#munch of the millennium

[jesuistrestriste]

thinking about dilf!art picking up a college girl at a bar down the street from his apartment. he gets tipsy with her off of vodka sodas before taking her back to his place, giggling the whole walk there, and then immediately pulling her to sit on the sofa.

he’s easing her down to lean back into the cushions while he sinks to his knees and then gently spreads her legs with his warm, calloused hands. peering up at her through blonde lashes as he leans forward and kisses her thighs, his lips soft and wet and eager.

his fingers work to push up her black mini skirt, and then his teeth make their way up to nip at the fabric of her panties. the young woman’s touch digs into his left shoulder and his head of golden hair, her body writhing with anticipation while she bites at her lower lip.

he tugs her underwear down in the next second before he’s smushing his face into her folds; fluttering his tongue over her sticky sweet flesh, his eyes rolling back before squeezing shut.

art’s pulsing and leaking in his slacks like a desperate virgin, and he hopes that the woman above him mistakes the flush on his cheeks for arousal and not the embarrassment it actually indicates.

in an effort to distract her, he slides his tongue into her hole..

and she just can’t help but let her hips vault up against his mouth, forcing him to further smother himself in her sopping cunt. the filthy moans pulled from his chest send warm vibrations up her spine from her swollen clit, and he gives the bud a languid lick before swallowing around it and hollowing his cheeks.

“mm,” he hums, forcing his eyes open to watch the way she’s crying out and squirming, “mhm.. mhmm, mhm— mhm—!”

right when he feels her twitch over his tongue, he disconnects and gasps for air; drool and slick covering his chin and nose as he rushes three of his fingers up to swipe them side to side urgently over her most sensitive spot. the wet sounds that echo out are lewd at the very least.

the girl squeals, nodding, and then tips her head back as she feels her orgasm rushing through her body.

shit, the high he gets from witnessing it is more than enough on its own to make his cock swell and squirt into his briefs. it’s a mess that he’ll deal with later.

for now, it’s all about her.

“oh god, yeah.. come for me, baby, come for me.. mmn— fuck—“ art whines, before surging forward to take her back into his mouth and drink everything that gushes from her perfect parts.

the taste of it is melting over his palate and subduing him like some kind of poison; his brain and body shuddering with a numbing pleasure he can’t quite describe. it hits him so hard, in fact, that his hands start to tremble where they cling to her hips. he just can’t get enough.

he’s sucking and swallowing like a man completely dying of thirst, and he plans to do it again and again until she’s limp and blissed out.

doesn’t matter that they just met tonight, he’ll give her whatever she needs for the next eight (8) whole hours until she has to go to her lecture in the early morning.

it’s the most gentlemanly thing to do, after all.

[zeldaelmo]

Welcome back to @zelinkcommunity 's prompt 'By a thread'. If you're here longer than three seconds, you probably know I love turning tropes and prompts on their head, and this fic is a typical result of exactly that.

@mistresslrigtar was so kind to beta this for me. Go read her zelink week fics! Oh, and she also inspired me to try new banners, hope you like them!

Enjoy!

Superglue

Akkala’s stiff breeze greeted them when they materialized on the platform of the shrine, carrying some crunchy leaves and the smell of the first autumn day with it. Link blinked slowly, taking a moment to feel Zelda’s hand curled in his. 

“Home,” she had said and, in a sudden rush of boldness, he had tapped the shrine symbol in Akkala instead of Hateno. Doubt crept up on him like ground frost, even through the tunic he had thrown on just before they fast-traveled, but it was too late to backtrack now.

Zelda shuddered next to him, her dress, once again, offering little protection against the weather, but her mood was splendid. Tired but splendid.

"What did you want to show me?" she chirped like a red sparrow in the snow.

"Ah—uhm," he stuttered, blinking out of his awe of holding her hand again. "It's a surprise."

"Ah, come on!" She laughed, running her palm over her bare arm. 

Ok, enough of this. Link let go of her hand and fumbled the Purah Pad from his belt, furiously scrolling the screen for some warmer clothes for her. If he took the risk of clattering teeth during a short paragliding trip, it was one thing, but he would surely not allow Zelda to suffer for another split-second in her life if he could help it. Finally, he came up with the Rito garb, tapped the screen, and turned back to her to drape it over her shoulders.

Abruptly, she stopped, her mouth falling open. She wouldn't argue with him about this, would she? Link bit his lip, mentally preparing to talk her into the warm coat. The woman had stubbornness for a whole millennium.  

"Link? What on Hylia's green earth is that?"

Huh? She was well acquainted with Rito clothes, had she lost her memory this time— oh wait, she was looking past him. 

Frowning, he turned his head, his eyes resting on her furrowed brows a moment too long. He only liked this look on her face when it came to solving science problems, and this seemed hardly the place for that. She pointed behind him and absently shrugged the coat on. Finally, he detached his gaze from her, turned, and saw what she meant.

In the middle of the plateau rested a pile of wooden slats, nearly two bases high. Ripped curtains stretched over what had formerly been window frames, weapon racks poked randomly out of the stack (one with the light trident still attached), and just barely discernible under all the rubble, Link spotted his, well, their, new bed. The wind tossed lighter household items around in little twisters while remnants of wooden walls creaked under the weight of rooms collapsed on them.

It wasn’t the chilly autumn wind that rushed over his back and expanded over his whole body. What… what had happened here? Unable to process what his eyes saw and to accept the conclusion his mind tried to draw from the images, he rounded the mess in slow motion. Everything was in pieces. Everything! The only intact cubicle seemed to be the paddock, thankfully. Epona and Zelda’s golden horse Apple were unharmed, unbothered by the ruckus even, and they both munched happily away at the flower ring he had bought from Koko to decorate the door.

“Link? What—” Zelda started, her voice tinted with concern, but she was interrupted by a loud crack from the other end of the pile. Link sprinted towards the sound, leaping over cushions meant to make a cozy evening for Zelda in front of the stove and a pair of boots that were entangled with something that looked a lot like a bowstring from a knight’s bow. Once he arrived at the backside of the pile, he stopped, gawking with his mouth open. On top of the mass, Zelda’s new study leaned dangerously to the left, only attached to the remnants of what was once the wall of the blessing’s room by a string of greenish glue. A green string he had seen thousands of times during his quest to beat the Demon King and get Zelda back. Rauru’s hand produced them as soon as Link wanted to attach two things to each other, and they were usually quite sturdy. Now, however, the string was thinning at worrying speed until it was the diameter of a thread. 

The room tilted; further, books and papers falling out and tumbling through Akkala’s afternoon wind like its famous red leaves. With a silent ‘pop’, the glue disappeared. Link swirled around and snatched Zelda, who had been gaping at the spectacle, causing them both to stumble out of the hazard zone. Not a second later, the study rushed down and crashed onto the ground, splitting into pieces. 

“Link—thank you!” she sputtered, finding her footing again. “But what is this? Is this what you wanted to show me? But why?”

Link gulped for air, blinking at the bouquet of silent princesses and sundelions he had prepared for her yesterday with the stubborn hope she would somehow return to her human form. The flowers were scattered all over the mountain of wood and personal belongings, stems broken and blooms crushed.

A single cup from somewhere on the right where the kitchen had once been detached itself from the rubbish and rolled to their feet.

Link kicked the cup back into the mess as if it was the head of a stalkoblin and muttered gravely, "That was my dream home."

Somewhere along the way, he had decided he would simply ignore the facts about Zelda’s irreversible transformation into a dragon and concentrate on the 'dream' aspect of the project and build a family home for them. 

Goddess above, he had burned so much money! He had dealt with not-upgraded armor and elixirs instead of proper equipment to have the spare money for the new kitchen or the large bed. And now… 

He shouldn't be upset about this, not when Zelda, the true Zelda and not a puppet or a light dragon or whatever form fate could come up with, was back at his side, and still, he couldn't help the wave of frustration that crushed over him at the sight of dirt-stained towels and broken shelves. Who would have thought that the house was only held together by a thread of— wait. Wait!

"Grante!!!" Link yelled in the general direction of the little sales booth at the corner of his property. Zelda was startled at his sudden loudness, but Link had had enough of this.

The man in question rushed to his side; a customer service smile spreading on his lips. Link had to restrain himself from slapping it off his face. "Explain."

Grante wrung his hands in front of him, smile unwavering. "First and foremost, it's Grante-son. And secondly, it looks like you had a little…ah… adhesion issue here. Sorry to hear that." His face lit up even more, genuine this time. "Hudson Construction will help you clean up the rubble for the small fee of—"

"Grante -son!" Link's hands twitched from suppressing the urge to shake him by the shoulders. One, two, three, he counted in his head to get a grip on himself. He would not embarrass himself in front of Zelda. "I purchased a dream home from Hudson Construction. Not a pile of wood. I have no idea how, but you'll fix this."

"I'm deeply sorry, but unfortunately, I have to inform you that we don't offer insurance together with our products, so I fear there's nothing I can do for you. We sold you a building ground and the cubicles. The rest was your own responsibility." 

Link took several deep breaths, forcing himself to smile at Zelda, who had walked off a few steps to greet her horse. She probably was still getting used to the fact that she could wander around Hyrule on her own two legs again and had no patience for… whatever this was. "I don't know what you don't understand about this! Hudson Construction, well, you personally approved the stability of the building, and now look at it! Goddess above." Link pushed his hand into his bangs, a habit that had come to him on his adventure while wearing his hair down. "Seriously, I don't know what I expected from a company that keeps someone occupied who can't even put up a sign."

"I don't know what or who you are referring to." Granteson frowned and picked a wooden slat up, turning it back and forth. With a shrug, he tossed it back onto the pile of trash l. "I did approve it. It seemed to work fine with the weird hand thing you had going on.”

Weird hand thing…? Right. Now that he said it, Link couldn’t recall that anyone ever affixed the cubicles that were the rooms, and since it worked just fine, he hadn’t insisted on it either. They must have been held together by the power-turned-glue of Rauru’s hand, and now that he had lost that ability, everything had come undone. Okay, so that was on him. Kind of. But they were a construction company! They didn’t glue the school in Hateno together, did they?

Granteson cleared his throat, correctly sensing the next accusation on Link’s face. “Maybe just try to put it back together? With your magic hand thingy?"

"Try… to… put it back together?" Link raised his marred arm and stared at the leathery skin on his stiff hand. "I don't think that still works…" Not one to give up easily, he flicked his wrist. The arm was a shadow of what it once was, but it was not completely immobile. It would be useless for swordplay, but maybe Rauru had a last, invisible gift for him…

Yes! 

Blue light flashed in front of him, and a gust of wind tugged at his hair. Link grinned. Oh, if ascend also still worked, he would have so much fun springing a surprise on Zelda! The look on her face if he popped through the ceiling of her study would be priceless — wait, what?! Why did the earth rumble? Horrified, Link watched the waves of blue radiating from his hand, splitting the ground in front of him like a laser beam. Before he had the quick-wittedness to drop his hand again, the fissure had already reached the pile of wood and was tearing everything apart. Wood cracked and rubble tumbled to the ground until the grand finale was marked by a small explosion that set everything on fire. Not a gift from Rauru, but from the Yiga. How could he forget about the cursed earthquake ability?

Link opened his mouth but didn’t have it in him to curse.

“Eh,” was all that escaped Granteson’s lips when the flames began to eat away at the remnants of Link’s dreamhouse, and frankly, Link had nothing more eloquent to add either. Against his will, a lump formed in his throat, and his bottom lip quivered. This should have been a surprise for Zelda! He had prepared everything from fruitcake and flowers to fresh notebooks! He had put a highlight in every single room for her to discover, and now… everything was gone. Goddess, he was such an idiot. Why didn’t he bring her to Hateno? She would have been happy to rest in their bed on the loft; there had been no rush to… to… 

A slim, gentle hand rested on his shoulder, and it took everything in him not to burst into tears immediately at her touch. 

“Link,” Zelda said, and when he turned to her, the heat radiating from what was quickly turning into a full-blown bonfire, hit them both. “I understand that you’ve been on your own for so long, so it’s only logical that you’d fall back into old coping mechanisms… But we’ve talked about this. No arson.”

Link blinked at her. “That’s not— I mean, it was an accident. I’d never…” She squeezed his arm with a tenderness that split him in two, just like the earthquake had done with his house. He pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes to stop the tears from spilling over and stuttered, “Zelda. This was— I built a house. A home, more specifically. It had a kitchen, a little stable, just— everything.” He lifted his hands from his eyes and pointed at the rubble before their feet. “The cubicle that just crashed down was your study. It was on top of everything with a separate staircase so nobody disturbs you, just like you like it— Goddess, sorry.” He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. “This is not how I planned it. You said ‘home’, so my mind just jumped to showing you what I built for us. It was a stupid idea. Let’s go to Hateno; we both need to rest.”

