#i thank you all for giving vivi the love and attention she deserves

[rockstarsoldier]

i have this feeling that people don't like female ocs...

i come from a time where people were adamant that female ocs sucked and they would bully anyone who had female ocs. thankfully, that doesn't happen much now but the subtly of dislike is still there, not sending hate or going around saying "all female ocs are mary sue" but how people ignore them and just don't pay attention to them to the point the author behind the character just lose interest of writing their character.

funny how the female ocs are the one that suffer it but male ocs are still well loved

[visd3stele]

Oak and the throne

summary:

TW: none

A/N: I always hoped Jude and Cardan would keep the throne, so I'm glad Oak likes the mortal world so much :)

Next one should be up by thirsday

Thank you so much for the request, hope it's what you expected. xoxo

@britishbookworm2 requested here

masterlist

"Oak! Come back here," Jude's voice carried through the palace. Despite years of dealing with stubborn faes in the council, eliciting orders to soldiers and servants alike and talking down to her subjects as Cardan does, her voice was steady, even and almost sweet as she yelled after her little brother.

Little brother. The thought seemed out of place. In his years in the mortal world, Oak had a growth spurt, while she remained the same. Young, not yen an adult, yet passed through much more than her elders could claim to.

"No!" Oak shouted back, though he stopped in the middle of the throne room. "No," and he turned back to Jude, walking fast with his now bigger, stronger goat legs. "You promised me I won't have to take over if I don't want to. Well, guess what, Jude? I don't!"

He didn't tower over her like she expected. His bent knees cutting from his height. But Oak, the boy she used to lean down to hug and kiss on top of his horned head, still stood taller than her at the throne's dais.

"You should have taken it in writing, little brother." Cardan chimed in, bemused. A glare from his wife shut him up, though still smirking, and the High King opened a second bottle of wine.

"Oak," Jude begin again. "I know it's not ideal. When all this started, you were so young. I get it's a little scary and overwhelming. But it's your birthright..."

"It's Cardan's birthright too." Oak protested, crossing his arms over his chest after pointing a hand towards the King sitting on the throne's dais. His tail bounced left and right in amusement as he raised the bottle towards his half brother and gulped down a mouthful of wine.

"Speaking of Cardan," Jude seized the opportunity, "he didn't want to be High King either. But he got used to it. He came to like it. Tell him, oh, dear husband." The look the High Queen gave her lover contradicted her words, for nothing short of a clear threat shone in her eyes. The fae just smiled to himself, used to his wife's antics. He made a show of getting up on his feet, taking a few steps forward with his normal care free elegancy, when Oak's words stopped him.

"If he likes it that much, why can't Cardan still be King? I thought you liked to be Queen, too, Jude. Don't you?"

Both the warrior mortal and the peaceful fae stood glued in their places. Perplexed. Twenty years ago, when she started her ascension to the throne, Jude did so with only one purpose in mind: put that crown on Oak's head. Every decision she made, each plotting and scheming should have led to the celebration of High King Oak of Greenbriar line. Didn't it?

Now that she thought about it, things changed. Jude couldn't say when or how exactly. But at some point between then and now, she started to see herself as the real queen. High Queen in her right, not just a replacement until Oak is old enough.

Maybe it was when she choose to love Cardan and he made her his equal by splitting the throne in two ostentatious ones right in the middle of the room. Maybe it was when the Court of Shadows gifted her the title as a nickname. Jude wouldn't admit even to herself how much though she'd given to that afterwards. Or maybe it was recently, in the years after breaking Cardan's curse. Years spent ruling together, bringing up a better Elfhame than either of them grew up in.

As for Cardan, the High King's eyes darted to the crown, fingers itching to pick it up and place it atop his head. To give it a light push so it'd lean on one side, but never falling. As if it clinged to him. As if it chose him.

It's true, the youngest prince - as he thought himself for so long - never craved the throne. Why would he? He was the least favorite child, not good enough to deserve their father's attention. His mother's love. So how could he be a good king? But after Jude tricked him and all Elfhame bowed to him, looked up to him, something shift inside him. Cardan actually enjoyed the process of thinking through a court scheme. The insides of a carefully given order - a pawn in a bigger game. He found it entertaining to search ways to deal with the council, to make them bow to his whims. And when he married Jude and those whims matured into interests, well, building a kingdom of dreams none he or his wife dared to ever hope for, leaving such a legacy behind, he, Cardan Greenbriar, the pitiful prince, it felt right.

"You don't wish to rule, Oak?" Cardan asked, more concern than he ever spoke with lacing his voice.

"No! Never did, never will."

Jude could recognize a bit of Vivi in the way Oak said it, rolling his eyes and putting accent on certain vowels. But Vivi insisted it wasn't unusual in the mortal world, humans using this sort of speech all the time. Thinking about it, seeing her little brother clear for the first time she summoned him in Fairyland, Jude realized Oak would look out of place in fae's clothes. The green hoodie he wore and dark grey jeans fitted him perfectly.

"But would you be alright there? Hiding your real self, your magic?"

"I'm not hiding, Jude," Oak's voice softened. His big sister didn't want to ruin his life. She was looking after him, his happiness in the only way she knew how. The Fae way. "I mean, yes, people see what I want them to, what with the glamour and all. But it doesn't mean I don't get to be myself. I go to college, you know? Herbologist," he chuckled to himself. "I like it. I have friends, and... and one day, when I'll meet my Heather, then I'll skip to telling her the truth and... I don't know what then, but it'll be fine. I'll be fine, Jude. I promise."

It took several minutes for Jude to reply. She eyed Oak the entire time, her mind swerling, trying to keep up with the speed of her thoughts. Eventually, she saw his truth, just like when she faced hers own: she wouldn't fit in the mortal world, she loved Cardan, she was the High Queen. And Oak? Oak would make a great herbologist - whatever that was - because he doesn't fit in Elfhame anymore. And she won't be the one to crush him or his hopes.

She nodded her head, Cardan's cue to drop a silly, drunk-like, huge smile and take the crowns in his hands.

"Promise you'll visit, though."

It was Oak's turn to nod, a grin pulling his lips upward. "Of course. I can stay for dinner, if you promise not to offer me a court or something."

Jude laughed. "I think we can do that." She turned to her husband, who hummed distracted and tucked a loose strand behind her year, putting extra effort in to trace the soft, round edge of it with his fingers. Cardan, then, crowned her, tilting his head. To no one's surprise his own tolkien of kinghood didn't fell, despite its crooked position.

"Unless a gift is required by tradition, brother dearest," Cardan said, "fret not. You'll be seeing nothing from us." And without waiting to see if Oak is following, he spooned his wife, his queen, in his arms, leading her to the dining table. All the way there, the king peppered his heart's chosen one with kisses, whispering promising for the night. Silk words about a royal celebration in their suit and implications of a new heir to the throne, now that the one they'd planned for decided to go to a mortal college and stay there.

Oak smiled. Truthfully and heartfully. No, he won't be High King. But he felt like he owned the whole world hours later, when he got back to his dorm and picked up his pen to write some notes on next friday's homework.

[love-toxin]

Hi! I’ve been reading a bunch about your new batch of oc’s (it’s really cool how they’re all super distinct from each other—that’s pretty hard to pull off, but you do it so well!) I was wondering (only if it’s ok!) to ask/req about how your new batch would react to a mouthy/sassy s/o who’s really not interested in a relationship? Thank you for your time and have a wonderful day!

merci!! ;w;

Leo

"I love you too much to let you push me around."

he may be domesticated, but there's no way he'll let your mouth run him away. he hates how much your laughter pisses him off in this moment, how it reminds him that you don't take him seriously enough to even consider his confession. nobody else makes him so crazy, so angry, so needy like the dog he's accepted that he is. you can barely collect yourself, and it's humiliating. it's all he can do to keep himself from baring his teeth and sink them into your neck to take you down and show you your place.

"are you serious, Leo?"

your voice cuts so deep into his chest, deeper than any knife of the most dire sharpness.

"this has to be a prank. you're not my type, puppy, and you know that."

you reach out to ruffle his ears, you think it's all just a joke at his own expense. you won't even look him in the eyes long enough to see how dark and cold they've become. if you don't see that he loves you now...

well, he'll just have to make it clear to everyone, so you'll never doubt him again.

Mel

"Mh? Is that an attitude I sense?"

it is. undoubtedly. but it's of little importance to him--he knows how to play this game, and he'll play it better than you ever will. you mouth off like you've never been shut up before, that much is very clear, and he didn't mind so much at first. thought it was just a little teasing back and forth, which isn't unnatural considering his personality.

but you don't wanna be his, and that's not allowed! haven't you realized by now that you're special? what the two of you have is rare, impossible even--he loves you so much he would give up his own life, and he knows you would do the same if you just admit it to yourself.

but you're so closed off. you serve back every flirtation with sass, get mouthy with him when he tries to be real and honest with you about anything, much less those times that you've been alone together and he tries to tell you how he feels.

this isn't how things are supposed to be. he won't let you shy away from the most passionate love he'll ever let you experience.

Noel

"Please, just listen to me....I love you."

how could you do this to him? just stop, pause, and stare right into his soul....and give him attitude? you're gonna make jokes like he didn't just pour his whole heart out to you?

what else can he do, now? he feels so lost, and for once your smile can't comfort him when you're holding back saying something rude to him. he doesn't want to cry, he wants to be strong, but the tears spill down his cheeks whether he wants them to or not.

"c'mon Noel, you know I don't want to be with you. is it really such a surprise?"

oh, now you've done it. his tears will abide soon, but only because he's realized what you're doing now.

you're just trying to string him along. test him to see if he's worthy enough to deserve being yours. and with that in the back of his head, he can find the strength to smile through the pain in his heart--because nobody has more patience than he does, and you'll understand just how much of your abuse he'll endure for the sake of your love.

Vivi

"So feisty, so cute! That's all I need to hear. You're mine."

it's adorable how you think a little brattiness will get you off the hook. don't you realize she's the master of this little game you've got going on? a few little scathing remarks aren't gonna make her run with her tail between her legs--in fact, quite the opposite. she loves the chase, after all.

"yeah right, Vivi. I don't think so, but thanks anyway."

aww, are you getting a little scared? she can see the twitch of your fingers against your arm, that look in your eye that befits an animal of prey. you couldn't get rid of her if you tried, and even if you did it would just end up pissing her off. so you keep hiding behind that wall of words you always put up to protect yourself, but she's gonna tear it down in seconds and take you for herself if you're not careful.

oh, dear. she didn't just say all that out loud, did she? your eyes are really struck with terror now...but it's such a cute look, isn't it? it really suits you more than all that attitude you like to give.

"just be still, darling." it'll hurt a lot more than your words ever could, otherwise.

Avi

"Settle down, little red. Don't make me bite you."

he's always liked playing with his food, but you bring a whole new meaning to that. you distract him with your little remarks and snarky comments, sometimes so much so that he forgets how perfect you would look with his teeth against your throat. he could choke you down and spit you up, churn you up from the inside out and leave you wanting more, absolutely ruin you so nobody else would even think of picking up such a filthy little pet.

and you still give him the best view of that pretty little mouth of yours. just that one comment alone has you giving him lip like your life depends on it, but all he can see is your energy wearing down bit by bit, your breaths getting slower with every passing word you spit back at him with more sass than you should be allowed. maybe he'll suit you up with a muzzle if you get this mouthy on your way back to his place.

just wear yourself out, he thinks to himself. you can't keep up the chase forever, little red.

Leigh

"I think you need to wash your mouth out."

does it not sound as serious when it comes from him? you laugh like you think he's joking, but he couldn't be more sincere. you like to tease him but this is different, this stings right in his heart and you know exactly how to twist the knife so it'll hurt the most. he can already imagine the expression you'll make when he grabs you by the jaw, fingers digging into your cheeks so you'll open up and he can squirt a bit of soapy foam on to your little pink tongue. just so you know he's really serious...but he can't stop thinking of sticking something else in there too, something that will really show you how serious he is.

he doesn't remember every little comment or ill-spirited jab, but the pang in his chest when you brush off his compliments and flirtations is enough for him to know it happens more often than it needs to. you're just being difficult for attention, and that's okay. you just need more of it, that's all, and who better to give it to you than him?

who better, darling? he'll wait for your answer, as long as it'll take to hear his name on the tip of your tongue.

Thorn

"Are you sure you wanna play this game with me?"

it's less of a question, more of a test. Thorn likes to drop these little riddles into your lap, and stand back to see how you'll react when he does. it's field research.

"you're gonna lose anyways, so what does it matter?"

oh, how cheeky. you always surprise him no matter what he throws at you, and this is no different--but this time he's just sick and tired of the answer. it's always the same no matter which way you phrase it, like unwrapping a candy and finding each one to be your least favourite flavour. there's always a part inside of him that thinks you're gonna change your mind one day, as if by a magical transformation--but no, you refuse, and to be honest it's really starting to irritate him.

you really don't know how good you could have it, do you? you don't understand how much he's been doing out of sight, and for you out of mind, just to ensure your happiness. you're royalty, and you don't even know it even when your prince is staring you right in the eyes, begging for the smallest scrap of your attention.

but you'll be the one begging soon. he knows it for sure.

Ilya

"That's enough out of you."

you may find it funny, but he doesn't think the same about you mocking him. sometimes he dreams about slapping that stupid little smirk off your face, but he's swiftly reminded that that may garner him the opposite reaction that he wants. people don't often take kindly to violence, that's right....but oh, you make it look so tempting. perhaps one day he'll get the chance to feel your throat bend beneath his palms, and listen to those sweet cries sputtering off your lips as you gasp for air....but you have to accept his love first, and you've promised him that it's never going to happen.

don't you realize how it breaks his heart? that your rejection time and time again is enough to make him feel like he may just die without you? why do you always do this to him?

he just has to collect himself. breathe. remember that your constitution is much weaker than his--you can't keep up this fight forever, and once you realize that he has no intention of letting you be loved by another soul on this earth, that's when he'll swoop in and claim you all for himself.

[missallsundaes]

OP girls of your choices love launages? Headcannons are fine xx thank you!

I haven’t gotten to write much for the girls!! I love my OP girls… ♥

Girls I’ve chosen to write for this time are Nami, Vivi, Nico Robin, Boa Hancock, & Perona

Feel free to make a more specific request if I’ve missed your girl x

NAMI

Okay I know that first thoughts might be “Gift Giving” And I think that she would probably enjoy that BUT I think her really TRUE love language is acts of service.

Literally like just doing something small for her like picking up on one of her chores when she’s feeling under the weather (no pun intended….)

Like she finds out you pruned the tangerine trees for her and weeded around their bases and she would be elated that you care enough to take care of something she cares about so much.

Quality time is also really important for her. She just wants to be around you but doing her own thing sometimes.

I don’t think shes the touchy-ist person so you’d have to be okay with that. She wouldn’t be physically clingy at all.

VIVI

Not to make them match but hers is also acts of service.

She tries to be independent bc she’s a Princess but doesn’t want to be pampered or waited on hand and foot.

BUT surprise her with a thoughtful homecooked meal or give her a hand with hanging up the laundry and do it together. Those little things can mean a lot to her coming from who she loves.

She also is a bit of a crybaby so physical touch in the aspect of giving her a shoulder to cry on and some attention with it would be important to making her feel loved.

She’s not afraid to do these things back for you by any means. She would probably do lots of little things that you might not notice but would add up to giving you a better quality of life.

>>Tossing a couple of your clothes in with hers when she’s doing laundry. Waking you up with a coffee and a pastry. Bringing you tea and cuddling up to you close when you were upset.

ROBIN

A woman of few words, she both needs to hear words of affirmation, and any that come from her would mean a lot because she thinks carefully before she speaks.

She would take a lot to open up fully to someone and learn to love and trust them, and kind words and encouragement would do her a world of good in that respect. She needs to be loved so much and reminded of it.

>>Please tell her that you won’t leave her when things are hard-- its what she deserves

Touch is a big one for her too. I think she would love to hold hands, and even if her hands were full, she could always sprout a new one so that she could still touch you.

She might sometimes be impatient about receiving physical touch back, but not everyone can just grow extra arms, Robin. She would settle for touching you, a hand rubbing your back or knee. Touching helps her feel grounded.

BOA

Words of affirmation.

She’s literally got a power that makes people fall for her, but a real true compliment or loving thought and she would melt.

She needs the positive love about her past and the care and thought that you could give her without being under the spell of her devil fruit.

She would also be so keen on giving out compliments or cheering you on if she loved you. She would shower you with compliments and soft words.

Physical Touch as well, She would love to be close to you. Especially nonsexual intimacy. Skin on skin and the intimacy of it would mean a lot to her, especially if you weren’t trying to have sex with her.

Like in the same vein-- washing her back in the bath. Brushing her hair.

PERONA

Gift giving!! She would collect so many things to bring you if you had been apart for a while. Imagine not seeing her for a month and she shows up with a chest full of plush toys, cute outfits, packaged snacks, and little trinkets.

If she sees something that reminds her of you-- she will buy it. No questions asked.

If you did the same back to her she would be so chuffed. Treasuring even cheap little things if they were from you.

>>You: (hands her a taco bell sauce packet that says “i love you”)

>>Her: Thank you I will keep it forever.

I’m not sure if this would be acts of service but like? Imagine lining her plush toys up in cute positions where you could see all of them at once or organizing her closet for her so she could find pieces of outfits easier? She would die for that kind of attention to detail used on her.

[jay-and-dean]

So ! You want some asks and talk and all ? Here I am :)

As I start this ask I don't know what I'm gonna say so I don't know how long it's going to be either ahah

Okay, first of all I'm sooooo excited to read the last chapter of Locked, I didn't have time to read it on Sunday (busy weekend lol) or yesterday but just so you know, I absolutely can't wait !!!

Also, your new series 'Highway To Hell' is soooo interesting, I don't know if you saw my comments and it's no problem if you didn't but since I'm here I wanted to tell you that I love how you write the topic of prostitution, the way you write the horrible situation Dean is in and how he feels and I'm soooo curious about the female character ! I always love your female characters, actually. I love that they aren't just some love interests, that they have a strong personality, badass and smart.

Anyway, while I'm here I also wanted to tell you that your fics are ones of the first I read and after reading all your stuff, I remember thinking "Wow... She writes so well and I love her ideas and I love the way she writes Dean. I admire her." And I just continued to read your stuff in secret over and over and I was excited when you posted something new and I loved your collab with @roonyxx so I started to read her stuff too and she's an incredible writer too ! Anyway, I quickly became a fan of someone I didn't know AT ALL ! Like, when I talked about your fics I couldn't even tell people what your real name was (until I stopped being an idiot and understood your username lol). But it wasn't important whether I knew your name, your nationality, your looks or not, I was a fan.

SO ! You need to know that, the fact you know I exist, that I've got the courage to DM you so I could post my fic (your writing kind of helped me improve my english and gave me some courage to try writing on my own) and you were very nice, the fact that you gave me a nickname and that we talked even a little bit makes me really really happy.... I don't know how to explain but I'm excited to hear about you, to read your stuff, to see your post appear on my dash because I'm a fan. But not a crazy one I swear ! I'm still amazed that I've got the courage to participate to your celebration and that you read my fic and liked it !! It's like if you loved a singer and when you sing your own song in front of them, they like it and say "Well done, kid."

So, I wanted to say thank you.

Thank you for writing your AMAZING stories ! For sharing them with us. Thank you for having wonderful, interesting ideas. Thank you for being nice and funny to talk to. Thank you for paying even a little bit of attention to me. Thank you for reading my rambling on my feedback and in your asks. Thank you for making me discover my hand kink ahah. Thank you for being the amazing, talented woman and writer you are. You're awesome, don't ever change or doubt yourself.

I send you Love 😘

Eva.

PS : told you it was going to be long, and I'm sure that once I'll press the button "send" I'll realize I wanted to add something else.

My (SO FUCKING) amazing Vivi,

I'll try to answer everything in order (love the gif).

Take your time for Locked, I really hope you like it as much as the rest. For Highway to Hell, thank you very much. I took some time to write the beginning, and then to post it. I knew the theme was going to be heavy, and I wanted to give it the attention and serious it deserves, without making it too triggering or insulting for people who live this kind of situations in way less lucky way.

It's such an honor that you started reading here with my fics, and it's incredibly flattering that you would want to talk about me to people. (We have the same nationality ! hehehe)

It's totally insane to have people tell "I'm a fan of you" like, wow, this makes me dizzy and blushing ! I mean, of course I answer you and of couuurse you can talk to me. The fact that I'm busy sometimes makes me a little slow at answering but I looove to interact. I'm a huge fan of you too. And I'm happy I could make you happy to interact because the person on this site that made me super nervous and fangirling never answered me when I started on this site (I'm not angry, she deleted her blog after so I guess she wasn't here anymore already).

Now, really you're welcome, and you don't have to thank me for reading your feedback, it's literally the reason why I write, or to thank me for acknowledging you, I'm not Maria Carrey lol.

For the handkink I'm sorry... not it's a lie.

All the LOVE

Jay

So shoot if you want, about literally anything, fics, questions, wtf comments, tell me about your day, your country...

[whompingweasley]

The Perfect Team

George Weasley x Reader

Brief Authors Note: Hello there! Welcome to my new (and first ever) blog! This is my first time writing a fanfic for tumblr, it is my first time writing a fanfic at all! Soooo it might not be the best but I had a blast writing it and I hope someone out there enjoys it! I wanted to create a more domestic type story with George, because I absolutely love the idea of him as a dad. I am still trying to figure out how tumblr works, and I am hoping to learn as I continue on with this blog, but for now please bear with me! Thank you so much, and enjoy!

Summary: Your husband George Weasley comes home from work to his loving wife and daughter after a long day. His wife, noticing his increased stress and sleep deprivation, offers him some much needed love and support. 

Word Count: 1.6k

“Look, mummy, look!” shouted the small, redheaded girl, flailing her tiny arms in the air as she danced to a jazzy tune coming from the record player. With her long, golden red hair and beautiful freckled face, she was the spitting image of her father, and your husband, George Weasley. 

It had been six years since the Battle of Hogwarts, and as much pain as the aftermath brought you, your friends, and your family, the years that followed were some of the happiest of your life. Shortly after the battle (and not wanting to waste any time) you married the love of your life, whom you had been with since your 5th year at Hogwarts. A year later, you gave birth to a beautiful baby girl; your daughter, Vivian Molly Weasley. Now you are the happiest you’ve ever been, living in a lovely flat in Diagon Alley, with your loving husband and the gorgeous child the two of you created.

“Wow, Vivi! Look at you!” You exclaim, pulling your eyes away from the pan on the stove containing your dinner for three. “I think you have real talent, my love.” you say, walking over to your daughter and pulling her into your embrace, kissing her cheek. “You hungry?” you ask, brushing an auburn lock from her face. She nods, causing the same lock to fall back into its original position.

“When will daddy be home?” Vivian asks, eyeing the stove, admiring the delicious dinner you have prepared for your family. 

“Should be any minute now.” 

Just as those words escaped your lips, you hear the rattling of keys, followed by the turning of the front door knob, eliciting an excited squeal from your daughter. The door opens to reveal a tall, handsome, ginger man; your man. He appears tired from a day's work at the joke shop, but over the moon excited to see his two favorite girls.

“Daddy! Daddy!” shouts Vivian, full of excitement as she dashes from across the room, and into your husband's arms.

“Hey, princess!” George bends, picking up his daughter and spinning her around. He plants rapid kisses on each of her cheeks and her head, releasing a combination of both their giggles into the air. You watch from the kitchen, admiring the love the two have for each other, and thinking to yourself “how did I get so lucky?”

George sets Vivian down, and she scurries off into the living room, mumbling something about a new toy she got earlier that day. George saw this as the perfect opportunity to greet his beautiful wife.

“Hey, mama” George pulls you in for a quick, but deep, kiss; a kiss he has given you thousands of times, yet still makes your knees weak. “How are you, darling?” he says, pulling his lips from yours, still holding you in his tight embrace.

“Alright,” you wrap your arms around his neck. “Happy that you’re home. I missed you.” You lean in for another kiss.

“I missed you too. And how was Viv today? Cause any trouble?” You and your husband look over to see your daughter, curled up on the floor, her little voice changing octaves as she imitates a conversation between two of her stuffed animals. 

“Oh, yeah. She wreaked havoc.” you say, sarcastically, eliciting a chuckle from your husband as you glance back at your daughter. “No, she was an absolute angel, as always.” You direct your  eyes to meet George’s. “And how was your day, darling?” you ask softly, caressing his cheek.

“It was good - tiring, but good. We got a massive shipment today. Gonna have to test some products over the weekend, I reckon.” You gaze into your husband's eyes. You noticed what used to be so full of life, and energy, had become more and more strained over the past few weeks. You knew work was weighing on him, however you weren’t aware of the extremity of his fatigue until just now. 

Swiping your thumbs along the dark circles under his eyes, you open your mouth to speak. “Dinner should be ready in just a minute. You must be starving.”

You and your little family sit down to enjoy supper; the most important meal in your household for it was the only meal of the day in which you could enjoy all together. Amidst the jokes, laughs, and silly stories shared by Vivian (like father, like daughter), you couldn’t help but lock eyes with George every so often. Judging by his tired eyes, loving glances and smirks, and the way he frequently brushed his leg against yours under the table, you could tell tonight was one of those nights where George needed extra love and affection. You gave him a smile, in which he returned, and reached for his hand to give it a gentle  squeeze, letting him know you were there as he tried his hardest to listen attentively to his daughter's rambles. 

“Daddy! Are you listening?” Vivian asked, playfully swatting her dad's arm. 

George quickly snapped out of the trance prompted by the beauty of his wife, and turned his attention back to his daughter. “Of course, baby. And then what happened?” 

