#lil sister defiant

[bride-and-bride]

When a newly appointed officer is asked to make a slightly unusual decision, he'd rather not step into any Office Politics Trouble. Much safer to hold an interview, first... go over all the details and make sure he knows what kind of woman Defiant Bride is.

A brief yet complicated summary of one Raen's military career, for the sake of me, who can never quite keep it straight~!

[musingmeaninglessly]

In Deep ; Neteyam x Fem!Human! Reader

Summary: When Tuk gets stuck underwater, there's only one person who can save her...

Lil bit angsty, lil bit fluffy. If you're sensitive to matters related to drowning, I suggest you skip this story.

If not, then enjoy! 💙

"Aaaand, I'm officially done."

Hands burning, you release the final inky braid of your boyfriend's that you've been working on.

Leaning his head back against your lap from his seat on the floor, Neteyam's glimmering eyes meet yours as he beams.

"Thank you, yawntutsyìp, what would I do without you?"

You don't get a chance to answer as he gently pulls your face down to meet his, the glass of your exopack chilly against his forehead. When he finally releases you, he's smiling wider than ever, but the same can't be said for the other figure present.

Sharpening her spear, Neytiri's glare never leaves you. Throughout the six month's worth of courting her son, you've never once been able to win her approval. Seeing her pride and joy be practically polluted by a damned tawtute was not her vision for the eldest Sully child.

And you felt that. Even without the prejudices against your species, what could you possibly offer her family? You lack the basic genetics that make the Na'vi so wondrous, not to mention the survival skills and intelligence. No matter how much Neteyam tells you otherwise, you feel inferior. And Neytiri's hostility doesn't help.

Yet in spite of it al, Neteyam had been defiant of his mother for the first time in his life. And it was all in pursuit of you; his star girl, his little love, his mate.

He catches your worrisome look and follows your eyes over to his mother's. With a sigh, he frowns at her silently, but her eyes remain the same, burning more ferociously than the campfire between you. No one says a thing; well, no one actually gets the chance.

"Help! HELP! It's Tuk!!"

The sound of Kiri's voice is the only thing that snaps Neytiri's attention away from you and her son. The teenage girl sprints over to where you all rise from your seats in a panic. She's gasping for breath and drenched from the ocean's waters.

Neteyam takes a step towards his sister, flashing you a worried, yet warm, look before he does so. Ever the level-headed communicator, he puts a hand on her shoulder, "Kiri, slow down. What's happened?"

"We- me, Lo'ak and Tuk- were free diving, and she spotted that new species of coral- you know, the one Norm told us about?"

Your eyes widened at that- you knew exactly which species she was talking about. A mysterious unnamed specimen with the ability to interact with the energy around it, not dissimilar to the Venus Flytrap plants you'd read about on Earth. Norm had told you all about this new discovery made by one of the botanists, detailing it's features and abilities. It was honestly quite fascinating; powerful, alive, dangerous.

"This new species, yes, I remember." Neteyam's green eyes transform with an amber hue just as Neytiri begins bombarding Kiri with a million questions.

"Well, we went to get a better look at it, and I told Tuk not to touch, but she didn't listen!" Kiri begins to cry, her face wracked with guilt. By this point, several overhearing Metkayina have joined the scene, "It's got her!"

"I can't reach her...the gap in the coral is too small..." Lo'ak suddenly appears on land, visibly exhausted.

"Can't we cut her free?" Neteyam sensibly suggests, but his siblings shake their heads.

"We tried, but whenever you cut a piece, even more grows!" Kiri wailed, prompting Lo'ak to put an arm around her. You make a mental note to suggest the name 'Hydra' to Norm once this is all over. "There's a gap in the coral-"

"-I will go!" Neytiri booms, ridding herself of her bow and spear. Lo'ak, however, stops her in her tracks.

"It's no use, mother! The gap is way too small, I couldn't fit through it..."

You squeeze Neteyam's hand sympathetically, and when his amber eyes meet yours, you get an idea. Amidst all the commotion, the panicked voices and desperate dives into the water, it all becomes crystal clear to you.

"I'll get her out."

Everyone's attention snaps over to you in an instant, not quite believing what you've just said.

"My love, it's far too dangerous! What if the water leaks into your mask?" Neteyam kneels down in front of you, sternness lacing his features. You simply shake your head.

"I'm the only one who can reach her and fit through the gap, I must go."

Neteyam exchanges a worried glance with his siblings, ignoring his mother's scornful expression. Lo'ak and Kiri nod to him, and he knows what he has to do.

"Then I will go with you."

"What's going on?"

Jake suddenly appears with Tonowari, presumably returning from some sort of meeting.

"No time to explain, Dad. Please could you fetch Y/N's spare mask?" Neteyam briefly requests, and is met with a nod of his father's head.

Meanwhile, you hurriedly rid yourself of your blouse. It's a flowing, loose fabric- certainly not appropriate for swimming. With no other choice, you're left in your bra before taking Neteyam's hand and diving into the water.

Lo'ak and Kiri promptly follow, helping you get down to the specific spot. Several other Metkayina follow you in, unable to help, but worried for the youngest Sully.

When you see Tuk, you have to do your best not to panic. She's more-or-less unconscious, limbs entangled in the coral's moving tendrils. Neteyam's grip on your hand tightens, but you place yours on his chest, wordlessly reassuring him, and he lets you go.

Lo'ak helps you over to the small gap in the coral. It's no wonder the siblings struggled, the opening is barely wide enough for a human to fit through. Yet, somehow you do, mindful of the fact that one wrong move would put you in the exact same situation as Tuk. With that in mind, you carefully make your way to her body after taking Lo'ak's knife from him.

There's really no other choice but to cut Tuk free, but you have to make quick work of it. Thankfully, your nimble fingers are up to the task as the Sully siblings watch on desperately.

But, amidst your hard work, you fail to notice that the suction lining of your exopack had come slightly free along your jaw, letting in a small trickle of water and, in turn, a whisper of oxygen out.

Neteyam goes to lunge towards you, noticing a small amount of water build up in your mask. But Lo'ak holds him back, signing that you're fine.

That's what you try to tell yourself as you hold your mask to your face tightly, cutting away at the last couple of coral tendrils. When you give Kiri the signal, she slashes an opening above you, and you haul Tuk's body out of the coral entrapment before the tendrils can grow back.

The rest of it becomes a blur. The Sully siblings are at your side in an instant, hauling you and Tuk up the surface. Your mask continues to fill with water and once it floods above your nose, you hold your breath. But, by some miracle, your head soon breaks through the water's edge above you.

Kiri and Lo'ak take Tuk from you while Neteyam wraps his arms firmly around your waist. "It's going to be alright, my love, we're almost there..."

He continues to murmur to you comfortingly through his own panic, finally reaching Jake and grabbing for the spare mask. "I'm going to take this off, alright?"

You have no time to acknowledge his words before your mask is swiftly swept off of your face and the new, dry, undamaged replacement is secured against your skin. You gasp in jagged breaths, only now processing it all as Neteyam bundles you against him.

"My brave, brave girl..." he whispers into your hair, cupping the back of your head as you both float in the water. For a moment, the both of you seem to forget about Tuk, and it's only when you hear her coughing back on the shore that you remember.

"Oh, thank Ewya!" Neytiri gasps, sobbing hysterically as she reaches to comfort her youngest daughter. "Don't you ever do that again, do you hear me child?!"

Tuk nods with a cry, before rushing over to you. "Y/N, you saved me! Thank you, thank you, thank you..."

The rest of the family smile at the two of you, Jake and Lo'ak thanking you profusely while Kiri joins yours and Tuk's group hug.

"Hey, hey, careful. She needs to breathe..." Neteyam protectively instructs, gently pulling his sisters off of you. You smile at them and mouth a silent 'thank you' to your boyfriend, before turning to hug him as he kneels to your height.

"My love," Neteyam's deep voice draws a soft smile from you as he tenderly cups your cheek, "you were so brave."

You can't help blushing at his praise, but grasp at his hand that's cupping your exopack-covered cheek and pull him closer. "You would've done the same if you could have, ma 'Teyam..."

The longer you hold him, the more pronounced the little sniffles heard from him become. Pulling back, you eye him worriedly, 'What is it, 'Teyam? Are you alright?"

Coaxing his eyes open by running the pads of your fingers beneath them, his tearful irises meet yours. "I could've lost you, little one..."

"But you didn't," you gently remind him, holding his hand over your heart, "I'm here, and I love you. Okay?"

Neteyam nods forcefully, almost as if an absence of the action would make you disappear. Yet, his eyes never leave yours. Not even for a moment.

"I love you...so deeply...even deeper than the waters you just braved for my sister..."

Now it's your eyes that overflow with salty tears and you throw your arms around Neteyam's broad shoulders. "I love you, 'Teyam...Nga yawne lu oer..."

"Y/N,"

The sound of your name breaks up the tender moment prematurely, and you spring away from Neteyam. In truth, you'd forgot that his family, and several people from the Metkayina tribe, were watching.

It had been Neytiri's voice that cut through the sweet moment like a knife through butter. You gulp, craning your neck to face the Sully matriarch, who's shrugging off her mate's hand from her shoulder.

You're surely for it now.

But to your pleasant surprise, she drops to her knees and hangs her head in..shame? Eyes wide, you look at her children and Jake, wondering what on Pandora you're supposed to do now. But they all smile softly.

"Forgive me. I've underestimated you, thought you like them. But you saved my child at your own risk. I was wrong."

You can tell that Neytiri's English isn't quite advanced enough to fully communicate her thanks. But it's there in her eyes.

"Please, forgive me..."

With a gentle nod of your head, you smile. You never expected Neytiri to see you as anything other than a Sky Person, but you really didn't expect her to grab at you and pull you into a hug.

Your arms raise to your side in surprise, and the look on your face is clearly comical enough to make Lo'ak burst out laughing- until Jake smacks him up the side of his head. Tentatively, you return Neytiri's hug. "I forgive you..."

"You are good for my son," Neytiri pulls back to look at you with a warmth you've never seen before, "thank you."

"Okay, Mother, let little Y/N breathe." Neteyam chuckles, gently pulling you back towards him. Neytiri shakes her head at her son's overprotectiveness, but fondly places her hand atop your head for a short moment before returning to fuss over Tuk.

You turn back to Neteyam and a soft hum leaves his lips and his eyes trail over your face, before he notices some Metkayina boys gawking at you. Only then do the both of you realise that you're stood in your bra and a pair of shorts.

"W-we, uh, let's get you back to the lab, get you some more clothes." Neteyam suggests, using his towering advantage to shield your body from prying eyes as his own glare at the intruders.

"Good idea," you giggle, desperate to be a little more concealed now that you're aware of your state, "I could do with a nap."

"I'm not surprised," Neteyam's face softens and he tilts his head, "may I join you?"

