#look the hair is actually easier to manage when it's loose

[nyatbinary-81]

@vulpixisananimal sifstem art jumpscare!! more specifically i got bored and decided to mess around with sif and mal's outfits.

[lowkeyremi]

Late Nights aizawa x reader

it's my birthday so im writing about the man i share it with (-ε-)

content: post war au, fluff, established relationship

"This isn't good for your health, Sho." Today marks the 5th night he's stayed up past 11 pm grading papers or doing something else for his job.

"How do you think I managed before I met you?" His small sigh meets your ears, and you really want to help him. Seeing out of only one eye is most definitely slowing him down.

"You looked dead on the outside when we first met. Do you want me to help grade papers?"

"I'll finish before one, go back to bed, honey." His eyes meet yours once he hears you scoff. He's draining himself by staying up this late, every single night. His face is lit by the warm kitchen light, one of his hands tugging at his long black strands of hair in order to keep himself sane.

"Shota. I'm not taking no for an answer." You say firmly, crossing your arms to indicate that you mean business.

"I knew you'd say that, come sit down." He gives in every single time. He knows he needs the help, he just doesn't want to admit it.

"Can you read through these essays?" At first you're confident, there's only a few papers on the table.

"Can you?" You nod diligently. You confirm you're willing to help, and your husband gets up from the table and slowly walks toward your shared bedroom. When he does return there's a large stack of papers in his arms. They drop on the table with a thump. He chuckles at your horrified expression.

"Just get through as many as you can. Write feedback on them too, hon." No wonder he's always so tired, you forget that 1-A isn't his only class. If you can remember right he has six periods of classes.

"Is this pile all your class or.." He's sat back down by now and started going through papers with red pen.

"That's 3rd and 4th period. I'm finishing up with 1st and 2nd right now." You click your tongue. It's hard to get started, you don't have any motivation unlike Shota. His only motivation is probably the fact he has to do this.

"Why don't you have an online classroom? It would make grading so much easier." He's probably going to say something about not knowing how to use it..

"I prefer for my students to write manually, because it helps with remembrance." Sounds like something an old man would say. You'd voice your opinion but he'd have a comeback for sure.

-----

"Shotaaaaa, I don't wanna do anymore." Your head is resting on the table, the cool wood on your cheek. He doesn't even spare you any sympathy either, laughing at you quietly. His rich chuckles sound like comfort more than mockery in your opinion though.

"Sweetheart, you've only graded four essays." The huge stack of papers looks back at you from it's side of the table.

"Yeah and each essay had like four to five papers in it. I feel bad for your students." The two of you are going to cuddle. You're determined to make it happen, so before he could even reply, you bounce up from your seat, grab his hand, and tug him towards your bedroom.

"We're going to sleep. I'm not taking any other answers besides "okay" or "yes my love." He clicks his tongue at your statement, but finds no reason to oblige.

-----

"Do you want to know something?" He whispers into your ear cuddling you close enough to feel the warmth of his chest on your back.

"What?" At this point you're only half-conscious, struggling to register what your husband's just said.

"I'm actually ahead of schedule. I can grade those papers loosely throughout this week." He admits with no guilt or shame in his voice at all. What a workaholic.

"Are you serious? So I could have been cuddling you all this time?"

"Yeah, I just do work to get out of my head." You wonder how many times you'll have to remind him that you're his strength and that you'll help him through anything, before he actually believes it.

"If you were having trouble sleeping, you should have told me." His big hand rests in your hair playing with it slowly.

"Didn't wanna bother you." His hand is so comforting that you almost fall asleep.

"You're never a bother to me Sho." Your voice is so soft and sincere that he almost breaks out into tears of joy. He's so happy to have met you.

"Oh." It has finally clicked in his brain, even though you've been married to him for quite some time.

You are his light.

[katskitoshi]

"JUST WANNA BRAID YOUR HAIR!" with TWISTED WONDERLAND

synopsis: you really wanna braid your dearest, pretty boy boyfriend's hair!

characters: leona, jamil, & vil x gn! reader

leona kingscholar, dorm leader of savanaclaw.

leona was obviously asleep on your lap, and from the position he was in, you had easy access to his very messy hair. its not that you wanted to necessarily style it, it's messiness was part of its charm. you just wanted to fix his braids since they were annoyingly loose.

you begin to undo one side, then start re-braiding it. the other side is much more tangled and its inevitable to not accidentally pull his hair a bit. as you're half-way through the second one, you feel a wrist tightly grab your hand, stopping you in your tracks.

"never noticed you woke up, leona." a soft scoff left leona's lips before loosening his grip on your wrist, but not enough for you to continue braiding.

"with you pulling my hair so hard, how could i not?" he yawns, "anyways, what are you doing with my hair anyways?" "re-braiding it, it was about to come undone."

leona rolls his eyes and removed his hand from your wrist, allowing you to braid his hair. as you continue, leona drifts back to sleep after a soft kiss on his forehead from you.

jamil viper, vice-dorm leader of scarabia.

you watch jamil cook in the kitchen as his hair flies around. even in its ponytail, it manages to get in his way. at some point, when he's not busy with cooking anything, you call him over to you.

you tell him to turn around and he gives you a questioning look. "why?" you roll your eyes and chuckle. "could you just do it? please?" jamil sighs and turns around as he's told. you get up from your seat and walk directly behind him.

he tries to turn his head back, but you tell him to keep looking forward. his shoulder tense, confused by your plans. jamil finally relaxes as he feels your fingers comb through his hair a few times before braiding it.

jamil realizes you're helping him, and flusters slightly. "there ya' go, millie! now it's easier for you to cook." you put your hands on your hips and smile at your work.

he lets out a small smile and chuckles. "thank you, dear." he gives you a little kiss on your cheek before making it back to the kitchen.

vil schoenheit, dorm leader of pomefiore.

"-no." "pleasee?" "no." "pleaseee?" "[name], no." "come on vil! pleaseeee~?" vil sighs and rubs his temple. he looks down at you and your pleading face before sighing again.

"fine." you thank him and push him down on his chair then straddle his lap. after days of convincing, vil has finally let you braid his hair! you start by undoing his already done braids and tilting his head up so you can have a better angle while you do it.

vil stares at you in all your ethereal beauty as you begin to re-braid his hair. the soft, determined smile on your face makes makes him blush. surprisingly, you're not as bad as he thought.

your hands delicately weave through his hair, braiding it and putting it in his neatly tied usual hairstyle. you get off his lap and turn the chair he's sitting on to his mirror.

he turns his head around, admiring your work. he gives off a light chuckle. vil gets out his chair and pecks your lips. "you're actually pretty good at this. gut gemacht, liebling."

"gut gemacht, liebling" translates to "well done, darling."

[v1x-x1]

✧𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝟐𝟓: 𝐀𝐧𝐠𝐫𝐲 𝐒𝐞𝐱 - 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐥𝐞𝐲✧

✧|| 𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒 | 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 ✧ 𝐚𝐨𝟑 ||

✧|| 𝐟𝐞𝐦 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 | 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 ||

“God don’t you ever shut up?!” You yell at your colleague that was starting to piss you off more and more during this work trip that you were forced on together.

“Maybe if you behaved accordingly I wouldn’t have to say as much.��

You frown at him further, not even realising that at this point you are following him to his hotel room.

“Why do you have to be such a fucking pain all the time?” You push further.

“Why do you have to be such a fucking problem all the time?” He opens the door, but doesn’t bother refusing you entrance as you slam it behind you and yell at him more.

“Literally working with anyone else- anyone else, would be better than having to deal with you!!”

“Why not just quit then, hm?” His hum was in such a condescending tone that only boiled your anger more, “It’s not like the lack of your already low efforts would be missed by anyone.”

You trod closer to him until you were standing directly in front of him, glaring up at his face with a fierce gaze that - if it wasn’t for his tough exterior - would cut right through him.

His voice was cold, it made your spine shiver even if you wouldn’t admit it. “You wouldn’t be missed.”

You bit the inside of your cheek and gripped onto the loose collar of his shirt. “Fuck you Wriothesley.” You then pushed his body - of course it barely budged - before letting go.

He didn’t let your little action pass by lightly, however.

Wriothesley grabbed your own shirt and turned your body to be positioned where he had just been standing, additionally pushing you against the wall; his teeth gritting and his eyes filled with fury.

You opened your mouth to argue, but he ended up slamming his lips against yours in a bruising kiss.

For whatever reason, you didn’t push him back at all, no, instead you returned the kiss with your own movements.

He moved back a little and glared down at you. “I hate you.”

You trailed your hand to the back of his head and pulled on his hair in an almost-painful way, but just enough to get the point across that you aren’t afraid to hurt him. “Right back at you.”

You tug on his hair and then press your lips to his own once more.

While the two of you kissed, he bit down on your lips and tongue, even managing to draw a bit of blood which he immediately licked.

His hot breath hit your face as he spoke into your lips. “You’re so damn annoying.”

You push him back and over to his bed, enjoying the grunt that left him when his head hit the pillows. “Good.”

You then straddled him, grinding on top of him still fully clothed.

“You should really quit, you know?” His voice was laced with smugness and superiority.

“And make your life easier? As if.”

You then placed your hands around his neck and squeezed enough for him to at least slightly struggle to breathe.

He placed his own hands on yours, pushing down on his neck further. “You’ll have… to try harder than that…”

A small huff left your lips and you kept grinding pleasurably on top of him, which caused him to gasp a little.

“Oh, am I getting to you, Wrio?~”

“Don’t. Call me that.”

“Or what?” You leaned in closer, smirking and pushing down further on his neck.

With almost zero effort, he pushed you off of him, now instead trapping you under his built body. Your lips parted a little; you really didn’t expect it to be so easy for him to pull something like this.

“Don’t tell me you’re actually shocked?” His voice sounded condescending.

You simply roll your eyes, not wishing to give him a reply.

As you did so, he started to unbuckle his belt. You noticed it but didn’t say anything. You hated this man wholeheartedly, but this did seem like an endearing situation that you weren’t going to just pass on.

You started to take your own clothes off, just enough for it to be practical.

Wriothesley looked you in the eye, his stare was cold, almost sharp enough to cut through you, but it further fired your desire for this moment.

You grabbed onto his hair again, just like before, and this time he gripped onto your neck, resulting in a smirk spreading across your lips.

“My hate for you courses through my veins.”

“That’s almost romantic, Wrio.”

“I told you not to call me that.”

“Wrio~ Wri-”

He cut you off by thrusting into you without warning. A gasp left your lips along with a moan and the small feeling of pain.

“Oh? Does this shut you up? Thank fuck. I’ve finally found a way.”

Wriothesley then kept mercilessly moving in and out of you, continuing to choke you; you were slowly beginning to feel light headed.

“C-can’t breathe-”

A low chuckle escaped him as he listened to your pathetic words. “What a shame.”

