it was up to their father at the end of the day.

As Eudora had mentioned, the children didn’t do as much as they used to after their mother died. He probably didn’t want to risk losing them in some freak accident and Soarynn certainly didn’t want to be the cause of something like that.

“Now breakfast is very important,” Eudora tells her, “this is the only time that the children get to see their father so it’s imperative that you and I say nothing unless spoken to. We’ll go over our schedules for the day, but other than that, zip it.” She turns to Soarynn and mimics throwing away an imaginary key and Soarynn presses her lips into a thin line, earning her a smile from Eudora, “Good! Coriolanus usually arrives a few minutes after the children so they can get started on breakfast early.”

Soarynn follows her down a few more hallways until she can hear the familiar giggles of the children. “I could’ve woken them up,” she mumbles, feeling bad that someone—most likely Eudora—had to do it.

Eudora waves her off, “You can wake them up for the rest of your employment dear, don’t you worry.”

They walk into a beautifully decorated dining room, with floor to ceiling windows and mahogany finishings. It’s one of the most beautiful and expensive rooms Soarynn has ever been in so it makes sense for this to be the room the Snows only eat breakfast in.

Why have every meal in the same room when you have twenty more?

All three children are seated at the table but they’re running the second they see her and Eudora.

“Soarynn! Soarynn you came back!” Ceraphina shrieks, throwing her arms around Soarynn’s legs.

Soarynn chuckles and runs a loving hand through Ceraphina’s hair, looking down into her blue-gray eyes, “I promised I’d stick around didn’t I?”

Celeste comes up behind her sister, simply taking Soarynn’s hand instead, “Well people lie,” she tells her matter of factly.

She’s got a point.

“Daddy says to never lie,” Ceraphina continues, “lying is bad and it breaks trust because Daddy says so.” Celeste nods in agreement, “Mhm. No lying allowed.”

These girls seem to cling to every word their father says, so she’ll have to watch what she says as well. “Lying can be very hurtful,” Soarynn agrees, trying to steer the conversation in any other direction, “now why don’t we eat this delicious breakfast?”

She’s met with zero complaints and they all make their way over to the table where Caspian is watching them with sleepy eyes, Lenny nearly falling from his grasp. Soarynn chuckles, readjusting Lenny so that he doesn’t take a tumble onto the floor, “Good morning Caspian. Did you sleep well?”

Caspian mumbles something she can’t quite understand but he reaches out for her and Soarynn gladly pulls him into her lap.

Breakfast today is an assortment of pastries, eggs cooked in every possible way, fruits, and juices. The girls seem to only be eating the pastries, the croissants, and doughnuts whereas Eudora and Soarynn help themselves to some eggs and fruits.

“Is Daddy going to be home tonight for dinner?” Ceraphina asks, a few crumbs falling from her mouth as she finishes her croissant. Eudora shakes her head, reaching out to dab the corners of Ceraphina’s mouth with a napkin, “Don’t talk with food in your mouth dear. And no, your father has a very important meeting tonight. Soarynn will eat dinner with you.”

Soarynn offers Ceraphina a smile but she’s met with a pout, “Daddy never has dinner with us anymore,” she grumbles.

Before Soarynn or Eudora can say anything to prove that statement to be incorrect, a stern, authoritative voice fills the room. “What’s this about me not eating dinner with my girls?”

Both Ceraphina and Celeste gasp, turning to look over their chairs at their father making his way into the room. He looks very handsome today, wearing a charcoal gray suit with his curls slicked back. He looks like he just happened to stop by for breakfast. Soarynn wonders if this is a part of his schedule.

6:00 A.M. - Wake Up

8:00 A.M. - Breakfast with the children

8:45 A.M. - Start running the country

Soarynn wouldn’t be surprised if he had to schedule every little interaction just to stay on top of things.

Both girls are out of their seats again, running over to their father who bends down on one knee to be at eye level with them. Soarynn looks down at Caspian to see if he also wants to go greet his father, but he seems quite content in her lap, mindlessly chewing on a croissant.

"Daddy, can we please have dinner with you tonight? Please, please, please, we'll be so well-behaved," Ceraphina promises, getting Celeste to nod along with her, "Yes, we'll be so quiet," Celeste adds.

President Snow gives his girls a small smile, reaching out to brush some of Ceraphina's hair out from her face, "I'm afraid not my darlings, this dinner is strictly business. You know the rules."

The girls must not be big fans of these rules because they both slouch, and Soarynn can see Celeste is on the verge of tears which he's quick to interfere with, "No need for tears Celeste," he tells her, his thumb wiping away at her eyes, "we still get to have breakfast together, don't we?"

Celeste shoves his hand away, stomping her little foot for good measure, "But you always had dinner with us! When Mommy was alive, you always had din-"

"Mommy isn't here anymore," he cuts her off, his voice more stern than it was before as he takes her small hands into his big ones, "but if she were here, what would she say? What would she want you to do for her?"

Ceraphina perks up, raising her hand as if she's in class, "Oh I know! I know Daddy!" President Snow nods, his focus still on his youngest daughter, "I know you do sweetheart, and so does your sister, right?" He uses one hand to give her a gentle squeeze, making Celeste crack a small smile, "She'd want me to be on my best behavior," she says slowly, rocking back and forth on her heels, "...and to listen to you."

"Mhm. And I know you can do that for me, darling."

It's a sweet sight to watch the President of Panem get down on one knee to talk to his daughters, to watch him wipe their tears and give them a hug. Soarynn had wondered how involved he really was with his children's lives, but it seems that he knows them well enough to know what to say when things went south.

With no more tears threatening breakfast, the girls make their way back to the table, hand in hand with their father. Eudora doesn't even look up from the binder she brought, flipping through several pages of what Soarynn can only guess is his schedule.

Soarynn expects President Snow to take his seat but he walks around to her side which would make her nervous if it weren't for his youngest child sitting in her lap. She hopes that's alright, that Caspian won't get in trouble for sitting in her lap instead of his own chair. He's just so small and sweet, it's hard to say no to him.

President Snow doesn't even acknowledge her when he comes to a stop next to her, the scent of roses overwhelming her while he places a loving hand on Caspian's head, "Good morning Caspian."

Soarynn swallows at how deep President Snow's voice sounds in the morning. Caspian looks up at his father, piercing blue eyes meeting piercing blue eyes, "Lenny."

"Yes, I see you brought Lenny to breakfast...again. Imagine my surprise."

Caspian looks back down at his food, "Lenny," he mumbles, pulling at his croissant some more.

Soarynn keeps her head down, watching from her peripheral vision to see when President Snow finally sits down. He's seated between the girls which is probably for the best, both girls can get equal amounts of attention this way.

