#i wanted to toss you guys a little scrap of things to come for the future so uhhhh *personifies Kevin's trauma into a metaphor*

[a-dude-named-mom]

Me: god i want to go home

The shadow demon that serves as a metaphor for my worst fears about my current situation: are you sure

[luvfy0dor]

“His Hands are in my Hair, His Clothes are in my Room ♡⁠˖” BSD x GN!Reader ੈ✩‧₊˚

╰┈➤ Osamu Dazai, Chuuya Nakahara, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Nikolai Gogol

Warnings; Nikolais and Chuuyas are hardly proofread, Nikolais was rushed, Nikolais nearly got scrapped, I don't like Nikolais, maybe a little ooc

Description; sharing clothing w the BSD boys

A/n; GUYS OH MY GOD I GOT A 5 ON MY FIRST AP EXAM IM SO PROUD OF MYSELF AHHHHHH IM GONNA CRY also I'm sorry posts are so few and far between. It's so hot and hard to function. I know I said the exact same thing to excuse minimal posts in winter but like. its literally hot as balls and all I got is a puny ass 8yro fan and the occasional sip of iced water.

Osamu Dazai ���

• Dazai likes to take your old T-shirts to sleep in when you lend them to him for the night. After a few nights of having Dazai at your house, you wonder why your sleep-shirt collection has nearly cut in half.

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You unlocked the door of your apartment and pushed it open with your unoccupied hand. The other arm held a large brown paper bag filled with gas station food and snacks for you and your boyfriend, who followed you inside. Once you set the bag down on the coffee table, you retrieved your keys from the door and closed it. When you came back to the kitchen, Dazai had already dumped everything out and was sifting through all the options. "The walk back from the gas station was hardly five minutes and I've already forgotten everything we got." He says with a grin, opening a bag of chips and eating a couple. He offered you some, holding the bag out to you. "Want some?' He mumbled.

"Yeah, let me just change into pajamas first, I don't wanna do anything until I'm comfortable." You said, shrugging off your jacket and starting to undo your belt before you even make it back to your room. Dazai followed suit, bag of chips still in hand. "Can I borrow some?" You nodded before taking off your shirt and tossing it in the laundry hamper, going through your closet to find a shirt for your boyfriend and yourself. "Thank youuu~" He plops down onto your bed, keeping the chip bag upwards so he doesn't get any crumbs or dust on your nice blankets. He watches you pull one of your band shirts over your head, admiring your body from his position on your mattress. He's snapped out of his daze when black fabric comes flying at him, but he catches it before it can smack him in the face. "Thanks, babe, you're so kind."

He switches his work clothes for your old ones, the big shirt nearly swallowing his scrawny torso comfortably. "Alright, I want snacks, come on." You gesture for him to follow you back out to the kitchen where the array of snacks was waiting for the two of you on the counter. There were numerous kinds of chocolate, and Dazai had grabbed a couple bags of gummies for himself. There were a few more bags of chips for variety, and you scooped everything up in your arms to bring to the living room. You dropped them all on the coffee table and grabbed the remote. "Alright, what movie are we feeling?" You ask, turning to the brunette man. "Uhhhhh, how about an action movie. Somethin' that looks exciting." He says, slinging his arm over your shoulder while he munches on sour gummy worms. Eventually, the two of you decide on a Godzilla movie, slumped against the couch with chocolate residue on the tips of your fingers from your candies. Dazai let out a long sigh as the movie came to a close, leaning into you and resting his head on your shoulder.

You ran your fingers through Dazais messy and slightly greasy hair, scratching his scalp and listening to his pleased, quiet hum. "Are you falling asleep or are you up for another movie?" You ask him, watching the credits roll on the TV. "I'm up for another movie, I just think I might be having a sugar crash." He says, groaning as he sits back up. You nod and grab the remote again, browsing through all the film options. Every now and again, your eyes involuntarily flickered over to your boyfriend, and you couldnt help but smile. He looked really cute in your shirt, and it almost made you wanna treat the movie like chopped liver and cuddle up to him.

"You look really cute." You say, playing whatever movie you absent-mindedly started in your daze. "Oh, I know, right?" He grins running his hand over his body. "As a matter of fact, I've never felt sexier." He teases, moving his eyebrows up and down with a smirk. You can't help but laugh at him. "Let's get you on a playboy cover." Before you know it, he's standing up in front of the TV. "Scrap the movie, you have me for entertainment instead." He puts his hands on his hips and strikes a pose, making you laugh some more. "You want some attention? I mean, I guess since you asked so politely." You stand up with an eye roll and pull him in, kissing him and running a hand down his side. He keeps one hand on your chin, tilting your head to meet his lips, sighing quietly each time your lips part for a quick moment. Soon, you both need more air then small gasps and have to pull away. He smiles and messes with the fabric of your own shirt. "How about we ditch this mess for now and go to bed, yeah? We can continue comfortably there?" He offers, You glance back over at the piles of snacks, opened or not, scattered acrossed the floor. Normally you'd make him help you clean up before doing anything else, but tonight you really couldn't be bothered and just wanted to follow Dazai wherever he'd take you. "Alright, let's go."

Chuuya Nakahara ★

• Everyone knows that Chuuya adores his hat, but not everyone knows he's got a decently sized collection of fancy hats on top of his closet. One day while rummaging around and trying to find one of Chuuyas button downs for him, you notice them all on the top rack.

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"Chuuya, you didn't tell me you had so many hats!" You called out to him, standing back and staring at them all. Chuuya was currently in the bathroom, shaving his peach fuzz to keep his smooth face. "Huh? Oh, yeah, I've got a ton." He calls back, washing the shaving cream off of his skin. "They're pretty..can I try some of 'em on?" You ask, reaching to grab the one on the top of the stack. "Go ahead." He walks out of the bathroom with his towel around his waist, leaning against the doorframe to watch the little fashion show you were about to put on. The first one you grabbed was adorned with flowers of various colors. You placed it on your head and turned around, posing with your hands on your hips.

"What do you think? Vogue worthy?" You ask him. He smiles at you and nods, his arms crossed over his chest. "One hundred percent, that's peak fashion." He says genuinely, standing up straight and walking over to the closet. He reaches up and grabs another hat for you to try, switching it out for the flowers one. This one is a dark, reddish brown color. "This one's cute too." You giggle and head over to the bathroom to see for yourself. "Ooo, I'm not sure this kinda hat is necessarily for me." You giggle. "What do you mean? It looks great on you!" He says, following you in and hugging you from behind. "You only say that because they're your hats." You say, grinning.

"I mean, I guess not everyone is destined to look good in them like me." He says, squeezing your hip. "I gotta actually get ready for work now, I'm probably runnin' late." He says, turning around and dropping his towel. He tossed it into the hamper before getting dressed in his usual attire, spotting the button down that you had forgotten about in favor of his hat collection. "Okayyyy." You yawn, stretching your arms over your head and treading through the bedroom to start your own morning routine. You didn't have to leave for another hour, but Chuuya had to get to work within the next 30 minutes. After brushing your teeth, you notice Chuuya searching the bedroom for his usual hat.

"The nightstand." You point out to him. He sees it and lets out a sigh of relief, grabbing it and plopping it on his head. "Thanks, doll. I gotta get going' now, but I'll see ya tonight, okay?" He says, pulling you in by your waist for his daily goodbye kiss. "Yeah, got it." You smile before kissing him sweetly for a quick moment before he backs away. "Alright, I love you, see ya later." He playfully smacks your ass before letting go of you and heading out to the door. "Bye Chuuya, I love you, I'll see you later!" Once you heard him leave, you smiled to yourself and headed right back to the closet. You didn't necessarily have to get dressed just yet, so that gave you some time to try on a couple more hats on your own.

Fyodor Dostoevsky ★

• Fyodor doesn't mind letting you borrow his cape if you seem cold, or he'll simply wrap it around you and pull you into his side. He prefers the latter, considering it doesn't take much for him to get chilly.

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Fyodor held your gloved hand in his as you both walked down the snowy streets of Yokohama. It was the winter solstice and you both decided to take a walk down one of the most popular roads and do some window shopping. By the end of the evening, the hand that wasn't occupied with holding Fyodors held a warm cup of hot chocolate that you sipped on periodically. "Have you enjoyed yourself tonight, Myshka?" He asks you, adjusting his ushanka and gazing up at the sky, noticing some snow start to fall. "I did. Thanks for coming with me, I know you have a lot of stuff to do." You respond, bringing the cup to your lips for another sip. He waves his hand dismissively. "That doesn't mean I can't accompany you." His thumb rubs over your knuckles as snow starts landing on his hat and your head, the street lamps illuminating the darkness with a tangerine-colored glow. You nod at his words, leaning into his shoulder and shivering.

"It's so cold, Fedya." You say, your head on his shoulder and your hand squeezing his tightly. He lets go in order to put his arm around your waist, pulling his long cape over your shoulder. "I know, the walk home isn't much further, don't worry." You smile and hold onto the old, worn material to keep it in place. "You're right, thanks." You say, feeling butterflies in your stomach. It never mattered how long you and Fyodor had been together, every affectionate action made you feel like you had just got together. He held you close with his cape still shielding you from the cold and adding a layer of warmth to your jacket. He would peer over at you every now and again, laughing under his breath at all the snow that was getting into your hair. "What's so funny?" You ask him, a smile spread acrossed your face. "You've got a whole bunch of snow on your head." He tells you. "It looks like dandruff."

You roll your eyes and yank the ushanka off of his head, placing it on yours instead. "There, now you won't have to look at it." You hold the fluffy hat on top of your head and try to prevent him from taking it back when he tugs on it. "No, you can get your own, my ears are cold." He says with a smile, eventually pulling it back into his own possession and patting it off. "I will say though, you look better in my hat than Dazai did." You give a proud smirk and rest your head on his shoulder. "I'd hope you'd think so." Your street comes into view and you pull him along as you speed up, wanting to get into the warm, cozy house as soon as possible. "I know running isn't exactly your thing but pick up the pace a little, I wanna get under the covers and cuddle." You tell him, getting closer to home with each passing second.

He picks up speed for you and listens to the sound of your feet hitting the pavement. It's not long before you've pulled him all the way home and you're unlocking the door, nearly spilling inside to get into the warm living room. Fyodor follows suit, unlacing his shoes and hanging up his cape and ushanka. You wait for him in the open doorway that connects the living room and the hallway, ready to curl up in bed away from the harsh cold. "Alright, I'm coming." He says, treading through the hall with you and opening the bedroom door. His hand rested on your lower back as you both walked to the comfortable mattress, crawling under the covers and pulling each other close. "Your cape is really warm and comfortable. You should wrap me in it more often." You say, scooching closer to him and letting his arm drape over your waist.

"Hmm, I guess that wouldn't hurt. You really like it?" He peers down at you, his head propped up on his fist. "Yeah, I might have to steal it, actually." You say seriously, making him click his tongue. "You're welcome to steal it if I'm not wearing it." He says, chewing on the inside of his cheek habitually. "Then expect it to be off the hanger more often then not." He smiles and presses a kiss to your forehead, laying his head down on the pillow. "Okay, that's fine, but right now you have me and the blanket to keep you warm." He murmurs, closing his eyes. "Well you're not contributing to that as much as the blanket, but whatever you say." You kiss his cheek and brush his bangs out of his face. "G'night Fedya, I love you." You say, resting your head on his chest, ready for sleep. "I love you too, y/n, sleep well."

Nikolai Gogol ★

• You always loved Nikolais outfit and couldn't help but wanna put it in one day. You were sure he wouldn't mind, after all, sharing attire was nothing foreign to your relationship.

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It started with you trying on his blouse for fun, but then you decided the blouse wasn't complete without the vest, pants, gloves, collar, shoes, or hat. Everything fit you a little differently than it fit Nikolai, but it didn't matter, because when you walked over to the nearest reflective surface, you found yourself cute, and you almost couldn't wait for Nikolai to get out of the shower to show him. You just needed one more thing, his cape. You ran out to the coat rack by the door and swung it behind you and then over your shoulders excitedly, grabbing it by the edges and moving it around. You felt really fancy with his cape, swaying your body just to feel the fabric move with you. As a matter of fact, you were so caught up in how good the cape made you feel that you didn't even realize the bathroom door open.

"Oh, wow, dove! My outfit looks so good on you! I've never noticed how much the red gloves pop until now." You turned around so fast, as if you were sitting in silence and all of a sudden a full file cabinet tipped over and crashed onto a linoleum floor. "Wah-! When'd you get out? I mean, thank you, but you scared me!" You say with a nervous laugh. "I thought it looked cute." You murmur, starting to pull off the gloves, but he stops you. "Hey, wait, you should stay in it for a moment, I'm not done admiring you yet!" He tells you, walking over and grabbing your hands gently. He leans in to kiss you, his smile palpable on his lips. You hand falls on his shoulder, rubbing it up and down affectionately before pulling away. "You really like it that much, huh?"

He nods. "Ofcourse! Oh, I'd love to show everyone how wonderful you look. Would you let me?" He asks, squeezing your hands tightly. "Sure, Kolya, go ahead." He quickly skitters off to fetch his cellphone, returning with the camera app already open. "Pose." He says, watching you place your hands on your waist and cock your hip a little bit. "Ah, gorgeous." He says, spamming the capture button. "Okay, I think that's enough." He says, his cheeks a bit pinker than before. He tossed his phone onto one of the side tables and embraced you once again, resting his head on top of yours. "Come on, y/n, I'd like to see you in my whole wardrobe now!" He says excitedly, pulling you along back to the bedroom. You don't necessarily know what you ignited in him, but it was certainly something, and now you were preparing yourself for a god-knows-how-long fashion show for your boyfriend. Not that you really minded, ofcourse.

A/n; another post that was supposed to have sigma and then didn't have sigma because I wanted to watch Jersey shore instead of write. ALSO I WENT TO THE DENTIST YESTERDAY terrible experience I cried but don't tell anyone I said that

[something-about-sunflowers]

ALRIGHT, *cracks knuckles* let's get into that teaser, shall we?

Should I itemize this? I think I'm going to itemize it lmao.

So:

Starting here because this is a baseline for Stede, he's got no neckerchief here. This is likely early in the season, probably the very start.

Man's got a fuckin' ARM.

This is Ed. You can see the bare right arm in both shots.

Red neckerchief. Ed's scrap of silk? Beat to shit if it is, which, he did toss it out to sea so, it would be.

Ed's not wearing the knee brace. Or gloves for that matter. I know the knee brace being an actual mobility aid is unconfirmed canon/fanon but it does make me :(c to see him without it. Either it wasn't actually considered as a mobility aid or he's lost it like he's lost his gloves OR he's going without it because he doesn't care if it hurts.

Closer shot of the neckerchief.

I just wanted to point out all the knives stabbed into the table. Also, those look like bits of paper on the windows, did they keep some of the books to repurpose for window blocking purposes?

THERE HE IS!!!!!!!! Other people have already pointed out the makeup and his ring still on his tie, along with the whip on his hip cjizzy real. He's got a new baldric but I also think his clothes look. Darker? Than in season 1? This is a darker/heavier contrast setting but it carries into other shots of him too I think? Like they're less sun/saltwater faded or something?

Other thing to note: If I have my orientation right, this is to the right of Stede's bed nook and to the left of the library, which means this shelf is the one with the auxiliary wardrobe opening mechanism. Which I bring up because:

This little guy seems to be in the place of the mannequin. Ed kept the auxiliary wardrobe and gothed up the mannequin to justify it still being there.

SO much here. This is, I'm fairly certain, Benjamin Hornigold. This camp he's set up (along with what he's wearing) looks like it was made out of a shipwreck. Ed's barefoot and missing his jacket and gloves, and his shirt's torn up at the sleeves. Definitely where he washed up from his dip in the ocean.

Note the trees and the lighting, that comes up later. Ed shoots here and Ben moves with the shot but it doesn't look like he was actually HIT by it to my eyes.

'Wanted. |Blackbeard| Villainous Pirate. Murderer, thrice over. $400 Reward for the criminal responsible for: theft - brigandry - larceny - arson - tax evasion ➡' Presumably there are more crimes/info on the back, though we see the reverse side in the next cut and it's either blank or all in very small text, I couldn't quite tell.

The poster to the right says 'Port' something which has me wondering Port Royal but that's just the only 'Port' something I know, could def be somewhere else.

(Also, just for fun:

Here's how much abouts Ed's capture would be worth now.)

Wider pic than it needs to be but I didn't wanna cut out Olu lol. ANYWAY. Neckerchief again. Also the back of the poster, see what I mean about it either being blank or very tiny?

Babygirl. . . But also that Bride Ed figure kinda slays. Little bralette with the midriff showing, I see you Babygirl. When will he be allowed to just rest and do silly little crafts WITHOUT heartbreak looming over him?

Well. Four is not nine. So. There's that. The other five could be used or out of frame though, of course.

OH. He's back to his fingerless gloves! They might actually be different from his original ones though, they look different at the wrist to me, not quite sure though.

The BOYS!!!! Frenchie looks like he's having a GREAT time. Considering he suggested they turn the hostage into a table and complained about the Republic of Pirates being a bit gentrified I'd say this is more in line with what he's used to in piracy. I 100% buy he was going along with Stede's way because he knew it was an easy ride compared to real piracy. This wouldn't necessarily be a return to form for him but definitely something he's more used to? And he gets to be kitty :3c

And FANG!!! Look at him showing a bit more skin!! Good for him!!

Everybody say 'Thank You David Jenkins'. Right now. Look at this Mad Max shit. Fuckin' Imperator Jimenez right there. LOVE that tye added the 'beard' after the 'fuck's wrong with your face?' bit in 1x10. Full 'it looked weird on you but I slay' energy.

Jim

Izzy

Fang

Near as I can tell at least. I can't make out if Frenchie is in the shot and I'm pretty positive Ed isn't cause he stayed by the cake when they charged in.

Man, yknow I know we were all kinda clowning on it a bit at the end of 1x10 but this look really is so JARRING. Like, in the dark it's menacing but in the light? It's unhinged and that reads as more dangerous imo.

Also just for comparison's sake the pre-Ed-ified version of the bride figure. He really did full on customize that thing lol.

I DON'T THINK ANNE KISSED STEDE HERE. It feels out of character of the show to pull the 'It's fine if a woman does it to a man' kind of thing with regard to unwanted kissing. This is the frame the scene starts on in the trailer. She's leaning back from him and isn't nearly close enough to his mouth to say for certain that's where she was coming from. My money is on her leaning in to whisper something into his ear, maybe under the guise of it being an advance/intended kiss, which would also explain the annoyed look when she's interrupted. She either got ACTUALLY interrupted or it's part of the act. Stede doesn't look nearly as uncomfortable as he would be if she'd kissed him or tried to, he looks confused.

Izzy going for his sword when this guy tries to get the drop on Stede. He either is starting to care or he knows how much Ed needs him alive.

Also, this is the other potential source of Stede's neckerchief. Mr, Knife right here has a red one and Stede doesn't have it in this scene. I do think this one is a little less distressed than the one Stede has though so it could just be coincidence.

See? No neckerchief. He DOES have a sword at his hip tho! So this, I think, is after Izzy's started training him.

Also, he actually looks really good in red lol.

Baby. He's definitely missing the ring in this shot. It sits higher than the baldric is covering. I want to give him a little kissie on his ouchie and then let him have a nap, he needs that.

The pants match the coat. Also, black shirt. Stede is kinda slaying ngl.

Still missing her head :(c. Isn't that bad luck?

Maybe yall didn't hear me properly with the Jim pic. I'll repeat:

EVERYBODY SAY 'THANK YOU DAVID JENKINS'.

I can't get over how Stede's just standing there politely with his arms behind his back lmfao.

Also, Izzy's got his right leg up, he's putting his weight on his left. . . 'foot'.

I SAID EVERYBODY SAY-

I know tits and all but also. The belly. I would like to. Bite.

*ahem*

ANYWAY. On the left (our left) side of the barrel you can see the tip of his right boot so he's def got that leg off the ground. Perhaps someone is trying to relearn their footwork? Now that they've got a different balance than they're used to? And perhaps a difference in sensory input in the leg he's standing on? Possibly?

This is the same beach Ed was on when he did the fuckin' RAD takedown of the other officer but it definitely looks like different times of day. Having both in the teaser is def meant to be a red herring. He doesn't have the neckerchief in this shot either.

Bra för honom. (Is how google translate tells me you say 'Good for him' in Swedish.)

Is Jackie's hair the same here as it is in the VF pic with Ed? Or like, similar enough to be a 'later in the day after some Fun™ messing it up a bit'?

Roach!!! Fully sleeveless now, added a belt, got some flowers tied to the strings/straps of his apron. Looks like he's having fun lighting that cannon lol. Pretty sure this is the same scene as that one leaked photo of him dancing with Fang and Izzy's green screen sock. He had the flowers in that, right?

[Ran out of allowed images, please hold]

[muneca-lemon-steppa]

All Kinds of Trouble

Alfie Solomons x Reader, Fluff, 1.2k words

Warnings: Cursing

A/N: Hi guys!! Ok so maybe hiatus is over? I'm trying to be gentle with myself and not hold myself to high standards in posting schedules. Again, therapy and Bar prep are a lot to handle rn, but I was able to do this little piece! This is based of a request sent in by my sweet friend @jassiefayee !!!! I hope you enjoy this angel!! Anyway, love you all so much! Have an amazing day!

