#i guess this feels like a christmas gift but ive been wanting to make SOME kind of art of ur model for a while now

[neonlitlesbians]

hey @jofiah your vtuber model is cool as fuck so i drew her.

[watchinghallmark]

Okay, here are my thoughts on the Hallmark Mystery movies and Hallmark+ programming!

Hallmark Mystery

🎄 This Time Each Year  Premiere Date: Thursday, Oct. 24 at 8/7c Cast: Alison Sweeney, Niall Matter Premise: Lauren (Sweeney) and Kevin (Matter) were once happily married and thriving as a family but the couple has spent almost the past year in a trial separation and are working hard to co-parent their young son Charlie (Ezra Wilson). Kevin is determined to make their family whole again and it’s clear he and Lauren still care for each other deeply. When Lauren’s mother (Laura Soltis) suddenly comes into town, she asks Kevin to pretend they’re still together as she hasn’t yet broken the news to her. As they try to keep up this ruse, they begin to remember what life was like and Lauren sees the strides Kevin has made to get back on the right path and just maybe, this holiday will be a season of healing and bring happiness back into their lives.

This sounds very sweet.

🎄 My Sweet Austrian Holiday  Premiere Date: Thursday, Oct. 31 at 8/7c Cast: Brittany Bristow, Will Kemp Premise: Charlotte (Bristow) is an American, who has lived in Vienna since inheriting a chocolate shop from her grandparents two years ago. Since then, she has worked tirelessly to grow the business into a successful enterprise. Christmas is one of the busiest times of the year and Charlotte has been selected as one of the finalists for Vienna’s chocolatier of the year. Taking home the prize could provide some much-needed money to fend off a large developer from taking over her grandparents’ shop. Charlotte soon meets and befriends Henry (Kemp), and they bond over their shared affinity for quality chocolate. But a surprising twist of fate just might end their newfound relationship on a bittersweet note.

Let me guess. Is he the developer? I feel like this movie doesn't quite belong in this group. I don't care for Britt but I do love Will so hopefully it'll be enjoyable.

🎄 Five Gold Rings  Premiere Date: Thursday, Nov. 7 at 8/7c Cast: Holland Roden, Nolan Gerard Funk Premise: When New York City painter Audrey Moss (Roden) returns to her small Minnesota hometown for the holidays, she’s met with an unexpected quest from her beloved late grandmother: find the owners of five mysterious gold rings and return them to their rightful homes before Christmas morning, only nine days away. In her bequeathment, Grandma also urges Audrey to team up with local private investigator and childhood friend, Finn O’Sullivan (Funk). From gingerbread house building to the annual Giving Gala, these two begin to bond over more than just their quest. As Audrey and Finn unravel the mystery of the missing rings’ owners, they discover there is more to their relationship than they ever expected to find.

Holland is one of my absolute faves so I'm excited for this one. I love a little holiday quest!

🎄 A Reason for the Season  Premiere Date: Thursday, Nov. 14 at 8/7c Cast: Taylor Cole, Kevin McGarry Premise: In order to earn her trust fund, Evie (Cole) is tasked with granting Christmas wishes to the people who saved her life on the night of her birth. To aid in her cause, she employs Kyle (McGarry), a handsome local attorney, to track down those who helped and attempts to secretly learn what they might want while maintaining her anonymity. With Christmas fast approaching, the heiress and the attorney can’t resist falling for each other’s charms as they ramp up their gift giving efforts. But as time ticks down, will she be able to accomplish the mission and grant all of the wishes by Christmas Eve?

What an interesting plot! I think these two will be really great together.

🎄 A Novel Noel  Premiere Date: Thursday, Nov. 21 at 8/7c Cast: Julie Gonzalo, Brendan Penny Premise: A successful New York City book editor (Gonzalo), who is losing touch with her passion after a few setbacks this year learns she was chosen to run a bookstore in the small town of Saint Ives for the month of December. While realizing a childhood dream, but butting heads with the handsome son (Penny) of the bookstore owners, she comes to realize that her love for bringing out the creativity of others is still her true calling, and untapped talent (and love) can be found anywhere… even in the writings of a cranky business-minded man, especially at Christmas.

Sounds cute and cozy.

🎄 Christmas Under the Lights  Premiere Date: Wednesday, Nov. 27 at 8/7c Cast: Heather Hemmens, Marco Grazzini Premise: Emily (Hemmens) is always reluctant to return home to her family’s animal rescue ranch — but when her mother passes away, her brother Nick requests her help organizing the annual Christmas Carnival. When she arrives, she discovers Nick’s friend, Luke (Grazzini), staying at the ranch — and that Luke was once a successful artist who works with light. Though initially reluctant to collaborate, Emily and Luke work hard to pull off the best, most light-filled carnival the town has ever seen, a healing celebration of Emily’s mother’s legacy and the magic of Christmas — and along the way feel sparks of romance as radiant as the lights themselves.

Planning events is never that appealing of a plot to me but this sounds like it'll have some heart and I really like both leads.

🎄 A Dance in the Snow  Premiere Date: Thursday, Dec. 5 at 8/7c Cast: Erica Cerra, Mark Ghanimé, Vanessa Burghardt, Dorian Giordano Premise: Melanie’s (Cerra) 17-year-old autistic daughter Jenny (Burghardt) is a senior in high school and looking forward to college. After a bad experience her junior year, Jenny is not interested in attending her final Christmas dance before graduating. Melanie decides to surprise Jenny by getting involved in the school’s planning committee to create a welcoming dance for all students. Meanwhile, Jenny and her friends secretly plan their own party, in part to honor Melanie. Melanie works with Jenny’s literature teacher (Ghanimé) on the dance and starts to fall for him while Jenny develops something special with a new classmate (Giordano) at school. When their secrets snowball, however, their plans begin to drive a wedge between the usually tightknit mother and daughter at the holidays.

This sounds really sweet. I love that they want to do something special for each other.

🎄 All I Need for Christmas  Premiere Date: Thursday, Dec. 12 at 8/7c Cast: Mallory Jansen, Dan Jeannotte Premise: Maggie (Jansen) has been trying for years to break in as a singer/songwriter. Now faced with challenges of new apps and social media, Maggie fears she’s outdated and unable to compete in a tech-savvy world. While helping her parents on their farm at Christmastime, she meets Archer (Jeannotte), an entrepreneur who has come back to town to spend the holidays alone. Archer is developing large-scale apps and is a tech enthusiast. At first, Maggie blames him for all of her songwriting woes. To her surprise, he encourages her to get back in touch with music that really matters and write from the heart; tech can be used in a supportive role to help her achieve her dreams without replacing the art of songwriting. Archer is dealing with loss of family, and through her tight family bonds, Maggie helps Archer find ways of moving beyond years of family feuding. In this holiday romance, Maggie and Archer both discover there is merit in preserving the tried and true while making room for new ideas and methods to bring people together and help make dreams come true.

To be honest, this sounds kind of lame to me but I'm sure it'll be cute.

🎄 Trading Up Christmas  Premiere Date: Thursday, Dec. 19 at 8/7c Cast: Italia Ricci, Michael Xavier Premise: Michelle (Ricci) is the dreamer of her family, always brimming with imaginative ideas to make the world a better place. This Christmas, her sister Keri desperately needs a new home, and Michelle hatches a creative plan to help. Starting with just a Christmas stocking, she sets out to trade her way up to something far greater—a house for Keri. While Keri dismisses it as a far-fetched idea, local reporter Dan (Xavier) is intrigued. Assigned to cover Michelle’s story, Dan follows her closely, and as her plan gains attention, he starts to see the world through her hopeful eyes. As Michelle and Dan grow closer, so do their feelings for each other. But when it seems her plan has failed and she fears ruined her relationship with Keri, Michelle is ready to give up. It’s Dan’s love and belief in her that reignites hope just when she needs it most.

I think this is a fun concept and I love Italia. I wish someone would get me a house.

Hallmark+

I'm really looking forward to both new fictional shows. I don't care about Wes' show at all. I'm excited about Finding Mr. Christmas. I think that'll be really fun and silly.

🎄 Unwrapping Christmas: Tina’s Miracle Stars  Release Date: Thursday, Nov. 7 Cast: Natalie Hall, Alec Santos Premise: Tina Mitchell (Hall), a successful business owner, meets a charming guy, Michael (Santos), just as her holiday season heats up with the town’s Christmas Gala and her busy store, All Wrapped Up. When the gala is threatened by a scrooge-like estate owner planning to sell the venue, rumors begin to threaten Tina and Michael’s newfound connection. As Tina works to keep venue’s doors open for the gala, she just might unwrap a new chapter in her life, filled with love and holiday cheer.

I mean... sure. Nothing to get too excited about.

🎄 Unwrapping Christmas: Mia’s Prince  Release Date: Thursday, Nov. 14 Cast: Kathryn Davis, Nathan Witte Premise: Mia (Davis), an accountant at All Wrapped Up, is stunned when local celebrity Beau Cavannagh (Witte), who looks just like her favorite romance novel hero, enters her life. Despite her doubts, Beau, an heir to a wealthy family, proves his feelings for her are real, even as his family disapproves. Mia soon finds herself swept up in a fairytale romance that’s straight out of her dreams.

Okay, this sounds really cute.

🎄 Unwrapping Christmas: Lily’s Destiny  Release Date: Thursday, Nov. 21 Cast: Ashley Newbrough, Torrance Coombs Premise: Lily (Newbrough), the marketing guru of All Wrapped Up, believes the universe guides us to our destiny and it appears that it’s guiding her toward a celebrity realtor. However, when she feels an unexpected spark with journalist Sean Whitlock (Coombs) during an interview, her heart starts to question everything. As her chemistry with Sean grows, Lily begins to wonder if he’s the true match she’s been waiting for all along.

And this one sounds lame.

🎄 Unwrapping Christmas: Olivia’s Reunion  Release Date: Thursday, Nov. 28 Cast: Cindy Busby, Jake Epstein Premise: Olivia (Busby), the gift-wrapping expert at All Wrapped Up, makes a delivery to a remote cabin only to find her ex-boyfriend Benjamin (Epstein) on the other side of the door. After the pair have a minor spat, an unexpected storm traps them together. Neither of them is happy to be forced to spend time together. However as talk turns to shared memories, old feelings and warmth begins to resurface and they are left wondering if it’s possible to get it right a second time.

I do love when people are forced together... but, on the other hand, it's Cindy.

🎄 Season’s Greetings from Cherry Lane  Release Date: Thursday, Dec. 5 Cast: Jonathan Bennett, Annabelle Bourke, Corey Cott, Sarah Dugdale, Shannon Kook, Vincent Rodriguez III Premise: In 1951, a doctor (Cott) wants to make the holiday special for his worried wife (Bourke) before he is shipped out to serve in Korea, but when she suffers a minor fracture to her arm his carefully planned out Christmas Eve plans are upended. In 2003, a newly married couple (Dugdale, Kook) who are always in agreement about everything hosts two sets of in-laws for Christmas Eve for the first time and find that they may not have had as much in common as they thought they did. And in 2024, a couple (Bennett, Rodriguez III) tries to arrange special Christmas surprises for each other but keeping them a secret may be harder than they thought.

I was very skeptical about getting 3 more of these movies but seeing the plan for them now has me interested.

🎄 Happy Holidays from Cherry Lane  Release Date: Thursday, Dec. 12 Cast: Benjamin Ayres, Catherine Bell, James Denton, Erica Durance, Julie Gonzalo, Ryan Rottman Premise: Good Witch reunion! In 1960, Eli (Ayres) and Penny (Durance) take in Eli’s curmudgeonly father, Walter (Serge Houde, Chesapeake Shores), and are forced to navigate some tricky family waters to get through the holidays while also working on a Christmas themed time capsule for son Alex’s school project. In 1998, we see Regina (Bell) and Nelson’s (Denton) first meeting: stuck together when a blizzard strands Nelson in Regina’s home on Christmas Eve. In 2015, Jessie (Gonzalo) faces a big challenge while planning her sister’s last-minute Christmas Eve wedding – the officiant is Tim (Rottman), her high school sweetheart, whom she hasn’t seen in almost 20 years.

I feel like all of these are going to have something different to offer and that's fun.

🎄 Deck the Halls on Cherry Lane  Release Date: Thursday, Dec. 19 Cast: John Brotherton, Erin Cahill, Brooke D’Orsay, Chelsea Hobbs, Benjamin Hollingsworth, Sam Page, Matt Dusk Premise: In 1966, single guy David’s (Hollingsworth) plans for a simple Christmas are dashed when his neighbor Stephanie (Hobbs) arrives with news that she won a contest to have Tommy Saunders’ (Dusk) Christmas Eve TV special broadcast live from her house – but used his address. In 1981, John (Brotherton) and Lizzie (Cahill) learn that this will be their last Christmas on Cherry Lane after John receives a job offer in Michigan and Lizzie finds out she’s pregnant. In 2000, best friends Matt (Page) and Rebecca (D’Orsay) find unexpected feelings developing as they try to find out who is behind a series of Christmas-themed random acts of kindness.

I'm also wondering what the connections will be or if they'll all tie in together somehow.

