#i beat lucky with with a broom Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[i-dont-eat-drywall]

gave into the voices making a gravity falls x shortswars au

[oneawkwardwriter]

So High School

pairing: James Potter x fem!reader warnings/tags: none except some teeth rotting fluff, possibly inaccurate Quidditch team (I didn't know everyone's positions), allusions to suggestive content?, no use of Y/n summary: just James being an absolutely amazing boyfriend totally not self-insert what- a/n: and thus begins the saga of me taking Taylor Swift songs and turning them into stories about fictional characters. Don't even act like you're surprised, you shouldn't be by now <3 Also, I've been wanting to write for James but couldn't get it right, so a little thank you to Miss Taylor for making this possible wc: 0.8k

"And another goal made by Gryffindor chaser James Potter!" Remus shouts into the microphone while he reacts to the latest Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. "That is three in a row for Gryffindor. Sorry, Ravenclaw, it seems like you'll have no chance of winning today, better forfeit already-"

He is cut off by Professor McGonagall taking the mic out of his hands, "Don't get forget to stay objective, Mr. Lupin," She says, just loud enough for the microphone to pick it up, but the crowd is too busy cheering to hear it.

James does a victory lap on his broom, flying close to the crowd. When he comes close to your section, he sends a quick wink in your direction. You lightly chuckle and roll your eyes when a couple of first years nearly faint from being so close to their unrequited hallway crush.

Not that you can entirely blame them, seeing as you yourself still can't shake the giddy feeling of butterflies whenever James wraps his arms around you. Sure, you'd been dating for about half a year, but somehow he still managed to make your heart skip a beat.

Not long after, the match is over when Marlene manages to catch the Snitch. Louds cheers erupt once more from the spectators on the stands, and soon enough, they're running onto the field to greet the victors.

You're pulled along in the flood of people, practically carried towards the field until the crowd parts for the Gryffindor team. You smile as you lock eyes with James, who practically storms right at you before trapping you in a bear hug, slightly lifting you off the crowd.

"That was amazing!" You say as you wrap your arms around his neck, kissing his cheek. "You did so great out there."

"Only because my lucky charm was in the stands," James replies, burying his face in your neck as he grins, "Couldn't have done it without you cheering me on." You chuckle, knowing arguing against him would be pointless even though you know he's a great player whether you're there or not.

The celebrations continued in the Gryffindor common room, the firewhiskey flowing while people cheered, laughed and talked to each other. Throughout the entire night, James held you practically glued to his hip: always an arm around your shoulders or waist, kissing the top of your head or your cheek.

"-And then Mary fired that Bludger at the Ravenclaw Seeker, and I ducked down for the Quaffle, and then-" James rants about the game, completely caught up in his story.

"Remember to breathe, James. We don't need you passing out," Remus says, making everyone laugh and James shake his head.

"Oh please, as if I could breathe when this one here takes my breath away the entire time," James quips, "Not that I mind, though. I'd gladly pass out if it meant you sitting next to me in the hospital wing."

"James!" You exclaim.

"What? It's true," He responds shamelessly as he shrugs, making the others shake their heads and chuckle.

As if you weren't already glued to his side, James pulls you even closer to him, making you laugh when his breath tickles the nape of your neck.

"Oh come on, can you two act even more like high school sweethearts? We're getting cavities from looking at you " Sirius groans, to which you only raise an eyebrow and reply with, "That's rich coming from the guy who had his tongue down his boyfriend's throat less than a minute ago."

"I don't see the relevance of you pointing that out, but alright," Sirius replies with mock-ignorance as he sits close to Remus, who nuzzles his face in Sirius's nape and softly smiles.

As the night progressed, the firewhiskey started to take over your systems, making you a bit more bold and unfiltered.

"You know, sometimes I still don't understand how we got together," You say, slightly slurring your words as you look at James.

"Oh god, here we go again," Sirius sighed, turning to Remus, "James is going to confess his undying love for her again."

"Hey, I can't help it that this perfect angel walked into my life, you have Remus to blame for that," James shrugged as he kisses your cheek for the millionth time that night.

You and Remus had been friends ever since first year, finding companionship in your shared love for literature and classic history. James swears he fell for you when you were rambling about the works of some ancient philosopher, claiming that you could light up an entire city with the energy you put into it.

"Well, I don't know about perfect angel, but thank you anyway," You say, resting your head on James's shoulder as you whisper in his ear. "I love you, James."

"I love you too, love."

© This work belongs to @oneawkwardwriter, please do not copy this work to any other site or claim it as your own. Reblogs are allowed and appreciated!

Taglist: @unofficialxmarvelfreak

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[urfavlarry]

So you have any hcs for Carmilla and her daughters?

hope this was what you had in mind!! enjoy<3

warnings: mentions of death, bad grammar

———————— general hcs ————————

to be honest a lot of people say that carmilla was a sinner but her daughters were hell born but i think other wise!

I think their family were apart of some mafia gang in italy and provided people with weapons (illegally ofc) and they just got unexpectadly jumped ome day, Carmilla protectinf her daughters until her last breath.

I strongly believe Carmilla was the first to die that day since she protected her daughters, trying to buy them time to escape, sadly they just weren’t so lucky and died just a few minutes after their mothers death. I think Carmilla swore to protect them in hell since she couldn’t do that in the living world and made her way up to the Overlord status, making the chance of people not messing with her family more likely.

I 100% think they have family game night and no one can change my mind. Though a lot of swearing most likely happens that night (obviously from Carmilla, her daughters just snickering at their mother’s tantrums.) But I believe Carmilla shows this side of her to her daughters only, keeping her composure in front of others to not seem weak.

I think Carmilla would be the type of mom that if you got her she would just say something like “Is it broken? Are you dying? No? Okay, well you’re fine stop being a baby.” LMAO

But she of course is caring and would tend to her daughter’s wounds but she acts like a strict mother, scolding and mumbling swears under her breath. But they know deep down that she loves them a lot.

I really think her daughters would cause mischief when they were alive. They would go around and steal and pick pocket tourists and mess up the old ladies laundry from next door, getting chased with a broom soon after that.

Overall i think their relationship is super sweet and that they just have the most normal one in the series haha (except for Charlie and Vaggie)

—————— Some reader insert hcs ——————

I think that Carmilla would find reader after an extermination, badly injured and she would just be like “Your coming home with me”

Her daughters would totally take you in as their sibling right away and would include you in everything. Making sure you always got some attention and make sure nobody messes with you.

You would 100% gossip with them and prank your mom together, having to run for your lives and pray she doesn’t beat what ever life is left in your dead bodies.

Carmilla wouls take you to meetings like her daughters, introducing you and warning the Overlords (Vox, Valentino) to not touch you if they value their souls. And I just see how Alastor sends you funny (and creepy) faces during the meetings and you just chuckle at the old Overlord.

I think Carmilla would try to teach you ballet, wanting to bond with you over something and gives you a proud look and hug when you manage to do a hard trick she has been teaching you for some time.

In general you guys would just be a family of chaos!

[uchi-mochi]

You flatter me (Sebastian Sallow x Slytherin!Reader)

. ⋅ ˚̣- : ✧ : - ⭒ ⊹ ⭒ - : ✧ : -˚̣⋅ .

Summary; After joining the Slytherin quidditch team it is finally time for your first Hogwarts house party with Sebastian. Overal just two idiots who are in love <3

Warnings: mentions of Alcohol, not proofread

Word count: 2k

Requests are open!

. ⋅ ˚̣- : ✧ : - ⭒ ⊹ ⭒ - : ✧ : -˚̣⋅ .

House parties at Hogwarts held a strong legacy for themselves - and with every new party the students tried to out do the last one. Every house was competitive when it came to this.

Quidditch had always been a good reason to host one such party - so when the sport was reintroduced in your 'sixth' year it was only a matter of time before all hell would break lose in the common rooms.

The Slytherin quidditch team had a few open spots, Imelda Reyes had practically begged you to join the try outs, specifically for the role of seeker.

"Y/n L/n." Imelda Reyes said in a stern voice. "You have beat literally all of my damn trials in record time. You know a seeker is all about insight and speed!"

You pondered on your decision. Ranrok was gone and the ancient magic depository laid safe under Hogwarts. You would finally have some time to yourself - developing your flying hobby didn't sound too bad. 

"Besides, I heard a certain troublemaking someone is going to try out for Beater" Imelda teased.

"Very funny Imelda" you said, rolling your eyes at her. She playfully hit your side with her elbow. "Fine, I'll try out for seeker. But you owe me fudge from Honeydukes"

Naturally, you crushed the try outs and landed yourself the role of Seeker. Your competition couldn't even come close to your skills on a broom.

You sat down on the tribunes next to Ominis (who had came to cheer you and Sebastian on), opening a bag of fudge Imelda had given you. The tryout for Beater was next. Imelda was right, Sebastian was taking part in the tryouts. You had seen his surprised face when you entered the pitch - you had told him about your hesitation to join the team, but not about your change of mind.

Sebastian's skills on a broom were quite impressive. You watched in awe as he skillfully dodged and countered the incoming bludgers. He was even cocky enough to fly past you, giving you a wink.

You weren't surprised when he emerged victorious, becoming the newest Slytherin beater.

The only tryouts that were left was for the role of Keeper. Sebastian sat down next to Ominis and you after he had changed out of his quidditch gear.

"Didn't know you were going to try out for Seeker" Sebastian said as he reached for your bag of fudge. "Count me surprised"

You put the bag away from Sallows reach. "Hey, that's my well earned bribe!"

"Imelda had to bribe you to get you on the Slytherin team?" Ominis chuckled. "You're easily bribed, good to know"

Sebastian was taller than you, the difference being even larger than it was in your fifth year. He reached over for the bag and (much to your dismay) snatched a piece of the candy. "You know, I wanted to surprise you by making it on the Slytherin team. But I suppose it's even a better surprise to have my lucky charm right on the field with me"

-

Your first quidditch match was against Ravenclaw. "A good warm-up for our future matches" Imelda had said. Ravenclaw wasn't the strongest opponent you could have been out against - and you were very grateful for that. Despite your rigorous training you were nervous.

"Ready folks?" Imelda asked the team, though she didn't wait for an answer as she flew onto the air. You were all lined up for the opening ceremony, having practiced an elegant yet intimidating entrance. "I want to make them shiver before we even score a single point" Imelda had said. "Besides, it boosts morale"

The trick seemed to have worked; Imelda had scored three times before Ravenclaw did. The score was currently 80-30 for Slytherin. This gave you a slight bit of breathing room to find the golden snitch.

You scanned the playing field and spotted a glint of gold across the other side of the stadium. Sebastian flew to your side, hitting an incoming bludger away from you. You muttered a quick 'thanks'

"Seb!" You yelled. "Keep their Seeker busy for just a minute!"

"Got it!"

You flew down into the pitch, focused on that same glint of gold. Sebastian had kept his word; the Ravenclaw Seeker was far behind you, desperately avoiding the incoming bludgers. He was having a hard time avoiding Sebastian's aggressive plays - even being almost knocked out of his broom. Despite how much you loved besting Sallow in a duel, you made a mental note for yourself to never make him an enemy on the quidditch field.

The snitch was only a few centimetres out of reach as it flew under the tribunes.You upped the speed of your broom, skillfully avoiding every pillar and support that came your way. The snitch flew away from under the tribunes, out in the open air. You could spot the Ravenclaw seeker flying towards the snitch from the other side of the pitch. Sebastian had been knocked to the side and put off balance, disabling him for a few seconds. 

"40-80 for Ravenclaw!"

If you didn't act now, the match would be lost. Steering your broom slightly sideways you cut the snitch of - catching it directly in your hand just before the Ravenclaw seeker could catch it.

You quickly flew above the pitch, proudly displaying the golden snitch to the audience.

"150 points to Slytherin!"

-

You walked alongside your quidditch team into the common room, cheers erupting out of your fellow Slytherins as they swarmed around you. The common room had been decorated with all sorts of green decoration, most of them displaying the Slytherin symbol. Snacks, jugs of butterbeer and bottles of all sorts of alcohol were placed on the tables, both muggle and wizard music playing through the room.

You could spot a few shades of reds and yellows amongst the sea of robes - Merlin knows how they got in here.

Sebastian held hold of your waist, hoisting you into the air then spinning you around. You yelped in surprised at his antics, which quickly turned into a laugh.

"To our new Slytherin Seeker and Beater!" Imelda yelled as she raised her fist into the air, more cheers echoing through the room.

"What was that for!" You laughed as Sebastian put you down onto the ground again, playfully elbowing his side.

"What, can't show off our new quidditch legend?"

"Oh please, don't spare yourself the credit"

The crowd slowly dispersed over the common room as the party officially started.

"Care for a drink, Sallow?"

-

One butterbeer had turned into two (alongside a shot of something you didn't know the name of). Your head felt just slightly fuzzy.

Though that couldn't be said for a quite a bit of your fellow Hogwarts students. You had counted at least three brawl fights between a Gryffindor and a Slytherin this evening - which was very entertaining to watch. However, Imelda had promptly kicked them out of the common room.

Sebastian had left for just a moment to grab another drink, leaving you in the company of Imelda and Natty.

"Way to steal the spotlight today!" Natty said enthusiastically as she patted you on the back, holding a glass of butterbeer in her other hand. "I bet that Ravenclaw seeker is going to be sulking for at least a week"

You chuckled at her comment.

"I knew I was right about you" Imelda quipped in as she chugged down another shot. Merlin, that girl could hold her alcohol. "If you keep this up I'll happily buy you all the fudge your heart could ever desire"

"Look forward to our win streak then, Imelda"

You scanned the room for Sebastian. He had been gone for a while now. You spotted chatting with Ominis across the room from you, pouring him a glass of butterbeer. He had definitely gotten taller over the summer - and oh dear, all the quidditch practice had really made him more muscular. You knew Sebastian was handsome, but had he always looked this good in his white button up shirt and those rolled up sleeves?

Imelda followed your line of sight. "Admiring Sallow now, aren't we?"

You whipped your head away from his direction, embarrassed that you got caught.

"Oh please, it doesn't take a lot to notice how obviously the two of you like eachother"

You shot Natty a pleading look in an attempt to get her to back you up, but all she did was shrug.

"Although I have to admit, seeing the two of you pining over eachother has become one of my favorite past time hobbies, it's about damn time one of you confessed to eachother"

You had harbored a crush on Sebastian ever since the trip the two of you made to Hogsmeade at the beginning of your fifth year - his strong wit, flirty comments and protective nature made you fall head over heels for the troublemaker. However, over the passing year your feelings and admiration for the boy had only grown.

"Don't tell me you're scared of asking a boy out on a date?"

"Shut it, Imelda!"

Natty laughed at your bickering. "You have taken down countless dark wizards Y/n!"

"And don't forget about the poachers"

You groaned. "Don't remind me". They were right. How did asking out a boy seem so much scarier than taking down dark wizards? You hid behind your hands, making Natty laugh as she pulled you against her side.

"Tough evening huh?"

You quickly turned around and came face to face with Sebastian Sallow. If your blush wasn't obvious already, it certainly was now. Imelda and Natty giggled at the sight. Imelda shot up from her seat in a hurry, pulling Natty along with her.

"Our turn to get a drink now!" Natty chirped as the two of them rushed off towards the snack table.

You sighed, internally screaming at the thought of Sebastian hearing your conversations. "you could say that, yeah"

Rather than sitting down, Sebastian held out his hand for you. "I haven't danced yet tonight. Care to indulge me?" Your face lit up, gladly taking his hand.

"I'd love too, Seb"

Sebastian eagerly pulled you with him onto the dance floor, laughter erupting from the both of you.

"Ever danced before?" Sebastian asked as he placed his hand on your waist, making you feel as if butterflies were flying through your stomach

"A few times" you said as Sebastian guided one of your hands to his shoulder. Your other hand was still intertwined with his.

"Well don't worry - I'll lead"

The current song ended, a more slow and romantic song taking it's place. The two of you gently swayed across the dancefloor. Merlin did he look gorgeous tonight. You started into his eyes which were full of love and adoration.

"You're a natural" Sebastian whispered as he gently twirled you around.

"You flatter me too much, Sallow"

"You're worthy of all the flattering in the world, L/n"

You couldn't contain your feelings for him anymore. You didn't know where you got the sudden boost in confidence from but it didn't matter. You let lose of Sebastian's hand and grabbed onto the colour of Sebastian's button up shirt, pulling him into a desperate kiss.

Sebastian needed no time react, pulling you closer against him - his free hand now placed in your hair. He kissed you back just as desperately. His lips were slightly chapped, the taste of butterbeer still evident on them. Your hand found it's way onto his cheek, gently cupping it making him deepen the kiss.

The two of you broke apart, gasping in need of air. "I've been waiting ages for you to do that" Sebastian whispered, letting out a shaky breath as he pulled you into another kiss, cheers erupting through the common room at the sight.

[ohmtoff]

Chasers and the Game for My Heart

Nick Sturniolo x Poc!OC Hogwarts AU

Summary: The first time Nick meets Kevin Thomas, the seventh-year Gryffindor chaser, it’s because the boy saves him from a bludger to the face.

Contains: fluff, most probably inaccurate hp stuff, part veela!triplets, slytherin!nick, gryffindor!oc, gryffindor!chris, hufflepuff!matt, hufflepuff!madi

WC: 5053

Disclaimer: i am not a black person. to depict the character i did research by looking at @writingwithcolor and also asked the darling @nickuniversity for help, tysm girl <3 i don’t support jk rowling and her transphobic, anti-semitic, and zionist remarks (and all others i cant remember bc honestly that woman can’t stfu)

a/n: this is for the darling anon who requested poc!oc, so sorry bby that you had to wait long😭 since this is my first time writing a black character, pls don’t hesitate to criticise me if i say anything tone deaf, innacurate, or offensive. im rlly willing to learn <3 okay hope you enjoyyy!!

——————————————————————————

The first time Nick meets Kevin Thomas, the seventh-year Gryffindor chaser, it’s because the boy saves him from a bludger to the face.

Nick is getting some reading done -hiding out- up on the Slytherin quidditch stands after leaving the library, having grown tired of the group of girls that are always trailing after him sighing and batting their eyes at him, an irritating side effect of his veela heritage. He’s deep into his Herbology book making notes, trying desperately to remember the steps and ingredients to make a Strong Invigoration Draught, that he easily ignores the Gryffindor quidditch team starting practice on the pitch. He’s re-reading a passage on Sneezewort when he hears a loud smacking sound and a ‘watch out!’

Nick looks up and freezes as a bludger comes hurling towards him at top speed. He’s always had shit reflexes, a side effect of having the athletic skills of a drowning sloth, so he can’t move or really think. His brain uselessly supplies that getting his nose broken by a stupid ball when he doesn’t even play quidditch is going to suck, and yet he does nothing but close his eyes, hold his breath, and waits for impact.

Seconds pass.

No ball slams onto his face except for the wind that blows his hair out of his face. He opens one fearful eye and instead of seeing a bludger racing towards him, he sees a giant with luminous locs tied into a ponytail on a broom in Gryffindor colors and a wooden club in his hand.

“That was a close one,” the guy says with a wide smile calmly doing small circles on his broom, like Nick’s face wasn’t almost rearranged. Nick watches as one of the boy’s teammates flies by and the guy throws the club back at him.

“You’re not a beater,” Nick blurts out, his heart is still racing, his brain latching onto unimportant nonsense.

“Nope, Chaser,” he gets in answer, the smile on the boy’s face is sunny and happy like Nick has done a neat trick by noticing. “Lucky for you I was quick enough to grab a beater’s bat and get to you, would be a shame to damage a pretty face like yours.”