“Link.” Her tone was soft and firm at the same time. Oh, how he had missed the grounding effect the simple call of his name in her voice had on him! “You built a home for us, although you knew I was a dragon and couldn’t return?”

Link smiled and looked boyishly through his lashes at her. Then he shrugged. “You said you wanted kids, and the house in Hateno is too small for more than two people. This is, eh well, this was a family home.”

“Ok, but…”

“Zelda.” He took her hand, and she raised her eyes to his, inviting him to share his thoughts. It would have been nearly romantic if not for Granteson trying to kick household articles out of the cracking fire. “Do you really think I would have given up on getting you back? Ever? I would have forced the Goddesses to give us our happy ending.”

“You’re crazy.”

“That’s what they say.” Link cracked a grin, and Zelda rolled her eyes playfully. “Let’s get out of here. I’ll take care of the mess another day.”

“No, wait.” She detached herself from him, stepping closer to the flames. Bent over by the hip, she inspected what the fire had left behind or hadn’t taken yet. “It takes a lot to make you emotional, so this must be important to you. I can help.”

“Zelda,” Link argued and tried to pull her back. “It’s ok. It’s really not that urgent. We can come back anytime; it’s just stuff that can be replaced.”

“Close your eyes.”

Link frowned at her, but when she shot him a radiant smile, he huffed, defeated, and did what she told him. 

Nothing happened at first, but after a while, the heat on his skin slowly dwindled, and he could feel the crisp autumn air again. The cracking of the fire also stopped; instead, he heard clattering and rattling noises, as if someone was moving many lighter things around. Those sounds were followed by heavy clunks of wooden beams clashing against each other. At this, curiosity got the better of him. 

“Zelda, what…?” He opened his eyes just in time to see the study that had nearly crushed them move back to the top of the pile. The cubicle was in one piece again. 

“Hey!” Zelda laughed at him, hand raised against the pile of clutter that kept moving around in a cloud of dust. “You’re cheating.”

“Maybe,” he said and smiled absently, captured by the golden glow that enveloped her. His eyes were only half on the pieces that slowly came back together; his focus was, as always, on her. Nonetheless, it was a little strange to see parts of the top rooms fly back in the air to form a cubicle once more, ignoring every restraint physics would normally put on them. Piece by piece, wood beam by wood beam, and cushion by cushion, the items darted back to their former place until everything looked like a house again and not like a pile of rubbish. 

“Granteson?” Zelda asked sweetly, condoning politely how utterly shamelessly the man was staring at her. “Please go fetch Hudson, will you? I need an expert carpenter to fix the house for good.”

“O-of course, P-princess Z-Zelda,” Granteson stuttered and ran towards Tarrey Town.

Link snorted at his sudden abjection but was too happy to complain that she didn’t get any talk about warranties or fixing fees. With a lazy smile on his lips, he hugged her from behind, put his chin on her shoulder, and watched his — their — house come back together. They had risked everything for the peace that now settled over Hyrule like the morning dew; it only seemed fitting that the place he had built for them would become part of that peace. The glow of her power made Zelda warm, warmer even than the Snowquill armor, and he nestled his face into her short hair. His lips found the stretch of skin that always made her gasp, and he pressed a lingering kiss on it until she giggled. 

“Thank you," he breathed.

"Look what you've done now! You're distracting me!" she called, laughing. One of the freshly put back walls rushed down again, but neither of them had the focus to care. Still laughing, she sneaked her free hand around his neck and pulled him in for a proper kiss. 

Link heard another wood beam splinter, but it didn't matter. Together, they could fix everything, and now, they finally had all the time to take care of themselves. 

Or on Ao3:

[randomfoggytiger]

X-Files Collector’s Edition: Curated Baroness Blixen’s “Millennium” Fics

I have a longer collection of Millennium fics coming soon-- but a big chunk of them were written solely by the lovely @baronessblixen (or Anika), so I decided to group them all together here. 

So, let’s go! 

Loose chronological order~~

@baronessblixen‘s (Ao3) 

Impatient (Ao3)

““I could drive over to your apartment."

"Mulder, your arm is in a sling. You can't drive." Scully pinches her nose. She can barely move; her own body, without the aid of painkillers, reminds her that she's not getting any younger.

"I can drive with one arm, Scully. I told you."

"You can't, Mulder. Or you shouldn't. Just stay where you are, all right? I'll see you in a couple of hours." He's quiet again and as much as Scully longs for him to hang up the phone so she can go back to sleep, she knows the silence is not a good sign.””

Mulder is miffed that Scully left; and calls her as soon as his druggy haze wears off. Scully, meanwhile, just wants sleep, but gives up after realizing he’s already driven over. 

Good Morning  

““It's winter," Scully says.

"Have you heard about socks?"

"You're not wearing socks either."

"My feet aren't ice blocks.”"

Mulder may be charmed to finally have a domestic routine with Scully; but he’s still an odd man with a hyperactive mind that prevents him from sleeping.

Kissing You (Ao3)

““Yeah, this can't be real.

"Scully?" he whispers her name into the crown of her hair. A strand of hair catches on his bottom lip and he tries to free it without moving his arm and waking Scully. Any amount of using his tongue and blowing against the flick of hair is without use though.

"Why are you spitting in my hair?" she mumbles, not moving, seemingly unfazed...””

Mulder wakes after his successful New Years Eve with Scully... and doesn’t believe this can be real. Scully also gets spit in her hair. (Note: I’m stretching the believability by including a fic at his apartment instead of at hers: but CC doesn’t care about canonical facts, so why should I?) 

Word Salad (Ao3)

““With his arm in a sling, he is a perfect picture of pity. Her mother awwed when she lay eyes on him as she opened the door. Mulder wasn’t an expected guest at her mother’s New Year’s Day afternoon tea party, but he is a loved one. Her friends treat him like a long lost child who needs to be fed and pampered. They've been here for two hours and Mulder hasn't been without food since. Every time she checks on him, he's munching on cake, on cookies, on whatever he is given.””

Mulder is brought along to the Scully-New-Year-afternoon-tea-party and picks the absolute wrong time to mispronounce “quiche.” Luckily for him, the Scullys are a pretty cool family.

Alternate Endings/Follow Ups

Plans - Chapter 1

““Truth be told, she expected his call sooner. Much sooner. When her phone rings, and she sees his name flash up, she bites her lip to hide her smile.

“Scully,“ he says, not even bothering with a hello, “I need your help.” He sounds desperate enough for her to hold the phone tighter and feel her heart constrict. Should she have left him alone last night? He didn‘t want her to go and she didn‘t want to leave. But she did.””

Mulder wants Scully to come back for another New Year’s greeting, no matter how low he has to stoop. 

On A High Note (Ao3)

““Scully touches her neck, where her own wounds itch like insect bites. Who knew that zombie bites and insect bites were actually similar? She saves that info in her brain and stretches her sore muscles. The shower is still running and she hopes Mulder leaves enough hot water for her.

She yawns, thinking about hot showers, hot coffee, and Mulder. It’s only then that she starts listening to the music and realizes that it’s not exactly music. Or rather, it’s not the radio.

Mulder is singing.””

Mulder decides it’s a good thing to take all his pain pills at once. Scully tries not to be amused as he bumbles around singing ballads, high and happy. 

A Single Moment

““They decided to "wait and see" (as if they were a virus, not two people tentatively taking steps towards a romantic relationship). But Mulder must not have listened because here he is, with his arm in a sling, his rose and a sheepish grin.

"Come inside," she says after too many seconds and he pushes past her. He smells freshly showered, like pine and citrus, and she wonders how he could have managed by himself with his injured arm.

"I put a bag over my arm," Mulder says with a shrug, as if it was the most normal thing in the world. Considering how often he hurt himself, maybe it is.””

Mulder is tired of waiting; and shows up New Year’s Day with a rose. Scully overcomes her nervousness by trusting in their strong bond. 

One More Moment

““He's hiding in her mother's upstairs bathroom, staring at the neatly folded, perfectly arranged towels. The sight unnerves him. Is this his future? Does Scully fold her towels like this? He hasn't even spent enough nights at her place to know this little thing.

"Mulder?" Her voice is muffled through the door. He doesn't know how long he's been up here. Maybe five, maybe ten minutes. Long enough for Scully to notice and miss him.””

Mulder runs upstairs, overwhelmed with Maggie’s book club friends’ questions on the immediate heels of his new relationship with Scully. She joins him in her mother’s bathroom to soothe his concerns and banter him back to normal.

Her Name Was Bambi

““Can you imagine me and her? Fox and Bambi?" He grins at her, but her own smile is a grimace. Maybe she is jealous after all, just a bit. "Scully, it never would have worked out with her and me. I wasn't interested in her that way. I was only interested in you." Now she's the one who huffs. "Fine, I was maybe attracted to her for five minutes. I've been attracted to you for seven years, doesn't that count for anything?"

"Shhhhh!" Little Matthew stands next to the couch, his bright blue eyes flickering with childish exasperation. "Quiet," he says, "watching Bambi!" He plops down again and Mulder and Scully share a look, trying not to laugh.””

Scully and Mulder’s plans are squashed by emergency baby-sitting-Matthew-duty; and a Disney movie stirs up some old jealousies.

What You Heard Isn’t What I Said

““No mom, it’s fine,” she says with a long, drawn-out sigh. “I just don’t know how to tell him, that’s all.” Mulder stops dead in his tracks. Who is she talking about? It can’t be him, can it? He knows he shouldn’t be eavesdropping, but he finds himself incapable of moving. The coffees are still in his hands and he stands there, frozen. The door is ajar, but he can’t see Scully, and she can’t see him.

“I’m just not interested in him that way,” Scully goes on and Mulder feels his knees give in. He leans against the wall, his head heavy.””

Mulder’s spring in his step the next day is momentarily halted by a misconstrued phone call; and it takes Scully tracking him down and dragging it out of him to set things right.

Can’t Hurry Love (Ao3)

““But do you realize that I hurried through lunch with my brother because I thought something important was going on?”

“I’m sorry, Scully. What else can I say?” “Next time your exciting news turn out to be about kitchen appliances, tell me right away and don’t make it a secret.”

“In my defense,” Scully shoots him a look and Mulder ignores it, “I never said it was exciting. I didn’t keep it a secret either. So that’s why I’m here? As punishment?”

“Partly,” she admits.””

Mulder is stressed while accompanying Scully to her family New Year’s party, having to meet both her brothers after being openly jealous of Bill’s previous attempts to set his sister up with a friend (previous part here.) He gets to grab a nap upstairs, though.

Change of Plans

““But today he really is fine. His arm is out of the sling. If she wanted, he could hand her a doctor's note saying he is ready. For anything.

He is convinced that nothing can dampen his mood. That is until Scully opens the door.

"Hi," she says, her voice unrecognizable.””

Mulder has been WAITING for the sling to come off; but his further plans are halted by Scully being undeniably sick.

Mulder Breaks The Rules (Ao3)

““As unusual as the weather is, the quietness that accompanies it is even stranger. There’s no incessant chatter heard on the streets, people honking impatiently, no children. This is the new normal now. When the first cases of the so-called “Millennium flu” broke, no one took it seriously. Just the flu could be heard around every corner. Now, if anyone uses the phrase at all, it is whispered in hushed, uncertain tones. One thing is certain: it is not just the flu.””

Quarantine after the new Millennium or no, Mulder shall not be separated from Scully. Besides, he prides himself on flouting the rules anyway.

Enjoy!

[askrobouteguilliman40k]

An opposum wanders in and begins snuffling about.

It finds a bit of something on the floor and munches it.

How?

Macragges Honour is in deep space!

And how did this things species survive to the 41st millennium?

[bampotsdiary]

New Monster Munch Review

A wis jist gied a wee taste eh ma wan time fav munchies better known tae masel as The Biggest Snack Pennies Can Buy.

Aw a cin say is thit a um no impressed wey yer new recipe Pickled Onion Monster Munches .

