#julian athantis

[saibug1022]

Ranking My MCs on How Likely They Would Be Adopted by Batman

Not a single person has ever asked for this. However, I have seen so much batfam stuff on my dash it's been living rent free

Val Ebony (ILITW) If you told me Val moved to Gotham and was a vigilante for a few years and then moved back right before ILITW I think I would believe you. This man has the whole package: dark hair (his hair is brown underneath all the dye), tragic backstory, shitty parents, even shittier bio dad who's also a villain, homicidal rage, he even died! But overall what got him to the top is just because of how well he fits with the Gotham and the Bats' vibes and aesthetics. Like it just feels right.

Eros Blackwell (Immortal Desires) Batman would have showed up in Crimson Beech to try to recruit Eros only for Eros to explain they do in fact still have a mom *who is on thin ice with me rn). However. They still get REALLY close, especially when they find out Gotham is on a ley line. I'm tempted to say Eros, Cas, and Gabe fuck off to Gotham after ID 2

August Rose (Crimes of Passion) So August's backstory is that they grow up most likely without their mom, and then their dad is mysteriously murdered. August tries to solve it themself but fails and instead becomes a detective to solve other crimes and hopefully find justice for other people. They're gruff, badass, and too damn clever. They were definitely Robin. Hell they could be Batman for all we know and it just wasn't mentioned in CoP

Magnus Bishop (Laws of Attraction/Into the Windverse) While slightly less likely only because he becomes a lawyer instead of some sort of detective or hero. However, he absolutely has the potential. His parents were murdered when he was young, he was tormented at school and betrayed by his friends, he was neglected by his foster mother and separated from his sister, all before he turns 18. He even gets super powers eventually. He has the determination, the ambition, and hell the whole reason he became a lawyer was to defend people from the systems that beat him down his whole life.

Asterin Nightbloom (BOLAS) I mean Asterin is pretty obvious, he's like the quintessential hero. Dead parents (twice), super skilled, heart of gold, etc etc. He's practically born to be a hero and I think he'd be such a good bat. Maybe not a Robin unless it's just for a few years before becoming his own hero

Leon Vance (It Lives Beneath) The main reason Leon is so high up is because he is so fucking capable. That's what the bats are known for among other heros. And of course there's his classic bat backstory. He's a badass, he unearths a CULT, has a cool and unique signature weapon, forms his own team and even has a super hero suit. Best part, he looks good the whole time.

Damian Stone (Murder at Homecoming) There's the obvious stuff like being a genius, a detective, unsolved mystery haunting the narrative, solving a murder, looking good doing it, socially awkward, etc etc, but I also have to add that I literally named them after Damian Wayne. In fact their name was originally gonna be Tim after Time Drake but Damian sounded better. However, they do suffer in the rankings seeing as they have both of their parents, both of which are also very good parents.

Callum Wayland (Hero) Listen, Callum would be a great DC hero but in terms of Batman relations I don't think he'd be adopted. Unfortunately for him the Super Family parallels are just too hard to ignore. However I could see him being a Bat's emotional support Super so they'd see each other a lot and I think Bruce would be begrudgingly fond of him when he finds out Callum punched a corrupt rich guy into the stratosphere.

Castor Athantis (It Lives Within) Castor has all the makings of a PHENOMENAL DC superhero but again I just don't see them as a bat. They have too much of a mystical connection. They're more likely to run ith someone like Constantine. I'm sure they'd be associated, I could definitely see Castor joining Justice League Dark, but that's it

Emrys (The Cursed Heart) Emrys will fight for people but it's not something they're really going to pursue. They have the backstory for it, don't get me wrong, but going out and punching bad guys just isn't really their thing. In a modern au they might be some sort of friend of Bruce's and a Batman ally but they wouldn't be a hero.

Julian Athantis (It Lives Within) Julian is just as good a candidate as Castor, down to mystical powers. But Julian would only be a hero to help Castor, if he was one at all. He just wouldn't have his heart in it. He'd show up, help other heroes, and I could definitely see his and Lincoln's apartment being open to be used as a safe house, but he just doesn't want to be a hero. Not as in he's just not interested, more as in he actively does not want to be a hero.

