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fountainpenguin · 3 months ago

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Riddle watches New Wish - Post #28

The Battle of Big Wand

Part 3 of reacting to this episode (spoiler-free)!

They locked the boy who has a darkness phobia in the deep dark pit, ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

omfg, OF COURSE the first thing he does is ask for a drink... Good to know that even 8 years ago, I clocked him as growing up to be a guy who relies on the things that get Fairies drunk (sugar and carbonation) to block out his excessive trauma. oh geez, dude...

How long's he been losing his mind down here? He was fine a few episodes ago in "Growing Pains"! D: He was hanging out at his parents' place!

- Oh, I SO called Peri with magical back-up. He's having a rough go of it... Wowza, he's hallucinating about Dev. That's dark. - I really hope they don't send Foop on a bathroom break or my anxiety is going to spike through the roof. Even if Hazel did use her rule-free wish to revive them, would that be f'd up if they killed Peri and Irep off the way the Grim Reaper told Foop he'd die back in "Man's Worst Friend" or what?

I think ginger ale is good for nausea, which is why Peri's asking for it, but it's still funny because... canonically, he can get drunk if he has enough of that.

I like the rainbow sickness. This feels more correct and enjoyable than the rapid inflation and explosion of the OG series. You can tell Peri is sick and gradually expanding as his magic backs up, but I like that we get to see it, especially since it's set up as death in this universe (rather than easy to recover from in the OG).

I like seeing that Peri is VERY clearly ill and definitely not in a mental or physical place to "push through the pain and escape."

I definitely would say "This is dark," and this loops back to what I said watching "Fearless" and "28 Puddings Later" that A New Wish is definitely a tone shift from the OG. I wouldn't say it's Invader Zim dark, but I think the only episode that gave me vibes this dark was "Channel Chasers" during the scenes that were aiming for "gritty adult action with buff hero characters.

I know Poof and Foop got torn out of reality in "Timmy's Secret Wish," but that's still cute and fluffy to me... lmao.

sldkjfsdklfj, I made a joke during my "Lost in Fairy World" liveblog about how Cosmo and Wanda were going to get ants with all that candy in their room. I know Hazel is lying about ants, but I like it.

Her landlord's hair reminds me of Remy's. that's... a unique style.

/glances tiredly and uneasily at my list of Remy's many runaway uncles who scampered off since they weren't their parents' heir and are still pretty messed up...

I enjoy Wanda comforting her dying son while Cosmo's taking it hard off to the side. Cosmo wanting a moment to himself feels right.

Peri and Irep must not be synced up, presumably because Irep is using magic to grant wishes. Or Anti-Fairies don't get back-up.

There he is~ Anti-Cosmo "literally only here because I was told I might score a godkid" Anti-Cosma. I hate him! (affectionate).

Anti-Wanda looks like she would bite me and I would let her.

Something is so very wrong with Dev "Instead of wishing my lactose intolerance went away, I'm going to delete lactose from the universe" Dimmadome.

I enjoy Irep constantly bouncing or lightly kicking his feet as he waits for Dev to give him new wishes. He definitely gets that from his dad.

Absolutely on the floor that I clocked Anti-Cosmo as hanging back while Irep runs the show with Dev. They've literally not changed and I'm so happy!!!!

I spent over a year worried they were going to reboot A.C. into some take-charge, full-steam-ahead takeover villain, and you're telling me the local confrontation-avoider is still avoiding conflict??

Take me out now; it's never getting better than this. (The sequel.) I'm gonna be riding this high for months.

I was expecting to see Tibecuador on that map, but they cleverly have the Americas on the other side of the globe. I assume that disappeared when Timmy aged out of Fairies, though we know it wasn't unwished after Season 5 (It gets a mention in Season 6).

I like that both Dev and Irep enjoy dancing to "So proud of my son" lyrics. They're vibin'. Irep has daddy issues too.

sdlkfjsd, when Jorgen undid Dev's "king of America" wish a few episodes ago, he didn't erase anyone's minds?? I like that the news refers to Dev as "former king of America."

??? Did Dev and Trev break their friendship after Episode 1 because they both like Bev? That's hilarious!

The news report specifically says "couples are breaking up" due to Anti-Fairy influence, without implying that Anti-Fairies caused these two to get together in the first place. WERE they together? That's silly.

I am once again disappointed we were robbed of the Trev-Dev-Bev friend squad. But this is funny too.

Another waning crescent.

I'mma be honest, but Hazel saying she's had her fairies for about a year just makes me even more confused as to why we're doing a "get a rule-free wish after 1 million" instead of the previously established "get a rule-free wish after 1 year."

I... am gonna un-canonize her 1 million wishes in 'fic unless this ends up being incredibly important. Sorry to keep bringing it up, but I just can't wrap my head around this. "Timmy's Secret Wish" was kind of a big deal. It was a movie and not just a one-off episode, and it's been referenced several times in A New Wish already. Timmy took so much flak for being allegedly wasteful, dangerous, or overly reliant on his wishes. He did make some wild ones, but I'm SO curious to know what Hazel wished for. I wish we'd see flashbacks like we did in that movie, but again... recognizing the limits of a 20-minute episode.

I'm so glad Jasmine told Hazel she wasn't shocked by the reveal that Hazel had fairy godparents, seeing as in Post #10, I said she'd expressed suspicions towards Hazel twice but it didn't seem to be going anywhere and I was disappointed. That's a good callback.

Winn: Your apartment was a hotel and then it wasn't.

That's the other thing I was wondering about! Thanks, Winn. You're my favorite.

It drives me wild that Antony's not going to talk to Hazel about whether she has issues because he doesn't have the context to know fairies get assigned to miserable children. I feel like he'd really want to hear about that.

Antony knows Cosmo and Wanda? Maybe they DID have dinner together. I hope he met Peri. I think they'd be friends. I'll have to look back and see if he was introduced to them by name in "Rattleconda Racers," but... I don't think I noticed he'd clocked them as her neighbors.

They probably crossed paths offscreen while he was home for the holidays. I haven't settled on a timeline yet, but he could've been home for a whole month for winter, so it's likely they've met and he saw Hazel interact with them.

There is something so funny about Winn saying they sussed Cosmo and Wanda out as fairies because of their pink and green hair when they look like this:

I enjoy Hazel being familiar enough with Dev, Cosmo, and Wanda to know their clothes by heart, but she blanked on Irep-

- implication being that she remembered his giant square head and not much else. Not even wings.

Hazel 🤝 Chloe Remembering Foop's hair, mustache, and crown, but forgetting he wears clothes

I'm surprised Hazel's friends are ready to go to war against an entire race of evil magical beings famed for bad luck and torture, and they don't have any questions about this? I feel like one of them would want to talk to their parents. Jasmine said she was a fraidy-cat early on, but I guess facing her fears in "Fearless" turned that around more than I expected.

Oh no, Jorgen's in a pit.

??? If we're in Jorgen's office, where was Peri held before the takeover?

I like how Anti-Cosmo clicks his heels.

New shirt design for Anti-Wanda?? That was on my reboot bucket list! I had my fingers crossed for a fancy dress, sweater, or jacket, but I'll take it! This is clever because it's close to her old design.

... I don't look forward to drawing it :'D

I am OBSESSED with their energy. Anti-Cosmo is so fancy and Anti-Wanda looks like she showed up in pajamas or party clothes. And he loves her so much. That's always been their thing, but it's good to get a reminder since he spends so much of their 1-on-1 time in the OG series screaming and running around. I missed him... It's been 11 years...

... Actually, that makes this my first time ever seeing new (canon) Anti-Cosmo content drop since he was outtie by the time I got to the fandom (back in 2016 when Season 10 was just starting). Exciting!

I actually have an AU called "King Me" that I started in 2016 but have never posted anything for, but it's about Anti-Wanda being raised from birth as the leader of the Anti-Fairies and getting betrothed to some nerd, and seeing them new and shiny and dressed like this makes me want to finish it, because I love Anti-Wanda being in charge when she's so casual and silly. It's one of my favorites <3

omg, it's an anti-Fairy shirt... OH, this makes the fact I portray Anti-Wanda as giggly over puns and wordplay even better...

Anti-Wanda shopping, pointing at the crossed-out crown: It's me.

I like how while Anti-Cosmo is bragging that Anti-Fairies are masters of torture who know all their counterparts' weaknesses, Cosmo looks like this:

Anti-Cosmo: I'm a master of torture... I know your biggest weakness~ Cosmo: I don't believe you for a second, but go off I guess

Irep knew exactly what he was doing when he sent Peri to the dark pit... u can't make me believe it was an accident he was hyperventilating and rocking back and forth with crossed eyes when Cosmo and Wanda got to him...

Wheezing at the fact that I'm pretty sure neither A.C. nor Anti-Wanda has been addressed by name because the writers gave us Irep and Lezah... They can't drop the anti-names on us and don't want to call them Omsoc and Adnaw.

I DID wonder where that set-up was going, but I think their names not being not acknowledged at all is the funniest direction.

Like?? POV, New Wish is your only exposure to Anti-Cosmo and Anti-Wanda, but you don't engage with the fandom so you sus out for yourself what their backwards names would be and that's how you grow up thinking of them.

I personally have Anti-Fairy kids using names picked by their parents and they only switch to using their anti-names when they become adults, so... if we were to assume Irep is just slightly too young to use the name Anti-Peri, that headcanon would still track in New Wish for him and Lezah. Which is interesting.

..... If Peri is short for Periwinkle, is Irep's full name Elkniwirep, because ouch. I understand where he was coming from when he complained his new name was "much more difficult to pronounce" than Foop.

I like the implication that Anti-Fairy nicknames would come from the end of their names rather than the beginning. Though looking at that name, I think Noir would also be an appropriate nickname for him.

Irep when he has to sign for a package for his parents: Eh, you can come back next week.

Anti-Cosmo's clothes are spot-on. It's him!! ... Except for his monocle being on the wrong side. I personally made him blind in one eye in 'fics, but I'm pretty sure a real monocle can be used on either eye.

It's kind of funny to me they did that. It must be easier to model this way, but the OG series never depicted him switching to the other eye even when he turned his head. Kind of interesting in an "I wonder if modern fanart will portray it interchangeably or if the right eye is deemed consistent" kind of way.

!!!! They kept his big ol' giant fangs!!! Irep definitely gets most of his personality from his mom, but he's got Dad's fangs <3

This makes me want to practice drawing him more. A.C. is the hardest for me to draw (between his clothes, hat, hair, and having bat-like ears in Cloudlands AU), but I really like his cravat here and would like to take another whack at him, I think.

skldjf, I'm glad Anti-Cosmo is still Mr. "super weird about needing to hold things in his left hand." Nobody cares, but I care

In the OG show, he threw his wand off-screen so he could switch his teacup to his left hand after picking it up... He does this in multiple episodes, shifting things to his left for no reason even if he picks them up in his right. I'm sure it means nothing, but... why did they draw him doing that? He keeps his wineglass on his left despite Anti-Wanda being depicted with hers on her right... Sometimes he'll even stand next to other characters and hold an item in his left even though his neighbor is holding the same item in their right. why.

?? Anti-Cosmo had to look up "discombobulated" in the dictionary? Wouldn't the taunting have been stronger to prove he doesn't have to look it up?

I like Anti-Cosmo bracing his legs beneath the dictionary the same way Peri did when he was looking at Da Rules.

Heavy book; need better weight distribution or it's killer on the back.

sdfkljsd... oh, poor Cosmo... Listen..... LISTEN........ I know there's no way in heck they would bring back the "77 Secrets of the Fairly OddParents (Revealed)" lore that Cosmo's deepest secret is that he's an "author of distinction" who's written oodles of books, including Astrophysics for Morons from the episode "Shelf Life," but...

This is SO MEAN... I have a 'fic ("Repeat") where we learn Cosmo's been erasing his own memories for ages because people wanted him in jail or worse for writing about astrophysics when Fairy culture pushes the idea that stars are ancient Fairies (à la "Wishology") and this is how he's protecting himself. My interpretation of him is that he gets upset sometimes because "He used to know what these words mean," like... that is an actual scene I've written, and I'm dying...

Corporate needs you to find the difference between these scenes... lmao.

"We knew it wouldn't be easy, not following the old beliefs… but we're on enough thin ice with the Fairy Council as it is. Let's… not tip the scales by making wild claims about the stars. But if it's any consolation… You can tell me about astrophysics any time of week." "Mm…" He didn't even know what 'consolation' meant. He did once, though… Didn't he? When he read his old diaries, they made no sense because he used to know so many words. His handwriting. His memories. But not all the words made sense anymore. Robin Cosma would be so disappointed in his son. How funny that your father can be a poet known across the cloudlands… and you can't remember how to spell "tinnitus."

Anti-Cosmo, you are being SO mean in my lore right now... Thanks, I hate it. But I like that physical torture wasn't the option they went for. This feels very right to me (Mental torments, preying on fears and paranoia instead of just attacking... This feels right for their species since they're supposed to be dark and creepy).

-> I mean, I don't know what I expected from Anti-Cosmo "avoids confrontation if he might get hurt" Anti-Cosma, but... lol.

SKLDFJSLDFJSLDFJ??

Anti-Wanda: /shoves A.C. out of the way and takes his book Anti-Cosmo: :(

If Anti-Cosmo has to confront anyone while he's in slapping range, he will die, actually. Wait, what did I write at the start of this liveblog?

OG series Anti-Cosmo doesn't even want to take over Fairy World; he wants a godkid. His shtick is "I will literally do anything for a godkid even if it's stupid and I make a fool of myself." And then he makes a fool of himself; it's great. [...] Taking over means confronting magical people, and Anti-Cosmo doesn't, like... do that. He taunts people IF he holds a blatant advantage (like them being locked up or them being a human who can't jump and grab him), but he's also a huge coward <3 He's Mr. Buddy System. He needs his Anti-Fairies. So... He might be here, yeah! But I do get major Irep vibes. Irep's totally leading, and I don't see Anti-Cosmo's aesthetic here, so I think he's playing a small supporting role if he's here at all. [...] He DOES have smug energy and cool lines sometimes… but he's also a tantrum-throwing brat who's scared to stand up to people, and in this house, we love him for it!! [...] I just want Anti-Cosmo to be an awkward nerd pretending to be confident, but also he likes to run around and goof off, but he should also look at people like he's confused they kicked his puppy.

sdlkfjsfdjkl??? oh my fluffin' gee. This is beat for beat "Anti-Cosmo taunting people when he's trapped them under a butterfly net in "Fairly Odd Baby" and then backing the heck down as soon as H.P. tells him "Yeah, we're not doing that." ... This is the same energy as Jorgen's slideshow when he specifically labels H.P., not Anti-Cosmo, the more influential parent of the anti-fairy child they raised to be evil way back when... He's the same person... He's such a sheep <3

I was so worried they'd change you, my doormat nephew, and for WHAT?!! Go king; give us nothing!!!

They didn't give him oodles of sass? That's what I thought for SURE they'd reboot him with. I'm losing it. He really is "just there doing his best" without being the main villain. He's minimally helpful. Basically not at all. I can finally embrace him without a hint of hesitation... My windblown tissue of a boy has come home!!

This is the best! spitting, crying. I cannot believe this. I can finally stop second-guessing if I even read him right in the OG series. He's so cringefail loserboy and always has been and I can finally stop lying low about it! I LOVE HIM!!

I genuinely could not fathom a world where they brought him back and he was still just Like That... How ?? did they do this?? I was so SURE they'd put him in charge and only present his "smug, confident" façade and I'd just shrug it off and try to squint for the parts of him I enjoy the most… omfg… Our anxious, dorky coward actually made the jump?

He's like Anatole Kuragin... Anti-Cosmo would be flawless in the role of "Okay, sing these two songs like you're the sexiest and most confident man alive. And for this other song, cower on the floor wailing about how you're a man of honor and the old man calling you a scoundrel should take it back because it hurts your feelings. You just tried to kidnap the girl you like, but got spooked and ran away. btw, you're everyone's most specialist boy in the world."

The Natasha, Pierre, & the Great Comet of 1812 AU nobody asked for but we know we deserve:

btw, after years of waiting, I had the opportunity to see this musical (<3) and words cannot express how I felt when - after listening to the soundtrack and always wondering why Anatole backs off so fast when Marya shoos him from the courtyard - I got to experience the shock of Marya bursting onstage with a gun.

I am in such shock that I read Anti-Cosmo right. Like ?? I don't know why that's bizarre to me- I've taken so many notes on him and I was very confident in what I thought about him. I just ?? can't believe he's still set up to be a soggy dishrag?

No one ??? ever portrays him like this ?? We don't do that here! That's not on his Fandom Wiki page, which calls him a "ruthless criminal mastermind" and "far more devious than most other villains in the show." People don't remember him like this... I'm dreaming...

I gotta lie down. What the FLIP do they have written for him in the story bible, if anything?

-> I gotta read the OG series story bible @zachbrightside sent me. I've been putting it off 'til after New Wish, but maybe I'll liveblog my reactions to that too.

-> Fun fact, I collect story bibles due to my days of combing Scribd for early scripts... But the OG series story bible for FOP is one I never thought I'd see in my LIFE. I'm excited.