Alfie didn’t find peace in many things. The business and all. Made him toss and turn at night, and in the daylight caused him to explode from the pure idiocy of people around him.

But walks in the park with Cyril? Now that gave him peace. With Cyril by his side, anyone who may have wanted to cause trouble stayed far away. Cyril’s imposing stature and mean looking face kept many men looking to scrap at bay, but little did they know that Cyril was by far the sweetest dog in Camden. And the fresh air did Alfie good. Being out in the park, feeling the breeze, hearing children and birds milling about created a sort of temple for him. A quiet place for him to let his mind rest, talk to himself (or God if he had a particular question), or just hum to the beat of Cyril's paws on the ground. This was his rest. This was his peace.

Now it should be noted, that one of the reasons that Alfie loved this particular park was that it was free of distractions for both him and Cyril. While Cyril was a very sweet and good natured dog who hardly ever caused an unnecessary ruckus, he was still a dog. And dogs have this strange habit, if not fantastic ability, to completely change the course of their owner's life.

So it was during a brisk walk on a fine November day where Alfie was suddenly pulled with all the force of heaven’s angels by Cyril’s lead through the park. And just as quick as he was yanked he was halted, nearly tripping over his boots and coat, and falling into Cyril and what might possibly be one of those treacherous angels.

It had become a relatively new habit for you to take a few moments of your day to sit in the park. Whether strolling, reading, or simply listening to the music of the city, you found the meditative state you entered in the park particularly divine. Spending all day cooped up in the house was not doing anyone any favors, and your mother insisted that you look at the sky, breathe in fresh air, or do something to get your energy out. And you enjoyed the respite from your family’s eyes and ears, and the view you caught of other people’s comings and goings. Often making up stories for the familiar faces that passed your eyes.

You had seen Mr. Solomons and his a dog before. It was hard to miss them. Both imposing. Even if Mr. Solomons wasn’t physically too tall, the air in which he carried himself made him seem absolutely monstrous. And the dog he walked along with came with a silent stature to match. When you mentioned to your mother that Mr. Solomons frequented your park, she all but forbid you to go to the park again. He was dangerous. A brute. Nothing good was associated with him. He was an animal. Damned.

Everyone in Camden had a story about Mr. Solomons. Even if they personally had never met him, they knew someone who knew someone who had crossed his path and suffered greatly. Fewer than those who crossed his path, were the women who had the pleasure of spending an evening with him. Demanding. Particular. Incredibly cross with hardly a smile crossing his firm mouth and creased brow. You had heard them all, many a time. And each time you heard the stories more fantastical and gory and outrageous they became. From the way the neighbors spoke of him, he might has well been an ogre who ate good men for supper. A confidant of the devil himself.

Yet those stories never deterred you from letting your eyes wander over to him when he made his way to the park. Surely observing doesn’t damn one’s soul right? And wondering if stories are true surely cannot condemn. Besides, he was never close enough to truly make a difference. A glance and gaze and thought were all that you experienced with the fearsome King of Camden. Until this afternoon, when that monstrous dog came charging at you with a gleeful and slobbery smile. And for whatever reason you never moved from your seat. You stayed planted on your spot on the bench, waiting for whatever was to come. And your supposed attack was merely a disgusting kiss to the neck and chin from the dog, and happy pants from it as well. It’s master, cursing and bellowing at hundred pound puppy who was uninterested in the threats of its flustered master.

You couldn’t help but giggle at the reddened face of Mr. Solomons, clearly out of breathe from the exertion of the sudden chase. “Mr. Solomons are you quite alright? Do you need to sit?”

“Hmm? No, no don’t worry about me angel, m’fine. This damn dog knows better than to run full force in a park. You alright love? Hope Cyril didn’t scare ya.”

You smiled warmly at him, and he was convinced he must have died in the chase and gone to Heaven. Your sweet eyes and tempting lips all too pretty to be here in Camden. You scratched Cyril’s ears before answering, "Oh no Mr. Solomons, I'm fine. Cyril here is very very sweet."

"Now treacle, I think I'm at a disadvantage. Don't like that at all me. Now how is it yeah, that you know my name and now my dog's name... but I don't get to know your name sweetness?"

With a quirked brow you answer, "Oh Mr. Solomons, everyone knows your name. The ferocious King of Camden, and his demon dog. Lots of tales about you Mr. Solomons.”

Alfie allowed himself a smile at your cheek, “Lots of stories eh? Which one is your favorite?”

“The one where you bested the devil himself in a game of chess and won the keys to hell.”

Alfie made himself comfortable next to you on the bench, making sure that his thigh touched yours, “Is that so? Your mum tell you that little one?”

You shook your head, “No sir. She told me I wasn’t to go near you.”

“And yet here you are, talking to bad men. Tsk tsk tsk. Naughty ain’t you?”

“It’s fun to be naughty sometimes. Don’t you agree Mr. Solomons?”

Alfie couldn’t help but bring his shiny rings to your cheek, taking stock of your face. You never flinched away, keeping fiery eyes locked on his. He hummed a tune you didn’t know, and stated, “There’s an opera tonight at 8. You’ll come with me. Wear something nice.”

“I don’t go to operas with strange men.”

“I don’t go to operas with strange women. Yet here we are sweet. I thought you liked being naughty.”

You couldn’t help but laugh at his brazenness. In truth, you couldn’t believe you allowed yourself to get this far. But it was too delicious to let go now. “You’ll pick me up on the corner of 10th and Victoria? At 6pm.”

“Now what will I do with you for two hours before the play treacle?”

You shrugged, “Show me how the King of Camden has a good night.”

Alfie laughed heartily, “Fuck me you really are a bad little thing aren’t you. Alright sweetness, I’ll pick you up there at 6. And let’s see what we can get up to.”

[writingoddess1125]

So I saw this fanart and got this idea! And after a gin and juice I wrote this. Enjoy!

Art does not belong to me! It says the artist is Flamingo_PinkArt on Twitter (If incorrect please tell me ;-;)

My Heart Breaks Pt. 1

Warning: Angst and some Fluff

Buggy X FemReader

Buy me a Ko-Fi? ☕️

Part 2

"(Y/N) Why the hell are we here?" You heard Buggy groan next to you annoyed, Shanks nodding in agreement. You rolled your eyes at their protest of being in the circus tent with you.

"Cause I am the one who got us the tickets, 20000 berries and I want to see the circus" You chimed proudly as you watched your favorite act come out. The clowns, Buggy grimacing at the sight of them, You see this and lean against his shoulder.

"Aww is Buggy afraid of clowns?~" You chime earning a glare from him and a blush. Shanks Grinning at this as he poked his friend in a teasing manor.

"No I'm not afraid of damn clowns! They are just... kinda creepy" He grumbled as he watched the group of bubbly cheerful clowns.

It had been a year since Gol. D Roger's had died, it had been hard on all three of you. But you luckily had each other and were trying to save up scraps of berries to start your guys own crew. You were the thief of the trio, a skilled person in breaking and entering as well as treasure hunting. Buggy was an amazing navigator and sailor while Shanks was the amazing fighter and leader of your trio of teenage Pirates.

You giggle at Buggy face of disgust at the clowns, you knew the real reason he hated them- It was the noses. He was self conscious about it heavily and seeing the clowns with the fake noses made him feel like they were making fun of him. You gently rub his shoulder gently, a silent gesture to comfort him.

Once out of the show you sighed in delight at feeling the sun on your face. Hearing both teens walking behind you and bickering between the two of them.

"Let's get some food for our journey to Hile Hile Village" You suggest, walking to the small market next to the curious. The three of you had been using this little village by Hile Hile Island as a sort of base. The three of you were planning a big heist in order to get a massive score of 750,000 berries which could help getting a bigger boat and not the stolen two decer you guys currently shared. The only issue was that the village was controlled by a dictator like man, A Lieutenant for the Marines that ruled the island. He had made it his mission to murder every pirate who tried to come to the island, so this would be a very quick smash and grab. Fleeing the island immediately afterwards.

It was simple, mildly foolish but hopefully effective.

Once in the market Buggy got toiletries, Shanks got food and you got basic supplies. The three of you walking together till you saw a beauty stand and seeing a deep red lipstick sticking out.

"Ohh I love this color" You hummed in pride at the red lipstick color, both teenage boys groaning as you took your sweet old time in choosing the brightest of red.

"I see you like the color red?" Shanks teased you, earning a sarcastic laugh from you.

"Oh yes, The color red really gets me going" You laugh as you pick the color and grab a near by red and white bandana, wrapping it around your head like a fake bonnet.

"Besides I hear red is a sigh of submission, what does that say about you Shanks?~" His face fell at your words and Buggy snorted a laugh.

You tossed down some berries for the bandana and lipstick. Following the boys back to the boat while you all chatted and teases each other, however Buggy's eyes landing on you every now and then more specifically your red lips. Everyone knew he had a crush on you, hell you had a thing for him too but it seemed he judt refused to make a move! Even when you all were on Roger's ship he never made a move on you.

"Buggy it's your turn to make dinner!" Shanks chimed out earning a groan from Buggy. After dinner you made it to the top of the deck to get some fresh air. Feeling the wind on your face as Buggy sailed you all to Hile Hile Island.

"Hey, You holding up okay?" You called out as you went to Buggy's side. The blue haired teen not meeting your eyes.

"I'm fine.." He grumbled, he knew he was pouting about something. Sighing as you look up at the night sky.

"What are you pouting about Bugs? Hm?" You pressed once more, Hearing a sigh from him.

"You um.. seem to like red right? Listen I assume you like Shanks and all. I mean ago doesnt- but um"

You look at Buggy as he leaned against the wheel of the stolen boat, not meeting your gaze.

"You two would be good together..." He grumbles, you roll your eyes and step towards him grabbing his arm hard you yank him from his pouting position and slammed your lips onto his. His eyes wide as you kiss him and leaned into the kiss, his eyes drooping as he felt warmth from you and wrapped a arm around you in return. After a moment you pulled away and grinned up at his cherry red face and eyes that were in a daze.

"I hope that answers the question of who I like Buggy" You teased, drawing a silent nod from him. Smiling you step back from his grasp and give his hand a gentle squeeze.

"Good night Bugs" You call out before heading down to the Lower Deck of the boat to sleep leaving Buggy standing there still shocked- His face breaking out in a wide grin as he silently cheered and jumped excitedly. You giggling at shearing his footsteps as he jumped up and down in excitement.

The next morning when the three of you arrived at Hile Hile Island and at dawn started your heist of robbing a jewelry store. It went smoothly enough, not too hard till the surprise alarms went off and the three of you ran.

Running through the streets you held the bag of values in your hand, the boys having a good lead on you as they slipped through the crowds and laughed. It was such a adrenaline rush! The boys ran ahead of you turning a sharp corner and heading down, as you prepared to catch up to them a muscular forearm suddenly slam put hitting you.

The wind getting knocked out of your lungs as you felt the forearm smash into your chest, your head smacking into the cobblestone ground as you looked up. The infamous Lieutenant staring down at you with a sickening grin- your eyes widened as you realized.. you were fucked.

"We are gonna be rich! Haha! That ship is ours! Right (Y/N!?)" Buggy yelled out, Hearing Shanks cheer ahead of him. Not hearing your voice he started to slow down lookknv behind him seeing you were gone and his eyes widened, Shanks still on his adrenaline high stopped as well and turned to look to see the confused Buggy.

"Where is (Y/N)?" Buggy questioned, Shanks face falling as he realized this. The two boys meeting each other's gaze and began to rush through were they had run to try and find you, calling out your name. The boys running back to try and find you, as they made it to a backstreet they see you in the back of a Marine jail wagon being dragged away to the local prison. Buggy surged forward in wanting to Spring you free but Shanks grabbed his shoulder quickly.

To say this had turned into a total shit show for you. You had been tossed in the back of the Marine jail wagon, then brought to the local prison.

There you were thrown into a cell with a women who had even in hysterics. Begging for death for her actions instead of the life sentence she was given. Your mind was racing as you tried to think of ways to get out- watching as the Lieutenant walked to you with a smile.

"It's been a while since we had a Pirate here, it's good. We needed an execution tomorrow" He said with a evil smile at you. The color draining from your face at his words.

"What!? Not a trial! Or even a proper investigation!?" You screamed as you grab at the bars. The Marine laughed loudly in your face as he leaned down to your level.

"Little girl, I'm the judge, jury and executioner. Welcome to Hile Hile!" He chimed loudly before dismissing himself with a deep laugh leaving you alone with the sobbing women.

You sat there for a while, trying to figure out what to do. Having even spoken to the women who told you she had accidently fell asleep and her child drowned and was imprisoned for murder. Now sentenced to life in prison at Impel Down, even though she wanted to die for her actions. A completely over sentencing for a horrible accident but you figured that was just how this place was run.

Going up the the barred wi dows of your cell you look out over the village. Fear running through your system as the words the man said to you rang through your system. It wasn't till you saw your two friends running in the alley by your cell did it snap you from your thoughts. Clapping your hands quickly to catch your attention you saw both of them turn to you.

"(Y/N)!" Buggy called out, looking around wildly before detaching his torso and floating up to meet you grabbing at the bars to try and pull on them. You quickly shoo him to go back down.

"No, They will see you" You hissed at him and held his hand, He floated back down but kept his detached hand with you. A sinking feeling hitting your stomach as you smiled at the two boys who rambled out in panic talking about how they would break you out. Shanks was the first one to notice your silence and the sadness in your eyes.

"Guys.. I.. I love you two-" You said to them, both freezing at your words as dread fills their system.

"Hey don't be so glum! We will get you out okay?!"

You gave Buggy's hand a squeeze sniffling back tears as you kissed the back of his hand staining it with your lipstick and taking the bandana you had bought before from around your neck and tied it to his wrist.

"I promise it will be okay Buggy.. Ill be okay" You say in a shaky voice, trying to keep him calm. Releasing his hand which floated back to his wrist.

"I'll get you out of here (Y/N)! They won't hurt you I swear!" Buggy proclaimed, his mind racing with ideas to break you out. Rushing down the alleyway in order to begin plotting.

You looked at Shanks through the bars and gave him a watery smile, tears welling in your eyes.

"Shanks... Promise me- If I go... Buggy can't see it.. He should never see me that way okay? Dont try and break me out.. you guys can get killed" You begged, tears rolling down your cheeks as you saw Shanks own eyes well with tears and nod his head.

"I-I promise (Y/N)..." He stuttered out, looking ahead and running after Buggy finally. Knowing the task that laid before him-

The next day was the day of the public execution. Wanting to make a an example out of you as they prepare for you to be killed. The Lieutenant coming by the cell you shared with the woman, who was still in her mess of a state at being imprisoned for life.

"Ah a Pirate and a Murderer" He chuckled darkly at the two of you. You glaring back at him as he leered at you-

"Does it make you feel strong to kill a child?" You asked him, earning a glare from the male who slammed his hand against the bars.

"Your show time is in half an hour- pray" He hissed at you and tossed a prison uniform and cloth bag at your feet. You knew what this was for by the red that spotted the collars on both-

Buggy had been frantically gathering a plan for his rescue mission, Ignoring the oddly silent Shanks who had just been watching him. Buggy creating a flashy and dramatic escape plan to rescue (Y/N).

"Alright It's almost ready!" He said as he grabbed rope, knives and more. Shanks looking at Buggy and sighing.

"Buggy- We can't get her-" He started but Buggy glared hard at him.

"Yes we can- if we follow this plan I can get her!" Buggy screamed, Shanks clenching his fist as he glared at his friend.

"Buggy I'm not going to let you get yourself killed" He said evenly, a silent standoff starting before Buggy shot a punch using his devil fruit which landed right on Shanks cheek knocking the red head stumble back for just a moment before Buggy bolted, running off the boat and into the rain. Buggy hearing the sound of the crowd gathering at the main city court yard, Bolting towards the direction.

Shanks chased Buggy, sliding through the rain as he saw Buggy run like his life depended on it. Buggy turned a hard corner and slipped hard, his body slamming into an alleyway wall.

Shanks grabbed Buggy and held him against the wall with all his force keeping his limbs pinned, tears running down his own cheeks as he make sure Buggy didn't move from his spot. He knew Buggy couldn't use his Devil fruit abilities as well and his limbs couldn't get far enough to reach you or strong enough to push or kick him off.

"THEY ARE GOING TO KILL HER! WE CAN HELP HER!" Buggy screamed at Shanks as the red head held his friend down-

"Buggy they will kill you!... I-I promised... I-Im sorry" He croaked out- The sound of the crowd in the courtyard got louder and Buggy moved harshly.

'We are here to show that while Gol. D Roger's influence still stands! We will be the strong hand that brings it back!'

The echoing voice sounded through the city, Buggy screaming as he tried his hardest to fight against Shanks.

'A Thief and Pirate. This is the price to pay for crimes here in Hile Hile Town! Is Death!"

The crowd cheering before there was a click before it happened- Buggy's eyes went wide as he heard the massive sound of the guillotine slamming down. The fight leaving his body as he saw the birds fly up from were the courtyard was the sound scaring them from their refuge in the rain, and the sound of cheers from the courtyard from the public execution.

He didn't even feel the cold from the rain anymore, instead feeling the emotions he had turn into ice in his chest. Like his heart had been ripped from his very being and tossed into the deepest part of the sea.

Shanks still sobbing himself pulled away from Buggy knowing it had been done. His own body shivering from the cold as he wept looking at his brothers face, Buggy's eyes looking dull like that of a fishes.

"B-Buggy I'm sorry" Shanks managed to sob to his friend, Like a puppet Buggy moved to his feet barely able to stand as he felt his body was hollow and boots too heavy. His hair sticking to his skin as he felt the rain wash away his love for Shanks and you.

"..I will never forgive this betrayal Shanks... Just like (Y/N) you are dead to me..." Buggy croaked out his voice the softest it had ever sounded, not even meeting Shanks eyes as he turned and started to walk off to towards the courtyard.

Shanks standing there in the rain not saying a word as he let Buggy go, still crying himself. The blue haired teen walking to the courtyard were the crowd was filing out, having gotten their fill of bloodshed. Buggy walked to the empty courtyard and looked up seeing the Marines cleaning the mess, the rain helping to wash the blood from the blade used and the stage it rested on. One of the Marines loading a headless female body into a basket, wearing basic black and white stripped prison attire

Buggy fell to his knees, his eyes locked onto the blade that had taken you from his life- he reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out the red and white bandana you had given him, while wet from rain he put it to his head and tied it around his blue hair.

He would remember you... he would cherish the memory. His best friend, his first love... a girl who always smiled wearing too red of lipstick and loved the circus...

He would be the greatest at it all.... Just for you.

[lipglossanon]

Someday

⊹₊⋆☁︎⋆⁺₊⋆ ☀︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆☁︎⋆₊ ⊹₊⋆☁︎⋆⁺₊⋆ ☀︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆☁︎⋆₊ ⊹

stepbro!Leon S. Kennedy x fem!reader (beach one shot)

this went in a weird direction but instead of scrapping it, I’m posting so 🤷‍♀️ enjoy lmao lots of smut 👌

Warnings: 18+ minors DNI, protective Leon, perv Leon, kissing, dirty talk, nipple play, teasing, grinding, public sexual situations lol, car sex, unprotected sex, creampie

not proofread

Title from Someday by Sugar Ray ☀️

⊹₊⋆☁︎⋆⁺₊⋆ ☀︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆☁︎⋆₊ ⊹₊⋆☁︎⋆⁺₊⋆ ☀︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆☁︎⋆₊ ⊹

This place is warm without a care

We'll take a swim in the deep blue sea

I go to leave and you reach for me

—"Someday"

⋆⁺₊⋆ ☀︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆

"Quit pushing!"

"But you're in my space!"

"If you guys don't behave, I will turn this car around!"

The squabbling in the back seat cut short as Leon glares you. 

He leans over and flicks your arm when you’re not looking; you hiss at the sting, smacking him on the forearm in retaliation. 

"Leon," his dad warningly calls out from the driver’s seat, looking at him through the rear view mirror. 

"What?" he glares at you still, rubbing the smarting skin, "she literally started it, I was just paying her back.”

"Yeah, but you know better," his dad sighs before moving his attention to you, “please let’s all just get along and enjoy our day.”

You smile, “Of course,” turning your attention to Leon you bat your eyelashes, “I am so sorry, big brother.” 

"Whatever," he rolls his eyes, flipping you off once his dad turns back to the road.

Your mom claps her hands, “Look alive kids, we’re here!”

"Finally," Leon breaths out, opening the passenger door and slipping out once his dad parks the car. 

Everyone piles out of the vehicle and makes their way to the back hatch. Your stepdad opens it and pulls out the coolers holding food and drinks.

"Here make yourself useful,” Leon sneers as he shoves a tote full of towels and sunblock into your arms. 

Your mom pats you on the back, “I got the beach umbrella so we’ll go find a spot!”

You stick your tongue out at Leon and turn along with your mom to walk along the boardwalk to the sandy beach below. It doesn’t take long to find a decent spot, staking down the umbrella and tossing the beach blanket down onto the sand. Leon sets down the coolers near the side while his dad hands out the beach chairs to be setup. 

Once everything is in order, you sit back on your haunches with a sigh. Rooting around through your own bag, you grab a few things and stand up. 

