#i brightened it. it's from the static on the tv screen in front of them sry i did my best :/

[mikesbasementbeets]

byler in every episode -> 3.06. e pluribus unum

[inforapound]

The Devil Inside  -  Part 3

I really meant for this to be the last chapter but it got away on me. I’m sorry. Also, please don’t date anyone who acts like Ivar. This chapter really makes me miss high-school though. 😬 It actually will be a couple of week before the finale is posted.

Pairing - Ivar and you

Warning - SMUT

The rest of the weekend was quiet and you spent it at home, declining invitations to meet up with friends. Instead, you studied, baked banana bread, and overall did as many wholesome things as you could to restore moral balance after your movie theatre shenanigans.

In truth, you felt a little sick over it, like you had been duped but what would you have even said to Ivar if he had called anyway? Thanks for the rub? Nope.

It was rare those days that your mom and dad were both home at the same time, or at all, as each traveled so much for work and you were pleased to have a family supper that Sunday night and pretend that you were still a kid.

Of course, the events of your Friday night did not leave your mind and you found yourself zoning out, remembering how Ivar had looked at the theatre and how he smelled, and what his mouth felt like on yours. God, his tongue had been inside your mouth as if wanting to taste your orgasm. More than once you had thought about his words, the part where he said “he knew that you were a good girl.”  How exactly did he know that? And if you were good, what was bad?

By Monday the entire event seemed less vivid and it was easier not to think about. But walking out of the school at lunch and seeing that black Camaro brought back that same rush of uncertainty. Was he there for you? Of course, he was, you almost rolled your eyes at yourself. He was parked right beside your car instead of his usual spot across the lot. God, you felt anxious but weren’t you also a little relieved? Shit... and where were Kim and Amanda? You needed them. As if they heard, your phone chimed but looking at your screen it was not a number you recognized.  

    : Are you going to stand there all day?

It was Ivar. Obviously. He apparently had your number after all.

Walking toward him, you were acutely aware that he was watching your every move. You could feel those cold blue eyes and because of the small size of your hands, when you got to the car, you struggled to open his car door with its stiff classic car handle. It was impossible to miss how he rolled his eyes when he leaned over to help open it from the inside. You felt stupid and awkward and by the look of him, you were already on his nerves.

“Hi,” you said meekly as you slid down into the seat.

Not saying anything back, he glanced over but continued to stare out the front window watching kids head to their cars.

It was quiet and felt strained and just… nope…. you weren’t doing it; his attitude, his sighs, and rolling eyes. Forget it. You had some self-respect and weren’t going to be ignored while sitting in his car.

“So, I was thinking... the other night,” you started and he glanced at you again, his face unreadable but the frown he often wore was there. “It was kinda crazy and I just don’t want to...”

“To what?” he snapped.

Hesitating you waited in case he was going to say more but when he didn’t you licked your lips and his bright blue eyes flicked down to catch that subtle movement. “So... I was saying,” you continued and he locked eyes with you again, “I don’t want you to think that you’ve got to follow up or, I don’t know, take me out...”

“You don’t want me here?” he cut you off again, his eyes were narrowed at you, assessing.

Oh no, you had not given enough thought to what you were trying to say. You had obviously insulted him.

“No, no,” you repeated, reaching over and putting your hand on his arm, his leather coat feeling soft. “I only meant...”

“Meant what?” his eyes narrowed further and he made a face like you had just blown salt at him.

“I’m sorry,” you apologized, shaking your head. “I’m bad at this. I only meant it feels backward, doing something so... intimate and then seeing each other and trying to... I don’t know...” you shrugged, sounding defeated.

Leaning over the console between your seats, he smirked. “Kiss me then.”

“What?” you couldn’t help but smile at his instant change in mood and you leaned back slightly to better look into his blue eyes. God, were they ever electric.

“If you’re not sure what to say, just kiss me. Everything else will come.”

Your enormous grin forced him to smile and you did, you kissed him. His hand came up and held the side of your face and it felt so amazing you sighed. You actually sighed. God, was this happening?

Pulling his lips away, he looked at you and his expression was serious but you could feel that his entire demeanor had softened. He was less on guard.

“Are you hungry? Wanna grab food?” he asked.

“Last block was home-ec; I ate everything in sight but I’ll go wherever you want so you can eat.”

Nodding, he straightened and turned the ignition; the engine firing up with a roar.

Less than five minutes on the road and you could tell where he was taking you. Driving through the gates, the impressive Tudor house came into view and he parked right in front, not saying a word as he got out and headed in, his crutch making a soft clicking sound as you trailed behind.

Inside, no one was around but you heard a TV or radio in the distance perhaps from the kitchen or that family room.

Down the hallway and into his room, you stood in the center looking around as he balanced his crutch against a hip and took off his leather coat, tossing it onto the loveseat. Flipping on music, he looked over at you and sat down on the end of his neatly made bed. You were dragging out the moment and when your eyes met his eyes, you knew, that he knew you were stalling.  

“You said you weren’t afraid of me.”

“I’m just trying to get a sense…. I don’t actually know you.”

Tipping his head to one side, he looked at you. Really looked, seeming to simultaneously analyze your appearance, your meaning, your reasons for coming, why you had let him do all those things to you. You didn’t actually know what he was thinking but that’s what it felt like. Regardless, it was clear, he held the power in the room.

“Come here,” he nodded to the bed beside him, his eyes not giving away his thoughts.

Clearing your throat, you made your way over, slowly sitting down, your hands running over your thighs to smooth out your skirt. Turning his head, he continued to look and you glanced up nervously.

“I know something about you,” he crooned, his expression a little more playful.

“What?”

“I know you are smart. Top of your class. I know you don’t go anywhere without those two chicks. I also know you dated some rugby player from Reynolds.”

“How do you know all that?” you asked your body picking up that static in the air that tended to play between you.

“Mark,” he answered matter-of-factly.

“I see,” you shifted on the bed, feeling squirmy. “I’m at a disadvantage then. I know nothing about you. Other than you have two brothers.”

“Three.”

“And that you go to Clairmont,”

“I don’t…I do school online.”

“Oh. I know that you are a good kisser,” you peeked up at him seeing how your comment brightened his face. “But that’s it.”

You weren’t sure why you couldn’t hold his eye contact but it was then that his fingers brushed back the hair hanging over your shoulder, and you stayed frozen as he pulled the collar of your white blouse aside. Slowly he leaned in closer and closer, his face reaching the crook of your neck and he pressed a kiss just below your ear. Ahhhhhh, you nearly melted as his lips continued lightly across your throat, gently sucking your skin into his mouth, making your body shiver. But you didn’t move…..

Pulling back, he looked at you and then sighed loudly.

“You’re so tense,” he breathed out. “Fine! What would you like to know?”

“Pardon?”

“You feel like you don’t know me. So… ask.” He lifted his eyebrows and shook his head like what he was saying was obvious. “I never lie.”

“Ohh-kay,” you said cautiously feeling unsure of where to start but not wanting this window to close.

“Where are your parents?” you started with the basics.

“My father is never around. Overseas working and my mom died two years ago.”

Okay, that was NOT where to start. “I’m sorry,” you turned your head and looked at him.

Swatting the air as if to move on, he gawked, impatient for you to continue.

“What do you want to do after school?”

“I don’t know.”

“Who was your last girlfriend?”

“Skip.”

“Wait you said...”

“I didn’t lie,” he cut you off. “I said skip.”

“Ohh-kay,” you replied, thinking quietly for a moment and you could tell this game was nearly done. “Do you deal drugs?”

He actually flinched and flared his nostrils, and you kept your eyes on him watching his reaction. Glancing around the room, he seemed to be steadying himself obviously hating this game.

“Weed,” he said almost bitterly. “I don’t deal drugs,” he mimicked some voice as if it was yours. “I sell weed. Nothing more than that.”

“Why?”

His head snapped over to look at you again and you could tell he was trying not to glare. God, he was not an open person.

“For the money,” you smiled, indicating you were joking, trying to lighten the mood.

“I started smoking it a couple of years ago. I went through a bad time after my mom passed. My legs were pretty bad,” he glanced over, “I have a disorder that I was on a lot of pain meds for and then the Drs gave me more shit because I was messed up over my mom. My dad basically ditched and I was not doing well. I had to quit all that shit. I knew I was heading toward a point that you can't come back from. So,” he shrugged, “I dropped the pills. Quit everything and just smoked weed.”

You were silent for a moment. “I see,” you said and it felt like the safest response.

“I started buying it in big qualities. Didn’t want to deal with small-time sellers. Didn’t know where their shit came from or what was in it. Just started selling a bit here and there and pretty quickly it paid for it. And then some.”

“Were you selling to other people who were in pain? Instead of them taking, like, pharmaceuticals?”

“Fuck no,” he scoffed. “Anyone with cash.” He rolled his eyes but it turned into a smile. “I’m done with your questions.”

With one hand, he pushed you abruptly back onto the bed.

“Ivar,” you gasped as he quickly scooped an arm around your waist and yanked you up until you were both laying on the pillows.

Meekly, you tried to resist, but he called bullshit and held your free hand back before pulling you against him and kissing you. His lips felt good, his tongue working its way into your mouth, his knee pushing between your legs. He knew exactly what he was doing pressing his thigh up against your crotch, his hand squeezing your ass, and running down the backs of your thighs.

You were going to stop him. You were. Just a few seconds more of his hot mouth, his amazing taste, and smell that flooded your head warming your body right down to your center. Oh god and the sounds he made. Small grunts like the more he kissed and touched you, the more he realized he wanted.

In one swift movement, he rolled on top, leaning on his elbows, his kisses becoming borderline rough. It was the bulge in his pants grinding against you, your hips rolling up against him that felt way too much. Way, way too much.

“Ivar,” you pulled your mouth back but he simply diverted, sucking on the side of your throat, one of his hands magically arriving at your cleavage and beginning to work on the buttons of your school shirt.

“Ivar, stop,” you said a little louder.

“What?” he asked, glancing up, managing to open two more bottoms with the flick of his fingers. How was he so good at that? Instantly, his hand was inside, squeezing and groping your breasts through your bra.

“This is too fast,” you muttered.

“Not for me,” he puffed, working his mouth back up to yours.

“Ivar, stop,” you turned your chin enough to escape him.

Letting out a resigned sigh, he tilted his head back to better focus on you.

“I don’t even know what is happening between us?” you continued sounding...well... a bit whiny.

“Don’t be childish,” he dismissed.

“I just want.... to take it slow. This is all new.”

“New?” his eyes flashed. “Not for me. I have wanted you since last the summer.”

What, you thought?! Last summer? Seven months ago? This was bewildering, you just met him.  

“I just fucking knew when I saw you,” his face grew serious, and he reached up, brushing your hair back from the side of your face.

“Knew what?”

“I just knew.”

Woah, this was overwhelming. His blue eyes were searching yours and you then understood how sincere he was being and how excoriating it was for him to be like that.

“Can I just... have a minute?”

“No,” he frowned but his features softened and he leaned down and kissed you again. It was a soft kiss, a beautiful kiss, his gorgeous lips pressing against yours, holding still as if pouring out the feeling behind what he had just shared. Dropping his head into the crook of your neck, his arms tightened around you.

“Don’t push me away, okay,” he whispered and you heard the anxiety in his voice.

It melted your heart and gave you some insight as to why he was such a weirdo. Wrapping your arms around his neck, you embraced him back.

“Why are you so.... cool with me sometimes. You’re unsure?”

Shrugging, he lifted back up to see your face but looked away, and you realized he was embarrassed.

“I don’t wanna freak you out. I can be…. a lot.”

No shit!

“Enough of your yapping,’’ he looked back and you could tell the subject had been changed.

“Ivar!” you gasped as his hand shot up your kilt, grabbing the waistband of your blue underwear.

Squirming, you latched onto his wrists to stop him but he clucked his tongue as if you were the one being naughty.

“These can fuck off,” he said yanking your underwear down your legs, slipping them off, along with your black shoes, and tossing everything onto the floor.

Narrowing his eyes at you, he looked wicked and smug and so incredibly sexy and you found yourself just watching, seeing what he’d do. Kissing you one more time, he moved down your body, nestling between your legs, and attempted to push up your kilt. Mouthing the word ‘noooo,’ your hands shot down to hold it against you.

“Move your hands!” he ordered.

“No, wait, this is crazy.”

“Move your hands or I swear to god,” he glared as if insane but it morphed into a grin. “Move your hands!” he barked, this time actually looking a little annoyed.

So, fuck it, you did. You moved your hands and he flipped up your kilt.

Oh god.

Even as your self conscientiousness began to burn, your bare box a mere five inches from his face, the glee that came over him made you laugh. But within a second, some darkness moved behind his blazing eyes and he just stared down at your pussy. Grabbing the back of your thigh, he bent your knee up, opening your legs wider.  

Oh god.

“Can we close the blinds or something? It's so bright in...”

“Shush,” he quieted you not looking up. “I want to see what I’m doing.”

Oh god.

With his free hand, he carefully spread the lips of your pussy, and you looked up to the ceiling, your cheeks hot, unable to watch. It was so weird, your legs instinctively tried to close but he clucked again, pulling them back open.

“Don’t hide from me. Ever,” he whispered and you glanced down just as he looked up at you. “Plus, you said you would go anywhere so I could eat,” he grinned wildly, looking handsome, like a total deviant.

You jumped when his fingers touched you a second time, his fierce eyes watching your face as he began running his thumb over your clit. Fucking hell, it was intense and you had never had a guy just hang out down there, staring at the details of your body. His mouth fell open alittle and you watched curiously as he spread your lips even further, rubbing that same spot that you knew was starting to swell under his soft strokes.

“Do you know how fucking perfect you are?” he asked, glancing up again, his expression looking somehow pained.  “Do you like that?” he kept staring at you, observing your reaction, his thumb gliding over and over. It felt amazing and by the way his head tilted to the side, gazing at your pussy and swearing under his breath, you knew he appreciated how wet you were getting.

“Fuck!” he rushed out loudly, “I could barely sleep last night. I was thinking about you. About kissing you. Everything at the movies. How wet your pussy was. Fuck!” he swore again. “Like it is now.”

His thumb pressed harder, and your stomach flinched making him laugh but he quickly grew serious and without breaking your gaze, he lowered his face, extending his unnaturally long tongue and swiped up the center of your folds. Jesus, it felt good and you glanced at his door noticing there was no lock.  Steadily, his fingers spread you further apart, so wide it almost hurt and he grunted, sounding very pleased, his tongue descending again and licking you, lapping you, feeling warm, circling your clit. Within a few seconds, your hips began to gently rock and your breathing became shaky.

Time was obviously not of the essence as he took his time swapping back and forth between tasting you and running his thumb over your slit and each time you twitched or shuddered, those menacing eyes were back on you, studying your reaction, seeing what made you moan.

“Please,” you heard yourself whimper and it made him chuckle.

“Please what?” he asked, clearly loving it.

“Please,” you whined as his thumb and his intermittent licks began to drive you mad. Your pussy was wide open and needing more.

“You will have to be more specific, beautiful.”

“Please,” you tipped your chin down and looked directly at him. “Make me cum, Ivar, please,” you added the ‘please’ just to make him happy and his eyes flashed.

With that his mouth dropped down to your flesh, sucking your soft layers and clit right into his mouth. He was devouring you and it was raw and wild and the carnal sounds he was making made you imagine him as some beast. The climb to your finish was fast and powerful and when you finally came, all inhibitions were gone, you bucked your pelvis and grabbed his perfect hair, grinding your cunt up against his mouth, incoherently crying out. It was messed up and you had never once felt anything like it before.