[atopvisenyashill]

my favorite targaryens are the women who have bastards. i am obsessed with the similarities and differences in circumstances and how they related to motherhood, because every goddamn lord in westeros has a bastard but NOBLE MOTHERS OF ILLEGITIMATE CHILDREN. oooh hell yeah. see my love for

saera, my jaehaerys hating teen idle icon who never married and didn’t want the iron throne (bc she’s smarter than the rest of her family) but definitely told her 3 sons to call themselves targaryens just to fuck with her dad

gael, all we know is that she literally slept in her mother’s bed bc alysanne was so clingy, fucked a singer, had a stillbirth, then killed herself but i’m obsessed with her for having pre marital sex in known prude bitch jaehaerys’ court, i find her so iconic and tragic i want to know more

rhaenyra, my precious meow meow who really stuck to her guns by getting her husband AND his daddy on her side only to fumble last minute by letting corlys name alyn and not joffrey as heir to driftmark or pushing for baela's inheritance. rip to a queen tho.

elaena not only manages to have THREE bastards from TWO DIFFERENT BABY DADDIES but she set all three of them up nicely by being insanely good at politics and math so everyone just ignored the fact that viserys plumm was obviously aegon’s and the waters twins established their own lil house without starting a civil war or succession crisis, something these people are famously bad at! elaena did that shit!!

daena the defiant, we do not know when she died but i keep imagining her raising daemon in the maiden vault and living vicariously through him, encouraging him to make these dodgy alliances with these dodgy lords because despite a lot of the blackfyre supporters being incredibly socially regressive, it's only through them she's ever been allowed even the dream of freedom and power, just imagining all the mommy issues daemon has gives me life

visenya since i feel her having a baby thru blood magic was probably like half of why aegon never showed an interest in maegor lmao he knew that baby was as visenya’s and the goat she sacrificed to make him, that’s why maegor has daddy issues, but also he has mommy issues bc she loved him but also made him with her witchy powers.

daella or rhae, whatever one of egg’s sisters that fucks dunk and passes the baby off as the evenstar’s kid, if that theory is what actually happened you’re an icon and i will stan you until the day i die for successfully pulling what rhaenyra, elaena, AND cersei all tried but couldn’t succeed and that’s your bastard inheriting the seat of your husband who is NOT the baby daddy and not causing a huge scandal over it, well done baby girl

[misc-obeyme]

what are your thoughts on the cheeky lil cow boy (belphie)

Ah yes, Belphegor, a bit of a polarizing character in general, I think. People seem to either really love him or really hate him.

Generally speaking, I think he's deceptively cunning, but not in a malicious way. He's pretty chill most of the time, but he'll do stuff like manipulate his brothers to get them to do his chores for him. Except for Beel, of course. And really they are a unit. Belphie is always ready to fight for Beel and vice versa. But I also really like how they just quietly support each other. Someone will say oh Belphie fell asleep in this weird place and Beel will immediately be like I'll go get him. Or Belphie will be like we need to make sure we bring food to this thing because Beel will get hungry. Like they're just always thinking about each other and I think that's really sweet.

Belphie will also call people out if he wants to. If he has no reason to keep it to himself, he'll straight up tell you if he thinks you're doing something questionable. And his issues with Diavolo indicate to me that he has a problem with authority, like he would be more defiant if he wasn't also lazy lol.

Inevitably, though, we can't really talk about Belphie without discussing the Lesson 16 Incident. At this point, I think most people are aware of those events, but just in case, I'll put the rest of this under a read more. And also it's kinda lengthy, so be forewarned lol.

First of all, I have to say that I was honestly so confused about what was happening in Lesson 16 that I didn't fully understand that Belphie had killed MC. I had to read it multiple times and then read what other people were saying about it. So I never had an intense reaction to it.

But to be fair, it wasn't like we didn't know there was something weird going on the whole time. I knew it was the youngest brother locked up there and it seemed like it was wrong, so that made Lucifer out to be the bad guy of the situation. Then it turns out that wasn't the case at all.

Belphie is manipulative. That's just part of his character. And when he has something that he's trying to do, he's going to use that skill to get it.

Some people are still mad at Lucifer for locking Belphie up at all. Some people are obviously quite upset that Belphie killed MC.

But here's what I think.

It isn't that black and white. Aside from the confusing time travel shenanigans, this event is one of the most realistic things that has ever happened in the story.

Belphie shared Lilith's love of humans. Together they wanted to learn more about the human world. It would be easy for him to blame himself for her interest and what ultimately led to her death. But even if he didn't, he saw the way that it tore his entire family apart.

It wasn't just that his dad got mad at his sister and they had an argument or something.

It was that his dad was going to end his sister's existence and in defiance, his older brother rebelled. And there was a war. This was not some squabble. This was siblings fighting siblings.

Belphie watched his brothers and sisters fight and hurt and kill each other and it all came back to Lilith falling in love with a human.

And then he fell with his brothers, cast out of his home, losing everything he's ever known. His brothers are changing and suffering just like he is.

They don't talk about it. They clearly all keep secrets regarding it still, things that don't come out until MC comes along. Which is supposedly thousands of years after the fact (at least in OG). That means Belphie has had all that time to let that trauma fester. To let it twist inside him. To let it morph into the one thought that became most dominant: that humans are bad.

Is that a fair assessment of what happened? No, of course not. But we're dealing with a war traumatized fallen angel that clearly hasn't worked through any of these feelings in thousands of years.

And then he defies Diavolo and Lucifer panics.

Yes, Lucifer should have found a better way of handling it. But remember what happened to him when he defied authority? He is trying his best to protect Belphie. He is trying not to lose another sibling. He is also still traumatized and therefore overreacting out of fear.

And so was Belphie.

Imagine being locked up like that and a human comes along. A human is free among your brothers to do whatever terrible things humans do while you're powerless to stop them. Of course he's going to try to manipulate that human into setting him free. Of course he's then going to eliminate them because humans have been historically bad for his family.

I read this situation as Belphie being both afraid and angry that a human - the thing he's convinced himself was the main cause of his sister's death - has become so close to his brothers and has the access to his family that could cause another rift among them.

You could say that it was Belphie's idea to get MC to have all the pacts, but that isn't really true, either. By the time MC meets Belphie, they already have a pact with two of his brothers. He sees them already starting to worm their way into his family. And he knows that the only way to get out of the attic is to encourage it. He doesn't really have a choice.

Maybe everyone can now call me a Belphie apologist. But I'm always coming at this from an outside fictional standpoint. I'm like listen he's a flawed character and it's actually pretty realistic of him to react this way considering the circumstances.

However, he did kill MC. And that's why my own MC, Ciaran, has issues with Belphie for a while. It's also traumatic to have someone kill you, so it isn't like I'm saying MC should just forget about it or forgive Belphie immediately. I think it probably should have taken a lot more time for MC to trust Belphie again. Certainly that part of the story was a bit rushed.

But they're dealing with lesson format constraints and also it's a silly otome game so I guess fully formed character arcs can't be expected. Especially since we aren't dealing with routes and they have to cram everybody into the same set of lessons.

In the end, I think Belphie is an interesting and complex character. I think there's a lot of space to explore more about this particular aspect of him, but due to the format of the media and the lack of routes, his more in depth character arc just doesn't exist.

I personally have no problem with Belphie as a character, but I also understand why people don't like him. I am always of the opinion that everyone is free to love or hate or have any emotions at all about fictional characters lol. This is just my personal opinion.

[sometimesraven]

I fell off a lil but I'm still doing Truth Saga character portraits! Here's Evie, the nonbinary mum friend of the supersoldier group and actual mother of Mist! I love them to pieces and may allow them to commit one (1) atrocity as a treat

Evie

The loudest, most defiant member of the team, Evie has always been fiercely protective of their fellows. When they were a child, their powers were the last to blossom: barely more than a basic level of telepathy. It was feared they may end up useless to the Controller, until the day their half-sister Angela was killed at his command. Something wild and vicious unlocked in their mind that day, violently triggering their powers and leaving them weak and shaken for days afterwards.

Over time they learned to draw to cope with the nightmares and phobias they often pick up from using their power. They hold a deep resentment to the Controller for both their powers and the death of their sister, still acting with defiance to this day despite the heavy punishments they receive for it.

About The Truth Saga

Children go missing all the time. That’s what they’re told. They run away, they’re kidnapped, they die. Scattered throughout Scotland, a handful of families remember the truth of what happened to their families. The violent, paranormal attacks that destroyed their lives and took their children from them.

Twenty years after the first incidents, the disappearences are happening again. The missing children are adults now, and reconnecting with the people they lost, but everything has changed. There is something sinister casting its shadow over their heads, and now they must fight to return the light to their lives. To learn to love and laugh and carry on living – while the truth of their history threatens to destroy them.

Combining science fantasy with interpersonal drama, The Truth Saga is an ongoing series following themes of love, family and grief wrapped in a bundle of supernatural mystery and violence. Step into the Controller’s world and you may never turn back…

BOOK 1, RECKLESS TRUTH, IS AVAILABLE NOW TO BUY FROM YOUR FAVOURITE BOOKSTORES

Taglist (Click here to be added)

@smallvillecrows

[cassynite]

6, 9, 16, 19 for Sparrow! <3

Thank you for the questions 🥺❤️ I love granular kinds of questionnaires like these, they always make me pause and think a lil bit about my characters a little more.

OC Character Development Questions

6. Does your character have recurring themes in their dreams?

Yea absolutely! Themes of her childhood before she was kidnapped appear constantly in her dreams--bright, sunny days, bright colors, large blooming flowers, the cliffs splashing into the sea with the wind blowing with enough force that it feels like she could jump off and it would be able to carry her. Climbing trees, great big reaching branches propelling her into the sky until she's on top of the world. Her brother, or pieces of him--his smile, his laugh, the way he talked so fast when he was excited she couldn't understand him, the way his hands always skillfully worked on the tiniest details of whatever he was creating--also show up frequently in her dreams. Freedom, flight, warmth, and family, that's what her mind draws for her in sleep.

9. Is your character’s current socioeconomic status different than it was when they were growing up?

Yes, Sparrow's status has changed a lot throughout her childhood! As a child, she was the younger sister of a very respected but very young engineer in a country where material needs were met as a matter of course. Crow's work and prestige meant that he and Sparrow were able to live quite well despite their young ages, though it was relatively humble. Away from the direct city, in a little house on a high cliff where others weren't as bothered by experiments on protoypes, Sparrow always had what she needed but wasn't living lavishly or anything. When she becomes a slave for House Arvanxi she ends up in a very awkward place in the household. She is property in Cheliax, the lowest of the low, but being a body double means that she also has to be seen and treated as Evaethi when needed. Because of this she's given fine clothes, a noble's education, and is separate from the servants and slaves--but if she makes a mistake, angers Gregoriath, or is otherwise defiant or doesn't live up to expectations, the punishments are as harsh as they would be for anyone else with a collar. Sparrow has gone without food, been beaten and whipped, and threatened all the while--because what she has here is still good, isn't it? Better than anything anyone else would give her as a slave. If she continues to fail to live up to the expectations of her position, Gregoriath can always sell her again. Pretending to be Evaethi puts her in a similar position--a noble, but not really, and terribly conscious of the fact--and Sparrow at the beginning of the game is prepared to strike out in the world with little more than the clothes on her back. Of course, when she finally closes the Worldwound and marries Daeran, she becomes a noble in truth--one who will never have to worry about any kind of material need again, and who can travel the world whenever she pleases. She's recognizable, a respected leader of the community, and far above any kind of status she'd have even dreamed of as a child.