“I’m heading over to the changing rooms,” you jerk your thumb behind you, to the wooden building, “shouldn’t take long.”

Your mom nods, “Okay, make sure to lock the door. Actually Leon, walk with her. You never know these days.”

You roll your eyes and walk backwards, “I’m totally fine mom, you can see the building from here.”

Leon’s dad nods at him, “Just maybe walk over that way with her and if it seems fine just mosey on back.”

Leon smirks at you, “You heard’em, little sis.”

He gets up from the blanket and walks over to you; spinning you around, he gives you a gentle push to walk forward.

“I don’t need the help,” you snip at him, elbowing his side so there’s more space between you.  

“Hey I’m just following orders. Besides,” he leans more into your space with a leer, “maybe I just wanted to see what kinda bathing suit you picked out.”

You roll your eyes, tamping down the heat that washes over you from his words. 

“Whatever, perv,” you climb the wooden steps and find an empty room. 

Hesitating, you look back at Leon before stepping inside, “Are you going to be out here?”

His arms are crossed as he leans against the banister, a deadpan expression in his face.

“Unless you want me in there with you, yeah I’ll be out here.”

Nodding, you completely step into the changing room and shut the door. It’s pretty nondescript but just something about it is giving you the ick. A low noise comes from behind the wall, probably just from someone changing in the next room. 

You tug your shirt off, already wearing a bathing top underneath— you just wanted to swap it for the more colorful one you brought along. A weird sound next door has you jumping in place. 

“Leon?”

“Yeah?” you can hear his muffled voice on the other side of the door. 

Another raspy noise comes from the other side of the wall giving you goosebumps. You swing your door open and gesture him inside. His mouth opens, probably about to make fun of you, when the look on your face cuts him short. 

He enters the changing room with you, keeping quiet as you hold your finger up to your lips. The strange noise happens again but louder, making you press into Leon’s side, hands gripping onto his thin tee shirt until your knuckles blanch. 

You both stand still, ears cocked and listening as that weird noise happens again. Leon reaches out and raps his hand hard on the wall. The noise stops and you both hear something scurry away from the wall. 

“Don’t change in here. We can go to the car,” Leon whispers to you, eyes serious, “definitely gonna report this to whoever’s on duty. Fucking creep.”

“Leon,” you whisper back, relief making tears prick your lash line, “thank you.”

“Hey, of course,” he murmurs softly, warm palms coming up to cup your jaw, “you’re okay. I won’t let anything happen to you, promise.”

You nod in his hold, pressing into his body even further. Your hands come up to wind in his hair and pull him down. He takes the hint and presses your lips together, kissing you softly. 

Leon pushes until your back is flat against the wall, never breaking his kiss. 

“You’re my girl,” he growls as he kisses a hot trail to your ear, tongue dipping inside, “no one gets to see you but me.”

“Leon,” you whimper, tugging on his hair as he nips at your neck before kissing down to your clavicle.

“Wish I could do more right now,” he murmurs into your skin, dragging his mouth down to the swell of your breasts in your bathing suit top, “just gonna get a little taste and we’ll head back, okay?”

Nodding, you have no idea what you’re agreeing to, when Leon noses the fabric covering one of your breasts over until he can suck your nipple easily into his hot mouth. 

“Just a taste, princess,” he whispers, moving over to the other hard bud and suckling.

He keeps you pressed to the wall as he lathes and sucks on your nipples until they’re hard and swollen. Your bathing suit bottoms are soaked with slick when he finally pulls back, eyes dark and heated. 

He slips his fingers under your top and pulls it upright, letting go with a snap. You cry out from the sting on your puffy nipples as your top now covers them. 

“C’mon, we need to head back before they come looking.”

“But..”

He grins at you, teeth gleaming, “What is it? Is my little sis feeling needy?”

You nod your head, “Please, big brother, I’m so wet.”

His fingers dip beneath the band of your shorts and bottoms to glide across your slippery clit. You cry out and bury your face in his chest. 

“Oh? She is,” he coos, “she needs me so bad huh, princess?”

He dips his head lower, whispering filth in your ear and making you rock against his fingers as they circle your pudgy clit. 

“Mmm I’d love to get on my knees and kiss your pretty pussy all over,” he licks the shell of your ear, “she loves getting kissed by big brother, always so fucking wet after I makeout with your cunt, isn’t that right?”

“Uh huh,” you whine, “feels good. Big brother makes my pussy so wet.”

“Fuck,” he grits out, fingers circling and pinching your clit over and over, “when we get home, I’m pushing you down and railing your little princess pussy, got that? I’m gonna use you all fucking night, so you’ll just have to keep that hole wet and ready for me. Can you do that for big brother, huh?“

“Yes, yes, please, want that,” you slur, thighs tensing as your orgasm winds tighter in your belly, “want big brother to fill me up.”

“Don’t worry, I will,” he laughs meanly, “you can only get off if I’m creaming in this tight cunt anyways.”

You whine and hump down into his fingers, “Love it, love getting your creampies.”

“God damn, princess,” his fingers slide across your clit roughly, “cum for me, get my fingers soaking wet.”

“Oh, Leon, I’m—“

You shudder in his arms, muffling your moans in his shirt as you shake apart on his fingers. Riding out the soft tremors, Leon finally slips his hand away and laps up the clear slick webbing across his fingers. 

“So fucking juicy,” he growls, free hand coming up to twist one of your nipples making you whine, “can’t wait til we get home.” 

He kisses you one last time before opening the door, letting you leave first. You both look around but luckily the whole area is deserted. He gives you a little push toward the stairs. 

“Go catch up with them, I’m gonna look around for whoever’s in charge and file that report.”

You watch Leon’s broad back as he walks around the corner and warmth flutters in your chest as you make your way back over to your mom and stepdad. 

“Finally, thought you two got lost,” your mom smiles, patting the blanket, “let me put sunblock on your back and shoulders and you can skedaddle.”

Your stepdad looks over at you and then glances around, “Where’d Leon get off to?”

“He said he’d be back, needed to do something.”

He nods and goes back to his book. Your mom finishes up with the sunblock and puts it back in her bag. 

“Make sure to drink plenty of water.”

“I know, mom,” you roll your eyes good naturedly, “I’m gonna go wade for a bit, see if I can find any cool shells.”

“Have fun,” she plops her big sun hat on her head and lays out on the blanket. 

You wander down the beach until your toes meet the small waves kissing the shore. Wading out into the warm water, you take in all the people. It’s really nice and peaceful even with all the racket; easy to let it fade into the background with the sound of the ocean echoing in your ears. 

“You wanna build a sand castle?”

Leon’s voice behind you makes you jump, quickly turning to face him.

“You serious?” you squint at him, still feeling out of depth with the whole fiasco earlier. 

“Yeah, let’s go build one,” his eyes are something else with the ocean reflecting off the already prismatic blue, “I know where the good sand is.”

You smile, reaching your hand out to see if he’ll take it. Surprisingly, he does. He leads you back away from the water but not too far in order to reach the ‘better sand’. 

"This is a lot of fun," you murmur, brushing shoulders with Leon as you try to dig out a moat.

"Yeah even if you’re complete shit at it,” he smirks, side eyeing you. 

"Hey," you push his shoulder, leaving a damp hand print on his shirt, "I’ve made like three sandcastles in my life, so lay off.”

"Doesn’t matter,” Leon shrugs then laughs, “I'm going to absolutely destroy this when we're done.”

You frown, "But why?"

“It’ll just wash out with the tide otherwise.”

You roll your eyes, “Such a dork. Think I might go for a swim since it’s gotten hotter just sitting here.”

"I'll go with you," he stands up and slips his shirt off making your mouth feel dry, "don’t want you to drown while my back is turned”

You mock salute him while trying not to stare at his chest, "Aye, aye, captain."

Leon ruffles your hair, "Last one in the water is a rotten egg."

He takes off running with you right behind him. 

“You’re such a cheater! You didn’t even countdown!”

"Snooze ya lose, princess,” he laughs, splashing into the ocean before whirling on you and grabbing you around you waist. 

“Hold your breath,” he murmurs hotly in your ear before he’s pulling you under with him. 

You’re not under long and Leon brings you both back up to the surface with you holding onto his biceps for dear life. 

“You’re such a jerk!” you yell, salt water running into your eyes making them sting, “I’m going to murder you!”

“Like to see you try,” he laughs loudly, faking like he’s going to dunk you before yanking you back to his chest. 

Your hands wrap around his neck while your legs wrap around his waist, squeaking as he fakes dipping you both under again. 

“You’re so mean,” you pout as he wraps his hands around your hips. 

“What else is new, princess,” he laughs, shaking the water from his hair. 

He eases out a little further, holding you in his arms as he treads water. 

“Can’t wait to get home,” he murmurs, kissing your neck. 

“Leon,” you whine, “anyone can see us.”

“Yeah? We’re too far off for them to know what’s happening. Just kiss me, little sis.”

You sigh as he places more soft kisses on your neck.

“You got me?”

Giving him a puzzled look, you nod, “Yeah…”

He slowly lets go of your hips and once you stay buoyant, he grins. 

“Since the waters up to our shoulders,” he smirks, hands coming up to grope and squeeze your breasts, “I’m gonna have some fun.”

“No, don’t,” you squirm, but don’t let go; letting him touch you like this is exciting. 

“Aww, you’re so cute when you’re lying.”

He pulls the cups of your bathing top down exposing your breasts to his greedy hands. Pulling and tugging on your nipples has you rocking into him with a moan. 

“Leon,” you keen, head laying against his shoulder, “we’re gonna get caught.”

“Fuck,” he groans, pinching your nipples extra hard, “I’d love that, love to see someone know that you’re getting off on big brother playing with your sexy tits.”

You whimper and press your chest harder into his hands, “Gonna get in trouble.”

“No we won’t,” he chuckles, letting his fingers tease across the swell of your breasts and circle your hard buds, “‘long as you can sit pretty and take it, I’ll play with these cute fucking tits the rest of the day.”

That visual alone makes you rut against his chubbed cock with a moan. 

“Like that?” he laughs and pinches your nipples too hard making you squeal.  

“Think you can cum like this? Rubbing that hot pussy all on me while I suck on your nipples?” his voice rumbles in your ear

“Uh huh,” you shudder nails digging into his back.

“So hot,” he turns his back to the beach and shifts you up higher so can dip his head and latch onto a swollen bud.

You lose track of time, letting Leon suckle and bite at your nipples til they’re puffy and sore as you rub off on him, cumming twice before he even pulls away. 

“Probably need to go back in,” his voice is hoarse while his eyes are nearly dilated black, “been out here for awhile.”

Your brain is total slush at this point and you agree wholeheartedly. 

“Thirsty,” you mutter into his neck as he fixes your top.

“There’s water in the cooler,” he double checks to make sure you’re both presentable before wading back to the beach.

Once the water’s waist high you drop your legs and walk next to him, pushing your shaking muscles to keep you up. Once you get back to the blanket, your mom is reading and your step dad’s conked out with sunglasses on his face. 

You smile and flop down next to Leon who hands you a cold water. 

“Thank you,” you keep your voice low.

He shrugs and cracks open his water and drinks it in like two seconds. 

“You kids about ready to go?” 

Your mom’s voice sounds sleepy. 

“Seems like you two are,” you tease making her laugh and she taps your stepdad’s arm. 

He jostles awake with a snort making you giggle as Leon grins. 

“We’re ready to go honey,” your mom kisses his cheek. 

“Of course,” he stretches and yawns, “Leon you feel like loading up?”

“Can do,” he stands up and starts bundling things in his arms. 

You stand and start collecting the little things he doesn’t have the hands for; you both walk over to your mom’s SUV and Leon sets his stuff down and grabs your armload. 

“Go grab them and the blanket and we should be set.”

“You don’t want—“

“I got it,” he pushes you with a shit eating grin on his face, “trust me.”

You squint at him suspiciously but listen and go grab your parents and the folded up beach blanket. 

When you get back, you see Leon somehow finagled the beach stuff in such a way that you end up sitting in his lap on the drive home cause there just isn’t enough room otherwise. 

His dad pokes fun at him, “Must’ve gotten too much sun eh son?”

Leon rolls his eyes as he tugs you onto his lap in the third row seating, “Like I haven’t heard that before.”

Your mom laughs, “Well just make sure to be safe back there.”

“Will do,” you and Leon chime in at the same time making her laugh again. 

As soon as your stepdad leaves the parking lot, Leon’s hands are under your shirt plucking and tweaking your overstimulated nipples. You twist in his lap, placing your legs on either side of his seat, facing him to eagerly makeout. It’s not long before you’re grinding against his bulge. 

He fishes his dick out, grabbing your hand and guiding you to jerk him off. 

“That’s it,” he whispers, “stroke it. Fuck wish I was in your mouth.”

“Me too,” you kiss him sloppily as he pinches your nipples hard. 

“Y’wanna suck big brother off? Mmm but our parents would hear it wouldn’t they? That tight throat choking on me.”

“Mmhmm, I’d gag so much,” your hand eagerly strokes his dick, “you’re just too big for my mouth.” 

“But not for that pussy”, he growls, moving one hand from your nipples to slide under the leg of your shorts and swim bottoms to tease along your slit.   

You have to kiss him to stop the moan from giving you both away. 

Once he pulls back, Leon smirks at you, “Gotta keep quiet or they’ll find out what a slut you are.”

You pout, “Just feels so good.” 

“Let me stick it in,” he whispers in your ear, “just let me slip the tip in, ‘m so hard it hurts, princess.” 

“Just the tip,” you agree, slipping your shorts and bottoms off. 

He pulls the foreskin back on his fat tip to spank against your clit making you bite your lip hard. Pressing into your soaked cunt, the head stretches you open making you sigh.  

“Don’t you want the rest?” he coos sarcastically.  

“You said just the tip,” you mumble against his mouth. 

Leon listens for about half a minute before he grabs your hips and forces you to sink down. Force is a strong word as you easily go along with it. 

“So bad, taking me all the way into this tiny pussy,” he teases, mouth pressed against your ear, “making me stretch you out on my cock like you just can’t help it, princess.”

You rock down on him muffling your sounds by pressing your face into his chest. Your body is ramped up and ready for another orgasm easily, the coil of arousal tight in your belly already. 

“Mmm, sucking me in,” he hisses, hands digging into the meat of your hips hard, “been fucking edged all day, so this is gonna be messy, princess. Cute pussy’s bout to be filled to the brim.”

You lift your head and let your hazy eyes meet his making him curse under his breath. 

“You’re cockdrunk,” he laughs meanly, “gonna make me cum cause a’your needy fucking face.”

He grinds up harshly into your fluttering walls as his thumb swipes over your hot, swollen clit. 

“Want it, big brother,” you whimper, eyes teary as your orgasm begins to reach its peak, “please, want you to cum inside me.”

“You’re getting a nice load princess don’t worry,” his grip on your hip keeps you in place as he ruts into your pussy and circles your clit with his thumb, “squeeze me, squeeze down on my cock and I’ll give you want you want.”

You kiss him messily, tongue licking into his smirking mouth as your climax shakes your body to pieces. You feel as your pussy tightens down on his cock so hard it must hurt but Leon likes it if his groan’s anything to go by. Your fluttering walls milk his cock as he ruts up one last time and spills inside your clenching pussy. 

You pull away from his mouth, both of you panting against each others lips, just sharing the same space as you cum together.  His cock kicks and throbs as sticky jizz fills your cunt, hot rope after rope of cum shooting from his fat tip. 

Your pussy pulses and clamps rhythmically, aftershocks making your thighs shake as your hands grip onto the upholstery of the seat. 

“Hope you’re not too tired,” he grins, “told you I’m gonna rail you when we get home and I still mean it.”

You rock down on him with a mewl, “Can’t wait, big brother.”

[astro-b-o-y-d]

Triangulum - Chapter 2- Unsettling In

— — — — — — —

“Dibs on being the first Pines inside the Shack!”

The old floorboards creaked lightly under Mabel’s weight as she bounded through the door, pausing only to drop her bags by the staircase before she continued on towards the living room. “Aww, I’ve missed this place!” 

She jumped from the small doorway step to the carpet, twirling on her toes like a ballerina before she gestured to the television set. “Hello, ancient TV that only plays local access channels~!” Her gesture moved to the large dinosaur skull in the middle of the room. “Hello, weird T-Rex skull that we use as a coffee table for some reason~!” 

She waggled her finger at the aquarium. “And hello, giant aquarium tank that only sometimes has an animal in it~!” she said with a giggle. “You can’t hide from me forever, Sir. Wiggleton the Pink!”

From the nearby couch where she had seated herself and Waddles, Wendy raised an eyebrow. “Sir. Wiggleton the Pink?”

“That’s what I call Stan’s axolotl,” Mabel explained matter-of-factly. “He’s very sneaky, and likes to hide a lot. I only got a good look at him, like, once last year!”

“Maybe he sneaks out when nobody’s looking?” Wendy suggested, then snapped her fingers with inspiration. “Ooh, what if he’s actually some kinda secret agent, one who goes out and fights bad guys? And that's why it's so hard for anyone to spot him in the tank, ‘cause he’s not always in the tank!”

“Yeah, yeah!” Mabel agreed enthusiastically. “Maybe he’s part of a whole secret organization of secret-agent animals! And they all wear funny little hats!”

While they laughed in unison over the idea, more creaking from the hallway floorboards drew their attention to the doorway. A moment later, Dipper’s body was propped against the frame for support, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he gulped down precious breaths of air. And between the desperate attempts to catch his breath, he shot Mabel a sour look. “You know, most people might call ‘tripping your brother as he tries to pass you in the driveway’ something along the lines of—oh, I dunno, maybe something along the lines of—cheating?”

Mabel’s mouth curled into a coy little smile. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Dipping Sauce~!” she said innocently. “Not my fault you don’t know how to avoid branches while you’re running.”

“You literally stuck out your leg as I was trying to pass you!” Dipper argued. “And then after I fell, you laughed about it once you were sure I wasn’t actually hurt and was only just mildly inconvenienced!”

From her spot, Wendy let out a cackle. “You tripped him? Brutal.”

“It was a branch!” Mabel insisted. 

“A branch shaped like your leg!”

Mabel waved him away. “Oh, we can go on and on about things I did or didn’t do all we want—”

“You did do it.”

“It wouldn’t have mattered anyway!” Mabel continued, tossing her arms up in the air. “I still called dibs on being the first Pines to step inside, and you can’t go against dibs!”

“She has a point,” a voice spoke up behind Dipper, seconds before Ford stepped into the room. “The International Dibs Protocol is highly respected across countless dimensions, with millions of interdimensional beings valuing the weight it holds when it comes to ownership over specific affairs.”

He pressed a hand to his chin. “I believe at one point, there was even talk amongst the council members here in town about passing a law that would make adhering to said protocol mandatory. But the idea was scrapped before the House could ever lay an eye on it.”

“Yeesh, so this town’s just fine and dandy with people marryin’ woodpeckers or deciding ownership of a place based on whatever chump’s got the deed in their hands,” Stan called from out on the porch. “But you call dibs on something and suddenly that’s going too far—hey, hey! Knock it off, Soos, I’m not gonna look!”

He cast a miffed look to his right, where Soos had firmly remained throughout their entire walk up the driveway. His arms were spread out as wide as he could possibly get them, and he had even crab-walked up the porch beside Stan in an attempt to block something from his line of sight. 

“Sorry, Mr. Pines,” he said, keeping his arms outstretched until both of them were safely inside the house. ”But I can’t risk you seeing anything on the other side of this building until I give everyone the tour later!”

Stan let out a gruff sigh as they joined everyone else in the living room. “Yeah, yeah, like I’m in any rush to jump right back into work stuff after a nine-month vacation.”

Soos gave him a pitiful look. “Wh-you mean you’re not excited for the tour of all the new exhibits and stuff?”

“...I said ‘right back into’, didn’t I?” Stan pointed out. “Gimme an hour, we’ll see where I’m at then.”

He shuffled over to the couch, then paused with a look to Wendy. “They got all the rats outta this thing while we were gone, right?”

“Completely rat free,” she assured him, moving her hand to Waddles’ head for scritches. “Although you’re never gonna guess what happened after we chased the last of them out of the shack—”

“Well, that sounds like six voices,” a voice called from the kitchen, seconds before a woman peeked her head through the doorway. “Pretty sure that’s everyone, unless we’re also expecting the girls.”

“Negative,” Wendy replied, as Stan settled down next to her. “Mr. Pines put down a hard no on any sleepovers tonight. Well, any sleepovers with the under-fourteens, at least.”

“Dipper also put down a hard no,” Dipper added. “Also hey, Melody!”

“Melody! Hi!” 

Mabel’s features lit up as Melody stepped out into the living room proper, and both twins rushed over to greet her further with a hug. “Hey, you guys!” she said, bending down to reciprocate. “Been a while, huh?”

“Sure has!” Dipper said with a hearty laugh.

“It’s so nice to see you again!” Mabel added with equal amounts of enthusiasm. “How’ve you been?”

 “I also think it’s nice to see you again!”

Before Melody could answer, all three suddenly found themselves lifted up from the ground. “I know we were only gone for, like, fifteen minutes or so,” Soos said, hugging all of them close to him. “But still, that’s enough time to miss someone, right?”

