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kefalion · 10 months ago

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20 Questions For Writers

I first thought I’d answered these questions, but after reading through more carefully, I saw that this wasn’t the case. @sinvulkt thanks for the tag! Im thrilled to have been one of the people you thought to tag.

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

24 of them are 5000 words or longer

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

707,267

Most of it from 2012-2015

I posted my first story in 2012 - on fanfiction.net though, only adding it to ao3 a bit later - and the feedback I got made me write like crazy. Made me decide to study English at university. For me who isn’t from an English speaking country that choice was as much to make my English better as to make my ability to write stories better. How to make any of it fit with a job could come later.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

It used to be Harry Potter. And I owe a lot to the people in that fandom. Now, for reasons many share, I’ve left that behind.

The last couple of years and probably for years to come the answer is Star Wars. I need to get deep into a fandom before the urge to write for it grabs me, so while I’ll enjoy other things too, they’re not likely to become stories.

That’s also the reason I’ve not written much original stuff. I want to know the characters before I write them. When I’m the one who has to create them, I have to write to get to know them and it’s not my favorite thing.

Anyway! Within Star Wars I tend to prefer focusing on the relationship between Anakin and Obi-Wan. It’s strong and messy and I find it fascinating.

Second to that comes Vader and Luke.

I also adore Cal Kestis from the games about the early years of the Empire.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

These are all going to be Harry Potter fics.

Sigh

We all have history. Gotta accept it.

Oh, they’re all Harry Potter Crossovers! That used to be my thing. Mainly pairing it with the MCU. Most of these are really old and each time new MCU content comes out, new people find them. And for the first one which is a completed Harry Potter/Loki I think it’s reached the top listing in that pairing and it’s snowballing.

1. Waiting | Soulmate mark AU. Crossover Harry Potter and the MCU. Harry/Loki. Complete. 5k words

This is in my opinion a very simple story. It’s set up and a meet cute. But if people like it, I guess that’s good.

Kudos: 3,222

2. From Russia With Love | Crossover between Harry Potter and the MCU. What if Natasha was Lily and Petunia’s long lost sister and she found out how the Dursleys were treating Harry? Complete. 5k words.

I had a series where I accepted prompts. I wouldn’t have written this without that. Which is why it’s not longer. I wrote until I’d filled the prompt. I do t know why this is so popular either.

Kudos: 1,806

3. Four Golden Lines | Another Harry Potter MCU crossover, Soulmate mark AU with Harry/Loki. Incomplete. 24k words

This I put a whole lot of work into and I’m still fairly pleased with it. I just lost momentum and then interest in the fandoms.

Kudos: 1,723

4. Great Minds Think Alike | This time it’s a Harry Potter and BBC’s Sherlock crossover! 🙃 What if the Horcrux suppressed Harry’s mental abilities and with it gone he’s Sherlock 2.0 and the two of them meet? Incomplete. 7,5k words

Writing clever characters isn’t easy. I didn’t know where else to take it.

Kudos: 1,713

5. A Mess with Capital M | Harry Potter and the MCU. What if Clint and Natasha were Harry’s biological parents? He finds out as a teen and arrives during the battle of New York. Complete. 3k words.

This was also written for my prompt series. I wasn’t passionate about the idea and had nothing more to say about it.

Kudos: 1,365

Let’s also give my top three Star Wars stories some space

24. Disasters Tiring | “Through Force nonsense, an Anakin who has just survived the crash of the fallen hand ends up on Tatooine in time to join Luke on his mission to find Artoo. He hasn't slept for seventy hours and is pretty out of it. When Obi-Wan sees him, he feels pretty out of it too.” Complete. 4,5k words

Based on a tumblr post. I took an idea and slashed it out. Funny little story.

Kudos: 382

27. Crashing Slowly into the Sands of Home | “Vader crashes next to the Lars farm on Tatooine, and the unsuspecting family cares for him. Luke takes a special interest.” Complete. 1,5k words

I saw a prompt for this on Discord and couldn’t let go of it until it was written. Short and sweet

Kudos: 273

28. Don’t Discount Your Sith Father when Searching for a Jedi Master | “Darth Vader follows Luke to Lothal where the young rebel has gone to search for answers on how to be a Jedi. When Luke falls through time, Vader continues to pursue. Through different times, places, and encounters with Jedi, they both learn something about what it means to be a Jedi and what they mean to each other.” Complete. 24k words.

This was a labour of love. I proved to myself that I could write something longer than 5k words and complete it. I think it turned out pretty good.

Kudos: 271

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I used to be better at it. For short comments I don’t feel like there’s much to say. I appreciate them, but they don’t open up a conversation. For longer comments, especially given shortly after I post I make an effort to respond.

6. What’s the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

The time that is given us | Harry Potter/Tom Riddle. Time travel. Time loop. Complete. 2k words

It was written for the following prompt: “Write a story about your OTP that has an UNHAPPY ENDING” and boy was it ever unhappy.

Examples of comments:

“THANKS FOR THE HEART BREAK. IT FELT GREAT. <3”

“Awwwwww, fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck”

“YOU FUCKING BTICH HOW DARE YOU”

I still take immense pride in that last one 😆

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Uhhh. I’m notorious for not completing my multi chapters. The ending is missing most of the time

And I thrive on angst and humour. And humour is just tragedy from a different point of view

Let’s do with a very lighthearted Obikin story

I can do you | “Famous Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi has agreed to consult on the making of a holovid about his life to make sure they do a fair job. During the production, he meets the stunt coordinator, a man named Anakin who shines in the Force and makes Obi-Wan feel out of sorts.” Complete. 5k words

8. Do you get hate on your fic?

It has happened. It’s been a long time though. And it was like one comment at a time not a storm. And it’s been things like “this is so gay.” And I’m like, yes, that was the point.

9. Do you write smut?

I’ve begun to. Mostly I never got to the point of my multi chapter stories where it was relevant. But my first published story is more explicit in hindsight than I realized even though there’s no touching and no one takes off their clothes.

Last year I published my first story where smut what’s the main point. Still plotty though.

Take Care of Yourself, I Wish I Could | “While Obi-Wan and Anakin are alone on a planet during a mission, Anakin goes into a presentation heat. One Obi-Wan will not help him through no matter how much they'd both want it. Not that they know that want is mutual.” Complete. 7k words

10. Do you write crossovers?

As seen in my top 5 kudos list. Yes. I used to. I loved it. It was most of what I read and wrote for many years.

The first Star Wars fics I wrote and trying for are also Harry Potter crossovers. They’re incomplete and gathering electronic dust though.

It is more than likely that I’ll try it again. Just gotta find a story I want to smush together with Star Wars.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Posted to other sites by other people without them asking me: yes. Many times.

Someone claiming to have written my stories: no. Not as far as I’m aware.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

I’ve had offers. People saying they want to translate. But as far as I remember no one delivered. Or might have been one case where the first chapter in a story was translated.

I welcome translations and pod fics etc!

I just want to know where they’re posted so I can read any comments.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic?

Not as such. I’ve had some significant collaborations. One which I hope I’ll get to see published soon. But never something where I share the work 50/50 or even 30/70

14. What‘s your all-time favourite ship?

Obikin is the winner because od the fact that compared to other pairings I’ve been obsessed with, it has to most canon content to draw from and that makes the relationship richer and more complex than any of the competitors. Because of their shared history, I think it might keep the throne even should I move on to something else.

15. What’s the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I’ve not felt much for any of my wips lately. Neither the published stories nor the unpublished ones. So most of them deserve the status abandoned. My mood might change and I might want to return though. My mood is liable to change

16. What’s your writing strengths?

Characterisation!

I study and analyse the characters in untreated in until I know them and can stay two to their core despite putting them in circumstances that are different from where we know them from. I’ve had many compliments about my characterisation through the years. And it’s the most frequent compliment I get.

Humor too. I think I can be funny. The feedback implies it.

I also think I’m good at setting up tension and delivering an emotional experience.

17. What’s your writing weaknesses?

Following through!

I’m struggling with picking stories that aren’t so long my interest in them will be over long before they are complete.

Endings overall I find a struggle. Most of my ideas are an inciting event and what drives me is that I want to see where that leads. Not knowing the destination means I don’t know how to get there, and I get lost along the way and quit.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I used to do more of it, but I dunno. I find Swedish to be awkward to put into fics, I think this is a remnant how growing up movies and music in English were seen as a lot cooler, and using languages I don’t know makes the perfectionist and linguist in me cringe.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Long before I knew what fandom or fanfic was. Years before I could write even, I had my mum write down stories for me while I drew the pictures (I was 4-5 years old). The two I remember were “sequels” to Disney films. First out Snow White. Second the Little Mermaid.

First fandom I wrote for as a teen who had discovered the phenomenon on the internet: Dragon Age Origins. It was als the first thing I published. I removed it only weeks later though. I understood that copying the game dialogue word for word and adding only a few things myself was something I didn’t like reading at all after the first couple of times and didn’t want others to read my poor attempt of that type of story.

Oldest published story that remains available is Harry Potter

Second oldest is a Harry Potter and BBC Merlin crossover (which I used for a school project and got a top grade on. Weird times. I think writing that many words in English (foreign language) that didn’t suck was the reason. Also, I printed it and bound it as a book myself. That probably helped.)

20. Favourite fic you’ve ever written?

In a way the Harry Potter Merlin crossover I mentioned above. It’s long (though incomplete). It made me grow so much. I had one commenter who wrote essays to me each chapter and I’m beyond grateful for that. It was the first story I worked with a beta reader on. And it saved me from doing a real school project

Is it the best writing I’ve done? No.

Would I recommend it to you now? Not really no. But yeah. I’m proud of it.

Two Destines | “There are ordinary people, people with great destinies and there is Harry who has two. He is Harry Potter the-boy-who-lived. He is also Prince Harry Pendragon of Camelot, younger brother of the future King Arthur. He grows up in Camelot and he has to conceal his strange powers from everyone until a young man with a destiny of his own arrives.” Incomplete. 74k words.

If fic can mean any story, I have a semi original short story (it draws on the sleeping beauty fairytale) that I wrote for a competition to get published in anthology. It almost made the cut, they said, and sometime, I should make an effort to get it published.

Tag someone

No preassure at all, but I’d you want to take the time to answer, I’d love to see what you have to say @intermundia @treescape @ossidae-passeridae

#writing tag #ao3 #fanfiction

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h2bakugou · 4 years ago

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celebrating 1 year of h2bakugou | pumpkin patch date

a/n: we made it! it’s been a year since we launched h2bakugou as a side-tumblr account that has flourished into what i consider my job!

on october 10th, 2019 i published my masterlist and my first fic on h2bakugou, and my first mha fic, ‘match’stick.

i continued to write throughout october and eventually i hit 100 followers. on november 5th, 2019, i published a shinso fic titled ‘hanging out’ and then disappeared off the platform, only to return on january 21st, 2020.

over the time i had amassed over 700 followers. it was mind blowing to me. but i opened up requests and now, we’ve grown, and looking back, it’s been so much fun.

i promise this isn’t going to be much longer and you can get to all the yummy headcanons down below, but from the bottom of my heart, thank you so much. when i started mha, i was just some fangirl who fell in love with characters and i combined something i loved with a hobby i had.

thank you for the laughs, the tears, the joy, the happiness, all of it, i can’t wait to see what the future holds, h2bakugou isn’t just me as a writer, it’s all of us. i love you all so much <3

and thank you so so much for 4,500+ followers <3 !!

headcanon: them taking their s/o on a pumpkin patch date

key: (y/n) - your name / (f/n) - first name / (l/n) - last name / (e/c) - eye color / (h/c) - hair color / (y/q) - your quirk

warnings: swearing, fluff

;cut for length;

»»————-　★　————-««

katsuki bakugou

»»————-　★　————-««

His goal by the end of this date is to bring home the biggest fucking pumpkin. I kid you not, this fool is going to be scouting the patch from the second he gets inside it.

It’s most likely a competition. You’re going to want a nice pumpkin to carve, so you look for one, and you find a nice, big one with plenty of room for a nice design.

Bakugou’s eyes land on your pumpkin as you heave it up into your arms and he’s like ‘oh hell nah.’

“Let me carry your-”

“Find your own pumpkin.” You stick your tongue out at him as you begin to rush back to where you purchase them and Bakugou begins to chase after you. He’d told you he was looking for a big pumpkin and while it had only just dawned on you that your pumpkin was great in size, you intended to keep this pumpkin.

Bakugou eventually gives up and settles for a slightly smaller pumpkin. He won’t admit defeat though.

Later on the date, you two go on a hayride, and hold hands. The smell of pumpkin and fall seem to grow stronger as the day goes on.

After the hayride, there’s the corn maze.

I hope you’re ready.

Because the winner, out of you and Bakugou, gets treated to lunch paid for by the loser, and gets bragging rights.

Bakugou is pissed when you dart of into the maze because clearly in the list of rules he’d laid out- yeah you stopped listening when he said rules and got a head start.

Bakugou is determined to find you, and without cheating. He sticks to the paths and eventually he can hear you laughing, because you can hear him shouting at the corn that keeps wacking him in the face as he tries to run through.

When he catches up to you, it’s too late. You’re already out of the maze and Bakugou is left dumbfounded. How did you complete it so fast?

“You followed me the whole time, I think you owe me two lunches.” You smile, hugging him as he stands at the exit of the maze.

“How-”

“Shh, let’s go get food, I’m starving.”

When you return back to the dorms, you head straight to Bakugou’s room. Lunch was great, all thanks to Bakugou paying.

You give Bakugou your big pumpkin and he’s hesitant at first.

“It’s yours. You found it-”

“Take it before I change my mind ‘Suki.” You lean up and give him a kiss on the cheek. He’s happy to carve some absurd picture into the pumpkin while you try your best to carve your own design.

A very successful October date.

»»————-　★　————-««

shoto todoroki

»»————-　★　————-««

Todoroki hasn’t been to a pumpkin patch in ages. He can’t remember the last time he went and actually had fun. But you were determined to make sure he had fun today.

You’d planned it all out, and you started with a hayride.

Sitting atop the hay, Todoroki sat close to you, his hand holding yours as the tractor began to move, pulling you along with everyone else in the open trailer.

“Do you know what you’re going to carve into your pumpkin?” You ask as you admire the fall scenery, taking in the lovely view of the color-changing leaves, the scent of pumpkin, and the sound of people running and having fun in the corn maze.

“I’ve never carved a pumpkin before.” Todoroki uttered, which blew your mind.

“You’ve never- Shoto Todoroki today you are carving a pumpkin.” You had a look of determination on your face.

After the hayride, you insisted on the corn maze, which Todoroki thought of as a challenge.

“So it’s a race.” Todoroki stood, looking at the entrance and the exit.

“No- it’s just a maze, but if you’d like to race, you can eat my dust!” You dart off into the maze and Todoroki charges after you. He’s smiling and happy. And that’s enough for you.

He catches up to you and traps you in a dead end you’d stumbled upon.

“Sho!” You smile and laugh as he hugs you. He pulls away ad leans to give you a quick kiss before darting off. You’re flustered but gather your senses as you try to locate the exit.

Todoroki makes it out first, but you’re close behind him. You congratulate him on his win and decide to head over to the pumpkin patch.

Picking out a pumpkin was much more difficult than Todoroki had imagined. He was going to carve it, so he needed a good size for whatever he was carving.

He looked over and found you heaving a giant pumpkin in to your arms, a devious look on your face.

“That is a large pumpkin.” Todoroki states, trying not to laugh at you as you struggle to hold it in your arms.

“Which one are you getting?” You ask, heaving the pumpkin up onto your shoulder to carry it better.

Todoroki settles on a medium-sized pumpkin, with the perfect amount of space for a nice carving.

Taking them back to the dorms was easy, but you were not prepared for what was Todoroki carving a pumpkin.

He somehow managed to lose the top to his pumpkin after cutting it out, he got pumpkin guts everywhere, you were still finding seeds in the common room after you cleaned up.

But on the front porch of the dorms, sat your giant pumpkin carved with a spooky design next to Todoroki’s smiley-faced pumpkin.

»»————-　★　————-««

izuku midoriya

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Izuku is super excited. He’s all for carving a pumpkin and going on hayrides and much more.

When you arrive at the pumpkin patch, you decide to do the corn maze first.

Izuku insists on completing it together, so you do. As you begin to walk through the rows of corn, trying to find the exit, you get lost a few times.

“Izuku I’ve seen this same stalk of corn before.” You laugh as you point at the corn stalk that had been bent in a funny way.

“Okay maybe we are going in circles.” Midoriya laughs as he stops to try and look for a different path.

When you finally make progress, Izuku wants to take a few pictures. Peaking out from the corn you smile as he snaps a picture of you, and you yank him into the corn for a cute picture together.

You kiss his cheek as he snaps the second picture. He’s a blushing mess, but it was worth it.

when you find the exit, you rush to it together, sprinting out of the maze.

Next is the hayride. Cozying up to Izuku, you admire the beautiful fall scenery as you ride along the pumpkin patch.

Laying your head on his shoulder, you’re happy to just be spending time with him.

After the hayride, you head to the pumpkin patch to pick out your pumpkin. Izuku wants a nice-sized pumpkin, something he can have plenty of room to carve on.

You point to a green pumpkin and smile.

“Izu’ look! It’s a little Deku pumpkin.” You hold it up and giggle, Midoriya’s cheeks tinting red.

“Have you found a pumpkin yet?” Izuku asks, looking around until his eyes land on a good pumpkin.

“I think I like the little green one.” You hold it in your hands and walk with Izuku as he heads toward his pumpkin. It’s pretty big but he picks it up like it’s nothing.

Back at the dorms, carving the pumpkins is an adventure. Deciding to try and carve All Might, Midoriya is hard at work while you carve your pumpkin.

In the end, Izuku’s All Might is more of a stick figure with muscles. Nevertheless, they sit outside on the porch, lit with a candle setting the mood for fall.

»»————-　★　————-««

denki kaminari

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Kaminari is super excited as well. He’s up bright and early the morning of, surprisingly, and running out the door when it’s time to leave.

He wants to do the hayride first, and you sit beside one another, his arm around your shoulder. He holds you close to him as you admire the scenery.

He’s constantly making puns related to the change in season, and while they’re corny and simple, you love them.

“I guess you could say I’m really fall-ing for you.” Kaminari wiggles his eyebrows. You giggle and give him a peck on the cheek.

“You dork.” You smile and cozy up next to him for the remainder of the hayride.

After the hayride, you two go to pick out some pumpkins. Kaminari isn’t looking for the biggest pumpkin, but he definitely wants to impress you.

“This one’s the size of your head!” Kaminari lifts up a rather large pumpkin. Your eye twitches as you look at him.

“Wait shit, my bad! It’s the size of my head! My head! Your head is cute!”

The recovery is about as funny as the comparison he’d made but you decide to let it slide.

After settling on some medium-sized pumpkins, you set them in a safe place to come back to later so you can go and enjoy the corn maze.

When you enter the corn maze, the sun is shining. However, when you leave, the place is about to close, it’s dark, and all you’ve got when you leave is your phone flashlight which saved your life when it got dark.

Denki is nowhere to be found.

He tried to be all funny and try and sneak off and scare you, but when you realize he’s not behind you after you told him it was time to exit the maze, you’re worried.

Darting back inside, you debate on calling for him or not.

“Denki!” You call out, deciding it’d just be best to give yourself away in case he was trying to scare you.

“Denki come on, it’s not funny anymore, where are you?!” You yelled again.

“Boo!” He screams as he jumps out form between some corn. You let out a yelp and latch onto him.

“Asshole.” You mumble as you hug him.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t think I’d still be able to scare you.”

“I was worried! You weren’t behind me and I-”

Kaminari hushed you with a kiss, his arms linking around your waist.

A bright light shone on your faces as the owner of the pumpkin patch called for you.

“We’re closing, come on and get out!” They yelled.

Purchasing your pumpkins, you returned back to the dorms to carve them, and despite being a little upset at Kaminari for scaring you, you still cuddled beside him after passing out on the couch.

»»————-　★　————-««

eijiro kirishima

»»————-　★　————-««

Heading to the pumpkin patch clad in matching fall themed sweaters, Kirishima is going to spoil you.

He’s helping you carry the pumpkin you pick out when you look at all the pumpkins. He’s such a sweetheart.

He’s also going to have a lot of fun.

On the hayride, he’ll let you sit in his lap, which makes the ride that much more bumpy, you can’t count the amount of airtime you got and how much Kirishima laughed when you practically floated off his lap.

His arms hooked around your waist after the first few bumps to secure you, hugging you close to him.

After the hayride is the corn maze. And honestly like Kaminari, he could spend hours in there. Whether it be scaring you, or making a map of the place, he’s having fun as long as you are.

The first time you do the maze, you race one another. You finish first, although Kirishima was two steps behind you.

On the second run through, you go together.

“I went this way!” You begin to pull him along but Kirishima doesn’t budge.

“I went this way.” Kirishima nodded toward the other path.

“Well who won?” You teased, following after him.

“I’d say we tied.” Kirishima replied, pulling you along the path. When the sun began to sink below the horizon, you tried to do the maze in the dark.

It was much more difficult than you thought. You bumped into Kirishima more times than you could count, and eventually you had to break out your flashlight.

And on the fourth time around, you entered the maze first and thirty seconds after, Kirishima entered to try and track you down.

It was slightly terrifying. Using your flashlight was sure to get you caught, but without it you could hardly see.

There were a few times where Kirishima had walked past you, where you had decided to try and hide rather than run away from him.

But when he found you, you had been cornered.

“Boo!” Kirishima yelled, scaring you. You jumped and let out a yelp as he gave you a hug, laughing it off.

“I got you!” He kissed your cheek as he held you close to him, smiling proudly.

“You didn’t have to scare me.” You smile, nuzzling into his chest.

“Let’s go carve some pumpkins.” Kirishima leads you out of the maze for the last time, having it memorized by now.