He continued thrusting into you, leaving you a helpless, breathless, moaning mess. And only when he saw that it was genuinely getting too much for you, he let go of your neck, but still continued moving into you like you meant absolutely nothing to him.

“G-god- I hate you-” You managed to utter through your mess of noises. You hated how good you felt and you hated that it was Wriothesley that made you feel this good.

“Good.”

He bit down on your skin, continuing to make your mind a hazy mess, until he finally felt himself getting close and he pulled out in time to unload all over your body.

You felt yourself come undone too, the moan you let out was so loud that you knew for sure that Wriothesley wasn’t the only one to have heard you.

“S-seriously? You couldn’t have not come on me? Now my shirt is a mess.”

“I just don’t care enough.” Once again he looked down at you with that cold gaze, but this time, there was a hint of satisfaction and lust hidden within it.

Taglist: @lov3-ly @velvetyshu @coffeeisbehindyou @sanestventisimp @bokukenmakuroo @starspinners-hsr

lmk if you wanted to be added or removed!!

[magics-neptunes-things]

Olympics Games (One Love 9)

Hi guys :)

I don't want to talk about today's game so straight to the new chapter from One Love ♥

Please enjoy :)

TW : None

(1) | (2) | (3) | (4) | (5) | (6) | (7) | (8)

Ona is tired. Like fucking really tired. She never felt as exhausted as she is right now after loosing the semi-finale of the Olympics Games. And what is rather alarming, is that she’s not only physically tired but her mental health is pretty low too.

Like some of her national teammates, Mariona for example, she played a lot of games during the last season. She played during the World Cup last year, the National Cup too and now she has the Olympics to play. The tiredness was easier to manage while they were winning, but it’s not the case anymore and she’s exhausted.

She’s exhausted to have to fight against her Federation and she’s exhausted to have to deal with the shit their coach is doing with the national team. They need someone who fight for them and know what she did and it’s not something they have now. Without pretension, Spain's team has some of the best players in the world and they aren’t in the Finale.

Ona knew that Lucy reserved a plane to come to see her play Saturday at Paris, not Friday at Lyon. She felt so exhausted and angry after their lost game that she didn’t have the strength to cry. She hated that game, hated the way the staff made them play and hated the way Cata Coll was the one who took the lost on her back.

She almost burst into tears when she saw that her family was waiting for her outside the stadium after the game, and she let herself being wrapped and cradled in the maternal embrace of her mother. Something she hadn’t done in years, probably at the beginning of her teenage era.

She just wants to sleep until she feels rested, go home to her dog and her girlfriend. But that’s not possible because her girlfriend is in fucking London, and that’s basically what she said while crying in Aitana’s arms way later that night, when her friend came to see how she was doing.

She had Lucy on FaceTime earlier and she managed to keep a more or less neutral face, even if the English woman obviously felt the disappointment she could feel. She had the right words to comfort Ona, like always, and it really worked. Until Ona realizes that it’s really all she will have during the next months, while she was brushing her hair after her shower. And that’s when Aitana came.

Ona doesn’t know that her friend texted Lucy right after that to inform her about Ona’s state of mind. She repeat everything that got out of Ona’s mouth even if it was in a confuse way. But Aitana managed to understand everything and was able to repeat it correctly to Lucy.

Lucy was supposed to be at training on Friday, so Ona doesn’t think anything more when Laia Aleixandri and Aitana take her outside of the hotel to grab a coffee somewhere. Ona loved coffee, they only had to say that word to convince her to follow them.

“Who suggested you that place again?” Laia asks Aitana while they were entering the shop.

“Oh, a dear friend of mine who played here for three years before going to Manchester and then finally coming to Barcelona”

Aitana smirks while she looks at Ona from the corner of her eyes, the younger one raising her eyebrow while looking back at her. Of course she understands that Aitana is talking about Lucy. The shop is almost empty at that time of the day. The place is what you probably find on Pinterest when you write “coffee shop”, Ona thinks. It’s all wood, peaceful colors and amazing smells, mix of coffee and pastries.

“Here, there she is actually.”

Ona’s head makes two abrupt movements, one to go on Aitana face (she was looking at the menu hanging on the wall while trying to decrypt those Frenches words when Aitana spoke again) and another to go where she was looking.

And actually, yes. Here she was, Lucy Bronze, casually sitting on a booth, grinning at her.

Ona’s mother probably wouldn’t approve of the words that come out of her daughter’s mouth at this particular time, but Ona doesn’t care. She doesn’t care either about the other people who are inside the shop too, because her girlfriend is here and that’s all it matters.

Lucy got up while the Spaniard came to her senses and that she joins her before passing her arms around her waist.

“Hi” Lucy smiles at Aitana and Laia when Ona buried her face in her neck and hair.

She’s glad that with time they decide to be less strict about the public display of affection. At first, they didn’t want the world to talk about their relationship more than their football skills. Plus, Lucy didn’t want Ona to have to face some of her creepy fans, but it was still happening anyway. So, one day, she surprised Ona by grabbing her by her waist from behind, in the middle of a pitch. And since then, they aren’t really thinking about it.

“What do you want to drink?” Lucy asks the two other girls.

“Nothing, we were just bringing you your girlfriend” Aitana smiles.

“Well now that you are here you still can take something” Lucy points. “Their latte are amazing”

“She has a point” Laia smirks.

Laia and Aitana went to ask for their drink at the counter and during all this time Ona hasn’t let go of Lucy. The dark haired woman puts her total attention on her girlfriend at that moment, lifting her face by sliding a finger under her chin.

“Hey” Lucy says softly, making Ona smiles.

“Holà”

“You look exhausted”

It wasn’t a remark saying in a bad way, Lucy is more concerned about her girlfriend than anything. She already saw the dark circles under Ona’s eyes when they called each other but it’s more impressive here and now. She frowns, realizing in what state her girlfriend is.

“I am” Ona shrugs.

Lucy doesn’t have time to say anything else because Laia and Aitana were coming back to say goodbye.

“You have to be at the hotel in four hours Oni, don’t be late, yes?” Laia reminds her.

“Don’t worry” Ona smiles softly.

They went out, Laia kissing Ona's cheek, and Ona turns again in Lucy’s direction. She has realized by now that Lucy hasn’t command anything for herself, which is pretty strange. She might be the coffee addict in their relationship, but Lucy likes it too.

“What are the plans?”

“Well, at first we are going to take some drinks and something to eat. And then I’ll take you to one of my special spots around here”

“Sounds perfect” Ona smiles.

Ona follows Lucy to the counter and looks one more time to the menu to choose a drink. She asks for a cold caffe latte while Lucy asks for a Macchiato. They take some pastries to go with it, Ona choosing to follow Lucy’s lead about it. As long as there are some with chocolate, she will be okay anyway.

When they get out, Lucy takes Ona’s hand in hers and the gesture itself makes Ona’s heart fluttered. They don’t talk a lot during the walk to Lucy’s secret spot, just enjoying each other presence. Sometimes, Lucy points a building or a park to Ona, mentioning some memories she has there.

They finally arrive somewhere next to one of the two rivers traversing Lyon, and after several yomps, they finally are where Lucy wanted to take Ona. She never lets Ona's hand go one time.

“Tadam!” the English woman sings, making Ona laughs.

“It’s beautiful” Ona says, smiling softly while looking around them.

They can see a lot of the river from her and the other side, but she’s pretty sure that they aren’t visible themselves.

“Beautiful view for a beautiful girl” Lucy winks at her. “Come on, sit with me.”

Ona obliged but chose to sit on Lucy’s lap rather than the big rocks around them. The former Barcelona player doesn’t seems to mind though, letting an appreciative hums passes her lips. Ona puts her head on Lucy’s shoulders, decided to enjoy their closeness.

“I’m happy you’re here” Ona whispers when she remembers herself that Lucy shouldn’t actually be here.

“A little birdy told me that my girlfriend was struggling away in Paris. Couldn’t let her alone, could I?”

“Is this little birdy called Aitana, by any chance?”

“It is” Lucy laughs before kissing Ona’s cheek. “I would have preferred that my girlfriend talk to me about that herself though”

Ona bites her lips, feeling a little guilty for hiding things to Lucy. It was easier to do by phone than in real life. When they are together, it’s impossible for her to do it. Lucy is able to read her expressions and her body language easier than anyone. Sometimes, Ona even has the feeling that Lucy can understands her better than herself.

“I didn’t want to worry you. I’m just tired, really. I will be okay.”

Lucy hums, not really sure about that statement. It looks more than a things Ona is telling herself or repeating to her friends and family, to reassure them. She knows very well how much worried her mother can be for her daughter.

“I know you will be okay. You’re the strongest person I know. But that doesn’t mean you are feeling fine now or that you aren’t allowed to feel a little low.”

Ona sighs softly, stroking Lucy's arm with her fingertips.

“It’s just frustrating you know? We are good and we were supposed to go on the final. But what are we supposed to do when they manage us that way?”

“I know” Lucy sighs too.

She really wants to help her girlfriend but like a little more than one year ago before the World Cup, there is nothing she can do. Other than hearing Ona’s frustration and sympathize with her. Which she tries to do the best as she could, of course.

“You deserved to go to the finale. But you still have a medal to fight for. And I beg your pardon if I’m wrong, but it seems like you like Bronze, no?”

Ona, who was looking at the river in front of them, smirk before turning her face to Lucy. The English woman was fighting against her smile, trying to keep a straight face. Which is almost impossible to do.

“You haven’t even kiss me and you start with your awful flirts attempts already?”

Lucy laughs and puts a hand on her girlfriend’s cheek, the other staying where their both were before, on Ona’s waist to stabilize her.

“You are right, first the kiss”

Ona is smiling when Lucy presses her lips against hers. They have kissed a lot already, an infinite number of times. They shared tender kisses, shy kisses, hot kisses, goodbye kisses and reunion kisses. But Ona can swear without a doubt that every time she has the same feelings to fly somewhere above the ground when Lucy kisses her.

She actually groans in annoyance when Lucy stops the kiss, crossing her arms behind Lucy’s neck for another kiss. This one is maybe a little less innocent than the first, but she doesn’t care. She missed her girlfriend, she needs comfort and she knows that almost no one can see them.

When it ends, Lucy takes Ona against her, the head of the younger one finding her place back on her shoulder.

“I’m sorry you had to cancel your travel to Paris” Ona mumbles finally.

“Don’t. You don’t have to excuse yourself for anything. I shouldn’t have anticipated things like I did, I’m the one who is sorry. I shouldn’t have put more pressure on you like this”

“You haven’t…”

Ona starts to answer, frowning, but Lucy puts a finger on her lips to make her stay silent. Their gazes cross and Lucy takes off her finger from Ona’s lips only to put hers against hers again.

“No football talks until you have to go back to the hotel”

Ona rolls her eyes with a smile but accepts gladly, sitting to be able to look at Lucy easier than before. She missed her like crazy, so why not to take advantage of this time to look at her the more possible? She always have been fond of her face, her smile, her hair, her eyes... Everything. But Lucy soon feels a little uneasy under her girlfriend’s gaze. She’s usually the one who is creeping on Ona, especially in the morning when the Spaniard is always asleep longer than her.