So in ma review fur the uninitiated new millennium munchers ,a stated thit the hings they ur masticating oan noo ur pure shite an no a patch oan the original Smiths which wir guaranteed tae draw yer lips thegether and gie ye heartburn ,an a couldn'y gie a flyin fuck if the auld wans wir seasoned wae carbolic soap ,hydrofluoric acid or radioactive isotopes ,the Smiths hings were multitudinous an most excellently flavorsome ,so they wir ..Ay

[biglisbonnews]

The Stark Beauty of Tushetian Shepherds’ Journey Across Georgia’s Caucasus Mountains As spring begins to melt the snow in the mountains of northeastern Georgia, shepherds drive thousands of sheep across a perilous mountain pass to the stunning meadows of the Tusheti highlands. The meadows of the Tusheti have been called the last wild place in Europe and make for ideal summer grazing for the hardy, local sheep of the region—but the steep path is full of dangers, dangers that can sometimes prove fatal. Herding livestock to seasonal grazing grounds, a practice known as transhumance, is nothing new. Evidence of such journeys stretches back 10,000 years to when animals were first domesticated. The Tusheti shepherds of Georgia have moved their herds between seasonal pastures for at least half a millennium. Nestled in the Caucasus Mountains, the grassy fields of the Tusheti make ideal summer pastures for the hardy local sheep. Between June and September, the animals munch on high-protein grasses such as alpine bluegrass and toothed bellflower, giving the cheese made from the sheep’s prized milk its unique, strong flavor. In 2019, the gourmet cheese, known as ​​Tushetian or Tushuri guda after the sheepskin, or guda, used in curing, earned a coveted appellation of origin, which verifies that cheese from the region is the real deal. In spring 2022, the Philippe Brothers, a documentary team made up of brothers François, Stéphane, and Michael Philippe, followed along as one group of shepherds made their way up the dangerous trail to the Tusheti. Shepherds are usually related, and the group of four shepherds they followed were all kin and grew up surrounded by the stunning mountain vistas of the region. In 2022, the four shepherds (who preferred not to share their names) set out on their annual trek with 1,200 sheep and eight herding dogs. “The scenery was epic but ruthless,” says Michael Philippe. “It was not a place to live in, yet we walked there for two days with them, alone in pure wilderness.” Days started early with the group easily covering more than 30 miles in a day. Food was basic, says Philippe. A quick lunch might consist of bread, a can of food, like stewed fish, and “lots of alcohol.” Often the shepherds downed shots of ​​chacha, a strong, Georgian liquor made from the leftovers of wine production. At night, they bundled up in their jackets and slept outside on the cold mountainside. Along the way, the group had to cross several raging, freezing rivers—Philippe sometimes opted to take off his shoes and carry them. Wet shoes were worse than freezing feet. But by far the riskiest stretch of the journey was the Abano Pass, says Philippe. The unpaved, 43-mile stretch of road weaves across the Caucasus Mountains at an elevation of almost 10,000 feet. The unpredictable spring weather can cause sudden snow storms, rock slides, and dense fog. Snowmelt from the mountains destroys portions of the pass every year. “All the journey was difficult but the pass was the worst,” says Philippe. “We could [have] died many times because of the state of the road, falling rocks.” Once the shepherds made it to the Tusheti mountain valleys, they settled back into familiar rhythms—milking and tending to the sheep by day and then gathering around the fire to share songs and stories by night. Tusheti villages, abandoned for most of the year, come back to life in summer as entire communities return to their mountain homes. Despite climate change and natural disasters threatening their way of life, every year shepherds continue to make the difficult journey to and from the mountains. The Philippe brothers took these images of the transhumance, revealing the shepherds’ determination and triumph in completing the dangerous journey for yet another year. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/transhumance-tusheti-georgia-shepherds

[marias-island-of-visitors]

"Oh... well you probably already know but I'm the Princess of Hyrule... at least the former princess. With Hyrule Castle ruined on top of spending thousands of years as a dragon unable to truly interact with the world... I decided to give up my title and live a simple life, and what better place to do it than in a town you have to bear it all for... though I wasn't expecting the act of being naked outside to be so intimidating. After all I practically was naked for thousands of years."

She joked a bit but it was clear the experience had changed the former princess. It wasn't hard to figure out why, being trapped as a mindless beast, unable to do much of anything besides fly around and observe for thousands of years. It might have explained the sudden fascination with food as well, being able to taste and eat things again must have been heaven for someone who couldn't for a millennium. She munched idly on her bun before she sipped her wine, a small smile forming on her face as she loosened up.

"What about you? I was always told Gerudo couldn't leave the town unless they were out to search for a mate. I'm guessing that search brought you here?"

Open Starter (Female or Futa only)

Zelda let out a small sigh as she looked around the new location for Tarrey Town. She had to admit it felt almost perfect, the warm summer air, the sweet delectable fruits and treats all around. The locals seemed more than a little friendly which was perfect for the group of perverts. It would have been perfect if not for the main rule of the island. No clothes allowed. Apparently the gods of the island forbid it, and she wasn’t about to be going against the wishes of the gods. So she swallowed her pride and stood in her living room, naked as the day she was born. She looked towards her chubby self and blushed heavily.

“It’s ok Zelda… you’ll get used to it… just being naked… and exposed… and horny all the time… no pressure!”

[chernobog13]

Found in the model room at G-Fest XXVll:

“Boat Munch” by Paul Pandocchi

Recreating the iconic first appearance of the Big G in Godzilla:2000, aka Godzilla 2000: Millennium.

photos by me

[twisted-art-wounders]

YGO AU Leviathan Rising

Yugi and Levi have a sleep over and Levi confesses his feelings for Yugi.

Chapter 14 The sleepover to end all sleepovers

They were back in Yugi's room; a fort made of pillows and blankets was made in the middle, floating lights shaped like stars hung all around. Inside the fortress of pillows and comfort Yugi was in his light blue star pyjamas while Levi was in a basic black t-shirt with the green symbol of the Orichalcos printed in the center with matching shorts. Levi watched Yugi move around a few pillows making space for more stuffed toys of Duel Monsters including Kuriboh and Marshmallon. Yugi was arranging the pile of DVD's next to bags of chips, candy and cans of soda.

Around Yugi's neck the millennium puzzle dangled; the god's golden eyes narrowed watching the puzzle swing back and forth like a pendulum. It didn't bother him before when Yugi would wear his puzzle but now looking at it filled the god with rage, a constant reminder to him that the Pharaoh's lingering presence was always in Yugi's mind, heart, and soul. Levi's fists tightened more the more he thought about it he would've drawn blood if Yugi didn't snap him out of it.

“Okay I think we're ready!” Yugi looked around taking stock of everything before them, a large TV appeared behind them and Yugi crawled over to it with a DVD in hand putting it in the player.

“Okay first thing we'll do is watch one of my favourite action movies! “Enter the Dragon” I know it's old but trust me this one is great!” Yugi looked back at Levi who only nodded and waited for Yugi to crawl back over to him. Sitting next to the god Yugi hugged his Kuriboh plush and started watching the movie.

At some point in the middle of the film Levi finally decided to ask. “I thought you didn't like violence? This movie is all fighting.”

Yugi was a bit lost in the film at this point but he still turned to face Leviathan before he answered. “Oh I do, but this is fictional violence so it's not the same thing. Besides this movie isn't just about the violence, it's about defending those who can't defend themselves!”

“Pfft why would someone as strong as him want to protect others? He should just keep to himself and let the humans defend themselves.” Levi munched on some chips watching the screen bored at this point.

“Because having power doesn't mean you should lord it over others, you use it to help others!” Yugi watched Levi eat and looked down a little hugging his plush more.

“I always wanted to be like that...someone who could stand up for others who couldn't do it for themselves, be a true hero you know? But this is who I am...I don't have powers, or strength...that really all came form the other me, he's the one with the powers...”

“Now you have power. Unlimited power! You can do as you wish now.” Levi took a sip form a can of cola now. “I gave you far greater power then the Millennium Items can.” Levi once again was eyeing the puzzle almost like he was challenging it.

“No doubt you defiantly have given me powers Levi. Not that I've really had the chance to use them myself you know. And it's not like you'd let me use them the way I hope to...” Yugi looked away still holding his plush tighter.

“Hmm perhaps I can allow you to have another hour of freedom...but you'd want to use your powers to free all of the captured souls and stop Dartz's plans...”

“Well you got me there and I know you wouldn't let me do that...you serve Dartz after all.”

Levi chuckled “You have it wrong Yugi, Dartz serves me.” He took another sip

“Then why go through all of this? If Dartz is your servant then just tell him to stop feeding you souls. You could find another way of feeding! I felt great after I had a hamburger, maybe we can-” Yugi was silenced by Levi slamming his can down, he gulped and looked at the god.

“It's not that simple Yugi. I can't just stop eating souls! I am the god of the Orichalcos! I was made form the rage in human hearts! The rage of the world! My only wish to eradicate all human life!” Levi's eyes glowed as his crushed the can in his hand, hissing he turned to Yugi who looked frightened by his out burst. Levi's eyes widened as he let go of the can, as it tumbled to the ground Levi's eyes returned to normal.

He reached out a hand and touched Yugi's face gently, he could feel Yugi's slight twitch when he did. His thumb gently massaged Yugi's cheek trying to clam him.

“Just as you are Yugi Muto, I am the Great Leviathan. I can not change what I am... ” Leviathan looked at Yugi's scared face turn to sorrow as he touched Leviathan's own cheek.

“Ma-maybe you can't ch-ange what you are...but you can change who you are...You are a god Levi I thought that meant you didn't have rules? That you stand beyond humans?”

Levi nodded “You are correct about that.”

“Then that means you can change who you are, Even if you where human I'd say the same thing! You can chose to be who you want to be...”

Leviathan was always amazed with Yugi's optimism even in the worse case scenarios he still wanted to believe in the worst of beings, he still wanted to to believe in light...

The god grinned and let out a little huff “So what do you think I could be?”

Yugi had to think since well Levi could literately be anything he wanted; He was a snake- well some kind of snake but he seemed related to dragons...dragons like Timeaus. Defenders...protectors of others...heroes of legend.

“You could be a knight!”

Levi raised an eye brow at him, was he serious?

“Yeah a knight! Just like the legendary dragons! You can defend the world of the humans just like Timeaus and others defend the duel monsters world! You'd be just like the Three Musketeers!”

Levi looked at Yugi in confusion trying to piece together what he just told him; Be a knight? Defend the earth? Work with the legendary dragons?

“Three Musketeers? Like Dartz's swordsmen? Besides they are already a threesome that would defeat the purpose of the name wouldn't it?”

“No, well sort of...and no there were actually 4 Musketeers; Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and D'Artagnan! But he didn't become one of them until later on in the book see; we've been studying it in my English literature class...so that'd make you like D'Artagnan! ” Yugi's eyes we're lit up with excitement. “And once you've proven yourself to the dragons then you'd be allowed to join them!”

“Hmph!  And what makes you think they would accept me as one of their own? I am the god of Orichalcos, they are the defenders of light. We cannot get along.”

“That's not true! You told me the Orichalcos can give you a path to both darkness and light! So why not use it to take the path of light? And I'm sure Timeaus and other dragons would accept you if you really wanted to become a protector of earth!” Yugi held both Levi's hands now his smile even wider. “I think you would be an amazing protector.”

Levi watched Yugi's eyes sparkle; it was like the universe shined in his eyes, everything and anything that can and would be all existing in him all at once. Leviathan's face went soft for a moment he really felt like maybe Yugi's words made sense... he was a god he could do what he wished...and if Yugi wished for him to be good...to follow the light...then maybe just maybe...

Levi shock his head quickly and tried to push attention somewhere else; he looked over to the stack of DVD's and pulled out one he then ask “What is Beauty and Beast?”

Yugi looked over at the DVD he was holding and smiled “Oh that's a classic too! It's about a girl named Belle who trades her freedom to save her father form being a prisoner of a horrible beast. But as she spends more time with the beast she learns to love him and breaks a curse over him! This is also a french story you know.”

“Hmm... can we watch this one next?” Levi couldn't keep his eyes over the cover art.

“Sure! I watched it a few weeks ago so it's still fresh in my mind!” Yugi took the DVD form it's case and put it into the player.

As Levi and Yugi both watched the movie; Levi couldn't help but feel this was all following very closely to their own situation. He watched as Yugi laughed at a few scenes and would look over to him and point out something he was confused about. Once they got to the ballroom scene Levi's heart started to race as he watched the couple dance to the graceful music, he couldn't help but imagine that this was him and Yugi. The lyrics adding more emotion to heart; perhaps he could change too? And if he did will Yugi love him?

By the end of the film Yugi was on his back and stretching out on his pillows

“Wow this is still a classic! So what did you think of it Levi? Felt a bit close to home for us huh?” Yugi chuckled a bit.

“Yes it feels very similar...Yugi remember what you told me earlier? About being able to choose who I want to be?” Levi looked over to Yugi who nodded sitting up again.

“Well If I can choose to be who I want to be...” Leviathan turned to face Yugi and lowered himself more standing on one knee, he held Yugi's hand and reached into his pocket pulling out a small box.

“Then I choose to be yours.” opening the small box there was a silver ring shaped like a serpent grabbing it's tail and in the centre was a green glowing stone. Yugi was confused at first but then it all hit him like ton of bricks.