[sweetepic]

lately i feel like blogging again. i like posting hideous opinion pieces which i personally think is a good outlet for creativity. last time i had a blog it got deleted by blogger because evan williams is a fat stinking piece of shit. when i first started troubleshooting this is what the google help desk gave me.

just in case i wanted to kill myself i guess.

that was a year ago now. i tried at least getting the domain back but they wouldnt let me. i hope evan williams slips on a banana peel and falls down 34 flights of stairs.

but yesterday i did actually get my shit back. i had to do the code all over again because i lost the old one. i really hate coding. everything looks fine now except for the comment section. i dont expect to get comments anyway but id at least like to fix it to suit my taste. ill probably drop the link here whenever i finish it and start posting.

i dont have any other updates. im way behind on smuppet manufacturing because i was busy doing other shit. i made a big ass clown doll for my best friends birthday because he is obsessed with clowns. its fucking hideous but he loves it. im not posting it here because its sentimental.

i do have a pink smuppet somewhere thats halfway done. i think its on the floor in my closet currently. its a christmas gift so i wont be keeping it but ill still post pictures when im done. the shape has been looking a lot better than the last guy. i still hate these things and i hate myself for making them.

also ive been in contact with the puppet lady. we went over everything and its going to take $900 to get lil cals head done. i was really picky about the whole thing. hell have a functional mouth and moving eyes. the rest is on me because i dont trust anyone else to put him together in a way thats accurate. i have a kind of dedication to replicating my nightmares that frankly should be studied by psychologists across the globe. maybe ill actually talk about the real reason for all of this at some point but that would ruin the fun of speculation.

also shoutout to my man @ovkl for being my one and only fan on this journey. youre a real one.

heres something i did a while back to make my room a little more homey. its older than the goddamn smuppets but its still something for you to look at. its also my favorite thing on my wall.

hell yeah dawg

[truc0nfessionz]

today i feel really sick and sad.

a lot of it is work. if im being honest, im tired. 5 years of constant changes and sprinting in new directions has fucking worn on me. 5 years of new bosses, new products, new leadership and the same disorganized CEO - it gets exhausting after a while.

it’s hard to be the one who champions every change, the one who always produces something from nothing. it’s hard to keep putting in “my all”, all of which gets thrown away when we see the next shiny object to chase. i get it, it must be hard to be ultimately responsible for the fate of the business and i really do have empathy for that.

but it is really hard to keep sprinting alongside it all. at some points, your legs give out and you’re just getting dragged. i try to be grateful there’s a company still here to drag me at all after all the questionable leadership we’ve seen.

i feel like i’m in jess’ crosshairs right now. she’s pissed that the CS numbers look bad, somehow conveniently forgetting that they forced me to go to absolute minimum viable staffing. now she’s focused on the hoops i can jump through to fix it. meanwhile, the answer is i just need more people.

and honestly, i get tired of jumping. i get tired of telling the same stories. i am so grateful to have this income, but the way it wears on my soul is starting to get old.

i hope it’s a phase. i hope we recover. i hope the metrics improve enough for her to focus her energy somewhere else and leave my team in peace. but if not, i guess we’ll see what happens. i guess we’ll see how much energy i can give and what happens when i finally can give no more. cause damn, i am so tired.

also, i’m still deeply hurt about my 30th birthday and the fact that my best friend and my parents didn’t really show up for me. i didn’t get a birthday card, a flower, a balloon, nothing. neither party tried to call me on my day. it’s like it was nothing to them. and considering I’M the person who shows up for them in every way - i go to great lengths to always make sure they feel special, loved, appreciated - it’s so fucking hurtful to me that they couldn’t even give me 10% of what i give them.

and it hurts a lot specifically from K. i’ve always said she’s the one who knows my heart. she would know that i literally don’t need expensive gifts or an equal contribution - i just want to be acknowledged in SOME WAY that shows you thought about me before this physical moment when i’m standing here. why would i have to explain that to someone who has claimed to know me and be my best friend for YEARS?

honestly, i don’t know how to get over this. i can see how to many it wouldn’t be a big deal, but to me it’s very personal. it’s the biggest milestone birthday ive had in a decade…. and you did nothing at all.

it’s actually enough for me to wonder if i’m going to continue the friendship at all. why would i show up for anyone who doesn’t show up for me?

and to add insult to injury - the fucking expensive ass gift i got her for christmas (that she ASKED FOR) isn’t the right thing in the end and she wasn’t even going to TELL ME during the period where i could actually get my money back. she would have let it sit there and let me waste my money entirely instead of just be honest with me.

how on earth is this someone who cares about me? the math doesn’t math on that at all. it just doesn’t.

so if i have to let this go overall, i have to. and it would hurt like hell for a long time. it fucking hurts right now. but as a 30 year old woman, i can’t show up for people who don’t show up for me. i won’t.

just because you’ve been a part of my life in the past doesn’t mean i can take you into the future. but i will let it go with love. i will wish nothing but the best for those who don’t move on with me. but i will hold the love for myself most dear - because at the end of the day: i can’t love anyone who doesn’t love me the same way.

so yeah i’m really fucking tired right now. just exhausted with work and with life. and honestly, if my best friend and i break up i might be exhausted for a long, long time. but i’m gonna push on. i’m gonna do what i can do. and no matter what, im gonna live a great life. with or without those who didn’t show up for me.

[beautifulnightmareunknown]

update:

So its been like a really long time since i have wrote here so i thought that i would do some updates. im going to try to keep this as a type of journal i guess? Well, first things first. i moved back to ripley from huntington. was it the best idea? yes and no. i love saving my money and having an exceptionally bigger living space to do what i want and need. i dont love being under the same roof as 4 other men lol. they can be slobs at time but when it gets down to it they help pick up. one thing i will say though is that male drama is hilarious yet so fucking annoying at the same time. 100% better and than female drama though i will say that. I have continued working in child care, but i just got offered a job in charleston as a registered behavior tech which opportunity to move up within the company. which i am super excited about. i registered for classes through marshall to finish my regents bachelors degree so i start that this year as well. Not much else has changed. gunnar will be graduating from his coding school this march then he will be on the search for a coding job. hopefully that lands us somewhere cool. im just excited for us to be on our own, together. oh something funny happened the other night about a week ago. our dog, kylo had a wet dream and literally busted a load all over our bed. i was so upset with him lmao but what can you do. our other dog poppy was in heat so he must have been in the mood. hes been acting great ever since. christmas and the holidays were good. im so thankful for all my friends and family. i also got some really cool gifts that i was not expecting. this new year im really focusing on bettering myself and just upgrading my life in every way. Started by getting a new job that im eager to learn about and thrive in! im going to work on saving my money and not spend it on things that i truly do not need. my other goal is also to crush my meal/workout plan and prep for my first bb show! that im nervous about but i have an amazing coach to get me through it all. 

with a new year though comes new worries. i turn 26 this year and once my bday hits i will officially be older than my sister and that feels weird. this year will make 6 years since her passing and it is crazy to me that she has been gone that long. time is so weird. im starting therapy this year to finally get to where i can deal and heal with all of my emotions and anxieties. it has really been taking a toll on me, but i dont let it stop me. ive made a couple really good friends who keep me distracted enough to not be constantly thinking about all of it. i definitely think that therapy will make a huge difference and in a way help me move on from it and heal properly like i should have a long time ago. at my current job with the preschool, the lead i am teaching under helps me a lot because she has went through damn near the same experience, so every friday we have our little venting sessions and just talk about all of our troubles and worries and she has really helped me see and realize so much and how to deal with certain things. shes a great person. she got me a cute yankee candle and 50 dollars for christmas cause she knows i like candles lmao. 

thats about all i can think of right now for the update, byeeee

[ugly-sweater]

im still sick as hell but im gonna do a little 2022 year in review i think. i used to do book lists on my old tumblr but i didn't do too much reading this year. i posted on my ig & saved to my highlights if you want book thoughts (or i guess request it here i don't mind too much).

2022 feels both dreadfully slow & pretty eventful. i moved to canada for 5 months, then back to MA as you can only stay without a visa for 6 mo. i applied to grad school, which was a painful process that im unfortunately still struggling with. i spent as much time as i could with my wonderful girlfriend. i got 3 tattoos. i made new friends and separated from old ones.

but also i worked the same job ive been at for years both before and after canada. sold my car & am back to relying on rides from friends. barely read any books by my standards (22, my goal was 25 which i purposefully set to be low, though i did read like 50 volumes of one piece). i also spent ten months knitting a blanket for my sister, which i ended up not giving her... (she was supposed to get married in novemeber. her bf broke up with her in october. i thought it would just be a kind of painful gift....) but it is a gorgeous blanket & im really proud of it (i left it at joy's place though).

i don't really do resolutions but i guess what i want out of 2023 is to get into one of the schools i applied to (already rejected from my first choice due to missing a paperwork deadline alas), read more books, make more art, be kind to myself and others. joy got me an introductory stained glass class for our anniversary that's happening in february, something ive been really interested in this year. i got some punch needles and embroidery hoops for christmas. i have a lot of knitting projects planned.

even when i am depressed, and i am depressed somewhat frequently apparently, i still think about how i am glad to be alive so i can appreciate birds and cool rocks and love my friends. i hope 2023 is good to me, and good to you too

[thewritewolf]

Mari Christmas And A Happy New Adrien

Summary:

Lost in the aftermath of Hawkmoth's defeat, Adrien loses complete track of time and before he knows it, the holiday season is upon him. Will a Christmas visit to his girlfriend's house be just what he needs to move on?

Hello and welcome to my piece for the @mlsecretsanta event! My giftee, @lesslinette, asked for among other things, Adrienette, family bonding, fluff and just a bit of hurt/comfort and I aimed to please!

I had to do a good amount of research into French and Chinese Christmas traditions (including interviewing my long-suffering French friend - thanks @emsylcatac!), so hopefully I didn't get anything *too* wrong.

Read on Ao3

Enjoy!

Marinette 💖: You still up?

Adrien: Yeah Still not sleeping great House was always too quiet Never thought it could get more quiet tho lol Whats up?

Marinette 💖: :( Just wondering what u were doing 4 xmas Since You know

Adrien: Since father went to jail and mom died again? Haven’t thought about it Guess ive still got time to figure it out

Marinette 💖: … ..Its the 23rd of Dec Like 2am Not a lot of time left

Adrien: oh Guess uh Stay at home?

Marinette 💖: Adrien Its been like two months Youve been going crazy in there Youll just be stuck in there all by yourself Why don’t you come over?

Adrien: I don’t know… I don’t want to bring anyone down Or ruin anyone’s christmas

Marinette 💖: Adrien ‘Kindest Boy in Paris’ Agreste

Adrien: Oh no she used my middle name

Marinette 💖: You are coming over tomorrow And letting me pamper you And letting my family - your REAL family - love you And that is the end of that ...Is that okay with you?

Adrien: Whatever you say ma’am

Marinette 💖: Good Be here no later than fifteen hundred Let me know if I need to pick you up

Adrien: Will do

Adrien laid back down, his face lit up only by the glow of his phone and the only noise in the room being Plagg’s snoring. Putting his phone to sleep, he turned over, closed his eyes, and honestly smiled for what felt like the first time in a long time.

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

Adrien reached the door to his girlfriend’s house with a gift under one arm, an envelope in his pocket, and a weak smile on his face. The latter wasn’t because of a lack of feeling on his part - the exact opposite, actually.

It had been hard to go to sleep after their conversation that night, a swirl of mixed emotions keeping him from getting the rest that he craved. Last night wasn’t much better and he was left exhausted. He’d even been half tempted to call and say that he couldn’t make it, but somehow that only made him feel worse.

So here he was. He’d shambled his way to the car, driven himself there through blurry eyes and frequent yawns, and turned the doorknob. Maybe they’d understand if he just dropped off the present and headed home.

Well, maybe not home, but just where he lived.

The instant the door opened, a wave of hot air buffeted him. Not only did it warm his freezing face, it brought all sorts of wonderful smells on it. There were the expected scents - baked potatoes, salmon, chicken. But then was something else, something a little harder to place.

After puzzling over it for a moment, he shook his head and stepped into the house. No sooner had he closed the door behind him than he heard some voices calling out from deeper inside.

“Wait, was that the door? The family wasn’t supposed to be over until tomorrow, weren’t they?”

“Tom, that has to be Adrien!”

There was excitement in Sabine’s voice that warmed his heart, but not quite as much as when he’d taken a couple steps into the house and was blindsided by Marinette bursting out of the living room to wrap him in a hug.

“Worried I might not show?” Adrien whispered after they parted from their kiss.

“Not even for a moment, chaton.” She smiled up at him before her eyes wandered down to his arms, a suspicious look on her face when she saw the one present. “Looks like you showed some restraint this year.”

“Of course!” At her continued doubting look, he added. “Come on, I’m perfectly capable of giving reasonable gifts.”

“Last year you tried to give me my favorite restaurant.”

“But I didn’t!”

“Only because I hid your checkbook and credit cards!”

Adrien snorted. “Details.”

Rolling her eyes, Marinette tugged on his coat sleeve. “Follow me, you ridiculous man. You can put your gifts under the tree, we’ll open them tomorrow.”

She led him into the living room, where their Christmas tree had been set up in all its glory. There were red paper chains wrapped all around it and a huge variety of homemade ornaments - including a few that he’d made in years past. Ever since he and Marinette had started dating, he’d been welcomed into their household with open arms. And even before that, they’d been nothing but kind to him.

His eyes poured over the tree, looking for one specific ornament. It didn’t take him long to find it - with its poor quality, it stood out among the beautiful glass orbs and painted baubles. His fingers brushed over the patches of glitter, a nostalgic smile spreading across his face as he took in the patterns of melted wax inside it. His first ornament. They’d barely been dating a few months when he’d made that one.

Had it really been four years already?

Arms wrapped around him from the side and he looked down at Marinette’s chin resting on his shoulder, peering up at him with big blue eyes.

“What’re you thinking about, hot stuff?”

“Old memories, that’s all.”

“Hmm…” She leaned up to give him a kiss on the cheek. “You just about ready to make some new ones?”

“With you? Always.”

“You two want to come in and help us finish cooking dinner?” They both jumped when Sabine’s voice reached them.

Blushing, Marinette reluctantly let Adrien go and headed toward the kitchen. “Coming, maman!”

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

A few hours later and the four of them were seated around the dining room table. Some things had been moved around from what Adrien remembered from the usual arrangement, and a long table had been set up. Most of the spaces were empty - with the four of them, only about a third of the table was occupied. But while the chairs were mostly left bare, the table was not.

Even though he had helped make some of it, Adrien was still amazed at how good the food all looked when laid out on the table like this.

Most of it was pretty traditional, at least from what he knew. A lot of the time his experience with Christmas dinners were meals allowed to grow cold until he gave up on his father showing. But the roasted chicken was still steaming when they cut into it, the smoked salmon and toast still holding the heat of the oven on them. Add in the gratin dauphinois and this was just about the ideal Christmas dinner he could imagine.

Naturally, it got even better with Sabine’s contribution - spring rolls.

As Adrien shoveled them onto his plate, he asked Sabine, “Is this the only Chinese dish for today, maman?”

“Just you wait, dear.” She smiled over her plate. “Today was Tom’s turn to make dinner. Tomorrow will be mine and you’ll definitely have your fill then.”

“I can’t wait!” Adrien took some of the chestnut sauce to pour over his chicken. Which reminded him… He glanced nervously toward the oven. “I don’t suppose you made foie gras, did you?”

Marinette made a face and shivered.

Tom quickly shook his head. “Oh no, son. Back when Marinette was… what? Eight, nine? She found out how it was made and made us promise to never have it again.”

“Eleven years later and we haven’t broken that promise yet,” Sabine finished. “There are plenty of other foods in the world.”

“That’s good.” Adrien breathed a sigh of relief. “It always made me uncomfortable when my father ordered it.”

