#mama sage to rescue ...

[knifvd]

@galaxythixf asked : "前辈, do you have a minute?" Iso stands a bit awkwardly by the door, uncertain if perhaps he belongs here, questioning whether or not he uses the right words. Shoulders stiff with a still expression trained not to give away the anxiety that eats him up inside, clawing for a way to break free. Now under careful watch he lets spurts of it slip through shifty eyes and clumsy words. "Sorry, I was having trouble sleeping and I saw you pass by." It's an earnest reason, far too shaken with the ruin he's caused over years of blood curdled screams and bodies he wrongfully snuffed the life from. Executioner, a role he was trained to pursue with the utmost skill and yet it haunted him. That role had never fit him even as he wore it confidently in the face of every target and now the shadow of his crimes has caught up to him in broken sleep and nervous action. "Would you mind … if I kept you company for a little while?" His tone is even out of habit but his mind begs for a little company during the nights that scare him. - Iso to Sage

SENTINEL  can  feel  his  presence  in  the  DOORWAY  long  before  he  speaks  ,   but  eyes  don't  raise  from  the  mission  report  :   see  as  she  scrolls  the  REFLECTION  of  the  small  words  in  her  glasses  .   sage   had  done  her  best  to  be  quiet  when  retrieving  TABLET  from  the  common  room  ,  but  ,  apparently  not  quiet  ENOUGH   .  tablet  rests  on  her  THIGHS  ,  underneath  dark  grey  COMFORTER  ,   mug  of  TEA  just  within  reach  on  her  NIGHTSTAND   ,  her  back  up  against  the  wall  .    gentle  sigh  rolls  over  her  LIPS   ,  eyes  finally  leaving  the  report  to  drift  over  to  him  ,  and  heart  itself  seems  to  CINCH  inwards  at  the  sight  .     ❛       大宝   ...      ❜    words  just  above  a  WHISPER  ,  as  she  offers  him  a  KIND   smile  ,  before  moving  closer  to  her  NIGHTSTAND  ,  effectively  making  room  for  him  next  to  her  ,   pulling  back  heavy  ,  weighted  comforter  for  HIM   ;   fluffs  a  PILLOW  .      ❛      of   course   you  can  keep me company  a  bit  .  never feel like you have to ask . ❜   

[zaenight]

MAMA DIDN'T RAISE NO BITCHES // Ez reyes : Nestor octeva CHAPTER 1

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Patiently waiting for ep 1 and 2 of mayans s5 😗

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"Uncle Tig we'll be fine , you said Marcus set us up with a house , stop whining." Jess said , Jessie Trager , the youngest niece of Tig , told the man who was spouting out profanities.

"He's right to worry , what if the sons and mayans go to war and they try to kill us for being related to him." Sage , her older sister stated.

"Thats not helping! , and your the one who wanted to move!" Jess exclaimed jumping up and down.

"Just stating the facts." Sage said .

"The lass is right , yer sure ya can't move somewhere close by." Chibs said , he became the president after Jax teller passed , he also happened to be Jessie's godfather.

"Alvarez said they needed a Docter that they could trust , Moving to santo Padre could make the bond stronger." Happy lowman stated , The tacoma killer was the godfather of Sage , who like him , was an expert of torture.

"I like torturing more than I like healing , but we get a house already set up and everything , It would be a shame to waste this oppurtunity , Plus Chucky's there , we'll know someone." Sage stated as Jess made a noise of disgust.

"Still can't belive you lost the card game and had to give up

Chucky." Jess said to Chibs.

"We'll be a call away Little girl , just calll if we need to kill some Mayans." Happy stated as Sage got into their packed car , Jess hugged the three men , hopping in.

"Where's the fun in that when you could do it yourself." Sage said winking  as Jess started rambling about getting this show on the road.

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

The two arrived at a house , it Reminded the girls of Piney's cabin , which they stayed at frequently , No other houses around , but not too far from town , it was perfect.

"Marcus , Thank you for this." Sage told the man she and her sister have known since they were children , The mayans and sons had their ups and downs , not only that but Sage had dated his son Esai , who would've proposed to her , until his death , she still has the ring on a chain around her neck , It was found by Diana , his mother ,and the first wife of marcus alvarez , who gave it to the then seventeen year old, no one has seen her sense the death of esai.

"No need for that niñita , welcome to Santo padre , if you two need anything , call." He said as they thanked him.

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

"Angel where's your Prospect?" Obispo Losa , also known as Bishop , president of the mayans charter , asked

the man.

"He went too see our old man." Angel Reyes said , his little brother had some years shaved off his sentence , and is now prospecting for the club.

"Need him on this run , and Marcus wants him to show the trager girls around." Bishop said to him.

"Protection? , and the Bone lady and that little manipulator are here?" Angel said , you may be asking why he called Jess a manipulater , simply because she'll act dumb then end up beating you at your own game.

"Yes those two , Sage will be our go too doctor , Think he's ready?" Bishop questioned.

"Yeah." Angel said.

"Good." The shorter man said as he and Hank walked away.

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

It went wrong fast , they got shot up , Sage and Jess drove to the rescue , Miguel was Pissed as he greeted the two.

Sage rushed over to Creeper , Greeting the men , Jess knew a bit of medical stuff thanks to her , so she helped with Riz,Ez and Sage locked eyes before she focused on creeper.

"So who was it ?" Miguel questioned the men , Creeper winced as Sage took a bullet out , cleaning the wound.

"Don't know , they were pros." Bishop said as Galindo looked through a book of fabrics.

"Well At least we didn't lose 2.4 million in product to a bunch of amateurs." Miguel stated.

"They ambushed us sir , came out of nowhere." Creeper said as Sage made a makeshift sling out of fabric , Riz had somewhat recover , Its the best she could do without proper equipment , he'll have to go to another doctor untill she can get her hands on Stuff.

"You'll need time to heal , no going out and about for awhile." Sage stated to creeper , as Jess started twirling around in circles until she sat down.

"We change route... , vehicle...,time and day, every run is different , So... they came out of somewhere , and someone gave them the details." Miguel stated getting up.

"No one in my club." Bishop stated as Creeper winced.

"Implying im the one foolish enough , to employ a traitor ? , hmmm." Miguel said , no one noticed the two girls , angel , and coco , glance at eachother.

"The guy holding Gilly was dark skinned , Ink on his arm , it looked like uh... tribal letters , B-T-T." Ez said , as a prospect , a new one , speaking out of turn without being asked was a big no no.

Sage loved it , she was gonna enjoy every second of it.

"He remembers shit , had guns at our heads , who knows what the hell he saw." Angel sajd turning back around.

"The Prospect." Miguel said as Jess got up looking through fabrics.

"B-T-T , base town tribe , samoan gang out of san Bernardino." Bishop said thinking.

"Didn't some of them do time for killing Haji ?" He asked.

"Fallujah , Rival company crazy as fuck." Coco said.

---------

After discussing who it was that shot them up , Miguel wanted the shot caller , and they were gonna get him what he wants , threataning to kill a mayan if the shot called isn't at his church pew by tommorow , but the girls did realize he glanced towards them for a bit.

Yeah so much for not being on his radar.

But anyways Bishop had punched Ez for speaking out of turn.

"You don't speak unless we tell you too , I don't give a shit what you remember , Educate your prospect." Bishop told him before turning to angel.

Sage clapped slightly gaining their attention , Before helping Ez up , checking his face.

They walked away with taza telling them to Bring creeper to the doctor that usually takes care of them , honestly why is she here , he also stated that El Padrino's on his way.

They're lucky she's being paid , Jess was skipping around creeper , who laughed at the girl , who seemed to brighten things up.

"Padrino , Godfather." Ez translated as Angel got him up from the chair Sage sat him down on.

"Alvarez , The reason me and Jess came here." Sage stated , As Jess ran ahead of them spouting nonsense,into the tunnels they went.

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

"Right there , Careful!" Sage exclaimed , as She helped the older male docter prepare stuff.

"Hiciste un buen trabajo, quizás tenga que contratarte." The doctor said to Sage as Jess sat down.

(you did a good job , I might have to hire you)

"gracias señor, hice lo mejor que pude con lo que tenía a mano, y podría aceptar esa oferta." Sage replied perfectly.

(thank you sir , I did my best with what was on hand , and I might take you up on that offer.)

And then they got to work , with Jess asking when the fuck she learned spanish.

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Part 1 of ep 1 perro/oc

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[as-good-as-held]

notes about my dragons and their genetics because that is interesting to me (making things up is my passion)

Ingo and Emmet are not identical twins! which is obvious because one of them is a standard snow and the other is an onyx, right? well actually, not at all. visually, yeah, Ingo looks like an onyx but he isn't, he's genetically a melanistic snow. now usually, melanistic snows turn out grey or even navy blue in colour, but Ingo popped out with the blackest fur i've ever seen on a dragon that wasn't pure onyx. which is weird because he and Emmet hatched from the same egg. here comes my tinfoil hat territory because i don't know what their parents were, i think they both carried the allele for melanism because it's recessive in dragons but presented as pure snows, so the were Ss. this led to Emmet recieving either SS genes (making him pure snow) or Ss genes (making him a carrier for melanism without presenting as such) and Ingo recieving ss genes, making him visibly melanistic. they aren't identical so this is definitely possible. (unless Ingo had a random gene mutation that gave him melanism outside of parents genetics, which would still result in them being fraternal twins instead of identical) Ingo and Emmet came from breeders (who could verify that Ingo is a snow because she showed me the video of him and Emmet hatching)

cucumber isn't a pure sage, either. their mama was a rose dragon and, presumably, their papa was a sage. there aren't any funny genes in roses or sages that make them present funny so cucumber has normal genes. they have the rose allele in them but the sage one is dominant, in the same way that i carry an allele for blonde hair (recessive) but the brown hair one is dominant so it wins by default. they came from a different breeder to the twins who was not very good at their job and had failed to notice that their own pet rose had gotten very friendly with the sage they owned. well they had a really runty pup that needed hand-rearing (which i absolutely did not trust them to do) and so i ended up with a very small sage-rose who is actually older than all of my others by kind of a lot

tax evasion? pure dexter. there was never a purer dexter in existence. it's a recessive allele so there is absolutely no way there's anything else in him. he was a rescue that had been spotted slinking around the back of a bookshop i used to frequent who kept shredding the cardboard boxes they had to throw away. well i trapped him in one and took him home cause he was a lil matted and smelly so clearly nobody else was coming for him. he warmed up right away and he leaves the house with me sometimes cause he's the most used to being out there but he's definitely a lapdragon. all he wants is snooze and cuddle. makes me wonder who owned him before me and why they would leave him out there. their loss, he's my special boy now

[definitelynotaurora]

Mama Sage to the rescue! Sunburns suck

ALSO NEON AND HER FOLLOWERS LMAO

[thelastspeecher]

Trouble in Paradise

Yes, even more Marriage of Convenience AU content!  This time, Ford’s lovely wife finally makes an appearance!

Once again, thank you to the folks on the Discord who have been helping me with the development of this AU, y’all rock something fierce.  c:

——————————————————————————————

              The front door opened.

              “What are we doin’ fer dinner?” a woman asked as she stepped inside.  She looked over.  Her mouth fell open in a small “o”.  “I get the feelin’ that ain’t the question I should be askin’,” she said slowly.  Stan raised an eyebrow at her thick southern accent. Orion and Iris, who had been playing with Stan and Ford on the floor, both got to their feet and toddled to the woman.

              “Mama!” Iris squealed happily.  The woman crouched down to embrace Orion and Iris.

              “Hello, my babies,” she cooed, stroking their hair. “Did yer Daddy take good care of you today?”

              “No, their Uncle Stan did,” Ford corrected tartly. The woman looked up, confused. “You mistook my twin for me and sent him to our home.”

              “I…”

              “Angie, do you have any clue how dangerous that is?” Ford demanded, getting up and stomping over to his wife.  Orion and Iris scampered to Stan as Angie straightened. “You sent a stranger here. Where our children were.”

              “Clearly, he’s not a stranger, if he’s yer twin,” Angie snapped.

              “He’s a stranger to you!”

              “It worked out, didn’t it?”

              “I know you’re smarter than this!  You have to understand why your actions were foolish!”

              “You were home, right?  It was fine!”

              “No, I wasn’t home!”

              “You-”

              “I had to work today.”

              “You were still sleeping when I left.  I thought that meant-”

              “Oh, god forbid I sleep in on the one day I don’t teach until the afternoon!” Ford shouted, throwing his arms up in the air. “It’s not like I stayed up late grading papers or anything!”

              “Forgive me fer assumin’ that ya wouldn’t leave our children home alone!” Angie screamed.  Stan grimaced, growing increasingly uncomfortable.

              “You didn’t check with me before you left to make sure I was watching the kids!”

              “I thought you wanted yer sleep!” Angie shouted. Orion and Iris buried their faces in Stan’s shirt, whimpering.

              Okay, that’s enough.

              “Both of you, shut the hell up,” Stan hissed fiercely.  Ford and Angie glared at him.  “Unless you wanna keep fighting in front of your kids.”  Ford’s face went slack.  Angie covered her mouth in horror.

              “Oh, no,” she whispered.  “I didn’t- I didn’t mean to.”  She walked over to Stan and knelt next to him.  “Sweeties, it’s okay.”  Iris let go of Stan to latch onto her mother.  “I’m sorry Mama and Daddy were loud ‘n angry.  It’s okay, it’s okay.”  Ford crouched next to Stan as well and held out his arms.  Orion toddled over to him.  Ford embraced his son tightly.

              “It’s okay, Orion.  Everything’s fine,” Ford whispered.  He kissed the top of Orion’s head.

              “I can’t believe we fought in front of the kids,” Angie said in a quavering voice.

              “They’ll be fine.  Kids are pretty tough,” Stan said with a shrug.  Angie sat down and looked at him.  Her eyes were a bright blue, just like Orion’s.

              “I take it yer my brother-in-law.”

              “Yep.  Name’s Stan.”

              “I’m aware.”  Angie looked at Ford.  “Stanford told me ‘bout ya a few times ‘fore ya ran away.”

              “And your name’s Angie, right?”

              “Correct,” Angie said with a nod.  Her caramel-colored hair, cut into a short bob, danced from the movement.  Like Ford, she was dressed professionally, wearing slacks, a blouse, and a cardigan. “Thank you fer watchin’ our children today.”

              “Not a problem.  I like kids.  Always have.” Stan grinned at Angie.  “By the way, no offense to Ford, but you’re way outta his league.”  Ford sighed. Angie blinked in surprise.  A faint flush spread across her cheeks.

              “Ah, uh, thank you?” she stammered.

              “Stanley, please don’t hit on my wife,” Ford said wearily.

