#jamil is only allowed to be awkward here

[leaderpinhead]

Jamil - Girl Problems

Written for @flashfictionfridayofficial weekly prompt

Jamil thrusted the bouquet towards Yuu. “Here.” 

Yuu blinked and swatted the flowers away with a stunted reflex. She glowered at him, mouth pursed and brow wrinkled. “What are you doing?” 

Jamil sighed and fought the instinct to roll his eyes. He kept the bouquet extended towards her despite a few of the stems now lacking petals. “What does it look like I’m doing? I’m apologizing.” 

“For what?” 

The question sounded like a landmine even if he didn’t have her narrowing glare to confirm the trap. He chewed the side of his tongue, quickly debating his options. Option one would be to admit fault to the obvious crime he had committed which had caused Ramshackle’s prefect to glare at him from across the cafeteria and pointedly ignore him for the last three days. The crime he had committed was a complete mystery to him, but it would be simple enough to smooth over the issue by being as vague as possible and allow her to interpret his apology the way she wanted. 

However, Yuu was a stronger influence on certain students than Jamil. He had seen how easily she could sic Riddle on Ace with the barest hint of rule-breaking or how Floyd would corner a poor soul just by her pointing in a direction. Not to mention the drum solos Kalim had started past curfew time now. He couldn’t be convinced she wasn’t behind that strategy of psychological warfare. The timing was too coincidental. 

So he decided against his better judgement and went with option three: answering honestly. “I have no idea what I’m apologizing for. My sister just told me to give you flowers and apologize for whatever I might think I was right about.” 

After laughing for five minutes straight. Jamil had almost ended the call just to be done with the dying wheezes scratching against his eardrum. It had been an extreme low on his part, but his next best “expert” on the subject would have been Ace. His teammate would have laughed twice as hard and possibly ruptured his spleen in the process. 

Yuu’s grumpy expression stayed in place, but Jamil could see it falter with the slight twitch of her eyebrows. “Najma is smarter than you are.” 

Jamil felt the muscle in his cheek spasm, but his only reaction was to shake the bouquet. A few more petals drifted to the ground. “Normally, I would argue that point, but it’s not what’s important now. The point is...” 

The thought trailed off, and Jamil frowned at Yuu. Yuu frowned back, her eyes narrowing. Had he blinked, he would have missed the quick downward flick of her gaze that softened her angered mask for a brief moment. 

Jamil lowered the bouquet and took a small step closer. He kept eye contact until he felt the heat rise in his face. “The point is...I don’t want you to avoid me anymore.” 

It was a really poor attempt to voice the jealousy he had felt watching her interact with everyone else and not even give him the time of day. If Najma had heard him, she would have sighed and told him all the better ways he could have said it. Like he enjoyed talking to Yuu between classes or liked her standing beside him in the long cafeteria line while they waited their turn. Or how it felt like he had swallowed a rock every time he checked his messages and didn’t see a new response from her. Or he actually missed her dragging him to the mancala tournaments she had started in Scarabia every Wednesday. 

Or how he didn’t feel like wringing Kalim’s neck as much when she was there to diffuse the clash of Kalim’s happy ignorance and Jamil’s spiteful annoyance. 

With a small huff, Yuu snatched the bouquet from his hands. She still glared at him, but it was obvious she didn’t harbor the same stubborn grudge. She poked at one of the few petals left on a stem. “I still think your sister is smarter.” Jamil huffed back at her, but his abstaining from argument was rewarded with a tiny smile. “You should think twice the next time you give Azul your molten curry.” 

The absurdity of her warning took only a second for him to analyze. “Are you serious? That’s why you’ve been upset with me?” 

Yuu’s anger immediately drained from her face to be replaced by a petty pout. “You told me you didn’t have leftovers.” 

Laughter burst from Jamil. The suddenness of the sound scratched the back of his throat, and he coughed a little to alleviate the sensation. He tried to catch his breath and failed twice. “You...you...you’re upset because I shoved leftovers into Azul’s face to get away from his persistent harassment? He was trying to get me to sign a contract to transfer into Octavinelle!” 

Yuu’s pout became more pronounce the longer Jamil laughed. “So? You told me you didn’t have any leftovers, and then I had Azul bragging about how you had made him a little box lunch and everything. Even Kalim said you don't make him box lunches.” 

Jamil’s laughter slowly died. He swiped a knuckle against the corner of his eye and smirked. The awkwardness from earlier no longer locked his tongue. “You want me to make you a box lunch? I could do that. Do you want little octopus hotdogs or heart-shaped rice balls?” 

Yuu stuck her tongue out him, which only made him chuckle. “I changed my mind. You can feed Azul all you want. I hope it makes him harass you more.” 

Jamil continued to chuckle even after Yuu slammed the door in his face. She tried to stick her nose up at the box lunch he offered her the next day, but the threat of Azul taking it instead won over her stubbornness. The mancala tournament was rescheduled after the day’s classes, and Jamil begrudgingly texted his sister to thank her for her “advice.” 

[kingconia]

i saw your thing about Leona with a reader that gets sick easily and may I request that but with Jamil as earlier in November I was getting sick every 2 weeks

-🐍anon

JAMIL VIPER WITH S/O, WHO GETS SICK TOO EASILY

— Even if Jamil tries to deny that, it is useless: he is a natural caretaker, always was and always will;

— He spent all years of his life taking care of someone. His parents, his sister, and Kalim, too. So it is a skill, he cannot lose so easily;

— Thanks to that, Jamil is pretty observant. To the point, where he notices slight shifts in your health even before you do it yourself;

— And when your immune systems weakens, Jamil is instantly worried. Getting sick in the autumn is a one thing, but falling with a fly all over again as you get well—is another;

— In this time, Jamil will make sure to spend all of his time close to you;

— You can also count on the homemade food and a special medicine from his homeland;

— Despite everything, Jamil is a very patient, I think. Though, his genuine worry sometimes might be too much to bear.

•

”Hey, Jamil?”

When you call for him, he is standing not so far, being busy with brewing a tea for you. Even though your voice sound weak, almost as a whisper—you try to suppress a cough, too—he throws a short glance at you, before focusing on his task again.

”Hm?”

”I... I am really sorry that I am ill again,” you say, offering him an awkward, almost ashamed smile. ”I know it is too much. And I don't want to burden you. Yet, thank you for taking care of me.”

Jamil drawls a sigh. It is an exhausted one.

You wait for him to answer something, but he keeps his mouth shut. For a moment, the room is quiet. You hear nothing but a dangling of the spoon in the cup, and as a weakness overcomes, trying to put you in sleep, you think that he will not continue this conversation.

But then, Jamil loudly puts a cup on the bedside table, and sits down in front of you, getting your attention back.

”Why do you think you are burdening me?” He asks, frowning slightly.

”I... I know you get tired from taking care of everything and everyone,” you explain, scrunching your nose. ”I don't want you to be annoyed by me, like with Kalim, you know...”

Jamil rolls his eyes, before pressing a cup to your lips—a delicate way to shut you up for a while. You take a sip.

”Dummy.” He chuckles.

You offer him a displeased sight.

”I am not—”

”Yes, you are,” he shakes his head. ”Y/n, I will never get tired of you. And taking care of you will never annoy me.”

”But—”

”Yes, I am not particularly enthusiastic about being Kalim's caretaker. But is my job," Jamil explains, carefully choosing his words as he does. ”And you are not. You are my family.”

You can't say for sure if you feel so hot because of the rising temperature—which wouldn't surprising—or because of his words—which also wouldn't be surprising—but in the end, you can only glare at the blanket embarrassedly, while gripping it unsurely.

”I love you. And I am glad that you allow me to take care of you,” Jamil continues. And then, he is leaning closer, pressing a chaste kiss on your forehead. ”Now, please, shut up and drink the tea. I asked my sister to send herbes here not for you to waste it so foolishly.”

You smile at him tenderly.

”Yes, honey.”

The day you became his soft spot surely was your most lucky one.

[vanrougenui]

can twst dudes do kiss of life's "sticky" choreo and how well ?! (question of the century)

DISCLAIMER: i am doing this just for shits and giggles THIS IS BUT A SHITPOST;

riddle: poor boy he would get so red no one laughed...

trey: i headcanon that he can shake ass because its trey but how can this apply canonically idk but i would say yes he'd try

cater: dear god... if you have seen johnny suh from nct do the choreo you will get exactly what i mean.. he tried i guess 💀

ace: surprisingly good. he danced so good just to rub it into deuce's face

deuce: poor boy 2.0 he just cant do it but he was so determined and that deserves some mad respect

leona: oh god. at first he didnt want to do it but then he got up danced so casual you know in that "i dont give a fuck" way AND HE DID IT SO GOOD YOUR JAW WOULD BE ON THE FLOOR

ruggie: now he would eat up TT, cheer up some cute choreos and stuff. can i envision him doing the sticky choreo.. nah...

jack: i feel like he just wouldnt do it. not because he cant its just he would be super embarrassed

azul: who allowed him here.. his legs would give out. we all cringed (also i think he wouldnt do it tbh not to embarrass himself and as he should)

jade: uncanny valley.. looks right but also doesnt? i feel like he would just look very weird.. can you turn dancing into something eerie? he did thats for sure

floyd: um a motivated individual.. he would really get into it but i feel like he would be super stiff for some reason

kalim: puts his heart into it. have you seen julie do the choreo all smiley. yeah thats him. best energy

jamil: wow the only person that understood the assignment. he is the yeonjun of twisted wonderland the best person here

vil: he can definietly do the choreo but he does it so elegant just wow second best after jamil

rook: he can do it... its just.. how to say it... he has his own reasons! i think he is the observer in this case

epel: he tried he thought he made it look so good but it was so awkward... please epel sit down and calm down

idia: 💀 i dont even want to talk about it...

ortho: he is just happy for his brother (why tho pls)

malleus: he has no ass to shake. NEXT!

lilia: he put his own flare on the choreo.. super goofy but its pleasant type of goofy. enjoyable to watch not too bad (we all know he can throw it down its just he is old yeah.. sad..)

sebek: he would yell a ton. he would not do it even if you bribe him idk

silver: he would do it super respectfully. look up seulgi doing the choreo. he would do it like seulgi

THATS IT MUAHAHAHA

[it-happened-one-fic]

Charleston - A High-Octane Performance - Strictly NRC Dancing

Author's Notes: I watched so many Charleston performances to write this and learned something. Also, the Scarabia student mentioned part of the way through this fic is techniqually Scarabia B-kun even though he is not labeled as such. The first aerial inspired by Sadie Robertson and Derek Hough’s Charleston on Season 19 of Dancing With the Stars. The flip from Sophie Ellis-Bextor & Brendan Charleston to 'Rock It For Me' on Series 11 of Strictly Come Dancing.The second aerial inspired by Jordan Fisher and Lindsay Arnold’s redemption Charleston on Season 25 of Dancing With the Stars. Written to “Crazy Stupid Love” by Cheryl Cole. Just like the rest of this AU/series the reader is female for this fic. I hope you enjoy!

If you would like to read more this AU/series, the fics can be found here: Strictly NRC Dancing AU Master-List.

Type: Dance AU/female reader/fluff/can probably be taken as romantic

Word count: 1238

The urge to wiggle non-stop in this flapper dress was incredibly great, and I had a feeling that Crewel had suspected that would be the case when he designed it. I also had a sneaking feeling that Jack was well aware of my wishes too, considering the amused glances he kept casting my way.

But, it was all fine and good since the Charleston was one of the silliest yet most complicated dances I’d learned thus far. For the viewers, the dance looked incredibly fun and silly. For the dancers, it was still fun and silly, but also a very technical and high-energy dance.

I was not the slightest bit worried about Jack being able to keep up with the energy of the dance. The sporty first-year had both stamina and energy in spades, courtesy of his beastman heritage.  If anything, he would outpace me and leave me in the dust as he continued dancing on in an unplanned solo. 

I was worried about his ability to master the silly angle of the performance, though.

Jack was a fun guy, but he was also quite serious about making a good grade, and I was worried that he was going to let that get in the way of the general silliness of the dance.

But that proved to be an unfounded concern. He kept up with both the speed and the general ridiculousness of the performance with ease.

He stood next to me, grinning as we both matched one another’s kick steps that were inevitably followed by slipping across the floor on twisting feet as we both laughed. But that was the nature of the Charleston. It was almost impossible to not let loose and start laughing as one danced.

Of course, that only added to the exhausting nature of the dance. It was always harder to keep up with a high-energy dance when one added the exertion of laughing to the performance.

On the flipside, though, we had the added bonus of Jack’s considerable strength, which allowed us to pull off some of the more impressive lifts found in the Charleston. 

Most of the couples were unable to do such holds and lifts due to weight or awkward height differences. Ace and Jamil, for instance, had only succeeded in the very easiest of lifts, which played off the momentum of the dance. 

Even some of my other partners, such as one of the Scarabia students I’d performed with earlier, had been banned from using the higher-level lifts for fear of them dropping me. 

Jack, however, proved capable of even the most difficult of lifts, and his immense strength was the only reason I trusted him to do some of the moves we employed. 

Such as the one where I ended up with my ankles crossed and both of my legs hooked over one of his shoulders while he spun, swinging me around as I hung upside down.

He sat me down with ease, and I cartwheeled back upright. Feeling slightly flushed from hanging upside down, but still smiling as my gaze met his bright-eyed one while we danced side by side. 

Soon though, Jack had shifted around behind me and grabbed my arms as he rolled backwards onto the ground and pulled me with him. It was almost as if I were sitting down on his raised feet to let him flip me on over him where I could then use my momentum to pull him upright. 

As soon as my feet had hit the ground, I could hear cheering from the crowd. One of the more notable voices being that of Ruggie’s. 

