#i'm actually pretty enthused with this au?

[luveline]

i’ve been re-reading some of the kbd au and was wondering if u would be up to writing a little kbd blurb wherein steve’s being all flirty and silly with reader? idk what it is but flirty kbd!steve specifically rips my heart open he’s so cute when he’s trying to charm r make r laugh <3 thank u as always mwah

thank you my love!! ♡ kbd au

Bethie brings a drink with her as she enters the living room. Steve a few steps behind her, your husband leans in the doorway and winces with every drop she spills on the floor. 

The cup is half full when it reaches you, but it is for you. "Here, mom." 

"Thank you," you say, tone enthused with bubbly affection. Bethie looks like you rather than Steve, and her smile is a mirror.

"Daddy says, uhm…" She looks over her shoulder at Steve. He nods encouragingly. She turns back. "Dad says to tell you that it's from a man at the bar. Because you look beautiful." 

You sniff at the drink, take an experimental sip. It's Steve's version of a virgin margarita, lemonade, orange juice and a spritz of fresh lime juice. "Ooh, so yummy. You want to try?" 

Bethie wrinkles her nose. "Will I like it?" 

Probably not. "I'm not sure, but it's got bubbles?"

Bethie shakes her head. You don't take it personally, scooping your second eldest up to sit on your thigh. She's not heavy. It's actually really nice when she leans back and uses your tummy as a chair, to be loved like this. 

Steve crosses his arms over his chest. "Come here often?" he asks with a wink. 

"Only every day, handsome." 

"Handsome? You're two timing the poor dolt stupid enough to buy you a drink, you know." 

"Poor dolt should've used his eyes." You gesture to either side of you, where Avery, the eldest, sits to your left and Dove, the youngest, lounges at your right. "I'm clearly taken." 

"Can't blame a guy for trying. I mean," —Steve whistles, looking you up and down, but he can't commit to his skit, and he cracks a smile— "hot damn, look at you." 

"Come here," you say. 

Steve's smile turns smug. He dodges the small margarita puddles on the way and leans down to kiss you, his hands on your face, a spritely peck that turns to kisses all over your left cheek. "Was the drink okay?" he asks, rubbing at your cheek with his thumb when he's done. 

You meet his eyes. Sugary brown, little flecks of honey crushed as his pupil grows bigger the longer he looks at you. "It's nice. I like your margaritas more than the store bought. Thank you, honey." 

"Oh," he hums, kissing you again. "You're welcome." 

"Daddy," Dove says simply. 

Steve knows what she wants, he can read their wants and needs from less, scooping her up to perch on the end of the couch. She can still fit into the curve of one arm if she tries. 

"Let me guess, you wanted a margarita," Steve teases, sliding a hand under her shirt to tickle her tummy. 

She laughs but ultimately protests, waiting for Steve to kiss her. He noses at her forehead, kissing her temple softly. "Better?" he asks. 

She settles in his arms and turns back to the TV, content. 

"See? You're not the only one in high demand." 

You sit back and beg him with your eyes to do the same. Steve does so immediately, shoulder to shoulder with you, pressing the tip of his nose to your cheek. Bethie wriggles in your arms and Avery asks about dinner, but for a few silly seconds, it's just you and Steve. 

"Love you. You look really, really pretty today. I had to tell you," Steve says. 

You reach out to squeeze Avery's hand to show you've heard her question. "I love you too, Stevie. Thank you." You make me feel really, really pretty. 

Especially when he says it like that. Three kids and he acts as though you're pretty enough for an urgent telling. Steve would tell you you're even prettier than the day he met you, and he's consistent enough that you genuinely believe it. He's your number one fan, and you're his. 

"Takeout?" you ask.

Steve's eyes glow with love. "Did I mention that you're beautiful?" 

[witchwyfe]

let me down easy - jhs

I pairing: college jake ‘hangman’ seresin x female reader

I précis: you have a date and it’s not with jake :(

I content/warnings: college au, roommates to lovers (that haven’t gotten past the roommates stage yet), mentions of eating and food, mild jealousy, language

I word count: 1,001

I a/n: part of the roommate predicament !!!!

"What are you doing tonight? Do you wanna watch a movie or something?"

You freeze where you're unloading the dishwasher, purposely focusing in on Jake's "Beat Army" coffee mug--despite your hatred for the thing. anything related to the Navy is a reminder of your waning time together--so that you don't have to look at him.

"Uh, I think I'm doing something tonight." You mumble.

"With Natasha?" He wonders casually. "Y'all can hang here if you want."

"No, not with her." You clear your throat.

"Oh, okay."

"I'm," You swallow harshly, mentally grasping for words. You know you don't have to tell Jake anything, but you want to, hoping for some reason that maybe he'll stop you.

"I have a date." You say flatly.

Jake feels his heart plummet to his stomach, but he keeps his face neutral.

"Oh, that's nice." He smiles lightly. "Anyone I know or...?"

"I don't know." You say quietly. "His name's Brent, he's in a study group with me and Tash."

Jake is thinking that Brent is the most ridiculous name he's ever heard and brainstorming how he can join the study group for your marketing class when he's a physics major.

"Jake?"

"Huh?" He wonders, breaking out of his short daydream. "Sorry, what did you say?"

"I asked if you knew him." You relay his full name to Jake again.

"No, I don't." He smiles tightly.

“Oh okay.” You smile. “He just asked if I wanted to hang out sometime and I figured, why not?” 

You could actually think of a hundred reasons why not, and most of them center around the fact that you have a huge, lovesick, crush on your fucking roommate. 

You haven't spoken to Jake since earlier in the afternoon. He'd gone into his room to work on homework so you'd just hung out until it was time to get ready for your date.

You’re just going to get drinks and you’re not very enthused with the plans—more like the person—so you don’t go over the top or anything. You come out into the kitchen in an old sundress, before pulling out a frozen pizza from the freezer.

“Jake!” You call out. “I’m making pizza, do you want any?”

He comes out of his room, smiling lightly at you. “Hey, sweet thing,” 

“Hi.” You smile brightly at him. God how much you wish you were staying home with him instead. Jake, who actually gives you butterflies in your tummy, who makes you smile for real, and who already understands you so well, you feel like you’ve known him your whole life. 

Jake’s smile at seeing you quickly drops when you turn. You’re wearing a pretty sundress, one that he’s never seen before and you’re going out with another guy. It’s not fair to you, he can’t expect you to never date anyone if he doesn’t tell you how he feels, but he doesn’t want to put you in the unfair position of rejecting him—because there’s no way you could ever feel the same. 

"Did you want some pizza?” You wonder again. “I’m gonna heat this and I figured you’d be eating soon anyway.”

“Yeah sure, thank you.” He smiles. “You need any help?”

“Nah, I don’t think so.” 

You and Jake eat the pizza together on the island, and he notices how often you check the time on your phone. 

“What time do you have to leave?” He asks, Adam’s apple bobbing nervously. “You know, uh, for your date?”

“Oh,” You sigh as if you’d forgotten about it. “In like twenty minutes.”

“He’s not picking you up?”

“We’re meeting there.” Jake doesn’t say anything for a moment and you look down at your phone once again, using a piece of paper towel to wipe your greasy fingerprints from the surface. 

You look at him again, pleading in your mind for him to do something, say something, anything to stop you from going. “You,” You clear your throat. “What are you up to tonight? Anything fun?”

He scratches the side of his head, tilting it as if he’s lost in thought. “Nah, probably not. Might grab a beer with Bradley or something.”

“That sounds fun!” You offer. You hate this. You hate how your usually easy and comfortable exchanges with Jake, feel awkward and dry. You decide that it’s because of how awkward you’re being, the pre-date jitters are taking over your ability to talk normally with your roommate and friend.

Nope, that’s definitely not it. 

“Yeah.” He agrees. “You sure you don’t need a ride or anything?”

“No, I’ll be fine Jake.” You smile. “But thank you for thinking of me. S’sweet.”

“Of course.” A sick twinge of jealousy pulls in his stomach when he spots you checking the time again. His gaze softens when you tug your bottom lip between your teeth. A soft, albeit quick, breath huffs through your lips and he smiles, hiding it under the guise of a cough. 

“I should probably go.” You speak up, setting your phone down. 

He nods and watches as you go to your room. You grab your shoes and bag, holding back from releasing a scream into the plush of your pillow. 

Jake follows you to the door to lock up, once you’ve collected your phone and the lip gloss you’d grabbed from the bathroom. Jake doesn’t even want to think about your pretty pink gloss being smeared over another guy’s lips. His jaw clenches at the thought. 

“Alright, well I’ll see you later Jake.”

He nods, swallowing harshly, nerves clawing up his throat. “You uh, you look real pretty darlin’.” He drawls, pink sprinkling his cheeks and ears.

“Oh,” You look up, pleasantly surprised. Not that Jake isn’t always sweet to you, but the way that he’s looking at you feels different—more intimate and softer than usual—but you’re probably just imagining that because you’re projecting your own feelings. “Thank you, Jake.”

He smiles once again. “Have a good night. I’ll see you later.”

© witchwyfe 2023. absolutely no reposting, translating, or modifying, even with credit.