“You are so beautiful, baby,” he murmured, kissing the inside of your skin and running the palm of his hand up and down the inside of your thigh. “You are so fucking beautiful. I have wanted this for so long,” he spoke against your skin as you came down from your climax.

As you untensed and simmered, he slid back up beside you, his hand snaking inside your blouse and grabbing your boob.

“You almost made me blow in pants,” he smiled and you just gazed at him, blissed-out, taking in how dreamy he looked.

“Oh shit!” you said, lifting your head, your eyes trying to find a clock.

“What time...”

“Relax,” he tightened his hold on you. “We’ll leave in 15 minutes. Plenty of time.”

Resting your head back down, you closed your eyes loving how much larger his body was than yours and how it felt to be in his arms.

“Plenty of time for what?” you asked, opening your eyes again.

“I’m not done.”

Oh god.

Sitting up, he grabbed you, roughly flipping you onto your tummy, his body quickly covered yours and pressing you down into the bed. It was so fast and you were confused but still too spaced out to speak. Pushing your legs apart, he shifted his weight to one side and flipped up your kilt uncovering your naked ass.

“What....” you rushed out, feeling too exposed. Your bottom, the back of your you-know-what, everything just out in the open.

“Stop fighting me,” he pressed his mouth to your ear. “You have a perfect ass, by the way.”

Fidgeting you realized he was opening and pulling down his pants and panic shot through you.

“Ivar, I can’t...”

“Shush, I’m not going to have sex with you. Relax.”

What was he doing, your mind started to reel? Was he lying? Was he going to try? If you were being honest, part of you wondered if maybe you’d let him. It was crazy.

You jumped, sucking in air when his hand touched the back of your pussy, his fingers rubbing between your lips and around your entrance. As the tips of his fingers dipped inside, the sounds of his approval fired back up. Bracing for it, you were thrown off when his finger didn’t push inside but instead traveled up the crack of your ass, circling around your asshole. Your eyes bugged out at the odd sensation and it hit you what he was doing; he was using your own slick to lube you up. But for what?

“What are you doing?”

Ignoring you he lowered himself back down, his weight feeling heavy, and you felt his hard bare cock land right in the crease of your ass. His elbows settled on either side of you, boxing you in, and just as you were about to tell him to get off, his face and chin burrowed back into the side of your neck. Slowly, he rolled his hips forward, his cock sliding between your cheeks, slippery and hard and feeling so unexpected. Pulling his hips back, he rutted again and his strained breathing showed you he loving it. It was different and hot and the sound of his panting in your ear was such a turn on. Not to mention his intimidatingly large rock-hard dick, touching the back of your entrance.

“All that panic for nothing,” he grunted and you could tell he was smiling. “I just needed to feel your perfect ass.”

It felt good. It felt surprisingly good and without thought you pushed your bum up toward him, immediately making his hiss.

“That’s it, my beautiful girl,” he grunted in your ear, pumping against your behind even harder. “Your little body knows exactly what to do, doesn’t it? Fuck!” he swore as his pace picked up.

Leaning on one arm, he snaked his hand under your tummy, finding your crotch, pulling you up toward him so your butt was at a better angle. Spreading your own legs a little wider, you dug your knees into the bed, arching your back even more. He fucking loved it and made you cry out when his fingers connected with your overly sensitive clit.

“Do you know how badly I want to fuck you? Hmmm? Put my dick inside you. Your beautiful little hole?”

He was moving faster and faster, it was so slippery and wet and you felt filthy because of how much you wanted him, wishing it might just slip and jab you.

“But I’m not going to rush you. I can wait,” he kissed the side of your head, his fingers rubbing your front which was a dripping mess at this point, your own hips moving in time. Everything began to feel funny and you realized you had never, not even once, had two orgasms in a row.

“You’re so wet,” he groaned as his hips moved faster and his fingers pressed harder. His breath grew even more ragged in your ear and everything began to distort. You couldn’t tell how long you’d been under him, grinding, panting, bucking up against him, and starting to whine his name. The air felt thick and your skin felt hot and you wished you were naked instead of your kilt being bunched around you. His arm was securely under you, his fingers slipping relentlessly over your clit, his cock sliding over the back of your pushed up ass. It was all too much and, in that blur, your second organism rolled, rocking you hard and stretching on so long you weren’t clear if it was still going or you were just that sensitive. You couldn’t breathe or think or move and or even make a sound. It was Ivar, crying out into the air above you that drew you back, his hips stuttering against you hard, and then you felt it, a warm pool of cum at the top of your crack.

His body went slack and he flopped down, half on and half beside, his leg and arm still wrapped around you. Catching his breath, he brushed the hair that was sticking to your tacky forehead away to uncover your eyes and pressed a breathy kiss to your lips. You didn’t open your eyes but felt him snuggle in, your faces very close and you guessed he was looking at you.

“I want you to be that person in my life… who….” his voice dropped off as if unable to finish what he wanted to say and you thought you heard him whisper your name. “God,” he continued. “I just want to be with you. So badly.”

Woah……

----

Not once on the short ride back to school did he let go of your hand, even bringing it to his mouth and kissing the back a couple of times. If you had any mental capacity left after your two earth-shattering orgasms and his heart breaking-ly sweet admission, you would have realized that you were in shock. Was it good or bad? It was hard to tell but he was swooning over you, smitten with an entirely different warmth in his eyes.

Kissing him goodbye and swinging the door closed, you walked toward the side entrance of the school, wondering if it was possible to bruise a tail bone and seeing your two best friends, waiting. By their expressions, it was clear they wanted to talk.

Great, you thought, you had to tell them that, like it or not, Ivar Lothbrok was your boyfriend now. And despite your hesitations, you did, you liked it very much.

Next chapter

*Happy Valentines Day❤️

@youbloodymadgenius  @whenimaunicorn @ceridwenofwales   @sweeneythots @funmadnessandbadassvikings @redama @mdredwine@didiintheblog   @londongal2810 @fields-and-fields-of-poppies  @oddsnendsfanfics @youbelongeverywhere @flowers-in-your-hayr @hecohansen31 @naaladareia @gearhead66 @blonddnamedhandz @lisinfleur @geekandbooknerd @xbellaxcarolinax @edythofhastings @ivarsgoddess  @where-beauty-goes-to-die @zuxiezendler @punkrocknpearls @snatcherheart  @lordsexmachine @fuchsiagrasshopper @wilhelmyna @heavenly1927 @cececolbert​ @peachyboneless​

[xoluvx]

come and see me; t.holland

Warning: smutish, some angst, fuckboy!tom Word Count: 1.8K

A/N: This is a fic I had thought of a long long time ago, but never got around to actually writing it so here it is. 

“Are you awake?” His voice rang in your ears as your eyes adjusted to the bright screen that had just flashed in your face a few seconds ago. Your upper body was propped on your elbow; your eyes now closed due to the blinding screen and because you were still tired as hell. 

“Tom-” you glanced at your phone screen quickly. “It’s 2am. Why are you calling me right now?” You asked knowing damn well why he was calling you at this house of the night. Or morning.

You were expecting him to come up with something, an excuse, anything, as he usually did. Instead, all you could hear was laughter and rustling coming from the other end of the phone. You scoffed letting your body flop down on the bed; your head hit the pillow with a soft thud as you raised your covers closer to your face with your free hand. 

“Come over,” Tom pleaded in a soft raspy voice. You could hear the need dripping from his voice. The background noise grew softer and you figured he’d removed himself from the group. He was whispering, conscious not to get caught. Something you’d grown accustomed to. 

“Are you sure about this?” you whispered as your bodies tried to find a way to adjust to the small space. Zendaya’s coat closet wasn’t the spaciest but it was the first place the two of you could find on such short drunk notice. A weird game of Never-Have-I-Ever and a few shots later had turned into a heated make-out session. 

“Yeah,” Tom groaned pushing your body against the wall. His hands roamed your body landing on your ass as he pushed a leg between your thighs. His lips were soft and sweet like you’d fantasized. His hands felt electrifying as they slid up your shirt. 

“Take it off,” you instructed lifting your arms so he could slip the shirt over your head. He did so swiftly taking his off in a hurry as well. He pressed his body against yours and you moaned at the feeling of your bare breast against his bare chest. It was a weirdly satisfying feeling. You felt united and aroused. The sensation in your nipples traveling down the rest of your body. 

“Tom-” you shook your head in disbelief as your voice trailed off. 

“Please,” he begged. It took every force in your body not to jump out of bed, grab yours keys, and head to him like you always did. You were weak, but even you knew there were boundaries and this, this was one of them. 

“I can’t, Tom. It’s late. I was sleeping, you know-” you replied snuggling your pillow slowly drifting back to sleep.

“No, yeah. I understand,” he replied and after a while all you could was silence. Static-free silence. He’d hung up. You placed the phone back on your nightstand burying your face under your covers falling back into deep sleep. Though deep inside, you felt yourself growing heavier. A strong weight rested on your chest. 

Instagram was your first go to the next morning. If the gang was together, which you were certain they were, then that would explain why he was acting so strange. Besides that, you were just curious to see what they’d been up to knowing that Tom would post something just to spite you. 

And sure enough there he was at the top of your feed. A smirk on his face with his eyebrows furrowed. His arm was wrapped around Jacob’s shoulders while Zendaya crouched in front of the boys with a similar facial expression. 

You weren’t going to lie, you did feel slightly hurt that they hadn’t invited you. But the photo was taken in Tom’s temporary home and knowing him, he purposely didn’t invite you because why would he? He was awkward. And you were a secret. Regardless of whether or not you were also part of that movie.

It also explained why he called you so late begging you to come over hoping you’d be there by the time everyone left. 

You scoffed placing your phone down as you leaned back on your couch. Your foot tapped furiously on the ground at the thought of Tom. He was despicable. You couldn’t believe you had fallen for his tricks and didn’t have the strength to let him go. To tell him no. To put your foot down and walk away.  

But then again, how could you? Just thinking of his smile explained why you were still lingering around waiting for him. Thinking of the way he made you feel when the two of you met secretly, hands roaming each other’s bodies - it explained why you were still willing to meet him. 

You heard a soft knock on your door later that night. You were wrapped up in your blanket watching tv. If it weren’t for the silent pause in your movie, you wouldn’t have heard the knock. Who knocked now a days?

Your heart thumped slightly hearing the knock get louder. Dragging yourself out of the couch careful not to make noise in case it was an intruder, you made your way to the door. Looking through the peephole, the sight was worse. It was Tom. Though he had a hoodie on, you could clearly see the outline of his nose and his jaw peeking through.

Taking a deep breath you opened the door softly and only half way. Your head peaked through the small crack and Tom’s face brightened. Even in the gloomy evening night you could see his smile. 

“May I come in?” Tom asked motioning towards the inside of your home, taking on hand out of his jean pocket. 

You didn’t say anything, instead you stepped aside opening the door as you moved welcoming him. Well, welcoming was a loose term. You were surprised he even remembered where you lived. You could probably count on one hand the times he’d come here. You always went to him; which was another reason why you were feeling some resentment towards him. 

“I’m sorry about last night,” Tom said as he stepped inside. He removed his hoodie burying his hands back into the pockets of his jeans. His apologies seemed to run right past your body. At first, you longed for him to apologize to feel bad about what always ignoring you when you were in public, but now he’d apologize so much it meant nothing to you anymore.

“What are you doing here?” you finally said afraid that your voice wouldn’t be loud enough for him to hear. Your body was leaning against your door as he stood awkwardly some feet away. 

“I’m sorry I didn’t ask you to come over sooner-” he started saying.

“You were clearly drunk when you called,” you replied calmly knowing that was the only reason he’d had the nerve to call you in the first place. 

“No-” he said trying to come closer to you but you put up your hands defensively. 

“Tom, I’m tired of this.” You whispered feeling a weird sensation in the pit of your stomach. You’d contemplated this day. Though of telling him off and finally demanding that he either do something about it or you were done with whatever this was. But you never though you’d build the courage to actually say something. 

Tom’s facial expression soften, almost sadden, when he heard the words fall out of your mouth. 

“What do you mean?” he asked stepping back, his brows furrowed with confusion.  

“You know what I mean. This. You and I. I can’t do it anymore,” you stated quickly afraid you’d regret it and take it back.

“Why?” he whispered stepping closer watching your body tense, your hands flat on the door as if trying to support your weight. 

“First of all, what even are we? You never want to be seen with me. I wasn’t expecting anything out of you, but whatever this is has made things weird with our friends and I just can’t-” you rambled feeling the air draining from your lungs. 

Tom said your name finally close enough to touch you. His fingers wrapped around your forearms gently and he was so close you could feel his warm breath on your face. 

“No,” he repeated as if that was the only word he knew how to say all the time shaking his head slightly urging you to look up at him. But you were looking off into the distance trying to avoid his gaze. 

“I don’t want to lose you,” he finally whispered clearing his throat loosing the grip of his fingers and letting his arms fall to his side. It felt like his heart was being crushed, but the realization of what he’d just said hit him. 

And it hit you too. Like a ton of bricks.

“Why are you saying that?” you asked crossing your arms in a protective way. As if shielding your heart from getting hurt, again. 

“Because I don’t want to lose you. I can’t imagine being without you,” he clarified stepping closer again placing a hand on your cheek. You shivered. 

“If you meant that-” you started saying still avoiding his eyes and your arms still crossed. Tom pushed himself closer moving hand to the back of your head moving your head so you could finally see his eyes. 

“Listen to me,” he breathed staring into your eyes. “I don’t want to be with anyone else. I want to be with you. I know, I’m stupid. I should’ve said it sooner. I shouldn’t have made you feel like you were replaceable. Fuck, I love you. Can’t you see that?” Tom finished his speech trying to catch his breath. His other hand had found its way to the other side of your neck and his was tenderly running his thumbs up and down and in circular motions. It almost made you forget how you were feeling a few minutes ago. 

“How can I trust you?” you gulped feeling both tense and relaxed under his touch. 

“You just have to,” he whispered inches away from your lips. “Please.” His nose brushed against yours and your body arched towards his. Your arms unraveling, ghosting over the sides of his torso. He moved his body closer to yours repeating a ‘please’ once again. 

“One chance,” you whispered letting your hands grip the sides of his hoodie and your lips brush against his before drowning in a needy embrace. 

“I like your house,” he whispered against your lips pulling your body away from the door. Your hand wrapped around his neck, the other played with the drawstring on his hoodie. 

“You need to visit more often,” you whispered into the kiss. 

“I will,” he replied wrapping his arms tightly around your body. Your breast pressed against his chest, your cheeks flushed, and your body yearning for more. You didn’t know if things would end badly; quite frankly you didn’t care. You weren’t expecting him to suddenly show you off. You just wanted him. All of him. 

[ghosttotheparty]

while the world ends around us (make believe with me)

5. We let the freckles on our faces make a million stars AO3

When Jens’s phone buzzed late last night, he ignored it, simply glancing at the brightening screen before looking away, back at the video game he was engrossed in. Lotte and his mom were both in bed, probably snoring, but he couldn’t fall asleep, hard as he tried. 

It was almost midnight when he finally took off the headset and shut off the tv, rubbing his sore ears and blinking in the dim light of the hallway seeping into the living room after staring at the bright, fluorescent screen for so long. As he moved down the hallway, it was like the music and booms and crashes of the game were echoing, rattling around in his skull, clashing with the deafening silence as he cracked Lotte’s door open and gazed at her for a second, his phone, notification forgotten, in the pocket of his sweatpants. 

He’d left his light off when he threw himself onto the bed, the door shut gently behind him. The windows were cracked open, the pale yellow curtains parted to let light from street lamps leak into the room, the quiet city just out of reach as he stepped between the window and his bed to grab his earbuds from the floor. 