When you arrive back at the dorms to carve the pumpkins, it’s very late.

Kirishima puts on a scary movie and the two of you carve away.

You pass out in the common room, cuddled up on the couch after successfully placing your beautifully carved pumpkins on the porch.

»»————-　★　————-««

tamaki amajiki

»»————-　★　————-««

Tamaki is excited, and the entire date is hyped up by Mirio and Nejire. He’s happy to go on a date with you, albeit a bit nervous, but excited.

When he sees you, his heart flutters. You look beautiful in the autumn colors, and he’s falling even more in love with you as every second passes.

When you arrive at the pumpkin patch, you decide to go pick out your pumpkins first.

“Do you know what kind of pumpkin you want Tamaki?” You ask, holding his hand. Tamaki smiles at the warm feeling in his chest as you hold his hand.

“Something c-cute. Like you.” Tamaki complimented you. You let out a small laugh and hugged him.

“Well if that’s the logic, we’re both looking for cute pumpkins.” Complimenting Tamaki right back, you both head out to find pumpkins.

Tamaki returns with a tiny pumpkin, like comically tiny. It’s cute, and manageable.

“I’m going to name it Bunny. A-after you.”

Your heart melts at his action. You show him your pumpkin, which was on the medium sized scale, not huge, but enough for a small design if you wanted to carve it.

“I’ll name mine Suneater.” You lean and kiss his cheek.

After picking out your pumpkins, you decide to do the corn maze, which was a load of fun.

Tamaki’s hand in yours made you feel secure as the two of you navigated through the stalks of corn, trying to find the exit.

You probably spent an hour or so in it, just having fun and talking.

“Look! We did it! Tamaki we did it!” You smile and jump wit excitement as you exit the maze, giving him a short and sweet peck on his lips.

Tamaki blushed, his arms wrapping around your waist as he hugged you close to him during the unexpected kiss.

After, the two of you headed to the hayride. It was about 10 minutes long, and it gave you plenty of time to rest, even though you weren’t really tired, you cozied up to Tamaki as the ride started.

The leaves on the trees had changed color, each red, orange, and yellow leaf catching your attention as you enjoyed the faint scent of pumpkin in the air.

“It’s so beautiful.” You commented, holding Tamaki’s hand in your own. Tamaki nodded and nuzzled his head into your shoulder.

When the hayride was over, you purchased your pumpkins and headed back to the dorms.

Mirio and Nejire had agreed to carve pumpkins with you, and while Tamaki’s pumpkin was too small to carve, he definitely enjoyed helping the others.

Putting on a Halloween classic, you and Tamaki cozied up on his bed and fell asleep together.

»»————-　★　————-««

mirio togata

»»————-　★　————-««

Mirio has planned the entire thing out. He’s excited to spend the day with you.

When you arrive at the pumpkin patch, he wants to ride the hayride first, insisting you sit on his lap. He wants to hold you, his hands intertwined with yours, taking in all the beautiful autumn scenery.

He’d given you one of his knitted sweaters to wear before going outside in the cool air. It looks good on you, and he can’t help but smile every time he looks at you.

“Do you have any idea of what kind of pumpkin you want to pick?” You ask, a soft smile on your lips. Mirio just hums, resting his head on your shoulder.

“One that’s cute, like you, sunshine!” Mirio kissed your cheek, a giggle escaping your lips.

“Mirio!” You snuggle into his arms as a cool breeze of wind blows by.

Once the hayride is over, you head over to the pumpkin patch where you struggle to find a pumpkin.

You debate on something small or something big when Mirio approaches you holding a medium-sized pumpkin, perfectly round and ready to be carved.

“That’s like the perfect pumpkin how did you-”

“I thought you might like this one.” Mirio suggests, his eyes landing on another good one.

“But you found it, I-”

“It’s all yours, besides,” Mirio hands you the pumpkin before reaching and grabbing one that sat by your feet.

“This one looks more like me.” Mirio lifts the large and tall pumpkin up to his head and smiles.

“Did you just compare yourself to a pumpkin?” You smile whilst holding Mirio’s perfect pumpkin in your hands.

“I sure did.” Mirio laughs.

“You need help?” Mirio asks, motioning to your pumpkin. You shake your head and hoist it up into your arms with a better grip, walking around some more.

After picking out pumpkins it’s time to do the cornmaze. You decide to start seperately, racing to the end. You bump into each other a few times, and youe ven bust Mirio for following you.

“You’re cheating.” You pout standing in front of him.

“I was just following my dreams.” Mirio says smoothly. You sigh and place a kiss on his cheek before continuing off down the path you believed to be the exit.

Mirio follows suit and the two of you make it out at the same time.

“So much for a race.” You laugh. Mirio just waves his hand and hugs you from behind.

“Let’s go carve us some pumpkins!” He’s excited to get back and carve a pumpkin so you head on back to the campus.

Mirio carves a cute sun on his pumpkin and declares that it reminds him of you. It sits outside the dorm alongside yours, Tamaki’s and Nejire’s.

»»————-　★　————-««

hawks/keigo takami

»»————-　★　————-««

Avoiding paparazzi, it took you a bit of time to get into the pumpkin patch, but once you were in, you were in.

Hawks was trying to be smooth, acting tough and trying to carry each pumpkin you laid eyes on.

“I can carry my own pumpkin.” You smile, reaching down and picking up one of the largest ones you could find.

“Oh yeah?” Hawks went to grab it and immediately felt his arms drop as the pumpkin was way heavier than he expected. His feathers came to aid, lifting he pumpkin back up and saving it from cracking open on impact.

“Way to go, handsome.” You tease, deciding his feathers were fine to hold it if they so wished too.

“Hey-”

You shut Hawks up with a kiss, holding onto the edges of his fur lined jacket. He’d come straight from work, but he didn’t mind. As long as he was spending time with you, he could care less when or where it happened.

Hawks wasn’t complaining. He kissed you back and smiled, pulling away with a goofy grin on his lips.

You hiked over to the hayride next, hopping on some hay bales, you cozied up to Hawks, resting under one of his wings which hugged you closer to him.

As the tractor tugged the attached trailer which you and Hawks sat on along, you gazed at the beautiful pumpkin patch. It was simple and easy on the eyes with the beautiful and cute decorations set up for the fall season, as well as a few Halloween themed decorations.

“It’s so beautiful.” You commented, resting your head on Hawks. Hawks smiled and slid his hand in yours.

“Not as beautiful as you.” He cooed, thinking he was being smooth.

“Did you practice that one in the mirror?” You tease. You did love Hawks cheesy pick up lines that you’d heard a million times before, it was what made them that much better honestly.

“You’re the one dating me.” Hawks mumbled, placing a short kiss on your head, mumbling something into your hair.

“Hm? What was that?” You ask, glancing up at you.

“I love you.” Hawks smiles at you. You return a smile and return to gazing at the scenery.

After the hayride, you take on the maze. Hawks is determined to finish it in some high score, but you want to enjoy it.

Getting lost and hitting dead ends is what makes a maze that much better. It can be frustrating, but you enjoy it.

Hawks ushers yo down several paths that all end up back at the same place, and in the end, you lead him out of the maze.

“I had that down, babybird.” Hawks tries to reassure you that he had figured it out but you just laugh.

“Sure you did.” You smile, giving him a peck on the cheek.

You return back to his home and set up for pumpkin carving, promising to spend a little more time together before he eventually gets called back in for hero work.

You both fall asleep on the couch after carving, wore out and tired from a long day.

»»————-　★　————-««

dabi

»»————-　★　————-««

Villains have to be on the low about things. Dabi couldn’t waltz out in the public freely, he’d be spotted. So he has to go disguised.

At least, if you go during the day, that is.

Breaking into the pumpkin patch was way easier than it should’ve been, and for the first thirty minutes, Dabi was on edge, thinking that something was bound to go wrong and that you’d be caught up with him.

But alas, the night carried on and the chirping of crickets and other various nighttime creatures kept the chilling silence away.

“Alright baby, where do you want to go?” Dabi asks coolly, resting an arm around your shoulder. You nudge him toward the corn maze.

It’s a race to the end the first time, but the second time around, Dabi wants to play hide and seek.

You’re it first, searching around for your villain companion, but you couldn’t even come close to finding him...until you notice a faint blue glow.

Creeping up on him, you decide to scare him.

It doesn’t entirely go that great.

Your face feels hot as a blue flame erupts in your field of view.

“Shit! Don’t do that!” Dabi curses, quickly extinguishing his quirk from further roasting you alive.

“I scared you though I totally got you!” You laughed, not at all bothered by the fact that he nearly singed you.

“Baby, you’re gonna regret that, because now I’m it.” Dabi’s voice was low and husky as towered over you. You smiled and leaned up, kissing his lips before darting off to go hide.

Your spot is pretty solid, hiding in a dead end, behind a few thick stalks of corn. You think you’re safe seeing as how you don’t even remember seeing this portion of the maze so how or why would Dabi come back here.

Everything’s going great until you hear things snapping and breaking behind you. You whip around to investigate but your back is forced to the ground as you look above you.

Dabi’s cerulean eyes peer down at you as a smirk dawns his lips.

“Got you, baby.” Dabi kisses you passionately, his hands resting on the ground on each side of you.

When the make out is over, you both sit up and decide to go pick out a pumpkin. You can’t go on a hayride since that’d make a lot of noise and probably alert someone that people were here when they shouldn’t be, but Dabi promises to make it up to you.

Remind him to ask Tomura for a tractor. He can write it off as a league business expense or something.

Picking out a pumpkin was much more difficult. Dabi found his in a matter of seconds, ready to head back and get to carving. He was actually pretty excited about the whole thing. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d enjoyed the fall season, or Halloween.

He waited on you to pick out a pumpkin, watching as you searched for the perfect one.

You settled on a rather large pumpkin, something you could carve a rather large design into. You wanted to really go all out, and you wanted to try and show Dabi up.

Pumpkin carving was a hidden talent of yours.

Returning back to wherever the league was stationed this time, you and Dabi got to work.

Toga and Twice stopped by to watch as you carved away, giving some input and cheering you on as you tried to beat Dabi in some sort of pumpkin carving challenge.

“Shigaraki! Can you judge our pumpkins! You’ll decide whose is the best.” You call out to your ‘boss’ and smile.

“Whatever.” Shigaraki mumbles, trotting over to examine your pumpkin beside Dabi’s.

After way to long, Shigaraki decides to give you the win. Dabi is pissed after all the effort he put into it, but you assure him his pumpkin is amazing.

A blue flame flickers on the candles you placed inside your carved pumpkins and you cuddle next to Dabi a little more that night to make up for his loss.

»»————-　★　————-««

overhau/kai chisaki

»»————-　★　————-««

Chisaki wanted to spend time with you, and althhough he was a villain, he had connections that set up a rather autumn-themed date. he was taking you to a pumpkin patch.

He’d lent you his flufy green and purple jacket to wear, and he couldn’t deny that it looked adorable on you.

His gloved hand resided in yours as you walked through the cornmaze.

It was something he’d never really understood, but seeing the excitement on your face as you begged him to go through it with you, he decided to go along with it.

A few other members of the Shie Hassaikai were scattered around, making sure the place was empty, and keep an eye out for heroes and such.

“Which way do you think we should go?” You’d stopped at a forked path, confused at which way to go.

“This path looks like it loops back around.” Chisaki commented, the first path did turn whilst the second path seemed to go traight and then curve back right.

“Second path it is!” You tug Chisaki along with you. when you reach the end, you give him a brisk hug and jump around with excitement.

“That wasn’t so bad.” Chisaki glanced back at the cornmaze, throughly impressed with how difficult it had actually been.

There was no one around to give the hayride so you had to miss out, but walking to the pumpkin patch itself was more than enough.

All the leaves had changed colors and the wind smelled like cinnamon and nutmeg.

Picking out a pumpking was fairly difficult. You wanted to carve something on it, but you didn’t know if you should pick the biggest one or something managable.

“Are you picking one Chisaki?” You ask, watchig as his amber eyes gazed around the field.

“I suppose it wouldn’t hurt.” Chisaki sighs, bending down to pick up one he’d been staring at. It was a fairly large pumpkin. He held it carefully in his gloved hands, grimacing at the dirt that stained the white fabric.

You’d decided on a pumpkin and brought it back with you, excited to get back to the base and carve it.

Chisaki wasn’t excited about the mess, but watching you carve a design into the pumpkin took his mind off of it. He was happy just watching you be happy.

He didn’t carve his although you asked if he wanted help with carving it.

They sat outside his room in the base, a small candle lit inside yours to illuminate the carving.

»»————-　★　————-««

tomura shigaraki

»»————-　★　————-««

Like Dabi, the two of you can’t exactly go to a pumpkin patch in broad daylight. Tomura is a wanted criminal, and since you’re associated with him, you’re not gonna get away entirely scot-free either.

So, a little breaking and entering never hurt anyone, and it was very mild compared to the things Tomura usually did.

Also similar to Dabi, the hayride is out of the question, but Tomura claims he can take you for a drive any day, all you have to do is ask, that is if you feel safe with Tomura behind the wheel.

Picking out pumpkins first, you and Shigaraki tackle the patch together. It’s a struggle to find one you like, and even more so, to find one Shigaraki likes.

Carving it is really up to you, but whether you chose to carve it later or not, you want to pick one out.

“What about this one?” You ask, heaving a large on up into your arms. Shigaraki’s eyes land on the bright orange pumpkin in your grasp and suddenly it’s the single pumpkin that he wants.

“I want it.” Shigaraki mumbles. You let out a giggle and walk toward him.

“It’s heavy.”

“I can handle it.”

“Careful!” You transfer it to his grasp, rolling it into his arms. His upper body droops as he catches it, struggling to hold it without decaying it at his touch.

“I got it.” Shigaraki hisses, clearly struggling. The pumpkin begins to slip and you’re able to snake your arms under it just in time.

“How about we share one?” Your soft expression calms Shigaraki’s growing anger. With a nod, you place the pumpkin somewhere so you can head to the corn maze, the part Tomura was looking forward too.

“It’s like a stage from a video game.” Tomura began trying to think of all the possible ways to clear the maze, but with your hand carefully wrapped in his, you began pulling him along.

Tomura wouldn’t say it out loud, but when you held his hand, or trusted him in general with things like touch, he felt much closer to you.

He didn’t feel so distant, he knew you weren’t scared of him, and that’s what he treasured.

“It’s this way.” Shigaraki’s sense were just leading you in all sorts of directions.

“Tomura, if we pass this little circle path again-”

“I know I know.” Shigaraki tugs you in another direction and sure enough, the exit comes into sight.

“We did it!” You hug him, pulling his face down closer to yours, pressing your lips on his gently.

Kissing you back, Tomura’s hands travelled to your hips, tilting his head ever so slightly to the side, deepening the kiss.

Returning back to the hideout, you set up to carve the pumpkin in your shared room.

Tomura gives some input on what you should carve and you get to work.

When the night is over, you’ve got a pumpkin carved sitting on the broken kitchen table for the rest of the league to admire when they stop by.

»»————-　★　————-««

eraserhead/shota aizawa

»»————-　★　————-««

Aizawa isn’t a big media fan, so he’ll try to avoid paparazzi or media at all costs.

Taking you out on a little fall date was Hizashi’s plan, and Aizawa actually liked the sound of going to a pumpkin patch.

The first thing the two of you do is the hayride. It’s short and simple, you sit next to Aizawa, holding his hand as the two of you cozy up when a cool breeze blows.

Sho’s hair is tied back from when you were playing with it on the couch prior to leaving for the date, he just never took it down. It was a good look on him, anything was really.

“Thanks for taking me out.” You smile and kiss his cheek. It wasn’t rare to go out on a date, but you both preferred to be inside when it came to dates, whether it be ordering takeout and watching a movie, or attempting to cook a meal to have together.

“Of course.” Aizawa pressed a kiss of his own to your cheek, smiling against your skin.

The hayride was over in about ten minutes which gave you plenty of time to explore the patch.

Next you went off to the corn maze where you got lost.

It wasn’t supposed to happen, but having so much fun, you lost track of where you were going, and somehow, you’d lost Shota along the way.

When you were finally reunited, an all black kitten laid in Shota’s arms.

“Sho...”

“It was all alone. Am I a hero if I can’t save-”

“It’s so cute!” You smiled, approaching the small kitten slowly. It warmed up to the both of you quite quickly, and it seemed to like Aizawa a lot.

Cradling it in his arms, Sho attempted to show you the way out. You followed behind.

Making it out of the maze, you headed toward the pumpkin patch, keeping the kitty some what hidden. Sho had every intention of taking it home with you, and you certainly didn’t have anything against it.

Picking out some pumpkins was easy, you settled for a pretty medium-sized pumpkin while Aizawa picked up something small, able to sit on his desk and not take up too much space so he could still sleep.

Getting the kitten home was Sho’s next top priority, right next to giving you a kiss before it got to crowded again.

Sneaking a kiss on your lips in the middle of the ‘deserted’ pumpkin patch, he kissed you tenderly, stroking the kitten in his arms as he did so.

Returning home, you pulled out the food bowls and filled one with some water and another with kitty food. Thanks to Sho having a habit of bringing home strays and nursing them up, you had quite the collection of cat toys, food, and other random assorted pet items.

“Are we going to name it?” You asked, sitting beside Aizawa on the floor as you watched the kitten eat.

“You wanna keep it?” Aizawa questioned.

“I think we could handle another one.” You smile as one of your other cats comes pouncing into your lap, resting on your thighs as you pet it’s back.

“Alright then, how about Pumpkin?” The name was cliché but you loved it. Resting your head on Sho’s shoulder, you smiled as you enjoyed the rest of your fall themed evening.

»»————-　★　————-««

masterlist

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pinkbubbles-and-bigtroubles · 4 years ago

Text

Wicked Game

Another round of the 5sos fic writing collab brought to you by @maluminspace and @h0tsos. There are so many amazing writers involved and I highly recommend checking out the event master list linked below. Thank you to the Sagittarius sorceress @sexgodashton for being very caring, patient, and kind while helping me tame this monster. Massive shout out to @ghostofmashton for the photo edits, especially Ashton’s eye. that’s my favorite. You’re a rock star. Texas girls forever, love you to bits!

Event Master List

Prompt: Chef AU with Cashton

Dialogue Prompt: “Kissing you is all I’ve thought about since the moment we met” First person to spot it in the fic and send me a screenshot gets a personalized blurb request.

Word Count: 20K+ Team Long Winded Bitch strikes again, this will be posted in multiple parts over the next couple of days. This first part is about 5K

Rating: 18+ Slash fic Strong language, alcohol and drug use, and a misogynistic and racist comment. Sexual scenes including masturbation, toys, voyeurism, oral, and anal sex.

Summary: Ashton is ready to move on with his life after his painful divorce from Luke and the demise of the restaurant they’d built together. With the help of his protegee and sous chef Hima Singh, Ashton is ready to take on opening weekend of his new restaurant Anne-Marie’s. Calum is a reporter filling in on an assignment and is surprised when his past comes back to haunt him. Hima arranges an interview that takes an unexpected turn between the two men.

Part 1

"Great job, guys, we couldn't have had a better opening weekend. Thank you so much for making it happen," Ashton told the two staff members in the kitchen who'd closed as he unlocked the back door.

"No problem boss, glad to be here. We made money this weekend. See ya tomorrow," DeSean told him as he left.

Ashton locked the door behind them and walked out into the empty dining room, his steel-toed boots echoing heavily on the distressed blonde faux hardwood floors. He stopped to adjust a few tables, double-checking sightlines and looking over the layout of the tables. The upside-down chair legs cast long shadows in the soft pink neon glow.

He looked up at the sign above the bar that read "Anne-Marie's." He smiled, not caring if anyone thought it was cheesy to name his restaurant after his mother. His mom had always been his lucky star, and he couldn't have gotten through the last couple of years without her.

"You look so serious,' a voice behind him startled him out of his thoughts.

"What the fuck Hima," Ashton yelped, clutching his chest dramatically. "I thought you were still in the kitchen."

"The guys didn't leave me anything to do so I decided to change and have a drink with you before my brother gets here," she tossed her bag and chef's coat onto a stool grinning at Ashton. She hopped up to sit on the bar before swinging her legs around as she pushed off. Landing without a wobble she reached under the bar and grabbed a bottle of black label Bushmill's Irish Whiskey and two short glasses.

"Straight for the good stuff, I like the way you think," Ashton smirked, taking a seat at the bar.

"To simply mark the occasion, of course" she poured them each a shot before adding a splash of water. She raised her glass, "Cheers to you, Boss, and to Anne-Marie's."

They clinked glasses. "Couldn't have done it without you," he replied before taking a sip.

"Awwwwww thanks Ashtton, " she grinned at him. "Damn that's good, the whiskey makes me forgive the Irish for how dreadful Guinness is. Did you see Kevin Mackie snuck in last night? I expect a write up in the Metro on Tuesday and I know you saw Patricia Bennett," she rolled her eyes at the name.

"She makes herself hard to miss," he snorted. "I missed Mackie though. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because we were busy and I didn't have time for you to get all giggly and nervous. He got the crab puffs and the Mac and Brie and inhaled them. You were right about the nutmeg; I thought he was going to lick the plate." She opened two bottles of beer before hopping back over the bar and taking a seat next to Ashton.

"How did this weekend compare to the opening of ‘Lune Rouge’? Was it as good as the first time?" Hima finished her whiskey before shaking a pack of Camel Crush cigarettes out of her bag.

"If you get ashes on the bar Paloma will flip her shit," Ashton warned.

"I'm not afraid of her," Hima snipped, but she made sure to be careful. No sense in antagonizing their temperamental main bartender.

"This opening was definitely smoother than the first one. We didn't know what the hell we were doing. The first night we ran out of duck fat and gorgonzola before the dinner rush was over. My sous chef's sister had to run to Whole Foods for emergency supplies. We got lucky the press ignored us for a couple weeks until we got a little buzz going. This time I knew what to expect but there was also more pressure," he paused, taking a pull on the bottle of beer. "This time I expected to succeed right out of the gate."

