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lokifantasies · 3 years ago

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Her Decision PART 3

Summary: Jade and Loki have lunch, and Jade realizes she knows what she needs to do.

A/N: There will be one more part posted tomorrow! <3

Character(s): Loki, Jade, & Reader

Read the Mischievous Life series here!

Follow Jade, Loki, and Reader!

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@1marvelnerd3000 @agentkinghorn @angeldarkness95 @donttouchmylaevateinn @emerald-alone @eyesbluelikethetitanic @fa-me @geeky-politics-46 @holdmytesseract @itsybitchylittlewitchy @jeongadelarinia @lokistoriesblog @lougy @melianisnothere @mm2305 @mortallythoughtfulgurl @nms224 @prettysbliss @shraddhadeveshvikram @xoxoloverb

Jade and Loki sit in his car – the sixteen-year-old has just gotten out of school, and as he promised, Loki is standing by his daughter – supporting her decision.

"You're not gonna ask me if I'm sure?" Jade's voice shakily asks as she looks towards the parked car in front of her.

Loki shakes his head. "You know yourself better than I...but if you want my honest, cross my heart, opinion, I'll give it to you."

"Please," Jade gasps – tears in her eyes as she turns to look at her father.

Loki holds his daughter's cheek in his right hand – giving her a sad smile as her blue eyes plead for him to speak. "You're making the decision that I would've."

"Mom won't be mad?" Jade asks – desperate to know that you and Loki are keeping your promise to support her.

"No, my love," Loki insists. "Your mom told you that she wished she could be here, but you know she can't...being stuck on bed rest."

Jade nods – trying to get Loki's words to stick in her head. Taking a deep breath, Jade opens the passenger side door. "Let's go."

The father and daughter walk towards the building – walking up the six steps. Loki opens the door for his terrified daughter – staying close to her so that she feels safe. Loki and Jade reach the front desk where they are given the paperwork to fill out for a walk-in. With her hand shaking, Jade fills out the paperwork the best she can, and when she gets to the reason for visit line, she quickly scribbles her answer – wanting to get this over with.

After turning in the paperwork, Loki and Jade wait until her name is called. Trying to distract herself by scrolling through her Tumblr proves to be useless – her thoughts racing a thousand miles a minute. When a woman finally walks up to Jade to let her know it's her turn, she instantly looks to her dad.

"Ca-can m-my dad um...come?" Jade nervously and quietly asks.

The woman smiles nicely to the two. "Absolutely," she agrees.

Jade breaths a sigh of relief – grabbing Loki's hand as soon as they stand up.

"I'm right here, my love," Loki softly reminds Jade – placing a kiss on the side of her head.

The father and daughter are led into an office – the door is closed while they wait for the doctor to come in and speak with them. Luckily, it doesn't take long, and the doctor has a friendly demeanor – doing little to relax Jade.

"Hello, Jade," the doctor greets the terrified teenager. "My name's Doctor Sealey."

"Uh...h-h-hi," Jade stutters – immediately looking over to her dad and begging with her eyes for him to do the talking.

"Loki," the god introduces himself. "Jade's father."

"It's nice to meet you both," she nods to the two. "So, do you know how far along you are?"

"Six weeks and three days," Jade answers quickly in a mumbled voice.

Doctor Sealey looks to Loki for some sort of answer. "It's a...it's a long story," Loki says – not wanting to throw Jade's business out.

"I was kidnapped and raped six weeks and three days ago," Jade blurts out to the doctor. "I'm here because I can't have this baby...I can't have his baby, so can we please skip the pleasantries and get on with it?" Jade closes her eyes and exhales when she hears the silence – her father and the doctor having nothing to say. "I'm, l-look, I'm sorry," she apologizes with tears in her eyes. "I j-just need to move on with my life."

The doctor does as Jade asked, and she gets them through the assessment as quickly as possible. When she leads them to the sonogram to make sure she's less than ten weeks, Jade refuses to look at the monitor – choosing instead to hide her face in her dad's side – clutching onto him for dear life.

"Perfect," Doctor Sealey announces to Jade – prompting her to release her father and put her shirt down once the gel is cleaned off her skin. Loki and Jade arrive back first in the office, and they wait for a nervous few minutes for the doctor to come back. When she does, she has two pill bottles in her hand and a paper with handwritten instructions. "Okay, Jade," she says as she sits back down. Loki and Jade turn their attention completely to the doctor. "Because you're under ten weeks, we can do a simple, non-invasive, medical abortion," she begins to explain. "I have the instructions written down for you, but it's extremely simple." Jade nods her head – feeling more of the weight beginning to lift off her shoulders. "Whenever you're ready, after you leave here, you'll take this first pill," the doctor starts to explain. "Afterwards, about five hours later, you'll take this second one."

Jade nods quietly – not believing that she's going to do this, but she knows she has to. She knows there's no way she can provide the kind of life that a baby...her baby deserves. She also knows herself well enough to know that she'd be unable to give them up for adoption if she carried to term. Jade had zoned out once Doctor Sealey gave her the instructions, but when Loki and Jade get back to the car, Loki sits the two bottles in the cup holders.

"Am I a bad person?" Jade tearfully asks her dad, who turns in his seat to face her.

"No, sweetheart," he tells her. "You're one of the strongest people I know." Loki wipes away a tear from his daughter's cheek. "I envy your strength...your courage...you're my daughter – you're my flesh and blood, and I don't expect this to be easy for you...neither does your mother, and we'll be there right beside you every step of the way."

"Don't cry, daddy," Jade begs – wiping away Loki's tears that roll down his cheeks – causing his ocean-blue eyes to glisten. "Please stop crying."

Loki shakes his head – taking a deep breath and holding Jade's forehead to his own – holding her face in his hands. "I know that everything seems so dark and never-ending, but I promise you, my love, that we'll come out of this – this darkness will end, and the light will shine on us again."

#loki laufeyson #loki fanfic #loki fandom #dad!loki #loki x reader #loki x you #mischievous life #ongoing series #requests open #send requests #loki family #jade lokisdottir

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tatooedlaura-blog · 4 years ago

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Fancy Paper Napkins

because doesn’t everybody eat their fancy meals with fancy paper napkins ...

Our Moments: Chapter 1: Five Words (post-Leonard Betts) Chapter 2: Sidebar Nonsense (post-Memento Mori) Chapter 3: Interim (floating somewhere around Unrequited) Chapter 4: Max 2.0 (post-Tempus Fugit/Max) Chapter 5: Shadowed Grey Eyes Chapter 6: The Warmest Thing I Own Chapter 7: Fancy Paper Napkins @today-in-fic

&&&&&&&&&&

He actually slept, his mind calm, until he heard her whispering in his ear, “what are you cooking and when will it be ready?”

Opening his eyes, he saw hers staring at him, awake and bright, “what?”

“I’m hungry and I saw the crockpot plugged in.”

He broke into a grin, more from her proximity than anything else and forcing himself not to look at her mouth, not to think of that kiss, “mushrooms. Garlicy, buttery mushrooms that have been slow cooking in the crockpot,” looking over her head at the clock, “for four hours.�� Sitting up quickly, “shit. I have to go stir them.”

Rolling off the bed, he disappeared down the hall, Scully close behind, “they won’t burn.”

“I’ll feel better when I see for myself.” Finally in the kitchen, he opened the crockpot, stirred with the big spoon, and glad to see the mushrooms soft and unburned, offered Scully a taste. Refusing with an, ‘I’d like to wait for dinner,’ he nodded towards the fridge, “go grab the steak, would you?”

They ate like civilized people, at the kitchen table, forks, knives, fancy paper napkins …

… “I refuse to use cloth ones because they’re too damn hard to clean.”