"Girls, you need to eat some eggs," he tells them, reaching for some fruits for himself. Ceraphina groans, slumping in her chair, "Eggs are gross." This earns her a sharp look from her father, "I'm sure people in the Districts would love eggs," he counters, grabbing the dish of scrambled eggs, "and eggs will help you grow to be proper ladies."

Ceraphina looks across the table at Soarynn, her eyes narrowing, "Do you eat eggs Soarynn?"

All eyes are on her now and Soarynn nervously brushes some of her hair out from her face, "I do," she answers, "a balanced meal is necessary to stay healthy." That wasn't the answer Ceraphina was looking for.

President Snow grunts and places some scrambled eggs on both girl's plates, "See? Now eat your eggs please."

There are worse things to eat but the girls don't push back any further, slowly but surely eating their eggs, even if they make very dramatic faces while doing so. President Snow shakes his head and looks over at Eudora, "What's my day looking like Eudora?"

Soarynn wonders how Eudora got this job, was she some event coordinator prior to landing this job? Or do all the Trinkets plan out the President's day?

"You have a meeting right after breakfast, then you have an interview with the Gazette, and after that, you have a phone call with the Mayors from Two, Four, and Six. Then after that..."

Soarynn tunes out the rest of the schedule, focusing on keeping most of Caspian's breakfast on his plate and not on the floor, "Soarynn, what're we doing today?" Celeste's question makes her a bit nervous, she had thought about the zoo, but another day in the house doesn't sound too bad now that her boss is sitting across from her.

Soarynn swallows, "I thought...I thought we might go to the zoo," she says softly, "but it might be too busy today."

The girls don't even listen to the last part, they're already gasping and squealing and grabbing their father by the arm, "Daddy! Daddy, can we go to the zoo with Soarynn? Please can we go?"

President Snow's piercing gaze finally lands on Soarynn and he looks nothing like the man she encountered last night. No, he looks like the man who asked about her dead father and then warned her to not act like the children's mother.

Soarynn feels so very small in her chair.

"I want to see the tigers," Celeste says, tugging on his sleeve, "and the birds, and the monkeys."

President Snow sighs, rubbing his temples, "It'll be hot today," he says, more to Soarynn than to his children, "but I suppose a trip to the zoo would be nice."

Soarynn lets out a small sigh of relief while the girls celebrate, cheering and promising to eat all of their eggs. President Snow says a few things to Eudora about extra security measures and clearing out the entire zoo before he starts asking the girls about what they did yesterday.

Soarynn heeds Eudora's words, staying out of the conversation and simply helping when needed. Caspian gets fussy after a while, wanting to be held by his father which is an adorable sight. He really is a miniature version of his father.

"Momma," Caspian says, looking up at his father expectantly.

President Snow shakes his head, a small smile on his lips while he fixes Caspian's bedhead, "She's not here anymore Cas. No more Momma."

Soarynn feels her heart breaking a little bit more for these children who so desperately miss their mother.

"Mommy's in the ground, remember Cas?" Ceraphina reminds him, poking at what remains of her breakfast, "Daddy says we can go put flowers on her grave soon."

Soarynn looks over at Eudora who's wearing a sad expression, perhaps she was close to Livia before she passed.

"Yes," their father finally says, "we can go put flowers on Mommy's grave soon."

꧁ ꧂

Soarynn never knew that a single child could possess so many clothes.

She spins around in Ceraphina's closet, in absolute awe at how many dresses she has. A normal four-year-old would have a normal amount of clothes, but Ceraphina Snow is not a normal child.

"Ceraphina darling, what do you want to wear today?" Soarynn calls, wondering if Ceraphina can ever hear her from all the way inside her closet. After breakfast Soarynn and the children made their way upstairs to get them properly dressed for their outing to the zoo.

She had left all three children in Ceraphina's bedroom, figuring it would be easier to dress them individually but they might want to pick out their own clothes. But she hears small footsteps a second later and looks down to find Ceraphina staring up at her, a smile on her cute face, "You called?"

Soarynn nods, "I did. What do you want to wear today? It will be hot like your father said." Ceraphina hums, spinning around her massive closet, her fingertips grazing several dresses until she stops on a pink dress, "This one! Except, you have to tie the bow in the back," she explains.

Soarynn pulls it off the rack to find that there is a small box that ties in the back, making it a very cute dress. "It's perfect," she tells the child, "and we can put a bow in your hair too."

Ceraphina gasps, not even thinking about her hair until now, "Will you braid my hair again? And Celeste's too?" Soarynn smiles and nods, it's so sweet how the girls always make sure to include one another.

Soarynn helps Ceraphina get dressed, making sure to tie the perfect bow, which earns her an excited squeal from Ceraphina, "Oh, it's so pretty!"

Soarynn wonders what the children's routine was with their last nanny. Did she let them pick out their clothes? Did she take them to the zoo?

But she doesn't think about it any longer, not when she's got to get Caspian and Celeste ready as well, "You look very fancy," Soarynn tells her, "like a true proper Capitol lady."

Her words must mean more than she thought to Ceraphina who's practically beaming, "Thank you!"

Soarynn hums, leading them back into the bathroom which is as massive as the closet. Soarynn sits Ceraphina up on the counter, and grabs a hairbrush, "You want me to braid it again?"

"Yes please."

Easy enough. Soarynn grew up braiding everyone's hair, it was the thing for girls to do. She and her friends would practice different styles on one another, all thinking about a future where they could have the chance to style their daughter's hair.

Ceraphina isn't her daughter though.

And she'd do well to remember that.

꧁ ꧂

Soarynn feels a little bit nervous stepping out with all three Snow children.

Getting them out of the house hadn't been too difficult, she thought their father might come say goodbye but he was nowhere to be seen after breakfast. The car ride was short which she was grateful for since both girls wanted to do everything but sit down and sit still.

At least Caspian sat still.

The August heat beats down on the small group as they make their way towards the zoo's entrance. Soarynn can't remember the last time she went to the zoo, she was probably around Ceraphina's age. As she got older, animals were replaced by catalogs and lipsticks.

Taking care of children means reliving the best parts of her childhood, the parts she got to spend with her father.

They're escorted by a group of Peacekeepers, clearing out the entire area for them. Soarynn barely sees anyone else at the zoo now that she thinks about it. Did President Snow close it down for them? She wouldn't put it past him.

"Look at the flamingos!" Soarynn watches the girls run over to the first enclosure, a small lake with beautiful pink birds wading in the water. Caspian is taking small, slow steps alongside her, looking around the zoo, "Lenny," he says, a small pout on his face.

Soarynn sighs, "I'm sorry darling, but Lenny might get lost if we bring him here. He's safe and sound back in your room."

Caspian shakes his head, "Lenny."