Despite most of her face being squished against his own, Melody smiled up at him.  “Well, fifteen minutes is about the same amount of time it takes to complete Ladybug on Dancey-Pants Revolution—” She paused and wriggled an arm free to tick off her fingers. “—what, five times? Five and a half? Just saying, that feels like an eternity when you’re trying to hit a perfect combo, doesn’t it?”

“That is so true,” Soos said with a nod. “You have such a way with words, babe.”

A squeak of delight drew their attention to the teenagers smushed between their bodies. “Hehe, you guys are adorable!” Mabel piped up. “And nerdy!”

“Also you’re kind of squishing us,” Dipper added with a wheeze.

With an apologetic smile, Soos lowered the group back down to the floor. “Sorry, dudes! Got so caught up in giving Melody a hug, that I kinda missed you were there.”

“Don’t worry, I’m okay,” Mabel assured him as she straightened out her clothes. “Being squished like that made me feel like the ham and cheese in a lovey-dovey sandwich!”

She gave a nudge to her brother’s arm with her elbow. “Guess that makes Dipper the lettuce and tomatoes!”

“What? Why am I the vegetables?” Dipper asked.

Mabel shrugged with a smile. “Because even if they’re not the most exciting ingredients, it just doesn’t feel like a proper sandwich without them,” she explained, pressing her hands together as if she were forming a sandwich herself. “But you gotta put ‘em between the meat and cheese, otherwise their veggie juices get mixed in with the condiments. Then bread gets all soggy and fall-apart-y and the sandwich is just inedible at that point.”

“Okay first of all, rude and gross. Second of all, that is a very weird analogy which explains nothing.” A pause as he pressed a hand to his stomach. “Although weirdly enough, it is making me hungry.”

“Good thing I got a head start on dinner before everyone got here,” Melody said. “In fact, I just checked the timer and there’s only a few minutes left before I need to pull it out of the oven—oh, by the way, lasagna from a box is fine with everyone, right?”

She directed her question both to the kids and to the group that had gathered by the couch, earning her a nod from Ford. “Fine with me. Meals that require minimal effort to prepare have sustained me since my college years, and I see no issue with continuing that trend now.”

“Long as there’s no fish involved, I’ll eat anything,” Stan assured her.

Wendy, who had distracted herself with scritching the spot between Waddles’ ears, looked to him. “Got sick of seafood out there on the open ocean, Mr. Pines?”

“Got sick of badly-prepared seafood.” 

Stan shot a pointed look to his brother. “Apparently somebody can rip out the spine of a zombified fishman from the ‘Walking Bullhead Dimension’—” 

“We’re gonna start this again, Stanley?” Ford interrupted, giving him an flat-but-amused look that implied they had discussed this topic countless times before.

“—but you give the guy a regular tuna to debone, and suddenly it’s all ‘Oh, this is ~soooo~ hard!’” Stan continued in a jestful tone. “‘I’m gonna make my twin brother nearly choke on a rib bone! Or two. Or five.’”

“Their spinal cords are more delicate than what I’m used to handling,” Ford insisted. “The anatomy of an anthropomorphic fish person—oh, uh, make some room?”

“Huh? Oh, right.” Stan made a gesture with his hand for Wendy to move. “Hey, scooch over and put the pig on the floor so we can all sit down.”

“I can take him off your hands now, Wendy,” Mabel said, holding her arms open. “Although he’ll probably end up on the floor anyway; I know he’s been dying to root around in the carpet for burrito bite crumbs again!”

While Wendy readjusted and passed Waddles back to his owner, Ford seated himself comfortably next to Stan. “As I was saying,” he continued. “The anatomy of an anthropomorphic fish person resembles our own more than that of a non-anthropomorphized fish from our dimension. This size increase in bone structure makes it far easier to get a grip on their spinal column and just—” He made a tearing motion with his hands. “—rip it straight from the body—”

He paused and looked to the younger twins. “Only when such drastic measures are necessary to take, of course. Had the dimension been populated by living anthropomorphized fish people, I would not have resorted to ripping out anyone’s spines.”

Stan lightly bumped his knuckles against Ford’s arm. “Heh, sounds like a buncha fancy-schmancy excuses from a guy who never learned how to properly work a pair of fish tweezers,” he said, making small, pinching motions with his fingers. “What’s wrong, Poindexter? Thought you were used to usin’ delicate sciencey tools out in the field with your dainty little sciencey grip.”

“Nothing about my science or my grip has been dainty in over thirty years, and I think you know that.”

“Yeah, tell that to the octopus babe you tried to hook up with off the coast of Australia! When’d she leave again, less than half-an-hour into the date?”

While Ford responded with his own playful fist to the arm—one that Stan cackled loudly at in return—Mabel knelt to the carpet and set Waddles at her side. “Aww, it’s nice to see you two getting along so well now!” she said sweetly. “Does that mean no more fighting? I mean, actual fighty-fighting and not play fighting?”

“Psh, please, let’s not go that far,” Stan replied, with a wave of his hand. “Of course we’re gonna fight, we’re siblings. Or are you forgetting how you tripped your brother out there in the driveway?”

“It was a bra~anch!” Mabel insisted in a singsong tone.

Dipper gave her a flat look. “Still gonna go with that excuse, huh?”

“Yeah-huh~! Also it’s not an excuse.”

With a wink to them, Stan snaked an arm around his brother’s shoulder. “But if anyone’s worried about a repeat of last year’s performance, don’t be!” he assured them. “Nine months of punching sea monsters and nabbing treasure from sirens have made us thick as thieves, just like old times!”

“While Stanley’s claims are a touch exaggerated, he’s not wrong,” Ford replied. “Despite our petty bickering over fish preparation, there’s nothing quite like spending months out on the open seas with someone to remind you of what’s really important in life. Sailing around the world on the adventure of a lifetime—”

He cast a small smile in his brother’s direction. “—well, it puts a lot of things in perspective.”

With a faux look of disgust, Stan pushed him away. “Ugh, why’d you have to go and make what I said all sappy? What, you wanna make the kids blow chunks on their first day back?”

While the kids giggled at this response, Ford nudged him in retaliation again. “Well, if you’re going to be like that, we could always go back to our petty fish arguments,” he said with a smug look. “You’ve harped on my inability to properly debone a fish, yet you act as if you didn’t completely butcher the deboning of those seatrout we caught along the coast of Florida.”

“Hey, hey, I plead the Florida loophole!” Stan insisted. “Which clearly states that if anything funky happens within the Florida boundaries, it was caused by the fact that we were near Florida.”

He folded his arms firmly across his chest. “Just sayin', can’t be blamed for anything when we’re sailin’ through territory that could give this town a run for its money in weirdness.”

“Oh, you two were down in Florida?” Melody piped up. “That’s exactly where Abuelita headed a few days ago!”

“She won a free trip in a bingo game,” Soos explained with a look of pride. “Man, you should’ve seen how jealous Agnes and Bertha got when she held up her winning card—”

The ringing of a timer from the kitchen turned everyone’s heads to the doorway. “Oh, sounds like the food’s done,” Melody said. “Better go ahead and start plating.”

“Need an extra hand?” Soos asked.

“Mmm, I think I can manage slicing up lasagna by myself,” she assured him, before casting another look at the group. “Besides, I know how excited you were for everybody to get here, and I wouldn’t dream of pulling you away from everything just to help me slop some food on a plate.”

Soos moved his hands to her shoulders with a solemn expression. “I love you. So much.”

With a chuckle, she leaned up to kiss his cheek before turning back to the kitchen. Once she disappeared out of sight, Soos let out a warm sigh. “Isn’t she the best?” he asked to no one in particular.

Stan turned to Wendy with a raised eyebrow. “So them bein’ all lovey-dovey with each other,” he said. “Is that a rare thing or am I gonna have to actually start stockin’ up on eyeball bleach for the summer?”

“Told you to keep it in mind earlier,” Wendy said, hand on her hip. “Also, you call that ‘lovey-dovey’? Kisses and random compliments for the other when they’re not even in the room barely crack a three or four on the Soos-Melody Romance scale.”

She tilted her head in thought. “Though I guess it’s been more about quantity than quality lately. Can’t go five minutes without one of them trying to smother the other person in affection because of…reasons.”

She raised a finger to her mouth before casting a look over at Soos, who smiled and pressed a finger to his own mouth in return. Leaving the Pines family to watch them with raised eyebrows and tilted heads. “Well, that’s certainly not cryptic or anything,” Ford said.

“Yeah, what’re you two hiding?” Dipper asked. 

“C’mon, spill the beans!” Mabel added, with a quick glance around the living room before she followed up with: “...If there were any opened cans of beans lying around, you know I’d poke ‘em over for dramatic effect!”

“Hehe, that’d be so funny,” Soos said amusedly. “It’d be like…a callback or something! But sorry, dudes, no beans of any kind can be spilled at the moment. Whether it’s beans of the secret variety, or just the ones in a can.”

“Why not?” Mabel asked.

“I mean, I think we ran out of them yesterday so you can’t spill what—”

“The secret part, Soos,” Dipper clarified.

“Oh, that!” Soos pressed a hand to the back of his neck with a tender look. “Well, it’s kind of a big deal, y’know? And I wanna wait until Mel and I can tell you together.”

“Yeesh, this secret of yours must be big big,” Stan said with a loose chuckle. “What, are the two of you getting married or some…thing—”

The mild amusement in his tone faded as the punchline he was waiting for never seemed to come, while the giddiness in Soos’ expression only seemed to blossom further. His cheeks had brightened to a light shade of red and he’d pressed hand over his mouth as he tried—and failed—to hide the smile that was quickly taking over his entire face.

Wendy also slapped a hand over her mouth to hide her smile—her entire upper half trembling as if she were holding back the biggest laugh of her life—while a deafening silence of realization overtook the rest of the Pines family.

“Alright, who wants the first two plates?”

It was Melody who finally broke the silence, having returned to the doorway with a paper plate of lasagna in each hand. “Again, I would’ve prepared something better for a welcome-back dinner, but with Abuelita out of town and the party tomorrow—”

“YOU’RE GETTING MARRIED!”

Mabel’s words were punctuated by an ear-piercing scream—one that earned slapped hands to the ears of everyone except for Melody and Soos—and she flung herself around the neck of the latter to hug him tightly. “You guys are getting married! I can’t believe it!”

Dipper hurried to join in the hugging of Soos with a hearty laugh. “Congratulations, Soos! I’m so happy for you guys!”

“Can I be the flower girl?” Mabel prattled on. “Can Waddles be the ring bearer?!”

“What?! Why Waddles?” Dipper asked, then looked to Soos hopefully. “Can I be the ring bearer?!”

Melody stared at the sight with a look of mild confusion, to which Soos shrugged apologetically. “Sorry, babe,” he said meekly, and slung an arm around both of them. “Guess my poker face needed a little work.”

She chuckled in response, and went to set the plates down on the t-rex skull. “Well, I guess that’s one way to spill the beans.”

“YEAH! I spilled the beans!” Mabel said delightedly, pumping a fist in the air. “The metaphorical beans!”

“I mean, technically Stan was the one to spill them,” Wendy said, flashing Stan a grin. “You should’ve seen the look on your face, dude, it was priceless!”

This earned her a pair of narrowed eyes from Stan. “Hey, hey, what’s with you and the jokes today? You should be a little more respectful to the guy who used to sign your paychecks.”

“Mmm, are you going to be signing my paychecks again now that you’re back?”

Stan opened his mouth to respond, before the implication behind her reply snapped his attention right back to Soos and Melody. “Woah, woah, hold on, go back a sec—you’re telling me that you two are actually tyin’ the knot?”

Melody held out her hand, an engagement ring with a beautiful, purple gemstone resting comfortably on her finger. “End of the summer’s our set date,” she confirmed. “Oh, not the end end of summer; Soos told me that the kids’ birthday was the last day of August, and he didn’t want to take the spotlight away from their special day with our special day.”

“Aww, what? Booo!” Mabel protested as she hopped down from Soos’ arms. “Come on, we can share the day with you guys! Right, Dip?”

“Yeah!” Dipper agreed. “If there’s anything that’ll make our birthday better, it’ll be sharing it with your wedding day!”

Soos pressed a hand to each of their heads with a warm smile. “Aww, man, now I kinda wish we did!” he said, with a hopeful look to Melody. “You don’t think we could—”

“Normally I’d say yes in a heartbeat,” Melody said. “But we’ve already booked the photography, and you know how they are about rescheduling at the last second.”

“But don’t you guys have three months?” Dipper pointed out.

“To a wedding photographer, rescheduling earlier than five months counts as last minute,” Melody explained. “Especially if your set date’s in the summertime; they’re usually pretty swamped from June to the middle of September.”

“You shoulda gone for a Vegas wedding,” Stan said. “You get in, get out in an hour tops and all you need is a witness.”

He crossed his arms with a scowl. “And I guess you’ll need a safe for your valuables, in case the broad’s only marryin’ you for your winnings and plans on running off with ‘em in the middle of the night. …On second thought, don’t get married in Vegas.”

“Well, thankfully I don’t have any plans to go running off with any of Soos’s valuables, so there’s nothing to worry about there,” Melody said, taking a look around the room. “Besides, I’m pretty sure the majority of his valuables are sitting right in this very room, and I don’t think I could carry most of you.”

This earned her a chorus of ‘aww’s from the kids and Soos, and a retching gag from Stan. “Yeesh, forget the eye bleach thing, I’m gonna need something to scrub out my ears with after hearing that.”

“You’ll get used to it,” Wendy said, rising to her feet. “You still want some help with the food, Mel? I’ll do it just so Mr. Pines has an excuse to stop complaining about all the mushy stuff.”

Melody pressed a hand to her mouth to try and stifle back another laugh. “Sounds like a plan,” she said, and gestured for Wendy to follow.

While Wendy hurried after her—Stan glowering at her until she was out of his line of sight—the kids continued to swarm Soos with questions. “So where are you guys holding the wedding?” Mabel asked, hands folded together. “Ooh, lemme guess! Uh, uh—the arcade? No, that’s not romantic enough. Hoo-Ha Owl’s Pizzamatronic Jamboree? Since it’s where you had your first date?”

“Here at the Mystery Shack?” Dipper guessed. “Or, you know, a regular church?”

Soos pointed at him. “Ding ding ding, Dipper got it! Or, uh, he was right with the first guess.” He tossed his hands in the air. “We’re gonna have it here at the Mystery Shack! We’re gonna make some space outside, maybe put the alter over in that spot by the totem pole—it’s gonna look so good!”

“Well, I know I’m happy for both of you,” Ford spoke up from his spot on the couch. “I mean, I might not know either of you very well. But from the little I’ve seen of you two together, this is clearly a big deal and I’m honored that we get to share this opportunity with you.”

Soos turned to him with a surprised, yet touched expression. “Wh—aww, thanks, Dr. Pines,” he said, placing a hand on his heart. “That actually means a lot, coming from you.”

Ford blinked in confusion. “It…does?”

“Well…yeah,” Soos said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “I mean, I know you didn’t plan for this place to become the Mystery Shack when you built it. But because it became that, I was able to meet Mr. Pines, and then Dipper and Mabel—” He began to tick off his fingers. “—and they were able to help me learn how to get a date, which led me to meeting Melody at the mall—”

He paused, looking to his hand. “Hey, should I count the whole ‘killer video game girlfriend’ thing in there somewhere, or was that more just a…thing that happened and isn’t really connected to all of this?”

“Definitely more of a side thing,” Mabel said. “Like, it happened, but I think connecting it back to the shack is a bit of a stretch.”

“The very weird point they’re to make is that none of this would’ve happened without you building the shack to begin with, Grunkle Ford,” Dipper said with a smile in his direction. “So in a way, a lot of this is because of you!”

“This wouldn’t be possible without help from our friend here!”

Ford’s smile vanished, nails gripping the arm of the couch tighter than he’d intended as the shrill, high-pitched sound of Bill’s voice echoed through his mind. Cruel tauntings mixed with the vicious laughter of his surrounding henchman, all while he struggled desperately against the invisible binds that held him in the air.

Invisible binds so similar to the ones Bill had used to restrain him all those years ago, back when he had refused to continue his work on the portal. For a fleeting, horrific moment, Ford could practically feel that old, familiar sense of his bones slowly, so slowly being pulled from their sockets as darkness flooded his vision. The faint click of Bill's fingers as he flipped an imaginary switch over his threats—far more menacing than taunting—of erasing whatever memories he could get his hands on if he didn't comply—

“Grunkle Ford, is everything alright?”

Mabel’s voice pulled him from his thoughts, a expression of worry painted across her features. Not only hers, but Dipper was giving him a mildly concerned look as well.

Ford let out a slow exhale of air through his nose to steady himself. Outside of his nightmares, he had managed to keep a lid on most of his Bill-related memories for the past nine months whenever they managed to snake their way to the front of his mind. Bill was gone, there was no sense in letting that part of his past haunt him. Bad memories were just that—bad memories. There was no need to dwell on them any longer, especially not now. 

“I’m fine,” he reassured the rest of the group with a smile. “I was just about to say that I don’t know if I would go that far with the compliments. I mean, Stanley’s the one who put all the time and effort into making this place what it is today, isn’t he?”

He looked to his right, an identical pair of eyes meeting his own as the older Pines twins stared at each other in silence.

While he and Stan had only been reunited for less than a year, falling back into the habit of picking up on Stan’s mannerisms had almost been second instinct for Ford. Despite the forty year gap between their teenhood and the present, so much of the way that Stan presented himself hadn’t changed in the slightest.

So naturally, Ford had also picked back up the ability to distinguish when Stan was hiding his displeasure with a situation.

It didn’t happen often; Stan had always been the kind of person to openly and fervently vocalize his complaints at the slightest inconvenience. A behavioral habit he had possessed since they were young boys—such a thought sent an uncomfortable wave of nostalgia rippling through Ford’s chest—and one that had clearly stayed with him throughout the years—more uncomfortable waves in his chest of a different sort.

So whenever Stan made the choice to to keep his grievances to himself, it usually meant there was more bubbling under the surface. More than he was willing to let anyone see.

And the way that his features had shifted, jaw clenched and a rigid look behind his eyes that was easy to miss if you blinked—

“Yeah, the heck am I? Chopped liver?”

Before Ford could think to question Stan, he’d already turned back to the group with an affronted look. “Or are you knuckleheads forgettin’ who even started this whole business to begin with?”

This sent a wave of laughs through the trio. “Of course we didn’t, Grunkle Stan!” Mabel assured him. “We’d never forget about you!”

“Of course not!” Dipper added with a laugh.

“Not for a second!” Soos added. “In fact, I was actually about to ask you—”

“More plates coming through~!”

Melody and Wendy reentered the living room, a plate in each of their hands. “Alright, dorks, come and get these before I eat them,” Wendy joked, passing both plates in her hands to the younger twins.

“And one for you,” Melody said, handing one of hers to Soos with another kiss on the cheek.

This got a small hum of delight from Soos, which was accompanied by another eye roll from Stan as he leaned forward to take one of the plates off the skull table. “Eugh, on second thought, I don’t want any sorta credit for this mush fest,” he said, bringing it to his lap. “In fact, unless you got more happy news to tell us, I’m turnin’ my attention to this mush fest instead.”

To emphasize his pun, he brought the back of his fork down onto the lasagna with an audible squishing sound, before shoving a large bite into his mouth. “‘Sides, the sooner we eat, the sooner we get to see Soos’s big, fancy shack tour, right?”

His point seemed to encourage the kids to dig into their own plates as well, although not without bombarding the happy couple with more wedding-related questions. Wendy, in the meanwhile, had realized that she was the only person left without any food and headed back to the kitchen to fetch herself a plate of her own.

Leaving the remaining plate on the dinosaur skull—one growing colder by the minute—for Ford to take.

He leaned forward to pull it to his lap as well, unable to resist giving Stan a glance out of the corner of his eye as he did. Stan’s expression had returned to a more relaxed look as he dug into his food, any previous signs of distress now nothing more than a memory.

Settling back into place with his plate, Ford turned his attention back to the group—specifically Dipper and Mabel as they laughed along with whatever Soos was telling them through a mouthful of lasagna. 

None of them had expressed any further concern for Stan’s behavior after it had happened, and the three of them had spent far more time with Stan than he had in the past thirty years. Sure, the two of them had spent the past nine months together out at sea, but the kids had gotten to know him over the course of the previous summer. And Soos had practically spent all of his childhood and young-adulthood around him.

If they had failed to noticed anything was wrong with him, did that mean that Ford had misinterpreted his reaction completely? If one of Stan’s closest employees and family members—people who had been around Stan for far longer than he had in the past few decades—hadn’t noticed anything wrong with him, then maybe there was actually nothing to notice at all?

“Ho-ho! Looks like Mr. Brainiac finally got smart!”

…Then again, he did have experience in not picking up on the obvious.

His grip on the fork tightened as he stabbed it into the remaining lasagna on his plate, letting out another slow exhale in the process. It was like Stan had said earlier at the bus stop. If the two of them showed any signs of stress regarding the events of the previous summer, then it was sure to stress out the kids as well.

He raised the fork to his mouth. And it was like he had said; It was a new summer. A chance for everyone to start over, and for them to start over together.

“We don’t have to do anything alone ever again, right?”

“We don’t have to do anything alone. Not now, not ever again.”

If there was anything truly wrong with Stan, he would say something. They could talk things out, find a solution together.

As he bit down on the lasagna, however, he couldn’t stop his gaze from uncertainly shifting back to his brother.