Okay, I totally got impatient and took a sneak peak at the New Wish story bible for fun (something I glimpsed super briefly about a year and a half ago and then put away because I wanted to wait and see the show for myself, so I didn't see more than a glimpse of Hazel, Winn, and Whispers Fred, but I don't want to look at the OG series bible until I'm properly liveblogging). AND!!!!

Guess who didn't misremember the rumor about the Pixies coming back! I'll talk about that more in a separate liveblog, I'm sure, but oh gosh; oh goodness...

They didn't reboot Anti-Cosmo with sass AND they have a note here about the Pixies "potentially aligning their interests with tech magnate Dale Dimmadome..." Do you understand how close that gets us to H.P. coming back as his sassy, in-charge self... My most beloved character in the series, still snarky... I want him so much... I can taste it... He's one chump door away...

I won't get my hopes up since Season 2 isn't confirmed, but do u understand... Yes I know they might kill him and replace him with Sanderson and it'd shatter me, but do u understand how close we are to the funky guy who's haunted my mind every day for the last nearly 9 years...

Dale, I have GREAT NEWS for you... The prophecy... H.P. and Dale together... My 7-year dream fulfilled at last...

what are Ben Stein's rates and can we get him for another movie. I think Pixies & Dale would be the thing that does me in; it's never getting better than that... Can you even IMAGINE if we had Musical 2.0. for some inexplicable reason...... My favorite episode, oh goodness... Just let H.P. dunk on Anti-Cosmo again and I'm done; I'm out. retired. deceased.

It's SO over for y'all if they do bring back the Pixies. Unfollow me then because it's all I'll talk about for the rest of my life.

Hey wait a sec- I'VE BEEN ROBBED!!!! They WERE supposed to be here! Dale WAS supposed to be the finale antagonist!

?? I was RIGHT in my initial assumption that Dale had been set up for this plot. I'm totally justified for going into this finale thinking we were gonna fight Dale. That's... way funny, because I have a whole note over here I was gonna address when I'm done watching about how I don't feel like Dale stalking Hazel and all those notes about Fairy World left on his board even went anywhere...

Did they drop the "Dale stalking Hazel" plot point & this Pixie route because they figured Anti-Fairies would bait viewers in and Pixies wouldn't? So, like... did we only have that scene to upset Dev, and now we're not following through with the implications? :'D I am dev-astated on both accounts...

I probably would've done the same thing in their position (Write the finale for Anti-Fairies instead) because the Pixies aren't as well known (I think) and don't have the same opposite vibe as counterparts (which makes for dramatic storytelling), and maybe increased excited viewers increases chance of Season 2, but...

I've been robbed blind!! D: OH, this hurts so much more than when it was "just a rumor" to me that the Pixies were meant to appear "in the latter half of the season." skdljf, I shouldn't have looked at this; what've I done... PLEASE give us a Season 2 with Pixies in it... I'm beggin'... I've seen behind the curtain and I cannot be reborn in my innocence.

- Extremely funny to me that the Pixies not showing up implies they're not making a move because it hasn't been 37 years since their last big takeover plan. It's the OCD... - HEY WAIT A MINUTE, back at the start, I told y'all taking over Fairy World wasn't Anti-Cosmo's thing and it was actually H.P.'s... oh, this is FUNNY... I wish I had someone I could rub this in the face of. Oh my feathers, I'm SO glad I know H.P. and Anti-Cosmo well enough that I nailed them both like butterflies on display and didn't make a fool of myself [in my mind], sldkfj... #Not a fake fan... You don't spend 8 years writing 1 million words worth of 'fics about each of them without knowing your boys!!! I'm sorry, I just... This has been extremely funny to liveblog. I didn't peek ahead... I didn't know for sure if Anti-Cosmo was gonna be here to take over Fairy World - I really thought they'd reboot him to be confident and suave because why would they read him as an anxious coward?? nobody does that - but I sure as heck knew an Anti-Cosmo based closely on the OG wouldn't be leading the charge! He's a pushover <3 And the fact the Pixies were supposed to be here is KILLING me. Of course it was a plot meant for Pixies... because Anti-Cosmo doesn't do this and H.P. does. That's SO funny... I can't believe this... I'm dying, squirtle... I can't breathe... Please let me infodump about how despite everything I've said about H.P. going against the Pixie stereotype, he is actually implied to have OCD, and by his own admittance seems to want to take over Fairy World because Fairy World's disorder just drives him up a wall... I miss him... I lied about loving Anti-Cosmo; please come back, beloved... Please send him on a time travel vacation so he can come back feeling like he waited his obsessive 37 years... oh my glory, he's within my grasp... It's been 16 years... - The file name on this thing is "FOP Reboot Series Bible Draft 7..." oh, my boys lived up to 7 drafts... oh, my babies...

Oh my GOSH, they pitched an episode where Hazel's parents come over for dinner game night and Cosmo and Wanda are struggling to appear normal... That's the exact kind of episode I was sad we hadn't had yet back when I was saying post-Episode 1 Cosmo and Wanda were giving me sexy lamp vibes! I'm sad we didn't get this one.

Okay... I've seen too much. I won't read anything else in here and I'll save it for a future arc of liveblogging all these resources. Oh, this stings. The finale's cool and all, but I just miss my boys so much, and I want them to come back as their glorious, snarky, finger-gunning, drunk-on-the-job selves so a new generation can fall in love with them like I have, and they are SO CLOSE...... D: Nobody knows the trouble I've seen... nobody knows my

Ooh, what?

Big Daddy!? Mark Chang? Mama Cosma? Juandissimo?? omg-

IRVING?? They found you too?

No one is safe...

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jessicaloons · 6 months ago

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Chapter 42:

Put it on the one people put wedding rings on…

Masterlist - Previous - Next

TW: slightly spicy content;

Charles POV:

"It’s not funny…" Lizzie threw a pillow at Pierre, while pacing back and forth "This is not how I pictured our wedding!"

"Yeah? How did you picture it?" Pierre laughed, wiping away his tears.

"Well, first off, I didn’t want to wake up from my wedding night with you sleeping on the floor and also it would be quite nice to remember the wedding at all!" Lizzie was stressed and pale, her anxiety through the roof "We don’t even have time to figure out what to do! We have to leave for the airport in… well 15 minutes ago." she hid her face in her hands before she pulled them away, looking at the ring, tears gathering in her eyes.

"Pierre? Can you…" I began but he already walked to the door "Thanks." he just nodded and I hugged Lizzie, pulled her in a tight embrace "Cara mia, it’s going to be okay."

"How? We’re married! And we can’t even remember it! And we were probably alone! Only Pierre was with us… Dad already couldn’t really walk Sissy down the aisle! And now me as well! Even worse! He wasn’t even there! Our mums weren’t there! Liam! Benji! Our siblings! Our friends! No one! This is not how I wanted to marry you!" Lizzie cried, her whole body shaking violently with each sob.

"Cara mia, believe me when I say that this is not how I wanted to marry you either! I didn’t even get the chance to propose to you!" I hugged her, tried to sooth her but she was still shaking violently in my hold. I pulled away a little, cupping her cheeks. But before I could say something, Lizzie flinched when it knocked on the door, her eyes wide.

"It’s okay, it’s just the door!" I cooed and she nodded as I went to open the door.

"Wait! The ring!" she said right at the moment when I opened the door, Pops looking at us, a little scowl on his face.

"If that’s not Mr. and Mrs. …" he began and Lizzie stormed over.

"I’m so sorry, Dad! I swear we didn’t plan it! It just happened!" she pleaded.

" 'We are always late'…" Juergen finished and then looked between me and Lizzie.

"What?" Lizzie asked.

"What yourself?" he replied, cocking an eyebrow "You didn’t plan what? What just happened?"

"No-nothing…" Lizzie stammered and looked down.

"Yeah, sure… whats going on?" Pops looked at me and I sighed.

"We don’t know. We might or might not got mar-…" I began, when Pierre bursted through the door.

"Dude, we’re screwed!" he said and I looked at him "We’re so freaking screwed!"

"Okay, can someone tell me what’s going on?" Juergen looked between us, Lizzie and I held up our left hands, showing him the rings. I couldn’t read him, he was quiet, his face void of any emotion, Lizzie next to me began to tremble, a silent tear running down her cheek, right when Juergen burst out laughing. His loud, heartfelt laugh boomed through the room and he had to wipe away the tears, holding his stomach, still laughing.

"That’s not funny!" Lizzie glared at him but that didn’t stop him from laughing.

"Oh god what a cliché! Getting drunk, getting married and then don’t remember it the next day. Vegas, baby!" Juergen pressed out between laughter and I had to laugh as well, but stopped immediately when Lizzie looked at me.

"Sorry." I said hastily and she groaned.

"This is not what I wanted. I wanted us to have a beautiful wedding and not this…" she sighed and Pierre cleared his throat.

"You can still have that…" he began but Lizzie scoffed.

"No! Because I don’t want it to be just the second ceremony because the first one no one remembers!"

"Don’t worry, it will be the first one… at least for you…" Pierre looked at me and I was confused.

"What do you mean, at least for her?" I asked, almost scared for his answer, when he threw his phone and I caught it.

"Look at the pictures…"

I opened the gallery and the first picture was Lizzie, Kika, Pierre and I with a whole wedding party in what looked like a chapel, with Elvis in the middle. I swiped to the next picture, Kika and Lizzie, both kissing Elvis cheek’s. And then the third picture. Pierre and I. At the altar. Holding hands. Elvis in front of us, reading something out of his book.

"What the actual fuck?" I swiped to the next picture and almost dropped the phone "YOU KISSED ME?"

"NO! YOU KISSED ME!" Pierre exclaimed and Lizzies eyes widened.

"What?" she stood up and grabbed the phone, looking at the pictures, Juergen looking over her shoulder. I didn’t know that it was possible, but Lizzie paled even more.

"You married Pierre?" she whispered.

"Well, I guess congratulations are in order, for our lovely newlyweds!" Juergen began to laugh again, this time I glared at him, but he just took the phone out of Lizzie’s hand looking at the pictures again.

"You married Pierre?" she repeated and I cupped her cheeks.

"Cara mia, please believe me that I have no idea how that happened! Please don’t hate me. I love you, cara mia. You know that!" I said and looked at her.

"You married Pierre." she breathed out and I groaned.

"Yes! God damn! I married Pierre! Can you please say something else?"

"Umm-… congrats?" she said and I looked at her puzzled, before she started to laugh.

"That’s not funny!"

"You just laughed when Pops had his little laugh flash! Then it was funny apparently!" she shrugged her shoulders.

"Yeah but then it was me and you who were married! Which would be okay, because guess what, that was something that was going to happen anyways!"

"No, no, Charlie. We weren’t married… we just thought it. That’s a difference." she chuckled and in this moment, I realized once again how much like her father she was, both now laughing, looking at the pictures "But wait? Why do you and I wear wedding rings? Why don’t you wear it?" I looked at Pierre and he shrugged, taking my hand.

"Because that ring wouldn’t fit on any of my fingers… maybe my pinky, but not even for sure." he said and I looked at his hand and then the petite ring on my finger.

"So you gave it to me?"

"Maybe? Probably? I don’t know?"

"Does that really matter now? No! No it doesn’t! Can we please focus on the main problem and figure out how we get out of this mess, before…" I began.

"Before the media finds out?" Kika appeared in the door, looking fresh and well rested compared to us “I guess that’s too late.”

"What do you mean?" Pierre asked and she showed him her phone "'POV: Your Vegas wedding gets crashed by 3 Formula 1 drivers and a model' oh god… so we crashed a wedding and then what? Decided to get married as well? And why did we get married? We were both there with our girlfriends! Why didn’t we marry them?" Pierre looked just as frustrated as me and Kika patted his arm.

"Because I left after the ceremony of the couple whose wedding we crashed. I told you that I had an important videocall this morning… what happened after I left was out of my control." Kika looked at me, a slight grin on her lips.

"What happened was that I married freaking Charles Leclerc!" Pierre groaned.

"Hey! Im not happy either, being married to Pierre Gasly is nothing I would ever wanted."

"Are there more videos?" Lizzie asked and watched the clip.

"No, they just posted this clip. We basically just attended their wedding. Some pictures with them but that’s it. I couldn’t find anything that implied you guys getting hitched." Kika answered and Lizzie nodded.

"Then I guess it’s not that bad, no?" she said and I looked at her.

"Not that bad? Lizzie I’m married to Pierre! To Pierre! Not to you! That is freaking bad!" I couldn’t believe her words.

"Yeah and we’ll find a way to solve that problem? Annulate the marriage? I don’t know. We should go to the chapel first because I didn’t see a wedding certificate or anything, so it must be there! And then we can ask them what to do in a situation like this!" Lizzie got up "Pops, I guess we need a later flight, can you call Julie and take care of that?"

"On it. And boys? Heads up, you looked beautiful and oh so happy!" Pops chuckled while leaving the room.

"Very funny." Pierre murmured and Lizzie and Kika laughed.

"Come on now boys, let’s get you guys divorced." Lizzie said, grabbing her phone.

"I can’t wait…" I mumbled, Pierre nodding in agreement.

"Last race of the season, Charles, what are your thoughts on this season?" Tom Clarkson asked.

"It’s been a tough season, starting out the worst way possible. When it finally got better, I was making too many mistakes myself. But we managed to turn the season around, won a race, fought for podiums and yeah, now I just want to finish the season on a high." I replied.

"You almost had a second win last weekend in Las Vegas. How did you like racing in Vegas?"

"The track itself was fun. The race was good, I had some good moments here and there. The safety car ruined my chance of winning unfortunately, but it’s like this, overall it was a good weekend with a second place."

"We’ve seen you not attended just one but two weddings? The one of Lizzie Doetterer‘s sister and our very own Daniel Ricciardo."

"Yeah, Daniel surprised us all a little with his spontaneous wedding plans, but his wife, wow weird to say that, but yeah his wife and Lizzie and co, made it possible and it was an amazing day. As for the second wedding, yeah that wasn’t planned. We decided to hit another club, but somehow ended up crashing a wedding. The people were all nice tho." I said, absently rubbing over my left ring finger, where just 3 days ago a wedding ring sat. A wedding ring Lizzie and I practically stole.

"There were rumours that you and Lizzie also tied the knot that night?"

"That are just rumours. Lizzie and I are not married. We had a lot of fun attending the weddings, that was enough for us." I smiled, thinking back at Lizzie and how beautiful she looked.

"So there was no secret wedding?" Tom laughed and I shook my head.

"No secret wedding." Thank god. I never felt as relieved as when the owner of the chapel, who dressed up as Elvis for ceremonies, told us that Pierre and I didn’t really marry. That we just made a joke and Lizzie took some pictures of it.

"Alright, then let’s get some questions from the floor."

The questions were almost all the same. Reflection of the season. What to expect from next season. How the contract negotiations were going. I answered as truthfully as possible and when I walked out, Lizzie waited outside with the next group.

"'Right now there is nothing new to announce. I'll be driving at Ferrari next season everything else is not on my mind right now.' You’re a liar, Mr. Leclerc." she grinned against my lips and I chuckled.

"I have no idea what you’re talking about." I shrugged my shoulders when she was called in "Have fun."

"Oh yes, so much fun." She sighed and walked inside.

I headed back to our hospitality, when I saw Arthur. He leaned against a wall, almost hidden, eyes closed phone at his ear. I walked over and as if he was feeling my presence he opened his eyes, shaking his head, walking away. I watched how he almost ran off, pocketing his phone, not once looking back and decided to ask him later about it, when I heard Silvia calling me. One last deep breath and I turned around, putting on a fake smile for whatever shenanigans she had in mind now.

The weekend started out with a bang. Topping FP1 didn’t just surprise the rest of the grid, but also ourselves. But reality settled in pretty fast after a more than realistic performance in FP2 and in Saturdays FP3. I sat in the garage, watching my mechanics doing their thing at my car and scrolled through Instagram when Shima sent me a link to a F1 gossip account. Opening the link, I already rolled my eyes, thinking about what abstruse rumour now is going on. It was a short clip of Arthur talking to a girl, looking very comfortable with the way the girl clung to his arm. A girl that wasn’t Carla. I read the caption right as Shima called.

"What the fuck is that?"

"Is that Arthur?" she asked and I swallowed hard "Because if that’s him… Lizzie there are comments that state that they were kissing… that’s not Carla."

"When was that?"

"Apparently end of October…"

"End of October? I was facetiming with Carla when we were in LA. She didn’t say anything…" I was confused. Carla would’ve mentioned it if they broke up.

"Lizzie… that gossip page is stating that Arthur unfollowed Carla on Instagram and deleted all pictures of them… I checked, theyre right." Shima said and I checked it myself "There’s a new post… they state that multiple sources claim that the pictures with the other girl, a TikToker, were taken when he was still with Carla, shortly after they were both together spotted clubbing with friens in Monaco. Carla is apparently not aware of the situation."

Yeah sure. The internet is exploiting it, but Carla’s not aware." I laughed bitterly.

"Do you believe it?" Shima asked and I sighed "Would he do that?"

"I never thought so… but… I don’t know what to think." I groaned when Pete waved at me "Oh for fucks sake… I have to get in the car, quali starts soon."

