#finally joining the club after 2 and a half years!

[britishchick09]

november 5th isn’t just castiel day...

it’s also covid dayyyyy.......

[magics-neptunes-things]

Open your eyes

Hi guys!

A new one, you can find the ask in here, from the prompt here :) For this one it's the number 2 and 9.

Alexia I miss you :(

Enjoy ♥

______________________________________________________________

Alexia. You’ve known her since you were a little girl. You met her when the ball she was playing with ended up in your backyard and she came looking for it, half hidden behind her father. Yours gave it back to them and the first look you exchanged with her was separated by the two pairs of legs of your fathers.

Over the years you have developed a flawless friendship, even if the life paths you have chosen are different. Alexia is a world-famous footballer, and you decided to follow your dream to become a photographer. You studied for that and you work for an agency that offers you mandates that allow you to live in a very comfortable way. And over time you have made your own customers who don't hesitate to contact you directly. Not to mention that, thanks to Alexia’s influence, the Barcelona football club calls you whenever they need official photos.

You have been present for Alexia during her career, attending her ups and downs. You were there during her various operations and Alexia convinced you to agree to participate in the report made on her, "Labor Omnia Vincit". You even gave an interview, some of which was broadcast on that occasion. The title "Childhood Friend and Photographer" made you laugh, because Alexia is much more than that to you.

The truth is, you’re completely in love with her.

You couldn't say how long, but in your opinion always even if you didn't understand the signs right away in your teenage naivety. Lost in your sexuality, you first tried to date boys, before turning to girls. Alexia never showed any signs of attraction to you, so you desperately tried to stifle your feelings for her in other people’s arms when Alexia was cooing with someone else.

It never worked out.

In fact, you’ve been single for about four years now and you’re resigned to ending up an old maid in your apartment with your two cats.

You had the misfortune to confide in Mapi about your feelings during an evening a little too alcoholic in which Alexia didn't participate, And since, she reminds you regularly that you should do something to get out of this situation. Alexia never being very clear about it, the tattooed doesn't really know what are the feelings of the blonde for you. But she told you that anyway, if Alexia has romantic feelings for you, seeing you with someone after so many years could make her react.

You don’t believe it for a second, it never has before so you don’t see why it would change today.

********

"You have to do something Y/N, it’s no longer possible" sighs Mapi.

She’s been watching you nibble the black straw of your cocktail for longs minutes, looking gloomy. Alexia has obviously caught the eye of a girl tonight, with whom she has been talking for quite a while.

"What?" You mutter mechanically in return, not listening to her at all, without leaving Alexia’s eyes.

"I feel like I’m having a drink with Wednesday from the Adams Family" complains Mapi

"Let me guess, I should "Try another girls"? "

You use your fingers to mimic quotes, making Mapi’s rolls eyes.

"Clearly. I can feel your tension from here, you need to get laid."

"Oh fuck off Maria" you sigh as you let yourself go against the backrest of your chair. "Just go with your girlfriend and leave me alone"

You finally turned your eyes away from your best friend, but that’s only because she started looking at you. I’d rather swallow your straw right away than be caught looking at her.

After raising her middle finger in your direction, Mapi actually decides to join Ingrid on the dance floor. This doesn't prevent her from fondly tapping on your shoulder when she gets up.

You sigh and decide it’s time to go home. Alexia is no longer where she was and you’re not sure your nerves will stand to see her exchanging kisses with someone else. But when you get up, you are suddenly face with young woman who looks at you with a hesitant look.

"Hi" said the young woman timidly with an uncertain air.

"Hi?"

Her timid smiles is strange, but you let her explain the reason of her sudden presence next to you.

"Um… it’s probably a little weird, but your friend over there told me you haven’t stopped looking at me all night, and you're like kind of cute so…"

You follow the direction she shows you with her head, but you figured it out before your eyes fell on Mapi. The spaniard addresses you a big smile and a sign of the hand, then a wink too exaggerated. You hold back a sigh and turn your attention to the young woman in front of you. Blonde, with some tattoos, taller than you and green eyes. You weren’t looking at her, but you see very well what Mapi wanted to do. She is unbearable.

"Were you going to go home?" continues the blonde, looking at your purse in your hand and your jacket on your shoulders.

"Um… I was, to be really honest with you"

"Would you mind staying while I offer you at least one drink? Not for long, I swear."

You hesitate for a split second, looking at her thoughtfully. She looks nice and deep down she's not responsible of you being desperately in love with your best friend. You briefly bite the inside of your lip before deciding to accept.

"Great!"

After taking your order, Erika (who just told you her name) hurries to the bar. You sit back at the table, waiting for her return and you thank her with a big smile when she's back. You realize with a certain surprise that you actually get along pretty well. Erika has an easy conversation and you catch yourself laughing at what she tells you. If you don’t notice Alexia watching you from the bar where she’s leaning, Mapi doesn’t miss that little detail. Despite Ingrid who asks her to take care of her affairs.

You’ve been talking to Erika for 30 minutes when Alexia comes to sit beside you, putting her hand on your shoulder when she sits next to you.

"Oh hi. I wondered where you’ve been" you smile at her

"At the bar" mumble Alexia.

"Hum, okay" you answer before turning to Erika. "Ale, this is Erika. Erika, this is..."

"Alexia Putellas. I know" Erika smiles in a friendly way before reaching out to Alexia.

Alexia grabs her hand and smiles, but that’s not the kind of smile you like about Alexia. It’s the same kind of smile as when she forces herself on photos, not those that make her eyes shine. You wish you could question her, but you don’t see yourself doing it when Erika is with you.

"Do you want another drink?" Erika offers, putting her hand on yours.

You accept with a smile and she smiles back before getting up from her chair to go to the bar.

"Is everything okay?" You take the opportunity to ask Alexia.

"Why wouldn’t I be okay?"

The answer surprises you, you didn't expect a question back to yours, to be completely honest. Her gaze plunges into yours and you have the impression that it pierces you. You have well understood that something bothers her and as you are about to ask her if it's in relation to the girl with whom she was talking, Mapi lets herself fall loudly in a chair beside you.

"Well then? Where’s your pretty blonde, Y/N?"

"She went back to get us a drink. Besides, wait until I take care of your case" you add pointing an accusing finger at her.

"Oh, no need to thank me, it’s all natural" grins Mapi.

"I hate you" you mumble

"Besides, if I were you, I would join her rather than let her come back to the three of us. Kind of weird to find herself with your two friends."

You also don’t see the annoyed look Alexia gives her, but you’re not sure it’s a good idea. But Mapi doesn’t give you much choice again, forcing you to get up from your chair and push you in her direction. You end up going there and Mapi doesn't wait a single second to turn in Alexia's direction.

"What was that?"

"What?" Alexia groans.

"Your behavior Ale. You were in a good mood until Y/N started talking to Erika"

Alexia answers nothing, shrugging her shoulders before crossing her arms over her chest. Now she's the one looking gloomy.

"Wait, where did she go?"

Alexia’s frenetic gaze travels through the room without being able to find you, which annoys her as much as it worries her. While she's about to get up from her chair to go looking for you, Mapi puts a hand on her arm to prevent her from doing so.

"Alexia."

"You don’t know who this girl is and you’re pushing her in her arms," Alexia abruptly says. "She’s probably not good enough for her, since when do we meet great people in nightclubs? Y/N need someone who bought her flower, take her on romantic dates and who will take care of her. That's not the kind of person you met in here."

Mapi remains silent, for so long that Alexia ends up ripping her eyes from the room to report it on the tattooed girl. Who looks at her with a perplexed look.

"I can’t tell if you’re lying to me or if you’re lying to yourself"

Although Alexia’s jaw is tight, Mapi sees her move distinctly when she looks for the right words to respond.

"I don’t know what you mean"

Mapi snorts at such bad faith, gently shaking her head. Since the captain decided to be stubborn, Mapi decides to talk the facts.

"You’re in love with her, Alexia"

Mapi’s tone is accusatory but Alexia answers nothing to it, her gaze stubbornly fixed somewhere in the room and her arms still crossed.

"Why are you reacting like this? Why is this a problem, Ale?"

"She’s my best friend, Maria. She’s known me since we were six"

"Yes, and what?"

"She’ll never look at me that way. I don’t know when my feelings have changed, but I can’t tell her."

"But why not?" Mapi almost shout

"Forget it" Alexia warns.

Mapi rolls her eyes and decides to let it go for the moment, plunging the two friends into a silence for several minutes. If Alexia remains silent, always looking for you everywhere in the establishment, so Mapi takes the opportunity to check that no one tries to approach Ingrid.

You end up coming back about thirty minutes after Alexia lost sight of you. You’re alone, but she doesn’t know if it’s a good thing or not. At any moment you'll tell them you’re going to leave with Erika.

"Where were you?" asks dryly Alexia, looking at you

"Um… in the bathroom?"

"What? With Erika?" Mapi smirks, almost jumping in her chair. "Did you sleep with her?"

"In the bathroom of a bar?"

You bow an eyebrow with a grimace and the shadow of a smile is born on Alexia’s face, despite her arms still crossed on her chest. Mapi shrugs her shoulders with an innocent face and you don’t want to know what kind of things she made in nightclub's bathroom.

"Where is she then?" insists Mapi

"She’s gone home" you shrug

"Without you? Do you even have her number? Did she kiss you at least?"

You blush and it's finally Alexia who puts an end to your ordeal. You are grateful to her, even if you don't know that it's also to put an end to hers that the Catalan decides to intervene.

"Mapi, stop. Now. I’ll go home too, I’ll take you home, Y/N?"

"With pleasure" you smile affectionately at her.

You get your jacket and purse back for good this time and say goodbye to the other girls before following Alexia to the exit.

You smile when you feel her put a hand between your shoulder blades to guide you to her car, even if you know perfectly where it's parked since you arrived together. It's in silence that you sit in her car and Alexia starts it.

"You didn’t answer Mapi’s question earlier"

Alexia’s observation makes you turn your head in her direction, whereas you were lost in the contemplation of the buildings of Barcelona by night.

"And you blushed. You kissed her?"

You sigh softly before shaking your head negatively. You’re not sure that talking to Alexia is the right thing to do, since it’s exactly because of her that things didn’t go further with Erika. When she tried to kiss you, you panicked and left.

"No" you end up answering, looking out the window with a new found passion.

You miss the relief that passes on Alexia’s face when she hear your answer. She doesn’t need to know why, just to know that nothing happened is enough for her. So it's with a little more joy that she brings you home and with a real smile that she accepts when you offer her to sleep at your home again that night.

"What about you? You didn't tell me what happened with your beautiful stranger" you point out once installed on your sofa with a bottle of water in hand and a shit telenovela on TV.

"Because there is nothing to tell. We just talked"

You just hums, leaning your head against her shoulder. You sigh with happiness when she puts her arm around your waist and you don't hesitate to cuddle up against her. If you have to keep your feelings quiet, at least you have the chance to find some physical comfort from her.

"So it wasn't because of her you were upset?"

You feel Alexia lean slightly against you and you cross her eyes when you raise your head to be able to look at her. There is something special in her eyes and you can't say what it is. It's a first in your life, you like to say that you're one of the people who knows Alexia the best.

"No" answer simply Alexia at first. "I just... I don't know. It was weird seeing you with another girl again"

You shrug, not realizing what she really mean. You are too used to silence your feelings and it has been many years since you have well integrated that Alexia sees you only as a friend.

"I’m not sure I’ll see her again anyway"

"Good. She’s probably not good enough for you"

You answer with a simple shrug again, putting your head back on her shoulder. You don’t realize that Alexia is frying her brain, trying to extricate herself from the conversation you’re in. Seeing you with someone else made her realize that it was time she tried something before it was too late. But she doesn’t know how to make you understand things without being too shocking or surprising for you.

"Maybe I should try Tinder or something" you mumble.

"Don't be stupid. You're better than that"

Alexia’s answer is dry, but you don't even react, imagining that it's only the disgust that this kind of application gives her that speaks. And not the idea of imagining you in the arms of someone else who annoys her prodigiously.

"I don’t have many other solutions left" you point out to her when you stand up to put your bottle of water on the table.

"Maybe you should just… open your eyes?"

"What do you mean, open my eyes?" you ask while arching an eyebrow.

Suddenly, Alexia decides that she's tired of this conversation that goes around again and again. That seems to lead you nowhere. She doesn't want to rush you but gently make you realize the reality of her feelings for you. But she feels like you will never understand.

So, she takes advantage of the fact that you are sitting and no longer lying against her to catch the necklace that she offered you for your birthday, using her index finger to attract you against her. Without you really understanding how, her lips are against yours and the way you feel is even better than you’ve ever imagined.

Alexia’s lips are soft, as you dreamed about it. They taste like her lip balm and not alcohol since she has not consumed it all evening. You briefly wonder if yours tastes like mojito, before this question evaporates when you feel her tongue caressing your lower lip.

From there, the kiss becomes a little more intense and you forget everything else. You’re not even sure you can identify yourself if you’ve been ask when the kiss stop so you can both breath again. You keep your eyes closed for a few seconds, to soak up as much as possible of this moment and not forget the slightest detail.

When you open your eyes, Alexia’s eyes are looking at you with a multitude of emotions. She seems to be as breathless as you. Which is probably a good news, thus testifying that you aren't the only one to be under the blow of this kiss. Moreover you don't fight yourself for long before you let your desire to start again. So you bend in her direction for a new kiss.

Alexia answers it, but takes off from you too fast for your taste. You hear her giggle softly when you whine and your lips chase hers, but you step back when you feel her hand resting on your stomach to stop you. Frowning, you look at her wondering what is more important than enjoying these new sensations.

"I just… before I go on… I mean… it’s not just like that, right? Does it mean anything to you too?" ramble Alexia.

"Of course you do" you smile softly at the blonde’s hesitation "You always meant the world to me, Ale."

"Perfect" smiled Alexia before leaning over you for a new kiss. "Now we can kiss again."

And you do. This one won’t be interrupted by thoughts of one or the other. After all, you’ll have plenty of time to discuss all this tomorrow.

[bruhnze]

PLAYING FOR KEEPS

CHAPTER 1 – United in Manchester (Ona Batlle x Lucy Bronze)

Summary: Ona Batlle has had a crush on Lucy Bronze for a little while now… how will it go when she joins Barça? A 10 chapter series.

Warnings: Slow burn, angst, fluff, smut. All the things, but I give this as a complete warning for the whole series. Not every chapter involves all the warnings :).

Wordcount: the series is around 50k words (10 chapters)

Note: no Spanish or Catalan is used for continuity purposes, probably most team dialogue you just have to imagine it being not in english xx.

Summer 2023

Ona closed her final suitcase, her last belongings packed away. Most of her things had already made the journey to her new apartment in Barcelona, leaving her with only a few essentials like a couple of shirts, a pair of jeans and her toothbrush.

Tomorrow marked the official farewell to Manchester United, a place that had been her home for the past few years. Although the team had already celebrated her departure with a party, this final day felt like the true goodbye. After tomorrow, she would close the chapter on her England adventure and return to her beloved Catalonia to begin a new journey with FC Barcelona. Joining Barça again was a dream come true, as she regarded it as the best football club in the world. Despite her excitement for the future, there was also a little sadness with leaving behind Manchester and all the memories she had made there. It made the farewell bittersweet, goodbyes were never easy.

As Ona gathered the last of her things for her hand luggage tomorrow, her gaze fell on her small, worn diary. This little book had been her loyal companion through the highs and lows of her Manchester adventure. Unlike her other personal items that been shipped off in boxes, this diary was something she couldn’t part with like that. It had been her friend during tough times and a place to celebrate her victories. Every page was filled with a piece of her journey, from the rivalries to the moments of joy she had shared with new people she had met.

Flipping through the final pages, Ona’s eyes lingered on the section at the back of the booklet she had dedicated to players she admired and when she’d played them. One of who was Lucy Bronze. She had always felt a special kind of feeling towards the defender, she was drawn to her. And with Lucy now becoming her teammate at Barça, Ona felt a surge of excitement at the thought of finally sharing the pitch with her idol on the same side.

This part of her diary held memories of their past encounters, it described Ona’s admiring for Lucy’s talent and her growing ambition to be just as great as her, or maybe even greater, although she didn’t know if that was possible.