“Ordered, dear?” Sabine gave him a confused look.

“Oh, we never really cooked our own dinners.”

Tom’s jaw dropped. “Not even Christmas dinner?”

“Nope. Sometimes he’d have to order the dinner prepared the day before and then we’d reheat it the day of, since no one wanted to come into work on Christmas day, you know?”

“I see…” Tom shared a look with Sabine, but the meaning was lost on Adrien. “Well, you make sure you have your fill, son! We’ll be making more for tomorrow, so this is all for us.”

“Thanks,” Adrien said with a grateful smile.

The conversation meandered and for the most part Adrien was just content to listen in, drinking in the company after spending so much of his time recently just by himself. Well, mostly by himself. Marinette would visit whenever she could get the time between college classes and internships. Nino and Alya were more elusive, if only because they were outside the city so often these days.

But there was one person who was his constant companion, Adrien thought with a smile as he peeked into the breast pocket of his T-shirt…

...Only to see that it was empty. Maybe he’d gone to visit Tikki and the kwamis of the miracle box? Adrien was drawn out of his thoughts when Sabine directed a question at him.

“Are you ready for the pre-dessert snacks, dear?”

“Oh! Sure, yeah. What do you have?”

“You’ll love it!” Tom excitedly got up and hustled over to the kitchen, Sabine right behind him. He raised his voice to be heard as he went to the room next door. “We know how much you love camembert so…”

Adrien’s eyes widened. They didn’t…

Tom returned with a platter of cheeses in his hands and a frown on his lips.

“Something wrong, papa?” Marinette’s eyes glanced between Tom and the cheese platter.

“No, no… its just… I could have sworn I bought more cheese than this. And I was so sure that I had purchased camembert.” He rubbed his chin. “Ah well, there is more than enough for the three of us anyway.”

While Sabine set down a large bowl of salad in the middle of the table, Adrien glanced at Marinette. At his side, Marinette was biting her lips and pointedly staring into the middle distance, trying her hardest not to laugh. For his part, Adrien was frustrated that he couldn’t go anywhere without Plagg making a noticeable dent in the food supply.

His annoyance with Plagg was so great he almost didn’t enjoy the Yule Log that Tom had made for dessert. Almost, but not quite.

Once they were done with dinner, they cleared the table.

“So, how’d you like the meal?” Marinette asked as she dried off the dishes while Adrien washed them.

“Definitely better hot. And homemade.”

Marinette chuckled. “I’m glad the bar was so high for us. Really makes us feel like we accomplished something here.”

“How about…” Adrien bit down on his lips and narrowed his eyes in thought. “It was the most delicious meal I’ve had in months.”

“Ooo, now we’re getting somewhere.”

“Years even.”

“Good, good, go on.”

“I had never known food could taste so delicious until you graced me with your heavenly meals.”

Marinette’s eyes gleamed with restrained laughter, the hint of a barely contained smile ruining her deadpan. “Glad I could finally weasel how you really feel out of you.”

“Yeah you’re pretty good at that, aren’t you?” Hands still in the sink’s soapy water, he leaned over and planted a kiss on her forehead.

“No fooling around now, we still have to help put up the last decorations before we relax for the night.”

“What sort of decorations?”

“Paper lanterns and paper chains. That sort of thing.” At Adrien’s politely confused look, she added, “It’ll help make mom’s side of the family feel welcome. Plus they look pretty cool.”

“Well what are we waiting for then? Let’s kick this into overdrive!”

Adrien suddenly worked in a flurry, Marinette scream laughing as she got splashed with some of the water thrown up by his breakneck pace. Marinette could barely keep up between her giggling, but she somehow managed.

With the last fork, plate, and glass sparkling clean and put away, Marinette shook her head and dabbed at her slightly damp shirt with a fresh towel.

“You’re a dork, you know that?”

“So my girlfriend tells me.”

Adrien relished the sometimes quiet, sometimes loud evening he spent with the Dupain-Chengs. When he went upstairs and cuddled Marinette in the cozy darkness, Adrien felt only excitement for the next day

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

Morning came swiftly, but Adrien rose to meet the dawn’s first light with a smile on his lips and a spring in his step. Marinette was… a little less eager, but he managed to coax her out of the bed, eventually.

When they finally got down the stairs and made it to the kitchen, Sabine’s eyes widened and she even froze in the middle of folding one of her dumplings.

“Marinette? I’m surprised to see you up so early.”

Bleary eyed, her daughter simply jabbed a finger toward Adrien and grunted. Adrien rubbed the back of his neck and chuckled.

“I knew you’d be a good influence on her, sweetie.”  Sabine patted his cheek with a warm smile. “Now, once you’ve had some breakfast I’d really appreciate some help out here. From you especially, Marinette, since you know exactly how to do it the way I like it.”

“Can’t Tom help?” Adrien made some toast for him and Marinette, doing his best to stay out of Sabine’s way. “Not that I’m not willing to lend a hand, but he’s got to be pretty good at it after all this time, right?”

Sabine laughed and even Marinette cracked a smile. “You’d think so, but no. The man can make almost any dessert known to French mankind, but I’ve yet to see him finish one spring roll or dumpling in all our years of marriage. Just about the only thing I’m trusting him with today is the roasted pork.”

“Not even the cheese plate?” Adrien asked, tongue in cheek. To his surprise, Sabine shook her head gravely.

“We don’t make one for Christmas day. After all, everyone that is going to be here is from my side of the family and we’re all lactose intolerant.”

“Oh.” Adrien glanced at Marinette, who shrugged.

“I got lucky and got papa’s tolerance for it, I guess.”

“Huh… well, can I help?”

A few hours passed, most of which Adrien spent doing vital but unskilled cooking like stirring and kneading. Although they did let him try to fold a few dumplings. It ended up nowhere near as well done as Marinette’s, but she still gave him a kiss on the cheek for the good effort. From what he gathered, Tom had never even managed to get it to stay together.

They had just put the last batch in the oven when they heard a knock at the door, Sabine quickly taking off her apron as she rushed to answer it.

Adrien’s ears perked up when he heard a conversation in Chinese start up, but between him being a little rusty and them speaking so fast, he couldn’t pick out much.

A few moments later, Sabine walked back into the room with an older Chinese couple. Marinette pulled him towards them. Sabine put a hand on Adrien’s shoulder and introduced them.

“Adrien, these are my parents. My mother, Ling,” she said, gesturing towards the grey-haired woman currently hugging Marinette. “And my father, Zheng.”

The older man’s grey eyes sparkled with excitement as he held out a red envelope for Adrien, who just now noticed that Marinette had also been given one. He froze, eyes widening. Was he supposed to have gotten them something too? He hadn’t realized that anyone would be getting him anything, except maybe Marinette. There was a moment where he was about to decline but he took a shot in the dark and accepted.

The moment his hand touched the envelope, Zheng spoke in Mandarin, “Best wishes for the New Year!”

“Thank you very much!” Adrien replied automatically in the same language. While the finer points might escape him, Adrien was fluent in niceties.

Zheng’s eyes widened before he nodded sagely to himself. “Ahh, I see you’ve picked up some Mandarin from my daughter, yes?”

“Oh, no, sir. I’ve been studying since I was fourteen.”

Once again, Zheng’s eyes widened before he chuckled and looked knowingly at Marinette. “This one is definitely a keeper! I approve.”

Marinette’s cheeks were almost as red as the envelope, but she still smiled.

The bright, enticing red of the envelope made him want nothing more than to open it right then and there. But Adrien took a nod from Marinette, who had very pointedly left it sealed even as she refused to set it down. He chose to follow her lead as they all made their way to the living room.

While the Dupain-Cheng parents and the Cheng parents were getting settled there, Marinette volunteered them to go make some tea. Once they were in the kitchen and out of earshot of the new arrivals, Adrien held up his envelope with a raised eyebrow and curious look.

“You can go ahead and look at it now, it’s just not polite to do it right when you get it.” She carefully unsealed the envelope. “It's this Chinese tradition - good luck money for the new year, you know?”

Adrien followed her lead and found one ten, one twenty, and one fifty euro note inside. Glancing over, it seemed Marinette got the same. He was half tempted to just give her his euros since he didn’t have any need for it, but decided that might be tacky. If she would even take them at all. After stashing the envelopes away in a kitchen drawer, they came back with tea for everyone.

Over the next few hours, more and more family members funneled into the house. Adrien, used to seeing maybe four people during the holiday season, thought the room would be close to bursting after the first aunt arrived with husband and two kids in tow. But then came the uncle and his family, then the second aunt with her boyfriend and by the end of it fifteen people were packed into the living room. For some reason apples in boxes became involved? Adrien thought that was a pun but that was more his pun sense than his linguistic skill.

Before anyone could get too settled in, they finally got to opening presents. Despite his fears from the red envelope, no one else seemed to have gotten Adrien anything.

At least, none of the extended family had. The Dupain-Cheng family, however…

“Here you go, dear.” While the rest of the room was chattering among themselves, Sabine placed a package about as big as a shoebox on Adrien’s lap. Before he could react to it, Marinette had shoved a bag stuffed with packing paper.

“Let me go get your-”

Adrien felt a tug on his arm and looked down at Marinette seated beside him. “Open your gifts first and then we’ll open the ones you got us.”

“Okay, okay.” Adrien looked at the box on his lap and tore it open. He tilted his head in confusion as he lifted the fabric that he found there out of the box. His eyes widened when he realized it was an apron with ‘Kiss the Chef’ on it.

“Its for when you come over to cook with us!” Tom beamed down at him proudly. “Now you don’t need to borrow our aprons any more - you’ll have one of your very own!”

Adrien felt his eyes get misty and he bit his lips to keep himself from crying. After a few moments of pulling himself together, he managed to say, “Thank you, guys. I’m really looking forward to wearing it!”

“Speaking of…” Marinette prodded the bag she left with him.

“Right, right.”

Adrien removed the paper and pulled out what turned out to be a sweater, cream colored and decorated with mistletoes and black cats in red scarves. It felt amazingly soft as he slipped it on over his head, embraced in a warm hug that - he lifted the fabric to his nose and took a deep breath - yes, smelled exactly like Marinette. For now at least.

“Do you like it?” Instead of replying, Adrien wrapped his arms around Marinette and pulled her close to him, nuzzling his nose against her neck. Giggling, she smacked his arms lightly. “I’ll take that as a yes, now let go!”

After he pulled his arms back, he stood up and stepped between the Cheng family members and made it to the tree before heading back to the little corner of the living room that they had claimed. He passed the envelope to Tom and the box to Marinette.

“A… gift card for an appliance store?” Tom said, his brow furrowing.

“I wanted to get you an actual new stove because you’re always upset at it,” Adrien explained in a rush, feeling embarrassed that his gift felt so… impersonal compared to theirs. “But when I went to the store I had no idea what actually made a good stove and searching it up on the internet only made it more confusing and… yeah,” he finished lamely.”

He glanced up at them and felt better to see them smiling back.

“That’s very thoughtful of you, Adrien! Thank you, we’ll make good use of this.”

Beside him, Marinette began opening her gift, which Adrien was much more excited for. Not because he had spent any less for it, but because that at least he knew exactly what to get.

He knew he’d done good when she gasped as she pulled out the expensive fabric she’d once stared at longingly from the otherside of a store’s window in Paris. Which, of course, meant that he was also expecting the smack on his arm from her as well.

“Adrien! This is expensive! You definitely shouldn’t have bought this.”

“Actually, you’ll remember that I get to spoil you exactly three times a year - birthdays, Valentine’s, and Christmas.” He gave her the most innocent look he could manage. “So you like it then?”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “You know I absolutely love it, you cat.”

“Then that’s great!” He continued with the overly chipper and oblivious tone, knowing how much it bugged her. He rubbed his hands together. “So… when’s dinner?”

-----------

After a Christmas dinner packed with Chinese dishes, they slowly returned to the living room.

Adrien sat in a corner of the room, taking in the warm and inviting atmosphere, the excitement and energy of so many people gathered together in such a small space.

Holding Marinette close, Adrien felt like he was part of a real family for the first time in a long time.

[honey-makki]

well, i guess sappy posts are better late than never. i can’t believe i’ve only been on anime tumblr for 8 months and writing for 6. it’s crazy how influential my time here has been on me and the relationships i’ve fostered. i guess this is also my thank you for 2.5k because i hit that recently. im so thankful and grateful you have let me create a nice lil coffeeshop in my own corner of tumblr. I wouldn’t trade it for anything, (ok maybe some things but not many). I will be disgustingly sappy and in love with people under the cut. beware of cavities from the sweetness.

@heauxzenji​ god you are really the love of my mf life. i talk to you more than i talk to my irl bestfriends and i live with them. i’m glad i can wake you up with horny thoughts everyday but its kinda homophobic that you are three hours behind me. manifesting that this year we get to see each other so our gay horny love can be actualized.

@sugardaddykenma​ lin you are simultaneously my love and my aunt and i wouldn’t have it any other way. please send me more snaps of you screaming because the really make me laugh. im happy we are genuine friends and i care about you so much. will flee to canada on a moments notice, on your beck and call my love.

@satendou​ spencer you are my wife and live teasingly close to me. i’m so happy i got drunk that one night and you messaged me because i was way too nervous to message you even though i wanted to. you are fantastic and oneday we will both not be ghosts and really catch up. i love you regardless.

@keijiskitten​ laura. my baby kitty lauwa. please come be my irl catgirl i will buy the nicest collars. you are so so sweet and genuine and im blessed to have oun in my life. sometimes royal!au sneaks into my head when im doing other stuff just so you know that you have fully ruined me as a person but i love it.

@crushzone​ nin. my god you are the sweetest person on this godforsaken website. every interaction i’ve ever had with you has been nothing less than wonderful. thank you for being horny w me and drawing the cutest fucking photo of me and shinkami ever. now watch mha so we can talk about aizawa,

@sgwrscrsh​ skye baby girl. mwah. a kiss. thank you for reminding me ao3 exists all those months ago when you sent me in another life. you have ruined me as a person but i sent you that monster fic so maybe we are even. i love you. thank you for the christmas gift i loved it SO much.

@cno-inbminor​ kay. quick friends bc we are same person and i love u. please stream urr next baking session it makes me happy. also townes!sakusa. just a reminder so you can think about that sweater. 

@samuslut​ wing we haven’t talked too much but i just want you to know i love you so much and admire your work and world building. you are a fantastic writer and a great person

@stallionissei​ miss cas!! we aren’t the closest but talking to you is literally always a pleasure and i love it. i hope your move is going ok and you all get settled down soon! lets talk soon!