Taylor McKenzie (Endless Summer) Taylor is in a similar boat as Julian where he doesn't really want to be a hero. He'll show up to big planet-threatening shit but otherwise he just wants to go to college and love his friends and husband. I could see the Justice League, Batman especially, keeping tabs on him so they'd know each other but that's about it. More likely Taylor would just go create problems for Dr. Fate when he's bored and then go back to minding his business.

Apollo Solaris (The Elementalists) Apollo really fits the hero archetype. However. I think if he stepped foot in Gotham city he'd explode. Or maybe Gotham would. They just clash so severely that even if he did meet Batman for whatever reason they'd hate each other.

Mattheo Lazarin (Bloodbound) Listen. Mattheo has enough on his plate being the Bloodkeeper and dealing with vampire shit. He doesn't have time to care or be a hero.

[saibugslegacy]

Percival Valley Ask Game

Because of my foolishness I am now committed to make these with all my MCs so here we go. Questions by @rypnami

1) if your mc was an animagus, what would their form be? if they are, what is their form?

I genuinely have no idea for Percival. Maybe a horse?

2) if they could choose what animagus form they would take, would it be the same? or would they want to have a different animal form?

Percival would choose to not be an animagus because he has enough to worry about and the process is a lot of work

3) does your mc have a favourite colour? why is it their favourite?

Purple! No reason, he just really likes it. Idris is definitely lucky it's purple though considering his hair is stuck that way

4) in a modern au, would your mc use social media? what would their preferred platform be? why is if their preferred one?

Probably Reddit and Twitter if I'm being honest with myself

5) did you consult wand lore when choosing their wand? if so, why did you pick what you did? if not, would you ever change wand details to match your mc?

I did! Percival has the most main character wand ever: elder wood and phoenix feather. Elder wood is ridiculously powerful and rare, and apparently the users are marked for a “special destiny”. Phoenix feather is mainly to allude to his patronus being a phoenix

6) what is your mc’s diet? are they vegan, vegetarian, do they eat whatever? Why?

He's a fairly picky eater because he has a lot of sensory issues around food but otherwise no special diet

7) what is your mc’s backstory as to why they didn’t join hogwarts until 5th year? or did you retcon that part of the story when creating them?

Percival (and Idris) didnt go to Hogwarts because their father kept sending the letters back with the reply saying his children would not be attending. Then he died and the twins were stuck in an orphanage. Professor Fig personally showed up to tell them about Hogwarts and magic and they decided to go 5th year

8) what house is your mc in? why are they in that house?

Percival is a Ravenclaw because he is a fucking nerd. Kidding, but it's not entirely wrong. He hates not knowing things, he loves answering unanswered questions, and his curiosity is a hust part of him. There are so many times he gets scared and wants to bail on everything, but he stays because he's so curious and refuses to leave the questions unanswered

9) were you inspired by characters from other media when making your mc? if so, which characters? and how did they influence your mc?

Not from media, but Percival was based on one of my old OCs named Julian Athantis

10) does your mc have any special abilities? (legilimens, parsletongue, metamorphagus, etc) how do they choose to use these powers? did you give them powers for fun, or does it relate to their backstory/plot?

Other than the sense that at first he has more Ancient Magic abilities no. Unless a dark curse counts

11) what is your mc’s blood status? how does it affect their time at hogwarts? how does it affect their home life?

They're both half-bloods but it doesn't affect them that much. The most it does is that they were raised muggles and have to try and uncover their father's legacy

12) did your mc open the repository? why or why not?

They did not because they knew they didn't want that much power

13) if your mc opened the repository, how did absorbing all that power affect them, if it did at all?

N/A

14) what does your mc think of the keepers? do they trust them? why or why not?

Percival fucking hates those people. They're hoarding and hiding and even erasing knowledge. But worst is that they are testing and forcing 15 year old children to do their dirty work. A N D they constantly talk down to and about Idris

15) how does your mc’s story continue after 5th year? how do they cope with everything that happened with ranrok, sebastian, etc?