“Will you be mine? Be my true partner?” Leviathan's eyes were full of absolute sincerity and adoration, a new gentle love had formed within him and he placed all of his love all of his heart into his words. “I love you. I love you so much Yugi Muto please become my mate.”

Yugi was in shock; this wasn't something he thought he'd ever hear at least not for a long time. Marriage? Was he serious? How did they jump form talking about choosing your fate to marriage so quickly? Yugi swallowed hard he was sweating and slightly embarrassed...

“I...uhh you...we...uhh...” Yugi was struggling to find the right words, he watched as Levi's face started to lower a bit he looked a little confused.

“Did I not do this correctly? This is how humans ask for matrimony is it not? This is how one confesses their feelings towards each other right?”

“Y-yes it is! but Levi we...I can't -we can't...I'm not...You and I uhh...” Yugi rubbed the back of his neck and tried to pull away now. Levi was getting a bit more more agitated now holding onto his hand more.

“What are you trying to say? Just tell me!” Levi had a bit of aggression flare up in his voice now.

“I...don't want to get married?” Yugi watched as Leviathan's eyes widened in disbelief.

“W-what are you saying? You don't want to be my mate?”

Yugi swallowed hard he was sweating extremely nervous as he let the words out

“N-no I don't want to be your mate Levi...”

Yugi quickly added.

“But that doesn't mean I'm not your friend! We can be very good friends! We are good friends! Even if our though our time has been brief I've really gotten to know and like you Levi!”

After Yugi said no Leviathan's ears couldn't pick up on the rest of what Yugi was saying, it was all starting to be drowned out and he was getting further and further away form everything around them.

Then something broke...inside of him.

“I'm sorry Levi but I don't feel that way about you...But I still like you alot!” Yugi was trying hard to play damage control, when he noticed the box close and fall form Leviathan's hand. His head was down now and he stopped holding Yugi's hand

“...Levi? Are you-”

He heard a small chuckle come form under Leviathan's breath, his fangs were visible under the darkness of his face.

He slowly started to stand up.

“Yugi...you've shown me just how truly cruel you are...” he kept chuckling but tears started to run down his cheeks. “I confessed my feelings to you...I let you into my heart...and you-you broke it.”

“What? No Levi I didn't mean to hurt you but I don't share the same feelings of love to you that you do to me.”

Levi rubbed his cheeks a bit trying to flick away his tears “Why? Why do you not share my feelings! You gave me these feelings! And now you want to run away form them?!” the god shouted as his claws cracked popping out of his fingertips.

“No! No I don't mean that I-” Yugi watched as Leviathan's form started to get darker his eyes still hidden form his bangs falling over them.

“What do you mean?! You're confusing me! Why don't you love me!?” the world started to crackle and break Yugi was trying to keep his footing but fell backwards hitting not pillows but hard rock. The safely of his room had fallen and now he was in a dark void, sitting on a tall rocky pillar.

“Tell me Yugi! Why don't you love me? Is it because I'm not a human like your friends? I'm I not attractive like that Tea girl? Strong like your Joey? Possess power like the Pharaoh!?” With each word a storm grew stronger and stronger around them, Yugi hand nothing to hold onto as the winds cascaded around him.

“I am ALL these things and MORE! BUT IT'S STILL NOT ENOUGH FOR YOU!”

He tried to stop things, tried to regain control but the god has stolen his ability to do so, once again he was powerless in his own mind.

“Le-Leviathan! Please!” Yugi screamed as load as he could before being blown right off the pillar, he was tossed and thrown all around, he couldn't tell up and down left and right it was all just purse darkness and he was scared. He felt his body hit another set of rocks and hard, even if it was all in his mind he felt it it was so sharp and hard he felt like he broke a few bones form the impact.

“STOP IT! PLEASE STOP IT!” Yugi screamed at the top of his lungs, holding his paining chest, then it all came to a stop, he opened his eyes slowly, he didn't see anything just a figure...it was Leviathan he was only a shadow now his golden eyes the only source of light around them, but instead of anger they where filled with sorrow and pain.

“L-Levi?” Yugi spoke weakly reaching out a hand towards the eyes, only to have them turn away form him. “Levi... I'm sorry...I'm really sorry I didn't- I never meant to hurt you...”

The figured noticed Yugi was holding his ribs with hs other hand now and whimpered “I'm sorry...Yugi.” Leviathan's voice was distant but it still bled with pain and honesty.

“Please Levi...you need to understand that just because I don't love you in that way....doesn't mean your any less important to me!” Yugi reached out again coming closer to the shadow, his hand was shaking form fear...but he still placed it on the shadow's back. He felt it twitch a bit but under his palm it soon calmed down.

“You mean so much to me...” the shadow let out a whimper as it started to cry.

Yugi removed his hand and now embraced the shadow form behind even if it pained him so much to do so he kept his hold, the shadow was stiff at first but slowly it started to calm down and smooth itself out.

“I know I do. Look inside of my heart Levi you've seen how big it is? There's so much room inside of it you could lost...” Yugi let out a tearful and painful laugh “So you know that no matter what you're always going to have a place there. No matter what.”

The shadows finally melted away and Leviathan was back to his original form again. Yugi smiled and embarrassed him more letting his tears fall onto his shoulder.

“I do love you...you're my friend Levi.”

With Yugi's words finally entering his heart Leviathan's tears started again but this time they where tears of joy.

To Be Continued...

[hexagonsun]

Edvard Munch: Handwritten text. 'The pause when the whole world stopped in its tracks'. Crayon, several colours, ca 1930. From the sketchbook Tree of Knowledge, dated 1892-1930 (uncertain). Photo © Munchmuseet

The pause when the whole world stopped in its tracks

Your face encompasses all of the earth’s beauty

Your lips red like ripening fruit

separate as though in pain

The smile of a corpse

Now life offers death its hand

The chain has been linked which connects

The millennium of generations

That are deceased to the millennium of generations that are to come.

[sadaboutniall]

something about you;

introduction | masterlist | tag | wattpad

Twenty One. May, 2016. 

After six years of working in the music industry, Niall’s learned to be comfortable attending all kinds of events. From prestigious awards shows with the most famous people in the world to stuffy board meetings with old, white men who don’t understand a word he’s saying, Niall feels like he’s gotten a handle on this thing over the years. At this point, there’s very little he can’t bullshit his way through.

He’s walking into the The Savoy Hotel when he realizes that, for all his life experience, he’s never attended a law school graduation before. 

Which is fine, really, he tells himself. He’s good at this: at making small talk with strangers, at finding his corner in a party and managing to have a good time no matter how out of place he feels. Except never before has he been desperately in love with the host of the party who, he’s pretty sure, just wants to keep being friends.

But this is fine, really. It’s a late spring day that feels like summer, he’s got the top few buttons of his dress shirt undone to show off his sprinkling of chest hair, Emilia’s introduced him to the concept of Aperol Spritz, Mully’s telling some stupid story about his most recent trip to LA for work, and Niall is going to be fine, really. He’s got this under control. 

He’s fine, really. If he’s decidedly not looking at Isla, standing on the other side of the room chatting to Laura, it’s because he’s totally, one hundred percent, completely fine. It’s because he’s not even thinking about it. Mully’s story about LA is just that interesting. 

‘Jesus,’ a familiar voice behind them. ‘If it isn’t the entire village of Mullingar.’

‘Hey, Erin,’ Mully flashes a charming smile, opens his arm for a hug, a kiss on the cheek. ‘Howya?’

It’s almost an unimaginable sight, Niall thinks: Isla’s older sister here in London, balancing her nearly one year old son on her hip, leaning in to Emilia now for a kiss. He tries to think of the last time he saw her and all he can remember is 2010, her wishing him luck before he left for London, left his life behind forever. 

‘I definitely didn’t expect to see you here,’ Erin says, turning toward Niall. She’s smiling, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes, and Niall feels himself heating up under her gaze, an itch rising on the back of his neck. ‘How are things?’

‘Well, thanks,’ Niall leans in for a kiss on the cheek, careful not to jostle the baby. ‘Lovely to see you. And to meet…?’

‘Oisín,’ Erin bounces her son, who’s munching on his own chubby little fist, shoved into his mouth. 

‘Hey, mate,’ Niall reaches out and lets Oisín wrap his other tiny little hand around his pointer finger, a gummy smile around the fist in his mouth. ‘Sick little tie.’

‘Isla got it for him,’ Erin’s looking down at her boy, smiling. ‘King’s College colors.’

‘Ah, you’re right,’ Niall feels a little tug of something in his chest, thinking about Isla shopping for her baby nephew, buying him things in her uni colors. He has a sudden urge to get the kid some One Direction merch—or maybe his own, one day, if he ever gets his shit together. ‘Looks sharp.’

‘So you’re back in London now?’ Erin’s talking to Niall, but she’s still looking down at Oisín, so Niall can’t quite sus out her tone, what she’s trying to get out of him. 

‘I am, yeah,’ Niall decides to tread carefully, looking up over Erin’s head to Mully for guidance. But he’s distracted by Emilia now, the two of them laughing over something Niall’s clearly missed, and he’s on his own, again. ‘For a little while, at least.’

‘Ages since you’ve been in one place,’ Erin says. ‘Even for a little while.’

‘Yeah, it’s,’ Niall glances up again, this time toward Isla, who’s still giggling with Laura, and now Eoghan too. There’s a fluttering in his belly, a desire, for the first time in a long time, not to run away. ‘It’s been really nice.’

‘You’re not getting antsy?’ Niall knows he’s not mistaken. Erin sounds accusatory. ‘Not planning to go backpacking around, I dunno, Antarctica this time?’

‘No,’ Niall’s firm enough that Erin looks up finally, her eyes, which look so much like her sister’s, locking on his. ‘I mean, eventually I’ll probably start working and touring again but, for now at least, I’m right here.’ 

‘Right, well,’ Erin gives Oisín another little bounce and he pulls his hand back from Niall, squealing with laughter at his mother’s sudden movement. ‘Glad you’re here, it means a lot to Isla.’

‘Wouldn’t miss it,’ says Niall, but Erin is gone before he can even finish his sentence, disappearing back into the thick of the party with Oisín. And, for what feels like the millionth time in the past two years, Niall is alone, again, in a very, very crowded room.

-- 

It’s hours later when he finds Isla on her own, leaning up against a wall in the dark hallway that leads to the bathrooms. She looks tired, eyes closed, head back, neck exposed, and he tries not to let his eyes linger too long—on the stretch of her neck, the rise and fall of her chest, the necklace, with a pearl, against her collarbone.

‘You alright?’ He asks, keeping his voice low so as not to startle her. 

He does anyway, of course, and he can’t help the way he laughs when she jumps, hand coming up to cover her heart, a relieved sigh falling from her lips when she realizes that it’s just him. She rolls her eyes, brushing a hand through her hair, then, ‘oh, I’m fine. Just having a minor heart attack, but other than that.’

‘Sorry,’ Niall laughs, leaning up against the other wall across from her. ‘You hiding back here?’

‘Yeah,’ Isla sighs, an apologetic look working its way across her face. ‘It’s just… fucking exhausting out there. Everyone’s trying to talk to me all the time, ask me what’s next, it’s like—ugh, I sound so ungrateful, don’t I? I’m just knackered, I woke up so early this morning.’

‘No,’ Niall shoves his hands into his pockets, anything to quieten the urge to reach out and grab hers. ‘You don’t. People asking you about the future is fucking ehxuasting.’

Isla smiles, dimple digging into her cheek, and rests her head back against the wall again. She really does look so tired, so desperate for a moment’s peace. Niall starts speaking again without thinking, without letting himself second guess. 

‘Hey,’ he says, and Isla tilts her head up to look at him. ‘You wanna get out of here?’

‘Niall, we’re in central London, there’s nowhere to go. Besides, this is my party, I can’t just—’

‘I know a place,’ Niall rushes. ‘We did a press junket here once, for the band. Louis and Zayn wanted to find somewhere to smoke and we used to fuck off and explore every time we got a few free minutes. We don’t even have to leave the hotel.’

Eyebrows raised, Isla picks her head the rest of the way up off the wall and smiles. ‘Alright,’ she says, crossing her arms over her chest, ‘show me.’

--

It’s easy enough, remembering the back ways through The Savoy, finding the service elevator, riding it all the way to the top floor. They wind through the hallways without a problem, muffled footsteps against the carpet matching Niall’s hammering heart, and Niall finds the utility door easily too, like it hasn’t been years since the last time he did this. 

Niall leading the way, he and Isla climb the thin, rickety iron staircase, towering high above London. They don’t look down, ignoring the summer breeze pressing back against them, the sounds of sirens and horns fading as they climb. It’s not a far climb, not much taller than a standard staircase, but it feels neverending when they’re up this high, a dozen stories above the city, an infinite fall if they make one wrong step. 