19 January 2020 – WSL – Manchester City 3-0 Manchester United“This match was tough. I tried my best to contain, but Manchester City was relentless. I remember one moment vividly—Lucy managed to slip past us and set up a goal with such ease. It was a harsh lesson in what it means to be at the top. Even though it stung, I couldn’t help but admire her skill. I wish to be as good of a right back as her”

13 February 2021 – WSL – Manchester City 3-0 Manchester United ‘’We faced City again, and it felt like déjà vu. Lucy seemed to be everywhere at once, and despite our best efforts, we couldn’t turn the tide. Losing like this for the second time was hard, but it only strengthened my resolve.” 9 October 2021 – WSL – Manchester City 2-2 Manchester United“This game was a nail-biter. We managed to hold City to a draw. Lucy made a brilliant run just after half time, but we managed to recover in time. Walking off the pitch, I felt a mix of pride and respect. Lucy’s talent was undeniable, and this game was a reminder of just how high I had to reach. We shook hands and she said ‘good game’ to me.” 24 February 2022 – She Believes Cup – England 0-1 Spain “Beating England was a sweet victory, but Lucy’s presence on the pitch was undeniable. Her leadership pushed us to our limits, I noticed how she figured our play out, and directed her players, but luckily we were scored a goal. This game was a turning point for me, a chance to measure myself against the best and it was an important step for Spain.” 13 March 2022 – WSL – Manchester United 1-0 Manchester City“Finally, we got the win we’d been chasing with United. I intercepted a pass from Lucy, leading to the goal that secured our victory. It was a moment of personal victory, knowing that I had finally gotten the better of one of my greatest rivals. Although she as a player is still better then me, our team was better this time.” 20 July 2022 – UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 – England 2-1 Spain“We came close, but England clinched the win, it was a tough loss. Seeing Lucy lift the trophy was a powerful reminder of the heights I aspired to. It was a tough pill to swallow, but England’s success was a testament to the dedication and skill required to reach the top. I vow to come back stronger with Spain, I believe we will come back stronger.” 20 August 2023 – FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 – Spain 1-0 England“Winning the World Cup was incredible, but I couldn’t help but feel for Lucy. Seeing her disappointment was a stark reminder of how fleeting triumphs can be and how hard it is to stay at the top. It also highlighted the thin line between success and heartbreak. It made me even more excited to join her at Barça and hopefully share many successes together. I walked after her to comfort her when I saw her tears, she walked away at first and I didn’t know if it was my place to consolidate her, but I felt the urge to do it and in the end I feel like she got cheered up a little. I can’t wait to spend more time together when we play for the same team. She said she was excited for me to join too. We even saw eachother inside again, in the tunnel, there we had another quick conversation, she was already analyzing the game in her head, she told me I had an amazing game. I thanked her and then we hugged. She thanked me for coming after her, and then she laughed and told me to go celebrate.”

As Ona closed the diary, she felt a profound sense of gratitude, each little reflection told a story of growth, rivalry and respect. She was filled with a mix of excitement and anticipation. She was about to join a team that included Lucy Bronze, a player she had always admired from afar. The prospect of working alongside her idol, and now also her teammate, was both thrilling and daunting. She couldn’t wait to maybe even become friends with the English defender.

Recently, during last winter, Ona had met Lucy Bronze off the field, at the wedding of their mutual friend Lucy Staniforth. It was a different experience entirely - Lucy turned out to be even kinder and more down-to-earth than Ona had imagined. Their day together was filled with laughter, personal anecdotes and even some dancing, breaking down the barriers of their on-pitch rivalry.

Despite the connection they shared that day, Ona had hesitated to reach out to Lucy afterward, doubting whether the English defender would welcome the contact. Stani had reassured her that Lucy would have appreciated it, but Ona’s lingering uncertainty had held her back.

She was just another stranger to Lucy right, they only knew eachother vaguely from being rivals, Lucy didn’t know, and didn’t need to know, how much Ona looked up to her. Especially with their coming colleagueship for the same team, it would be a little unprofessional, and not to speak of the fact it was embarrassing.

…

Ona took a deep breath and looked around her very-soon-to-be-former training ground, she allowed herself a moment to appreciate her journey. The rivalries here, the victories, the defeats - they had all shaped her, preparing her for this new step ahead. Finally she had build enough experience to play for Barça’s first team with a big contract this time.

The cool Manchester air was heavy with nostalgia as she walked towards the building one last time. The crisp morning light filtered through the clouds, casting a soft, almost melancholic glow over the pitch.

As Ona moved into the busy locker room, memories of her time here flooded back, each one a bittersweet reminder of her impending departure.

Preparing for her final practice session, Ona's mind drifted back to a series of encounters that had come to define her time in England. Her time in England had been transformative. She had arrived in Manchester with a mix of excitement and dread, eager to prove herself in a new league and a new country. The transition had been challenging—the climate, the culture, the language—all required adjustments. Yet, as the months rolled by, Ona had found herself adapting and thriving. Manchester, with its gray skies, had become a part of her journey in ways she hadn’t expected.

One of the best things about her time here had been the friendships she’d built. The locker room, once an intimidating place, had turned into a second home. As Ona walked by the familiar lockers, she felt a little tug in her chest, knowing she’d soon leave it behind.

Lucy Staniforth sauntered over with a smile, but a hint of sadness. "So, last practice, huh? You ready for it?"

Ona gave a small laugh, even though her throat tightened. "I think so? It’s weird, though. Feels like I just got here, and now it’s already over."

Lucy nodded, her arm slipping around Ona’s shoulder as they sat down together. "It’s going to be so strange without you. You’ve gotta keep in touch, yeah?"

"Of course," Ona said, smiling. "And you’re always welcome to visit, you know that."

Just then, Mary Earps wandered over, her face showing how much she’d miss her too. "Onita!!!" Mary said, with a raised voice, drawing attention from the whole team. "You better invite me to sunny Barcelona at least once."

Ona pulled Mary into a tight hug, laughing. "Ofcourse."

Although the team had already held a goodbye party last week, they gathered around Ona one by one again, each declaring how much they were going to miss the tiny Spaniard and asking to be invited to her house or a fc Barcelona match when to opportunity was there.

…

The next morning, the reality of her move finally hit, but instead of feeling nervous, Ona was filled with excitement. A new life in Barcelona was waiting!

The club had set up a beautiful, modern apartment for her close to the training facilities. Her family had already sent her photos of all her things neatly unpacked. Everything looked perfect, but with one thing still missing—herself, and ofcourse her little dog Coco.

Ona felt a twinge of sadness as she checked Coco in for the flight. She hated that he had to travel in the hold, away from her, but she knew the flight wasn’t too long and they would soon be walking the sunny streets of Barcelona together.

During the flight Ona gazed out the window. She watched the familiar English countryside fade away and not much longer then two hours, the vibrant colors of Spain came into view, the bright sun shining down on the city below. The lively atmosphere of Barcelona, so different from Manchester’s gray skies, felt like a warm welcome.

When she had landed and gathered all her belongings and Coco, Ona’s heart skipped a beat as she spotted her family waiting for her. Her brother was holding a colorful sign that read “Welcome home Ona!”, but it was her mother’s open arms that she rushed into first.

Hugging her mother tightly, Ona felt a wave of relief and happiness wash over her. She had missed this—missed the warmth and comfort of her mother’s embrace, the real feeling of being home. Her father and brother joined the hug, and for a moment, everything felt perfect.

As they drove to her new apartment, Ona couldn’t help but smile as she looked out at the familiar sights of her beloved city. This was it, her dream was finally coming true. She had faced the challenges of living in England, grown as a player, and now she was back in Barcelona, ready to play football she had always dreamed of.

Surrounded by her family and with Coco by her side, Ona knew she was exactly where she was meant to be.

…

After a drive which wasn’t supposed to take this long, but with all the traffic in the streets of Barcelona, it did, Ona and her parents finally arrived at her new apartment. Her brother had already said goodbye after their greeting in the airport.

The moment she stepped inside, she felt happy. Her belongings already unpacked, made the place feel like home. The afternoon was spent in the company of her parents, laughing together and talking about the exciting time laid ahead.

They had ordered some local food, paella ofcourse, to celebrate her return to Spain. And as the sun dipped below the horizon, they sat around the small kitchen table, enjoying their first meal in her new home.

Ona’s mother fussed over her, making sure everything was in its place, while her father admired the view from the balcony. Ona ensured them for the hundred time she would be okay and they could go.

Finally Ona’s parents began to gather their things, preparing to leave. Her mother, with a warm smile and a kiss on her forehead, reminded Ona that she was just a call away. After a few more hugs and goodbyes, they were gone and the apartment fell into a peaceful quiet.

Ona was exhausted, the day’s events catching up to her all at once. All she wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep, but there was one last thing she had to do: taking Coco for a walk.

She grabbed his leash and headed outside. The night air was refreshing against her skin. The neighborhood was peaceful, with only the sound of distant traffic and an occasional passerby.

Suddenly, she heard someone call out, "Ona? Ona Batlle!?"

Assuming it was a fan, Ona turned around with a kind smile.

But her smile grew wider with surprise when she saw Lucy Bronze standing just a few steps away, a dog by her side.

"Ona! I didn’t expect to see you here," Lucy said, her face lighting up with recognition. "I mean, I knew we’d run into each other soon, but not like this."

"Lucy! What are you doing here?" Ona asked, still wrapping her head around the coincidence.

"I live here," Lucy replied with a playful chuckle, joking. "I play for Barça, remember?"

Ona laughed, the initial tension melting away. "ahh, ofcourse," she chuckled and pointed to the building she had just left. "wait, you mean in that building?"

"Yeah," Lucy confirmed with a warm smile, finally reaching her. "are we hugging?"

Ona smiled back ‘’ofcourse, we’re teammates now’’, nodding as she stepped into the embrace. "Nice to see you again" she said softly as they pulled back, "I wasn’t expecting to see a familiar face so soon."

"When did you get back here?" Lucy asked, knowing Ona had a history with Barcelona but also recalling their brief encounter in July, when Ona had come down to the club to officially sign her contract.

"Today, just a few hours ago. My parents picked me up from the airport and we had dinner together before they headed out, they just left actually."

"Oh, you must be exhausted," Lucy said, sympathy lacing her voice.

"Yeah, I’m sure I’ll crash as soon as I hit the bed, but Coco needed a walk first." Ona chuckled. The dog looking up as he heard his name.

"Am I keeping you? I can take another route?" Lucy offered.

"No, not at all," Ona shook her head, her smile widening. "I’m glad I ran into someone familiar before training next week. Even though I used to play for Barça and I know a few girls from nationals, it still feels like a new beginning, honestly I’m a bit nervous."

..

They chatted for a while, sharing stories about moving clubs, discussing their excitement for the season to start again and even the world cup made a brief appearance, but Lucy assured Ona that she didn’t hold a grudge about that, chuckling that England would beat them next time.

Both dogs seemed to get along well too, happily trotting beside each other as their owners talked. The conversation flowed easily, much like it had the last times they had met. It was comforting for Ona to find a familiar face in the new place, especially someone she admired so much and it helped a lot that Lucy was being so nice to her.

Ona couldn’t help the fact that she had considered that Lucy might not be warm towards her, given that they were both playing for the same position. Something which could come with a bit of rivalry within teams if players were both eager for a starting position. She didn’t get any of those vibes off of the English defender, but maybe that was yet to come, she hoped not.

As they said their goodbyes in the building’s lobby and headed back to their respective apartments, Ona couldn’t help but feel a spark of excitement. Not only was she living her dream, but she also had a friend and teammate just a few doors down, with who she had just exchanged phone numbers to carpool next week.

When Ona finally shut her apartment door, she still wore the smile on her face, she had had a good day. A perfect day.

She tucked Coco into his bed and as she crawled under her own blankets, she still couldn’t stop smiling. This new chapter in her life was already off to an incredible start.

…

The next week, on a bright august morning, Ona and Lucy set off together for the FC Barcelona training ground, the sun casting a golden glow over the city. During the drive they chatted and Ona tried to ease her worries about fitting in with both her new and the familiar teammates. Lucy, with her easygoing and kind nature, reassured Ona that it would be like coming home for her.

Upon arriving at the club, the day was a whirlwind of medical tests and introductions. Ona was welcomed back into the fold by familiar faces. She saw Aitana, her national camp roomie, as they were both having their bike test at the same time. She hugged her and Bonmatí said she was very excited to see Ona back and couldn’t wait to play with her again.

Alexia, Jana, Salma and also some players she didn’t yet know, like Keira, Caroline and Esmee, everyone was kind and even though the medical examinations were thorough and took up most of the morning, she had had a good time.

The few nerves that Ona had started the day with were long forgotten as her first day of work went by.

..

By the end of the day, Lucy and Ona drove back together, sharing their impressions of the day. Ona had barely seen her neighbor around at the club, but she hadn’t expected Lucy to stay around holding her hand either. And after all it hadn’t really been necessary , she knew most off the girls there maybe even better then Lucy so it would’ve been weird. But she did feel really comfy near Lucy and was definitely eager to become friends with her.

The long hours had been exhausting, but the mood in the car was great. They reflected on the promising start to the season, discussing training plans and their hopes for the future. The drive back was filled with laughter and mutual encouragement, reinforcing the feeling that this new chapter was going to be an exciting adventure. Already planning out all the trophies they would win, all of them ofcourse.

..

The week had gone better than Ona could’ve imagined. Joining a new team was always a mix of excitement and nerves, but Ona was settling in well. Her developing friendship with Lucy helped a big part in that. They quickly fell into a rhythm, driving together whenever their schedules matched up. It was comforting to have someone to talk to during the rides—Lucy’s calm and laid-back demeanor put Ona at ease. They even walked their dogs together, sometimes by chance when they bumped into each other outside, and other times when one of them texted to arrange it. Those small moments of connection gave a spark to Ona’s days.

The training sessions were intense, but Ona was also starting to find her place within the team. Over the course of the week, she had formed a tight-knit group with Salma, Vicky, Bruna, Jana, Patri, and Pina. It came naturally—they joked around, supported each other through drills and even helped each other out with little things like advice on new drills or finding the best spots for post-training snacks.

This Saturday morning’s session was typical pre-season work: sharp, focused and designed to get them all in peak condition. The mood was upbeat, everyone knowing they’d have the afternoon off once they were done. Lucy had texted Ona earlier, suggesting they grab lunch together after training and Ona had agreed, excited about spending more time with her new friend.

As they finished the session, the group drifted towards the locker room, still chatting animatedly. The conversation quickly turned to lunch plans, with Vicky and Salma leading the charge.

“There’s this rooftop restaurant in the city that has the best views,” Vicky said, her eyes lighting up. “You guys have to come. The food’s amazing.”

Salma nodded enthusiastically. “And the vibe is so chill. Especially on a day like this.”

Ona was about to say yes when she felt a gentle nudge at her side. She turned to see Lucy, who was freshly showered and ready to go. “Hey, chauffeur, ready to go?” Lucy asked with a teasing smile.

Ona smiled back, feeling a bit torn. “I’d love to go with you guys another time, but I’m carpooling with Lucy.”

Vicky wasn’t going to let her friend off the hook so easily. “Why don’t you join us after you drop Lucy off?” she suggested, not missing a beat.

Lucy, responded with a grin. “I was actually going to buy Ona lunch for driving me to training, but if you’d rather go with them, we can always reschedule.”

Vicky waved off the idea with a laugh. “Lucy, you can join too, you’re a cool old person.”

Salma chuckled, adding, “Yeah, sure Lucy can join.”

Lucy raised an eyebrow, pretending to be offended. “Old? I’m not old.” She huffed.

The whole group standing around bursted out in a chuckle.

Ona quickly jumped in, without having control she called out to defend the older player. “Lucy’s not old.”

With a smile, Lucy draped an arm around Ona’s shoulder. “See? I’m not old,” she said, pulling Ona a little closer. The gesture was casual, but it made Ona feel warm inside.

The rest of the group laughed, the teasing and banter making the decision easy. Vicky grinned. “Alright, so it’s settled. We’re all going.”

Lucy nodded, still smiling. “Sounds like a plan.”

As they all headed out of the locker room together walking to the parking lot. Ona turned to Lucy, ´´sure it´s allright?’’, ‘’I don’t want to bother you, we can go another time for lunch together?’’.

Lucy looked at Ona curiously, ‘’do you not want me there? It’s cool if you just want to with your friends, I just-‘’ she smiled awkwardly, ‘’thought it could be fun?’’.

Ona shook her head, ‘’no, no’’ she put her hand on Lucy’s lower arm, ‘’I would really like for you to come’’.