Vargas had been right when he’d told us that our greatest boon would be Jack’s impressive strength paired with my absolute trust in him, which allowed us to pull off all sorts of tricks. 

While most of the performers would have one to two flips and/or holds, we were able to keep pulling such tricks off as we trotted around the dance floor to the bouncy beat.

In fact, we even managed to end our dance with yet another hold that involved him scooping me up bridal style before releasing my upper body so that I was once again upside down with my head zipping towards the ground as Jack freely swung me around his body. 

I wrapped around his back and grasped his legs while he caught me with his one free arm. He was slightly out of breath as he bent and pulled me the rest of the way around, setting me down in our ending position with me hugging his side.

He glanced over at me, breathing heavier than usual but still bright-eyed from our performance as our fellow students stood from their seats and erupted into applause, “You good?”

I nodded, no doubt flushed from exertion, but still alright and even feeling a little giggly despite the fact I was worn out from performing three Charlestons in a row. 

Crewel’s stamina potion had been a blessing today, and, to be honest, I was glad this was my last performance. As much fun as I’d had with Jack, I didn’t think I could handle another Charleston.

“Well done, Mr. Howl! I doubt many of the other students performing the Charleston could have pulled off quite so many aerials and swing holds as you did!” Vargas and Crowley were both over the moon and overly excited as they usually were after a more high-octane performance. 

But everyone knew the final word would fall to Sam, the usually nice store-owner who became incredibly hard to impress with any swing dance.

Jack’s tail, which had been previously wagging so fast it was a blur, lowered significantly as all eyes turned to the shopkeeper, who shrugged nonchalantly, “I would’ve liked to see a few more moves typical of the Charleston, such as a flapper walk. But it was still a solid performance, probably a B+. Good job.”

I laughed slightly, turning to face Jack and applauding along with the crowd as he did a first pump and turned, bright-eyed, to see both Vil and Leona congratulating him from their respective seats. 

It was almost cute how much his tail was wagging as he received approval from not only the judges, but also his two upperclassmen, whom he so respected.

But then Jack startled me by turning to face me and grabbing my hand in his, “This was your last performance, right?”

I nodded, before responding, still half-breathless from our dance, “Yeah, Crewel said that even with a stamina potion, I could only handle three Charleston's at most.”

He nodded, and I watched as his tail began the wary but hopeful wag that indicated he was fixing to say something else, and he did not disappoint, “Do you want to come sit with me and the guys to watch the rest of the performances?”

I felt a smile creep onto my face as I bobbed my head, “I’d love to! Just let me change out of this dress and I’ll be right over.”

The first-year straightened, his tail now wagging more openly as he responded, “Sure, I’ll wait for you. That way we can walk up to our seats together.”

I trotted off to the dressing area set up for me in the corner of the room, still smiling to myself as a thought hit me.

 It seemed like Jack had been making me grin all day. 

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[villain-in-love]

cherry vanilla, matcha and blue moon for Jamil? (@canarycurse)

I'm finally done answering this... Sorry for the delay, I was fighting demons here.

cherry vanilla: how does your F/O show their affection for you?

Does allowing me to be stick around by his side without him making a sour face count as an affection?

Just kidding. But it was, at one point, the first sign of affection that he ever showed to Prefect.

I would say that Jamil is a person who prefers to speak with his actions. I mean, this guy got a silver tongue, but it seems to be mostly reserved for nefarious purposes. He’s not that good at expressing his true feelings that way– the words that come out are awkward and he will just end up embarrassed, telling Prefect to forget it. She won’t.

Part of his affection is making sure that she’s alive and well. Maybe helping with some chores or homework, or finding ways to keep Grim busy when this cat is in the mood to annoy her. Treating her constant injuries (things got better after she gained the ability to control magic, but she will always stay a physically inept loser), making lunch not just for himself and Kalim, but also for Prefect.

He also always makes sure to make time for her in his insanely packed schedule, and wouldn’t mind Prefect accompanying him even when he’s busy with something. Even if he keeps a neutral expression and even when he's doing something else at the same time, he listens, observes, and analyses.

I would even say overanalyses. Like many people, sometimes he can’t sleep at night because he’s thinking of his beloved, except he just overanalyses Prefect’s every word and every gesture trying to deduce more information about her. As I always said, scientific interest is a form of love and he wants to study her with a scalpel under a microscope. This feeling is mutual.

He also always tries to come up with a logical the solution if she has any problems. Part of it is just the way he usually thinks, of course, but this time he’s actually invested.

Another way he shows his affection is, surprisingly, by teasing her, making sarcastic remarks and lovingly poking fun of her, mostly her questionable life choices and opportunistic nature. Though that is, honestly, more about allowing her to see that playful and sassy side of him he hides from most of the people behind the mask of seriousness. And it’s only fair because Prefect is also known for showing her affection in a form of roasting him at any chance she gets.

Jamil is not a fan of public displays of affection, so most of the physical affection stays behind closed doors. And when it comes to gestures of physical affection he’s surprisingly gentle and almost innocent, mostly just wanting to stay close and keep Prefect by his side.

matcha: what kind of gifts does your F/O give you? Are they always buying you little presents or do they invest only in larger items for birthdays or holidays?

Useful gifts. The ones that may not seem anything special from an outside glance, but in reality Jamil puts a lot of thought in his gifts. Judging by the information provided in canon, Jamil’s gifts are usually small but high in quality, and are usually the things that fit the situation. Jamil’s quite observant so he knows what people might need at the moment.

So Prefect might receive a new teapot because she's constantly drinking tea and her old one just broke down. Or much needed alchemic reagent for one of her (most likely illegal) experiments. Or a new set of graphite pencils because she’s been drawing using the same old stub for a while now and Jamil just wants to put an end to this travesty.

Also, assuming that this takes place during and after my s/i’s second year in Twisted Wonderland (because Jamil and Prefect weren’t quite at that level of friendship to exchange gifts before the second year), magical artifacts are the best gifts when he really has no other ideas – it's something Prefect can both use as intended or study for her own curiosity… or drain of magic in case of emergency.

Gifts are not something Jamil buys often as something like this just doesn’t cross his mind often. So even in the relationship Jamil will mostly give Prefect something only for the occasions when it’s customary to give gifts – like birthdays or other holidays. (Not that she minds – Prefect sucks at choosing gifts and is always running out of money, and she would hate to stay in debt)

However, if we look into the possible future, if Jamil’s wish to travel the world alone comes true, then it would become a custom for him to buy her sweets from different countries as a gift for when he comes back.

blue moon: is your F/O very routine-oriented or do they like to go with the flow? How routine-oriented are you?

Jamil is less of routine-oriented and more plan-oriented, if that makes sense? Let’s put it that way, he has to babysit look after and serve Kalim – one of the most nonsensical and unpredictable people you will ever meet. Which means that it’s rare for Jamil to get stuck in a predictable routine, for better or for worse. And that taught him to be ready for literally anything that could possibly happen (he can predict at least 100 ways something can go wrong and he’s prepared for every single one of them, but then the 101th thing he somehow wasn’t able to predict happens and then he freaks out.) I think that if left alone in a calm environment Jamil might eventually fall into the routine but I’m honestly not sure if he will actually like it that much.

Prefect is… not a routine-oriented person. In fact, she hates routine so much that she throws herself into a new misadventure at any chance she gets even if it’s dangerous. She’d rather risk her life than get stuck doing the same thing every day. It’s good for her mental health. But not so good for Jamil’s, though.

[noodles-and-oodles]

it's good to see that you're back ! i missed your writing <33

can i request leona, jamil, and azul reuniting with their gn! s/o after a long time ? maybe they're doing their fourth year internships and they came back to nrc to visit s/o ?

thank you very much !! hope you have a good day / night :DD

ITS GOOD TO BE BACK!!! 🥴 BDSJDJDK ty I miss writing here as well ahhhh and I also hope you’re having a good day!! Thank you for requesting and I hope this is to your liking!

~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~

Leona Kingscholar

Leona doesn’t make his return a surprise that much, though he may hint at it through messages to you. He’ll be a bit playful, saying things along the lines of ‘my Herbivore must miss me terribly’ or ‘maybe I’ll visit if you tell me how much you want to see me’

When you hear the Savanaclaw students getting riled up is when your suspicions begin to rise, what could possibly have those guys all riled up like this?

Well, the visit of their former dorm leader is certainly something to be chatty about! You can only stare in shock as Leona walks towards you, shaking off the pesky savanaclaw students as he does so

You’re greeted with his usual lazy smirk and obviously, you’re thrilled to see your boyfriend after so long. Leona welcomes all forms of an affectionate greeting btw so you better shower him with as much love as possible~

It’s only natural that the two of you spend time together to catch up, and the two of you do so in the gardens where you allow Leona to rest his head on your lap. All the reminiscing filled your heart with warmth and you found yourself unable to stop smiling, the joy being almost overwhelming at the fact that Leona was with you

Leona won’t be as vocal about it, but he is also extremely happy to be in your presence and you can tell because his tail swishing lazily but there was a certain perk to it, his tail even wrapping around your wrist at times. This lion was a prideful one but even he can’t resist the feelings of happiness that fill his heart from being with his s/o <3

Azul Ashengrotto

This octodude has been planning to visit his s/o for MONTHS, he wanted to surprise you but his schedule kept having unexpected changes which pushed back his visit. But he finally, finally managed to escape his responsibilities for a bit to come see you

Seeing you the first time in a long time has surely put Azul on edge, he hopes that you are still as enamored with him as he is towards you. He knows it’s been a while but they say that distance makes the heart grow fond, so he’s praying that you’re ecstatic to see him

Of course you are! When word spreads that Azul is back in town, you’re the first one to go searching for him. As soon as you see your boyfriend, you’re greeting him with a big hug that knocks almost the both of you off your feet. Needless to say, all of Azul’s worries are immediately forgotten about as he hugs you tightly

As he is wondering how the Mostro Lounge is faring, Azul suggests having a date there. He’s glad to see that business is booming as usual but he’s quick to push that to the back of his mind once the two of you start talking about things

Azul will try to stay with you for as long as he can, he’d even think about putting days aside to stay with you but you’re quick to scold him. Azul swears though, that the next time the two of you see one another, that it will be for much longer than a lousy few hours. He swears on it!

Jamil Viper

Jamil is more straightforward, he’ll tell you that he wishes to see you, not everyday but every once in a blue moon he’ll mention it. He does miss you dearly, but he doesn’t want to overwhelm you either

The two of you make plans to meet up several times but something Kalim is always getting in the way so Jamil takes things into his own hands, aka, takes a day off. That boy turns his phone on DND and heads off to meet with you immediately

Jamil finds himself being a little awkward at first when thinking of seeing you after so long but then realizes that he’s not feeling awkward, it’s him being nervous. Jeez, what’s gotten into him?

However, seeing your smiling face makes any feelings of nervousness fly out of the window. Jamil’s just thrilled that he can actually see you and touch you, his first move being to grasp you in his arms. He missed the feeling of you in his arms a lot, it was like all of the stress he has built up melted away

As the two of you are catching up, Jamil is moreso listening to the sound of you talking than participating. Hearing your voice over the phone wasn’t the same as hearing it in person and he wished that he could just keep it on loop in his head

When it’s time for him to leave, Jamil will remind you to take care of yourself while he’s gone. He won’t admit that he worries, but of course he secretly does. As you send him off with that smile of yours, Jamil is already thinking of how to get more time off to see you again

[fairestwriting]

Hey can i req the dorm leader reaction , to find yuu\ fem!reader sleeping under the tree or somewhere else because too tired doing everything crowley asked she to do

Riddle Rosehearts

Will quickly start scolding you. "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in class?" It's probably his voice that wakes you.

When you begin open your eyes, though, then rubbing the sleepiness off them -- His mouth shuts. Suddenly talking is hard, and he feels a little bad for coming off so harsh.

You tell him you didn't mean to fall asleep there, it's just that today had been such a long day, and when you walked by, your body just moved by itself and you laid down on the grass... Riddle will grumble that's no excuse, and you shouldn't be spending your time lazing around, but you can tell there's no bite to his statement.

Offers a hand to help you up and walks you back to Ramshackle. "I know you're tired, but at least try to get to your dorm, sleeping like this is inappropriate..." He says. "B-But, make sure you're taking care of yourself too, so this doesn't happen again."

Feels worried once he knows you're overworked, but doesn't know how to approach the subject. The walk back to Ramshackle is a little awkward...

He'll keep the incident in mind, though, and you'll notice him offering you help often when you're doing chores.

Leona Kingscholar

Is sort of a bastard, so he ignores you if you barely know each other, and joins you if you know each other too well, maybe even draping himself over you a bit.

In a healthy, middle ground scenario, though, he just shakes your shoulder. "What're you doing just sleeping here? Am I rubbing off on you?" He asks, teasingly.

When you groan and mention, annoyed, about Crowley's overworking of you, though, he's less than amused.

Curses the principal under his breath, then stubbornly tells you to come with him. Agree and you'll find himself in his room.

"Just take a break here, alright, I'll be back soon." He grumbles, and off he goes, to argue with Crowley until his ears fall off.

If you ask about him nagging the principal to leave you alone, though, he'll deny it.

Azul Ashengrotto

...likely also ignores you, unless he wants something from you, or you’re close.

If the case is the latter, he’ll kneel next to you on the grass, and wake you up politely, with an excuse me and a gentle shoulder shake.

“Hey...oh, you’re awake. You just fell asleep here, are you maybe feeling unwell?” He asks, and it’s hard to tell sometimes, but there’s genuine worry in his eyes.

Tell him about Crowley and you’ll have his full attention. Both because that likely goes against some rules, meaning he’ll have some dirt on the man, and because, well, it’s hurt someone he likes, he’s not exactly happy about that.

