#i just. agh. over the last 2 or so years i feel like most of what has stopped me has been a feeling that my micro level writing-

[mariyekos]

140k words deep into two unpublished longfics and the Posting Anxieties(tm) are hitting me again. I keep getting caught up in feeling like the pacing isn't good enough to share, or the characters are too OOC, or so on, and while with my previous fic I decided to post it anyway because the fic was for me first and foremost and if someone else liked it that would be a bonus, this time I think the worries of being disliked (rather than just not liked, which is the difference of hated versus no opinion) might win.

Sucks to have spent 5 months writing things that will never see the light of day, but in the end it's for me. I write because writing is fun and I want to be able to read my story in the future after the daydreams have been forgotten. Maybe if I free myself of the "is this good enough for other people" shackles, some of that anxiety will fade and I'll get back into the groove again. Easier said than done, but we'll see how well I can manage it.

[eluminium]

SKIZZ WEEK DAY 7. FINAL DAY. Well, okay I have to catch up on day 3 and day 6 BUT. STILL. DAY 7!!! this one got LONG again. I based this fic on that one scene from Skizz's episode 1 where Beef decides they're gonna spoon each other. Yeah.

As always, HUGE thanks to @skizzlemanweek for organizing this in the first place! It has been really fun to write for and the fact that it got me to write shit after like, 2 years of inactivity is insane. Huge props to them!!!

ANYWAYS! ONTO THE FINAL DAY!

Prompt 7: Free day!

-

Okay. Take some deep breaths, Skizz. It's not that big of a deal. You are fine! It's just being on THE Hermitcraft server with all the hermits as a hermit. That's just your average Tuesday for the Skizz- wait.

Void, he is on HERMITCRAFT. He's a HERMIT. FOR REAL. Is this real?! Or has he been dreaming or hallucinating?! His eyes dart around, and yep, those are hermits. Quickly, he pinches his arm. He lets go just as quickly with a squeak to boot when it's confirmed that this is real. He is a Hermit.

Now, he isn't the type of person to be nervous or scared. He thinks of himself as a pretty chill guy! He's Skizzleman. What dignity does he have to lose? However, maybe the fact he's not the type of guy to freak out means that because he's freaking out right now he has NO clue how to cope. He's so cool that he forgot how to deal! Agh, why now!?

"I'm gonna make a bed for our team, so we're gonna sleep in a communal bed, cuz there's only one right now." Someone- Oh it's Clebert!- comments while a newly crafted white bed appears next to the crafting table and furnace combo. It shakes Skizz out of his thoughts and back to the present, thank void. It's also a sweet reminder that just because he's on Hermitcraft doesn't mean he's a total stranger! In his mining team (what were they called again? Musterd Milktots? What is a milktot-) he's got Clebert and Tango Top! He knows them well! Then there's Doc, and he's hung out with Doc before! Like at the OlympZITS! And last, there's Beef! Who he….uh…Okay, he's never talked to Beef before. But how hard could it be? He'll charm his way into Beef's heart soon enough.

Speaking of the man, here he comes over the hills now! "I have a bed already. I have a bed!" he announces as he jogs over to use the crafting table. The sky behind him has faded to a soft yellowish orange as the sun sets on Skizz's first official day on Hermitcraft. Good thing they managed to make these beds in time!

Cleo seems to agree as she declares: "Oh okay! Now we can split up our sharing of the beds! That's cool!" While they speak, Tango appears behind them. He doesn't even acknowledge what just happened. The blaze man starts placing dirt around their little area to prepare for the night. Skizz giggles to himself. He's always task-focused, that guy.

As night starts falling, it dawns on Skizz that they only have two beds. And there are currently four of them. Doc disappeared somewhere, but he was told Doc tends to do that. Still, even with one less Milktot, they need to share beds in pairs or have one or two of them sleep on the ground. Well, he can do both! Nothing against a little snuggling with the homies!

"So, everyone under the covers?" He asks, looking between his fellow teammates. They also seem to have realized the situation and come to the same conclusion as him.

Their faces tell Skizz of the various levels of internal conflict occurring in this dirt hut. Tango doesn't seem very excited at all with the low burning flame on his head and a frown decorating his face. Cleo also wears a frown on her lips but a glint of understanding in her eyes. Once again, Skizz doesn't know Beef well enough to read him accurately, but he seems the most accepting out of the three. That's when it dawns on him that maybe not everyone is as comfortable with cuddling the homies. And now he feels like a dumbass for instantly jumping to that option. And he's the new guy, too! Void, this is going great so far!

Okay, how can he fix this? Maybe he can volunteer to sleep on the ground. Or he could invite Tango to a bed (god he's gonna get a headache from all these jokes he shouldn't make-!) since Tango knows him best and Skizz already has experience dealing with Tango's fire. Besides, they both have old man backs. If they sleep on the ground, they'll be incapacitated for days. And there's no way Tango should be allowed to do that, not on his watch!

But as he's turning towards Tango to make the offer, Beef unexpectedly grabs his gaze instead. Huh-?

"Skizz, you're mine~. Get in here, big boy," He growls in an overly sultry tone. Completely outta nowhere! So outta nowhere Skizz can't help but giggle at it.

Now, he recognizes what a bit is and realizes that it's probably an attempt by Beef to lighten the mood. So obviously, he's gotta keep it going! That's the one rule of improv, baby!

"Big spoon or little spoon?" He responds in a comedically deadpan tone while moving towards one of the beds. Cleo and Tango laugh at his theatrics, and the mood does indeed lighten. Mission success! He and Beef also chuckle a bit before Skizz moves between the beds and puts on a more serious face.

"Okay, for real though. How are we doing this? Are there some kind of Hermit rules around snuggling with your fellow Hermits I don't know about?" He asks the other three.

"No Skizz, I don't think we have rules about that. Although I don't know how…safe and comfortable it is to cuddlebear ol' Tango over here. With all the fire stuff and possible burnificating in your sleep," Tango responds honestly. Skizz rolls his eyes.

"Come on, Top. You're not that bad, dude! We've shared many a bed during Third Life, and Last Life, and Limited Life, and Secret Life-"

"Don't act like you weren't complaining in the morning! You were like: 'Ooo Tango I'm never cuddling with you again! This is awful, bleugh!'"

"That's because I got SWEATY from your crazy body heat! Not because I was on FIRE like you seem to be thinking!!!"

"Okay guys we get it, you're very affectionate with each other and it's cute, now lets get back to the point!" Cleo calls out to stop this madness before it escelates into a slap fight. Skizz and Tango both shut up in compliance.

"I have an idea!" Beef chimes in. All of them turn their eyes to him. They stay silent but nod at him to continue.

"Cleo, you can't really feel temperature, correct?" Beef asks, turning towards said Cleo.

"Yeah, being a zombie and all," Cleo answers with a shrug.

"So if you and Tango take one bed, we'll minimize the amount of…sweating happening. And, for you Cleo, it'll be easier to keep your body warm enough not to freeze up during the night!" Beef finishes off.

Tango and Cleo both contemplate this plan. It makes a lot of logical sense to split it up that way.

Cleo turns to Skizz. "Can you promise that he doesn't light up like a flamethrower? Don't get me wrong! I do like fire, just not ON me," She asks him. Tango makes some vaguely offended noises in the background despite the fact he was the one who brought it up.

"I promise you, Clebert! Top sleeps like a dead man. There's no way he'll light up at all. And if he does, dude, just kick him off the bed. It'll be funny," He answers with a smile and a wink. Then he laughs at the increased amount of offended Tango noises. They're just the best, okay!

"Alright I guess it's you and me, Tango. We'll sleep back to back, yeah?" Cleo gestures at Tango while she starts preparing the bed closest to them. Tango sounds like he agrees, but Skizz has already tuned them out to focus on his deal with Beef.

"So, I guess I was yours, huh?" He jokes as Beef joins him by the other bed.

"I guess so!" Beef cheers back.

For a second, they just stand there. Waiting for the other to make a move. …Maybe Skizz should give Beef the bed anyway. Skizz's the new guy, after all. He can't be making moves like this.

"Hey man, if this is really not your style, I'm fine with sleeping on the ground," He offers, meeting Beef's eyes. Said eyes light up in amusement, however.

"I think everyone in this hut knows that if anyone slept on the grass they'd wake up with a ton of back pain. We're all too old for that! Unless you'd feel uncomfortable, but I'll take a guess that you're not considering…you know." Beef reassures while patting Skizz on the back. He's right on that. It doesn't really bother Skizz…Then Beef's face morphs into one of contemplation.

"I was thinking more about how we're gonna fit in this bed," He continues, gesturing to said bed.

Oh, oh yeah. Second observation of the night. The bed is kinda small for them. They're both big, burly, broad men, for crying out loud. Unless they're going to connect like puzzle pieces, there is no way both of them are fitting in this bed.

Skizz smacks his lips. "Well, big guy. Either we snuggle up real close, or one of us ends up on the ground. You in?" He says bluntly, almost like a challenge.

Beef thinks about it before exclaiming: "I'm in," while lifting up the blanket. He then crawls in towards the opposite edge of the bed and lays sideways. Skizz has never been one to think too hard before doing something, so he crawls in next, and the great shuffling begins.

It's, well, not the easiest. Each time one of them moves an inch, something gets kicked, punched, or pushed. It's a miracle that they manage to avoid kneeing each other in the jewels. But eventually, they managed to settle into a comfortable position. What a blessing!

That blessing ends up being them curling their legs around each other like two strings of DNA, pressing together like a sandwich, and Beef's head resting on top of Skizz's, while Skizz almost has his face in Beef's mantits. It's not something Skizz thought would be included in his first day on Hermitcraft, but he isn't unhappy about it. Beef seems content, breathing a sigh of relief as they finally fit together. Afterward, he lets out some soft laughter that Skizz feels more than he hears.

"Welcome to Hermitcraft, Skizzleman. This has been your initiation ritual into this madness," He jokes, his log-like arms resting around Skizz's back.

"I think I'm gonna like this gig," He responds with a laugh before wiggling a little bit. He feels Beef smile into his hair. On the other side, the shuffling sound from Tango and Cleo ceases as well. After a long negotiation, everyone is finally comfortable.

"Goodnight, everyone," Skizz says.

"Goodnight." The others respond.

As silence falls on the Musterd Milktots dirt hut, Skizz feels the most relaxed in months. Beef is already drifting off based on his breathing, and soft snores are heard from the other side. As Skizz starts succumbing to sleep, he thinks:

"Yeah. I'm gonna love it here."

[carcharsaur]

finally finished something else to put in my got damn tag, let’s go gamers

norn9: var commons an interesting game, charming and understandably a classic from the vita era, but over-ambitious and kind of unfocused and bloated, with a few rough spots

without spoilers, I legit think my perception of this game got really skewed at the beginning based on the play order I did... I would not recommend kakeru first HAHA

I think best off for overall plot elements would be something like: Senri -> Heishi -> Sakuya or Itsuki -> Masamune -> Kakeru -> Akito -> Ron -> Natsuhiko -> epilogue but the only one that is super super required is natsuhiko last, I think. I definitely think them putting kakeru on “recommended” was a MISTAKEEE it left me so dazed about stuff playing it first

part of the game’s problems is just that right there... too many damn routes! a lot of them had endings that felt really unfinished, and there’s a fandisc being localized later this year for the first time but! ideally a game should stand on it’s own merits rather than needing a sequel to feel properly resolved v_v that said, I am rather excited for the FD regardless because I’m invested now lol

on a positive note, I loved all 3 heroines! they’re all characterized distinctly and thoroughly, helped by them all being voiced which I love love love to see in this genre. it helps their characterization a ton, and makes me so much more attached to them. they interact frequently, and have each other’s backs in the stressful situations they find themselves in, rather than squabble over things which was really good. I struggle to pick a favorite from the 3, they all have different charms points and mild frustrations for me. mikoto got the most tears from me overall, I adored koharu and her well-executed (imo) neurodivergent vibes, and I could relate too well to nanami’s emotional wall she builds around herself and her, well, PTSD? T_T haah

my fav pairings for each were: Koharu and Senri, Nanami and Heishi, then Mikoto and Natsuhiko!

-getting into spoilers now-

I also really loved this game’s setting/world lore! it was really interesting, but at the same time it almost feels like the premise of all this would’ve been better served with something that’s not a romance game. it feels like the background and over-arching issues should have had more time and development rather than being brushed over in the course of 10mins in most routes... I know it’s heretical to say for otome games but that’s how it had me feeling. by the time you get to the epilogue it makes thematic sense that the love is an important part but it really, really, does not set that up and build on it well before then so I was left kind of wishy-washy on the game in the middle. I dislike comparing games like this; but the scenario director’s later work, Even If Tempest, handled the romance being integral to the overarching plot much better. though that also was a linear single-perspective story rather than 3 POVS with 3 routes each. orz

getting into more critical things now, the age stuff was a little weird and I just. ignored it most of the time but if that’s something that’s uncomfortable for you (16-17 yr old MCs getting with 20+ yr old guys =_=;) then yeah I strongly do not recommend. they don’t mention it too much but when they do it’s just. man was this necessary. man why did you make nanami 16 when she acts more maturely than the other 2 girls... though that might be the PTSD more than anything AGH. speaking of, I disliked that all of nanami’s routes either have the potential to, or just do straight-up mistreat her... not much to be said about it other than it sucks! it’s not unrealistic but well, forgive me for wanting my romance games to be a bit more idealistic unless they’re going for full tragedy/thriller/etc.

also I think 2 of the routes could’ve been straight-up dropped and had almost no impact on the overall game. ron’s just had... virtually no insight into him other than how awful he is which is like. a matter of taste I guess but god it was more boring than it was shocking or appalling. mundane in his slimy-ness? just magically fix your horrible mans by erasing all the memories that make him who he is. and when he wakes up, he’s somehow the same dude but without all the sadism? wateverrr -_-

and then masamune, I really really like him as a side/support character, and in a bubble I like his character too, and I LOOOOVE his voice actor but man. his dynamic with koharu was uncomfortable. not outright bad but just not a good vibe even if she was never uncomfortable with him it doesn’t sit right. and despite being one of the more ‘important’ characters to the overarching story his route had very little about that stuff in it.. ended up feeling pretty lacking. extremely ironic considering his whole power is being able to see the past of people (and objects?) he touches with his right hand (WHICH ONLY GETS USED ONCE?????). I ended up liking his bad end MORE than his normal end because it focused more on koharu’s relationship with mikoto in a way I liked, even though it was still a tragic circumstance.

they’re just good friends : )

my other least favorite route, which I admit at least has important plot and character and background information, is sakuya’s. I was enjoying it somewhat until he straight up ASSAULTS mikoto in a way that was too visceral and realistic for me, immediately made me want to dumpster him and the lack of real consequence or even anger from the MC in response made him irredeemable to me and I was sick of him by the end. even as a side character he chafed me rather than his overprotective comments being funny or... anything else. common yandere L

on the other hand, I think my fav character overall is heishi. his bad end is a little... huhhh... but I try not to judge too hard on those because most feel like insane non-sequitur anyway.. it felt ooc for him even with his emotional instability. I did enjoy that it was longer than basically every other bad end, though. most are throwaways but his felt like there was some real effort behind it, at least in regards to the decisions nanami brings herself to

but anyway, I could understand people not loving his route or being frustrated with the route it takes with his genki-seeming character. but I find his struggle to control and suppress his negative emotions out of legitimate concern for those around him relatable and compelling! regardless though, when he’s a supporting character he’s MVP for me, no doubt. I didn’t expect him to grow on me so much!

alright after all that I think I’ve run out of steam and thoughts for now...

other than, the epilogue being about robot love was cute! love giving even robots the power to make their way through life: really cute! but the shit about rebirth and exact dna.... man nah. good and bad I guess. I had a mostly good time though

masamune go bald in 5 years

[justkeepdancing-nemo]

I posted 798 times in 2022

That's 467 more posts than 2021!

94 posts created (12%)

704 posts reblogged (88%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@ashlee-bonfamille-lyons

@robbie-ryeo

@a-merman-not-a-guppy

@moon-yeongtae

@jimimn

I tagged 798 of my posts in 2022

#just keep queuing - 307 posts

#gif chat - 190 posts

#para - 164 posts

#sharkbait oo ha ha - 97 posts

#namtae - 89 posts

#romo - 82 posts

#bffs - 82 posts

#tiny dancers - 74 posts

#dance - 58 posts

#about - 50 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#i wasnt gonna keep this gif here it was literally a place holder but then  was like actually that captures the cat energy so nemo ur special

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Step by Step || Tiny Dancers

Nemo: ASHLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!! LKFJALKFJKLj

Nemo: GUESS WAHT 

@inperfection-ashlee 

16 notes - Posted February 27, 2022

#4

Q&A || Fast Car

Just when one assignment was over for his fellowship, there was another. And another and another, just a whole pile of stuff to do that was threatening to topple over and crush Nemo underneath it. 

But this time-- he was determined not to wait until the last second like he’d done his first essay. He needed to get interviews with three magicks-- three! That was so many! At least part of this assignment seemed fun though, if only cuz he could pick whoever he wanted...

All it took was asking Cruz if famous Magick Grand Prix winner Lightning McQueen would be up for it, and bam: interview scheduled!

Nemo still had some interview jitters though as he walked into the dining room of the inn. Ah, this was the closest he’d ever gotten to a real celebrity! He gulped, then took a deep breath. Just keep it breezy!

“Um-- hi! Y-you’re Lightning McQueen? I’m Nemo Bae, from the uh, the Pride U magicks fellowship! Thanks so much for meeting me!” 

@lightning-kachow​

22 notes - Posted October 5, 2022

#3

5, 6, 7... || Tiny Dancers

Thorns thorns thorns, he was late! 

Nemo had been trying to study... again... but agh, he’d fallen asleep, face smushed up on his book! He’d woken with a start at the hornet-mad buzzing of his phone near his head and when he’d grabbed it, there was Ashlee-- sending texts, even calls, that he’d totally missed.

And so Nemo had scrambled up and gone running across campus to the dance studio. He burst in, lungs heaving-- 

“Sorry, sorry! I’m here! We-- we still got the space right?!” he said, running a hand through his hair. 

@ashlee-bonfamille-lyons

24 notes - Posted October 19, 2022

#2

Just Keep... || Tiny Dancers

Ugh, honestly, Nemo didn’t wanna be here right now.

‘Here’ meant on Pride U campus. ‘Here’ meant the beautiful dance studios in the performing department. He had already promised Ashlee that he’d come by for some warm-up and to watch some of her new piece, and then they’d chat about his audition in London but that had all been decided last week-- before.

Now it was after, and the humiliation cut fresh, Nemo feeling like he was bleeding out with every step he took on this campus. He got to the studio and punched in Ashlee’s ID number before she even got there, then sat against the mirror. He hadn’t bothered putting on any of his dance clothes today. He just didn’t feel like it.

When the door clicked open, Nemo glanced up. “Hey,” he said. 

@inperfection-ashlee 

24 notes - Posted March 28, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Let’s Blow This Frogsicle Stand || F.R.O.G. Squad

Humans were corrupt. Frog lives were in danger. And Nemo was fed up. 

Those were the facts that Nemo walked away with after Dr. Drakken had told them the teachers weren’t going to vote or change the syllabus until NEXT YEAR. Next year, Nemo and Mim weren’t going to be at Swynlake Secondary! F.R.O.G. would fizzle and die, and with it, three million frogs. Maybe there was nothing he could do about that... but he could at least save the frogs that were coming this year, just like how he had in 2021. 

So he held another official, emergency F.R.O.G. meeting at lunch the next day, calling his members (Mim) together. 