… “Did I say anything?”

… “No.”

… “Then why are you arguing at me?”

and a bottle of not-so-cheap wine Mulder found in his travels through Scully’s cupboards.

“I shouldn’t drink this.”

“Will it lower your inhibitions? Will you sweep off the coffee table and dance on it if I wave a bunch of ones at you? Will you tell me all your secrets?”

She couldn’t keep her hand from shaking as she poured them both glasses, “mostly I’m thinking that it’ll make me fall asleep even early that I probably would have already.”

Ignoring the tremor, “as long as you stay awake enough for ice cream.”

“I will do my best.”

She made it through half the steak, a bowl of mushroom, and three spoons of mashed potatoes, before finally giving in, trading her plate for Mulder’s empty, who continued to eat without pause. Watching him, she had to smile, “thank you.”

“For finishing your food? No problem.”

Not able to articulate at that particular moment that she was actually thanking him for a thousand things at once, she simply agreed, wondering if he’d figure it out on his own, “yeah, I wouldn’t want it to go to waste.”

Giving her a grin, he finished her food, then stood, “give me ten minutes to do dishes and put everything away, then we’ll argue about movies.”

“Let me load the dishwasher, at least. You won’t do it right and I’ll just have to redo it when you’re not looking.” Standing as well, she bumped hips with him as she walked past, “save me the trouble.”

Twisting up his leg, he hit her on the butt with his stocking foot, “smartass.”

They finally settled on several movies but still sitting on the couch, facing a blank TV and a window with a sunset just beginning to tint the room pink, Mulder gently poked her in the side, “how’re you doing?”

Feeling the urge to move, to take advantage of feeling okay for the moment, “I think I’d like to go for a walk.”

Up immediately, he leaned in, kissing the tip of her nose, “any destination in mind?”

“Just … around.”

“Around it is.”

&&&&&&&&&

Warm enough to wander without jackets, they headed out her front door and turned left, bare arm brushing bare arm as they walked. They didn’t say much, commenting on scurrying squirrels here, a cute cat in the window there, Mulder catching a waywardly stumbling child tripping past, “geez, if I had known we were going to be experiencing a Norman Rockwell painting, I would have combed my hair and put on a clean shirt.”

Her laughter hit his ears like his favorite song and reaching over, he took her hand, never asking, never letting go as they circled and turned, ambled and veered. She didn’t argue, her thin, cool fingers enjoying his warmth.

But even on her best days lately, she gave in quicker than she’d have liked, 45 being the magic number of minutes she lasted until, “I think I’m ready for some ice cream.”

Giving her hand a squeeze, “ice cream it is. What kind should we start with?”

Discussion ensued and by the time they were in their pajamas, they’d settled on dark fudge and peanut butter swirl to begin with. Two spoons dove in, two spoons sampled, occasionally Scully would pull her loaded spoon out and looking at Mulder, found his mouth wide open, waiting expectantly.

And by God, she fed him.

The first time felt a little weird but by the third time he did it, she was laughing, “can you not feed yourself fast enough?”

“Nope.”

That was good enough for her.

Once the gorging finished, they’d had at least one spoonful out of each carton Mulder had bought, six in all, the flavors running the gambit and Scully full and happy and sleepy. “Are you going to be able to sleep with all that sugar in your system?”

Mulder grinned, chocolate rimming his lips, “if not, I’ll have a TV to keep me company while you drool all over your pillow.” A relieved sigh, one she didn’t know she was holding, escaped, and Mulder cocked his head, suddenly worried, “y’a’right?”?”

And deciding there was no reason not to tell him, “I think I was nervous you were going to go home tonight and,” another sigh, this one embarrassed, “it’s been a really nice day and if you went home, it would be over and,” slight wobbly smile appearing, “I don’t want it to be over just yet.”

Knowing something funny was in order, he raised an eyebrow in her direction, “is that some veiled attempt at asking me to move in here?”

Her smile steadied, “just go start the movie.”

&&&&&&&&&

Midnight rolled around and even though Scully had given in and gone to bed, Mulder was still awake and indeed watching TV, some cooking show he’d never admit to enjoying but enjoyed nonetheless. The sound was off and suddenly, the quiet of the darkened apartment was broken by Scully calling from the bedroom, “Mulder?”

It didn’t sound like a nightmare which, in his mind, could only mean she needed help. Jogging down the hall, he was in her doorway a second later, “yeah? You okay?”

Still laying down, she met his nervous gaze, her own a unique brand of terrified confusion, “am I still here?”

Immediately walking to the other side of the bed, he crawled under the covers, his hand meeting her cheek after she rolled over to face him, “yeah. You’re right here, in your bed.” When her terror didn’t fade, he continued, quieter, moving to meet her forehead with his, “you’re with me, in your apartment,” hand moving to the back of her neck, “whatever you dreamt wasn’t real.”

“It will be.” Feeling the bed shake as she hitched a silent sob, she managed a cracked whisper, “I don’t want to die.” Her fingers ran over his cheek, his ear, “I don’t want to go anywhere without you.”

The tear escaped before he could blink it away but he kept the others in, reservoir full but holding, “we’re gonna beat this. I guarantee it.”

She couldn’t bring herself to believe him anymore and she couldn’t keep up the lie at this hour, “you don’t know that.”

“But I choose to believe it.” Hand in her hair by now, he pulled her close enough that their noses were smushed together and eyelashes tangled, “I need to believe it.”

Maybe she could pretend a little more after all, “do you believe enough for both of us?”

“I believe enough for this whole damn world. You should know that by now.”

She could only nod against him, bringing their mouths to millimeter distances but refraining, crippling fear not a good enough reason to cross the line between them, “can you stay right here with me, tonight?”

He crossed it for them, a quick brush of lips, a quick nuzzle of noses, “I won’t move until you do.”

“I don’t want you to leave me alone.”

Both knew the translation of that:

I don’t want to die alone.

&&&&&&&&

The next morning, Scully opened her eyes to find Mulder still sharing her pillow, not touching anymore but close enough to have him blurry in front of her instead of clear. For five seconds, she forgot her world and felt warm fuzzies chasing through her, up and down her spine, settling low.

Then, reality set in with a resounding thud.

Pulling back, she sat up, turning quickly so he wouldn’t see the tears racing down her face. Neither could ignore the echoing sob, however and Mulder, already half-awake, sat up, confusion clearing in a heartbeat as he slid across the mattress, arm around her front, hugging her back to his chest. Kissing her neck and that hated, fucking scar, “we’re gonna win. I swear to God, we’re gonna win.”

And they cried together.

#msr #cancer arc #my writing #MulderNScully #xfiles fanfic #xfiles #Our Moments series #we're gonna win #I swear to God #xf fanfic #and reality set in #with a resounding thud

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nikkoliferous · 4 years ago

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Phase One: Thor

Since I was looking up my past live-blog of the novel and realising how annoying and repetitive reading through it all is because of my having structured it as a bunch of reblogs, I’ve decided to organize it all into one long-ass post instead. In case anyone else wants to read it in the future. Or in case I decide to re-read it. Because I’m hilarious. 😅

SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADO

My Hilarious Yet Wrathful Overview Of Phase One: Thor, Redux

—

If your son who’s to become king requires a babysitter to not screw it all up and also the idea of him being king is stressful enough to put you into a coma, maybe, uh… reconsider doing that? Just a thought.