He fell onto the bed, causing a quiet thump and he buried himself under his blanket, hiding from the soft breeze sneaking into the room. He finally pulled his phone out, struggling for a second before managing to plug in his earbuds, and he opened his phone, flinching as it shone too brightly in the dark. His eyes caught on a notification as the phone opened too quickly for him to read it beyond a phone number he didn’t recognise.  He let out a quiet “Oh,” as he swiped on the screen until his messages were open, remembering suddenly, his heart picking up its pace until he could hear it. 

l: hey this is lucas :)

Jens smiled, hurriedly sending a hey whats up?? before adding the number as a contact, as lucas :). (He’d used a smiley face in the initial email, so maybe it was a Lucas thing.) Before he could leave the app to open his music, Lucas had texted back. 

l: not much just staring at the ceiling

Jens had laughed lightly, rolling over so he was on his belly, propping himself up on his elbows with his phone in front of him. 

j: oh same

He paused before typing again. 

j: sooooo how are you liking antwerp

He watched as a bubble appears, and then disappears, and then appears again. 

l: im sure if i went out into the city and actually did stuff i’d like it more

Jens had chuckled, tilted his head understandingly.

j: very valid

j: it’s not the same rn bc of covid but there are still some cool places to see

He watched the bubble again. 

l: i haven’t really left my apartment since i got here :( but i do want to go places l: my friends are pressuring me to be adventurous

j: when it’s safe for people to meet up i can show you around

j: we can go on some adventures

After hitting send he paused, biting his lip, wondering if it was too… forward, straight-up, blunt. If it was too early, too soon for a let’s hang out invitation. But then Lucas responded with his little :)and it was fine. 

Jens started getting sleepy as they chatted, as Lucas told him about Utrecht and about what he did with his friends. 

l: we used to get fries a lot l: too often maybe

l: no such thing j: so we’re getting fries when we meet up it’s decided

l: a man after my own heart

j: stomach

l: oh yea

He wakes up to shifting on his bed, and his eyes open, just a bit. It’s still a little dim out, too early for him to be worried about missing a class, too early for him to be worried about sleeping through an alarm. 

It’s the first time he’s woken up in the morning without earbuds tangled around him. He sees them when he opens his eyes, a fuzzy, white, tangled mess on the edge of his bed like he placed them there (maybe he did), and a part of him says huh, seeming to forget that it’s actually possible to fall asleep without his head full of noise. 

He glances down, still too tired to really move, and sees Lotte crawling up his bed, a little blurry. He moves his arm so she can climb under it, and realises his fingers are resting on top of his phone, also dangerously close to the edge of the bed. He pulls it closer and slides it up to a safe place before lifting his arm up more, feeling Lotte’s small hands pull at his bicep until it’s in the air, and she flops down next to him, narrowly missing his face. He scoffs and pulls her close, resting his chin on her head. 

When he wakes up again it’s brighter, and there’s a jolt in his chest before he reaches up, around Lotte (the arm she’s laying on it filled with static but he’s careful not to move her), and snatches his phone, bringing it close enough to his face to read the time. There are only a few minutes before his alarm is going to go off. 

“Lotte,” he whispers, and she just nuzzles her face into Jens’s chest. “Hey.”

She groans quietly and furrows her brows, a hand coming up and curling under her chin softly. 

“Lotte, I have a class soon.” 

“I don’t wanna go,” she mumbles, moving closer, and he sighs, running a hand over her hair. 

“Will you stay quiet while I’m in class?” he asks after a second. 

“Mm-hmm.” She nods, moving closer, but Jens sits up, pushing her away, and she ends up with her head on his leg, seemingly undisturbed as Jens bends around her to pick up his laptop and set it in front of himself. She’s snoring softly by the time the video call is open, by the time Jens’s glasses are on his face, by the time the teacher’s droning voice is talking about the homework Jens did last class, still with a few minutes before class actually starts. (Chemistry. Jens suspects Mr Claes is just about as done with virtual learning as the rest of them. Classes are quick, just attendance and instruction. The minimal amount of learning Jens does in this class is through the assignments: YouTube videos and Google Forms. Modern education.) 

Jens ends up running his hand over Lotte’s hair, waiting until Mr Claes dismisses them with too much time left over like usual so he can go and make breakfast. 

As Mr Claes is talking to Mathijs (“Why didn’t you do last week’s assignment?” Jens winces in sympathy for him.), Jens’s phone buzzes, back on his bed where he had put it before Lotte crawled in and he leans back, pulling it close and looking at the notification, a text from Lucas :).

i: i have dupont first l: any advice

Jens opens the messages, skimming the ones from last night, that took up too much of the night, that are probably the reason Jens’s eyes are struggling to stay open this morning more than usual, and types a response, lifting his hand from Lotte’s head to do so.

j: never had him :/ 

Lucas responds soon after a second. 

l: ugh l: disappointing

Jens scoffs, glancing up as Claes starts discussing the day’s assignment. 

j: my apologies j: good luck

He sighs, leaning back as he waits for a response. 

“So,” Claes is saying, his voice echoey. “It’s the same as last class, just make sure to turn it in before three today.” None of the other students have their cameras on, and Claes stares blankly, waiting for a response, reminding Jens of Dora the Explorer. After a second, he gives up and says, “Okay, guys, I guess I’ll see you Tuesday.” A pause. “Or I’ll talk to you next Tuesday, I guess. Email me if you have questions.”

Jens’s phone buzzes in his lap but he ignores it long enough to lean forward and unmute himself to say, “Bye, Mr Claes.”

He shuts his laptop quietly when he leaves the meeting, setting the assignment on a to-do shelf in his brain, and lifts his phone to read the text. 

l: ok he’s just telling personal anecdotes about his cats i think he’s bored l: but i am too so what’s up

Jens smiles again, pushing his glasses up his nose and pushing his laptop away.

j: my sister is asleep on my leg and my teacher just dismissed us j: so i’m going to make breakfast or something

Jens yawns after hitting send, arching his back as he stretches and hearing it crack softly, taking care to not move his leg and bother Lotte, who’s still sleeping peacefully. One of her hands is under her chin, her fingers pressed between her face and Jens’s leg, making her cheek squish, and Jens gently brushes her hair back.

l: wait that’s so cute how old is she l: also what are you making can i have some l: also dupont just dismissed us, do you want to call bc i don’t have anything to do

Jens grins, quickly reaching up to push his glasses again (they fall when he looks down at his phone; tightening them has been on his to-do list for a while), and responding.

j: she’s eight j: eggs probably come on down j: yes i’ll call you in a minute

“Lotte,” he says softly, clicking off his phone and tossing it away. He touches the top of her head, rustling her hair gently, and she lets out a disgruntled groan, turning her face into Jens’s leg. He laughs, rustling her hair again. 

“I’m going to make breakfast, but you have to get off me first.” She doesn’t move. “Do you wanna eat?”

Her eyes open and she glares at him groggily. 

“You can stay here if you want, I just have to get up.”

“But you’re so comfy,” she says, nuzzling her face into his leg again.

“Well so are pillows and that’s what they’re actually for.”

“Ugh.” 

She finally moves, rolling off of his leg and squirming around like a fish until she finds the pillows, and she clutches the end of the blanket and she buries her face in them. 

“I’ll wake you up later.”

“Don’t,” she grumbles into the pillow, and he almost doesn’t hear her. 

Before leaving, he reaches over her, snatching his earbuds and pressing a chaste kiss to her head. 

As he makes his way to the kitchen, he struggles to plug the earbuds into his phone, lifting it closer to his face to see and bumping into the doorframe of the kitchen, wincing as his shoulder hits a sharp corner. 

He calls Lucas, hesitating for only a second to take a deep breath, as he opens the pan cabinet. 

“Hey,” he says when Lucas picks up.

“You said you’re making eggs?” Lucas says, sans greeting, and Jens startles, snorting and trying to stifle a cackle as he flips the pan in his hand and turns on the stove. His voice is different than it was during class, over the video call. It sounds... closer. Softer, even though he’s speaking with his chest more so than he did when he was in class. 

“Yes? What’s your problem with eggs?”

“I don’t have a problem, it’s just fucking gross.”

The laugh breaks through loudly as he sets the pan on the stove, leaning over the counter to grab the non-stick spray. 

“This is not a conversation I was expecting to have today— Are you vegan?” 

“No, I’m not vegan. Why, what’s your problem with vegans?” 

“I don’t have a problem with vegans.”  He spins on his heel to go to the fridge and pulls three eggs out of the carton, leaving two. He makes a mental note to get eggs next time he takes Lotte grocery shopping.

“Just like I don’t have a problem with eggs.” 

“Listen… I respect veganism.” He cracks an egg.

“Did you… Just tell me to shut up so I could hear you crack an egg?”

“I…” Jens looks at the eggshells in his hand. “That was not on purpose.”

“The amount of disrespect.”

“I just said I respect vegans!”

“And I just said I’m not vegan!”

“Oh my god…” 

Jens laughs as he drops the eggshells in the bin, turning back to twist the knob on the stove to turn down the heat.

“Anyway,” Lucas says lightly. “How are you today?”

Jens scoffs, grabbing a plate from the counter as the egg cooks.

“Fine? I’ve been awake for approximately ten minutes, so we’re going pretty good. You?”

“I’m dead inside, thanks for asking—” Jens interrupts him with a laugh— “But this class doesn’t seem too hard, so that’s nice.”

“Cool, which class is it?” 

“Biology.”

“Oh, gross. I just had chemistry.”

“Biology is better than chemistry.”

“Incorrect,” Jens says after scoffing. 

“Actually, I’m always correct.”

“I think your brain is broken.”

Lucas lets out a quiet laugh. 

“Just a little bit.”

Jens laughs, carefully shimmying the spatula under the egg to flip it.  

“What have you been up to other than classes?” He asks after a second, and there’s a slight pause before Lucas answers. 

“Just hanging out in my room, I guess. I haven’t done much.” 

“You said you’re an artist, right?”

“Uh— Yeah,” Lucas says, sounding hesitant.

“What kind of art do you do?”

“Visual,” he says. “Mostly portraits in pencil or pen, but I really like watercolour.”

“How come  you don’t have art or anything on your wall?” Jens asks as he drops the cooked egg on a plate and sprays the pan again. “One of my friends is an artist and his wall is covered.”

Lucas sighs. 

“I would, but I’m not allowed to put anything up.”

“Like your landlord won’t let you put pins or anything?” 

“No, like my dad won’t even let me use tape, it’s ridiculous.”

Jens makes a face even though Lucas can’t see him.

“That’s stupid,” he says, cracking the other two eggs and mixing them together when one of the yolks breaks. 

“He is stupid,” Lucas grumbles, and his voice has changed. It’s lower, less playful than when he picked up.

“How come you live with him?” Jens asks, something in him recognizing the result of divorced parents. Lucas doesn’t answer, though, and Jens regrets asking as he hears Lucas let out a quiet sigh. 

“We can talk about something else,” he says gently. 

“Thanks,” Lucas says softly.

“So you only do portraits?” Jens asks, changing his tone so it’s more conversational. 

“Usually, yeah.” There’s a clicking sound on Lucas’s end, sounding like the mouse of a laptop. “Every once in a while I’ll draw something else, but it’s typically faces.”

“Do you do people from real life?” Jens asks curiously. “Or do you do like… I don’t know.”

“Both,” Lucas says. “I use references and I like drawing my friends with pictures they send me, but sometimes I just… draw whatever comes to mind. Random faces and stuff.”

“I wish I could do something like that,” Jens sighs. “My sister is the artist of the family.”

“I already love your sister.” “Everyone loves my sister.”

“What do you do?” Lucas asks, and Jens shrugs, mixing the eggs around a little with the spatula. 

“Not much. Before covid I went skating with my friends, I went to parties and stuff. Now I just play video games and play guitar on occasion.”

“You play guitar?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re an artist.”

Jens scoffs, laughing lightly, but Lucas insists, “You are! Music is an art and you make music. Artist.”

“If you say so.”

“I told you I’m always right,” Lucas sighs. “Ah, shit.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Dupont actually assigned homework.”

“He’s a teacher, Lucas, that’s what they do.”

Lucas sighs again, sounding forlorn. 

“Yeah, but I was hoping he’d be easy.”

“It’s biology.” 

Lucas groans loudly, and Jens winces, laughing. 

“Go do your homework,” he says when Lucas stops. “I’m gonna wake up my sister to eat. Are you still coming by for breakfast?” 

“If I’m ever going to your place it’s not gonna be for eggs. It’ll be to hang out with your sister, because she’s probably cooler than you”

“...Wow.”

“Did that hurt your feelings?”

“Little bit.” 

“Good. Build some character.”

Jens lets out a laugh that sounds a little much like a giggle for his liking, and his face burns as he turns to pull the fridge open.

“Go do your homework,” he says as he pulls the orange juice out.  (Lotte’s favourite. She would drink it like water if Jens let her.) 

“I don’t wanna….” Lucas whines. 

“My hands are full, you have to be the one to hang up,” Jens says, lifting a plate and trying carefully not to drop the juice. 

“Are you already tired of me?” Lucas asks, and Jens can hear him stifling a laugh.

“I’ve known you for less than twenty-four hours.”

“And yet…” Lucas sighs forlornly. “I’ll let you go, I guess.” 

“Text me later.” 

“Will do. Bye-bye-e-e.”

Jens sets the other plate on the table just as Lucas hangs up, and he stops, his eyes stuck on the table in front of him. Lucas’s voice is still rattling in his head, a stark difference from the sudden silence of the flat. He sounded like he could be in the same room, right next to Jens, teasing him and laughing with him like they’ve known each other for years. Jens briefly wonders if this is how Robbe felt when he met Sander, but he shakes his head, dismissing the thought. 

---

Jens twists his back, popping it, and winces in the bright sunlight streaming through his window that falls on his face. 

“And I want you all to get some fresh air today too,” Ms Peeters is saying. Her hair is tied up today. Jens has never seen her with her hair tied up. He’s reminded that she does have ears, even though they’re typically covered by her curls. “Take a walk or open a window. It’s nice out today.” “My window is stuck closed,” someone says after a second, the bubble with his initial in it moving as he speaks. Ms Peeters opens her mouth to say something before another student, Liam, interrupts, “Smash it.”

“No, I don’t recommend that,” Ms Peeters says, and Jens hears Liam’s snicker echoing in his speakers. Liam makes similar comments in class. 

Jens laughs, glancing down to the little box with Lucas’s face in it and feeling a little rush at Lucas’s grin. 

“Okay, anyway,” Ms Peeters says, and it takes a second for Jens to look back at her. “Matthew, don’t do that please. And if you do, I had nothing to do with it, I don’t want a phonecall from your parents. Anyway, you all remember what I said about a project, right?”

Almost every student throws their head back, rolling their eyes, and Jens sighs deeply, mentally adding the unexplained work to his to-do list. 

“Well, you’ll be happy, because you can really do whatever you want.”

“Does that mean I can do nothing?” Liam asks, and Jens wonders if he leaves his microphone on just so he can cut in easily. 

“Liam, I will fail you,” she dismissed him. “That means you can do an essay, a powerpoint, a poster, whatever. If we were still in person, I’d want you and your partner to present it to the rest of the class, but I won’t make you do that.

“Your assignment is to read a book. A classic,” she clarifies. “And to complete something, powerpoint, essay, whatever.” “Are you assigning partners?” Ella asks after a second, and Jens finds himself glancing at Lucas's box again. 

“No, you guys can pick partners yourself. No more than three to a book, and you can all probably find the books online as PDFs.” She pauses, her eyes scanning her screen. “Any more questions?”

“Uhm,” Ella says, looking hesitant. “When is this due?”

Ms Peeters sighs, looking away from her computer. 

