#for the magic au and in general. boy get ready I have ideas

[justkillingthyme]

Dragging Luke to the cave

[yuri-is-online]

Weird Yutu thingy but what if Yuu came from the Pokemon world

I believe the support system in the Pokemon world is much better than Earth so-

Single parent with a raging teen-

Add some emotional support Pokemon

And when Yutu comes to his parent's timeline Yuu gets so excited to see new Pokemon (that love them for some reason. Almost as though they were their first trainer-)

Oh Yuu and Yutu would be in such a better place if they came from the pokemon world. Yuu gets a house with a bunch of neighbors and nearby a lab and no one really cares about not knowing who Yutu's dad is.

The pokemon part is a bit trickey though... would they remember Twisted Wonderland? Probably, I couldn't see the magic marshal's keeping the pokemon? But I could also see one of Yuu's team staying with Yutu's dad by accident. Maybe it helps keep the boys who remain alive that much more sane, maybe it stands reluctant guard nearby where the phantom resides, unable to think of anything else to do until it sees Yutu and gets some of its old energy back. This whole ayuu is based off of Fire Emblem Awakening so I have to mention Cherche and her wyvern Minerva... her son Gerome takes up his mother's mount and brings her back in time with him, it's how she recognizes him even before he shows her the wedding ring... perhaps something similar happened with Yutu where he has one of your pokemon and you just know that he's lying to you even before you know he's your son (Gerome's supports with his dad made me so mad because I always S ranked Cherche and Libra because Libra actually learns to speak wyvern in their support chain but that's not reflected in his support with Gerome because it's generic and i wanted to scream every time i read iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit. I sort of based Jade! Yutu's attitude towards his dad on those supports though)

But back to nicer thoughts, I always struggle with pokemon aus because half of it is just assigning the pokemon, and then I get super caught up in what region everyone is from and just bleh

Riddle! Yutu has to have a Roselia right? It just makes sense, maybe he has the shiny stone for the evolution all ready to go but it was the last present Yuu ever gave him so he's reluctant to use it. Maybe, if you want some extra angst, when he comes to Twisted Wonderland he still just has a budew because he's not super into pokemon battles but he struggles to raise the friendship level enough for budew to evolve once he's there. He's so upset about losing his parent and budew is trying their best tm but it's not enough until they see Overblot Riddle and finally get on the same wavelength.

The triplets... one of them has to have a Fidough that's just a given. I was tempted to say they all have one? But I like the idea of Yushi having a Swirlix since she's more into candymaking. That's 2/3 fairy types so I was scrolling looking for another one when I saw Sinistea and went "oh that would be cute and the perfect fit for a cafe themed se-" and then I realized I could give that to Yutres. Could. For funsies. But it makes much more sense and is less cruel to give her a Milcery. So Yutu gets Fidough, Yutres gets Milcery, and Yushi gets Swirlix for a cute little fairy cafe set.

Cater! Yutu is trickey, he's big on mindfulness and I was really tempted to give him my favorite pokemon because of that, but he also really likes music... I feel like psychic pokemon sort of fits his vibe? And I am torn between Chimecho and Espurr. Espurr is supposed to have difficulty controlling its power, so maybe Chimecho and Yutu could have been focused on helping one out. Cater is super underrated so why shouldn't I give his Yutu two pokemon, it'd be very cute.

Ace! Yutu is pikachu coded to me <3 They would fight so much because both pikachu and Yutu are little brats but once they get in sync watch out they're super scary. Easily the pokemon most excited to see Yuu again... perhaps all that ego clashing is just something that happened in Yuu's world because pika and Yutu bonded while grieving Yuu. Maybe Yutu never evolves his pikachu because that's how Yuu gave it to him. Maybe Pikachu doesn't want to evolve because that's how Yuu left it.

Deuce! Yutu... there aren't any explicitly chicken pokemon outside of maybe Moltres but there is Togepi who is an egg. Baby Yutu loves his bestest friend in the whole wide world, Delinquent Yutu is sort of embarrassed by them. After he catches a houndoor he stops actively using them in battle... he doesn't hate Togi, he just doesn't let anyone in his gang see them and gets really violent with anyone who might try to hurt them. Probably defends fairy types any chance he gets before stammering out some sort of excuse trying to play it off as someone else's opinions. Maybe his boys catch on and one of them gets the idea that maybe they could like... start using impidimps. Make Grimmsnarl the icon of the gang instead of Houndoom, just cause you know maybe fairies are kinda neat maybe. they all want it to be togi instead please boss we made them a little biker jacket isn't it so cu- i mean badass?

Leona! Yutu is loved by cats and he loves naps. Litleo feels like the most thematic pokemon for him, maybe they were napping under a tree one day and a Munchlax decided to follow him home because sleeping on Leona! Yutu was actually pretty warm and Yuu makes the best snacks. His dad probably didn't appreciate the correlation between him and his son's pokemon but as I have said before, he's very much that dad who doesn't want the cat but ends up asleep on the couch with it in his lap two days later. Except this time it's him feeding all his vegetables to Munchlax.

Ruggie! Yutu is my little dandelion prince so he gets a Hoppip. I like the idea of him coming home with one stuck in his hair and they've been best friends ever since. He feels like the one most likely to take over training Yuu's team, if he had continued living in your world I don't think he would have become a trainer. He would have been happy to have a normal job and maybe never evolve his pokemon, but he doesn't regret taking on the role of trainer in the bad future. It gives him a lot of self confidence.

Jack! Yutu... I will bestow him the honor of giving him one of my favorite pokemon. He gets Cacnea because Yuu remembers that Jack liked succulents. Yutu is very serious about taking care of him and making sure he has the best possible habitat at home. Cacnea is under the impression it is doing the same for Yutu and Yuu, but the stubby little hands it has make helping with chores difficult.

It's really tempting to give all of the Octatrio kids water type pokemon, maybe left over memories from Twisted Wonderland make Yuu think that would be a good idea. But I want to give Azul! Yutu a Clobbopus sosososososo bad. It's such a cute pokemon and I think Yutu would agree that his pokemon is super cute. So does everyone in Savanaclaw much to his annoyance, it's like his pokemon is the dorm leader and not him.

Jade! Yutu feels like a Mareanie guy. Water type since he's a merfolk, poison type because that's pretty punk rock, and it looks just enough like a mushroom to be thematic. I could see one of Yuu's pokemon staying in Twisted Wonderland with Jade... a Shiinotic who helps him at the bar and is the best cared for mushroom out there that Yutu is envious. Why does his parent's pokemon love his dad so much? Why won't it agree to come with him into the past where you are still alive because it insists on staying with Jade, saying that's what you would want?

Floyd! Yutu's favorite pokemon ever since he was a little boy was Sharpedo. He asked, suspiciously politely, to be given one when he was old enough to get his trainer's license. He even made a power point, how cute! The answer was still no, instead Yuu convinces the lab near by their house to take Yutu on as one of those trainers with a pokedex who goes on a journey to collect all the gym badges. He really likes being a trainer, probably would have been the annoying rival to his next door neighbor, definitely picked whatever pokemon was strongest against whatever they picked. He still catches his Carvanha and doesn't hold it against Yuu for not giving it to him, he thinks that was probably for the best.

Kalim! Yutu deserves a Whooper. It's cute, the little face is always smiling and Whooper and Quagsire are such joyful little guys I think Kalim would love them. Oricorio feels like a good choice too because of how much it likes dancing... but I feel like Yutu would have a hard time choosing what form to train because they are all so cool. His dad would be such an enabler, sure son lets have all four! And throw a themed party for each one lol

Jamil! Yutu also feels like a good candidate for a pokemon rival. Sure, Ekans and Arbok feel like good pokemon for him thematically, but I just know he would have a well balanced and thought out team of pokemon he deeply loves and takes great care of. Keeping with the snake theme, lets say he started out with Snivy. Serperior fits Jamil's overall vibe pretty well, it's a beautiful pokemon and very regal. Other pokemon I could see him having are Gastrodon, Clefable, and Scizor.

Vil! Yutu loves to draw but I do not like Smeargle in the slightest and will be pretending it does not exist. I feel like anyone attached to Vil should get a Buneary, it's a cute pokemon with a friendship evolution who has real hate in its heart. It is more like Vil than any poison type pokemon fr fr. I could see Vil! Yutu doing well as coordinator, but being a bit uncertain of who else he wants to add to his team, but catching an evee with the intent of evolving them into... something he just doesn't know what.

I hit the text block limit lol, I should just. Stop being distracted by cassette beasts and get back to writing. Or replay a pokemon game.

[just-barely-a-somebody]

I’ve got a take on a prohibitedwish/fionna and cake pirate au that I thought of while listening to music and will never write a full fic for, so I just wanted to write out the ideas I had for funsies

It starts at night when Scarab, a feared pirate captain, kidnaps Prismo, son of the navy’s head general, to be used as a bargaining chip to save Jake from being hung.

Prismo has befriended an owl (Cosmic Owl ofc) and it follows them as Prismo’s taken away. On the ship, Fionna and Simon are ready for when he returns and they have Prismo tied to the mast to be clearly visible.

With no better way to help, Cosmic Owl attempts fly in and attack Scarab. It isn’t very effective when Scarab manages to grab Cosmic Owl by the claws. Scarab questions Prismo about the owl and Prismo panics to explain that Cosmic Owl was some of his only company.

Begrudgingly, Scarab sends Fionna to get something from below deck. Fionna returns with a small pouch. Scarab takes a pinch of colored dust from the pouch and blows it into Cosmic Owl’s face. Prismo’s worried about how it might hurt his eyes when Cosmic Owl sputters and is now *magically* able to speak (the first thing he says is probably yelling at Scarab to let them go or something before being like ‘wait oh shit I can talk’). As Prismo and Cosmic Owl are both coming to this realization, Cake comes up from below deck and makes a casual comment abt how great two way communication is (ref to what the squirrel said to cake in fionna and cake).

^that’s like the closest thing to an actual scene I’ve thought of

so more general lore just laid out

Meet the Crew (and learn the lore):

Scarab- captain, helmsman (does the steering). He is the owner of the boat, and is the one to decide who gets to join and who doesn’t. To his own annoyance, their safety is top priority. He claims it to be because they’re already such a small crew, and cannot afford to lose any more (but really he’s grown attached, though it would take a significant amount of inebriation for him to admit it). He carries an unassuming cane everywhere because of its magical ability to transform into a weapon (his crystal from fionna and cake but pirate themed). Previously a bounty hunter, he formed the crew after a target got the jump on him and left a scar slashed across his back. Now they search for magical artifacts and treasure to get by.

Simon- navigator, cook, surgeon. He takes care of everyone’s wellbeing and responsible for most technical stuff. He joined the crew in pursuit of knowledge about the treasures out there to be found. Years ago his long time girlfriend Betty sacrificed herself to save them from the kraken that rose from sea during a large battle at sea. She did it by using one of their treasures to fuse with the kraken before it could sink their ship, and the part of her that remains now allows them to cross its territory unharmed. He still misses her, and drops small offerings/gifts that he thinks she might like into the water when they pass over.

Fin- master at arms. Fin is well trained in combat and responsible for teaching the others how to handle themselves. He and Scarab are well matched when they duel, with most ending in a draw due to an interruption eventually requiring their attention. Growing up he was an orphan living on the streets with his only friend being his dog Jake. They were thieves to get by, and one day stumbled their way into finding the sack of magic dust that allowed Jake to talk. One day they stole a relic from bounty hunter Scarab that granted Jake his stretchy powers. They were caught in the act, but became the first to be recruited by Scarab as he saw their potential. Upon Jake's capture, he has become dead set on saving his best friend.

Jake- Cabin boy. With his stretchy powers he improvises ways to help the crew or hold together the ship. He met Prismo by chance and got to know him well enough to find out he didn't like his life stuck on land. They became friends before Prismo knew he was a pirate, but things went downhill when Prismo's father caught them and had Jake arrested. Stuck in jail, his only knowledge of what is happening is through the complaints of Prismo's father blaming Jake for Prismo's capture. Safe to say, it's the only reason he has yet to be hung.

Fionna- Rigger, Swabbie. She and Cake are the most recent addition to the crew. Like Fin she was an orphan before being recruited, and was the same age as he was when he was recruited many years ago. She reminded Fin of himself, though she was much more eager to be a pirate, so he convinced Scarab to allow her and Cake in. As the youngest in the crew and filled with a need for adventure, she often is the first to rush in without thinking things through. This has gotten them into troubling situations before. To make up for it, she is doing her best to learn how to fight from Fin so that she can properly defend herself.

Cake- Swabbie. When she joined, she was given the same magic dust that Jake had. In Jake's absence, she has had to learn how to use the stretchy power relic that he left behind on the ship. With some big shoes to fill, she makes it her business to keep others positive/entertained (this has yet to work on Scarab)

Not sure if there should be Bubblegum and Marceline or Gary and Marshal, or both, so feel free to imagine their inclusion however you prefer. Coming up with this stuff is hard, okay?