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

As the evening grew late, you found yourself curled up on the couch with your two favorite people, finishing a movie that Vivian had picked. You were tucked under your husband's left arm; your daughter curled up on the other side of him, latched onto his arm. George turned his head to check on her.

“Looks like the little one’s asleep.” George declared. You sat up to see for yourself. You, nor George, could resist Vivian when she was asleep. Aside from finding it so undeniably adorable, you both treasured the way she laid, pressed against her dad's bicep, so peaceful, so calm; strands of ginger hair spread across her forehead. You sat together, admiring your beautiful creation for a moment until George spoke again. “How did we get so lucky?”

You buried your head in the crook of his neck, and let out a loud sigh, bringing your hand up to his firm chest. Reminding yourself of what occurred at dinner, you took this as the perfect opportunity to comfort and offer support to your stressed husband.

“Georgie?” You asked into his neck.

“Yes, my love?”

“When was the last time you got a good night's sleep.” You asked, concerned. For a second, he was silent, contemplating the question as if he could not recall the last time he had a decent sleep, which furthered your concern.

“Well...I can’t seem to remember.” he confessed, letting out a small chuckle which lightly shook his whole body. “I have just been so busy with work. Y’know, coming home late, waking up early, the whole ordeal. Why? Can you tell?”

You sat up to look at him, cupping his face in your hands, contemplating an answer that wouldn’t offend him.

“It’s alright, darling, I know I look like I’ve been hit by a bus.” He said, letting out the same soft chuckle as before. You laugh into his chest. 

“Honey, I hate seeing you like this. Every night this week you’ve come home, absolutely drained. Is there anything you can do to maybe... take some time off? Or at least come home earlier a few nights a week? You work the shop from open to close. There has to be more people to take some shifts” You say, playing with his fingers.

“M’ afraid that’s the problem with running my own shop, darling.” He says, letting out a loud sigh. “It’s hard to find good employees when I really only trust myself to get the job done. And Fred-” He stops, fighting back tears. “We worked so hard for this. For the shop. I will do everything in my power to see all his dreams and ideas come to life. He deserves it. I just want to make him proud, y’know?” 

At this point, your own tears began streaming down your cheeks. You kiss George’s cheek, pressing your forehead to the side of his. “Of course. He would be so proud of you Georgie. I am so proud of you.” George leans his head down, and you catch him in your hands, pulling him into your chest and caressing his hair. “I understand. But you have to stop doing everything on your own. It’s ok to ask for help. In fact, I could help out at the shop a few days out of the week. Help take the burden off you.” 

George lets out a breathy laugh. “I would love that, actually. And I trust you more than anyone.” He said, looking up at you. 

“I know. I think we’d make a great team.” He smirks, then lets out a very pronounced yawn against your chest. “For now, though, you must get some rest. I want you to go get ready for bed. I will handle the munchkin.” You carefully climb out of George's embrace, and scoop your daughter up. The movement wakes her from her deep sleep. She brings her little hands to her eyes to wipe the sleep away. 

“Mummy?” She asks through squinted eyes.

“Shh, it’s ok baby. It’s time for bed, ok?” You kiss her forehead. George slowly gets up from the warmth of the couch to kiss his little girl goodnight.

He pulls her away from you to give her a tight squeeze. “Goodnight daddy.” Vivian says reaching for him, with a hint of grogginess in her voice. 

“Goodnight my beautiful girl. I’ll see you in the morning, yeah? I love you.” Viv mumbled back what sounded like an “I love you too”, although it was muffled out by her burying her face back into her mom's shoulder. As you headed for your daughter's room, you turned back to George, mouthing an “I will be right in” as he headed for the room you two shared, looking back at his better half with the uttermost content. 

[thatbrownb1tch]

I have a post TWK prompt Jude meets her mother’s wealthy parents and they try to set her up for an arranged marriage, And Cardan rescues her

Edit:

I definitely did not base everything off of Gilmore Girls.

“We have grandparents?” Anger fumed through me while Taryn stood in shock. “And you chose to keep this a secret for how long?”

“Jude, I didn’t tell you for many reasons but now that you seem to be, well nearing the end of your peak you must get some family if you’re not willing to settle down,” Madoc leaned back into his chair.

“What do you mean settle down? What? I’d marry some random monster like Locke? I’d rather die than ever marry anyone that I don’t care about,” I spoke the truth right now. Something I rarely did with Madoc.

“Taryn?” He moved off of me trying to figure out what his other daughter was feeling. It took a lot to get me to agree to meet with Madoc but it was even more difficult to get me to be in here with Taryn. I’m only doing it in case they try to kill Cardan or something but right now it doesn’t look like it.

“Where do they live?” Taryn finally spoke.

“Right outside Elfhame, in a large house by the country. They have many connections and you can easily go back and forth in case you’d like to form a connection which I’d rather you not do,” For someone so against us meeting them he’s telling us an awful lot about it. “Look, if you guys want you can see them, but you don’t need to, I was just doing my job,” He stood and began to make his way out of the room.

“You’re a little too late,” I called after him.

“At least he told us,” It’s typical of Taryn to do that. Agree with the one who caused us the most pain. This is exactly why she’s known as the optimist and why I’m the pessimist.

“Wow! It’s so great that he finally told us! Madoc is such a good person because he told us about our only biological family still alive that can possibly help up a decade after he kidnapped us!” Sarcasm erupted, it’s something I try not to do with her but right now she was really getting on my nerves.

“Jude,” She began, “I’m sorry. I understand why you’re so angry but please, let’s go see them.”

I narrowed my eyes, “you can go see them. But I’m not ruining their lives on top of what they already went through.”

“Excuse me?” Was she really this stupid?

“Don’t be so naive. They obviously had to go through the death of their daughter after she ran away. What do you think they went through after mom came here? And then after like 30 years we show up at their doorstep claiming to be their daughter’s kids? They probably haven’t even gotten over her death. Maybe you didn’t love our parents like me but I still mourn them,” I knew the last part wasn’t needed but sometimes she really made me feel like that. Taryn moved on so much faster. Vivi remembered them very vividly and had a good reason because of that but I never did. They just said I was being difficult for no reason when I was forced to live among monsters after I saw my own mother and father die by the hands of the man who’s been taking care of me.

“You really think that? I hope you know that I grieve them just like you and Vivi do. The only difference is I can hide it better unlike you two. Jude, deal with it. You’re not the only one with traumatic events who’s empathetic towards other people who lost their family. Don’t you think it’d make them feel better to know that they still have a piece of mom left?” How could she be so optimistic? If I was in their place I’d wish to forget everything, I’d wish to die in peace knowing that no one else would need to go through the pain I felt. Maybe something was just wrong with me.

“Fine, I’ll go but if everything goes wrong don’t blame me.”

She smiled sweetly, “Thank you.”

Vivi drove us to mom’s parent’s house. Well, technically our grandparents but I’m not sure if it’s okay to call them that yet. Vivi had called them earlier and made sure they knew we were coming, she said they’re sweet.

“Alright, we’re here,” Vivi didn’t leave the car, she didn’t follow us to the doorstep. She was related to them yet she didn’t come with us.

“Are you not coming?” I asked.

“Why? You guys deserve an actual family, I don’t want to see any more. They’ll just ruin my life again,” Every word she spoke made me feel more normal. I didn’t want more people to interfere when I was doing what I wanted. I was so close to getting a higher place on court.

“Alright then, Jude we better get going,” Taryn pushed us away from the car before I changed my mind. The house was gigantic, it was like a mansion, much bigger than a regular family-sized house. It was like Locke’s estate but more homely. It had a beautiful garden with a large driveway. It was in an ‘u’ shape. The house looked newer than the estates in Elfhame but it was still very grand and kept well for its age. I heard that most houses get very old here and start to crack but this one was taken care of.

“I don’t want to go,” I stated flatly as we reached the front doors. The door has a gold knob with a glass window but there were designs on it to keep people from outside to look inside. It was like a privacy barrier but it worked very well because I didn’t see the owners my grandparents walk up to the door and open it. I jumped a little, I wasn’t expecting that but Taryn was very ready with her gigantic smile.

“Hello girls!” The woman grinned widely while looking between the two of us. It was as if she was picking apart everything in our face and bodies, but we were identical so I’m not sure why her head went back and forth.

“Come in, please,” The man pushed his wife away a little and welcomed us inside. He was tall, and wore spectacles. They had a thin metal frame and were small for his face. They were circle shaped and he wore them a little done on his nose, it definitely made him look old. The woman had a short blackish Gray shirt and she wore a red pantsuit.

“Thank you,” Taryn was the first to speak between us and I could tell this was how most of the trip would end up going. They’d ask a question and Taryn would answer, and I’d just nod along. And like usual, I was completely right, an hour in and somehow the only thing I said was “thank you”. The man had introduced himself as Richard and the woman had said her name was Emily. They seemed like lovely people who wanted to get to know their grandchildren but we were all definitely uncomfortable and I was definitely a huge reason behind it.

“So, Jude, how are you?” Emily said it directly to me so Taryn couldn’t answer for me.

“I’m fine, how are you?” I would’ve used her name but I wasn’t sure if she’d like that.

“I’m great, so what are you two doing? School? I assume you’re around 17?”

“Uh, well I did go to school,” I started not sure how to explain to her that my foster father killed the prince during his coronation which made him a traitor and then the person who I thought cared about me actually loved my sister. Then, I made my enemy the king so that my little brother wouldn’t need to be on the throne and so that my foster father wouldn’t be given any power and now I’m the high king’s seneschal.

“We did but we graduated,” Taryn interrupts us so that I wouldn’t say anything stupid. That’s a great way to put it.

“That’s nice, so are you guys going to college?” Richard asked.

“Yes, well not exactly but we have jobs,” Another lie. Taryn is really going all out today with the lies.

“Is college even a thing there?” Emily looked at me.

“Where?” I wasn’t sure if they knew about Faerie but I couldn’t risk it.

“That place, the one which stole our daughter from us, the one which caused her death,” Emily said in such a sweet voice you wouldn’t be able to feel her rage unless you were looking directly at her eyes.

“Yes, we live there. College isn’t a thing and honestly the only thing we can do is either become a knight, a member of the court, or just get married,” I explained.

“So where are you two on the list? I’ve heard that girls get married around your age and we have a couple of boys that we’d love to set you two up with. They can also get you to very high places on the list, almost near the top with the king,” Richard jumped in.

“Well, you can’t help Taryn, she’s already found a place,” I felt their eyes on me and I had to get it off.

“Oh! Are you-?” Emily began.

“I’m betrothed,” Taryn finished with a glare that was shot in my direction.

“That’s great! Is he a good man? Will you be protected? Do you truly love him?” A ton of questions spilled out of Emily and all I could see in her face was grief. She missed mom and all of her questions gave away her intentions. She wanted to make sure we were safe, she wanted to make sure we weren’t going to make the same mistakes. I don’t think they’re that bad anymore. They’re trying to save me from Faerie. Something that only one other person has done and that’s Vivi.

“Yes, I really do. He makes me feel like I’m flying,” She gushed.

“Well that’s great, but please be careful, think it over before you say ‘I do’,” Richard looked at her sternly.

“I will, I promise,” Taryn said looking down at her hand where a small gold ring laid on her ring finger.

“What about you dear?” Emily’s attention turned back to me. Now, I really don’t have anymore saves.

“I’m not planning on marrying anyone there,” I heard a snort come from Taryn but moved on. I could tell she was thinking about my relationship with Cardan which was very simple. “I have a place in the court, I’m not sure for how long I can secure it but I’m happy with where I am,” I didn’t want to give too much away.

“Really? Are you a knight?” Richard leaned forward interested, to know how I got a place without a mans

“No,” I laughed, it was my dream but I was definitely not a knight and I’m not sure if I could be trusted to be a knight anymore. Cardan would choose me to be a part of his personal guard just to annoy me and I’d probably end up going to the tower of forgetting to kill him. “I’m actually connected to the high King,” I wasn’t sure how much I could say but my wording was really bad and I could tell the second they left my mouth. Richard looked surprised while Emily looked disgusted for a split second. She covered it up but it was there. “Oh! No, not like that! I am definitely not connected to him like that! I’m just his seneschal,” I scramble to get the words out.

“Oh, that’s a lot better,” Richard recovers a lot faster than Emily. “Alright, well it is time for me to get back to work but Emily, you’ll be here with the girls?”

“Yes, don’t worry I’ll still be here and if you guys do decide to leave, please do think of coming here,” Emily does seem very sweet and honestly it’d be a lot better to live here than in the tiny apartment with Vivi and Heather, oh and of course Oak.

“Yes, don’t worry if I ever do plan on leaving I know where I’m going,” I grinned hoping they know that I’m trying to accept them. Taryn doesn’t say a word, it’s obvious she doesn’t like them. You couldn’t tell at first but now she’s not being as friendly. Maybe because of the way they talked about her marriage but I’d say the exact same thing if we were still on better terms but now we barely even acknowledge each other.

“Now, Jude, I really do think we could set you up with someone. We could at least throw you a coming out party! Oh, please Jude! It was my favorite thing to do with your mother! Please?” She seemed so excited and I know I should’ve said no but what’s the worst that could happen? I’d just say I’m better off with no one and they of all people should understand that.

“Okay, I’ll do it.”

“What?” Taryn asked, not expecting that.

“Great! Alright I’ll get started on it and you two should sleep here for the night, tomorrow evening you will have the best party ever!” Emily stood up excitedly as a maid came in to show us to our rooms.

“Actually I have to go home. Locke is expecting me,” Taryn escaped, leaving me alone. Right before I was planning on going to sleep a short lady walked inside. She had a straight cut that went up to her chin and she had black cat-eye glasses on.

“Hello, stand up straight please,” There was a hint of Russian in her accent. She walked up to me and began to measure me. My waist, my hips, my bust, she measured every curve on my body. “That’ll be all, a dress will be ready for you tomorrow,”

“Thanks,” I didn’t understand exactly what happened but I think I have a dress now. It was a sleepless night, thoughts filled my head but it wasn’t the worst night of sleep due to the bed I had. I don’t even have anything to compare it to. Somehow I didn’t think about Cardan once throughout the trip. I was afraid of leaving for a day like this, I told him I may be out for up to a couple of days since I kind of wanted to stay with Vivi and Oak for a day but I didn’t realize that I would like Emily and Richard so much that I’d be okay with spending a night.

The party started out great, over time the garden was filled with men who all fought to get to know me. I didn’t enjoy the fact that I was actually missing Cardan right now. Usually right now he’d say something to give me something to overthink, laugh, or mostly panic about but right now I was stuck with a bunch of boys who all wanted my hand. As if they really expected me to choose and on top of it, Emily was very keen on me choosing. She had told me she had about 5 batches so I can have a party each night of the week. It wasn’t that I didn’t like her or anything but, I just could not deal with a room filled with rich people like this. I know I’m supposed to be happy that there’s a room full of people ready to marry me at any second but right now all I wanted to do was run all the way back to the palace. To bicker with Cardan and fight with Madoc at council meetings. I finally found an empty area , a couch in the corner of the garden, somehow no one was to be found. I sat as politely as I could incase anyone was watching but I ended up leaning back and closing my eyes trying to process every person who’s introduced themself. Within minutes later I felt a thud next to me on the couch, I tried my best not to groan and turned my head. I attempted to have a sweet smile but I’m pretty sure it was a glare from the moment I looked over.

“Why the face?” The boy had a sly grin on his face as my eyes widened.

“Cardan!” I hissed. “What are you doing here?” How did he even know about this party?

“Taryn told Locke and Locke told me about it,” He replied coolly while he took a bite

out of something he was holding.

“Who’s at the throne? Oh my god, is it Madoc? He’s going to kill everyone,” I started to panic thinking about what was happening in Elfhame with Cardan and I back here.

“Don’t worry Lo-“

I cut him off, “Locke! You put Locke in charge? He’s going to kill everyone and lock us out!” I almost stood up with even more panic spread throughout me. At least Madoc was logical, Locke thinks everything is a stupid game.

“Locke called for the court of shadows and now they’re doing whatever it is that you do,” Cardan finished.

I took a deep breath, “Oh thank God.”

“So, what did you do to get a party for yourself? I doubt you’re actually planning on choosing someone,” I could tell he didn’t like the idea of me marrying someone just for the sake of it.

“After Locke, I don’t think I’ll ever rush into love at all,” I forgot who I was talking to for a second, I let my guard down stupidly. I could tell Cardan didn’t like the fact that I said Locke but he let me continue before I stopped talking, “I’m just doing this because they miss my mother and Em- she pleaded. How could I refuse a stupid party that caused her more excitement than to know that she had a piece of her daughter left.”

He smirked, “Well, I know something that’d cause her even more excitement.”

“What?” I could already tell this would end with a dirty joke.

“Oh, don’t be like that. I was just going to say that if you chose me, you could pretend you’d live with me for a while,” His idea was great except for the fact that she’d freak out to know that I planned on running away with a boy that she doesn’t even know.

“I think she’d have a heart attack.”

He snorted, “Well, we won’t know until we do it.”

“Cardan!” I gasped.

“Also, who’s ‘she’?” I realized I never actually explained to him who my grandparents were.

“The woman who gave birth to my mom.”

“So ‘he’ is the dad who caused his wife pleasure and pain so that your mother would come out of ‘she’?” He could make even the stupidest things sexual.

“Yes Cardan, please talk about the way that my mom was conceived. Please, I’d love to know more,” sarcasm filled my voice.

“I’d love to but ‘she’, is coming down here’,” my heart stopped for a second. Was she going to recognize him? He did glamour himself so hopefully she wouldn’t, and she probably didn’t know how the new king looked anyway.

“I see you’ve made a friend,” Emily winked at me.

“Yes, I did, but I think it’s time w-“ I stop myself quickly, “I go back home.” I smile as naturally as I can but I can tell it looks too artificial.

“Yes, well I’d like to get to know him a bit before you go,” Emily looks at him. “Have we met before?” She’s catching on.

“I’m not sure, maybe you knew my father?” Cardan played along but maybe he wasn’t. He sounded serious, was he actually asking my mortal grandmother whether or not she knew the old high king?

“Where’s Richard?” I blurted, hoping that she doesn’t figure out who Cardan is.

“Yes, I’m not sure where he is, but Jude. If you ever do feel comfortable, I’d love for you to call me your grandmother. And the same goes for Richard,” This was it. The conversation I least wanted to have and on top of it we were doing it in front of the boy I hate.

“Well, I hope you wouldn’t be calling him grandmother,” His laugh echoed through my body.

“Oh Yes! My wording was not that great,” Emily began to laugh. I’m surprised she didn’t snap at him but again, I think I’m just one who has no filter when it comes to Cardan.

“Emily, dear. Oh, hello. Jude, did you find someone interesting?” Richard inquired as he walked up to the trio.

“Yes, I did, now I really must get going,” I just wanted to leave and Cardan was not helping at all. I glared at him hoping he’d catch the hint.

“Well, it was great meeting you two but, I too must get going and well, I would just love to give Jude a ride back to her house,” Cardan stood up.

“Jude, will have to go her own way,” Emily interrupted. I wasn’t sure whether or not these people knew I was from Faerie.

“Yes, I hope I can see you another time,” I knew if I didn’t go with him I’d be stuck here for at least another day. My eyes burned hoping he’d come up with something else, anything else.

“I don’t think you understand, I know of Jude’s home very well and am offering to take her with me. I’d love to see where she live as I live there too,” Cardan said again. His voice was commanding, just like how it is when he’s in the court.

“Y-yes, of course, you may definitely take her with you,” Richard stammered. He was definitely afraid but I’m not sure what he was afraid of. I looked over and Cardan looked like his normal glamoured self. Emily stood there, as if she was struck by lightning.

“Emily, you’ll walk them out?” Richard looked over to his frozen wife.

“Yes,” She began to walk next to me while Cardan was a step in front of me. Once we reached the front door I began to say goodbye. I hugged her first, I kissed her lightly on her cheek as I saw everyone else do. She did the same to me but lingered a little longer. She whispered into my ear, “You could’ve just said no. You did not need to drag him here to save yourself. The next time you come here, I expect you to leave him there.” Her words were stern and I could tell she wasn’t joking around. She was right, I could’ve just said no but I did not bring him here. He came himself but there was no point in arguing. I wasn’t sure if she knew he was king but I could tell they knew he wasn’t mortal.

“Good bye,” Emily said quietly as we began to step outside the door, “and farewell, your majesty.” The last part made me freeze for a second. Cardan kept moving but he grabbed my arm quickly. Emily definitely saw it, she knew she was right.

“What did you do?” I asked once we were out of sigh.

“Nothing, just unglamored myself for

a second so they saw my crown,” Cardan shrugged as we continued to move.

“You did what?” I froze.

“Well, what did you want me to do?” He grabbed my arm again and forced me to start walking again.

“Anything other than that!” I couldn’t believe him.

“Hey, you needed rescuing so I rescued you.” He brought me to the horse he came here on.

“Thank you,” I said as I threw myself over it.

“You’re welcome, just make sure the next time you plan on getting married,” I turned my head to look at him as he talked, “Make sure it’s to me.” And with that, we started. I didn’t say a word on the the ride back not sure whether or not he was joking. But even if he wasn’t, it didn’t matter because that’s not my priority. We reached Elfhame by dawn and I made a decision. That was the first and last time I’d ever go back to their house.

[anjuschiffer]

Wasn’t Meant For You but For Him

I know I’ve been quiet in terms of updates, but this is what I’ve been working on for the past two days! My first Timari! *squeal*

Thank you Vivi for encouraging me to write this! Also want to thank @eve-valution for beta-ing! 

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P.Tag: @theatreandcomicfreak @damianette-is-life

@-@-@-@-@

Pairing: Timari

Context: This is years after highschool, possibly 5-6 years (I can’t count)? Gabriel isn’t HM here and HM was defeated a year after highschool was done for both Adrien and Mari. Mari isn’t the Guardian, since Fu was never discovered, however Adrien and Mari knew each other’s identities. Mari and Adrien are 24, Tim 25 and Damian is 17…

@-@-@-@-@

AO3

@-@-@-@-@

Richard yawned as he made his way to the kitchen, noticing a dim blue light peer through the crack of the living room, deciding to poke his head into the room.

His eyes laid straight onto Tim, his attention on the television screen, his coffee spilled on the floor, his laptop and documents spread on his table long forgotten and covered by the lone mug.

Wondering what had captured his brother’s attention, Richard decided to look at the television screen, then and there connecting the pieces.

“-and there you have it! Straight from the groom-to-be father’s mouth!”

Richard watched as Tim got up and left the room, giving Richard a nod as he left.

“The wedding of the year! Of possibly the century! The unification of the mysterious designer -MDC- and the face of Agreste - Adrien Agreste!” The tanned skinned reporter with a beauty mark above her eyebrow said. “And you’re saying that MDC will be revealing her actual face at the wedding?”

“She is, without a doubt, along with her actual name.”

“You heard it here first everyone! France’s beloved designer, MDC, will be revealing her face and name at her wedding! So don’t forget to joint down the big-”

Richard turned the television off, a click escaping his mouth as he cleaned up the spilled coffee on the floor and took the mug with him.

-----

“I can’t believe that I’m late for my own wedding!” A woman said, bouncing her leg as she kept looking outside her window to see if the limousine was anywhere near the church, Goliath Cathedral. 

While the cathedral was lovely, it was nothing compared to the Gotham Cathedral. Despite the Cathedral never being restored, its stone gargoyles and rusty bells attracted Marinette to the 800 foot, moss covered building.

It would’ve been wonderful to have the wedding there -no- to even walk inside the cathedral if it were ever restored. It’s lovely interior was filled with history, the unreachable ceiling would’ve enthralled the people when the music started, drawing everyone into an ethereal trance. 

The real trance, however, would start when Mari would step into the monotone room, her pure white dress becoming the centerpiece of adoration. The very dress she had on. An MDC original.

A dress made of tulle and lace, two materials and nothing more. The lace will create the sleeves and cover the bodice, forming an off-the-shoulder top. Tulle will create the skirt, lace once more adorning the hem of the dress and train that would be two meters in length. The veil would also be an MDC original, each crystal in that veil to be sewed on with joy and precision, an emotion that still radiated from Marinette since the day she started sketching her wedding gown.

“-Earth to Marinette!” Alya yelled, causing Marinette to let out a squeak. “About time you snapped from your trance!” Alya said with a giggle. “We’re here.”

“Already!” Marinette said with disbelief, looking outside her window once again, watching how crowded the streets in front of Goliath Cathedral were flooded with people of all ages and races, Marinette feeling something weighing on her. “Mon Dieu.”

“Well, Gabriel did make a huge fuss about your grand day.” Alya reminded her. “As much as I wish that I was the one to comment over your wedding, I couldn’t say no to being your Matron of Honor.” Alya said, really wishing to be the reporter to comment on her BFF’s grand day, but knew this task will always be of greater importance.

Marinette melted at that, throwing herself at her best friend. “Woah there girl! I can’t have you crying before your big dream comes true!”

“I’m sorry! I’m just-”

“You just can’t wait to finally marry Adrien after all these years of-”

“Alya!” Marinette squeaked, squeaking once more when Alya tackled her. 

“You deserve this Marinette.” Alya said, wrapping her arms around her friend. “You deserve this and so much more.” Marinette resisted the urge to cry. “Finally, after defending Paris for so many years and after getting your breakthrough as MDC… you can finally get your happily ever after.” Alya gently pushed Marinette away from her, wiping off the tears that slid down Marinette’s face. “Now! Let’s not be a minute later than what we already are!”

Marinette nodded, pep talking herself as she watched the door be opened for her, emerging out of the limo and stepping into the sea of cameras, smiling and waving as they captured the moments that would lead her to her life as Marinette Agreste.

-----

“He’s not here.”

Marinette felt lightheaded, her heart beating loudly in her ears, her chest tightening and becoming unbearable.