—right?

— — — — — — — — 

“Remind us again why we’re wearin’ blindfolds?” Stan asked.

“Oh, how the tables have turned,” Mabel piped up, and reached her hands out in front of her to blindly grasp at the air. “Are you going to make Grunkle Stan drive us somewhere with his blindfold on?”

“I strongly advise against anything of the sort,” Ford said quickly. 

“Nah, I’m pretty sure Soos just wants us to be surprised by all the new stuff he’s added to the shack,” Dipper pointed out, and looked towards where he had heard Soos’s voice. “Isn’t that right, Soos? …I think I’m looking at you, I can’t actually tell.”

“You got it, dude!” Soos said, giving him a thumbs up before adding as an afterthought: “By the way, you can’t see it but I gave you a thumbs up!”

Dipper gave him a thumbs up in return, while Stan folded his arms across his chest. “Yeesh, with how much you’re hyping this thing up, it better end with a boatload of cash.” He said, flipping his thumb in the direction of the parked car and boat situated a short distance from the group. “And don’t think I don’t know how much a boatload is, we got the Stan-O’-War 2 parked right over there for reference.” A pause. “I’m pretty sure it’s over there, at least.”

“It is,” Soos assured him. “Alright, is everyone ready?”

Dipper gave a nod. “We’re ready, Soos!”

“Yeah, knock us dead, Mr. Mystery!” Mabel added encouragingly.

After a quick glance down at the stack of flashcards in his hands, Soos looked back to the waiting Pines with a big smile. “Greetings, ladies, gentlemen, and other assorted tourists,” he began in a rehearsed tone. “First of all, the Mystery Shack family would like to offer you a hearty welcome to the town of Gravity Falls, Oregon—”

He winked at them. “Or I guess I should really say welcome back to the town of Gravity Falls, Oregon! …‘Cause, like, you all came back to the town after leaving—”

Stan pressed a hand to his forehead. “You’re really gonna give us the entire pitch first, huh?”

From off to the side where her and Wendy were situated, Melody perked up at his remark. “He’s been waiting ages to show it to you,” she called to them. “He barely got any sleep last night out of excitement!”

“I kept opening my eyes and hoping it was finally morning,” Soos admitted with a bashful smile.

“Besides, aren’t you the one who’s always saying that buttering up the chumps that come through here is a good way to get them to toss more money at us?” Wendy added. “Why do you care if he gives you the entire pitch first?”

“Hey, never said I didn’t approve of it,” Stan clarified. “I especially like the part where he refers to the staff as a family.”

He gave a theatrical wave of his hands. “Paints a mental picture in those chumps’ minds. A picture that says ‘Hey! The people at this place must be really close if they’re callin’ themselves a family! And if they’re a family, they must have a bunch of hungry kids to feed! Let’s toss all the money in our wallets at them…for the children!’”

“Probably helps that you actually made us dress up like ‘the abnormally hungry twins’ for an exhibit last year.” Dipper cast a flat look towards Stan, then to verbally emphasize his point: “Which I will not be doing again this year.”

Stan waved him away with a scoff. “‘Course not; those extra inches on your height won’t make you pass as anything more than a starving teenager. And people aren’t as taken in by teenagers in need as they are kids.”

“An unfortunate fact, but a true one,” Wendy chimed in again. “Now shh, Soos worked really hard on this speech!”

“Thanks, Wendy,” Soos said. “But I don’t mind any interruptions, especially not from Mr. Pines! If there’s anything my online forums taught me, it’s that running a business is like writing a fanfiction: healthy criticism informs me of the areas I can improve on, and makes me feel good about the areas I’m already doing well in!”

He tapped his chin. “There’s also a lot of overlap between the two when it comes to people who want to learn about how to romance a werewolf,” he mused with a chuckle. “Turns out the secret is just buying a lot of beef jerky, they go nuts for the stuff—”

“Keep it on track, Soos,” Stan interrupted with a roll of his hand.

“Gravity Falls, Oregon,” Soos continued. “A mysterious and strange town, full of mysterious and strange beings. Whether they’re human, animal, vegetable, mineral, something in between or something else entirely, the one thing they all have in common is that they call this town home.”

He tossed an arm in the air to gesture at the building behind him. “And lucky for you, our totally awesome family here at the Mystery Shack is happy to help bridge the gap between the mysterious and the…not-mysterious—”

He made a so-so motion with his hand. “This part’s a little rough, but we’re working on smoothing it out. I know there’s a good M-word that would fit there, I just can’t remember off the top of my head.”

Ford pressed a hand to his mouth, before he spoke up with a suggested: “Mundane?”

Soos’s features brightened with inspiration and he shot a finger gun in Ford’s direction. “Boom! That’s the one!” he said, fetching a pencil from his pocket. “Thanks, Dr. Pines! …By the way, I shot you a finger gun. If you don’t know what that is—‘cause of all the time away from our dimension—I can tell you! It’s when you take your finger and—”

“No need to explain, Soos,” Ford assured him. “The concept speaks for itself.”

While Soos scribbled a few edits onto his flashcard, Melody raised a hand from her spot. “Sorry to interrupt your speech, Soos, but I just want to make sure I’m getting things right now that everyone’s here.” 

She pointed a finger at the Stans, shifting it back and forth between them. “Mr. Pines is the founder of the Mystery Shack and Dr. Pines is the one who actually owns it, right?” she asked with a shrug. “Or—well, I know that technically we own it since we have the deed to the building, that’s such a weird law for this town to have—”

“You have no idea,” Stan added.

“—but you get what I mean, right? Dr. Pines is the name on the deed?”

“I gotcha, and you’re right!” Soos clarified. “Mr. Pines founded the mystery shack and Dr. Pines is the one on the deed.”

He turned to face her completely. “If it helps, you could try remembering it like this: Mr. for mystery and Dr. for deed to the shack!”

Melody considered this for a moment. “Oh, that does help, actually. It’s like a stalactite/stalagmite kind of thing.”

“You could also just call them Stan and Ford,” Mabel added. “Ooh, or Grunkle Stan and Grunkle Ford like we do!”

“I mean, technically they aren’t her great-uncles,” Dipper pointed out. “So that wouldn’t really make sense.”

With a tut, Mabel placed her hands on her hips. “Please, the title of Grunkle is less about being a great-uncle, and more of a state of mind.”

“...Yeah, the state of mind where you’re a great-uncle,” Dipper said pointedly. “Hence the combination of the two words.”

“You can call us whatever you please,” Ford spoke up. “Clearly there are plenty of options to choose from, and all are accurate to some degree.”

He pressed a hand to his chin. “Although I will admit that it’s been a long time since anyone has referred to me as Dr. Pines. It was far more common for people to call me that for the first few years after I finished college.”

“You know what, I’ll experiment with a few different names, see what sticks,” Melody said, then turned her attention back to Soos. “Sorry, babe, didn’t mean to interrupt. Go ahead and keep going.”

“Never hurts to double check,” Soos assured her. “Plus since the two of them are part of the Shack’s history, it doubles as a tour question! Ooh, we should write that into the speech, too—”

There was another pause as he scribbled something down on his flashcards. “See, that’s another reason I wanted to show you guys the tour as soon as possible,” he said to the Pines. “I’m adding so much that’s gonna knock the next group of tourists that hears it on their butts! Okay, let’s see, where was I—”

“Mysterious and mundane,” Dipper reminded him helpfully.

“Thanks, dude! As I was saying before, we here at the Mystery Shack are happy to help bridge the gap between the mysterious and the mundane—”

He playfully waggled a finger in Ford’s direction, before tossing his free hand in the air. “And hopefully after today’s tour, you’ll all be able to walk across that bridge alongside us! Welcome to the Mystery Shack!”

He squinted down at his flashcards again. “Is…is that good for a welcoming statement?” he asked. “Did I do a good job? Do you feel invested to learn more about what awaits in this fine establishment?”

“Oh, I know if I had a wallet full of money, I’d be tossing fistfuls at you right now,” Mabel said supportively, and dug a hand into the pocket of her skirt. “Ooh, wait, I might have some glitter I can toss instead—”

After blindly feeling around for a moment, she pulled her hand out with a with a disappointed look. “Aw, nope, false alarm,” she said, opening her palm to reveal a squished, blue blob. “Just my wad of that sticky stuff teachers use to hang up posters that I stole over the school year~!”

She dropped it in her pocket again and gave the side a pat. “Just gonna tuck that back where it belongs~!”

“And I’m always ready to learn more,” Dipper added. “So you don’t need to do much to convince me!”

“Sounds like a yes to me, Mr. Mystery,” Melody said. “We good to move on to the next part of this tour?”

“You know it!” Soos said, before looking back to the Pines. “Okay so that part of the speech would normally be followed up with me leading everyone over to the exhibits area and showing all of them off.” 

His gaze moved to the Stans. “But I know you wanted a quiet evening without tourists or sleepovers or parties—”

“We did,” Stan confirmed.

“I didn’t,” Mabel argued with a pout. “I’ll bet Candy and Grenda would’ve had so much fun on the tour!”

“Oh, they’ve taken it many times!” Soos assured her. “They’re practically honorary employees at this point, and sometimes they even help with the new exhibits!”

At this information, Mabel’s pout was immediately replaced with a cutesy smile and she squished her hands to her cheeks. “Aww, of course they do! Can we see some of the ones they helped with?”

“Well, uh—like I was saying, we knew Mr. Pines wanted at least one evening before all the loud stuff,” Soos said. “So we ended tours early for the day and sent everyone from the exhibits home.”

The Pines exchanged a series of confused, blindfolded looks, before Dipper vocalized their confusion with an: “Everyone?”

Soos looked to Melody and Wendy, who nodded in unison. “We sent everyone home,” he continued to the Pines. “But we still wanted to give you all a taste of the kind of tours we’d normally give on a regular basis! So Melody had the brilliant idea to leave out the empty displays and do a fake tour before cleanup!”

He gestured for them to follow. “If you really want to know more, you’re gonna have to come look for yourselves~! And to look for yourselves, you’re gonna have to follow me!”

“Refusing to explain further until we take the tour for ourselves?” Stan gave a proud nod. “Good, good, you’re reelin’ us in…”

“Uh, Soos?” Dipper said, and pointed to his blindfold. “How can we follow you if you can’t see?”

Soos froze, and pressed a hand to his forehead. “Oh, duh, forgot about that!” he said, and thought for a moment. “Uh…just carefully follow the sound of my voice and footsteps?”

He began to walk backwards, making wide gesturing motions with his hands as they blindly followed him. “Alright, dudes, just keep walking forward—oop, careful of that crack in the ground, Dipper! Okay, just a little further—”

“Still don’t understand why we can’t just take the blindfolds off,” Stan said, taking a few bold steps forward—

—and letting out a grunt of pain as he stepped on a small rock. “Also, since when did Soos know to call you Dr. Pines?” he asked, kicking the rock to the side. “Don’t remember you ever tellin’ him to do that.”

He directed the last remark at Ford, who was carefully toeing the dirt in front of him before taking a step. “Well, I did mention my college years back when I first stepped out of the portal,” he reminded Stan. “Perhaps he took that fact and came to the conclusion that using the Dr. prefix would be appropriate, given my numerous PhDs.”

Stan’s expression shifted for a moment. “Oh yeah, that did happen, didn’t it,” he said, before shaking his head. “Yeah, given your whole science guy thing, I’ll bet he woulda called you Dr. Pines even if you didn’t have the credentials for it.”

“I would’ve!” Soos confirmed helpfully.

“Ooh, Mabel just had a fun idea!” Mabel piped up, and pressed her hands together. “What if we called you Dr. Grunkle Ford?”

She smiled cutely in Ford’s direction, despite being unable to see him. “I’ll bet one of those PhDs is from mastering the study of Great-Uncle-ing, isn’t it? Hmm~?”

“Well, if we’re getting into the specifics,” Ford began. “The field of studies I majored in were biology, archaeology—dabbled in Hyper-Advanced Engineering and Fifth-Dimensional Calculus for three semesters, deeply regret trading the rest for an extra semester of Applied Quantum Phase Theory—”

He paused. “Oh, that was a joke, wasn’t it?”

Mabel let out a giggle. “The PhD part was, the Dr. Grunkle Ford part was not. That was also not a ‘no’ so I’m gonna tuck that away for later.”

She made a motion to grab something out of the air, and pretended to drop it into her pocket. “And just ‘cause you can’t see it, I grabbed the nickname out of the air and dropped it into my pocket,” she explained, patting her skirt. “It’s resting right next to my blob of sticky poster stuff as we speak.”

“Hey, Soos, are we able to take off our blindfolds yet?” Dipper asked.

“Just a little further ahead—ooh, okay, stop, stop!”

Soos came to a stop himself, smile wider than ever. “Alright, esteemed guests! You may now remove your blindfolds and behold the wonders the Shack has to offer! …Or, at least, get an idea of what the Shack has to offer when we’re not closed!”

Four pairs of hands met cloth as the Pines reached up to lower their blindfolds and take in the sight before them.

The area situated between the shack and the edge of the woods was reminiscent of a carnival after all the guests had gone home for the day—the grass a tamped-down mess of discarded pamphlets and trash, and a wide selection of empty displays surrounded them on all sides. To their left stood a tall aquarium that stretched around ten by ten square feet, filled nearly to the brim with placid water. Further ahead was a lengthy presentation stage, littered in the remains of unidentifiable objects made of wood, stone—anything that looked like it would’ve been a challenge for a regular human to destroy. Ahead of that was an artificial recreation of a magical forest glenn, one perfect for a unicorn to kneel before in a graceful and elegant fashion.

A series of perches for winged creatures both big and small. A small pet bed the perfect size for a plaidypus. A collection of scattered Pitt Cola cans near a skateboarding ramp covered in massive, yeti-like footprints and tire tracks. Empty display after empty display surrounded the Pines family as they looked around, each a clear indicator of what beings would normally occupy them during business hours.

And if the sight wasn’t enough, Soos was happy to confirm it as he lead them forward: “Now, this is our Main Exhibit Area,” he said, and gestured around himself. “Any live beings for these attractions would normally be gathered here for their demonstrations—”

“Live beings?” Dipper asked with a hopeful sparkle in his eyes. “As in we’ve started including actual, real monsters and creatures and stuff?”

“You know it, dude!” Soos said.

Mabel smooshed her face against the side of the large, glass tank, pupils darting back and forth while questions spilled out of her mouth at breakneck speed: “Is this a mermaid tank? How many mermaids are here? What are they like? …Are any of them Mermando?”

“Reminder that you’re in a relationship,” Dipper said.

Mabel pulled her face back with an audible pop, before giving her brother a pointed stare. “I wasn’t asking so I could date him again! It’d just be nice to catch up with an old friend!” 

She moved a hand to her forehead, rubbing the spot where skin had met glass. “Besides, you act like Dev wouldn’t be cool with being in a polyamorous relationship with a mermaid.”

“...You know, that is probably something he’d be cool with.”

“Soos said he had a feeling you’d like the mermaid tank,” Melody said, coming up beside them. “And Wendy had a feeling that you’d love to see me jump into it.”

Mabel stared up at her, eyes wide. “I would love nothing more.”

“Called that one,” Wendy said with a smug grin.

Using the ladder near them, Melody climbed up and onto the wooden platform on top of the tank, pausing only for a moment to fiddle with something in the very center. After a few seconds, she lifted the half she was not kneeling on upwards and held it still for the group to see.

Rather than being made completely out of wood like the other half, the ‘lid’ was made up of sturdy, steel bars with gaps between them. Like the bars of a jail cell, if the rest of the jail cell had been laid on its back and made of glass. “We like to close and lock the lid between mermaid demonstrations,” she explained to the Pines family. “Keeps any bold tourists from trying to climb inside.”

“You lock your mermaids up?” Mabel asked, hands pressed to her mouth in horror.

“Wha—oh, no, don’t worry!” Melody quickly assured her. “We only lock it up once Mitch is outside of it and in his portable tank—hey, Soos, Wendy, can you guys—”

“Oh, yeah, one sec.”

Both Soos and Wendy hurried over to the opposite end of the tank and held out their arms, as if preparing to catch something out of the air. Once they were in place, Melody arched the lid up and over towards the side where they stood. While it quickly swung downwards at the two of them, they stood firm as they caught it in their arms, before gently guiding it to rest against the side of the tank.

Looking pleased, Melody turned her attention back to the kids. “Alright, I’m not even gonna try to do a proper mermaid dive into this thing because there’s a good chance I might break my neck,” she said. “So are we fine with a cannonball instead?”

“Cannonball! Cannonball!” Dipper and Mabel chanted in unison.

“Cannonball!” Soos added with just as much enthusiasm.

“Sounds like a yes to me!” Melody said, and took a small step back from the gap. “Get your cameras ready!”

Mabel held up her cell phone with a bright smile, before taking a cautious step back from the tank. “For safety measures,” she explained. “Don’t want what happened to Dipper’s phone to happen to mine~!”

“There was a chicken in science class, caught on fire and set off the sprinklers…” He shrugged in mild annoyance. “I had to get a new phone, it was a whole thing—”

“Shshshsh,” Mabel said, taking one hand off her phone to wave him quiet. “We can exchange cool stories after the tour! Cannonball time!”

“Oh, right—go for it, Melody!”

And with that confirmation, Melody took a deep breath jumped up and over the open side of the tank, folding her body into a cannonball shaped before she sank down into the water. Water that splashed up and out, soaking the grass around the tank and the toes of anyone who hadn’t followed Mabel’s example and backed up to safety.

While Melody breached the surface and swam to the tank’s side, Soos looked back down to his flashcards. “As you can imagine, normally a trick like this would be done by our hired merteen, Mitch,” he explained. “He would do a few tricks, explain a few of the basics of being a merperson, and then answer a few questions from the audience about being a mermaid and stuff.”

Melody propped her folded arms over the side of the tank. “And since I’m not an actual mermaid, I can’t really answer any real mermaid questions,” she said. “Or, at least, not as well as someone who’s been one their entire lives. But if anyone’s got any about how the exhibit works in other ways—”

“And Mabel’s hand is already in the air.”

Dipper flicked a thumb towards his sister, who was waving her arm about so frantically that it was a miracle that it didn’t go flying right off her body. Melody smiled and gestured to her with a damp hand. “Go ahead, Mabel.”

“Because I didn’t get any answers before, I repeat my questions from earlier,” Mabel said. “How many mermaids are here? What are they like?”

She turned her nose up at Dipper. “And would there happen to be an old friend of mine by the name of Mermando among them?” she asked. “One I am not interested in dating again, but one I would like to say hello to, despite what a certain someone might think—”

“Laying it on a little thick, aren’t we?” Dipper asked.

“Ehhh, we only got the one merman and I doubt you’d be interested in dating him,” Wendy answered. “He’s kinda dull, one of those beach-dude types who’s overly obsessed with surfing and sun…”

She flicked a thumb towards the skating ramp. ”Gets along pretty well with the Abominable Bro-men who hang out at the halfpipe, though.”

“Speaking of which, he headed down to the California coast for the summer,” Soos said. “Apparently he’s got a lot of family down there—”

“Makes sense,” Dipper said with a nod.

“Totally tracks,” Mabel added.

“—which means that the only mermaid exhibit you’ll get to see for the next three months is Melody’s,” Soos continued. “Unless another one applies for a job soon, that is. ‘Course we’ll still need to check their resume, confirm their resources are legitimate—”

“Which could happen,” Melody said, as she pulled herself up onto the edge of the tank. “I’ve got a couple of interviews lined up.”

She looked towards the older Pines twins. “What about you two? Got any mermaid questions for me?”

“I’m afraid any questions I might still have about mermaids would only be able to be answered by actual mermaids,” Ford said, and looked towards the rest of the displays. “And I assume the same applies to the rest of the exhibits.”

He cast them both a smile. “But I’m in full support of this method of showcasing them! I mean, using the supernatural beings of Gravity Falls as willing exhibits, and providing a chance for everyone to grow accustomed to each other in a neutral setting?” 

He tossed his hands in the air. “All with education lessons about each creature added to the mix? Quite the scientific approach to this sort of thing, color me very impressed!”

“Well, we kinda have you to thank for the idea, Dr. Pines,” Melody said. “You and the kids, of course.”

Once again, Ford found himself bewildered by the sudden praise and he tilted his head with a curious look. “Care to explain?”

“See, I spent sooooo much time with Dipper and Mabel last year,” Soos explained. “And they spent sooooo much of their time doing lots of cool, mystery stuff! Whether it was fighting some big monster or just trying to find out more about the super-mysterious author guy who wrote the journal that Dipper found in the woods—”

He once again pointed at Ford with a playful grin, before continuing: “—we learned about a lotta weird dudes! And with the town coming together and everything after Weirdmageddon, that meant a lotta those weird dudes were walking around in broad daylight. Which meant a lotta tourists started seeing those weird dudes walking around in broad daylight!”

“And as most tourists do, plenty had questions about them,” Melody continued from the water tank. “So with the Shack being one of the most popular locations in town, some talk was thrown around about us providing a space for those beings to answer their questions!”

“It probably helps that a lot of those weird dudes hid in the Mystery Shack during Weirdmageddon,” Wendy added. “So you know, didn’t take a lot of convincing to get them involved, since they kinda consider it a safe haven now.”

“That’s so cool!” Dipper piped up excitedly.