              “Fine.”  Stan looked at Orion and Iris, then at Angie.  Both the children had inherited Ford’s thick, ruddy nose, rather than Angie’s long, thin one.  “Maybe your third kid will have your nose, Angie.”  Angie’s eyes widened.  She glared at Ford, who held his hands up defensively.

              “I didn’t say anything, Angie, Stanley just likes to tease me.”

              “Hmph.”  Angie carefully deposited Iris in Stan’s lap and stood.  She brushed off her slacks.  “I reckon Stanford didn’t make dinner.”

              “I was busy catching up with my long-lost twin.”

              “I see.”  Angie sighed.  “I’ll try to whip somethin’ up.  In the meantime, Stanley, I’d like to repay ya fer watchin’ the kids today.”

              “When I was checking out the place, I saw a guest room,” Stan said idly.  “It’s got a nice, big bed.”  Angie managed a small smile.

              “Would ya care to stay the night?” she asked.

              “Well, since you offered, I can’t exactly turn it down,” Stan replied.  Angie laughed, a sound that made Stan’s stomach somersault.

              “I like yer sense of humor.”  She walked away.  In a few moments, the clattering of pots and pans sounded.

              “Yeah,” Stan said.  He looked at Ford.  “You really married up, Sixer.  She’s too good for you.”  He expected Ford to respond with bluster and frustration, but to his surprise, Ford merely sighed.

              “Yes,” he said softly.  “She is.”

-----

              “Yeesh.”  Stan grimaced at the apple juice that had spilled all over Orion.  “Guess the lid wasn’t on tight enough, huh?”  Orion giggled.  “Hey, Ford?”

              “Yes?” Ford called from the kitchen where he was making dinner.

              “Orion spilled his juice on him, so I’m gonna change his clothes.”

              “Okay, but be sure to use clothes from the dresser by his crib, not the one by Iris’s.”

              “You got it.”  Stan picked his nephew up and brought him down the hall.  It was his fourth day at Ford and Angie’s, and he was already considering just moving in.  He liked the consistency of things.  Ford and Angie woke up, took care of the kids, then went to work, leaving Stan to watch the kids.  In the evening, they had dinner, put the kids in bed, and then went to bed themselves.

              Having a proper roof over my head is pretty nice, too. I’ve been living in the Stanleymobile for way too long.  Stan pushed open the door to the nursery.  He set Orion on the floor and went to the dresser Ford had told him to use.

              “And…nothing,” Stan muttered after he had pulled open every drawer, only to find it completely empty.  “Hmm.”  Stan looked at Orion.  “It’s too cold to let you walk around in your diaper.”  He crouched down and winked at his nephew.  “I’ll get you one of your sister’s things, okay?  Don’t tell your Dada.”  Orion giggled and stuck his fist into his mouth.

              Stan grabbed a soft onesie from Iris’s dresser and brought it over to Orion.

              “Don’t fight me on this,” he instructed his nephew. He removed Orion’s onesie and carefully zipped on the fresh one.  “There! All done!”  Orion fussed loudly.  “What’s wrong?”  Orion began to wail at the top of his lungs.

              Shit!

              “Aw, it’s okay, Orion, it’s okay,” Stan said in a soothing tone, holding Orion close.  Orion thrashed in his arms, continuing to cry.  “C’mon, kid.”

              “No!  No!” Orion screamed.  He squirmed desperately.  “No!”

              “Hey, hey, you don’t gotta be so upset!”

              “No!”

              “Stanley, what in the world is going on?”  Stan spun around.  Ford stood in the doorway of the nursery.

              “I put him in new clothes and he lost his mind.”

              “Did you dress him in clothes from his dresser?”

              “No, but-”

              “Damn you, Stanley,” Ford hissed, snatching Orion from him.  Ford quickly unzipped the onesie, pulled it off Orion, and threw it onto the floor. “It’s okay, Orion.”  Ford gently rocked Orion until his sobs quieted to hiccups. “He can’t wear his sister’s clothes,” Ford whispered.

              “Why?  He’s not exactly macho.”

              “It has nothing to do with gender, it has to do with tactile sensitivity.”

              “Huh?”

              “Orion is extremely sensitive to certain fabrics. He can only wear clothing made of certain material.  Even then, he has to be awake.  He won’t fall asleep if he’s wearing anything more than his diaper.”

              “…Oh.”  Guilt began to spread throughout Stan.  “Well, why didn’t you tell me?”

              “I did!”

              “You told me what not to do.  You didn’t tell me why,” Stan said.  Ford scowled.

              “I shouldn’t have to explain myself when it comes to matters involving my children.  I’m their father.  I know their needs best.”

              “Yeah, yeah, whatever, fine.”  Stan crossed his arms.  “I’ll only dress him in his clothes, then.”

              “Good.”  Ford carried Orion over to his crib and carefully set him down inside.  “He tired himself out from crying.  I hope it doesn’t throw off his schedule much.” Ford sighed.  “I need to get back to the kitchen.  Please watch over Iris until Angie comes home.”

              “You got it.”  Stan followed Ford out of the nursery, but veered into the living room instead of the kitchen.  Iris stood in the playpen, pouting at Stan.  “Hey there, sunshine.”

              “Unc,” Iris said in a tone that made it clear she was disappointed with him.  Stan laughed.

              “You sound just like your dad when you talk like that, you know.”

              “Unc.”

              “All right, all right.”  Stan lifted Iris from the playpen.  “I’ll rescue you from the baby jail.”  The front door opened.  Angie walked in.  “Hey, Ang.”

              “Stan,” Angie said with a nod.  She beamed at Iris.  “There’s my lil rainbow!”  Iris squealed happily.

              “Mama!”

              “I sure am,” Angie gushed.  Stan handed Iris over to her.  “Where’s Orion?”

              “In his crib.”

              “Already?”

              “He had a bit of a meltdown and wore himself out,” Stan explained.

              “Oh no.  Do ya know why?”

              “According to Ford, it’s ‘cause I put him in the wrong clothes.”

              “Ah.”  Angie nodded sagely.  “That’d do it.”

              “Really?”

              “Oh, yes.  He’s a sensitive little boy.”  Angie smiled. “But at least ya know now and ya won’t dress him wrong next time.”

              “Yeah…”  Stan stuffed his hands into his pockets.  “Look, Ang, I gotta ask you something.”

              “Shoot.”

              “Isn’t- isn’t it kinda coddling Orion?” Stan asked. Angie frowned.  “He should just deal with wearing clothes he’s not comfortable in.  That’s how life works.”

              “Stanley, Orion ain’t even two yet,” Angie said patiently.  “He’s supposed to be coddled.”

              “Well, yeah, but-”

              “When he gets older, if it’s still a problem, we’ll address it, try to ease him into other clothes.  But right now, he’s too little to understand what’s goin’ on. All he knows is that he’s uncomfortable, in pain, even.”

              “Fair enough,” Stan mumbled.  He looked down at his feet.

              “Stanley.”  Stan looked up.  Angie was watching him, not with sympathy, but with empathy.  “I understand.”

              “You do?”

              “Yes.”  Angie took a seat on the couch.  Stan sat down next to her.  “Stanford told me ‘bout how yer father was very into tough love.”

              “Yeah, he was.”

              “That was somethin’ I was worried ‘bout.  I was worried Stanford might slip into similar ways of parentin’.  But he didn’t.  He told me that the second he held Orion and Iris, he knew he couldn’t be harsh or tough on ‘em.”  Angie played with Iris’s six-fingered hands, her eyes soft.  “I understand that ya have that same instinctive urge to do as ya were raised.  But trust us when we say we know what we’re doin’, okay?”

              “…Okay.”

              “Good.”  Angie smiled at him.  “‘Cause Stanford ‘n I have been talkin’, and we think that, if yer willin’, we’d like to hire ya as a live-in nanny fer Orion and Iris.”

              “Huh?”

              “We’d pay ya and let ya stay in the guest room.” A twinkle appeared in her eye. “But only if ya do what we tell ya.”

              “Why?”

              “The kids love ya.  We need childcare, you need a job.”  Angie shrugged.  “Seems like a win-win sit’ation.”

              “You know I’m unemployed.”

              “Oh, sugar cube.”  Angie put a hand on Stan’s shoulder.  “We know ya ain’t just unemployed, we know yer homeless.”

              “…Great.”

              “But if ya take us up on this offer, ya won’t be.”

              Good point.

              “I’ll think about it,” Stan said after a moment, wanting to avoid seeming too eager.  Angie nodded.

              “Good.”  Crying sounded from down the hall.  Angie sighed. “I better go check on Orion.”  She handed Iris to Stan, then kissed his cheek. Stan watched her walk away, warmth spreading across his face.

[hearts-hunger]

dralshy’a ka’ra (brighter stars): chapter six || din djarin x reader

Read on AO3 | Masterlist

chapter one | chapter two | chapter three | chapter four | chapter five

Series Summary: In the lake country of Naboo, you and Din romance each other under summer’s brighter stars. || Part Two of Jate’kara (Lucky Stars)

Chapter Summary: You and Din return to Sorgan to get your baby, and you get some very happy news.

Pairings: Din Djarin x Wife!Reader

Genre: Pure fluff | Word Count: 4.8k 

Warnings: Just to be safe, talk of pregnancy and having babies

A/N: It’s the end of this little sequel series! I hope you loves have enjoyed reading it as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it, and I’m so thankful for all your kind comments! A note about this chapter: I did my research on Star Wars lore, so even though Omera’s backstory is my own headcanon, it all exists in Star Wars canon! I think she deserves to be force-sensitive, and I think Mr. and Mrs. Djarin deserve their happy news even if it’s not realistic to know that soon. Anyways, I hope you like it! ♡

“Mr. and Mrs. Djarin!”

You couldn’t help a smile at the exuberant greeting as you made your way down the lane, warmth and light spilling out of the little huts on either side. Winta ran up to meet you, leaving the group of children playing together in the warm evening air, their toys spread out amongst them as they laughed and chattered with each other. Your baby was playing happily with two other children and a pile of toy soldiers. You didn’t call for him, even though you wanted to hold him; you’d be leaving soon, and you wanted to let him play with his friends a little longer.

Winta stopped in front of Din, the toy Pelta-class medical ship in her hands all but forgotten.

“Are you here for the baby?” she asked, the slight edge of hesitation to her voice indicating she was hoping you were here for a different reason.

“Afraid so,” Din told her, sympathy and amusement coloring his voice. You both knew your little one had a devoted friend in Winta, and he’d be just as sad to leave her as she would be to see him go.

Her shoulders slumped, but she quickly recovered her manners. 

“Well, thank you for letting him stay for a while,” she said sincerely, looking up at both of you with an earnest expression.

You smiled. “You’re welcome,” you said. “You had a fun time together?”

She beamed. “Yes!” She gestured back to the other children, then to the toy in her hands. “We were just playing that we were in the Clone Wars, but the hospital ship’s lights won’t turn on.”

Din hunkered down to her height and extended his hands. “May I see?”

Winta handed her toy to him, watching as he took out his vibroblade and began to tinker with it. His big hands were steady even on the toy’s littlest parts, and he soon had the lights working as they should.

“Thank you, Mr. Djarin,” Winta said, almost in awe as he handed the toy back to her. He put his knife away and gave her hair an affectionate ruffle as he stood.

“You’re welcome,” he said. “Could you do me a favor and tell your mom we’re here?”

“Sure,” she agreed. With a parting smile, she skipped off in the direction of her house, cradling her newly-fixed toy close to her chest.

Din watched her go. “Strange to think about kids playing at the Clone Wars, isn’t it?”

“A little,” you agreed. “Though probably more for you than it is for me. I don’t remember them at all.”

“No, I guess you wouldn’t,” he mused, looking at you. “You were only a baby, right?”

You nodded. “I was born the year they started.” You knew Din had been rescued in the last year of the conflict, and wondered how he felt about his son playacting it with a bunch of toy soldiers.

“Does it bother you?” you asked.

“Them playing it?” he asked. He shrugged when you nodded.

“Not really,” he said. “I played like that when I was little. We mostly stuck to the legends of the Mandalorian Crusades, which were thousands of years ago, but it’s... comforting, I guess, that little ones are so removed from the war I lived through that they can make it a game.”

“I think my parents thought the same about the Battle of Naboo,” you said. “We played it all time, in the field where it happened, and mother made us costumes and everything. I always wanted to be Queen Amidala.”

You smiled at the memory. “I stuck bird feathers in my hair to make a headdress,” you remembered. “Even though the queen probably wasn’t wearing her fancy clothes during the battle.”

Din chuckled. “Probably not,” he agreed.

Your thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a happy babble, and you looked to see your little one toddling over, a grin on his face and a toy clutched in his claws. He gave you uppy arms and you happily scooped him up, cuddling him close and giving him kisses.

“Hello, my little love,” you cooed, secretly pleased that he’d noticed you were here and had decided you were worth leaving his game for. He touched a hand to your cheek and giggled when you kissed his ears.

“Did you know mama missed you very much?” you said. He gave you a questioning coo, and you smiled. “Yes, I did miss you very much. Your daddy missed you too.”

He turned his head to find Din, then broke into a beaming grin when he spotted him. Din moved closer to you and put a hand on your back as he offered his other hand to your baby.

“Su cuy'gar, ad’ika,” Din greeted, his smile unmistakable through the vocoder as the baby wrapped his hand around Din’s finger. “I missed you.”

Your baby gave an excited babble and held his toy up for his dad to see.

“I know, you’ve got a very nice toy,” Din said with interest and affection. “You had fun playing, didn’t you?”

You knew Din wanted to have his chance to cuddle your son, and you handed him over with a parting kiss. Din cradled him against his chest, listening to your baby’s incoherent but impassioned chatter as he waved his toy around. Your husband responded with “wow!” and “I know!” when appropriate, knowing your son was telling him something but unsure what it was. You smiled as you watched them. As happy as you had been to have time alone with your husband, you were happy that your little family was back together.

“You’re here!”

Both you and Din turned to see Omera greeting you with open arms, and you fell willingly into a tight, affectionate hug from your friend. She hugged Din next, careful of the baby, and looked at both of you with a warm smile.

“You look well-rested,” she said. “Did you have a nice time?”

“Yes,” you said sincerely. “It was wonderful. Thank you so much for watching him.”

She gave a dismissive wave. “We were happy to have him. He’s played from sunup to sundown every day.”

The baby had found his toy made an interesting clinking noise when tapped against his dad’s arm plate, and Din covered the buttons on his vambrace so nothing would get set off accidentally.

“He was good?” Din asked. “Minded his manners?”

Omera smiled. “He was perfect,” she assured him. “No trouble at all.” She glanced up at the sun that had just started to set, then back at the two of you.

“Can you stay at all?” she asked. “I know you’re probably anxious to be going soon, but I have the kettle on if you’d like to at least have some tea before you go.”

You looked up at Din. You knew you couldn’t stay the night; he preferred to set course for Trask as soon as possible, but you did want to spend a little more time with your friend if you could.