“What are you doing?” the English woman asks.

“Admiring you” Ona answers while Lucy rolls her eyes. “You are so beautiful. I want our children to have your eyes. And your smile.”

“Nah. They all will be mini-Ona” Lucy smirks. “With your beautiful smile, hair and freckles”

Ona pouts when Lucy boop her nose with her fingers, but it’s quickly erased when Lucy kiss her again.

“Barcelona agreed to give me ten days of rest after the Olympics” Ona informed her.

“Finally, you will be able to breath. What will you do during that time?”

Ona shrugs without looking at Lucy. She wants to go to London and having some days with Lucy at least, even if the weather seems to have already said goodbye to summer. But for a maybe stupid reason, she doesn’t want to be the one asking if she can come. She doesn’t want to impose herself in her girlfriend’s life.

“Probably sleep all day long” Ona finally answers.

“Yeah?”

Ona nods and there is a moment of silence.

“Want to come to sleep in depressing and cloudy London?”

Ona smiles and nods again, this time while looking at Lucy with a smile. Lucy is smirking too, one of her arms always around Ona waist. She kisses her hair this time, when Ona sinks her face under her chin.

“Can I take Coco with me? Even if he seems have a blast in my family’s trail, I miss him.”

“Of course you can. Narla will be happy to see him again”

Ona smiles wider and sink even deeper in Lucy. She misses the comfort of her arms. She’s not really used to lose anymore and the only time it happened last year, Lucy was here with her. It will be a process she will need to start to learn again.

“Did you come her a lot while you were in Lyon?” Ona asks casually.

“Only when I needed to clean my head. But I usually came her alone.”

“Usually?”

Of course, it was the word who seems the most important for Ona. It makes Lucy smiles and rolls her eyes again.

“Nah, more like always”

When Lucy walks back Ona to her hotel, she offered her a big hug and a long kiss goodbye, even if they know they will see each other after the game. It’s only when they heard Alexia loudly clearing her throat that they remember where they were. Lucy looked over Ona’s head while Ona turns herself to see the Spanish’s captain looking at them with her arms crossed on her chest.

It might be an impressive sight, but Ona spots quickly the hidden slight smile and the fun in Alexia’s eyes.

“I better go” Ona smiles at Lucy.

“You better” Lucy laughs before kissing her one last time. “Go, Superstar. See you after the game”

Ona rolls her eyes and keep Lucy’s hand in hers as long as possible when she starts to walk to Alexia. The blonde passes an arm around Ona’s shoulders, who take a last look at Lucy before entering the hotel.

“See you at the stadium, Bronzey” Alexia says at the same time.

Like the other time when she came to watch Ona playing, Lucy is sitting near her family. The “O. Battle 2” clan is today joined by Ona’s grandparents and some of her cousins. Lucy knows them all, the Catalan girl having took her at every birthday or family celebration since last summer.

She was next to Ona’s brother, listening to him talk with her father in Catalan. And she’s proud of herself when she realizes that she understands almost everything. She turns when she feels someone putting a hand on her shoulder, smiling when she sees Lia Wälti, wagging discreetly like every time.

“Lia, hi!” Lucy smiles before hugging her.

She knows well the Swiss woman now, having watched some Spain’s games with her since she was with Ona.

“Mind if I seat next to you for a bit?” she asks after they great each other.

“Of course not. Are you here alone?”

“Kind of. Mario’s family is here, but…”

She shrugs, looking at the field where Germany just entered to train. Her unfinished sentence makes frown Lucy, who looks at her with concern.

“Aren’t you getting along with them?”

“I hardly know them honestly. I saw them like four times since I’m with Mariona. When I come to see her in Barcelona they are obviously still in Mallorca”

Lucy nods softly. She has to admit that she knows Ona’s family a lot better than Ona knows hers. She never asked herself how Ona feels when she’s with the Bronze, but the younger always seemed happy to pass time with her brother’s kids or her parents. She seems to have a great bond with Jorge, and Sophie too.

“How is Mario?”

Lucy feels a soft guilt, she should maybe have checked a little more for her former teammate and frien. They are close after all and moving both in London at the same time. Lia shrugs one more time.

“She’s tired. I really hope they will win today, I’m a little scared for her mental health if they don’t” she sighs softly. “How’s Ona?”

“Same things. At least after that they will have some days to rest”

Lia hums softly. They don’t have to say what they think about the Liga’s schedule and the Women Football’s in general. They both think the same and understand each other quickly.

“I’m happy that Mario will have less games to play next year. I was concerned about her having an injury, even if I was the one getting one after all”

Lucy smiles at that. It’s honestly a miracle that her knee seems to be always fine after all the games she played last year. Lucy got a little distracted when the speaker starts to present both teams, frowning when she hears “Felicita Rauch”. She hasn’t realized until now that Ona will play against her ex.

“Oh shit” she mumbles.

“What is it?”

Lia got distracted too, but only because Mariona came on the pitch with some of her teammates and staff members. Like every time, Mariona looks for her and send her a wink, which Lia answer with a heart with her fingers.

“That’s Ona’s ex” she mumbles again, indicating Feli by a nod.

“Oh.”

Lia doesn’t really what to answer, she knows Feli well, they played together at Potsdam for four years before she went for Arsenal. It was before the things between Ona and Feli, though.

“Didn’t she mention anything?”

“No” Lucy frowns.

“Probably because it doesn’t have any importance for her” Lia says with a gently smile.

Lucy groans in answer. She still struggles some times with her new jealousy, who appeared when she starts dating Ona. She hates when people she doesn’t know touch her girlfriend, not knowing what intentions are behind that kind of touch. She doesn’t mind Ona’s friends hugging her of course. But having to play against her ex, it’s something different.

“Have you already been in that situation?” Lucy asks soon after.

“Not really”

“I hope she won’t take advantage of that game to try to reconnect with Ona” Lucy frowns.

Lia giggles softly next to her, making Lucy stop glaring at the poor German player to look at the Swiss Woman. With all of that, she hasn’t realized that Ona has entered the pitch too and that the Spain’s team has started the training.

“I’m sorry, but she probably knows you both are together and that’s it will be a lost cause”

That’s true, and finally it’s wasn’t a bad idea to stop hiding things, Lucy thinks. She seems a little relieved when Lia points that fact.

“Plus, you are wearing a Spanish jersey with her name and hanging with her family in the stand, this is probably another indication of how much you are into each other”

Lucy relaxes completely this time, her shoulders falling back a few centimeters. Lia is right once again, and she is glad about it. As if to press this point, Ona’s dad comes back with a carton of beer, holding one to Lucy with an affectionate pat on the back. He proposes one to Lia too, who refuses with a smile.

She keeps an eye on Feli anyway, after seeing that Ona doesn’t seem to take one look at the German team. She plays as a defender, just like Ona, so they shouldn’t have to face each other a lot during the game. Lucy feels like a creeping fan when she looks attentively at how Ona and Feli greats each other at the beginning of the match, but other than a smile, there is nothing. Ona has a full match face.

(She always found her sexy at that very moment)

In the end, they didn’t win. It would be irrelevant to talk about Montse Tome management once again, Lucy thought. She would have preferred to find her girlfriend with bronze around her neck, not to see her sad face and the sadness of her other friends.

“What does that bitch want?” Lucy grown when she sees that Felicitas is actually coming to Ona.

She looks at her tapping softly on Ona’s shoulder while the girl was standing next to Alexia, Salma and Mariona. Lucy isn’t able to understand what they are saying, but she sees Ona’s hesitation at what Feli is asking her. Then she shrugs and nods before getting out of her jersey to hand it to her former girlfriend.

“Is she…?” Lia asks next to her.

“Looks like it” Lucy shrugs at her turn.

If Felicitas puts Ona’s jersey without hesitation, she sees Ona looking for her in the stand. It’s only when Lucy smirks at her that the Spaniard puts it too, making what it can be described as a slight smile.

“Can’t wait to see Twitter going mad” Lucy comments.

She hears Ona’s family laughing with Lia. She can’t herself explain why it doesn’t bother her, but just after their exchange of jersey Feli went back to her team and Ona seems to ask the permission to go in the locker room. She jogs to go with Patri, relief on her shoulders.

Half an hour later, when Ona comes to her family in the VIP section, she looks once again exhausted. She’s wearing her Spain’s training kit again and goes right to Lucy’s arms. The English woman smiles softly, hugging softly Ona.

“I’m sorry about the defeat” Lucy whispers in Ona’s hear.

“It’s over now. I just want to sleep for four days” Ona mumbles, somewhere on Lucy’s shoulder.

The dark-haired woman laughs softly, releasing Ona for her to be able to say hi to her family. The Battle seems sad for Ona but relieved to see that she will have some rest, finally.

The next day, they are on a plane for London, Ona half-asleep on Lucy’s shoulder. Coco is on the end of the plane with other animals, sleeping peacefully like his human. Lucy has passed a hand under Ona’s shirt to stroke her back softly, helping the younger one to feel relaxed.

“Are you sleeping?” Lucy asks softly.

“Only resting my eyes” Ona mumbles, making Lucy laughs.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure”

She yawns but sit a little better, just to be able to watch Lucy’s face while the older one is talking. Lucy needs several seconds to focus and stop beaming in front of her girlfriend’s cuteness.

“Why did you get your ex’s shirt?”

“It’s sound so bad saying like this” Ona winces. “But I don’t know. She asks and I say yes. And then I looked for you before wearing it and when you smiled at me I thought it meant that you were okay with it?”

“I was” Lucy assures her quickly. “But I was wondering... We never really talked about it, are you still talking to her?”

“No” Ona shakes her head. “She likes my Instagram's posts from time to time but that’s all. This jersey’s swap doesn’t mean anything, really.”

“Ok. Great, because you made the social media going crazy”

Ona smiles when she sees her girlfriend relax against the back of her seat. She kisses her jaw and then her neck, it’s impossible for her to reach another part of her from her position.

“I don’t care what they say. I’m in love with you.”

“I’m a lucky girl” Lucy smirks.

“Nah. I’m the lucky one.”

[livesworthlivingau]

Behind the Vale Chapter 7-10

ISAT/Two Hats Spoilers, CW: Implied Suicidal Thoughts

[You walk… You've been walking for days… Your feet are sore, you legs feel like they're on fire. Your stomach aches… You thought you might be looping at first, until you remembered what hunger was… You haven't had the need for food, or water, or sleep for so long… You'd forgotten what all of that felt like, and now you're painfully aware of all of it again. What would happen if you died anyways?... Would you both loop back?... Would you just be dead until he loops? You summon your dagger into your hand, stopping in your tracks and staring at it... Would you?... Could you, even?... You stare at the curved blade for longer than you realize.]