Soarynn had decided against bringing his precious stuffed animal to the zoo for the main purpose of keeping him safe. She didn't need him to fall into the wrong enclosure and go missing.

They finally reach the flamingos and she picks him up so that he can see better, "Look at the flamingos Cas," Ceraphina says, standing on her tiptoes, "they're so pink!"

Celeste tilts her head while watching the birds, "Why are they pink Soarynn? Did someone dye their feathers?"

Soarynn chuckles and shakes her head, what a sweet way to think of the flamingos, "No darling. I think it's what they eat that makes them pink." Celeste's eyes widen and she watches one of the birds flap its wings, "If I eat pink food will I turn pink?"

"You might feel sick, but you won't turn pink," Soarynn tells her, "why don't we go look at the monkeys?"

꧁ ꧂

They spend a good chunk of their afternoon running around the zoo.

Besides the workers, Soarynn doesn't see a single patron which further confirms that President Snow has seen to it that no one will disturb his children today.

The children loved watching the monkeys, especially since they're so similar to humans. Caspian was elated to see an actual lion, even if this one was sleeping the entire time they watched him. Caspian kept roaring at the lion, hoping to get a response. It did get the girls to giggle, Soarynn didn't know he could be so loud but anyone nearby could hear him.

Then they moved onto the aviary where they were all given sticks with birdseed stuck to them. If they stood still enough, a bird might land on the stick. The girls moved around far too much for a bird to even consider landing on their sticks, but Caspian actually managed to get one bird's attention.

Everyone gasped when the small wren landed on his stick, pecking at the birdseed. "That's a bird Caspian," Soarynn had whispered, watching Caspian's face of delight while the bird continued to peck at the seeds. "Bird," Caspian had repeated, eyes wide with amazement.

As the day dwindled down, they found themselves in the zoo's gift shop, which must be new because Soarynn knew for certain that it wasn't around when she was a little girl.

"Can we please get a stuffed animal?" Ceraphina asks, tugging on the dress Soarynn chose to wear today, giving her pleading eyes, "Just one stuffed animal, please?"

Soarynn wants to remind her that they've got an entire collection waiting at home, but she can see Celeste eyeing a stuffed bear already like she owns it. Whoever designed the gift shop to be right next to the exit must hate parents because this is a recipe for disaster.

Soarynn cards her fingers through her hair, "I don't think so darling. We'd have to pay for the stuffed ani-"

"It's free of charge," a worker interjects, flashing them a Capitol smile, "President Snow insists. Pick whatever you like."

Well, that's the greenlight Soarynn didn't need because the children go nuts, grabbing everything in sight. They won't be able to fit into the car at this rate. "Girls," Soarynn says sternly, "you each can pick out one stuffed animal, alright?"

Cerapina huffs, putting her hands on her hips, "Well Daddy said th-"

"Well, I am saying that you can only choose one," Soarynn cuts her off, "it's not fair to the other children who visit the zoo if you take everything. We have to think of others and share."

They're at a standstill, Caspian and Celeste watching as Ceraphina and Soarynn battle it out. But Soarynn is a grown-up, and she's not backing down.

"Or you don't have to pick anything," she says sweetly, "we can just go home if you'd like."

Celeste gasps and grabs her sister's hand, "If you want to leave with nothing you can. But I am leaving with a stuffed animal." Her little sister's words seem to knock some sense into Ceraphina who slowly nods, "Okay, one stuffed animal," she agrees, running off with Celeste to grab something.

Soarynn lets out a sigh of relief. She doesn't want to come off as strict or mean, but she has to earn the children's respect and that means not backing down on certain things such as how many stuffed animals are too many.

"What do you want to get Caspian?" She asks, bouncing him on her hip. She tried to let him down several times today but he's clung onto her every time, wanting to be carried. Who is she to deny him?

Caspian points at a display of different bird stuffed animals, "Bird."

Soarynn smiles, "Excellent choice."

꧁ ꧂

"Hold my hand while we walk to the car please," Soarynn says, reaching out for Celeste's hand. Coming into the zoo, the streets were empty, but a crowd has grown since they went in and it's making Soarynn nervous. She knows they're safe, protected by Peacekeepers but she's still nervous.

Celeste gives her a curious look but obliges to her request, taking her large hand into her smaller one, offering her other hand to Ceraphina, "We've got to stick together," she tells her sister. Ceraphina nods, her blue-gray eyes scanning the crowd, "Snows stick together."

Soarynn guides them towards the car, doing her best to ignore all the shouts that are thrown her way. None of them are mean, everyone seems to be excited to see the President's children out and about after so long. Many people call out the girl's names, a few even waving. Soarynn spots a familiar face, Lucky Flickerman with his camera crew, commentating on the entire spectacle this has become.

Soarynn swallows and tugs the girls along quicker, desperate to get inside the car, "Come on, time to go home," she urges, helping them climb into the back of the car. Soaynn slides in last with Caspian still in her hold, slamming the door shut and letting out a breath of relief when the car immediately starts moving.

"Were you scared?"

Soarynn looks over at Celeste who's playing with her new stuffed bear, the same one she was eyeing earlier, "I was," she admits, "I'm not used to that many people watching me."

Celeste gives her a smile, kicking her feet as they dangle off the car seat, "Don't be scared, Daddy always protects us."

Ceraphina hums in agreement, playing with the stuffed horse she picked out, "People always take pictures of us. Daddy says it's because we're very important."

"You are very important," Soarynn agrees, knowing that sentiment doesn't apply to her as well. She's just a nanny.

Just a nanny.

꧁ ꧂

The Mansion is quiet when they return although Soarynn doubts that it's ever truly busy. The girls run ahead to the dining room where lunch is waiting for them, giggling and playing with their new stuffed animals along the way.

"Lenny," Caspian mumbles, burying his face in the crook of Soarynn's neck. He should probably be put down for a nap. "Alright," she decides, "we'll go upstairs so you can take a nap with Lenny, how does that sound?" He must be so tired after such a busy day.

Soarynn opts to take the back staircase since it's closer, carefully climbing all the steps. She's almost at the top when she hears the familiar voice of President Snow, looking up to find him and another man climbing down the same steps.

For a moment, she's frozen. Not knowing what to do or how to act.

Caspian thinks for her, perking up when his father comes into view and he holds out his new stuffed animal, "Bird."

Soarynn steps to the side so the men can pass, keeping her head down when they pass. "Bird," Caspian repeats when his father passes by, earning him a small nod before he continues down the stairs. Soarynn smooths Caspian's hair down, both of them watching his father disappear down the stairway, "Let's get you in bed mister," she whispers, climbing the last few steps.

She can't shake that feeling while she tucks Caspian into his crib after changing him into some pajamas. President Snow hadn't even really looked at her and yet she felt frozen, in trouble, nervous.

Will she always feel this way around her employer?