“I don’t know yet. We’ll see. Probably not for a while, I know you’re all busy with your other classes and, you know, the pandemic. Don’t put it off though,” she adds. “I don’t want you to skim your book and throw something together the night before it’s due. I want to see effort.”

“Also--”

“Ella, stop asking questions,” Liam interrupts, and Jens decides that he definitely leaves his microphone on just to be able to annoy people better. He wonders if he does it in any of his other classes. Maybe not. None of Jens’s other teachers are as patient as Ms Peeters. 

“Someone has to,” Ella retorts. “Are we still doing poetry?” 

“Yeah, we’re going to do poetry in class and your project you’ll have to do on your own time.”

“Okay.”

“Any more questions? Comments, concerns? Debates, disputes, dilemmas?” Ms Peeters asks, her trademark end-of-class questions. “No?” 

Jens shakes his head, because he knows she can see him. 

“Okay, well I want you guys to enjoy today, so you’re free to go. Pick your partners and book and email me so I can keep track. Cool?”

Jens’s phone buzzes not five seconds after he leaves the meeting. (Ms Peeters always leaves last. He doesn’t know why, but he suspects it’s in case anyone wants to stay after and talk. She seems like that kind of person.) He shuts his laptop, leaning over his bed and pulling his phone up.

l: partners? I might already have a book

Jens grins, immediately typing a response. 

j: yea for sure j: what book do you have?

He lays back on his pillows as he waits for a response, pushing one of them under his head until it’s comfortable. 

l: the great gatsby? She never said it had to be a belgian classic

Jens scoffs, shaking his head. 

j: You’re turning into Liam  j: but sure whats she gonna do, make us start over?

l: I can send her an email and ask but i’m pretty sure shes gonna say sure

j: sounds good

Lucas responds with his signature smiley face, and Jens smiles at his phone before adding, 

j: i should warn you that youre making a mistake picking me as your partner though j: im not a reade

After hitting send he tosses the phone across the bed, stretching his back again and looking out his window. From his room he can see the buildings across the street. The windows are all shiny, reflecting the sunlight brightly, like the sun is inside the building itself, burning everything up except the structure and glass. Jens tosses his blanket aside, stretching his legs out and sighing before spinning to sit on the edge of his bed. His eyes drift shut as he sits there, supporting himself with his hands by his legs, digging into the mattress. 

It’s quiet, but he can hear Lotte’s TV show come through the walls and his door. The volume is low, per his instructions, and it’s just a gentle, inaudible hum. It makes him think of the music he’d be able to hear through the bathroom door at parties. 

His phone vibrates behind him and he reaches back to get it as he stands, opening his door. 

l: not to worry i like reading l: and ive read the great gatsby several times already

what are we gonna do our project on, though? Jens types, making his way down the hall, doing his best not to walk into the wall or door frame of the living room. like a powerpoint or an essay or??

l: powerpoint sounds easiest l: we can do like just a summary of it l: or analyze gatsby or something

j: whatever gets us a passing grade

l: got it

“Are you done with class?” Lotte asks, looking up at him with a cereal bowl under her face. She’s cross-legged on the floor in front of the television. 

“I’m done with that class,” he says, flopping onto the sofa. “My teacher let us out early so we can enjoy the weather.” 

“Are we gonna go on a walk?” she asks excitedly, spinning around on the floor, nearly spilling milk on the carpet. Jens raises an eyebrow at her. 

“We can if you finish eating first. And if you get dressed,” he adds, glancing at her pink pyjamas.

She eats her cereal as quickly as she can (Jens tells her not to choke on it.) before rushing off her to her room to change. Jens doesn’t bother changing out of the sweatpants and t-shirt he slept in. While she’s gone, no doubt wrecking her room by throwing clothes everywhere, Lucas texts again. 

l: I found my copy of it l: you should be able to find a pdf online but worst case scenario i read it to you over skype or something

Jens smiles. 

j: yea that could work

Lucas responds with another smiley, and Jens thinks about it. 

He supposes he could do something while Lucas reads it, take notes or work on the powerpoint. But part of him (most of him) wants to just listen. Lucas’s voice sounded different over the phone than it did during class. Jens wonders if it’ll sound different when it’s just the two of them.

Just the two of them.

Jens’s stomach flips over. 

He grabs a granola bar before he and Lotte leave.

---

He doesn’t bother putting in the effort to finding the PDF of the Great Gatsby online after Lucas says it’s a go. (Ms Peeters is indifferent. She says she just wants them reading.)

“Hey,” Lucas says when he appears on Jens’s screen, and Jens was right. He does sound different. He also, apparently, has freckles scattered across his nose, and a mole just above his lip that Jens can’t see when Lucas is stuck in a box as small as the one in class. After a brief pause, Jens turns up the volume a little on his laptop, adjusting his headphones as he sits back.

“Hey.”

“So. Storytime?” Lucas holds up the book, smiling. It’s dim in his room, like Jens’s, the setting sun making stripes on his wall glow orange.

“Yeah,” Jens says brightly, sliding down so he’s propped up on his pillows. (A stack of three. His mom hates it, but it works for him.) “Do you want me to take notes or something?” He has a notebook and pen next to him already.

“You can if you hear anything worth noting,” Lucas says, shrugging. “I already have a ton of annotations in here, so I wouldn’t worry.” 

“Okay.” Jens leaves his laptop propped up on his legs and crosses his arms over his chest, burying his chin in his elbow. 

“Okay,” Lucas says, smiling as he looks at Jens. There’s a long pause before he inhales sharply, looking away and opening the book. Jens’s face feels hot. “Okay. I’m skipping the preface because it’s like w quarter of the book and kind of unnecessary.”

“Do you have notes in that section too?” Jens says, and it’s meant to be a tease, but Lucas says, “Yeah,” and Jens snorts. 

“It’s a good book, you asshole,” Lucas retorts, grinning. 

“Proceed,” Jens says, gesturing politely with his hand. 

“Dick,” Lucas mutters, and Jens snickers as Lucas opens and flips through the book. 

“Okay. Ready?”

“Mm-hmm.” 

“In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice…”

Lucas’s voice shifts slightly when he reads. It’s lower, less him and more… Nick, Jens supposes. He can’t tell if Lucas is doing it on purpose. He doesn’t think he is. He reads a little quickly, but not so quickly that Jens can’t understand him. 

Lucas reads.

And reads. 

And reads. 

Jens can tell Lucas loves the book. 

He barely even looks up (which means Jens doesn’t feel embarrassed about how much he’s just staring at him (although to be fair he doesn’t have many other staring options)), completely engrossed in it, subtly shifting the octaves of his voice for the voices of  Jordan and Catherine and Myrtle. Jens finds himself smiling. 

The only time Lucas breaks character is to say, “This is my favourite line.” 

“Tell me,” Jens says softly, almost holding his breath to hear it. 

“Yet high over the city our line of yellow windows must have contributed their share of human secrecy to the casual watcher in the darkening streets, and I saw him too, looking up and wondering.” He pauses, taking a breath. “I was within and without, simultaneously enchanted and repelled by the inexhaustible variety of life.” 

Lucas looks up, a small smile painting his face, and he looks almost proud. 

“Wow,” Jens whispers. “Do you have that highlighted?” 

“Underlined.” 

Jens hums. 

“Are you gonna fall asleep on me?” 

He hums again, moving his arms out of the way and rolling his head. 

“I’m sleepy but not like falling asleep, you know?”

 “Mm-hmm. We can finish this chapter; it’s only two more pages.” 

“How many chapters are there?” Jens asks, and he watches as Lucas flips through the book.

“Nine,” Lucas says after finding it. “And we have time, so…” 

“Yeah.” 

“Myrtle pulled her chair close to mine…”

When the chapter is finished, it’s dark out, and Lucas closes the book dramatically and sets it to his side with a flourish. 

“To be continued,” he says. 

“Spooky.”

“You���re falling asleep,” Lucas says, looking at him skeptically, cocking his head and smiling. 

“...Yeah.”

“Didn’t know my reading voice was so soothing.”

“Oh, so soothing. You should do stuff for the Calm app.”

“‘Stuff.’ Very specific.”

“I just said I’m falling asleep, and you expect me to be articulate?”

“Well I never expect you to be articulate.”

“Oof…” Jens winces, looking away from the computer as Lucas says, “Hah hah.”

“You’re too quick for me,” Jens says, sitting up slightly and pushing his laptop away. Lucas raises an eyebrow. There’s a curl that’s fallen in his face, and for a second, Jens wishes he could push it away. “I’m gonna have to kill you. I can’t have any competition.”

“Social distancing,” Lucas says, holding up a finger. “Murder responsibly.”

“Of course. Always.”

“Okay, got to bed, Jens. You look like you’re about to pass out.” 

Jens groans, shutting his eyes for a second, ignoring the strange flutter in his stomach.

“It’s only like ten.”

“Yeah, that’s bedtime by normal people standards.”

“Ugh. Fine. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

When they hang up, Jens finds himself smiling. 

Again. 

He lifts his eyes from his blank laptop screen after some time (he doesn’t know how long, and he can’t be bothered to look), and shakes his head.

[ciestessde]

Phantasma Magica Ch. 1

STORY SUMMARY Clockwork and the Observants send Danny to Hogwarts on a special mission. But, cryptic as ever, that Old Stopwatch never actually told him what would happen on it!!! “All you need to do right now, Daniel, is stay focused on your mission. And remember, the-” “‘The Lions with the time-turner, lightning-bolt scar, and hair like fire are friends; watch out for the rat; and the black dog is not a threat.’ Yeah, you’ve only repeated that a few dozen times today.”

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Podfic Version

Ghost Zone - Clocktower - Sometime in the 2000s

After the accident that transformed him into a dangerous creature known as a “phantasm,” Danny had been staying with Clockwork, the Keeper of Time. The ancient being had saved Danny many times, and in many ways, by then. He’d even taken Danny under his wing as his apprentice. And as his apprentice, Danny was often sent on missions – either by the immortal Keeper himself, or by his bosses the Observants. It was one of these missions that Danny was currently trying to find out more about.

“Why are these things so much trouble, again?” Clockwork was floating around the room, his purple robe and spectral tail flowing behind him, working on making his apprentice a few extra batches of imitation ecto-energy, or “substitutes.” Just in case Danny ran out while on this mission. (Not that Clockwork was trying to hint at anything… Because honestly, if he did, it would just make things worse for the poor boy.)

“They are only trouble if they fall into the wrong hands. I had planned to discreetly destroy them myself, but…” By the way he trailed off, Danny knew he would never get the end of that sentence. “Alriiiight… So are you at least going to tell me why you’re sending me to a MAGIC SCHOOL first?” Silence. “Aaarrrgh!” He bumped his head against the nearest wall. “*sigh* Fine. Whatever. Why do I even bother asking questions, anymore…” Clockwork handed him a large backpack with the substitutes in them (all 3-years-worth… And, yes. It WAS heavy), and, after Clockwork formed his legs once more and retrieved his staff, they walked in silence to one of the innumerable clock-shaped viewing screens.

Clockwork twisted a few mechanisms on his staff and waved it in front of the screen, and, with a sound like tv static, a view of a dark, mysterious forest appeared on it. “Y’know, just because no time will pass HERE, doesn’t mean it will F E E L like it to ME.” “All you need to do right now, Daniel, is stay focused on your mission. And remember, the-” “‘The Lions with the time-turner, lightning-bolt scar, and hair like fire are friends; watch out for the rat; and the black dog is not a threat.’ Yeah, you’ve only repeated that a few dozen times today.” Clockwork stepped out of the way of the portal, and Danny flew through.

Despite knowing the most likely outcome (and having a backup plan for all over-fifty likely dangers), he couldn’t stop himself: “… Be safe, Daniel.”

Hogwarts - Forbidden Forest - 1993

As expected, Danny had arrived above a forest and about a mile away from the school in the late morning. He took his time flying, and, after a few minutes, he was about halfway there. At this point, he decided he should probably go ahead and take one of the substitutes, seeing as it had been a while since he last ate. But as he was about to uncap the bottle, he noticed a strange black shape moving toward him from the school’s direction. It was moving rather quickly…

He could feel his hackles rising from the aura the creature was giving off and the way it made the space around it darken. It was too close, and coming in WAY too fast. He managed to get the bottle back in the bag, but he didn’t notice the OTHER of the creatures come up from below him in time. It knocked the bag out of his hands before it-

Pain. Electricity. Screaming.

The creature shrieked when the blast of ethereal fire hit it. But, although he’d fended off the one, its buddy was only a few feet away now.

Danny picked up speed – still trying to get to the school – before realizing how much weaker he felt. ‘Those things must feed off ectoplasmic and ethereal energy. But how? What are th-? OH!’ Now he remembered: Dementors. They were Spirit Eaters, just like phantasms like him. Except they usually only fed off of emotions. ‘So why do I feel weak? … Wait, I feel wea- The substitutes!’

Danny turned around to try and find the bag and the (hopefully not broken) bottles of imitation ecto-energy, but the dementors were done only trying to snack on him. They were still starving, but anger and ages-old hatred between their kinds had overruled hunger. If Danny slowed… they would destroy him.

So Danny flew. And he fought. And he became weaker and weaker, and – eventually – hungrier and hungrier. And by the time the wizards showed up, he was starting to fall apart…

Hogwarts - Defense Against the Dark Arts (DADA) Class

Professor Remus Lupin was writing on the board in silence, finishing his final preparations for the day’s lesson, while the third-year Slytherins and Gryffindors – including the Golden Trio themselves: Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger – settled into their seats. But while the rest of the class were preoccupied by today’s lesson, the latest gossip, or a forgotten textbook, Hermione…

“Professor? Could you tell us a little about phantasms? They were only briefly mentioned in the book.” She continued to flip through her textbook until finding the page in question. A brief paragraph greeted her with the challenging lack of information that had left the brunette in an absolute storm of frustration, no matter how many times she went over it.

Remus Lupin, dressed in his usual ragged robes, turned his gaze to her with a mixed expression. His normally sad, wistful smile fell, and a sigh left his lips. But his tired eyes brightened at the topic, as a hand brought itself up to rub his furrowing brow in thought. “You bring up an interesting topic Miss Granger. The little information that is written – is true to the fact that there is little known about them.”

The class was silent, waiting to sate their curiosity. Despite the numerous times most of the students would simply roll their eyes at ‘Know-It-All’ Granger’s antics, this was something even many of the pureblood Slytherins in the room hadn’t heard of. All ears honed in to hear the professor’s next words, hung with anticipation.

“From what little we do know, I can tell you that phantasms are very rare creatures of the spectral class. Not unlike ghosts or poltergeists with their varied appearances and personalities; and yet they hold a frighteningly close similarity to dementors in the dangers they pose. They are, indeed, Dark Creatures.”

Harry shuddered as the rest of the class broke into nervous murmurs. Snickers came from some of the Slytherins, followed by teasing gestures imitating dementors aimed at Harry. The raven haired teen just gave a huff in response, turning his attention back to the professor, while Ron continued to glare at Malfoy and the other Slytherins. Hermione then broke the moment of tension and returned the eyes of the class to their professor. “How is it possible for a ghost-like creature to also be a dementor-like creature?”

Lupin pondered her words for a moment, his mind attempting to piece together the few existing bits of information regarding the matter. “In that lies the mystery. From what little is known, we can only piece together a few facts, considering that they are, in fact, corporeal beings – unless they wish otherwise – and are extremely aggressive in demeanor.”

It was Ron’s turn to earn a few points for curiosity, “But if they’re so aggressive… how come almost no one’s ever seen ‘em?” “Good thinking on your part Mr. Weasley, though that in itself brings up more questions than answers. As your book states, many old stories of ghost attacks or hauntings are results of phantasms holding claim to their territory. More often tormenting muggles and going out of their way to avoid the wizarding world.”