Well I can't spoil that, but I can tell you Percival's curse has a large part to play

16) did your mc learn the unforgivables? why or why not?

No, but he would have had he been given the opportunity because he thinks the limitation of knowledge is absurd

17) did your mc turn in sebastian? why or why not?

He does not. For….reasons :)

18) what is your mc’s family like? do they have siblings? do they still have parents?

They had two parents who were amazing parents and a little sister Annabelle but all three were killed by Ranrok and their father did lie to them their whole lives

19) does your mc have a love interest? who is it? why did your mc fall for that character, if they do have a love interest?

Garreth Weasley! Percy falls for Garreth because he's so…laid back. He's a spot of sunshine and fun when Percival doesn't have it. And he just cares so much about Percival, even thought Percival isn't as fun or sweet as Garreth

20) does your mc have a favourite spell? if so, what is it and why do they like it the most?

If he had to pick one probably the disillusionment charm. He prefers charms over any other type of spell and he prefers being discreet so this spell helps him avoid unnecessary fights

21) if you could change anything that the mc does in the game, what would it be? why would you change it? how would you change it? (ie; a line they say, an event of a quest, things of that nature)

The storyling of the Sallow twins has such a huge impact on the game but nothing comes of it in the end. Whether its curing Anne, not being able to, or even something as simple as knowing how/where the twins end up would be better

22) does your mc have any pets? if so, why do they have the pets they have? and for fun, what are their pets’ names?

Prof. Weasley gets Percival a Eurasian eagle owl over the summer so he can keep in touch with his friends but that's it

23) when designing your mc, why did you choose the appearance you did? has it changed at all since you first made them? would you change anything now?

Honestly I had a pretty clear image of Idris in my mind and even made them first. I just used the same face and shape and such to make Percival then changed his hair, skintone, and scars. I wish I could find a style that was curlier because his hair isn't supposed to be that straight but that one was the closest I could find

24) where is your mc from? where is their family from?

They are scottish on their father's side and South African on their mother's

25) what is your mc’s favourite season? why is it their favourite?

Summer, he loves being able to sit outside and read without it being too cold or rainy

26) how about your mc’s favourite holiday? what makes it special to them?

He doesn't particularly care for holidays anymore but he used to love his and Idris’ birthday

27) if your mc wasn’t in their current house, where would they have been sorted? why do you think they’d be there?

Gryffindor. Percival wants absolutely nothing to do with Ancient Magic and goblins and poachers. In fact he's terrified of all of the above. But every time he squares his shoulders and does it anyway. That screams bravery to me.

28) does your mc have a favourite childhood toy? if so, what was it? do they still have it with them?

He has a bracelet that a little baby Idris made him that he doesnt wear anymore because hes so scared to lose it

29) what kind of music would your mc like? is there a reason?

Im sorry but Percival would adore Taylor Swift. He likes lyrics and hed like fun pop songs so Taylor is the best bet

30) last but not least, just tell us something you love about your mc!

I loooove that his hair is purple. Something about having a character in the 1800s with colored hair makes me excited

[choicespride]

Choices Pride 2024 Week 2 Masterlist

Alpha

Kalani Picrew - m!MC (Kalani Mochizuki) - @peonyblossom

A Very Scandalous Proposal

SpreadJoy #885 - Nigel Brookes - @storyofmychoices

Blades of Light and Shadow

Forever my tiny human 💛 - nb!elf!OC (Nyx Selenastra) x Aerin Valleros - @storyofmychoices

Happy Pride 🌈 from Daenarya & Maiele - f!human!MC (Daenarya); elf!MC (Maiele Nightbloom) - @lilyoffandoms

The Elementalists

MC Pride Hearts - MC (Apollo Solaris); Atlas Erndhart; OC (Lance Hartley) - @saibug1022