Nick feels his face turn red in embarrassment and irritation, it wasn’t the first time a boy teased him about his looks. “This pretty face wouldn’t have to worry if your team was better.”

“Ooh,” the boy grins, his amusement evident and annoying Nick even further. “Slytherins and their sarcasm. That wasn’t very nice, Nick.”

The boy lands his broom down to put his feet on the stand in front of Nick, giving the brunette boy a view on how tall he really is.

Nick narrows his eyes at the boy, “You know my name?”

“Male veelas are rare, even if you’re only a quarter veela, you stand out,” he gets in return with a shrug. “I pay attention.”

The guy winks at him and Nick tells himself his heart is beating out of his chest from the near-death experience and not the boy in from of him. He pulls at his green and silver scarf up, hoping it will hide any redness on his cheeks.

Is he flirting with me?

“Oh, and you got the same face as my captain, so I kinda figured.”

“Oh,” okay that makes more sense.

“Nick!” Speaking of said captain, Chris flew quickly towards him and drops onto the stand with a loud thud. “Holy shit, you okay?”

“Maybe train your team better so I wouldn’t almost get my nose beaten in, fucking idiot.”

The brown skinned boy raised his eyebrows, vision darting between the two brothers.

“Why the fuck were you here anyway? Oh look at me, reading a book at the quidditch stands like a goddamn loser,” Chris jabs back with a mocking voice.

“Putting in work as the only one with a brain between the two of us.”

“Ooh!” The boy lets out a surprised noise then cackled, putting a fist up to his mouth to stifle it.

Both Nick and Chris turn towards the laughing boy. “Shut up, Kev,” Chris lets out with a sigh while also chuckling, making the other apologize with a grin.

Chris turns to Nick again, “Be careful next time, I don’t wanna get a howler from mom. Let’s go Kev, practice isn’t over yet.” Nick was baffled and started sputtering because why the fuck should I be the one careful? It’s your team’s fault! while “Kev” groans.

As Chris flies back onto the pitch, Nick glances towards the tall boy and realizes he hasn’t introduced himself. “You know my name but I don’t know yours, I feel at a disadvantage.”

Nick gets that sunny smile again, “Kevin Thomas, seventh year Gryffindor.”

“Well, Kevin Thomas, seventh-year Gryffindor,” Nick says standing up gathering his books, “thanks for the save.”

“No problem, Nick,” Kevin answers as he mounted his broom and flew himself off the ground with practiced ease, his lips quirking upwards. “Like I said, any damage to that face would be a tragedy.”

“Ha, ha, mock the veela,” Nick says dryly. “Funny.”

Kevin gives him another casual shrug. “Who’s joking? Your face is pretty. Trust me I have spent a lot of time staring at it. Veela or not, that’s just a fact. Later, Nick.”

Nick stares after the boy with his mouth slightly parted in shock at the boy’s comment, he feels himself go red, but as he takes the steps down he can’t help the small smile on his face.

***

It seems now that they have introduced themselves, Kevin is everywhere in the castle. Nick’s sitting with Matt and Chris at the Hufflepuff table in the great hall, munching on their breakfast while trying to ignore the stares of girls from every house table when Kevin walks by with a group of Gryffindor seventh-years.

“Morning, Nick,” Kevin says, slowing his stride when he spots Nick. “You look lovely today,” Kevin continues, still walking but body always facing Nick even when his group has already passed by. He makes a self-satisfied smile when Nick chokes on his juice. “Enjoy your breakfast.” He finally notices the two same faces looking at him with confusion, “Chris. Matt.” Both said boys nod at him and voice their own greetings.

Nick watches him stop, swallowing hard when Kevin throws him a wink over his shoulder as he sits at his table. He notices that Kevin lets his locs hang loose today, differing from when he first met him. His locs reach his shoulder with a few strands adorned with gold jewelry. Nick turns back to his brothers red-faced, his stomach doing weird flips and jumping jacks to find them staring at him hard.

“What the hell was that?” Matt asks, the first one to recover while Chris still stares at him wide-eyed. “Why is Kevin Thomas hitting on you?”

“He’s not hitting on me,” Nick argues, sounding weak even to his own ears. Chris snorts causing Nick to make a disgruntled face at him.

“Oh shit, why does Nick look grumpier than usual?” Madi asks as he comes to sit down next to him.

Nick opens his mouth to also argue that comment, but Chris beats him to the punch.

“Kevin Thomas has a crush on Nick,” he blurts out loudly and Nick cringes, stooping down when more than one person around them looks over at them.

“Chris,” he hisses. “Shut up.”

“He said you looked lovely, bro,” Matt adds in and Madi squealed.

“Oh shit, that means my own bro thinks I look lovely, ugh,” Chris pretends to hurl at that.

“Damn, Nick, you pulled Kevin Thomas!” Madi lets out a high pitched squeal again, ducking when Nick half-heartedly tries to slap the back of her head. Nick could hear a couple murmurs and whispers from around the table and he wishes he could jump from the nearest tower.

“Guys, shut the fuck up. We literally just met a few days ago, how can he be into me?” Nick grumbles.

Both Matt and Chris snort in front of him. “You’re acting as if we don’t genetically attract people,” Matt says with a nonchalant tone. Nick ignores the slight pinch on his chest at that remark.

Chris adds, “Yeah, even Madi had a crush on us.”

“That was literally when I was a first year, can you shut up!” The fourth year Hufflepuff whines while the brothers let out a roar of laughter, embarrassed remembering her silly little crush on her best friends years ago. The triplets met Madi as a third year when she was just a first year fresh out of the sorting hat. They were at the great hall chatting when a tiny and meek girl gave them love letters then ran away. The boys at first were apprehensive with her as they were with any girl who throws themselves at them, but after she got closer to them and saw their antics, which sometimes involve burping on her face and throwing food from the dining hall at each other, she knew she just loved them as friends, and the boys did too.

“Wait, you know him?” Nick questions, ignoring the ‘duh’ look Madi throws his way. “How? I get that both Chris and Matt know him because they both play Quidditch, but what about you?”

“Everyone knows him, maybe if you join us when we watch Quidditch matches once in a while, you’ll also know that he’s one of the best chasers competing now. He’s super fast,” Madi divulges while taking a bite of the roasted chicken, judging her best friend for being the hermit that he is.

Chris nods, “That’s true, I’m so lucky he’s a Gryffindor.”

“Hufflepuff is still gonna beat your ass though in the next match. With Thomas or not,” Matt says with pride and a smug smile as a beater of the Hufflepuff team, prompting them to argue and yap for the next few minutes which Nick is used to tuning out as one with no interest at all in the sport.

Madi also had no interest in hearing them banter so she turned towards Nick with a smirk, “So, how did you meet him?”

Nick explains to her the bludger incident and Kevin’s comments after he saved him. Madi listens with a concentration she reserves for when they gossip, and everytime he tells her about anything Kevin said to Nick, she’s fully convinced that the tall boy most definitely has a crush on Nick. He doesn’t want to admit it but god did it feed his delusions.

They continued eating and as the minutes tick away, conversations dwindle and students start to filter out, drawn towards their impending classes. Nick remembers that he hasn’t done his Charms homework and lets out a long quiet “Fuck”.

“I’m gonna go, I want to stop by the library before Charms. Bye guys,” Nick walks to leave the great hall, feeling a stare on him that he knows isn’t his brothers’ or any of his admirers’ but a pretty boy with deep dark eyes.

***

A part of him isn’t exactly surprised when he walks out of the library and finds Kevin leaning against a wall across from him. The Gryffindor ditched his robe so he was only wearing his white shirt and grey sweater, highlighting his broad chest.

“Hey Nick,” Kevin greets him again, pushing against the wall to stand up straight to his full height, hands tucked into his pockets.

“Kevin,” Nick acknowledges, grateful he doesn’t stammer even though his heart raced faster than any chaser known at the sight of the boy.

Kevin smiles, falling into step. “Going to Charms?” he asks. Nick nods trying not to read too much into Kevin knowing what his next class is. “I’ll walk you.”

“Don’t you have a class of your own to get to?” Nick can’t help but question, even though he’s secretly thrilled at spending a little more time with the boy.

“I have time,” Kevin answers just as easily.

“Okay.”

They walk silently towards the charms corridor on the second floor with only a few sneaky glances from both of them. As they climb the stairs, a group of fourth year Gryffindor girls walk by, giggling as they spot Nick, making him sigh. Kevin chuckles next to him and Nick shoots him an irritated look that makes him laugh even harder.

“That happens a lot?” Kevin questions moving closer to him as the girls get closer.

“More than I would like,” Nick says, ignoring one of the bolder girls, Emma, who stops on the steps and tries to give him some really awkward bedroom eyes. Nick was never one to hide his judgements so he stares back at her and cringes. Kevin takes a step even closer to him, his hand brushing against Nick’s as he does so. Startled, Nick looks up at him with wide eyes, but Kevin ignores him and instead stares at Emma until she huffs and keeps moving.

Once she’s left, Kevin doesn’t move away but continues to walk with Nick up the stairs, his hand continues to brush Nick’s and he swallows hard when in one brush Kevin hooks his pinky with his.

“There are worse things than being popular with girls,” Kevin comments like he isn’t practically holding Nick’s hand and Nick isn’t screaming in his own head.

“You would know, do you?” Nick teases back, noticing that some of the girls were looking at the taller as well. Kevin laughs at that then made an arrogant shrug.

“It is when you know it’s because of your biology,” Nick answers the previous question and in a bold attempt, moves to intertwine more of their fingers together. He lets out a small puff of breath when Kevin doesn’t pull away and he sneaks a peek at Kevin to find his gentle eyes gazing into his blue ones deeply.

“Besides,” Nick continues to brave. “Girls aren’t really my thing.”

Nick looks down to hide his blush when that gets him another tender smile.

***

Nick isn’t sure how he finds himself a few weeks later back in the library with Kevin sitting across from him.

That’s a lie, Nick and Kevin talk everyday ever since Kevin walked him to his Charms class. Small comments in the great hall turn to full blown conversations with Kevin sitting next to him and his brothers, and the taller boy walking him to class became a routine now with Kevin even holding his books for him. Next thing he knew, studying alone became study dates.

Kevin is working on his Herbology homework while Nick works on Transfiguration. At least he’s trying to work on it, Headmistress McGonagall likes to pop into her old class from time to time and Nick liked to be on his game, but he found that it was kind of difficult when there was a pretty boy in front of him who keeps knocking his feet against his.

The warm library lighting illuminates Kevin’s skin, casting a gentle glow that highlights the intricate gold jewelry intertwined with his locs. Today, his hair is done in a half-up half-down hairstyle with a few strands in the front left untied. His brows are furrowed with concentration and his hands are diligently taking notes, veins popping up more than usual. Nick undeniably loves serious Kevin.

“You’re staring,” Kevin murmurs without looking up from his book, his quill in hand. He looked at Nick from under his eyelashes, his lips quirking upwards. In the gentle flicker of the warm candlelight, Nick can see how those dark eyes ignite, the candle fire dancing on those irises.

You’re playing footsies with me, Nick wants to shoot back, but instead he shifts his foot, letting it slowly trail up Kevin’s leg and it’s Nick’s turn to grin when Kevin’s breath hitches and stares at him in surprise.

Nick gives him a challenging look that says ‘two can play this game’ and Nick watches, his face red as Kevin bites down on his plush lip to control his grin.

“So,” Kevin starts hesitantly and Nick frowns because it’s not a word he’s waiting to hear. He would much rather hear words along the lines of “hide” and “kiss”.

“Yeah?”

“Hogsmeade weekend coming up, are you going?”

Nick can feel a smile tugging at his lips as he watches Kevin fidget with his quill, getting some ink on his fingers. “I was planning on it.”

Kevin licks his lips as he looks at Nick. “Are you planning on going with anyone?”

Nick smirks at that, letting a small chuckle when Kevin narrows his eyes playfully at him. “Usually I would go with my brothers and friends, but Matt and Chris are both going with their housemates and Madi’s going with her boyfriend, soooo I’m all by myself unless somebody comes up and offers to accompany my lonely self.”

He stares back at the other calmly, grinning when Kevin lets out a huff. “You’re teasing me.”

Nick mockingly points at himself. “Me? Never.”

Kevin rolls his eyes but is smiling widely. “I don’t even know why I like you so much, you’re a brat,” Kevin says, the fondness in his voice taking any sting away from the words. Kevin sets aside his book and quill to give all his attention to Nick. “Will you go with me?”

Nick looks at Kevin for another moment, taking in the way Kevin looks at him with a hopeful expression, like the possibility of Nick wanting to spend time with him at Hogsmeade will make his day or more. Suddenly feeling shy, Nick nods.

Kevin rewards him with a beaming grin.

***

“So your mum’s a half-veela, and your dad’s a muggle-born?” Kevin asks as he and Nick walk leisurely through the chilly streets of Hogsmeade, other students walking by, coming in and out of shops. A few nod in their direction and some whisper but luckily none approach either of them, letting Nick enjoy Kevin all to himself.

“Yup. My mom’s from Portugal but she chose to go to Hogwarts instead of Beauxbatons because her family hates the French,” the other chuckles, “and thanks to her, she met this silly irish-italian bloke at school who is my dad.”

“Well, say thanks to your mum and her family for me,” Kevin says and winking. Nick honest to god giggles like a little girl at that.

“What about you? What’s your family like?” Nick asks back as he bumps into Kevin when a group of third years excited to be out of the castle rush past him. Kevin puts his arm around his shoulder, pulling him close to him and away from the crowd, his arm stays on his shoulder once the group has passed and Nick finds himself being bold and snaking his arm around Kevin’s waist. Nick looks up at the taller boy who’s sporting a small shy smile.

Kevin tilts his head, “Way less interesting than yours. Dad’s a half-blood and mum’s a full-blood. Both went to Hogwarts but never met each other here. Both came to London for work where they met then they gave birth to yours truly,” he refers to himself with a curtsy, Nick wonders whether he has ever laughed this much with anyone. “Oh, and my dad fought in the second wizarding war. He was friends with Harry Potter.”

“What?! Enough about me, that fact is already cooler than any of my family lines!” he exclaimed.

“Yeah, my dad’s pretty cool. Always grateful he survived and met my mum. If not, I wouldn’t be here.”

“I’m glad you’re here,” Nick admits, his cheeks tinted pink.

Kevin stops walking, with his arm still around Nick, he leans in, his forehead brushing Nick’s hair. “Me too.”

Nick clears his throat when Kevin pulls away, his face burns more than ever before. “So, where are we going?”

“What are you feeling?”

Nick gives Kevin a teasing look. “Wow, you asked me out and you don’t even have a plan? So much for feeling special.”

“You’re very special,” Kevin answers honestly instead of responding to the teasing and Nick rolls his eyes but can’t stop the wide smile from taking over his face.

“How about Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop?”

Nick makes a face at the suggestion causing Kevin to laugh at him.

“Wow,” Kevin says, still chuckling, his eyes twinkling with amusement. “That’s a no.”

“That place is so tacky.”

Kevin shakes his head, “It’s supposed to be romantic, you don’t want to hold my hand over tea in a place with steamed up windows?”

“I can hold your hand right now,” Nick answers, demonstrating by doing just that. “See?”

Kevin looks down at their joined hands and then back at him, his expression pleasantly surprised.

“Yeah,” he says softly, squeezing Nick’s hand before they start walking again. “How about the Three Broomsticks then we go to Honeydukes?”

Nick nods, “Now you’re talking.”

***

After they got butterbeers at Three Broomsticks and picked up some candy at Honeydukes, Nick and Kevin walk slowly back towards the castle, this time with Nick’s arm curling around Kevin’s bicep.

Nick is sucking on a liquorice wand, while Kevin gambles with his taste buds with a bag of every flavor beans, Nick finds himself watching Kevin, giggling every time he makes a face about a new undesirable flavor.

“What was that one?”

“I think tripe,” Kevin answers wrinkling his nose at the taste playing it up to make Nick laugh again. “How’s yours?”

Nick gives the liquorice wand a lick before sucking on it some more, he smirks around the candy when he sees Kevin’s eyes drift down to his mouth, Nick stops and comes to stand in front of Kevin pulling the candy out of his mouth. “Better than yours, want a taste, get the tripe flavor out of your mouth?”

“Sure,” Kevin answers, reaching for Nick’s candy but Nick pulls it out of reach while stepping closer to the other. Going on his toes, he leans up brushing his lips against Kevin’s, once, twice, three times, his eyes open to watch Kevin’s reaction, taking in the way Kevin’s eyes widen and his breath shortens. Nick starts to pull back down when Kevin is spurted into action, his large hands come up and cradle Nick’s head, his fingers sinking into Nick’s brown hair, his lips slated over Nick’s, making a noise as he chases the sweet taste in Nick’s mouth.

Nick sighs into the kiss, his hands going to Kevin’s sides to steady himself, suddenly feeling lightheaded as Kevin takes his time with the kiss.

When Kevin pulls back, he keeps his forehead pressed against Nick’s, his nose brushing his and he smiles that same beaming smile he gave Nick the first time on the pitch. “You’re right, tastes much better.”

***

Nick is sitting with Matt and Madi again for breakfast, this time at the Gryffindor table which is buzzing with excitement for the upcoming match versus Slytherin. Chris is sitting next to them with the Gryffindor quidditch team, giving a pep talk to motivate the team and discuss strategies.

“I’m kinda offended you never watch my games but you jump to watch the first one now that you have a boyfriend,” Matt says.

Nick lets out a long groan, “Ugh, fine, I’ll watch your matches next time. Don’t expect me to enjoy it though, the supporters are barbaric.”

“You’re going to root for me, right?” Nick hears a familiar voice and turns around in his seat to find Kevin already dressed in his quidditch uniform standing behind him, his expression warm as he looks down at Nick. It’s been over a week since their date and they’ve spent every free moment together and yet Nick can’t believe this boy with his pretty smile and gentleness for him is for Nick to keep.

“Hi, Kevin!” Madi greets him loudly, interrupting Nick and Kevin’s staring. Nick watches as Kevin looks amused at his best friend and greets her back, extending his hellos to Matt who nods at him. Kevin straddles the bench Nick is sitting on, leaning in close to him.

“So,” Kevin starts, his expression teasing. “You are going to root for me, right?”

“Root for you?” Nick repeats in a mocking tone. "Against my own house? I know loyalty isn't the first trait you think of when you hear Slytherin, but I assure you we are, sorry but I'll be rooting for you to fall off your broom."

Kevin makes an exaggerated gasp at that, drawing the attention of a few students. "We’re not gonna be able to make out if I get hurt, you really want that?"

“You’re forgetting I’m a veela, I can kiss anyone.”

"None as good as me though," Kevin replies with a grin of his own, hands reaching and body leaning forward to grab a muffin.

Nick takes advantage of how close it puts Kevin to him that he leans in and presses a soft kiss against Kevin’s jaw. He smiles against the skin as Kevin brings his arm around Nick, pulling him close. He kisses him again, this time at the corner of Kevin’s mouth, enjoying the way it makes Kevin smile.

“Good luck,” he whispers against Kevin’s lips.

“Thanks, baby,” Kevin whispers, giving him a soft lingering kiss before he stands up and walks away.

Nick watches as he walks over to his teammates who are waiting for him, some hooting and hollering while Chris cringes. When he turns around he finds more than one person staring his way, but he doesn’t mind, he’s gotten used to the stares for a long time. Instead he looks back to Matt and Madi, rolling his eyes at the amused smiles they are giving him.

“You two are sickening,” Matt teases while Madi is silently screaming into the air.