꧁ ꧂

The zoo mixed with the August heat took a toll on the Snow children today. Both girls are slumped over on a sofa while Soarynn and Caspian sit on an armchair, the television playing softly in front of them.

They're in that strange period between lunch and dinner where taking a nap sounds like the best idea ever. Ceraphina perks up when a cat appears in a commercial for cat food, its brown fur looks so soft. "Do you have any pets?" She asks Soarynn, playing with the hem of her dress. A few stray curls have come loose from her braid throughout the day but Soarynn can always slick them back down if need be.

"I do," Soarynn nods, "a white cat named Petunia."

This is big, exciting news apparently.

Both girls are all over her in seconds, asking all sorts of questions.

"How old is she?"

"Is she nice?"

"Does she smell bad?"

"Does she meow a lot?"

"Can she do tricks?"

Soarynn is blown away by all their questions and motions for them to sit down on the floor so they don't crowd Caspian who nearly got smothered, "Petunia is five years old, she's very sweet, and no, she doesn't smell bad since I give her lots of baths. She has a bit of a loud personality, so she meows on occasion, but she's also a bit of a diva so she doesn't know any tricks."

Soarynn was gifted Petunia by her father for her birthday and she became her most prized possession. She knows Petunia is at home right now, passed out on top of her pillow without a care in the world.

Heaven forbid that cat ever have to fend for herself.

"Daddy won't let us get a cat," Celeste pouts, "or any pet. He says they're too messy." Petunia is a rather clean cat but Soarynn is sure that there are messier animals out there. "I'm sure he has his reasons," Soarynn tells her, doing her best to defend the President when he's not here to do it himself, "and pets are a lot of responsibility."

Lucky Flickerman's television show finally comes back on the screen and Soarynn can't believe her eyes. It's her. Her and the children at the zoo.

"Today we had a rare sighting at the zoo today folks and no, it wasn't an animal that we saw!" Lucky draws some chuckles from the crowd before continuing, "We caught a rare glimpse of the Presidential family out and about, enjoying the zoo on this bright sunny day, accompanied by who must be their new nanny. Looks like she could be their mother!"

Soarynn is mortified.

This is exactly what she gets for trying to do something different. She should've just stayed within the safety of the Mansion's walls but now she's being compared to Livia Snow.

"We're on television! Soarynn look!"

Ceraphina's words wash right over Soarynn, a million thoughts running through her mind, the main one being that she's getting fired tonight, she has no doubt in her mind that President Snow will fire her. She didn't even last a week.

"Let's go to the playroom," Soarynn says, clicking the television off, "I think that's enough television for tonight."

꧁ ꧂

Dinner is quiet.

Well, Soarynn is quiet.

The girls are talking a mile a minute, telling Eudora every single thing they did and saw at the zoo today. Soarynn pushes her food around on the plate, no longer hungry.

"...and then we got new stuffed animals!" Celeste finishes, throwing her hands in the air for dramatic effect. Eudora gives her an impressed nod, "Sounds like you were very busy today. That's good, a busy schedule is a good schedule."

"Is Daddy busy?"

"Yes dear, he's always busy."

"I wish he'd play with us," Ceraphina mumbles, pushing her half-eaten plate away.

Eudora frowns, glancing at Ceraphina and then at Soarynn, "You have Soarynn to keep you company dear. Your father hired her himself so you could always be taken care of."

Soarynn straightens up in her chair. This is no time to glower in her own self-pity. Her main priority is the children so until she goes home tonight, she's got to keep up her cheery persona. "Eudora is right, I'm always here to play."

"But you don't live here," Ceraphina points out, "Macy lived here. Remember Macy?" Celeste nods, taking a bite out of her bread roll, "Mhm. Macy had pretty red hair like Mommy."

Sorynn quirks a brow at Eudora and is met with a look she understands too well, 'I'll explain later'.

"I might not live here, but I'm going to be here from the moment you wake up to the moment you go to sleep," Soarynn assures her. Unless she gets fired tonight.

Celeste perks up, roll long forgotten, "Can you bring your cat?"

Eudora pulls a disturbed face which leads Soarynn to quickly shake her head, "I'm afraid Petunia is quite comfortable at home. She doesn't do well in cars."

Or around other people. Petunia is a one-woman cat.

"Finish up with your dinner if you want dessert," Eudora reminds the children, "then you all can go play before Soarynn helps you with your baths. I have to go over a few things with Soarynn."

The promise of dessert motivates the girls to finish the last few bites of their dinner while Soarynn helps cut Caspian's chicken into smaller bites, "Lenny," he says, placing his small hand on top of her large one. She gives him a small smile, "You can play with Lenny after dinner."

Dessert is a crowd favorite apparently, chocolate-covered strawberries. Soarynn used to beg for these as dessert when she was little so she's happy to see the children also get so excited to eat them.

"Let me wipe your mouth darling," Soarynn says, reaching out for Ceraphina's face. She's got chocolate all around her mouth and that just won't do. Celeste slides out of her chair and runs over to Soarynn, tilting her head up, "Clean my face too!" Soarynn chuckles softly and makes a big show of cleaning her face as well, even though Celeste doesn't have anything around her mouth.

"All clean," she announces.

Caspian is more interested in licking the chocolate off the strawberries rather than eating them whole but he seems content so she doesn't bother him.

Soarynn watches the girls try to sit in the same chair, determined to sit with one another with a smile on her face. These children are so sweet. She hopes tonight isn't her last night with them.

꧁ ꧂

"Who's Macy?"

Soarynn watches Eudora's face carefully after asking a question she doesn't even really know about, but the girls do if they mention this mystery woman.

Eudora sighs, shaking her head, "Macy was the first nanny we hired after Livia died. She looked nearly identical to Livia because Coriolanus thought it would help the children. All it did was confuse them. And it didn't help that Macy was the complete opposite of Livia, always so kind and cheerful, just like you."

Soarynn frowns, glancing over at the children contentedly playing with dolls and blocks, "Livia wasn't nice?"

"Livia wasn't kind," Eudora corrects her, "anyone can be nice, it takes a special type of person to be genuinely kind and Livia didn't seem to ever possess that quality. She loved her children though, it's a shame she got sick."

"Was she...did they ever love each other?"

Eudora furrows her perfectly groomed eyebrows, "Coriolanus and Livia? No. Not truly that is. I think they loved the idea of each other which seems to be the case for this generation, running before they learn to walk, let alone crawl. They both loved their children though, it brought them together as a united front, and now he's all alone without a clue as to how to raise them."

Soarynn doesn't know much about love. She's never been in love herself. But she can imagine what it feels like, what it looks like. the Snow couple never looked to be truly in love. Maybe Eudora was right, they just loved the idea of each other and then Livia died, leaving him alone.

