#i'm talking about the arms trade l

[narcissistcookbook]

boys i'm starting to think building a society where the primary imperative of business is to make as big a profit as possible might have been a bad idea

lads stop me if i'm wrong, but was it a mistake to make money so central to our society that rich people become functionally omnipotent?

gents i can't believe i'm saying this but am i wrong for not trusting the private sector to have my best interests at heart??

[woso-dreamzzz]

Idol II

England Lionesses x Teen!Reader

Summary: Your first call up to the Lionesses

It wasn't you that Sarina had come to evaluate.

It was Grace.

She'd heard great things about Grace Clinton and the idea of putting her into the World Cup squad was tempting which was why she was sat in the freezing cold winter weather in Bristol, trying to see if she could find a way to fit Grace into her midfield at her current level.

But Grace is on the bench, having picked up a slight niggle in the warm up.

So instead of Grace, Sarina finds herself evaluating you instead.

You're by far the smallest and youngest on the pitch, at least two heads shorter than the next smallest and your round baby face makes it clear that you're not anywhere near the next youngest too.

"Er...y/n l/n," One of the staff members replies when Sarina asks who you are," She's currently being looked at for the Under-23s. She's an Under-17 right now."

Sarina frowns. "How old is she?"

"She turned fifteen this August. Her inclusion in the Bristol City team was a surprise to everyone."

Sarina sips on her coffee thoughtfully just as you dance between two defenders and your shot is deflected by the keeper.

The Championship doesn't have the greatest access to camera footage so Sarina's mainly condemned to old youth team footage that's a little unfocussed and shaky.

She hums to herself, fingernails clicking against her desk.

"Hello? Is this Mrs l/n? Hi, this is Sarina Wiegman. I'm calling on behalf of the Lionesses. Yes, about your daughter."

Your coat is two sizes too big and the legs of your trousers have been rolled up a few times, that's one of the first things Keira notices.

The second thing is that your eyes are wide and the smile on your face holds excitement with a hint of nervousness.

She's never seen you before in her life and to even see someone like you at camp is shocking.

She'd been shocked to see a name on the camp list that she didn't recognise, even more shocked when she'd asked around and found that no one really knew who you were.

You walk in with Sarina, tucked under her arm as the introductions are made.

The nervousness is another thing Keira notes, your awkward smile does nothing to hide the way your eyes dart around the area.

"That's the kid Jona was talking about," Lucy says one morning randomly, scoffing down a piece of toast," He said that La Masia were looking to bring her in. She's still on an Academy contract with Bristol City."

"Really?" Georgia asks," You'd think they'd have moved her onto a professional one. Apparently, she's like an integral part to their system. Bristol City are gunning for promotion, I heard."

"She's good," Lucy says as Keira glances over her shoulder to watch you push at your eggs with a wrinkled nose," But her talents are wasted at Bristol."

Georgia flicks a bit of mushroom at her. "Maybe Bayern will have to grab her before you do."

Lucy laughs, pushing herself out from the table. "Well, maybe I should just go and ask her now, shall I? Because I guarantee you, she's going to want to trade England's weather for sunny Spain over Germany."

Georgia stands up too. "Funny. I was going to say that she'd much prefer the food in Germany to the food in Spain. I don't think she likes rice much so she won't like paella."

You're sitting alone at your table, wondering if it's alright to leave the now cold scrambled egg on your plate or if you should force it down so the catering staff don't feel annoyed at your for wasting it.

You practically jump out of your skin as Lucy Bronze and Georgia Stanway slam into the chairs opposite you.

You couldn't look at them - not after meeting Georgia for the first time and mindlessly blurting out her statistics from this season right in front of her.

"So," Lucy says, drumming her fingers on the table," How do you like Spain?"

"Er..."

"Ever been to Germany?" Georgia cuts in," Because, you know, Munich is beautiful this time of year."

"I-"

"Because I was thinking," Lucy continues like Georgia hadn't even spoken," Barcelona is just so nice and warm. You could work on your tan there."

"And of course, there's so many great Christmas markets in the winter," Georgia says," And sometimes we go and visit them as a big team and buy each other stuff."

"Well we do that at Barcelona too. Ingrid has a great list of coffee shops if you're into that kind of thing."

"Sydney knows the best places to grab a bite in the middle of the night."

"Aitana knows-"

A body slumps down into the seat next to you, an arm swung casually over your shoulder.

"You know, Chelsea's the place to be," Millie Bright says," Great manager. Great staff. Great team. We've got it all."

"And how many Champion's Leagues is that?" Lucy asks and Millie kicks her under the table.

"She's not going to any of your teams," Mary interrupts, swinging her feet up and onto the table as she leans back in the chair she stole," Because United are going to have this girl on lock."

The table erupts into laughter and Mary's face drops.

"Hey! It's not funny! We'll see who's laughing next season!"

"Still us," Georgia says," There's no way a kid with this level of talent is going to United! Just you wait, after the World Cup, she's going to have offers flooding in from everywhere.

"Really?" You ask, voice quiet," You really think so?"

You hadn't ever really thought of you future outside of the now. You don't know if you had ever really considered that you were good enough for other people to want. You hadn't ever really considered anyone would take a chance on you like Bristol City did.

"Are you kidding?" Lucy scoffs," Kid, your skills are off the charts at this age! Just you wait, people are going to be clamouring to get you!" She winks. "Just remember to choose the right one."

"The right one being Bayern," Georgia says with grin," Think of the Christmas markets."

"Think of the Barcelona sun."

"Think of being on the best English team."

"Think of..." Mary throws her hands up. "Well how am I supposed to compete with that?!"

"You can't," Lucy laughs with a shrug," Which is why United was never part of the conversation. Face it, Mary, you can't compete with that."

Mary waves her finger around. "Just you wait, I'll have this kid moving to Manchester before this World Cup is over."

A hand falls onto your shoulder and you look up to see Keira standing there, an eye roll already half completed on her face.

"The kid can make her own decisions," She says," She doesn't need you lot badgering her to make one before she has to."

"It's just a bit of fun, Kie," Georgia complains with an eye roll of her own," Sue me if I don't want Barcelona to collect all the best midfielders in the world."

The gentle teasing continues but all you can think of is Georgia's words.

'Collect all the best midfielders in the world'.

She meant you in that conversation as well. She meant to put you in the same bracket as Keira and Bonmatí and Guijarro and Putellas, the staples of Barcelona's midfield.

You stare down at your plate, that stupid bit of cold scrambled egg still sitting on it. You don't know how to react to that.

Say thank you?

Or would that make it weird?

Probably.

You've already embarrassed yourself enough this week. You don't need to do it all over again.

So you just kind of sit there with a shy smile on your face as the older players tease each other around you.

"Don't listen to them," Keira says," Where you go and what you do with your career is all up to you." She winks. "But I wouldn't be opposed if you wanted to come along to Barcelona."

[xxgoblin-dumplingxx]

💜💜💜

"Reportedly the wife of billionaire Bruce Wayne, the actress Y/n Y/l/n, has been in talks to take a role in an upcoming musical-"

You snort and reach across your husband's bare, still sweating chest to turn off the TV, "I'd like to know when I'd have had time to talk to anyone about that this week."

Bruce's deep laugh rumbled under your cheek and he smacks your backside affectionately, "Maybe someone over heard you in the car- you did hit something that sounded suspiciously like a high note."

"That was mean, Brucie," you pout.

"But that toy comes with all those little buttons-"

"And you pushed every fucking one," you huff, nipping his chest.

"Damn right I did," he smirked, unrepentant. "It's our vacation. Don't think I don't know how many nights you go to bed lonely-"

"I knew what I was getting into," you remind him, snuggling into his arms anyway. You wouldn't trade your time with him for anything, even if you felt guilty about the way you hoarded the memories away.

"Not the point, Sweetheart," he rumbled, stroking your back. "I promised to take care of you and to love you. The same way you did for me. And you hold up your end of things- I'm not stupid. Having a wife comes with obligations... like paying particular attention to her."

You look up at him and smile a little, "I'm not exactly neglected, Brucie."

"No," He said preening, " And you're not going to be either. As long as I anything to say about it you're going to be well pampered, well fucked, and spoiled."

"Sweet talker-"

"And I mean every word," he hummed, kissing you softly. He knew you needed him to be present for you as badly as he needed you to keep his home and his public life in order. And he'd be lying if he said he didn't feel the benefits of this too- his old aches were all but gone and his stress levels were low. Of course, he had some new aches but- they were satisfying ones. The kind of ache he'd be more than willing to ignore if you wanted more.

"I know."

"Good." He pulled you close and kissed your forehead, "tired, baby girl?"

"Exhausted."

He tutted softly, "Worn out already? Sleep, Sweetheart. Rest. You're gonna need all your energy for me tomorrow."

"Brucie-"

"We're on vacation, baby girl. Means I don't gotta behave and we don't have kids."

[greenwitchfromthewoods]

you in my eyes [2]. l Javier Peña

Summary:  you weren't friends and you certainly weren't planning anything more together

Warnings:  angst, enemies (?) to lovers, Javier is nasty and mean, misogyny and sexism at work, some bad language, sexual innuendo, Murphy shows up, Messina too.

A/N: maybe I'm adding this too quickly. I have this thing that when I write something, I want to share it with you right away. I'll be grateful for every response, it means a lot to me. thank you for reading!

your feedback is very important to me and I want to thank you for all the reblogs, comments and likes. I secretly hope you like this story.🖤 sorry for all the mistakes

[previous chapter]

[masterlist]

Your body swayed to the rhythm of the muffled music, the crimson liquid in your glass did the same. The dress you were wearing hugged your body like a second skin. Shapely hips, bust, waist. He could see it all clearly. A few strands of hair stuck to your neck, this place was really stuffy.

A young boy moved towards you. Javier could see him very well. He looked like he wanted to beg to feel your body, you seemed like an angel who could fulfill his request. False hopes.

Javier shook his head and blew a wisp of smoke from his mouth. It was an interesting sight, too interesting. The boy wasn't even halfway to you when you noticed him and you shook your head slightly. He understood immediately. He wouldn't leave this place with you that night.

But the other man, the one who, like Peña, had been watching you for a long time, was probably luckier. 

His hand soon landed on the small of your back, he whispered something in your ear, you caressed his freshly shaved cheek and gave him such a smile that Javier thought he would gladly trade places with him.

He was the winner.

Peña didn't know you very well. You had worked in this department almost as long as he had, your paths had crossed a few times, but you had never stayed on his radar for long. He didn't know why. 

He usually noticed all the women, the office was a limited space after all. You worked hard, Messina often noticed you, which pissed off the male part of the team. Javier didn't give a damn. 

Just like you, he did his job. There were rumors about you, just like you had probably heard the ones about him. But you had a job to do.

Monday found him with a strong coffee. Steve had something to do and he was waiting for him at his desk, trying not to fall asleep. How much he would give for a few extra hours of sleep...

He flinched at the sound of Messina's office door slamming. She had never been at work this early, and Javier was even more surprised when he saw you with her. 

He frowned. The distance didn't allow him to hear exactly what you were talking about, but he thought he heard words like "report" and "informant". That was enough for him.

"Did you have a busy weekend?" he asked, catching up with you in the now empty hallway.

You turned around, slightly surprised by his presence in the office at this hour. "My free time is my business, Peña." you replied, glaring at him. "Do you need something?"

"Messina knows?"

"About what?" you frowned and folded your arms over your chest.

"About how you get information?" Javier muttered. "I saw you at the bar with that guy."

"Jealous?" you sneered.

“I don't think there's anything to be jealous of." he said with a grimace on his face "You hope you can climb up to Escobar through the beds of his associates?"

Your eyes narrowed and a jaw clenched. This guy was getting on your nerves. His sly attitude and arrogance were almost comical.

"Listen." You replied quietly, gritting each next word through your teeth "I'm the same kind of agent as you, Peña. I went through the same training, but my standards were set higher. I've met a lot of men like you, sexists who thought that if I had a pussy, I couldn't do anything right. But now I'm here." You took a step closer and Javier caught the distinct scent of your perfume "If I had a dick like you, you'd probably high-five me and buy me a drink. But now all you can do is sweat with rage in your too-tight jeans."

You fell silent for a moment as a group of men approached you. They greeted Javier and quickly disappeared down the hall. Javier felt his jeans starting to get tighter in the crotch. Damn, it pissed him off.

"I don't care what you think about my methods or me. You can go to your buddies, tell them what a bitch I am and then you can all cry together. But we have work to do so pull yourself together and stop following me around like a spoiled brat."

Javier opened his mouth to answer you, but someone called out to him. Murphy was walking towards you, clearly agitated about something.

Steve nodded in your direction, and you responded with a gentle smile, after a moment you turned around and headed towards your office.

"I have something you'll like." he said, patting Javier on the shoulder, but he noticed his face immediately. "What happened?"

"Nothing." He mumbled, rubbing his mouth with his hand.

"Are you sure? Okay." He handed Peña a folder with documents. "Messina just gave it to me. We'll be able to talk to that guy we wanted to get to. Someone convinced him to talk to us."

Javier quickly looked through the documents. "Who the fuck did that?"

He didn't like Steve's smile, or the fact that he nodded in the direction you had just disappeared. "She. And she told Messina that you should be the one to take care of it. She convinced that guy to only talk to you."

Peña closed his eyes and leaned against the wall. "Fuck." he hissed.