‘’Sure?’’ Lucy asked, ‘’you can just drop me off at home if-

‘’No’’ Ona shook her head, ‘’I just thought-‘’.

Salma and Vicky called out from Ona’s car ‘’Ey, can you open the car Ona?’’.

Ona looked up annoyed, ‘’why? what are you two doing?’’.

‘’Patri and Pina said we could drive with you’’ Vicky said proudly.

Ona internally groaned, she would’ve rather sat alone with Lucy, but she didn’t show her discontentment and just clicked open the car.

‘’I really like you joining the lunch’’ she quickly said to Lucy on more time before they made it to the car too.

…

The lunch was great, Ona couldn’t help but glance at Lucy every once in a while, especially when she laughed at one of her own jokes. She normally didn’t like people that did that, but with Lucy it was so cute, so innocent. She wanted to watch her laugh for hours.

Lucy had paid for the lunch of everyone, Ona hadn’t expected it, no one had. But she had been gone for a second and when they’d asked for the bill the waiter had told it had been paid. Then Lucy had confessed she’d already paid.

After dropping Salma off they were now at Vicky’s place. ‘’Thanks Ona, and thank you Lucy, you’re a G’’ Vicky said before closing the car door, ‘’see you next week’’.

‘’Bye Vicky’’, Lucy called out as Ona stayed silent.

She drove off again, now headed to their apartment block, about a twenty minute drive.

‘’You good?’’. Lucy said, turning the music down a little, ‘’you seem very far away in thoughts’’.

Ona blinked, ‘’uhm, oh, yeah, no’’.

Lucy chuckled, ‘’tired?’’.

‘’Yes,’’ Ona nodded, happy with the excuse easily offered to her, ‘’a bit tired’’.

‘’Ah, maybe a nap when you’re home then’’.

 ‘’Maybe, but I have to walk Coco first’’.

‘’Ah, Narla also has to go on a walk, maybe we can walk together?’’.

Ona smiled, but quickly put her face in neutral again, trying to stay casual. ‘’Mhm, okay.’’

‘’If you’re too tired it is fine too,’’ Lucy said, ‘’don’t feel pressured’’.

‘’No, no’’ Ona said, momentarily glancing over to face Lucy, ‘’I would like to walk together’’.

‘’Good, I like walking them together.’’

‘’Yeah me too, they seem to like eachother.’’ Ona said, a little blush creeping up her cheeks.

‘’Mhm.’’ Lucy chuckled, ‘’becoming besties like their moms’’.

...

Masterlist: Playing for keeps

[mysticfalls01]

Time

(Williamson!reader)

The Wonder Twins Universe

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

You had your debut two weeks after arriving to the team, you played in a friendly against Atletico during the preseason. You entered the pitch as a sub for the second half and your impact was immediate. Jonatan saw the way you orchestrated the midfield, your communication with both the defenders and the strikers and how everything went smoothly. The game ended 5-0 with you being player of the match as you contributed with 2 assists, and you had participated in the building of a third goal.

Not only your impact in the team was noticeable but also the impact of joining Barcelona was noticeable. You started learning Spanish to speak with the staff, your teammates and with the fans, you also started to gain more muscle as training in Barcelona was more rigorous than with Arsenal. You felt as if you had been playing in Barcelona for years.

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

Before you knew it you already had been in Barcelona for a month and a half. You loved everything in Barcelona, the city, the warm weather, the staff, and your teammates.

You thought that joining such a united team it would have been difficult to be accepted and to join into the team’s dynamics however, it has been the opposite.

You could say that Mapi has become your closest friend in Barcelona, she made sure to make your adaptation easier and Ingrid became your confidant and the person with whom you went for advice as she understood perfectly what you were going through, being a foreigner joining Barcelona. Patri and Claudia became your annoying little sisters while with Jana and Bruna you felt the necessity of protecting them and teaching them everything you could, you were sure that those two would become superstars.

Having other British teammates joining at the same time as you have made everything better, you had a piece of home in Barcelona thanks to them.

Finally, Alexia. The chemistry you had her was undeniably, you made her laugh with your clumsiness and with the stories you told her about your adventures with Leah when you were younger and she made your heartbeat faster, you love the passion she has about the game for either the club or her national team. You couldn’t stop thinking about the Catalan and you couldn’t wait for her to be on the pitch again.

The only negative part of joining Barcelona was being separated from your family, specially from your twin. You talked with Leah every time it was possible, you missed being with her almost 24/7. Being separated from her while it gave you a sense of independence it was also the worst feeling ever.

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

Being in Liga F has taught about a new playing style, your skills have only gotten better and it was noticed by Sarina so it wasn’t a surprise when you were announced as part of the squad for the international break and that’s how you found yourself in the locker room after the last practice before the break saying goodbye to some of your teammates.

“Mapi! Don’t do anything to crazy while I’m gone!”

“Me?!? y/nn I don’t why would you say that” Mapi said with a fake innocent voice.

“You are right Mapi. How could I say that? You are an angel” you said smiling with a sarcastic voice.

You picked up your things before approaching Mapi, hugging her and whispering. “Mapi, if there’s something bothering you, and I mean anything at all you about the coach from your national team remember that I’m one call away.”

“Thank you y/nn, I can’t stand anymore Vilda and his staff. I don’t know what to do, I want to stay strong for the younger ones” she whispered back to you.

“Remember Mapi, one call away” you whispered back before separating.

“Good luck with Norway Ingrid!” you said while giving her a quick hug.

“You to y/nn! I hope everything goes well with the Lionesses”

After saying goodbye to more teammates, you went looking for Alexia who should be finishing her physiotherapy session. You were waiting outside the physiotherapy room when she came out.

“Ale! I couldn’t leave without saying goodbye to you” you said looking directly to her eyes and giving her a soft smile.

She approached you and hugged you.

“If you couldn’t say goodbye I would have understood. Our schedules are hectic.”

“Ale, I had to say goodbye. I wouldn’t have been comfortable without it.”

You guys kept hugging until you heard Lucy “Williamson! We need to go! Are you ready?!”

You separated from Alexia and turned around towards Lucy yelled “Yeah Lucy! Just give me two more minutes!”

Lucy realized that you and Alexia were having a moment, before leaving she said “Two minutes Williamson!”

You turned around back to Alexia and said “Ale I know that I will only be gone for like 10 days, but I’ll miss you”

“I’ll miss you to y/n, good luck for your games y/nn, I’ll make sure to watch every single match. You better return to me, I mean Barcelona in one piece, I would hate for you to join me and the physios.”

“Don’t worry Ale, I’ll take care of my myself” you told her smiling.

Before leaving and turning around you gave her a kiss in the cheek close to her mouth.

If you had turned around to see her reaction, you would’ve seen her really red face and how her fingers here softly caressing the exact spot of the kiss.

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

St George's Park, you really had missed that place.

You, Lucy and Keira were just arriving to the place. You couldn’t wait to see your teammates again but the person you wanted to see the most was Leah.

As soon as you guys left the van you were greeted by the media team. After you waved and greeted the camera you entered the lobby.

Before you could even greet some teammates and Sarina a body had tackled you. You immediately recognized her blonde hair and hugged her.

“Look! The Wonder Twins are finally reunited” Tooney said.

After her words everyone turned their attention towards you and your twin.

Everyone could see that was an emotional exchange, they couldn’t imagine how you guys felt.

Finally, Leah and you separated and you greeted everyone.

After greeting everyone Leah hugged you again “I’ve missed you so much sis”

“I missed you too Lee, there’s so much that I need to tell you. There might be someone special in Barcelona” you whispered.

You guys separated and she smiled at you before she could talk Rachel’s voice interrupted her.

“Oi! y/nn what are they feeding you with in Barcelona. You have more muscles than you did before and only in a period of two months!” 

After hearing that you couldn’t help but to laugh.

You couldn’t wait to play to play again with your sister.  After all you guys are The Wonder Twins.

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

Thank you to everyone! The love recieved by part three was amazing.

If there is anything that you guys would like to see please comment it!

[redfurrycat]

🤠🩰🎤🎶🐓Musicians, Singers & Dancers Fic Recs🐓🎶🎤🩰🤠

(Pic credits: GP - MT)

Check the Top Gun Masterlist post for the latest updated version. 💕

Ao3 Authors: Coconutcordiale, Dalearden, Hangmanbradshaw, Haridwar, LulaluzHazel, Multifandommonster, Perishablealex, Road1985, SunMonTue, Tearsricochets, ToukoJalorda003, Trinipedia, Vahosi,  Youlookgood.

Music & Dancing within the Top Gun Verse {🤠🐓} > Actors & Celebrities {🤠🐓}

the happy daggers band AU by multifandommonster

in the morning, when you wrap me up {G}

“I’ll make sure to keep up the complimentary breakfast,” he jokes back. “Gonna give me five stars?” “I’ll give you whatever you want if you keep pouring the coffee,” Jake replies, turning in Bradley’s arms until their noses touch. “I have the GQ shoot today. Probably won’t be home until late.”

kiss you too hard and follow you west {T}

Bradley’s shirt is drenched and his hair sticks to his forehead, sweat dripping into his eyes and ears still ringing, breath coming in uneven ragged pants. He can feel the patchy flush spread across his neck– knows without a doubt that the sheer amount of exertion has left his eyes red and his cheeks splotchy. Jake never takes his eyes off him.

pay for my coffee and leave (before the sun rises again) by haridwar {T}

chance encounters in a diner at 2 am

let me put on a show by dalearden {E}

Stripper Bradley falls hard for Navy pilot Jake. The trouble is, he doesn't realize it until after a series of hook-ups following which Jake has already disappeared from his life, seemingly never to return.

I Don't Wanna Live Through This Comedown - Top Gun AU [Jake "Hangman" Seresin/Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw] by Road1985, trinipedia {E}

Meet Bradley, a struggling musician working at a strip club to cover medical expenses. Then meet Jake, who joined the Army in a desperate attempt to atone for his muddy past of drug abuse and get back the respect of his family. They couldn't be more different, but their needs are the same, so they agree to marry solely for military benefits. However, when tragedy strikes, the line between real and pretend begins to blur.

takin' my heart out (of its zone of comfort) by tearsricochets {T}

Javy, who is still holding on to Bradley like they’re best friends, shakes his head. “Sorry, boss man, I walked all over set. This Tanner dude just isn’t here.” Who the fuck is Tanner? He tries to convey this question to Javy with his eyes, but the actor is not paying a lick of attention to him. He’s looking at the man in front of them, who is instead looking at Bradley like the brunette is the sole cause of every problem in his life right now. “Then who the hell is this guy?” As of finally noticing their boss was no longer pacing in front of them, or that he was suddenly getting louder in tone, Natasha and her friend look up at the new additions of their group. Bradley pretends not to notice the blonde taking an appreciative look at him, but he’s a simple man and absolutely preening under the attention. “This is Bradley,” he gives a meek way to the man burning holes in his head. “And he’s going to fill in as my other half today.” “Excuse me?” He’s going to what? OR: the one in which Bradley is not an actor, but he is going to film a music video for the hot singer

Shimmering Beautiful In The Moonlit Glow by perishablealex {E}

Bradshaw nods and Jake swallows. He begins to slide his hand down from Bradley’s ribcage, gliding over the muscles of his abs, inhaling sharply when he feels the other man’s breath catch. His hand continues pressing onto the hot skin, brushing over the ridge of Bradley’s hips before it finishes its path, sliding to the man’s inner thigh. Holding up the leg, mouth next to Bradley’s ear, he breathes, “There.” Or: The Ballet AU

Cambiaste un Ferrari por un Twingo by LulaluzHazel {T}

Jake Seresin is a famous songwriter in a long-term relationship. He has been living in Barcelona for the past five years living the most romantic and beautiful dream. Until one slip from his partner reveals on National TV the dream is not a dream and Jake has been cheated on for the past year and a half. Heartbroken, he doesn't know to function, until his younger sister suggests he could do a song with one of the most controversial DJs and producers to 'vent' and start healing. A music producer he doesn't respect much. But he knows that between both of them, they can put out a song that will follow the Fucker who played with his heart like that.

blue memories by coconutcordiale {E}

Taking a deep breath, Jake tries not to lose his nerve, summons the last bit of anger and discontent that’s been simmering for nearly a year now. “I want a divorce.” Bradley blinks from his spot on the annoyingly stylish chair next to the bed. Rolls the rocks glass of whiskey in his hands slowly before answering. “Okay.” + aka the musician bradley au

muse by youlookgood {T}

Lately, it's like the spark that would keep driving Bradley forward each night, the fire on his fingertips hot and blazing just like the sweet burn of the drink that comes between and after sets, has been snuffed out. He sees his half-steady gig work and instead of a semblance of comfort and that sun-bright thrill, he feels... ...a little empty. Then, "Can I get you another?"

You and Me, We Got Big Reputations (the fame AUs) by hangmanbradshaw

Love (Suite Love) {T}

Jake never thought he'd leave a pop concert with a public crush. Bradley was on vocal rest. Really, he was.

takes one to know one {E}

He decided to go for broke. “I could handle you.” Jake’s eyes sparked. That smirk on his face grew. “My, my, Bradshaw. That a threat or a promise?” “Depends.” “On?” He shrugged. “On what you want it to be.” Or, rival popstars Jake & Bradley have been circling each other for years. Add in a supposed romance with star QB Javy Machado, a SNL appearance, PR, and Jake throwing down a challenge...and things get interesting.

I've loved you three summers now, honey, but I want 'em all {M}

Jake's been singing songs about himself for longer than he knows, but in the end, he finds out singing songs about Bradley is so much better. Or Writing love songs is hard until it isn't (the musician/producer AU)

Songs of Ballads and Lullabies (Always Revered for Their Adoration) by ToukoJalorda003 {M}

Of all the things that Bradley had wanted most, creating a name for himself was one of them. And given that his friends and he were set to create one of the most iconic rock bands in recent years, he would do anything to keep it that way. Except that Hangman was there, too. That was bad enough - particularly when the guy kept getting on his nerves. Dealing with those put together was going to be…a challenge, to put it lightly.

suburban legends ✈ by vahosi  

we were born to be suburban legends {G}

we were born to be the pawn in every lover's game {_}

Take more chances, dance more dances by SunMonTue {E}

Meet!Cute with Jake as the best man at Natasha and Javy's wedding and Bradley is the instructor teaching them how to dance...

You found me by SunMonTue {E}

Bradley didn't expect to meet his soulmate halfway across the world, especially not when he's meant to be working. Good thing staying close to Jake is part of the job. Now he just has to manage to not get too close while also ensuring Jake understands that he's all in.

[mrchiipchrome]

The Olive Theory

W.C.- 2,5 k

Frida Leonhardsen Maanum. That’s the name of the person you love the most in this universe, and your teammate at Arsenal. The two of you had met at a very unclear point in your lives, as two teenagers going through the hardships of feeling misunderstood you found your clarity in each other.

You two completed each other in a way people never understood and that’s what made you two so perfect for eachother. You didn’t have the need for people to understand what made your relationship work, because it just did. You were like night and day, sun and moon, good and bad, push and pull, love and hate, for and against. It was inexplicable, but that’s what makes it so much more fun.

You had met this ray of sunshine when you were 14 years old, it was at an U17 friendly against Norway and she had caught your eye as soon as she shot you one of her signature shining smiles. Your older national teammates shot you knowing looks as you sent one back, though this was an unusual sight for them only having seen it a handful of times. 

They often joked that your face didn’t encompass the muscles needed for smiling as you always sat there stone faced. This would later be proven untrue when they saw you engaging with the ‘enemy’, who never failed to exercise the 43 muscles that make you smile.

They could always notice when you were thinking about the Norwegian, as the corners of your mouth were upturned more than usual while Frida’s teammates knew through the dreamy and unaware look that appeared in her eyes the second thoughts of your stone cold expression crossed her mind.

After two long years of pining after the other, the two of you finally fessed up after a hard fought draw between the U19 squads of Sweden and Norway. The both of you were now 16 and pursuing a long distance relationship, with you living in your native Sweden and her in Norway. But no matter where you lived you both knew that home wasn’t a place rather a person, your other half.

You were the first person she called when she got called up to the senior team at the age of 17, and she was the first person you called when you got the same news a week later. No one cheered louder than you when she entered the pitch in her debut match against the hosts Netherlands, and her shouts of delight as you scored the goal that sent your team to the quarter finals where you sadly lost bounced around the hotel room she was in and out into the corridors.