@lesbians4yaku​ joy. my first love. you were one of my first friends on tumblr and im ever thankful for that. i care about you so so so much. just seeing your name and you exist makes me smile. we should talk about more evolutions soon because that was very very fun. enjoy your nips and this kiss im sending u *mwah*

to everyone in tumblr babies, i’m so glad i was there in the start of my journey. its such a safe and fun space. thank you for letting me tease *people* about glasses fetishes and just go buck wild in the thirst chats. thank you for voting me horniest member <3 @ceo-of-daichi @hqsoftboysupremecy @scorpiosanssexy @nonexistent-social-life 

to my fellow gravediggers and funeral home employees. yes ive been in the server for like 3 months and yes i am already 8th in rank, no i don’t know how to shut up. thanks for dealing with me. You are my favorite home and i want to cook all you a meal and pet the babies. @xakusa @lumos-flies @tsumue @iwaasfairy @sasa-writes-fandom-things @sweet-sugu @keijiiszn​ 

god, to all of my other mutuals i love you so much and you are all badass. i would fight the horny police and whatever 12 year old kids are in your inbox for all of you. you are all immensely talented and i still wonder why some of you follow me. thank you for every single reblog, comment, advice or like you’ve given me bc it shoots serotonin directly into my heart. which isn’t how its supposed to work but feels nice anyways.

@undermattsun @onefortyninecm @rat-suki @bakatenshii @godjo  @dxddykeiji @saetyrn9 @introloves @pomsuki @lookslikeleese @tetsou @whats-her-quirk @blahkugo @dearsakusa @sugawarakoushihoe @stonersugawara @koutarouthighs @prettysetterbaby @heyhinata @seita @present-mel. 

im going to stop tagging because m tumblr has crashed four times and im already close to max and i really really don’t want to type this out again. thank you to every person who has supported me and i can’t wait to see where this year leads us.

[madisonrooney]

i can't believe you haven't seen barbie in the nutcracker. hopefully you can fix that very soon. you don't need any barbie knowledge to enjoy it haha

meeting one of the directors of bolt sounds amazing! glad you got to do that. definitely makes up for the first disappointing movie.

i can enjoy a villain redemption story, but instead we are getting movies that excuse a villain's bad behavior with a tragic backstory. please just let the villains make mistakes and redeem them afterwards, or give us the full villain story we deserve. it's fine if the main character isn't a good person. as long as the movie is enjoyable. it can be very fun to watch the villain doing dastardly things.

that's totally valid! for me a dream job is just something i would enjoy doing with the perk of getting paid for it. since most of my current hobbies do not pay at all haha. but yeah definitely put your own happiness over making money. jobs can take the fun out of things you enjoy because of the stress of deadlines and trying to meet certain standards.

i'm glad you got to watch so many shows and movies. i did a lot of that too and it was really nice. i miss having that kind of free time, tho do not miss the stress of being scared to go out.

it's great that you found a job you like. definitely a fun place to work too! my dream job is really just making money from my hobbies and being able to collaborate with other people more often.

i should have stuck to one question haha. thankfully i saw your answer to the second one in the tag. the daughter of dr. calico sounds really cool! i'm glad to hear you've put a lot of thought into this already. personally i think it would be fun to be alice in wonderland's kid. i can just imagine creative pursuits being encouraged and i am very curious by nature.

christmas is just around the corner. are you an ugly christmas sweater fan? and if so, what is your favorite one you own or one you would want to buy? ⛄

if premingers not in it im not interested im sorry

it was! it was chris williams but id love to also meet byron howard someday cuz he also co-directed tangled, zootopia, and encanto!

yah thats a really good point! im not really used to seeing movies where the character isnt a good person, but i guess the bigger problem is when its unclear if youre supposed to side with them or not, yknow? like i binged bojack horseman in the fall and they make it abundantly clear that hes not a good person and if you relate to him you should get help lol.

yah i totally feel the same way. if my hobbies do pay, its minimal, but if i wanna keep doing them in a self-run way without pressure from outside sources, i have to keep them hobbies and do what i said im doing and keep a job that i enjoy enough that pays the bills, which thankfully i have! i wouldnt mind some sort of editing job since ive been editing videos since i was 11 and did some for the faculty at my high school, but the application and searching process is too daunting and i dont want it THAT bad lol. but like if it were offered to me and it made sense for me at the time, id probably like it.

oh yah 100% same. i would never have wished for that to happen to the world but im glad i was able to make the most of it given the circumstances.

thank you! and i assume we arent considering wicked world canon bc frankly we shouldnt as ive said in the server before lol.

good question! i have a jolly to the core ugly sweater that i got on redbubble a few years ago. i wore it to the disneyland christmas party last week on my birthday. and my friend @tevinter-pariah recently gifted me a replica of joey's cat sweater from joy-to-a-rooney and its glorious. i dont think i could get any better than those two lol. what about you?

[bean-pole-art]

Ed’s Borderlands Fics Masterpost

well finally

here is the masterpost of all of my Borderlands fics posted. most of them are Rhysothy focused to various AUs. I’m gonna update it as I post more but here it is, along with some of my commentary

right from the start big big BIG shoutout to @spoks-illogical-art​, my partner in crime, my biggest inspo, without them honestly most of these fics wouldn’t exist, please check out their amazing art <3

(latest edit - 21/02/2021)

Atlas AU - our main timeline, follows events of Moxxi’s Heist. lots of different concepts and ideas but the core really is Tim moving to Promethea to get help from Rhys. gonna sort em here with posting date, check the ao3 series for the “timeline”

Hypothetically - 2240 words summary: Rhys talks a lot, but usually thinks about it too little.

coffee, cats & monographs - 2880 words summary: “Hey hey, easy. You don’t want to repeat the accident from last week, do you?” Rhys cooed towards the cat and picked her up, just as Timothy instructed him to. Hearing these words, Felicity meowed. “Oh, don’t say that. This is my office and I have the power here,” he answered, carrying her back to his personal space.

Or Timothy's cat pays a visit to Rhys' office in the morning. note: I am a stupid mofo and at this point Tim would also have Loader Bot fkjbfd just imagine hes not mentioned cause hes wandering off, typical LB

Have Faith - 1470 words summary: During the 7 year lockdown at the Handsome Jackpot, Timothy couldn't really have any hope for himself. But maybe on Promethea it could be different. note: sudden feelings while watching JoltzDude139′s stream

Warm Cheeks, Cold Hands - 1170 words summary: Rhys comes home early and wants to say hi to his husband. With no ulterior motive. None at all. note: first fic Ive ever posted where characters are married, actually. fuck it, Rhysothy Real, his name is Rhys Lawrence

the battle (and the aftermath) of the ages - 2970 words summary: In a situation like this everything was possible, they could pull any punches they could think of. Four beasts playing against each other, every single one of them thinking of striking the winning blow.

Or Promethea Squad plays UNO. And then watches a movie. note: I love Promethea Squad with my whole heart

okurimono (贈り物) - 4/4, 17170 words summary: “Not a bomb. Just a device with a message for Rhys. Trust me on that,” this time an emoji of both winking and showing off a tongue [;P] appeared on the surface of Zer0’s helmet. Ah. So they were definitely trying to mess him up. In a way. Unfortunately, he really didn’t have any other options. Almost with a defeat, Timothy took the ECHOrecorder right from their hands and looked around it again. Or Zer0 gives Timothy a peculiar mission. note: my first ever multichapter fic. took me legit abt 8 months to finish but I am absolutely satisfied with this. also the bonus ending. yes

(there is) something I see in you - 8690 words summary: How one Rhys Strongfork met one Timothy Lawrence and how they fell for each other. More or less. note: best to go into this one blind, I swear. dumbest fic Ive ever written and please take this as a recommendation

this world is gonna pull through - 14380 words summary: Timothy really hoped it wasn’t anything important. He had that tendency to forget things easily, even if he tried to fight it. But Rhys kept on smiling and went by his side. So it couldn’t have been that bad. Still dumbfounded, he felt Rhys leaving a kiss right on his cheek.“November 11th? 

That- That seriously doesn’t ring any bells?” Rhys continued, brushing his hands against his shoulders. Or how Timothy spent one of his birthdays. note: also a love letter for Tim but a nicer one I guess kdjfnb dont ask how old is he i have no gdamn idea man

Strawberry Sweet - 3560 words summary: Rhys surprises Timothy with a gift for their date night in.

Happy Mercenary Day, Mr. Lawrence - 4670 words summary: How Timothy spent his first Mercenary Day on Promethea. note: I swear this is the best writer night Ive ever had. Ive written this whole thing in one night on Christmas day, solely on the inspo of that song I linked

Don’t Go Wasting Your Emotion - 4/4, 17080 words summary:  Afterwards, he went around with his usual duties. Getting a quick roundabout from his PA, checking several sectors himself and looking through the thousands of messages already sent to him via ECHOs. Rhys was ready to finally take on the day, yet when he made his way to the office, he saw the unusual envelope right by the edge of his desk. “For Rhys” was written on it. Straightforward enough. Or Rhys gets a letter from a secret admirer. note: another multichapter fic!! this one also took some time and well. its inspired by ABBA songs. cause only I would write a Rhysothy fic inspired by ABBA

Ratchet Effect - 7130 words summary: Knowing just how much overworked Rhys has been, Timothy wants to let them have a nice getaway in Lazy River Land. There's only one problem to overcome - ratch infestation. note: first fic of 2021!! Ive been playing a lot of bl3 suring the writing of it so it has a lot of stuff I had observed both on Promethea and on Jackpot

Reflections - 2250 words summary: Sometimes, Timothy needs a reminder.

Tales AU - second most important timeline. it’s Tales but Tim is a part of the group. sorted chronologically

A Story For Another Day - ongoing, for now -  2/25, 15280 words Tales AU main fic. it’s gonna be a big one

Connection Interrupted - 3240 words summary: With his driving shift finished, Timothy checks up on Rhys and Vaughn's plans.

Completely Hopeless - 1040 words summary: In which Fiona notices that Rhys behaves differently in front of a certain doppelganger.

infinity times infinity times infinity - 3460 words summary: Rhys and Timothy share some dreams and secrets underneath the stars. note: the beautiful combination of Sleeping At Last and Minecraft parodies. I promise it makes sense

reality can be whatever I want - 11420 words summary: “Hey, Tim?” Timothy didn’t even spare him a look, “Are we alone, or is he there with you?” Oh, this definitely won’t be pretty.

After the confession of Handsome Jack's AI in his head and his plan to infiltrate Helios, Rhys needs to set things right with Timothy. Somehow. note: thanosdancing.gif to Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way” 80′s remix and a guest appearance from Ferocity but I cant legally say her name here

still here - 2820 words summary: It all had to go down, after Helios crashed. note: I have...a love/hate relationship with this one kjdfbfg I like it but it’s honestly an alternate ending and doesnt fit within our usual bad ending, so take it with a grain of salt. i ten jebany błąd językowy w summary, kiedy ja go poprawię

together at last - 5590 words summary: It all struck him down in an instant, in this one minute. They were all safe. And they were all alive. Nothing was threatening neither him, nor Timothy, nor Fiona. He could finally breathe out.

They all found each other again. note: I am multitasking most time of my life but I dont relate any other fic to multitasking more than this one. I was honestly doing 10 things at once while writing this dfkjbndf

David AU - this one is a sub AU to Tales AU and the plot is kind of complicated dfjkbfb please check the fic for further explanation

building in curved lines - 22490 words summary: “To be fair, you look terrible. You’re barely standing in one piece and none of your coffees will hold you together for that long,” Lilith paused, seemingly weighing the correct words in her head. “You haven’t really been holding on since… We rescued The Double.” Rhys sighed heavily. Why did she have to be so right about everything. Or how Rhys and Timothy adjust to the reality after the Handsome Jack AI. note: bday gift for Spok, EASILY one of my absolute faves and the longest fic Ive written thus far

outside of AUs - some concepts I play with that are honestly outside any of our concrete timelines/concepts + fics not focused on Rhysothy

Real - 770 words summary: Reconciling with your past is a little easier, when you have someone you love right in your arms. note: first blands fic I’ve ever written. the characterization isn’t really there yet but as a first shot at the game and my kind of “introduction”, I am still satisfied of it

(Un)Familiar Faces - 9620 words summary: Timothy pursed his lips and leaned over the wall a little. He’s had enough of this solitude of closed doppelganger cabinet. Today wasn’t the day for another self-loathing session. Today, he should go off on Helios and do something for himself.

Or Timothy spends the night at a Helios bar. But not as Handsome Jack. And not as Timothy Lawrence either. note: personal favorite of mine, tough love letter to Timothy Lawrence. I have so many fond memories of writing this, including getting drunk out of my mind just like Tim and Rhys here

basics of survival - 2010 words summary: Athena taught Timothy everything he needed to know about survival. Now, it was time to put these skills into use. note: wrote this right before rona outbreak on last day in my dorms. thats all

[tloujm]

Part IV: I Was His & He Was Mine

Author’s Notes: The chapter is the calm before the storm. Now, as stated below, there be smut! This isn’t my first time writing smut and its sure as hell not my first time reading it. To be specific, I’ve written smut between two people before. This is my first attempt at a masturbation scene. Be warned, I’m not an expert, so take everything with a grain of salt. I hope you still enjoy though; I tried my best. 

Genre: ahhhh sookie sookie now, things are smutty smutty now; but don’t worry, there’s some fluff too

Summary: You and Joel are officially a couple. Its basically three different imagines combined into one chapter. I tried to make them flow, but they’re really just glimpses into their domestically blissful lives. 

Ship: Joel x Reader

Jackson survived another winter. Despite the harsh weather, it was probably the highlight of the year. It didn’t take long for people to notice that you and Joel were together. Tommy and Maria especially loved it. You always felt accepted by them, but now there was more of a familial bond. The four of you found time for more family dinners. You and Joel hosted Thanksgiving while Tommy and Maria took care of Christmas. Maybe you’re a hopeless romantic, but the winter time was sort of magical. 