"Today people saw us at the zoo," Soarynn says slowly, playing with the fabric of her dress, "Lucky Flickerman was there and he said I looked like I could be their mother. And now I'm worried he's going to fire me," the last words tumble out of her mouth like a confession but she's glad to get it off her chest.

She had to tell someone before President Snow got back home tonight.

Eudora looks over at the children who've built some sort of zoo enclosure from the looks of it for their stuffed animals, not a care in the world. "I must admit, you certainly could be Ceraphina's twin, your eyes are identical. But Coriolanus isn't going to fire you over what Lucky Flickerman said, that man just found out you existed today and now he's got all sorts of opinions about you. Let people talk, all you need to do is focus on your job."

Soarynn sighs, nodding along to her words that do a great deal in comforting her, "I just need to keep them happy," she finishes, "nothing else matters."

And nothing does.

꧁ ꧂

Soarynn can not believe how much energy these girls have right before bed.

She put Caspian to sleep first since he was still tuckered out after his nap. He didn't even put up a fight which she was grateful for.

"It's time for bed," she says for the sixth time, picking up toys from the floor, "your father will be very upset if he comes home to find you two still awake."

The girls continue jumping on their bed, not paying her words any mind, "Daddy never gets upset with us," Ceraphina says, bumping into her sister, "and we're not tired." Soarynn places her hands on her hips, giving them a look, "Well I'm tired."

Celeste flops onto the bed, giving Soarynn a curious look, "How old are you?"

Soarynn puts the last of the toys away, closing the trunk, "I'm twenty years old." Sometimes she feels forty with back pain and aching knees. Other times she feels like she's ten years old again, not a clue to what she's doing with her life.

"You're young," Ceraphina says, hopping on one foot, "young enough to marry someone."

Celeste gasps, sitting up so fast that she knocks her sister down in the process, "You could marry Daddy!"

Ceraphina's face morphs from one of annoyance to one of agreement, nodding along to her little sister's plans, "Yes! Yes, you can have a big wedding and live happily ever after!"

Soarynn laughs, gathering her hair into her hands and twisting it into a braid, "Your father is far too busy to get married right now, especially to the nanny of his children," she says, poking at both of them to make them giggle. She succeeds and scoops them both up, swinging them around, "Now what story should I read tonight hmm?"

The girls shriek with excitement as they all spin around, "The jungle one!" Ceraphina cries, "The one with the lion!" Soarynn tosses all three of them back onto the mattress, letting them catch their breath, "Alright, I'll read that one but then it's bedtime alright?"

"Will you do the voices?"

"I'll do the voices."

Once Soarynn finally gets the girls settled and under the covers, she starts reading the story, doing her best animal impressions and there are a lot of animals in this book. But the girls must think she's doing a good job because she receives zero complaints throughout the whole story, not even a whine when she turns off the light.

"Have sweet dreams and I'll see you tomorrow," Soarynn whispers, cupping both of their faces with her hands. Ceraphina leans into her touch, her eyes growing heavy now that it's dark, "Thank you for taking us to the zoo today Soarynn."

Celeste yawns before cuddling up to her big sister, "Yeah, thanks for taking us."

Soarynn smiles fondly down at the girls, watching them fall asleep, "You're very welcome sweet girls," she whispers, quietly padding over to the doors.

She makes it out just in time to see President Snow coming out of Caspian's room. Her heart starts to beat a little faster when he walks towards her, his tie loosened and his curls unruly. He looks very handsome right now.

"They're asleep?" He nods at their bedroom doors. Soarynn nods then shakes her head, "Yes, well, no. I just put them down."

President Snow hums and pushes the doors open, slipping into the darkened room. Soarynn hears excited gasps and then the sound of him quieting them down. She peers in and sees him kissing them both goodnight, nodding when they show him their new stuffed animals. He gives their foreheads one last kiss each before rising back up to his full height.

Soarynn backs into the hallway, her hands clasped behind her back and her head lowered when he comes back out, closing the doors behind him. "How was the zoo?"

She glances up at him, he looks so intimidating from the outside, like he could break her into a million pieces and yet, he's so endlessly gentle and patient with his girls.

"It was good," she says, "Caspian kept roaring at the lions."

His lips twitch into what might be a smile but she's not too sure, "Ceraphina said you only let them get one stuffed animal."

Well, shit.

Soarynn is sure that his children are more than used to telling him about every interaction where they're denied something, and she can probably guess what happened to the people who were the cause of those upsets.

But she has to stand her ground the same way she did with Ceraphina. They're very alike, Ceraphina and her father.

"I did," she confirms.

He raises his eyebrows and he looks almost...impressed? No, that can't be possible. "You're the first nanny to ever tell her no to something. She's very used to getting her way."

I can tell, Soarynn thinks, "Is that a good thing?" She asks, tilting her head slightly. He lets out a breathy laugh, "Yes, it's a good thing. I can't have my children running around spoiled and demanding."

"They're not demanding," she quickly says, defending the children, "or spoiled. They're very sweet. It just seemed unreasonable to give them everything in the gift shop. Life doesn't always work that way, even if you want to protect them."

Her words seem to strike a nerve with the President because he frowns, "I have to protect them. They're all I have now that their mother is gone."

Soarynn knows how men like him think, how their children are more than flesh and blood. They're his legacy. Without them, his name, his work, his family will die alongside him. He'll do anything to keep them safe.

"I understand sir," she says softly, "and we were very safe today at the zoo. The children enjoyed it very much."

He nods, scratching the back of his neck, "Good. I'll have to let you take them more places then, they need the interactions with other people."

Soarynn stares down at her shoes, wondering how high of heels she'd need to wear to be at eye level with President Snow. He's so tall, so...overwhelming. She feels the same way she did in the stairwell earlier today, unsure of what to do.

"I'm sure they'd appreciate that," she finally says, giving him a polite smile. He stares her down for a second, his cold gaze analyzing her face which only makes her feel more self-conscious than before.

"You look just like your mother."

That just about knocks the wind out of her.

He's older than her, and old enough to remember her mother before she died in childbirth. Soarynn's heard it countless times, how she's the spitting image of her mother but she didn't expect him of all people to comment on it. Not here, not now.

She finally regains her composure and nods, "I've been told that before sir."

His eyes travel up and down her body, "I always thought your mother was beautiful, she was always kind to me. Do you think of yourself as kind Ms. Nightingale?"

"...it takes a special type of person to be genuinely kind..."

Eudora's words echo over and over in her head while she thinks of a suitable answer. She doesn't think it's possible to always be kind but she sure tries. She doesn't really have a reason not to be kind.

"I try to be sir."

"I think you might make my children kind."

"All children are kind, it's the adults around them who make them cruel."