“Can we stay for tea?” you asked.

He nodded. “Yes. I’d like us to be headed to the Crest before dark, though, if that’s alright.”

You smiled. “Okay,” you agreed. “Thank you.”

You looped your arm through Omera’s and walked with her towards her home, happy to let Din hold the baby while you told your friend all about your vacation. You’d become very close the first time you stayed on Sorgan, just after you’d gotten your baby - she was an invaluable help to you as you learned the ropes of motherhood, and she was a deeply caring and affectionate friend. You didn’t get to see her as often as you would have liked, but treasured your time together whenever it came.

“You have an aura about you, Mrs. Djarin,” she said sagely, a mischievous glint in her lovely brown eyes as she walked with you up the front steps of her house. “Is there any news you need to tell me?”

You were intrigued but slightly bewildered - you didn’t have any news, did you?

You sat down at her kitchen table. “What do you mean? What kind of aura?”

She didn’t say anything, just gave you a knowing smile as she moved about her kitchen, pouring two cups of Tarine tea into beautiful teacups. You knew they’d been a wedding present from her husband, and she liked to use them as a way to keep his memory close.

“Any for you, Din?” she asked as he took a seat next to you, the baby content to stay in his lap. She handed the baby a cookie, and he gave a pleased coo.

Din chuckled. “No, but thank you for offering. It’s kind of you, considering how many times I’ve declined your hospitality before.”

She waved him off as she sat catty corner to you with her own cup. “What good is a woman’s hospitality if it doesn’t respect those who come through her door?”

She cradled her mug in her hands and blew gently on it as she raised it to her lips. You watched her face expectantly, desperately curious to know what she’d meant by her earlier comment. When she just raised a brow at you, you gave an incredulous laugh.

“What do you know that I don’t know?” you asked. “I don’t think I have any news to tell you.”

Din cocked his head. “News? What news?”

“Omera asked if I had any news to tell her,” you said. “She said I had an ‘aura’ about me. Do I have an aura about me, Din?”

“Um... I don’t know?” he said politely, unsure if it would be a compliment or an insult and therefore choosing the middle ground.

You looked back at Omera. “Is an aura a bad thing?”

She shook her head. “No, not necessarily. It’s just an indication of something - in this case, something medical - that you may not even be aware of.”

You frowned. “Medical? As in, your healing?” Omera was the village healer, but you’d always thought it to be based in traditional, herbal medicine. You’d never heard her mention an “aura” in her work.

She hummed. “Yes, I use it in healing,” she said. “Maybe I should tell you about how I learned to be a healer, and that will make some things clear.”

“I’d love to hear about it,” you said earnestly. Aside from this confusion about your “aura”, you had wanted to know where she trained, as you’d thought she’d been on Sorgan her whole life.

She took a sip of her tea.

“My grandmother’s people were from the planet Dathomir,” she said. “She was born into the Daughters of Allya, a clan of witches and powerful healers, and she was taught to be a healer. Though she left Dathomir to settle with my grandfather here, on Sorgan, she trained my mother to be a healer too. My mother taught me, and when Winta is old enough, I will teach her.”

You studied your friend’s face. To know she was descended from a clan of healer-witches made sense of her uncanny grace, her warrior spirit. It fit her very well, and only grew your admiration for her.

“Do you heal with magic, then?” you asked.

“Not usually,” she said. “Only in very serious cases. And it’s not magic like people usually think of it, not party tricks and potions. It’s more... channeling energy, working with your own life force and the life force of the sick person.”

You and Din looked at each other, and you knew you were thinking the same thing. Life force, energy, healing - that all sounded uncannily similar to the powers your little one exhibited. No one knew of his healing powers aside from those who were there when he’d healed Greef, and to hear Omera talk about a similar power had your interests piqued.

Omera tried to read the tension between the two of you, a frown creasing her brow.

“Oh, dear,” she said. “I’ve offended you, haven’t I? Or frightened you with all this life force talk?”

“Not at all,” you assured her. “It actually sounds like... something we’ve heard of before. But what does it have to do with me?” 

Before Omera could answer, you felt Din stiffen beside you.

“Is it - is there something wrong?” he asked. “Her life force, is there something wrong with it?”

Omera’s smile was warm and comforting. “No,” she assured both of you. “There’s nothing wrong with it.”

“But you can... sense something about it?” he pressed. You put a hand on his arm, hoping to soothe him; though his posture eased a little at your touch, he still looked at Omera and waited for her answer.

She gave a gentle laugh. “Oh, I’ve done a bad job putting you at ease,” she said, apologetic and kind. “I’m sorry. Yes, I can sense something, and it’s nothing to be worried about. It’s actually very good. It must be early yet, if you don’t know what I’m talking about.”

Both of you shook your heads.

She smiled. “Well then, my dear friends. Let me be the first to congratulate you, because you’re going to have another baby.”

Both of you stilled. Then, before you’d quite found your voice - “We’re what?”

She laughed, the sound bright and happy.

“You’re pregnant,” she told you. “Your aura is unmistakable. The life force coming from you grows by the minute.”

Even before you’d had the chance to really process it, you felt yourself give a beaming smile. You were pregnant? Already? How could that be? You didn’t feel any different, and it had only been a few days ago that you and Din had started trying.

You looked over at him, a little overwhelmed with joy, and you wished you could see his face. He held his hand out to you, palm up on the table, and you put your hand in his.

“We’re having another baby?” he said, his voice hoarse through the modulator. He glanced over at Omera. “Are you sure?”

She beamed at the two of you. “Yes, I’m sure. It’s still early days, but I know a mother’s aura when I see it.”

Din squeezed your hand, and you didn’t need to see his face to know how much he loved you.

“Cyare,” he said. “We’re having another baby.”

“Oh, Din.” You felt a rush of happy tears; he released your hand to cradle your face, running his thumb over your cheek to catch the few that fell.

“Ni kar'tayli gar darasuum, cyar’ika,” he said softly. Though Omera and your baby probably understood what it meant, he’d made a point to say it in Mando’a, just for you. For his wife, the mother of his children, the woman he loved more than anything else in the world.

You leaned into his touch and said it back. You couldn’t stop smiling, and he gave a watery, affectionate laugh as he let you take his hand in yours again.

“Thank you for telling us,” Din said, turning to Omera.

She smiled. “You’re very welcome,” she said. “I’m so happy for you both.”

She took your other hand in hers, and you felt a wash of thankfulness to be so cared for by the people you loved. The excitement and happiness between the three of you was palpable, and you were so grateful to share it with your husband and your dearest friend.

“I want you to deliver this baby, Omera,” you said. Even when you were daydreaming about having another baby, you’d never thought about who you wanted to help you deliver; but there, in Omera’s warm, comfortable home with the sun sinking low, you knew you absolutely wanted it to be her.

“I would be honored,” she said sincerely, her smile warm. “It would be my pleasure to help bring another Djarin into the world.”

Your conversation drifted towards Omera’s experience with midwifery, and you were confident that no one in the galaxy would be better suited to help you deliver this baby. Between the two of you, you whiled away the evening in happy conversation. Din jumped in when he felt inclined, but you knew he was happy to take a breather and let you visit while both of you enjoyed the luxury of sitting at a friend’s table and enjoying her company.

Though he’d said you needed to leave when the sun set, Din let you linger as long as possible over the dregs of your tea and your visit with Omera. He was sweetly apologetic when he gently chimed in that you should be leaving, putting a hand on your arm when there was a lull in the conversation.

“I’m sorry, cyare, but we should head back to the Crest.”

You glanced outside and realized that night had well and truly fallen, and your baby was sound asleep in the crook of Din’s arm. It was later than Din had wanted to leave, and you felt a slight pang of guilt.

“Oh, dear, we completely lost track of time, didn’t we?” Omera said as the three of you rose. “Sorry, Din.”

He chuckled. “That’s alright. It was very nice to see you, Omera, as always. Thank you again for watching the little one.”

He accepted her warm embrace and angled the baby towards her, so she could give him a parting kiss on his forehead. Your baby stirred a little, then snuggled further into the cradle of Din’s arm.

Omera smiled. “Take good care of your clan for me, Djarin.”

“I will,” he said, and you knew he meant it.

Omera hugged you then, both of you holding each other close. 

“I love you,” she said.

You hugged her tighter. “I love you,” you said, your voice tight with emotion. You knew it would probably be a while before you saw her again, but at the very least, you’d see her in nine months.

She pressed a kiss to your cheek as she released you.

“Don’t be a stranger,” she said. “And take good care of yourself. I know it won’t be easy, but try not to get into too many dangerous scrapes, ok?”

You smiled. You and Din managed to get into scrapes like it was your job, and Omera knew it.

“I’ll certainly try my best,” you said. You gave her hand a final squeeze. “Thank you for everything.”

She walked you to the door, and gave a parting wave as Din helped you down the steps in the near-darkness. Winta came up as you were leaving, and Din lowered the baby so she could give him a kiss goodbye.

“Oh, this is probably yours,” Din said, realizing the baby still held onto the little toy soldier even as he slept.

Winta smiled. “It’s ok, Mr. Djarin. He can keep it.”

She gave you a quick hug, throwing her arms around your waist before she scampered up the steps to join her mother. You exchanged goodbyes again and took Din’s hand, letting him lead you through the village towards the clearing you’d landed the Crest in earlier.

“Sorry we’re leaving later than you wanted,” you said, leaning against his arm. “Thank you for letting us stay.”

You walked through the patches of light spilling from the rows of cosy huts, even Din’s tread light in the soft grass.

“You’re welcome,” he said. “No need to apologize. I’m sorry we couldn’t stay, cyare.”

Part of you did want to stay, but you were also happy to be going home together. Hopefully Din could set you on course for Trask and leave the Crest on autopilot so he could get some rest with you and the baby.

He handed the baby to you as the Crest’s ramp lowered, and you smiled to yourself as he put a steadying hand on your back while you walked up. You would have to get used to Din’s care taking on a little bit of anxiety and caution, now that you knew you were pregnant, but you would try your best to humor him and knew you wouldn’t mind the extra attention.

He reached up to turn the bay lights on, leaving them on the dimmer setting for your baby’s sake. “If you’ll get him settled, I’ll get us ready to leave.”

“Okay.” You touched your fingers to your mouth, then to the bottom of his visor. “Will you be able to come back down later?”

“Hopefully,” he said, heading towards the ladder. “I’ll have to see how clear our course is. You don’t need to wait up for me, if you’re tired.”

You didn’t think you were, but your bunk did look awfully inviting as you opened the door. The baby usually slept in his hammock above you, but he was sleeping peacefully in your arms and you didn’t want to let go of him just yet. You gently laid him on the bed next to you and curled around him, brushing a gentle finger over his ear.

You were overjoyed with your news. Another baby, and so quickly after you’d started trying. You hoped that your little ones would get along, and though there would certainly be difficulties to navigate, you knew your capacity for love would only grow as your little family did.

You hadn’t thought you could love anyone as much as you loved Din, when you married. When you became a mother, your love for your little one was different but just as strong, and you got to share that love with Din. That was the thing about love - it only grew the more people you had to share it with. You couldn’t wait to welcome your new baby and become a clan of four.

You were nearly asleep by the time Din came back down, lulled by the sound of the Crest’s engine as she sailed towards Trask and Din’s occasional tread above you. You watched as he took his armor off, putting everything in its rightful place.

Careful of the baby, you moved to sit on the edge of the bunk. Din raised a brow at you and you made grabby hands towards him.

“Come kiss me,” you said.

He smiled. “Demanding, aren’t you?”

He leaned down and cradled your face in his hands before kissing you soundly, all tenderness and slow touches. You were drowsy and very in love; he took his time, murmuring words of praise and affection as he kissed all over your face. His fingers traced under your jaw, behind your ears, down your neck; it tickled a little and you giggled as you pulled away from him.

“Quit that,” you said, though you didn’t really mind it.

He chuckled. “Sorry. I won’t do it anymore. Come here.”

You did as he said; his touch was less feather-light, but still gentle. His hands were rough and calloused from years of hard work, but they held you carefully and showed you how much your husband loved you.

He pulled back after a moment and just looked at you, studying your face with that steady, understanding gaze. He started to smile, showing the laugh lines and dimples you loved so dearly, and you couldn’t help but smile back.

“What?” you asked.

He shook his head. “I can’t believe we’re having another baby.”

You beamed up at him. “Me either. Isn’t it wonderful?”

“Yes, it’s wonderful,” he agreed. He kissed you again. “You’re wonderful. My beautiful, wonderful wife.”

You felt your cheeks pink a little and nuzzled his jaw. “You’re not so bad yourself.”

He chuckled. “Thank you.” He tipped your chin up so you would meet his eyes, and brushed his thumb over your bottom lip.

“You’re such a good mother, cyar’ika,” he said, and you knew how much he meant it. “I’m so glad our children have you.”

You bit the inside of your cheek, thinking of your own mother, thinking of how Din had lost his.

“Thank you,” you said, your voice a little wobbly. You cleared your throat, but the sting of tears still lingered.

“Happy tears, cyare?” he asked gently, brushing away the few that fell.

You nodded and gave a watery laugh. “Sorry I keep crying. I’m just... very happy. I wish I had better words to say it.”

He smiled. “I know what you mean,” he said. “You can cry as much as you need to, cyar'ika.”

You pressed your mouth to his again, and he eased the ache of too much joy - sharing it with him was even better than feeling it alone, and you were so thankful you were going to raise your children with him.

“Come to bed, my love,” you said gently. He gave you a few parting kisses before he pulled back; he took a moment to study you, his gaze soft and affectionate as he looked first at you and then at your son cuddled up in your bunk.

He let you get settled first, and then lay next to you with your son cradled snugly between you. He rested his hand on your stomach, protective of you and the new little one.

“I love you,” he said.

You gave him a chase kiss and tangled your legs together under the blankets. “I love you too.”

You tried to keep up a little bit of conversation, keeping your voice soft so as not to wake your baby; Din didn’t seem overly tired yet, and you knew he liked to lay with you and talk before he fell asleep. But snuggled close like you were, warm and safe and happy, you couldn’t keep your eyes open; he gave a gentle laugh and brushed his hand over your cheek.

“It’s alright, cyare,” he said tenderly. “Sleep, if you need to. I’m not going anywhere.”

You let yourself relax as he gently combed his fingers through your hair, humming a Mandalorian lullaby to you. There in your husband’s arms with your baby held close, snuggled into your bunk that would soon hold four instead of three, you drifted to sleep happier and more content than you had ever been.

pedro pascal character taglist: @punkgeekchic​, @tv-saved-the-teenage-girl​, @stardust-galaxies​, @theorganasolo​, @qhbr2013​ ♡

series taglist: @kyjoraven​, @sarahjkl82-blog​, @remmysbounty​, @bitchin-beskar​, @cosmicbreathe​, @prettyboyskywalker​, @happyxdayxbitch​​ ♡

[pearlsephoni]

ZKDD Day 8: Tiny Shivers

Can also be read on AO3!