Joel asked you to move in soon after the two of you started seeing each other. It made no sense to keep going back and forth between beds especially when you two lived on the same property. You’d never got that far in a relationship before, so it was new, but with Joel it didn’t feel wrong. Everyday, he made sure you felt loved and there was nothing you wanted more than to show that same love back to him. You remembered the first time those precious three words were said. It was after the two of you had sex for the first time. He turned you around and spooned before draping the covers back over you. He asked if you were comfortable as his arm snaked over your middle. You said yes and kissed his knuckles. They were rough but warm. He was always so warm. Then, you said it. You couldn’t hold it back anymore and you weren’t afraid to be the first one. You held your tongue during sex because you didn’t want him to think it was just because of that. You wanted him to know that how you felt was real. Him saying it right back, though, sent your head reeling. You knew that he loved you but to hear him say it for the first time was exhilarating. 

As the nights got warmer, the two of you would sit on the porch and play your respective instruments. It was mostly playful little strums but sometimes Joel would turn a little ditty into a full fledged song. He was gifted. You wished that it came as easily for you as it did him. You watched him play. He looked so at peace tapping his foot and bobbing his head to the rhythm. The melodic tune was so tranquil that it almost lulled you to sleep right there on the porch. If he hadn’t stopped, he probably would have had to carry your sleeping form to bed. 

“Now, I want you to play me somethin’” He said. 

“Who me?” You asked rhetorically. “I guess I could try.” You picked up your ukulele.

“That’s all I ask.” He said, setting his guitar down against the house.

“Um…” You tried to remember what he taught you about the guitar so you could apply it to your instrument. You played a few basic chords but when you tried to do something more complicated, the notes began to jumble and it all fell through.

“That’s startin’ to sound like somethin’.” He said encouragingly. 

“Ugh, I suck.” You make a disgusted face.

“Nah, you just need to build up your calluses is all. Here, let me see your hands.” He gestured you over by patting his thighs. You got up from your rocking chair and sat on his lap. He took the Ukulele from your hand and sat it next to his guitar. “Like these.” He showed you his hands. You were well acquainted with them, but you enjoyed the closeness nonetheless. He unraveled the fist your hand naturally formed and gently slid his fingertips across your palm. “Your hands are too soft.”

“Oh? You want them rough like yours?” You playfully asked. He chuckled and shook his head. “Uhhhuhhh.”

“You’re getting better though.” He encouraged again. You grunt and shrug your shoulders. “Just remember what I said, keep your thumb---”

“Thumb behind the neck and use your fingertips and not your fingerpads.”

“Glad to see I’m gettin’ through to you.” He said sarcastically. You made a move to leave the porch but Joel’s arms tightened around your waist. “Now, where do you think you’re goin’?”

“I was going to put my ukulele up and call it a night.” You responded.

He dug his face into your shoulder. “Don’t go.” The words came out muffled but you still heard him. You moved your arms and wrapped them around his neck before laying your lips on his forehead. 

“Then, I’ll stay.” And the two of you did for a few solid minutes.

“Y’know, when I was a kid,” He stopped and let out a breathy laugh. “I wanted to be a singer.”

“Shut up!” You laughed with him. “Really? Joel Miller, the singer? That’s sensational.”

“I’m serious.”

“I believe you! Sing for me.” You requested.

He shook his head and fiddled with a button on your shirt. “Uh, no.”

“I bet you sound really nice!” You said but he didn’t respond. “I won’t laugh. Please?” You beg in a voice Joel could only describe as adorable. 

“Maybe another time.” He was serious. In truth, he was self conscious, even in front of you. Music had always been near and dear to him. It was one thing to share his guitar skills, but his voice was different. He knew he wasn’t the best singer, but when he was younger, he figured that if he could find a vocal coach, maybe he could actually be successful at it. He scoffed at his thoughts, as the dream seemed so distant now. 

“Come to bed with me?” You asked in a whisper.

He smiled. “‘Course.” He kissed the arm still wrapped around his neck before tapping your thigh. You got up and grabbed both instruments. He opened the front door for you and turned off the porch light.

*****

Sometimes Joel’s patrol job could be a multi day excursion. Because of his level of experience, he was trusted with doing the longer, harsher routes. What gave you comfort was knowing that he wasn’t by himself out there. He never left without a group of two other equally experienced people. When you especially missed him, you would spend time in his craft room. That and his pillow reminded you of him the most. Today, you decided to relax in there. You grabbed a book from downstairs and settled down on the loveseat in his room. You only managed to get one page in before thoughts of him distracted you. It was not enough to be in his space, you had to imagine that he was there. 

You looked up at his desk. It was covered in sawdust and unfinished figurines. He would make them for the children in the community. Despite his cold exterior, he had a soft spot for kids. Toys were often not a priority when scavenging, so they were grateful for the things he’d make. It was a win-win. The kids got to be kids and Joel got to keep his hands busy. What couldn’t that man do with his hands? You smiled at the thought. His passion project was building a guitar from scratch, though. He used the one that he found as a model. Various parts of the guitar were strewn across the table. Looking at the curved edges of the guitar’s body made you think back to when he first sanded them down. His hands skimmed the surface; top to bottom. His muscles flexed through the motions. You let out a little whimper before changing positions in the loveseat. If you weren’t facing the table, thoughts of him couldn’t distract you. Or at least that’s what you wanted to think. Soon enough, you learned that that was far from the truth. Giving up, you sat the book down and went to your shared room. 

You gently closed the door behind you. The pants were the first to come off, then it was your shirt. You crawled into the middle of your bed with nothing but your underwear on. You allowed your hands to caress different parts of your body. Closing your eyes, you imagined that they were his. Your smaller, softer hands could not compare, however. Still, you continued your blind search. Your hands quickly found themselves down your panties and to your clit. You massaged it for a few moments before turning over on your knees. You grabbed two pillows and lined them up before straddling one between your thighs. Arching your back, you began to grind to maintain the sensation. Your hips quickly found a rhythm while your hands slid under your bra. You rubbed and squeezed your breasts like he would. Your body was becoming more sensitive and you were determined to ride out the sensation. Within seconds, the clasp was released and your bra was tossed to the side. As your body moved up and down the pillows, your nipples dragged against the bed. You slipped a hand down your middle as you began to pulsate. You rubbed circles around your clit before abandoning the pillows altogether. You slid over to the edge of the bed and started to grind over the corner. You squeezed your thighs with every stroke. With your face planted on the bed, you slid your other fingers into your entrance. You contracted around them for several moments longer until the built up pressure finally released. 

Your favorite part of being with Joel was the end. You would keep him hostage inside you every time you closed around him. You could see the struggle in his face as he fought off the impulse to cum inside you. As an erotic contraceptive, he would spill onto your stomach instead. After getting yourself off, you found yourself missing that part. You found yourself missing him. You climbed back onto the bed and cuddled the pillows, one between your legs and the other hugged by your arms. It was such a comfortable feeling that you soon fell asleep. 

*****

For Joel, today was just like any other day. He woke up next to you, took a shower, made breakfast and waited for you to wake so you could eat together. Even though the routine appeared mundane on paper, he was more than content. He was happy and it was because of you. He never said it out loud, even in front of you, but he was afraid of being alone again. Not the kind of alone where you’re reading a book by yourself or eating in the corner of the bar at a table for one. He’d grown accustomed to going through life alone after the infection. His family had fallen apart and he had to learn how to fend for himself. He even learned how to benefit from being alone after a while. It wasn’t until he crossed paths with you and reunited with his brother that he realized how being alone truly made him feel and he did not ever want to go back to that. At times, he found himself paranoid over losing you again. He fought those thoughts by reminding himself that you were here with him. You loved him back and it made his heart swell, almost to the point of breaking; a feeling he hadn’t experienced in at least a decade. 

“Hey, I was gonna make breakfast today.” You protested as you came downstairs. You followed the smell of eggs, buttered toast and freshly squeezed orange juice.

“I was already up.” Joel said nonchalantly.

“See, that’s your problem. You don’t let yourself sleep in.” You playfully accuse.

He chuckled. “I can’t sleep in,” He pushed your plate toward you. “I have work today.”

“Today? I thought you were off.”

He shook his head. “Nathan asked me to cover him in his scavenging group yesterday. His son is sick and Sheila’s still on patrol…” He faded out before stuffing a piece of toast in his mouth. 

“Oh.” You said. Joel noticed the wheels moving in your head.

“You can join us today. I know you like scavenging and we could use another good shot.” Joel offered. 

“I would love to, but I can’t. I promised Donna I’d help her in the gardens.” It was a lie. You were usually not opposed to lying, especially since it has saved your ass multiple times when traveling. After starting a relationship with Joel, you’d become more conscious about lies and you didn’t want to be hypocritical. It was just a little white lie which you deemed ok, however. 

“Oh. Well, I’ll miss you.” He said as he got up. He walked over and lifted your chin before kissing you. “Save me a couple of apples?”

You nodded with a smile. “Of course.”

“And not one of those green ones.”

“I know, you like the dark red ones.” You said. He matched your smile, thinking about how much he appreciated you, even with the little things. You waved as he left for the day.

You cleaned the dishes, wondering what to do now. You had the whole day planned out for you and Joel. Of course, you hadn’t told him this the day before. You were convinced that his day would stay open. Why would he work today of all days? You were just going to have to rearrange some things for when he came back from the scavenging trip. After the kitchen was cleaned, you got ready for the day and went down to the gardens to get his apples.

Later that evening, Joel came back home. It was dark inside the house. Joel flipped the switch. Your name caught in his throat as he found you sleeping on the couch. He was glad that he saw you when he did because he was ready to yell out your name. Joel had gotten home later than planned. The scavenging group arrived back in Jackson after dark, but it was still too early to find you sleeping. Joel was usually the first to fall asleep between you two. You were the night owl and he was the morning bird. 

You woke up as he slung your arms around his neck. He was going to carry you to bed but you protested as soon as you gained consciousness. He was surprised at how quickly you woke up and sat you back down on the couch.

“Joel!” You woke up startled. “Shit, what time is it?” Napping had always disoriented you. Seeing the darkness from the windows didn’t help. You looked around for the clock.

“Quarter to ten. Sorry I’m late, darlin’. There was this store that we couldn’t pass up on our route but it took some extra work to get into.”

“Oh,” There’s still time, you thought to yourself. “That’s alright. As long as you’re back safe.” You began to get giddy with excitement. Joel smiled at how you cared. He let his body fall onto the couch, slumping into the cushions.

He stretched his arm out around your shoulder just as you got up. “Hey, where you goin’ now?” He frowned.

“I’ll be right back!” You ran into the dining room and back within record time. You came back with a big box in your hands.

He looked up at it with tired eyes. “What’s this?”

“Happy Birthday, my love.” You said, holding the box out for him to take. 

He shook his head with a smile. “How did you know about that?”

“So you can know about mine, but I can’t know about yours?” You asked playfully. “I asked Tommy awhile back.”

“You coulda just asked me.”

“I wanted it to be a surprise. I had the whole day planned out as a surprise but then…” You faded off.

“Sorry, (Y/N). If I would have known, I would have said no to Nathan.”

“Well, that would have ruined the point of the surprise, silly. Now, just open your gift.” You demand excitedly. You knew he was going to be happy with it.

“Yes, Ma’am.” A look of confusion crossed his face as he took it in his hands. “Seems kinda light for such a big box.” 

“All part of the surprise to throw you off.” 

He did as he was told and you watched as his face went through a multitude of expressions. “Um...Is this what I think it is, darlin’?” Joel held up a blunt between his fingers.

“That is exactly what you think it is.” You gave him a mischievous smile.

“Where did you find weed?”

“God, you wouldn’t believe.” You shook your head. “It was from Eugene!” His eyes widened. “Yeah, during the winter, me and my patrol group had to make a detour because of the weather, so we found this building that appeared abandoned but it looked like Eugene beat us to it. He turned the whole basement into a garden of marijuana plants. I fucking swear. He had rolling papers there, so I rolled two and took them with me.”

“How do you know it was Eugene’s?” He asked, twiddling it between his fingers.

“I recognized some of his stuff around the place.”

“You showed your patrol group this?”

“We had to wait out a whole blizzard. How do you think we killed our time?” Another slick smile crossed your face to which Joel playfully shook his head. “Don’t worry, we made sure to leave no evidence that we were ever there...other than the missing blunts. We swore each other to secrecy, but I figured I’d make a little exception for my baby on his birthday.”

Joel chuckled. “You’re too kind, darlin’.” He took a whiff of the blunt before setting it back down for later. “Now, this.” He pulled out a glass jar with a worn label, smiling ear to ear. He was speechless.

“You like it?” You knew he did. 

He glared at you sarcastically. “How did you find coffee beans?”

“I picked up a few scavenging shifts of my own a while back. We were inside this large house and the person who owned it must have loved coffee too because this is good quality stuff right here. Look at that label, or what’s left of it. It looks fancy!”

“That it does.”

“And I traded for this mortar and pestle right here,” You reached inside the box. “When that group passed through last month, remember?” He nodded before looking back up at you. “I figured you could use it to grind the beans. It's stone, so hopefully it’ll hold up well.”

“Mmmhmm.” He hummed in agreement. You looked back at him and smiled. “Thank you, baby. I love it all.” The way he looked at you so genuinely mingled with his deep, Texas drawl? You almost lost it. 

“You’re welcome, my love.” You cupped his bearded cheek and kissed him. You gently pushed away before it could go deeper. “What do you say we leave the coffee ‘til the morning and light up now?” You gesture toward the blunt on the coffee table. 

Without words, Joel reached into his back pocket and pulled out his lighter. Your grin grew as you held the blunt up to his flame. You were about to take a drag, but you turned the blunt around and placed it between his lips. You told him that it was his birthday, so he got to have the first puff. For the rest of the hour, the two of you passed it back and forth before putting out the stub in the mortar. The two of you became a fit of coughs and laughter which lasted well into the night. You didn’t know about Joel, but it hit you harder than you thought it would. The two of you ate through all of the fruit in the bowl on the counter and the homemade granola bars you made the other day. 

You were picking with the granola crumbs on your shirt when you caught Joel looking at you a certain way. You were not a stranger to this look. You licked the crumbs off your fingers and squinted your eyes in playful curiosity. A coy smile grew on your face to match his. Joel patted his lap. He didn’t have to ask twice. You crawled on top and his face was immediately glued to yours. You grinded over his jeans as your fingers snaked through his hair. His tongue entered your mouth and danced with yours. The air was filled with nothing but panting and moans. You lifted up to unzip his pants and pulled him out of his underwear. You licked the palm of your hand before reaching back down and wrapping your fingers around his member. It was a slow and gentle stroke at first. Your thumb ran over the precum from the head and dragged it all the way down. As his breathing became more and more shallow, you began to tug faster. Your eyes were locked on him. You reached your other hand down to fondle the rest. He twitched in your hands; you could feel what was coming. It was only a matter of moments before he released all over his shirt and your hand. He rested his head back against the couch. You helped him remove his button down and put it in the dirty laundry. Shirtless and pants undone, he grabbed your hand and pulled you upstairs to bed.