Prismo- hostage. Prismo lived most of his life under control of his strict father, and began sneaking out at night to live his own life. With little friends, he befriended an owl that happened to nest outside his window. One night he met Jake and they got along well, meeting up every night for a week until Prismo's father caught them. Only then did Prismo find out that Jake was part of Scarab's crew which his father had been working tirelessly to catch. Prismo was grounded, and Jake was jailed to be hung. After his capture, Prismo sympathizes with their crew, and wants to support their goal of having Jake released. It takes a lot of convincing from Prismo to be allowed to roam free on the ship after they have set sail (which Scarab permits on the grounds that Prismo simply doesn't have the combat skill be able to seriously injure any of them even if he wanted to). Scarab is highly skeptical of Prismo's sympathy, and keeps a close watch that Prismo cant help but be highly aware of. Fionna reassures him that it's just how Scarab is, but with his nervously pushy attitude Prismo is slowly able to break down Scarab's emotional walls one by one.

If anyone does anything with this I'd love to see it

[shadowgast-recs-weekly]

This week, we have ten shadowgast fics centered around the theme Professor Widogast! Dive in after the cut:

Ongoing Speculation by marsmystic (1674, Teen) Warnings: None Essek shows up to Caleb’s classes in various disguises Reccer says: Nothing

Caleb and the Pussycats by Daintylemonsquare (1105, General) Warnings: None Caleb has cats in every lesson, a new one joins in Reccer says: It's so cute

You don’t understand, we don’t hold hands. by comradeartemis (1435, Teen) Warnings: None Zoom classes and Frumpkin being a menace. Reccer says: Students will be students

A Wizard’s Spellbook by dhwty_writes (1321, General) Warnings: None This is a beautiful and heartwarming reflection on the people who have influenced Prof. Widogast's life. Reccer says: Be ready to read it twice and have a good cry.

prospective pupils by quinn_of_aebradore (1128, General) Warnings: None Caleb takes a look through some rejected Soltryce student prospects, and chooses who he will teach. Reccer says: Short and sweet, Essek is a wonderfully supportive partner to Caleb in his decision-making.

Name by jakia (833, Teen) Warnings: no warnings Caleb starts his own magic school, and has a mysterious visitor one night. Reccer says: I love the possibilities contained within, the idea that Caleb can make his own place and not just teach at Soltryce.

Dunamancy 101: The Practical Application of Romance Upon Two Unsuspecting Wizards by Dragonslaeyr (5196, Teen) Warnings: None Double whammy with both Professor Widogast AND Professor Thelyss. It's a modern AU from an outsider perspective in which a group of students conspire to set up two of their professors in order to alleviate their workload. Reccer says: This one is SO cleverly done! It's a modern AU but stays so close to the essence of our boys and the formatting is just so cleverly done. Lots of little references that don't stick out to our narrators but will warm/break your heart in an 'if you know you know' kind of way. Especially recommend for current or recovering academics.

A Sort of Beacon Where There Used to Be A Dull Roar by Wordonawing (8781, Mature) Warnings: none Essek gets hurt, then stays with Caleb for a while. Reccer says: It's so very soft, but especially for professor widogast - I like that part of the attraction for Essek is that Caleb is a good teacher, and that the fic shows what being a good teacher is like.

And then for these last two we had two recs each!

His Husband by Cers (3347, General) Warnings: None Student's POV: Two very different, but very good professors sometimes mention significant others. Can you guess the plot twist? ;) Reccer 1 says: It's an absolutely gorgeous depiction of not only tenderness and love, but also of two very good teachers. My teacher heart soared while reading it, I teared up on the train when seating arrangements were mentioned. It also has fantastic characterisation of Essek and Caleb. It's the quintessential professor fic to me. Reccer 2 says: I don’t usually like second person pov but damn this is a good fic

I think of all the education that I’ve missed (but then my homework was never quite like this) by MarsBar2019 (15118, Explicit) Warnings: None Essek gets to see both Caleb as a good teacher and Caleb as a decidedly naughty teacher. Contains some jealousy/possessiveness. Reccer 1 says: Caleb is a great professor in this - imaginative, supportive, firm but kind. There are lovely depictions of Caleb and Essek's home life. Essek experiences a wild variety of feelings. There's some wonderful smut in Caleb's office. And most importantly Caleb says the words "daddy voice" and uses said "daddy voice". Reccer 2 says: Hot professor Widogast gets to dom the naughty student.

Have some questions? Check out our FAQ, and look for us next week, when we'll have a new rec list centered around Culture Differences!

[social-mockingbird]

in the name of the moon...something something...whatever

(an Obiyuki Sailor Moon AU) 

my second written obiyuki bingo entry! please forgive the mad cheesiness, I do really appreciate sailor moon but I find it mad cheesy. also the idea of obi wearing sparkly shorts was too funny to not use. enjoy!

________

Obi stared at the glossy black cat sitting on his bed and started to laugh. 

He couldn’t help it. Then he looked down at himself and laughed even harder. By the time Luna could get him to calm down, calling his name in an increasingly exasperated tone, Obi was lying on the floor like a star, chest heaving with suppressed chuckles.

“This is serious,” said the cat, tail flicking with annoyance. “The magic I’ve bestowed upon you is not to be taken lightly! You are destined to save Earth from the forces of evil, Obi, and I’d like it if you had a little more gravity.”

“Okay.” Obi crossed his legs and sat up, folding his hands primly. “Consider me grave as a full moon. But you’ve got to admit, Luna, the outfit is ridiculous.”

Luna humphed. “The Moon Guardian outfit has been passed down through generations—”

“Of women, obviously, because there are too many sparkles on here for my comfort—”

“The moon shines brightly in the night sky and the guardian reflects that light—”

“The moon also goes in phases; can’t I be more of a new-moon sort of guardian? I’m more of a stealth sort of guy.” Obi raised his hands, pretending to creep. The effect was very much ruined by the white sailor shirt and shiny blue shorts.

Luna sighed. “We can talk about the outfit. But listen to me first. Your first quest will be to find your fellow Sailor Guardians. They are the guardians of other celestial bodies and will help you in your ultimate journey.”

Obi was doing his best not to yawn. “Ultimate journey?”

Luna’s eyes sparkled. “You are to find the legendary artifact, the Silver Crystal. With its supreme power—and the combined power of the Sailor Guardians—you will be able to defeat the forces of evil once and for all, and bring balance to the universe.”

“Um…Luna, look, I hear what you’re saying, but I’m really not the saving-the-world type…”

“Which is why you’ll need my training,” Luna continued patiently. “This is your destiny, Obi.”

Obi looked down at his sparkling uniform, unconvinced.

“Okay. So—I just need to find other…Sailor Guardians…and then the Crystal?”

“Yes. So you’ll do it?”

“Do I have a choice?”

“No!” Luna clapped her paws. “Also, you’re late for school.”

“Why,” Obi whined, leaping to his feet. “You knew.”

“The more you complain, the later you’ll be!”

Obi prayed to the god of sparkly princess powers to do some very nasty things to Luna as he threw a hoodie over the sailor shirt and skidded out the door. Apparently the ability to run in platforms came free with the new guardianship.

____

Obi was grateful that the magic clothes had faded halfway on the way to school, especially since the platforms were hurting his feet. There had been no sign of Luna during the day, and while he hadn’t really been looking, no sign of any Sailor Guardians, either.

Are they going to be classmates or something?

There had been a very tall boy with turquoise hair who’d stared at him for the entirety of second period, but he’d chalked that up to boredom.

There had also been that absolutely enchanting red-haired girl he'd nearly knocked over on his way to school who had accepted his eight apologies with the most adorable smile he'd ever seen, and smelled like flowers, and had the nicest hands, and he needed to get a life.

The pin Luna had given him rested securely in the inside pocket of his hoodie and had stayed cool all day, despite being up against his skin. School was now over and he’d holed up in his favorite tea shop with the massive pile of homework he’d accumulated. Jasmine tea steamed comfortingly in the cup to his right and a massive anpan sat next to it. Obi was reaching for the sweet bun, ready to sink his teeth into it, and then the entire tea shop exploded outward and Obi found himself flailing through the air, surrounded by shards of broken glass. He landed unhurt several feet away from the smoking scene and got to his feet, blinking in shock. There was a gaping hole in the side of the tea shop and despite the commotion no one was running to help, or screaming? In fact, the entirety of the street was empty.

It was then that Obi remembered there was a parade in the town square and they’d blocked off this road. That explained the distinct lack of people on the street when he’d walked over after school. And the cheering, music, and shouting from two streets over. There was no way anyone had heard anything over the celebration.

Obi thought that was weirdly convenient of the universe.

From the wreckage of the shop stepped a beautiful lady with short reddish hair, holding her hands at her sides in a dramatic sort of supervillain pose. She’d been behind the counter about five minutes ago and the more Obi looked at her, the less human she became. The last time he’d checked women didn’t have bulging yellow eyes and lizard-like skin on the daily.

“Moon Guardian,” she hissed, “I am Jadeite. We meet at last.”

Obi shuffled into a weak sort of fighting pose, raising his fists, more confused than anything else. He was okay with fighting as a whole and figured this was a kind of boss fight, since he’d just been declared savior of the universe (or whatever) but he hadn’t expected anything this soon. He hadn’t even had a mastering-his-powers montage yet. Had Luna even mentioned any sort of training?

“Yeah, that’s—me. Unfortunately. You’ve heard of me? I just got the job this morning.”

Jadeite laughed, the sound like dark water over sharp rocks. “You are funny, little guardian.” Then her hands started to glow a menacing green. “Too bad I have to kill you.”

Obi would have laughed if that green energy didn’t look so deadly. The brooch tucked into his jacket began to burn, so he took it out, holding it in his palm. It was also glowing.

“Obi!”

Luna was behind him, perched on a wall.

“What?” Obi held up the brooch. “Is this you?”

“Excuse me,” said Jadeite, dropping her hands a little. “I’m on the clock.”

“You have to transform!” Luna pointed a paw at the brooch.

“Okay, fine. You did it last time. Go ahead.”

“No, it has to be you! You have to yell Moon Prism Power, Makeup! That’s your transformation phrase!”

“Okay, are you serious? How long has it been since you’ve had a male guardian?”

A blast of green energy sang by Obi’s ear, smashing into the wall.

“Moonprismpowermakeup!” Obi screeched.

The brooch hummed, shooting out bursts of white light. Obi felt his feet leave the ground and he began to spin, the way he had in his bedroom earlier that day. But this felt different. More powerful.

It also took about twenty seconds longer.

“I am Handsome Guardian Sailor Moon,” Obi yelled, posed dramatically in the air, hair swirling around his ears.

Jadeite looked a little dumbstruck.

Obi pointed the staff that had magically appeared in his hands at her. “In the name of the Moon,” he intoned, voice echoing, “I will punish you!”

A blast of energy shot from the staff and sent Jadeite spinning backwards about 20 feet, into the rubble of the tea shop. Obi flew after her, laser-focused, and found her smoking body in a heap on top of what used to be the front counter.

He landed, gently, and felt the focus fade from his brain.

“You did it!” Luna leapt atop a turned-over chair, smiling the way cats do. “See? This is your destiny!”

“I guess—I guess so.” Gently, Obi turned the staff over in his hands, examining the moon crest on top of it, the ornate carvings on the handle. He did feel different.

“Seriously, though, I could lose the shorts, I’m getting a wedgie.”

Luna rolled her eyes—then she was pointing behind Obi, screaming something he couldn’t hear because there was a terrible pain in his back and he was skidding across the damaged floor—

Jadeite was a horrible twisted thing, leaning over him, blackened and grinning, hands charging with deadly green—

A single rose hit the floor in front of her feet and stuck.

Jadeite paused, straightened a little, looked up in confusion. Obi, dazed and aching, looked too, towards the entrance of the shop—

Silhouetted in the sunlight stood a lanky figure dressed in a tasteful black suit and flowing cape with red lining. A white mask covered the top half of her face.

She looked utterly calm as she threw another glinting rose, piercing Jadeite in the chest. The monster screamed and collapsed, finally lying still.

Obi blinked, hard.

“What.”

The girl stepped into the rubble, smiling mysteriously at Obi. Her hair was as red as the lining of her cape.

“You did well, Sailor Moon,” she said.

“Um,” Obi muttered intelligently, intoxicated by the sudden scent of flowers. “Who are you?”

“My name is--Tuxedo Mask.” The girl lost a little of her composure when she said the name, like she wasn’t quite used to saying it.

Obi very politely chose not to say no, duh.

“We will meet again.” Lifting her cape, Tuxedo Mask disappeared in a swirl of material.

Obi stared after her.

“Luna, please tell me one of the signs of concussion isn’t seeing pretty girls who throw roses at people.”

“It’s not,” griped Luna, glaring after the girl. “I didn’t like that.”

“Speak for yourself.” It hurt to stand, but Obi managed, despite having to get up on three-inch platforms.

“She can’t be trusted, Obi, weird people who pop in out of nowhere are suspicious!”

“She didn’t seem evil to me. She literally just saved me from being killed.”

“Tuxedo Mask,” mused the cat. “I’ll have to keep an eye out for her.”

“Me too,” said Obi, and he meant it.

____

@snowwhite-andtheknight

[sadi-fics]

New Official Sadi-Starlight rp rules/fandoms post!

Oh boy, time for an update to my rp fandoms and rules post!

My status of rp availability will be in my bio, I'll try to remember to update it. If I don't, then I'm screwed and I apologize for any confusion this causes.

Each fandom will have a ✅ if I'm looking for it, ❌ if I'm closed and ❓if it's possible to talk me into it.