“Okay, we just gotta plan for a jailbreak,” Nemo told Mim with a grim expression. “Last time, I did it with his kid named JJ. I floated them out with my pixie dust so that should work but we need a distraction and a way to break into the lab in the first place once they’re delivered. I could probably get Tae to help us... you think Ferb might too?” 

@madmagicmim 

25 notes - Posted February 5, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[wantedtourist]

I really thought the creators knew better than to make everything on the show about Johnny, and I event spent time in the past fighting idiots on Twitter who keep insisting this show is about Johnny and shouldn’t focus on Daniel at all, but then they just went and brought back Daniel’s personal nemesis Terry Silver, barely explored Daniel’s trauma and then just… wrote the story in a way that Terry now has vendetta against Johnny going into s5. WTF.

Anon, are you me? This is beyond a gripe for me with the show in general. Because, for me, a lot of the issues I have with this show stem from 1) all the conflict being centered on Johnny; and 2) I probably would not have a problem with that if I liked how they wrote Johnny (because I like the idea of Johnny but the writing for him is, just, agh, not for me) AND if it didn't come at the expense of having interesting arcs and stories for Daniel that are rooted in his experiences in the films.

And so, YES, I am beyond salty at the fact that Terry Silver -- Daniel's biggest nemesis/villain/nightmare/demon, his anti-Miyagi, the only person who ever replaced Miyagi as his teacher, the only person who caused him to feel distress and shame towards Miyagi, and yes the man who karate BDSM'd him for months -- THAT Terry Silver is back, and at the same time Mr. Miyagi is gone... and, what? All that, and almost no focus and exploration on what it all TRULY meant and means to Daniel?

 The showrunners are always saying that this show respects the original films, the OG characters, and most of all it respects Miyagi and the Daniel/Miyagi relationship. But their idea of "respect" for those things is having Daniel just quote Mr. Miyagi 24/7. They had the opportunity this season to TRULY respect that relationship by exploring what happened in TKK3 not just between Terry and Daniel, but between Mr. Miyagi and Daniel (because Terry didn’t just “drive a wedge between them”; the wedge was already formed when Miyagi would NOT train/help Daniel, he abandoned him in his time of need; the show should stop putting Miyagi on a pedestal and explore the fact that he wasn’t perfect, because the films were never about that, that was never the point of Miyagi!). And how those events and experiences shaped Daniel and how they affect him to this day. But "lmao f&ck all that I guess" - the writers.

And, yes, it’s frustrating and annoying that instead of getting any of that in s4, or showing that they are setting that up for s5, they instead seem to be setting up Terry as Johnny’s problem -- not in addition to Daniel’s, but instead of Daniel’s. Like. It really does feel like this whole weird story and ooc dynamic with Kreese was just meant to pit Terry against Johnny (Terry’s last “eff you” at Kreese for all those years of Kreese abusing his loyalty for him I guess?? or whatever that was??) moving into s5. 

Of course, I can’t be sure at all that’s what the show is doing, but if that is the plan, to shift away from the Terry/Daniel angle (that it didn’t even bother to explore) to a new Terry/Johnny angle, then I’m already tired of it. Because, c’mon! We’ve had THREE SEASONS of Johnny/Kreese. They milked that for all they could by retconning their past as some twisted father/son dynamic, and now that’s it FINALLY over, now that it’s the perfect time to switch gears to Johnny being the more controlled and grounded one (LMAO -- for that to have even happened, Johnny would have had needed significant character growth/maturity in the previous seasons, which he did not have, so he’s still just as much of a mess) and Daniel to be the unbalanced once, having poor judgement and making bad decisions due to Terry’s presence and Terry’s manipulation and general villainy. 

But not only did NONE of that happen (other than Daniel doubling down on his “Miyagi do is how we’ll win this because it’s how I defeated CK/Terry in the past” thing), but it seems the show will continue to do more of the same: to make Johnny the center focus of the show’s villain, while Daniel just remains the guy who provides reliable drama/comedy/conflict for Johnny as a fellow protagonist, without his own villain (because the show has established since s1 that they are not each other’s villains). 

Well, I say: I’M TIRED. Let Daniel have his villain! 

Switch it up! Shake things up! Let Johnny get his head on straight for once and make progress with Miguel and Robby while Daniel handles Terry! That’s what I want for s5. Not Terry to somehow be focused on squashing Johnny just to fuck with Kreese. Cuz. Ugh. I’m tired of Johnny/Kreese and I’m not here for this weirdness between Terry and Kreese. It’s all just so uninteresting and unappealing to me and not what I’m watching this show for. I’m watching for Daniel and for his villain (and for Sam and Robby and my other kids). But the Cobra Kai showrunners do not seem interested in writing a show about Daniel and his past, his traumas, his enemies to a meaningful extent; or in writing a show about Daniel and Johnny in a way that balances/evenly spreads interesting story and conflict between the two of them instead of having almost all plot and conflict be centered around Johnny.

[sylverstorms]

Cassandra x Maiden ----Anonymity Ch. 6

Ch.1 Ch.2 Ch.3 Ch.4 Ch.5

It becomes a sort of evening ritual between the two of you, waking Cassandra up at sunset.

You're always cautious with your movements and how much light you allow in from the hallway as you enter her lavish bedroom, but the cold fear that used to grip at your chest is no longer there.

Measured steps take you to the edge of her bed.

Cassandra usually sleeps on her side, yet today she's on her front, firm back and creamy thigh tantalizingly on display against satin crimson sheets. Her pretty face is turned halfway into her pillow, a river of rich brown waves falling behind her ear and over one shoulder.

The sight makes you stop and stare for a moment. A strange feeling —accomplishment?— swells within your chest at the thought you know just how smooth and sensitive that skin is.

Then you shake your head at yourself. Pull it together. It's one thing to accept you're in a mutually beneficial arrangement with a killer —you remain intact, she scratches an itch, both of you share the pleasure as a means of escape or passing the time— but it is entirely another to be proud of it.

She's nothing of yours. Not your lover, certainly not your girl. That would imply you stand on equal ground which you most certainly do not. You're exactly what she calls you;

A plaything.

The question is, inside your head, what do you call her?

"My lady." you say, keeping your voice low. She doesn't stir but somehow you know she's awake.

"Either wake me up nicely or don't wake me at all." the words come semi-muffled against her pillow. "If I wanted to hear 'my lady' I'd have another maid come."

Well. She does seem to enjoy when you take some creative liberties. So you lean forward and press your lips just over her knee, then move a tad higher on her thigh, then kiss the veins visible on her hand.

Cassandra's mouth slowly pulls into a pleased smile as she turns onto her side. Her fingers then curl on the neckline of your shirt and tug you forward, into a quick little kiss that ends with a nibble on your tongue.

You always get anxious when she does that —it's probably why she does it in the first place— that you'll end up with a piece missing, but so far you haven't even been cut. And if you're honest with yourself, which you're not, but if you were... the thrill is a turn on.

Cassandra licks her lips and scoots back, patting the spot she just vacated on the queen-sized mattress. You look at her, confused. Surely she isn't suggesting...

"Come, now. I don't bite." A devilish smirk curls her mouth while she tells probably the biggest lie of the year. "Keep me company until dinner."

You climb onto her bed like it's a freaking minefield. As carefully as you lower yourself onto the crimson sheets, however, the bruises across your sides still protest. You subtly suck in air through your teeth.

Cassandra's fingers slide over to you, to the exposed part of your waist from where your shirt has risen up. There's a visible patch of purple there that she traces —the coolness of her skin is so soothing— until she presses into it. The brief flare of pain makes you gasp. She giggles.

"You make such nice expressions to pain." she says, as though tempted to draw more from you.

"I've been told my pleasured ones are better." you reply quickly.

Cassandra chuckles. "Is that so?" Her yellowish eyes are gleaming with amusement as she pushes you onto your back and straddles you.

The sight is enough to steal your breath away. The sinful black of her underwear peeks through the royal red of the sheets tangled around her waist, all a wonderful antithesis with her incredibly pale skin.

You want to touch. But then you may lose your hands, so you lock your muscles down and wait for her move.

Cassandra slowly trails a slender finger up your neck, all the way to the underside of your bottom lip. "...yeah, they're good too." she breathes, although you've almost forgotten what you were talking about.

"Can't hold a candle to yours." you whisper back. At this point, you're not really capable of rational thought.

You loathe the effect she has on you. How everything she's done can just be bypassed in your head whenever she gets like this with you.

Cassandra's mouth twists into a near coy little smile. "I'll take your word for it." she says. "There hasn't been anyone else to see them, so."

Wait. Your mind stutters to a halt. Wait. What?

According to rumor, the Dimitrescus have been around for over one hundred years. From what you've seen in the castle, probably longer. And you... you're her first?

"Cat got your tongue?" she giggles again, taking your chin between two long fingers. "I think I may like surprise on you best."

You want to ask if nobody's ever interested her before, but you're afraid to overstep. Cassandra seems to know, though and has no problems answering your unasked question;

"The first few dozen years after the mutations were... very bad. The hunger and thirst were enough to drive one mad. Didn't leave much room for anything else." she explains. "And humans in general are only attractive to me chained up and bled out."

Something inside you recoils at how casually she says it. Like she's simply commenting on the weather.

"But you... you have a little spark that I like." She smirks down at you.

"What about before?" you ask.

"Hm?"

"You said after the mutations. What about before?"

Cassandra's smile gets swallowed up by the abyss so quickly you wonder if you imagined it there. Tension builds at her temples and her eyes take on an icy quality that feels like it extinguishes all warmth in the room.

"There is no before."

You've never heard her voice like that. You hope you never will again, either.

The conversation drifts to lighter subjects, then. She asks you about the world beyond the village and you share what you remember from your childhood, until it is time to escort her to dinner.

But even as she eats and talks with her family, even when she leaves with her mother and sisters and you're left alone, to clean after bloody plates with the other maids, you can't shake off that look in her eyes when you dared ask about her life pre-mutations.

The more you linger on it... there's only one word that comes to mind as an accurate description.

Haunted.

-

-

Deep in your slumber, you hear the telltale buzzing of flies.

Something winged flutters against your cheek, but you merely stir. It prods at your jaw and you grunt. Leave me alone, you want to protest, brain muddled with sleep still.

Until.

A nip that cuts a thin line on your jaw has you springing upright in bed. "Agh!" Your hand flies to the wound, eyes wide.

A familiar form materializes out of an insect swarm, right in front of you. Cassandra grabs at your hand before you can start flailing and panicking any harder than you already are. Your lungs empty of hair in the milliseconds it takes you to realize she's not here to kill you.

Probably.

"Calm down." she says it like you're overreacting.

You try to take a deep, relaxing breath, but she leans forward in the meantime, running the tip of her tongue over the fresh cut on you. So much for oxygen. She even hums against your neck. Despite the sting, your stomach flutters.

Cassandra pulls back, licking her lip. "There. All better now?"

No. Your heart is trying to jump out of your chest. Has she never heard of knocking? For the love of everything Holy out there, it's the middle of the night.

"W-what are you doing here?" you ask.

A dramatic huff escapes her. "I'm bored."

Ah, yes, that makes a lot of sense. You spare a moment to wonder what your life has come to, then accept lack of proper rest and sit back against your pillows. Cassandra takes it as an invitation to push off her hood and plant herself next to you.

"Do you... want to go for a walk outside?" you suggest, uncertain.

Her eyes light up like a Christmas tree for a moment. Then she seems to remember something that dims the glow. "Ugh. Can't. It's way too cold tonight."

That... shouldn't be and issue for her, should it? It makes you wonder.

"Well, if I stay here I'm going to fall asleep." you sheepishly admit.

Cassandra's gaze darkens as she runs her fingertips down the taut skin of your bare middle, leaning over you like a lioness cornering her prey.

"I don't mind biting you awake if you do."

You want to say that you mind, yet her lips are on top if yours, smooth, tasting of strawberry lipbalm and that's the end of that conversation.

"But I am willing to cut you a deal." A manicured nail presses a bit at the middle of your chest. "Put that smart tongue of yours to good use and I'll let you get your sleep."

So spoiled and so demanding, you think. But then, looking at her face this close up... So beautiful.

You forget all about sleep for the next half hour or so as you focus solely on Cassandra, your bedroom filling with her quiet sighs and moans.

True to her word, she does ease back when she's satisfied and you're so tired your eyes start drooping before you've even lowered your head to your pillow.

She doesn't move to leave though... and you find that you don't mind.

When you drift off to sleep this time, your last thought is that the gentle chill of her body beside yours is almost...

Comforting.

[skellebonez]

Could you write 22 “Oh, you’re just grumpy” with Monkie King and a deage MK?

OOOOH coming back to this? Yeah, I am totally up for giving this another go! MK is having a not so great time, nothing warning worthy but I do HC him not being the healthiest kid. Mild spoilers for season 2 episodes 1 and 2.

Oh, you're just grumpy.

"Noooooooo!" MK shouted, stomping his foot on the ground in anger. "I'm not grumpy, I'm mad! You can't let them leave me behind! Take me back! I'm the Monkie Kid! I have to do this myself! I-"

"You are currently physically 4 years old with all the control over your powers of that age," Sun Wukong rebutted with a soft sigh, frowning and wincing at the high pitched angered scream in reaction he received at that. That was... not the best way to go about this... He needed a different tactic.

He knelt down to be at eye level with his now even younger protégé, holding out his hand. When MK stared at it he chanced putting it on his shoulder and continued when MK didn’t shrug it off or start yelling again. “Bud, MK, it’s ok. I know you’re frustrated. You have every right to be! But we just want to make sure you’re safe until we can get you back to normal.”

This was not the kind of trouble the Monkey King expected to happen immediately before... well, put a cork on that for now. But this wasn't the kind of trouble be expected to happen regardless of time frame. How in the world anyone managed to not only curse an object in this way but find a way to slip it on his student was anyone's guess. But the fact of the matter was that MK, the Monkie Kid himself, was now physically 4 years old. Mentally, he was still the same age he was before the curse, personality and memories still completely intact... for the most part, it became clear to them very quickly that being physically a kid again came with more than just a smaller body. It came with the mood swings and heightened emotions of “kid brain” as Mei called it, when MK immediately burst into tears at just the mention of being left behind so Mei and the others could go after the demon. And then he couldn’t figure out why he was crying, whether from frustration or worry or both or why he even started, which lead to more crying out of sheer confusion, which made everyone feel very bad.

They’d managed to calm him down long enough for the Monkey King get him on his cloud and bring him to Flower Fruit Mountain in case the demon attempted to go after him like this, but that was short lived once they actually made landfall.

"But I can do this!" MK continued, pouting and tears of frustration starting to peak at the corners of his eyes once again, albeit calmer frustration. "I-I beat the Spider Queen! I can handle one demon who had to slap a bracelet on me to make me a kid to beat me, even if I'm tiny! I can kick his butt!"

"I know you can, Bud," Wukong said evenly, offering him an understanding smile. "And normally I'd let you go in guns blazing and know you could handle everything no problem now! You've more than proven you can handle stuff even I couldn't. If you were just shrunk I wouldn’t dare think you couldn’t handle this." He reached out a hand, ruffling his hair far more gently that he normally would. But still rough, rough enough to let him know he wasn't going to just treat him like glass now. "But this is a bit different. Remember what I said when Macaque was having you use your full power?” MK scowled for a second before nodding. “Using your powers like this? Could hurt you. And I don’t want to see you get hurt like that. Heck, even I would have trouble controlling my powers and probably get hurt if I was turned into a little kid monkey man, and if this happened to me I would trust you if you told me to stay safe."

"... you would?" MK asked softly, and Wukong nodded. Maybe it was a... bit of a stretch of the truth. Sun Wukong would probably need some convincing too (Great Sage title leading to Great Misjudgement sometimes, the previously mentioned Spider Queen fight a key example), but that's just one more thing he and MK had in common.

"Course I would,” Wukong said, and given said convincing that was the truth. “I trust you, MK, and-AGH!" He may be the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, but nothing prepared him for the barreling rocket that was a 4 year old launching themselves at him to hug him with all the strength of... well, himself!

"I trust you too!" MK yelled right in his ear and oh if he thought his student had a loud yell before. But that only lasted for a second before he pulled back from the hug, body limp and head rested on his shoulder as the energy seemed to sap a bit from him as Wukong stood back up and he held him on his hip instead of setting him down when he saw the bright red rings around his eyes and how tired he seemed already... Tang had mentioned that he knew MK wasn’t exactly the healthiest as a child... "But... I feel bad not doing anything..."

"Then we can do something, that's an easy fix!" Wukong laughed, and his chest warmed as he was reminded of the few children he had helped take care of or play with while on the long journey centuries ago. He was a softie, really. "No training though, I am not going to body slam you when you come up to my knees."

This apparently was the magic joke to make, making MK devolve into a fit of giggles. A testament to how this cursed object affected him, he never would have giggled at that without it. Probably... MK had an odd sense of humor sometimes. But then again, so did he!

"Actually... I think I have just the thing for us to try."

~

All things considered, Wukong probably should have expected something like this. He did tell MK that he probably didn’t have much control over his powers. And that using his powers was a bad idea. And Tang did warn him he wasn’t a healthy child. The three together were a bad combo when his powers activated with MK’s unconscious reactions to certain things...

“How you feeling, Bud?” Wukong whispered softly, rubbing his back as he laid face down on his couch. He’d barely used his powers at all, just activated his true sight to find ingredients when they were cooking without even thinking about it, but that was enough to make the kid’s head feel like it was splitting open (in symptoms that sounded like a migraine, which... yeah, he felt really bad for him, and the jolt of worry and fear that shot through him surprised him less than he felt it should). “Still bad?”

There were a few of Wukong’s monkeys hanging out on the couch, one in particular was curled up next to MK’s head. Perhaps they were keeping him company while he wasn’t feeling well and nodded off in the process.

“I think I’m ok now,” MK answered, sitting back up and leaning into the Monkey King’s side (he seemed to seek out contact a lot more like this, letting Wukong carry him to the house, leaning on his shoulder when he showed him how to prepare the snacks they were making, now this... it made him wonder just how much physical affection he got as a kid). He looked leagues better than he had just 40 minutes ago, thankfully not nearly as exhausted as he had looked before he laid down. “Headache went away... I dunno, a while ago. But I didn’t wanna get up.”

“Completely understandable,” Wukong nodded in approval, glad that he’d gotten some form of rest. He needed it after everything he had been through. “You feel like getting up now, though? I made us some lunch... dinner... not desert food! Just like I promised.”

“Yeah!” MK exclaimed, immediately jumping off the couch and making his way to the kitchen like a rocket. “How about our snacks, how much longer do they have? Do you think we did ok? Do you think the others are gonna like em!?”

“They still have well over an hour of sitting in the fridge,” Wukong laughed, following him and watching him scramble to sit on one of the chairs at the table. “But I think we did a pretty good job of making annin tofu for the first time. They already look pretty darn delicious.” The almond jelly dish wasn’t as hard as he believed it would be, and using agar even he would be able to enjoy it... once he added some peaches on top, of course! “But that’s for later, for now what do you think of your meal?” MK looked up from his bowl, a spoonful of rice and vegetables already in his mouth. Wukong couldn’t help but laugh. “I think I’ll take that as a job well done.”

The two ate their respective lunches, rice and steamed vegetables for MK and rice and fruits for Wukong, talking about what dishes they could try making together in the future. Being a monkey Wukong had a very limited pallet for what he could (and would, given other circumstances) actually eat, so brainstorming workaround for that was a great way to pass the time before moving back to the couch. They played some, shockingly not Sun Wukong related, games that he had stashed away (and he was very offended by MK’s disbelief that he had media not related to himself in his house, totally offended). The game was one of those ones with a motion controller that you had to move around to play, and MK was having a blast with it.

