#i have....3 other ideas for the christmas party! hopefully i get time to draw them all o7

[parisoonic]

Don't talk incriminating shop infront of your boss at the office Christmas party.

[flourgirl]

Sick of Losing Soulmates

Pairing: Peter Parker x Reader

Summary: Months after you and Peter have broken up, you run into each other at Harry’s Christmas party.

Word Count: 4.1k

Warnings: Both fluffy and angsty. Mentions of alcohol and sex. A mild amount of curse words.

A/N: I’m ALIVE! I hope you all are having a wonderful holiday season, and Merry Christmas to everybody that celebrates it! I am so happy to be able to share my work with all of you! Enjoy <3

“And maybe we got lost in translation Maybe I asked for too much But maybe this thing was a masterpiece Till you tore it all up” -All Too Well, Taylor Swift

He wasn’t supposed to be here. Harry had promised you that his roommate would be spending the holidays with May back in Queens. But here he was, wearing the sweater that you had given him last year with his arm snaked around another girl’s waist.

“Hey!” Betty grinned, throwing her arms around you. She had a half-empty glass of mulled wine that you could tell was doing a good job of getting her tipsy. “I’ve missed you so much, Y/N. We never see each other anymore.”

She pouted, a pair of reindeer antlers where her signature black headband usually sat. “Are you okay?”

“Oh, yeah,” you assured her, still staring at Peter effortlessly carrying the conversation with a bunch of people you didn’t recognize. “Uh, who’s the girl with Peter?”

“Gwen Stacy,” she muttered, obviously not a very big fan. You figured it was because there was only room for one preppy blonde girl, and Betty didn’t feel like sharing that position with anybody else. “Don’t worry though! It’s nothing serious. Peter actually hasn’t really dated anybody ever since the two of you…”

Her voice trailed off as you locked eyes with her, silently communicating for her to drop the subject. It was a relief to know that he hadn’t moved on, but the fact that he was wrapped up in a fling with somebody else still made your heart hurt.

“Come on, Y/N. I’m sure MJ and Ned would love to see you! They’re over in the kitchen.” She reached for your hand, dragging you along through Harry’s expertly decorated apartment. 

You dropped the box of cookies that you had baked on the counter before tapping MJ on the shoulder. She was turned away from you, lecturing Ned on why his secondhand Beyblades were not acceptable Christmas presents.

“Who the hell is touching me?” she snapped, turning around with a look on her face that told you she was ready to throw hands. “Holy fuck. Y/N! How long have you been here?”

MJ’s frown faded into a smile as she pulled you into a side-hug, her other hand busy nursing a glass of Harry’s infamously terrible eggnog. “Only a few minutes,” you laughed, your face smushed into her torso. 

“Hi,” Ned piped up, offering a small wave. You could tell he didn’t really know where he stood ever since his best friend basically ripped your heart out and threw it on the floor. Well, it wasn’t actually that dramatic, but he had a flair for exaggerating stories. “Remember me?”

“Of course, stupid,” you grinned, offering a fist bump that he happily accepted. “How could I forget those iconic fits of yours?”

“True,” he said, popping his collar and doing a little twirl that made Betty and MJ roll their eyes. “You look pretty fly too, though.”

“Thanks,” you replied, holding the edge of your dress as you curtsied, something you and Ned had made a habit of doing as the so-called best dressed members of the group.

“You two are just as ridiculous as ever,” Betty mused, happy to see you still fit in just as perfectly as when you were Peter’s girlfriend, even if you weren’t around as much.

The reunion was interrupted by the loud chatter of a certain couple, and your heart sank as you watched a very drunk Peter and Gwen stumble towards the kitchen, a giggling mess. They situated themselves under the archway that separated the two rooms, a piece of mistletoe conveniently hanging above them. 

You could tell that MJ was ready to put a stop to her friend’s embarrassing behavior, and the looks on Ned and Betty’s faces told you that they had no intentions of holding her back. 

“They’re so gross,” MJ complained, setting down her untouched cup before excusing herself to drag Peter out of his drunken makeout session. “I can’t believe he’d do that when you’re right here!”

“Wait, MJ,” you blurted, grabbing onto her wrist to stop her. She turned to face you, her eyebrows furrowed. “It’s okay. I don’t care about it. I’m just going to head to the bathroom, alright? I’ll be right back.”

You did your best to stop yourself from tearing up, although you realized you had made the utter mistake of forgetting that the very arch that Peter and Gwen were sucking each other’s faces under was the only way out of the kitchen.

Not even a few moments of you awkwardly standing next to them, occasionally clearing your throat, made them notice you. Eventually, the discomfort grew too heavy, and you tapped Peter on the shoulder. He finally pulled away from Gwen, her lipstick smudged across his mouth and a dazed look on his face.

Gwen whimpered at the loss of his kiss, obviously annoyed at the random girl that had just interrupted them. As soon as Peter recognized that it was you, he stepped away from her, wiping his mouth and fixing the hair she had been running her hands through, just like you used to.

“Y/N. I didn’t know that you’d be here,” he reasoned, a blush spreading across his face as a sense of regret settled into his stomach. 

“Obviously,” you sighed. This wasn’t the Peter you knew—the sweet, shy one that you had fallen in love with. “You guys are blocking the hallway, by the way.”

“Shit, sorry,” he stammered, stepping aside to allow you to pass in between them. He followed you, leaving Gwen irritated and confused as to who you were. “Y/N. Can we talk later?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. Nice sweater, though,” you quipped, not even turning back to meet his gaze before climbing the stairs towards the guest bathroom. Everything felt all too familiar, memories of you and Peter stumbling up the same steps after a date flooding your brain.

The first time Peter had kissed you was after MJ’s birthday party. Neither of you had been drinking, since you hated alcohol and Peter refused to touch any before he turned 21. This meant that you got to spend the whole night laughing at everybody else’s drunken mischief. 

In the middle of his performance of some Nicki Minaj song, Ned managed to spill a whole can of beer on you and Peter, which resulted in many cheers as the two of you ran to his room to grab a change of clothes. Shirts came off, confessions were made, and the party went on without you guys.

You took a deep breath, shutting the bathroom door behind you and sitting on the edge of the bathtub. If you had known Peter would end up being here, you would have never accepted Harry’s invitation. There were so many old wounds being opened up that you had spent months trying to heal, and you weren’t sure some stupid Christmas party was worth it. 

But you didn’t want to leave. It wasn’t fair how much the break up had stolen from you. All of your friends were here and you were tired of shying away from going out with them anymore because you were too scared to see Peter. Too scared that you would never be able to stop being in love with him.

By the time you rejoined the rest of your friends, Harry was announcing that it was time to start the game of White Elephant. You bit the edges of your fingernails as the party guests filed into Harry’s living room, hoping that Peter wouldn’t somehow pick your present.

“What’d you bring?” you asked Betty, squishing in next to her on the couch. 

“Gift card to In-N-Out,” she giggled, satisfied that her present could only be used on the other side of the country. “But Harry’s rich friends might not have any trouble flying their private jets to California, so maybe I’m not as clever as I thought.”

“Heard that,” Harry said, leaning behind you on the edge of the couch. He placed a quick kiss on your cheek, something the two of you had always done as friends but stopped once you started dating Peter. “Hey, Y/N. Glad you could make it.”

“Hey, you,” you replied, smiling back at him, your leg bouncing impatiently. “We doing this thing or what?”

“Yeah, yeah, give me a minute,” he laughed, running out of the room. Moments later, he came back wearing a fake beard and a Santa hat, complete with a miniature sack of toys. 

“Alright, boys and girls. Let’s get this game started! Hopefully you all know the rules, but I’ll repeat them anyway. I draw a name out of the sack, you pick a random present and open it up for everybody to see. The next person that goes can either steal your gift or pick a new one. If your gift gets stolen, you get to do the same. No stealing twice!”

The first couple of people you didn’t really know, and they had all pulled presents that were relatively uninteresting. A scented candle, toilet paper, a pair of socks. Nothing you really considered worth stealing, although Ned ended up taking a framed, autographed photo of Harry from MJ, which resulted in her stealing Gwen’s mini waffle iron.

By the time it was your turn, there weren’t many gifts left. Going with your gut, you grabbed the bag covered in glittering polar bears. Reaching past all of the tissue paper stuffed inside, you pulled out a red sweatshirt that you unfolded to see had a large graphic of Spider-Man printed on it. 

“Oh,” you said, a little confused. The only people you knew that wore stuff with the Avengers on it were little kids, but you figured that was part of the joke. “I mean, I prefer Captain America, but thanks, whoever this is from!”

Peter’s face blushed to a shade of red, amazed that out of all the presents, you picked his. The only issue was that you didn’t know that he was actually the guy on the front of it. Nobody except Ned knew, although he was sure that MJ and Harry had caught on to his secret identity by now.

“Okay, two people left. Jake, you’re up next, buddy,” Harry called out, happily bouncing around the room, his Santa hat now replaced with a baseball cap that had “I Love Ned!” embroidered on it. You watched nervously as he walked around the room, eyeing up all of the presents before settling on the tiny, golden box that you had placed under the tree when you first arrived.

“Let’s see what we’re working with,” he smirked. Your thoughts raced, immediately feeling a sense of regret over the gift you had picked. “Oh, shit. Sweet! I’ve got a date with Y/N!”

“Sup, baby,” Jake continued, his words slightly slurred. He pointed at you and winked, and you offered him a polite smile in return. “We’re gonna have a good time. Just name the time and place and I got you.”

“Awesome, congrats, man,” Harry said, obviously ready for the game to be over. It had been going for way longer than any of you had expected, mostly due to the fact that two girls wouldn’t stop arguing over a piece of rose quartz. “Okay, we’re nearly finished, guys. Peter, you’re up. Pick any of the gifts that haven’t been stolen yet, or the last one under the tree.”

You locked eyes with him, a familiar scowl on his face that told you he was thinking really hard about which gift to pick. His spidey-senses felt your heartbeat pick up as he walked around the room before stopping in front of Jake, who was busy gloating to his friend about how “hot” you were. Your face heated up as you watched Peter take the little note that you had written out of Jake’s hands, smugly gesturing for him to pick up the present under the tree.

He waved sheepishly at you, and you felt both relieved and angry at his decision. Did you want to go on that date with Jake? No. Were you still mad that, technically, you now had to go out with your ex-boyfriend? Yes.

The game ended and the party-goers dispersed throughout the apartment. You lingered in your spot on the couch, your arms crossed and heart full of mixed emotions. Peter, whose gaze never strayed from you, walked over to where you were sitting.

“We don’t actually have to go out,” he whispered, hoping that you’d actually look at him this time. “I just didn’t think you wanted to go out with that guy. He seemed like kind of an asshole.”

“Yeah, well, it would have been nice if you let me decide that. You’re not my boyfriend, anymore Peter. We aren’t even friends. You don’t get a say in who I go out on dates with,” you grumbled, your eyes focusing on everything in the room except for him.

Before you could say anything else, Peter had already grabbed you by the hand, dragging you away from the rest of the party. Strangely enough, you went along with it, a little curious to hear him out.

You started to remember your first date, and it was almost like you could hear his excited laughter after you finally managed to knock a pin down. It became a tradition that whenever you had something to celebrate, Peter would pick you up and twirl you around until you had to beg him to stop.

Your thoughts were interrupted by Peter slamming the door behind him and cornering you against it, his heartbeat racing. He had pulled you into the laundry room. “I can’t stand seeing you with anybody else,” he panted, eyes flickering down towards your mouth.

His hand pushed a piece of your hair behind your ear, and your breath hitched as you felt his rough fingertips against your skin. But before he could lean in to kiss you, you were ducking underneath his arm and backing away.

“Peter, we really shouldn’t,” you whispered, watching the disappointment wash over his face. No matter how much you wanted to kiss him, you just couldn't forget how he had broken your heart months ago. “It’s over, okay?”

“Y/N, please. I—”

“You what? You love me? Because last time we were together, I told you how much I loved you and you said that we should break up. Remember?” you cried, embarrassed at how you couldn’t control your emotions anymore. “You’re just… you’re too late.”

You fumbled with the door, slipping through the opening before rushing towards the balcony. As soon as the cold air hit you, a wave of relief washed over your body, and you laid your head against the metal railing. Your breathing slowed and time seemed to stand still as you watched the snowflakes flutter through the wind.

“Peter’s an idiot,” you heard a voice call out from behind you. You turned to see Harry holding an extra coat in his arms, and you started to wonder just how long you had been standing out there. He draped it over your shoulders before leaning next to you against the balcony’s edge.

“Huh?” you asked, wondering if he knew what had just happened. You looked at him, the multicolored Christmas lights reflecting off his shiny hair. “What do you mean?”

“He’s stupid for ever letting you go,” he remarked. He had a look in his eyes that made you unsure of what he actually meant. “I mean, look at you. You’re so beautiful, and smart, and funny. And if he was dumb enough to throw all of that away, then yeah, Peter’s an idiot.”

“Oh, thanks, I guess,” you shrugged, your voice faint under the music that was still playing inside. You looked at him, his cheeks a rosy hue, which you couldn’t tell was from the cold or whatever he was trying to tell you.

“You know, I used to have the biggest crush on you,” Harry admitted, laughing a little bit at how nervous he was. Everybody knew that he was a player, so being flustered over a girl was uncharted territory for him. “I never told you this, but you were my first kiss.”

“Wait, really?” you asked, a little shocked at his confession. “But I thought you kissed Sarah Emerson on the playground in the fifth grade?”

“Nope. I was just a liar,” he grinned, running a hand through his hair. “It was right before our eighth grade formal, when you asked me to teach you how to kiss because you were scared that Jeremy Pellegrino was going to try and french you.

“Oh! I forgot all about that,” you laughed, suddenly remembering just how long you and Harry had been friends. “Hold on a second... You gave me kissing lessons without knowing how to kiss!?”

“Guilty,” Harry chuckled as you punched him on the arm. “Ow! Damn, Y/N. When did you get so strong?”

“I have a lot of rage,” you mumbled before the two of you burst out into laughter, which slowly faded into a comfortable silence. 

“You don’t feel that way anymore, right?” you wondered out loud. Harry looked at you, smiling softly.

“No, not anymore,” he affirmed, and you let out a sigh of relief. You knew what it felt like to love someone and not be loved back. “I think what really helped me get over it was seeing how happy you and Parker were when you were dating.” 

“He misses you a lot,” Harry continued, his tone more serious than before. “He keeps this scarf that you left behind under his pillow because it still smells like you. I found out because he was having a pretty bad dream one night and I had to try really hard to calm him back down. And we both thought Gwen would help him move on and get his mind off of you, but I think she only made him realize just how much he still loves you—”

“Harry,” you interrupted, cutting his rambles short. “Why are you telling me all of this?”

“Because you and Peter should be together.”

“You think so?” you asked him, pulling the jacket tighter to keep you warm.

“Yeah. We all do.” It took only seconds for Harry to realize his fumble, accidentally admitting that the whole thing had been planned by him and your friends.

“We?” Your frowned, all of the coincidences from tonight suddenly making much more sense. “Wait, did you know that Peter was going to be here tonight all along?”

“Uh… yeah, about that. MJ, Ned, and I have kind of been pulling a Parent Trap on you guys.”

“HARRY!” You glared inside to see them not-so-secretly watching the entire exchange from behind the Christmas tree. Ned did some awkward finger guns, which MJ immediately swatted down. “I am so going to get you guys!”

You marched inside to where your friends were attempting to hide, the rest of the party guests too drunk and oblivious to notice what was happening. 

“The eagle has left the nest. I repeat, The eagle has left the nest!” Ned yelled, ducking behind MJ, who was already shielding herself with a throw pillow.

“What’s going on?” Betty whined, half-asleep on the couch. “Is this that stupid plan about Peter and Y/N?”

“It’s not stupid!” Harry grumbled, his voice cracking a little bit. You could hear MJ snorting about it from her hiding spot. “Whatever, Michelle.”

“Shut up!” she shouted back.

“No, you!” he said, crossing his arms and standing his ground.

“Make me,” MJ said, narrowing her eyes and shooting daggers at him.

“Uh, guys. This isn’t about you two,” Ned interrupted, snapping them out of their mini argument. There was a weird tension between them that you just knew you would have to address some time in the future.

“Right,” MJ continued, sticking a middle finger up at Harry before turning to you. “Y/N. You should go talk to Peter.”

You nodded, exchanging hopeful looks with each of your friends before walking away. They might be dramatic goofballs, but you loved them so much that you didn’t really care.

Wandering around the party, you spotted Peter trapped in a conversation with Brad Davis, who was explaining his conspiracy theories about the Denver Airport and its demonic horse statue.

“So, all I’m saying is that they’re totally planning the end of the world over there. I mean, the Freemasons built an entire bunker for when they activate the nukes!” he rambled, Peter politely nodding along to his nonsense.

“Hey,” you said, tapping Brad on the shoulder and batting your eyelashes at him. “Can I borrow Peter?”

“Uh, yeah, totally, Y/N,” he stuttered, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards into a smirk. You could smell the peppermint Schnapps on his breath.

“Great. Thanks, Brad!” you smiled, grabbing Peter’s hand and pulling him towards the staircase. By the time you made it to his bedroom, he had already asked what was going on about ten times.

“Why’d you dump me?” you asked, the two of you sitting together on the edge of his bed, your knee brushing against his. He could tell you were wasting no time in getting to the point. “Be honest.”

He stared at the floor, unsure of how to answer your question. You reached for his hand, running your thumb across his knuckles until he looked up to see you smiling at him. His eyes were starting to water. “Just tell me, Peter. It’s okay.”

“I was scared,” he admitted, his voice breaking. “I was scared of how much I love you. I mean, Liz was just a crush, and Gwen was a hookup. I’ve only ever loved you, Y/N. Before we met, I had to watch May’s heart break day after day when we lost Uncle Ben, and when I realized how much I loved you... I just wasn’t sure if I could handle ever losing you like that. And so I felt like I needed to protect you from all of the people who would want to hurt you.”

“Hey, Peter. Calm down. I’m right here,” you whispered, wiping a tear from his face. You watched as his breathing slowed, eventually evening out. “Why would anybody want to hurt me?”

“Because…” he started, hesitating a little bit. “Because I’m Spider-Man.”

Your eyes grew big as you mulled over what he had just said. “Are you being serious right now?”

He nodded, feeling a weight lift from his chest. Your eyes followed him as he walked over to his closet, digging around through piles of clothes before he found what he was looking for.

“Holy shit,” you breathed out. Peter was holding up Spider-Man’s suit. His suit. The sweatshirt from earlier made a lot more sense now.

“I would never lie to you,” he said, folding it up and sitting back down. “I’m so sorry, Y/N. I thought I was doing the right thing—that you’d be safe—but I was so stupid. I, uh, I think about you all the time. I worry whether you’ve gotten home alright and how your little brother’s doing and if your mom got the promotion that she wanted and—”

You cut him off with a kiss, something you had been dying to do ever since you shut his bedroom door. “I forgive you,” you sighed, gently playing with his hair.

Peter stared back at you, a grin slowly spreading across his face. “Does this mean that we’re back together?”

“Yep,” you confirmed, before leaning into another kiss. And another. And another.

“Wait,” Peter said, breaking away from you. “I have a present for you. It’s actually from when we first started dating, but I was waiting until Christmas to give it to you.”

He moved to his desk, digging through one of the drawers before pulling out a flash drive. “Here it is,” he smiled, dropping it into your hand. It had your name scribbled on it next to a cat sticker. “It’s a playlist. Of all the songs that make me think of you. I think it’s got around a hundred on there?”

“Wow,” you beamed, marveling at the little piece of plastic in your hand. “You’re making me look bad. I didn’t get you anything.”

“Not true. You owe me a date, remember?” he reminded you, wiggling his eyebrows and pulling you into his lap.

“You’re right. Let me think,” you hummed, running through all the ideas of what the two of you could do. “Oh! I got it. The Central Park Squirrel Census for this year just got released. What if we analyzed the data? You could do the wrangling and I could do the visualizations!”

“I love you so much,” he laughed, pressing a kiss onto the tip of your nose. You giggled as Peter buried his face into your shoulder, his grip around your waist tightening. “But you are such a nerd.”

“I’m your nerd, Parker,” you agreed, leaning further into his embrace. “Always have been and always will be.”

—————-

Taglist: @hommyy-tommy @itsgonnabeohtay @alltimekyn @allycat449-blog @greatpizzascissorstaco @dummiesshort @parkerpeterparker2004 @letssee2468 @parkerlovebot @alytavzla @yourbiggestspiderfan @silentium-tais-toi @jailcalledlife @orangesodafoam @obsssedwithjustaboutanything @hufflepuffprincess24 @hollanddolanfangirl @in-a-lot-of-fandoms-tbh @spideydreamers @taciturnspidey @harrisonsoceaneyes

P.S.: Please shoot me an ask or a reply if you’d like to be added to (or removed from) the taglist!

[that-scouse-wizard]

David Willows MK 2

A/N: Just an updated version of David’s profile, complete with a few changes and a more in-depth description of certain characteristics. Hope you guys enjoy and if you’d like your MC to be friends with him, message me and let’s chat about it.

Some more things to note:

-Merula is not the mole.

-I’m using the female version of Rowan as David’s best friend because to hell with game restrictions. Also, she survives, at least... David’s Rowan does.

-Drastic alteration to the Quidditch storyline. Skye is in David’s year and a Gryffindor. Orion, Murphy and Erika are two years above David and are in Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin respectively. Also including Andre and Charlie while introducing Oliver Wood and Lee Jordan.

-It goes without saying but spoilers for my ideas. Some are kept deliberately vague and some aren’t covered entirely more so because I intend to write about it someday. Let me know what you guys think of those that are given though. 

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

General Information

Name: David Owen Willows (Formerly David Owen Hall, changed to mother’s maiden name in 1982).

Gender: Male

Age: 11-18 (1984-91), 19-25 (1992-98)

DOB: 30/03/1973

Species: Human

Blood status: Half-blood

Sexuality: Straight

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Ethnicity: White-British 

Nationality: English (maternal side of family is Irish, paternal grandmother is Scottish, paternal grandfather and father are English).

Residence: Liverpool/ Lancaster (during his Hogwarts years and depending upon who he’s staying with).

Wimborne (during his career as a pro Quidditch player)

Hogsmeade (final place of residence after becoming Charms professor)

Myers Briggs Personality Type: ENFP, The Campaigner

Character summary: Though he may come across as stand-offish at first, David Willows is a friend as loyal as he is bull-headed. A student of Erika Rath, he became known as Hound on the Quidditch pitch for his relentless pursuit of opposing players. A skill in duelling and the muggle martial art of muay thai (also a pair of knuckledusters) ensures David is a formidable opponent with or without magic.

Personality:

Aggressive: While he tries to reign in his anger, David is known to have a short temper when it comes to certain taunts. Chief amongst them, comparing him to Jacob. In his early years he was even willing to physically fight much older students despite the clear difference in both size and strength.

Aloof: For all of his first year and a good portion of his second year, David isn’t the one to initiate a friendship (except for Chiara but that was when there was no one else to really talk to while spending a night in the Hospital Wing due to the Devil’s Snare incident). However, while undergoing his first time as a quidditch player, he’s taught by Penny how to be a bit more social at pre and post-match parties.

Artistic: David was taught by his mother Rue to draw in greyscale sketches, something he improves on during his time throughout Hogwarts. In the midst of Jacob’s disappearance, his parent’s divorce and especially the stress that comes at Hogwarts, drawing provided an escape for him. His favourite things to draw are people and creatures.

Competitive: This aspect of David tends to come out the most when it comes to sport. With Erika as his mentor, he nurtures a healthy sense of competition as well as a determination to best the other houses and put Hufflepuff on top when it comes to quidditch.

Courageous: Largely as a result of his loyalty, David is willing to throw himself headlong into danger. The Sorting Hat didn’t nearly put him in Gryffindor for no reason.

Determined: When David sets his mind to a goal, he wants to accomplish it to the best of his abilities. In the case of finding Jacob however, it led to a sort of tunnel-vision, one that was finally broken when Chauncy and Philip succumb to injuries sustained under the sleepwalking curse.

Empathetic: Throughout his years at Hogwarts, David starts to empathise with people in his life. Even in the case of Merula, he sees how lonely she must really be and tries to reach out to her on numerous occasions. If he doesn’t fully understand it, he’d like you to share your feelings with him, at your own behest of course.

Loyal: In spite of a prickly exterior at first, once you win David’s loyalty, he’ll return it ten-fold. The type of friend who would take a bullet for you.  

Snarky: David has a sharp tongue, preferably he tries to shut down an argument with his wits. Only going for duelling when he feels it necessary. That being said, he isn’t shy about getting petty in a verbal spar, for example his response to Merula when first being taunted about Jacob supposedly teaming up with Voldemort: “At least that’s just a rumour, can’t say the same about your parents.”

Stubborn: A self-described ‘stubborn git’, David is quite notorious for not budging from his position once he thinks he has all the facts he needs. If he’s being especially difficult, just get Merula.

Appearance

Face Claim: Dave Franco (as an adult at least).

Voice Claim: Paul McCartney.

Game appearance: 

Physique: Athletic, broad shouldered and fairly bulky as a result of weight training with Erika.

Hair Colour: Dark Brown

Hair style: Chin-length (1st-2nd year), crew cut (3rd-4th year), short but long enough to slick back (5th year-present).

Eye colour: Dark brown.

Height: 5′11″ (as of 6th year)

Weight: Approx 80kg (when fully grown)

Scarring: A few small ones sustained during duels and the occasional mishap in quidditch, mostly on his upper body with a few on his legs. Sustains a burn scar on the left side of his waist during the battle with R.

Body modifications: Get’s the phrase “You’ll never walk alone.” tattooed on his right bicep at eighteen. Later gets a ram skull tattoo on his upper back just between the shoulder blades at age twenty. Finally, gets a shepherd crook just below the ram skull tattoo at age twenty-one.

Inventory: His wand, a pair of knuckledusters, a sketchbook, a pencil case containing stationary.

Fashion: He trusts Andre’s advice on what looks good on him though knows what works for him and what doesn’t. Partly influenced by his musical tastes (mainly punk, and rock and roll), has a love of leather jackets and slightly ripped jeans.

Background/ History:

Pre-Hogwarts:

-David was born in Liverpool, living in the suburb of Allerton. One of his favourite things to do was play football with Jacob and his dad.

-His mum would teach him to draw, most often on rainy days.

-Close to both of his parents as a result but it all changed when Jacob disappeared. He knew Jacob and his parents had arguments after being expelled but hadn’t heard any of it on account of the use of a muffling charm. Furthermore, Rue and Matthew were driven apart, Matthew blaming Jacob’s change in attitude and eventual disappearance on magic in its entirety.

-Sometime after Jacob disappeared and when the general shitshow stirred up by the Daily Prophet had died down, it was settled that Rue and Matthew would divorce. Given that David would go to Hogwarts as well, they thought it would be best for David to take Willows as his surname, hopefully not being recognised as Jacob Hall’s brother.

-This was fruitless, Rita Skeeter caught wind of the proceedings and sensationalised them, exposing the name change in the process. The stress and grief caused both parents to distance themselves from David in some way. Rue threw herself into work and became even more strict with David’s freedom while Matthew just left.

-David however, was fighting his own battles, it became known at his muggle school about Jacob going missing as well as his parents divorcing. This caused him to become quite reclusive from his classmates and would lash out at anyone who said a bad word towards him, especially if it concerned his family drama. He lost any friends he did have and refused to make any more.

During Hogwarts

-Year 1: He first meets Rowan, even being introduced to her younger brother, Alder (basically male Rowan). 

David, Rowan, Tonks, Diego, Chiara and Penny first begin to form what becomes known as the Hufflesquad. 

Also befriends Ben and Charlie.

Angelica Cole takes him under her wing despite not being in the same house and even shows David a group of trolls she’s been tending to in preparation for her apprenticeship in training security trolls.

Meets the Booths during the Christmas break and despite a rocky start, begins to develop a positive relationship with them even coming to an understanding with his dad.

During one of his expeditions with Angelica, he’s confronted by Needle, an acromantula that previously belonged to Jacob. 

Finally stands up to his mum properly, resulting in him staying with the Booths for the summer in Lancaster.

-Year 2: David meets those who are involved in the Quidditch scene at Hogwarts, including Erika Rath, who he briefly develops a crush on until he’s let down gently at the end of Year 2.

He duels Merula for a second time, winning once more, which makes her cry albeit in private. This then results in having his first encounter with Barnaby Lee, who confronts David about upsetting Merula. David tries to get past but Barnaby wraps his hands around David’s throat. Not actually choking him mind, more to get his attention. David panics as it reminds him of the Devil’s Snare that wrapped around his throat and lashes out at Barnaby.

David puts Barnaby in the hospital wing, much to the anger of Liz Tuttle.

The last Quidditch match for the House Cup between Hufflepuff and Slytherin is interrupted by the spread of the cursed ice. Ultimately resulting in Gryffindor’s victory in the cup for that year. 

Rue comes back, mentioning how Corey Hayden (David’s American cousin in this AU) would like to transfer to Hogwarts.

Year 3: Amelia comes to Hogwarts as a first year and gets sorted into Hufflepuff. Similarly, Alder starts at Hogwarts and is sorted into Ravenclaw. 