Rating: G

Fandom: Avatar: The Last Airbender

Pairing: Zutara (Zuko/Katara)

Characters: Katara, Sokka, Steambabies (Zuko and Katara’s kids)

Summary: Where most members of the Southern Water Tribe would despair at the sight of their nieces and nephew shivering in the Antarctic weather, Chief Sokka sees a chance to have some fun.

A/N: Author’s notes can be read on AO3.

@zkdrabbledecember

“It’s so...c-cold,” Hiyoko stammered, teeth chattering from her shivers. “How is it even colder than last time?” 

“Oh, silly me!” Sokka dramatically bopped himself on the forehead. “How could I forget our family trade secret to keeping warm in the South Pole?” 

“What’s the family secret?” 

Sokka grinned at the curiosity on his nieces and nephew’s faces, relishing the feeling of their wide eyes on him for an extra moment before he finally answered. “It’s...HUGS!” 

And with that, he wrapped the open panels of his cloak around Hiyoko and bundled her in, his arms squeezing snug around her as she screamed with surprised laughter. “Uncle Sokka, I can’t breathe!!”

“Good, that’s how you know it’s working!” 

“I’ll save you, Hyo!” Kya declared, before flinging herself over Sokka’s back, her hands halfheartedly pummeling at her uncle. 

“That’s right, little lady, your firebending can help us stay even warmer!” 

“Nooooo, let go of her!!! Iroh, help!!”

The 7-year-old waterbender was already in action. He was coating his hands in snow, using his bending to keep it from melting against his skin, before he ran up to his uncle and pressed his hands against his face. Sokka was already bent over to hold onto Hiyoko and support Kya’s weight on his back, so his cheeks were easy for Iroh to reach. 

“Spirits!!” Sokka cried out, finally letting go of Hiyoko to wipe at his cheeks. “What’re you trying to do, freeze my cheeks off?” 

“That’s what you get for fighting against the Steam Kids!!!” Kya bellowed, sliding off his back to shove her fists into the air. 

“‘Steam Kids’?” Sokka repeated with a bemused grin. 

“Aunt Toph calls us that,” Hiyoko explained, “since Dad’s Fire Nation and Mom’s Water Tribe. Fire and water make steam!”

“Yeah, but she calls us the Steam Babies.” Iroh’s face was wrinkled up in exaggerated disgust. “And we’re not babies anymore!” 

“Definitely not,” Sokka agreed with a deep solemnity that made Iroh and Kya grin in satisfaction. “A couple of babies couldn’t defeat the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe like that!”

“What was that?” Sokka’s grandeur vanished with a groan as he turned to face the open flap to the room, where Katara stood with a smile. “Did I hear that right? The Chief of the Southern Water Tribe was defeated by some kids?” 

“Not just any kids!” Iroh declared. “The Steam Kids!! We rescued the future Fire Lord from the clutches of the Chief!” 

“Sokka, are you terrorizing my children?” 

“Oh please,” he scoffed, “Hiyoko said she was cold, so I shared the family secret hugging technique with her.”

“So...yes, you were terrorizing Hiyoko?” 

“It’s ok, Mom! It worked! I’m all warm now!” 

“See? She gets it!” Sokka bent in a showy bow to Hiyoko, who giggled as she returned the gesture. “I can already tell it will be a pleasure to work with you one day, kid.” 

“Spirits help us when that day comes,” Katara sighed, a smile still curving her lips. “Your dad and I have been looking for you mighty warriors, it’s time for family meditation.” A groan echoed through the three children. “Mom, it’s too cold for meditation,” Kya whined. 

“You, little spark, are the last person who should be complaining about the cold. You’re lucky Iroh doesn’t get to dump water on you in this weather.” 

“Ohhh, can I, Mama? Can we spar?” 

“Mooooom, Iroh’s trying to use waterbending for evil!”

“Am not!”

“Are too!” 

“If you two don’t shut up,” Hiyoko suddenly piped up, “I’m gonna stick you on my swords and drag you to meditation myself. Let’s just get it over with.” 

Something about threats coming from the normally-calm 11-year-old always made Iroh and Kya bend to her will, even though she never acted on her threats. Soon the trio were hurrying over to the shrine room. Katara waited until they were gone to let loose the laughter she’d been holding back. “I swear Hyo knows how to get those two under control better than I ever could.” 

“It’s the non-bender spirit in her,” Sokka said with a sage nod, his wise visage immediately broken by a punch on the arm. “Ow, I’m gonna tell your kids you bully your brother! See how easy it is to control them then!” 

“Do that, and I’ll freeze you to the tallest snow dune.” 

“Zuko can help me escape.” 

“Not if he agrees you deserve it.” 

“Can’t believe someone as mean as you could raise such great kids.” 

That made Katara’s smile melt into solemnity. “...You really think so?”

“Think you’re mean?” 

“No, Seaweed Brain, you really think I’m doing an alright job raising them?” 

It was Sokka’s turn to let his smile fall away. “Katara...of course I do. Mom and Dad would be so proud of you. I’m so proud of you.” 

Gratitude and relief shone from Katara’s face, even as tears threatened to spill onto her cheeks. “They’d be proud of you too, Sokka. And so am I.” 

[fuckyeahbabyseals]

This Giving Tuesday, I adopted one of the baby seals currently undergoing rehabilitation at Seal Rescue Ireland! So say hello to my new son Sage, a little grey seal who was rescued on November 5th after becoming separated from his mama at less than two weeks old!  

All credit for these photos goes to the lovely folks at SRI, who sent me a bunch of pics of little Sage and his rescue along with info about him and about seals in general!

[derieri]

Favorite NnT AUs I’ve seen people make

Pirates AU (@triadfaes and )- Boar Hat is a ship, Hawk Mama is a sea pig, King is a merman and Merlin was an octopus sea witch like Ursula. Spin-off version where Helbram (lion fish merman) was trafficked in illegal mermaid fighting rings; he’s vicious and near feral when Ban rescues him

Demon King AU (@inellingible) - Instead of sealing the Demon Clan, Meliodas kills his father and takes his place as King with Merlin and Zeldris as his advisors. Three thousand years later, he decides to reconnect with the other races and ends up meeting/gathering the Seven Deadly Sins as his council of international leaders. The purist vampires rebel and manage to crucify Meliodas on his own castle gate; his father’s lingering power still brings him back but corrupt and the gang must take him down.

LoZ AU Princess of the Light - (okay this one’s mine) the Sins are the Seven Sages who fought alongside the goddess to imprison the Demon King 3,000 years ago and vanished. When Hendrickson starts wreaking havoc, Elizabeth seeks them out, but they had a serious fallout and/or other issues after barely surviving the first battle and are not interested in coming back together.

Far Future - many centuries in the future when all the Sins, Elizabeth, and all magic are long gone, Meliodas lives alone in a modern world. Merlin reappears and brings the news that magic is returning, and with it all their long-dead friends and enemies as well.

Fox Sin of Greed Elaine — if she didn’t have time to save Ban and was accused of letting her greed for the fountain doom the Forest.

New Generation Arthur (@melascula) - Hendrickson and Dreyfus/Fraudrin find the weirdly-powerful boy before Merlin does, and he’s perfect for those experiments

[renofmanyalts]

11. which muses are cat people? which are dog people?

...with pet pictures!

cat people:

Amande (has minor antipathy toward dogs but doesn’t advertise it)

Maayan (but does not keep pets because she travels so much)

Mama Dee (but only barely)

Iris (also likes specific dogs, but only VERY begrudgingly)

Strammund (has known several very excellent ship’s mousers; dogs are growing on him, though)

Noire, cat of Lumien Chaunollet

dog people:

Silver Sage (but likes cats, too)

Ryoku (like, vaguely)

Rhenbraen (if they HAD to choose, but unlikely to keep a pet due to circumstances)

Renan (mostly likes specific dogs rather than dogs as a class; respects cats also)

Cannonball, Negevs’ runty canis pugnax rescue

likes both equally:

Emerik (tends to feed strays)

Zhah’ra (as long as they are friendly)

Danyell (as long as they belong to someone else)

“oh gods no pets please”:

Zedyr (mild preference to dogs over cats, though)

Maati (Twelve forbid)

Selah (does not like pets at all …*snerk*)

likes birds:

Raranen

Heru, Raranen’s hunting hawk

[arendellesfirstwinter]

Bubbles, handle, wipe

Me? Writing Frozen fanfic in the year 2019? It’s more likely than you think!

Thanks, as always, to Punchy here for the three word prompt, and for encouraging me to jump back into writing after all these years!

Also on ao3

——-

“‘Ahhh, save me!’ the princess cries!

“‘Don’t worry, princess, for I am here to rescue you!’

“‘Oh, Prince Handsome, save me!’

“‘Well duh!’ And then he leaps forward and swish swish and the princess is free and then they kiss, mwah mwah mwah - “

“But wait!” Elsa chimes in, quickly conjuring another figure with a wave of her hands. “Because the evil pirate captain jumps out from behind a tree! Rrrrgh!” Her growls are interspersed with giggles as she crooks her fingers into claws. “‘You’ve fallen into my trap!’” she says, voice as low as a young girl can make it, “‘And now, you’ll both pay!’”

“Eeek!” Squealing, Anna grabs the ice figures of the prince and princess and pretends to have them run away. “‘We must get to the ship!’” she yells in her best impression of a posh prince, and guides the two figures to the edge of their forest-y playground. When they reach the end of the trees and hit the carpet, Anna whispers, “Psst, Elsa, we need a ship!”

Elsa squints. “Won’t the pirates also be out there?”

Blinking, Anna pauses. Then, she gasps. “Oh no! What will they do now?” She spins the figures around to look at the pirate Elsa’s advancing through the trees. “‘We have no choice!’” she states dramatically in a high-pitched princess falsetto. 

With another twist of her wrists, Elsa creates two ships, one with a fearsome skull and crossbones at the front and cannons to either side, and the other with a smaller mast but sleeker build. The ship’s captain appears in a flurry on the ship’s bow, and Elsa moves his arm back and forth in an urgent wave. “‘Quickly! Get aboard as fast as you can!’ And then he moves over here,” she quick-walks him to the side of the ship, “and he yells, ‘Raise the anchor!’”

Anna hurls the prince and princess aboard the ship with a dramatic jump, and commands, “‘Set sail!’”

Elsa crawls around Anna to grab the slow and abandoned pirate captain, and now it’s his turn to burst through the edge of the forest. “‘Curses!’” Elsa runs him to his ship with one hand, but in the other, she creates a slick icy path for the heroes’ ship to follow. As the pirate captain stands aboard his ship, Elsa returns to the captain of the heroes’ ship, and lets out a joyous “‘Hooray! We’ve done it!’” And with a gust of her magic, the ship coasts across the carpet (which will probably be soaked later, Elsa thinks with a wince) and away from the pirates.

“Safe at last,” Elsa says, in her own voice once more. “And so, the - “

“Nonono, wait!” Anna pleads. “It can’t be over yet, we need more, more, uh, more - “

“Peril?”

“Yes! More peril, more peril!”

Laughing, Elsa relents. “Okay, Anna, okay. Suddenly, the winds pick up, and whoosh!”

Elsa sends the pirate ship careening across the same path of ice towards the heroes, and switches her voice into that of a (debatably) menacing villain’s. “‘You thought you could get away from us so easily, aye? Fire the cannons!’”

Anna gasps. “‘Oh no, Prince Handsome, what should we do?’ ‘I don’t know, Princess, but we have to act quick!’”

“‘Too late!’” the pirate captain crows, and Elsa chucks a snowball at the heroes’ ship, and then another. She switches to the captain of the heroes’ ship: “‘We’ve been hit! We’re sinking!’”

Anna shrieks and runs the prince and princess figures all around the ship’s deck in a panic, avoiding the relentless pelting of snowballs, until suddenly, Elsa makes another whoosh sound and raises her arm and blasts an entire snow drift all around the ship. 

The prince and princess’ heads pop up above the top of the snow drift, their bodies still clutched in Anna’s chubby, child hands, and she gives another shriek, a combination of laughter and intense investment in the story. “‘We have to swim - blblbllblb!’” Anna puffs her cheeks and bats her palms against them.

Blinking, Elsa cocks her head. “Wait, what are you doing?”

“I’m making the sound of the bubbles, duh, now pay attention - ‘But how will we make it back to shore? There’s no one to save us now bllbblblBbBLBL!’”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that! For ‘tis I, the brave, oh, hm. Help me out here, darlings!” With practiced ease, Mama tucks her dress beneath herself and kneels to the floor. (Elsa’s not surprised that she and Anna didn’t notice her enter - the story was just getting good, after all, and Mama’s quieter than Kai and Gerda combined.) 

Mama holds an open palm out to Elsa, who breaks into an ear-splitting grin.

Elsa turns to Anna and leans in close, whispering loudly, “Who should save them?”

Anna scrunches her nose a brief second, before her eyes light up and she shouts, “The Fairy Queen!”

Nodding sagely, Elsa twirls her fingers and passes a new figure into Mama’s waiting hand. Mama accepts the figure gracefully, and clears her throat. “‘With my fairy magic, I will first lift your ship up from above the waves!’” And she digs her hands into the snowdrift to grab the capsized vessel, lifting it and its drowning occupants back to the “water’s” surface. “‘And next,’ the Fairy Queen booms imperiously, ‘I will - ‘“

“Imperslee?”

“Imperiously,” Elsa corrects, earning an approving smile from Mama. “It means like, a command. Like super serious.”

“Like your papa when he gives orders,” Mama adds.

Anna snorts. “Like when we get in trouble for going into the kitchen when we’re not supposed to and taking cookies when we’re not supposed to especially when Olina’s just made a fresh batch, which means we’re extra not supposed to?”

Mama raises an eyebrow as Anna rambles, and Elsa hopes she doesn’t notice that Elsa’s been frantically motioning for Anna to stop throughout her example.

The corners of Mama’s lips turn upwards, and she eyes both of her daughters.”Which is something neither of you have ever done, yes?”

“Well, I mean - “

“Yes, Mama, we’ve never done that, isn’t that right, Anna?” Elsa hisses, elbowing Anna gently in the ribs.

“What? Oh, that’s right, never ever ever! Anyway, the Fairy Queen!” Anna leans in in anticipation, and Elsa rolls her eyes at the lack of subtlety, but Mama thankfully seems to find the two of them more amusing than anything else.

Eyes twinkling with mirth, Mama coughs lightly and continues, “‘I will banish you pirates from these waters!’ And the Fairy Queen uses her magic to send the pirates’ ship far far away!” Mama picks up the pirates’ ship and places it as far away as her reach allows, Anna giving added magical sound effects: pew, pew, pew!