[kylejsugarman]

as a dedicated andrea crusader i must know, how does au^2 impact andrea and jesse's relationship? do baby and brock get along? i'm picturing it in my head and🥹🥹

ANDREA CRUSADERS UNITE, u are one of the ultimate andrea understanders 🥺 so their relationship is a little different in au squared!! around the time that jesse infiltrates the recovery group and actually meets andrea is the same time that demi moves back to abq and tracks him and baby down. he and demi have a weird, semi-formal relationship for a while before they start developing romantic feelings for one another and during that time, jesse dates andrea. any initial plans to just sell meth directly to her as a recovering addict and put together his own walter white-esque "fund" for his daughter instantly evaporate when he sees brock and realizes that andrea is also just a single parent trying to navigate addiction. they're so similar and jesse, having not encountered anyone in this specific situation yet, kind of desperately clasps onto her. he really likes her and she likes him, but a big part of it is truly just. jesse desperately wanting to be around someone who Understands. and andrea does understand!! she has support from her mom, but she had to figure out a lot of this child-rearing stuff by herself and sees a lot of her slightly younger self in jesse. the way he wants to provide the Best for his kid, but doesn't trust anyone else to give it to her. she feels the same way about brock a lot of the time, even though she knows now that its not necessarily them vs the world.

the thing about au squared andrea is that she realizes through observing jesse's behavior and his feelings about raising baby that he's a very sweet guy who is great to be around, but they are not on the same timeline and she doesnt really feel like "dating" is the right arrangement for them. andrea's not in a place yet where she wants to incorporate a romantic relationship into her life and jesse, god bless him, has an overeagerness to him that tells her that he's diving into this because he badly wants A Connection, which doesn't necessarily have to be romantic!! she talks to him about this and asks instead if they can just be friends, so that's what they become. andrea is his dear friend :') jesse still cares very deeply for her and brock and tries to spoil them both (if he's going to get baby a swagged out play mat, then its only fair that brock gets a sick new transformer toy and andrea gets memory foam slippers for after long shifts on her feet at work. u know. if he's already going to be out). brock adores him, but is initially less enthused about baby because well. she's a baby. she can't really talk coherently or play a significant role in his games and he can't use his toys with smaller, choking hazard parts around her, so he doesn't really know what his mom expects him to do with baby while she and jesse are talking. but he realizes that it's actually kind of fun to assume a "big brother" role (brock's a sweet kid :') he likes to be helpful) and teach baby things; she basically copies whatever he does after a certain point, which is extremely validating to him. plus, she's a pretty patient, docile little playmate, so she can play the role of "building that is on fire that the brave firetruck must extinguish" with tremendous skill. the highlight of his month is when they all go to the zoo together and brock gets to feed a handful of feed to one of the giraffes while baby looks at him just shocked and awed like :O

andrea remains a source of support and eventually befriends demi too, but as things get darker towards the end of the show (post-drew shooting), jesse withdraws a little from her to try to protect her. he already feels responsible for tomas being murdered and drew's killing just reminds him of how nobody, no matter how innocent, is safe from this shit. andrea and brock are too important to him to endanger, even if it means cutting himself off from a good friend. demi visits them a few times while jesse is in captivity just to be around Someone and so baby can play with brock, but it's weirdly uncomfortable and baby isn't acting the same without jesse there and demi soon worries too that the cantillos might become endangered through association with them, so she reluctantly withdraws. once jesse escapes and he and demi and baby make the trip to alaska, he still writes a letter for brock that he gives to ed, but he also writes one for andrea. he wants to thank her for the support she gave him, for guiding him and baby through so much uncertainty, for being such a wonderful woman and friend. "i hope baby grows up to be like u. i want to make sure she grows up to be like u." andrea never learns what became of jesse and baby and demi after the news breaks, but she keeps that letter in her nightstand drawer along with a messy scribble drawing that baby made for her and the ticket stubs from that zoo trip. she doesnt care what the news says. she doesnt care what the dea agents who come to question her think of jesse or their friendship. she knew him, the real him, and she will always love him.

[umbreerie]

𝒪𝓋𝑒𝓇𝒽𝒶𝓊𝓁 ; more thoughts + canon divergence ideas.

Hate to say it but sometimes I find myself agreeing with the horny side of the fandom when they lament the fact that Kai doesn't have cool intricate Yakuza tattoos because oh yeah the aesthetic rips but also can understand why he doesn't both because thats not really a thing for modern Yakuza and also it probably wouldn't be a stretch to imagine Kai's extreme mysophobia makes him less than enthused about being prodded with a needle for hours in a dingy establishment. But, do it for Pops, Kai. ( Then he would, lets go with that. ) We are nothing if not slaves to the aesthetic here.

ANYWAY, another note about him, I'm thinking about AUs / canon divergence and want I wanna do with him post Overhaul Arc beyond what canon did. We know Hori wasted him in an extreme way like make your eyes water type way that almost reduced his insane godmod quirk to a plot hole ━ UNLESS .... Though it is NEVER spoken or really expanded upon in canon, the reason the overhaul quirk could have been written off was because Kai was the only one who could use it. This isn't entirely out of the realms of canon possibility because we have seen there are several quirks that can't be copied or used outside of the bodies of their original owners. In fact, the only two people that seem to have been SMART ENOUGH in the entire MHA world to engineer a way for these type of quirks to work outside an owners body is Kai (With Eri's rewind) and Kyudai Garaki with the rest of his shit. Though this being said, it seems not even Garaki was able to successfully make a copy of overhaul useful outside of the broken version of it Tomura apperently received. ( which is something I still don't think I'll be keeping as a fact in my canon because its one of those things that ended up kind of unnecessary. )

So we could also say that Kai's intelligence and scientific knowledge helped play a part in him being able to use his quirk so well. Without these things, his quirk is useless to everyone else. So yeah, I'm going to say BOTH things to make sense of why his quirk was so underutilized in canon, at least !! But that doesn't fix the armless problem and this is where the canon divergence I've been playing around with @corfides comes in.

Pretty much the whole Nagant thing ended up useless. So we're going do some canon divergence and change the prison break situation for Kai. Instead, Kai is going to be found by Hari and Stain during the prison break and they're going to become a hilarious bumbling threesome of guys who have beef with the heroes AND the villains. Kai wont have gone with Nagant, she'll have gone and done all that on her own since his presence makes literally no difference either way. Kai ends up getting his arms back thanks to Hari and Stain. We've decided this would be as easy as reattaching one because canon has even stated Kai can use his quirk with someone else's hands. This being said.... Kai isn't his old self. Its not exactly clear what happened but Kai appears to have some type of brain damage from his fight. And I'm not one to erase disabilities. This is something thats not really explained in canon outside of an offhanded comment that he "has some screws loose." And other characters wondering what is wrong with him. The running theory is Kai lost it after the LoV cut his arms off but if you actually look back at canon Kai seems to be out of it BEFORE the LoV got to him. Which leads me to think maybe Kai's uh... Distant / scatted, near catatonic state of mind wasn't just brought on by "grief" (which I'll say def worsened it, as I'm also headcanoning he was told Hari was dead so thats on top of him knowing he wouldn't be able to heal pops thus him believing he'd completely lost everything) but that Kai might have actually been suffering side effects from taking multiple 100% punches to the face from Deku's superpowered OFA and that this is actually whats "wrong" with him post Deku fight. Though we know he was rewound by Eri at least twice, the logic of her rewind seems inconsistent. For whatever reason Kai was rewound enough to undo his mergers with his minions but was apperently not rewound enough to heal his injuries ? Thats what we seem to be shown in canon as it doesn't really make sense for Kai to have lost otherwise because though he would have been separated from his mergers, he wouldn't have been out of fighting condition but rather quiet the opposite. So we're just gonna go with Eri's rewind being inconstant at times, especially cause her power was very untrained at this point and her intentions weren't to heal Kai, but rather to stop him, so maybe it was a result of her unconscious wishes shining through that he wasn't healed but just stopped. SO YEAH. ANYWAY. Kai is suffering some type of brain damage. Which is going to effect his memory + other things and how proficient he is with using his quirk. He wont be able to use it as perfectly as he could before. But he can still use it. And he'll be practicing to try and get it at least good enough to fix pops. HOWEVER, we've also talked about Kai and Hari accompanying Stain in his fight against AFO in aide of All Might. Stain's doing it because he's gay for All Might, but Hari and Kai ? They see an opportunity to get in societies good graces and also fuck the League of villains / AFO. So they help with the fight. The outcome is however roughly the same with Stain getting "killed" by AFO but in THIS canon divergence, Kai is able to use overhaul to restore Stain from death. This is a big success moment for him, showing he can indeed heal pops.

This results in Kai, Hari and Stain being offered a type of "pardon" at the end of the war along with other villains / criminals who helped out like Gentle, La Brava and Nagant, though Stain is quirkless. This gives the heroes the opportunity to have Kai use his quirk to do a bit of good for everyone, like not just healing pops and getting chewed out by him, but also help heal some of the more severely injured during the war.

[aurumacadicus]

What are you procrastinating?

Steve and Tony techy spy au?

*waves hand at... everything* Eh.

Anyway I'm feeling some okayish-dad Howard and stupid boys. But when am I not feeling stupid boys 🤔

Steve isn't about this whole... high-tech stuff. He's been doing this spy thing for years without even a smart phone. He doesn't want all these newfangled gadgets that take up space that could be filled with extra bullets instead. Sure, the key-reader had come in handy, but he also could have just kicked the door open in the same amount of time. He tries, though. He knows the world is getting more reliant on tech, and while his flip phone and motorcycle are enough for him, espionage is advancing to heights he never could have imagined. Plus, it genuinely helps that he always looks a little confused when he does anything tech-related. Most people think he's too stupid to know how to upload viruses and key loggers. He's gotten a lot more on board with it now that Tony is working in the labs, though. Tony is bright, and he always smiles wide as he explains exactly what his inventions do. So maybe Steve leans into being a neanderthal a little bit, just so he can get some extra attention as Tony makes absolutely sure he understands how everything works. His life depends on it, sometimes! He needs to know this stuff! And sometimes Tony leans in, one long line of heat against the side of Steve's body, and Steve is grateful he actually knew what Tony was talking about because all he could think at the time was 'Tony Tony Tony Tony' and he took in nothing.