-JJBA parts 1-5 ❓

-Helluva Boss/Hazbin Hotel ❌

-Super Mario Bros ❓

-Star Wars ❌

-Kuroshitsuji/Black Butler ❌

-XMen ✅

-Avatar The Last Airbender ✅

(Edit: Adding a section about AU'S and crossovers...) Yeah, in general, just ask me if you have any ideas, but I've done several au related things at this point, and a few crossovers, and I feel like some that I can handle are as follows:

-Old West AU

-Mermaid / Sea Life AU

-Cottagecore AU

-Modern AU

-Fairytale / Magical Creatures AU

-Gods / Demigods AU

-Mafia AU

-HONSE

-Canon universe but they're all cats au

And in general, I'm open to new things as long as you ask me first!

And now for the most grueling part! The rules!

Please don't approach me for an rp if you're underaged, I'm not looking for an rp with minors, or to go to prison. And please don't lie about your age to get into my DMs, that shit's not okay.

As stated previously, you must be 18+, the reason for that is that my rps usually contain smut, but it won't be immediately, there should be a build up to smut between two characters, and they can't be minors because I don't feel comfortable depicting minors in sexual situations.

In terms of youngsters in romance, no smut that involves minors!! Romance, kissing, cuddling, and light teasing is fine if both parties are in the same age group and both consent, but anything more than that is a no go as far as youngsters go.

Tell me about any and all triggers or sensitivities you might have so I can avoid triggering topics, our rps are meant to be a safe space for both of us.

No scat, vomit, or diaper fetish.

No pedophilia ships, incest ships, zoophile ships, or proshipping in general.

I'll be checking your profile to see if you're a proshipper, map, zoophile, terf, or anything problematic, I tend to form friendships with my rp partners, and don't think I can be friends/rp with bad people for the sake of my own mental health. You should also have your age in your bio so that I have confirmation that you're a legal adult.

Active hours really don't matter all that much, replies can just be whenever you're able to write, my reply schedule will probably be inconsistent too, so you don't have to feel bad if you fall asleep or have to work. But, please let me know if you're going to be inactive for more than 2 weeks, I would greatly appreciate it!

I only do OCxCanon ships, and prefer to double up, you do my crush, I do yours, equivalent exchange!

I'm not too picky about reply lengths, but more than 6 sentences in a semi lit to literate writing style would be ideal. I don't do illiterate roleplay, sorry.

If I happen to be inactive for more than 2 weeks, feel free to poke me, I really don't mind.

I only roleplay on discord, sorry

Where to contact me?

If you dm me on either of my Tumblr blogs, I may take longer to contact you back due to notifications on here being silly for me, so here's my discord info.

Shoot me a message or a friend request or something if you're interested! Don't just comment on this post saying "interested", you little dorks. If you read the whole post, include the word "fork" in your first message, that's the secret word.

I repeat, the secret word is "FORK", include it in your message or I'll redirect you to read through this whole Bible again, dammit! >u<

[qfzeeph]

Wanted to share my goofy ah crossover oc x canon ship today because why not!!

excuse the slightly older art I don't have the energy or time to draw at the moment Characters: Chere Altridge [OC], Byakuya Togami Ship Name: Chergami Going to keep this mainly to fluff! But there will be mentions of both SA and extremely mild spicy talk within, so tread with caution if need be. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。..・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

So I actually have one of those "Get to Know My Ship in 5 Minutes" things I made awhile back but never posted wehhhhhh- but before that I want to share some general stuff. I haven't posted too too much of my character's backstories and lore here just yet so I probably won't go too too deep into what I have planned for these two (I actually have a whole sheet for Chere but it hasn't been updated in awhile!) Lore Related Stuff: The continuity in which Chere and Byakuya are romantically involved is entirely an AU of both plotlines respectively. This AU also crosses over both my Final Fantasy continuity and Danganronpa (obviously.) In Chere's story, Byakuya takes the place of a different character that Chere develops a relationship with (to be fair - said character is based off of him as well and pretty much exists because I like the idea of Chere being able to heal through a relationship very very much! Being able to heal without a partner is all part of my other character Zephyr's plotline.) I write Byakuya in the non-despair setting, and having just recently graduated college. During his college years, he's become significantly more mellow behind closed doors, but has to keep the rich asshole mask on in public. He's getting ready to inherit the big family business, and he's under extreme pressure from his elderly father to start producing heirs. Most of the time, he's not interested in the women being placed in his bedroom by their parents hoping their daughter will get to bear a Togami child, and will either pay her to leave and not say a word. At first, he'd indulge his suitors (safely of course) but quickly learned he wasn't enjoying having one night stands with rich girls who just want to get laid and bear the child of someone with status. Byakuya isn't opposed to being in a relationship, he just wishes he could be in one with someone who isn't following him for his money and he wants a strong partner who can hold their own.

So, How Did These Two Even Meet!? Byakuya and his father attended a high end Chocobo Racing event in Chere's home country (Grimore.) Chocobo Racing is seen as an exotic sport to those who are outside of Grimore since the birds only have a population within the country boarders. Chere and Byakuya are around the same age, Chere has some sort of status due to her respect as a high ranking Chocobo Jockey (though far lower than anything the family would settle for.) His father sees this as an opportunity to try and introduce magic-bearing Grimorian genes into the Togami family, and with the help of some of the upper management of the event a "date" was planned between the two without either party knowing. The plan was to tell both of them that the other was interested in meeting and potentially hooking up. Chere wasn't on board, but decided she'd humor her suitor and refuse him as soon as she was bought to the bedroom. Byakuya had started preparing to pay another greed driven woman to stay out of his room. When the time came, neither party cooperated. Chere cursed him out for trying to court her, and Byakuya angrily declared he'd never settle for someone that low in society. They had a pretty viscous argument, but things came to a standstill when the two reached a mutual "Oh, you actually didn't want to be here either. We were tricked." Apologies were dished out (though Byakuya's wasn't very concrete, he's Byakuya after all. Man can't apologize to save his life but boy will he learn!) and the rest of the time spent together was fairly pleasant albeit awkward because of how they had just been fighting. They left on mutual terms, but didn't intend on hanging out anytime soon because of how terribly things had begun. Fate would have other plans, however, as Byakuya would continue running into Chere throughout the duration of the event. Between playing pool in the venue's game hall, jockey meet and greets, and corporate leisure events the jockeys had been invited to, they tended to gravitate toward one another just because it had been a familiar face. Through this, they learned more and more about one another, how the other felt about the world, and general, non trauma related talks of each other's backgrounds. By the time the event had ended, they had become good friends. Byakuya even bet on Chere in her headline race and won a huge sum of money after she won!

Well, When Did They Hook Up Then? Things really began to snowball after the event, when they had to split ways and were countries apart. They stayed in contact, both having very easy ways to see the other (Zephyr makes a pretty good taxi in pegasus form and Byakuya has his rich boy means of getting to Grimore.) They realize they miss the other person and have a hard time accepting their feelings towards one another. Byakuya, still clouded by his status and upbringing is mortified of the consequences of breaking the family tradition and having a partner rather than sleeping around. Chere's discomfort with her feelings is rooted in her abuse, she doesn't want to put faith in someone despite trusting them greatly because, at least in her mind, there's still a chance she could be hurt again. She decides to be strong and confess to him, which was against her better judgement, only to find out Byakuya had also fallen for her and was having the same amount of difficulty accepting his feelings.

What's Their Relationship Like? Very much a learning experience for both parties, but in the best possible way. Chere begins to grow comfortable around someone for the first time and learns that she can trust other people with her feelings. Byakuya learns how to care for someone other than himself and that he isn't bound by the path preset for him by his family. They have their tender moments where they learn what each other likes and dislikes, and have moments where they must put their familiarity aside to truly understand one another. Byakuya also gets to experience the hardships of falling for a magical girl and that her world is very, very different from his. Many people ask Byakuya how he ended up becoming the way he was, and many people ask Chere how she puts up with someone with that much status. Both always answer with "To love is to be changed." Over time, they learn they have far more in common than they thought and it just brings them closer. Later in life, they do end up marrying and having a child on their own terms. This pisses Byakuya's father off to no end, but that's a story for another day-

Alright, Just Post The Damn Chart! There's TONS of more lore I have for these two but as I mentioned a lot of it is based on Chere's lore which I haven't really posted about hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I've also started taking certain things (hint hint) from project raincode and working it into how their relationship functions... >:) But for now, here's this thing. I made it awhile ago when the post was going around but then forgot to post it whOOPS.

Hope ya enjoyed watching me yell about this!!! Maybe I'll post more sometime weheheheheh

[caixxa]

Writing tag game

Thank you so much dear @arsi-lehkonen for tagging me! I'll try answer this without being too affected by your answers because they were fucking brilliant and we feel and think so much alike about writing, it's unbelievable.

what is your absolute all-time favorite idea you’ve ever had?

I'm bad at absolute superlatives so I'll name 3.

Cristiano Ronaldo as a catholic priest in a rural Welsh village after WWII, with James as an angel and so many side characters and cameos. I learned so much with this AU!

Creating a porn industry AU where I could play with my favorite characters as if they were naked barbie dolls.

The idea that I can and should write Finnish players in Finnish.

(All these became actual fics: 1, 2, 3)

what is your favorite part of being a writer? which parts could you take or leave?

My favorite part is the pure magic of creation. This thing exists only in my head until I flesh it out with words, and the words that I choose and the order I put them in is the only way to bring it to reality and share it with other people, and the extra sugar and spice on it are their reactions.

I could do without having to write in English, but to reach whole audience that I think would enjoy my work, I have to. It's not my native language, and I don't use it in my daily life, and it creates such an extra effort to be able to really express myself the way I want to, and a layer of uncertainty about the result. If I want to diminish the uncertainty, I'll have to go the extra mile of bringing in a native beta, and that's an extra delay in the process of getting the work posted (and it can be nerve racking too, I've asked my betas to be gentle with me but it's still terrifying to show anybody my imperfections).

I'd love to be able to write casually and fast but solidly and well, and when I'm not, I'll rather step away from writing until I figure out if I want to do it again.

what is your greatest motivation to write/create?

My greatest motivation to write in general is monthly salary. My greatest motivation to write fan fiction has been passionate fan love for the subject matter of my fic. Writing is my way of dwelling around in the world of hockey fandom and screaming about how wonderful and sexy in all aspects the characters are.

"Fan fiction is a love letter to the fandom" is a great way to put it, and it also explains why I don't write that much anymore. When do we write love letters? When we're freshly fallen in love, the feeling is new and all-encompassing and makes you vibrate out of your skin. It's obsessive, a little similarly as when some people find religion, think new born christians who can't stop talking about how everything would be better for everyone if they accepted jesus in their hearts.

With time, this new obsessive kind of love dials down to a more mature love, it's still a grounding, lovely fiber in the tapestry of your life and emotional setup; the flames have settled to keep you warm, not consume and scorch everything in and around you. The urgent need to constantly pour your love into love letters has faded down at that point.

I think I'm at that point.

what is your favorite story you’ve written to completion? link it if you’d like and can!

It varies so much! I'll have to say three again.

Right now I thought I'll go with the crowd and mention my porn AU camera ready because it was such a huge work to write to completion, it's 89 K in 43 chapters.

But the dearest to my heart is my second ever hockey rpf story and truly a love letter to my favorite Finnish hockey boys and Finnish summer, and my first bilingual work Jussi at Jussi's / Jussi Jussilla.

As a story, however, I'll have to say Father Cristiano's Redemption for the richness of the world building, ensemble cast and plot.

what is your favorite out-of-the-box quote?

Each and every kiss feels like a lingering mark on his skin, burning like droplets of hot wax from the candles he used to carry as an altar boy in the church, his second home.

(Father Cristiano’s Redemption)

which of your characters would you say has the most controversial mindset? why do you say so and how do you personally feel about their ideals?

I don't know if there's anything controversial in being a shitty human being but if there is, maybe Sepe pursuing and banging older married family men with no qualms / those older married family men cheating on their spouses with him in the King and Prince of Carolina series is a tie in low morals. I don't endorse hurting people this way in real life.

if you, when you first started writing, met you now, what would younger you think?

"I have how many children?"

--

If you feel like doing this, consider yourself tagged, I'd love to read everybody's answers! @behoright @thosedaysthatwill @violasmirabiles @isconnormcdavidok you came to mind, and! Edit, @la-cruz-del-sur .

[wamb-revamped]

A “realistic” conversation in the polyamorous au (generated by AI) part 2

Thrilling Pink: Hey, my lovely bunch of superheroes! I've been thinking, why don't we all go on a date together? It'll be an amazing way to spend quality time and celebrate our polyamorous relationship.

Rowdy Blue: That sounds like a delightful idea, Pink. I could use a night out with all of you. Count me in!

Soft Ivory: Oh, a date? How absolutely romantic! I can't wait to be showered with affection from all my handsome partners.

Nyan Nyan Orange: A date with all of us? Sounds like a blast! I'm up for some fun and laughter, as long as there's good food involved.

Steady Cobalt: It'll be quite a logistical challenge to plan a date for all six of us, but I'm sure we can figure it out. I'm in, Pink. Let's make it happen.

Crushing Red: Oh, Pink, how sweet of you to want to take us all out on a date. Are you sure you can handle the attention divided among all five of us?

Thrilling Pink: Of course, Red! I'm up for the challenge. Besides, seeing your face light up with all the attention is totally worth it.