"Oh shit! I totally forgot about that! I'm sorry! Don’t think about it too much, okay?" Shima sighed.

"I try…"

I tried and succeeded, partly. P5 for the final race of the year. Not the best but certainly not the worst either and when I walked to the interviews I had a little smile on my face, seeing Daniel smiling brightly, showing off his wedding ring.

"Oh there is my sister-in-law or how I call her from now on, ring-stealer, wanna join in?" he waved me over, joining in on his interview with Ted Kravitz.

"Ring-stealer?" he asked, looking at me and I laughed.

"Yeah… I- we, Charles and I, kinda stole their wedding rings? But like… not intentionally?" I said and he cocked an eyebrow.

"Care to elaborate?" Ted laughed and

Daniel threw his arm around my shoulders.

"Basically, at I don’t know? 1? 2? In the morning my wife and I, fucking hell I love saying that, my wife and I decided to jump in the pool outside." he chuckled looking at me "And because she was scared that we lose our wedding rings, we gave them Charles and Lizzie to take care of them. And somehow they kept them? And we didn’t think about them anymore when we finally got out of the pool… and these two drunk lovebirds forgot about them as well… my wife was a little… well she wasn’t really happy about us losing our wedding rings in our first night as husband and wife. But yeah, our little thieves brought them back."

"While apologising profoundly!" I threw in and Daniel nodded.

"So you and Charles didn’t get secretly married, now that you had the rings ready?" Ted chuckled and I shook my head.

"God no! Wearing someone else’s wedding ring is bad luck! I don’t want to imagine what happens when you use them to get married." I laughed, feeling bad for wearing the rings.

"So Vegas was fun then?" Ted looked at me and I sighed "You weren’t really happy about racing there? You and Max were… let’s say not that open minded?"

"It’s like I said, the track was fun, nothing too special, sure, but still fun. It was the show around it. Opening ceremony. Too many events. It was draining. I’m a racing driver, I want to race. I don’t want or need a big show…" I shrugged a little and he nodded.

"Thank you Lizzie, for joining us!" Ted said and I smiled.

"No worries! See you later Danny Ric!" I nudged his shoulder and walked off, right into Charles.

"Hey pretty girl." he smiled and pulled me in, kissing me shamelessly.

"Stop! Everyone is watching!" I whined a little and he rolled his eyes.

"No one is watching!" he chuckled and walked off, Julie next to me grinning.

"Come on." she laughed and I followed her back to our hospitality.

After our debrief I waited for Charles’ text and scrolled through some of the pictures and videos Shima sent me earlier. I watched the clip replay and scoffed, right as I saw Arthur walking by outside.

"Julie? Give me a minute, okay?" I walked out "Arthur!" he turned around, smiling.

"Hey Lizzie, I was on my way to see Charles." he hugged me but looked at me confused "What’s going on?"

"Is it true?" I asked him and he cocked an eyebrow "The clips and pictures from you and that girl? In Paris?"

"Lizzie, listen it’s not-…" he began.

"Yes or no. It’s simple. Is that really you? With that girl? You know I don’t believe gossip pages, but that picture? So please, answer my question. Is that you?" he took a deep breath and looked down "That’s answer enough. Why? This is not you. You wouldn’t… I don’t understand?"

"It’s complicated…" he said, rubbing his neck.

"No. Cheating isn’t complicated. It’s a decision. A stupid decision. One that you made. How could you?" the disappointment in my voice was palpable.

"Lizzie, please believe me… it’s not what it looks like. Let me just expl-…" he began when I saw 3 girls and a guy walking towards us. The girl that laughed the loudest looked familiar.

"Here you are Arthur!" she smiled at him and it dawned on me.

"You brought her here? Are you fucking kidding me? Already showing her off?" I was shocked.

"It’s not like this!" he stated.

"You’re an asshole, Arthur. You’re not the sweet guy I once knew. You changed. Not for the better." I said bluntly and walked back inside the hospitality, not reacting to him calling my name.

"I can’t wait to go home! Just pack the rest of our stuff and then it’s time to move into our first place together!" I leaned back in my seat, closing my eyes "Tests are done. I’m not needed until the 12th in the factory."

"Yeah well, I’m needed at the factory… so…" Charles sighed a little, smiling at the flight attendant who handed us some water "I feel bad for not helping you…"

"Oh come on! I’m finishing my place first, Shima will help me. And then Marta and Riccardo will help me finish with your place! It’s fine. Most of our furniture stays behind anyways! The new furniture is already delivered and some pieces are even assembled! So it’s just pack up and put it in our flat! And as soon as we’re back we’ll start with the rest together!"

"Yeah but still… I wish I could be more helpful… but they want me in Maranello for the big announcement."

"Mattia is gone. Fred comes in. You will finally have a team principal who will actually look out of for you as well! Who will listen on the input you’re giving! I’m really happy for you!" I smiled at him, leaning my head on his shoulder and snuggled a little into his side.

"Yeah… let’s hope that all the work and effort that Fred put in over the past year will pay off…" Charles mumbled and I grabbed his hand.

"I’m sure you’ll have an amazing season." I kissed the back of his hand and he sighed.

After a while I sat back up, grabbing my book and leaning back into my seat when I saw Charles scrolling through his phone, the look on his face pure agony.

"What’s going on?" I asked and he looked up.

"I still can’t believe that Arthur did that…" he whispered and I put my book down "You should’ve seen the look on his face when I tried to talk to him? He was furious… he! He did this? He has no right to be furious!"

"That was maybe because of me? Because I already gave him a piece of my mind and that’s why he had that attitude?" I replied but he shook his head.

"What you said was right! What he did was… I don’t know how he could do that. I’m so disappointed in him." Charles closed his eyes and leaned back "That’s not how we were raced. He has so many good role models in his life? I thought he would be better than this?"

"Maybe we need to talk to him again? Really figure out what happened?" I suggested but he just scoffed.

"His reaction said it all. He doesn’t t want to talk…"

"Give him a little time? I try to talk to Carla…"

"Poor girl. She’s like a little sister? She’s a part of this family! I’m so sorry for her…" Charles mumbled after a while and I nodded.

"Yeah… but she’s strong. She’ll be alright." or at least I hoped so.

I looked around. Chaos. Chaos everywhere. The mover did a good job in bringing the boxes into their designated rooms, but it was still a mess. A mess I had to organise. But I had no idea where to start. I put up some music and decided that the kitchen might be the perfect start. After what felt like hours all the boxes were empty and folded together in the hallway, the kitchen looked almost done. Just a few decorations here and there. I was about to decide what would be perfect when I got a notification on my phone. A text from Charles that the official announcement of Fred replacing Mattia would be out in the next minutes and that he was already on his way back home. I sighed, looking around. I had hope to be almost done by the time he would come home, but the chaos around proved me wrong. I continued with unpacking our clothes, trying to organise first my side of the walk in closet and then Charles. Taking the opportunity, I kept some of his most hideous clothes in one of the boxes, hoping I could get rid of them, without his knowledge. I shoved the box in the bottom shelf of one of my closets and put some of my clothes on top to hide it a little. Happy with my job I went on to unpack our books and other stuff for the living room upstairs. I lost all track of time, listening to my music, unpacking box after box. I stretched a little when I heard Charles calling after me.

"Cara mia?"

"I’m upstairs!" I called back and a moment later I heard him coming up the stairs.

"Here you are! And look at- damn Lizzie! You’re almost done?" he pulled me up, straight into his arms, hugging me tight.

"Well no, there are still some boxes for the kitchen left, don’t know how they ended up here? And also some knickknacks here and there. I also have to-…" I began but he silenced me with a kiss.

"Hi." he whispered against my lips.

"Hi." I breathed out, feeling myself blushing under his intense gaze.

"You did an amazing job, cara mia…"

"I tried. There is still some furniture that needs to be assembled and some boxes need to be unpacked. Oh and I have to put the bedding on our bed!" I sighed a little but Charles hugged ne closer, kissing my temple.

"Show me which boxes are for the kitchen and I bring them downstairs, then we can unpack them together…" he replied but I shook my head.

"We bring them down, but then you’re going to take a shower, I cook something and then we just relax? You drove all the way from Maranello. You must be exhausted!" I looked at him and he cupped my cheeks kissing my forehead.

"Sounds like a plan! And then tomorrow we’ll do the rest together!"

I nodded and showed him the boxes for the kitchen. Grabbing one myself to follow him I hissed a little in pain. Pain erupting in my back.

"Are you okay?" Charles turned around and I nodded.

"Yeah… I think it was all just a little much today with carrying all the stuff back and forth… I’m fine." I smiled but he waited for a moment then he walked back and took the box from my hands.

"You’re done carrying boxes. Come on…" he ushered me down the stairs and I sat down on the sofa "How about we order something to eat? Yeah?"

"Just order whatever you want to and that’s fine with me." I yawned a little, stretching my back and neck, feeling how tense I was.

"Alright, I’ll take a shower and order food, you l make yourself comfortable and pick out a movie?" Charles kissed the top of my head and I nodded leaning back.

I switched through Netflix sinking deeper into the pillows, my eyelids heavy. A dull pain in the back was the last thing I felt before I fell asleep.

I handed Charles another book he put away when I got a text from my sister. I replied quickly and then turned back to the box of books. After an hour all our books were stored away and the bookshelf was a wild mix of poetry, books about design and architecture, nature, fantasy books, cook books and books about photography. Right when I stepped away to look at our doing I got another text and I sighed reading it.

"What’s up?" Charles asked, pulling the packing film off of his piano.

"It was something about Christmas…" I said and he turned.

"What about Christmas?"

"It seems that this year everyone has some plans already…" I walked down the stairs with some empty boxes, Charles hot on my heels.

"Wait, wait, wait… are you telling me we’re not celebrating Christmas together this year?" Charles looked at me with big eyes.

"Marcus, Lisa and Benji are going to Norway visiting Lisa’s family. Sissy and Liam are joining Daniel in Australia. Enzo will celebrate with Charlotte’s family, Arthur… well Arthur said to your mum that he wants to go to the alps with his friends, rent a cabin and yeah… so its just us and our parents…" I said, putting the boxes away when Charles shook his head.

"But its Christmas! We always celebrate Christmas together! Its like this for the last? I don’t know 15 years? Maybe longer?" I could see in his eyes that he was upset and gently stroked his cheek.

"Its okay, we grow up, starting our own families…" I started but he scoffed.

"That’s no reason to not celebrate together anymore! What are we supposed to do now? Celebrate Christmas all alone? Where do we go? What are we doing?" Charles sounded desperate.

"We can do whatever we want to do!"

"Yeah? I want to celebrate with our family…" he mumbled and got up, the sadness in his voice palpable.

"Charles…" I began but he held up his hand, walking towards the stairs, moments later I heard him play a slow and sad sounding version of Jingle Bells "Drama queen!" I yelled upstairs before I walked into the kitchen, sitting down at the island and opened up my MacBook, looking for an adventure that would brighten Charles mood. I immediately found the perfect getaway, it looked amazing. I didn’t know how long I sat there, when Charles hugged me from behind, making me squeal.

"Fuck! You scared the shit out of me!" I breathed out.

"Sorry… for being upset and scaring you…" he whispered in my neck, peppering it with tiny kisses "What are you doing?"

"Looking what we could do for Christmas and New Year's Eve…" I said and he sighed a little "Oh come on! Its just you and me? Isn’t that also something nice for a change?"

"Of course it is, but it's just… Christmas was always this big family party…and I loved it…" he mumbled, sitting down next to me.

"And it will be like that again, next year. But this year its just us, is that so bad?" I pouted a little and he groaned.

"Of course it's not! It's just… oh whatever, show me what you’ve planned." he leaned over and I turned the screen a little "New Zealand?"

"New Zealand. 3 weeks. You and I in our campervan. Look it has everything we need! A little kitchen. Bathroom. Big and cozy bed. Little seating area if the weather’s not too great. Everything. We can explore New Zealand the way we want. If we like it somewhere, we can stay. If not? We’ll just drive off. We can go hiking in the mountains. Surfing. Relax at beautiful beaches. We can go whale watching. And a big bonus, I think you’re completely unknown there."

"We are completely unknown there, you mean?" he looked at me pointedly.

"Okay, fine…we are completely unknow there…" I rolled my eyes a little and he pinched my side.

"That’s our camper? It looks really nice and cozy… just you and me in that van? Going wherever we want to go? Doing whatever we want to do? No one knows us?" he said, looking at the screen and I nodded.

"Yeah… I already looked up some nice places to go to, some nice hikes, campgrounds. It could be an amazing adventure…" I looked at him and he smiled, tilting his head a little.

"Book the flights. We're going to New Zealand…" he kissed my cheek and I squealed, this time out of happiness.

"You know how I always wanted to go to New Zealand! Finally!" I was so excited, already typing away, booking our flights and the campervan "I wanna go to Hobbiton! The WETA Cave, Milford Sound, Doubtful Sound! I wanna do the Tongariro Crossing… swimming with dolphins and seals in Kaikoura! Whale watching! Oh and Wharariki Beach! Oh god I’m so excited! I wanna wander through the red wood forest in Rotorua! Oh and look at all these amazing hiking trails! That’s like were training already for the new season… look! We can go bungee jumping and skydiving in Queenstown and-…" Charles pulled me in and kissed me, shutting up my excited rambling.

"I love how excited you are." he whispered against my lips and I smiled "So when are we leaving for our little adventure?"

"This Sunday everyone is coming for our little housewarming brunch… I have to be in Neuenburg on the 12th and our flight is on the 14th from Frankfurt." I said and he nodded.

"Will we be back for training camp with Andrea and JK?"

"Yep, maybe were even on the same flight back as JK. We have to visit him! He told me to come visit him for years! He probably has some secret spots for us!" I sent a text to him.

"So. New Zealand. You and me."

"You and me." I kissed him "We can go stargazing! The night sky is so clear in New Zealand, and we can go kayaking in the Abel Tasm-…" he interrupted me again, kissing me.

"Shhh cara mia, later…" he pulled me up "Didn’t we say every room?"

"What do you mean?" I looked at him all confused when he slipped his hand underneath my shirt, pushing it up and it dawned on me "Not we… you said that…" I breathed out against his lips as he pushed me against the kitchen island "Charles…" he hoisted me up, sitting me down on the cold countertop "Not on here…"

"Yes on here…" a devilish grin on his lips.

Charles POV:

Lizzie flitted through the flat, adjusting some vases here, pillows there. Next was the kitchen island and the wide variety of food she prepared.

"Do you think its enough?" she asked and I looked at her.

“Depends on how many people exactly are coming? 50?” I joked and she groaned a little.

“Im serious, do you think its enough? I could make another quiche maybe?” she was already halfway through to the pantry, before I stopped her.

“Cara mia, we already have three quiches! And eggs in all shapes and forms. Bread rolls, bagels, croissants, fruit, vegetables, salad. A whole bunch of stuff I don’t even know what it is. Its enough. You did enough!” I reassured her, massaging her tense shoulders.

“I want it to be perfect. It’s the first time they all see this place, our place, our very own and first flat together. Penthouse. Its not a flat, it’s a penthouse. I need to get used to it first.” Lizzie sighed and I smiled.

“Lizzie, this place looks amazing. You made it a home for us, its perfect. That brunch? Perfect. The flowers? Perfect. The decoration on the table? Perfect. You? Perfect.” I kissed her and I felt her relaxing into me “Don’t worry. Its all going to be perfect…”

“Okay… thank you.” She whispered, right as her timer went off “Oh! The cupcakes!”

“Cupcakes? You made cupcakes as well? Again, how many people are coming exactly? 100?” I chuckled, watching her taking out two trays of cupcakes from the oven.

“Very funny…” she threw the oven mitts at and I caught them “I saw a recipe of these red velvet ones! They looked amazing so I had to try them.” She shrugged her shoulders, looking at the baking trays.

"I mean yeah, they look amazing." I said, grinning while looking at the island.

"I disinfected it. Twice." she mumbled, blushing slightly and I laughed.

"You mean you disinfected it twice today?" I chuckled when the doorbell rang.

"Oh god! They’re here already? I’m not ready! I need to change! I was just taking a break to do the last bits and take the cupcakes out of the oven!" Lizzie made big eyes and I kissed her cheek.

"You go change and I open the door. It’s fine! Everything looks great! The table is set. The food looks delicious. So let’s go!" I calmed her down and she nodded, almost sprinting into our bedroom. I chuckled before I went and opened the door.

"And that’s the terrace." I opened up the big sliding doors and stepped outside, followed by our parents, Sissy, Daniel and Liam, Arthur, Lorenzo and Charlotte, Joris and Lizzie.

"Oh wow! What a breathtaking view!" Marina said looking towards the ocean.

"Is that- is that a pool?" Sissy made big eyes when I nodded "You have a pool? On the terrace of your penthouse? Are you kidding me?" she followed Liam the stairs up to the pool and he looked like he was about to jump in "Don’t you dare!"

"We don’t have a pool at home!" he looked at me an I laughed, opening my arms and he jumped right into me "When it’s summer, can I come to you and swim with you?"

"Absolutely!" I smiled and he clapped excitedly.

"This is really… it’s amazing you two. I’m proud of you." Juergen said and pulled Lizzie to his side, kissing her head "I guess we lost you now for all time to Monaco."