"CRAB!" [You hear a shout that snaps you out of it. You rush towards the sound of heavy thuds, leaves rustling, a shriek... a sadness?! You break through the tree line to see it, standing over a figure on the ground. Their hammer tossed to the side, holding a hand up defensively as it's just about to strike! NO!]

[The sadness freezes, stuck just before landing a blow on the figure... then fades away, revealing you behind it. Your eyes wide, panting heavily, dagger held at the end of a flourish... You look down at the figure. You start to lean forward to offer a hand up, before exhaustion takes over. Everything goes dark as you collapse.]

-----------------------------------------------------

[Your vision slowly returns... You're on the ground, it's night time. The crackling of a fire fills your ears. The scent of wood burning, and broth boiling fill your lack of a nose. You feel a blanket covering your body, slipping down as you try to sit up.]

"Woah woah! Easy now, buddy!" [You hear to your side, noticing the dark skinned figure that had been sitting beside you. She gently pushes your weak form back to laying down. Her long hair in a braid that reaches the middle of her back. She's dressed in loose, breezy, coastal style clothing. Something about her feels oddly familiar...]

"You gotta get your strength back before you'll be up and at 'em again." [She instructs, taking a bowl and ladle to scoop some of the soup and bring it over to you. She hesitates...]

"Uhhh... How do you... eat?" [She asks, gesturing to her mouth, and clearly noting your lack of one. You just give a light roll of your eyes, sitting up slow enough that she'd allow it. You take the bowl and bring it to your face. It presses against your hidden lips and you pour it down your throat. The still steaming fluid burns your insides, but nowhere near as bad as a star once had. What does cause a sudden choke though is the taste. You'd forgotten what food tasted like... and if this was it you think you'd be better off not being reminded...]

"Heh... I know, I'm sorry, my sibling's the real chef. I can barely make cereal without screwing it up, but it's all I got right now and you're about to starve to death." [She remarks in a demanding tone. She's right, and you're so hungry it makes ignoring the taste easier, just pouring the rest of it directly down your throat and letting out a relieved, steaming sigh.]

"... Thank you..."

"Ah! So you can talk! Well thank you uhhh... Glowey person? If you hadn't come along when you did I don't know what would have happened." [You sit there in silence for a while until suddenly the sibling comment clicks.]

"Sibling?"

"Oh! Yeah! I'm looking for my little sibling. Their name's Bonnie, real little, looks a bit like me, wears a big poofy hat. They managed to get away when I got frozen, and apparently I heard they're travelling with the saviors themselves?! I've been trying to find them ever since I got unfrozen." [… This really is some sick, cosmic joke, isn't it?...]

"... You're... Nille. Petronille."

"Y-Yeah! How'd you... Wait, do you know them too?!"

"I... I travelled with them for a little while, they talked about you all the time." [Her face lights up with joy and awe, so happy to finally meet someone who actually knows about Bonnie instead of just rumors and tales.]

"That's wonderful! I can't believe my luck today! So what's your name anyways? I gotta know how to properly address my knight in shining face!" [She snickers to herself, holding out a hand to shake as a more formal introduction. You stare at it for a moment, your own approaches it almost in slow motion. You need a name... a real name... you can't just be 'wonderful little loop' anymore after all...]

"... I'm... Vale [They/Them]… It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Nille."

"Likewise, Vale!... Now if you don't mind me asking, what are you doing out here? You look like you've been running for a while..." [Her tone suddenly shifts. She recognizes something in you in this moment... and you start to recall some of the stories Bonnie had told you.]

[No-NO! You're getting too vulnerable, your mask is slipping... Get a hold of yourself Lo-... *ahem* Vale. You shake the pathetic look off your face, your strength starting to return with the soup in your system now. You give those bright cheery eyes you're so practiced in.]

"Oh you know~! Just went out for a stroll and got rather carried away~."

"... Riiiiight... Well, where 'ya headed? You know I'm looking for Bonnie but I don't exactly have the best idea where they're at. I got lucky with you twice already, maybe a third time'll happen if you'll let me join yah!" [You scream internally as you do your best to keep up your poker face.]

"O-Of course! I don't have a destination in mind yet, but how could I say no to the famous Nille!" [What are YOU DOING?! We are heading in the OPPOSITE direction!]

"Great! And don't worry, I'll pick up some food in the next town so you're not stuck at my cooking pot's mercy the whole time" [She laughed to herself, chipping in a slight chuckle of your own... Okay... Okay we can do this... Even if we do help her, who knows how long until we run into them all again? We'll feel Stardust nearby, we can just leave before they reunite! We get to be lovely helpful L-Vale and we don't need to see them all again... We can make this work...]

[pomplalamoose]

Ooohhh how about different eras of luke (ROTJ is my fav if doing one is easier) and maybe some modern dilf!luke 👀 reacting to you laying your head on his shoulder when you’re tired or have a headache pre-relationship?

Anonnn, you don't understand, I'm obsessed with this ask. I just HAD to do every single Luke era plus the Dilf AU as the cherry on top because it's been so long since I last wrote something wholesome😩

also it reminds me of the posts I used to do when I first started writing and ngl I'm feeling a little nostalgic

• sweet ANH Luke with his open smile and honest eyes is so easy to approach and befriend, resting your head on his shoulder comes almost naturally

• though unbeknownst to you he'd immediately be on the brink to loose his mind

• already he tends to be a little jittery with nerves whenever you randomly appear in the same room he is in

• even more so now that he's finally admitted his major crush on you to himself

• so just imagine his excitement the moment you decide to sit next to him

• as soon as your head touches his shoulder he goes bright red and doesn't dare to move in fear of accidentally shooing you away, his heart beating wildly in his chest

• for a slight moment he forgets how to breathe, though it's not like he minds

• this is the best day of his life

• not only does he finally get to feel the warmth of having you so close by his side, but also your soft hair aginst his cheek if he dares to tilt his head just a little bit

• when eventually he manages to somewhat normalize his breathing, his thoughts will start to wander

• he's SO proud you're clearly comfortable and feeling safe with him

• but should he strike up a conversation? Ask how you're doing? If everything's okay?

• maybe he could make you laugh

• your hands look so soft; what if he were to reach out and just take them in his?

• would you mind?

• he's not sure, his aren't as pretty and smooth as yours

• you smell very nice

• wouldn't your current position make you look like a couple to an outsider passing by?

• what if, and he feels very bold just considering, but, what if you...like him?

• quickly enough he has a very hard time remaining calm

• and how could he? He needs to tell someone about this RIGHT NOW

• good luck trying to catch ESB Luke sitting still for even once

• though should you be as lucky to catch him during a moment of rest and manage to lean on him, he'll feel similarly as ANH Luke; excited, a little nervous even, though not as much as his younger self would have been

• still he has to fight off the blush rising into his cheeks and will absolutely deny ever changing colors should someone (especially Leia, Han or even R2) point it out

• at the same time he wishes for as many as possible to witness this very monumental moment, hoping everyone will see that you're leaning on HIS shoulder

• HIS!

• yeah that's right! In your face, (add in name of random rebellion member that also takes an interest in you)!!!

• if he's feeling extra bold, he may use the chance to put an arm around your shoulder

• but very carefully so; he's afraid to overstep any of your boundaries

• after all he's not sure if you'd even like to be held

• there's only one problem: how is he supposed to do anything now?

• he has places to be, things to do, an Empire to fight!

• he's getting kind of warm too

• more than that actually

• Force, are you hiding a heater under all of your layers of clothing?

• also he just remembered; isn't there a meeting he has to attend?

• shouldn't he be working to improve his x-wing?

• he'll check on you out of the corner of his eye, trying to get a feeling for how long you plan to stay like this

• he needs to come up with a way to notify the others of his delay

• because there's no way he's moving even a single muscle

• he's not leaving you behind

• he simply can't!

• not when he was just chosen as your designated spot to rest your pretty but, admittedly, very heavy head

• but not to worry, of course he can handle it!

• he'll be here as long as you need him to be

• RotJ and post RotJ Luke is hard to keep tabs on and thus hard to find

• all you can hope for is to encounter him by pure chance, as he seems to simply have evaporated whenever you wander around searching for him

• though despite his withdrawn ways he's always welcoming and inviting should you happen upon him

• he, above anyone else, understands the importance of rest during a busy day

• he smiles mildly to himself as soon as you settle down and scoot close enough for your arms to touch

• the emotions you are unconsciously emitting, may it be nervousness, excitement or shyness, amuse him a great deal and he's keen to see whether you'll overcome them this time or not

• I don't think he'd tell you outright that he enjoys your presence, that it tends to calm him down and to ease his mind, until much later

• but despite what he is or isn't saying he can't help but feel a little warm inside whenever you come across him during the day

• despite that he can never not worry at least a little bit about your well-being and immediately feels the need to check in on you either with words or a gentle probe with the Force to make sure you're okay

• if he has the time to stay with you for a while he asks if you'd like to lay down

• see, he can shuffle to the side a little and then you could rest your head on his thigh instead of on his shoulder

• wouldn't that be more comfortable?

• he doesn't have a blanket in case you're cold, but maybe you could use his cloak?

• it's not the best, maybe a little rough and still a little dirty from his last trip as he didn't have the time to wash it yet, but it does a good job of keeping a person warm

• he doesn't show how happy he is should you follow his invite and agree to rest beside him, though maybe Leia would notice

• and possibly so would you by how he'd start to absentmindedly stroke your head and play with your hair whenever others are around to keep him properly distracted

• I think Dilf!Luke's reaction would really depend on the current situation/ on how far your relationship has already developed at that point

• here it's important to note though that he'd never tell you off or send you away for initiating contact, not even after just recently getting to know you

• yes he's standoffish and withdrawn, cold in demeanor, seemingly displeased with your presence in his house

• but when it comes down to it he is kind, always has been, even if he hides it away to protect himself

• his behavior towards you is nothing personal; the emotions you call forth are his to deal with

• he may try to at first but ultimately knows deep down that he can't hold you accountable for how his past still troubles him

• he's a father, deeply caring in nature

• no matter what, he could never bring himself to deny anyone his child's age comfort

• though he might be a little confused about why you chose him, of all people, to rest your head on

• after all it's not like he's been going out of his way to be peculiarly inviting or nice - quite the contrary actually

• he'll remain very still for the duration of your vicinity, involuntarily stiffening not only out of surprise but because it's been so long that anyone outside of his immediate family initiated intimacy

• he's so touch starved, so used to rarely feeling a person's warmth, that your simple act catches him off guard

• suddenly he has no idea what to do, how to continue on after

• for your own good and his child's sake he wants to keep you at an arm's length and yet...

