#no matter how honest and earnest of a try I gave it?

[dex-starr]

I know my brains not really designed to think in s conducive way for some things. Like I’m laying in bed just thinking about the times I got to lay in bed with you.

It’s not like an experience that I’ve had an emotional equal to and I’m sure you’ve had that since then. I know who and when too, but yeah dude I just miss it. I don’t want to give it a try. I don’t think I would even give it a try with you at this point. There’s just a part of my heart that’s extremely weak right now. I wouldn’t be giving my best self or my full self like I was. I don’t know if I know how to.

…like to elaborate on that: I’m being my honest self and saying what I mean but I don’t think I could just reach that level of tenderness. I felt like that was the best I could give and that was not enough given everything else that was going wrong. It’s confusing to get into but it’s something that I need to talk more about.

I think about love a lot and sometimes I just get stuck thinking I don’t really know how to… because I lost it. But I know that’s just me not giving myself room for error. But yeah dude like… there’s just parts of my brain that I just don’t know why it’s going like that; but it do what it does.

[pestorik]

can you please expand on deuce/riddle ??? im rlly curious abt them tgt in your AU,,,,

(if you have the time i would also love to read abt azurid & mallerid :D ! no pressure though! im mostly interested in deurid ^^)

the riddle ship trifecta...

i enjoy them bc i think riddle really needs a calm presence in his life that makes him feel like he can act in ways he never had the freedom to do before, without feeling judged or made fun of. whether that is acting childish and silly or just expressing emotion freely. he's obviously really sensitive to being teased so he needs someone who is ok with that and just finds joy in his joy.

i relate to this a lot bc i myself am a very sensitive person, and get emotional really easy but im also very cynical and dry, so i think ppl see that contrast and find it funny. which is fine, but i get hurt or annoyed really easily by teasing bc i think what i really want is for someone to see how easily i get emotional (like crying at almost every movie i watch) and rather than seeing it as smth weird and funny, they recognize my empathy as something good. i want someone to see the value and worth in my emotions, no matter how trivial they seem.

and i think riddle needs that too. deuce isnt super smart but i think he's really earnest and riddle would appreciate that about him. he shows a lot of self awareness in recognizing how his past actions hurt his mom, and realizing he needs to be proactive if he wants to be a better person. very few ppl are willing to admit when they are the problem. he's just a very soft guy, but like, passionately soft. he wants so bad to be good. and i think he would want so badly for riddle to be happy, it would become really important to him just like his mom's happiness.

malleus is super honest about his intentions, which i think riddle needs bc his lack of social skills leave him anxious. he probably would get too frustrated having to play games and guess feelings. malleus just has a super calming presence and riddle needs that so bad. i think they are both pretty awkward bc of their upbringing so maybe they could find comfort in each other, knowing there's no judgement.

azul is none of these things lol 😂 i do NOT think these 2 would be a perfect healthy couple but i enjoy their dynamic. riddle is sensitive ofc but hes also super smart which is why i like the thought of them together. the two top students, not really in a competitive way, more like they recognize each other's weaknesses but also highly respect each other. to the point that they wouldnt ever make a move against the other. i could see them having a more loving relationship but in my mind they are more like a power couple lmao. like two powerhouses joining forces. i do think seeing riddle trying to overcome his own trauma and be a nicer person could inspire azul to do smth similar, realizing that if he likes and respects riddle, there must be some value in kindness without reward.

none of these would be canon in the AT au unfortunately, at least not in my mind (you can do whatever you like with it tho, it also doesnt mean i wont still talk/draw about it). there would definitely still be interactions among them with plenty of room for interpretation. obviously the most between deuce and riddle bc they are both HL.

i could see an episode where riddle recruits deuce to help him repair one of the elephant guardians (since deuce is good at repairing stuff) and they become closer. bc deuce used to get up to a lot of trouble he also has a lot knowledge of some of the rougher parts of the kingdom (im referring to deuces former crew as the spoiled fruit gang) and probably accompanies riddle when he needs to go there. riddle might sometimes go to deuce for advice on his relationship w his mother, since deuce is close w his mom. it would be cute if deuces mom came to really adore riddle and gave him a lot of the experiences he didnt get w his own mother.

[outro-jo]

저기요 누나/형

pairing: han jisung x (older) reader

type: blurb

summary: that one kid in your office won’t stop asking you out…maybe that’s not such a bad thing

request: yes

warnings: age gap (han is current age), technically the reader works for the company but don’t tell jypapi, jisung… being jisung, “저기요 누나 혹시 남자친구 있어요”

a/n: sorry if it’s kinda cringe to bring this line up but it was a request from a new friend on here and i think it’s kinda fun/funny so… slay. we’re gender neutral in this house bc i write for everyone so it’s noona/hyung

masterlist | info

—————————

han jisung was an interesting person. he had a type of “rizz” that could be described as like weird and slightly off putting in a cool way. to you he was this kid who felt he could definitely pull you given the right opportunity or line—not that you were really that much older than him. it wasn’t the age that mattered, it was more that you were in totally different places in life. he was in his early twenties, in the prime of his life and career while you were moving into your later years of young adulthood and were looking more to settle down soon rather than hookup or casually date. you had dates and people you were getting closer too but none of them were ever the right fit. 

in walks crashes jisung. literally, that’s how you met. he crashed into your office at the jyp building one day. don’t ask how, that still remained to be a mystery you couldn’t quite understand no matter how many times you heard the stories from each member.

from the moment he met you he was always trying to flirt with you or ask you, even a few times he just tired to kiss you. every time you dodged his advances with an eye roll and playful shove which only fueled his need to win you over more. 

for jisung, as soon as he met you he knew. it was something he felt deep in his gut that he was put on this earth for you. sure he came on a little strong but he knew it would take some warming up for you. he knew you were headstrong and determined. you knew the way life was supposed to go and falling for a 20 yr old popstar was not the way life was supposed to go—especially a popstar at the company you worked for.

once again you came into the jyp building, greeting the receptionist at the front and other coworkers on your way to your office. it wasn’t 20 minutes later that jisung was leaning against your door frame with what would be your second coffee of the day in his hand.

“저기요 누나/형,” he greeted you with a smirk.

you didn’t look up, you kept typing away at your computer and gave him a slightly perturbed, “hello, jisung.”

“i brought your favorite.” jisung set the coffee on your desk.

“thank you.”

“of course! anything for my baby.” he said in earnest. 

as usual you rolled your eyes and deadpanned, “i’m not your baby.” 

“well, you could be. i was thinking about our talk the other day and i think you’re wrong about me.” 

“oh, really?” you finally looked up at him.

“yes!” his eyes rounded and eyebrows raised. he continued to talk about how your age shouldn’t matter and he feels that you could make things work even with his job and how he could take care of you but it all faded to white noise because he was just so damn cute. his brows furrowed together as he spoke meaning he was serious about what he was saying. he was so determined and…

no!

you snapped out of your daze, sitting up straight and squaring your shoulders to continue typing away at the keyboard. “that’s fine, jisung. thank you for sharing your thoughts.”

“wait, so you’ll go with me?” he asked but to be honest, you were trying so hard to ignore him that you simply waived your hand and said, “sure” before you could even process what was happening.

“yes!! you won’t regret this, hyung/noona! this will be the best date of your life!” jisung ran out the door, leaving the words hanging in the air for you to grasp.

“date… JISUNG!” you called after him but it was no use. he was already halfway to the dorms to tell all the boys and figure out where to get a suit so quickly.

he got you.

————————

taglist: @ujejdjd

[crimeronan]

Hello, got a TOH question for you! I'm trying to write a scene from only-slightly-canon-divergent!Luz's POV, and to dismay finding I'm struggling with it. Any pro tips for writing her you can pass on to someone who didn't study at Luz University? 😅

aw, this is a sweet ask. i'm flattered to be considered a resident luz expert! and i LOVE an excuse to infodump. this got long i'm sorry i just love thinking about. my girl.

luz is usually pretty whimsical and optimistic (which is why her later self-destruction hits so hard), she believes in people and she believes in The Triumph Of Good Over Evil. she's weird and doesn't understand social norms but she cares So Much, About Everything, Ever. she believes that things will work themselves out like they do in stories, she sometimes steps on people's toes when she's trying to fix a situation, she loves an underdog story and it's constantly getting her into trouble.

i think the biggest three things for me when writing luz POV are these:

-

she is UNRELENTINGLY kind and trusting.

this is her biggest strength - she's constantly befriending her enemies through the sheer power of earnestness. and this is how she makes and keeps friends like willow, gus, and eda.

this is also one of her biggest weaknesses - she gave hunter back his staff in hunting palismen when she Really Should Not Have, she didn't pick up on philip's Bad Vibes, etc.

she truly honest-to-god believes the best in everyone and is surprised and hurt whenever they disappoint her.

-

2. she has NO impulse control and CRIPPLINGLY hyperactive ADHD.

luz is all over the place, constantly. her thoughts and hyperfixations go a mile a minute. she can devour a book in a day and learn a conlang in a week, but she can't sit still and she has the type of ADHD that makes traditional classroom learning borderline-impossible.

outside of school, you see this constantly in the decisions she makes, or rather the decisions she Doesn't make. luz always blurts out exactly what she's thinking, when she's thinking it. she always thinks that her first solution to a problem is the best one & rarely plans beyond that. she's not an analytical strategist. in fact she's frequently fucking up everybody else's plans by..... just. being luz.

the fact that luz always says and does whatever she's thinking is, again, one of her greatest strengths: she is SO earnest and genuine, and it makes it easy for people to believe in her. she loves SO openly and is so lovable in turn.

it's also one of her greatest weaknesses because. oh my god, girl. challenging boscha to a witch's duel on willow's behalf. angrily shouting straight-up heresy about belos in public in hollow mind. all the shit that got her into trouble in the human realm before she ran away. u know

-

3. she is Desperately Afraid of hurting people.

i'd say she's afraid of being a Bad Person (TM), but i do think her fear is more specific. in WAD, her nightmare isn't exactly about having committed atrocities herself -- she doesn't even believe she could have! she knows she didn't create the statue graveyard, she immediately tells amity "i don't know what's going on, but i wouldn't have done this."

all of her fears are related to things her friends & family went through after meeting her.... she's terrified that she's going to hurt the people she loves, no matter how much she tries not to. she's terrified that her presence in the world is harmful by itself.

same with her rant in the classroom in TTT. when she says "it would be better if he [i] never existed," she even says (paraphrasing) "who cares about the broader impacts or the greater good. who cares if he was a hero or wanted to do the right thing. it doesn't matter!!! what matters is that he ruined everything anyway!!!!"

her anxiety with papa titan reflects this, too. "doesn't that make us just like belos??" she's figuring out how to navigate the world and complex morality and she's terrified of getting it Wrong. she already feels like she's done everything wrong & it's completely shaken her sense of self. she doesn't trust herself not to hurt people or to work for evil because she doesn't have a clear understanding of what separates her ideology from belos's.

this third point often isn't relevant in fluffy/lighthearted fic because luz's optimism, joy, and simple zest for life are Definitely dominant in her character. but it is VERY relevant when doing character studies or angstier writing exploring her headspace in situations where she feels guilty or afraid.

-

everything else is set dressing. she's quirky and weird, she's bouncy and stimmy, she loves bats and rats and snakes and bugs and creepy crawlies, she loves gross shit, she loves shipping and romance and sweeping high fantasy, she gets Deeply invested in every random plan she ever conceives, and she is Astonishingly easy to love because of how easily she loves.

you don't have to keep every single detail of this in mind when writing her!! this was just a nice excuse to gush about my girl who i love so so so so so fucking much. luz love of my life daughter of my heart FOREVER.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Azul, Jack: An Honest Effort

The first thought I had about the Groovy is… MAN’S BARELY OFF THE GROUND (as expected). I imagine that Azul aggressively insisted to the photographer they should lie on the ground to get a high angle shot of him on the broom just to give the false impression of him being higher up than he actually is.

I wanted to write about Azul coming to terms with accepting who he was, as well as shed a light on how hardworking he is. He didn’t just take the easy way out, he actually worked his ass off in all that he does. There’s many instances of Azul going above and beyond go improve, even for things he sucks in or for inconsequential things (flying in his P.E. Uniform vignette, rolling the dice in his School Uniform vignette). He deserves recognition for that.

A Boy in Bloom, and his Flowering Future.

“What do you do on your days off?”

“I don’t much like to be idle. Time is money, and I would prefer to not waste either,” Azul expelled a breath. “If you must consider it a ‘day off’, then... I wake up early, prepare myself a drink, and peruse the papers. When there is no work to be done, it’s all about self-maintenance.”

“I agree it’s important to take care of yourself, but... You’re basically still working at that point.”

“You could put it that way, yes. However, sharpening one’s mind is not just busywork. It’s also like a kind of training to strengthen the brain, similar to how one would train to strengthen their muscles.”

“Now that, I get.” Jack nodded. “There’s nothing like the burn after a good, honest workout.”

At this, Azul winced. “I fail to see the appeal of such a thing. It’s hardly a sensation that I’d call pleasant. However, I suppose it can be nice to physically feel the results of rigorous effort.”

“You should try it sometime then. You’d appreciate training the muscles if you worked up a sweat yourself.”

“... I do.”

The effect on Jack was immediate. The beastman’s eyes popped, jaw hanging open and fur standing on end.

“HUH?! Azul-senpai, you... train?! Seriously? I never thought I’d hear the word from your mouth!”

“Yes,” Azul replied, bristling. His voice was set in frost. “Is that really so difficult to believe?”

“It’s just--” Jack stopped himself and reconsidered. “You’re not the type of person I picture doing that kind of thing.”

“What does it matter if I am or not? Anyone is capable of exercise, and it is well within my right to do so.”

“Er… yeah, you’re right.” The shock quickly turned to shame, and Jack’s ears flattened, tail dropping. “Sorry. I got caught up in the moment and said something careless.”

“As your benevolent upperclassman, I will overlook your transgression and accept your apology made in earnest.”

Jack gave a small smile. “So tell me more about your training. What kind of exercises do you do? What made you want to start?”