Is quick to offer assistance, asking if you’d like him to get you a coffee or something like that, so you feel less tired, or even if you’d like him to walk you back to Ramshackle.

If he’s just doing this because he wants something from you, though, he’ll go through the same motions, just with a different motive in mind... and he probably brings up his favors, later. So, this can go well or pretty poorly depending on how much Azul likes you.

Kalim Al-Asim

He's just walking by when he sees you leaning against the tree, completely out.

It shocks him pretty fast -- His first assumption is you might have fainted, or something? He'll rush over to see if you're fine, you'll probably wake up when he has his fingers over your pulse.

"Aah, you're okay, thank god!" Kalim exhales. You blink in confusion, asking what happened, and he explains he saw you sleeping and got too worried about it.

Soon turns the conversation back to you. What were you doing here? Were you okay yourself? You looked so tired, dull eyed and everything -- He's shocked again when you explain the situation, and how overworked you'd been.

“If you need somewhere to rest, you can always come to Scarabia! Ah, I can get Jamil to make you some food too!” He’ll innocently offer.

If you do accept, he lets you sleep for as long as you want in his room. Brings you snacks when you wake up and everything, Kalim just wants you to feel nice and rested. If you don’t, though, he’ll walk you back to Ramshackle, and check up again later!

Vil Schoenheit

Sooo exasperated at first. Really, what is she doing here, sleeping on the floor? She'll get her uniform dirty!!!

Upon closer inspection, though, he'll see the tiredness on your face, and soften at that.

Wakes you up and only lectures you a little bit. "What made you think it was a good idea to sleep here? Look, there's dirt all over your blazer..." He'll sigh, but still pat the leaves off your hair while you're half asleep "If you need to sleep so much, at least go to your room first."

He'll lead you back to Ramshackle so you can have a proper place to sleep, and when the walk gets silent, he asks you what happened, the concern showing in his voice. Worries about you being sick or something.

If you tell him about Crowley, you bet he'll be having a word with him about overworking his students.

Idia Shroud

Internal conflict galore. He thinks you look peaceful and sweet while sleeping like this, but, to just pass out somewhere like this? Are you okay?

Also worries about you being sick, and therefore, about whether he should wake you or not. Kneels next to you for a bit with an anguished face, questioning what he should do...

If you don't wake up by yourself, he'll eventually tap your shoulder shyly, and shakes it until you're up.

"Um, y/n, hey, y/n, wake up... are you alright? You just...fell asleep here." He mutters. He's so quiet it might take him a long time to wake you.

Sort of horrorized when you explain you're tired because of Crowley's tasks. What the hell was that man doing to his students? Idia's pretty sure that isn't allowed, and yet...

A part of him wants to invite you to his room so you could nap there, but the idea is far too overwhelming for him to get out -- If you ask for it, though, and you're close enough, he'll probably let you.

Otherwise, he just leads you back to Ramshackle, mostly in silence. If you need to rant about Crowley, he's all ears.

Malleus Draconia

He frowns. This is no place for you to be sleeping, the ground seems so uncomfortable... Malleus stares at you, unsure of how he should go about the situation.

He doesn't want to wake you up -- You look peaceful, and like you need the rest, but if you stay like this for too long you'll definitely wake up with pretty bad neck pain.

In the end, he might just leave you there, regrettably, or pick you up and carry you back to Ramshackle, if you're already pretty close. He'll want to take you back to your dorm no matter what, though. Malleus doesn't want you to rest somewhere so uncomfortable.

Does his best to let you sleep, mostly, though he worries a bit about what had you so tired -- Might bring it up later when you're talking, asking if you've been getting enough breaks.

[sunnytwst]

Hello! May I request the dormleaders hc where there sibling who is just a little bit younger then them visit them after they overblot. If thats alright^_^ and I absolutely love your writing💜

hello!! sdofhsofdh first of all i’m sorry this took so long!!! and then also sorry once again if jamil is out of character because i feel like i don’t have a good grasp on his personality.....and then sorry yet ANOTHER time because i only did the characters who have overblotted in the story so far because i’m pretty new to the game and too nervous to speculate...please enjoy askjdfgodifhg

relationship: riddle rosehearts x gn! reader (siblings), leona kingscholar x gn! reader (siblings), azul ashengrotto x gn! reader (siblings), jamil viper x gn! reader (siblings)

format: headcanons

genre: hurt/comfort

warnings: spoilers for backstories, spoilers for overblots, discussion of past abuse and trauma, mentions of depression

riddle rosehearts:

for as much as riddle seems to have improved, he’s sometimes overwhelmed with shame because losing control like he did when he overblotted almost felt like failure

when you tell him that you’re visiting he’s kicking the dorm up into a frenzy again, making preparations for your arrival, everything has to be perfect, nothing can be wrong

it might stem from feeling like he has to be strong, as your older brother, or maybe from an ingrained fear of harsh criticism from his family

you think that he’s just awkward initially because you haven’t seen each other in so long but he doesn’t relax at all as the day goes on, speaking stiffly and formally

when the two of you are alone later that evening and you try to explain the reason for your visit was just that you’re worried about him he’d try to deflect but ultimately snap, face growing redder and redder, fists tightening at his sides

worried about what? there’s nothing to worry about! or maybe you’re worried that he’s gone off the rails? that he’s gotten too soft? that he’ll damage the rosehearts name?

when you flinch away from him, eyes wide and watery, riddle practically deflates

it’s not your fault. you’re not his mother.

you’re not his mother.

wrap him in a hug and tell him that it’ll be okay. you’re not worried about any of that, you’re worried about him, about how he’s doing and feeling, about if he’ll be alright, because he’s your only big brother and you love him

he cries, but knowing that you’re still there for him and you always will be even when he’s not perfect is a huge weight off his shoulders

leona kingscholar:

honestly, he really, really did not want to see you shortly after his overblot and told you to not to come

even if the two of you are close, leona has a pretty complicated relationship and view on his family and probably wouldn’t be ready to see you right after an incredibly vulnerable point in his life

you should respect his boundaries and lay off but if you reach out again in a few weeks, asking for permission to visit, leona will probably be in a more ready state of mind, albeit not particularly enthusiastic

doesn’t really bother to make any preparations for your arrival

like he might have ruggie dust a little?? but that’s about it

when you get there and go to greet him with a hug he doesn’t behave any differently, just loosely wrapping his arms back around you if you’re persistent and grumbling

if your goal in coming to visit him was to have a serious talk and check in with his Emotions then you’re fresh outta luck buddy

anytime you try to bring up what happened with the overblot or genuinely ask how he’s feeling he would either deflect with a “tch, what are you, my mom?” or ignore the question entirely

you probably won’t be able to get him to open up to you but if you talk to him anyways, just mentioning that you wanted to see him and make sure he was okay, that you love him and his health and happiness came first to you, he would listen

he defaults to his tsundere response but having that support and assurance means a lot to someone who is so used to being second place

azul ashengrotto:

probably anticipated your visit

life in the coral sea is incredibly challenging and with all that on top of azul’s crybaby tendencies, you had made it a habit since youth to check in with him pretty frequently

something like the aftermath of an overblot wasn’t really something that could really be gauged over the phone or some letters though and so it made sense that you’d want to come and see azul in person

he would agree to meet you in the evening, after he’s cleared out the lounge, because scamming people helps him both make a profit and gives him time to calm his nerves

he’s your charismatic big brother after all, right?

everything is going smoothly, the two of you are just making small talk and enjoying the atmosphere, but azul won’t address the overblot on his own and you’ll need to put your foot down and bring it up explicitly in conversation

may try to distract you with “ah, need another drink?” or “what do you think of this song?” but you’ve known him too long to fall for that

it’s not that he doesn’t want to talk about the overblot so much as he’s scared to talk about it, scared of revealing his vulnerable side, so if you assure him that you won’t judge him at all then he’ll crack

there’s not a lot of talking going on but he cries into your shoulder if you offer it to him (and later offers to foot the drycleaning bill)

would act like it never happened the next day but expect a gift basket sometime soon

jamil viper:

basically the entire viper family works for the al-asim family in one way or another so jamil knows that the news of his overblot would reach you pretty fast

his parents had reached out too, of course, checking if he was okay (and checking if he was well enough to keep serving kalim, remarking how merciful it was of him to not fire the vipers on the spot!) but you were the only one who wanted to come visit

jamil tells you that if you manage to get time off then sure, you can come visit, evidently not expecting you to actually be able to take a vacation

he had to do a lot of thinking and reflection after his overblot and you’ve caught him in a vulnerable time so he’s quite guarded around you when you first arrive

could you possibly be here to reprimand him too?

it feels like an uphill battle because you didn’t come here to make small talk but you’re also not really sure how to approach the topic of his overblot since he’s never really been a Feelings kinda guy to begin with

at the end of the day it’d probably be easier to either let him confront you on your reasons for visiting on his own time or, if he doesn’t, go ahead and assure him that you really and truly care about him anyways

it might not seem like it but you’re still family and what you think matters to him

would allow for a hug and maybe a small smile before you left

[gay-salt-amber]

I feel odd asking this but. . . slight nsfw headcanons you have?

I can't find anywhere that says if you do or do not allow such things so I just want to ask in case I say something awkward one day

Ofc I can do nsfw headcanons... they're not SLIGHT atleast by my standards but here you go anyway

Rook likes being tied

Epel likes knives and being and getting bitten

Idia has a tentacle kink because of you know who

Azul has a wax kink

Jack is such a bottom omg

Epel and ruggie are the tops of epel x savanaclaw surprisingly

Leona likes having his tail messed with only when things are getting really heavy tho

Che'nya likes to make only his hand visible with his ability thing and stick his hand down his partners pants and give them a hand job

Riddle got one in the middle of class

Floyd's fucked his boys in the water before

Vil and Rook love to see Neige tied up in lingerie

Silver likes the feeling when Esther drinks his blood and once Esther was sitting on his lap and he got hard from it and he got a blow job

Malleus is also a bottom

Kalim and jamil do it on tables

Cater will film everything, not for blackmail he just loves seeing Riddle and Che'nya begging under him and Floyd

Idia will suck azul off under his desk and won't react to it while idia is trying his best to get a reaction out of him

Ruggie will put Jack in a collar and will tug it when he wants him to go faster

Ace and Kalim will get their hands tangled in their hair while making out and when someone asks what tf happened to his hair he says, "my boyfriends"

Neige and Vil have done it in a changing room

Rook may or may not have photos of his partners jerking off

Malleus has a very deep morning voice and Idia and Azul get confused like, "Are we horny? Wait its only 6am can we not be horny? But oh my Seven I wanna hear him moan in that voice!"

Lilia: "I ain't had my dick sucked properly in a few months where's my vacuum mouthed veteran whore?"

Ruggie: "I'd fuck someone in the ass for a box of doughnuts right now"

Leona: "Well then, start fucking."

-------

This is mainly kink stuff but I hope it works for ya :D- Amber

[thatweeboverthereisthirsty]

Ask Blooper Fic/JamilxKalim Angst and slight jealousy

Ok ngl I started this fic in response to a Possessive!Jamil x Kalim ask but read the ask wrong and started writing Kalim as the possessive one (as best I could cause he’s a softie) then half way through I realised my mistake so I took a completely different route and put angst instead because that’s all I seem to do recently. Nevertheless enjoy and Anon that requested the Possessive!Jamil x Kalim fic, I’m sorry I messed up. The correct fic with your ask is coming.

And yes, I still don’t know how to properly end a fic. (Just pretend I do, lol)

I wanted to be with you

 Parties were a large part of Kalim’s life. As the son and heir of a wealthy family with extremely high status it was normal for the teen to attend parties all the time. So he had become quite accustomed to socializing and being the center of attention. The sweet boy never realised that when he attended parties, his personal servant and in his mind, best friend, Jamil would never dress up or speak to anyone besides him. Despite never seeing Jamil as a servant in the back of his mind it was always apparent that they were different in many ways. Of course being preoccupied with a party his easily distracted brain often forgot that Jamil would follow him, but never too close, and make sure he didn’t trip, or would retrieve things for him at any time Kalim asked. Never had the white haired boy realised that before he was allowed to touch any of the food on his plate, Jamil would yet again put his life on the line and test all the foods for poison. He was so oblivious to these things growing up that he was surprised when they finally had the chance to attend a party together as equals.

   Across the room stood Jamil, dressed in a stylish outfit with arabian accents that expressed his homeland well. He also wore gold pieces of jewelry that Kalim had never seen before. They went well with his round gold earrings which sparkled in the right light. His eyelids were painted in a dark bronze that faded as it travelled higher and his eyeliner made his dark eyes seem slightly more almond shaped, which gave them a mature, sexy appearance. In all he was gorgeous in a way that Kalim had never seen him, despite spending nearly his entire life with the teen. 

   Other people obviously noticed these good looks as well cause they flocked to him and spoke in ways that would make them appear more attractive to the listener. All night long women and men from every school that attended the dance jumped at any chance to spend time with the attractive young man. As a consequence Kalim was left alone to navigate the large room himself. Normally he would thrive under these types of conditions but without his friend and, regrettably, servant by his side the eccentric teen felt a bit more vulnerable than he was used to. 

   People still approached Kalim with interest since he didn’t look half bad himself. He never did, Jamil wouldn’t allow that to happen. Since day one he always got Kalim ready for the day and its events no matter what they may be. Kalim always looked amazing when he was done and Jamil would settle with appearing mediocre for the sake of rules and the lack of time he had to pay attention to himself. Kalim felt a pang of guilt as he remembered how obliviously he had stolen away Jamil’s childhood with his own wants and needs. He had ruined his friend's life simply because he didn’t know how to put on his own clothes. That had all been changed though, Kalim thought with reignited joy, because he let Jamil be free. He would learn how to get dressed on his own, bathe on his own, cook his own food, even tie shoes! He had already started to improve, deciding to put on his own clothes and makeup for the party so Jamil could dress up on his own. It wasn’t easy though, Kalim recalled with a sigh.