• if he wasn't enamored with you before, he is so now

• he thinks back to those moments of doubt and insecurity frequently

• but where they once haunted him, they now serve as a reminder for how far he's come and what he was able to finally leave behind

• he's proud of himself too, yes, but most of all to call you his

• every little touch of yours, and may it be one as innocent as laying your head on his shoulder, fills him with joy

• never, in a thousand years, would he once have believed to be in a position to reciprocate your gentle displays of trust and affection

• but now that he can, now that everything feels a little less like a dream, it's all he wants to do

• (and he does)

• (forehead kisses are his favorite way to, he can't help it)

• (not when you placed yourself so conveniently)

[fastcardotmp3]

Wheelingham; S4 AU; Outsider POV (Max); Presumed character death (but not real character death); 1.9k Written for @strangerthingsfemslash week day 3: secret relationship read day 1: different first meeting read day 2: women over thirty

Max goes to Nancy first. 

The lights flicker and the cops roll in and one of them is whispering about— The Cunningham girl? She’s probably dead by now. 

So. Max goes to Nancy, partially because at first she thinks she’ll knock out two Wheelers with one stone before she remembers Mike is already on a plane to California, but also because it’s Nancy. 

Because for the entirety of this past school year, Nancy has managed to bulldoze her way over all of Max’s carefully constructed walls and forced her to keep one of them in her life, at the very least. 

She’s a force of nature, Nancy Wheeler, and the first time she showed up at Max’s trailer with dinner on a night her mom was working a double, that had been apparent, but not everything had been. 

Not the reason Nancy was determined to insert herself in Max’s life; not the underlying despair that Max has learned chases that girl from one fight to the next. 

Max goes to Nancy because Nancy knows what to do when the world ends, in more ways than one. Max goes to Nancy, because she doesn’t realize that saying—

“I overheard the cops talking, they think she might be dead.” 

—she’ll be knocking loose the mask of resolve that Nancy puts on with her hair clips each morning, knocking it straight to the floor and stomping on it hard. 

“They think…” She's small, but normally she takes up mountains of space in Max’s life. She’s got this presence to her which Max can barely admit to herself is grounding, but it is. She actually seems small in this moment though. Wound up and tiny. “And you’re sure— did they say Chrissy? Did they say Cunningham? I don’t… I just—”

“That’s what they said,” Max feels like she’s watching something she’s not supposed to, like when she still lived in California and her mom still cared about the ratings on the movies Max rented from the Blockbuster. “And usually I wouldn’t put too much stock in what the Hawkins PD has to say, but… The lights were… I know what lights like that mean.” 

Nancy clenches down on her jaw and something in her eyes shifts and Max has spent a lot of time with this girl in the past six months. 

Long enough to recognize that there’s a lot Nancy doesn’t talk about, even when she’s actively trying to be vulnerable to make Max feel better; long enough, too, to know that just because Nancy is a force of nature doesn’t mean she’s not also still barely eighteen years old. 

Nancy swallows thickly and her fists clench and unclench around the fabric of her skirt until it's wrinkled and Max wants to ask, but before she gets the chance Nancy is steeling herself and sending Max to the car and telling her to radio Dustin to meet them at the Family Video. 

Before Max has a chance to really get a gauge on what’s going on with Nancy at all (because something is going on) she’s being forced to walk through exactly what and who she saw last night four times over on the fifteen minute drive. 

More than anything, Nancy’s haste reminds Max that they’re in it again. It reminds her that none of it was ever over and she was right, in a lot of ways if not all of them, to expect another shoe to drop. 

The problem is that it’s a lot easier to focus on something going on with Nancy than it is to think about the nightmares that have been haunting her since long before she watched Billy die. He’s starred in her nightmares before, but this is different, this is new, this is so entirely old by now. 

No, it’s easier to let the rest of them try to make sense of what’s going on while she watches the looks on Steve and Robin’s faces when they hear the name Chrissy Cunningham. 

They look at Nancy on instinct, without a beat of hesitation. They look at Nancy.

“Chrissy…? Shit, Nance—”

“Don’t,” she snaps, pushing past Steve’s big and welling eyes that clearly know more than Max does to begin typing away at the computer behind the desk. 

He doesn’t let her run from him though, visibly putting himself between Nancy and the rest of them as he speaks just under his breath enough that Max can’t hear him over Dustin’s own plan-making, but can see the way Nancy’s shoulders tense up and her fingers falter across the keys. 

If Max were, say, Dustin, it would look like the kind of sign that the two of them were starting something up again, but Max has broken up and gotten back together with Lucas enough times to recognize that this isn’t that. 

This is its own thing. This is Nancy on the verge of something else Max has been keenly aware of for too much of her young life: a nervous breakdown. 

Nancy Wheeler is terrified, but not in the same way the rest of them are, not because the world might be ending again. Hers is a different sort of terror, only Max can’t place it. She might even be wrong about the whole thing, looking too hard for a distraction from the pulsing ache at the center of her skull, but there’s something about the slices of conversation she catches that tells her otherwise. 

“... might not actually be…”

“... no way for you to know that, Steve…”

“... not the same as…”

“...don’t have time to… need to focus on this…”

But again, too much is happening with too quick a turnaround for Max to really dig in and find the answers to her queries. 

“Eddie wouldn’t hurt someone,” Dustin is saying with the sort of forceful defensiveness of someone who is being put on trial himself rather than defending a friend. “He wouldn’t. Something else killed Chrissy—”

Max’s eyes train in on the shift in Nancy’s posture, the thick swallow she takes as she turns halfway away from all of them like protecting her soft bits from coming blows. 

“ – or probably something,” Dustin insists. “Which means Eddie is in danger too if he was there.”

“Why would Chrissy have even been at Eddie’s trailer?” Robin asks, the question broad enough to seem as though it’s angled at all of them, but Max can see the way she looks at Nancy, the direction she means for it to land. 

Nancy seems to feel it too. 

“They’re friends,” she says without meeting anyone’s gaze, arms crossed and eyes downturned. “Ever since she broke up with Jason, it’s been— hard. At school. And Eddie’s just— he’s been a friend, so…”

“So maybe she’s with him,” Robin says, but it’s less like a suggestion of theory and more like the kind of thing meant to ease nerves, softer around the edges, almost imploring in nature. 

Nancy’s grip around her own biceps is tight enough to make her skin go white, and by the time they have an address for Reefer Rick, any proximity that Max gets to her feels like the air is vibrating at a different, but not unfamiliar, frequency. 

When Max stepped out of Starcourt on that night in July, the air had tasted like ash. When she had sat unblinking and trembling in the back of a parked ambulance, she hadn’t been able to feel Lucas’s hand in her own past the shake of the world around her. 

“She’s your friend?” Max asks, a murmur of a question just for Nancy after having forced her way into the front seat of the station wagon for their trek across town, letting the other three keep themselves occupied in the back. 

Nancy’s lips purse and what Max can only imagine is an involuntary hum chokes its way out of her throat. 

“I was— I shouldn’t have been so blunt about it,” Max says. “About what I overheard the police saying. I should have said it differently, because we don’t even know if she’s really—”

“She is,” Nancy says stiffly, grip tight on the steering wheel as they turn down a path that leads to the lake. “That’s how these things work. She is.” 

Max doesn’t have an argument for that. 

In her experience it’s the truth, the only truth, that the worst case is the actual case. 

It keeps her quiet in the passenger seat until they’re parking, all the way up to Rick’s front door, through Dustin’s incessant knocking, until she notices Nancy wandering towards the boathouse and hurries to follow behind her. 

The door creaks when they open it, windows mucked up with algae and the general wear of time to the point where even the fading light of day doesn’t permeate the space. The floorboards groan under their feet and the lap of water against the bottom of the boat at the center of the room makes the whole thing eerie. 

Eerie and nerve-wracking and bad, the whole thing has their collective adrenaline pumping right up until a number of things are happening at the same time. 

The toss of a tarp, the guttural scream of a man, the pushing and shoving and trapping of Steve up against the wall as the rest of them merely try to keep up and act on their feet and prepare for an attack and—

“Nance?” 

It’s quiet, but it cuts through the chaos. 

It’s quiet, but it seems as though it has physical weight in its effect on Nancy. 

“You’re—?” the sharp choking-off of a question, the near-buckling of knees, something starts to click into place as Nancy seems to move a woman-possessed across the boathouse until she’s got her hands hovering over Chrissy Cunningham’s shoulders, drifting down her arms, searching, searching, searching for— “are you hurt? You’re hurt? You’re— oh my god, are you real?” 

Chrissy’s got what appears to be Eddie’s leather jacket tied up around one of her arms like a sling, the stain of dried blood smudged on her cheekbone just under her eyes, but she smiles as she places her available hand on Nancy’s cheek. 

Wet and nervous, but a smile all the same. 

And things are clicking into place, because Max has broken up with and gotten back together with Lucas quite a few times. 

“Um, some stuff is— is happening and I don’t know how to explain—” Chrissy shakes her head, lifting her gaze to meet Eddie’s as he drops his attack stance from Steve, “but we’re okay. And you’re here now, so, so that’s—”

“They said you were dead,” Nancy blurts, chin wobbling and voice thick and cracking. “They said— I thought you were dead, I thought—”

It’s bold, when Chrissy cuts her off with a firm kiss to the mouth, right there in front of all of them in the middle of the dark. 

It’s bold, but Max sees the fondness on the older kids’ faces, the clarity that they’ve known the whole time. 

It’s bold, but pretty fucking cool, Max thinks. Proof, maybe, that it doesn’t always have to go the other way, that maybe sometimes their people can get through to the other side, scared and hurt but okay. Not lost. Not entirely. Close enough to be found. 

“Wha– Wait, what the–?” Dustin balks, confusion radiating off of him as bright as the sun beside Max, almost blinding in its comical nature. “Did you know about this?” he looks to her, face all twisted up in not knowing something more than actually having a problem with it. 

Max looks at him, looks at the gentle way Chrissy swipes away Nancy’s tears as they press their foreheads close and relish in the finding. 

And then she looks back at Dustin and shrugs. “It was kind of obvious, dumbass.” 

[return-to-ravenbrooks]

Return to Ravenbrooks:

Biography

Entry 8

Name: Finch [REDACTED]

Date of Birth: 1996

Gender: F

Current Address: 910 Friendly Court

Height: 5'0

Hair color: Black

Eye color: Black

Key features: Dyed hair, grey pink lipgloss, lip piercing

Role: Scout

Abilities: Eyesight, accuracy, flexibility

Occupation: "Wouldn't you like to know"

Status: Fair

Biography:

"Dude!" Delroy jumped back.

"What the hell Nicky?!" Maritza was staring, dumbfounded. I let out a long 'impressed' whistle. He was already reeling from the impact before Aaron even hit the floor. I think he might've broken something.

"Mmmppphhhh- Holy aliens-" he exhaled through gritted teeth.

"Nice shot, first time throwing a punch?" I smirked.

"Not the time Finch." Trin shot me a glare, I don't know when she managed to learn such a mean look, but it always caught me off guard. I pursed my lips impatiently. Sure enough, he busted a knuckle and probably fractured something from the way he was now babying his hand. We couldn't find the will to care though, or at least were too busy recovering from the shock. "I thought you guys were best friends?"

