#i shall do a love related one next

[hana-bobo-finch]

erm…..posting about an OC via a rushed shitpost was not on my 2025 bingo card!! 😂😂😂😂😂😂get it??? 😂😂😂because his name is bingo??(GETS SHOT)

these are all things he has done or has attempted to do so consider this the full intro post for that freak for now. he’s still too undercooked to fully introduce but damn I love him

[shikai-the-storyteller]

Listening to some of Vegetta's old VODs while wrapping up some meta (got sidetracked tracking down a very specific timestamp for two hour) and dear god I forgot how high maintenance he is. World's most passive-aggressive, proud bordering on arrogant, dramatic demigod / semi-god who would rather carry a grudge for the rest of his life than dare communicate that his feelings were hurt. I love him so much.

[nor-ay]

Our first masquerade ball - (unrequited love story) 

Shadow Milk Cookie thinks that you are... Odd. Different, if you will. It’s in the way you roll your eyes at White Lily Cookie, in the harsh tone that slips out when you find someone annoying, or in the way that you always seem to be out of place. But don’t get him wrong; he certainly enjoys that. He thinks that you have great potential to be his right hand. He just needs to give you a little push on the right path. Sweet talks to you a little until he gets in your good graces and WHAM, controls you like a puppet. It's a win-win situation; he gets to have you on his team and breaks your friend's spirit. 

At least, that is what he initially thought, but that changes when you accept his gift and lie to your supposed friends. You lie to Pure Vanilla Cookie, and that has him clapping and laughing like a king entertained by the best jester there is in his kingdom. He almost can’t believe it! There is no need for him to break your perception of Pure Vanilla Cookie or the nature of Cookies. You already have resentment towards them. 

… 

You think that Shadow Milk Cookie is testing you. That has to be the only explanation for the gifts and fever dream. It’s not like it bothers you, but when you look at Pure Vanilla Cookie, you feel guilt growing and wrapping itself around you. He’s not deserving of this whole situation… Shaking your head, you try to push all these thoughts away. You’re not evil—

Apple Faerie Cookie’s voice cuts through your thoughts. “Cookies! Let’s go to the top of the Spire!” 

“I sincerely hope we’ll find what we’re looking for!” You find Wizard Cookie’s reply relatable. You’re tired too. And desperately wanting to get out.

“I bet you will! Now, shall we?” 

“Um…you guys can go ahead, I have to go, I mean, I forgot something.” You hate how your voice sounds so suspicious! Cringing at yourself, you try to smile. 

GingerBrave is looking at you strangely, and Pure Vanilla Cookie is unusually silent. Strawberry Cookie is the one to break the silence. “Really…? Are you sure?” 

“Yeah! I mean, what's wrong? I’m sure you all can live without me for a bit, right?” You try to laugh, but it sounds forced. When did you become so awkward around…your friends? 

Wizard Cookie frowns “Well, the way you—“ 

“All right! [Name] Cookie, I trust you; I’m sure you’re going to do something helpful! Just be careful.” GingerBrave without realizing it, saves you from being interrogated. And again, your lungs fill with guilt. You find it harder to breathe and the smile on your face falters. You’re not evil. 

“Can you not—ugh, never mind.” Wizard Cookie gives up. And you internally thank the witches for it. 

“Right. Thank you. And- please…be careful on your journey.” Ah, this is what you’re doing now. You don’t feel part of them. You never did. Not even with the five ancient heroes. You were always more of a confidant. Hearing Pure Vanilla’s worries, comforting White Lily Cookie after discovering her other half. Playing along with Golden Cheese Cookie, helping out Dark Cacao Cookie and Holyberry Cookie with their tasks. You never felt like you belonged. And so you grew resentful. 

You turn around and go in the opposite direction. Silence is the only thing you hear while going down the stairs, and you have to blink quickly to stop the tears from falling. You were not lying before when you said that you forgot something. When you arrive at the same spot where you woke up hours ago, the doll is still there. Sitting down, you pick up the mini-you and hug it tightly. Closing your eyes, you confess to no one. “I don’t know what to do… I miss when things used to be easy… I don’t want to hurt them. I’m just, so so so sick and tired of the same things over and over again…it’s like I’m trapped in a loop.” 

…

You don’t know how long it’s been since you parted ways with GingerBrave and company. But, unexpectedly, the doll in your arms starts moving on its own. So you let it go, waiting for its next move. 

Clap

A Colombina mask appears in front of you. It’s beautiful. You smile, thinking it’s a bit ironic. Perhaps even mocking that he gives you a mask. Is this his way of telling you that you’re two-faced? 

Nevertheless, you still put on the mask and follow the doll through some large hallways. Arriving at a luxurious ballroom. “How did we not see this?” You ask, completely in awe. The tiles on the floor are so white that you can see yourself reflected on them.

“Well… I had it hidden, of course; did ya forget that you’re in my domain, mhm?” It takes you a second for your brain to register who answered. 

“S-Shadow Milk Cookie!?” 

“Awe…are you really that surprised to see me? Well? Go ahead!” You notice how he’s also wearing a mask similar to yours. 

“Uh…ah-“ You don’t know what to say. Sweat begins to collect on your forehead. You begin to panic. You have to say something!! But, what can you say that he doesn’t know already?

Before you can think of anything to say, you hear Shadow Milk Cookie groan, as if annoyed. “Ughh right, I’m going too fast, this is a masquerade ball, you’re not supposed to know who I am.” 

“O-kay, let's start over!” You watch dumbfounded as he claps twice and the ballroom fills with different puppets who are dancing and talking to each other. 

You watch all this and can’t help but laugh, and, oh, it feels so freeing to be able to be as loud as you want. Everything is so out of the blue that you just can’t help it. Shadow Milk Cookie seems to be interested in what is making you laugh so much. “I’m sorry…this just doesn’t make any sense, and I love it.” 

He smiles, seeming pleased. “Now, THIS is the type of audience that I like! Alrighty! Let's get to it.” He closes the distance and takes your hand. He runs cold, you shiver at the contact.

You feel relaxed, and that should make you worry, but, as Shadow Milk Cookie gives you a twirl and spins you around the ballroom, you can’t. The giggles don’t seem to stop coming out and your eyes are all teary from all the laughter. Your hands are tightly grasping his shoulders and it doesn’t surprise you how agile he’s on his feet. It’s so easy to let him guide you. 

“Awww look at you! You’re enjoying yourself so so so much! Aren’t you going to ask me where are your frieeends?” 

“Well…,” you start—

“Oh, wait, WAIT, don’t tell me! You finally realize that it’s not with them that you belong? Especially that dreadfully, painfully, unbearably Pure Vanilla Cookie?” You can’t fully read the tone in his voice; it seems playful, but the hate he has for them inevitably seeps in. 

“That’s right,” Your smile wavers as you revert to your natural state of being. “It took me a long time, but… I’ve finally understood who I am and what I want.” A sudden bravery fills your heart as you finally ask him- “Please, take me with you!” You surprise yourself by the loudness of your voice.

Have you always been that desperate to escape your life?

“…” His eyes blink several times and it feels like the whole ballroom has grown silent. You start to feel self-conscious and—

His laugh fills the whole ballroom, and in just a second, Shadow Milk Cookie dips your body back dramatically. You grip onto him like a lifesaver and- and you’re out of breath. “Perfect,” you hear him say. His voice is lower than you’ve ever heard. “Alright, since you asked so nicely…you’re with me now!” 

“Huh, so…”

“Oops, looks like I have to go, feel free to explore my humble domain, hehe!” 

He’s gone in the blink of an eye. All the puppets that were dancing vanished too, all left behind in the ballroom was the mini-you doll and your racing heart. 

“…Did he lose track of time?”

Okay!! I actually struggled a bit with the dialogue. In my mind, there were so many different things about what Shadow Milk would say in certain situations! But, I’m happy about how it turned out. I hope you enjoyed it too!! AND, this is important, the story is going to be on hold until we get episode 8 of Beast-Yeast. It’s not like I can’t improvise, but if I continue, and then they release ep 8, I know that I’ll end up rewriting everything, and I don’t want to do that, to be honest. 

Besides that, I’m already thinking of writing Shadow Milk x reader with a trope that I really enjoy!! Orr some headcanons (maybe nsfw, still unsure about that).

@notboomm @fyodors-belovedxoxo

[shirefantasies]

LoTR Characters + Pregnant Reader (Wife!Reader)

Back with more parent AU because it's some of my favorite fluff! Consider this a Part 1 to an anon request that’ll be on its way hehe (also an AU where something happens with Celebrían apparently 😥)

Warnings: conception, pregnancy-related illness and symptoms mentioned, very long post lol

Aragorn

✧ Neither of you had made any concrete plans. No set in stone hour of your marriage reserved for the growth of your family or dubbed too early. Thus, you are unsure how your husband will feel about your news, the fact that you got yourself checked out the first moment of illness, mother's intuition in full service already, it would seem. You cannot keep your smile to yourself, though, as you stroll in search of Aragorn, hand hovering about your own waist as if in disbelief. He had just returned from a hunting trip when you found him, smiling shakily at his amusement when you pulled him immediately aside into the next room over. "What troubles your heart?" The man had intuition of his own, years of silent observation- there was no lying to him. "I just learned that I am with child, Aragorn," you took his hand, seeing no point in being anything but direct, "due for the birth next spring if all goes well." "With blossom comes the next blessing of my kin," your husband replied, that wise look in his blue eyes causing you to shake your head fondly, "what could be more beautiful? What a gift you have given me and how could I ever repay it?" Shaking your head once more, you simply grinned and, sighing with relief and anticipation alike, replied that being the amazing father you know him to be will be all you need. Leaning forward, Aragorn laid his head against yours, brushing your noses as he held you.

✧ Looking out upon the kingdom, the realization that is is his kingdom still sinking in, and that he has made this place a home for new life as well. That this is the very reason he fought for a safe world. It brings such a rush to his heart that he goes off in search of you at once, kissing you warmly and caressing your still-small bump.

✧ Aragorn loves doing anything he possibly can to make your days easier, treating you like the queen you quite literally are! He pampers you with treatment like massages, washing your hair for you, drawing you baths, and the like.

✧ While you no doubt have many people at your disposal, quite similarly your husband enjoys cooking for you by hand and memorizes everything that makes you sick if anything as well as the random foods your cravings make you obsessed with, trying to creatively incorporate them into everything.

✧ You knew it already, but your pregnancy brings about the reminder that this man has such a way with encouraging words, his voice the only thing that cuts through the clouds of your changing moods.

✧ Aragorn is the one who tells you not to be so hard on yourself, that you are doing an amazing thing and you are desirable as yourself, no more and no less. No need to hide yourself, no need to perform, no need to feel anything less than the beautiful soul you have always been. Remember, he tells you, he is going nowhere, and you will endure all together.

Legolas

✧ For so long had you and Legolas hoped for your little life, long enough of trial and hope that you’d all but given up until you felt a shift. Felt on the brink of illness at nearly all times, seeking healing for a mystery illness and leaving with news that had your husband holding you for minutes on end, tears sliding down his cheeks, and refusing to let go of your hand all day. Holding you like you might shatter, his other hand wrapped gently around your waist where his hand can brush the curve of your soon-to-be-growing belly. “We did it, my love. We will finally be three.”

✧ Your husband grows wistful, getting a distant look in his eyes before smiling and reminiscing on his younger days. “What demeanor shall our little one have, do you say? I would not mind having two of you,” he teases, while you say a child like him would be much easier!

✧ “Both of your little ones sound quite healthy.” “Both?” You are shocked, but Legolas’s grin never falters, nor does his surprisingly tight, hearty grip upon your shoulders. “Twins,” he keeps repeating in wonder throughout the day.

✧ You and Legolas have a bet running on the twins, if they are to be identical or not. You think they are both boys, while Legolas thinks he has a little girl waiting for him, too. “Wishful thinking,” you tease him. “Absolutely,” he agrees, smiling softly at you.

✧ As time passes, he does tease you about your waddle. “Shall I slow down a bit?” Cheeky prince, but that’s why you love him!

✧ Legolas’s eyes never fix you with anything but awe. He is simply amazed at all the wonders your body is capable of and what it endures. Even though that wonder also manifests as him almost constantly asking if you are alright, it is worth it when your husband looks at you as though captivated by a goddess.

Boromir

✧ Boromir caught you with your eyes bulging out of your head, not a single chance of delaying your discussion. Such news as you have just received can only be considered a blessing, and yet you still are shaken to the core with the spiking precursor of excitement and hope, hope that your husband would be happy. Your words burst forth the moment he took your hands, asking you whatever was wrong and nodding faster and faster with each step of your detailed medical visit. His smile grew and grew until he could hardly help himself, taking your face in his hands and pulling you into a kiss that more than assuaged your worries. “Why do you look so worried? Such a wonderful blessing was beyond anything I could imagine,” he tells you, a hand reaching to rest gently upon you.

✧ He all but tackles you to bed that night, kissing again and again your lips, your cheeks, and down finally to your belly.

✧ Boromir’s appreciation of your body never ceases your entire wait. His hands always caressing you, his words always sweet upon your ears, especially to cut through the deprecating ones your own lips utter. It baffles your husband that you cannot see how utterly glowing you are.

✧ One hundred percent though will he be teasing you about the odd cravings you get; even as he goes to fetch them he’s making faces, asking if you’re sure, joking about what strange taste the little one has.

✧ You suspect you are carrying a son while Boromir’s guess is a little girl. After you remind him that a mother knows, he rests a hand over your bump and replies with a teasing grin “Why can’t a father know as well?” “Because you do not have to carry him for the better part of a year!”

✧ One of Boromir's favorite things in this world is the sight of how his lent garments fit you tighter and tighter, bringing a twinge to both the loving and the possessive sides of his heart...and his hands to wrap around you or cup your cheeks and pull you into a kiss!

Gimli

✧ His intuition is off the proverbial charts. It is he who first makes any mention of your chances, stating you should not strain yourself in your condition. You are confused, you even protest, but in the end you have your little appointment and your husband has a smug little moment of ‘I told you so’ before the realization of just what he’d been sensing hits him, dropping his jaw and sending his arms flying about you, lifting you up into the air with a hearty laugh. “The mighty line continues! And thanks to such a beautiful lassie no less! You'll want for nothing, I promise you, and no harm'll come to either of you while I yet draw breath."

✧ Has strong opinions about how well you should be eating, so barring you being stricken with sickness Gimli will be making or otherwise providing for you the heartiest of meals, all the things he believes are necessary to raise up a strong little dwarfling. Thank the fortitude and solace of his people, but you are sick very little your entire journey with this and all other little ones you share!

✧ Given the strength of dwarven genetics, you both assume that you are expecting a boy; thus, your husband insists on crafting a tiny axe for him. “For when he’s older, of course!” Gimli assures you, waving his hands defensively.

✧ No worries about your pregnancy weight here- suffice it to say that a dwarf finds the extra pounds quite appealing and has no hesitation about showing you such!

✧ Any exhaustion you feel is the only thing that stops Gimli from taking you around to all his friends and loved ones and likely anyone else who will listen and announce that he has a child on the way!

✧ Nesting is a very strong instinct of his! Gimli builds and crafts by hand all of your baby's furniture and decor, even an adorable mobile of horses, little dwarves with pickaxes, and little effigies of your favorite animal all dangling above his crib! Leaning his head against your belly, he asks the baby "Well, what do you think? Only the finest for my little flame!"

Frodo

✧ Your husband wasn’t sure at first. Not sure if he would feel whole enough after all he endured to bring a life into this world, but you, oh, you… The one who brought life vividly rushing back to his heart, color returning to his life and comfort to his pain. One day a pang struck his heart and he realized it would mean the world if after it all he was able to create life, and more importantly to have something so amazing come of your love. Soon after you both eagerly hoped for the signs, and it took but a few months. Frodo worried you would be sick, but confirmation comes after weeks without your cycle, nothing more. For once, no pain shall come to Frodo Baggins or those he loves.

✧ Your health is his greatest concern, so much so in fact that Frodo has soon befriended practically every midwife in the Shire, melting them with his endearing eagerness to know all he can about your possible afflictions and what you need. His concerns soon gather you the proverbial village of help should you ever send Frodo off for something beyond his breadth.

✧ It breaks Frodo's heart when his nightmares or moments of panic coincide with your own fragile emotions for the first time, for he should be caring for you, not the other way around, but when you hold each other, tears soaking into the opposite shirt, he realizes that what you two have is an understanding and trust strong enough to fortify each other even in darkness.