Tony is, unfortunately, untouchable. Peggy is the head of the organization, but there are several others under her who wield almost as much power. Howard Stark is one of them. Steve had thought he and Howard had a pretty good rapport. They would get drinks after work, sometimes even eat lunch in the commissary together. Howard liked the work Steve did, and he also had a soft spot for older technology like Steve. They got along. But then one day, while they were taking their trays to one of the tables to sit at for lunch, someone said, "Have you seen the ass on that new guy in tech? Bet he's tight as a--" and Howard wordlessly slammed his tray into the guy's head with such force that it bounced off the table. "My son's ass is as tight as what?" Howard had asked mildly, as if he had not cracked his tray in half, and the surrounding three tables had scattered. Steve had wanted to run, too, but he'd pretended he understood Howard's reaction and how obviously he'd made the right decision. No one should be talked about like that, least of all a sub-director's son. After lunch, Steve had immediately gone to a payphone three blocks away and left all his friends messages to please god please don't tease him about how much he's talked about how sexy Tony is at work Howard will murder him Agent Malloy got a concussion please.

It's not like Steve is special, anyway. Tony is enthused about one thing only: Technology. Part of the reason he got the job was because Howard was tired of being pestered to show things to Peggy for him. Howard had cleared a path for him to force his way into Peggy's office and show off his stuff firsthand and that had been that. (Rumors said that Peggy was still aghast that Howard would allow Tony into a situation where he might be shot by his godmother, but both Howard and Tony showed a distinct lack of care for their safety, so. Maybe there was truth to the rumors.) So being an idiot about technology is the only way that Steve can get his attention. He think it's probably not the best way to endear Tony to him. Tony probably wants someone he thinks can keep up with him, anyway. Steve portrays himself as sort of a dinosaur when it comes to tech. Surely someone who didn't "need" to have things explained to him in very small words. Besides, active field agents were discouraged from serious relationships. It's always possible that they might not come back, or that their significant other would could be used against them. He wouldn't be Tony's first choice, and Tony probably had the good sense not to get involved with an active field agent. (Or if he didn't, Howard had probably scared the majority of them off. Agent Malloy had been the first creep he'd used his hands on. He hadn't been the last.)

Tony is absolutely, embarrassingly, and obviously in love with Steve. He thinks Steve is so sweet. He doesn't understand a lot of high-tech stuff, but he's so earnest when he asks questions, Tony doesn't even mind taking time from other projects to give him explanations. He wants to make sure Steve knows as much as possible so that he's less likely to get hurt. Steve has a sweet smile and he's literally heard him say 'aw, shucks.' He kinda wants to take Steve to bed and make him learn new swears. Steve's basically the only one Howard has good things to say about, too. 'He's a polite young man who would never gossip about how good his boyfriend is in bed,' he'd said. Tony... isn't actually sure why his dad felt the need to tell him that? But he appreciates it. He had his time as the college bicycle and while he's maybe not ready to settle down, he's ready to test the waters, date around. Maybe with Steve, if he could ever get Steve to catch a clue. Every time he hints at a date, Steve starts babbling frantically about someone named Agent Malloy? Tony only met him once. He thinks the guy's on medical leave, maybe. Maybe he's more Steve's type, Tony thinks in disappointment.

"...So you were just making fun of me," Tony says, hurt, after Steve has cracked the code on the digital cuffs he'd been bound with. "When you asked me how things worked." "I just liked listening to you talk," Steve admits, embarrassed, and doesn't meet his eyes. "I'd listen to you read the dictionary. You at least seemed to like talking about tech." "Aw," Tony begins, and then grabs Steve's arm and yanks him down with a scream. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" "What?! What!?" Steve shouts, but then Tony is gathering him to his chest and holding a taser threateningly. "Who are you threatening I can't see Tony oh my god." Howard adjusts his grip on the wooden beam he'd found to use as a weapon. "If I have to watch this comedy of errors for one more minute, I will beat Steve to death." "What are you fucking talking about?!" Tony splutters, at the same time Steve wails, "NO I SAW WHAT YOU DID TO AGENT MALLOY WHEN HE WAS TALKING ABOUT TONY'S ASS!" In the end, Tony has to use a prototype bondage device to disarm and bind his dad so he doesn't kill Steve accidentally club them both and Steve is so in love with him. He's so smart and beautiful and kind. "He is not kind," Howard barks from where Steve is carrying him like he weighs nothing. "Look away Tony. I don't want you getting ideas about his biceps." "It's too late. I had them the first time I saw him training newbies in the gym," Tony retorts, and Steve has to fumble around with Howard as he snarls and gnashes his teeth.

[27dragons]

New Year Countdown: Dec 31

This Ineffable Husbands ficlet is brought to you by a kids' new years party I took Thing1 to back when they were about 5 years old at the Virginia Living Museum. It was a great concept - they did the "midnight" countdown at noon and there were animals the kids could interact with! But it was, I'm pretty sure, the single loudest event I've ever attended.

Dec 31 - Ineffable Husbands - Single Parents AU - Countdown

The noise was incredible.

Axiraphale had known it would be, and yet all the knowing in the world had done not a thing to actually prepare him for the cacophony of a New Year’s Eve party for several hundred children under the age of eight.

Muriel, bless them, didn’t seem to notice. They turned in a slow circle, taking it all in, and then looked up at Aziraphale in confusion. “You said we were going to the science museum.”

“This is the science museum, Muriel. And it’s also…” Aziraphale drew it out a little, hoping to increase his child’s anticipation and enthusiasm. “…a party! A New Year’s party! With a big count-down and everything!”

“I’m not allowed to stay up that late,” Muriel informed him, as if he were not the one who had set their bedtime in the first place.

“No,” he agreed. “This is a special count-down, early, so that people who need to go to bed before midnight can enjoy it.”

“Oh, all right,” Muriel agreed with their trademark acceptance of everything. They turned in another circle. “Is there a count-down every year?”

“I believe so, yes. Why don’t we go look at the space and stars exhibit?”

Muriel let him lead them through the press of yelling children, but continued, “Why don’t we ever count up?”

Aziraphale paused, momentarily stymied, when a child crossing their path stopped and said, “The count-up happened before the universe was made. Now we can only count down until the end of time.”

Muriel’s eyes went big and round. “Really?”

“Yes,” the girl said, nodding importantly. “I read it in my book, and it’s a very good book that tells all about the past and the present and the future. It has everything in it.”

“Oh, I like books!” Muriel enthused. “Do you have it with you? Can I see it?”

“Well,” the child started, and then a man ran up to them, panting and out of breath. “Anathema!” he scolded. “What’ve I said about running off without me?” He caught her hand and gave Aziraphale an appraising look. “You’re an angel for getting her to stop long enough for me to catch up,” he added. “Anything might’ve happened!”

“Oh, I would certainly never have allowed anything harmful to occur,” Aziraphale assured the frazzled man. “And it’s so nice that they’ve both found a new friend!”

Anathema turned to look back at Muriel, head cocked. “Are we friends?” she wondered.

“Oh, I hope so!” Muriel enthused. “I’ve never had a friend before! You must tell me how we go about it!”

Anathema nodded as if this were perfectly normal. “If we’re friends, then I suppose you may look at my book.” She began rummaging in the satchel that was slung over her narrow shoulders.

Aziraphale offered a hand to the other — he assumed — father. “I am Aziraphale, and this is Muriel.”

“Crowley,” Anathema’s father introduced himself. His hand was very warm in Aziraphale’s, and his eyes sparkled behind his sunglasses in a way Aziraphale hadn’t seen for some years. “I’m glad to make your acquaintance, angel.”

[fancy-a-dance-brigadier]

For the ask game: 3, 7, 15, 19, 26 (pick and choose if you don't wanna answer them all!)

Thank you for asking so many questions! I shall answer them all because I can't resist the opportunity to ramble lol.

3. What’s something you learned about yourself as a writer?

That I'm not very good at writing fics for the sake of it. I can think of about three different fic events/challenges that I tried to participate in this year that I didn't really go anywhere with, because I wasn't invested in the ideas I was coming up with for the various prompts. I'm the most enthused about writing when I'm working on something that came from my brain unprompted rather than trying to devise fics to specifically fit a set prompt list, if that makes sense. So from now on, I'm only going to participate in fic challenges if one of my own ideas just happens to fit a prompt (e.g. I'm thinking of doing Femslash February next year, but only to work on F/F fics I've already started, brainstormed, or really want to write!)

7. What character(s) captured your heart?

So I can definitely think of multiple characters for this answer! In the first half of the year, my foray into watching Star Trek: Enterprise definitely made me fall in love with T'Pol and Hoshi (and I really do need to write more for them, they hardly ever speak to each other in canon but the potential is THERE my god). And then in the second half of the year Padme Amidala set up shop in my brain and has yet to leave - I already loved her, but this year it's gone into overdrive!! Padme my beloved Padme etc. Honourable mentions to Shin Hati and Malcolm Reed because they are so feral and I love that for them. They deserve to bite things.

15. Rec a fic you wrote or posted in 2023

So I think my favourite fic that I wrote this year was Brave Little Fool, which is so far my only attempt at writing Julian/Martok. I was challenging myself to improve my characterisation of Julian (since I think I'd been losing sight of his canon personality in my work because of too much fandom brainrot lol), and I think it turned out pretty well! And I'd never written Martok before this, but I think I did a pretty good job with him too. I definitely want to write more for this pairing, but the only other idea I have for them is a multi-chapter and I definitely do not need to start writing another one of those right now!

19. Share your favorite opening line

Ok, after looking through all the fics I posted in 2023, I think my favourite opening line is from Resting Place:

"She would wade through the mires of thought and feeling for all her endless days, her mind an abyss into which others could fall into and ensure the comfort of a listening ear and a gentle heart."