The monkeys also seemed to be enjoying the show quite a lot.

Before the two knew it the sun had begun to set, MK’s grip on his controller starting to weaken as he sat down on the couch and attempted to keep his eyes open. Even with his rest earlier he was exhausted.

“Did anyone... tell you anything yet?” He asked softly, once again leaning into Wukong’s side with a yawn.

“Not yet,” Wukong admitted, looking at MK’s phone for the fourth time in he hour. “Not since they told me they found out where the demon went. But that probably means they’re focused on catching him! They’re gonna get the guy, I have a good feeling about it.”

“If you say so...” MK mumbled out, the controller slipping from his grasp as he closed his eyes.

“UH.. Bud? MK?” Wukong gently nudged his student, smiling softly when he realized that he’d just fallen asleep. “OK, that game clearly did it’s job a little too well.” He made to stand up, stopping short when something tugged on his clothing. MK had an iron grip on him, holding tight to his side and not looking like he was going to be letting go any time soon.

Well... Wukong didn’t have the heart to make him let go or chance waking him up to move him... so instead he took a hair and poofed up a blanket to lay over top of MK as he made himself comfortable on the side of the couch. It didn’t take long, and it took even less time for the monkeys around the house to curl up around and on top of the duo.

It was nice... Wukong didn’t want to admit it, but he was going to miss this. Not just when MK was changed back to his normal age, but when he had to... “go on vacation”.

He felt bad, lying to his student. His kid, now that he realized he couldn’t keep from admitting that to himself. But he trusted MK, genuinely trusted him in this regard, to keep everyone in the city safe while he was gone and he didn’t want the extra stress of knowing just what Wukong was really doing to weigh him down. He knew how much MK worried, seen how much anxiety he had after Macaque and the fight with the Spider Queen, how hard it would be to keep him from following him into places that were too dangerous for him to traverse without training they hadn’t completed yet.

He... really regretted not training him more in the beginning. Regretted it more than most things he had lately. Maybe if he had he could have explained things to him better. Known that if he did sneakily follow him he would at least be in much less danger.

He couldn’t let himself be too close after this. He’d have to go back to normal, aloof, jokey, “ah you’re fine cool beans good luck bud I believe in you!” Monkey King. For MK’s sake.

As he looked down at the sleeping child curled into his side he had to make himself believe it was for MK’s sake.

Why did that feel like it was a lie?

[jaceyneedsabetterusername]

Lavender Lace

Pairings: Tom Holland x Femdom!Reader

Summary: Edging Tom (no plot whatsoever which is super rare here cause I’m a slut for plot)

Warnings: Edging (male receiving), unprotected sex (because it’s a fic and there is no pregnancy or STD’s unless I say lol), Dom!Reader-Sub!Tom, Creampie, Cockwarming, Reader doesn’t cum (sorry)

Word Count: 1860

A/N: I wrote most of this on my phone so I’m sorry if there are any words that autocorrect changed. I looked through and changed the ones I saw but just in case I missed any, my apologies!

Part 2 out now!

______________________

Tom lied on the bed, hands tied up above his head to the bed frame. His beautiful body was on full display against the sheets, small freckles adorning his taut skin. A glistening layer of sweat made every dip and rise of his body shine deliciously, his defined muscles exaggerated by the light shining off it. His chest heaved up and down as he attempted to calm himself down yet again and his biceps flexed as he pulled against his restraints. “Fuck! Please, please please…” His voice was broken and desperate- but not quite desperate enough.

“Awe, Tommy. You’re doing so well,” you cooed, rubbing your hand lovingly across his firm thigh, “But I think you can go a little longer.“

Tom groaned in frustration, his cock already painfully hard and leaking precum. He hissed and bucked up into your hand when your hand went back down to pump his impressive length. Your hand glided up and down, adding a twist at the top around the tip. “Please-”

You stopped your movement but kept your hand still on his member, shaking your head, “No cumming until I say.” You chided, voice gentle in stark contrast to the torture you’d been putting him through for the last hour. Tom’s hips bucked upwards again, desperate for release, making you chuckle, “Look at you. So handsome. So desperate.” After a few moments, his breathing calmed down and your fingers circled feather light across his pelvis and down over his thighs, “Let’s get you a little more desperate.”

Tom shook his head, “I need to cum. Please, please let me!”

You almost felt bad for your boyfriend. He looked almost in pain and you really did want to please him more than anything but you also knew that he loved this torture. If he really wanted you to stop, he only had to say the safe word. That weird simple little word had yet to leave his lips, which meant the fun could go on, guilt free.

Your middle finger circled his tip, so agonizingly light that he couldn’t tell if you were there or his brain was just creating sensations to cope with the torture. “Just a few more, love. Think of how good it will feel when you finally get to cum.” With that, you licked a long, slow stripe up the underside of his length before taking only his tip into your mouth and swirling your tongue, lapping up the abundant pre-cum that had been practically pouring out at this point.

Tom pulled at his hand restraints aggressively, “Agh!” He almost screamed out as you brought him to the edge yet again with only small kitten licks to his tip while you stroked his shift with your hand. Tom was so painfully close, it only took mere seconds before he was crying out again.

“I’m gonna cum!” He warned and you took your hand off completely, causing him to cry out. You crawled up his body, kissing a line up along the way. You made sure that his cock rubbed through the valley of your breasts, concealed by a lacey lavender push up bra that did wonders for your chest. When you made your way to his lips, you straddled his waist, just above where he needed you most, and kissed his lips.

“What number was that?” You whispered lightly into his ear.

His eyes opened to find yours only mere inches away and he could have cried. You looked beautiful. Sultry, sexy, confident. Tom, on the other hand, appeared to be a few seconds from tears. His big beautiful chocolate eyes were practically black, pupils blown so wide they nearly overwhelmed his entire irises. His brown curls stuck to his forehead from where he’d attempted to desperately bury his head in the pillows. “Nine.” Tom managed barely, only able to focus on the intense pressure between his legs.

You kissed him again, lifting yourself off him just enough to move the thin fabric of your thong aside before sitting back down, his length sliding between your slick folds as you rocked your hips.

“Fuck!” He hissed out, eyes screwed shut. He had already been so close that this alone almost sent him over the edge.

Your nails scratched lightly over his chest as your ground on him. You moaned a little when his head bumped your clit as he passed through your folds, so close to finally being inside you. “You’ve been such a good boy, Tommy. Where do you want to cum?” You asked, reaching over his head to untie the scarf you’d had him bound by. Immediately, his hands were on your hips.

He timidly asked, “Inside you?” Even after all these years together and the fact you were on birth control, it was still a request he felt weird making.

You smiled against his skin as you licked up his neck, still moving your hips against him, “You can cum inside me when I hit ten, understand?”

“I don’t think I’ll make it. I’m already s-so close.” Tom stuttered when he felt the tip of his cock finally slide into your warmth.

You squeezed your walls around him, just to torture him a little more, “You’re gonna have to, love. If you cum before I say, I’m gonna have to stop and ruin it.”

A genuine look of fear ran through Tom’s eyes and you knew he’d behave for you. He wanted this - nay, needed this - so badly. You began to bounce on his length, his cock rubbing against every wonderful spot inside you. Your hands came to your breasts, palming them through the thick fabric of your bra. “One.”

Tom’s hands struggled to stay on your hips, knowing you might edge him longer if he stepped out of line, “Let me touch you.” He begged and you only nodded, reaching for his hands and placing them on your breasts. He pulled the fabric down and raked his nails gently over your nipples, making you breathe out in pleasure.

“Two,” You moaned out, “Three.” You kept bouncing and you could feel him twitch inside you. “Four. Five.”

“I’m not gonna make it. I’m so close.” Tom was almost crying, legs struggling to stay still as he used every ounce of willpower to not let go here and no. He was so close, all it would take was a millisecond of losing concentration to snap.

You slowed down and just sat on him yet again, not moving but clenching your walls around his aching member and he audibly whined, “You’re gonna make it or I’m gonna get off and leave you writhing on the bed. Then you can watch while I finish myself off. That what you want?”

He shook his head aggressively, his hands moving back down to your hips to keep you in place, “No, no, no! I’ll make it to ten!” You noted the movement of his hands and maybe if he hadn’t been so well behaved all this time, you would have punished him a little more for trying to take control but you could see in his eyes how painfully desperate he was, how hard he was trying to be good. You wouldn’t punish him for it - this time.

“Good.” You began to swivel your hips, just like you knew he loved it and he threw his head back into the pillows, eyes shut tight as he struggled to keep his composure. “Six. Seven.” You reached down and ran your thumb gently across his cheek where an actual tear slid down, still moving on his cock, still drawing this out, “Eyes open, love.” Tom struggled to comply, knowing that one of the only things keeping him from busting right this second was trying to take his mind anywhere but this situation. Seeing you looking so damn sexy bouncing on his cock was sure to send him over. But he managed to pry his lids open and lock eyes with your blown out orbs. You bit your lip and smiled, “You’re doing such a good job. Eight.”

“Shit!” A broken moan tumbled from his lips as he flexed every muscle in his body to keep it at bay. He was gonna snap and there was nothing he could do about it, especially at this painfully slow pace you’d been counting at.

“Nine.”

Tom’s heart raced as he waited for that last number, that last bit of permission before you would let him finally release. He didn’t think he’d ever been this painfully hard and it made him look back at every other time he ever thought he had blue balls and smack his past self. He had no idea what it was like to be this achingly close. “Please, please-”

“Ten. Cum for me baby.” You finally allowed, raking your fingers down his body, making sure to graze over his nipples.

The orgasm hit him like a semi, crashing into across his body hard and fast the very moment you permitted it. “Agh! Fucking hell!”! He was nearly sobbing, his hands squeezing tightly into your hips and bouncing you up and down at just the right pace. Again, something you let slide. He had just been so good for you, he deserved it. His seed shot deep into you, warm and overflowing and waves of pleasure just kept coming. Tom didn’t think he’d ever cum this hard or long in his life, himself surprised when more and more hot ribbons seemed to just. Keep. coming.

Finally, he slowed down, arms slackening weakly against your thighs as he came down from his high. He was still sheathed inside you, his seed leaking out around his cock, down his cock and along your inner thighs. You had never been so full and you didn’t want it to end. You leaned forward, coming to lay on his chest, head in the crook of his neck. When you moved, your walls instinctively fluttered around his sensitive cock and Tom hissed, his grip suddenly tightening on you as the stimulation became too much.

Once you had positioned yourself comfortably on his chest, he wrapped an arm around your body, rubbing large stripes up and down your side. You twirled his hair in your fingers and listened to his wrecked breathing with a bit of pride knowing you made him feel this good. “You did so good for me, Tommy.”

He sighed heavily, “Thank you.” You giggled a little, knowing his brain was still moving a little slow. He wasn’t thanking you for the compliment- he was thanking you for finally letting him cum.

“Wasn’t too much?” You asked, hoping you didn’t go overboard. Logically, you knew he’d use the safe word if it was too much but you just wanted to be sure you hadn’t gotten a little too lost in the power.

Tom shook his head with a chuckle, pulling you closer into his body, hissing yet again when your heat shifted around his overstimulated softening length. “Just right. Any more and I might have died, though.”

You both laughed at his joke before you cooed in his ear, “Oh, love, you can take it. We’ll just have to break your record next time.”

[pedrosbisch]

My Sun and Stars

Santiago ‘Pope’ Garcia x Reader w/ nickname

Chapter 1- Call Signs

Chapter 2

Summary:You go out on a Friday night with your buddies, and meet Santiago ‘Pope’ Garcia for the first time Rated M for Mature themes, but would prefer the fic stayed 18+ since it gets a little spicy later 👌

AN: Hello everyone! This is my very first fanfic I’m posting, and I hope it’s up to par 😅 I’ve been delaying posting it for so long but I’m so excited to finally get this posted and starting this journey.

TW! Alcohol, Slight Violence. Please let me know if I need to add anything else!

It was just another Friday at the bar after a dull day at work. Your friend Will invited you out for drinks with him and a couple of his buddies to celebrate a friend coming home.

“Where is this guy anyway, aren’t we supposed to be celebrating him?” You ask, frustrated by the fact the person they were celebrating was nearly an hour late.

“Pope’s always late, he runs on his own time. But he’ll be here.” Will took another sip of his beer before glancing toward the door.

“He better be, I can’t stay late. I have to go back home to Maria, I promised her I’d help with the baby after I got back tonight.” Retorted Frankie.

“Speak of the devil.”

Up walked a man with curly hair and sun kissed skin. He's undoubtedly handsome, smiling before he claps a hand on Frankie’s shoulder.

“What’s up cabróns? Sorry I’m late, there was traffic coming from the airport and then there was this girl out in the parking lot who had this ass that-“

“Ah-hem.” You clear your throat, hoping to cut off whatever vulgar story he was about to tell.

“Pope this is Hail. We met through the VA, thought I’d invite her out with us.”

“Hail? Cute, what’s that short for, Hailey?” He pours himself a mug of beer, barely looking your way.

“Hail Mary.”

“That’s a hell of a name. Parents were religious huh?”

Benny snickers and Frankie leans back, preparing for the shitshow to unfold.

“Call sign. Hail Mary, as in the prayer most people say before they’re about to die; A last ditch effort. For a man whose nickname is Pope, seems like you’d know better”

“Oh baby, people call me Pope because I bring them closer to god, whether it’s out in the field or in bed.” He side eyes Benny and they fist bump behind your head.

“Classy.” You roll your eyes and look over to Will who pinches the bridge of his nose and mouths 'sorry' over to you.

“Anyways- glad to have you back safe man, but I really gotta go. Wife’s gonna kill me if I don’t help with the baby like I promised.” Frankie fixes his hat and slaps Pope on the back before walking out.

“Yeah man me too, I’ve got my fight tomorrow and I already got too drunk waiting for you. You gotta come though!” Benny says as he wobbles standing up.

Will quickly stands after and steadies him propping him up on his shoulder. “I better drive Benny home, what about you Hail? You need a ride?”

“I’m alright, I’ll probably stay a little longer. I need to decompress from work.”

“Whatever works for you darlin, text me to let me know when you get home safe.” He says goodbye and shakes Pope’s hand before walking away with his brother.

“And yous better be coming to my match tomorrow!! I need my Hail Mary!!” Benny yelled with his head flopping back and forth.

“I’ll be there Benny.” You punch his ass and send them off, leaving you entirely alone with the menace of a man you’ve just met.

“So uh— you and the Miller brothers seem close.” Pope eyes you up and down, clearly trying to figure out what he’s missed while he was god knows where.

“Sure. Like Will said, we met through the VA. We’ve been pretty close since then.”

“I take it you’re a vet then, with your call sign and all?”

Was he actually trying to get to know you? “No, my dad served. 20 years in the Marine Corps, I just drive him to the meetings. He tried dragging me in one day to set me up with Will.”

“So you two are together then?” He looked up quizzically.

“Ha! If he’s interested he sure doesn’t show it. Plus I don’t think he’s really my type.”

“What is your type then?” Pope raises an eyebrow and a wide grin spreads across his face.

“Definitely not a man some of whose first words around me were ‘there was a girl who had this ass’”

“So you don’t like me because I appreciate the female form?”

“Ha! I don’t like you because you make assumptions. Like how you just assumed that you could get me to go home with you.”

“I’m offended you think so lowly of me Princesa, and how are you so sure I want to you to sleep with me?”

“Don’t call me Princesa, and because if you didn’t want to— you’d be off chasing that girl with the ass down. But you’re here, talking to me about if I’m taken and what my type is. Now if you excuse me, I’m going home.” You gulp down the rest of your beer before grabbing your purse and speed walking to the door.

Pope rushes through the crowds and grabs your arm before you raise it to hail a taxi. You break from his grasp and slam your palm into his chest before realizing it was him.

“Agh! So you’re not all bark after all.” He rubs his shoulder and winces. “Listen, I truly am sorry for this bad first impression. But I don’t think Will would be happy with me if I didn’t at least offer you a ride home in your inebriated state.”

You roll you eyes before you look in your purse and realize all your cash went toward tipping the bartender; You sigh and toss your head back in defeat. “Fine. But you’re not coming in for a nightcap.”

He leads you to his Jeep and you buckle yourself in as he pulls out of the bar parking. You punch your address into his GPS and lean your head against the cool window as the music plays softly. The alcohol hits you all at once like a tidal wave, and your head starts to spin.

You’re thankful the ride home is quiet, and even more so when the car comes to a stop. The car door opens letting the fresh night air hits your face waking you slightly.

“Can I at least walk you to your door?” Says Pope, but this time his tone is different. It’s not assertive or defensive, almost like he cares you get home safe. And he has this look on his face, what is that look? You’re too drunk to tell.

"That would be great, actually." He walks beside you, careful not to touch you unless you expressly needed help. You were doing better than expected, swaying slightly and bumping arms as you walked side by side. You were about to send Pope off, all up until you came to foot of the stairwell.

“Shit. You can go, really I’ll be fine. You’ll be here all night watching me climb these stupid things. Without an ounce of of dignity, I may add.”

He chuckled as you planted your palms on the stairs and began to crawl up them like an overgrown toddler.

“I have all night to help you up the stairs Hail, but I’ll have to touch you. If that’s ok?”

Why did those words send fire through your cheeks? ‘But I’ll have to touch you.’ You quietly nod your head in defeat and feel two strong arms lift you from under your knees and behind your back. You instinctively wrap your arms around his neck and press your head to his chest. The world is spinning and you’re doing anything to anchor yourself, even if it’s to him.

You turn your head and shut your eyes, taking deep even breaths into his chest doing everything in your power to calm yourself. ‘Focus’, you tell yourself. Focus on literally anything but the spinning. You take another deep breath, but this time you take a second to appreciate the scent of Pope’s cologne. It smells expensive, but sooo nice. You hear his heart beating, or—wait. Is it yours? Your mind continues to wander further as footsteps echo off the stairwell. His arms feel so nice, maybe you could invite him… No, you decide. You won’t just be another drunken conquest.

You reach the second floor of your apartment complex and tell him your door number. He steadily places you down, and keeps a steady hand on your back as you dig out your keys. You open the door and catch yourself on the frame turning yourself to face Pope.

“Thank you for taking me home, and for carrying me up the stairs. This is so embarrassing, I swear this never happens.”

“Shh, it’s alright Princesa. Drink some water and get some rest, I’ll see you tomorrow at Benny’s match. I’ll bring my best manners, and hopefully we can forget about today.” He gets you a glass of water and places it next to your couch where you ungracefully plopped yourself down.

“Mmhh. Pope?” You reach, as if trying to reach him without knowing where his is.

“Santiago. My real name is Santiago, but you can call me Santi if you want.”

Your brain is far gone, blacked out in a half asleep state with no filter attached to your mouth. “Well then Santiago, thank you again for bringing me home. Sorry it wasn’t in the context you wanted. Next time if you want it to go more smoothly, ask me to dinner. You smell too good to say no.”

He chuckles and looks at you with a soft expression before locking your door behind him as he makes his way back to his car. For the rest of the night, he replays the way you said his name in his head and makes a mental note to wear the same cologne again tomorrow night.

[beau-draws-and-cries]

Third-first kiss - Raeda oneshot

Summary:   Raine and Eda finally are reunited  

Rating: Teen and up audiences

Tags: Mutual pining, fluff, yearning

AO3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/33629347

 Raine wouldn't wake up and that was driving Eda crazy. The tattoo had paralyzed them and to get rid of the red vine-like stuff, they had to scrape the tattoo with fire magic, their wrist still healing from the burn, wrapped in bandages and healing herbs. They briefly woke up when rescued, just to register what was happening and then passed out, to stay 4 days like that, and that was making her bite her inner cheek and lips, walk around the house like crazy and check on them every ten minutes or so.