Crushing Red: Well, I suppose I can tolerate the excessive pampering for one night. Just don't forget to give me extra smooches to keep my ego intact.

Soft Ivory: Oh, Red, you know we can never resist showering you with affection. You're like our own personal sunshine, always craving attention.

Nyan Nyan Orange: Red, don't worry. I'll make sure to prepare your favorite meal and give you all the attention you need. Consider it a challenge!

Steady Cobalt: Let's not forget, Red, that we're all here because we care about each other deeply. Your playful desire for attention is just part of what makes you so endearing.

Crushing Red: Well, if you're all determined to spoil me, who am I to resist? I'll allow this date to happen, but only if we have a dance-off later. Just to keep things interesting.

Thrilling Pink: A dance-off? Challenge accepted, Red! Get ready to be dazzled by my moves. And remember, we're all in this together. Let's make this date one for the books!

And so, amidst playful banter and sarcastic remarks from Crushing Red, the six magical boys superheroes planned a date that would celebrate their polyamorous relationship. They embraced the challenge of balancing attention and affection, all while enjoying each other's company. It was a testament to their love and the strong bond they shared, ready to make this date an unforgettable experience.

[countessofravenclaw]

The 2022 writing Advent calendar: Day 11

11. A Santa's Elf AU

Okay, so I was so excited to write this one. I definitely went bit overboard with creating some of my own Santa Elf lore and everything

“Matteo! Come on, we are going to be late!” Matteo was pulling his hat on as he rushed out of the cottage as his roommate Gastón kept urging him. 

“You need to start waking up on time,” Gastón continued as they walked through the snow towards the cafeteria. The apprentice elf’s cottages were located at the outskirts of Santa’s village. “If we ever want to be ascended into Maisteri Elfs, we can’t always be late.”

“Well, sorry, but I got an idea for this chord progression—”

“Matteo, look I have nothing against that,” Gastón sighed, “but you work in the sports division. Transferring department is not easy.”

“I am not looking to do that,” Matteo countered, “but you can’t help the gift North Star has given you.”

“Hey! Matteo! Gastón!” They were just passing the reindeer yard when two reindeer caretakers Pedro and Nico came up to them to the fence. “How’s it going?”

“Well, trying not to be late.” Gastón gave Matteo a side-eye. “How are the boys?”

“Ready for Christmas,” Pedro says while patience one of the reindeer’s, Twinkles, head. “How are things in the workshops?”

“As you could probably imagine. Hectic.” Matteo responded. “Somehow, rollerskates are this year's hot item.”

“I sometimes wish I would have ended up as a reindeer caregiver.” Gastón scratched Twinkle’s ear. “The literature department has been slammed. Love for storied never dies.”

“Well, you are welcome to come and help any time,” Nico rolled his eyes, “Contrary to popular belief, this is not just lounging. We are in charge of the thing boss relies on so Christmas night goes smoothly. Delfi and Jazmin were just over last week, you know, from the media department. They did a feature on as apparently, some kid has wished for a video of Santa’s reindeer.”

“Anyways, it was nice to chat, but we need to go to eat.” 

Gastón and Matteo finally made their way to the cafeteria and sat down with their bowls of rice porridge. 

“You know—” Matteo was just about to say something as he was interrupted by a cling of a sleigh bell as a folded paper appeared in front of Gastón with a white glitter poof. 

Matteo watched as Gastón picked it up and read the note and then turned his absolute heart-shaped eyes towards another table on the other side of the hall. Matteo did not need to guess who he was looking at. It was this certain brown-haired and short apprentice whole worked with him at the literature department and wore glasses. 

“And I thought it was bad when she was sending you those anonymous messages and you were desperate to figure out who you were.” Matteo groaned. “Why are you and Nina still hiding?”

“I told you, she is really shy,” Gastón answered after putting the note in his pocket. “Why do you think she has the gift to make text appear from thin air?”

Matteo just nodded. All the elves had a magical gifts given to them by the North Star when they had entered the academy. Gastón had the gift of generating images from his mind while Matteo was able to create a soundtrack to any scenario he saw. 

“Plus there is no rush,” Gastón continued, “North Star can only bind you together after a year, you know that.”

“Of course, I know that,” Matteo snarked.

“When are you putting yourself out there again?”

“Who’s that next to Nina?” Matteo ignored Gastón’s question as his eyes focused on another small brunette who had wavy long hair and she looked like talking animately to Jim and Yam, two elves from the music department. 

“I don’t know,” Gastón said. “She could be new.”

“A new apprentice ten days before Christmas?” Matteo laughed, “I pity that poor elf who gets settled with her. What elder has allowed that?”

“Lot of departments are understaffed. We did hit the two million Christmases mark last year and a lot of the maisteris took that milestone year to retire.” Gastón shook his head. “I mean it is really just me and Nina at the literature department, and we are still apprentices, but we might as be maisteris already. I hope we get more people next year. But don’t change the subject, how about you ask that new girl out?”

“Really?” Matteo cringed at Gastón, “You know that thing between me and Ambar didn’t end on the best of terms.”

Ambar had been an apprentice at the sports division with Matteo and they had been all but set to get bonded before the North Star this year until… well until things had gone sideways. Ambar had transferred to the dreams and wishes division and was now from the sound of it together with a post-elf called Simon. Matteo was happy for her, really. In the end, they were better off this way. 

Gling! The big bell on the ceiling of the dining hall rang, signifying that it was time to go to work. 

***

Gastón opened the door that led to the literature division in the workshop of arts. He smiled as he saw Nina already sitting on the table, already working. He had been working in the literature for two years now, and it had been just two of them since the maisteris had retired after last Christmas.

“Hey.” He sneaked a kiss on her cheek, startling her completely. 

“Oh, it was you.” She turned toward him.

“Who else would it have been?” He chuckled and pulled her up from her chair and kissed her properly. 

“Someone could come in.”

“No one ever comes in here,” Gastón said as he let her go. “Anyway, what are we working with today?”

“Nothing that different from yesterday,” Nina said as she took the list from the table. “Couple of princess stories, one space adventure, and then three wizarding stories. Actually, I heard from Dreams and Wishes that we only have a couple of shifts left. We are ahead of schedule.”

“Well, we make a pretty good team.” He ran his finger on her braid. “How about, after we are done today, meet me behind the reindeer stables?”

“I promised I’d show my roommate around today.”

“You have a new roommate?”

“Yes,” Nina answered as she sat back down on the desk and pulled an empty book from the shelf, and used her magic so words started appearing on its pages. “She is actually really nice. Really excitable and energetic.”

“Well, how about I come with you?" Gastón suggested as he produced an image that he transferred under the paragraph Nina had just finished writing. “I mean, we should probably let her know if you think we can trust her. Matteo does.”

***

“Okay, I would have not predicted that roller skates would be this year's hit gift,” Matteo remarked to Ramiro, another apprentice elf in the sports department at the action workshop. “I thought it would have been there again.” He gestured to a hockey stick he had just finished.

“Matteo.” As Matteo had just dropped off the hockey stick to the hatch where they got transported into Dreams and Wishes, where it would be assigned to a child and wrapped, so it was ready to go for Santa on Christmas eve when the action workshop elder Juliana called for him. 

“What?”

“Matteo, a new apprentice is starting at the sports department, and we want you to show her the ropes.”

“Okay.” Matteo nodded. In reality, the last thing he wanted to deal with was a newbie. Why could not some maisteri do it? Also, the new apprentice appeared to be late.

Matteo returned to his station and picked up another hockey stick… when Bang!

…someone ran straight into him. 

“Can’t you look where you are going?” He looked at the person who had almost crushed him. It was the new girl he and Gastón had seen with Nina and she was wearing pair of roller skates.

“Oh I am so sorry,” she jumped back onto her feet at once, “but I got lost and then saw these and decided to try the out.”

“I am guessing, you are the new apprentice.” Matteo just stared at her. 

“Yes, I am: I used to work at the post…as a messenger but I kept dropping the sack all the time… so I kind of got kicked out.” The girl laughed, “So I had to go back to the academy and here I am. I am Luna by the way.”

“Matteo. The elder asked me to take care of you.”

[starlostastronaut]

DAY 14 | THE SAME HEART

PAIRING: hwang hyunjin x reader

GENRE: exes to lovers, some angst, college au, happy ending (sort of), ambiguous ending

WC: 1.12k

CW: brief hyunlix at the beginning, there's drinking bc party, reader gets called sweetheart

PROMPT: "i can't keep kissing strangers pretending that they're you"

we are slowly catching uppp! huge thank you to mars for literally saving my ass on this one because i was stuck on this oneshot for days. i used like 2% of your idea but still you kickstarted my motivation haha. i hope you enjoy <3

title from not mine - day6

general masterlist here

<< previous | mctc masterlist | next >>

You let Jisung silently pour more of whatever he was drinking - you weren’t really sure - into your cup. He had his own recipe for mixing drinks that he refused to tell anyone. You didn’t really care anyway, because it tasted good and got you into the right mood without making you feel too drunk too soon. Besides, your mind was occupied by something else, or rather, someone else. From your spot, where you were leaning on the wall next to the door to the kitchen, you had a clear view of Hwang Hyunjin chatting up a cute freckled blonde. You recalled that his name was Felix, and he was in a few of Jisung's classes. And like any other person on campus, not even he was able to resist Hyunjin's spell. You watched Felix blush and hide his face behind his hands. Hyunjin pryed them away with a familiar glint in his eyes. You smirked at how easily Felix fell for Hyunjin's magic, but a part of you felt pity for the boy. After all, you were once in a very similar place to where he is now.

When you and Hyunjin began to date, it was the event of the year. Hyunjin, desired by so many, somehow ended up falling for you. You would be lying if you said you weren’t in love from the moment you spoke to him for the first time, so to find out your feelings were returned was nothing short of ecstatic. Dating Hyunjin felt like a dream come true. He was attentive and affectionate, but he gave you your space. He was the perfect textbook boyfriend, until he wasn't. He began staying in the library until it closed. He began spending more and more time on homework, and your weekly “small dates," where you would just be together, go to a coffee shop, or watch a movie, turned into a monthly occasion. Classes and school corridors were where you met 90% of the time now. And you understood; of course you did. Hyunjin was having a rough time with his classes, and you did your best to support him, but it wasn't enough. No matter how both of you tried, it wasn't enough to sustain a healthy and functional relationship.

You agreed to remain friends, though that was not the reality. Soon after the breakup, Hyunjin distanced himself. You gave him his space, thinking he needed to get over the whole thing. You needed it too, after all. Nonetheless, months passed and nothing changed. Until Hyunjin began his series of hookups. Every party, every event, every social gathering with you present, he found someone new. Someone to take home and never talk to again.

At first, it hurt. Your feelings for Hyunjin never changed, no matter how many times you tried telling yourself it was for the best. You and Hyunjin simply didn't work out; that was how life worked. In a few attempts to forget, you brought home people too, but they could never replace him. So you just stopped trying. Soon, the anger and sadness turned into apathy. You pushed your feelings to the deepest pit of your heart, locking them there. You would get over him eventually, and until then, the feelings would stay there, hidden from everyone.

You averted your eyes from Hyunjin and Felix, who were now making out on the couch, and focused your attention back on Jisung instead, who was waving at you to tell you your drink was ready.

To your pleasure, you didn't run into Hyuniin for most of the night. When you went outside to get some fresh air, though, you soon found yourself in the company of one tall, raven-haired dancer. You looked at Hyunjin through the corner of your eye, begging your brain to not do anything stupid. You hadn't had that much to drink, but you were always kind of lightweight, so the outcome of this situation was up to fate.

“So you're into blondes now?” you asked, doing your best to keep a friendly, teasing tone in an effort to not make it awkward. And speaking to Hyunjin with the same attitude you used to have back when you were together made it easier for you. It allowed you to pretend that, just for a moment, things were normal between you two again.

Hyunjin rolled his eyes. “I've always liked blondes. And he's cute,” he shrugged. His eyes found you and scanned your whole figure. “Can't compare to you, though, sweetheart. None of them could.” Hyunjin kept his eyes on you, looking like a dumb schoolboy with a crush. It was kind of adorable, the way his eyes sparkled with something unknown only you made him feel.

And while Hyunjin didn't seem to realize what he said yet, you were completely taken aback. “You don't mean that,” you said, in a pathetic attempt to keep your feelings safely locked away. Maybe if you convinced him, you would also convince your already raging heart.

He looked at you properly, eye-to-eye. His gaze darkened and lost all its sparkles. His hair was falling out of the complicated hairstyle and into his face, making him look straight out of a drama. The darkness around you, paired with the dim lights from the party, created shadows in all the right places on his face, accentuating his beauty even more than usual.

Hyunjin shook his head. “All of them, I just wanted to forget. Because I still… Fuck.” Hyunjin ran a hand through his hair. “I'm drunk, but I need to tell you because I can't keep pretending. I can't keep bringing them home when all I can think about is you.”

You stood there, silent. You knew he meant every word, even if he was drunk. Hyunjin was an honest person, and no amount of alcohol changed that. You were on edge. Your feelings were returned, and it took all your willpower to not jump at him and kiss him. But you were here before. You tried and you failed, and you knew you couldn’t go through that a second time.

As your heart and brain were fighting over the decision, you found yourself saying: “Yeah, me too.” You sighed, looking away from Hyunjin before you could do something reckless. But life was about risks, so maybe now was the time to throw caution in the wind.