16. Which does your character idealize most: happiness or success?

Happiness, full stop. Success in Sparrow's eyes is to be happy, to have found peace in herself and her surroundings and finally become allowed to live in a way that lets her be free. Material wealth, prestige, accolades--they're all pointless to her, secondary to gaining the emotional fulfillment that she craves.

19. What is your character’s biggest relationship flaw? Has this flaw destroyed relationships for them before?

Sparrow's biggest relationship flaw is her insecurity in its strength. She is always waiting for the other person to leave--for them to realize that she's not worth sticking around for, that her idiosyncrasies and her nerves are too much to handle and for them give up. It leads to her catastrophizing arguments, planning for the worst possible reactions and outcomes, and hiding concerns, criticisms, and complaints from her partner for fear that expressing them might make her too much trouble. It makes arguments--even over small things--monumental tasks to get through, and it's hurtful to the other person, because what does it say about Sparrow's view of them that she thinks they'll abandon her at the drop of a hat? This hasn't destroyed previous relationships because Sparrow never had previous relationships to destroy--every connection she made prior to the Crusades did leave. It does, however, create a few rocky points in Sparrow and Daeran's relationship after the Crusades end and they marry. They do eventually work through them, and Sparrow does learn to talk herself down from her first instinct to jump to the worst conclusion.

[atwistedtalehq]

**CHARACTER NAME:** lord roiben of the court of termites

**CHARACTER FACECLAIM:** luke eisner 

**CHARACTER AGE/DOB (if from enchanted forest, general age okay):** 

**CHARACTER PRONOUNS/GENDER IDENTITY/SEXUALITY ETC:** he/him | he guesses cis male? the mortal concept of gender is next to meaningless to him. he’s… knight gender? is probably what he would say if pressed. | theoretically pansexual but mostly just kaye-sexual. 

**CHARACTER FANDOM:** the broader holly black universe

**OC OR CANON:**  canon

**WHICH LAND ARE THEY FROM (examples: earth, enchanted forest, wonderland, monsterland [frankenstein, dracula, vamps etc], neverland):** earth but also not earth - from fey lands. 

**CHARACTER BIOGRAPHY:**

born into the seelie court, roiben was close with his younger sister ethine and didn’t want for much or bear much unhappiness outside of the typical fey chaos found in any court. 

all he ever wanted was to be a knight, particularly to silarial as she came to the throne after her mother murdered her father. he shaped himself into a weapon she might wish to wield. 

deeply romanticizing courtly love and the classic Ye Olde version of chivalry, he was over the moon when she bestowed him with her favor and he was allowed to become her knight. 

eventually she takes him to her bed too and he’s like ‘i’m in love i’ll never feel this devotion for anyone else i would literally take the stars out of the sky for you’ and silarial’s like ‘you just keep doing what you’re good at champ’ 

so silarial has a sister who took the unseelie throne, nicnevin. to end hostilities between the seelie and unseelie courts, they decide to do a lil knight swap as a show of good faith. roiben is sent to the night court, and nicnevin’s knight nephamael is sent to the light court (that man’s a real freak but it’s Fine we don’t have to talk abt it)

this isn’t supposed to last forever (theoretically) or at least that’s the impression that roiben is under. or at least hoping for, waiting for the day his true lady might recall him to her side. 

nicnevin’s like ‘mmm, a fresh pretty little knight with Morals and an unbroken spirit who would rather be anywhere else. tasty.’

with the use of his real full name (which allows anyone, fey or mortal to control the name bearer, the reason fey don’t give their full names or real names) she proceeds to have him do horrible horrible things like a big sad meat puppet. both carrying out her ‘justice’ or retaining her honor, or just for her amusement and whims. 

this guy has killed or tortured… so many fey against his will. he gained a rep for being unpredictable (“as likely to kill you as to spare you”) to non-gentry fey because internally he was always trying to look for loopholes in the wording of the direct orders nicnevin might give him, so he could be gentler than he was ordered to be. or at least try to be more merciful and end someone’s life more quickly, rather than allow them to suffer.

(nicnevin loved this btw. it’s her Thing that she enjoys watching him attempt to be defiant and unhappily do her bidding against his will. she’s kind of a freak too tbh she liked debasing and humiliating him any way she could) 

this continued for a few months until roiben was attacked by who he thought was seelie aligned fey in unseelie territory (new jersey), and kaye, who he Thought was a human girl who happened to have The Sight (ability to see the fey and through their enchantments and glamors), happened upon him in the woods and pulled out an arrow from his chest that was bespelled in such a way that he couldn’t pull it out himself. 

in the course of all that, she gets his full real name from him as part of the ‘three questions’ he awarded her for saving him. 

lots of stuff happens for kaye here, but for roiben he goes back to court and nicnevin is like ‘aha i heard there’s a cute lil mortal girl who helped you… what a shame if something happened to her :) actually :) go get her for the Tithe she’d be a good sacrifice :) :)’ 

(The Tithe is an every-seven-years “willing” mortal sacrifice by the unseelie court, the court does the sacrifice and the non-gentry unaffiliated fey within the court’s boundaries pledge themselves to the court for seven more years. the seelie court has one of these too but it involves less blood and murder.) 

kaye is brought to the court for the tithe! she’s under the impression this is an elaborate ruse (and it is but also She Got Lied To About Who The Ruse Was Ruse-ing) and she’s not actually going to die but surprise they actually mean to kill her! oops! 

she uses his full name to order him to get her out of there after he basically begged her to and roiben essentially raw killing machine’s their way outta there, it’s Brutal, he kills nicnevin to kick it all off 

oops kaye is actually one of the fey! roiben does some Assuming that she knew she was fey and a changeling this entire time (she did not, she found out LIKE FOUR DAYS AGO) and he’s all hurt and huffy about that

roiben has to hide out at kaye’s mortal grandma’s house and they find out that the tithe not going through has Consequences (mortals getting fucking Eaten or dancing to death because there’s no one to make the solitary fey…. Not play with humans too much) 

they go back down into the unseelie court after kaye’s friend dies by kelpie drowning to get things back in order (kaye’s other mortal friend is still stuck down there being enchanted and dommed by nephamael, who took over when nicnevin died) 

in true gay villain fashion, nephamael is like ‘ahahehehe i hoped you’d come back’ and reveals that he heard kaye use roiben’s name but he sucks at giving orders in the Just Correctly Worded Way nicnevin had and kaye gets away 

iron and most metals in general are poison to fey, she pries the lil shoe tacks out of her doc martins (resourceful queen) and sleight of hand drops them into his wine. nephamael is Dead as shit but here comes the seelie court “just in time” to take over. 

instead, roiben is very over all of this bullshit and feels like silarial used him as much as nicnevin did so he’s like “actually i’ll be in charge. solitary fey what’s up pledge to me instead and you can do all the mortal eating you want forever from sundown to sun up on samhain”

roiben and kaye smooching here. he loves her, she literally gave him his life back and he’s just Some Guy to her, not Unseelie King or A Knight and he’s all about that. who knew that the courtly feudal system might be something one might want to find love outside of! WHO KNEW! 

okay so they have to wait to coronate him officially until the winter solstice, and of course, silarial doesn’t want that because she had plans to rule both courts that got ruined by the other stuff, she’s like ‘aw baby just come back home i know you miss me, kisses :(‘ 

also his sister is mad at him for not just coming back to the seelie court :( 

he’s falling deeper into the ‘fuck i have to become this harsher person to rule this court but has this cruelty been inside me this whole time… am i a terrible person….is there even a home for me to go home to anymore because i’m Ruined and twisted now’ you know. ptsd and trauma shit. 

after his coronation, some asshole fey manipulates kaye into trying to formally declare herself to roiben, which he did NOT want her to do because it puts her in more danger. 

he’s a Moron so instead of explaining this he sends her on an impossible quest that she must complete before being accepted, which is to find a fey who lies. which… they physically can’t. 

kaye is off Doing Shit and roiben and silarial come to some sort of agreement- instead of fighting a full-out war with lots of casualties, they’ll just have a straightforward 1V1 duel. he beats the champion she chooses, she’ll let it go and they can have seven years of peace, and roiben’s sister on the seelie throne. 

during this lil meeting at the seelie court roiben spots kaye glamoured among the queen’s attendants (she’s doing something let her be she’s valid) and is like What The Fuck 

silarial is like USE HIS REAL NAME KAYE AND MAKE HIM DO WHAT I WANT and kaye’s a clever girl and uses a Fake name but it only buys them time to get the fuck outta there. or like, for kaye to get out of there with roiben’s sister as a hostage. listen, she’s got good reasons to be kinda pissy with roiben right now

stuff sure is Happening with kaye but roiben shows up for the duel on hart’s island (real place!) knowing none of that and she completes her quest (SHE is the fey who can lie) so she can tell roiben the Deets, namely that silarial is going to name roiben’s sister as her champion, so roiben won’t duel her and silarial will win 

instead he still duels her, but instead of killing her upon winning he’s like ‘since you’d die and you were supposed to get the crown, who do you name as your successor?’ 

silarial’s like UH THAT’S NOT HOW THAT WORKS and roiben’s like i mean. we agreed if i won she’d get the crown but if she dies then… she has to name someone… 

silarial is like okay fuck this duel the seelie court’s fighters would win in an actual war anyway and roiben is like i was hoping you’d say that! :) i brought all the exiled fey from nyc with me! :) interesting! :) 

then she’s like FINE I’M GONNA KILL YOUR STUPID LITTLE GIRLFRIEND and roiben’s sister is like actually. i’m done with every aspect of this bullshit. and kills silarial herself with her dueling sword. 

she gives roiben the seelie crown, like ‘take this I Guess, i kinda hate your ass now for making all of this come to pass when you could have just come home and everything would be normal’ 

so now he’s playing a balancing act of ruling both courts, which together become the termite court. it’s a pain in the ass but he’s not too bad at it, even if he kinda has a distaste for the courtier style of wheeling and dealing that being fey royalty and dealing with the royalty of other fey courts tends to entail. 

he’s a stand-up guy though, and when you give him good reason to trust you at your word he’s got your fucking back. 

OKAY NOW THE RELEVANT TO CURRENT STORY STUFF- storybrooke has been this weird twilight zone ass repellant spot to the fey for a hot second, since they could Feel something happening there but obviously couldn’t get in. and the longer storybrooke was around, the longer fey lands got kinda… weird-funky where they were close together. which is saying something because being on “fey lands” already makes time and weather super funky strange. 

now that storybrooke’s curse is broken and people can enter the town, they’ve decided to check this out and see just what this strange interference is. 

OOC INFORMATION: 

MUN NAME/ALIAS: jesse

MUN AGE: 30

MUN PRONOUNS: he/him

[lilbugprincess]

43. Is there someone who gets to see their true self? (for any/all)

In truth... Defiant’s older sister might be the only one who gets to see her ENTIRE true self... all of her, without any obfuscation. She can open herself up to Zedyr and Steiner... she can be herself among many of her friends... she can rely on people, relate to people, but no matter how she loves people, she can’t stop hiding parts of herself.

No one ... has been given the chance to really know all of her. There’s pain too raw for her to share, fears too deep to open up about, memories too shameful to recount. And she’s been hiding things for so long that she doesn’t even realize she isn’t her true self around anyone.