 When asked about who they were (besides a coven head) Eda just blurted out that they were old friends, but King and Luz obviously caught on something more intimate than that for the way she would touch their cheek and gently rubbed it (then feel bad about it and get away from them for approximately 7 minutes and 34 seconds), and the way she kneeled besides the couch they were in and softly ask then to please, please wake up.

 Eda wouldn't deny she was losing hope over being reunited with them again. Of course she wouldn't get nice things, nothing never worked out for her. She was cursed, not only as the Owl Beast, but to be alone forever, because she just wasn't good enough for things like this. Not good enough to have someone as sweet as Raine with her.

 "Hey, Eda." Luz called her "How are they?"

 "Their breath is steady.... Also heartbeat. But they haven't woken up yet." She muttered, looking at their face. God, they were so lovely without their glasses. They sure got old, but they still were cute (and hot) as hell, Eda hated to admit it. They seemed to get old in a much healthier way than Eda (after all, the curse made her look older than she was) and they still had that spark of life they had when Eda dated them back in their young years.

 God, they were so handsome.

 King sat down beside her, with a book on demonics that Luz checked out from the library for him.

 "We decided to check on them with you! I brought a book."

 Eda sighed, petting King.

 "Thank you, King."

 When the night fell, Luz got her sleeping bag and put it near the couch, and Eda installed her blankets beside her. King cuddled on Luz and fell asleep quickly, and Luz, who had promised to stay awake to make company to Eda, ended up dozing off.

 But Eda couldn't sleep.

 She decided then to talk to the Owl Beast, to make sure they wouldn't freak out and turn into owl beast when Raine eventually ditched them (because that was what Eda had sure about Raine, that after that terrible breakup,they would never love her again) and she would have to be Raine's friend and ex. Agh, thinking about it before didn't make the possibility any better. She closed her eyes.

     Owl beast?     She called, afraid.      Listen, you know Raine. Last time they broke up with us, you freaked out and that made them go away. Raine saying they don't want to be with us isn't the end of the world, ok? Please, let's try to remain calm. I don't wanna lose them again.  

 The owl beast seemed to pay attention. They made an agreeing sound that was a deep snarl, they were talking more lately, even on regular days.

 She ended up dozing off while that, sitting down, with her head near Raine's arm.

 She dreamt of Raine again. The dream was less real than the ones she had drugged, but they were still real enough to make her heart ache at the possibility of being together with Raine again. Now she had her own owlets (adopted, not hers hers, but still her owlets and she would kill for Luz and King), and she dreamt of a calm life with Raine. Maybe even another adopted owlet, if they wished for. She would do anything to make Raine stay, she would be honest at every step she took, she would tell the truth and the truth only, she didn't care what, she would do it---

 There was something playing with her hair when she woke up. She barely registered, thinking it was King.

 "Eda? Is that you?" The voice was hoarse, kinda weird, but Eda would recognize that voice anywhere. She woke up quickly, looking at Raine.

 "Raine?" Her voice trembled with emotion, almost becoming a sob.

 "Good morning, Calamity." They muttered, coughing a bit "Missed me?"

 "RAINSTORM!" She sobbed, jumping on the couch to hug them, ending up on top of a very giggly and blushed Raine "Oh my god I missed you so much I thought I was going to--- I thought I would never see you again, Raine, oh my Titan, I will hug you tight and never let go again." She was interrupted by sobs, Raine hugging back tightly as well, huge tears streaming down their face.

 (The last time she saw tears this size was when they had a fight while drunk)

 But now they were happy to be reunited, and when they stopped the reunion, Eda blushed and got away from them.

 (But not that much, she couldn’t stand the idea of being distant once again. A hand still was on their cheek)

 "Sorry, I got carried away."

 "Hey, it's no problem." Raine muttered, blushed as well.

 (Raine couldn't deny that this was the person he most loved on the world and they would do anything to have her again)

 "Do you need something? Water, food,  violin, to kill who hurted you?" She joked. Old Eda was back, smiling widely and still wiping tears.

 (Gosh, she was so pretty, so breathtaking.)

 "I would like some food and water. I am feeling like the saddest raisin you have ever seen." Raine chuckled, trying to look around. Eda helped them to sit up on the couch, by hugging them and slowly bringing them up.

 (The contact made both blush and Raine was holding back from kissing her)

 Luz woke up during that, and she gasped.

 "THEY'RE AWAKE!" She commemorated it.

 "Awake and apparently alive." Raine smiled, recognizing Luz from Eda's picture. They saw King snoring on her lap. Eda went to the kitchen, to get Raine a decent meal, and came back with what used to be their favorite meal when they hung out together. Raine smiled and took the plate, slowly eating, since they had spent 4 days with food, testing the waters slowly about what would make them feel good or bad. The food was being accepted, apparently, so they kept eating, in silence.

 (Eda couldn’t be more than 10 feet apart for them for too long)

 (Raine wouldn’t stop grabbing Eda’s hand when she was around)

 Slowly, the mood in the house got better. Raine was recovering from being knocked out, slowly going back to stand up and walk around the house. They still used the couch to sleep.

 (But Eda was sleeping on the floor next to them every night)

 King and Luz witnessed the long stares at each other, the soft touches, the tension between the two, something that Luz would call “Pining” from her human fictions, and King thought that was the most annoying thing ever.

 Raine would laugh and Eda would give them the most in love expression ever, then they would blush and look away.

 (They looked like teens having their first crushes)

 Luz and King were just seeing this mutual yearning between the two, which was very fun to watch but was getting embarrassing pretty quickly.

 “Agh, my back.” Eda stretched, making a worryingly loud cracking noise, and Raine rubbed their neck, also trying to get rid of the pain they were having because of the couch. They smiled weakly, having their breakfast.

 “We are getting old.” They said, and King huffed.

 “There are easier ways to sleep next to each other, you know.”

 This made both of them blush, and Eda sipped her apple blood loudly, Raine looked at their breakfast with an entirely red face, trying to make it less noticeable.

 “King.” Eda just said that, as a warning.

 “What? You guys have been on this for 2 weeks, I think Eda’s nest has enough space for two. Then you guys won’t be in pain everyday because of sleeping in places that aren’t made for sleeping.”

 “King we-- Huh, I don’t want to talk about this now.” She was blushing in a deep red tone. Raine quickly got up from their chair, almost knocking over their own mug.

 “S-sorry.” They put the mug on the table again. “Huh, I will be going, uh, STUFF.” They couldn’t talk right, quickly leaving the kitchen.

 Eda sighed, looking at them leaving, still embarrassed.

 “I CAN HELP WITH THE TUNNEL OF LOVE.” Hooty suddenly yelled, making Eda jump on her skin, and blushing more “I AM AN EXPERT ON MAKING PEOPLE DATE.”

 “No! No tunnel of love!” Eda shouted “Last time it almost didn’t go right!”

 “Yeah, it’s better to let them go at their own time.” Luz said, looking at Hooty “Sorry.”

 "It's okay!" Hooty yelled and then left.

 It's not that Eda didn't want Raine. Eda wanted Raine a bit too much, she wanted to kiss them, to cuddle them, to have every inch of them for her and for her only. That was her Rainstorm, and she would do      anything     to get them back.

 Later, Luz said she was going to hang out with Amity, while King was passed out on the couch. Eda was fixing dinner, and Raine was sitting on the kitchen table, and everytime they and Eda crossed their eyes, they blushed and looked away. Hooty appeared on the window, looking at that.

 "You know, my idea of a tunnel of love is still up if you---" Eda didn't let him finish the sentence, quickly closing the window on his face.

 "Those old house demons, am I right?" She let out a shy laugh, red all over her cheeks and now ears too. She was finishing to fry some meat with vegetables and make pasta for them.

 "Yeah, hum, those house demons." Raine muttered, looking at Eda. This took some seconds to end, with both looking away "So, hum, you're a single mom?"

 "Yeah, apparently. After you, no ex wanted a cursed girlfriend, you know." Eda laughed it off, but it really bothered her "I apparently couldn't get pregnant as well, and well, I thought King was a pet at first. He's trying to contact his real family…. Then Luz just came into my life. She still is going to go back to her real mom, but…. I am happy to have them here for the time being."

 Raine nodded, now the self-sacrifice made sense. Many things were spiraling onto his head, Eda would make them dizzy.

 (Like it was the first time having a crush)

 "You know, there's nothing sexier than a single mom." They teased.

 "Is that flirting, Rainstorm? Aren't we too old for that?" She snorted, getting a noodle from the pan to test if it was ready.

 "Just if you are too old for that." They looked at her, dreamy expression and thinking about how they could finally be together, even if they weren't in a relationship.

 "I haven't had a partner for 3 years now, I think I am doing well by myself." She noticed what she said and tried to correct herself. "I mean, I suppose that if someone was really nice, they could stay. I am not set in stone, like you know."

 "Oh, so you're waiting for your enchanted prince?" Raine smirked, playing with some napkins on the table.

 "No! That was when I had like, ten! I have changed since then. But you know me, I…. I always wanted a big family until… This happened." She pointed at the gemstone, which was entirely black "And since I can't use magic anymore, well, things got harder. Luz taught me glyphs, but they aren't as powerful.

 "I can imagine that not being the most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles anymore sucks." Raine gave her an understanding look, not pity, but understanding. It made Eda feel safer.

     See, Owlet, we're being comforted. Doesn't that feel good? Doesn't it feel safe?     She silently told the owl beast. She was getting better at talking to them without much effort. And Owlet sounded a lot better than Owl Beast, less scary.

 "Yeah, but I'll fix it as I can, you know? Since Luz and King came into my life, things have gotten better. I am not more mature, and well, you tell me the difference."

 "What's a heart without responsibility?" Raine muttered, smiling "I am so, so happy you have grown as a person."

 (Raine couldn't stop thinking about the when they reunited, while she met the BATs and at some point during the time Eda joined them and Raine wss captured, they ended up making out in some alley, like teens again, hidden, and then they didn't touch the subject anymore)

 "C'mon, not all the credit for me. I learned with you that I shouldn't keep secrets. And talk about stuff." She was finishing mixing the pasta with the sauce, getting it on two plates. "King and Luz had a part in it. I started to deal with the curse better….. And well, now I can turn into Harpy Eda? It's like me but 100% hotter."

 "Woah, I can't even begin to imagine how you would be able to be hotter than you already are." Raine grinned, that was to bring her self-esteem up.

 "Silly witch. I can show you later. When we rescued you, I was like Harpy Eda but I don't think you had the time to see it."

 "Unfortunately, no, I was busy." They joked.

 "Too busy to witness my hottest version? Damn, that must be some serious business." She sat on the table with them, plates ready. Raine thanked Eda for the food, starting to eat slowly, and they ended up in silence until they finished the pasta.

 "Hey, Eda?" They muttered, now red "King is probably right, about the bed thing. Maybe you should go back to using your nest." They took a deep breath, looking at the empty place "And if you don't mind…. Could I sleep with you? I mean that's totally okay if you don't want to and it's totally okay if you think that's too much, I can--"

 "Of course, Rainstorm. Well, a nest isn't a mattress, but…."

 "You say it as we didn't share it like, a million times before." Raine smiled, and they hoped that sleeping on the same bed could end up making them re-tie.

 That was a bad plan, they thought as the sleeping time was almost there. Luz had come back home, rambling about Amity but all that Raine could think was that it was an extremely bad idea to ask Eda to sleep with her. That was the worst idea they ever had and it would blow directly into their face when---

 "Hey, Rainstorm? Are you ok?" Eda asked, worried. They were clenching their fists and entirely red. Luz had moved to her bedroom with King already, saying that she would get ready to sleep.

 "I-- I just was t-thinking…. Huh, I a-asked to sleep with you but n-not that way, I mean, unless you want??? I am sorry sorry I am just an anxious mess!" They hide their face, rubbing their eyes.

 Eda blushed as well. Well, she thought they would just sleep as friends, but now it was more than obvious that Raine was thinking about more than just the friendly cuddling.

 "Raine, it's ok! To be honest, it's cute." She was being sincere, and she took their hands out of their face. "You're cute."

 Raine gently squeezed her hands, looking at her skin. Both had hands that were worn by time and by their experiences. They felt old, but still somehow in a young way. Raine liked to feel the roughness on her hands, and the little scars she had from working as a trash collector.

 "I missed you, Calamity."

 "I missed you too, Rainstorm." She muttered, close to their face. They could feel her breath mixing with theirs and the heat emanating from her skin, that felt so right, their heart skipping a few beats, their mind a mess from many feelings mixed about this.

 They couldn't deny, they      wanted     it. Not like a small desire, but as something taking over their whole body and mind. They      needed     her.

 "Can we go to the bedroom?" Eda whispered. If she was going to have their third-first kiss, she was not going to do it in the living room with Luz's abomination track homework there. It had to be soft and cute. They were finally reuniting after all of those years. It had to be special.

 They silently climbed the stairs, holding hands and giving each other caring looks. Soon, they were in the bedroom, and Eda found pillows for Raine, and laid down on the nest, turned to each other and exchanged tender touches and cuddles.

 "I thought this would never happen." Eda muttered, with a finger going through Raine's arm "When was the last time we laid down in peace? Like, without the lingering feeling of 'this relationship isn't going to last?'. It feels like an eternity."

 "We just pushed that last 2 years because we were afraid of breaking up, didn't we." Raine sighed.

 "I would say that it doesn't matter now…. But it does matter. I am sorry for never telling the truth and pushing you away." Eda whispered, not looking at them "I wanted to protect you, I couldn't understand why someone so sweet as you was with such a monster like me."

 "Eda, you weren't a monster. You were just a hurt person. I felt so bad for abandoning you when  you most needed me…." Raine closed their eyes, trying to control the tears. They felt bad to this day because of it.

 "Hey, hey. It wouldn't be healthy for us to continue going like that, ok? It's not your fault. We grew as people because of that, and… and I think that right now, we can try to build something better." She looked at them, hopeful of a positive reaction. Raine didn't answer, pulling them closer and kissing her like that was the thing they most desired in the world and they would die without it.

 (That was how they felt about it)

 Eda kissed back, surprised but with the same intensity, getting Raine closer, all the closeness didn't seem enough at this moment. That was supposed to be a cute third-first kiss, but Eda didn't mind that it was hungry instead. She discovered she was hungry to have them again as well, she wanted them up close and personal, she wanted everything they had to give, she loved Raine, and Raine loved her and that was the truth and the only thing that existed right now, even the bedroom seemed to disappear around them while they finally got the proximity they yearned for so long.

 When they stopped to catch their breaths, Eda only smiled.

 "Wow."

 "Wow." Raine agreed, blushing and hiding their face on Eda’s chest. Eda cuddled them, grinning ear to ear.

 “So, can I call you my partner?”

 “Only if you accept to be my girlfriend.” Raine muttered.

 What a beautiful way to end their day.

[whentherewerebicycles]

okay I slept nine hours again last night but it’s fine I’m telling myself that I’m just aggressively resting up now in case the coming semester is super stressful. 11 business days and counting with no reply from the foundation (not even an out of office reply??) which is driving me insane because I have such a limited window of time to do all this fall semester planning if we do indeed move forward with recruiting a new cohort. I am loath to waste these last couple weeks of break revamping the whole syllabus and prepping training materials for a new hire if we’re just going to get a no from the foundation, but I also don’t want september to be a living hell for me if I don’t do the work now while I have the time. agh! I think I’m going to try to use syllabus replanning as a chance to concretely apply what I’m learning from this learning & development research book. that way I can tell myself I’m prepping for my new job by practicing with a real world example, and I can get at least a chunk of the initial work done for the program. okay okay. I can do this.

here’s what I’ve done so far this morning:

I rewrote my learning objectives based on the book’s advice to set aside separately defined abstract goals and focus instead on the practical real world skills that I’ve noticed students need to successfully complete their projects. then I subdivided those complex bundled skills into different sub-skills I’ll need to explicitly teach them + made notes on what type of instruction would be most effective for each one. I have started loosely using that list to plan specific seminars but I am leaving that a bit more open for now… that’s going to be more sustained work.

since we are probably going to have to start a couple weeks behind schedule, I think I’m going to require them to attend a paid one-day weekend retreat where we can do some intensive cohort bonding and lay a foundation for the semester in a more deliberate way. I mapped out a rough schedule for that event.

I downloaded some templates for Asana and Notion to experiment with. I’m going to need to use more structured project management tools this year since I’ll be supervising a grad student employee, so I need to teach myself how to use them + also create replicable templates tailored to our program.

to save time for faculty and to get better recs I think we’re going to use a recommendation form instead requiring a rec letter. I sketched out a very rough version of that form though again will put off actually creating it until we have more info.

I mapped out a calendar of deadlines for august and sent it to my boss, then nudged her to nudge the dean about reaching out to the foundation again today.

I am going to pause program work for a bit and get back to reading my L&D book. I have 70 pages left so I might try to finish it in the next hour or so, depending on how dense the last sections are. then I will take a break and do podcast editing for a bit, as I find it soothing. I think a good strategy for this week is to spend 2-3 focused hours each morning on course prep then firmly set that work aside. that way I can feel like I’m making solid progress but I’m not wholly giving over my last precious weeks of vacation time to work that might not even turn out to be necessary.

[lady-eny]

TITLE: TIME TO TIME (7/13)

Some tags: Canon compliant, Fluff, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Drama, Minor Mikenana, Veterans, Canon-typical violence, Character Study, Love to Hate, Hate to love, Mutual Pining

Summary:

When Hange met Levi, little did she know everything that would come after.

Not just titans and the end of the world, but their own personalities, problems, and not to mention those developing feelings none of them want to acknowledge.

Over time their relationship changes, for good and worse. But at the end they always come back to each other.

It’s only a matter of time.

—AKA the LeviHan journey. From meeting to friends, to something more, to hating each other (or do they?), to rekindling their relationship, etc. —

Cross-posting on: AO3

Other Chapters: 1 2 3 4 5 6 8 9 10 11 12 13

Notes:✨Thanks for reading!!

Chapter 7: Nothing to Comrades

Time often gets belittled as such an abstract concept, which it is. Even so, the wise know that its power should never be underestimated. 

It can change perspectives, relocate entire cities, and most importantly, reignite what feelings used to inhabit a heart.

 Year 847.-

Hange is trying, she really is. She boils the water with the tea leaves in it and waits the same time Levi used to. Pours the liquid into a cup and adds a little sugar. Then, she sips.

And she slams the cup against the table.

“Agh.” She throws her kitchen gloves away in an outbreak, and buries her face in her hands. It’s the same procedure; she’s following it at even the smallest detail. So, why?! The tea tastes good, it does. But it just isn’t the same.

“Maybe I could try?” Nana asks, and drinks from Hange’s cup. Her eyes widen. “It’s good. What’s the probl—”

“Why is it so difficult to replicate?! He did it exactly like this, but it continues lacking something.”

“Here,” Nana says, walking to the oven. “I’ll bake you a delicious bread.”

Mike stands up after Nana to help her with the mix.

Great, now I made Nana and Mike work on their day off. What a fantastic friend I am, she thinks

Hange sinks lower on her chair, if possible.  

Erwin appears at the doorway, tired features weighing on his shoulders.

“I’m finally here,” he announces, exhaling when he takes a seat.

“It took you long enough,” Nana says, while Mike wipes a flour stain from her cheek.

Erwin arches a bushy eyebrow. “Headquarters are hours away.”