   The brush and palette of black paint felt awkward in his hands as Kalim attempted to apply a reasonable amount of eyeliner to his face. “Ouch!” The brush slipped again and slid across his eye. Dropping the brush and palette Kalim clutched his irritated eye and hissed as it started to sting. He pulled his hands away from his eye and looked down at the palette which now lay broken on the floor. Tears slipped down his cheek on one side to clear his sight, but it only succeeded on smudging more makeup into the delicate pupil. He stood and approached the mirror slowly. Taking in his appearance, Kalim felt a jolt of frustration. Why wasn’t this easy for him like it was for everyone else? How come he couldn’t get his shirt to button properly or his wrap to lay correctly on his head? Why wasn’t putting on makeup as simple as painting?

   In the end he had to ask for outside help from a fellow student who often helped Jamil when he needed it. It was almost shameful how he couldn’t do anything at all by himself, but at least his former servant had been allowed to give himself the attention he deserved. 

   Kalim sighed and shook his head to clear the thoughts about their recent dynamic change. Deciding he needed something to eat, he approached the buffet table and gazed at his options with excitement. Food from the land of the hot sands was always good and comforting, but occasionally switching things up sparked excitement at the new discovery. He chose a heavily seasoned meat dish, which he assumed came from the Afterglow Savannah. He munched thoughtfully and eyed the room around him once again to take in his busy surroundings, or at least that’s what he told himself. In truth the young heir’s eyes searched for one thing in the crowd and paused when they found what they were looking for. 

   The brunette stood in the middle of a small group laughing at something a pretty red haired girl said. It was unusual to see so much happiness on his face, or it was something that Jamil didn’t show Kalim very often. He felt a strange emotion bubble up within him. It wasn’t something he had never felt before but it was so rare that it was hard to place exactly what the emotion was. Scrunching his brows together he looked down at his food. Suddenly he didn’t feel hungry anymore. Still he placed more food in his mouth. The taste was no longer as flavorful as it was the first time. He frowned but kept eating. It distracted him from that feeling so it was worth it. When he finished his food he threw the plate away and tried to start up conversation with a few of the people around him. None of the usual starters worked however and Kalim found himself alone yet again.

   Only then did he spot Jamil and the girl again. They were dancing together while talking and laughing. His hands on her hips and hers around his neck. They looked so happy together that Kalim almost felt guilty for wishing that it was him Jamil was dancing with instead. Kalim watched as the girl leaned up and whispered something in the brunette's ear. She pulled away giggling and he responded by pulling her close and whispering something back. Suddenly Kalim felt like the walls were closing in on him. Everyone was too close and he felt dizzy.

   He weaved through the crowd trying to find an exit. The room was hot and the windows were fogged with the contrast of the cool night air and sweaty teenager body heat. When he finally found a way out he made a break for it and ran to the hall of dorm mirrors. Stopping only for a fraction of a second Kalim quickly found the Scarabia mirror and stepped through. His body quickly adjusted to the sweltering heat that the Scarabia dorm’s environment consisted of and ran through the dorm as fast as he could. The entrance to his room never looked so inviting before. He pulled himself inside and shut and locked the door behind him. He entered his private bathroom and did the same thing.

   Tears came hot and fast as his body shook with sobs. Kalim collapsed to his knees and wrapped his arms around himself in a feeble attempt to calm himself. Whether it was from the running or emotions Kalim felt nauseous. Why was this happening to him? Had he not been good enough? Jamil had promised that he didn’t hate Kalim and never did. He also promised he would never leave him. All those kisses, hugs, and I love you’s. Were they just lies? Of course they were. He thought bitterly. He should have known that this ‘relationship’ they had was just another way for Kalim to guilt trip Jamil into staying. Would he ever learn? Even after all that happened he still hadn’t allowed his former servant the freedom he wanted. If Kalim thought he felt sick before he definitely felt worse now.

   “Kalim? Kalim! Hey Kalim, open the door.” Jamil’s voice filtered into the bathroom and Kalim held his breath. “Kalim I know you’re in there. Please open the door so I can make sure you’re ok.” He didn’t respond. There was silence for a moment before Kalim picked up the faint sounds of footsteps leaving his door. The teen sighed and leaned his head back against the wall. He shouldn’t have left so suddenly, then Jamil would still be enjoying himself at the party instead of here worrying about him. The sound of keys in a lock snapped Kalim to attention. He had forgotten that as his assigned caretaker Jamil would have the keys to his room and bathroom. He heard his door swing open and Jamil call out to him again. “Kalim! Kalim? Are you alright? Answer me.” The panicked tone of his voice suggested that he had no idea if Kalim was ok or not. The keys jangled again and Kalim watched as the bathroom door opened.

   “Kalim? What are you doing? What happened to you? Why did you leave without telling me? Do you not feel well? Please tell me you didn’t eat any food that I didn’t taste first?” Jamil knelt down in front of the white haired boy and continued his long list of questions. “No.” Jamil stopped speaking and frowned. “No nothing happened and it’s not the food. I’m fine so you should stop worrying about me and go back to that girl you were hanging out with earlier. It would be a shame if you wasted your night on me.” There was no bitterness in Kalim’s voice, only sadness. “Kalim,” Jamil said quietly, “if this is about that girl I can tell you that we were only dancing to get your attention.” Kalim looked up in surprise. “I know you were making an effort to give me more freedom so I didn’t want to babysit you cause I knew you would get upset that I wasn’t giving myself the freedom I deserved, but the truth is, I wanted to be next to you. I wanted to be at that party with you so when I caught you looking at me with jealousy I thought that maybe I could push you to come to me, but it didn’t work and I’m so sorry.”

   Kalim stared down at the floor and tried to process what Jamil said. He was just dancing with her to make him notice. Cause he wanted Kalim to come to him and be with him. “So,” Kalim looked up again with watery eyes, “I make you happy. You want to be with me, I’m not just forcing-” “NO.” Jamil cut Kalim off with a shout but started again quietly when he saw that he had startled the smaller boy. “No. You aren’t pushing this relationship on me. I want to be here cause I love you Kalim Al Asim. Because you make me happy in a way no one else can.” He leaned forward and pressed his lips lightly against Kalims, who in return smiled. “I’ll always love you. Nothing can change that, and there is no way I would ever leave you. No matter how amazing the other person seems, you are always gonna be better.” Kalim lowered his knees and allowed himself to be brought into a comforting hug. “I love you too” He whispered quietly before burying his face in Jamil’s neck. The brunette smiled fondly at the bundle of Kalim that laid against him. It was a smile that no one but Kalim would ever receive. It was one that was made of more than happiness.

[wonderland-in-bloom]

an unexpected day off

[leona kingscholar x fem!pomefiore!reader]

anon asked: Yay requestss are open! May I request a oneshot where Leonas fem Pomfiore s/o's little sister comes to Night Raven to visit her and meets Cheka who is also visiting Leona and they become friends and all that cute stuff ( bonus Leona and readers reaction )

yes!! cute indeed uwu hi guys how are you all, are you dying over silver and lilia’s cards as much as i am? heheh 

le fic under the cut

TODAY was going to be a chill day filled with activies which could be tied to lazing around. well at least that’s what both you and your boyfriend thought. but the both of you were wrong. horribly wrong. that morning leona was woken up by cheka literally jumping on top of him. while on the other hand, you were having a beautiful dream until the door to your room slammed against the wall after it swung open. “(Y/N)-NEEEEEEEEE!!! WAKE UP! I’M SPENDING THE WHOLE DAY WITH YOU TODAY!” in your half awoken state, you were still able to recognize that high pitched voice. it was your younger sister. 

“what the hell are you doing here?” you groaned as you buried your head in your pillow. “mom and dad want me here! besides i want to see how miserable you are.” you growled and threw a pillow at her. you two argued and fought so loud that vil came storming into your room with his face still full of cucumbers and a face mask and scolded both you and your younger sister. you really did just want to have one day off without anything crazy or chaotic happening, but hey, when is life ever calm? you sighed as your little sister dragged you around the whole campus. some students gave you glares and in return you gave them back glares which signaled “please help me i beg you”. they legitimately just laughed at you. after all, it was only entertainment for them. in the middle of the way as you trailed behind your sister in the courtyard, she suddenly stopped. 

your eyes sparkled when you saw your boyfriend walking towards you from the other end. “leona!!!” you cheered as you rushed over to him. you saw a glint in his eyes as he was happy to see you too. you wrapped your arms around his torso and he placed his hand on your waist. “please help me....” you whispered. “yeah i could say the same.” you both turned around to face the children you were forced to babysit. they both froze as they eyed each other up and down. “oho? what do we have here?” cheka stepped closer to your little sister and eyed her even more intensely. “who are you?” cheka asked. 

“i could ask you the same! i didn’t know kids were allowed here.” she shot back. “i’m cheka kingscholar...ojitan...leona’s nephew. and you?” you and leona saw the two bashful kids. “i’m (l/s/n). (y/n)’s litle sister.” it was a little awkward for a while. you were debating with yourself wether to break it up or do something at least. however as you were about to step closer to them, leona grabbed your hand. “wait, (y/n). this might be a really good chance. if the both of them gets along, then they’ll just wander off on their own. less work for us, ya know?” you bit your bottom lip. a negative multiplied by a negative equals a positive. which means that both their chaotic-ness and irresponsibility would cancel each other out and you and leona would have no trouble. you two would have a day filled with relaxing and lazing around just as you both thought. “hmm, you’re right.” you smirked. you and leona chuckled evilly as the two kids started a conversation. 

you and leona didn’t even pay attention to them for five seconds and they were already running off to go play somewhere else. leona smirked as you both turned around, planning to head over to his room and just continue your beauty sleep which was cut short. leona slung his arm over your shoulder as you snuggled close against him and started walking to the savanaclaw dorms. however not long after, you heard a surprisingly high pitched yet familiar screaming coming from somewhere not too far from you. you and leona briskly made your way to the source of the scream to see...idia in a tree? “idia...senpai?” his eyes were wide filled with terror and fear. “(Y-Y/N)! L-LEONA! PLEASE HELP ME!” he pleaded. you two looked down to two very familiar figures right below the branch idia was gripping to dear life on. “YOUR HAIR IS SO COOL! WE JUST WANNA PLAY!” your little sister chirped. “PLEASEEE COME DOWN.” cheka joined her. 

leona growled and grabbed cheka by the collar. “oi, what are you doing?” cheka pouted. “we were just curious!” he replied. “we just wanted to play with him...it’s not our fault he’s a scaredy cat.” your little sister joined. you smacked the back of her head. “that’s not nice. we’re so sorry idia-senpai. you can go now.” he slowly climbed from the branch and down to the ground and started running off. “heeeh, what a weird guy.” your little sister commented. “well you two were basically invading his boundaries. so.” she rolled her eyes. “sheesh (y/n)-nee, can’t you just let us have a little fun? come on cheka! we have more places to go to!” she giggled and the two kids started running off. remember when you thought that the chaotic-ness would cancel each other out? yeah. wrong. instead it multiplied and now they get into more trouble as a duo than you both thought. 

and thus your day off from school was filled with running around, trying to catch the two kids, and apologizing to the other dorm leaders and students. to keep things short and simple, there were a lot of things those two did which disturbed the other students. first, they managed to leave the hedgehogs riddle used in his game of croquet to almost die because of shock and fear. this left riddle in a frenzy and it took the adeuce duo and cater to calm him down while trey urged the two kids to run off. but he didn’t even hesitate giving you and leona a little lecture. second, they sneaked into savanaclaw’s daily magift training sessions and held onto a couple of senior’s brooms. they almost fell a couple of feet from the air and had to be caught by jack and ruggie. ruggie (wholeheartedly) told leona off and when you wanted to catch the two troublemakers, they were already gone. third, they managed to infiltrate the mostro lounge and begged jade and floyd for piggyback rides. it went well at first but let’s just say the lounge didn’t look so good after the whole session ended. azul ended up threatening leona with blackmail and scolded the both of you for doing that to his precious lounge. (of course he threatened to sue leona but he just brushed him off. after all, leona was a rich boy so he didn’t really mind. lol)

fourth, they played hide and seek with kalim in his treasure room. for once, this was the one instance where the dorm leader wasn’t mad or troubled, but rather joined them in the fun. in the end, jamil had to drag kalim by the collar and scold him instead of you and leona. they continued their game without kalim and this time it was hide and seek with you and leona. of course you didn’t find them anywhere in scarabia and concluded that they headed off to pomefiore. rook was in a panic because the peacocks from the gardens escaped and started to cause havoc, making the garden a mess. epel was chasing the two children (as ordered by vil) but they just laughed and thought it was a game of tag. your dorm leader didn’t hesitate to blabber a handful of comments which made your ears ring and he also didn’t hesitate to slap the back of leona’s head. “irresponsible. just like their relatives.” he mentioned, hinting at the fact that like nephew/little sister like uncle/older sister. finally, cheka and your little sister stepped foot into diasomnia but regretted it the instant they stepped in. 

they were greeted with sebek and silver who scared them off and made them not even dare to do anything which involves diasomnia. lilia tried to be nice to them and tried to calm the down as best he can (he is a father after all ha ha) but he managed to make them cry. at the end of your tiring and NOT AT ALL peaceful day, you found the two snuggled next to each other under a tree. they were both fast asleep. you and leona sighed in relief. you exchanged glances with each other before collapsing yourselves. “finally~” the storm has passed and you two could finally calm down. you both leaned against the tree and sat down with a ‘thump’. with aching feet and ears just having enough of lectures and rambles, both your eyes felt heavy. you were already drifting off to sleep when you felt leona’s hand position your head to lean against his shoulder. you smiled and that’s when you were engulfed in a deep slumber. 

this really wasn’t the day off both leona and you were expecting. but at least you spent the whole day together and managed to work together as a pair to solve the mischief caused by the two children. well....somewhat solved it at least. 