[dragon-queensguard]

I think Rhaena may have annoyed Elaena and Daena with her piety, and she may have disapproved of/been concerned about some of their behavior, but she never snitched on them, including Daena’s escapes

[bride-and-bride]

You are correct and also to not have any idea what this caption means that you are blessed.

every single one of the beta kids the second they figure out how the alchemizer works and spend half an hour making outfits

[bride-and-bride]

Gentle-hearted Negotiator, Defiant Bride

[dammarchy211]

THE POLLS HAVE SPOKENon my instastory. Here’s Dex’s family under the cut😎

Okay so! For his parents I believe I mentioned in the archetype post that despite not really being openly anti-psychic, they still undermine and dismiss him for being so, since as magicians they think being psychic and a magician is “cheating” (which I imagine is a common opinion in the pn universe). Like, it’s not a magic “show” if there’s no show and everyone knows how you did it. Because of this and in conjunction with their parenting style just generally causing Dex to act more defiant, they kind of dump him on his grandpa. Whose death is the catalyst for Dex joining CRIME!

This relationship with his sister is kinda difficult, at the time being they do not get along, just an unfortunate outcome of their upbringing. They’re meant to mirror Frazie and Raz, but instead of their shared psychics (and one wanting to be open about it w/ the other hiding it) bringing them together, it divides them. I think Dex especially resents her on account of how much shit she simply didn’t have to deal with by hiding her psychics because like, HE didn’t know the amount of shit it would get him in if his parents knew, how is that fair? Also the fact she can and totally does get away with a tone of shit simply by blaming it on Dex since he’s the family scapegoat and she’s very much the golden child. I think as she grows up, she’d start tobecome a magician like her parents, but eventually decides to become a psychonaut instead, probably going by her mother’s maiden name since Fahrenheit would be more associated with a villain at this point lol. She would definitely turn out to be a normal and level headed person (w/ therapy), and I really do believe her and Dex would reconcile but like! As adults and when their brains aren’t stupid kid teen brains lol. I don’t really think she would keep in touch with her parents as an adult either, which is probably one of the reasons for her career change but I do like to think she would still put on magic acts at the Aquatodome in her free time. OH AND! She’s good friends w/ Sam! Since both of their grandpas were/are psychonauts n they were both in the motherlobe a lot, by default Dex has to hang out with Dogen bc their sisters are friends but they do actually like es other it’s not like forced or anything (tho I imagine Dex might make Dogen a lil nervous). Also Dex would have to go to whispering rock when he was way younger until he probably got grounded from it.

ALSO IMPORTANT

I know Franke is the name of a pre-existing character, but to be fair psychonauts canon has a Bob, Bobby, and Bobbie (background character). BUT I am thinking about changing it anyway? I might not bc I do love Frankie but here’s the other options

Taffy, Billie, Max/Maxine/Maxie, Eden, and maaaybbeee Agnes or Clara

[jscrystalized]

𝒹𝒶𝓃𝒸𝒾𝓃𝑔  𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓈 🌹

( 𝑨𝑻𝑻𝑬𝑵𝑻𝑰𝑶𝑵! 𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚜 𝚖𝚢 𝚏𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢  𝚠𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚗 𝚘𝚗 𝚎𝚗𝚐𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚑  -𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚖𝚢 𝚖𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚞𝚊𝚐𝚎-, 𝚜𝚘 𝚒’𝚖 𝚜𝚘𝚛𝚛𝚢 𝚒𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎’𝚜 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐 ).

𝐏𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝐶𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑜 𝑀𝑎𝑑𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑎𝑙 𝑥 𝐹𝑒𝑚! 𝑅𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟

𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑐𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑜 𝑏𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑜𝑛 𝑑𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒.

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑓𝑙𝑢𝑓𝑓

𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐞:  𝑠ℎ𝑒/ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟; ℎ𝑒/ℎ𝑖𝑚 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝐶𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑜.

• POV: Camilo ~

There she was.

Linda, dancing among the tangle of so many other bodies, giving her commitment and her soul to it, concentrating her life on dance. The mullet dress swayed frantically, following every delicate, beautifully applied movement of her legs and arms. The long light brown hair that ran down her back, ending exactly at the peak of her ass, bounced around without rest. She followed a surprisingly relentless pace, leaving behind only the curious and impressed looks about her. That night, she shone brighter than the stars in the sky. Her light lit the atmosphere, drawing others to take chances, tasting unknown sensations. A pink clove on her lips and a smile that never faded from her face. She didn't stop.

His hands were sweating in anticipation, stirring every hormone in his body. Usually, Camilo was the first to throw himself on the track and deliver his best, forgetting everything else. Part of his talent dancing was inherited from Felix, what could made him feel free to be himself, unconcerned with transmutations to amuse others. And the other part, it was his genuine spirit of audacity that he never wanted to show on the surface. Today, in particular, was atypical. His spirit screamed over the sound of Latin music to lift his feet off the ground and take him to her. A hot spot crossed his freckles the instant the mention of taking the initiative popped into his mind. Should he go?

It wasn't the first time he'd seen her. She had the habit of appearing at the Madrigal family celebrations, always reserved and silent. She didn't exchange many words, instead preferring to let her body do all the communication work. It was pure art, natural talent. And as if the incredible magnetism of her presence wasn't enough, she was the owner of an incomparable beauty.

“How long are you going to stay here?” Dolores tapped his shoulder lightly with the tip of her elbow, a glass of wine in her hand and a defiant smile on her lips. “I can hear your heart from miles away. Every time it's the same thing.”

“Ha-ha” Camilo scoffed, a surge of energy increasing his heart rate at what his sister had said. A silent moment passed, until he finally concluded. “I have no idea how to do this.”

“Wow, this is very worrying. Don't you know what to do?” The sister's ironic laugh made him blush. “It's easy, lil brother. Do what you do best and just dance. The rest will happen naturally. Let me know if you need help.”

As soon as the oldest walked away, lefting the encouragement planted in his head like a seed, Camilo knew she was right. Since when had he been afraid of something he did without batting an eye? There were no more threats to worry about. Tío Bruno was back and posing no danger. The Encanto was saved and everyone was happy to have their gifts back. Dancing alongside the mystery girl was the least of their problems now. He just awaits for the right moment.

He watched her twirl with her arms above her head, her dress opening like a flower blooming just at the end of a song. Right at the beginning of another one, with scores in the calypso genre, Camilo took a deep breath, ignoring the hammering of his wavering heart. On tiptoe, he performed flashy steps, which, from his own experience, were the flagship of his dance. He closed his eyes and hope to be filled with that feeling of freedom, of bliss, of deep satisfaction. Suddenly, his legs move involuntarily, carrying him among the men and women who applaud him in awe. He couldn't deny himself, he was Pepa and Felix's golden boy. Not in a pejorative sense, of course, his brothers had unparalleled talents... however, the choreography was totally his strong point.

In a matter of minutes, the two souls covered the center of the floor with skill and mastery. The girl swirled around the curly boy, givin he all her attention. Bending her hands, calling him closer, into something more intimatate. Camilo in turn snapped his fingers, moving his arms on opposite sides up, lifting his chin and flashing her a daring smile. He heard the girl laugh behind the pink carnation stem in her teeth, stomping her feet to the beat of the music around them.

“Aye, Cami!” Someone yelled on top of all the noise, feeding his body fuel, revitalizing your energy.

At one point, the choppy sound waves dramatically descended to a slower harmonization, pairing all the couples around them in pairs for a hot mambo. His green orbs found hers, but neither had any real pretense of giving up. They preferred to vie for leadership, to know who would hold whom.

The girl walked gracefully, swaying her hips, never taking her eyes off him. Camilo tapped hands once, slowly in tune with her careful movements, palming himself. Within a breath of distance each other, he could feel her vibration, her feverish temperature, her relentless presence. Things are getting interesting now that there's finally room for affront. And she didn't give up. The sway of her body fulfilled him, she guided him, impressed him. He navigated her curves, catching a glimpse of something he'd never been curious about before.

So this is how feels atracttion on someone else works?

Camilo didn't have time for his emotions because he was more committed to meeting the needs of others – less himself, which often means an inner emptiness. It was great to help everyone, but what about him? His feelings mattered too, they were what made him himself, and now he was sure of it.

In an attempt to liven up the mood, Camilo changed shapeshifting, transforming himself into a reflection identical to his suitor. She abruptly stopped her beautiful and skillful improvisation for a laugh, a real hearty laugh. He felt empowered by awkwardly imitating her steps, unrelated to the body he now possessed, always seeking her approval.

"You're great at this, papi." She teased him, removing the blackhead from his lips with his fingers before speaking, and a wave of disconcerting emotions invaded the curly-haired boy's heart.

Making up his true identity, he bent down and lifted his palm up, holding it out to her in a sign of truce. He had to act if he didn't want this to go unnoticed and her go away like so many other times.

"Baile conmigo, princesa." he asked in a lethargic tone, visibly eager for their interaction. The labored breathing and sweat trickling down his temples and jaw, being absorbed by his shirt collar.

She made a scene, pretending to consider his request and biting her lips but it didn't take long for Camilo's hand to be filled with her's, a corner smile instantly melting him.

“I liked your ruana.” She praised her, both walking around one another.

“I liked the flower, is beautiful like you.” Camilo handed it back, his sass kicking out a flirtation.

She blushed, destabilized by the compliment. As if to ease the embarrassment, she tucked the green stem inside the boy's rauna neckline, embellishing it with that pink detail that contrasted with the vibrant yellow of the piece. “Y ahora és tuyo.”

Seconds that seemed endless passed without a word, millions of thoughts being conveyed in looks of mutual affection. Her fingers squeezed his palms minimally and if he hadn't been so attentive to his senses, he wouldn't have noticed. Immediately his legs run, a playful smile spread across her face.

"Where are we going?" she asked, laughing as she tried to keep up with the hurried boy for a unknown destination.

“Wait and see” Camilo created an enigmatic air, heading to the pillar closest to the stairs that led to the bedrooms. He looked up and cupped his hands around his mouth like a makeshift megaphone. “Casita! Help us up!”

Automatically, the big, smart house worked to dismantle the upper level guardrail and turn it into a ladder that descended to the ground near his feet.

“Bamos!” He started to move up, excited. In a way, she shared the same enthusiasm, curious to know where they were going, both hearts pounding.

On top of what would  been the roof of Abuela Alma's room, Camilo was the first to get up, then helping her. She was careful not to slip on the fabric of the dress, otherwise it would be a serious accident judging by the height they were now.

“This is my favorite place.” he explains, sitting up and patting his side for her to sit up too. “I come here when I want to relax.”

• POV: Reader ~

You understood how important it was to him and felt honored to be able to be there. Both watch the skies above their heads, allowing for a pleasant silence. Even if you didn't know him personally, you knew who he was and you knew you had a crush on him just like all girls your age, which didn't stop you from feeling lucky now.

That unplanned first meeting, the spontaneity of the events, the sweetness on his face when turned to look at you… all of this would be etched in your memory forever.

"You know...I see you." Camilo confessed, expelling a ton from his chest. You tilt your head and he continues. “I don't remember when it started, but I saw how you dance and how good you are at it and sometimes I even feel envy. I'm just a viewer and I never get tired because you are amazing.” When he finished, his whole body was boiling and his chin was trembling with nervousness. "And I know this might sound weird, we just met..."