High School Story

Evie and Aiden Picrews - f!MC (Evie Ayana, HSS) x Aiden Zhou - @cadybear420

Jamie is ready for pride! - nb!MC (Jamie Baxter, HSS) - @peonyblossom

Ria and Maria Picrew - OC (Ria Morena) x Maria Flores - @lover-also-fighter-also

Picrew - MC (Cher Lee, HSS:CA) x Ajay Bhandari - @cadybear420

Picrew - MC (Jordan Price, HSS Prime) x Julian Castillo - @cadybear420

Picrew - m!MC (Alan Parke, HSS) x Emma Hawkins - @cadybear420

Picrew - f!MC (Evie Ayana, HSS) x Aiden Zhou - @cadybear420

Pride Heart Picrews - f!MC (Lola Williams, HSS Prime); nb!MC (Jamie Baxter, HSS) - @peonyblossom

It Lives Anthology

MC Pride Hearts - MC (Val, ILITW); MC (Leon, ILB); MCs (Athantis Twins, ILW) - @saibug1022

Picrew - m!MC (Devi, ILITW) - @gutsfics

Picrew - f!MC (Harper Addison Vance-Fisher, ILB) x Tom Sato - @cadybear420

Picrew - f!MC (Jo Hunter, ILITW) x Lucas Thomas - @cadybear420

SpreadJoy #886 - Lily Ortiz - @storyofmychoices

SpreadJoy #882 - Andy Kang - @storyofmychoices

Laws of Attraction

Bisharpe pride heart icons - MC x Marcus Sharpe - @saibug1022

Murder at Homecoming

SpreadJoy #884 - Stevie Sun - @storyofmychoices

Open Heart

Edits - nb!MC (Baxter Lucafont) - @gutsfics

Some Sydney Picrews - nb!MC (Sydney Valentine) - @peonyblossom

Red Carpet Diaries

SpreadJoy #883 - Seth Levine - @storyofmychoices

Untameable

y'all means all - m!MC (Jules Rojas, Untameable); m!MC (Barrett Kemp, Unbridled) - @peonyblossom

Crossovers

Picrews - MC (Jiahao, ID) x Cas Harlow; MC (Fiona Lightwood, LOA) x Gabe Ricci; MC (Rams Erndhart); MC (Sawtooth, Alpha) x Channing Lowe - @choicesmc

[saibug1022]

Aquino-Athantis Family Picrews

In Order: Julian Aquino-Athantis (he/they), Lincoln Aquino (he/him), Mars Aquino-Athantis (he/she)

[saibug1022]

Hi! Pretend all of your favorite characters & OCs are in high school together. Who would win each of the following categories? (And here's a hug... hope the sadness passes soon!)

Most Likely to Succeed

Class Clown

Best Dressed

Class Pals

Class Sweethearts

Teacher's Pet

Most Athletic

Class Flirt

So for convenience I'm going to narrow it down to only the characters in my mc list, let's go

Most Likely to Succeed: Magnus Bishop (LoA/Windverse)

Class Clown: Asterin Nightbloom (Blades of Light and Shadow)

Best Dressed: Castor Athantis (It Lives Within)

Class Pals: Callum Wyland (Hero) & Taylor McKenzie (Endless Summer)

Class Sweethearts: August Rose (Crimes of Passion) and Mattheo Lazarin (Bloodbound)

Teacher's Pet: Julian Athantis (ILW)

Most Athletic: Leon Vance (It Lives Beneath)

Class Flirt: Eros Blackwell (Immortal Deisres)

I can't believe I filled this whole thing without including Val, what's happened to me. Also I am not tagging all these books lmao

[saibug1022]

MCs Masterlist

Blades of Light and Shadow

Asterin Nightbloom

It Lives

Val Ebony/Aquino - It Lives In The Woods

Leon Vance - It Lives Beneath

Castor Athantis/Flint - It Lives Within

Julian Athantis - It Lives Within

The Elementalists

Apollo Solaris

Lance Hartley - OC

Crimes of Passion

August Rose

Immortal Desires

Eros Blackwell

Into the Windverse/Laws of Attraction

Magnus Bishop

Endless Summer/Hero Crossover

Taylor Vaanu/McKenzie - Endless Summer

Callum Wyland - Hero

Bloodbound/Nightbound

Mattheo Lazarin - Bloodbound

Percy Lamrian - Nightbound (Coming Soon)