“I try to work a little of everything to ensure that my body is evenly toned. As for what motivated me to begin… I suppose you could say that I was, in your own words, looking for a ‘good, honest workout’.”

“But unlike me, you’re not in an athletic club. You don’t like P.E. class either. When you talked about it earlier, it didn’t sound like you enjoyed training. I don’t think you’d go out of your way to do it for fun.” Jack folded his arms and furrowed his brows. “If you only wanted to get stronger, wouldn’t it be easier for you to make a deal and take someone’s strength?”

“Is that truly what you think of me?” Azul frowned. “You miss the point. What use is it to steal what you desire most rather than earn it for yourself? Would I really be able to call those traits my own? There is no pride to be had in that.”

“You didn’t have an issue with it before winter break.”

“Well…” A complicated look clouded the birthday boy’s features. “I was a different person then. Those things don’t have the same value as they once did. They’ve depreciated.”

In spite of the coldness of his words—the pointed truth of them—there, too, was a soft sadness slipping past his lips. Acknowledgement, and painful sympathy.

Azul was looking at Jack, but not clearly seeing him. His eyes seemed to be trained on something else, someone else, far off in the distance.

A sad little boy curled up in a pot, clouds of inky black tears coloring the water.

“… I was a different person then,” Azul repeated, this time more firmly. “I endeavor to be someone worthy of admiration through my own efforts. If I can be satisfied with my abilities, then it will steer me from walking along that dark path again.

“Be it flying, strength, or luck of the draw… I have always been aware of those shortcomings, in life, but what good comes out of it were I to stop there? What good comes from wallowing in doubt? That is why I will make something for myself, and why I must find my own strength through honest effort.”

I will accept the past and use it to guide me to the future. The “me” I wasn’t able to accept then… Someday, I will become strong enough to embrace him.

Jack stared at him hard. “Are you being honest with me?”

Azul chuckled faintly. “Why wouldn’t I be? What would I hope to possibly gain by deceiving you about my personal ambitions?”

“Towards the end, it didn’t sound like you were…” Jack paused, cocking his head to one side. “Are you even still talking about your Overblot anymore?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Of course I was referring to that incident. What else would I be talking about?”

“You’re dodging the question again,” Jack sighed. “It’s good that you’re motivated to keep up that training though. With that kind of attitude, I’m sure you can reach the heights you’re dreaming of.”

“Urk! Must you phrase it like that?” He hurriedly glanced away, mumbling to himself under his breath. “And here I was, so carefully redirecting the conversation away from that!”

“Heh.” Jack allowed himself a smirk. “So even Azul-senpai has this kind of side to him, huh…”

“Wh-What side?!”

“You know, like a point of weakness. Vulnerable. Kind of squish—”

“AHHHH, DON’T SAY ITTTT!!” Azul pleaded, his volume and pitch spiking into a loud whine.

Jack deadpanned. “Yup. There it is, the squishiness.”

“A-Ahhhh… You went and said it anyway…” the birthday boy groaned, a hand to his forehead. He took a deep gulp of air and slowly exhaled. “… Excuse me, forget you heard that.”

“Why? Isn’t it good to be aware of your weaknesses? That way, you can find strength from them.”

Azul warily eyed him. “You’ve got some bite in you after all.”

“You keep me on my toes. Wouldn’t want you catching me off-guard someday.”

“My, I’m honored to hear that. I’ll have to work hard to keep up with that strong moral character of yours.”

“Good luck. You can work on that along with the muscles. Maybe I’ll see you at the gym or on the field sometime. Until then… show me what you’ve got.” Jack nodded at Azul’s broom.

“Hmph, very well. Prepare for me to deft your expectations, and bear witness to the fruits of my labor!!”

The merman mounted his broom, tensely straddling the handle between both legs. It was a posture he has practiced for hours on end—perfected and polished like a mirror, if not a little too stiff.

The moonlit air around him heated with magical energy, sparkles flickering among the flowers. Very slowly, his bouquet—and his feet—lifted from the ground.

And…

… Azul sluggishly chugged forward, only a few centimeters off of the ground.

“Uh… good job? … I think.” Jack searched for a compliment. “It definitely ‘defied’ my expectations like you said it would.”

Azul flushed.

“… N-Not a word of this to anyone, Jack-san!!” He sputtered back. “Solemnly swear to me that you will not share this with a single soul!!”

[lirotation]

I Hail from Silverymoon: Delapsus Resurgam

I gave up on this one. LOL, just not what I imagined.

The graveyard scene was perfect, so wholesome I wouldn't change a thing. Though given my Amaara's personality, "sex on thy grave" is not going to happen. To be honest, I don't think killing Cazador magically made everything right for Astarion. Him offering sex here feels like: "1. Let's see if I can do this now. 2. I have to secure this relationship cuz I don't want to lose her."

Astarion X Amaara(my wizard Tav) fluff.

____________________________

At the city graveyard, Astarion and Amaara stood side by side in front of his grave.

Astarion said, "There is almost nothing left of the person I was. Just a name on a rock. For nearly two centuries, I stalked the streets like a ghost while the person I was lay here, dead and buried. Now I need to figure out who I am. What I want."

Amaara turned her gaze to him, tenderness danced in her eyes, "And what do you want?"

Astarion turned to face her, eyes holding warm affection, "You... I want you. You were by my side through all of this. Through bloodlust and pain and misery. You were patient. You cared. You trusted me when that was an objectively stupid thing to do. I feel safe with you. Seen. And whatever the future holds for me, I don't want to lose that."

Amaara met his gaze solemnly. "You won't. I am oath-bound to you now. Whatever comes, we walk this path together."

Astarion paused, thinking back on the desperate vow she'd made in the ritual chamber. "You may spend your life on a fruitless quest just for my sake...I won't hold you to such an oath."

Amaara stepped closer, taking his hands in hers. "It was no reckless oath made in desperation. I meant every word. However long it takes, I will find a way to restore your life." She brought a hand up to cradle his cheek gently. "time spent with you have been the most cherished moments of my existence. You are worth any sacrifice on my part."

Overcome with emotion, Astarion pulled her into a fervent embrace, “Thank you.” He murmured. Then he stepped away, drawing his dagger, “Well, I should probably fix this.” He curved the current year on the tombstone

He knelt down in front of his tombstone in contemplative silence, and Amaara joined him, a wildflower in her hand. With a gentle touch, she placed the delicate bloom on the grave, a symbol of life and renewal amidst the shadows of death. He cast a soft, appreciative smile her way.

"Cute," he teased, the word tinged with warmth. Then, more earnestly, he continued, "I've been dead in the ground for long enough. It's time to try living again."

Moved by his words and the sincerity in his eyes, Amaara's heart swelled with hope. She turned to face him, mirroring his position, her gaze locking with his. His hands found hers, and he held them gently but firmly.

"With everything that life has to offer," he declared, his voice carrying the weight of his determination to embrace this newfound chance at living.

Amaara's smile softened with shared hope. This was all she had wanted - a future together unburdened by the past's shackles.

Astarion's eyes twinkled with equal parts affection and eagerness. He leaned in close and whispered, "If a night of passion is on the table, my dear, I could certainly be persuaded."

Amaara froze, smile faltering. "On your grave?" she asked uncertainty, She searched Astarion's face intently for any trace of humor. But his eyes held only earnestness.

Her thoughts raced, trying to discern his motives. Did he find some morbid significance in making love at this location, some sense of healing or redemption? 

Part of her recoiled at the notion of intimacy in a graveyard, But another part worried refusing might hurt Astarion, making him feel rejected all over again.

Perhaps this was a test of her vow to walk whatever path he needed, no matter how dark. But did devotion demand going against her own instincts? Unsure, she hesitated, grasping for the right words.

Overthinking as always, Amaara tried to ignore the voice inside screaming that this was wildly improper. She wished she could read Astarion's complex emotions and history the way she devoured arcane tomes. But understanding him would take time and care, not just intellect.

All the racing thoughts took only but a second. Amaara pushed aside her uncertainty. She drew him into a lingering, tender kiss, pouring all her affection into it.

After, she met his gaze again and spoke softly. "My love, while I'm touched you want to share this, being intimate in a graveyard would...discomfort me. I hope you understand."

She brought a hand up to cradle his cheek. "The past is buried. Our future lies elsewhere now. In warmth, joy and new memories untainted by sorrow."

Astarion covered her hand with his own, turning his head to kiss her palm. "Wise council as always," He offered a roguish smile. "I suppose cemeteries make better backdrops for brooding, not romance."

They lingered a while longer hand in hand, the silence between them comfortable and contemplative. Amaara could sense Astarion reflecting on all he had endured and lost, and she gave a small, supportive squeeze, anchoring him in this moment.

Then they made their way back to the Elf Song Tavern, both absorbed in thoughts of life, death, and new beginnings.

Upon entering Amaara's room, Astarion hesitated. "Actually, would you mind conjuring up your illusion again? The one of your old bedroom."

Amaara looked surprised but nodded. With a graceful gesture, the modest room transformed around them into her lavish childhood quarters.

Astarion regarded it closely this time. He asked her questions about the décor, the cluttered bookshelves, the sweet scent of potion ingredients. Small details he had ignored before now jumped out, hinting at her personality.

When Amaara drew back the curtains to reveal the dazzling Moonbridge under the starry sky, Astarion joined her there. The wonder in his eyes was genuine now as he took in the iconic view she had shared. This time, the illusion felt real. A true glimpse into her world instead of staged artifice. Proof of how deeply things had changed between them.

"It's beautiful," he said softly, then he turned and pulled Amaara into a passionate kiss in the moonlight, expressing wordlessly the depths of his feelings for her.

When they finally parted, Astarion gently cradled her face in his hands. "I love you, I love this, I love it all." he confessed fervently, laying his heart bare. After centuries unable to trust or feel, those words carried momentous meaning.

Amaara's eyes shone with joyful tears. Hearing him finally say it with sincerity was more magical than any spell.

"And I love you," she replied, with all her heart. 

No more false pretenses or manipulation - just openness, grace, and a future together built on understanding. Their true journey was just beginning.

[fluff-a-nutter]

What’s up girl, it’s ya ADHD simp

My I request varian x crushing!reader?

The reader had a massive crush on him but after the “betrayal” she ignores him and doesn’t tickle him as much as she did when he came to him in a lee mood. He keeps trying to talk to her but she keeps ignoring him even though she still loves has a crush on him, he then, after feeling sad that she won’t pay attention to him, see’s her face down in a pillow mumbling about how she hates that she still loves- I MEAN HAS A CRUSH ON HIM and wants to tickle him to death because of how cute he is. He then gets a revealing (tickle spot wise) outfit and keeps laying on her and stretching himself out, after she brakes and tickles him to death they mend they’re relationship and FINALLY become a couple

Absolutely! Here ya go!

You had heard wind of Varian being redeemed after his betrayal of Rapunzel and most people were thrilled. You however, were not most people. You wanted to rekindle your close bond with the boy, you really did, but Varian’s betrayal still hurt too much. You had trusted him and he had broken your trust and your heart. How could you forgive such a thing? It doesn’t help matters that you still have a massive crush on him. So you did the completely mature thing and started avoiding Varian completely. However he seemed very determined to fix things between the two of you.

You were hanging out in the town square with a book when he approached you a few weeks later.

“Y/N, can we talk?” He asked. He sounded so earnest and his shyness was so adorable. You almost said yes. Almost. Then the pain of being betrayed returned and you turned away.

Varian sighed, feeling discouraged, but he continued anyway. The only thing he could do was to be completely honest.

“C’mon, y/n. Just listen to me! Can’t you see I’ve changed for the better? I know I hurt you and you have every right to be upset, but I miss you. Don’t you remember all the good times we had together? We were so close. I’ll do anything to get that back.”

Despite feeling hurt, you can’t help but listen to his voice. He sounded so sad and sincere. You felt a pang of guilt for avoiding him so much.

Hesitantly, you turned to face Varian. The way his face lit up with hope was so precious that you could have kissed him. He’d tried talking to you before, but you had never gotten this far with him. Maybe it was time to fix things.

You opened your mouth to speak but you quickly faltered when you saw what Varian was wearing.

Instead of his usual maroon vest over an apron, he wore a plain white tank top that exposed his stomach. Varian had noticed you staring and his face turned crimson.

You knew what he wanted. He was in a lee mood. He only wore that when he was desperate.

Before you could say anything, he laid himself across your lap and stared up at you with those goddamn puppy eyes that should be illegal. You were close to your breaking point and you knew if you gave him what he wanted, there was no turning back. Taking a deep breath you decided to forgive him.

“Alright, Varian. We can try again, but don’t blow it.” You said, pressing your hands against the warm skin of Varian’s tummy. He squeaked in delight but he spoke with utmost sincerity.

“Don’t worry, I won’t disappoint you again, y/n.”

You offered him a cautious, but hopeful smile.

“Alright then, prepare to laugh, alchemist.” With that, you began to mercilessly tickle Varian’s tummy, sides, and even his belly button. He squealed in delight, wriggling around in your lap. He’d always been such a squirmer when it came to tummy tickles.

“Aww, is this what you wanted, Varian?”

You cooed in a teasing fashion. Varian couldn’t answer, but he giggled and nodded happily. He was too cute. Before you really thought it through you leaned down and planted a small kiss on his giggling lips. He went rigid in your arms, causing you to stop tickling him.

“Sorry, I don’t know what came over me and I just- mmmph!”

Varian cut you off with a kiss of his own. His lips were warm and soft and tasted vaguely like the smoked ham he loved so much on his sandwiches. Overall, it was a truly perfect kiss.

He broke away all too soon and smiled shyly.

“I- umm- I really like you, y/n.”

You giggled and kissed his cheek.

“I really like you too, my ticklish alchemist.” You teased, poking his exposed tummy. He jerked back with a squeal.

“Oh, you thought I was done tickling you? Think again!” You grinned and pulled Varian closer and resumed tickling him. He was still giggling long after you had stopped.

[reobsessed]

A Knight and His Squire- Part two

Alright here it is, Part two!

CONTENT WARNING: 18+, NSFW, Minors DNI, unprotected sex.