“It’s brilliant,” Ford agreed. “During my years of research, I spent so long studying all the strange and mysterious beings of this town. How they came to exist, how they functioned—”

He placed a hand to the side of the tank. “Not just them but the weirdness that surrounded the town as a whole. Why all of it was so drawn to this tiny, Oregon town out of anywhere else in the world—”

“Imagine it, Sixer—a whole dimension of weirdness! One where the strangest and most bizarre beings the Multiverse has to offer call home! All waiting for someone as brilliant as you to pop on over and show the world what they—and you—can do!”

“You really think so?”

“Buddy, I know so! This is the way genius happens! …With a little help from a friend, of course!”

The hand against the glass curled into a fist as Bill’s voice once again pounded through his skull, the memories of their ‘research’ together gripping his insides like a vice. All those years of hard work for naught, all that wasted time being fed promises from the honey-dipped spoon of a liar, the bitter truth hidden from sight until it was too late to spit it back out—

He slowly unclenched his hand with a shuddery exhale. Deep breath, just relax. Everything was fine. “—well, this whole setup is making me reminisce on more nostalgic times,” he finished with a forced smile in Soos’s direction. “That’s all.”

If Soos had caught on to his half-truth, he didn’t show any sign of it in his own expression. Rather, his own smile simply widened further as he looked to Stan. “What about you, Mr. Pines?”

Ford couldn’t help but look to his brother as well, and his eyes once again met a matching pair as the two of them stared at each other in another shared silence.

The rigidity in Stan’s features from before had returned. Far less prominent than it had been back in the house, but the way his jaw was set, the cold, studious gaze behind worn lenses—

“All I wanna know is how much this kinda stuff’s costing the two of you.” 

And quick as a flash, Stan had turned back to the rest of the group, arms folded across his chest and any sense of tension in his features nonexistent. “Don’t get me wrong; I think usin’ all the ghouls and goblins of this town to get more money outta tourists is a great idea—”

“You mean like what I suggested last year?” Dipper pointed out.

“Last year I was still playin’ dumb about all of that, in the hopes it would keep you kids outta trouble,” Stan reminded him. “Think we can safely say that ship has sailed by now. Besides, I ain’t the big man in charge anymore, so whatever changes you make to the shop are up to you and you alone.” 

He directed the back half of his sentence at Soos and Melody as he turned to face them again. “But you know me; always lookin’ at the side of business with the dollar signs. And I just wanna know if you’re turnin’ more of a profit than what you’re spendin’.”

Ford’s gaze continued to linger on his brother for a moment more, before he turned to them as well. “Stanley raises a good point. While I clearly support the desire and motivation to help others approach the supernatural beings of the Falls with a more respectful and scientific mindset—well, as Stanley put it so eloquently, such methods aren’t exactly cheap.”

“Oh, that’s nothing to worry about,” Melody assured them. “If anything, the Shack is making more money than it ever did before!”

“Oh yeah!” Soos agreed. “Even taking into account all of the paychecks we give out—of course we pay anyone who’s part of an exhibit—”

“They’re employees after all,” Melody chimed in with a nod.

“—even taking all that into account, we’re doing really well!” Soos finished, tossing his hands into the air. “In fact, the Shack is more popular than it’s ever been before!”

Ford glanced back at Stan, scanning his features for any other signs of distress. However, Stan only seemed to perk up further at Soos’ comment, even going so far as to clasp a proud arm around his shoulder. “Well, then I have no complaints whatsoever! Show me another one of these magnificent, moneymaking—uh, m—uh…whatever, just show me another one.”

“Sounds like my cue,” Wendy said, and turned to the younger twins. “Who wants to see me break something over at the Manotaur stage?”

This time, Dipper and Mabel’s hand shot up in unison, and Wendy laughed as she lead them over towards the empty presentation stage. Much like back at the bus stop, the adults found themselves left behind as Soos helped a sopping-wet Melody back down the ladder and into the grass. 

“Well, the tour might not be how we usually do things, but at least they seem to be having fun,” she said, and reached up to wring out some of the water in her hair. “Plus getting a chance to jump into a tank of water on a hot summer evening’s probably the opposite of a problem.”

“You cannonball like no other,” Soos said, tone full of sincerity before he looked to the older twins. “So you’re really enjoying the tour so far, Mr. Pines? I know you probably won’t get a proper feel of the new exhibits until you’re able to take a real tour, and I know this is a huge change from how you used to do things—”

“Like I said, it’s makin’ this place more money than ever so I’ve got zero complaints,” Stan said with a shrug. “Your methods are smart, keepin’ up with what the people want like any good business should…”

His features shifted to something that almost resembled genuine pride, if one looked closely enough. “You’re…you’re doin’ good, Soos. Really.”

A single touch could’ve shattered Soos like glass, eyes swelling with tears of pure joy. “Thank you so much, Mr. Pines!” he said, and finally gave in to the urge he was probably holding since the moment the Stans arrived and scooped Stan up into a hug. “You’ve no idea how much this means to me!”

Any pride in Stan’s expression vanished in place of annoyance at being scooped, and he struggled fruitlessly against Soos’ embrace. “Alright, alright, save the huggy stuff for your fiance over there,” he insisted firmly. “Besides, didn’t Wendy say she wanted to show us another exhibit or whatever?”

“Oh, right!” Soos said, and looked to Melody. “Want me to hug-carry you over to the stage?”

“Soos, I’m soaking wet.”

“Then we’ll both be soaking wet!”

Recognizing a good point when she heard it, Melody shrugged and hopped into his arms and the two of them fell into a shared fit of laughter as Soos lead them both towards the Manotaur stage. 

Leaving the Stans as the remaining two near the mermaid tank. 

“Can you believe this?” Stan asked, with a light flick to the glass. “A mermaid exhibit with a living, breathing merman? And one not made out of random animal parts?”

“They really seem to have tapped into a brilliant method of showcasing the exhibits here,” Ford agreed, turning his attention to the glass as well. With Melody no longer inside, the water inside was slowly settling back to a calm and undisturbed state. “You really picked the right man to take up the reigns in your absence.”

“Yeah, I…I really did, huh?”

That heavy silence from before began to envelop the brothers again, nearly impossible to ignore by this point. Not even the whooping and hollering from the stage—apparently Wendy had started her demonstration without them—was enough to distract Ford from his growing suspicions that Stanley was hiding something.

With the way he kept looking at Ford, features set with that rigid expression that clearly obscured his actual feelings beneath, he was either hiding something or he needed to say something without the others nearby.

Well, they had a moment alone now. Best to do the straightforward thing and just ask directly. “Stanley, is everything alright?”

Stan snapped his attention from the tank to Ford so quickly that it was a miracle he didn’t pull something, and for a moment he did seem like he had something he needed to say—

—before his expression settled back into something more neutral as he leaned back against the glass. “Yeah, why wouldn’t it be?”

It was an odd thing. With the many years of conning people under his belt, Ford had expected his brother to be far better at lying right to his face. “Are you sure?” he tried again, and leaned back against the glass as well. “You know you can talk to me, Stanley. It’s like you said before: we don’t have to deal with things by ourselves anymore. So, if you need to talk about anything, anything at all…”

This earned a small chuckle from Stan. “Throwin’ my own words back at me, huh? Cheap shot.”

He hesitated to reply for a moment, before giving him a halfhearted shrug. “I dunno, it’s nothin’,” he said. “I think I’m just having a hard time getting back into the swing of things now that we’re back in town. Just a lotta new stuff to get used to, stuff that wasn’t here last year…”

He cast Ford a smirk. “Guess you could say I’m having trouble gettin’ my land legs, instead of my sea legs,” he said, leaning over to nudge him with his elbow. “You—you get it? My land legs—”

Dodging the subject with a joke, and an incredibly cheesy one at that. A classic Stanley move to avoid talking about something he didn’t want to, one that only cemented Ford’s concerns further.

However, his first remark brought a thoughtful hand to Ford’s chin. “There have been quite a few changes in our absence,” he agreed. “It would make sense that it would be difficult for you to readjust, especially in regards to the shack.”

He cast a look towards the shack itself. “I mean, you were in charge of this place for what, thirty years? That’s about five times the number of years I lived here,” he said. “Not to mention Soos and Melody’s whole announcement, I can imagine that would be quite the surprise for you—”

“Only surprise there is that there’s apparently someone on this planet more nerdy than Soos,” Stan interrupted quickly, and crossed his arms. “What about you? How’re you holdin’ up?”

Ford stared at him, perplexed. “Me?”

“To quote the words you stole from me to then throw back at me; we don’t have to deal with things by ourselves anymore,” Stan said. “So do you have anything you wanna talk about?”

“Heads up!”

A shout from the stage sprung the brothers into action, and both jumped out of the way just in time to avoid a porcelain vase whizzing past at breakneck speed, right before crashing straight into the side of the cabin and shattering on impact.

“Sorry, guys!” Wendy called from atop the stage. “Think I put a little too much oomph into that swing!”

“I think you put just the right amount of oomph into it!” Mabel said from beside her, grin bright. 

“It was incredible!” Dipper agreed. “Can you do it again?”

“I dunno,” Wendy said, tapping the end of the bat against her boot. “The destruction of valuable properly really gets both the Manotaurs and the audience all riled up, so they tend to keep the going until there’s nothing left to destroy.”

She moved the end of the bat was moved to a discarded plank of wood near her feet, gently nudging it towards the edge of the stage. “And judging by today’s damage, it’s a miracle that one vase remained unscathed as long as it did.”

“Aw, boo,” Mabel said. “I wanna see more mindless violence!”

“Sadly that’s all I got for the big lugs for now,” Wendy said, letting the bat clatter to the stage. “You squirts know all about their deal already, so random trivia is kinda out of the question. I mean, I could always do the thing where they let someone from the audience challenge them in a fight, but ehh, I’ve already gotta clean up the displays on my day off—”

“Didn’t you choose to come to work anyway?” Mabel pointed out.

“—so I’m just gonna pass the baton to Soos,” Wendy continued, tossing a hand in Soos’ direction. “How about it, Soos? You’re the only one who hasn’t shown off one of the exhibits yet, it’s only fair you get a turn before we move on to the Big Stuff inside.”

“You make a good point!” Soos agreed with a nod, and glanced around at the remaining exhibits for a moment in thought. “Who wants to watch me try and do a kickflip over at the Abominable Bro-Men’s halfpipe?”

“Me! Me!” Dipper piped up enthusiastically. “You are absolutely going to fall and break your neck, so I’m in!”

Beaming, Soos turned back to the direction of the mermaid tank. “What about you, Dr. and Mr. Pines?” he called. “You wanna join us?”

The sudden vase attack had pulled both from their conversation long enough to grow distracted by the kids’ antics on the stage. At Soos’ call, however, the two of them exchanged a look with each other. “Like I was askin’ before,” Stan tried again. “Are you okay? You got anything you need to talk about?”

It was said in such a knowing tone, as if Stan could physically see the triangle-shaped echos that were permanently etched against the inside of Ford’s mind. As if he were just waiting for Ford to offer him the chance to swing another fist at them again.

But while swinging a fist at Bill had worked the first time around, Stan couldn’t exactly swing a fist at the nightmares that had plagued Ford’s head for as long as he could remember. And even if he could—

“I’m fine, Stanley,” he finally insisted aloud. “Really, I am. Perhaps it’s as you said, and it’s taking me more time to readjust to being back in town than I’d initially expected.”

He flashed Stan a weak smile, one that his brother hesitated to return for a few seconds. But eventually, the corners of Stan’s mouth curled upwards into a amused smile of his own. “Pretty sure my exact words were ‘having trouble gettin’ my land legs’,” he pointed out, clasping a hand on Ford’s shoulder. “Was a pretty good one, if I do say so myself.”

“Stanley, you realize that ‘getting your land legs’ is about as common of a phrase as ‘getting your sea legs’,” Ford pointed out.

“Nah, I’m pretty sure I made that one up,” Stan said, and plopping an arm across his brother’s shoulders. “Now come on, let’s go watch Soos break his neck or whatever he’s gonna do.”

“Personally, I’m not a fan of Abominable Bro-Men,” Ford admitted. “But with all this talk of neck-breaking, I think there should be at least one person there who knows how to reset a bone.”

“Oh, so you’re an expert with human bones—”

While the adults followed Soos towards the half-pipe, Mabel let out a disappointed noise. “Aww man, I wanted a chance to try and fight Wendy!”

“Eh, we’ve got all summer,” Wendy reminded her. “Besides, you’re telling me you’d miss a chance to watch Soos fall flat on his face?”

With a giggle, Mabel shoved her hands in her pockets. “Now I never said that—oh, wait—” 

She shuffled her hands around for a moment, before pulling them back out and peering into her pocket with an annoyed look. “Aww, dang it, I think my wad of sticky poster stuff fell out of my pocket somewhere.”

“Eugh, that probably means it’s all covered in dirt or something now,” Dipper said with a grimace. “Probably best to cut your losses and start a new one when school picks back up again.”

“Are you kidding?” Mabel protested, gaze now shifting around their feet. “I barely managed to collect as much as I did before the teachers started catching wind of my thievery!”

Taking care to avoid any of the broken debris, she dropped to her knees and pressed her face against the stage for closer examination. “By the time fall hits, they’ll probably have security guards around every single one of those cheesy pun posters that relate to each class’s specific subject! I’ll never be able to get the new one back to the size of the original!”

Dipper placed a hand on his hip. “You realize that this is a very weird and specific problem that only you could have,” he said, then paused. “You want me to help you look?”

“Nah, nah, you go ahead and watch Soos. Just snap me some pics with my phone.”

Without taking her eyes off the stage, she held out her cell phone to him. “Feel free to add whatever filters you want, I’m partial to the kitty-ears myself.”

“Of course you are.” 

While he hopped down from the stage and headed towards the half-pipe, Mabel continued to search on her hands and knees for the telltale blob. When the stage itself produced no results, she moved to retrace her steps from the stage to the mermaid tank, to the area where she was pretty sure she’d pulled the lump out of her pocket—Soos making them walk around blindfolded had been delightfully quirky at the time, but now it was just making her search all the more difficult—

THUMP!

The sound of something heavy hitting the ground snapped Mabel’s attention towards the edge of the forest, her gaze darting about wildly as she tried to locate the source. A goal that didn’t take long for her to accomplish; a conspicuous black mass was splayed out on the ground between a pair of nearby birch trees.

Her first guess was some kind of animal, until her gaze landed on a small, fleshy hand at the end of an arm. An arm, a head of messy hair, a pair of legs—

“Wait, that’s a person!”

Once her brain clicked two and two together, Mabel broke into a sprint towards the unknown—potentially unconscious—body. Sure enough, her suspicions were confirmed once she reached it and knelt down to investigate.

They were short, probably not much taller than her or Dipper at full height. And as Mabel rolled their unconscious body onto their back to get a closer look, further similarities between the mysterious person and Dipper presented themselves to her.

They had the same facial structure, their noses were the same rosy shade of peach that was slightly darker than the rest of their face. Even their messy mop of hair fell over their eyes in the exact same way Dipper’s did when he wasn’t wearing a hat, although his usual brown shade had been swapped for a light bleach-blonde that would make the entirety of Sev’ral Timez weep with envy.

Despite the similar physical features, the mysterious person’s fashion sense differed from Dipper’s in every way. Rather than the casual shirt, vest and hat combo that Dipper wore on a regular basis, the person was dressed in a black jacket and pants, bow tie, yellow button up—an unusually fancy outfit for someone who might’ve just fallen out of a tree in the middle of the woods.

“What’s wrong, Pumpkin?”

Drawing her gaze from the body, Mabel looked up to see Stan approaching her with a curious look. “I think someone fell out of one of the trees,” she explained. “I heard a loud thump, and saw them lying here. I think they might be a kid—”

“What’s going on over here, dudes?”

Stan turned to see Ford and Soos coming up behind him, a skateboard tucked safely under Soos’ arm. “I was just gonna wait until everyone was at the half-pipe ramp,” Soos explained. “Dipper said Mabel was looking for something, and I’m in no rush.”

He flashed a grin in Stan’s direction. “Even if I’d love to get to the inside part of the tour as soon as possible, you are gonna flip when you see it, Mr. Pines—”

“What’s wrong, Stanley?” Ford asked, echoing his brother’s earlier question.

“Accordin’ to Mabel, some kid fell out of a tree or something,” Stan said, with a look to Soos. “What, you’re just lettin’ kids climb in the trees around here now? You lookin’ to get sued by some Patsy or Jane with straight bangs and a failing marriage that she insists on makin’ everyone else’s business?”

Soos innocently raised his hands. “I didn’t let anyone do anything, I swear! Maybe he was part of the last tourist group of the day and got separated from them before they left? Haven’t had any parents show up looking for a lost kid, though.”

“Either way, we should probably call 911.” 

Ford knelt down beside Mabel and pressed two fingers to the unknown child’s neck. “Well, they have a pulse so they’re probably alive,” he said, then pulled his hand back. “Of course, a lack of pulse doesn’t rule out the possibility of them being undead. But if they did fall out of a tree, they could possibly have a concussion. So either way, it’s a concern.”

“Well, let’s hope you don’t have to rip out the spine of this one,” Stan said.

While they conversed, Mabel gingerly placed a hand on the kid’s shoulder and gave it a light shake. “Hello? Are you alright?”

There was no response, so she tried again with a bit more force. “Hey, kid, I hope you know that you just fell out of the sky!” she said with a bit more urgency. “Which is probably not out of the norm for kids in Gravity Falls, but still, it’s a little worrying!”

The child remained still for a moment more—

—before their body began to tremble with a quiet chuckle. A quiet chuckle that slowly morphed into a full-on laugh.

Any relief that might’ve started building inside Mabel was snuffed out in an instant as the laughter—that cold, cruel laughter—only grew more audible, and sent her crawling backwards in a panic as the body slowly rose up from the ground and turned to face her.

Now that Mabel got a better look at his face, the similarities to her brother were so clearly skin deep. Their aforementioned features were the same as before, but Dipper never smiled in a way that revealed all of his teeth and gums at once, like a young child being told to smile for the first time in front of a camera.

Dipper’s limbs weren’t quite as gangly and limp as the other boy’s, like a marionette being controlled by an inexperienced puppeteer who hadn’t mastered the art of making their body move naturally.

And Dipper’s eyes weren’t that terrifying, familiar shade of jaundice yellow, complete with slitted, catlike pupils that bore deep, deep into her very being.

“Grunkle Ford!”

Her panicked shout—one that spilled out of her on complete instinct before she could even process what she was saying—was far from necessary. Ford had completely frozen when the laughter had started, features aghast and grim as he stared at the child, as that wicked, horrible laughter droned on and on—

CRACK!

And suddenly the laughter was silenced, and the same sound of a body hitting a ground as before drew Mabel’s attention back to reality.

The child was unconscious again, now with a decent sized welt on the back of his head. And beside him stood Wendy, the bat from before in hand and her body hunched over while she tried to catch her breath. “Saw…saw what was happening,” she explained between sharp gulps of air. “Heard the laughing. Panicked…”

The only sound to break the silence that followed for a few seconds was the faint rustling of the wind through the trees, until a pair of approaching footsteps against the dirt drew everyone’s heightened attention towards the sound in a panic. 

Much like the others had done, Melody and Dipper were approaching the group from the direction of the half-pipe. Upon seeing their petrified expressions, Melody held up her hands. “Woah, woah, hey, what’s going on?”

From beside her, Dipper lifted up something he was clutching tightly in his hands—one of the discarded planks of wood from the Manotaur’s stage. “I heard Mabel yell and saw Wendy run over here with her bat,” Dipper added. “Thought it’d probably be smart to grab a weapon, too—”

“Get a rope.”

Ford didn’t tear his gaze from the body as he responded in a low tone, as if it would vanish the moment he looked away. As if he, or everything around him, would shatter in an instant if he dared tear his attention away from the body that had previously been letting out that horrible, horrible laughter. 

The laughter that had haunted his dreams for four decades, the laughter still bouncing off the inside of his skull, even after Wendy had silenced the source.

When he didn’t elaborate further, Dipper looked to one of the other adults for an explanation—

“You heard him! Get a rope!”

It was Stan who replied next, and actually spun to face them with a grim expression. “A rope, chains…if it can be used to tie someone up, then get it!”

“It’s code yellow, Melody,” Wendy said quickly. “Soos, do we still got that unicorn-hair rope?”

“Same place as it always is,” Soos said, and looked to Melody. “Come on, we need to hurry—I’ll get the moonstones, you fetch the mercury.”

Recognizing their urgency, Melody looked to the unconscious body on the ground. “...That’s him, then?”

“Did you hear me, I said get a rope!”

It was Ford who spoke again, tone more demanding as he finally tore his gaze from the body to glare at them. “If I have to say it a third time—”

“Oh, okay, yeah, that answers that question,” Melody said quickly, and gestured for the rest of them to follow. “Alright, there’s a rope and a chair to tie him to in the shack. But who’s gonna—”

“I’ve got it.”

Letting the bat clatter to the ground, Wendy scruffed the unconscious child by the back of his jacket and hoisted him up into the air. “Let’s get him inside.”

With mild chaos, the group hurried towards the Shack with the unconscious child in hand. Leaving the bat, Mabel’s unfortunately-missed blob of blue poster tack lying several yards away, and the remaining exhibit displays abandoned as the first real hints of night began to peek their way through the treetops.