You caught what he meant and what was implied by the unspoken words and thanked the greater forces that your deep interest was not as oblivious as you thought. From the first day you took part in one of the Madrigals celebrations, it was as if a small obsession with him had unexpectedly appeared, and since you didn't intend to be inconvenient, you hid it. After all, you believed your chances were remote, almost non-existent.

Smiling, you gazed at the moonlit freckles and the perfect curls that formed from the roots and fell to her narrow shoulders. God, he's criminally handsome.

“I see you tho, Camilo. And isn't like I just said that because you have a gift or something. It goes much further. Maybe's just be too early to bring up the subject.”

Yes, it was definitely too early and it was too fast. Camilo cleared his throat, extremely flushed and relieved that he could not been caught by the darkness of the night. Reciprocity can be charming and new, however, he wanted to understand a little more about it. Understand a little more about you. Before saying something stupid that would spoil everything, Camilo removed the clove from the rauna, placing it on his legs, and pulled the fabric of the poncho down his arms, leaving only the white shirt underneath. He offered the ruana to you, a passionate expression on his face.

“Take it, hermosa, it's yours now. I have many others where this one came from.” It justified when you drew your eyebrows together. “a fair exchange. Your flower and my ruana.”

Despite his hesitation in accepting, you couldn't refuse such an affectionate act and couldn't wait to use it. “Gracias...” You hugged the fabric to your chest, inhaling the boy's heady scent and he came undone at the sight.

Both would like that moment to last a lifetime, just to prolong their stay together. It's a shame that everything good ends so quickly. You needed to go home to help your father with some chores and Camilo made you promise to come back to visit him the next day, so it was done.

• POV: Camilo ~

He had prepared all the ground, making all the Madrigals aware of you, which meant a special dinner for your arrival. Nothing that was very promising, but that would certainly be very important to you – and to him. Tía Julieta cooked her best appetizing recipes and Isabela decorated everything delicately, without exaggeration. Mirabel sewed a brand new rauna for him and Bruno, and a skirt for herself. And Pepa… evidently wanted nothing to go wrong, whispering to herself that it wasn't necessary to freak out because her son was one foot from a date

For Camilo's happiness, dinner was fine. You were too gorgeous in a coral-orange jumpsuit, your hair pulled back in a subtly messy ponytail, and the same warm look he adored. The family treated you like a real princess and, to the boy's surprise, there weren't any unnecessary comments regarding a hasty marriage.

At one point during the night, they approached the theme of music, thing they had a great affinity for there, and Agustin had the brilliant idea to show you his gift on the piano, since everyone had a power except him, Felix and Mirabel. And that didn't detract from how fantastic he was at playing. First it was lyrical notes, a sweet, peaceful sound. Then he added a touch of parsley, warming the mood. Camilo noticed every minute detail about you and it was no surprise to see your hips swaying, seeking to synchronize with every note that hovered around everyone else.

Camilo invite you for a dance, and you accept, very hesitantly, because you have no affinity with this modality - dance in pairs, but at least gave it a chance. At first, she only knows how to apologize for how much stepped on the boy's feet, who seemed unshakable even with the pain. He held you deftly and little by little showed you how to make it work. Camilo couldn't stop looking at you, in fact he didn't measure efforts to do so. You radiated an iridescent glow that enchanted him. Literally.

He knew you were the girl for him.

What was supposed to be a visit one day dragged on for a whole year. Every day you was present, helping the family with whatever it takes and especially being close to Camilo, reinforcing her feelings that were now even more intense. Your name was already on everyone's lips at the Casita, as everyone hoped to see you together someday, especially Dolores.Well, ambitious as Camilo was, he'd confided his love vows to you less than three weeks after they'd officially met, which had resulted in a secret relationship that ultimately everyone was suspicious of.

• POV: Reader ~

Pepa encouraged Camilo to be a good boy, which was not necessary. Camilo was the best person you had ever met. Gentle, sweet, playful, sensitive, extremely caring and respectful when they were alone under the four walls of his room. You could barely start a sentence and he would finish it, as if he could read your thoughts. You wanted something and he hurried to do it just to saw your satisfied smile in thanks. However, in contrast to his lovable personality, he could also be a playful comedian without limits, sometimes getting on your nerves.

And today in particular, you weren't in the mood for pranks and Camilo managed to be annoying enough to make you frown for the rest of the night.

“Cami, just shut up, please.” You request in an emphatic, exhausted tone. Your morning had been a frustrating one at the bakery your dad ran and having him snap at everything you said only made you worse.

“Come on, sweetheart, ¿Qué pasa?” The curly hair boy questioned, finally settling down beside her on the bed. You were lying on your back staring at the ceiling and he lay on his side, his face projected very close to you.

"No big deal, I had a bad day, that's it." You take a deep breath, closing your eyes in the brief moment of stillness.

“Hmm, and what can I do to improve this, mi amor?” Camilo settled closer to you, carrying his hand to caress your cheek with the links of his fingers.

You lean into the soft touch, relaxing. "Shhh..."

But he looked restless, nervous. Maybe he wanted a more specific statement of what you passed or he just had the innocent intention of embarrassing you by initiating a small kissing session on the same cheek he caressed earlier. Slow kisses that traced a line from your cheekbone to your earlobe, sending a shiver through you.

“You're so beautiful, amor.” He whispered in your ear. “Dime qué está pasando... I want to help you."

Your heart hammered in the chest and you took a deep breath, regaining your sanity after that. Turned your face to see him staring at you, his eyes intense and dark in submission to you.

“You look beautiful when you're mad, muy muuy hermosa. Come here…” He pulled you up and laid your head on his chest, you breathing in his rauna and never getting tired of his scent. Stroked your hair, patiently given your time and allowed you to calm down.

“I miss dancing with you.” You say, stressing over the silence too.

"Let's dance then."

Lifting your neck the slightest bit, you caught him watching you intently and a fragile smile crept onto her face. He was the most important boy in your life, to whom you had given your all. Your time, your strength, your desire, your passion. A stunning beauty, he was extraordinary with his gift, humble and full of surprises. His golden skin overshadowed even the colors of the rainbow, and all the elements that made up his physiognomy were incredibly harmonious.

“Come, mi vida, levántate.” He lifted you carefully and helped you out of bed, running over to the small radio on the dresser next to the porch door. Music blared from the radio as it turned on and you shivered, your muscles tensing in alert.

Before you could think of a method of escape – 'cause you didn't danced for a long time, you'd probably be rusty, Camilo didn't wait and performed small actions consistent with the beats that filled the room, walking slowly towards to you.

“Cami…” You struggled, though nothing came to your mind, no coherent idea. Music was your weakness, and it was hard to resist. Your limbs involuntarily throbbed in need, requiring you to follow along with a few short moves, perfecting them as the sound went on.

“Sí, amor, that’s what I’m talking about!” He gasped, staring at his hourglass body that slithered, rippling with cunning. The swaying wide hips were his undoing.

Damn, Camilo was an expert at lifting your spirits. Quickly his face radiated pure delight, reminiscing about old times. Her chest rose and fell quickly, panting. Droplets of sweat were already spreading across her skin. Both found an equal attunement of mobility, giving way to competitive spirits that only you knew. He took two steps toward him and placed his hands on his waist, tracking his dexterity with minimal difficulty. You wrapped your arms around his neck, leaning your back back and throwing all your weight so he could hold you, trusting him with everything. And Camilo did not disappoint. He knew you so well, deciphering you by heart and sautéing. His hands immediately supported her back, holding her a few inches off the ground. You looked at each other, absolutely in love, sweating and panting from the exercise you loved so much.

“Thank you, Chameleon.” You smiled, embarrassed. "I needed that."

Camilo craned his neck and planted a soft, lingering kiss on your lips.

“You are amazing, princesa. I will always remind you of this.” Camilo squeezed you a little tighter to get you back to your natural posture, hugging you tight and snuggling you on top of his slender, cozy frame. You no longer remembered why you were angry, that dance and the boy's affection had extracted everything negative from inside you, leaving only the deep love between you.

And so life went on. With each celebration of the arrival of summer or anniversaries of each Madrigal, you and Camilo led the dance room. Your connection could surprise from a child who knew little about dance, to the most skeptical who believed that “dancing was not a sport”. In fact, you never believed that this is a sport. Sports are boring, at least for you. But dancing... there was a whole special feeling, a form of expression, a demonstration of feelings. What was even more beautiful was the way both of you were connected to the dance. It was through this that both met and fell in love.

And so they would continue, the dancing lovers.

[princessphilly]

Word count: 5627

Tag list:  @ohpuckyeah, @joelsfarabee, @besthockeyfics. @dreamer1430 @Defiant-Mouse @miracleonice87 @lovethepreds @linkingdolans @chicagostylehockey @heatherlcrosby87 @hockeywocs @shortstacks-blog @heatherawoowoo @newlibrary @markymarkstrom @iangiemae @puckbitchesgetmoney @missymore @himbos-on-ice @fiveholegoal @no-pucks-given @pagirl6866 @willieshakesqueer @nazdaddy @whatishockey @alphalib22 @romanseggy @laurenairay @texanstarslove @konecny-s @cutiesara23 @myhockeyworld87 @extratragic @squidlywiddly87 @stuff4me2do​ @allinangel93 @mydarkestsecretlol​

CW: angst, meeting the family, references to the n-word, people sucking

I decided to go ahead and finish it when I got a sudden burst of creativity when I came home.

*

Nina snuggled in bed, a happy little sigh leaving her lips. Sidney looked at her, a fond smile on his face. It had been a month since they were back together and life was almost perfect. Well, they were 6-3-2, 14 points earned which was okay but not where Sidney wanted the team to be. It was still early in the season, it was mid-November so there was plenty of time to right the ship. He and the boys would fix it. Sidney sighed before attempting to try to go back to sleep. However, he heard the sound of a door opening and he sat up, pushing the covers down inadvertently. 

Sidney racked his brain. It was Sunday, Marta, his housekeeper’s day off. Mario or Nathalie would have called before coming over. He had no idea who the hell it could be. “Fuck,” Sidney breathed. There were only two people who would do a surprise visit and one of them was a week earlier for the Moms trip. 

Lightly brushing his fingers over Nina’s side, Sidney urged, “Pretty girl, wake up.”

It was roughly 8am so it wasn’t hard to get Nina, an early riser by nature to wake up. “Urgh, mawning,” Nina mumbled as she cracked open her eyes. Sidney looked anxious and agitated which made Nina focus. 

Sidney opened his mouth, then closed it. If he was right, he was fucked and his pretty girl was probably going to run away screaming. He finally said, “Um, someone just opened the door and there are exactly five people other than me who have a key. There are two who’d do a surprise visit.”

Looking down, Nina was thankful that she had on one of Sidney’s shirts and shorts while sleeping. “Well, fuck, at least I’m not naked,” she said pointedly. Sidney had the grace to blush as Nina continued, “If it’s what you think it is, you need to get that under control,” pointing at his rather obvious morning wood. Sidney pulled the covers back over himself and Nina

Then a voice called out, “Morming, Sid!”