Pairing: Luis x Leon.

A continuation of Luis and Leon's activities in the basement (: enjoy.

A big thanks to my editor and reader, Suri.

Here's a link to part one!

Part two is just below the cut here =p

“Ah, ah fuck,” Luis cried out. 

Leon’s passionate assault didn’t end there, with his free hand he jammed it down the front of Luis’ underwear grabbing ahold of him. Luis’ head spun at the sensation. Leon’s fingerless gloves felt rough against his sensitive flesh and yet his exposed fingers were surprisingly gentle, pain and pleasure merged as Leon’s hand moved up and down. Luis reached his hands up the back of Leon’s t-shirt, burying his nails into soft flesh. He worked in tandem with Leon and with every stroke Luis would scratch lines down his back.

“Looks like I’ve really made my mark,” Luis remarked, staring proudly at his handiwork. Vibrant red streaks ran all the way down Leon’s back, a stark contrast to his milky white skin.

“I think I’m ready to leave my mark too,” Leon grinned mischievously. He was hungry, his stomach empty and he had a whole feast in front of him.

“Reach into my back pocket.” 

Confused yet compliant, Leon used his free hand to rummage in the back pocket of Luis’ jeans. He kept hold of his grip around Luis, there was no chance he was letting the sad excuse of a man weasel his way out of this one. Finally he found what Luis wanted.

“You serious?” Leon groaned in exasperation as he held up a clear bottle of viscous liquid, aptly labelled ‘lubricante’.

Luis shrugged. “Never know when you might find yourself in a tight spot.”

Leon gave Luis a firm squeeze, eliciting a pained yet lustful moan.

He brought the bottle to his lips and twisted the cap off using his teeth. He pulled off Luis’ remaining article of clothing, purposely throwing it so that it landed alongside its matching counterpart.

Luis felt vulnerable for the first time since entering that basement. His entire body laid bare to Leon’s piercing gaze. 

“Guess it really was worth coming to Spain to see the sights,” Leon quipped, struggling not to laugh at his own joke. Luis rolled his eyes in response.

“Fucking tourists…”

Leon moved fast, stifling Luis’ complaints with a clumsy kiss. Luis couldn’t help but laugh inwardly at how inexperienced, yet earnest Leon’s affections were. Upon first meeting he thought the man uptight with no sense of humour but beneath the cold exterior of a secret agent was a kindhearted and caring soul.

Leon spread a generous layer of lube on his fingers, he turned to Luis once more, seeking approval in his longing gaze. 

Just like a puppy. Luis smiled fondly at the comparison. He lovingly stroked his hand down Leon’s slim yet defined chest. His hand hovered over Leon’s boxers momentarily before he brought it down and clasped his hardening cock in one hand. That was all the go ahead Leon needed as he plunged a finger inside Luis.

Luis’ back arched but he didn’t call out, Leon would have to try harder than that. Accepting the unspoken challenge, Leon added another finger, and then another until finally the dark haired man let out a cry laced in ecstasy. 

“You seem used to this,” Leon stated matter of factly.

Luis did his best to sound hurt by the accusation. “Are you insinuating something amigo?” 

“Have a lot of companions, do ya?”

“I hope that’s not an issue for the president’s loyal little mutt.”

Leon chuckled. “I’m not the judgemental type, I promise. Just making an observation.” Sensing Luis’ hurt he pulled him close. “I’m a little jealous to be honest, I've only ever been with women.”

“That much was clear.”

Leon threw Luis to the ground playfully. “I’m getting tired of that smart mouth.” He reentered using his fingers, peppering Luis’ chest with kisses as he did so. He was desperate to taste every last inch of Luis.

“Hurry up and come inside,” Luis pleaded, his mind muddied with longing and impatience.

Leon pulled himself free from the confines of his boxers. With both hands available he steadied Luis’ hips as he lined himself up. They both moaned in unison as Leon pushed his way inside. 

“Fuckkk,” Luis whimpered. “Leon, ah.”

There was no sound sweeter than the utterance of his name from Luis’ lips. 

“Ah you like how that sounds do you?” Luis brought his mouth to Leon’s ear and whispered sensually. “Leon…” 

Hearing it drawn out in that smooth Spanish accent sent Leon’s mind into a frenzy. He was on top once more as he buried himself desperately and repeatedly inside the other man.

Grunts and heavy breathing echoed throughout the room, along with the resounding clang of chains. The desire to draw it out and keep going crossed Leon’s mind but alas, he had a job to do. 

Luis, sensing something was off, wrapped his legs round Leon tightly.

“Let’s wrap this up shall we?”

Leon shivered, there was something thrilling about being ordered around that really got him going. 

“Ye- yes,” he ground out through deep gasps. His pace quickened, as did Luis’. Leon could feel his mind going once again, pleasure took hold of him and he could feel his release coming. With a final cry, “Luis, ah, ah,” he let go, filling Luis to the brim.

“Got there in the end,” Luis tried in vain to retain his earlier snark but lust overtook him as he let out a breathless howl, spilling all over Leon’s chest.

Both men collapsed to the floor in a satisfied heap. However, reality soon set it.

“Oh Jesus, i’m sorry Luis, fuck let me clean this up.” Leon frantically grabbed at the discarded tissues that fell out of Luis’ pockets earlier and began dabbing at the man.

“Quit it, quit it. If you wanna be helpful, fetch me my cigarettes,” Luis ordered as he sat upright, fiddling with his lighter. 

Leon began overturning Luis’ pockets until his hands fell on the unmistakable box of cigarettes. Wiping his hands before he did so he pulled one from the box.

“Allow me.” He brought it to his mouth, holding it limply between his lips. Taking ahold of Luis’ hand he lit the cigarette. Leon’s hand cupped Luis’ for the first time that day. Leon let out a satisfied sigh as he savoured both the taste of the cigarette and the touch of Luis’ fingers.

“Didn’t take you for a smoker,” Luis smirked, snatching the lit cigarette with his free hand. 

“Guess I’m open to trying new things.”

Luis scoffed. “Don’t get too used to riding on top, cowboy. I’ll show you how it’s done next time.”

Leon turned away in an attempt to hide the blush that was rising to his cheeks, when suddenly he broke out into a cocky grin. 

“So, there’s gonna be a next time?”

Luis responded by tossing the closest piece of clothing he could find at Leon.

“Filthy American.” Luis chuckled in disbelief as he exhaled a puff of smoke.

[waystartoo]

tomgreg sand mites microfic

Tom wasn’t entirely sure how far down applying lotion on his assistant for a severe case of sand mites in Dundee, Scotland, fell on his bucket list, but it certainly seemed as if it may be getting crossed off any moment now. That is to say, he was seated on the bed with Greg facing with his back toward him, a tube of medicated anti-itch cream in his hand, and an earful of the same incessant whining he had heard all day blaring in his head.

“It’s like, did you know they can actually lay eggs under your skin?” Greg sputtered in disbelief, frantically pawing at the reddened spot on his neck he had been attacking all afternoon. “I could be filled with hundreds of these things at this point and I don’t even think the number for the sand supplier Connor gave me even works, really? It just keeps ringing?”

“You know I think I saw a guy a few seats over from you scratching his arm as he was leaving the play, Gregory. We may have a class action lawsuit on our hands if you play your cards right,” Tom chimed back as he twisted open the tube of cream.

“Really?” Greg asked in complete earnest, spinning around where he sat to face Tom with those familiar big doe eyes only to be met with a suppressed chuckle.

“Of course not, you idiot. Now, turn back around.”

Greg huffed in frustration but obliged the demand just the same, repositioning himself to face away from Tom again. Then, without further hesitation, he tugged off his sweater and deposited it on the bed beside the two of them. “Be honest, how bad is it?” he asked.

Tom sucked in a deep breath glancing over the sight in front of him. To be honest, it was much worse than he was anticipating. The pale skin of the boy’s back was entirely covered with unevenly distributed clusters of tiny, bright red dots. Some sections of the skin were more irritated than others, even breaking open into slight gashes from where he had reached around and scratched himself through the thin material of his sweater throughout the day. It was a bit like a young child had been let loose with a container of red finger paint and instructed to use Greg’s poor back as a canvas.

“Tis but a scratch,” Tom lied in reassurance, catching his lip between his teeth as he took in the full sight of the matter before him. He could only imagine just how much pain Greg was actually in. It almost made him feel guilty for scolding him for whining all day. Emphasis on the almost. “You’ll be back to frolicking around and making merry in no time as soon as you stop scratching the damn things.”

He squeezed a somewhat generous amount of the anti-itch cream into his palm as Greg huffed again. Tom didn’t need to see his face to know that his lips were curled up in that signature pout of his.

“Yeah, well, you try dealing with these things crawling over your body all day and see if you don’t do the same!” Greg protested, folding his arms over his chest like a child.

“Oh, just hold still for a second, would you? I probably will have these disgusting things crawling all over me by the end of this,” Tom said with a roll of his eyes in response.

“Fine, just hurry up.”

Tom was the one to oblige this time, gently beginning to apply a thin layer of the cream over the surface of his back only to have Greg immediately tense up at the sensation.

“Jesus, that’s cold,” he whimpered.

“Oh, I’m sorry, did I need to warm it up for you first too, princess?” Tom teased, gliding his fingers over Greg’s shoulder blades and reveling just a teensy bit in the feeling of watching him shiver beneath his touch.

“It might’ve been nice, sure,” Greg answered, ever-entitled and needy without shame.

Tom simply laughed in response, concentrating on rubbing small circles of the product into the clusters of bites on Greg’s back. Even despite the bumps and gashes, his skin was incredibly soft, easily manipulated even with the slightest touch of Tom’s fingertips. It was kind of addicting in a way, trying to cover every square inch of his flesh with the pasty pink cream like it was some sort of game he was determined to win.

“You can relax, you know,” Tom said after Greg’s shoulders never strayed from where they had seized upward at the first touch. “I’m already committed to the task so it’s not like I’m gonna hurt you or anything.”

It was Greg’s turn to laugh now, albeit a bit nervously, as the tension slowly relaxed from his body beneath Tom’s touch.

“Thanks,” he said sheepishly, then, without thinking, added, “It feels really nice, Tom.”

An uneasy silence settled in between them as Tom froze in the motion of applying the cream across his back at the sound of Greg’s words. What happened to the man that had chucked water bottles at the guy, pushed him down in the snow, and wrestled him against his will, and why had he been spontaneously replaced with some tenderly caring nurse in a too-short white dress and matching hat? Who was this, really, rubbing circles on Greg’s back with a smile on his face? Had he completely and totally lost it?

“Tom?” Greg asked suddenly without turning around, snapping Tom out of the downward spiral he was racing through.

“Sorry,” Tom said under his breath, deeply embarrassed at each and every one of the thoughts that had raced through his mind. It was only once he recognized the discomfort in Greg’s voice that he remembered why he was here in the first place. As a friend helping another friend. Greg would do the same for him, after all. It was only fair.

More cream was added as he once more applied his hands to the man’s back, paying close attention not to press too hard on any of the sections of broken skin. His hands lingered over a knot in the muscle, hesitating before gently massaging it out. He was almost too distracted by watching the muscle loosen at his touch to hear it, but he did. A high-pitched, involuntary moan tumbled out of Greg’s lips and into the deafening silence of the room around them.

Tom should’ve paused here. He meant to. To rip his hands off of Greg’s back as if he was removing his burnt hands from a searing hot stove and gasp at his indecency. To make some cutting joke about this reaction was only appropriate given it was probably the most intimate physical touch Greg had ever and would ever receive in his life. To storm out of the room and avoid speaking to him for the next few days.

But, instead, he just laughed, feeling the warmth from Greg’s body filter up through his fingertips and into his chest.

“Sorry,” Greg chirped out, a reddish tint settling over the tips of his ears. Clearly embarrassed by the sound he produced. “You’re just really good at this.”

“Try not to sound so surprised, will you?” Tom taunted, easily undoing the tension between Greg’s shoulders with his fingertips. “You’re not the first to crumble at the Wambsgans rubdown.”

“Don’t call it that,” Greg whined in response, earning another chuckle from Tom. “That makes it sound like you’re-like you’re out just giving back massages on the street or something.”

“And if I was?” Tom asked. His hands moved lower on Greg’s back, dancing just above the waistline of his pants.

“You’re, uh, not though?” Greg said, entirely too confident for Tom’s liking. “You wouldn’t do this for anyone.”

“I see,” Tom said quietly, watching his hand creep dangerously around Greg’s waist. He didn’t remembering telling it to do that. It was almost like a reflex of some kind. “You think you’re special, then?”

At this, Greg closed his eyes, leaning backwards into Tom’s hands which were now embracing either side of him. “I know I am,” he hummed.

-

baby’s first tumblr post. idk if i’m doing this right but heyyy <3 also if ur looking for a better version of this scenario, @/ezlebe wrote a fantastic one.

[neverwasreddie]

Part 2 of my reddie Christmas ficlet that nobody asked for!

*

Eddie’s trying really, really hard to be chill about Richie’s Christmas gift, but 1. “chill” is not a word that has ever been used to describe Edward Kaspbrak, like, not ever as long as he’s been alive, and 2. how can he possibly be chill about this?

Richie swears up and down that it’s nothing, that Ben loves tinkering around in his little garage-turned-woodshop and it gave Richie an excuse to try and reenact the Ghost pottery scene with the hottest Loser without his Beverly around to interfere.

But Eddie knows better, saw the flicker of fear on Richie’s face when he finally opened the gift. Knows that this means something special to Richie, something he’s too shy to put into words.

And the fact that the wood is from the Kissing Bridge of Derry is no coincidence, either. That is the detail Eddie keeps getting hung up on, no matter how Richie tries to brush it off.

“I just don’t get it!” Eddie is still saying a few days later, dusting the shelf around the frame with the utmost care. “Did they demolish that safety hazard while I was in the hospital, or what?”

Richie snorts, not even bothering to look up from the Rubik’s cube he’s fiddling with on the couch. “Well, someone almost did. Lucky Mikey boy caught me before I burned his whole stupid town to the ground.”