Murder at Homecoming

Valentine "Damian" Stone

The Cursed Heart

Emrys

Desire & Decorum

Genevieve Aurelia/Sinclaire

Anneliese Harper (Coming Soon)

High School Story

Asher Williams

Ren Abello - OC

[saibug1022]

Super anonymous ask that definitely is not from Elliott and definitely has nothing to do with the May Monthly Challenge

Choose your 3 favorite blorbos, who would their patron Greek god be and why 👀

Well I'm definitely glad it's not Elliott, can't stand them, I wouldn't have answered /j

As expected with me I did in fact go overboard so here's all my MCs as gods

Asterin Nightbloom (BOLAS) - Atlas

August Rose (CoP) - Ares

Valentine "Damian" Stone (MaH) - Athena

Val Ebony (ILITW) - Hades

Leon Vance (ILB) - Poseidon

Castor Athantis (ILW) - Hecate

Julian Athantis (ILW) - Persephone

Callum Wyland (Hero) - Zeus

Taylor McKenzie (ES) - Cronus

Apollo Solaris (TE) - Apollo

Eros Blackwell (ID) - Eros

Mattheo Lazarin (BB) - Hestia

Magnus Bishop (LoA/ITWV) - Nemesis

Emrys (TCH) - Hera

[saibug1022]

Julian Athantis (ILW)

Another child I am delusional about, Julian Athantis. In another canon alteration, Julian and Castor are actually twins, with Julian being older by a few minutes, and they're dating Lincoln McQuoid/Aquino :)

[saibug1022]

My Main MCs!

Alright, MCs in my canon route. I've written about them so let's actually talk about them with some edits I made of all of them post-ILW. @ila-appreciationweek

Devon - ILITW MC

Name: Valen "Val" Ebony

Pronouns/Gender: Trans demiboy, he/him

Love Interest: Lucas Thomas in game along with Noah Marshall, Daniel Pierce, and Andy Kang in my own personal adaptation of canon

Personality: Valen is best described as passionate. He’s passionate in every sense of the word, but mostly he’s passionately himself. This results in a fair bit of chaos to the point it’s even been described as feral but Val doesn’t care. The central core of Val is his love. His love for his boyfriends, all of his friends, his brother, the people of Westchester, music, the woods, the world, all of it. He’s loyal and loving and would do anything for those he loves, no matter the price.

Notes: Became the Shadow monster at the end of ILITW

Harper - ILB MC

Name: Leon "Leo/Lee" Vance

Pronouns/Gender: Trans male, he/him

Love Interest: Tomoichi Sato

Personality: Leon is actually fairly well put together. He’s smart and resourceful and tends to know what he’s doing, or at the very least making everyone else think he does. He’s confident and strong and just. He has a sweet and a fun side and is a hopeless romantic, though he’ll never admit it. Ridiculously loyal and protective.

Rowans - ILW MCs

Name: Castor "Cas" Athantis

Pronouns/Gender: Nonbinary, they/them

Love Interest: Abel Flint

Personality: Genuine/sarcastic. Overall they’re just a nice, fun, outgoing person who is loyal and stubborn and good and just truly cares about people. The problem is that they’re also a little shit.

Notes: Twin sibling of Julian Athantis

Name: Julian Athantis

Pronouns/Gender: Trans male, he/him

Love Interest: Lincoln Aquino

Personality: Genuine and a little bit sarcastic but in a more playful, almost adolescent way than Castor. He’s sweet and playful and he fucking loves people. He has a good sense of right and wrong and they tend to be very trusting but oh can he hold a grudge. He’s protective and stubborn underneath that bright pink hair. He seems grumpy on the surface but he's just tired of running and fighting for so long.