BONUS: “AAAWH THEY’RE SO CUTE! THEY’RE LIKE A LITTLE FAMILY!” cater whisper shouted from behind a bush. he took out his phone and readied his camera. you and leona were out cold. snoring and dead asleep as leona leaned against the tree and you leaned against his shoulder. cheka rested his head on leona’s lap whilst your little sister did the same thing to you. the four of you really did look like a cute, little family. “this might be a good time to ambush. don’t you think my beautiful queen?” rook commented as he put aside the binoculars. “hmm...maybe we can make use of cater-kun. those pictures can easily be blackmail. we can get them to do our bidding as long as we have their picture.”

“ah! smart and beautiful! that is our dorm leader, vil schoenheit!”

“that’s what the both of you get for disrupting my day off.” 

♡

lol i included a sentence or two related to math (simple math tho lol). wai? i finished like four weeks of math hw in a day haha. yeah well it was stupid for teachers to give us summer hw. like i’m already stressed sm and now they’re just yeeting more stress to me. yeeeets. rant over. 

love, a♕

[opalmaplehibiscus]

Finding Him in The Mountains

*Fic about Youkai Okami! Kalim and Reader/ Yuu/MC meeting 

Faster, faster, run faster!

You run with all your might through the mountain’s forest, not caring about the sharp stones and branches scratching and stabbing your feet.

You never thought war would’ve reached the village you were staying in, always believing you were finally freed from the grasp of the war lords that wanted to use you. Your skills in medicine was renown all across the country, healing anyone that comes to you no matter what injury or sickness they had.

Maybe if you hadn’t healed so many people those ambitious people wouldn’t have noticed you, try to kidnap you for your skills – your asset. How could you not though when there were too many dying from diseases and the battlefields. Who would’ve saved them when everyone has been trying to look for themselves?

Tears stream from your eyes as you continue to try to escape, cursing everyone who causing the war with resentment in your head.

“Please. Please, someone save me. Anybody. Please I-,” You sob before screaming when you nearly got hit by an arrow.

You luckily tripped, allowing the arrow to hit a tree instead of your head. You sniffle as you grip on the ground in frustration, realizing the pain in your feet. Without wasting a second, you got up again and run.

Not once did you turn your head to the side and notice the wolf statue that was right next to you, its eyes suddenly glowing red the moment you tripped right in front of it.

A few moments later, you look and see large stairs. Your eyes widen as you realize it was either you climb up the stairs or you get captured. And like hell you’ll let yourself be captured when you came this far.

Biting your lips, you climb the stairs as fast as you could, thankful how you’re travels allowed you practice walking up steep and elevated areas. You hear them struggling – turning around and seeing them try to continue climbing the many steps on knees and hands, their figures becoming farther and farther.

By the time you reached the top, you see a large temple. Its temple gate being mostly gold except for its post while the temple itself is colored in red and green. Despite being empty, it seems that it’s being maintained by someone since its entrance way was clean and spotless.

Not bothering to look more though, you didn’t waste a second and sprint the doors, passing under the gate. And as you do, a figure, perched on top of it, watches you with a smirk.

You don’t hesitate to lock the gate’s doors the minute you enter them, leaning against them and sliding down in temporary relief. You take a few minutes to finally breath properly, letting the adrenaline die down and process everything that happened so far.

Tiredness and hunger registers in your mind when you hear your stomach growl. Getting up, you explore the place. Yet, in the back of your mind, you couldn’t shake off how clean the shrine was despite being so bare and empty.

It’s clear to you that no one has visited this shrine yet there isn’t a dust in sight. The minute you thought this, you suddenly start smelling something good. All the warning bells in your head tells you stop, but you ignore them, letting your feet lead you to where the source was coming from.

Arriving in front of a room with soft, glowing light seeping through its sliding doors, you push them open and enter the room. You slightly jump when you hear the doors close themselves but slowly walk across the room, looking left and right as you keep your guard up.

Haze from incense obscures your vision as the lamps gave a soft, dim glow. Had you not personally entered through the gates; you would’ve thought that you had entered one of the room’s in a red district’s building. Unknown excitement and passion fill the place, enticing you to stay and do something.

“Oh? What’s this?”

You freeze when you suddenly hear the voice, trying to locate where it’s coming from only to squeal when you suddenly feel something soft brush under your chin.

Looking towards the front, you see a white-hair man with a tail and wolf ears giving you a friendly smile. His eyes glow red through the haze as he watches you from his spot, sitting with one leg up.

When you fail to answer, he disappears only to reappear in front of you. He leans forward and sniffs your neck before he smirks to himself and licks his lips.

Blushing, you take a step back and shove him away from you.

“What are you doing?” You scream, holding your neck with a hand out of pure embarrassment.

Laughing, he holds both hands up as he tries to make himself look innocent.

“Ah~ Sorry, sorry~” He says, giving you a grin. “My name is Kalim, the Okami that inhabits this shrine!”

Sensing the distrust coming from you, he grabs your hand and drags you to the back of the room where another set of doors were located.

“You’re a visitor, right? Then we got to welcome you properly!” He cheers, ignoring your reluctance to follow him.

Sliding open the doors with a bang, his grin widens as he keeps a firm grip on you. You look past his shoulder, surprised when you see a brightly-lit hall, filled with a bunch of tables that were covered in various types of drinks and food. Other Okamis are seen, eating and having fun as music is playing on the left side.

“Welcome to my shrine!” He says, pulling you in with him.

During the first few minutes, things were awkward as everyone gave you curious glances while a black-haired Okami named Jamil nagged Kalim about bringing “strange people” into their shrine.

However, as you sat next to him, you realize he didn’t mean harm. He made sure you were getting food and currently talking to a Okami on drawing you bath and some garments and shoes for you to wear after seeing yours all ruined and tattered.

You start feeling grateful towards him when he doesn’t ask you questions on how you came to his shrine, only asking the basics and pleasantries. The way he’s treating you as if you were a VIP guest seemed all genuine, making you feel warm hearted and touched.

It seems like he times things well though as he gives you an unknown look every time you look away and pay attention to something else, his eyes becoming half lidded as he gulps.

When you suddenly feel him gently touching your cheek, you turn your head towards him and try to ask him if there’s something the matter with your mouth stuffed with food.

He blushes before stuttering that he was trying to wipe off some food that was on your cheek, moving his hand away as if he touched fire.

You finally get pulled away from him once the Okami he talked to calls you over and takes you to the private baths.

As soon as you leave, Kalim groans into his hands, his tail hitting the ground from annoyance and having to hold things in.

He complains to Jamil, who’s sitting next to him and drinking sake, about how frustrating it is that he has to hold back trying to claim you there and then.

He’s been watching and guarding you for the past few years, helping you escape by taking on your pursuers himself or casting illusions that would confuse your enemies. He was one that causes you to “coincidentally”  find some herbs that you could use for medicine – though he would find out that you used them for others instead of yourself.

To him you were beautiful, smelling like peaches and cherry blossoms. The way you smiled and laugh made his heart rush and when you cry, made his heart hurt.

And now, here you were, in his very own home. After trying to stay aloof for so long, he finally given up and decided to coax you to where he was. He couldn’t hide from you anymore which led to him using his magic to lead you here.

You getting chased in the mountain he lived in wasn’t something he planned however he took advantage of it. He’s can’t do it anymore. There’s no point of holding back anything when you are here.

He remembers how you blushed from earlier, thinking how cute it was. He covers his mouth from showing his mischievous grin though the glint of his eyes reveals everything he’s thinking at the moment. Ah, he wants to see that blush again. He’s going to make you his, one way or another.

[mvsicinthedvrk]

mmm personality test sorting time !!

i’ve done one character a day for a while & now they’re all done, so: fun sorts for my characters alphabetically under the cut.

i took the 16 personalities test for the mbti, the eclectic energies test for the enneagram, for hogwarts house I was going to originally just choose based on instinct but i did end up using this knockoff pottermore test, and then I did the open psychometrics “which character are you statistically most like” quiz for the last one. 

henry strauss-- 

mbti: INFP (the mediator) -- “Mediators may feel directionless or stuck unless they connect with a sense of purpose for their lives. For many Mediators, this purpose has something to do with helping and uplifting others. Empathetic by nature, these personalities may feel other people’s suffering as if it were their own“ lmfao oh henry

enneagram: oh he’s a type 4 for sure. I agree with that 200%. -- “Fours are emotionally complex and highly sensitive. They long to be understood and appreciated for their authentic selves, but easily feel misunderstood and unappreciated.”

hogwarts house: 42% hufflepuff (then in order: ravenclaw, gryffindor, slytherin)

which other characters are you most like: 

#1: charlie from perks of being a wallflower (OUCH!!)

#2: wes gibbons from htgawm

#3: jonathan byers from stranger things

holland vosijk--

mbti: ISTJ (the logistician)-- “Logisticians have sharp, fact-based minds, and prefer autonomy and self-sufficiency to reliance on someone or something. Dependency on others is often seen by Logisticians as a weakness, and their passion for duty, dependability and impeccable personal integrity forbid falling into such a trap.” this is so funny to me. it’s very true. 

enneagram: type 8-- “People of this personality type are essentially unwilling to be controlled, either by others or by their circumstances; they fully intend to be masters of their fate... Eights have a hard time lowering their defenses in intimate relationships. Intimacy involves emotional vulnerability and such vulnerability is one of the Eight's deepest fears” legit

hogwarts house: 40% slytherin (then in order: ravenclaw, gryffindor, hufflepuff)-- this actually surprises me because I would have guessed ravenclaw instead. 

what other characters are you most like: 

#1: carolyn martens from killing eve (i didn’t know who this was but apparently she’s “principled yet ruthless” and that tracks)

#2: severus snape from harry potter

#3: mr. darcy from pride and prejudice (lmfao)

kaz brekker--

mbti: ESTJ (the executive)-- I don’t know that this is accurate because the whole first paragraph of the description is about how executives understand right/wrong and embrace honesty and tradition BUT later in the description some of it aligns: “Executives don’t work alone, and they expect their reliability and work ethic to be reciprocated – people with this personality type meet their promises, and if partners or subordinates jeopardize them through incompetence or laziness, or worse still, dishonesty, they do not hesitate to show their wrath. This can earn them a reputation for inflexibility.”

enneagram: type 3-- “They are frequently hard working, competitive and are highly focused in the pursuit of their goals... They are often self-made and usually find some area in which they can excel... They know how to present themselves, are self-confident, practical, and driven... They are good networkers who know how to rise through the ranks.” THAT’S accurate. 

hogwarts house: almost the same as holland, which is unsurprising-- 37% slytherin, then 30% ravenclaw with gryffindor and hufflepuff trailing far behind. 

what other characters are you most like:

#1: amy dunne from gone girl (lmfaoooooo)

#2: walter white from breaking bad

#3: vicious from cowboy bepop

martin blackwood--

mbti: INFJ (the advocate)-- “Advocates generally strive to do what’s right – and they want to help create a world where others do the right thing as well... Advocates may be reserved, but they communicate in a way that is warm and sensitive... Advocates might find themselves feeling especially stressed in the face of conflict and criticism. These personalities tend to act with the best of intentions, and it can frustrate them when others don’t appreciate this.” awww that’s sweet I do like that for him.

enneagram: type 2, with 6 being a close second. I definitely called that. “People of this personality type essentially feel that they are worthy insofar as they are helpful to others... Twos are warm, emotional people who care a great deal about their personal relationships, devote an enormous amount of energy to them, and who expect to be appreciated for their efforts.”

hogwarts house: 39% hufflepuff, and then the others are all fundamentally tied around 20-21% each. I’d agree with that. 

what other characters are you most like:

#1: landry clarke from friday night lights (initially i was like-- a football player? what? but then his wiki description is: “generally polite, awkward, and enjoys playing guitar” so lol ok)

#2: cameron james from 10 things i hate about you

#3: peeta mellark from the hunger games

melanie king--

mbti: ESTP (the entrepreneur)-- “Entrepreneurs keep their conversation energetic, with a good dose of intelligence, but they like to talk about what is – or better yet, to just go out and do it. Entrepreneurs leap before they look, fixing their mistakes as they go, rather than sitting idle, preparing contingencies and escape clauses.”

enneagram: like holland, she’s for sure a type 8: “Eights are strong willed, decisive, practical, tough minded and energetic.” I think the aggressive aspect of type eights is more obvious in her personality than his, though.

hogwarts house: 47% gryffindor! then, in order: slytherin, ravenclaw, hufflepuff. 

what other characters are you most like:

#1: erica sinclair from stranger things

#2: max mayfield from stranger things

#3: lois lane from smallville (yessss)

orpheus--

mbti: INFP (the mediator)-- I was actually surprised he got introverted instead of extroverted, but here we are. “Mediators’ creativity and idealism can bloom even after the darkest of seasons. Although they know the world will never be perfect, Mediators still care about making it better however they can. This quiet belief in doing the right thing may explain why these personalities so often inspire compassion, kindness, and beauty wherever they go.”

enneagram: oh, yep, he’s a type 9-- “People of this personality type essentially feel a need for peace and harmony. They tend to avoid conflict at all costs, whether it be internal or interpersonal... Nines tend to adopt an optimistic approach to life; they are, for the most part, trusting people who see the best in others; they frequently have a deep seated faith that things will somehow work out.”

hogwarts house: my sweet son is 43% hufflepuff, then gryffindor, ravenclaw, and essentially no slytherin.

what other characters are you most like:

#1: flounder from the little mermaid (ok that’s sort of rude)