He’s casual on the surface, but there’s enough bite to his words for Eddie to turn and ask carefully, “What?”

Sighing, running a hand through his hair and refusing to look up at Eddie, Richie shrugs. “I wasn’t exactly in tip-top shape while you were in your little coma nap, there, bud. When they finally kicked me out of your room to go shower and sleep, I took the long way back to the inn. Got some of my frustration out on that stupid bridge. And before you say anything, I didn’t vandalize the whole thing, alright, just that one slat that was already rotting in the center. Didn’t take much to rip it off.”

A flashback to his hospital room strikes Eddie, then: the feeling of Richie’s raw, scraped hands gripping his tightly, Eddie assuming the injuries had come from his fall from the Deadlights.

“You really took this wood from the bridge?” he asks carefully, dropping his dust cloth and carefully approaching the couch. Richie is still sprawled out on his back, gaze turned from Eddie, so there’s no room to sit beside him, but Eddie feels the inexplicable need to be near Richie for this conversation.

Always feels that need, if he’s being honest with himself.

“Yeah, well, excuse me for not exactly thinking straight,” Richie mutters, and it’s a testament to the sincerity of the moment that he doesn’t even go for a low-hanging gay joke at his expense. “I thought I was losing you after just getting you back, and I…”

He squeezes his eyes shut, shakes his head and lets the Rubik’s cube drop to the floor.

“Hey.” Eddie drops to a knee beside him, picks up the toy and squeezes Richie’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring it up if it was going to upset you. I’m…I’m still just really surprised about the gift, that’s all. It means more to me than you know, alright, even if I…even if I’m showing it in a stupid way.”

Richie cracks an eye open, then smiles when he sees whatever pathetically earnest expression Eddie’s probably wearing in return.

“Just glad the work was worth it, Eds,” he says softly. “That stupid hunk of bridge is about the only thing worth taking from that town.”

*

Eddie doesn’t know how serious Richie is about that statement until later that night.

Their evening of Hanukkah and Christmas gift-giving with the other Losers had been a smashing success, with all the stupid gag gifts one could expect from the friends of Richie Tozier mixed with all the sentimental and heartfelt presents to be expected from the likes of Mike, Ben, and, surprisingly, Stan, secret sap that he is. By the time the others stumble back out to their homes or hotels for the evening, safely and drunkenly tucked into Ubers lined up like Christmas sleighs, Eddie is feeling warm with love like he hasn’t felt on Christmas Eve in decades.

Richie is looking just as warm and relaxed from his spot on the couch in the corner, flushed from mulled wine and cozy in an ugly Christmas sweater and smiling at Eddie like he’s never been so content.

“Did you have a good Christmas Eve, Eddie Spaghetti?”

“The best,” Eddie says honestly, ignoring the nickname in favor of painful sincerity. “Thank you for letting me host that here. That was…you’re really the best, you know? That was the best Christmas I’ve had since the last time we were all together.”

Richie’s smile only grows at that. “Glad to hear it, Eds. Anything for you.”

It’s hard for Eddie to look too closely at Richie when he’s turning his full attention on him, knowing he’ll never have it like he truly wants it, so he fiddles with the decorations on the bookshelf for something to do. A nutcracker and a snow globe and a fat, squishy snow man, lined up next to Richie’s homemade frame.

“It’s just nice having everyone together. It’s just…we’re so lucky, you know?” he murmurs, his wine-clumsy fingers knocking the nutcracker over, hurrying to catch the frame before it can fall.

It’s only then in his hands that he sees the back of the frame for the first time, the engraving on the back that looks much older than Richie’s more recent carpentry efforts on the front.

R + E

“Oh,” Eddie breathes, a rush of cold panic and warm hope pouring over him all at once. “Richie, what’s…is this from the bridge?”

Richie looks up, curious, paling slightly when he sees what Eddie is looking at.

“Oh, yeah. That. It was, uh, it was on the part of the bridge I broke.”

“It’s our initials, Richie. R and E.” Barely able to hear over the pounding in his ears, Eddie whispers, “Is that us?”

Flushed from the tips of his ears to the collar of his sweater, it’s impossible for Richie to do anything but nod, a little sheepish as he drops his gaze to the floor.

“The summer of the clown, when you were grounded and we were all in that awful fight and I couldn’t see you, or anyone…” He laughs, a bleak and mirthless sound. “I thought I was going crazy, you know? I needed you more than I ever did, because that stupid clown knew my secret and…and I was already so scared of him doing something to me, but then he knew how I felt about you, and if he did something to you…” He shakes his head, eyes falling shut as the fear of the memory washes over him.

“How you felt about me?” Eddie clutches the frame to his chest like a raft in a stormy sea. “How did you feel about me?”

Richie opens his eyes and looks steadily at Eddie. “How did I feel?” he asks. “I felt enough to carve our initials into the Kissing Bridge without caring if anyone saw. I felt enough to rip that bridge apart and take those letters with me in case that’s all I had left of you when I left that stupid town this time around.”

He closes his eyes, briefly, and then, like he’s steeling himself for something, he adds, “I don’t know why we’re saying ‘felt’ in the past tense, like I just gave that frame to you for no reason. As if any of those feelings ever went away.”

All at once Eddie feels lightheaded, like the first thrilling time he drank a beer with Richie and thought he was going to fall over, but knowing all the while without knowing how he knew that Richie would catch him if he needed to.

“You still like me like that?” he whispers, running his fingers over the letters with reverence before placing the frame back on the shelf.

Richie smiles ruefully, makes a buzzer noise out of the side of his mouth. “Wrong four-letter word, there, Eds. Try it again. Same first letter, whole different set of consequences for me.”

Eddie approaches Richie with all the care needed to approach a startled fawn, quiet slow steps forward and a gentle hand on his shoulder.

“Come on, Rich, don’t chicken out on me here. Can you say it? Please? For me?”

Eyes wide with someone less like fear and more like wonder, Richie swallows and grips the hand on his shoulder with all the strength of someone about to unburden something he’s been carrying for far too long.

“I love you, Eddie. I’m in love with you. Always have been and always will be.”

It’s like someone unlocked a box that had been hiding in Eddie’s chest, flipped it upside down, and shook it until every joyful emotion he’d ever known came tumbling out in one jumbled mess. It’s a thrill unlike anything Eddie’s ever felt: every leap into the quarry, every stolen moment in the hammock with Richie, every night sneaking in and out of windows and whispering in the too-near closeness under bedsheets.

Richie loves him.

“Does it count as a Christmas gift,” Eddie says breathlessly, pulling Richie to his feet, “if I tell you that I love you, too?”

Dazed, eyes wide and lips parted slightly, Richie nods stupidly until it seems his brain has caught up with his heart.

“Only if you mean it,” he says, gathering Eddie into his arms and pulling him in to a first-class kiss for the ages.

Eddie thinks, if this is how Richie is going to kiss him every day, he’s going to have to find him a Christmas gift, after all.

“Merry Christmas, Eddie,” Richie whispers against his lips, and there’s a lot Eddie wants to say back to that, but it’ll have to wait, he decides, as he pulls Richie in for another kiss.

They’ve got a lot of catching up to do.

[tennant-davids]

what did the spectator review of macbeth say? 👀

i'll be honest, i didn't read the whole thing because it was behind a paywall and it was also a while ago now.

but i mean it starts with "donmar warehouse declares war on shakespeare" lmaooo but one of the initial criticisms i read from the reviewer was that david is "a terrific light comedian but his mischievous off-beat style doesn’t suit the role of an earnest, bloodthirsty villain" like he's trying to play macbeth like the doctor on a good day or something?? and how dare he try his hand at murderous, mad, tortured macbeth?? idk. it also just ignores half of his filmography and theatre work, as well as any depth he gave to those 'light' characters when needed, but the reviewer doesn't care - they were pretty rude about the overall production, cush jumbo (like... how????), and other cast members generally just from the first bit i could read.

their experience wasn't anything like mine when i saw it though - i found david's performance deeply engaging, but also unsettling, emotional and distressing at times - and i loved it! - so it doesn't really matter, but it still bothers me lmao i'm holding a grudge on his behalf

[neoninky]

TWST Fic "Her Lost Voice" Chapter 9

Not me watching Sleeping Beauty and taking notes in preparation for Diasomnia's impending victory

Hey it's still May 19th so Happy World Eel Day, everyone!

Speaking of eels-

Let's pick up where we left off yesterday with everyone's favorite tweels storming the castle/siren club lol

Chapter 9: The Miserable, Lonely, and Depressed

As soon as he heard her voice say his name, the sleepy fog flooding his system evaporated. It had been way too long and now here she was.

"Floyd...?"

The miniature Leech twin regained all of his energy and then some in an instant. He beamed up at the siren as she slowly swam over to her bed, the dumped flowers completely forgotten, and curled up in front of her pillows so she could get a better look at what was apparently her beau. Floyd excitedly dove into her hands and wrapped himself around her thumb, hugging it since he was too tiny to give her a proper embrace. 

"Lunaaa! I missed you!" he chirped in his much smaller voice as he nuzzled his cheek against the pad of her thumb like an affectionate kitten. 

Luna's heart melted for a moment at the sound of Floyd's familiar and honest glee. How she missed it and him both. But that didn't distract her from her immediate frustration. Granted, now it was even more difficult to stay angry with him. 

"Floyd," Luna huffed in a whisper that was trying to sound stern but knew it sounded lackluster, "What are you doing here?! If they find out, they'll kill you!" 

The tiny eel didn't seem to hear her. That or he just didn't care. Floyd just squeezed the parts of her hand he could fit his tail around excitedly as he planted tiny excited kisses on her skin. Luna felt her resolve starting to crack. Good grief, why did he have to be so damn cute?

"Floyd, please."

He finally gave the siren an annoyed pout. So much for her never getting upset with him for doing something reckless, "I don't care about them. I'm here to rescue you. If you wanna be mad then be mad at Sevy, not me."

Luna sighed and gave Floyd's tiny head a very gentle pet with the tip of her finger, "I'm not angry with you or Seven, honey...I just don't like you putting yourself in danger! I'd rather you'd stay away from me and far from here-OW!" 

The siren scoffed and glared down at her miniature boyfriend who had bit her finger. He kept nipping at her while giving her a sour glare like a pouty, rebellious child.

"Floyd, stop that!" Luna hissed quietly.

"Then take that back! I know you don't mean it so why did you ignore me for so long?!" She could hear the frustration make his voice crack as he stared her down, the end of his tail whipping against her fingers. 

Luna's frustration reached its peak and her words spilled out of her mouth  before she could give them thorough thought, "Because I love you, you idiot!"

Floyd's eyes went wide and his tiny jaw went slack as he felt his brain grind to a halt. Luna looked away from him as she felt heat bloom on her face. 

"The thought of something happening to you or you getting hurt because of me absolutely kills me, Floyd. I'm sorry. I didn't know what else to do to protect you..." When she looked back down at him, Floyd was still completely frozen in shock, making her feel even more embarrassed, "Floyd. Goodness, j-just say something! ...Please?"

In a matter of seconds, Luna saw him completely thaw his way out of shock and b-lined right back into hyper glee in record time. His smile was as wide as his eyes and his tiny tail was wagging like crazy.

"You love me? Really? REALLY?!"

Luna now couldn't deny it even if she wanted to. It was a first and frankly, Floyd Leech was definitely not the type of person she imagined herself committing to. But then she met him, flirted and romanced him, and he not only reciprocated but chased after her in earnest. Especially when she tried to break things off. And the big difference was that it didn't feel like a game or a transaction. Luna couldn't lie to herself anymore. This silly, wild boy actually made her feel happy. Floyd made her feel so good and never pretended to have feelings he didn't. It was all genuine with him...which is why this had all been so hard. So here she was being hit over the head with her own clumsy confession and feelings that had been bubbling under the surface for months now. There was no point in trying to play coy now.

The warm smile on her face set Floyd off like a little firecracker, "Yes, honey. I do."

Luna almost squealed when he suddenly darted up to her face and smooshed his into her lips. She guessed that was as close to a legitimate kiss as he could get in this form. While he had been a bit confused and conflicted about how exactly he felt before, Floyd's brain pretty much threw all that out the window right then and there. 

Luna let a genuine giggle slip just before kissing Floyd on his tiny head. He suddenly looked irritated and grumbled, "I wish I wasn't tiny...this makes it even more awkward..."

He became bashful out of nowhere which only confused the siren. Floyd was pretty straightforward all around so this seemed very strange. His ear fins were wiggling and twitching as he looked back up at her, "Hey Luna...?"

Floyd knew that he was definitely doing things out of order here which was frowned upon when it came to mating rituals but honestly, he and Luna had technically already mated in the physical sense before so it was already too late to 'do things by the book' so to speak. His mother would be livid at his lack of preparation but hopefully the fact that she's getting another daughter-in-law would distract her. Normally the male would give his chosen mate a proper gift in the form of jewelry or some other trinket when proposing they become official mates. The female would then wear it like a human woman would a wedding or engagement ring to symbolize that she had taken a mate and was essentially off the market.

 Floyd, unfortunately, forgot that part until just now...so here he was about to do the mermaid equivalent of proposing to his girlfriend without a ring. It still meant just as much to him regardless and he hoped the same was true for Luna as well. He just hated the fact that he felt so goddamn flustered all of a sudden!

"Luna, I wanna ask you-"

Floyd snarled and nearly spat acid as a sudden knock on the door interrupted their moment. The scared look that was on Luna's face made his guts twist and turn. He didn't like seeing her that way at all. Luna quickly whispered for Floyd to hide as she opened her jewelry box and shepherded him inside before going to the door. Fortunately, it was Seven on the other side of the door. This only irritated Floyd even more. As soon as Luna let him in and shut the door, Floyd popped out the jewelry box like an angry jack-in-the-box. 

"HeyheyHEY! You couldn't wait a few more minutes?!" the tiny eel hissed. 

Seven was unphased as usual, "Afraid not. Luna needs to be back on stage in the next three minutes." 

Luna gave Seven an understanding nod before picking up her seething beau into her hands and cooed to him, "I'm so sorry Floyd honey. Just please wait a little longer." 