But they won’t, Niall knows. He doesn’t make wrong steps when he has Isla’s help. 

Up on the safe, solid concrete of the hotel roof, Niall turns around and offers Isla a hand up and over the waist-high barrier, and he looks away when she hikes up her dress to make the jump, ignores the flash of inner thigh he catches, the way she squeezes his hand for more support. He’s fine, really, staring out at the skyline once she’s safely on the roof too, smoothing out her dress. He’s not looking at her. 

‘Sick, isn’t it,’ he dares a glance, heart in his throat. She’s decent now, dress back in place, making her way over to stand next to him at the edge of the roof. The sun is setting over London and they can see everything from here: the Thames, boats like tiny specs on the heaving water, the Millennium Bridge, teeming with tourists and Londoners setting off for their Saturday evenings, The Eye, revolving slowly, rhythmically over the water. Niall wonders if the tourists in those little pods can see them: two people who’ve known each other as long as they’ve been alive, one falling desperately in love with the other. 

Isla leans forward, arms resting on the barrier, face toward the wind. Niall watches her throat work as she swallows, watches her eyelashes flutter as her hair whisps gently around her face in the breeze, and his hands are itching to reach out, to cup her face the way he used to, to press his thumb to her lips and hear her hiss. He reaches out for the barrier instead, letting the cool metal calm his heart rate. 

‘This is stunning,’ she says, voice lost to the wind a little. ‘Thank you for showing me.’

‘S’alright,’ he tells her, eyes still trailing over her profile. With the darkening city behind her, Niall thinks this might be the most precious sight he’s ever seen, that not even hundreds of thousands of strangers screaming his name in a stadium makes his heart feel tight like this. ‘Congratulations, by the way. I think I forgot to say earlier.’

‘Thanks,’ she turns her head to face him, hair whipping in the wind as she does. ‘I’m glad you came.’

‘Of course I did,’ Niall swallows a lump in his throat as he watches Isla tuck her hair behind her ear, her hand trailing down the side of her neck. He feels it all over: in his stomach, in his chest, in his fingertips, in his lips. ‘I wouldn’t miss this. I’m really proud of you.’

‘Ah, come on,’ Isla’s voice drops to a whisper. ‘Graduating law school is nothing compared to what you’ve done.’

‘You joking? Isla, you’re a fucking lawyer. You’re a genius. I didn’t even finish secondary school.’

‘Yeah, fine, but you have, like, millions of awards. And fans. And—’

‘Doesn’t matter,’ he cuts her off. ‘I got lucky. I could never, ever do something like this. You should be really proud of yourself.’

‘You didn’t get lucky, you’re bloody talented.’

‘Yeah, and so are millions of other musicians in the world. I got lucky, I know that. But you worked your fucking arse off for this. I want you to be proud of yourself.’

‘I am, I am,’ Isla smiles, pressing her cheek against her shoulder shyly. ‘Thank you.’

Niall hums a response, watching as she turns back to face the wind, to look out at the skyline, at their living city. Downstairs, the party is dying and the city is quiet and it’s like there’s no one else in the world but them: just him, Isla, and the rising moon.

‘Wanna dance?’ He asks her, before he’s really aware of what he’s doing. Isla looks over, confusion in her eyes, and Niall repeats himself. ‘Dance with me?’

‘Huh?’

‘Come on,’ he holds out a hand and tries to ignore the way his heart swells when she takes it right away, no second guessing. Gently, he guides her toward the center of the roof, sliding his arms around her waist. ‘This okay?’ he whispers, holding her at a distance until she nods, eyes locked on his, and steps a little closer. 

Pressing his body to hers again feels so natural, so easy, that Niall’s amazed he managed to go so long without doing it. Her arms wind around his shoulders, her fingers pressed to the nape of his neck, and they start to sway, slow and easy with the wind. 

‘Are you making up for the Debs you never got to take me to?’ Isla asks, leaning her cheek against Niall’s shoulder. 

‘Guess so, yeah. Bit of a better view though, than the Rec Hall at school.’

Isla hums, a little laugh, ‘No music, though. Gonna serenade me, popstar?’

‘Ah,’ Niall glances down at her, cuddled against his shoulder, and prays she can’t feel the way his heart is slamming against his chest. ‘I think I can manage that.’ 

And so he does. Quiet at first, something like stage fright curling in his chest despite the fact that he never gets nervous while singing in front of anyone else. Easy, he picks The Blower’s Daughter, tells himself that it’s just because it was the first song that popped into his head, that he’s not desperately hoping she’ll listen to the lyrics, that she’ll pick it up like some kind of message. 

If she does, she says nothing. She shuts her eyes, turning her head a little so her nose is pressed to his chest, bare from the way his shirt is open, and hums along. She’s quiet, below his voice so he can’t hear her unless he strains, but he loves it, feels certain that this is the best his voice has ever sounded.

He feels choked up with the magnitude of it, of them: swaying together in the middle of London, across an ocean from where they met, the whole world below them, completely oblivious. He’d do this again with everyone watching, he thinks—dance with her, hold her to his chest, tell her he loves her. He wouldn’t ever want to do it with anyone else. 

‘Love you,’ he whispers, dropping his lips to the top of her head, mumbling into her hair. 

She doesn’t say a word.

####

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[chroniclackofselfpreservation]

Creatures of the Night

Chapter 23 - the world of shut doors and countless walls

Back to the Beginning   < Previous chapter / Next chapter >   

AO3

Masterlist

(TW: graphic depictions of violence (stabbing), blood, mild panic)

(The title of the chapter comes from "The Ruins of Bam" by Garous Abdolmalekian.)

Roman sliced and buttered Dorian a piece of bread from the loaf Patton had baked just before their whole word had flipped around, pretending not to notice Virgil stand with his back pressed against the pantry door, right where he could see both Dorian and Remus.

The demon sat innocently on one of the kitchen stools, waiting for his food. Roman glanced over at the hobgoblin, who was nonchalantly blowing snot bubbles to entertain himself. Remus didn’t seem all that concerned for his own safety. Either he didn’t care about his own well being, or was confident Virgil would petition for his survival.

Roman handed the bread to Dorian, who accepted it graciously. He leaned back against the counter, enjoying his own toasted bread. Roman was fairly certain that the demon didn’t need to eat.

It had probably been a long time since he’d eaten anything substantial.

Roman’s bread turned sour on his tongue as a dark thought entered his mind. Had it been his mother?

He felt nauseous and wasn’t sure he could swallow what he’d bitten off.

“So,” Dorian said, happily munching on the bread, “did Ursula end up killing the sibyl and the boring one?”

Roman choked on his toast.

Virgil’s folded arms tightened against his chest. “She Displaced them.”

“Oh? Where to?”

Roman recovered, swallowing painfully. “You know, for not wanting to help at all, you seem awfully interested.”

He leaned back in his chair, defiant. “Intrigued, more like.”

“She sent them to Kulong,” Virgil said, glancing over at Roman. Concern flashed across his features, and Roman, leaning casually against the counter, shoulders relaxed as he desperately tried to stop thinking about how his mother died, wondered how Virgil could tell something was wrong.

The demon’s eyebrows shot up, an unabashed laugh pealing out of him. “The prison island? Ha! That’s too perfect.”

“You really tiptoed around our feelings, huh?” Roman snorted, looking down to hide the pain lancing through his eyes.

Dorian shrugged, continuing around the bread in his mouth, “You need to get that sibyl back if you’re going to have any chance of defeating Ursula. There hasn’t been an oracle born for nearly half a millennium. You’d be fools to waste such talent.”

Virgil stilled. “Wait, an oracle? Patton’s not an oracle. There’s no way.”

Dorian stared at him. “You’re not serious.”

“I’m pretty sure I would have noticed if I was living with an oracle.”

“You’ve spent too much time with these mortals,” the demon sighed, giving up.

“That’s rich, coming from you,” Virgil muttered, averting his eyes.

“Please,” he sneered, gesturing at Virgil’s human form. “You’re a familiar for Witch Queen’s sake, yet you pretend like this. It’s shameful.”

“You don’t know a thing about me,” he hissed. Virgil gripped his talisman inside his pocket so hard Roman worried he might shatter it.

“That’s enough, Dorian,” Roman said, voice low and warning. The demon looked anything but placated, an eager grin playing at his semi-scaled face. Roman’s mind registered the shift in tension, and he found his eyes scouting the kitchen.

“I doubt you could tell a kelpie from a red cap anymore.”

“Shut up.”

Roman pushed off the counter, grabbing the loaf of bread and walking over to the knife block, his posture the epitome of calm.

“Oh?” Dorian growled, his voice inhumanly low. “Say it again, familiar. I dare you.” The stool scraped against the tile as he rose to his feet. Roman could practically smell the barely contained fear radiating from Virgil. He casually grabbed two steak knives.

Dorian’s lip curled and his hand shot out.

Roman reacted almost in tandem with the demon, whirling around and impaling Dorian’s hand onto the counter before his arm had even fully extended. Not a moment later, the second knife thudded between the demon’s ribs.

Virgil recoiled so violently he slammed into the pantry door, disappearing into a streak of black dashing up the stairs.

Dorian grimaced. “You insufferable child,” he spat, the black blood filling his mouth spattering across Roman’s face.

Roman didn’t even flinch.

“You are a guest in my house, snake,” he snarled. “I suggest you treat my friends with respect.”

“You can’t—”

Roman twisted the knife. “No. You can’t. You can’t kill me, and unless you want me making your new freedom as miserable as possible, you’ll leave Virgil alone.”

“You’ll only waste what little time you have.”

Roman pulled the knives out with a squelch and walked over to the sink. “If you aren’t going to help us, leave us alone.” He pumped soap into a sponge and scrubbed the black liquid off the utensils.

“I just want to make sure you kill her. That’s it.” Dorian muttered, his wounds sparking with magic as they healed.

“Aw, Dory, you’re worried about me.”

“I most certainly am not.”

Roman wagged one of the newly clean knives in his direction, smiling as if he hadn’t just stabbed him twice. “Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

Dorian bristled. “You are well aware I’m incapable of the function.”

Roman winked.

* * * * * * * * * *

Logan supposed he should have been more interested in Patton’s studies with Daveigh. However, he couldn’t “read” any of the prophetic text that they apparently could, and he was too rife with worry over Patton’s well being to properly investigate it.

After a night to for Patton to recover, Daveigh apologized profusely and promised never to do anything remotely similar to what she’d done yesterday without asking permission first. Patton had forgiven her almost immediately. Logan, however, was slower to trust.

After a surprisingly plentiful breakfast of various roots and fruits, everyone had gone about their business.

That is, expect Logan. He didn’t exactly have much in the way of “business” at the moment.

He sat only a few feet from Patton, leaning back against a tree trunk and trying not to seem too distracted as they went on and on about their abilities and the history of oracles.

Mikhail milled about camp completing various chores. Jorryn had disappeared at the rise of the sun and hadn’t been seen since.

The air was humid, but not as hot as yesterday. A cacophony of bird calls echoed around the valley, filling the air with a sort of white noise for Logan to lose himself in.

He thought about Killian.

Eudora had called him a master arcanist, and there had been something in him that intrigued Logan. He looked as if he’d once been well respected. A teacher of some kind? Perhaps it was that commonality that drew him to the man?

Be wary of conjecture, his father’s words echoed in his mind. You don’t know he’s anything yet. List what you know. Go from there.

A sad smile played at Logan’s lips. If anyone would have known how to handle their current situation, it would have been him.

List what I know, he told himself. They were on an island—most likely in the Pacific given the climate. He and Patton were alive and uninjured. Reminded of his injuries, Logan ran his tongue across the tooth that had cracked when he’d fallen into the ocean.

It was fine. As if nothing had happened.

He remembered what Patton had said about Eudora healing them that night, ridding them of their need for glasses. Patton no longer sported the scars Remus had clawed into his cheek either. Logan was grateful, even if the idea of being grateful to the ill-mannered witch made him grimace.

What else? A relatively hostile green man, two oracles, a mentally scarred arcanist, and Mikhail. He’d called himself a magicless witch earlier, which made Logan wonder as to his reason for being imprisoned.

Logan could ascribe his own capture to accident. Mikhail, on the other hand, seemed like a powerful leader. An ambassador, perhaps? Still, Logan had no clue what the title “master arcanist” meant. How was that different from being a witch? As for Jorryn, Logan was even more in the dark on his abilities. The Fey hadn’t exactly been a topic of study for him until very recently.

What do I do? he pleaded at the canopied sky.

The answer came without resistance. Logan knew exactly what his father would have replied.

Gather more data. The answer’s here, but you can’t connect dots you can’t see.