Hange nods. Earlier this month, Erwin sent each squad to different locations throughout the walls’ inner territory, to further establish branches in each district. It also helps each Squad to train with far more freedom—ever since they received new recruits, the barracks yard has been overcrowded.

Squad Mike is the second closest to Hange’s—only after Levi’s—therefore he and Nana arrived so early. Erwin, on the contrary, had to come all the way from Headquarters.

“It’s the last time I do this,” Erwin declares. He didn’t want to attend such a needless reunion, but Hange’s letters came every day until he complied.

Mike settles next to Hange and sniffs, smiling afterward.

“Smelling something funny?” Hange asks him.

“I’m surprised you bathed today.”

She crosses her legs. “I was seeing my friends after ages, that’s a very special occasion on my book.”

“Talking about friends…” Mike exchanges a look with Nana, who squints at him severely. His tone switches to a light one, “… have you talked with Levi?”

Hange’s posture stiffens. Nana puts her hands on her hips, waves of disappointment swirling directly to Mike.

“I haven’t.”

Weeks have gone by and their squads haven’t shared a word, despite being able to meet with a little walk. Maybe because of their leaders’ relationship, but mainly because they’re deep in work. That’s, at least, what Hange tells herself.

“You know?” Nana sits in front of Hange with caution. “The day you disappeared… Levi was really worried. He rushed through the barracks, scaring everyone with his look, and was on the verge of panicking when I found him.”

The table between them is suddenly so interesting to Hange.

“I… know.” Hange scrapes the table’s wood with her fingernail. It’s so firm, and… brown. She scrapes a little more, leaving a mark.

“Did you thank him for helping you out?”

Hange nods, almost chuckling. Honestly, sometimes Nana is such a mom. For a moment, she lets herself imagine how Nana and Mike’s children would look like. Tall kids with blond hair and too much bread to eat dance through her mind.

“And what did he say to that?” Erwin asks.

Hange shakes her head, thrown out of the sweet bubble she was in to face reality. A not-so-pleasant one.

“Mmm… nothing? I may have told him to leave… I was kind of embarrassed, with the notes and me getting hurt by those… those...” Fire runs through her veins at the memory, and she oughts to extinguish it, drinking her bad tea in one gulp.

“I told you it wasn’t your fault!” Nana clasps her hands tightly on the bowl she carries.

Hange takes a shallow breath. She knows, but it doesn’t change how judged she perceived herself at that time. Nor how bad she felt when he slammed her door and left, later.

“I…” Hange looks at the three people around her, and then at the free spot next to her. She feels the sudden burning of tears behind her eyes, but contains them, as she always does. Her voice is quiet, when she utters, “I don’t know how we ended up like this.”

Nana and Mike ram her with a big hug, which makes Hange laugh.

Mike rubs his nose at Hange’s hair. “You must have seen your face the last time I mentioned Levi, you were an inch from murdering us in the act.”

“We thought you were never calming down. That temper of yours, really,” Nana says, fondness in her tone.

Hange’s laugh dies. She squeezes her friends, pressing her lips into a thin line. That temper of hers, indeed. She’s been trying to tame it, and only let it arise when she needs it. Neither before nor after.

“Don’t worry, everything is gonna be alright.” Nana kisses her forehead.

Erwin agrees, soft eyes on Hange.

Hange opens her mouth. Pauses. Opens it again. “How is he? Have you talked to him? He can be rough, but he sees you as his friends, too.”

“We still meet together,” Mike assures her, stroking his sparse beard, “but I can’t tell how he is. We never got to read him as well as you did.” Hange’s gaze darkens, and Mike hastens to add, “But he looks cool!”

“Good, then.” Hange claps. She tastes the bitter lie before it escapes her, “We’re both good.”

A mouth-melting scent engulfs them, which propels Nana to check the oven. Erwin puts a paper bag onto the table with a thud, and slides it down to reveal a wine bottle. He takes it out and shows it as a trophy.

“I got it.”

They cheer and distribute the alcohol into glasses. After a couple of drinks, Erwin’s features soften.

It’s good to see him as before, Hange thinks while Erwin talks about his childhood. As the Commander, he carries a big responsibility, and all alone—Hange doesn’t envy him in the slightest. It’d be amazing if times like this were more frequent; when he can loosen up and be simply their friend again.

A ghost stays in the room the entirety of the night, though. Here and then, Hange glances at the place where Levi would have sat, and her cheeks fall down.

She misses him; his words, his company, his voice. Dammit, even his grumpy face.

Looking at Nana, Mike, and Erwin, she is sure that they miss him, too.

  ***

  The woods mostly hide the sunlight above Levi’s head, albeit some rays slip through the branches like vertical lines falling to the ground. He wanders past trunks and mud, intending to hike his way out of here.

He can’t be lost, surely?

Gusts of wind fly his clothes and ruffle his—previously neat—hair, causing a scowl to break over his face. He’s supposed to find a river; according to the map that keeps moving with the air on his hands, it must be nearby. Actually, he should have been there since an hour ago, but here he is, only more and more greenness before him. The overpowering smell of nature already permeates his nostrils, but still no sight of running water.  

Fucking river. It’d be an improvement on his Squad’s conditions, as now they have to travel far away to get water. With a traced route to this supply, their life would be so much easier.

If only he finds it.

Eld volunteered to come with him, but Levi preferred to leave his subordinates cleaning, an idea he doesn’t find that good as of now.

Fine. I’m lost, he accepts, scanning around. There are, as far as his sight reaches, trees and trees and more trees. How to find something if everything looks the same?

Coo! A white bird flies over his head, placing its claws onto his hair and poking his skin. He shakes the animal off and glares at it. Chases it with the map as a weapon, until he comes to a halt. Hears. It’s the sound of running water.

Levi follows the burble, and a wide view opens at his front. The river is grounded by bright, green grass, adorned with purple and blue flowers. Small stones extend at its edge, and tall trees stand a little further. He breathes in the fresh aroma of the place, which fills him with lightness.

Suddenly, he starts and stiffens, blood stopping cold. With all its beauty, the river holds a defect.

It’s already occupied.

Under a shade, Hange is leaning against a tree, sleeves and pants rolled up, and barefoot. Her head is up, her eyes closed. She looks the same as the last time he saw her. Perhaps with huger and darker circles under her eyes.

He makes a move to return to the secrecy of the woods, but she opens her eyes and stares at him, astonished.

“… Levi?”

Levi gives her his back, turning to the water. Blurred fishes’ shapes swim under the surface, but he can’t make out their characteristics. He stays with his gaze fixated onto the river’s flow for minutes, fidgeting with the rim of his jacket and feeling self-conscious. On his nape, he senses her gaze, burning like the sun that, without anything covering him, is hurting his skin.

“I—I’ll go,” he finally cracks the silence.

“No, don’t…”

He doesn’t advance an inch. Instead, he changes his weight from one foot to the other and folds his arms over his chest.

“Y—you can sit here. If you want. It’s the only shade and it’s… comfortable,” Hange says, sliding to her right, making space.

And she smiles at him, a smile that reaches her eyes, wrinkling the skin at their corners. It’s just like the one she built the first time he met her: a little uncertain, a little too wild, but gentle, nevertheless.

Levi is so disarmed by it that he walks like compelled, and mindlessly, settles next to her. Not close enough to touch, yet enough to distinguish that her face isn’t quite identical; more and more freckles spray her cheeks, and her glasses are not the same ones from days ago.

If one of them turns their head, the other would feel their breathing on their neck. But neither does. Both of their gazes direct at the river, intently.

Levi tries to relax, as the scenery demands. It isn’t easy; after all, they’re like strangers meeting for the first time.

And he’s never been good with strangers.

“How are you?”

Levi jerks up. “Good.” His eyes follow the flight of a white bird. It lands on a high branch and meets Levi’s eyes. It looks like the one which just attacked him. “You?” He adds as an afterthought, remembering that this is how people usually behave. Politeness, though he doesn’t remember a time when they were this mannerly to each other in the past.

“Everything is going fantastically.”

Silence. He stirs.

“Hey, Levi?” Her tone is tentative, somewhat afraid. It makes him tense in a second.

He may not recognize many things about her anymore, but he can still read some of her emotions pretty damn well.

“What?” He asks, sharper than intended. The air feels charged and heavy, out of nowhere.

“I know that… we aren’t friends anymore. I—I don’t feel what I used to.”

Something breaks inside of him, rendering him in pieces. Cold and spiky pieces.

“Oh.”

Hange lowers her shoulders and embraces her legs. “How did we come to this?”

She still doesn’t get it completely. Since the moment she saw him at the river, those questions keep bombarding her. She needs to understand things, and they need to bear logic. This—science doesn’t apply to this, which is frightening at the very least.

Right now, he’s so different to her, but he looks mostly the same. How is that possible? Why can’t either of them talk properly, as they used to?

Levi limits to shrug.

Hange continues, desperate for answers. “We did something wrong, eh?”

“Yes.”

She twists to him, and he slides further away. Hange looks at him in the eye, willing to ignore the distance he just enlarged.

It’s beyond repair, isn’t it? She asks him with her pleading eyes.

He drops his sight to his hands. Enough of an answer, to her.

“Do you still hate me?” She asks, and air leaves her lungs afterward. Is she prepared to hear this?

He shakes his head, and utters, tonelessly, “I feel nothing.”

His words are like a slap; they leave her breathless and dizzy. Hange rubs her eyes as something stars prickling at them. Blinks rapidly to keep her face. She wants to run to her room, snuggle up in bed, and remain there for many days to come.

But I love you. You are my best friend, her voice mutters in her mind.

Her former best friend, though, doesn’t even want to sit close to her. Doesn’t feel anything, and probably still hates her. One can’t force some stuff, no matter how much you want to.

“So, we’re done. Friendship over,” she hears herself saying.

“Has been for some time.”

She winces while an invisible hand tightens her heart. Does it feel like this, when titans smash you?

“I feel like, a phantom of pain? It’s weird to describe it hahaha.” She brushes her chest.

“I know,” he says. A residual flare of anger overflows him. “You didn’t need to… cut me out like that.”

What’s over it’s over, and he doesn’t have the force to try to retrieve it. His words were accurate; he feels nothing, and how to come back with someone which makes him this numb, this bothered still?

Levi swallows, but the painful knot in his throat doesn’t loosen. Why the hell did he come here? They don’t need another water supply. What’s wrong with walking more every day?

“I know,” she mutters. “It’s so… weird. We used to—I used to know you like my own palm. How can two people who were like that act like strangers?”

He observes her, from bangs to nose, her smooth skin, and the line of her mouth. It’s weird, he agrees. Tears begin rolling down her cheeks, and she pulls her legs closer to her chest to hide her face there.

I’ll never find someone as important as you were once to me, he thinks, squeezing his eyes shut. He disregards the hotness of his eyelids.

Hange speaks roughly, “We’re what, then? Mere ashes on the ground? Nothing?”

Talking to her used to be so easy. Getting her mind-state, melting in the hazel of her eyes. That’s no longer true, as words struggle to come out. He can’t take a grasp onto her thoughts, and neither tell what she wants by the nuances of her expressions. As if an insuperable wall had fallen between them, preventing them to see each other with clarity. And it is filled with the ugly words they shouted to each other weeks ago at the Mess Hall, emotions and hurt and anger. By resentment, and the unsaid.

Levi’s eyes find the bird from above. It cocks its head to the side, scrutinizing him. Then, it takes flight, probably for Levi to never see it again. It could be for the best, it simply fluttering away forever. Even when it doesn’t always feel like that.

“We’re Survey Corps,” he says. “Comrades.”

“We are.” She nods. Her face contorts into a sour grimace. “We’re humanity’s strongest and Titan-freak, polar opposites and not friends. As it’s supposed to be.”

They stay until night approaches. When the breeze makes him shiver, she jumps to her feet and waves him goodbye with a smile. Not the smile from hours ago, but the one she gives to all her comrades. Instead of the numbness he’s felt for days, the sight shoots a pang to his chest.

With only the river and its inhabitants as witnesses, Levi lets a tear fall down, looking as she flies far, perpetually far away from him.

  ***

  Nanaba throws herself at her chair and looks around. Most of the Survey Corps are back to the barracks, and the Mess Hall is buzzing with conversations; not unlike the past. Yet it is different from previous years, in a way.

First, after the fall of Wall Maria, they’ve received many recruits, so there are new tables. Second, everyone sits with their respective squad, something that isn’t inherently bad, if not for….

At a table across from Nana’s, Hange talks vividly with her squad. Unless you were someone who knows her since many years ago, you wouldn’t detect it as Nana does. It’s quite clear to her. The shadow of sadness under Hange’s glow.

On the other side, Levi drinks tea with his squad. She hasn’t seen him smiling—not like the times they were together, talking about nonsense—for months now.

Nana exhales, and rests her head on Mike’s shoulder, feeling reassured at the steadiness of his presence, bathed with warmth. She rarely felt this safe and sure of the brightness of the future, until he looked at her eyes and told her he loved her for the first time. Other times when Nana encountered this kind of happiness include reunions with her friends—reunions in which Hange plays the biggest, most important part.

Hange has been with Nana through thick and thin. Unfortunately, her friend is, at the moment, not her happiest self. This means Nana can’t be fully happy, either.

She can’t take it anymore. This is ridiculous.

Nana jumps up and looks down at Mike, who is frowning at her outburst of energy.

“We have to talk with Erwin,” she states and waits for him to follow her out.

Erwin is, though, impassive at her concerns.

“Is there really nothing we can do?” Nana purses her lips, hands on her hips. “Nothing at all?”

She can’t stand Hange faking smiles, not anymore. It’s disturbing.

“Nothing,” Erwin ditches. He takes a stack of papers and leafs through them, without dedicating a look to the pair.

“But… but… they’re both our friends!” Nana even used to think that Hange and Levi were closer than Hange and herself. “Usually, when people separate here is because one died, so supporting them is something we’re used to doing. We know what to expect. But this… I don’t know.”

It’s like someone died for both of them, but… isn’t the other right there? What’s the problem with facing each other and fixing it?

“Or they figure it out by themselves or they don’t. We can’t interfere.” Erwin orders the papers, exhaling.

She shakes her head. “We need ideas, not limitations.”

“We could lock them up in a room,” Mike proposes.

“I’d pay for seeing you trying to abduct Levi.” She smiles at Mike. “Still, for what? They seem civil to each other.” She wrinkles her nose, brushing her blond hair out of her face. “They’re solely… no more friends.”

“Time to time, Nanaba.” Erwin walks to the window and joins his hands at his back. Observes the stars from outside. “Let matters take their course.”

“But we could give them a little of help. Some tasks together, maybe…?”

Nana is sure that, if they weren’t seeing him, Erwin would have rolled his eyes.

“That, I could do. But—”

“Thanks! Mike, let’s go.” She hurries outside before Erwin can retort.

As she closes the door of Erwin’s office behind her, Nanaba can’t help feeling hopeful. She knows Erwin is right; there’s nothing like time to heal wounds and make people realize stuff about themselves and what they want for their lives. It’s what allowed her to leave the damages from the past, after all—what helped her to end up at this precise moment.

Her gaze meets Mike’s, and she smiles warmly, enveloping him in a big hug.

She wouldn’t change this precise moment for anything else.

Time can help. So, she should give this some time.

Even so, time isn’t almighty. And a little extra help never hurts, right?

  ***

  Levi folds his arms tighter against his chest, glaring at Erwin with the entirety of his will. The subject of his fury, though, wears a calm face, disturbed only by glimpses at Hange.

He can understand why.

Hange is biting her nails. Levi had never seen her do that before. Not just that: she keeps bouncing a knee, and her arms tremble slightly—but that may be caused by the carriage’s movement. Even so, she is a nervous mess. Levi is mad while she is at the edge of panic, which is strange for them.

Her eyes are lost in the window, expressionless. An elegant green gown fits her shape, and her hair is down, hazel curls fluttering over her shoulders. Some would say she looks… clean. Right, clean. That’s a good adjective.

Hange connects with his eyes, sending a wave of concern to his chest. It’s strange, how one look at her disturbance can drag him closer to the edge.

His uneasiness grows when he realizes that, no, it’s not an effect of the carriage. She’s truly shaking.

“Maybe this isn’t a good idea,” Levi repeats, for the thousandth time.

Erwin sighs, tired. “We’ll do it great.” Still, his eyes betray a doubtful glint while he adjusts his suit.

Levi clenches his jaw, directing his gaze to the houses they’re passing by. Huge mansions with fine architecture and expensive ornaments line the streets, until they come to a halt at the biggest one of them.

“It’s time,” Erwin declares, climbing off the carriage. Levi follows him unwillingly.

Outside, the air smells musty under the gray sky, and tens of carriages await behind theirs. An open elegant white fence with flower patterns welcomes them, and a rocky path—towered with street lamps—stretches to the entrance of a wide, rectangular-shaped mansion. It looks posh and extravagant, to Levi.

It’s built with white stones and has gold and blue decorations; the roof is high, triangular, and covered with blue roof tiles. Small chimneys poke out the roof, and the structure is surrounded by a garden with grass, flower patches, and a fountain on one side.

Rows of tall windows give a hint of what’s happening inside. People with elegant dresses and wine glasses wander around, and low music tones reach his ears.

Levi shrinks, overwhelmed.

For once, Erwin is wrong. This isn’t a good idea at all.

“Hange, please…”

Levi turns around to see that Hange refuses to exit the carriage.

“I should come back. You two are going to do it great. Yes, great.” Her pupils are a frenzy, snapping from Erwin to Levi, and the building at their backs.

Erwin shakes his head. “If we want support for your ideas…”

“They’ll never give it!”

Erwin’s features harden. “Fine. Stay here.” He whirls to the rocky path and strides forward, to the murmur of voices inside the house.

Levi shoves his hands into his pockets, agitated. He’s unsure of what’s the best course of action, staying with Hange or going after Erwin. On one hand, he hates the idea of being circled by those rich pigs; on the other, Hange’s presence is somewhat distressing, and uncomfortable all the same.

A loud, exasperated moan comes out from the carriage, and the next second, Hange lands next to him. She takes a cleansing breath in, squares her shoulders, and a fierce expression settles on her face.

“Let’s go,” she says. Marches forward.

He doesn’t have any other choice, does he?

The interior is like its façade suggested, although colder than expected. Levi shudders from the fresh air as soon as he enters, and Hange’s skin cracks goosebumps as she examines the cream tapestry. The walls are stuffed with expensive paintings, some portraying dreamlike landscapes; others, figures which Levi can’t decipher. There are gold ornaments everywhere, blinding his eyes. Even though the candlelight should give the place a cozy air, the candles are wrapped in white jars, thus provoking a clear, but sterile environment.

A crystal chandelier hangs overhead in the main room, where the floor is white marble and the furniture sandalwood.

Levi listens loudly to every step he takes into the room, but fortunately, their sound becomes weak when they meet the crowd, the chatter, and laughter drowning out anything else.

“This is… too much,” Levi says.

“Not really. The neighbor houses are way worse.”

Waiters walk around with trays full of appetizers and wine. Hange snags out a wine glass and drinks it in one gulp. Levi is about to ask how does she know about the other houses, when Erwin appears.

“Take it easy,” Erwin tells Hange, a proud smile dangling at the corners of his lips. “Glad you decided to join us. I want to introduce you to some people.”

Levi prepares himself for a dreadful night.

“Mister Baxter here, he’s a court advisor,” Erwin murmurs, walking them to an old man with a long white beard. Approaching him, he exclaims, “Baxter, glad to see you here! These are… Levi and Hange, Survey Corp members.”

Hange transforms—that’s the only way Levi can describe it. Her posture switches to a relaxed one, a small smile emerges on her face, and she bows her head.