Floyd's temper was almost boiling him alive. It was so bad that even Luna's pet name for him barely put a dent in it, "Let's leave right now! You have the key right here!" 

Seven rolled his eyes. Jade had warned him ahead of time about his twin's impatience, "If you leave now, it'll only cause more of an unnecessary commotion. Wait until the show is over and the guests all leave. Then, and ONLY then, Luna can open the portal and you two can sneak away because no one will even realize she's gone until tomorrow. And you need to stay quiet...my younger brothers are still outside lurking about. Not to mention, I haven't seen Proteus all night." 

Floyd looked like he was ready to take a bite out of Seven when Luna calmly interjected, "Seven, I'll be right there. Just give me a moment with Floyd, ok?"

Her step-brother left without an argument. Luna turned her gentle smile back on, making her lover cool down a small margin.

"Floyd honey," she tried again, this time actually seeing Floyd start to relax, "Please wait for me. Just a little longer. Then you and I can leave together, safely, quietly. Then we'll have all the time in the world to talk and more." 

The tiny Leech whipped his tail with acute sass as he crossed his arms and pouted up at her, "....ok."

Luna set him back down on her vanity and planted another kiss on his turquoise hair, "Thank you, darling. It won't be much longer. Then you can be back to your normal size and have me all to yourself." 

His expression didn't change but the excited thump of his tail betrayed him making Luna giggle, "Stay hidden and quiet, honey. I'll be back."  -

Jade remained waiting in Seven's box, still as a gargoyle. He was quietly pondering how much time they had left when Seven returned and casually sat back down in his seat. He knew that eyes were on him constantly so he had to remain vigilant and calm. Thankfully he had one hell of a poker face. He kept his eyes to the stage as he quietly addressed Jade.

"As soon as the last song ends, return to the front doors with the other staff and unlock them. Wait until the crowds start to leave and then exit with them. Don't break away from the crowd until you're away from the club. You only have about an hour left on the potion so move as quickly as you can without looking suspicious." 

Jade said nothing but tapped his manta tail on the floor twice to indicate he understood the instructions. 

The crowd below started to quiet down as the lights dimmed. Luna took her position behind the curtain once again, this time with a rekindled spark in her eyes. Just a couple more songs then it'd all be over. Finally...

-

The youngest of Seven's brothers yawned as he circled around the club once again. This was getting boring but he knew if they didn't do this then the lot of them would get a face full of electricity from Proteus...or worse. He yanked on the uncomfortable collar the three of them had been forced to wear by the sadistic ray: the material alone was rough and rubbed against the skin but it also had metal bolts attached to the outside to make the charges all the more potent. He was about to turn around when a strange smell suddenly hit his senses. It seemed a bit old but also extremely out of place....it was then he noticed it was coming from the vents. 

He suddenly let out a whistle to call his older brothers over. The two larger eels made their way over and saw the youngest pointing to one of the vents. He didn't have to explain when the other two caught the same smell. All three pairs of eyes narrowed as they broke apart, each one entering a different vent to track down the infiltrator. It was definitely the smell of another eel but not one of their own. 

It didn't take the three brothers long to track the smell to the back hallways where all the sirens' quarters were. But which room was it in? The three silently filed into the empty hallway and accessed the situation. The two elder brothers left the youngest to keep looking as they returned to the main floor. Surely Ventuno and their father would need to know about this. Meanwhile, the youngest continued to sort out all the smells along the doorways, searching for his target like an aquatic bloodhound. 

-

Don Muraeni hadn't budged from his seat all night. He had plenty of gentlemen come to his own box to discuss business in between performances. The more foolhardy of them tried to make offers on purchasing Luna for as their own personal siren but each one was swiftly and rudely dismissed by the Don and his snickering heir. Ventuno just took it as even more entertainment, knowing his father would never sell Luna to anyone or give her to their sons when she already brought him in profit aplenty. He wasn't exactly put off either by the fathers trying to push their daughters onto the Don's son in exchange for some other kind of boon. No agreements were officially made but it was clear that Ventuno had plenty to choose from if he were interested. His enjoyment was rudely interrupted when his two younger brothers silently shuffled into the box, trying to whisper something urgently to him as their father continued to chat with another colleague of his. 

"The hell do you runts want?" Ventuno spat before grabbing another crab off of the platter next to him. He lazily crunched the tiny creature between his sharp teeth, half-listening to whatever it was that his brothers were saying but as soon as he heard a certain name, he started to choke, "What?!"

"Ventuno...cover your mouth, boy."

Don Muraeni's sinisterly smooth tone made all three sons freeze. The eldest cleared up his own cough as soon as possible and quickly dismissed himself, "Father, there's some riff-raff inside that these slugs can't handle."

The Don held up a hand to silence his colleague as he turned to narrow his eyes at his now whimpering younger sons and his snarling heir. His voice seemed to turn the air colder all around them.

"Take care of it. Now. Or would you rather continue to disrupt my business and suffer even greater consequences?"

The sons knew better than to answer that and quickly dismissed themselves before the Don had to ask a second time. Ventuno snapped his teeth at the shaken brothers before shoving past them in an irritated hurry. 

-

Floyd had settled on taking another nap to make himself feel better but he was once again interrupted by a noise coming from the other side of Luna's door. He saw a shadow from underneath the door and smelled a scent he didn't recognize. His fins prickled up on edge when the doorknob started to rattle. Outside in the hallway, the youngest of the numbered brothers snarled as he fiddled with the lock, trying to pick it open. Whatever that smell was, it was coming from inside Luna's room. He turned and yanked on the door handle when picking the lock had failed him. 

Floyd quickly dove back into the jewelry box on Luna's vanity and pulled it shut as he wrapped his tail around the coral portal key. He felt his whole body tense up and flood with instinctual adrenaline in the process. Had he been full-sized, he'd just knock the door off its henges and sucker-punched the intruder himself. Whoever showed up next had the same idea. Floyd heard a gruff voice bark at the first intruder, telling him to 'piss off', seconds before the handle was ripped off and the door forced open. The Leech twin couldn't see him but Ventuno's deep snarl and the stench of aggression told Floyd all he needed to know. The Muraeni heir leered around the empty room, occasionally tossing things aside as he sniffed about. 

"I can smell you in here, you Leech bastard, where are you?!" 

-

The last song had reached it's second chorus when Jade noticed some movement coming from the sides of the room. He remained silent but tapped Seven on his shoulder with his tail before gesturing to the sight of Seven's younger brothers swimming towards the back hallway in a hurry. Seven cursed under his breath but rose from his seat in a calm manner.

"Stick to the plan...throw them off track." 

-

The three younger numbered brothers heard Ventuno thrashing about in Luna's dressing room and felt uneasy about the entire display. The eldest had already snarled and threatened each of them for not doing their jobs and letting some outsider sneak in...and now that the adrenaline of the hunt had started to wane, they realized that they were in fact in forbidden territory and that Ventuno was absolutely destroying the headlining diva's room with no clear signs of stopping.

"The hell are you three doing back here?!"

All three brothers turned and nearly died on the spot from fear when they saw who was yelling at them. They cowered under Seven's icy glare like a pack of scared sardines.

"Get back outside before Father sees you. You know you aren't allowed back here," he commanded in a cold but blunt tone as he made his way towards the ruckus. 

The three younger brothers quickly made their way back towards the front doors that were now open and hid amongst the leaving patrons. They shuffled in between the gentlemen and their packs as they exited the venue, going unnoticed by most. The three of them seemed to share alike mind and moved together like a school of much smaller fish. They came to a united halt as one of the manta mermen suddenly swam in front of them, nearly bumping into the eldest. The manta gave a polite apology before disappearing into the flow of the crowd. When the eldest of them picked up on another scent trailing behind the manta, the other two suddenly stiffened as well. It was very similar to the first foreign musk they discovered earlier. Did that mean...there were two of them?! 

The eldest snarled quietly as his dark eyes honed in on where the stranger had disappeared in front of them. The manta ray was further ahead moving at a steady pace. The other two brothers followed the first as he began to follow the strange manta at a safe distance. What the brothers didn't see was the smirk on Jade's faux-face as he began to pick up the pace even more once they reached the edge of the lot. He could feel the potion's effect start to fade and knew he was on a tight time frame. The further he lured them away from the club and away from Luna and Floyd the better but he had to get back to his home turf quick.

It wasn't quite as easy for him due to his larger size but Jade had taken mental notes during his and Cowrie's last 'chase'. He continued to face forward, never letting on that he knew he was being followed as he took different twists and turns down this street and the next. All the while, Jade kept his eyes and mind sharp. It wouldn't do him any good to get himself lost. The trio moved together like a pack of wolves. If one of them bumped into a dead end, the next brother took the lead down another path trying to get ahead of Jade to cut him off. Jade picked up speed as he began to recognize his surroundings. Even in this form, he was too quick for the trio to get ahead of him. He was almost to the border when he began to feel a twisting pain in his torso. Jade cursed silently in his own head as he almost crash-landed into the square as the manta fins morphed back into his normal eel form, throwing off his balance. He quickly turned down the alleyway that led behind the Leviathan Club and hid himself the best he could. His body fully changed back as he quietly tried to catch his breath. Around him, he didn't hear or see anyone. Jade waited in silence for several minutes before looking about the area himself...nothing. 

In front of the Leviathan Club, the street was full of usual patrons either enjoying the late evening or heading home. Jade didn't see the three brothers anywhere nor did he smell them. He exhaled in short relief before heading straight back home, not knowing that four pairs of glowing eyes were watching him from further down the street. The tall, imperious figure hovering in the middle of the three rough hunters grinned as his red eyes burned with mirth. Each telling whisper the brothers gave him filled him in on the night's events including the suspected intruder in Luna's room and how it had smelled very closely to how Jade Leech had smelled. 

"My, my, it would seem hiding in the square all night paid off. Thank you, boys, for chasing the young Leech my way. Let's let him go for now. I have a feeling Don Muraeni might need some assistance rounding up a runaway soon..."

The three brothers knew better than to argue with him as all three of them answered in submissive obedience.

"Yes, Proteus."

-

Floyd quickly swam underneath the vanity as an angry Ventuno knocked the jewelry box and other items off of it as he continued to turn the room inside out. He held the key tight by the end of his tail. His ear fins perked up as he heard a familiar voice enter the room.

"Ventuno! What are you doing?!"

The only thing that could overrule Ventuno's boiling temper about his enemy hiding in plain sight was his inexplicable desire to either throw Seven under the bus or knock his lesser brother's teeth out. Either way, for Ventuno, the opportunity literally just came through the door. 

"I should be asking you that, Seven. Or better yet, what aren't you doing? I was just told by our younger brat brothers that a Leech somehow got in here unnoticed like a rat. I can smell him all over this room. Why couldn't you, hmm? I wonder what Dad will have to say about this...especially since you already fucked up once."

Seven clenched his jaw shut as he allowed the arrogant family heir to laugh in his face, "I've had securities checks done around the clock since we opened, Ventuno. If there was an intruder then we would have found and dealt with him already...but I guess your method of destroying business property works just as well," he added sarcastically.

His older brother growled and got up in Seven's face, baring his teeth and tensing up his tail fins to show dominance, "Listen, just because you're the toughest dog in the pack doesn't mean you can talk back to me so freely. Or do you want another scar on your throat? Maybe this time, I'll rip out your vocal cords and mount them in the dining room right next to a nice, open plaque I'll be saving for your head...'Sevy'..."

Seven felt his hold on his temper start to ebb as his brother used the nickname Cowrie had given him. Ventuno sneered as he watched Seven's eyes narrow, "Oh I'm sorry. Did I hit a nerve? I forgot, that was the lil' maggot's pet name for you, wasn't it?"

"There's nothing in here as you can see, Ventuno. Get out," Seven's tone was cool and collected as usual but Ventuno wasn't finished with him just yet.

"Ooh, poor Sevyyyy..." his tone was laced with amused malice, "You were too late to rescue the little brat from becoming shark food. Damn, what would Stepmother think?" For the first time, Floyd saw Seven's tail tense with anger and shake like the end of a rattlesnake's. "Oh was that supposed to be a secret? How you were her favorite out of all of us? It's adorable how the guilt is tearing you apart, you pathetic sap," Ventuno swam around his younger brother with the smuggest sounding taunts Floyd had ever heard,"Or actually now that I think about it...didn't you just sit back and watch as Stepmother became shark food too? Wow, that soft-hearted bitch even gave you a name without telling Dad...you act like you're above all this but you're just as greedy for a place at the table as the rest of us-"

Floyd heard a loud thump as he saw Ventuno suddenly hit the ground right in front of the vanity. He quickly zipped out from his hiding place and went behind the overturned bed before Ventuno could spot him. Fortunately for Floyd, the eldest Muraeni son was preoccupied with Seven's hand holding him down by his throat. All Floyd could hear was Ventuno struggling and choking as Seven's voice turned dark. His curiosity got the better of him as the tiny twin peeked out from his new hiding spot to watch Seven almost strangle the arrogance right out of his older brother. For the first time, Seven's usually empty eyes were on fire with cold rage.

"I know you haven't given a single damn about anyone besides yourself since the day each of us was born, but don't you dare assume that I'm the same as you, you fucking parasite. And don't you dare insult her like that," Seven's snarl sounded like the beginning of an earthquake as his ice blue gaze pierced right into his older brother's angry eyes. For a moment, Floyd was convinced that Seven was really about to choke every last breath out of his brother...until he didn't. Frankly, Floyd was a tad disappointed. Seven let the asshole go with a final warning.

"There's nothing in here for you to find. Get the hell out." 

Ventuno coughed and sputtered as he flailed on the ground, trying to get away as soon as Seven let him go. He snarled as soon as he got his breath back and rose back up, trying to bolster what little dignity he had left, "Ok Seven...I'll leave..." 

Before Seven could even blink, Ventuno's tail whacked the bed and knocked it back against the opposite wall. He smirked as he looked down at Floyd who had curled up in a tiny spiral to duck out of the way of the large piece of furniture. 