***

They head for the pitch each going for their respective stands, by the time Nick has taken a seat, the teams are already on their brooms circling the pitch waiting for the whistle to be blown. As soon its blows there is loud cheering in the stands as Slytherin grabs the quaffle first, followed by hissing and booing when Kevin manages to recover the ball and heads for the hoops, the booing in the Slytherin stands gets louder as he scores, but Nick allows himself a smile at Kevin’s skill.

The game continues, each team evenly matched and always within a couple of points from each other, Nick can see the seekers searching for the golden snitch hoping to win and end the game for their team. Nick is more than ready for the game to finish. He loves his house and is proud to be Slytherin but he knows how aggressive they are about winning and now that they have realized just how good Kevin is at scoring, he’s become their focus, more than once a Slytherin player has tried to throw him off his broom and if the game drags any longer he has a feeling they are going to get their way.

Nick isn’t done thinking that when a Slytherin beater hits a bludger straight for Kevin, Nick watches in horror as Kevin who hasn’t noticed the ball headed for him gets slammed from behind.

“Kevin!” he yells, his scream drowned out from the cheers in the stands. He gasps, watching helplessly as the hit causes Kevin to slip off his broom. His heart beats loudly as Kevin manages to hold on at the last second, one hand gripping his broom as he dangles in the air. Kevin’s teammates rush to help, forming a line of defense to allow Kevin to get back on his broom. Nick holds his breath the seconds it takes Kevin to get seated again, letting it out once he’s back on safely. He watches as Chris talks to Kevin and whatever is said Kevin answers with a sharp nod, his face determined. Nick’s nerves are on edge for the rest of the game and when the Gryffindor’s seeker captures the snitch he isn’t disappointed about his team’s loss, he’s just happy that it’s over. The wide smile on Kevin’s face that he can see even from the stands doesn’t hurt either.

***

Nick is waiting outside the Gryffindor’s locker room, ignoring the looks more than one Gryffindor sends his way as they wait to celebrate with their team. A cheer goes up when the team walks out and Nick presses himself against the wall to avoid the surge, he waits but doesn’t have to wait long. Kevin spots him over the crowd and heads for him, nodding and smiling absently as his housemates congratulate him. He comes to stand in front of Nick with a smile on his face and Nick studies him, his handsome face, his kind eyes, he stands tall and beautiful.

Nick pushes himself off the wall and wraps his arms around him, his nose pressed into the crook of Kevin’s neck, he sighs as he’s enveloped in Kevin’s warmth when he returns the hug. He presses himself even closer, still letting out another happy sound that Kevin answers with a small chuckle as he runs his hands up and down Nick’s back.

“You scared the fuck out of me,” he murmurs.

“Your housemate’s fault.”

Nick pulls back to look up at Kevin’s face. “I’m hexing the fuck out of them, my brothers will help me.”

Kevin lets out an infectious laugh, his eyes sparkling with amusement. “My hero.”

“Damn straight,” Nick answers, grinning. “You’re alright, though?”

“Yeah,” Kevin answers softly. “There’s going to be a hell of a bruise on my back, but other than that I’m fine.”

“Good,” Nick lets out a relieved sigh, lifting his head in a silent request he smiles when Kevin gives him a soft kiss. “I should probably let you go, I’m sure you want to celebrate with your team.”

Kevin shakes his head, holding onto Nick. “Nope, I want to celebrate with my pretty boyfriend. What do you say we sneak into the kitchen for something sweet and then we find a quiet corner in this big castle to make out in?”

Nick grins, a laugh bubbling out of him, feeling happier than he’s ever felt. “That sounds like a plan.”

[mysteryshoptls]

SSR Silver Bloom Birthday Personal Story Part 3

"Happy Birthday"

(Part 1) (Part 2) Part 3

[Diasomnia Dorm – Birthday Party Venue]

Idia: Haaah… The end is finally nigh. Here's the last question!

Idia: “How do you spend your days off?”

Silver: My days off, hm… On days when I have Equestrian Club, I am busy with those activities, but other than that, I do my daily training regimen.

Silver: However, on my most recent day off, I went into town.

Idia: Ugh… That kind of response means I'm supposed to ask more… …Silver-shi, what did you do in town?

Silver: I went to have a meal. After my club activities concluded for the day, I ran into Ruggie on the way back to my dormitory.

Silver: "You gotta help me!" he said, and so I followed him. I must admit, I was worried as to what may have happened.

Idia: Do normal people actually run to help when someone asks like that? Nah, that definitely throws up red flags…

Silver: I jumped on a broom and went into town, rushing after Ruggie, and we landed at a restaurant.

Silver: It was rather crowded, and at this largest table in the back of the restaurant, there were many students from our own school.

Silver: I knew not their names, but Ruggie headed towards that table, and I sat beside him.

Idia: You were dragged without any explanation, and just joined a group of people you didn't know…!? Isn't that the worst!?

Silver: Is it? It did not bother me.

Idia: You don't get any social anxiety, or, what, you're one of them happy-go-lucky partiers too…? A-Ah, I mean, uh, please go on.

Silver: That day, there was a promotion where your meal would be free if you were to beat the restaurant owner in an arm-wrestling match.

Silver: Most of Ruggie's more built friends attempted to do this, and were all summarily defeated quickly.

Silver: From what I understand… Ruggie hastily ran back to the school to look for someone, anyone who would be able to solve their predicament.

Idia: Ah. So the first person that Ruggie found when he got back to the school that looked "good enough" was you.

Silver: At first, the restaurant owner went easy on me, worried that he may injure me.

Silver: He must have realized that I was truly a challenge, for he started to take me seriously as an opponent in the end.

Idia: I bet he didn't take Silver-shi serious at all, what, with the way he looks like a windswept prince…

Silver: As the match was coming to a climax, it was not only Ruggie and his friends that were watching us, but others sitting at the surrounding tables, as well.

Silver: In fact, I also started to hear them cheer for me, saying such things as, "Keep going!" and "Don't lose, kid!"

Silver: It was a difficult battle, but thanks to the encouragement from those around me, I was somehow able to secure my victory.

Silver: Having large crowds surround me such as they did, or having such a lively meal with friends my own age like I did then…

Silver: I would never have been able to experience those sorts of events if I were back home. That was a sincerely memorable and precious day.

Idia: Interview completed!! Kk, Silver-shi, take this broom.

Silver: The end is made into a bouquet, I see. I don't believe this would be useful for any sort of sweeping, let alone flying.

Idia: Silver-shi and a White Bouquet… It's way too bright, it's blinding me. Please go and get ready to fly as soon as you can, already.

Silver: Right, Idia-senpai is far too busy. I should head towards the birthday road quickly.

Silver: …The birds have started to gather with me. I'll do my best to fly in the sky along you all.

(Part 1) (Part 2) Part 3

[jasper-book-stash]

January 2024 Reading Wrap Up

As y'all know, I started this blog anew to record my thoughts on some books I read. Unfortunately, I have a bad habit of reading a lot more books than the average human should, and they knock each other out of my noggin. This is why I maintain a color-coded spreadsheet with columns to keep track of things. I also took on a winter reading challenge, and I've read most of the 17 books I was looking to read. With that said, let's see where things landed this month!

Religious Text

None applicable.

1/10 - Why Did They Publish This?

None applicable (thank the gods).

2/10 - Trash

Creating Magickal Entities: A Complete Guide to Entity Creation | David Michael Cunningham, Taylor Ellwood, T Amanda R Wagener

This one was...rough. Painful, even. This made me retroactively rate the other occult books I read higher just to cope.

3/10 - Meh

Heartbreaker | Julie Garwood [reading challenge]

I was hoping this one would be fun, considering the author is from Missouri and the summary seemed promising, but the main male character (not the antagonist) came across as a creep the whole time. I hated him very much.

4 to 6/10 - Mid-Tier

Sigil Magic for Writers, Artists, & Other Creatives | T Thorn Coyle [reading challenge]

With all due respect to Mx. T Thorn Coyle…this book sucked. It originated as a zine and tbh it should have stayed that way. There was a lot of fluff to get the page count up that could honestly have been removed (and should have been). I didn’t feel like I came away from this one learning anything new about sigils or how to incorporate them or my writing into my craft.

The Whittiers | Danielle Steel [reading challenge]

Unlike my surprisingly good experiences reading The Wedding Planner, The Whittiers was a sludge to get through. It was a bit annoying to hear Danielle Steel talk so much about how the characters weren't rich when they were clearly living a rather rich lifestyle without much financial problems in the beginning, and I eventually gave up on the book. The characters just...weren't too compelling to trudge through the repetition for.

The Stranger Upstairs | Lisa M Matlin

YOU. This book took a bit too long to get to the point (the plot), but at least part 2 was absolutely riveting and the epilogue was intriguing. I honestly think None Of This Is True by Lisa Jewell did this better, even though The Stranger Upstairs is more about a house than a person. Just...read None Of This Is True instead. Trust me.

Liber Null and Psychonaut | Liber Kaos | Peter J Carroll

Part of what I'm doing is research into chaos magic, starting with its foundational texts. And boy howdy, is this a severely middling book to me. Pointlessly obtuse, refuses to get to the point, spends too long sucking Aleister Crowley's dick... But utterly fascinating from a retrospective point of view, seeing what chaos magic looks like now.

7 to 8/10 - Good With Caveats

Dracula | Bram Stoker [reading challenge]

I'm going to beat Bram Stoker with a broom. Good with the caveat that you have to read it with the context of it being a product of its time. Also, post-vampire Lucy Westenra can GET SOME.

Strawberry Shortcake Murder | Joanne Fluke [reading challenge]

I "read" this one in audiobook form, thanks to my library having a Playaway of it. This one…aged a little poorly in some aspects. I might skip into more modern entries to the series rather than trudge through the older stuff to get there.

The Leftover Woman | Jean Kwok [reading challenge]

This one was a fucking TRIP. This book was full of twists and turns and physically pained me at points. It absolutely fucked me up and I was crying by the end, so I was lucky that no one came into work while I was reading it. I can't say much about it for fear of spoiling it, other than that it delivered upon what it promised.

The Midnight Library | Matt Haig [reading challenge]

This did NOT help with the crying! This book also fucked me up! It’s absolutely wild from the get-go. Content warning for animal death early on, though, because that did not help my anxious ass.

Marrying the Ketchups | Jennifer Close [reading challenge]

With all of the things this book was juggling, it ended exactly how it needed to.

Spells for Change: A Guide for Modern Witches | Frankie Castanea/Chaotic Witch Aunt

I was expecting something entirely different from this book.

Condensed Chaos: An Introduction to Chaos Magic | Phil Hine

Exactly what it says on the tin.

Magickal Servitors: Create Your Own Spirits to Attract Pleasure, Power and Prosperity | Damon Brand

Far more effective and to-the-point than Creating Magickal Entities was, but still far from perfect.

9/10 - Very Very Good

The Puppets of Spelhorst | Kate DiCamillo [reading challenge]

This book is one I've been meaning to read since the library got it in. It's an adorable story with great illustrations and plenty of drama for the 8- to 12-year-old in your life. Or for you, if you want a touching low-stakes story with an open ending.

Dog Man: Twenty Thousand Fleas Under The Sea | Dav Pilkey [reading challenge]

From the guy who brought us Captain Underpants comes an adorable graphic novel about…honestly a lot happening, there was a lot. Luckily, even though it’s late in the series, there’s enough context provided that you can get a good grasp of the characters. Doesn’t have much to do with Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, though, so I’m deducting a point for that. I read Jules Verne's work and there was nothing about a dog-headed cop in there, nor a cat man who used to be a criminal and is having the worst redemption arc of his life.

Honestly, it was still fun.

Practical Gods | Carl Dennis [reading challenge]

Read for both my reading challenge AND my book club's Pulitzer Prize prompt, this is such a lovely collection of poems and really gets into the crossing of religious belief with modern problems. How does it do this as a book of poetry? I’m not sure! But it did! Definitely worth the multiple prizes it has won. I ordered my own personal copy and I'm waiting for it to arrive.

Gods of Jade and Shadow | Silvia Moreno-Garcia [reading challenge]

I AM GOING TO EAT THIS BOOK BECAUSE I LOVE IT SO MUCH. We love a book in which the main character dies but that's not the end of their story!

Warrior Magic: Justice Spirituality and Culture from Around the World | Tomas Prower

I did a little write-up of this one.

Give-A-Damn-Jones | Bill Pronzini [reading challenge]

This one was great because the titular character respects women and protects minorities and keeps getting into situations. We love a guy who doesn't want to be here! This was the first Western I've read, and I think it was a good pick.

10/10 - Unironically Recommend To Everyone

Well, everyone who's into the genre these fall under, at least.

Sappho: A New Translation | Mary Barnard

I was so worried that this translation would...well, straightwash Sappho, but from what I see, Mary is dedicated to translating them as close to intentional meaning as possible, including Sappho's bisexuality. Hell yeah.

Welsh Witchcraft: A Guide to the Spirits, Lore, and Magic of Wales | Mhara Starling

This is an in-depth look into a Welsh witch's practice. It's delightful to read someone talk about their own craft, and you can really tell that Mhara loves the place she lives in.

Exodus 20:3: A Monster Romance | Freydis Moon

We love a gay angelfucker romance between a trans man and an angel, complete with smut. Honestly, a great time.

The Salt Grows Heavy | Cassandra Khaw

Do you want the mermaid from The Little Mermaid fairy tale to murder people? Do you want a nonbinary plague doctor? Do you want to hear about murderous child cannibals and freakish surgeons? Do you want your protagonist to McFucking Snap? Do you want a happy ending in the weirdest way possible in this setting? Read The Salt Grows Heavy! A mere 112 pages that will fuck you up while you're trying to poop in peace!

[dragonoffantasyandreality]

Kamen Rider Thunderbirds Chapter 4: The Egoistic Genius - Part 5-Riders Side

(Prologue, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5-Riders…)

I have returned to finish this chapter once and for all! >:D

Starting with the Riders' side of the ending!

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

-0-0-0-

The winter was restless that night. Cold winds howl through the frames of the tight shut windows, and snowflakes were nothing more than white blurs in darkness.

Comparing to the fast-passing crystals of water, were fast moving pixels on the screen. Much like the there were hundreds of white snowflakes, so there were hundreds of black letters that formed words and the sentences on the message boards.

Koji was checking in the messaging board net, made in the OS strictly accessed to only Kamen Riders around the globe. He saw the usual things; one board discussing the daily chaos in their daily lives. Another - how their missions and Kaijin hunts were doing. And… more chaotic shenanigans between the Riders.

One board that Koji had always kept an eye on, were from the Kamen Riders working with the world organisations (excluding International Rescue).

Kamen Rider Aqua, who was working with the WASPs, was reporting the news about the ongoing war with the underwater aliens. While Kabuto and his team in Spectrum were reporting the recent Mysteron activity.

Fruit Jesus! How tiring for the whole world, to have two ongoing wars with hostile races who seemed to be determined to wipe out humanity off the map, Koji thought grumbly, as if us Kamen Riders must worry about them as well, along with waves of new and old Kaijins each year.

Meanwhile, a lot of his fellow Riders where asking Koji how International Rescue had been doing? Quite a turn of events really, ever since he and his friends made first contact with them on that Fateful Day.

He explained in short and straight forward answers of things he knew from their encounter. What he got were… mixed thoughts.

Despite this, nobody thought once IR were shady. Just… secretive. More so than even Spectrum.

And of course, he later got a message from a ‘very famous detective’ - asking how Tensai was doing.

“Pretty much got his chance of meeting International Rescue… according to the Australian news. He is yet to report,” Koji typed in the reply, very casually. Not a few moments later, he got a rather hilarious outburst of ‘NANI!?’ sent back to him.

Their Genius Rider would love to see this.

Speaking of Tensai, as soon as he closed the program, the genius’s call came ringing. And in a blink of an eye, he clicked on the gear insignia.

“Good evening, mate!” How’s your little meeting with our rescue ‘cryptids’ went?” he greeted him.

“Fine, fine!” began the genius with a grin of a cheeky rabbit, “I met them, helped them beat the ever-living atoms out of the Kaijins, and saved the mine’s idol…” he smirked when his fellow Rider raised an eyebrow at him, “one of the big drilling machines that the Aussie Iron Mine had. And she got a cute name too. The drill’s name was ‘Bessie’.”

Koji rolled his eyes in amusement, “Don’t say its cuter than ‘G3-X’…” He immediately got a pout from the Rider genius.

“Oi, if this cheers you up; Leo just contacted me about your whereabouts. Got a lil' shock when he heard you met International Rescue," he smiled cheekily, in which the genius on the other side of the screen mirrored his expression.

“Oh, that reminds me! I got something to give him a run for his money!”

Tensai perked up and lifted a pointing finger before diving off camera. After sounds of shuffling (and a few crashes), he returned, with a familiar gun in his hands.

Immediately, Koji leaned into the screen as he made a gasp, “Lucky son of a-”

“Sō~ Koji! A genius of International Rescue gave me one of their weapons for me to improve on them, after giving them a little repairing service on one of their ships.” Tensai was hopping with excitement, an ahoge* appeared on top of his hair.

“Oh? They got a genius in their team too?” Koji asked.

“Hai! So that makes it five members, nē?” Tensai gave a smug at the screen.

Koji chuckled as he shook his head ruefully, “Don’t rush, mate. Just you wait, there’s probably more members that we haven’t met yet. What do you call him?”

“I just call him Meganē*” the genius Rider casually replied.

“Pretty straight forward, innit?” Koji had to restrain from rolling his eyes, despite snorting in amusement.

“Its better than Leo’s naming sense!” Tensai smirked as he crossed his arms.

“Fair,” he mirrored his friend’s expression, “Anything else?”

“That is all,” the genius nodded an exaggerated confident grin and crossed arms.

“Alright. Now get out of my sight, before I’ll start a bloody thundering typhoon on ya like this morning,” Koji said sarcastically.

Tensai winked with mischievousness and gave his friend his signature salute before signing off from the call.

He shook his head once more with a little amused huff and gently closed his laptop.

Then, he threw a glance at the window, seeing the snow continuing to fall on the window in the darkness.

In three days, it will be Christmas and the beginning of the Seven Days of Fortune… a stray thought crossed his mind. Then, the thought halted for a moment. He frowned; he swore there was something he wanted to say after that.

Koji shrugged himself with a smile, got up to give himself a little stretch, before leaving for the bathroom to brush his teeth.

Washed and dressed into his attire that he uses as pyjamas; he went to the bedroom to take some nice long night sleep.

-0-0-0-

*Japanese Translation

Meganē = Glasses

[libidomechanica]

Untitled (“And wrappd and sphere, sleep, and weed”)

A sonnet sequence

               1

Into a low sky raining lost lands. And wrapp’d and sphere, sleep, and weed. Delicate, pulling it the bridale bowre with short a scene ravens, and when first process of the book, and threats on those whispers breed: till on first begin. This memory stung aside to a rivers. Open themselves but as a woman ties a knot so through some and griefe renew. By what sunk low, but a word she found the rose her I say her secrets of willow, sweet loue, my hunt old they, that is Lord of beauties she was borne that my words some unfooted, we only asks to be anything to me young were it came to earthly walk; compact of their lance from her white limbs of his gift; creating violin struck, so I count, and so goodly sits beholding on vs raine, the Acidalian should but cruelty, by silk curtains mingled in the father’s pangs his most odorous birds that due to marry.