"Oh come on, Pops… don’t get all mushy on me now." Lizzie sighed and Juergen chuckled as the doorbell rang "Let’s get back inside, the food is all ready."

I walked downstairs into the hallway and opened the door, looking surprised.

"Carla! Hi, umm- come in." I stepped aside and let her in, sensing her discomfort.

"Lizzie didn’t tell you that she invited me, right? I shouldn’t have come. I knew it was a bad idea…" she began but I shook my head.

"No! No it's not a bad idea! It’s just-…" I stopped, looking towards the kitchen.

"He’s here, right?" she almost whispered and I nodded.

"Yeah… but if it’s okay for you, then let's go inside." I said, throwing my arm around her shoulders.

"I mean… yeah. I live here… Monaco isn’t that big so I might get used to seeing him around." her voice wavering "I’m sorry."

"Whats taking you so lo-…" Lizzie's head plopped through the door frame. She walked outside and hugged Carla "Hi! I'm so happy you came!"

"Is it really okay that I’m here? I don’t want to intrude or anything…" she lowered her gaze.

"You don’t intrude! You’re a part of this family! Also you helped me with designing this place so you should see how it all turned out, no? So come on in!" Lizzie took her hand and pulled her inside.

"Carla!" Liam chirped as soon as they walked through the door and he ran up to her.

"Hey Liam." she kneeled down and Liam hugged her tight.

"Carla, it's so good to see you!" Maman said as soon as Liam let go of her and then hugged her "You've been to Paris, I've seen? How was it?"

"It was wonderful. I really loved the city. Some of the people weren't the nicest tho… but yeah, I'm already planning my next tr-…" she stopped, right as Arthur walked down the stairs.

"Yeah we could try-…" Arthur said to Lorenzo but stopped dead in his tracks when he spotted Carla.

"Watch it!" Lorenzo bumped into him.

"What- why… what are you doing here?" Arthur asked her, his eyes wide.

"I-umm… Lizzie, she- umm…" Carla looked at her hands.

"I invited her!" Lizzie said bluntly and Arthur looked at her.

"Why?" he sounded conflicted.

"Because this is my, sorry Charles, our place, Carla helped me with some of the interior design decisions… also because I wanted to." Lizzie looked at Arthur, a fire in her eyes.

"Maybe I should just go…" Carla said quietly.

"No, you should not. We invited you. End of the story. And now let’s eat… Lizzie made food for at least 50 people, I hope you guys are hungry." I said and Lizzie smiled, pulling Carla with her, followed by the rest of our guests, only my brothers and Liam left.

"I'll leave." Arthur mumbled but Enzo grabbed him by the shoulders.

"Oh come on. Don’t be ridiculous. We’re all grown ups here!" he said and I nodded.

"I’m not!" Liam pouted when I picked him up and threw him over my shoulder, chuckling.

"Yeah but that my ex sits here and I have to be cool with it?" Arthur rolled his eyes.

"Ex because you cheated." It was out before I could stop it.

"Charles…" Lorenzo shook his head.

"Let’s eat." I only replied and followed Lizzie towards the kitchen.

I watched Arthur the entire time. He was quieter than usually. Only talking when someone asked him directly. He looked at me every now and then, feeling my gaze on him.

"Stop staring at him." Lizzie whispered, leaning over to grab the bottle of champagne in front of me.

"He should feel that we’re all disappointed in him." I whispered back.

"Believe me, he knows. I already had a few not so nice words for him, your Mum as well… and the fact that you all look at him like he kicked a puppy is also a clear indicator."

"I don’t care. What he did… it’s not okay. It’s so wrong. And I can’t believe that he did that. To Carla! She’s like a little sister, she’s part of the family and he fucked up." the last part was louder than intended and Arthur looked up from his plate.

"Charles… not here. Not now." Lorenzo warned and I rolled my eyes.

"Just say it. Come on. You’re dying to! So come on." Arthur looked at me and I balled my hand under the table into a fist, trying my best to not just burst out what I had in mind "Come on Charles, this is your chance."

"Arthur stop!" Maman said and he scoffed.

"I think it’s better when I leave..." Carla folded her napkin and moved her chair back.

"No, you know what? I’m leaving." Arthur said and got up "I’ll just grab my phone from upstairs and I’m gone." he walked up the stairs and I sighed.

"Carla, you stay." Lizzie put her hand on Carla’s arm.

"Excuse me…" I got up and followed him "Arthur…" I began but he ignored me, looking for his phone, which I spotted immediately and grabbed it.

Arthur looked at me, holding out his hand.

"Just give it to me and I'm gone…" he said but I shook my head "Charles…"

"Why did you do it?" I asked.

"Does it matter now?"

"Yes it does!"

"I don’t think so…" he sighed taking a step towards me "Give me my phone now and I’m gone."

"No! I want an answer!" I insisted.

"It was a mistake." he shrugged his shoulders.

"Then why did you do it? Explain it! Don’t just shrug your shoulders!" I was furious.

"No matter what I’m saying, it won’t be a good enough reason for you anyway!"

"Because there is no good reason for it! If your feelings changed, which happens, then talk to her! And not run away and cheat to make her end things because you deeply hurt her!

"You’re right. Of course you’re right. You’re Charles. Charles the golden boy. Charles the perfect boy. Charles who never makes any mistakes. Charles who’s amazing in everything he does. Charles who is so much better than me. Always was. Always will be. You’re right. I shouldn’t have done it. But I did, okay! I did it. It’s done. Over."

"No it’s not over! You pulled us all into this mess! Because Carla is a part of this family! And we are torn now because you- because you fucked up! How could you do this to her! I thought you love her! And when you love someone you don’t hurt them! You are supposed to love them more than anything! But you- you fucked up instead of talking to her you cheated… because you didn’t have the balls to end it yourself? Or what? You’re a fucking coward." I almost shouted it and he pushed me away, but I grabbed his arm, he looked at me, eyes full of rage.

"I’m a coward? That’s rich coming from you! I hurt Carla once! And that was it! You let Lizzie suffer for an entire year. You hurt her every single day for an entire year because you didn’t have the balls to tell her how you feel! You didn’t even see how much you hurt her! How often she cried! You didn’t know shit! If I’m a coward then you, oh so perfect Charles Leclerc are a coward as well!"

"Enough. Both of you!" Pops appeared out of nowhere "Charles, let go of him."

I let go of Arthur and took a step back.

"Why don’t you go out for a moment? Cool down?"

"No! Everyone is treating him like a kid who made a mistake… but he's no kid! He's old enough to know that actions have consequences! And sometimes that consequence is that everyone is fucking mad at you because you acted like a total asshole!"

"Okay that’s enough now. Charles, leave. Please." Juergen looked at me pointedly.

"No, he-…"

"Charles. Out. Now."

"Okay…" I sighed, turning around.

"And if youre on your way, take this little sneaky lad with you." he shook his head towards the stairs where Liam looked like a deer caught in headlight.

"Come on Bubba." I walked past him and he followed me outside.

"Why is everyone mad at Arthi?" Liam whispered and I sighed.

"He- umm he did something not so nice…" I began, but stopped, how do you explain a 5 year old that someone was cheating?

"He did something not so nice to Carla?"

"Yeah… he wasn’t nice to Carla."

"Why? We love Carla?" Liam pouted a little and I had to chuckle.

"Yeah, we do." I turned my head a little and looked inside, Arthur and Pops sitting down by the window bench "Come on, let’s go to the sofa, it’s more comfy there." I hoisted him up and quietly sat down by the garden lounge. I gave Liam my phone to keep him distracted with a video game while listening in on Pops and Arthur’s conversation

"You know, I never told this anyone, but when I was around your age, I cheated on my girlfriend as well. I’m not proud of it and it’s nothing I talk a lot about. Honestly you’re one of only two people who knows about this but yeah I made a mistake, just like you did…" Pops said and my eyes widened.

"Wait, you cheated on Marina?" Arthur asked, sounding just as shocked as I felt.

"God no! No! No, I don’t agree with the way you’re brother said it, but I agree with what he said… you know, if you meet that person that you love more than anything in the world. If you know that’s the right person then you just can’t cheat on that person. Because every fibre in your body will scream at you to not do it, to not hurt that person, that person that’s a part of you… and usually when you’re smart enough you listen to it and I know that you’re smart enough! So I’m not going to say what you did was right. Hell no it wasn’t, but maybe Carla wasn’t the one…"

"Or she was the right one at the wrong time." Arthur mumbled and I turned a little to look at him.

"You think so?" Juergen asked and Arthur sighed.

"I love her. I wanted what Maman had with Papa, you with Marina, god even Charles and Lizzie! I wanted that! But… it’s scary? To think this far ahead in the future? We are so young? And I don’t know… shouldn’t we both explore life a bit on our own before we commit to something that big? She has dreams and ambitions that are far off from what I’m doing! But I saw how sad it made her when I was away and she felt like she didn’t support me when she wasn’t joining me at the track! And I told her it’s okay… but still… Lizzie and Charles are both in F1, they both know this life, after all they’re both living it, but Carla and I? It’s different. I don’t want her to put her goals aside just to be with me…"

"Sounds like she could be the right one at the wrong time…" Juergen nodded "Did you tell her this? No? Maybe explain her what happened… it’s still no excuse for cheating, but it’s at least an explanation…"

"I didn’t even really cheat… that girl, she was nice and sweet. Funny. So we talked a little, that’s all and then she kissed me out of the blue and I was just too stunned to speak because I was asking myself if I sent her any signals? But I left shortly after. Went back to the hotel and felt like complete dog shit…" Arthur said, head hung low "I saw that there were people taking pictures of it. So I was sure that it wouldn’t take long until Carla saw them… we had a big fight before I left for Paris. I told her that I wasn’t so sure about us anymore… then I left and this whole mess happened. I was prepared for it to come out. But it didn’t. And I avoided Carla, then sent her a text that I think it’s better if we break up. And then I left for Abu Dhabi and she sent me a text that she wants to talk about it when I’m back…"

"And then the pictures went online…" Juergen sighed and Arthur nodded.

"And then the pictures went online."

"What pictures?" Liam looked up from my phone, apparently bored of the game he was playing.

"What?” I looked at him.

"Arthur said that there are pictures online?"

"Oh yeah… um- his friend took pictures of him throughout the year…" I lied and Liam nodded, looking back down in the phone.

"I need to pee." he then said out of the blue getting up, opening the sliding doors.

"Wait!" I got up and followed him, Arthur and Pops looking at us.

"Pops, I need to pee!" Liam looked at him and I had to stop myself from laughing "I forgot where it was…"

"The toilet?" Pops asked and he nodded shyly.

"Come on, little one." Pops got up and took Liams hand in his, leading him away from Arthur and me.

"Umm- here." I handed him his phone which I still held in my hand.

"Thanks…" he mumbled, taking it "I’m sorry… for what I said about you and Lizzie."

"No, don’t be. It’s the truth. I just like to push it away and pretend it didn’t happen… I’m sorry for what I said…" I sighed a little.

"No… what you said was also the truth…" Arthur said, looking down "I know that what I did was wrong and that I deserve everyone’s wrath… I don’t want this to be awkward- with Carla, you know?"

"Yeah, sure… umm… do you- do you want to talk to her? Should I ask her to come up?" I replied a little hesitant and watched him, he closed his eyes for a moment and swallowed hard before he nodded "Yeah? Okay… you wait here, I’ll ask her." I got up and walked downstairs, a moment after Juergen and Liam descended downstairs.

"He’s a good kid, Charles. A good kid that made a mistake… don’t be too hard on him, you heard his reasonings…" Juergen mumbled and now I looked like a deer caught in headlight "Oh come on… you didn’t think you were subtle, do you?"

"Sorry…" I replied sheepishly, walking over to Carla "Could you… umm- could you come with me? Please?" I asked her and she nodded slightly.

"Excuse me…" she got up, Lizzie looking at me, and followed me.

"Look. I’m not going to defend Arthur. Not at all. And I want you to know that you’re always welcome here, okay? You’re a part of this family, no matter what…"

"Okay?" she looked a little nervous.

"He wants to talk to you… I know you owe him nothing. But-… maybe talking with him will be good for you as well?" I said slowly and her eyes widened.

"I- I don’t know… is that a good idea?" Carla whispered and I smiled reassuring.

"Just listen to him. You can walk out whenever you want to." I said and she took a deep breath.

"Okay. Yeah…" she smiled nervously and then walked upstairs.

I waited for a moment and then returned back to the table.

"What is going on?" Lizzie whispered "Where’s Carla? You didn’t kick her out, did you?"

"Of course not! She and Arthur talk… I think they haven’t really talked when they broke up…" I sighed a little, taking my glass and Lizzie nodded.

"Drama follows us wherever we go, I swear." she grabbed her glass and we clinked them together.

"I can’t wait for three drama free weeks in New Zealand…"

"Don’t jinx it!"

"Sorry!"

"I love you..." I heard Lizzie mumble, and looked up "Thank you for this..." she nodded towards the beautiful landscape in front of us "It was always my dream coming here and now... I'm just speechless... it's so beautiful!"

I smiled, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles. She was right, it was beautiful. Every new place we drove off to was breathtaking. The last ten days were filled with beautiful beaches, forests and mountains. We did two bigger hikes, taking almost the whole day each, explored around ate in little cates spending time talking to the locals. But by far my favourite part was our campervan. We drove to camping sites in the middle of a forest, or right next to a beach and just enjoyed ourselves. Cooking together, playing chess, reading, just cuddling in bed, watching the waves crash down on the shore. It was a truly magical place.

"What are our plans for Wellington tomorow?" I asked her, parking the van at a beautiful spot at the beach for the remainder of the day.

"I thought about going into the national museum? Te papa. It's Maori for treasure box. It shows a lot about Maori culture, the Polynesian culture, of course the history of New Zealand. Oh and it's also an art gallery!" Lizzie unbuckled her seat belt, rummaging through the glove compartment for her New Zealand guide.

"Sounds good..." I got out of the seat and stretched a little.

"Oh and I want to go to the WETA cave! I wanna make a tour!" she was overly excited and I cocked and eyebrow "It's the digital studio who created Lord of the Rings! You can make a tour through their workshop and see some props from the trilogies! Also a ton of other movies of course! Maybe some new projects!"

"Alright, Te papa and Weta cave it is." I smiled at her, while she continued to flip through the pages excitedly "What do you want to do today?"

"Hmm?" she looked up and I laughed.

"Today? Just do nothing? Go for a little walk? A little swim?"

"Oh umm-... yeah a little walk sounds nice? And then we can just do nothing? Relax a little? Cook?" she suggested and I nodded.

"Sounds perfect." I kissed her head.

After our walk we cooked together and watched a movie before we cozied up in bed, listening to the ocean. I never felt as much at peace like here. We explored New Zealand without people knowing who we were. We met up with JK and together with his girlfriend we spent a couple of days together on the South Island. He told me about a camping site that was almost unknown to tourists, and for our last night in the van I decided to surprise Lizzie with a night away at a truly magical place, how JK called it.

"Can I open my eyes now?" she asked for the up tenth time and I chuckled, lighting a candle.

"Yes cara mia, you can open your eyes now." I said and she did immediately.

Her eyes immediately fell onto the food on the tray, next to the open doors, revealing the beautiful beach in front of us.

"Wow…" she whispered, looking at me.

"It’s our last night, I thought we needed to say a proper goodbye to our van…" I smirked and she nodded.

"Yeah? What did you have in mind?" she smiled and I pulled her in.

"First we eat our food, then I eat…" I began but stopped when she blushed and looked down. I kissed her forehead and pulled her with me towards our bed and her eyes lit up.

"Burger Fuel!" she squealed and I laughed.

"Come on, let’s eat…"

The air inside the camper van felt thick with raw desire. Our lips met in a searing, intense kiss that ignited a spark between us, making Lizzie moan. It seemed the world around us faded away as we lost ourself in the heat of the moment. I pulled her into my lap, kissing her again, the desire palpable in every breath and every touch. My lips left a trail of kisses down her neck, setting her senses ablaze and eliciting breathy moans of pleasure from her. Lizzie began to tug at my shirt and I pulled it over my head, the rest of our clothes followed quickly. I littered her jaw and neck with open mouthed kisses when she let out a content sigh, yearning for my touch. I leaned back a little, trying to find a more comfortable position, when Lizzie moved forward, her hands trailing down my sides, before she leaned down, peppering my chest and abs with eager kisses. In one swift move I turned us around, now hovering above her naked form, a smile spread across my face as I gazed at her gorgeous, heavenly body, causing a blush to bloom on her cheeks. Her beauty was captivating, and I couldn't help but feel a rush of joy at the sight of her. The way she always blushed when I looked at her, made me fall in love with her all over again. I leaned down, kissing her passionately, swallowing down each and every sound she made. Moving down her neck, over her collarbone on to her breasts, I lavished them with kisses before delving further down, exploring every inch of her with a hunger that matched her own. I held her down, when I felt her scrambling away, grinning at her small whimpers.

"Charles…" she whispered and I kissed her thigh.

"Hmm?" I looked up at her glassy eyes.