“Get me out of here.” She whispered. When she felt no one come to her, she said it again, not registering how loudly she said it. “GET ME OUT OF HERE!”

She didn’t know who grabbed her, but someone did, leading her back to the limo that was still awaiting for her, or rather for the couple that was supposed to be.  

She heard as cameras clicked and let out a shuttering noise that rang in her ears, she watched as lights went off as they capture her face in that moment,

Marinette kept looking forward, barely hearing Alya yell at the driver to get them somewhere.

Marinette felt as her entire body shaked, looking down at her bouquet of flowers. 

White roses - purity...innocence...

Baby’s breath - everlasting love... 

What a joke…

The limo came to a halt, Marinette looking up to see what stood in their way from getting out of the area.

Her eyes widened upon seeing Adrien step out of his car. 

She didn’t know when she got up and out of the limo, but she finally regained her composure when she heard the words she dreaded to hear on her grand day… their grand day.

“Mari, I’m sorry.”

Three words… that’s all it took.

Walking up to Adrien, feeling her anger shake the flowers in her hand, she lifted them up, connecting it to Adrien’s face, watching as flower petals scattered around them and the road beneath them. “How dare you show your face to me!” 

“Mari, I tried calling you-”

“YOU ALWAYS SAID WE WERE MEANT TO BE!” She hit him again, wondering when the petals were going to stop scattering.

“I’m here now. I-”

“YOU TALKED ABOUT ETERNAL LOVE AND YET LOOK AT US!”

“Mari, I’m-”

“YOU HUMILIATED ME! ME!” Marinette yelled, feeling hot tears trailing down her face, hitting him again and again, never noticing that the petals were already gone and battered, the stems of the bouquet bent and worn.

Seeing Adrien with guilt spelled across his face, Marinette looked him over one last time before running off, never hearing Adrien nor Alya yell out her name as she disappeared into an alley.

-----

Tim let out a sigh, running his hand through his hair, hearing Bruce’s words ringing in his mind.

“You’re not in the right mind. Come back when you’re ready to do your work properly.”

How exactly was he supposed to do that?

MDC’s wedding was today. To-day.

And no, that wasn’t what upsetted him, oh no.

It was the mere fact that she would be revealing herself to the world, something she said that she would never do until she felt comfortable.

So when Tim heard through Gabriel Agreste’s mouth that she would be revealing her face at the wedding -a wedding in which she later commented that she wanted to be private, but later was pressured into making it public- Tim couldn’t help but become upset for her.

Everything that she had worked so hard for, the respect and dignity she had built for herself all crumbled within a few moments… her years worth of effort, gone by marrying her highschool sweetheart.

To make matters worse, Tim felt like Gabriel was the one behind the wedding and not his son. 

Tim sighed as he wondered why he was even letting this all get to him.

Looking up, he didn’t expect to find himself wandering the park.

He also didn’t expect to see a bride-to-be, oddly feeling like he had seen her before. 

He heard sobs escape from her tiny frame, watching her rip the skirt of her gown with no effort, watching as she continued to rip the gown to shreds, the fabric laying at her feet, battered and covered in dirt.

He took a step forward before stopping himself.

Who was he to interfere in her life. Hell, what can he even do to stop her from crying?

He didn’t need to be told when he watched her turn around, Tim finally piecing why her back seemed so familiar, why her ruly midnight hair stunned him and why her dull, puffy bluebell eyes caused his breath to hitch.

He had seen her face before leaving his office. She was the reason why he couldn’t focus at work. It was her…

But why was she here? Wasn’t she-

No…

It couldn’t be…

She didn’t deserve this… 

No…

How could he?!

Tim slowly approached the woman he had secretly admired since he could ever remember. 

Taking the fabric away from her hands, the thing that was once her veil, a fabric that she happily worked on as she streamed her progress on her wedding gown over the course of six months…

Tim could only stand there… wondering what to do next.

“Would you like some coffee?” Tim offered, watching as something returned into MDC’s eyes. She nodded, slowly rising to her feet, collapsing as soon as she got up. Luckily, Tim had caught her in time, the woman now dangerously close to his liking.

Fishing for his phone, Tim called his most trusted family member.

“Hey Alfred… I need your help. Can you make sure there isn’t any type of paparazzi near me? We have a runaway bride that would be grateful to not have any more drama added to her big day.”

------

Adrien walked into the reception hall with his head hung low, too embarrassed to face his friends, feeling eyes pierce through him as he walked towards his former classmates.

He could feel Nathaniel and Marc’s gaze pierce through him, years of working with them allowing him to know who’s gaze was who. He could also feel Juleka’s and Mylene’s, thanking Kwami that Kim and Alix weren’t here. 

They would’ve killed him the minute he walked into the room with Mari by his side. But he didn’t need to hear their disappointment when he could already hear everyone else’s.

He could already hear the murmuring as people noticed the empty space beside him.

Where was the bride?

“What were you thinking, Adrikins?!” Chloe yelled, storming to her childhood friend upon seeing him, Sabrina close behind her. Adrien watched as her black dress with golden trims approached him, wincing upon seeing a name hiddened at the hem of the dress. “How could you do that to Dupain-Cheng?!”

“Marinette didn’t deserve that.” Sabrina added, watching as Rose and Ivan stood in front of him, acting as a wall between the two.

“You guys are being too harsh on him.” Rose stated, glancing towards Ivan, as if pleading him to back her up. “He was just nervous.”

“Rose is right. Give Adrien some space to breath and rethink-”

“Rethink?” Juleka scoffed, everyone turning their heads to see Juleka make her way through the reception doors. “Seriously Ivan? Rethink?” 

“Juleka, calm down.” Rose whispered, not seeing the anger in Juleka’s eyes diminish in the slightest, instead, it grew.

“No Rose!” Juleka making Rose wince. “You’re telling me to forgive this idiot for leaving Mari at the altar?!”

“Juleka, you’re being too harsh-”

“No I’m not Rose and you know that!” Juleka looked at Adrien, her eyes narrowed. “How dare you ruin Marinette’s dreams like that? How dare you mock Marinette’s feelings! How dare you!”

“Juleka!” Another voice shouted, gaining everyone’s attention, but Juleka’s. “That’s enough!”

“Lu-” Adrien could hear the gasps that filled the room as his vision shifted to the side, his face aching and on fire.

“You had one job Agreste.” Luka growled, Adrien not daring to face Luka. 

He knew that Mari meant a lot to Luka. She was like a sister to him, the two were inseparable when they were younger. “You were suppose to make her happy Agreste and yet here you are, not feeling a single shred of shame that-”

“I told her that I was-”

“Sorry?” Luka let out a dry laugh. “Sorry doesn’t cut it buddy. I told you what would happen if you made her cry.” Luka grabbed Adrien’s face, forcing him to look at him. “I swear, if I see you anywhere near Marinette, if you dare to talk to her again, I will find you and I will tear you to shreds Agreste. I don’t care if I have become a villain once more to protect those I love.” Luka let go of Adrien, the ex-groom falling to the ground, shaking.

“Mark my words Adrien Agreste.”

Adrien heard Luka and Juleka walk out, hearing another pair stop before walking in, watching as they crouched to his level. Kagami looked at him with disappointment, a frown on her face.

“Kagami.”

“Seems like Luka beat me to the punch.” She said, her frown curving a bit. “Literally.”

Adrien didn’t utter a word as she rose, helping him get up. “I also came to tell you something else before heading to your father.” Kagami smirked when she saw him tense. “The Tsurugi’s will no longer work with the Gabriel brand. Our relationship is over.” Kagami headed for the door before stopping to take one last look at Adrien. “Seems like Lady Luck is no longer on your side.”

------

Marinette stirred, jolting up when she felt soft comforters covering her and a mattress beneath her. She noticed an elderly gentleman standing near the doorway, letting his shoulders relax when he saw her.

“I see you are awake, Miss...?”

“Marinette.” Marinette started, scanning her area. Where exactly was she?

“Do not worry, Miss Marinette. No camera nor paparazzi knows of your location.” He assured, watching as Marinette let out a sigh of relief. “We also have some attire prepared for you if you so wish to change from your current one.”

Looking down onto herself, Marinette quickly took the offer, slipping into the slightly oversized shirt and a pair of jeans that fit her loosely, also thanking the gentleman for also giving her some comfortable footwear. Sneakers were definitely better to walk in than heels. 

“Thank you,” Marinette said, walking out of the room she was in, her battered wedding gown in hand. “Do you happen to know of a good way to get rid of this?” Marinette motioned to her gown, the gentleman giving her a knowing look.

“Of course Miss Marinette.” He said, motioning her follow him. “The manor is always prepared for anything, especially when it comes to getting rid of unwanted clothing articles.”

“And before I forget,” the gentle said, bowing. “My name is Alfred Pennyworth. Welcome to Wayne Manor.”

-----

Tim sighed as he dragged his hands down his face, settling with trying to rub his temples in a futile attempt to get his mind into the right place.

MDC was in the manor. 

She was finally in front of him, so why was his chest aching instead of fluttering like he thought it would when he imagined the day he got to meet her?

He stared out the window, noticing smoke rise into the air, Tim feeling his heart stop. 

It was coming from the garden. 

Quickly, he made his way to the source of the fire, finding Alfred flipping what seemed to be a white piece of fabric, tossing it into the flames, Tim finally noticing the sigh of relief coming from MDC.

He didn’t dare to speak as he saw her lock eyes with him, her hair a bit more tamed than what it was earlier, the corner of her eyes red and no longer puffy.

“If you do excuse me, Master Tim.” Alfred said, breaking the spell that drew the two into a staring competition, causing said duo to turn away, not wanting to acknowledge the heat that dared to spread across their face. 

“It’s fine Alfred. You are excused.” Tim managed to say without a stutter, watching MDC from the corner of his eye.

He watched as she went back to watching the flame burn the remains of her supposed grand day.

Seconds became minutes and then into an hour, Tim never realizing when the flame had died out. He honestly didn’t care that he was still looking at a dark pit filled with ash. As long as she stood by the makeshift fire pit, he’d stay there to keep her company.

“You know,” MDC spoke, Tim noticing how soft it was, how lifeless it sounded. “I spent six months sewing it, only for it to be destroyed within an hour.”

“I know.” Tim said, not noticing her whip her head towards him, her eyes large with horror. “I remember how you keep doing samples of the lace over and over again, saying how you kept messing up, even though each sample was meticulously done to perfection.” Tim didn’t notice how she backed away from him. “Even though you couldn’t hear me, I keep saying how you’ve improved since the last time and how you kept seeing each one as a failure because you were using new techniques you learned a week prior in comparison to the ones you started out with when you first started your career.”

When Tim decided to look at MDC, he noticed that she was crying again, standing two meters away from him, and yet one step was soon taken closer to her.

“You… you know who I am?” She asked, her hands shaking beside her face.

“Um, yes? You’re MDC.” Tim answered, watching as she shook even more.

Where was Dick when you needed him?

Tim slowly approached her, going to place his hands on her shoulders when he hesitated, his hands hovering over her. “Listen, can I call you Bean?” Tim said, cursing himself for not having Dick nor Jason’s ability to give proper nicknames.

“Bean, I didn’t mean to scare you. If there’s anything I can do to make you forget what happened earlier, please tell me.”

“Nettie.” She whispered, Tim barely catching it. “Call me Nettie.” She lowered her hands as she looked at him.

“If that’s what you want, Nettie.” Tim wondered why he adored the way it fluently rolled off his tongue. “Are you still up for that cup of coffee I offered earlier?”

Nettie gave him a small smile, nodded. “Alfred makes the best coffee.”

-----

Gabriel fumed as another person reported to him that another video of Marientte and Adrien’s dispute went online, the PR having difficulties taking the video down.

“What part of “get rid of it at all costs” don’t you incompetent fools understand!” He yelled, watching as people scattered to fight off the damage Adrien had done to the Gabriel brand.

Gabriel had planned everything to go according to plan, twelve whole months to plan this day to the utmost perfection, to be the most spectacular day for him and his brand, all for Adrien to ruin everything thanks to having cold feet.

Gabriel had taken everything into account, everything that would possibly make Miss Dupain-Cheng to call the wedding off, only for his stupid blood to let him down.

“Sir.” Nathalie said, gaining Gabriel’s attention. “We have a problem.”

“What is it this time?” He dared to say through gritted teeth.

“We’re receiving heavy backlash from-”

“When will anyone-”

“It’s Mr.Drake-Wayne, sir.” Nathalie managed to say, holding her breath as she watched Gabriel ingest what she just told him. “After saying how incompent and embarrassed we should be, he declared taking complete control over MDC’s PR and her entire business.”

“No.” Gabriel whispered, feeling himself get cold. “There is no way-”

“He just announced it sir.” Nathalie said, showing him her tablet screen, Gabriel snatching it to get a closer look. “MDC is now protected by the CEO of Wayne Enterprises and there is nothing we can do.”

-------

Tim pressed something on his screen before tucking his phone away.

“Something happened?” Nettie asked, sipping some more of her coffee. Tim hadn’t lied. Alfred made the best coffee Marinette had ever sipped since she had gotten to Gotham. Maybe in her entire life.

“Some damage control, nothing more.” Tim assured her, watching as she looked into her coffee. 

After drinking their first cup of coffee, Nettie had asked for a favor, something Tim couldn’t say no to. 

She wanted him to deal with her PR, seeing as she wasn’t in the right head to do so. 

After getting her sign of approval and calling a few people, Tim gained control of the rumors and content that surrounded and included anything that mentioned and dared to mention the disaster at the cathedral. 

Under different circumstances, Tim would’ve been over the moon upon having the chance at being in charge of MDC’s PR, but right now, it wasn’t the time to celebrate to his heart's content. 

He had someone else to cheer up. 

“Say Nettie.” Tim started, placing down his mug. “What do you think about staying for dinner?”

Nettie blinked, sipping into her mug. 

“If it means staying indoors and away from the rest of the world, I’m down for it.” Tim smirked. 

“Just gotta warn you, I’m not the only Wayne that lives in this manor.”

——

Marinette only meant to stay at the Manor until things cooled down, but she knew that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

She kept elongating her stay at Wayne Manor, bonding with each family member over the passing days. 

Alfred, she quickly bonded with. After asking for permission to the kitchen to stress bake, Alfred shared some secrets on his cooking, Marinette in turn sharing her secrets in baking. From baking and cooking, the two started to chat more, Marniette adopting him as her third grandfather.

Bruce… she was still trying to get used to him. While they spoke quite a lot when it came to business… Marinette would always run short in talking about other things, usually their conversations ending in comfortable silence. However, Mairinette did manage to find out something to blabber about: grandkids (or rather children in general). Marinette would share her fantasies about having children, Bruce asking if she would ever adopt. Marinette would laugh and comment on how she didn’t want to be a serial adopter like him. That always got a laugh from the man.

Richard, or Dick as he insisted, was a sweetheart, helping her whenever she would wake up from her nightmares of her former life and from that disastrous day. He’d stay up until she felt better and held her hand as she drifted to sleep. He would never mention the incidents, knowing and  respecting Marinette in that manner. She also couldn’t help but respect him for skills, finding something new about herself whenever she would join his gymnastic warm ups.

Jason was… the brother she wished she had. They would banter about what food to have for lunch, always resulting in having to play a game to decide who would choose. When it wasn’t that, it was wrestling each other, Marinette having the upperhand due to her small stature, only to be overpowered by the baberious man. She enjoyed learning new attacks although she hated having to lose to him in the majority of their sparing.

Damian… he was the little brother she’d always wanted. While Tim told her he was the most annoying person to spend time with, Marinette would beg to differ. He just needed some guidance. The two bonded over animals, Damian showing her his favorite part of the mansion. When she walked into the room, she swore she was in a pet store,every wall was filled with dog supplies and toys. Ace and Titus wagging their tails as soon as Damian walked into the room, the dogs immediately taking a liking to Marinette. Even the rather bratty Alfred the Cat had taken to her quicker than with the rest of the family that wasn’t Damian. 

When it wasn’t pampering Ace and Titus, it was sparring, Marinette thanking him for not holding back like Jason and Richard. He’d expose her openings, apologizing as he would hit her. After training, she would teach him to bake, enjoying how he would blame the ingredients for not working and coming to Marinette for help. Mari’s best parts would be when he would lighten up when a pastry would come out perfectly after a few tries. 

Tim… he was… she had mixed feelings about him. Being a fellow coffee addict, Marinette could sympathize with the need to drink more and having to deal with late night work. Sometimes she would stay up with him, pulling a blanket over him, although there were times where she would end up covered by a blanket. She found out he liked her opera cakes; Damian would always request one, only to share it with Tim every now and then. 

He was respectful of her space, always checking up on her in his own odd antics in the form of a mug of coffee for a new tiny plushie. (She now had a wall dedicated to them.) He never once brought up her work as MDC, something she was glad for (she wasn’t ready to go back just yet). He was the one to give her a room, provided her whatever she needed, even a new family… but Marinette knew that he was more than just that…

What exactly was he, she would have to wait to figure that out herself.

------

“What do you mean you can’t find her? That you can’t reach her?” Gabriel seethed, pinching the bridge of his nose. 

It’s been two weeks since MDC had gone missing, no one knowing where she was. 

Gabriel had tried to open a line for people to call when they had any clues as to where the rising design was at, only to get an influx of false claims, prompting him to shut it down.

“Mari isn’t answering any of her phones, not even Alya knows where she is at.” Adrien reasoned, really hoping his father wouldn’t make him recall Alya. 

He could still hear screams in his ears, Nino having to answer the phone call before giving him his own two cents on Adrien’s actions towards Marinette.

“Listen Adrien, you have to find her.” Gabriel said soothingly, placing his hands on Adrien’s shoulders, the young adult wincing at the pressure. “If you don’t, let’s just say you can say goodbye to your dream of being forever with your lady.”

------

Titus and Ace were enjoying another day out in the manor garden, laying by Nettie’s side as she meditated to her heart’s content. 

She was practicing this new technique that Damian’s friend Raven had taught her, when a noise caught Titus’ attention. With a single glance towards Ace, Titus went to investigate, quickly finding the source. Without a second to lose, Titus barked a command to Ace before sprinting towards the manor, knowing he had to find Damian, and fast.

Nettie was in danger.

------

Marinette breathed in and then out, focusing on her breathing when it came to a halt when she heard Ace growl and her name being spoken by the one person she never wanted to see again.

“Marinette.” 

Her focus snapped and she felt her entire being freeze. How did he find her? How did he-

“Marinette, I’m so sorry about leaving you there, for leaving you at the steps of the cathedral instead of being by your side like I promised to be. Because you were right. I hurt you and I’m sorry for that. I should’ve kept my promise and should have gathered the courage to push my nerves down.” Adrien continued when Marinette remained silent, her bluebells staring at her with unshed tears. “We were meant to be Marinette.” Adrien said softly. “Will you marry me?”

A wind blew around them, its whistle snapping Marinette back to the present.

“No.” Marinette quietly said, stepping away from Adrien, feeling Ace began to intensify his growl. “I don’t want to marry you Adrien. Not today, not tomorrow, never.”

“But Mari!” Adrien said, grabbing her arm. “We are meant to be.” Ace began barking madly, circling around the two.

“Adrien, let go!” Marinette exclaimed, biting down on her tongue as Adrien clawed his nails into her wrist.

“You’re. Coming. With.Me.” Adrien gritted through his teeth, pulling Mari towards him, only to yelp in pain when Ace bit him. “Damn mutt!” Adrien hissed, attempting to kick Ace, but failing. However, he did manage to grab Marinette again, even if it was by her hair. 

Marinette felt tears escape her eyes, placing her hands over his, lowering herself, twisting to face him and bring herself up, watching as his grasp on her hair loosened. She quickly kicked him on his knee, not turning back as soon as he howled in pain. 

However, she knew it wasn’t enough when he grabbed her again by her hair, causing her to jerk backward, holding in a yell as her entire scalp ached. 

Again, she twisted her shoulder towards him, punching his groin area and striking his back with her elbow and throwing him forward, where his face collided with the ground.

Without giving him a second to react, Marinette stood on his knees, pinning his arms behind him.

But she was a second too late.

He pushed her off of him, pushing her down by her throat.

Marinette pushed him off using her legs and punching his face as he flung off, launching herself at him to punch him again, turning him over and hooking her arms under his own, struggling to put both of her hands at the center of his back.

Establishing her position, Marinette grabbed both of his elbows, her arms still hooked and flipped him over, her body crossing his and holding him into an excruciating pin.

She ignored the yells and cries that escaped him, yelling at Marinette to let him go, to free him before things were going to get worse for her, but she added more force into her hold, screams piercing the garden.

Marinette didn’t know how much pressure she had put into her hold, nor when Adrien passed out nor when all the brothers got to her.

She didn’t know when she was pulled away from the pale Adrien and pulled into Tim’s arms, feeling circles being rubbed against her back as Tim whispered to her that she was alright, that she was safe. 

It wasn’t until she saw Titus and Ace at her side and Damian asking Tim if she was alright that Marinette finally understood that she was okay. That she was going to be alright.

The boys watched as Nettie broke down, her wails and sobs echoing throughout the garden, watching as she gripped Tim’s shirt and cried into it, Tim wrapping his arms around her frame, nuzzling his head against hers, continuing to whisper to her that everything was alright.

-------

“-and I will continue to hold my charges against A-”

Marinette turned off the television, staring at it. 

It was over.

Adrien was behind bars, the Agreste brand tarnished and cancelled, Gabriel now dealing with lawsuits thanks to his son’s actions.

She can finally move on...

A mug appeared before her, Nettie not having to look up to see who had brought it.

She took it, a frown still on her face.

“Do you regret it?” Tim asked, sitting beside her on the floor, laying his legs beneath the coffee table.

“Not one bit.” Nettie said, letting out a sigh. “I’m… actually glad I didn’t marry him.”

“Hmmm..” was all Tim could say, sipping his own cup of coffee. “So, what now?”

“I�� don’t know.” Nettie said thoughtfully. “Actually… I do know.” She said, turning to him. Tim blinked as she leaned into him, placing a kiss on his forehead.

A spark ran through Tim, making him balance his reaction between freezing upon being kissed and holding onto the mug he had in his hand. “Thank you… for everything.”

Tim remained silent as Marinette got up and left the room, leaving her mug behind.

He didn’t know how much time had passed, but when he did get up, he ran.

He ran to where she could’ve been, where she used to be, but didn’t find her anywhere within the manor. 

Her room was empty, but her things remained, the plushies she gave still on the wall.

As he got to the foyer, he found Damian, who seeked comfort in Titus.

“Damian. Ha-Have. You. Seen. Nettie?” He asked between pants, getting a frown from him.

“She just left.”

“Where?”

“She said she was heading back to Paris. Something about- hey!” Damian yelled as Tim ruffled his hair and sprinted out the door.

Please let him get to her...

-----

“-passengers for flight 6236 to Paris please go to Terminal 3.”

Marinette let out a sigh as she grabbed her luggage and started to walk towards her gate when the announcement tone rang again.

“-I promise it’s going to be quick!” A voice echoed through the intercom.

“Tim?”

“Ne-Marinette! Please. Don’t go.” His voice said, Marinette feeling her chest ache upon hearing his voice crack. “I know we’ve only known each other for a short amount, but hear me out.” She listened as he took a breath. “I love you.”

Marinette dropped something, but she didn’t know what. It didn’t matter.

“Even before we met in person, I was enthralled by your work, your delicateness when you sewed and when you would bake things.”

Run.

“I remember when you broke down during your video and spent the entire two hours explaining why you were crying, making me want to find out where you lived to tell you that everything was going to be fine and that everything was going to work out.”

Run!

“I remember when you won your first fashion competition for Audrey. I cried when you showed off your winning designs that you worked day in and day out, the days that you spent working on designs you drew with your prickled covered hands and sprained wrist.”

Find him!

“I remember when you eagerly shared with us how you planned to debut, going into details about your launch before you panicked because you let out confidential information, saying how you wanted to remain a mystery to the public. You didn’t want anyone to know who you truly were until you felt comfortable about it.” 

Where was he?

“Then when I met you,” A pause. “Even with your dress tattered and ripped, with your hair ruly and out of it’s crown  and your eyes red to the brim, I was still captivated by your beauty.”

There he was. 

Marinette allowed herself to breath, panting heavily as she walked up to the booth where Tim was, tears running down his face.

“The days we spent… I truly treasured… so please… don’t-”

“I’m not going anywhere.” “I’m not going anywhere.”

Marinette said, hearing her voice echo throughout the airport as she cupped Tim’s face into her hands, wiping his tears with her thumbs with such tenderness.

“I love you too.” “I love you too.”

With those words, she kissed him, soaking in the moment, feeling Tim place his own hands over hers, leaning in to deepen their kiss.

“I love you.”

[infiniteoddball]

Just wanted to say that new Rita one shot broke my heart😭but it was so good... thoughts on a part 2?😙✌️

A/N: So, here is the original post that started this all. Angst is something that I love to write. It is something that keeps me alive and makes me want to scream. I hope this fulfills all of your needs. I REALLY, as that you listen to the song September Song-Agnes Obel !  Word Count: 1,113 Tags: Angst  Tag List: @storiesofsvu @vivis-ghost-wife @svushots @wannabe-fic-reader @zeldasbabe @wall1418 @womenlovingwomen-imagines @kiwiana145 

Rita paused, staring at herself in the mirror of your bedroom. She stared at her puffy red eyes, not caring that she looked like shit. The thing she wanted the most was to have you back in her arms. She fucked up and she felt terrible. She knew that she wanted, more than anything, to fix things. She didn’t care what it took. She would do it. Therapy, some time apart, whatever. She never realized how much she hated sleeping in an empty bed until you weren’t there.