Nicky didn't respond, but the two exchanged a look. God I hate when they do that. Looks like that are how we got here in the first place.

"Delroy, do you have any rope on you?" She asked. Delroy looked completely off put by this, but there was that look again.

"What kind?"

"What're you got?"

I leaned my head back and sighed, rubbing my forehead. "Please tell me we're not doing what I think we're doing..." I felt Maritza's arm rest on my shoulder.

"No way, we're 'just taking a quick look' remember?" She smirked and stifling the laugh it gave me was difficult at best. Jabbing her however, was much easier.

"I mean, we were going to question him anyways- eventually. Right?" Enzo tried to reason while helping lift Aaron.

I don't know why I of all of us was given the camera for this. Or why we needed a camera for it. I mean sure we took pictures all the time while investigating but this felt- creepy.

"This is like CIA kinda shit guys."

"He'll be fine. He can deal with a little interrogation after what he did." Nicky shook his head. He's still nursing his hand, even in its loose bandage.

I don't blame Aaron for his freak-out when he wakes up. I suppose being tied to a chair in your kitchen while the kid who tried to break your face stands over you.

"Nicky?" What the hell?" He looked around frantically. Or as much as possible when someone grabs your face. It's borderline weird how grabby he got. Checking his nostrils, the underside of his chin, his cheeks, inside his ears, pupils. Finally when he was done looking for- whatever that was he took a step back and cupped his hands over his face.

"Why couldn't you have just been a changeling or something?!" He yelled into his hands.

"Wha- did you actually punch me over more alien nonsense?!" He wiggled under the knots. Nicky rubbed his temples and paced heavily.

"No! But- You're not supposed to be here! You're dead!" He stopped to gesture towards him. Maybe he thought it would make him not be here. "I mean- they looked through the whole house! The town! You were just gone!"

Aaron's face scrunched, a mix of pain, and what I could only assume was embarrassed regret. Like a dog caught chewing the remote.

"Besides!" He rubbed his bangs back, "You must be dead! I can't imagine any other reason that you'd go 12 years without calling or sending a letter or just doing, I dunno, anything to tell your best friend you're not dead!" He threw his hands in the air, and like a cue, Aaron's expression worsened.

"Look I wanted to, I really did just-"

"Just what Aaron? You can go get a fancy degree and put your life together so perfectly, but you can't bother to find a way to tell me you were okay? I went nuts trying to find you! I went through school a laughing stock because no one believed me that you needed help!"

"And because you broke your window with a chair and acted like a total asylum patient," I added. His shoulder's scrunched, and I could almost feel his want to turn his scolding to me next. But he stayed facing Aaron. Clearly, this was more intense than I'd realized. And, suddenly holding the camera didn't seem so bad. Wish I had popcorn, though.

"I just- ugh. Aliens, forgive me..." he buried his face in his hands again, dragging them slowly down his cheeks. "I would've been fine if you simply really never wanted to see me again, but I needed something! I was so sure that- that you were just waiting for me to stop messing around and do what I was supposed to!"

"Nick, I-" Aaron paused, shifting under his ropes again. "For god's sake, can you guys untie me?!"

"No, you had a strong dead arm when we were kids. I'm not testing your shots now that you're-" Nicky gestured madly at him again. "I dunno, a football player? A wrestler?"

"An architect."

"Seriously?" He looked him over several times. "Whatever, point is, I'm not testing the structural integrity of my bones today"

"Any more than you already have," I added. This time, he did look back, I met his eyes with a flashing grin.

"I'm not going to punch you," Aaron promised with a sigh, letting his head drop. The way his hair fell around his face, I almost would've thrown model in with that list of job guesses.

Nicky folded his arms, jerking his head away in a "hmph." Aaron accepted this solid, 'no' with another sigh.

"Look, I couldn't say anything because I-" he paused and grumbled. "I was busy, okay?"

Nicky looked ready to try and break his other hand. Instead, he just ran it through his bangs again. "Busy... right. Right... well, am I going to meet the wife 'n kids?"

Aaron choked on the air, "What?!"

"Well I can only assume a perfect family came with your busy-ness"

"Dude- Gross! No!" He spat the words like he was still a middle schooler. Ready to talk about how kissing girls gave you cooties. Nicky chorted, stifling giggles, which slowly turned to laughter.

"Yeah, right, sorry. You probably couldn't even manage to kiss a girl"

"I could too!" Aaron started to laugh as well. "Dude, shut up! Stop laughing!"

"You stop! I'm pissed at you!" There's something about watching two grown men giggling uncontrollably that's just, boring.

I stopped the recording, "Are you two gonna keep at this for much longer?" The louder laughter occasionally intertwined with 'dude' drowned out my question almost entirely. "...Whatever. Have fun weirdos."

I'd be willing to bet good money they didn't even hear the door shut behind me.

[roseapov]

Streamer

Idia Shroud x GN!Reader

Tw: stalking, invading privacy, being delusional, mentions of obsession, collarbones fetish

Povtober 2023, Day 13 [Masterlist]

You two met just by chance, getting paired up against each other, in a game you decided to play, as a game streamer.

You used a typical supporting character, with not much attacking capabilities, meant to be power and hp boost to your teammates, but even then you were making kill after a kill.

Idia couldn't believe it, you managed to kill him, him of all people! with a support character no less.

Someone actually managed to surprise him in a game? Are you serious? That can't be happening. That made him so enraged, focusing all his attention on you, to take his revenge.

After he and his team unexpectedly lose, he starts to look through your account, and sees in your bio your streamer name with a link, such a normie thing to do.

He starts to stalk through your social media, and with a pain in his heart admits, that his defeat was recorded on your actual live, it's nothing he can't take down anyway.

Hm? You're streaming with a camera? Oh, how bold of you, but don't worry, he won't stop hacking your phone camera and microphone even after you beg for it, falling into paranoia.

It's your unlucky day, he took an interest in you, slowly treating you as a character from his beloved games. Your merch on the shelf, his phone littered with your photos and edits, a special spying program made by him personally, to see your activity on your devices.

Soon you're the only one he can think about, you, your voice, your hair, your face and your.. collarbones. Such an exciting sight for this shutted in otaku.

If you're counting for a high donates from your newest follower, Gloomurai, then you hit the jackpot, literally.

Tons of money flowing into your bank account, each one of the descriptions more unnerving than the other, but hey at least you got the money. Yeah, no, you're terrified.

You started to wear blouses for your streams, afraid of more uneasy commenters on your donations, contemplating quitting your side job for good. Your sanity was worth more than some money.

Yet you still felt endangered, so to ease your worries you bought cameras and installed them inside and outside of your home, wrong move.

He, of course easily hacked into it, feeling delighted that you decided to do so, the fact that you liked him enough to make it easier for him to observe you, how thoughtful of you, he's so delusional.

If you like him this much, then he mustn't deny you his presence any longer, he may be afraid of humans, but you're an exception.

When he heard you talk with your friends about quitting, all hell broke loose. The next thing you know, you're in Shroud manor, not allowed to leave.

Yes, the thought of you leaving the media was enough to make him snap and be really daring, doing things he normally would've never done, the effect you have on him is insane. After all he loved your streams very, very much.

Ortho is super supportive of this as a cute sibling he is, after all his older brother finally took an interest in someone real!

You have no idea how relieving it was for him, maybe his brother won't have to be alone? Of course not, you two live together already, should he plan your future with Idia already? Maybe you can date, and later on marry his brother! He's so happy!

Don't you dare disappoint him.

Ugh, after my sickness I lost my enthusiasm and motivation to write even tho I had a lot of ideas😭(it's better since I added Roxana, but still). It's not fair, even more so since I am already way in the back of my Povtober writing challenge.😭😭 Not sure of how this one came out tho, I'm writing this at 3 am💀 I'm not exactly proud of this, I'll probably rewrite it in the distant future (he's so hard to write smh)

~roseapov

[good-and-evil-unveilied]

Good and Evil unveiled

Kindergala <3

Normally, Carla only went over to see Penny when she was passing by.. Which wasn't often, considering the rose bush that separated the two parts of town. But, for once, Carla planned to actually take her out.. To take her as her date for the Kindergala. When she went over last time, Penny had kissed her in the cheek, hugging her and practically shouting yes, but quietly.

Now she had to go and pick her up, Carla had put on one of her nicer clothes, obviously made by Cindy since she was the only one in Evil with.. proper style or fashion-skills. A opaque black dress with sparkly greens that fell down the dress in an vine-like manor. Whilst it obviously wouldn't even compare to what Penny was going to wear, after all she was richer and had access to *actual* clothing stores, it was still a shock as to what Cindy could do with such minimal recourses.

Her hands slipped into the back of the shoes as she wedged her heel into the back of the boots she had chosen. They were a dark green that had a few black, sown on patches of leather that had laces swapping through the holes in the leather. Carla's gloves were fingerless, so it made it easier to actually put the shoes on, her nails were pretty bit off and messy. The faint, messy layer of dark green nail polish were sanded off with the socks she had on under the boots, she was *not* dealing with blisters..

Finally, she walked up to the mirror near her front door, granted it was dirty and a few cracks were forming in the corners, but a mirror is a mirror. Her hands ran through her hair, it was tied up into an actually beautiful bun. The curls slipping out of the hair tie creating loose, curly, scraggly lines that seeped into her green hair piece. Emerald gems scattered around her brunette curls, clung together by a clip set under her bun. Luckily, Monty managed to help her get a hold of the gems, obviously making snarky remarks about how shes going to turn into the rich guys back at Good. Well, it would be nice to live the life of a rich dude.

Her thoughts got cut off as her older sister, Savannah, walked down the stairs and looked and Carla through the mirror. "You look nice, don't worry, I told dad that you were going on a money-run to Good for a few hours." Savannah comforted, walking over to her younger sister and tightening her hair bun.

"Thanks, Sav. I did not want to deal with an interrogation when i get home." Carla remarked, walking away from the other brunette girl. Savannah was 17, being 4 years older than Carla, her hair was buzzed off at the side and she wore combat boots with jeans and turtle necks. Like what she was wearing today, Savannah wasn't going to the gala, purely because she wasn't a big masquerade girl.

"I know, dad can be such an overprotective dick sometimes." Savannah commented, leaning onto the banister besides the stairs. She watched as Carla picked up her bag, just a small black and green bag that was a bit old-looking, but in a cute vintage way. "Oh yeah!" Savannah reached into her pocket, passing Carla a handmade masquerade mask. "Just.. made you this, since its a masquerade ball or whatever the fuck its called."

Carla took it from her sister, her hands brushing across the hand stitched pattern along the black fabric. A faint green was layered over the top of the black, making the mask shimmer a dark green. "..Thanks, Sav." Carla looked up, smiling. She put the mask into her bag then looked at the clock above the front door. "I.. I have to go, Penny's waiting."