"You succeeded there," Hima stubbed her cigarette out in her empty glass. "I really need to quit."

"You could get a puff bar and start vaping," he teased.

"I'm not a fucking junior varsity cheerleader. I can take my cancer like a big girl." She checked her phone. "Ugh it's almost nine, and it's gonna take me at least thirty minutes to get home. You're closing tomorrow with me right?"

"Yeah, I'll be in around 11 all this week. Rafi is handling brunch with Gloria but I want to be here," Ashton double-checked his phone. "Tuesday I have that interview with Men's Life and they just emailed me."

Hima saw his nose scrunch up as he read. "What's wrong?"

"I thought they were sending Taj, but instead of rescheduling the interview, they're sending Calum Hood," Ashton sneered.

"Chill dude, it's not that bad," Hima was confused by the venom in his voice. "Yeah he's a bit of a goof, but he's hot and not a pretentious dickhead. They could've sent Felipe."

"True, true," he grumbled as he saw a black Honda pull up outside. "Kabir is here."

"Shit, ok see you tomorrow, Boss," she grabbed her stuff, gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, and ran out the door, locking it behind her.

Ashton walked through once again. He made sure the lights were off in the employee lounge. Since many of his staff members used public transport or worked two jobs, Rafi had convinced Ashton to provide his staff with a decent place to take a break and get ready before or after work. He built a small shower stall, lockers, and provided clean towels, and as his new kitchen manager, Rafi took responsibility for maintaining the space. Ashton took a last look at the bar, double-checking for any stray ashes Hima might have missed before setting the alarm, locking up, and heading home.

Calum opened the email from his editor and swore loud enough to wake the scruffy brown terrier mix snoozing at his feet.

Hey Cal,

Sorry it's such short notice but Taj's mom had an emergency and I need you to cover for him. He's interviewing Ashton Irwin, remember him? He had the Lune Rouge a few years ago. Well, he's got a new place, diverse staff and we're doing a feature. Maybe even the cover if he's really pretty. Tuesday at 2 pm I'll send you the address and details after I talk to Taj. Oh, and my friend Nick is coming into town and I told him you'd show him around. It's been a while since you had a date but you'll like him. He's kinda short, but he's got big muscles, huge dick, perfect credit. You could do a lot worse.

Call me tomorrow

Sham

This isn't good, this isn't good. Calum's mind was racing. He rubbed his temples trying to think. Taj was notoriously reliable and responsible, so if he was taking off on short notice, it must be serious. It was just his bad luck it was Ashton Irwin.

He usually covered travel and sports for Men's Life while Taj handled food and fashion. Calum didn't mind taking back food and dining for the time being. He'd started in that industry, working as a line cook while he went to school for journalism. He'd quit both when a flirty, older professor recommended him for an internship at California Culture and he managed to land a real job. Professor Davis had been highly disappointed to lose him as a student and catch him making out with her son who went to the same college. He'd found a tiny shitty apartment, spent his life on the road for work, and sent every penny he didn't need to live on to his family. He didn't even date for the longest time until he met a handsome blonde with sharp features and a sharper tongue.

He couldn't remember if it was four years ago or five, but he clearly recalled his review of Lune Rouge had not been nice. Calum was in a toxic relationship with the restaurant's sous chef at the time. He'd let his personal life spill over into his work for the first and only time. It wasn't something Calum was proud of and while he felt he owed Ashton an apology, the right time and place hadn't presented itself yet. He'd run into Ashton twice since then. The first time he was with his husband, and Calum wasn't about to humble himself in front of Luke. The second encounter came not long after their marriage broke up. Calum was dating a photographer at the time, when Ashton came to the photographer’s art show. They were briefly introduced but Ashton's chilly demeanor discouraged any further conversation, so Calum avoided him the rest of the evening. He remembered being unable to stop staring at the handsome chef with the sad eyes. He'd always hoped they'd bump into each other under better circumstances. I guess an interview will have to do.

********

Ashton sat out on his condo balcony overlooking Echo Park, taking in the night air and enjoying a second bottle of IPA. Hima was right, the opening had been a smash. Anne-Marie's had the best staff he'd ever had the pleasure of working with, and aside from a small mix up between gruyere and Havarti cheese, the opening had been smooth. The alcohol hummed in his veins as he allowed his mind to wander back five years.

Lune Rouge's opening had been a chaotic mess of brilliance, balls, and blind luck. He was a year out of culinary school, newly married, and ecstatically in love with his husband. Luke was a trust fund baby; his dad ran a major studio. He put up the funding for their restaurant which procured a prime spot in trendy West Hollywood. Ashton had the idea of taking traditional French cuisine and turning it into "pub grub." Luke created a kitschy tacky cool interior with the ambiance of fairy light curtains, vintage 90's movie posters, an eye-popping pink and aqua come scheme. Featuring a bartender who doubled as a DJ, the restaurant became an immediate hot spot.

The culinary press treated them like rock stars and it went to their head. Ashton was portrayed as the mysterious boy genius, boisterous and foul-mouthed, he ran the back of the house, oversaw the business and created the menu. Luke, who's blonde-haired blue-eyed good looks were regularly described as "angelic", was the frontman, often schmoozing in the dining room, taking song requests, or slinging drinks behind the bar. They worked so well together until they didn't.

Ashton shook his head, not allowing himself to linger on negative thoughts, not when he'd fought to regain balance. He'd spent the last year freeing himself from the wreckage of his partnership with Luke. Still, tonight after the opening, alone and overlooking the city lights, his mind kept going back to the exhilaration of that first opening night. After they stayed late with the crew for a drink to celebrate, Luke's hand wandered up Ashton's thigh causing him to almost choke on his tequila. Soon Luke started whining about all the paperwork he had to do before they could go home. The crew quickly bagged it out of there, not wanting to get roped into more work.

Ashton swallowed at the memory before glancing around at the other balconies. It was late enough most of his neighbors should be asleep. Already hard, he reached down and squeezed his bulge through the thin fabric of his pajama pants.

After letting everyone else out of Lune Rouge that first night he'd been puzzled to find Luke no longer at the bar. He heard noises coming from the office. When he opened the door, he found his husband, shirtless, and waiting for him.

Ashton slid his hand into his pants swiping his thumb across the leaking tip. He heard a sliding glass door open and froze in place until he realized it was his neighbor below him chatting on the phone. He stroked himself and let his mind wander back to Luke. It had been too long since Ashton got laid, and Luke was still the best sex he'd ever had. He shuddered and bit his lip thinking about the way Luke grinned at him as he opened the office door. Before Ashton could say a word, Luke was sinking to his knees. A bit awkward given his long legs, but it didn't take long before he was letting Ashton fuck his throat. The thought of those blue eyes looking up at him as Ash's hands tangled in those blonde curls caused a moan to slip out, and his neighbor stopped talking at the sound.

"I think somebody is having sex," he heard her whisper. He almost laughed.

His dick was twitching flat against his stomach as he ducked back inside his bedroom, kicked off his pants, and grabbed a small tube of lube. Ashton shut off the light and stepped back outside.

The breeze cooled his fevered skin as he stood there looking out at the city and stroking his dick. The idea that he could possibly be seen turned him on almost as much as his trip down memory lane. He swallowed another moan thinking about how Luke's lips felt against his, their tongues tangled until he pulled back looking at Ashton with mischief and love before giving him a wink and turning around.

Ashton's breath caught in his throat as he worked his cock thinking about it. The red and white striped pants his husband pranced around in that night had been blissful torment working him up until the moment he slid those pants down and bent over the desk.

"Come take what's yours, my love, I've been wanting you all night," he cooed, wiggling his hips.

Luke was a whiny boy when he was getting pounded, and the memory sent Ashton closer to the edge. He felt his knees tremble as he increased his speed, the city lights becoming starbursts in his vision as he edged himself closer. At the moment of release, he swore he could feel Luke pushing back against him taking him in as deep as he could go.

When Ashton opened his eyes, he found himself sweaty and streaked with his own seed. He was amazed he'd managed to stay quiet, but his neighbor was chatting away obliviously. He went back inside, cracked another beer, and took it with him into the shower, trying to focus on his day tomorrow.

It was after midnight by the time he went to bed. His body was exhausted but the adrenaline from the opening weekend hadn't quite worn off. He found himself still restless and playing on his phone. After scrolling through Instagram, he found himself looking at the page belonging to the Galway Grill-- Ashton cringed at the name-- an Irish pub and microbrewery very recently opened by Luke and his boyfriend Finn.

Ashton simmered with resentment perusing the menu; they'd recycled at least half of the Lune Rouge recipes, his creations. He'd heard they'd rushed their opening to launch the week before Anne-Marie's, and even with Daddy's deep pockets the decor looked slapped together, all flash no class. He came to a picture of the happy couple and couldn't help but notice how thin and tired Luke looked despite his huge smile. He felt a twinge of concern for his ex before pushing his phone away in disgust. Rolling out of bed, he headed to the bathroom and fished an orange prescription bottle out of the cabinet. He broke a valium in half and swallowed the smaller piece with a gulp of water straight from the faucet. He scrolled through different sounds on his phone before settling on crashing waves. He spent the next ten minutes stretching and practicing deep breathing to push out any lingering negativity and troubling thoughts. It was too late to drag up the past and there was nothing to be gained. Ashton crawled back under the duvet and sank into a deep sleep dreaming of blue eyes.

*********

Hima rolled into work a little after one, pleased to see a decent lunch crowd and multiple delivery orders going out. She ordered a chicken mojito wrap for her lunch and headed back to the office to find Ashton. She found him in his chair with his laptop open on his desk, a notebook in his lap while scrolling through his phone.

"So what's the Monday morning report, Boss?" She asked, taking a seat across from him.

Ashton was beaming as he spun the laptop around to show her. "We made 30% over our projected sales. We came in right at payroll, actually a little under if you can believe that."

"I've checked the reservation book," she responded, flashing her phone. "We're booked solid for dinner Friday and Saturday and will call is 3 pm-7 pm. We're probably going to have to do that all week."

"Whatever you need. This weekend is going to be bonkers. If you have any suggestions, I'd like to do something for the staff. That reminds me, I've got to talk to Maisie." He scribbled down a quick note.

"She's already on it," Hima laughed. "The servers who struggled are coming in for extra training with her and Dakota. I have no doubt she'll straighten them up or ship them out."

Ashton nodded as Daniel knocked on the office door to bring their lunch.

"How's it going out there? Let us know if you need anything," Ashton told him.

"We've got this, Boss, enjoy your lunch," Daniel closed the door behind him.

"He's Rafi's brother?" Hima asked before taking a big bite.

"Cousin, Gloria is his sister," Ashton replied tucking into his roasted corn and quinoa salad with queso fresco.

"Are you ready for this interview tomorrow? You look tired," Hima looked concerned.

"I am tired," he shrugged. "I just wanna get this over with. I'm thrilled we're doing so well, but that's not what the press wants to talk about."

"Don't think about it like that. Anne-Marie's will stand on her own. You've just gotta get through this week. I know it's a lot," her words were half-muffled by a napkin.

"Tomorrow is the worst of it. Mackie called and is available Tuesday at one or Thursday for dinner around four. Since he's already been here for dinner, I thought I'd let Rafi wow him this time," he told her.

"Good idea, try to keep it short because if he drinks he gets super chatty. He gave a lecture at school and came to the bar afterward; he would not shut up," she warned.

"Chatty bastard, got it," he replied and they both laughed.

Anne-Marie's was his restaurant, but he couldn't have done it without Hima. She was fresh out of culinary school working as a line cook at the Hilton when he'd discovered her a little over a year ago. Ashton only lasted four months before chafing under the corporate yoke and deciding to strike out on his own. She'd been the first person he'd hired for the restaurant, guaranteeing her first year's salary out of his own pocket. Rafi and DeSean were excellent managers for the kitchen, but Hima was a coach: she understood the business as a whole. He'd let her handle most of the press and promotion, and she'd scored two big interviews.

Gourmet Table had interviewed him last Thursday The piece wouldn't be that in-depth, but they'd spent three hours photographing food. He expected the Men's Life article to focus more on him and his personal life. Calum Hood was known for his sharp pen and take-no-prisoners style. He'd given Lune Rouge two stars and a biting review during a brief stint at California Culture before he'd become known. It was five years ago, but Ashton still had the clipping somewhere. Calum had branded Lune's food as tasty and imaginative but thought the presentation was lacking in creativity. He'd ripped into the decor, calling it "somewhere between art house and frat house," and labeled Luke and Ashton "spoiled pretty boys pretending to be chefs." Luke had brushed it off with a laugh, but it still bothered Ashton.

Unlike the Hemmings’, Ashton’s family didn't have money to throw around. He'd started at sixteen, washing dishes and peeling vegetables for Chef François at Bordeaux on Hollywood. He'd taken culinary classes after high school while working full time. Sadly, Chef François had a heart attack and retired around the time he met Luke.

"You're not listening again," Hima complained, licking her fingers. "Rafi killed it with this wrap. The chicken is amazing, but the cucumber-mint salad and the tamarind chili mayo are next fucking level."

"You're right, I'm not. Sorry about that," he pushed his plate aside.

"Ok, what's got you so rattled? You've handled the press like a champ up until now. Is it Mackie or Hood? Who needs to catch these hands?" Hima stood and assumed a fighter's stance, bouncing on her toes.

"Easy there killer, I can defend my own honor. Mackie is an irritating little mosquito. He just wants gossip, but he's got enough readers so we all have to kiss his ass. Hood gave me one of the few bad reviews we got at Lune, and it stuck. He called us frat boys and said we were trying too hard," Ashton rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed by saying it out loud.

Hima raised her eyebrows and smirked, "I love it when you're petty. You're always so perfect and Zen, it's annoying."

"My therapist would disagree. Oh shit, that reminds me," he straightened up in his chair and grabbed his phone. "I've got an appointment at 2:30. I'll be back before 4," he dropped his eyes to the floor.

"Ashton," her voice was soft but commanding, and he looked up. "I don't know what's going on, and if you don't want to tell me that's fine. I want you to take care of yourself, whatever that takes. Ok?" He nodded and she smiled, "You can tell Dr. Claire that I've confirmed her for 8 pm Saturday, and you're going to personally cook her dinner. We've got the 50th anniversary that night so maybe you could flex and make your Pavlova's? I'll get the berries myself."

"It's a deal; we can comp them champagne, too. I'd better get going before I get yelled at. She's a stickler for punctuality, I think it's a British thing."

"I'll hold things down until you get back," Hima gathered up the dishes and headed out with Ashton right behind her.

*********

Ashton drew a deep breath and exhaled through his nose as the reporter settled in the chair across from him. Kevin Mackie's column in L.A. Metro was the definitive opinion for restaurants on the West Coast. His readers loved the snarky tone, celeb sightings, and bitchy gossip that peppered his column. His reviews could make or break new restaurants.

"Let me start off by saying I love the decor of this place. It's rustic, but not in that played out, hipster-in-the-woods nonsense," he leaned in and lowered his voice towards the end of the comment with a coy smirk.

"You'll find no Mason jars here," Ashton replied, taking the bait. Kevin liked people who liked him, and his most recent column was a snarky takedown of "Pinterest style interiors." Ashton found the article tedious and uninspired, but there was no need to be antagonistic right out of the gate.

Ashton watched as the reporter ordered his lunch from their server Zia. He guessed Kevin to be in his forties, and he thought he could see fresh hair plugs, bleached blonde, and a bit of Botox. Rumor had it, he'd recently split with his long-time girlfriend over a fling with a much younger waiter. Ashton tried not to pay attention to industry gossip. However, his personal problems made their way into the column more than once, and he couldn't help but feel the tiniest bit of satisfaction at the other man's problems.

After they'd both ordered, Kevin sat back and took a sip of his Pellegrino water and smacked his lips. "I was here the other night and I have to admit I was prepared to be underwhelmed. A menu based on sandwiches and comfort food sounded like an upscale Applebee's, but I really liked it despite myself. I was surprised to see your main girl was on the mature side, but she's efficient as hell so I get the trade-off."

Ashton's body tensed at the insult to Maisie, and he took a deep breath. Exhaling through his nose he forced a smile that didn't reach his eyes. Kevin was prattling on with some bit of gossip as Ashton sipped on his iced coffee.

"So let's start with something simple and ease our way into the rough stuff," Kevin set his voice recorder on the table between them. "Tell me how you formulated your top-secret house coffee blend."

Ashton broke into a wide grin as he described taking two months to travel and sample different beans, learn more about the roasting and blending process. Kevin sipped his coffee and nodded as if deep in thought, but his eyes kept wandering to Ashton's biceps. He'd been baking this morning so he smelled of cinnamon, his black t-shirt damp and clingy from sweating under his chef coat.

"So we sell the house blend all year, but we have single-source coffee that's seasonal, all of it fair trade," Ashton finished proudly.

"Coffee has always been your thing if I remember correctly," Kevin said.

"True, true, and once I started roasting my own beans it became a true obsession."

Kevin followed it up with a couple more softball questions about menu details and sandwiches. Ashton expounded on his love of food. "Cooking for someone is a simple way to show care, to be enjoyed almost as much as dining should be. Food is caring and comfort; it sustains us. It brings people together in a shared experience."

"Ooh that's a nice pull quote," Mackie chuckled. "I love when y'all have media training. It makes the bullshit flow much smoother.

Ashton seethed but said nothing. He'd watched this man's pettiness wreck a good opening, and Ashton couldn't do that to his crew. Zia brought their lunch. Ashton noticed Kevin had also ordered the chicken mojito wrap.

"This looks delicious. I think it's a nice touch that you've got so much, let's say diversity, in your restaurant. That you're actually letting them make their own food makes your menu more interesting. Not all restaurants get it. Please tell me you've seen how horribly Finn ripped you off for that tacky Irish pub," Kevin glanced up at him a tiny smirk playing on

"I haven't paid any attention to that," Ashton wanted to end the interview right there.

"Oh come on, you've had to see how much he's trying to recreate the magic you and Luke once had. The menu is tired, I don't give a fuck if he is Irish. Finn has no imagination yet fancies himself an impresario. Luke's still got it though. He even asked when I was coming here. I didn't tell him of course, I'm a professional after all."

"Of course," Ashton nodded checking out of the conversation. The reporter talked as he ate which given the wrap he was eating proved especially messy and little flecks of food kept flying his way. Ashton watched the door, nodding at customers, silently willing someone to come and save him. Kevin was still talking about himself when Hima and Zia came out of the kitchen. Ashton tried to catch their eye when he felt a hand on his arm.

"I wanna ask you about that one," Kevin leaned in so he could almost whisper.

"Who? Hima? What about her?" Ashton was pretty sure he wasn't going to like the answer.

"What's the deal? I've only ever seen you with Luke. Did your palette change that much? India must've been a real spiritual awakening for you huh?" Kevin winked at him, thinking he was clever.

Ashton controlled his breathing trying to keep his temper in check. He looked over at the reporter who kept talking oblivious to the situation.

"Who doesn't like trying something exotic. She seems like a smart cookie. She's darker than most Indian girls you see, like a rich brown butter sauce. I bet she tastes like tumeric though."

"Get out of my restaurant" Ashton hissed, his hands gripping the table to restrain himself from physical violence. "You are not going to insult my staff, my friends, in their restaurant."

Kevin started to speak but Ashton cut him off.

"Not another fucking word" he kept his voice at a low growl so as not to cause a scene. He noticed a couple of the closest tables were already watching them. "You've said enough and I'm barely holding back as it is. Get out of my restaurant, don't ever come back, don't ever speak to me again, and if you trash me in this review I promise you I will find you and fuck you up personally." Ashton stood up and Kevin flinched, the sight would have made him laugh if he hadn't been so furious. He stepped back and the reporter scrambled out of his seat leaving his lunch unfinished. Ashton walked back into the kitchen, Hima fast on his heels. He kicked the door open to the break room and headed for the speed bag hanging in the corner. He'd learned the hard way punching walls usually resulted in the wall winning the fight so he'd given himself something easier on his hands.

Hima watched him from the door, his back and biceps rippling as he went two minutes at full speed. When he finally turned around she could see the anger had cooled somewhat. She hated that her boss looked incredibly sexy when he was angry.

"Are you gonna tell me what happened?" She asked when he turned back around.

"Nope, it'll just piss me off all over again, and I gotta get ready for another fucking interview. With a guy who already doesn't like me," Ashton put this coat back on and headed into the line to check on Rafi.

At least the second interview can't be worse, she thought, wishing she believed it.

*********

Calum eased his beat up Range Rover into the parking lot of Anne-Marie's amongst the Mercedes, Audi's, and Teslas. He cursed the traffic when he checked the time. He was late, and they were busy. Not a good look he thought, grabbing his bag.

He smiled at the ladies waiting for a table before introducing himself to the impossibly serene hostess. He was quickly led to a table in an alcove not far from the kitchen. As he pulled out his voice recorder and notebook, he noticed a young woman heading his way. Her black hair was knotted tightly in a bun on top of her head, and her chef's coat had a large streak of what might be hollandaise sauce. He remembered his editor, Jacqueline, telling him Anne-Marie's had a female sous chef. He checked the notes she'd given him quickly as she was stopped by a server. Hima, Culinary Institute of America graduate, 23, Indian maybe?

"Hello I'm Hima Singh, you must be Calum Hood," she greeted him. From up close, he noticed that her eyes were a rich golden brown and that her smile didn't reach her eyes. He chalked it up to her youth; his editor said she was 23 but she looked like a teenager. He mentally stopped himself there. He'd become jaded by one too many husband/wife teams in recent years trying to rebrand a post-divorce startup as a "new adventure." While the divorce was true, Calum knew Ashton's history.

"Yup that's me, it's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Hima," he shook her hand, relieved to see her relax a bit.

"Chef Irwin will be out shortly. He's helping with a problem in the back" she glanced towards the kitchen, and Calum had a feeling she was lying.