“Nice to meet you, sir,” she says, offering her hand. Even her voice sounds different, plummy and courteous.

Erwin and Levi exchange a look, and Levi can tell he’s surprised, too. However, unlike Levi—who feels that the person next to him is a ghost with Hange’s face—Erwin seems pleased.

“I heard great things of your brain,” Baxter says, kissing her knuckles.

“Oh, don’t make me blush.”

What the—? Erwin elbows him, making Levi stiffen and retake his neutral demeanor.

“She’s very smart,” Erwin adds. “Tell him about some of your ideas…”

Hange goes on and on about traps for Titans and what studying them could mean for humanity. After minutes, Levi removes himself, shriveling to a corner.

Nobody pays him attention, either engrossed in conversation or dancing the slow violin’s melodies. There are fancy people at every side, talking with a vocabulary he doesn’t get, of topics he knows nothing about. He feels so small. Pulls at the cravat that suddenly feels too tight around his neck.

This view is contrasting with the one they saw leaving Headquarters. Some of the displaced from Shiganshina barely have something to eat, let alone wear, and here… Levi’s hands lock into fists as his stomach troubles. So many dead people, so many orphans…

Erwin drives Hange around the room, and she continues being the epitome of politeness. Her curls float behind her with every movement, her dress the perfect blend to this place. Levi doesn’t consider himself wrong, thinking her skin has something making it glow under the silver lighting. She enchants with her talking, which makes him conclude that Erwin wasn’t wrong for the most part; only with Levi, of course.

Hange, contrary to himself, seems to belong here, to be in her territory. Levi only moves with such ease when he’s out of the walls, killing beasts in dirtiness.

He takes a wine glass and gulps its content, enjoying its sweetness, even though it has a bitter and hot lingering aftertaste. He takes another drink to retrieve the sweetness, until he starts feeling light and calm.

For moments, Hange’s shoulders deflate and she hurries to Levi. Her mask falls, then, and the former Hange returns, all clumsiness and relief. It’s like she seeks a refugee at his corner, a place where she can stop acting and be safe.

Levi can’t help covering her from the things she’s running from. Or should he say, people?

“Erwin is looking for you again,” he hears himself saying. His mind is out of focus, and he feels his mouth dry. Searches for yet another drink.

“Agh. Maybe he won’t see me, this column is wide enough.” She fans herself, beads of sweat sliding down her clavicle.

Levi swallows, unable to look away from the sweat rolling down over her shimmering body…

“Do you have glitter on your skin?” Everything acquired a soft quality. He wouldn’t be hallucinating, right?

“Yeah, Nana spent hours with it. And with my hair and make-up.” She lets out a tired sigh and takes a sip from her wine glass. “And—”

“Hange?”

Hange strengthens, eyes widening. She drops her glass. Levi catches it in the air, only a bit of the liquid falling to the floor. He puts it on a table— he mustn’t be as lost as he thought if his reflexes are this great.

“Hange Zoe?” repeats the same ringing voice, an inflection of surprise permeating it.

She closes her eyes, her chest contracting with her quick breathing. The voice comes from her back, so Levi is unable to see its source—not that he doesn’t try, but he almost stumbles down with his own feet. He supports himself with a hand on the smooth wall.

Okay, better to stay still, he thinks. He hates this feeling of being unable to control his body. He glares at his wine glass and leaves it on a small table. Never again.

“It’s you!” A tall and young man shouts, dark-haired and broad around the shoulders. His tailored suit is of the most shining blue Levi’s ever seen, but again, he isn’t well versed with the different styles of this type of clothing.

Hange smiles. “It’s me,” she nods. “Such a surprise to see you here.”

“Here. In my house.”

She blurts out a shaking laugh. “Yes, how could I forget?”

The man’s eyes soften, and he wraps his arms around her. “Years without seeing you. What are you doing here?”

They… know each other? Levi’s mind may be spinning, but he’s doing a supernatural effort to make sense of this conversation.

She separates, cheeks red. “Ah, yes. Years. I’m… with the Survey Corps.” She absently points to Levi next to her. “He’s Levi.”

Levi avoids the man’s blue eyes, but takes his hand when he offers it. Hopefully, he squeezed it properly.

“Wait… you’re ‘Humanity’s strongest’, yes?”

Levi grimaces. Hange laughs more.

“That’s him.”

“I’m Elias Lovof, Hange’s ex-fiancé.” He says it at the same time as Hange yells, “Friend!”

Elias flushes. “I mean, sure. Friends now, I guess.”

Levi frowns. Hold on, fiancé? Lovof…? Isn’t that who hired him to rob Erwin before joining the Survey Corps? Is he mixing words? He shakes his head, but the world twists with that.

Hange takes another drink from a tray, forgetting about her previous one on the table, and sips.

“So, how have you been?”

“Doing good. By the way, my father isn’t here, so don’t worry,” Elias says.

Hange loosens, and Elias laughs at the sight, a tender look in his eyes. It occurs to Levi that this look bothers him. He doesn’t trust this guy, but in his maze, he doesn’t ponder on why.

Hange fidgets with her glass. “D—do you… is my dad here?”

Levi’s gaze darts to her. Hange never mentioned her family, before. Did he mishear? But if she really did ask for her dad in such a place…

Elias purses his lips. “No, he… he’s rather ill, lately. But the business is doing great.”

“Ill?” She repeats to herself, faintly.

“Ah, Hange. I finally found you.” Erwin arrives, and first thing, he studies Elias. They shake hands. “Erwin Smith, Commander of the Survey Corps.”

“Elias Lovof.” Erwin’s muscles quiver at hearing that. “It’s such a pleasure to meet you.”

“The pleasure is mine. Can I call you Elias? Elias, I’ve heard you’ve been doing a great job with your father’s company, now that he’s retired. What is your opinion on the Survey Corps’ mission?”

“Well… I fully support it? The times we talked, Hange used to tell me tons about it before she…” He trails off, scratching his brow. “It’s very brave.”

“Indeed,” Erwin says. Levi can almost see the hidden smirk on Erwin’s mouth. He just saw an opportunity and is about to attack. “These days we’re facing difficulties, you know? We lack the needed supplies to survive. What do you think of meeting another day and…” Erwin pats Elias’ back as they walk off to a quieter place.

Hange looks shaken. Five songs go by, and by that moment, Levi’s mind fog recedes, and clarity engulfs him.

“Would you dance with me?” A slim, old man interrupts their corner’s silence.

“What?” Hange shakes out of her mind. “Sorry, maybe later…”

“Just one dance.” The man takes her wrist.

Her eyes narrow to slits, a vein twitching in her jaw. “I said, no.”

“Oh, come on, it’s only—”

“She said no.” Levi interrupts him, tearing his hand off of her, and stepping at her front.

The man looks at both of them and storms off, muttering about bad manners.

“We should go,” Levi says. His head is pulsating with pain.

“But… Erwin…” Yet, she’s already striding to the exit.

Together, they walk through the rocky path, Hange lost in her mind. The sound of small rocks moving under their weight follows them, the noise of the crowd far away. The sky is clouded and dark, but the street lamps light their way. Levi recalls the events of the night, and a weight falls onto his chest. He shouldn’t have drunk that much.

Levi inspects the person at his side. For some reason, tonight causes some of his forgotten anger to return and harden his muscles—their shared memories are suddenly tainted by this, making them feel like lies. He thought he used to know her, but did he ever, for real?

He sets his jaw. “You never told me you belonged to this kind of world.”

Sure, he saw glimpses of it; she once talked about a maid and expensive cleaning cloths. Still, she never truly shared her past with him.

Hange blinks. “No, because I never belonged. I just happened to be born in the middle of it.”

In the mere middle, if her relationship with Elias was that close. Levi doesn’t know a lot about this, but… his house is the biggest one. That must mean something.

His mind evokes the way she trembled, the panic in her eyes from hours ago.

“Did you know you would see him here?”

“I hoped not. I sort of, disappeared in the middle of the night. His father probably curses my name daily, as he wanted to expand his company with the Zoe family’s help.”

Levi can’t fully understand what she’s talking about, but he gets a general idea.

“His father… he doesn’t like the Survey Corps, does he?”

“He likes money,” Hange jerks one shoulder.

They continue in silence. At the street, they find a free carriage and ask the driver to get them to the Survey’s small branch in Mitras. They sit inside, and Hange lays her head onto the window frame when they take off.

“Nothing changed,” Hange mutters, aloof. “Not even after the fall of Wall’s Maria. I don’t know why I expected otherwise. If only, they look happier, with their expensive food and… and… paintings,” she says through gritted teeth.

Levi twists his mouth, remembering all the party’s luxury. “At least someone is happy and free within the walls.”

“Free?” She strokes her chin. “I don’t think so.”

He creases a brow. “They can do what they please. Eat what shit they want, and die from oldness instead of starving. Even if the exterior walls fall, they’ll just gather here, safe and well-fed.”

“Most of them are unaware of the dangers from outside, so they don’t know fear, nor acknowledge the walls around them. But the walls remain there. They’re still confined in a small area.”

“They don’t seem annoyed by that.”

Her bangs bounce against the side of her glasses with the carriage’s movement. “No, but it’s their reality, nonetheless.” She pushes her glasses up with a finger, eyes far away. “They’re still caged, with or without their conscience. After all, is ignorance true freedom?”

Levi rubs a hand over his face. This is the most they have talked in months, and it feels weird. He’s drained from spending the night trying to melt into the mansion’s tapestry, and he’s developing a headache. He doesn’t answer, then; no need to pile something else.

Hange bites her lip. “Erwin will kill us for leaving. And no one acceded to invest in the Corps yet, so tonight was kind of fruitless.”

“The wine was fine.” And he was never going to drink it again, for his own safety.

“Yeah, there’s that.”

She smiles and closes her eyes. Levi does the same, the carriage’s rattle a peaceful lullaby after being out there.

  ***

  Levi fires his grapple hook and activates his gas, propelling himself up to the titan’s head. He lands on its shoulder and slices its nape with a hard thrust, gasping for air when he falls to the ground.

His squad assembles around him, tired.

“There are more coming,” Eld claims, helping the Captain to his feet.

Shit, Levi thinks. They’ve killed a dozen, and there are still more? He studies the field, but the other Squads must be too far, as they’re nowhere in sight.

Suddenly, the thudalup-thudalup of horses at his back fills his ears, showering him in relief.

Reinforcements.

Hange climbs out of her horse before it stops. Puts her hands on her waist.

“How many are coming?” She asks, straight to the point. Her expression is commanding and serene, a leader in every way.

Eld looks at Levi for permission before answering. “Ten, possibly more.”

Hange sets her lips into a grim line and tilts her gaze to the sun above.

“We need to go west and reunite with the others, as soon as possible,” she says and shoots a blue flare to the sky.

“No, I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Eld says.

“And why should we?” Oluo chimes in. “We’re on a special mission. Commander said to the east—”

She shakes her head. “We’re as far as we’ll get, if we go further with these conditions, we—”

“—we can’t be sure of coming back safely,” Levi finishes her sentence. He doesn’t know what made him do it, but he guessed the way she was thinking and didn’t like his squad’s contrariness. Because she’s right.

Hange nods and smiles at him. A sense of understanding bonds them, and his chest expands. Abruptly, he averts his gaze to his subordinates. Oluo’s lip is curled in annoyance, but Eld rotates to share the orders with everyone else.

They part off, but soon, a horde of titans chase their tails. Hange and Levi dart to opposite sides, separating to slow them down, distract them. Both squads execute the formation perfectly in sync. It’s a matter of time, though; titans break through them, and the only thing to do is fight to the death. Titan’s death, preferably.

It’s surprising how old habits tend to come back. After killing two titans, Levi ends up next to Hange. When a five-meters comes to them, Hange gives him her back and he does the same, covering her. They’re too absorbed to repair on their actions, on the implicitly of their partnership, but it doesn’t erase it.

Another titan, a seven-meters, charges to them, and Levi acts. He rolls to the side and jumps to his feet, adrenaline beating through his limbs. He cuts its ankles and it falls, but when he’s about to climb to its neck, another one takes him. Its grip is too tight, and his hands got trapped in the hold, so he can’t move. He can’t breathe, and can’t think.

He’s blacking out when he hears a swish, and then he’s in free fall. Arms—her arms—envelope him, along with a rose scent. His soles touch the ground, and Hange makes sure he can keep his balance before letting go of him.

“Are you alright?” She explores him with her gaze.

Levi flinches when he moves his left arm, but it isn’t broken. “I’m fine… thanks.”

Her gaze stays for a while as if trying to see through a lie, but circumstances make her decide he’s being honest.

They turn to another threat.

He grinds his teeth by the pain in his arm when he slices another nape, but it needs to be done.

By the time only humans stand among the steam, Levi’s arm is numb. He sits on a rock, his raven hair soaked with sweat, and tries to move his arm, but that’s when it stops being numb to become a burning pyre. He groans in pain.

His squad huddles around him.

“Are you okay, Captain?” Gunther looks worried.

Hange breaks the group, and kneels in front of him, a wrinkle between her eyebrows. She inspects his arm. “We have to bandage it, and you shouldn’t move it.”

“It’s fine.”

“I have some bandages…” She stands and digs into a bag hanging from her horse’s saddle. Comes back with a white roll. “It’s to immobilize it until—”

“I said it is fine,” Levi grunts. He hates being the center of attention as he currently is, with everyone’s eyes on him. It isn’t so bad when it’s only his squad, but Hange’s one is looking at him, too, which is making him prone to lash out.

Hange kneels again and pouts, annoyed. Her lower lip sticks out, and her eyes squint at him.

“Is it?” She pokes his arm with a finger, and he squirms in pain.

“What the fuck is wrong with you, shitty glasses?!”

“I thought it was fine, or was I right?” She cocks her head.

“Captain, maybe you should listen to her,” Petra interjects.

Levi sneers, but lets Hange bandage his arm. She hums while working, a melody she used to repeat when they watched the stars. It brings back emotions he forgot. Makes him take her in; the little bloodstains on her goggles, the way she sucks her cheeks when she’s concentrated…

“Ready,” she says, patting his lap.

“We should head off, then.”

They ride their horses to the west, as she suggested. Her mood is joyful while he follows her close behind.

The way her brows drew together in concern returns to his mind. It’s good, this cordial relationship between them. It benefits their squads and themselves.

Every so often, she glances back and checks if he’s alright, if his arm is properly bandaged. It suits him well. She’s worried about a fellow Corp, something completely normal. For his part, he rides closer to her, only to be ready in case an unforeseen event arises.

Only because of that.

They’re doing their job, working efficiently as a team.

Just like true comrades.

[greenbriar-j]

5 times the prince crashed the bookstore

and the 1 time the owner(’s grandson) broke into the palace

-

One.

             The first time was an accident. Sort of. Not really.

             Prince Gabriel did need to buy new ink and maybe a new journal to replace the one Gunther accidentally threw into the fountain the last time Gabe escaped the palace. If he was so pressed, though, he could’ve asked one of his attendants to buy it for him.

             So, yeah, it was kind of an accident. Gabriel donned his ���commoner” attire, hiding his immediately recognizable curls under a cap. The clothes he wore were bland, but he had the kind of figure that made every outfit stand out. He snuck out through the window, running to the bookstore to get as much time away from his princely duties as possible.

             It was so boring, all of it. The paperwork, the meetings, the girls.

             Full confession: Prince Gabriel loved girls. Adored them. Thought they were the neatest thing to be placed on the planet. He loved the neighboring princesses, their mother queens, the female attendants – he loved women. He could not for a second imagine kissing any of them.

             Kissing Gunther? That, he’d imagined several times before the guard had caught on and assigned him even more paperwork. Fucking Gunther.

             Not, Gabe grimaced, pushing open the door to the bookstore, fucking Gunther. Stop thinking about fucking Gunther. About fucking. In general. … You’re a disgrace of a prince. At least you’re not responsible for producing an heir.

             Because he was the second prince. Because he was responsible for many things, actually, while also not being responsible for a thing at all.

             “Welcome to Vanilla Pages, how can I help you today?”

             The prince’s head whipped to the sound of the voice. It was not the voice he expected to hear, the almost frail, ever-loving voice of the old Asian lady who’d always been here the last few times he came. This voice was rich, masculine, deep – and, oh, the prince was very, very gay for it.

             “Uh,” he said intelligently. “You’re new.”

             The man smiled at him. “I’m not. I’ve worked here every summer since I was ten. Granny gets a little faint in the summer. The heat and all.” A beautiful hand waved in a beautiful, dismissive gesture.

             Gabe had one thought, and it was this: He himself was feeling a little faint this summer. Somehow, behind the broad shoulders filling out the loose shirt, the scruffy ponytail, the calm yet twinkling eyes, the man was undoubtedly a big teddy bear. “Ah,” he said, again the pinnacle of intelligence towering over his whole kingdom. “What’s your name?”

             “It’s impolite to ask for someone’s name without giving yours first,” the man prompts. “Your Highness.”

             Your-? “The disguise is that bad?”

             “If I say so, will it end in a death sentence?”

             Fuck, fuck, fuck. That smile is unfair. What the fuck. “I’ll make sure it doesn’t.”

             “Then yes, it sucks. The name’s Phuong.”

             “Oh, word? Good name.” I did not just say that. Who responds to introductions with oh, word?

             Gabe could not stand to make any more of a scene. This was fun. It was also very embarrassing. He grabbed a journal without really examining it, checking out and running across the street to the bakery.

             Gunther picked him up there after his own round of flirting with the baker’s daughter. There would probably be a wedding soon. Depending. The guard seemed surprised that the prince turned up on his own, but the prince thought nothing of it. He thought nothing at all.

             Not about the name Phuong.

             Not about those broad shoulders and muscular arms left on full display. The wide, toothy grin.

             Not anything at all.

 Two.

             The second time was a detour.

             “Gabe, I mean this in the most respectful way, but if you do not finish writing a birthday card to the prince of [other kingdom, idk], we will be having a war council within the month.”

             “Gunther, he can’t even read. Why does it matter?” Tossing his head back and stretching his legs out, he acted like the brat he only was for Gunther.

             The guard delivered a withering glare without adjusting his rigid stance. Even the prince has to admit that Gunther seemed to be experiencing physical repercussions for his job. In just a month, the prince had aged his friend by a year, or so it seemed.

             Reluctantly, Gabe held in every protest dangling on the edge of his tongue and penned a birthday note to the two year old prince. “We have to deliver this in person?”

             “Yes.”

             Gabe groaned. He could not think of a prospect he hated more. In a month, he had not managed to gather enough poise to revisit his beloved Phuong at the bookstore. He merely whimpered the name in his sleep, according to an unusually smug Gunter. And now, to be separated by this meaningless trek?

             “To the post, Gabe. Not to [neighboring kingdom].”

             Ever the model prince, Gabriel drew himself upright immediately. “The post, you say,” he repeated regally. “The one three streets away from the bookstore.”

             “That’s the one.” His guard, his best friend, smiled tightly. “I intend to propose along the way, and your stringing this out is not helping my nerves.”

             His royal eyes wider than saucers, Gabe ruffled all of his curls in distress and excitement. “Propose! Why didn’t you say so, you big baboon?”

             “You were sulking, Highness.” Gunther’s smile is wry, only a little amused.

             “I most certainly was not. Agh, let’s go, let’s go, let’s go.”

             In his rush, he sustained more injury to his hands that day than he had in the past year.

 -

             “So…” Phuong glanced at Gabe’s hands, a quick flicker of dark brown eyes. “What happened to your hands?”

             Prince Gabriel hid the offending bandaged digits behind his back. “A mishap while writing the world’s most useless letter.”

             “Oh?”