"Ah yes, don't leave your beautiful, rich girlfriend waiting!" Savannah joked, pushing Carla out the door. Carla was about to retort, but then the door was slammed behind her, leaving her in the orangey air. The girl looked up at the sky, purples and oranges signifying the dawn. Then she looked over at the wall-like rose bush, taking a deep breath and walking over, ready to find her way in. <3

.

.

.

.

To be fair, climbing through a bush of wild roses and therefore thorns with a long dress probably wasn't a good idea.. But, Carla did make some worse choices. The dress was still fine, just the fact that it was already pretty low-quality and obviously hand-made just stuck out more.

Her eyes lit up at the sight of house number 8, Penny's house. Carla rummaged through her bag, scooping out the mask that was thrown in amongst a hunting knife she kept and a pocket bomb.. What? You can't blame her! God knows whose gonna be at the event! Anyways, she grabbed the mask, tying it around her head with a small knot solidifying it at the back. The mask has a small coating of faint green glitter, Sav didn't do glitter.. so that was nice of her.. And the way that that mask was just so perfectly fitted, and didn't fold back into her head with the knot and just stayed still on her face, oo-la-la!!

Carla's thoughts were interrupted by a blonde girl crawling out her bedroom window, well.. kinda crawling. More like a hop. Penny landed on both her feet, her dress being that poofy to the point it actually slowed her floor. Her hair was tied up in a bun, perfectly swirling around the back of her head. Make-up lightly covered the girls face, blue's and white's covering her eyelids and a deep scarlett red tracing her lips. Carla just looked at her, mouth a gape before the started to nervously laugh, walking over to the girl with steady feet.

"Hey, Penny!" Carla greeted, offering Penny a hand. "You ready to go?" Her smile offered a warm sense of comfort, that smile truly made Carla aware that Penny was there for her. Thick and thin. The way her silky white gloves dripped onto Carla's hand, a light-weight 13 year old picked herself up. The way she properly stood up make Carla's stomach turn in knots, she looked like an angel descending from the skies above. Unlike Carla, Penny was going for the lighter setting. Her palette was a light blue scattered with white throughout the outfit. Light blue and white poofy dress, a blue flower clip for her hair, white gloves, blue and white heels, blue and white make-up? She just looked so perfect.

"Of course, I am." Penny slid her fingers between Carla's, making them both hold hands. The two just looked between each other, a feeling of safety washed over the two when they were near each other. Anyone would say they were perfect, your stereotypicaly extroverted, bright, young prodigy and the darker one, who was just as bright if not, louder.

Yet, even through the comfort, it was still a bit shocking and honestly scary when the two blinked in unison, to then end up in front of a large venue... this was it. Carla turned around and bowed in front of Penny, a hand out stretched.

"Will you accompany me on our date, madam?" Carla loved pretending to be all pretentious and stuck-up, as a joke, obviously. She never actually be one of those proper rich folk. Penny let out a small giggle, putting her white glove atop Carla's finger less black one.

"I shall, madam." Penny smirked, following along with Carla's snarkiness. The two stood still for a second, before bursting into laughter for a good minute. Eventually the laughs stopped, making the two turn to the entrance where someone was stood looking at them, confused. They both just coughed and stood up straight, ushering them away. They did, but gave the two a weird glance.

"Oh my goddd.. that was so embarrassing.." Penny waved her hands, panicking.

"Its fine! Lets just go in, I'm sure they'll forget."

Penny sighed and smiled lightly, interlocking her hand with Carla's. "Okay, lets just go in and see who'll we'll meet.."

( GAEU Penny and Carla are welcome for interactions!! )

[vi-trying-to-survive]

No One Else

Anthony Lockwood x f!Reader

Warnings: None, this is fluff and only fluff :) 💖💖💖

Summary: Lockwood asked Y/N to stay with him for the night, which is not new, but she's tired of always running after him

A/N: This is basically a P2 to Couldn't Sleep 💖💖💖 It's a little short and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about it but I hope you guys like it :) 💖💖💖 Also sorry if updates are slow :') 💖💖💖 I hope you guys have a good day :) 💖💖💖

Also if you want to read it: Couldn't Sleep 💖💖💖

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

She yawned and pulled the covers further up, covering her face. She pressed her face further into her pillow. The warmth was pulling her back to sleep. Wait, why was her pillow warm ? She blinked a few times, leaning up on her elbows. She grabbed aimlessly at the nightstand. Where was her hair-tie ? She turned to look around, the room was finally coming into focus. This wasn’t her room. She knew who's room this was. It happened again. She cursed under her breath, pressing the heel of her palm into her eyes.

Feeling something wrap around her waist, she turned to the left. Well at least one of the two of them was still having a good time. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy this, she did, but it hurt when they walked out and things went back to normal. She had told herself to break the pattern, more than once already, clearly this was turning out to be easier said than done. How was she expected to get over him when he always tugs her closer during a dangerous case and cuts the crust of her toast cause she doesn't like it. He really did look the most at peace when he was asleep. She sighed, pushing back the hair that had fallen over his forehead. How many more times would she find herself in this position before she finally learnt ? He begun to stir, she held her breath.

"Morning", he rubbed at his eyes.

She bit her lip, "Good morning".

He laughed, voice still gravelly in the morning, "Do you always stare at people in the morning ?". It seemed she had been caught. A heat rose to her face, she looked away.

She should say something witty she thought. "I um- I-", she frowned. Right, so this was not one of her best moments. Though she usually worked well under pressure, considering that her job involved getting rid of ghosts and avoiding death in general, this was one of those times where she did not.

"It's ok, it's sweet actually", he tilted her head back to his with a finger.

"Oh I-", she was suddenly aware of how close they were. An arm of his was still loosely circling her waist, their legs twisted together. Her heart was pounding and she was careful not to breath too loud. She wondered how insane she must look, her hair unbrushed and lines from sleep running across her face. Her racing mind was making this more and more mortifying. It would be best if she could suffocate herself right now.

"So, maybe we should talk about last night", he scratched the back of his head.

"Yeah, I- I understand-", she untangled herself from him. The ache in her chest began to grow stronger, but she fought to ignore it. She sat up at the edge of the bed, making a terrible attempt to pat down her hair.

"Wait, where are you going ?", rising up quickly, he left the covers strewn by his feet. His eyes were wide with hurt and distress.

She found it hard to meet his eyes, "I- Lockwood please- Don't make me say it out loud".

"Say what ?", he was confused.

"Pretend that last night didn't happen", she sighed. How he always managed to put her in such a vulnerable state, was beyond her.

"I- I don't understand, why would I want that ?", he ran a hand through his hair, wincing.

She threw her head into her hands, "We always do this". She felt her eyes burn, but forced herself to not cry. This game that they played was getting harder and harder to go along with each time they did it. She didn't want to be trapped in this cycle if it always ended with her wounded and chasing after him like a lost puppy. It was becoming humiliating and she couldn't bear it any longer.

She groaned, "You always say we're just friends but every time I come running after you we act like more, I can't do that anymore"

"I- I know, and I'm sorry", for once he was turning away from her. She chewed at her fingernail. This was somewhat out-of-character, but she was not against it. She kept silent. Maybe for once he would give her the truth, instead of beating around the bush with flourishes and distractions.

He pressed his lips together, "It's just that I thought you could do better- Better than me".

Her stomach did a flip. Well this was unexpected, to say the least. How could he even think that ? For the longest time she had only been able to think of him. He was rash and careless, but she was able to look past that, and she liked what she saw. She could only wonder why that was difficult for him to comprehend. She shook her head grinning, "Why is it so hard to get through your thick skull, I don't want anyone else. I want you". She shifted close to him and ran her thumb across his cheek, he leaned into her touch.

"I- I want you too, if you can get past how big of an idiot I can be", he smiled.

"I think that can be arranged", she laughed. Clutching the collar of his shirt, she tugged him down to her, connecting their lips. He was soft and gentle, reacting quickly enough to thread his fingers through her hair, pushing her nearer to him. He smelt faintly of lavender and worn books. She felt breathless, but couldn't wrench herself from him, wishing that they could be closer.

He pulled away, "We should have done that much earlier". She giggled. Dragging her back onto the mattress, he wrapped them tightly in the blankets, so that they were face to face with their hands intertwined. He seemed content and so was she.

[beanghostprincess]

(Modern Au) Fem!Law to me is from the itty bitty titty committee, not because she's just skinny, but because she barely eats properly and has been sick for a long time. So she has small boobs, bad posture, and huge eyebags. She's so tired, guys. So tired. She cuts her hair only because it's easier to maintain but she doesn't give a fuck. Her clothes are basically edgy bands loose t-shirts and baggy jeans with old boots and so many chains. So many chains. She has the energy of a depressed failgirl who's actually an honor student but if you ask her something in class she'll roll her eyes and groan. She has tattoos honoring her dead father and they turned out surprisingly good even though Kid was the one making them and Law didn't trust her at all for this shit but they were drunk, so who cares. Her body isn't 60% water. Her body is 60% energy drinks, her lungs full of tobacco and so, so many instant noodles. Her hair is greasy and she's so done with life, God help her, she's about to collapse. If you see her without her headphones on, there's something wrong with her. She spends the night reading and playing games and doing everything but sleeping. She sleeps, though. Sometimes. In class. Her three hours a day and her two meals consist of a Monster and probably rice that she cooked a week ago. And somehow. Somehow. She managed to get a "friend" (annoyance, to her) like Luffy. And a friend group like hers. She looks like she could kill you but she's actually a sweetie if you get to know her and she's very protective of the people she loves. If she likes you enough she'll show you her bass. Wow. Bold of you to assume she knows how to play it properly because no lesbian knows how to play the instrument in the corner of their room. But whatever, cool bass. She girlrots in her room most of the time but when she showers and dresses properly she goes out with Kid and the others to smoke and drink outside. Which is the same as they do in her house but, like, outside. Good for her. Getting fresh air. Anyway, I love fem!Law. This is fem!Law to me.

[lunastarnight]

Beauty is Pain

aka. My reinterpretation of Alexandria's Genesis

"Beauty Syndrome"

"Models Disorder"

That's what many called what I had: Alexandria's Genesis. Many probably know it as this amazing thing where you have purple eyes and no body hair. It seems amazing from the outside, Modeling Agencys always willing to hire people with it, and people with it always bding popular and envied for their beauty, but honestly? It is hell.

Well, let's start of with the fact that I am really sensitive. No, not in the "I didn't get my way, so I'm gonna cry untill I do" way some assholes would probably think. For one, bright light hurts really bad! To a point I have to often even have to wear sunglasses, just to go outside and stand being able to see sunlight. That's honestly why fall is my favourite season, then it rains more, at least here where I live, which makes it easier to go outside since it isn't as bright.