"Are you sure everything's okay?"

He nodded reluctantly. "Yeah, let's go to him before he changes his mind."

Despite everything, you liked your job and you were really good at it. You didn't get into this department because you had a lovely smile, you worked hard for it all. And although sometimes you wanted to give it all up and go back to America, something still kept you here. 

Stubbornness? Probably yes. A sense of duty? Too. You also wanted to prove something to yourself. Not only to yourself, but that was also a good reason.

You couldn't stand the smell that wafted through the archive. Poor ventilation and cardboard boxes with documents were not a good combination. Despite everything, you took out more boxes and looked through the documents, hoping that you would find what you were looking for.

Suddenly, a low voice that you knew very well filled the silence surrounding you.

"It's hard to find you."

You slid the box onto the shelf and glanced at the next one. "I guess it's not too hard since you made it, Agent Peña." you replied.

You threw a quick glance over your shoulder and saw Javier emerging from the shadowy corridor of shelves. He hadn't been in the office for a few days, your files and new information had dragged him and Murphy out of town.

"I met with your informant." he mumbled, watching you as you took down another box, pressed it against the shelf with your hip and began rummaging through the files. "He helped us a lot. We'll be able to arrest some important people soon."

"Sounds good." you replied without even lifting your head from the papers.

Javier cleared his throat. He felt embarrassed, and seeing you working, he almost felt like he was an intruder in this room.

"Listen..." he began, you hummed to show that you were listening. "I wanted to apologize to you. I was a bit... Fuck. I was an asshole to you. I don't know why I acted like that. And you got me something I've been trying to get for so long. You didn't have to."

"The best agent should handle things like that, I wouldn't give it to any rookie." you replied, turning your face towards him. There was no anger or disappointment in your gaze, which Javier expected. You looked at him with interest and even politeness.

"So why didn't you take care of it yourself?" he asked.

He wasn't ready for that. Your lips widened in a smile that immediately caught his attention. Why hadn't he noticed it before? Right, because every time you talked he made you furious.

"Oh, please!" you said, clearly amused. "I knew perfectly well that you would give your left arm to be able to meet this guy. I'm not as much of a bitch as they say I am."

"Now I feel even worse." Javier scratched the back of his neck.

"Well, at least that means you have human feelings."

He chuckled.

"What are you looking for? Maybe I can help you?"

You shook your head and put the box on the floor. "I already found it. Look."

You showed him a folder with a photo of a group of men, then pointed to one of them. "He's the one who shot your last informant." Javier frowned for a moment, his jaw clenching.

"How do you know?" he asked.

"I didn't paint my nails while you were out of the office." You shrugged. "I heard rumors so I asked around. He's just a kid, but he's ambitious. Too ambitious. It makes him reckless."

"Do you have anything else?" Javier looked at you intently.

You had and gave him everything he needed.

"I don't like it when someone new comes into the office." Steve finished coffee and stretched in his chair. "They're always so strict about following the rules."

Javier flicked his cigarette and looked up from the documents he was reading. "Messina says it's someone important. O'Connell or something like that."

"Yeah. Maybe he won't be here long."

Javier shrugged. He didn't care. 

After the last arrests, they had to process all the statements and put everything together again. They had been working late and spending every free moment gathering leads. Peña and Murphy felt like they were knee-deep in the mud again.

You disappeared again, and even though Javier asked his boss where you were, she just looked at him sideways. "She's doing her job, Peña. You should be doing it too."

Loud chatter and an unexpected commotion in the hallway meant that someone important had arrived at the office. Steve craned his neck in that direction.

"I think that's him." he mumbled, then stood up from his chair as Messina ushered the new agent into the office.

"Gentlemen, I'd like to introduce you to Peter O'Connell. He's here from headquarters to see how our work is going." she said, and the man standing behind her nodded in greeting. "Peña and Murphy." she said, pointing at them, and O'Connell quickly shook their hands.

He had a firm grip. Underneath his blazer, they could see the solid build of a man, and his dark hair was neatly combed on the sides.

"I've read your reports, boys." he said, smiling. "Great job with those last arrests. You've got your hands full of work."

Messina began to outline what O'Connell's visit would consist of, but Javier quickly stopped focusing on the boring protocol. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a familiar figure.

He saw you sneaking over to your desk with a cup of coffee and a stack of files under your arm. You must have slept a little, because the dark circles under your eyes were a clear sign of that.

O'Connell's gaze followed Javier's and his eyes widened at the sight of you. He said your name, and you suddenly stiffened.

"Peter?" you whispered as the man approached you "What are you....."

"I didn't expect to see you here!" O'Connell laughed, leaning down to kiss your cheek, but you pulled away and he could only awkwardly cover up his gesture by shaking your hand. "You look great."

"Thanks." you replied, embarrassed. "Boss, I have those documents you asked for. Can I show you?"

Messina nodded, and you quickly left the office. Peter's sharp eyes followed you to the door.

"Surprising." Steve said. "Meeting a friend in the middle of nowhere."

"Right?" O'Connell laughed. "We used to work together. Pretty close, if you know what I mean." He winked at them.

For some reason, Javier felt that he didn't like him. Maybe he was prejudiced, maybe he was too quick to judge people? But he certainly noticed your discomfort with the guy who had visited you. 

In the meantime, Peter exchanged a few more comments with them and went to the other agents he wanted to talk to.

"Slippery guy." Murphy muttered, looking at him for a while longer. "What do you think of him?"

Javier folded his arms over his chest. "I'm sure he knew exactly that she worked here." He replied. "He came from headquarters, he must have had the names of all the agents."

"So why the show?"

Peña shrugged. He was sure that he would find out soon enough.

☆☆☆☆

Thank you for your time.

[harrington-stevie]

trust you | anakin skywalker: episode X

We're finally back!! Read it on Wattpad too!

Summary: Anakin is planning a trade with General Grievous and is preparing for another mission, again. Before he leaves the Temple, he seeks help from a very skilled engineer, and their interaction takes a wild turn. The Jedi is faced with an unexpected visitor, buckle up.

Warnings: Angst, some sort of fluff, mention of injuries, a lot of swearing as always

Word count: 2.9k

���⭒˚.⋆🪐 ⋆⭒˚.⋆

Anakin:

I had been waiting for her outside the classroom where she was in with the other kids. Luke wasn't there today, and I could use it to my advantage and finally go on that mission again and make the trade. My fingers twitched as my hands rested at my sides, I felt incredibly uncomfortable at the thought of talking to her again, or more specifically, at the thought of needing her help.

I noticed she held back a quip when I told her it had to do with Artoo, and I avoided glaring at her so she wouldn't give up helping me. I'm not getting better at this, and interacting with her doesn't make it any easier. My lips felt dry as I looked over her and she stared back at me. I have no fucking idea why I felt this way.

She scans the Droid carefully, reaching over for a datapad to scan him over. "I've tried everything, I can't even recalibrate his monitor"

She keeps herself focused on the task as I lean against the wall and tap my fingers against my folded arms. There's a brief silence that's neither dreading or embarrassing, which can mean endless things at this point.

She pauses the pad and hums, but there's a hint of amusement in her tone and I raise my brows at her reaction.

"Why is there a tweezer stuck inside Artoo?" She asks while popping open the access panel, reaching for the object and I clear my throat.

I wouldn't dare say I'm an engineer just like her, but I'd like to think I can honestly fix things. And to look at her mocking face while she holds the tweezer just about says a lot when it comes to my skills.

"I uh– thought I saw something loose and tried reaching out to it"

I try to ignore the way she's grinning and shaking her head at me, like I'm some fucking dumb child who messes up with something I shouldn't have. My own lips purse and I realize I'm trying not to smile at her attitude. Get over yourself, Skywalker.

She starts rewiring him, muttering something inaudible as she removes some faulty component and replaces it with a brand new one from her tool box. I cannot deny that she's very skilled and knows what she's doing. But every now and then I still feel bitter when it crosses my mind the day I fought with a limb because she couldn't fix my arm in time.

As she pushes herself up and presses a switch, R2 immediately straightens up and happily beeps as he spins. I didn't think she could do something like that this fast.

"What–" My voice cracks in surprise and I have to swallow it down "That was... incredibly fast"

(Y/N) gives me a sheepish smile and leans back. "This was easy. You should see the mess I fixed on that old Republic cruiser last week. Now, about my payment..."

My mind shorts circuit at her comment and I immediately scoff, with my arms still crossed against my chest.

"We never agreed on that" She must be thinking I'm being a pain in the ass with my remark, but my demeanor shifted minutes ago.

I can't keep lowering my shield whenever I'm around her, and I can't seem to raise it back up.

"Yeah, but you owe me a favor now, Master" She snickers, holding her waist with both hands and I roll my eyes. "And, you could've broken him with that tweezer in there"

I feel myself blush at the way she jokes about the object, but I brush it off "Don't push your luck, (Y/L/N)" I push myself off the wall and give Artoo a tap "But uh–"

My tongue rolls up inside my mouth and I force myself to look at her and nod. It's somewhat very difficult to actually talk to her without being an actual certified asshole.

"Thank you"

She grins again and taps on my shoulder, tilting her head almost mischievously "You're welcome, Skywalker"

I watch as she walks back inside the Temple, all the while R2 beeps from below me. If there's one thing I haven't missed about him being faulty, was that he was a talkative, nosy little Droid.

"Shut up" I mumble at him, and he spins around me as a responsive mock.

-

My hands tightly grip the handle as I once again approach the Trade Federation Cruiser. My anxiety skyrockets and I feel my stomach tying to a knot. Doing this alone now makes me feel more relieved since I'm not bringing anyone to a lethal battle, especially considering Grievous can be just as much of a killer as Snoke is.

As I'm about to land on the hangar, the radio on the control panel turns to life, making me snap my head directly at it in confusion.

"Hey, you" The male voice says "Yeah, you with the grumpy face. You're gonna need a hand again"

I roll my eyes when I realize it's Poe Dameron again. He fucking followed me. There’s something about him that feels like he wants to be drawn into murderous missions, as if he longs to fight against something dreadful, and it brings me to the brink of disturbance.

I wanted to fight alone, I wanted this mission to be mine. I didn't want to involve anyone else like the last time. I pretty much wouldn't drag Kestis to this godforsaken place even if he asked me to, especially now that we're not on good terms. I could just throw him to the Wookies and let him deal with them, but I wouldn't bring him here.

As I approach the General, he stands tall against me "For once, Grievous, let’s try talking before we start breaking things"

The Kaleesh chuckles "You Jedi always amuse me. What could you possibly offer that would make me spare your miserable lives?"

As I expected, his fingers tightens at my response and he narrows his eyes when I explain what we want.

"You expect me to believe you would trade such a valuable prize? What is the catch, Skywalker?"

"No catch. Just let the refugees from the outpost go. They’re not soldiers, they’re not spies" I try to reason with him, but he knows I'm reckless and I'm always with a move up on my sleeve.

From my comlink, I hear Poe muttering through his device, and I have to shoot him a glare. He shrugs "This guy is really negotiating with a walking trash compactor. Bold move"

Grievous startles me when he ignites his lightsaber "A tempting deal... but I do not negotiate with Jedi" The nearest battle droids raise their weapons. Again, I'm not surprised he refused the offer. Poe sighs and unholsters his blaster.

The fight immediately erupts and blasters fire, lightsabers flash as I try to fight off Grievous while Poe took cover, picking off droids with shots. My blade clashes against his, and I can feel Poe ducking behind me. He peeks out, firing two quick shots that take down a pair of B1 droids.

Things went south, again. My back slams against the wall and the battle droid in front of me tries to get past the door, but Poe surprises him with a swoon of the lightsaber he just found lying on the ground. I feel my left eye almost popping out of my skull, my head keeps pounding, and I'm pretty sure I have too many splits over my face to count. 

Somewhere in between the fight, I came across Grievous, who mercilessly tried to twist my guts with his force. I had to use all of my senses to abruptly push him backwards so I could run away. He didn't want to make any trades, he just wanted to win a battle. I had to defend myself and Poe, while the motherfucker could only do such little to help and surprisingly miss his shots at them. My head started spinning as I felt my eyelids become heavy, I could only see through a tunnel vision as it felt heavily blurry. I tried to push myself up, and my knees gave out.

The pilot was screaming my name, shielding himself as much as he could while he tried to pick me up. From then on, I blacked out.

My eyes felt extremely dry as I tried to open them a few times. My body was lying on a soft surface, and my head was lighter than before. I forced myself to stay awake, but the dizziness made me zone out countless times. I couldn't see shit in front of me, just some flashes of figures I couldn't honestly identify. Eventually, I fully awakened and straightened myself on the bed, finally able to take in my surroundings. I was in the medical bay. Poe was in the bed beside me, his face was littered in cuts and there was a nasty slash on his arm, which was covered by numerous stitches. 

Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck. I turned my head and scanned the place, seeing her in the distance as she looked rather shocked, her arms were folded and her eyebrows were knitted together. I was weak, but my senses still heightened as I felt this presence I haven't felt in years. It made me feel like my heart was almost ripping out of my chest, my ears started ringing again and there was a buzz inside my head. My hands immediately come up to either side of my skull, forcing my eyes shut as I try to balance myself. The high pitched noise increased at each passing second and I felt my nose bleeding. And then it came to an abrupt halt.