             “Its recipient can’t even read. OH!” Without thinking, Gabe grabbed at Phuong’s shirt, tugging in his hasty excitement. “He’s doing it, he’s-!”

             He turned, only to find his face alarmingly close to Phuong’s. Why was the other man looking at him anyway? Did it matter?

             The moment was broken too soon by a holler across the street. “GABE! SHE SAID YES!”

             “OF COURSE SHE DID, YOU BABOON!” He fired back, pretending not to feel the heat rising inside him from the sudden close proximity. “He’s going to look so hot at his wedding,” Gabe muttered dreamily, still clinging with bandaged fingertips to Phuong’s shirt.

             “I have something for you,” Phuong said suddenly. “I wasn’t sure when you would come back, but I have something.”

             It was the best news the prince had heard all day. Seeing Phuong while getting his work done and receiving a gift? Only the gods could provide such a setup.

             He was right, for once, that it was too good to be true. Phuong deposited a box of fanmail in the prince’s arms and turned away without a word.

 Three.

             The third time was a disaster.

             “Did you read them?” Phuong asked after the initial pleasantries had been exchanged.

             “The letters?” Gabe leaned on the counter. “Burned them.” He grinned, but back-pedaled when the joke falls flat.

             Phuong swallowed, then busied himself wiping down the counter. “You burned them?”

             “If I read every piece of fanmail I ever got, I wouldn’t survive, Phuong.”

             “I see. I suppose- No, never mind.”

             While he hadn’t burned them, Gabe hadn’t read them either. He had no reason to read confessions of love from women who didn’t stand a chance with him because 1) he didn’t like women like that and 2) he only had a certain pool of suitors to choose from. This thing he was perpetuating with Phuong… It would burn him eventually. But Phuong was still very, very hot, and Gabe was still very, very gay.

             There was no promise of reciprocated anything from the clerk. He was simply doing his job, and Gabe was just a guy that came in a little too often for a little too long. That was all.

             “What’s this about, then? Was there one I should have read? Is it from your sister?”

             “I don’t have a sister.”

             “Your cousin?”

             “Your Highness,” Phuong looks at him, finally. Gabe doesn’t enjoy it, though. Not the way the address comes out so clinical, so distant. “All the letters had the same handwriting. My handwriting.”

             The prince’s throat goes dry. “What?” He whispers.

             “I’m closing the shop early today,” the other man responds in that same distant voice. “You’ll need to leave, Your Highness.”

             Stunned, Gabe returns to the palace.

 -

             Each of the letters is one sentence long.

I hope this finds you well, Your Highness.

 The stars in your eyes shine brighter than mine, yet belong to the same single sky.

You’re a brat.

Gunther came to the bakery today; I’m strangely disappointed by your absence.

A heartless one, you turned out to be.

The stars in your eyes shine on different continents than mine, it seems.

 Foolish of me to write letters to someone I’ve only met once.

Why do I think of you so often, my most hated daydream?

              There’s one for every day of the month Gabe avoided Vanilla Pages.

             “Gunther?” He calls into the air. A maid scurries in instead, apologizing for the absence of his guard, a different guard trailing in behind her. “It’s fine. Will you bring me some alcohol?”

 Four.

             The fourth time was a mistake.

             The very same night, a very drunk Gabe stumbled through the streets. It would be a prime night for assassination, if anyone wanted to put him out of his misery. A shame that no one did.

             Mindless feet guided him back to the bookstore. Fruitlessly, he banged on the shut and bolted door.  

             An angry Gunther dragged him home, and Phuong was never the wiser.

 Five.

             The fifth time was purposeful.

            “Your engagement was decided today.”

             Hollow-eyed, Prince Gabriel blinked at the captain of his guard – a married man now. The wedding had been beautiful. As expected. “My what?”

             “Your engagement, Highness. She’s a very pretty woman, if it’s any consolation.”

             “It’s not.”

             “Phuong is also in very bad shape, if it’s any consolation. Rea said so.”

             “It’s not.” The words came muffled by the pair of hands covering the prince’s face. It was enough that he felt bad about everything. There was really no reason both of them should feel awful. “Gunther, clear my schedule for the next hour. I’m going to the bookstore.”

             “You’re engaged now.”

             “I’m aware. Betrothed men ought to tell other suitors when they’re off the market.”

             The intention is clear, and Gunther seems upset. Unreasonably so. “Your Highness-”

             “I have to, Gunther. I’m going to make him hate me so he can move on faster.”

             “But you-”

             “I always knew how this would end. It’s okay. I’m okay.”

             He was anything but okay. He was gay and in love and engaged to a beautiful woman who deserved the kind of love he could never give her because he was gay and desperately in love with someone else.

             Each solemn step of the way, he bid farewell to each part of the man he had inexplicably grown to love. Goodbye, beautiful hair. Goodbye, kind heart. Goodbye, brown eyes. Goodbye, biceps; goodbye, thighs. Goodbye, hands. Goodbye, stupid love letters.

             He walked in, announced his engagement to the ground, and fled before he could see the other man’s reaction.

 One.

             Phuong considered his life in chapters.

             They were typically large, vague categories of his life that were boring and tedious to live through. Childhood. Teenage years. Adulthood. Gabe. It was only this latest chapter that made any difference in anything he thought.

             Before Gabe, life was dull. Every day, the same. After him, every day was painful – but the good kind of painful that perhaps would lead to something. The second prince bore the name of the messenger of the lord, and that had to count for something, didn’t it?

             Apparently not. For Gabe to cut him off so quickly… If he had hoped to give Phuong any kind of conclusion about what they were and what they meant to each other, he failed spectacularly.

             After milling around Rea’s bakery for half the day, he finally called in his favor. “Rea, can I… Uhm…”

             “If you wait until sundown, Gunther will come home for dinner, and he can take you straight to the brat himself,” she replied before he finished the thought. “Just tell him how you feel, and if it goes bad, you can have free cakes for a week.”

             “I’ll get fat and unattractive.”

             “Honey,” she said in that pitying tone he’d so hoped to avoid.

             “Can I… Have a free cake now?”

 -

             Prince Gabriel and Gabe were very different people, and while Phuong had known this, it didn’t really dawn on him until he saw it with his own two eyes.

             Gabe – his Gabe – smiled and laughed at everything, had horrible posture because he was always trying to get that tiny bit closer to Phuong, and dressed horribly because he thought it’d work as a disguise.

             Prince Gabriel wore tailored clothes that made Phuong a little dizzy because of how they accentuated a man who didn’t need accentuating at all. Prince Gabriel spoke with authority and walked with it, too. He oozed it.

             Phuong didn’t know if this made his job any easier.

             The moment the door shut behind him, the prince groaned and stretched and stripped off his clothes from the day. He flopped face-first on the bed like a child and immediately called for the captain of his guard.

             “Is it okay that I’m here instead?” Phuong said softly.

             Unexpectedly, the prince jumped ten feet in the air. “Phuong?”

             A complicated series of expressions crossed the prince’s face. He looked like he wanted to be upset, but couldn’t, and in the end, he started to cry, reaching for Phuong with grabby hands and a bleeding heart. What a foolish prince, to wound himself like this, when he really didn’t need to be wounded at all.

             “Your eyes shine with stars that are different from mine, but they share the same sky,” Phuong murmured, climbing into the prince’s bed and pulling him into a clumsy embrace. “If you had read that, I thought you’d have understood.”

             “It’s not the same as telling me upfront. I can’t bank my decisions on I think.”

             “I know.”

             And the prince only cried more. This was all his heart had ever wanted, but it still didn’t tell his mind what to do. Could he afford to forfeit his engagement? Would he have to forfeit Phuong again, knowing what he knew now?

             He didn’t know. He didn’t care yet. It was hard to care with Phuong’s finger sliding through his curls, with feathery touches of lips to his forehead.

             “Gabe.”

             “Hm?”

             “I really, really like you. But I get it if you still have to let me go.”

             Gabe tightened his arms around Phuong. “I won’t. I don’t want to.”

             “Okay.”

Spoiler alert: I have no idea how to actually end this but I believe they figure out their way to get together and live happily ever after bc that was the whole point of this but I really can’t be bothered to write it out whoops

[twstarchives]

Mirror of Darkness Show

This show has been screened at several events: ■ Twisted Wonderland pop-up shop in Animate (Aug 1 - Sept 6, 2020) ■ First Anniversary livestream on Abema TV (Mar 17, 2021) ■ Halloween 2021 virtual event on Cluster (Oct 18 - Nov 18, 2021)

I’ve translated the script below ↓

                           ・━━━━✥◈✥━━━━・

Crowley: Allow me to welcome all of you who have gathered here to hear about this academy. I am the headmaster, Dire Crowley. I’m overjoyed to know that so many of you are interested in our Night Raven College. Heheh.

Now then, I will leave it to the first-years to attend to you all. Freshmen, please be very welcoming and professional with them. Alright, I will take my leave. Ah, I’m so busy, so busy!

Grim: Oi oi, the headmaster just left everything up to us and ran off somewhere.

Ace: Bleugh, I don’t wanna be here.

Deuce: C’mon, Ace. Some of these people might be new students next year. Pull yourself together!

If we get to have juniors... then we’ll finally be considered upperclassmen!

Ace: Now that you mention it... if you had a junior, then you could force them to take care of flamingo feeding duty for you! That’d be a win!

...That’s what you were imagining, right?

Deuce: Ah! Don’t act like I’m you.

Grim: But... they wouldn’t be in Heartslabyul with you guys unless the Mirror of Darkness picked it for them, right?

We’d always welcome anyone to Ramshackle! Hehe! If I get more henchmen, I could push them around everyday and make them bring me all the tuna cans I want!

Jack: Hey, Grim. You’re telling everyone too much of your internal thoughts. This is a job the Headmaster entrusted us with, so let’s do it right.

Ace: There it is—Jack’s always-on-task voice.

But anyway, you guys. The looks on your faces all scream “I don’t know anything!” but... don’t tell me—not just about Night Raven College obviously, but you don’t know about the Great Seven either?! Oi oi, I’m getting déjà vu here!

Grim: These guys are just like my henchman—they need you to walk them through everything.

Ace: Whaaat, but I’m too lazy to give the same explanation again. So anyway, Epel! You can take it from here!

Epel: Huh?! M... Er, me? I’d like to help, but... I don’t know if I’d be able to explain it right.... um... ¹

Jack: He’s stumbling right from the start... Alright, guess I’ll do it.

Night Raven College is a mage-training boarding school. There are seven dorms here based off the Great Seven, a group of powerful figures who once existed in the past. Whichever dorm you’re put in is determined by the Mirror of Darkness at the time you enroll. They say it’s chosen based on the essence of your soul.

Epel: Thank you, Jack. I’m sure all of you here must look up to the Great Seven too, and are hoping you’ll be able to get into Night Raven College as well.

Ace: Hello—? Wait, did they all fall asleep?

Sebek: What?? Oi, all of you! WAKE UP!!

Jack: Agh! Sebek! Don’t start yelling without warning us first!

Deuce: Both of you are being too loud! Everyone, I’m sorry if that startled you. Is it alright if I continue?

I’ll explain about the dorms and the Great Seven.

Heartslabyul is the dorm Ace and I are in, which is said to be founded on the severity of the Queen of Hearts. Everyone here lives by the law of the Queen of Hearts. Dorm Leader Rosehearts is very strict about the rules, but he and others like Clover and Diamond are all respectable people.

Ace: “Respectable,” huh? Deuce, that’s such a basic way to put it.

Everyone! If you end up in the same dorm as us, you better be careful. Our scaaary dorm leader will give you hell if you break even just one rule!

God, don’t you think things would’ve been better if they hadn’t kept in that aspect of the Queen of Hearts?

Epel: Um... The Queen of Hearts was also an amazing woman who reigned over a kingdom that was chaotic by law.

Grim: And so, anyone who broke those laws was said to have been put on trial and exiled from the country.

Jack: I’m part of Savanaclaw, which models the indomitable spirit of the King of Beasts. There are many students here, including Leona and Ruggie, who excel in athletics.

Which is why... I wanted so badly to have a serious fight at the Magift Tournament.

Deuce: I know exactly what that feels like!

The King of Beasts used his wit and magic power to climb his way to the top. A MAN AMONG MEN! Doesn’t he just amaze you?!

Epel: Yeah, he’s so manly and cool... isn’t he?

Grim: But ya know, the dorm leader Leona is just a do-nothing who sleeps all day.

Ace: You say that, but you never know—someday he might just knock you dead with a POW!

Next up is the dorm founded on the mercy of the Sea Witch, Octavinelle.

Jack: Octavinelle is a group of intellectuals who are always getting the highest scores on written exams. Along with the dorm leader Azul Ashengrotto, it’s full of really clever students. They also run a café called the Mostro Lounge.

Deuce: The Sea Witch lived in a grotto deep under the sea, and granting the wishes of pitiful merfolk was something she lived for.

Ace: The price was a little bit expensive, but just for that you could get anything you could ever wish for!

Epel: After that... we have Scarabia, the dorm founded in the tactical spirit of the Sorcerer of the Desert Kingdom. I hear there’s a lot of students here who are good at Astrology and Ancient Curses. The current dorm leader is Kalim Al-Asim!

Jack: The Sorcerer of the Desert Kingdom was someone who excelled at anticipating the future, often gave advice to the king, and acted as a support for the entire kingdom. That “tactical spirit” of his has definitely been passed down through this dorm, hasn’t it?

Grim: So what you mean is, they’re really smart?

Deuce: Yeah. And the people here also use their own power to strengthen themselves! You could say they climbed their way to the top too!

Ace: I could never put in so much effort and motivation just to get good at something.

M’kay, next! This is the one Epel’s part of—Pomefiore! It kinda has a sparkly, really aesthetic vibe to it.

Epel: Pomefiore models the heavy efforts of the Fairest Queen. They say the Queen was the fairest in all the land, and that she spared no effort to preserve her beauty.

I wonder if that’s why... the dorm leader Vil is so strict with both himself and all the students here.

Jack: The Queen was also supposed to have been a master at making poisons. And it’s true that a lot of the students at Pomefiore excel at potion-making too.

Grim: Next, we’ve got that guy Idia’s... Hngyi... Hngyahyde Dorm.

Ace: I-G-N-I-H-Y-D-E! Try to remember it right!!

Grim: Yeah, that! The dorm leader Idia is so rude; he’s always trying to pet my fur like I’m a cat! Me, the almighty Grim who’s going to become a powerful mage someday!

Epel: Huh...? You’re not a cat...?

Ace: Ignihyde was founded on the diligence of the Lord of the Underworld! Cater told me that a lot of the guys here are strong in magic energy engineering and digital gaming, but their lifestyles tend to be real quiet.

Jack: The Lord of the Underworld ruled over a kingdom of writhing spirits by himself. He never once neglected his job, even though anyone else would fear it. He was very dedicated and earnest, and worked without taking breaks.

Deuce: One, two, three, four, five, six... We’re at six now, so there’s only one left, right?

Ace: Last is Diasom—

Sebek: With Lord Malleus working as its dorm leader, this is Diasomnia!

Ace: BLEHJG!

Epel: Ah...

Ace: You know cutting in yelling like that scares everyone, right?!!

Anyway, you’ve been gone this whole time... Where’d you run off to?

Sebek: Yes, I was receiving a lecture about gargoyles from the Young Master.

Grim: Gar.... ghnghyle? Do those taste good?

Ace: I don’t really know what that means, but I’ll let you introduce Diasomnia ‘cause it’s too much of a hassle for me.

Sebek: Of course. This is far out of your depth anyway.

Ahem. Are you ready? HUMANS! Diasomnia, the dorm I’m part of, is founded on the nobility of the Fairy of Thorns. The current dorm leader is Lord Malleus Draconia! He is a descendant of the faeries, and ranks as one of the top five... No, the strongest magic-wielder in the world! He was born in the Valley of Thorns, his birthday is January 18th, he’s 202 cm tall, he’s part of the Gargoyle Research Society, both of his eyes are—

Ace: This isn’t a introduction on the dorm anymore; you’re just talking about the leader!!

Sebek: Hm? This is the dorm that Lord Malleus runs, so what’s so strange about talking about him?

Ace: This is obnoxious... 

Deuce: He won’t listen no matter what you say, huh?

Grim: Right?

Epel: I feel like the students of Diasomnia can wield magic much better than the other dorms can.

Sebek: That is correct. The Fairy of Thorns, who lived on the Mystical Mountain², could cast magic that was extremely powerful even among the Great Seven. It’s clear that Lord Malleus is the most suited for running this dorm, isn’t it?

Epel: ...And that concludes our explanation. Everyone, thank you for listening all the way through.

Jack: Every dorm has its own set of quirks, but in the end, the one you join depends on the Mirror of Darkness. You shouldn’t worry too much about it.

Deuce: Jack’s right. No matter what dorm you get assigned to, let’s all do our best together to become powerful mages!

Ace: What’s with this beautiful ending you’re leaving off with? Well, I’m not complaining, getting some cute little freshmen around doesn’t sound too bad.

Let’s go to the next Unbirthday Party together!

Sebek: This orientation is not over until you return home safely. If anything happens, we’re the ones that will be held responsible. Do you hear that, humans? Be on your guard as you make your way back.

Grim: Next time you stop by, make sure ya don’t forget my tuna cans!

1. Epel: M... Er, me?

I wasn’t able to convey this correctly, but Epel starts off by using the pronoun “Ore” (a rougher version of “me”) and then pauses to correct himself to “Boku” (which is a bit softer).

2. Mystical Mountain

It’s called the “Forbidden Mountain” in the EN dub, but the term engraved on Maleficent’s statue on Main Street is “Mystical Mountain.”

[argumentl]

The Freedom of Expression Ep 42 - Filling up at  old style sweet shop 'Kamikawaguchiya'.

Part 1 (Part 2 here)

00:14 K: This is Dir en grey's Kaoru with this week's episode of The Freedom of Expression. Today is a little different from the usual white background.

J: Its totally different.

T: Its good isn't it? It feels nice.

J: It does.

K: Yeah, Joe san, Tasai san, Im forgetting the order of things, haha. Uh, where is this?

J: So this is in the neighborhood Zōshigaya, and this place is called Kishibojin. I think most Kantō people know of this place. Its really near Ikebukuro. By train its either the Toden-Arakawa line, or the Fukutoshin line, and about 3 mins walk from Zōshigaya station.  Kaoru, is this your first time here?

K: Yes.

T: What do you think of the atmosphere here?

K: Well, I like temples, so...

J: Oh, you like temples?

T: (*speaking off mic*)

J: Yeh, so Ikebukuro Sunshine City is quite close to here..

K: Is it that close?

J: Yeh, its close. You could walk it if you tried. Its not that far. But this area has had temples and shrines on it since long ago.

1:33 J: So, inside here is Japan's oldest sweet shop.

K: The oldest?

J: Yes.

K: Ah, we talked about this before.

J: Yes, thats right. Shall we go inside? You know, I've not eaten all day so that I will have room for sweets.

K: Really??

1:56 J: Here we are. The name of the shop is 'Kamikawaguchiya'.

T: Established in 1781?

J: Really. How many years is that? I can't work it out immediately...200....240 years ago?

T: Yeh.

2:16 J,T: Hello, sorry to disturb you.

J: This shop was founded in 1781? What generation are you?

Old lady: 13th generation.

J: 13th??

T: 1781 was in the..

Old lady: Edo era.

J: The Edo era?? Well, this place is very unique, and Im already feeling hungry. Do you remember this? *picks something up* Its plum jam. I used to put this on soft rice crackers.

K: Oh yeah!

J: We used to eat this, right? Plum jam. Its so nostalgic, I really wanna eat this. What else..