26. If you had to choose one, what was THE most satisfying writing moment of your year?

Coming up with the Jedi Padme AU, for sure! It's been so much fun to have a fic that's really captured my imagination again, and not only that - but I'm actually writing this thing! I'm over halfway there with the first fic in the series! I'm just very excited about this story, and I can't wait to share it <3 (and of course brainstorming it with you has been an absolute highlight of my fandom life for real)

[sincerely-krp]

if you're an au krper, please read through and give me your thoughts! i'm going crazy by myself. i kind of wish that literate and/or au krps would stop including an option for members to post sns. personally i think it kills the mood for writing threads, overall. tell me if i’m wrong though. //

(admins please only post positive things to this because i'm not trying to have any hidden agenda with this and i genuinely liked my time at insidious. maybe i left before any drama or something. i'm not willing to let my post be what brings down a krp's name)

this actually worked really well for au krps, back in the day, iirc insidious (au krp from a couple of years ago) focused much more on threads instead of sns and they had steady activity with good plot consistency and diversity for like a year. darkstt (another au krp that closed after about a year and a half) said no sns at all and it did phenomenal in terms of culture till the admins had to close it down in 2023. i still remember how tight knit that group was, they were there to WRITE you know. rupes (still around?) like darkstt didn't allow sns and the group had writing chemistry like crazy with everyone. they required paras every two months so the tl wasn't dead, which was the one thing with darkstt that made it feel super dead. i remember insidious would sometimes have like cute things everyone would do too lol, like post event fits, and both insidious and rupes having stuff on the timeline made darkstt feel a little dead, but nothing serious because you had other krps to vibe on when it was.

where insidious was much more modern and defined what i consider a genuinely literate au krp to be with its use of modern media and classic krp event ideas, darkstt felt like an old-time au krp (akin to gaia or tumblr aus), and rupes felt more like a place to find people invested in the art of writing and character development which are core aspects of krp everyone seeked to find writers enthused about, and they did so particularly with magical realism/fantasy/horror genres. which makes sense, since insidious was about classic supernatural media and exploration into that world, darkstt was about crime and city underbellies, and rupes is about purity, horror, and wonderland-like whimsy.

their admin teams reflected that too. the darkstt admin team was pretty hands-off, and only made activity posts and event posts. no one knew the admin but because they weren't super present it didn't matter, and no one had any issues with them ever, like either with the admins or the krp. their tone was always kind of kid-like but not unprofessional, just not taking themselves too seriously which broke immersion just enough (rupes too) that i felt like the place was super kind. i feel like the admins definitely set krp tones, and most old krps were like darkstt admins where being an admin was safe to make known because everyone generally supported the kid doing it. (i say kid because now i'm like 28, so everyone 18+ to 25 is a kid to me lol). i really liked this approach from this admin team because it was a low-maintenance krp as it stood, and the one time there was major drama not only did the admin handle it well, but they also made way to open a dialogue with their community and assert their decisions without being pretentious.

rupes admins don't write in their krp, but i can't think of a more accommodating and responsive, beginner-friendly admin team. they never assert themselves as more important or 'the law' and you could do whatever you wanted with their premise, even if you misinterpreted it they would find value in encouraging you to explore that. they never expected perfection from any member, and no member expected a level of writing skill, just ooc interest. i can't remember anyone in or out of the krp having anything bad to say about them which is, as all of us know now, rare (in a different way than darkstt). they have a sharp sense of humor too, and a very clear brand that they're dedicated to (in fact part of the humor was when the brand would meet their chaotic/modern humor). because of that it added to the feeling the place gave of being about the art of writing, but without expectations or judgement.

i actually looked up rupes and darkstt on this blog and nothing bad was said about either (in fact they're rare here in general) which only proves my point that krps like this feel so much different than the modern stuff because their communities are barely even here. even the stuff i found attached to insidious was minor/feels like it was way after the time of the krp itself, but a little bit of tea here or there is also part of a krp! it adds to the legends of the places you know!! a good au krp always has ooc lore to it and the members that were there, but no one ever takes it too seriously!

in insidious it was common knowledge the admin team was part of the central community, but it wasn't a bad thing! it added to that classic krp feel the place had, and they were pretty detailed and into their premise probably because they were actively writing in it too. i don't remember this team too much, just that they were super specific about people following their rules which is a totally valid admin style, especially in a literate krp. the expectations are always higher when it comes to member conduct with literate krpers, and these admins were so detailed in their announcements that it makes sense they would expect their community to follow what they basically spell out for them. this community was also like the admins, very detailed about how they liked to write, and very self-assured about their writing worth. they were very amicable and easy-going ooc, always excited to plot and offer ideas while communicating with the base admin team to make sure they were within the specifics and particulars of the influences the krp was based on. this krp had a lot of etiquette to learn because of the expectations of the members to know what they had written in their bios, but once you did it was smooth sailing and they would generally do the same for you. this meant that you carried yourself with more care, and because of that, it was a seriously literate group in a different way from darkstt (their mature and calm community never causing drama or propagating it because the focus was always writing), and rupes (their more academic pursuit of discovery in personal styles and love for exploring psychological nuance through their plots). all equally valid, although today i'm sure all three would be trashed for their communities or clear styles because they don't cater to everyone in krp and thus must be cliquey, or elitist, or dead!

even the events in these places reflected their krps: darkstt with their simple but versatile settings and references to classic crime pop culture, rupes with their beautiful, innovative and modern to gothic plots (balanced impeccably with what their community was in the mood for, which might be something easy and creative and not very in depth plot-wise), and insidious with their blend of classic and modern takes on time-tested events. bit of a tangent i know, but i picked these three because they are popular krps for their time that represent different takes on literate au mewe krps that didn't allow sns or had a community that didn't encourage/rely on it, and really did awesome with that.

so it can be done, but i feel like those same groups wouldn't do as well anymore because au krpers nowadays just seem to be into formatting blrs or accounts and chatting ooc. or worse, they just hear things from these blogs and spread them around without even bothering to realize how tone deaf that approach is.

modern au krpers get a lot of self importance from having such harsh, critical opinions of krps in my opinion.

these groups were definitely for the people who were looking for a place to stay through all the seasons of their life, both busy and still, and i think they all allowed triggers to be written that it feels like krp would take issue with, despite them being handled correctly.

also, nowadays i think people like the aesthetic of writing literate, but forget that literate doesn't mean darker/detailed/smarter plots. it means more writing. semilit used to have characters and plots just as complicated and cool, but without as much writing. you're expected to write in literate krps, and plot over ooc connections. jesus. or, i see literate krpers making responses that should be 200 - 300 words like 600 words! everything is filler! it's all backwards.

i think there's also very aggressive and obvious jealousy or competition between krps today sometimes. people from one group will shit on another for no reason, just because they're viewing everything as politics. gone are the days where everyone joined all the krps and shared their spaces, you know!

for context, when i used to au krp, everyone would join two or three krps, because when one would be dead they'd have the other two to keep writing in, and then when they'd be quieter, the other one would be popping again. nowadays no one's really into that i feel like.

i also think nowadays it's seen as cliquey to be in a group with people that have stayed in a group for a long time. but back in the day that was kind the point? like every krp had a community, and you could invest into one ooc to join their community or just vibe in their orbit and write with their muses. and if you tried hella to join a community and it wasn't working, they're just not your vibe & you can choose to leave. krps are so unique, their communities are too. none of us get along well with everyone we're paired with for irl group projects right. but it wasn't a requirement you know.

at all three of the krps i mentioned i was a writer in orbit, but i saw people bring others into their little communities all the time because you'd see new names consistently in the ooc chats you know. it was my favorite to see writers i knew in one of the krps join another one, you could tell because their style was so influenced by their community elsewhere but would grow from their immersion in the new one they added to their krp roster. unlikely writing-style muns meeting and becoming friends too.

i never went without plots at any krp, i had eight to twelve plots in all the groups overall even if i wasn't quite friends with anyone ooc, and if i wanted more ooc connection i'd bring a friend into a group and that would jumpstart things back into gear. if i miswrote someone's muse they'd just tell me to fix it, i was never scared they'd think i was an asshole or an elitist empty-shelled krp writer or anything you know.

one thing i liked about darkstt and rupes was that people would always give feedback on your writing, either support or suggestions for your next piece or character development, so i never cared about emojis and whatever else. in insidious this was supplemented by the constant emojis and occasional conversation about the piece in dms with people you plotted with (which occurred at the other two also, don't get me wrong!), but in classic krp style, paras were meant for the people you plot with to really care about, which was nice release of pressure in a lot of ways too.

see how things can be good depending on your perspective? all of this is just perspective i feel like. i'm gonna take a moment here to address that i know insidious ended problematically, and while i wasn't there, i was able to see a bit of it in my look-through on this blog. they were wrong for what they did, and very very very wrong for everything at paradigm. i'm not excusing or avoiding this, i'm just mentioning my experience there to show what a genuine experience was like in the krp, without knowing any tea or whatnot. because communities that are toxic under the surface are barely noticeable when in the place itself. they're no better or worse than the other places. i also know that group took issue with many au krps, and that they tried to defame so many other groups behind the scenes or on vent blogs, and that some people reading this will be influenced by that and not believe what i'm saying. i don't care to talk to sheep though, and they know they're sheep if they haven't been in a krp and have such a strong opinion they refuse to join. they're literally the whole problem, we all know this.

but also, in other krps, those same base communities didn't need an ooc chat to stay in the group. those were the quiet ones, which were always a welcome addition to the collection you join you know. one busy au, one chaotic gen, one quiet au or gen that you know will be around forever, and will have people in it forever that might be quiet but will always have awesome brains to plot with. in fact it was always nice whenever everyone seemed to be back and kicking, usually when that quiet au got a bunch of new members. and if the old quiet group was still... old and quiet, it also didn't matter because the new groups would become the new base. just like that though, the opposite (with darkstt) was great too, it was all about the writing, not about krp or art and just about plotting and making chaos. the focus was nice.

like idk, things are so different now. coming back to krp is just... it's no longer anything it used to be. every krp from back in the day would be called cliquey and elitist. those words have simply lost all meaning. no one is ever meant to write with everyone in the krp. you find a couple people, and you settle, and that's chill!!

so my point is in modern au krp, it's much more like fast food, kind of like how all our social media is becoming hyper-addictive (short form content everywhere, youtube shorts, insta reels, you can't even filter those functions anymore, sometimes the app just opens you to it. or they will show you those short form contents in your searches even to draw you in). until there's a return to reading being the source of dopamine (delayed gratification/resistance to immediate dopamine) we go to for escapism, i feel like these groups will never be joined.

the majority of krp today in the literate communities are all people with writing skill not realizing how inconsistent muse and flow state are. they just mistake it for being dead, or loss of muse, or take every move too seriously and decide things are being implied ooc when they aren't. like that ridiculous exchange i read about while looking through the proof here, of a college student berating someone for wasting their time who (i assume works) said less than a week is not enough time for receiving krp feedback! it would be unheard of in my day to try to do anything in less than a week.

the glory days of krp in the literate world died with the era these came from, right around/during quarantine. they began in 2016 or 2017. i probably sound like an old hag, please forgive me if i've misstepped, i'm not all the way caught up on modern krp etiquette.

we'll only post positive/constructive (with discretion) responses to this!