Notes: Twin brother of Castor Athantis

[saibug1022]

The Morning After

Word Count: 2.5k

Abel Flint x Castor Athantis (gn ILW MC)

A/N: So. That Chapter 14 Abel scene. We were robbed of the next, morning. So, I wrote it. It was originally supposed to be all fluff then I had the thought of Castor having one of the nightmares that night and it all spiraled downhill. Also, for context, I took two of my MCs and made them twins, Castor is this one and their twin is Julian.

When Castor opened their eyes, at first it seemed they were floating in some sort of black void. There was no light, no ground, nothing as far as they could see or feel or hear. 

"Hello?" Castor called out, only minutely relieved to hear their own voice.

Castor.

"You again?" Castor looked around. "What do you want now?"

I want out!

"Out of where?" Castor asked for the millionth time. All they'd managed to understand was that this person was trapped somewhere and in obvious pain. They were scared, Castor could tell that much. But they still wouldn't tell Cas where they were or who they were or anything!

I'll show you.

There was a glint of something in the distance, something metallic. Castor squinted to try and make out what it was but it was moving too fast. It streaked toward them in the darkness and Cas's eyes widened. They tried to move, tried to cry out, but they couldn't do anything as the strange bronze object cut through the air and stabbed Castor in the heart.

"Hnnnnn," Castor whined. It was the only noise they could make as their world exploded in pain. It wasn't just the wound. It felt like they were falling apart. The life was draining out of them as if their soul was being forcefully yanked from their body. No. Not their soul. It was the Power. The Power itself was being drained from them, burning them from the inside out. 

They looked down, vision swimming, and tried to identify the object they'd been impaled with. It was a spike, long and lovingly carved with a rope tied to the end. But the thing that really caught Castor’s attention was the glowing blue rune set into the metal. They wrapped their hand around the spike and went to pull it out before they heard the voice of their brother in their head, some memory from when Amalia got stabbed and Jules told Cas not to pull the knife out because it was containing the bleeding. But this thing wasn't stopping Castor's bleeding. In fact, despite being able to feel their own blood choking them as it filled their lungs, they didn't seem to be bleeding at all. 

Before they could decide what to do the spike moved forward. But not further into Cas, instead it seemed to shove them until they were "laying" on their back. Then it started moving, dragging Castor with it.

It moved fast, faster than Cas should be able to survive moving. It wasn't even moving really. It was falling. They were falling. They were falling through an endless darkness. It didn't matter if they survived the spike. They were dead the moment they hit the bottom.

If there was a bottom.

Castor couldn't even scream. The spike in their chest kept them from getting the air they need. The most they could make was choked-off noises of pain and fear as their hair whipped around their face. They couldn't scream, they couldn't move, they couldn't do anything. They had to just wait. Wait in terror to die. 

Alone.

There was no warning. One moment they were falling, the next they'd slammed into the ground with several sickening snaps. A gasp was forced from them. They couldn't even feel the pain over the burning. They opened their eyes and…light! There was light! It was faint, so faint it didn't light up the area around them. But it was there. It also seemed distorted, kind of like it was filtering through water.

The second Castor had that thought it was like the water had become real. Thousands of gallons of water tried to force themselves into their lungs. The air and blood were forced out and Castor found themself choking, trying so so desperately to just breathe. They didn't want to die, not down here. Not alone where no one would ever find them. 

They fumbled for the spike to try and pull it out but it was stuck fast, anchoring them to the ground beneath them no matter how they struggled. This couldn't be the end. No. Not like this, not when they finally found somewhere. They finally found a place that felt like home for the first time in five horrible long years and they couldn't lose that. 

And Julian. Oh God, Julian. The two of them had lost everything. Julian, he couldn't lose Castor too. Cas wasn't sure he'd survive it. They had to get out, they had to live but they COULDN'T FUCKING BREATHE!

"Cas?"

Castor was sure they were crying as they pulled desperately on the spike but the tears blended with the water drowning them and their sobs couldn't escape their suffocating body. They just kept struggling for what had to have been minutes yet they were still just burning, drowning, dying, but never quite crossing that threshold. They couldn't even die.

"Castor?!"