But you see here why Odin was so deadset on Thor becoming king, despite him being ill-suited for the role. It’s not about what’s best for Asgard; it’s about personal legacy. Thor is Odin’s mini me, and Loki is very much not. There are places within the text where Odin laments Thor “lacking his father’s wisdom” (he’s definitely inherited your humility, though, Odin!), but he hopes for Thor to grow into a “wise king” like himself. Whereas he holds no such illusions (lol, pun) that Loki will ever take after him.

now with tag commentary! #this scene is in the script and both novelizations #(though in reading this novel seems to just be a more complete version of the junior novel? #idk i'm confused because they're supposedly written by different authors but so far the text is identical) #and it drives me insane each time i read it

“Haha, I’m a warmongering piece of shit, isn’t it funny?”

I know, I know. I try to cut Asgard some slack for being such a militaristic culture because social changes happen slowly and when you live for thousands of years per generation, it makes sense that your views on things like war would be regressive. The text says Odin has ruled Asgard for tens of thousands of years (so much for taking Loki’s “give or take 5,000 years” line literally; sure, the Odinsleep would have extended Odin’s lifespan, but by that much? Idk).

Still, fuck Odin. Especially since he’ll eventually try to shame Loki for doing the same thing he’s fucking boasting about here. And on a much smaller scale too.

…is it, though?

I actually think Loki’s relationship with being the centre of attention is really interesting in its complexity and we don’t discuss it enough. I’ve said this before, but he strikes me as the sort of person who craves attention but also wouldn’t really know what to do with it if he had it. He craves it as a result of neglect, because he’s never been shown recognition or validation. This is why he seems to revel in it in Stuttgart, even in (or maybe especially in?) his brainwashed state. But he also frequently comes across as pretty introverted and has horrible self-esteem, so I think on another level, sustained, genuine attention would make him feel kind of uncomfortable. Loki seems to believe that in order to be loved or respected, he has to literally be Thor, though. And Thor has always been the centre of attention, so for Loki, attention is synonymous with respect.

I find Loki’s relationship with wanting attention especially fascinating because I too both crave and fear it. As a borderline, I need it. When no one is paying attention to me, I lose my sense of identity. I feel as though I literally cease to exist. It’s excruciatingly painful. And yet, I have no authentic sense of self; I’m just a chameleon, and the closer people get to me, the more likely it is they’ll see behind my mask. They’ll realise it’s all a show and that I’m actually no one. And then they’ll leave. I can’t help wondering if that’s how Loki feels sometimes too.

Wait, what? You mean goat. His horns are shaped like a goat’s. This is a ram:

This is a goat:

This is Loki:

Do you see now? They’re like a goat. Not a ram. Not a cow. A GOAT.

This book was written before Ragnarok was a thing, so it may be unfair to connect the two, but it still seems worth noting that it was Thor who reduced Loki to being no more than a trickster to begin with. “You could be more,” my ass. Loki’s problem has never been that he was one-dimensional; it was always that the people in his life, including Thor, refused to see any other dimensions to him. Which makes those words particularly cruel—as if they aren’t cruel enough already, what with the physical torture and all.

Always happy to have cause to point out that

Loki was on Thor clean-up duty their whole lives; he certainly was not trying to kill Thor.

People like to point to Loki’s attempted genocide of the Jötnar and attempted(-ish? lol) conquest of Earth as proof that he’s some kind of violent maniac. But in a little place I like to call reality, Loki was historically far less aggressive and bloodthirsty than his peers.

Question: why is one conqueror evil and the other is righteously entitled to ruling over the Nine Realms?

Asgardian exceptionalism FTW

I can’t even begin to imagine what would lead you to expect such a thing, Odin. 😂

Uh, ‘cause it is?? And also their planet is MELTING without it??

This is all only within the first two chapters, btw. Lmao

—

“Looking for answers,” my foot.

YOU WOULD THINK SO, WOULDN’T YOU??

#i mean unless you knew heimdall #he only commits treason on days that end in y

—

What’d I say? Thor clean-up dutyyyyy

Just wanna remind everyone that this

is why he’s smiling during this scene

because it makes me laugh every time. 😂

—

My heart breaks every time I remember that second excerpt because literally ALL OF IT happened to him when he survived falling through the wormhole. My poor boy. 😭

But also of note… Loki gets cold (and also does not like being cold). This interests me because 1) as many are aware, the prevalent headcanon that Loki has a low body temperature irritates me and 2) it possibly(?) lends weight to the theory that he may not be fully Jötun, whether by virtue of his birth or Odin’s spell.

Haha, look at this Feminist Icon™ trying to take credit for his female friend’s accomplishments! Truly inspiring.

#for some reason the ragnarok lovers have somehow decided that thor is both a feminist and lesbian icon #whatever that means 🤷‍♀️ #and i'm still trying very hard to figure out why #is it literally just because he *says* he respects women or whatever in that dumb rambly conversation with valkyrie?

Ooh… you were so close to getting the point, Volstagg. So close. Take your tongue off Odin’s boot for just a couple minutes longer.

Also, the author just forgot the name of the Casket. How did this book get published? 😂

JUST LOOKING FOR ANSWERS, HUH?

Because fuck Loki, amirite? He, uh… he’s a prince too, you know.

Also… Fandral, you dweeb 😂

…am I reading too much into this, or did Odin just literally forget that Loki exists?

On the other hand, the author also seemed to forget Loki existed for most of this chapter, so who knows. 🤷‍♀️

lmao @ Jane immediately trying to convince herself she’s too rational to be attracted to a stranger

Honestly, though, big mood.

Just your periodic reminder that Thor’s sycophantic friends KNEW Loki was right and decided to throw him under the bus anyway.

Just as I’ve always said: That was it. That was their ENTIRE rationale. That Loki *could* have done it, therefore he must have. Please tell me these people have nothing to do with Asgard’s justice system.

…lol, jk, Asgard has no justice system.

Ok, first of all, no.

Second: thank you, Fandral. You’re a self-absorbed cad, but also evidently Thor’s least stupid friend.

Thirdly, how…? First, it was, “Loki arranged all this because he’s jealous of Thor.” Now they’ve suddenly jumped all the way to, “All of Asgard is in danger.” What exactly does Sif think Loki is planning? He’s gonna, what… assassinate Odin and then sell Asgard to the Jötnar?

—

Please stop hurting me.

Just so there’s no confusion: this one sentence explains everything Loki did for the rest of the movie. It explains how a person who has been historically non-aggressive suddenly transforms into a warmonger. To prove himself a real Asgardian, like his brother and father and grandfather.

—

…why did Odin fall into the Odinsleep in two completely different scenes in this book? I’m super confused.

Also, we really need to talk about how cruel it is of Marvel to keep forcing Loki to prove his loyalty again and again and again when he’s been doing so almost literally since we met him. And by “we need to talk about it”, I mean I need to tie Kevin Feige and co. to a chair and spend a minimum of five hours lecturing them on how poorly they understand their own fucking character.

Let’s just be clear here: they’re talking about Loki. They’re saying Loki, their LEGITIMATE king, is an enemy of Asgard, based on evidence so paper-thin it’s practically invisible. Just… please, let that sink in. Take a moment to appreciate how utterly fucked up that is.

I’m sorry (not really), but Thor was so much funnier before Ragnarok.

This scene has always kind of bugged me. If Odin removed Thor’s powers, how come he can still control the weather? Confusing.

So what exactly was Thor’s plan anyway, before he realised he couldn’t lift Mjölnir? He was just gonna call on Heimdall to help him commit treason AGAIN, show up on Asgard against the expressed command of his king, and… Odin would just shrug and be like, “You got me, son! I guess I can’t keep you down. Welcome home!”?

…I mean, I guess that more or less is what happened in the end, but it’s hard to imagine it would have still gone down that way without all the stuff that happened with Loki. Idk.