"Can I get you something while you wait? Do you like coffee? We have a house blend cold brew Chef Irwin selected himself that we roast and grind on-site," she asked motioning towards the sign listing the daily selection of teas and coffee.

"Thanks, but maybe not coffee. I'm nervous enough without more caffeine," he admitted, "but the lavender and blackberry infused lemonade sounds amazing." He smiled and her face softened.

"Absolutely," she signaled to Zia who brought Calum his drink and a basket of warm, fluffy yeast rolls with Anne Marie's cinnamon honey butter. The smell reminded Calum he'd skipped breakfast as his stomach began to rumble.

"So you're Chef Irwin's sous chef? I heard a rumor you were a partner as well," he asked, almost drooling as he tore into the soft bread, watching the steam escape.

"Yes sir," Hima's smile finally reached her eyes, and she sat down across from him. "When he got his core team together for Anne Marie's, there's three of us total. Desean and Rafi are his kitchen managers, and he gave us the opportunity to buy in as minority investors, no pun intended."

"These rolls are incredible. Please take one before I finish this whole basket and ruin my lunch. How long have the three of you worked for Ashton, excuse me, Chef Irwin?" He asked.

"Desean and Rafi were part of his Lune Rouge crew. They go way back, but he met me fresh out of school and took me under his wing," she told him.

"Did you go to CIA?" Calum was jotting down notes, getting a feel for the story.

"I wish, it's so pretty up there. My twin brother attended Brown, and I went to Johnson and Wales so we could stay close."

"You're a twin? Is he a chef as well?" Calum asked.

"Are you kidding? He's a lawyer, of course, my parents had to have one in the family," Hima laughed.

Zia appeared beside their table. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but Rafi is looking for you, Hima."

A worried frown replaced her warm smile and Calum felt his nerves bubbling back up. He glanced around and caught sight of Ashton, flushed and sweaty from the heat of the kitchen, poking his head around the corner. Their eyes met, and Calum felt like he'd been hit by lightning.

Hima saw his reaction and whipped around to see what Calum was looking at. Spotting her boss she quickly excused herself and hurried to the back.

Zia cleared her throat and Calum realized she was still standing next to his table.

"Would you like to try Rafi's plantain skewers while you wait? It's my favorite thing here, and it'll leave room for whatever these geniuses cook up," she asked with a smile and a wink.

He nodded and she headed to the server station to put the order in. Calum looked around and started taking notes. The most striking thing about the decor was how they'd used diffused skylights for soft lighting to accent the Nakashima-style crafted wooden furniture. Thanks to his Mom’s love of Antiques Roadshow when he was younger Calum discovered his preference for natural grain wood and bespoke pieces. He liked the use of pastel neon signs to complement the muted green and blue tones of the mosaic tile floors and he thought the framed pictures of what he assumed were family photos of the staff provided a really nice personal touch. The largest photo was in the bar of Ashton and his mother, the restaurant's namesake, Anne Marie.

Zia set a plate down in front of him. "The boss will be out in a minute., Let me get you some more tea," she told him.

The skewers consisted of chunks of pineapple, plantain, red onion, and sweet potato grilled and dusted with chili powder and brown sugar served with a yogurt sauce for dipping.

Calum was almost finished with the first one when Ashton came out of the back, making his way towards him. The chef stopped to talk to several customers, the hostess, and Zia before he made it to Calum's table. Cal licked his fingers, wiping his hands clean with a Sani-wipe before standing up and offering a handshake.

Ashton took his hand and Calum wasn't expecting it to feel so soft. Caught off guard Calum stammered out an introduction as he sat, but he noticed Ashton just nodded, barely listening.

"If today isn't a good day we can reschedule," Calum sipped his tea, his throat suddenly dry.

"I'm here aren't I?" Ashton snapped. He folded his arms across his chest, his hazel eyes narrowing at Calum. "I still remember your first review you know."

Calum's pulse was racing. He hated confrontation, and he hadn't expected Ashton to kick off right away. He knew he'd better suck it up and apologize if this wasn't going to go completely off the rails.

"Listen, I wanted to apologize. I shouldn't have been such a dickhead." As he spoke Ashton scoffed at him and Calum felt his cheeks get warm. "I was young and stupid. I let something personal affect that review. I'm sorry."

"Personal? With Luke? What do you mean by that?" Ashton went from annoyed to hostile.

Calum realized he'd said something wrong but wasn't sure what exactly. He was floundering trying to think of what to say next.

"Nothing with Luke, no no no. I was involved with Finn and we weren't getting along. It's so stupid I know, but I think you're a great chef. The new place looks incredible, and Hima is a delight."

The anger drained from Ashton's face, leaving him looking empty and sad. His head dropped to his chest, and Calum held his breath waiting for him to speak.

"I'm really sorry, it's not you, but I can't do this right now. Maybe we can reschedule or something. My apologies, but I have to get back to work," Ashton mumbled, standing up.

Calum spotted Hima watching them from the podium, chewing on her lip, her black eyes wide with concern as Ashton hurried back to the kitchen. Calum started to get up but she was too quick for him.

"Well, aren't you lucky. I'm going on my lunch and I hate to eat alone," she slid back into the seat across from him. "Please forgive my boss. He's had a rough day, but I'm better company anyway." She waved to Zia who headed their way. "You gotta try the toasted gnocchi with gorgonzola cream sauce if you like cheese, but if you want something lighter the apple carrot kale wrap is excellent too," she smiled at him, and to her relief he smiled back, both of them realizing the situation might be salvageable after all.

(A/N: y’all my tag list, much like my life, is a hot mess. I know some of what I write isn’t for everyone. If you want tagged in part 2 of this fic or my upcoming smuts, pink kink series, or dad!calum series please let me know. I apologize for my previous mistake)

@sublimehood @tea4sykes @be-ready-when-i-say-go @scribblesos @kiiiimberlyriiiicker1995 @wildmichaelflower @castaway-cashton @damselindistressanu @notinthesameguey @cashtonasfuck @irwinkitten @mermaidcashton @malumsmermaid

#calum hood #ashton irwin #5sos writing collab #cashton smut #cashton slash #Calum Hood smut #ashton irwin smut #cashton #calum 5sos #ashton fanfic #ashton 5sos #5sos

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siya-batmann · 3 years ago

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Epilouge for turtles all the way down.

I realized the book didnt have one so i thought about writing it on my own, im not that great at writing fan fic but i hope you guys like it. Enjoy <3

I liked to think that everything works out in the end, and it almost did, but then I saw him. There he was, in line for a Dr.pepper, with his handsome face, and unruly hair and the memories came flooding back.

I thought to myself, shit, what do I do, do i look good? Do I go up to him?Maybe I shouldn't. But what if it was one of those times where I regretted not doing something? I should just go, no I wanna stay. GO. STAY.

Then all of a sudden he looked at me and a huge smile spread across his face

He’s coming here, I think to myself , god what do i do, what do i say?? tell him you still love him oh my god no, tell him you're married, WHAT NO ? okay but what if he's married ? AHHH why is this happening to me?

“Hi”, he said, i forgot how to respond for a moment, and then he smiled again “what's going on in your spiral, right now”, “You”,i say without thinking “not in a creepy way tho”, he laughs, “how are you ?”, “I’m good, though the spiral hasn't left me, which I guess is pretty evident, but I'm getting better. Still can’t kiss someone without freaking out tho, what about you ?How are you? How's Noah?”, “He's good, he has grown up to be a good guy, although I still have my doubts” I laughed, “So what are you doing here ?”, “Oh nothing just missed home, i guess”. This was followed by a minute of awkward silence and then he said “It was great to meet you again, but I guess I should get going”, ”Yeah I should too”.

Before going we both looked at each other with this longing gaze, his dark brown eyes were more alluring than ever, I tried not to succumb to the crazy entropy of this thing between us and then finally, he said “goodbye, aza”, I smiled “Goodbye, Davis”and he was gone. Again.

As for my life, I wasn't lying when I said I'm getting better, I still haven”t had c. diff. and honestly i'm not as fearful as i was anymore. I now teach biology in a university, not far from home. My mom has retired, and I really really hope her baking days do too, ever since she has stopped working, she keeps making me cookies and I just don't have the heart to tell her how terrible they are. As for Daisy, she's now a successful writer and still my best friend. She got engaged to Mychal last summer and I know I'm not the only one surprised by the fact that she said yes.

I still haven't been able to be in a long term relationship but I think I can live with it. I love my job, my friends and my family, and that’s all I need.

I went home and looked up davis’s blog, i realized i hadn't checked it in a long time

“Now I will believe that there are unicorns.”

― William Shakespeare ,The Tempest

I met her today, after 25 years. They keep saying that you'll always remember the first person you love, but I don't think that the word ‘remember’ captures how you feel at the moment. I felt something that could never be put into words. I'm in a reverie that I do not want to come out of. If only, we’d gotten more time, if only.

All of a sudden my phone buzzed.

Daisy : Yo holmesy, we found the old canoe and Mychal fixed it up, you up for a ride to pirate’s island ?

Me : Be there in 5.

In a few minutes, it was just me and Daisy, floating through the still river. The boat was big enough for us to lie down, and so we did. We looked at the trees that leaned over the water in search of more sunlight. It was as if nothing had changed in these 25 years.

I told her about my short interaction with Davis and what he wrote.

I told her how much i wanted to go to columbia, and how much i wanted to be with him, but i couldn't, i couldn't just leave indianapolis, i couldn't just leave mom.

All Daisy said was , ”break hearts not promises, holmesly.”

We passed under a dead , leafless tree and I looked up through its branches which intersected the blue sky into all kinds of irregular polygons, and sang “You're. The one. You're the one that I choose. The one I'll never lose. You're my forever. My stars. My sky. My air. It's you.

As I sang, I realized that in the course of time, I had become the author, and I wasn't just pretending anymore.I realized that Spirals grow infinitely small the farther you follow them inward, but they also grow infinitely large the farther you follow them out.

I had stopped looking for the turtle at the bottom because I finally knew, that It’s turtles all the way fucking down.

#turtles all the way down #book #holmesy #break hearts not promises #reading #wholesome #epilogue #first time #first post #readers of tumblr #writing #writerslife

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kyovtani · 4 years ago

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ASKS

hey babies! i’ve decided to answer the asks about back to life one and two like this because ive received so so so many and you guys blew me away so answering every single one of them is the least i can do to show you guys just how grateful i am. thank you so much for giving both parts SO much love, i love and appreciate you guys and the support you’re constantly sending my way with my whole entire heart <33

BYE THE FIC IS SO GOOD SO FAR. MY ANXIETY THO FROM THE ENDING, LIKE PLS KYO REALIZE THE MCS ANXIETY PLS DONT GO OUT WITH SORA PLEASE PLEASE HE SEEN HOW SHE DIDNT LOOK OKAY WHEN HE CAME IN PLEASE REALIZE HER ANXIETY PLEASE

– THANK YOU SO SO MUCH BABY !! this was the very first ask about back to life and it’s honestly the cutest thing ever! I hc Kyoutani to be rally understanding of things like anxiety and depression, generally mental health so that’s why it was easy for him to understand the reader’s situation and mindset!

BACK TO LIFE!!!!!!!! MY HEART!!!!!?! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH SO GOOD!!!!! i was really excited when you started posting about it!! i can't wait for part 2, i wanna know how they fix this!

AAAH !! thank you so much for the love and support baby!!!! I really hope you enjoyed part 2 just as much, sending you lots of smooches MWAH

OH MY GOD THE KYO FIC IS AMAZING

THANK YOU SO MUCH BABY !!!!!

OH MY GOD YOUR KYOUTANI FIC HAS ME ACTUALLY FROTHING I LOVE IT SM

IM NOT KIDDING WHEN I SAY THAT MY JAW ACTUALLY DROPPED AT THE LAST COUPLE PARAGRAPHS AS WELL I CANT WAIT FOR PART 2

AAAH YOU GUYS !!! this made me so happy !!! thank you so much and I hope part two met your expectations and you enjoyed the ending MWAH!!

HOLY FUCK THAT KYOUTANI FIC WHEW IT WAS SO SO GOOD IM SO EXCITED FOR PART 2

thank you for the food <33

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE LOVE AND SUPPORT BABY !!!

YOUR KYOTANI FIC AHHHHHHH my heart can’t handle this

I AM SO GLAD YOU ENJOYED IT BABY !!!

OW THE END ON BACK TO LIFE HURTED THOUGH GDFGHJDFHJRY

Was overwhelmed by the hurty that I forgot to say how much I ADORE your characterization of Kyoutani. fdjkhgjkgdr

THANK YOU SO MUCH !! honestly- that means the world to me, probably the best compliment you can give me :((

Back to life was so good OMG 😳😳 HELLO??? You're amazing

Thank you so much, my love! it honestly is everything to me when you guys tell me such sweet things I love you so much MWAH!!

the new fic did not help me with my insecurities now i’m just frustrated and insecure. great writing tho.

honestly- same. when I wrote this, I lit indulgent every bit of my mind working into this fic and thats why it means so much to me ?? so youre not alone, my love; but thank you so much <33

The way I panicked at the end of the fic thinking there wasn’t gonna be more to it, holy shi that fox was so good I almost cried thinking they were just gonna end things like that 🥺🥺🥺🥺

I’d NEVER end a fic like that- I hate bad endings and cannot stand cliffhangers but the formatting didn't give me another choice im sorry for the heart attack baby kfhflashsj but am glad you liked it!

@au-roraaa said: ZADE I WAS NEVER A KYO FUCKER BUT I THINK YOUVE CONVERTED ME HOLY FUCKSJFJSJDJSN

THIS IS MY JOB AT THIS POINT I WANT YOU ALL TO TURN INTO KYOU FUCKERS KSSSOH

UR THE BEST WRITER WTF?? WHEN DO U THINK PART TWO WOULD BE UP... and does kyoutani flirt with sora 😣💔

YOU GUYS- NOOO- pls my heart made a loop :(( I love you so much :(( thank you baby and I think now you know what he does with sora MWAH

@kawakuto said: hi hi zade!🤩 (ajdjs idk if you remember me but i moved main blogs and I was @/gukooky before LOL) THE KYOUTANI FIC ANDJWNS I DIDNT EXPECT THE END WAHHHH🥺🥺 it was so well written omg I loved it!! (wtf kyoutani, you said we were going slow what if I wasn’t ready to call u my boyfriend wtffff😔😔 pain.)

AAAAH OFC I DO REMMEBER !! hope youre doing well baby !!! and thank you SO much for your sweet words, I honestly appreciate them so much :((<33

pls I’m in love with your writing. You write kyoutani so well so now I’ll always be grabbing at any crumbs you send my way 🥵

thank you so so so much baby!!!! these kinda words always hit me right at the heart, I appreciate them so much and I love you sm much

bb i love ur kyoutani fic sm :(( ur rlly so talented <33 i look forward to pt 2 ^3^

thank you so much baby, sending a smooch your way mwah

zade that kyoutani piece im in so much pain why would u do this to me 💔💔💔💔

believe me when I say It hurt me even more than you </3

I just finished reading part 2 and it waS SO GOODAJSFHJLFG you did amazing!! (n˘v˘•)¬

THANK YOU SO MUCH BABY !!!

Hi! New nonnie coming through :) First time I'm writing something because I'm such a nervous wreck but I just had to

THE FIC WAS SO GOOD THE VIBES ARE CHEFS KISS. IT WAS SO GOOD I LITERALLY DROOLED I CAN NOT GET OVER IT !

Mister kyotani pls rail me thanks 🐱

THANK YOU AAAH YOURE SO CUTE !!! I truly appreciate this with my whole entire heart so thank you so much baby, hope you have a good one mwah

Wait did he do anything with Sora?

nope!! they just went to the party together but in my mind he didn’t even hug her and she didn’t try anything else, too, simply bc she knew how in love he is with reader!!

YOUR MINDDDDD!! THE KYOU FIC WAS SOOOO GOOOD!! Omg i hope you do a part 3 😭😭

i have a Little sequel which is really really soft but I'd love to write some more for it!

@soranihimawari said: Part 1 & 2 with kyoutani was amazing as always Zade! I really liked the ending. This was such a fun read. I was wondering who’s else would be sharing the apartment with Kyoutani. What made you choose tattoo artist Iwa & Oikawa? Those two made me chuckle with the way they came in like that. Hope you have a great day/evening/late night/etc.

✌🏼&💜

—sora—

aaah thank you so so much, baby!! I truly appreciate your sweet words, youre the cutest! regarding your question: You shares an apartment with Iwa, Oikawa and Yahaba (who also works at the tattoo studio!) and i don't know to be really honest- I just like the thought of these three being really good friends so after contemplating whether or not to go with iwaoi or matsuhana, I ended up going with those two dorks! hope you have a good one baby mwah!!

@sakusapetals said: PLEASEE I LOVE YOUR WRITING SO MUCH

AAAH THANK YOU SO SO MUCH BABY !!! I LOVE YOU SM

How long did it take you to write the entire two parts? Like wow that’s alot👁👄👁 i adore long fics though

oooh- hm ?? tbh i don't really know ?? I can’t remember ?? I think it took me about a month or like three weeks since I did write it all in one go yk? it was the only WIP I worked on during that time and it felt SO relieving to publish it!

AAAHHH the kyou fic was a masterpiece bb!!! ❤️❤️

thank you so so so much baby!!<33

U LITERLALT WRIYE KYOU THE BEST ABSOLUTE BEST. he’s so aggressive and demanding but he still is willing to show someone special his vulnerability. I LOVE READING STUFF ABOUT HIM FROM U

AAAAH thank you so much- you guys have no idea how much these kinda comments mean to me- I love you so MUCH MWAH

I just read the first part of "back to life" an it had me speechless so many times, almost cried at the end, it's honestly so well written. I'm off to read part two. Have a nice day 🐰

sdoalfsla thank you so much baby! I hope you enjoyed both parts equally as much and thank you for all the love mwah!!<3

Hana is a baddie

SHE IS!! she’s literally the baddest bitch to ever exist ft. saeko ofc but nobody acknowledges it </3

@tonhwa said: I’m in love with the way you write kyoutani pls. Even your previous fics on your old account ( if you don’t mind me mentioning it ) are so fucking amazing. GOSH YOU CHARACTERIZE HIM SO WELL AND THE PLOT IS ALWAYS SO JUICY AND INTERESTING I CANT HELP BUT GO BACK AND READ IT. and then you release this fucking wonderful piece and I feel like it’s my birthday even though it’s already passed LOL ty ily have a wonderful day I’m sobbing tears of happiness

YOU GUYS PLEASE- the fact this made me tear up when I first read it- thank you SO much honestly. knowing you guys enjoy my characterization of my favorite character is honestly everything to me so thank you sm I love you baby have a good one!!<3

I’ve been on this app from high school, and now I’m a college grad. I have to say I’ve never sent a message to anyone I’ve followed. But that tattoo artist! Kyou fic, part 1 and 2 are 😩💕 *chefs kiss* you are one of my favorite writers I’ve ever followed since joining this app. You NEVER disappoint!

-💕 a very satisfied reader

thank you so much baby!! aaah this is honestly so so sweet :(( thank you for taking the time out of your day to send me such a sweet thing, I appreciate it and you so much mwah!!

i gotta say babe THANK YOU FOR THE KYOTANI CONTENT!! muAAAAHH💞💞

NOO THANK YOU GUYS FOR GIVING IT SO MUCH LOVE MWAH!!!

i love kyoutani and he obvs deserves his dick sucked 🤧🤧 but i catch him posting up with other girls I DONT CARE THE SITUATION he gonna catch these hands for a real one 👊🏼👆🏼🤜🏼🥊🥊 kidding 😐😐😐 he’d body me

pls the way this had me chuckling like crazy bc same sajlskjpw he can get mad all he want but he better stay his pretty ass where he is- by my side 😌

#💌.zade's mass response

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gabriel-agreste-has-no-rights · 4 years ago

Link

Rating: G

Summary: Kagami and Nino plan a surprise party for Adrien's seventeenth birthday. With help from their friends, nothing can go wrong this time. Nino's even invited an extra special guest who's sure to make Adrien's night. (Nino & Kagami & Adrien friendship, with a side of Ladrien)

Word Count: 3101 | Chapter 1/3

Notes: written for @marinetteplztakeabreak through the @mlbforblm charity drive! The donations go directly to Color of Change, an online organization for racial justice centered on the Black Lives Matter movement. I highly recommend checking them out and reblogging/donating the mlbforblm posts if you’re able! I have one fic slot left as of 7/23/2020, and many other talented writers and artists are offering incentives as well! There’s even a giveaway going on; see the mlbforblm blog for more info!

XXX

“Hmm.” Kagami’s brow furrowed as she stared at Nino’s Operation: Totally Swank Party binder. The two of them sat on a bench in the park, where she had agreed to meet him after slipping away from her fencing lesson. “Bribing the bodyguard is a proven technique. Get me a list of action figures his collection is missing, and I’ll have them by tomorrow.”

“Way ahead of you, dude.” Nino tore a piece of notebook paper out. He’d done his research last night after a long phone call with Adrien. “Glad I can count on you.”

“Of course.” She neatly folded the paper and slipped it into her jacket pocket. “I’ll have them shipped to your apartment. Do you have a plan to dispose of his babysitter?”

Nino sighed and flipped to the page with a doodle of Nathalie with horns at the top. It was a much more tentative outline than what he’d prepared to deal with the Gorilla. Hopefully Kagami would be able to help him with that.

“Nathalie’s whole job is to suck out all the fun in my bro’s life. We’ll never be able to throw this party with her in the picture.”

He’d tried the past three years. From Hawkmoth transforming him into the Bubbler, to Nathalie locking him in a closet, to Gabe himself nearly arresting him for trespassing, each had been a total bust. At this point Adrien probably wasn’t expecting Nino to try.

But Adrien was his best bro. Nino would never give up on throwing him the most poppin’ party ever.