Rita walked into the bathroom, sitting on the edge of the tub, holding her head in her hands. She rubbed her eyes, wanting to cry even more. Instead, she had only cried until she fell asleep. Rita felt her regret in the pit of her stomach. She texted her assistant, Benjamin, saying that she wouldn’t be in today due to food poisoning. Rita’s finger hovered above Y/N’s phone number before she finally hit call. She swallowed hard as she silently begged for her to pick up. She swallowed thickly when she heard the familiar voice mail.

“Y/N. Babe...I am so sorry. I know that I messed up. I hurt you and I am so, so sorry. Please come home. I miss you and I love you. I want to work on us. I want us to get better. I am so sorry thatI haven’t been giving you the attention you deserve. Look, I am home. All day. I will be here if you decide to come home. Okay...I love you. Bye,” She hung up, slowly sliding into the empty tub as she curled into herself.

**

You stared at your phone, holding your breath until your phone stopped ringing. You closed your eyes, feeling the tears slip down your face as you listened to her voicemail on speaker. You could hear the remorse in her voice, knowing that she was serious. Especially since she was taking a day off of work. You swallowed the lump in your throat, wanting to throw up, but knew there was nothing in your system to throw up in your stomach.

You rolled over in the bed. You couldn’t remember the last time you had been in a bed without Rita by your side. You took a deep breath, forcing yourself to get out of bed. You slipped into the shower, losing track of time. You took a deep breath feeling yourself wanting to cry even more. How did things get so badly between you and Rita? When did you stop communicating?

You miss the scent of her lotion that she always bought extra of because she never asked you not to use it. She knew you loved it and never forgot to buy extra. You sit down, atop the bed, pulling the hotel robe tighter as you twist your wedding band around your finger. You hadn’t taken the ring off. You couldn’t bring yourself to do it. You take a deep breath, before finally getting up to get dressed. As much as you hate to admit this, you feel absolutely exhausted by this.

A while later, you walk up the stairs to your home, knocking on the front door. You hug yourself, looking up when Rita says your name. You bite your lip, feeling extremely awkward. She doesn’t know what to say and neither do you. You take a deep breath before really looking at her, “Can I come in?”

“Yes,” She says instantly. She stepped back, allowing you in.

You keep your eyes on the hardwood floor as you hear the door close. You inhale a deep, shaky breath before turning to face her. You have never seen Rita look so small with slumped shoulders and red rimmed eyes. You look back down at your feet, wishing you knew what to say.

“I regret not stopping you,” Rita blurts out. You feel shock fill you as you look up, “I am so sorry that I made you feel as though you are small. You’re not. You’re really, really not. When I first met you, I couldn’t stop thinking how you are larger than life and I would be lucky to even have five minutes with you. Somewhere along the way, I began to take you for granted and I am so sorry about that. You don’t deserve that. You never deserved that.” She declared.

You feel your heart clench as you look down at your feet. You swipe at the tears, that seemingly, haven’t stopped flowing since yesterday. You understood how serious she was being because she didn’t go into work when you knew she had court.

You look up finally before you hesitantly say, “Thank you for hearing me. I should have never snapped in that way. I should have talked to you.”

“Should we sit and talk?” Rita ran the heel of her palm up and down her thigh.

It honestly broke your heart to see her so unsure. You could tell just how sorry she was. You step forward, hugging her to your body.

“I don’t want to lose you!” Rita blurted out, hugging you tightly to her body, “I will do anything it takes to make you come home,” She whimpered.

You swallow thickly as you both melt into tears. This was not how you pictured this conversation. You thought anger was still going to be brewing between the both of you, instead, you were both falling apart at the seams, “You’re not going to,” You whisper thickly.

Rita pulled back, wiping away your tears. She cupped your chin tightly, “I don’t- No, I can’t do this on my own. I can’t live without you. I never thought I would ever feel this way about someone. I never thought I would be so connected to someone, but here we are. I love you.”

You slip your hand to the back of her neck, pulling her into a kiss, “I love you so, so much.” You say between kisses before pulling back to look at her. You touch your forehead to hers, “I hated not sleeping next to you. I missed you warming your cold, old man feet on my calves,” You choke out a watery laugh, “I hated not waking up having your limbs entangled with mine. I missed being woken up by you nuzzling into me, wishing for five more minutes of sleep. I don’t want to lose you either.”

“I do not have cold old man feet,” Rita laughed weakly. She buried her face where your neck and shoulder met, “Let’s go lay down so we can wake up together.”

“I would like nothing more than that.” You murmur.

[kaleidescope-writes]

Faithfully Yours-- Chapter 6: Underneath

In partnership with @accio-boys​

Billionaire!Tom Hiddleston x Doctor!Reader

Slow Burn! (Yay)

Warnings: Pre-Covid Activities (Please stay safe out there) taste of fluff, Roller coaster Rides, references to previous chapters, Cliffhanger(permanent warning), Long Chapter!!

Word Count: 3,719

Plz read final Note at the Very Bottom!!

Masterlist

The sound of distant laughter filled the morning air as you made your way down to the kitchen. It was 7am on Friday and you were planning to have an eleven hour shift before taking the weekend off to finally start planning the wedding. You were hoping to get most weekends off to focus on the wedding details. Unless there was an emergency at the hospital, in which case that would be your priority. You descended the stairs, going over today’s itinerary in anticipation. Making your way to the kitchen, the smell of food began to get overwhelming as Tom and Vivie came into your line of sight. “Good morning,” you greeted with a smile. Vivie turned to you and cheerily responded, “Good morning, Auntie Y/N!” Tom gave you a smile and nod before turning back to whatever he was cooking. “So what’s the plan for today?” Vivie asked excitedly as you sat down next to her. “Today, I have a few post-ops to attend to before I consult with another doctor on a surgery plan for a patient that came in recently. Finally, I have a meeting with the board of directors to discuss the finishing on a new policy that will grant Trans patients benefits their insurance doesn’t cover,” you explained. Vivie nodded, closely paying attention to every word you said. 

“What’s a post op?” she asked curiously, giving you the cutest face of confusion ever. “Post op is a short term for Postoperative Care,” you began, “Basically it’s after a patient has surgery, they have to stay in the hospital for a bit to make sure they get better and stay healthy. We monitor them so we can prevent anything bad from happening just in case there are complications after the surgery.” Vivie nodded again, eager to learn every little thing you said about your job. Tom interjects before she could ask another question, “I’m glad you’re interested in Y/N’s job, but I’d prefer you not speak with your mouth full.” He sets down two plates of food, one for each of you. Handing you utensils, he gives you a small smile as you thank him before he goes back to his own unserved plate. He comes back seconds later and sits down in front of you before beginning to enjoy his meal.

There was a momentary silence between the three of you, only filled by the sound of the utensils making contact with the plates. It felt nice. For a brief moment, you were reminded of when you were a child having breakfast with your family. Back before you grew older and things began to get more complicated. Back before all the bad times you spent. It felt welcoming. It felt like this is where you were meant to be. As if this was your new family. You smiled at the thought. 

“Auntie Y/N!” Vivie blurted, “Uncle Tom has something to ask you!” Tom gave her a quick look of horror before composing himself and turning back to you calmly. “It’s nothing really,” he dismissed, “It can wait.” You smirked, donning a tone of mock innocence as you spoke, “It’s ok, you can tell me.” Tom glared at you slightly, to which you returned a simple wink. “Vivie,” he began cautiously, “Go get your bag, I’ll take care of your plate.” Vivie nodded, getting up before she excused herself. You kept eye contact with Tom as you heard her leave the kitchen. Once she was far enough, Tom sighed before opening his mouth to speak. “Given what you told me last night about your brother, I believe it’s time we start selling our relationship more,” he proposed. You gave him a look of confusion and he took it as a sight to continue. “If it isn’t much trouble, I would like to invite you on a first formal date. If you’re not too occupied.” 

Your jaw dropped slightly. Unable to process what he’d just said, you stared at him blankly. Was he kidding? Did he actually think it through before asking? You were completely dumbfounded. “I’ll take your silence as a no, then,” Tom muttered, keeping a neutral expression. “No, no,” you rushed out, “I mean yes, I’d love to!” Tom smirked, catching that word before you did. “Love to?” he repeated questioningly, smugness oozing out of him as he spoke. 

“I didn’t mean that!” you exclaimed, “I just mean I think it’ll be a good idea. Tom nodded, keeping the expression from before. He stood, taking both his and Vivie’s plate over to the kitchen. “Then I’ll pick you up at 8 from the hospital. Wear something comfortable,” he declared. You raised an eyebrow, “I get off work at 8.” 

“I know.” 

~~~~~

“I mean seriously, I understand the whole ‘mama bear’ thing, but when a doctor says it’s just a scratch, chances are it’s just a scratch,” Teigan laughed. You were on your lunch break in the cafeteria, accompanied by some of your close friends from the hospital. This was a relatively common occurrence. “She was just taking care of her kid,” Luke shook his head taking a sip of his carton orange juice. “I’m just saying,” Teigan continued, “I get some kids have overprotective parents. I did too. But there’s a limit between concern and paranoia and she was crossing the limit.” 

The group laughed a bit, each enjoying their respective meal as the conversation died down. The temporary silence was interrupted by your phone ringing, letting you know you had received a text message. Pulling it out of your pocket, you checked the screen to see a message from Tom. It read, “I forgot to mention this before, but you’ll need a coat for our date. I won’t lend you mine.” You rolled your eyes, taking another bite of food as you unlocked it to reply. “Who’s that?” Lucille asked, trying to look over your shoulder to see the message. “No one,” you responded bluntly, typing a message to send to him. Luke squinted, voicing his input. “It has to be someone to make you react like that,” he pried, leaning closer to you just a bit. 

You huffed, “It’s just Mr. Asshole, reminding me of how much more of an asshole he can be.” Luke’s eyes went wide for a moment, a smirk forming on his features. “And what did uh, Mr. Asshole, say?” Teigan asked, a teasing tone lacing her words. You quickly sent the message, knowing damn well where this was going. You tried to put it back in your pocket, failing as Luke yanked it from your grasp. He held it away from you as Lucille kept you in your seat. “Seriously?” you bickered, “You guys are acting like teenagers.” Luke unlocked your phone with ease, already knowing your password. As soon as he found the messages, he read them silently. He turned to you with a look of surprise, gasping before he spoke, “He’s taking you out on a date?” As soon as he said that, both women turned to look at him with the same expressions on their faces. “A date?!” Teigan asked incredulously, dropping her burrito onto the plate. 

“It’s nothing serious,” you disclaimed, “We’re just keeping up appearances so people think this whole marriage thing isn’t a ploy for money.” Luke shook his head, “A date is a date. Doesn’t matter the intention, so long as it’s consensual.” You groaned, slouching in your seat as Luke read the message to your other two companions. “Our girl is finally going on a date!” Lucille teased, nudging you as she spoke. You deadpanned, muttering a response, “You did pay attention to the last part of the text, right?” She ignored you, instead urging Luke to read your response. “She wrote back ‘Ever the gentleman, I see. I have a coat, don't worry. See you tonight.’” Lucille cringed a bit, “Couldn’t you be nicer to your future husband? I mean he’s taking you on a date.” Sighing, you let your head drop slightly, wanting to be somewhere else at the moment. Anywhere else. “Well for one,” you began, “This is something that should have happened before we got engaged. Besides, he said he wasn’t going to give me his coat if I forgot mine, he’s not planning on being nice.” 

“Still, it’s cute that he’s taking you out on a date,” Teigan acknowledges. You groan, reaching for your phone in Luke’s hand. Taking it back, you quickly put it back in your pocket. The group momentarily fell silent, continuing with their meal. “You should wear your ‘night out’ outfit to your date.” Luke spoke suddenly, interrupting the silence. You gave him a disapproving look, shaking your head as you responded, “Nope. We’re not doing this.” He scoffed, “Doing what?”

“You’re not giving me date advice.”

“Why not? You might actually need it!” 

“We already live together, there’s nothing I need to do differently.”

“It would be nice for him to see the relaxed version of you.” Luke concluded, taking a sip of his water bottle. Both Teigan and Lucille nod, eyes fixed on their respective meals. You rolled your eyes, deciding not to say anything as a response. “Don’t be so bitter and closed off on the date,” Teigan suggested. You gave her an indignant look, to which she simply shrugged. “If he’s being a jerk, just remind him that he asked you on the date and you’ve done nothing to warrant it.” Lucille added. “And if he leans in to kiss you, make sure you let him know whether or not you’re ok with it,” Luke finished. You turned to him, unable to muster up a response before your pager went off. 

“Well, I have to go. Have fun in AP Bio, kids,” you bickered, taking your platter with you as you made your way to the trash bin. 

“I really hope the date goes well,” Luke sighed, “She really deserves some love.” 

~~~~~~~~~~

Walking out of the elevator, you made your way out to the lobby. It was seven thirty, marking the end of your shift, and the beginning of your date. The thought alone was enough to make you feel weird about it. You spotted Tom waiting near the entrance, seemingly texting. Walking towards him at a relatively fast pace, you kept your eyes fixed on his presence. “Dr. L/N!” a voice called out from behind you. One of the residents caught up to you, standing in front of you so you would stop. “I know your shift just finished, but I just wanted to ask if I could be on your service for next week. I’m really interested in cardiology and would love to learn from you, if that’s ok?” Albert, a third year resident,  rushed out. You sighed heavily, looking up at Tom to see him now looking at you with intrigued eyes.

“First off, you need to drop the passiveness. Good surgeons take initiative, they don’t passively ask for things,” you explained, “Second, if you want to be on my service, ask the chief resident and submit your hours. If you’re approved, let me know on Monday and not before. Understood?” He shook his head quickly, “Yes ma’am. Thank you so much! I’ll let you know on Monday.” With that, he walked back the way he came, letting you continue to walk to where Tom stood. Once you were a few feet away he let out a laugh. “Who’s the fanboy?” he asked with a laugh. You reached him, rolling your eyes as you responded, “He’s a resident. He wants to be on my service for a week. I don’t want to think about work anymore, let’s go.” Tom smiled, reaching out his hand to you, “Well then, shall we get going?” You took it, realizing this was probably just part of the act. Giving him a nod, you began to lead him through the doors and out into the cold air night. 

He led you to his car, having parked it in the lot right outside the lobby. Once you were close enough to it, he let go of your hand and let you walk up to the passenger door. He unlocked the car and opened the door for you. “Madame,” he said with a polite smile. You shook your head, getting in wordlessly before he closed the door and made his way over to the driver’s side. Tom got in, immediately buckling up and waiting for you to do the same. As soon as you were ready, he started the car and began to pull out of the parking space. 

“So, where are we headed, Mr. I won’t share my coat with my fiance?” you asked in a mocking tone. He chuckled, keeping his eyes on the road. “You’ll see when we get there.”

“An amusement park?” you questioned quizzically. This had to be a joke. He left Vivie with the babysitter so he could take you and you alone to an amusement park? This felt a bit off. “Vivie suggested it. Why, do you not like amusement parks?” Tom asked in a fake hurt tone, placing his hand on his chest. Shaking your head, you turned back to look at him, “It’s not that, I just didn’t expect this from you.” He raised an eyebrow, taking your hand and beginning to walk you to the entrance. “If we are to be married, you should forget this asshole notion you have of me and start believing the fact that I am full of surprises,” he smirked. The two of you walked closer to the large neon signs glowing pink, red, and yellow. They were shaped like moons and had  “Luna” written with lights inside the four crescent moons. You walked through the entrance, taking in all the bright lights that surrounded you. 

“I was thinking we could start with a ride or two. The games are good as well,” he suggested, slowing his pace as he let you pick something to do. “You brought me to Coney Island without a plan of what you want to do first?” you queried, looking up at him in absolute confusion. “Being the gentleman I am, I was allowing you to pick our activities. If you don’t want to, then allow me to introduce you to the things I enjoy about Coney Island,” Tom answered, already leading you to the first activity he had in mind. 

He led you to the first ride on the left, walking into the line to begin the wait. You looked up at him expectantly, waiting for him to say something about tickets or money needed for the ride. He seemed not to notice for a moment, instead looking at the ride cars that passed by. After a minute of not breaking your sight, he turned to you and instantly realized your source of confusion. Wordlessly, he reached into his pocket and took out two cards, handing one to you. “The park has a credit system. I have these from a prior visit. I reloaded them earlier, so you have 41 credits,” he explained, “After this ride, you should have about 34.” You examined the card as he spoke, looking up after he finished to ask him one more question, “What ride is this?” Tom smiled, fixing his posture and extended his free hand to present the ride. “The first ride of the night is the one and only Tickler,” he announced, making you laugh a bit, “I hope you enjoy thrill rides, because it not only goes fast on a rising and falling track, but it will also spin on occasion.” Shaking your head, you pulled him along the line by his hand-- that for some reason was still holding onto you. He hasn’t let go. And you weren’t pulling away either, enjoying the small amount of warmth that radiated from it. 

You approached the front of the line, handing the card to the line operator when you were close enough. He let you both in, directing you to a car. A minute later, you were being strapped into the car, having left your bag in a safe place off to the side. Once you were secure, you looked up at Tom, who was already looking at you with a smirk. “Ready to have fun?” 

The ride ended after a few minutes, and you were a laughing, jittery mess. Grabbing your bag, you began to make your way to the exit. Tom held onto you, making sure you weren’t too dizzy to walk as you made your way to the next activity he had planned. “I didn’t scream the entire time!” you bragged, leaning into him slightly for support. “I’m sure I heard you scream at some point in the ride,” Tom disclaimed, putting his hand on his chin as if he was thinking. You scoffed, “I did not!” 

“Yes you did. I clearly heard a scream coming from right next to me!!”

“It was the other car!” 

“It sounded like you.” 

“How did it sound like me?”

“It was a bit whiny and high pitched,” he teased, looking at you as your laughter calmed a bit. His soft blue eyes reflected the lights around you as your pace slowed a bit. You didn’t say anything, heavily captivated by his mere presence as you suddenly became aware of your proximity. His warmth seemed to surround you completely and you found yourself basking in his smell. He cleared his throat, looking away as he quickened his pace and led you to the next thing he wanted to introduce you to. “So we’ve done the first ride, now we have to do the first game.” He pulled you to one of the game booths, only letting go once you were close enough to the stool to sit down. Looking up at the name, you read “Water Racer.” You each took a place on a stool and handed your cards to the worker. A few more people joined in and you turned to Tom. “Ready to lose?” you smirked, glaring at him slightly. He laughed a bit, quickly responding “Are you?”

The game began, causing water to flow through the water guns. You aimed it at the target as best as you could, only moving it slightly when you laughed. Tom looked over to you, quickly realizing just how well you were doing. “Oh, no!” he laughed, “You won’t win that easily.” He reached over and moved your hand out of place, causing your aim to falter completely. “Stop!” you cried, desperately trying to push his hand away while regaining your aim. You succeeded, but were still far behind now. The other competitors came closer to the top as you slowly regained your pace. Just as you thought you were close to winning, the bell sounded and the worker called out “Winner!” You turned to look at the bars, trying to find the winner, only to realize he was sitting to your left. 

Tom stood from the stool with a proud smile, winking at you as you glared even more. “Seriously?” you rhetorically asked, standing from the stool to meet his eye-- well chest considering the height difference. “Which prize would you like, sir?” the worker asked, resetting the bars as he spoke. Tom looked over at the prizes as you kept your eyes fixed on him. He pointed at one hanging from the tent. You didn’t bother to see which one he picked, instead choosing to keep playfully glaring at him as you spoke, "You pushed my hand, cheater!" He looked at you briefly, then turned back to the man behind the table. "You're right," he confessed, " I cheated. That's why I think it's only fair you have the prize." He took the plush from the worker's hands and gave it to you. 

It was a jaguar plush, made to lie down wherever you placed it. "To commemorate the day we met," he told you, taking a step closer. You didn't know whether to be bothered by it or just smile. It was a cute little detail, but it signified almost getting hit by his car. A Jaguar. Your lips curled into an involuntary smile. You looked up to meet his eyes once more and muttered a ‘thank you.’ “What was that?” he asked teasingly, “I couldn’t quite hear you.” 