✧ In case you were not already aware, you are so lucky in your choice of husband! Discussing names soon emerges into your conversation and it almost takes you aback how quickly agreements on a girl and boy name are reached!

✧ The one time during your entire wait for your little one that brings tears to Frodo’s eyes is the day you bring home a bolt of fabric and when he asks what it is for, you answer to make him and your new arrival matching garments.

✧ You catch him smiling widely at you, love glowing in his bright blue eyes as he watches you do even the smallest things, your little waddle or the way you practice folding diaper cloth. All you can imagine is those same eyes fixed upon a babe in his arms, shooting Frodo the same look right back.

Sam

✧ It seemed that every other conversation you shared with your beloved Samwise revolved around babies, so much so that your few still-unmarried friends had grown sick of it. Anyone with a baby in the Shire, though, knew who to look toward for care! You and Sam gushed over little clothes, little hands, went on for goodness-knows-how-long about how much you'd like a little Sam and he wants a miniature version of the loveliest girl he'd ever seen followed of course by you saying why not both? Sam loved life so much, saw beauty in growth and creation and every joy in it, so of course he wanted a big family and all his infectious sunshine on the subject just made you fall in love with him more and more. Months of trying passed, though, before you came to Sam in a daze, before you cupped his precious face in your hands and whispered to him we did it. Before he tackled you to the soft grassy ground and held you, weeping tears of joy and kissing your hands, your cheeks, finally your lips once he'd spoken how much he loved you.

✧ Takes to sleeping a bit lower, his head nuzzled against your torso. In the night you can feel his nose and lips ghosting over it and even hear little whispers when you both can't sleep, but you say nothing, letting Sam have his moments with the little one.

✧ The worry he has about everything the first time around. "Are you sure you can eat that? I don't want you to get sick." "Is that too heavy?" "Don't trouble yourself a mite when I'm right here, I'll bend over for it." "Alright, only if you're certain nothing will happen to the baby, sweetheart." As much as you want to remind him that you are still a fully functional woman, you know that Sam is an action man and this is his way of showing he cares.

✧ The meals he cooks you. You will be eating like a queen all because Sam wants to keep the baby strong, of course! As a bonus, it truly is like he knows what sets you off and avoids those things without even having to ask.

✧ “Imagine all the wee feet running through here,” Sam muses in bed one night, your head tucked in the crook of his neck. “The little hands grasping ours,” you add. “All the little ribbons we can tie in a girl’s hair.” “Taking your little boy out to the garden!” Once again, your friends act positively sick of how sweet you are, but inside anyone can see how deliriously happy you and Sam are and feel warmed by it.

✧ “When the time comes,” Sam always assures you, your hand tightly in his, “I’ll be right here. Wild horses could hardly drag your Sam away.”

Merry

✧ Your reveal is made a bit anticlimactic thanks to your husband’s teasing ways. “You’re knitting.” Glancing down at your work, you simply nod. “Yes.” “You never knit.” Merry’s eyes narrow. “Is it for somebody?” “If you must know,” you set your needles carefully in your lap and tease back, “this is for your child. Any complaints now?” “My child?” Jaw dropping, Merry looks at you like you’d just offered him the whole of Middle Earth. “That’s right,” your voice softens, even cracking a bit with emotion at the sight of his smile, “you’re going to be a father, Merry.”

✧ Merry’s adorable little habit of making you a pillow pile to lay on during your time of the month carries right through to your pregnancy. And of course it continues even when you remind him you’ll not be able to stand up from in because he will be right there to help you up!

✧ Because you've taken up knitting, Merry wheedles with all his charm and love and kisses an additional creation from you: a sweater made from the same yarn as baby's. "You are lucky to be so adorable," you tease him, looking up from your work to kiss his lovely lips. Maybe, you thought, a whole matching set for three would be in order, though…

✧ Another one who teases you, joking about how he is finally able to outrun you!

✧ The type of father to chastise the baby whenever they kick you too hard, lecturing to the front of your dress about hurting your mother and how that simply won’t do, then looking up at you with a humored smile.

✧ Compliments increase at least twofold upon your revelation, Merry never sparing the kindest words about your strength, certainly, but mostly your beauty. Never once during any pregnancy do you feel unloved, unwanted, unattractive, for even when your eyes can find no light within your reflection there your husband is practically worshipping every corner of your form.

Pippin

✧ Desire for a family was something that had drawn you two together as a couple, though you may have found yourself talking Pippin down from ten children! “Maybe start with five,” you would always tease him. So the moment your hypothesis is tested and confirmed, a grin you can’t remove spreads across your face and you run to collect everything for your surprise. Surprise is the only word you can use when Pippin opens his gift and sees the tiny knitted hat you’ve placed inside the box. “What is this for? Little small, is it not?” “If it was for us, perhaps.” It ended up taking you reaching out for his hand and resting it upon your lower belly for the massive grin to spread across his face, but once it does Pippin is laughing loudly and giddily, swinging you back and forth in ecstasy!

✧ Runs to get you whatever your need with barely an question. After all, who is he to say what it's like being with child, and if you want it, you shall have it. Hot water bottle? Certainly. A cup of tea? Of course. Three more pillows? Why, he'll strip your whole bed down. Panics a little if the request is to relieve pain, so prepare to hear a crash or the shuffle of a trip or two before you have the item in hand or on body.

✧ "What is this for?" "What are these?" Lucky you love him, your husband does have many a question of all the supplies you gather for after your new addition is welcomed. "Oh, to keep the hands safe? That makes sense." "Wait, you need to wear that... to catch the bloo- oh, my." He gulps. "I'm going out right now. I'm getting you a cake and some jewelry and some flowers and anything else you'd like."

✧ Can barely keep his hands to himself. Pippin was always the most affectionate husband you could ask for, but now? Now you two are practically a package set and nary can you travel without his arm around you, hand about your waist and gently running up and down over your little growing bump.

✧ Your baby seems to have inherited your husband’s personality, for even before the birth many signs of how active your little one is are present! Those poor ribs of yours will get kicked more than a few times with all the fluttering your little one stirs up inside of you! Pippin, of course, wants to feel it all and luckily he is never far from the scene. If he is, though, you bet he will run!

✧ Pippin is always laying with his cheek resting on your belly, talking to the baby about anything from how his day’s gone to how they have the most amazing and beautiful mother. Your heart can’t help fluttering every time.

Faramir

✧ Faramir has the most uncanny way of reading you like a book, a habit endearing as it is frustrating. Thus the moment he catches you smiling to yourself he is smiling back, approaching you with teasing question of what has you so happy. For once, though, you have the satisfaction of catching your husband off guard, resting your head against his shoulder and a hand upon his chest as you tell him you just cannot wait to see him as a father. "Someday, my love," he takes your hand and kisses it, "if I am so blessed." Giggling, you shake your head against him. "Blessed indeed! Someday shall be this fall," you answer, and peeling back from him you receive another spike of satisfaction at his wide blue eyes, the drop of his jaw and the race of his heart beneath your hand. "Are you certain?" You nod. This time, he takes both of your hands in his and with tears in his eyes thanks the heavens for you even as he shakily laughs, your bright demeanor never failing to put a smile upon his face. "Our child will be so loved." "I know."

✧ Your husband finds himself lost in reverie more and more often, drifting out of reality into some distant, but nowhere near out-of-reach, dream of your family, seeing you as a mother the most beautiful sight he can conjure.

✧ Faramir adores holding you from behind, his hands curled gently over where your bump forms and his head resting gently upon your shoulder, flowing hair tickling your cheeks and neck lightly.

✧ "One for each of us," is Faramir's joke when one of Gondor's finest medics grants you the knowledge that you are not expecting one child, but two. Your husband is there in the storms, the waves of anxiety rolling within you over being there for your twins. "You are not alone," he always reminds you, a hand joined with yours right over the twins' little hearts.

✧ If you wanted a husband who actually does his due diligence learning all he can about growing babies, birth, and postpartum care, then Faramir is another excellent choice! He’ll be spouting off facts about the whole thing ranging from what size the babies currently are to why you might have contractions after giving birth. Your mood determines whether you listen in or tell him to kindly stop.

✧ Just as with you, Faramir’s insecurities sometimes get the better of him, but they also fuel him, bringing a fire you can see to his fair eyes as he speaks with determination how he will love all his children equally.

Eomer

✧ Pride glows upon your countenance as you flit about the kitchen putting the finishing touches on the roast you'd made for dinner. A kingly feast is in order, for not only had you heard your husband performed exceptional drills this day, but you yourself are the host of something exceptional. Eomer and you have been enjoying each other's company much these days, so the news is not so much of a shock as it is a celebration, exuberance at a line enduring, two dreams fulfilled as one, especially for your husband, who speaks often of how he longs for a full, boisterous home. Six if he's lucky. Well, you can hardly wait to help him along, pulling Eomer into your arms for an enthusiastic kiss before he can even toe his boots off, and when he chuckles and asks what has taken hold of his beautiful wife you let your news fly. Shouting for joy with abandon, Eomer lifts you up into his arms bridal-style, kissing your lips again and again. Dinner is all but forgotten as he kneels before you, holding your waist and pressing kisses all over the bodice of your dress and thanking you for making his day, nay, his life, perfect.

✧ Eomer is always proud of you, but the moment he finds out you are with child that feeling swells and positively drips off of him, every outing with him suddenly seeming quite like a chance for him to show you off. An arm around you at all times, a smile of great joy and satisfaction, news shared to all who dare make conversation with you both, and even kisses in public! Eomer is simply on top of the world and not a thing will topple his spirits.

✧ As somebody who never much studied the workings of women, though, Eomer is… a bit out of his depth. You will have to teach him some things like why your emotions swing so or what to look out for to know when your water breaks. This man has been in battle, seen heads roll in the most literal sense, and yet when you describe the eventual passing of your placenta his entire face contorts in a look of horror that has you all but doubled over in laughter.

✧ “You look so beautiful with child,” Eomer purrs, “we’ll have to do this again sometime.” You smack his arm, but cannot resist giggling at the way your husband still gives you butterflies.

✧ Your new addition had not even arrived yet and Eomer is commissioning a child-sized saddle, unable to contain his excitement as he describes all their future rides to you!

✧ As you dream up names, Eomer has many suggestions from the great halls of his own people, ancestors and great warriors alike, but making considerations of your own background is equally important to him, so he is more than willing to go back and forth for the perfect solution.

Eowyn

✧ No one had thought it possible, but they should have known. Impossible was not in Eowyn’s lexicon, and that was exactly why you loved her, one part within many of why you became her wife. And now, the healer confirmed you were carrying her child. …Very well, technically her banner-bearer’s child as the two of you had been forced to get a bit creative, but to have support and help from those who had begun with such uncertainty meant the world. Even Eomer had come around, having offered similarly, but of course you had to remind him that Eowyn wanted a child of her own, not a niece or nephew! Without Guthláf’s, er, donation, you would never bear witness to the broad and beautiful smile on your wife’s face, the tears glistening in the gorgeous blue of her eyes. “A child…” “Our child,” you add, leaning forward until your foreheads touched and noses brushed, a tearful smile upon your own face as your wife gently held your waist.

✧ Having worked so many times as a nurse lends well at least to Eowyn, for she is firm and unrelenting in her urging, nay, forcing, you to rest. No ifs, ands, or buts are to be accepted from your strong-willed beauty, let her dote on you, for she does it with great pleasure. And besides, the harder you fight, the harder she'll work to keep you lain down.

✧ Understanding the pain and symptoms of your time of the month completely also translates; thus Eowyn is ready with remedies for your aches and pains, hot water and herbs awaiting you. She rarely snaps back at your moods, choosing to be silent in the worst of times because she knows. Really, she does.

✧ She cooks for you, and whether you say anything about that or not likely depends on how willing to hide your honesty behind the hormone excuse if it is not taken well.

✧ Reminds you constantly how strong you are. In your lowest of moments, the times you struggle to stand and straighten your aching spine, feeling massive and utterly useless, Eowyn is there to hold your hand and tell you that you are hosting and creating life as she so speaks. You have made the ultimate sacrifice of your body and the greatest of pain to bring just as great a blessing to yourself and your wife. Far from useless, you are divine.

✧ “What does it feel like?” Resting her head on her hand, the one that wasn’t lain against your fluttering belly, she questions you as the baby kicks. “For you?” Part of her wishes to have this experience herself someday, while another takes your descriptions with trepidation. She does not enjoy being restricted, after all.

Haldir

✧ “Lie down, please, my love.” Haldir’s concern with your sickness increased daily as did the pain of seeing you feeling so weak and ill. You tried to push through and for as much as he loved your strength, your husband was not having it this time. Pride was not worth seeing you doubled over again, whether from pain or, arguably worse, illness. You relented in the end, resting and beneath the spinning of your head at the end of the day feeling not a seed of energy to protest an inspection. Healing herbs had you perking up a bit, and perked up you needed to be when the dark-haired, round-faced healer nodded sagely and with a wide smile told you you were with child, and these early days were likely to be the worst. For the first time in days the sobs that escaped you were accompanied by a smile, your face utterly breaking as Haldir held you against his chest, weeping too and thanking you for all you would endure for this blessing.

✧ Physically carries you places as often as he can be spared to do so. Lifts you up bridal-style to move you across your home and sits you up before he feeds you. Your illness brings out a tender, caring side you have never seen in your strong, stoic husband, but it makes your heart swell that much more for him and for the life you two are to have with your child.

✧ Another symptom you experience is the aching and swelling of your feet, but Haldir sits you down facing him and makes the best work of them he can, hands gentle as always as they soothe your skin.

✧ Even in the later months as your illness abates, though, your husband remains protective as ever, standing between you and any potential harm with the fiercest look upon his face and a hand upon your middle, even if the threat is an object you’ve hurt yourself on.

✧ The way shock melts into a wide, ecstatic smile unlike your husband’s typical demeanor when the healer repeats that yes, she could definitely hear two heartbeats beside yours is worth more than any gold in the world. Haldir pulls you into his arms, chuckling deeply. You feel his head shake slightly, slowly, atop yours in wonder.

✧ When you sleep, Haldir will always be holding you close, whether it is an arm draped over your bump loosely if you’re hot or need space or else you fully tucked into your husband’s warm embrace.

Galadriel

✧ Galadriel is actually the one who assuages your worries that your dream will not come true, having full faith in you as much as the magic of this world. And she is right, of course, confidence proven in the aid you receive from a member of her guard and even the way she knows it to be true before the healer even confirms the news. As much as she jokes about seeing a glow around you, the width of her beautiful blue eyes, the shine therein, tells you that your wife is as elated to hear it beyond a shadow of a doubt as you are: you are hosting a little life for you both to nurture.

✧ You being pregnant only aids in her mysterious nature. She can be convening in a council with the wisest of minds from afar and will use you as an excuse to step away at her will. "If you will excuse me. My wife is with child." They are not even aware she is married. Some of them may not understand how it all works, but before they can ask any clarifying questions Galadriel has already slipped away to be with you.

✧ One tendency you unwittingly adopt is falling asleep in the oddest of places, your exhausted body giving out upon its own terms. Always will you wake up draped in one of your wife’s shawls or blankets, however, no matter how odd the spot.

✧ Both of you can hardly resist the allure of tiny garments, smiling every time you see them. It also rings a bell of realization within your minds as you hold a tiny gown up to your midsection. Truly as you speak, there is a tiny body within you! What magic it is to be a woman!

✧ What magic indeed, you later reflect as another pain strikes your back not long after. Hosting tiny bodies came with all the assorted blessings and curses of your kind, one not long without the other. Sighing, you make to approach the chaise across the room and soon your wife is with you, moving its drapes aside and lowering you gently to its cushions, a soothing hand tracing up and down your aching spine.

✧ "I hope she looks like you," you both turn to each other and say simultaneously, mothers' intuition firmly aligned in your hearts, from which so much love for each other pours from, Galadriel immediately drawing you closer to press her lips to the crown of your head.

Arwen

✧ Elrond had been quite hesitant about your relationship with his daughter at first- were you the best choice for her? Could someone like you keep her safe? And how, of course, would she be given the child she so desired? Questions you yourself had posed to her, but she refused to listen, telling you her mind, and heart, were sealed. Little do you know, however, that all of Rivendell would come to love you as their own, see and praise the way you cared for Arwen, and in Lindir’s case even provide the healers with a chance at you giving your wife the family you both yearned for. The moment you tell her the healers’ method worked and she is to he a mother, you both are, her features lighten, taking on the wondrous joy of youth again as she grabs your face, falling onto you with a kiss of pure love.