“Lo?” Patton inquired gently, placing a hand on Logan’s knee. He blinked, returning to the present.

“Where’s Daveigh?” he asked, looking around.

“She had to, er, use the restroom,” Patton said as gracefully as possible. “How are you? You look bored—and you’re never bored.”

Logan sat up off the tree and ran a hand through his hair. “How could I be bored? We’re stuck on a mysterious, magical island,” he said with more contempt than he’d meant. Sighing, Logan supplemented, “Sorry, Patton. I did not mean to be snappish.”

Patton stuck him with a meaningful look, pulling his crossed ankles closer to himself. “Come on. Something’s distracting you. What’s on your mind?”

Logan opened his mouth to reply, but found a trickle of guilt running down the back of his throat. “It… It’s nothing important. I’m more concerned with making sure you’re okay.”

Patton’s smile became a bit more deliberate. “I’m just fine, Logan. I promise.” Before Logan could point out yesterday’s incident, he continued, “Yes, I’m glad you were here to help me out yesterday, but we figured out why it happened for the most part, and it won’t happen again.”

“For the most part?” Logan echoed dubiously.

“Tell me what you were thinking,” Patton insisted, and Logan reluctantly capitulated the change in subject, though he fully intended on coming back to the issue.

“I want to go see Killian.”

Patton’s brow furrowed, as if that wasn’t what he’d been expecting at all. “Why?”

Logan shrugged. “I’ve got a feeling. There’s something I need to learn from him.”

“Why not go now?”

Logan desperately tried not to stare at Patton like he was a complete idiot. “I’m not leaving you alone here.”

He smiled innocently. “I’ll be perfectly fine, Lo.”

“We’ve known these people for all of eighteen hours. I doubt that qualifies them for unmitigated trust,” Logan hissed, leaning forward and shooting a glance at Mikhail, who stood several feet away chopping wood with a stone axe.

Patton’s smile grew exasperated, and he looked down at his feet, chuckling.

“I’m sorry, did I say something amusing?” Logan asked, genuinely confused.

“No, sweetheart,” he replied, placing a hand on Logan’s cheek. “It’s just that there are very few people in this world I trust.” He gave his cheek a gentle pat and retracted his hand. “None of our new friends have made that list just yet. You don’t have to worry.”

Logan’s mind reeled as he desperately tried to recall what Patton had just said. His brain had metaphorically shorted out when Patton had touched him.

“Um,” he said, blinking and lifting his own hand to his cheek. Logan met Patton’s eye. “This is unusual.”

Patton looked jittery, but in a good way. Like he’d just jumped off the highest platform at Wakeby Rec Center pool, his face flush and eyes bright. “What is?”

“You.”

He laughed. “Thank you?”

Logan tried again for words—coherent ones this time. “You seem different.”

Patton stood, brushing off his pants and stretching. Logan felt his face heat.

“I guess I’m just feeling a bit more myself these days.”

[real-life-senshi]

[At Usagi's wedding party]

pgsm!Minako: Rei, I never realized how nice your hands are.

pgsm!Rei: Uh... thanks?

pgsm!Minako: I bet they'd look even better gripping my-

pgsm!Usagi: *covers human-Luna's ears* griPPING THE BIBLE PRAISE THE LORD AMEN

pgsm!Ami: Usagi-chan, Luna's a millennium older than us.

pgsm!Makoto: *munching on party snacks* Porn

[fortunatelyhauntedblackcherry]

Moonshine - A Beetlejuice Fanfiction 14

Warning: cussing, slight mention of the death of an asshole ex

The sisters all went to get some rest after the long night, but Beetlejuice had other plans. He had so much built up energy that he terrorized the neighborhood 'till the late morning, then teleported back to the house, still wiping his happy-teary eyes.

He appeared in a green puff of smoke right behind Rei, who was clearly cooking something in the kitchen. Even though she dressed up properly in highwaisted denim shorts and a kawaii pastelpink tank top, and did her makeup, her baggy eyes showed that she haven't slept a minute. He peaked over her shoulder.

- HI THERE! - he shouted, which made Rei drop the ladle she was holding, spilling batter all over the counter.

- JESUS TAPDANCING CHRIST!!! - she widened her eyes, held her chest and breathed out. - Crap dude, you scared the living shit outta me. - Beej flashed a wide smile at Rei while doing a little fist pump and hopped on the counter's clean part.

- What can I say, I'm a demon, get used to being jumpscared, doll. - he said with a theatrical shrug. Rei rolled her eyes, grabbed a dish towel and wiped off the counter. Beetlejuice watched excitedly as she opened up the waffle maker, slided the cooked waffles out onto a plate, then after yawning, loaded it back up. Beej tilted his head sideways. - I wouldn't mind if you'd throw one of those yummylooking thingies in my way, sugar.

Rei fixed her glasses and raised an eyebrow at BJ.

- Aren't ya... You know... Kind of undead? - the demon pulled one side of his upper lip up.

- Yeah, so?

- So you wouldn't have to eat? - Beej threw his head back and groaned.

- I don't HAVE to, but I LOVE to. - he looked back at Rei and shrugged with his hands held up. - I dunno, it makes me feel... - he sighed with a smile. - ...alive.

For a couple of minutes, Beetlejuice just watched as Rei made breakfast. He was pulled out of daydreaming by the sound of hissing. Sofía came into the kitchen, holding Minerva in her arms. The cat hissed and groaned at Beej, who, as a response, just put his stripey snakelike tongue out. He looked at Sofía who still seemed to be furious. He started to dangle his feet and flashed the cutest smile he could.

- Sofía, sugarpuffs, may I say you look absolutely stunning on this fine morning of...

- Cut it, demon. - she said with dead eyes. The smile on BJ's face froze off. - You'll achieve nothing with flattery. - she set the cat down on the floor, then got back up and pointed at the demon. - Plus. I don't like you. - Beej put his hands on his hips.

- Well then go and fuck yourself!

Sofía rolled her eyes and went to the refrigerator. Minerva sat down before Beetlejuice on the floor, watching him with hauntingly thin pupils and perked up ears. But at least she didn't hiss anymore. Rei looked at her sister's way.

- Hey I'm pretty thirsty, would ya, Miss Grumpy, check if we have any orange juice left? - Sof reached into the fridge, got the bottle out, shaked it, removed the cap, and drank every last drop of orange juice. After this, she put the bottle down and flashed a meaningful look at Rei.

- No, we’re all out.

- I have a lot of questions, first of all, how dare you? - Sofía didn't answer, just grabbed a yogurt out of the fridge and exited the kitchen. Beej looked after her with puckered up lips, then looked at Rei questionably.

- Is she always this abominable? - Rei shrugged.

- She's just pissed at the three of us now so no, not always... But a lot of times. You're gonna get used to it though.

Beetlejuice laid back, put his hands under his head and floated next to Rei.

- I'm getting bored, so be a doll and tell me, where's my favourite little baby rook? I wanna tell her how my daily hauntings went, she's gonna LOVE it. - Rei pointed to the back door without looking up from the waffles.

- Outside, in the conservatory. Since we couldn't sleep, we fixed the glass panel Matthias broke. Now she's talking with her mom on the phone. - Beetlejuice started to float towards the door but Rei grabbed his jacket. - Stopstopstop, bring her this. And make sure she eats it. - and handed him a plate full of waffles, and a bottle of Nutella.

- What, why? - Rei sighed, put down the Nutella on the middle counter and pulled her hair back.

- Look, Beetlejuice, that's your name, right? - the demon nodded with enthusiasm. It was SO NICE hearing his name from a breather's mouth, not his own. - Okay so, Beetlejuice, just so you know, Ari has a very bad habit. When she's feeling down, she just won't eat. And that makes her hangry. And that makes her insufferable. And you don't want that. - she shook her head. - You NEVER want that. But comfort food always makes her want to eat, so... - she raised her arms and shrugged. - Here I am! Being a best sister/bestie, making her fuckin comfort food for breakfast. - Beetlejuice put his legs on the ground and grabbed the plate out of Rei's hand.

- Okay, I'll bring it to her... - he snickered and reached for the Nutella. - ...you slavemaster you. - he headed out but in the archway, he turned back and looked at Rei with a light smile. His green hair turned glowy a bit and his tips got a shy white shade. - Hey Rei? - the girl stepped back from the waffle maker and looked at him. Beej pulled his shoulders up and bit his lower lip. - Thanks for letting me stay.

Rei smiled widely and looked at the ground, blushing.

- Well, am I a hero? Really can't say, but... yes. - BJ laughed then blew raspberries. Rei gestured with her hand in the winter garden's direction. - Besides, Ari doesn't make friends easily, and it was nice to see that there's someone who gets her and genuinely laughs with her... Even though they're not a human. - BJ was still smiling, biting down on his lower lips. And were those slight pinkish streaks? - So I didn't have a choice, really. But yeah, you're welcome. - she went back to making waffles but quickly stepped back to face the demon. - By the way, she will totally act like she's alright but, let's face it, she's a mess. - A hot mess, thought Beetlejuice. - So be a nice emotional support demon boy please. - BJ's smile turned into a frown.

- What? Most of the time I even suck at being a proper demon... and now you want me to be a nice demon? - Rei snapped with her tongue.

- Did I stutter? Be brave enough to suck at something new. - she made a shooing gesture. - Now shoo before the waffles get cold.

When Beej arrived at the conservatory, happily floating while munching on a bug he catched earlier, Ari was sitting on the stairs, facing the inside of the garden with a sleeping Sirius in her lap. She had a red dropped-shouldered top on, which had the image of a running cherry bomb on it. She also wore comfy black knee-high trousers and fluffy red slippers with devilhorns on it. She was having a call.

- Ay no me digas! - she exclaimed with a huge hand gesture. She sounded so enthusiastic. - Is that true? Ahhh I can't wait to see mis primos favoritos! I miss those little rascals so much already! - Beetlejuice stepped behind Ari, leaned closer to her ear and whispered in the raspiest voice he could produce:

- BOO. - Ari turned around with a smile to face the demon, and scruffed his hair. Beetlejuice's hair's tips turned into a light pink shade. Ari pulled it a bit towards herself to see it better but Beetlejuice snapped his teeth towards her hand. She let out a tiny laugh.

- Sorry Mom, I gotta go now. A friend came over. - she stopped for a second, listening to the answer while smiling. Beetlejuice crouched down to her level. Sirius stood up, sniffed around the demon and wrinkled up his nose. Beej petted his head. The dog lifted his head up, licked his hand, then turned around and headed towards his dogbed to sleep a bit more. Ari wrapped a lock of her hair on her index finger. - Yeah. - she all of a sudden shook her head. - No mamá! NO?! - she faceplamed herself, then made the impression of peeling her face off. Beetlejuice let out a loud laugh. - Yepp he's weird like me. - she laughed and held her phone away from her face. She gazed at the demon with a sarcastic look on her face. - My mom asks if you're handsome or not. - she held the phone closer to Beej and did the hand gesture of talking.

- I'm devilishly handsome, Miss Rodríguez. - Ari gasped. She mouthed "Did ya remember my family name?" to which Beej nodded happily. Ari put the phone back to her ear. Her mom said something that made her roll her eyes. Hard.

- Okay that's WAY too much Mamá I'M HANGING UUUUPPP. - she sighed. - Sí, sí, sí. Give abuelita mi besos y bendiciones, okay? I love ya. - she sent kisses. - Bye, bye, BYYYEEE. - she put her phone away. Then with glistening eyes, looked at her demon buddy. - How was your dawn of haunting? - she cupped his face in her hands which made him kind of melt. At least his eyes looked like that. - TELL. ME. EVERYTHING.

- The. BEST. - he took a deep breath (even though he didn't need to) as Ari released his cheeks and planted the biggest smile on his face. - You know the house down the road? With the pretty pond and shit? - Ari nodded as her eyes started to wander around BJ's figure. - Well, a couple lives there with their kids and...

- OH MY GOD MILLENNIUM FALCON WAFFLES!!! - interrupted Ari and snatched the plate out of the demon's hand. Beetlejuice blinked fast with annoyance in his golden eyes.

- I thought interrupting was my thing. - the girl rived the Nutella from Beetlejuice's hand. He gasped and held his chest in a theatrical way. - Wow. Ya rude.

- Shut up Beej and tell me what you did to those poor kids. - the demon lifted one of his eyebrows with a cheeky halfsmile. Ari gasped and held his mouth. - Shit can I call ya that? - she definitely started to panic based on the stuttering. - I'm sorry it just came out, it's okay if you don't like it, I mean if you don't like nicknames I understand just...

Beej interrupted her with a gurgling laugh which made his head fall back. His vertebrae were cracking like an old door. He held Ari's shoulder with one hand and squeezed her cheeks together with the other. He locked his gaze in the girl's.