Rolling your eyes, you repeated it louder and added ‘asshole’ to the end of it. Satisfied with the gratification, he took your hand again and led you away from the booth. “C’mon, I have more to show you,” he said, keeping you close as you held his hand with your left and the adorable plush with your right. 

~~~

After a few more games and a couple rides, you found yourself switching over to Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park--which was conveniently right next to Luna Park. Tom also had two cards for, ready and loaded with credits. He said that he frequented both parks with Vivie, which explained basically everything. He took you to the Spook-a-Rama attraction, claiming you couldn’t have a date at an amusement park without going into one of the horror attractions-- mild horror, but still. After that, you went on the bumper cars and made several jokes about him being great at crashing into people. To which, he simply warned you to watch where you were going. Multiple times.

After you’d stopped to get a snack and water for  the night, Tom took you to one more ride. “There’s only one way to end a great amusement park date,” he explained, leading you to the line for the Wonder Wheel. As you stood in line, you both joked about all the things that had happened in that single night. It took you about fifteen minutes to get to the front of the line, choosing the one for the stationary cars. You entered the car and sat down, Tom choosing the seat to your right ratchet than the one directly in front of you. The operator closed the door and called the next car. The two of you sat in a comfortable silence, taking in all the bright lights that came from the Ferris wheel. It was nice to have small moments like this. “Oh,” Tom said suddenly, “I meant to tell you this sooner. I have Vivie’s record for you to look at. I’ll give it to you first thing tomorrow before we meet up with your mother.” It took you a moment to process what he’d said, staring blankly for a bit before reacting. “Right, right. Thanks for that. I’ll take a look at them on the way to the wedding planner’s,” you stammered. He smiled, nodding once before looking away again. 

The ride started shortly after the exchange, moving your car up closer to the top. You looked over at the New York Skyline, admiring all the brightly lit buildings that made your eyes sparkle. Tom noticed how they did, gazing into them as you were looking away. “I have to say,” he whispered, “For an uptight, workaholic doctor, you do know how to enjoy yourself.” You snapped out of your trance, fixing your eyes on him. “I have to say,” you repeated with a smile, “For an asshole, you do know how to show a girl a good time.” He mimicked your smile and leaned in closer to you making the car move just a bit. “You know, under any other circumstance, this would be romantic,” he pointed out, a wondering expression gracing his features. You laughed a bit, “This is what you find romantic?”

“What do you find romantic?” he asked as if he was slightly offended. 

“Long walks on the beach, spontaneous gifts, random dates, cute little notes, things like that.”

“Well technically, this is a random date,” he mentioned, “It’s not quite a walk on the beach, but we are near it. The jaguar is a spontaneous gift. All this needs is a cute little note.” You thought for a moment, realizing he had a point. “I guess you’re right,” you admitted. His expression changed again. He gave you that look that you came to despise slightly. That devious look that informed you of a secret plan he had brewing in his head. “So you could say this is romantic?” he asked teasingly. Internally groaning, you quickly became wise to his plan. He won’t let you be until you admitted he was right. “Yes, ok?” you gave in, “You’re right.”

“About what?” he questioned, feigning innocence. You let out  a frustrated sigh, refusing to answer. Tom narrowed his eyes at you, “You know I won’t stop asking until you say it.” You thought for a moment as you weighed your options. It was either give him the satisfaction of telling him he was right or having him bother you until you inevitably did. Tom is a stubborn man, you learned that fairly quickly. Deciding you’d rather have this bickering end here. “Fine,” you muttered, “You’re right. This is romantic.” Tom raised an eyebrow, smirk widening as he spoke, “Is or would be?” 

“Both,” you laughed, desperately wanting it to end. You both fell into silence once again, taking in the view as you enjoyed each other's presence. You felt him shift slightly, choosing to ignore it as you continued to look out into the distance. You barely noticed when his arm went around your shoulders. Freezing for a moment, you processed the situation and considered your options. You could either pull away or lean into it. You considered the situation for a moment, realizing this was probably something you’d have to do often to keep up your charade. You didn’t want to think about that. All you wanted was to embrace this moment for what it is and think about just that. So you did. You leaned into his embrace, wordlessly accepting his actions. The two of you stayed that way until the ride ended.

“And that concludes our date,” Tom announced, walking towards the exit with you close behind. “I had fun,” you smiled as you caught up to him. He returned it, opening his lips to respond to your statement only to be interrupted by a voice calling out nearby. “Mr. Hiddleston! Dr. L/N! Can we have a few words for the press?” A small group of, what you assumed were reporters, began to run up to you. In an instant, Tom took your hand and began pulling you away in the opposite direction. You began to run to the exit on 12th Street, quickly turning towards the beach as you ran. Tom held your hand as you hurried down the street and into the open air of the ocean nearby. You ran as fast as your legs and will could take you, desperately trying to keep up with him. 

Once you reached the boardwalk, the two of you went to hide near the tables. Coming to a complete stop near one of the establishments, you tried to catch your breath, exhausted from the sudden run. Your breaths slowly turned into laughter, causing Tom to give you a look of utter confusion. Slowly, he too began to chuckle a bit at your current situation. You both laughed for a bit longer before it died down. You looked deeply into his eyes, taking in every ounce of unspoken emotion. Tom did the same to you, leaning down ever so slightly. You leaned in closer to him as well, gradually minimizing the space in between the two of you. 

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

A/N: It’s finally done!!! This chapter took me so long because I wanted to get the geography layout right. I am not a New Yorker, so I had to do a lot of research regarding both parks and their locations. It took a while. But anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!! It’s well over due and I hope the extra work makes up for that!! Show some love for @accio-boys​ for being the mastermind of this chapter and coming up with the idea of a Coney Island date. As always, I love you all, feel free to comment what you think as feedback is appreciated and encouraged!! Stay Safe, Stay Proud, Stay Wonderful, Please be Careful out there, and I hope all is well in your corner of this hectic world. 

Also, I will be posting well overdue chapters from now till Sunday before I start online Classes, so please be patient. Later today I will post Life in Audrilluria Chapter Two and Possibly Winter Mistakes as well. Stay tuned for that!!

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One last thing; I’ve been having troubles with the @’s and some of them aren’t showing up. If you aren’t getting the Tag Notification, please let me know. That way I can message you anytime I upload a chapter. And If I missed you, also let me know as Tumblr has been eating some of the tags. 

And to all my new followers, Welcome to the family😘❤🧡💛💚💙💜

[arthurtristankingsmen]

BOO

Some more rusty writing, but this time some fluff \o/

Ugh—another Sea Bass.

Arthur continued to tap at his switch screen, lounging on the couch on his stomach. Over the quiet ambiance from the game, he could hear Vivi rummaging in the kitchen. She had announced making a sandwich after the two of them had finished playing a game she’d seen online, and by the sound of it, the meal was well underway.

A scattering of papers was strewn over the coffee table with scribbles ranging from halfway decent to downright awful, and a pair of markers dangled just over the edge of the table. They wiggled precariously atop art rendering the vague approximation of a cat by someone who’d never seen one in their life. The cause of their distress was Mystery, who kicked at the leg of the table while dreaming in front of the couch. Every time he did, there was a soft thump and the sound of an under-the-breath yip.

Arthur enjoyed the quiet calm, catching another fish and making a face at an olive flounder. At least, he did until something semi-heavy dropped on him and draped itself over his back.

“Oof—hello big guy.” He looked over his shoulder at Lewis, who took the opportunity to kiss his cheek. His grin widened. “Fancy seeing you here.

“Mmm… I’m always fancy.” Lewis hummed against him, arms moving to curl around his waist. Lewis nuzzled into his hair. “How’s fishing going…?”

“No rares yet.” Arthur grumbled and let the Switch lean against the arm of the couch. He touched Lewis’s arm with his own, squeezing his wrist and using his prosthetic on the joystick to continue walking. “Make the coelacanths come out for me, Lewis.”

“Hmmm. No. Suffer.” Lewis kissed the back of his neck.

“Ha—" Arthur shivered at the feeling and aimed a smirk his way. “Is this your new plan for revenge?”

Lewis’s own smile was tender as he leaned a cheek on his shoulder. “Maybe. Is it working?”

“I am distraught and will never recover.” Arthur touched his forehead with the back of his hand with all the drama he could muster, and Lewis rumbled with a laugh.

After a minute, when he’d found another fish, he let go of Lewis’s arm to play again. Lewis stayed where he was, but one arm did readjust to touch his waist beneath his shirt. He could feel Lewis’s finger moving slowly in a pattern on his skin.

“Did you see me and Vivi playing that game earlier?” Arthur asked, frowning at another sea bass. He punted it into the ocean on principle.

“Yeah.” Lewis nuzzled him again, clearly in a loving mood. “She was drawing on your pack and you were copying her, right?”

“Yep. I was not good. But I like to think I got better. After a few dozen tries. It was fun.” He laughed, and Lewis hummed in his ear.

“Better, huh…?” He started tracing his finger slower. “Can you tell what I’m making, then?”

Arthur closed his eyes to concentrate. “Hmmmmm… feels like…. A heart?”

Lewis laughed and it made his heart dance. “You did get better.”

“Are you surprised?” Arthur leaned his head into his into him, and his voice twisted to a teasing one. “This is me we’re talking about. Clearly I’m amazing at everything.”

“You are.” Lewis smirked as his face twisted in protest of the compliment. “And you said it, so it must be true.”

“You should know by now that everything that comes out of my mouth is bullshit.” Arthur snorted, a hint derisive. “Trying to be all sappy and throw me off. How could you Lewis?”

“You’ve seen through my other master plan.” Lewis laughed again and kissed behind his ear and then his temple. He hummed at Lewis’s ministrations before looking at him.

“Your hand changed again. It’s uh…..I think a star?”

“Close. A flower. Guess you still need practice.”

Arthur puffed. “Well—you wanna play a bit with me and help, then?”

Lewis leaned up, bracing on the hand that’d been drawing on him. “What about your game?”

“Meh.” Arthur shrugged. “I’m just fishing and it’s near full battery. It can sit for a bit on standby.” He moved the switch to the coffee table and when Lewis had ease off of him, he sat up. “Let’s do this.”

“So you just—turn around, and I draw on your back? And you try to draw the same thing?” Lewis asked, already moving into position on the couch behind Arthur.

Arthur snagged the markers and two sheets of blank paper from the table. “ Yep. We did it standing, but you should be fine to do it here. I’ll use the table.”

“Alright.” Lewis waited for him to be situated. He felt the marker move in a long line down his back and to the left. He replicated it.

|

The next feeling was weird. It felt like—two humps? Near where he’d felt the line.

B

The next thing was pretty clearly a circle. He added it easily.

BO

It looked like the start of a word. But what sappy thing would Lewis put that started with a Bo? Bodacious? No room, with how big they were both drawing on the paper? Was this one of those big H A P, little p y happy birthday situations? Bold? That was Vivi. Bawsome—why did he think that it didn’t even make sense--.

He felt another circle on his back.

BOO

Arthur stared at it for all of one second—before screaming hard. Lewis warmed and he heard the whoosh of flames and say the glow of purple on the table. Mystery kicked the table in a scramble to get up, and papers haphazardly place rustled as they fell and scattered on the floor. Vivi showed at the doorway to the kitchen, half-eaten sandwich in hand and mayonnaise smeared on her cheek and lips.

“Whuh happn?” Concern reflected on her face and Mystery’s.

Arthur sheepishly smiled and held up the paper, before it shifted to a pout. “Lewis scared me.”

The three of them were dead silent for a few moments, before a snicker cracked the silence. Then another, and then like a dam, they all burst out laughing at once.

“Arthur—you’re awful!” Vivi wiped at her face. “I thought something happened!”

“I thought something did too!” Lewis ruffled his hair. “And I was right next to you.”

Arthur cackled. “Sorry! I couldn’t not.”

“My revenge shall be swift and merciless.” Mystery puffed at him, but a smile was on his face as well. “I was just having a pleasant nap too.”

“Sorry, sorry. The way you failed was pretty damn hilarious though.”

“Merciless.”

Arthur laughed again. “I guess I deserve that. Think you’ll probably really disarm me with whatever you do.”

Mystery gave him a sour look, and the both of them spat their tongues at one another before laughing again. Vivi huffed and flopped down on the couch beside him and Lewis.

“I might just help Mystery with this plot after the frighten you gave me.” She pouted.

“Well—I can make it up to you.”

“Oh? Better have something good planned.” She pouted at him.

“I will.” He said it like a promise. “But first—you have something on your face.”

“What is it? Some must—?” She started to speak but Arthur leaned forward, bracing on Lewis’s leg and pressing a kiss to her cheek and then lips. She hummed after a moment of surprise and kissed him back. He enjoyed the way their lips brushed against one another and the gentle touch of her fingers to his face when she framed his jaw and the way she seemed to melt and close her eyes. He held out as long as he could until they separated for air.

“It was me.” Arthur grinned while panting. “And some mayo. But I got that. Does that make up for your earlier frighten?”

“Hmmmmmm…. I guess.” Her grin was doubly wide and there were sparkles in her eyes and god he loved her so much. “But I might still ask for more later.”

“What about me?” Mystery puffed, and Arthur glanced at Vivi.

“Hey Vivi… can I have the rest of your sandwich if I give you another kiss?”

“Hmmmmmm…..I suppose.” She sighed in a put upon way, and passed him the sandwich, which he passed to Mystery. Mystery inspected it with a gastronomer’s eye, before nodding. “Very well. You are safe. For now.”

“Thanks buddy.” Arthur grinned, and he returned his attention to Vivi. This time when he kissed her, he cupped her cheeks and leaned into her a little more, fingers curling into the soft blue strands of her hair. She hummed her appreciation and clasped his hands over her face, and he could feel the smile on her lips.

When they broke away they both sighed, and he was sure his expression was just as pleased as her own. He kissed her forehead with a grin. “Sweet as always. And a little bacon-y now.”

“Some sandwich flavoring.” Vivi giggled. He laughed too, though it stopped short when he felt a tug to his shirt. He glanced at the bone-patterned hand on his sleeve, and then up at Lewis.

His face was soft and wanting. “….Can I have one too?”

Arthur grinned in answer. “It’s only fair.” And before Lewis could answer, he leaned forward to capture his lips as well. Lewis was more ready for him, and immediately moved into the kiss. His hair took on a sheen of pinks that glittered like flame, and his body seemed to warm at the touch, before tilting his head so their noses didn’t touch. His hands came up, curling into Arthur’s hair to cup the back of his head and cradle him close.

Arthur had to pull back after long enough to breathe, and Lewis looked half flustered, half sheepish as he panted. “I forgot you need to breathe….”

“That’s okay—I enjoyed every second.” Arthur grinned, and leaned into his chest.

“I did too!” Vivi purred. “Though I think if Mystery got his sandwich and Arthur got kisses, I need one from you too. So everything’s fair.”

Lewis rumbled with his laugh. “I suppose I did scare Arthur. So I should apologize too~.” He leaned forward to kiss her too, gentle and sweet as she kissed him back. Arthur hummed in approval while watching the both of them. The way Vivi giggled as Lewis rubbed his nose against hers bloomed warmth in his chest, and the way Lewis’s hands touched her with the tenderness of one holding a priceless treasure made a smile pull at his lips. They were both so amazing, and somehow they both loved him.

When they parted as well, Lewis gathered both of them in his arms and settled into the couch. Arthur glanced at the switch, but then he turned away, laying his arm over Lewis and Vivi both. Instead he enjoyed Vivi’s fingers curling into his shirt, Lewis’s arm around him, and Mystery’s warm fur at his legs from where he jumped up to join in, sandwich thoroughly defeated.

He sighed in contentment and closed his eyes. He could keep playing and stay like this….

…but he had better things to do.

[oveliagirlhaditright]

RokuShi Day Fic 1/Day 1. Prompt: Pining

Chemistry

Xion was jealous of Roxas and Olette... It was silly and dumb—she knew that it was, because they were great together and deserved every happiness—but it was what it was. Though she made certain that her feelings didn’t cloud her judgement and that she became mean to either party.

It had all started when Roxas had suddenly latched onto Olette as the "normal one" in their group of friends. For as much as Roxas loved Hayner, he—like all of them—could get annoyed with his temper when it came to all things Seifer... as well as his hare-brained schemes, that he barely helped out with. And Pence had really been getting into his superstitions lately, which kept him from being “normal”… whatever that word meant.

And as for Xion herself? Well, she'd probably been venting to Roxas too much about how she wasn't sure she wanted Isa in their lives... It was a work and progress, anyway. So Xion understood why Roxas would end up going with Olette, especially since Olette was a constant pillar of light, in helping him—them—from flunking the year.

And then Roxas had gallantly offered to be Olette's date for the dance. And that was when it had really become clear to Xion that she’d never be in Roxas’ heart… at least not in the way she wanted to be.

And ever since that date, Roxas and Olette had been inseparable. And it warmed Xion's heart and broke it at the same time.

At the moment, Xion and Vivi were in science class together. And he was secretly using some of the magic that he apparently had, to get the Bunsen burner cold while they put a pop can on top of it. Xion had told him to do this, as she was pretty sure that that was what their teacher had instructed them to do. But it was hard to remember, because she couldn’t keep her attention from wandering over to Roxas and Olette.

...If she was hearing them at their table correctly, it sounded like Roxas was saying how weird it was, that every young adult book had the intended couple in it as lab partners in it... and Olette was laughing at that jest... Because of course she was. She, like Roxas now, was well read enough to get the joke, it seemed, whereas Xion wasn't… She didn’t know that “lab partner romance” seemed to be a trend.

And it was as Xion was having that depressing thought, that Vivi's words reached her. "Xion, you were wrong! We weren’t supposed to freeze the can and then heat it. We were supposed to do it in the reverse order!”

But it was too late.

Xion had made the mistake of rapidly heating a cold can instead of rapidly cooling a hot one, and the item exploded!

Thankfully, Xion was able to whip out her Keyblade just in time—to use an aero spell, so that the shrapnel  wouldn't rain down on anyone and hurt them.

But her experiment was a failure—and she even had Roxas and Olette's attention now—and she put her head on her desk and dreamed of somehow fazing into it so no one would see her.

...

In the end, Xion actually wasn't in trouble for the experiment gone wrong. Rather, her teacher was impressedthat she'd figured out how to make it explode all on her own, and thus must have greatly been improving in her understanding of Chemistry… though he of course pointed out that she should never do such a thing again. He also seemed moved  by the “phenomenon that had been around her to lessen the blast”. And Xion had had to lie through her teeth to try and think of a convincing answer that had nothing to do with Keyblades, magic, or other worlds.

And once she had miraculously done that, she was happily out the door and heading home.

“Xion!” Roxas called her name as soon as she began heading in that direction, whilst he hurried down the stairs after her. “Hey, wait up! Don’t you want to walk home together? And, hey… are you okay? What happened with the experiment today? I saw that you… you and Vivi took down the notes right, so-”

Oh, no. Was Roxas reprimanding her in the way that Isa had used to? As that depressing thought and trauma came back to Xion, the best she could do was come up with the best explanation she could think of and try to sound sincere. “S- Sorry, Roxas. I freaked out and forgot what I was doing. I swear I transported back into the girl I was in Organization XIII, who knew nothing of the world… strange.”

“…Do you want to talk about it?” Roxas asked her now, as he ran to her side and dropped his books so he could put a hand on her face. And oh, how that hurt in the best way possible. And Roxas looked so beautiful in the sunlight that Xion wanted to cry. “Xion, you can talk to me about anything. You know that, right? I’m sorry I stopped listening to you about Isa some—you have every right to feel how you do about him—but I just felt torn in the middle, since you were hurt by Isa ,and Le- Axel was singing his praises. But I swear I’m here for you.”

Xion smiled, and even leaned towards Roxas some. She couldn’t help it. Because while this didn’t solve her problem about Roxas loving another… she had felt heartbroken she’d been, that Roxas hadn’t been listening to her about this touchy subject lately. So, she was glad that he was here now.

“Thanks, Roxas!” Xion exclaimed, as she clapped her hands together—taking a page from Kairi and Naminé’s books, probably—“but I- I swear I’m doing better with this now. But let’s celebrate being good friends again! Why don’t we go see a movie… platonically, of course. We’ll get all of our friends together, and-”

“…Will Vivi be there?”

‘Wow. Roxas must really be trying to be certain that Olette wouldn’t get the wrong impression that the two of us like each other’, Xion thought. 'I'd better try and reassure him.' "Of course he will. Vivi is our friend, right? Especially since we found out he's sick... right?"

"Right..."

But Roxas didn’t seem to like something about that answer, because he let Xion walk home alone, after all, as he suddenly seemed to recall that he had a chess club meeting that night… But when had Roxas ever been in the chess club? Xion thought it best to leave that conundrum alone, and bring Axel and Isa the fried ice cream she’d made in home economics, before it spoiled.

…

That night, when they were back home—though Xion had thought that she and Roxas were somewhat thick as thieves again—he didn't say a word to her at dinner (and rather seemed to be promptly ignoring her). And so Xion was left wondering what she'd done wrong…

Xion had gone back to her room pretty miserable then, and had called Vivi on the phone like she often did, and had fun talking to him about their video editing class…

And just when Xion was done talking to him, Roxas suddenly walked into her room and gave her a look, that she was instantly coming up with come back after come back for whatever he was about to say. "Don't you think you should lay back when it comes to Vivi some? He's younger than us, and-"

But what he did say had certainly took the wind out of her sails, so that Xion could only look at him dumbfounded as she knelt on her bed. "…Roxas, he's a year younger than us ,but in our grade because he's a genius who got promoted. Where is this coming from? I thought you wanted me to hangout with Vivi! And at least I'm not like you, pretty much bribing a teacher, to let you go to the next grade so you can stay by Olette’s side!"

And for the first time since Roxas had fallen in love with another, Xion let her envy on full display… and she hated that her beloved had to see her like this. Hadn’t she always tried to be the selfless one?

"Wait... what?!" Roxas asked. He sounded confused; and this got to Xion, because usually when Roxas was upset about something… well, his first reaction was to be angry. So, the fact that he just sounded confusednow must have meant something. And was it Xion... or did his next words have a sympathetic air to them? "Xion, do you think I'm in love with Olette?"

Xion blinked a few times at this, as it all suddenly came together in her heart. But what was one to expect from her? She'd just figured out that the boy she'd loved for so long wasn't with another, after all... and that he'd been afraid that she was.

And it was at this point, that Xion burst out laughing and kicked her legs to and fro, as she completely fell back onto her periwinkle bed.

And Roxas blushed, and rubbed the back of his neck in what looked to be an embarrassed manner. If she had to guess, she would have assumed he’d done the math, too. But right now, she was too amused to put that belief into words. "We've, uh, been pretty dumb here, Xion. Haven't we? I've just been hanging out with Olette because I thought you were with Vivi... and since her family was making fun of her for not having a date to prom. It was a whole thing. But you and Vivi... you've just been friends?"

And Xion rocketed off her bed and ran towards Roxas so fast, that she dove into his arms. It was actually a wonder that her socked feet hadn't caused the rug to catch on fire, honestly… How ironic, that would have been. "Roxas,” Xion giggled, as she held Roxas’ face in her hands this time, “I can only ever just be friends with someone who isn't you. How have you not figured out yet that I love you, when I sacrificed myself for you and so much else?"

If it had been Sora with Kairi, Xion thought, he would've been shocked by this... said he loved Kairi too, or any number of things. But not Roxas, because he wasn't Sora—she wasn't either—and neither was she Kairi.

Instead, Roxas came forward, kissed her passionately for some beautiful seconds, and then grabbed her hand to begin leading her downstairs. "Xion, what do you say we head downstairs, and give Lea and Isa the nightmare that we're dating? I think that will be hella fun. And get back at Isa for how he treated you some, maybe.”"

And while Xion was pretty sure that Axel and Isa must’ve known it was going to go this way for a while, Xion squeezed Roxas' hand—and let him move her, thank you very much—and shouted "Let's!"

And something about the way they moved, did catch the fuzzy steps on fire.

[providentially-demonic]

Miraculous Mystery Skulls: Chapter Eight

First Arc: a Spellcaster, a Ghost and a Mechanic walk into a bar Paris

Summary: On their honeymoon in Paris, the City of Lights, the trio of Vivi, Lewis and Arthur encounter more than sightseeing… in the form of monsters, supervillains and a pair of teen superheroes. Sometimes, miraculous things can happen, when you least expect it.

(A Mystery Skulls/Miraculous Ladybug crossover event)

A/N: This all started with this fic by @phantoms-lair and the silly idea of them running into Chat Noir and Ladybug while there. It grew…

It’s a tale of heroes, miraculous, found family and more (with a healthy dose of puns). Co-created and written with assistance from @phantoms-lair, so she deserves some of the credit and a lot of the blame! :P

Back to Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight: Un-kamen Sense

Arthur had just gotten out of the shower and emerged from the bathroom with a towel in hand, carefully drying his scarred shoulder and the connection port for his arm. Vivi was sprawled on the bed, wearing only a towel, and humming in pleasure as Lewis, hovering over the bed with his legs folded under him, gently combed through her wet hair. Zippi was amusing himself by jumping on the buttons of the remote, rapidly changing the channels on the tv. Thankfully someone (probably Lewis) had turned the volume down quite low.

Mystery was asleep in the chair. He’d woken long enough to scarf down an enormous meal sometime in the early morning hours and gone back to sleep. Vivi had just smiled fondly at him and said again that he had worn himself out and would probably sleep the rest of the day away. Arthur smiled as Vivi waved him to sit in front of her. She took the towel from him and took over the task of carefully making sure every drop of water was gone. He’d only made the mistake of putting his arm on right after getting out of the shower once. It had been shocking, to say the least.

Lewis suddenly made a startled sound. “Zippi, stop!” He commanded, dropping the comb and grabbing for the remote. Arthut and Vivi turned their attention to the tv as he turned the volume up. “— mak reporting on the Akuma attack at the Arc de Triomphe. Ladybug and Chat— LOOK OUT!”

Rubble filled the screen, huge chunks of stone tumbling down around the hapless reporter and her cameraman. There was a pained scream. The camera janked sideways and the image blurred, finally clearing to show a cockeyed view of the pavement. “Gerard, get up, we need to move!” The reporter’s voice cajoled from offscreen. “I— I can’t. I think my leg is broken!” The responding voice was strained with pain.

The camera was jolted again. “Son of a—” the reporter hissed. “Okay, okay. You stay put here and—” 

“Give me my camera back. I can still film.” The camera jerked again before focusing shakily on the reporter’s dust-streaked face and worried eyes.

By now Arthur had attached his arm and was throwing his clothes on as fast as he could. Vivi was already mostly dressed, kicking into her shoes and muttering angrily under her breath. 

“The akuma, calling themselves Big Boomer, has been leaving a trail of destruction all along the Champs-Élysées from near the Louvre to the Arc de Triomphe.” The reporter continued, crouched near the cameraman, who panned the camera to show the swath of shattered buildings. “Ladybug and Chat Noir are keeping Big Boomer occupied, though they have yet to strike a decisive blow—”

Lewis had already dropped his human guise and waited by the balcony doors. Arthur trotted over to join them, blinking as Lewis shoved a metallic-looking gold and black mask made of spectral energy into his hands. “I don’t want anyone seeing your faces.”

He was just as quick in passing a second mask to Vivi, stylized in silver, white and ice-blue. She made a delighted sound and put it on at once, throwing her arms around Lewis’s neck. He tucked his arm around her and held out his other arm for Arthur. Zippi darted over and tucked himself into the collar of Arthur’s vest.

Arthur wrapped his arm around Lewis’s waist and let Lewis lift them both from the balcony, the reporter still talking on the tv behind them.

“—deserve hazard pay for this—” the cameraman grumbled to the mostly empty room.

~~~~ 

It hadn’t taken all that long to deal with Big Boomer. Ladybug’s lucky charm had been a large wrench and with the addition of a nearby fire hydrant and Vivi’s ice powers, he had been frozen in place long enough for Lewis to snag the stopwatch around his neck and toss it to Chat to destroy. Arthur had been on crowd control, herding civilians out of the way and helping the injured cameraman out of the range of further injury.

Ladybug’s Miraculous cure swept over the area, repairing the destroyed buildings and swirling around the cameraman’s leg. He tested it after the ladybug swarm had gone, cautiously resting his full weight on it after a moment. “It’s better, thanks.” He waved off Arthur’s hand, grabbing for his camera. “Hey, are you one of those new heroes?” He motioned frantically at one of the people talking to Ladybug. “Did you come to help Ladybug save Paris? Will you do an interview? Ms. Chamak will be so hyped! Can I get your name?”

“Um—” Arthur almost flinched away from the deluge of questions. Vivi was more used to being the face of their investigations, the one who did most of the talking to clients and the occasional police interview after a case. But he forced himself out of his almost instinctual reaction and smiled for the cameraman. “No, thank you, on the interview. Maybe some other time.”

The cameraman looked slightly disgruntled. “Not even a couple of questions? You haven’t even told people your names!”

Arthur reached up and fingered the edge of his mask. A wicked smirk curved his lips as he saw Lewis heading in his direction, probably to rescue him from the media attention. “You can call me Kamen Sense.”

Lewis stopped dead in his tracks, spectral eyes blown wide. For a long moment he did not move.

Arthur deliberately winked at him. 

That did it. Lewis doubled over, laughing so hard he lost control of his voice and that strange spectral echo shadowed his delighted laughter. 

His ghostly laughter sent a visible shiver up the cameraman’s spine and he turned slightly to gape at Lewis, convulsed in helpless mirth.

“Did you say your name was common sense?” The voice at his elbow startled Arthur and he jerked around to stare at the curly-haired girl beside him. After a moment his brain connected and recognized her as the one he had saved at the museum and Marinette’s friend, Alya.

Another whoop of laughter escaped Lewis, and Arthur grinned. “Kamen,” he corrected, stressing the slight difference in pronunciation. “It means ‘mask’ in Japanese.” “Is that supposed to be a pun?” She squinted at him suspiciously. “I should introduce you to my friend Adrien. He’d love you.”

“Speaking of common sense, though, how bout you exercise some, and stay out of danger?” Arthur fixed her with a stern look. “You could be hurt. Again.” “I’m a reporter,” she retorted cheekly, “I go where the story is.”

“And the life threatening injuries,” the cameraman muttered, trying again to flag down the woman, who had turned her attention to Chat Noir. Arthur took the opportunity to head over to Lewis’s side. Despite his lack of a need to breathe, he was still wheezing from the fit of laughter. “You okay there, big guy? Didn’t think it was that funny.”

Lewis looked up, flickers of pink flame at the corners of his eye sockets attesting to just how hard he’d been laughing. “You—” he started, but shook his head, another spate of laughter escaping him.

Arthur chuckled and patted his arm. “If you can pull yourself together, shall we get out of here before those reporters descend on us too?”

That sobered Lewis quickly and he nodded.

Arthur tipped his head toward a nearby alley. “You grab Vi. I’ll meet you over there.”

With a nod, Lewis drifted towards Vivi, who was talking with Ladybug now that the reporter had focused her questions on Chat Noir.

Arthur slipped away quietly. Vivi and Lewis were more about showmanship, but Arthur preferred to stay away from the spotlight when possible. 

It didn’t take long for Lewis and Vivi to join him, and after making sure there were no prying eyes, Lewis lifted them both for the flight back to their hotel.