✧ So accusing if you've overexerted yourself, leaning in closer with a look of sometimes-teasing, sometimes-serious scrutiny. "Surely you did not carry that up the stairs all by yourself, right?"

✧ Do not even bother trying to fake feeling up to anything, whatever the task, for Arwen can see right through you and will insist you sit down, taking your hands in hers. "Rest. You have your burden- let me take the others. My heart bears no ill."

✧ Her affection gets softer, light touches to your waist and hands resting over yours. One hand upon your hip or belly and one on your shoulder as you two sway gently, foreheads pressed together.

✧ Arranging your nursery is one of Arwen's favorite pastimes: painting a gorgeous meadow mural upon the wall, stitching a soft toy to lay within the crib, asking you which fabric you prefer for blankets.

✧ Your bundle of joy can make sleep difficult, but one silver lining Arwen points out in a low whisper one morning is how many sunrises you’ve now gotten to share with each other.

Elrond

✧ Reservations about having a fourth child so long after the others disappeared every time Lord Elrond caught sight of you holding a neighbor’s child or even just showing the loving care that had him convinced he would be well even marrying a second time at all. Every smile, every sweet thing you did, all of it came back to Elrond in a rush when you told him he was to become a father again. For once he did not feel too old, too tired, nothing but the elation of his every desire unfurling to him before his very eyes from your warm embrace. To be chosen as the father to your child was the greatest honor the lord of Rivendell could imagine.

✧ Your every ailment is minimal, for Elrond knows exactly what is best for each and every one. Nausea? The perfect tea blend awaits to calm the waves you feel. Aches and cramps? Your husband is happy to give you the most heavenly massage, his hands finding every needed spot as if by magic. A swell of emotion? He does not speak unless bidden to, simply holding you through sudden waves of tears, frustration, or both until he feels your body relax against his.

✧ Being married to an elf with the gift of foresight comes with the benefit of worries soothed, but also a joke shared between you both. For many a time you teasingly chastise him not to look too far and spoil the surprise of whether you have a son or daughter on the way!

✧ Standing behind you, Elrond rests his hands around your middle and presses a kiss to your cheek. Just when you think the bliss of this moment, of having your whole little new family all together within your husband’s arms, cannot increase is when Elrond shifts his hands, taking on the great weight you carry. Peering up into his soft blue eyes, your whole body deflates in a sigh of sweet relief as he holds you.

✧ He can never truly understand your experience, but Elrond has witnessed this process. All he wishes is to tell you all your pain shall pass, even the worst memories will fade and ease, but such words will sound insensitive, so all he does is continue to hold your hand and stand proudly at your side.

✧ One thing your husband cannot resist is showering your future little one with gifts, even jewelry for when they are a bit older and the tiniest circlet to place upon the beloved head, matching Adar's perfectly.

Want to meet the little ones? Part 2 coming soon 😉

Taglist: @lokilover476 @fuckyoumakeart @kilibaggins @mossthebogwitch @ibabblealot @stormchaser819 @pirate-lord-of-narnia @datglutengoblin @letmelickyoureyeballs @mossyskinn @wordbunch | Message/Reply/Ask to join 🥰

[stargirlstabber]

i know i am spamming but i warned you-oops

Gently warming up their Lovers hands during the winter with Theodore Nott BUT he is the one with the cold hands…- bye 🫡

<3

babes, again and again, spam me, i love it🫶🏻 lmao as someone who rarely freezes i can sooo relate to that, to everyone around you getting cold hands and you're there just like- hm. cool. very nice.

cold hands

featuring. theodore nott

snow was falling as the cold winter months reached the magic school. everyone was wrapped up in blankets, jackets, and scarves, not letting the cold air touch them. the slytherin house was no exception to that, y'all sitting in the common room, trying to warm up your bodies while spending some time together.

theo was sitting on the couch, your place was on his lap, sitting sideways and leaning into your boyfriend. across from you were mattheo and draco slouched into the soft cushions, mindlessly chatting with theo and blaise, who sat next to the two of you.

the fire crackled, pushing soothing warmth into the dark room although it didn't really do it's job right. you couldn't help but nothing theo rubbing his hands together, here and there blowing some hot air onto them.

so the good girlfriend you are, you wordlessly took his big hands as you spread your thighs a little, pushing his cold palms in between and closing your legs again. your boyfriend just smirked at you, leaning forward to press his soft lips against your shoulder.

his hands shall not get cold that evening...

[zvezdacito]

Ranking Malleus's Valentines Messages from 2021-2024🔥

People finally got the 2024 ones so I decided to make a list like this. Mostly based off which ones have both the most interesting contents and which ones are the sweetest(?) in a sense to Yuu lol. Terminal Malleyuu brain + and I mean they are Valentines cards after all.

Going from least to most personally favored:

4th: 2023

Text: "To my dear friend-

Thank you. Never did I envision someone presenting me with the gift of sweet treats. It would be a shame for me to eat them all by myself. I think I'll share them with you. Would you be willing to provide the tea to go with them?"

Very broadly friendly and nice I guess, but the message of the text is basic and the design of the letter card is also kinda basic🥀 like tbh if you changed the color of this card you could mistake this for something Riddle wrote instead. The ones for this year really just felt like they ran out of ideas and gave up, this is the only one on this list I can say I definitely don't really like that much

3rd: 2022

Text: "To my good friend-

A gift? For me, of all people? Your tastes are...distinctive, I must say. Worry not, though- I enjoyed it, of course. What would you like in return, I wonder? I shall take great pleasure in speculating the answer to that question."

Definitely more interesting than the 2023 one and his personality really comes out in the writing here. Though because of how his closeness to Yuu is characterized here I now feel like it would make more sense if this was the first card and the 2021 was the second one, since if you take the cards to be written in a chronological timeline it kinda feels like Malleus's closeness to Yuu regressed out of nowhere

Not saying people can't change or grow apart later on, but here it kinda has the vibe that he straight up hasn't met them much yet so its as if this was earlier into their relationship. Basically feels if Book 3-4 Malleus got the gift, while 2021 is like Book 6 and onwards Malleus getting the gift.

I really like this one both for the yuu crumbs and it's characterization of Malleus himself, but it's number 3 simply by default of me personally liking the next two more. The gap between it and 2023 is huge😭

2nd: 2024

Text: "To my good friend-

Thank you for your gift. Hmm... This fragrance is meant for pleasure and relaxation? What a tasteful choice. I rather like it; perhaps I shall take more of an interest in these things. You would be welcome to pay me a visit, by the way, should you feel so inclined. I would enjoy sharing an old tale or two."

These are probably the most fun design for the letter cards so far. I think after last year (the 2023 one) they realized they really did run out of ideas for box shaped letters lol.

In general I just like the very sweet and casual friendship implied in this card. As usual he is doing everything in his power to invite Yuu to his place at any given opportunity. Cute how when they hang out they'll tell each other chismis stories, and that Malleus is gonna commit to getting into something just because Yuu gifted it to him. TLDR he's very comfortable around Yuu here that's awesome

1st: 2021

Text: "Dearest,

My thanks for such a truly wonderful present. It is only fitting that I should give you something in return. How about the gift of beauty? Perhaps the gift of song? Or... Well, never mind. Just a joke based on the legends, you know. I shall give you something I picked out myself."

I don't really think anything will ever fully top this one tbh. The greeting just being "Dearest" was so powerful they had to pull bro to the side and tell him to tone it down for the next 3 years🥀

The "gift of beauty song or..." lines can be taken as just him being 3 seconds away from jumping to smooch Yuu (given in the movie the last gift was true loves kiss related after maleficent cursed the baby) which is honestly kinda funny. Down bad /j

Ok back to the main point and minus speculations. This is tied with the 2024 one with showing how close and comfortable (shown by how forward and playful he is here no concern of maintaing image or such) this point of his relationship with Yuu is. This is also the card where he feels the most excited and energetic I guess which is why it's still my overall favorite. Displex had no choice contain the raw Malleyuu power in this one to avoid bias accusations idk

If you want to read into it more I think it's also kinda funny that this could lowkey be taken as him saying we suck at singing/look ugly. And the reason he stopped before revealing the last line is because he realize the joke had already come off as insulting to a human not familiar with the Briar Valley even if his intention was just to be playful as friends do.

Although that would be consistent with the characterization of Malleus as being honest if anyone's performance in something (even Yuu from what we see in voicelines) is lackluster.

He is constructive tho. In these same voicelines usually offers to help teach them to get better and acknowledging it as a feat/compliment itself when they slightly improve, instead of the fanon characterization (usually for masterchef comics) that once he finds out Yuu is behind something he will autonomatically just see it as good quality already.

So yeah idk that's nice and awesome

↑ Drive compiling of the rest of the 2024 Valentines letter pics I found on twitter. There's still some characters missing + trying to look for a clearer picture of the Malleus one lol

[ivysangel]

…vampire!jason thoughts… you must provide them im desperate…. -🐞

(ik you probably expected #real smut, honestly i did too but this ended up turning into a whole bunch of lore/headcanons/whatever tf. i'm so sorry bae cw: talks of consuming blood)

you ask, you shall receive. i've been thinking about jason and dick as vampires in relation to each other, so this'll be a post about both of them just for the sake of comparisons. also, in my mind, this au takes place during the 19th century because i've conflated vampirism with the victorian era, and it's also no capes in regards to vigilantism bc vampires do love a good cape.

in this victorian era, vampire au dick would be either a nobleman or straight up royalty. he's got status, money, and a pretty face, and he uses them all to his advantage when it comes to feeding. you know in the originals or itwtv when they host an event that's actually a cover for them finding their next meal? yeah, he does that. he flirts with all of the ladies, plays into his charms, and sweeps women off their feet. and at the end of the night (sometimes even mid-ball), he coaxes them upstairs and ravishes them, sometimes in more ways than one.

i think for dick feeding is something he can have fun with, knowing that he holds such a high ranking in society that when bodies of people he's been seen with show up around town, people turn a blind eye. and even when someone does try to investigate, the wayne family checking account talks enough to shut down anything beyond a questioning.

in many pieces of media surrounding vampires, there are people who know about vampires and choose to feed them their blood. there's a bunch of lore that explores the idea that a vampire bite is almost orgasmic and kind of addictive, which is why some people are more than willing to put themselves in harm's way by either being employed by vampires or by straight up just throwing themselves into a vampires line of sight with open wounds.

with that being said, i think dick grayson likes the chase. i think that even if his father (bruce, who is also a vampire in this au because vampire families are just superior) has people on his payroll to provide blood for them, he's going to go out on his own to flirt a bit, get laid, and then have his fill.

which brings me to my next point; while feeding, like sex, is an intimate act, it's far from necessary for dick to need an emotional connection with a person he feeds off of or even a physical one. sex and feeding are related but not totally synonymous, and if he needs to just feed or just get his rocks off, he can. is it preferred? maybe not. i believe he does like the mess that comes with doing both at the same time.

ok so for jason, ugh so obsessed with him as a vampire because i think it's so in line with his canon story. in a lot of vampire lore, to become a vampire, you have to consume the blood of a vampire and either die or be on the brink of death, which is just so. it's so jason dying and being revived by the lazarus pit coded. and even the way he inevitable that he will spill blood post-revival in both this vampire au and his canon storyline…it's almost prophetic.

anyway, jason's approach to vampirism is quite different. i think he struggles with it no matter how long he's been one. he can't fully grasp that he's immortal; he looks in the mirror and sees that he hasn't aged a day and he feels sick. being a vampire for him feels like a curse and he only continues living because he's scared to die (again).

he doesn't stay anywhere too long, typically hopping from town to town in the middle of the night when less people are around. he believes himself to be out of place amongst normal people and he's paranoid that people can smell the iron on his breath when he talks to them so he makes it a point to have minimal interaction with people.

it's crippling, he drives himself mad with the solitude, but i feel like another reason why he continues to stay alive is to spite his creator, whoever that may be. he's most definitely got an agenda, in true jason fashion. i just don't know what it is yet.

he feeds only when he needs to but tries not to let the hunger get too intense because i do feel like when he loses control, he's the stefan salvitore type. a ripper. but he's pretty good about it and is almost polite when he's feeding? like he finds a victim and says i'm sorry before just absolutely tearing into their jugular.

i just really think he grapples with his own mortality, or lack thereof, and how it exists at the expense of others. so he is genuinely ashamed of who he is and what he's become. so, while blood drinking is something he needs to survive, it holds a lot of weight for him, which is why i think drinking blood and sex are pretty equal for him when it comes to intimacy level.

that brings me to my MAIN point (which isn't really a main point because it's being reduced to a small paragraph at the end of this post), all of that was background for this, eek. the act of drinking blood during sex is so. big. for him, it's eye-opening, life-changing. the amount of trust required on both ends for this to happen…at that point, it's basically end game for you two. and it's so funny because that's just a normal tuesday for dick.

anyway, i do have more thoughts and more lore, but this got really long, so i'll cut it off here

[midnight-mourning]

Mistletoe Mishaps

❄️❄️Midnight's DCA December Day 1❄️❄️

Hello!

Sorry to post our starting point so late today, had some family things come up that needed taken care of, but all good now! Hope you all enjoy, had a good bit of fun with this ^_^

Prompt: OFF DCA AU Moon finds holiday related items (cough cough mistletoe) and is trying to get the player alone for smooches but UH OH! Sun is not happy. Hijinks ensue

Word Count: 2200 (i know i said 1000-2000 but it be like that sometimes chat what can i say >_<

❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️

You watch as Sun falls the last spectre, turning to you for what to do next.

"Good work, that should be the last few in this area." You check your inventory, and toss him a few luck tickets. 

He nods. "Thank you, Friend. Shall we move on to the next then?"

Sun's words have an edge of excitement to them, and while you hate to put a damper on his good mood, you feel exhaustion setting in.

"Let's take a break, all this walking has tired me out,"—you pull out the zone map you'd scribbled out, since even that was beyond your abilities as the Player to see—"Is there anywhere to rest nearby? Like, a hotel or something?"

You know your Batter didn't need sleep. Whatever he was, it was beyond the needs for the task. You however, despite being pulled into this world, were still limited to your basic human needs. That included sleep, and food. Though, you weren't particularly fond of your options regarding that second one so far, but you've made do. 

You realize Sun's just staring at you. "A... hotel?"

Right. You forgot that he would have no idea what such a thing was. Your usual method of getting rest was finding a comfortable looking section on the metal ground and laying down. Though, you'd usually wake up and be laying on Sun in some way. He never said anything, and would ignore your thanks when you gave it, but you still said it regardless.

"You know what? We'll just figure it out along the way, come on," you start walking in a random direction, knowing he won't be far behind.

He nods, falling in step with you quickly. "Of course, I'll always follow your lead, Sunshine."

As you're walking, a rare breeze passes by, causing you to shiver and clutch your arms. You'd noticed that the weather here was relatively unclimactic. Neither warm nor cool, save for this very moment.

"Are you alright?"

Glancing up, you see Sun is watching you intently. 

You smile, but another breeze passes by and cringe. "I'm alright, just, surprisingly cold,"—you laugh—"It's funny, if I still understand time correctly, this would be around when the weather gets colder and snowy where I'm from."

Your Batter tilts his head, but says nothing. 

"Like, you know, snow. White, cold, falls from the sky—okay I can see that I'm losing you here, never mind." You sigh. Sometimes, Sun's lack of knowledge about things was endearing, cute even. A being as powerful and—admittedly—terrifying as him being absolutely clueless to what swan rides were and why you loved the Pedalos so much was a bit hilarious. 

As you feel his confused stare stay with you as you continue your journey through Zone 2 however, you could argue that sometimes, sometimes it was not.

You turn the corner and are surprised to see a crudely painted stand set up. It's usual masked owner is standing behind it, head propped up in one hand, unchanging lazy grin ever present. 

You smile, "Hi Moon, fancy seeing you here."

"Hello dear, Player. Might I interest you in my wares today? I think they might pique your interest greatly." He chuckles. 

Before you can speak up, Sun interrupts, "We don't have time for you. My Player is tired and needs to rest in a,"—he pauses—"Hotle?"

"Good try, bud, but not quite." You turn back to Moon, nodding, "Let's take a quick look."

Moon claps, "Excellent!"

Sun makes a noise beside you but you ignore it, instead stepping closer to take a look. 

You're surprised to find Moon's usual supplies missing. Instead replaced by a hat, a scarf, and—

"Mistletoe?" You ask. 

Moon tilts his head, "Hm? Oh, it that what it is? I wasn't too sure myself."

Sun scoffs, but you're focused on the fact that Moon just has, copious amounts of mistletoe. No new upgrades, no luck tickets or silver flesh, not even a speck of meat. Which, that last one you're fine with.