You were over the moon when it was announced that Frida would join you at Lindköpings FC, and the two of you moved into a small one bedroom apartment 5 minutes from the training grounds. Your club teammates finally got to witness the loved up version they had heard so much about from your national teammates, so much that they thought it was a fable as they never got to see you without the hard frown situated on your face.

They saw how utterly complete your soul was when you were with her, how in a strange way her optimistic and delightful personality made your ruthless and hard one full.  She was your soulmate and no one could argue anything else, though they were slightly jealous at how you had found your person at such a young age.

When the two of you got a call from your shared agent at the beginning of summer 2021 telling you that you had offers from Arsenal in the WSL, the two of you didn’t hesitate and you began looking for apartments near the London Colney. You bid your longtime teammates goodbye before starting the new chapter in your life.

Now after nearly 2 years at Arsenal, you can proudly say that you hadn’t regretted your decision to move to England. People would think that after 8 years together you would fall out of love but that’s the opposite of what happened, the two of you only falling deeper in love with every second that passes. Everyone around you saw it, how you pulled her back to the ground when her head was too far up in the clouds and how only she could calm you down in your many moments of incredible rage on the pitch.

They could see it in your interactions with each other, how your eyes would follow her every move before she was close enough for you to grab her and pull her onto your lap and how she would look at you with eyes full of adoration whenever you brutally tackle someone on the field. It could be seen in your instagram bio spelling out ‘God is a woman, and her name is Frida Maanum’, while hers was the date when you had confessed to your obvious feelings. The two of you even shared a ‘son’ together, a border collie named Rutger ‘Gus’ Maanum-L/n who you posted about all the time. 

And yet the thing people (your teammates) obsessed over most in your relationship was olives, surprisingly. You utterly ‘despised’ olives, but she loved them. ‘The olive theory’ they call it, having explained it every time they saw you give the olives found in your salad to her. They talk about it like it’s the rule that makes every relationship work, not that you believe them in the slightest.

Like everything else regarding your relationship, it was perfectly balanced. She dislikes raisins, while you basically inhale them. You despise the bitter taste of morning coffee, but as she sits curled up on the couch with a steaming cup of joe every morning you find yourself not wanting to gag as the stark smell of coffee invades your every sense. You perfectly balanced out each other, that’s what made your relationship so great, or so you’ve been told by your overenthusiastically curious teammates.

—

Sitting in your cubicle in the locker room at the Colney, the voices of your loud teammates surrounding your every move. Suddenly, the room goes quiet and you get tunnel vision when your eyes lay upon your ethereal girlfriend. Even with flyaways appearing from her ponytail and a thin layer of sweat covering her face, your girlfriend's beauty could still rival that of Aphrodite.

Feeling eyes on her, Frida turns her gaze upon the usual culprit and she finds herself staring directly into your eyes. She brings her hand up and into a wave directed at you, a wave you replicate before your line of sight is invaded by the aggressive movement of an arm not connected to your girlfriend's body.  

Your gaze changes from love filled to murderous in the span of a millisecond, turning towards the body in which the arm is connected to and seeing Jen Beattie and Katie McCabe. Raising an eyebrow in an unamused expression you see how their larger than life smiles falter slightly before continuing with whatever they were supposed to say.

“We lost you there for a sec, don’t forget that we’re having dinner tonight at that new restaurant.” Jen says after a second of silence.

You stand up, picking your kitbag off the floor before nodding in agreement. You muster up the meanest expression possible before telling them that you would not hesitate to contact their girlfriends if they ever did that again.

Walking over to Frida who had finished her shower and had changed into her everyday clothes, you take her bag from her grasp and sling it over your shoulder while slipping your large hand into hers. You lead her out of the room while she bids everyone a quick goodbye and see you later. As soon as you reach your car and you settle behind the wheel she pulls you in for a sweet kiss by the sides of your unzipped hoodie.

Returning home, you lay down on the couch being exhausted from training and as Frida lays down on top of you with her head perched on your chest right above the placement of your heart, you realize that you’ve reached peak euphoria. If something were to happen to you, you realize that you’d be happy with everything you’ve achieved up to this point in your life and that you would take your last breath feeling complete and happy with the life well spent.

You relax into the couch and the added weight of your girlfriend makes it much easier for your eyes to fall closed. Speaking up you ask her;

“Raring, could you-”

“I put an alarm on as soon as we walked in the door”

The sweetest of smiles takes over the usual barrenness of your face and you press a kiss to the crown of her head before resting your head back on the couch without a care in the world. 

The loud chirping of the alarm ringing for the ninth time has you finally opening your eyes. Frida has now cuddled into your side and you have an arm slung around her shoulders, her eyes closed and her breaths coming out in regular puffs. The sight has you enchanted and you forget about the alarm for a moment, before it brings you back to reality with rude beeps and you turn towards it with a sleepy kind of charm. You fully intend on snoozing it, but as you see the time displayed at the top of the screen you realize that you’d slept through the alarm more than once.

The harsh movement of you sitting up has Frida waking from her seemingly deep sleep, a confused frown on her face as you rush around the living room with your shirt pulled halfway from your torso and pants halfway down your thighs.

“Min kjæreste, what are you doing?” Turning around, you tell her your reasoning for your rush.

“Älskling we have 20 minutes left until we’re supposed to be at dinner with the girls, that's how long the drive there is.”

You watch as her eyes widen in realization and she scrambles up from her place on the couch like you had just moments before, you both thankful for your thinking in advance as you already had matching outfits prepared. You throw on the muted green trousers on before moving onto the off white button up, leaving the top buttons unbuttoned and putting on the matching green blazer. Turning towards your girlfriend once again, you take in the sight of her standing in a light green sundress that just about reaches down to the bottom of her knees. 

You’re frozen in the moment, just staring at her with your jaw fully slack and hanging open slightly. When she sees your expression in the mirror as she’s finishing the last touches to her hair she giggles softly to herself before strutting over to you and pushing your jaw up with her index finger.

“Come on kjæreste, we have to go” You follow her out of your house akin to a lost puppy would its owner. You put the key in the ignition and start driving towards the restaurant on the outskirts of the town. You see her going into her makeup bag out of the corner of your eye and you make a face of disagreement.

“You don’t need any makeup, hjärtat.”

“I’m just putting on some mascara my love”

You nod before turning your attention back onto the road fully. You pull into the parking lot and you put the car in an open parking space before you turn off the engine and get out of the car. Rounding the car you pull on the door handle as you open the car door for her, holding out your hand she puts her own in yours as you assist her out of the car.

You enter the restaurant hand in hand with your girlfriend hearing the whistles and suggestive comments coming from the team at the time when you arrived, being fashionably late. Separating, you sit on opposite sides of the tables but still parallel to each other. You start to engage in conversation with your teammates sitting to the side of you after having ordered your food. As it arrives you notice the olives apparent in the dish and you’re too focused on picking them out of your food to give to your girlfriend to realize Jen pulling up her phone sneakily and filming you as you give them to her.

You eat with your teammates and talk to them simultaneously which means that you are more distracted than usual. You don’t realize that you missed an olive when you had given them all to your girlfriend, but Katie does. She’s just about to warn you but you manage to stuff it into your mouth before she could. Katie watches on, waiting for the visceral reaction but it never comes. She leans in to whisper softly in your ear.

“I thought you hated olives.”

You turn your face towards her with a questioning look on your face before she gestures towards your fork and you realize your mistake. Your face feels warm as you stare back at her and you start to explain in a hushed whisper so that the girl opposite you can’t hear a word of what you say to the Irish woman.

“I don’t hate olives, I never have. I actually love them, but I love her more. Love is all about sacrifices, and this is an easy sacrifice to make for her.” 

Finishing your dinner you stay and mingle for a while before you meet your girlfriend's eyes and 

you see the prominent exhaustion in them. Slapping your thighs, you stand up and catch the attention of the team and you tell them it’s time for you and Frida to return to your homestead. A few of them let out protests but you don’t listen to them, instead taking her hand and walking out to the car and beginning to drive home.

As soon as you return home you notice the incoming flood of notifications from TikTok, most of them tagging you. Taking a seat at the table, under the overhead lamp you pull her to sit on your lap as you press the notification of the video you’ve been tagged in hundreds of times, wanting to watch the video with her. Both your and Fridas eyes are fixated on the screen as you see a video of you giving your olives to her during your rendezvous at the restaurant, it being posted on Jen’s account. Pressing play you are met with soft plucking of a guitar and Ted Mosbys voice flooding out the speaker,

“The olive theory is based on my friends, Marshall and Lily-”

Got an idea, here you go!

[strangerscallmegray]

Are we the Same, Pt. 3

Okay yeah, I wrote this over the weekend and I hope you will like it. I don't know whether the characters are OOC or not because I haven't even watched it yet lmaoo. Imagine writing a fanfic over something you haven't even watched.

Link to Pt. 2

Also, my first language is not English so pls don't kill me.

Warnings: Blood and Gun-shot Wound.

Word Count: 1390 words

Joel had not expected this to take an ugly turn, it was supposed to be simple patrol job, your everyday work so he had taken you along with him. If he knew it would turn out like this, he’d never have asked you to tag along. You were resting at home today with Ellie, it was a holiday when you had heard Joel’s voice ring out “Kid, get ready, we’re going patrolling.”

You were shocked to say the least, he had never called you out for a patrol by himself in the past two years. You jumped up and eagerly got ready in your excitement, you missed the smile Joel had on his face.

“I’m ready, Dad!”

You hopped after your dad like a little kid on Christmas. Joel realised that he only needed to understand where you’re coming from and everything would be solved. He felt very positive. They had joined the others and had begun to go on your regular trail. You were right behind him.

All of a sudden, they heard a scream from Tess who was standing in the front and there were some robbers, good for nothing robbers. They had heavy equipment in their hand, they seemed to be well prepared. They were here for something clearly and it seemed like they had planned it out for weeks.

Instinctively Joel pushed you behind him. They had jumped Tess and hit her with a club, she had fallen down unconscious or rather, that is what you hoped. You were peeking from above Joel’s shoulder. Soon, everybody was fighting. You were desperate to go look at Tess and make sure she’s okay.

Joel grabbed you by your shoulders, you looked up at him and never had you felt more like a child. He was crouching down a little. You didn’t have the best height, at least not at 16.

“Run.” He said, he had a wild desperation in his eyes.

“Run and go home, make sure Ellie is okay too. Just get out of here.” He said, shaking you a little. You nodded furiously, not knowing what else to do. He nodded at you and turned to join the fight.

You knew that you had told your dad you’d go home but how could you? How could you just leave your dad and head home? Even if you wanted to, your legs would not obey your command and stayed firmly planted in that place. As you felt a bullet stream past you, you were jolted to reality and you quickly hid behind a rock and silently watched.

You watched as your dad stood in front of Tess and fought with them. He had even successfully killed one of them. There were five of them and four of you. Your uncle, Tommy had also managed to kill one of the robbers. For all you know, they could be rogue FEDRA officials dressed as robbers to get your supplies or they could be infected. As you were watching the scene, your eyes suddenly shifted to a rock behind Dad and you saw that one of the robbers was taking an aim at Joel.

You panicked and flung to action. “Dad!” you ran to him and crashed into him sending you both to ground. The robber had taken his shot. There was a ringing in your ear and everything felt muted. You saw that the guy attacking dad was dead. ‘Oh good’ you thought, ‘the bullet must have got him’.

Slowly, as you recovered your senses, you realised that you were half on top of Joel. You got up.

“Dad! Dad, are you okay?” you asked, still panicked, holding Joel by the shoulders and checking him over for injuries. But you saw that Joel’s eyes were not focused, he was looked down and it seemed like he had gone as white as a sheet.

“Dad!” You shouted again, shaking him a little. He looked at you and again looked down, you followed his sight and you finally realised what he was staring at. Your right-side abdomen was gushing blood. Your white shirt had taken a shade of red. The bullet had gone through you and hit the other robber.

The realisation, the pain suddenly hit you as the adrenaline wore off. Your hand slid off of Joel’s shoulder’s and you slowly touched your abdomen. You cried out in pain. Joel was up in an instant, holding you.

“Y/N!” He laid you down and put pressure on your wound as you cried out.

“Don’t you worry, you’ll be as good as new, yeah?” he said and you didn’t know whom he was convincing more.

Tommy and the others had dealt with the other robbers and Tommy came rushing over to you.

“Oh my God.” He said kneeling down.

Joel had tears in his eyes. He was not losing you today.

“Why the hell did you jump, kid!?” he asked through his tears.

“He was…. he was going to kill you.” You nearly whispered. You could feel the energy leave your body as you fainted.

“NO! No, Kid, wake up!” Joel shouted. He knew he had to get you to medical attention but he seemed to be frozen. Tommy kicked into action. He asked the others to bring Tess, meanwhile he and Joel half carried you to the hospital.

It had been hours and hours of waiting which was nothing but pure agony for Joel. He kept replaying the moment in his head and why you had jumped in front of him. He was an old man; you had your entire life ahead of you and he didn’t think he’d be able to survive losing you.

Ellie was by his side; she had not said a word either.

“It was not your fault, you know.” She said quietly. He looked up at her sharply.

“I know you’ve been thinking it and no, it’s not your fault, he would have gone to the patrol in a minute had he known it was happening with or without your consent.”

He took a deep breath and did not reply her for a long time.

“Ellie, I cannot survive losing him. I’ve harboured this guilt for so long of not looking after him properly when Sarah died and I know he blames me for it. No parent should ever live to see their kids die, it is something beyond imaginable Ellie and I hope you will never know what that feels like.” He said uncharacteristically quiet and candid.

Ellie thought about what he said for some time. Never before had Joel shared so much with her and she was treasuring it. However, she also knew how you felt. You were like a brother to her and you had come about to sharing things with her and you were the only one who did not treat her like a kid. She had always appreciated that.

“Oh Joel, he thinks you hate him for Sarah.” She blurted out unable to say anything else. She continued before he could interrupt. “He thinks you blame him for Sarah’s death and that it would have been better if he had died instead that night and that is why he’s been trying to prove to you ever since! He wants to help so that others don’t end up like Sarah.”

Joel fell into deep thought. You thought he hated you? Oh my god. How could he ever hate you. You were a kind kid always, since before Sarah was even born. He had never weighed the lives of his children and wished for one to survive over the other. Of course, he would have been more than happy to have both his children alive and well but now since, Sarah was gone, never had he wished that you had died instead, it didn’t work like that. If you had died that night, he would just be in the same situation as he is now, with Sarah. Is that why you were so reckless? Why you kept risking your life so much? As if it had no value whereas it was the very reason why he woke up every day, why he lived through the day and pushed it to the next one. He needed to make you understand and resolved that he would do it if it’s the last thing he did.

Teehee, I hope you liked it, let me know!

[overtrred28]

Stargirl | matildas x original character fic [part two]

Words; 1.5k

Pairings; matildas team x astrid taylor (OC)

Warnings; none (i don't think)

A/N; second part of this series. the only games i'm fully going off of right now are the tillies games and not for Sydney FC, sort of making them up myself. again please give it some love and i welcome any good feedback. enjoy x

masterlist

Joining Sydney FC was one of the best things Astrid could have done. She was thriving. She knew joining in the middle of the season was going to be tough, especially because all the girls already knew each other, and it was at first but having Cortnee there really helped, and the other girls ensuring a smooth transition for her too.  

Astrid and her parents did argue for a while when she signed because they weren’t so keen on letting their only child live in Sydney alone at 17, but that was the only option with them unable to move from their jobs. Astrid was a little scared at first when they finally agreed she was more than mature enough to do it, but Cortnee was close by and they had developed a sister-like relationship in Matildas camps and now at the club. And it wasn’t long until she was going to be 18 anyway so it was just an early start to adulthood and Astrid loved it. 

It wasn’t long until she was playing her first Women’s A-league game, subbing on in the end of second half as a right forward. During training and practice matches Astrid was known to always score a goal, specifically towards the end. That’s why the coach brought her on when they were still 0-0 and 20 minutes from full time. She had been warming up since the second half started, ready to run on and help the team out. 