Amelia brings Dusty, her cat, along with her. However, Dusty goes missing shortly after arriving at the castle.

Later, in a COMC class, Barnaby mentions that he found a cat matching Dusty’s description. Initially, David is very suspicious to the extent of threatening Barnaby if he harmed Dusty in any way. Barnaby refutes this and returns Dusty to him unharmed, causing David to apologise for both for the accusation and the events that happened last year. Eventually, he even befriends Barnaby.

In a similar vein, when tending to some of his creatures on the reserve, he bumps into Liz and winds up introducing her to Needle. The two get a friendship going, David admiring Liz’s passion for creatures and Liz appreciating David for not finding her weird when she rambles about animals. To the extent that they go out on a few dates.

Close to the end of the year, he rants at Merula. Effectively asking the question of why she seems to hate him. Yet despite the rant he closes off with how he understands Merula, he’s been that lonely kid lashing out at the world and it’s not fun. Despite her reluctance to admit it, Merula knows David is right.

He gets the chance to verbally unload on Rita Skeeter for the articles she wrote about his family when she comes to the school looking to interview an interesting student. Later, several of his friends plus Merula of all people step in to put Skeeter in her place when she successfully provokes him into a fit of rage to make him look bad. The situation is eventually diffused by McGonagall.

Year 4: 

Corey officially transfers to Hogwarts from Ilvermorny after exchanging letters with David throughout third year.

Though David wasn’t particularly close to them, Chauncy and Philip (two of his dormmates alongside Diego) succumb to injuries sustained when they were attacked by a red cap under the Sleepwalking curse. When he learns the truth of what attacked them, David slays the creature.

David starts to realise he has a crush on Merula after assisting her in casting Expecto Patronum. Later in the year, he takes her out on a date to Hogsmeade, gets her a songbook for Christmas and even takes her out to the Celestial Ball.

Merula’s parents are freed from Azkaban by R, her mother even meeting Merula in secret throughout the year. During one of their meet-ups, she has a hunch Merula is starting to develop a crush on David (something which is true but not something she would admit it at the time). 

In order to eliminate this apparent threat to her family’s blood purity, she asks Merula to bring him to her in the Forbidden Forest under the guise of allowing the two of them to join R like she has. Instead, she subdues David with Petrificus Totalus, attempting to convince Merula to leave him, that David isn’t worth it.

Merula sides with David even though it pains her initially. David stays with her over the summer, where they try to figure out... whatever the hell their relationship is at the moment.

Year 5: Throughout this year he dates Merula in secret until Valentine’s Day. It’s here that she confesses she’s ready to have their relationship out in the open.

One of the most major event for David is Rakepick’s betrayal, he had actually grown fond of her as a mentor. Being stabbed in the back wasn’t a good thing for him.

The second is Jacob leaving immediately after David finds him. It’s hurtful and David becomes a bit reclusive for a while. Finally, he’s comforted by Bill, Orion and Erika, the older sibling figures in his life.

Year 6: Jacob returns, under the watchful eye of Alastor Moody, acting as the DADA  teacher for that year. Naturally, there’s tension between the brothers, which eventually resolves.

Jacob does join David for the Christmas break, where he gets along well with the Booths and reunites with his parents.

As well as this, R attempts to come after Amelia, resulting in the death of Alder Khanna. As well as being a devastating loss, it causes a rough patch in David and Rowan’s relationship when in her grief she winds up shouting “I wish I’d never met you, David Willows!” She only realises what she just said when the words leave her mouth but regardless, it causes a fracture within David’s larger circle of friends.

Eventually, the time comes for when David, Jacob and their allies take on the vaults like they had always dreamed of. Together, they face off against the guardian of the Sunken vault, an Ammit (based on the creature of Ancient Egyptian Mythology). Eventually the beast is defeated and they claim the treasure of the vaults, what seems to be the base of a necklace.

In a celebration at the Three Broomsticks, R attacks and murders Jacob. This sends David spiralling into grief, hitting his truly lowest point. He worked so hard, he rebuilt his family at home and forged a new one at Hogwarts, all the while hoping Jacob would be able to join them. And what was it all for? Nothing.

Before the school year is up... he snaps his wand and runs away from Hogwarts. Not to Liverpool, not to Lancaster, just anywhere but there. It will keep his friends and family safe or so he reasons. Deep down though, he thinks it’s cowardly.

During this time, he finds his way to Glasgow and starts sleeping rough on the streets all the while battling with grief, anger and self loathing. This goes on for two months before Moody tracks him down, apparating him to a secluded area of the Scottish countryside, kicks his arse and talks him down. Taking him to Grimmauld Place afterwards with the intention of formulating a plan to take the fight to R. 

Where he finds most of his remaining friends waiting for him. At first he staunchly refuses their help, feeling he’s already put enough people in danger. Yet they refuse to leave.

This is actually the moment where the Circle of Khanna is formed, this time named for Alder. Reconciling with Rowan after a serious heart-to-heart.

Year 7: ...Let’s just say R is going to regret setting David Willows on the warpath.

R’s destruction becomes widely regarded news, however David allows Moody to take the credit for it. Frankly, by this point he’s sick of any attachment to the Cabal and just wants to play Quidditch.

He’s able to pass his NEWTS and win the Quidditch cup for Hufflepuff one last time, resulting in him being offered the position as beater on the Wimborne Wasps.

Post-Hogwarts:

David and Merula work things out, moving in together. Though it’s odd with David still keeping at his Quidditch training and Merula now working for Gringotts as a curse-breaker. After winning the British and Irish League for the Wasps in 1993, he proposes to Merula which she accepts.

In 1994, they have a wedding in the summer time with Rowan being David’s best woman. They did plan on having kids until Cedric’s murder at the hands of Voldemort. With Quidditch cancelled and Merula being affiliated to Gringotts, both are approached to work for the Order. 

Though initially very hesitant, David agrees. Eliminating Death Eaters, rescuing their hostages and even fighting in the Battle of Hogwarts.

He returns to the Quidditch scene when it starts up again in 1999, helping the Wasps win the cup three more times. 1999 is also the year in which Merula and David have their first kid, Robin. After the latest victory in 2002 he discovers Merula is pregnant again, and his retirement from Quidditch is looming on the horizon. He’s convinced by Judith Harris (@judediangelo75) to teach for a few weeks over the summer at KC’s (@kc-needs-coffee) quidditch summer camp.  It’s here that he develops a love for teaching. Getting in touch with professor Flitwick to work as his assistant before becoming the Charms professor. 

In early 2003, he welcomes his son Nicholas into the world.

Family

Matthew Hall (father): 

Face Claim: Ben Miller

A stern but fair man and CIMA-qualified accountant originally from Yorkshire, Matthew met David’s biological mother Rue when he was on a business trip to Dublin in 1956. Encountering her in a quiet pub being told “I’ve dealt with a real dragon today” when he asked if she was okay on account of how tired she looked. Matthew took it as a joke but Rue was being entirely serious. They struck up a friendship and began dating, eventually getting married in 1961 and having Jacob in 1964. 

initially, he was fascinated by the existence of the wizarding world but soon came to fear it after Jacob’s disappearance. Divorcing Rue afterwards and cutting off contact from David aside from agreeing to send child maintenance. However, after being chewed out by his girlfriend Lyra, he all but begs David to come visit him in Lancaster over Christmas in 1984. 

The reason being that Amelia’s magical abilities finally began to manifest, which became a cause of conflict between David and Matthew, largely from David thinking that was the only reason he was invited. Eventually, they come to an understanding and try to work on improving their relationship.

Rue Willows (mother): 

Face Claim: Fiona O’Carroll

A dragonologist from Dublin in the employ of the Dragon Research and Restraint Bureau. Though she was strict, she was generally attentive towards David, being the one who taught him to draw.

After Jacob’s disappearance however, she became very withdrawn and austere. It was her way of opting for a ‘tough love’ approach, thinking she had been too soft and in her misguidance tried to control David’s life. Even then, she still grieved, frequently getting into arguments with David about his behaviour at school, bringing up Jacob when David tried to make her proud of him and other such things. 

During the start of the summer break between first and second year, David finally stands up to her properly. The words that get through to her are the following, “That stranger’s name is Lyra and she’s been a better mum to me in the weeks I’ve known her than you have for me in years.” and “I love you too mum... but I don’t know if I like you anymore.”

She does a lot of soul searching after that, staying with relatives in America for a year before coming back and promising to do better with her and David’s relationship.

Lyra Booth (nee Robinson) (step-mother):

Face Claim: Ruth Wilson

A muggle and CIMA-qualified accountant originally from London, left widowed in 1980 after her first husband, Peter died in a car accident. She met Matthew when working at an accounting firm in Lancaster shortly after his divorce from Rue. After a couple months of knowing each other, the two began dating, Lyra introduced him to her children, who he hit it off well with.

She knew he had a son who he sent child maintenance to but it wasn’t revealed until Amelia accidentally made a plant pot explode in a fit of frustration that Lyra learned the truth. Consequently... she blew up at Matthew for as good as abandoning as his son. Insisting on inviting him around for Christmas.

While David was prickly when he first came around, he eventually warmed up to her and the rest of the Booths, being a positive maternal influence on him.

Jacob Hall (brother) (deceased):

Face Claim: Tom Holland

David’s only biological sibling, a gifted though trouble-making student, first became interested in the cursed vaults during his first year when he was informed about the legend by seventh year Patricia Rakepick. In his sixth year, he stood up for fellow Gryffindor Angelica Cole when she was being bullied (at the time she was a first year).

His investigation into the vaults would put him into conflict with the mysterious cult known as R. A conflict that would put his family in danger and even cost him his life.

Alex Booth (step-brother):

Face Claim: Jody Latham

The eldest of the Booth siblings, Alex is a highly protective big brother and was worried upon realising his little sister was going to be part of a world none of them had any knowledge about. He tried to make David feel welcome despite the younger boy’s hostility.

When David attempted to run away during his first stay with the Booths, Alex caught him in the act and made a deal, get past him and he wouldn’t tell anyone he’d left. Though David was tenacious, Alex stopped him every time even pointing out the flaws in David’s technique if he tried to physically fight Alex. After David finally gave up, Alex didn’t breathe a word of his run away attempt to anyone. David would take up Alex’s offer to teach him muay thai during his first visit.

Sarah Booth (step-sister):

Face Claim: Emilia Clarke

The middle child of the Booth siblings and also the least welcoming, Sarah was most vocally against Amelia being part of the wizarding world. She treated David coldly at first, going on a grouse hunting trip with her friends the day after he arrived to stay with them for Christmas.

However, at some point, she caught him reading an old copy of a Shooting Times magazine and after some persuasion by Alex, took David clay pigeon shooting. Becoming quite impressed, and even a little endeared from how quickly he picked up shooting.

Amelia Booth (step-sister):

Face Claim: Maisie Williams

A muggleborn witch and the youngest of the Booth siblings, Amelia was surprised to realise she possessed magical abilities. Though was even more shocked to learn Matthew already knew about it.

When she was five years old, she was involved in the car accident that killed her father. Resulting in her being scarred with a gash on the right side of her forehead, a similar one on her left cheek and a larger one that cuts across from shoulder to her chest. Though she repressed the memory, she did indeed see her father die, thus Thestrals are visible to her. Another thing the accident did was give her motorphobia, though can tolerate it as long as she’s A) In control of the vehicle and B) It’s not motorised.

However, she does have a love of cycling, she was taught to do so by her dad before he died. Similarly, gymnastics helped her get some of her confidence back after the accident and still keeps up with it. A love of plants and animals prompts her to excel in Herbology and Potions, then later COMC.

Allegiances

Hogwarts House: Hufflepuff

Affiliations: The Circle of Khanna, The Wimborne Wasps, The Order of the Phoenix, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Professions: Beater for the Wimborne Wasps (1991-95)

Agent of the Order of the Phoenix (1995 - 98)

Resumes position as beater for the Wasps (1999-2003)

Charms Assistant Teacher (2003 - 05)

Charms Teacher (2005 - present)

Hogwarts Information

Class Proficiencies:

Astronomy: E

Charms: O

DADA: O

Herbology: E

History of Magic: A

Potions: A

Transfiguration: E

Electives:

Care of Magical Creatures: A

Muggle Studies: O

Quidditch:

Hufflepuff Beater (1985 - 91)

Hufflepuff Captain (after Orion graduates) (1989 - 91)

Extra Curricular:

Duelling Club (Becomes known as one of the best duellers in Hogwarts)

Art Club

Football Club (Founder)

Apparition Class (in 1991)

Favourite Professors:

Professor Sprout, his head of house and someone he feels he can go to if he needs advice. One of several people who warned him about being careful with Patricia Rakepick.

Professor Mcgonagall, his Transfiguration teacher and head of Jacob’s house when he was at Hogwarts. Though they disagree entirely on him tackling the vaults, he always pays attention in her lessons as while she’s often stern she can be a great teacher.

Professor Flitwick, as his Charms teacher, David always found Flitwick to be respectable. David especially respects Flitwick for teaching him Expelliarmus, even after he was honest in what he intended to do with it (i.e. use it in a duel against Merula). Also came for Flitwick’s help in developing Cometa.

Least Favourite Professors:

Professor Binns: Finds his droning entirely too boring and really only passed History of Magic thanks to Rowan.

Every other professor he’s either neutral on (Snape and Trelwany) or he likes but aren’t his favourites (Kettleburn).

Best Canon friends:

Rowan Khanna

Diego Caplan

Nymphadora Tonks

Penny Haywood

Chiara Lobosca

(David plus the above five make up the original members of the Hufflesquad)

Bill Weasley

Charlie Weasley

Erika Rath

Orion Amari

Badeea Ali

Barnaby Lee

Liz Tuttle

Love interest:

Erika Rath (crush)

Nymphadora Tonks (first kiss)

Liz Tuttle (dated briefly in third year but broke things off fairly amicably when they realised they were developing crushes on other people).

Merula Snyde (began dating in fourth year, later marries David in 1994)

Best MC friends:

Judith Harris (@judediangelo75): The closest of his MC friends, David and Judith first get acquainted by being pushed into friendship... somewhat subtly by Penny Haywood. Both of them catch on when Penny mentions they should try out for the Quidditch team. Both of them still go for it, bonding over a shared love of martial arts and proving they have the potential to be fearsome beaters.

Throughout their time at Hogwarts, David and Judith would demonstrate a fierce loyalty to each other, being as close as siblings. David even becoming godfather to her children, Bakari and Kendrick.

Cato Reese (@catohphm): David was first introduced to Cato by Penny. The two find themselves sharing very similar values, having a great love their friends and absolute ruthlessness towards their enemies.

Like anyone involved in the Quidditch scene at Hogwarts, David has a bit of a rivalry with him. Tending to trash talk him (though with no real weight behind it), Cato understands that David doesn’t mean it.

Katriona Cassiopea (KC) (@kc-needs-coffee): The two of them are sports fanatics, they could talk to each other for hours about Quidditch. While David definitely knows more about footy, he’s eager to learn about any sport, such as baseball which KC is highly knowledgeable about.

KC would be one of the first to jump at the football matches David organises during his time at Hogwarts. 

Lizzie Jameson (@lifeofkaze​): Like David, Lizzie is an avid fan of LFC. Even meeting up at some point with their respective partners to watch a footy match at Anfield, where Liverpool were playing. 

On the quidditch pitch, Lizzie is a chaser and knows she can count on David to keep the bludgers off her back.

If any of your MCs would want to be friends with David, let me know!

Rivals:

Merula Snyde (For most of his time at Hogwarts).

During Quidditch: Erika Rath, Skye Parkin, Andre Egwu, Charlie Weasley, Angelica Cole, Oliver Wood, Cato Reese and Katriona Cassiopea.

Enemies:

R (including Patricia Rakepick, Fenrir Greyback and Peter Pettigrew).

The Snyde family (minus Merula)

Voldemort

Death Eaters

Magical Abilities

1st Wand: Blackthorn, unicorn hair core, ten and a quarter inches, slightly springy and flexible. Snaps it in half shortly just before the end of sixth year, citing, “What kind of warrior can’t even protect his own brother?”

Blackthorn, which is a very unusual wand wood, has the reputation, in my view very well-merited, of being best suited to a warrior.

Unicorn hair generally produces the most consistent magic, and is least subject to fluctuations and blockages. Wands with unicorn cores are generally the most difficult to turn to the Dark Arts. They are the most faithful of all wands, and usually remain strongly attached to their first owner, irrespective of whether he or she was an accomplished witch or wizard. Minor disadvantages of unicorn hair are that they do not make the most powerful wands (although the wand wood may compensate) and that they are prone to melancholy if seriously mishandled, meaning that the hair may ‘die’ and need replacing.

2nd Wand: English Oak, Dragon Heartstring core, twelve and a half inches, unbending.

A wand for the good times and bad, this is a friend as loyal as the wizard who deserves it. Wands of English Oak demand partners of strength, courage and fidelity. Obtained from Garrick Ollivander while being accompanied by Alastor Moody.

As a rule, dragon heartstrings produce wands with the most power, and which are capable of the most flamboyant spells. Dragon  wands tend to learn more quickly than other types. While they can change allegiance if won from their original master, they always bond strongly with the current owner. The dragon wand tends to be easiest to turn to the Dark Arts, though it will not incline that way of its own accord. It is also the most prone of the three cores to accidents, being somewhat temperamental.  

Animagus form: A ram, specifically of a Dalesbred Sheep. Rams symbolise determination, initiative and leadership, factors that are put to the test more than once during his time at Hogwarts.

Misc magical abilities: Legilimens, Rue informs him of potentially inheriting her legilimens ability between third year and fourth year when he tells her of his delve into the Vault of Fear. David prefers not using it on people, rather using it to see through the eyes of animals as his great grandfather Reuben used to do.

Occlumency: Snape, at Dumbledore’s behest begins teaching David the art of Occlumency in fifth year.

Non-verbal magic: David began learning the non-verbal use of magic in fifth year thanks to professor Flitwick. Becoming highly skilled in it by his seventh year.

Spell creation: Assists in the creation of Stella Cascadia alongside Badeea Ali. Given how dangerous the vaults could be, he begins to work on another spell inspired by Stella Cascadia alongside several of his friends, Cometa, the comet jinx.

Boggart Form: Initially, Jacob as a death eater after hearing about the rumours of him taking Voldemort’s side.

From year four onwards, himself as a dark wizard as he worries about the path the vaults will set him on.

Riddikulus Form: Death eater Jacob’s mask turns into a pie that promptly splats him in the face.

Later, his dark wizard self in the uniform of Everton Football Club with a blue clown nose and wig to match. Since he’s a Liverpool Football Club supporter, seeing himself in one his rival team’s colours as a clown is hilarious to him.

Amortentia (what do they smell like?): A sea breeze and heather.

Amortentia (what do they smell?): Freshly mown grass and clear air after a rainfall.

Patronus: African wild dog, a symbol of his loyalty and relentless pursuit of his goals.

Patronus memory: -Attending the LFC vs Nottingham Forest semi final match of the Football League Cup at Anfield on the 12th February 1980 with his dad and Jacob. They drew 1-1 and LFC didn’t get through to the final but David was still happy to be there with both them.

Mirror of Erised: Jacob being back, alongside all of his friends and family. All of them are safe and well.

Specialised/ favourite spells: 

Cometa, a spell that David creates in sixth year with the help of Badeea Ali, Rowan Khanna, Merula Snyde, Diego Caplan and professor Flitwick. Inspired by Stella Cascadia, and using some principles from the Ice Jinx, the spell initially creates cricket ball-sized pieces of ice that explode into a mist when they impact against something. This makes it especially useful for blinding or disorienting a target. Later they develop the more-powerful Cometa Maxima in seventh year. Its main limitations are maintaining eye contact directed at the target (as is the case for all jinxes) and its general range is quite short (about twenty five feet) due to the “comet” (really a mix of ice, dust and gases) disintegrating quite quickly.

Protego Diabolica, A spell taught to him by Felix Rosier in sixth year, nothing says “Get away from my friends!” Like a massive wall of blue flame that incinerates enemies and leaves allies unharmed.

Expelliarmus, the Disarming charm taught to David by Professor Flitwick in first year is one of his go-to spells when duelling.

Protego, learned in order to protect himself from spells and other projectiles.

Healing spells: Largely taught to him by Chiara throughout their time at Hogwarts, healing spells have come in handy more than once when he needs to preserve his own or his friend’s lives.

Expecto Patronum, though niche, a spell that can get rid of a dementor is nothing to scoff at. Plus it’s a sentimental reminder of his friendship with Tonks.

Incendio, good as a fire-starter and a duelling spell, also reminds him of a time when Merula stood up to Rita Skeeter for him by burning her camera.

Misc Information

-David is a huge supporter of Liverpool Football Club (LFC), so much so one of his casuals is a club uniform.

-As well as Needle, David has other creatures on the reserve, Lucky (Knarl), Clop (Porlock), Bonita (fairy), Mori (thestral), and Chen (Chinese fireball).

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Naughty or nice?

Based on this: “Thor dressed up as Santa for the Avengers Christmas party. Sitting upon a throne of candy canes and gum drops he calls out your name. It was your turn to sit on the God of Thunder's lap. Imagine him whispering in your ear asking if you were going to be naughty or nice for him later that night. Feeling disgusted you excuse yourself from the party to return to your apartment only to find him waiting for you.” requested by anonymous

Warnings: noncon sex (fingers, intercourse)

Note: Okay, so I’ll be working on holiday drabbles over the next few days. I haven’t too many atm but hopefully one or two a day if I can manage!

Hope y’all enjoy. Like and/or reblog!! <3 Reblogs really help especially since I haven’t been getting many.

Tony’s parties were always extravagant. Over the top but elegant. This year’s theme was winter wonderland. Cliche but classy. Wear something sparkly, the invitation said. Of course, sequins were the look for the night but you opted for blue-silver dress with long sleeves and a skirt to your knees. Elegant, like Taylor before Burton. Your sparkle was a silver necklace with a single sapphire.

When you entered, it was a swarm of sheen and shine. Tony wore a dark red suit with a sequined gold tie, Steve had managed a glittery blue tie with his grey suit, and Bucky looked dour amongst the bunch with a string of tinsel around his neck, no doubt forcefully slung over his head. The women were only too content to show off their sequined gowns and bright frills.

Thor stuck out like a sore thumb. A santa hat of sequins and a full-out costume as he sat on the faux-snow throne at the front of the room. Loki frowned as he held a pair of elf ears and argued with his boisterous brother. Tony looked on with amusement as others tried to ignore the bickering.

You neared, hesitant, eager to greet your host before you found a flute of champagne to hide behind. Tony was chuckling as you came closer and you could hear the Asgardians’ voices above the jazzy seasonal tunes and refined din. Loki tossed the ears at Thor’s chest.

“Brother, you demean me!” He accused. “For the last time, I am not your sidekick.”

“Oh, brother, don’t be so dramatic. It is theatre. I am the god of Christmas--”

“Santa Claus,” Tony intoned.

“Yes, this San-ta Cloos,” Thor mimicked, “And you are my loyal helper. The true hero of the night.” Loki fumed and Thor turned to reach over the arm of the chair. “Fine, you don’t have to be an elf. How about...a deer!”

Thor pulled forth a headband with antlers and offered it up. You stopped beside Tony who was shaking in silent laughter. You nudged him and he glanced over at you, his face red with restrained mirth. 

“Who’s idea was this?” You asked.

“Well, I was just going to hire a mall santa but...Thor insisted.” Tony explained. “Though I don’t think he discussed it with his brother first.”

“Clearly,” You eyed the brothers as Loki snatched the antlers and snapped them in half. “Were you intending on keeping this place in one piece?”

“Worse things have occurred here than sibling rivalries.”

“I think you underestimate them,” You shook your head and turned to him. He was still rapt by the scene. “This is really fabulous...for now.”

“Thanks, but it wasn’t me.” He shrugged. “I think if I took credit Pepper may just reenact this little show with me tonight.”

“Well, I’ll let her know--”

Tony raised his hand and pointed to the brothers. Thor had stood and Loki was right before him. Thor reached out and placed the ears over Loki’s and his wrists were seized by the black-haired Asgardian. 

They struggled for a moment, Loki’s dark haired was mussed as he wrestled with his brother, and the scuffle last only a moment before he snaked out and took the ears with him. He whipped them at his brother who caught them with one hand and spun on his heel. Loki cursed under his breath as he stormed away and Thor boomed with laughter.

“Never an occasion without a tantrum,” Thor pronounced as he turned to Tony. His eyes found you beside the billionaire and his smile grew. “Ah, my lady, you’ve arrived.” He sat in the snowy throne, his thick arms draped over it. 

“Thor,” You greeted reticently.

“Santa Close,” He corrected and you squinted at his peculiar pronunciation. Tony chuckled again. “Tony has declared me the king of the party.”

“Alright, I really don’t know where he’s coming up with this stuff but...I’m gonna find Pepper before he drives me crazy, too.” Tony excused himself with a twitch of his brow. “Santa.”

You watched Tony go and wondered if you could slip away with him. Thor was boisterous tonight, more so than his usual fervour, and you were quite ready to contend with it alone. “Um, I should--”

“You should come sit on Santa’s lap!” Thor declared and you looked back to him in shock. “Tell me what you want this year?”

“Okay, Thor,” You laughed, “You’re really taking this seriously.”

“Yes, I have a list,” He tapped his head. “Lady Natasha wants a new knife, she showed me how dull her old one was. And Steve wants a nice pair of shoes, very practical. His friend with the arm wanted me to leave him alone and that was an easy enough gift to give.”

You blinked at him. Wondering at how disastrous this evening had been so far. You weren’t exactly late and it seemed you’d missed all the fun. “Well, Thor, what I want for Christmas--” He shook his head.

“You have to sit in my lap and tell me,” He insisted as he rubbed the red velvet across his thigh. “I understand this is Midgardian tradition.”

“For children,” You scoffed. 

“Well, my lady, we are still young. So sit.” He slapped his thigh and beckoned you close with his other hand. 

You glanced around and saw how so many guests were avoiding Thor’s gaze. Bucky frowned as he peeked over and a glimmer of pity shone in his eyes. Steve looked over in kind and quickly grabbed him to draw back his attention.

“Alright, but then I’ve got to go say hi to everyone, I’ve only just got here.” You relented and stepped closer to the bottom of the chair.

“Very well,” He allowed and held his hand out. “But you cannot start the evening without first greeting Santa.”

He tugged you up onto the step below his throne and between his legs. He guided you as you turned and released you. He swiftly grabbed your waist and swept you up onto his leg. You grabbed his shoulder to steady yourself.

“So, my lady, what do you want for Christmas?” His hand rested on your lower back, tenuously close to your ass.

“Um,” You looked around, suddenly hyper aware of the room full of guests. “Thor, this is silly, I’m gonna--”

You tried to slip out of his lap but he snaked his arm around and clung to your hip. He took your chin with his other hand and made you look at him. “Tell me what you want?”

Your eyes rounded and you felt your skin burning. You stuttered before you could even find your breath. “Uhhhh, um,” You licked your lips as you thought, your mouth suddenly dry. He focused on your tongue and you pressed your mouth shut. Finally you found your voice. “A vacation.”

“Vacation?” He repeated as he tilted his head.

“Yes, I uh, wanna go away for a while. Take a break from work.” You explained nervously as you moved your clutch onto your lap and played with the embroidered flap. 

“Well, my lady, you surely deserve a respite,” His arm fell slightly and his hand returned to your back. He leaned forward and his fingers crawled down until he was cupping your ass. “But are you going to be nice or naughty?” You gasped. “As I understand, only nice girls get what they want.”

You stared at him and trembled just slightly. He squeezed your ass as he felt you waver and you pushed yourself off of him. You nearly stumbled as you landed on your heels painfully and clattered down the step. He let you go without a fight but his fingers longingly trailed your arm as you detached.

“Sorry, I should--” You turned back to him as you righted yourself. “I gotta say hi to Nat before she takes out that knife again, yeah?”

Your feet twisted together clumsily as you fled. Thor said nothing but you could feel him watching you as you dove into the crowd. You were lost at first, Nat’s red head not visibly until you were on the other side of the room. You leaned on the wall as you tried to clear your head. 

Were you being stupid? Did you overreact? You looked across the room to where Thor sat at a vantage across the whole din. He looked back at you and grinned. Was he really looking at you? You peered back to Nat and Wanda and pushed yourself from the wall. 

You grabbed a drink from a server as he passed and wove between the couples and groups that chattered. Forget it. It was done with. All in your head. Nothing. Your own anxiety fueling your fretful imagination. Have a drink with your friends and you wouldn’t care so much.

-

At the end of the night, you barely recalled its beginning. Three glasses of champagne kept you in a festive spirit. Thor remained a speck in your vision, looming in your peripherals. But it grew easier to ignore him. Easy enough to chalk it up to your social awkwardness.

You left with a final goodbye to your hosts and wrapped yourself in your jacket as you headed out onto the chilly city street. Tony had hired cars lined up for guests, both inebriated and not. Always mindful, always thinking a step ahead. 

You slid into one and gave your address, a tip for the comped driver. The drive was relaxing and lulled your champagne hazed mind. You were almost dozing in the backseat as the car pulled up to your building. You thank the driver one last time and were once more awakened by the winter air.