[coolspacequips]

Listen I love Griffin and Rachel McElroys podcast and tbh whenever they are being rly cute or riffing off of each other and giggling abt some stupid bullshit I DO think about married Shance hosting their own podcast

[nikirishimura]

shotguns and lemons

genre: fluff, crack, bestfriends au

pairing: jake x reader

wc: 1k

warnings: smoking, drinking, suggestive themes

a/n: this has been sitting way too long in my drafts, i honestly forgot i had this one-shot/drabble (whatever you call it TT). anw, i have another jake x reader story coming up this week! <33 also, here it is @woniebae :D ps. reblogs will be very much appreciated :<

distant chattering can be heard inside the Kim's residence. one can even assume that somewhere in that house is a party that’s actually just getting started; with a bunch of giggling and slurred sentences breaking the quiet of a sunday afternoon.

"i didn’t know day-drinking could be fun!" jake mumbled as he downed another shot of tequila followed by sucking a slice of unevenly cut lemon.

"well if you think it's fun getting wasted at night, why not stretch the hours before 5 o'clock." you reasoned, pouring another round of shots for the both of you.

"i'm pretty sure that leads to alcoholism." your best friend told you with a slight hint of warning in his voice but that didn't stop the both of you from bursting in unjustified laughter again for the nth time that day.

feeling the alcohol streaming in your veins, your vision becomes a bit blurry and your inhibitions are starting to leave your body. without much thought, you gently reach for his face, cupping his right cheek, tracing the bottom of his lips with your thumb, "you have such beautiful lips." you say.

he felt his heart skip a beat for a second but before he can even compose what to say next, you already got up from your seat.

things like this don't happen unusually between you, too. in fact, this has happened one too many times already, drunk and sober. like you touching the back of his neck and him staring back at you intently. or sharing the straw on your diet coke. or even using the same spoon to scoop out your shared, favorite-flavored ice cream. being intimate with jake, in different forms and shapes, isn't something new to you. but just like every other coward, either one of you seems to be pulling back. just like right now.

pulling out a cigarette box from your left pocket and a lighter from the kitchen island, you leaned on its side to light one, "man i need a time out." you announced, probably from the alcohol or the intoxication you got from the encounter not even a minute ago.

"i thought you quit smoking?" jake asked, slightly confused but appearing to be more enthused.

"well, i thought i did too but look at me," puffing the first smoke of your nicotine-induced addiction.

jake stood up from one of the chairs towering the kitchen island across from you, a cheeky smile evident on his face, "lemme try. i wanna try one!" sounding just as delighted as he was an hour ago, the moment he heard you're gonna be drinking alcohol in daylight.

"uh, no?"

"no?!"

"i don't like sharing my cigarettes!" swatting his hand away.

"hey, i see you giving out free sticks to people whenever we're in a bar!" he retorted, feeling kinda betrayed.

"that's because i don't want shotgunning strangers."

the thought of your lips close to his had jake’s heart beating fast. he could actually feel it in his chest, like it's going to come out any second now.

"come here,” you said “you wanna try one? i can shotgun you instead." you said, confidence oozing out of you out of nowhere.

"oh, al- alright." he stuttered, "oh wow–." wiping his sweaty palms on the side of his pants, "this is really happening right now, huh."

"jake, just shut up and close your eyes."

and so he did, as he leaned in forward, slightly opening his mouth.

you gently grab his jaw before inhaling an adequate amount of the cigarette into your lungs and finally blowing it out into your best friend's mouth.

as he opened his eyes, you could see the innocence in him slowly fading out like the smoke that was keeping your distance from one another.

and again, he started giggling like the cute idiot that he is.

"you're supposed to inhale it too you dumbass! what was the purpose of me giving it to you if you're just gonna let it evaporate in the air?”

he was gonna say something but you cut him out immediately— "the word is dilute, i know. but i got the point across, didn’t i?" rolling your eyes and eliciting another one of his angelic laughs.

"okay okay, i'm sorry. lemme try it again." he asked with those puppy eyes you cannot, for the life of you, resist.

and so he leaned in once again but this time, he's the one grabbing your chin closer to him. you puff the cigarette once more, slowly blowing the smoke inside his mouth.

but before you could open your eyes, you hear him speak again, "i'm gonna kiss you, yeah?" and so you nodded like this was something you have wanted for so long, because honestly what’s the point of holding back?

fully closing the distance between the two of you, he gave you an opened-mouth kiss and you immediately reciprocated it, moaning into the sensation. your lips are dancing with his like it might be your last, knowing full well this is just the start.

it didn't take you long to find a rhythm that suits your neediness and desperation. deep into the kiss, you feel him getting more and more harsh, but in the best way possible. linking your arms around his neck, his grip on your waist loosen, hands travelling lower.

"jump," he says as he swiftly catches your weight. crossing your legs around his waist, you feel your core heat up.

letting out a deep groan, he broke the kiss much to your disappointment. “how about we bring this upstairs?” he offered, his grin getting wider by the second. wanting to wipe that smug look in his face, you decided to tease him, “hmm. what’s in it for me?”

“seriously? what the hell” he deadpanned. “how about, i shotgun you but instead of smoke, it’s alcohol?”

you couldn’t believe what you’re hearing. “as your best friend, i’m legally obligated to let you know that you’re annoying,” picking up the bottle and shot glass, actually considering it. “tsk, fine.”

taking in the full shot, he kissed you until you could taste the bitterness in your mouth so you immediately pulled away. “well that was a bad idea,” trying to find where the last piece of lemon went, you searched the table top but to no avail.

“looking for this?” jake spoke while biting down the other half of the lemon slice. rolling your eyes once again, you leaned in for that sweet (in this case, kinda sour) kiss. picking up on the pace where you left off.

“so..” you start, “wanna take this one upstairs?”

“thought you’d never ask”

[mikauzoran]

13, 14, 22, 23

Thank you for the Ask, Steel! ^o^

13. Most underappreciated

There are a couple I really love that aren't as popular as I think they should be.

- Your Hands Hold Home (Lukadrien) - I had a really good time with this one. I'm so glad that I decided to do Lukadrien June this year after all, and I think it was really important for me to write this one.

- Finders Keepers (Adrienette) - This is one of my favourites from this year. I think it's really cute and sweet. Adrien and Marinette are just so in love with one another, and it's kind of adorable.

- Tights and Tea Lattes (Lukadrien) - Okay, okay. I know I wrote this one purely for myself and it's a miracle that anyone else read it in the first place. XD But...Lukadrien ballet AU! Where they sit around and talk in a coffee shop and do a pas de deux together! It's everything I ever wanted! XD I worked hard this year, and I seriously deserved this. (But I think I actually did do a good job writing the dance sequence, so there's that.)

- Clarity in the Harmony (Lukanette) - For the record, I would like to repeat that I am insanely happy with the first three lines, and I will be plagiarizing myself at a later date because not enough people are going to read this story and see the magnificence of those three lines because this is a Lukanette story.

14. Most overappreciated

Here are a few I thought, "Huh. I didn't expect this to be that popular."

- Betting Against the House (Adrienette Lila) - I think it's because Lila is in the story. People tend to flock to that for some reason, but I'm really happy with this story, and I think it's really good, so...

- Her Good Opinion (Marichat) - I don't know what drew so many people to this work, but I'm glad they enjoyed it.

- The Marinette Yeets Adrien Reveal (Adrienette) - Okay. I know why this is popular. It's hilarious. ^w^

- To Choose You Twice (Marichat/Lady Noir) - This is another one where I can't figure out what people like so much. I wish someone would write me a nice list of "this is what I enjoy about your writing" so that I can go do it again. XD

Kasienda asked 22 and 23 too, so you can find my responses in this post or below the cut for convenience. ^.^

22. Most anxious to post

I think there were three I was super anxious about because I was doing something new or different, and that’s always anxiety-inducing.

- Betting Against the House (Adrienette Lila) - I was afraid everyone would hate the ending. I based a lot of this on my own experiences being bullied and how I would have liked for the situation to resolve, and I was afraid people were going to tell me my feelings were invalid or something. ^.^;

- Wishing for You (Ladrien) - I think I’m slowly getting a handle on the Ladrien dynamic, but it’s definitely my weakest and least favourite side of the Love Square. This was my first Ladrien one-shot, and I was afraid I wouldn’t do a good job and people wouldn’t like it. I also wrote it as a gift for people who had taken the time to share what they loved about Ladrien with me, so I was nervous that they wouldn’t like it in particular.

- Clarity in the Harmony (Lukanette) - Lukanette is kind of outside my comfort zone. I know I regularly take requests and write random pairings that aren’t in my comfort zone, but this one was kind of challenging. I was afraid no one would read it or like it. ^.^; I struggle with insecurity.

23. Most excited to post

I’m so bad at choosing between my children! XD Here are probably my top five. I was so psyched for these.

- Finders Keepers (Adrienette) - I know this isn’t super popular, but I was really enthused about the idea for this one, and I really like how it turned out. I was excited to share it with people.

- Behind the Masks (Marichat) - I cranked this one out so fast. XD I was really excited about this one too.

- I’m Learning to Love (Walking Away from Things) (Lady Noir/Adrienette) - I wrote most of this in one day. I really liked pretty much everything about it, and it was well-received too. I was happy that people enjoyed it.