#look what i'm saying is... thor is not exactly a thinking person #no one on asgard is a thinking person #except loki but he's crazy now so he's also thinking somewhat poorly lol

Cool, Thor. Now imagine feeling that way for ONE THOUSAND YEARS and develop a little fucking empathy for your brother.

But you won’t.

You’ll brush off his feelings of worthlessness as “imagined slights”. 😒

Nice that somebody knows how the royal line of succession works, I guess…

That sound you hear? Yeah, that’s just my heart breaking. NBD.

First, they mislabelled it the Casket of Eternal Winters. Now it’s the Cask of Ancient Winters. Author must have been thirsty when they wrote this. Lol

Look, not to nitpick, but this is not the recommended procedure when you see a storm that you don’t believe is of supernatural origin coming. I’m just saying. Lol

Uh… ‘cause he is?? And your pals are committing treason AGAIN, Thor, so it technically is responding to a threat to Asgard. Just FYI.

Anyways, this is an important point that doesn’t get made often enough. People want to act like Loki illegally usurped the throne somehow, but even without the deleted scene that explicitly shows Frigga passing rulership to him (a scene which is, for some reason, entirely skipped over in this book, but whatever), understand this: Loki could not have controlled the Destroyer unless he was legitimately King of Asgard. The fact that he’s able to do so is irrefutable proof that his rulership is valid.

lmao you little shit

So… here’s my issue with this scene (and with Thor as a character): He always assumes that Loki’s acting out specifically to hurt him. That Loki’s entire life and thought process revolves around Thor. He does it in this scene, he does it in The Avengers… it’s just a chronic thing with Thor. Everything is viewed through the lens of Loki inexplicably hating him.

But that’s… just not accurate. Yes, Loki harbours a lot of jealousy towards Thor. But that’s not what’s happening in this scene. Loki is not trying to kill Thor here because he wants him dead; he’s doing it because Thor (and his friends) are getting in the way of Loki completing his ultimate goal. Loki tried to solve this problem non-violently, by lying about Odin being dead. It’s Thor’s friends who all but forced his hand by going behind his back and trying to bring Thor back to Asgard against Loki’s (and Odin’s!) direct orders.

For all the humility he’s learned in the past few days, this entire speech is still really all about Thor. About assuming that Loki’s doing this for personal reasons, because he holds a grudge against Thor for some unknown reason. This is implicit in his request to “take [my life] and end this.” It never even occurs to him that his friends are traitors to the Crown and Loki, as King of Asgard, is perhaps justified in pursuing them.

It also needs to be acknowledged that Thor’s apology here is hollow, even if it’s ultimately coming from his heart, because he has no idea what he’s apologising for. “Whatever I have done to wrong you” is not an apology. An apology addresses specific hurtful actions taken and commits to not repeating those mistakes in the future. Thor cannot commit to not repeating the hurtful things he’s done, because he doesn’t know what he’s done. Despite his best intentions, what Thor is doing here is actually kind of manipulative. He’s not addressing any substantive issue between the two of them; he’s just trying to talk Loki down. And it ultimately fails not because Loki doesn’t care or because he wants Thor dead, but because it doesn’t actually change anything.

Finally and only semi-relatedly, we should maybe at some point talk about the fact that Loki, who is stated to be a master tactician, has displayed a weird pattern of hardly ever being as lethal as he could be. He freezes Heimdall in place instead of killing him outright; he backhands Thor with the Destroyer instead of incinerating him; he, well… *gestures vaguely at almost the entirety of the first Avengers movie* Anytime the violence is even a little bit personal, he seems to hedge. Odd behaviour for somebody who’s supposedly super evil.

I’m sorry, I know I’ve pointed it out at least a hundred times before, but I just can’t encounter this scene in any form without taking a moment to appreciate how underrated and hilarious it is.

I also genuinely wonder how many Ragnarok stans who have accused me of having no sense of humour, have failed to laugh at moments like this one. Kinda feel like if you need to have the comedy spoonfed to you in the form of ass jokes, maybe you’re the one whose sense of humour is lacking. 🤷‍♀️

Let’s be super clear: this is not what happened. Loki did not betray Odin; he was betrayed by Odin. He did not open Asgard to its enemies; he attempted, misguidedly, to destroy Asgard’s enemies. And he most certainly did not commit suicide out of a sense of guilt.

I’m not saying Loki did nothing wrong, nor am I saying he feels no regret for the lives he has taken. What I’m saying is there’s no indication that he believes he betrayed Odin or Asgard in the process. Which makes perfect sense, because he didn’t. Everything he tried to do was for Odin and Asgard. It was misguided and horrible, yes, but it can hardly be classified as a betrayal.

The insurmountable burden on Loki is not that he did terrible things, but that no matter what he does or how hard he tries, Odin will never look at him with anything but contempt. Consider once more these passages from the very beginning of the book, at Thor’s coronation:

—

Consider that this book goes to great pains to point out that Odin favours Thor because Thor is a warrior like him. And yet even when Loki embraces that, even when he acts more war-like than ever before, Odin rejects him— just as he always has.

There is a reason why this moment is the last time Loki will ever call Odin his father. Because he realises once and for all that, no, nothing he tries will ever be good enough; no, Odin won’t ever look at him with pride. That is Loki’s burden. That is why he lets go.

The epilogue is really just two pages of making me want to vomit.

There’s your party where Thor and a certain subset of the fandom insist that Loki was mourned. There’s barely an indication here that anyone even perceives his demise as a negative thing.

“[Sif] could see Frigga thought [Loki was dead] as well” also contradicts the tie-in comic for TDW, so I don’t know what the author is on about there. Unlike the majority of Marvel comics, the tie-in comics are canon to the MCU, so it’s a bizarre statement to make.

COULD YOU SMEAR THE DEAD* ABUSE VICTIM A LITTLE HARDER, PLEASE? Fucking hell.

No matter how many times I encounter this scene, in whatever format, I still fail to become desensitized to how disgusting it is. I realise there’s a good chance that whatever version of events Thor has been told was twisted at best; but how you can look at a man whose son has just committed suicide under any circumstances and say there will never be a better father than that guy, is utterly beyond my capacity to understand.

And Odin’s “you’ve already made me proud” line just feels like extra salt in the wound because, again, Loki let go because he realized Odin would never say those words to him. And yet they come so damn easily when it’s Thor.

Fuck this entire family so much. I think I hate them more than Loki does. Sometimes I wonder what he would think about that. How he would react to knowing that not only is he actually loved, but that he’s so loved that people are genuinely furious at the way he’s been mistreated. That there are people who regularly devolve into full-on rants because they just can’t contain how much anger they have towards the people who hurt him. I think he’d have a hard time wrapping his head around that concept, tbh.

Anyways, to end on a not-completely-depressing note, I’m still waiting for someone at Marvel to explain how Loki knew what Thor said in this scene after plummeting into a wormhole. ‘Cause he references this conversation as Fauxdin at the end of TDW. So like… ?? Did he steal Odin’s memories before he erased them? Because that would be… kind of neat, actually. And very clever. Not entirely ethical, of course, but it’s Odin, so fuck ethics.

WELP, THAT’S IT. Thanks for following along with my dumbassery, hope you enjoyed yourselves. Lol

#phase one: thor #loki meta #thor meta #odin's a+ parenting #frigga's b+ parenting #topic: thor and loki's broken relationship #loki #thor #heimdall #lady sif #the warriors 3 #jane foster #ragnarok cinematic universe #mcu #topic: asgardian hypocrisy #topic: asgardian militarism #topic: odin's family dynamic

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ahnsael · 5 years ago

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From the Winter 1975 edition of Disney News Magazine (which I found an treasure trove of on The Internet Archive -- I’m looking for one article in particular, announcing the future arrival of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at Disneyland, which was the very first thing I read on my own without my grandpa’s help when I was a wee lad and he used to read his old issues of Disney News Magazine to me, so I can re-live one of the happy memories of my childhood).