Sidney sighed in relief. It was Taylor, not his mom. Nina noticed it and arched an eyebrow. “Eh, it’s my sister, pretty girl.”

“Shit,” Nina fretted. This was going to be awkward, she didn’t even know if she wanted to meet his family but now, she was going to,have to. At least it was a sister.

The door creaked open and a blonde-haired head peeked in. “Boo,” Taylor said. Then her eyes perked when she saw who Sidney was with. 

Nina groaned. Her hair was in a scarf, it was obvious she slept over and fuck, fuck, fuck. A devious smile spread on Taylor’s face. “Nice to see that you finally let a girlfriend sleep in your room, Sidney.”

“Shut the fuck up, Taylor,” Sidney yelled as his little sister giggled before closing the door.

Nina facepalmed. “That was fun. Fun fun fun.”

Rolling onto her front, Nina mumbled, “I’m not ready to meet your family.”

“I’ve already met yours,” Sidney reasoned. 

“That was because Yanni was part of your Lil Penguins program. That was work related for you, doesn’t count.”

Trailing his fingers down Nina’s back, Sidney replied, “True but, it still counts. What are you doing next weekend?”

“I’m going to be in Philly for a wedding.”

Nina turned onto her left side, facing Sidney. Sidney sucked his bottom lip into his mouth before letting it go. “Don’t get any ideas.”

She slipped off the bed, pulling the scarf off her braids, letting them fall down her back. Rummaging through her clothes on the floor, Nina pulled out her bra. Pulling her shirt off, she put it on to the sound of Sidney’s groans. Nina rolled her eyes. “I’m stuck having to meet your sister because she decided to give you a surprise visit. I’m not meeting her without wearing a bra.”

“But you look so amazing without one,” Sidney replied. 

 Nina shook her head before leaving his bedroom. Making her way to the kitchen, Nina literally bumped into Taylor. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry,” Nina gasped. 

“I’m okay,” Taylor reassured Nina, taking the moment to check out this girl that Sidney was now seeing. She wasn’t exactly what Taylor was expecting but one thing that Taylor liked about Nina was that she had kind eyes. Taylor had heard about her over the years, especially that Nina had kept rejecting Sidney. Her brother rarely heard the word no so that made Nina intriguing to her. 

Taylor offered, “Have you had breakfast yet?”

“No, and I’m hungry.”

Opening the fridge, Taylor took out the ingredients to make omelets. Nina sat at the island, a pensive look on her face. “You know, I totally didn’t expect to meet you this way. This is awkward as fuck.”

“Eh, don’t feel bad, I should have given Sid a heads up,” Taylor replied. “Plus, I’ve heard about you over the years.”

“Oh really?”

Taylor laughed as she cracked eggs. “Sidney couldn’t shut up about you. First it was he met this nice girl at work. Then, it was that you kept telling him no and he was confused. Later, he was beating himself up because he managed to fuck up before he could even ask you out. I really enjoyed that, I liked that you kept not only telling him no but when he pissed you off, you didn’t forgive him right away. I love my brother but his ego needs to get cut down sometimes.”

“True, he has a huge ego. He needs to take himself less seriously,” Nina concurred. “But it’s probably impossible to get him to do that.”

Taylor shrugged, pursing her lips. “At least he means well,” Nina added. 

Nodding, Taylor replied, “He does mean well, most of the time.”

“Already ganging up on me?”

They both laughed as Sidney entered the kitchen. “Why are you here, Taylor?”

“I went on a camping trip and I decided to be nosy and visit my big brother before heading home,” Taylor chirped. “The look on your face was worth it.”

“Hahaha. Should’ve called,” Sidney grumbled. 

Taylor quipped, “Oh, did I ruin your morning sex plans? I’m so sorry.”

Nina snorted as she laughed. Sidney gave her hurt eyes and Nina blew him a kiss. 

“Don’t worry Sid, I’m not staying long. Just enough to rest and then get back on the road,” Taylor said. 

“You drove,” Nina asked. Sidney was now standing right behind her and she could feel his hands massaging her shoulders. 

Taylor nodded as she flipped the first omelet. “You’re not what I expected, Nina. You’re way too pretty for a hockey player like my brother.”

Sidney wanted to kill his little sister as she continued to chirp him. Well, not only chirp him but ruin his planned lazy morning sex. But as he watched his sister and Nina interact playfully, Sidney could admit there was a slight good point. Taylor and Nina were hitting it off and Sidney knew that Nina would meet his family soon. This was a good sign. 

**

However, after practice four days later, Sidney was wishing his sister had never stopped by. Nina had been incredibly busy all week and Sidney knew he wouldn’t see her until next week due to her trip out of town. He was feeling extra irritable and hearing his name over the tv didn’t help. 

“So, two weeks ago, Sidney Crosby admitted that he was having relationship issues that were affecting him on the ice.”

Tanger went to change the channel on the tv in the lounge, muttering, “Fucking ESPN.”

“Shh, keep it on,” Sidney urged, crossing his arms over his chest. He wanted to see what kind of bullshit ESPN was saying now.

A couple of the guys stopped to check out the TV. Kevin Neghandi laughed as he responded, “Yeah, he admitted that after breaking a slump. Ever since, he’s been on a 2 point-per-game streak. But this really isn’t about him.”

“Huh,” said Geno, scratching his head.

Buccigross continued, “There was a picture of Crosby and his girlfriend posted on the internet, a nice picture. Someone posted it and made a derogatory statement about his girlfriend, Nina Jackson. This player is a player for Clemson.”

Neghandi laughed again. “Ms. Jackson has a younger brother named Jason Jackson. He was also the number 20 prospect, number 1, 5 star tight end. He also now plays for UNC.”

Sidney chuckled as he realized exactly where this was going. The guy on the tv continued, “Clemson and UNC had the rare Thursday night game last night. #1 Clemson went to the Tar Heels, ranked #22 and got spanked, 56-30. Jason Jackson had 10 catches, 200 yards receiving, and 3 TDs. His response in the postgame.”

The tv showed a clip of Jason talking to the media. A reporter asked, “What inspired you to have such a big game tonight.”

“Lowell decided he needed to talk about my sister on the gram so I had to put him in his place,” Jason drawled.

Sidney’s phone buzzed and it was a message from Nina. my brother is so dramatic 🙄

Nice to know he’ll always have your back, Sidney sent Nina. 

**

Nina smiled happily as she looked at the Thai food on plate. She was so hungry and excited to see Jamila face to face in person for lunch. Her friend looked more vibrant than usual, as life was treating her good. They made small talk until Jamila said, “I heard something about you, that you aren’t single for the first time in forever.”

“Oh really?”

Jamila looked at her best friend. “You’re dating Mayo boy.”

“What?!?” Perplexed, Nina stared at Jamila while Jamila rolled her eyes. 

“Sidney Crosby is like Mayo. Super white. Damn, my dating habits really did rub off on you. Welcome to being a basic bitch like me.”

It was Nina’s turn to roll her eyes. “Stop being so fucking dramatic, Jamila Brown.”

“I was an actress, I’m supposed to be dramatic. Tell Mayo boy if he ever breaks your heart, I’ll kill and cremate whatever’s left of him after your father and brother are finished with him.”

“Are you really gonna nickname him that?”

Jamila smirked at Nina and Nina sighed. Shrugging elegantly, Jamila replied, “I’m a part of Philly sports Twitter. I got lots of other names I could call him.

“Be a bigger bitch, Mila.”

“He gets a better nickname when he lets you fully run his pockets. And don’t give me that look, don’t be afraid of being called a gold digger. They are probably calling you worse names. Make Mayo boy run that card up when he takes you on baecation. Once that happens, I’ll upgrade his nickname.”

Nina sighed as she looked at the menu. Jamila reached out and put her hand out, covering Nina’s menu. “You know I’m just playing, right?”

“I don’t want to talk about it now, let’s talk about Toyin’s wedding instead,” Nina murmured. 

It was Jamila’s turn to sigh. “I’m sorry, Nina. I’m sorry for being a bitch. I shouldn’t be taking out my bad mood on you. I hate men.”

“Not forgiven yet,” Nina snarked. 

Jamila looked pensive as she said, “I like this guy but I don’t want to admit I like him. He’s like too perfect, too nice, well not that nice. He actually gives a fuck.”

“Let me guess, you’re scared and about to do something super stupid,” Nina dryly replied.

Jamila gave Nina a shocked look before she slumped in her chair. “I don’t want to,” she pouted. 

Nina reasoned, “Then don’t. Just ride it out for once.”

“Easy for you to say,” Jamila replied. 

Nina shrugged as her phone buzzed. It was a message from Sid, well really just a picture of him sweaty post-practice. Nina left him on read, she would get him back later for that. “Stop being stupid, and stop self-sabotaging.”

Jamila rolled her eyes as she ate her food. After swallowing, she arched an eyebrow. “Mayo boy sent you a message?”

“Yeah, but I’m focusing on you. I’ll see him next week… and his parents.”

“This is going fast,” Jamila commented. 

Nina bit her lip before saying, “I guess he had to wait eighty-four years, I mean five years, so he’s going to take advantage while they are in town.”

“Interesting.”

Nina pointed out, “At least I’m giving my relationships a chance, unlike you.”

“Fuck you.” 

Jamila gave Nina an exaggerated nasty look as Nina quipped, “I’m strictly dickly, bitch.”

The conversation switched to safer topics. However, throughout the wedding weekend, Nina had the thought in the back of her mind that maybe things were going a bit too fast. 

**

“Well, Taylor says she likes her. I checked out her instagram account and she doesn’t even mention you. Lots of nice vacation pictures though.”

Sidney looked at his mom from across the table. Trina had a pensive look on her face. Troy raised his eyebrows before leaning back in his chair. 

Sidney reasoned, “I want you two to meet her. Give her a chance. Nina is amazing, I’m lucky that she even likes me.”

“Why wouldn’t she like you, you’re Sidney Crosby,” Trina scoffed. 

Sidney shrugged. “Nina’s a PhD student and everything. It hasn’t been easy for her either.”

“Interesting,” Trina said. 

Nina herself was feeling extra nervous. She wasn’t sure if she was ready to meet Sidney’s parents, especially after having to turn in a huge paper and part of her thesis to her advisor. But, as she shook her head and smoothed down her shirt, they were in town and she was going to try to make her best impression.

Midway through dinner, Nina began to wish she was somewhere else on this Friday night. While Troy, Sidney’s dad, seemed nice, it felt like Trina was judging every single thing she did. Every reply Trina made to Nina’s questions was in a dry voice, as if it was boring her. Nina felt a bit discouraged. Sidney obviously loved his parents but it felt like his mother didn’t like her. 

On the other hand, Trina felt like Nina was looking down on them. It seemed like she was mentioning her PhD program, her thesis, like she was too smart for them and her boy. Trina sipped her water as there was a pause. She didn’t know about this girl but at least, every time she looked at Sidney, Trina could see the stars and hearts in her eyes.

Nina looked at Sidney, her palms sweating. She didn’t know what to say as she looked down at her plate. Her appetite was gone. Sidney, himself, didn’t really notice anything as he answered his father’s questions about the beginning of the season. Then Troy turned to Nina. 

“So what do you plan to do now that you’re with Sidney,” Troy casually asked.