The elevator ride was slow. Or so it seemed. You stepped off and dragged your feet down the hall to your door. You unlocked the door and entered with a yawn. You kicked off your heels with a sigh, happy to be ride of the torturous arches. You just wanted to sleep.

You dug your phone out of your clutch and flicked on the flashlight. You shone it ahead of you as you crept through your dark apartment. You were too lazy, too tired to flip the lights on. You were just going to get out of your clown suit and fall into bed.

Your bedroom was full of shadows. You passed the open door and set your phone on the night table to let it shine up at the ceiling and illuminate the space. You reached back to unzip your dress and struggled to bend your arm at such and angle. As you brought your arms up over your head to push down the zipper, a large hand caught yours.

You tried to scream but another hand clapped over your mouth. A long shush filled your ears as a warm body pressed against your back. “My lady, you needn’t be afraid.” Thor’s voice was low, sultry, “I only mean to help you.”

He parted just slightly, the heat of his body still radiated around you. He tugged down your zipped in a single swipe and the fabric loosened around you. You held it up against your chest as he kept his hand over your mouth. Your voice was smothered by his palm and you pulled at his hand.

“You didn’t answer my question?” He shoved his other hand beneath your chest and snaked around to your stomach. “Have you been naughty or nice?”

His hand slipped down to your neck and you kept yours on it. “Thor, what are you--?”

“I think you’re a naughty girl.” His hand drifted lower, just over the top of your panties. He played with the lacy elastic. “Aren’t you?”

“Thor,” You warned and his other hand slid from under yours and tugged at the top of your dress. “Stop.”

“You said you need a break…” He purred and moved his hips against you. You could feel his arousal through your skirt. “I can help you relax.”

“I think you misunderstood me.” You clung to your dress as he tried to push it down. “Please--”

“Don’t act so innocent,” He snarled as his fingers edged under the top of your panties. 

He turned you, the light of your phone gave a sinister dim to the room. You tried to resist him but he was too strong. He almost had you off your feet as he pressed your legs against the bed. 

“Naughty or nice?” He asked again.

“Get off of me,” You whined. “Thor!”

He stopped pulling at your dress and wrapped his arm around your middle. He lifted you and brought his knee up between your legs. He climbed up onto the bed with you in his grasp and fell onto you, pinning you beneath his body. Your legs hung over the edge as his other hand felt around your vee.

You were crushed beneath him as he kept your legs apart with his knee. He pushed his fingers between your lip and pressed on your clit with his index and middle finger. You squirmed and whimpered. You could barely breathe against his weight. 

He dragged his fingers up and down your folds and circled your clit, over and over. The shame mingled with your unwanted arousal. You grabbed at the blankets, unable to move yourself from beneath him. 

The heat gathered with your juices and he groaned as he felt it. As he spread around your entrance and shoved his fingers inside. They were so thick, it hurt. Even with your bodies response, it was too much. He pulled out and pushed back in. Slow at first, he kept his palm against your bud. 

You quickly unravelled. You whined as you tried to resist the surge within you. You writhed beneath him, unsure if you were working against him or with him. You buried your face in the blanket as your breath picked up and you gasped. He worked his fingers faster and you shuddered as the waves washed over you. 

You went still as you came; ashamed and trapped. He ground his crotch against you as your pussy clenched around his fingers. He slowly drew his fingers out of you and lifted himself slightly to free his arm from under you. He brought his hand around as he grabbed your chin and squeezed your jaw. He forced his fingers past your lips, the taste of your cum sweet on your tongue.

He reached down with his other hand and pulled up your skirt. It wrinkled around your hips as he revealed your skimpy black thong. He tugged on it and groaned. His hand fumbled between you and you grabbed the hand in your mouth as you realized what he was doing. 

You felt the tip of his cock as he pulled it free of his pants. Your fingers clawed at the furry cuff of his jacket, the realization that he still wore the costume chilled you. He brought his other leg between yours and spread them further. He dragged his cock along your ass and down the line of your thong.

He hooked his fingers under the sheer fabric and pulled them aside. He used his thumb to guide himself to your entrance. You slapped his hand desperately and protested around his fingers. You bit down as hard as you could. He flinched but didn’t withdraw his fingers, only pushed them deeper until you gagged.

His tip stretched you as he entered you. He paused as if to let you adjust and you tried to kick your legs around him. The movement coaxed him deeper. He was thick and your walls strained against him. He didn’t stop this time. He slid inside until you were sure you couldn’t take anymore, but there was more. When he bottomed out, you were weak and he held your head in your hand as you lost all strength.

“You are a naughty girl,” He growled as he nuzzled your hair. 

He pulled back and thrust. He jolted your body and wiggled his hips as he splendoured in your warmth. He repeated the motion, each time jerking your body as you gagged noisily on his fingers. His other hand snaked under you and groped your tits, pinching sharply through dress and bra. The velvet of his coat rubbed your bare back and caught on your open zipper.

Soon, the whole bed shook with him. You mewled as you felt your core begin to bloom. You knew he felt it too as he sped up and his cock slid in and out smoothly. He drew his fingers from your mouth and gripped your neck instead. 

He forced your back to arch as he lifted himself to his knees, your legs propped open around them. He slapped your ass with his free hand as he rutted against you, his groans filled the air and he gripped your hip roughly. You latched onto the wrinkled blanket as your thighs buzzed and your climax rose sharply.

You came with a squeak, his hand still at your throat as he contorted your body. The pathetic sound only encouraged him and he fucked you faster and faster. It hurt but felt so good. You orgasmed again with a hiss, ashamed of your reaction to his intrusion.

He let go of your neck and pushed your head down into the mattress. He grabbed the back of your thong and snapped it with a yank. He freed it with another and held you down by your head as he pounded into. His groans grew louder and louder until he was roaring. 

The pleasured cries were muffled as he slammed into you so sharply you yelped. He spasmed and his thrust turned uneven. He slowed and you felt the flood inside of you. He pulled his hand away from your head and leaned back, his cock still in you as he panted. 

You turned your head to peek back at him. He held your thong to his face as he caught his breath, inhaling the scent of it. You closed your eyes and shakily reached up to try to drag yourself off of him. He caught your hips, the thong pressed against your skin.

“Ah ah,” He warned as he pulled you back to your limit. “Naughty girls must learn to be nice.”

[rkxjongsuk]

Final Post ||

I spent most of yesterday evening and this morning just kind of mentally processing the actual closing of rookies after seven years. Seeing the amazing plans that would have come to fruition makes me a bit sad but also kind of happy that rookies ended where it ended. Thank you to the mods for prolonged effort to keep this rp running as long as it did and I am glad to have been here as long as I was. 

I first joined rookies six years ago on the 15th of October, 2014. 2014 and subsequently 2015 had been a chaotic formative years for me. At the time, I was in my third year of college, constantly questioning whether or not I should be doing my degree, watching my parents get divorced in the summer of 2015 and moving out of the house where I’d lived for twelve years. Rookies (at first through Sungjong in October and then through Kevin in March (03.04.2015) and Kris in April (04.29.2015)} was a writing escape and somewhat of a comfort. Over the years at rookies, I have grown, graduated from college with a business degree and ended up completely a different person then I was five years ago.  

My writing improved a lot and I can confidently say that it was mostly thanks to Rookies. I had been completely scared off writing after an English teacher bitched at me for my skills but thanks to rookies, I got more confident in my own skills. Sure, there’s been other rps before rookies and at the same time as rookies, but they had never lasted quite as long. Through the years, I have made some incredible friends through rookies and I am glad to have them in my life. You guys are genuinely the best and I’ll always love you. I have no intentions of ghosting any of you and hopefully, we’ll write again together somewhere else. 

Now, onto what everyone actually wants: rkmuses future and taking in the ideas and everything set out by Bianca in account, where they would end up?

rkxjongsuk: the trc vocal king, easter bunny, princess diva of youtube fame - formerly rkkevin 

I know I always used to say that I wanted him to debut the most since he’s my oldest muse,  but in all honesty, he would have never fit in the idol bubble. Going off the ideas set out by Bianca, however, his future would have been pretty satisfying. 

He would have ended up staying in TRC (since he had signed his contract for the second time back in may) and debuting as part of the rkmonstax group with the other trc boys in early 2021 (most likely as their main vocalist). Jongsuk would have felt pretty accomplished by this, and had been ready for the idol life. However, he was not ready for the rules and restrictions that would come into play with the group.  

he’d always had a kind of laissez faire approach to everything and so the idol life is kind of shocking to him. it wasn’t what he’d fantasized it would be. so, jongsuk would probably become the first member to officially leave the group before their six-year contract would expire citing personal difficulties and mental health issues (three years and a bit after debut) 

During those three years with the group, however, he’d make a name for himself as the King of OST. He would have gone on to King of Masked Singer (making it to R2 and shocking everyone with the high note octaves), gone on to be one of the trainers on the Voice of Korea partnering with Dynamic Duo, and make multiple appearances on Immortal Songs (a la Kyuhyun). Simultaneously, he’d also be collabing with idols across companies, most notably fellow former mga 3 contestant Gyeoul of And*Roma and Jiyeon of HEARTZ. 

Upon his departure from the group, he moved back to San Francisco and resumed his Youtube life and career. He would still support the rest of the boys, as an international fan and would always buy up a lot of their cds to support and tell his followers to stream. However, being back in his element, Jongsuk would feel a lot more relaxed and a lot more comfortable. 

A few months after his return home, he’d gain a collaboration with Smashbox or Morphe for a makeup line and he’d release an eyeshadow palette, two lipsticks and three eyeliners with the branding Smashbox x Stark: Rave on Mad (an homage to his youtube name: starkravingmad). He’d most likely send it in packages to his best friends in Korea. Jongsuk would find success in other fields outside of music and delve into what made his channel tick and what made him the happiest.  

Eventually, I think, he would have found love (maybe in the form of another tall actor who was in school 2013 with him) and been a happy youtuber, taking constant new challenges all over the place and always stepping to his own beat. 

As for his friends, he would have definitely gone back to Korea for Kangjoon’s eventual wedding and Jiyeon’s eventual wedding as well. The invites to visit him in San Francisco, California would have been extended to all his friends and even in his busy schedule, he’d always find time to show them all around the city that he’d been born. He’d even always be happy to see his former groupmates if they came on tour to California and would always be the first one for the backstage/VIP passes. 

rkxrm: the kt chaebol, nsg’s main rapper and actor extraordinaire - formerly rkkris, rkkmh, minhyukxrk

namjoon had always been the unwilling debut, since I honestly never saw him actually debuting before jongsuk and instead, here we are. he’s the established idol. 

With NSG’s debut having just happened, he would probably stick around as the rapper before KT began shoving him into acting everywhere. Most likely, would have ended up as leader of another subunit (maybe?) in the future putting that leadership expertise to the good use. After the first two successful comebacks, he would have gone into acting officially with the first main role on a web-drama as Cha Gihyun on A-TEEN. 

His charisma would have definitely shined and stolen the screen time since he’s a former actor already. Following initial drama success, he would have tried his hand in modelling and endorsement, with Honda and Skool Looks. He would have gone further in modelling and acting, eventually becoming more known as the actor Kim Namjoon than the rapper of nsg. 

He would have had his share of crazy fans (mostly noonas, pretty girls and drama grandmas) and even probably taken the top bias spot for quite a few people when they would have found out his past. Of course, during the course of promotions (I envision this would happen during Regular-Irregular promotions), it come to light that he’s an actual chaebol (he’s never hidden it but netizens think this is a big deal) and the heir to Kim Securities with a former Canadian award winning actress as his mother. It also comes to light the dysfunctional family dynamic that he’d always had with them.  

It caused some hardship between him and his family but he had the support of nsg behind him (his ride or die brothers and family) but in the end his family did began treating him a lot better and he eventually gained their support. 

He would have stayed with NSG all through their first contract, but probably wouldn’t have renewed and most likely would have either gone to acting agency where he could focus on acting or go back to that chaebol life and actually fully embrace it as a future heir. 

In terms of his love life, he would have officially asked Jiyeon to date him at the Halloween party and they would starred in a few dramas side by side (Cinderella and the Four Knights being their first). They would kept secretly dating and eventually after their mutual dating ban was over, would probably reveal it in a cute couple shoot for Ceci or Dazed and Confused (like E Dawn and Hyuna). After Joon would have left NSG (post contract non renewal), he would have probably still kept acting and modelling alongside Jiyeon. NamYeon would have been a lot like the Rain/Kim Taehee acting and visual power couple. 

He would have definitely still kept in close touch with the rest of nsg (since they’re like brothers) and even with all his former kt friends, loving the time that he had spent in the company. 

rksxngyeol: nova’s artist, the mangaka 

sungyeol had been an incredibly refreshing muse to write. he’s always been someone who actually doesn’t want to debut and he just wants to draw. i initially got him because minhyuk (joon) and jongsuk were getting really exhausting.  

there’s not much to say about sungyeol’s future. his contract with nova would have expired in november and he would have left the company on his own terms with the two years behind him. he learned a lot during those two years at nova and even realized a lot about himself. 

following his contract expiry, he would have asked his boyfriend (myungsoo) to move in with him over christmas with a key in a box  attached to a black butler keychain. if the other said yes, then the new year would have kicked off with the duo moving and cooking together and spending time with each other. 

sungyeol would have resumed drawing manhwa and mangas, combining his webtoon comic into a more professional looking five volume manga series with the same title. eventually he would have gotten an anime deal again and even a live action deal on his works (if your muse would have wanted to be in the live action of the Princess’s Sword, go for it). That would have propelled his family to actually recognize him as a talent and he would have been reinstated into the family. 

This would have led to myungsoo officially meeting Sungyeol’s family. His parents would have loved him to bits and his grandparents would have been iffy on it, but  his grandmother would end up dying three years after of heart attack and his grandfather would have followed her a year later of old age. 

After having dated Myungsoo for about five years, Sungyeol would have proposed to him and they would have most likely gotten married on the beach while on vacation somewhere warm. (we love a happy ending ;.;)  Also, he would have moved into a bigger house and brought Haebin with them so that they could be a cute happy family. 

Eventually, he would have come back to work for Nova as a producer and creative direction artist under Wendy as CEO (if that would have happened), and if not, he would have taken over his family’s company despite the lack of education and simply learned on the job. (Can I say that he would have been Myungsoo’s sugar daddy at some point even though they would be married or engaged at this point???) 

Thank you for reading to the very end and I love you all. Let’s stay friends and meet again in another rp. 

[darkestgalaxy]

X-mas in Hannibal’s homeland (3)

Kūčios (Christmas Eve) dinner/supper

(This is Part 3 of the series. Other parts can be found here: Prologue, Part 1, Part 2 and Part 4.) 

Kūčios dinner is supposed to consist of 12 dishes. Nowadays, however, it has not escaped the clutches of over-consumerism and more often than not it becomes “at least 12 dishes” and the table can start overflowing with food. 

No matter if you’re a traditionalist of strictly 12 dishes or a more liberal generous one, your Kūčios dinner is always ALWAYS vegetarian: consisting only of vegetables, mushrooms and fish (no poultry or red meat). Some people go even stricter and do not make anything that includes eggs or milk. 

It is customary that everyone eats a little bit of every dish, so they’re usually served in already divided chunks. Everybody helps themselves by taking pieces of food into their own plates from the dishes placed in the middle of the table. A table usually looks similar to this:

A table can be decorated with spruce/fir/pine branches, cones, straw, candles. No flowers, though. It’s a remaining tradition from the old times when flowers were not available during winter.

There’s a tradition that’s recently less and less practiced, especially in cities. Straws would be put on the table beneath the tablecloth. And a practiced spell was that family members would draw (without looking) a straw from beneath the tablecloth. The length of the drawn straw would symbolize the length of your remaining life, and the thickness - the material riches awaiting you in the future. It’s a rather morbid ritual to the modern eye, but I guess morbidity was a much more common and accepted part of the lives in the old times.

Another vanishing (but still practiced by some) tradition is allocating sitting places and plates for recently deceased family members. A burning candle is usually placed on their plate. More superstitious people believe that spirits of those dead relatives come to hang out with the family on Kūčios night. There are no strict rules on how recently the relative has to have died to be included. So if it’s someone extremely important to you, you could in theory give them a place and a plate at your Kūčios table for the rest of your life. I imagine that Hannibal could probably do this for Mischa and Abigail indefinitely.

It’s common to begin Kūčios dinner by symbolically breaking “plotkelės” (even for families that are not really religious, it’s become a part of tradition). These are basically Eucharist wafers that are given out during catholic masses as a symbol of Christ’s body. But they’re bigger and rectangle shaped, with Christ nativity themed embossed pictures. You can get them at your local catholic church for a certain offering of cash. Every family member gets their own “plotkelė” and then other members break a little peace from each of the other family member while looking into their eyes (sort of similar like during a toast) and then eats them. The remaining parts of “plotkelės” are further broken down and put on dishes present on the table. More religious families would also say a prayer. While the head of not so religiously inclined ones would give a short speech along the lines of how happy we are to be gathered here all together and hopefully luck and health would not leave anyone during the next year. “Plotkelės” look like this:

(photo from wikipedia) 

Probably the most traditional and almost obligatory dish on Kūčios table is “Kūčiukai”. These are small bakery products served in sweetened poppy seed milk. Usually they’re eaten at the end of the supper as a sort of dessert soup. They look like this:

Examples of other traditional dishes:

“Kisielius” - a thick, almost jelatinous sour-sweet drink (it can be made of various fruits and berries, but on Kūčios it’s usually cranberry based).

Various kinds of “Mišrainė” - that’s a sort of thick kind of salad consisting of boiled, pickled, dried and otherwise preserved vegetables, legumes and wild mushrooms with thick, usually mayonnaise or oil based sauce (might also include eggs, fried or smoked fish). It’s not just only a Kūčios thing, but common throughout the cold season, heritage from the old times when people did not have access to fresh greens or other fresh plant ingredients in winter (outside of Kūčios ir can also include ham). Examples:

Various kinds of herring dishes with vegetables and wild mushrooms (though we DO NOT have this extremely fermented foul smelling Scandinavian type of herring that’s almost close to rotting point). Examples:

Different kinds of fish. Though white meat fish has been traditionally more common, recently salmon or trout or even some seafood has begun to gain popularity.

Wild mushroom stuffed pastries (filling can also include cabbage and/or carrots). Like this:

After Kūčios dinner some more religious families would go to late Christmas Eve Mass. It’s called “Bernelių/piemenėlių mišios” (translates to “shepherds’ mass” and is called after the shepherds who were first informed about the birth of Christ according to the Bible). IRL this is also used by not so religious people who take this opportunity to meet with their friends from childhood and high school whom they don’t meet very often anymore due to the fact that they had moved to live in different places, but now came back to visit their families in the same native town).

There are also a lot of pagan traditions and spells to be performed on the night of Kūčios.  From different rituals before sleep that would invoke prophetic dreams to dubious ways for young girls to get an answer if they’d get married next year an so on and so forth. :) It was also believed that animals can talk on Kūčios night and you can probably get them to divulge some future forecasts and other important information (I have no idea how they prevented death of children by cattle trampling when they probably tried to sneak out at night and talk to livestock). That’s not widely practiced anymore outside of some ethnographic clubs for a sheer benefit of preserving knowledge of ancient traditions or a sporadic thematic ethno party. (But similar jokes can still be told around the Kūčios table, like “go ask the cow, if you’re so curious”).

[kristallioness]

2016 | 2017 | 2018

*quietly sneaks back in*... Happy New THIS Year, my dear followers! In Estonia, we have this saying that if you wish someone a 'happy new year' after Three Kings' Day (the 6th of January), you gotta have a bottle of alcohol with you and give them a drink. *lol*

Anyways, I would like to apologize for the sudden disappearance that happened prior to Christmas. I was just busy travelling back home for the holidays, unpacking and putting away my stuff, watching some great, traditional movies or shows on TV, and most importantly, working on those 2 latest masterpieces that I posted (which barely got 30 notes each.. *sigh*).

But as you can (and probably will) see, the year of the yellow earth pig (i.e. my dad's year) was a rollercoaster of emotions and accomplishments, or lacking thereof.

My creative side seems to have suffered the most due to lack of leisure time. I only managed to finish 3 full digital drawings and left behind several sketches or unfinished WIPs (2 of which are revealed here under the months of June and November for the first time, I intend to finish the Korrasami one btw). At least I got to start 2020 with a completed drawing on the very 1st day, ha-ha! Perhaps that's a good omen for this year?

If so, then I hope I'll find the time to finish the rest of the 2019 Inktober prompts, since I only did 4/31 this past October (even though I'd thought of ideas for all of them). I brought all the necessary drawing utensils and sheets of paper with me, so whenever I'm in the mood, I'll try to sketch another one.

*calculates for the nth time*.. I wrote 18,110 words worth of fanfiction, plus 820 words for the UYLD prompts (making the total 18,930). Technically, you can count another 8k+ in there, since it comes from that unfinished story (of Aang taking care of a flu-ridden Katara, as illustrated by the September sketch), which I haven't finished within the last 4 months or so. Plus, I barely wrote 1/5 of the amount compared to 2018.. *hides in shame*

Then again, I was an excellent pupil for picking up an actual book and reading through 150+ pages (which means I have ~300 pages to go). I'm talking about the new Kyoshi novel that came out. As I once said, I haven't voluntarily read a book in years make that 2 years ago (most of the reading I've done in my life is either Tom & Jerry comics, now the Avatar comic trilogies and art books as well as fanfiction online, or compulsory reading during school). But this novel is freaking fantastic superb!

Not only that, I bought all the new comic trilogies and managed to read them through. Damn, did they give me feels.. especially "Ruins of the Empire" (ngl I squeed so hard when I saw the Korrasami farewell kiss on the 1st page of the 2nd part). I can't wait to read the 3rd part this year!

However, I failed to rewatch Avatar last year, and I haven't seen Korra since.. 2016, I believe? Wow, that's 4 whole years.. But I intend to fix that mistake starting from 2020. Hopefully I'm in the mood to start my rewatch this weekend tonight. *fingers crossed*

But as I said, I had much less time to focus on my hobbies since 2019 was the year for finally moving on with my life (sort of, I'm still working on it). I still remember how down I'd been feeling for a while and how valid those emotions really were. The first quarter of the year (+ like a month or two) was a continuous descent into desperation and feelings of utter failure, which already started around the 2nd half of 2018 and only continued to deepen around that time.

Everything began to change when I was first chosen to be part of a 2-month summer internship in an IT company, and I had to start building a new nest in a new location in Tallinn this May. And now, I feel like I've hit the jackpot by getting a permanent job in another IT company this October.

I got the opportunity to work in two different fields, in two different teams within a year. I met some awesome colleagues (a lot of whom are foreigners) and got the chance to really put my English skills to the test.

Thanks to the new job, I also had to go to a free health check, which went really-really well. Despite my nervousness in the beginning, I feel much more relaxed about my physical (and mental) health, cause the results showed that everything's okay (something I'd been worried about since March 2017).

Speaking of health or staying healthy, there were a few sports events that I went to, too. Our team held the first winter team event (it was the first one for me, at least) by going to do archery in a range on the outskirts of the capital.

I watched the football match between 2 teams of our local league at my hometown together with my dad on his birthday. Our home team won the match and came in 4th place overall in the league this year, which is their best result so far (I'm really proud!). And merely days before I started work, I visited the Tallinn International Horse Show for the first time (also with my dad). I last got to watch horses jump over fences or dance to their musical programs ~ 10 years ago, and I loved it!

Event-wise 2019 was pretty full of them. As has become tradition, I went to the Defence Forces parade on our 101st Independence Day (which seemed rather bleak compared to the centennial, even more so since we didn't have ANY snow at the time).

What will hopefully become new traditions, I visited the television tower on the Restoration of Independence Day (where Uku Suviste gave a free concert in the evening), and went to the Veteran's Rock concert (to honour our war veterans) on our Freedom Square on the 23rd of April (since I'm residing in the capital now, I should be able to go again this year).

To continue with the centennial celebrations (yes, some things are STILL turning 100), I saw and explored inside the armoured train no. 7 called "Wabadus" ("Freedom") in the Baltic Station. This armoured train was one of the keys that led our country to victory during the War of Independence from 1918-1920.

There was an even bigger (150th) anniversary to celebrate in the beginning of July, when I attended our Song and Dance Festival. This was a really important, if not the biggest event of the year. I intend to make a longer post about my experience, cause it's something that you foreigners need to see for yourself. I can't simply describe or put it into words, I have to show you some videos and photos.

But while we're on the topic of concerts, I should mention that I went to 2 more at the beginning of June - Bon Jovi and Sting - as well as 2 that were part of Christmas tours in December - Elina Nechayeva and Rolf Roosalu.

Besides that, I went to 6 different festivals, half of which I'd been to several times before, such as the Türi Flower Fair, Jäneda Farm Days (where I went on my first helicopter ride for my 25th birthday present) and the Christmas market in the Old Town of Tallinn.

The other half is comprised of festivals that I'd been considering going to for a while, or which took place for the first time. The latter applies to the Black Food Festival, whereas the "Valgus Kõnnib" ("Wandering Lights") and the duck rally, both of which took place in Kadriorg, fall under the first category.

The duck rally is a charity event held in the beginning of June. Regular people can buy at least one (or several) rubber bath duckies for different prices, which will then be dumped into a tiny stream that'll carry them towards the finish line. This event has grown more popular each year, and the money the Estonian Association of Parents of Children with Cancer (sorry, long name in English!) collects is donated to the Cancer Treatment Fund.

*wipes forehead*.. Phew! I'm surprised, that's a whole lotta positivity for 2019. I think there's one more important, but seriously negative topic I haven't covered yet, but I feel should be mentioned and explained.

When it comes to politics, 2019 was a complete disaster for us. EKRE (Eesti Konservatiivne Rahvaerakond in Estonian, or Estonia's Conservative People's Party in English) i.e. our populist/nazi/pro-Trump party is in the government as of April 2019, thanks to 100,000+ idiots (out of our population of 1.3 million) who voted for them and gave them 19/101 seats in the Parliament.

No, I am NOT going to apologize for calling them a nazi party, because their main leaders have repeatedly supported ideology that's common to nazis (they use aggressive rhetoric, blame the media for making them look bad, downgrade women, minorities, are racist, anti-semitic etc...). And I will not apologize in front of the people who voted for them, because "thanks" to this, EKRE has dragged our country's reputation straight through a mud puddle (not to mention the scandals that have accompanied 5 of their ministers, 3 of who have THANKFULLY stepped down from their positions) and.. *swears like the British*.. it's BLOODY EMBARRASSING.

I am done being nice, I have at least some kind of prejudice about anyone who supports them or their ideals. And I will certainly not let Estonia end up like America. So that is why I participated in two protest events against EKRE and our current government (because the 2 other parties, who were willing to form the coalition with them, are spineless jellyfish that simply seek to hold onto their current positions of power). I'm willing to take bets as to when our government falls (the sooner the better).

*shakes off the frustration*.. Brrr! So besides that, I guess the only downside to 2019 was my spare time falling back in the list of priorities (which shows in the empty square of July).

2020 is gonna be the year of the white metal rat. I can only hope (and take action so) that it'll be just as eventful, and much more creative than 2019. Thank you all for following me (or lurking anonymously) for so long, especially to the bloggers who've offered me support through better or worse! *raises a glass* Here's to 2020!.. *sip*

[everly-kindred]

Everly’s Diary - Entry #38

Synopsis: Eve details the festivities of the past few weeks - the Winter Fete, her birthday, the Yule Ball, and the return home!

Words: 1,881

Date: 17th of December, 2026

Dear Diary, 

Can you believe it's already been a year since I first started writing these? I know I can't! So much has happened since then, it almost feels like a year is too long and yet also not long enough! 

I'm writing this from my bed. Ruby is sound asleep in the other room. I hope he’s comfortable, I worry that the space is too small for him. 

I haven’t really had much time to write. I know I say that a lot, but it’s true… And when I do have time, I feel too exhausted, like I’ve run out of… spell slots or something. So I know it’s been awhile and I have a lot to catch you up on, but not to fear! I’ve been keeping a list of the things that have happened since my last entry! 

So, I found out that on the first of December, the keeper of keys brings Christmas trees into the Great Hall, and we watch them all get lit up once decorations are done. That day was also the day of the fete that the prefects threw for everyone. 

It was so stunning to see the Great Hall filled with that light from the Christmas trees. Honestly, Christmas trees give off the best lighting, and I have no idea why we don’t just keep them all year ‘round. I guess that’s what faerie lights are for, and I’m quite fond of those, but anyways...

The prefect’s fete was absolutely brilliant! They had completely transformed the long gallery and filled it with booths and activities and snacks… Elaine, an older Hufflepuff girl, convinced me to do this kissing booth thing with that Slytherin Prefect, Persephone Vitrac. Basically she waits under the mistletoe for anyone who dares approach her for a kiss on the cheek. Elaine claimed it’d be my first kiss, but I don’t think it counts! I mean… I got all flustered after and ended up running face first into a pile of snow that was being used for snowball fights, but still! I mean, maybe it counts… Doesn’t it only count if it’s mutual? Is it a real kiss?