Back in the safe haven of their room, Arthur pulled off the mask and weighed it in one hand, staring down at the stylized face. It was gold, black, and silver, swirls that bore a strong resemblance to interlocking gears arcing away from the blank eyeholes and down the cheeks. The ends curved down where his cheeks would be, leaving his mouth bare and coming together to a gold-trimmed point on his chin, covering his goatee. Set directly above the brow of the mask was a stylized sunburst, mostly in gold but with a silver crescent overlaying the right side.

He looked up from it to the one Vivi still wore. Hers was asymmetrical, curving down in a crescent over the left side of her face, etched silver with blue and white swirls, like stylized clouds, that formed the eye and swept out across the bridge of her nose to cover her right eye. It curved up just under her lower lip, coming to a point on her right cheek. Suspended from the right eyehole, like a golden teardrop, was a tiny replica of the sunburst on his own mask.

The symbolism was not lost on him and he turned an eye on his husband, eyebrow climbing up. “Really?”

Lewis, back in his human guise, ducked his head and scratched sheepishly at the bridge of his nose. “I don’t want this Hawkmoth character to be able to identify you. Your safety depends on anonymity.” Arthur snorted and set the mask aside, “You big sap. Do you think I can’t see what those mean?” He flicked his mechanical hand first at the discarded mask and then at the one Vivi was taking off. “You are such a dramatic.” He stepped close enough to  reach up and slide his arms around Lewis’s neck. Lewis’s arms automatically went around, holding him flush against his body. “The sun and moon, huh?” His voice lilted teasingly.

Lewis sagged a little and pressed his forehead against Arthur’s, his energy tickling like static over Arthur’s skin. “You are, you know,” he spoke softly, lips turning up in a sweet smile. “You and Vivi are the lights in my existence. Without you, I’d still be lost in the dark.”

Arthur’s eyes prickled but he managed a laugh that wasn’t too watery. “Okay, but in that case, even though the colors fit her better, you’d have been better calling her the sun. I’m a pale reflection—”

“Hey, none of that!” Vivi squeezed herself under Lewis’s arm until she was pressed against them in the embrace.

Arthur huffed at her but dropped one arm to slide around her shoulders.

“Vivi’s right. None of it. You are the one who wouldn’t stop searching. You are the one who led me back out of the dark. Vivi’s the light in the darkest hours, but you’re the warmth of the sun.” Lewis’s voice trembled, wavering between spectral and human. “And both of you are my light.”

“You’re a sap,” Vivi sniffled. “But you’re our sap.”

Arthur could only nod agreement, his throat too thick for words.

~~~~

Later that evening, Ladybug and Chat Noir turned up for the training session that had gotten cut short the other evening. This time, with four sets of eyes leveled expectantly at him, Arthur announced he would take a walk, promising he would be back in an hour. With Zippi tucked into what had become his favorite hiding place in the collar of Arthur’s vest, he headed out. Wandering down a quaint street filled with shops, he browsed windows, stopping once or twice to pick out small tokens he was sure Vivi and Lewis would like. At a tiny Asian grocery, he found a bag of dried bonito flakes and another of dried squid. Glancing sideways at his passenger, he bought both and headed back for the small park where they had met the kids last time.

He settled in an out of the way spot and opened the bag, chuckling under his breath at the squeak of joy Zippi made when he passed the kwami the first bite of the squid. Chewing on a piece of his own, he couldn’t help a laugh at Zippi, with his cheeks stuffed full, enthusiastically trying to fit the rest of the piece Arthur had given him into his mouth. 

“Well, at least you have good taste,” Arthur chuckled. “Wish there was a place around here that made Surf’s Up Surprise. You’d love that, I bet.”

Cheeks bulging, Zippi looked up and made an inquiring sound.

Still chuckling, Arthur explained his favorite pizza to the kwami. Zippi’s bright eyes widened further with every word, until he launched himself into a dizzying spiral around Arthur’s head. “Want, want, want wantwantwant!!” he caroled. Landing on Arthur’s head he tugged pawfuls of hair. “You have to let me try that!”

“If we weren’t over five thousand miles away from the only place I know that makes it, I would.” Arthur reached up to detach Zippi from his hair. “Lewis make a pretty good version of it, if I beg him to, but, well, we’re not home...” He rolled his shoulder in a shrug and opened the bag of bonito shavings to let Zippi investigate. “And right now, we can’t leave Paris. And Fu...” he hesitated. “Even if we could go, I’m not sure he’d let me take you there.”

Zippi, with his mouth full of the fish shavings, looked up. He deliberately swallowed before speaking, high-pitched voice solemn. “You’re my bearer. I knew you the moment you touched my miraculous. He can’t separate us, because I’d find you again. And again and again, if I had to.” Zippi stuffed another mouthful of the fish in his cheeks. “So there.”

Arthur sighed. “Zip, I wish the world worked the way you believe it does.” “Oh, it does.” Zippi smiled, and honestly, Arthur thought it was a little blood-chilling. “Kwami are elemental forces of the universe, remember. We let ourselves be bound to the miraculous stones, because we like being able to interact with and help you.” He made a soft chirruping-sound that was at odds with the serious look, “If I were really determined, there’s no force he could level to keep me from finding you.” “Besides—”He laughed, the heaviness in the air fading like shadows in the sun. “Plagg and Tikki might be the oldest, but I’m the cleverest!”

Arthur shook his head, chasing away the last of the shadows. “What exactly am I going to do with you?”

Zippi stuffed more fish in his mouth. “What you’re supposed to! Use my miraculous! Be the hero you can be. It’s easy and so much fun! Together, we can jump and run anywhere. No walls to hold us!” He left the bag of flaked fish and whirled in the air. “You should try it! Please, please, please? I’m sure you’ll love it!”

His enthusiasm drew a chuckle out of Arthur. “Maybe.”

After he was sure a little more than an hour had passed, Arthur packed up the mostly decimated remains of the seafood and whistling, headed back to the hotel. He tapped softly on the door, just in case they weren’t done. Vivi opened it, and grinning, let him in. “They finished a bit ago,” she said softly. “But Mystery woke up and is being interrogated by Adrien.” Her eyes sparkled with amusement.

Arthur dropped a kiss on her upturned lips and slid past her into the room. Marinette was sitting cross-legged on the end of the bed, Tikki resting in her cupped hands and munching on a cookie almost as big as she was. Marinette was a little pale, but looked otherwise unscathed. Plagg was perched on her shoulder, holding on to a wedge of cheese, but not eating it. His ears were back and his tail lashing in irritation.

Seated on the floor in front of Mystery, Adrien looked like he’d just won the lottery, asking question after question about japanese creatures in general and kitsune in particular. 

Mystery was trying to answer the rapid-fire questions, but looked more than a little lost. His ears were canted sideways and he shot a pleading look at Vivi.

She snorted laughter, sliding one arm around Arthur’s waist. “Don’t look at me for rescue, bucko. Your princess didn’t need it, after all.” She stuck her tongue out at the dog.

While she was delighting in teasing Mystery, Arthur glanced down at Plagg. “What’s got your fur all ruffled?”

Zippi stuck his head out of Arthur’s collar. “He doesn’t like dogs.”

Plagg hissed, but didn’t go after Zippi. “Shut it, fuzz for brains. Anyway, that’s not a dog. It’s even worse than that.”

“Oh?” Arthur inquired, smiling as Lewis came through the door, a bakery box in one hand and a plastic bag in the other.

“It’s a fox,” Plagg said sourly. “Foxes are just dogs trying too hard to be cats.”

Arthur stifled laughter as Plagg’s tail fluffed up.

“Excuse you!” Mystery yipped, ruff bristling. “Says a kwami pretending to be a cat!”

“Don’t make me separate you,” Vivi threatened.

Lewis passed pastries and bottled juices to the two teens. “Eat those. You may not think it does, but fighting metally like you were doing drains your reserves as much as actual physical combat would.”

Adrien didn’t hesitate, gulping down half the juice in one go, before stuffing a half a pastry in his mouth, quickly scarfing it to ask Mystery, “So why exactly are you pretending to be a dog? I mean, with powers like yours— You could go anywhere, do anything; not be bound by— by leash laws or cages or... or anything!”

Mystery flattened his ruff. “I— I think you’re perhaps letting your own— biases, shall we say— color that question.”

Plagg snorted. “You have no idea.”

Mystery shot the kwami a look, before turning his attention back to Adrien. "It’s not a matter of being bound, child. Rest assured, I am held by nothing I do not choose. No leash can hold me, no kennel could cage me. The only things I am chained to are those I choose to be tied to," He looked to Lewis, Arthur and Vivi, and it seemed his eyes lingered on Vivi longest. "And if I chose not to be bound at all, well, it would be quite the lonely existence." He rose to his feet and padded over to put his forepaws on Adrien’s lap and butt his head into Adrien’s chest. “You choose the bonds and ties that hold you.”

His grin turned cheeky and suddenly in Adrien’s lap, there was no longer a dog but a black, white and red cat that primly licked one paw. “As you see, even my form is nothing I am bound too.”

Plagg hissed and streaked over to perch on Adrien’s shoulder, growling at the not-cat in his lap. “Mine!” he hissed, tail a bottle-brush. “Get your own!”

Something softened in Adrien’s green eyes and he reached up to scratch behind Plagg’s ear. “Silly. Don’t get in a catfight over me.”

Plagg leaned into his hand, but didn’t lessen his glare at Mystery. 

With a saucy flick of his black tail, Mystery stepped out of Adrien’s lap and strolled over to Arthur, placing both forepaws on his pant-leg until Arthur bent and picked him up. “And there’s one of your bonds. Does it tie you down?” he asked from his new perch in Arthur's arm.

Adrien relaxed minutely. “No. No it doesn’t.” Marinette reached over and patted his arm. He rested his hand over hers and relaxed even more. He smiled at Mystery. “I get it.”

“Good.” Mystery nodded. “Remember that in the future. No bonds can keep you but the ones you choose to allow.”

Arthur set Mystery down In Vivi’s lap and took off his vest, leaving Zippi on the bed with the remains of his fish snacks. He perched on the arm of Vivi’s chair and slid his arm around her shoulders. “He has a good idea every now and again.”

Mystery, shifting back to his dog form, huffed up at him. “Every now and then? I—”

“You ran here from Texas, doofus,” Vivi chided. “That is hardly a ‘good’ idea.”

“It seemed like one at the time,” Mystery grumbled, curling up in a ball.

Artur glanced down at Mystery and then back at where he’d left his vest, and it’s occupant. There really hadn’t been a chance to introduce them. “Before we devolve into another argument, I think maybe we should introduce you to someone, Mystery." He reached down to caress Mystery’s pricked ears. “Being that’s he’s made it pretty clear he’s not going anywhere. Zippi?”

With a delighted chattering sound, Zippi abandoned the vest and darted over to hover over Arthur’s shoulder. “Hi hi hi. I’m Zikikii.”

Mystery’s red eyes narrowed on the little kwami before turning to fix on Arthur. “I feel like this is something I should have known about before.”

Vivi barked a laugh, poking Mystery with a finger. “There was hardly time to tell you when you decided a roadtrip where there were no roads was a good idea.”

Quickly she and Arthur gave him a rundown on what had happened, Arthur carefully leaving out how badly he’d been hurt in the incident. Mystery tended to get a little worried when he got injured, all things considered.

Zippi had perched on Arthur’s shoulder during the story and capped it with, “And he’s the holder of my miraculous now.” His tone made it clear that he didn’t care if Mystery objected.

Mystery’s hard gaze at Zippi held for a long moment that felt like an eternity. “You had better protect him, kwami, or I will use you as a squeaky toy.”

Zippi made an ugly sound, glaring down at Mystery. “I protect what’s mine.”

“Hey!” The harsh bark of Arthur’s voice made both Mystery and Zippi freeze, turning their attention to the object of their contention. Arthur picked Zippi off his shoulder and left him hanging in the air, turning so he could face both of them squarely. His thin face was set in hard, determined lines. “Boundaries, boys. Remember that I have them. I agreed to being friends, Zippi. That means I don’t belong to you. I belong to no one except myself. Not even Vivi and Lewis. I married them, I didn’t give up myself to them, so it would do you well to remember that.” 

He focused on Mystery. “We’re friends, Mystery, and I know you consider me part of your family, but that doesn’t give you sole responsibility for my decisions and safety.” He gestured sharply with his metal arm. “You tend to make bad decisions when you get scared, as if running all the way across the ocean to get here wasn’t proof enough. We’re family, Mystery. That means you can’t lose my affection. I’m still here, bud, and still your friend.”

Mystery whined softly and bracing his forepaws on Vivi’s arm, stretched his head out toward Arthur. “Sorry.” His voice was so low as to barely be audible.

Tension drained from Arhur’s frame and he stepped close and dropped his hand to caress Mystery’s head.

Zippi hung in the air, his eyes stricken.

Arthur sighed and held out his hand toward the kwami. “That doesn’t mean we’re not friends, Zikikii. It just means I won’t let you two get possessive, okay? I have problems with anyone thinking they can control me. Hawkmoth got a headache trying.” His smile was weak and lopsided.

It was enough for Zippi, who darted over to cling to his shirt.

Arthur sighed again and traced a finger over the stripes on Zippi’s head. “We’re okay,” he breathed. “Just remember that the next time, deal?”

Zippi nodded, still clinging tightly to Arthur’s shirt. “I won’t forget again.”

Vivi caught his eye and glanced significantly at his discarded vest and back to Zippi, who was merely hanging on to Arthur, quietly. Her eyes cut to Marinette and Adrien and the two kwami that accompanied them, Plagg was studiously smoothing his ruffled fur, but Arthur caught the glint of one leaf-green eye. Tikki wasn’t even trying to hide her concern.

Arthur bit his bottom lip. He really wasn’t entirely on board with the whole miraculous bearer thing, but right now, his concerns on the matter paled next to Zippi’s obvious distress. “So— um, you want to try the thing—?”

“Thing?” Zippi echoed.

“The magical moon make-up schtick? The what-do-you-call-it, transformation bit?”

Zippi’s huge blue eyes went even rounder, and a wordless squeal escaped. “Really? Really really you mean it?” He practically vibrated in place.

"Yeah. Might as well give it a go." Arthur was sure his smile looked a little forced, but he didn't think Zippi would notice. "So how do we do this? Anything I have to do?"

"You have to put my miraculous back on and say the words 'Zikikii Scamper', and that should do it." Zippi twirled excitedly.

"If you say so." Arthur's misgivings were clear in his tone but he went to fetch his vest and put it back on. He glanced at Adrien and Marinette, giving them a lopsided smile. "I'm gonna trust you two to keep me from doing anything too dumb."

Marinette smiled at him. "We will, but I don't think you will. Adrien and I are more reckless than you."

Arthur took a deep breath. "Zikikii Scamper."

The small kwami made a thrilled noise, bouncing before being sucked into the badge. 

Arthur felt a wild rush of power go through him. Strengthening him; making his every sense sharper.  His left arm reached up for the brooch.

No! I wasn't thinking of moving my arm! No wrong—  GETOUTGETOUT GET OUT!!!!

Zippi was suddenly flung from his miraculous, hitting the pillows on the bed faster than he was comfortable with. "Arthur, what—" The little kwami's words cut off as he saw his bearer.

Arthur was white as chalk, his eyes wide and terrified. No sound escaped him, but his mouth was twisted in a silent agonized scream. He'd flung himself backward, away from where he'd been standing, and he was clawing frantically at his robotic arm. He probably would have hurt himself if Vivi hadn't lunged forward to detach it while Lewis grabbed and held him tight. 

The moment it was off, Arthur collapsed, the tension in his frame gone. Lewis followed him to the floor, still cradling him tightly. Vivi barely had time to grab the wastepaper basket before everything Arthur ate that day came up.

Marinette was pale enough to have been Arthur's twin, but she gathered her wits and headed for the bathroom to wet a washcloth, her lips pressed so tight they were white.

"My arm....it moved...I didn't move it— but it moved." Arthur sobbed, shaking so hard his teeth were rattling.

Vivi, her expression grim, accepted the washcloth from Marinette's trembling hand and wiped Arthur's pale, sweating face with it, her motions slow and careful.

Marinette retreated and clung to Adrien's hand so tightly her knuckles were white.

"It's okay, Artie," Lewis soothed, running his hand through Arthur's hair. "We're here. You're okay. No one got hurt, I promise."

Zippi shrunk into the pillows, shaken. That wasn't true at all. Arthur had gotten hurt. This wasn't humility or apprehension. This was something very wrong. Something he didn't even know if Tikki could fix. He shot a pleading look at her.

Wide-eyed, she shook her head. Her creation magic could heal and work miracles, but this was a whole different level of trauma.

For a long, breathless span of time, there was no other sound in the room beside Arthur’s shaking, sobbing breath and the soft murmurs of Lewis and Vivi as they worked to soothe him.

Marinette could only cling to Adrien’s hand. What had Arthur gone through? She thought she had at least somewhat understood when Piano had possessed her, but it was very clear Arthur’s trauma ran far, far deeper than she had even guessed at.

Fur brushed against her legs and she jumped, a startled squeak escaping her lips. To her surprise, it was Mystery. She’d have thought he’d have joined in the soothing after the confrontation with Zippi, but instead he was pressed against her and Adrien’s legs, jerking his head silently towards the still-open balcony doors.

Quietly, they followed him outside, silent kwami trailing after them. Zippi cast one last despairing look at Arthur and followed too. It was his fault that Arthur was so scared and he didn’t dare try to help calm him.

Mystery nudged the door shut behind him and returned to where Adrien and Marinette stood together, feeling altogether like lost ducklings. “It’s best if I am not there, either,” he said softly, twining around their legs again. “As much as I want to offer comfort, in this panicked state, he will not see it as comfort, only another level of hurt.”

“C-can I ask you what happened?” Marinette whispered, her throat tight. She shivered, and not entirely from the cool spring night.

Mystery sighed, lowering his head, ears flattened against his fur. “I suppose it’s fair. What do you know?”

“Just that he was possessed once.” Adrien murmured, moving to press against Marinette’s side.

“And that there were fatal consequences,” Marinette’s voice was small, frightened.

“There was a cavern, rumored to be haunted, and we went there to investigate. There was a malevolent spirit there, something steeped in long years of blood and hatred. I sensed it, but was too late to stop it from seizing on the most vulnerable of us. It took him over, slowly, forcing his hand— quite literally. Taking control of his arm first, it sought more blood to strengthen it, by using that hand to—”

“To kill someone.” Plagg said suddenly. He tapped the side of his head with a tiny paw. “I could almost sense something, but it was muddled, I thought by the presence of the ghost. Death and decay are a part of destruction.”

Mystery nodded ponderously. “You have the right of it. Arthur was an unwilling, terrified participant in the murder— of his own best friend.”

Suddenly, it all clicked— a possession, an unwilling murder, and a ghost— and Marinette’s knees gave out. She sagged against Adrien. “Lewis! The spirit— it made him kill Lewis.”

Mystery’s head lowered even further. “Clever girl. Yes. With that death, the spirit would have had enough strength to completely subsume Arthur’s own spirit and leave the cave in his body, to wreak more death and despair elsewhere. To prevent it, it became necessary to remove the point of infection— his arm.” Mystery whined softly, looking away from them. “The possession itself, incomplete as it was, damaged his memory of the events, but he remembers well enough the feel of a body that answered to another’s will. It is a wound in his psyche that will not heal.” 

Marinette made a soft sound. She could still hear Arthur's ragged gasps and the soft voices of his spouses breathing reassurances. Every instinct she had was screaming that he needed help, and it was clear she was not the only one. Tikki flitted back towards the door. 

"Don't." The toneless words came from Zippi, huddled in the darkest corner of the balcony. "Leave him be. He’s scared, scared enough to throw me out mid-transformation. That’s not something— something words can fix.”

Tikki turned away from the door and went to Zippi’s side. “Zikikii—”

“I hurt him.” He turned his eyes up to her, his expression one of misery. “I hurt my own bearer. I’m not supposed to do that.”

Tikki sent a look back at the rest of them before pressing against the small brown kwami. “You didn’t hurt him—”

He barked a bitter sounding laugh, pointing back toward the room. “Tell me I didn’t.”

“You didn’t,” Plagg heaved a put-upon sigh, flitting over to join them. His bright green eyes caught the dim light from the streetlights below and flashed in the darkness. “What hurt him was his own mind. Yeah, you triggered it, by accident, but it’s his own mind doing the hurting.” At Zippi’s disbelieving look, Plagg rolled his eyes. “You think I haven’t seen this before? Tch, I’m the embodiment of destruction. Not— not all of my bearers were strong enough to deal with that.”

“Stinky—” Tikki’s voice was soft.

Plagg shrugged, still talking to Zippi. “He’s hurting, yeah, but it’s not you doing that hurt, not like it was me. I was the reason some of my ki— bearers were— not alright. There were times when Tikki and I hadn’t been active at the same time. She’s my balance, the exact opposite of me. Without her to mitigate what they had done— well—” Plagg looked away. “Just be glad your bearer’s still alive, Zippi. It doesn’t always work that way.”

Adrien came over and scooped Plagg out of the air, cuddling him close. Normally the feline kwami protested such gestures of affection (but accepted them anyway), but this time he leaned into Adrien’s hands. “You won’t lose me, Plagg.”

A rough purr vibrated Plagg’s whole form. “I know, kitten. I know.”

At that moment, Vivi stuck her head out the balcony doors. “You can come back inside now, it’s too cold to lurk out here. Arthur’s calmed down now, for the most part.”

Still holding Plagg tight, Adrien looked up to meet her eyes. “Are you sure? He— he might not want us here.”

Vivi puffed her lips out in a sigh. “He does. He wants you to see he’s— well, not okay, but getting there.” She reached out to Zippi, still hiding in the shadows. “You too, Zippi. He wants to see you especially.”

Zippi’s look was desperately hopeful. “He does—?” The hope in his voice was heartbreaking.

Vivi scooped him up, kissing the top of his head. “Yes. I promise, he does.”

Cautiously, they trailed her back into the hotel room, still uncertain of their reception, in spite of her words.

Arthur had been settled in the center of the huge bed, his back propped up against a pile of pillows. He looked too small, and pale enough that the pillows behind him had more color, except for the bruised-looking bags under his eyes. His arm was still where it had been discarded and his sleeve pulled down to hide the metal port where it attached. He offered a wan smile. “Sorry, guys. Wish you hadn’t had to see that.”

“Are you—?” Marinette cut herself off. He didn’t look, in any way, okay.

Arthur’s smile was a trace more real. “Not yet, but trying to get there.”

“Um— Mystery told us what happened. Don’t be mad at him please. We were worried.” Marinette rushed to say.

“Scared, you mean. No. I’m not mad at him. I’m still just sorry you had to see me like that.”

Adrien shook his head. “Don’t be. Yeah it was scary, but we understand what happened— now,” He glanced significantly down at Mystery.

Arthur huffed, not quite a laugh but close enough. He looked at Zippi, huddled miserably in Vivi’s cupped hands. “Sorry, Zippi, if I hurt you when I freaked out. I didn’t mean to scare you either.” He stretched his only hand out toward the kwami. Marinette could see how badly it was shaking.

Zippi peered over Vivi’s fingertips. “You— you didn’t hurt me,” his voice was small and uncertain. “I hurt you. I didn’t mean to!”

Arthur crooked one finger in a beckoning gesture. “C’mere, Zip. You didn’t hurt me. Something else did, a while ago, and it was the memory of that freaking me out. Not you.”

Zippi left Vivi’s hands and darted to the bed. He slowed as he reached Arthur and crept forward slowly to cuddle in his outstretched hand.

Arthur lifted his hand to bring Zippi close enough to nuzzle his nose against the top of the kwami’s head. “Still friends?” Arthur asked softly.

Zippi nodded rapidly. “Friends,” he confirmed. “I won’t ask you to do that anymore, promise.”

Arthur smiled. “I know.”

Lewis came out of the bathroom, a cell phone propped against his ear, and holding a hot water bottle that he gently settled against the shoulder of Arthur’s missing arm, dropping a kiss on Arthur’s brow as he did.

Arthur made a face. “Please tell me you’re not—”

“Do you have any idea what time it is, Kingsmen?” The rich feminine voice was loud enough to be heard in the quiet of the room, carrying a clear note of annoyance.

“You did,” Arthur groaned.

“Sorry, Dr. Quyn. It’s Lewis. I forgot the time difference “

“Lewis.” Dr. Quyn’s voice sharpened. “What happened? Is Arthur alright?”

“Not really,” Lewis said at the same time as Arthur raised his voice to say “Yes!”

"Cut that bullshit, Kingsmen. Your husband wouldn't be calling me at ass o'clock in the morning if something weren't wrong."

Lewis yelped. "Dr. Quyn, language!"

"It's aforementioned ass o'clock in the morning, so I am exempt from proper language. Now, being that you have woken me from my well-deserved slumber, what's wrong?"

Arthur clamped his lips shut, expression mulish. 

Lewis just sighed, turning the phone on speaker. "Something triggered a grand mal panic attack. Bad enough that he tried to claw his prosthetic off. He— well, it was a very, very bad moment. It took a while to talk him down, and well, he doesn't look good either."

Lewis turned the phone in his hand. The sudden light of the flash made them all jump. He tapped a few buttons, his mouth set in a thin line.

"Lewis—" Arthur groaned. "Do not text her my picture!"

"Too late, Kingsmen. You look like shit. Tell me what happened to trigger you that badly. From the top." There was no arguing with the command in her voice.

"My arm moved, but I wasn't the one moving it." Arthur wasn't arguing, precisely, but he was not going to make it easy.

"Hmmm—" Quyn's tone was thoughtful. "That is a very good reason for a panic attack, given your history. But stonewalling me is a game for people much, much older than you. You might as well talk."

Arthur looked helplessly at Marinette, Adrien and the three kwami before shaking his head and clamping his lips shut. “I can’t.” He drew his legs up, an almost instinctive attempt to hide.

“Arthur,” her voice softened and for the first time she called him by his given name. “You know who I am and what I am. Also the vows I have taken. Let me help you.”

“It’s not my secret to tell.”

Tikki left Marinette and flitted over to sit on Arthur’s upraised knees. Her gaze was steady. “I can’t help you. I don’t know how. My magic can do a lot of things, but not this. If she can, then let her.”

“I know that voice... Tikki?” Quyn’s voice was full of very real surprise.

“Ye—sss?” Tikki’s eyes zeroed in on the phone like she could see who was on the other end of it and she tilted her head to the side like a curious cat.

“I thought that was you. Kingsmen has gotten himself mixed up with kwamis now, eh? I don’t wonder why he’s being recalcitrant.” Quyn’s laugh was light and silvery, like the tinkle of windchimes. 

“Do I know you?” Tikki asked bluntly.

“Ah, sorry... I suppose it has been a while. When we first knew each other, I didn’t have a name, but you called me Dawn Fire. I go by Una now,” Quyn laughed again.

“Dawn Fire!” Tikki’s squeal of delight made Arthur flinch. She left his knee and spun gleefully in the air. “Is it really you? I thought... well, you vanished a long time ago!”

“Reports of my vanishing were greatly exaggerated.”

“Doc, you know about kwami?” Arthur’s tone was high-pitched and more than a little unsteady.

“Arthur, breathe.” Quyn’s voice turned calming. “Vivi, if you’re there, help him with a count.”

Vivi was quick to obey, sitting on the bed. “Artie, love, you heard your doctor, Breathe with me. One, two, three, and out. Three, two, one and in.”

Slowly, Arthur’s ragged breathing eased to match hers.

“That’s good,” Quyn soothed. “Just keep that up until you’re steady again. I won’t pry for the moment.”

Arthur just nodded in time with Vivi’s counting and Lewis relayed that aloud.

“Arthur, I’d like you to take something to help you sleep tonight. Do you still have your prescriptions with you?” Quyn asked.

“He does,” Lewis affirmed. 

Arthur made a thin sound of negation that was ignored. “Good. I know he’s taking the lowest dose he thinks he can get away with, so I’d like you to see that he takes a full dose before he goes to sleep. That and a sleeping aid. He’ll need them, all things considered. He said you could soothe him out of nightmares, yes?”

“Yeah, I can.” Lewis agreed. 

“You’re on nightmare duty then. Tonight will probably be a bad one.”

Marinette could agree with that. She had a feeling none of them would be sleeping particularly well tonight. She knew she wouldn’t be. Her stomach was in knots and she could feel the tension in almost every muscle. Adrien looked almost as wired, nervous energy making him bounce on his heels.

“I’ll make sure they don’t trouble him tonight.” Lewis promised.

“Good. Tikki, we’ll catch up another time. My client needs me.” Quyn said. “Arthur, keep breathing with Vivi, okay? Let me know when you feel okay to talk. I need you to tell me how you are feeling, when you can.”

“On it.” Vivi said in a pause between counting. She had caught Arthur’s hand and, after resettling Zippi on Arthur’s shoulder, she lifted his hand and splayed it over her breastbone. Arthur sagged a little more, some of the tenseness of his muscles easing.

Feeling like she shouldn’t be here, Marinette caught Adrien’s eye and started easing toward the balcony. Teeth in her pants leg brought her up short. Mystery released the fabric. “Stay. You’ve all had a pretty unpleasant shock tonight. No one should be alone.”

Marinette shook her head. “I can’t. My parents trust me and staying out all night would break their trust. I hate having to lie to them so I can save the city as Ladybug already.”

Adrien shook his head. “My father won’t notice unless I’m not in bed when Nathalie comes to get me up for class, but— I don’t want to get you in trouble, Ladylove.”

Marinette bit her lip. She knew she should go home, but she had a feeling she’d wake up screaming at least once tonight. She’s already had more than her fair share of nightmares. Dreams of being unable to save people she loved, nightmares of Hawkmoth turning Paris into an apocalyptic hellscape in whatever mad scheme he had for using their miraculous, among the usual anxieties of mundane life.

“I— I don’t want to wake Mama and Papa with my nightmares again, but—” she canted her head toward the bed. “I don’t want him to suffer either.”

Mystery shook his head. “Lewis— all ghosts are beings of memory— I’m sure you’ve heard of ghosts that appear, endlessly repeating some moment of their life or death. Nightmares are memories of a kind too; distorted fragments of things we know, things we’ve seen. Lewis can shift those memories into pleasanter ones, and thus ease the grip of night terrors.” He gave them a canine grin, tongue lolling out the side of his mouth. “Do you think he would want you to dream of what has happened tonight either?”

The thought of not suffering nightmares was appealing, but Marinette shook her head. “I don’t want to take his attention away from Arthur. He’s the one that suffered most.”

Lewis, who had passed the phone off to Arthur, now that he was a little calmer, glanced over. “I think Mystery has the right of it. If you don’t mind me messing with your dreams, that is?”

“Mind?” Plagg snorted. “If the kid wasn’t too embarrassed to say so, he’d thank you!”

“Plagg—” Adrien hissed. “Shut up!”

“Make me.”

“I still need to go home,” Marinette shook her head. “As much as the thought of no bad dreams sounds lovely, I can’t do that to my parents.” 

“With a little help from your kwami, I can make it so they won’t even know you’re gone.” Mystery said smugly.

Marinette’s eyes widened. That could be useful. “How?”

“Kitsune, remember?”

“Master of illusion,” Mystery and Adrien said in the same breath.

“I can make an illusion spell strong enough to touch, as long as there is someone to carry the spell. Tikki, if she agrees, could pretend to be you long enough to go home and to bed, thus making your parents believe you are there all night.”

“I could do that myself,” Marinette protested. 

“But she can get out easier, with less chance of being caught. You are rightfully tired after tonight’s training and could far too easily make a mistake.”

“But—”

Adrien caught her hand and simply held it, and her. She couldn’t pull away. “Milady, let him. I—” He clamped his lips shut and glanced away, a hint of red shading his cheeks.

“Do— do you want to stay here?” She found herself asking.

“He does. And so do you, honestly.” Arthur’s voice was still shaky, but he seemed more himself.  “Frankly, I’d feel better with all of us under one roof, at least for tonight. And you guys need to stop pretending today didn’t shake you up almost as much as it did me.”

“He can be taught,” came a laughing voice from the phone still held loosely in his hand. 

Vivi snickered and kissed Arthur on the forehead. “Now you know what you sound like, love, when you act like you’re fine even when you aren’t.”

Arthur wrinkled his nose at her. “Shush.”

“Can’t make me.”

“If that’s all settled,” Mystery broke in. “Tikki, are you willing to play Marinette for a bit?”

"Marinette?" Tikki asked.

Marinette bit her bottom lip. "Only if you're okay with it, Tikki."

"Normally, I wouldn't be, but these are hardly normal circumstances. More than anything, except getting Nooroo back and defeating Hawkmoth, I want you safe, in both body and mind." Tikki glanced over at Lewis. “If he can help your nightmares, even for just one night, I consider it worth it.”

“Yeah.” Was Plagg’s contribution.

Marinette kissed Tikki on the forehead. “You are wonderful.”

Mystery settled himself in a corner of the room and transformed, becoming the huge multi-tailed creature of last night. He nodded at Marinette. “In front of me, if you please. I want to be sure to have every nuance right.”

Nervously, Marinette went to stand where he indicated. He nodded and used one paw to indicate she should turn around,so he could study her from every angle. Awkwardly, she obeyed.

He turned his attention to Tikki, hovering near Adrien. “Ready?”

Tikki nodded firmly. “Ready.” She floated closer to him.

Mystery’s tails rose up behind him, weaving sinuously in an ever changing pattern. He breathed out and from his muzzle came a cloud of gold magic, laced liberally with sparks of bright red. It swirled around Tikki, eclipsing her from sight. All his tails swept forward like a fan, and the mist blew away. Where Tikki had hovered was a perfect duplicate of Marinette down to the tiniest details.

Tikki looked down at herself, and poked her own arm with a pink-painted fingernail. “Oh, wow. This is new!” She giggled and turned to Marinette. “Now that I’m this size, there’s something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time.” Tikki reached out and reeled Marinette into a firm hug, squeezing tightly for a moment. 

Marinette hesitated for only a second before hugging back, burying her face in Tikki’s shoulder.

Tikki kissed Marinette’s temple before releasing her. “Best hug ever!” She grinned and turned an impish smile on Plagg. The cat kwami yelped and tried to hide behind Adrien, but she caught him and cuddled him to her cheek. Plagg yowled, struggling to escape. Still giggling, Tikki kissed his forehead before letting him go.

Plagg darted back to Adrien, glaring daggers at Tikki. 

Marinette giggled softly herself, leaning her shoulder into Adrien’s. 

Some small measure of her usual happiness had come back into her eyes, and Adrien was glad of it. Any other night Adrien would have reacted with glee at the sight of two of his Ladylove, even knowing one was her kwami in disguise. Tonight though, he was just grateful for the extra level of comfort Tikki was providing. He only hoped he could provide as much tonight, when Tikki was away on her deception. He clipped his hand over Marinette’s and squeezed her fingers lightly. To his gratification, she returned the gesture, twining her fingers with his and leaning her head on his shoulder as Vivi let Tikki out and called down to housekeeping for more pillows and blankets