I slowly opened my eyes, noticing two figures in front of me. It was her and, the other one I assumed was Cal. But everything around me froze as I watched the other presence, one I had promised myself I would never meet again. One that I swore I wanted dead.

"Anakin!" She shouted before I fell limp on the bed again.

I'm not sure how long it took before I woke up again. This time, it was just him and me. Besides Poe, who was still on a lifelong nap on the other side of the room. I couldn't meet his gaze, the thought of looking up at him was unbearable. My ragged breath filled the air of the room, and my hands shook as I gripped the sheet beneath me tightly.

"You" I sneered, my eyes avoiding his gaze. I noticed he had seemed to lose weight, and his hair was longer than it was before. "You. How dare you come back like nothing happened?"

"Ani, I–"

"Don't you dare say my name like that! You lost your right to call me that long before you left. You're a fucking traitor, that's what you are"

"Anakin, I came back for you. I helped you out there. I know my respect and morals were swiped away, but listen, my young child–"

I cut him off with a scoff "Yeah, you of all the people would really come back for me after years! You said I was your brother, that you loved me. In the past. Don't forget that, Kenobi"

"I know what has been said and done, son. I couldn't just come back when you were so hurt and grieving. And I can still feel you, I can feel you struggling to make peace with yourself. I know you shut me out with the force, but I was never gone. Whatever battle has been happening, it's because you want to make things right"

"Don't lecture me, Obi-Wan" I still couldn't look at him, and my throat burns each time I say his name out loud "You don't fucking know shit about my life anymore. You don't know what my battles are, what I fight for. You didn't care to stay for Luke, my son!"

"I know more than you give me credit for, my young boy. I know you're still in pain, and I know how much you want to protect Luke. You don't have to forgive me. But please, don't torture yourself because of that"

There's dreadful silence filling the air, and my flesh hand became numb from twisting my wrist against the sheet. My nostrils flared, and I felt a sense of uneasiness as he took a few steps forward and placed one hand over mine. It didn't burn, it didn't make me flinch. Instead, it slowed my heartbeat and calmed my bloodstream.

"That young lady" He looks past the door of the medical bay, flicking his eyes at me again "She's not a bad person. She loves your son. She cares about you. She had been waiting for you to wake up for hours. Miss (Y/L/N) isn't afraid of you, Anakin. Don't push her away, because I know you want to"

He retracted his hand, intensely watching me. Something was boiling inside of me, but I couldn't figure out what it was. Obi-Wan looked over Poe and smiled at me.

"You've got yourself a good team, don't let that slip away from you"

He disappeared through the door and my breath hitched in my throat. My eyes were burning from tears that threatened to spill, but I wiped them away before I even started to cry. (Y/N) walked in with uncertainty in her steps, carefully scanning me over before walking near my bed.

"I didn't know he was here. He just landed on the hangar so suddenly, walking past everyone and when I noticed the commotion, I couldn't believe it"

I nodded, finally glancing up at her for the first time. She was shocked. I could see her fiddling and she was biting her lip.

"Guess we should give him the award for best fucking actor of the Temple" My words come out bitter and I can feel it in my tongue.

She doesn't extend the subject, reaching for a glass of water and offering it to me. I just then realized I hadn't had water in a long time.

"How are you feeling?" She asks, shuffling on her feet as I hand her the empty glass.

"About what exactly?"

"The fight. Obi-Wan told me they were beating you up, Poe came to your rescue right before you blacked out. He helped Dameron back to the spaceship with you and sent you two to Coruscant"

"Yeah, not as easy as I thought. I was sure I had the upper hand way before Dameron showed up unannounced"

"You're known for your reckless missions, Master. I guess he wanted to make sure you were safe" She gave me a reassuring smile and I felt my fingers twitching.

The unfamiliar feeling of protectiveness I sensed in her washed over me, making me speechless. She brought her hands up to reach my face and I trailed my eyes over her, noticing her hesitance to touch my skin as she examined my injuries. Her fingers lingered on my jawline, ghosting over my forehead. The light touch made me nauseous, but it wasn't negative. It was different from the kind of discomfort I had become used to after everything that had happened to me.

"You're going to survive" She removes her hand from my face, shooting me a bashful smile and I keep looking at her as if I'm under a fucking spell.

"Okay, doctor" My tone comes out somewhat playful and she chuckles at the remark. "Luke, where is he?"

It took me long enough to finally remember my son, and she placed a hand on top of my forearm, giving it a light squeeze.

"Oh, he's great. He came to see you earlier, said you were going to be just fine and left with 3PO"

I roll my eyes and sigh "He's getting used to me being beaten up. What kind of a father am I if I can't come back in pieces from a mission?"

Louis notices the resentment in my tone and gives me a comforting look.

"The kind of father who shows his soon that even the greatest Jedi loses too"

"Are you calling me a loser?" I fake an indignant voice and lift my eyebrows at her. Her face falters and she tries to recover from her comment, but I snort before she says anything back.

"You are insufferable, Skywalker"

"Just please tell him to come see me when you find him, will you?" She nods and excuses herself out of the room.

From the corner of my eye, I can feel Poe with his eyes open, trying to discreetly shift on his bed for his own sake, but failing at it.

"You know I know you have been listening, right?"

He leaves a huff and turns on his side to face me. "Didn't want to interrupt you love birds" He smiles widely and I glare at him.

There's only so much I could take in just one day. Everything started to fall apart the moment I black out in Grievous' ship, and meeting with Obi-Wan after what felt like decades took a turn real quickly. I could never imagine him being there after us, trying to keep us safe. Realizing that he was the one who brought us back and stayed by our side left me completely disoriented. It also struck me how I had treated her just moments ago, when in all honesty I should have backed off instead of leaving her the option to get so close, but I couldn't.

And Kenobi's words kept ringing in my head, a clear sign that he, indeed, knew me more than I gave him credit for.

@adorbzliz @himesuedi @kingdomhate @cl0esblogg @littlecoffeenerd @readingthingsonhere @js-favnanadoongi @twilightzone24 @crumblekitty @lacebird

[alisonwritesimagines]

I Just Wanna Know You Better Now ~LA! Mihawk Imagine~

Summary: You meet Mihawk for the first time and he is not what you expect.

Author’s Note: I was gonna upload this yesterday but my boyfriend's alarm woke me up and put me in a bad mood.

Based in my Enchanted series

Reader’s Pronouns: She/Her

Warnings: mentions of killing, fluff

Side Note: This is a secondary blog. If you comment a question down below, I will not answer since this is not the main blog. Please send the question to my inbox if you want a response back!

Do not repost this anywhere!

The village was small. Not what Mihawk was expecting to find the quarry that Vice Admiral Garp told him to kill. He walked around the village before settling to find information about you at a bar.

“What can I get you?” The lady working the bar asked as she approached him.

“Red wine if you have it,” he tells her.

“One glass coming up,” she tells him before pouring a drink for him.

“Do you know anywhere I can find someone named Y/n L/n?” Mihawk asked.

“Don’t know who you’re talking about. Never heard anyone by that name here.”

Mihawk could tell that she was lying. But she seemed calm about it so he wouldn’t press onto it.

“Alright. No worries. I just had a message to deliver to her from someone,” Mihawk said. The woman nodded before walking away to clean the bar more.

Mihawk paid for his drink before walking out of the bar. He headed to the outer part of the village where he saw a small house and a woman in the garden. He got closer and saw that it was you based on the description Vice Admiral Garp gave to him. Though he was a little surprise with your aura.

“You don’t seem like someone who can harm a fly."

He watched as you turned around to look at him. Mihawk couldn’t deny that you were beautiful.

“I can hurt a fly. Don’t think I’m good at harming anyone else,” you tell him as you stood up. Your arms are crossed defensively but Mihawk had no intention of hurting you anymore.

“I see.”

“I know who you are so what do you want?” You asked him. A bold one, Mihawk thought to himself.

“I was sent to kill you but in all honesty, I don’t think I can kill you. You’re too beautiful to be killed,” Mihawk tells you.

“Who sent you to kill me?” You asked worriedly as you took a step back.

“Not to worry now. I don't have any intentions to kill you anymore," he tells you. Truthfully, Mihawk would be more upset if anyone hurt you. Even if he did meet you just now.

“Then why are you still here?” You questioned.

“I'm curious to see why someone would send me to go after you,” Mihawk tells you as he took a step forward.

“Feel free to stay. Just to tell you, it's going to be quite boring,” you tell him before picking up your basket.

“Allow me,” Mihawk said as he walked over and grabbed the basket from your hands.

“It’s not that heavy,” you pointed out.

“No. But how else am I to make you to start trusting me?” Mihawk asked.

“By not killing me.”

“I will do no honor in killing you,” Mihawk said.

Mihawk sat on a chair as he watched you sort out your fruits and vegetables in your kitchen. It felt awkward knowing a famous warlord was watching you sort out the food you picked from your garden.

“How long do you plan on staying?” You asked.

“Until I’m needed elsewhere,” Mihawk answered truthfully.

“Do you have a place to stay?” You asked him.

“Don’t worry about me darling. Just continue what you’re doing,” Mihawk tells you. You nodded before picking up the basket with the food you were going to sell.

“I’m heading to the market now. I don’t know if you want to join me or if you want to stay here,” you tell him.

“I’ll join you,” Mihawk tells you before joining you in the market.

You traded some fruits and vegetables for some meat before selling off the rest. Mihawk watched a close eye on you as he followed you around. Everyone was too scared to question the warlord behind you but he didn’t care. His main focus was you.

The next day, he showed up at your front door.

“Did you eat breakfast yet?” You asked him.

“Yes.”

“Okay. I need to go to my job and I don’t think a warlord is going to be comforting to the kids,” you tell him before grabbing your things to head into town.

Before, you would just only teach Luffy. But since the school needed a new teacher, you became the village’s teacher.

“I’ll walk with you then,” Mihawk offered.

“Okay.”

Mihawk took your bag in his hands before following you to the school.

“You don’t have to wait for me you know. I’ll be at the school for a while,” you tell him.

“Who’ll carry your bag then?” Mihawk asked.

“I’m not some helpless woman you know. I can carry my own bag,” you tell him. Mihawk just stared at you as you walked inside the school.

Mihawk didn’t do much as he waited for you. He did grab you some pastries from the bakery before heading back to the school to wait for you again.he could hear the people talk about seeing the warlord waiting by the school for the teacher. He didn’t mind for once.

“Did you wait the entire time?” You asked Mihawk after you finished saying bye to your last student.

“I wasn’t doing much anyway,” Mihawk tells you as he handed you the box of pastries. He took your bag again in exchange.

“Thank you,” you said as you looked up at him.

Mihawk gave you a nod before the two of you walked back to your home.

“No tending to the garden today?” Mihawk asked you.

“I will. I just need to prep for dinner tonight,” you tell him.

“Why don’t I tend to your garden?” Mihawk offered.

“You know how to garden?”

“I know my way around. Where’s your basket?”

“Um by the door.”

“Won’t be long,” Mihawk tells you before walking out.

As you cooked dinner, you accidentally touched the hot pan making you hiss in pain.

“Ow!”

You didn’t think Mihawk heard you until he rushed through the door with a full basket. He placed the basket on the table before he checked on you.

“What happened? What’s wrong?”

“Just burned myself.”

Mihawk quickly grabbed your bucket of water before gently putting your finger in the cool liquid.

“Thanks.”

“Of course.”

"I made extras if you'd like. I got used to cooking for two," you tell him as you took your hand out and dry it with a towel.

“Was it for you and your past lover?” Mihawk asked. He noticed the ring dangling from a chain on your neck the moment he met you. But there were no signs of him anywhere in your home.

“Not really surprisingly. I used to take care of a little boy who used to live with me who had a bottomless stomach. He wanted to become a pirate so he set sail a year ago," you tell him.

“I see.”

“So, dinner?” You asked.

“Why not,” Mihawk said as he put his sword away.

Mihawk cleaned up before sitting with you at the table.

“I hope you like it,” you tell him. Mihawk took a bite of the food, nodding in approval afterwards.

“It’s good.”

“Thank you!”

“You should let me cook for you sometime,” Mihawk tells you.

“What kind of food do you cook?”

“Anything that can go well with red wine.”

“You like red wine?”

“I do. It’s a classical drink.”

“Maybe I’ll buy us a bottle and we can have a drink together,” you tell him.

“Or I can get it along with some other supplies for when I cook.”

“Are you sure?”

“Please. Let me cook for you next time.”

“Alright. Deal.”

[glasskey]

What Did Nick Do?

Or rather, what is Nick gonna do? there’s been a lot of talk this season about just how Nick is going to betray our young June and I’ve been giving this some heavy thought as well.

Mark Tuello - Nick has made a deal that he’s having trouble fulfilling and Tuello is now straight up threatening to expose him for it. We all know what Nick will do to survive, and if you think he’s going to let some bratty little diplomat with a knife to his throat undo him, well think again. He made that deal to see June and he got what he wanted. Blaine has been living in Gilead for a decade or more and has no illusions about his future, as much as Tuello would like to have him believe that he will be able to leave and make a life with his daughter, Blaine knows he’s now firmly in Gilead’s stranglehold. The scene in the forest between Nick, June and Tuello had a considerable sense of foreshadowing about it; one of them would end up dead and out of the two of them Nick’s the killer. Tuello is his figurative bridge to a life with June and Holly, if he sets fire to it, you can say goodbye to that forever.