But when I ran into this during my search...I mean, I was ODV (Outdoor Vending, for the uninitiated in Disneyspeak -- good old Department 944). I worked those popcorn carts (there were ten of them during busy seasons when I was there and four during slow times, not the four-eight mentioned here), and this was before Disney had realized that feeding the birds popcorn wasn’t a good idea (even in my first time at Disney, it was okay to give a kid a small courtesy cup of popcorn for free to feed the ducks).

I’ve had all kinds of popcorn. Movie theater popcorn, those holiday tins with three different flavors of popcorn, home-popped (air or a pan with some oil) popcorn...but no popcorn I’ve ever tasted compares to Disneyland popcorn.

But my favorite part of being ex-ODV, other than having sometimes been able to sell balloons or glow necklaces (you can keep that battery-operated stuff of today), is that when I see that episode of Disney After Dark where Walt gets popcorn from one of those carts, I’VE WORKED THAT SAME CART.

Obviously, I never served Walt (he died almost eight years before I was born), but I’ve had GOOD times on those popcorn carts.

Including one of my favorite guest interactions ever, in which I met them twice over the course of five days (their daughter was sick for the intervening three days and they weren’t able to come in even though they had tickets).

The family (grandparents, parents, and the parents’ daughter) were from Washington state. They had never been to Disneyland before. I was working what, at the time, was Popcorn 4 (last I heard it’s called Popcorn 1 now, since it’s the one at Central Plaza that most people see first, in its old location where it was part of the scenery if you took a picture of Sleeping Beauty Castle from south of Central Plaza, but that may have changed since I worked there the second time). They came up to me in the morning full of questions.

I made it a habit to carry park maps in my back pocket (and, since in the Southern California Heat, I tended to sweat, I took about ten more than I thought I would need so that when I gave them a map out of my back left pocket, it wouldn’t be soaked with butt-sweat; I know, TMI, and I’m sorry, but it’s the truth).

So I gave them the map that they didn’t grab on their way in, explained everything I could to them, even wrote out an itinerary for them on the best times to hit different attractions (since those “best times” are often the same for different attractions, I encouraged them to prioritize, but also figured that since they had five days they had plenty of time to get it all in -- back then, before DCA opened, you COULD do Disneyland in one day and hit EVERY attraction if you planned it right; not sure that’s possible today).

While I talked to the parents/grandparents, I gave the daughter a free courtesy cup of popcorn to feed the ducks that ALWAYS hung around that popcorn wagen waiting for handouts or scraps.

There were two ducks there that day. She named them “Pop” and “Corn” as she fed them.

And she was better at telling them apart than I was. I just saw a couple of mallard ducks, but she recognized the differences in their markings.

So I basically helped this family plan five days in the park, detail by detail. And this was NOT an imposition on their part -- I was happy to do so. I mean, that popcorn cart gets REALLY busy at parade times and later in the day, but just after park opening it’s mostly open just for show. When the rope drops on Main Street, there aren’t exactly many people who think, “The first thing I need to do today is get popcorn!” It’s a slow time of day on that cart, and I loved helping give directions or advice or doing whatever I could to make a guest’s day better.

I gave the family my schedule for the next four days, with the caveat that schedules can be changed last minute and, while I might be scheduled to sell ice cream bars in Critter Country the next day, that didn’t mean I wouldn’t be selling churros in Tomorrowland instead.

And I really looked forward to seeing them again. They were REALLY nice people, and I wanted to be able to check up on them and see how things were going if they stopped by my carts over the next few days.

I didn’t see them for the next three days.

The last day of their vacation, I was a Lead -- which meant more time backstage, and less time onstage as I handled the paperwork end of things more than I handled the onstage end.

But it was my job that night to “close the park,” which means that I would go around to the popcorn carts (the only ones that aren’t brought back to the ODV warehouse that night) to make sure they had been properly cleaned, and to put tarps over them so the people who hose down the walkways every night wouldn’t end up spraying the collected dirt/debris onto the carts, so that they would still be clean the next day.

This night, I had just finished -- I had to wait for Control 1 (the main security office) to announce that the park was clear to the Hub (Central Plaza) and to the Hub only before I went to my last cart at Central Plaza.

I finished that (usually I used a bicycle to do this but I’d gotten an early start that night and knew that I couldn’t let guests see me on a bicycle) and as I started walking back to the office (a route that would take me from Central Plaza through Frontierland, New Orleans Square, and Critter Country), I saw the family again on the bridge between Central Plaza and Frontierland.

So I stopped and checked up on them, knowing it was the end of their last day. They recognized me (which, as many thousands of people I talk to each day and how many cast members guests talk to, I was impressed both that the remembered me and that I remembered them, though I had spent more time with them than I do with the average guest so they had kind of stuck out to me more than the average “where’s the bathroom?” guests), and we talked a bit about their trip.

I started to ask about what they got to experience, but the mom quickly shushed me and explained that the daughter had been too sick to come to the park for the middle three of the five days, and that they had just been in their hotel room and were only willing to come in on Day 5 because they wanted the daughter’s last day to be a Disney experience, and not a “stuck-in-a-hotel-room” experience, and that they didn’t bring her in until late in the day because they were worried that they would make other people sick. This broke my heart. And there wasn’t anything I could do about it.

But while I talked to the mom, the daughter saw two ducks swimming in the water near the bridge, and declared that they were Pop and Corn (not gonna lie, I was kind of proud that she named them after the thing I gave her to feed them on the first day, even though now I know that feeding popcorn to ducks isn’t the best idea). I honestly have no clue whether they were the same ducks. A mallard is a mallard to my eye. But I wasn’t about to argue.I went back to what was then Popcorn 4 (leftover popcorn was left in a large plastic bag to be picked up in the morning and taken to a local food bank where it joined other leftover Disneyland food as a tax write-off donation to those who could still use it, rather than being thrown away).

I shared some history and trivia with them (at this point, including the daughter, since the mom had already told me what their experience had been like and I could tailor things to avoid asking about things like “You know that part in this ride?” to avoid having to hear the daughter say she hadn’t been on it.

Security came by on their sweep to get everyone out. Even the Main Street shops had closed at this point.

Fortunately, the guard who showed up and I had spoken several times backstage. I wouldn’t say we were friends, but we knew each other well enough to respect each other professionally. When I pulled him aside and explained the situation, and told him that I would be responsible for this family and get them out before long, but that...we needed a moment, he tipped his cap and moved on (and I did walk the family out when all was said and done to make sure they did leave and didn’t spend the night in the park, but it’s also amazing knowing that I was not only the first cast member they had a conversation with about the details of their trip, but also that I was literally the LAST cast member they spoke to AT ALL in the park...that’s still a source of pride for me something like 25 years later).

At one point during my conversation with the mom (the dad was sadly deceased), the mom literally asked me to marry her. I’m pretty sure it was meant as a joke, and that’s how I took it at the time. But it’s the only time anyone proposed to me (the one time I proposed to someone else, it ended in a Dear John email on Christmas Eve so while it gets easier 22 years later, if I’m a little short with anyone or any posts that day...it still hits me this time of year).

But this was before my actual engagement, so there was no pain at the time.

The mom gave me her number and told me to call if I was ever in Washington state so they could return the favor of showing me around.

And the thing is...I lived in Washington state for a while quite a few years after this. But while I kept the phone number for YEARS (even if, at the time, I thought of it as “saving a memory” rather than actually intending to ever call), I had lost the number in a car wreck in which my car was totaled (back when I lived in my car so literally EVERYTHING important to me had been in it and I never recovered any of it).