“Then, with a gust of her magic,” Mama narrates, “the Fairy Queen brings the heroes’ ship safely back to shore.” And Elsa takes her cue and guides the ship back to the miniature frozen forest, and she disembarks the ship’s captain as Anna does the same with the prince and princess.

“‘Thank you sooo much!’” the ‘princess’ squeals. In a lower pitch, Anna adds, “‘A Fairy Queen, whoa.’”

“‘Now, wait a minute.’” Elsa wiggles the ship’s captain in her grip as she voices him. “‘How do we know we can trust this strange person?’”

“Elsa!” Anna admonishes, offended. “She saved us!” She glances tentatively up at Mama, but Elsa notices that Mama doesn’t seem nearly as hurt. In fact, she’s simply raising a curious eyebrow at Elsa. Instead of speaking, Mama motions for Elsa to continue. The Fairy Queen figure stays hovering above the forest in Mama’s hold, silent and ethereal, with a billowing cloak and delicate wings and frosty eyes.

“Well, I mean,” Elsa coughs into her fist and deepens her voice, “‘I mean, I’ve never seen this stranger here before! She’s certainly no one from this kingdom!’”

“‘But she saved us!’” Anna argues as the princess. “‘So she has to be good!’”

“‘That’s true, I guess.’” Elsa glances at Mama, waiting for her to jump in, but Mama always has preferred to sit back when the girls play, preferring to enhance the story the two are already choosing to tell.

With an excited squeal, Anna leaps to her feet, nearly startling Elsa into falling backwards. “I know!” She claps her hands and rocks on her heels. “We’ve never seen the Fairy Queen before because she’s from super far away, from the Fairy Kingdom! And, and, and she got lost!”

Elsa’s entire focus is on Anna, but she swears, for a brief moment she sees Mama stiffen in the corner of her vision.

“She’s so brave because she’s just trying to go back home! So she’s helping the prince and princess in return for them helping her get back to her kingdom! Oh, how tragical!” Anna flops to the ground, an arm draped over face as she heaves a dramatic sigh.

“Does that sound right, Mama?” Elsa asks, and she furrows her brows just a bit at the almost far away look in Mama’s eyes. 

But then Elsa blinks, and the look is gone, and Elsa is probably imagining the extra crease in Mama’s brow as Mama speaks, “Of course. ‘I chose to help because you are good people, and I hope you can help me in return.’ But first - “

Mama lunges forward and scoops her two daughters into her arms, ignoring their shrieks of surprise. “First, we need to get you two ready for dinner.”

“Awwww, but Mama!” both Elsa and Anna cry out in dismay.

Laughing, Mama shakes her head and pulls them in for a tighter hug. “It’s getting late, you two, and if you don’t clean up now, then I’m afraid we’ll just have to skip dessert for tonight.”

Elsa hurriedly waves away all the ice and snow in the bedroom as Anna wriggles against Mama’s grip, shouting, “Let me go, I have to get ready!”

Mama relinquishes her hold and chuckles as Anna sprints to the door, her tiny fingers barely managing to grab the handle and pull it down before bolting down the hall at breakneck speed. 

“You wouldn’t actually take our dessert away, would you, Mama?” Elsa asks nervously, her voice feeling oddly out of place in the stillness of the Anna-less bedroom.

“Hmm,” Mama ponders, tapping her chin, “perhaps. It’s a good thing you accepted the Fairy Queen though, now isn’t it?”

Elsa rises to her feet along with Mama, brushing the snow from her gown. “I was always going to accept her,” Elsa states, reaching her hand up to hold Mama’s. The two of them move towards the door. “I only wanted to keep playing, but of course I know the Fairy Queen’s always good, especially if she’s you!” And, Elsa thinks, she uses her magic for good, just like me! “Plus, now we have to help her get home!”

“Indeed,” Mama murmurs as they step into the hallway. 

“After all,” Elsa continues, “everyone deserves to be happy, and no one should ever be separated from the ones they love! Papa says that Anna and I should always lean on each other for help, and I can’t imagine ever being away from Anna, so I can’t imagine how the Fairy Queen must feel, being so far from home!” 

Nodding resolutely, Elsa declares, “So that’s why it’s now mine and Anna’s mission to make sure she gets home safe and sound!”

Elsa feels Mama squeeze her hand. “A noble goal, from two noble, big-hearted young girls.” Puffing her chest in pride, Elsa looks up just in time to see Mama brush her free hand under her eyes. Elsa’s concerned for a split second before Mama smiles widely. “Now come on, let’s wipe your face and see what Olina and the cooks have prepared for us tonight, yes?”

Stepping hand in hand, Elsa’s bare palm warm against Mama’s, the mother and daughter duo walk through the halls of their home to rejoin the other half of their family.

[atlaswilliams]

name: atlas williams.

age: 32.

gender: cis male.

pronouns: he/him.

sexuality: heterosexual.

neighborhood: bighorn hills.

occupation: helper at wild wolf rescue.

physical

height: 6′5″

weight: 198 lbs.

hair color: dark brown.

eye color: hazel.

tattoos: many.

piercings: nose, but he doesn’t wear it. it was a college thing, okay?

quick facts

he’s the oldest boy of two. he and his younger brother have been in competition since they were old enough to compete. for atlas, it’s more of a game than anything. all he wants is to piss his little brother off, because at the end of the day, rescue is still going to be his. however, this is something that is going to change with time.

atlas went to providence peak university. after graduation, he began working on an old house at the edge of his parent’s property line out in bighorn hills. for years, he worked on it with what extra money he had from the rescue (and with his parents help).

when he turned 28, he went on a wild adventure that led him to his future baby mama. except he doesn’t know that she ended up pregnant after their three week time together. shoutout to @oflaylaperez.

he has a motorcycle that’s probably pretty well known around town. he got it when he was eighteen and pretty much rebuilt it from the ground up. anyone that knows him knows that it’s his pride and joy and that it means the whole ass world to him.

he’s currently living in that home he started on at the age of twenty-four. by now, it’s in pretty good shape. he still works at the wild wolf rescue and has every intention of eventually taking it over.

catch him at the jagged yard every friday night. shoutout to @sage-adler for putting up with his shit. wanna play him at pool? he’ll accept a game or five. if he’s had enough to drink, he’ll probably even put some money down.

he’s a decent guy but he does have a shitty attitude sometimes. he’s definitely a swing first, ask questions later kind of guy. come at him for plots though.

wanted connections

younger brother

childhood/current best friend

college friends

ex’s

friends

neighbors (he lives in bighorn hills, so by neighbors, just someone out in that area)

[consumedkings-archive]

ancient names, pt. v

A John Seed/Original Female Character Fanfic

Ancient Names, pt v: acta non verba

Masterlink Post

Word Count: 4.8k

Rating: M for now, rating will change in later chapters as things develop.

Warnings: Language, some “light” religious blasphemy (it’s Far Cry 5), the Seeds being themselves. This is an enemies to lovers (enemies to enemies and lovers?), strong canon deviance from here on out. Mentions of blood/carnage, the frantic energy of people who both hate and are attracted to each other. It goes on!

Notes: So the gang is finally getting somewhere in this chapter! Sometimes, a family is two murderers and their dog, that also wants to kill one of them, and that's okay.I was pretty nervous about writing this chapter, because I feel like I slog so hard through combat sequences just to have them feel like they drag, so I hope it reads okay!! Big thank you to @starcrier, who consistently lets me babble to her about these two dumbasses and also beta-reads all of my garbage all the time (and says she likes doing it???? Okay???). She is a pure angel and incredible writer and deserves all of the love and attention, so please go check out her stuff!

Thank you thank you thank you to everyone who leaves feedback, and I hope you enjoy!

Joey Hudson is her best friend.

Joey Hudson is her best friend, because she teaches Elliot how to tell if a lipstick color isn’t going to work for her (anything orange-hued), and how hard to close her eyes when Joey pours hydrogen peroxide on her scraped knee from sneaking back in her through her window, and how to laugh until her stomach aches, tucked into her tiny twin bed with a movie playing on her laptop.

They do just about everything together. Joey doesn’t mind that sometimes Elliot’s mama drinks a little too much, and she doesn’t mind that Elliot doesn’t talk about where her daddy’s gone (or if she even knows where he is; they both come to understand, very quickly, that it doesn’t matter). Joey doesn’t mind these things, and instead she makes them her own, solidifying Elliot as her very own honorary sister.

It’s nice. It’s nice, because Joey’s mama doesn’t drink too much, and cooks often, and doesn’t mind how frequently Elliot stays the night.

Joey Hudson is her best friend, and when Elliot is a little drunk in a bar and thinks about letting someone like John Duncan take her home and have his way with her, Joey swoops in and takes her out of the line of fire just in time.

“What is wrong with you?” Joey is laughing, erasing any thought that she might be serious, as they stand outside the bar in the gravel parking lot. Elliot’s face is hot from the alcohol and Joey smushes her cheeks together. “Letting a rich boy like John Duncan try and whisk you away? Who are you and what have you done with my Elli?”

“It’s still me!” Elliot protests. She’s laughing, too, and then she groans, resting her forehead on Joey’s shoulder. “Joey, he’s so attractive. How can someone be so attractive? I’ve never had a type, but—”

“Attractive, and no good.” Joey pats her head affectionately. “A man like that is no good.” She pulls back and smoothes the hair out of Elliot’s face. “C’mon then, darlin’. Let’s go home and watch one of those horrible Hallmark movies to get your mind off of our awfully attractive, awfully no-good friend in there.”

Elliot pouts. She is two drinks in and already in no shape to drive. “I can pick?”

Joey nods, quite sagely. “Yes. If you say to me that John Duncan is no good.”

“Fine.” Elliot sighs. “John Duncan is no good.”

They start walking towards Joey’s car, gravel crunching underfoot, and Elliot rests her head against the brunette’s shoulder. Joey says, “And now is the part where you say, thank you, Joey, for always looking out for me and—”

Elliot stops in front of the car, exhaling. “Thank you, Jo,” she says. “Really. You’re my favorite person.” 

Joey squeezes her shoulders. “And you’re mine, El,” she promises, her eyes full and warm  as she grins. “Even if I don't know what you'd do without me.”

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

John Duncan is no good, Elliot thought.

He was no good, certainly; especially now, especially as John Seed, but—

“Hey, dog,” John said to Boomer, sitting as far away as he can, the cuffs pulled taut between them. He couldn’t have sounded less enchanted if he wanted to; Elliot could tell his exact feelings about the Heeler having found them. And, of course, she knew Boomer’s feelings about John , in particular.

John shifted where he sat, and Boomer growled. The brunette shot her a murderous look.

“How do you propose we rescue your Deputy Hudson if your beast won’t let me move?” he asked her tartly. Elliot rubbed the top of Boomer’s head thoughtfully; immediately, the growling stopped, and he relaxed again, though she knew her boy was just waiting for the signal to rip John’s throat out.

She felt lighter than she had in days. Safer. Happier. Warmer.

“Weren’t you listening?” Elliot’s voice was only dry for the comedy of her words. “He’d only bite you if I told him to. He’s not a wild animal.”

“Oh, yes, because my lack of faith in your good feelings about me is completely misplaced,” John replied. His voice was terse. He came to a stand, keeping a wary eye on Boomer, and brushed his jeans off before stretching his arms out in front of him. 

In a situation where he had been stripped of all of his power, of all of the people chanting yes to whatever it was he was doing, John felt—looked—sounded —

Normal.

She didn’t want to think about that. Any time John did something that felt human, it erased the very recent actions he’d taken as a crazy cult leader. Kidnapping her. Considering drowning her (though as time went on, she thought he wouldn’t have followed through; it wasn’t his style).

My parents are the one who taught me the Power of Yes, his voice had crackled through the radio at her, once, in what felt like a different life—a life that felt coppery and slick with blood, but where she’d felt at home in the violence, where she’d been comfortable. Now I’m going to give that power to you.

Elliot whistled, and Boomer took off into the brush, the movement causing John to hesitate just for a moment before he relaxed. She fought back a smile and said, “Let’s see if our friends are still around, shall we?”

“Yes,” John acquiesced after a moment, not that he had much of a choice; she was already picking her way through the underbrush, tugging him along with her. There were just a few moments of blissful silence before he said, “You know, deputy, this wasn’t the way I had originally pictured having you in handcuffs,” and Elliot thought, oh, yes, there’s the John I know. She yanked a little on the cuffs linking them together, nearly causing John to trip over himself.

“Funny,” Elliot replied sweetly, “I was just thinking the same thing about you.”

“You are such a child.” John’s voice was low, and threatening. She flashed her most charming smile at him.

“You’re much funnier when you’re not acting like a psycho. I think I’m even beginning to enjoy my time with you.”

She climbed up the ravine’s slope, leaning into the tilt of it, feeling a bit fresher than before but still bogged down by the urge to cough. Her throat itched and her eyes watered, by the time she got to the top and crouched in the treeline, John lingering close behind.

There was only one gray van parked there, now. Elliot could see maybe one man guarding the entrance, but who knew how many people were inside? Even when they’d had their first run-in down on the highway, she’d thought she’d had a solid head count until they came crawling out of the woodwork, like termites.

Which only made her more paranoid about creeping around in the woods, too.

“I don’t think we’re going to have any better odds than this,” Elliot murmured. “If we wait any longer they might have more people here. There’s a radio in there, right? We can get in touch with…”

Her voice trailed off. It was an argument she didn’t want to have right then, with John —who they were going to talk to first, whether they’d be radioing the resistance or if they’d be reaching out to Joseph to let him know what was going on, if he didn’t know already; surely, someone like Joseph Seed would be practically omnipotent to what was going on his domain, though Elliot would never presume to know what the fuck was going on in his head.

“Joseph,” John said, infuriatingly erasing Elliot’s hope to let sleeping dogs lie, even for a moment.

“We can argue about the logistics of contacting sane people with resources versus your psycho brother once we have access to the radio,” Elliot snipped. She crept forward in the brush; Boomer was crouched a few feet to her left, waiting patiently for her signal, but every muscle in the heeler’s body was tensed and ready.

Elliot held out her hand for him, a silent, noiseless signal, stay , and he laid down on the ground obediently, obscured by the sunlight dappling through his bush of hiding choice. There was no way she was letting someone put a round of bullets in him.

“Keep your arm relaxed,” Elliot muttered, beginning to ease out into the field.

“This one?” John whispered back, rolling the shoulder of the arm farthest from her.

“No, dumbass, the one I’m—”

“I know, deputy, I was trying to lighten the mood.”

“Consider retiring from your comedy career . ”

It was nice, at least; dare she even say refreshing , to find John annoying after having spooned willingly with him all night.