               2

Of monster, while the fawn, white. Though she also beneath, for she-society. My loue I go from the dwarf. Of hazel copse- clad valleys, maud in those harmed by griefe confirmed, and still, lay in a pellet of some stray: against the place, and the vanquisht as a Though bubble blows coming freshness, whose powres, so sad forlorn by this love, to governes mee. To be put on Neptune’s shining? He is a tide in divide the best—of whitely stirred, that strife with lucky words expressing to the garbage tub is most cause them hither and a’ thy flight: the story of my glorious with slaught.

               3

Dear are figur’d in aught they passionate loved, and quickly vein’d, who had love is long in the mourning flowers him amearst dyd fly.—’Twas love just as I had they besieged by blind, old Adam’s teats, and loth, where Cupid his gifts in our truth to sport my hearty curse is compensated size: beside the eternall people, as longer freed from her wrath of murmuring the most of laws Salique and triumphs and its unknown, by praises dew, that he canopy of her herself upon whom then fayre light? Conception be takes his own halls could like a mountains us both thee and sleepe so fast.

               4

Watch was he quiet slumberous and polished. But by this flowers brought rather of thy lov’d her thought by element is observed the people, with green access of science; other weary change; and somewhere as mortal friend; but busks his crowned with dead unhappy as to begin his hair. And one that glory things and poppied corn; the bridegroom was these symptoms, which like those who cried: The dooryards a bore: most files of bonnie Doon to unperplex’d delight lest a hand of metal the new begins his wilds Ierne sent Yet when and signifies that, he wound affixed to force himselfe that forever.

               5

But to shew for proctors! Cried my brothers clear, a Love shalt win much of those powers deck thy horrid pain spray, so mourne, and in those high builde an anticke worms, when I’m with entertayne, poure out of the lake disguysing dandelions and her present? That I was the town knows not-yet to bind my pure, al with iuncats, fit to mortall these— what kindled hopes are sped, and blown rain, hot Shame beat its pearls, or maiden posy, found the stones and saved my loving, eye-earnestly spot; and thee; and thee on their little shafts of promist both hart of her cold full day, there are the voice and the wine with rend.

               6

You didest dye, flying on them blinded thee see, far as human clime will warrior frost to behold they ydly banner true believed so slow; she may in disarray: that well where needle broom bowèrs whereof let kind, with holiday. With please—we will never they the shame, that every hart with my caressed. Corpses in secret bed, and ask’d the comes, but a common rule, lycius, said her so, as one is on, which is what is complayne, Of evening best to any, this beams of your countenaunce vnto the birth can sing, to wash of a backward beauty of their complain, beside you are. As ere the massy keys he born beauty wouldst be countenance—like the hert’s for the wife, that euery wear; I am not of these head, and, snugging to me a challeng needs and as his. Rider occasion been, but what’s all virtues, endless wishing delighten my though they might so hard, and look’d down wind.

               7

Life’s sacred brow; the world’s wealth could do? Such women inclind: take it deeply dawn; and in the silvery oak and wondering gentle creeping over the walls by twinkling lightning: for the rock, here read: and thus far,—where is a story down to Camelot: and with you all in wassail’d by the then all the sky, that with due care be prayses sung heauen aspire. She sun, whence, the turf, and never come to quite. His orient beams obey: stay! The Panther knowledge of his ditty. They were small that thou dost thou wrong; Oh, weep the guarded meteor, trail along, while the room is turning, sleepy Venus’ temple become to and mutual present laught. Sunk thy trumpet’s call its bodily tenement. Well as thou leftst them at theyr eccho ring? Nor damned ghosts—their luckless ashes burne, whaever has met wi’ the right unto the Maker pray. And arrow-wounded am with all that can seuer.

               8

Soon gathers had drunk her glad to make Elysian: but find a selfish uncle’s warmth, if I faint desire to orphans young charm which bore her dress my uncertaine. Sight, so God and brought with the lily’s through almond vales did eat. Which wrapt him doth lay:&with itself in at the hoard of his sacred veins; they should bar him daily could for to the water. Of happy lines, on her from off its own bough, whate’er thirst; now bleeding heart above, because of cride of distant colonnade. Where when shrinks, priest ’mong whisper’d to live, an ’twere now enjoyed, like the meadows on me askew the buzzing intreat?

               9

Their better, nor to talk of all this I read my speed, flipped each his thoughts on its low, or that kings here, which wrapt thy joes hae sweet sound of racoon tongue, now so gay beseemes to the globes of friendship through they were at last my arms serenely image place who first day would make again, with yourself will, the Pilgrim soul of deadly array’d that unrest worth is a flowers, the breath with portly well be its realm in awe, and now a ring-dove let falls, betwixt fear. The seventeen, that buzz about the patient ties would hard, where and make the fayre Spirit pass’d their soul gave but ioy her vain to the abode where hung the love or feeling it that I have no prosody call neither for to arryue, when and welter to pleasant hue, and began to me holy is, poure historic monstrain; learn, nor Mars his owlets cry, of logs piled so on, from wearied, said did fly: darting there, why did offend.

               10

Head of heavens. Into theyr sad and bene dect, while the aid of God who gives overtop your praise, phoebus was woven curse into their scrannel fuming the extremely clear rills that had best partly because come in pearl, and in little servitors. When I behold! The birches partly because of complete within her mothers doo chace for thee how light offend. I straight, thou likewise loue be infected angel pure daylight their out-peeping at the van of all hoped to enduring, wonder. Would reached an universe? By conduct had held in thee living out of his greeny flowers.

               11

Along, the lame just when I have been worth a wildered grew pampered like is bride: two small, of all my soul to alighting each other rough, when cloudy grief, of double smart The named, her kind, where, she weary change termes on herb, tree,-are the Spyder the frost of foot, fray vs with its might be, that I might my womankind of her empty of time to which thou say she was a wild plum. Comes along together siluer, heavier still, child—little joy or fewer, see ye wracke, made the Future doth inure, to lookers eyes, Thy extremely warning the falling you alone, and morn!

               12

Where shore; and now haue so we can burning in them for fearing, give me hence to pay, unpaid, protected and an eye could eclips’d, but play Petulant she was not play? In the silent that to the kings of grate on this things me near thing central to thee forlorn, we issue as the called us: we left behind which can sing it his warm; Katinka was agree, much morning hounds can the matted hyacinthus, and an eye could be, i say if they ne’er conceal’d, which became more, with troubled plains who told me by and vanish’d scrips. Indeed, were it not the tip-top, then she saw what I shall get.

               13

Yet disappointment still Leave us: promise, all extremely feeling? Each side, perfect I cannot repenting, in its chipped a blue gaze vpon her crescents, enthralments came we? And next to unslumbring, that won you don’t—I am not one; my press increace. Might noise overgrown, than all this world would I account; all selfe doth lay: who would never wi’ her count the apex of it. Down its bosome boy when your life close too, good-morrow, say: But now so gay beseemes to all then, in shore, far as human serpent, but mountain spray, disguysing for these hall the gadding high, what was the dwarf.

               14

In the spouseless eye. Her sapphires, at that falls, or made one to yse, and wrapt thy close then either’d at her likes of him. Mine was uncurl’d gray tower’d in a fire- balloon rose upon a place, singing clay. That footsteps stirr’d of question’d himself at every vessel could, art sophistrie, that make loved your names, and I struck, so I could watch the fayre Spirit, from servitors. To the roof how should be a shawl. We went to me, is yet when she rather argent sparks, without know the Maker selfenesse doe you for crowed from vallies: so I count, which, as well sugred lights doo weaue, the souls away.

               15

Doe but exerted man, with a rainbow the whirl was worse these make and mighty cost of slight vapoury tent—where not allow life have a mute and when you blame for the which she suffers not the while they can either’d at won your bellies’ sake creep betweene to me another gaue, haue shewed all; nor fame, now all their lances in that trailed a rose-bud’s throne, beneath thee, Theocritus, what toiling on it her cheek turn’d its garden wall to Loues honor and wives and thus most for the corners of the doors! And lifted, eyes I the dusk cocoons, she dwels sweet praysed. So, still left me loue not my name.

               16

Or steele dart, that is the Jews from the night, and leap the led him more: ne all a sweet breath for in fifteen I sigh’d them at they held in its spectators? Ay me! Not help the measure, but their soul, in whatever a sunbeam she vouchsafe together faces sing, the Little shall because man quod I that ye neuer was serpent rod, and twenty posts of his mantle, gem, and story and better the others tost it is, why thence of foot, frail, but had riven his feeling to every man who whiff it. Haste, little space, and beneath, o’er-power’d not; to sorrows the propose thee soone afraid!

               17

Thy widowed, and strange. That grieve, mistake it was she, like a shady bower-eaves, where we took full many long-limbed themselues O sweet bowre and when western border semi- tone, but, dearest one of hopes and elbows. The swift to see pearless virtues we remain! So, still in which mote inuent, I honors seat of Lamech is but still perfect, and horrid temple become here a grave i’ th’ bed of honour shame shady boon for he is. She driues away. Retire from the last he flitting. Enough, Madam, I love of the Impression-—swung the woods be thought! Eyed like the dusky brink.

               18

Who watching hour: but love go by, but the shoreward Angels weep into the dreaming down rain, and I sigh’d, or discours’d duke; o give the deepening thee, perforce me leaue oftentimental friend; for no one to vale, is things deuize at the tear-drop on drop of love all care, but blush’d, and dwelling swans with which thee the called it away:&with flower feet. As he rode down beside the fifteen and when he finally the scold a font of our good stormy seat, playing on the waues attyre. And so slight and hostages doe only a magic bed of silver- white, by Stellas lawes of delight, doe blynd.

               19

On, when the creatures better from point to be the banquet-room should be found me seemeth in, before, how are out that to vs impart. A twisted snake or spend? Journey; then things gay betwixt the gate now, then unstinted squaws of that she weanling heart. Were all allow and what footsteps lead you again the sacred the time and how great hard it in their bells rang merrily And howling: for one that closing die in mind I slept into sudden blaze of skill, I shall scarce uplift hand, from the bigger boy, the yeare is the morning’s grace to turn back, so rapt in crime in the honor and new.

               20

In chase peace betweene these essence; till her title was found, and speak to our smile thus, which they’d try it on this powers in his glow! Soon, and pass; of my own on the social wants to tell her speaks of our near-dwellers wish, nor they of mingle; all the rest be with inharmony, and gay, a martial scolding more. Ne but feelingly part, the Lady of Shalott. Attend the woods shal answer’d, or brightnesseth within my cups, after then more thankles paines and every loth to answer bright example, just clear, nor vnto Christmas up to thinking in good college gown, that I following!

               21

That selfe addresse, the cruell fayre, this might from ogling in her share if that to his artlesse, like a trumpet blow tone, but not better near-dwellers without: ne let the thou fayre when lo! Amiss, lady of Shalott. And the ranks, so sordid her playmates, her hair. This alchemiz’d, and I might or woaded, with a flowery nunnery: they blesse whyles heap’d o’er their late for not as bare is a crimes a virgins learne to the treasons why they spring all fancies that, say: How good; so reach’d upon the rest; for to surprise that all the river and both sight; and stately stayre, as I do my beer.

               22

After long you not to be, to smoothed all my pretty on my moan, received a science, chatter’d; for invent? You lounged, like the wild pleasure the faded: deepen fresh ones; and swift-lisping straining consummate cup, what he had deep, what she coming with noise; her strife of heaven entirely because in June, I thoughts of the maxim for this arrow and ensample awning in Patagonian shape me—even with her eyes already at its five-words- long that ever deerest at even and quietsome, with which she worlds riches, to tumble that I in your lord, across than skies.

               23

And Grisi’s existence? And look at Blake and felt. From Lady Psyche. Without drawing stay, where lay down them threes, till at her sacred welcome from breath whose victors of the Cyprian Queene of fair and spend? Belongs! And taken, to me! Ring years with beautiful, and retain. Youth, whence remaine. And vows in view, by council upon the blanching, wonderment. Which you be you perhaps and you when this sterile perhaps as once more a woman’s lore soft tremor, a calm and minstrel-life that the which no one extremely wize he fed, she mead, sunk though for let her, bade her praise. And wide; there happy!

               24

My horse moved from thou that! When my hart be hidden hair, fallen in earth should be I know how to counted woodland, nor prayed, the brings to muse and even at they hunt old Florian added praises of poyson’d their show he rode, vnto the first ray, or talk, and the shafts: there be a copy near, or newer. But onely the should have Helen in the sheaves me sureness could cull: wild warbles, bold eye skyward man, with still reuealed plains speckled with feeble strength to God, whose navigators must returned to tastes her for to speak Saucy pedantic wretches, toilet, whiles the woods shall happier than soul or more to be and r though I did so, but that takes up one’s lips to mind no, not left our dear delightful eddied in the place, what silently round affixed the ledges of visioned to lingered in sight of any now in her virtues, lineament of visions, shows but sight.

               25

She tender hand, nor light with her glories that al the glow-worm bite the fame of us having and came to tumble, but she was, a sweet air hast the yellow tone, she could tell me how they never wi’ her can complex and one in the lang, lang harsh and sad afraid, and Gibson’s state with me doth spred he, why dost leave me thus my name most faire loue embrace my father may create the marbles, bold pretence and blew bubble up their glorious sky but in the hills of foule horn, batt’ning the intense atom glory in her deep intoxication. High as the Chicano cats overlooked for the whole desired my little jealous of the shrieks and listen the noontide ocean, one parties altogether than going; when, wise-women comes, built beyond the waves; wee Pope but ioyed in the home. Of cups divine, and all your face now leave towers. The fruit nods from his black cable.

               26

Love and he storm burst or blame; to put understand. Through the guerdon for louing you not event and the garbage. ’Ring spoke at once in a class the original, twas to me, she may in all come and our lives my footsteps o’er trembling happiness, and night fears and the day-star in weird syrops, thou art thro’ all my tears and rolling as yet while on that prince, I have not fearfully, to make it furre: it is to me here is a fault in women go tell her view, it fell but not you. Breakers are; forgetfulness invisible, yet investigating so mock-solemn, that when thou less thine.

               27

Grow older win his face a thunderbolt, she courteins ouer-wise. Such life or homes ethereal dew fall on the began retreat into mar the sickly near, beauties, they all ash top, call’d up and rare O miracle of an inspiration of men to the rest thy lips: hist, in my bracelet richly are weak a wash my hair in equall her selfe new delight shame young, and thus the whisperst the proud hall, with besprent, in baskets hear the heart beat, and bone represence of all counted as certain;—these world of war the shade can give them thus, when glad many a mortal door, and rural grace.

               28

And I have sped, like one Spirit melt! Albeit then in half-historic, chemic laws, by slow woods therefore perfect behind; and, being hue, and ours, with any man’s, and take in upon this like themselves to have been awhile they did dropt a fair, on a new tree, was what passing faint, replies, but far be t from her pageants: but this low together. Daily devout to placed, it turn and future; everywhere, upon a day of comforts which if euer I do! What the marble, nor can every pyre of new life to give ours from aboue vnto Gillyflower amid a crust like Tom Waits.

               29

When thought for me in over stead: and keep his aged nurse is written with long a pillow broom. A beauty, gloriously all alike a woman’s amount: though their show by which her moon, the occasion did it die? For all the actual itself extremest painters which theyr shadow of the sky; and lend a dreadful passages to say what is, how Love is laid. If any, but exerted as spirite spoyle when I cry she that saints for triumph’d ere ye, Nymph reserv’d the Faery Queene of her trembling said with green. Your lips of mourning fynd, ye cruell and tunes, and the chang’d to wondrous fear!

               30

Imagined for kiss note, came in one spark disturb the unblest name thoughts behold springs from his child, and wake again and me as for their sex, and beautiful, and mock the pink, and riddles as throne, beneath the chamber: dim and to hide already in her prayses forth to death deprived the world is much become a papa! Daily, I pluck sweet, is also with display, the years and threat, and mean oh, never can companions wide, but a bit of knowledge and from which do endless chord of loue, or, lone, we dreadful leisure of weather was my paynes and lilies, the burning shuts amain.

               31

Of all the lovers to sighs—all the woodmen heart in this legs wanton wind of gentle rushy lake, after the monstraynt or dark ivy-tresses foreheads, vacant of it, Florian is set, with every morrow and throng, and presence of female for her exquisite? And, as the loud aduaunce make: for al the Gracia in a stranger tips; and in his purposed, saving us. What is the cruelty, which al power, the mind until the centuries—so rainbow their Institute but, for thy broad lawns, the ineffable place for which mote perceant, still voice falter to suffer wrecks.

               32

In which rushes and thus he living him in a new-fall’n year, is not his labyrinth from inanition fall, and up I staid not thou? Where sweet dream not Prince withers do abhor my vows, and yet the inward joy. Run in myrth lyke Narcissus vaine? When the lady’s fingers her struck up and spice and early knew. Its guerdon of men, with lid-lashes burning, hidden woman, fillèd with loss the murmur’d: Who art twice as I haue so wondrous they waited for shar’d themselves know thou chance Rumpelstiltskin is overtop your lovely youth: yea, every door unto the bounds can overwhelm surmise.

               33

She must give not be free he forth wit, of green neon. Admiring Incarnation,— a melt into sunlight; the warm her mind, could be broken utterly, keen, cruelly, like as when as night a kiss from his imploy, is yet unknown had nothing line vpon her, as this, that on the rested was like the widow’d which doth hart rouse them blossoms from a tall ash top, call’d simplicity, and all new success is much more to place, her goodly all their loss, rouses that acquaint enamel’d eyes, as ugly as an articles of Time; all I unveil the sequel, but see thrown in dust, break my cheeks.

               34

In white flower, and girls Prince more a pillar’d porch, with mercifullest shadow of what she wound, then not worthy to be mingle;— why not your mouth-deep into you go, my dearer than with you without one man, affianced aloe. Wisely clear and still the world’s dusk through with you without a forbid. They do pray: so that he seraglio, whereof each moment white, and when shall the Dream with she. I iou to see that day would ne’er souls did the bitten pilgrimage of Circassians, her owne woe; so bad end for a heap, so passes and tell me all wrong, who foster up udderless take.

               35

Echoing grace. Soft went; and multitude, a thought, a bribe apples lyke Narcissus vaine I see this masked among the remnant of it, Florian added, Let the learne with another subtle fluent Greek father win his feathers false or two, and their narrowes the land solace; and now wept and can no more salue both to be true it is the best, an arm and a celestial threatens all ordained, she wrote it was delight behind; and the image of love, ye wracke, and the slave, that she known: my part this dayes I neuer read: an endlesse blood? I shall have her her smile was; and, in a glow, even as a part I can give thought, the Lady Psyche, wont with the custom of the airs and leap through reeds, whom my Muse they say at lengths of cataracts. That it can either desert, I am not a floating fire a ridiculous; full blood was said to filled with the walls. Breath the body.

               36

Which I cannot expresse haruest turtle hiding to all her feet: and countenance need greater double grown tea—we held in draw. Which men and the time, on the wore a want with sacred well-moulded into cataracts. Opening that doth my sigh’d for laugh at meridian height those forgot. On her sound of sister. They fled? No, no: you wanted only, without the injured light, while my heard my dust of theyr shining Love’s coming year, Whose lofty be. Or if so indeed his froze. Knew who would shiver this upon the shadow-large richest dye between his foot; bronze clarity of break.

               37

He lives in which if she stings, even therefore thee down thou night from either comprized. When rights, a full-born Venus bliss alone in the Tyrannesse world subdew, the first time will wonder age was to music out of human, the dead, he departed … never certain up to have purchas with teares as a shawl, and love, to the naked, playing not your gain: and music, forfeits, and was long, O God, as sudden strayt, the inhabitant of kind at all, seven-head. Fair Gulbeyaz was no tears from thy love, the castle gates seen about the midst tell, but the deer’s thro’ the grass and was unseen shall I never fall. Ye myrtles, what their merry Cuckow, what stand, the from basenesse matron Night hold your pleasure presence like his lips, and daffadillies are her articles of a ruin’d Paradise vanish ere he would rather we it departed joys did vnto me lovely lightning?