Was this really it? This couldn't be how their journey ended. They couldn't even DIE?! They were cursed to spend forever drowning, suffocating, breaking, dying, over and over and over forever until eventually, they did die. But they didn't want to die. They didn't want to die they didn't want to die THEY DIDNT WANT TO DIE-

"CASTOR!"

"GAH!" Castor cried out, body jolting upright as their hands scrambled at the bedsheets.

"Hey, Cas, it's okay!" A familiar voice assured them as large hands gripped their shoulders. "Breathe, baby, you're okay."

Cas forced themself to inhale, slowly, shakily, then exhale. Their eyes squeezed shut as they kept forcing those breaths in and out like they'd forgotten how to breathe. 

"That's it," The voice muttered and they felt one of the hands move to cup their cheek and they leaned into the warmth without even thinking about it. "Just breathe. You're okay, I've got you."

After a few more breaths Castor finally opened their eyes to find the kind features of Abel Flint, his face set with worry. They were in a room that it took Castor a moment to recognize considering it wasn't theirs, it was Abel's. They were in Abel's room, they'd stayed over the night before.

And they just woke him up screaming.

Shit.

"Fuck, I'm sorry," Castor muttered, gaze dropping to Abel's shoulder instead of meeting his eyes. Abel's thumb brushed their skin, brushing away their tears. They hadn't even realized they'd been crying. 

"Sorry? What are you sorry for?" Abel asked, so genuinely confused it made a smile flicker onto Castor's face for just a second. 

"Whatever the hell that was," Cas sighed and used their own hand to wipe away the rest of the tears roughly. 

"Was it one of the nightmares?" Abel asked gently. "With the voice?"

Castor just nodded. 

"Cas you don't have anything to apologize for," Abel assured them. "I'll admit, I was worried when I woke up and I was definitely scared when you wouldn't, but none of that is your fault. It's whoever has been torturing you for the last three weeks."

"I know but I shouldn't have stayed over knowing that could happen," Castor argued and Abel used his hand on Castor's face to force them to look at him.

"Castor you do not have to deal with this alone," Abel insisted. Castor opened their mouth to protest further but Abel shook his head. "No. You don't have to go through this on your own. I know, Julian is having the same dreams, but when was the last time you talked about these dreams outside of just summarizing them for information?"

Castor's silence was all the answer Abel needed.

"Exactly," Abel nodded. "You're the one talking about how you want me to let you take care of me, right? Well, that goes both ways. Let me take care of you.”

Castor wanted to argue. The only people they’d let take care of them in five years were Julian and Amalia and even then it was iffy. They’d been in other relationships in that time and while they were fun and Cas cared about those people whenever it got to this moment right here, where Castor needed to open up and admit how fucked up they were and that they needed help, that was the moment Castor ran. They just couldn’t get themself to make that last big leap. Because being vulnerable like that meant letting that person into their life fully, including the dark, the scary, and the violent parts of it. Which meant someone else they could lose.

But none of those relationships were like this one. Not only was Abel already a part of all of this but he was just…different. Abel understood them, better than anyone else. He was so sweet and so kind and so strong and he cared. He cared so much and so strongly that Castor couldn’t stop him if they wanted to because that care was what kept them smiling and their eyes shining and their heart beating. Castor just felt…safe. They felt safe. They felt safe with Abel. Enough that they let their shoulders drop and their eyes close and their cheek lean into Abel’s palm.

“Okay,” Castor finally said, voice hardly even a whisper. The grin Abel gave them could have rivaled the sun. He leaned over to press a gentle kiss to their forehead.

Abel wrapped his arms around their waist and carefully shifted the both of them until they were laying down again, Castor’s head once again pillowed on Abel’s chest right over his heart. They took a deep breath as they focused on the steady thump of Abel’s heart, reminding them they weren’t alone. They wrapped an arm around him and went to curl in further only to hiss in pain as their legs moved. They were sore, really sore, and it took them a second to remember why. Once they did, well, they had to hide a flustered grin against Abel’s chest.

“What is it? Are you okay?” Abel checked, concern creeping into his voice.

“Mhmm,” Castor hummed. “I’m just, uh, sore.”