Soarynn has seen it before, how sweet, kind children have been turned into monsters due to their upbringings and the influences around them. She won't let that happen to these children so long as she works as their nanny.

"Goodnight Ms. Nightingale."

"Goodnight sir."

Soarynn walks past him, her hands shaking and her breaths uneven. She's never been around a man as unnerving as President Snow but he probably prefers it that way.

The only time he lets a sliver of kindness show is when he's around his children for a mere hour a day.

What a terrible way to live.

| Part 2. |

| tumblr oneshot/drabble |

{ Part 3. }

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

Aita for not engaging with my mom after she didn’t make the effort for my birthday?

About a month before my birthday, me and my mom were out for lunch and she asked me what I wanted. I told her that what I really wanted was for my family to go out together and maybe go to a museum or a zoo for some family bonding.

My family is constantly busy. Dad works 24/7, mom’s a teacher, and my brothers both partake in sports and music that keeps them busy. The only time we really ever spend time is when my mom books us a trip to DisneyWorld. Don’t get me wrong; I love going to Disney. I’m a huge foodie, so all the themed food is really fun for me. But it’s not relaxing. My brothers get overstimulated from the noise, the heat and the lines and either refuse to leave the hotel room, or make their discomfort everyone’s problem. My dad likes more “exciting rides” when I don’t, so he doesn’t really spend time with me there either. And my mom spends all her time making picture perfect memories for her 30k insta followers. Going to Disney may be a vacation, but it was never fun. So for once, I wanted family bonding that had nothing to do with Disney.

I made this really clear to my mom for the next few weeks. Giving ideas, like going to a new exhibit at a museum in my city, showing her a pottery painting studio that might be fun to check out, but she always replied with something along the lines of “that didn’t really interest her.”

About a week before my birthday, we went to Disneyland. This didn’t bother me; the trip had been planned for months, but it was the usual train wreck. At this point, I was getting really excited for my birthday, to experience something new after such a stressful trip.

The day before my birthday arrives, and so far, my mom hasn’t said anything about her plans for my birthday. That night, she’s sitting in another room, and she calls out to me, “By the way, Anon, I don’t have any presents for you tomorrow. I don’t know what you want.”

This really broke me. I spent the rest of the night privately crying to myself, and my birthday was pretty much spent the same way. I would have been okay if my mom couldn’t find a way for everyone to spend time together as a family. I get that out schedules might not work out that way. But, I got nothing. Not even something small.

I found out from my dad a few days afterwards that my mom thought the trip to Disneyland was what I wanted. But I made it explicitly clear, several times, that I wanted to spend time somewhere that wasn’t a theme park.

It’s made me feel like my mom doesn’t listen to me, and because of that, I’ve been really distant with her for the past month or so. My dad tell me she feels bad for how my birthday turns out, but she hasn’t made any effort to fix it. I feel like I have the right to be upset about this, but I also don’t want my mom to feel upset, either. I understand she has a hard time understanding me sometimes, but I made it really clear what I wanted. She’s trying to book us a trip to DisneyWorld just the two of us in about a month, so maybe I should just put this behind me and try and bond with her on her terms? Aita?

What are these acronyms?

[vasyandii]

Hellooo!!! I have a question for the two goobers: Would Nak/Kreuger rather go to a museum (weither it be art, historical, etc) or a zoo (Or something simular like an aquarium or a butterfly garden)?

Does KruegerNak prefer Museums or the Zoo?

Howdy Mishap! I'm personally a fan of both so it got me thinking a bit! Here's them at my visit to the modern art museum last year :) Thanks so much for the ask! 💞💞💞

I feel like neither but both at the same time xD. Each place is catered to their specific interests. But they both have things they enjoy about each trip :3

My headcanon, half of Krueger's family (Dad side) are part of "higher society" + being naturally artistic, he enjoys museums, contemporary art, etc.

Nak is still technically considered "New Money" because of Naga, plus how she was raised, she really doesn't see anything cool in art museums or museums in general. She's willing to go with him because it's something he enjoys, and she likes walking beside him as he explains each piece. She really enjoys how smart he is when he wants to be.

Nak likes animals so zoos, aquariums, etc. are enjoyable for her, she likes pointing at the ones that she thinks look like him, and there are slightly less restrictions in there unlike the museum (Don't touch the paintings, don't stand too close, etc.)

Since Krueger is rather indifferent about most animals, that feeling naturally transfers over to zoos. He'll find other ways to entertain himself there by taking pictures of the plants or being the Map Man. He'll go to the zoo or aquarium with Nak because he likes seeing her happy and excited :D (Sorry if it doesn't make sense)

Their Interaction at an Art Museum usually goes like this...

Who's Afraid of Red, Yellow and Blue III - Barnett Newman

"It's..red."

"And.."

"And blue."

"Can you see the yellow?"

"I think..? It blends in with the red."

"The paint is so fine that it morphs into the canvas."

"Uh huh... I could probably do that."

"You couldn't, someone tried."

"Did they?"

"Mhmm. Someone slashed the canvas, the restorer thought it'd be easy to fix, it came out worse and people got mad."

"How'd it come out worse?."

"Glad you asked"

(He then goes on a looong tangent, she listens of course)

And the zoo..

"Se, Look, look! he's drinking water!"

"Yea, Want to see something cool?"

"Yeah?"

He takes a sip from a bottle of water, promptly closing the cap, proud of himself with a grin.

"Swoon."

"You know I can throw you in there."

"Yes."

"Want me to?"

"Maybe. But I wanted to take you to see the big cats."

"...I'll throw you later."

(after a while, she finds him a shady area to rest a bit, she knows he's a bit tired from walking around so much)

"Did you get any good photos?"

"Of you or the animals?"

"Both."

"..Most of what's in here are plants."

"That's good too."

[jeridandridge]

“You don’t remember anything, do you?” “No…? What are you talking about?” “Nothing. Nothing.”

Would you mind a melissa x reader? But like fluffy if you're feeling it? Or angst to fluff? Lol

Drunk Confessions

“Girl just do it. It’s better than sittin around here moping all the time.”

You groan bringing your head down to rest on the cool kitchen table. Being drunk didn’t happen too often for you, but when it did you always made sure you had friends around. Tonight, Ava was the one that brought over drinks and junk food to drown your sorrows in.

Melissa accepted a date with Gary the vending machine guy the day before and you weren’t handling it well at all. Having a crush, no, being in love with the woman but too afraid to say anything was the best yet excruciating experience of your life.

“You’re right. You’re right!” You lift your head hitting the table with your hand. “Where’s my-phone?” You ask through a hiccup.

Ava rolls her eyes pointing to the device right in front of you.

“Oh.” You giggle picking it up.

“This is gonna be messy,” Ava smiles sitting back with her frosted glass.