Anyways, yes, I got my ‘first kiss’ from a werewolf girl who is actually very nice thank you very much, I still remember when she helped me and Bonnie with making that laughing potion which I thankfully haven’t had to use. The boggart is still running around apparently but I’ve managed to avoid it. But anyways, back to the kiss! I was so nervous at first, but Elaine assured me that it’s fine and that Persephone wouldn’t hurt me and whatnot. I feel like I should learn more about werewolves because of it, honestly, and I’ve made a note to ask Vikander or Lane about them, later. 

Like I had mentioned, there was also snowball fights, ice skating, and Vikander was up on a chair dressed as Santa, taking everyone’s Christmas wishes! I’d write what my wish was, but I don’t think… I mean, you are only a diary after all, but isn’t it bad to say what you wished for? Well, it’s not like it could really happen anyways. Alright, so I wished that I could be a faerie, just once. Shrink down to six inches tall with pretty wings on my back! Fly around, sleep in flowers, that kind of thing. Oh, and also for my very own broom for quidditch, though first years can’t really have that. And love and joy for all my friends and family, of course. 

And then there was what was probably my favourite part of the evening, which was the sleigh ride. It was so… magical, romantic, exhilarating, dreamy… Wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. We all got into this sleigh and flew around the castle in the night! It was perfectly fantastical! I don’t think I have the proper words to describe it, though I tried, I’m just… Not sure if it is something you can put into words, truly. I do think it caused me to get a bit of a cold, though, because I was sick for a couple of days after, until the matrons in the hospital wing fixed me up with some pepper-up potion. 

I believe it was the next day that we Hufflepuffs had our meeting, and we all went out to Dracheblume’s hut and had a snowball fight! I tried to hide in the pumpkins, and was able to hit Elaine and Roisin a few times, and I even climbed up on the roof, but Elaine pulled me down by summoning my cloak. I landed in a snowbank, though, so I didn’t hurt anything! 

End of term exams started for the last week of school, and when I wasn’t studying for those or practicing quidditch, I was writing and drawing Maxine. I can’t tell if I wish she existed and was really my friend, or if I simply wish I was her… She helps me when I feel lonely, which has been often, lately. I feel like there’s an awkwardness between me and my friends, and perhaps it’s because I’ve been hiding so much in my dorm that I don’t see them anymore. I hope I’ll have more time to see them over break and in the next term. 

A weird thing that happened was that two Slytherins apparently burnt up one of the Christmas trees. The Ravenclaw one, I think. It was even written about in the Owl Post. I don’t know if they got punished for it or not, though. I hope the Ravenclaws got a replacement tree! 

The Slytherins also had their first quidditch game, against Gryffindor. But apparently there was an issue with the snitch or something, so even though Gryffindor caught the snitch first, it’s being investigated? I’m not really sure what happened with that. 

The full moon happened recently, too. On the 12th, I think. The castle was locked up at 3 p.m. and professors and prefects were set to patrol, which I found both scary and exciting. Nothing happened that I know of, though.

Hufflepuff finally had a party and a secret santa gift exchange. My secret santa was Cheryl, so I made her some biscuits iced and shaped to look like badgers and mushrooms. They turned out quite well, if I do say so myself! She said she liked the colour black and sweets, so hopefully she approved!

My secret santa got me a new snow globe with a pretty tree inside, a crystal ball, and some other things, so I can definitely say that whoever it was knows me very well! I always welcome more snow globes and crystals for my collection. The crystal ball is orange, too, so it looks like a fire trapped in a ball. 

It was also my birthday that weekend, the 8th of December. I didn’t really do anything about it, except take the day to actually relax. My family sent me some birthday wishes, some sweets and a few presents, but I’ve decided I wanted to wait until I was home to throw a true party. I want my parents there for it, you know? 

I actually just sent out all the invitations yesterday, when we got home. Our owl has been very busy lately! I also sent a letter to the Headmistress regarding that letter she had sent me about wanting to meet, and I invited her and Deputy Headmistress Blightly for tea with me and my parents. Oh! And I must say, they both looked absolutely stunning at the prefect fete, and the Yule Ball! I hope that one day I can look that beautiful and elegant. 

My dress was more plain in comparison. But at least I was able to get Bonnie’s help with it, because she helped me make lace faerie wings that were enchanted to flutter, and she also coloured my hair pink! I wanted to be the sugar plum faerie, so I guess in a way, I got one of the things I’d wished for at the fete! I was so inspired, that I wrote a poem about the sugar plum faerie:

“Twirling in a flurry of snowflakes

Dreaming in a starry haze

The sugar plum faerie with glittering wings

Sweetens the snow on these wintry days”

Anyways, back to the Yule Ball. I must write everything about that, so I remember it forever! Firstly, everyone got to vote on these awards that they give out at the beginning of the dance. I voted Bonnie for four different things, and she actually won two of them! She won the awards for best spellcaster and for most likely to become minister of magic! I was so proud! 

Also, Professor Gallo won the award for most inspiring professor, which was named after Headmaster Fox! I nearly cried at that! I love so many of the professors here, but Gallo has been one of my absolute favourites since I first met him. Also, Marigold won the award for most uh… Congenial, I think was the word, which means she’s very friendly to everyone and has a lovely smile (I think that’s what it means, anyways) and I found that to be very fitting, too. Persephone Vitrac won the Grand Sorceress award, and Ruby’s… Cousin, I think? Won Grand Sorcerer.

Ruby and I danced for most of the night, and ate sweets. He tried to show me how to dance, but I was terrified of messing up and hurting him or myself or even someone else with my clumsiness. Ruby says he’ll teach me how to do ballet like he does. I have my doubts that it’ll be successful, I think I’m pretty hopeless, but he seems to believe in me!

He wore pretty white flowers in his hair and white and grey suit that looked sort of vintage. Snow was enchanted to sort of float off from the flowers, which I thought looked very pretty. Oh, and the great hall looked stunning, also!  Everything was frosty and white, and there were penguins everywhere, wobbling around and sliding across ice! 

A girl named Charlotte who is a Gryffindor Alumni sung for all of us. She was gorgeous! She wore a sparkling costume and had a voice like honey wine... not that I know what honey wine is, mind, I’ve just heard good singing voices described that way. The night sort of flew by, I couldn’t believe how quickly it ended.

And then, it was time to get back on the Hogwarts Express and go home. One of these years, I’d like to stay at Hogwarts for the holidays, but… Not this year. I miss home, and I miss my family, and I got to bring Ruby with me! 

On the train ride home, the Owl Post sent out an article filled with candygrams which were basically nice messages people gave to each other for the Owl Post to share, and I guess you also give a candy cane to whomever you wrote to. I feel bad that I forgot to do it! It’s just as well, though, no one wrote to me, so I guess I don’t have to feel guilty about it. 

When we got home, I found out that dad has a new girlfriend! Her name is Genevieve. She’s also a witch, but I forgot to ask her what her house was. She has very long, pretty red hair that sort of fades into a soft blonde, and I’m honestly quite envious of her hair colour. She always wears sparkly makeup, and she has a lot of freckles which I love! I love freckles and dimples. She is very nice, I like her a lot! I look forward to getting to know her better. Apparently, she knows a lot about faeries!

Once we were settled, I talked to Genevieve and dad about school and I showed them Venus and told them about how I found her in the dungeons. Dad was actually quite annoyed with me that I now had three pets instead of just the one, so we compromised and decided to keep Venus at home. Dad doesn’t like her because she’s a rat, but Genevieve loves her! So that works out. I get to keep Puck and Cornelius, and bring them back to school whenever we return to Hogwarts, since Puck kind of does his own thing in the castle and I can keep Cornelius in my bag or pocket. 

I think that’s just about everything there is to catch up on! My birthday party will be in two days - on Thursday, and I’ve been trying to find and make the perfect things for it. You know, it doesn’t really feel like my birthday, maybe because everything around the house is green instead of white and snowy, from my dad keeping things warm with weather charms. That’ll work for the party at least, so my guests won’t be cold! Anyways, I hear Ruby stirring, so I think it’s time to wake up and make breakfast. 

Much love, Everly

About the Character: Everlina Rosemary Kindred is an imaginative Hufflepuff attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She keeps up with her magical journey through a series of diary entries, dream journals, and tarot readings, all documented for future reflection. Her diary is a small glimpse into her enchanted life, and her adventure into the wizarding world and all its splendors. If you’d like more information about Eve, visit her wiki page. 

About the Author: My name is Katherine! I am a 21-year-old Hufflepuff & Pukwudgie from Louisville, Kentucky. This page is my creative journey into the magical world, through the lenses of Second Life. Here I post diary entries, dream journals, and tarot readings all from my character’s perspective. If you’d like more information about me, visit my Flickr! 

[rorykillmore]

and this one is for @spearitsandmonsters who requested an au with one of our more recent dynamics! i decided to do sly and emerald because i wanted to have some fun with our sly cooper au idea. i ran with the whole “em and merc get recruited for the sly 3 heist” idea. there were a lot of ideas i had to cut for the sake of focus and flow (god i NEED emerald interacting with dimitri someday) but i wanted to explore how she’d react to the panda king in particular, so!

merry christmas spear!!! here’s to another wonderful year of being friends -- okay, it hasn’t really been a wonderful year, maybe, but the parts with YOU have been wonderful. from all our fantastic rp dynamics and plots to the fandoms we plunge into together to the fact that we always seem to be on the same page when it comes to salt, you are and have always been a person i jibe with so naturally. it hasn’t been an easy year for you, and you’ve had to deal with a lot of ups and downs, but you’ve worked so hard to be present and kind to your friends despite that and to contribute to some great things to denny, so hopefully this fic honors that <3

“What does power mean when you only use it to destroy? Until it begins to erode at your very self?”  The Panda King sounds more bitter than Sly would have expected, although his anger doesn’t sound like it’s directed at Emerald.  “What does loyalty mean when the people who demand it would see you steeped forever in your own rage, or doubt, or self-loathing, for their better gain?”

The whole gang’s assembled (maybe too organized a word) by the time Sly gets back to the hideout with their two newest recruits.  And... Sly can see that Bentley and Murray, at least, have recognized them immediately.

“Oh,” Murray says, puzzled.  “It’s those guys.”

‘Those guys’, in this case, being Emerald and Mercury.  A rival duo of thieves who Sly admittedly expected to cause a few ripples, not only because they’d been competing with the Cooper Gang for months now, but because of the rumors that sometimes flitted around about Mercury’s more... less than savory work. 

It’s not worth the discomfort of immediately pointing out that Bentley’s newest choice of recruit has more blood on his hands than either of Sly’s do, but Sly has the defense ready all the same.

“Glad to know we’ve left such an impression,” Mercury notes dryly, while Emerald shifts a little at all the attention in the room being centered on them.

From where he’s perched on the couch behind Murray, the Guru murmurs an inquiry, and it’s Bentley who responds.  “Guru -- everyone -- meet Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black.  Fellow thieves, former rivals, current...”

“Allies,” Sly cuts in firmly. “They’re here to help us with the heist, just like everyone else.”

“No, we just dropped by for pizza and drinks,” Emerald quips. The joke appears to be lost on Murray, who starts to look hopeful at the prospect.

“Well,” Bentley continues, still eyeing Sly, but clearly addressing the two newcomers.  “You already know Murray and I, obviously.  I’ll just run through the rest of the introductions briefly. This is the Guru -- our chief mystic.”

“He kind of does that... spooky illusion thing, too,” Sly tells Emerald, waggling his fingers for emphasis. “I figured the two of you might have a thing or two to teach each other.”

“Right.” Emerald eyes the Guru dubiously until, courteous as ever, he dips his head to her in greeting, and she seems to relax slightly.

“And Penelope, our RC specialist...”

“I would love to get a closer look at your weapons. -- You know. Since we’re  allies now, and all,”  Penelope tells them immediately, pushing her glasses further up her nose as she leans in to get a closer look. “I might even be able to make a few nifty modifications, if either you wanted...”

Bentley glances over his shoulder almost hesitantly, and Sly follows his gaze to where the Panda King’s bulky form is visible hunched over his desk as he tinkers with what looks like a few small explosives. He’s the only one, notably, who hasn’t joined the welcome party.  “And that’s...”

“The Panda King,” Mercury cuts in, his eyes glittering with interest and some other unreadable emotion.  “Yeah. We’ve heard of you.”

“Demolitions?” Emerald guesses his role, likely clued in not only by what the Panda King is doing now but by his long, infamous history of blowing up villages who refused to pay tribute to him. Bentley nods.

“He’s ‘reformed’,” Sly says, the sarcasm and doubt in his voice perhaps a little too clear. The Panda King himself doesn’t react, but Murray and Penelope are starting to look a little uncomfortable, and strangely, even Emerald won’t quite meet his eyes.

“Well,” Bentley breaks the silence after another stiff moment.  “We’ve certainly got the makings of a fine team, here. If I was the kind of person who liked to jinx things, I’d say Dr. M’s fortress didn’t stand a chance.”

Sly - who has already clued Emerald and Mercury in on the situation with his family’s treasure vault being heavily guarded by an evil super genius who bought the island it was located on - fills in the remaining gaps.

 “We, uh.  We have to fulfill our end of our bargain before we move out to the island, though.” Mercury frowns and Emerald raises her eyebrows, so Sly continues, “We promised the Panda King we’d rescue his daughter. In exchange for him lending us his services.”

“What happened to his daughter?” Emerald asks. Sly opens his mouth to answer, but before she can get a word out --

“She’s being held prisoner. By a military general who would force her into marriage against her will.” The Panda King’s rumbling voice cuts through the conversation, surprising everyone. Sly turns and sees that he has set down his tools at the table, and keeps still as he pushes himself to his feet.  “If you will all excuse me. I have some other preparations to make.”

He exits the room without so much as glancing at their new recruits.

“Wow. Just as charming as I’ve always heard,” Mercury drawls once he’s gone.

Emerald shifts beside him. “Never pegged a guy like that for being such a devoted father.”

Sly doesn’t particularly want to dwell on the subject. Instead, he shoots them both a friendly smile.  “Come on, I’ll show you where to get settled in. Luckily it’s a pretty spacey place for an inconspicuous thieves’ den.”

----

Later that night, he braves the cold to go sit on the hideout’s rooftop, letting the drifting snow settle softly into his fur as he tracks the guards below on their nightly routes. General Tsao’s certainly no slouch when it comes to security, but something about that makes this all the more satisfying -- being hidden right under his nose.

He almost doesn’t notice when a lithe, shadowy figure hops up to join him, but all things considered, there’s only one person it can really be.

“It’s freezing up here,” Emerald immediately complains.  “Why aren’t you inside?”

“Why aren’t you?” Sly teases back, twitching an ear towards her. “Getting attached to the pleasure of my company?”

He can practically hear Emerald rolling her eyes in response.  “Ha. You wish, Cooper.”

But then, to his surprise, she settles down beside him at the edge of the roof.  She must want to talk to him about something, then, and Sly patiently waits in silence without pushing her until she gets around to breaching the subject. 

“Let me ask you something. Did you just hire me and Mercury to piss off your turtle friend?”

Sly’s ears prick up in surprise.  “What? No. Why would you think -- ?”

“Things just... seemed kinda tense between the two of you, is all.” Emerald shrugs nonchalantly, gazing out at the view beyond.  “Sort of seemed like you didn’t like him inviting the pyromaniac along.”

“Well, I don’t.” Sly catches himself before he can sound too bitter, suddenly self-conscious and a little more clear on where Emerald might’ve gotten her impression that he only invited her along for petty payback. Sheepishly and feeling he owes her some kind of explanation, he draws a breath.  “...I just... don’t trust him. He was... part of the gang that killed my parents.”

There’s a brief, almost fragile pause. “Oh.  Jeez. I’m sorry,” Emerald says finally, the sympathy sounding a little brittle, but not insincere.  “I... didn’t know you were an orphan. Me too.”

Sly glances over at her carefully, but she still isn’t looking at him.  “Kinda seems to be a common sob story in our line of work.” He keeps it casual, but his tone is gentle.  “Bentley and Murray grew up without their parents, too. ...What about Mercury?”

Emerald shrugs again.  “He grew up with his dad, but... honestly, from what I’ve heard, he probably would’ve been better off with no parents at all.”  She laughs bleakly, and it’s more than telling.  “Kinda funny how an actual mass murderer cares more about his kid than Merc’s ever did about him.”

Sly gets the feeling that this isn’t the kind of thing he should admit knowing to Mercury -- ever. Which means that... maybe Emerald trusts him more than he realized, if she’s sitting here talking about it. He opens his mouth, searching for words, but Emerald abruptly changes the subject.

“So why did Bentley invite the Panda King into your gang, if you guys have such a horrible history?”

Faced with the question, Sly can’t say that he thinks Bentley ever had any ill intent. And, of course, he’s always known that. “Because he thinks we need him, I guess. Even I have to admit, I don’t know of a better demolitions expert out there, and... that vault’s gonna be tough to crack.”

Emerald pauses, frowning.  “...Do you think... there’s any chance he could actually change?”

No, is Sly’s first, immediate instinct, but if he’s being honest with himself, it might be more deeply rooted in his own anger than any objective assessment of the Panda King that he’s made. He’s not sure whether or not he would safely call the Panda King reformed, but technically, he has already changed. He isn’t the same person he’d been when Sly had confronted him three years ago. And neither was Sly.

“I think we all change,” Sly says finally. “One way or another.”

It’s part of being alive. He thinks - suddenly and unbidden - of Clockwerk, who traded that essential spark of life for immortality, and wound up trapped in stagnant hatred for all of his supposedly eternal life. It’s almost enough to make Sly pity him.

The Panda King isn’t Clockwerk. Maybe it isn’t impossible for him to step beyond the various ways he’s trapped himself. And abruptly, Sly wonders why Emerald even asked.

He glances at her again, more thoughtfully, and smiles.  “You know... saving the Panda King’s daughter isn’t the only way we’ve helped out our new recruits. We helped the Guru protect his home back in Australia, and won Penelope’s flying competition.  I guess what I’m saying is... we kinda owe you and Mercury one too. If you ever needed help with anything.”

He senses - without really needing to ask - that she has some kind of past that she’s running from. Something altogether separate from her dead parents.

Emerald blinks at him slowly, cautiously, and Sly can tell she’s trying not to seem too surprised.  “...Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” she says finally, but something about it seems contemplative, like the offer is actually weighing on her.

So Sly only laughs, in no hurry to push her. 

“Yeah. Okay,” he agrees, and they watch the sun rise together.

----

It’s two days later when, in the midst of waiting in the van’s passenger seat for Murray to come out and drive them to their latest tag-team mission, Sly catches a glimpse of the Panda King approaching in the rear view mirror. 

He activates his ancestor’s invisibility trick before he can even really think about planning it -- maybe because a still suspicious part of him wants to see what the Panda King’s doing poking around out here on his own. Maybe just because he’s not really in the mood for a friendly chat with his former adversary.

But as the Panda King throws open the van’s back doors and begins rummaging around, Sly realizes that he’d been mistaken -- the Panda King isn’t out here on his own.

“Bentley has recommended we make use of these custom communication devices during the mission,” Sly hears him rumble to someone else.

And then he recognizes Emerald’s voice answering, “Well, he is the resident tech nerd. Guess we’d better take his word for it.”

Bentley must’ve had another mission for the two of them, Sly guesses easily. He’s not entirely sure how he feels about it -- but he’s starting to feel a little bad about eavesdropping.  He’d consider silently slipping away, if he didn’t have to conspicuously open the passenger side door to do it.

“His intellect is... more then sufficient,” The Panda King agrees carefully. “And the way he has modified that chair to compensate for his injuries, more than worthy of respect. I once believed that an old associate of mine was the most skilled inventor to have ever lived. Perhaps I was mistaken.”

There’s a pause, which Sly spends trying not to feel a reluctant glow of pride at one of his most bitter enemies praising his best friend.

“...The... people you used to work with,” Emerald ventures casually -- or ‘casually’, because Sly is starting to be able to tell the difference between when she means it and when she’s feigning it.  “Do you ever... I don’t know.  Question whether you were right to leave them?”

Sly pricks his ears, surprised. The Panda King’s brief silence suggests that she might have caught him off guard, too.

“It was not my decision,” he growls eventually.  “The organization was falling apart at its seams, thanks to Cooper’s interference.  In the end, there was hardly anything left to leave.”

“So does that mean you would you go back?” Emerald asks, still sounding idle. “If you could?”

“What does power mean when you only use it to destroy? Until it begins to erode at your very self?”  The Panda King sounds more bitter than Sly would have expected, although his anger doesn’t sound like it’s directed at Emerald.  “What does loyalty mean when the people who demand it would see you steeped forever in your own rage, or doubt, or self-loathing, for their better gain?” 

Emerald is quiet for longer, this time. When she speaks, her voice is a little softer, almost partially inaudible from Sly’s position.  “You remind me of someone I used to work with.  He had your... sense of integrity. I guess. Honor. Even when we were doing some pretty terrible things.”

And it only hits Sly just then why Emerald has seemed so cautiously, tentatively curious about the Panda King and Sly’s opinions on him up until now. He feels an unexpected pang of sadness for her, and remorse at the fact that he could have inadvertently given her the impression that he didn’t think it was possible to come back from... wherever she’d been.

“And did he ever walk away?” The Panda King asks more lowly.

“I don’t know. He always wanted Mercury and I to get out, but I... never really found out what happened to him, after we left.”

“Making peace with the past is never simple,”  The Panda King sounds thoughtful, or maybe troubled -- Sly can’t really read his tone, but it’s one he’s never heard before.  “And doubt along the way... is not a sign of weakness. Merely a symptom of wounds that have yet to fully heal. The only remedy is to move forward even still, and fight for the things that are dear to us. When you have something to fight for... that makes it easier.” 

“Like your daughter,” Emerald provides quietly.

“Yes. And what do you fight for now, Emerald?”

Brief silence, again.  “...I guess I’m still trying to figure that out.”

“I think perhaps... you are in the right place, then.”

There’s a shuffle as the equipment they needed is evidently located and removed from the van. And then the doors slam shut, and Sly can hear nothing more.

He drops back into visibility once he’s sure they’re both gone, complicated emotion twisting in his chest. The Panda King is the last person in the gang Sly would have ever expected Emerald to connect with, but maybe that’s his own oversight.

Maybe - whatever he thinks of the bear himself - his insight is valuable. To Emerald, at least. And maybe Sly is already more invested than he’s realized, because this makes it more valuable to Sly, too.

He settles back in his seat, closes his eyes and then opens them again, and tries to grab hold of that slowly building hope for the future.

[roxywashere]

What’s Up, Danger

Rey acclimates to her powers

Rey Walker, better known as the superhero Neon, had very suddenly become a celebrity after being inducted into Astra’s League, the world's most prestigious superhero organization. She sat in the League's headquarters, FursTech Tower in Danesville, Wisconsin, at 3 in the morning January 1st 2101, watching as 24-hour news stations scrambled to uncover everything they could about this random punk-rocker who had just been thrust onto the world's stage. Her best friends and long-time crime-fighting partners Hilda Furst, Elle Ectric, and Shailene Octavia stood around watching the same holographic screens where they were also being analysed for the same reasons.

“This is so weird,” Rey commented as she watched the TMZ office argue about the team’s power levels while all still wearing party hats from their New Years party just hours before.

“You’ll get used to it,” Aradia Furst told her. 

“I’m literally being interviewed by like 17 people every single minute and I hate it,” Hilda said. She was apparently Aradia’s second cousin three times removed (Hilda’s great-great-great-great-grandparents were Aradia’s great-grandparents), which Hilda had only learned when she saw it on MSNBC’s coverage of her. “I’ve never killed myself in public before but I’m this fucking close to doing it just to have one less body for everybody to interrogate.” She’d never been this stressed out by her power before, at least that she’d let her best friends know.

“This is exactly why I don’t like going out in public,” Elle said.

“Well, I guess you’re going to be travelling exclusively by lightning bolt forever now because your ass is famous worldwide.”

“I wish my ass was famous,” Shailene mumbled.

“Don’t go getting any ideas, now,” Aradia chastised. “We’re public figures, we have to keep a clean facade.”

“I mean, do we have to? Or is that just how things have been done? What if it’s tasteful? With, like, a real photographer?”

“If you want to draw Astra’s ire, go ahead. But I’ll be looking down my nose at you the whole time.”

“All I heard was ‘go ahead’.”

“Do you pay us?” Hilda asked. “Or would we have to do brand deals and shit.”

“You each get a monthly stipend which will support a quite comfortable housing arrangement,” Aradia answered. “Anything else you wish to earn on top of that is up to you. I would suggest that you wait to get comfortable with your new income before you start trying to supplement it.”

“Is that on top of, or replacing, your basic income program?”

Aradia was at a loss for words. “No League members have ever been on the program before. I never even considered that it was a possibility.”

Rey’s phone dinged with a new message. She was actually kind of surprised that it wasn’t just constantly going off since the press conference. The text, and the ones that immediately followed it, read:

Hey, this is Felicia The waitress From the diner You gave me your number Are you busy right now? You’re probably busy You can ignore me if you’re busy

With a brief burst of her superspeed Rey texted back:

                                          I'm not busy don’t worry                                           Just watching the news                                           hyd?

What is this, the 20s? ‘hyd’?

                                          I’m old fashioned

I get enough old fashioned at this fucking diner

                                          Is your shift over?

Almost. Another hour

                                          You work third shift often?

Only tonight I drew the short straw to work the new year shift

                                          You busy after?

I was planning on sleeping

                                          That’s probably a good idea

I could wait until after getting an early breakfast tho

                                          Wanna come to Danesville?                                           I know a couple places

Danesville is a 10 hour drive from here

                                          I can carry you                                           Btw, whats the actual address of the diner                                           I kinda just stumbled upon you last time

1 Mile Run Rd Allenwood PA We’re right next to Little Mountain State Park off I-80

Suddenly Hilda jumped out of her seat, yelling “FUCK!”

“What is it?” Aradia asked.

“The Harlequin just showed up at one of my bank security guard jobs. Midwest Federal.”

A plasma trail traced from the chair Rey had been sitting in to the workshop’s balcony, where Rey already was, leaning over it to look out over the city. “Alright Aradia, time to hold up your end of the bargain.”

“I suppose it is.” Aradia got to work casting a portal, but instead of waiting Rey jumped over the railing and ran down the side of the building. Running down a building was always much harder than running up one, but it was so much more exhilarating. On her way down, she sent one last text to Felicia:

Gotta go. Duty calls. See you in an hour hopefully If I never text back then that means I’m dead 👉😎👉

She made it to the bottom with no problems, and flowed through the city until she stopped in front of the bank. Five of Hilda in bank security guard uniforms were standing with their handguns pointed at the door. All the lights inside were dark, and the front door looked like it had been smashed in. A second later the portal Aradia had been casting finally opened, behind Hilda and Rey.

“Wait,” Shay said, double-taking at the balcony of the workshop behind her. “How did you...”

“I’ve been here for like five minutes, guys,” Rey taunted.

An ATM came flying out of the bank’s front doors, followed by a shrill roar. Rey stepped out of the way, pulling one of Hilda who was also in the way along with her.

“What the fuck was that? I thought you said the Harlequin was in there?”

“I swear to god I saw her mask for an instant before she killed me,” Hilda said.

“Is she working with somebody new?”

“Let’s not wait to see...” Aradia said. “HARLEQUIN!” I know you’re in there. You’ve slipped under my radar for far too long.”

Another roar rang out. And then a slow stomping, slowly growing closer. And eventually some creature stepped out of the shadows, with red-and-white checkered scales, wearing the Harlequin’s mask: a plain featureless oval, half red and half white. Except the mask had been split across its width, a third of the way up, by a thick crack which was now its mouth.

“What the fuck is that thing?” Elle asked.

It spoke, in a low, rasping tone. “Hello, Aradia. Recognise me?”

“Why should I, fiend?” Aradia demanded.

“Twofold, witch. Your father was a thorn in my side for decades, one. And you and I spoke face to face only 7 days and a few hours ago, two.”

The Harlequin had been a consistent foe of her father in his early days before joining Astra’s League, this Aradia was familiar with. But, seven days and a few hours ago, Aradia had been at Johanna Kerr’s christmas ball, before it had been blown up by what evidence suggested was the Harlequin, or at least her goons. Aradia would have remembered encountering this beast there.

“What happened to you, Harlequin. This is something new, even for you.”

“I’ll spare you the details of my weakness, if you please. I’ll only have you know that it was and remains to be very painful.”

Something clicked in Aradia’s mind. Could it have something to do with the massive explosion the Harlequin had triggered after Aradia had left the christmas ball? If she had been at the ball to trigger the bomb, she likely would also have been caught in it. That would be more than enough energy to disrupt the impenetrability of her superhuman skin and possibly cause this strange alteration. It was a chemistry gauntlet to work through some other time, however, and especially not as a mere thought experiment.

“Then allow me to relieve your pain,” Aradia announced, straightening her back, and drawing herself up into the standard casting stance, one hand held in front of the other, fingers ready to trace magic circles into the air. “Girls, do what you do.”

The very first thing the Harlequin did was wrench a piece of the door frame out of the wall, and attempt to use it as a javelin to spear Aradia. As before, Rey leapt in to pull Aradia out of the way of the projectile, which embedded into a concrete wall across the street.

“Don’t worry about me getting hit,” Aradia told Rey. “I’m more robust than I look. Focus on taking this thing out.” She then quickly summoned a simple but strong magical barrier, and used it to give herself cover while maneuvered herself next to Hilda.