#2: snow white from snow white

#3: dorothy gale from the wizard of oz (that tracks)

patroclus--

mbti: INFJ (the advocate)-- so, same as martin. “Advocates can speak with great passion and conviction, especially when standing up for their ideals. At other times, however, they may choose to be soft-spoken and understated, preferring to keep the peace rather than challenge others.” i love him sm.

enneagram: he’s a type 2, also like martin, the helper type. this half-surprises me because i thought there was maybe a chance he’d be a type 6. 

hogwarts house: it’s actually really close between hufflepuff and gryffindor? 31% and 32% respectively. then slytherin, then ravenclaw. 

what other characters are you most like:

#1: eliza hamilton from hamilton

#2: glenn rhee from the walking dead

#3: ben hargreeves from the umbrella academy

wei wuxian--

mbti: ENFP (the campaigner)-- “Campaigners, like all their Diplomat cousins, are shaped by their Intuitive (N) quality, allowing them to read between the lines with curiosity and energy... Charming, independent, energetic and compassionate, the 7% of the population that they comprise can certainly be felt in any crowd.”

enneagram: he’s my only type 7. “They tend to be extroverted, multi-talented, creative and open minded... They often have an entrepreneurial spirit and are able to convey their enthusiasm to those with whom they come in contact. When they are able to focus their talents, they are often highly successful. Focusing does not always come easily for Sevens, however.”

hogwarts house: this test says he’s 29% slytherin, 27% gryffindor, 23% hufflepuff, and 21% ravenclaw. 

what other characters are you most like:

#1: george weasley from harry potter (oh that’s genuinely really good)

#2: abby sciuto from ncis (that’s actually perfect too from what i know about ncis)

#3: nymphadora tonks from harry potter

yuri plisetsky--

mbti: ISTJ (the logistician), same as holland-- “Logistician personalities are no-nonsense, and when they’ve made a decision, they will relay the facts necessary to achieve their goal, expecting others to grasp the situation immediately and take action... To Logisticians, honesty is far more important than emotional considerations.”

enneagram: he’s type 3-- “People of this personality type need to be validated in order to feel worthy; they pursue success and want to be admired... When unhealthy, their narcissism takes an ugly turn and they can become cold blooded and ruthless in the pursuit of their goals.” lol

hogwarts house: 31% slytherin and 27% ravenclaw, then gryffindor and hufflepuff in last. 

what other characters are you most like:

#1: cordelia chase from buffy the vampire slayer (once again, hilarious)

#2: amy march from little women

#3: tahani al-jamil from the good place

[heartstabyuldaisuki]

Twisted Fate (Twst reader insert)

ch2 Clean up the mess

(Y/N) pov

As I entered the Hall of Mirrors, people stared at me. The suffocating atmosphere sent a shiver down my spine. Not wanting to waste any more time than I already had, I trusted Mr. Crowley to keep an eye on the flickering cat and scurried forward to the center of the room, where a floating mirror with an eerie white face stood.

"State thy name."

"I'm (Y/N)(L/N)."

That mirror...looks so familiar.Where did I see it before?And the whole talking to the mirror thing makes me think of the one belongs to the evil queen in Snow white.

The mirror stared back at me without saying anything. That thing was way creepier than the one in the movie. I prayed that the staring would end soon, as the mirror said it would.

"The shape of thy soul is..........................I do not know. "

Not knowing what to do, I looked back at Mr. Crowley, but the headmaster seemed just as baffled as I was. After a few seconds of awkward silence, he asked the dark mirror again about the shape of my soul.

"Come again."

"I sense not a spark of magic from this one...the color, the shape, all are nothing.Therefore, they are suited for no dormitory. "

"An Ebony Carriage would absolutely never go to meet someone who can't use magic!In 100 years, there has not been once been a mistake in student selection. So why in the world..."

Wow, this is so compelling. I wonder how the story will continue. Do I wake up my magic later? What element could it... no, wait... is not this a magic school? There's no reason why they would bring a magic-less person here. An accident? Or is it...

"Unlike that dumb human, I can use magic! Let me in the school instead!If you need proof, I'll show you right now!"

I can't believe the whole burning up scenario is happening again.

Knowing what was going to happen next, I immediately ducked for cover.

"Oh no,not again!"

"Everyone, get down!"

"Nnnaah~!!"

Someone shouted for everyone to get down. Everyone was panicking about what to do next, and retreated to stay as far away from the fire source as possible.

Crap,that's bad.Gonna Stop the spread of the flame.

"Waaaah! Hottttttt! My butt's on fire!"

Hearing someone lashing out, I looked over to where the voice was coming from and saw a boy with a turban walking in a circle.Worried, I called out to him.

"Hey you,the one on fire.Roll on the floor to put it out!" 

"Huh you mean-"

"Yes,I'm talking to you.Just roll the floor already!"

When the man heard my words, he was visibly taken aback,but he did as I had just told him, and luckily for him, the fire on his butt was gone.

Whew,that was close.

To check on him, I decided to approach him and quickly went up to him and asked him.

"Hey,are you okay?"

"Ah ha ha...I'm fine. Thx for the help."

The boy smiled as he thanked me. When I looked closely, I noticed that he had white hair and dark skin, and his handsome face had some makeup on it. Relieved that the fire was out, I remembered my words when I called out. My tone was like a command and it sounded so arrogant that I just had to apologize to him.

"Phew...ah...I'm also really sorry for my rude attitude when I was shouting to you.Your situation was um...quite urgent."

"It's OK.You save my life and-Eh...are you-"

"Kalim!"

Someone called out the white-haired boy's name, I think, interrupting whatever he was about to say. I heard footsteps coming towards me, turned around and saw a dark skinned person with black hair coming towards him with a worried expression.

"Kalim,are you okay?Feeling hurt anywhere?Do you-"

"I'm fine Jamil.Thx for worrying about me."

Kalim...Jamil...are those their names?

"Anyway,I was saved by her."

"Her?"

The black-haired boy seemed shocked by the salutation. He turned and stared at me suspiciously. The look in his eyes was quite frightening, as if they could see right through me. To end this awkward contest of looks, I asked him.

"Um...does this mean there's a problem for a girl being in here?"

"Well...thanks for saving Kalim. And to answer your question,this is an all boys school so yes.It's strange for the Dark Mirror not only bringing someone magicless but also a girl."

"Um...perhaps it's some sort of error so...anyway,I'm taking my leave now,gonna get back to the headmaster."

Kalim smiled once more, waved his hands, and said, "Bye and thx again for helping me."

Before leaving,I waved back and nodded my head.

The ball of fur rushed back to the headmaster and was already tied by the neck, frowning and wriggling. Beside it stood two students, one with red hair and one with silver. Watching their stares, I couldn't help but gasp and held my hand over my mouth so no one would see my widening smile.

More pretty boys.What's with this school full of good-looking people?

The red-haired boy held the cat with an angry look, and I recognized his voice as the one that called for everyone to come down.Being mistaken for a cat angered Grim,it wriggled to get rid of its collar.

Wow...he just catches that thing in no time.

"Laws of the Queen of Hearts:Number 23"One shall never bring a cat into a festival.You being a cat means you've broken the rule.I shall have you leave at once."

Yep,I knew that thing is a cat.Someone agrees with me on that.

"I'm not a cat.I'll burn this collar right up and ... E, eh? I can't use my fire! "

In fright, Grim lost its previous confidence and went from being a threat to a normal cat.

"Hmph! You won't be using any magic until I remove the collar. Just like an ordinary cat. "

The red-haired boy grinned as he said this, and as I looked at him more closely, I noticed that he looked adorable, in stark contrast to the way he talked. At first glance, he seemed like the type who acted like a brat and was arrogant.

Shaking out my thoughts,I continued to observe the situation to find the perfect timing for giving out my explanation of my so-called familiar.

"Wh-what?! I'm not some pet!"

"Don't worry, I'd never keep a pet like you.I'll take it off anyway when you get thrown out."

That's so true.Who would be able to take care such a troublesome pet?I felt bad for its owner.That's must be tiring.

"Wow, as wonderful as ever. Any and all magic gets sealed by your Unique Magic, Riddle.I want it... No, I wouldn't ever want that cast on me."

I shook off my thoughts and continued to observe the situation, trying to find the perfect time to make my statement to my so-called familiar. The white-haired boy with glasses grinned wickedly as he said something about " unique magic". He may have looked like a straightforward, friendly person, but somehow he made me feel uncomfortable.He concluded his comment, the collar is something created by Riddle's magic, also known as the red-haired boy.

That collar looks so heavy.Wearing it definitely is pain in ass but locking out someone's magic is so cool.

When the trouble was finally over, I signed with relief. The headmaster looked at me with a serious expression, not pleased with the current situation, and scolded me.

"You must do something about this! It is your familiar!Properly discip-"

"Mr Crowley,I have been trying to tell you but I am NOT its owner and DON'T KNOW ANYTHING about it." 

"Eh? It's not yours?"

"Yes,it's not mine.How many times do I have to tell you!"

"Y-you did?Anyway, let's get it out of the school at any rate. We won't turn you into a stew. For I am gracious.Someone help, please. "

I bet that cat stew tastes horrible.

"Gyaaaa! Let me go!I'm going to, going to...Become the greatest magician!"

The school staff arrested Grim and released it. The kitten was stubborn and still wanted to prove that its worth , but no one paid any attention to it. When I saw that the cat was gone, I felt nothing but relief.

I'm glad that escaped from death.What a long dream.

"We had a bit of trouble along the way but this brings the entrance ceremony to a close.Dormitory Heads, please show the new students back to the dormitories."

So the seven students standing in the front are some sort of leaders.

I glanced briefly at Riddle, who stood tall with a stern look on his face.

Even though he is shorter than most perfects,Riddle-san sure gives out an imposing image.

I glanced back at Mr. Crowley, who was pacing back and forth, seemingly looking for something.

"... Hm? Now that I think about it, I don't see the leader for Diasomnia, Mr. Draconia, around at all..."

"That's no different from usual, is it?"

"What? Did nobody tell him about the ceremony?"

"If you're going to complain, you should've done it yourself. "

"Hmmm. But I don't really know anything about that guy."

When I heard the name Malleus Draconia, everyone was discussing it. Most of the students looked scared and shaking as they continued their conversation. Most of the dorm leaders looked uncomfortable as well.

"By Draconia... Do they mean "that" Malleus Draconia?"

"Is he seriously attending this school?"

"Scary..."

That Malleus Draconia is probably very intimidating.It makes me curious.Too bad I can't see him in person.

"I was correct.I thought he might come but Malleus really didn't. It seems the invitation "never arrived" again." 

"My deepest apologies. I promise, we didn't intend to exclude you. "

"His aura makes it hard to approach him. "

"It's fine. Members of the Diasomnia Dormitory can come with me. ... I hope this doesn't upset him..."

Even the dorm heads are scared of him.Poor Draconia-san.He must have been excluded in a regular basis.

After all the students had gone, Mr. Crowley attended to his last business.

"Then, I'm terribly sorry about this but.. We must have you leave the school. Those without any talent for magic cannot be allowed to attend class here. "

"Yes,I understand but how?"

"There is no need to worry. The Dark Mirror will send you directly back from whence you came.Enter the Gate, and picture your home clearly in your mind."

I closed my eyes and imagined my homeland.

"Oh, Dark Mirror! Guide this one back to the place they belong!"

"..........."

The Dark Mirror gave no response.So Mr Crowley called out to it again.

"Once more. Oh Dark Mirror! Guide this... "

"It is nowhere..."

"Eh?"

"The place they belong is nowhere in this world...It does not exist."

"Say what?!"

Wait,I need to calm down,it's just a dream.I'll be back home after I wake up.

"What did you say? That is unbelievable! Hmm, well, the unbelievable has been on parade today."

"............"

In light of this incredible news, I felt kind of bad for inconveniencing him so much, but it meant I could stay in this interesting dream a little longer, and I was glad for that.

"This is the first time it's ever happened since I became Headmaster, what should be...Where exactly did you come from?"

"I'm from(insert your homeland)."

"I've never heard that place. I have a general grasp of where all the students came from but I've never even heard that name before.Let's go do some research in the library. "

And so we made our way to the library.

??? pov

Although this is supposed to be a serious commencement ceremony, the new students are a restless bunch. THAT * aside, it's fortunate that unlike last year, there isn't too much ruckus.

"Is that all for the new student dorm assignments? Listen up, new students. Here in Heartslabyul, I am the rules. Break them and it's off with your head."

As the head of the Heartslabyul dormitory, my first duty is to uphold the strictness of the Queen of Hearts and strictly enforce the rules. First of all, I've warned the new students----to abide by the rules, or else it's all over with their heads.

"By the way, where did the headmaster go? He flew out right in the middle of the ceremony." "Abandoning his post." "Did he get a stomachache or something?"

In the middle of the ceremony, the headmaster just left without the dorm leaders noticing. He should have informed at least one of us about his sudden disappearance beforehand, but knowing him, I'm sure he'll return soon. "Bang!" Suddenly, the door flew open and the headmaster rushed in. He was holding a grey cat with a blue flame, trying to stop its scuffling, followed by a fellow student wearing the same ceremonial robe.

The headmaster quickly denied not leaving his post and explained his sudden absence.As instructed by the headmaster, the straggler scurried to the dark mirror to be assigned his dorm.

The dark mirror announced that the new student had no magic.Intrigued, everyone whispered among themselves.Some were worried, others curious.The room was once again filled with murmurs.

The cat broke free of the headmaster's grip and exclaimed with a wide grin on his face, standing on two limbs, crossing the upper ones confidently.

"Unlike that dumb human, I can use magic! Let me in the school instead!If you need proof, I'll show you right now!" "Oh no,not again!!!" Seeing the new student quickly run for cover, I shouted.