Nina replied, “I have about two more years left before I finish earning my PhD. I plan to continue to work and I may teach a class or two.”

“You still plan to work,” Trina asked.

Nina nodded. “Yes. I love what I do and I’m not wasting my degrees.”

“Why do you want to work?”

Nina could tell that Trina intended that question to be light but Nina could still feel the claws. She was tired of this passive-aggressive bullshit and ready to curse her out. But Nina couldn’t so she measured her words carefully. “I did four years of undergrad, three years of school for my doctors in physical therapy, and I will do four more years for my doctorate. Why would I stop working after earning my degrees?”

Trina paused; she had expected some trite, suck-up answer. But it seemed like Nina was serious. “I would think that if you were with my son, you’d rather not work.”

“I’m not built to be a housewife.” Nina laughed. “I love what I do and if I’m expected to stop for Sidney, then maybe I need to reevaluate some things.”

Trina felt like she lost control of this conversation. All she wanted was to see what kind of user her boy’s dream girl was. Now, she had the feeling that her son was going to get dumped and it was going to be her fault.

Sidney laughed. “I don’t expect you to be a housewife. You would be so bored if you were.”

Nina flashed Sidney a quick grin before adding, “Nathalie has let me know the responsibilities though. I’ve done lots of volunteer and charity work over the years so that isn’t new at all. I’m excited about the toy drive, I remember when my parents just got out of the army and cash was tight. I got my favorite doll as a kid from a toy drive.”

“That’s nice,” Trina said. Maybe this Nina girl wasn’t completely stuck up, she thought as the night continued. After a couple of hours, Nina said her goodbyes. It was getting late and she was spending the morning taking her little sister to volleyball practice. After she left, Trina let out a sigh as Sidney turned to her.

“You have to lay off on Nina, Mom.”

Trina turned to look at her son. Sidney was giving her his most serious look and she sighed. 

“I like her but I don’t know if she’s the one for you, Sid. It seems like she’s one step from leaving you,” Trina said. “I don’t see her sticking with you if things go bad.”

“Just because she plans to work?” 

Sidney gave his mother an assessing look. He knew she meant well but this wasn’t for her to decide. “This isn’t your problem.”

“Fine, I like that she has her own life. She’s not obsessed with you and she plans to be her own person,” Trina conceded. “But she’s different.”

He knew this was going to be hard, asking his mom to back off but Sidney knew he had to do it. Nina hadn’t said anything last night but Sidney could sense that she was tired of how his mother was acting. Sidney also knew that if Nina decided to cut ties, it would be completely over. Sidney started, “Compared to Nina, I’m a dumb hockey player. But what I have with her, I’ve never found with anyone else. If you have a problem with that, that’s you. But be civil to Nina.”

“Really, Sidney Patrick Crosby,” Trina said, incredulous. But the look on her son’s face was something she had never seen before. Even though she didn’t believe her son would really pick any woman over her, a voice at the back of her mind told her that if Sidney ever did, this would be the woman he’d pick over her.

**

It was Saturday night and Nina pasted another smile on her face. If Trina got snide again, Nina didn’t know if she could be nice about it. But at least they were in public. As they sat down for dinner, a couple of guys came up. Sidney and his family had perfect PR smiles but the guys stopped in front of Nina.

“Hey, aren’t you Jason Jackson’s sister?”

Nina grinned. “Yes.”

“Why did he have to have such a great game against Pitt today? He killed them,” one of the guys said.

Nina shrugged. “Pitt should play better defense.”

After the guys left, Troy asked, “your brother plays college football?”

“Yup. He was the top prospect in Pennsylvania last season. Games on tv and everything.”

“I didn’t know that,” Sidney murmured.

Nina giggled as she replied, “All you do is eat, sleep, and breathe hockey.”

Sidney blushed as everyone laughed at that statement. However, through the night, more people came by the table to give Nina props for her brother’s monster game than to try to get a glimpse of Sidney. Jason had 184 yards receiving and 2 TDs for UNC today and there was already buzz about Jason being on the fast track to the NFL. During a lull, Trina stated, “You must get asked about your brother a lot.”

“I’m used to it. Once ESPN comes to your brother’s games when he was a sophomore in high school, you have to get used to it,” Nina said with a shrug. “I’m old enough that it really doesn’t bother me.”

“How does your brother deal with it,” Sidney asked, curious as he remembered some of his early experiences with fame. 

Nina replied, “College football is a different beast than the pros. So, he’s on scholarship and his days are pretty much regimented with meetings, practice, classes, more meetings, video study. I ran track when I was in undergrad so my experience was slightly similar. Main difference is that Jase gets paid for his likeness in video games now and a percentage of any jersey sales with his name and number.”

“You ran track,” Troy asked. Unlike his wife, he felt a bit more open towards Nina. It was obvious that she didn’t need Sidney for anything and Troy could see that his son was able to relax in a way with Nina that he hadn’t been able to relax with a woman before. 

“I had a partial scholarship. I ran the 4x100 relay and the 100 meters. I didn’t have the athletic ability to race for a living but I did decent,” Nina stated, feeling a bit shy. It had been a long time since she even talked about her track career. “I was state champ my senior year and my team won silver at the Penn Relays my sophomore and junior years of college. Now, I just run to stay in shape.”

“Wow,” Sidney said, impressed. “Sounds like you loved it though.”

Nina flashed Sidney a grin. “I did, I love running. What most people forget is that you can’t just run for health, you have to run and do strength training and yoga or Pilates.” 

“Have you been to any of your brother’s games,” Troy asked. “Seems like they are doing well.”

Nina replied, “We went to the season opener. I will never go to North Carolina in August ever again if I can help it. I’m going to their game next weekend at Virginia Tech. We’ll probably go to the bowl game since my little sister will be off school that week.”

“Seems like you stay busy,” Trina mused. 

Nina couldn’t help a little glare as she managed to say without malice, “I plan my calendar in advance.”

Trina said, “That sounds good. You have a life outside of everything.”

“And I will continue to have a life outside of everything,” Nina said with a syrup-sweet smile.

**

Nina quietly washed her hands, glancing up to the mirror. Trina was looking down on her hands as she washed hers. Tentatively, Nina asked, “Are you having a good time on this trip?”

“I enjoyed the Moms’ trip,” Trina replied. 

Nina looked down at her hands as she dried them. This was so awkward and she wanted to cry. 

“Sidney Crosby is here, and so are his parents,” somebody exclaimed just outside the ladies bathroom. Trina and Nina both shared a look until another person said, “And his n-word girlfriend is here with them too.”

Nina opened her mouth but Trina put up a finger. The second person continued, “His mom doesn't look too happy with that black girl. Maybe you could get a chance, finally.”

The door opener and the two women came in, laughing. The laughter stopped when those women saw Nina and Trina. 

“You don’t have to worry about getting a chance with my son because there’s no way I’d let him be with someone like you when he’s with a lady like Nina,” Trina stated. 

The two women shared a look but Trina stared them down until they left. Nina let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. “No wonder my son is always saying that it hasn’t been easy for you,” Trina offered. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure they get kicked out.”

Nina sniffled as she said, “That’s the first time I’ve heard it in person. It’s usually nasty messages online. I really, really hate it. But I guess I’m going to be stuck with this for the rest of my life.”

Impulsively, Trina reached out and grabbed Nina’s hand. “From the way that my son looks at you, nasty women like those will just have to be angry forever.”

Nina giggled as they shared a look. It felt like there was a truce and she was going to take it. After Trina talked to the manager and got those women booted, Nina definitely felt like there was definitely a truce.

**

“Don’t take anything seriously. If they don’t like you, they’ll say absolutely nothing to you. If they make jokes, they like you.”

Two weeks after meeting Sid’s family, it was his turn to meet Nina’s family. The team was home for American Thanksgiving and they didn’t have a game until Friday evening this year. So Sidney was going with Nina to meet her extended family. He was feeling extra nervous and desperate to make a good impression. 

Sidney grimaced as Nina giggled. “Plus, it’s Aryanna’s birthday so they won’t be too mean. I think.”

“Anything else I need to worry about,” Sidney asked. 

Nina reached out over the console and touched Sidney’s hand. “Relax, it’s not a game. You can’t lose.”

“But, I want them-”

Cutting Sidney off, Nina said, “I know, you want them to like you. So be the dork that you are instead of faking like you aren’t a dork.”

Sidney felt a bit insulted but Nina gave him a dazzling smile. “I like it when you’re being dorky, anyway.”

**

Sidney tried hard to follow Nina’s advice. There were so many people that he couldn’t keep them all straight so he focused on making sure he remembered the names of the older people in Nina’s family. There was Mawmaw, the family matriarch, Tracey and Vernon, Nina’s parents, Aunt Tasha who baked the sweet potato pie that he was having his third slice of, Aunt Dee, Uncle Tony, and Uncle Bashir. All of the cousins kinda blurred together but Sidney figured he’d learn their names quickly. 

Overall, he felt like everything was going well. Sidney answered everyone’s questions and he guessed his answers were good since one of Nina’s older cousins told him his new nickname was White Boy. Nina had snickered while some of the younger ones giggled. Right now, Sidney was talking to Aunt Tasha. “What would it take to get you to bake me a pie of my own,” Sidney asked. 

Tasha laughed while Tracey smirked. Tracey interjected, “Oh no, Tasha gonna be bragging about this forever. ‘Guess who came to Thanksgiving and loved my sweet potato pie? Sidney Crosby loved my sweet potato pie.’ She will never shut up!”

“Don’t be mad that you can’t bake a pie as good as me, Tracey,” Tasha chided, laughing. “Nina makes a better pie than both of us but that girl don’t wanna cook.”

Tracey smirked when she saw the look on Sidney’s face. “Oh no, Tash, now this boy gonna be begging my daughter to make him a pie.”

Everyone laughed as Nina was in a different room. Mawmaw chided, “I’m happy that one of my family don’t got to be in the kitchen like that. I wish I could’ve been the same at her age.”

Sidney decided to scroll his phone as the older women began to argue. Then he felt someone tap his shoulder.

“White boy, you wanna play spades?”

Sidney looked at this cousin of Nina. He was sitting at a table with Vernon, one of her aunts, and another cousin. “No,” he replied, shaking his head. 

The cousin got a devious grin on his face. “It’s easy, you should play for Shantara, she can’t play for shit.”

Sidney’s competitive instinct told him it was a bad idea. And from the way Vernon was eyeing him, Sidney knew he was right for shaking his head. “Nope. I’ll learn by watching.”

“Nina’s white boy smart,” Aunt Tasha hollered. “You play spades and renege, boy, someone about to go for those knees.”

“Stop torturing, Sid, Deonte,” Nina scolded as she sat in Sidney’s lap. “At least wait til the second visit before hazing him over spades.”

“I like this boy, Nini. Keep him, he’s betta than that last boy you brought here, bless his heart. Didn’t know how to talk to people,” Mawmaw advised. 

Nina wanted to die as the rest of her family snickered. Holidays: the time of the year where your greatest fuckups get rehashed for shits and giggles. 

Nafis snorted. “What’s his name... it wasn’t that Ron boy, was it? Naw, it was James’s old friend, Jordan. We all knew he wasn’t shit, I mean, nothing, when he made Tommy mad.”