This brought another snicker from the Slytherin group. Malfoy leaned back in his chair and shared a cruel smirk with some of his housemates. “Seems there’s actually a respectable creature out there after all.” More bits of smug laughter came from the group at the implication their ‘leader’ had made. The weary teacher cleared his throat to grab the attention of the students before a fight broke out.

“They’re not to be taken lightly, Mr. Malfoy. Most reports of attacks – from the few who have survived – have been upon unwary witches and wizards that stumbled into their haunts. Despite their preference to muggle neighborhoods, they will not differentiate when it comes to what they claim as their territory. Though I have not met one personally, from what I’ve heard, they can make even a dementor look docile in comparison.”

The class fell silent once more with the weight of the professor’s words. The meaning in his tone was clear: This was not a matter to be taken lightly. The silence was only broken by a nervous squeak from Longbottom. “P—pp-professor…. Are they….. r-really that dangerous?” Neville chirped, his body attempting to sink below his desk. “Indeed. They are one of the few dark creatures that dementors will respond to in earnest – and violently for that matter. Usually the two species will avoid one another, but should they cross, a fight will undoubtedly occur. “It is also said that their presence can often be mistaken for that of a dementor’s, as the room will become as cold as ice. But rather than the happiness being drained out of you, a sense of feeling hunted will settle in your gut… ”

And right then, what would have otherwise been an inconsequential lesson – doomed to be forgotten except for the occasional nightmare or horror-story – became a well-timed joke for the old, meddling Keeper of Time.

Lupin found his words cut short as his gaze turned towards the window in surprise. Every pulse in the room raced, adrenaline pumping through them to prepare them to fight or run – but a feeling of despair soon layered on top, competing with this sudden desire for life. Harry, Ron, Hermione and the others, turned in the direction of their professor’s gaze; expressions of fear, horror, and curiosity forming upon their faces, as all eyes fell upon the window glass. Crystals of ice crept up the window panes like an all-consuming fungus, encrusting the view to the outside world in a layer of frost – just as a black figure flew by, followed by another two, much larger, forms. Gasps rose from the crowd of students as they darted over to the window to see the spectacle that had just raced by. Professor Lupin pushed his way to the front of the group, peering out the frigid glass towards the scene playing out less than thirty meters from them.

Two dementors encircled, and were lashing out randomly at an unusual entity. A teenage boy, not much older than Harry or the others, floated there in the middle of the two wraith-like creatures. He was dressed quite oddly: a long-sleeved black shirt and black pants; white boots, belt, and gloves; and a sleeveless, white hoodie. His snow-white hair hung down into his face – but it didn’t hide the blazing green glare and bared fangs the boy directed at the two dementors. Just as they lashed out again at the floating boy, a yelp rang out from most of the class. A flash of neon-green light had tumbled one of the beasts backwards! However, it quickly recovered from the intimidating attack, and all three specters shot off across the grounds – the two dementors remaining in hot pursuit of the ghost-like boy.

Hermione was the first of the class to recover from the shock enough to speak; her gaze turning from the window, to Professor Lupin, and back again. “Professor, was that… ?” Remus remained in stunned silence, staring out the window in his own spell of disbelief. However, quickly shaking himself from his thoughts, he turned to face the students. “So it would seem. Class is dismissed – and I want you ALL to head to your houses immediately! I must speak to Professor Dumbledore.”

Hurried footsteps clattered down the stone corridors as students and teachers alike scattered about. The Golden Trio darted through the crowd and over to the nearest window that viewed the grounds. Soon followed by the Weasley twins, who’d spotted them slipping by. “Wotcher, Harry! This has to be one of the weirdest sights Hogwarts has seen, ‘eh?” George grinned, patting the raven haired teen upon the shoulder, as he and his twin peered out through the glass.

A black-and-white speck went whizzing by the gamekeepers hut, with the two other figures in hot pursuit. The extremely large man that resided in the hut could be seen exiting and flailing up at them in agitation. “Hagrid!” Harry jolted, looking ready to leap through the window and save the man from the angry specters.

“Easy now, Harry. I think we best let the professors handle this one.” Fred had the same grin as his twin, his hand coming up to pat Harry’s other shoulder. “Yeah, even the professors are gonna have trouble with this,” George chimed in. Harry heaved a sigh in response. Hermione shook her head, “I just hope Professor Dumbledore knows enough about them to do something.” Ron was about to smack himself in the face at her comment, but stopped when the scene swept by the window. The blur of motion caused him, and several others, to yelp in surprise.

Outside the Entryway

“Merlin’s beard!” Professor McGonagall swore, a hand held to her chest to steady herself from shock. The three specters just whisked by centimeters from the tall, severe-looking teacher’s head as she stepped out onto the grounds. Her eyes followed the scene fly out across the lake and back again. Her gaze then shifted over towards Dumbledore, who had just arrived in the entryway of the castle. “It’s trouble enough just having dementors around the school grounds, but in Heaven’s name! This is too much, Headmaster!” The old wizard chuckled, his piercing blue eyes twinkling behind his half-moon spectacles. “There, there Minerva. This will be settled soon enough. But first, it would be best to separate them before this matter escalates. Severus?” Dumbledore turned to look back up the stairs, a serious look on his face as blue eyes met jet black.

“Yes, Headmaster?” The thin, sallow-skinned man remained stoic, his tone flat with a hint of irritation. Although it was likely due to general frustration (with the DADA professor), rather than with the situation at hand. “If you would?” Professor Snape nodded, his wand at the ready for the creatures’ next pass. The group of professors (as well as the unavoidable huddle of students behind them, just inside the entryway) watched the creatures’ exchange nervously.

As they flew, the black-and-white blur would sporadically fire green projectiles at the following dementors, causing one or both of them to briefly fall behind. They sped over the lake, the Forbidden Forest, and made several laps around the castle once again, before coming within reach of Snape and Dumbledore’s wands. “Expecto Patronum!” yelled the Potions Professor, successfully blocking the dementors’ pursuit. At almost the exact same instant the Headmaster cried “Irretio idolon!”

The boy-like apparition immediately fell, as though snagged on a line. When he hit the ground, there seemed to be a physical struggle – as though the phantasm were trapped in an invisible net held together only by the tip of Dumbledore’s wand. Once he regained his bearings, the phantasm tried to fly away again. The old wizard wasn’t expecting the smaller creature to be so strong; before he knew it, Dumbledore was pulled a couple meters forward. He quickly started shaking and sweating from the strain of trying to keep the phantasm in place. “Pomona!” The dumpy, dirt-covered Herbology professor quickened her pace from the Greenhouses, carrying a sack of what resembled roses in one hand and glowing green dust in the other. She carefully combined and formed these into a circle around the phantasm, being sure to stay well out of striking range. When she finished, Dumbledore immediately released his hold on the spirit.

Professor Sprout fell back in fright when the phantasmal boy sprang at her, fangs bared and growling so low she could feel the ground vibrating beneath her. She breathed a sigh of relief when the barrier held. Everyone took a few moments for the shock to wear off, before Hagrid approached Dumbledore. “Wha’ should I do with…” Dumbledore shook his head, “I’m afraid, Hagrid, that this will take the care of professionals to be dealt with safely.” “Ay, ay, Headmaster, sir.”

“And who, may I ask, has the most unfortunate job of supervising the creature until such professionals arrive?” asked McGonagall. “I believe that falls to whomever is most familiar with and knowledgeable on such matters.” His eyes, duller than usual (though not by much), turned questioningly to the other professors on the stairs. Remus stepped forward. “I suppose that would be me… Though I’ll need at least one other to help me, as I can’t be watching it at all times.” “I’ll take the night shift, professor, don’tcha worry none,” said Hagrid, “I’ve ne’er met a creature I couldn’t take a liking teh.” “Yeah,” whispered Malfoy, near the back of the huddle of students still just inside the doors. “But I’ve never met a creature or wizard who could take a liking to that oaf. Except blood-traitors and mudbloods.”

The Heads of Houses quickly began ushering students back to their dormitories after that, and the search began for how such a dangerous and powerful creature had managed to come so close to Hogwarts without being detected by the castle’s barriers. And that evening, in a corner of the Gryffindor common room, a certain group of students discussed how they could use this situation to learn more about the elusive creatures called “phantasms”… as well as whether, and how, this might give them a new way to fend off the ever-lurking threat of the dementors.

This fanfic is a crossover between the Harry Potter book series and the Danny Phantom AU “Time’s Apprentice” by Atrieisan on deviantart (check out her comic – her artwork is beautiful!)

This is only Arc 1 of 3, but all of this arc has been written. So you can expect regular updates every Wednesday until Arc 1 is finished! You can find this fanfic here, as well as on:

Fanfiction.net/~ciestess ArchiveOfOurOwn.org/users/Ciestess/profile Deviantart.com/Ciestess

Also, if you like my writing, you should check out my other series “One-Shot Wednesdays” where I write a requested short story every week! I’m also in the process of writing an original book series called “Crossroad of Infinity,” so if you want to know more about that, you can check out more of my Tumblr (#CrossroadOfInfinity , send me asks, etc.)

Finally, I want to thank everyone who helped beta this story, including Jay. Bloodworth  ( @jaywrites101​ ).

I hope you enjoy! And if you did, please REBLOG!

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[gosecretscribbles]

MonthofMaybel2019 Week 4: Mabel’s Guide to Cryptid Families!

So I’ve never done this before, but I wrote it out like a transcript for an actual TV show.  Was kind of a fun experience?  (although formatting this thing was a nightmare and I couldn’t even copy over most of the formatting here @,@) Anyway I hope you like it!

Also these fics for the month of maybel are linked; it would help to read the one for week 2 about Anansi, but long story short, he’s a spider-person who wants to weave from a society where everybody’s a warrior.  He was an outcast, but helping his people win a series of contests against the Mantises meant that he’s not completely shunned anymore. 

Okay.  *Now* enjoy! INT. DIPPER AND MABEL'S ROOM – DAY

MABEL WEARS A HAND-KNITTED PINK SWEATER WITH FOUR HEARTS ON THE FRONT, EACH WITHIN ANOTHER.  MABEL STANDS IN FRONT OF A WALL PAPERED WITH BOY BANDZ POSTERS, PIG PICTURES, AND POSTERS FROM ANTARCTICA.  THE CORNER OF A MESSY DRESSER IS ON HER RIGHT, THE EDGE OF A WINDOW ON HER LEFT. 

MABEL Families come in many shapes and sizes, sometimes as small as Nana and Liro in Liro and Pugface, sometimes so big you have second-cousins you didn't even know about until you got your inheritance! 

Today we're going to take a closer look at some particularly unusual families – CRYPTIDS!!!

SWISH PAN – WINDOW ON MABEL'S LEFT

ANANSI STANDS ON THE WINDOWSILL FACING THE CAMERA.  THE BACKYARD IS VISIBLE THROUGH THE WINDOW.   A TERMITE MOUND STRUCTURE RISES IN THE FAR CORNER OF THE YARD, TEEMING WITH SPIDER-PEOPLE.

MABEL Please welcome our first guest, a seriously cute member of the Spider-People living in our backyard!  And ladies, he's single!

ANANSI (looking nervously at camera) Are you sure that's not an insect?  It has a very large black eye.

MABEL So, Anansi!  Tell us about your brother!

ANANSI (brightening) Oh! He's one of my people's finest warriors.  He can lift over a hundred times his own weight, run for hours without getting tired, and adjust his strategy in the middle of a battle.  Even after his legs were injured in the Challenge, many young warriors were seeking him out as a trainer – I could see him teaching them from here. 

MABEL What did you guys like to do together?

ANANSI Sparring, mostly!  Not that I was ever any good, but he was very patient and kept encouraging me to try again no matter how many times I fell down.  And I fell down a lot.  He always said that every warrior mattered.  But, well...I'm clearly never going to be a warrior now, with the Weaving, so I don't know, but he might be – oh!

SWISH PAN – WINDOW ON WALL TO RIGHT

A SLIGHTLY LARGER SPIDER-PERSON IS CLIMBING OVER THE SILL OF THE WINDOW.  HALFWAY UP HIS BODY TENSES THE MOMENT HE NOTICES THE CAMERA.

BROTHER An enemy insect!  Hya!

BROTHER HURLS A SLIM OBJECT STRAIGHT AT THE CAMERA LENS.  THE BEGINNING OF MABEL'S SHRIEK IS HEARD AS WHAT IS CLEARLY A SPEAR STRIKES THE LENS.

STATIC

CUT TO FIRST WINDOW

ANANSI AND BROTHER STAND ON THE FIRST WINDOW SILL, MOUND STILL IN THE BACKGROUND.  ANANSI IS ON THE LEFT AND BROTHER IS ON THE RIGHT.  THEY STAND SEVERAL INCHES APART, BOTH SQUARELY FACING THE CAMERA.  THERE IS A SLIGHT CRACK IN THE UPPER LEFT CORNER OF THE LENS.  ANANSI'S ARMS ARE PULLED IN AND HE FIDGETS SLIGHTLY, CLEARLY NERVOUS.  HIS EYES MEET THE CAMERA BUT KEEP FLICKERING AWAY.  BROTHER'S ARMS ARE RELAXED, YET HIS POSTURE CONVEYS PREDATORY STRENGTH AND GRACE.  HIS GAZE IS STEADY.

BROTHER Are you sure that is not an insect?

MABEL Anansi was just telling us about how you two spent time together!  Do you have any embarrassing spiderbro stories to share with us?

BROTHER (stoically) My brother is not an embarrassment.  His Weaving allowed us to win back a large portion of our land from the conniving Mantises.  Word of his deed has already been sent out to the rest of our people.  He will teach a new generation of Weavers and spearhead our victory in reclaiming our ancestral lands. I believe he is a greatly valued and talented Weaver.

MABEL (squeals) AWWWWWW! Anansi is there anything you want to say?!

ANANSI (mumbling) Th-thank you.

BROTHER (grunts)

ANANSI'S FACE IS BRIGHT RED AND HE STARES DOWN AND TO THE SIDE, EQUALLY STUNNED, EMBARRASSED, AND TOUCHED.  BROTHER IS STOIC, STILL SQUARELY FACING THE CAMERA.  THE TWO STAND SILENTLY FOR SEVERAL SECONDS. SLOWLY BROTHER'S RIGHT ARM STARTS TO RISE.  A SPEAR COMES INTO VIEW.

MABEL Wai–

STATIC

EXT. ROOF OF SHACK – DAY

SOOS'S FACE FILLS THE SCREEN, SMILING HAPPILY AGAINST A BACKGROUND OF REDWOOD TREETOPS AND BRIGHT BLUE SKY.  SOOS'S FACE IS TOO CLOSE AND HIS ARMS ARE EXTENDED; HE IS HOLDING THE CAMERA.  STRANGE CHIRPING NOISES COME FROM OFF SCREEN ON THE LEFT.  

MABEL Our second guest comes to us from a certain roof in Gravity Falls, Oregon.  Please welcome – Soos!

SOOS Hi, Mr. Pineses!  Can I give shoutouts?  Is that allowed?  

MABEL Absolutely! Can you tell us about the new addition to your family?

SOOS Oh, sure!

CAMERA SWINGS ERRATICALLY AND STOPS ON A MASSIVE NEST SITTING ON THE ROOF. IN THE CENTER OF THE NEST IS A YOUNG PTERODACTYL THE SIZE OF A SEMI TRUCK, CURLED UP AND FAST ASLEEP.