Leaning closer to Hyunjin, you asked: “Can I kiss you?” And when he nodded, you surged forward, not caring about anything else. You will see what the future brings. Good or bad, you'll deal with it all somehow. For now, you will just enjoy the feeling of Hyunjin being yours again.

taglist: @stayconnecteed @saintriots @vivioluh @ivaneedssleep @jazziwritesthings @darkypooo

©starlostastronaut 2023 | do not repost/translate my work without permission

[i-put-the-yan-in-polyandry]

Children of the Creator — Cyres and Cryas

Okay so! Here's about my sagau bois Cyres and Cryas! I don't have any images bc I've not been able to get the idea in my head hammered out yet but I'll give a basic description~

For those who didn't see my last post, "Mother" is the original creator god that made Teyvat, and that title sticks to any iteration of them.

For both brothers, they view themselves above others and only interact with mortals that have drawn their ire, or who have been deemed worthy by Mother (god!darling, their creator) or Teyvat, including nonhumans and those with longevity bc why would that make them any better? Although, they're generally amiable or even friendly (in their own ways) to the innocent and children, especially when in Teyvat because of their Mother, they're just cloud nine.

They both have a strong sense of faith and justice, always upholding their Mother's name and principles. You can expect them to smite a bitch if they catch anyone chasing you down in the imposter au, their Mother or not, you don't do that shit to innocents. At least in my au, they particularly believe in repentance and atonement over punishment (of course punishments are also important sometimes) which means they're gonna cut a bitch who goes straight to the death sentence instead of putting them to work in service of others.

Actual puppies toward their Mother, will do literally anything without question. Bois protected Teyvat from any external threats and watched over all your creations while you were gone, though not interfering unless they needed to. Forget everything else about them, they're filial sons who would destroy and create Teyvat a million times over to achieve your perfect world, should you ask.

They act as one unit, almost as if they were one person in two bodies. Seeing them work together is like watching a river run, unable to tell where one stream of water separates from another. They bounce off of each other perfectly and make up for each other's weaknesses. Together, they're unstoppable. That's how you made them, after all.

Cryas, the Aspect of Creation, is about as chaotic as you'd expect creation to be. He's the more expressive of the brothers, always up for some chaos and mischief to shake up the order of things. He's a bit like Childe, except he only ever shows it to people he deems worthy. Otherwise, he's a cold sadist who takes delight in showing heretics and sinners why Destruction is the merciful one. A wild attack dog waiting to tear his fangs into something, and a playful pup to his family.

Cyres, the Aspect of Destruction, is generally the more mature of the two and the voice of reason—but don't let that fool you, he's just as crazy. He's smart, calculating, and decisive, the strategist of the two. His demeanor doesn't visibly change much between his hated and beloved, though that's only if you can't see the way he softens into complete mush at the attention of his Mother. Although Cyres doesn't believe in death as a punishment and isn't as cruel as his brother, that doesn't mean you're better off with him as your judge; Cyres will execute a swift punishment that targets your every weakness, leaving you begging to repent. He's a snake in the grass, elegant, poised, and always ready to strike.

The two, despite being near identical twins, are visual opposites: Cryas has white hair and black eyes while Cyres has black hair and white eyes, both with distinct primogem pupils. Cryas favors lighter clothing while Cyres dresses dark, both favor gold as an accenting color. They look like young adults, have since birth, and, in case you're wondering, their blood runs pure gold.

Both have unchallenged dominion over their respective domains, able to create or destroy anything. They possess an eternity of experience in combat, strategy, and magic. These boys are ready to defend you in your new, weaker body! Just rely on them!

Please give them headpats and tell them that they're good boys, praise them for working so hard in your absence~

[discet]

Owlhouse AU brainrot: Marcy, after a few weeks in the boiling Isles, begins to think more and more about Anne and Sasha. Wanting to check up on them, Marcy learns a scrying spell/potion. When everything's ready, she casts it - and something goes wrong. There's an explosion of magic, and when the dust settles, there, standing before Marcy, are Anne and Sasha.

Context: AU where Marcy does move to Conneticut without going to Amphibia, ends up going through Eda's teleporter door in place of Luz.

Welp, guess this is my brain until I get this out again. So I am gonna tinker with this premise a bit, but don't let that stop you from writing this is its in your brain.

So to start, I don't think I would let this be the new status quo. I think a big problem with crossovers is cast bloat. Leading to too little narrative to share around.

That said, this would be an incredible premise for an episode/chapter. It's so good. I love it, here is how I think it would go.

This would probably happen midway through Season 1. Marcy, Hunter and Amity are pretty firmly established as the main trio for the story. Hunter has dropped any pretense and has embraced his friendship with Marcy. Amity is somewhere between Adventures in the Elements and Enchanting Grom Fight in terms of her developing crush on Marcy

In my original post I posed 2 different possibilities for how the Calamity Trio handled the move. This episode idea is so good that I think I would choose to have them be still be on speaking terms prior to Marcy getting teleported.

So I think that Marcy has trouble acquiring all the ingredients for the scrying potion, and tries to improvise some substitutions. Ultimately this results in a Planar Binding Potion rather than a scrying spell. One that has to be undone before lets say the next evening or else Anne and Sasha's souls are forfeit. Something serious enough that even at her most selfish Marcy wouldn't ever think of trying to keep them there.

Sasha is fucking bewildered, and while Anne is also confused and weirded out, she is really happy to see Marcy.

Knowing she's going to need help, Marcy seeks out Lilith's help. Lilith basically knows a way to break the binding from her research into curse breaking for Eda, but needs Marcy to get a key ingredient while she prepares the ritual. Knowing she can't do this alone, Marcy seeks out Amity and Hunter's help.

While the circumstances could be better, Marcy is really excited to introduce her old friends to her new friends. And boy, it goes sooo fuckin bad ya'll.

So we have this through line of them going to get this key ingredient, doesn't really matter what it is, just needs to be a macguffin really. Keep in mind that Sasha and Anne have basically had no character development in this AU.

So Sasha is just generally putting down and being dismissive of Marcy, like she's always been. And hunter, who can't recognize it coming from Belos towards him, absolutely clocks how it makes Marcy feels. I think this would also be a early moment of realization for Hunter that his relationship with Belos might be toxic, as Marcy makes excuses for Sasha's attitude and behavior. I think it just increasingly gets under Hunter's skin and he starts sniping back at Sasha until they finally come to blows at the climax of the quest.

I think Amity would be on the same page as Hunter, but she is absolutely tunnel vision on Anne. You see Anne is kind of freaked out and terrified in the Boiling Isles. That plus a mixture of missing Marcy and Anne being Anne, she is being really clingy and physically affectionate with Marcy. And Amity is just simmering in a cauldron of jealousy. She's doing her best to hide it and play nice, but she is also fucking awkward trying to subtly figure out if Anne and Marcy were dating, or are dating, or had feelings that were never acted upon, etc. This all goes right over Anne's head, and she keeps innocently giving the worst answers for Amity's anxieties

Amity: "Did you and Marcy ever talk about romance stuff or...? Anne: "Like shipping, yeah, Marcy was super into fandom stuff. "

Amity: "So you're pretty close with Marcy, huh?" Anne: "Yeah dude! Thick as thieves. You know we used to fall asleep in each other's arms during sleepovers?"

Amity: "I guess you guys experienced a lot growing up together..." Anne: "Definitely, we were each other's first kiss? Back in Kindergarten on Valentine's day."

Hunter and Sasha's fight at the end of the quest ends up jeopardizing Marcy, and Anne and Amity both jump to help her. And in the process Anne finally picks up that Amity is crushing on Marcy.

Ultimately they get the ingredient before the time limit. Sasha is full of salt after her brawl with hunter and basically tries to put an ultimatum on Marcy to stop being friends with Hunter. Marcy tries to reason with her to no avail and Marcy in a moment of growth chooses her new friends over Sasha. Sasha is pissed and basically stalks over to the binding severing and bails.

Anne promises to talk to her, and Marcy notices that Anne looks a little run down and asks if Anne is doing alright. Anne brushes it aside saying she's alright. Just tough trying to keep up with Sash. We'd probably follow up on this in a theoretical Earth arc, if the gang got trapped back in LA like Luz and crew do at the end of S2. Or a cutaway episode where Boiling Isles are bleeding over onto Earth like the episode with V when Luz gets her portal half working.

Lilith would call Marcy over briefly and Anne would take the opportunity to thank Amity and Hunter for befriending Marcy. Then slip Amity some tips on things Marcy might like as gifts, giving Amity a knowing wink before her time is up and she has to go drink the counter magic potion for the Planar Binding.

Ah, what a fun episode. Good times. Alright, back to AWIW now that has been excised from my brain

[earth-ambassador-jim]

Parent/Mentor Swap AU

The swaps:

Aaarrrgghh – Bular

Blinky – Nomura

Barbara – Strickler

 Yeah so this was meant to just be a short explanation but it’s not so please enjoy my 2500ish word backstory for this AU. (Jim will still be the Trollhunter.)

Bular

Shortly before the Battle of Killahead Bridge Bular is talking with his father about their plans for their future kingdom. In the course of the discussion Gunmar reveals that he wants to eliminate all humans and bring about a literal Eternal Night. (Gunmar has talked about the Eternal Night before but Bular assumed it was a metaphor.)

Bular doesn’t like humans per say. He definitely agrees that their numbers need to be reduced. He certainly wants them to be cast down into the dust and subjected to the rule of trollkind…

But he doesn’t want them gone.

The thought has frankly never occurred to him.

Humans are pests but they are tasty and create useful things. The world will be worse off without them.

The second point is even worse. Bular may be rash at times but he is not a fool. Trolls may not survive under the sun but they won’t survive without it either. Bular has traveled far and wide recruiting trolls for Gunmar’s cause. He’s seen what the Northern Lands become during the winter when for a time the sun ceases to rise.

Based of off that he has a fairly good idea of what the surface will become like under the Eternal Night and it is not desirable. There is no point in taking over the surface only to decimate it.

He tries to argue these points but his father will not listen. Eventually shutting the conversation down entirely with a warning snarl.

Bular is left uneasy. He wonders if it is wise for Gunmar to be the ruler anymore. He wonders if there might be more substance to the rumors of his father’s madness then he thought.

As the War comes to a head and the Battle of Killahead Bridge draws near, Bular tries to convince his father to change his mind. He receives only growls, sneers and a couple beat downs for his trouble.

Eventually he decides that other measures must be taken.

He considers starting an uprising but he doesn’t want to kill his father. Eventually he learns of Deya’s plan to banish Gunmar into the Darklands and decides to assist her. He thinks that spending some time in a world without humans or the sun might bring Gunmar to his senses.

Unfortunately Gunmar learns of this.

Bular, not wanting to fight his father, flees. Gunmar can’t leave to pursue his son, so he sends a detachment of soldiers lead by his most trusted general Aaarrrgghh after him.

Centuries later he comes to Arcadia. He is not accepted by the local troll population for a very long time. They don’t believe he’s really changed sides. It also doesn’t help that unlike Cannon!Aaarrrgghh he is not a pacifist. (He has sworn off eating humans however.) He eventually wins them over by helping the Kanjigar protect Trollmarket. He’s brought into the market for the first time because his energy drops to dangerously low levels (he’s completely catatonic when Kanjigar finds him) because he hasn’t been near a heartstone for centuries and doesn’t eat humans anymore. (I headcannon that eating humans allows for trolls to live away from a heartstone because humans produce a similar energy but in very small amounts).

 Aaarrrgghh

Aaarrrgghh’s origin story is the same as in cannon: he was given to Gunmar by Usurna to be his champion.

In this story he doesn’t switch sides at the battle of Killahead. Seeing the destruction wrought by humans on uninvolved trolls leads him to believe that Gunmar is in the right about wiping them out. When the battle of Kilahead happens, he and his detachment of soldiers become the only Gum Gums outside of the Darklands (or rather the only known Gumm-Gumms) because they were hunting for Bular at the time.

Aaarrrgghh works rather loosely with the changelings as well as doing “recruiting” of more trolls to the Gumm-Gumm cause. (More like threatening into obedience).

Aaarrrgghh comes to Arcadia when he learns of the Trollmarket and Trollhunter’s presence there.

Aaarrrgghh’s presence combined with his small battalion results in more skirmishes with Trollmarket than in cannon. Bular and Draal work with Kanjigar to protect trolls that go out to scavenge against the Gumm-Gumms. The Janus Order has their hands full keeping the constant fighting secret.

Aaarrrgghh generally stays in Barbara’s basement which has a tunnel connecting it to the sewer system. (Disguised with magic so Trollmarket trolls and maintenance workers don’t find it.)

He often leaves the window open and tries to lure cats in for him to eat. This is how he meets Toby.

Toby happens to be looking for one of their missing cats. He finds paw prints leading to the open basement window. He attempts to get in the window but is shoved back by a pole. (Aaarrrgghh has been told repeatedly to not eat the neighbors since this will draw to much scrutiny and they will have to find him a new den if he does.) This distracts him from the cat as he is now more interested in learning about the strange something living in the basement of what he thought was an unoccupied house. He starts asking Aaarrrgghh (who he can’t see) questions about himself and Aaarrrgghh (who isn’t quite sure what to do in this situation) awkwardly responds.