Meanwhile, Elle and Shay put their powers to work together, performing one of their favorite tag-team moves. Shay reached out and liberated the bronze fixtures from the destroyed door, which she psychically compacted into two rods and Elle then pumped a voltage differential into. Shay launched them at the Harlequin, which hit and elicited a scream as the voltages equalized through her.

Once Aradia had sidled up to Hilda, she asked of her “I’m going to need you to duplicate something for me, quickly.”

“What is it?”

Aradia knelt down and anchored her barrier to the street. She then plucked a dimly glowing white jewel off one of her necklaces and handed it to Hilda. “Its magic and that's all you'll understand even if I explained it. Took me a few years to understand myself.”

Hilda took the jewel and quickly duplicated herself to five, before passing the now 5 jewels to the middle-most her and re-condensing herself back to one. She repeated the duplication once more, before handing them to Aradia. Piled together in a hoard of 25, their combined glow was now about as bright as an average light bulb.

“That’ll do quite nicely,” Aradia said. She dumped all but one into her sleeve, cradling the last one in her palm. She pumped her light through her skin into the jem.

Aradia stood up, clenching her other fist and dissipating the shield she had summoned. She tossed the jewel towards the Harlequin, and yelled “Rey! Blast this with me!”

While Aradia cast a spell to focus her light, Rey zipped in and examined the jem. In the compressed time that her power afforded her, she grabbed it out of the air, and made a deliberate pondering pose for a long enough fraction of a second that she would be visible doing it. She then walked up to the Harlequin, and held it out in front of the Harlequin’s mask. While the Harlequin did a double-take at the audacity of the act, Rey asked “This a good spot?”

“Perfect.” Aradia illuminated the jem with a brilliant white laser projected from her fingertip. Rey, for her own part, channeled her power to siphon some of the plasma that was fueling her into it as well. It was less than a second before Rey felt a crack, and took that has her cue to let go and back away very casually.

Rey watched from a roof across the street as the jewel exploded, throwing the Harlequin through the wall of the bank. 

She only recently had been able to go this fast, after Aradia had given her an upgrade: The Heart. The Heart was a backpack fusion reactor that produced functionally infinite plasma for her to fuel her power with. She use to be able to consistently hit speeds of about fifteen miles a minute, but she’d only be able to sustain that for a handful of minutes. With the Heart, however, she’d been clocking a mile a second, and she had been able to sustain that for at least fifteen minutes, long enough to run from New York City to Danesville, without a sweat.

She pulled her phone out and checked to see Felicia’s response:

If that becomes the last text you ever send anybody i’m donating this phone to the smithsonian for their astras league exhibit

Rey smiled, and put her phone away. She went to step off the roof, but stopped when she noticed a strange flower growing out of the gravel spread across the roof. She summoned some plasma to her palm to shine a light on the flower, which closed its petals against the intense beam of sun-simulacrum.

She heard a crunch against the gravel behind her, and as quickly as she could she turned to face the sound, delivering her neck quite nicely into the grasp of a viney tentacle.

“Well, well, well,” world-infamous supervillainess Babalon said, as she lifted Rey off the ground.

She was dark-skinned, indian-american if Rey remembered the various tv specials about her correctly. Her hair was a long braided tangle, interwoven with branches and interspersed with flowers. She was wearing a bodysuit that was either made of leaves or designed to look like it was made of leaves. Holding her up off the ground were a dozen or so ten-foot-long, inch-thick vines that sprouted from her back and waist, one of which was stretched out and holding Rey. Each vine ended in a bundle of two-foot-long “fingers” each of which could move individually but tended to be used in groups. The fingers were what was wrapped around Rey's neck, preventing her from making her retreat.

Babalon drew herself closer to Rey. “It seems the self-pompous priestess of light has found herself a new disciple. Wanna know what I did to the last one?”

“I'm good, actually. Hey, why'd you name yourself Babalon?” Rey responded, grabbing the vine around her neck with both hands and channeling some of her plasma into it. Babalon recoiled as two feet of that vine was instantly incinerated.

“She gave you the Light too?! HOW?!” Babalon screamed as she swung another of her vines at Rey, faster even than most other superspeedsters Rey had ever met. No wonder she was on the top tier, worthy of being one of the few that drew Astra herself out to fight.

Rey needed to actually focus. Her new upgrade gave her an edge, but only barely.

She boosted herself backwards, remembering just a little too late that the edge of the roof had been behind her. She tripped over the parapet and fell back over the edge, and slowed time down to give her some space for thought. She was about 5 stories up. It would take about 4 seconds to reach the ground. That was plenty of time. She brought her hand to her chin and pondered.

She had only had three hours to adjust to her new power level, but she was fairly confident in her ability. She had developed one specific new skill, something almost unnoticeable that she had nonetheless noticed running up and down buildings all night. She just needed to figure out how to do it on purpose.

She felt the writing mass of plasma on her back, the Heart, given to her by Aradia. She felt its warmth, its light. “The Light”, Babalon had called it. Astra, local goddess she was, had never revealed what it was that fueled her cosmic might, but she did do a lot of glowing while she used it. Was this the same Light? Rey had no idea, but it was a fun little supposition to make. And it did somewhat explain the aforementioned new skill.

“Are you... posing?” Babalon asked, apparently appalled by the gall Rey was exhibiting.

Rey had been focusing on both her inner monologue and maintaining the hand to the chin, and hadn’t noticed that time had resumed normal speed and she hadn’t continued falling.

“What the fuck?!” Shay yelled. “I’m not doing that!

Rey looked at herself. She appeared to be just standing at a 90 degree angle from vertical, 45 feet above the street. “Huh. Didn’t know I could do that.” As she moved, the plasma trail that indicated she was using her power traced her every gesture.

Babalon lunged over the edge, and Rey cut out her power to drop herself out of reach. Shay reached out and grabbed Rey before she hit the ground, following the unprecedented failure of Rey to reactivate the hovering part with the rest of her powers.

“That was weird,” Rey told the others as she righted herself. “Anyway, what’s up with this bitch, Rad?”

Aradia gave Rey a look of annoyance for using her nickname. “That’s Jane Newark. She’s...” Aradia sighed. “A pseudodemon, and a Whore.”

“Wow, strong words. But, I get the idea. Let’s kick her ass.”

A brick whizzed past Rey's head. “Forgetting something?” the Harlequin growled.

“Elle, help me out with Babalon, the rest of you keep dealing with dollface.”

Elle zapped up to the roof with Babalon, with Rey following.

“The witch’s new toys are out to play, I see...” Babalon said as she circled the two. “I’ve killed 5 of Astra’s League, you two small fries don’t stand a chance.”

“You haven’t seen anything yet,” Rey said winding up a punch, Elle standing behind her. “Elle, now!”

Elle jumped forwards, converting herself into pure electrical energy, electrical plasma. She wrapped herself around Rey’s arm, and Rey absorbed her and used her energy to launch herself forward, fist first. Elle released herself the instant Rey’s fist hit Babalon’s chest, exploding out of Rey’s hand, shooting forwards and launching Babalon into the sky.

Elle continued to the clouds, dragging Babalon along with her. She rematerialized periodically, taking opportunities to give Babalon a kick or two before returning to plasma to dodge Babalon’s flailing vines. On the ground, Rey flowed through the streets, following Elle’s flashes of lightning.

Elle eventually let Babalon go in the middle of a cloud over a field outside the city. She struck down to the ground, and started waiting for Babalon to fall down to her. Rey caught up only a few seconds later. They acknowledged each other with a fistbump that crackled with static and neon.

“So what was with that flying thing back there?” Elle asked.

“I don’t really know. This nuclear backpack Rad gave me has some fucking magic in it or something.”

“Can you do it again?”

“I mean, probably. I don’t know how though. How do you do it?”

‘“It’s just an instinctual extension of my power. But it’s not really the same as, like, how Astra flies.”

“I mean, obviously. But I gotta start somewhere.”

“What if you just try running up?”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

“When you run with your power, it’s like pushing yourself in the direction you want to go, right? Just do that, but up.”

“I don’t know...” Rey was silent as she looked up to inspect Babalon's progress towards the ground. “Wait, shit, I just got it.”

“Got what?”

“It’s the Garden of Babalon, because she controls plants.”

Elle sighed. “That does make sense, yeah. You wanna give it a go, with me giving you a boost?”

“Give what a go?”

“Running up.”

“I mean, sure. But you gotta promise to catch me if it don't work.” Rey reached out her hand towards Elle

“Deal.” Elle took Rey’s hand. “3, 2, 1...” Elle converted to lightning and crackled over Rey’s skin as Rey absorbed her, before Rey knelt down and then jumped into the air, Elle releasing herself to give Rey a little extra height.

Rey tried doing what Elle suggested, activating her power to try to force herself higher. As Elle jumped out of her, Rey tried to siphon some of the extra energy Elle had given her, and add it to her reservoir.

She didn’t expect that she would be rocketed into the sky at the same speed she could run. She passed Babalon, still on her own journey down, before she knew what was happening, and hit the clouds in a single second.

Elle, still nearly on the ground, for a second thought her friend had exploded or somehow vaporized herself, until she backed away and saw Rey’s plasma trail tracing a thick, bright line straight up. “Holy shit, Rey.”

Rey, now whizzing past the clouds, considered what to do next. She calmly pulled some plasma from the Heart, though not nearly as much as she used to get into this position, and then tried activating her power downwards to slow her still very rapid ascent through the atmosphere. She managed to stop herself before she got to the point where the air would be too thin to breath, and then let herself start to drop back down to Earth. She periodically slowed herself down, until she was continuously doing it, and was floating like she had done accidentally before. She experimented with the hypothetical throttle of her power, gently increasing and decreasing to raise higher and lower, and then tried to change the angle at which the was directing her power, and managed to achieve something quite analogous to how she assumed someone like Astra could fly.

She glanced down, and noticed Elle zapping around a very angry looking dot, and dropped down to join her.

“Nice of you to join us,” Elle said as Rey gently fell to a stop a few dozen feet above the grass.

“Hey, turns out, I can totally fly.”

“Join the club.”

“We just did, like 5 hours ago.”

“Shut and help me, Rey.”

Rey dropped down to the ground, where Babalon was swinging her vines wildly to try and and reach the two heroes floating just out of her reach.

“You getting tired yet?” Rey asked her. “If you want I could go get Astra, somebody you can actually get some good swings in with.”

“Don’t act like you’re too powerful for me. You haven’t laid a finger on me either, you stupid punk.”

“Tell that to your singed vine.”

Babalon lunged at Rey, growling with frustration. Rey zipped past her vines, and grabbed the vine harness that anchored her plant limbs to her human body. Rey pumped plasma directly from the Heart onto the vines, incinerating them and burning away the leaf-like costume Babalon was wearing.

Babalon swung one of her human arms, hitting Rey and sending her flying.

Rey crashed into the grass, rolling and yelling in pain. “FUCK! I think my rib is broken...”

Babalon, now robbed of her major advantage and seething with rage, stomped towards the now vulnerable hero. “That’s why it takes Astra to handle me, you petulant child. She can take a hit.”

Elle zapped over to Rey, to put herself between Rey and Babalon. “You get back, you bitch.” Elle unwound the chains she kept wrapped around her arms, and started swinging them, striking sparks between them. “We aren’t done here, yet.”

“I’ll just kill you both, then.”

Elle ran at Babalon, and then zapped around her, leaving her chains corporeal enough to wrap around Babalon’s arms. Elle materialized behind her and twisted the chains to bind Babalon’s arms behind her. “Do anything stupid and your heart’s a piece of burnt toast.”

“Bold of you to assume I have one.”

“Well, if you say so.” Elle pumped 10,000 volts across her hands, sending the current across Babalon’s shoulders, setting her skin on fire most evidently. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Elle atomized the chains and rematerialized them back on her own arms, and then kicked Babalon to the ground, where she screamed in apparent agony. “Rey, do you think you can walk?”

Rey slowly got to her feet, grunting occasionally whenever she agitated the broken rib. “Yeah, I think so.”

“Can you send up a flare?”

“Yeah.” Rey raised her palm up to the sky, and launched a plasma ball into the air, arcing slightly towards the city.

A portal appeared a dozen seconds later, out of which Aradia, Shay, and Hilda stepped. Rey saw, through the portal, the Harlequin, restrained tightly by a few dozen feet of chain wrapped around her, being loaded into a police van.

“Good work, girls,” Aradia congratulated. “You are certainly working hard to earn your place on this team.” Aradia strode towards the writhing Babalon, and pulled all of the adamantium from the jewelry she was wearing and sent it to lift Babalon and hogtie her. “Wait until Astra hears how the youngest members of the League took you down on their own.”

“Your threats of humiliation mean nothing, witch,” Babalon spat.

Aradia muzzled Babalon with the remaining adamantium she had. “Shut the fuck up, Whore.”

Rey limped over. “Hey, I don’t suppose you got any healing magic, do you?”

“Depends how severe your injury.”

“Broken rib?”

“Just one? No trouble at all.” Aradia quickly danced out a spell, which sent a warmth up through Rey’s ribcage. “Now, I would suggest you rest for a while before...”

“No can do, doc, I’ve got a date to keep.” Punctuated by a communal sigh from all five of the other women, Rey zipped off.

[malecsecretsanta]

Merry Christmas, @the-prophet-lemonade!

Hello! My first Malec fic as part of the Malec secret santa 2018! I hope you enjoy it. <3

I found it a little difficult to write due to being used to writing longer fics, so I hope it's not as bad as I worry.

Read on AO3

*****

Fearless

Good morning, darling.

Alec gulped at the text. His sister had persuaded him to branch out and meet someone on some sort of mobile app that finds you friends. Or, rather, he had lost a bet and had to at least talk to one person on the app. So he talked to some guy called Magnus (though he didn’t actually do anything as the guy struck up a conversation first) and…well, he found he had enjoyed it. And now there was this. This man managed to make texts sound exciting. Alec sometimes struggled with what to say or he found himself talking easily with him.

Hi.

Eloquent this morning, I see! What do you have planned for the day?

Uh, same as yesterday really. Practising my martial arts, reading…I have work in the evening. You?

Ah, exciting, darling. You should visit some clubs with me on one of your evenings off. ;)

It hadn’t been the first time Magnus had suggested this, unfortunately he was just…not that into clubs. Or being social in general. Yet every time he declined, his new friend took it in great humour. Alec was puzzled, if he was honest. He could tell that the other man was social, definitely far more social than him…wasn’t he boring?

Not really my thing. Thanks for asking, though. :)

If you change your mind, you have my number. ;) How is that job of yours going?

Much the same as usual; a never-ending battle. I enjoy it, though.

Obviously he couldn’t tell him exactly what his job was, but he supposed policeman wasn’t too far off.

Better you than me; I’ve never been much of a physical man, except for the pleasure of another’s company. ;)

…I’m sure you do very well there. Not that I would know. Haha.

;)

How is your job?

Usually quite enjoyable, with the occasional asshole client. Needless to say, they don’t remain client for long. ;)

How unfortunate for them, but not undeserved.

Exactly, darling. I’m too pretty to deal with their negative energies.

He was glad he lost that bet; talking to Magnus took his mind off things, especially recently when things had gotten a heck of a lot weirder. They had found a mundane with the sight…or, as it turned out, an unmarked shadowhunter. A very rare occurrence. Clary had waltzed into their lives and distracted Jace, been a nuisance and needs to be taught a modicum of patience and sensibility, but he at least had a new friend to distract him, just a little. Not from his job, never that.

Alec pocketed his phone and decided he should get on with his day. Clary had been talking about runes that had been coming to her mind. He didn’t really think that was possible, but it wasn’t like his opinion was going to change anything. Today, she was apparently going to show them some.

He found Jace and accompanied him to the library where they were all meeting to see these new runes of Clary’s, Alec every bit as sceptical as he had been from the start.

“I know it’s hard to believe, but I can create new runes and I’ll prove it today,” Clary said.

“Can you create one by will or…do you have to wait? Honestly, this seems very much unlikely,” Alec scoffed.

“Hey, hey, Clary’s got a gift, she’s going to show you,” Simon said.

“I’m still working on it. One came to me, but I could try by will. Any ideas?” Clary asked.

“What about fearless? That would be useful,” he said.

“Yeah, that would be,” Izzy said. She said quieter to Alec. “You can go through spider dens then.”

“Shut up,” Alec muttered, though with no real fire.

“I can try that,” Clary said.

He watched as she stared into space and he rolled his eyes, looking at Jace. “Do we have time for this?” He muttered.

“Alec, she’s done it before, I’ve seen it,” Jace said. “Shot sunlight out of her palm at some demons.”

He looked back at Clary, who was drawing something on a piece of paper. She brought it over to them and he looked at it. He looked at Jace; as sceptical as Alec was, Jace wasn’t much different to him in that respect. He was as cynical as they came and yet he trusted Clary’s abilities. He shrugged and pulled up his sleeve, looking at Jace. He trusted Jace completely, so he might as well try it.

Jace drew the rune on his forearm and Alec pulled his sleeve down.

“So…?” Simon piped up. “How do we test it…in the institute…where demons aren’t allowed?”

Before Alec could speak up, their parents walked in. “What is a mundane doing here?” Maryse asked.

“He’s with Clary. While you’re here, there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you, I just…didn’t know how to or whether you would accept it, but I’m not scared anymore,” Alec stated, feeling brave, which he supposed meant the rune was working. “I’m gay.”

Alec stared at his arm, at where the fearless rune had been. Long faded, it had been a week since he had come out to his parents (and Clary and Simon, thankfully Jace and Iz already knew) and it had been a week since they had spoken to him. He could still remember the shock on their faces. They hadn’t known what to say, but it didn’t look like they needed to say anything; actions spoke louder than words.

Are you alright, darling? I haven’t heard from you in a week.

He stared down at the text, wondering whether or not to tell him. The fact that he was even considering it puzzled him further; what was it about this person that made him want to share such private details of his life?

I’m sorry. Family crisis. Rather not talk about it. How are you? Hopefully better than me.

I’m sorry to hear that, darling. Perhaps I can make you feel much better. ;)

???

An ill-timed joke, darling, nothing to fear. I am quite alright, sitting with my cat and planning a party. You’re welcome to come, of course. ;)

Alec was interrupted from replying by a knock on the door. Pocketing his phone, he answered the door to see Izzy there. She smiled at him and wrapped her arms around him. They might not have the parabatai bond, but sometimes they really didn’t need it. They knew what each other needed, most of the time.

He shut the door and she smiled at him. “I know things have been…unpleasant for you, around mum and dad. I had an idea; what if you got away for a while?” Izzy suggested.

“I’m not running away,” he muttered.

“No, not that, just…I don’t know, for a few weeks, just think about it,” Izzy said.

“Where would I even go?” Alec asked.

“I’ve thought about that too. Magnus Bane. He says he doesn’t care for Shadowhunters, but I also know he can’t resist helping people,” Izzy said.

“I’ll think about it.”

“Come on, we’re getting ready for a party,” Izzy said.

“A what?”

“A party, we need to visit Magnus Bane again,” Izzy said. “This time, you’re coming as well. Maybe you’ll make up your mind by the time we get there.”

“Do I have a choice?”

“No.”

Alec stood in the doorway of this Magnus Bane’s loft waiting for their knock to be answered. Honestly, he didn’t want to be there. He really didn’t and yet, here he was. He was more than a little tired of all of this; ever since Clary had come into their lives it had all gone downhill. He had been better off in the closet, but that had been his choice. He’d offered to test out the new rune, it was his own damned fault. At least he could stand here having prevented Izzy’s attempts to dress him nicely. Her nice was generally uncomfortable.

The door swung open and Alec’s eyes moved to the man who answered it. He was young-looking, but warlocks generally were. He had spiked up dark hair with colours highlighting it, possibly glitter too…glitter everywhere…and he was showing a lot of skin. There Alec was in his mottled woollen jumper and jeans.

“You lot again. What now? I—well hello. You seem to have brought someone new. You are?” The man answering the door asked. He was probably Magnus Bane.

“Alec. This is my brother, Alec,” Izzy said. “This is Magnus Bane.”

Clearly she was trying to get his attention and he looked at her, then at Magnus. “Hi,” he said, lamely.

“Come in,” Magnus said, leading them in.

Izzy pulled him along, into the loft which seemed to be heaving with bodies dancing to loud music. Already he felt like he wanted to get out, but he had to stand his ground. He led him into a room, which on further inspection was his bedroom and the music died out completely.

“So…” Magnus started.

“We have a couple of requests,” Izzy said.

“Of course you do. Darling, you’ll find that I’m very expensive,” Magnus said. “Though I suppose I can be persuaded.”

Alec was pretty sure he imagined the look Magnus gave him. As if he would hold the attention of someone who looked like Magnus did when Jace and Izzy were in the room. In the better lighting, the suspicion he had earlier was confirmed; he had green-gold cat eyes and was very handsome. Which also meant he was likely straight. All the handsome ones were.

“Alec, you had a request, you first,” Izzy said.

“Don’t you think my mom is more—” Clary started up, indignant.

Alec swallowed, unable to cope with his attention. “Um, yeah. I wanted to know…where’s your bathroom?” Alec asked, unable to do it after all.

Magnus blinked at him before waving his hand. “Follow the shining light, darling,” he said.

Alec couldn’t have gotten out of that room any faster; how embarrassing, He followed the magic through the room full of people, dodging out of the way of a handsy faerie and locking the bathroom door behind him. He leant against the door and pulled his sleeve up, staring at his forearm. Just last week he had been brave and spoken his mind how he wanted, uninhibited by his usual self-doubt.

He pulled out his stele and drew the fearless rune on him again and took himself out of the bathroom and back to the bedroom. He stood next to his sister, waiting for them to be done with Clary’s latest issue and watched when they finally started leaving the room.

“I’ll join you in a moment,” Alec said.

When it was just the two of them, he looked at Magnus, who was watching him curiously.

“So, you’ve worked out what you wanted to ask me?”

“Yeah. I have. I need to get away from the Institute for a while. I’m suffocating there after coming out to my parents and they’re none too pleased. I was wondering if you could help me find a place to lay low. I don’t really have a lot of money,” he said.

“Darling, money is no issue, but I don’t have a spare room. My friend Ragnor and I are halfway through our new year’s bet slash challenge to live one year like mundanes. Almost. Of course, some magic is allowed, but home improvement is not,” Magnus said. “So unless you’re willing to share my bed, there is the couch.”

He cleared his throat. “The couch will be fine,” he said.

Moving in wasn’t much of a hassle, especially when Clary’s mundane friend actually offered to drive his stuff to his new place. He wasn’t exactly fond of the mundane, but Alec couldn’t exactly deny that he’d been considerate this time. Most of his belongings were books and manga that he had collected over the year, which he had managed to put into one trunk, then a trunk for weaponry…and one for clothes, though they were hardly exciting. Holey jumpers, other dark coloured and worn clothes.

He wondered whether he should have simply gone elsewhere, considering Magnus didn’t have much room for himself, but the man seemed eager to have a roommate and Alec didn’t know where else to go. He supposed when you lived as long as Magnus did, you had to find ways to make it interesting.

Sleeping on the sofa did prove a little uncomfortable; unlike his brother, he couldn’t just fall asleep anywhere. Alec pursed his lips thinking of Max; he had talked to him before he had moved out, explained why he was doing this and what he was. Max might be too young to fight, but he was intelligent. He seemed to have taken everything into stride and he loved him for that, but he still felt a little like he was abandoning him.

As it was, Alec sat on the sofa reading a book, and Magnus’ little cat Chairman Meow rubbed against his leg. He reached down and picked the cat up, putting him down carefully on the sofa so he could do what he wished, which turned out to be climbing onto him and curling up. He smiled to himself, stroking the cat as he read his book.

Several hours later, Magnus returned in a flourish, as seemed to be his style and yet Alec didn’t look up from his book. It was easier that way; then he didn’t have to embarrass himself staring at him a bit too long. He was far more attractive than should be allowed, but at least he had his book to distract himself with. That he had read the same line four times now. Also, he could see the bottom of Magnus’ legs and he didn’t think the book was going to last much longer.

A ringed hand reached underneath his arms to pet the cat and he all but jumped, his book now moved sideways as Magnus crouched down with a smirk, his cat eyes alight with amusement.

“He’s certainly grown fond of you quickly, darling; it usually takes him longer to become comfortable with people,” Magnus said.

“Oh,” Alec said, unable to think of how to reply to that. He hadn’t actually gone out of his way with the cat.

Magnus smirked up at him before straightening up long enough to sit down next to him, long legs so close to his own. Shit. He did not have a crush on his roommate. This was bad.

“Is this what Shadowhunters do in their spare time? I always thought it was train, train, train and perhaps some bitching about Downworlders,” Magnus said with a hint of playfulness.

He swallowed uncomfortably. “Not quite. I just…need some time. That and for all I know, my parents might have my duties removed…in that case, I don’t know what I am going to do, I can’t exactly stay here for free,” Alec said.

Magnus reached over to retrieve his cat, but due to the location of said cat, Alec froze a little and relaxed when the cat was gone. Maybe it was a mistake staying with an overly handsome warlock.

“You know, being a gay shadowhunter and being a Downworlder in a world of narrow-minded Shadowhunters, those of which like to make the rules, aren’t much different, darling,” Magnus said, his usual tone tinted with something else. Insult, he thought.

Alec realised Magnus had mistaken his flinch and his hand automatically flew to stop Magnus from standing up. Most unfortunately for himself, his hand landed on Magnus’ chest. He clearly wasn’t built like a shadowhunter, but it certainly wasn’t an unpleasant feeling. He could feel his cheeks burning and he tried to remove his hand, but Magnus clamped it there with a smirk.

“Cat got your tongue, darling?” Magnus purred.

“Uh. I wasn’t…I don’t hate downworlders. Wary before, I guess, but my parents are not what I aspire to be,” Alec said.

Magnus’ eyebrows rose. “You know about that?”

“Yeah. I haven’t told anyone, though…as the oldest, I want to protect the younger ones, and I wasn’t sure whether they should know this, at least…for now,” Alec said.

“I seem to have misjudged you…you weren’t flinching because of what I am, but something else…” Magnus murmured.

Alec took his hand back and stood abruptly. “I’ve got to go, I need to meet with my siblings, it’s getting late,” he said gruffly.

Alec returned from a night of demon hunting a couple of nights later and collapsed onto the sofa after removing his weapons and groaned. He knew he needed to shower, but it had been a tough night and he needed to draw a few iratzes.

“Alexander, are you alright?”

Alec didn’t need to turn to know it was Magnus and, soon enough, the colourful man was in front of him, taking hold of his scuffed hands. Alec grimaced, not wanting to see Magnus dirty his own hands on his…then he realised how absurd he was being. Blue magic crackled around their hands and he could see his own clearing. Magnus moved one of his hands to his face, snapping his fingers before cupping his cheek. The magic felt soothing and he closed his eyes.

“Anywhere else, darling?” Magnus asked.

“I’m fine, Magnus, thank you…for this,” Alec murmured.

“Mhm,” Magnus said, tugging at Alec’s top. “Your chest, right? Let me see.”

Alec shook his head, feeling his cheeks warm, eyes opening to see Magnus’ concerned face. Magnus smiled and waved a hand, making him freeze up and his eyes widen for a moment, but all that happened was his chest started mending. His injuries weren’t bad, but he was a shadowhunter and used to it. Magnus may not be quite used to daily scrapes.

Magnus chuckled. “Relax, Alexander, you have nothing to worry about with me,” he said, standing up straight, once again reminding him how tall he was. “How about you take a shower and I will fix up some comfort food?”

Alec nodded, wandering into the bathroom and taking a moment to lean against the door, unable to believe his nerves. He needed to get a grip and stop acting like an idiot. He supposed it didn’t help that this was his first major crush. Sure, he’d had small crushes growing up, ones that solidified that he was, in fact, not into girls, but they were fleeting. Nothing in comparison.

Little did Alec know one night when he was lying asleep on the sofa, Magnus came in drunk as a skunk. A little too much fun with his friends and he apparently had enough thought to kick off his Louboutin high tops and find the nearest available place to lie down. On Alec, apparently.

Alec woke up the next morning feeling rather heavy, and waking up some more he realising he was holding someone. He blinked awake and looked down, recognising the hair. Long spikes with glitter and colours in it? It could only be Magnus. He swallowed, feeling warmth in his cheeks and utterly confused as to how they got into this predicament. He had gone to sleep while Magnus was out…so Magnus had found his way there.

And if that wasn’t enough, he had been holding Magnus. He wasn’t sure what he should do, but he certainly didn’t want to wake him up. Unfortunately, getting back to sleep wasn’t an option anymore; how could he sleep when he had this man in his arms? Oh, Raziel. He needed to get out of here; crushing on his roommate was not a good idea.

An hour later, Magnus stirred, making noises and eventually getting up onto his elbows. Alec had never seen him so ruffled, and perhaps if Alec was more articulate, he could have come up with something smart to say, but all he could do was simply stare at him.

“Like what you see, darling?” Magnus asked.

Yes.

“Uh, I—,” Alec floundered.

“You don’t need to open that pretty mouth of yours, Alexander; considering where I’ve been sleeping, I can tell,” he said with a wink, reaching to plant a kiss on his cheek before managing to get up surprisingly gracefully for someone sleepy after a night of drinking.