SOOS Tada! We named him Kitten because he chases that little red laser around just like a quarter-ton kitten.  Aw, look –

ZOOM IN, FOCUS BLURS, THEN CLEARS ON A CLOSE-UP OF KITTEN'S FACE.  ITS FRONT CLAWS SCRABBLE LIGHTLY AGAINST THE NEST.  ITS UPPER LIP IS TWITCHING, REVEALING SHARP WHITE TEETH GLISTENING WITH SALIVA, AND ITS EYELIDS OPEN SLIGHTLY TO REVEAL GROTESQUELY ROLLING EYES.   

SOOS (Abnormally Loud Stage Whisper) He's dreaming!

MABEL (Abnormally Loud Stage Whisper) How did he end up on the roof?

SOOSOh –

SWISH PAN ERRATICALLY BACK TO CLOSE-UP OF SOOS

SOOS So we think he was learning to fly and crash-landed on the lawn.  I got him to hold still long enough to fix his wing, and then we bonded over a housewarming barbeque, and by the time his mom showed up we were basically like brothers!  So he sleeps here during the day while his mom hunts and then they go home to the dino mines at night.  At least until his wing heals up.

MELODY (Off Screen) Soos! Don't forget to wake up Kitten for his three o' clock snack.  And no more gingerbread men!  We don't want him getting ideas about the tourists!

SOOS You got it, honey!

LOUD SCREECHING FROM OFF SCREEN

SOOS(grinning)Uh-oh! Sounds like someone heard the word 'snack'!  He's so smart.

PAN TO KITTEN, WHO IS CRAWLING AWKWARDLY BUT RAPIDLY OUT OF HIS NEST.

KITTEN SCREECHES AND BITS OFF THE TOP HALF OF THE CHIMNEY.

SOOS Whoops! Those can't be good for his teeth.  Put it down, Kitten, go on...

KITTEN (Chirps without letting go of chimney)

MABEL He's like a puppy!  ...A really scaly one.

SOOS Doooown...

KITTEN PAUSES.

KITTEN DROPS CHIMNEY.

CHIMNEY CRASHES THROUGH ROOF.

SOOS Good boy, Kitten!

CAMERA ANGLES DOWN TO A MASSIVE PILE OF TURKEY LEGS AT SOOS'S FEET.  HIS ARM ENTERS THE SCREEN'S FIELD OF VISION.  HE GRABS A CHICKEN LEG AND THROWS IT AT KITTEN WITH A GRUNT.  KITTEN'S HEAD SHOOTS OUT TEN FEET AND HE SNAPS IT UP IN ON GULP.  KITTEN CHIRPS FOR MORE, THEN SNEEZES SO HARD IT BLOWS THE REST OF THE CHIMNEY AWAY.

ABUELITA (Distant, rapid Spanish)

MELODY Soos!

SOOS I can fix it!

CUT TO INT. DIPPER AND MABEL'S BEDROOM – DAY MABEL IS NOW SITTING ON A ROLLING CHAIR AT A DESK.  A CORKBOARD OVER THE DESK IS COVERED IN NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS, MORE POSTCARDS, POST-IT NOTES, AND STRINGS OF RED YARN.  

MABEL (Squeezing her cheeks) Aw, that was adorable!  Guess I can't say Dipper sneezes like a 'Kitten' anymore!  HEY-OOOO!  

MABEL STANDS AND MOVES SLIGHTLY TO HER RIGHT, THE CAMERA FOLLOWING HER MOVEMENT.

MABEL And now for the final portion of the episode, please welcome Grunkle Ford, and his extensive knowledge of all things ocean and occult!

A LAPTOP RESTS ON THE DESK.  THE SCREEN IS FILLED WITH GREAT-UNCLE FORD'S FACE.  THE SLIVERS OF BACKGROUND ON EITHER SIDE SHOW BOAT RAILINGS AGAINST AN AZURE SEA AND SLIGHTLY CLOUDY SKY.  A SMALL DARK THREAD OF LAND TRACES THE HORIZON.  FORD IS WEARING A LIFE JACKET OVER A RED TURTLENECK AND LOOKS SLIGHTLY SUNBURNED, SMILING DIRECTLY AT THE CAMERA.

FORD Greetings, future scientists!

MABEL Grunkle Ford, what can you tell us about the supernatural families you've found in the Arctic Circle? 

FORD Actually most of the cryptids we've discovered on the ocean are solitary by virtue of their size alone.  A giant squid, for example, typically requires a hunting ground of one to two thousand square miles of open ocean just to sate its voracious appetite.  It's quite rare for them to engage in anything we might call “socializing.”

STAN (Off Screen) Oi!

STAN ENTERS FROM THE LEFT, BENDING OVER TO SQUINT AT THE SCREEN.  FORD LEANS BACK SLIGHTLY, ANNOYED.

STAN Did I hear that right?  Is my irredeemable nerdbro actually talking about socializing?

FORD It's science, Stanley!

STAN Whatever, this I gotta see.

MABEL We're doing a segment on cryptid families!  Got anything to add?

STAN You tell 'em about the ghosts yet?

FORD (Looking uncomfortable) Not yet, but –

MABEL (excitedly) I wanna hear!  GHOST, GHOST, GHOST, GHOST –

LOUD BANGING SOUNDS FROM OFF SCREEN.  AFTER A CRASH, AN ELBOW AND A PARTIAL VIEW OF AN ELECTRONIC DEVICE APPEARS ON THE SCREEN.

DIPPER I'm here where's the ghost?!

FORD(annoyed)Stan claims to have seen two of them on our visit to Vik i Myrdal.

DIPPER (confused) Huh? Vik what?

FORD A beach on the coast of Iceland, famous for its basaltic sand.  We were visiting primarily to study the petrified troll bodies just off the shore –

STAN Yeah yeah with the weird rocks, Ford was doing his science doodles or whatever, but that wasn't the important part.  See, there was this massive cave in the cliffs that looked exactly like the place a pirate would hide his treasure –

FORD Not at high tide!

DIPPER What happened?

STAN Uh, turns out the waves around there get really bad.

FORD As in twenty feet high. I turned around, there was no Stan in sight, and cave was already half-flooded with water.  Luckily one of us followed the rule about wearing our scuba gear under our clothes.  I immediately dropped my equipment and dove in after him. I found him pinned under a pile of rocks several dozen meters into the cave.

MABEL Whoa, are you okay?

STAN (smirking) Fine, I'm not the one who got knocked out.

FORD You shoved me!

STAN The water shoved you!  Accidentally!  To keep falling rocks from hitting you!

DIPPER But what about the ghosts?

STAN So we're stuck in the cave, right, and I'm trying to hold my breath, swim, and drag Sixer with me all at the same time, and the water's smashing us around so much Ford's underwater flashlight cracks and I'm thinking the next light I'm gonna see is the pearly gates.  And then I do see a light, and I swim toward it thinking it's gotta be daylight, but it's not getting any closer and all this fat was not helping me float.  And then a second light shows up and takes Sixer's other arm and practically drags us outta there, and next thing you know we were back on the beach, and I look back just in time to see an outline of this guy and his wife watching us from the middle of the air next to the cave.  

MABEL Wow, they stuck together and not even death could part them.  That is so romantic!  

STAN Sure. Woulda grabbed a photo but there was a little matter of Sixer not breathin' at the time.

FORD You should have taken the picture!  Thanks to the rocks falling, the end of the tunnel was completely blocked, and I was almost sure I saw fossilized cryptid bones inside.  Now we don't have anything at all to prove supernatural activity occurred in the cave!

STAN The words you want are 'Thank you, Stanley, you're the best brother ever.'

FORD Of course you are, that's not the point!

STAN What? Wait –

DIPPER Why were there ghosts there in the first place?

FORD I didn't know enough of the local language to inquire, but I suspect it may have something to do with the cryptid bones I glimpsed.  I suspect the couple's death was somehow caused by the cryptid, but Stan's account suggests that they're poltergeists, and poltergeists generally don't die violent deaths.

DIPPER What if the couple was keeping it as a pet?  Or maybe they could turn into the cryptid, like selkies?  The ghosts Stan saw might just have been their human versions!

FORD Brilliant hypothesis, Dipper!  Perhaps I was merely asking the wrong questions! Stan, quick, turn the boat around!

STAN No way, no, you literally died in that cave –

FORD Not permanently!  Besides, you'd have my back!

STAN That is so below the belt!

DIPPER Stan, are you crying?

STAN I got sea salt in my eye!

CAMERA PANS TO A CLOSE-UP OF MABEL, WHO IS LOOKING TO THE SIDE, BACK TOWARD THE COMPUTER SCREEN.  THE CONVERSATION CONTINUES IN THE BACKGROUND.  

MABEL We'll leave them to their nerdery.   (Looks directly at camera.)   Families don't have to be related, and they don't even have to be the same species.  What's important is that you show how much you care for each other, and spend time doing the same things, like getting thrown in a county jail or treating flamingopher bites.

BOTH STANS (Off Screen) That was ONE TIME!

MABELYour family might include close friends, dogs, pet rocks, or that one crow who brings you shiny pennies and half-eaten lollipops.  Whatever your family, take a minute today to let them know how much they matter. Thanks for watching Mabel's Guide to Cryptid Families.  See you next time! A/N: To my friends on Deep Woods, and a good friend on tumblr...thank you ^u^

[theskeletongames]

Looks like we got eathother for the @ @undertailsecretsanta this time @peanutable

You asked for some Underswap Undyrus, so I shall deliver it!

Floundering at the lab...

Papyrus checks his phone one last time before looking up at the massive concrete building. Yep… back here again… Though he shouldn’t be surprised. A new Royal scientist had just been announced yesterday. Guess they saw his name all over everything in the files. He can hide a lot of things, but he can’t hide that.

Papyrus sighs out. The immense building almost seeming to loom in front of him. He’d hoped he wouldn’t have to ever come back here, but a summons from the Royal scientist wasn’t something he could ignore.

Papyrus breathes out again, before walking up to the heavy metal doors. The’re gonna want answers… answers he can’t give… He’s not really sure what can be said. Nobody remembers the former scientist. Even he hardly remembers.

Welp… he’ll just have to do his best and deflect as many questions…

Papyrus takes one last breath, before stepping on the metal door pad. Listening to the familiar hiss as the lab doors open, he walks inside.

The hallway is dark on the inside. Huh…? He could have sworn the place use to be lighter. He lingers in the darkness for a moment, listening to the doors hiss shut behind him. The lab is quiet. The only sound, a static hum from somewhere in the background.

“Uh… h-hello!” Papyrus calls.

His voice echoes through the hall, but otherwise, there’s no answer.

“I-I’m here.”

Still no answer.

Papyrus waits a moment more, feeling the sweat collect across his skull as he stands in the darkness.

Wh-Where’s the new scientist? They just called him over… shouldn’t they be… waiting for him.

Papyrus shifts awkwardly in the dark hallway. This scientist was supposed to be brilliant. Somehow, they’d managed to outfit an inanimate object with a soul. Something he would have never dreamed of possible. He had to admit... he felt a little apprehensive. They was leagues ahead of anything he’d ever done. Soul technology was advanced stuff!

And now he’s standing in a darkened hallway waiting for a genius at monster soul science to come meet him. His soul hums with nervousness as he waits. Listening to the whirring of the machines in the background.

Another minute passes, and yet still he stands in the hallway…

M-Maybe he should come back at another time…

Papyrus reaches into his pocket, gingerly gripping his phone.

Maybe they’re busy...

“Um… I can come back if now’s a bad time…!”

His voice simply echoes off the dark hallway.

Papyrus feels his sweat starting to chill. Maybe he should leave. This is too creepy. Where is the scientist?! They should be here. Is something wrong! He got their message several minutes ago, why aren’t they here!

...They could… be in the basement…

That was an option…

But the place was outfitted with cameras, they should have seen him enter!

What if… what if something had gone wrong?

More sweat builds on Papyrus’s skull.

There’s a lot of things left in that basement, what if… Oh stars! What if they didn’t know what it was and activated it on accident!

Papyrus feels his hands tighten in his pockets.

He’s…. He’s gotta check. He can’t leave! He’s gotta make sure.

His legs are moving down the dark hall before he realizes what he’s doing. He’s gotta get down there! He hurries through the hall, and into the main lobby. An enormous TV lights the room. A strange high pitched song carries lightly from the speakers. Some sort of strange human drawings are dancing across the screen.

What’s going on! Why did they leave this on! Papyrus walks past the tv, heading for the hidden elevator. He’s got to check!... got to make sure!

“Maaaaaaah! Kill me already please!!!”

Papyrus stops in his tracks.

“Oh god! Everything hurts! Why did this have to happen!!!”

Papyrus slowly turns his skull… Th-that voice… It sounds like something horrible is happening!

And then he spotts it. Sitting in the center of the room is a large dark lump huddled pathetically in the light of the tv. Surrounded by huge blankets, the lump shakes ever so slightly.

Papyrus watches it for a moment, carefully… What… what’s going on?

He approaches cautiously, his light feet nearly silent on the smooth tiled floor. The lump in front of him shakes some more, and then a strange sound flows from it. Loud slurping and smacking as though someone or something’s being eaten.

“Seriously! This is torture! Uahhhhhhh! I wanna dust so bad!”

Papyrus gets closer to the dark lump, watching it from behind. There’s something horrible going on inside it! Someone’s getting eaten!

Oh stars! Maybe he should call for help! But what if help doesn't make it in time…

“That’s it! I’m dusting… I don’t even wanna live on this planet anymore…”

They’re dying! He’s gotta help them!

Gathering all his courage, Papyrus reaches down, and in one heavy motion, rips the blanket off the lump, exposing the vile creature within!

“AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!”

“GAAAAHHHHHH!”

‘HAHHHHHHHHHH!”

Screams ring through the air as two monsters stare at each other in horror.

The lump of cloth was actually a blanket. It’s currently wrapped around a tall gangly monster. Covered in blue iridescent scales, her face lined in fins, she gapes at Papyrus. Her yellow slitted eyes widen in surprise, the glasses over them flashing against the light of the TV. Wet noodles drip down her sharp teeth as she stares up at him from the floor. Small tears glistening in the corner of her eyes.

“Hah...?!!!” Is all she manages to mutter out. It echoes emptily around the dark room as she stares at him from the floor.

Papyrus is taken aback. He thought someone was being attacked, or dying… But this monster was only sitting under the blanket eating noodles…! Well… there were tears in her eyes.

“Uh… hi?” He says awkwardly, watching her eyes expand further. A tinge of red beginning to build across her face. “Name’s Papyrus… I-I uh… got a message from the Royal Scientist earlier… summoning me to the lab?”

Realization passes the fish monsters features. She seems to get ahold of herself, finally noticing Papyrus is still holding a part of the blanket, exposing what she’s wearing underneath.

Bright colorful pajamas covered in some sort of strange drawings….

“O-Oh my god!” The other monster shouts, pulling the blanket out of his grasp and burying herself back inside it. “I-I didn’t expect you to show up so soon… I haven’t showered... I haven’t dressed… a-and everything’s still… a-a mess!”

As she says this, Papyrus notices a large collection of cups strewn about the floor at her feet. Several of them still containing small chunks of noodles or oily soup remains.

She struggles to stand, knocking over a half filled cup of noodles in the process.

“Um… h-h-hiya… I-I’m Dr. Undye…” She says, getting to her feet. “The… uh… n-new royal scientist… hahaha…” She laughs nervously.

This is the new Royal scientist? A master of soul technology? Papyrus feels himself struggling to suppress a chuckle as he watches her. Well… not like this invalidates her skills.

He takes note, that even in her hunched state, she’s still an inch or so taller than him. But what he wasn’t expecting was her bright red hair… It hangs off her head messily, drooping down past her waist.