Almost 15 minutes passed and their side finally gained more possession of the ball, Cortnee ran with it on the right side, opposing defence closing in on her. She shot the ball straight up to Astrid who was in a lot of free space just further up on the outside of the box. The ball connected with her feet, with players coming closer she went for it, shooting strongly with her left foot, successfully passing by the goalie and sinking it in the back of the net. The crowd roared, Astrid ran directly to Cortnee who was already running to the younger girl. Astrid jumped onto Cortnee, a wide smile plastered on her face as the rest of the team ran and jumped onto the pair. Her first A-league game and goal and she had brought the team ahead to 1-0 with minutes to spare. 

The game has ended here and the score is 1-0 to Sydney FC with the only goal from number 19 Astrid Taylor. First appearance with this club at 17 years old, after joining the CommBank Matildas a few short months ago. I’ll say it now, I think she’s one to watch everyone, she’s got a strong strike and a great passion for the sport.

After that game, Astrid was gaining more and more minutes with the club, not in the starting 11 just yet, but subbing on towards the end and gaining the position of a ‘super-sub’, never failing to give the team a leg up by scoring at least one goal and a few assists per game right at the end. 

Her parents tried to come to as many games as they could, it being easier with her in the same state and especially when they played against Central Coast United. But when they couldn’t see them in person, they got the extended family together to watch at home. They were so proud of her, finally getting some acknowledgement for all the hard work she had put in from a young age. 

The new year started and the Matildas were off to compete in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup, Astrid and Cortnee travelling over together after their recent club match. 

When they arrived Astrid couldn’t have been happier to see the rest of the team after almost 2 months, immediately jumping on Kyra and Charli from behind when she saw them walking towards the tunnel. 

“ASTRID!” Charli squealed once the attacker had let go and they both turned around and brought her into a tight hug. “Oh I missed you.” Charli smiled before letting go, allowing Kyra and Astrid to hug finally. 

“I missed you guys so much. It’s been way too long.” Astrid spoke over Kyra’s shoulder. 

“Good to have the group back together.” Kyra commented as the pair let go, the three of them now walking down the tunnel together, arms wrapped around each other. 

“You know, I think we could beat Cait, Lani and Macca for the best trio on the squad.” Astrid spoke up as they spotted the three players chatting amongst themselves, her comment catching their attention. 

“Excuse me?”  “What?”  “WOW.”

The three of them spoke after one another, Kyra and Charli trying not to laugh beside the youngest player who was about to speak but Mackenzie got the chance first, a small smirk on her face. 

“Now listen here, child-” She began but was interrupted by Tony calling the group over to the pitch for today's training session. 

“Catch ya later.” Astrid smiled before skipping off with Kyra and Charli, arms linked and laughing. Caitlin, Alanna and Mackenzie stood for a second before laughing and following close behind with a shake to the head. 

Throughout this first training session plenty of laughs and jokes were shared within the team, most coming from their youngest player and quite a few being harmlessly thrown at said player. Astrid was building a dynamic with the squad and it was working well for everyone. 

Astrid had been working really hard over the past few days, hoping to maybe make her debut in this camp alongside Cortnee who had yet to make hers too. The pair had been talking up this camp excitingly since it was announced, both having spent a while on the squad but yet to play. 

And that day came for Cortnee. It was their second match in the competition against the Philippines this time and the Matildas were struggling a bit more than their last match a few days ago when they won 18-0 against Indonesia. They reached half time and no goals were made. The starting line up came back after halftime more pumped up than ever. 

6 minutes into half time and Sam had secured them a goal with an assist from Steph; then a Phillipines player made an own goal and gave them another one. Another goal in the net by Emily Van Egmond and they felt even more hopeful about securing the win. At the 71 minute the substitutions for Aus began happening. When Cortnee, Courtney and Holly got called up, Astrid gave them all a clap and a pat on the back, hugging Cortnee a bit more and wishing her luck for her international debut. 

Astrid definitely had the loudest cheer when Cortnee ran on, subbing for Kyah. The final goal by Mary at 87 minutes and then the game was over. A 4-0 victory and a Matildas debut for Cortnee, it was a good game. The Matildas had another game in the group stage, making it to the quarter-finals with a 2-1 win, but again no debut for Astrid. 

The quarter-finals match against South Korea was a tough one, the first goal of the match being made by South Korea in the 87th minute and ending the Matildas journey in the competition with a 0-1 loss. The team were devastated of course, Astrid slightly upset at not making her debut this camp again, but she had only been on the squad a few months so she knew her time would come. 

When Cortnee and Astrid returned to Sydney FC they both trained really hard, especially Astrid. She knew she had something to prove with both her club and national team and the only way to get there was to keep going. In their second match since returning from camp she made the starting line up and Cortnee could not have been more proud, nor could her parents who had been able to come to the game. 

Astrid had played more than 70 minutes and scored the team 2 goals and one assist before she was subbed off, more than happy with her results and to take a rest from her first long game since joining. At the end of the game, which they had won 5-1, Cortnee and Astrid made their way over to the barricade where her parents and Cortnee’s parents and brother had been chatting while they waited for the pair. 

The two families had joined the next day for lunch to celebrate the win and get to know each other a little better. They could see the sisterly bond Astrid and Cortnee had created and Astrid’s parents were happy to see she was being well taken care of since moving out of home. 

The next Matildas camp wasn’t until early April so Astrid had plenty of time to hone in on her skills, gain more minutes with Sydney FC while also adding to her score sheet. By the end of March she had 16 goals, many more assists and even more determination to be on the pitch in the next Matildas camp coming up next week.

to be continued...

[tomtenadia]

Detours to you - Epilogue

Here we are with the final chapter.

I hope you will love it... it's just pure fluff..

Before I leave you to the story, thank you to all the people who followed this and left a comment... love you ❤️

MASTERLIST

Three months later.

January had arrived and Orynth was deeply covered under a thick layer of snow. 

The Whitethorn-Galathynius household was a flurry of movement because on that day, Aelin and Rowan were finally getting married. They had decided to go for a firehouse wedding since that’s where they met after Elide took Aelin with her for a visit when she was still dating Lorcan. Rowan being the captain, had given her the tour of the station and slowly things had progressed between them.

The station was going to be taken out of service for an hour, just enough to get ready and perform the wedding.

Aelin was in her room surrounded by a slightly pregnant Elide, Lysandra, Evalin and Eiddwen.

“You can finally join the married club.” Joked Lysandra, while tending to her hair.

“How do you feel?” Asked Eiddwen.

“Happy,” and she was. It had been a long time coming but she was looking forward to call Rowan her husband. 

In the background she heard the noises of her son fussing and her instincts kicked in “mum, pass him here.”

“Aelin, he just finished his lunch, Tom needs burping and I am not having you smelling of rotten milk on your wedding day.” Evalin pulled her grandson on her shoulder and patted his back “isn’t it, love? We are letting mum get ready for her special day.” Evalin kept pacing the room while cooing at the infant.

Maya had gone to the firehouse with her dad and the boys, claiming that she wanted to help decorate and Aelin had happily let her be one of the boys. She smiled and thought on how her life had changed since she had let Rowan in. How much happier she had felt and Maya had made incredible strides too. They had set aside the five dark years that had separated them and slowly had rebuilt the family that they were meant to be.

“Lys, you can get a move on and join the mum club too. It would be awesome if we all got kids of the same age.”

Lys scoffed “Aeds and I have talked about it but we might just wait a bit.”

They other two women booed her and then all laughed together.

*

Station 15 was alive with activity. They still had half an hour before they were removed from service but the chairs and all they needed, had been brought in the common room ready for the go ahead from Lorcan. Maya was following Asterin and Ansel around the station. The girl had become quite attached to the two women, especially with Asterin after she told her she wanted to become a paramedic. The older woman had begun showing Maya more of the ambulance and the girl’s fascination had grown quickly to the point that at the station they had a toy doctor’s set and the paramedic had been teaching Maya how to use the toys to treat people. Asterin and the other members of the station had offered themselves as guinea pigs. 

“Rin? When is dad getting married?”

The woman kneeled at her level “we are just waiting for the station not to be on duty, then we can decorate the floor and wait for your mum to arrive.”

Half an hour later Lorcan announced his team that dispatch had confirmed them being off duty and the station had become alive with activity.

In the Captain’s quarters Aedion was helping Rowan to get ready. He was wearing his dress mess Chief uniform “have you texted Aelin that we are good to go?”

“Lorcan called Elide and the girls are ready. Brullo is taking the engine to pick them up.” That had taken a bit of planning and a few requests of approval from the commissioner. Also, given where Rowan lived they had to plan a meeting point in the village. He just needed the day to be special.

Lorcan waltzed in “Brullo just radioed with an ETA of 2 minutes.”

“It’s finally happening,” commented Aedion happily.

Rowan nodded and walked on the apparatus floor where, in a very short time, all the chairs had been pulled out and truck and ambulance parked not to obstruct the area.

He stopped in front of the truck and Maya joined him in a run “dad, mama is coming.”

“I know, my love.” He pulled his daughter against his legs and brushed her head.

Not long after, the rolling doors opened and the engine appeared. Nox honked and they parked beside the truck. Rowan turned his head and spotted Aelin sitting at the back, his heart racing madly in joy.

Fenrys, who had been on his day off, had joined them and went on the ride with his former team. He was the one who helped Aelin off the truck while Brullo aided the two grandmothers, Elide and Lys. 

Rowan’s eyes never left Aelin. She was wearing a sleeveless pastel blue dress and kingsflames in her hair. She was stunning and he was a lucky man. He spotted his mum carrying their son and taking a seat with Evalin and the other guests. Maya was firmly at his side. They wanted her involved in the wedding.

Rhoe had taken Aelin from Fenrys and was now walking with his daughter on his arm to where Rowan was standing.

“Look after her, Rowan.” He kissed his daughter on the cheek and joined his wife.

“Mama, you are so pretty.”

Aelin smiled, “thank you, my love. You and dad are dashing too.”

Her eyes lifted and saw Rowan staring at her, his eyes shining in happiness.

“I believe the ride was smooth?”

She took his hand and nodded, but Rowan moved Maya in-between them and they both held their daughter’s hands.

Aedion stepped up and took position in front of them. They had asked him to perform the wedding and he had been delighted.

“Friends, family, first responders, thank you for joining us today to celebrate Aelin and Rowan’s wedding,” he started “This has been a long time coming. Aelin and Rowan have overcome a lot but today they are here to show us that loves conquers all.” A chuckle “now, I know we are on a tight schedule so let’s get cracking.”

The guests laughed “I believe you have vows?”

Rowan pulled Maya in front of him, her back resting against his legs “Aelin, fireheart, I have imagined this day in my head a million times, the moment I would get you to call you my wife.” A smile “you, the love of my life.” A squeeze of Maya’s shoulder “what I had not imagined was to do it with our children at our side. I am the luckiest man alive and I love you madly.”

Aelin stared in his eyes and a sob escaped her lips “you mushy old man.”

Everyone laughed and Maya went to hug her mother. Aelin crouched down and held Maya in her arms and they both stared up at him “Ro, for a long time it was just Maya and me and we thought we were fine, didn’t we?”

“Yes.”

“But something was missing and I am so glad that you spotted us on that day over a year ago. I am glad you pushed because this, being here with you and our kids, has been my dream too. I love you Rowan.”

He kneeled too and held them both in his arms and kissed Aelin while Maya protested at the PDA.

Then the trio stood up and Aedion proceeded. They exchanged rings and just before proclaiming them husband and wife, Evalin brought forward Thomas and Rowan took him. The other arm sneaked behind Aelin’s waist and Maya squeezed between them.

“It makes me happy to pronounce you husband and wife and children.”  

Rowan turned and kissed Aelin deeply while the crowd celebrated in the background.        

All he cared in that instant were the people in his arms. 

Later that night back at home the newlyweds were sitting on the sofa, enjoying a quiet night in. Maya was at their feet playing on the carpet while Aelin was tucked at Rowan’s side and breastfeeding the infant in her arms.

“Dada, why can’t Thomas eat chocolate cake like us?”

“He is too small, his tummy can only drink milk for now.”

“What about chocolate milk?”

Aelin laughed “He needs my milk because it’s very special and it has all he needs to grow strong and healthy.”

Maya seemed happy with the answer and went back playing.

Rowan squeezed Aelin and kissed her head.

“You seem happy, chief.”

He nodded and caressed Thomas’ head “we took a long detour through life, but now we are here and I would not change it for anything in the world.”

“Mama, dada, it smells of doo doo.”

Aelin detached her son and smelled him “not even this, Chief?”

“No, not even our son’s full diaper.” He took the baby and walked away, leaving his two girls alone.

Aelin sat at her daughter’s side and pulled her to her chest “are you happy, my love?”

“Yes mama, and I love dada and my brother too.”

She kissed her daughter and smiled. 

Well I lost my way

Damn near lost my mind

Pedal to the metal, let the devil lead me blind

I was way outside the lines

And I got way off track

Took some wrong turns lookin' back

It's been one helluva ride in my rear view

And only He knows all the hell I had to go through

I thank Him for the detours to you

All the detours to you

taglist

@rowaelinismyotp @swankii-art-teacher @whimsicallyreading @elentiyawhitethorn @aelin-bitch-queen @bruiseonthefaceofhumanity  @mis-lil-red @thegreyj @sailorsassley @leiawritesstories @clairec79 @morganofthewildfire @sv0430 @heartless--aromantic @autumnbabylon @rowanaelinn  @susumaus98  @gracie-rosee @mybloodrunsblue @tanvee1231 @avenrebekah @whoever-you-choose-to-love  @theywillnotsingforme @universallytreepost @black-daisy-water @goddess-aelin @whispers-in-the-darkest-heart @lovely-dove-zee @athena127 @mariaofdoranelle

[songbirdlopez]

Santana Lopez is lazy. At least, according to herself in New Directions (5x13) "I'm too lazy to do eight shows a week". Now I have many issues with this episode and the entire understudy plot, but that isn't what I want to expand on here. I just want to talk about this one line.

Warning, this is a very long post.

Where on Earth did the writers get that idea? I can see Santana genuinely believing that about herself since her self esteem isn't always the greatest, but Rachel never corrects her. Santana says she is lazy, and that's it. She's lazy. But wait a minute, are we talking about the same Santana here?

Let me bring up the obvious. The cheerios. I don't think it's possible to be lazy and be a cheerleader under the leadership of Sue Sylvester (unless you're Becky, I guess). Santana was a cheerio for all of season 1 and 3, half of season 2 (only because without her, Quinn, and Brittany the cheerios weren't good enough to win), and presumably all of her freshman year. That's three and a half years of gruelling training and death-defying stunts. And for her senior year she is co-captain, so taking on extra responsibilities.

Also cheerios related, in Diva 4x13 Sue offers Santana a job as the cheerios coach. Despite knowing how tough Sue is she says yes. Later when speaking to Britt she says that she'll take over fully when Sue dies and she's gonna make sure that happens within a few years (presumably a joke but who knows what would've happened).

Then there's the New Directions. Santana is in the glee club for three (almost) straight years. We don't often see much more than lessons being introduced and then singing, but it's established in season 1 that they do vocal warm ups/training. There's also booty camp which runs late season 2 and all season 3. After she gets (unfairly imo) kicked out in The Purple Piano Project (3x01), she agrees to join Booty Camp to come back to ND. In universe she is one of the better dancers, so this is just a punishment that she accepts, she wants to be in the glee club and will do extra work for it. There's also practising for their competition numbers (even if it's the day of). In season 1 she helps come up with some choreography. Santana often has solo parts and was one of only a few members to get a full solo where she doesn't just park and bark (obvi Britt and Mike were the featured dancers but Santana has her own choreo). Santana is also one of only four characters who audition for a solo for nationals in Funeral (2x21), and she's one of only two who have some sort of choreography.

Continuing on with glee clubs, the Troubletones. Santana joined TT to get more focus. We saw TT discussions and dance practise, and we know that Shelby did vocal coaching that was better than Will's (Mercedes: "Shelby's a great teacher, I'm hitting notes I didn't even know existed.") Santana also pushed through a majorly distressing event (outing) to perform and used that pain to lift the performance (RHI/SLY).

School musicals. Santana has roles in three different school musicals. The only one she doesn't participate in is Cabaret, but that is just a sham to get Rach away from the New Directions. In season two she plays two different characters in Rocky Horror, she's double cast as Magenta (a supporting character) with Quinn, and she plays the lips (this is a mistake on the show's part, the lips are Riff Raff's actor in the movie, but on stage this song is performed by a character named Trixie the Usherette who does a reprise of the song at the end). In West Side Story she plays Anita. Finally in Grease she plays Rizzo, it's worth noting that she gets the role with very little notice and still (from what little we see) nails it.