Alec closed his eyes. Crap.

His phone beeping reminded him that he hadn’t texted his friend Magnus back. He blinked at the text, realising how strange it was that he knew two people called Magnus.

Hello darling. Long time, no speak. I hope you’re still alive, darling. ;)

Hello. Yes, sorry, it has been another hectic few weeks.

Indeed. Tell you what, darling. How about we throw caution to the wind and meet?

Sure, why not?

Try to contain your enthusiasm, darling.

I’m sorry. Not with it. When do you want to meet?

Alec rubbed his face, unable to believe he’d forgotten to text his friend. Not that he actually even knew the man’s face, but they’d talked so much that Alec felt reasonably comfortable talking to him. Although, he hadn’t actually told him the full story behind his absence. Maybe he should when they met.

Tonight, at Dusk, 7pm?

Yeah, that sounds good.

Alec arrived at the place ten minutes early and waited at the bar, sending a text to say where he was before sitting down and ordering a glass of water. He was bombarded with texts from Izzy; he’d made the mistake of telling her he was finally meeting with his friend. He sipped his drink, his voyance rune clear against the back of his hand. One of few permanent runes he carried on his body, it was one of the first ones he had ever received.

Neither of them were worried about Magnus being one of those weirdos that the mundane talked about that you met online; there was never a time that Alec went out unarmed, but he couldn’t see Magnus being a threat. Far too odd to be a suspicious character.

At five past seven, he heard the noise of a chair next to him.

“Sorry I’m late, darling,” Magnus said.

Alec looked at him in confusion. “Hi Magnus…I wasn’t expecting you. I’m actually meeting a friend here.”

Magnus smirked at him and lay his phone down between them. Alec looked over and his eyebrows rose; they were his texts. He looked at him again.

“Oh.”

“Oh indeed. I had a feeling, then I spoke to your sister,” Magnus said.

“Oh.”

“Disappointed?” Magnus smirked.

“No, uh, sorry. I’m…I’ve never been great with people,” he said.

“Your sister told me as much. How about we have some drinks and food?” Magnus asked.

They were taken to a table and Alec picked up a menu, looking at the choices before balking at the price. He didn’t nearly have enough money to waste on a meal. Had he known Magnus was also his friend, he might have been more careful. Despite the bare minimum apartment, he knew the other man had expensive taste.

He sighed and put the menu down. “I can’t afford this, I’m sorry,” Alec said.

“Don’t worry, Alexander, this is on me. No buts,” Magnus said.

Alec was a smart guy (despite how idiotic he felt he had been recently) and he had read a lot of books. Therefore he had a feeling that, perhaps, this dinner meant something different to each of them.

He cleared his throat, picking up his menu to hide the warmth on his cheeks (again; this was happening a lot recently and always around Magnus).

“Just to, uh, clarify…is this dinner between friends…or something else?” Alec asked.

“In all of my years, Alexander, I’ve not met such an adorable Shadowhunter,” Magnus said. “We meet through a dating app and through your brave move away from a toxic environment…and yet, you have no clue, do you?”

“A dating…” He started before grunting. “Izzy!”

“It’s quite alright, darling; we can make this a friendly dinner,” Magnus said. “If that is what you really want.”

Alec found himself completely lost. “I’m…not opposed to dating you.”

Magnus’ face brightened.

“But…” Magnus’ face dropped a little, so Alec hurried on. “Can we start over?”

Magnus beamed, standing up and holding his hand out to Alec. “How about we find somewhere a little more comfortable; we can do the fancy date another time,” he said with a wink.

Alec let him pull him up and walked out into the cool evening with him.

“What you said before…I’m not brave, not really,” Alec said.

“Are you wearing a fearless rune right now?” Magnus asked.

Alec gaped at him.

“I saw the rune at my party and I asked your sister. That rune wasn’t in the Grey Book,” Magnus said.

“I’m not wearing it, not right now…I wish I was,” Alec muttered.

“Maybe those two times you had a jumpstart, but I would say you’re most definitely not a coward, Alexander. I’ve not known you long, but I know you’re an intelligent, brave, compassionate, funny and very much selfless young man,” Magnus said.

“Now you’re just trying to get into my pants,” Alec said, hiding his embarrassment behind humour.

Magnus just smirked.

They had bought some fast food on their way back to the apartment; despite Magnus being able to easily whisk them back to Brooklyn, the walk was nice and comfortable. Magnus asked him about his siblings (the safer option, given his parents), to which Alec spoke long and fondly about them, even if they exasperated him too, and Alec asked Magnus about his work, which led to a discussion about what variety of work warlocks did and what (far more limited) variety of work shadowhunters did.

Alec hesitated at the door and Magnus grinned at him, making him flush, before leading him inside. All the lights turned on with a flourish of Magnus’ magic and Alec felt just a little awkward now. Magnus walked back over to him with a smile.

“Thank you for a wonderful not-date, darling,” Magnus said.

Alec couldn’t help but remember Magnus’ words on bravery and decided to prove to himself that, perhaps, he was right. He reached forward and kissed him softly, not lingering long before he moved to pull away, but Magnus wrapped his arms around him and returned the kiss passionately. Alec moved his hands to Magnus’ hips, realising too late that he was touching bare skin, Magnus’ top not quite making it to the tops of his skinny jeans (and they were very, very skinny).

“Let’s go to bed, darling,” Magnus said when he pulled away. “To talk and sleep. You have to buy me dinner first if you want more than that.” He winked and sauntered into his room, hips swaying suggestively.

Maybe, just maybe, that fearless rune had saved his life.

[prettieparker86]

In The Bleak Midwinter || Part 5

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11,  Part 12 & Part 13

Pairing: Tommy Shelby x Reader

Warning: Mentions of death and blood

Gif Credit: @sikanapanele, @themiseducationofb, @peakyblindersdaily Thank you for allowing me to use your gifs

Tag: @lainey-lane​, @pindlemouse, @thelastemzy, @helloandreabeth, @fandoms-broke-my-life, @taylxr0, @shelbysbushblog, @accio-witty-username, @iamtheonewhocares, @infinitelycharmed23, @kingsmanstories, @shelby-gin-limited, @taylxr0, @sympathyfortheblinderdevil, @neversleeping4am, @ icebluegriffin  If you left a message I tagged you. If you don’t want that just let me know. And If you want to be tagged in the future let me know.

Note: This chapter really starts the beginning of a difficult time for all the characters. I said, season four was a bitch. I also really tried to lay the seeds for things to come. So there are hints of things throughout this chapter. Hopefully that comes through. Hope you like Fiona and Tommy getting closer. Hell, hopefully you just like the update! I also just realized how fucking long this is. Sorry.

As always Comments, Likes, and Reblogs are greatly appreciated! And I want to say Thank You to everyone who commented, liked, or reblogged my post about this update. You all are seriously the best!!!!

It’s the smell of pine and the promise of a drink that draws to into the room. Stack of presents in your arms, ready to be placed under the tree for little minds to wonder about and be tempted to shake. 

But your feet idyll as Tommy comes into view, slouched low in a chair, drink in one hand, smoke in another, staring off at a picture on his desk you know is Grace. 

For a second, only a moment, your heart aches just a little, before you swiftly dismiss the notion as Tommy glances over at you, rising from the chair as if he’s surprised to see you, surprised you caught him.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt. I finished wrapping the gifts” You explain, your gaze dodging his sheepishly as you move quickly for the tree. 

Unsure if tonight will be one of the rare nights you finish what you came to do and then turn in for the night, or whether Tommy will offer you a drink like he normally does. 

You haven’t talked about it, that almost kiss. It’s been over a week and he hasn’t said a word, so you haven’t brought it up either. 

He’s your family- with you and the boys, your friend, a trusted confidant, but also still your boss. That makes this a precarious situation you are none too eager to navigate. 

And he still loves his dead wife. Nearly two years later, the longing in his eyes was unmistakable. 

So you tell yourself, perhaps it was just a beautiful moment gone awry. Getting the better of the both of you.

“No, it’s fine.“ Tommy says, his voice deep and tired from another long day. 

Working himself beyond exhaustion so there’s little time for his mind to wander or dwell on the things he’s too stubborn to fix… You know all his little tricks by now.

“Drink?” He asks. He doesn’t ask what you’ll have. You’re long past such formalities and besides, he already knows.

It appears you’ll be staying after all, you think, as you offer a subtle nod his way. 

You arrange the presents just so underneath the jutting branches and rise on your feet, feeling your shirt drop back down around your ankles as you rise.

You linger by the tree, breathing in the smell of pine as your fingers stroke the short stiff needles. 

Big red ribbons drape the tree with bright white bulbs like a lady of the house all dressed up for a ball. 

You love Christmas. It always reminds you of years long past. Of being at home as a child. Your brothers carrying on and creating a ruckus through the house as your sister tried to chase you down to finish dressing you for the party. 

Even then she thought you were given far too many liberties and freedoms for a girl. 

The house smelling of your mother’s ginger snap cookies as she’d try to shoo your brothers away when they’d steal them off the cooling rack. Your father hollering on for everyone to quiet down as he attended to business, but with five children in the house, peace was hard to come by. 

And you, the youngest, would take the teasing and the prodding, always captivated by the energy that fluttered through the house with the holidays.

It’s the smell of him that tells you Tommy’s brought over your drink, not the clip of his steps, or the rhythm of his breath. 

He smells of tobacco, leather, and the kind of industrial smoke that billows in his factories. 

It’s harsh like his moods, but distinctly masculine and after living this long in his home, you find the smell of Tommy calms you. Makes you feel safe. Almost the way the smell of your father had when you were a small child.

Taking the drink from his waiting hand, you turn back to the Christmas tree, letting the memories wash over you. Understanding a little better that look in Tommy’s eyes as he gazed upon Grace’s picture.

“It’s always a little harder around the holidays, missing the little things, loved ones-“ An air of nostalgia lingers on your breath.

“An’ where ‘er your loved ones this time of year, Fiona?” Tommy asks, making conversation. 

Easy and smooth like the words you often share after the children have gone to bed and the manor’s grown quiet. Even though he’s never asked about your family before.

You glance over at Tommy from the corner of your eye, a playful smirk edging on your lips.

“I’m surrounded by them.” You tease him, even though it’s true and you’re starting to think he knows that.

Tommy meets your gaze, his lips pursing as he tries to restrain the smile curling at the corners of his mouth.

You catch sight of his hand running along his jaw out of your periphery as your turn back before he speaks again. 

“I meant your family.” He clarifies as if you didn’t know.

“Aww yes, my family.” You repeat sarcastically before talking a large sip of your drink and turning to face him, leaving the tree behind.

“You see Tommy, when you get pregnant at seventeen outside of wedlock from a boy who’s fallen somewhere in France and then refuse to give it up… Well, family has a way of turning its back on you. What with you bein’ a disgrace to the family name an’ all.” He knows this, parts of it, but not all of it.

Taking another tall sip of whiskey, you find your lips sharing a little more than perhaps you should.

“But my brothers always did like a good party. So surely, they’d be at some social event right now, and my sister- well she was always far too concerned with what other people thought. So I’d imagine she’s at home somewhere. No doubt with babies of her own by now.” You say, an air of distance on your breath as you let your mind truly think of them, all of them, for the first time in a very long time.

“I thought you just had the one brother?” Tommy asks, a shift in his voice you miss as you wander absently over toward the fire.

“You forget I’m Irish, Tommy. No reasonable Irish family only has two children. There were five of us in total and if my mum hadn’t passed surely there would have been more. Three brothers, one sister, I was the runt.” You share. 

Freddie, Frankie, Frannie, Finn, and Fee, you can still hear the melody of your mother’s voice as she’d call you all in for supper. 

Their faces flash through your mind like a distant memory, but only two linger, your closest brother and mum.

“That’s not what they said. When I asked around ‘bout yeah. That’s not what they said.” Tommy’s words hit your back and your feet stop suddenly by the fireplace. Try as you might not to let your movements look abrupt or startled.

Your heart thumps a little faster. Honesty, that’s what you and Tommy have, but you aren’t that girl from before and you curse yourself for bringing her up at all.

“No?” You feigned ignorance as you turn back his way. 

“Maybe they had it wrong.” You say, reminding yourself that isn’t a lie, even though it doesn’t feel quite like the truth on your heart either as you meet his eyes.

Those piercing blues, those hypnotizing pits that draw you in like a vortex, you and everyone else. You swear they see right through you. 

There’s a question hanging in his gaze, a narrowing around his eyes as he stares back at you. It makes a shiver run down your spine and leaves you desperate to make it stop.

“John’s having a party at his house for New year’s.” You say, quickly changing the subject. 

You watch the shift in his eyes. Talk of his brother getting his attention the way you knew it would.

A little huff leaves his chest, barely audible, but you hear it as he fishes out his cigarette case and plucks a smoke between his lips. 

He bows his head, drawing it to the lighter before, glancing back up at you once it’s sparked.

“John’s having a party at the big house, eh? Good for him.” He says, trying far too hard to sound as if he doesn’t care, but you see right through it. 

He’s so transparent to you. John reminds you the most of your brother. Of who he was before the war. 

But Tommy… He reminds you of the man who came back. They all came back different, changed. But the walls Tommy puts up, the way he isolates himself, it’s not foreign to you. You see right through him.

“Lizzie thinks it’d be a good idea if you took Charlie. Finn and I could come along too if that’d make it easier.” You suggest. 

You hate seeing him like this, like a ship lost out at sea without it’s harbor. He’s stubborn to a fault, and he thinks he doesn’t deserve them after the pain he’s caused them. 

He doesn’t say it, of course, but you hear it all the same. This has gone on long enough. Someone needs to make the first move.

“You an Lizzie workin against me now, eh?” Tommy almost laughs, almost, as his head shakes with the ridiculousness of the notion.

Downing the last of your drink, you set the glass down on the panel over the fireplace, amongst the garland draped across it and move for him.

“It’d be good for Charlie. He should know his family, Tommy.” You tell him, your voice growing more firm as his gaze evades you. 

Pulling at his cigarette, his gaze lingers up along the ceiling, head shaking slowly as if he made it clear he’ll have none of it.

But you’re not one to be so easily dismissed either and what your saying is important. 

Charlie may not be yours, but you love him like he is and his wellbeing is of your utmost importance. He already lost his mum. He should know his family. 

It’s a gift you wish you could give Finn. There’s little you could do to change that, but this you can do something about.

Snatching the cigarette from the space between Tommy’s fingers, you stub it out in the ashtray on the coffee table below and find you’ve won his full attention with the boldness of your move.

“Charlie misses his family and I know you miss them too.” You challenge him, looking him dead in the eye and daring him to deny it.

Tommy stares at you, not saying a word. His face impossible to read, but he doesn’t look away, and you could swear there’s something slowly revealing itself in his gaze as you take a chance and reach out for him. 

Running your thumb gently along the curve of his prominent cheekbone.

“It’s ok to miss them, Tom.” You speak softly, as if your words are a secret that should never be revealed in casual tones. 

Reminding him his heart is still beating in there. No matter how hard he tries to wall it out. 

Reminding him family was his strength and still is no matter how hard he tries to convince himself he doesn’t need them.

Your hand drops slowly from his face as Tommy holds your gaze. The power of his stare so intense you’re not sure if you’re remembering to regularly blink or breathe. You’ve never stared into each other’s eyes like this, not since…

“Think Charlie might not be the only one you’re good for, Fiona.” Tommy says slowly as if the truth of his words is still revealing itself to him.

A shuddered breath quivers off your lips as Tommy brushes a strand of hair behind your ear, taking you by surprise.

You can’t speak as you stare back into the endless pits of Tommy’s eyes, feeling his thumb run along you jaw as he slowly tilts it and leans into you, causing the breath to still on your lips.

Your eyes slip closed as your lips meet and hold, his kiss is gentle, lips soft and full. It sends your heart hammering in your chest on contact, you nearly feel lighthearted as you reach for Tommy to steady yourself.  Your hands slipping along his waist, fisting at his vest.

Tommy kisses you slowly, cautiously, feeling out the moment, but as you return his kiss, you feel his fingers dig into your hair at the back of your head, clutching you closer to him before he begins to kiss you harder.

Your mind is a swirl of thoughts and uncertainties, all moving too fast for you to capture more than a fleeting recognition of. And when combined with the heat of Tommy’s breath and the swipe his tongue along the seam of your mouth, you know you’re done for.

Tommy tastes like whiskey and tobacco, complimenting the distinct scent of him that surrounds you. A smell that usually calms your nerves, but wrapped in Tommy’s arms, lost against the stroke of his lips and tongue, you feel anything but calm. 

You feel fucking alive. You let your hands settle around the back of his neck, running up the curve of it, feeling his cropped hair prick at your palm before your fingers lacing through the longer strands as Tommy’s grip falls to your waist, pulling you against him. 

His mouth slips too, down along your jaw then neck, nipping and kissing a trail against your skin. A path of destruction really, you haven’t been touched like this, kissed like this, with passion and desire, since before you had Finn. 

Your senses are on overload, your mind going haywire. And that mustard seed you’ve been trying to keep understand wraps, the one that holds all your forbidden and confusing feelings about Tommy Shelby, it’s just blossomed into something that feels nearly beyond your control under his undivided attention.

Your eyes shoot open, staring up at the carvings that line the ceiling as your mind quickly starts to scramble. 

What are you doing, it asks like an echo shouted down a quiet hollow hall. This is your boss. 

Yes, he’s more than that, but he is still that. You have no idea what he feels for you, not concretely. 

And you have so much to lose here. You and more importantly, Finn…

“Slow down, Tommy.” You breathe out, your voice far more ragged and uneven than you intended. 

You cup his face and draw it back to yours. His breath is heavy on your lips as you rest your head against his, seeking out those enchanting blue eyes that are as mesmerizing as they are dangerous.

“Last time things went this fast it didn’ fare so well for me. And we have Finn and Charlie to think about.” You whisper, trying to hold onto rationality, sensibility- things you wish you would have considered in your youth. 

But it’s hard, undeniably hard as Tommy’s lips linger just a breath away, brushing faintly against your own when his arms hold your body into the curve of his. 

No man has ever tempted you the way Tommy is right now, not since Finn’s father. He’s gotten under your skin, so slowly you didn’t feel him sinking in until it was too late. 

Making your heart weak and desirous to take ill-fated risks if it means just one more brush of his lips, another moment in his arms. 

Staring into those eyes, you feel yourself losing this battle as you give in and gently kissing him once more to kill the hunger burning its way through your veins. 

Your hand grips at his hair, the other curved around the base of his neck, not ready to let go of him.

“This isn’t like that.” Tommy’s husky breath fills the space between you, deep and gritty, enough to melt butter as you break the kiss.

But it’s his words that get to you. How is this predicament any different than the last? 

You know Tommy’s care about you. Perhaps more than he should, but how much more? You were youthful and naïve once and it cost you everything. 

You can’t do that again. You have a child now, he has to be your focus, and no man it worth sending a wrecking ball through the life he has here.

Placing your hands on his shoulders, you pull away from him, slipping from Tommy’s arms while you still have enough good sense. 

His eyes are full of confusion, his brow pinched as he stares across from you waiting to see why you pulled away.

“What do you want from me, Tommy? I need to know your intentions. I know your heart isn’t free, not completely, an’ I would never try an’ take that from you or judge it. Lord knows I understand, but I can’t cross this line if you’re gonna be somewhere else, thinking of someone else. I understand your loneliness, I do, but for reasons of my own, I can’t pretend.” You tell him truthfully. 

You can’t play games. You can’t have Tommy making you feel alive in a way you haven’t felt since before Finn was born.  

You can’t give him your heart and body, and worry if he’s thinking about Grace while you do. You can’t. There’s too much at stake.

“That’s not what-“ Tommy starts to explain, but there’s a knock at the door of the study.

“Mr. Shelby-“ Frances’ voice follows before it suddenly dies when she steps into the room. 

She looks at you both, but her eyes settle on you as your cheeks suddenly feel like they’re burning up. 

You’ve been in this room at this hour of the night countless times together, but you can see it in her eyes, she knows she’s walked in on something.

“What is it Frances?” Tommy presses as he turns from you toward the door, the impatience in his deep voice only amplifying the unspoken tension in the room.

Her gaze pulls quickly from yours to Tommy as she stammers for a brief moment.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Shelby. I didn’t- I didn’t mean to interrupt. But the chef keeps asking how many for dinner on Christmas. He’s new and foreign, and he gets easily upset.” She tries to explain, suddenly sounding more flustered than even you feel.

With matters to attend to and enough playing with fire for one night, you take this as your cue and move for the door. 

Stopping beside Tommy, you place your hand upon his arm briefly, garnering his attention, offering him a simple smile when he looks your way. 

Trying not to arouse anymore suspicion than what has already been stirred up, but to let him know there’s no bad blood.

“I should leave you to it.” You say, before moving for the door, but Tommy catches your hand as it falls away, trying to draw you back toward him before you can get away.

“Fiona,” Tommy calls, your eyes meet Frances’ briefly, surely- now more than ever she believes something it going on between you and Thomas.

Turning back, you meet his eyes, seeing the way they reach out for you. 

Suddenly you’re not sure you give a damn what anyone else thinks as you squeeze his hand and offer him the reassuring smile.

“Enjoy tellin’ her ‘bout Johnny Dog’s tribe. I’ll see you in the morning. Good night, Mr. Shelby.”

It wakes you up in the dead of night. Your eyes shoot open as the sound ripples and settles beneath your skin, chilling you to the bone. 

Your heart begins to pound before you’re even fully awake. Some sounds you never forget. No matter how long it’s been since you’ve heard them. 

The sound of a gunshot echoing through the halls of a hollow manor, the place where your children lie asleep in their beds, that’s a sound every protective instinct inside you would recognize anywhere.

You rise quickly in the bed, turning to the space beside you, you breathe a sigh of relief Finn is still sound asleep.

Gently slipping from the blankets as not to wake your son, you snatch your sweater off the chair beside your bed and move quickly for the bureau. 

The doors creaks as your slowly pull them open. Glancing over your shoulder to ensure the squeal hasn’t awaken Finn, your hands reach for the top shelf and search blindly along the back wall of it. 

Your hands steady and still as your feel it - cool steel.

Gripping it tight, you pull the gun from the back of the shelf and draw it to both your hands. 

Your pulse is racing, you can feel it humming through your veins as your hands tremble lightly.

Blowing out a steady breath to calm your nerves, you remember what your brother taught you. Pulling the clip from the bottom, you make sure it’s still fully loaded. 

Finding it just as it was when Tommy gave it to you all that time ago, you push the clip back into place and turn for the door. 

Stealing one last glance at your sleeping son, you say a silent prayer for protection and slip out of the bedroom door as quietly as you can. 

Fishing the key from your sweater pocket, you lock Finn inside and move for Charlie’s room.

Your bare feet move as lightly and quietly as you can against the cold hardwood floor. The night before Christmas the long halls and large rooms fill with frigid air if they aren’t warmed by a fire. Your breath echoes around your like the house itself is breathing.

Reaching Charlie’s room, you pull back the chamber of the gun to load it. Holding the steel at your side, you slip quietly into the little boy’s room. You say a silent prayer of gratitude when you find the room empty besides Charlie. 

Tip-toeing over to his bed, you make sure he’s still breathing and sound asleep. Staring down at the little boy you love as your own, you realize you can’t leave him here. 

You don’t have a key to lock him in and keep others out. What if they come for Tommy’s son next, like they did before? You couldn’t bare even the thought, so putting the gun in your sweater pocket, gentle as you can, you lift Charlie off the bed and into your arms.

He stirs in your arms as his head snuggles against your shoulder, his little arms wrapping around your neck.

“Mummy,” He calls out quietly, the way he still does sometimes.

You hold him against you, scooped in one arm as you softly rub his back with the other.

“Shhhh, it’s Miss Fiona. Everything’s alright. Go back to sleep, sweet boy.” You whisper, giving his rusty locks a little kiss. 

You move quick with the ease that comes from years of carrying a little one in your arms.  

Making it back to your room, you place him gently beside Finn on your side of the bed. Waiting steadily by the edge a few moments until you’re sure both boys are fast asleep, before creeping back for the door. 

You fish your keys out and with a heavy heart, lock it. You hate the idea of trapping your boys in a room, but it’s the safest you can keep them as you move to investigate further. 

You need to know your boys are as safe as they can be before you go in search of Tommy.

You try not to let it frighten you more that Tommy hasn’t come for you or the children, that you can’t hear him moving about the house like you’d expect if there was gunfire. 

You stay close along the tall mahogany walls as you make your way to Tommy’s room. Trying to stay in the shadows as your heart thumps wildly in your chest. 

His door is shut and you find yourself praying once again there isn’t something horrible waiting for you on the other side of that door. 

Raising the gun close to your chest with one hand, you slowly turn the knob to Tommy’s room. 

Sucking in one last breath for courage, you give the door a gentle push open as both hands take hold of the gun, outstretched and aimed for anything that gets in your way as you move inside.

But there’s nothing. The room is empty and doesn’t look like it’s even been touched all night. 

Your heart sinks with dread, your stomach tightening with knots that make it hard to breath as you refuse to think over what this means. 

You refuse to let the worst case scenario linger in your mind.

Leaving Tommy’s room, you move for the stairs. Chest rising and falling rapidly as you move as silently as you can down the steps. 

Heart pounding wildly in your ears. You’re absolutely terrified of what waits you down these steps – Men ready to kill, Tommy’s dead body lying sprawled out in a pool of his own blood, waiting to gun you down next? 

But none of those fears deters you. The boys, Tommy, they’re your family. All you have in this world and you’d walk through the fiery pits of hell to protect your family without hesitation. 

Because after having your family throw you to the streets, burying your brother, and raisin’ a child alone in Birmingham, you’ve learned only the strong survive. If fear was going to hold you back it would have killed you long ago. 

So steadily your steps continue.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, you swallow hard against the lump tightening in your throat and cross yourself the way years of catholic school engrained in you. 

You force yourself to blow out a slow steady breath to calm your nerves as you hold the gun out in front of you and slowly move along the walls. 

There’s a sound, a movement. 

You swing the gun around and find Frances shaking against a wall, startled by the sight of you and the firearm in your hand.

You lower the gun quickly. “Tommy?” You ask, your voice barely a whisper.

Frances shakes her head nervously from side to side, but shares what little she knows. “It came from the kitchen.”

You nod with understanding, trying to appear more sure of yourself than you are. You move quickly across the room to her and back hidden in the shadows.

“The children are asleep in my room. The door is locked. I want you to go up there, grab a lamp, a vase- I don’t care, find something to defend yourself and keep guard.” You instruct her, your voice far more confident than the panic racing through your veins.

She looks back at you with blinding fear in her eyes. She’s just a maid, but you need her.

“They’re just children, Frances.” You plead, you’re voice begging for her mercy.

And that’s all she needs, you watch the realization wash over her face, watch a resolute take hold before she straightens up and nods.

“Nothin’ will happen to ‘em.” She swears, her breath stronger than the fear you saw gleaming in her eyes a moment ago.

You force a smile at her with thanks before she moves for the stairs, creeping along the shadows as you move for the kitchen.

You round the corner for the hall to the kitchen. In the distance you can see light peeking out from beneath the kitchen door. 

Gripping the gun tighter in your hand, you feel your stomach muscles clench as you harden your heart the way you did that night those men came for your brother. 

Preparing your mind and heart to do whatever it takes, no hesitation. You take a step closer, but you don’t get far as a pair of arms suddenly wrap around you from behind.

Your heart shoots into your throat as a man grips you tight. Every survival instinct inside you shoots to life. 

Your hands loosen on the gun, but one still manages to keep a grip on it as the other sends a sharp elbow into the ribs of the man behind you.

You hear him groan in pain before you quickly send another, feeling his grip on you loosen against your assault. 

You hear his voice fill your ears, but the panic racing through your veins makes his words meaningless as he shoves you against the wall, spinning you around to face him.

Only then do you understand as piercing blue eyes you’d recognize anywhere stare back at you in the dim light. 

And suddenly you understand what he’s saying as he grips your arms firmly against the wall.

“It’s me, Fiona. It’s me.”

A ragged breath vibrates off your lips as terror rapidly slips from your veins, but as you take the sight of him in you choke on the next breath. 

He’s covered in blood. Splattered all over his face and neck, thick dark pierces in his hair, smeared and saturated against the stark white of his shirt, his hands painted red.

Shaking loose of his grip, you shove the gun in your pocket and reach for him. Your trembling hands running frantically along the sides of his face, slipping down his neck and on his chest, trying to find out where all this blood is coming from.

“Fuck Tommy, where’s it coming from? Where are you hurt?” You question him desperately, tears filling your eyes as you rip open the top buttons of his shirt to check the skin beneath as your heart pounds wildly out of control with worry.

You feel Tommy grip your face tight as he forces your gaze back up to his.

“I’m fine. It’s not mine… It’s not mine.” He tells you slowly, deeply, trying to draw you back from the grips of panic that are taking you over.

You grip at his blood-stained cheek, a sad smile creeping on your face as you let out a shaky breath. 

Your heart warring against itself, battling against the sense of relief you feel knowing this blood belongs to someone else and not him.

Tommy’s gaze drops to your side as his hand taps the pocket of your sweat with the gun in it before his gaze returns to yours.