[innerpostmentality]

On the 8th day of ficmas…. Loose at Edenbrook a Naughty Elf with a Santa Suit

An Open Heart inspired fiction featuring Ethan Ramsey and (MC) Tia Sheldon Words around 1700 Warnings: this follows Ethan and Tia after my Kinky Cards 2020 submission so it is M- erotica All rights to Pixelberry characters and settings are acknowledged Thanks to emichelle and leelee10898 for organizing this and for their patience with me. 12 Days of Fictmas Tag list

Writers : @texaskitten30 @leelee10898 @emichelle @zaffrenotes @alj4890 @burnsoslow @kat-tia801 @darley1101 @msjr0119 @annekebbphotography @god-save-the-keen @plumeriavibes @ofpixelsandscribbles @camillemontespan @ao719 @cocomaxley @cordoniansgonewild @twinkleallnight @the-soot-sprite @cordoniantrash @axwalker @innerpostmentality @lucy-268 @janezillow @katedrakeohd

Readers : @mom2000aggie @sfb123 @bbrandy2002 @debramcg1106 @desireepow-1986 @speedyoperarascalparty @hopefulmoonobject @drariellevalentine @tornbetween2loves

  Tia was looking over the detailed list that Sienna had given her, checking it twice, she grinned and couldn’t keep herself from softly whisper signing “�� makin’ a list, checkin’ it twice…. Dum de dum dum.. So naughty, but nice…” She slipped a small neatly wrapped silver brocade package with a tag that read “Merry Christmas Dr. Ramsey From: Your naughty Elf” into the large red shoulder pack that she’d been filling with the small tins of cookies and treats that Sienna had made’ and other small packages for staff and patients who were having to spend this Christmas at Edenbrook.  She pulled her phone out to check the time and frowned, it was later than she thought, and she had missed a call from Rafael who was supposed to be their Santa Claus. She sighed and called him back.  Rafael picked up on the first ring. ”Tia? I’m so sorry. I’ve got a fever.. I thought I’d be better once I got a shower and some coffee but it’s gotten worse. I don’t think I should do this. I don’t want to get anyone sick.”  Tia could hear the congestion and sadness in his voice. “Oh no. I’m so sorry you’re sick, Raphael. I understand. We’ll find someone. Just take care of yourself. Lots of fluids and plenty of rest. Doctors orders! We’re going to have a little New Year get together. You get better and we’ll see you there.”     She looked forlornly at the Santa costume draped over her desk. Then a mischievous grin settled on her face as she pulled out her phone and called Ethan.                  ________________________________ “This is all bass ackwards if you ask me.” Theodore Sheldon kept his dark eyes on the road as he grumbled. “… driving half-way across the country so we can at least meet this guy. AFTER they are already engaged! Two weeks before the wedding!... What if we didn’t want to come for Christmas? Maybe we would have liked to come for Thanksgiving! Maybe we already had plans for Christmas.” Marie’s smile was a soft, private one as she glanced up from her book and over at her handsome, ranting, husband. The years had made him a perfect fit for the term debonair with a kiss of salt and pepper in his hair but only a single streak of white in his immaculately trimmed beard. He was usually very calm and genial perhaps with the exception of any suitors of their only child, Tia. Then all the proud, incredibly protective papa came full to the fore.  “Did we, mi Amor?” “No. But that isn’t the point. He didn’t ask. He should have asked. We should know this man who is taking our Tia. He could be a complete fraud. Some charlatan out to take advantage of her. He’s too old for her. Something is wrong with a man never married and 38 years old. Maybe he is married. Left his wife and their kids in a trailer park in Detroit looking for greener pastures.” “Theo, Stop it!” Marie shut her book app and frowned over at the mature man now pulling a face a five-year old sulking boy would be proud of. “You know better. The moment you got off the phone with Tia when she told us they were engaged you Googled him. You know he’s a renowned doctor.  He’s a good man, Theo. And Tia is in love with him. Be happy for them. You know they were off on vacation when he proposed. And this works perfectly. We’ll get to spend Christmas and New Years and then the wedding the next week with them. It’s a lovely holiday for us the way this is working out.” She reached over and gently stroked his arm. “Te amo, Theo. I’m looking forward to exploring Boston with you mi Amor.” “He should have asked…” he grumbled but patted his wife’s hand on his arm.                        _________________________________ Ethan was reviewing the cases that had come into the ER that morning. Thankfully they were all treat and release. A few minor burns, some cuts that required stitches but not surgery. A kid that swallowed a marble. Another with a broken toe and some pretty bad scrapes who was trying out his new skate board. Slow was always good in the ER. But it was so slow that he was having too much time to be anxious about meeting Tia’s parents later. It was a strange feeling for him, wanting to impress… well anyone besides Tia.   Then his phone rang and he smiled as he answered, “Hello Tia. Have you heard when your parents will be arriving?” “Ah. No. I think this afternoon or evening. But I have a problem I was hoping you might help me with. If you’re not too busy.” “It’s been blessedly slow so far today. I was just reviewing cases. I think I have a bit before the afternoon food poisoning cases start arriving. I’ll join you in a minute.”                     _____________________________      He was wearing fake hair, bells and a fat suit.  Seven years of medical school three years of residency, Published seven times in the American Journal of Medicine. Two text books published on Diagnostic Methodology and the Interpretation of Diagnostic Modeling. He was wearing fake hair, bells, and a fat suit, and a grin as his very naughty elf bounced up to him jingling in her little green velvet elf suit with her peppermint knee sock clad legs, his ring on her finger, and bells bedecking the pointy toes of her green elf shoes struggling to carry a giant red sack that had presents sticking out of the top. “Tia? Put that down and let’s find a cart. I do not want either of us getting a hernia for Christmas. It would definitely interfere with you making this up to me later.” A few minutes later they settled on an empty IV tree as a Santa bag holder and went wheeling the bag through the halls distributing the assortment of goodies to the staff, popping in to occupied rooms and giving patients little gifts that didn’t violate dietary restrictions and brought lots of smiles to faces. As they left the last room Tia grinned and held the small silver box up. “Only one left. Say’s it’s for Dr. Ramsey. I guess we should go to his office and see if he’s there…” Ethan raised a brow and his bright eyes twinkled with amusement. “Lead the way.” Tia smirked and sashayed her way to the elevator. She paused for a moment before hitting the button for the 4th floor. The moment the elevator doors closed Ethan pulled her to him and kissed her. “4th floor is diagnostics not emergency.” He murmured as he let her go and the elevator door opened. Tia sighed and giggled. Then led him down the hall toward her office stopping by the door just before hers. “I think you should open the present now.” Ethan broke the tape seal and opened the box as his gaze held hers. Finally he looked down. There was a note, and a skimpy bit of green lace underwear wrapped around a key. ‘Look what I’m NOT wearing, just for you! Doctor Banerji pulled a few strings and got us adjacent offices!’ He slid the key in the lock and opened the door to the darkened office letting her go in first. Shutting the door behind them he slipped his arms around her as he whispered, “I love you, my naughty elf.” “Ummm… I love you too, Ethan. Thank you for doing this.” She kissed him sweetly then deepened the kiss.

He slid his hands down her back then below her skirt and found her bare bottom. Lifting her she wrapped her legs around him so he could carry her. She giggled softly as he carried her across the room to the desk, kissing her all the way. He set her down on the desk then stepped away and started wrestling his way out of the Santa suit.  “Hurry, Ethan. I need you.” she purred at him in the darkness. “This damn suit is not cooperating.” The fat padding was attached with Velcro to a spandex body suit. He tried taking the spandex off without removing the fat pads first but that wasn’t working so he rolled the spandex back up and started ripping the fat pads off. “I can’t see a damn thing.”  Tia giggled as she heard the rrrrrip, rrrrip of Velcro separating.  A few minutes later his hands cupped her face and he was kissing her again. Her hands explored the warmth of his bare chest and then wandered lower caressing his growing stiffness. His fingers found her wetness a moment later as he slipped one and then a second finger into her, curling them up and stroking across her g spot. He heard her breathing change and soft mewls marked the nearing crest of her passion. His voice was very low, “Lie back Darling. I need to be in you now.” He pulled his fingers from her even as she guided his velvety hardness into her. His arm slipped beneath her to protect her from the edge of the desk as he began to thrust. Ethan knew all the mechanics and still the wonder and marvel of making love to this precious woman shattered him and remade him every time. “Ethan… Ethan… I … “ Her back arched and he felt the storm within her clench around him and he was gone.  “Tia..” He held her to him tightly releasing deeply in her. “I..” They both heard the knock and Sienna’s voice in the hallway. “Tia?”  “I’m not sure exactly where she is, Mr. and Mrs. Sheldon. Maybe she’s down in Dr. Ramsey’s office. Let’s check there. I know they were going to be distributing gifts but I think they already finished.” …….. Merry Christmas!.....

[yessoupy]

the @imetyouonljpodcast episode this week gave me lots of thoughts and feelings about star wars. more like, reminded me of all my thoughts and feelings around my first fandom. thus, I decided to write my own journey into and throughout star wars fandom, and what it means to me. buckle up, this story spans decades.

my very first memory of anything star wars-related is a yoda puppet that my grandmother had. it had to be from the original run of the movies, because I was maybe 4 in my first memory of it, and i was born in '86. my sisters and I loved it, and one of our cousins was deathly scared of it so we'd chase him around the house with it.

my second memory of star wars was going to the movie store with my dad and sisters and seeing our favorite yoda on the cover of a VHS. "yoda yoda yoda! daddy, it's yoda!!! can we get it?" we were holding up the display cover for return of the jedi. dad said no, we couldn't get that one yet because we had to watch them in order. so we rented a new hope and all I remember was falling asleep while artoo and threepio were trundling across the tatooine desert sands. at five I guess I was too young.

in early 1997 the special editions of the original trilogy were aired in theaters and I was in 4th grade. dad took us to see one of them (I think empire, at some point we'd finally finished a new hope). at school that grading period I sat next to a boy named mark and he noticed I was drawing little x-wing silhouettes on my paper. "you like star wars too?" he asked. when I said yes, he declared that because of my name, he was going to call me skywalker. that's the name on the back of my high school letter jacket.

in fall of 1998 I started the 6th grade and I came home from school one day to a hardbound book my mom had checked out for me from the library. heir to the empire by timothy zahn. mom pointed out where it said on the cover it was a trilogy, and I could get the other books when I finished this one. she hadn't found the young jedi knights series for me. she'd checked out a GROWN-UP star wars book.

in spring of 1999 the phantom menace came out and my parents' friend took me to see it on opening day because neither of them were free and I HAD to go that day. later on that year she took me to a star wars exhibit at the museum of fine arts. that was also the first time I saw a monet and a renoir. the exhibit had costumes (real costumes!!!) from the original trilogy and the newest prequel. I bought a book about the myth of star wars in the museum gift shop.

I read every expanded universe book our local library had, which was a lot. I had a lot to catch up on, too, since heir to the empire had been published in 1992. you never saw me at school without a star wars book. I read while walking in the hallways, even. in 6th grade I read during lunch, since I was in varsity orchestra with 7th and 8th graders and was terribly shy. they'd tell me I should socialize at lunch, not read my books, but... I wanted to read. I had a lot to learn. I have a lot to know.

I was in 7th grade when I read vector prime, the first in the new series. my first class of the day was science, and the boy I had a crush on was in that class. we had DEAR time at the beginning of that class - drop everything and read. not a hardship for me. that day, I read the part of the book where chewbacca was killed. I looked up, astonished. heartbroken. I locked eyes with the boy I liked. he nodded at the book and I showed him the cover. he nodded sympathetically. "they killed chewie," I whispered. he said "I know."

I wrote original characters in star wars fan fiction when I was about 13. I had an internet friend named rachel who lived in brisbane. then there was dave and 'roswell' who gave me ideas for my story. I loved being able to talk about the wide world of star wars with other people. we used aol instant messenger and email. my username in those days had 'skywalker' in it. I am pretty sure we met in an aol chatroom. I didn't find much of use on the official star wars site and I have probably visited it fewer than 10 times since 1999.

I read those books all through middle and high school. they were my christmas presents and my birthday presents. I moved into our family beach house after college. it sounds really nice but I didn't have running water because it was the summer after Ike hit. I would go to the used book store on 23rd street and buy a stack of star wars books and read them while I waiting for calls to interview for a teaching position. weekends I'd go into town to stay at a friend's house and help her with wedding stuff. I'd shower there, too. that's where my new stash of star wars books started, with me catching up on the legacy of the force series I hadn't read in college and then finishing up through the fate of the jedi as those came out. I felt that I had grown up with these characters. I remembered when kyp was just an orphan han rescued, when jacen and jaina were five years old, when corran horn had no wife, no kids, and was just finding out who his family was. I had capital o opinions about what color lightsaber i would have and why (silver; bc corran), I knew the geography of the galaxy and where everyone was from and my favorite planet was dathomir because women ruled it. I knew all of these characters' histories and motivations and the difficult decisions they'd made and had to live with. I loved them.

i never ventured into the online fandom space for star wars, even after I'd found other online fandom spaces, because I didn't feel like there was anything anyone could add to it for me. I was satisfied with all I'd gotten. sure, favorite characters had been killed (after chewie, the one who stung most was Mara, luke's wife), but people die. and in such a long-running series spanning so many years and trillions of miles of space... you come to expect it.

people would ask me ALL THE TIME when the sequels were coming out and I said never. then, disney bought star wars. initially I was excited (tears of joy happy) to have sequels confirmed. my mind raced, imagining a trilogy centered on the events surrounding jacen's descent to the dark side. the original actors would be the right age for that. who could play jacen?

then, the announcement came that the canon was now 'legends' and they wouldn't be taking any of it into account when writing the sequels BUT that didn't mean we wouldn't see old canon favorites. they announced adam driver as the villain and I thought "jacen." I held onto the idea that this knowledge I had, these years of knowing these stories, would still be worth something. that I'd be able to add new information to my mental bookshelves and maps. that my universe would expand further.

the force awakens was a bitter disappointment. I was upset from the crawl, leia's title making it clear to me that she wasn't chief of state, she wasn't the mother to three children, han wasn't her husband, and all of her history I'd grown to love really was gone. what I saw was the older version of a woman I'd met when she was 18 and hadn't seen her since her early twenties. I didn't know her.