"Well, well, seems we have an infestation after all!" Ventuno chuckled with a sinister grin. The grin quickly faded in a matter of minutes when a large spark of magic suddenly went off in the smug Muraeni's face, temporarily blinding him. Before his vision could clear, Ventuno felt a blunt something hit him in the head twice so hard he swore he had been hit by a bus. Floyd now back to his original size just blinked in both disbelief and wonder at the culprit. Seven sighed in either relief or frustration at how quickly this entire operation went south. Possibly both. The metal piece of her broken bed frame sank back to the ground with a hollow thud as Luna glared at her now unconscious stepbrother.  

"Change of plans," she huffed, quickly addressing Floyd and Seven after shutting what was left of the door, "Floyd, give me the key."

He obeyed without question and Luna pressed the key to the wall just to the side of the broken door. The same kind of mirror-like portal opened and she gave Seven a desperate look. He cursed under his breath, "Luna, we don't really have time for goodbyes here. You gotta get going." 

"You're right, there's no time for a goodbye," Luna suddenly wrapped her arms around Seven in a tight hug, "Heart's Lyre."

Before Seven could argue, he felt his entire body lock up in a weird paralysis as his arms crossed behind his back. The look in Luna's eyes was both apologetic and determined, "Proteus saw Jade. I heard your brothers talking about it just before I rushed back here. If he knows, your father will too if he doesn't already. You're coming with us. Floyd, let's go."

Floyd gave Luna and Seven a push into the portal as Luna kept her arms around Seven and dove in after them as the portal closed after him. 

Luna's body hit the sand hard as the portal seemed to throw her and the others out the other end like a shot. She tumbled more times than she could count and swore some of the sand got into her lungs as she gasped and coughed upon finally landing, her ears ringing.

...Lu.....Lunaaa... "LUNA!"

A familiar voice echoed to her before she felt a pair of arms envelop her. When she could finally open her eyes properly, Luna felt her throat tighten. Elise's beaming smile greeted her old friend as she hugged her close, "You're here! You're really here!" 

It took Luna a moment to realize that, yes, Elise actually was speaking to her. Her sister's excited cheer rang out as the younger eelmaid hugged Luna from behind, wrapping her tail around her older sister affectionately, "Luna!! You're ok!!" 

"Wh...where...?" Luna's brain was still trying to make sense of everything that was happening way too fast. The giant coral garden surrounding her didn't look familiar at all. Floyd somehow ended up across the way and was currently being helped off the ground by a very relieved-looking Jade as Azul kept patting his back to help him cough up some sand.  Luna sighed a few her nerves out seeing that he had made it in one piece. A groan coming from behind her proved that Seven made it as well. The dazed eel pushed himself off the ground and shook the excess sand from his hair, ears, and back. Cowrie pried herself from the sisterly hug and full-on tackled him, squealing with glee, "Sevyyy!!"  Everyone was here...they made it.

Luna turned back to Elise and held her face as if she wasn't sure if her friend was real or not, "Elise...you...wait you can talk now?!"

The princess just laughed as tiny inky tears prickled at her gem-colored eyes, "It's a long story. We can talk about all that later. I'm just so happy that you're here! We're all together again, finally!"

Luna's lips quivered as the sentiment hit her in full force, "Yes...Yes, finally." 

The two girls squealed as Floyd suddenly wrapped them both in a tight hug nuzzling Luna's cheek before giving her several kisses on her face. Luna broke down in laughter and embarrassment, now noticing that Elise had somehow escaped the hug and joined the rest of the group as they just hung back and watched Floyd explode like a happy puppy. 

"F-Floyd! Calm down! I'm not going to disappear, I swear!" Luna's usual cool-headed veneer was all but destroyed at this point and any attempt to regain it or hide behind her hands was rebuffed by her excited beau. 

"Never," Floyd was relentless. Elise and Cowrie were both a fit of giggles at the display. Azul and Jade both had looks that were somewhere between relief and exasperation. Seven was just lost entirely...until he saw Don Leech and his wife enter the garden with two very different reactions to what was happening.

Everyone froze as a stern 'AHEM' from Don Leech broke the atmosphere. He hovered, arms crossed, hair looking like he had been asleep until not that long ago, and an irritated yet confused scowl on his face. Madam Leech, a surprise to no one, looked fully prepared for the day already even though it was technically very late at night and merely blinked as she observed the beautiful, embarrassed girl in her other son's arms...until realization hit her like lightning. She looked at Luna and then Cowrie. Seconds later, she connected the dots, seeing how similar the two girls looked, and gasped in delight.  Her husband wasn't nearly as enthusiastic. How could he be when here he was, peacefully asleep in bed, when suddenly he was very rudely awakened by a loud ruckus in his garden which was now full of rowdy young people. One was his enemy's kid which he was convinced he would NEVER see again. The other he knew exactly who she was and whose siren diva she was...and here she was in the arms of his son. His headache from the other day came back in record time with a vengeance.

"Everyone. Inside. NOW."

-

Inside Don Leech's office, the three eel boys all stood in front of his desk as if it were a prison lineup. The twins looked like they knew fully what to expect. Seven looked like he was wondering how in the hell he even got there in the first place. The three girls all sat comfortably as they could in this tense atmosphere on the large couch behind them with Madam Leech perched nearby, poised elegantly, calmly but still very much like a protective mother hen. Azul stood off to the side of Elise, silently grateful to not be put on the spot for once during this whole affair.

The Don glared daggers at the three boys as he heaved a deep sigh, "Days ago, my property was trespassed by Muraeni thugs that chased his own daughter onto my territory....and my son, Jade, tells me then that she is his to be his mate. And you," his eyes darted over to Seven who flinched for a split second, "You, one of the Muraeni boys, show up, beat up my other son, and tell me the same thing. Now, in the middle of the night, you show up yet again with no warning whatsoever with the main diva of my rival's very exclusive sirens club in my garden of all places. Care to explain what the hell is happening here?"

Seven cleared his throat, "Sir, I apologize for this very...strange...situation. Obviously, you know who my other sister is. I was the one who helped her escape here."

"Jade and I helped too," Floyd pipped up casually making Jade and Seven sigh heavily.

"Thanks, Floyd..." Seven grumbled. So much for taking the brunt of the blame.

Don Leech slowly rose from his seat and stared at all three boys before leaning over to address Luna directly, "Luna Cerith is it? ...As in the same Luna Cerith that is the not only the headlining siren at the Siren's Cove but the eldest daughter of the past diva and ex-mate of Don Muraeni himself, Junonia Cerith?"

Luna felt her hands trembling as she kept them folded in her lap, "Yes sir. The very same. I wasn't aware you knew my mother, sir..."

"We've never met," Don Leech's gaze softened momentarily while speaking to the very nervous eelmaid, "I just did some further digging on my rival's history when I found out my son was planning on taking his daughter as his mate. When I did, I found out about you and your brother," both Luna and Seven tensed up at the implication, "I didn't expect to actually see you in my home...again." 

He threw a look Seven's way before addressing the three boys with a renewed glare, "With that said...am I to believe you three idiots somehow snuck into the Siren's Cove, in the dead of night, to kidnap Don Muraeni's prized siren singer that has been no doubt at the very top of his radar and still is and bring her back here, into my house?"

The three boys all muttered some form of affirmation to the father's very dangerously poised question. He continued in a very deceivingly calm tone, "Tell me. Why would you do this exactly?"

Seven swallowed as he felt himself begin to crack under the pressure but before he could answer...

"She's my girl," Floyd said bluntly, "I didn't like how they kept her all locked up so I rescued her." 

A single pin drop would have sounded like a landslide at that moment with how quiet that office was. Any faint hope that the father had that maybe, just maybe his assumptions were incorrect were shattered. Floyd fully expected his father to react the same way he did when Jade told him about Cowrie: the agro snarling intimidation tactics, the staredown, the whole nine yards. Instead, his father looked into his eyes with the most stoic expression on his face that Floyd had ever seen...which frankly was way more terrifying. Floyd tried to silently stand his ground as Jade had done before but he felt his tail start to twitch anxiously behind him. 

His father took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly before speaking, "So...not just one of my sons, but both of my sons have decided that out of all the women they could choose, they choose the two that are absolutely, undeniably off-limits and from the absolute last family they should ever associate with at all...because of course, they would..."

Their father's expected snarl started to build with every word but stopped when Luna's gentle voice politely interjected, "Don Leech, sir...if I may?"

The Don's felt his brow twitch but he still extended his hand, giving Luna permission to speak. The twins scooted to the side to give her room to approach their father's desk. The siren floated forward with Cowrie in the middle between her and Seven.

"Thank you, sir. What you said is very true...the Muraeni family is the very last family anyone should associate with. And that is exactly why my brother and your sons have done what they did for me and my sister. Don Muraeni is a monster and he's abused Seven, Cowrie, and myself for years, in several malicious ways," Luna paused only to give the twins a soft smile, "Jade and Floyd are wonderful boys who have risked so much to help us. My sister and I love them and owe them so much for just that. As for Seven, he risked everything to help Cowrie and me. Because of that, I brought him here to your home. I ask that you forgive my overstepping and accept my gratitude for extending your kindness and generosity to my brother and sister, sir." 

Luna bowed her head to the Don and Seven did the same. Cowrie grunted as Seven and Luna placed their hands on the back of her head, making her mimic them. The Don felt the entire room watching him, waiting for a response. He looked at the three siblings and contemplated what the elder sister had said carefully. 

"Something else I've discovered that seems off. None of you have the name Muraeni...?" he asked curiously. 

The three of them raised their heads again to meet his calculating gaze and Luna shook her head, "No sir. I never took the family name Muraeni even after the Don became my stepfather. Cowrie is biologically his but she shares our mother's name as I do. And Seven..."

Luna hesitated, knowing that this was a somewhat touchy subject. Seven was never actually allowed to even discuss this topic even within the family but if Don Leech was really so concerned about his and his sisters' lineage then now was the time to bring it to light.

"I'm Seven. Just Seven. I have my father's genes but that's it, sir. The only one allowed to have the family name is the Don himself and his heir, Ventuno. The rest of us are just numbers. Our mother never tried to give us proper names." 

Elise felt a heavy sadness settle in her chest as she listened to Seven talk about himself as just a number as her eyes took in all the scars on his arms, neck, back, and tail. She hadn't known him that long but his voice always sounded so even, so sure until now. The sound didn't change but really taking in his form and listening to his words...he just seemed so tired. For a moment she, and Azul judging from the look on his face, felt like she was intruding on a very personal moment. The two octopuses shared a look of understanding but remained still and quiet as the rest of this strange drama unfolded in front of them. The proud Don had a look on his face like he was considering his next move as if this were all just a game of chess. 

"Your biological mother didn't. But you seem like an anomaly compared to your other siblings, Seven. You went to the surface for a time for schooling like your sisters did when you were about sixteen years old, correct? In that time, you were documented having a name that wasn't 'just Seven'...but you were the only son who did go up top." Don Leech pulled a file of documents from his desk and placed them on the top for all of the younger eels to see. Right on top was an acceptance letter to none other than Night Raven College with the name 'Indigo Cerith' as the addressee and an ID photo of a younger, human Seven wearing the school's uniform.

It was Luna and Cowrie's turn to be shocked. The younger sister cut through the tense atmosphere with a confused chirp, "What?! Sevy you never told us that!"

"You never asked," he grumbled with a heavy hint of embarrassment before looking at Don Leech, "How did you find this information...and why?"

He just snorted as if the boy told a funny joke, "I'm the leader of one the strongest and most influential families in town, boy. You really don't think I have eyes and ears everywhere? As I said, once you came here to ask me to accept Cowrie into my household, I called in a few favors to find out exactly who you were. In the process, I learned about Luna, her mother, and you....and frankly, though they are trained sirens, I have no reason to suspect any foul play from your sisters. Everything about them checks out. You, however, are awfully suspicious and I don't like suspicious visitors coming and going as they please..." The family leader rose again and stared directly into Seven's wide ice blue eyes with the look of a hunter, "So my question is this...who are you really, and why have you come back here, boy?"

Seven took a breath, not looking away from the elder eel who was silently challenging him, judgment and sentence at the ready the moment he said one wrong word.

"I'm..."

Damn we just can't get away from these cliffhangers huh? lol don't worry the next chapter is coming right up!

Tagging: @wysteriadelights @1ndigowitch @iscarlettappel @marcepanna @honey-milk-depresso @foxwitchaine @nuitthegoddess @evieyouknow @aiimee9 @espada188

[hcm92literature]

‘Out Of Character’ 9th July 2022

‘Out Of Character’ master page  

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“Hey, babe?”

“Hmm?”

“Why is Adrien here when I specifically asked you not to invite him?”

Nino’s eyes widened at his girlfriend. “You told me to invite him!”

“What?!” Alya gaped at her boyfriend in disbelief then got her phone out to find and show him the message. “How on Earth did you interpret the words “please don’t invite Adrien” to mean “please, invite Adrien”?!”

“Oh…” Nino’s face fell. “I must’ve missed the “don’t” part…”

Alya smacked a palm to her face then looked around in panic. “She’s not here yet, we can still get rid of him before she arrives.”

“Get rid of him?”

“You know what I mean!”

“I don’t see why we have t- hey!”

Alya dragged Nino over to Adrien but hesitated when she saw he had a heartbreakingly hopeful expression on his face. The couple shared a look before Alya approached him. “Heeey, Adrien…”

“Hi, Alya! This is gonna be a great party, I hope Marinette enjoys it!”

Alya pulled a face as if she were looking at an earnest puppy, then attempted to regain her composure. “Haha, yeah, me too. Look, there’s kind of been a bit of a mix up-”

“I did notice that one of the speakers was playing up. I could lend you one of mine, if you want. They’re professional PA speakers like these, so the difference will be barely noticeable.”

“Oh. Adrien, that’s…” Alya paused and considered his offer for a moment, thinking it would give her time to tell Marinette about the mix up so she wouldn’t be too shocked (or angry) by Adrien’s presence, and Adrien’s heart wouldn’t be broken by being told he wasn’t actually invited to the party. “Actually, that’s a really good idea! Thank you, Adrien! Nino can go with you to collect it.”