“Good girl,” He says, his thumb sweeping against your cheek.

“Listen to me carefully, go wash up. Then I need you to pack a few bags for you and the boys. We’re leaving and I don’t know when we’re comin’ back.” His breath is so serious, the look in his eyes unquestionable as he grips tightly at your face.

“What’s going on, Tommy?” You ask, panic filling your voice. 

You need to know. Standing before him, covered in blood. A man dead somewhere in the home your boys sleep in, where you’re supposed to be safe. You need to know.

“Tommy-“ A voice calls quick, the kitchen door swinging open, filling the hall with piercing light.

Your nerves still shot, you react on instinct, grabbing the gun from your pocket, you rip free of Tommy’s grasp and swing it up, aiming it squarely on the voice in seconds.

Luckily Tommy’s instincts are even better than yours as he shoves the barrel of gun and your arms back down toward the floor before you can get off a shot. Johnny dogs fills your vision as your eyes adjust to the change in light.

He curses from the doorway, in Romani you assume because you can’t make out a word he’s said, but don’t need a translator to understand the scare you just gave him.

“Fuck Fiona, remind me never to cross yeah.” He says on an uneasy breath, everyone on edge, but you can tell he’s trying to be make light of it.

“Sorry Johnny,” You exhale heavily, your heart pounding as you try to calm yourself.

“She’s perfect for yeah Tom, act first, questions later.” He says, smirking to himself in amusement as he takes a pull from this cigarette.

Tommy pretends not to hear Johnny’s remark as he turns back to you.

“I’ll tell you everything, but for right now I need yeah to trust me, alright?” His eyes unblinking, his breath heavy, pressing the weight of his request deep into your chest.

Reluctantly you agree, you’ll insist upon answers later, but standing in the hallway, while he’s covered in blood and has surely managed to get it all over you as well, forcing the issue doesn’t seem like the right time.

Nodding, he leaves you in the hall, heading back over to Johnny as you move quickly for the stairs to handle your end of the business.

When you see Tommy again he meets you in your room. He’s cleaned the blood off of himself and changed his cloths, no sign of the carnage that just took place. 

Scooping his son into his arms as you hoist Finn on your hip, both boys groggy and barely awake. You both take a bag as Tommy leads you all out of the manor and into the waiting car.

You settle the boys in the backseat, bags and presents on the floor. So much for Christmas, you think.

You don’t ask, but Tommy seems to sense the question hanging in your eyes as you settle in your seat.

“We’re safe for now. I’ll tell you everything, but first I got to sort a few things out is all.” He vaguely explains.

It’s only as Tommy starts her up, his hand coming to rest on the stick shift do you see it. Blood on his hand and under his nails as you draw his hand to your lap, running your fingers over it.

“There’s still blood on your hands, Tom.” You tell him, trying to hold back the concern in your voice. Trying to stay as calm as he appears and not as rattled as you feel

You feel him squeeze your hand with reassurance.

“There always is, Fee. Just sometimes you can see it more than others.” He tells you simply, the words settling deep in the pit of your stomach with unease.

“Where are we going?” You inquire, changing the subject and hopefully the flutter of thoughts in your mind.

“Back to Birmingham…” Tommy says, as the car disappears in the darkness.

[tessmontyart]

2018 Year In Review

Another year, another review 💕(I actually typed most of this up before 2019 and then got distracted, whoops)

To put things short, 2018 has been AWESOME :D Exhausting and fast, but awesome.

I started it off pretty uncertain how things were going to go, dreading it would be a repeat of 2017′s boring TAFE courses and endless job rejections. But the miracle happened - a 2D animation studio opened up near me, I applied, did an animation test and got the job!

The job was a contract from 1st of April - 21st of December, so I spent the majority of my year going to work to animate characters for a really crazy but hilarious new kids show called Spongo Fuzz and Jalapena, due to air mid 2019 :) 

It was honestly the most fun job I have ever had and I can’t wait for the next project! 🎉 I have never been this exhausted in my life, though. 😅I had already booked a whole bunch of conventions before I got the job, and didn’t want to cancel them so I was working nonstop - Animation during the day and intensive convention prep every night. 

I also had the bright idea of creating a full colour 26 page comic -with a tight deadline - so I was madly working to the point I didn’t even have time for dinner half the time :’) I am sort of happy with the comic, but also kind of wish I never had the idea in the first place. 😅

I tabled at a ton of conventions; Melbourne Supanova, Central Coast ComiCon, Other Worlds Zine Fair, Sydney Supanova, SMASH and Canberra Gamma Con. If next year doesn’t go so well on the job side of things I’m hoping to add a few more conventions to that list - Brisbane Supanova, Oz Comic Con and Animaga to name a few. I’ve already booked Sydney Madman Anime Festival!

2018 was the year my partner and I celebrated our 4th year together, and he never fails to amaze me with his continuous love and support. I was too sick to attend the first day of SMASH, so he set up and ran the whole stall for me while I stayed at home. Same with Sydney Supanova, I was too bogged down in animation work and couldn’t afford to take the Friday off, so he set up and ran the stall for me on Friday, then we ran the stall together on the weekend. He also tended to my every need when I broke my toe, cooked all my meals when I was busy with work and even packaged + posted all my Etsy orders every day because I was always working during post office hours. He listened to all the problems I was having with my stall setup and helped make shelves and decorations to make it look and function better. I was getting stressed because my desk space was too small, BAM he bought me a brand new desk with plenty of storage. I was getting stressed that I had so much on my convention to-do-list and couldn’t keep track of all my project ideas, BAM, he sets up a whiteboard and helps me brainstorm everything so I can keep track of all my thoughts and ideas and what to prioritise for future conventions. I didn’t even ask him to do any of this, he just loves to help me and make me happy and I am forever blissed and happy to be able to spend my life with such a wonderful human! 

(Home made High Tea I made for him on Valentines Day) 

Arsty Highlilghts / accomplishments:

🌸I designed 9 cute Houseki no Kuni acrylic charms which have been doing really well at conventions!

🌸I also drew a cute series of ‘Sleepy Gem’ Houseki no Kuni / Steven Universe holographic prints, which I’m quite proud of 😊

🌸I created my 2nd enamel pin design, which already needed 2 reorders because they were so popular! ;w; I never knew I could make something that so many people love *sob* I’ve already planned to make these into a series! (already designed some deer ones, and thinking of doing foxes next ^_^ )

🌸I also tried getting gold foil prints done for the first time, which was pretty cool! I got the american sizes mixed up though so I might try for the bigger size next time :) (grainy photo cause its a screenshot from a video)

🌸I’ve been taking steps to make my stall look more ‘professional’, and got a really neat wooden sign made for me by my friend as_sweet_as_jasmine!

🌸I’ve started revamping my favourite series of posters - the Eevee Gijinka girls :) I plan to have them all done and ready for 2019s conventions! 

🌸This was the year I got an iPad, so I could do digital art on-the-go. Honestly its helped me so much, and I can’t wait to be able to use it more (sorta didn’t get a chance to touch it while i was working!)

🌸I got Copic Markers for my birthday so I had a whole new medium to play with! These mixed with using a brush pen for inking really make my inktobers pop and I’m eager to draw more with them  :) 

🌸Speaking of Inktober, it was a huge accomplishment for me to put effort into a decent artwork every day this year! Usually theres a few dud ones when I lacked inspiration, but I somehow managed to make it work ;w; So when it came time to printing the books, theres 31 illustrations rather than 25 like the others :) Also the whole rainbow theme idea came from how cool I think it would look flipping through a rainbow book - so I managed to make that happen and couldn’t be happier!

🌸I passed 1000 sales on Etsy!! 😱As well as 1000 followers on instagram! Crazy right??

General 2018 highlights

🌸2018 was the year one of my best friends got married! I made cute little clay wedding cake toppers for her :)

🌸The year Owl City’s 7th album Cinematic came out!! All the tracks are so GOOD and exactly the sound all us hootowls were longing for. Also Be Brave is a tearjerker, in a good way. What an amazing human Abbey is to Adam <3 

🌸The year Spyro Reignited Trilogy came out!! It’s absolutely amazing, and I love every second of it. Every time I play it I just can’t help but stand there looking around at every detail because everything is just so gorgeous *_* And the nostalgia is so real.

🌸Not exactly a highlight but the year Tumblr went NSFW free, and lost hundreds of thousands of users 😂I’m still here though. Got a dumb tradition to keep up ya know.

🌸The year my work had a hilarious Christmas party where we had to dress up as a character from Spongo Fuzz and Jalapena. It was the first time I actually put effort into a cosplay by myself 😂(possibly the last) (wont put a photo up for embarrassing reasons)

🌸the year I broke my toe for the first time xD;; definitely not a highlight but a first! I couldn’t walk for weeks! it sucked!!! T__T

🌸The year my friend successfully funded his kickstarter for his own cartoon ‘Nurry Brothers Adventure World’ :D So proud of him. I’m gonna help him animate!

🌸The year Lano and Woodley reunited with their amazing show ‘Fly’!! I loved it so much I saw it twice :D 

🌸The year I tried doing Halloween for the first time - I bought a bunch of lollies and chocolates and decorations on my letterbox/door to let people know I was participating. I got 2 different groups of people at the door, 5 people all up 😂More than I expected tbh!

🌸I tried Ruby chocolate for the first time! It was ok .. just kinda tasted like berry yoghurt flavoured white chocolate though ;w; 

SO! What’s coming for 2019?

I’m not really sure at the moment, but I have high hopes for Cheeky Little Studios (the animation company I worked for) - so I guess I’ll just have to wait and see if any of their next projects get concrete start dates :) I’m not as terrified of the year as I usually am when its just one big question mark. I know I can make decent money through conventions and commissions in the meant time so I’ll just continue doing what I love! 

LAST YEAR I SAID:

“I am crossing my fingers for an animation job I applied for a while ago” - I GOT IT! :D

“I plan to do even more conventions. Hopefully I can get into Oz Comic Con!" - didn’t end up applying because I was busy with the job, but keen to try for 2019 :)

"I’m keen to apply for like Animaga in Melbourne, as well as Madman Anime Fest in Brisbane and Melbourne.” - didn’t end up doing so for the same reason above, but that might change this year :)

“I also want to make a lot more non-fandom things for market stalls, as well as a comic and zines!” - I made the comic, as well as 3 inktober zines and a cute ‘if I fits I sits’ cat zine! As well as a bunch of cute original enamel pin ideas and my whole inktober was original art :D 

“Hopefully I’ll hit 1k followers on fb/ig? :D that will make me feel important lol” - I hit 1k on instagram!! I felt very important xD

“I’m also hoping to go on a holiday this year." - I didn’t, for job reasons ... buuut I’m booked in for a cruise in Italy / Greece this September that I’m extremely excited for!

“PLEASE BE KIND 2018, I’M BEGGING YOU 😱” - You were very very kind to me, 2018. 2019, please follow suit! 

(man this is the 7th year of review I’ve done. Can’t believe I’ve been on tumblr this long 😅)

[2017] [2016] [2015] [2014] [2013] [2012]

[mystical-flute]

Miracle on Second Street (3/3)

Ao3 || Buy Me a Ko-Fi?

"Emma?" Mrs. Morris called. "Can I speak with you for a moment?"

Emma rolled her eyes as she looked at the countdown to Christmas she'd made in school. Three days until another terrible Christmas that she'd hate. What could Mrs. Morris want with her now?

 "Emma?" the woman said again, this time right outside the bedroom door.

The ten year old rolled her eyes and put the calendar back on the bedside table just as the door opened. "What do you want?" She couldn't help but feel a bit bitter over what had happened at the Christmas party a couple weeks ago.

 Mrs. Morris took a seat at the edge of Emma's bed with a small smile. "I have some news for you, Emma."

 She rolled her eyes. "What, is Santa going to be giving me an ornament with my name engraved on it?" she asked with dripping sarcasm.

 "No. Well, actually, it isn't up to me what Santa gets for you, anymore."

 Emma frowned. "Oh. So you're moving me to a new home now?" Had her behavior at the Christmas party really been that bad? Even the old guy playing Santa had understood her frustration. Maybe she'd go live with him instead.

 "Please just listen to me, Emma. It isn't up to me to buy you gifts anymore because… well… you've been adopted."

 Emma blinked, her brain taking a moment to process what Mrs. Morris had said. Adopted? Someone actually wanted her? This had to be a joke… right?

 "You're lying…" she said quietly. "You have to be. I'm ten. I'm too old."

 "I'm not lying to you. I would never lie to you about something like this. Their names are Mary-Margaret and David Nolan, and they're downstairs right now waiting to meet you," Mrs. Morris said quietly. "They live in Maine, so you'd have to change schools, but I promise you, they really do want to adopt you."

 She furrowed her brow, trying to find a hint of lying in Mrs. Morris' face, but couldn't find any to her surprise.

 "…Okay. I'll go downstairs," Emma said, getting off the bed and following her foster mother downstairs to the dining room where the couple was. One look at them and Emma had a gut feeling in her stomach that this was different from the last time she'd been told she was going to be adopted.

 The woman's eyes were full of tears, and she was looking at Emma with so much love (not pity, not sadness, but love), that Emma thought she might burst.

 The man's gaze was no different. His eyes were soft, and he mirrored the same look his wife had.

 "Hi Emma…" the woman said softly, beaming at her. "I'm Mary-Margaret, and this is David, and we're… we're going to be your parents."

 Emma nodded, sitting at the table. "Hi… Mrs. Morris told me that you live in Maine."

 "We do. In a small town called Storybrooke. David's the sheriff and I teach fourth grade," Mary-Margaret said.

 "Oh. Will I have any siblings?"

 A brief flash of pain crossed both of the adults' faces, and Emma nearly winced in embarrassment. Okay. That was a bad thing to ask.

 Finally, it was David who spoke. "No. You'd be our only child."

 Relief flooded her. "Really? That's okay. I promise," she said with a tiny smile. She could have them all to herself? Good. She was looking forward to that. "Do I have any other family?"

 "A big one," Mary-Margaret said with a light laugh, obviously happy to be off the topic of other children. "There's my former stepmother and her husband and their kids, David's mother, his brother, and our closest friends and their children. You'll have lots of playmates, Emma."

 Emma's smile grew a bit more. "Oh, that's good." She didn't mind playing with other kids, but she got annoyed when she had to share everything with him. Especially when they stole stuff from her. Hopefully these two, and the other parents, would be good parents and stop them.

 Mary-Margaret smiled. "Emma, we have been waiting so long to adopt a child. We're so glad that they matched us up with you. I have an idea. Why don't we take you out for lunch? You can get anything you'd like."

 "I like grilled cheese and onion rings," Emma said with a smile. "Mabel's Diner has the best onion rings in town."

 "I think we can arrange that. Shall we go then?"

 "Really? Right now?!" Emma asked, her eyes lighting up. She was starving!

 David and Mary-Margaret laughed. "Yes, of course right now. Go get your coat and shoes and you can show us the way."

 In moments, Emma was walking between David and Mary-Margaret through the snowy weather, telling them stories of her childhood while they told her stories of Storybrooke. They owned a farm as well as their regular jobs, and her new grandmother and uncle helped  them out. Mary-Margaret was Jewish, so Emma would be celebrating Christmas and Hanukkah.

  They had a dog too – Emma had never had a dog before.

 Even though part of her was still suspicious of them, part of her afraid that she would be returned again, there was something about the two of them that made Emma feel comfortable and safe in their presence.

 "When are you taking me to Storybrooke?" she asked through a mouthful of cheesy goodness and swallowing a sip of her cola.

 "Tomorrow."

 "Just in time for Christmas!" Emma said with a small gasp. She couldn't wait to celebrate Christmas with a family instead of other orphans who also only got one present. Finally, she'd be able to celebrate Christmas with a family that loved her.

 "That's right. So Emma… Mrs. Morris tells us you've never had a proper Christmas so… what do you want for Christmas?" David asked.

 Emma blinked in surprise, pausing. What did she want for Christmas? All she wanted was a family that wouldn't return her, and it looked like she was getting that… she'd never been able to flip through a Toys-R-Us catalog and mark which Barbies or games she wanted. How was she supposed to figure that out in a matter of days? The older kids had stolen the catalog anyway.

 Emma bit her lip, looking between her new parents. "I… I don't know," she admitted. "I didn't think I'd have a family for Christmas. I didn't think of anything other than a family."

 Predictably, there was worry written on their faces.

 "What do you like to do then? Drawing? Sports? Reading?" Mary-Margaret asked.

 "Um… I like reading and singing… and animals," Emma said, biting her lip. "Sorry if that's not much help."

 "Don't think that. We'll find gifts for you. We promise. Do you like school?"

 Emma shrugged as she took a bite of an onion ring. "It's okay. I don't have many friends though. But I like music class at least. And I like science too."

 Mary-Margaret smiled. "Well that's good! My friend in Storybrooke teaches music. She'll be so happy to have you in her class, I'm sure."

 She smiled again. How were things going so perfectly for her? There had to be a catch, right? There was no way that these people would be so willing and excited to have her as a daughter. She was a screw up. Damaged goods.

 Something had to be wrong.

 Still, Emma would humor them for as long as they'd have her in their home. They were willing to at least listen to her and talk to her like she wasn't just a check from the government. Plus, she'd get away from her annoying foster siblings for a while.

 -----

 Mary-Margaret had been smitten with Emma Swan since Aiden had showed her the photograph of her. Finding out the struggles the girl had gone through had only made her heart break into thousands of pieces, and she knew they had to do something to make her Christmas extra special.

 It would be a time crunch, she knew. Only days before Christmas – a holiday she didn't pay all that much attention to anyway – left little time for people to go shopping, but one look at Emma and the day they'd spent getting to know her meant Mary-Margaret felt like she had to throw her everything into making Christmas special for her.

 "David," she said quietly. "How are we going to do this?" she asked with a sigh as they relaxed in their hotel room later that night. "Sure we have some decorations and that small tree but… Emma deserves better, don't you think?"

 David nodded in agreement, a look of consideration on his face. "Yeah. I agree. But even though we're far from home, we aren't stuck doing this by ourselves. I'll just call Regina and my mother and see if they'd be willing to help make our house Christmas-ready. And tell them what Emma likes so they can get some gifts for her too. Aiden already promised that Baelfire would be willing to be her friend. Ruby and Killian said both Emily and Alice would too. We can do this, Mary-Margaret. Just have faith."

 She nodded slowly, taking a deep breath. "You're right. This just happened so fast that I feel like we haven't had time to breathe."

 "We haven't, really," David said with a small smile as he dialed his phone. "But when we're able to celebrate as a family, it'll be worth it."

 "I know it will…" she said softly. "David, we have a daughter. We have a child and she's perfect and beautiful."

 "We do. And we're going to make this the best Christmas she's ever had."

 Mary-Margaret grinned. "We're going to make every holiday the best she's ever had."

 -----

 It all felt like a dream still. Even as she packed her clothes and few personal belongings up into her suitcase, she still felt like she was going to wake up and find it was all just a fantasy. Finally, she wouldn't be the one standing outside in the freezing weather looking longingly at the car as it drove away with some lucky kid. She was the lucky kid now.

 "Emma! Mr. and Mrs. Nolan are here!" Mrs. Morris called. "It's time to go, sweetheart."

 Emma took a deep breath and looked around the shared bedroom. It was strange that she wouldn't be returning to this place. She'd be going to Storybrooke, Maine, with her new parents… and an extended family she'd never had before.

 She made her way downstairs, feeling the stares of her now former foster siblings shooting right through her as she looked up at David and Mary-Margaret, giving them a timid smile before being led out to their car.

 "Okay Emma. You ready to head to Storybrooke?" David asked, pulling the driver's door closed and starting the car.

 "I'm ready."

 As David pulled out of the driveway, Emma didn't even bother looking back at the foster home she'd lived in for two years. There was no need to – she didn't feel any sadness about leaving it at all.

 The plane ride was easy, only a little bit of turbulence, and before long, Emma found herself riding through the dense forests of northern Maine, a vast difference from the cities and suburbs of Minnesota. As happy as she was that she was finally out of here, she had to admit… she was pretty hungry.

 "Um… 'scuse me," she said softly and waiting until Mary-Margaret looked in the backseat before continuing, "I'm hungry. Are we going to stop soon?"

 "Oh, of course! We'll be home soon, and everyone is meeting us there, so we'll have a big family dinner, okay? It's usually a tradition to go to Ruth's house for Christmas Eve, but everyone wanted to come over to ours to meet you instead. They all brought food, so don't worry about going hungry."

 "We'll be there in ten minutes. Think you can hold on until then?" David added with a smile.

 Emma nodded with a smile. A home cooked meal would be better than a restaurant anyway.

 Before long, they were pulling up to a white farmhouse, a haven against the snowy backdrop that surrounded it. The house was decorated with all of the Christmas trimmings Emma had once imagined, but never thought she'd ever get to experience.

 "Emma," Mary-Margaret said as she put a hand on her shoulder, "this is your new home."

 She smiled up at her new mother and nodded. "Thanks… mom."

 There were tears in Mary-Margaret's eyes as she and David led Emma up the steps, letting Emma be the one to open the front door.

 The home itself was something out of a Christmas movie. A large tree was in the corner of the room, stacks of presents lined up underneath it. Snowflakes and stars hung from the ceiling, the fireplace had three large and one smaller stocking hung in front of the cozy fire that was burning. A winter village was on one of the tables, and Emma noted some of the homes had a menorah painted on it, rather than a tree.

 But what really caught Emma's attention was the large banner that hung right in the middle of the room, hand painted and decorated with children's handprints that said 'Welcome Home, Emma!', and the crowd of people that were gathered underneath it, all smiles.

 "Alright Emma?" David asked with a smile. "This is your family."

 "Oh!" a grey-haired woman in the front of the crowd cried as she rushed forward to where Emma and David stood. "Look at you. You're so beautiful."

 "Mother… give her a bit of room," David said, though Emma could hear the amusement in his tone. "I'm sure this is a lot to take in at once."

 "Oh David, she's my first grandchild. You can't blame me for being excited."

 Emma smiled up at the woman. "Hi…"

 "Are you hungry, sweetheart? You've had a long day, I'm sure."

 Emma nodded, relieved she'd asked that.

 "Alright. Why we get you a plate of food and then you can meet everyone. Does that sound okay?"

 She nodded again, and Ruth guided her to the kitchen where a buffet awaited her. Emma had never been allowed to have so many choices before, and she wound up with a plate and two bowls filled to the brim of food.

 She had to sit with the other kids that were there, but for once, they didn't fight her for food. Instead they just… talked and introduced themselves. Emma slowly felt her guard slip away, and she began to enjoy herself with them.

 They allowed Emma to open a few presents ("Think of them as welcome home gifts, not Christmas gifts!" her grandmother had said), and before long, she was under the warm covers of her bed with her new purple quilt, stuffed horse in her arms and Wilby asleep at the end of her bed, drifting off to sleep.

 It was then that Emma heard something strange. She ignored it at first, until the noise got louder and was followed by a very distinctive human laugh.

 Her eyes popped open, and she pulled herself from the bed and went to the window, eyes widening in shock when she saw a familiar face flying outside her window, in a sled, pulled by nine flying reindeer.

 She pulled the window open, leaning out, hearing the sleigh bells clear as day.

 "I promised you, didn't I? Merry Christmas Emma!" she heard in the distance.

 He was too far away to yell to him without waking up the entire house, so Emma could only hope he'd hear her whisper.

 "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you… I'm sorry I didn't believe you."

 She had a feeling she was going to have to write a really long apology letter next year.

[ineffablecolors]

BLUNDERS AND (HAPPY) BEGINNINGS [8/8 - COMPLETE]

Blunders and (happy) Beginnings; CHAPTER 8; ~ 3, 100 words; FF.NET || AO3

Thank you to everyone who went on this ride with me (your feedback and love gave me a huge boost in the completion of this little endeavour) and to everyone who might decide to do so now that it is complete (I know wips are scary af). Hope you like this! ;)

The ceremony is beautiful and far enough from modest to satisfy the groom and the bride’s family but not so far as to aggravate the bride herself. All of Storybrooke is abuzz with news and gossip, genuine happiness and only mild surprise for weeks before and after the wedding. The bride’s dress is brought all the way from Arendelle. The flowers are only in bloom in that particular month. The cakes – oh, Mrs Lucas will talk anyone’s ear off about the cakes for months to come.

Mrs Chillton looks 15 years younger. Mr and Mrs Nolan have been all too eager to lend their superior knowledge and experience. Miss Anna has barely slept for more than 6 hours out of sheer excitement.

And Mrs Elsa Jones would’ve scolded her but she is much too happy and much too busy dissuading her husband from any grandiose and imprudent honeymoon ideas.

Miss Swan and Captain Jones are involved both in the ceremony and in assisting with said imprudent ideas but not quite so busy as not to be able to throw many knowing looks and smug smiles at the bride and groom.

And that would probably be a high note on which to leave our characters to their celebrations. But as it is we have one more story to tell. The story of Miss Emma Swan and her hand much desired in marriage as it turned out.

5 weeks before Captain Liam Jones and Miss Elsa Froster’s wedding

“The audacity!”

She drops the letter on his desk and plunges in the chair across from it with all the grace that Killian has come to expect from Miss Emma Swan in the last week of cohabitation with her.

“Am I to take it that you have taken the liberty of going through my correspondence or that you are requesting that I read yours?”

“You don’t have a correspondence.”

“I assure you Commander Nemo and I are very particular about our annual Christmas cards.”

“How personal. Please do look at this so you can share my outrage.”

Jones picks up the discarded letter, then makes to rise to get his glasses, only to find Emma already thrusting them in his face. Exasperation and fondness – it would make a good title for a memoir about life around Emma Swan.

He takes the glasses and ignores her satisfied little grin as he quickly glides over the lines on the single page. It is not a long letter and it is not a particularly good one, especially if it is supposed to be what it appears to be.

And Captain Jones cannot help but feel a spike of irritation – dare he call it jealousy – at the possessive manner in which another man sees fit to address the woman across from him. For a moment, he wonders if inciting his jealousy is, at least in part, the very purpose of him being shown the letter.

But he finds that the part of him that was conceited enough to believe so once upon a time has grown rather old and wary of making such assumptions. So he makes a point of keeping his expression neutral and his voice even when he finally looks back at Miss Swan.

“It is a proposal, if I am not much too rusty to recognize one.”

The way she rolls her eyes around all the time is definitely not befitting of a lady but it tugs at the corners of his mouth all the same.

“Not the most passionate or well-worded one I can imagine,” he cannot help but add.

“Passionate – as if it can be passionate!” and like that Miss Swan is back on her feet. “I have seen this man all of four times in my life!”

“You must admit people marry on much less.”

“Three times then?”

He does not laugh but it is a near thing and that is just the magic of Emma he has come to realize and grown rather comfortable with that realization.

“That, substantial fortunes and the appropriate positions in society on both sides.”

“Oh. Oh, now that you mentioned it… why, I must accept, mustn’t I? What shall I ever do, if I do not take my ‘appropriate positions in society’? How shall I live?”

Killian does his best to remain unmoved and unamused in the face of her fluttering eyelashes.

“Took it a bit too far at the end there.”

Emma huffs in exasperation and sits back down, snatching the letter from his loose fingers.

“I swear I am never to understand the way men think.”

“Usually it is along the lines of ‘beautiful woman and a sizable income equals marriage’. Not the most sophisticated logic I admit but…”

“Was she rich?”

He looks at her in confusion.

“Your wife.”

“Ah,” Captain Jones strokes a hand down his beard – slightly longer than usual – something should be done about it, perhaps tomorrow, before their walk. “Her family was. But her family did not approve of me very much. At the start. Or at the end, come to think of it.”

“But she was in love.”

“I would like to think so.”

“Of course she was.”

He realizes he has dropped his eyes to where his shirtsleeve hangs around his wrist. Brace and all has proven too much of a hassle for one with a bullet hole inside him. And Emma has been much too insistent on him not leaving the grounds and not needing his whole ‘armour’ on when in his own home.

His stomach is churning painfully for some unidentifiable reason.

But then he looks up and she is all soft, golden curls falling from her braids and ever softer eyes and the kind of smile that he hadn’t really seen on Emma’s face before he came to consciousness to find it hovering over him a week ago.

His insides settle and he tries to shake his head at her but his face has certainly betrayed him twice over by now. Especially given her next words.

“I think you should help me pen my rejection, Captain. Might lend it some diplomacy.”

4 weeks before Captain Liam Jones and Miss Elsa Froster’s wedding

This time is infinitely harder. This time she has known him for years – years ago but she remembers the fondness she had for him in her early teenage years all too well. This time he is in front of her and he is earnest and hopeful and a little nervous. This time she looks inside and tries to move away the brashness and exasperation and find her own diplomacy and understanding tucked somewhere for safekeeping. This time when she says no – because there is simply nothing else she can say, no hope she can possibly give – she can see the way his face falls, the way his eyes dim and flit away from hers, his hands dropping the one he had so ardently asked her for.

“I see. And if I were to ask again in a month or even a year-“

“Mr Humbert.”

“No. I understand… But if time is what you need-”

“It is not a question of time. I… well, given the time, I hope… That is I am to… I don’t think you will be able to ask in a year. I hope.”