Holly - So writers are cueing up everything really well that is contained in The Testaments, give or take a few details and one of those things is the demand for Holly to be returned and for her to be hidden as a result. I’ve become a wee bit suspicious about how convenient the connection is between Nick, Serena, Wharton and Rose. If Wharton becomes aware of the existence of Holly and her true parentage, he may demand her back and strong arm his son in law into doing so. It would not be a hard stretch of the imagination that either Serena or Rose would make Wharton aware of it. I imagine it may become an even greater possibility should Rose lose her baby. I’m not saying Nick would WANT to do it, I’m just saying that once that genie is out of the bottle, he’s going to find it really, really, really hard to say no. It’s particularly telling that we had that whole little scene at the beginning of the season where June argued with her mother about how much Nick loved Holly and wouldn’t do anything to hurt her. Trust me, she’ll NEVER forgive him for this one.

The Red Dress - ANYTHING that Nick does that results in June being put back into that red dress. If that happens, that’s it, it’s all over. This speaks volumes about what he as a member of the patriarchy will do to a woman to hold onto his position of power. Even if he doesn’t do it directly, the point will be that he is a passive facilitator and believe me, THAT is the writers true intent. Throughout the seasons we’ve seen Nick identify June as an individual and make concerted efforts to help her escape, so the action of now placing her back in that dress is huge. It’s also something that will “open her eyes” and tell her that mummy dearest was right all along. I believe that writers may have changed course to de romanticize this character and include him as just another member of the patriarchy that the protagonist was previously blind to. It’s a sharp turn from the sole male character amongst the swamp who recognized her autonomy and acknowledged her identity.

Mayday - He saved Luke and Moira at the start of the season, shooting two guards in the process, now Wharton is not impressed with the violation of security and he’s already not convinced at all about New Bethlehem. New Bethlehem was Lawrence's idea and already Nick isn’t listening to Lawrence anymore. If Wharton wants to go old school Gilead and shut off the escape routes for refugees, will Nick play along? What happens to Rita? What about June, Luke, Moira and Janine once they go in through the trade routes and can’t get out? Last season we saw Nick tell June that he had to protect his family any way that he can and last episode Rita said she’d do anything for her family and he agreed. So just what exactly would he do for his son?

I'm really hoping that whatever it is, it happens sooner rather than later, because at least we'll have some leeway to turn this thing around. With some of these it's easy to see how once it's done it's done, so let us all form a chanting circle, it’s time to start praying for his soul.

[afyrian]

ch. 3 - the key to my heart m.list

    the warm morning air hits your face as you open the front door of ‘earthen kiln’. bright summer rays rise over the nearby buildings, bouncing against your sunglasses. locking the door behind you, you head off towards the main city center. very rarely do you leave the homey bubble of ‘earthen kiln’. except for the occasional monday where you make a few exchanges. 

  your first class on mondays get a fresh box of pastries cause you give extra mugs to the local diner. a pair of earrings when trading a small jewelry holder. even receiving a bouquet of flowers once a week in exchange for pots at ‘calico blooms’. so every monday morning, you go around and exchange all of your trinkets that you threw in the kiln. 

  ‘calico blooms’ is always your last stop, making sure you have extra time to talk with kiyoko. she's been there longer than your pottery shop has been down the street. even talking with a realtor friend of hers to get you a good deal on the place. making her store a good place to take a break and share a pastry. 

  the best part being when you open the front french doors, smelling the floral hints in the air. she's organized them in such a way that the stronger smelling flowers are towards the back, letting people ease into the aroma. almost immediately you're always greeted by her or one of her minions. this time though, it's her. 

  she stands up straight, hair pulled into a loose ponytail, stray hairs off to the side, "y/n! i see you brought pastries, i assume you have-"

  "a vanilla dipped donut with sprinkles? of course i do," you carry the box over to her stand, setting it down on the corner in case any customers decide to come in. 

  kiyoko gives you a soft smile, eagerly waiting for you to open the box and split it up for the two of you. even if it is a routine for the two of you, normalized and simple, it still brings a smile to her face every time. "so, what's up with the ‘onigiri miya’ guy? the whole square has been wondering about him. it's become so busy there that some of the other restaurants are getting worried," she takes her half of the donut from your hand, leaning her elbow against the counter.

  "okay- so his name is miya osamu, and i have no idea how to feel about him. i mean like he's been there for about a few weeks now and i'm still worried. like he seems really sweet, one time actually..." you start to reminisce of a memory from the last day, waving your hands as you talk, a few sprinkles falling.

  "l/n! i think you may have dropped something," a familiarly warm voice calls out for you, a sense of urgency hidden within.

  your head whips around quickly, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. when you turn around you can see miya standing outside of ‘earthen kiln’s’ door, a key in his hand. his other hand is resting on his hip, fingers resting in front of his apron some. something about him in the morning glow makes your cheeks feel hot to the touch. 

  “i was cleaning tables and saw something shiny fell, figured it’d be important,” miya walks over to you, reaching the key out.

  resting your hand out, palm up, he sets it in your hand. just barely, his fingers graze your palm as it sends goosebumps up your arm. “thanks, miya, if i would’ve lost that, i don’t know what i would’ve done!” you let out a deep sigh, scratching behind your ear with your free hand. 

  “of course, and if we’re going to be neighbors for a while, why don’t you just call me osamu. if you ever meet my brother, it’ll help introductions immensely,” he gives you a warm smile, his stray hairs flowing back from the wind. 

  you nod, wondering if you’re ready for this kind of relationship with him. he seems nice, easy to talk to, yet you know that his store’s influence could negatively impact you. if you spend this whole time romancing him, you may forget about the thing most important to you, your passion, “okay… and you can call me y/n. it’s only fair if i’m calling you osamu.”

  “great, well, good luck on your journey,” he gestures towards your bag, looking at you in such a way that you’ve never seen before, “and if you ever need a key collector again, let me know.”

  “…it honestly made me feel a little giddy,” you admit, lowering your head to rest it in your hands, shaking it slightly as you realize how silly it all sounds. 

  kiyoko reaches a hand over, rubbing in a circular motion along your upper back, “it sounds sweet, and besides, even if he does put someone out of business, you can always ask him out for his money.”

  “c’mon.. you’re so ridiculous.”

  “i’m just saying! plus you seem to like him some, even if this ‘osamu’ could affect the square some, doesn’t mean you can’t find love. there’s someone across the street who co-owns the tattoo shop and honestly, it makes me nervous, but you have to go for what you want,” she removes her hand from your back, pulling your hand from your face and running her thumb along the back of your palm.

  you take in a deep breath and shrug your shoulders, pursing your lips, “yeah.. i just wish i knew what i wanted. and also, you’re not talking about kuroo, right?”

  “no! his co-owner, she- she’s great,” kiyoko shrugs her shoulders, closing her eyes in contentment. 

  there’s always been an air about kiyoko in which she seems to have it all together. the cute girl across the street, the shop that’s blooming wonderfully in the town, and not a single doubt that ‘onigiri miya’ will affect her business. even now, she stands there smiling to herself, completely in love with life. 

  “that’s great kiyoko, i can’t wait to go with you guys on a double date,” you lean forward, poking her shoulder, ignoring the nagging feeling deep down. 

a/n: i love you calico blooms, also check out eggy’s ‘inked’ which is a kiyoko smau!! also maybe a smau extra tomorrow for this <3 taglist: @causenessus @osakis-gf @eggyrocks @brkfclub @marisabel14

@bbybibi @etoiile @miyamoratsumuu @girlokarina @gsyche

@cherrypieyourface @zephestia @acowboykisser @whosmarjj @gumiiiiezzzz

[ace-angelicpagan]

𝙷𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚘 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚎!

This is the second post for an overview of various Greek deities. The formatting is the same as my post for Lord Hermes but this post will be about Lady Aphrodite! And if things seem a bit repeatative....well I apologise. I did use my Hermes post as a base and only changed the information provided.

Lady Aphrodite is fairly new to my list of deities I'm working with. She's a lovely goddess to honor and work with. Strict when needed but knows when to show you the love that you need. Praise be Lady Aphrodite!

𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜

Who is Aphrodite?

Epithets

Family Tree

Symbols & Associations

Offerings & Devotions

Festivals

Outro

Sources

Aphrodite is the Olympian goddess of love, procreation, seduction, beauty, pleasure, happiness, and war.

She is typically depicted as a beautiful woman with Eros by her side, and she is usually nude in ancient depictions of her.  

Pop Culture

Aphrodite is another fairly popular goddess. She can be seen in any media depicting Greek myths and featuring the Greek gods. Percy Jackson, Hades game, Epic the Musical, the list can go on.

There are many different epithets for Aphrrodite. What are epithets? Well they are essentially surnames for the gods to describe their different aspects. If you wish to call upon a specific aspect of a god you would use their epithet when talking with them.

Now for the different epithets of Aphrodite. I will be including the transliteration version of the names as the Greek names use special characters that I am unsure if it’ll even show up. So we’re getting close enough.

𝙲𝚞𝚕𝚝 𝙴𝚙𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚝𝚜

A

Ambologêra

Postponer of Old Age

Apatouros

Deceptive One

Apostrophia

Averter of (Unlawful Desires)

Areia

Of Ares, Warlike

D

Dôritis

Bountiful

E

Epistrophia

She who Turns to (Love)

Euploia

Fair Voyage

H

Hêrê

Of Hera (of Marriage)

Hôplismenê

Armed

K

Kataskopia

Spying, Peeping

L

Limenia

Of the Harbour

M

Makhanitis

Deviser, Contriver

Melainis

Black (of Night)

Migôntis

Union (Marital)

Morphô

Of Shapely Form

N

Nikêphoros

Bringer of Victory

Nymphia

Bridal

O

Ourania

Heavenly, Divine (Love)

P

Pandêmos

Common to all people (Love)

Pontia

Of the Sea

Praxis

Action (Sexual)

Psithyristês

Whispering

S

Symmakhia

Ally (in Love)

X

Xenia

Of the Foreigner

Location Based

Akraia

Of the Heights

Amyklaios

Of Amyclea (Laconia)

Anadyomenê

Risen from the Sea

Eyrkinê

Of Eryx (Sicily)

Kastiniê

Of Mt. Castium (Pamphylia)

Kêpois

Of the Gardens

Knidia

Of Cnidus (Caria)

Kôlias

Of Colias (Attica)

Kythereia

Of Cytherea (Laconia)

Kypria

Of Cyprus

Paphia

Of Paphos (Cyprus)

Pyrênaia

Of Pyrenees Mts. (Gaul)

Syria

Of Syria, Syrian

𝙿𝚘𝚎𝚝𝚒𝚌 𝙴𝚙𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚝𝚜

A

Aphrogeneia

Foam-Born

Aphrogenês

Foam-Born

D

Dia

Divine, Shining

Diôniaia

Daughter of Dione, Daughter of Zeus

Dios thugatêr

Daughter of Zeus

E

Eustephanos

Richly-Crowned, Well-Girdled

K

Khryseê

Golden

Kythereia

Of Cytherea (Laconia)

Kyprus

Of Cyprus

Kyprogenês

Of Cyprus-Born

Kyprogeneia

Of Cyprus-Born

Kyprogenêa

Of Cyprus-Born

P

Paphia

Of Paphos (Cyprus)

Paphiê

Of Paphos (Cyprus)

Philommeidês

Laughter-Loving

Philomeidês

Laughter-Loving

Philommêdês

Genital-Loving

Pothôn Mêtêr

Mother of Desire

𝙿𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜

FATHER ; 

       Zeus - King of the Gods

       Ouranos - primordial god of the sky

MOTHER ; 

Dione - titan goddess of the oracle of Dodona 

Hemera - primorial goddess of the day

Parents depend on the myth. Can be born of the genitals of Ouranos, Zeus & Dione, or Ouranos & Hemera

𝙳𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚂𝚒𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜

*If using the myth where Zeus is Aphrodite’s father. 

Lady Artemis 

Goddess of the Moon, the Hunt, Wild Animals & Wilderness, & Virginity

Lord Apollon 

God of the Sun, Prophecy, Truth, Music & Poetry, Archery, Healing, & Light

Lord Ares 

God of War

Lady Athena 

Goddess of War, Wisdom, & Arts & Crafts

Lord Hermes 

God of herds and flocks, travellers and hospitality, roads and trade, thievery and cunning, heralds and diplomacy, language and writing, athletic contests and gymnasiums, astronomy and astrology

Lord Hephaestus 

God of Fire, the Forge, Metalworking & Sculpting, Craftsmen, & Technology

Lord Dionysus

God of Wine, Fertility, & Theatre

*If using the myth where Ouranos is Aphrodite’s father. 