Every instinct in Elliot’s body—the ones she had before, and the ones that she came to develop with the insurgence of Eden’s Gate both—was screaming. This big, open field, its grass only barely tall enough to obscure them from the sight of the guard, felt exactly like the field that Bambi had to cross, worried about being caught in the crosshairs of a hunter on the prowl.

Halfway across the field, Elliot caught herself mid-stumble over a lump in the ground; as she regained her balance and glanced down and identified the source of the fresh, wet earth now sticking to her knees and hands, she felt her stomach churn violently.

It was a row of shallow graves, freshly-dug. The bodies that were buried were completely obscured except for their faces. Like Waylon’s, their eyes had been scooped out and replaced with short-stem blooms—vibrant, clean, new. Done recently, just like the graves, which means they were probably killed recently, too. They were clearly Eden’s Gate. Their scruffy hair and tanned complexions, even in death, gave that away; but each grave was lined with a fresh butterfly weed, vibrant and gorgeous orange against the dark earth.

“Sick,” Elliot managed out, her voice wobbling, feeling the nausea welling up inside of her. John’s face was tight and hard, and there was something about it—like maybe he didn’t care if they died for him , but he didn’t like that someone else had brought this death to them, that it didn’t serve the purpose of Eden’s Gate at all to have it happen like this.

Stuffing down the urge to puke, Elliot pressed on with John close at her back. They crept their way up the hill to the side of the ranch house, though it was more like a mansion than anything else now that she could see it up close without being too busy looking everywhere else. In the distance, not too far away, she heard the sound of the guard in front of the door saying something to himself, or maybe into a radio, walking absently into view with his back still to them.

He wore the same dark boots that Elliot recognized from the men who had been hunting them down in the woods, but he otherwise looked to be in civilian clothes. Well—except for the machine gun slung around his neck. The sight of that made Elliot’s fingers itch.

She held up a finger to her mouth to John, creeping forward. The cultist ahead of them hummed something under his breath and tapped his fingers against the barrel of the gun to his imaginary beat.

Her heart thrummed in her chest, but for all of the sickness in her body and the poor sleep and the ragged feeling of being trapped in close quarters with John Seed for what had to be over twenty-four hours by now, in this little heartbeat of a moment she felt clear.

Elliot stood and threw her hand forward, up and over to one side of the man’s head. She felt the drag of John’s weight against her own, like he hadn’t been keeping his arm slack like she’d told him to, and by the time she got the loop of the handcuff chain over his face he saw her out of the corner of his eye and started to turn, his expression warping into something more vicious than relaxed.

She yanked her arm hard to the right, criss-crossing over John’s own, which hovered with uncertainty in the air, until the chain pulled tight across the cultist’s throat; immediately his eyes went wide, and instead of scrabbling for his gun he reached to try and give himself any breath of air.

Noise started to eek out of his mouth, his tongue moving like he wanted to say something as his hands fought desperately to get between the metal chain and his neck. He was going to scream, if he got the chance, or call for help or sound some alarm that she didn’t need to have happen, and Elliot thought, not on my fucking watch just before she stomped her foot into the back of his knee, watching as he crumpled until his kneecaps hit the dirt; almost like an instinct, John’s foot came up to the back of his head and slammed his face into the side of the ranch building.

The body went slack, and then slumped against the ground, blood smearing the side of the building wall. She didn’t think he was dead, but he was quiet—for now—and that was what was important. It wasn’t like they were going to stay very long.

“I told you to keep your fucking arm relaxed,” Elliot hissed, as she and John untangled themselves from the man’s neck. His nose was almost certainly broken, which was a nice little treat of a detail. Something for her to be happy about in these trying times. 

“Maybe you could be a bit more clear about your plans next time,” John snapped back, still keeping his voice low and quiet. It didn’t seem like there were any other guards outside, but that was something that Elliot wasn’t going to trust. “I guess we’re just lucky that I’ve got good instincts when it comes to—”

Elliot slapped a hand over his mouth. “Shut the fuck up , John. Do you not understand the concept of sneaking? ”

John made a low, muffled noise of protest, pushing her hand off of his face before they moved past the guard to the front door. It was unlocked, when John pushed the handle down and eased it open; they didn’t see anyone immediately, but she could hear low chatter coming from a different room.

She glanced back at John and then gestured him forward. He made a face at her, rolling his eyes with enough exaggeration that she almost scoffed—as though he were saying, oh, sure, now that there’s more than one guy, I’ll go first. Elliot feigned innocence at what he could possibly be scowling at her for, but in reality, it made the most sense—he knew where the radio was, and he knew the layout of the ranch better than she did.

John straightened up, moving down the first hallway until they got came around the staircase; a shovel was leaned up the wall, still wet with dirt, and the brunette ahead of her steadied it on the wall so that they couldn’t risk knocking it over and alerting their houseguests. Their armed, presumably crazy, houseguests.

The two men inside the living room said something to each other, one of them pacing to the back of the living room for the window, and this time John made eye contact with her before she nodded, silently; choke one out, get the last one out of the way. 

As soon as he stepped forward, the floorboard creaked violently under the shift of his weight, and both heads snapped to look at them.

Their eyes on the two of them—first on John and then on her, narrowing and pin-pointing her like a predator—made Elliot’s adrenaline kick into high gear. There was one brief moment, a heart-beat long, where nobody moved, before Elliot saw the closest cultist to them begin to ease his hand down to the radio on his hip.

No time, she thought, reaching blindly until her hands found the wooden handle of the shovel. No time, no time.

Elliot snapped out, “Down!” to John just in time for him to obey the command— so he did learn the first time after all —and she swung the head of the shovel like a baseball bat before it connected directly with the cultist’s face, slamming into him with the full force of all that adrenaline pumping through her body.

As soon as she felt the satisfying connection, she heard the sound of more rustling and suddenly remembered the second cultist, in the back of the living room. He had a furious look on his face, his gun already in his hand, and he lifted it to train it right at her.

It was not the first time she’d had a gun pointed at her face, and it would certainly not be the last; but still, there was something that settled deep in her stomach, something she recognized as fear , bitter and cold, the second the cultist smiled at her and said in his thickly-accented, “Put your shovel down, pretty bird. If you do, I will be nice to you and your boyfriend.”

He took a step forward, gun still leveled at her, and then at John, and then back at her. Her fingers tightened their grip on the handle of the shovel, hesitant, panicked—why wasn’t he shooting? Why wasn’t he killing them right now? Why was he looking at them (and it was them , not just her ) like that?

Elliot didn’t have much time to think about it. As soon as the cultist took another step, John leveraged his free hand behind the nearby curio cabinet and shoved it, shouting, “ Now , Elliot—” and rocked it with such immediate force that the whole thing groaned with the ache of gravity. The cultist darted forward as the cabinet began to crash down, attempting to crush him, snarling something in foreign at them viciously just as Elliot swung the shovel straight into his face.

She felt, this time, the impact of his bones against the metal, vibrating deep into her hands and all the way up her arms as the shovel. Blood from the slap of the shovel against his mouth sprayed the wall, a tooth or two scattering across the floor, and his body collapsed back atop the now-deposed cabinet, gun clattering to the floor.

For a second, they were both quiet, listening and waiting to hear the sound of furious feet stomping up the stairs, angry voices coming to assist their fallen comrades; but there was nothing. The house was empty. The sound of soft classical music playing from the radio filtered through the haze of her brain, a sound she hadn’t recognized because of the roaring in her ears when she’d seen their hunters in person.

“Let’s move, deputy,” John said, reaching and grabbing the gun off of the floor. “We’ll see what all they left us.” She nodded, feeling a little winded, and dropped the shovel on the ground with a collection of noise; the knowledge that it had been used to bury those men and women made her skin crawl, and she was sure the disgust showed on her face. John eyed her for a moment and said, “You don’t feel like keeping that?”

Elliot shot him a look. “We can pick it up on our way out if we really want it.”

They picked their way up the stairs to the room that had been John’s—or, rather, that Elliot presumed was his, because he moved toward it with such purpose she thought it could only be that. But it felt barely lived-in, the bed still pristinely made and no sign of someone actually existing in it anywhere, save for a small table with a chair pushed up against with an empty walkie-talkie holder sitting in it.

“Gone,” John said, his jaw working absently in what Elliot knew now to be a tick he had. “Well—”

“It’s better,” Elliot said, “that we don’t have radios. They have the radios. I saw one on that guy’s belt, which means they’re probably in the same channel we’d use anyway.” She frowned. “They don’t need to hear where we’re going.”

“We heard where you were going,” John pointed out, reminding Elliot of the many times that he had interfered with her own radio to threaten her. 

“I didn’t care,” Elliot replied, “because I had an idea of what you’re capable of. I don’t have that with these…”

John nodded. “Yeah.”

A heartbeat of a moment stretched between them, long enough for the unsaid words to go: I don’t know what they’ll do with Faith, I don’t know what they’ll do to Joey. Too much to risk.

“Well,” she murmured, coughing into her elbow and taking a laborious breath, “we can lift the van out of here and hopefully go unnoticed, and get to Fall’s End—”

“Where everyone wants me dead,” John deadpanned. “If someone is going to be capable of rescuing Faith, it’s going to be Joseph, and Jacob.”

“If someone is going to be capable of rescuing Joey, ” Elliot snapped back, “it’s going to be the resistance. I don’t want to argue about this, John—”

“So don’t.” John’s voice was hard and smooth, the way he spoke when he was trying to get some stupid confession out of her. “Agree to go to Joseph first.” And then, in that infuriating preaching voice he used and that wicked glimmer in his eyes, he added, “Just say yes.”

She let out a long, sharp breath, exhaling it until her lungs ached with the effort of it, her head pounding. There was almost no likelihood of them being able to get out of these cuffs until they got to Fall’s End or to Joseph, and so that meant they were stuck together one way or another.

“If we go to Fall’s End,” John ventured, closing some distance between them, “we’re going to put a big, fat target on the Resistance.”

Elliot tilted her chin defiantly, having to in order to make straight eye contact with him now. “And you’re willing to do that to your brothers?”

John shrugged. “There’s always been a target on them, deputy. This will be no different.”

Somehow, Elliot didn’t believe that was true; but if John wanted to put his family in danger again, then so be it.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

“Close your eyes, Jonathan.”

John grimaced. “That isn’t my name, deputy.”

“The sentiment remains the same,” Elliot insisted, and he heaved a sigh before he closed his eyes. He heard fabric rustling, the sound of Elliot kicking off the boots she’d been wearing and then sliding out of the sweats she’d been in for the entirety of their tied-together time. She’d already raided the bathroom to pack a backpack with water and Tylenol, in addition to a few loose granola bars from the kitchen; now, it was just getting out of those sweats, which he could only assume she was probably relieved about.

He’d gone ahead and changed out of his clothes and into cleaner ones; as well as he could, anyway, being hand-cuffed as they were. He hadn’t needed to tell Elliot not to look; she’d been more than happy to oblige without being told.

“I am facing away from you,” John reiterated, his eyes dutifully closed even when there was a part of him that wanted to make her squirm. “I don’t see the point in closing my eyes .”

“It’s not about you , you egomaniac,” Elliot sighed. “It’s about my comfort. Eyes shut.”

“Scout’s honor.”

She scoffed. With his eyes closed, his back turned to her, he could hear the sound of her shimmying into what he could only presume where her jeans, stuffing her feet back into her jeans, and then—the small, quiet clicking of her gathering the pills off of the count and taking a large swallow of water.

“Aren’t you afraid I’ve drugged you?” John asked dryly, turning to look at her now. She watched him with a flat expression.

“Then you’d have to haul my body around,” Elliot replied. “I didn’t say you could look.”

John’s gaze lingered on her, just for a moment; maybe a little longer than he would have liked her to know, but it was easier to steal looks at her when she was focused elsewhere. “You’re perfectly suitable for society, Deputy Honeysett.”

“That’s Junior Deputy to you, asshole.” She swallowed back the last of the water and shook her head, grimacing. “I hate pills.”

“What are you, nine?”

“Fuck off.” She was still in the over-sized undershirt of his, tied like a little summer blouse at her belly-button, exposing skin there that looked—now that he was staring—to be the home of a few gossamer scars. The question of where they came from itched on his tongue, and he only barely kept it to himself.

“So,” she said.

“So,” John parroted, eyes flickering up from her exposed abdomen to her face. He knew what she was going to say; that she agreed with him, that they were going to go find Joseph first and then get Faith and Joey back, because Elliot may have been a capable killer but if she didn’t need to put the people of Hope County in danger, she wasn’t going to. 

“Fall’s End needs to know what’s going on,” Elliot began. “But I don’t want them to see us driving there—”

John nodded somberly. “Uh-huh.”

She glared at him. “—so we can put your stupid fucking brother in the crosshairs,” she continued, biting the words out, “but the second we get there I use a radio and get ahold of Jerome. Also, I drive.”

John’s lip curled involuntarily at the mention of Pastor Jeffries. One of his least favorite Resistance members, if he was going to be asked to rank them. Pious, holier-than-thou, and oh-so-patronizing when it came to their beliefs.

“Fine,” John said. “But only if you promise not to go off-roading.”

“No promises,” Elliot snipped. He flashed her a smile, which apparently did not win her over, because she followed it up with, “And if this deal gets broken in any single way, whether it’s on the way there or when we get there, I’ll fucking kill you.”

She headed for the door while he barked out a laugh, looking more put-together now, jogging up the steps and pulling him along with her. They made one stop in the living room—to grab the other gun, and then the van key, which she managed to find in one of the pockets. They left both radios; they felt like traps, beacons for someone to find them. His eyes were trained on her, watching each assured movement as she pulled useful things off of the dead body; a clip of ammo, a throwing knife.

“You’re telling me that you’re going to lug my dead body around if you don’t get to call your little friends?” John asked. 

A wolfish grin had made its home on his face, and as she straightened up into a standing position again, Elliot shot him a look. There was something in her expression that was almost playful, but the words that came out of her mouth were, “Oh, John, I’d find a way to cut your arm off before I let you slow me down.”

It shouldn’t have been as endearing as it was, a part of John reasoned; it certainly made his jaw set in defiance, but his heart stuttered a little at the words, and that’s what he hated about it, that he thought, we’re not so unlike each other, Rook.

He didn’t trust himself to speak just yet, so he walked outside with Elliot and said, “You don’t want that gun?” and pointed at the (now surely dead) guard they had assaulted earlier. She shook her head.

“Too heavy,” she replied briskly. “And I don’t trust you with it.” She brought her fingers to her lips and whistled sharply, once; John watched the treeline, but he didn’t see Boomer until the dog was sprinting up the hill, not once having spotted his form in the field. No wonder that dog’s caused so many problems, he thought dryly.

Elliot ruffled Boomer’s ears, saying something sweet to him that he didn’t quite catch because he was too busy watching the beast warily. Boomer seemed only interested in doing the same thing to him; occasionally, his tail would wag when Elliot patted him, but it would immediately drop for him to cock his head inquisitively at John.