T: Should we just choose one each?

J: Once each?

T: To start with.

J: Oh, to start with, yeh. Kaoru, what about you?

3:11 K: This has a lot in..

J: Oh, it does.

K: So, I might be full after just this.

J: Haha, yeh. You chose quickly.

T: Oh this is nostalgic.

J: So nostalgic!

Old lady: Please put them in a basket.

J: Ah, ok, we'll put them in this.

T: These are 'lottery sweets'.

J: Excuse me, do you have those rice crackers to put plum jam on?  Oh, these! Its this!

Old lady: Thats a pack of them. The individual ones are down here.

J: Oh, right.

K: This is really good. (*looking at the sweets box lid *)

J: Haha, yeh.

K: I feel like Im back in my hometown.

3:58 T: Ok, im gonna pull out one of these sweets.

J: So nostalgic!

T: Look, (*points to Ginko leaf*) the Ginko tree is shedding here.

J: Remember this yogurt type thing?

K: Oh yeh yeh! I've eaten that.

J: I'll have this too.

K: Hang on, lets eat the first ones before that.

J: Right, the first ones.

K: Ok, money...

J: Our staff will pay.

K: Ok, we'll have these, and one of those please.

T: Yeh, one of the lottery sweets.

Old lady: Please pull one out.

T: This is nostalgic too!

J: Its a type of gambling.

T: Yeh, this is the moment you turned from a child to an adult. Ahhh, its small!

J: Ah, it is small.

T: Im in shock. Thank you, I'll eat it later.

K: So, this and this aswell please.

Old lady: Ok, pass it over, I'll work it out.

J: Please do.

Old lady: ¥30, ¥50....ok, thats ¥119.

J: ¥119.

T: I'll get this.

J: This is on Tokyo Sports? haha.

K: Thanks for buying us this!

J: So cool! haha.

Old lady: ¥81 change.

T: Thank you.

Old lady: Thank you very much.

J: She's so thankful just for ¥120.

T: Yeh, it makes me happy.

J: Ok, lets try these. Look at this..

T: That looks good.

J:(*opening packet, Tasai holds the the rice crackers for him while he squeezes the jam on*) Oh, im sorry, can you help me. I feel like the colour is different.

Old lady: Ah, thats because the maker is different.

J: Oh?

Old lady: The old maker closed down three years old.

J: Oh really?!

K: Are you using all of it.

J: Of course!

Old lady: The newcomers can't make it the same. ???*1 This one tastes okay.

J: Its ok?

Old lady: ???

J: Ok, I'll try it. Ah, yeh, its ok.

T, K: Hahaha.

J: Its just like you said, its ok. Ah, but its nostalgic! It tastes like old times.

K: *To Tasai* You're eating already?

J: Eat while the camera is on you!

T: Haha, it tastes good.

J: Please, we're on location!

T: I can't take it out of my mouth now.

J: We didn't come here to eat only.

6:29 J: Ok, Kaoru, you next.

K: *opening packet* Oh, it has a tooth pick.

J: So it does.

Old lady: Would you like this?

T: Oh, no Im ok, thank you.

K: *eats sweet* Mm, yeh this is how it tasted.

T: Haha

J: I've actually never tried that before.

6:55 J: What is it? Is it a hard sweet?

T: Isn't it gum?

Old lady: I think its gum.

K: It says its candy.

J:Oh, candy?

Old lady: Like a hard type candy.

J: It might be like a gum style gummi sweet. We had gummis in elementary school.

7:12 J: Ok, me next. What should I go for? Oh, this type of thing..

K: Ahh.

J: You suck it. This is nothing but food colouring.

T: Oh, look at this.

J: Ah, this. Oh, also this. *Opening box* This, this, this!

K: Ah, plum.

J: Plum! This is so sour! I might go with this. But Kaoru, you choose yours first. This is exciting.

7:44 J: So this is our second round.

T: Yeh.

J: Everyone's like, I don't care, just choose, haha.

K: I've had a sweet one, so I feel like getting a sour one this time. Maybe I'll go with this.

J: Oh, you're picking that one? Yeh, thats a good one.

T: Yoguru

J: Yeh, its Yoguru. Thats so nostalgic too. You eat it with a spoon, right?

Old lady: The spoons are in there.

8:23 J: This too, right? Kinako sticks.

*Old lady and Tasai talking in the background*

J: I think I'll go with this. The sour plum. I'll take the plum..

T: And I'll go with this old fave..*holds up bag of snacks*

J: Ah, that!

Old lady: Oh, thats delicious, isn't it.

T: Yep.

Old lady: This one (Yoguru) has a lottery. Ok, its the same as last time, ¥119 yen please.

J: ¥119? Thats great.

T: Thank you

J: *getting money out*. No, no, this feels great, haha. Paying for you two adults like this.

9:05 J: Oh, the smell of this.

K: *smells the plum* Ahh

J: The smell makes your mouth water, right?

K: Its sour! You've gone for another sour one.

J: *smells the plum* So sour!

Old lady: You drink it with the straw.

J: Oh, were you supposed to drink it??

K: You should have opened that first *points to straw*

J: I've done it in the wrong order again, I just can't get it right.

K: While you're doing that, I'll eat mine.

9:28 K: I didn't win.

J: Oh, yeh! That comes with a lottery.

Old lady: Someone won with that before and just threw it in the bin.

K: Ehh? What a waste.

Old lady: Customers just eat them and throw them away.

K: *eats* Ahh, this is nostalgic.

J: What exactly are the ingredients in this? haha. Its not yogurt, is it? At least.

K: Its best not to think about it.

J: Haha

10:06 J: *Drinking plum juice* Ah, it sour!

K: Haha.

J: Did I really drink this as a kid?? I cannot drink all of this.

K: Does it irritate your throat?

J: Mm..*drinks* Agh, sour! This makes my face   frown!

T: ???*2

J: Honestly, I've got tears in my eyes! Do I have to drink all of it?

K: Yeh, you have to.

J: Really?

10:34 J: Ok, watch this. *drinks*

K: Ahh, the straw is little..

J: Agh, so soouuuuur. Ah, its sour. But its cause its vinegar, right?

K: Its good for your health.

J: Yeah. No mistake.

K: It has artificial colours in it though.

J: It does, yeh. I'll eat the plum just as it is. *eats plum* Ah, yeh, i remember this taste. *To Tasai* You want this one? I can't eat two.

T: I've still got this sweet in my mouth from before. I've totally messed up this job.

K: Hahaha

T: Its still in my mouth.

J: And you're holding everyone's snacks. You look like the sweet shop guy /駄菓子おじさん

T: Haha, Kaoru, do you want the plum?

K: Nah, im ok.

T: Haha, you're ok?

K: It looks difficult to eat.

J: It is difficult to eat, for sure.

11:35 J: Ok, should we go for a third round?

K: Yes. I havn't brought money, Toru can pay.

J: Thank you

11:50 K:*picks up snack* A long time ago, was it my previous band? We used to eat these in the all night studio.

J: Haha, these?

T: A nostalgic taste.

K: Yeh, we had no money.  We used to eat stuff like this.

J: ???*3, its big right?

K: Yeh, I would have it if I got tired and hungry, and wanted a sweet snack.

12:19 T: Is this a stick lottery?

Old lady: If the end is red, you win.

T: Should the three of us play?

K: Yeah.

Old lady: How many do you want?

K: Three.

Old lady: Just three? ¥33yen please. *Takabayashi pays*.

T: Ok, lets try these lucky sticks.

J, T, K: *eat snack* Ahh

J: Oh, look! I won!

T: Thats a success.

J: I thought the plum food colouring had just gone on it.

K: Haha, no.

13:02 J: *getting another stick* What happens if I win again?

Old lady: You just carry on, no matter how many you win.

J: Ok, I'll try this one. *eats* Ahh, I didn't win.

13:24 K: *opens packet, eats* Ah, there's no mistaking that taste.

T, J: Hahah

T: Can I try? *takes a snack from bag, so does Joe* No mistaking?

K: Its kinda sweet.

T: Ah, tastes great!

K: This is so good.

T: It is.

13:40 J: What is this thing again?

K: This? If you look closely, they are different.

J: Oh, I used to get this one, Mochitarō.

T: It says 'sauce flavour'.

K: I used to get this one.

J: I got Mochitarō.

Old lady: Mochitarō is the strong flavour, the other one is sauce flavour.

K: I might go with this.

14:23 J: This is fun.

K: Oh, its chocolate barley.

J: Chocolate barley? Its hidden there.

K: And these. *points to snacks in basket*.  Um, near my parent's home, they would come and shoot these out. It was on the back of a truck.. (*image here*)

Old lady: Yes, thats right.

K: And you would take your rice, and there was this handle that they turned, and made it into this snack. If you helped out with turning the handle, they would give you it for free. And at the end, they would shoot it out.

Old lady: ???*4

K: Yeh yeh yeh.

J: Really?

K: You could make it with macaroni too.

Old lady: Its also nice as popcorn.

Click for Part 2

[batfam-rewrites]

Batfam During Quarantine: Happy Holiday’s

December 1

Duke: So, what weird traditions do you have for Christmas.

Stephanie: What makes you think we have weird traditions?

Duke: Please, at this point you all are so predictable, I can tell you all what you’re gunna to do on Christmas Day. Dick text everyone he knows that celebrates Christmas Merry Christmas,

Dick: Why shouldn’t I?

Duke: Jason is gunna bitch about all of his presents or tune us out or both, Tim is gunna sleep through most of it because he’ll be up all night wrapping presents, Steph will spend most of the day on social media, Barbara and Dick will get very cozy on the couch probably reading something, and Damian will wake everyone up by jumping on the bed screaming, 

Barbara: Sounds about right!

Cassandra: What about us?

Duke: You guys are just about as new as I am to this family so I’m not to sure.

Harper: So there is some weird tradition?

Dick: Nothing too weird, just an advent calendar.

Tim: But with movies, so for example the first day could be Home Alone, the next day could be Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, then the Charlie Brown Christmas Special, then Home Alone 3...

Cassandra: I’m assuming Home Alone 4 is in there somewhere?

Stephanie: No, fuck that movie!

Cassandra: Damn, just assuming! Don’t get so judgmental.

Jason: The only movie that is consistently.....

Dick: Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, don’t ruin the surprise, Jaybird!

Jason: Whatever, you’ll love the movie. It’s funny as hell.

Duke and Cassandra: Coolcoolcoolcoolcoolcoolcoolcoolcoolcool.

December 6

At a mall in Central City

Dick: *grabs a large stuffed animal unicorn and walks with Wally towards Jason, Victor, Roy, and Donna This is Fred.* He’s coming with us. 

Donna: Dick, what is this?

Dick: You didn’t hear it from me but *whispers loudly* Fred is a secret agent. He’s here to save all unicorn kind.

Roy: *stiffles a laugh*

Wally: *laughs loudly*

Victor: Why do you need a unicorn? You’re not a child! 

Dick: It’s for Dami. And Fred is a secret agent.

Roy: Uhh no he’s......

Dick: *throws Fred at Roy* Sneak attack!

Roy: Hey!

Donna: You don’t get the unicorn back until we get to the car!

Dick: No fair! *spots the pet store across the way* OOOOO, PUPPIES! *jumps on Jason’s back* Piggy back ride.

Jason: No! *throws Dick off his back*

Victor: Jason, what is up with Dick today?

Jason: No idea.

Dick and Wally: *starts hopping like a frog around the store*

December 10

Damian: HAPPY HANUKKAH, SUCKAS!!!

Bruce: Settle down Damian.

Damian: NEVER!!!!!

Bruce: Okay, we’ll see you guys soon, we’ll be at Kane Manor. Alfred is in charge.

Dick: Why not me! I’m responsible!

Bruce: No you’re not.

Dick: I am too!!!

Barbara: Really? What about last night?

——

Nightwing: Hey, Babs, check this out! *jumps off the roof of a building* YEAH I’M FREEEEEEEE! FREE FAAALLLLLIIIN’! fires his grappling hook across the street

——

Dick: So? That proves nothing!

Selina: *whispers to Damian* Get to the car.

Damian: *starts leaving*

Bruce: Goodbye everyone see you in eight days! *backs away slowly* ALFREDS IN CHARGE!!! *running to the garage*

December 13

Jason: *to Stephanie, Tim, Cassandra, Harper, and Cullen* Okay, everyone hold on!

Barbara: What’s going on?

Jason: We’re sledding down the stairs.

Barbara: Without me! Someone make room! Let’s go!

They sled down the stairs landing outside.

Dick: I’M GOING NEXT!!!!

December 15

Damian: Can I light the candle tonight?

Bruce: I don’t think that would be safe enough. Maybe next year.

Damian: You let me roam the streets of America’s hell hole dressed with a target on my chest, how would lighting a candle be MUCH WORSE THEN THAT?

Bruce: You can’t be trusted with fire! Last time I tried to let you light Dick’s birthday candles you set the table in fire!

Kate: Shit Damian! I thought you were getting better.

Damian: I’M TRYING! NOW GIMME THE LIGHTER OR ELSE I’LL SLIT YOUR THROATS!

December 19

Tim: *walks in the back door* We got the tree!

Jason: *runs down the stairs* Lets see it!

Damian, Cassandra, Dick, and Barbara run down stairs to see the tree and stare at it.

Dick: Ummm.... Tim, Steph, did you guys think of how the tree would fit into our house?

Stephanie: Well you said to get a cheap one and we did! We got it for free!

Damian: And where did you get it? The woods?

Tim: How did you know?

Dick: Okay, we’ll find somewhere to place this one and get a new one to decorate tomorrow.

Tim and Stephanie: Okay.

Three squirrels jumps out of the tree.

Damian: SQUIRREL!!!

Dick: Don’t touch it!

Jason: Let it bite you!

Barbara: *elbows Jason in the side* Jason, shut up!

December 20

Bruce: Can someone hand over the Joker ornament?

Dick: *hands over the ornament* 

Jason: That ornament is the bomb!

Everyone: Oh my god!

Jason: Look, I’m just saying I would definitely not break that one with a crowbar!

Dick: Shut up Jason!

Barbara: You’re not the only one to have been traumatized by the Joker, Jason!

Jason: Yeah, but I’m the only one the Joker killed.

Harper: Why do you even have ornaments of your villians, Bruce!

Stephanie: Oh, I got this one! Because the trophies in the Bat-cave aren’t enough!

Jason: *high fives Stephanie*

Bruce: It’s because I like to remember those who are not spending the holidays in the most ideal place.

Jason: So you are capable of emotion! I never knew!

Alfred: *hits Jason on the head*

Dick: Awww, this is a cute one *holds up an ornament of Bruce and Selina kissing in their costumes*

Selina: I’ll hang that one up! *reaches for it and places it on the tree* Do you remember that one Bruce?

Bruce: Yeah, that was when we first started working together. *both of them kiss*

Damian: I CAUGHT THE SQUIRRELS!!!

Dick: No!

Barbara: Put it outside!

Damian: I’m going to adopt it!

Alfred: No your not!

Bruce: Set it free!

Jason: *takes the squirrels and throws them outside* 

Harper: Problem solved.

Damian: NOOOO! MY BABIES! *runs to the door*

Dick: *puts a hand on Damian’s shoulder* It’s for the best.

Christmas Eve

Jason: Yippee Ki Yay motherfuckers!

Harper: So we’re watching Die Hard?

Jason: Fuck yeah! And then The Ref!

Duke: Oh! That is a great movie!

Tim: Damn it! You all weren’t supposed to know the movie!

Harper: We still haven’t seen it! Sounds interesting!

Tim: Yeah but now the reaction is going to be underwhelming.

Dick: I don’t know. I’d probably just be whelmed.

Jason: NO! *jumps towards Dick and wrestles him* I...hate...your...use...of....those.....words.

Dick: Get off me!

Bruce: Jason! Get off of your brother!

Jason: Fuck you!

Alfred: *grabs Jason’s ear* 

Jason: Ouchie! Alfred!!!

Alfred: I’ve frankly had enough of your swearing today Jason! Go to your room and don’t come down until it is time to grab your wrapping paper for the presents you bought!

Jason: *stomps towards his room* I’m fucking....

Alfred: STOP SWEARING OR ELSE I WILL WASH YOUR MOUTH OUT WITH SOAP! AND STOP STOMPING!! IF YOU’RE GOING TO ACT LIKE A CHILD THEN I’LL TREAT YOU LIKE ONE!!!

Bruce: Thank you, Alfred!

Alfred: Not a problem Master Bruce.

Later that night

Harper: Omg, this movie is hilarious!!!

Cullen: How have we never seen this before?

Damian: HOW DARE YOU SHELTER ME FROM WATCHING THIS! THIS IS THE GREATEST CHRISTMAS MOVIE I’VE SEEN!

Bruce: I am regretting not having Damian wait a year. Am I a bad parent?

Tim and Stephanie: Yes.

Cassandra: Hey Dick, when do we get to open presents?

Dick: I’m not saying it.

Cassandra: Babs?

Barbara: Nope!

Cassandra: Jason?

Jason: WHAT!

Cassandra: When are we going to open presents?

Dick: Jason, don’t do it!

Jason: Presents? Is that what you said? Presents? We'll open them when we get there. No, in fact, I'll save you the trouble. Your present is a giant fucking cannon. And you're gonna crawl in it. Then I'm gonna get 2 pounds of gunpowder and I'm gonna shoot you right out of Jersey! And then I'm gonna drive to Jersey, and pick up all the parts of your body and put them in a plastic bag. Then I'm gonna drive to my house with you in the bag and toss you into the fireplace. I'm gonna get my glass of whiskey and watch the Charlie Brown Special with your ashes burning IN MY FUCKING HOUSE! AGH!

Alfred: *runs in with a bar of soap and shoves it in Jason’s mouth* WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT THAT MOUTH!!!!

Christmas Day

Damian: *jumps out of bed and runs to Bruce’s and Selina’s room* YOU GUYS DRESSED! 

Selina: Ehhh....

Damian: *opens the door and jumps on the bed* COME ON IT’S TIME TO OPEN PRESENTS!!!!

Dick: *walking by* Damian, what do you think you’re doing?

Damian: PRESENTS!!!

Dick: *stares at Damian* Presents. 

Damian: *locks eyes with Dick*

Dick: Presents! Babs, come here!

Barbara: *walks over* What’s up?

Dick: Presents.

Barbara: Presents!!

Dick: PRESENTS!!!!! *lifts up Damian and they run downstairs to look at their presents*

Jason: Can you basic bitches keep it down? I’m trying to sleep.

Damian: *grabs one of Jason’s presents* this feels like it won’t break! *throws the present at Jason’s door*

Jason: *catches the present and opens it* AWESOME! A BOOK OF H.P. LOVECRAFT’S STORIES!!!

Dick: How is Jason such a nerd?

Barbara: *shrugs her shoulders*

Tim: PRESENTS!!!! *runs down the stairs*

Stephanie: LET’S GO SUCKAS!!!!! *runs down the stairs*

Duke: *to Bruce* Is it always like this?

Bruce: *sipping coffee* I wish I can say no.

Harper: If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em! *runs into the fray* Where’s my presents ass-hats!

New Years Eve

Everyone: 10...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1...Happy New Year!

Dick: *kisses Barbara*

Stephanie: *kisses Tim*

Bruce: *kisses Selina*

Jason: *turns to look for some one* Oh, that’s right, I have no one.

Harper: *raises his glass of grape juice* Here’s to hopefully a better year!

Everyone: Cheers!

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all had a safe and wonderful holiday! this month. Sorry if there are any errors. Much like the last one this was a bit last minute! Let’s hope that 2021 will be a much better year than 2020!