Giving Alya a confused glance as she shoved the boys out of the park and gave him a wink, Nino nervously grinned at the smiling Adrien and followed him to his apartment a couple blocks away. Alya then pulled out her phone again to call her friend.

When Marinette walked through the park gates wearing a pretty pink and grey party dress a few minutes later, her face was a contrasting storm. Alya ducked her head as the storm was directed at her, and she quickly handed her friend a drink. “It was an honest mistake, okay? You know Nino doesn’t read messages properly!”

“But Adrien?! Doesn’t Nino know what I think of him?”

“Not really, no. Every time we’ve talked about it, he just assumes your little feud is only in character.”

Marinette rolled her eyes then put her free hand to her head in frustration. “This is a disaster! But what about Adrien? Why has he agreed to come to this party? Surely he dislikes me as much as I do him.”

“Apparently not,” Alya mumbled into her cup, remembering the conversation she’d had with Nino about Adrien’s crush on Marinette.

“What was that?”

“Nothing. Look Nette, Adrien is just here to celebrate your birthday, right? Maybe you could just, Iunno, call a truce for one night?”

Marinette raised an eyebrow at her friend’s enthusiastic expression, then rolled her eyes and groaned. “Fiiine. But I’m gonna try to avoid him as much as possible.”

“He does have a gift for you…”

“A gift? What gift?”

Alya raised her hand in innocence. “I dunno, girl! I just know he was really excited to give it to you.”

“Adrien? Excited?” Marinette narrowed her eyes sceptically at Alya, then turned when the boys returned carrying a large speaker between them. Her heart skipped a beat when Adrien lowered his end of the speaker and she got a good look at the outfit he was wearing. No matter how much she disliked him, she couldn’t deny that he was very attractive, and the open collar and rolled up sleeves of his black dress shirt only accentuated that fact. Hoping he hadn’t seen her or her reddening face yet, Marinette grabbed Alya and dragged her over to greet some of their other friends and accept their birthday wishes.

A couple hours passed and Marinette had successfully managed to avoid Adrien by striking up a conversation with someone else, excusing herself to go back to the bakery for something, or by hiding in a bush. She was not proud of herself for that last avoidance technique, but desperate times and all that. It got to the point in the party, though, when her friends had decided to give her their presents, and she knew she wouldn’t be able to avoid him for that as he apparently had his own gift to give her. She thanked each friend warmly with a kiss on each cheek after unwrapping each present, then piled them on the table behind her, marvelling at how generous and caring her friends were.

Then Adrien stepped up. He fished in his jeans pocket and held out a small box wrapped in light blue paper. As Marinette ripped open the paper and looked inside the box with an intense curiosity, he rubbed the back of his neck almost sheepishly. “I made this since you’d lost yours a couple months back. I uh, I know it doesn’t replace the one you lost, but… well, I really hope you like it.”

Marinette was speechless as she held up the red string with eight beads on it. At the top was a large gold coin-like bead, in the middle was a golden bird, tied onto the bottom loop was a gold bell, and between them there were smaller light and dark blue beads. She looked up at Adrien and it was almost like looking at a different person; there was none of the grumpy impassiveness she was used to and he was smiling nervously. A small smile crept across her lips and she tiptoed up to kiss his cheeks, trying to ignore the delicious aroma of his sandalwood cologne. “Thank you, Adrien. It’s beautiful.”

Adrien’s face flushed a deep pink and he grinned back at her. “Happy birthday!” He then moved over to talk to Nino, making way for other friends to offer Marinette their gifts, but she found herself unable to focus anymore, shooting furtive glances Adrien’s way at every chance, just to check that he was still the same aloof fashion model she played D&D with every week. She felt conflicted when her face warmed every time their eyes met, but she ignored Alya’s sly looks and decided to blame it on the drink and his decidedly provocative shirt.

[ashketchumseleventhbirthday]

I Have a Boyfriend, You’ve Just Missed Him

Summary: Lyra is invited to her cousin’s wedding, but she is not really certain if she would like to attend. Her boyfriend insists on the matter.

Rating: K+ - Suitable for more mature childen, 9 years and older, with minor action violence without serious injury. May contain mild coarse language. Should not contain any adult themes.

Words: 1800

Notes: I’ve never taken or gone as a plus one to a wedding. I’ll probably never will, so fanfic will have to do.

Looking over the overpriced piece of paper that has just arrived in the mail, Lyra is forced to have a good thinking upon her position in life. Being completely honest, she is not completely sure why she was invited to that wedding in the first place.

Her parents, as in the bride’s mother’s brother and his wife, she could understand and chalk it up to those uncomfortable family dynamics that come into play on those occasions, but she was not exactly close with any of her cousins. In fact, all the interactions they have ever had, especially since growing up and inevitably growing apart, have been awkward smiles and strained small talk.

Nevertheless, the young woman accepted the invitation from the mailman, groaning at the plus one section and discarded it on the breakfast table before heading out.  

Her relationship with Lance is nothing new, especially considering the news cycle of those gossip rags that wasted the department stores from Lilycove to Veilstone, but they have not even reached their first anniversary yet. Though things were going well, she is not overly sure just how serious this was for him. A non-friend only plus one attendance would be seen as a serious move, and she does not know whether he was ready for that.

Lyra would have her answer soon enough.

*_*_*_*_*

“I’m not even sure if I want to go.” She had replied, trying to give a nonchalant shrug.

Lyra had not expected for Lance to pick it up off the coffee table when he came over later that night, and she mentally kicked herself for not moving it sooner when he gave her a confused expression as to why she had not asked him about this.  

Despite her earnest efforts, he saw through her ruse immediately.

“You love weddings.” He pointed out, his voice clear and factual. “Why wouldn’t you want to attend this one?”

The brunette scoffed. “I don’t love weddings, I just like them. They can be fun. I wouldn’t clear my agenda the second I received an invite, though.”

Lance does not need to know the veritable caravan she led to Hoenn when her childhood friend May married two years before, Lyra considered deep into her thoughts. She likes weddings, just like a normal, well-adjusted mature woman would.

“I see. Hypothetically, would it be the plus one section that’s making you say this?” He asked, tapping the card against the table.

The Dragon Tamer watched his girlfriend carefully as she shuffled from foot to foot nervously under his heavy scrutiny.  

“It’s the bride more than anything.” Lyra grumbled, opening the drawer and retrieving some food menus to help distract the man.  

“That would be your cousin, right?” He confirmed.

The brunette woman nodded. “Technically, yes, she is, but we’re not close. It feels like it was an invitation given purely to not cause a row in the family. I don’t think she actually wants me there.”

Lance stepped closer and rubbed her arms. “If I went with you, would that help?”

“I don’t want to put that on you.” She said, giving him the first genuine look since he had brought this up.  

“You’re not, I’m offering. I’m free that day, and I’d like to meet your family properly. It’s only fair, right?” He paused, putting down the invite and taps the table nervously before looking back up. “Unless the issue isn’t the wedding?”

“It’s her. Really.” Lyra smiled earnestly. “I hadn’t mentioned it because I didn’t know if I was going. If I’d made up my mind, then I’d have discussed it with you to see where you stood on things like this.”

“I’m standing at the ‘hi I’m your boyfriend and I would love to go out to these places with you’ spot. Please.” Lance smiled back, feeling rather self-conscious about the whole ordeal. “If you don’t like it, we can leave early, go get a takeaway and some beer and come home.”

“Fine.” She conceded. “I’ll put the RSVP on the mail in the morning.”

*_*_*_*_*

Though this whole thing had been Lance’s idea, being in the reception room was very different to the idea he had about escorting his girlfriend to a wedding.

To be completely fair, this was new ground for him, since he has only ever been to Clan weddings, and he has always gone stag. He knew the age difference would get tongues wagging, he noticed the way his name was uttered by the fans in the room, and he stood politely for photos with them when asked. What he was not prepared for was the nervousness he felt.

Thanks to the unpleasantness Claire put up four years ago, when Lyra was still running the gym challenge, she had the chance to properly meet basically his entire family, but he had not had the same privilege. Sure, he had briefly met her parents, but it had not been a sit down and get to know each other type of meeting. It felt rushed and awkward.

This could have been relaxed with very little pressure but, instead, he had piled it onto himself with expectations and demands. He is often his worst enemy in these circumstances.  

He sits back, adjusts his suit jacket, and stretches out his neck until he hears and feels the clicking of the bones popping. With one foot up on his toes, he sways one knee anxiously as he scans the room. He has been polite, completely himself and the camera-friendly persona that often would show up in magazines. He answered all questions thrown at him by your family who had chosen to try and speak to him.

With the questions now quiet and he has the chance to simply sit, relax and enjoy himself at the reception, this is when he feels the most nervous. He does not have the distraction he needs to feel comfortable, something she had not seen from him in a long time.  

“You do look gorgeous in that suit.” Lyra tries a compliment as she reaches for his hand.

His other hand rests on the table, elbow just off the edge for manners, his fingertips dangerously close to the pint glass that sits there.  

“You think it was a good choice?” He asks, turning to look at her, a small smile on his lips at her praise.  

The brunette nods emphatically. “Very much. I’ve always loved you in a suit. It’s just a shame I don’t get to see you in one more often.”

“I thought you liked my cape and unique wardrobe style?” He queries.  

“I do.” She nods, chuckling, as he knows perfectly well that she finds him gorgeous in whatever he deems to wear. “But the suit just hits differently baby. So different.”

Lyra balls her hand into a fist and pretends to bite it. He laughs and she relaxes ever so slightly.  

“Can I dance with you?” He asks, smiling.

His words surprised her. He had commented how much he loathed his etiquette lessons back when he was a kid. Not that she was any better at it. 

“What, here? Now?” Lyra responded.

Lance resists rolling his eyes. “No in the taxi on the way home. Of course, here. Are you turning me down?”

“No, of course, not. I’d love to dance with you.” She replies, smiling excitedly.

The man, in turn, grins before holding out his hand as he gets to his feet, waiting for his girlfriend to place hers into his. He keeps hold of her hand as he moves away from the table, leading her straight into the centre of the dancefloor.  

It feels as though everyone parts as the two Elite trainers take their place, his hand slips to her waist and the hand that is linked with hers raises high up to his shoulder.

Lance pulls his girlfriend closer, her cheek now nuzzling against his chest, and she breathes in the spiced scent of his aftershave contently.

It is not the dancing that she is used to, the crazy shapes she would throw in the evening at the kitchen when music is playing, and the food is cooking. It is not the way he would grin and laugh and sing along with whatever song was on at the time, being pulled into her craziness until the smoke alarm cheers the two of you on.  

The redhead sways her in perfect timing, with grace in his steps and light on the execution of the proper movements. It should be beautiful to watch from the folding chairs on the edge of the dancefloor.

He hums the song softly in her ear as Lyra all but melt into him. It is a song that he has once claimed to hate. He is not one to enjoy the lovey-dovey lovestruck type of songs, so common in weddings, and he would always scrunch his face up when anything like it would come on the radio.

Yet, here he was, fingers stroking delicately over his girlfriend’s lower back as he sings each of the words softly.  

“I knew you secretly liked these songs.” Lyra ribbed on him.

“Just because I know the words, does not mean I like these songs.” Lance counters, but she can hear the smile in his voice.  

“Sure, you tell yourself that.” She says, holding onto him a little more when he begins to pull away laughing.

His hand slips from hers, copying the other and linking his fingers together behind your back.

The woman looks her boyfriend deep into the eyes. “I'm glad you came here tonight.”

“I’m glad I asked you here tonight.”

“You are?”

He makes an affirmative noise as he grins at her, and they keep swinging to the rhythm when another slow song begins to play.

“Yeah. The food’s good and a free bar? Perfect.” He jokes and she chuckles. “It’s nice to see people. I can put real faces to their names.”

“I think they like knowing I’ve actually got someone and I’m not just making it up.”

“Ah, the famous invisible “I do have a boyfriend, you’ve just missed him,” line. How many other events have you pulled that line on while you’ve been with me?”

This silences Lyra. She should have expected this after the initial invite conversation but hearing it now, in such a spot that she cannot just slip away, she curses him silently.

He knows, his grin only widening further at the dark expression flooding her face. “Interesting.”

“It’s not that I didn’t want you there for them.” When he doesn’t say anything, she has no choice but to continue. “It’s just… You’re busy and I thought you’d want to spend your downtime doing something that you actually liked. Not spend time with far-slung members of my family whose only job is to make me glad I don’t talk to them that often.”

He considers this, eyes staring off above your head somewhere as he tongues the centre of his bottom lip before nodding to himself.

“That makes sense.” He concludes. “But if you had the right event, I’d hope that you would invite me."

“I would. In a heartbeat. I want you around the right people.” She smirked, wickedly. “I do like to show you off to my friends.”

“Yeah, but I get to show you off now on the dancefloor.” He dips her low. “So, who is the real winner here?”

*_*_*_*_*

2nd Gen Masterlist

[kinetic-elaboration]

February 21: MSCL 1x02 Dancing in the Dark

Not many new observations, versus last week, after today’s episode of the MSCL re-watch.

I think that Angela and Patty will get on really well as adults, when Angela can see how similar they are in a lot of ways, and appreciate both her mom’s sense of humor and her… her own earnestness, how she does try, how she is trying. The things that probably seem awkward and embarrassing to Angela at 15. And I think Patty anticipates this day, too, and looks forward to it: “Pretend I’m not your mom.” / “Mom. I can’t pretend that.”

I really felt for Rickie in this episode, even though he hasn’t really come out of the chorus line yet. I think re-watching as an adult, I see more of how his story is really influenced by and defined by his sexuality. Yes, it’s obvious that he’s also got a crush on Jordan and that, unlike Angela, it will have to remain just a fantasy that gets him through his day. But the full impact of that just…hits me anew. When Rayanne says that Angela DOES want Jordan “in actuality,” but she’s just “programmed not to admit it,” she means it in a girls-need-to-hide-their-sexuality way, but it’s really more true of Rickie: he’s not allowed to admit it; he could put himself in danger by admitting it. He seems to just be parroting back the others as he’s been doing for 2 episodes. But really he’s just being honest: he understands what Angela means AND Rayanne’s admonishment has a ring of truth to it.