Plus, this year, he had a secret weapon. One that even Kagami didn’t know about.

“You seem quite prepared.” Kagami squinted at the page. “You’re sure Max can play his part? The Agrestes use my mother’s security technology.”

“Positive. He and Markov can hack anything.”

Max had already wired into the speaker system last time they threw a party for Adrien. Of course, on Adrien’s birthday, the mansion would be too obvious a target. That’s why the plan just required getting his bro out of the house altogether.

“I’ll trust you, then. What exactly is my role?”

Nino grinned, placing a hand on her shoulder. “You, my good bro, will be sneaking Adrien away from his fake fencing lessons. Adrien says you’ve done it a thousand times, and his pops still barely knows who you are. You’ve got like, some kind of invisibility superpower.”

“I simply have practice. That’s all.” She took his pen and began making notes in his binder. “Nathalie will realize we’re gone approximately forty-five minutes after we leave. The Gorilla has set patrol routes for finding Adrien when he goes missing, which I can map out for you.”

“If he takes the bribes, that shouldn’t be a problem.”

Kagami was already sketching out a map of the city on a clean sheet of paper. Geez, how did she remember all that? He doubted he could even draw the path from his apartment to Alya’s.

“I don’t want to take any chances. We cannot fail Adrien. Do you have a venue reserved already?”

“Huh?” Nino scratched under his hat. Kagami was pretty rad, but it was hard to follow her train of thought sometimes. “Oh, right! I was thinking the hotel. Now that Chloé’s not a total jerk—”

“No. Too obvious. Nathalie will find us within the hour.” Kagami frowned and tapped the pen against the back of her hand. “The ice rink will be our best option. It’s out of his bodyguard’s patrol zone, and it can accommodate all of Adrien’s friends. We hid there all the time when we were dating, and no one ever found us.”

“Sure, sure, there’s just one problem.” He grinned nervously and tapped his fingers together. “I, uh, don’t know how to skate.”

Kagami tilted her head and. “Really? No matter. His birthday is twenty-one days away. You have plenty of time to learn.”

Over her shoulder, he watched her write “Teach Nino to ice skate” in her crisp print.

“Uhh… well, I guess that works.” Hopefully everyone else knew how to skate already, or they could just enjoy the food and cake from the seats surrounding the rink. Nino could technically do that too, but he didn’t want to miss hanging out on the ice with his best bro.

“I’ve seen you parkour with Alya. You seem like you’ll learn quickly.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Nino chuckled. “Just get ready to watch me starfish out there.”

Her lips pursed thoughtfully. “If it proves too difficult for you, I can try to find a backup location. I doubt one exists that will fit everyone you’ve listed, though.” She flipped back to the guest list, which included all of their classmates from the last few years, Adrien’s whole fencing team, and a few other friends like Luka and XY. Pretty much everyone Adrien had ever interacted with was on the list.

Except for one special guest, but Nino had left her out on purpose.

“No, no, it’ll be fine! I’m just joking, dude.”

“Oh.” Her face pinked a bit. “How are we going to deliver the invitations without alerting Nathalie or Adrien’s father?

“I’ve started planning that too.” Nino flipped forward a few pages. “The most important guests—ones who aren’t gonna snitch on us—will get their invites a week in advance. The rest will get theirs by text on the day of. If they can’t come, they can’t come.” It was the best solution he’d been able to come up with. He was sure that even if people did have plans, most would drop them for a chance to party with Adrien Agreste.

“Hmm. It still feels too obvious. The fencing team in particular may give us up.” She frowned before scratching a few names off the list. Well, she was on the team herself; she would know better than anyone who could be trusted. “You’re right though. This does seem like the best plan.”

Nino grinned. One nice thing about Kagami was that when she gave a compliment, he knew it was sincere. If she agreed with his birthday plan, then it was as close to foolproof as it could be.

“Sweet. I think that covers everything for now.”

“A very productive planning session.” Kagami nodded before holding out her fist.

Nino laughed and bumped knuckles with her. After a year of hanging out with him and his bro, Kagami was finally getting the hang of fist bumps.

“Meet me at the ice rink at eighteen hundred on Saturday. We’ll begin your lessons then.”

She closed the binder and handed it back to him, then stood and walked away.

“Skating lessons with Kagami, huh…”

This was either going to be a legit time, or he was going to make a total idiot of himself.

XXX

“Come on, Nino, you’ve got this!” Alya called encouragement as she and Marinette lapped him again. He frowned at their backs. How was it that even Marinette, certified clumsiest girl in Paris, could be a better skater than him?

“Focus, Nino.” Kagami snapped her fingers. She stayed near him, slowing her pace even though she could’ve skated rings around him. “Your girlfriend’s praise will only become reality if you practice proper technique. Keep your weight centered.”

“Right, right.” He pushed off from the handrail and tried not to flap his arms. This time, he made it a solid twenty seconds before he slipped and went skidding across the ice. His hat slid off in the opposite direction, but Kagami quickly retrieved it.

“Don’t try to go so fast. Catching up to Marinette and Alya isn’t your goal.” Kagami’s advice was blunt, but helpful. Nino didn’t mind her getting to the point. He knew his skating needed work, and no matter how many times he fell, she didn’t lose patience with him.

It was nice that Alya was so far ahead, honestly. It meant she didn’t see him look like a total dorkasaurus every time he fell.

I’m doing this for Adrien, he reminded himself each time. He didn’t need to be a pro skater. He just needed to be able to stay upright.

“You make it look so easy.” He frowned as Kagami glided backwards.

“I’ve been skating since I was six. It makes a relaxing hobby.”

He snorted. “How is anything about this relaxing?”

“Hmm. Perhaps you’re thinking too hard. It makes you hesitate, place your weight incorrectly. You’re a musician, aren’t you?”

“Huh? Yeah, you know I’m DJ-ing for the party.” He had no clue why Kagami was asking, though.

“Skating has a rhythm. Maybe you’ll feel more comfortable timing your strides with music.”

He tapped his chin. “Y’know… that’s not a half bad idea.”

“Not half bad? Does that mean only half is good?”

“No, no, the whole idea’s good! It’s just an expression.”

He slipped his headphones over his ears and picked one of the slowest songs on his playlist. It was a waltz in ¾ time; hopefully that wouldn’t trip him up.

“Alright, here goes.”

He took a deep breath and pushed off from the wall.

One-two-three, one-two-three. The music was smooth as the ice under his skates. Kagami kept pace with him, smiling as he counted the beats under his breath.

Something about it did feel different. Maybe it was that he stopped overthinking; maybe it was just the magic of music. Either way, he went the whole six-minute song without falling on his butt.

“Not half bad.” Kagami smiled. “...Did I use that right?”

“Heck yeah, dude.” They fistbumped.

“Way to go Nino!” Marinette gave him a high five as she and Alya caught up.

“Thanks for teaching my boyfriend, Kagami. I owe you one.”

“You owe me nothing, Alya.” Kagami’s cheeks turned red. “We’re all working together to ensure Adrien’s birthday is perfect. Teaching Nino is just one step in that plan.”

“Well, I still think it’s really cool of you. Oh! And speaking of the party, my mom says she can cater. I’ve already sworn her to secrecy.”

“Awesome! What about you, Marinette?” Nino took his headphones off to better hear the conversation, but his legs still knew what to do. “Are you gonna get Adrien a totally rad birthday cake or what?”

“Yeah, absolutely!” She nodded. “I’ll just have to drop it off before the party.”

“You’re still sure you can't come, girl?” Alya asked her.

“No, sorry. I promise I would if I could, but I—I’ve already made a commitment. But I’ll have the cake here on time, I swear!”

“And one of his fifty birthday presents, right?” She nudged Marinette with her elbow. Marinette nearly fell, but Nino wasn’t sure if that was from Alya’s bump or her words.

“I—I don’t have those anymore!” Her shoulders slumped. “It turns out, planning presents fifty years in advance works a lot better if you can see the future. They’re all out of style by now.”

Alya laughed at that. Nino couldn’t help noticing that Kagami had gone silent, though, her gaze locked on the ice in front of them.

“Something wrong, bro?” He asked her.

She shook her head. “Adrien’s party won’t be perfect if Marinette isn’t present. I thought she of all people would understand how much she means to him.”

Marinette gasped. “I… I’m sorry, Kagami. Adrien does mean the world to me, and… I promise, I’ll make it up to him.”

Nino was forced to stop as Kagami grabbed the handrail and locked eyes with Marinette. Some kind of silent conversation seemed to pass between them. He looked to Alya for help, but she just shrugged. By now he thought he’d understand the girls, but maybe some things would always be a mystery.

“See that you do. He deserves that much.”

This wasn’t some kind of love triangle over Adrien again, was it? Kagami had stayed good friends with all of them after she and Adrien broke up. Marinette was probably still crazy in love with him, but that was nothing new.

“It’s okay, dudes. The party’s still going to be perfect. I’ve got a special surprise planned for our favorite bro.”

He winked at Alya, who grinned back. She’d been the one to help him pull it off.

“A surprise?” Marinette clapped her hands together at the same time Kagami raised an eyebrow.

“I didn’t factor any surprises into our plans. Why didn’t you tell me about this?”

“It’s not much of a surprise if everyone knows, is it?” Nino said. “But you’re right, I should have told you, Kagami. I just wasn’t sure if it would be awkward for you, knowing who Adrien’s crushing on now and all…”

“It’s not an issue. Adrien is a wonderful friend. That is more than enough for me,” Kagami replied.

“Adrien’s... crushing on someone?” Marinette asked, her eyes wide.

Oops. Kagami might have taken it well, but Nino should’ve waited until Marinette was gone.

“What’s the scoop, babe?” Alya raised her eyebrow, and Nino threw his hands in the air.

“I thought you already knew! Why do you think we worked so hard to get Ladybug to show up for his party?”

Marinette caught hold of the hand rail before her legs slipped out from under her.

“Adrien has a crush on Ladybug?”

“Oh. That’s all?” Kagami asked. “I’ve known that for months.”

“You have?”

“Was it supposed to be a secret? He keeps posters of her in his fencing locker.”

Marinette still looked like she was blue screening. Alya glared at Nino, and he gave a nervous smile. What was he supposed to do? Kagami had a point; the dude wasn’t exactly subtle.

“Anyway.” He coughed. “Our bro likes Ladybug, and she’s coming to his party, so he’s going to have a totally cash money time.”

“Cash money? You’ve been hanging out with Luka and XY too much, babe.”

Marinette giggled at that. She got her feet back under her, and they started skating in unison again. So… she wasn’t that upset? Whew.

“Oh, speaking of XY, I gotta get him here to help set up the special effects,” Nino said. “I already got permission from Phillipe. We’re going all out, courtesy of the actual cash money Kitty Section and XY’s last collab made.”

“How did we end up friends with so many rich people?” Alya mused under her breath.

“It sounds like the plan is in motion, then,” Kagami said.

“Yeah, it’s going to be perfect! Adrien will love it.” Marinette grinned. “Thank you two for putting all this together.”

“Anything for my best bro.” Nino shot her finger guns.

“He deserves a party worthy of his friendship,” Kagami added.

And he was going to get one. This year, of all years, Nino refused to let anything go wrong.

XXX

Three weeks later, on the night of September twenty-first, Nino paced the blue chairs surrounding the perimeter of the ice rink. His friends wove between the chairs, setting up tables of food and games. His turntables were already in place at the head of the rink, and XY was hooking them up to the speaker system.

“Nathalie’s schedule?” Nino asked as he passed Max.

“Hacked and adjusted.” Max flashed a thumbs up.

“Great job, dude.” He clapped him on the shoulder before moving on to Rose and Juleka’s station.

“Presents?”

“Stacked and organized!” Rose saluted.

“Sweet. Make sure to leave some extra space, there’ll be more where those came from.” He continued his path to where Chloé was lounging in a chair and scrolling through her phone.

“Chloé, status report.”

“No trace of Adrikins on Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, or YouTube.” She flipped her ponytail. “You should check your tone, though. I’m not some peon you can just order around.”

“Right.” He rolled his eyes. Classic Chloé. At least she was taking her job seriously, though. “Thanks for all your hard work.”

“You’re welcome.” She smirked.

Her job was one of the most important. If the media caught wind of Adrien’s location, the party would have to split before he even got here. To prevent that, Max had jammed the wifi and cell service so that only his computer, Chloé’s phone, and Nino’s phone had wifi. If anyone wanted to post about the party on social media, they’d have to wait until after it was over.

Everything was looking perfect. There wasn’t much else to do but wait for updates from Kagami.

19:00. Arrived at the court. No sign of Adrien.

19:04. Adrien has arrived. Bodyguard bribed and driving away.

19:05. En route to ice rink. Adrien was suspicious, but believed my excuse of buying him birthday orange juice.

Nino shook his head with a smile. How did Kagami type all that without Adrien noticing? At least everything seemed to going smoothly on her end, too.

He started pacing again. According to Kagami, a casual stroll from the school to the ice rink took twenty minutes. It was longer than Nino wanted to wait, but the location had to be far enough away to avoid notice.

His phone beeped again. He unlocked it to see a selfie of Kagami and Adrien smiling wide, though Adrien was practically unrecognizable in the oversized hoodie and bright blue wig Kagami had borrowed from Juleka.

Alya’s chin rested on Nino’s shoulder. “Aww, look at them. All grown up and ready to rebel.”

“Psh, Kagami’s been rebelling for ages. Adrien could still learn a thing or two from her.”

“Oh look, she sent another one!” Alya clicked his phone.

In this photo, the two of them were pulling funny faces. Adrien stuck out his tongue, while Kagami puffed out her cheeks and gave him bunny ears.

Nino laughed and put an arm around his girlfriend. “We did a great job with them, didn’t we?”

“Absolutely.” She smiled before zooming in on the background. “Looks like they’re in front of the parking lot. They’ll be here any time now.”

Sure enough, Kagami texted, 19:25. Two minutes away.

“Right!” Nino gave her cheek a quick kiss before running to his turntables. He snatched up the microphone, and his voice blasted through the speakers. “Alright, dudes! Adrien’s about to walk through those doors, so everyone hide!”

Their friends dove behind tables and chairs. All of them except XY, anyway.

“What’s the point, dude? He’s gonna see all our sick lights.” XY pointed to the laser lights next to the turntable.

“That’s why we switch them off,” Luka said, pressing the button. The rink fell into darkness.

“Ohhhh.”

Nino pulled the two of them under the table with him just before the double doors opened.

#what an ice surprise #fic tag #miraculous ladybug #kagami #nino lahiffe #nino #tali writes #mlbforblm

33 notes · View notes

frenchibi · 4 years ago

Note

Hi! Okay so obviously this isn’t an ask or a request but basically I just wanted to let you know I’m a fan. I saw that you were upset with how little feedback you were getting so I was looking for a way to contact you. I don't have an ao3 account so I can’t comment anything, and I can’t get one yet because I’m still 15 (the limit is 13 but the TOS were complicated and I didn’t wanna risk anything). In any case, your writing is AMAZING. I love it sm I’m obsessed. You’re so talented <3

Oh, hello!!

This is such a sweet message, thank you for sending it! I’m very happy that you enjoy my writing - but also, this message made me realize I have something to say, so I hope you’ll forgive me for hijacking it a little to make a slightly different point.

You probably read one of my older fics before sending this message - I had a habit of complaining in the notes about the amount of comments I got. Or maybe you saw that one post that I wrote a few years ago, specifically about the Haikyuu fandom and about being angry...? It goes around from time to time and has never really stopped getting notes.

I still feel, generally, that fic writers deserve more responses and interaction for the effort they put in, but my stance on how to go about saying this has changed somewhat since I last talked about this. Looking back at some of the author’s notes for my fics and that post I wrote, they feel very... whiny and entitled, to be honest.

Yes, fic writers invest a lot of time and effort into the works they create, and the fact that they share them for free is amazing, so I feel like “expecting” the people who enjoy their writing to at least let them know that they do is... more or less justified, and a writer being disappointed and frustrated when engagement with their writing is rather low is understandable (especially on tumblr, a place that is notoriously difficult for writers). However, I don’t like the kind of... culture of pressure that has resulted from this (and that my post helped enforce), and the way it “guilts” people into commenting.

We’re all part of fandom because we want to be here, right? We enjoy the same media and we want to talk about it, want to exchange headcanons and story ideas and concepts and fanart. And we want to engage with the stuff other people create - at least that’s how I, personally, feel about it. So when I see something someone made that strikes a chord with me, I WANT to let them know, and so it feels natural to me to like, reblog, leave kudos and comment. And because that’s how I feel, that’s how I expect other people to feel, too. So when I get very little response to something I post, it disappoints me - was my newest fic not up to my usual standard? Are the people who follow me not interested in this fandom anymore? And so on.

I can acknowledge that not everyone interacts with fandom in the same way I do, though. When I wrote that post about being angry - I was, well, angry. A lot of my frustration had piled up and I wrote that post as an outlet, and the people who responded in the notes (overwhelmingly other writers who said things to the effect of “thank you for voicing what we were all thinking”) validated this anger.

I’m... not good at being angry. It doesn’t last very long. In the end, my love for writing and for fandom in general outweighed my anger - and so I’m still here, and I’m probably not going to stop creating fanworks any time soon. I have also expanded to other fandoms (other than Haikyuu) and that has helped me immensely - I needed to get away from the box I put myself in. That doesn’t mean I don’t like Haikyuu anymore! It just means that writing only in one fandom no longer brought me the joy that it used to (and maybe a lack of responses contributed to this, but it wasn’t the only reason. This was a decision that I made for me, and no amount of comments from readers would have changed my mind).

I’m still writing, and all the fics I wrote are still up. I still read and respond to every comment, and every time someone new stumbles upon my ao3 or my tumblr writing tag and starts reading my works - I see you, I appreciate you, I am so happy that you’re here and that you’re enjoying my writing. And if you choose to “only” like five posts in a row without reblogging a single one - well, that just means you missed the chance to have a conversation with me, I guess. But I’m not mad - you do you, and have the fandom experience that works best for you. We’re all friends here, as far as I’m concerned!

All this to say, anon - you have absolutely no obligation to go to such extreme lengths to let a writer know that you like their work. What you said about not having an ao3 account - you ABSOLUTELY don’t have to sign up for one just to leave comments because writers are asking for them. Also, and I mean this in the nicest way possible, you’re 15 and it’s not your job to make a 20+ year old writer feel better about themselves. It was incredibly kind of you to send this message, but it did surprise me a little bit - I tend to always assume (as one does) that the people I interact with are around the same age as I am - but I’m glad that it surprised me, because it reminded me that what I post is seen by everyone who follows me, not just my immediate peers. When I posted about being angry, it was directed and people “like me”, in similar situations, in similar age groups, and I didn’t even stop to think who else might read my post. Which is incredibly irresponsible, actually.

I am aware many people in fandom spaces are minors and I say this for you especially: You don’t owe anyone ANYTHING, least of all should you feel obligated to go out of your way to contact writers who feel “neglected” by their readers to make them feel better. Their emotional state is not your responsibility. I’m grateful for your very sweet message, but I’m also sorry that you felt you had to send it. It is not your job to make sure I feel appreciated. It’s on ME to find a way to interact with fandom spaces that works for me. That’s no one’s responsibility but my own, and it was not fair of me to make a post that basically demanded more interaction “or else I’ll stop posting”. It was years ago, and I don’t feel that way anymore, but I can’t stop people from still reblogging it.

Yes, every single comment or ask or reblog matters and makes me happy - but I hate that I made you feel like you had to reach out to me and tell me that my work is appreciated when you weren’t otherwise going to do so (and that you considered making an ao3 account just for this purpose! No!! Don’t do that!! You’re RIGHT, the TOS are complicated and you shouldn’t sign up for anything without thinking it through properly!).

Tl;dr: Thank you, anon. I’m fine, and even if I wasn’t, it would not be on you to change that. You’re a very sweet person, and I apologize for using your ask to go off on this tangent, but I felt it was important to say.

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ernmark · 5 years ago

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Please continue the fic about Peter being a PI.

Ah, this is an old one.

Juno is the Thief and Peter is the Detective | Part 2 | Part 3

When Juno’s vision comes back into focus, he finds himself staring at what can only be the subject of a still life arranged on the bedside table. Kiwis, dragon fruit, a bunch of bananas, and a glass of orange juice, a cup of yogurt.

And yes, okay, he’s famished. Even discounting the time he’s spent unconscious, it’s been too long since he last ate. But he’s not an idiot about it.

The idiot detective left him a spoon and knife as part of the table setting. And sure, it’s just a butter knife, but he’s done plenty of damage with less than that. He stashes the knife at his thigh and then starts scarfing down what he’s been given.

He suspected the detective might be listening in on him, and he was right. As soon as he starts making noise, the door opens, and there he is: tall and lean and way too pretty to be on that side of the law.

“Oh good,” he says, flashing that sharp-toothed smile. “You’re awake.”

Juno grunts. He doesn’t owe the detective a reply.

“Are you enjoying your breakfast?”

“Is that what this is supposed to be?”

And dammit, Juno can see the suave retort on the detective’s lips, just itching to come out, and he can only guess at which one it’s gonna be. Maybe something about how Juno didn’t seem to mind when Rose was hand-feeding him strawberries. Maybe a quip about the last time Rose made him breakfast. Maybe an allusion to other ways entirely to keep his mouth full. He doesn’t even have to say it out loud for Juno to feel the sting.

And maybe something shows on Juno’s face, because the detective’s expression falters.

“I didn’t know when you’d wake up,” he says at last. “I wanted to leave you something that would keep.”

Juno grunts again. He can’t think of anything else to do.

If he wasn’t still pissed, he might be grateful that the detective changes the subject. He opens a drawer in the bedside table. “I had Rita get you some clean clothes. Ones that haven’t been dredged through the sewer.”

“Nothing wrong with my clothes,” Juno mutters, just because he’s feeling petty.