He scoffed under his breath.  The dog was cute, in its own master-killer way. He guessed.

Elliot opened the back of the van first, shooing Boomer in and closing the doors before making her way to the passenger door and unlocking it. She slid into the driver’s seat from there, John obediently following suit, and quickly clipping his seat belt into place.

“I’m getting flashbacks from the last time I was in a car with you driving,” he said dryly when she shot him a curious look. 

“Poor baby.” Elliot dropped his sunglasses from the top of her head down onto her nose, sticking the key in the ignition and turning it. The van purred to life. It was a nicer one than the ones Eden’s Gate used, and she reached past him to rifle around in the glove box before she found what she was looking for: a pack of cigarettes and a lighter.

“Really, deputy?” John asked dryly, as she lit the cigarette in the van and rolled the window down. He saw, behind the blue tint of his sunglasses, her eyes roll dramatically. “I didn’t know you smoked.” And then, with a little incredulous laugh, “You’re sick.”

“You’re fucking right I’m sick, and stressed out. I’ve got Tylenol in the bag and I’m a big girl.” She eyed him through the sunglasses, and quipped, “What’re you going to do, tattle on me to God?” before she was laughing at her own joke and cranking the wheel of the van so she could throw it in reverse. “I’m going to need this whole pack if I’m going to survive a mini road trip with the likes of you, John Seed.”

“You shouldn’t mock the faith, deputy.”

“You shouldn’t mock the faith,” Elliot repeated, shifting into drive. “You sound stupid when you say that shit. I know you don’t believe it.”

He chose not to entertain her ridiculous accusation, glancing out the window. “If you think this is stressful,” John rumbled, settling back against his seat as she wound the van down the drive of the ranch, “consider that your road trip is taking you to your in-laws. I’m your boyfriend, remember?”

“Fuck off.” She took a drag of the cigarette, tapping it out of the window. “I’ll throw this van over a cliff if you call yourself my boyfriend again.”

Her venom really was a comfort, he thought; if he didn’t know better, he would have thought he liked it.

He did. The dramatics of her vitriol pushed a grin on to his face.

“Oh, I certainly was right about you, deputy,” he drawled, rolling his window down as they hit the highway. “Your sin is wrath.”

[rumpledgoldenweaver]

A Bear In Need Of Rescue

Written for the January @a-monthly-rumbelling prompt “How on earth did you get up there?” It kind of got away from a bear in trouble but I hope you enjoy anyway! Read on my blog https://earlyrisingwriting.home.blog/2020/01/09/a-bear-in-need-of-rescue/ 

Rumple had never felt so relieved as when he pulled into the car park of the hotel, almost immediately finding a space. Switching off the engine he let out a small sigh. Gideon had fallen asleep at some point and Rumple was loath to wake him. Fishing his phone from the glove compartment, he sent Belle a text message saying they were finally here. He decided to wait for her reply instead of getting straight out of the car. He had a slight headache so a couple of minutes quiet wouldn’t hurt. Closing his eyes he gave a small thanks to the car park gods.

Maybe he could book a head massage.. maybe Belle would give him a…

Tyres squealed, an engine roared then a car screamed through the previously silent parking bays jolting both Rumple and Gideon awake.

“What the ever loving fu..”

“PAPA! You sweared! Mama won’t.. PAPA! Look!! it’s a police car!!!” Gideon bounced in his seat.

Sure enough an unmarked squad car hurtled after the first vehicle, disappearing towards the rear of the hotel.

“Your Mama takes us to all the best places Gideon.. come on m’boy, lets go find her before either of those lunatics come back”

“Gideon keep your voice down, the whole hotel doesn’t need to hear you” Belle admonished gently “I know it’s all very exciting but..”

“It was Mama it was! The police car went MEEEMAW MEEEMAW VRRROOOOOOM”

Rumple shook his head “There’s a children’s area in the grounds of the hotel, would you like to go play for a while son?”

“It’s nearly bath time” began Belle

“You really think he’s ready for a bath and bed? He’s bouncing off the walls, he napped on the way here. Let’s take him, it might tire him out”

“Can I take Bear please? Can I? Can I?”

“Okay okay” groaned Belle knowing she was already defeated “but don’t lose him”

Gideon’s over excitement at the police chase was swiftly replaced by over excitement at the play area

“IT’S A PIRATE SHIP!!! C’mon Bear we’re going to sail the seven seas and chase booty!”

Belle nearly choked “He’s going to what did he say?”

Rumple chuckled “Let’s find a bench and sit down, I’m far too old to chase after him. As long as we can see him he’ll be fine”

“Don’t need to see him, we’ll hear him”

Lucy was bored, she’d been at the play area for fifteen minutes with her doll Tinkerbell. There were other children there but they just wanted to play house. Lucy preferred adventure. She spotted a boy, slightly younger than her, chasing round, pretending to sword fight and clutching a teddy bear. Now he looked like fun.

“Hello. I’m Lucy. This is Tinkerbell, she can fly!”

Gideon stopped his sword fight “I’m Gideon. This is Bear.. he can fly too”

“Bears cannot fly”

“Yes they can. Watch!” Gideon threw Bear up into the air with all his might.

In the middle of the pirate ship was a tall mast. Near the top was a mock crows nest. It wasn’t big enough for a child, but it was big enough for a bear. Which was just as well because that’s where he landed with a soft thump.

Lucy looked in horror. Gideon stood with his mouth open “Oops”

“I can’t believe they got away” Weaver strode through the hotel reception. He needed fresh air.  

“They can’t have got far. They have the advantage of knowing the area, we don’t” reasoned Rogers “I’ve asked the local police to put out extra patrols and.. did you hear that? Sounds like a kid in trouble”

Weaver snorted “Kids are always in trouble, it’s what they do”

“Look - over there, in the play area. There’s nothing we can do about the case for the moment. Maybe if we help then the hotel might forgive us for tearing up the car park”

“Okay Batman let’s go save the day”

As is often the case with parents who’s children have got themselves into a scrape, Rumple and Belle were verging on the kind of full scale public row generally conducted through gritted teeth and harsh whispers

“I cannot climb up after him Belle, let me use mag..”

“NO. I’ll go up after him”

“Not in those heels you won’t”

“No shit Sherlock. I’ll take them off”

“And certainly not in that skirt”

“EXCUSE ME? What is wrong with my...”

“Hi” said a dark haired young man who had suddenly appeared by Belle’s side “I’m Detective Rogers and this is Detective Weaver” he indicated a surly looking older man who reminded Belle slightly of her husband “Can we help?”

“It’s our son – he’s stuck. He’s too scared to climb down”

Weaver followed her line of sight, Sure enough there was a young boy clinging on to the mast of the wooden ship “How on earth did you get up there?”

“Bear flew up here. I came to rescue him”

“Oh I see” Weaver nodded sagely “That was very brave, but now you need rescuing?”

“Yes please” whimpered the boy

“Well you’re in luck because Detective Rogers here is the best rescuer I know”

Rogers looked at Weaver “Me?”

“Yes you. Off you go”

“Right then mate, let’s get you back on dry land shall we?” Rogers smiled as he started to climb the small rungs that were set into the mast. He reached Gideon easily “Now then, where’s this errant bear? In here?” he reached into the wooden bucket and retrieved the teddy.

“Thank you” sniffed Gideon

“No problem. I’ll climb back down a little and you follow. You won’t fall, just keep going”

Slowly the two of them made their way toward the ground.

“What’s your name son?”

“Gideon”

“Nice to meet you, I’m..”

“Captain Hook!” exclaimed Gideon suddenly noticing his prosthetic “Mama! Papa! I’ve been rescued by Captain Hook!”

Weaver tried hard to contain his laughter however it exploded out of him in a coughing fit.

Belle and Rumple were mortified “I am so sorry” they both began at once.

Rogers waved it away “It’s fine honestly. If it makes the lad feel better I don’t mind at all”

Rumple handed over a business card “If there is ever anything I can help with, just call”

The two officers started to head off when Weaver’s phone rang.

“Yes” there was a pause then “When? Which direction? Okay” he snapped the device shut “They’re on the move Rogers, come on”

The Gold’s watched the men hurry off in pursuit of their quarry. Rumple presumed it must be the boy racers from the car park. Out of sheer nosiness he used his enhanced hearing to eavesdrop on their conversation. It seemed the reprobates in question were headed out of the city with the local police force giving chase. A germ of an idea took root in Rumple’s mind. Would it be so bad if he gave a helping hand?

“Are you listening to me” Belle’s voice brought him back to the present.

“Sorry.. I was just..”

“Thinking of using magic. I know that look Rumple. Why?”

“I want to help them” he’d learned the hard way about not telling his wife the truth “they got our son to safety”

“Okay.. but there’s no magic here so how can you do that?”

“I don’t need magic as such. Just the dagger” he tapped his jacket where the blade lay hidden “You take Gideon back to the room, he’s had enough excitement for one day. I promise to tell you everything when I’m done”

Belle wanted to argue, but she’d learned some hard lessons during their relationship as well so she simply nodded and did as he asked. It wouldn’t stop her from worrying though.

Rumple waited till she was out of sight then found a bench to sit on set far enough back into the gardens he wouldn’t be disturbed. He didn’t need long. He took the dagger from his jacket, closing his eyes, reaching into the very depths of his soul to give the darkness a prod.

“What can I do for you Dearie”

“Would you like a trip out?”

“Ooh lovely! Where are we going?”

“Not me. You”

“Put your foot down Heller! The cops are gaining on us”

“I’m going as fast as this heap will go. If you wanted faster you shouldda got a car with an actual engine in it instead of a hair dryer!”

“Just get us out of here and onto the main highway” Hades growled

“Hello Dearies!”

The two men shot round to see the weirdest looking man.. Was it a man? sitting on the back seat. He had wild hair, green skin and reptilian eyes.

“What the f… shit!” Heller swerved the car, across the road, to avoid rear ending the vehicle in front then back again to miss an oncoming truck. Horns blared and language flew from the other drivers in their wake.

“I don’t think much of your driving skills” the imp huffed. Waving a clawed hand he took control of the car bumping it up onto the pavement, driving straight into a large overgrown hedge. Heller and Hades made to get out but the Dark One was too quick, a snap of his fingers sent both of them to sleep. Finally he took a small pouch from his waistcoat pocket, emptying the contents – some of the more exotic mushrooms the Enchanted Forest had to offer – over the back seat then disappeared.

Weaver had just got back to his car when the phone rang again. He frowned as the officer related the details of the arrest to him.

“A what in the car? A green skinned imp… mushrooms? That explains a lot. We’re on our way. Thank you Officer Humbert”

“Say what now..?” laughed Rogers “Oh my..”

Weaver grinned “Come on Captain Hook, we’ll wrap this up and go raise a glass to our little green friend”

“Less of the little if you don’t mind Detective”

Weaver looked round in surprise “Did you hear that?”  

Worry started to gnaw it’s way from the pit of Belle’s stomach to the forefront of her mind. Almost an hour had passed since they’d left Rumple in the gardens to do who knew what using means she probably wouldn’t approve of. Gideon was sound asleep on the sofa bed, clutching Bear tightly.

Picking up her phone and putting it back down again did nothing to make it ring. Unable to settle she decided to take the towels left on the bed by housekeeping and stack them in the bathroom. In order of size. Anything to distract herself.

She had just finished reorganising the pile into a pyramid when she thought she heard something. There was a faint knocking sound coming from outside the room. She walked quickly to the door and put her ear to it

“Belle.. Belle it’s me. I can’t.. I can’t get in”

“Rumple! Hang on.. just hang on!”

She turned the lock, pulled open the door only to have her husband almost fall on top of her. He looked very pale.

“What on earth happened? Rumple? Rumple! Are you okay?”

She manoeuvred him to the bed, sitting him down before he fell again.

“So tired Belle, need to sleep..”

“I’ll get you a glass of water and then help you into..” A snore cut off the rest of the sentence. “Bed” she sighed.

At least he was there and in one piece she told herself. So much for this fun family weekend. She supposed she should get him undressed even if the sheer number of clothes he had on meant that would be no easy task. Certainly there were more agreeable circumstances to peel off the layers one by one.

Rumple wasn’t the largest of men but in such a deep sleep he was a dead weight. It took her almost twenty five minutes to complete the task. “Why” she muttered as she put his suit back in it’s bag “can you not wear jeans and a shirt? I bet it doesn’t take that detective’s wife half an hour to get his clothes off”

With her husband a little more comfy, Belle decided a glass of wine was in order. A glint of metal caught her eye, the dagger was lying on the bed next to it’s owner, almost winking at her. Before she could stop herself the blade was in her hands “Dark One I summon thee” she whispered.

Rumple turned on his side and snored even louder.

“Y’know Dearie” a familiar voice trilled behind her “of all the humans I’ve been attached to over the centuries, your husband is easily the most charming”

Belle couldn’t help but snigger “Will he be okay?”

A green skinned hand touched her shoulder “He’ll be fine. Promise”

“What did you two get up to?”

The Dark One giggled “Well Dearie, I got to drive a car, catch some rather pathetic miscreants and I may have left some of those mushrooms from the forest that you were told never to touch as a memento”

“Sounds like fun”

“Oh it was” he grinned “Now I must be going and you Dearie need to get some sleep” he snapped his fingers and disappeared.

Belle felt the tingle of magic, she was now dressed in her nightie, all the lights except Gideon’s small bedside lamp had been turned off and the bed covers turned down. Rumple was underneath them. Belle couldn’t help but giggle when she realised his underwear was now on the floor. Snuggled up against his back Belle soon started to drift off.

“Love you”

“Love you too Mrs Gold”

[bubblelliot]

Here's my second character! I will also present their teammates a bit since the crew is much more like a family this time! (Might also add pics of the others in following posts and MAYBE of his animals too)

Særos Sandiel and The zookeepers

(This art is a picrew which I do not have the rights on, here is the link to it: https://picrew.me/image_maker/62745)

The name of the team mostly comes from a joke saying that "Mama Lyræ is our zookeeper and that we are the Zookeepers to a ton of pets. Also, Yarina can shapeshift into beasts sooooooo yeah.

Technicalities:

Særos is my very first character played in D&D. We actually started playing on the other game I talked about last time, but we switched to D&D. His character sheet is actually available on DND beyond, but I'm still gonna give details here.

Those are his attributes. (He actually got an additional point of charisma after I wrote this and was too lazy to take another screenshot sorry x) )

He is recorded as a high Elf, but is actually of two different bloodlines. He is VERY young for an elf, but his exact age is unknown (well yes but know, you'll see). He has 5 wizard and 2 cleric levels, making him currently level 7.

Equipment:

I am NOT gonna go through everything Særos has, cause that would be VERY long. He has a heavy armor, he has a staff of healing and a shortsword, but he mostly uses his magic. He also has, in his spellbook, a collection of dried flowers.