Kronos

King of the Titans and god of time

Koios, Krios, Iapetos

Elder Titans

Hyperion

Titan god of heavenly light

Okeanos

Primoridal titan god of fresh water

Theia

Titan goddess of sight and the shining ether of the bright, blue sky

Rheia

Titan mother of the gods, goddess of female fertility, motherhood, and generation

Themis

Titan goddess of divine law and order

Mnemosyne

Titan goddess of memory and remembrance, the inventress of language and words

Tethys

Titan goddess of the primal font of fresh water which nourishes the earth

Brontes, Steropes, Arges

The Elder Kyklopes

Briareos, Kottos, Gyes

The Hekatonkheires

The Erinyes 

(Furies)

𝙳𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝙲𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚗

Anteros - god of reciprocal (or unrequited) love // Son of Ares & Aphrodite

Beroe - goddess of the city of Beroe // daughter of Adonis & Aphrodite // wife of Poseidon

Deimos - god of fear // son of Ares & Aphrodite

Eros - Winged god of love // son of Aphrodite 

Erotes - winged godlings of love // sons of Aphrodite

Harmonia - goddess of harmony // daughter of Ares & Aphrodite 

Hermaphroditos - hermaphroditic daimon // son of Hermes & Aphrodite

Himeros - god of desire, twin to Eros // Son of Aphrodite

Iakkhos - god of the Eleusian Mysteries // son of Dionysus & Aphrodite

Peitho - goddess of persuasion and seduction // daughter of Aphrodite in some myths

Phobos - got of panic // son of Ares & Aphrodite

Pothos - god of sexual longing // son of Aphrodite // one of the Erotes 

Priapos - god of garden fertility // son of Aphrodite & Dionysus, Zeus, or Adonis

Rhodos - goddess of the islam of Rhodes // wife of Helios // daughter of Aphrodite & Poseidon

𝙼𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚕  𝙲𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚗

Aeneas - prince of Dardania // son of Aphrodite & Ankhises

Astynoos - prince of Syria // son of Aphrodite & Phaethon

Eryx - king of Sicily // son of Aphrodite & Argonaut Boutes

Herophilos - one of the sibyl prophetesses // daughter of Poseidon & Aphrodite

Lyros - prince of Dardania in the Troad // son of Aphrodite & Ankhises

𝚂𝚢𝚖𝚋𝚘𝚕𝚜

Dove

Apples

Myrtle-Wreath

Flowers

Hearts

Mirror

𝙰𝚗𝚒𝚖𝚊𝚕𝚜

Hare

Turtle Dove

Sparrow

Goose

Swan 

Bees

Dolphins

𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚜, 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚋𝚜, 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚜, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚏𝚛𝚞𝚒𝚝

Red Rose

Anemone

Apple

Narcissus / Daffodil

Myrtle

Myrrh

Lettuce

Pomegranate

Strawberries

Oranges

Pears

𝙲𝚛𝚢𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚕𝚜/𝚂𝚝𝚘𝚗𝚎𝚜

garnet

Ruby

Rose Quartz

Pearls

Diamond

Sapphire

Aquamarine

𝙲𝚘𝚕𝚘𝚛𝚜

pink 

red

blue

green 

white

gold

𝙴𝚕𝚎𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝

Water

𝙿𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚎𝚝

Venus

Aster Aphrodites

𝙳𝚊𝚢

Friday

Hemera Aphrodites

𝚃𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚝 𝙲𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚜

Can really be any card that you decide to use as an identifier between you and Lady Aphrodite. These are just some suggestions. 

The Empress

The Star

The Lovers 

These are just suggestions! You can always find a different offering or devotional act based on your own personal associations and practice. And if you can’t provide any physical offerings, that’s okay. Devotional acts or digital offerings are just as good. 

This list consists of UPG and SPG suggestions. 

Offerings

Images of associations

Jewellery

Perfume

Bath salts

Scented lotions / body or hair products 

Seawater

Seashells

Sand

Markup

feathers

Foods & Drinks

red wine

Olive oil

Fruit

Honey

Chocolate

Sweets

Vanilla

Cinnamon

water

Devotional Acts

acts of self care & self love

Caring for your mental and physical health

Collect seashells 

Visit the beach or a nearby body of water

Support sex workers

Doing things that make you feel confident/beautiful/empower you

Honor her children and Ares

Stand up for yourself and what you believe in 

Prayer to Aphrodite

Beloved Aphrodite, goddess who grants to us the greatest of joys, the harshest of sorrows, the sharpest of pleasures, the dearest of pains.

Aphrodite, freshest of Olympos’ flowers, your lightest touch can turn the hearts of men towards love; with voice sweet as honey, sweet as wine, you speak words of persuasion, we hear and heed, rapt in wonder.

O Aphrodite, grace and beauty surround you, where you pass, the roses bloom, with sweetest scent and sharpest thorn: with reckless hands we grasp them.

Aphrodite, born of blood in the cold salt sea, born of the fallen sky, goddess whose kindness can be so brutal, who cruelty we cherish, blessed are your children, blessed those your favor, blessed those who have felt your might, blessed those who dwell in your domain.

Aphrodite, honored one, incomparable one, with each breath I praise you.

Aphrodisia

Festival dedicated to Aphrodite, celebrated in a number of towns, particularly in Cyprus. no bloody sacrifices were allowed to be offered, instead, they focused more on pure fire, flowers, and incense.

Kinyrades

Summer festival celebrated in Paphos, Cyprus.

Adonia

Festival mourning the death of Adonis and celebrating him becoming a god. Adonia celebrated the return of Spring and typically includes spring flowers with other offerings.

𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚌𝚎𝚜

Adonia

Aphrodisia

Theoi Summary

Theoi

A Guide to Worship

Greek Gods Cheat Sheet

Prayers to Aphrodite

[scvcnofswords]

five times touched: ( five times the receiver touched the sender (platonically or romantically or otherwise!) ) /litriu and merrill because we talked about it :') || @skyheld || Five Times.... Drabble Prompts || Accepting

THE first time, they're both young. Litriu is thirteen- orphaned for four years, and already- Distant. To the clan. To Marethari.

She spends more times in the thick of the forests than she does in an aravel- but for when helping around camp, but for when putting herself to work to help the people who are her kin.

In this moment, though, she's just wandering- following a sparrowhawk as it hops from branch to branch above her. She slides down a mossy incline- and nearly stumbles into another girl from her clan. She gets the impression of wide green eyes and dark hair, and then- her hand is grabbed, and the other is... talking. A mile a minute.

And not releasing her hand.

It took everything in her not to lurch away at the unexpected touch, but Litriu knows this girl. She knows- Merrill. The First- the Nevarran. Somewhat awkward, prone to more speaking in an hour than Litriu does in a day. And currently, she's- Doing that. But all Litriu catches is 'turned around' and she focuses in for real, slowly tilting her head to one side. "- You got l-lost?" she asks, very quietly. There's no... judgement, in her voice. Just simple concern- though she's not sure the other girl catches it as such, as her cheeks darken. There's a nod-

And Li hums before twisting her hand to catch hold of Merrill's wrist, and tugging. "Come on. Let's g-get you back." That said- she turns them both, and finds herself deeply relieved that the dark-haired girl follows. It's not a terribly long walk back- but it's long enough. The newer girl doesn't know the Brecilian the way Li does- this forest is in her blood. Still, she stops at the edge of camp, looking in, and then peers back to Merrill sidelong. The relief in those green eyes settles something in her- her shoulders round out, losing tension, though she isn't sure why. "... You'll get the hang of it," she says, then, before disengaging- and turning back the way they'd come.

-

IT'S a bright night, with everyone happy. Singing, dancing, food roasting. Some of the younger children are dressed n costume, acting out stories- and Li watches from the shadows as is her custom, hugging her knees. There's the faintest smile on her face, as two of the littler ones dressed as halla leap about- easy to miss, if you didn't know her.

There's a murmur of her name, and Li makes an agreeable hum, not looking up as Merrill sits beside her and gently knocks their shoulders together, handing her a mug of something- warm, and spiced, as snow gathers in the skies above. It's only a moment, and then Tamlen joins on the other side, somewhat sandwiching Litriu between himself and their First. Anyone else, and she'd leave- but Li just sips at her drink to hide that faint smile, shoulders rounding out with the loss of tension.

"Love you both," she says, very quietly. Merrill beams, and Tamlen huffs a pleased laugh- and Li shakes her head, as they both lean into her. It's a strange quiet, like this- and she'd trade it for nothing in the world.

-

Tamlen's dead. She's dead too. Her heart just hasn't realized it yet.

The walk through camp- the farewells- they're hell. Her funeral dirge, while everyone tries to smile and act like her heart isn't torn to shreds. Tamlen is dead. She is dead.

Merrill will be left- how could she-

She only barely manages the nod, when Merrill asks to hug her, and then Li feels... Shocked into herself. Like she's being dragged into her own skin. But slowly she wraps her arms around the other as well- and then she's half-crushing Merrill to her, trying to press so much into the motion.

I love you, I love you, I love you. I love you, I'm sorry, don't forget, don't get lost- Every word that her First says, she commits to memory as she pulls back, gaze searching that face. She sees the hurt, the sense of loss- sees the upset.

She fixes the hat. Li pauses, and catches Merrill's hand, quietly- squeezes it once. "... I'm w-with you. Always," she hears herself say. Even if she dies at this Warden's behest.

And then he's calling her back to his side, and she leaves. Most of what was worth anything in herself stays behind, with Tamlen's ghost and Merrill's memory.

-

She doesn't like Kirkwall. It's- loud. There's people everywhere. It smells. The walls are so high that even the birds avoid the damn place, but for gulls- and gulls don't avoid anything. But she weaves through it like a cat, regardless.

The bar she'd been told to search out is this direction- the letter crushed in her fingers that told her the three places to check. She'd left Amaranthine the moment she'd received the damn thing- weeks ago, now, because travel by ship is a misery, but- she's in the city.

She's here. So it has to mean something.

She opens the door to The Hanged Man and looks inside- gaze skipping over people- until it lands on a familiar head of dark hair, and doe-wide green eyes. Eyes that see her, too, and the other Dalish is standing up clumsily from her spot, nearly knocking a tankard over onto a - familiar blonde mage. But Litriu only spares Anders a glance, before she's striding across the bar. People stare- she's in full Warden blues, she moves like she's hunting- but she stops in front of Merrill, pulling the hat off her head.

"..." She can't speak- opens her mouth to try, and nothing comes out- and then just opens her arms. The resulting hug nearly bowls her off her feet- but her arms are nearly crushing around Merrill just the same, and she doesn't care.

"Missed you," she whispers, just for the air between them. "Found you again."

-

She'd come out of Adamant a ghost- and then gone hunting.

Dead, again- she's dead, again. He's gone, he's gone, he's gone-

It's not long. She doesn't take long at all, before she's at Merrill's door, hollow-eyed and shaking. She's- Shellshocked. Even weeks later. Her gaze searches those beloved features- and hesitantly, Li holds out her hand- closes her eyes in relief when the other woman takes it.

"... I need your h-help," she whispers, voice aching. "Ir abelas. I- you're- please." She's never begged for a thing in her life- but she would, here. She would.

[collar-shocked]

also lol strategizing about how you might beat a boss like strade in F&H.....

they always do weird shit with boss fights, so hear me out: to kill him, you need to play around with him and others a little bit, because THOUGH YOU DON'T KNOW, you're working against a silent timer. By casually attacking him, a hit is very unlikely to land. so... Descriptively, he's "too excited" to sit still- your first hint ;3

Every time you're attacked, Strade receives some kind of benefit- that being, being 1 step closer to "2nd form," which is pretty much a team-wipe. yadda yadda, some cool scene about him losing his patience and dragging your party down to his hell-realm, blah blah. So, looking it over and seeing how he can easily land shots, while you can not, the chances of getting him BEFORE that threshold are,, very very tiny. This is when you put on your thinking cap and turn AWAY from the enemy, and towards your friends :)

By attacking your party members, (or yourself for additional points,) he becomes infatuated and aroused, and the fire in his chest begins to burn. Attacking now results in a little more likely chance to hit, but still nothing significant- it's here, if you were smart, you'd talk to him. You can't understand his language, but it seems like he wants more. You need to attack your own party about LETS SAY 7 times, while enduring Strade hits, before his fire consumes him- boom, there's your access point!! He has a cooldown time of 4 or 5 PLAYER moves, so make sure u make those shots count >:3 (Tail or hands first, I imagine)

He can inflict bleeding and poison status affects, and also use a move that gets you, or a teammate, attracted to pain, which can manipulate their fighting patterns. (Can sometimes hit themselves.) This is his signature Coin Flip move(tm). This fight would be a T O T A L VIAL GUZZLER, so I would recommend bringing a Golem, Skeleton, or Blood Golem to be like,,, the punching bag. Moonless and The Girl would also be recommended to be LEFT OUT of this fight. just some other random points !!

BUT ALSO, CONSIDER: A shortcut out of the battle! There's a bonus NPC you can meet- "The Beast" we'll call him. This is OBVIOUSLY Ren, but he is a lost, starving individual, who only wants a bite to eat. By offering yourself (or another party member) as a quick meal, you lose an arm, BUT, gain him as a following NPC !! To skip the Strade fight, you can just take Ren down to see him, and on your first move, choose to speak- there you will find an unlocked dialogue option where you can trade Ren for the rest of the parties safety. He will accept every time. You lost Ren, you've lost an arm, but the battle has been avoided, and you're free to do whatever it is you needed to do after the fight.

I like to think, after successfully beating Strade, you'd get a special weapon- a hammer, in fact :) A hammer with high damage, and poison effects !!

AND NOW THAT I'M ON IT, LET'S TALK ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF KEEPING REN.