Eventually Toby falls into the habit of visiting Aaarrrgghh’s basement window in the evening and jabbering to him about his day. He brings him little treats and will occasionally ask him questions.

Aaarrrgghh ends up growing fond of him and decides that while he doesn’t like humans in general this one is okay and he starts making plans to keep Toby alive after Gunmar returns.

  Blinky (Bartholomew Georgiou)

Blinky is given as a whelp to the Gum-Gumms by his brother Dictacious (who was working as a spy for Gunmar at the time) and made into a changeling. He’s slightly older than Barbara.

Blinky works at the Arcadia museum. He is in the habit of swapping out old, rare books with exact replicas so he can horde the originals in his secret library.

He has an incredible collection of books from many ages and places. He guards them zealously. Entering his library without permission is suicide and generally ends in the offender being blown to pieces by one of Blinky’s booby traps.

He has very few books of Trollish origin and would do just about anything for more.

 Nomura

Nomura was stolen by the Gumm-Gumm’s when she was a child but her parents survived the initial raid and several decades later they are able to rescue her. Her time with the Gumm-Gumm’s have left its mark, however, and she no longer fit the other trolls in her clan. Her family eventually moves to Dwoza Trollmarket.

She doesn’t really fit in with the younglings her age there either but she makes friends with the archivist. He eventually takes her on as his apprentice and when he passes she takes over as the Trollmarket librarian. She takes her job very seriously and does not tolerate loss or abuse of books.

She becomes friends with Draal (due to having similar temperaments) and later she becomes the first troll to truly accept Bular in the Arcadia Trollmarket.

 Barbara

Barbara is a 700(ish) year old changeling (equivalent of 40-50 human years) and the head of the Janus Order. She’s still a doctor and has the most knowledge of how troll and human bodies work of any one person on the planet. This is partially due to how long she’s been alive but also to the large number of often highly unethical experiments she’s carried out on both species.

Barbara meets James Sturges when she’s working on retrieving a piece of the Killahead Bridge in Maine (officially she’s just a nurse at the hospital named Janet). They hit it off and start dating. Barbara finds his expectations for how she’s supposed to act a little annoying but it suits the role she’s currently playing so she goes along with them.

Then James makes the mistake of breaking one of Barbara’s rules and goes through some of her off-limits stuff, so she kills him and disposes of the body.

She assumes that’s the end of that but about 4 months later when she tries to shift into troll form she can’t. Aside from a curse, there is one thing that will prevent a changeling from shifting back into a troll. A trip to the local pharmacy confirms it: she’s pregnant.

This is certainly a dilemma.

Until she’s done with the pregnancy (one way or another) she’s trapped in her human form.

In the past she would have had an abortion without a second thought, but with Gunmar’s release and the destruction of the human race drawing closer and closer this will probably be her last real opportunity to experience pregnancy. So out of pure scientific curiosity she decides to go through with it.

Quite a few arrangements have to be made but soon she’s on her way to her hidden cabin out in a remote area of Alaska.

The pregnancy and birth go well and soon she is the mother to a little boy. She names him James after his father, figuring that will keep her from getting attached. She plans to keep him for two or three years to observe his growth and see if any changeling traits manifest after which point she’ll drop him off at an orphanage or something. As far as the Janus Order can tell human-changeling unions produce completely human children, but one can never beat first hand observation and experience.

She initially chalks up the warm and mushy feelings she’s getting to hormones. It isn’t until Jim is about two and a half that she’s tucking him into bed one night and Jim gives her a sleepy smile and leans into her hand that she realizes that she really truly loves him.

This was not in the plan.

After Jim is asleep, Barbara calmly goes outside and devotes an hour to cursing. (One of the perks of living centuries is that she’s had ample opportunity to amass an extensive collection of swear words.) After that she feels a lot calmer and more ready to look at the situation in a rational manner.

The fact of the matter is that she genuinely cares about Jim. She’s developed feelings for people in the past but it’s always been something she’s been able to pass off as part of her cover. (She still misses her pirate crew sometimes). Jim however is not. Barbara has a lot of enemies. If Jim’s relationship to Barbara is discovered he will never know peace and if Barbara keeps Jim around it will be discovered.

So it’s with a strangely heavy heart that Barbara realizes that this changes nothing: the best thing for Jim is for her to give him up.

On his third birthday she gives him some tea that will make sure he stays soundly asleep. Barbara can’t go through the legal process of giving up a child because: A. Jim does not exist in any legal manner and B. As changelings are everywhere and Barbara is well known (infamous really) there is a very real possibility that someone would find out. So she leaves him on the doorstep of a foster family she has carefully vetted out as responsible and trustworthy and keeps watch from some hidden cameras until she knows he has been found and is going to be taken care of. With him are a note with his date of birth and first name and a necklace with a pendant carved from Barbara’s own stone (Barbara isn’t very good at magic but she was able to enchant it with a simple protection and luck spell.).

Once she’s satisfied that Jim will be cared for she goes on her way and forces herself to not look back.

Nine years later she moves to Arcadia and three years after that she is very shocked to find a found add describing the Amulet of Daylight of all things. She calls the number but is told that the amulet was already claimed. Further investigation reveals that the amulet has chosen its first human bearer (or so everyone thinks). Barbara feels a bit of a twinge in her heart when she learns that the new Trollhunter is about the same age her son would be and that his name is Jim but doesn’t think too much of it. There are a lot of Jims in the world after all and she left hers in Alaska.

She immediately arranges a very minor “accident” as an excuse to make contact with his father in order to keep an eye on him.

 Walter

Walter Strickler is a history teacher at University of Alaska Anchorage. He enjoys his life and his job but there’s one thing lacking: he’s always wanted a child.

He’s had a few relationships over the years but none have ever stuck. He’s also of the opinion that he shouldn’t go into a relationship specifically with the end goal of having a kid.

He weighs his options and decides that he’s financially very stable at the moment. His work hours are consistent and he can afford to cut back a little; especially since his stock investments have been doing well in the recent years. All things considered: he decides he’s in a place that he can be a single parent.

He begins looking into adoption.

Eventually he finds Jim. As Jim has no parents or relations on record, the adoption is relatively simple.

Jim is very shy at first (having spent his life so far out in the woods with only his Mom for company). Eventually he warms up to Walter and then becomes very clingy. Living with only one other person for his early years and then being left behind has left Jim with some attachment issues.

Walter ends up taking him to his classes where he sits in the back and doodles while Walter lectures. He’s a rather quiet kid (most of the time) so this works out well. Walter’s students adopt him as the class mascot.

When Jim is five, right before he’s ready to start Kindergarten, Walter’s mom falls ill. Walter is an only child, so after some debate he ends up moving back to his hometown of Arcadia, California to care for her.

He meets Nancy Domzalski through the chest club and through her Jim meets Toby. The two boys become fast friends.

When Walter’s mother passes away four years later, he decides to stay in Arcadia. Jim is well settled and Walter enjoys his job teaching history at Arcadia High School.

Things are going well.

Then his son finds a strange blue amulet in the canal. It looks fairly expensive so Walter puts a found add up and assumes the owner will give him a call. Then settles down to work on grading papers.

He is definitely not prepared when his son, sitting across the table from him, reads an incantation off the amulet and starts floating.

He is even less prepared when a large stony monster the size of a large grizzly barges into their house.

Bular attempts to explain the situation to the father-son duo but they both faint from terror.

Not quite sure what else to do he wraps them up in a tarp and takes them to Trollmarket. He figures Vendal can sort it out.

[cheelduh]

How to tie up a cute boy

(Highschool Au)

Pairing: Childe x fem!reader

Parts: 1  2  3

Word count: 4K

Warnings: Swearing, Scaramouche abuse, no Signora slander this time, shit humour.

Synopsis: "Why are you doing homework?" Childe groans, rolling off to the side and kicking off the blanket to expose himself in nothing but a pair of boxers. "I'm literally right here, naked and defenseless. Why aren't you taking advantage of me?"

Note: Unedited yet again besties. Tysm for reading :) I got Childe after losing him to mf MONA, istg it was the most stressful moment of my life.

The clock ticks with its pendulum, ridiculing you as it holds the time. The gentle whirring of the air conditioning in the background serves as the icing on the cake to your pent up aggression.

You try not to glare at your phone too much after receiving a text from Childe that told you not to worry, that his dad picked him up and that he was in the comfort of his home, letting the flu blow over.

It took a lot of convincing from his part earlier that morning to get you to go back and actually attend the rest of your classes, making sure to check up on him every break plus the additional "bathroom breaks" you usually never take while in class.

"I can't let you get in trouble for me." He murmured with a small smile that pumped your blood a little faster than usual. "I'm fine, really. Don't worry your pretty little head."

You do exactly that.

You don't even know why you're so worried. He's sick, not dying. Not to mention, you aren't even his girlfriend let alone his friend to care so much. 

Your intrusive thoughts don't waste any time. You latch onto the one thought that takes over. He's probably dead. Lying in his bed in a heap of pillows, passing peacefully while his parents are in the other room. He's dead.

Okay, he's not dead. You intrusive thoughts sure do one hell of a job. He'll be fine, and in no time he'll go back to being a reckless distraction in your life that you need to surpass. Just another obstacle to add onto the list of things life has thrown at you.

But for an obstacle, he sure is kind of cute.

You refrain from bashing your head on the desk. School isn't really a preferred environment on your list of top ten places to shrivel up and die.

Speaking of death and all that is evil, why is Childe always on your mind? He takes up every nook and cranny of your day, constantly, and truth be told it's starting to boil your piss.

Every time you close your eyes you see his smug smile, and hear his stupid laugh. He's an annoying little prick who gets a rise out of exasperating you. Yet here you are, terrified by the warmth that blossoms in your heart when you so much as hear his name.

The final bell rings at long last, conveniently before you bite your tongue to avoid screaming, and not another second is wasted once you launch yourself out the door. You dodge through the crowd of students in the hall that are buzzing in excitement from it being a Friday afternoon, and you would be too if you weren't so damn hung up over a ginger with a battlekink.

Locker in view, you make a beeline and spend the next two minutes fumbling with the lock in your hands.

"Woah there cutie," Lisa speaks up playfully. "At this rate you'll break the poor lock with your bare hands."

For a moment you're surprised at her sudden appearance, but then remember that it's normal for her to worm her way anywhere.

"It's just—this lock is being dumb okay? It has no reason being a pain in my ass but it wakes up every day and chooses violence." You hiss through your teeth, a sharp metallic ring invading your ears when you lose it and jostle the combination lock against the door of your locker.

Lisa winces, but smiles teasingly nonetheless. "Want me to give it a try?"

"Please."

Lisa has the door open at record speed.

"I love you Lisa." You confess wholeheartedly, gripping at your chest. "I love you so much—"

"Yeah yeah," She waves you off with a grin. "Now hurry up and go save your boyfriend from the common flu. Archons knows he won't make the night."

You flush at the word "boyfriend" and don't give much thought to the insinuation that lies within the rest of her sentence.

Sliding your skateboard under an arm, you spin on your heel just to bump straight into Scaramouche, who's won the scowl of the century on his face. He's the last person you want to see right now, but apparently the universe wants to have a pissing match with you.

"Give this homework to that idiot Ginger." He shoves a stack of papers into you. "Tell him that once he's done circling the drain, I'm gonna kick his ass." He then leans in, murderous glint in his eyes. "And if you ever touch me again I'll take a shit in your cereal. That's not a threat, it's a promise."

You shiver at the thought of him squatting on your Cheerios, hands becoming clammy as you try and justify yourself. "It was an accident."

Your pitiful excuse earns you nothing from the navy haired boy. "It'll be an accident when I murder your entire family, three generations over."

"Hi Mona!" You wave excitedly over his shoulder at the body of students that are totally not Mona. With elation he fails to conceal, Scaramouche turns to look at the speed of light.

You take the chance to make your escape—not before waving to Lisa, chuckling to yourself. He's down bad.

With great expertise you file your way through the flock of students chattering near the entrance. , you confidently place your skateboard down on the sidewalk, ready to—

Wait—where does he live again?

You sigh heavily, ignoring the sadness as you thank the universe internally for pulling the reigns on your disastrous plan. Checking up on Childe at his house? With his family present? Making a complete fool out of yourself? What are you thinking? The possibilities are horrendous. He probably doesn't even think of you like that, he just likes a challenge and you pose as one.

You turn away to make a run for it in the direction of your home, all the while ignoring the nagging worry in your chest for Childe. He's probably fine anyways, you don't need to check up on him, and if you did he'd likely find a way to spin it and tease you relentlessly.

Although somehow, the thought of being teased by him isn't as dreadful as you'd like it to be.

Suddenly, an idea graces you, one that guarantees your misery by sating your obligation to check up on Childe. A litany of curses escape your mouth. Genius really, the amount of ways you can think of doing something that'll end in your demise.

"Adeptus Xiao." You whisper apprehensively, already regretting your decision. "Adeptus Xiao." Glancing around your surroundings, you barely notice the shadow that looms over you at your backside.

"What do you want mortal?" Unbeknownst to you, he strikes out of nowhere, making you jump back several meters. You manage to muffle a surprised shriek.

Xiao is Venti's -6 ft boyfriend, the vicious epitome of an eboy. He has a scaled tattoo covering up the majority of an arm, a few piercing holes in his ears, all matched up with a disinterested look. Somehow, he always appears out of nowhere if you call out his name. It's sort of disturbing in a way.