- The Most Pointless Argument (Lady Noir) - This one is so silly. XD I personally thought it was hilarious. I mean, how can you not love Ladybug dissing Marinette and Chat Noir disparaging Adrien in an attempt to keep their identities secret when their partner wants to add their civilian self to the team?

- Le Carnaval: A Short Story Collection - It was a ton of fun to do so many different pairings (many of which it was my first time writing). I really liked how most of these turned out, and I was excited to share this with people. ^.^

Thank you again for the Ask! <3

Ask Game.

[achairwithapandaonit]

Hhhh time to drop more info on my kuroshitsuji reincarnation au I guess. I've actually written a bit of a prologue now and have started plotting things out better so it's less of a jumbled mess.

While o!ciel doesn't properly remember things from his previous life at first, he feels a big connection with the funtom company. It was shut down three years after it started despite doing well as a company, but researching all those old designs makes him feel happy and proud.

Sebastian and Grell are kind of friends by the 21sy century. Sometimes they play board games at phantomhive manor, though it's in a state of disrepair from years without proper care.

Sebastian took good care of a lot of the servants/o!ciel's things despite his claims of having not been bothered by their deaths and he keeps them in the basement of phantomhive manor. He shows all of this to o!ciel after a certain plot point in the au where Sebastian starts to realise that maybe he does care. O!ciel realises at this moment that he's never going to see the servants again and cries over it ✌😔 afterwards he takes one thing for each one, all things that he had gotten them in his past life. Mey-rin's glasses, finny's straw hat, the tin of candy he bought for bard, and the big bag he got for snake. He starts using snake's bag as his go-to one, and this marks the end of the first arc of the au. Once they all reunite again he gives them back their things and ask if they'll stick by him in this life too, but as family this time, and they tell him that they always saw themselves as family anyway. Also,, group hug and Sebastian gets forced into it. Get over here loser ur part of the family.

It really varies on how much characters remember from their past lives. Bard wasn't always very aware of his memories but he's older than the others and has pretty much remembered everything by the time the plot starts happening in the au. He spent a while in his early twenties being pretty lost after realising he won't meet the people in his memories but he picks himself up afterwards. At the moment he's living near he phantomhive manor because of nostalgia.

Snake doesn't remember anything at first. He eventually meets bard, who recognises him and helps him get a job at the zoo in town since bard knows the locals and knows that snake loves snakes. Snake starts to remember things though he doesn't talk about it for a while, and after accidentally stealing all the snakes from the zoo because he just really wanted the snakes and the snakes like him, he starts living with bard.

Finny has lived in Germany for the whole of this life. He'd known some German in the emerald witch arc so I just took that and headcanon him as German. As a child he hasn't understood that his family were his family. In his mind he already had a family with the young master and the phantomhive servants and he didn't want this different more normal one. He meets sieglinde at school and though she doesn't remember anything she's very enthused about ghost stories and has always wanted to go to phantomhive manor because it's said to be haunted by a demon. So finnian joins sieglinde and her adoptive father wolfram on their holiday to England, which is when he meets o!ciel for the first time in this new life.

I haven't worked out mey-rin's backstory in this au yet but either she barely recognises them all at the start or she is overjoyed to meet them again.

There's definitely going to be an arc about Lizzy and Edward though I haven't figures that out yet or what their lives in this au are like. I'm thinking this would build up to meeting r!ciel in the au, and then as the relationship between r!ciel and o!ciel is on rocky grounds the main plot gets thrown at everyone.

Another thing to say is that this hasn't been tied into the plot yet but agni owns a cafe and soma is a regular customer. And across the road is lau and ran mao and idk what their store is yet but they have a friendly rivalry with agni

[hyperfixationtimego]

I'm interested in the killing game au of all three games you mentioned! Tell me more! I c r a v e this kind of content, there's simply not enough of it and it's a crime!

AGREE AGREE AGREE AGREE AGREE!!!!!

okay okay okay okay okay so

Like I said, it involves every character from the main three games. So obviously it’s a lot of people. Not for long but shhh

None of the anime is canon because I don’t have enough patience to watch it nor do I care

Technically the kids from sdr2 still got to be considered alive after their game, but like I said the anime isn’t canon so basically what happened was the survivors escaped the simulation and began waiting for everybody else to wake up. And then boom now they’re here. Everybody who died just….suddenly wakes up here and it sucks <3

Anyway

The survivors are clearly,,,,,,not enthused to be back in this bullshit. Some are taking it better than others. (Makoto & Toko are both hit with a huge wave of depression and it manifests in different ways for both of them, Hajime is simultaneously PISSED OFF but also relieved to see Chiaki alive and well. They have a very tender reunion when they see each other again for the first time items very sweet there’s lots of hugging and crying and brushing each other on the cheek to make sure the other is real and OUGH I just love them so much. Kyoko is the “this is fine” meme personified, Togami is also pissed but doesn’t let it show, Hiro is predictably scared out of his fucking mind, yadda yadda yadda. Also scared is Kazuichi, but he and Sonia, who is disheartened to have to go through all this again but confident that everybody can make it through, are finally reunited with Gundham so that’s something!!! Akane is abt as carefree as she was during the neo world program, but seeing all her friends again, ESPECIALLY coach Nekomaru, makes her so fucking excited that she just. Punches a wall and screams /pos HDBWMDB FUYUHIKO AND PEKO REUNION REAL!!!!! UGHHRHEJ GOD I LOVE THEM??? Maki is silently stewing in her own rage, Himiko is both bawling her eyes out while simultaneously Feeling Nothing (which, honestly, that’s a vibe), and Shuichi is in emotionally unstable wonderland because OH THANK GOD KAEDE AND KAITO ARE BACK AND REAL AND HE GETS TO HUG THEM AND HOLD THEM but also there IS the looming threat of possible death again so. Yeah. Fun.)

As for everybody who’s died, they’re all experiencing a lot of phantom pain in relation to however they died. (For example, Sayaka frequently feels a sharp pain in her abdomen, and her wrist aches if she moves it too quickly or suddenly. Leon’s entire body consistently hurts all over, and he sometimes feels as though he’s choking or being restrained. Chihiro gets headaches every so often. Etc. etc. etc.)

They’re also adorned with some nifty new scars, too, which a lot of them are pretty pissed about because it serves as a constant reminder of the traumas they suffered but w/e (suicidal thoughts tw - Nagito in particular has some trouble with this one. Literally every single scar is a reminder of the horrible things he did, both in the simulation and out of it - a reminder that he was so close to not having to be alive anymore, a reminder that he is dangerous and that he is tired and everything is fucking bad) (he’s getting impromptu therapy from Hajime “done with this motherfucker’s shit” Hinata so they’re. working on it HSNSBDDN dw dw)

Haha memories are also an important thing, too, actually!!! It’s used as a motive (whoever kills someone will receive the memories of their forgotten school life or, in the case of the ndrv3 kids, their forgotten identities)

BUT obviously that puts Mikan in a weird position - she REMEMBERS having the remembrance disease, and she REMEMBERS what she learned, but the memories are distant and hazy. As if they aren’t really hers. (Monokuma is able to fuck with people’s emotions the same as memories - this was mostly done to actually give Mikan a fighting chance at Not Being Found Out As a Murderer Within the First Three Seconds HDNWMEHDN anyway Mikan recovery rights ❤️) ✨it’s the trauma✨

The building they’re in is HUGE + also includes things like Ultimate labs & an outside area like in ndrv3. The Thh kids are like “still hate it here but thank GOD at least there’s sunlight. no I don’t give a shit if it’s fake or artificial or whatever”

And how was Monokuma able to bring people back from the dead???? Why is the cast of ndrv3 here???? Well to answer the first question, it’s because he’s spicy like that. And to answer the second question idk I think he just likes ‘em. He thinks they’re neat ❤️

Tsumugi and Mukuro are both here and they’re treated like normal participants! They have no special ties to the mastermind of this new and improved killing game, but that does not make their peers any less suspicious of them! (Is junko alive??? Where is she???? Is she masterminding this shit??????? 👀)

And nobody is safe from death. Not even protagonist squad, there i said it. Every single protag goes Through Some Shit and whether or not each individual one ends up surviving is 👀 *wiggles eyebrows*

I. THINK that’s it for the general gist of the circumstances, but I absolutely can and will get more specific about things if u would like me to. There are character dynamics + plot points + motives + unresolved pining + resolved pining that is very quickly immediately destroyed + psychological horror and MORE baby we haven’t even scratched the SURFACE yet

[starryeyed-char]

Expecto Patronum (2/7)

Hunk

Second part of my self indulgent Harry Potter AU. You don’t really have to read them in order, but you should. Basically, I’m doing all of the happiest memories they use to cast their patronuses, and this chapter is about Hunk. I hope you enjoy! It’s 3 AM now so I might have to edit this tomorrow but it’s fine.

Hunk had always been a family-oriented guy. He loved his relatives more than anything in the world, and he spent all his time with them, even though his moms were in the very small percentage of wizarding families that had decided to send their children to public school until they grew old enough to go to Hogwarts. Most would just homeschool their kids.

But Hunk had never had many friends. At school, he was shy and anxious, and never talked to anyone much. The other students teased him for his weight more often than not. Then again, if you accidentally make things happen that no one but you understands, that gives bullies plenty of material.

Hunk had been terrified to go to Hogwarts, to be away from his family and at the mercy of people who would probably just end up being new bullies for nine whole months. He wouldn't even have any siblings there his first few years, since he was the oldest. His parents, both witches who had gone to Hogwarts and in fact met there, assured him he would love it, but Hunk wasn't so sure.

Which is why it was surprising that Hunk's happiest memory didn't take place at home, or with his family. It involved only him and one other person, a person he was meeting for the first time.

But it also made sense, because of the impact this one specific person had had on his life since that time. He was Hunk's first friend, his best friend.

No matter how many happy memories Hunk had with his family, no specific moment could hold a candle to the day he met Lance McClain on the Hogwarts Express.