“Y-Ya should’a said something at the door!” She says, trying to gather up some of the empty cups in her arms, causing several of them to spin wildly across the tile.

Papyrus watches the display, feeling himself start to chuckle. Can’t believe he was feeling scared… He’s glad nothing bad was happening to the other monster… Actually… what was she crying about earlier?

His sockets roam to the only light source in the room. A large TV. The colorful show continues to play across it’s screen, displaying strange looking humans talking in high pitched voices.

“I called a skeleton of times ya know…” He says lazily, feeling himself sink back into a relaxed state as he talks more and more with the other monster. He can’t believe he was panicking so hard earlier.

“Uh… r-right… s-sorry… sorry… guess I didn’t hear ya…” Undyne says, missing the joke completely as she attempts to stack the empty cups on top of an already full trash.

“Don’t worry… it’s kinda adoorable… makin’ me wait there like that.”

The cups fall from Undynes grasp. Her face brightening in the darkness as she slowly turns around.

“A-A-Adorable!?”

Papyrus smirks… This monster’s actually kinda…

“You know…” He says lazily, pointing a slim bony finger behind himself. “Cause’a the door?”

“R-Right!” She says, adjusting her glasses… “R-Right… A-A-Anyway… I-I’m sure you're wondering why I called you here…?”

Papyrus shrugs. “I’m guessing you saw my name while you were fishing around.”

Undyne pauses… looking at him. “D-Did you just…?”

“Don’t mean to be koi with you but… guess you can’t get much skeledone without me.”

“A-Are you really…?”

“Just let minnow what ya need and I see what I can do…”

Undyne’s mouth is dropping further and further as she listens to the skeleton. Was he really telling puns! Right after they’d met!

Her face starts to change color as she watches him smirk. H-How can he just… really!

“Guess these puns are a little too kray-z for ya if I haven’t got ya kraken up yet?”

“Huh!” Is all Undyne manges to squeak out. She seems a little overwhelmed by what he’s been saying. Instead of being able to respond, she simply looks at him blankly.

“Anyway…” Papyrus’s sockets scan over the TV. “What are you watchin’ thats got’cha whale-ing so hard.”

The fish monster’s face completely reddens.

“I-I wasn’t… Oh my god! I-I was just” She begins to presses her webbed index fingers together, her face slowly getting redder. “W-Well you see! I was watching the second season of Mew Mew Kissie Cutie… A-An anime about a human girl with cat ears who fights m-monsters-... uh… bad guys… The first season was amazing fuhuhuhuh!” She laughs loudly, her face brightening. “But this second season… it was neither kissie nor cutie! The story doesn’t make any sense! The plotline is trash! They completely changed Cuties’ character! You can’t change Cuties’ character!” Undyne starts growling. “Why don’t we just dump the entire first season off a cliff and pretend nothing even happened! Why did they even bother to make it if they aren’t gonna continue the original plotline! How could they do that! Oh my god! I’m so angry! They can’t just change the entire thing like that! They can’t just-”

“Snirk.”

Papyrus starts laughing on the spot, watching as the tall fish monster quickly changes her entire demeanor once she’s realized what she’s been doing.

“I-I… I mean… I was j-just a little angry that my favorite show was... Uh… r-ruined…” She says sheepishly, her yellow eyes dropping to the floor as color floods her face. “N-Nothing to… w-worry about.”

“So what your sayin’ is the new season’s got ya feline down.”

“Oh my god! How do you keep coming up with these!”

“Heh…” Papyrus slides his hands lazily into his pockets, his hooded sockets looking Undyne up and down. “Can’t help it if I’m purrfect.”

Undynes face somehow manages to glow even redder. Has the lab always felt this hot! Why is it so hot!

“I-I meant at telling puns!” Papyrus shouts, realizing what he’d implied.

“R-Right!” Undyne agrees! “P-Puns! Fuhahaha…” She laughs nervously.

The room is suddenly very quiet.

The silence is broken by Papyrus’s phone ringing loudly in his pocket. He looks at the caller id and sighs in relief. Nothing like a great older bro when you need one! Then he answers the phone.

“Sup bro.”

“PAPYRUS! YOU’RE LATE! WHERE ARE YOU!” The loud low voice of his brother calls through the phone.

“Floundering around at the new Dr’s.”

“YOU’RE WHERE!?!”

“I got called over by the new Royal scientist...”

“WHAT! BUT YOUR SHIFT STARTED OVER 5 MINUTES AGO!”

“Guess I’m gonna have ta leave it for salmon else.”

“...” His brother doesn’t respond.

“Bro?” Papyrus asks in his silence.

“PAPYRUS...WHY ARE YOU TELLING FISH PUNS…?” His brother’s voice asks.

Papyrus’s eyes snap to Undyne’s, realizing what he’s been doing the whole time.

“Uh...huh… The uh… heh… New Dr… sh-she’s uh.”

“SHE!”

“Yeah she’s-”

“WOWIE! YOU’RE ON A DATE WITH A GIRL!”

“What NO!” Papyrus shouts.

“MWEH HEH HEH! DO NOT MIND YOUR SHIFT THEN BOTHER! I WILL ALWAYS HAVE YOUR BACK IN ANY AND ALL MANNERS INVOLVING YOUR LOVELIFE! WORRY NOT LITTLE BRO, FOR I AM THE GREATEST WINGMAN IN ALL OF THE UNDERGROUND! FEEL FREE TO TAKE YOUR TIME WITH YOUR NEW SPECIAL FRIEND!”

“Sans no!”

“SANS YES! I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!”

And then the line goes dead.

Papyrus slowly lets his hand fall with his phone. His hollow sockets turning to look at the only other person in the room.

“Uh…”

Her face is about a red as it could possibly get.

He’s really drowning in it this time….

[jolynreblogs]

Lost and Found

Ehhhh not much to say about this one, other than it was a small concept that became a really looooong fic. Enjoy! tags @mcdomii and runs away (Masterpost: https://mcdomii.tumblr.com/post/180578210717/insomniascrooge-au-master-post don't kill me)

"Movie Night!" Louie exclaimed, holding up a tape that he found in Scrooge's garage. After days of persuasion, he had finally convinced his Uncles for a day staying up together to watch a movie. Scrooge agreed readily, having nothing else to do at night besides staring at the ceiling, but Donald was a hard one, mostly because he was against the idea of the kids staying up late. Everyone gathered around the living room for their first movie night in months, except Dewey. Wondering where he went, Scrooge left halfway through the movie.

Dewey was in his room, gazing at the stars longingly, before unpacking the bag he and his brothers found at Castle McDuck. "I miss you so much, Mom…" He said, hugging Della's clothes. Closing his eyes as tears formed in his eyes, he tried to enjoy the time alone he had to grief. Everything had been so hectic lately, he didn't know what to feel about it anymore. A tear dropped, landing on a cracked camera lens in the bag. Opening his eyes again, he found it at a discrete corner of the bag. 'This is new?' Dewey thought, as he wiped away the tears on his eyes, carefully picking it up. Imprint on the lens was the camera's brand number, OP131000.

"Wait, I've seen that number before, but where?" Dewey questioned aloud, rubbing the stray tear that landed on it. After staring for a while, a sudden realisation came to him, causing him to run out of his bedroom.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Meanwhile, Scrooge was turning the mansion upside down trying to look for Dewey. He had already checked the kitchen, where they would usually go for snacks, the dinning room even though he have no idea why Dewey would be in there, and even his own room! In case Dewey was snooping around trying to look for something, but to no avail.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Opening the creaking door, Dewey found himself back in the place where Scrooge first locked him up, the attic. It was as dusty and old as he remembered, with sheets covering any object that was there. Curiosity driving him, Dewey looked under the sheets, throwing them off if he could, though it often ended up with the sheet above him. The room had more to what it seemed, there was even a piano under one! Getting distracted, he wiped off the dust around it, playing a few notes, before jumping off to search under the other covers.

After a few minutes, he had uncovered everything, except the one beside him. Coughing the dust out he had accumulated, he angrily kicked his leg in defeat, frustrated that he couldn't find what he was looking for. What he didn't expect was a shearing pain as his leg hit something hard. Holding the urge to scream, Dewey looked down, finding a small part of a video camera exposed beneath the sheets. The imprint on the camera lens was the same as the one he was holding.

'Is this Mom's one?' He thought to himself, bringing the sheet up high enough just for himself. Behind it, he found the rest of the video camera, and a box containing old fashion tapes with one titled 'The Golden Chicken.' Intrigued, Dewey pulled out the camera and the box of tapes, carrying it down to the garage to watch them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The television flicked a couple of times, emitting white noise as the tape was put in, showing how old it is. Once it stopped, a temple that was seemingly in the middle of a forest was in the background. "Is this thing working?" A voice, seemigly female, echoed around the place. The camera was then panned to the foreground where three ducks, one carrying a heavy backpack was seen.

Della: Donald it's on!

Donald: Great, now help me with these please!

The female duck ran towards her brother, carrying some of the weight for him. An old duck with glasses moved closer, inspecting the camera.

Scrooge: I never knew I would see this running again, how did you do it, Lass?

"I have my ways." The female duck answered, as she carried the camera up. It was now facing front, focusing on the little features of the temple.

Della: Mind telling our viewers what this temple is, Uncle Scrooge?

Scrooge: Well, according to this book, they had a civilization with chocolate and rubber, as well as corns, avocados and tomatoes. It was the magnificent capital that the mighty monteplumage ruled. I've read everything about it but the book never told me how wonderful the temple structure is though!

Donald: They should've built escalators...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Walking around aimlessly through the hallways, Scrooge was still trying to find Dewey. With his insomnia kicking in once again, he no longer knew where he was, and thought he was hallucinating when he saw light emitting from the garage at the corner of his eye. Nevertheless, Scrooge went to check it out, hoping that Dewey would be in there.

"Lad, what are you doing in there, it's time for movie night-!" Scrooge asked, opening the door. He found Dewey blocking the tv, innocently looking at him. Annoyed, he snatched the tape Dewey was holding, reading it.

Della: These people were no strangers to gold, but… a chicken?

SQWAK

A wave of uncertainty and confusion hit Scrooge as soon as he knew that the tape on and the one he was holding was one of Della's tapes. Holding himself together, he nervously asked his nephew, "…It's movie night.., you coming, Lad?"

Dewey: I'm.. not really in the mood..

"That's alright, though if you change your mind…?" Scrooge offered, solemnly walking out of the room. He knew nothing will ever be the same after the rest of the family knew **that**, but sometimes, he wished everything was back to normal, he wished his family was the same.., he wished he was the same old, smart, adventuring uncle they knew.. He sighed, tired of feeling this way.

Dewey: Wait.. Uncle Scrooge, do you want to watch these with me?

Scrooge's face brightened up at the question. 'Did he?' He wondered, he had never watched any of his niece's tapes before and after all, he had nothing else to do at 12:35am other than chug more redbulls. He didn't know if he could stand seeing Della again, bearing the blame of what happened to her but then again, guilt and grief was a common and normal emotion to have around. Finally deciding to accept the offer, he walked back into the room, taking a seat beside Dewey.

Donald: Della you reckless akdbskbekdhdg will you two stop catching up on your reading and get this chicken offa me before it starts its own airline?! Put it back in a cage or something!

Della: Donald will you can it? It's not going back in any cage unless there's one that's a size of a hanger!

The screen moved up and down, shaken by the vibration the chicken made when chasing Donald. Occasionally, there were blurred images of the beast and Donald running around, due to how old the camera was.

Scrooge: That's not totally true.

Della: Huh, what do you mean, Uncle Scrooge?

The camera was seemingly suddenly picked up and now, it was facing the old duck.

Scrooge: According to these inscriptions, if we follow these instructions, we can get a bigger cage to contain it!

The screen moved, focusing on the inscriptions that were mentioned beforehand, moving as Della and Scrooge follow where they lead. Given how late it was, Dewey was starting to fall asleep, leaning on his Uncle. Noticing this, Scrooge shook him awake. "Lad, wake up, this is one of the best parts." The screen was now showing a wall with ancient shapes.

Della: Uncle Scrooge, can you take this for me? I know I can solve this.

Scrooge: Alright, good luck, Lass!

Dewey jolted awake, "Uhh…?" seeing his mom on tape, solving the puzzle in a few minutes. He couldn't believe his eyes, 'She was that fast?' he thought. He always knew his mom was great but this, this was a new level. "Is she always this good?" He asked, wondering if this was normal.

Scrooge: Yup, she had the ability to read the situation and see all the shortcuts and possibilities. Ya know… I think a brother of yours inherited that trait.

Dewey immediately knew who he was talking about, Louie. He was the first to realise something was up with his Uncle Scrooge and in the previous adventures they had, he had a nack of figuring out the pattern every adventure had. It was a trait he got from being lazy, but still, a really neat skill to have.

The camera was now panned to the floor, as Della was using the light from the camera to search for her brother. Dewey smiled at the sight, his mom was so amazingly smart and practical, it would've been amazing to meet her.

Della: Donald where are you? What did those cacao beans do to you?!

Donald: Down here- GIANT CHICKEN! BEHIND YOU DELLA!

"Huh?" Confused, Della turned around, causing the camera to pan to an image of a giant chicken 50 times her size. The chicken towered over her, ready to eat. Terrified, she ran, slipping on the cacao beans in front of her, dropping the camera, causing the screen to go static.

Dewey: MOM!

The white noise and the deafening silence that followed after it as the tape ended echoed around the room. Dewey walked towards the tv, grabbing the tape that was ejected out. "That was mom, huh." He said aloud, tears once again falling from his face. He didn't know what to feel, happy to see his mother, even if it's on tape, or be sad that she wasn't here. Scrooge walked over, kneeling beside him.

"I miss her.." Dewey stammered, crying and hugging the tape. He couldn't be bothered he was crying in front of his Uncle, he just wanted his mother back! Scrooge placed his hand on his nephew's shoulder, trying his best to comfort him.

Scrooge: Lad, you know I miss her too..

Dewey: Yeah.. I do.

"You're actually lucky you found that box, most of the tapes, like the one you played, were damaged or missing, or both." Scrooge said off-handedly, bringing the box of tapes over.

'So that's why it was cut off halfway.' Dewey thought, head inside the box, digging through it. "That.. may not be true." He said, holding up a tape. It was in perfect condition, titled For The Kids.

Scrooge: I think you should watch this one.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Static filled the screen again as the tape started, then it showed a background of the mansion. It slowly panned towards the car Scrooge uses for his business trips. He was about to get in, when he realise his niece was filming again.

Scrooge: Hey Della, what you doing?

Della: Just making another video, nothing much. You?

Scrooge: I'm going overboard to find business opportunities. Don't burn the house down while I'm gone!

"We won't!" Della answered back as Scrooge got into the car. Beside him, Donald was talking to his old college buddies who had paid a visit to the mansion. Like Scrooge, Donald immediately realised he was being filmed.

Donald: Filming again, sister?

Della: Yep

Panchito: Oo oo! Do we have time for one song? Whoever's watching it needs to hear this.

Donald rolled his eyes as he saw his buddy grabbing his guitar, playing a random tune, before keeping it again. "Experiment with the effects, Della!" Donald called out, halfway through the song.

Della: Hmm… what does this one do?

A flurry of blue gradients suddenly flashed past the screen when a button was pressed.

Della: This one?

The screen transitions into a rocket shape closing on static. A second later, it was showing the background of the mansion again. 

"Isn't this amazing, kids? This world is full of so many possibilities, from the day to day basis in the mansion, to the advantures we have, to having you all! Each living thing has an entirely unique experience, the sights they see, the sounds they hear, the lives they live, are so complicated, and so simple! I can't wait for you all to join us." Della said in the background, moving to the horizon as Scrooge's car drove off, and then moving it back to The Three Caballeros while Donald was saying his goodbyes to Josè and Panchito.