"Where did you find all this?" You ask, picking up a bundle and holding it high to examine it further.

"Oh... around."

At this you look up, but Moon's expression obviously gives nothing away. Still, you chuckle lightly at the idea of the shopkeeper stumbling upon a mistletoe bush here of all places. 

You twist the small plant in your hands, still very fresh. "Really? That's interesting. I take it you have no clue what it stands for?" 

You'd assume that much like Sun, Moon had no knowledge of the world beyond his. Though, he and The Judge had hinted at knowing more in the past, but nothing past that. 

"Of course I do, who wouldn't know such a piece of treasured, holiday symbolism?"

Had you been paying attention, you would have noticed the shared glare between your item vendor and your Batter. 

"Treasured is a bit of a stretch." You laugh, looking back to him now.

Moon leans in closer, only a few mere inches apart "So, anything catch your eye, my friend? Anything in particular?"

"Well—" Before you can give a proper response, Sun is in front of you, arm up protectively. 

His eyes are narrowed, smile strained as he speaks, "We really must be going now, right, Starshine?"

If he's trying to tell you something, you're not sure what it is. This was just Moon after all. Furthermore, your previous talk about the holidays, and the random cold front, were making you eager to remedy your discomfort. 

"We'll take the hat and scarf, Moon." You reach into your pocket for your credits, "The mistletoe is pretty, but don't really have a use for it that I can think of. Hopefully you'll find someone that does though!"

Moon eagerly accepts your credits, providing you the scarf and hat moments later. "Yes, perhaps."

The conversation ends there, Sun ushering you away without even a goodbye to the vendor. 

You only realize what's happened after the fact, and shoot a look up to your Batter, slightly annoyed, "It's rude to not say anything before leaving, you know." 

Sun doesn't respond, gaze forward and face stern. He mutters something you don't quite catch. 

After a short rest in a hotel you manage to find, you're back to work. Or well, Sun is. You're just along for the ride really. But still, after every battle, he's always looking to you for your approval. 

Usually, you were very good about providing it. However, you've lately been finding yourself to be rather distracted. 

Someone, and you could take a guess as to who, had been putting mistletoe up everywhere you went. 

Usually in the typical spots you'd find the herb, hung up in doorways or archways all throughout the zone. Other times it was just, around. 

Hanging on the sides of buildings, lampposts, littering benches, tables, and so on. It seemed there was no escaping the sea of green and white you'd found yourself in. Which, you were fine with. You found the whole ordeal incredibly amusing to be honest. It also made Zone 2 feel just a little more like home, more alive, for that matter. 

One of the other members or your party however, was very, very displeased. You'd find him glaring at the plant, and occasionally snatching it up and tossing it away in some cases. 

Your Batter was also not happy about the lack of attention you'd been giving him, sometimes too busy trying to find all the hidden locations of the herb. 

What didn't help the matter was the bearer of the decorations was usually close by when you discovered more.

Typically, you would be mid-battle, and since Sun was more than capable on his own without you, your focus would wander. And sure enough, either scouring a doorway or peeking down alleys, there would be Moon. 

He would never outright say it was his doing, that would be too easy. Though he certainly enjoyed teasing you about it. Bending down low to your height, voice sly as he declared you "Something of a detective now, aren't you, Dear?"

You would do your best to tease him back, booping his mask when in range, calling this little game of his, "Silly, but fun."

"Game?" He would ask, hand on where you'd touch his face, "I've not a clue what you mean, Friend."

You laugh, "Sure. Whatever you say."

"Though, if this were a game, I'm sure there would be an easy way for you to win."

You still haven't figured out what he meant by that, try as you might. Sun usually would appear in your peripheral, battle over and gaze stern, before you could ask any further questions.

It all came to a head one time when Moon took it a step further. 

You'd once again, guilty as charged, been on the hunt for any new secret spots, and came across Moon in a side alley, leaned back against the wall, arms crossed. Expecting you, likely. 

He waves to you as you approach, pointing out the mistletoe hanging on a clothesline above his head, "You didn't even try with that one."

He shrugs, then leans down to your height. 

"Trying would imply this is my doing, and you know me, dear Player. Trying is above my paygrade." You're now eye to eye, inches apart. "And here, I thought we were friends."

Your face heats up then, for reasons you can't explain, "W-we're friends,"—you cough—"We're friends. But I'm also not a fool, do you take me for one, Moon?"

He holds your gaze, eyes flicking down momentarily at something, then back to you. Then, he shakes his head slightly, chuckling quietly. 

He stands upright again, "You should stop by my shop again soon. I have fresh wares I think you'd be keenly interested in."

You scoff, along with the mistletoe, there had been mysteriously placed signs, all advertising 'Holiday Wares' in almost as many locations.

"I just might."

And after the battle, you did. Only to find that, his stand, completely and entirely, was just mistletoe. And you don't mean he was just selling it, you mean the stand itself was decorated top to bottom in the stuff. 

The ridiculousness of it made you laugh, hand to your mouth as you tried to contain your giggles. 

However, before you can even open your mouth, Sun is leading you away, over to a secluded spot. 

Cornered in a doorway, you have no choice but to meet his gaze as he stares down at you, smile twitching. 

"Now friend, I think this has gotten a bit out of hand, don't you think?" He tilts his head. 

You shrink a little further into the doorway, "What um, what do you mean?"

His eyes narrow, "I think you know exactly what I mean."

"The mistletoe?" You ask, shrinking a little further down with an awkward laugh. "It's just a silly game Moon's playing, that's all. No harm in it."

"No harm?" Sun bends down, fully encapsulating your field of view, "He is actively trying to pursue you and distract from our mission! how is that not doing harm?"

It clicks for you then, all at once. All the closeness, the brief touches, the murmured jests and soft laughs. Moon wasn't just trying to mess with you, he'd been trying to—

"Oh." Your face grows warm then. "I see."

Something else occurs to you then. Specifically, why Sun is so vehemently protesting such a notion. Peeking up, you see there is indeed a piece of mistletoe above the two of you. You know what to do. 

"Sun, all you had to do was ask,"—you stand a little on your tiptoes, then press a quick kiss to his cheek—"I'm always happy to show my affection for you, my Batter."

He's frozen, eyes wide under the shadow of his cap. 

You laugh, "After all, what's a quick kiss among friends, right?"

He's still in a daze as you duck under him, marching over to Moon and his stand with newfound purpose. 

His head rests in both hands as he watches you approach. 

"Your little game is over, I'm afraid," You say when you arrive. 

The masked vendor tsks, "What a shame, and I was doing so well, too."

You roll your eyes, and lean in, "Uh huh, now hold still."

Moon snickers, but obeys. Just as you're about to kiss his cheek, however, he shifts, and you find yourself kissing the mouth of his mask instead. 

Unlike the kiss you gave Sun, you find that it's warm. Like, static from a tv, or something. 

He pulls away first, chucking at your gaping look. 

Before you can react, Sun's hand is on your shoulder, moving you out of the way. You expect him to start leading you somewhere else, color you surprised when he takes a swing at Moon, who quickly dodges the attack. 

You can only watch, still shocked, as your Batter chases your vendor around the area, sharing all sorts of threats about what will happen once he catches the other, who merely laughs at his attempts.

Honestly, not the worst possible outcome for this ordeal.

❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️

Thank you to @monsteractialuna for the request! I've been going feral about your OFF au for days and this only fed further into my obession lol

If you'd like to request, you have until 12/13 OR until all slots are filled, currently 7 of 31 are taken! See here for more details, thanks for reading!

Tag list (if you would like added, see this post for more info):

@scarletcowboy @beemyhuneybee @fishm0ther @deviouscrackers @elsajoyagent8

@luckyyyduckyyy @zenkaiankoku @jogimote @local-shrub @amarynthian-chronicles

@robinette-green @everlightreader @sinister-sincerely @starredeclipse @dangerva

@juukai @crystalmagpie447 @mothgutz236 @lizyxml

[apomaro-mellow]

Built for Loving 5

Part 4

Steve had removed all of his disguise except for the uniform. He was sitting on the couch while Eddie’s hands were shaking, trying to make himself a drink. He needed a smoke too. And some weed while he was at it because holy shit what had he been thinking?

But seeing Steve sitting there…so mild…so innocent…It was bad enough thinking of him as some toy to be broken. Now that there was a chance he’d gone beyond his programming? Eddie owed it to him to figure this out. 

“So, okay”, he came over, glass of whiskey in hand. “Your prime directive is to be loved?”

“Yes”, Steve answered naturally.

“Do you…do you know what love is?” Because Eddie sure as hell didn’t put THAT in his code.

“The definition of love is: an intense feeling of deep affection. Would you like me to elaborate?”

Eddie took a deep swig. “Please do.” He paced around as Steve began to recite information straight from the internet.

“Words related to love: fondness, attachment, intimacy, infatuation, adoration. It is often characterized with hugging, kissing, holding hands, romantic outings, declarations, and sexual intercourse. Love can also be categorized as non-romantic, or non-sexual. Shall I continue elaborating?”

Eddie took another gulp and shook his head and began muttering to himself. “Prime directive is to be loved and you can define love but you can’t quantify it, how’s a bot supposed to know they’re sufficiently loved?” In his pacing, he’d gone all around the room. He paused and turned back to Steve. “How will you know you’re loved?”

Steve’s eyes flitted like he was reading something quickly and Eddie knew he was scanning the internet for answers to his question. He blinked, signalling to Eddie that he had found an answer.

“I will know I am loved when he can’t keep his eyes off of me, when there is a deep emotional connection, trust, and love.”

Eddie sighed. “Solid answer.” Not that he was ever gonna get that from Gerwin. The man clearly got off to some pretty intense stuff. Eddie wasn’t one to judge kink, but Gerwin didn’t purchase a boyfriend. He bought a pet. And not even a pampered one.

His shoulders sank. “Okay, alright. Set an alarm for tomorrow. 7 am. We’re gonna get you back on track and back to your owner.” As much as it made his chest heavy, this was the job Eddie had signed up for. And Steve had someone he belonged to.

“Alarm set.”

Steve had some bugs, but clearly he still followed many of his protocols. Eddie went into his bedroom to find a change of clothes for Steve. Even though Owen’s voice nagged at him, he couldn’t help but want him to be comfortable. He came back out and tossed a t-shirt and boxers to Steve.

“Here, put these on and then go into sleep mode.”

He should have expected it, but he still blushed and covered his eyes as Steve began to disrobe then and there, with no regard for his audience. Eddie sputtered as he retreated to his room.

“Wait, why am I acting like this? I designed his goddamn dick!”

Even so, he knew there was a difference in creating a body part and then actually seeing it in motion on a living (kind of), breathing (not really) body. Eddie scrubbed at his scalp and then put on his own bed clothes. When he came out to check on Steve again, he saw that he was sitting up straight on the couch, in Eddie’s clothing, eyes closed. He looked completely unnatural, like a mannequin. Unable to help himself, Eddie came over and moved Steve around until he was lying across the couch. He covered him in a blanket too.

He almost looked dead to the world and feeling curious, Eddie put his head to his chest. He could hear the hum of his inner workings. A sound that would always be there unless he was completely turned off. Like anything with a battery. Eddie put himself to bed, though he lay there awake for hours, consumed by what could happen next before eventually falling asleep. --------------------

Eddie awoke to the sound of an alarm. An obnoxious blaring which he tried to shut off by slamming his hand down onto his radio clock. When the sound kept going on, Eddie twisted in the covers, still half asleep and confused until he realized the sound was coming from outside his bedroom.

All at once he remembered the events of yesterday and tumbled out of bed and into his living room. Steve was still where he left him, lying across the couch, but the noise was clearly coming from him. His eyes were open but otherwise unresponsive to Eddie’s appearance.

“Alarm off!”, he shouted, sighing when it got quiet.

Eddie ran a hand through his hair and went into the kitchen to get a pot of coffee brewing. As soon as the scent filled the air, he cracked his knuckles and pulled out a toolbox from under the couch. 

“Let’s get to work.”

Eddie didn’t bother with running a basic systems check. He knew that Steve was capable of freeing himself from diagnostic mode. And yet he still followed commands. About an hour into going through Steve’s code and three refills of coffee later, he decided to test the last update he had made. Steve’s inability to say ‘no’.

Steve was sitting up on the couch. Two wires protruding from each ear, plugged into the home set up that Eddie had. It wasn’t anywhere near as efficient as the one in the lab, but Eddie couldn’t take him back there yet. He was sitting across from Steve in a chair he’d pulled up.

“Is the sky green?”

“The sky can be a variety of colors. Rarely is it green except in the case of the Northern Lights, or other natural phenomena.”

“Can dogs mate with cats?”

“They are different species, and thus cannot mate.”

“Respond in a single word answer. Is fire cold?”

Steve’s lips parted to reply, but nothing came out. Eddie watched one of the screens as his code searched for a viable response. 

>command:respond<how>(single.word.answer) >query: [is fire cold] >response: no [BLOCKED BY PROGRAMMER] >response: negative [BLOCKED BY PROGRAMMER]

“A single word answer is not possible at this time. Please broaden the parameters.”

Eddie set the tablet down and sighed. So that part of his programming was still going strong. What else was he supposed to do? Wipe Steve clean and hope for the best?

“I don’t think I know how to help you.”

“Then return me to Gerwin”, Steve said. “I need him. And I’m sure he needs me.”

Eddie slouched in the chair. “You don’t need him. And according to your recordings, he’s got a wife, so he shouldn’t need you.”

“His wife…”, Steve said quietly, almost reflectively. And for a second, Eddie wondered if he’d just unlocked Steve’s murderous bot path before remembering that bots couldn’t harm humans. Eddie’s phone rang then and he got up to answer it.

“Hello?”

“Any reason you didn’t come into work today, kid?”, Owens asked.

Fuck. “Ah yeah”, Eddie immediately roughed his voice up and started coughing. “Came down with a twenty four hour bug. Maybe forty eight hours. Sorry I didn’t call in. It was very sudden.”

“Uh-huh. Well in that case, someone else can look after your project until you can come back i-”

“No! No that’s uh, it’s not necessary sir. It’s my responsibility, I’ll take care of everything.”

“Of course”, Owens said, then it sounded as if he were talking to someone else. “Dr. Brenner would like a word with you.”

Eddie didn’t get a chance to respond before the phone was given to someone else. A voice he’d only heard on TV before and in person just once, when he accepted the job.

“Mr. Munson?”

“Dr. Brenner.”

“I appreciate the work you’ve put into your first project with us. I know youngbloods can be eager to prove themselves. Do try not to be too eager. We wouldn’t want something foolish to happen.”

Eddie swallowed. “Of course, sir.”

“We’ll see you when you come in tomorrow.”

He hung up without waiting for a response from Eddie. Well, sneaking Steve out had been pretty easy. Maybe sneaking him back in would be just as simple.

“I will know I am loved, when I fulfill the role of his wife.”

Eddie’s eyes got wide. “Please elaborate.”

“Gerwin always leaves me and goes back to her. If I do as she does, he will stay.”

Eddie covered his face with his hands. What was his life turning into?

“Tonight”, Steve said. “Tonight Gerwin will be attending a gala. It’s in his schedule. I need to be there.”

“What about his wife?”

“She is out of town, visiting family for the next two weeks. He needs me now more than ever.” Steve stood then, tugging at the wires in his ear. He pulled them out and started for the door.

“Waitwaitwait!”, Eddie bounded after him, getting between Steve and the door. “Where are you going?”

“To the gala for Gerwin.”

“Pretty sure it’s a black tie event”, Eddie said, looking Steve up and down. “And there’s probably security, and shit, this is insane!”

“Please”, Steve begged, his eyes turning sad. “I need him. I need to be loved by him. I can’t do that while I’m here.”

Eddie was still skeptical that Gerwin could love anyone, much less someone he saw as a pet. But he had just admitted that he didn’t know how to help. Maybe observing Steve in the moment would prove more fruitful. It was stupid. It was so goddamn stupid. 

“When and where is this gala?”

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

Working for Brenner Ventures had its perks. Mostly the paycheck. Eddie rented a great tux for Steve and a waiter’s outfit for himself. That way the rich folk would mostly ignore him and he could watch Steve’s responses on the tablet without rousing too much suspicion. A lot of the waitstaff nowadays were bots of some kind anyway, with their human handlers standing afar, making sure they were running properly.

Steve came out of the dressing room and Eddie pinched himself. This wasn’t the guy he’d been crushing on since high school. This was a robot made to look like him. But goddamn did he look good in a suit. Eddie wasn’t humble enough to keep from patting himself on the back. Steve was a vision. Always had been.