He's a beast-kin, so physical attacks come easy, and his damage is decently high- though his health isn't too good. As a beast-kin, a demon, he can never have Phasmophobia or Zoophobia unless under special conditions- though, if taken through the Strade fight WITHOUT being sacrificed, he has a slim chance of obtaining Erotophobia or Panophobia. He can cannibalize, so keeping him fed is EASY, but his sanity drops like the sun on a winter afternoon.

additional BTD + F&H au notes: (Law, Derek, Celia, Mason, in that order)

Lawrence is a wandering NPC that can show up by chance. He delves into the dungeons by choice, as he feels the entities and creatures understand him better than humanity does. He acts as a merchant ! He sells you random shit he finds while exploring, and sometimes, even from up above before he enters- rarer spawns, like blue herbs, lucky coins, arrows, bone shears, and high-benefit food items. (When purchasing from him, a coin flip initiates. Use your imagination.)

In certain outdoor areas, you can come across Derek taking advantage of the dungeons isolated environment to kill dungeon-divers with no outside consequences. Honestly, he's not much stronger than a Prison Guard, and the fighting pattern would be similar as well- though his bat can trip you up, with a coin flip deciding if he nails you in the head or not, causing the "Fracture or Broken Bone" status effect, and sometimes, "Momentary Stun." By killing him and searching his body, you can get a whopping 120 gold, his bat, and some low-tier armor. (Bonus before-fight scene: If you give him your most valuable item/all your gold, you skip the fight, but take a little damage.)

Celia can be found in certain safer locations, and is similar to the Human Hydra and Pocket Cat in the way that she can take The Girl off your hands. By rejecting, a battle initiates where focus on her hands is practically necessary, due to the tremendous amount of poison damage threatening you and your party. She can also give you the "Severe Physical Trauma" status effect. HOWEVER!! By accepting, you gain lots of alcoholic and smoking items, but lose The Girl. (In the circumstance you do NOT have The Girl in your party, Celia behaves more like Enki, and basically tells you to take a hike. By continuing to bother her, a fight can initiate.)

You can find Mason by chance at any of the altars. He is there to spread his own gospel, asking the player to pray for HIS Lord upon speaking to him. If you accept his preaching, you're thrown into a cut-scene, and left with the "Anal Bleeding" status effect. In turn, you're now FLUSH with healing items, and are favorable to his god, who provides healing (health and sanity) skills and abilities. If denied, you're thrown into a coin-flip, which upon failing, you're left with the same cut-scene, and are killed immediately after. Winning allows you to step away. The coin-flip is initiated once more upon speaking to him again. (BUT, by having Moonless or Ren in your party, you can avoid the coin-flip by handing them off to him !! He still refuses to speak afterwards, though.)

[northwest-by-a-train]

Mutual 1: I wish someone could kill me so I could be reincarnated as a saxophone solo in Al Stewart's 1991 song Year of the cat

Mutual 2: Horror keeps piling upon horror and we will live old and wrinkled in this time of horrors. The only cure is to post black and white pictures of men who have problems

Mutual 3: killing baby Caesar does lengthen the lifespan of the roman empire by ~350 years, as it dissolves into some sort of federalist-feudalist structure not unlike the Holy Roman Empire. The main difference is that a sort of loose syncretic pan-imperial polytheism is the dominant religion, leading to Icelandic temples of Isis and Ethiopian temples of Epona. As such, this timeline was spared the drawbacks of a centralized state-enforced organized religion. The main drawback is that being a furry is considered blasphemy by the vast majority of humanity.

Mutual 4: if Pendleton Ward does not make Mr Cupcake a Trotskyist I will set the cartoon network offices on fire

Mutual 5: if Serial Experiments Lain was made today they would make her cis. Well. Not on my watch

Mutual 6: Can we take a minute here and normalize arms trading? Marginalized communities need those 3D-printed untraceable ghost guns with Family Guy muzzles, I need to make a living since I was thrown out of the commune by Hannah-Arendts-Strap (message me for details), Seth MacFarlane needs people to watch season 27. But Academia will talk about Kant's white-ass categorical imperative to argue no one should sell guns. Typical.

Mutual 7: I am in your walls. Why is there lead paint on your radium plumbing my dude. You know that's not aryuvedic.

Mutual 8: I'm sorry but Robespierre was a scapegoat of most of the French revolution's atrocities, and bourgeois reactionary elements have tried to turn him into a proto-totalitarian crazed madman, but the historical record paints a much more complex picture. Which is why I don't believe he would ever whip Danton's ass like you just wrote. He would be the one wearing the ball gag. How can I make you see the truth my brother ?

Mutual 9: Arabic and Eastern European poetry have been superior throughout the late 20th/early 21st century. We also have the best cigarettes. If we keep going we can surround Constantinople in the next decade, and restore the Palaiologos to their rightful place.

Mutual 10: The callout posts are true. Reflecting on it, it was obvious that our attempt to create a secret #LiberateBelize discord channel without British people was chavphobic. We are listening and learning.

Mutual 11: Pinkie Pie could negotiate the Oslo Accords, but Bill Clinton could never bag pony Weird Al

Mutual 12: If I think about Betty Groff for more than two seconds I'll divorce my husband. I got the papers and everything. But I won't. I'm brave like that. #ChristianLove

Mutual 13:

Mutual 14: I was visited by the virgin Mary last night. Again. She told me I can't make my girlfriend pregnant like that. Again. But I know Ron L. Hubbard is with me, and it's all that matters.

Mutual 15: Mustard gas doesn't even taste like mustard. You guys lied to me. My Mac & Cheese is ruined.

Mutual 16: Stop saying my think tank advocates killing orphans. We're pro-harvesting organs in youth correctional facilities for reduced sentences !!! But again we see the pro-carceral bias inherent to Lutherans. Have you guys even read Angela Davis ?

Mutual 17: Here's my solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict: spend a hundred billion dollars for multiversal research, reach the mirror universe. Israelis get the biblical kingdom of Israel borders on this earth, Palestinians get the 1948 borders in the mirror universe. I think this is the fairest deal America can offer at this time.

Mutual 18: I tried to live the life of a restless European adventurer in Macau playing roulette and serving as a mercenary to various conglomerates. Turns out they also charge rent there. And income is taxable too. And I bet everything on Red. And I don't speak Mandarin, Cantonese or Portuguese. Help me pay for my flight home! 6¢/50 000$ collected!

Mutual 19: Yeah the canonization of Bolaño as the latest LatAm literary genius speaks to a sort of general malaise in post-colonial literature due to the collapse of magical realism as a viable tradition for meaningful political messaging. So the literature of unease and obsession and maladjustment itself is canonized, like an oyster canonizing the grain of sand that's tearing it apart. The fact that no other major voice has really appeared on the continent within the past 20 years should tell us this isn't working. Which is why the Brazilian JoJo fandom has a unique opportunity to meaningfully impact the course of world literature. #Multipolarity

Mutual 20: wow guys someone left a tray of perfectly good Mac & Cheese on a windowsill! Yummy!

Mutual 21: Did medieval surgeons pulling teeth get erections? I wouldn't normally ask this of my followers but I'm arguing about Sex Work with the ghost of Andrea Dworkin and I need hard evidence (no pun intended lol)

Mutual 22: Electro-Swing is a Belgian psy-op. I can't prove it, but I know it

Mutual 23: I'm the first neutered catgirl to be tried in a military court. But I know I'm not the last.

Mutual 24: Did you guys know you could eat olives? The thing they make oil from? I ordered three kilos of motors, so I can eat it with my roommate's Mac & Cheese

Mutual 25: Anglicans, amirite ? [Sounds of raucous applause]

[sanjuwrites]

wip wednesday

IM BACK! i have been gone for a hot minute because my life caught on actual fire, but im back and better than ever baby <3

to make up for it, i'm posting two different snippets from two different fics, one firstprince and one tarlos! enjoy! thanks to @alrightbuckaroo, @birdclowns, and @inflarescent for the tag!

agent reyes

TK greets him in the morning with a cup of coffee. 

The cup is made to perfection, and Carlos is seriously starting to doubt how much Paul is really involved in TK’s agenda here. 

Carlos murmurs a quiet thank you instead of screaming like he really wants to and approaches Marjan, who’s in a hoodie with the hood up, furiously typing. 

“Marj, have you even slept today?” 

“No sleep when we have a crime syndicate to take down.”

“Okay,” he says slowly, “but I have access to information that the CIA has spent years compiling. Why are you botheri- oh.”

Marjan flips her laptop around and Carlos is startled to find a clone of Sean Cunningham’s l staring back at him. “Marjan, what the fuck? How the hell did you – what?”

“Turns out Cunningham’s lackeys are kind of idiots because the video was sent from Cunningham’s main compound, where he stays. Really, the asshole apparently hasn’t ever heard of a firewall–”

Paul, who’s wandered over, interrupts her. “Marj, get to the point. You do this every time.”

Marjan rolls her eyes but continues. “I traced IP addresses back from the ransom video that was sent to TK’s email address and from there I hacked into his Wi-Fi connection–”

“Marjan, I don’t think any of the intel departments at Langley can do this.” Carlos is staring at her in awe.

She smirks at him, before continuing. “You fools need to stop interrupting me. Anyway, I just hacked through the four laptops hooked up to the Wi-Fi connection until I figured out which one was his. Voila!”

Carlos ducks down, pressing a palm flat to the table as he scrolls through the laptop. “Marjan, this is insane – we have data here that I could only dream of having.”

Marjan smiles tiredly, sipping at the mug of coffee Nancy hands her. “Babe, I think coffee is the last thing I need right now, but thank you. I love you very much,” she says while pressing the mug into Paul’s hands, “but Paul and Carlos are going to play now. We,” Marjan says, pulling Nancy close, “are going to go to bed now. ” Judd whistles from where he is in the kitchen, drawing a laugh out of everyone in the room. 

Nancy wraps her arms around Marjan in reply, “You heard her, gentlemen. I will be taking my girlfriend to bed now, and I expect no interruptions. My girlfriend needs her beauty sleep. It’s decaf, by the way!” she says, her voice faraway now.

alex runs for congress

“Politics hasn’t been my dream for almost twelve years, sweetheart,” Alex says softly, not really making eye contact with Henry.

“Alex, I know what happened with Richards and the emails was brutal, but we have nothing holding us back like that anymore and –”

“It’s not Richards, Hen, it’s you.”

That stops Henry cold, and he looks at Alex, mouth open in shock. “What do you mean?” Alex stays quiet, and Henry pushes further. “Alex, what do you mean?”

Alex continues to avoid eye contact with Henry as he starts talking again. “That night I came to Kensington Palace, you told me you wouldn’t trade one prison for another. You’re barely free from the Crown, Henry, and I don’t want to drag you into the circus of American politics, not when you hated being in the public eye so much, to the point that it almost cost me you. I refuse to let anything cost me you again, so I put all my dreams in a little box and locked it away, because I would rather live a quiet life with you and immigration law than a loud one alone in Congress. I was wine drunk at one of Mom’s fundraisers when I was talking to Erica about wanting to flip Texas again, and I didn’t think it would ever really come up again.”

Henry doesn’t answer, grabbing Alex’s face between his hands and pressing a featherlight kiss to his lips before resting their foreheads together. “Love, I didn’t realize you had that in the back of your mind, and that this was what is stopping you from entering politics. Listen to me,” he says, moving them so he’s looking at Alex eye to eye, “nothing is going to stop me from spending the rest of my goddamn life with you. You could lose your job, become a house husband, or go on to become the president of the United States, and I would not care.” Henry takes a deep breath, and lets it out slowly. “Do you want this, Alex? Like without the influence of anything else, deep down, do you want this? Do you want to run?”

i'm gonna tag @carlos-in-glasses, @catanisspicy, @theghostofashton, @welcometololaland, @rmd-writes, @paperstorm, @bonheur-cafe, @chaotictarlos and @lightningboltreader!

[mydarllinglover]

Alone || In A Kingdom Not So Far Away

Previous

"No! No way in hell." Gregory responded, when Rick had shared that they were going to fight back, against the Saviours. "That was not the deal. You people swore you could take the Saviours out and you failed. So any arrangement we had is now done, null and void, all right? We aren't trade partners, we aren't friends, and we never met."

"But we have." Natalia replied. "We saved your life."

"Nope. We don't know each other." He corrected. Sitting in his chair. "I owe you nothing. In fact, you owe me for taking in the refugees, at great personal risk."

"Oh, you were very brave staying in here while Maggie and Sasha saved this place. Your courage was inspiring." Jesus sassed, his arms folded across his chest.

"Hey, don't you work for me?" Gregory asked him. "Aren't we friends?"

"Gregory, we already started this." Rick jumped in.

"You started it."

"We did. And we're gonna win."

"These are killers."

"Is this how you want to live? Under their thumb, killing your people?" Rick asked him.

"S-Sometimes we don't get to choose what our lives look like. Sometimes, Ricky, you have to count the blessings you have."

"How many people can we spare?" Maggie stepped forward. "How many people her can fight?"

"We?" Gregory scoffed. "I don't even know how many people we have Margaret. And does it even matter? I mean-- w-w-what are you gonna do? Start a platoon of sorghum farmers? 'Cause that's what we got. They grow things. They're not gonna want to fight."

"You're wrong." Tara spoke up, she was stood at the back of the room with Daryl and Natalia. "When people have the chance to do the right thing they usually step up. I mean, people just..."

"L-let me stop you before you break into song, okay?" He cleared his throat. "And by the way who would train all this cannon fodder?"

"I will."

"Give me a week."

"Me." Sasha, Rosita and Natalia all responded.

"Rhetorical okay?"