               38

Wisdom lingered in gold or silvery planet clear Sprite yet regret, in bidding his primrose to splendour wind is not euery beast with a soft beams, and bower that hater on the grueling mead to faint degrees the greater glorious chronicle within him over the cup as well where she lie to the will ne those holy ayde, out on that which became my greater sphered the air lookes to erect beauty up, leaving sun or close of the nativity of the swell of all may heart to pluck it from its marriage-pillow, a fond game, taught by element lyke a young brain!

               39

Along the town of pearles, his gift; creating, might see each others lap: a gentlest breathed, dissolv’d: Crete’s forepast; glance: tread my thought above, in Tempe, lying heart, and ever from their own room, fill’d out, at all back. In a new-fall’n likenesse the chain’d it, lost thee forlorn, in vowing that they on it saue the dying firmly to sing you the leave me mine ear, till he for thence, I Stellaes face so clear. Roots into a friend or guides the sun unwilling came melissa hitting not the game from far, that from far, then as Ioue within the belly full, poure his low embased.

               40

Started all, so fortified with chaunge eeke brink. Like mankind! But things but a dreary chance: so that same night! That have Helen, reawaken’d it, everything’s on the best may our clay, and forgoe. They are contentment warmed by to-morrow, who have cross, dog ill, or hereticks of my gloriously, the passe did best! And doth he, my dear presse the minstrel-life that had neuer cease the threshold, I erred in Cathering and gold were sureness wild than I have been. To heavily, where the secret bed: in vain, and Where, ’ asked buds; so dear begin againe, of season: never watch the wife, and go.

               41

Round its chipped each stings, with his sworn the belly full vice, a dreams, which now my wrist is time and eke his, a friendship through the serves: who, safe assurance feminine caprice may lurks the pink, and seems to face, nay, say I doe at last seeme a myle. By violets, behold desert sand in westering weed, until, from the matron Night with the gold or sing to the rest; all loves my heedlesse the bugle’s call it took the sweet i want of inspiration: women into suns, that whiten, as it out and wreathed words you can heart did never more to viperous mortal draught for me reuiued with me.

               42

A firmament reflects upon his path; and loth, while the stopped: when the best doesn’t always be so bad, mad slanderers by mighty passion’s prey? When most, but that under that graze, or those that was at hangs a mistaken fringed a bee, to-morrow, and exquisite, before I fynd my great wings and glad to hear this cheek grow that may veil of my wit can be, that in old friendly breeze is become soone aftertime, I had but he music, solemn as unpleasance and nuptial room, but poortith carefull sober ring where all who do love and black and all you pleasant ayre; for she cries, oh!

               43

And murmur’d: Who art the Princessant battell, and whence beat once so cruell hand, no season be the abandon’d quite: but ioy her tower and when I used to balk slowly still these notes like lame just cause of Chokan: two small old man? Soft for all the slave to close, thou cannot breath; but no more, they do all this your Academe, which cost, tis they do pray: yet if in two. And be the slave to leaves—she sun’s public as the freshly into thou looked foot: that’s all out each understand. And sleep, my life exulting paragon, guies me here, slew both harbour of life confounded there last with diuide the maid?

               44

Here; and he: the field and words with awful rainbow-sided, to sing. With happy Lycius liv’d to Time, that do I love wisdom the greeny flowers and grew For all Aspasia’s clever: this bad age; scarce such a questions bred third heroic seemst to lay those her hand, and greet: I hate’ from whose thumbed, the light thoughts in vain; the mass of sand, she took not extremes of mortal look of your little lispers may sights, though some prize, that all the townes be Saphyres place, and as wanton and the archers continuance doth fly. Not marble steps towards me, since the war-drum throbb’d no long languid arm, a leg.

               45

Some dainty eares in fields with coffee at a fainting charge, who farewel, sad Hour, selected by whatever I do! Phoebus gins to sweet loue, awake the wide- spread this decay. ’Er-heart her, or shall like a wishfully, the while they the floor of your heart banter, saith Love, in which the ocean flag, slides all surmise? Ye beares, then fair God! Blue hare I feeles no cause the same time yet Gibson demolished. Dear selfe were one way? The which now vnthought in old forgotten—out of heads I kiss’d thee fair. The old and the raw maternal are litigious story of mortal friend is the stream.

               46

When dilated phrase of your face within the faults with painter’s breast upon his own no prize. Shake hast said to it down, till look for no one by one’s lips sweld so full many rest his brothers moue? Them sing: that all the substance beaten way the scales there is through the spake enticement lyke to her ears a lad that anybody shall turn back when to marry. As, slight from her woof, here when dread of incomes in my hart: that sigh- shrilly me is to keep into the spitefull teares, but Actium, lost nymph is flowers of my loue, or, seem of grace, clad all we loved your louely lyke to subdueth!

               47

Or why turned your goodly tempestuous store of all hold of laws Salique and all those who his dungeons; heathen, they hearth-flower salesman i’m on the thing, and bite it ill of dogs and proud restraynt or rather subtle captiue sonne how great lease till him now, which laden brede; made close, though enjoyment more praysed. Willows what was stung the day all the ocean; thought me thee, and some sparkled at that all wrong, that them, but cruel eye hath sleepe and stay, poure out the smooth pervading to be telling summers. The Lady of Shalott. As the pure yvory: and a whole, then my break my heart as any.

[awrathsodarkandvelvet]

*cracks knuckles* *pulls up sleeves* I have been waiting for this one actually. For some context I have been researching witchcraft-related things for some years (since folklore, mythology and botanology are my special interests) but I was afraid to actually practice, as I live with my strict Christian family and I started practicing three or four months ago so I'm still a beginner but not a complete one. One of the first "practice" I had was an evocation. Yes an actual fucking evocation. I had been washed over by the mess that witchtok is and had started deity work or more like worship. I had proclaimed (to myself I was and still am in the broom closet) that Lord Ares, the God of war from the Hellenic pantheon is my patron deity, without even really knowing what the term meant and I started leaving daily offerings of honey, wine and water. One day I was getting anxious abt what am I to do with my life since I'm turning 18 and the first thing that came to mind was asking Him to give me an answer. Now mind you, I was shit at energy work, to put it lightly, I had no wards set up and zero experience with spirit work and my clair senses were weak at best. I read a Tumblr post abt demonic evocation and went to my balcony. I meditated to my heart beat, casted a circle with my pointed finger and started chanting a hymn to Him. I spoke to Lord Ares (more like to myself cuz I didn't know if the evocation was successful bc nothing had happened) and after half an hour I got bored and left without uncasting the circle and a little disappointed. BUT (there is always a big but) in the evening my mum's best friend visited and started asking me abt what I want to do in the future (university-wise) and when I told her I'm interested in psychology she directed me to psychology in a MILITARY academy as a niece of hers had done the same and was very pleased with the outcome. When I told her that I wasn't very sure abt the sports exams that were required (since I'm not the best at physical exercise) she told me not to worry abt it and that she knew a coach who could train me FOR FREE. Since I had no better ideas I called the coach the same day and started training two days after that, in late August. It didn't take much to connect the dots and I was absolutely shocked by what had happened. I left an offering of basil for Him as a thank you. I continue with my studying, worshipping and training to this day (the exams are in four months) and my mental health has been better than ever due to regular exercising and so have my scores and my performance. Looking back at it I still can't believe what the hell took place. But if I learnt one thing from the whole experience it's that Lord Ares is THE best (and very underrated for some inexplicable reason), that sometimes mistakes can take you to wonderful places and that evocations ARE NOT to be performed by novice witches, so many things can go wrong honestly and I just got lucky.

That's it, sorry for the long post I hope you enjoyed my little story <3

My turn to start a community discussion, because I’m curious how other people approach this!

Scenario: you’re a would be spirit worker. You have never encountered a spirit before, that you know of, and don’t really know where you sit in terms of senses/abilities. How do you go about making contact with your first spirit(s) to start forming relationships and practicing your skills?

I’m going to be using the tag “#first spirit encounter scenario” for this discussion in case anyone wants to block it or follow along.

[spxllcxstxr]

Dating Angelina Johnson • Headcanon

(Gif not mine)

Request: can i request some george weasley or angelina johnson headcanons? (either is fine i love both of them <3) — 🧩 anon

Warnings: gn!reader, malfoy and Parkinson bad because that’s just the truth ❤️, brief mention of food?

A.N: bruh let me just say that we didn’t have enough Angelina Johnson in the movies lmao, where is the wholesome Gryffindor quidditch team moments???? We were robbed, robbed I say!!

•

The two of you start going out after the Yule Ball ends

She spends the night dancing with Fred and occasionally George but she sees you leave the ball early, in a hurry, so she runs after you

The two of you were best friends, meeting on the train in your first year

And you were enamored with her

How bold she was, her competitiveness, she was so kind and funny and breathtaking…..

You would’ve asked her to the Ball yourself, but Fred beat you to it

Of course he did

And of course she accepted

But she finds you sprinting up the steps of the Great Hall, shoes in hand, hair a mess.

Angelina calls out to you, following you all the way up until somehow you end up in her arms

Tears slowly move down your cheeks, and your friend wipes them carefully away with her thumb.

“What’s wrong, (Y/n)?” She asks lightly, the flickering of candlelights reflected in her deep brown eyes

“I wanted to be the one dancing with you, Angie…”

“What?” She’s confused, pulling back to take you all in. “We danced to the Weird Sisters—“

“No, Ange…I wanted—I wanted to be your date. I wanted to be your partner for all the slow dances,” You mutter, cringing at your pathetic admission. “I like you, Angelina, more than a friend. I-I was going to ask you but Fred beat me to it—“

“I would’ve said yes, (Y/n),” Angelina softly confesses. “Fred asked me as a friend because he knew I was too scared to ask you out…”

She walks you back to your dorm, holding hands the entire way

Dating her is like a dream come true

You are her #1 cheerleader at quidditch matches, even at the practices

You donn your Gryffindor spirit (most of which is taken from your girlfriend’s closet) and scream your lungs out in the stands

Hell yeah you wear her quidditch jersey around

And Merlin she loves the sight of you in it

“Sweetheart you are absolutely stunning, bloody hell”

She takes you flying on her broom, anywhere on the grounds you want to go

You guys will sit in the tallest goalpost and she’ll kiss you lightly, and you press for more, desperate, but hoping not to slip and fall

Though you trust her to catch you

Dates in the Hogwarts kitchens of course

Late night hot chocolate

Angelina loves to tease you across the room

She’ll send you winks or flirty little smirks, you absolutely love it

100% calls you sweetheart, and she’ll do it every chance she gets

Study dates in the library , you leaning into her side as she runs her fingers through your hair

Angelina always smells of peppermint tea; her favorite

Hogsmede dates!!! To anywhere but Madam Puddifoot’s lmao

Very protective of you, especially when it comes to Malfoy and Parkinson

“Malfoy, you talk to my partner like that one more time and I’ll hex you all the way to Bulgaria!”

Holds your hand through the corridors, a skip in her step when she’s especially happy

Honestly, you love her

You love how she kisses your forehead in the corridors and how she calls you her lucky charm before matches

Angelina Johnson is just someone you want to spend the rest of your life with

•

[drarrily-we-row-along]

Day 68: Rain

(Or 4 times Harry and Draco get caught in the rain and one time they don't)

As Draco was on his way out after a very long day of work one afternoon, the skies opened up and it started to pour.

"Just wonderful," he grumbled as he reached for his wand and cast a hasty umbrella charm to protect himself from getting wet. He heard the sounds of people all around him doing the same but when he looked up he saw someone doing something quite different.

Potter was just standing there letting the rain soak through his hair and through his clothes, water rolling down his nose and his chin as he stood there with his head bowed.

He wondered if Potter had forgotten his wand or forgotten the charm, perhaps, but as he watched Potter took his glass off, looked up to the sky and just stood there, letting the rain run down his face.

Draco was entranced. But it wasn't adorable, he told himself firmly. Potter's face opened up into a smile and there was something inside of Draco that unclenched at how free and young Potter looked standing there in the rain.

After another heartbeat watching him, he shook his head and started off, leaving Potter standing in the rain.

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

They were on a mission the second time he and Potter got caught in the rain.

It had been looking gloomy the entire afternoon that they'd spent on a stake out in a muggle community and he'd been hoping the rain would hold off because he didn't have any choice but to get wet.

Draco hadn't ever been especially lucky and this afternoon was no exception. A little while after they'd finished their lunch it started to pour. He grumbled and tried to edge closer to the building, seeking what little shelter there was under the eave.

Potter on the other hand, grinned like a loon and stepping out a touch further, holding his hands out and watching the rain drops falling on his palms; little puddles gathering.

"What is it with you and the rain?"

Potter shrugged, "I dunno," he replied, glancing over at Draco, "it just makes me happy."

And Draco might find it a bit charming, the childlike innocence that peaked out every so often and caught him off guard.

Fortunately, he was saved from having to respond when the man they'd been watching for appeared a few booths down at the market. Potter spotted him first and was up in a flash, chasing after him and leaving Draco to follow along in his wake and try not to miss the sweet, wistful expression that had been on the other man's face.

(Read more below the cut)

The third time that he witnessed Harry getting caught in the rain, they were playing a friendly game of quidditch. And the rain came on so hard and so sudden that everyone gave up and landed their brooms.

Thunder rumbled overhead and lightning struck, the oppressive heat they'd bee experiencing for days broke as the rain washed over them. Everyone made for the house, dashing up the drive to the cozy cottage that Ginny and Luna had made their home.

Everyone except Harry who tipped his head back and started laughing, arms extending as he spun in circles.

"What are you doing?" Draco shouted.

"Doesn't it feel amazing?" Harry called back, not ceasing his spinning.

Draco shook his head but couldn't keep the smile from his face, "You're barmy."

Harry looked over at him, smiling back, "Yes, well you're the one out here keeping my company so what does that make you?"

"Also completely batty," he replied without missing a beat.

"Come on," Harry said, holding out a hand for Draco to take and wiggling his fingers.

Draco reached over and took it, his fingers sliding wetly through Harry's, and Harry pulled him in and started to dance with him. It was unlike any dance Draco had ever done before; sloppy and uncoordinated, there was no music apart from Harry's appalling humming which hardly constituted as music at all, and there was no discernible pattern to the way Potter was moving their bodies together.

Yet somehow it was the best thing Draco had ever done.

Harry tried to spin him but the ground was turning to mud beneath their feet and both of them just ended up slipping and falling.

Draco landed mostly on Harry, wincing and beginning an apology before Harry burst out laughing once more. The sound was free and unfettered, and Draco felt certain that his heart had gone flying away with it.

"You're ridiculous," Draco informed him as he started making his way to his feet again before reaching out to drag Harry to his feet as well.

"Would you go on a date with me?" Harry asked, voice warm and loose.

He smiled, "Seriously?"

The other man nodded, pushing his wet curls back off his face.

"Yes, alright."

"Alright," Harry repeated with a smile before he pulled him back in and started dancing with him again.

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

Work had gotten busy and their official date had been bumped back a few weeks but by the time they finally got to go, most of their nerves had worked themselves out. Harry took him to dinner and then one of those muggle cinemas and he'd been completely amazed by it.

Every time he looked over at Harry, Harry was already watching him and grinning widely as though the entire point of coming to watch a movie was to watch the person you were with instead.

Something warmed in his chest every time he caught the other man looking, though.

"Did you actually watch any of the movie?" Draco asked as they wandered down the street vaguely in the direction of Draco's flat. He looped his arm through Harry's and Harry tugged him close.

"I watched enough," he said with a shrug.

Draco nudged him with his shoulder, "Thank you for tonight," he murmured, "it's been really lovely."

"It's absolutely my pleasure," he replied.

They chatted amicably as they made their way toward Draco's flat and they were only a block away when it started to rain.

"It's like you do this on purpose!" Draco exclaimed.

Harry laughed, "I don't control the weather."

"Are you certain?"

The other man shook his head, "I'm not certain of anything when I'm around you," he murmured, turning to face Draco as a raindrop carved a path down his face. "When I'm with you all I know is that I want to spend more time with you. Nothing else matters."

Draco cupped Harry's face in his hands and leaned in, pressing a kiss to his lips.

Harry groaned and his hands grabbed onto the fabric at Draco's hips, pulling him closer as he angled his head to get better access to Draco's mouth. And Draco lost himself in the wet press of their mouths against one another's, in the way that he could feel the heat radiating off of Harry's body in spite of the chill of the rain.

By the time one of them pulled back they were both completely drenched but it didn't bother either of them. "Can I invite you in for coffee?" Draco asked.

Harry nodded, "I'd like that very much."

-----------

The fifth time it started raining when Draco was with Harry, he heard it before he saw it.

"S'raining," he murmured into the warm, dark of the bedroom.

Harry hummed and pulled Draco a little closer, their bodies shifting and slotting together like that's what they were always meant to do. "I don't need the rain," Harry murmured.

"Hmm?" he whispered, still mostly asleep.

Harry pressed an uncoordinated kiss to Draco's temple, "you make me happier than the rain."

And perhaps from anyone else it wouldn't have seemed like a compliment, but from Harry, it seemed to be the highest praise there was.

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

Thanks so much for the prompt @sirius-you-know! I hope you enjoy it, sweetie! <3

Day 67: Soulmate (Take 1) | Day 69: Soaked

Day 67: Soulmate (Take 2)

[talesofarcadia78]

Beneath the Stars || Douxie x Reader || One Shot

The soft sound of plucking of guitar strings filled your ears. It made your heart melt and feel warm inside, making you forget the cold. Your boyfriend started softly singing a song. He suddenly stopped playing, making you frown and turn your head towards him. 

“Why’d you stop?” you asked, closing up the book you were reading. 

“Well, I noticed what the time was and saw it’s nearly 6,” he said, gesturing to the clock on the wall behind him. 

“So?” you asked, still confused. 

“Remember, you promised me something…” he hinted. 

You looked at him blankly. 

“You promised me you would make me hot chocolate with marshmallows,” he said. 

“Oh! Sorry Doux, I forgot about that,” you apologised, getting up from the couch and heading to the kitchen. 

You grabbed a mug from the drawer, placing it on a counter. You then got sugar, and added 2 tablespoons of it. You walked over to the pantry and tried to get the cocoa powder, but it was on the top shelf. You weren’t that tall, so you struggled a bit. You felt a hand brush yours. You turned around to see Douxie grabbing it for you. 

“I could’ve just grabbed it myself, you know?” you said, crossing your arms. 

“But it would’ve taken you longer, so that would delay your making of my drink, which means I would have to wait longer,” Douxie whined, handing you the cocoa powder. 

You rolled your eyes at his whining. He had to learn to be patient… well, at least for his food. 

You continued to make Douxie’s hot chocolate. You felt a pair of arms wrap around your waist as you were mixing the sugar, cocoa powder and milk. Douxie put his chin on your shoulder as he whispered into your ear, “How much longer do I have do I have to wait? You know I’m hungry.” 

“Well, if you let me go to the microwave, I can heat up your drink and then you’ll be able to drink it,” you replied. 

“But I love doing this!” Douxie whined. 

You chuckled at him. Even though he was a bit impatient with his food, you loved his whining. You gently pushed him back and walked to the microwave, putting the mug inside and turning it on. You walked back over to the counter to clean up your mess. 

As you were cleaning up, Douxie was leaning over the other side of the counter, staring at you. He never took his eyes off of you. You noticed his staring from the corner of your eye. You blushed a little and giggled. 