~~~~

Lewis woke them both in the pale light of dawn, so they could sneak back home before anyone knew they were missing. Thanks to him, neither had woken up with nightmares, and felt almost well-rested. They parted ways on the rooftop of the hotel, Marinette giving Adrien a quick, shy kiss, before transforming and leaping away and back to the bakery. Her parents were already up, of course, but she slipped in through the skylight unseen and began her morning routine, though far less hurried than normal. She padded downstairs to greet her surprised parents and was sent off to school with a box of fresh pastries to share with her friends.

After school she walked home with Alya, listening to Alya’s running commentary on the views her blog had gotten since the reveal of the ‘new heroes,’ and laughing at some of the ridiculous names people had already submitted on her poll.

They had just turned a corner when what sounded like the rumble of thunder made them look up, but the sky was cloudless and bright. They barely had time to exchange a confused glance when the earth beneath their feet jolted.

Marinette yipped and clung to Alya as the pavement bucked like a startled horse underfoot. All up and down the street, cracks opened in the sidewalk and pavement while windows rattled or shattered. It sounded like a low constant growl of thunder as the ground tried to shake itself to pieces. People staggered and fell, screaming and crying out in panic. “Wha—?”

Still holding onto Marinette, Alya dragged them both into the shelter of a doorway, tugging her down to her knees and hunching over her. “Earthquake! Stay down, Marinette!”

Marinette shank as dust and tiny chips of mortar showered down on them. It was several minutes before the shaking and heaving of the ground stopped. The rumble of the shaking abated, leaving only panicked cries and the shrieking of varied alarms. Marinette struggled to get her feet under her, but Alya hung on tightly. “Stay down,” she said urgently. “There might be aftershocks—!”

As if in punctuation, the ground heaved again.

[fanders-sanctuary-au]

Pint-sized Pining

I worked on this with the wonderful @cefinitely-rolo and I think she deserves some credit for this too! Thanks for all the ideas!

________________________

“I don’t know, Vi, something about her is just… Off,” I mumbled, picking at a few fibers on my friend’s bed. “Well, maybe you should get to know her, Ames, she doesn’t seem all that bad.” She responded, not looking up from posting something on the sanctuary’s Twitter. “But she’s so stubborn! She won’t even consider going to therapy, and even I went after I was healthy.” I sighed, looking up from my assault on Violet’s blanket. “If I remember correctly, you bitched and whined about it for almost a week before Emile dragged you into his office when you woke up screaming one night.”

“That’s different! I didn’t think I needed it, y'know?”

“Well did you ever think maybe Christina feels the same way? That she doesn’t need help?” Violet countered, turning away from her computer to face me with an amused glare.

I groaned and rolled over on the bed, my voice coming out muffled when I spoke next. “Ugggghhhh, fiiiinne, I’ll make an effort” I whined, sitting up and making grabby hands at Violet, signaling that I wanted help off the bed. She held out her hand and I hopped on, allowing her to gently lower me to the ground. “Thanks Vi, I’ll go and talk to her.”

“Good, go on, and if I hear one more report of you and Virgil having a screaming match, I’m not coming to your defense.” Violet chuckled, gently shoving me out the door of her bedroom.

“Love you to Vivi!”

___________________

“Okay, make an effort, make an effort. C'mon, Ames, you’re an inch taller than her, it can’t be that hard to talk with someone so tiny right?” I mumbled to myself, not really paying attention to where I was walking until- WHAM - I collided with another borrower that I hadn’t even noticed walking towards me.

“Oowww, hey! Watch where you’re walking you-!” The tiny suddenly cut off, staring at me with a combination of horror and blush. “Oh god, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to- ah! Christina, I was looking for you, are you okay? Your face is super red, did I hit your nose or something?” I asked, reaching my hand out to her face, but she jerked back before I could do anything. “I’m fine! Don’t touch-! I mean, I’m fine, thanks though.” Christina rushed out in all one breath. “You-uh, said you needed something, what’s up?” She asked, trying her best to compose herself before facing me. “Oh um, I know we haven’t really made an effort to really talk to each other, and I wanted to get to know each other, y'know?”

Christina started at me for a long time, whether with annoyance or confusion, I wasn’t sure, but after a while she opened her mouth again. “I would love to but Larry convinced me to go to therapy and that’s where I’m headed now, so maybe take a raincheck?” She offered, looking legitimately disappointed, so I nodded. “Of course, not a problem, maybe after?”

“Uhh, yeah, sure. I need to go now!” She waved a hasty goodbye and ran off in the direction of not Larry’s office, but Patton’s room. I stared after her for a few minutes before turning and walking to the Borrower Boulevard.

A few hours later I sat on my bed, reading a book and generally staring off into nothing, when I heard a knock at my door.

“Come in!” I called to the person behind the door. I thought I was going to be Patton or Virgil, but instead walked in Christina, holding a cupcake. “Hey, uhh, I wanted to um, give you this cupcake. Um, yeah!” She squeaked, her voice a much higher pitch than normal.

“Oh! Thank-” before I could finish the sentence, she had already ran out the room, leaving my door slightly ajar. I picked up the tiny cupcake off the ground and looked at the icing scrawled on top it, spelling out ‘<3 U.’ I stared at it for a bit, not sure why Christina of all people would hand me a cupcake, but I honestly don’t understand the girl at all, so maybe this is her way of saying she wants to make amends for our awkward meet a few hours ago.

I shrugged and but into the cupcake, surprised to find that it was peanut butter, my favorite flavor.

_____________

“I swear, it’s insane! The girl won’t say two words to me, but almost every other day I find something from her at my doorway!” I ranted to Virgil. “It’s been almost a month! I don’t understand it at all!”

Virgil sat in silence for a moment and took a deep breath. “Oh you oblivious fucker,” he sighed, rubbing his temples.

“What?! What is that supposed to mean Virge? Nothing she does makes sense!” I groaned, standing up from Virgil’s bed and beginning to pace. “Listen Ames, maybe Christina feels something towards you.” Virgil offered.

“Christina? No way,” I scoffed, “she doesn’t seem like the type to just leave random gifts and say nothing about it! I mean, just this morning, she burst into my bedroom, yeeted a bouquet of flowers at me, stared me in the eye for a few seconds, and just booked it! I swear she’s insane!” I yelled, feeling my cheeks start to heat up.

“Ames, you’re blushing”

“Am not!”

“You totally like her!”

“Shut up! I’m gonna fuckin strangle you, you emo nightmare!”

“AMELIA LIKES CHRISTINA! AMELIA LIKES CHRISTINA!”

“SHUT UP!”

_____________

A few days later, I heard a timid knock at my door and after allowing the person to enter, Christina walked in, looking one part bashful and one part ashamed.

“Hey, um… I just wanted to apologise for my- y'know- behavior this last month…” she mumbled, picking at a loose thread on her shirt.

“Oh! I was actually wondering why you stopped doing all those odd gestures of flirting.” I laughed lightly, standing up and walking over to her.

“You-you we’re? I thought for sure that it was annoying, I even talked with Thomas and Violet, and even they said to stop, that you didn’t like all those big gestures and I was doing it wrong.”

“Well, yes I do prefer smaller things, just simple things like wanting to be near me is often enough, but I did appreciate you trying. How did you know my favorite cake flavor by the way, I’ve only ever said that to….” I cut myself off and sighed, “you’ve been conspiring with Patton haven’t you?”

By the blush on Christina’s face, I knew I was right.

“Listen, I know you’re trying and I appreciate it, but whatever your doing isn’t going to win my affection so easily. I want it be friends with someone before I want to date them, so for now, and we’ll see where it goes from there, friends?”

Christina faced me with a flirty expression, “friends with benefits?”

“Friends.”

She gave me a cute pout and sighed, “oh, okay, friends then.”

--------

T: Aww, this is so cute! Hopeless little babs in love! Thank you so much for writing this!

[creative-type]

Chapter 218 is Amazing and Here’s Why (Continued)

So I had intended to finish my analysis of chapter 218 of One Piece in one post, but things were starting to run a little long and I split it in two. Here’s Part 1 for those who are interested. For the rest of you, let’s jump in where we left off

I know I say this a lot, but I really like that panel. For one thing, Usopp is using a desk lamp. Knowing him, he probably invented it himself just for the occasion. 

On a more serious note, the entire feel of this scene is completely different than the last time the Straw Hats as a group interacted with Robin. I wrote extensively on chapter 114 here, but what I want to draw attention to now is how the tables have (supposedly) turned. Remember how Robin held all the power and was seated above the Straw Hats while tossing them around like a bunch of punks?

Yeah, that’s no longer the case. Robin is surrounded by Usopp, Zoro, and Nami, the three Straw Hats who distrust her most. And while Usopp’s too much of a chicken to be intimidating, there’s no mistaking Zoro and Nami’s body language. They’re closed off, guarded, and Zoro at least has his weapons close at hand. 

At the same time, the way the speech bubbles are placed draw attention to Chopper and Luffy. You can barely make out a hand, and one might assume it’s Sanji’s, as he’s the only Straw Hat not visible. 

Which, of course, it’s not

This set up is the impetuous for three hilarious pages where Robin one by one wins over the Straw Hats (except Zoro, because he’s a killjoy). I recommend reading the entire sequence to get the full effect. It’s classic Oda humor from start to finish that makes me smile every time I read it

(especially this)

Now going back a bit, Robin tells Usopp that she’s an archaeologist from a long line of archaeologists and has been on the run for twenty years. Never once in this entire “interview” does she lie. In fact, I can’t recall Robin ever  lying in the entire series, except for when she didn’t give Crocodile Pluton’s location. 

There are a couple of different reasons for this. For one, it’s convenient for the narrative if the audience doesn’t have to second-guess everything the main characters say. On the whole the Straw Hats are pretty honest people - Usopp being the obvious exception. (Nami is also a bit of a wheeler and a dealer, but since Arlong Park is more prone to using her good looks and force of will to get her way over straight-up lying. That, or stealing what she wants outright.)

Secondly, Robin has had a bounty on her head for a long time. The Ohara incident was publicized around the world. There’s no reason to hide certain aspects of her backstory when it’s essentially public knowledge. 

Still, it’s interesting to note that the one Straw Hat who is known world-wide as a demon who has betrayed every group she’s joined tells the truth here. It’s obvious that in addition to winning the Straw Hats over, Robin is using her ability to direct the attention away from herself. One might even suggest that Robin tells Usopp she’s an assassin to rattle him enough to avoid more personal questions. She does a masterful job of using each of the Straw Hat’s weaknesses against them. 

It becomes more apparent later on that Robin is an incredibly private person. When Chopper and Sanji are looking for her on Water 7 they don’t know where to even to start, because there are no ancient ruins about, and that’s the only place they can think of where she would go. 

Now, this falls more into the realm of theories and head canons, but since Robin’s whole dream focuses around finding The Truth and since her whole life has been ruined by vicious slander and falsehoods, I would imagine that Robin hates lying more than the average person. She will misdirect, avoid questions, or tell bits and pieces of well-known information without giving context, but she won’t lie.

Moving on, Robin uses the same intelligence and playful nature that was established in chapter 114 to avoid any more of Usopp’s questions (consistent characterization, gotta love it) before having a private word with Zoro. I like how Robin doesn’t even try the same tricks she used with the rest, because I think she knows it won’t work. Instead she addresses him more or less as an equal.

Assuming this is a nuanced and accurate translation, when Robin says “This isn’t that bad” we can make the assumption that she thought it would be bad. It’s understandable that she would think this way - the Straw Hats were her enemies not too long ago - but it brings up the point that Robin willingly stowed away on a ship she knew she wouldn’t be welcome because she had no place else to go. When Zoro affirms that the Straw Hats are basically a bunch of dorks, Robin smiles.

Now Robin smiles an awful lot for someone who wants to die. It’s basically her default expression, and it’s nothing but a front to hide her real feelings. She even smiles when she’s just been stabbed and is about to be buried alive after living a miserable, meaningless life without accomplishing anything she’s ever set out to do. That’s one deeply-rooted defense mechanism.

This is the first time we see Robin really be happy, and her surprise at learning that the Straw Hat Pirates are fun-loving and cheerful even when traveling with a former enemy is the kick-start to Robin’s character arc.

Because make no mistake, the Robin who joined the Straw Hat Pirates was the same Robin who joined Crocodile. All the stuff at the beginning of the chapter helps flesh her out into a fully-realized character instead of a cardboard Vivi replacement, but at this moment Robin’s beliefs about the Straw Hat Pirates are challenged, and a character can’t change if they aren’t challenged. 

There’s a cute Zoro-pouty face to that ends this scene, and our focus swings back to the Straw Hats as a whole. An undetermined amount of time has passed because now they’re talking about the weather and Zoro is back to lifting weights

I don’t know if you can have foreshadowing that’s paid off in one panel, but Oda doesn’t waste a beat with the little clacks of wood against wood. For the second chapter in a row there’s an amazing twist at the end that no one could have seen coming. I already shown this spread in my last post, but it’s so epic it deserves a second viewing

I can’t remember if this is the only time Oda has used a real life quote in One Piece, but if not, it’s one of very few. And honestly, what could be more appropriate for a series like One Piece? The whole composition of this page is beautiful, and all the little details take my breath away. I really don’t get it when people say Oda’s art is ugly, because they’re wrong. 

Anyway, things get crazy for a couple of pages while the Straw Hats try not to capsize. Oda has this thing he does when he uses square or rectangular panels for his dialogue and uneven shapes like trapezoids for action scenes. I think that’s pretty standard procedure for comics (I’m by no means an expert) but here Oda helps sell the chaos by composing his pages so it feels like the panels are tilting with the ship

There’s also a nice gag with Usopp that doubles as a character moment. Instead of grabbing hold for dear life Usopp sits and closes his eyes to pray, completely ignoring the problem in hopes that it goes away. It’s funny here when he gets a skeleton to the face, but it highlights a huge flaw that finally comes to a head during the Water 7/Enies Lobby arcs.

After that we get this sequence of panels

Please forgive my horrendous edit, but I wanted to show how the speech bubble fits into curve of the wave in the second panel and leads the eye through the rest of the sequence even though the individual images don’t really relate to one another. Oda constructs this scene in such a way that we feel the chaos, but he does so in an orderly fashion. Each panel gets smaller and smaller - similar to the “fade to black” technique I talked about previously, and it leads directly the last splash panel on the page

The chaos ends just as abruptly as it began. The Straw Hats are mystified, and, honestly, Oda could have ended the chapter here. It’s such a high note, a good dose of Grand Line craziness after so much focus on the crew. But Oda isn’t satisfied with stopping here. He ends the chapter with what I believe to be one of the best story hooks in the series, tied only with Zou for sheer “WTF, the Straw Hats are going where?” moments in all of One Piece.

Skypea isn’t my favorite arc in the series. A lot of people say the same. But if you can pretend that you’d never read/seen what was coming next and take the end of 218 for what it is - and that’s pure hype - then you’ve got to admit that Oda has done his job.

So that concludes our look into chapter 218 “The Log Pose and Why It Is Round”. To summarize my thoughts on the chapter and why it’s amazing

Ships fall from the sky

Oda never forgets 

But he does lure us into thinking he does

Ships fall from the sky

Robin is established as a “protagonist” without necessarily being a “good guy”

Symbolism

Excellent page composition

Gags that reveal character

Consistent characterization with hints of further development to come

and last but not least

      10. Ships falling from the sky

(Thanks to everyone who has the patience to read this far. Next I’ll continue my Nico Robin study with chapter 253, specifically looking at Robin’s place in the Skypea arc and how Oda prefers stealth development over big character moments. See you next time!)

[idigihearts1x3]

Deja Vu

AO3 Link

Arthur used to think loneliness and abandonment were the worst thing he could ever feel. Stuck in the back watching his two best friends make Goo-Goo eyes at each other while the dog watched them happily. He thought nothing could make the trip to a case longer.

What he wouldn’t give to have those days back.

Afterwards he thought the emptiness was the worst thing ever. Vivi smiling and appearing happy, but knowing something important was missing. Mystery, unsure of how to act now that he had to use his secret against Arthur in such a way. And Arthur crushed with guilt and pain, but the only one able to drive since Vivi had lost her licence yet again. He’d thought that was the worst thing he could ever feel.

And now the gang was back together, but it wasn’t like before. Lewis was the one stuck in the back, but while he was still making eyes, they were no longer loving, and no longer aimed at Vivi. He could feel the ghost’s constant glare at the back of his head, creeping down his spine and making his left arm ache. The ghost would occasionally make a comment along the lines of

“Sorry I can’t give you a break, Art,”

Seemingly friendly, but he knew he was really saying:You know why I can’t drive. And I’ll NEVER let you forget. Vivi knew it too. Every time he said something like that, her hands clenched a little tighter, her face became a little more of a scowl. She was reaching her breaking point...but all she could do was try to calm everything down, right? Keep a smile on her face and keep the peace.