Unexpectedly, Della moved the camera such that it was facing herself.

Della: Kids, I… I'm going to space. I know, its a bad idea, there's a lot of risks, and I'll probably never hear the end of it from Donald when I tell him. I won't be gone forever, but I just want you all to know that every moment you love being yourself, that's me, loving you! Because you all are something extraordinary. Take care of them for me, kids.

Donald: Della, wanna play gengar? I found a old box of it earlier today!

"Coming! I bet 10 bucks I'll beat you again!" Della answered back, winking at the camera as she stopped the recording, ending the tape.

Instead of walking towards the television to grab the tape, Dewey sat there, motionless, with tears bluring his vision. He slowly turn to faced his uncle, who was also staring at the screen blankly, before hugging him, sobbing on his shirt. Scrooge embraced it, hugging his nephew back as they enjoyed the silence they had in the room.

Headcannons used (from Domii's 50 insomnia au thing part 2)

[fiftytwobadstories]

10 - Blank Tape

It was my first video party. My group of friends had been trying to get me to go to one for a long time, but I was never too good with crowds. On this particular evening, I had run out of excuses for why I couldn’t make it and found myself being dragged along. I couldn’t think of a worse way to spend my night than in a crowded room filled a bunch of strangers watching whatever garbage they could come up with, but there I was. As we approached the old dilapidated apartment building on the other side of town, I could feel a knot tightening in my stomach and I was already beginning to plan my exit strategy.

The idea of a video party was that you were supposed to bring a video tape of something strange you had found and a big group of people would get together and watch them all. It was sort of like a Show and Tell, but much weirder. It could be anything ranging from a news broadcast that someone recorded right off the tv to some random kid’s birthday party where the cake catches fire. These tapes were usually copied and shared like they were trading cards through different circles. It didn’t matter what was on that tape, only that it was absolutely bizarre.

As we made our way up the creaking stairs of the building, I could already hear the distant roars of laughter through the thin walls. I gripped my friend’s hand with white knuckles—it sounded like a lot of people. I hadn’t brought anything to share myself. My goal for the evening was to avoid any sort of attention to myself and to just slip away into the darkest corner of the room to make myself as invisible as possible until it was time to leave. All I that I could think about was how much I missed my bed and my favourite bottle of wine. I just wanted to be alone.

The small studio was packed with people that were all huddled together with their eyes glued to the tv screen. The lights were off and everyone’s faces were shining with the static glow. It was hard to make out the screen through all the heads, but it appeared as though they were watching an acting reel that someone had recorded in their basement with makeshift props. The room was warm from the bodies and the air was heavy. I could already feel the walls starting to close in on me. Why did I let myself get dragged here?

I felt my friend’s hand slip out of reach as she disappeared into the crowd to find a better view of the screen and I found myself orphaned. There were people on all sides of me that I didn’t recognize. I tried to keep my breathing steady, but I could already feel my heart starting to pound in my chest. There was nowhere to go, I was completely surrounded. At that moment, I would have rather been anywhere else in the world. Then, I noticed an opening. I slipped through a small gap in the crowd and found my way to edge of the tiny room where I found myself just barely able to catch my breath.

I didn’t pay too much attention to what was on the screen—watching this struggling actor only made me feel awkward—instead I found it much more interesting to observe the many faces in the dark room. There was a wide variety of expressions that came together like a quilt of joy and second hand embarrassment. As I continued to scan the room, my eyes met with those of man on the other side of the room. I barely noticed him at first in the darkness, but occasionally the screen would brighten just enough to flicker onto his pale face. His features were sharp and his eyes were dark. If I were to be completely honest, he was quite attractive, and maybe that was the reason that I couldn’t take my eyes off of him. His lips tightened into a smile and I felt a slight flutter in my chest. He continued to stare back at me until the video playing on the tv ended.

“All right, who’s next?” asked the deep voice of a woman who I assumed was the host.

The man slinked out of the shadows with a video tape in hand. He handed it to the woman who looked the tape over and asked what was on it. The smile on the man’s face never faded and he made his way back to his spot in the dark without another word. I heard someone whisper to another asking who he was—maybe he was another oddball like me. As the woman pushed the tape into the player, I looked back over to him. He was still watching me and his smile had stretched even tighter. He motioned his head towards the screen and gave me a wink as though he wanted me to watch.

The video began to play. The bright blue screen turned to static and then a white room came into focus. The camera seemed to be facing a white curtain—I think it was someone’s bathroom. A person entered the frame and stared directly up at the camera. It was strange, I couldn’t explain how they looked: it was as though they had no features at all. The person stood there some time as though they were watching us. The room had gone deadly quiet and I realized that there was some kind of uneasy feeling growing in my stomach. Slowly, I began to notice more features on the face of the person. She was a woman with long dark hair and olive skin. I wasn’t sure how I didn’t notice that before. Tears were starting to fall from her eyes and she seemed to be whispering something to the camera that I couldn’t understand. The longer I watched, the more that I realized that this woman looked just like me. It was a mirror image. I felt a shiver run up my spine. She raised a trembling hand and I could see a gun in her hand. I heard someone gasp. As she slowly began to turn the gun towards herself, I quickly spun my head away and slammed my eyes shut. I couldn’t see this.

There was a loud bang and I heard someone scream. My heart was race as I slowly opened my eyes and turned my head back towards the screen. The figure was gone from the frame. The only thing that was left of her was a large red stain splattered across the white shower curtain in the background. My body began to shake and I looked at the others in the room. Each and every one of them were all staring blankly at the image. I thought of looking back at the man, but I just couldn’t bring myself to.

Then, someone who had been sitting on the carpet stood up and calmly walked towards the window. He slid open the window and then he was gone—leaving nothing but the sound of a heavy thud on the pavement below. Someone else then followed behind him and then another. One by one, and without a single word, all of the people from the party began to leave the room: some through the window and some though the door, but all were going to their deaths. I tried to look out for my friend, but I couldn’t make her out in the crowd.

It happened all so fast, but soon enough there were only two people left in the room: me and that man. He made his way over to the tv and ejected the tape from the player. There was a distant sound of screaming coming from outside the window and everything else was silence. I was too afraid to move or even look at him. What on earth was he? In a sort of casual stride, he made his way over towards me and tapped the top of my head with the corner of the tape. The sudden contact made me jump.

“You didn’t watch it?” he asked innocently.

I looked up at him and his dark eyes sent a shiver down my spine. I tried to speak, but there were no words left in me. He sighed at my silence.

“That’s a shame, it was my masterpiece.”

There was something in his face that started to change. The sharpness began to soften and his eyes began to lose their colour. All of its feature faded away, leaving behind what looked like a completely blank canvass. He looked like one of those mannequins from the mall and I wondered if he was even human at all. He turned away from me and left out the front door. Then, I found myself to be alone. I could still feel the touch of my friend’s hand on mine and I wondered where she ended up. My body began to shake as the silence became unbearable. I didn’t want to be alone anymore.

[gris-0]

MED2306- Cinematography CW2

Task 1: Fly Through

https://vimeo.com/543422524

The concept for the setting that the camera would fly through is an unsettling house. The camera begins outside the front door before travelling through a hallway, looking into the living room and the kitchen as it goes and ending by the back door. Lights are located midway through the hallway, in the living room, at the top of the stairs and in the kitchen. The lighting used, due to the setting, are positioned around ceiling level with the light scattering downwards across the area. In doing this it was hoped that the lighting would somewhat emulate the effect of ceiling lights illuminating the set. For a similar reason, all the lights except the kitchen light also have a slight yellow tint to appear similar to old style lightbulbs and add to the general "old abandoned house" feel that was trying to be achieved. The exception is the kitchen, which instead uses a sterile white light that was also meant to feel unsettling.

Parts of the original layout plan are missing in the final animation, though these are mostly just props that were left out due to the tedious nature of searching for suitable, feely accessable 3D assets. The one detail that was left out that would have impacted lighting somewhat was that a backdoor with a window that had light shing through was supposed to be present. This was dropped in the end due to the same reason of finding a 3d asset that suits my needs was deemed as counter productive. However, in a convenient turn of events, the lack of light at the end of the hallway actually adds to the atmosphere and makes the setting slightly more unnerving.

In terms of sound design, though lacking in the final fly through, the notable sounds that were decided would have been TV static and some water drop sounds. The TV static and interference would play as the camera looks into the living room only to fade to silence as the camera turns away, and similarly the water drop sounds would be heard after a point in the hallway, getting louder as the camera approaches the kitchen and quieter as the backdoor is approached. Both sounds would have a slight reverb to them to further add to the feeling of emptiness within the house.

Overall I would say that my aim of achieving a certain atmosphere was successful, though the execution could be better in terms of lighting and camera movement. Camera movement as it turns is extremely janky and timing fails while passing the living room of the house, though it was less so when passing by the kitchen. The main reason this happened was partly out of struggling to find a good frame to have the camera turn to look into the room while still also giving the camera time to look down the hallway again before getting to the kitchen. Ways this could have been amended include slowing the camera movement down the hallway as it passes by the room, extending the hallway out or even having the living room as an open space by changing the set layout. As for lighting, most issues were technical related as often render previews are significantly brighter than final previews, so multiple times certain settings for the light sources had to be changed in order to accommodate. In the end the lighting may have been a bit too bright compared to what was intended, though it came close.

Pictured: The same frame, preview vs final render, before changing the rendering and lighting settings

Task 2: Packshot

Packshots are images of items that are taken in a way that both highlights the object in the picture including all its details and is intended to look appealing to the viewer. They are used in advertising to communicate the product.

When taking my own packshots I used an energy drink can and a vinyl tiger figurine respectively. The lighting set up was roughly as follows:

The set up includes a projector that's shining onto a screen which dissipates the light, spreading the area it's casting over, and acting as a backdrop that draws attention to the object in front of it. A gel mat was placed under the object, both to allow the light to shine better on the object and for added visual appeal.

Additional lights were also added when taking my packshots. Two in particular were used to light the front of my chosen objects and the set up for them, at least for the packshot of the tiger model, are pictured in image 1 below. The purpose of the lights are to ensure that the object is lit in an appealing way that brings attention to the important parts of the prop. Due to this, the lighting set up is very similar for the energy drink packshot though the way the lights are placed might differ slightly for the sake of making the object more visible. Though unneeded for my packshots, occassionaly a propped up plain white surface is used to angle the a light source towards the object that the light may not otherwise be able to reach. This is pictured in image 2 and typically is used when taking pictures of transparent objects.

My packshots were mostly successful, though the tiger model image is slightly blurry. Before taking the picture I could have had the camera focus on something else that's the same distance away to ensure the camera is focused correctly. Moreover, in the energy drink packshot some light from the right bleeds onto the backdrop and the gel mat, drawing attention away from the prop and ruining the packshot. This could have been easily fixed by moving the light source further away. Though minor in this instance, in a real life setting the energy drink packshot wouldn't have been accepted for advertising for the mere reason that the can is slightly dented. When creating packshots, everything has to be accounted for to sell the product pictured, including taking into account the state of the product.

Task 3: Glamour and 3 point light shots

Pictured: Glamour shot

Pictured: 3 Point lighting

Glamour shots and 3 point light shots are usually used to take pictures of people as the individual set-ups flatter the subject of the picture. The way this is done usually entails the use of lighting that keeps the individual well-lit but refrains from lighting that's too harsh.

In glamour shots multiple, evenly spread lightsources are used and placed behind a screen that dissipates the light, and the subject sits in front of the screen when the picture is taken. The lighting being evenly placed ensures that as much of the subject's details can be seen as possible while the screen allows the light to scatter and prevents it from being too harsh. The topmost drawing pictured illustrates this.

In 3 point light shots lights are placed two on the front and one on the back with the subject's picture being taken wile standing between them. The light behind the subject is the backlight intended to seperate them from the background and make them stand out more. One of the lights to the front, is the key light that's used as the main source to light the subject. The final lightsource is the fill light that's usually softer and is used to brighten dark shadows that'd otherwise appear from the key light. In the drawing above, the light that's illustrated hitting the surface is the fill light while the light directly shining onto the subject is the key light.

[goodlucktai]

Your PC story was recommended to me by a friend and I finished it in two days XD! I know I'm a little late but is you still accept PC prompts can you write one about Leo finding old home videos of him and his bros back when splinter was alive? Thank you so much!

x

Donnie comes down from the attic covered in a thin film of dust, with a sturdy cardboard box in his arms. 

“There are VHS tapes in here,” he says with certain glee. “Do we still have our VCR?”

Leo lifts the lid off and Mikey leans over his arm for a look. There are easily two dozen old tapes inside, with handwritten stickers labeling each one. Raph tells Donnie where Casey stuck the VCR as Leo traces sensei’s writing with a faraway look in his eyes. 

Sensei used to keep his big, bulky camcorder within arm’s reach all the time. Mikey remembers him filming at birthday parties and Christmas dinners, but he had figured those home movies were as lost as the rest of their childhood home was. 

It’s kind of amazing that they’re all right here, in neat little rows. 

Mikey is a little bit worried Leo won’t want to watch them right away – sensei is still a healing hurt, with Leo – but when Donnie comes back over from setting up the TV, their big brother hands over a tape without being prompted.

The video cuts in abruptly, a mess of static that clears into a little kid with a mess of dark hair and almond-shaped blue eyes. He’s grinning through a gap in his teeth, and somewhere behind the camera a familiar voice says, “Show me again, little ninja.”

Mikey and his brothers go still, their breath catching, because somehow they weren’t prepared. Sensei’s voice is heavily accented and so warm with affection that Mikey’s heart squeezes painfully in his chest. 

Little Leo on the TV screen schools his face into an expression of intense concentration, assuming the first stance of one of the first katas they ever learned. Before he can go more than a step, a pint-sized Raph plows into him from the side with a yelp, and they both hit the matted floor in a groaning pile. 

Behind them both is young Donnie with his hands over his mouth in mortification, brown eyes too big for his face, and Mikey is next to him, impossibly small and laughing fit to burst. 

“What on earth happened?” sensei asks, but he’s chuckling despite himself, and the camera rocks to one side as he steps forward to untangle the boys on the floor, and turns off not long after. 

“I remember that,” Donnie says from Leo’s other side. His voice sounds thick the way it does when he’s about to cry, but he’s grinning. “That was the first time I managed to throw Raph during training. Neither of us expected me to actually pull it off.” 

Mikey says, “You were so little, Leo!”

“And already Sensei Jr.,” Raph says without heat. “What a teacher’s pet.”

They’re all clustered on the floor in front of the TV, Raph with his bad leg stretched out carefully, and when the next video clip starts Donnie is the only one to move – and only to pick up the remote and nudge up the volume, as sensei’s face fills the screen.

Crows feet crinkling beside his eyes when he smiles, their father says, “I think you’ve fixed it. Well done, Donatello! Let’s go show your brothers.” 

“Pause it,” Leo says, abruptly. He’s digging his phone out of his pocket. “I want Karai to – to meet him.” 

“Ooh!” Mikey brightens. “Leatherhead, too!”

“Casey and April are probably in a lot of these,” Raph adds, warming to the idea. “And I don’t think Al’s working tonight.” 

Donnie shakes his head, but the smile on his face is fond as he gets his phone out, too. Mikey sits back to lean on his hands, pleased that his brothers are bringing the rest of their clan into this impromptu movie night.

It’s nice to have enough now that they can afford to share these happy memories with the other people they love, instead of hoarding every good thing away like a brittle treasure that might lose its shine if they handle it too much.

Mikey is all too happy to share. He thinks everything they have left of sensei is the kind of treasure that gets brighter the more it’s passed around.