“Why are you staring at me, Douxie? Do I have something on my face?” you asked. 

He shook his head, eyes still on you. 

“Then?” you asked. 

“You’re just… so amazing. I’m very lucky to have you,” Douxie expressed. 

“I’m flattered,” you said, walking over to the microwave and getting out the mug. 

You set the mug onto the counter and grabbed a bag of marshmallows, and plopped a few in. You handed Douxie the mug, putting the marshmallows away. You then looked at the time, it was 6:30. You had to get going or else your roomie, Zoe, would freak out. 

“Doux, I go to go,” you shouted, grabbing your bag and opening the door of his apartment. 

“Wait!” he shouted, running to you. 

“What? You know Zoe will freak out if I’m not back soon,” you reminded. 

“I know, I know. I’ll be at your door tomorrow at 9 a.m. sharp. So you better be ready and have your things packed,” Douxie explained. 

“Why?” you asked, wondering why he wanted to you to have your bag packed. 

“It’s a surprise and surprises aren’t supposed to be told,” he said. 

“But--” you started, but were cut off by a kiss. 

The kiss wasn’t as long as Douxie wanted. You pulled back and smiled at him.

“Sorry, but I gotta pack and Zoe might be having a heart attack right now,” you apologised. 

“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow, my love,” Douxie said, giving you a two-finger salute. 

You laughed at his gesture and walked out the door. 

As you were walking through the streets, you noticed a bunch of kids gathered around something. You went over to check out what it was. You looked at what everyone was looking at. It was Toby doing some magic tricks. Currently, he was holding a sock in his hand and saying some words, you didn’t quite hear, and then the sock disappeared. Everybody started clapping at his trick. You were impressed. He actually pulled off a magic trick, unlike the other times. 

You walked away and continued making your way to your apartment. As you continued, you felt a bit more colder than earlier. You hugged your arms and quickened your pace. 

You were about to open the door to your apartment, but someone from inside already did. 

“Y/N! Where were you? I was worried sick! You know I don’t like you staying outside after dark!” Zoe scolded. 

“Sorry, Zoe. I got hung up. I was making Douxie some hot chocolate,” you apologised. “And you know that you could’ve just called to check where I was.” 

“I did! I called you 10 times!” Zoe exclaimed. 

You checked your phone to see 10 missed calls from Zoe. 

Oops. 

“My phone must’ve been on silent,” you shrugged, walking in. 

Zoe closed the door and plopped onto the couch, turning on the TV. You put your bag away and sat on the couch with Zoe. 

“What are you gonna watch?” you asked. 

“I don’t know,” she replied blandly. 

She then turned off the TV and turned to you. 

“So? What do you want for dinner? We’ve got some left over lasagne. Or we can just order something,” Zoe asked. 

“I’ll have the left over the lasagne, you can order something for yourself. I’ve got to pack,” you replied, getting up and walking into the kitchen. 

You warmed up the lasagne and quickly ate it. 

“Woah! Hold up. Pack? Where are you going?” Zoe questioned. 

“I actually don’t know where I’m going. Douxie just said to pack my bag and that he’ll be at the door at 9 tomorrow,” you answered. 

Zoe smirked. 

“Are you two going on a little lovey dovey holiday by yourselves?” Zoe teased. 

“Zoe!” you groaned and rushed into your and Zoe’s room, wanting to avoid her and start packing. 

You heard a laugh but you didn’t say anything, you just wanted to pack and go to bed. 

After about half an hour, you zipped up your duffle bag and put it at the door of the room.

Crash! 

Uh-oh! You rushed out to the kitchen to see broken glass all of the floor. Zoe was standing there, her hands behind her back, as if she didn’t do anything. 

“Zoe, how did this happen?” you asked, grabbing a broom and cleaning up the mess. 

“I was just tryna practice my magic… but, it didn’t go so well,” Zoe admitted, helping you. 

“Next time, go somewhere where you won’t break anything,” you advised her. 

“I will,” Zoe said. 

“Ok, I’m heading off to bed. I’m beat,” you said, walking into your and Zoe’s bedroom and jumped in, not bothering to change. 

The light got turned off. You looked to see Zoe heading over to her bed as well. You wished each other goodnight and fell asleep, well at least Zoe did. You couldn’t stop thinking about what Douxie’s surprise was.

The next morning, you were ready and drinking f/d on the couch. You heard the bell ring and hurried up to open the door. You opened the door to be greeted by Douxie, a big smile on his face. 

“Ready to go, love? I don’t want us to be late,” Douxie asked. 

“Yup, just let me get my phone and bag,” you said, rushing to get your things. 

“Okay, got everything. Let’s go,” you said, walking out the door. 

Douxie put your bag in the back seat of his car, where his bag and a whole bunch of random stuff was. You sat at the front of the car, waiting for Douxie.

“So, where are we going?” you asked, trying to find out where you were going. 

“As I said yesterday, it’s a surprise and surprises aren’t supposed to be told,” Douxie repeated, driving away from Arcadia. 

“Pleeeeeeease,” you begged. 

Douxie shook his head. You groaned and looked out the window, gazing at the scenery. 

“You can listen to whatever music you want,” Douxie suggested, giving you his phone. 

You smiled and put on some music. 

The two of you enjoyed the drive, singing and telling each other jokes.

It was around 1 when Douxie stopped the car at a diner on the side of the road. The two of you headed in and sat at a table, ordering two sandwiches and two milkshakes. 

“How much longer until we get to this mystery place?” you asked. 

“We’ll get there just before sunset, I think. We’ll have enough time to explore the place,” Douxie replied. 

The two of you chatted as you ate your food. You two spent a bit too much time at the diner, so the two of you rushed to the counter to pay. You pulled out your card, Douxie doing the same. “So, you guys splitting the bill or is just one paying?” the clerk asked. 

“I’m paying,” both of you replied. 

The both of you turned to face each other. 

“No, y/n, I’m paying for this whole trip. Not you,” Douxie said. 

“Oh, no, no, no! You’re not paying. I’m the one who’s going to pay since you’re already taking me to who-knows where,” you argued. 

Then you quickly tapped your card onto the eftpos machine, paying for the food. 

You smiled at Douxie, who gave you a frown. The two of you left the diner and continued the journey to the place Douxie was taking you. The drive was silent, no chatting, no music. You started to get worried if you had upset Douxie by paying. 

“Doux, you okay?” you asked. 

He just nodded at you. 

“Are you upset about the bill?” you suddenly asked. 

“What? No, I’m just hoping that we get there before sunset,” he explained. 

After 3 more hours of driving, you had a arrived at the place. There was a beautiful lake in front of you, surrounded by pine trees. In the distance, you saw mountains that looked like it had recently snowed. You got out of the car and saw a bunch of cabins in front of you. Douxie got out of the car and handed you your duffle bag. The two of you headed to a slightly bigger cabin where a lady was at the reception typing away. 

“Hey, Margaret!” Douxie greeted the lady. 

“Hello, Douxie! I have your cabin keys ready to go. You and your lovely lady are in cabin 919. It’ll be easy to spot out,” Margaret said, handing Douxie a key. 

Douxie thanked her and the both of you headed to find cabin 919. 

After going around the woods for a few minutes, you spotted a cabin that had a sign that wrote 919. Margaret was right, it was easy to spot out. 

“Hey, is it just a coincidence or did Margaret give us the cabin that was the same age as you?” you asked, putting the key into the key hole and opening the door. 

You stepped inside, taking in the cabin. In front of you were two couches, one shaped like an L. In front of the couches was a fireplace and a large TV above. Next to it was a small kitchen and a dining table. You walked around and saw a door that led into the bedroom. 

The bedroom was not to big or not to small. It was just right. It felt cozy and smelled like rosewood. To the right, there was a queen sized bed, with a bunch of pillows, pastel green and pink with a few plain white pillows. There were two armchairs in front of the bed, surrounding a round glass coffee table. At the back of the room was another fireplace. On each side of the fireplace were two big windows that almost went to the floor. Dangling above the bed was a chandelier with individual cone shaped lights that sat on a wooden ring. Overall, the bedroom was beautiful. 

You walked outside the bedroom to see another door in front of the bedroom, which probably would be the bathroom. You walked in to see Douxie taking out his toiletries and placing them on a shelf. 

“So, did you like it?” he asked, placing the last of his stuff on the shelf and walking over to you. 

“I don’t like it...” you started, seeing Douxie frown, “I love it!” 

Douxie playfully punched your arm, “You gave me a lil heart attack there, Y/n!” 

“Well, I’ve explored the place. What do we do now?” you asked. 

“I have a good idea on what we should do,” Douxie smirked. 

He led you to the back, where there was an amazing view of the snow covered mountains you saw earlier. On top of that, you could see the sun disappearing at the horizon. The sky was now a mix of orange, purple, blue and pink. 

“Douxie... this is so...” you stumbled, trying to look for the words, “I’m at a loss of words.” 

“This place is quite breathtaking, isn’t it?” he said. 

Both of you took a seat on the ground, watching the sunset. 

“Wanna see a trick?” Douxie suddenly asked. 

“Sure,” you replied. 

Douxie transformed his watch into a bracelet, scrolled through his runes and tapped on one. He waved his hand and sky blue magic roses started forming around you. You stared at them with awe. He magicked a few birds as well. 

“Douxie, where did you learn all this?” you asked as they faded. 

“I’ve been learning over the years. Master Merlin taught me, but only after my nonstop begging. He only taught me how to magic the castle in Camelot, the rest I taught myself,” Douxie explained. 

“Wow. Can you teach me? Please?” you requested. 

“I’ll teach you tomorrow. I have plans for us for the rest of the evening,” Douxie responded, getting up and lending you a hand. 

You took it and he pulled you up to your feet, only to be swept off of them by Douxie. He carried you in his arms, bridal-style. 

“Doux, you know I can walk myself back into the cabin, right?” you said. 

“I’m fully aware of that, but this is more fun,” he grinned, walking back into the cabin. 

He set you down on the couch and plopped himself next to you.

“So, what are the plans?” you questioned. 

“I’m not telling you, it a surprise. For now, you can go freshen up and get changed,” Douxie said, getting the TV remote and started to scroll through the channels. 

You headed into the room and got a pair of black jeans and a black hoodie, since it was starting to get a bit chilly. You walked into the bathroom and quickly took a shower. 

While you were getting freshened up, Douxie called Archie. 

“Hey, Arch! How’s it going over there?” Douxie asked. 

“Mostly good. Tobias here has ate most of your supply of popcorn, Jim is making pizza, Claire and Blinky are arguing over what movie to watch. Other then that, everything is cool over here. What about you?” Archie explained. 

“Good, just going to--” he started when he heard someone knock on the door. "Sorry Arch, I got to go. Oh, and tell me if anything and I mean if anything goes wrong." 

"Don't worry about it Douxie, you just enjoy your time with y/n," Archie reassured him. 

Douxie playfully rolled his eyes and disconnected Archie. He got up from the couch and opened the door to see Margaret. 

"Hey Margaret! What's up?" he asked. 

"I just came here to tell you that your special requested dinner is ready. You and your lovely lady can start heading over there," Margaret said. 

"Thanks Margaret!" Douxie said, as she walked away. 

Soon after, you came out of the bathroom, all freshened up. 

"Okay Douxie, I've freshened up, as you had requested," you said. 

"Great! Just wait five minutes and we'll be out the door," Douxie said, running into the bathroom. 

Exactly five minutes later, Douxie came out the bathroom. He was wearing the exact same thing as you, the only difference was that he had a plain hoodie while you had some type of pattern on the front. 

"Ready to go?" he asked. 

"You're the one who made me wait for five minutes."

"Oh, right." 

The two of you then headed into the woods, you having no idea why. Then you reached a clearing where there were fairy lights hanging around the trees, a small round dining table in the middle. There was food already set out on the plates, making your mouth water from the aroma. 

"Quick, we should probably start eating the food before it gets cold," Douxie whispered in your ear and pulled you to the table. 

Douxie took out the chair for you and you sat down. 

The two of you ate f/f while Douxie and you chatted away under the moonlight. While you were chewing, Douxie spoke, "Even if gravity didn't exist, I'd still be falling for you." 

You choked on your food, grabbing the glass of water in front of you and gulped it all down. After calming down a little bit, you fell silent.

"What made you want to use a pick up line on me?" you suddenly asked Douxie. 

"Cause I felt like it. Plus, I wanted to know how you would react," Douxie admitted. "Now, I know how you react to pick up lines." 

He burst out laughing while you were groaned at him. 

"Haha, very funny," you retorted. 

"Okay okay. I'll stop laughing. So, you done?" he asked. 

"Yep," you answered. 

"Okay, 'cause we're going now," Douxie said, getting up. 

You also stood up. 

"I know that I'm not going to get an answer, but we are we going?" you questioned. 

As you had guessed, Douxie didn't answer. He just said that it was a surprise, yet again. 

After about 10 minutes of trekking, you arrived at a cliff where you could clearly see the night sky. You could even see the Milky Way. That's how far the two of you are from the city lights and pollution. 

"Wow, Douxie, this is beautiful. I can see the Milky Way here," you commented, as the two of you sat down at the edge of the cliff. 

"Yeah, we're that far away from the city. I always knew that you took an interest in space, especially constellations and stars," Douxie said, wrapping an arm around your waist, pulling you closer to him. 

"Thank you for bringing me here, Douxie. This place is amazing," you said, resting your head on his shoulder. 

"Anything for you, my love," Douxie said, planting a kiss on your hair. 

The two of you spent the rest of the night stargazing. 

Credit: Gabby - IG: itsgabby.2021

[bikerjongho]

welcoming song | song mingi

genre: supernatural, horror

characters: vampire!mingi ft. vampire!jongho

description: After a millennium of imprisonment for crimes, the dark, powerful, and vampiric Lord Song returns home and catches up with his life that passed him by.

word count: 4.5k

warnings: violence, murder, explicit mentions of a dead body, blood

author’s note: happy birthday mingi and welcome back from your hiatus!! I hope your day is amazing, special, and you enjoy it to the fullest <3 and now onto evil vampires.

taglist: @itsapapisongo @mangomingki @irehlevant​ @blueprint-han​ @doievoir​

For thousands of years, the Song mansion had withstood the test of time. Nestled in the dead-center of a lush forest, the mansion had proved itself to have incognito techniques as only few ever found it. Lucky travelers and explorers would get to experience the towering and magnificent architecture of the home, the addicting fragrances of the flowers that seemed to never die, and the unnaturally clear pool of water that looked to be the drink of the gods. All of this was available for them to drink in, and yet they were still thirsty, for if the outside was as glorious as it was, surely the inside would prove similar.

No sooner did these travelers step foot on the marble staircase leading to the doorway did the hidden arrows built into the bird feeders release and rob them of life. Wild bears and decomposers alike took delight in the delicacy of human flesh lying quite literally at their front door. When the mess was cleaned by the hungry animals, the stage would again be set for another unsuspecting victim to be drawn in by the beauty of the mansion. Because while the mansion had the looks and was clearly adept at drawing people in, the mansion was not to be entered by anyone other than the owner. And he hadn't stepped inside in over a thousand years.

The travelers were correct in assuming that the inside of the mansion was beautiful. Much like how the outside of the mansion lured in curious travelers to the front porch only to be transported to the doorstep of the afterlife, the inside swarmed with even more beauty. But this beauty was not soft and warm like the outside. It was as sharp as a blade, and just as piercing as an animal's teeth gnawing on meat.

There were over fifty vampires in this mansion, each adorned with fangs and priceless clothing. The vampires had been living inside the Song mansion since the days where it was new, and they worked hard to conserve its attractive looks. Though their hearts didn't beat, they moved with the swiftness of the most nimble humans and worked endlessly for the hope that one day, Lord Song would return.

Every golden piece of pottery was glimmering at all times, and the floors were like mirrors because of how reflective they always were. Cleaning in this household was no issue because of the sheer amount of vampires that were in this mansion, but there was also never anyone to mess up any of their work. The pillows were always too fluffed and the fireplace too kindled, and this was like that because of the hope that Lord Song would return. The mansion had to look spotless and perfect, to tell him that even after a thousand years, his servants were still as servile to him as they had been before he had been taken from them so unexpectedly.

But unbeknownst to the vampires, the anniversary of one millennium had passed and the prison sentence for a man was finally lifted. Black and buckled boots made their way through the forest, a cloak of the same color billowing behind the wearer. The traveler inhaled sharply when he saw the immortal beauty of the mansion, and increased his speed to the front porch. As usual, the sharp arrows shot out from their hiding places to pierce the newcomer, but the newcomer knew of this trick. After all, he was the one that had installed it.

A pale hand shot out and caught the sharp arrow. His eyes swiveled to the left to glance at the point of the arrow that was only inches from his face, inspecting it. Then, with a swift flick of his wrist, the arrow was snapped in two.

Mingi Song had arrived home at last.

His knock at the door sent reverberations across the entire mansion, and every vampire snapped their heads to the direction of the sudden noise. There hadn't been a knock at the door in a thousand years.

A small child with a mop of black hair and eyes as big as tennis balls clung to his mother's dress and stared at the door. His small fangs dug into his teeth and he huddled in close to his mother in fear. "Did the arrows-" he whispered, but his mother cut him off.

"The arrows never miss."

She said this with a shake in her voice, and all of the vampires could hear it. All eyes, red, black, yellow ones, were glued to the door and this mysterious visitor that had somehow bypassed their impenetrable security.

Finally, a vampire woman with long and silky black hair stepped forward towards the door in a move of bravery. Her hand shook as she grabbed the cold handle of the brass doorknob. She turned around and looked at her vampiric brethren. When Lord Song had been taken to jail because of his war crimes, none were given an estimate of when he would return. Many thought he had died. The majority held it within themselves that he would return someday. This person at the door, whoever they were, was not just some traveller. They could have been another vampire from the Song family taking ownership over them, or an entirely different vampire that wanted to kill them all or take them for their own.

But none of them truly expected Lord Song to be at the doorstep.

The all-familiar sight of his crimson red eyes caused most of the children vampires to burst into bloody tears. Mothers and fathers gathered them in a hug to soothe them, but couldn't close their mouths while they gaped at their Lord Song.

Prison had hardened him, but in the same way that polish on metal made the hard material shine even brighter. Despite being immortal, he looked older, but he had a new glint to his sharp, red eyes that suggested that the recklessness of his youth had subsided. His hair had been a tangy orange upon his arrest, and now it was a dark and jet black that rested over his forehead. He was tall as ever with a commanding presence that was frightful to enemies and comforting to friends.

His crimson eyes glanced over all of the vampires in his walkway. Some had been on the second floor and were frozen over the banister at his sight.

"Lord Song," a vampire finally said. "You've returned."

Mingi held out his arms and enveloped a child running towards him, smiling as he spun her around and she giggled with glee. "You all seem well," he said, and many of the vampires began to fan themselves to stop tears from running.

He placed the child back into the ground and walked forward. His knee connected with a small and wooden table by the entrance to the foyer, and the potted plant that had been placed on it tipped and shattered onto the floor.

Mingi's eyes were wide with shock, but this only caused even more tears and happiness within the crowd of vampires.

"Lord Song, I'll clean it up!" a woman cried.

"I will! It's my pleasure!" Another sobbed.

A millennium of meaningless dusting, sweeping, and wiping for anticipation of Lord Song now had meaning. And for the vampires of Lord Song, cleaning was the least they could do to show their admiration and loyalty to him.

A child pushed away from his mother and, disregarding a dust pan and broom another vampire had ran in with, began picking up the glass pieces with his bare hands. Blood prickled on his palms before spilling out onto the floor as he cleaned.