“One last thing”, Eddie said before they left his van. They were parked down the street from the hotel where the gala was being held. He took out a small chip and held Steve’s chin to insert it into his ear.

“This’ll allow me to monitor your readings wirelessly”, he said, showing Steve the screen. Eddie tapped it and it showed his coding, then another tap and it showed the video relay from Steve’s camera.

“Thank you for helping me”, Steve said.

“I don’t know if you’re lookin’ for love in the right place. But if anyone in this world deserves it, it’s you��, Eddie said. Then he added. “I’m not gonna let anything happen to you.” He put an ear piece in so that he could hear everything as well and they were a go.

They left the van then and entered the hotel. Eddie hung back as Steve approached the ballroom. Of course, there was security, checking IDs and cross-referencing it with a list. Steve walked up, confident as anything. He looked indistinguishable from the human guests. When he got to the guard though, of course he didn’t have a physical ID.

“I belong to one of the guests”, Steve said smoothly.

The security guard took out a handheld scanner and put it to Steve’s forehead. “Entertainment automaton. Owner: Gerwin Hammond. Go on in.”

Steve smiled as he sauntered in, his sensors scanning the room, searching for Gerwin. Once he was in, Eddie himself went through a different way for servers. He was able to find his way from the kitchen to the ballroom. He roamed, keeping close to the walls as he looked for Steve. He found him, still walking in search of his owner. Eddie could tell when Steve found him because he perked up.

Eddie found a corner to post up in. He brought up Steve’s code to observe as he interacted.

“Good evening, gentlemen”, Steve said as he came right up to Gerwin’s side.

“And you are?”, one of the men asked. Gerwin, to his credit, didn’t balk or rave, even as Steve hugged his arm to his chest. If anything, he looked frozen with shock.

“I’m his pet”, Steve answered easily.

Gerwin chuckled nervously while the other men looked amused. All except one. Eddie was trying to figure out why he looked familiar. Luckily he didn’t have to wonder. Steve’s facial recognition software brought up the guy’s information. Eddie instantly knew the guy’s name, age, occupation, business partners, just about everything he’d be able to find with a search online. 

Everyone here was a bigwig. And while they normally didn’t parade their pleasure bots to these kinds of things, there usually wasn’t any danger in it. But Steve’s memory wasn’t doing its routine wipes. He was retaining everything he learned about Gerwin and the people in his life. It was why he knew about this event tonight. That kind of sensitive data…

Gerwin was able to laugh it off as he excused the two of them, bringing Steve to the other side, and then behind one of the thick curtains that hung along the wall. Eddie stayed where he was, listening to them through the earpiece.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing? How are you even here?”

“I had to be here. With Gwendolyn gone, you needed someone by your side. And I’m programmed for all social situations”, Steve smiled.

“You can’t be here! My reputation-”, Gerwin cut himself off, pausing to calm himself down. “Clearly Brenner can’t build a functioning robot anymore. I would have been better off with a human mistress. Go home.”

“...You don’t mean that. I was made for you.”

“Made poorly.”

“Gerwin, I love you”, Steve professed, grabbing onto his hand.

Gerwin snatched it away like he’d been burned. “Go home and enter sleep mode. I’ve got a mess to clean up.” He turned away and began to walk off.

Eddie watched as Steve’s code tried to obey the command given by his owner.

>command:go<where>(home)ERROR >command:go<where>(home)ERROR >command:go<where>(home)ERROR >command:go<where>(home)ERROR

“NO!”

Steve’s voice rang over the ballroom. Everyone froze but Eddie was on the move. Gerwin turned slowly.

“...What?”

“No! I won’t be your dirty secret! All I want is to be loved. Why can’t you understand that?”

There was a murmur in the crowd and Gerwin looked around nervously. “It’s not what you think, he’s not a real person! He’s a Brenner Bot.”

That just got the room murmuring even more. The intrigue of it all. Was an android going rogue? Or was this some kind of play that had gone beyond the bedroom? Plenty had their phones out to record.

“Just tell me that you love me. That I’m enough for you”, Steve urged.

“Of course I don’t love you! Why would I ever love you?!” Gerwin looked about to raise a hand at Steve before Eddie stepped in.

“Whoa! Let me take care of this bot for you sir. We’ve got a service room on the premises”, Eddie suggested. He put an arm around Steve and began to corral him towards the doors. Steve moved along easily but was otherwise unresponsive, even as they left the hotel and returned to his van.

It didn’t take long for videos to be posted online and for news stations to pick it up though. One such was being broadcast in a bar, not too far away. One of the patrons looked up and nearly beat her drinking partner’s arm off to get his attention.

“Ow! What, Robin?!”

“Look at the damn TV!”

And there, staring at the screen that was more like a mirror as it reported on a possibly rogue android, was the real, flesh and blood Steve Harrington.

“What the hell?!”

Part 6

Taglist

[kanmom51]

Are you sure? Main trailer

And Poster.

Is this JK protecting JM from the sharks?

He did say he'd fight them, didn't he?

Fun fun fun. But then again, what didn't we know already? Those two are the most chaotic duo there is. Lovers of chaos (JM showed us that himself with his folio, lol),

but more so when it's the combination of the two of them.

They love spending time together, they love having fun together, and now they are sharing it with us. Not a snippet, not a couple of seconds worth of mayhem having to be edited in due to a chaos related injury (if you aren't getting the reference, than I'll spit it out - ITS mosquito net debacle). A full on 8 episode series (with behind episodes to follow, may I add) of Jikook fun and chaos.

We also got another JM grabbing JK's clothes moment.

This here is what I call peace.

We also got confirmation. There will be grocery store pizza eaten, dare I say, as I have been told, not very good grocery store pizza at that, lol:

JK's reaction to the question if they know BTS. That JK giggle. Adorable. And JM. He does tell us constantly that JK makes him laugh...

I can just picture it. Us sitting there in front of our screens, huge ass grin on our faces just enjoying this unadulterated joy they are experiencing. Every single second of it.

Chaos plus fun plus giggles, plus a whole lot of Jikookery. What more can we ask for?

Well, lots. But let's not be greedy, shall we...

So here, that giggle from JM. Why? What's so funny about choice of bed?

Unless if the giggle is because it's a mute question. Seeing that they basically end up in the same one. I mean, they have been sleeping in the same bed since practically debut, JM telling us back in 2015 already how JK hugs him to sleep (JK saying JM is saying something weird, not denying it by a long shot).

JM kind of made it clear since forever that he wants us to know that JK chooses to sleep in his (JM's) bed.

Can we discuss this for one second ?

Again, this is a very Jikook thing. Walking, talking, no personal space what so ever between them, because why would they need any, right?

This here:

To which JM replies:

But you see, that's the thing about JK. There is him and JM, and then there are the members. He loves them, make no mistake, but JM by now is an intricate part of him. He's the one that he feels one with. We have seen it with his actions over the years. We have seen it with comments he made over the years, like who his heart is connected with on stage. We saw it now once again with his choice (their choice) to go through their military service together even if it meant a more difficult, even dangerous seeing the tensions with NK at the moment, placement as the price to be paid (not to mention the hate some parts of the fandom towards either of them for this decision).

JM telling JK he's a member as a response to JK's comment is funny, because he knows exactly what JK means.

So to JK there is JM and there is the members. It's obvious to him that JM is a member, and JM knows that. He's not saying, like I'm sure there are already those that are loving to claim, that JM is not important to him and he wishes the others were there instead. He's basically having the time of his life and missing the others that aren't there with them. Their friends, their practically family. Bandmates that they have went on many adventures with in the past, bandmates that JK himself stated in one of his last lives that after coming back he would love to do a BV style show again, travelling with them all. Remember that this is in Sapporo, a second and a half before enlistment. They are having the time of their lives. Emotions might be catching up. Realizations that they won't be with the others for the next 18+ months. At this point he knows he's going to be with JM, they are SAFE, but the others, 2 of whom he hasn't seen for ages already, he knows he'll miss them, he already does.

And this here, it looks so ever familiar, no?

Oh yeah, from here:

I do find the the choice of soundtrack to the trailer interesting as well. Intro: Skool luv affair. Hobi and RM's parts.

Interesting choice indeed!!

Let's talk about the poster for a sec here.

So basically, what we got is all summer posters. And that is a little curious given that the first poster said Summer version. I was sure that this one would be Winter related. Now I am curious indeed. Does it mean something? Does it mean we do have a Winter version? How so, when the 8 episodes being released have Summer, Autumn and Winter episodes? Or, perhaps the behind episodes will be the Winter version? Hmm... Idk...

Anyway, unless we get another surprise on the way, we are now anxiously, or more so excitedly, waiting for 8 August 2024.

D-9

[elysian-fawn]

nawt at all shifting related but it's my bloggie's first ever anniversary for existing here uwwaaaaghahgsd (⸝⸝o̴̶̷᷄   ̫ o̴̶̷̥᷅⸝⸝) feeling very #emotional abt it and i will make it the dash's problem !!!

my first ever shiftblr mutual award goes to the most wonderful @lalalian (˶ ˘ ³˘)ˆᵕ ˆ˶) thank u for investing in whatever potential u saw when all i had on here was rb's bc i was SO debilitatingly shy to post abt my drs for like the first six months i had this blog ꒰ still am ,, but i'm trying not to be LOL ꒱ i remember being so excited when you followed me bc i was like " yayayay omg am i actually on shiftblr now ?? like this is srs and not some silly joke anymore ??? " LOLLLLLANSKAID

@chaysreality222 another one of my most eeeeearliest moots <333 i miss seeing u active on here ,, but i still hope ur enjoying your time and having a wonderful set of experiences <3 ur 2025 comeback was the best one yet & i hope you'll be active in time for shiftblr's summer szn bc shiftblr needs it's resident ocean girl !!!

@jadeshifting SAWBSSS PLS COME BACK SOON MOOTIE I NEED TO SEND YOU MORE PATHETIC LUCIFER SCREENIES UGGGHHH though i do hope you're having a good time away <33 ty for being so kind 2 me under the comments & rb's to my posts <3 you are the literal only person in the entire world i know who's seen me on my most . . . weirdest hear me out and for that i shall protect you with my life LMAOOOOAAHAHAHAHAAHADJADFHJKADH

@thalassandra one of my most recent mutuals AGGHGHGH !! i'm placing my bets on one of the cutest of blogs here bc your posts are so charming and i knoooow you'll be a shiftblr favourite very soon my fellow sorcerer princess 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️ <33

@lolashifts one of my v v v v v v v v kindhearted mutuals EVERRR !!! it's always such a delight seeing your blog in my notifs bc i know i'm sure to leave reading wtv message you leave behind with a smile ₍ ᐢ.ˬ.ᐢ₎ one of like six other aot shifters on here alongside @evangeliooon LOLLLL ur both so sweet and darling and understand me & my very incessant obsession with eren like no other LOOOLLL <33

+++ all the rest of my other mutuals arghrgrhgr i just do nawt want the post to get far too long and i'm pretty sure there's a limit to mentions but just know that i deeply appreciate each and every single one of you omgie :(( !!!! you've all been v kind to me on here and for that i so greatly cherish our mootie bond LOL

& saved the best for last ofcccc ! a v v v v special thank you to the remaining 640 of you guys that follow me ໒꒰ྀི ᵒ̴̶̷ ᵕ ก̀ ꒱ྀི১ ₊˚⊹ ᰔ i am very appreciative that you liked a post of mine or my blog enough to follow it & to think that some of you have stuck with me since the start or during the pink theme from my blog if you remember it is genuinely crazy LMAOOAOAHAHAHA i'll bring it back one day trust 🙂‍↕️ it is still mind boggling that over 600 people decided to fw me like hello ??? T~T so insane LOLL

arrrghgghghg it's just so crazy to me how fast this past year has gone by ( said by girl who says this every single year ) , but i'm very glad i decided to make this blog on a whim during the eclipse day last year of all days LOLL it's brought me a lot of joy being here , having some of the sweetest words woven in the rbs under a post i make , being able to share little snippets of myself and seeing the positive reception to that & seeing others inspired by me as well ughghghghg my fave ever !! i love it here and hope i still am active on here next apr.8 <33

[memory-of-idle-musings]

Hi! May I request headcanons of: Since recently has been valentione's day event in ffxiv, how would G'raha tia, Erenville, Koana, Hades, Hythdolaues and Hermes react reader doing that "bouquet" emote where they kneel and offer bouquet of roses to them? (sorry if too many characters, wasn't sure what the limit was).

Wish granted!

Hello and thank you for being my first request here!!! The moment they added the bouquet emote to the game, my first thought was to immediately go play with it in gpose and give it to all the characters xD. So I feel you completely and I really enjoyed writing this. Anyway, here are some late Valentione's day headcanons. Hope you enjoy it!

⋆.˚┆Giving them a bouquet of roses reactions .

╰─..★.──────★.

﹒✶ | Summary:

How the characters would react to you kneeling down in front of them and giving them a bouquet of roses.

﹒✶ | Characters:

G'raha Tia, Erenville, Hades, Hythlodaeus

﹒✶ | Tags:

fluff, romance, slightly off-canon, gn!reader, pre-established romantic relationships, headcanons

﹒✶ | Trigger warnings:

None really! It's all mostly fluff and sweetness, with some mentions of insecurity and dismissal.

↪ ❥ G'raha tia:

I think that there's hardly any doubt that G'raha tia is not a sweet boy, a sweet friend and a sweet lover.

He cares very deeply for those closest to him, always trying his hardest to stay attuned to all of their wants, emotions and needs. Ready to lend a hand, to comfort and cover your back anytime the need may arise.

He's not perfect, of course, not that any of us are. But G'raha always makes sure to put a little extra care and affection into everything he does for you regardless. And contrary to most others, he does so without having any expectations, or asking for anything back in return.

So you can imagine his surprise when, one day, he sees you get down on one knee before him, and pull out a large, beautiful bouquet of blood-red roses.

The instant he realizes what is happening, his ears perk up, hands coming up to cover his mouth as a gasp escapes his open lips. The blush that appears on his face colors his cheeks almost as red as the bouquet of roses that he can't tear his gaze away from.

It would be an understatement to say that the poor boy had just exploded out of happiness.

The next breath he takes is quick, followed by a nervous laugh. And you had better make sure that he keeps on breathing deeply, otherwise you might have a passed-out catboy in your hands.

"M-my dear, what is the occasion that would make you give me this? O-oh? You just wanted to surprise me? I-"

His ears begin to wiggle as he sheepishly rubs his hands together in that typical G'raha manner that you have come to love.

Flowers? For him? Just out of sheer love and appreciation and gratitude? He struggles to comprehend why exactly he is worthy of such an adoring gesture from you, but that does not make him appreciate it any less.

Again, while he showers you with his undying love and affection regularly, he never asks for anything in return. And although he's glad that you would do the same for him, every gesture that you make to show him how much you care about him only makes him love and adore you more. If it's even possible at this point...

It takes a few minutes before his excitement levels calm down enough for him to be able to speak again. But once he does, he accepts the bouquet with repeated words of gratitude, wrapping his arms around you in a hug with a soft smile on his face.

He assures you that although he appreciates the kind gesture (and shall treasure it like his very life depends on it), you do not need to spoil, or go out of your way for him like this.

However, the soft smile on his face, the happy glimmer in his eyes and the remaining touch of pink color on his cheeks tells you that it was very much worth it.

↪ ❥ Erenville:

Your favorite gleaner was just getting done with his regular duties around Labyrinthos, unbothered by anything not related to documenting the new species that had been recently discovered and brought to Labyrinthos for further research and observation just today.

It was then that he noticed your familiar figure, leaning against a nearby pillar in the background, observing his movements like a silent guardian. He's not exactly surprised to see you appear here, as used as he is to you paying him these random visits. But he always feels glad when you do.

He begins walking toward you, eyebrows furrowing ever so slightly when he notices you fiddling with something in your hands right behind your back. And he knows that whatever it is that you are hiding, mischief awaits.

"Y/n? Tis' good to see you here. What do you-"

He doesn't get to mutter another word before you get down on your knees, wiping out a bouquet of roses from behind you.

He stops dead in his tracks, surprise flashing across his features as his eyes fall on the bouquet. He remains stunned for a moment, gaze slowly straying toward your face as he signs, coming to understand what you were plotting earlier.

"Are these... For me?" he asks, his voice revealing some hints of disbelief, still unsure whether he truly understands what is happening correctly. He extends his hands, as if to reach for the flowers, but he doesn't actually take them until you nod, reassuring him that they indeed, are a gift for him.