I don’t remember what part of Washington they were in. And we were on a first-name basis from the get-go, so there’s no looking them up now to say “Hey, I’m that Disneyland guy from 20 years or so ago, how are things?”

But I totally would have checked in had I still had their number when I was in Vancouver WA.

It’s a guest interaction that has always stuck with me, and always will. I’ve had several of those, but this is the only one that comes with regret for not keeping in touch.

#popcorn #Disneyland #cast member stories

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daisy-chain-gardens · 7 years ago

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Exchange Romance - Part 3

Part 1 - https://daisy-chain-gardens.tumblr.com/post/162913902685/exchange-romance

Part 2 - https://daisy-chain-gardens.tumblr.com/post/162947052535/exchange-romance-part-2

A/N - Me again. Sorry for the two week break but I went on holiday with my host fam so not really that sorry. I am sorry however for giving you ugly links again though because I haven’t had time to figure out how to make them pretty. This is un-edited but I’ll edit it in the morning. Shout out to the lovely @marieherondalebookfangirl because she is the absolute cutest. On a more content related note, I did some research and couldn’t find out when Betty’s birthday was so it’s now November 16th in this universe. If her actual birthday has been said somewhere and I missed it, sorry!

Summary: How will Betty’s birthday go down?

Word Count: 4,631

A ringing noise filled Betty’s room early, really early. She reached over and grabbed her phone. The bright momentarily blinding her as she fumbled around trying to lower the brightness and answer the call at the same time.

“Elizabeth, happy birthday!” Alice’s chirpy voice seemed about fifty times too loud for Betty’s ears at this time in the morning.

“Thanks Mum. You know it’s 5:30 in the morning here, right?” Betty croaked in the direction of the phone, her eyes still not functioning properly.

“Oh no, have I screwed up the time difference again? I was wondering why you were looking like that. Should I call back later?”

“No, no it’s fine Mum. I’m already awake so we might as well talk now,” Betty replied, ignoring her mother's dig at her appearance while she tried to sit up. She rubbed her eyes to try and get rid of the sleep stuck in them.

“So, Elizabeth, any big plans for today?” A smile crossed the sleepy blonde’s face as she thought about today. It was finally her birthday, her favourite day of the year. Jug was coming over later to hang out and then they were going to catch up with Ronnie and Archie to watch movies and eat takeaways. It wasn’t anything major but she couldn’t wait.

“Nothing special. V and I are gonna have some friends over for movie and takeout tonight but I’m not getting up to much during the day.” Although Betty had never been the best at lying to her mother, it was a whole lot easier when she was thousand of miles away. “That sounds … nice. Have you been using that face cream I sent over? You’re skin is looking a bit irritated, you need to drink more water.” Alice pointed out. The screen froze momentarily, giving Betty enough time to roll her eyes without her mother noticing.

“Of course Mum. I’ll grab some water when I get out of bed. 5:30 in the morning remember?” Betty retaliated, hoping that it wasn’t too obvious how irritated she was at her mother for already putting her in a bad mood. Typical Alice Cooper.

“Well everything is going well here thanks for asking Elizabeth. Polly is coming home in a couple of weeks but she’s already on holiday. Honestly, I swear they are always on holiday at that university of hers. This is why you’re over there Elizabeth, remember that. I want something better for you than what Polly has.” Betty felt homesick at the mention of her beloved sister. The emotion quickly passed as it was replaced by disgust at her mother’s opinion of Polly’s education.

“I know Mum, I’m sure you won’t let me forget it.”

Alice continued to fill her youngest daughter in on various things happening in back in Wellington but Betty stopped listening after a while, having perfected the art of nodding and mumbling generic response at a very young age. A while later she broke out of her daze and interrupted her mother while she was complaining about a neighbour who had supposedly stolen one of their recycling bin.

“Sorry Mum but I need to go. Kevin was planning on calling me in ten minutes so I should probably get up and out of my pyjamas.”

“Of course Elizabeth. Happy birthday again. Don’t forget to drink some water before your friends call. I love you, have a great day.” “Thanks Mum, I will. Love you too,” Betty said before quickly hanging up.

--------------------

Betty’s phone rang again at exactly 6:30. She hurried over to where she’d left it on her dresser and answered it quickly.

“Happy birthday Betts!” Her friend’s voice greeted Betty as her face broke into a huge smile at the sight of her best friend.

“Aww thanks Kev, you’re the best.”

“Betts, Imiss you so much, you have no idea,” he exclaimed, the corner of his lips turning down in a fake pout.

“Trust me I know,” Betty replied as she sat down on her bed. “I did talk to you guys two days ago though.”

“Yeah we know but it’s not the same,” whined Kevin. “Anyway, on a lighter note, how are you going to celebrate the big one seven?”

“Umm, well I’m spending the day with Jughead and then we’re gonna watch movies with Ronnie and Arch tonight.”

“Oooh, Betty. And what exactly are you planning on doing with a whole day alone with your handsome prince, hmm?” Kevin waggled his eyebrows in question, reminding Betty of a cartoon character as she burst out laughing.

“Probably nothing even close to what you’re thinking in that screwed up little heads of yours Kev.”

“I’m hurt.” Kevin held a hand up to his chest in mock offense.” “But seriously, what are you doing.”

“I don’t actually know,” Betty confessed. “Jughead said he was planning something but he hasn’t let anything slip.”

“How intriguing. Be sure to fill me in on everything, and I mean everything.”

“I always do Kev.” Betty joked. The topic then turned to more trivial things as Kevin filled in his best friend on the various gossip that was currently circulating. The conversation kept flowing and Betty started to feel like she was back at home, sitting in her pink room on the phone to Kevin as he talked her ear off. It was a strange feeling, to be going through such a familiar routine but feeling so detached from it. Kevin eventually had to leave but Betty sat there for a long time. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she stared out the window.. All she really wanted in that moment was to be able to talk to Kevin for just a little while longer. To slip back into that bubble of familiarity instead of sitting here in isolation. To go home.

--------------------

Jughead strolled into the Lodge’s apartment at nine o’clock with a bunch of flowers in one hand and a small present in the other. He walked straight to Betty’s room and knocked softly on the door.

“Come in,” Betty’s voice sounded small and broken, forcing Jughead to open the door faster than he thought was humanly possible.

“Betty,” Jughead’s heart broke at the sight of her. She looked so small. Her hands quickly came up to her face to wipe away the tears but they just kept coming. He placed the flowers and the gift on top of her dresser before sitting down next to the broken blonde and hugging her tightly. He placed a soft kiss on the top of her head as she collapsed into him. “What’s wrong Betts?” Betty could hear the worry clearly in his voice as she pulled away from the hug, trying again to dry her teary eyes.

“It’s nothing, it’s stupid. Don’t worry about it Jug. I’m fine,” she replied with a fake smile. Jughead looked at her cautiously before resting his hand on one of her legs, his thumb moving in soft circles.

“Betts, come on, I know you. You don’t cry over nothing. What’s going on?” He asked again. She looked down at his thumb as the smile fell from her lips.

“I just … I’m just kinda homesick. I talked to Kevin this morning and just had this unexplainable urge to go back home,” Jughead’s hand moved from her leg to her check, brushing away the tears that had started to fall again. “It’s not that I don’t love it here, I mean it’s honestly a dream come true. In fact, I feel like this is a dream, like I’m not really living, you know? I feel like I’ve just hit pause on my life but no one else has. Everyone else is still carrying on with their everyday routine but I’m here on the other side of the world and no one cares. Everyone back home just assumes that I’m having the time of my life and everything is so easy and I’m living the ‘American dream’ or whatever. Everyone here just treats me like the new kid and makes fun of my accent. I just want things to be normal.” Her tears had dried up now as anger replaced her loneliness.