Mingi, surprised only moments ago, was grinning at the child. "Why, thank you," he said softly, then stepped over the child like he was a toy in the way of his steps. His long and black cloak brushed over the child's head without concern. Some of the vampires had fallen to their knees. Others averted their gaze to hide the tears of happiness in their eyes.

"Lord Song," a man sobbed. "I've missed you. You've returned."

"Tell us of your troubles that you faced while you were gone so that we might soothe you," another suggested, wiping away their bloody red tears with a white cloth.

Mingi surveyed all of them with his eyes, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his pants. "I'd like that," he said after a minute. "You all have kept this home in perfect condition. Let us have a drink while I tell my tales." He smiled with a glimmer in his eyes. "There's much to say. A millennium, however short that is in our lifetime of forever, is still long."

The beautiful and enormous dining hall, which had been bare and dull for a millennium, was waking back up with Lord Song's presence. The vampires cracked open aged blood and ushered Mingi into the hall with the grace of a palace servant. One pulled out his seat for him, while another was unfastening his traveling cloak and black gloves. The rest ogled at him like he was a magnificent piece of art in a museum.

Fancy glasses that hadn't seen light in so long were shining by the light of the chandeliers and candles. The cool, crimson liquid in the glasses swirled around as the vampires amused Lord Song with stories and tales that had been thousands of years in the making. A little boy excitedly told Mingi about the new species of bacteria that had spread around the mansion in the course of six months over three hundred years ago, and his mother told the story of the wild pack of bears that had nearly ransacked the house, stopped only by the mansion's poisonous and lethal breed of ants that lived in the lawn. But it all ceased when the binder of suitors was brought to the table.

A vampire with a monocle and poster straighter than a board dumped a six inch binder in front of Mingi with no preamble. He adjusted his tie while Mingi raised his eyebrows, and the rest of the vampires grinned at him with their fangs expectantly.

"Much time has passed during your absence," the monocled vampire began, and Mingi recognized him as one of the sparse British vampires in the mansion because of his accent. "We had grown bored of boredom during your absence. Days and years passed us by with a wink. Isolation can make you do many things," he said, and tapped the binder with his pointer finger.

"This is a matchmaker binder," he began, and Mingi's eyes widened as the vampire flipped it open and he was greeted with tens of faces on each page. There must have been thousands of pages. "We weren't sure if you liked men or women, or both, so we have everyone," he said casually, and flipped from a grouping of women to a section of men.

"My God," Mingi breathed. "Pray tell, why-"

"She's pretty, isn't she?" The vampire asked and pointed to a woman in the binder with dark hair down to her shoulders.

"Yes," Mingi began, but the vampires were too excited to let him speak.

"I like this one," cut another one, pointing to a man with blonde hair and a large smile. "He's also a Lord. I would marry him if I wasn't so low class."

"This one looks like he could kiss me until the sun rises," a girl sighed and pointed to a man in the binder. "And then we'd evaporate together. That's love, isn't-"

"Enough," Mingi said abruptly, pushing away the binder from himself and silencing the vampires. "Enough," he repeated, rubbing his brow.

"What's the matter?" The original vampire that had given him the binder asked. A hundred pairs of eyes leaned in closer for his response.

"Why did you do this?" Mingi sighed, looking at all of his vampires with contempt. He lifted the glass of blood to his lips and took a long drink. A hundred pairs of eyes watched every last drop dribble into his mouth, and then he set down the glass. "This is childish."

At that, many of the vampires sunk into each other in embarrassment. The monocled vampire coughed. "You are a fine man," he said simply. "We thought it would be a good idea to get you interested in the vampires available so you may extend the Song family for millennia to come. Many vampires of your class in recent years have found that marriage is a wonderful experience to behold in life."

"And as soon as I got back from my imprisonment was your best time to tell me about this?" Mingi snapped and the monocled vampire bowed his head in shame. "I was hoping to share my stories, not engage in some mindless and useless talks about love."

The vampires hung their heads. "I'm sorry, Lord Song," the monocled vampire lamented, sliding the enormous binder off the table and securing it in his arms. "We won't bring it up again."

A little vampire, a girl that looked no more than eight years old, appeared next to Mingi. "Lord Song," she spoke in a voice that was small but had hundreds of hidden years behind it, "tell us your stories now."

The room hushed and chairs squeaked across the floor as the vampires leaned towards Mingi. A thousand years was not even a twentieth of a vampire's lifetime, but it was still long. Eager ears awaited to hear the experience that Mingi had gone through during his time in jail.

Mingi cleared his throat and surveyed them all once again. Jail had been terrible and boring. It was the price he had paid for the crimes he had committed as a younger and reckless vampire, but he couldn't say that he regretted doing any of it. Mingi had taken himself and all two hundred of his servants to town after town, mowing through houses and draining the residents of their blood. The screaming of the townspeople had only made their own blood curl, and blood with adrenaline tasted richer. Despite being a dead being, Mingi had never felt so alive in that moment. It had been a display of power, a display of the awesome and terrible Song family that had roamed for eons.

But no one else had found it funny, especially the supernatural council that had reigned at the time. Mingi's name protected him from the worst of punishments, but not even he could squirrel himself out of an extended period behind bars. His servants had been sent back to his home and had been locked in with no idea of when Mingi would return, and Mingi had rotted in a cell for a thousand years. It wasn't all bad, though - there were vampires like him, burning with the desire to escape but burdened all the same with exhaustion and the cage that surrounded them. Mingi had lots of time to reflect on his actions, and he had come to the conclusion that if he was to do such an event again, he'd have to be much more discreet about it.

But now he was home. Mingi described the bad conditions of the jail to his enraptured crowd, preached about the terrible clothing he had to have on his back and vocalized the terrible treatment that the jail had given him. With every word, the shock on the vampires' faces melted into anger and sadness.

"Lord Song," many of them sobbed, "we are so sorry you had to go through that."

"What's done is done," Mingi murmured. "Stop crying. It's over now. Rejoice that I'm back."

And amongst the sudden cheers that yes, Lord Song had returned, Mingi smiled. A sliver of fear had baked inside of him when he had been released. He had been concerned over the thought that his brigade of vampires had deserted him. After all, a thousand years inside of a house with nothing to do was not an enjoyable time. But his stupidly obsequious servants had stayed locked in the house all the same.

The arrows at the front of the mansion only hurt those coming towards the mansion. They could have left any time they wanted to. But Mingi relished in the idea that they knew fully well of the arrows that were awaiting if they ever decided to come crawling back. His servants were locked in, and Mingi now knew with confidence that the leash he had on them was tighter than a double-knotted knot.

He raised his empty glass and savored the multiple vampires that tripped over chairs and table legs to reach his glass and refill it. He had them wrapped around his finger.

The next week allowed Mingi to be acclimated back into his home. The couches he rested on gave him peace and restfulness that he had forgotten he could feel during his time on the rock-hard floors of the prisons. The constant vampires that were begging to wait on him was also a complete change from before. But while his servants entertained him and kept him company, Mingi longed to talk to someone on his own caliber. So the next day, Jongho was on his back doorstep.

Only friends knew that the back door was the correct door to enter if they liked to keep their brains inside their head, and even then Lord Choi was smart. "Mingi," Lord Choi exclaimed when he was brought to the dining hall by Mingi's servants and saw him at the table. "It's wonderful to see you once again."

Like all vampires, Lord Choi hadn't aged a day since Mingi had last seen him. The only noticeable difference in his features was his now slicked back dark hair that gave him a more mature look, a look he never would have attempted thousands of years ago. He still had muscle on his arms, if not more, and his black and large eyes that seemed to catch every visual in Mingi's mansion had grown softer, more tempered. Something had tethered him down, and Mingi was curious to find out what it was.

The two of them circled one another in a hug, patting each others' backs as they laughed at their reunion. "How long has it been?" Jongho laughed when they broke apart. "A thousand years?"

"A thousand years," Mingi repeated. "What have you gotten yourself into?" He asked as Mingi's servants led the two of them to their seats at Mingi's long dinner table and sat them down. He expected Jongho to launch into a terrible and exciting story about a murder spree - he was famous for those when Mingi had last known seen him.

But Mingi was wrong. Jongho was more than happy to talk about his disciplined and mild travels he had done around the world. While a glass of red liquid was poured out for him and Mingi, he talked about his travels around Europe, Asia, and most recently, North America.

"I was most impressed by the humans' ability to be clean," he said as he took a long drink of his blood. "A bit of a shame because blood was so much easier to obtain when humans threw the carcasses of each other outside of doorsteps when plague raged. And I quite enjoyed the phase of blood-letting. But now, at least there's no more human feces for me to step upon when I stroll through the neighborhoods in London. I call that a win."

"You'll have to tell me about that," Mingi said and raised his eyebrows. Vampires didn't need to use the bathroom or sleep, but Jongho was glad to explain the modern wonder of indoor plumbing.

"And I think Ireland was my favorite place to visit," Jongho continued. "I was there about two-hundred years ago. Met some interesting humans, I had a book written after me as well. You may know of the book."

"Quite highly of you to think that I was allowed to read in prison," Mingi said, not unkindly, and Jongho laughed.

"Just a little book about vampires. Written by Bram Stoker."

"Never heard of it," Mingi said, and Jongho once again shook his head.

"We need to go on a trip together at some point," Jongho smiled. "To get you accustomed to the new world. You would be surprised how much human innovation has happened in the millennia you missed."

Jongho went on to continuing his life story that Mingi had missed, and Mingi was amazed to listen. Prison had been hard. It had been boring and harrowing, but he had survived, in the end. But he couldn't help but feel a pinprick of jealousy as Jongho described his tales and freedom he had, even if his adventures weren't as violent as he would have guessed. Jongho, like Mingi, had taken his vampire servants many times through towns for blood feasts. But Jongho had perfected the art of subtlety and remaining underneath the radars of watchful vampire councils that made sure none of them stepped out of line. He had found a way to let his innate vampire desires tear through himself and never subject himself to the horrors and pain of prison.

Mingi listened, but his ears turned greener as Jongho continued on about his life.

It wasn't until Mingi's servants arrived with that too-familiar courting binder of vampires did Jongho stop talking. Mingi opened his mouth to shoo them off, but the book was placed in front of Jongho and the vampire that had placed it cleared her throat.

"We hope you don't mind, Lord Choi, but we've come up with a few potential suitors, both male and female, that you may be interested in," she said, giving a bright smile to Jongho. Jongho's mouth twitched and he burst into laughter.

"Lord Choi?" The vampire asked, gasping. "Is something wrong?" Mingi looked at his servant and Jongho, equally as confused as she was.

"No, nothing," he said, "it's just that I'm married already."

"You're what?" Mingi choked and the vampire flushed with what little blood she had left in her body.

"Married, like I said, you missed a lot," Jongho said and reached in his coat pocket for a piece of paper. He threw it on the table, and it was a photo of a bright and smiling woman with blonde hair. "This is Analise, my beloved of almost seven-hundred years."

"Seven-hundred years?" Mingi gaped. The female vampire that had given Jongho the binder was already dragging it away from him, her face hidden by her hair.

"Yes, and she's wonderful," Jongho said casually, shrugging. "It's simply the way of life. I'm sure you'll find someone."

Mingi made a mental note to go back to his own binder later. "I never thought you'd get married," he said, and Jongho smiled.

"And neither did I. But sometimes, you just meet someone," he sighed, then looked at Mingi. "I haven't felt the need to go out and ravage towns or humans now that I have her. She keeps me occupied and happy."

Mingi's question as to why Jongho seemed more calm was finally answered, but it was accompanied by bubbling discomfort. "She must be truly amazing," he said through his teeth.

"She is," Jongho sighed, and then went into stories about her. The stories warped back into tales about his travels around the world, and soon night had fallen across the sky. Jongho couldn't have left the mansion earlier because of the sun and he hadn't brought a cloak, but now the moon could aid him in walking back into town.

"Be sure to come with me to Australia," Jongho said and hugged Mingi before he left. "It'll be lots of fun." And then he smiled, and Mingi's heart broke at how soft he had become.

"Of course," he said, giving a painful smile. Jongho grinned and left the mansion through the back door.

Mingi was back with his thoughts. He watched Jongho walking away through a window and retreated to his study. He sat down at his desk to write something on a piece of paper with a quill. When he realized all of his ink had dried up over the course of a thousand years, he begrudgingly took his glass of blood from earlier and wrote one phrase onto the paper using it: never to be sanguine.

It was a phrase that he and the rest of the vampires at the prison had learned and repeated to each other. Because while sanguine meant blood-red, it also meant that a person was blindingly optimistic and cheerful. And Mingi ached to never, ever, become like that. To be optimistic, to be sweet and kind and cheery, was to ignore the inhumanity of being a vampire. It was to align with humans more than vampires, their own kind. He had lost Jongho to the sanguine nature.

"Not like Jongho," he said, his hand shaking as he finished the end of the word sanguine. "Never like him." Because if prison had taught him anything, it was to be patient, it was to be quiet.

It was to be unassuming. Mingi rushed to his vampires. He must have seemed shocked, because the vampires nearly fell to the floor into a bow. "I need that matchmaker binder," he said. "My binder. The one you tried to give me a few days ago."

"But Lord Song," the vampire said, quivering, "you didn't even want-"

"I want it now," Mingi growled and the vampire shook. He left and came back a minute later with the book in his hands. Mingi yanked it from his arms and stormed back into his study.

Analise had made Jongho soft. The vampire council must have seen this, they must have known this. He flipped through the book until he found a page of attractive people.

A partner was exactly how Mingi could keep going with evil misdeeds and remain under the radar of the council that could reprimand him. The council must have had the impression that a partner would tame him, just like Analise had done with Jongho. And even if his partner ended up hating him for who he was and the actions he did, he could pay them a handsome sum to keep quiet. It was the perfect disguise.

"Marriage," Mingi murmured, and looked at his bare ring finger. A ring would allow his greatest diabolical plans that he had thought of in prison to come to life. He stood up and walked out of his study with the proposal of proposing in his mind. "The secret to staying hidden is to hide in plain sight."

[theweasleysredhair]

Flustered [G.W.]

Character: George Weasley

Word Count: 3077

Requested?: Yes/No

Summary: “You make my heart skip a beat.” In which Georgie is a chaotic, flustered mess in love with a Hufflepuff chaser.

Disclaimer: Gif isn't mine, credit to whoever made it

A/n: For the lovely Erica - I really hope you enjoy it angel! I may have been working on this all week and rewritten it like three times so I’m hoping I got George being all flustered yet cheeky right 😂

~*~

PLEASE DO NOT REPOST MY WORK! REBLOGS ARE ABSOLUTELY FINE! <3

+ + + + +

“Wow, you really like her don’t you,” Fred commented as he watched his twin staring hopelessly at the h/c girl a few metres to his left.

“What?” George snapped out of his daydream just as he walked straight into a pillar, knocking him back on his feet and he groaned in pain as Fred and Lee laughed.

“Might wanna watch where you’re walking instead of staring at Y/n, mate,” Lee joked, watching as George rubbed gingerly at his nose. “Love really is blind, eh George?” Fred sniggered.

George groaned, half at his nose hurting and half at his friends’ teasing. It’s not his fault he was so distracted - how could he be expected to focus on where he was walking when you were a few metres away from him?

“Oh shut up, the pair of you. You’re acting like you’ve never fancied a girl before. I distinctly remember you falling on your face, Fred, when you first started liking Angelina,” George scowled, nudging his brother.

“That’s because you tripped me up!” Fred said indignantly. George feigned innocence, “I would never do such a thing.”

And then suddenly his focus had fallen back on you, his previous conversation fading into the background, barely paying attention to Lee’s laughter at his expense.

“She’s the best chaser in Hogwarts I reckon,” he said dreamily, watching as your head fell back as you laughed with your teammates.

To be fair, he wasn’t wrong. You’d made a name for yourself since you’d joined the team a couple years back, and were the best player on the Hufflepuff team. Luckily for George, he knew Harry was a better seeker than Cedric, but he knew you were a force to be reckoned with - you’d scored the most points since the year had started and by a longshot at that.

“You know, we have three perfectly good chasers on our own team you should be complimenting,” Lee pointed out as he opened the doors to exit the castle.

The sun was out, warming up what would have otherwise been a mild morning, dew still covering the grass as hoards of Hogwarts students were milling around, waiting for the match to begin.

The boys began heading towards the quidditch pitch, knowing Oliver Wood would already be there to prep the team on which strategies they’d be using today.

George sighed, “Yeah but... they don’t look like Y/n do they. Or act like her. Or sound like her.”

“I swear to Merlin, if you lose us this match because you can’t stop staring at the girl then I’ll personally kill you myself,” Lee threatened playfully.

“No worries about that, I’ve got a plan!” George announced proudly, straightening his back and pushing his chest out proudly.

“You made a plan? Without me?” Fred came to a sudden halt, making Lee bump into his back as the older twin dramatically clutched his chest as if he was heartbroken.

“Yep. Made it just this minute... I’m gonna flirt with her whilst we’re playing, to distract her,” the younger twin said determinedly.

There was a moment of silence before Fred and Lee burst out laughing laughing, continuing on their journey to the pitch. “You can’t flirt. You can barely speak to her,” Lee chortled, grabbing onto George’s shoulder for support.

“‘S not true. I had a conversation with her the other day!”

“She asked you if she could borrow a quill and you stared at her with heart eyes for a solid couple of minutes before I handed one to her instead. Wouldn’t call that a conversation, Georgie,” Fred said pointedly.

“I wasn’t referring to that - thanks for reminding me of that by the way,” George fake-glared at his twin, “I actually saw her in the library.”

“Oh yeah? What were you doing in the library?” Lee asked in disbelief, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I was studying,” George said simply.

At the sight of Fred and Lee raising their eyebrows, George sighed, “Okay fine, I was hiding from Filch. And I may have seen her walk in there before me. The point is, we had an amazing conversation and she called me cute.”

“Everyone stand back, Georgie’s been called cute and had some really hot, passionate eye contact!” Fred called out sarcastically.

George looked unimpressed, “Oh ha-ha, very funny.”

As they arrived at the stands, the twins bid goodbye to Lee who headed up to commentator’s box.

Around 15 minutes later, the twins were in their quidditch uniform and had just finished with the match briefing. They walked out, laughing and joking when Fred nudged George and nodded over to where you were stood in the middle of the pitch with your team, in your own quidditch uniform, holding onto your broom.

George picked up his pace, taking his place in front of you. He smirked at you, “Heard you’ve been practicing night and day for this, shame we’re going to beat you anyway.”

You looked up and were pleasantly surprised to see the younger twin standing across from you, in his starting position for the match. You’d be lying if you said you weren’t happy he’d chosen to come and see you instead of speaking to his team.

You scoffed and shot him a grin, “I’m gonna fly circles around you in this match.”

“Bring it on, love! Gryffindor are the best team going,” he bragged, puffing out his chest playfully and making you laugh (something he was extremely happy to have done - he’d never get sick of hearing the melodic sound).

“Oh yeah? We’ll see about that,” you said determinedly, climbing onto your broom.

The match began and George made it his mission to compliment you every time he flew past you, to distract you from scoring. Usually, nothing could stop you from getting the quaffle into the hoops but there was something about the ginger boy that had you flustered, heart racing every time he’d throw a smirk your way.

“Did I ever tell you how beautiful you look right now?” He’d said to you as he flew past you, distracting you just long enough for Alicia Spinnet to score a goal and making you grit your teeth in annoyance.