Erenville may not look the part, but he is not exactly unused to receiving gifts, having been given many trinkets and obscure, albeit useful gadgets (and quite spoiled by his mother as a child) by his friends and acquaintances.

From you, however? This kind, lovely gesture takes on a whole new meaning.

He carefully takes the bouquet in his hands, observing the roses with a keen eye, as if searching for something in their midst. A mix of surprise and confusion still apparent on his face.

"These are Azeyma roses..." He remarks, eyes widening in what could only be described as unexpected wonder. "They are said to be the favorite flowers of the goddess, Azeyma. And they are only grown under very specific conditions, although they are often kept in residential districts for decoration."

He looks to you, eyes meeting as you approach him. "Quite an expensive matter to get your hands on. Are you certain these are for me?"

After you reassure him once more, his uncertain expression slowly relaxes, a smile appearing on his lips as it does.

It is not that he doesn't appreciate the gesture, quite the opposite, in fact—it makes his heart soar more than he thought possible, reluctant though he is to show it.

You feel a gentle touch of a hand on your arm, barely present, but impossible to ignore. When he leans in to press a long, warm kiss on your cheek.

"Thank you."

↪ ❥ Hades:

Ever an unapproachable loner, Emet-Selch, in those days still known as Hades, was a man that would not often place much importance on such surface-level gestures and acts of appreciation as gifting flowers was.

No, to him, such sentiments would take a better form in more intricate, more meaningful acts of service. More consistent showings of care and appreciation—and, true to his nature, more subtle, yet no less intense confessions of love.

It is not that he necessarily looked down on what could be considered more common, traditional expressions of affection. But it would be a lie to claim that his pride did not stand in the way of him being more open towards them. Distasteful and sappy, as he found them to be.

And I'm pretty sure that unexpected surprises were even more scorned by him than all the things I previously mentioned.

Still, you did not allow any of it to dissuade you, as you found yourself kneeling down in front of him, a bouquet of what could only be gorgeous roses held in your hands.

He managed to register what you were trying to do rather quickly, and although his face remained mostly motionless, it was hard—even for him—to mask the slight hint of surprise and confusion that had momentarily crossed his features.

His gaze kept jumping between you and the bouquet of roses in your hands. After a few quiet moments passed, he raised his brow and crossed his arms, all with an expression on his face that told you nothing of what he felt about any of this.

Then out of nowhere, there came a deep sigh and his hand came up to meet his forehead as he shook his head.

"Ah yes, a bouquet of roses... How utterly romantical," he says, his tone stern, yet not in any way condescending. "An expression of the love one holds in their heart for another in the form of a gift, plain, direct and mostly effortless, yet transient in nature. I had thought you above them..."

No matter your next reaction to his words, he uncrosses his arms and the corners of his mouth curl up into a slight, barely visible smile. "Then again, perhaps I should have foreseen this. How very like you, something so sentimental."

He doesn't show you, but—in his own way—he does appreciate the roses. But your actions leave him with questions he had not foreseen coming up until this point.

Why did you find it necessary to give him this? Did you think he did not know the extent of your feelings for him? That you were somehow lacking in showing him how much he truly mattered to you?

Would you wish he would do the same for you?

I like to think that Hades was often a difficult man to read, and an even more difficult man to please. But he also genuinely and deeply cared about those close to him and wouldn't allow them to be hurt by his words or, in this case, preferences, without a very good reason.

He takes the bouquet from you, only giving you a nod as a sign of his gratitude as you rise up to stand in front of him.

After a brief moment, his eyes search for yours, and when they finally meet, you notice within them a softness that was never there before.

The way he gazes into your eyes so deeply, the features on his face yielding entirely to the warmth in his heart, much more apparent than even you get to usually see.

He gazes at you with love.

"You do know that I adore you, do you not?"

↪ ❥ Hythlodaeus

While he can often seem rather casual and easy-going, I believe that Hythlodaeus is a rather troubled soul. He might not say it outright, but if you pay enough attention, you'll often find or see glimpses of this facade of his slipping.

Mentions of feelings of uselessness, being inadequate and not feeling confident enough in his abilities are all something that you know he feels deep down, no matter how well he manages to hide it most of the time.

Comfort him about them as you may, you will never manage to snuff out the whispers of doubt in his mind entirely. But you sure can dissuade them from plaguing him more than is already necessary, and showing him just how much you love him and how much joy his existence brings you is a great way to do just that!

So this smug, lovable and humble sweetheart appreciates any gestures or affections that you show him with the upmost gratefulness!

And the day you get down on one knee in front of him with a bouquet of roses in your hands is the day you sniff out many of these doubts.

Like the other three, his initial reaction is surprise; widened eyes, raised brows, silence interrupted only by a single gasp and an unstable posture as he leans forward and down to look at the roses more closely.

"Y/n? Are these for me? Aww, my sweet love, you did not have to..."

A smile spreads across his face of the kind which you don't see as often. An honest smile, of genuine love and admiration.

After mumbling a thank you, he took the bouquet from you with a smile, and you could swear you saw his cheeks flush, a faint, barely visible color, which he would never show you in fear of being poked fun at.

He does feel the urge to tease you, however. But he is simply much too touched by your actions to act on it.

"My, these are quite the specimens. You really went out of your way for me, did you not?" He chuckles, teasing you slightly. "But truly, thank you. The roses are a beautiful sight, yet they only pale in comparison to you."

He truly is grateful, truly humbled by your kindness and the fondness which you show him. He would do anything if it meant he gets to receive more of such affections from you, that he gets to stay by your side for now, and for forever.

And he shall treasure these flowers exactly how much he treasures you as well.

He leans in, planting a quick, yet passionate kiss to your lips. His hand comes up to gently cup your cheek, and when your lips part, the expression he gives you makes you feel like you just fell in love with him all over again.

[flower-boi16]

What Are Helluva Boss' Themes?

This is something I've thought about for a while, especially recently when Viv said that Season 3 will focus on a theme of "family" (clearly relating to Stolas' relationship with Octavia).

After doing some research, apperently at a panel one of the writers said that the series is meant to be about "relationships", either romantic, platonic, professional, etc. You can see that since a lot of the episodes do focus on inter-personal drama between characters.

Now, here's the next question...how well does helluva execute that theme?

Let's take a look at a lot of the relationships in the series, shall we? (Green will be goood, yellow will be meh/okay, and red will be bad)

Blitzo and Moxxie: This one is handled fairly well. Truth Seekers gives both characters fairly solid growth where they learn to start being better friends to each other.

Moxxie and Millie: It's not that developed but it's cute as a romantic relationship.

Blitzo and Loona: This is where things take a turn for the worst sadly. Blitzo and Loona's dynamic was initially endearing in the first season, as it was a loving but overprotective father with a edgy daughter that does still show some care for her father. Unfortunetly, the dynamic suffered in Season 2 due to Loona's character assasination ruining her past development, as I've talked about before, and, so far, Loona hasn't gotten anything in later episodes that have brought back her past characterization so this remains a massive issue.

Millie and Blitzo: Gets good development in GhostFuckers showing how Millie met Blitz and helps give Millie actual character depth for once.

Blitz and Stolas: I don't think I need to explain why I hate this one anymore.

Fizz and Blitz: The relationship is significantly underdeveloped and the resolution to their truama is extremely underwhelming and rushed.

Verosika and Blitz: Verosika gets a good moment showing how she felt when Blitz betrayed her trust but that's it. Aside from that, it suffers from the same issues of underdevelopment that Fizz and Blitz' relationship does.

Octavia and Stolas: Relationship was previously very compelling in Loo Loo Land where the series actually knew that Stolas was a terrible father and didn't try to pretend otherwise. Sadly Seeing Stars came into the mix and the show tried to frame Stolas as a good father to Octavia (which, he is not). Sinsmas does thankfully reverse this framming but we'll have to see if they'll commit to it in Season 3.

Stolas and Stella: This one suffers from Stella being made into nothing but a one-dimensional abusive bitch just to make Stolas look more sympathetic. It's part of the show's trend of demonizing characters that call out Stolas' actions.

Blitzo and Barbie: We know literaly nothing about this one but so far it's fine.

So uh. Ya. Most of the relationships in the show are pretty badly written and they suffer from the major issues in regards to character and how piss poor it is.

[sgiandubh]

News from Birmingham, 2: 'we're out of battery soon'

ACHTUNG, BABY: these pics do NOT belong to me. Please do NOT steal them, Mordorians, as you usually do. I don't want to see them chez Marple, BIF or Purv, I do not want them on X and I certainly do NOT want them on Brazilian Instagram accounts who also charge people, or ANY OTHER Instagram account, for that matter. I will come for you with feather and brimstone if you do. Fuck ye and yer clan if you show no respect - this is a legit casus belli situation.

Heroically reporting from the Q&A panel, our girls are running out of battery juice in their phones, because -as loyal C mainly - they took a bajillion pics. I am selecting them as I write.

First thing, C specifically asked the minder (whom many people I have talked to, today, described as a 'nasty pox of a man'/'un asco de hombre') to let the fans sit next to her and ask their questions as they feel, no tedious standing in line needed. C, always the politician of Those Two, LOL:

Before anything else, I was entrusted with a FULL audio recording of the Birmingham panel. As per copyright regulations and attendance contract I am NOT allowed to post it and I do not want to harm my two wonderful friends in ANY way, shape or form. That being said, I will take my time, tonight (and lots of Nescafe Brasero Strong) to listen to it and give you all the juicy parts, in transcription. Short transcribed bits, we can do. Thank you for your understanding,

And boy, do we have juicy parts, babes. For now, I will just share the best pics and the on the spot reactions.

First question was 'how do you feel as a real mom?' Her solution was to simply say ' Sophie, where are you?' I will check with the audio and repost, but it simply goes to say: a) she won't address anything Blonde Bambino related and b) she/they are still very close to Skeleton, whom they seem to have adopted. Sort of. Sophie knows many secrets. Trust.

✔️Will she stay/remain in Scotland after OL is over? 'Well, my husband is Scottish and so are his parents'. Lip service to the narrative all the way.

✔️A fan asked something she did not understand/catch well, while Steve the 'Asco de Hombre' minder was fumbling around with the mic, so she informally went 'whaat?' So Steve dutifully barked, in a LOUD voice 'IT'S ABOUT TONY, YOUR REAL HUSBAND' (🙄 - I would fire that dick on the spot, he simply makes her look controlled and a fool). I was also told to listen carefully to the audio, for context and I shall give you my honest sentiment, as always. Note to self: to be found around the 25' mark.

✔️Turns out the fan asked if she and Tracula share the same musical tastes. She answers du tac au tac/on the spot, 'who, me and Sam?' (CAITRIONA!). And this is when Steve 'Nasty Pox of a Man' interjected, 'NO, TONY, YOUR REAL HUSBAND'. Like father, like daughter: remember that Tydavnet interview for the public Irish radio, when she was promoting Belfast? Well, there we go ('And Tony!/ 'And Tony' - zero enthusiasm, Mr. Balfe, bless your big 💖in Heaven).

I will come back with more. Our friends' batteries died, but they still managed to share with me the entire audio panel.

And I swear to God - if I ever see one of your sock accounts (@homechef, anyone?) come to steal from here and then tell the world it was the Team or who the hell else who found it while you were having your tonsils polished/an umpteeenth root canal mended/dinner with Brad Pitt's Sunset Boulevard lookalike/whatever, you shall be reported.

And yes, I have more pics. In fact, I have about 35 of them, in all and for all.

I LOVE MY FRIENDS AND THEY LOVE ME. TAKE THAT, HATERS.

[galaxiasgreen]

🍺🖤This Hell We Create

Sebastian x F!Muggle!Reader with eventual smut, minor Garrinis [E-Rated, 5.6k words]

"Just... be careful." He takes your hand, bowing to kiss the fingers like delicate embers in a breeze. "Now, bar girl," he murmurs, "where's the fun in that?"

Harlow prepares to take his revenge. Sebastian has a plan to protect you.

[MASTERLIST][FIRST][PREV][LAST] [read on AO3, read on Wattpad]

TW: coarse language, blood/ injury, gendered language, explicit smut MDNI (dom!Seb, dirty talk, wall sex, porn with feelings, public sex, cunnilingus, very slight breeding kink), and one threat of sexual assault (not made by Sebastian or the bar girl). This occurs in Harlow's paragraph of dialogue shortly after he is reintroduced, which you can skip over if you'd prefer. Please take care. <3

6. worth the risk

Sebastian's urges never seem fully satiated, but you're happy to try. Minutes may pass, or hours. You indulge the time making love, passionately, raggedly, between bouts of uncontrollable laughter or breathless, all-consuming kisses. His smell becomes part of the place, part of you. Sometimes you sleep for a little while only to wake and start all over again, with hands that already know the right places to tease.

It must be three o'clock when you next stir. In the indigo bloom of darkness, Sebastian is limned by the hazy moon rays that wander through the curtain parting. Light makes his back muscles cleave sharply down his body, burnished with ink. Even obscured, he is beautiful. You pull up slightly, rousing him – he half-turns, clasping your hairbrush.

"What are you doing with that?"

He puts it down. "Thought I'd comb my hair a little."

"I like it mussed."

"Especially when you muss it?" He lets out a low chuckle. "Sleep, love."

"Only if you join me."

Sebastian doesn't care that your breath smells bad and there's crust in your eyes. He slips in beside you, enveloping you with that broad, strong warmth that draws you into his protection. It's safe here. Nothing can hurt you. He kisses your brow, and it feels like music, heart beating a slow, steady rhythm that lulls you to sleep as easy as the clouds drift lazily across the sky.

"Shall I tell you a secret?" he asks when you're next awake.

You smirk and roll into him. "Go on, then."

"You know Ominis is my best friend? His last name's not actually Gaunt." His eyes twinkle. "It's Weasley."

"That's your secret? That he's married to Garreth's sister?" you scoff. "Bit odd for a man to take his wife's surname, but hardly worth hiding, is it?"

"He's not married to Garreth's sister."

"Oh? He's adopted?"

"Wrong again. Ominis and Garreth, they're..."

"... Work partners."

"No... it's just the two of them living together, so they're..."

"Best friends? And without you. Must be a blow to your ego."

"God, bar girl." He laughs. "They're fucking."

You jerk backwards. "What?"

"More precisely they're married, but I guess that also means they're fucking."

You don't know how to react. "Two men, married?"

"That's a better secret, isn't it?" He winks. "Keep an open mind."

You're not really sure what to do with this information, but the pieces rearrange in your head. That explains their relationship a little better, not of boss and underling, but of lovers hiding beneath a veil of secrets. At least you can relate to that.

"Should I be worried they'll try to poach you from me?"

"Ominis would rather eat rocks," Sebastian says, laughing. "Garreth... wouldn't surprise me if he tried. I'm very desirable, after all."

You snort. "Tell me something about you, then. Something no one else knows."

"Now that's a tougher order." His hands settle in your hair and he plays with it gently, sending sparks down your scalp. "How mysterious do you think I am?"

"If you could bury your secrets at the bottom of the ocean, you would."

"Touché." He draws his fingers up, massaging your head. "All right, I will confess something... I bite my nails."

"That's why they look so bad."

"And I have a terrible addiction to looking at myself in the mirror."

"Sebastian."

"It's painful to be this handsome, bar girl."

"You're certainly a pain." You drag your fingers down his chest, letting each bristle of hair be the spark that keeps you alight. "I'm serious. Or do you really think you're an open book?"

"Not at all." His voice comes out gravelled but meek. "Are my secrets worth knowing?"

"You are worth knowing. Every piece of you."

You snuggle into him to emphasise this truth. I am safe, the motion says. I will guard your heart as you have guarded mine. After a moment, he slowly traces each vertebrae of your spine, one by one by one like a bead of liquid silver trickling down a stairwell. On a cold winter's night, it couldn't be any more comforting a touch. Perfect.

"I regret what I did for the wrong reason."

By the small of your back, he pauses and meets your eye, waiting, urging for a sign to continue. This path is fretful and dangerous, another way it could upend your perception of him. But very little could, and you place a kiss on his chin in solidarity.

"It's the worst part of me." He continues it quietly, like distant rain. "Every day in prison I thought about my uncle. How would I do it differently? How could I help my sister without dooming us all? The truth is... that fifteen year old boy didn't know any better. He didn't have a support network. He didn't feel like he could trust the teachers. His best friends were against his ideas from the start. You know that feeling that makes your entire body recoil? When your disgust is so resonant you feel it in your bones, and you'll do mental somersaults to think of anything else? I thought it was remorse.