"Everyone, get down!" "Nnnaah~!!"

The blue flame engulfed the entire hall of mirrors.Students and teachers were all frightened by the fire.The feline creature let out the fire, causing it to spread throughout the hall.Panic, wailing and screaming, everything is chaos.

"Waaaah! Hottttttt! My butt's on fire!" "At this rate, the school will be a sea of fire! Somebody, catch that raccoon!" "Che! Suck-ups." "Hmm? Aren't you good at hunting? Doesn't it look like a nice, plump snack? " "Why me? Do it yourself." "Crowley sensei, please leave it to me.I'm sure the others couldn't stomach harassing the poor creature, so I will take it upon myself." "That's Azul-shi for you. Always try to earn himself points." "Ummm, hey, could someone put out my butt fire already!?" "Are you all even listening!?" "If it's just catching some stupid raccoon, can't you do it yourself, sensei? " "How many times do I have to tell you, I'm not a raccoon!The Great Grim that will become the greatest magician is me!"

Ughhh, why could the open ceremony never happen without someone causing trouble? Besides, how irresponsible could the owner be for not disciplining his familiar, and more importantly, for breaking the Queen of Hearts' law.

"It certainly has moxie. Care to help me, Riddle-san?" "I can't overlook those who breaks rules. Let's hurry and get it."

Wanting to get this over with, I worked with Azul to put an end to the cat's annoying behaviour. Fortunately,it went well.Soon,the cat was banished out of the school and everyone left for their respective dorms.

[clansayeed]

Bound by Destiny II, part 1 ― Chapter 12: The Return

PAIRING: Kamilah Sayeed x MC (Nadya Al Jamil) RATING: Mature

⥼ MASTERLIST ⥽

⥼ Bound by Destiny II, part 1 ⥽

While struggling with nightmares of lives she’s never lived, a shadow from the past looming over her city, and the proposed idea that her life may just be a little bit too weird to handle alone, Nadya makes sure to tell herself that everything is perfect just the way it is. If only. When the self-proclaimed King of Vampires (and Maker of her sometimes-girlfriend and always-boss, can’t forget that little tidbit) Gaius Augustine returns intent on claiming Manhattan as the throne that was promised, she and her friends find themselves forced into the task of saving the world. But with millennia-old vampires and an Order of hunters on their heels as well as allies hiding catastrophic secrets at their backs… it won’t be an easy task. Too bad destiny didn’t exactly ask for her input.

Bound by Destiny II and the rest of the Oblivion Bound series is an ongoing dramatic retelling project of the Bloodbound series and spin-off, Nightbound. Find out more [HERE].

*Let me know if you would like to be added to the Destiny II tag list!

⥼ Chapter Summary ⥽

The gang returns to New York with a well-earned victory under their belts. But that means Nadya has to face Kamilah, and she isn't quite sure she knows how to feel just yet.

[READ IT ON AO3]

Nadya leans on the rail with a wistful sigh. Takes a moment and just… lets herself enjoy the peace of being at peace. No memories haunting her behind her eyelids, no immediate danger… at least none she can see right in front of her.

No, the only thing in front of her is New Orleans. The French Quarter spread out for blocks around her in vibrant colors going pale against the purpling sky. It’ll be dawn soon.

Did she sigh already? Well… no harm in another one.

Taylor’s learned his lesson in sneaking up on her. Why else would he knock on the door leading up to the roof instead of taking advantage of one final attempt to startle her silly?

He clicks his tongue with a wry look. “Careful now, that sigh right there, that’s trouble. Means you’re falling in love with this place and you won’t ever wanna leave.”

Nadya can’t help it that she laughs.

“Are you trying to sound like Garrus?” It sounds like something the fae would say, actually.

“No, and frankly you don’t want to hear my Garrus impersonation,” he hesitates; waits for Nadya’s little go-ahead of a nod before joining her overlooking the city as it begins to put itself to sleep, “it’s not very good. My Ivy on the other hand…”

Their laughter is soft and polite. They wouldn’t dare jostle the world below.

“I mean, when I went off to college I had dreams of road trips on spring break, summers spent with one program or another. New Orleans was always on my list.”

“And did she live up to the hype?”

Now how exactly is Nadya supposed to answer that honestly? “Well college-aged me probably wouldn’t have been hanging around the Graveyard Shift, that’s all I’ll say.”

“Nadya, babe, you have got to stop being a hard mood,” Taylor places a hand to his chest, “my little empath heart just can’t take much more of it.”

She shoves him (gently) and their laugh is a little less awkward the second time around. Probably because he is, indeed, an empath. And he gets exactly what she’s feeling right now.

Longing — exhaustion — trepidation — to name a few.

He nudges her shoulder with his own. “You’ll have to come back when everything’s fixed on your end; see the city for real, you know? Not just all the bad things.”

Not like she goes searching for the bad things, thanks. They just kind of… happen dangerously close in her proximity. “I’d like that. Lil’ too, for sure.”

“Oh, for sure. Though I have a feeling her and Ivy together might be a bit more trouble than Nik’ll want to deal with.”

And on that Nadya can most certainly agree. Not that she does so with words. Strangely she doesn’t feel much like talking right now. Not-so-strangely, Taylor doesn’t either. So they lean in mutual silence and watch the streets below. People going through the motions; living their lives.

Lives far less strange than theirs.

The blue of the dawn is just starting to bleed orange when he finally speaks again.

“You’re not used to winning the day, are you?” She isn’t surprised in the least to look and see that strange iridescence back in his irises.

“I don’t have enough coffee in me to answer a question like that,” which — that’s her answer; but Taylor definitely isn’t taking it, “I mean… back when all this stuff started; we won then, I think. Adrian was exonerated and Jax joined the Council and Vega wasn’t trying to kill me anymore —”

Taylor holds up a finger. “Wait — like the missing Senator, that Vega?”

“You knew him?”

“Uh, Vee and our friend Kristin lived up there together. Wait a second—he was a vam— no… that’s not the point. Sorry, please continue.”

God, is that how I look to other people, Nadya wonders; but it’s humbling to see somehow.

“Anyway… I thought everything turned out for the better, and for a while it was better. But now that I think about it…” Gaius, Jameson, the Trinity; all of them lurking just on the other side of the two-way glass. Waiting for the time to strike and take her happiness away; to pluck memories from her she never asked for all in pursuit of some epic fantasy-level world conquering.

If the fight wasn’t over, did that still count as a victory?

“And you’re left wondering if this is the same deal. If you’ve really won, or if there’s more stuff—worse stuff—just out of sight.” Taylor finishes for her. Still a little weird and possibly more akin to mind-reading than the half-fae originally led her to believe, but for the moment she’s glad to not have to say it.

“Yeah, exactly.”

His hand comes to rest over Nadya’s on the railing. He’s warmer than he should be and the sun’s got nothing to do with it. Likely his weirdness is helped by touch, too. Which Taylor all but confirms aloud when a sudden but not unwelcome ease relaxes the tension she didn’t know she’d gathered in her shoulders.

“I can’t offer any answers, and I don’t think I’d want to. With my luck I’d be wrong and you’d hate me forever.” He’s joking but Nadya still rolls her eyes and shakes her head for it.

“But I can say that no matter what happens? You’ll always have friends here to call up if needed.”

What is she supposed to say to something so sincere? “Same to you, Taylor, same to you.”

A sleek black car with tinted windows pulls around the corner and onto their lonely street to park right in front of the bar.

Looks like their ride is here.

Kamilah isn’t waiting for them when the plane pulls into the nice and shady hangar. Nadya tells herself she isn’t surprised by this… but she’s trying not to tell herself mostly-truths lately either. Luckily she’s still too exhausted (and she’s pretty sure she only got about half an hour’s nap in the entire time they were in New Orleans) to make much of a fuss about it.

In fact, Nadya barely remembers sending a text off before she and Lily both are being ushered into the back seat of one of Adrian’s company cars.

[TEXT]: back in NY and miss you like crazy. can we plz talk?? [TEXT]: its nadia

And its the most dreamless, dead-to-the-world-est sleep she knew she needed but didn’t know how to get. Staying awake for near-days and going through every emotion under the sun and also dealing with a high-stakes pursuit weren’t exactly on her list of viable solutions to her sleeping troubles.

Ergo the point of all this — no one is allowed to think her anything less than totally justified when Nadya wakes up in her own bed, in her own bedroom, sometime well after sunset and thinks for even the smallest second that everything was just a dream. She knows logically that it wasn’t… but still.

Totally justified.

When her eyes adjust to the lack of light Nadya realizes she’s not alone. There’s a figure sitting on the edge of her bed nearest the window, away from the door. Giving her the chance to escape if she needs it; making sure she doesn’t feel trapped.

Only one person would do that.

She fumbles for her glasses on the nightstand but leaves her bedside lamp untouched. Can’t shake the feeling like if she does turn the lights on then Kamilah will vanish. This is better for them both.

“Hi.”

Something moves near her head; Nadya leans back to see the woman pulling her fingertips away from where they had been combing through her hair gently. She wants it back so much she aches from the loss of them.

“Hello,” replies Kamilah; sounding awfully breathless for a woman who doesn’t need to breathe, “did you rest well? You… seemed to need it.”

Probably not what she meant to ask judging by the way the neon signs from across the street illuminate her in postmodern beauty. It’s okay though — Nadya isn’t sure she has the courage yet to say what really needs saying.

“When did you get here…?”

“Shortly after your return. Oh, Lily wished for you to know she’s left for the evening. She didn’t leave a message as to why.”

So it’s just been Nadya and Kamilah in the apartment for at least the daylight hours. Alone; together. And not talking about their problems.

When Nadya sits up (in part to look at Kamilah better, in part to make sure she doesn’t fall back asleep on accident) the bed dips as Kamilah shifts back; makes to stand and leave her with all this twin-sized budget bed kit to herself. And because she can’t stand a thought so terrible Nadya reaches out and stops her with a hand on her arm.

“Kamilah.”

A long pause — then; “Yes, Nadya?”

“Why are you here?”

“You messaged me,” so Nadya of course fumbles for her phone and finds it charging under her pillow, “though I suppose I should have realized you were exhausted beyond recognition.”

“Why’s that?”

“You spelled your own name wrong.”

Upon further inspection yes, yes she did. “Glad you weren’t expecting some other disaster you’re dating also named Nadia…” That she chooses not to dwell on the fact that she may have very well used that word for the first time in the middle of their first fight is actually self-care.

Or — she doesn’t until Kamilah’s been quiet for an awfully long time.

“Uhm — I take that back, actually — what I meant was…”

“I won’t disagree.”

Only Kamilah Sayeed could look so perfect framed in the flickering lights of a discount electronics shop.

“But you’re my disaster.”

Nadya kisses her because every other time it’s been Kamilah who takes the lead, takes charge, takes her. This isn’t some attempt to switch that dynamic either (in fact Nadya’s very happy with it just the way it is) but what else is she supposed to do seeing all these vulnerable parts of such an invulnerable woman one right after the other?

But — no, she can’t fall into this. Fall into her. Not without talking. But holy mother of crap she doesn’t wanna do anything but moan at the lips soft on her cheeks, her chin, her throat…

“Kamilah.”

Nadya only has to say her name once. They both know how this works. That doesn’t mean she doesn’t feel the hesitance; the resistance before they part and she all but forces them to meet eye-to-eye. Nor does it mean that she doesn’t take just the tiniest bit of happiness from it.

When Nadya starts pulling away Kamilah holds on just a little bit tighter. Only for a moment; then its gone.

“We can’t not —” — talk about this.

“I know; I agree.”

And she’s got a whole speech planned out in bullet points; not even fully seated and she’s already buzzing to jump right into it. Until—

“I was uncertain and without control. I fell back on old habits to bring my life to a heel — but those were the wrong choices to make. They nearly cost me… something very important.”

Kamilah’s hand falls open on top of the bedspread and Nadya takes it for the offering it is. Their fingers slot together familiar and like nothing’s changed but this is different. This is talking about it; this is… this is Kamilah apologizing. “They nearly cost me you, Nadya.”

Now is not the time to go all red in the face and flustered. Nadya’s willpower is astounding frankly. “There was never a second where I doubted that you cared. Not about what I was going through, or what it was doing to… to everything in my life. But I think there was a part of me that didn’t want to tell you because I didn’t want to believe that you and… and the you I saw were —” — were the same person.

Kamilah’s thumb strokes along her knuckles slow and rhythmic. “My thoughts are the same. I am not fragments of a woman; a queen, different than a soldier, different than a killer, different than who I am today. I am all of those things and more. And perhaps still there are parts of myself I have not yet come to know.”

Nadya chances a look up while she listens, but it’s the words Kamilah doesn’t say that catch her by surprise. The ones about who that person she doesn’t know could be. And—god she hopes she’s not reading too much into this—who she could be that person with.

“I think I get it now.”

“And what would that be?”

She squeezes their hands until it hurts because she knows it’s probably the weight of a feather to someone like Kamilah.

“We were scared of the same thing and for the same reasons; you… and your past. But I wanted to know more. I—I wanted to talk about it, without thinking of how hard bringing up all of those bad memories might be for you.”

Kamilah purses her lips and offers a slow nod. “Insightful; and perhaps I was so insistent on trying to keep that knowledge from you that I did not stop to consider what… I was saying in withholding it.”

Now the question is… where do they go from here?

“So we work on that — we try and… understand what the other is doing when she…”

“Makes a mistake she instantly regrets?”

Nadya smiles, but it’s strained. “That’s half of the things I do anyway though.”

“You know my meaning in the context of this, Nadya.”

“Yeah, but that’s not my only problem.” Which isn’t the best word she could use but at the moment she’s not focusing so much on word choice as actual feelings. And Nadya… feels a problem. There’s a breath of a second where it feels like Kamilah might start to pull away, but it passes.