[midnightsnyx]

paper rings

pairing: ajax x reader

requested: yes summary: idk how to summarize this it’s just rly fluffy as per request word count: 617 warnings: none this is just super fluffy!! also sorry it’s so short

authors note: guys!!!! tysm for the love on my Xavier imagine. I hope you guys like this one. if you didn’t notice 99% of my fic titles are from songs cause I suck at coming up with them so this one is from tswifts song paper rings. thanks again for reading <3 masterlist link

You’re sitting in the Quad reading when you feel a pair of arms wrap around you. You almost jump but you recognize who’s arms they are right away, so you put your book down and lean back, tilting your head to see your boyfriend, Ajax smiling down at you.

“Hello, love.” You say, accepting the quick kiss before he settles down next to you. He watches you pick up your book, intent on finishing the chapter before he drags you off somewhere. Unlike yourself, Ajax can’t sit down for long so while you read, you notice him fiddling with a piece of paper. You don’t think much of it, finishing the chapter and when you look up at him again, he has the paper folded up in some shape. 

“For you.” He says dropping it into your hand and you look to see a makeshift ring made out of paper. 

When you raise an eyebrow at him, he just shrugs.

“Wanna walk to class together?” He asks and you nod, absentmindedly tucking the paper ring in your bag, not thinking much of it.

. . .

It has become a habit. You’ll be somewhere, and out of nowhere Ajax presents you with a paper ring. At the Weathervane, they are made out of paper from the disposable straws. In class or in the Quad, they’re made from a piece of scrap paper. 

You don’t realize how many he’s made until Yoko is searching for something, tearing apart every drawer and cabinet in your shared dorm when she pauses and looks up at you.

“Why do you have a bunch of paper rings?” She asks, looking confused but also amused. 

You walk over and your eyes widen when you realize how many he’s made you. You never really thought much of the rings, thinking they were just something to kill time.

“Ajax made them for me.” You tell her, picking one up and sliding it on your finger.

“Next thing you know, he’ll be giving you a real one.” Yoko jokes and you laugh, brushing off her joke because there is no way the two of you are anywhere near ready for marriage. You still had to finish high school and then hopefully go to college.

However, the paper ring thing was starting to make you curious, so when the two of you were hanging out in your dorm (you tended to ignore the no boys policy and Yoko didn’t spend a whole lot of time in the room anyways), you decided to bring it up. 

You’re laying with your head in his lap, reading while he runs his fingers through your hair and scrolling through his phone when you put your book aside. 

“Hey, can I ask you something?”

He tosses his phone to the side and smiles down at you. “Yeah, of course.”

One of the things you love about Ajax is that when the two of you are talking, he always gives you his complete attention and vise versa - you give him yours. You’re a firm believer that it makes relationships stronger. 

“The paper rings…” you hesitate, “why do you make them?”

He shrugs and says, “it’s just a hobby.” 

Unconvinced, you sit up and raise your eyebrows. “Just a hobby?”

He shifts uncomfortably. “Well, I mean, it started out as a hobby. You know, something to kill time while you were reading.” He gives you a lopsided smile that makes your heart beat a little faster before continuing. “But then, I wanted to see what it looked like. A ring on your finger. A specific finger.” 

What, are you planning on popping the big question?” You joke and he grins.

“One day, you’re damn right I will.” 

[littleladymab]

OC Kiss Week - Reach

This one goes out to @bottlingsound and @laprismaluna thank u for being the #1 fans of my blorbos 8')

I went through several different ideas of how to convey 'reaching' and who I wanted to be the narrator, and then recently, completely unrelated to writing oc kiss week, I thought about Rhys selling the family house and moving in with Kaito. So I decided to roll with that!

+++ 

Kaito places the mug down in front of Rhys. “You’re distracted.”

As if in testament to his distraction, Rhys actually jumps at the sudden sound. “What?”

“What do you mean what?” He nudges the mug with his elbow. “For you.”

Rhys’ gaze drops to the mug, and then he tucks the stylus back into his tablet and pushes the work aside. It is like watching him move in imperfect stop motion, the hands moving to the mug, fingers wrapping around ceramic, lifting it to his nose.

Then Rhys frowns. “Whiskey?” he accuses.

Kaito grins and shrugs as he returns to dicing the vegetables. “I didn’t think you were going to get back to work any time soon, so I figured I might as well make you a drink.”

“Hmm,” Rhys says into the depths of his mug as he takes a sip, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with the statement.

“What’s wrong?” Kaito pops a piece of carrot into his mouth, then hands one out to Rhys.

Still distracted, Rhys leans across the counter and eats it directly from Kaito’s fingers. Then he shrugs, as if to say, oh no I have a mouthful of carrot, I cannot answer.

“It can’t be that bad.”

Rhys gives another shrug and fiddles with his mug. “I’m just… thinking about selling the house.”

Kaito freezes, knife poised over the cutting board. “The one in Derry?”

This, at least, gets the glare he was aiming for and Kaito holds up his hands in defense. “I’m kidding!”

“Yeah yeah,” Rhys grumbles, rolling his eyes — but it’s not enough to hide the hint of a smirk at the worn joke. “Precious derriere, sure, I’ve heard it all before.” He spins the mug between his fingers before leaning back in the chair and running a hand through his hair. “I’ve been spending more time here now that the twins have moved out, but the nice thing was that I own the house.”

“Well I own this building,” Kaito challenges. “And my offer still stands.”

Rhys, to his surprise, flushes. “I don’t want to inconvenience you.”

“Rhys. Love. We’ve been dating for three years. Isn’t there some kind of rule where if I ask you to move in more than five times, you’re obligated to do so?” Kaito is rewarded with Rhys’ expression doing something complicated between frustrated and embarrassed. “I mean, I’m not trying to pressure you. I’m sure Ayn can help you find something in New Ox if you’d prefer—”

“No,” Rhys says a little sharply, then again, softer, “No.” He sighs and scrubs a hand over his face, knocking his glasses askew. “I would love to move in with you. It’s just… Everything.”

“Have you talked to the twins?”

“Liala’s called, but it’s hard to tell with Lionel. He has a terrible sleep cycle and the time zones don’t make it easy.”

Kaito is about to offer to call Lio, but quickly dismisses the idea. This is something the Darcy siblings need to talk about without his intervention. “If you need help with the property listing or anything, I’ve got some friends that can help.”

A smile softens the worry lines permanently etched into Rhys’ face. “I’ve got a realtor lined up, but if you know any buff guys that can help me move, then—”

Kaito scoffs and tosses the vegetable scraps into the compost bin with a bit more force than absolutely necessary.

Rhys laughs and reaches across the counter. “Come here.”

Kaito does, leaning in just enough that Rhys’ mug-warmed fingers can curve around his jaw and reel him in for a kiss.

“You smell like onions,” Rhys murmurs against his lips.

“I was in the middle of making curry.” Kaito kisses him again. “And you taste like whiskey and honey.”

He can feel the way Rhys’ smile takes over, and Kaito immediately regrets having to reach across the counter instead of moving around it before accepting the kiss.

[howlingday]

Compromise

Jacques: (Sighs, Rubs eyes) Okay... So this treaty is getting scrapped, yes?

Watts: Well, if they won't agree to our terms, then I don't understand why we should let them call this "fair".

Marrow: It's not just us! We tried to readon with them and- And she threw pens at me!

Salem: Pen. I threw A pen at you, crybaby.

Marrow: W-Well, what if I throw pens at you instead? (Throws, Misses)

Salem: Nice toss, Michael J. Caboose.

Ironwood: Hey. You want me to try? (Click!) It's not going to be a pen, though.

Watts: See?! See?! They overreact to every little thing!

Jacques: Yes. Yes, I do see.

Jacques: You're children! That's why old man Big Nicholas put you in the family pool and let you duke it out. Surprise! Big Nicholas was a barely competent parent! At least when my kids whine about fairness, I tell them fairness is a philosophical fairy tale! There's no such thing as being fair! What did you guys-

Emerald: Hey!

Jacques: What did you PEOPLE come here for?! Look, you won't get everything, but you'll get SOMETHING. Then you both take off on your evil monsters and high tech toys, brag to your weirdo besties and brag about how much you gottem! Make some damn compromises, for Dust's sake!

Jacques: ...

Jacques: Or you both get nothing, go home, and cry about it. "WAAAH! WE DIDN'T GET EVERYTHING WHAT WE WANTED, SO WE GOT NOTHING! BECAUSE WE'RE SUCH BIG BABIES!"

Jacques: ...What's it going to be?

Watts: ...Fine.

Jacques: Atlas? Will you play nice?

Winter: ...Fine.

Jacques: Good! Now look over my changes and sign it. Trust me, it's a way better deal than whatever Big Nicholas wrote.

[giggly-squiggily]

Forget Me Not (Black Clover)

Happy Valentine's Day! I wasn't planning on posting anything, but in a sudden boom of motivation, I've decided I'm posting a fic! Yunleo makes me soft, and I haven't yelled about them in a minute, so here we are! :D I hope you like it!

Cloud 9 (Taglist Peeps):

@duckymcdoorknob @rachi-roo

Summary: It's the day before Valentine's and Leopold completely forgot. He scrambles to put together the perfect gift for his boyfriend.

Leopold was in quite the predicament.

You see, it all started a mere few hours ago…

~~~

“Perfect-oh, wait- no. It spread.” Mimosa sighed, brows furrowing as she looked at her tray of misshapen heart cookies. “They look like potatoes!”

“Yum!” Leopold grinned as he snagged one, frantically shoving it in his mouth before he could burn his fingerprints off. “They taste good! Nothing like a potato.”

“Why did you..nevermind.” His cousin shook her head with a small laugh as she put the tray down, grabbing her cookie cutter in hopes of reshaping them before they cooled. “At least they taste good. I suppose that’s the important part.”

Leopold hummed, mouth too full to speak. He watched her curiously, tilting his head as she reshaped her handiwork. “What’s the occasion? Are you guys having a celebration or something?”

“You could say that- it’s for Valentine’s Day. I’m gonna frost these and give them to-” She looked back at him, blinking when he went pale. “Leo?”

Oh.

Oh no.

No, no, no, no, NO!

How did he forget???

~~~

“What about… that’s not gonna work. Oh, now…no, that’s dumb!”

Leopold was pacing around his room, hands in his hair as he struggled to think of something. It felt like the hours of his day were flying by with each failed attempt at securing a date. Most if not all the local restaurants were full with reservations for the big day, and shopping proved fruitless.

Then there was the question of what Yuno even wanted for Valentine's day. Past experience proved asking was pointless; his boyfriend always said the same thing when asked what he wanted: “You.” It was cute and never failed to make Leopold blush as dark as his hair; but it didn’t make surprises like now easier.

That left only one thing remaining; a handmade gift.

And Leopold…wasn’t exactly a craft man.

“Why is making paper flowers so difficult!?” He cried in frustration after the seventh failed attempt, tossing yet another crumpled mess into the pile growing on his bed. Mimosa was kind enough to show him how to make them on such short notice, but it didn’t mean much in the end. Littered on the floor were various paper hearts he tried to cut out like a heart- but even those were lopsided and ugly. Little scraps of paper and a dash of glitter coated his room like a thin film with the redhead sitting in the middle of it all, fighting the urge not to cry.

“Come on, don’t give up! You’re a Vermillion! We don’t throw in the towel!” He grunted through a lump in his throat, closing his eyes as he willed himself to take deep breaths.

Paper hearts and flowers were out. He couldn’t cook to save his life, so forget that. Yuno was one of those weird people who didn’t like chocolate, so that wasn’t an option- what was left? What could he..

Opening his eyes, he peeked at the remaining paper and pens before him; survivors of his crafting storm.

And just like that- he had a plan.

~~~

February 14th. It was officially the big day.

Oh great Wizard King save him.

Throughout the day, Leopold was a mess of anxiety and excitement; alternating between joy of sharing his gift with Yuno and dread that he’d hate it. They weren’t meeting up until the evening; both of them had a day full of team tasks to do before then- giving the fiery mage even more time to panic.

What if Yuno saw right through him? His gift was certainly last minute; nothing flashy or intricate- Leopold feared it would come off as disappointing; leaving his boyfriend to question if Leopold truly did love him.

Oh god- what if Yuno hates it so much they break up? The idea made his legs feel heavy, dragging his feet up towards their usual spot as he went to face destiny. His heart raced a mile a minute, threatening to bust out of his chest.

I want to run.

I want to run away.

I can’t face you; I’ll only disappoint you.

He started to turn-

“Leo?” That voice- soft and low- called out to him. Leopold felt himself freeze, everything in him coming to a complete standstill. He had been caught. “Hey.”

“Y-Yuno! Fancy meeting you out here! Hehe, hi!” Leopold twisted to face him, smiling big in hopes it’d hide his fear. “W-What a night to meet! Hehe, so what’s u-up?”

“You invited me out?” Yuno raised a brow, concern in those golden eyes as he watched him sweat. “Are you okay? You seem a bit-”

“Happy Valentine's Day!” Leopold practically shouted, making them both flinch. There, he said it! Yuno blinked at him, eyes wide.

“Oh…Oh! Right- Happy Valentine's Day, Leo.” He smiled gently, relaxing as everything came together. “Is that why you invited me out here?”

“Huh? What- I-” Breathe! He took a shaky breath, willing himself to calm. “Yes- that’s exactly why! I have a-”

He’ll hate it.

Three little words was all it took. Leopold felt his voice fade out as he froze once more, paling beneath the stars. He..he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t take that risk.

Yuno raised a brow, giving him a small encouraging smile. Leopold took it to his heart as he let out a shaky breath.

“Yuno…I have a present for you.” Leopold reached into his pocket, hands shaking as he went to grab said gift. He couldn’t even get his hand in his pocket. “But…I’m scared to give it to you.” At his boyfriend’s raised brows, he hurried on. “I’m just- I just really nervous all of a sudden cause it’s kinda last minute and I usually put more thought into things like this and I don’t want you to hate me-the gift and-EH!”

Fingers pressed into his sides out of nowhere, making him jump up with a squeak. He hadn’t realized Yuno got so close. “So you're saying…you’ve lost your nerve?” Yuno asked, something teasing in his tone as he pressed in more, making Leopold giggle and squirm. “In that case, I’ll help you find it.”

“Y-Yuhuhuhuno! Ahehahahaa- wahahahit!” This was certainly not how he planned tonight to go. Dancing in his boyfriend’s arms as Yuno gently tickled his ribs, his face pressed into his chest as he lightly batted at his chest. “Hahhahahang ohoohohn, I gohohohotta fihihiihnd it ohohoohohn my ohohohohohown!”

“Sorry, no can do. We’ll be here all night.” Yuno grinned as he pulled the redhead into his chest, wiggling his fingers against his belly and making him squeal. “Not that I mind that, really.”

“YUHUHUHNO!” Leopold thrashed in his arms, kicking dirt and stardust around them as he laughed like a goon. Out here in their usual spot, not a soul could hear them. It felt both freeing and devastating at the same time. “YUHUUHUHNO PLEAHHAHAHSE!”

“Please what?”

“DOHOOHOHN’T DHOOHOOHOHO THAHHAT!”

“Do what? You gotta be more clear, Leo~”

“TIHIHIHICKLE MEHHEHEHE- NHOOOHOHO WAHHAHAHIT!” Leopold all but shrieked when Yuno bit his shoulder, blowing a raspberry against the clothed fabric. Low and behold- he found yet another spot on him that was ticklish! “YUHUHUHUNO!”

“What? I’m just doing what you asked me to do!” Yuno grinned, moving his fingers back to his sides as Leopold calmed. “Do you feel better now? Ready to share with the group?”

“Ahehaha! Fihihihine, fhihiihhine! Ihiiihhih’m reahhhhahahdy!” Leopold gasped out, falling back against the other with a soft sigh as Yuno supported him. “Yoohohu’re teehehrrible!”

“Hm.” The wind mage smiled as he pressed a kiss against Leopold’s cheek. “You love me.”

“I do.” He replied automatically, his voice hushed with sincerity. He felt Yuno jolt in surprise; not quite used to hearing it. It gave Leopold the push he needed. “Hey, can you let me go for a sec? It’s important.”

Yuno did so, watching him as the redhead took a few steps away. Turning back to his boyfriend, Leopold reached into his pocket, pulling out the folded paper. “I wrote this and…well, I know it’s not much, but if you’ll have me, I’d like to read it to you.”

“Poetry, Leo? Who would have known.” Yuno teased good naturedly, leaning back on his heels as he waited. 

“I’m not much of a poet- but I tried.” After another breathe, Leopold began to read.

“First of all; Happy Valentine’s Day. It’s our first, and I wanted to do something special for it. However- this is where I must confess. I kinda…forgot.” Leopold winched. Yuno gasped, clutching his pearls.

Then he chuckled, easing away Leopold’s worries.

“Sorry about that. I’ll remember going forward. But this letter isn’t about my forgetfulness; it’s about something much more important…it’s about you.

“When we first met; it was during my sister’s bootcamp. I remember when I first really looked at you- I thought to myself: ‘This guy’s really cool. And he looks strong. I have to defeat him!’ I declared you my rival and set my goal to surpassing this really cool guy with fluffy black hair and eyes like sunlight by any means necessary. I challenged you to many duels, and not once did you turn me down.

“I think that’s when I started to fall for you. I can’t pinpoint an exact moment; maybe it was the way you carried yourself- or how you always talked about your siblings with such love. Maybe it was during a battle- or how you declare your ambitions like obtainable goals rather than distant dreams. I thought my admiration for you was simply that; a feeling of mutual respect for my fellow mage.

“But then you looked at me and I realized it was more than that. It was love. A love that burned within me like a burning candle wick- new and different than anything I’ve felt before. It grew and grew until there were times I simply couldn’t be around you cause all I wanted was to tell you how I felt. I was scared you wouldn’t feel the same, so I kept that burning wick to myself for months.

“And then…you returned my feelings. You said you liked me back! I couldn’t believe it! Sure- things were a bit rocky at the start, and there was a moment I was scared my wick would blow out, leaving me cold within, but you kept it burning and you still do.

“Did that sound good? I’m not exactly good at this poetry stuff. The point is- I love you, Yuno. I love your ambitions and your dreams, I love your faith in me when I don’t have any left. I love when you smile at me, when you take my hand in yours and never let go. I love how you look at me when you talk- like I’m the only one here. I love how passionate you are about what you want to do with your life. I love your bravery, your kindness, your competitive spirit and how you always make me feel loved and treasured. Your love comes as easy as breathing, and I want to keep breathing it in, letting it do whatever air does to our bodies- something about blood cells and whatnot.

“I probably killed the vibe with that last part; the point is- I love you, and for as long as I live- I’ll always love you. Even in death I’ll love you. My heart is yours for all eternity. Happy Valentine's Day, Yuno. Let’s have many more.”

Finishing the letter, he stared at the page, suddenly too shy to look up. What would he see when he did? Would Yuno fight off laughs? Would he be bored? Disgusted? Disappointed? He was scared.

Be brave.

He looked up- and stared. Yuno was crying.

“Babe..” He whispered, but that’s all Leopold got out before he was engulfed by arms, a cloud of pine and forest invading his nose as Yuno clung to him. “Yuno?”

“Not much of a poet my ass.” He choked out, a wet laugh coming though his voice. “Leopold…That was so…I love you so much.”

Those words were like coming up for air after nearly drowning. More than that- it felt like he was ascending. His body felt light with relief, almost numb as he brought them around his boyfriend- grounding him and filling him with warmth. “I was worried you’d hate it.”

“Never. I loved every word.” Yuno pulled back, eyes shiny with tears. Leopold reached up, brushing them away with his thumb. “I hate that I don’t have the words to describe how I feel right now…”

“More than words?” Leopold asked, earning another wet laugh. He closed his eyes as Yuno leaned in, capturing his lips with ease. Where words failed him, Yuno’s kiss told him everything he so desperately wanted to hear. His hands ran through black tufts of hair as Yuno grasped his hips, pulling him against him until only the pounding of their hearts were between them.

~~~

“I feel kinda bad now. I didn’t get you anything for Valentine’s Day.” Yuno confessed after some time. They were lying beneath the stars, his head on Leopold’s chest as the redhead played with his hair. “I kinda forgot too.”

“What?” Now it was his turn to clutch pearls. “Yuno!”

They looked at eachother. Then they were laughing.

“We’re a match made to be!” Leopold wheezed, shaking beneath Yuno as he giggled himself silly. “God, I love you.”

“I love you too.” Yuno smiled, scooting up so they were nose to nose. “I still want to give you something. Is there anything you want?”

“You.” Leopold grinned, watching Yuno flush pink, starting to laugh once more as he lightly slapped his chest.

“Jerk- that’s my line.” He laughed again, the sound muffled by Leopold’s lips on his. He was melting against him in minutes. “I still want to get you back.”

“You already did. Your love for me is the greatest gift I’ve ever received.” Leopold smiled, pressing his forehead against Yunos. “What more do I need when I have you?”

Instead of words, Yuno kissed him again and again.

Even if they both forgot the rest of them; Leopold would always remember this Valentine’s Day.

Thanks for reading!