“They were a biohazard. I tried to launder them, but the landlord threatened to evict me if I brought them within a hundred yards of the washing machine.”

Juno sits upright fast enough to make the medical tape pull at his arm. “Your landlord knows I’m here?”

“That was a joke.” The detective raises his hands to calm him. “No need to get upset.”

“Oh really?” Juno demands. “You sure about that? Because last time I checked, you stalked me, you kidnapped me, you took my clothes off, you stuck me full of needles–”

“To save your life,” the detective says. “They would have done the same for you at Hyperion General.”

“You think they would have sold me a lie to fuck me for three days straight at Hyperion General?”

“Usually that depends on your insurance provider.”

“Shut up,” Juno mutters, because he’s not playing this game. He’s not gonna banter with the detective like they’re partners. He’s not gonna fall for that. Not again.

“Juno,” the detective says again, his voice softer. “I do want you to know–”

“Which part of shut up don’t you understand?” Juno snaps. “I don’t want to hear it.”

“Yes. Well.” The detective nods. “Do let me know how the clothes fit. I can find you something else if those don’t work.”

Juno tries not to hate himself as he watches him leave.

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

Peter isn’t surprised when he finds his bed empty and Juno gone. He’s had a few days to recover, and at least he’s taken the bottle of antibiotics with him.

It might not even be too much to hope for that he stays out of the sewers from now on.

Still, he keeps his subscription to Houndwatch active. It’s on the show, weeks later, that he learns of Juno’s latest escapade. The hosts are in the middle of memorializing their beloved Hellhound when they’re interrupted by a special bulletin: the Hellhound has struck again. His latest victim is an elderly collector who murdered anyone who wouldn’t sell her their Ancient Martian artifacts.

Peter can’t help but feel a twinge of approval when he hears it. He’s always felt acute distaste for people like her– wealthier than the gods themselves, and they’ll never be satisfied. Mag would be proud.

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

“Let me see if I understand you correctly,” Peter tells the police captain. “You want me to be your plus-one?”

Captain Khan’s mustache bristles irritably. “That’s what I said, isn’t it? Do you have honey in your ears or something? Now are you comin’ or not?”

“Not that I’m not flattered, but…” Peter picks his words carefully. I was sure you were monogamous hardly seems like the right way to put it. “I’m more a fan of romance than memoir.”

“It isn’t about the stupid book,” Khan grumbles. “I got a good look at the guest list, and Ingrid Lake ain’t the only criminal there. The whole party’s gonna be a big ol’ what’s what of the nastiest people this city’s got to offer. There aren’t enough handcuffs in the precinct for me to arrest them all.”

“Remind me, captain, are you trying to tempt me to go or warn me off? Because I’m afraid you’re sending some mixed signals. at the moment.”

“Maybe let me finish a sentence and I’ll get to that.” The captain scowls like a put-upon school teacher. “I’m gonna be there as Mister Public Relations, bein’ the face of the HCPD for all the cameras. That means that I can’t just go around questioning a bunch of known criminals. But the press don’t know a thing about you. Heck, a few of the guys at the precinct are taking bets that your face doesn’t show up on film.”

“You don’t say.” Honestly, he’s flattered. He’s put a lot of effort into making sure he’s never caught on camera. “So you want me to conduct your interviews for you.”

“Just keep an eye out. With that many shady characters, you know something big is gonna blow up. And I gotta be francine with you– at least half my precinct is on the take from at least one of those mudbags. I can’t trust ‘em. You, though.” He puts a big hand on Peter’s shoulder. “I don’t always get you, Glass, but I know what you’re about.”

Peter would be genuinely touched right now if there wasn’t something unsettling about this moment. He should be used to it by now; in all the strangest ways, Khan reminds him of Mag. He always feels just a little off balance when he’s around him, at once desperate to make him proud and waiting for the moment when he’s betrayed.

As always, he doesn’t let his unease show. “Well, you’re in luck. I just so happen to have the evening free.”

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

Juno never should have taken this job.

Vicky said it was gonna be easy. Just find the weasel who keeps stealing her delivery vans, drag them back to her club, and he gets another month rent-free in her safehouse. Nobody ever said anything about homicidal ex-girlfriends or endless agonizing about how the wife better not hear about this.

And nobody ever said anything about Captain Khan’s new assistant.

If this is another disguise, it’s working: nobody with eyes would take Rose for a private eye the way he’s dressed, all sleek and stunning in a tailored suit that he’ll probably have to peel off himself by the end of the night. Even if Juno wanted to ignore him, the detective is practically everywhere, slinking around between writers and white-collar criminals, hanging off the arms of arsonists, clinking champagne flutes with the mayor themself. God, does he have to flirt with all of them?

But of all the people here, Rose is the closest thing that Juno has to an ally. And if he’s going to get Vicky out of this party alive, then he’s going to need some help.

For most of the night he’s been slinking around the walls, looking for anything else he could possibly work with. Now he steps out of the shadows, positioning himself so that he’s directly in Rose’s line of sight the next time he turns.

It’s like something out of a goddamn movie. Their eyes meet across the crowded ballroom. Time seems to crystalize around them as the thief’s lips part to form words that he doesn’t say. Juno wants to...

It doesn’t matter what Juno wants. He needs Rose to get him out of this mess.

He jerks his head to one side, indicating the dark alcove by the locked back door. Rose gives a slight nod and makes his excuses to the mobsters around him.

Juno listens for the clack of Rose’s heels on the hardwood floor, but he’s still startled when that soft voice croons from behind him. “I don’t suppose I should be surprised to find you here.”

He’s leaning over Juno, even taller in those dizzying heels, looming like some kind of godly statue brought to life. The sight of him leaves Juno’s mouth dry, but it only makes his voice more gruff.

“Are you still in the same line of work as the last time I saw you?”

“For the most part,” Rose says lightly. “Though I’m afraid I’m not much of a nurse anymore.”

“Then I’ve got a tip for you to pass along to your buddy with the mustache.”

He leans in, close enough that Juno can smell that damn cologne.

“Ingrid Lake is planning a murder-suicide. Tonight. Midnight.”

“Do you have any evidence?”

Juno bristles. “You can’t be serious. You really don’t believe me?”

“I do,” Rose says gently. “But the dear captain will be more difficult to convince. And he can’t make any arrests without at least some kind of probable cause.”

“Since when?” Juno nearly snarls, but he manages to get his voice under control again.

“I won’t deny that it’s inconvenient,” Rose says. “But that’s just one of the rules you have to follow when you work with him. Do you have anything, Juno? Anything at all?”

Even though he towers over Juno, there’s something about the sincerity in his eyes that makes him look small and fragile. Juno knows not to let him get under his skin again, but he can’t help it.

“The art,” he says. “The stuff on the walls. It’s all stolen. Smuggled goods from the Outer Rim. Most of it’s obscure enough that you’d have a hard time tracing it, but--”

“But it’s something I can work with.” He smiles softly, gently. “Thank you, Juno.”

“Hurry up and get your evidence already.” Juno turns away so he doesn’t have to look Rose in the eye. “I don’t want to see anyone die tonight.”

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

By the time the police lights cast their flashing lights across the mansion’s walls, Juno is nowhere to be found.

Peter isn’t surprised that the thief has slipped away again. He is, however, caught a little off guard when he reaches for his keys and finds a slip of paper tucked into his pocket.

Just one word, scribbled in a messy hand, but it makes Peter’s heart skip a beat.

Thanks

#likeactuallyroselalonde #the penumbra podcast #writing prompt #fanfiction

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masked-disciple · 4 years ago

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1, 4, 5, 6, 11, 15, 21, 22, 23 for the writers ask?

1. Tell us about your current project(s) – what’s it about, how’s progress, what do you love most about it?

Currently, I’m working on a fic titled A Monstrous Manifesto, which is a fic entirely inspired by Cat Valente’s poem of the same name. Every line is a chapter, every noun is a part of that chapter, and every single beast named corresponds to a Spectre, allowing me to dig directly into their heads and demonstrate their full psychology.

Progress stopped unfortunately back in July on part four - a fiend, which I picked Deadly Beetle Stand for, because I just couldn’t get into his head. Kiril played soundboard for it and I’ve been humming and hawing over him trying to figure it out, but let’s be real it’s gonna come to me in a dream.

Because see here, most folks who’ve read my works, if told to point to my best, it’ll either be a) my breakthrough with Armour Adventures (which tbh if I redid I’d do better on), b) In Kismet Marcescence (which I need to sit down and plot out properly before I continue), or c) rather unexpectedly to me, Green Grows The Asphodel. Guess everyone likes that soft MiAlba where Alba gets his bastardization arc, but also I let him speedrun it in Broken Shine The Stars and people seem to like that one too, so.

The thing is with AMM is that this would be my greatest work. Like AA, it’s gen, but here’s the one advantage I’ve realized I actually have over pretty much everyone else in this fandom: I am myself a monster, fictionkind and all. I’m a Devil and a feral little beast, which means when you offer me Spectres - warriors of the dark and death who are all based around animal motifs - I take one look and go “oh! You’re like me!” and proceed to write them as actual monsters while having some unspoken and long-winded conversation about what it means to be human, what it means to be shunned, and what it means to belong among the broken.

It means that I write Spectres wildly different than anyone who isn’t Kiril (who is on the same wavelength as me and we argue back and forth about the inner details of everyone’s monstrosity), which means when I do it, nobody’s seen this shit before and apparently people seem to think it’s cool. So AMM is the very epitome of that style, of that psychological and philosophical discussion. I don’t really have a background of research in either of those things, so any similarities to works or theories already out there is entirely coincidence. Cat Valente’s poem was the first stepping stone I ever took to accepting myself for who - and what - I am. I owe as much of my identity and confidence to her as I do Zamorakian philosophy, which built my personality and is a major part of how I survived the middle school era of my life. The least I can do in return is offer the best of me out into the world.

4. Share a sentence or paragraph from your writing that you’re really proud of (explain why, if you like)

“Somewhere deep below conscious thought, below his training and the life and this Lemurian body, buried under lifetimes of war, buried under the idea that a Spectre was a fighter, his blood remembered how to love the memory of the fallen.” - Beneath Blood Ties

BBT is one of my most unappreciated fics, which makes sense as it’s set almost two thousand years prior to Classic, starring a fourteen-year-old Lemurian Minos and the Saint who raised him, Aries Kirien, whose name is probably still spelled Kiriel at least once in the fic because no beta we die like Gold Saints.

The original inspiration comes from Seanan McGuire’s Once Broken Faith, and the line in question is Toby reading the Luidaeg’s blood memories after the latter told a young Karen that she couldn’t speak Faerie even in her dreams - she speaks it in her blood memories, and Toby notes that her blood remembers.

It stuck with me, though I’ve read OBF approximately a million times. It, along with A Killing Frost and An Artificial Night, are my three top Toby books. And it responded to me as someone who’s fictionkind: I couldn’t speak the language I spoke as a Devil in my dreams, or in the waking world, but I know some part of me remembers it. Would know how. The Chaorruption filters all of that into English because it thinks it’s helping, but if I were a magical creature right now, in this world, I’m pretty sure my blood would remember.

So I wrote about Minos, and the sorrow he carried. The premise of BBT is that a Pope realized some Spectres come back, went around before they became Spectres, and kidnapped the lot of them to train as Saints, leaving them all traumatized as fuck, unsure of who they were or who they followed, and messed up for lifetimes. I also wanted to show more that Spectres were more than what the Holy Wars made of them, and about digging through that exotrauma to remember that they could be kind.

Spectres, originally, would make sense as really just Hades’ servants and the ones who keep the Meikai running. Pretty sure that means they know every single death rite that’s existed in the past three millennia. Pretty sure they know how to be respectful of the dead. Pretty damn sure that below all that soldiering and war, they’re all really exhausted librarians who want to do their job and also dig graves.

But I like this sentence here best, because that’s pretty much the climax of the plot here: that there is, in fact, something underneath all his exotrauma, all the current trauma he’s been dealing with. That below all of that bitterness and war, he’s a better person than what Athena made of him.

Idk, I just think it’s neat and no I’m not projecting being ‘kin on him again. /j

5. What character that you’re writing do you most identify with?

Albafica, to nobody’s surprise. I mean, come on. A guy with a fuckton of traditionally-feminine beauty whose looks keep getting brought up, is very introverted, has seen some shit, just wants to kill people who hurt what he cares about while also not hurting the people he does care about, really wants you to keep your damn distance, is super touchstarved, and holding onto his humanity with his fingertips? Come on the only things he’s got that I don’t is an actual male reproductive system and naturally blue hair.

Once you realize that especially in TLC Athena’s actions are pretty damn horrific, especially to her Saints, Albafica has the perfect setup to become a Spectre. Seriously, if he’d been offered Luco’s deal but while holding a dying Lugonis, do you really think he wouldn’t have taken it? I explore that more in Broken Shine The Stars, but like. Albafica is the perfect fallen angel of a character. He has genuinely good intentions. He’s hurting so damn bad and only fucking once in his entire onscreen performance is that acknowledged (shoutout to Luco for that one), and if you take his sorrow and let him turn it into anger, he’s a glorious monster indeed. Albafica’s descend into monstrosity and Spectrehood is exactly what would happen if I got angry and also hadn’t been fucking nerfed physically.

I love him way too much.

6. What character do you have the most fun writing?

Surprisingly, Aiacos. Alba’s hard as fuck to write. Aiacos, though. You’ve heard me go off about Aiacos at length, but like. He’s the very embodiment of the worst person you can become while still loving, still surviving. Aiacos is the type of person we’re all capable of becoming, and we all should be terrified of becoming, because every single choice he’s ever made is completely understandable and that much more horrific for it.

It’s somewhat unsurprisingly easy to get into his head. He’s fun to write because he scares me. Because if I let him do all the dumb, selfish, sadistic-looking, survival-focused things, then I don’t have to worry about doing it myself. I let him look out for only himself when the pieces are down, so I can do better.

Also I haven’t seen anyone else write him that way (Kiril being the obvious exception here), so it’s double the fun because new territory.

11. What do you envy in other writers?

Hey. Hey you fuckers who can plot shit. Give me the number of the demon you sold your soul to. Let me PLOT SHIT.

15. Which is harder: titles or summaries (or tags)?

Summaries! Titles are easy, I steal them from songs and Toby books. They’re just fancy wordplay and I have literally a list on my fic spreadsheet of titles I want to use. Summaries, though, are very important. People don’t pick fics based on title and tags, they pick based on summary. They’re your hook into the work, so you’ve got to give the audience your premise short and sweet and actually sounding appealing.

Sometimes I can write them no problemo. Other times, they’re a fucking nightmare. I try to imply the tone of the ending in my summary, because I have absolutely been blindsided by the ending in a way I really didn’t like because I thought the summary was hiding the ending. (Example - there was this one fic that made it sound like my OTP was going enemies to lovers, and it wasn’t, it wasn’t, it needed the fucking dead dove do not eat tag, stopped just short of serious nonsexual noncon (which wasn’t tagged at all), and ended very unhappily and it messed me up for days, I did not like it.)

So for my summaries I set the scene, set the tone, and imply the tone of the ending so you have a vague idea of where it’s going. Easier said than done.

21. What other medium do you think your story would work well as? (film, webcomic, animated series?)

Anime, probably! Manga wouldn’t lend itself too well to my style, but I’d enjoy short anime episodes, I think. I honestly don’t know. Someone tell me what my stuff would work good as. I dunno.

22. Do you reread your old works? How do you feel about them?

For fic, all the time! I write what I want to read, and since six out of seven of the Dohko/Kagaho works on AO3 were my fault, I’d better get used to reading my own writing for pleasure. Fortunately, I like most of my writing recently, so that’s pretty all right!

Don’t ask about what I had up on ff.net. Don’t. It’s old and bad and I didn’t know how to write.

23. What’s the story idea you’ve had in your head for the longest?

Hmmm... I want to rephrase this better as ‘what fic exists only as a concept and has done so for the longest out of all the concepts of fics currently in my head’, and hmmmm. Honestly, it’s either Shion and Aiacos’ romance fic where they also get a daughter (which has a title actually, The Lost Sea Fantasia, but still hasn’t been written); or it’s Wyvern Rose and the Trials of Lightning, which is about 15th century Rhada’s two daughters, the elder of which is surprise-given his surplice and his job when he dies right before Hades does, and the younger of which is kidnapped by a spiteful goddess who doesn’t like the elder of the two.

ToL is a fic that I have somewhat plotted out, but really needs a lot of work. I’m not really sure how to go about writing it, because whenever I sit down to sketch it out, it never comes to me. It does, however, lend itself well as a bedtime / campfire story that Albafica tells Regulus while they’re out on a mission together, as part of Alba sneakily teaching Regu how to be a Spectre without anyone knowing. It’ll stay a concept for a long while until Rose crashes into my headspace and actually fucking tells me more about herself other than “oh yeah btw I’m fucking Julia” like thanks, already knew that from Julia herself, tell me more about you you awful little Judge of a dragon princess.

[ask game here!]

#asks #saint seiya #dorksmithery #thank you!!#i'm gonna go answer the other one now #but ofc send me more if yall want!

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atamascolily · 5 years ago

Text

lily liveblogs “terminator: dark fate,” part five

HEY, time for our industrial end sequence!! This time, it’s on a dam because we had fire and machinery in previous films, and we’re switching to a different element.

(this means that the next film would have ended with a FOREST fight scene, right? Right.)

[parts one, two, three, four]

The NPCs run for cover. I have no idea what dam this is supposed to be! It looks like Hoover, but I honestly have no clue where they are at this point.

Carl and the chassis are fighting in the water. Then the oozy metal part comes up and grabs him from behind! I hate it when they double-team like that.

Wow, they just barely keep from going over the edge there. Oh, wait, too soon...

Sarah dislocates her shoulder. Ow. Grace pops it back in. Sarah gets another "Fuck!"

The Rev-9 vaulting out of the water is just like in the beginning....

"No, no, Grace, really...?" YES GRACE. She yells back at them to wear their seatbelts!!! WOW... Sarah snarks back at her because what good is it if you can’t get a one-liner in right before you go over the edge into the abyss and certain death?

OH my god the Rev-9 on the windshield is so fucking scary right there they are UNDERWATER in the DARK aaaaaaaaah.

Okay, I'm not sure how if they would have survived that in real life, but fuck if that underwater fight scene isn't as cool as hell.

A legit complaint I've seen is that the bulletproof vests would weigh them down too much to get to the surface with the air they have, but... I mean come on, if that's your only factual complaint about this movie, I think they did a good job.

Cut to them on top of the dam again, wow that was fast. This scene with the three badass women battered and bruised and clinging to each other.. MY HEART. MY POOR HEART!!

Ah, here it is... Grace's power source! The EMP substitute I’ve been waiting for. Then Carl shows back up.. with a weapon for Sarah. Triumphant theme music. The whole family is here. Oh, and meds for Grace. YAY. wouldn’t want to pass out halfway through the climactic fight scene.

Wow, this functionally dysfunctional found-family is only together for like half a day and I need a million TV episodes about them STAT.

Oh, of course it's a hydroelectric dam...so generators!

Oh, hey, Grace gets her chains from the poster! Nice.

Murderbot bonding time! The Rev-9 talks to Carl: "You and I were built for the same purpose. And Legion is the only future." SO MANY FEELS ABOUT THIS.

"I know she's a stranger to you. Why not let me have her?" POLITICAL QUESTION OF THE MOMENT, KTHANX. But also proof that even though the REv-9 is good at mimicking humans and predicting humans, it still doesn't UNDERSTAND humans.

"Because we're not machines, you metal motherfucker," Sarah snarls. And I think we're up to six fucks for Sarah at this point? I've lost count.

Have I mentioned that the splitting Terminators are creepy? Have I? HAVE I? Because they are.

Oh, dear, Sarah Connor confronting her nightmare of flaming death murder skeletons again.

Geeeeee, I wonder if that turbine will do anything...

Oh, Grace is stabbed, I guess she's gonna pull the power source out and take him down with her... or not. But at least now Dani’s going to object way less about self-sacrifice, since she’s already doomed.

I don't know why the REV-9 goes back to one; I feel like he's stronger and fights better in two parts? But you do you, I guess.

Pretty sure it's not over yet because Dani still hasn't done anything against the REV-9 herself. Oh, good, and Sarah gets to relive yet another nightmare of a metal skeleton stalking out of the flames. ONLY THIS TIME IT'S ON FIRE, TOO. (I guess that's the polyalloy bits melting away??)

Yep, Grace is gonna sacrifice herself to save Dani from the REV-9 and remove her power source. Oh, wow, Dani has to stab her and pull it out herself. That's gonna cause some more trauma. Another round for everyone!

Dani gets to go after the REV-9... but it goes badly, because drama. Sarah yells for Carl to wake up, and it works!! He distracts the REV-9 long enough for Dani to stab him in the eye with the power source and... I guess that sets it off???

[why the hell didn't they augment Grace with more than one of those things? Maybe Dani will fix that in the future when she gets there. maybe that's something to add in fix-it fics. And where did they get them? Did they take them from destroyed Terminators and weld them into humans?? What happened?? ]

Carl and the REV-9 fall into the abyss together, because OF COURSE THEY DO, because just when Sarah has learned to forgive/accept Carl as he is, she has to lose him because RULE #1: SARAH CONNOR MUST ALWAYS SUFFER. And the REV-9 rips his flesh off and they both die when the EMP goes off, and it mimics the lightning flash in the beginning.

Oh, so yet again, Sarah Connor has to stand and watch a Terminator she cares about die in a fire. GOOD JOB PACKING ON THE ANGST, PEOPLE.

"For John." OH MY GOD, WAY TO GO OUT IN STYLE AND ALSO MY HEART.