  Hunk stared out the window, even though the train hadn't left the station yet. He'd already said goodbye to his family, and with every second his dread grew.

He'd secured a car near the front of the train, where the first years usually sat, all to himself. Hunk had already made up his mind that he would talk to the other kids as little as possible. Maybe that way, he wouldn't get made fun of.

Hunk turned back to look at the door when he heard noises from behind it, only to see several Hogwarts students, both in robes and out, passing by him without so much as glancing in the car.

One short boy with black hair and eyes that seemed almost purple did pause to look, but quickly continued trailing after the older girl in front of him, who was probably his sister.

Hunk nearly turned back to the window, but stopped when he made eye contact with another boy walking past a few moments later.

This boy's eyes were a calm, dark blue, and he was walking with his two apparent brothers. They stopped, and asked the boy something.

The boy stared at Hunk and the empty car for a moment longer. Then he nodded once, and slid open the door. He plopped down onto the seat across from Hunk with an enormous grin that was all but contagious, and stuck out a hand.

“Sorry to barge in like that. I was going to sit with my siblings, but when I saw you sitting alone I figured you could use someone to talk to! I'm Lance, by the way.”

Hunk stared at his outstretched hand, dumbfounded.

And Lance's smile faltered. “Unless... sorry. I shouldn't have assumed you'd want to talk to me. I can go—”

“No!” Hunk blurted, finally finding his voice. He had no idea what was going on, but he knew that he didn't want Lance to leave. “I mean... no, you can stay. I'm— I'd love someone to talk to. I'm Hunk.” They shook hands.

“Hunk,” Lance echoed, and Hunk mentally cursed himself. He shouldn't have told him that. “Is that... like a nickname, or...?”

“No,” Hunk said, with a sigh. “It's my actual name.” He waited for the teasing to begin. How someone who looked like him shouldn't have a name like that. How his name didn't fit him in any way, shape, or form.

“Hunk,” Lance said again, tapping his chin thoughtfully. He was smiling again before he'd ever really stopped. “I like it! What a cool name! I'll bet the ladies love it, huh?”

Hunk snorted. Ladies? They were eleven years old.

Lance was undeterred. “Man, I'll bet there are so many cute girls at Hogwarts! I don't really have that many friends my age, since my siblings and I were homeschooled before this, but I just know it's going to be great! I'll get to meet so many new people, like you! How fun is that?”

Hunk hummed vaguely, trying to seem interested. The idea of being in a permanent setting with all his peers wasn't exactly all that appealing... but he had to admit that if everyone at this school was as nice as this Lance kid, then maybe he could get used to it.

Lance was, apparently, unfazed by Hunk not answering any of his questions. In fact, he rambled on, not hesitating to ask even more.

“What house do you think you'll be in? I'm pretty sure I'll get put in Hufflepuff, like my brother Marco. But it'd be super cool to be a Gryffindor, don't you think?”

This time, Hunk nodded. He'd done as much research as he could into Hogwarts, and the four houses were actually something he knew quite a bit about.

“Ravenclaw seems pretty cool, too,” he offered, and Lance nodded.

“Yeah, Veronica was a Ravenclaw. I'm nowhere near smart enough for that, though. I hear you have to answer a different riddle every time you go through! As if remembering a password isn't hard enough! How crazy is that?” Lance asked, with a shake of his head, then continued before Hunk could reply. “Man, I hope we're in the same house! Then we could be roommates.”

“Maybe,” Hunk said, and he couldn't help but hope so. But this boy seemed like a Gryffindor if Hunk had ever seen one. Outgoing, speaking his mind, yet kind for no reason at all. And Hunk would probably get put in Hufflepuff, which he didn't mind.

Still, it would be nice if he got to spend more time with his first friend.

“You said you had siblings?” Hunk asked, trying to contribute more to the conversation. If he wanted to return the kindness Lance was showing, he should at least give answers of more than one word.

“Yep!” Lance replied, instantly beaming. “Veronica's the oldest— she was a Ravenclaw before she graduated. Luis is a Slytherin, and he's in his seventh year. Marco's in his fifth year now. Hufflepuff. Do you have any siblings?”

Hunk nodded. “Two, but they're both too young to go to Hogwarts yet.”

Lance tilted his head to the side. “Both your parents are magical, then?”

“Yeah,” Hunk said, nodding again. “My moms are both witches. They sent us to regular public school, though, instead of homeschooling.”

Lance seemed to hesitate, before blurting another question. “You're pure-blooded, then?”

Hunk shook his head. “One of my moms is, or at least it's all wizards so far back that we can barely keep track. But my other mom's parents were muggles. So I'm a half-blood, I guess.”

Lance, who had become momentarily tense, relaxed again. “Good.”

“Do... you weren't asking because you have something against people who are muggle-born, were you?” Hunk wondered, almost afraid to ask. He had really hoped this Lance was as nice as first impressions had suggested.

Lance's eyes widened, and he shook his head automatically. “No! Of course not! It's just... well. My dad was a muggle, and my mom's a witch. She warned me that a lot of pure-blooded wizards have a problem with people who aren't like them. Even though I'm not fully muggle-born, a lot of people think that muggles and wizards shouldn't be allowed to be together at all. That's... that's why I asked.”

“Nope. Half-blood brothers, man,” Hunk said with a grin, then immediately regretted it. Just when he was making a friend, he had to go and say something lame.

But Lance smiled back. “Yeah!” He gave Hunk a high-five, then opened his mouth to say something else. Before he could, however, the door to their car opened.

“Anything from the trolley, dears?” asked the little old lady wheeling a cart of candy and treats.

Lance was visibly staring at all the food longingly, and Hunk couldn't blame him. The smell alone was enough to make his mouth water.

“No, thank you,” Lance started to say anyway. “I'm good—”

“Hey,” Hunk interrupted, fishing out some of the galleons his moms had given him specifically for this purpose. “What's life without a little sweetness? Can we get... two pumpkin pasties, two chocolate frogs, and... some every-flavor beans, just for fun?”

He returned to his seat with the goods, and Lance stared at him in awe. “You didn't have to do that.”

“I wanted to,” Hunk said, handing Lance his share. “You didn't have to come sit with me when you saw me by myself.”

“I wanted to.” Lance held out his own chocolate frog case, and clicked it against Hunk's in a childlike toast. “To magic and to new friends, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Hunk echoed, mimicking the gesture.

They ate the chocolate quickly, as children always did, and enthused about their cards. Lance had received Professor Alfor and Hunk had gotten Professor Gyrgan.

Lance sighed contentedly, wiping a hand across his face and smudging chocolate on the side of his nose. “I hope everyone at Hogwarts is as amazing as you.” he said, voicing Hunk's thoughts exactly.

The rest of the train ride they spent just as happily, eating both impossibly disgusting and delicious jelly-beans and talking about their excitement for sorting and classes while the rolling green hills sped past them under a sunset out the window.

Hunk opened his eyes, with a small smile at the memory. A translucent dog materialized out of thin air from the point of his wand, and ran around in circles at his feet. A pretty fitting patronus, he thought. Man's best friend.

And Lance really was his best friend. Even after being sorted into different houses, him in Gryffindor and Hunk in Ravenclaw, they still did everything together that they could. And in their second year, Pidge joined their group, resulting in countless wonderful memories that Hunk had never had before meeting them.

But out of all of those, this moment stuck out the most. It was the beginning of a whole new era of Hunk's life, the moment he met his favorite person. 

He felt a hand on his shoulder, and turned to see Lance looking at his patronus, a smile on his face.

“Woah, a Labrador! Aren't they, like, one of the friendliest and cuddliest dogs ever? It fits,” Lance said, then seemed to think for a moment. “Well, but wait, is it a chocolate lab or a yellow lab? Or a black lab? I can't really tell.”

Hunk shrugged, not sure which color the ethereal blue light was supposed to represent. “I don't think it matters, man.”

Lance snorted. “Yeah, you're right. Whatever it is, it's perfect.”

And it really was.

[asukaskerian]

OK, correct me if I'm wrong, but in your psychic wolves AU, it seems that being wolf-bonded is seen to be reserved only to the noble (and knight) caste, but at the same time, a lot of nobles see it as being undesirable in their families. Could you explain why, please?

OKAY YES it’s basically a relic of ancient times where warriors protecting their villages against trolls and things (yes they’re canon for the books so i’m assuming they also happened in here) had to bond with packs of wolves to fight them off. from that the noble caste emerged. traditionally castles maintain their own pack on the premises. 

it’s still seen as a mark of a warrior spirit, and it does unify a troop like nothing else, so the more warlike nobles and the ones that really get into hunting big game are like hell yes sign me up, but the more “oh i love to party and start mean rumors in the ballroom” types are less enthused about it.

some noble families, like tarvek’s father’s branch, see them as pointless relics of a less civilized time. like, okay, they sort of think, but they’re still animals. plus, they’re telepathic, which means if you like to keep secrets from people who should be your allies or trusted subordinates or you want to just not know them that well because you like your subordinates to be disposable and not give themselves airs like they’re anywhere near your level it would kinda be NOOOOPE opting the fuck out bye.

so probably what happened with the sturmvoraus pack was that adults and widowed wolves wandered off to bond to people from visiting packs, and breedings happened less and less, and the last bonded people were not of the ruling line so they were encouraged to move their allegiance elsewhere or let the last wolves die out without reproducing.

(also yeah, it’s forbidden to women, because GASP women are gentle and should stay behind to take care of the house not go HUNTING or WARRING, but men don’t actually have the monopoly on traits that might be attractive to a wolf, so it’s not uncommon that half of a litter will bond to women and then whoops “where did your pretty daughter sophie go my son was looking forward to her coming of age” “OH AILMENT OF THE LUNGS COUNTRY ESTATE HAHA UM I HAVE ANOTHER ONE??.” and it’s forbidden to peasants and servants, but if they’re around a wolf cub and the cub likes them, well, shit happens. in the end the wolf chooses and you just have to deal with it, but with the widening of the social gap between nobility and the rest of the populace it’s less and less desirable to allow a creature to draw you intimately close with people you ought to be working with, but cannot reliably choose to make sure they’re all “the right sort”.)