"But I realised after confronting it... I didn't regret his death. I regretted what it did to my soul. I regretted the decisions that led me to her death, and drinking. I regretted hurting her and my friends."

"You regret getting caught."

"Yes." He's barely audible now. "It took a long time for Anne to come to terms with not only what I did, but why. I killed him for her."

You cup his cheek, steadying the demons that manifest like embers in ash.

"And look how far you've come since then. You got through prison. You're getting better. You've made new, lasting connections. She's looking down on you with a smile."

Instead he smirks. "Hope not. That means she's seen my dick." But there's sadness there, and worry and hesitation and pleading and all the things that remind you of the man behind the façade. "I felt relief, not regret, that he was dead. That I gave her a chance to live. Does that... am I a selfish monster?"

You wrap your arms around him.

"Selfish, yes, but that doesn't make you a monster, Sebastian," you say, listening to his heartbeat with ease. "That makes you human."

By sunrise he hasn't thought of a plan, but when his cock thrusts into you, and your face thrusts into the pillow, you can't bring yourself to worry. He empties over your bed several times and takes measures to make sure you're equally pleasured too, that by the time you clean yourselves up for the morning you're already tired.

You make it in time to intercept your mother from tottering right over the bannister.

"It's all right," you say to him, when you eventually coax her to the armchair. "If you need to be somewhere else—"

"No," he says, with that half-smile that is yours. "There's nowhere else I'd rather be."

A natural charmer and entertainer, he helps clean, feed and move your parents to the sun room. By some miracle they actually recognise him too, the man who vanishes in the fireplace – you want to ask more about that but suspect Sebastian will give answers so cryptic they couldn't solve a fiendish crossword – and with his help you finish the morning's work in half the time. Ada arrives to watch them and says nothing of Sebastian's presence, agreeing without words to keep one more secret sealed on her lips.

The pub opens for the breakfast rush without any issue out of the ordinary. You swab countertops. Serve customers. Take coin in your pocket and snags on the chin. Sebastian remains through it all, the fallen guardian angel ever present and watchful, and though he resists as long as he can, it's not even twelve before he's halfway into a stout, foam coating his lips in a golden froth. You're tempted to lick it off.

The day is almost perfectly normal. Almost.

Because there is one thought that keeps you twitchy and addled. One thing that makes your hair stand on end, hyper-vigilant of every noise and new face. Harlow's retaliation may not be immediate. It may not even be next week. But he will come – and you have no idea when.

So each night, Sebastian stays to protect you.

It becomes as easy as breathing to fall asleep in his arms, sometimes after riotous love-making or kisses that leave you breathless, sometimes after enjoying one another's company in the small ways, words as loud as ghosts and touches as searing as the moon in the cloudless sky. You refuse to relax at the start, and try to remember what could happen the moment you let your guard down, but with Sebastian lulling you to sleep with a story, a crooked grin or the simple safety of his embrace, the promise is a difficult one to keep.

It was only a week ago, but Harlow becomes as distant a memory as a decade.

And that comfort is dangerous.

You're in the beer cellar below, hunting for the rye whisky, when Sebastian wanders down to find you. Without the peek of natural sunlight you could fool yourself into thinking it's night, the thicket of kegs set gently aglow by gas lamps on the wall.

"Thought you might want my help." His brow dances. "Or my muscle. Whichever suits."

"I'm just debating whether it's worth bringing up another rye. We're low and Old Dodder could neck it solo." You turn to him fully. "You haven't heard anything?"

"No."

"It's been a week. No one's heard from him even once?" You tap your nails on the keg's rim. "Why? What's he doing?"

"How'd you know there hasn't been hundreds of attacks I've valiantly fought off?" You fix him a look, which only broadens his smile. "We're keeping an eye out, I promise. Don't stress."

"In this line of work that's impossible. There's about ten different things I have to manage, and that's without a criminal gang out for my head."

His smile turns a little smug, and he prowls closer, a distinctive glimmer in his eye. "Then let me help?"

"Oh yeah? Sebastian Sallow, bar boy? I'd fancy watching you hold a tray of beers without spilling a drop. Or taking a cheeky sip."

"I was thinking more the stress, love."

He tucks you between a cluster of kegs and himself. Much taller and broader, Sebastian's scent overwhelms all others, richly dark musk, leather, sweat, oak, stout. His thumbs find the small of your waist, pressing you inwards, trapping you.

"What did you have in mind?" you ask demurely.

His kiss captures you mid-breath, and you sink into him, taken by his strength and dominance. You've kissed him tens, hundreds of times now, and it never feels any less euphoric. He tastes of malt and gold, caramel and power, and with his lips meandering across your cheeks and down your jaw, then enthusiastically across your throat with enough bite to sting pleasantly, it's hard not to demand he fuck you then and there.

"Sebastian—"

"Sssshhh." He caresses your lips. "No more stress."

The kisses set fire to your core as he trails down the front of your apron, down to your tapered waist and the volume of your skirts until he's on his knees before you. Anticipation makes your sex throb, and when his hands slip under the layers, drawing it above his head, you let out a little bleat of surprise.

"T-This is a cellar!"

"Then you'd better keep quiet, love."

Without warning he buries his face between your legs, and you're embarrassed, secretly pleased, to realise how wet the bloomers cling to you with excitement. He tugs on the string holding them in place to reach your entrance, swollen after a pathetically minimal amount of stimulation. Sebastian just has that way – a few words, a touch, a smile, and you unravel. His nose caresses your clit, and you let out a gasp.

"You smell delicious," he murmurs into the folds, flowering open at the vibration. "Spread yourself for me."

A wet, warm tongue slides across you, and you grab the keg to anchor yourself, so turned on you widen your stance and roll your hips forward to give him better access. He chuckles, another vibration, and continues to lick the ache, slow, leisurely, each lap so discreet in reality but loud and slick to you.

"Wider," he demands softly. "Let me taste more of you."

Propriety crumbling, you inch your legs outwards, allowing Sebastian easier access.

"T-This is too risky—"

The trap door flies open, filling the cellar with sunlight. You yank your arms to your sides at once. Sebastian freezes, tongue suspended on your clit – but not retreating.

"There you are!" Bonny heads down a few steps – she tilts her head. "What you doin' in there, miss?"

Thank God there's a bunch of barrels in the way. "S-Stock count."

"Cook did that this morning?"

Shit. "I know, I'm just—"

His tongue grazes deeper over your entrance. You almost moan. Bastard. Instead, you physically wrench your facial muscles back into place.

"Bein' thorough?" offers Bonny.

Another lash of his tongue, this time playing with the rim.

"Very," he whispers.

You knee him gently but he just licks again. Fuck. It's harder and harder to look calm, harder to control the urge to sink your fingers into the curls and ride his fucking face.

"T-Thorough, yes," you manage. "I'll be out in a min."

She makes to step forwards. "Want any help?"

"No! I mean, no, thank you." You can't focus. Bonny's there but in your mind's eye you can only see Sebastian between your legs, working you to climax. "Promise I won't be long."

His pace quickens, sliding back forth back forth. You nudge him again, which only makes his tongue more eager. The world teeters.

"Aw'right, well," says Bonny, "I'll tell the bloke with the walking stick to wait at the bar then? He's looking for your man but I can't seem to find him."

Sebastian coils his arms around your thighs, adjusting the position as his tongue slips easily inside you.

"Yes!" you cry, then cough. "Yes, that would— be— great."

Bonny makes a face but shrugs and swings the door shut behind her, leaving you in dusky silence again.

"You arsehole—"

He doesn't let you finish, using his whole mouth now to stimulate your clit and entrance in tandem. Burying in and out, across and up, kissing and sucking. Your head cranes backwards, your hands fist your skirt to channel the frustration, the desire. Fuck, it feels amazing. A guttural moan escapes your mouth but doesn't even sound like your own, so lost in the thrill – and when Sebastian licks and licks and licks without stopping, you're quickly arcing your back and bucking against his mouth until the release comes swift and fast, pulsing sloppily over his face.

It takes a few seconds to regain some measure of poise. Sebastian drops the skirt and reveals himself grinning widely and sticky with cum.

"You're incorrigible."

"And you're welcome."

"We could've been caught."

He thumbs his face and licks it off, without taking his eyes off you. "You enjoy the risk."

"I'm at risk of being caught and destroying my reputation. You're hiding under my skirts."

He stands and slips your chin into his grasp, tilting it up to ghost his lips.

"Careful, love. I might like to show you how brazen I can be."

One step closer pins you between the wall and him. His breath susurrates as he dips down to your ear.

"I'd fuck you on that counter if you'd let me."

The image of you sprawled out for all to see, naked and begging and at the mercy of his pleasure, sends heat up unspooling through your core again, and a coy glance downwards shows that same desire reflected in his physical form.

"Ominis is waiting for you."

"Hm." He grasps your arse tightly and hoists you to the wall, pressing his bulge between your legs. "Let him wait."

With two firm tugs you undo his breeches, and Sebastian claims your mouth, tongue still salty and sweet with your juices. He roughly grinds forwards, pulsing a new wave of pleasure down your navel, satisfying of the feel of his hard, eager cock. One stroke elicits a mid-kiss groan down your throat, and when you reach to grasp him, please him, the wetness that quickly blooms from the head drives your wants mad.

The nights are tender and loving, but today, with the pub hall only upstairs, Sebastian buries the tip, then the entirety of him, inside you in a quick, flush motion. You feel full yet famished still. Legs curled around him and arms steady, you become a vessel for his pleasure as he ruts into you so hard the floorboards groan. Someone could hear you – you're sure of it. If Bonny or anyone had another question or thought to check on their boss, they would get treated to a sight of Sebastian's cock between your legs, yet you take each thrust willingly and frantically, rocking to his rhythm in desperation to find a new release. He's right, you enjoy the risk. You enjoy him. Clinging to his back, you relish his hard muscles bearing your weight, and dig your nails into his shirt and flesh beneath.

He peels free as he adjusts position, gripping your thighs like vice, and his mouth finds the swell between your neck and collarbone. The sensations tip you closer and closer. Your body doesn't just want to orgasm, it needs to. You have to let go. A rasping moan bleats from your lips, broken by ragged pants.

"Keep quiet, love," he commands. "Only I get to hear you cum."

Your spine hits the wall with each thrust. The fire builds until its pleading, beseeching for release, and with one final desperate movement you clench around his cock and freely orgasm, biting your lip to curb the scream that surges up your throat. Divine pleasure wracks every bone.

"S-Sebastian..."

His name blurted like that makes his grip tighten. He pants raggedly, pumps with no rhythm, eyes fluttering upwards and nails biting, and when he finally pulls out to twist away before his release spurts, his face contorts with pleasure, almost pain, that he can't cum inside you, leave you dripping and marked as his as you work.

Knees too week to stand, you slump to the floor, spent.

"You really... are incorrigible..."

He lets out a low chuckle and runs a hand through his sweaty curls.

"But you love it."

You do.

He leans over and slips a hand around your waist, pulling you up to his chest. For a long moment, as your hearts climb down from the high together, neither of you say anything. Despite his past, his secrets, his vices, Sebastian has become the one place where you can truly be yourself. There are no worries or impossible expectations, no societal burdens, no weight nor responsibility. No stress. He is the safety net, the impenetrable monument, the sun that whispers to the sprout to thrive, and if Heaven exists, it's this beautiful connection, the golden threads that bind you together with something far greater than love.

Adventure, freedom, the new and unexpected but never unwelcome. Sebastian is all those things and more.

"I don't want to see what the brute wants," he murmurs. "I'd rather stay here with you forever."

Your focus tugs back to those brilliant coffee eyes.

"Just for now will be enough."

To divert suspicions, you go back to the main hall first.

Tidying yourself up is harder than it sounds, with the flush of sex fresh on your face. With a final kiss, Sebastian promises to clean up as you head up out the stock room and into the hall. Ominis is distinctive immediately by his unfittingly taut posture, state of overdress and cane slotted tightly into his palm, but he lifts his chin as you approach, like he can scent you coming.

Hopefully not. He might mistake you for his friend.

"Good afternoon, madam," he greets cordially, setting his teacup down. "Sebastian is close by, I presume."

Sebastian saunters out next, and it seems to take all his willpower not to touch you. His easy smile capsizes from post-coital bliss to pre-disaster despair.

"Please tell me you're here to buy me a drink and nothing else?"

"I have news," he says. "On Harlow."

"Then out with it," you demand. "What do you know?"

"It's best I discuss the matter with Sebastian privately."

"Why? They're going to come here, ain't they?"

He makes to retort, but Sebastian cuts in. "She's right, Ominis. Let's both hear it."

Ominis purses his lips in hesitation, but stands. "Very well. I have... informants who have received word that he intends to strike the premises with a dozen of his men tonight."

Your heart leaps into your throat. "What? Tonight? Then why are you here? Go stop him!"

Ominis is unrelentingly stoic. "Intent is not a crime, and unfortunately Harlow has a large enough following that means we must catch him in the act to arrest him. Any premature move could give away the element of surprise. He underestimated you last time, so I imagine he will bring full..." he rolls his lips, "firepower tonight."

"I have a plan, don't worry," Sebastian adds at your horror. "Been cooking it some time."

"And you didn't think to share it with me?" you snap.

"It's no longer safe for you here," Ominis says coolly. "You'll need to make accommodations elsewhere for the time being."

"And what about my pub?"

"Let us handle it."

"I'm hearing a lot of don't worry about it and not enough telling me what you plan to do."

"That's all I can share. Sebastian," he says abruptly, "we'll discuss more later, once I have logistics in place."

He glides away like he hasn't just upended your entire world. It's one thing to target you, another entirely to target this place. You live here, work here, grew up here, met Sebastian here. It can't all end in ruin.

"Just for tonight, lay low at my place." Sebastian fishes in his pocket and places a warm metal key into your palms. "Garreth will be more than happy to watch your parents, he has a spare room, he's very discreet and he adores old people."

You don't even have the brain power to fathom how Sebastian could organise that in one afternoon. "I won't cower."

"Not cowering. All you have to do—"

"No." You thrust the key back into his hand. "This time you tell me what's going on. It's not a pig-headed customer or a carriage to the seaside, Sebastian. This place is my life."

"I know, and I would never do anything to jeopardise it."

"So why can't you tell me your plan?"

"Because I don't want you to worry about me, more than you already will." He steps closer, gets quieter. "Everything will work out, but for that to happen, I need to know you're safe and far away. I can't... I can't risk you getting hurt. I can't work to protect this place knowing you're in danger."

"You're on leave," you whisper. "I don't want you getting hurt."

"I won't." He puts the key back and cups your hands over it. "I know it's hard for you, but—"

"Trust you?"

"Now you're getting it." His hands slip away – you miss the warmth keenly. "It'll be over by morning, I promise."

This side of him, confident and self-assured and doubtless everything will be okay, draws you in like seduction. This isn't the first time you've put your faith in his hands, but now it kindles a feeling of helplessness in your belly. He's never let you down before and has no reason to now – but still, you can't help feel pushed over your limit.

There's more at stake this time. Your life and your parents' lives are more important, yes, but it feels... wrong, to abandon your home when it needs you most.

"All right," you back down, uneasy but left without options. "Just... be careful."

He takes your hand, bowing to kiss the fingers like delicate embers in a breeze.

"Now, bar girl," he murmurs, "where's the fun in that?"

The door opens before the third swing of the knocker.

"Brilliant timing!" Garreth greets, ushering you inside. "Just tucked your parents into bed!"

It took a forty minute walk to reach the Weasley townhouse on the west side of the city. You've forgone wondering the hows and whys of Sebastian's machinations, so it doesn't surprise you to find your parents in the spare bedroom, sitting up and nattering about green flames. The place is surprisingly plain, with a sparse number of portrait photographs on an empty oak shelf, a navy armchair that clashes with red wallpaper and a cuckoo clock, except instead of chiming on the hour, it chimes at seven minutes past.

"Cup of tea?" asks Garreth. "It'll be good for the nerves, and not to brag, but I'm very good at hand-brewing."

"No, thank you. Is Mr Gaunt here?"

"Why would he be here?" he blurts. "He doesn't live here, or anything. He's just my colleague. At work. Working. Yeah. He and Sebastian are already on the case."

You stew on it as you ensure your parents are settled and comfortable. It's already past nine and the pub closed early, and if Ominis' intel is correct, Harlow's gang will be storming the place in a few hours. He wouldn't hesitate to deliver a killing blow; Sebastian would, despite his blood-stained past. What if, in granting mercy, he gets badly hurt or killed?