Jobs. Throughout highschool Santana doesn't seem to have any part time employment, but that's the case for most characters. While she's at Louisville she doesn't need to get a job since she got a scholarship and a bunch of money from her mom. I mentioned previously that she almost got a job as cheerios coach. Once she moves to New York in season 4 she works a shit ton of jobs, like a ridiculous amount. She's a bouncer, a cage dancer, she works at the Coyote Ugly Saloon Bar, she's a waitress, a reoccurring actor for Yeast-I-Stat, Fanny Brice understudy, Rachel's publicist, back up singer (and maybe dancer?) for Mercedes which includes touring with her, and she is an active member of Pamela Lansbury before she and Rachel are kicked out.

Even ignoring the jobs that were just word of mouth, she had five jobs, that's more than any other character in the show, and we unfortunately never find out what she ends up doing.

In season 4 after a push from her friends she takes on NYADA extension classes.

Also relevant, in season 4 she drops out of college. This isn't because she's "too lazy", it's because of the environment. She didn't gel with her fellow students, there's no mention of the work being too much, it's purely that the other cheerleaders don't respond well to her. Her "brutal honesty" or whatever, still not a reflection of her work ethic, just her lack of tact (to put it lightly). Also worth mentioning, the two times we see her at Louisville she is clearly working hard. She can't talk to Britt because she's too busy, and in the scene where that Virginia Wolfe girl eyes her up she's in the library studying. In Jagged Little Tapestry (6x03) Santana tells Brittany that she would like to go back to college, unfortunately we never see if this comes to fruition.

Volunteering. Santana is also the character who volunteers the most. In Silly Love Songs (2x12) she says that she often volunteers at the hospital which is where she got the candy striper outfit. Two episode earlier in A Very Glee Christmas (2x10) the glee girls are going to sell their hair, Santana is the one to tell the others to "stop yapping" and just do it and is just a about to cut off her hair when Will stops them, so clearly she was willing to do it. The next Christmas Santana joins Sam and Quinn at the homeless shelter with the other New Directions after the tv special (kinda goes against her prior eagerness to help out, but makes sense since fame is her mistress). In Lights Out (4x20) she joins Rachel and Kurt volunteering at the Ballet Gala. Admittedly here it's takes a push and she only goes after being offered dresses.

Mentoring. From season four the ND alumni often come back to mentor the newbies or just to help out in general. Santana comes back in Glease (4x06), Thanksgiving (4x08), Diva (4x13), All or Nothing (4x21), 100/New Directions (5x12, 5x13), Homecoming (6x02), and Jagged Little Tapestry (6x03). (I'm not including The Breakup or The Quarterback because she came back for emotional reasons.)

Knowing all of this about her shows how hardworking and passionate Santana is. She is constantly working at something. She has her down time (watching Facts of Life, scrolling Rizzoli & Isles lesbian subtext blogs), but that seems few and far between when knowing just how much she works. It can also be inferred that she is a good student at WMHS, seeing as she got the scholarship to Louisville and they probably wouldn't accept her on just cheerleading merit alone, and she is seen multiple times with her books open, studying. (Pot O' Gold and Saturday Night Glee-ver come to mind). We also know that she cares about her education because she reported Will for being a sub par teacher in The Spanish Teacher (3x12).

Along with everything I just mentioned, Santana also takes it upon herself to do side quests when she wants something. She is so determined to prove that Quinn and Finn are having an affair that she gives herself mono (she's immune apparently, but still). She also goes full spy to take down Sebastian, and to take down Brody. With everything else she does and the effort she puts into random situations to do with her friends she must be goddamn exhausted.

Something I must bring up is related to her being Rachel's understudy. But first another disclaimer: I don't want this post to become a discussion on who was in the right in the situation, both women did bad things, that is not what this post is about. I only bring it up because it is the plot where this line is said, therefore some parts a relevant.

Santana only gets the idea to audition for the understudy role as Rachel leaves to go judge the auditions. We do not know exactly how much time passes in between but it's presumably only a few hours at most. This means that Santana had to memorise the song, change the key and structure by herself, and choreograph the number in a few hours. That shows dedication. Later on in The Back-Up Plan (5x18) Santana goes on in place of Rachel to try and save her friends job. Again she has very little time to prepare to play the role as the show is that night, and hasn't been the understudy for approximately a good few months. We don't see her perform but Rach herself says she was really good. It's unfortunate that we never see Santana get any opportunities come from this, but it's Glee so I digress.

In conclusion (I feel like I'm back in highschool lol), Santana Lopez has many flaws and there are many valid reasons to criticise her, her work ethic is not one. Santana is shown to be an extremely hard working and dedicated character who aims high and will put in the work to get what she wants, she won't let other people get in her way. She can be her own worst enemy and can get into a slump when she can't see a direction to go in, but she always pushes through. I think it's cowardly that the show not only decided that she was the sole offender of the Understudy Situation, but also shunted her with a negative descriptor that is in complete opposition to what we know of her. Despite also saying cruel things during the understudy plot line Rachel gets away with not apologising, and then lets Santana insult herself. It's an unfortunate result and complete character assassination for Santana and shows how little the writers care for her. It also destroys the friendship that Pezberry developed up until that point. Santana is not the only character to be described in a negative way even when the rest of the show doesn't represent that, Mercedes Jones gets this treatment even worse and more often. I do have a discussion about her in my drafts, hopefully I'll finish it one day. It sucks that two of the most versatile and skilled characters in Glee are constantly said to not be enough.

Santana Lopez is not lazy.

[kimmiessimmies]

What Went Before: The Gang

This story of mine has been going on for years, mostly over on my WordPress blog. Since I have gained quite a few new followers recently, I understand not everyone is up to date with everything that went before, and sometimes it can be worth knowing a few things. So, every so often, I shall do summary posts on what went before. In this case, on the history and relationships of my deeply loved friend group, sometimes referred to as "The Gang": James, Seth, Daniel, Jill and Sarah. Beware, though, I may say "summary", but this one will probably be quite long. Are you sitting down? Do you have a spare half hour? Here we go!

"The Gang" started with James, Sarah and Dan(iel). They have known each other their whole lives, with James and Sarah being twin siblings and Dan being their cousin.

Seth and Jill joined them when they started school. As is frequently the case with young kids; it was often the boys together and the girls together at first.

But as they grew older, more and more often, the five of them played and hung out together.

The boys formed a band, which they called The Hot Wings as a joke, and making music together only strengthened their bond.

Sarah and Jill were their biggest fans and Dan's parents turned their garage into a rehearsal space for the band.

Jill's crush on James kicked in the moment the hormones did. At that point he was oblivious to it, but as puberty progressed, James started to notice the way Jill was looking at him. While he didn't hold the same feelings for her as she did for him, he did like her and was curious, so when Jill finally mustered up the courage to ask James if maybe they could hang out together sometime, he accepted.

They shared their first kiss and went from there. When they started sleeping together it was huge for Jill. It was huge for James too, but for different reasons which will be divulged by himself later in the story. Jill couldn't wait to tell bestie Sarah all about it. The only problem is... as stated above, Sarah is James' sister. And while she didn't directly say anything to James about it, she couldn't help but give him telling looks or sometimes make suggestive remarks.

So, James got fed up and ended up confronting Jill during a prom night.

This was actually one of the first "story" posts I ever made. It's... well, let's say, if you go back to this one, you can clearly see my growth...

Breaking up at prom is not a very decent thing to do, to say the least. But teenage boys are not usually known for their decency, and James was no exception.

So, that was that, James and Jill were broken up.

After the first heated emotions of the prom night had died down, Jill and James agreed to stay friends. They were both too attached to "The Gang" and felt they could make it work. And honestly, they seemed to be doing okay.

When Jill and Dan threw a party at the teen club because they both turned 18, The Hot Wings played their music, and from the way Jill was looking at James on stage that night, it was clear she was, in fact, not over him at all...

Time went on and the dynamics within The Gang were always shifting. Seth and Sarah fell in love...

...And Seth made their relationship official when he asked her to be his girlfriend on New Year's Eve of 03.

Seth and Sarah were solid from the get-go.

Things were a little more complicated where James and Jill were concerned... After a school Christmas party, they had a so-called "bonus night"...

Even though James was honest about his intentions upfront, this night had reignited a spark of hope in Jill's heart.

Six months later they sat for their final exams and were the first group of teens to initiate the fire walking ritual which Rachel, Finn and Sadie adopted 2 years later upon their high school graduation.

Jill held on to her little bit of hope until The Gang was about to start university and Sarah and Seth got word of this bonus night, which had remained their little secret up until then. It became evident right there, and then that Jill was hoping something could still be, while James had clearly moved on.

They had a good talk after which it appeared the message was clear, even to Jill: they would never be a couple ever again.

And then it was uni time. I truly had a bit of a proud parent moment when I saw the five of them with all their stuff on the lawn of their student residence.

We had come a long way and the friendship was still strong as ever. Little did we know then how much the strength of this friendship would be tested during the uni years.

Because of course life didn't stop there. Jill truly appeared to be over James when she got together with housemate Narai.

And there was a slightly awkward corridor run-in with James when she left Narai's room one morning, thinking she could cross over to her own room quickly.

All in all, things seemed to be going well for the gang. Jill appeared to be over James and order was restored.

Maybe now is a good time to bring Dan in, because not much has been said about him yet. That's mainly because Dan is maybe the most steady friend within the group. He likes to keep the peace and is usually the mediator when things get a bit more heated. Dan was the only one to find romance outside of the friend group (Sadie!)

Dan and Jill have a special friendship within The Gang. Being born only a few days apart, they started school at the same time and always celebrated their birthday parties together.

In May of 06, Eva, James and Sarah's older sister, married Jasper, Jill's cousin, in Monte Vista. All these family connections meant the entire gang got to go on a trip together!

Both Jill and Dan weren't in the happiest of moods though. Dan was upset because he and Sadie had just broken up and Jill was doubting her relationship with Narai.

Together they decided that getting drunk at the wedding was the best solution.

Which led to Jill drunkenly telling James she was definitely over him...

...and a drunken kiss with Dan...

They both immediately realised this was definitely a big mistake, had a good talk about their friendship and knew they'd never go there again. Jill also realised that her relationship with Narai wasn't going anywhere either though and broke up with him when they got back home.

And that brings us close to the present. In which Sadie started university and stirred up a lot of emotions throughout The Gang, as we have seen. And which showed Jill is actually NOT over James yet... Time will tell how this all unfolds...

If you are curious how Miss Sadie connects into all this, I actually did a "What Went Before" on her a few months back. You can read it here. I should add though that I wrote this right before she started university, so also before she locked eyes with James again and f-ed up my entire storyline. xD

[qwib]

Looking For VtM Players

Hey ho! Two of my players have recently put down their roles for the foreseeable future. They're sticking around as friends, but that means I'm looking for new players to add to my roster.

New Orleans by Night has been running for two and a half years and is entering its final arc. Interested? More details are under the read more.

Chronicle name: New Orleans by Night / The Dusk Club

Base system: V5

Any homebrews?: Many. V5 is basically unrecognizable save for the basic roll system.

Language: English

Preferred time/timezone: 6pm GMT+1 (Berlin) / 12pm EST (New York). We have players from both the US and Europe, so this is the time we stick to. Our sessions tend to run an average of 5 hours. Day of the week is subject to change depending on player needs.

Where: Discord, sessions held weekly in text. (Meaning sessions are scheduled weekly the same as they would be for a voice session, except everything takes place in text.)

General description of the chronicle: Current applications are for my Chronicle “New Orleans by Night”; but as that chronicle is nearing its end within the next year, we are exclusively looking for players that will also want to join us for our next upcoming chronicle, “The Dusk Club”. 

The Dusk Club: Led not by me but @cthylla-rlyeh, this Chronicle will start running after New Orleans is finished (roundabout a year from now). Cthylla has been a player of mine for almost 2 years now and is one of my best friends as well as an incredible Storyteller.

New Orleans by Night: Following the Beckoning, New Orleans is left in a power vacuum. Countless parties are vying to be on top. A Tremere Prince works hand in hand with the Second Inquisition to stay in power; an ancient Tzimisce considering herself Lilith reborn is sacrificing Thinbloods in droves in an attempt to awaken an Antediluvian she believes to be sleeping underneath the city. We are Anarchs, trying to create a world in which Kindred of all walks of life can live together in peace - but some nights, it’s hard to even catch our breaths.

This chronicle has been running for two and a half years and we are well into the story, but I have prepared a timeline document summarizing prior events. Feel free to ask for the document at any point in your application. Your character will receive all the XP the other characters have accumulated over past seasons.

Nothing interesting ever happens in Mosspoint. A sleepy little town by the sea, the most earth shattering news you heard in recent years was when it-girl Caroline Kyng cheated on her boyfriend. Meaningless gossip. 

But everything is about to change. What was supposed to be a nice evening out at a concert will turn into a massacre, thrusting you into a life you never would have believed possible, all while coming to terms with your own death… and what it means to be a Thinblood in this world.

All players will be playing Thinbloods in this Chronicle, but your sire’s Clan will affect your abilities, merits, and flaws. The daywalker merit will come free to all Coterie members. A primer document exploring Mosspoint exists.

Required experience level: Should have at least a general overview of the setting. Given how far we are into the chronicle, I would rather not be explaining the system to you.

How to apply: Simply send a message introducing yourself to either me or @cthylla-rlyeh

Anything more?: As a group made up entirely of queer people, we are exclusively looking for other queer people. 

We are extremely invested in these stories and our characters, and would love for you to bring the same level of enthusiasm to our table - we promise to welcome you with open arms. 

Our chronicles are filled with extremely triggering content. If you are sensitive to themes of sexual assault (kept off-screen, but discussed), body horror, gore, addiction, disability, self harm, suicide, and homophobia, our table is not for you. If you have any specific triggers, feel free to ask. 

We will not be jumping right into the chronicle with you. Rather, we will be holding multiple one shots with applicants to vet how we work together. The number of one shots we hold will depend on the number of applicants so we can give everyone a fair shot.

Ultimately, we will be looking for 1-3 new players.

[pretty-batty]

Would you like to come back?

Eddie x Original Female Character Pt 2 of Eldath's Priestess 2406 words

No warnings. Tags: Dungeons and Dragons, table top gameplay, flashback usage marked by =, slight angst, Jewish oc, family dynamics. Now on ao3 No beta this time. We ride like the Rohirrim in the Battle of the Pelennor.

Summary: Judy gets reacquainted with her favorite troupe of misfits, and the newest members.

Notes: Not canon compliant, alternate history of Hellfire, semi-accurate portrayal of Dungeons and Dragons. hint of Eddie the Simp.

Judy was buzzing with excitement, tossing her dice bag into her purse. She had gotten the call from Fred Emerson, the Dungeon Master of Hawkins legend, immediately asking her if she would “join in the newest crusade against the Shadow Lord”. She had never accepted an offer to quickly in her life.

The handmade drawstring bag kept her pencil case company as she went to her suitcase and pulled out her binder, cracking it open. From the corner pocket, she saw her old character sheet.

Feyanim Hellarad       Half-Elf Cleric            Lvl- 14- High Priestess          Lawful Good

From banished princess to priestess of Eldath, yearning for adventure far from the cloister and the crown.

Her memory played vignettes of her times as Nim, starting with her older brother, introducing her to the game on her twelfth birthday.

“A princess? Are you sure?” he had asked.

Little Judy nodded at her desk, “yeah! But she has a heart of gold. Forced into the cloister by her mother, the queen, and her jealous stepfather, the king.”

“Is she illegitimate?”

“I think so. That would add…” She paused, searching for the word.

“Angst.”

“Yeah…angst.”

Judy’s eyes shot to her bedside clock. 3:45. Fifteen minutes to get to Scott’s place, pick him up, and drive to Fred Emmerson’s place for the game. After a year without playing, in Pittsburgh where her brother’s body lay buried, she was itching for the game to continue. Her old group, her old comrades. She finally exited her front door.

                                                            =

Her brother, the dungeon master, introduced her to the group the first Friday of freshman year, Eddie in tow. His hair was longer than when she had last seen him. She had hoped he would grow it out.

The newest members of Hellfire club, the trailer park metalhead and the nepo-baby.

Her stomach was in knots. Where were the other girls?