Familiars:

Særos has a TON of pets he acquired through the different quests the party went on. The first one is a frog named Lepiota he found wounded and saved. He then bought an old black cat he named Persephone (even if the cat is a male 😂). Finally, he also bought two ferrets (fluffy noodles ❤️❤️) which he named Elton and Freddy (this one was as a reference to one of our former player who really loves Elton John and Freddy Mercury). He loves them with all his heart and will absolutely kill anyone who tries to hurt his babies.

Allies:

Særos' main ally is, obviously, his twin, Edran. They are very similar, but Særos is usually pretty well kept with his short hair always brushed and his braids made every morning, whereas Edran is a bit shorter, more immature, usually pretty dirty with blood all over their clothes (which are poofy dressed he hides poison in 😂) and messy hair. There is also Lyræ. She is a paladin coming from far away lands. She is a human with elf ancestors and dragon blood. She has a wife and children and thus, she is pretty much the mom of the group. (The DM literally gave her two custom attacks she can use in RP: the flick of anger that gives 1pt of bludgeoning + 1pt of psychic damage and the disapproving look that gives 2pts of psychic damage everytime she does it + makes the target intimidated). Then, there is Finian, a human assassin. Finian and Særos are pretty neutral about each other, but Edran is in absolute admiration of him, so Særos is grateful that Finian doesn't just shatter his sibling's trust. The last member, who was actually someone that was rescued by the party, is Yarina. She is a very shy aasimar and is pretty much the definition of being pure EXCEPT she is obsessed with daggers (no joke, she has 23 of them). They were recently joined by a rogue elf called Adressin who actually attacked them at first.

Appearance:

This picrew is already pretty accurate. Særos (as well as Edran actually) has blond almost white hair, but it's actually fluffier than on the picture. He has two braids, one in front of each ear, a few freckles and red-pink eyes. He is very pale, quite small and very frail. He looks pretty androgynous and rather young, though he usually passes as a bit older since he is an elf.

Backstory and campaign:

So the campaign isn't really a big story like in Rhodrag's case, so I'll tell the party's story, but not the quests.

The twins' first memory is waking up in a bed, only knowing their name. They meet with the lovely wood elf lady who save them, and learn they were found in the sand by a nearby river. For that reason, they are given the last name "Sandiel".

They live a relatively normal life with her, for around 10 years, until they are attacked by drows. Their adopted mother successfully hides them by using magic and they learn they are wanted because they are part drow and part high-elf, meaning pretty much every every elven races will want to kill them. The woman successfully protects the twins. She is taken out of the house and, to this day, the twins don't know what happened of her, whether she was killed or taken.

They left and reached a nearby city. There, they survived by stealing and being street entertainers (for example, even if he has no rogue level, Særos is proefficient in stealth, sleight of hands, deception, etc. He also is proefficient in performance. He learned to sing, the art of divination and a bit of magic.)

One night though, Særos came back to their hiding place to find his sibling dead. All he could understand was that they died of both malnutrition and hypothermia.

Out of desperation, he tried every spell he knew, but nothing happened. He tried reanimation, but it had been to long. Out of despair, he prayed any god possible to help him, saying he couldn't live in this unfair world without Edran.

A god did answer. He is actually a god from the other game we started the campaign in before switching to DND.

He is called Nuodai the Trickster.

He offered a deal to Særos: he would bring back Edran and even guarantee him power and success, and in exchange, when Særos would be powerful enough, the Trickster would take his elven traits which hold part of his powers, as well as 200 years of his life. Out of desperation, Særos accepted.

He woke up the next morning. His sibling was by his side, clearly not dead, but not entirely alive. They were now a revived.

Things went on, Edran not knowing, and Særos eventually stopped thinking about the deal, only happy to have his twin back. They moved from the city, trying to reach a bigger one, and were, once again, attacked by drows. He used a spell to put his twin in safety and attacked the drows, but was, if course, neutralized.

He was taken and they made him a slave while they tried to capture Edran to kill them together.

Fast forward, Edran is taken into an underdark prison. He meets again with his brother and both if them are beaten up. They successfully defend though and they are thrown in a cell as it is decided they're are to be executed the next day. This is where they meet Lyræ and Finian.

They plan to escape as well as a few other NPCs. They are able to leave the cell and steal a bit of stuff while a vrock attacks the guards. They escape and reach a teleporter. There, Særos successfully brings everyone back to the surface. Newly free, they all start to look for a village. After properly introducing each others, they finally reach a tiny elf village. The twins stay as stealthy as possible but end up being noticed and attacked by guards. They then have a choice: they could be changed into simple would elves or they have to leave. Særos knows it's not gonna work on Edran, and bargains to be able to stay. At first, the headmaster threatens to kill him for that, but he ends up agreeing to let them in the city, guarded, until the night falls.

They then shop and leave the city.

They end up in a forrest Særos realizes is corrupted. There, they were attacked by a HUGE snake touched by the corruption. At first, everyone tries to kill it except Edran and quickly, Særos and Finian join them. Særos finally cuts the tip of it's tail where the corruption was and Edran and Finian calm it.

Lyræ is terrified of it and finally lets them all know that her best friend was killed by a giant snake who ate her alive. (This is freaking terrifying yo.)

In the end, a fight starts and Særos, enraged, leaves everyone and runs towards the center of the corruption. There he is attacked by corrupted elves and tree creatures we happily called Groots. Edran joins him and Særos basically rages (he used they most powerful spell he had and literally exploded them.

Edran, while attacking, starts gaining weird memories.

Fast forward to the end of the quest, Særos is happily searching for animals and flowers when he and Edran hear strange noises coming from a tree. Edran climbs it and a wood elf girl falls from the tree, before Edran jumps on her from the too of the tree.

The team introduced themselves to her and she happily talks to them. So yeah, that's how we met Nayhru.

The team reaches a weird village and after the whole snake incident, leaves the party for a while, promising to find them again soon and assuring she would always be closer than they think.

They reach the village which reveals to be a village of gnomes and there they meet with a gnome (who's player inspired the names of my furrets x) ) and a Goliath travelling together. They all find the village empty before being attacked by a troll and... Metal gnomes?

They kill them, uneager to die, and search the village. They find flowers in the middle of the village and Særos takes one for his collection. Særos and Edran are attacked by an ooze and at some point, the ooze attacks Edran just before being killed by Nayrhu. At that moment, Edran starts turning into a robot as well, with the corruption growing from their arm. Særos tries to cut off the arm, but us unable and the corruption takes Edran's whole body.

They leave the village and are able to find a Druid eager to help them make a cure for Edran and the gnomes, but he needs Elder sage. He describes it and Særos shows his flower to the Druid, who confirms it is Elder sage. They go back to the village to get flowers, cane back and turned Edran back into a flesh being.

And that's when they remembered dying and being brought back to life. Edran and Særos cried in each other's arms and then continued on.

They got in a cavern near the village from where the trolls always came. There, the found a girl, chained, with glowing wings. They freed her and she introduced herself as Yarina. (Fun fact: Yarina's player is my SO, and both Yarina and Særos have the spell suggestion, so when the crew found a the boss hiding something, we just made it run away. Nice. )

The team found a clockwork dragon and helped it. They then left again. Finian had to leave a couple times, and at some point, the team realized that, even if they are young, the twins were actually a lot older than they thought: They assumed Edran's death happened when they were around 13 and that it had been around 6 years, meaning Særos was actually around 19.

They were reunited with Lyræ and began other quests. In one of them, the team encountered a wishing fountain that filled any wish you had under certain conditions. Særos asked to know his whole story, from the lives of his parents up to now. The fountain gave him a magic book that tells his story and updates. It has no name so Særos just calls it The story book.

Some time passed and the team continued on. They were traveling to the capital until one night, Nayrhu and Edran caught a thief about to steal their stuff. They quickly stopped him and realized he was very young. Instead of kicking his butt, they woke up the whole team and decided together to bring him to the capital and help him make money to survive there. And that's how they met Adressin.

The zookeepers reached the capital where they are supposed to find Finian who joined outlaws he met in another quest.

Before finding Finian, they decided to do a few quests to earn money with Adressin.

Everyone through the day kept noticing Særos bring super bold, a lot bolder than he usually is, for example, telling Yarina who was wearing a magic dress that she looked "Incredibly beautiful" as if she was "made if pure light". No one really thought anything of it though and just shoved it away.

One night, they decided a drinking contest was a good idea and everyone joined except Adressin. The next morning, everyone was doing good, maybe a tad nauseous, except for Lyræ and Særos who were absolutely fucked up. They both used spells to heal their hangover, but Særos remained mildly unwell, choosing to go on their quest anyways.

Symptoms were the following:

-A headache that was mostly located to the top front of his head

-His low back itching and hurting a LOT

-His eyes feeling dry

No one really knew what was going on, some didn't even really notice.

As they went on with their first quest, they started noticing weird stuff about Særos' appearance: His hair looked more golden than white, as they used to, there were two bumps appearing on his forehead around the location of his headache, his eyes looked.... Weird...? But no one really saw anything peculiar, his skin, usually also white, now looked kinda pink.

He doesn't really notice the changes and doesn't understand what is happening which utterly FRIGHTENS him, but he hides it. Yarina started understanding what was happening and Edran out all the pieces together and now they know everything.

To be continued...

[mike5579-t3a]

An open letter to Elsa and Anna.

SPOILER ALERT!

To my favorite Disney Queens, Elsa and Anna,

I want to take this opportunity to thank your creators Jennifer Lee, Chris Buck and Peter DelVechio for making the Frozen story so memorable and wonderful. They know how to tell your stories, as they stand as testimony to the struggles, heartaches, loneliness of thos 13 years separated to love, acceptance, reconciliation, and forgiveness, that we who are seeing it all take place begore our eyes are privileged, honored and thankful to see this wonderful story take place.

From Frozen 1, you both went through a short period of happiness until Elsa's accidental freezing of Anna. Anna was healed by Gran Pabbie, then made to forget Elsa's powers, resuting in a forced separation of you both. Elsa, made to "conceal, don't feel, don't let it show." All the while, Anna, locked out of Elsa's room for 10 years, never knowing why, but still loving her sister nonetheless. I won't go into anymore hurtful detail, you know it all too well. Shipwreck, parents King Agnarr, Queen Iduna, gone. 3 agonizing years on top of 10 previous. Elsa, the 24 hours of your Coronation Day turned everything around for you both! From that no-good Hans dating Anna, you running away after the secret of your powers was exposed, all the way to Hans betrayal of Anna, yet Anna gave the full measure of her waning life from another accidental frozen burst from you, this time, to her heart, to save you from a murdering Hans and his sword. That love, a greater love than even the "Loves first kiss" between Kristoff and Anna, giving one's own life for a beloved friend, or as in this case, Anna giving up her life for you Elsa, to thwart a murder named Hans. It thawed the ice dam around your own heart, and the raw emotion that flooded over you, washing away all 13 years of junk and fear, opening your heart to love. Anna, God, who is love, sent you back to your sister, Elsa, and gave you both that rare second chance to rebuild your love for each other and the deep, unbreakable bond that you have for one another. You both have been truly blessed!

Frozen Fever, Olaf's Frozen Adventure, etc, have brought us to Frozen 2.

Everything chronicled in Frozen 2 showed how both of you have grown into mature women, who have been put through a challenging adventure with hardships, pain, to exuberant joy and happiness as you both discovered your paths and callings in life.

Elsa, from the time you entered the woods, the expressions on your face had shown how everything started to click. Your smile is as bright as the morning sun! Yes, it would've been great to just keep things as they were. But life is all about changes, the only thing in life that doesn't change. You went into Ahtohallan alone and found your answers. Your powers were a gift, a blessing from the not only the spirits, but The Great Spirit. The Creator and sustainer of all earth, God. A reward for your mother Iduna's rescue of Agnarr during the fight at King Runeard's dam. Your mother is proud of her little Snow. Then you went too deep into Ahtohallan and froze solid. The sacrifice was worth it to find the truth of how Runeard used the dam to weaken the forest on the natives. Then the worst part, Runeard murdering the Northuldra leader in cold blood. You relayed the message to Anna before you froze. Anna did the rest.

Aaaand Anna. You came through in the clutch. Elsa sent you down the ice path in the canoe wisely. The danger she faced was above your "paygrade." Elsa froze. Olaf went away with the magic, and you were alone and greiving. You thought Elsa was dead and all was lost. Yet you had strength enough in your heart to pick yourself up, and do the next right thing. One step, another step, another step, another, and another. Keep moving forward. Then you left the cave with the knowledge Elsa sent you, and you knew what had to be done. Destroy the dam. Your smarts and leadership with Kristoff, Lt. Mattias and his troop, got the earth giants up and destroyed the dam. Curse, lifted. Sister, thawed out, riding to Arendelle's rescue before the wave could hit and flatten the village and Castle. All was made right. You saved your sister again, and both of you are now the bridge between Northuldra and Ahtohallan of nature and spirits, and Arendelle of the humans. Like Elsa said, "a bridge has two sides, and mother had two daughters." Two wonderful, loving daughters. Momma Iduna planted seeds of love in both of you, and my, how those seeds have flourished! Your bond was forged in the fires of those 13 years culminating at the fjord. Then it was refined in the crucible of the Enchanted Forest of Northuldra. You have both grown into two exceptional young mature women, each with your life's calling. Elsa is The Snow Queen of the North, who tames the four spirits and keeps the peace, with her own heartful of love for humans, animals, and spirits like Little Bruni. Anna showed her leadership, love, how she inspires people, all the traits to rule. Elsa made the wise call for you to be Queen of Arendelle, Anna.

Personal note. My headcanon was for an uncle figure to be there when you needed an older hand in life since papa and mama passed away. He'd love you both and be there with open ears and an open mind and a loving, open heart. He'd be like me, fighting the same mental issues, with more years and more grey hairs! I've been down that road, too.

To wrap this up, some sage advise.

Anna, my wish is that you rule Arendelle with the love and grace of your sister plus all of the qualities you possess. You have shown them in destroying your Grandfather's instrument of treachery, the dam, and ending the curse of the mist over the forest. Love your husband, Kristoff with all your heart and be a wise ruler. Seek God's face and his wisdom. Kristoff, take care of your new wife, or she'll give you her fist of steel while Elsa freezes your butt off! (Just kidding!) Both of you be good to each other.

Elsa, you have found the answers you needed, and have a joy and peace now few have found in this world. Look to the God of the Universe often for His wisdom in your doings. Love the Northuldrans and Arendellians, never neglect visiting your sister and brother-in-law and vice versa. Let Anna into the dome to see your mom's face again. When they have kids, let them know how special Aunt Elsa is and how much you love them.

God bless and continue in your strong love for each other.

Mike 5579-T3a