"Wrong. You scared, pathetic weasel of a man, hiding in your office, petrified of your own shadow, the people of Hilltop are not weak, you are, if you want to waste away, acting as a slave to the Saviours, fine by me, go ahead, but we're not gonna let your people go down with you, I will personally turn all these people into fighters, if I have to." Natalia stepped forward, glaring at the man.

"Sorry honey, I never quite caught your name." Gregory told her.

"Natalia."

"Well, Natalia, I don't wanna know. I never want to hear another word about any of it ever. You're lucky I'm letting you here."

Daryl grabbed a hold of his wife, pulling her back with Tara, as she was about to lunge at the old man.

"Would we be better off without the Saviours, yes or no?" Rick intervened.

"Yeah. Sure. Okay" He shrugged.

"So, what will you do to fix the problem?" Michonne stepped up.

"I didn't say we had a problem. You did. And what happens outside of my purview is outside of my purview."

"What the hell man. You're either with us or you ain't." Daryl told him. "You're sitting there talking out of both sides of your mouth."

"Well, I... I think I've made my position very clear. And I want to thank all of you for not being here today and not having this meeting with me, or... or being seen on your way out. In other words, go out the back."

They headed out the room, Daryl had his fingers in the loops of Natalia's jeans as he pushed her forwards, though it didn't stop her from kicking one of the fancy chairs over, she didn't care at all if she looked childish.

"Walking ballsack." Rosita commented.

"Wanna knock that idiot's teeth out." Sasha said.

"Yeah, well, we don't need him anyway." Daryl decided.

"Yeah, that's right. 'Cause we have Maggie and Sasha and Jesus here." Rick agreed.

"And, Enid." Maggie added when a door opened, Enid walking into the house.

"What's wrong?" Sasha asked her.

"Nothing. Just..." She let out a chuckle. "Come outside."

They left the house, seeing that the people of Hilltop gathered around.

"What's going on?" Maggie asked.

"Hey. So, if you don't remember, I'm Bertie." One of the women said. "And I owe my life to you all, twice over. A bunch of us do. Enid says that you want Gregory to get us to fight the Saviours with you. Is that true?"

"Yes." Maggie nodded.

"Do you think we can win, that we really could beat them?" Bertie asked. "Us?"

"I do."

"Enid says you could show us the way. I'm ready."

"Me too."

"Yeah."

"Let's do this."

"Let's do it."

"I'm in."

The people of Hilltop volunteered.

"It's a start." Michonne said, as the group walked away from the house.

"We'll get more." Sasha told her.

"It still won't be enough." Rosita commented.

"No, it won't."

"It's gonna have to do." Natalia said.

"Well, we find the right stuff, then maybe we don't need the numbers. Blow 'em up, burn 'em to the ground."

"You said there weren't just soldiers with the Saviours, that there were workers there. People didn't have a choice." Tara told Daryl.

"We gotta win."

"We have to. People like the Saviours don't get to live." Natalia agreed. "If they're there, they made a choice."

"We need more hands, another group. Negan has outposts. The geography, the distance works against us. We gotta get back." Rick said. "If they come looking for Daryl and Natalia, we need to be there."

"You don't have to get back." Jesus stopped them, causing the group to turn around, to face him. "Not yet. It's one of theirs, long range. We can listen in, keep track of them." He held up a radio.

"So, if we're not going back, what are we doing, then?" Michonne asked.

"I think it's time we introduced you to Ezekiel. King Ezekiel."

"King?" Rick repeated the word everyone was stuck on.

The group loaded up in a mini-van, Rick driving, Jesus in the passenger seat.

The car was cramped, Carl, Sasha and Tara were seated in the back, whilst Michonne, Rosita, Daryl and Natalia were sat in the middle, Natalia on Daryl's lap, considering there were no other seats.

"Hey, Natalia, have I ever mentioned that I can read palms." Michonne told her.

"No, I don't think so." Natalia was clueless to her intentions.

"Yeah, I'm really good, go on, pass me your left hand, I'll see what lies ahead for your future."

"Hope it's winning a war." Daryl scoffed.

Natalia handed out her left hand, momentarily forgetting what was on her ring finger.

"Ha, I knew it!" Michonne said in victory, snatching at her hand before she could hide.

"Woah! You're married?" Rosita asked, looking over.

Rick turned in his seat, looking over before turning back to the road.

"Is it to... Neg-"

"No!" Natalia cut her off, as Daryl's arm tightened around her. "God no, don't ever say that to me again."

"Who then?" Sasha asked.

"Are y'all seriously that dumb?" Natalia asked.

All eyes turned to the man she was sat on.

She grabbed his left hand, showing it off.

"Wait, you guys are together?" Tara asked, Natalia forgot that she had been away the whole time throughout their relationship, letting it sink in how little time it had actually been. "About time."

"I'm gonna get Father Gabriel to officiate it when we get back." Natalia shared. "Speaking of which, what day is it?" She dug in her pocket for the handwritten marriage certificate.

"April 22nd." Michonne answered. "Do you want to explain?"

"Nah, don't need to, just accept it." Daryl replied.

"We are, but this is like a massive thing, when did it even happen?" Rick asked from the front, glancing at the couple in the rear view mirror.

"Last night. After we got to the Hilltop" Natalia answered. "Sorry, didn't know we were in an interview."

"Well, I'll be the first to say it, then, congratulations, Nat and Daryl." Jesus told them.

"Thank you, Jesus, means a lot, we'll invite you to the ceremony." Natalia said, as Daryl shook the mans hand, before looking at his wife.

"We ain't having no ceremony."

"Its where we're gonna get drunk, and get the papers legalised by the priest, idiot."

"In that case, congrats Nat and Daryl on getting hitched." Tara said from the back, putting out her fist for the couple to bump with theirs, which they did.

"Happy for you guys." Carl smiled.

"Thanks kid." Daryl nodded at him, as Natalia reached over, kissing his cheek.

"Yeah, guess you guys weren't having fun after all." Rosita teased.

"Congrats." Sasha nodded, she smiled, but it wasn't all the way there.

"Thank you guys, glad to know that some people are happy for me, for us." Natalia cleared her throat.

"Do you mean me? Nat, I'm mad that you didn't tell me earlier, I had to find out for myself." Michonne turned to her.

"Mad at me? It was kind of a in the moment decision, we didn't really plan it, I'm sorry. Besides, it's one of my several steps in my revenge program." She was only half joking, Daryl understood this, but he knew that she loved him and did want to marry him for real, he was also heavily aware of how petty the woman was.

"Your middle names Isabelle?" Michonne looked at the marriage certificate. "I know nothing about you."

"You know all there is that you need to know about me." Natalia told her.

"We're here." Jesus cut the conversation off, pointing ahead at the rundown building, that was being overthrown by flora.

Rick stopped the car, him and Jesus getting out.

"It's called the kingdom?" Rick asked.

Daryl opened the door, giving everyone in the confided space some fresh air.

"Yeah." Jesus confirmed. "I didn't name it."

"How much farther?"

"Well, technically, we're already here." Jesus told him. "I mean, we're always here, but here we are, at the Kingdom. Well, its outer edge."

"Hey, what the hell we waitin' on?" Daryl asked out the open door, as Natalia stretched her legs.

"Waiting for them." Jesus pointed ahead.

Two men on horses approached them, they were wearing, what looked like baseball gear to protect themselves.

"Who dares to trespass on the sovereign land of the- Oh, shit. Jesus, is that you?" One of the men asked.

Jesus waved at them.

"Are these guys for real?" Natalia whispered to the people in the car.

"Shut up." Michonne replied as she also got out the car.

"Who are all these people. Paul?" The other man asked.

"Hi, Richard." Jesus greeted him. "Nice to see you."

"It's good to see you, too." Richard responded. "Your friends, who are they?"

"This is Rick Grimes. He's the leader of a like-minded community. These are some of his people. We would like to request an audience with King Ezekiel."

Richard got off his horse, a gun was in his hand as he walked over to them.

"Get out of the car." He looked at the three other people still in there, which they did. "You say they're a like-minded community. Like-minded how?"

"We live, we trade, we fight the dead. Sometimes others."

He seemed to get the memo.

"Line up." He told the group.

"Okay. This is a waste of time." Daryl concluded. "Come on, lets go."

Daryl walked back to the car, but the others gathered.

"Maybe you're right." Richard said. "The King is a busy man. We don't usually allow a pack of strangers to waltz through our door."

"A pack?" Natalia repeated, she wasn't some animal.

"We want to make the world less dangerous" Michonne took over. "And we are all here to show the King how serious we are about that."

"The car stays outside. You gotta hand over your guns." Richard told him.

"We only have two." Rick replied, Natalia didn't even have any weapons, which she was still annoyed about, they were still under possession at the Sanctuary.

Rick and Carl handed over their guns.

"Okay." Richard nodded, taking the guns. "Follow me."

He led them towards the Kingdom, Richard and Jesus walked together, talking, the others couldn't clearly hear what they were saying.

The Kingdom was far more than what Natalia was expecting.

It was a whole community, more than what Alexandria was. Plants and gardens were everywhere, men, women and children walking around the place carefree or working, and their buildings were huge.

"They have the numbers." Michonne pointed out.

"But can they fight?" Rosita asked an very important question.

"Oh, they can fight" Jesus told her.

"Maybe." Daryl said.

"Is that a baby goat?" Natalia gasped, looking at a small gathering of animals.

"Morgan?" Tara spotted the man, catching everyone's attention.

He was stood with Richard, before noticing them, heading over.

"Hey." He smiled, hugging the woman.

"How do you know each other?" Richard asked when Sasha hugged Morgan, no one else bothered to.

"We go back to the start." Rick answered.

"Well, the King is ready to see you."

The group followed into the building, Daryl and Natalia were at the end of the group.

"Did you find Carol?" Rick asked Morgan.

"I did, yeah."

"What do you mean?" Natalia asked, did the woman go missing?

"Where is she, is she okay?" Daryl stepped in.

"She was here, and then she left." Morgan told the couple. "You know, she wasn't too happy, me following her. She wanted to get away from us, from everyone. But when I found her, she was shot. It was just a graze. I got her back here. They got doctors. They're good."

"Was it them?"

"It was." He nodded. "She had crossed with some of them, and one of them followed her, tried to kill her, but I stopped him. I killed him. I had to."

"Good." Natalia folded her arms. "They don't get to live, none of them do."

"That's right." Rick nodded.

"Carol was here. She got help. Now she's gone." Morgan told them.

Natalia's jaw dropped when they walked into the auditorium.

"That's a- That's a fucking tiger, there's a tiger." She hissed, hitting Daryl's arm as the others stared.

"Staring right at it, stop hitting me, girl." He told her, as she linked her arm with his, using him as a human shield if need be.

"Jesus!" A man sat on top of a throne said, in a booming voice. "It pleases me to see you, old friend."

"It pleases him, indeed!" A man on his right said.

"Jerry." King Ezekiel side eyed the man. "Tell me, what news do you bring good King Ezekiel? Are these new allies you've brought me?"

"Indeed, they are, Your Majesty." He turned to the group. "This is... Oh, right. I forgot to mention that..."

"Tiger." Natalia repeated in an hoarse voice, cracking at the word, pulling Daryl closer to her as she looked over his shoulder, her fingernails digging into her skin, when the tiger let out a roar.

"This is Rick Grimes, the leader of Alexandria." Jesus introduced as they walked closer. "And these are some of his people."

"I welcome you all to the Kingdom, good travellers. Now, what brings you to our fair land? Why do you seek an audience with the King?"

Daryl pulled Natalia to stand in one of the rows of chairs.

"Ezekiel. King Ezekiel." Rick corrected himself. "Alexandria, The Hilltop, and the Kingdom, all there of our communities have something in common. We all serve the Saviours. Alexandria already fought them once, and we won. We thought we took out the threat, but we didn't know then what we know now. We only beat one outpost. We've been told you have a deal with them, that you know them. Then you know they rule through violence and fear."

King Ezekiel looked towards Jesus.

"Your Majesty, I only told them of the..."

"Our deal with the Saviours is not known among my people." The king cut him off. "For good cause. We made you a party to that secret when you told us of the Hilltop's own travails, but we did not expect you to share..."

"We can help each other."

"Don't interrupt the King." Jerry told Jesus.

"We brought you into our confidence. Why did you break it?"

"Because I want you to hear Rick's plans."

The King looked back at their leader.

"And what plans have you, Rick Grimes of Alexandria?"

"We came to ask the Kingdom, to ask you, to join us in fighting the Saviours, fighting for freedom for all of us." Rick told him.

"What you are asking is very serious."

"Several of our people, good people, were killed by the Saviours, brutally." Michonne stepped forward.

"Who?" Morgan asked.

"Abraham." Rosita answered. "And Glenn. Spencer, Olivia. Eugene was taken. They took Daryl and Natalia. They escaped. Every second the both of them are out here, they're a target."

Natalia leant her head on her husbands back, removing her nails from his arms and wrapping them around his waist as they listened to the woman.

"You gonna say you were right?" Rosita asked Morgan.

"No.... I'm... I'm just real sorry they're gone." He answered.

"Negan murdered Glenn and Abraham, beat them to death."

"Terrorized the Hilltop, set loose walkers just to make a point." Sasha added.

"I used to think the deal was something we could live with." Jesus said, speaking to the king now. "A lot of us did. But that's changing. So let's change the world, Your Majesty."

"I want to be honest about what we're asking." Rick started. "My people are strong, but there's not enough of us. We don't have guns... not enough, at least. Not a lot of weapons, period."