Before she could open her mouth, Eddie took a step forward, his voice booming throughout the stage. “I am Edward the Stalwart, half-orc fighter, prepared to cast off the bonds of the past through my unquenchable thirst of adventure.”

“And how do we know you, young Edward, have the grit to join the band of fearless warriors who sit before you?” Joey asked, theatrically gesturing to the other men at the table.

To be honest, she had tuned out Eddie’s answer, too paranoid about her own.

Their gazes turned to her now. “I…am Feyanim Hellarad, half-elf cleric.” She cleared her throat, feeling a push of energy, “from banished princess to priestess of Eldath, I yearn for adventure beyond the cloister and the crown.”

The table was quiet. She looked at Eddie, whose sweet brown eyes gave her the encouragement she needed.

“And what makes you, dear princess, fit for adventure as a priestess of the most peaceful of Gods?” Her brother asked, no longer the Joey she was used to, but the DM, omniscient voice of the world she wished to join.

The question stumped her. It was a good question. Why would she venture from Eldath’s still waters to join this rowdy band of fools?

She heard two of the older boys make a comment, leading to a chuckle, which turned into a laugh. A ginger boy, bespectacled and haughty, called over to Joey. “Listen, man. We get that she’s your sister and all, but is she really ready for advanced Dungeons and Dragons?”

Judy’s lips pursed in irritation. Staring down the table, she took a step further, placing her foot on what she planned to be her chair, puffing her chest out. “I am already a priestess, skilled in the healing arts. And by all that is holy, I will ensure your survival. Something tells me you lack a healer in this party. If I may be frank, this party lacks any sense at all.”

“Then welcome, Princess Hellarad, to Hellfire.” Joey placed a hand on her shoulder, whispering with pride, “good job.”

She sat down, beside the boy who had talked down to her, and across from the boy she had known for years. Judy and Eddie’s eyes met, excited to be joining the first campaign of the year. They reached across and grasped each other’s hands, uncertain of why. Was it a shake of mutual friendship? Or did she just want to touch him, like she always had, and he finally wanted the same?

Before the winter break, Joey had planned first boss fight, a paladin oathbreaker and his undead horde was prepared to slaughter the party. He took his job as DM very seriously, carefully considering all player’s strengths and weaknesses, deciding what path he wanted them to go down. He was more narrative focused, though his battles were just as intense.

“What is your action, princess?”

“There is still time we can make it.” Shouted Marty.

Eddie sucked in a breath, “I’m already down. We can’t last much longer.”

“Your action princess.” Joey insisted.

Judy looked at Eddie, who gave her a nod. He was on board. The others were either prone, dying, or occupied by the undead horde. She looked at the rogue, Andreas the Swift, who had yet to reveal himself. He gave her a nod.

“Does he see me?”

“In his fury he has paid no mind to you.”

“Then I get advantage.” Judy gritted her teeth, “I cast command,” rattling her first d20 and sending it to the table, 14, with her modifier it still wouldn’t hit. The next d20 followed with her call, 19, with her wisdom modifier that would be a twenty-three.

Her brother cracked a smile, an evil smile. She felt her heart sink before her brother froze, as if struck by lightning. “What is your command?” He bellowed.

From the far end of the table, her finger extended, and she cried out, “grovel!”

“Yes…” Her brother slammed his hands on the table along with his face, to make it seem as though he threw himself down, “my la..dy…”

Knowing it was his turn, the halfling assassin played his held action and backstabbed the prone paladin oathbreaker, with advantage, and all his proficiencies, doing heavy damage. Judy’s command turned the tide. That and her brother’s two very unfortunate rolls.

                                                            =

Summer rains were Judy’s least favorite. The droplets themselves, warmed by the atmosphere, felt like stones against her skin. Fat rain, heavy rain. Also, the humidity made her hair both expand an extra half an inch in width and cling to any piece of skin it touched. A hot, wet, sweaty mess.

She slid quickly into her 1970 Volkswagen beetle, closing the door behind her. There was her cleric figurine, mounted with a rolled slip of duct tape, and sitting beside her was an armor-clad half-orc, her lover’s paladin. Gifted to her before she left for Pittsburgh by Eddie Munson, the presiding Dungeon Master of the Hawkins High School Hellfire Club.

“I won’t need him anymore. Besides, I don’t think I could bring myself to separate the princess from her paladin.” He took her hand and enfolded his figurine in her palm, “as sadistic of a DM I might be, I would never.”

Judy’s lips fought back a frown, “I’m sorry. I just can’t stay here and wait…”

“I know,” he released her hand to caress her face, bringing her lips to his in a gentle kiss. “You’re still my girl, however far you go.” Another kiss, this time on the bridge of her nose. A journey up to her face that he had taken many times before, a path he adored. “And when I graduate this year,” his lips rested on her forehead, his nose nestling in her hair, “I will get in my van and come to you.”

“Class of eighty-six.” She smiled.

She started her trusty steed, twisting the key in the ignition and listening to the turnover. Knocking it into reverse, flicking on the windshield wipers, she looked over her shoulder to pull out smoothly from the driveway.

“Eighty-six, baby.” Eddie’s voice echoed once again though Judy’s ears, as the phantom kiss still warmed her skin. She never should have left, never should have watched him shrink away as she drove further from her home. Her eyes graced back as if he was still standing there. Nothing.

The citizens and military personnel had entered a regular routine, the belching crags that divided the town into fourths became as normal as creeks and cliffs. Judy’s practice of Pittsburgh navigation took a backseat to the slow and cautious pace of post-earthquake Hawkins. None of her destinations were severed by a crack. First, five minutes away, was Scott Clark, another teacher. He had started the year after Judy entered high school, taking over for Emma Magil for 8th grade science.

Their journey went off without any conflict. Judy had asked him about his fiancée. Scott had asked her how her mother was doing. Neither really dug into the unspoken sorrow in the air. She parked her beetle in the street, as the driveway was already full of cars. The two got out and joined in the festivities within.

The kitchen and the dining room were separated by a countertop, upon which was a lineup of various snacks. A veggie tray, some cheese and crackers, tiny sausages on toothpicks, mini ham and cheese sandwiches.

God bless you, Sheryl. Judy thought.

Fred had married Sheryl Kaufmann when Gareth was in middle school. Joey would drag Judy to these grownup games at the Emerson house. She’d sit with Gareth as he kicked rocks in the driveway. Sheryl would come out with snacks, and he’d grumble a forced ‘thank you’.

That woman tried so hard. She didn’t make him call her mom. No pushing boundaries, forcing herself to be liked by her stepson. But she still tried. And even when Gareth warmed up to her, called her ‘Cher-bear’ when she called him ‘Gare-bear’, told her he loved her too, she still felt the need to prove herself. She wanted him to have a good home, a place to feel safe and happy.

In the end, they all loved Sheryl.

“Celery’s gross.” Gareth said, staring blankly at the veggie.

“You don’t have to eat it.” Said Sheryl as she floated through the kitchen.

“Not to everyone,” Dustin reached his hand past the upper classman’s gaze, fishing out three sticks of green and placing them on his plate.

“I don’t know, Henderson.” Judy rattled her d20s in her hand, releasing them on the table. “Celery is just bitter and stringy.” She sighed at her results, “Guess purple and red are going to dice jail.” The dice clattered in her brother’s old ashtray. “Bummer, these were his.”

“Whose?” Will asked, sliding next to her at the table.

“My late brother, he was the DM of Hellfire before Eddie.” She answered, rolling the final two dice, “nine-teen and twelve, guess I’m using these.”

Will sat awkwardly, taking a moment to salvage the situation. “I didn’t realize Hellfire was so old.”

“Oh yeah, it started as an offshoot of the chess club.” Judy popped a tiny sausage into her mouth, half her mouth chewing as the other half continued, “My brother was a sophomore. Fred was the teacher who signed off on it. Seventy-eight, I think. I came in two years later and somehow these guys had already set up their boys’ club.”

Andrew dropped his bag on the table, sitting on the opposite side of Judy. “And how is our beloved nepo-baby? Still squeezing into places she might not be wanted?” Setting his cane down between them, he slumped into the hardwood chair.

“God, you are such a dick. I saved your lives how many times in my four years as your resident cleric?”

“None of that matters now, your eminence.” A voice bellowed.

Dressed in his Renaissance best, Fred Emrerson slowly made his way down the stairs to the dining room, the wood creaking below his weight. His graying auburn hair tucked under his feathered flat cap. “Such a high ranking Eldathyn priestess should do well not to dwell on lives owed.”

“Wait…Eldath?” Dustin slid beside Will, “what’s your name again?”

“Uh..Nim Hellara-”

“No, your actual name.”

“It’s Judy.”

“No. Actually, Hebrew name.” He insisted.

“Who says I have a Hebrew name?”

“You’re a Jew, of course you have one.” The table let out a chorus of sniffs in amusement. Dustin was always frank, seeing no point in sugarcoating and beating around any proverbial bushes.

Judy nodded; lips pressed in a thin line. “Yudit-Miriam after my great-grandmother.”

The young teenager smiled, as if the pieces of an ongoing puzzle fit into place. “Huh.”

Once Fred reached his chair at the end of the dining room table, the game began.

The tavern was busier than usual, the cloud giants had occupied a nearby summer palace. And with unusual activity and monsters to be slain, comes many an adventurer hoping to increase their renown, or their coffers.

Judy worried Nim would struggle to fit in, but with Andreas the Swift by her side, she was quickly welcomed into the party.

“Nimmy,” he asked, “what’s that thing you used to do? That poem?”

“The limericks?” She clarified. They nodded and Judy took a sip of her lemon-lime pop. She began.

“There was once a woman from Wheeling, who had a particular feeling. She laid on her back, tickled her crack, and pissed all over the ceiling.”

It got a laugh. But her eyes fell once more to Dustin as his gaze burned into the side of her head.

The younger players were at a lower level compared to the others, and Fred had planned accordingly. But Andrew, Scott, and Judy pulled most of the weight, Gareth and Jeff were auxiliary. But Fred was a kinder DM compared to Eddie. He never liked to punish his players, and only wished for a good story and plenty of laughs. The younger players: Dustin, Will, Mike, Lucas, and Erica, were uneasy and borderline paranoid. No doubt traumatized by Eddie or the tales of him.

“Perception check on the door.” Erica rattled the dice, “not gonna let you take me out because of some trap.”

Fred was ready to tell her it was ‘just a door’, but he let her roll anyway. And even with her nat16 and the modifier, she still refused to believe it wasn’t rigged with a trap.

Judy’s character stepped forward, holding her shield up in front of Erica. “Okay, if something happens, you won’t get hit.” The lock was picked, door opened to the next room. No bomb, no spikes, no danger, just a door.

“A valid fear, my lady.” Scott’s druid reassured Erica, “the Gods can be cruel.”

Judy leaned in and whispered to her, “Fred doesn’t run games like Eddie. The worst thing he tried to do was the Tomb of Horrors. A tenth of the way through, he scrapped it. The only time I heard him use the ‘just a dream’ cliché.”

 “I read that module after that session, and it is so asinine. And the captured nymph thing was so creepy.” Andrew Grumbled.

They continued through the maze of corridors, an entire world inside the walls of the small palace, occupied by a very uncomfortable cloud giant.

Through a spell of marching teapots and a well-placed howl from a dark corner, the group managed to rid the small castle of the cloud giant squatter. The fact of the matter is, not all D&D sessions are climactic battles or salacious dramas. Sometimes, it’s just pretending to be ghosts to scare away a cloud giant because he’s too high level and no one wants to die.

Once the session was over, Fred offered to give Scott a ride if he agreed to stay for a few more beers. Judy had her own belongings packed. While she had enjoyed herself for the first time in recent memory, the ache in her chest refused to abate. It wasn’t the same without her paladin.

The air draped over the trees, the smoke from the cracks caught beneath the thick layer of moisture. It stuck to her skin, her hands becoming clammy with each swipe across her shorts. She just wanted to get home.

Dustin stopped her before she got to her car.

“You’re Yudit Mountain Song.”

“Yudit Mountain Song?”

“Yeah,” Dustin opened Eddie’s binder of character sheets, messily flipping through the pages. Judy watched the many NPCs fly by, familiar faces and strangers alike, until she finally saw it. Her face. “She’s a reoccurring character, a half-elf bard who gave us some excellent quests and much needed rescues. Even gave my character her harp, lets me have an extra bardic inspiration slot after a long rest.” He excitedly handed the binder off to Judy.

She gazed at her own face, her own body. He had given her some additions, fantasy length hair and a lyre. Her lips parted in song. Eddie had made her a singer.

“I knew you looked familiar.” Dustin continued. “At first, I thought it was a coincidence, but then you said that dirty limerick and I remembered Eddie saying that exact joke when introducing her before the Vecna storyline.”

Judy flipped through the character sheets until reaching the back. Eddie had made one for Kas, altering little traits to mirror himself.

“Pretty sure Yudit and Kas used to connect, before his sword made him all…evil.”

“Maybe I was the blade and not the bard, slowly pulling him to the darkness, seducing him with power.” She smiled, “or maybeeee I was both.” Judy closed the binder, handing it back to Dustin. “I’m sure we’ll never know.”

Thank you for reading! This is a passion project of mine, and it means a lot that you are taking time out of your life to read this. Next chapter very soon...like tomorrow maybe. tag list: @voyeurmunson

[justforbooks]

Franz Beckenbauer, who has died aged 78, was widely regarded as the best footballer Germany has ever produced. A pre-eminent figure in the world game after the second world war, he was a phenomenally innovative player who captained West Germany to a World Cup win in 1974 and later managed his country to two consecutive World Cup finals, winning the second of them in 1990 in Rome.

As a club manager he added a Bundesliga title and a Uefa Cup win to his World Cup victory at international level and as a player he won a World Cup, a European Championship, three European Cups and five Bundesliga titles in Germany. However, more than his capacity for winning, it was the elegant, intelligent nature of his play that attracted such admiration all over the world.

While he was still a teenager at Bayern Munich, Beckenbauer had become the virtual inventor of what came to be called “total football”. Watching the Milan team Internazionale on television, he was impressed by the attacking forays of their big left-back, Giacinto Facchetti. He asked himself why a defender might not attack from a central role as well as from the flanks, and thus became Bayern’s attacking libero. It was a role that became the cornerstone of the total football practised by Bayern and their great Dutch rivals, Ajax, in the early 1970s.

Captained by Beckenbauer – a tall, erect figure always ready to sweep out of defence – Bayern at first played second fiddle to Ajax, but eventually emulated them by winning the European Cup three times in a row, between 1974 and 1976. Before that sequence Beckenbauer had already captained an outstanding West Germany team to the European Championship title in 1972, beating the Soviet Union 3-0 in the final. Two years later he led his country to victory in the 1974 World Cup on German soil, defeating the Netherlands 2-1. He played 103 times for West Germany and appeared in 427 league matches for Bayern.

Franz was born to Antonie (nee Huphauf) and Franz Sr, a postal worker in the Munich suburb of Giesing, near the stadium where he would make his name. By the age of eight he was already regarded as a technically accomplished player, even in a city where footballers and football proliferated. Munich 1860 was the club he favoured; Bayern Munich, where he would later excel, were small beer at the time; an upstart by comparison.

However, Munich 1860’s loss would be Bayern’s gain. In 1958 he was playing for the junior team of a little local club, SC 1906, which actually closed that year, and expected to join 1860. “But in the last game we played for SC 1906 against 1860,” he related, “a half-back gave me a slap. That was enough for me. 1860 would never get me. And so Bayern took me into its ranks.” Beckenbauer was, with rare exceptions, always a sporting player, who declared that he would rather be fouled and leave the field than commit a foul himself.

He made his debut for Bayern Munich in 1964 – when they were in the German second division – and in his first season helped them gain promotion to the Bundesliga.

Thereafter Bayern rapidly became a major force both at home and in Europe, winning the German Cup in 1966–67 and the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1967 (against Rangers). Beckenbauer was made team captain for the 1968–69 season and led the club to its first league title that year, subsequently winning three league championships in a row from 1972 to 1974 and that hat-trick of European Cup wins in 1974-76.

Under his leadership (he was nicknamed the Kaiser for his commanding, almost imperious presence) the Bayern team of that era, which also featured greats such as the goalkeeper Sepp Maier and the centre-forward Gerd Müller, established itself as one of the most accomplished club sides of all time.