His amber eyes pierce through you, forcing a shudder of fear and dread to lace your blood, almost as if he can sense you shittalking him in your head.

With shaky hands, you ask, "Can you tell me where—"

"No."

"You didn't even hear me ou—"

"No."

"Please?"

He refuses to at least pretend to think about it for a moment.

"No."

"Why?" You frown, stomping your foot on the ground childishly.

"Because." He retorts with a lack of interest, but doesn't further explain his point. English teachers must love this kid.

"Okay," You say slowly, casually inspecting his form as you come up with an idea, briefly remembering Lumine mentioning it to you. "How about I give you my share on almond tofu Tuesday."

The lack of interest on his face wavers slightly. Bingo.

"What do you want mortal?" Xiao mutters gruffly, arms crossed, face morphing into subtle annoyance.

You wrack your brain for a proper answer. You can't just outright ask him or it'll seem like you have a thing for Childe, which you unfortunately do, but you'd like to keep a semblance of integrity. Ah yes, the homework!

"I gotta deliver these to Childe." You outstretch the pile of worksheets in your hands. "Except I don't know where he lives. Can you tell me?"

Xiao's eyes glint with danger. "Did you summon me for the trivial task of giving you an address?"

You nod furiously.

"Do humans have no shame?" Its rhetorical. Expressionlessly, he closes his eyes with intent focus, doing what you assume to be locating Childe's exact location.

He blinks an eye open, reaches a hand out. "Give me your phone." Palm waiting.

You hand it over to him almost desperately.

One glance at your bubbly phone case and he doesn't even try to hide his distaste. He taps a few times, then hands it back to you almost immediately.

On the screen is maps, and Childe's home is about a fifteen minute walk away.

Your jaw drops in disbelief. "How did you do that?"

"Easy," He mutters, leaning back against the school gate as the remainder of students walk past the two of you. "Locating demons that need subjugating is but a simple task."

There's a pregnant pause. Demon.

"Childe's a demon?" You gasp, even though you've always had your suspicions. Hence the reason you invest so much in demon-cancelling charms.

"What? No." He mutters with a roll of his eyes, and you note that his irritation grows the more questions you ask. "I had a physics project with him last semester."

That's why the charms don't work.

Your mouth forms an o, in fear that if you keep this conversation going on any longer, he'll snap at you. Especially when your next line of interrogation involves how he's able to appear and disappear into thin air.

It's a magic trick you'll want to master whenever Il Dottore has another conniption fit in the middle of the hallways after Kaeya tells him he looks like he has skid marks.

"Thank you." You say instead, trying to preserve his regard, but by the time you meet his gaze he's already gone with the wind.

—

Childe's home is surprisingly humble, considering the amount of fat stacks of cash he carries around in his fanny pack so care-freely. It's a normal suburban home from what you can tell, a little bigger than normal with a double garage, neatly mowed lawn and a few forgotten decorations from the windblume festival. A series of water guns lay forgotten near the entrance, making their presence known when you stumbled upon them.

It's hard to remain unphased. Especially since such a normal looking home has bred someone as ruthless as Childe.

Maybe it not the home, you think. Maybe it's the way he was raised. You recall a few glimpses of his mother in middle school, but because of your worse for wear memory retention, you can't ballpark her personality type.

As your thoughts wander further down to his parents and early childhood, villain origin story and what not, you're pulled out of your concentration when the door opens. The possible implications of being here are most definitely not in your favor.

Childe's mother is a stunning woman in her mid-forties who sure as hell doesn't show it in that jaw-dropping sapphire dress, topped off with a brilliant smile that makes your knees weak. Like mother like son, you suppose.

With her sudden appearance, strangely enough, you can remember how good her tiramisu bites are.

You take a moment to respond, swallowing thickly, only to stare at her stupidly.

His mother doesn't waste another second before ushering you in, oblivious to your star-struck expression. "Y/N? L/N Y/N? My have you grown. I remember when you were only this tall." She lifts her hand up a little above her waist, the jewels on her fingers dazzling with every movement. "How is your mother doing?"

"She's doing alright, busy with the clinic." You're able to find your words, smiling back at her, able to get somewhat familiar with her warmth. "I hope I'm not intruding. Childe forgot some homework." You say, heaving the short stack up.

"Ajax?" She laughs, shaking her head in disbelief. "I can't believe he's going by that now. I wonder when this phase will be over. He may act tough but he's such a softie, has the biggest heart."

You, in between concealed emotions and giggles that threaten to leak, try to hide the oncoming grin but it's impossible. "Well he's got you to thank for it."

"You flatter me too much Y/N," She fixes the up do, pinning back the blonde hair that deftly frame her familiar cerulean eyes. "I can see why he can't stop talking about you."

Her words make you waver momentarily. The fondness you've refused to share, the drawn out stares in the halls, the lingering touches, you don't want to acknowledge it but it's there. Whatever it is.

"I'm so sorry for cutting this short dear," His mother sighs, grabbing her keys off the counter and placing her wallet in an elegant handbag. "My niece is getting married and we're already late. I told Ajax I'd stay if he didn't feel too well but he said he could handle a headache. That boy, I swear, always tries to power through."

You nod in understanding, but wait a minute. A headache?

Scrunching up your face, eyebrows furrowed, you ask. "Headache?"

She frowns, applying another layer of her rouge lipstick hastily in a nearby mirror. "I know dear, how unfortunate. The school nurse said it's a migraine, and I shouldn't fret much, but a mother can't help but worry. If only he weren't so stubborn, like his father."

As if on cue, a loud honk comes from outside.

"That must be him!" She exclaims, hurriedly sliding in her heels, turning back to look at your awkward figure. "Ajax is in his room, it's the second door to the right upstairs. I've made some lasagna for the kids, you ought to have some as well, I'll be upset if you don't—" Another annoying honk cuts her off, to which she scoffs, shaking a fist. "That old man, I'll strangle him in his sleep. I must be going now, goodbye dear." She reveals a twinkling smile at you one last time, waving a slim hand before picking up her heels and making a run for it.

The door closes with an unceremonious thud, gust of wind in its trail, leaving a bewildered high schooler in its wake.

Snapping out of your haze, overwhelming tides threaten to drown you whole. Being in Childe's home, alone, with him a handful of stair steps and a wall or two away, your cheeks are set ablaze.

Now that his mother's gone, you take a second to really look. There are a few toys littered in front of the TV, home covered in with soft throws and coordinated cushions, a lazy sectional plopped right in the middle. The marks on the furniture with all the stories, the light hued mismatched frames hanging on the walls and on all the table, so many pictures of those that resemble him, his brothers, his sisters, his family. You can almost hear the echoing laughter in the halls, the childish squeals and pitter patter of tiny feet slapping the hardwood floor.

This is where he grew up. This is where he retires to after a long day full of gratifying fistfights. This is where he was raised to be who he is today, ambitious and reckless, with the absurd dream to one day rule the world. This is his home.

It's...like being wrapped in blanket, safe and cozy, surrounded by all the love in the world.

Absentmindedly, your fingers trace the outlines of a younger Childe, two missing teeth and eyes full of dreams, hugging the side of his father's shoulder because his small arms can't wrap around them. Not just yet.

You make your way over to the staircase, which has even more frames littered across the wall, one that falls short of hiding the marks of a green crayon—another slice of domesticity you aren't quite accustomed to.

The reality sets in, and you come to a conclusion. This home is definitely not an environment for growing psychopaths, Childe just beats the odds like he beats up kids on the daily.

Your fist hovers over his door as you contemplate abandoning the sheets on a nearby table, but his mother was so sweet and polite, so incredibly hospitable, you wouldn't have the heart to make a run for it.

"I can see why he can't stop talking about you."

Three consecutive knocks. If he doesn't answer, you'll leave them at the door.

"Mama," Childe's muffled groans stem from the other side, and oh, you want to revel in the grave undertone of his voice because it's certainly not a common occurrence. "I told you I'm fine. You can go okay? I don't want you to be late, just need to sleep it off."

You blink, lips curling, and then knock again.

"Mama," He whines again, and it has you grinning mischievously. He's a mommy's boy, he has to be. The thought envelopes your heart with a newfound fondness. "Just come in and hurry."

You eagerly take in the room once you slip in, eyes scanning over every little detail, until they zero in on the heap of sheets smack dab on the single bed, a pair of feet dangling off the edge, topped with a comforter thrown over leisurely.

Childe's facing away from you, head dipped in between his shoulders, probably trying to find a position that's more comfortable. He's shivering, sweating at the same time. His mother must've been too preoccupied to notice. This isn't the first time he's used his exceptional bullshitting finesse.

"I can't believe you lied to your mother," You cross your arms, leaning back against the door.

With a jerk, Childe flings into a sitting up position, wide awake and aware of everything that is going on, a stark contrast from nearly seconds ago.

He blinks at you in shock, once, twice, rubs his eyes a bit, relaxes, then leans back, out of it completely. "For a sleep paralysis monster, you sure are kind of cute."

"For and idiot you sure are an idiot." You snort back.

"Wait a minute," He mutters slowly, jaw dropping. "You're actually here?!"

Ignoring his question, you opt to slap the papers on his desk to ignore your clammy palms. "Homework."

"And here I thought you came here all this way to be my personal nurse." He smirks, recovering from his momentary shock fairly swiftly. Doesn't refrain from giving you that shit stain of a bad boy grin, even with a flushed face and concavity under his eyes.

"I can be your personal mortician instead."

"I didn't know you were into role play babe, but I'll take what I can get." He winks, but is punished by a sequence of coughs that earn a wince from you.

"Headache?" You tease after he quiets down, but he remains as cavalier as always.

He sighs, sides of his lips still arched upwards. "My parents barely have any time to themselves, it's so hectic with the kids. What kind of son would I be if I couldn't even give them this?"

He must've threatened Barbara.

"You're," You inhale, briefly letting the silence hang between you two, mulling over what you wish to convey. sweet.

"Irresistible? Hot? Sexy?" He starts casual, arrogant smirk widening.

"Kind of not a complete asshole, is what I was going to say."

"Careful girlie," He narrows his eyes on you, playful lilt in his tone. The comforter is allowed to slip past his shoulders to reveal the goods that lie underneath, the complete naked chest of a post-puberty highschool boy who sprays too much axe. Full pectorals are something to pay for, stringed with smooth muscles that ripple their way over his toned shoulders. "If you keep teasing me like this, I can't promise I'll be the nice guy."

"One more time from the top," You bite back, avoiding staring at him for too long. "Without the congested nose this time."

With great expertise, he weakly throws a pillow at you, and you watch it exceptionally land at your feet, barely grazing the tips of your socks.

"Impressive," You whistle, not impressed.

He pouts, shivers, then is dunking his head back into the welcoming embrace of his plush collection of pillows.

With a sigh, you plop down on his chair, grab a pen and begin calculating derivatives.

"What're you doing?" He doesn't even turn your way, voice muffled.

"Homework," You reply nonchalantly, trying to calm your nerves. "unless you want me to get you something to eat, considering you puked out your gogurt on Barbara's shoes earlier. Congrats by the way, you're hit listed by her fan club."

"Why are you doing homework?" He groans, rolling off to the side and kicking off the blanket to expose himself in nothing but a pair of boxers. "I'm literally right here, naked and defenseless. Why aren't you taking advantage of me?"

He really has an IQ below room temperature.

Burying the formidable obligation to clock him in the face on behalf of society, you slowly get up to approach his bed, to which he grins widely in disbelief.

Apprehensively, you climb onto his bed, and he scoots over, excitement as clear as day. His hair's a wild mess from all the shifting, almost makes you want to card a hand through it. Your heart nestles it's way in your throat at the sight of his blazing blue eyes.

You pity him for what you're about to do.

"Relax Childe," You lean over him with confidence you never knew you had to begin with, face hovering inches before his. Your fists strategically grip the comforter on either side of him. "We have all day after all."

Although you attempt to pay no heed to his quivering hand that snakes up to find solace on your hip, you momentarily shiver at the tenderness.

He's eating this up and leaving no crumbs. Closing his eyes in anticipation, his lips tremble when he tries to close in the distance.

Abruptly, you cross both handfuls of sheets over his body, tying them securely in place to keep him docile. He struggles in your grip, eyes snapping open in surprise. "Wuh-What."

"Did you really think you had a chance?" You cross your arms, stepping back to get a good look at your handiwork.

"Honestly?" Childe huffs, struggles some in his restraints. "I wasn't really thinking."

"Typical," You scrunch your nose up, unscrunch, and then exhale. "You stay here and I'll go make you some soup. Well, not that you can really move but you get the idea."

"You're really going to leave me here like this?" He pouts cutely, melting you, and the sick bastard knows of his power.

"Relax," You wave a hand, "I may be evil but I'm not Scaramouche."

Meanwhile, Scaramouche sneezes as he tries to ask Mona out, falling straight on his ass from the kick back, making a complete fool out of himself. Mona doesn't mind though, finds it endearing.

Back at Childe's room, he raises a brow, expectant.

Going through the five stages of grief, you do something you've been wanting to do for a while, succumbing to the immense feeling.

Closing in the distance between you two, you suck in a breath and gently tilt Childe's head to the side. He blinks quickly, not quite expecting your sudden forwardness, about to say something that doesn't matter as soon as you place a tender peck on the side of his cheek.