The difference between this and the first film is that Sarah isn't alone at the end. The difference between this and the second film is that Sarah and Dani are... not equals, exactly, but they are more equal than Sarah and John were at the end of T2. They're veteran and leader, not mother and son. Dani and Sarah understand each other in a way that no one--not even John--can because of what they've suffered and lost. The cycle repeats, and yet it’s subtly different each time

cut to Grace as a kid on a playground, oh now there's some loaded symbolism in this francise, lol. And there's Dani looking through the chain-link fence at her right on cue, like Sarah looking at her might-have-been kids in T2. Is this where the filmmakers got the idea that Dani is Grace’s “mother”? LOL, nice try, guys.

She walks over to the car where Sarah is waiting for her. It's a Jeep, just like the one she drove to Mexico in at the end of T1. She tosses Dani the keys and moves over to the passenger seat AND IF THAT AIN'T A STATEMENT, I DON'T KNOW WHAT IS.

"I won't let her die for me again," Dani says. "then you need to be ready."

Dani puts the car in gear and they drive away down the eucalptyus-lined streets of the California suburbs where everything is green and tranquil and beautiful, and while the movie ends perfectly here as is, I can also see how they would have linked it into a trilogy like they'd originally planned. But alas, this is probably the end until the all-but-inevitable next reboot.

And THEN the credits roll, and we get the main theme at the end, and I jut have to say, it's not the same as in the other movies, where we had to listen to the whole thing first THEN we heard it in the film itself. But nobody has the goddamn patience for credits anymore, which is why Marvel started sticking bonus scenes in theirs to keep people in their seats.

...but wow are these credits long. Oh, well, the music's good and I learn random tidbits this way, like how the writers have little imagination when it comes to naming minor characters, and just give them the same name as their actors (Diego, Gabriel, Alicia, etc).

sadly, all the deleted scenes and bonus content is on the blue-ray and not the DVD sigh.

So. Was this a perfect film? No. It was written by committee, and I think it shows. Did it deliver what I hoped for--Sarah Connor being a badass, snarky dialogue, and cool action sequences? Yes. Did I enjoy watching it? HELL YES. Will I be thinking/ranting about it for a long time. YOU BET.

Was it "necessary"? Of course not-but is ANY piece of art ever really "necessary"? Who cares! It was fun, and it was thoughtful, it was interesting to me, and it was wayyy better than most of the recent rounds of sequels and reboots.

And to be honest, if they can make a bajillion Fast and Furious movies, and James Bond, and John Wick, and Mission Impossible and Karate Kid action flicks featuring men (not to mention Star Wars and remakes of every single animated Disney film AND a three-part Hobbit movie trilogy), I think I can enjoy a female-led action movie with zero guilt whatsoever without having to justify its existence to anyone.

(I can’t think of a single other action film with three badass female leads, who have complete character arcs and aren’t sexualized for the male gaze... and if there is, I want to watch it STAT)

#terminator #terminator: dark fate

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idratherstayslytherin · 6 years ago

Text

Re-writing the story I once wrote, but not really

Some of you may remember my fic “The Feelings We Can’t Let Go”.

It began as a head canon, then the lovely person on tumblr wrote the more put together version of it. We decided to write the fic together. It was going well until university and UK fucked me over. During this whole madness my co-writer disappeared from tumblr and I can’t contact her. I have tried it many times. She didn’t reply. I started writing the fic myself determined to finish it, but my life is hell rn and I don’t have the time to write the two last chapters. I do have the outline and hopefully after i start earning money and start actually getting better mentally and studying and money wise, I’ll finish it. For now I went back to the first version of the headcanon I made with my co-writer and noticed A LOT OF GRAMMAR mistakes as well as some things that weren’t making sense. I wanted to re write this kind of first chapter, so I did. I added a lot of new text, fixed all the mistakes that I could see and ta da! There you have it. You have to be happy with just this until I have the time to finish this damn fic. I want it to be enjoyable, but also make sense, maybe even help people with their own problems, I want it to seem real and I want it to be a lovely love story. I’m a romantic shoot me. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy it! Let me know what you think of it <3 I love reading your comments. Also if any artist wants to idk make a fanart of my work now or after I finish this damn fic and have a beta read it , then feel free to do so. Okay, I’m talking way too much, just STFU Ola, no one wants to listen to you rumble :D

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Harry felt like he should have wanted to go back to Hogwarts. Even worse, he knew he should go back there. But he just couldn’t convince himself, not even with Hermione and Ginny returning. Then again, Ron wasn’t going back either, and he didn’t even feel guilty about it, not even after Hermione talked to him about the importance of learning and getting the best possible results in their NEWTs. He got a bit of yelling too, but Hermione directed most of it at Ron, leaving Harry to deal with an angry and sad Ginny, who wanted him to go back.

But there they were on the first of September at King’s Cross station saying their goodbyes and waving after the Hogwarts Express before apparating back to Grimmauld Place. Ron had no intentions of spending the year at the Burrow, it was too far away from London, and he wanted to help George out at Weasley’s Wizarding Wheezes in Diagon Alley. He also admitted that he couldn’t really deal with his parents’ grief, and Harry was more than happy to offer him accommodation, not only because Ron was his best mate, but he really needed the company. Grimmauld Place might have looked a lot less gloomy since they renovated it, spending all June and most of July sorting and chucking out old furniture and artefacts, knocking down some of the walls (this being the only way of getting rid of the horrible yelling portrait of Sirius’ mother), and painting the rest in brighter shades, the house was still way too big for one person.

Soon, having turned Hogwarts down, Harry found himself obliged to decide on what he wanted to do with his life or at least the foreseeable future. Of course everyone expected him to become an auror, it seemed like the most obvious choice, but despite admittedly being interested in the job back in their fifth year, he wasn’t sure anymore if he wanted to go along with it. He might have defeated Voldemort, but was that really what he was destined to do all his life? Hunt down dark wizards?

He decided on meeting with Kingsley to discuss further possibilities. After getting detailed information about all of jobs he recommended to Harry, and spending three days straight going through the descriptions, forms and books he got, he was sure he would either want to become an Unspeakable or a Curse-breaker. He would have been happy to dive back into his books and papers to choose one of the two jobs. However Ron was already complaining about the whole house being littered with the papers; how Harry did nothing except sit on the couch, read and compare and read and compare; so Harry decided to give himself some time to consider his choice, meanwhile enjoying his freedom.

Do you seriously want to be an Unspeakable?" Ron asked, his mouth full. This was the only part of the last few days he was enjoying, the takeaway they had every evening. "You can never shut up about what you are doing. Do you really think you could go without telling anyone anything about your job?"

"Probably not." Harry shrugged, picking up another slice of pizza. "Though I guess I’ll have to, and it will be worth it.

"C’mon, Curse-breaking seems much more interesting. I’d go with that without hesitation."

"Well then why don’t you? And let me become who I want to be?" Harry snapped. He ate the last bit of pizza, and wiped his hands. " Sorry I didn’t mean that, I’m tired. " He apologised as soon as he realised Ron said nothing that should have angered him. He rubbed his eyes.

"Hardly surprising, you barley slept these past few days, mate, seriously. Just forget about this job thing for a while, it isn’t going to do you any good. Besides, it’s not like you have to start work instantly, you have enough money to live happily for the rest of your life."

"I did sleep last night." Harry protested, deciding not to comment on the money part, as what Ron said was true, he did have a vault full of money. His friend didn’t, and even though he offered to help them, they never accepted it. What he also didn’t mention was that even though he did get a bit of sleep, he kept waking up from nightmares, and if it hadn’t been for the coffee he had every two hours, he would have nodded off halfway through the day. The nightmares, and pretty much everything else connected to the war were one of those topics they avoided. It sometimes resulted in uncomfortable silences, Harry agreed that it was better this way.

"I wonder who else from our year is going back to school." Ron said, changing the topic. "I know Neville decided to do the auror training. And Seamus isn’t going back either, he said something about opening some pub in Diagon."

"I think I heard Dean was going back."

"Oh yeah I heard that too. And Padma and Parvati. I don’t know about anyone else though."

"Me neither. I only know that most of the Slytherins aren’t returning, a lot of them got house arrests with their parents and stuff like that."

"Malfoy?"

"House arrest, in France. But I think he will be taking NEWTs."

"He deserves to rot in Azkaban with his father" Ron scowled.

"He isn’t that bad. I mean he did save my life once" Harry said, though he didn’t sound too sure about it. He might not have despised him as much as he did before, but it was still Malfoy.

"Yeah, and then you saved his, so don’t get any funny ideas of owing him or anything" Ron told him, making Harry grin, Ron knew him more than anyone else. He did feel like he owed Malfoy, a bit at least, but he guessed that speaking in his favour at the trials made them equal.

"Alright" Harry laughed. He vanished the empty pizza boxes, and stood up, yawning. "I’m tired, let’s pack it in for the day."

"I second that" Ron stood up as well, and the two friends made their way upstairs to their bedrooms, Ron in one of the guest ones, Harry sleeping in Sirius’s old room.

Days passed, Harry visited Kingsley once again, then spent another day reading before eventually deciding on Curse-breaking, which seemed ideal for him except for one small thing: he needed an Exceeds Expectations in Potions. Which was impossible to say the least with his skill and knowledge. So he went to the Ministry again, and consulted with several people before agreeing to let them find him a tutor.

He ended up spending a week doing whatever he wanted, before he got any news on the matter. He visited Ron and George; he went to Muggle London; he started repainting Sirius’s old motorbike that Arthur fixed for him, leaving the finishing touches for Harry. He also sat around at home, waiting for Ginny’s face to appear in the fireplace, so she could tell him about school, and he could tell her how much he missed her. He also thought about who will be chosen as his tutor. Was it going to be some weird old Potions master like Slughorn or someone distant and cold, but really talented and intelligent like Snape, or maybe just someone of his age, who was better at the subject than him? The Ministry owl arrived on Friday, with the name and address of his tutor. But something was wrong, the address was somewhere in France. And the name was Draco Lucius Malfoy.

"Are you kidding me? Malfoy?" Ron asked horrified, when he read through the letter Harry shoved into his face as soon as he got home that evening. "Don’t tell me there isn’t anyone else in the whole wizarding world who could help you in Potions. Why did they have to choose that git?"

"I have no idea" Harry sighed. "But it’s not just that. Why France? Why can’t it be someone here in London? I don’t speak French, I don’t know anyone there, it just doesn’t make any sense."

"Can’t you ask the Ministry to find you someone else?"

"Already tried. But apparently Malfoy is the best solution, as we know each other, and we would both benefit from it."

"Both benefit from it?! How would you both benefit from it? What would Malfoy benefit from it? You are lucky to actually learn something if you don’t get killed, but how can he benefit from it?"

"Search me" Harry rolled his eyes.

"When are you leaving?"

"I have a Portkey for next Wednesday."

"Wednesday? But that’s less than a week!"

"I know, but I guess I’ll just have to do it, no matter what."

"This sucks, mate."

"I know. If I don’t get an O after this, I swear I’ll be using some Unforgivables on some people."

The next few days passed quickly, way too quickly in Harry’s opinion, and soon he found himself at the Ministry, looking at the corkscrew on the table, his belongings in his pocket, all shrunken.

"Here goes nothing" he muttered, before taking hold of the charmed corkscrew, and letting it transport him in only a few seconds to his destination: a little French town.

From what he saw on his walk to the Malfoys’ place (Kingsley thought it would be safer for him to arrive outside the town for whatever reason), he thought it could have been England, the small cottages were no different from those they had back there. The one Malfoy and Narcissa were living in was just like the others, a simple Muggle house. The Ministry told him that he would be staying there in a spare bedroom made for him with the help of the expansion charm, until he mastered the needed level of potionmaking, practising in Malfoy's lab. Apart from this, all he knew was that Narcissa had a Muggle job helping out at a clothes shop in the town, and Draco also worked a bit from home, neither of them allowed to leave the boundaries the Ministry had set, and neither of them possessing a wand.

Narcissa greeted him when he arrived, looking as pale and tired as ever, and much to Harry’s surprise wearing a simple blouse and jeans, something he never thought he’d see her in. She showed him around the house before retreating to the living room where she was sorting through some papers, telling him that Malfoy was in his room, and that he should make himself comfortable in the his bedroom. Harry thanked her, and did as she suggested, unpacking, and quickly Flooing Ron and Ginny before lying down, hoping for a decent night’s sleep, not only so he would have all the energy he needed for next day to face Malfoy, but because he would have felt extremely embarrassed if he had woken up screaming from his nightmares like he did sometimes. Then again, a simple muffliato charm should do for the latter.

Next day he woke up feeling surprisingly fresh and well-rested, that didn't mean he was ready to study Potions. With Malfoy. In France. When he could have been at home, spending time with his friends, or just enjoying his freedom.

But then he reminded himself he needed this to get the job he wanted, so gritting his teeth, he headed downstairs to where Narcissa said the lab was, where his old nemesis was already waiting for him.

"Malfoy" he greeted him, sitting down at the table looking around. The walls were filled with shelves of books and tiny bottles, each of them full of liquids of different colours, labelled neatly. The work space however, was empty except for two cauldrons and a copy of a simple Potions schoolbook. Harry's eyes shifted towards Malfoy, who looked pretty much the same as he did the last time Harry saw him, apart from his white-blonde hair being longer, the strands escaping his elegant hair. He also seemed much thinner, Harry noticed, he must have lost at least 20 pounds, it made the boy's features much sharper and angled than they were before.

"Potter." he nodded, restraining himself from scowling, sitting down opposite to Harry. "So, I’ve heard the Chosen One may not be as perfect as everyone thought so. Problems with Potions? Seriously?"

"Shut up Malfoy!" Harry snapped. He wasn’t expecting any different, but it still angered him that the other boy was already getting under his skin.

"Whatever, Potter." Malfoy shrugged. "But then don’t expect to get anything better than a D." He smirked.

"Fine." Harry said angrily. "Just shut up about other things and let’s get on with it. I get it, I won’t pass the stupid exam without the help of perfect Draco Malfoy, who is the best Ministry-recommended tutor in the whole Wizarding world, but we’d make better progress if you actually started explaining things" he snarled.

For a moment Harry thought this would be the end, and Malfoy would stalk out, but after glaring at each other, the blonde broke the eye contact and opened the course book without any further ado, and started explaining everything, starting from the very basics. Harry soon found, that even though he would never admit it to anyone else, Malfoy was a good teacher. He cleared up some things Harry previously didn't understand; and apart from the snarky comments, he was almost patient. Well he did snap and start shouting and swearing when Harry messed up a potion even after trying several times, but still. He was way better than what Harry had expected.

Soon they developed a daily routine which consisted of going down to have breakfast on their own, avoiding each other; having a short, theoretical lesson in the morning; having lunch on their own; a longer practical lesson in the afternoon; spending time on their own; then having dinner on their own, except for when Narcissa insisted that they should sit together, which usually resulted in glares and uncomfortable silences.

But Harry was definitely improving at potions, and after all, that was what mattered. As two weeks passed, and October was drawing nearer, Harry found himself tired of arguing with Malfoy, and the other boy must have felt the same way, because all of a sudden the nasty remarks were gone, and they were actually capable of spending time in one room without wanting to kill one another. This definitely was an improvement. Malfoy would actually compliment him if he did something right, and Harry would smile at him. They didn’t try so hard to avoid each other in the time between the lessons, but actually greeted each other, and sometimes even stopped to have short conversations. Nothing too serious or deep, only little things, but this was already much better, Harry realised that Malfoy’s company was actually quite alright sometimes, now that they weren’t constantly arguing.

Weeks passed, and Harry was getting used to living there, and as now he felt more comfortable around the Malfoys, he decided it was time to change some things. He started going for walks around the town and the countryside. He spent a bit more time with Malfoy, they stayed in the lab every so often after the lessons and just talked. One evening Harry even asked Narcissa if he could cook something. They have been eating takeaway pretty much everyday, and Harry didn’t mind it, but after over a month, he had to admit it, it was getting a little repeatable, and he was craving a home-made meal.

Narcissa was surprised, but happy to let Harry work in the kitchen, so after making a quick supply run to the shop around the corner to get all the ingredients he needed for the curry, his favourite dish, he occupied the kitchen.

As he started heating the oil and chopping up the onions, the unmistakable smell of cooking filled his nose, he realised how much he missed it. Cooking was one of those things the Dursleys made him do, but he didn’t really mind it when he was making food for himself or his friends, and after seven years at Hogwarts without cooking, he enjoyed experimenting with all kinds of recipes that he learned from Muggle cook books.

He had started dicing the meat when he grew aware of someone watching him. As he looked up, he saw Malfoy standing in the doorway, watching him.

"You know, it’s not too polite to stare" he said, smirking at the boy. "And do try to be more secretive if you want to look at me." He added, grinning as he saw Malfoy blush, which was definitely something he hadn’t expected to see. Ever. But now that he did, he couldn't stop laughing, making the blonde boy blush even harder, his normally pale face was a deep shade of red. "You should see your face now!" he choked out, holding onto the counter as he tried to calm down, suppressing the laughter that was bubbling in his stomach. Malfoy just stood by the door, glaring at him, his face still flushed. "I’m just messing with you, no need to plan my death" he said with a shy grin as he finally stopped laughing, and went back to chopping the meat, but still keeping one eye on the other boy.

"I wasn’t. I never did. Plan your death, I mean." Malfoy said quietly. Harry looked up and saw that the boy's face was serious. Harry swallowed thickly and nodded, not knowing what to say, so he just kept staring at him, green eyes locked onto the pair of grey ones.

"So, do you want me to show you how to cook?" Harry broke the silence, moving to one side so Malfoy had his space at the counter, offering the boy a little smile. The blonde boy hesitated, running one hand through his hair, and chewing on his bottom lip, which caught Harry’s attention for some reason, he couldn’t explain, he looked away embarrassed, afraid of being caught staring. Malfoy made his way over to the counter. Harry carried on cutting up the meat, giving the other boy smaller tasks, explaining why he did things the way he did, and within half an hour the spicy scent of the simmering curry was filling the room. After tidying up, Harry sat down on one of the chairs, fanning himself with a piece of newspaper that was laying on the dining table, his gaze fluttering to the other boy, who was pouring himself a glass of water, before leaning back onto the counter, flushed, but this time from the heat of the cooking, the top two buttons of his shirt undone, his hair messy and curly from the vapour, making the lines of his face look softer. Harry didn't even know why he thought of that, shaking his head, he stood up, and started setting the table.

"So where did you learn how to cook?" Malfoy asked him, his tone genuinely curious, something Harry still wasn’t completely used to.

"The Dursleys, you know, my foster parents made me cook for them, so I had to, but I actually always enjoyed it a bit." He shrugged.

"They made you cook for them?" Malfoy asked, sounding horrified.

"That wasn’t the worst part. I had to do all the cleaning too, I could never go anywhere. I had to pretend that I didn’t exist whenever they had guests over, and I lived in the broom closet until I was eleven."

"You lived in the broom closet?!" The blonde boy echoed, his voice raised. Harry nodded. "That’s even worse than how we used to treat our house-elves. At least they had proper bedrooms."

Harry just shrugged again, and went to serve the dinner without a word, he didn’t understand why Malfoy was so shocked by how the Dursleys have treated him, or why he cared at all. Dinner passed quietly, apart from Narcissa complimenting Harry on the curry, but otherwise they ate in a silence. It wasn’t an uncomfortable silence, it was just strange. He noticed Malfoy looking at him few times, but he always looked away when Harry caught him staring. When they finished eating, Harry did the washing up by magic, not wanting to spend the rest of the evening scrubbing pans, something Draco watched almost in awe, telling Harry his wand was taken by the Ministry, and how he missed using magic, how strange doing everything manually was.

They carried on talking, and walked up the stairs together, but when they stopped on the landing, instead of parting ways, Malfoy asked Harry whether he could explain Muggle technology to him, and Harry was happy to do that, so he followed the other boy into his bedroom. He was surprised to see that the room wasn’t much different from the one he was staying in, except for having more books and other bits of things. But the walls were plain white, the bed wasn’t the posh four-poster he was expecting, and wasn’t covered in Slytherin green sheets with silver lining. It was just a simple bedroom.

"What were you expecting, Potter?" Draco smirked, and Harry realised he must have been staring in shock. "This isn’t Malfoy Manor."

"I don’t know. I just thought it would be more like you."

"More like me? And what’s that like?"

"Well definitely not this" Harry said, gesturing around the room.

"Oh and you know me so well that you are positive that I loved Malfoy Manor and now couldn’t stand living somewhere that wasn’t green and grey and silver and black and full of snake-patterns" Draco snorted.

"That’s not what I… oh never mind" Harry rolled his eyes, already feeling irritated with Malfoy, but also himself for thinking that they could actually spend time together properly, without things like this. He was on the verge of walking back to his own bedroom, when he noticed that Malfoy wasn’t glaring at him, he was smirking. Harry sighed, and flopped down onto the bed next to the boy, and started telling him how toasters and TVs and computers worked. He actually enjoyed it more than he thought he would, and he was surprised to see that Malfoy wasn’t being difficult, but genuinely curious and interested, and would listen to Harry’s explanations without interrupting, only showering him with questions afterwards, a fascinated smile spreading over his face, Harry thought that Malfoy was much nicer this way, smiling, friendly, patient and interested in almost a childlike way.

They made this a regular thing, often making breakfast or dinner together, and spending hours before going to sleep talking about Muggle things, and sometimes bringing up other topics as well, and Harry realised he was starting to enjoy Malfoy’s company.

Harry was also improving in Potions, he was now able to make quite a lot of decent ones, and Malfoy was almost proud of him. However then he accidentally burned the cauldron down, causing the blonde boy to give him silent treatment and avoid him after yelling at him about being irresponsible and hopeless.

But after a day of ignoring each other they called truce, and went back to doing things together. This was when Harry realised actually how much time they spent together, and how he talked to Ron or Hermione and Ginny less and less, calling the girls late that evening, feeling guilty. Hermione told him about the lessons, and asked him questions about potions, she was happy with his progress, reminding him again how important it was, and that he needed to carry on. She then left Harry to talk to Ginny privately. They talked about school mostly, and how they missed each other, and how Harry had to go home for Christmas, because Ginny couldn’t go any longer without talking to him properly, face to face, or kissing him, or touching him, and before saying goodbye, Ginny pulled her shirt up, teasing Harry, saying all kinds of dirty words she could think of, leaving the boy with a hard-on. He was too embarrassed to wank, being separated from Malfoy by only one thin wall.