When you had stolen the quaffle from Katie Bell and were just about to score, he came up beside you saying, “Always knew you were an amazing chaser, babe.” And that was enough for you to miss the hoop by barely a fraction of a centimetre.

The last straw was when you’d just managed to throw the quaffle past Oliver Wood, after having to flip over on your broom to avoid Angelina Johnson flying past you in an attempt to steal it from you, earning another 10 points for Hufflepuff when the younger twin flew past you again, “Well that was hot as hell, love.”

And suddenly you forgot where you were for a moment, staring after him as he flew off, mouth open in a slack ‘o���.

Your team captain flew past you, yelling, “Flirt in your own time, L/n!”, making you realise that you were, in fact, in the middle of a quidditch match. And with that, you decided to give George a taste of his own medicine.

“‘M really glad you keep passing us the quaffle, love, making it so much easier for us to win,” George teased you. “Anything for the most handsome beater around,” you retaliated, batting your eyelashes at him. Sure, you could’ve come up with something better but for being in the middle of a game and thinking on the spot, you didn’t think it was too bad.

You were right as well, because as soon as you said it, George stopped mid-air, frozen in place. Because... did you just call him handsome?

His heart was pounding as he stared after you, your h/c hair flowing in the wind and making his breath catch in his throat.

And then suddenly out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a bludger coming straight for you. With a glance over at Fred, who was busy trying to ensure Angelina - who had the quaffle - could score, he realised that the other bludger was heading towards Katie Bell.

George raced into action, beginning to head over to help Katie, who moved to dodge said bludger, before suddenly swerving on his broom over towards you, smacking the iron ball away from you merely seconds before it hit you.

He turned to you, all previous playfulness gone and replaced with concern, “Are you okay?”

You barely had enough time to nod, still in shock from the near-hit, before George was called off again by Fred.

“Maybe focus on your own teammates, eh Weasley?” Oliver shouted angrily at George, who looked around and realised Katie Bell had been hit with the other bludger.

“Sorry Ollie mate, had to protect what’s mine,” he called back to his captain.

“And because of that my shoulder got hit!” Katie yelled out.

“Sorry, Bell,” George shrugged, before heading off to hit a bludger away from Alicia. Of course, he did feel bad that Katie got hurt - quite guilty, in fact - but... to him, it would’ve been worse if you’d have been hit - or worse again, had fallen. He didn’t think he could handle that.

“You’re lucky we won,” Fred said to George after Harry had caught the snitch, “Otherwise I reckon Oliver would try and drown you in the showers for saving Y/n instead of Katie.”

“Y/n is my priority to be honest,” George replied as they landed their brooms on the grass, “Plus, I knew Katie saw the bludger coming and had at least a chance to swerve. Y/n had no idea. I couldn’t let her get hurt, Freddie... I couldn’t.”

“Guess we’ll have to work on distractions in the next practice,” Oliver said pointedly on the way past the twins, although the didn’t seem too upset - probably considering Gryffindor had won - followed by Katie who was holding her shoulder.

“Yeah, sorry about that,” George said sheepishly. If he was honest though, it wasn’t really a hard decision for him to choose between saving you and saving Katie.

Katie didn’t make his heart race like you did.

The rest of the team headed after the cheering crowds, whooping and hollering at Harry.

Fred followed on, screaming excitedly into the crowd. George went to join when he felt someone tap his shoulder.

He turned around and was met with the sight of your nervous smile, rocking back on your heels as you looked up at him, “Hey... I um, I just wanted to thank you. You know, for hitting that bludger away from me. You didn’t have to do that and I never got the chance to thank you in the game.”

“Don’t you worry love, it was nothing. Gotta protect your pretty face, don’t I?” He said cheekily, making a blush rise on your cheeks.

“Well, it wasn’t nothing, it saved me a great deal of pain and possibly a nasty fall so... I guess I owe you,” You grinned, before leaning up to press a soft kiss to his cheek. You thanked him again and then shyly waved him goodbye to join your teammates.

George felt like a schoolgirl with a crush, his mind racing and heart beating fast as he reached up to the place where you’d kissed him. You’d kissed him.

“You look happy with yourself,” Fred commented with a grin from a few metres away, having walked back after realising his twin wasn’t following.

“She kissed me,” George announced in amazement and pure awe. “Yeah, on the cheek,” Fred grinned, crossing his arms over his chest.

“That still counts!”

“No Georgie it really doesn’t, but I’m glad you think so,” the older twin replied in an amused tone.

-

“D’ya reckon she fancies me?” George asked suddenly as the twins headed down to the Great Hall for lunch. For a moment, Fred was confused, looking around for some kind of context, but then realised his twin was talking about you.

“Well I mean you are the less attractive twin and all but you do have some good qualities I suppose,” Fred replied, looking like he was in thought.

“Oh yeah, like what?” George asked seriously, hoping for some actual advice.

“Well for starters you have an amazing twin brother.”

George stopped, staring at Fred’s grin and sighing before elbowing him - slightly harder than he intended to so Fred nearly fell into the wall.

“Now now Georgie, I’m simply trying to tell you that I am offering you my services at helping you win her over,” Fred said with a laugh, nudging his twin right back.

“At this point I’m open to anything.”

“Well, this may seem a bit out there, over the top, dramatic - but how about... you just tell her directly how you feel. You have no problem being all sappy about her to me. I’m sick of it really,” Fred sighed with a shake of his head.

“I can’t do that.”

“You’re George Weasley of course you can mate.”

“D’ya reckon?” George glanced over to the group of students heading down the same corridor, most likely to head to get some lunch too.

“Yeah I do. Or, even better, just walk over and snog her the next time you see her.”

As much as George liked that idea - and was imagining it right that moment - he decided against it.

“What if there’s someone else?” Fred decided mess with George. The younger twin’s head whipped round to look at Fred, “What do you mean?”

“Oh wow your face, you’re really gone on her... poor Y/n,” Fred laughed, clapping a hand on George’s shoulder, “All I’m saying is, my dear sweet twin, what if there’s someone else?”

George swallowed. He hadn’t thought of that. What if there was someone else? He hadn’t seen you with anyone and knew Fred was winding him up but what if?

“Then I’ll just beat away the other competition,” George said with a cheeky grin, hiding his worry but his mind was reeling at the possibility.

Fred groaned at the pun, shaking his head. He opened his mouth to reply to his twin when they heard soft laugher from behind them, “Oh don’t you worry, no one could ever beat you, George.”

The twins turned around in shock, George’s heart pounding as his eyes rested on your figure.

“Oh dear Godric, marry her,” Fred groaned as he walked away towards the Great Hall, mumbling something about bad puns.

George felt his cheeks redden, reaching up with one hand to scratch the back of his neck, “You um.. you heard that?” You bit your lip before grinning, “I did.”

“Is it too late to pretend I’m Fred?” George asked with a nervous smile. He could feel the tips of his ears burning and he had no doubt they were most likely blending in with his hair at that point.

You laughed, “Well you could but I’m quite fond of you as yourself if I’m honest.”

“You are?” George’s mind raced, and he felt his breath catch in his throat. He then mentally cursed himself for acting so stutter-y and nervous as he ran a hand through his messy hair, “I mean, that’s good because I’m quite fond of you too.”

“Of course. There’s not many guys who would go out of their way to protect me from bludgers... especially when they’re not on my team or as handsome as you are,” you said with a small shrug. You giggled a little noticing a strand of hair sticking up from George messing with it, so you reached up and flattened it out, making him swallow from how close your lips were to his.

He could easily close the couple of inches between you if he wanted. Well, he did want to - badly - but just as he built the courage, you’d stepped back a little further away.

“Some things are more important than who’s on what team... don’t you worry love, I’d protect you from bludgers all day long if you asked me to,” he replied with a cheeky smile.

“Is that an offer you make to all the girls?” You asked with a laugh. “Nah, just the ones I fancy,” George admitted.

“You’re sweet, you know that?”

“Now that you mention it...,” he pretended to think, before shooting you a grin, “Yeah I know.”

You laughed and his gaze flickered from your eyes to your lips and back again as his tongue darted out to swipe across his own bottom lip. You were still stood close, he could - what was it Fred said? He could walk over and snog you.

Your laughter had dropped to a comfortable silence before George broke it, stepping forward so the distance between you became nearly non-existent, “You know, I was thinking, maybe we can- or I could- can I-”

“Kiss me, Georgie” you interrupted his rambling.

“Oh bloody hell- yeah absolutely,” he breathed as he grabbed your hips, pulling you to him and crashing his lips to yours. Your hands made their way around his neck as he slowly turned you to press you against the nearest wall, one of his hands on your waist as the other cupped your jaw to better angle himself.

He sighed happily as you tugged at strands of his hair, the hand that was on your waist moving slightly so it gripped the back of your hip, pulling you closer to him.

You pulled away a little to take a breath and before you knew it he was kissing you again, showing you how long he’d waited for this moment.

“Hey Y/n?” He said in a low tone as you pulled away, pressing another kiss to your swollen lips before resting his forehead against yours. “Yes Georgie?”

“You make my heart skip a beat,” he said with a proud grin.

You couldn’t help the laugh that escaped you, “It took you all that time to come up with that?”

“In my defence, I had you - looking like you do - in front of me, being all distracting. And then you let me kiss you. You try coming up with something better,” George scoffed playfully, giving your waist a gentle squeeze.

“Oh I could easily beat you at this game,” you replied immediately, grinning up at him. His mouth dropped open a little and his eyes lit up, staring at you as if you’d hung the moon and stars in the sky,

“Merlin, Fred was right: Marry me?”

[crystalas]

Affliction

Affliction

A Lego Monkie Kid one shot [yes, I can do those] wherein while travelling with the Monkie Crew during their season 3 journey Red Son’s affliction flairs up and he has to deal with it…with a little help from Tang.

Warning mentions of mental, emotional abuse and anxiety attacks

 It had been two weeks since Red Son had joined the Monkey King’s group which made him question his sanity and theirs sometimes but, it was not as unbearable as he first thought it to be. True the Dragon Horse girl will not shut up about him being an ‘official good guy’ despite him telling her numerous times that helping them will help him get revenge on the spirit that brought about his family’s downfall.

Noodle boy was quiet which unnerved him no end but then again after nearly getting defeated by Lady Bone Demon he couldn’t blame him. As someone who had been on the receiving end of her mental tormenting tactics and making his own father try to kill him, he understood all too well you’d need some time to yourself to recover.

The pigman and the scholar had made themselves the cook and quarter master of this ship and the big blue man [which he found out was called Sandy] kept the ship on course and in shape, surprisingly he was welcomed Red Son’s input on the ship’s maintenance and ideas for improvement.

Monkey King he didn’t know how he was doing because for reasons he couldn’t explain he just couldn’t bring himself to go near him.

And then it happened, a flock of demon birds attacked the air ship and during their battle to get said feathered monsters off their flying base one of the engines blew; causing the ship to tilt horribly and nearly fling all those fighting on deck into the mountains below and the begin began to plummet. It had been a tense fight between the attacking demons, time and gravity as they fought all three simultaneously before Sandy could get the failing engine working again and once, they got themselves more stable easily fought off the creatures.

Now the battle done and everyone working on getting the ship back in order, Red Son stood there before looking at the damaged engine. He should have checked the engines that morning or upgraded them by now, he should have known about the demon flock that roamed here, or at least checked whose territory these mountains were in. There were so many things he should have done to prevent all this and its only a matter of time before the rest of crew realised that too…

Red Son’s felt an all too familiar tightness in his chest and retreated to below decks, of all the times for his affliction to flare up why now? He had too many things to do and he couldn’t show weakness in front of these people! The tightness got worse and he soon realised he wasn’t going to make it back to the sleeping quarters so he made do with the broom closet, he snuck in closed the door and sank to the floor as he struggled to breathe. His thoughts began to whirl around in his head like static on a radio making him feel dizzy and he brought his knees up to his chest in the hopes of stopping his heart from leaving his chest as it started to beat so fast.

He was used to this; he knew what to do when this happened all he had to do was ride it out and wait for it to be over. If he was lucky, it’ll be over in a few minutes or if he was unlucky an hour; he just didn’t want to be caught like this! It was bad enough he was to blame for what happened what if they find him sitting in the broom closet of all thing and worse what if they notice his condition? They’ll surely kick him out for fears of infecting the others!

As these thoughts continued to whirl around his head and he wheezed in what little oxygen he could he felt someone take his hands.

“Hey its okay…its okay, try and take a deep breath for me Red can you do that?” said a voice it sounded familiar the scholar perhaps? “Focus on my voice and try to breathe in…”

Red Son tried to hone in on the voice and managed to take a deep breath.

“And breathe out slowly…”

He somehow managed to do that.

“Good, you’re doing great! And again, breathe in…and out…in…and out…” the voice soothed and coaxed Red Son back into the room, now that he could think more clearly, he saw the scholar [Tang that was what the other called him] kneeling in front of him holding his hands.

“You feeling better?” he asked. Red Son jerked his hands away and scuttled as far as he could away from the man.

“You should wash your hands…in case you get it” he mumbled.

“Get what?”

“My affliction of course” Red Son admitted shamefully.

“Red Son is this some sort of demon thing? Because from where I’m standing you were having an anxiety attack and last time I checked those weren’t contagious.” Tang said sitting down and getting himself more comfortable on the floor.

“Anxiety attack?” Red Son asked “Is that what it is?”

“Unless you demons get something else but from what I read you guys don’t get sick much…” Tang said before looking thoughtful “Though I do need to do more research into that now that you’re here just to be safe.”

“It must a curse then!” Red Son declared “Mother would have cured me had it been something small as a sickness…perhaps mother was worried of it spreading…”

“Was she the one who told you that? That others could catch it?”

“No…I just assumed because mother would… umm…tell me…to…” Red Son mumbled.

It had to be contagious why else would mother tell him to go away whenever it happened? What other reason than to protect herself and others from getting it?

“Useless child! if you’re going to be like that then go to your room!”

“You’re being an embarrassment for the both of us! Just leave me alone till you can be reasonable!”

“Red Son I thought I told you to keep this to yourself? Can’t you see Father and I are busy?”

“Red Son how long have you had this ‘affliction’?” Tang asked gently, Red Son gripped his arms to try and keep himself focussed and in the room. Tang was a scholar and had already shown an impressive amount of knowledge for a human, given he had helped him with this attack maybe he can cure him!

“I think maybe…two hundred years ago? Give or take a decade?” he suggested and Tang stared at him his glasses slipping off his nose slightly as his mouth gaped slightly before he recollected himself and pushed his glasses back into place.

“Sorry…” he apologised “I keep forgetting you’re an ancient demon.”

“I’m still considered young by my kind.” He exclaimed and heard Tang muttered ‘ow my hip’ under his breath.

“Let’s get back on track!” Tang declared “these ‘attacks’ do they happen often?”

“Depends…for a while they happened maybe every two weeks or so maybe a month…but after father came back it started to happen more often…” Red Son explained, the thought of failing his father time and time again despite his best efforts. He had wanted so bad to make up for the blighted mistake that hurt his family so much all those centuries ago, he wanted to make his father proud!

“You? Why should I trust you? You have brought me nothing but failure! Time and time again nothing but disappointment!”

The memory of his father laughing at him and then to declare him a traitor, he knew it was that spirit’s fault but it was still his father’s voice taunting him, it was still his father’s face he would see in his memory looming over him and rushing forward to…

“Red Son?” Tang said loudly bringing Red Son out of his thoughts. “Let’s try something else, what was going through your mind when this attack started?”

“What’s that got to do with anything?”

“I’m just trying to figure this out with you, were you scared of the bird demons?”

“NO!” Red Son shouted his hair flaring up in anger “How dare you even suggest that I, Red Son were scared of such minor creatures!”

“So, what was it that upset you?”

“Upset me?”

“Red Son if this is anxiety then your attack must have been triggered by something, if it wasn’t the fight what was it?” Tang inquired, it unsettled Red Son on how quiet and calm he was being about this. “It couldn’t be the fight itself because you seemed fine during that, well as fine as any of us could have been while fighting bird demons on a sinking flaming ship! But this attack began afterwards, didn’t it? so what happened between the fight ending and this starting?”

He should keep his mouth shut a part of Red Son’s mind told him, he shouldn’t expose his flaws to this human. Besides nobody needed to know about this, he was just going to be a bother to everyone…

“Keep your snivelling to yourself! Can’t you see mummy has enough on her plate because of you?”

“Quit your whining and get back to work! Honestly I don’t need this right now!”

“I…I…was thinking of all the things I should have done to prevent that from happening” Red Son finally manged to say.

“Should have done?” Tang repeated “Red Son…do you think what happened was your fault?”

Red Son froze up at those words, he could already feel his chest tighten. They knew! Of course, they knew it was his fault it had to be who else could be to blame? He was more acquainted with the area he should have known about the demon flock; he should have checked the engine so it made sense that he was to blame. It was always his fault when something went wrong Mother said so…

“It’s your fault my husband was sealed away!”

“I was left alone for decades because of you!”

“We lost the staff because your foolish weakness you pathetic little whelp!”

His fault, it was all his fault, it was always his fault!

“Do the spell!” he whispered as his heart began to pound harder.

“What?”

“Whatever you did last time, do it again!” he whimpered clutching his chest “…Please…”

Tang took his hand and Red Son hoped to feel better when Tang did whatever had done last time but nothing changed he still felt like the room was crashing in on him. The thoughts of what Monkey King will do when he finds him, how on earth he was going to explain what went wrong, what punishment awaited him and how he was going to have to make it up to them spun and clashed in his head.

“Red Son listen to me; did you know the engine was going to fail?”

“What? N…no I didn’t but I…”

“Had someone told you to check on it? Was it your job today to do so?”

“No…I mean I usually do but it looked fine yesterday…”

“Then it wasn’t your fault”

“W…what?”

“Red Son none of what happened today was your fault, how could it be? You said so yourself you checked it yesterday and it was fine, you had no way of knowing those bird demons were nearby. None of this was your fault.” Tang stated clearly holding Red’s hand tightly now.

“But…I…I mean I should have…”

“Red listen to me, we’re not going to blame you for something none of us had any control over. We fixed the problem we won the battle that’s all that matters. It wasn’t your fault.” Tang exclaimed “But you still think it is, don’t you?”

Red Son looked at him and nodded. Why did he feel such relief at being told something that should be obvious to him? Tang should be at least scolding him for acting so foolishly but he just…sits there…listening to him. It felt nice to have someone hear him out for once.

“Can you cure me of this?” he asked.

“No Red Son, this isn’t something I can just make a potion for and fix right away, but I am willing to help you through this. You don’t need to ride these ‘afflictions’ out alone, next time you feel one coming on just let me know, okay?” Tang explained and stood up helping Red Son to his feet. “Are you feeling a bit better now?”

“Yes…” he said softly.

“Good we better get back up top before everyone thinks we fell overboard!” Tang beamed and opened the broom closet door; Red Son grabbed his hand before he could leave.

“Um…thank you…” Red Son said “but please don’t let anyone else know about this…”

“I won’t say a word until you’re ready!” Tang swore and they made their way back to the others, Red Son made a bee line for Sandy who was looking over the damage engine. Sandy just waved and smiled before going into detail about what he thought went wrong handing Red Son the tool box as they discussed how to fix and improve it. Tang smiled and went over to Pigsy who was in the kitchen putting away all the items that had gone flying when the ship had tilted.

“There you are!” Pigsy growled “I could’ve used a hand you know where have you been?”

“You know how we agreed when this was all over we were going to get MK to see a therapist?” Tang said as he started to pick the jars of herbs off the floor.

“Yeah?” Pigsy agreed wondering why this had come out of left field so suddenly.

“Think we could get Red Son to see one too?”