“Oh yeah?” Castor could hear Abel’s smirk and they groaned as they reached up to try and cover his mouth, but all they got was the sound of his laughter as he caught their hand. “I don’t see how that’s a problem, I’m pretty proud of myself for it actually.”

“Oh my God I hate you,” Castor groaned again. Abel made a dramatic gasp and pressed his hand to his heart as if Castor’s comment had deeply wounded him. “I’m so sorry.”

“You should be,” Abel gave a fake sniffle and Castor found themself actually laughing as they surfaced from Abel’s skin. They folded their arms on his chest and set their chin on their arms so they could look up at Abel with a small smile. “There it is.”

“What?”

Abel grinned as he brushed the hair from Castor’s face. “Your smile.”

Castor felt their face heat and they immediately hid in their arms again.

“You’re adorable,” Abel commented.

“And you’re the worst,” Castor replied.

“But I’m your worst.” 

“That didn’t even make sense!”

“It totally did.” 

“You’re such a dork.”

“But I’m your dork.”

“There you go, look at that. Are you happy now?”

“Very,” Abel nodded, grinning like a fool. 

“You know, I believe I was promised pancakes,” Castor remembered.

“You absolutely were,” Abel confirmed. And because he was so loving and so caring he tossed Castor onto the bed so he could get up, ignoring their startled shriek.

“You asshole!” Castor laughed and Abel just stuck his tongue out at them as he opened his dresser. He pulled out a t-shirt which triggered a thought in Castor that made them grimace. Not pout. Totally not pout. “Ugh, I don’t wanna put my jeans on.” 

“If you want to borrow my clothes you could just ask,” Abel smirked at them over his shoulder and Castor stuck their tongue out at him because they were a very mature pair. 

“I think I’d drown in your clothes you titan,” Castor teased and Abel just shrugged and pulled on the t-shirt he’d grabbed.

“All I’m hearing is more reasons for you to borrow my clothes,” Abel held out a dark green t-shirt, a pair of soft and black pajama pants, and a pair of boxers. Cas glared at him for a second but sighed as they took the clothes, biting back a delighted giggle because they were committed now. 

Abel pulled on his own pajama pants and Cas got out of bed, wincing a little at the soreness in their legs. But they managed to pull on the clothes Abel had given them and resisted the urge to smell the shirt, knowing it would smell like him. They looked up to see Abel beaming at them and they grabbed him by the shirt to pull him in for a kiss. Abel hummed happily against their lips and his hands held their waist only to use that to scoop them up and carry them out to the living room bridal style. Castor couldn’t help laughing as they were plopped onto the couch and got one more kiss before Abel headed for the kitchen.

Castor turned on the couch and folded their arms on the back of it, head laying on their arms as they watched Abel hum to himself and start going through his kitchen. The sun was just starting to come through the blinds, turning his brown eyes amber whenever he turned towards the golden light. Castor felt a smile tug at their lips but it was different from the grins and smirks from earlier. It was smaller but it was soft, it was so happy and content. After all, Castor was happy and content. For once, they were just…relaxed. They felt safe. They felt loved.

They loved Abel Flint. 

Cas already knew this deep down, but thinking the words still brought them a new kind of joy. They’d always wanted a long-term relationship, to really build a life with somebody. But whenever they tried they just…couldn’t. They could never get themself to pull out of their monster-hunting lifestyle long enough to really grow roots anywhere and they refused to let anyone else fall into that kind of life. They could never really see a future for themself outside of monsters and the Power.

But with Abel? They could see it. They could see him making breakfast in the morning, teaching them how to cook because, in all honesty, they were hopeless at it. They could see waking up with him every morning and watching the sun turn his skin gold only to fall asleep in each other’s arms every night. They could see themself meeting his siblings, stealing kisses when they both have a free moment between classes, dancing in the living room, and getting into a water fight doing the dishes. They could even see moving in with him maybe, rings on their fingers, maybe even a kid of their own one day. 

Because god damn it Castor loved Abel Flint.

And Abel Flint made them love themself too.