"Stop teasing…"

"As you wish…"

After our training camp in the mountains, some intense sessions with JK and some quiet days with our family and friends it was time to prepare the new season. JK and I were just in the gym, doing some exercises to strengthen my back when a murmuring began. I was almost 100% sure that I knew what was going on so I just sat back and kept on doing my exercises like JK said. After a long, hot shower to tend to my sore and tense back I dressed up and walked inside our meeting room, everyone whispering. I grabbed an orange juice and sat down, it seemed like nobody noticed me so I leaned back and waited for the meeting to begin.

Right when Felix walked inside with Pete almost every phone in the room buzzed and Matt looked at his phone exhaling loudly.

"They just confirmed it officially." he said and I nodded slightly.

"Fucking hell. Lewis?" Pete’s jaw dropped and the whole room turned to look at me.

"What?" I asked.

"Did you know?" Felix looked at me intently and my eyes widened.

"Did I know what? That Ferrari snatched Lewis and kicked Carlos out?"

"Don’t play all innocent! You’re sleeping with the best and most reliable source!"

"Hey!" I let out.

"Sorry! Did Charles tell you anything?" Matt asked and I sighed.

"No. He didn’t. He probably did find out only shortly before us." I said. Half the truth.

"What a line-up!"

"Fred did a pretty good job, he’s not even team principal for 3 months and he already snatched Lewis out of Mercedes and secured Charles for multiple years. Damn, we should be afraid of the little French man!" Felix chuckled and I shrugged my shoulders.

"Fred loves Charles. The moment Ferrari announced Binotto‘s departure and that Fred would take over, I knew Charles would be getting a new contract."

"I guess we can expect big things from Ferrari this season then? I heard that Fred was heavily involved in the construction and design of this years car? He also brought in some new engineers and technicians over the last year?" Pete said and I nodded.

"You heard it here first: Charles will be our world champion at the end of the season." I smiled and Matt clapped his hands.

"You know what? If Charles wins, I jump in the harbour in Abu Dhabi." he said and I laughed.

"That’s a deal then!" I gave him a high five and we laughed "You should wear some swim shorts under your suit then."

"We’ll see." he shrugged and Felix got up.

"Alright folks, enough with the jokes, let’s focus on our car and our season, how does that sound?" he looked around and I nodded determined.

"Let’s do this!" Valtteri said next to me.

"Let the season begin!" I clapped my hands and so it all began.

Hours and hours in the simulator, giving feedback about every little vibration, every little anomaly we felt. But when we presented the new car, had the first tests and then head off for Bahrain, I was confident.

"Can I get you anything?" the flight attendant asked and I shook my head "For you Sir?"

"No, thanks." Charles smiled at her and she left "I can’t believe that the season starts again already…"

"Yeah? It feels like just yesterday we were in New Zealand?" I yawned, leaning back in my seat.

"Right? The last weeks literally flew by!" Charles said and I nodded.

"I’m really excited tho. I think we have a good car…" I looked at him and he grinned.

"Yeah? We too, I think…" he replied with a soft smile on his lips "We’ll see, I guess."

"I think you’re doing great this year. No, I know you’re doing great." I kissed his cheek and he laughed a little.

"Like I said, we‘ll see." Charles chuckled.

"Oh we will." I cuddled into his side.

"And we are back for the 2024 Formula 1 Championship starting here in Bahrain with race weekend number 1 of 24! With us today Lizzie Doetterer, Audi, George Russell, Mercedes, Oscar Piastri, McLaren, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari and Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin. Now let’s start with you Lizzie, winter break, it seems like you and Charles went a little off grid? Renting a camper van, exploring New Zealand all alone? Tell us a little bit about your break, please." Tom Clarkson smiled at me and I picked up the microphone.

"Yeah, we thought we would do something a little unconventional. Not just some nice beach resort. We did a lot of different activities in New Zealand. Hiking, climbing, surfing, but we also tried some more extreme stuff like bungee jumping and sky diving. It was an amazing trip and we can’t wait to come back to this amazing country." I said and George looked at me.

"Bungee jumping? Sky diving? Aren’t F1 cars enough for you guys?" he laughed and I shrugged my shoulders.

"You know us, we love action." I chuckled and he nodded "What did you do? Just relax and do nothing?"

"Basically…" George laughed.

Clarkson asked the other drivers about their break and then sat up a little, looking at us.

"Now let’s talk a little about contracts. I think we were all a bit shocked by the news that Lewis will leave Mercedes at the end of the year to join Ferrari? Your thoughts on that? George?" Clarkson said.

"Of course we were all a little shocked. But Lewis did so much for this team. He was an amazing team mate and now we want to end our journey together on a high." he answered and I nodded.

The rest of the drivers answered the questions and soon it was time for the journalists to ask their questions.

"Carlos, are the rumours true? Are there talks with Audi for the next season? We know your father is a highly cherished member of the Audi Sports family, is he talking with the F1 team?"

I swallowed hard when I heard that question, but what was even worse was the smile on Sainz face.

"There are always rumours, right now I’m focused on my last year with Ferrari. But of course I have to think ahead."

"That’s not a no."

"No, it’s not." Sainz laughed, his head slightly tilting, looking at me, smirking.

What the actual fuck? Was Sainz after my seat?

Chapter 42 - sooooo our two lovebirds didn’t marry after all 😅 I have something else planned for these two in their future 😇

Please leave a comment/ like/ reblog/ message and tell me how you liked it! I'm dying to hear your thoughts!

If you want to be added to the taglist, drop a comment!

Last but not least, English is not my first language and although I tried my best: please excuse any mistakes I made!

Taglist:

@silkenthusiasts @eugene-emt-roe @sunny44 @itsjustkhaos @glitterquadricorn @aundercover @kakorrhaphiphobia @alittlebitofbooksandmagic @ru-kru @shimmermotorsport @janeh22 @kahhorri @18754389 @chiliwhore @hellowgoodbye @queensassybitchsworld @harrysdimple05 @skynel09 @4nor1zz6

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vc55bughead · 6 months ago

Note

Bestie....I have terrible news

EVERYTHING IS GOING TO BE FINE- HES GONNA COOL OFF AND ACTUALLY APOLOGIZE......god I hate this feeling- I love him but GOD REALLY DUDE? even my toxic positivity can't stop me from feeling sad. AND ALSO OOOF OK: did he absolutely shit the bed with how he did things ABSOLUTELY however twt has a horrible way of "holding people accountable" because they don't.....they really just bully people and they're 0 place for prospective. Here's an example: I was part of a fandom for a bit and I tweeted a controversial opinion (big mistakes) and the quote tweets and replies and just everything got ugly so I was a coward and blocked everyone and deleted the tweet because my anxiety was through the roof. Granted this is obviously bigger than all that but the anxiety and sheer defensiveness you suddenly feel is intense (WHICH IS WHY YOU SHOULD NEVER TWEET WHILE GOING THROUGH THE MOTIONS) and Damien is a good person. He has a good heart. But he CANT keep letting his emotions take control because THIS is what happens. I really hope he grows and learns. I love my boy but I'm mad. And with all that said

FUCK THE ABLEISTS COMMENTS HES GETTING BECAUSE THATS FUCKED UP NO MATTER WHAT.

......god can't I join a drama free fandom for ONCE?!

Thank god for anxiety meds and hugs from my mom fr. And truly I hope he's in a good place and takes this as a learning moment.

💜 tldr: I'm tired and you can love someone and be mad/hold them accountable for their actions.

#smosh #damien haas #free palestine #get these bitches a publicist fr

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grayhyacinth · 2 months ago

Text

The Wishmaker Star

Go watch season three of The Owl House! I hope you guys enjoy another work I wrote. Unfortuantly, school is about to start again, so I'm not sure when I'll create another work. But, I won't forget about you.

Links: ao3, tumblr, masterlist

Hunter’s POV:

“…do you think she’s going to like it?”

“Dude, you know she’s been wanting a palisman for like... over five years!” Augustus sighed in exasperation, pinching the bridge of his nose before sliding his fingers down the length of it.

“Yeah! I know, but—”

“Plus, you’ve been carving palistrom wood to make her the perfect palisman.” Gus added air quotes, emphasizing the last two words with a teasing smirk. “She’s going to love it.”

“…really? You think so?” The former Golden Guard turned the small, carefully wrapped gift box in his hand a few times, as if the motion could help him decide whether its contents were truly enough.

“Really.” Gus nodded with confidence, locking eyes with Hunter. “Now, come on! We’re gonna be late to the party!” He stopped mid-stride, suddenly grabbing Hunter’s hand and tugging him into a sprint.

“Haha, hey! Okay!” Despite the laughter in his voice, Hunter couldn’t shake the undercurrent of anxiety brewing inside him. What if you hated it? What if the last thing you wanted was a gift from someone who used to serve Belos?

His fingers tightened around the gift as they dashed through the forest, the sight of The Owl House growing closer. Deep down, he desperately hoped you’d appreciate it. More than that—he hoped you’d understand what the gift really meant to him. What you meant to him.

He blinked in shock. Did he really just think that? His ears burned bright red, and he forced the thoughts away, but they lingered, hanging in the back of his mind as they neared the clearing.

The trees thinned, revealing the tip of the familiar crooked roof, smoke billowing from a lit, bubbling cauldron. The scent of delicious food greeted them, and the sound of laughter echoed through the clearing, filling the space with warmth.

His eyes were instantly drawn to you.

“Haha, seriously, Luz?”

“Oh, come on! Don’t tell me you didn’t find that funny!” Luz was grinning, clearly proud of herself, but you were shaking your head, still chuckling.

“Your attempt at a dazzling light show ended up with random colorful sparks chasing each other around! You almost set King on fire!”

Your laugh rang out again, your head tilted back, eyes crinkled in a way that made you absolutely radiant in Hunter’s eyes. It had been three long months since your last visit to the Boiling Isles. And he missed you.

(Y/n) POV:

Returning to the Boiling Isle was like a breath of fresh air after drowning in the Human world. While Luz occasionally visited the Isle, you had thrown yourself into preparing for your exams, working day and night to secure your place at your dream university.

And now, you had done it. The letter was sitting back in your room, in the Owl House, confirming your acceptance. Tonight’s "Night Under the Stars" party wasn’t just a reunion with friends—it was the perfect chance to announce your plans for the future. But that didn’t stop the nerves boiling beneath your excitement.

Out of the corner of your eye, you spotted Gus and Hunter making their way through the crowd. The moment your gaze met Hunter’s, a wide smile spread across your face, and you waved energetically.

“Gus! Hunter! You made it!”

Gus approached first, grinning as he handed you a blue gift bag decorated with silver stars. “The party looks awesome, (Y/N)!”

“Thanks, Gus!” You took the bag, your excitement bubbling over. “You didn’t have to get me anything, though!”

He shrugged dramatically. “It’s either a gift or a firework show, and let’s just say... my track record with fireworks isn’t the best.”

You laughed. “You mean the time you nearly set Luz’s eyebrows on fire?”

Gus pointed at you. “Exactly! See, I’m learning from my mistakes. No more ‘explosive’ gifts. I went safe this time.” He gestured to the bag.

Peeking into the shimmering tissue paper, you raised an eyebrow. “Should I be worried about this gift now?”

Gus waved his hands quickly, eyes wide. “No, no! I swear, it’s not dangerous. This time it’s actually cool! Just, uh, make sure you open it carefully… outside.”

You shot him a playful glare. “Gus!”

He laughed, nudging you. “Just kidding.”

Hunter stood a little behind Gus, awkwardly shifting the small, carefully wrapped box in his hands. He took a deep breath, holding the gift out to you, his gaze darting nervously to the ground.

“I… uh, made this. For you.” His voice was quiet, and his ears were still red. “I hope you like it.”

You took a step away from Gus, eyeing the gift box with curiosity. It was wrapped in a beautiful shade of magenta, one that almost perfectly resembled Hunter’s eyes. A neatly tied yellow ribbon sat on top, forming a large, slightly uneven bow that added a cute, personal touch. You couldn’t help but smile—Hunter was really getting good at arts and crafts.

“This is…?” you asked, your voice soft as you carefully reached out, your fingers brushing against his as he held the box. His hand felt warm and rough, calloused from endless hours of training and carving. You couldn’t help but notice the small bandages wrapped around each finger, a testament to how much care and effort he must have put into this.

Your eyes flicked up to his face. Hunter’s blush deepened, his freckled cheeks glowing a light pink as his eyes darted anywhere but yours. He seemed frozen, caught between the hope that you'd like it and the fear that you wouldn’t. It was endearing, seeing the normally composed Hunter so nervous.

His voice barely came out in a whisper. “It’s, uh... just something I made. I wasn’t sure if it was good enough…”

You smiled, squeezing his hand gently to reassure him. “Hunter, you didn’t have to—”

“I wanted to,” he interrupted quickly, almost panicking at the thought that you might dismiss it. His eyes finally met yours for a second before he looked away again, clearly embarrassed by his own outburst. “I mean, I just… I thought you might like it. If you don’t, that’s fine too! I just—”

You cut him off with a soft laugh, feeling your own cheeks warm. “I haven’t even opened it yet, but I already know I’m going to love it.”

Hunter blinked, surprised by your words, but his shoulders relaxed ever so slightly. His lips twitched upward in the smallest of smiles as he mumbled, “I’m glad…”

You carefully took the box from his hands, your heart fluttering at how much thought he must have put into this. Whatever was inside, it already felt special. You looked up at him again, giving him another warm smile. "Thank you, Hunter. Really."

He cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "Yeah, uh... you're welcome." He stole a quick glance at you, his blush deepening again.

You glanced over at Luz, who was giving you and Hunter a smirking look, clearly enjoying the awkward tension. “I think there’s a couple more things left to do before the party can start, right, Luz?” You raised an eyebrow at her, trying to shift the attention away from you and Hunter.

Luz’s smirk widened, her eyes gleaming with mischief. “Oh, totally! But, you know, I think we could give you two a little more time to… finish your moment.” She wiggled her eyebrows dramatically.

You rolled your eyes, suppressing a laugh. “Luz.”

She snickered. “Okay, okay! I’ll behave. But yeah, there’s a couple last-minute things to get done. I’ll go grab the snacks from the kitchen, and King’s in charge of making sure everything goes well. You know how much he loves bossing everyone around.”

Hunter let out a small, awkward laugh, scratching the back of his head. “Sounds like King…”

“Yup! Little guy’s already giving me a lecture about optimal stargazing positions,” Luz added with a grin. “But we’ve got it all under control. You two just… keep doing whatever you’re doing.”

“Luz!” you called, a mix of embarrassment and amusement coloring your tone as she dashed off with a mischievous wave.

Hunter stood beside you, looking slightly flustered but smiling softly. You turned back to him, giving him an apologetic shrug. “She’s… well, Luz.”

“Yeah,” he chuckled, eyes softening as he looked at you. “She is.”

While Amity worked her culinary magic in the kitchen, preparing delicious treats and savory bites, Willow was outside weaving a tapestry of glowing enchanted flowers. Gus was busy setting up a stereo system and curating a playlist.

Lilith, ever the organizer, took charge of a trivia game focused on the magical history of stars and constellations. Eda zipped around with King to assist wherever needed—whether it was adjusting decorations, fetching supplies, or simply keeping an eye on things to make sure everything was running smoothly.

Hooty, with his characteristic enthusiasm, took on the role of party greeter and entertainer. He offered his over-the-top hospitality, engaging in animated conversations.

As for you and Hunter, you were hard at work preparing the stargazing area. Together, you laid out an array of soft blankets and pillows, arranging them in inviting clusters around the open space. You made sure there were ample cozy spots for guests to lounge and gaze up at the stars. Hunter adjusted the placement of a few blankets to ensure that everyone had an unobstructed view of the night sky.

Taking a step back, you admired the sight before you. The sun was dipping below the horizon, casting a final burst of orange and pink across the sky. As the daylight faded, the first stars began to twinkle, their light growing clearer against the deepening blue of the evening. It was a breathtaking backdrop for the night’s festivities.

With a deep breath, you called out, “Everyone! It’s time!” Your voice carried across the gathering, amplified by the excitement in the air.

Gradually, the guests made their way to their chosen spots, finding cozy places among the clusters of blankets and pillows you and Hunter had arranged. Plates of snacks and small bites were passed around, with some guests holding their treats in hand as they settled in. The soft murmur of conversation began to mingle with the occasional burst of laughter, while the louder chatter from Hooty and the background music set a lively, cheerful tone.

As everyone settled in, the trivia game organized by Lilith started to draw interest, with guests eagerly gathering around to test their knowledge of magical history.

"What rare type of star is known for emitting a gentle, calming glow that can soothe even the most agitated magical beings?”

“Oh! I know!” Willow immediately raised her hand. She was literally clutching a finger, hence the name for finger food, and waved it around excitedly. “The Tranquil Star?”

“Very good, Willow!” Lilith responded with a proud smile. She marked a point on her chalkboard, which rested on her lap. “Next question: Which star is known to be the source of the most potent moonlight magic used in spells and enchantments?”

“Hmmm…” You furrowed your brow, trying to recall your Astrology Class lessons at Hexite. But before you could come up with the answer, Eda chimed in, leaning back with a confident grin.