“Betty, it’s absolutely fine to be homesick. You’re allowed to break down sometimes. You’re allowed to cry and be angry and scream and kick stuff. You don’t need to be strong all the time. I don’t know how to help you with all of that stuff but I will personally beat up whoever makes you feel like you’re unwanted ok? Nobody should ever have to feel that way, especially not you.” Jughead pulled her into his arms again and this time she didn’t pull away. They stayed that way for a long time; Betty curled up around Jughead as he stroked her hair and whispered sweet nothings into her ear. A while later she sat up and looked out the window.

“It’s snowing,” she said quietly, her voice still hoarse from crying. She walked over to the window and Jughead couldn’t help but think how pure and innocent she looked. Her eyes were wide with wonder and she looked out at the white blanket falling over the town. Jughead got up slowly and stood next to her.

“Happy birthday Betts.”

--------------------

Betty had become too entranced by the snow to register that she hadn’t yet eaten. He offered to grab some breakfast and she nodded absent mindedly, not fully registering the question and the white flakes drifted past the glass. He chuckled under his breath before exiting the room in search of food. Veronica was in the kitchen making coffee when he arrived. Jughead was planning on making some toast or finding some cereal but there was already a tray full of pastries on the bench. He searched the cupboards for a clean plate before loading it up with pastries and fruit.

“Hey Jug, is B ok? I thought I heard her crying this morning but I didn’t really want to intrude.” Ronnie asked before taking a sip of her coffee.

“Yeah she’s ok. Just a bit homesick. It’s kind of hard for her, being away from her family and friends on her birthday.” Jughead replied while filling up two glasses with orange juice.

“That sucks. I know how much she was looking forward to her birthday but I didn’t even think about that. Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.” Jughead smiled up at he in response before continuing to empty the kitchen of various breakfast foods.

“Actually,” he said, stopping what he was doing and turning around to face the dark haired girl. “I do have an idea but it might be kind of hard.”

“Anything for B. Just name it and I’ll sort it out.”

“Ok, so…”

--------------------

After their huge breakfast, Betty and Jughead put on their winter coats and stepped out into the snow. Jughead couldn’t stop smiling at his girlfriend. She was running and spinning and jumping around the streets as they walked. Despite his hatred of cellphones and what they did to society, Jughead couldn’t help himself when he pulled his out of his pocket and took some photos of the carefree blonde.

“You would think you’ve never seen snow, Betts,” Jughead quipped. He shoved his phone back into his pocket before she turned around.

“Well, I haven’t really. I mean, I’ve seen snow but I’ve never actually been outside while it’s snowing. Wellington gets cold but it’s right next to the sea so no snow for us.” Although her tone was slightly sad, Betty was beaming at the magical scene surrounding her.

“I guess I never really thought about that. Do you want to stay outside or should we find something to do indoors?” he asked her as her wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her tight.

“Outside, definitely.”

“Ok. I know somewhere we can go.” With that, she was off. She ran down the street, leaving Jughead far behind. Her laughter bounced around the deserted street and Jughead started to wonder if maybe snow was a bit magical. It had to be to turn the crying, broken girl he saw this morning into this playful, carefree Betty he was now chasing through Riverdale. She kept running and laughing and he kept chasing after her, street after street. Betty disappeared around another corner and Jughead followed not long after, his heavy breaths visible in the frozen weather. Once he turned the corner he stopped; Betty had disappeared. He looked around the empty street for the giggly blonde. He couldn’t see her anywhere and was just about to call her name when he felt something cold and wet on the back of his jacket. Sure enough, Betty was standing at the other end of the street, snowballs in hand.

“Watch out Betts. Remember you’re the one who hasn’t been in proper snow before!” He called out to her playfully as he crouched down to make his own snowballs. He managed to roll up two before he felt another one of Betty’s hit him, this time on the back of his head. He stood up to retaliate, only to find the street empty again. “Hey Betts! I got a present for you!” He yelled out while walking towards where he’s last seen her. He heard a faint giggle from behind a large letter box and slowly walked around it before throwing both of his snowballs at her, hitting her shoulder both times.

“Juggie!” She squealed before hitting her with her last ball. They both crouched down to make more, smiles wide on their faces and the sound of their laughter echoed off the houses. Several minutes later they were both soaked. Jughead had one snowball left and Betty tried to run away, only to be stopped by his arms wrapping around her waist and picking her up. Jughead put the snowball down her jacket and she squirmed and giggled as the snow melted down her back.

“I warned you Betty Cooper.” Jughead set her down on the ground in front of him and brushed a strand of hair back behind her air.

“That you did Jughead Jones.” Betty wrapped her arms around his neck and looked up at him for a second before pressing her lips to his. The kiss was slow but heated, soft, but passionate, all at the same time. He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up, spinning her around as she giggled against his mouth. Jughead put her down gently and pulled his lips away slowly. His eyes stayed closed as he leant his forehead against hers, trying to remember every second of this perfect moment. He opened his eyes slowly to see her looking up at him expectantly.

“Happy Birthday Betts.”

--------------------

Eventually the smiling duo ended up at Sweetwater River. They held hands as the strolled along the snowy banks of the water before finally stopping at a large rock. Jughead sat down on the edge, Betty sitting right next to him and leaning her head onto his shoulder.

“Is this where you wanted to take me?’ Betty asks without turning her head. Her voice is soft so as not to disturb their peaceful surroundings.

“Yeah. This is kind of my spot,” Jughead replied. He reached over and put an arm around her shoulder before leaning his head on top of hers.

“It’s beautiful here, even with the snow. I don’t know why I haven’t come here before,” she wondered aloud. Jughead chuckled before replying.

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed but Ron isn’t really a big fan of nature.” Betty chuckled as well at the thought of Ronnie coming into the forest.

“Definitely. I can’t really see her in anything less than three inch heels, let alone sneakers. Plus there are way too many creepy crawlies for her liking.” They fell into a comfortable silence, watching the snow slowly dissolve in the half frozen river and listening to one another breathing. There weren’t any birds around but Betty could imagine the music they would make in warmer weather. Despite them both being soaked from head to toe after their snowball fight, neither of the felt the cold when they were wrapped up in each other’s arms. Betty was so caught up in the their surroundings that she didn’t notice Jughead slide his phone out of his pocket and take another photo of her.

“Before I lived with Archie I used to come here a lot.” He barely broke their silence. His voice was so soft that Betty thought she’d imagined it. She shifted slightly to look up at his face once he moved his head off of her’s. “Once my mum left with my sister, my dad used to come home drunk more and more often so I’d come and sit on this rock. I don’t know why it was here but it made me feel safe. Archie and I used to come here every day during the summer when we were kids to go swimming or fishing and I guess it just reminded me of when things were simple. When my family all lived under the same roof. When I didn’t have to worry about my dad’s drinking. When I was happy. I used to sit here and write. I wasn’t much good but it kept me distracted. Being able to come here and sit in the quiet was so … it was what kept me going. Once I moved in with Archie I kind of stopped coming. I still write but it’s not the same. I used to make up stories about princes and dragons and far away kingdoms.” He chuckles and a small smile plays on his lips as he remembers his own innocence. He’s still looking straight ahead, his gaze locked on the moving water of the river before them. “Now it’s darker, more realistic. I feel like my writing kind of shows how I’ve changed, you know? How I used to be this little kid with dreams and fantasies but now I’m this screwed up teenager with such a pessimistic outlook on life that I can’t even let myself be happy because I feel like it’ll just be taken away from me.” Betty reached up and held his face between her hands, forcing him to look at her.