… did anything not make enough sense? i can expand. probably for like a dozen more pages. thirty more pages. psychic wooooolves.

[trashangel-dee]

Prompt idea for a soulmate AU (I'm a sucker for those :P): You don't see color until you find your soulmate. You only see in black and white again if your soulmate dies or if there's a really bad break in the relationship.

Here it is! Sorry it took so long, I was somehow super inspired and super stuck at the same time. It is fairly ooc, but kind of wanted it to be for an au.

Hope it’s okay! :)

Dee grumbledto herself, sitting next to her brother in the restaurant. They were meetinghis boyfriend, and his friend. Dennis claimed they were “just friends”but the way he yammered on about the guy was much more than she had heard himtalk of others. The fact that he had agreed to pay for her meal and a newpurse, just so she would go and chat with the friend he didn’t want to leavebehind didn’t help- Dennis was offering money just so he could see the guy.

“Here theyare!” Dennis whispered excitedly, leaning in close. Dee groaned, ready to killDennis for getting her in this situation. She recognized Mac, having only methim once, but the karate noises and smell of Drakkar Noir would stick with her.It was his companion, her “dinner buddy” that was an issue- a shorter, scruffyman in a wrinkled t-shirt and oversized jacket trailed along. He’s out with abeautiful woman and decides it’s okay to dress like that? Shit, she hopes thisisn’t him actually trying.

“Like Isaid, Deandra,” Dennis began, “sleeveless shirts are so white trash, but witharms like that, Mac can pull it off.” She stared at him for a moment incredulously-is he not hearing himself?

The two menreach the table and sit, Mac across from Dennis and the grungy one across fromDee. “Hey, bro, this is Charlie, we’ve been friends since, like, forever.”Charlie gives a half hearted wave, and Dennis nods.

“So, you’reDennis’ sister” Charlie says to her, and she can’t tell if he’s asking ortelling. She’s debating whether to give a sarcastic response or “play nice” asDennis had begged in the car, when she lost her train of thought. He waslooking right at her, and his eyes, they were so different than anything shehad seen before.

Instead ofthe usual monochrome palette she had only known, there was a new brightness.Green.

—————–

Dee walkeddown the hall to Charlie’s apartment finding herself excited, a combination ofseeing him and hopefully discovering a new color. He had called, inviting herover for lunch, one he had cooked himself. Dee had been to his apartment oncebefore- briefly when picking him up to go out; she wasn’t thrilled aboutspending the day in the small, dirty room but found the pros far outweighed thecons.

He answeredthe door quickly, though there’s no reason he shouldn’t, Dee thought, with howsmall the apartment is.

“Oh, hey,hey, come on in” he smiled stepping aside. She entered, surveying the room,realizing that’s exactly what it was. A room. No kitchen, no dining area. Shewas about to ask just exactly how he ate in there, glancing over the coffeetable littered with magazines, empty bottles and various empty food wrappers.Of course, he hadn’t bothered to clean up before she came over, much like hehadn’t bothered to do to himself the first time they met.

Her eyes fellto a small card table, a little off the center of the room, a chair on eachside; with two place settings, and in the center stood a single flower in avase. She recognized the green stem immediately, but atop where it bloomed wasa new color. Yellow.

——————————————-

“This placeis supposed to be really popular. I hear they make really good drinks and havelots of colors, too,” Dee explained, as she and Charlie rounded a corner andsaw the giant SUDZ sign. Neither had experienced all the colors yet, but therewas always hope of discovering a new one, and finding all the different shadesof the ones they had already learned.

They hadboth discovered different ones than the other, and part of the fun was tryingto explain them and pointing out what things were the unknown colors.

The placewas loud and busy. They sat at an open spot at the counter, and a man behindthe bar held up a finger indicating he’d be there in a moment, they bothnodded. Dee reached for a flyer indicating drink specials, when Charlie pointedat a group sharing something from a fishbowl, “I know what we’re getting.”

“That?” Deeasked trying, and failing, to sound annoyed, “what’s so great about it?”

“It’s blue!Like your eyes. And I want you to like it as much as I do,” he enthused. Sheunderstood, remembering the first time she saw his green, it was such abeautiful color, her first color,instantly shifting her mood that day.

The manjogged up to them, “How you doing? My name is Greg-“ before Charlie cut himoff.

“We’ll takeone of those,” pointing again at the table.

“That’d be aBlue Hole. Our blended signature cocktail. A great choice. It’s what werecommend to our first-“ he started happily, before Dee cut in this time,enjoying interrupting the man. “That’s great! Go get it.”

He got thehint to quit with the small talk and returned a moment later with the drink,two straws sticking out. For a moment it looked like he was going to try beingfriendly again, but decided against it, and left. They leaned in, taking adrink at the same time; Dee feeling like one of those couples sippingmilkshakes on posters, but not so cheesy.

She satback, looking at the drink they had shared, and it seemed to spring to life.Blue.

———————-

Dee hadnever celebrated a real Valentine’s Day before. Sure, she’s been on dates andsent cards, but nothing really went anywhere. Sometimes it was just a plan toget laid, sometimes she’d see the guy again once or twice; it was more of aholiday for following what movies and TV suggested, she never had actually feltthe things the day had promised.

She hadknown Charlie for almost 6 months, and was looking forward to the holiday,going into it with real expectations; though years ago she would’ve thought areal Valentine’s should include jewelry, chocolates, and an expensiverestaurant, she now found the idea boring and impersonal.

They hadagreed to spend the day together, with no plans, just each other.  She jumped when she heard a pounding on thedoor, pulling it open to see Charlie smiling widely, hands behind his back. “Imade you something,”

He pulledout a slightly lopsided paper heart full of bright stickers, two cats touching nosesin the center, inside a red hand drawn heart. ‘Happy Valentine’s Day’ scribbledacross the top in messy handwriting. The paper wasn’t like the kind she was accustomedto, it was colored, too. Pink.

———————-

Dee sat atthe counter of the bar she had just bought with her brother, Mac, and Charlie.

It wasalmost nightfall in the warm summer, when Dee felt someone grab her hand. Looking up, she saw itwas Charlie, a lumpy bag under his arm. “Dee, come with me,” he whispered. Sherolled her eyes then glanced over at Mac and Dennis, who were in the middle ofdoing something… stupid. Deciding Charlie’s mystery was better than the othertwo, Dee followed him out the back door into the alley.

Charliereached for the roof ladder, pulling it down. She sighed, tired from the long day. “What the hell are we doing, Charlie?”

“Having ourown celebration.” he explained, then continued after catching the doubtful lookon her face. “It’s good. I promise.”He stepped back, motioning towards the ladder, “ladies first.”

Dee shook herhead. “Nope. I don’t know what’s up there.”

“Fine”Charlie started climbing, glancing back to make sure Dee was following. Shewas.

They reachedthe top, looking over the large flat surface for a moment, before Charliewalked to the center, dropping the bag; he opened it, pulling out a largeblanket and a couple bottles of wine. He sat down, patting the spot next tohim; Dee followed, sitting and looked around.

“Can youbelieve this is ours?” he asked after a moment. She leaned close, resting herhead on his shoulder. “No. I can’t.” she breathed.

They sat ina comfortable silence, staring at the darkening sky barely illuminated by the settingsun, filled with swirls of a new color. Purple.

———————————–

“We’re notkids, Charlie,” Dee explained. “Halloween is for costumes and getting drunk.Not carving faces on pumpkins.”

“Well yeah!But it’s also for candy and jack of lanterns,” Charlie fought back, patting thetwo giant pumpkins on Dee’s kitchen table.

“O, Charlie. It’s Jack o Lantern.”

Charlienarrowed his eyes for a moment, thinking. “Nah, Dee. I’m pretty sure it’s of,”he finished, grabbing a knife and stabbing at the top of a pumpkin.  Dee watched as he cut the top off thenreached inside, happily pulling out handfuls of seeds and goop.

“Well, I’m pretty sure the only reason youwanted to do this, was to touch all that gross shit.”

“We need decorations, Dee, if we’re really gonnacelebrate. Besides, it’s our first holiday at the bar. Gotta make it big.”

Deeresigned. She had never really enjoyed holidays as a kid; it was alwayssomething her parents had blown off, seeing celebrating for her and Dennis asan inconvenience. She watched Charlie concentrate on carving into the pumpkin,working in detail on his design, finding herself more focused on his excitementthan the actual tradition.

He looked upa few minutes later, spinning the pumpkin towards her with a look of pride, awell crafted glass of foamy beer carved in the center. The entire object lookedeven better when it took on a color. Orange.

——————–

“I’m reallyhappy Dennis dragged me to that stupid restaurant with him,” Dee said oneevening, as she and Charlie sat side by side. He tilted his head slightly, confused.

“I might nothave met you. Things might not’ve worked out, and we wouldn’t be here,” sheexplained. He nodded, “It is kind of cool.”

“I want thisto be forever” she confessed.

“Then, let’smake a blood oath!” Charlie exclaimed sitting up straighter, “That’s, like, thebest promise you can make someone. It can never really be broken.” He looked so serious and focused.

She lookedat him for a moment, considering, then nodded.

Charliepulled a pocket knife from his jeans, flipping it open. He held out hisopposite hand, placing the blade against his palm; Dee reached across the tablepulling one from her purse, and doing the same. They both took a deep breath,pressing down and pulling the tips across, looking up upon noticing that thistime there was a color to the warm liquid slowly pooling out. Red.

They bothsmiled, clasping hands together before leaning forward and touching lips, too.

 ———————–

 This was really fun to write. I tried to use a canon-ish moment for each one, but had to really stretch on some. I thought about doing the death/broken part, but just couldn’t bring myself to.

 If anybody else has prompts, headcanons, etc. send them to me. No promises they’ll be good, but I’ll try.