Nina winced as remembered that. Tommy was one of the sweetest guys and hard to rile up, but anyone who could make cousin Tommy mad was a douchebag. 

“Her pets like him. Tess curls in his lap and Steely lets him pet him,” Vernon said. 

Everyone stared at Sidney, eyes wide. Stuttering, Aunt Tasha said, “T-t-that cat and d-dog hate every damn body other than Nini and her family. I be damned.”

Mawmaw laughed.

The rest of the dinner went without incident. But at a quiet moment, Vernon pulled Sidney from the group to a quiet spot in the yard. It was late November in Western Pennsylvania so no one else was there. 

Vernon Jackson had seen more of his fair share of crap in his life. Growing up in Ward 8 of D.C., Vernon had dodged dealers, hustlers, stick-up kids, etc. to survive. His grades weren’t great so Vernon went into the army to ensure that he escaped. Through being deployed in the Gulf War then to Mogadishu, Vernon had done his best to make sure that all his children had more than he did growing up. 

Now, his sweettart, his eldest, his sweet girl, Nina was grown. She had done more than he and Tracey combined. But looking at the man he was sure his daughter was in love with, Vernon began to wonder if he made a mistake. 

Oh, it was obvious that Sidney Crosby was in love with his daughter. But the feelings of love could fade and given his history, Vernon couldn’t trust that Crosby would do the right thing. 

So as a loving father, Vernon pulled Sidney to the side. “I just wanted to ask you something important before I give my blessing to this.”

“Yes, sir,” Sidney responded. 

“You know your children will be considered Black?”

Vernon watched Sidney’s face after asking that question. Lust and infatuation was nice but this was his little girl. The last thing he wanted was his daughter hurt because she fell for someone not just clueless but maliciously clueless about race. 

Sidney quietly replied, “I know. People will see them as Black and will think the worst of them first.”

Not bad, Vernon thought. He expected a colorblind response.

Then he heard Nina call out, “Dad? Sid? We are about to cut the cake!”

Vernon and Sid both grimaced but for different reasons. Vernon because he couldn’t really have cake because of his diabetes, Sid because cake wasn’t on his meal plan. Vernon told Sidney, “before you start making plans for rings, you need to start thinking about how you are going to start speaking up about race. Think about that.”

**

Sidney kept Vernon’s words in his mind through the week. Trina had told him what happened in the bathroom that night but Nina told him that his mom had handled it for her. But as he waited for Nina to open her door, Sidney couldn’t help but think what he could do to avoid situations like that from happening for Nina. But words failed as Nina opened the door and gave him a shy smile. 

“Hi pretty girl,” Sidney drawled as he walked in, closing the door. He hung up his coat on her coat rack before sitting on Nina’s couch.

“I missed you daddy”

“Missed you, pretty girl. Did you have fun?”

Nina straddled Sid’s thigh and replied, “it was a good time even though UNC lost. The VT campus is beautiful. How was the road trip?”

Sid laughed as Nina played with his hair. “It went well but Geno got hurt. He’ll be out for two weeks.”

“That sucks.”

Sidney hummed his assent as he wrapped an arm around Nina’s waist. He missed his pretty girl and it seemed like she missed him too. They sat there together for several quiet moments before Nina whispered, “I really missed you, daddy. It’s been too long.”

Sidney gave Nina a slow smile as she began to grind on his thigh. He felt the same way as he kissed Nina, soft and slow. Then as they broke apart, the sensual haze on Nina’s face turned into horror.  “God damn it,” she muttered. 

Sidney frantically asked, “What’s wrong, baby?”

“I just felt my period show up, three days early,” Nina said, rubbing her temples. Her period was cock-blocking her after a couple weeks of no dick and she wanted to die. “I just felt cramps and as much as I’d like to slide to my knees and suck you off, it won’t happen tonight.”

Nina groaned as she closed her eyes, head down. Sidney just started to laugh. 

“Cmon, pretty girl. Let’s just watch movies tonight.”

“Movies sound good,” Nina replied, “I just refuse to watch Friends, ever.”

Sidney giggle-honked as Nina moved from straddling his thigh to curling into his lap. 

[thedevilliers]

Not to go psychologist here but something has to be seriously wrong with Alex for him to act like that. I mean yeah he’s a Royal but his mother is crown princess and his father is a duke?? They’re like,, always busy??? And he’s not heir so they have no real reason to spend time with him?? Man definitely has mommy issues bc I see that people pleasing towards Amelia :(

Is he jealous of Theo for any reason?? Why else is he so hell bent on making his life miserable?? Kinda hoping that after whoever is dying dies the family will go to grief counseling and be like “damn we should seek more long term/general help for Alexander” or he realizes life is too short to be an a-hole :(((

hi!! you're right that Amelia and Oliver are busy very often; you can in my lil chart post HERE that they go to a lot of events per year. Especially right now, that Amelia/Harry/Edward are mostly abroad someone has to go the engagements to keep up the appearances that 'everything is normal'. He does seek amelia's validation a lot and before she left he mostly behaved like he was at least... tolerable.

I can give a little insight on his childhood and his relationship with his siblings!! under the cut. because I did elaborate a bit

obviously, emi is the eldest. they will never say it but she's the favorite; ever since she was a lil kid she's been well-behaved, like barely 5% defiant, quick-learner, etc. amelia can actualy hide it well, but oliver is quite obvious about it. which is why when he was younger he stomped on her to make him 'feel' bigger.

emi/alexander/theo were just the three of them for around ~8 years (six for alexander/theo) before theresa came along. during this time, in a future post it will be briefly mentioned how a situation similar to the one they're going through happening: there was a big health scare for someone and mostly all attention obviously went to this person. alexander was around four/five, he didn't really understand what was going on ONLY that his parents were obviously preocuppied by something else.

he's always been in need of attention, good or bad, so when he was growing up he always looked for ways to get it. Emilia got attention even if she didn't try, which pissed him off, and Theodore was actually good at sports, got his share amount of attention, so he was !?!?!?!?!? and me ?!?!?!

He actually joined horse riding classes, got bored and annoyed he wasn't good on his first try, left. He tried american football, again, got annoyed he wasn't the main player, left. He joined the soccer team at first NOT to piss off Theodore, but because he was looking for something to do. He ended up being good at it, naturally started having this 'rivalry' with Theodore about it even if they are literally in the same team.

Amelia and Oliver do try their best to give attention to every single one of them, Alex just really wanted it all for himself. Alexander was kinda just stuck in the middle with a sister that will be the heir and a brother that stood out on his own.

He also found out he was good with teenage girls naturally, so he kinda like sucks the validation and attention from them and when he's done he ditches them. Theodore actually didn't lie.

Now, you didn't hear this from me, but it all comes from his mommy issues. He's need for validation and attention from not only her but others shows he's actually insecure, he always wants to be 'better' and 'bigger' than Theodore because realized no matter what he did he will never be able to overcome Emilia, who's the heir. I wouldn't say he's entitled, but he needs someone to put him in his place. Which..................... will happen.

[kenafm]

‷ watch out , makena ❛ kena ❜ lawson has crash-landed into roswell !! they look 24 years old and celebrate their birthday on august 18th. they are from medford, oregon, reside in greystone complex and are currently working as a sales associate at forbidden planet. one thing you should know about them is she has an unhealthy obsession with horror movies and video games. ‷

biography ( wip ) ,  connections ( also a wip ) ,  pinterest ,  playlist

GENERAL

FULL NAME.    makena stefanie lawson.

NICKNAMES.    kena.

AGE & BIRTHDATE.    24 years old ; august 18th.

GENDER & PRONOUNS.    cis female ; she / her.

ORIENTATION.    bisexual ; demiromantic.

MARITAL STATUS.    single.

RELIGION.    agnostic ( former christian ).

OCCUPATION.    sales associate at forbidden planet.

PHYSICAL

HAIR COLOUR.    dirty blonde.

EYE COLOUR.    mossy green.

BUILD.   athletic.

MARKS.    faint dusting of freckles across the bridge of her nose, a beauty mark on her right hip and left index finger.

TATTOOS.    small black rose behind her left ear, a symbol of the end of her former lifestyle  ;  chef’s knife along the right side of her rib cage, a tribute to her love of slasher films.

PIERCINGS.    lobes (x3), left helix, both nipples.

HEIGHT.    5′6".

PERSONALITY

ZODIAC.    leo.

ALIGNMENT.    chaotic neutral.

HOGWARTS.    ravenclaw or slytherin.

TROPE.    good girl gone bad.

POSITIVE TRAITS.    astute, dauntless, fervent, incisive, resilient, solicitous, truehearted, witty.

NEGATIVE TRAITS.    broody, cynical, defiant, eccentric, flippant, foolhardy, restive, splenetic.

HOBBIES.    watching the same collection of horror movies over and over again, playing spooky video games, hitting up planet 7 every weekend.

BACKGROUND

PLACE OF BIRTH.    medford, oregon.

CURRENT RESIDENCE.    roswell, new mexico.

NATIONALITY.    american.

ETHNICITY.    white.

PARENTS.   radical christian father, subordinate mother.

SIBLINGS.     two brothers, one half sister, one half brother.

BIRTH ORDER.    middle.

PETS.    none ( but she smothers everyone elses’ with love ).

LANGUAGES.    english, broken spanish.

QUICK HISTORY

BEGINNINGS.    kena was raised in a strict religious household, heavy on the christianity. it was all she knew, until she grew older and actually started to notice the normalcy and freedom other families had that hers did not. the resentment started to build just as she hit her early teens.

ADOLECENCE.    a rebellious streak flourished, she started to stand up to her father without any help from her mother or siblings. she started to act out, skipped out on church, dressed how she wanted, snuck into r rated movies, hung out with a more chill crowd of people, and basically worshipped the devil according to daddy dearest. the final straw was the untimely discovery of the intimate relationship she'd been hiding with another girl. this resulted in kena being booted out ; disowned.

EXISTING.    she’s been living in roswell now for a couple weeks after drifting across the country for a spell. the last of her funds was spent on a deposit and first month’s rent on a cozy apartment at greystone complex before she managed to secure a job with forbidden planet. while she’s literally living paycheck to paycheck at this point, kena’s the happiest she’s been in a long time.

CONNECTION IDEAS

REGULAR ACQUAINTANCES.    she’s pretty much brand spankin’ new around here, so it’d be neat to have a few people she see’s around often, like maybe regular customers at forbidden planet she chats up while working, or planet 7 regulars she sees whenever she goes for a drink?? or anywhere tbh.

JUST A CRUSH.    somebody she’s taken a quick liking too, based on what few interactions they’ve had OR vice versa??? maybe somebody feels a lil spark with her.

NEIGHBOURS.    fellow greystone dwellers!! if she ever runs out of something she’s in desperate need of, you bet she’ll be knockin’ on your door. and of course, she’ll offer the same assistance when she can.

COWORKERS.    her newly adopted family, in her mind. these are most likely the people she attached herself to when first moving in.

ANYTHING.    idk what else, my brain’s not cooperating, but i’m literally open to whatever! just keep in mind that she’s a newcomer, so she wouldn’t have history with anyone ( unless they’ve also lived in oregon at some point, then that could be interesting omg ).