“You deserve to be happy Jug. You deserve it more than anyone else that I’ve ever known. You’re kind and smart and so much more. No one should have to go through what you’ve been through but you did, and that sucks. Look at you now. You're not this scared little kid running away from your problems anymore. You’re so much more than that. I’m so grateful that you have come into my life and allowed me to see this side of you. The soft side of you that you choose to hide from the world. I know that you’ve been hurt by people you love Juggie but that doesn’t mean that everyone you love will hurt you. That just means that those people who hurt you are idiots because they didn’t realise what an incredible person you are.” His expression softened as he looked into her eyes and saw her determination, her pain, and this light that was purely Betty.

He kissed her, hard. So hard that she fell onto her back on the rock, his body following her’s. The kiss only lasted a few seconds but Betty swore she saw fireworks. Jughead pulled back first but kept his body hovering just above her.

“Thank you Betts, for everything.” She placed a quick kiss on his lips before pushing him off her and sitting up.

“How about you shout milkshakes at Pop’s. It is my birthday after all.” Her green eyes now sparkled playfully, any hint of pain that she felt after their previous conversation had disappeared without a trace.

“Anything for you Betts.” He helped her up and the kept her hand held in his until they saw the familiar red glow of Pops through the blanket snow.

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They got back to the Lodge apartment at about 7pm, takeout from Pop’s was still warm in their frozen hands.They’d spent many hours sitting in their regular booth, laughing over milkshakes as their clothes dripped onto the red vinyl. The walk home had been quick, their clothes will still damp and the wind had picked up, chilling them to the bone. They tumbled through the door, a mess of laughter and melted snow.

“Happy birthday!” Archie and Ronnie sang out from the living room. Ronnie hurried up the couch and hugged Betty tightly, catching the blonde by surprise. Archie followed in a less urgent manner and gave Betts and awkward half nod instead of a hug. Betty returned it with a chuckle.

“Thanks guys. We brought Pop’s for dinner.” Jughead held up the bag before walking over to the living room to set it up. “I’m just gonna go and put on some dry clothes, be back in a minute,” Betty said over her shoulder as she walked out of the room. She returned minutes later in sweats and a t-shirt. “Ok, I’m all good. You guys ready t-”

“Surprise!” Her three friends yelled from their spot by the coffee table. They stepped aside to let Betty look at what was on the table. She gasped and her hands flew up to her face.

“Oh my god! Guys, this is so cool! Oh, you shouldn’t have.” On the table in front of her stood all of things to cure her homesickness; marmite, pineapple lumps, hokey pokey ice cream, ANZAC biscuits, the list goes on. All three of her friends stood in front of her with smiles on their faces but Jughead’s was by far the largest. Betty wrapped her arms around his neck and then jumped, wrapping her legs around his waist. He reached his hands up to her face and kissed her hard. Both of them were smiling widely, pulling away from each other only to be pulled straight back in.

“Ok, ok. I get that you’re excited B but you’re room is literally right there.” Betty kissed Jughead once more before unwrapping herself from Jughead.

“Very funny V. Thank you guys, so much. This is honestly the best birthday I have ever had.” She bounced over to Ronnie and hugged her tightly. “Thanks Ron. I know that Jughead didn’t do all of this by himself. You’re the best.”

“I know B. And honestly, don’t worry about it. You know I’d do anything for you.” The bubbly blonde let go and then walked over to Archie. They looked at each other for a second before Betty stood up on her tiptoes and hugged him briefly.

“Thanks Arch,” she said quietly. He looked down at his feet before giving her a small smile.

“No problem Betty. I didn’t really do much, it was all these two really. I just helped carry stuff from the elevator.”

“Well thanks anyway Arch. Are you guys ready to watch a movie? I don’t know what to watch so you guys can pick if you want.” She was still bubbling with happiness and love for her amazing new friends.

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The rest of the night was spent with good food and even better company. They ended up watching ‘Titanic’, much to Jughead and Archie’s disappointment. The girl’s shared a knowing look but kept quiet when they saw their boyfriends with wet cheeks after the movie. The pineapple lumps were finished as soon as Betty opened the packet but Archie didn’t quite understand how to eat marmite properly.

“No Archie! You need to put less on the piece of toast otherwise yes, it is disgusting.” They were all laughing at the strange faces that Archie was pulling. Jughead and Veronica were still refusing to eat the black spread which their kiwi friend was consuming at speed.

“I don’t know how but your accent seems to get stronger when you're speaking this weird stuff you like to call food,” Jughead teased, receiving a playful punch on the arm from his girlfriend before she kissed him on the cheek.

“Haha, very funny. You wish that you could have this accent,” Betty retaliated, trying to play it cool. The squeal that left her lips gave her act away as Jughead pulled her onto his lap and peppered her neck with kisses.

“I think that’s our queue Archiekins. Happy birthday B, don’t stay up too late,” she said with a wink as she dragged Archie towards the door.

“Don’t worry, I’ll cover for you Jug. Happy birthday Betty,” Archie called over his shoulder before the door slammed behind him.

“A whole apartment all to ourselves, Juggie. Whatever could we do?” Her tone was playful as she leaned back against him.

“Well, I still haven't given you your present yet. Do you want it or should I save it for the next cute blonde with a funny accent that waltzes into my life?” She kissed him softly in lieu of a response before hopping off Jughead’s lap. He took her hand and gently led her down the hall to her bedroom.

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The parcel and the flowers were still sitting on the dresser where he’d left them this morning. Betty went and sat in the middle of her bed, legs crossed and hugging one of the fluffy pillows which Jughead had never really seen the point in. He walked across the room and sat down facing her, shoes hanging off the edge of the bed.

“Happy birthday Betts,” Jughead whispered as he handed the gifts over to girlfriend. She kissed his cheek before looking down at the present in his hand. Betty unwrapped the paper carefully, finding a piece of paper folded up inside. She started to unfold the paper but stopped when she felt Jughead's hand on her wrist.

"Not yet, ok? I don't really want to be here when you read it." He gave her a shy smile before looking down at the bed and picking at a non-existent thread. She placed the note carefully beside her and then cupped his face in her hands, forcing him to look at her for the second time today.

“Thank you, Juggie," she said softly. Their eyes met for a brief moment before his lips were on hers. This kiss was different from all of the others that they had shared. It was soft but needy, saying all of the words they couldn't yet. Jughead pulled back slowly, leaning against her forehead.

“I wouldn’t thank me yet, you haven’t even opened it,” he said jokingly, but Betty could see the uncertainty in his dark eyes.

“Thank you, Juggie,” she repeated. “Thank you for a birthday I will never forget.” Betty kissed him once more before falling back onto the bed and pulling the covers up around her. She was still holding his hand as he carefully removed his shoes and jacket before slipping under the covers beside her. She falls asleep with Jughead stroking her hair and a smile on her lips as she remembers her perfect day.

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Betty wakes up to an empty bed. She rolls over in search of Jughead but only finds a piece of paper in his place.

Had to go and meet Fred. Sorry I couldn’t wait for you to wake up. Pop’s for milkshakes later?

She smiled as she read his messy writing. Betty sat up and picked her birthday present from Jughead off the floor. She sat back down on the edge of her bed. By the time she reached the end of the letter, her eyes were filled with tears. She read the letter four more times before grabbing her phone off the charger and texting her boyfriend three little words.

#exchange romance #bughead fanfiction #bughead fluff #bughead #riverdale #betty cooper #jughead jones #veronice lodge #archie andrews #kevin keller #alice cooper

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