- If I don't like something, I'll ring a bell. - he pulled the girl closer to him by her cheeks. He lowered his voice, tilted his head a bit, pulled a smirk and some hooded eye action. His face was only a few centimeters away from Ari's. - But I'd like the best if you'd call me... Daddy. - Did... Did she just stare at my lips?

- You wish. - she said in a cooky tone. BJ laughed and let her go.

During the next hour or so, Beetlejuice and Ari talked and laughed their asses off while the demon was floating around. Beej showed Ari what he did last night, for example how he took off his head and rolled it under one of the kids' bed. Or how he hid in the wardrobe of the other child, then when he was falling asleep, he pulled his lower jaw down and let his tongue wander out of the closet, making him scream out in a half-asleep delirium. Ari tried so hard not to think about the kinky uses of a tongue like that... But she failed so miserably. She turned red as a tomato. She stood up and went to one of her cupboards of herbs to distract Beej from her face. He quickly stood up as well and stepped behind her. He was still talking while Ari was looking around in the cupboard, searching for her herb-book. Gods he sounded so happy. Ari glanced sideways with a smile. The demon's golden eyes were full of life, of freed up energy and...

- WAIT, you wear eyeliner?! - asked Ari, interrupting BJ in discussing whether he should scare the old couple living down the road just a little, or whether he should scare them to death. He crossed his arms before his chest and his smile quickly turned sour.

- Well, I like it. - he sounded defensive all of a sudden. Like he got bullied because of this before, thought Ari. - I know it's a bit wobbly but I LIKE IT and that's...

- Bug, eyeliner makes every guy hot AF. - stated Ari, making BJ surprised. He shook his head in disbelief, which made Ari giggle. - Yeah it's wobbly a bit but it looks awesome anyways! - she put the herbs down and stepped closer to Beej. He almost stepped back but Ari held him by his suspenders and pulled him closer. Her eyes twinkled as she took stock of BJ's makeup. - I think slightly metallic purple or dark green would suit your face. - Beej had the biggest, horniest smile spread out on his face.

- So basically what you're saying is that you think I'm sexy? - Ari let go of the demon's suspenders go and shaked her blushing off with a laugh. Beetlejuice blew raspberries at her since he didn't get an answer.

Ari got back to dealing with her herbs. She took a big cleaver and a chopping board out of the cupboard. Beej stepped behind her and put his head on her shoulder.

- Whatchya doin'? - Ari shrugged.

- Boring mortal stuff. - BJ clicked his tongue and rolled his golden eyes.

- Come on now, I'm not usually interested in boring mortal stuff, but this involves a cleaver so it can't be THAT boring. - Ari looked sideways, spotting BJ's puppy eyes. She snorted. Beej pouted his lower lip. - Pleeeeeaaase.

Ari smiled lightly. Nearly nobody was interested in her home remedies, not counting her family from her mother's side and her sisters, of course. So hearing someone new genuinely being interested in what she was working on, made her feel warm and appreciated. She lifted up the big, leather covered black book, which had pretty golden cornflowers painted on the cover. It had a ton of bookmarks and notes sticking out of it; some were stained, time made some yellow, some were colorful and bright and fairly new.

- I haven't slept, only 2 hours since yesterday and my body can't function with that much. But, you see, my mind is still hectic, which keeps me up, but I NEED to sleep to work properly. - Beej nodded. - So I'm making myself a nice pot of sedative, nightmare-repelling tea. - the demon nodded again. Ari's eyes wandered around his hair: now it had a fairly light green shade, with light pink and yellow tips. What do these colors mean?!

- And what do you need that for? - he pointed at the book Ari was still holding. She opened it up and started to turn the pages over.

- It's my family's herb book. It's easier to work from a recipe, I don't mess up anything like this. - she flipped a page and touched the next one. It had an extruded purple flower glued to the page. - Only a couple pages survived from the original book, but I can proudly say that some of our recipes date back to the 17th century, some are even older. - she sighed. - What I'd give to own the original copy... - she lifted the book up and hugged it. - It's nice to use the knowledge of my ancestors, it's like holding their hands. - her face turned foggy for a bit. - Even after what happened to them.

- What happened? - asked Beetlejuice while looking at the book.

- The Inquisition. Back in the 1600's in Cataluña, many of my family members were burnt at the stakes. They were thought to be witches, bringer of sickness and bad harvest. - she snorted. Loathing was audible while she talked. Beej pinched her cheek and flashed a toothy grin.

- So, you follow their path! - Ari let out a weird laugh, turned around, still holding the book, and leaned against the cupboard, smiling at the demon's slight remark. She flipped through some pages then pointed at a coffee-stained recipe.

- THAT'S IT! That's what I was looking for. - she pulled her hair back and smiled nostalgically. - Anise hyssop for defeating fear, bergamot for a good night's sleep, buckwheat because of high vitamin and mineral content, californian poppy for my anxiety, sage for basically everything, granadilla flower for calming nervousness and against bad dreams, chamomile and lavender for flavour and chillsies. - she hugged the book once again and breathed in heavily, with a smile on her face. - It's gonna be so good with honey. - Beej leaned against the cupboard as well and scratched his stubble.

- Just... Leave the sage out. - Ari raised an eyebrow.

- Why?

Beetlejuice let out a loud, aversive sigh and looked sideways at Ari while pushing his hair back.

- I bet ya know they say it repels demons. - Ari nodded slowly, disbelief in her eyes. - Yeah, shit works.

Beej made a face so disgusted it made Ari burst out with laughter. He put his palm on the top of her head and pushed her away. She elbowed his side in return.

- Okay, okay, then sage stays out of the mixture. - she said, still smiling like an idiot, and pointed at the other cupboard. - Wanna help me find my dried herbs? - Beej shrugged with a sarcastic face.

- Yeah, sure, ask the dyslexic demon to look for labeled magic herbs.

While Beej was searching through Ari's a hundred and twenty frickin tiny glass vials, for a slight second Ari checked her demon buddy out from the corner of her eye. She flashed an evil smile as a devilish thought planted itself into her mind.

- Hey, Beej, can I ask ya something? - Beetlejuice looked out from behind the other cabinet.

- Sure. - Ari's smile turned even more maleficent. Beetlejuice exactly knew what that naughty smile meant. Shit, he made that face at least a thousand times a day.

- Aren't you a little short to be a demon? - Beej gasped, held his chest, then when Ari started laughing at him sticking his stripey tongue out like a snake, he said in the most angelic tone he could produce:

- Says the oversized toddler! - Ari opened up her arms, mimicking something huge.

- But aren't you supposed to be a big, flaming entity? - Beej stepped before Ari with a similar smile on his face then lifted her up by her armpits... which she seemingly hated, based on the angry pre-schooler impression on her face. Although, the thought of "shit, he's strong... WAIT, NO, THAT'S NOT HOT, FUCK, BRAIN, NO... Okay act angry that should solve ya problem... You hoe." passed her mind.

- Aren't you supposed to be with your parents, my sweet, tiny, chubby cheeky child? - while talking, Beej summoned 2 more arms, pinched the girl's cheeks with them and did smooching sounds.

- Imma so punch you in the throat. - said Ari with the maddest tone she could. Beej raised an eyebrow and changed to a crooked, husky, even kind of horny tone.

- You had your chance when I kissed ya, but ya didn't. - Ari smirked.

- You call that a kiss?

Beetlejuice dropped Ari. He turned around, all 4 hands in the air, looking so irritated that even the tips of his hair turned into a slight reddish shade.

- EXCUSE ME?! - he pointed at Ari, who was still sitting on the ground, stroking her hurt bottom. - NO, EXCUSE YOU! HOW DARE YOU?!?!? - he popped his tongue, then went to the plate of waffles smothered in Nutella. - You know what? - he pointed at the girl again with one hand, put 2 on his hips, and grabbed a waffle with the fourth. - No more waffles for you. - he said as he bit into the Millennium Falcon. As he swallowed the bite, his eyes got wide and his additional 2 hands disappeared. An expression of wander and astonishment found its way to his face. - OHMYGOD THIS IS HEAVENLY!!! - he said in an amazed tone, then quickly changed back to his normal. I'm a badass demon, I shouldn't show emotions. - Ironically. - he stack his index finger into the bottle full of chocolatey nougaty hazelnut cream. - What is this shit?

Ari looked at him with a raised eyebrow and a weird little smile, not understanding her buddy's fuss about the delicacy. She shrugged.

- Nutella... Never heard of it? - Beej rolled his eyes and grunted.

- Babe, this house was uninhabited for at least 25 years. And the last people who lived here were between 90 and coffin-break years old. And that was in the late 80's. - he licked the paste off his finger and changed to a more seductive tone. - Lower your expectations about me. I might look young and devilishly handsome but I'm so new to these modern shits. - Ari rolled her eyes and stood up. Horny bastard.

- Okay, grandpa. - Beej stack his tongue out but Ari just pushed him in a childish way. - Gimme a bite too, I'm still starving. - she said as she reached for the plate Beej was now holding.

She took a bite out of a waffle, then put it back and started chopping up her dried herbs. She was almost done with the chopping and the piece of Millennium Falcon when she noticed that BJ was literally staring at her face with a cheeky halfsmile. His eyes were wandering around her lips.

- What are ya lookin' at? - she asked abruptly. Beej shrugged a bit and pointed at her canines as she took a last bite from the waffle.

- I like the teeth. - Ari smiled widely. She put down the cleaver and tapped her teeth with her long, black, spiderwebbed nail on her pointing finger.

- Thanks, they're fake porcelain caps. - she pointed at Beej's smile. - I like your double canines too! They look so badass. - Beej's hair turned into a weird mixture of light pink, shy white and bright green. He started to play with his fingers and looked down at his shoes. He bit his lower lip with a flattered smile. Ari leaned closer. - Am I crazy, or just like your hair and your eyes, those can change too? - Beej lifted his head up and pulled his hair back. He scratched his scrag as his teeth changed into a bear trap-esque, sharklike weirdness. Ari jumped back and screamed while covering her mouth in excitement. - OHMYGOD THAT'S SO HARDCORE! - she stepped back to Beej and tapped his teeth. - WOOOOOWZAH! - she grabbed the demon's shoulders and shaked him a bit. - You are the most awesome person I've ever seen. - she stepped back and crossed her heart with her nail. - Swear on my black gooey heart.

Beej changed his teeth back into "normal", but he was still scratching his scruff and was looking down. He was obviously taken aback. It looked liked he had never been genuinely complimented before.

- Well... Thanks... - he stuttered as he turned more pink. Ari looked at the ground too, blushing and smiling shyly as she said the next words:

- You know, I'm glad we winded up at your haunted house. If you wouldn't have been here, all three of us would be dead by now. Nobody else would have been able to stop my crazy ex. So... Yeah. - she sighed and bent down to peak at Beej's eyes. They found each other easily. They both smiled with bitten lips. - Thanks for killing him. - Beej cleared his throat to quickly regain his composure. He put his hands in his pockets.

- Ey, I got you. You know I do. That's what undead best friends are for.

After a couple minutes of awkward silence, Ari grabbed her chopped up herbs and pointed at the kitchen with her other hand.

- I'll boil these up quickly. Wanna watch The Nightmare Before Christmas in my room while I dose off to sleep? - Beetlejuice's eyes lit up as he nodded.

- Sure... Let me grab my snack. - he snapped and with that, the Nutella appeared in his hand. His devilish smile didn't tell nothing good about his intentions. Ari laughed lightly and reached for the bottle.

- Hey, come on, that's my Nutella! Give it back! - as soon as she almost reached the bottle, Beetlejuice started to float with a laugh, just out of Ari's reach. - HEY COME ON, THAT'S CHEATING!!! - she jumped up but Beej floated higher. - GIVE MY STUFF BACK!!! - Beej layed on his back while floating out of the winter garden, eating the paste with his fingers.

- If you don't pay your bio-exorcist, you will get repossessed! - Ari jumped after him one more time, then stomped angrily.

- This fuckin' demon, I swear to Ra... - she looked at her puppy, who was looking after the floating demon. - Hey, Sirius! - he peaked his ears up. - CATCH!

[baronessblixen]

After much encouragement, I turned the incorrect quickie/quiche convo into a fic. You know me so you know this is fluff. It’s a post-ep for “Millennium”.

Tagging @today-in-fic

Word Salad

He's like a puppy she needs to keep an eye on. 

Mulder.

With his arm in a sling, he is a perfect picture of pity. Her mother awwed when she lay eyes on him as she opened the door. Mulder wasn’t an expected guest at her mother’s New Year’s Day afternoon tea party, but he is a loved one. Her friends treat him like a long lost child who needs to be fed and pampered. They've been here for two hours and Mulder hasn't been without food since. Every time she checks on him, he's munching on cake, on cookies, on whatever he is given. 