“Obviously, the Silver Beacon,” Eda declared, casually biting into a piece of spicy manticore jerky. “These questions are too easy. Either you’re getting rusty with your history, Lilly, or I’m just a natural.”

Lilith’s smile widened, clearly enjoying the challenge. She noted a point for Eda on the chalkboard. “Alright then,” she said, rubbing her hands together in preparation for a tougher question. “What is the name of the mystical star that is said to appear only once every hundred years and grants a single wish to those who find it?”

A hush fell over the group. Everyone furrowed their brows, deep in thought, but no one could come up with the answer.

Lilith’s eyes twinkled with a mix of anticipation and mischief. “Come on, folks,” she teased. “Anyone want to take a guess, or should I reveal the answer?”

Amity speaks first, tapping her chin thoughtfully with a finger. Her other arm is wrapped securely around Luz, drawing her close. “How about giving us a hint?” she suggests, her tone light but eager.

Everyone nods in agreement. Lilith, clearly enjoying the playful challenge, grins and leans forward. “Alright, I’ll give you a hint,” she says, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “The name of this star is said in stories we read to children.”

You spent a lot of time in the library, a habit sparked partly by Amity and Luz’s influence, but also because you genuinely enjoyed delving into the rich history and lore of the Boiling Isles. As you pondered Lilith's hint, a classic children's story came to mind. You murmured the title under your breath, “The Wishmaker Star.”

Hearing your whispered answer, Lilith’s eyes lit up with approval. “That’s right!” she exclaimed. “Nicely done, (Y/n)!”

The group erupted in applause, impressed by your knowledge. Lilith marked another point on her chalkboard, and the trivia game continued with a renewed sense of enthusiasm.

Once the trivia game ended, with Gus emerging as the clear winner, the friendly competition had everyone in high spirits, and now it was time for the much-anticipated moment: opening the wrapped gifts.

You gathered the colorful packages, each one tied with cheerful ribbons and adorned with heartfelt tags.

The first gift you unwrapped was from Amity. It came in a shimmering purple bag, and as you carefully lifted the tissue paper, you found a beautifully crafted crystal pendant. The pendant was shaped like a star, with intricate details that caught the light in a mesmerizing way.

Amity watched with a hopeful smile as you admired the pendant. “I thought it might be a nice reminder of the stars we’ve spent so many nights talking about,” she explained.

You were touched by the thoughtful gift and hugged Amity gratefully. “It’s perfect, Amity. Thank you so much!” you said, your voice filled with warmth.

The next gift was from Luz. In her yellow gift bag, you discovered a small, leather-bound journal. The journal’s pages were blank, inviting you to fill them with your thoughts, dreams, and magical discoveries. Luz had added a personal touch by writing a heartfelt note on the first page, expressing her pride in your achievements and her hopes for your future. You rushed over to hug her tightly.

Luz’s said enthusiastically. “I’m glad you like it. I thought it would be perfect for your new adventures,” she said, her tone filled with sincerity.

After that, you made sure to open each gift and to express gratitude with heartfelt joy.

Eda had gifted you a charming, hand-carved wooden charm that depicted a playful owl. The charm was both whimsical and meaningful, capturing Eda’s unique sense of magic and mischief. “I figured you could use a bit of my own brand of luck,” Eda said with a wink. “Besides, owls are good for keeping watch!”

Lilith’s gift was a beautifully crafted set of magical candles, each one infused with different enchantments. There was a candle for relaxation, one for focus, and another for inspiration. “These are to help you with your studies and your adventures,” Lilith explained with a warm smile. “Light them when you need a little extra magic.”

Gus’s gift was a set of magical quills and enchanted ink. Gus had been excited to see you use them, and his enthusiasm was evident. “I just knew you’d appreciate these for your notes and sketches,” he had said. “Be careful with that though. Only write with the bright green ink when you want something to come to life!”

Willow’s present was a collection of enchanted botanical seeds. Each seed had its own magical properties, such as glowing flowers or plants that could change colors with the seasons. “I thought you’d enjoy growing these,” Willow said with a shy but proud smile. “They’re a little bit of nature’s magic for your home.”

Next, was Hooty’s gift. The eccentric owl had been practically bursting with excitement, his eyes gleaming as he hopped around. With a dramatic flourish, he coughed up a large, oddly-shaped package that landed with a soft thud in front of you.

As you carefully peeled away the wrapping dripping with salvia, you discovered a bizarre but intriguing gift: a large, enchanted plushie that looked like a cross between a fuzzy critter and a whimsical creature. The plushie had multiple eyes and an array of mismatched limbs that wiggled amusingly.

Hooty, still brimming with enthusiasm, explained, “Surprise! I thought you could use a little friend to keep you company. This is Hooty’s special buddy, Fluffernox!”

“Haha…” You held the disturbing stuffed animal at arms length. “Thanks… Hooty…”

Lastly, you turned your attention to Hunter’s gift. His hands trembled slightly as you carefully untied the ribbon and unfolded the wrapping paper. Inside was a small, intricately carved wooden box. You noticed that the lid of the box had your initials. As you lifted the lid, you discovered a delicate, handcrafted palisman. The palisman was adorned with symbols and a subtle glow, reflecting the effort and care Hunter had put into its creation.

You were momentarily speechless, your eyes wide with amazement. “Hunter… This is incredible!” you finally managed to say, your voice filled with awe. “I’m truly surprised. It’s beautiful.” You held up the small creature, admiring it’s weight in your hand and the aesthetic.

Hunter leaned in, his hair brushing lightly against your forehead as he gently cupped your hands, holding the palisman between you. “All it needs to come to life is to know your deepest desire,” he whispered, his voice soft and intent. The warmth of his hands and the fresh scent of his shampoo made your pulse quicken. Heat rose to your cheeks, but Hunter was so focused on the palisman, he didn’t notice the way your gaze lingered on him.

“I—” you hesitated, the words catching in your throat. What was your deepest desire? What did you truly want? The weight of that question felt almost unbearable, and you swallowed hard, feeling the pressure of the moment closing in. Now was the time to tell them—about your future, your plans, everything.

You gently pulled your hands back, allowing the palisman to fall into Hunter’s palms. His expression shifted to one of confusion, but before he could ask, you stepped away, the silence from everyone around you suddenly heavy. Their eyes were on you—waiting, watching. You felt as though the weight of their expectations was pressing down on you, making it hard to breathe.

Your hand trembled as you clenched it into a tight fist, trying to steady yourself. You took a deep breath, scanning the faces of the people you cherished. They all looked at you with concern, curiosity, and affection.

“I… I have something to tell you guys,” you finally managed, your voice cracking just a little under the pressure. The words hung in the air, each one harder to say than the last. “I’m staying in the Human Realm.”

They blinked Everyone stared at you, stunned. You could feel the weight of their surprise, their confusion, and the sharp, heavy moment that seemed to stretch between all of you.

The silence that followed your announcement felt endless, thick with shock. You could see the confusion in their eyes, the sudden tension between excitement and uncertainty. Even Hooty, usually brimming with chatter, was silent, his long body frozen in place.

Luz instantly stood up, her wide eyes reflecting disbelief before she finally broke the silence. “Wait… you’re staying?” Her voice was a mix of confusion and hurt.

You nodded, your throat tightening. “Yeah. I got accepted into my dream university in the human world. It’s… it’s a huge opportunity for me.”

Amity’s eyes widened in understanding, but there was a flicker of sadness. She squeezed Luz’s hand. “You didn’t tell us. All this time, you’ve been planning to leave?”

“I didn’t know how to say it,” you admitted, feeling your heart pound harder in your chest. “I didn’t want to make anyone upset.”

Eda let out a low whistle, crossing her arms. Her usual smirk was replaced with something else, something more thoughtful. “Well, kid, that’s one heck of an announcement. I get it, though. You’ve got big dreams.”

Gus, stepped forward with his usual enthusiasm dimmed by concern. “Does this mean you won’t be coming back? Like, ever?”

Hunter, still holding the palisman in his hands, was the quietest. His magenta eyes darted between you and the small creature. His mouth opened slightly, but he hesitated to speak, clearly grappling with what this meant.

The pressure from their reactions hit you hard, and you tried to steady yourself. “I didn’t tell you guys sooner because…” you paused, taking a shaky breath, “because I wasn’t sure. It wasn’t an easy decision, but after everything that’s happened, I think it’s what I need.”

Luz’s lips trembled, her hand gripping Amity’s tighter. “But we’re your family too,” she said softly, her voice breaking slightly. “Are we… not enough?”

Her words cut deep, and you felt your heart ache as you tried to explain. “It’s not about that,” you said quickly, “it’s not about any of you not being enough. I love you all so much. But… I have a life back in the Human Realm. I’ve worked so hard to get into this university. I need to follow through with that, with my own future.”

Eda let out a small sigh and rubbed the back of her neck. “You’ve got to do what feels right for you, kid,” she said, her voice softer now. “It’s a tough call, but… I get it.”

Hunter, finally finding his voice, spoke quietly. “And the palisman…?” His eyes searched yours, his fingers brushing over the wooden surface. “It won’t come to life if you don’t… if you’re not here.”

You looked down at the palisman, the weight of his words sinking in. This creature, a symbol of magic, connection, and belonging in the Boiling Isles, would never awaken in the Human Realm. You felt a pang of guilt, but you stood by your choice.

Hunter didn’t said anything else, but his eyes met yours for a brief moment. There was something deeper in his gaze—something that made your stomach flutter with uncertainty. Finally, he broke the silence. “I’m happy for you,” he said quietly, his voice steady but laced with something unspoken. “This palisman… it’s for you, wherever you go.”

He reached out his arm, beckoning for you to take the palisman. You looked up at him and then back towards the creature. “Thank you, Hunter.” You said, your voice heavy. “I’ll—”

“Will you be gone forever?” Willow’s voice trembled, her lips quivering. She adjusted her glasses to hide the sight of tears brimming the edges of her eyes.

You shook your head quickly. “No, I mean—I’ll visit, of course. I’m not disappearing forever. I just… I need to do this. For myself.”

Lilith reached out and squeezed your arm gently. “We’re happy for you, you know? It’s just… we’re going to miss you.” She was the first to squish you into a hug. Everyone else followed suit, attaching themselves to you as if they could somehow keep you from leaving by holding you close. It was overwhelming, the way everyone piled on with their arms wrapped around you—each hug a reminder of the bond you shared.

“We’ll be like one of those inter-dimensional friend groups!” Gus continued, his voice muffled by the group hug. “We’ll visit you in the Human Realm, and you can visit us here. It’ll be epic!”

Luz, still clinging tightly to you, added, “Yeah! We’ve got portals! Nothing’s stopping us from seeing you.” "You better not forget about me, your majesty!" King puff out his chest. "After all, who else is going to teach you about ruling the world? I can’t have my future co-ruler running off to the Human Realm without a plan!"

Hunter stood a little apart, watching quietly. His arms folded across his chest, but you could tell he was trying to process it all in his own way. He still held the palisman carefully, his fingers tracing the edges absentmindedly.

As for Hooty, he'd suddenly stretch his long, bendy body over to you, making his presence known with his usual unsettling enthusiasm. "OH, (Y/N), MY BEST FRIEND IN THE WHOLE WORLD! YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME!" He’d dramatically sob, then in a disturbing twist, he’d blurt out, "Do you need a Hooty-sized suitcase? I can pack myself inside and come with you!"

You looked at the weird creature. Hooty was… unexplainable. You were gonna miss him.

Eda, ever the practical one, ruffled your hair gently. “Kid, you’ve gotta do what makes you happy. We’ll survive without you... somehow,” she teased, but there was a glimmer of emotion in her eyes too.

As the hugs loosened and everyone stepped back, the weight of the moment settled in. You weren’t disappearing from their lives, but things would be different. There was a bittersweetness in the air, knowing that this was a goodbye of sorts—not forever, but for now.

As the group slowly dispersed, leaving you a moment to catch your breath, you faced the blond boy. He stood there quietly, his hands shoved into his pockets, his gaze shifting between you and the sky above.

"Hey," you said softly, trying to catch his eye.

He looked at you, his usual guarded expression softer than you’d seen it before. “(Y/n)…” he replied, though his voice was quieter than usual. It was like he wanted to say something, but he couldn’t find the words. For a moment, there was silence—neither of you quite knowing what to say.

“I... I guess this is it, huh?” he murmured, his voice barely above a whisper. His gaze finally lifted, and you could see the mixture of emotions swirling in his magenta eyes—uncertainty, sadness, and something else that made your heart skip a beat.

You offered him a small smile, stepping closer until you were only a breath away. “It’s not goodbye, Hunter,” you said softly. “It’s more like... see you later.”

He nodded, though his shoulders still seemed tense. “Yeah, but... it won’t be the same. I won’t be able to just... you know, see you whenever.” His hand clenched around the palisman for a moment before he loosened his grip, offering it to you again. “Here. Take it. You should have it.”

You reached out and gently closed your hand over his, pushing the it back toward him. “No, Hunter,” you said, your voice steady. “I want you to keep it safe for me. That way... I’ll have a reason to come back. To see you.”

Hunter’s breath hitched slightly, and his eyes widened in surprise. For a moment, it was as if the world had quieted around the two of you. Then, with a soft exhale, he smiled—a real, genuine smile that lit up his face in a way you hadn’t seen before.

“I... I’ll keep it safe,” he promised, his voice more certain now. “And... I’ll be here. Waiting.”

Without thinking, you closed the distance between you, wrapping your arms around him in a tight, warm hug. He stiffened for a second, clearly taken by surprise, but then he slowly relaxed into the embrace, his arms wrapping around you in return. It was a quiet, tender moment—no words needed, just the unspoken understanding between you.

“I’ll miss you,” you whispered, your cheek resting against his shoulder.

Hunter’s grip tightened slightly, his breath warm against your hair. “I’ll miss you too,” he whispered back, his voice soft but full of sincerity.

As everyone murmured in agreement to start star gazing, Hunter tugged you along to a soft picnic blanket. As the night grew deeper and the stars twinkled above, a particularly bright one caught your eye. It shimmered in the sky, a little brighter than the rest, almost like it was watching over you. You recognized it immediately, your breath catching in your throat.

“The Wishmaker Star,” you whispered, pointing it out to Hunter.

Hunter’s eyes followed your gesture, widening when he saw it. “What would you wish for?” Hunter’s voice was quiet, almost hesitant, as he looked over at you. His hand was still wrapped in yours, grounding you in the present.

You looked up at the star, thinking about everything—your journey, the friendships you’d built, and the uncertain path that lay ahead in the human world. But then your gaze shifted to Hunter, sitting beside you, his face illuminated by the soft starlight. After a long pause, you answered.

“I don’t think I need to make a wish,” you said softly, a smile tugging at the corners of your lips. “I already have everything I need. Friends who care about me... and people I’ll always come back to.”

Hunter’s expression softened, his grip on your hand tightening slightly. “I think I’d wish for the same thing,” he murmured, glancing back at the Wishmaker Star. “To keep what I’ve found.”

A moment of comfortable silence passed between you, the star continuing to shine brightly above, as if blessing the quiet bond you shared. You leaned your head against Hunter’s shoulder, your heart full, and together, you both watched as the star slowly began to fade into the night.

And as it vanished into the sea of stars, leaving only its soft glow behind, you felt a sense of peace wash over you. Wishes weren’t always about longing for something new—they could be about holding onto the moments and people you already had. And under that starlit sky, you knew that no matter where life took you, this connection, this feeling, would stay with you—just like the legend of the Wishmaker Star.

Hunter whispered, almost to himself, “Maybe we didn’t need the star to grant our wish. Maybe it’s already come true.”

And under the vast, starry sky, with the warmth of his hand in yours, you couldn’t help but think he was right.

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creaturebloom · 5 months ago

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so plans have changed a little and my mom is getting cataract surgery today instead of thursday !! and this is good except we have no idea what time the actual surgery will be bc the doctor is staying late to do it and also it's a high-risk surgery for my mom bc of other factors

and im just nervous about being home alone with my dad for so many hours and i'm nervous that something will go wrong at the hospital and my mom will be like blind or really sick or something awful

or that here that weird dude who was harassing our neighborhood will come back despite the fact it's been 2 weeks and there's been no sign of him at all

and im trying to be so brave rn but my anxiety is through the roof so if u wanna be like "hey champ you got this and literally nothing bad will happen at all" i would love that thank u my friends ♥

#whiny baby post

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celestiall0tus · 1 month ago

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What If It's Us - Julemarc - Anxiety

Table of Contents

Marc was dragged towards the Agreste manor as Nathaniel and Nino chatted excitedly. He tuned in and out of their conversation, unsure of where they were going, but was happy to go along with Nathaniel. He had wanted to spend more time together outside of their comic, but the anxiety was eating at him. He had to ask.

“H-hey, Nathaniel? Wh-where exactly are we going?” Marc asked.

“Huh? Oh, we’re going to throw a little party for Adrien instead of joining the girls.”

Marc paled. “Party? Gee, that sounds, uh, nice, but I don’t exactly do well with parties.”

“Relax, my dude. It’ll just be a small one with us guys. No worries,” Nino butted in.