She thinks better of it. She tries to understand.

“You are amazing, Kamilah. You are this… super gorgeous, super smart, super old—in a good way I swear—and super experienced vampire. But it’s not a smart thing for us to—to ignore that.”

“I wasn’t under the impression we had been.”

This is more painful to admit than Nadya thought it was gonna be. There’s no turning back now though; no ‘Restart from Checkpoint’ or save to load.

And this is so so important. Nadya wants to follow through, and not just for the sake of them. She deserves it for herself. “Maybe you haven’t — but I have. I thought that was the only way we were gonna make this work. Only, if I ignore that then I’m ignoring the fact that you are always going to have a power over me. A physical one. You lashed out and…”

“And I could have hurt you.” That Kamilah’s hand tightens with hers is the literal definition of ironic but she knows it comes from a good place; the same place all that honesty was walled up inside now pouring out.

“Nadya, please tell me you know I would never have hurt you. I don’t think I could.”

“That’s not the point. The point is you were angry, and your first reaction was to try and scare me into running away.”

See, this is Nadya’s problem. There’s a reason her life is so organized — without all her colored pens and sticky notes and multiple tabs that always end up in the strangest places, she’s a literal human mess. Prone to rambling and impulsive actions that aren’t always good for her health; physical and emotional both.

She didn’t organize this part of her talk with Kamilah. She didn’t even know this part existed. And now it’s out there in the world without a label tacked on and… and…

“And I don’t think that’s something I’m quite… over, yet.”

Nadya trusts Kamilah still; she doesn’t flinch away when the woman’s free hand comes up to her cheek — thumbs away a tear she didn’t know was falling. She can separate the then from the now.

But at the end of the day her trust and the way she had felt betrayed that night… they weren’t mutually exclusive.

She turns her face into the lingering palm. When she exhales her breath rattles in her lungs.

“I miss you.”

Kamilah’s hand betrays her composed silence; the barest tremor. “I’m here, Nadya.”

Nadya who doesn’t want to pull back, never wanted to pull back… but what is she saying to herself if she doesn’t?

“I miss you,” she repeats, “and I still care about you — I don’t really see that changing any time soon. And I’ll forgive you, really—I will. I just need some time.”

I know there are no promises you’ll be there when I’m ready, or if you won’t have moved on, or if you can’t forgive me for not forgiving you, or for not understanding you, or for making you feel this way. But I feel this way too.

And in all the things she wants to say but doesn’t, Nadya’s left still and heartbroken. Completely by her own design.

The bed dips and Nadya lets her eyes flutter closed as Kamilah’s lips press to her forehead. Not so much a kiss as a touch; something sincere and solid and so so sad.

Kamilah commits the warmth and life of her to memory. Nadya dares to hope that some day they’ll have all of this again.

She has to. If anything deserves hope right now it’s them.

Finally — too soon, too damned soon — a whisper tickles at her hairline.

“I’ll be here.”

When she opens her eyes Nadya is alone.

Jax has a really good point; if the heat from Adrian’s industrial-grade blowtorch hadn’t been enough to melt the gold, then they probably didn’t need to worry about his sword scratching the stupid thing up in any way that didn’t lend to opening it.

Everyone still backs up a few paces for good measure. They’ve all seen him in action — and the man needs a wide berth.

Nadya closes her eyes and braces herself but she still isn’t prepared for the hollow screeching clang every time the sharpened steel collides with the surface of the Amulet. One—two—three.

He stops after three. Judging by the enraged determination in his eye though he’d keep going given the opportunity.

Lily throws her hands up before crossing out ‘ASSAULT BY KATANA’ on the transparent eraser board. “I’m calling it. This thing is a horcrux.”

“A what?” asks Adrian, but Nadya just gives him the now familiar “I’ll explain it later” wave-off. Because unless pop culture references were the secret puzzle to opening the Amulet of Nero they weren’t that important in the moment.

She pushes her glasses up and unsuccessfully stifles a yawn with the back of her hand. Brings her focus back to their list of attempts to crack open (literally) the case… all of which have failed miserably.

‘METALWORKING HAMMER’ ‘REGULAR HAMMER’ ‘BLOWTORCH’ ‘ASKING IT NICELY’ (Nadya’s idea) ‘OPEN SESAME’ (Maricruz’s idea) ‘ASSAULT BY KATANA’

Off to the left Lily’s circled ‘MISSING KEY??’ over and over in the corner and while they had all agreed to try and hold out on just not having found the right amount of physical force they might as well face it.

They’re running out of options.

Adrian clears his throat and stares hard enough at Nadya that the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. “Ahem, Nadya, could you…?”

“Oh — yes — sorry guys, my bad.”

When she pulls the cover back over the Amulet the difference is immediate. The tension leaves her friends’ shoulders; they sit a little less restless and their eyes are a little less bordering-vampish.

Nadya wasn’t the only one who had been content to write off the strange aura that had come over the vampires in Isadora de la Rosa’s booth as nothing more than trepidation for the inevitable. Now, however, they have to face the facts.

There’s something in the Amulet that draws vampires to it. Cadence had said so himself — when he talked about generations of vampire influence. It’s not enough to incite a war (about which Nadya was admittedly worried, and with good reason given their track record) but covering it was a noticeable benefit to rational thinking.

They only have one thing going for them right now; if they can’t open it then no one else can, either. Hopefully that includes the Trinity. Maybe it even includes Gaius. Who knows? They certainly don’t.

There are too many unknowns — and they’re starting to take a toll on everyone in one form or another.

Adrian begins to gather up the dozens of data graphs spread out in front of him. “With that, I think we’ve come to a natural stopping point for the evening.” And nobody disagrees.

While Nadya carefully wraps the Amulet back up to return it to the R&D vault, Lily leans on her elbows and watches.

“I take it we still haven’t heard from Cadence? What about calling up Izzy?”

If only she had good news to give. “Nope; and I already did. She definitely remembers feeling that weird magnetism to it before it was repossessed by Persephone but nothing beyond that that she knew of. Actually,” she throws a look over to Adrian, “she suggested one thing; witch-fire? Something like that.”

He seems hesitant to mull the idea over. But they were desperate enough to let Jax hit it repeatedly, so…

“I’ll look into a few contacts. That kind of magic should only be used sparingly and in dire cases.”

“Would this count?”

A beat. “Probably. We would have to run it by the Council, though.” Which kind of nulls even the idea. Since everyone had agreed not to tell the rest of the Council yet. Not only because of the Amulet’s potential.

Lester, Priya, the Baron — Nadya likes to try and see the best in people as much as possible but they don’t make it easy on her. None of them are certain who would, if it came down to it, side against Gaius for a second time.

Nothing is unlikely anymore.

Wow, their shortest-lived idea yet.

Nadya nods towards the vault for Lily to follow. “As for the other thing — Kathy’s starting to get worried. I guess he left town a day after we did.” Which the Nighthunter had admitted wasn’t off-brand for Cadence. But the museum had let slip (which Nadya knows means ‘been bullied into admitting’) that he had been granted a leave of absence; very off-brand.

“The one thing he’s always had is that damn museum. No identity, no Izzy, and we both know I’m a recent development. He was a manic mess the first time that kind of dissociation happened.” The Nighthunter had kept her cool better than Nadya would have in her situation. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t worried ill.

“What if it’s worse this time,” even through the phone she couldn’t hide her concern; her fear, “what if he hurts himself? What if he hurts someone else?”

Hopefully they find him soon. But she’s met that strange group of people; the regulars at the Graveyard Shift. If anyone has the ability (and sheer force of stubborn will, to be honest) to find Cadence it’s them.

“I mean, if I went Jekyll and Hyde around a chick as crazy as that Trinity woman, I’d probably want to get away for my own health too.”

Lily’s comment doesn’t sit well with her; luckily at her admonishing look she at least looks apologetic. “You know what I mean.”

“I also know a little bit of what he’s going through.”

There’s an “ahem” behind them as Nadya spins the wheel on the vault. Adrian definitely has the look of someone who knows he shouldn’t have been eavesdropping but was anyway.

“Speaking of.”

Only… she’d rather not speak of it until it becomes a problem. “It’s fine,” she replies, and waves it off. That was what they’d agreed on for the time being, right? And there haven’t been any problems.

Turns out feeling the weight of relationship-burdened depression the moment you walk through your front door lends to a pretty heavy sleeping pattern. Like Nadya’s body doesn’t want her to do anything but try to get through the next day, and the next, and maybe… just maybe the one after that.

Adrian doesn’t seem immediately convinced. “Promise?”

“Pinky promise.” Which — he still doesn’t really get the concept but the verbal agreement is enough.

Once the lab is fully shut down they manage to pile together into the elevator. Jax thumbs at his phone, blows the hair out of his eyes just a little too close to Nadya’s ear for her liking. She swats him away because personal bubble.

“What’s the matter?”

“Eh, Espinoza wants —” But he catches himself with a look in Lily’s direction. “— something. She wants something. And I gotta… go get it.”

Nadya and Adrian just shake their heads and laugh at him while Lily pretends with absolutely no tact whatsoever not to know what he’s talking about. She even sticks her fingers in her ears like that’ll somehow stop her super vampire hearing.

Jax, somehow with even less tact, like negative tact, takes it as permission to lean and murmur on Nadya’s free side. “Apparently Lula got into the cake. So…”

“Weren’t there three?” Adrian hisses, surprised.

“You’ll get it when you meet her.”

Nadya reaches around and pats Jax’s chest awkwardly. “Good luck with that. Maybe try putting them in the passenger seat this time.”

“Shut up.”

“Just saying… third time’s the charm you know.”

When she gives Lily a nod in ‘all clear’ everyone knows she heard everything. But she’s just excited to know Maricruz is going as all-out as she possibly can, so who would be so heartless as to spoil the whole thing by just admitting the obvious?

Adrian lets them all off on the ground level and offers Nadya one last chance to go home early. “What do you pay her for if you keep giving her chances to not work?” And Jax raises a good point — too good of a point. She maybe shoves him in front of her with all her might, and he maybe stumbles. The world may never know. “Just saying — let me know next time there’s an opening.”

“I’ll be up in a sec. I just have to stake him first.”

She and Lily wave until the doors close. Yes, they live together and see each other every day. Yes, they recently defied death in New Orleans together. But its rare now that Nadya and Lily get a chance to unwind like they used to. So whenever it comes along they’re both there to indulge greedy and giggling.

“Mari’s really going all out with this party, huh?”

It’s a valiant effort but Lily doesn’t look so much humbly embarrassed as expectantly excited. “I think I’m in love, Nadi’,” she jumps the next few steps like hopscotch, “she was fully ready to get a bouncy castle.”

“How are they going to fit a bouncy castle in the Shadow Den?”

“Oh I didn’t say I let her. But she was planning on it, and isn’t that what true love is all about?”

Nadya tries not to falter. Key word being tries. And around anyone else she might do everything in her power not to draw attention to it but this is Lily. Who found her huddled up in bed hours after Kamilah’s farewell and called to cancel her own date to stay with her; to be there for her and give her all the hugs she desperately needed but didn’t know how to ask for.

She doesn’t need to pretend around that kind of love and friendship.

But before Nadya can apologize Lily starts up an air drum solo in front of her while they walk. “And winner for Most Insensitive Best Friend Ever is — drum roll…”

“You’re fine, Lil’.”

“I’m gushing about my life while you’re… not so hot.”

Nope, Nadya won’t have it. “You’re gonna gush because you have every right to gush, okay? You’ve been a vampire for a whole year. That’s super important. You survived Turning, became the digital fanged crusader, and it’s ten times more cool because you did it all without a brand. Jax and Adrian can’t say that. Heck… even Kamilah can’t.

“So if you want a Turning party, you’re gonna get a Turning party. I’m not the only one who thinks you’re worth celebrating.” They lace their fingers and Nadya squeezes. “Plus if Jax shows up with the third set of cakes to a canceled party I think he might flip his lid.”

Lily gives a dramatic little sniffle — pretends to wipe a nonexistent tear from her eye. “Please tell me you just memorized all that.”

“Why?”

“Because it’ll be the speech to end all speeches.”

Together they play-shove all the way through the Raines Building atrium. Right before the revolving door Lily spins her around, takes both of their hands together and swings them gently.

“Do you want me to uninvite her? She probably doesn’t even care.”

“No — and even if we broke up, like, badly I wouldn’t want that. I’m just not that kind of person.”

“True, you’d probably invite them to Christmas dinner or something.”

She rolls her eyes at that and ignores it for her own sanity. “And for the record — as someone with experience in decoding Kamilah-isms, I think you surprised her. She admires strength, and Lily… you’re the strongest person I know.”

When they hug, like always, their glasses get jostled in the middle and the following laughter lightens both of their hearts. Lily makes her promise to add that last line to her speech (which inadvertently is a promise to write a speech, she’s guessing) and only when she’s out the doors and around the corner of the block does Nadya head back up to the office.

Adrian is leaning in his open doorway when she exits the elevator — Nadya slows her steps for a hesitant second before coming to realize he’s just having another one of his pensive moods. He’s been having them a lot lately. More and more since they returned from New Orleans.

This one looks different though. He’s not staring into space — he’s staring at her.

“What?” She finally yields, glancing at her boss over her shoulder while the computer boots up slow as a snail. “What’s that face for?”

Nadya nearly convinces herself he isn’t going to answer.

“It’s good to see you smiling, that’s all.” He leans out and squeezes her shoulder; something soft and friendly and so sweet her teeth ache from it. Before Adrian can pull away Nadya makes sure to return the gesture.

“It’s good to smile,” which is far more bleak than she would like, “you know something?”

Adrian pauses mid-step. “Hm?”

“It’s even better to mean it.”