Blinking a couple times at the bright screen you tap away until you find Melissa’s contact, a silly picture of you two from the zoo field trip as her icon. Bringing the phone to your ear it rings and rings, eventually giving you a beep for the voicemail.

“Hey,Mel. It’s late I didn’t realize it.” You giggle. “I was sitting here drinking- I mean thinking and I wanted to say I’m happy for you. If you’re happy with vending machine guy that’s great and I’ll swallow my feelings for you. It’s gonna suck, but I’ll do it just because it’s you and I love you. I’m in love with you,” You sigh, “But if he ever hurts you, well I got a guy too. I’m word vomiting now. If this is weird we can pretend it never happened. Bye.”

You set the phone down bringing a hand over to cover your mouth. “I can’t believe i did that!” You laugh.

Ava looks at you shocked, mouth gaping. “Girl you did that.”

“I did that!” You laugh. Feeling giddy and excited, hours later you forget what you’ve done. After Ava gets an Uber home you clean up as best you can while drunk, passing out on the couch with a bag of pretzels.

The sound of banging on your apartment door shocks you awake, the sound making the throbbing in your head worse. “I’m coming I’m coming.” You groan grabbing your sunglasses on the way to the door. It was just too bright. Unlocking the heavy door you look up to see Melissa, completely confused.

“Hey, Mel. What’s up?”

“Don’t ‘Hey Mel’ me, y/n. What the hell is this?!” She barrels in holding her phone out.

“What’s going on?” You ask closing the door, confused until you see her screen. wanting to melt away into the air when you see the voicemail you drop your head slowly remembering what you did. “Shit.”

“You can’t tell me you’re in love with me just because you’re jealous or have some crush!” She tells you, moving her hands around like she always does.

“Mel, I was drunk. This doesn’t need to be a thing.” Shaking your head.

“That’s what you said in the message!” She lets out hitting play.

When you hear your own voice you cringe, it could be a lot worse, but it was still bad. Taking your sunglasses off you toss them on the kitchen counter bringing your fingers to the bridge of your nose, trying to process the message you’re hearing.

Melissa reaches out tipping your chin up to meet her eyes. When you do you could cry right there. She was so beautiful.

“You could at least look at me after admitting something like that in a voicemail of all things.” Her voice was so soft, a voice not many people got to hear from her especially at work.

“I’m sorry, Mel. Really I am.”

The redhead looks at you biting her lip, her hand gently moving to your cheek. “Ya know I wouldn’t have said yes to Gary if I knew you felt the same way.”

“Wait,” you shake your head, “felt the same way? Meaning you like me back?” You try to work it out taking the new information in.

Melissa smiles at you, a real, bright smile as she strokes your cheek. “Yeah dummy, I thought it was obvious.”

“No!” You laugh reaching out to pull her flush against you. “I thought all my pining was a lost cause after Gary asked you out.”

Giving you a soft smile Melissa wraps her arms around your neck, her fingers playing with your hair.

“He’s not you, hon.”

Looking into her eyes you see nothing but pure love and happiness.

“I’d kiss you but I really need to brush my teeth.”

Melissa laughs gently pulling away playfully swatting your butt.

“Go on, I’ll make you breakfast.”

[all-pacas]

@sylviedonnas: four times the wonderful shark story worked on women and the one time it didn’t 🦈🫢

as usual, i am given a perfectly lovely prompt and don't actually follow it at all: (rated m for remember that burn lady chase dated? well…)

-

1.

There might have been a shark.

Dickie Campbell’s dad had a cabin boat, and Dickie was allowed to take it out whenever he liked, even though he was fourteen and didn’t have a full license. He was Chase’s best friend, although they really didn’t like one another much, had twice had drunken fist-fights over girls, but at the time Chase would have done anything to not be home and Dickie was the same. They’d take the boat out weekends or skipping school, snickering and ducking the aggravated harbormasters, and then not do anything, not really: get out of sight of land and cut the engines and lay on the couches in the cabin. The only two people in the world. They didn’t even talk, just drink Dickie’s dad’s beers. Chase would look out the window and wonder if his parents cared where he was. If they would notice if, someday, he never came home.

Sometimes they’d bring along a pack of sausages, or ground meat from the grocer’s, and throw it overboard, trying to bait fish or sharks. Daring one another to cut their palms or wrists and drip the blood overboard — everyone knew sharks could smell blood. It was stupid. Probably illegal in some way. They were apparently bad at picking random spots of ocean to toss sausages: it never really worked but once.

“It was a shark,” Chase said; they’d seen the glimpse of something big and bright in the water, but not clearly.

“Was not,” Dickie said, digging around the plastic litter of their bait for some leftover scrap of hamburger. “I dare you to get in the water,” he added, so obviously Chase had. Stripped off his shirt and jeans fast so as not to seem worried about it. Given the water a quick nervous glance and jumped over the side of the boat.

The shock of cool water enveloped him and he’d been suddenly, immediately sure there was a shark right in front of him, mouth gaping and ready to bite — he’d blinked his eyes open, salt prickling at his retinas, but all he could see was water, his own pale limbs, the boat. Chase broke the surface of the water. “Ahh!” he yelled dramatically. “The bastard’s — got me!” He faked being pulled back under, and when he popped up a second time, Dickie was leaning over the rail unconcerned.

“There’s no shark,” Dickie shouted back.

“No,” Chase agreed, swimming towards the end of the boat to climb back aboard. At the boat’s rear, he took a great breath and went under once more, peering into the endless murk of the ocean, feeling safer with his hand on the ladder. Something moved, some bit of the ocean grayer than the rest, big and sleek and dark. He imagined teeth. A beast racing closer. He breached the surface with a gasp and tried not to scramble too obviously aboard.

2.

There was a shark.

Chase’s first proper girlfriend was called Melina Ryan, and she insisted they go on dates. They couldn’t just hang out or walk around together: they had to go on outings, preferably a new place every week. She read a lot of magazines, had lots of ideas of proper relationship behaviors and kissing and real dates and sex. This was sometimes exhausting (“Robbie, we can’t get burgers, we’re on a date”), and sometimes fantastic, particularly when Melina read about some new sex tip in one of her magazines.

This Saturday they’re at Melbourne Zoo, which is a letdown. They’re modernizing, replacing old cages with new habitats, and so large portions of the zoo are closed off and inaccessible. Melina coos over every monkey they see, and her little squeals and baby-talk remind him of his sister, who at two months old at least has an excuse. Mum dotes on Danielle, and even though she’s been sober for almost a year Chase can’t stand to be at home lately. Neither can his dad, of course.

“You’re so out of it,” Melina said as they walked around the outdoor aquarium section, passing low open pools full of fish and stingrays and smaller sharks.

“Sorry,” Chase said automatically.

“You didn’t notice my new earrings,” Melina said.