Marc looked away, unsure of it all, but played along. He kept to himself as the other guys from school showed up and they all hung out with Adrien. It was fun until more and more people showed up. He felt his anxiety shoot through the roof with the large crowd that was crammed into Adrien’s bedroom. He slipped out and left the Agreste manor behind him as he headed for the Seine where the girls were.

Marc paused as he peeked over the corner to see Alya, Rose, Alix, Mylene, and Juleka. He took a deep breath and came out from his hiding spot. He opened his mouth but tripped over himself and fell flat on his face. He felt their eyes burn into him as he laid there. He whimpered softly and pulled his hood over his head to escape their gazes, but it didn’t help. He laid there until Juleka gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

“You… ok?” Juleka asked.

Marc shot up to his feet and startled Juleka. “I’m perfectly fine. Yup! As fine as fine can be! I’ll just… I’ll be over there, uh, helping.”

Marc retreated to a far off section of planters before the others could say anything to him. He let out a breath of relief as he started on the tree saplings in the area. He slowly worked on planting them alone until Juleka joined him. He shrank back as she stared at him.

“You… ok?” Juleka asked.

“I… yes. I’m fine. Nothing to worry about.”

Juleka narrowed her eyes as she glared at him.

Marc gulped and avoided her gaze. “No, really. Everything is fine.”

Juleka didn’t relent and glared at Marc still.

Marc took a deep breath and moved around Juleka as he continued to work. He tried to block out Juleka’s glare, but felt it burn into him worse than the others. He whimpered and crumbled behind a planter.

“Not… ok,” Juleka remarked.

Marc shook his head. “No, of course not. I wanted to hang out with Nathaniel today, but that all went up in smoke. I thought maybe I could hang out with you girls where it’d be quieter, but I feel like I’m making a mess of myself. I just… I want to go home.”

“Why have you not?”

“I… I don’t know.”

Juleka looked at Marc, then the planters. She offered her hand to him.

“Juleka?”

“Help. Together.”

Marc raised a brow before he looked over at the planters. “You want to help me finish these?”

Juleka nodded.

Marc considered and nodded as he took Juleka’s hand. They worked together in silence to finish the task. He felt his anxiety melt away in Juleka’s quiet presence. There was no expectation or anything, just to be, and it was refreshing. He found himself smiling as they finished their job.

“Better?” Juleka asked.

“Yeah. Thank you.”

“Did not… do anything.”

“Well, no, but just being around you helped me relax. It was nice, especially since I’m always nervous around Nathaniel, but not you. It felt good. Would you maybe want to hang out again?”

Juleka blinked as a slight blush formed on her cheeks.

Marc’s eyes slowly widened as his anxiety tore through him. “No, not like a date. I mean, I’m not sure I really like girls, expect you. You’re really cool, and I like you. Ah! But I don’t mean like, like, but I like you. I just… I thought… we could hang out some time without the others. Or with them too. Just, like, not that many, y’know? I… I’m… I’m sorry.”

“I… would like… that. Tomorrow?”

“Huh, oh! Uh, yeah! Tomorrow works perfectly. I was supposed to hang with Nathaniel, but I’d much rather hang with you. I mean! Because you’re cool and relaxing to be around… like a friend!”

Juleka blushed still as she looked away and tucked her hair behind her ear. “Tomorrow then?”

“Yeah, tomorrow.

Patreon || Discord || Ko-Fi

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous #miraculoustalesofladybugandcatnoir #miraculous au #au #alternate universe #fanfiction writer #fanfiction #fanfic #julemarc #rare pair #rarepair #juleka couffaine #marc anciel #what if it's us au

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dragonfirerogue-writes · 2 years ago

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Can't Keep My Eyes Off You

Jade x FtM!Reader

For @zoomdeathknight

You were sitting at the Asphalt Cafe, waiting for your sisters to arrive to get their food. Trina messaged you while you were working out, practically demanding Thai food. While you weren't one to give into Trina easily, you still loved her and would try to do nice things for both her and Tori. So you agreed, getting Tori's order as well. At least you had time to shower beforehand this time.

Students began to file out to the courtyard around you. You take a quick glance around to try and find Trina but then figure that you would hear her before you saw her. As you glance down at your phone, you miss the amount of eyes starting to stare at you. The whispers, however, reached your ears.

"Who is that?"

"I dunno, but daaaamnnmn...."

"Who's the lucky bitch he's waiting for?"

"His hair looks so soft..."

"Look at his muscles..."

The mutterings made you a little self conscious about being here. Your hand runs through your split blonde/black hair, unintentionally flexing and causing several girls to swoon.

"C'mon, Trina," you mumble. "Get out here already..."

As if on cue, Trina's booming voice echoes around the outdoor cafe.

"Finally! My love has arrived!"

People are absolutely baffled as the older Vega sister runs towards you, only to slap their foreheads when she goes straight for the take-out bags.

"Pad Thai, you never disappoint." She says as she essentially cradles the box of noodles. You just deadpan at her with a wave.

"Hi. Brother here. You know, the one who brought your food?"

Trina ignores you and walks away.

"... You're welcome!?"

A pat on your shoulder draws your incredulous glare away from Trina to the sympathetic smile of Tori.

"I, for one, appreciate you going outta your way. Thanks, Y/N." She gives you a hug before reaching for her own food. "Oooh! Rangoons!"

"At least my good deed is appreciated." You share a laugh with Tori as her friends begin to join you at the table.

"Whoa, you got Thai food and you're not sharing?" Andre asked as soon as he sat down.

"Blame Trina. I just took advantage."

"And I had the free time."

"Oh, hey dude. I'm Andre." He stuck his hand out, allowing you to take and shake it.

"Yo. I'm Y/N, The Vega adopted child."

Robbie pops up then, seemingly out of nowhere.

"Wait, since when?"

"Yeah, why would you subject yourself to living with Trina?" Said Rex.

You take a moment to register that a PUPPET just spoke. Before you could answer, the rest of your sister's friends arrive.

"Who's the beefcake?"

Your eyebrows furrow as you turn to look at the person who, in tone, sounded like they insulted you. However, as soon as your eyes meet ocean ones, all of your annoyance melts away. While the rest of the group chatters away, you and the infamous Jade begin a staring contest.

She sits down, eyes never leaving yours. In your peripheral, you can see a small smirk forming on her lips. It causes one to spring from your own. Eventually, her eyes move, analyzing and appraising your whole form. Your body burns from the focus, but it wasn't entirely unpleasant. At least until another person literally pulls you away.

"Ohmigod, you're so hot. What's your name? Can I touch your hair? Flex for me pleaseeeee"

The barrage of questions from the random girl caught you extremely off guard. You weren't even allowed to answer as more and more girls begin to surround you.

"How are you so real?"

"Is everything about you this buff?"

"God, you're even hotter than Beck."

You barely register the incredulous sputtering from somewhere behind you. Tori's voice is getting lost in the girlish chatter as she tries to get to you. Your anxiety was going through the roof. It wasn't until a booming voice pierced through the rumpus.

"ALRIGHT BACK IT UP, YA VULTURES!"

Jade almost literally cuts through the group of girls surrounding you, brandishing her signature scissors. She maneuvers the gaggle until they are in front of her, keeping you behind her with Tori comforting you.

"While we can all agree that Y/N is hot, that doesn't mean you can bombard him with stupid questions and be all..." She waves her hand. "Handsy with him."

Rooted in your spot, you stare at the goth defending you. What little femininity you retained after taking hormones start to bubble with the girlish whimsy of being the damsel in distress, now saved. Jade was holding her own against the pack, but it seemed like you would need to step in to get rid of them for good. You snap out of your stupor and wait for an opportunity.

"Why do you even care, Jade? You don't have a claim on him like you did with Beck."

Bingo.

You take a step forward, being cautious to be close to Jade, but not touching her. You've heard the stories Tori told you. Putting on your best smirk, you address the mob.

"Who says she doesn't have a claim on me?"

Everyone gawked at you. It unnerved you a bit, but you held strong, refusing to crack. You shrug, sitting back down on the bench behind you, bracing your elbows in the table against your back.

"I mean, the hottest guy needs to have the hottest girl, right?" You inwardly cringe at the words, but you'll beat yourself for it up later. Jade, being the smart actress she was, caught on and sheathed her scissors to perch herself into your lap, crossing her legs as she gently plays with the hairs at the nape of your neck. A shiver runs down your spine at the touch.

"You heard him. He's been claimed. Go be ganks somewhere else."

The bravest of the girl stepped forward with a stomp of her foot.

"No way! I don't believe it. There's no possible way he's with a creep like you!"

"No? Well then."

The next sequence of actions played in your mind like a slideshow. Hands on either side of your face. Said hands turning your face towards a beautiful girl. Lips of said girl suddenly on yours.

While the entire situation was a surprise, you reacted on instinct. You tilt your head slightly to deepen the kiss as your hands pull at Jade's waist. It lasts even after the gaggle of girls walk away dejectedly. It wasn't until an awkward cough did you and Jade part ways.

"So... That worked to get them away..." Andre awkwardly said. He was actively not looking towards you and Jade. She was still on your lap, now with her arms around your neck.

"Great. Now I don't have to watch my brother make out with Jade." Tori mentions with a shudder.

"I dunno, Vega," Jade pipes up with a smirk. "You may end up seeing it more often."

Tori just groans and flops on the table, causing you to laugh at her antics. Before you could apologize to your sister, your attention is forced to the goth on your lap.

"How about we get to know each other a little better? Maybe somewhere more private."

With a grin, you just pick up the girl on your lap and start making your way to your car.

"See you later, Tori. Love you!"

You and Jade let out a cackle as you leave the group behind. Tori just hopes that they won't be insufferable. She knows that there's already going to be chaos when Trina finds out.

#a dragon tries to write #victorious imagines #jade west x reader #i hope this turned out ok #i was sick while writing a chunk of it lol

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hearts4golbach · 1 year ago

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Light Shower. (Sal Fisher x Fem!Reader)

part 5

"I'm screaming like a kettle on a stove. You cranked the heat up,"

Y/n passed me the blunt that Larry had just lit. usually, I didn't smoke. but today, I decided different. "You're cute, sally. you never smoke with us."

Larry gagged. "Get a room. but yeah, the fuck is up with that?" Larry giggled like a little girl before wiggling his eyebrows at y/n, making her roll her eyes and push him.

I gave him a weird look. "I don't like the smell, or the taste, you know?" I looked around my room as I noticed my high had already hit me like a damn truck.

sal and I sat at the park behind his house. it was around midnight when we had decided to steal my mom's weed and get high for the first time together. neither of us had ever smoked anything before, so we didn't know what to expect.

"were going to smoke it, then go home, right?" sal asked, fiddling with his fingers. I held the tightly wrapped blunt between my fingers, proceeding to light it.

"yeah, I'm too nervous to stay out here and your bed is so comfy."

he laughed and took a small hit and inhaled before passing it back. he put his mask back down and started coughing up a storm.

"damn, ladies first, I guess." I said before taking my first hit. I had taken two hits before I looked up and my world was spinning. "woah, what the fuck?" I looked at sal and laughed.

we got up and continued smoking on our way home. a group of teens followed behind us, occasionally laughing extremely loud. my anxiety quickly went through the roof and I began to hold back tears. I didn't know why I was so anxious, but I was. I could barely breathe and all I could think about was the negative shit.

I looked at sal, who seemed more calm than usual during his high. "you okay?" he asked.

"uhm, I don't know. I don't feel good." I stuttered, rubbing the tears from my eyes.

"It's alright, we're almost back." sal sounded a little panicked by my response as he looked over at me once more.

we got back and laid in his bed, eating whatever food our fatasses could find, which was a big bag of chips, as we watched back to the future. whenever we had settled, I actually relaxed.

"is she over here trying to bang her own son?" sal mumbled, taking a swig of the mystery drink next to his bed. I never figured out what that was, and it was always next to his bed. and no, it wasn't for his eye. he threw his mask on the floor somewhere.

"have i ever told you how beautiful I think you are, sally face? you're my pretty princess!" I giggled, pinching his cheeks. I kissed his scarred cheek as he wrapped his arm around my waist. pretty bold for a 13 year old sal, if you ask me. "why do you think she's trying to bang him?"

"she's like, all over him. it's so weird. he's her son from the future, she's his mom from the past." he said in a higher pitched voice.

"I don't even understand nor remember the plot of this movie do I have no comment." I laughed.

I felt sal shrug. "I love this movie."

"i love you." I smiled up at him. I don't know why the fuck we were being so bold, but that was the night we started cuddling. God, I hate the word cuddling.

Y/n looked at me and gave me a smile that made my heart stop. God, I needed her so bad.

"dudes, I gotta take a shit." Larry grunted and stood up.

"wow, thanks for sharing with the class." I said sarcastically, making yn giggle.

Larry walked out of thebroom and y/n looked at me. our eyes locked and a weird tension filled the room. maybe the weed was mind fucking me, but I wanted to kiss her so bad. she broke eye contact for a second as she looked me up and down. I moved my hand to gently hold hers. my eyes flickered down to her lips then back into her eyes. she scooted closer, our knees touched. she reached up and unclasped the bottom strap of my mask. she lifted it up slowly to see my face, leaving it resting at my forehead with the top buckled. whenever she noticed the blush on my face, hers began to glow brighter. she glanced down at my lips. we sat like that for what felt like eternity before I bit the bullet. I placed my hands on either sides of her face and quickly pulled her in. I squeezed my eyes shut, worried about her reaction. our lips melted against one another's, and I felt a warm relief wash over me. I leaned in further, pressing our lips together harder. her hand gently ran down my neck and gripped the neckline of my hoodie. she pulled me closer to her.

she slowly pulled back, her eyes fixed on me. she had an expression that I couldn't read. she began to speak. "i-"

Larry burst into the room with a loud yawn and flopped onto his bed. "what's up?" he greeted us as i had just finished strapping my mask back on.

"Uh, hey." Y/n said awkwardly.

I waved, too nervous to talk. I wanted to know what y/n wanted to say.

"Did someone die? what happened, bro?"

"No, your shit smell wafted in here with you, so you might have a few deaths on your hands soon." y/n joked, going back to normal quicker than I could.

"Preach." I responded. She gave me a small, abnormal smile.

I fidgeting, spinning the thick black ring on my middle finger. Y/n rested her head back to look up at the ceiling and took my hand again, putting my mind at ease for the moment.

Larry began rambling about something, but I had zoned out, rubbing my thumb against the back of Y/ns hand. I reminisced the feeling of her lips on mine, closing my eyes to relive the moment. my body felt like I was floating. I took a drink of the flat diet mountain dew next to me.

the next couple of days were weird. no texts, calls, or even answering the door from y/n. I got nervous, thinking she probably hated me now for that obviously stupid mistake. I texted her, 'Everything okay?'

read.