I didn't know the galaxy, either. starting with the new jedi order series, a map of the galaxy was included in the front of each book with the planets named so you knew where everything was happening. the new galaxy was bare. it was small and knowable. while the hosnian prime system was destroyed in the movie, I'd never known it, and all the planets I DID know were similarly blasted out of memory. where was dathomir and its fierce warrior witches? if their planets were gone so were their people.

as the movie trudged on, a retelling of a new hope, I kept thinking, "at least let his name be jacen." I hung my hopes on this sith character being han and leia's son and sharing that name of the boy I'd known and the man who'd grown up to turn to the dark side. at that first shout of 'BEN!' I was angry. Ben?? that was the name of LUKE'S son! that was MARA'S child! Ben??? with three letters jacen solo and ben skywalker were also dead to the galaxy.

I know, I know. I should get over it. I AM thankful for poe dameron. the x-wing books were always my favorite. poe was familiar to me the way other new characters weren't. he was part of the new republic navy. I knew what that was. he flew an x-wing. I knew what that was.l and what company manufactured them. he was from yavin IV, I knew where that was and what it looked like. finn was a stormtrooper, yes, but the empire had not stolen children to be raised as stormtroopers. they were recruited like any other position. his story wasn't real to me, it wasn't something I could easily accept. and the idea that the new republic just LET the first order rise? leia's new republic would NEVER. but leia wasn't chief of state in this universe. leia hadn't had that power.

I read a lot of articles about the force awakens and the reactions to it, and never saw myself in any of them. the star wars fanboys whom I'd never known were painted as being angry because their fan knowledge was useless and "boo-hoo poor widdle fanboys" they would be mocked, rightfully. but that's why I was angry, ultimately. everyone I knew and loved was dead. worse, they'd never existed. "what do you think will happen?" some unsuspecting coworker would ask. I'd shrug, but inside I was yelling "who the fuck knows! my favorite characters don't exist anymore. nothing I know as this person you know as SKYWALKER means anything anymore."

it only got worse from there. One day I spent four hours figuring out how far the casino planet was from the drifting ships in the last jedi and doing math to figure out how long it would REALLY take to get there, using old canon star wars physics. I couldn't suspend my disbelief during that movie. everything was wrong. (the other space physics quibble I had was from TFA when poe is using comms while in hyperspace, and dropping out on a command and not... when nav told him to?? you'd fly right through a star!! were they HOVERING in hyperspace? none of it made sense.) I knew too much and too little to enjoy it.

TROS was a narrative mess already retconning new canon and I decided that I would only keep what I liked about the new canon (poe and his family) and pretend the old canon is all there is. one day I'll write the story of poe being part of the storied rogue squadron being sent by leia's new republic to put down the fascist upstarts at the edge of the unknown regions. one day.

one more quick story -- i met my college friend’s three kids for the first time when the oldest was 6. i’d sent a toy lightsaber as a gift when he was born, because i believe every child should get their first lightsaber from a skywalker, and his father had shown him the movies when he turned 4. when i walked into the house i said hello and he said, “i have some questions about star wars.”

we sat on the couch with the tfa visual dictionary, a book he’d gotten out of the library. every question he had was an excellent question, and i couldn’t answer any of them. “why does his lightsaber look like that? and why does he have the extra blades?” 

“well, kiddo, let’s see what it says here about how lightsabers are made. i used to know all about it, but they changed everything on me.”

---

what i love about star wars since disney bought it:

poe dameron, cassian andor (and all of rogue one, i got over the fact that the movie wouldn’t be about rogue squadron it was PERFECT), solo (a fucking DELIGHT), the mandalorian, and i’m sure the cassian andor live action will be amazing and i’ll love it. 

[snoewolf]

Im not good at blogging.

I always assume its not worth posting and just dont do it.

Ive been pretty depressed lately. Bae has been amazing and trying to help me through it.. but sometimes.. theres nothing even he can do to make me feel better.

My birthday came and went, its always hard for me the week of my birthday ever since my exhusband served me divorce and child custody papers on said birthday. Its been a couple years, and nothing bad has happened since then.. but it still haunts me.. like im waiting on the next shoe to drop or something.

I keep catching myself treating Bae really bad even when he doesnt do anything to deserve it. He is amazing to me, and does everything for me literally treating me like a Queen. He loves my children like his own and actually interacts with them.. what more could i ask for? But when i get into these depths.. i feel myself treating him unfairly based on what happened to me in my previous relationship. He handles it well, but i know hes just as tired of it as I am.

Still no further on getting my child support from my ex.. which really sucks. I ended up having to drop out of school. They offered for me to go back in a few months.. but theres no way im going to be able to afford it. Im already working double to try to make up for how behind on my bills its made me since i started the program. This saddens me, but im trying to think of it positively.. i wasnt really happy once i was in the program and saw how hospital employees are treated... and treat each other.

My current job is amazing and works with my schedule when possible and i am so thankful for the opportunity. But. It doesnt pay very well for the amount of time im away from my kids to do said work. (How does america expect a single parent to live on $9/hr without any kind of help?!) I cant even afford rent, let along car/phone/electricity/gas/ whatever else comes with renting. My credit isnt good enough to buy anything not to mention wouldnt be approved simply for how many cobwebs are in my bank account.

SO ive been looking for a second job, or a better paying job. I found a second job that pays better.. and offers health insurance! Ive been looking for months and finally got a call for an interview. It happened to be on my day off. How great is that?! So of course i went, theyre paying amazingly! I got there and along with 4 other people, they start showing us around. I thought that was weird.. ive had interviews with this company before and never was shown around the whole place.. but i just accepted it because ive never had an interview with this specific location. We go to the back and im ready for the interview! They start handing us company vests and work tools... im a little confused until they had out schedules. I got the job! Wait... this isnt an interview.. this is orientation! Oh snap! What am i suppose to tell my current job?! Luckily my current job hadnt put out the next weeks schedule yet so i was able to alert my manager as soon as i got out of the building.

Unfortunately, she was not happy. Granted, had it been up to me.. i would have much rathered given a heafty warning.. i dont like to leave any job on bad terms (and so far havent 🤞🏻) so i let my manager know im being trained for this second job for the next two weeks and i cant mess with those days but it doesnt effect my current job at all this week.. which is all i have a schedule for.. she doesnt think she should have to work around another jobs schedule when i worked here first.. i agree.. but.. in my shoes.. this other job is a better opportunity for -me-, for -my- bills for -my- family. So she told me she fixed it for the next two weeks but wasnt happy about it.

Sooooo.

Im now working the next 14 days straight and even at two jobs in the same day.. 🤦🏻‍♀️ im gonna hate myself for sure. But! My daughters birthday is next week and i need to buy her more than the only gift i currently have for her. And Christmas is right around the corner! I need to catch up my car payment and keep my phone bill current and not late... not to mention gymnastics/dance/and boyscouts that i dont want to take away from my kids because its not their fault im poor.

So luckily today hasnt been too awkward at my job but i did tell Bae that depending on how petty they decide to be over the next two weeks depends on if i keep 2 jobs or focus solely on the new one that pays so much better. So. We'll see. Id like to have both at least until Christmas so i can get some presents under my tree.

I guess thats as good of an update as i got currently. Whoopwhoop.

[nanasarea]

Sucker I iii

Prompt: Y/N attends a school for the supernatural, specifically: werewolves, witches and vampires. The school might be magic, but so is love, right? Right?

Genre: angst, fluff, slight smut in the future

Pairing: reader x 00 line

Inspired heavily by: Legacies (and The Vampire Diaries&The Originals)

main m.list / sucker m.list /  i  ii  iii  iv   v   vi   vii   viii   ix   x   xi  xii xiii  xiv  xv

“So? Where’s my gift?” You ask jokingly, grabbing the fries from his plate and dipping them in your milkshake. 

“Am I not enough?” Jeno asked back, mimicking your tone, causing you to playfully kick his leg under the table. 

“It’s a surprise.” He answered, looking straight into your eyes as he took a bite of the fries. 

You and Jeno have been dating for a year now, and you must admit, he put your past boyfriends to shame, he was everything you could want and more. There was just one problem. 

You never got to see each other. You met the summer before you started your freshman year of high school. He made your heart flutter, your knees shake and filled your stomach with a whole bunch of butterflies. 

You were excited to start high school, but when you found out he was just visiting his uncle for the summer and would go back to living with his parents during school time, your smile soon faded.

You had a long distance relationship, which was hard, when you came home from school and all you wanted to do was hug your boyfriend till all the stress went away. Life at your school wasn’t bad, you had Hana after all, who you were lucky enough to share all classes with, but it felt empty. You felt empty. 

You saw each other every school break (Christmas, spring break, etc) but it didn’t feel right. You wanted to just move to his town, start at his school and see him every day. You missed him, but you couldn’t do anything about it. 

Summer vacation arrived and you saw each other every day, it felt nice, it felt like you were complete again, as cheesy as it sounds. 

You went swimming, you went skateboarding, you went out for ice cream and slushies, you spent every minute you could together, so you thanked yourself for preparing your gift for him during school time, because there is no way you could do it now, with him attached to your hip.

“Come on. Don’t look at me like that, I’ll come back for the next vacation!” Jeno explained, holding your hand and flashing his infamous smile at you. 

“I know, but I just miss you so much.” You replied, trying not to smile at his cuteness, and failing in the process. 

“You finished?” He asked, motioning to your milkshake. You nodded, so he took you by the hand and dragged you out. 

After a 10 minute walk, he stopped you and told you to close your eyes. 

“I can trust you not to peak, right? Or do I need to get you a blindfold?” He asked. 

“I promise I won’t peak.” You answered, holding out your pinky. He intertwined your pinkies together before kissing your hand, making you let out a small giggle. He took your hand and led you further into the forest.

“Lee Jeno, if you’re leading me to my doom, I will haunt you from the afterlife.” You said after 2 minutes of walking. 

“y/l/n y/n, i’m offended you think of me like that.” He said, with a fake dramatic tone. 

“Open.” He said as you felt his hand leave yours. You knew where you were just from the sound. You opened your eyes as he wrapped his hands around you from behind you, embracing you into a back hug. 

You saw the waterfall in front of you, which was where you and Jeno had first met. In front of you, there was a picnic blanket placed on the ground, with some cut up fruit, mainly strawberries, whipped cream and melted chocolate. 

“Didn’t you just eat?” You playfully asked “A Lee’s belly is never full.” He playfully answered, impersonating his uncle, who was convinced his whole family had black holes where their stomachs should be. 

You sat down and Jeno followed not long after. You tried to keep a straight face when you accidentally got some whipped cream off the strawberry and onto Jeno’s nose while feeding it to him. 

“Ya! Why?” He asked, already putting whipped cream on his own strawberry and “accidentally” smudging it onto your lips. 

“Oh no, how ever will be clean that up?” You asked, sarcastically.

“I have an idea.” He answered happily, cupping your face and bringing it closer to him. He stared into your eyes for a bit before you decided to close the distance. 

You giggled at his touch after pulling away. 

“I love you.” He confessed, looking into your eyes. 

That wasn’t the first time he said it, but it was the first time he said it in that tone. It sounded helpless, but at the same time, commanding. Warm, but with an element of coldness. Natural, but painful. Bittersweet even. 

“You know I love you too, Jeno.” You said, earning a sad smile from him. 

“What’s wrong?” You asked him, concerned. 

“Nothing, let’s finish eating! Then we can go swimming, if you want!” He answered, in a more cheerful tone. 

You knew something was bothering him, but you couldn’t bring yourself to say it, seeing how sad the subject must have been making him. 

Little did you know, it would be the reason why you would spend months crying yourself to sleep.

*flashback over*

You stared at the photo of you, Jeno, Hana and a couple of your other friends as you asked yourself if you should hand it on your picture wall. You didn’t know what hurt more, looking at it or not looking at it. 

Your thoughts were quickly cut off by hearing your new roommate call out for you. 

“Coming, Jisoo!” You yelled as you put the picture back into the box. 

A/N: I told ya’ll I didn’t forget about Jeno! This is more of a filler part, please tell me what you think of it! The reader’s supernatural powers still haven’t been revealed, so take your guesses! And tell me what you think made Jeno say it so sadly. 

[artificialqueens]

Let the Love be Your Life (Branjie) - Athena2

Summary: After their kid doesn’t know one of their favorite movies, Brooke and Vanessa have a little movie marathon introducing favorite movies to them.

A/N: This is a Christmas gift for Writ because they’re the absolute best. It also fulfills the prompt ‘List’ for Ficmas over @writethehousedown, so you can find it there as well! It’s pretty much pure fluff and I hope you enjoy! I’d appreciate any feedback you have!

Also, thank you to everyone who’s read and commented on my fics this past year. It’s been a really hard year for most of us, and sharing my stories with you made it a little brighter for me, and I hope for you as well.

Title from Mother from Carole and Tuesday.

—

“Brooke, can you get me a bowl?” Vanessa calls over from the stove, where she’s stirring a pot of rice.

“As you wish.” Brooke snorts after she says it, trading smiles with Vanessa. One of their favorite movies, and the first couples costume they did all those years ago for Nina’s world-famous–or at least city-famous–Halloween party, where there was always full catering, a DJ, and at least one rumored celebrity hidden behind a mask. One person isn’t smiling though, and it��s their kid, pausing table-setting to stare at them.

“‘As you wish?’” Sam repeats in confusion. “What is this, the Middle Ages?”

Brooke’s mouth falls open. “What? No, it’s from a movie.”

“Oh.” Sam shrugs and goes back to setting the table, clearly unimpressed.

Vanessa is nowhere near as calm, her wooden spoon clattering on the counter. “Brooke, our child doesn’t know The Princess Bride!” She leaves the stove to stand by Brooke, shaking her head in outrage.

“We’ve officially failed as parents,” Brooke agrees.

Sam rolls their eyes. “It’s just some old movie, right?”

“‘Some old movie,’” Vanessa mutters under her breath. “‘Some old movie.’ Brooke, we gotta fix this.”

Brooke nods. She and Vanessa have always let Sam be themself, reading and watching stuff freely, as long as it wasn’t too dark or upsetting. But in all that, they must have forgotten to show Sam all the movies they had wanted to, the movies that Brooke and Vanessa love.