Beckenbauer’s first game for the national team, at the age of 21 in 1965, had come even before Bayern’s dramatic rise to prominence. He was the star member of the West Germany side in the 1966 World Cup finals, where they were runners-up in the Wembley final to England, and again in the 1970 finals in Mexico, where they finished in third place.

Helmut Schön, the tall, gentle West Germany team manager who was almost a father figure to Beckenbauer, for many years refused to let him play the libero role for his country. When he finally relented in 1974, West Germany won the competition and Beckenbauer lifted the trophy as captain.

All seemed set fair for a fourth World Cup campaign for Beckenbauer in Argentina in 1978, but to general surprise, and aged only 31, he retired from international football in 1977 to switch to play for New York Cosmos in the North American Soccer League.

It was an unusual move after almost 15 years at the highest level of the game with Bayern, but the contract was lucrative and enormous crowds came to see him play with Pelé and other stars at the Giants Stadium, New Jersey.

In his four seasons with the Cosmos the team won the national Soccer Bowl on three occasions (1977, 1978 and 1980). “I’ve done everything in my life – championships for Bayern Munich and the World Cup for Germany – but the New York Cosmos was the best time of my life,” he said. “At Munich it was all German players; at the Cosmos it was 14 nationalities and Pelé.”

He returned to Germany to play for Hamburg (1980-82), where he picked up another Bundesliga winners’ medal at the end of the 1981-82 season before going back to the US for one final campaign with the Cosmos in 1983 and then retiring. In his career in domestic leagues he had made 587 appearances and scored 81 goals.

When Beckenbauer retired he seemed to have no ambition to go into management, so it was a surprise that in 1984 he agreed to manage West Germany in succession to Jupp Derwall. Never before had a West Germany manager been appointed who had not come through the exhaustive qualifying programme of the German football association, one which involved not only the passing of examinations but the running of minor clubs.

In appointing Beckenbauer, the German authorities were abandoning firm principle in the hope that his immense prestige and authority would prevail; and they were not disappointed.

The team he inherited was in the doldrums, yet at the 1986 Mexico World Cup, suitably inspired, they reached a final in which they were plainly inferior to an Argentina team that went into a 2-0 lead, only for the Germans to fight back, catch them up, and then lose 3-2. Four years later, in a grisly final in Rome, Germany had their revenge, beating Argentina 1-0 with a penalty by Andreas Brehme.

Shortly afterwards Beckenbauer resigned his position to became technical director of the French club Marseille on a two-year contract worth nearly £500,000, taking a German physical trainer with him. But for once his writ did not run. The French players were unhappy with the training regime and Beckenbauer withdrew after just four months.

He was far happier when he returned to Bayern Munich to serve as manager over two short spells – in 1993-94 and in 1996 – during which time he collected two further honours, the Bundesliga title in 1994 and the Uefa Cup in 1996. Thereafter he was president of the club for two years.

In 1998 he became vice-president of the German football association and at the end of the 90s headed the successful bid by Germany to host the 2006 World Cup, chairing the subsequent organising committee. He was named honorary president of Bayern Munich in 2009, a position he held until his death.

His son, Thomas, with Ingrid Grönke was born in 1963. In 1966 he married Brigitte Wittmann. They had two sons, Michael and Stephan. Following their divorce in 1990, he married Sybille Weimer; they divorced in 2004. With his third wife, Heidi Burmester, he had two children, Noel and Francesca. Stephan, who was also a footballer and played for Bayern Munich, died in 2015. Franz leaves Heidi and his four other children.

🔔 Franz Anton Beckenbauer, footballer, born 11 September 1945; died 7 January 2024

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[octuscle]

Hungarian Hooligan

The 23rd match day

Viktor had been living in Debrecen for almost a week now. He had been unable to turn down the offer of a job as a department manager at his employer's Hungarian engine factory. He had been employed as a graduate engineer for almost ten years now, so this was finally a chance to advance his career. And Hungary wasn't wrong. When he got homesick, it wasn't far to his Bavarian home. And the city made a nice impression, too. His first weekend away was coming up, the weather was too cold and damp for the time of year, so after a short walk Viktor took shelter in a corner pub. The pub was packed. People in soccer shirts, with fan scarves and caps. He had obviously stumbled into the pub of a fan club of the local soccer team. Soccer… well, interested him only a little. In his hometown, he had occasionally joined in the celebrations when Bayern Munich had once again become German champions. But otherwise he cared less about sports. Neither actively, nor passively… But here it carried away him somehow. The waiter had put a beer in front of him without being asked, and one of the guests toasted him. And between cheers and groans a conversation developed. Somewhat sluggishly in English. But towards the end of the second half, Viktor was able to slip in a few words of Hungarian. It had been a very exciting game. Debreceni VSC had won 0:1 away. Viktor was cheering with the other guests. Someone had put a fan scarf on him. And the host gave a local round.

The 24th match day

Viktor had been looking forward to Saturday all week. Since moving to Debrecen a year ago, he had attended almost every home game at the stadium. His employer had a number of business seats in the stadium. And the winner of the internal betting round always got a seat for the next home game. Viktor may not have been the greatest expert. But when he stopped at his favorite pub for a beer in the evening after his jog, he always read the sports paper carefully. And it often helped him snag one of the coveted tickets. His buddies, with whom he watched the away games in the pub, usually turned up their noses because there were only snobs sitting in the business seats. But Viktor enjoyed the atmosphere and the closeness to his superiors. This could only be supportive for his career.

The game today was a disaster. 1:2 lost against the current second in the table. The score was still 0:0 at halftime. Viktor could hardly stand the cheering of the fans of the opposing team. The only thing that helped was drinking in frustration after the final whistle.

The 25th matchday

Today Viktor didn't get any tickets for the Sunday home game. Of course, he had also tried to get tickets on the black market, but he had had no luck. So he had to watch the game in his pub. After all, it went great against Vasas, the last team in the table. 3:1! This meant that his club climbed to fourth place. In the jubilation, Viktor got a beer shower. His jersey was soaking wet. But he was happy!

The 26th match day

The away game was in Mezokovesd not far from his home. Normally, Viktor would have carpooled with a few pals from his gym. But going by train with the other fans was much more fun. They tuned into the game with loud heavy metal from Symmetry Of The Void. The police separated them from the local fans already at the station. The mood was testy, Mezőkövesd-Zsóry SE was definitely on the heels of its club. A victory was important. And even though it didn't look like it for a long time, Meldin Drešković scored the redeeming goal shortly after the start of the second half. The fan block cheered. Chants of abuse began from the opposite side. Viktor, for his part, joined the chorus of his club. The first bengalos were set off. The mood threatened to tip over. And Viktor and his lads were looking forward to a proper brawl.

The 27th matchday

Home matchday. The fifth in the table meets the fourth in the table. Viktor had finished work early that Friday. Before the game he had worked out for an hour on the punching bag. He wanted to be in shape for the game. He had fought hard for his place in the Ultras' fan block and naturally wanted to keep it. He had been in the city for four years now and was an ardent admirer of his club. Right after graduation, he had been given the chance to move to Debrecen. He had never regretted it. He fevered with his club. He fought for the honor of his club after the games. And for that he kept himself fit with boxing training. Viktor laced up his boots tightly and tucked his gloves into the back pocket of his jeans. Whatever happened today, he was prepared.

It wasn't until the fourth minute of stoppage time that the opponent's goal came. Viktor was beside himself. The police tried their best to prevent an escalation. But it was a matter of honor not to let the opposing fan block go home unscathed.

The 28th match day

His friends had long called Viktor only Gyözö. The Hungarian variant of his name. And indeed, Viktor also felt rather Hungarian. Here he had graduated, here he had his circle of friends. He and his pals had already taken the fan bus to Zalaegerszeg on Friday afternoon. And they had partied the weekend away. There had already been one or two brawls. And it became apparent that it would also go off today properly. After the first goal for his team in the first half, Gyözö had made every effort to heat up the atmosphere. And after the 0:2 lead in the second half, he had an easy time stirring up the hatred of the opposing fan block. While still on his way out, he put in his mouth guard and put on his gloves.

The 29th match day

Finally, summer arrived. Géza loved to fire up the Ultra fan block with his bare upper body. He wore his tattoos with great pride. If they won today, they could finish third in the league. But Géza didn't really care. His name meant winner. And that was what he wanted to be today. Gladly in the stadium. But more importantly on the street in the fight against the cursed fans from Székesfehérvár.

@hottfguys, hope you like it!

[she-posts-nerdy-stuff]

Daughter of the Rain and Snow

Concept: Around ten years after the events of Crooked Kingdom, 25-year-old Captain Inej Ghafa frees Maya Olsen from a pleasure house in Ketterdam. Maya is looking for revenge against the man who put her in her position, a man who she knows nothing about except his name: Kaz Brekker.

Tags: @wraith--2 @lunarthecorvus @just2bubbly @real-fragments7 @ethereal-maia @cartoon-clifford @origami-butterfly @lady-a-stuff

Content Warnings: in more general terms I want to remind people to be aware of the nature of Kaz and Inej's experiences and relationship since even if I'm not directly addressing these things they tend to be implicit in any writing about them, but specifically to this chapter there's ptsd and implied SA references.

Chapter 33 - Kaz

Kaz lay still on the bed for a while after Inej had drifted off, watching the flickering of her oil black lashes in the half light. He hoped it wasn’t an unpleasant dream. Her breathing remained steady and gentle, but he found himself listening intently for a catch or panic that would make him shake her awake. She needed to sleep, but he would not leave her prey to nightmares.

On the worst nights she would wake up screaming, often still lost beyond reality, haunted by invisible monsters. Sometimes Kaz would hold her close, stroke the hair off her face, whisper and try to soothe her. Other times she could not stand for anyone to be near. On those nights, if they were in the house then Kaz would go downstairs and make a hot drink to leave on top of the dresser on the landing, before walking to the Slat or dozing in the living room. The next morning, he would usually find the empty mug on her nightstand and Inej sat on the roof. He couldn’t manage to climb up to join her, but she’d perch with her feet hanging over the window frame so he knew she was okay. If they were at the Slat, Kaz would leave their apartment and go downstairs, or walk to the Crow Club and spend the night working. The next morning, the window would be open and Kaz would know that Inej had left to find herself a perch. Those nights had been less frequent, in the last year or so, but they both knew these things came and went in rounds. There were days when Kaz couldn’t hold her hand, when he wanted to scream at himself that it was Inej, that of course he could touch Inej, that Inej was the only safe thing in the world, but his mind would not let him hold her. That was better, at the minute. But Inej was struggling again, and Kaz wasn’t entirely sure how to help.

After Inej had been sleeping for a while, Kaz gently lifted her from his chest and rested her head on the pillows. He pulled the blankets over her and pushed back a lock of hair that had fallen across her face, before placing a gentle kiss against her forehead.

“Sleep well, my love,” he whispered, “I promise you, I’ll be back soon,”

He found Jesper in the living room, curled up on the sofa with his arms wrapped around Wylan. Kaz hit his cane against the doorframe, making both of them jump slightly to look up at him.

“Let’s move,”

Jesper clambered to his feet and took Wylan’s hand in his, walking down the hallway to the front door backwards to face him for as long as possible. Wylan laughed as he followed, leaning in close as they reached the porch. Kaz walked after them, wondering if they could actually hear his eyes rolling.

“Don’t do anything stupid,” said Wylan, pulling Jesper’s hands into his chest.

“Don’t do anything stupid what?”

“Don’t do anything stupid,” Wylan murmured, edging closer to Jesper, “without me,”

Jesper grinned, leaning down slightly to complete the kiss.

“I love you, Wy,”

“Love you too,”

“Yes, wonderful, everybody loves each other,” said Kaz, impatiently, “Can we get moving now?”

“He says this like he didn’t just spend the last hour saying goodbye to Inej,” said Jesper, shaking his head.

“Speaking of which,” Kaz turned to Wylan, “Make sure no-one disturbs her; she’s finally sleeping,”

Wylan nodded.

“Back before you know it,” said Jesper, kissing the back of Wylan’s hand.

The door swung shut to leave Kaz and Jesper in the cold air of early evening. By the time Jesper had turned around from the door Kaz was already off the porch and making his way down the street; he didn’t realise how far behind Jesper was until he’d jogged to catch up with him.

“How do you do that?” he breathed as he slowed down to match Kaz’s pace.

Kaz neglected to answer.

Lamps were beginning to be lit in the windows of the Geldstradt, and as they headed south through the financial district the streets became busier with people hurrying home after closing the doors on a long day in the office. As they moved towards the Barrel the crowds got thicker, brighter, and louder. It wasn’t particularly busy outside the Crow Club; despite the ever-present crowds along the rest of the street they thinned around the half leaning door and the purple ‘No entry’ sign that someone had posted there. Kaz hit the sign with his cane so it fell into the dirt, grimacing.

“Saints,” said Jesper, as he followed Kaz inside and saw the carnage.

Someone had clearly begun an attempt at setting the room to rights; cabinets were upright but not yet pushed back against the wall, their contents still littering the brightly coloured carpet. Glass shards seemed to decorate every surface, broken bottles and discarded knives had replaced the spend-happy tourists, and there was an array of bullet holes across at least two of the walls.

It seemed no-one else was home, and Kaz paced straight through the chaos to the door of his office. Jesper followed, pausing in shock at the damage once again when Kaz flung the door open and walked inside. He grabbed the torn up ledger from the floor and began to rifle through it, trying to figure out what Alby had taken. From the corner of his eye, Kaz saw Jesper picked up the toy crow from the desk. White stuffing guts poured out the edges.

“You’re killing stuffed animals now?” he asked, glancing up at Kaz, “Interesting business tactic,”

“Present from Alby,” Kaz replied without looking up from the ledger.

Jesper began to pick up some of the books that had been thrown off Kaz’s shelves, brushing off a cover and reading it aloud:

“Theoretical underpinnings and empirical illustrations of the business model: a conceptual analysis - Saints, Kaz, don’t you ever have fun?”

“Sure he does,” said a voice from the doorway, “That’s what he has you for,”

Kaz nodded at Anika, leaning on the doorframe, and smirked slightly to himself thinking of the last time he and Jesper had gone out for real fun. He seemed to remember Wylan throwing up and cursing Jesper’s name, making melodramatic and blatantly false proclamations of never wishing to drink again, whilst Jesper attempted to prove to Kaz that he could definitely do a handstand and almost ended up kicking him in the head. It was the most drunk Kaz and Jesper had been in years, and Kaz was pretty sure it was the most drunk Wylan had been, ever. Kaz had staggered back to the Crow Club, almost fallen over the doorstep, and pulled a small group together to whisper:

“I’m getting married next month. Next month! I’m marrying Inej. Inej is the best. Don’t tell anyone in the Dregs, okay? They’re not supposed to know,”

Every person in that group had been a member of the Dregs. All of them received blackmail threats from Kaz the next day. Anika had been one such victim of Kaz’s ramblings, and it would appear she remembered it at least marginally more clearly than he did.

“Anika!” Jesper crowed

“Fahey,” she raised an eyebrow, “Thought you’d elevated yourself above these haunts,”

“Thought you might’ve done too by now, love,” he winked.

Anika smiled.

“Nah, not me mate. Locked in for life,”

“Did they talk?” asked Kaz impatiently, dropping the ledger onto his desk

“Nothing much helpful,” she replied, “Of the four we got, two were already dead - and I had to take care of another one when she tried to cut Pim’s throat. Last one’s still upstairs. Said someone paid ‘em to come in and cause problems, claims he didn’t know about the bomb,”

“With a Corporalnik present?”

Anika nodded. Kaz sighed - he needed to speak to the bomber. He really needed Vix to stop killing people before he could interrogate them.

“No gang tattoos,” she added, “He hasn’t said who paid ‘em,”

“Rollins,” said Kaz

“I thought he was dead?”

“Pekka is,” said Jesper, picking up another of Kaz’s books, “Now there’s a murderous little baby Rollins running around. Are these supposed to be in a specific order Kaz?”

Kaz looked over at Jesper, almost cringing for his poor leather-bounds being shoved randomly back onto his shelf.

“It’s a cross referenced system of genres, organised alphabetically by author’s surname within each subsection,”

“... yeah, I’m not doing that,”

Kaz rolled his eyes.

“Is anyone else around?” he asked Anika

“Few people upstairs, but most are back at that Slat or in the Sliver Six,”

“And there’s one hostage still alive?”

She nodded

Kaz cracked his knuckles.

“Alright then. Let’s go have a chat,”