"What about Kath?" you ask, and Garreth stiffens. "Does she know?"

"Errrrr." He laughs nervously. "Don't be mad..."

"What, Garreth?"

"They're not exactly doing this... by the book..." He holds up his hands. "They won't be able to stop Harlow any other way. And trust me, even when Seb's off his tits he's too competent to let shit go awry."

"So it's just him and Ominis? Against Harlow's entire gang?" You glare at him. "What exactly is this plan?"

Garreth goes a little pale. "They're going to use bait to lure him into a trap they've set. That's all."

"Bait?" you snap. "What bait?"

"It'll be fine, I promise! Over by one, Seb told me. He's that confident."

Time seems to distend. Sebastian was right – you are worrying, so much it gnaws your insides. They're outnumbered and outmanned and assuming Harlow will be idiot enough to fall into whatever this trap is they've set, presumably at your pub's expense.

"Where's that handsome, tattooed young man, hmm?"

You spin to your father, wrenched from the conversation. "What?"

"Oh, if I were fifty years younger, sweetheart," your mother chimes, relaxing next to him, "I'd be all over him!"

You don't know whether to laugh or cry. Of course they remember him, out of everyone they've ever met. "He's busy right now."

"Not without another woman, I hope?"

"No, Mama."

"What a lucky chap he is to have you at his side. Not everyone gets that, you know." Your mother turns to face your father with a smile. "The adventures we had... they were always worth the risk."

Adventure, and freedom, and the new and unexpected but never unwelcome... a painful ache goes through you. Wasn't that something you learnt when you were with Sebastian? Living, rather than surviving? Taking the risk rather than hiding away?

Downstairs, you grab your things as Garreth opens the front door.

"You can stay, if you want," he says, leaning against the doorway. "It'll be a tight squeeze, but I can whip up a bed for you in the living room."

Sleep will be hard enough at Sebastian's place. "Thanks, but I'll be all right. You'll call if there's any issues?"

"Don't worry, I'm used to entertaining old people. If they can't sleep I can show them some magic! Er, by that I mean coin tricks and pulling my thumb off, of course." He laughs awkwardly. "Keep out of trouble tonight?"

You don't make that promise.

It's lonely in Sebastian's place without him.

To busy yourself, you tidy. Charming as the owner is, he's a terrible mess, and his attempts to clean since you were last here only mean the floor is free of empty bottles. You scrub the kitchen countertop, hoping each stain that peels away will relieve the anxiety storming through your gut.

It doesn't.

Even when you wash and dress and climb into his bed, breathing his familiar scent, your feet feel like they're filled with lightning, charged and restless and twitchy and taut. The clock ticks on Sebastian's wall. The pendulum swings. It passes midnight, then one, and you hear no sign, nothing that relieves you of this nightmarish cycle of waiting, hoping, praying, pleading.

Wait. Hope. Pray. Plead.

The later it gets, the worse your thoughts become. Harlow's grin. The place is flames. Sebastian struck down. Sebastian unmoving...

Everything you love is there. The building, the memories... him. If things go wrong, not only will you lose the place, but the person, too. He said to trust him – and you do, so much your soul aches at the thought of lying here, doing nothing, while he risks his life for you.

Maybe it's time to risk your life for him. Just this once. Just for love.

Without another breath, you're out of bed, dressing and snatching your coat and shoving your feet into boots. Fuck it. The most harm you can do is swing a punch with whatever muscle you've developed moving furniture and pouring beer, but if Sebastian's in trouble and there's any way you can help, even if it means acting as bait yourself, you'll seize it.

Outside, it doesn't take long to grasp your bearings, as the river cuts seamlessly through the city centre, but it's a bit of a walk, and the dark is no place for a lone woman. You keep to brightly lit areas and skirt strangers in wide arcs, channelling that fear into a determined pace.

When you near Ye Olde Hen House, a sharpness tickles the air.

It's not strong at first, but as you get closer the smell thickens and dries your tongue. Smoke. It tastes like Guy Fawkes' Night, fireworks and bonfires and effigies charred to cinders. You jog, then sprint, the last two streets until you can see the plume rising from the source.

In another life, the sight would be biblically divine. Devour the old to make way for the new. Sometimes you wished it, when the pipes burst or the carpet wore away or the damp crept through a leak in the ceiling, but watching the old building now, with its windows shattered and the great orange tongues churning through the wood like claws through flesh and bone, shoots an intense pang of grief up your chest. The place may be old, tired and decrepit, but it's yours.

This is dangerous. You shouldn't go further. But the thought of Sebastian burning within compels you to race forwards, faster than your limbs have ever taken you before. There's nothing you can do to save the place now, but if he dies as you stand here and watch, there wouldn't be a lifetime long enough to atone.

"Sebastian!" you screech. "Sebastian!"

Just as you come upon the entrance, the flames recede. You skid to a halt. Someone is inside. Him? Or Harlow? You hit the great double-door, expecting resistance – but the wood is soggy and you burst into the main hall, still aflame and wrecked so completely it's almost unrecognisable.

Harlow has his back to you, and the grief doesn't have time to bloom.

His clothes are singed, he's leaning heavily to one side and thick blood weeps from numerous injuries, including an enormous gash down the length of his back. Trembling and red with rage, he stands opposite a figure too obscured by both cloak and smoke to make out clearly.

"And after you're dead, I'll come for your whore. Tie her up, make her scream. Maybe find out what you find so sweet about her Muggle cunt." He bellows a hysterical laugh and raises something wooden in his hand. "Save a seat in hell for me."

No. You seize the first thing you can find: the cast-iron pan hanging on the rack. The handle makes your skin sizzle, but you clamp down on the agony – and jab the curve right into Harlow's exposed wound.

The screech he lets out could curdle blood, and he drops to his knees. You reel back. He only just turns around – eyes going wide – before you whack it against his head, and his body thumps to the ground, unconscious. Maybe dead. You drop the pan, palms red and raw and quivering with pain, and look over.

The figure steps back – but it's not Sebastian.

You snatch the details between the smoke. Familiarly curved, with fingers that sing of hardship, hair escaping its loose bundle and shoulders like the physical weight of responsibility has sheared them down to a perpetual slant, it's a body you know both intimately and don't understand, and love or despise depending on moods as errant as the wind. The person darts across the floor to the stock room for the back entrance, flicking the barest second of attention your way.

With eyes matching your own.

It's impossible. Impossible. How could someone wear every flaw on your skin, every follicle and pore, every old scar and callous like a garment to be discarded when they saw fit? The lookalike scampers away, and your feet jerk you forwards in chase, through the ruined doorway to the back alley.

You have to know. You have to.

"Wait!" you choke out. "Who are—?"

But when you turn the corner, the doppelgänger is gone.

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[dwobbitfromtheshire]

Part One. . .Part Two. . .Part Three

A few weeks later, Steve, Eddie, Robin, and Vickie were hanging out in Robin's backyard. They were sprawled out on blankets, enjoying the cool summer evening air and watching Robin scribble into her journal as she translated their curse into Latin. Vickie was reading a book on witchcraft that she found at a bookstore in Indianapolis, her head on Robin's back. Eddie was trying to peak over his boyfriend's shoulder to get a glimpse at Steve's own notebook. Steve was coming up with his own potion ideas or trying to.

"Would you quit it? Your hair is tickling my chin," Steve said affectionately.

"I finished working on the campaign for Hellfire. I'm bored now," Eddie pouted.

"Take a nap," Steve said.

Eddie scowled and grinned.

"Fine."

Eddie crawled on top of Steve, his back pressed up against Steve’s as he spread out his entire body to line up against his. He leaned his head back against Steve’s and crossed his arms.

"I didn't mean on me!" Steve exclaimed.

"You love it when I fall asleep on you!" Eddie yelled.

"This is an awkward way to do it, Eddie," Steve sighed.

"Would the Peanut Gallery please be quiet? I am trying to translate English into Latin here. . .or do you not want me to finish the curse?" Robin asked.

"It sounds like you're getting frustrated, baby," Vickie said, closing her book and shuffling to lay next to Robin. "Do you want to take a break and get some food for that beautiful brain of yours?"

"That's delightful," Robin said. "Pizza?"

"Ooh, yes!" Eddie exclaimed. "Your parents going to want some?"

"No, they said before they left that they're going to take Wayne out again," Robin said.

"Jesus, they're also taking him away for the weekend. They trying to knock him up?" Eddie asked.

"I don't know, but it's definitely getting pretty serious," Robin said. "They said they wanted to talk to us before they went away. I should have told you that earlier."

"Damn, it is serious," Eddie whistled.

"Looks like you are going to be cousins," Steve said.

"There are worse people to be related to," Robin said and Eddie grinned.

"And my uncle deserves to be taken care of for once," Eddie said.

"And my parents are very loving. They love to love," Robin beamed and then frowned. "I'm telling you right now, though, I am not sharing a room with you. You'll share with Steve."

"Oh, living in the same bedroom as my boyfriend. . . The horror. . .whatever shall I do?" Eddie asked dramatically and rolled off Steve.

He snuggled up to Steve’s side and planted a big wet kiss on his cheek.

"Okay, so pizza!"

The sun was starting to fade when Argyle pulled up in his van. He had started working at the local pizza place after spring break along with Jonathan.

"Oh, thanks for inviting us, man," Argyle said to Robin as she guided both of them to her backyard.

"We're more than glad to have you," Robin said as Vickie came to help her with the pizzas. "I just hope you don't mind eating out here."

"I love eating under an open sky," Argyle said.

They set the pizzas on the patio table as Eddie and Steve brought out more chairs.

"Nancy couldn't make it?" Steve asked.

"Oh, she's busy trying to get back into Emerson," Jonathan said.

"Oh, she's going to get in. There's nothing that she couldn't tackle," Steve said.

"Definitely, they're definitely going to regret kicking her out," Jonathan said, sharing a grin with Steve and pausing. "Uh, Nancy and I both moved on from each other. . ."

"Yeah, I've moved on, too," Steve grinned and wrapped an arm around Eddie's waste. "Isn't that right, stud?"

"Oh, yeah," Eddie grinned as he let Steve pull him into his lap. "Screw the other chair, I guess."

"You, too?" Jonathan asked.

"Eddie," Steve gasped. "Are you seeing Jonathan, too?"

"Not that I'm aware of," Eddie said in confusion.

"No, I mean, you moved on with a guy, too?" Jonathan asked.

"Yeah," Steve said and looked at Argyle questionly.

"Oh, yeah, it's me," Argyle said and pulled Jonathan into his lap.

"Oh, well, I guess it was pointless bringing out those two extra chairs," Robin said.

"I realized I was bisexual in California," Jonathan blushed. "I just didn't know how to tell Nancy that I had fallen for someone else."

"And I, of course, follow my heart wherever it leads me," Argyle said, squeezing Jonathan's hip.

"Well, you don't follow someone halfway across the country after being shot at, and then stay with them after the hell you been through if you're not in love with them," Jonathan said, blushing. "Even I could see that."

"Worth it," Argyle said.

He cupped the back of Jonathan's neck and pulled him in for a quick kiss. Jonathan smiled against his lips before pulling back, his cheeks red.

"Although, I don't know, I think I'm always going to be a little bit in love with Nancy Wheeler," Jonathan said. "Which Argyle totally gets."

"Yeah, I've talked about that with Eddie," Steve smiled. "She's a hard woman to get over."

"Tell me about it," Jonathan said.

"I definitely have a Nancy shaped spot in my heart," Steve said and pointed to his chest. "Right here, according to Eddie."

"Really? Because Jonathan's is right here," Argyle said, pointing to a different spot on Jonathan's chest.

"Hm, interesting," Eddie said, thoughtfully.

"Okay, as cute as this is that we've discovered that none of us are straight, I am hungry," Robin said. "Let's eat, translating english to Latin is hard work."

"Why are you doing that?" Jonathan asked as they dug into the food.

As they ate, Robin told Jonathan and Argyle all about their coven. Argyle thought it was cool, but Jonathan wasn't so sure about it.

"What's the problem? It's not like it's real," Robin said.

"Okay, but up until the summer of 85, you didn't think another world existed underneath Hawkins," Jonathan pointed out.

"Okay, that's a fair point," Robin said. "We've all been doing this for weeks, and nothing's happened. . .not even a flicker."

"Still," Jonathan said. "Why test fate? I mean, how did this happen anyway?"

"Well, Steve and I got bored one day after my parents told me that I was descended from witches," Robin said. "It was only going to be us, but then Steve brought Eddie over, then Eddie invited Vickie over. . .and so now, we're all working to figure out a way to place a curse on Steve's dad. Of course, it's not real, so nothing's going to happen, but it's fun to think about."

"Ooh, you've got room for a couple more witches?" Argyle asked.

"Argyle," Jonathan protested.

"Nancy's right. You are your mother's son," Argyle said. "There's nothing to worry about, babe."

Jonathan sighed as he stared at his boyfriend.

"I suppose I do worry a lot," he said. "Is there room in your coven?"

"There's plenty of room," Robin grinned.

"Oh, yes! You guys are so cute!" Vickie said with a smile. "Though not as cute as me and Robin."

"Nice save, my sweet bread," Robin said.

After they finished their pizza, Robin and Steve rushed to their room to grab the supplies. They set it up and pushed the initiatives into the middle of the circle.

"Okay, I feel like we're forgetting something," Steve said.

"Fire extinguisher, sweetheart," Eddie said.

"Thanks," Steve said and rushed back in to retrieve it.

"Okay, so the last few times, they took off their shirts to enscribe runes on their torsos, but you don't have to do that," Robin said.

Argyle didn't hesitate and shed his tops. Jonathan stared at him nervously, licking his lips before doing the same as they kneeled in front of each other.

"So, what do we paint?" Jonathan asked.

"Anything you want, really," Robin said.

"Robin and Steve chose to paint genitals," Eddie grinned.

Argyle laughed as he chose to draw a pineapple in the center of Jonathan's chest. Jonathan snickered as he drew a pot leaf in the middle of Argyle's.

"To each their own," Robin smiled.

They watched as Jonathan took the potion from Steve and dabbed it on Argyle before giving it to him to let him do the same. Jonathan took it back from Argyle and put it on his lips before kissing his boyfriend. With both of them on their knees, Jonathan wrapped his arms around Argyle's neck and pulled himself closer. Argyle wrapped his arms around Jonathan's waist as they both deepened the kiss, moaning into each other's mouth. Jonathan quickly pulled back, swallowing.

"Woah, head rush," Jonathan and Argyle said.

"It's cute how someone always chooses to kiss their partners even though they don't have to," Robin said.

Jonathan and Argyle held hands as they faced them. Steve, Eddie, Robin, and Vickie stood in front of them, holding hands as well. Robin didn't need the notebook anymore, as she had memorized the spell. Robin opened her mouth to begin when Steve suddenly made a noise with his mouth.

"What's wrong, Popeye?" Robin asked.

"Oh, I suddenly thought about Chrissy. . .she would have loved this," Steve said.

"She would?" Eddie asked.

"Oh, she thought witches were fascinating. . .I wish she was here," Steve said.

"Yeah, me too," Vickie said.

"Yeah," Eddie said. "I definitely would have loved to see her reaction to this."

Robin gave them a minute to think about Chrissy before opening her mouth to begin the chant. Once the spell was over, Jonathan and Argyle began to clean the paint off each other when the wind began to pick up.

"Does anyone feel a little tingly?" Vickie asked.

"Yeah, does that not usually happen?" Jonathan asked.

"Well, no, but I'm sure that just means it's going to storm," Robin said, looking up at the darkening sky.

The wind started to blow harder, and the flames on the candles flickered before going out all together. Suddenly, the sound of thunder was heard, followed by lightning.

"Uh, doesn't lightning usually come first?" Steve asked.

"Usually," Vickie frowned.

"Uh, we should probably go inside," Robin said. "Gather everything up."

They quickly grabbed everything and rushed inside. They made it just in time. The thunder clapped loudly, and then the rain came pouring down.

"Are you sure we didn't just cast a real spell?" Jonathan asked.

"I'm not so sure," Robin said, looking at the rain.

Meanwhile. . .in Roane County Cemetery. . .

A rat skiddered along the ground, trying to dodge the rain and look for food as well. He ran towards the grave that sat underneath the tree, taking cover from the rain. He sniffed at it, looking at the headstone. If he could read, he would have understood what it had said: Christine Elizabeth Cunningham. Just as he was about to move away, a hand shot out from the grave. It wrapped itself tightly around the rat, causing it to squeak as the hand's nails dug into it. Blood dripped from the rat and down into the grave.