When Vanessa got stuck on bed rest towards the end of her pregnancy, she watched movies to pass the time, and Brooke joined her when she could, rubbing Vanessa’s aching back and massaging her shoulders, doing anything she could to make her more comfortable. They talked about all the movies they wanted to watch after their baby was born, the things they wanted to do and memories they wanted to make as a family. They had even made a list of movies, but it got lost somewhere in the chaos of having a new baby. Sam might be nine now, but they can still make those memories, and Brooke claps her hands. “We need a movie marathon!”

Vanessa jumps up and down. “Yeah! This week, we’re gonna watch a bunch of movies! Sammy’s on winter break, it’s perfect! We can do one every night! Peter Pan, and the Peanuts, and Muppets Christmas Carol–”

“Jurassic Park,” Brooke adds, grabbing a notebook and pen. “And Star Wars, and Matilda … my movies are way better than yours, babe.”

“Nuh-uh!” Vanessa yells. “Mine are classics!”

“I guess Sam will be the judge of that, then.” Brooke grins.

“They will be, and you can do dishes for a week when they like mine better,” Vanessa says, raising her eyebrow mischievously.

“What do I get if I win?” Brooke asks. It better be something good, something Vanessa hates as much as Brooke hates doing dishes.

Vanessa thinks. “I’ll do the laundry for a week.”

Vanessa hates folding clothes since she does it all day in her boutique. Brooke doesn’t mind laundry, exactly, but she’ll happily let Vanessa take over and fold the endless amounts of clothes for a week.

“Deal.” Brooke smiles, all thoughts of rivalry gone and replaced with excitement of the memories they’ll make.

—

i. The Princess Bride

“Okay, is everyone ready?” Brooke stands in front of the TV, making sure Vanessa and Sam are settled on the couch with pillows and blankets and the cats, canyon-sized bowl of popcorn and cupcakes from Brooke’s sister Kameron’s bakery all ready for the night.

“Ready!” Vanessa yells. Brooke presses play, and Vanessa opens her arms for Brooke to snuggle into as the movie starts.

“At least you two aren’t wearing your costumes,” Sam teases. Vanessa and Brooke have probably been a little too eager in showing Sam that picture over the years, but Vanessa looked like a literal princess in her red Princess Buttercup dress, Brooke was the perfect Westley, and they got compliments through the entire party, so sue them for showing off. Vanessa still remembers the cool silk flowing around her and warming her hand on the soft bit of skin revealed by Brooke’s shirt.

“Don’t think we weren’t tempted,” Vanessa says. “They’re in the attic somewhere, I bet I could still fit in that dress–”

“Do we need to pause it already?” Brooke asks, and Vanessa swats at her before snuggling back down and watching the movie.

Vanessa finds herself watching her family more than the movie, watching Brooke’s eyes widen and her lips stretch into a grin like she’s never seen it before. Then she turns to Sam, who really has never seen it before. They’re skeptical at first, face blank, but then their brown eyes–so warm and expressive, like Vanessa’s–light up when the Dread Pirate Roberts reveals himself to be Westley. By the end, their smile is huge.

“You liked it, huh?” Vanessa asks.

Sam looks down. “I guess,” they say, and Vanessa knows their nine-year-old heart can’t quite admit something their parents like is cool, but it’s a start, and she’s counting this as a win in both her and Brooke’s column.

“Well, I’m ready for tomorrow!” Vanessa yells, pulling Brooke in for a kiss.

—

ii. Star Wars

Brooke knows the baby Yoda ugly sweater and Star Wars pajama pants are overkill, but she can’t help it. From the moment she first saw the movie as a seven-year-old, all she wanted was to be a Jedi like Luke and save the galaxy. She and Kameron made lightsabers out of foam swords and spray paint, and they ran around their background slicing through enemies and saving the day. Kameron had even made truffles decorated like the Death Star when Brooke told her what they were watching, her brown eyes warm with memories of their Jedi days.

Brooke doesn’t know whether this movie thing between her and Vanessa is a contest, but if it is, she doesn’t really care about it for this movie. She just wants to watch it with her kid, hope they find the same joy in it that she did.

Sam seems to be enjoying the truffles at least, and they shove another one in their mouth. “Aunt Kam’s stuff is so good,” they say with their mouth full, and Brooke agrees.

The music blasts and opening crawl creeps onto the screen, and Brooke grins, even when Vanessa rolls her eyes fondly and asks her continual question of why everyone else has such ‘weird-ass names’ and Luke’s is normal.

Brooke didn’t think anything would be better than the first time she saw it, in their living room with salty popcorn burning her lips and Kameron next to her, but watching it now, with her wife at her side and their kid on the other couch watching with wide eyes, just might be even better. She never thought she would have this life, a family around her like this, and she pulls Vanessa little closer, breathing in the familiar scent of her coconut shampoo.

Sam is grinning when the movie ends, and warmth rushes through Brooke’s chest, that her kid enjoyed something that means a lot to Brooke.

“That’s my favorite one so far,” they say sheepishly, and Brooke lets out a whoop.

“All right, all right, it’s only been two movies so far,” Vanessa says. “We’re goin’ to Neverland tomorrow, and then we’ll see what’s better.”

—-

iii. Peter Pan

Vanessa feels like a professor as she stands in front of the TV, Sam and Brooke staring at her expectantly.

“Is this a presentation?” Brooke teases. “Should I take notes?”

“Oh please, you’re the one who loves presentations,” Vanessa says fondly. “No presentation–this movie did make me want to go into design, though. Oh! And it was the first sign that I was bi. Little kid me didn’t know if she wanted a flying boyfriend or a fairy girlfriend more.” Vanessa grins dreamily. She can still remember her heart fluttering the same way when she looked at Peter and his coppery hair as it did when she watched Tinkerbell pout, how it all made sense when she was seventeen and fully realized that she was bi for the first time.

“Start the movie, Ma!” Sam yells.

Vanessa does, then instantly pauses it, turning to Sam with worries in her mind. “Don’t get any stupid ideas from this movie, now!” she warns. “Don’t go flying around with people who show up in your window, no matter how cute they are! And Wendy was a child, acting all grown, Lord help us when you become a teenager–”

“Okay, Ness,” Brooke soothes, motioning for Vanessa to sit with her and pulling her into a hug when she does.

“I promise I won’t fly around with people in my window,” Sam says, and Vanessa smiles, reaching over and ruffling their brown waves.

“You better not,” Vanessa says, leaning back into Brooke, her wife still as cozy to cuddle with as she’s always been.

Vanessa’s dancing in place and belting out all the songs in no time. She’s known all the words since she was six, when she would perform the whole movie in her living room or sing them to herself as she drew fierce pirate coats and sparkly fairies with striped wings, and they’ve refused to leave her brain, even if she wishes she could have that space for something useful like where she put her phone.

Brooke’s not much of a singer, but she hums along, and when Sam’s soft voice hesitantly joins Vanessa’s, she knows the night is a success.

—

iv. Matilda

It’s not as action-packed as her other favorite movies on the list, but as a shy kid who always had her nose in a book, Brooke’s always had a soft spot for Matilda. After she had to accept that becoming a Jedi wasn’t a viable career path, it had been Matilda that gave her the idea to become a librarian. She could surround herself with books all day, and help people find the book they were looking for, introducing them to whole new worlds through the pages, just like she does with each bedtime story for Sam every night.

“This is a movie about a kid with magic powers, right?” Sam asks.

“Right,” Vanessa says, “and Mommy loves it because she’s a big nerd.”

“Hey!” Brooke protests, but Vanessa is laughing and giving her a warm hug.

“You know I love you for it,” Vanessa says simply, and Brooke hugs her back and knows it’s true.

It’s nice to watch a movie she hasn’t seen since she was a kid and find it still makes her smile the same way, still gives her the same hope at seeing a shy girl who loved books the way she did—and still does. Brooke has never been the confident, outgoing kid in so many movies. She was quiet and kept to herself, and Matilda gave her a world where she could be the hero. She hopes Sam always feels that way too, always knows that they can be the hero.

When the credits roll, Sam declares that it’s not their favorite off the list, but Brooke doesn’t mind.

—-

v. Peanuts

“Why are these even on the list?” Sam asks as Vanessa fiddles with the TV. “I’ve seen all the Peanuts movies.”

“And you’ll see them again!” Vanessa yells. “This is different. They’re official now, on the list and everything.” She starts the Easter special and shuts down all the arguments, biting into a peanut butter cookie.

“All right, all right.” Sam gives in, but they’re not complaining. Sam once tried to make Riley dance like Snoopy, and Vanessa knows they love these movies just as much as she does.

“This is another thing that got me into fashion,” Vanessa says. “Because I didn’t know why they always wore the same boring old clothes in all the movies, so I drew them wearing some new ones.”

“Of course you did.” Brooke grins.

“Well, I had to jazz those outfits up! They’ve been wearing the same clothes forever!” Vanessa laughs. She’s always wanted people to wear clothes they feel like themselves in, and somewhere in between drawing new outfits for cartoon characters, she decided that was what she wanted to do, and it’s what she still does with her own little boutique, just up the street from the library where Brooke works. She loves getting to help people pick out the perfect outfit, watching them smile as they come out feeling as good as they had hoped.

She leans back as Charlie Brown and the others take them through all the seasons, from Easter to Halloween to Thanksgiving and finally Christmas, where Vanessa reaches for tissues and even Sam pretends they have dust in their eye. Vanessa always wanted to fight the other kids for being so mean to Charlie, and even as an adult, the urge is still there.

When the movie’s done, an idea pops into Vanessa’s hand. She whips out her phone and brings up the Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack, yanking Brooke into the middle of the room and pulling her into a dance while Sam twirls around with Riley, cats watching from the couch, unimpressed.

“Ness, you’re making me dizzy,” Brooke giggles as Vanessa spins her faster and faster, until they almost crash into the Christmas tree.

Sam is cackling next to them, and Vanessa slows up, pressing her chest close to Brooke’s and melting as Brooke places a gentle kiss on the top of her head.

It’s her favorite movie night by far.

—

vi. Jurassic Park

All her movies on the list are special, but this one just might be the most special for Brooke. Because this is what she and Vanessa watched on their first date.

Brooke had started her first job at the library the same summer Vanessa started doing formal design sketches for a portfolio. She came to the library to get fashion books for ideas, and Brooke secretly hoped she would come back in every day, so they could make small talk and maybe she could say something funny to see Vanessa smile again. And almost every day, Vanessa came back.

Summer was half over and Brooke thought they would do nothing but talk with a library desk between them when Vanessa finally asked her to a movie in the park, both of them giggling as they set the date because they were finally going out after weeks of flirting and smiling and wondering if feelings were reciprocated. A dinosaur movie might not have been the most romantic choice for a first date, but they curled up together on a plaid blanket and let their fingers meet in the bag of buttery popcorn, and when Vanessa gave her a soft kiss as the end theme song played, Brooke knew she was the one.

She looks at her wife now, humming along to the opening theme and eating the dinosaur sugar cookie Kameron made, and knows that she’s still the one.

They snuggle up together and make dinosaur noises that cause Sam to look at them in annoyance, but it only makes them laugh harder.

They watch on the edge of their seats even though they know the ending, and Sam does the same, jumping every time a dinosaur pops out. When the end theme plays softly as the characters escape in the helicopter, Vanessa has tears in her eyes. Brooke’s not a big cryer–the last time she cried was probably when Sam was still a baby–but her eyes pool with dampness too, until she and Vanessa are holding each other and half-laughing, half-crying, because this movie is what brought them together.

“What are you doing?” Sam asks in alarm. “Why are you crying over a dinosaur movie?”

Brooke and Vanessa just laugh and exchange a soft kiss.

—

vii. The Muppet Christmas Carol

Christmas has always been Vanessa’s favorite holiday. As a kid, she fought her brothers every day to move the little Christmas tree counter on their Advent calendar, her excitement only growing as the day grew nearer. She’d just make it through the extra-long church service, and then she was free to play with her cousins and stuff herself with cookie after cookie and wake with the sunrise Christmas morning to jump in her parents’ bed.

Only now that she has her own child jumping in her and Brooke’s bed at an ungodly hour each Christmas does she realize why her parents would groan so loudly and what a little demon she must have been.

But her and Brooke don’t mind–they both love it, really, love all their traditions. There are the cookies they bake all month, the toy drive they help with at Sam’s school, and then Vanessa’s turn bringing Sam shopping to buy Brooke’s present and Brooke’s turn taking Sam to buy Vanessa’s present. The weekend after Thanksgiving, when they’re still stuffed with leftovers, the tree goes up, the three of them passing ornaments around while Vanessa narrates the history of how they got each one and almost falls on the tree trying to prove to Brooke that she can reach the tall branches. The tree is her favorite part, with the rainbow lights twinkling and the shining star looking over them. The tree is extra bright tonight, Christmas just days away, as Vanessa starts one of her favorite Christmas movies.

“This was my favorite to watch when I was pregnant with you,” Vanessa says to Sam. “The doctor said I had to go on bed rest, and I was so mad because it was almost Christmas and I wanted to do stuff. This was the next best thing.” She still remembers those long days, the pain in her back and hips and shoulders combined with the sadness of not being able to hang up lights or bake cookies or do much of anything. The Muppets at least made her smile, gave her a piece of Christmas she could have while stuck in bed. And when Sam was born perfectly healthy in January, she knew it had all been worth it.

“I swear, I heard Kermit in my sleep for weeks,” Brooke says, rolling her eyes but smiling anyway.

“You love Kermit and you know it,” Vanessa says.

Brooke just snorts, but Vanessa knows she’s right.

Vanessa knows most of the words—she really did watch this movie a ridiculous amount of times when she was pregnant—and finds her mouth moving along with the characters. The movie still makes her just as happy as it did when she was stuck in bed, makes her love Christmas and her family that much more. It doesn’t mean she’s forgotten the bet though, and the credits have just started to roll when Vanessa leaps from the couch and turns to Sam. “So?” she asks expectantly.

“So what?” Sam asks casually.

Vanessa huffs. “So, whose movies did you like better? Mine, right? Say mine.”

“No way.” Brooke pops up behind her. “Mine were way better.”

Sam just rolls their eyes. “Come on, you know I can’t pick between you two. You’re both my favorite.”

Vanessa melts then, pulling Sam into a bone-crushing hug, Brooke wrapping her arms around both of them.

“I guess we’ll just split the house stuff next week,” Vanessa says.

“You mean like we already do anyway?” Brooke snorts, holding them tighter.

Vanessa just smiles. She has her family, and tomorrow is their holiday party with all their friends, and then Christmas with her family and Brooke’s family, and her smile deepens. She watches the snow fall softly outside and knows this will be the best Christmas ever.