It was interesting to me to read that Graham and Patty were supposed to illustrate a couple who felt boxed in by gender norms and were figuring their way out from under those expectations. I do see that: Patty is Graham’s boss, Graham prefers cooking to working in the office, etc. It’s something I’d like to think about and try to look for in a more detailed way, though. Like in this episode, where Patty complains about not being able to lead in the dance (let her lead!!) and later Graham seems to complain about the same thing: always having to lead. Well—let her lead! It’s also notable to me that, even though they are adults, they get their own sort of coming-of-age arc too. Patty, like, Angela, changes her hair and for largely the same reasons. She smashes a princess doll her father gave her when she was a child. She’s ready to move on and grow and change. And Graham is still trying to figure out “what it means to be a man,” feeling stagnant in his work, sabotaging his marriage, unsure of what he’s doing with his whole life (I can relate).

Jordan definitely is already really interested in Angela… It’s odd trying to read their interactions from his point of view. She obviously challenges and confuses him, and even though she has this huge crush on him, she doesn’t just go along with him no matter what; she doesn’t do things that make her feel uncomfortable or that are unpleasant; she can’t be pressured. I feel like he hasn’t run into many people like that. (Not really saying anything new here just… am trying to see more from his POV this watch-through.)

I’ve always assumed that Brian’s reaction to the ID—“It says here she was born yesterday”—was a reference to a typo on the card, but now I wonder if maybe it was just a really deadpan joke? Jordan didn’t get it for sure.

It really pushes all my buttons to see all the connections and metaphors and the whole overall structure of the episode—how the night at Brian’s is compared to the science experiment about the hearts, how the interaction between Jordan and Angela is compared to the dance. Yes, every sentence about the hearts did seem to have two meanings and yes it did get to me every time.

…I still really want to write the fic based on the headcanons from like 3 years ago and I know I just SHOULD because that’s what hobbies are for but…yeah. Afraid. Anyway, I got distracted by that, so, that’s all for today’s thoughts. Gotta get to bed so I can be a semi-real person tomorrow.

[luveline]

you know, I'm coming right back [Fred Weasley x Reader]

summary: you're a lonely artist and Fred is your adoring model

word count: 2.4k

tags: reader insert, lonely reader, artist reader, seventh year, kids in love, first kiss, getting together, pining, fluff, friends-to-lovers

It was easy for you, usually, to act fine. To feel fine. Any loneliness that clouded your life was pushed firmly into the depths of your thoughts. You tried to focus on the things that mattered, essays and charms and your art.

You loved to draw. You had sketchbooks filled to the brim with sketches, some half finished, others coloured and lined. You drew everything, though you struggled to bring anything from your memory. Everything you drew had to be done right there, right then, with unsuspecting models. You sketched students eating their dinner, scribbled side profiles when you managed a spare minute in class. But you're most impressive artwork was done in the library, where nothing moved. Everyone was silent. You had pages and pages of bored, tired looking students. When exams approached, you hurriedly copied down the expressions of people on the edge of depression and panic.

You had friends, ish. You knew people. You'd had intense friendships that somehow always ended in awkward drifting aparts. Well, you thought. There must be something wrong with me. They liked me before they didn't, so the fault must've been mine.

You huffed out a sigh, pressing your face deep into the textured page of your sketch book, breathing in the smell of charcoal. You were sketching the illusive Fred Weasley, who you'd never truly drawn before. Maybe you had scraps from your second or third year when you'd still attempted to draw moving objects before getting comfortable and accepting that still life was your forte.

He was maddeningly good lucking when his eyebrows puckered in concentration. He seemed to actually be studying for once, sat at a table with his brother, George, and housemates Angelina Johnson and Alicia Spinnet.

You were sat by yourself, and couldn't help listening to his lilting voice as he bantered with his friends. They were talking about Umbridge (the current victim of the Hogwarts' student body hate train), and quidditch, and their recent ban from quidditch. You'd never played.

"Watch out, dolly fell asleep," said one of the girls.

You bit your lip. You'd been nicknamed dolly by the girls in your dorm because of your porcelain doll you'd had since childhood. Even though this year was your last, you still hadn't felt the need to hide her away. She made you feel much less anxious and alone.

The whole school knew, naturally.

"Don't get any funny ideas," said Angelina,  to the twins.

"Come on Angie, you think so little of us?" said George.

"Yesterday I watched you trick a group of forth years into taking puking pastilles." Angelina said.

"It was hardly a trick. We told them they were multi-faceted," said George.

You could hear your heartbeat if you focused. It was in your ears. It bump, bump, bumped.

Bump bump. You flinched, a hand settled on your shoulder quickly moved.

"Wake up, dolly. Library's closing."

You squinted up into Fred's face, head halo'd by candlelight. Lifting your head from the wooden table, you stretched your neck to the left. It clicked.

"Uh..."

"Hmm?" You prompted him, smoothing your hair behind your ears.

"You have - dirt. On your face. Here-" He said, reaching forward. You closed your eyes as he gently wiped the skin above your eyebrow.

"It's charcoal."

"What?"

"It's not dirt," you said, peaking at him through your eyelashes. "It's charcoal."

He looked mildly surprised. You shifted, hoping to cover your sketch before he caught sight of it.

It didn't matter.

"It's me. My gorgeous dolly, you've created quite the masterpiece right there, haven't you? I look vexingly handsome, of course. Thought if that's a consequence of your skill or my handsomeness is anyones guess."

You were lost for words. "Uh, quite."

"Yes, yes, quite. Say, could I keep it?"

"... You want the drawing?"

"I'd love it, if that's okay."

"I," you quickly dug your thumbnail into the paper, tearing carefully at the centre. The paper came away a little ragged and smudged. "Of course. It's yours."

He handled it with care.

The librarian jingled her little bell again.

"Thank you. So, see you?"

"Yep," you agreed.

He nodded his head and bowed out with his friends. You tried not to feel paranoid at their laughter.

-

You were curled up in a hidden alcove, though it was hardly hidden. Most students knew where to seek privacy in the castle. You just so happened to get there first that evening.

You were trying to sketch Fred again. It felt weird to be missing a page from your book, and weirder still that you couldn't remember his face when he wasn't right in front of you. You tried, but it kept going wrong.

When you finally managed one you liked well enough, you had accidentally ruined it with a heavy hand and the wrong shade of brown.

He looked much too brunette.

You carefully rolled your coloured pencils back up, securing the leather ties tightly so as to keep every pencil confined.

Sighing morosely, you flipped to a new page. Things got so complicated sometimes, it made you agitated. You doodled a little sad face in the corner of your page. When the one thing that you enjoyed in life started to go wrong, it set off your whole mood.

Your birthday was coming up. It had been on your mind a lot lately. You'd spend it alone. That's what you figured. Nobody would know it was your birthday, or if they did, you weren't friends now, so...

You began with an arching circle, bisecting the lines appropriately. Feeling out the familiar lines of your own face came easy, the slight upper tilt of your brows, your hair and your pursed mouth. You always looked sad in the mirror, and it showed, dotted here and there when the only thing to draw was your own face.

The rudimentary outline of a birthday cake took form. The candles were unlit.

In a fit of unhappiness, you scratched out your mouth. It was never smiling.

"What did that piece of paper ever do to you?" said a voice.

You jumped. Fred was peering down at you curiously, wringing his hands. You put your pencil between the soft cover and smashed it flat, closed.

"Hi, dolly."

"Weasley."

"Oh, not even a first name?"

"You neglected mine first," you reasoned, rolling the words. He smiled at your joking tone.

"How rude of me. Hi, Y/N," he corrected himself.

"Hi, Weasley."

He smirked.

"Anymore of me in that blessed vessel?"

"Nah. You never stand still."

"If I pose for it?" He asked. You patted the ground in front of you.

He was a lovely model. He stayed infinitely still, more still than you imagined possible for him. He sat at a 3/4ths angle, chin up but not too far, mouth tilted and eyes open.

His eyes were the one thing he couldn't keep still. You tried not to flame in the cheeks everything you'd catch his gaze on you.

You sketched fast, choosing to hatch rather than render, big swooping lines to give the illusion of a depth that wasn't really there. You would've loved to do a full render, maybe even a colour portrait, but he was beginning to look a little antsy.

You set the book on the floor to face him and pushed it into his eyesight softlt. He turned. He looked nice like that, face bent, hair falling into his eyes.

After a moment, he began scrounging through his robe pockets. He set down a box, a lighter, a pair of gloves.

Finally, he set a galleon onto the floor close to your crossed legs.

"For you," he said, smiling at your inquisitive look. "For the drawing."

"Oh, I can't accept that. And I'd like to keep this one, if it's alright."

Fred thought for a moment. "Alright, you keep it. And the galleon, too, for the one you gave me the other day."

You bit back a smile. "I can't take your money, Fred."

"I can't keep having you draw me for free. It's as valuable a service as anything else. Plus, I'm not sure if you know, but I run a lucrative business these days."

You picked up the coin, rubbing your thumb against the engravings thoughtfully. "It's hardly a service."

"A talent, then. A skill. You're very good."

You're neck almost snapped as you looked into his face, wanting to assess his expression for genuineness. He looked earnest, and kind. You blinked away the gathering heat behind your eyes.

"Thank you."

He waved a hand at you. "Think nothing of it."

"Really-" you cleared your throat, "-you're doing me a favour. I'm not good at drawing things that move."

"I'm sure you're better than you think," he said.

You shook your head, smiling smiling smiling.

"What's in the box?"

"Oh, this old thing?" Fred weighed the box in his hands. It was soft at the corners, like a simple jewelry box that you had in your trunk. He offered it to you. You opened it carefully, the lid sliding free with a shhhhh sound. Inside was an evil looking fruit pastille, a match stick and a dried up flower petal.

It felt like a very private thing to see, suddenly. Such an eclectic collection of items couldn't be random.

"The first puking pastille George and I made. Or rather, the second - the first was forcibly fed to Lee Jordan in our third year. The match stick is from my Uncle's matchbox. I never met him. And the flower was from Ginny, when she was 9." He sounded nervous.

"It's a memory box."

"I- yes. It is. Things are sometimes so miserable now, with Umbridge and you-know-who. Scary, even. I look at them when I feel like it won't ever end."

You took them in for a little while longer and then placed the lid onto the box with nimble fingers. You scratched the lid with a fingernail.

"It's nice. You're right. Things are so awful right now, it's good to have reminders of why we keep going."

"Exaclty. Dolly, can I interest you in a fruit pastille?"

"Not on your life."

"They're perfectly edible!"

"Sure, Fred."

-

The honest conversation you'd shared with Fred was a catalyst between you. He often came to find you, each time whining and nagging you to just sit in the library like most people do.

"What, so your housemates can throw paper balls at me?"

"They thought you were sleeping!"

A likely story, you thought. He sometimes asked you to draw him, posing with the elegance of a natural born model. It was great for you personally, you felt that you were really getting a feel for his face. Eventually, you were able to draw his face from memory, the details of his nose coming to your fingers as easily as a first year spell.

It became about capturing emotion. You could capture his likeness now without a second thought, but his emotions were much more complicated. How would you show his veiled frustration the day Umbridge kicked him off the quidditch team? Through the clenching of his jaw? The shy veins in his forehead? How did you showcase the fear when he'd come back to Hogwarts after Christmas break, through his eyes, downturned and squinting just a little?

Today, it was poorly hidden elation. "How come you're so happy?" You asked, pencil between your teeth. He grinned. You measured his face with your thumb in the air, forming an L.

"Is it a prank?"

"You're thinking too small."

"A new product?"

"Still need to go bigger!"

"Hmmm," you hummed. Measure twice, cut once. Or in your case, sketch once.

"George and I, we're gonna open a shop."

"A section at Zonko's isn't enough for you?" You asked, casually, though you were very very happy for him.

"It's going to be amazing. We're going to run it, just the two of us, and you won't catch me in these scrappy long sleeves anymore. The next time you see me, I'll be in a full suit and tie."

"The next time? Is that not tomorrow?"

Fred closed his mouth, realising his mistake. He had revealed something he hadn't intended to. "We're leaving," he confessed. "We were going to wait for our NEWTs but... Well, we won't need them. This is going to work."

"So. You're leaving today?" You asked, crestfallen.

"Hey," Fred said, rubbing a placating hand over the curve of your shoulder. "Tomorrow. During the DADA OWL. We have a plan."

"This is goodbye?"

"No! No. Not if you don't want it to be. Actually, I've been meaning to ask you something, and maybe now isn't the best time, I had this whole letter planned and I didn't want to distract you from your exams and-"

"What do you want to ask me?"

Fred straightened. "I wanted to ask - will you go out with me? Not, you don't have to be my girlfriend if it's too soon, I'd love to take you for food someplace, I was going to ask you to Hogsmeade, but when the shop officially became ours, the plans changed so fast and I didn't know if you'd still want-" you cut off his rambling.

"I'll be your girlfriend," you said.

"You will?"

"Sure, if you'll be my boyfriend," you murmured.

Fred moved the arm that had been on your shoulder to the nape of your neck. "That's a dealbreaker," he said, leaning in.

He kissed you chastely on the lips first and then pulled back to look into your face. You chased him, a moment of bravery, and opened your mouth to taste him. He was sweet, like sugar. Your sketch pad crinkled beneath you both as he pressed forward. Your chests touched, heaving.

"You're not gonna be my boyfriend?" You asked against his mouth, breathing hard.

"I'm gonna be much more than that, dolly," he said heatedly.

Your mouth was tingling. "Kiss me again?"

You gasped at the force of him, laughing. He laughed too against your lips, and the sound tickled. He gave you a multitude of short and sweet kisses before pulling away again.

He wiped the wetness from your lip with his pinky finger. "Godric, you're cute. Look how flushed you are! You're insane."

Something churned in your stomach. The butterflies had acquired a trampoline. You felt happier than you had in a very long time. "You're not half-bad yourself, Weasley."