“They’re nice,” he replied, leaning on the concrete barrier of one pool. There was a sign saying PLEASE DO NOT PUT YOUR HAND IN THE WATER: Chase put his hand into the water, wriggling his fingers around. The pool was filled with little spotted sharks, too used to fingers in their water to be enticed.

“You have been such a ass lately,” Melina said.

Growing up, Chase had heard about piranhas, how they’d strip flesh to bone in seconds, how it just took one toe in the water for them to find you and swarm. Sometimes he thought that would be nice. Not dying (and death-by-piranha-on-purpose was probably a form of suicide, and so a Sin). But being stripped to the bone in seconds, too fast to even feel it, or know he was dead.

Scaphoid, Lunate, Triquetrum, Pisiform, he thought, looking at his hand in the water. Mum hadn’t shut him away in the study since he was ten and old enough to outrun her, but he’d tried to memorize the names of all the bones in a human body one time. When he was a kid he was stupid. He’d thought his dad would be impressed. Maybe tell Mum to cut it out. More likely, if he’d ever successfully managed a recital, his dad would have locked Chase in the study himself, to study harder.

“Robbieee” Melina whined.

“I want to break up,” said Chase.

3.

There wasn’t a shark.

In the States, everyone thought Chase was exotic, which was interesting, because he generally thought the same of them. He’d never struggled to find dates, even in England, but in America it was easier than ever. He just needed to play up his accent to something more rural, pretend to be flummoxed by cold weather or passing on the right or anything, really: Chase quickly learned that most Americans had only the vaguest idea of what Australia was like outside of Steve Irwin and the Crocodile Dundee movies.

At first he just… embellished some true stories a little. Baiting sharks with Richard — who he hadn’t spoken to since they were fifteen — turned into seeing sharks. Chase had gone diving and snorkeling before, and had seen sharks in the wild, but little harmless fish, not scary ones: in his stories he’d turn them into hammerheads, great whites. It was what women wanted, he figured: someone rugged and tough who had seen crocodiles outside of zoos. That Chase grew up in the city and had never seen a dingo in the wild would be boring, he assumed, and so he really didn’t feel badly at all about lying.

He and Heather never exchanged surnames. They’d met at a bar and she was good looking, thick curly hair and full lips and a set of perfectly spaced burns on the inside of her wrist, round and even like a tattoo. Cigarette burns, she explained later. She’d make patterns of them on her skin, head tilted back and eyes closed. Chase had seen his share of burns in the ICU and the whole thing made him slightly squeamish.

Her bedroom was all shades of blue: walls and carpet and bedding and curtains. She’d light candles — she liked the wax — and the room would get hazy with cigarette smoke. “Try it,” she asked him, splayed out and damp and gorgeous, and handed him her lighter.

“Okay,” he said, lighting a cigarette and taking a drag because it seemed like a waste to not. His head was spinning, the room was truly suffocating, and the nicotine made him feel on-edge. “Doing it now,” he added:

“No,” Heather interrupted. “Don’t tell me when you’re doing it. Just… do it. Randomly. Without telling me first. It’s better that way.”

He did it, and she gasped, and then again, and she gasped again, and his head was spinning and he was slightly worried he might vomit. The room swam around him and he finally apologized and got off the bed to open her window.

“You don’t like this much,” she said.

“No.” It was blessedly cool outside, and Chase stood at the window for a moment, breathing in the fresh air. “But I don’t mind it, if you get off on it.”

“Is it because you’re causing me pain?” Heather asked, sounding genuine, like it was something she really did want to know.

He thought about it. “No. I don’t know. I don’t get off on it.” He thought about the hippocratic oath, although he truly didn’t think it applied in cases like this: it would be funny, bringing it up now, like this — a nice joke — except Chase didn’t think he’d ever told Heather he was a doctor.

“We don’t have to do it anymore, then,” Heather said cheerfully, but she stopped returning his calls by the end of the week.

4.

There was a shark.

As a wedding present, Cuddy rearranges their schedules so Cameron and Chase have three full days off for their honeymoon: short notice, it’s the best she could do, but that’s alright: Cameron has been hinting she’d like to visit Melbourne: considering the travel times, it made sense to wait until they could manage a longer vacation.

They fly down to North Carolina, rent a cottage with steps down the dunes to an endless, empty beach. It’s too bad we won’t be leaving the bedroom, Cameron jokes after seeing the view for the first time: Chase isn’t yet used to his wedding ring and keeps twisting it around his finger.

It’s June but the water is freezing: this doesn’t stop Chase but Cameron hesitates to go in past her knees; he makes it his mission to dunk her and she makes it her mission to, of course, have sex right there in the open — at night! When no one is around!, she protests, but he’s not fooled. They find horseshoe craps and spot dolphins from the bluffs and joke about reflexively reaching to check their pagers, and Chase doesn’t think he’s ever been happier.

Hits him like a wave, like a hammer, like a bullet. It scares him to death, realizing it. He’s spent so much of his life wishing he were somewhere else, something else, that the sudden lack is painful. Friends he never quite liked, girls he never quite loved, always wanting something different. He and Cameron are walking along the beach and talking about work, of all the boring, unromantic things, and he feels it by the absence. He doesn’t want something else. She’s picked him, they’re married, he’s happy and it will be like this, stay like this, they’ll be happy. Forty years. Fifty years, easy.

“What’s wrong?” Cameron asks, taking his hand.

He feels oddly choked up. He doesn’t lie, just shrugs. “I’m happy,” he says. She smiles knowingly and bumps her shoulder to his. “Now’s when you say you are too,” he reminds her, teasing.

“You’re okay,” she says, squeezing his hand.

There’s a small crowd, a half a dozen people or so, clustered further down the beach in the direction they’re walking, all looking towards the water, talking and pointing.

“What’s going on?” Cameron asks.

“There’s been a shark sighting!” an old man says excitedly. “We don’t usually get them this early in the year! We’re not supposed to go swimming while it’s in the area!”

“Are you sure it wasn’t a dolphin?” a woman frets.

“I haven’t seen anything,” another man complains.

Chase wanders towards the waterline, the icy water making his toes curl, looking hopefully for a fin or flash or gray or barred monster teeth. The sea is choppy: there could be anything fifty feet out and they wouldn’t see it.

“Hoping to finally punch a shark?” Cameron asks, following him. A breeze causes her to shiver and wrap her arms around herself.

“I did,” he says mildly. “It absolutely happened.”

“Sure,” she drawls. “Get in there, babe. Show those sharks what’s what.”

She’s trying not to grin when he looks away from the water. He narrows his eyes purposefully and she does.

“Wouldn’t be fair to the shark,” he says, slinging his arm over her shoulder.

“Right.”

“I’m alright,” he insists, and is.