Emma squeezes her eyes shut and tries not to curse under her breath the way a lady should not even curse in her head. If people could stop asking her to marry them, it would be of great help. She has some things of her own to think over and execute and ask and hopefully achieve the desired results.

“Oh. I… I was led to believe that you rejected Mr Cassidy. I deeply apologize, if-“

“I did reject Mr Cassidy,” she says it in the mocking tone that she only allows herself in front of Elsa or Killian – much to their consternation. “His offer was preposterous and his assumption that it will be received favourably doubly so.”

“But then perhaps after some time to consider the merits of marriage-“

“Graham, I do wish to be married! Just not...”

“To me.”

She tries not to flinch.

“It’s not that. It’s not… it’s just… someone else.”

The gentleman’s brows draw together and for a fleeting moment his lips twitch and Emma knows with perfect certainty that he thinks she is playing a joke on him.

Neal Cassidy is one thing. Neal Cassidy might have money aplenty and his father might be a magistrate but he also has a reputation of caring little for what people say and, what truly matters to Emma, how people feel – even people supposedly close and dear to him.

But Mr Humbert is a man of indisputable character, fine manners, fine fortune and an even finer looks. He is young, pleasant and by all expectations should not want to settle to family life so early on. He is, to put it simply, the most coveted bachelor in Storybrooke, perhaps in the whole county.

And Emma is the ridiculous girl who has apparently seen fit to reject him. For someone else.

  “Stranger things have happened.”

“You should tell Mary Margaret that.”

Instinctively Emma turns her head to the side, to try and catch a glimpse of their gracious host in the beautiful gazebo but her and Captain Jones seem to have walked much too far into the Nolan’s luscious gardens and her vision is obscured by far too many roses red as blood.

She is just about to scold the gentleman beside her – who is not supposed to be walking around at all, her hand tightening around his forearm and her eyes narrowing on his profile when-

“She was quite adamant that I tell her right away, if it is a promise to me that is holding you back from Mr Humbert.”

“Wha-“

“Not to worry, I told her that she should know I have more sense than that.”

Once, when Emma was about 6 years old and skating over their favourite lake with Elsa, she heard the ice crack under her and in the next second she was in the water.

It felt a lot like this.

She pulls her arm away from Killian and steps to the side, there’s noise in her ears and her body feels like it did all those years ago – like she is not giving it enough air. Jones keeps going for another meter or two before he stops and looks back at her in confusion.

“Swan?”

It would probably be better, if her first – or second or at least third – thought was that it was all fine, she could just turn around, go back to the garden party, take Mr Humbert to the side and accept his incredibly enticing proposal.

But Emma doesn’t think of that. She doesn’t think about much of anything other than the fact that she is a complete and utter fool. And, frustratingly enough, that Jones should really get off his feet already. So she focuses on that.

“We should head back. Liam is going to have my head for letting you go this far out.”

“Wait, wait, what-“

“I think we should rejoin the party, Captain Jones.”

She watches him draw back as if she is the one that slapped him in the face.

“Emma, what-“

And she can’t help it. How dare he look at her like that. How dare he.

“And you, being the man of sense that you are, surely must be tired of the company of a silly girl and all her silly problems.”

He opens his mouth to respond but, much to her relief, quickly snaps it shut. Much to her distress, however, he decides to move closer instead, his hand reaching out for her.

“Emma, surely you don’t think- I did not mean-“

“That you were gravely offended at the mere suggestion that you might have expressed an interest in being engaged to me?”

“Of course not!”

Emma takes a step back and watches his hand fall along with his features. She crosses her arms over her chest protectively.

“Then what, pray tell, did you find so offensive to your sensibilities in Mrs Nolan’s remark?”

She says it in a deliberately haughty tone and is almost glad when she sees it achieve the desired effect – the Captain’s eyes blazing and his nostrils flaring as his hand curls into a fist at his side.

“I meant rather the opposite to what the lady has decided to conjecture. I meant that I have more sense than to believe that you would settle so far below your stature, were I to ask such a question.”

And Emma can’t quite help herself, can’t refrain from throwing her arms in the air and almost growling at the damnable man in front of her.

Oh, he was the complete and utter fool.

“We’ve been through this! I already told you that I would very much have you, you insufferable-“

She presses her lips together hard and tries to regain some measure of control over herself. It’s hard when he responds with utter confusion and a painfully pinched brow.

“That was not… That is to say, it was clear that, given the dire circumstances-“

“Yes, because dire circumstances are known to make women partial to matrimony.”

“Are they not?”

“No, Killian, no. Love makes women partial to matrimony.”

“Oh.”

Emma lets her arms unfold and finally does away with the space between them. Her hands settling on his shoulders and sliding down to hold his hands – real and wooden.

“And I don’t mean to sound impatient but given recent events-“ she cuts off and hurries to add. “I don’t mean to sound conceited either but-“

“Miss Swan, are you… propositioning me?”

She tries to keep her expression serious, she truly does, but Killian’s eyes are twinkling and his eyebrow is going up and so are the corners of his mouth and after all she is propositioning him and she does not seem to be in the least bit embarrassed about it.

“Well, yes, as a matter of fact, I am. Would you- Do I have to ask Liam first?”

“Swan-“

“Would you marry me, Killian?”

She is rather proud of how steady her voice comes out, how she looks him in the eyes – his very wide, very blue eyes. He seems rather proud as well.

“Only you, Emma Swan, would receive multiple offers of marriage in the span of a single week and proceed to make one of your own.”

“I was hoping mine would be a smidge more successful.”

Captain Jones sways closer, now completely in her personal space, her breasts almost brushing the buttons of his vest.

“If I were still a betting man, I’d say it would be an astounding success.”

3 months after Captain Liam Jones and Miss Elsa Froster’s wedding

Perhaps the younger Captain Jones should’ve indeed put money on that bet, he does turn out to be absolutely right.

The ceremony is as unconventional as the mysterious proposal that everyone seems to have a different opinion for – held on a windy beach on an only partially sunny afternoon, it satisfies the sensibilities of no one but the bride and groom. Hardly anyone but the groom’s brother and his wife know of the whole thing before it is already happening. The bride’s dress is picked by the bride alone at a time equally unknown. Flowers are needed only for her bouquet and picked single-handedly by the groom the day before. There is no cake. There is some rum. Mostly to warm up anyone who finds the sea spray and breeze hard to bare.

Mrs Chillton is somewhat put out by the short notice and the inability to invite any of her friends and acquaintances but much placated by the sheer joy on the bride’s face as she waves her into the carriage. Mr and Mrs Nolan are equally baffled but much easier to be prevailed upon – given Mr Nolan’s predisposition to cheerfulness and Mrs Nolan’s penchant for romantic and spontaneous gestures but mostly thanks to the groom’s very persuasive and excited manner, rumoured to have been unseen in years. Miss Anna is taken with the whole idea and beyond delighted to be whisked away to the mysterious ceremony close to sunset.

Miss Emma Swan and Captain Killian Jones are said to have never been in higher spirits and that by the older Captain and Mrs Jones, said to know them best of all.

In the first year of their marriage it is believed that they are rather an unlikely pair and thus unlikely to be much too happy together.

By year two, they are believed to be rather inconsiderate and verging on scandalous with the amount of times that Mrs Jones sees fit to display her affection for her husband in rather public places and gatherings and with the amount of invitations for more such gatherings that Captain Jones feels justified in refusing in order to take his wife to the seaside or to “reorder their library” as he dares put it to some of their closer friends.

By year three Mrs Emma Jones and her husband have surprisingly little time to shower their twin nephews with gifts and affection – a practice much encouraged by the older Captain Jones and for reasons completely unimaginable to the other three labelled as “spoiling” by Mrs Elsa Jones – and this mostly due to the fact that they have provided the other Joneses with a niece of their own to “spoil”.

To this day Mrs Emma Jones is rumoured to have actually put a curse of sorts on a lady who insinuated that she had been extremely foolish to accept Captain Jones when she had much more becoming offers made to her. The legend of exactly how many gentlemen she had refused while waiting for the Captain to propose has taken on a life of its own – from some stating that no such offers had been made at all to other whispering of numbers in the dozens – all this resulting in much undignified eyerolling from the lady in question and quite a bit of amusement and preening from her husband.

To this day Captain Killian Jones is rumoured to propose to his wife anew every year to “reaffirm her willingness” and pledge his own, much to the sighs and flutterings of the young ladies of Storybrooke and the groans and muttering of gentlemen who are being more and more often asked by their wives why they have been proposed to only once.

But Emma, when among their friends and family, takes extraordinary pride and delight in stating that Jones can propose as often as he wishes – she’d accept every time, but he should never forget who did it first.

Captain Jones doesn’t seem to mind his wife’s boasting one bit.

[smellycinnamonthundahfudge]

tumblr fweinds

a year ago, i was tagged by @suplosers on two questionnaires and it is only now, a year later that i was able to answer em. i’m so sorry it took me this long but yah i’m just glad to get thru dis milestone, answering the first tumblr get to know ya post i was @ at... yaayyy ^^

rules: answer these 85 statements and tag 20 people.

I tag: tbd haha i still have to dig thru meh notifs to see which ones apparently took an interest in me so i’d like to take an interest in as well haha but oh @you-guys--are-losers, ur doing this whahaha hope it’s not too much of a bother, no presh watsoever ;3

the last

1. drink: ughh it's dis shitty stuff called hydrite w/c is basically salt water cus im sick rn and it's supposed to rehydrate ur shts or something hahaha

but dat was like a week ago... as of da moment i posted dis, it’s coffee from mini stop dat i drank at like 530 in da morn while i waited until i could enter the school cus i had to commute 3 hours w/ lil to none sleep

2. phone call: my father or one of my best friends

3. text message: the last one i texted was my sister and the last one i got a text from was dis org in school about the location for recruitment/auditions/interview

4. song you listened to: billy jean by michael jackson and i listened to it for meh tomdaya fic hahaha. But i also listened to halo by beyonce, untouchable and dress by taylor swift, and some other songs magmt mentions in her tomdaya fic hehe a week ago

rn, a metal cover of toxic by our last night

5. time you cried: haha i don't actually remember the context of it (i could find out tho haha cus i sent da pic to my best friend) but i took a pic of it while i did it which was on... july 16 hahaha. Oh but w8 oh sht i think i cried after that fudge w8 i don't remember the date (i think i can find this out too hahaha) but i wrote a sortof goodbye confessions letter to one of my dear friends and i wrote there that i externally cried (b4 i just said internally haha) so i'm not entirely sure i cried but i think im pretty sure i teared up hehe

6. dated someone twice: hahaha i haven't even had a legit love interest yet 😆😂 buuutt my best friend and i have "dated" as in spent entire days together w/ just the two of us, we even went to mcdonalds for valentine's day and got each other gifts hihihi aahhh gosh i miss her :'(

7. kissed someone and regretted it: haha im not even sure if dis happened and i have no plans on asking her about it but i remember when i was a kiddo, when my sis came home for some reason i kissed her on the lips hahaha dont remember if accidental or i just brain farted heck i aint even sure if it happened but das all i can answer cus well like i said, see #6 😆😂😆😂

8. been cheated on: hhmmm probs not, i have no idea if ive been cheated on in an unromantic way hahaha but in da romantic way, like i said, no love interest hahaha

Oh w8 does being someone's crush (i aint sure but it seemed like it) and crushing on dat dude but dat dude crushing on someone else too count as cheating? 😆😂😆😂

9. lost someone special: yes, all of my grandparents are dead. I've also lost pets, and i fear i may lose some of my friends due to the distance among us in this time of our lives

10. been depressed: i always wanna be careful over how to define depression. Like wat constitutes it... but yes, i think i have. Not sure, mind you, but yes, at the beginning of gr 7 i was really alone, i think i was bullied and i think i was depressed and going thru a really dark phase of my life back then. But then again, i have to say, i'm not sure.

11. gotten drunk and thrown up: hahaha nope. I'm looking forward to getting drunk tho. Im currently underage so im not allowed to drink dat much yet but yeah i wanna know my limits hehehe i hope im da kinda gurl who can handle her liquor but i have drank and i have to say it made me all loopy and weird and just like woke or high or something hahaha so yeah man im excited to get trashed on my 18th bday hahaha (hopefully i get to do this tho huhuhu)

3 favourite colours

12. Pink

13. Blue

14. Gray

in the last year have you

15. made new friends: yyeeesssss and i'm so glad i have hihi. I have made friends w/ a select group of my blockmates and they're awesome and weird, i hope to strengthen our bond in da future hehe. Ooohhh and i sure hope that you guys are losers is my friend cus she's been rlly great :')

16. fallen out of love: i guess the closest i've come to falling out of love in a romantic way is moving on from da heavy crushin on meh crush. But i dunno, i still think he's a unicorn n pretty special to me so i dunno hahaha.

But bro, i do think i have fallen out of love. With tv shows, with characters. Like i used to be so passionate about a few shows and characters but now all i have towards them is regret heck i cant even remember wat dey are but i know dat der was love lost. I know it.

17. laughed until you cried: hahaha yaasss i think so. It's either when i was with my best dearest friends or during the class of dis really cool and funny as heck joker teacher who makes us laugh in EVERY SINGLE CLASS hahaha ahhh das guy's so cool

18. found out someone was talking about you: oohh yah yah i think so. Either from my best friends or from a few of my old classmates i care about and had gotten close with. Da best friend ones was about something in my past/history (g7) and the classmates one i think was just dem talking about me and they told me about it ooohhh i think it was my crush hahahaha. They told me dat my crush actually admired me a lot hehe. There was one time my friend (the one who told me about dis) was putting make up on me for a school film, and my crush was da cam guy and he told my friend i looked pretty. Sooo im pretty lucky dat- oh sht w8 i dunno if it's dis year but oh w8 no, it was on my bday last year (dec 20) and da same friend said she was sorry cus apparently da bois make fun of me or something and she was sorry cus she laughed along too hahaha but i didnt mind cus i know im weird and i dont even know what dey say about me in da first place hahahaha. Ok das it im done, i think ive overshared now hahaha 😆😂😆😂

19. met someone who changed you: my best friends. Ive thought about it based on wat sup losers said about change for da better and i dont rlly think of change as something dat happens quick, i think it happens over time and u dont even notice it. So ok oh sht i think im wrong cus i met my best friends 4/6 years ago hahaha but for reals tho, i was in a dark place and if it werent for dem i think id still be lost lonely and sad. Uuhhmmm in regards to answering the question correctly, i guess my blockmates count since they inspire/challenge me to be better. OH SHT W8 i def think you guys are losers and dead end street and tomdaya receipts and tout de suite have changed me hehehe. Da first 2 in dat dey inspired me to write more hehe. Da 1st one inspired me to do this so i think this counts as change hehe. And da last 2 changed me in dat bcus i met dem, i became OBSESSED w/ tomdaya hahaha.

20. found out who your friends are: yes, i have actually. And it's all because i am now currently a college freshman as well as my friends.

21. kissed someone on your Facebook list: hahaha my fam i guess hahaha. But no one in a romantic context.

general

22. how many of your Facebook friends do you know in real life: hhmmm i guess id say about 200 since i know 4 sections of around 40 ppl and da rest is like fam and ppl ive met once/twice or have passed by haha

23. do you have any pets: yaaaassss 3 doggos: albie, juju, and biggie girl. Juju has a pupper named tchalla called dat cus he black hehehe and biggie has 2 biglets named mermer (meredith) and crissy (cristina) cus they're sisters 😍😊😊

My fam have also had a buncha dogs n puppers before but they were either given away or passed away. My bro also has dis cat named bob and i think he counts as a semi pet since my bro's home is a fam home.

24. do you want to change your name: uuhhh i wish i had an alliterative name like superheroes. Buutt im pretty happy w/ my name :')

25. what did you do for your last birthday: oohhhh i think i was at my section's christmas party it was pretty nice n emotional and i spent da rest of da day w/ 2 of meh best friends who bought me cake n food when my own fam didn't 😆😂😆😂

26. what time did you wake up: 4 am to shit cus im sick, but fell asleep again and officially got up around 730 or 8ish

27. what were you doing at midnight last night: haha tryna stay awake cus i had to drink meh meds and failed oh so much and i think i was asleep by midnight hahaha

28. name something you can’t wait for: tomdaya content, chatting/being w/ my best friends, watching da stuff i wanna watch, tumblring, reading sht i wanna read, vacation, writing fanfics, learning how to do a buncha stuff (write screenplays, make films n gifs, draw better), my bday when i hopefully get to do wat i want haha, avengers 4 and smffh, and captain marvel and antman and the wasp too i guess haha oh and the incredibles 2 and httyd 3 😍😍😍 oohhh and crazy rich asians

29. when was the last time you saw your mom: on monday which was when i was at home and not at my dad's n sis' n i's apartment in manila for school/work

31. what are you listening to right now: commercials on da tv as i answer this long ass questionnaire hahaha

32. have you ever talked to a person named tom: hahaha i had to think about dis one but yah i have actually haha he was my gr 8 class mate n i like to think semi friend back den at least haha. Oh w8 but he doesn't go by tom tho, it's just thomas haha

33. something that is getting on your nerves: myself hahaha my shitty lazy ass procrastinating self hahaha 😅🙍

34. most visited website: fb specifically messenger, youtube, and tumblr

35. hair colour: hmmm black w/ a bit of brown i guess (ASIAN, YO! 😆😂😆😂)

36. long or short hair: neither, medium i guess haha. I like how long hair looks but it's such a bother n hassle haha. So i def would prefer short hair on a practical standpoint hahaha (im actually thinking of shaving the hair above my nape, yknow on da back of my head hehe)

37. do you have a crush on someone: well i dont have dat much of a crush on da crush i mentioned before, like i said haha. I have a crush on tomdaya, does dat count? 😆😂

38. what do you like about yourself: hahahaha nothing 😆😂😆😂🙍

Naahh uhhh i guess i like how much i love tv shows, i love meh fangirl self, and i like how diff n unique n weird i am, how i stand out, n dat i think my dreams are noble n worth tryin out. N i like how supportive n nice i am n im just chill on da outside haha. N sometimes i like meh face hehe. And i think dat im hilarious n weird n ppl should appreciate me more hahaha das y i crave for more validation dan consulting researchers hahaha (no one laughs at dat jokes and it's like im da only one who finds it funny and come on, man, i managed to make a research joke. Cant ya give a girl a break?)

n i guess sometimes it's good how much i care but sometimes i wish my feels could just chill for just like a minute pls

Thanks, man. I usually just focus on meh bad qualities so thanks for dis question, man :')

oh and i like dat i can swim hehe

39. piercings: i have holes on my ears for earrings but i don't really wear dem

40. blood type: a, i think?

41. nickname: sam, sab, and i rlly want to be called smells cus it's like a more me version of mels from melody hahaha

42. relationship status: single, yo. Oh w8 but i am married to my bed and fandoms so dey always come first. Plus i love my friends 😍😊

43. zodiac: sagittarius i think but i dont rlly know/care about zodiac sht. Tho it's nice if it does match up hehe

44. pronouns: uhhh i dont know wat to put here but i assume dis refers to wat i wish to be referred by ssoooo she, her, and a genderless pronoun in my language siya

45. favourite tv show: ughh i cant choose. Friends, grey's anatomy, phineas and ferb, avatar: the last airbender, black mirror, doctor who, and all of michael schur's stuff, and modern family, grimm, person of interest, pushing daisies, scrubs, happy endings, forever, how i met your mother, gravity falls, sherlock, and yknow wat? Yah, supernatural too and the httyd shows and suits :') oooohhh w8 and how to get away w/ murder and i guess big bang theory as well 😃 the end of the fucking world, legends of tomorrow, crazy ex-girlfriend, the good place, timeless but it’s kinda depressing so speaking of w/c game of thrones and west world and a series of unfortunate events and stranger things and scorpion and lost in space and for anime, let’s go with yakitate japan and boku no hero academia

46. tattoos: none, but i rlly want one and even have a list of tattoos i want (pretty minimalist), i just have to think of da perf place tho (both where to put it and where to get it) and find out if i can still donate meh bod if i have tattoos, but one of da ones i rlly want is smileys on meh fingers hehe

47. right or left handed: right, but my ma says im kinda ambidextrous n i kinda wish i could develop it hehe

48. surgery: haha nope, never. But in terms of an interest, i love grey's anatomy 😆😂

50. sport: ooohh my main sport is swimming cus my siblings are all swimmers so i am too. But i have played other sports for school like badminton, table tennis, volleyball, some water game i dont remember haha, and a combat sport in my country called arnis

51. vacation: christmas vacay and i cant wait huhu

52. pair of trainers: uhhh are trainers rubber shoes? I have a couple, i guess.

GENERAL

53. eating: my dad (who cooked our meal), sis, and i ate afritada (chicken dat's tomatoey basically) for dinner

54. drinking: just water, but ugh i have to drink da hydrite sht again 😑😒

55. I’m about to: finish dis questionnaire n fall asleep haha

56. waiting for: sleep n happiness

57. want: to sleep n write n tumblr n watch n read n for all my problems to disappear

58. get married: yeahhh... but i think it's highly unlikely, man. So i aint counting on it but i do want it to happen, it seems nice having someone to spend da rest of your life with :')

59. career: hahaha i'm still just a college student, just a newly minted freshman actually. But i like to consider myself a fulltime fangirl hahaha

WHICH IS BETTER

60. hugs or kisses: well, i havent rlly made out with anyone yet so im gonna have to say hugs i guess w/c ofc i love haha but i wish someone bigger than me could cuddle me for once in my life 😢

61. lips or eyes: lips cus they just seem so soft and sensual hehe. Plus i dunno man, eyes are kinda gross with muta (da sht in da corner of ur eyes when you wake up, it's a filipino word) and sht. And ya have to wear glasses/contacts if dey weak so it's just such a hassle. Tho i do recognize their importance n stuff 😊

62. shorter or taller: ugh TALLER. im a pretty tall gal so for once id like to be da lil spoon for once, for someone to be able to carry me and ya know all dat jazz. But i wouldnt give up my height for anything, makes me feel confident and better than everyone else mwuehehehehehehe

63. older or younger: uuuhhh for now i think it's a bit weird to date someone younger dan me, but for me personally, wat age i'd like to be, YOUNGER ALL DA WAY. it was just way less stressful and innocent back den, id give anything to go back 🙍

64. nice arms or nice stomach: haha nice arms if it means i can swing around them and they can carry me whahaha. But i do like em abs, i wanna feel wat abs feel like just once in my life hahaha

65. hookup or relationship: ooohhh i guess i fancy myself having a relationship for now hehe. Havent even had one yet haha.

66. troublemaker or hesitant: i am a hesitant troublemaker whahahahaha. Like i have all these ideas of thangs to do n sometimes i do dem but sometimes da situation n context scares me into not doing it like a wuss hahaha

HAVE YOU EVER:

67. kissed a stranger: haha nope.

68. drank hard liquor: haha nope but am looking forward to it hehe

69. lost glasses/contact lenses: thankfully i havent needed any yet whew

70. turned someone down: uhhh i guess the closest i came to "turning someone down" was being awkward around my crush haha but to be fair i think he was awkward too hahaha. And in an unromantic sense, i turned down a blockmate who offered to be my partner in an assignment becus i already had a partner hahahaha 😅

71. sex on the first date: haha havent experienced it if das wat ur askin. Maybe imma be dat kinda person after ive had a couple of relationships but for now i'll settle for someone actually being interested in me hahaha

73. had your heart broken: yes, by tv shows, and by da crappiness of life in general 🙇

74. been arrested: hahahaha nope but dat would be CRAZY hahaha

75. cried when someone died: yes, whether in real life or in tv shows, i have cried bcus of death 😢

76. fallen for a friend: look, man, my best friend's probably the most important person in my life who i couldnt bear to lose. I love her more dan anything in da world so i dunno if our friendship is something more dan da "typical" best friends i just know dat i love her n dat i dont wanna lose her n dat our bond's nothing like any other relationship ive ever had

DO YOU BELIEVE IN:

77. yourself: hahahaha not rlly 😅 im pretty unreliable tbh and i make tons of mistakes and ill never be enough ever and just in general hate myself and have 0 self esteem hahaha 😅😅😅😓

But there's a chance i could improve tho, a very very VERY small tiny chance... but i guess i'll take wat i can get :/

78. miracles: hhmmm not in da way most ppl think about miracles in dat, it's da impossible event. I like to think it's a miracle that i have the family dat i have, da friends dat i have, and da life dat i have cus honestly i think i'd be dead w/o em. It's a fucking miracle i have things im passionate about and things that i love and im surrounded by ppl who i love and who love me as well. So yeah, i guess i believe in those kinds of miracles :')

79. love at first sight: hahaha not rlly. Look, man, im a fat girl who doesnt rlly care dat much about looks so unless a person manages to fall for someone while dat someone was doing something dat was a huge indicator of their personality and thus it's not only da appearance dat da person "fell in love w/", den i rlly dont believe in love at first sight. It's just infatuation, bruh. Love at first sight is cheap and u dont rlly know any thing about dat person other than the fact that they're pretty (why they caught ur eye in da 1st place imo) and nothin, zilch. Unless, like i said, they were doing something important to dem n indicative of deir personality. But even then, it wouldnt be love. Like i said, it'd be infatuation cus imo love is deep and takes time and cant just HAPPEN just cus u looked at someone and thought he/she was pretty 😒. True love would mean knowing dat person to deir bone but wanting to know more about dem. So to conclude a ted talk from a bitter person w/ a non existent love life 😆😂😂😂, love at first sight doesnt exist, is cheap, and is discriminatory to "ugly" ppl.

80. santa claus: hahaha i know he probs doesnt exist and is u know basically just capitalism n marketing hahaha. But i dunno, man, i kinda wanna believe he exists just cus it's more fun n childlike n innocent 😍

81. kiss on the first date: hahaha yeah i guess so but i think i probs would have had to known dat person for a while before we decided to date. I havent had a first kiss yet sooo i aint just willin to give dat out to someone i just met/knew for like a day or something hahaha (i have no idea how dating works) 😆😂😆😂😆😂

82. angels: huh... i like to think guardian angels exist cus dat means there are like angels of pure light sent down from heaven to protect us from any harm w/c is just nice to think about, yknow? Hehe. But angels in da catholic sense... i dont think i do, bruh. Sorry :/ *shrugs*

OTHER:

84. eye colour: uuhhhh brown, i guess? Like i said, i dont rlly care much for eyes hahaha 😅 ooohh but da purple eyes thang ive seen on da internet sounds cool hahaha

85. favourite movie: aaaahhhhh there's just so many good movies thoo

But agghh fine. Ive come to notice dat my genre's pretty lighthearted w/c is nice actually hehe

Spider-Man: Homecoming, Rogue One, 10 Things I Hate About You, Moana, Coco, Mulan, Avengers: Infinity War, White Chicks cus it's just so goddamn funny and iconic 😆😂😆😂😍, i'm not- ok you know wat, da Pixar movies in general ok? I mean, how can ya not? Oh which reminds me, Tangled, and The Princess and The Frog, oohh The Avengers is also a pretty solid movie, ooohhh Love, Simon, godhs dat was just such a wholesome sweet n nice movie :'), oh and den i freaking love the Scream franchise, man. It's so good :'), oooohhh w8 maybe The Dark Knight cus heath ledger was just da fuking bomb in dat movie, oohh and About Time's da sweetest time travel movie :') w/c reminds me dat the Back to the Future franchise was just such a classic, man :') oh and yknow wat? Unbreakable's actually pretty fucking cool, man. I get shyamalan know haha. Oh and yknow wat? 100 Tula Para Kay Stella is da 1st filipino film i actually liked so it has a special place in meh heart :')

ooohhh and Black Panther, man, gods how can one not bring up Da King™? WAKANDA FOREVER :') 😄

Oh and hey yknow wat? I have a sweet spot for the Sorcerer's Apprentice. It's kinda a guilty pleasure of mine hehe 😅

Whiicchh reminds me... the HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON FRANCHISE HAS GOT MY HART WHIPPED 😭😭😭

Oh and i also rlly like when harry met sally hihi :') and i guess the OG Star Wars trilogy's got a special place in my heart even if it is da way dat it is now 😢 :')

oh and i can't forget meh guardians :') Guardians of The Galaxy is such a solid film, bro. I loved it :') ooohhh and yknow wat? I actually rlly like Ready Player One, Baby Driver, and The Mummy (the brendan frasier one, who ya kiddin 😑)

oh and yknow wat? The Wedding Singer, 50 First Dates, and Music & Lyrics has got a special place in my heart, man. Gotta admit it :')

aawww and amelie, and begin again, and flipped and hercules, and room, and spotlight, and shape of water, and ladybird, and the princess bride, and the iron giant, and the lobster, and we're the millers, and what if and man up and shrek and kimi no na wa and a quiet place and inception and the lion king and to all the boys I’ve loved before and oooh tim burton movies are pretty cool, the animated ones, and I did spend a good amount of time obsessed w/ dis one so I guess cap civil war, and then big hero 6 and wreck it ralph, and the martian and inside out, and gone girl, and the lion king and forrest gump and spider-man 1 and 2, and les miserables and the devil wears prada and the book of life and the intern and the princess diaries and miss congeniality and aladdin and confessions of a shopaholic

And ok, ok, i think im done. Hahaha das it das my list of meh all time fav movies and i feel like rewatching all of em now hahaha 😍