Time stops, the world coming to a halt completely. A moment made in history, one you won't ever forget, fresh in both your minds from forward on.

And then you stagger away as if you've been stabbed.

"Soup!" You squeak, appalled by the sheer boldness of your actions. "I'll go make soup while you rest."

Childe, frozen, stares at you incredibly confused, and then beams.

Dear Archons, what have you done.

[renaerys]

PPG One-Shot: Spelling Bee (Brick/Blossom)

Happy birthday to @genovah​! She is always inspiring me to come up with more PPG content, a true hero. I’m back with another entry in the ongoing Shooketh, Not Stirred high school AU Reds series for your entertainment. As always, this can be read alone, but it happens in the same universe as part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, and part 5. This is also posted on my AO3.

Summary: Brick and Blossom hunker down in the library to study for the upcoming regional spelling bee.

***Reblogs are extremely appreciated, since this probably won’t show up in the tags due to cursing. Thank you! <3

xxx

In fairness, Brick had come to the library during his free period with the pure intention to learn. And he was certainly learning something. But somewhere between sliding into his seat opposite Blossom and watching her lips move around insouciant as if it were a strawberry slathered in ganache, his purity was torn from his weak, teenage boy fingers and there was absolutely no going back. 

��Brick, are you listening to me?” She touched his hand across the table. 

“Yup.”

“Did you need me to repeat the word?”

“Yup.”

“In-SOO-see-uhnt.” She sounded it out slowly, and hand to god, that dominating SOO went straight to his cock.

This, of course, was fine. 

“Origin?” he asked. 

She twirled her hair around her finger and puckered her lips. “French.”

Fuck.

“I…”

Blossom mistook his increasingly horny stupor for plain old stupor and sighed. “Are you even trying? Because if I didn’t know better, I’d say you were completely fine with Darla Dimpleton going to regionals instead of one of us.”

“I am not fine with that.”

Darla Dimpleton was an unassuming, unthreatening nobody with the personality of plain oatmeal. Brick would never have even bothered to learn her name had she not committed the cardinal sin of scoring so much extra credit while everyone else was busy having lives that she stole the number one GPA right from under him. Which meant she stole it from under Blossom too. Which meant Brick was no longer a respectable silver medal to Blossom’s gold, but currently ranked third and therefor merely happy to be on the podium at all (and for the record, no one has ever been happy merely to be on the podium, just like no one has ever been happy winning Most Improved: you sucked, and now you suck a little less. Except this time, you actually suck more because Darla fucking Dimpleton decided to Quaker Oats her way to the top of this rat race that doesn’t actually matter, but it’s the principle of the thing, i.e., the only thing that matters.). 

All of this to say, Darla Dimpleton was the Worst™ and she was one hundred percent going down. 

“Are you sure? Because you’re being awfully cavalier about this. Some might even call you insouciant.”

It was a testament to Brick’s powerful fondness for winning and being seen doing it that he spelled insouciant in one Darla Dimpleton-shaped cock blocking breath.

Blossom smiled like she knew something. “Much better.”  

Yeah, she knows a lot of things.

The problem with dating, Brick was convinced, was that suddenly the mundane became extraordinary. Everyday experiences that he had previously taken for granted—flying around Townsville, enjoying a cup of coffee, thwarting his sometimes murderous demonic overlord from distributing incriminating polaroids, that sort of thing—were suddenly exciting, thrilling even. Because now he got to do those things with Blossom, and Blossom was cool in a smarmy, elitist sort of way that both softened his heart and hardened his dick all at the same time, and that was kind of A Lot to deal with at 9 a.m. on a Tuesday.

“All right, do me,” Blossom said, and Brick coughed so badly his aforementioned weak, teenage boy fingers shook to stifle himself. 

Mercy, he thought, probably. But all his blood was rushing south and it was going to take a supernatural willpower to get through these words so that one of them could beat the upstart porridge peasant to this year’s regional spelling bee. 

“You’re the boss,” he said, because it was true, and also because he liked the way she looked at him when he said it. Like he was now the ganache-coated strawberry in this overextended metaphor that he was too laden with Homeric concupiscence being in her general proximity to unpack. 

Concupiscence, there’s a ten dollar word for you, you horny genius. 

He made a mental note to brag to Blossom about this later. 

“Okay, let’s see…” Brick made a show of organizing the flashcards so that she wouldn’t see him discreetly re-situate his pants under the table. “Your word is cymotrichous.”

Blossom tapped her lips, and Brick found himself sympathizing with the Puritans in their absolute befuddlement over the libidinous effect of women having lips. Witchcraft, surely. “Could you use it in a sentence for me?”

Compelled entirely by black magic and therefor not responsible for his imminently questionable choices, Brick obliged her with: “Thinking about how I’d rather run my fingers through your cymotrichous hair for the rest of free period instead of sit here spelling words no one’s ever heard of.”

Blossom, who he was dead certain was extremely thirsty for him and had been for years long before they ever reconciled their rivalry, leaned over the desk separating them. Her hair, long and loose and indeed quite wavy today, was tempting. “Brick, are you flirting with me?”

It was a well-known fact of being a Weak-Fingered, Teenage Boy that one must never reveal such weakness, especially not in front of one’s girlfriend. On the other hand, co-opting said weakness and rebranding it as the suave truth was galaxy brain levels of flirting. And Brick, as has already been established, was a horny genius. “Yup.” He leaned in to meet her, and he twirled her hair between his fingers because they were weak for her, indeed. “How am I doing?”

Blossom, too determined to let her thirst deter her from her goal of sweet, academic retribution and bragging rights, tapped a finger to his lips. “Great. But we have so many words to spell, and only thirty minutes left to do them all. So get shuffling, stud.”

Well, he could work with that. One thing that made his relationship with Blossom work very well was their insatiable competitiveness. Whether they were whaling on each other over an empty parking lot, debating the efficacy of post-its as a note-taking device, or combining their powers to Captain Planet a cornmeal know-it-all back down the leaderboard where she belonged, they were relentless glory chasers. And the greater the challenge, the more they enjoyed the experience and each other. 

Blossom spelled her word perfectly, by the way. She stretched out the o-u-s at the end in a bewitching little whisper as she pulled away and her hair slipped through his fingers. That moment when the light changes and the temperature shifts and you’re weightless in a state of existential anticipation of something monumental about to happen, but not quite? That happened. Thirty minutes to explore the shape of that anticipation was enough time to taste it but not enough to savor it. Which, Brick supposed, was about to make this the best thirty minutes he was likely going to get all week. 

“Are you ready?” Blossom watched him from behind the card she’d drawn. She had a glint in her eyes that told him she was smiling behind that card. 

“Anytime.”

“Your word is eudaemonic.”

That fucking gorgeous ooh again.

“Define it.”

Blossom flushed as though he had just ordered her to bend over. She bit her lip (it must have been a ten Hail Mary’s kind of day when the Witch-Finder General caught a flesh and blood woman doing that with her improbably sorcerous lips) and grinned. “It means producing happiness. Based on the idea of happiness as the proper end of conduct.”

Producing happiness, which is proper, much like how Blossom came off as proper and even prim around adults, when really she was the most fun, most confident, most person he’d ever met, especially when she was spelling in that chiffon top (son of a bitch, that was a great top on her), and the only conduct he was interested in was of the happiest kind.

“Oh.” His throat clenched, and then his stomach twisted, and then his pants grew little too tight again in a full-body chain reaction that began and ended with a fierce determination not to give in first even though it would mean release because release would be meaningless without this etymological tête-à-tête. 

Don’t think about tête-à-têtes. 

Seventeenth century, noun, borrowed from the French meaning literally “head to head” (please, please stop hurting yourself like this).

“Brick?”

Brick cleared his throat. “Yup. Got it. E-u-d…”

Crisis averted, Brick picked the next card and promptly choked on his own tongue. Blossom made a show like she was concerned and are you all right? and please drink some water. Brick drank her water, which of course she had had her anatomically heretical lips on earlier, which was just fantastic for him. Tuesday fucking morning. 

Milieu was her word. 

“Milieu, hmm.” Blossom’s smile was spellbinding, which was a pun because he punned when he panicked. “Origin?”

You bitch, he thought, and be cool, and also, witchcraft.

Brick leaned back in his chair, slipped his trembling hands in his pockets, and squeezed every ounce of anything you can do I can do better into a winsome grin. “French.”

Blossom’s adult-facing façade cracked like an egg, and he got a glimpse of the raw delight she felt for this game, for the words, and for him for making it happen. For cultivating the electric milieu, if you will, currently driving them both into a state of impassioned, competitive euphoria at 9:42 a.m. in the library. 

“Right, um…” She stumbled over her words, and Brick had to restrain himself from crowing for joy and risk the rheumy-eyed librarian coming to scold them. 

By the time they got through another set of words, they were each visibly frustrated and doubly turned on by the other’s masochistic resolve not to throw in the towel. 

“Okay, ready for another round?” 

She wasn’t even trying to hide her intentions now, and that was just fine with Brick. “Of course.”

One more.

If it was another French word, he was fucking done. 

“Really?” Blossom truly had ice in her veins for the way she was able to school her face then. He couldn’t read her, and that was very bad. 

If it’s another fucking French word…

He could be over the desk and on her faster than you could say concupiscence. 

“Okay.” Blossom set down the flashcard she’d drawn and folded her hands on the table. She looked him dead in the eye licked her lips. “Succedaneum.”

The bookshelf shook but Brick’s fingers didn’t as they pinned Blossom’s over a Dewey Decimal-stamped spine and he kissed her with all the horny passion of a teenage genius who would make a note to thank the devil for giving women lips. One of his better ideas. 

xxx

“Hey, has anyone seen Blossom? I’ve sent her, like, four texts!” Bubbles shoved her phone, open to the ignored texts in question, in her sister’s face. “She was supposed to help me with Chem homework.”

Buttercup ducked. “No, and watch where you’re swinging that thing.”

“I saw her earlier,” Boomer said. “She was with Brick coming out of first period.”

“Oh, yeah.” Mike slung his arm around Boomer’s shoulders. “Don’t they both have a free period right now?”

Buttercup rolled her eyes. “What a scam. Whoever decided to give the A-students free periods while the rest of us mere mortals gotta slave away is a straight-up Supervillain.”

Boomer snapped his fingers. “Hey, I just remembered! They both decided to compete for the spot at the regional spelling bee this year. I bet that’s what they’re doing.”

“God, that’s the saddest thing I have ever heard in my life. That’s a new low even for Blossom.”

“I heard there’s a cash prize for the regional winner,” Bubbles said. “It’s like twenty thousand bucks! Remember, everyone in school signed up and we had to have that assembly to narrow it down?”

“Twenty thou— How the tits did I miss that?!”

“I mean, it was all over the school,” Mike said. “We signed up too.”

“What? And no one thought to tell me I could’ve won the lottery?”

Boomer chuckled. “Dude, come on. You wouldn’t have stood a chance in hell against Darla Dimpleton.”

“Who?”

Bubbles cast Boomer a not worth it look, and he just sighed. “So, if they’re studying for the spelling bee, do you think they’re in the library?”

At that moment, Butch came bursting down the hall a little too fast to be human. Open lockers rattled on their hinges as he passed, and a Sophomore girl’s binder went flying, scattering looseleaf papers everywhere. Buttercup looked ready to punch him in the dick for breaking the no powers in school rule. “Guys, you’re gonna shit!” 

“Calm down before you blow a load, Jesus Christ.” Buttercup yanked him back down to the floor so he wouldn’t spontaneously float. 

Sensibly, Boomer asked, “Why?”

“‘Cause Brick and Blossom are making out in the library right now!”

Mike cringed. “Oh, come on.”

“The hell they are,” Buttercup said. 

Bubbles smiled. “Good for them.”

“I’m serious! There were books everywhere, and the noise—”

“Oh look, there goes my dignity. Better catch it before it gets away. C’mon, moron.” Buttercup dragged Butch down the hall over his protests. “What were you even doing in the library? I didn’t think you knew where it was…”

“Like that could ever happen,” Mike said. “Those two wouldn’t waste a minute of study time if it means beating out the competition.”

Boomer did not look so convinced. “I don’t know. I mean, they’re officially, for real dating now,”—“Finally!” Mike interjected—“so it’s not that unbelievable.”

The bell for the next period rang. Bubbles groaned thinking of stewing for an hour of Chem. At least she shared that class with Boomer and would not have to suffer alone. They parted from Mike and walked together through the throng of students rushing to get to their next period.

“Hey, do you think…” 

“I mean…” Boomer shrugged. 

They rounded the corner and nearly ran into Blossom dashing to her next class with a rushed “Got your texts talk later bye!” before she disappeared into the crowd. 

Bubbles whirled on Boomer. “Did you see her buttons—”

“Completely uneven—”

The late bell rang and made them jump. Among the last stragglers, they both dashed a bit too fast to get to class and made it to their seats just as Mr. Micelli finished writing a problem on the board. 

Boomer winked when she caught his eye a couple desks away from hers, and it took everything she had not to laugh.

“Good for her,” Bubbles said to herself. 

“You are late,” Mr. Micelli said. 

Everyone turned to watch Brick sink into his seat, his short hair totally askew and looking healthily flushed for a Tuesday morning. 

Boomer burst out laughing and needed a whole minute to calm down. 

He’d tell her later that the detention was worth it.

xxx

Witchcraft! 👁️👄👁️✨