#ash campbell #sal fisher #larry johnson #fanfic #sally face #friends to lovers #fanfiction #melanie martinez #light shower #sal fisher x y/n

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kobiiioo · 11 months ago

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hanpunk relationship development (oc x hobie)

fyi this is me rambling about my spidersona and hobie so if you don’t like oc x canon just scroll 🤗

alrightieeeee so i don’t think i’ve ever explained their relationship that well because it’s technically a ship but it’s not at the same time ?? their relationship is so complex and i love how complicated it is because i have a whole buildup in my head of how their relationship develops through time !

this is actually their first meeting and she wasn't supposed to go on a mission but since gwen had emergency back to her universe, lihan decided to go instead for her because gwen helped her the day of her *COUGH* first canon event. so the situation here is that they had to capture an anomaly and she was supposed to go with hobie but he wasn't at HQ at that moment so she decided to go alone first and when she arrived she was already planning in her head what to do and how to capture the anomaly anddd

of course.

that lad just pops outta nowhere to knock the sh*t out of the anomaly almost killing it which WASN'T WHAT HE WAS SUPPOSED TO DO OF COURSE!? and yeah she just start having a crisis since she's already pissed that he didn't came on time and she was still overwhelmed by the death of her brother, trying to grief over his death and this silly dude manages to push her to the edge.

so yeah, i think you can tell that her first impression of hobie wasn't the best.. and she's legit being sarcastic when she says she's going to quit if miguel puts them together again but she's being so fr at the same time 😭 i just LOVE HOW DIFFERENT THEY ARE AWUAAUWUAU (opposites attract each other 😔)

aaaanyway, after that unfortunately for lihan, hobie just continues to interact with her (he tries).

it’d be like whenever he sees her wandering around HQ, doing wtv just minding her business he’d pop outta nowhere and wave at her or say “hi” as if they’ve known each other 4ever and he literally knows she HATES him and it pisses her off (which is exactly the reason why he’s doing this) and she always freaks out even though she sees it coming and simply ignores him as usual. 😀

but it actually gets worse because at first it was just him saying hi to her for few days but after that, whenever he saw her around he’d stop what he’s doing and immediately rushes to her just to mess with her. there’s one time when he started running towards her and she literally thought he was going to jump on her or literally harass her and she started running away bc she got scared (HC but i swear, i bet that when this man runs, his stomps are so damn loud.) so it was a chasing game in the whole HQ LMFAOOO

he simply finds it funny and enjoys seeing her angry and she's definitely done with him and can’t really do anything about it because he’s not specifically being mean towards her so she can’t really blame him either. but they eventually kind of get used to each other's company since they start to go on missions together more often (even though she warned miguel she’d quit if he does that but we ain’t talking about that ! 🤭)

so yeah, later on, she tries to adapt in the Spider-Society, trying to socialize with other spider people and talk with them but her social anxiety kicks in and she’s like “nope 🫡⁉️” and runs away from them.

now she’s on the HQ’s roof just trying to relax and enjoy her evening alone but ofccc it’s him again, as always he pops outta nowhere (it’s his thing literally).

fun fact about them is that this is only their second time seeing each other without the mask which explains why lihan gets so embarrassed because when they first saw each other’s face without the mask, it was in this exact same spot. (omg coincidence)

ngl, when she first saw him she wasn’t intimidated at all bc she only saw him as a unorganized, irresponsible, disrespectful punk. but she got sooo intimidated after seeing his face like she was acting kind of odd and hobie noticed that but he just plays it off bc he finds it even more funny to see her act like this and he enjoys pretending he’s clueless when he actually sees everything.

anw anw anw thanks for reading this long ass really bad paragraphs of hanpunk this is so silly and so corny and so cringe and embarrassing but let me dream about them a little bit because why not guys ?! don’t we all love oc x canon ? 😰😤

#lihanlore #kobiverse #hanpunk #spidersona #oc x canon

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stickbug-made-entirely-of-spite · 9 months ago

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I said I would make art, and by god did I do just that (for once)

Here's a little armadillo friend!! I don't know why my mind was immediately set on armadillos when I was looking for something to sketch, but I do know better than to question - t h e m i n d - *insert ominous music*

Now that I think about it, it's probably because we just got armadillos in minecraft lmao

I think he turned out pretty cute! The paws were really fun to put on paper, lots of big, swoopy lines which I love :]

I'm trying to build up some more confidence when it comes to inking, so I forced myself to ignore my anxiety and actually picked up my fineliner for once, instead of just leaving it as a pencil sketch lol

It was really satisfying to see the scales start to pop out from the page, and adding all of the final details in white gel will always be the best part of any art-session (especially all the little hairs on this dude's shell, that was so gratifying) 😌👌

I'll definetly be turning to armadillos more often in the future when I'm looking for sketch material, these funky little guys have so many fun textures, and their cuteness-levels are through the roof TT^TT<3

With all that said, I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day! ^-^

Yours truly, Stickbug 🪲

#Art #Artist #artwork #traditional art #traditional drawing #sketchbook #cute #animals #Armadillo #he's just a little guy #Stickbug's art :]

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arthropod-concoctions · 11 months ago

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My @mcytblrholidayexchange gift for @salty-seasick! I had a blast writing this, and I hope you enjoy reading it! Can be read on AO3 or below the cut:

Relationship: Etho/Bdubs

Characters: Etho, Bdubs

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Gender Identity, Trans Male Ethoslab, Coming Out, Hugs, Banter, Anxiety/Comfort

Summary: Angel and Echo may be the most powerful superheroes around, but they do have a life beyond that as well. Sometimes Echo wishes he could forget his personal life. Sometimes Angel wishes he could forget his heroic life. At least they have each other.

Note: the character called Sunny at the start of the fic is Etho.

~ * * * ~

“I think my superhero alter ego should be a guy,” Sunny said, sitting on the couch with her legs folded underneath her.

“You- really?” Bdubs was sitting on the floor in front of the couch, looking at the paper where he was sketching outfits for the two of them, but he looked up to reply to Sunny. “What makes you say that?”

“For anonymity, you know?” she replied. “If the new superheroes on the block are a guy and a girl, everyone’s gonna be looking for a guy and a girl, and someone might realise it’s us. But if it’s two guys, we’ll never be suspected.”

Bdubs let out a surprised laugh, but nodded. “Okay. You know what, that’s actually pretty smart. Sure.” He grabbed another paper, this one with two lists of bullet points, and added another point to one: “`Sunny: superhero is a man.’ Wonderful. Uh, do we have to change your outfit as well then?”

“Let me see,” Sunny replied, leaning over Bdubs’ shoulder to look at the designs. “No, I think that’s still good.” The design of the outfit had some of her hair poking out, but that wouldn’t be a problem; her hair was quite short already. She liked it that way, it was just more convenient. And the outfit didn’t show much skin; for anonymity, and to prevent from accidentally touching something she shouldn’t while using her power. If she played her cards right, maybe used a voice modulator, no one would suspect that the hero might be a woman.

“Good.” Bdubs said. “Alright, next point: names. Any ideas?”

“Hmm…” Sunny thought. “Something like Ecto? If I’m going to be phasing through things, like a ghost…”

“Ecto…” Bdubs was quiet for a few seconds, then snapped his fingers. “I’ve got it! Echo! Hear me out. I’ll be Angel, because I have the voice of an angel, and you’ll be that voice’s echo. I’ll use my singing, and then when they least expect it, you’ll show up and give them a beating. Angel and Echo.”

“Right, I see,” Sunny said, smiling and leaning back. “I’ll be secondary to you, just the way you want it.”

“No- I- no, of course not!” Bdubs laughed, and moved onto the couch, wrapping his arms around Sunny. “I’m sorry. Come on, Sunshine, you know that’s not what I meant.”

“Oh, I don’t know, Bdubs, I think the jury’s still out on that one…” Sunny laughed, then returned Bdubs’ embrace, putting her head on top of his. “I’m just kidding. Of course you didn’t mean it. You’d never say mean things about me, would you?” she asked, sarcasm lacing her voice.

“I never say mean things,” Bdubs agreed, and then they just sat for a moment, enjoying each other’s touch. Until Bdubs spoke up: “Just two superhero dudes hanging out.”

Sunny burst out laughing, and pushed Bdubs off of herself. “Come on, dude, you ruined the moment!” she said.

Bdubs laughed too. “I have to get some practice in, you know? If y- if Echo’s going to be a guy, I have to really get that in my head.”

“Just Echo, not me. I mean, if you start treating me like a guy in person as well, that defeats the whole point!”

“Of course, of course.” Bdubs sighed contentedly, the laughter finally wearing off. “You and me, Echo and Angel. We’re gonna make a great team.”

- - - -

Echo sat on the roof of an apartment building, watching the sun rise over the city- over his city. His and Angel’s debut as superheroes a year ago had been a resounding success, and their corner of the city had never been safer. When something did happen, the two of them jumped to the chase, smoothly executing the tactic Bdubs had laid out for them back then: he would take their attention, distracting and potentially soothing them with his voice, and Echo would phase in from behind and knock them out. It was still a bit of a weird strategy to Echo. Bdubs insisted that his singing had an effect, that it was an essential part of the plan, but it barely seemed to slow their enemies down after the initial confusion. Whenever he sang to Echo, he couldn’t feel any effect either, but Bdubs always said he was simply holding back. Still, it seemed a little fishy to Echo.

I keep calling him Bdubs even when thinking about his hero persona, he thought to himself. I really shouldn’t do that. Not when I keep calling myself Echo instead of-

Well, that was the other weird thing. He- she- Sunny never called herself Sunny anymore. When alone, she wore Echo’s outfit whenever possible. When with other people, every time she noticed somebody looking at her, she just wanted to disappear, to phase out and maybe come back looking different. Every day, Sunny’s first thought was what he was going to do as Echo, rather than what she was going to do as Sunny.

The plan that Sunny had made a year ago was clear. To be a man as a superhero, and a woman in everyday life, to draw suspicion away from herself.

He’s afraid it might have backfired spectacularly.

Well, I’m gonna need a new name again, he thought. Obviously he couldn’t start calling himself Echo to his friends and family as well. He thought back to the day when they were brainstorming superhero names. ‘Ecto’ was the name that popped into his head back then, was there anything he could do with that? It was very similar to Echo, but maybe he removing the `k’-sound would help. Etto, Eto…

Etho?

“Etho,” he said to himself, slowly. It had a nice ring to it. He tried again: “Hello everybody, my name is Etho…”

A smile crept onto his face. It was a very good name.

He phased out, becoming completely invisible and intangible to the outside world, then began descending through the walls the building. He kept his eyes closed as he did so, careful not to look inside the other residents’ apartments. After a minute, he’d ended up back in his own apartment; he opened his eyes, and phased back in, feet thumping the ground as if he’d jumped.

After taking a quick shower, Etho got dressed in his usual getup; sweatpants, a t-shirt, and a comfy jacket. He’d always valued comfort over fashion, a preference which had gotten stronger over the years; in hindsight, that was probably because he’d been looking at the wrong fashion.

I should probably go shopping for new clothes soon, huh? he thought to himself. He wasn’t quite sure what to do, to be honest. Should he tell Bdubs about his decision immediately? This seemed like the kind of thing you had to think about for longer than one morning before going around telling people. Not to mention his relationship with Bdubs… probably wouldn’t be the same. He hadn’t fallen in love with a guy, after all. But then, would acting like nothing’s changed be any better? Maybe-

Suddenly, he heard a pounding at his door. He jerked around in surprise to look at it; he rarely got visitors, and that didn’t exactly sound like a friendly knock. Had he pissed off his neighbours somehow? Now he heard a rattle; someone was messing with his lock. That worried him; he put Echo’s gloves back on, just in case there’d be a fight, then opened the door.

Bdubs stood on the other side of it, his copy of the apartment key in his hand. He jolted in surprise when the door opened. “You are awake!” he said.

“Yeah, I’m awake. What the hell are you doing, man? Did you…” he trailed off, taking a good look at Bdubs now. He seemed to be out of breath, his eyes were bloodshot, and he was shaking. “Wait, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Never better. Can I come in?”

Etho stepped aside, letting Bdubs enter. “Are you being chased? Do we need to fight somebody?”

“No, no, it’s fine. I’m not being chased. Not anymore. Not yet, I mean.” Bdubs walked over to the couch, and collapsed onto it. Despite his prior statement, he was clearly not feeling well.

What? “Okay…” Etho felt a stab of nerves in his chest. He sat down next to Bdubs. “You know, it’s actually pretty good that you came over. We need to talk.”

“Yeah. We do,” Bdubs said.

Etho instantly regretted that statement. The thing he was going to say suddenly didn’t seem nearly as important as whatever Bdubs was dealing with. “…Uh, should we maybe go visit the doctor’s? You-”

“No!” Bdubs interrupted Etho, grabbing his wrist. “We’re not going outside today, alright?”

Etho removed the hand from his wrist, and took a deep breath. Bdubs was making him nervous. Usually he was the paranoid one, and Bdubs was the one that gave him confidence; how the hell was he supposed to deal with this? “That statement doesn’t exactly make me more confident in your good health, Bdubs.”

“Look, Etho, I need you to tr-”

They both froze. What on earth? “How did you-”

Bdubs snorted. “Uh oh,” he said. “I’ve just messed up, haven’t I?”

“You…” Etho was flabbergasted. “Well, you did something, that’s for sure! How- I’m gonna need some explanations here.”

Bdubs closed his eyes and exhaled slowly. “Right. Explanations. It’s probably about time, huh?” “So, you know how I always say that my superpower is singing?”

“Yeah?”

“That’s nonsense. It has nothing to do with singing, that’s just a distraction. Really, it’s… I get nightmares.”

“Nightmares?” Etho said. “Okay.” That didn’t explain how he knew his name.

“I get nightmares that tell me exactly how I’m going to die that day.” “`nightmare’ isn’t the right word, really,” he continued. “Honestly, they might not even be dreams. Nothing unnatural happens in them, it’s just regular life. And then something- or someone- comes along and kills me. Or, in this case, kills us.”

“Oh,” Etho said softly. He grabbed Bdubs’ hand. “Why haven’t you told me about this earlier?”

“You would’ve laughed at me.” Bdubs looked at the wall as he spoke. He was still shaking. “A guy gets a bad dream every now and again, and thinks it’s a superpower?”

Etho shook his head. “I would’ve believed you.”

Bdubs turned to look at him. “Would you really?”

He didn’t respond immediately. Truth be told, he would probably be skeptical of this story, had Bdubs not started it by saying Etho’s name before he could reasonably know it. But Etho was skeptical of everything. If he decided he couldn’t even believe Bdubs, what would he do then? “I would have trusted your judgement,” he eventually said.

Bdubs didn’t respond immediately. He didn’t seem convinced, but eventually he spoke up: “Alright. Thanks, S- Etho.”

Suddenly, Etho felt another spike of anxiety in his chest. Right. Guess there was no postponing that conversation now. Bdubs chuckled weakly, apparently not seeing the worry on Etho’s face. “Boy. This was supposed to be your day, and I’ve really gone and made it all about me, huh?”

“I mean, we can keep talking about you if you want. I know you like to do that,” Etho said. “So, nighmares, huh? Can you tell me how exactly-”

“No.” Bdubs cut him off. “Listen, I… I really don’t want to talk about it. Not while it’s still… fresh.”

“Oh,” Etho replied quietly. He berated himself internally. Of course Bdubs wouldn’t want to go into details about their deaths. “Looks like we’re at a stalemate then,” he said. Because, truth be told, he didn’t want to talk about himself either right now. Actually, he kind of wanted to phase out and run off into the distance somewhere. Dream-Etho had made a mistake telling Bdubs, he must have. There was no way-

“Etho, I can see your mind freaking out just by looking at you,” Bdubs said, looking Etho in the eyes and smiling gently. “Come on. You really think I’m gonna stop loving you ‘cause you’re a guy?”

Etho let out a strained half-laugh. “I mean…”

“No!” Bdubs grabbed Etho’s hand with both of his, and leaned in closer to him. “I didn’t fall in love with you just because you were a girl. I fell in love with you because you were thoughtful, and smart, and competent, and had nice hair, and were you. And if a guy has all that, if a guy is you, I’ll love him just the same. C’mere.”

Bdubs wrapped his arms around Etho, who’s shoulders dropped as he reciprocated. He hadn’t even noticed he’d been tensing them. Etho leaned forwards as well, putting his face on Bdubs’ shoulder. Bdubs’ mouth was right next to his ear, so he heard him whisper: “And this isn’t the nightmare-brain talking. I said this exact thing the first time.”

Etho opened his mouth to respond, but no sound came out. He was shaking- or maybe that was still Bdubs. Maybe they were both shaking, and their relative moods would cancel each other out if they just held each other tightly enough.

Then, after a minute or so, Etho’s stomach rumbled. He lifted his face up again and slowly, reluctantly, let go of Bdubs. He suddenly felt a tear running down his face.

Etho chuckled as he reached out and wiped the tear off of his face. “You haven’t eaten breakfast either, huh? We should probably get on that.”

Etho giggled quietly. He was still a bit shaky, but feeling infinitely better than before the hug. “Wait, you left the house before eating breakfast? Wow, you must really be messed up today.”

Bdubs grinned, his typical wide grin which fit his bloodshot eyes remarkably well, in a weird way. “Yeah. That proves it, huh?” he said, and then got up to walk to the kitchen.

Etho followed him, and grabbed two bowls to put cereal in. As the two of them were preparing their breakfast, Bdubs spoke up again: “You know, there’s something else I feel like I should say, about this.”

Etho froze, holding a spoon in mid-air. “And what’s that?”

“I saw this coming a freaking mile away.”

Etho laughed, dropping his spoon and turning to look at Bdubs. “Wait, really?”

“Yeah!” Bdubs said, laughing as well. “I mean, come on. The love of your life, who has a boy haircut and only ever wears hoodies says ‘hey, I want to be a boy, but only as a superhero!’ and- you know, I wasn’t born yesterday!”

Etho continued laughing. “I guess the signs were there, huh? Although you figured it out before I did if that’s true.” He chuckled. “Maybe you saw it in a dream, just like…”

He didn’t finish the sentence, and neither did Bdubs. Etho sighed. He had to say something, or this would eat at him. “Look, I know you didn’t want to talk about it but… if somebody if this city was going to kill us, I want to know as much about them as I can.”

Bdubs looked at the ground, and didn’t respond immediately. “I just- can we talk about it later? When my brain isn’t all messed up. Right now I just wanna… watch a movie, or something.”

“I don’t know if I can-”

“We started it,” Bdubs interrupted him. “We started the fight. That’s the important part. He’s not gonna come to us if we just… happen to stay inside today.”

Etho nodded. “Alright.” He tried to banish the worry from his mind. Taking a rain day would probably be good for their health regardless, honestly. “So what movie were you thinking?”

Bdubs shrugged.

“The A-Team?” Etho suggested.

“Oh, god. Just because you’re a dude doesn’t mean your taste in movies has to get worse, Etho.”

Etho snorted. He finished making his cereal, then moved back to the couch with Bdubs.

As Bdubs was flipping through channels on the TV, Etho stretched his arms, then laid one of them around Bdubs’ shoulder. “You know what, Bdubs?” he said. “We really are just two dudes hanging out now.”

“We are!” Bdubs responded, leaning his head back into Etho’s arm. “Two dudes. Etho and Bdubs. We can take on the world, you know.”

Except for what you saw in your dream… Etho shook his head. They were in mortal peril as superheroes all the time. They could take one day off from worrying about that side of their lives. For now, Etho was content to enjoy himself-- really enjoy himself, as he’d never been able to in his life—and enjoy Bdubs’ company.

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