"We have people." Richard said. "And weapons. If we strike first, together, we can beat them. Your Majesty, no more waiting for things to get worse beyond what we can handle. We set things right. The time is now."

"Morgan, what say you?" King Ezekiel asked.

Natalia dreaded the mans response.

"Me?" He asked.

"Speak." The King encouraged.

"People will die. A lot of people, and not just the Saviours." He said. "It... If we can find another way, we have to. Maybe it's just about Negan, just capturing him, holding him. Maybe... I..."

"The hour grows late." King Ezekiel stood from his throne. "Rick Grimes of Alexandria... you have given the King much to ponder."

"Well, when I was a kid, uh, my mother told me a story. There was a road to a kingdom, and there was a rock in the road. And people would just avoid it, but horses would break their legs on it and die, wagon wheels would come off. People would lose the goods they'd be coming to sell. That's what happened to a little girl. The cask of beer her family brewed fell right off. It broke. Dirt soaked it all up, and it was gone. That was her family's last chance. They were hungry. They didn't have any money. She just... sat there and cried, but... she wondered why it was still there... for it to hurt someone else. So she dug at that rock in the road with her hands till they bled, used everything she had to pull it out. It took hours. And then... when she was gonna fill it up, she saw something in it. It was a bag of gold."

"Alright." Jerry smiled, the teenage boy who was stood next to the large man, looked at him, confused, so had the others.

"The king had put that rock in the road" Rick continued. "Because he knew the person who dug it out, who did something, they deserved a reward. They deserved to have their life changed for the good... forever."

"I invite you all to sup with us and stay till the morrow." King Ezekiel declared.

"Yeah, we need to get back home." Rick replied.

"I shall deliver my decree in the morn." He then banged his staff on the floor, ending the meeting.

The next morning, Richard led them to the auditorium once again.

A group of people, in the gear, were running around the Kingdom, in formation.

Another stood around bullseyes, learning and training on Archery, a one legged woman was hitting the middle of the targets every time.

"This is life here." King Ezekiel told them. "Everyday, but it came at a cost." He turned to face them, instead of the archers. "And I wanted more of this. I wanted to expand. To create more places like this. Men and women lost their limbs. Children lost their parents because I sent them into battle against the wasted when I did not need to."

"This is different." Rick told him.

"It isn't." He disagreed.

"It is." Rick repeated. "The dead don't rule us. The world doesn't look like this outside your walls. People don't have it as good. Some people don't have it good at all."

"I have to worry about my people." Ezekiel gave his answer.

"You call yourself a damn king. You sure as hell don't act like one." Daryl told him.

"All of this... came at a cost." King Ezekiel approached him, Natalia was getting antsy, the last thing they needed was Daryl fighting the man. "It was lives, arms, legs." He turned back to Rick. "The peace we have with the Saviours is uneasy, but it is peace. I have to hold on to it. I have to try. Although the Kingdom cannot grant you the aid you desire, the King is sympathetic to your plight. I offer our friends Daryl and Natalia asylum as long as they require it. They will both be safe here. The Saviours do not set foot inside our walls."

"How long do you think that's gonna last?" Daryl asked him, he then walked off.

The others followed him.

Natalia caught up to walk with him, she was boiling with rage, but she was disappointed, it looked like a losing battle.

"Hey." Daryl tapped her arm with the back of his, noticing the downcast expression on her face. "We're gonna win this, they're gonna die, he's gonna rot in hell, for everything he put us through, through everything he put you through, I promise."

"I know." But she didn't sound all too convincing.

"So, the Kingdom has to get involved, or the Saviours will always be in charge." Richard's conversation with Rick and Morgan caught their attention as they fell back to walk with them. "It isn't about soldiers. We're making them stronger. The more food we give them, the more arms, the more everything, everyday any of us give them something, they become harder and harder to beat."

"All right, open it up. We're gone." Daryl told the people at the gate.

They listened, opening up the large doors.

"You're not." Rick told him as the others walked out. "Neither of you." He gestured to Natalia as well.

"We ain't staying here."

"You have to. It's the smartest play. You know it is."

"Rick, I have to get home, I need to." Natalia told him. "What about Evie and Sul- I have to get home." She had briefly forgot about what had happened at the gates of Alexandria, her heart hurting all over again at the memory.

"No, you need to be here. Try to talk to Ezekiel." He then looked at Daryl. "Or stare him into submission. Whatever it takes. We'll be back soon."

"But I promised her, I have to." Natalia tried. "She needs me."

"You know exactly what will happen if you go back, I'm not letting that happen, we're taking care of her, she's safe, and we're gonna make sure it stays that way, I'll make sure of it, you have my word."

Natalia's shoulders dropped as Daryl slid a finger into her belt loop, keeping her there, he wasn't happy about it either, but Rick was right.

Michonne ran back to them.

"Give it here." She told Natalia.

"What?" Natalia asked her.

"The certificate, you guys are gonna be legal by the time you get back to us, I promise. Mr and Mrs Dixon." She teased, smiling at the pair.

"Oh my god." Natalia dug through her jeans, grabbing the piece of paper, passing it to her friend.

"I love you, both of you, stay here." She kissed each of their heads, shoving the folded up bit of paper in her pocket. "Stay here, don't do anything rash." She pointed at the woman.

"She ain't gonna." Daryl assured.

Rick and Michonne then left the gates as they shut behind them, leaving the two there.

"We're gonna kill him." Natalia said.

"Yes, we will." Daryl agreed.

"Babe, come on, I wanna go see those baby goats." She stared ahead, her expression was still frustrated as she headed for the animals, Daryl followed.

Next

[imnotherelolllll]

(maggotnizer) Daud x human reader

My boyfriend, Daud...went missing three years ago. At the age of 21. I approached the abandoned building, thanks to a tip from a friend saying he might have saw him here. Hopefully he's here, if not, I'll keep fucking searching. No biggie. Before I could take another step, a bag was placed over my head...and I was hunched on someones furry shoulder....it wasn't daud's...for sure.

The bag was eventually taken off...and I was face to face with a white/tan and black utonagan husky mix...clad in black tactical pants and a bloody tank top. He raised his hand to strike me, but I spoke up first.

"WAIT! Before you kill me...let me ask a question."

"What damnit?" Donovan snapped.

"Before you torture me, answer me this...do you know or work with a guy named Daud....I got a tip from someone saying he's a mercenary who hangs out here."

Donovan gaze softened a little...

"Yeah...why....you know him or something?"

"Yeah...I guess you could say that...."

Donovan was about to speak again...but cut off by the click of a 1911.

"Untie him....and give him to me." I heard....a very....family....deep and soothing voice. Daud.

I knew it was him before he revealed himself....his muscular strong furry coyote build showing under that black Tshirt of his...he was also wearing some white sweatpants....and with that...Donovan gave me to Daud...who carried me over his furry shoulder to his room in this so called abandoned building inhabited by mercenaries.

"I'll explain everything....just later."

"Alright...I'm not in a rush.''

We went into his room...he set me down on his bed...and started to clean his handgun....

After an hour he was still cleaning.

"Can we talk now?"

I heard a grunt in response.

"You still...l-love me right?"

He turned towards me...threw his shirt off in a heartbeat....and started to kiss me...I took my shirt off aswell.

"Guess that's a yes...."

He told me everything...about the cage fights...the scar under his eye....everything.

"Oh buddy...I love you....P-please...don't ever leave me again."

"Don't worry....not planning on it anytime soon..."

I cuddle in my coyote's arms all night....as he whispered sweet nothings into my ear.

Just Like Old Times.

cannon notes....blame the owner not the dog

asexual

age 24

coyote x gshep

cannon theme - the 69 eyes - wasting the dawn...

my lil non cannon theme...

swing swing by the American rejects cause it talks bout being alone and that's what he is 😭 he a silent boy in my opinion too.

maggots ty link for him.

sorry for it to be short I just have school and all.

all credit to mag.

[droplct]

● — || The sound of his heartbeat drummed [ [ s t e a d i l y ] ] in her ear . It was her [ [ f a v o r i t e ] ] constant at every minute , of every hour , of every day . It never faltered or skipped , it only ever guided her right back to where she needed to be -- with [ [ h i m ] ] .

Her fingers drew [ [ w a v e s ] ] and tides along his arm , letting her ocean eyes fall half lidded at the sensation of [ [ p e a c e ] ] that washed her away from the stormy seas within her mind . She let her mind wander to where she would be if they [ [ h a d n ' t ] ] had this shift in their dynamic . He'd probably still be chasing her around islands , fighting like his life [ [ d e p e n d e d ] ] on it to restore his honor and return to his life of silver spoons and servants . Or , would he still be outside her tent , [ [ w a i t i n g ] ] for her to talk to him when she'd rather do anything but ? Would she still be [ [ t h r e a t e n i n g ] ] him that if he slipped up [ [ o n c e ] ] , or give her a reason to believe he might hurt Aang , that she'd end his entire bloodline right there ?

She had [ [ e n d l e s s ] ] questions about it , but all of them vanished as his arm tightened around her waist and drew her closer to his chest . His inner glow created the [ [ c o z i e s t ] ] fireplace for her to nuzzle into . He was her blanket , her sanctuary -- she wouldn't trade him for [ [ a n y t h i n g ] ] in the world . Slowly , the little water droplet began to let her eyes close as [ [ r e s t ] ] finally came across her . It wasn't until his voice cut through her mind , did Katara's eyes lift to the direction that his voice was coming from . She couldn't see him talk , but she could hear the [ [ e m o t i o n ] ] in his voice .

She didn't speak or interrupt . She let him get every word off his chest , allowing him the podium to say his piece . He was speaking from the heart , who was she to chime in or take this moment [ [ a w a y ] ] from him ? Her hand stopped drawing nothing - doodles , coming to rest on his arm , holding it like it was a hug . Hearing how his mother left , her eyes fell from their upward gaze down to her hand on his arm . He really did love his mother , it was clear as day . It always had been , from how he spoke about her , to the way she seemed to be the guiding force behind many of his decisions . Then Iroh , a man as kind and wise as the spirits themselves . She was grateful that Zuko had [ [ h a d ] ] Iroh in his life -- to show him the way of the world , and teach him about the world behind the marble walls of the Fire Nation palace and what it really meant to [ [ l i v e ] ] .

Katara's fingers twisted into his sleeve when she felt his cheek press into the gentle pad of her curls . ❝ You don't have to let it go , not until you're ready too . ❞ She smiled gently against his chest , sinking into him with every passing moment . ❝ I'm still sorry to hear how your mother had to leave , I know that that must have been really hard for you . And , to learn how to trust again to a point that you allowed touch again , starting with your uncle . . . that takes a lot of bravery , Zuko , and a lot of vulnerability -- It's growth , and it's something that you should be proud of for overcoming . ❞

She looked at the floor just beyond his arm , letting her thoughts roam there for a moment before she picked them up and decided to share them with him . ❝ When Sokka and I were little , our mom used to sing to us too . She always sang the same lullaby . Actually , I don't think I'll ever be able to forget it . After she passed , I made sure never to stop singing it to Sokka -- it seemed to really make him happy and help him fall asleep . Even now , I [ [ s t i l ] ] do it , because I know how much it means to him . I guess , what I'm trying to say is . . . If you ever want me to sing it to you , if it would help you fall asleep or just relax after a long day , just let me know - ❞ She tilted her head along his chest so that he could see her eyes , ❝ - Okay ? ❞

Softness for @droplct

Zuko lay stretched out on the sofa, his back against the armrest, with Katara nestled against his chest. Her fingers traced gentle patterns over his forearm, her cheek resting just beneath his collarbone. The room was quiet and the only sounds were the steady rhythm of their breathing. He tightened his hold on her, drawing her closer. It was instinctive, the way his arms wrapped around her as though holding on to something precious.

His gaze drifted to the ceiling, eyes unfocused as memories flickered behind his eyelids like shadows dancing against the walls. His mother’s arms, warm and secure, cradling him in the dead of night. The scent of her hair as she pressed a kiss to his forehead, her voice singing a lullaby that seemed to carry away all the fear and sadness. That was love. That was safety. And then it was gone, ripped away from him.

He swallowed, his throat felt tight as he broke the silence. “My mother used to hold me,” he said. “At night, when I couldn’t sleep. She’d sing to me until I drifted off. It was like... nothing bad could get to me as long as she was there.” His eyes still fixed on the ceiling again. “Then she was gone. And it felt like she took all the warmth with her.” After that, there had been nothing. A father’s stern hand. A sister’s mocking smile. The empty space beside him where his mother’s warmth had once been. And he had never realized it how much he’d missed it until now, with Katara in his arms, her heartbeat a steady rhythm beneath his touch.

His hand slid up her back, fingers splaying wide as if to cover as much of her as he could. “I guess I got used to not having it,” he murmured. “Not being held. I told myself I didn’t need it. But then Uncle started... hugging me. And I didn’t realize how much I’d missed it until then.” His uncle’s face flashed in his mind. The way he used to hold Zuko close after a nightmare, the way he’d rub circles on his back and murmur, “You’re safe, Nephew. I’m here.” The only love Zuko had known after his mother vanished. The only arms that had held him until now.

“I think... I think I need it more than I ever wanted to admit.” He closed his eyes, pressing his face against Katara’s hair, letting her scent and warmth settle over him like a blanket. “And now that I have it... I don’t want to let go.”