[lianhua-jun]

Am I ever gonna get through this book?! I turn the page to 28 and am smacked with this:

"No need." Shen Qingqiu stopped Luo Binghe, and with a flick of his wrist, he tossed over a small bottle. "This is medicine." He paused before adding in a mocking tone, "Don't let anyone see; they might think my Qing Jing Peak abuses its disciples."

Shen Qingqiu had assumed his role quickly. Even though he'd done something daringly subversive by handing over medicine, he'd also done it with a nasty attitude. Therefore, it was passably in line with Shen Qingqiu's hypocritical nature—his tendency to do evil while he simultaneously feared others finding out.

He has such a "I'm not like other girls" attitude towards the original goods, and he's so petty about it! I can understand doing this compare and contrast thing between himself and the original goods, but when he's being so needlessly catty, it makes you wonder. Does he see something of himself in the original?

Not that the cattiness lasts; he pretty much immediately pivots into our third instance of Binghe Bias:

At this point in time, Luo Binghe's face was still full of innocence, his smile sincere and gentle like the warm dawning sun. Shen Qingqiu stared at it for a while, then turned his face away.

Prior to his darkening, this male lead's personality was that of a model and upright youth; shine a bit of sunlight on him and he'd glow, give him a scrap of goodwill and he'd return it tenfold— that type. It would not have been an exaggeration to call him a little lamb.

I'M SORRY, are we thinking of the same guy?? He clearly states multiple times earlier that the roots of Binghe's blackening are in his troubled childhood—including all the way back before he came to Cang Qiong.

It's things like this that made me decide to call it Binghe Bias. I genuinely do not believe Shen Qingqiu's assessment of Luo Binghe at all—it comes off as very "rose-tinted glasses" to me. I think this boy was always the type to have viscious feelings, he just hid them in his heart as a child.

Additionally, I want to laugh at the whole lamb thing. I completely understand how the fandom ran with Bingpup, but can we just tease SQQ about thinking that Binghe's a sweet and innocent little lamb? Wolf in sheep's clothing, sure. Genuine little sheepy? No.

This is not Binghe slander, I think he's great. My only criticism here is of Shen Qingqiu's warped impression. This whole book is just gonna be me explaining how Shen Qingqiu does his best to break my brain, I'm like 80% sure.

[aelinschild]

TWO - ROWAN

Holding Me Like Water In Your Hands

Main Masterlist | HMLWIYH Masterlist

And its time for chapter two! I'm in the process of creating a masterlist and mood boards along for this series, so look out for that! Anyways, please enjoy, and feel free to let me know your thoughts! :)

SYNOPSIS:A cross continental move forces Aelin Galathynius to open her eyes wider than before, and at the doors of Terrasen's most exclusive and expensive private high school, she realizes her life is flowing through her. And if she wants to make the most of her life, she needs to grab onto something. Or maybe someone. WORDCOUNT: 1.3k GENERAL WARNINGS: Language, Drug use, Alcohol, Allusion to sex/intimacy, Brief descriptions of sexual assault, Domestic violence, Very severe angst, Messy Divorces (More to be added)

The air is hot, and beads of sweat roll down my back. My ratty t-shirt does little to hide the sweat, and the working overalls only add another layer to this heavy Orynth heat. 

Terrasen’s weather is well known for being difficult. Freezing winters and withering summers, dramatic rainstorms, or weeks of fog. All part of the routine. I roll out from underneath the car I'm working on. Three out of the four garage doors are propped open, and the AC is coughing up air, it's not cold, but at least it keeps the air moving.

I wipe my grease-stained hands onto my overalls and reach for the filter I need. After I switch this out, then refill the oil, ill be done for the day, and I can hear the creek behind my house beckoning me. 

I work in the Elia, one of Orynth’s more reliable garages. And technically my labour is illegal, but being good friends with the Ashryvers comes with perks. Like a job. And I’m the lucky one, because Aedion doesn't even get paid. Gavriel took pity on me years ago, and I've been working here since, trying to cushion my pockets a little more. 

The office doors bangs open, disturbing the fragile silence of the room.“Yo,” the devil himself shouts from the other side of the garage. “Dad says you’re good to go if you want. Just stop by the office. He got your moneyyy.” Aedion shouts, humour lining his tone.

It's a running joke, I get paid under the table until I'm sixteen, and Aedion gets nothing. He likes to pretend he’ll tell some sort of authority on me, but Gavriel shuts that down pretty fast. 

I snort and roll back under the car. I can hear him banging around somewhere. I move through the motions quickly, tasks like this have become second nature to me at this point. 

I was eleven when Gavriel recruited me to his small team of mechanics. Aedion and I constantly were getting into scraps at primary school, and my adopted parents and Gavriel thought a job might help me ease my overactive mind and raging hormones. The past few years have been mostly instruction and learning. Small projects and being the glorified maid for the older guys, but I'm beyond grateful for Gav’s direction. 

My family and I aren't rolling in money, and it pained me when I would hear them up at night pouring over overdue bills, attempting to budget and still support Oliver, my adopter father’s medical bills. There was nothing I could do as an eleven-year-old boy, but now I'm fourteen and I make ten dollars an hour. Which magically make their way into Myra, my adopted mother’s, pockets each Sunday. 

I fill the oil, and toss the empty bottles into the trash. Dragging a cloth from my overalls across my forehead, I close the hood of the car with one hand and begin to clean up my station. I may not be as good as the older guys, but I'm meticulous about cleaning. Gavriel approves, Aedion calls me anal. I walk my things over to the tool bench and put them away. Elia Ashryver stares at me from her perch on the wall. The photo of her, in the signature Elia red overalls, tattoos lining her arms, and elbow-deep in grease, shines from its spot. 

Gavriel and Elia Ashryver started this garage decades ago, but it was Elia who roped Gav into it. She was a wild child. The black sheep of her family. Apparently, she was decorated in ink before Gav had even met her in mechanical school. She was top of her class, knowing how to repair anything with an unnatural efficiency. Machines were second nature to her. And Gavriel fell head over heels in love with the cunning woman and post-graduation, the two were hitched and opening their own garage together. Elia’s expertise was the best in Orynth. And their business bloomed. Soon she was pregnant, and the asshole I call my friend was born. 

I've heard the story recited over and over from Gav, who revers his wife, but the end of her story was harder to get out of him. Elia struggled after Aedion’s birth. Her Post-Partum Depression lasted longer than the doctor said it might, and she became a different person. She struggled to bring herself out of bed, be with her child, or work with the machines she once loved. And Gav was so caught up in running a business and caring for his son, that he missed the warning signs. Elia Ashryver ended up overdosing not eight months after Aedion was born. 

Her picture never collects dust.

I shut the drawers, and make my way to the office, the red overalls I wear drag slightly on the ground around the heels of my work boots. I'll grow into them eventually. I see Aedions boots underneath a Ford Raptor, which is unsurprisingly back for the fourth time in six weeks. 

“Turn on the radio on your way out!” He shouts.

“Kay,” I flick the dial and the room fills with the familiar static of the ancient radio, landing on a more common channel playing the ‘top hits’. I recognize the new song from The Archeron Sisters.  

Aedions shitty singing fills the room, and I hastily make my way to Gav’s office before I permanently lose my hearing. I rap my knuckles on the frosted door. 

“Come in,” The voice inside shouts. 

I push the door open, and I'm hit with the heat of the room. “Gods Gav, this place is like a sauna,” I say as I trudge over to the shelf that holds my cash.  

He laughs and runs his hands through his shoulder-length hair. “I heard it's good for the skin, keeps me young, or something.” I laugh and turn to face him after I've slipped the cash into my back pocket. 

Gavriel’s a handsome man for all the weight he carries. One might think you'd find the lines of his grief over his face, but it's fitted with wrinkles from all the smiling he does. Somehow, Elia’s death doesn't really haunt him, or this garage. How he does it, ill never know. 

He leans back and appraises me. 

“You look taller than the last time I saw you,” He muses.

“Taller than yesterday?” I smile.

“Maybe a foot of height?”

“Sure Gav” 

“Bigger too, been lifting?”

I roll my eyes. “Nope.”

“You gonna join the rugby team? Aedion’s been crawling up the walls with excitement to start.” He shifts forward, tawny eyes boring into me. 

I shift in place, uncomfortable. “I’ll see.”

“You’re nervous to go to ORHS, arent you?” He states. 

“I'm not nervous.” I scoff. 

We stare at each other. And I wait for him to call me out on my bullshit. Sometimes I think Gavriel knows me better than I know myself. He just hums and nods. 

“CUSTOMER!” Aedion bellows from the garage. 

Gav rises from the worn leather chair. “Go home kid. I'll see you next week.” He says as he passes by me and wanders out of the office. 

I sigh, and turn to the other door that leads to the break room and staff parking lot just outside. Swiping a stale donut off the countertop, I trudge over to my pickup truck that's days away from being impounded into some dinosaur museum. Stuffing my face, I hop in and drive home.

[fixfoxnox]

I saw those tags please talk about it please i'll listen to anything you have to say believe me

More bts stuff for you guys!!

So fun fact, Chapter 10 of this fic (Jolene aka the one where Jackson comes to visit the base, Soap and Ghost get jealous, and ghost kisses Roach) had many different ways that it almost went!

I tossed around a lot of different ideas for this chapter because I really wanted to hit Soap and Ghost with the jealousy hammer when it came to Roach.

My initial idea going into the chapter was that Roach was going to get drunk (out of sadness naturally.) This chapter was initially going to involve some hefty Soap/Ghost moments that Roach would witness. Jackson was going to ask the two something about their relationship and Ghost was going to say something that first life Ghost had said to Roach, but about Soap this time and it was, naturally, going to absolutely ruin Roach.

So the initial idea was that at the bar, Roach was going to get fairly drunk, do some karaoke to Jolene, then absolutely flirt his ass off with a guy. This was gonna hit Soap and Ghost with adorable Roach drunkenly doing Karaoke (they're in love) followed immediately by a hit of jealousy.

I ended up scrapping this because I lowkey thought that having Roach do Karaoke would be a little too silly for the fic, so I scrapped it.

Another Idea that I had was going to tie in further with the Cowboy Hat Rule conversation. Essentially I had initially placed the Base further in the south and the squad were gonna go to a much busier bar (almost club type of thing) where Roach was going to be first approached by a woman who he quickly explains to that he's queer. Followed immediately by this woman trying to set him up with her friend.

The big moment that was going to spur Ghost and Soap into interrupting Roach was actually going to be Roach taking the guys cowboy hat. It was going to be called out by Jackson ("Holy shit, Sanderson just took that guys hat! Thats my boy!")

I'll explain why I scrapped this one in a moment, but another one that I scrapped for the same reason was that they were going to go to a busier bar (again) and rather than only one person showing Roach attention, baby was going to have the entire club going after his ass (literally).

Like constant flow of drink to the table, men constantly coming up to flirt with Roach. The idea was that initially Soap and Ghost were going to ignore it, but slowly get more and more aggravated as the night went on. They were especially going to get frustrated when one of the men that Roach had actually been flirting with was bold enough to take his cowboy hat off and put it on Roach's head.

So the reason I decided to scrap these was pretty simple: the bar was way more crowded than I wanted it and I was way too tempted to actually let Roach leave with one of the guys lol.

I couldn't see the 141 going to a crowded bar because of Ghost and the mask.

And while I could have sent Roach home with someone (hello major jealousy on Ghost and Soaps part) I really wanted Roach to go back to base with them so he could have the interaction with Ghost.

I'd briefly considered having Roach hook up with one of the guys at the bar (like in the bathroom or something), but I didn't really feel like he would be bold enough to go for that.

Another idea that I had initially incorporated one of Roach's brothers. I thought it would be interesting if one of Roach's brothers owned a bar and that it was somewhere in Roach's hometown that they were stationed near.

The idea was that they would go into the bar and Roach would essentially get the team free drinks all night. The conflict would come when one or more of his old school bullies would be at the bar. Either the bullies would be like "we're gonna beat the shit out of him for the broken arm thing" or the bully that they ran into was going to actually have come out and flirt with Roach.

I ended up scrapping this primarily for the fact that it would place Roach somewhere closer to his parents and childhood home and I didn't really see that working out how I wanted to, especially because I knew that Roach's stuff with his family was going to become a more important thing later (we aren't there yet in the fic 🤫)

I also just didn't really like the bully idea after mulling it over for a bit.

Another one incorporated more of Jackson flirting with Roach! When they got to the bar he was going to lay it on thick and Roach was going to playfully flirt back with him. This was going to culminate in Jackson inviting Roach back to his hotel room with him ("Why don't you come back with me, Sanderson? It'll be just like old times. I wanna see if I can get you to whimper like you used to for me." *cue Roach literally turning into a tomato and Ghost and Soap seriously considering rolling Jackson into a nearby street*).

I actually almost went through with this lol, but I ended up deciding to go with a separate character cause I was like "I probably shouldn't have Soap and Ghost hate Roach's best friend."

It was certainly a close battle though.

Last little bit, Roach's conversations/interactions with James in the bar were initially longer and more flirty, however, I ended up cutting most of it because it ended up dragging on a bit too much and slowing down the rest of the chapter.

[yourstreetserenade]

1, 6 and 9

1. What’s your middle name, and do you like it?

Okay so like, Nicole *is* my middle name.

After a Very Weird situation involving a certain ex, I deleted all of my old social media that had my actual first name attached. I just didn't want to exist online anymore and risk him finding me somehow. Not that I was in fear for my life or anything and not to say he was ever physically threatening, but there were moments where it was clearly over and he would say ''well, what if I just showed up at your job...'' I just didn't want him fucking with my life, my job or my family and so later on when I made new socials I used my middle name. I kinda think my middle name is pretty cool so I stuck with it over the years. But anyway yeah, fuck that guy lol

6. Do you play any sports?

I can play sports, that doesn't necessarily mean I can play them well. I like baseball though. Playing it though, not watching it, watching baseball is like watching grass grow.

9. Do you have any cool talents?

I'm one of those people who dabbles in lots of odd little hobbies, but does none of them exceptionally well.

I will say, I don't post them or anything but I do enjoy making weird little art pieces. I take old books, tear them up, mix up scraps and put them on small canvases.

This is one I gifted to a friend a few years back.

Here's another one. This has been on my wall for years. I don't know if this will offend anyone but, I tore up an old bible, tossed some red and black paint around and stuck it in a frame. It's chaotic and ugly, but like, purposely so.

My friend told me that these are weird and kooky and I should put a few up on Etsy to see if anything happens but I don't think I could. When I make something and it doesn't come out the way I want it to, I'll tear it up and use the bits and pieces again and again until I'm happy with what I create. And when I'm happy with what I create and think it looks really weird and cool, like, I can't part with it. I just want to put it up on a wall and stare at the things I make.

[casspurrjoybell-22]

Dream Eater - Chapter 11 - Part 1

*Warning Adult Content*

I expected post-sex awkwardness but Damien moves right past it and doesn't look back. 

Something's changed between us, though and despite my determination to keep feelings out of it, little glimmers of happiness keep sparking in my chest whenever he touches me or looks my way and it pisses me off.

Damien's the last guy I want to fall for.

He's a pushy, dangerous asshole and he's got more baggage than the cargo deck of a 747 but he's also a patient, thoughtful and an attentive lover... not to mention... hot as fuck.

I know he only cares about me because of the Key but when he laughs at the stupid things I say or explores my body with pleasure and admiration, I can almost convince myself he's seeing Alex Shade and not just a shade of someone else.

His dreams change, too and for the first time since I met him, he has a nightmare that isn't based on a memory.

I know because I'm in it.

In the dream, I watch myself through his eyes as I walk towards an enormous stone arch.

I call to myself to stop and come back but I don't listen.

There's a blinding light and I'm gone.

For a dream not from memory, his pain is surprisingly intense.

After the fourth time I wake up with a tear-stained pillow, I ask him about it.

"It's a Doorway," he tells me, tiredly. "You're seeing yourself open it with the Key."

"But... where do I go?" I ask.

He gives me a look.

"Heavenly Keys are destroyed when they're used to open a Door. That's why Sakariel knew he would die whether the rebellion succeeded or not. If he'd managed to open a Door, he'd have been consumed by it."

"Oh."

I guess that explained why he was so tragic all the time.

"Well, stop worrying about it," I say. "Even if I could, I don't plan on opening any doors."

Later that morning, I discover I have other reasons to worry and they're a lot closer at hand.

Allannan summons Damien to see her and I go along because no one says not to.

When we enter her study, she looks grim.

"Allannan, has something happened?" Damien asks.

She looks between him and me and for a moment I wonder if she's going to ask me to leave but then she speaks.  

"Last night, someone attempted to break into the residential wing of the estate. They got away but they left this behind."

She lifts a small cloth bag from her desk and tosses it to Damien.

He catches it and looks through it.

His expression grows sour.

"Poison, blades, rope... an assassin, then."

Allannan nods.

"He also had this."

She hands him a small scrap of paper. 

He frowns and shows it to me and I recognize a crude map of the building... our room is marked in red. 

"It seems he was after either you or Alex but the most disturbing thing is what my guard managed to snatch from around his neck."

She holds out a pendant on a string and Damien goes still.

"What is it?" I ask.

It looks like an X in a circle.

"The cross of the Vanguard," Damien says. "Oran's elite crew."

He stands.

"I will discover what is behind this, Allannan. I apologize if we've brought trouble to your house."

She shakes her head.

"I'm not worried about my house, Damien. I'm worried about those within its walls."

Damien barely speaks as we cross the city to Oran's headquarters.

He marches up the steps and storms through the doors, directly into what appears to be a meeting of some sort.

Around a dozen people are gathered at a long table and Oran sits at its head.

"Damien. What a surprise," Oran says, rising to greet us.

The others rise as well. "

And... Alex, wasn't it? What brings you to my humble home?"

Damien's voice is cold when he replies.

"I'm here because two attempts have been made on Alex's life. Can you explain why an assassin would be wearing the sign of the Vanguard?"

Oran doesn't answer for a moment but his face loses the false cheerfulness and falls into a well-worn expression of steely gravity.

"Well, it seems the time for subtlety is passed. Yes, the assassins were mine. I would have done things more directly but you seem... attached. Besides, after nearly a century as Azael's prisoner, I don't know how much I can trust you. Especially when you won't even use your real name anymore."

Damien is obviously furious and as I watch a pale, lean blade of blue fire forms in his hand.

"I suggest you explain yourself, Oran and quickly."

The others in the room move to draw their own weapons but Oran stills them with a wave of his hand.

"The war isn't over, Damien and the stakes are higher than ever. I'm only doing what I must."

He nods towards some of the others and they move behind us, blocking our retreat.

"What are you talking about?" Damien snaps.

"Of course the war is over. The Key was destroyed and our forces broken and scattered. You can't hope to reignite rebellion at this point."

Oran shakes his head.

"Do you really think our side was the only one with an agenda? Azael has his own plans and they are long in the making."

He moves around the end of the table and comes towards us.

"Tell me, Damien, why do you think he did what he did to Sakariel?"

I hear Damien's breath catch.

"To punish him. To destroy him," he whispers and Oran sneers.

"Punish, yes. Destroy, no. If he truly wanted him destroyed, he would have used a Sephiroth blade. He wanted him broken, ruined, shattered beyond repair. He wanted the pieces and this... abomination... is the result," he says, gesturing to me.

"I don't understand," I say, trying not to sound like I'm freaking out. "Why would he need a broken Key? Why not just use Sakariel as he was?"

It's Damien who answers me, sounding stunned.

"Because Heavenly Keys only open higher realms."

"You always were bright," Oran nods at him. "That's right. The Door Azael wants to open doesn't need a Key. It needs something dark and twisted. More of a lock's pick, really."

Damien sways and the blade of fire fades from his hand.

"He wants to open the Abyss," he says.

I don't know what that means but it sounds bad.

"Indeed," Oran confirms. "A Key would never serve but if he could break one, mold it and twist to his purpose... that might do."

He pauses for a moment, seemingly letting Damien absorb this information.

Leaning against the table and crossing his arms, he continues.

"Of course, the pieces were scattered far and wide but Azael had time to find them. He only needed one, after all. We set out to make sure he failed. While you were trapped in Azael's domain, we were busy tracking down as many fragments as we could find and putting an end to them."

He turns his eyes towards me with a look of thoughtful disgust.

"We never thought to look on Earth but at least this piece is the last."

Damien goes pale.

"What do you intend?"

Oran cocks his head.

"We mean to destroy it, of course. Although there is another way. A way that might even heal Sakariel's soul, given time."  

I feel a shiver of alarm when I hear the interest in Damien's voice.

"What way?" he asks and Oran smiles.

"We could burn him clean with Fire. Scour away the polluting elements... the human and demon. Only the fragment of Celestial soul will be left, purified. In time, the fragment may heal itself and regain its whole form... your beloved restored."

"What about Alex?" Damien asks and Oran shrugs.

"He is partly Sakariel, after all. The human and demon parts of him will perish, as will his physical form, of course but we will supply another for the fragment. One more... suitable... for a Celestial soul."

I feel like he's basically saying I'm gonna die.

At least, pretty much all of me that makes me who I am.

"Damien, don't listen to him," I say. "Even if Sakariel's soul could be restored, he wouldn't be the same person you knew and loved. He's gone... you have to accept that."

"Silence, demon," Oran snaps. "You will die regardless... either burned clean by Fire or slain by sacred blade. A defiled Key cannot be allowed to exist. The choice is Dantalian's."