“Come on, Lew. You'll be able to drive again once you've got your other form down! We're working on it, so you'll be able to help Artie out in no time.”

Lewis blinks before forcing on a smile for Vivi, nodding slowly. He couldn't deny being happy about the fact they were working on that, that he would maybe get some of his life back – oh wait, he could never get that back thanks to his best friend.

“Of course, mi arando...”

He says with the grin still on his face even as his eyes slip back over to Arthur, narrowing as the air against their back grows hotter...at least until Vivi rolled down her window, making the ghost yelp as the wind puts out his hair.

“Oh sorry Lewis! I just thought things needed to chill down in here!”

Vivi says as she glances back at him with a wide smile before turning back to face forward again and nudging Arthur's side lightly. He smiles back at her nervously, hunching his shoulders slightly when he hears the irritated grumble from behind them. Thankfully it seemed like Lewis would back off, for now, considering he moved to escape the stronger wind and relight his hair.

“V-Vivi it really doesn't seem like a good idea to....to keep antagonizing him. Really I should just-”

“You are not staying home just because my apparent 'boyfriend' is an over dramatic baby. He said he's forgiven you, but he sure isn't acting like it!”

A small sound came from the back, something between anger and disbelief and just a hint of hurt, but it was quiet since Vivi was the one who spoke. There was no way that Lewis was going to say anything against her; he couldn't. She's Vivi, the leader of their group, his amor, their-his blueberry. Arthur didn't deserve to be able to call her his friend at all....though with as unhappy as Lewis was making Vivi lately, did he deserve to call her his anything either?

Lewis looks down, his skull obviously showing that if he had a mouth, it would be frowning. Nothing made sense lately...they kept saying Arthur didn't kill him – all of them except Arthur himself who just kept saying sorry, the rare times when he could get words out to him. That made it hard to believe it wasn't really in Arthur's plan all along to get rid of him.

“Alright, we're here!”

Vivi says happily as she jumps out of the van once it was stopped, looking around at the area that they were now in. A large abandoned lumberhouse was in front of them, the van parked just off the dirt path that lead up to it. It looked in pretty bad shape, if the rust on the building as well as the trucks and rotting wooden logs around it were any indicator. Just barely through the trees she could see a small bridge, most likely leading toward the house of the long dead owners.

“Alright boys, I printed us each a map, just in case we got separated. Arthur-”

Vivi turned around with a smile, preparing to hand a folded up map to her friend when she paused. He was curled in on himself, rubbing his shoulder while Lewis stood off to the side of him, looking around and pointedly not at Arthur with his hands behind his back. Her eyes narrow yet she tried to keep the smile on her face.

“Arthur,” her voice had taken on a different tone, more sugary and that instantly made the two boys stand more at attention, “you'll be coming with me while Lewis and Mystery go together!”

“Wha-Vivi, no! You can't go with him. You have to-!”

Lewis started to speak- no, growl- at Arthur before Vivi quickly moved closer and shot him a smile - one forced and clearly cracking as she tries to hold herself back.

“I don’t ‘have to’ do anything, Lew! We’re not dating as far as i remember, and even if we were I know I would never date anyone who tried to tell me what I can and can’t do!”

She kept her smile up, making sure her voice stayed pleasant - huh, those times dealing with unpleasant customers at the bookstore have paid off - even as she narrowed her eyes behind her glasses. She waited, giving Lewis a moment to make his move and nods in approval when his own heated stare dies down and steps back a few feet.

“Now, let’s get to work before it gets dark!”

She says as she turns to Arthur with a much more real grin, holding a map out to him.

“As I was saying before, I printed out one for each of us as a just-in-case. the logging building has a few floors, but because of the state it seems to be in, you and me will stay on the bottom floor and outside just to be safer. The actual death happened in the owner's’ cabin so we’ll check that out last all together.”

She says before turning back to Lewis and holding out a map to him.

“You and Mystery can check the upstairs floors. Sounds good? Great!”

She didn’t give Lewis much of a chance to say anything, not when she saw that his gaze was sliding past her and more toward Arthur with again, before turning to Mystery and using it as an excuse to block Arthur more from Lewis’ gaze.

“Be careful, Vivi. For both of you. There will most likely be a few wild animals that have taken up residence here, and neither of you are very well...equipped to handle them as well as me or Lewis.”

“Exactly! which is why I should go with Vivi! To protect her! She’s going to be left with a murderer otherwise!”

Lewis immediately speaks up, glaring toward Arthur as his hair flares in his anger, making the other man yelp and duck behind the other side of the van in fear and clutch at his left arm. Lewis growls as he marches forward and just phases through the van to get to Arthur, glaring down at him.

“Just admit it already! You're obviously guilty, since you never say you aren’t! Just admit it so that we can be done with you!”

“I-I-!”

“Shut up! There is nothing that could come out of your mouth that could fix this!”

Lewis snaps as he reaches out to try and snag Arthur’s shirt, before halting quickly when Vivi forces herself between them, glaring back at the ghost with hardened eyes and a white slip of paper in her hand. It took him a moment to notice the slip but as soon as he did, he took quite a few steps back, looking at Vivi in shock.

“I do not want to use this. I am hoping I do not have to use this. But I will use it if you do not stop threatening my best friend.”

“But he-”

“No. I do not care what you think he did or did not do. I remember him. I do not remember you. I did not even want you to come along. The only reason you are here right now is because Arthur begged for me to let you come. Otherwise you would not only not be here, but also not be anywhere near either of us. I do not care who you used to be. You are obviously not that person anymore. And the person you are now, I would never want to willingly be around.”

Lewis stares at her in disbelief, blinking with wide eyes before looking away as he crosses his arms with a scowl. Vivi had to admit it was a bit impressive how he seemed to be so committed to his temper tantrum that he could make it so obvious he was scowling, even without a jaw. She almost even laughed at it. She actually might have laughed, if Lewis didn’t decide to grumble something - what he actually said, she wasn’t sure, the echo of his voice making it impossible to make out, but she knew it couldn’t have been very nice, since he was so angry.

“Now listen...I get that you aren’t happy. Right now none of us are. And I get that you’re confused and that you think you know what happened. But maybe you should think beyond what you think you know and look at the big picture.”

Vivi says before turning her back on him and taking Arthur’s hand, leading him firmly toward the building. Arthur squeaks softly but quickly moves to follow her, giving a small glance back toward the others before focusing on where he was walking.

Vivi was a bit disappointed as she walked back toward the van. They had looked around for hours and didn’t find a thing! The only highlight was that nothing bad had happened, no hidden cults or sudden animal attacks and Arthur had only been scared by dark corners a few times!

“Well, it’s a good thing we brought food and blankets along. Seems we’ll be spending the night!”

Looking back at Arthur with a grin, she pauses as she saw the look on his face. Strained, tired, guilty...she has only seen that look after Lewis had done something to him that Vivi didn’t happen to notice in time to stop. But Lewis hadn’t come anywhere near them, had he?

It took not even a minute more, just enough time to open the back doors of the van, before Mystery and Lewis were walking out toward them, Mystery trotting a bit faster to get over to Vivi first.

“Did you two see anything?”

“.....No.”

“Ugh, yeah we didn’t see a thing! I’m starting to think this one may be a bust, but we still have the cabin to check tomorrow so I’m not completely down yet….”

“Well I’ve got good news for you, Vivi! While Lewis and I didn’t see anything either, the whole time I felt something’s aura moving around. There must be another ghost somewhere here. The energy wasn’t strong enough at the time for me to track, but it’s here and I think it knows we’re here, too.”

Mystery yelps before he smiles and licks at Vivi’s face when she cheers, throwing her arms up in the air with him in them. If he hadn’t been lifted in Vivi’s arms, he might not have seen the guilty and pained look on Arthur’s face. Didn’t they say nothing had happened? Was Arthur trying to blame himself for nothing showing up?

“That’s great news! We didn’t come all this way for nothing then!!”

Vivi dances around with Mystery for a bit with happy laughter, before stopping to grin at the others excitedly.

“First thing tomorrow we’ll all check out the cabin across the bridge. Until then, we need to start setting up for the night before it gets to dark.”

She turns to Lewis and Arthur, holding Mystery in her arms as she grins at them - the excitement from the possible case being a real haunting overpowering her annoyance at Lewis so she didn’t try to dim down her smile at all. Even seeing Lewis smile back at her didn’t deter her.

“I’m going to go get firewood, you three stay here. We can’t use the logs here because they are way too big for one, and very rotten, so it’s probably not a good idea to burn them.”

“Are...you sure it’s safe for you to look by yourself?”

“I’m not going to go far, Lewis. I know how to take care of myself. I also know how to scream if I do need help.”

Vivi says before setting Mystery down and petting his head - shooting a pointed look toward Arthur. Mystery leans into the pets and gives a subtle nod before trotting over to Arthur as she left. He laid down at the man’s feet, putting his head on top of one of them and getting comfortable.

It was silent for only a few seconds before Lewis huffs softly and floats away from the van a bit, going to look at one of the closer rusting trucks for just something to do. The ghost getting farther away let Arthur relax a bit more - not very much, but enough that he felt he could move without pissing the other off again.

The creak of metal made Mystery’s ears twitch before he lifted his head to look up at Arthur, watching in confusion as he detached his arm and laid it across his lap, grabbing his toolbox and dragging it closer.

“Arthur? ...what are you doing?”

“Just some routine maintenance, Mystery. I do this all the time.”

“Yes I know that, but...you just did it last night. It’s at least another day before you do it again normally, unless something happens to it.”

Arthur doesn’t glance at the dog, not wanting to risk meeting those too-old eyes. Afterall, something did happen. But Arthur couldn’t say anything, not without throwing Lewis under the bus - and considering he already pushed the man off a cliff; there was no need for him to do more harm than that

The silence seemed to be enough of an answer though, Mystery narrowing his eyes as he glances toward where Lewis was before looking back at Arthur.

“....what happened Arthur?”

“W-what? Nothing happened, it's fine, just want to make sure it’s ok. There was a lot of dust in there, after all.”

Arthur laughed nervously before quickly swallowing the sound when Lewis turned toward them. He stared at them silently for a few seconds, Arthur staring back just as silently with his screwdriver poised partway into his arm.

For a minute, Arthur almost thought that Lewis had somehow frozen before he started floating over to them. He tried to keep his small whimper of fear quiet, not wanting to give Lewis any reason to blow up at him. Lewis kept floating closer until he was standing next to Mystery, staring down at Arthur as he ducks his head and hunches his shoulders to try and get even smaller and to look less threatening. Who would have ever thought that a guy like him could be taken as threatening looking?

“I’ve never seen you with your arm off.”

...What? Arthur blinks and risks a glance up at Lewis, surprised at how there was no heat in his words. It honestly sounded like...Lewis was confused. Maybe even curious.

“U-uhm…..I could...do this later. if it’s bothering you.”

“.....Can i watch?”

Ok, what? He had thought Lewis wouldn’t want to be anywhere near him when he didn’t have to, but...now he was basically wanting to sit and watch him work on the replacement for the arm that murdered him. Arthur didn’t think he would be able to speak, even if he got his tongue to unstick from the roof of his mouth, so he just nods his head quickly. He watched silently as Lewis sat on the end of the van next to him before clearing his throat and looking back down at his lap and arm. Just don’t stare at him, don’t do anything different than you normally would, don’t give him a reason to get angry, just enjoy this while you can.

It wasn’t very long, not even 5 minutes have passed - but god did it feel like 3 hours - before the tense silence was broken by something else besides the sound of Arthur's tools.

“It...never really sunk in until now. That you...lost your arm.”

Mystery makes a small huff from where he was laying on Arthur’s feet, eyeing Lewis, who just waves his hand as if brushing away anything Mystery might have said.

“Yes, yes I know you both told me that he did but...I’ve never seen it. I knew your arm wasn’t...right anymore, it’s kind of hard not to notice metal where there should’ve been skin, but….being told by someone else what happened and then actually seeing it on the person it happened to are very different things. I just…”

Lewis frowns, still staring down at the arm and all its exposed wires even though Arthur was now staring up at him with his mouth slightly agape in shock that Lewis was not only talking with him but...it was civil.

“Tell me what happened Arthur. What you remember. You are the only one who hasn’t tried to convince me you hadn’t planned to murder me.”

“Well….would you have believed me if i tried? I mean...I-I still have trouble being able to be around you without you glaring at me-”

Lewis snaps his gaze up from the arm to Arthur with narrowed eyes, making Arthur flinch away.

“S-see, like that! I-I can’t t-talk when every time I try, you immediately start glaring at me! Y-you know this t-too, I g-get all...all t-tongue-tied when you start glaring at me!”

Lewis growls before looking away with a small mumble, crossing his arms. Arthur was right, which he knew and he hated. Arthur was always good at pointing out things that Lewis didn’t notice, or forcing him to stop ignoring the things that he did. It was one thing he had liked about their friendship, that Arthur wouldn’t let him get away with things just because he didn’t know everything. Yet...that was what he had done with the mansion wasn’t it? The mansion and the truck after, when he had gone off what he thought he knew...and ignored everything he knew about Arthur himself.

“Fine...I won’t glare or interrupt you while you….explain what happened. Unless it’s obvious bull.”

Arthur frowns slightly and shakes his head before sighing softly as he looked down.

“Fine, sure whatever. So you’re going to call bull on whatever I say, then? Because that’s what it sounds like, since I still doubt you’ll like my answer.”

“So you did plan this!”

“I never said that! Stop assuming things!! Why would I want to kill you Lewis, I care about you! You’ve been my best friend since we were kids, since before we even knew Vivi! What would I even gain from killing you?!”

Lewis opens his mouth to answer exactly what Arthur could have gained, when Arthur narrows his eyes at him - his fear and worry of the ghost getting angry overpowered by him finally having the chance to speak with the ‘tentative’ promise of no interruptions.

“Don’t you dare say Vivi. Don’t you dare even suggest that I would be so petty or-or horrible to kill you over your choice of girlfriend!”

“Don’t you yell at me!”

“Then don’t think everything is so black and white! You know me, Lewis, we grew up together! You know I hate violence, you know I get jumpy at like, everything!”

Arthur takes a deep breath and runs a hand through his hair, tugging on the end of the strands as the short burst of his anger faded out.

“Lewis…I helped set you and Vivi up once I realized you liked her. Why would I...why would you think I wouldn’t just...say something?”

“Because you don’t say when something is bothering you. You never want to make us feel bad.”

“Oh so you do still know me. I thought you forgot who I was....”

Lewis flinched in slight shame and looks down, frowning. Arthur was right of course. He still knew Arthur, he knew who he was and how he acted. It just...it didn’t add up. It had to have all been an act. Yet...why would a little kid protect another from some bullies with the plan to just kill him later on in life? Why would Arthur always try to make everyone else happy first if he was just concocting this as a plan?

“....Just tell me what happened that night.”

“It...alright. Do...you remember what Vivi told us for the information about the cave that she found?”

“That...that the bats inside didn’t behave like normal bats and the fog made people think they heard things. And that people did things they couldn’t explain later. But most of those reports were made by local high school kids or people who had been drinking and none of them did anything remotely close to murdering who they were with.”

Arthur sighs and nods before looking down at his arm and starts working on it again, needing the distraction to be able to force himself through finally actually talking about that night.

“...Yeah. We should have given more credit to those reports. I...at first I had started thinking maybe it was just the fog mixed with my nerves. I hadn’t been...feeling that great the few days leading up to that case and I should have said something but...you guys were happy, that was enough for me to be happy for you too. I didn’t want to ruin the road trip for you two. Then again...none of this might of happened if I just spoke up...but the fog. It wasn’t really fog. Or not natural fog at least. I couldn’t...I didn't realize at first what was happening but….there was something in that cave. Something more than just bats.”

Lewis scoffs weakly - weak from knowing that he shouldn’t - with a small eye roll that Arthur ignores.

“How convenient...”

“You said you wouldn’t interrupt. at the time...I don’t know why it...decided to do what it did. Mystery told me later that it was because the spirit was most likely trying to break me so I wouldn’t fit back. I...I didn’t want to hurt you, i never wanted to hurt you Lew-is.”

“Then you-!”

“I know!”

Arthur snaps, shooting a look at the ghost as he once again interrupted, making him shrink back in surprise.

“I know! There was many things I should have done. And I tried alright!? When I realized what was happening, what it planned to do to you, I tried to warn you. I tried to make a sound, to scream, to do anything! I even tried to make myself fall over the side so it wouldn’t be you!”

Lewis blinked with wide eyes at Arthur, flabbergasted. He...had tried to make himself fall?

“Anything would have been better than you being dead! B-but..but I wasn’t strong enough...I couldn’t...it was planning on going for Vivi next. And by then I couldn’t...I couldn’t fight it. if Mystery hadn’t...saved me when he did, I don’t know if any of us would be here. I...I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. I didn’t want any of this to happen…”

Arthur sniffs softly as he looks away, scrubbing at his face for a moment before shaking his head.

“That doesn’t matter, I’m sorry, it’s my fault. I should have fought harder, I should have done something different, it was my hand that pushed you, it's my fault you're like this I’m so sorry Lewis.”

Lewis was still stunned. even as Arthur started crying in front of him - he had forgotten what Arthur looked like when he cried. he saw it so rarely...because Arthur always made sure to hide it. Even now, he was trying his best to hide that he was crying, keeping his breathing unnaturally even as his tears dripped off his chin.

“Y-you...you’re right to hate me Lewis. You didn’t deserve this. you h-had so much to live for, so many people t-to live for. I’m...I’m so sorry Lewis. I know there’s nothing that I could do to make it up to you and you probably don’t even believe me either but..it’s what happened. I pushed you and killed you and it’s my fault you’re dead and you can never have that back and I can’t fix that ever.”

Lewis stares before letting his gaze drop, letting Arthur have at least the illusion of privacy as he got himself back under control - how different from the last time Lewis caught Arthur crying, immediately going to hug the smaller man and comfort him. how times have changed…

“I...don’t hate you. I..don’t think i ever really hated you. Which is why I was so mad. I...all I knew is that my best friend had pushed me off a cliff right in front of my girlfriend while the last thing I heard was you...laughing and her screams. But….I never hated you. Which is what made ,me even angrier. I couldn’t even hate the man who murdered me.”

Maybe it’s because he never wanted to truly hate Arthur. Because he knew there had to be more to what happened then he thought. Because he couldn’t accept that Arthur, the one who used to protect him from bullies when they were children, was the same one who hated him enough to kill him. Why he couldn’t believe the others when they told him the truth was anyones guess - but it really wasn’t a guess that was needed. It’s always different hearing something from someone else then from the one who truly did, or didn’t, do it.

That was the scene that Vivi came back to - Lewis and Arthur sitting next to each other, one trying to hide his tears and the other obviously torn between trying to comfort or ignore that it was happening.

“What the hell did you do, Lewis?!”

Lewis yelps and shakes his head quickly, jumping and floating away a bit when she threw down the wood in her arms, running over to Arthur and cupping his cheeks as she looks him over for any bruises or burns. Arthur makes a small noise of distress and surprise at the sudden blue in his face and leans back slightly before shaking his head and taking one of her hands in his only hand.

“V-vivi no, no it’s...it’s alright. He didn’t do anything, it’s ok, I’m fin-alright. I’m alright.”

Vivi’s eyes narrow slightly. She knew what Arthur had been planning on saying...and she knew what ‘fine’ really meant. At least for Arthur, who never wanted to bother others with his problems.

“Ok. if everything is alright, then why are you crying?”

“We just….we talked.”

Vivi huffs softly. she still had a few doubts but glancing down at Mystery, who was still lying across Arthur’s feet and didn’t look like he had been disturbed much. And even if he had been, then he wouldn't look so calm now or would at least be looking slightly more protective of Arthur.

“....Alright. But I’m watching you, mister!”

She says as she rounds to face Lewis with a small glare - her face softening slightly at the look the ghost had. Well...past her at least had good taste in looks. She was still debating on personality. But now, when he wasn’t a flaming ghost of rage and stupidity, he kind of looked a bit like a fluffy purple puppy. ...or maybe a bobble head with the way he was nodding right now. She was honestly a tiny bit concerned for his neck - until she remembered that he couldn’t really hurt it.

“Well...since nothing bad apparently happened, let’s start setting up the fire before it gets much later. Since Arthur needs to finish up with his arm, you’ll help me Lewis?”

Again. Bobble head. At least it seemed like he was willing to be a bit more friendly. So she let it be for now, Lewis floating off a bit to find some stones to put in a circle near the van while Vivi started setting up the wood she had found in a teepee shape as best she could. She was never the greatest at this part, the ones she made always falling over. Now that she thought about it….Arthur’s kind of sucked too whenever he made them. But she remembered past haunts they’ve gone to where they need to camp out like this and the fire had been...almost perfect. Had those been when Lewis built them?

“...Do you have a good enough handle on your fire to be able to light this?”

Vivi asks as she glances up at the other. Lewis huffs softly, as if insulted.

“Hey don’t blame me! The only time I’ve ever seen you use your fire it's been all explode-y! Not to mentioned aimed to hit my best friend, so excuuuuse me if i’m worried about your control of your abilities.”

Lewis tried to hide his flinch. Especially since it reminded him of the night they finally found him...he hadn’t meant to explode like that. He really hadn’t, not even from how angry he had been at Arthur had meant to ever put Vivi in danger. The just...sudden pain from his anchor, paired with the anger he already had and then the added anger of Arthur taking Vivi away from him? It all had to come out somehow. He hesitates before being sure to keep his fire under control as he lights a small ball in his hand, tossing it into the middle of the wood - making sure he kept it weak enough that it wouldn’t explode or anything….which admittedly took a bit more concentration than he thought it would.

“Did...I ever….apologize for that?”

“Nope.”

Vivi pops the ‘p’ as she gets up, walking away to the van. She knew she should get a sorry for herself but the one who really deserved it was Arthur. He was the one the fire was aimed for after all.

“Then...I’m sor-”

“Let me stop you right there. Words aren’t good enough. Words are never good enough just by themselves. so prove you're sorry instead of just saying it. Prove it to the one who really deserves it.”

Lewis stares after her in surprise before looking down at the fire that was crackling merrily, a small frown on his face. Arthur...he did deserve an apology. He didn’t fully believe that Arthur wasn’t at least a little bit at fault - there was no way whatever possessed him (because okay, maybe something did possess him, Arthur had been acting weird the days leading up to that day) had just up and decided that it should use Arthur to kill him. Not without the thought already being inside Arthur’s head. Or else he would have been able to fight it off! But...Lewis could try. For Vivi. To show that he still loved her so that he could stay and protect her from the backstabber - or well, back pusher.

“Ok. I’ll prove I’m sorry for almost blowing you all up.”

Well at least it was a start. Vivi would take what she could get. Especially right now when she was starving and didn’t want to deal with much more tonight until she slept and ate - preferably in the opposite order.

“Alright! Let’s get to cookin so we can get to eatin!”

She cheers as she pulls out their food - two containers of cup of noodles and a small pan out, a water bottle being pulled out next.

“Ok, give me a minute to reconnect my arm and I can hold the pot.”

Arthur speaks up as he works at reattaching the limb. He was normally the one to keep the pot steady when cooking outdoors, since he would be able to hold it without working at it, or it being too heavy and his arm getting tired. It was useful sometimes, thankfully. And if he could do anything to make it easier for Vivi, then he would without a second thought….even if sometimes that was something as mundane as holding a pot of water over a fire.

Lewis stared silently from the edge as Arthur and Vivi did what they needed, watching as they worked together and then just sat next to each other and waited for the water to boil. It was...it was so like before. So close but yet...so wrong now. Arthur shouldn’t be that close to her. Vivi shouldn’t want to be so close to him. Lewis….Lewis should be in there with them. Lewis missed being there with them, being able to smile at Vivi and her actually want to smile back, to cook actual good food for them all, to be able to crack jokes with Arthur even.

Too bad someone had to take it all away and ruin it for everyone else.

He was lost in thought for a while, unknowingly ruining the slightly relaxed tone the night had taken since his gaze was still on the two living humans.  Arthur quickly became uncomfortable and squirmed at his place by the fire.  He slowly shortened his speaking to one or two words - and that's only when Vivi directly said something that needed a reply instead of him offering one up willingly. It wasn’t until Arthur retreated to the van - barely half of his noodles eaten - that Lewis even noticed what he had been doing or how late and dark it had gotten.

And then he noticed Vivi’s look. Not quite a glare, but not really just a passing glance either. If he didn’t know better, he would think she had been taking lessons from his Mom.

“What? I didn’t do anything this time!”

“This time? What do yo-no, I can’t deal with that right now. one thing at a time Vivi…”

Vivi sighs and rubs at her temples, feeling a headache starting to grow. Hopefully she could fall asleep before it got to bad and kept her up…

“You were staring Lewis. Almost glaring even. So you know, kiiiind of messing up dinner. Arthur didn’t even finish eating, again, because of it. Just….whatever. Don’t do that please. I’m tired. I’m going to bed. Take care of the fire whenever you’re….done with it.”

Vivi says as she waves a hand and sighs again before heading to the van herself and climbing into the back - closing one of the doors to kill some of the light but leaving the other open to allow the warm fire-air to float in.

Lewis stares after her silently before looking down with a frown. He honestly, for once, hadn’t meant to make Arthur uncomfortable. He had just been thinking. Could...he not even think without seeming like he was going to kill someone?

Lewis shook his head quickly with a small growl.

Not just someone. Arthur. His murderer. Not a random someone.

…..Why didn’t that make him feel a whole lot better?