"Have you taken your meds?" she asks him in a whisper, touching his elbow to get his attention. In a room full of chattering old ladies, she is fully aware that she and Mulder are a spectacle. He's been introduced as her work partner though she doubts anyone believes it. After seven years, they are so much more. After last night, they definitely are. Warmth shoots into her cheeks and she hopes no one, including Mulder, will notice.

"I have," he promises, chewing.

"What are you eating?"

"Cheesecake."

"Have you had any real food, Mulder?"

He rolls his eyes. "Yes, doc. Have you?" The way he looks her up and down makes her flush all over. It's only now that she realizes she hasn't. All day she's kept an eye on Mulder. Her stomach rumbles and answers for her. Mulder beams at her, a soft, dopey smile.

"Let me get you something," he says and stuffs the last of his cheesecake into his mouth. A crumb ends up on his cheek, close to the corner of his mouth. Scully wipes it away, smiling gently. For a moment she forgets they're not alone. Mulder thanks her before he walks over to the small buffet her mother has set up. 

"Do you want grapes?" Mulder asks her from across the room. The constant chattering drowns out his voice and Scully decides to join him instead. But she's not quick enough.

"Do you want a quickie?" The room falls silent, Scully is certain of it. or maybe it’s because her ears are ringing. Did he really just - she stares at a completely clueless Mulder. 

"Ex-excuse me?" she stammers, afraid to turn around and face her very Catholic mother and her very Catholic friends. Never mind that they haven’t had any sex yet. Neither a long night full of hot, passionate sex nor a quickie. Leave it to Mulder to bring sex to the table. Or the buffet, as it is. 

She should have left him at home after all.

"A quickie," Mulder repeats, his voice softer now that she's closer to him, "one of those cake things." He points at the little quiches that sit on her mother's silver platter.

"It's pronounced quiche!" Scully says through her teeth, relief flooding her. Of course, he is talking about food. He hasn’t talked about anything but food today. But now the damage is done and Scully doesn’t dare to turn around and face the room. Ever again. 

"Oh," is Mulder's response as he takes one, sniffs it and puts it into his mouth. "Better than a quickie," he says, flaky crumbs falling from his lips, grinning.

Part of her is angry. So angry. But the feeling doesn't last, evaporates quickly. All she sees is Mulder with his rumpled hair, his arm in a sling, his lips beckoning. The lips she kissed last night.

Love.

She loves this man. Oxford-educated, oblivious Mulder who can't pronounce quiche. How could anyone not love him? He picks up another piece and offers it to her. 

"Fox," both Mulder and Scully turn around. It's old Mrs. Kupchek, her mother's 70-year-old neighbor and church companion. "Would you be a dear and bring me a quickie, too?"

A moment of silence follows before the tension breaks and they all laugh. Mulder smiles at Scully as if proud of his work. His fingers brush hers in a promise when he hands her a small quiche. 

Scully bites into the treat as Mulder walks over to Mrs. Kupchek, a plate of quiche in hand. The old woman pats his cheek lovingly, chattering away. Mulder nods and listens, doesn’t say no when he’s offered another quiche.

She sighs, smiling. 

[jeidafei]

D.Gray-Man Vol.26: Komui’s Lounge (Extended) 1/5

Featuring: Marie, Bak, Lavi, Wisely, Allen, Link

(T/N: We got 31 questions this time. It really is extended! I’ve broken it up into five parts for convenience of translating and scrolling.

Let’s start with the onslaught of the usual Kanda questions...)

Lavi: G’afternoon y’all! As always, welcome to the Komui’s-Lounge-where-Komui-doesn’t-show-up-again-this-time! And first up is...ME~~! (Pull crackers)

Link: Keep it down, Bookman Jr.

Bak: And now, the time is ripe. At long last, my debut has come! And I made it on the page before Komui, too! MUHAHAHAHAHA!!

Marie: I’m not very good at this kind of thing...but I’ll do my best.

Wisely: And here comes the Noah of the Demon Eye, Wisely~~!! Back for his second session! (Holds up two victory signs).

Allen: Wait a moment. There seems to be two deceased among us?

Lavi: Hey, I’m not even confirmed deceased yet!!!

Allen: Nobody’s saying it’s you, Lavi. Well, it’s actually you, anyway.

Lavi: Allen, you were just calling for me back in Vol.24′s lounge, didn’t you? What’s with all this darkness right from the get-go, meanie!?

Allen: I haven’t been able to eat at all, and I’m irritated. 

Link: (lays a hand on Allen’s shoulder) Just forget about everything in the main narrative for now, Walker. The freshness of this discussion lounge is fading quick, and now the author’s already using trial and error.

Allen: Reckless move on the author’s part.

Wisely: Even so, it seems the author didn’t intend to bring out Bookman Jr. at first, though. Just that there was a truly unsolvable issue... 

Lavi: Damn you, Hoshino...But yes, that’s what happened! The thing is, this time the most questions are directed at me! The fans are calling out to me! I heard their voices! How can I not be here for them! (heart)

Allen: Even though I can answer questions about you just fine.

Lavi: With messed-up answers, more like.

Link: Walker, here are some doughnuts, so would you cheer up already? And you, Bookman Jr, don’t get too carried away. We went over the word-count limit last two times, and both the editor and designer sent an e-mail to warn us to stay within the limit this time. All pointless talk is prohibited from all of you!

Allen, Lavi, Wisely: Roger~~

Marie: Haha...(wry grin) Having the Inspector here really is a help.

Bak: Oi, haven’t you lot been forgetting about me from the start......!?

Question 1: Kanda had a little pouch hanging from his neck when he returned to Marie and Lenalee. What was in that pouch?

Allen: You can always count on a question for Kanda, huh.

Lavi: Yeah, ain’t Yu gettin’ a little too popular? By the way, ain’t this supposed to start off with a question for me?

Wisely: Well, it’s because there’s also a wagonload of questions for Yu Kanda as ever. What a sinful lad...

Link: You there! No pointless chatter!

Bak: Huh...? He had a pouch? We disposed of those clothes Kanda was wearing after he swapped it in for the Order uniform at the Asian Branch, but there wasn’t any pouch.

Marie: Ah, that’s because I’m keeping it for him. The little drawstring pouch, right? Seems to be silver coins in there.

Allen: Money?!!! (clatter)

Lavi: Calm down, Allen!

Marie: There was this old lady who took care of Kanda’s every need back then, and she gave it to him, said it’s for travel expenses....sorry, that’s all I know.

Lavi: ........That so?

Allen: Kanda will definitely turn out like Master someday. (hmph!)

Marie: Looks like he barely used any of it, though.

(T/N: aight guys, now we know the true reason Allen decided to tag along with Kanda, right? right?)

Question 2: Is Kanda right-handed or left-handed?

Lavi: Yu agaaain?

Link: He’s ambidextrous, isn’t he?

Allen: Eh? Is that so?

Link: It’s something you’d notice right away.

Lavi: After all the time you spent fighting with him and you still didn’t know, Allen? Yu’s punches hurt like freakin’ hell no matter which fist he used, right?

Allen: Makes me sick just thinking about it.

Marie: Exactly, Kanda’s ambidextrous.

Bak: By the way, Alma was also ambidextrous, you know.

(T/N: damn, that stab in the heart when I have to go back and correct is into was...)

Wisely: By the way, over to the Noahs, the Millennium Count is ambidextrous.

Question 3: After the Second Exorcist sigil’s power deteriorated, Kanda now has hangover. Will he also be more vulnerable to illnesses like the cold? 

Lavi: Yu again...? Now I’m starting to think Hoshino is trolling behind this!

Allen: He’s an idiot, and idiots don’t catch colds! NEXT!

Wisely: Well, if he does catch colds more easily then it’s good news for us Noahs. But if he’s such an idiot, guess it can’t be helped.

Marie: Hey, watch it. (sweat)

Link: Stop fooling about and answer properly!

Bak: Allow me, current patriarch of the Chang clan, to enlighten you. Just because the sigil’s power has weakened, doesn’t mean Kanda’s body will become very weak as a result. Though his extraordinary regenerative ability will be impaired, the bodies of Second Exorcists are also designed for battle, so he’d probably still be far more sturdy than normal people. Even so, unless he keeps a balanced diet from now on, there’s a possibility he might fall ill. He eats nothing but soba, doesn’t he? That won’t do!

Question 4:  Those...flying needles?...that Howard Link was throwing about? What are they for? The Crows have had them in the past too, and I’m curious.

Link: Those are called Shibari (嘴針 lit. Beak Needle. T/N: “shibari” also sounds the same as “Shibari-bane”, the Crow’s binding feathers, but uses a different Kanji). Even amongst Crows, it’s a weapon reserved for the elite members. A single needle can unleash power equal to a hundred feathers (those binding feathers, flame feathers, confining feathers, etc. that Crows frequently use). The Shibari I have are the ones Master Zu used back in the day, so they’re an old model, but even now they still work very well. Though they can be a little unwieldy to carry about, in times you run out of feathers you can still fight just using Shibari. And for me right now, in particular, it’s also a way to save up on feathers, so it’s a very handy weapon.

Allen: Huh? What do you mean by “for me right now”?

Link: I have chocolate doughnuts, too, Walker.

Allen: WEE-HEE! (chomp!)

Wisely: Careful, boy...he’s tricking you with those doughnuts...

Link: Would you like some, too?

Wisely: WEE-HEE! (chomp!)

Lavi: I heard from Gramps, though. Looks like the Crows’ abilities are developed by the Chang Clan, right?

Bak: Aha. The Crow Unit was established by Grandfather Zu in his younger days. Even now, the Chang Clan is still responsible for manufacturing all the feathers, needles and other weapons the Crows use. 

Marie: I see. So this is why the Asian Branch Supervisor position is passed down the Chang bloodline. The Chang Clan must have been indispensable for the Central, right?

Bak: Well, I guess.

Allen: I’ve been wondering for a long time. Why are the Changs able to use such awesome magic?

Wisely: It will be a long story, so we’d better drop it for the sake of the word count.

Link: If it’s going to eat up precious space, then let’s leave it for now.

Question 5: Do Lavi and Bookman still remember their original names?

Lavi: YAAAAAAAAAY~~  ! Finally~~! The answer’s Nooooooooooo-peeeeee! From the time I became Gramp’s heir, my name was erased!

Allen: Hey Lavi, why must Bookmen discard their real names? Isn’t it painful?

Marie: You’re one who cherishes his name, huh, Allen.

Bak: Do you really have to go that far in order to be a recorder of alternate history?

Link: Now that you mention it, we’ve received many questions on the Bookmen’s fake aliases.

Lavi: While we’re a Junior, we have to change our names every time we change the place of our log. Because those names will become the title of our logs. Thus, the log for this Holy War will be titled “Lavi”. Makes it easy to search for logs this way. As for whether it’s painful to lose my real name...hmmm, well...frankly, I don’t really know. Since me becoming a Bookman was something that can’t be helped, too. By the way, Gramps is the one who named all the logs.

Wisely: Uh-hmmm. Come to think of it, the name Lavi seems to be...

Lavi: What?

Wisely: Nah, nuffink. (munch munch). Blimey, these doughnuts sure are delicious.

Allen: Hey! You’re eating too many!

Question 6: How did Lavi and Bookman earn money for expenses during travels? The Allen way?

Allen: What do you mean by my way?

Lavi: Means gambling, of course. Ain’t it?

Wisely: Swindling Mafia bosses then fleeing with winnings and the like?

Bak: Mafia!? (falsetto)

Marie: So that’s what you’ve been up to, Allen!? That’s no good! You’re still a kid, aren’t you? Lenalee would wail if she ever hears you’ve been doing such dangerous things.

Allen: Please, please don’t tell Lenalee! I beg you, Marie! (googly eyes).

Link: No matter how adorable a face you manage to make, Noise Marie won’t be able to see it, Walker. We’ll have you tell us all about this later in detail, so for now let’s return to Bookman Jr. 

Allen: Eeehhh!?

Lavi: Where were we? Oh, travel expenses, right? Well, members of the Bookman clan are everywhere and they help us out, so both me and Gramps don’t have to work for money.

Marie: You mean you have relatives all over the world?

Lavi: Yup! The whole clan comes together to support the Bookman as the clan’s leader, so Bookman can focus on his logs. 

Bak: I never knew the Bookman Clan is such a large-scale thing.

Lavi: Well, since everyone conceals their Bookman lineage and outwardly leads normal lives, it’s no surprise nobody knows.

Allen: Why do they have to hide?

Lavi:  Hm? It’s a secret!

>> Part 2 <<