But it's not just my eyes that have trouble with sunlight, it's my whole body. You know how Alexandria's Genesis gives you pale skin? Well, that's because it basically kills of most of the melanin my body produces, and guess what your body kinda needs to fight the chance of sunburns? It's why I mostly wear long sleeves and pants when outside. Sure, some might say I'd look good in something a bit more revealing, but first of all, fuck them for trying to tell me what to wear, and second of all, fuck sunlight for basically trying to roast me alive.

I also have trouble regulating my temperature. Did you know your body hair helps with that? I do, because my doctors told me. It's always just really cold for me, which is why I basically take at least one jacket pretty much everywhere.

But speaking of clothes, those are also tricky to manage. My sense of touch is completely messed up because of this. There are so many fabrics I hate touching, because they feel like absolute hell on my skin. Thankfully cotton is common enough in clothes, that's one of the few fabrics I can actually stand wearing.

The weight also isn't a pretty story. Your body kinda needs calories and stuff like that to keep going, which is something my body is very unwilling to save, and very happy to loose. I'm basically constantly standing on the edge to being underweight, it being very hard for me to gain weight, but very easy to loose it.

This also makes me feel just so tired constantly, my body having trouble actaully taking in the energy I need from the food I eat.

It also makes injuries a lot more common. Wether it'd be small thing like cuts and bruises, or something bigger, without my body taking the proper ressources from my food, it can't really build itself up that strong, so injuries happen way faster. (And also, people tend to get weirdly judgy when they see them. When I had a bruise on my hand from accidentally hitting the edge of the table a bit too hard, I had multiple people tell me off for it. Even a total stranger, some grandma at the store, told me to "be more careful next time" and that I need to "preserve my beauty", like what?!)

So there you have it. I'm weak frail and tired. Yeah, I get it, I'm pretty, I have pretty priviledge, but I don't want it. I'd rather just live, then be pretty and in pain. "Pretty Priviledge" hasn't even helped me that much, this has made more people just like me for my appearance then actually like me for...well, me.

To whoever thinks they want to have Alexandria's Genesis:

Trust me, you don't.

[late-to-the-fandom]

Daily Writing Challenge - February 2024

Day 3 of @daily-writing-challenge February challenge was not the fun, 30 minutes tops, carefree writing warm-up I promised myself these would be, but we got there in the end.

Day 3: Bargain - 1kish words, no warnings

The name of the sanctuary was Eon's Fringe. Another time, Renathal would have found this amusing. Now, he felt unpleasantly humbled. Heavy. His mind weighed down by the day's events and the new future they offered. Or, more accurately, the new past.

Leaving Elisewin safely sleeping, he crept out of the cramped inn and back through the small haven's vined and bejeweled archway. He nodded at the defenders on guard, who returned the gesture warily, and let his feet carry him to the stairs cut into the cliff's edge, just before the temperate autumnal forestland gave way to shifting sand.

He looked up. Truly, there was nowhere else to look. The massive, hovering platform - both too far to walk to and too tantalisingly close to ignore - commanded all eyes. And all Renathal's thoughts, as well. He only realised he was sitting when a stag beetle crawled across his hand, now resting on the smooth stone step beside him. He barely registered either sensation, preoccupied as he was.

This place… that staff… the infinite possibilities… the undeniable risks…

"I know what you're thinking."

Startled from his reverie, Renathal swiveled around and found Elisewin sitting on an upper step, watching him blandly, head propped on one hand.

"I knew you would do this. Knew you wouldn't be able to let it go."

There was no reproach in her words; no disappointment, no anger. Renathal returned his gaze to the conflux and contemplated it for another moment before replying:

"Can you?"

Elisewin did not answer, but Renathal felt the hem of her robe brush against his back as she slid closer. He swallowed - his throat was very dry; exactly how long had he sat here? - then finally spoke aloud the idea that had teased, tormented him all the last day.

"You must admit, it is a prospect certainly worthy of some consideration. Imagine - being able to stop all that conflict, that chaos from happening before it ever began. If I could overthrow Denathrius before he joined forces with the Jailer, just think how much destruction could be prevented - how much ruin undone. All those souls, gone, lost for eternity, and I - I could save them all."

Only the sudden, tentative hand on his shoulder made Renathal realise how loud his voice had risen. He broke off, inhaling sharply and superfluously through his nose, and pushed back the loose hairs that had fluttered across his face during his rant.

"Renathal," said Elisewin unaffectedly, sliding down another step to tuck herself next to him on his, "you know it wouldn't be that easy. If we learned anything from today's events, it's that. You have no idea what the repercussions would be, and that's only if you actually pulled it off. Putting aside the fact the dragons would probably catch you, you don't know when to go back to - how far back Denathrius' betrayal began. And even if you did, and by some miracle you managed it, events would likely still unfold just as they have. There are too many players involved, too many moving pieces. It's - it's just ... too enormous an event to try to change."

Elisewin's tone was patient, her arguments pragmatic. Renathal had to bite back the instinct to serve her some biting retort. She was right, and he knew it; his own better sense had run through all these same irrefutable lines of reasoning. But it made the truth no easier to bear. He remained obstinately silent, eyes still fixed on the looming temporal conflux and its tempting possibilities.

Until Elisewin added hesitantly:

"On the other hand…"

Renathal glanced down at her, surprised to find her own face turned to that enticing gold horizon.

"…I know exactly where I would need to go. And when. The exact date and time." She paused, as if debating whether or not to say any more, then continued in a breathless rush," And nothing of any real importance would be altered. Elisande would still die. It would just - just be a few weeks sooner. Everything else would be the same. No one would even have to know. The only difference would be my - my sister… she would still be alive."

"You think that is an alteration of no of importance?" asked Renathal, a slightly bitter edge to his voice. "Her death is the reason we are here at all. Had she lived, there would have been no reason for you to venture into the Shadowlands. No reason to save them - to save your allies - save me. And, certainly, no reason to stay."

"You don't know that," Elisewin argued. "I might have - there - there might have been… some way…" Her hands clenched against her robes in a sudden burst of frustration. "There has to be a way - a way to do both. To save her and you. To save everyone."

Renathal recognised the notes of desperation from his own impassioned speech. He wondered if his face had looked anything like his lover's did now: almost manic as it reflected the light of the conflux's golden glow. He shifted on the step until he was looking directly at her.

"There is... much we might save," Renathal admitted slowly. "And there is much at stake. If we managed to succeed, we risk... this moment. This existence. Is it worth it?"

He asked the question as much of Elisewin as himself.

A beat of silence pulsed between them, heavy with the memories of the last few, impossibly precious years. Then Elisewin, too, tore her eyes from the conflux and reached for Renathal's hand.

"No," she said fiercely, and gripped him like a lifeline. "No. No, it's not. Nothing is."

Some tumultuous emotion rose in Renathal's throat, and he found himself leaning in just as Elisewin looked up. Their lips met halfway. For a time that mattered more for its meaning than its minutes, they simply sat, anchoring each other to the present.

Elisewin broke first, pulling away just enough to meet Renathal's eyes.

"We need to make a pact," she said hoarsely. "A - a promise. To each other. That neither of us is going to - to run off later and - and try."

Renathal's eyebrows quirked in surprise - promises were something Elisewin very rarely offered.

"I will if you will," he agreed.

It took her a few seconds, and a deep, shuddering breath, but at last-

"I promise," she said.

Renathal nodded solemnly.

"Then, so do I."

Elisewin's smile was shaky, but her hands were not as she reached for Renathal's face and pressed her lips to his again. This was less kiss than confirmation, but no less meaningful for it. Bargain thus sealed, they sat, nestled silently together, breathing in each other's presence and the warm, tree-scented air. Then Renathal, suddenly as exhausted as if they fought some prolonged and devastating battle, stood up, pulling Elisewin with him, and together they put their backs to any other possibilities and began to climb the stairs.

[imreadydollparts]

SO.

I’ve heard a lot of complaints about a specific doll’s hair coming out in clumps and, being experienced with doll hair, I’ve been curious.

But I don’t WANT this doll, so I waited to sate that curiosity until she went on sale.

She’s just not my style.

But that HAIR.

Straight out of the package (which has an ungodly number of plastic tabs), her hair looked and felt horrible. A tangled, matted mess.

And yes, hair did come out in alarmingly large clumps.

But, like I said, I’ve been at this for a WHILE and know that often doll hair doesn’t actually get rooted into the head (it’s just stuck in the hair that IS rooted), and that hair comes out the first time you comb or brush the hair. It’s usually not this much.

Even with the loose hairs removed, her hair was unruly and I personally can’t tolerate that. The curls were not even or defined, or even all the same texture.

However, none of the hair that was rooted into her head came out UNTIL I was detangling and popped one plug when a bad tangle was stuck in my comb.

She has the older locked loop method of rooting (like Blythe and 80′s/90′s Barbies) and if one loop comes out, there’s no longer an anchor for the others that were attached to it. More and more will come out the more the hair is handled.

So, despite being boil dunked to help get her hair under control (it wasn’t enough... I hate hair that tangles more while you comb it), she lost another large amount of hair, this time from her scalp.

I did end up straightening and recurling her hair in a more manageable way, but that’s not relevant here.

So, if you want to make sure none of the scalp hair comes out, or is at least more difficult to take out, you need to take her head off. I like to use a mug, a small sandwich bag, and an electric kettle.

The sandwich bag lets you heat the head without getting her hair wet.

When her head is hot and pliable, you yank and hope for the best.

Unsurprisingly, a Bratz style neck knob. They’re not nearly as annoying as Barbie neck knobs.

Next you need some waterproof glue.

You can 100% do this before even touching the hair for the first time as a precaution and on a doll with curly hair, I do recommend it. I wanted to see how Riviera’s hair behaved without any modifications since that’s how most parents or children would encounter this doll.

I like Aleene’s Fabric Fusion over Liquid Stitch because Fabric Fusion is a thicker gel and isn’t likely to wick up through the hair, ruining it. This is also why you want her hair to be dry. Dry hair doesn’t soak up glue through the strands as quickly or as far as wet hair would.

It also WILL cure and won’t become disgusting and ruin your doll or run down her hair or turn her face yellow like whatever Mattel put in G1 Monster High and Barbies from that time.

I did consider plugging in new hair to replace the hair she lost, but decided against it since she still has a ton of hair and I honestly don’t like her that much.

I do have some small bottles of Fabric Fusion that I refill from the large bottle instead of trying to squeeze the big bottle in a doll’s head. The little bottle is easier for me to manage.

Anyway, stick the nozzle in her neck and give it a hardy but not excessive squeeze. You don’t need a ton of glue, just enough to coat the roots of the hair.

Then I will put a cotton swab in there and mash the glue around to help spread it out. A big blob of glue in one spot does you little good.

Then you wait. The glue needs some time to dry. Come back tomorrow, maybe.

I have a small air purifier with a fan that points straight up which is handy for this kind of thing.

Once it is dry I’ll put her head in a baggie in the mug of hot water again and put it back on her body since I didn’t find a suitable replacement body with legs in my stash.