He kept thinking about Ginny, even though he didn’t call her for some time, thinking how things would be when they both got back home. Will they get married straight away? Will they have kids? And if yes, how many? He missed her, a lot, but he had to admit, these thoughts were scaring him slightly. He knew Ron and Hermione were planning on getting married and moving in together when Hermione graduated, but Harry wasn’t sure if he could imagine himself settling down already and becoming a father.

In the end he found himself in the lab, as he did quite often for some time now, deciding it was the best time to practice, trying to make some dreamless sleep for himself, but failing, which meant he could only hope for a decent night’s sleep without nightmares, even though he knew it was unlikely.

He did seem to have less nightmares than before, but now when he did, they were the worst ever, and he would wake up screaming, and couldn’t go back to sleep properly afterwards, and would be stressed and irritable all day. He just really hoped Malfoy never heard him screaming, embarrassed even by the thought of it. One night he felt two unfamiliar firm hands shaking him awake, and a voice, unsure yet steady telling him to breathe, and how it only had been a dream, and finally when Harry was calm enough, handing him a vial of dreamless sleep, he thought he never could have been more thankful, even though he was indeed extremely embarrassed.

Malfoy gave him dreamless sleep and that was all that mattered, because he slept until 1 PM next day, and when he woke up, he feels much better than other mornings, except for the sadness and anger that lingered from the nightmare, but he was used to that. He didn’t even want to get up from bed, he wanted to just stay there and disappear, somehow slip into nonexistence. It was mostly on the days after his nightmares, but sometimes even on just ordinary days, that he thought of what it would have been like to stay dead. He knew some people would have missed him, but with the Horcrux in him destroyed, the world didn’t need him anymore. And it wasn’t bad, it didn’t hurt at all, Sirius had been right, he didn’t feel anything. It didn’t really feel like being dead. It didn’t feel like anything to be honest. But he came back, even though he wasn’t sure he should have.

He decided to go and tell Malfoy that he wasn’t in the mood to study, but he didn’t find the boy in his bedroom or the lab or anywhere else. Or at least anywhere he was expecting to find him, he realised why as he entered the kitchen, there stood Malfoy he was cooking something by the stove, it smelt amazing. The smell of cinnamon mixed with apples and something sweet filled Harry's nose.

"Hi." he said quietly, stopping in the doorway.

"Hey," Malfoy looked up to greet him. "You look like shit" he informed him. Harry snorted. He didn’t need Malfoy to tell him that. He felt like shit. "I’m making you food. Sit."

"What? Harry looked up at him, shocked, unsure if he heard him right. Malfoy was making him breakfast. Malfoy. For him. How did this even happen? And why?

"Can’t you ever do just one thing you’re asked for?" The blonde boy asked, rolling his eyes. "Are you really that much of a rebel?" He asked, as he watched Harry sit down, still dazed, he smiled. His voice was softer than the usual, and Harry couldn't understand why. He continued to stare at the blonde boy in complete shock, until the latter lets out a soft chuckle, and told him to stop staring at him with his mouth open. Harry felt his cheeks grow warm in embarrassment, and he mumbled something Malfoy couldn't quite make sense of. Harry dropped his gaze to the table, and toyed with the spoon. He runhis hand through his hair which was messier than usual, he didn’t even try to comb it as he was planning to go back to bed. He felt Malfoy's eyes on him. Harry turned his head to meet the blonde boy's gaze just as Malfoy turned away.

Malfoy sat down opposite to Harry, handing him his breakfast and a cup of coffee, he himself only drinking tea.

They sat in silence, the blonde watching Harry eat.

"We don’t have to study today" he said, breaking the silence. Harry just nodded, still confused by the boy’s kindness, and carried on eating. As he finished, he watched Malfoy sipping his tea, gazing out of the window. He looked different, Harry thought, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on the difference, the only thing he noticed was that his hair was messier than usual. That couldn’t have made such a big difference, it was more than that. It was something about his whole face, all of his features. But mostly his eyes. His eyes were definitely different, no longer cold and distant, but almost soft. Harry watched his eyes fixed on the garden outside, the shape of the window reflected in the sliver greyness. The practically white eyelashes around his eyes. His pale, porcelain-like skin. The pointiness of his nose. The pinkness of his lips, that for once weren’t frowning. His perfect jawline. The way his shoulder length hair fell onto his shoulders. Harry thought he was beautiful. He felt weird had just thought that, but as he continued to look at the boy, he couldn’t help but admit it. He also couldn't help but notice how his heart was hammering in his chest. He tore his gaze away from the boy and looked back down at the table. What was wrong with him? Why was he finding Malfoy attractive? He swallowed hard, allowing himself another glance at the boy. He noticed the longing in his eyes, the sadness on his face, and he realised, Malfoy must be missing being outdoors. Of course he must miss being outside! He had been in the house arrest for over a year.

Harry couldn't stop thinking how terrible it must be, not being able to go out, and within a minute the idea pops in his mind. He stood up abruptly and told Malfoy he’d be back in a sec. He rushed up to the bedroom and called Kingsley on the Floo, begging him to allow Malfoy leave the house with him, explaining what a great teacher he was, and telling the Minister that he trusted him. He didn’t actually realise all of this before he said it out loud, but it was true. He trusted Malfoy, especially after he gave Harry dreamless sleep and made him breakfast. He deserved something good. Harry was really pleased with himself when Kingsley permitted him to open the doors and go somewhere with Malfoy. He had to make him a promise that he’d look out for the blonde and would be careful, which Harry promised he would. He quickly packed few things and rushed back down to the kitchen.

Malfoy looked up startled as Harry re-entered the kitchen, his expression soon turning to shock, as Harry told him to get up because they were going out.

"What do you mean ‘out’?" He asked, looking at Harry in confusion.

"I talked to Kingsley" Harry shrugged, as if it was nothing, already making his way to the door, unlocking it, and casting several counter spells that would let Draco out as well. The blonde boy followed him, still shocked and surprised, but as he stepped outside and inhaled the fresh air and felt the breeze tug at his hair, he just closed his eyes and let a smile spread across his face. Gosh, how he had missed this. Harry stood looking at him, smiling, thinking how gorgeous Malfoy looked with the strands of blonde hair flowing around his face. No. He wasn’t gorgeous, Harry thought, feeling angry with himself, feeling like his thoughts were betraying him.

"There’s a beach a few miles from here" Draco spoke up.

"Are you suggesting we go there?" Harry asked, snapping out of his thoughts.

"thought that was obvious" Draco smirked, and Harry grinned at him as they set off. They walked in silence, until Draco spoke again. "Thanks. For taking me out." He said quietly. Harry looked up at him. "And everything" the boy carried on. "Testifying for my mother. Saving my life in that room."

Harry didn’t say anything for a few moments. The situation was so strange, Malfoy sounded so honest and so vulnerable, and he just didn’t quite know what to say.

"I did what I thought had to be done." He said in the end. "And… I never thought you deserved Azkaban." He added after a pause, avoiding Malfoy’s eyes. "You saved me too, at the Manor."

"I should have done more" the blonde boy whispered. "I was a coward. I still am. I should have helped." The words spilled out of Draco, no louder than the wind whistling in their ears, and if Harry hadn’t seen his lips moving, he wouldn’t have believed that he heard what he heard. He watched the boy’s face, noticing the way his eyes were shining, tears flooding them. "I deserved all they planned for me at the trial. You should have left me there, but I guess you can’t stop yourself from saving people’s lives, even if you hate them." He said, a sad smile on his face, Harry found it heart wrenching. He swallowed thickly, once again lost for words. He wanted to tell him that it wasn’t true, that he didn’t deserve to be punished, that he didn’t hate him. He wanted to squeeze his hand and tell him it was okay. But he didn’t, instead he kept quiet, and carried on walking.

Neither of them said anything on the rest of the way to the beach. It was quite a long walk, they both stopped to catch their breaths as they arrived at the end of the cliff from where the carved steps led down to the beach. Harry had been going out for strolls around the area, but he felt a little exhausted after the walk, and Draco, who had been indoors for ages was clutching his side, but it was definitely worth it.

The view was beautiful, the sun was just starting to set, tainting the sky pink and orange, the warm light reflecting on the surface of the water, the white cliffs and the pale sand on the shore making the picture perfect. It was breezy, but not too much, just enough to ripple the surface of the ocean and to catch in their hair.

They made their way down to the beach, Harry spread out the blankets he brought with him, before sitting down, Malfoy following him, they sat down, watching the sky together.

"I miss Sirius." Harry suddenly blurted out, not even knowing why he said it, regretting it immediately.

"Your godfather?" Malfoy asked, not looking at him, messing around with a stick he found in the sand. Harry nodded, and lied back on the blanket.

"He and Remus were the only people who made me feel like-" He took sharp intake of breath. "-like I still had a piece of my parents with me" he sighed. He didn’t know why he was telling Malfoy this, but he couldn't stop himself. As the blonde boy seemed genuinely curious, Harry carried on talking, telling him about third year, how he met Sirius, and about Peter Pettigrew, and the Marauders Map, and about the Order of the Phoenix, and everything Sirius told him about his parents. Malfoy listened intensely, asking questions every so often, being very careful not to cross the boundaries.

"I’m sorry they aren’t around anymore." Malfoy simply said when Harry stopped talking. He tilted his head to the side, looking at Malfoy’s face, studying his expression, but he couldn't see anything except for honesty and sadness, and something slightly even like an affection. He felt like crying, but he didn't want to cry in front of the other boy. He knew he should feel angry, after all if Malfoy hadn’t let the Death Eaters into Hogwarts, if his father hadn’t been there at the Department of Mysteries, Sirius and Remus could still be have been alive, but that’s too many ‘if’s. Harry thought of asking Malfoy what his intentions actually were, or something, but he chose to keep silent.

"I’m going swimming" he announced after laying around for a while, he stood up, already taking his shirt off.

"Are you crazy? It must be minus twenty down there°C!" Draco exclaimed, sitting up.

"Yeah, sure, minus two hundred." Harry chuckled. "Chill Malfoy ." Harry rolled his eyes, shucking his jeans as well, making his way to the water, ignoring the feeling of the other boy’s eyes on him.

"Come back here you prat, I don't fancy being framed for your death. It’s dark and it’s cold and you will drown. We can come back here tomorrow and then you can do whatever you want." Malfoy called after him, making Harry laugh.

"If you are so worried about me, come with me" he snorted, stepping into the water, leaning down and splashing it over his body, before carrying on walking deeper into the water. He was in knee-deep when Malfoy caught up with him, stopping at the side of the water. Harry went in even deeper, looking back and shooting a grin at Malfoy. "You better take that shirt off if you want to rescue me when I drown."

The blonde boy just stood there shaking his head as Harry carried on, the water was now up to his shoulders. He couldn't help but laugh as he looked at the fully clothed Malfoy standing on the beach, and suddenly an idea crossed his mind. What if he faked drowning? Would Malfoy really rush to rescue him? He grinned in anticipation, before going in a bit deeper, and pretending to drown, yelling for help, and sure enough, the blonde was there beside him within seconds, his hands around Harry’s waist.

"You idiot" Malfoy said angrily, letting go of Harry when the brunette burst out laughing.

"And you said I’m the one with a saving people's lives-problem." Harry choked out, still shaking from laughter, clutching his stomach with his arms.

"You’re such an imbecile! We could have both lost our footing! I thought you were really drowning." he sneered, and splashed Harry with water. The other boy splashed him back immediately, still laughing, and soon enough Draco was laughing too. They were splashing each other madly, trying to get away from one another, making their way to the beach.

"Scared?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow as they reached the dry land, still breathless from laughing, clutching each other.

"You wish." Draco smirked, and chased Harry back to the blankets, ending up on top of Harry, kneeling between the boy’s legs, holding his hands down above his head. "Feeling defeated, Potter? Did I just defeat the Great Harry Potter?

"As if I’d let you." Harry said, wrapping his legs around Malfoy's waist. He knocked the boy over, straddling him, with a triumphant grin, which died down as soon as their eyes met. Until now, Harry didn’t quite realise how close they were, only a few inches between their faces. He was starting to feel uncomfortable, and dropped his gaze, but if anything, this made things worse, as he found himself staring at Malfoy’s chest, his white shirt sticking to his body, the wetness making it almost see-through, the boy’s lean muscles and his hardened nipples visible to Harry, making him blush. What was wrong with him? It was the third time that day that he found the boy extremely attractive.

"Potter…" Malfoy spoke up, sounding a little embarrassed, as he shifted underneath him. Harry didn't get it for a moment, but then he realises he had an unmistakable hardness in his pants, and it was pressing right into the blonde boy’s thigh.

"Shit, I’m sorry, I just…" he stammered, as he stood up as fast as he could.

"Stop, it’s okay. It’s a normal reaction, I guess, I mean you’ve been away from your girlfriend, and…" Malfoy trailed off, leaving the sentence unfinished, avoiding looking at Harry, who was also avoiding looking anywhere near the other boy. "Let’s go home. Or do you want me to go and you can just stay here, think of your lovely girlfriend, jerk off, and meet me back at the house" Draco said, picking their stuff up, his words making Harry blush even harder.

"I’m… I’ll be alright" Harry managed to say. Malfoy snorts.

"For Merlin’s sake, just stay here, and follow me back when you-" "fuck, just take care of yourself, Potter!" With that said, Malfoy was already turning his back to Harry.

"You are wet. You’ll catch a cold." Harry said desperately, not wanting to make this situation any awkward, which he probably was doing anyway.

"Well then cast a drying charm on me, will you?!" Malfoy looked angry. Why was he like that? He was sneering at Harry, Harry felt like they were back at Hogwarts and Malfoy was about to make one of his snarky comments that always boiled Harry's blood. "You are the one with a wand, you arse!" He rolled his eyes and let out an annoyed huff. "if you are so concerned about my health then do it." he snapped, and Harry obeyed. As soon as he did, the blonde haired boy turned around and left in a rush without saying another word. What was wrong with him? Why did he get so pricky about all of this?!

He left Harry there on the beach. On his own. With a bulge in his pants. Still painfully pressing to his trousers.

He tried to think of Ginny, he really did, but he couldn’t help it, his thoughts drifted back to earlier that day, Malfoy’s hair flowing in the breeze, and Harry remembered how much he wanted to run his hands through it. The closeness of the boy made his body shiver, his angular face, his soft silver eyes, his flat yet arousing chest… oh Merlin, he felt like he could melt away just thinking of him, however weird it is, and however guilty he felt about not thinking of Ginny. What the fresh hell?! Malfoy was a boy! Harry wasn't gay for crying out loud! How the hell was he getting of to the thoughts of Malfoy?

The next few days passed in their usual routine, making breakfast together, Potions theory, having lunch together, brewing, making dinner together, and talking about Muggle things until it’s time for bed. Neither of them mentioned the day at the beach, and Harry was thankful for that, but he couldn’t stop thinking back to that very day, and what it felt like to be that close to Malfoy. He kept thinking back, and would often get distracted from doing whatever he was just by looking at Malfoy, or listening the way he talked about Potions, with such enthusiasm, or the excitement on his face when he showed Harry a book on Muggle things and told him how he finally understood how something worked, and it dawned on him, that he was growing more and more attracted to him.

It wasn’t just his looks that made Harry want to press the other boy to the wall and snog him senseless, though he didn’t even try to deny how his soft platinum hair and silver eyes drove him crazy, but it was his whole personality. The way he was nice to Harry now, always, but still kept teasing him, and Harry would tease back, and sometimes it occurred him that it felt almost like they were flirting or something. Or how patient and serious he could be as a teacher. Or how clever and intelligent he was, almost like Hermione, but in a different way. Or how he enjoyed just small things, like walking out into the garden when the sun was shining, or finding a new book among his mother’s belongings that he could read, or a nice meal they made together. How honest he could be sometimes. How passionate he would get if he was talking about something that was important to him. How similar his sense of humour was to Harry’s. He felt like they could be friends, like actual friends, who would stay in contact and have fun together even when they weren’t locked up in a small cottage in France together to study Potions. But real friends. And maybe even more, because Harry wanted to touch him again, to feel his soft skin, or his silky looking hair. Malfoy was driving Harry crazy, and he couldn’t do anything about it.

After another week or so Draco told him that he was doing well enough to pass his NEWTs easily, and they decided to go down to the beach once again, before Christmas. They spent the whole day there, taking a basket of food, they swam, but only a bit because the water was much colder by now, they talked and laughed and talked even more, about school, about their childhoods, about Quidditch, anything they thought of. Harry couldn't imagine his life without the blonde boy by now. He thought of how hard it will be for him to leave this bastard. How hard will it be to say goodbye to all their memories. Forget about all that they have accomplished and of course, about the whole attraction thing. Harry didn't even know if maybe he allowed himself do what his mind, and other parts of his body, told him to do, then would he discover something about himself. He found his mind drifting off to this idea while he stared at the blonde looking up to the sky.

As the sky grew darker, covered in thousands of sparkling spots, bright and shining like diamonds, scattered all over the sheet of the night, they lay back on their blankets, and Malfoy started to point the constellations out to Harry, saving his favourite one, his own one, the dragon for last. His voice proud as he told the boy next to him which one it was, which Harry found adorable, and returned the boy’s smirk with a grin of his own. Their eyes met for longer than they have ever held each other's gaze. It was like looking at the other's soul through them, finally seeing the real version of the person they never got the chance to get to know better. Harry wanted to kiss Malfoy. He wanted to throw his arms around the boy and press their lips together. He didn't. Whether it was because he was scared of what would happen if he did or he was scared of what he would become if he made this move. Harry turned his face towards the ground. The moment was ruined.

Sometime after staying quiet for a while, they started to talk about more serious things, and Malfoy told Harry how he didn’t want to kill Dumbledore, and how he only realised then that his parents were wrong, and how all he wanted before was to make his father proud. How he did everything afterwards just so Voldemort wouldn’t kill his parents. How terrible it was to let the Death Eaters into Hogwarts, but how he had no other choice if he wanted his parents to live. What it was like to live at Malfoy Manor with the Dark Lord. How he wanted to just apparate somewhere where no one knew him and there were no expectations he had to live up to, no war, no pain, no suffering. How he felt like a coward but still didn’t do anything.

Harry saw the tears shining on Malfoy's cheeks, in the moonlight, as he got to the end of his story, and without thinking, he wrapped his arm around the boy, pulling him close to himself. Malfoy instantly pulled back as if Harry's touch burned him. He mumbled something about not wanting to be pitied and knowing that he was a coward and a bad person but he wanted to change, and Harry didn’t know what to say, so he just sat there beside him.

Later they lay down on their blankets, and fell asleep next to each other under the starry sky.

When Harry woke up, to the first rays of sunshine stroking his skin, he found himself wrapped around Malfoy's arms, their bodies pressed together. He stayed in those arms for a while, enjoying the warmth that came from Draco's, not Malfoy's, body. Oh how much he wanted to stay here forever and just breath this air, go for long walks, talk to Draco, discover himself, get away from all the stress that England and people there caused him. But he couldn't do it. He felt too obligated to be the man everyone expected him to be. He couldn't just disappear and stay here with the blonde. It would be mad. Besides, he had his friends in England, his girlfriend, probably soon to be wife. He wanted to have a family and a job that he enjoyed, the job that would make him feel more human than just the Savour of Wizarding World. He had to go back home, no matter how much his heart was begging him to stay here and try losing himself in the unknown, something that didn't feel quite possible and normal, in something that was as exciting as scary. Just trying to be happy without all the shit that was going to await for him in London. Harry got up from under the blanket and Draco's arms carefully, making sure he wouldn’t wake the other boy up. He conjured a piece of parchment and a quill, with a deep sigh he started writing a letter. He knew he wasn’t the best with words, especially when they were goodbyes, and writing it all down helped, he could say all the things he could never say face to face. He could thank Draco and promise him he’d talk to Kingsley and find a way for him to come back to England. At least that's what Harry wanted. If he couldn't stay here he wanted to hold on to this unexpected friendship in any way he could. He wrote how he’d wait for Draco, and would want to see him, when he did come back to WIzarding World where Harry would be. Harry realised how much he's going to miss Draco, his smile, his snaky comments, the lessons with him, their midnight or morning walks to the beach, their inside jokes, their conversations, Draco's eyes that at some point became everything Harry could think of, just Draco Malfoy in general, still the same git, but trying to become better.

Harry rolled up his blanket and put it back into the basket along with all of the other scattered bits, and put the letter on top. He looked down at the boy below him, and leaned in, pressing a soft kiss onto his cheek, feeling the soft skin underneath his lips and smelling the scent he will never be able to get out of his mind, he didn't realise when a warm tear run down his cheek. He shook himself from the trans he was in. Before he got up to his feet and head back to Malfoy's house and then the town to take his Portkey back to London, he took one last look at Draco sleeping peacefully on the beach, Harry once again couldn't breath. If he never again got the chance to see this idiot, he didn't know if he would ever feel understood and complete as much as he did in Draco's presence. He could only hope for the best.

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Read Chapter Two HERE

#drarry #drarry fic #drarry head canon #head canon #my fic #first chapter #re writting stuf #wip #fic #ao3 #feelings we can't let go #drarry squad #harry potter #draco malfoy

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topazshadowwolf · 6 years ago

Text

The Door (Chapter 14)

An Undertale Fanfiction by: Topaz Shadowwolf Undertale is owned by: Toby Fox Setting: Post neutral run when Papyrus dies with chapter intros being before the child fell. Relationships: Sans and Toriel is the main focus, with a little bit of Undyne and Alphys Rating: I’m thinking Teen? Heads up: There are some depressed thoughts, feelings of worthlessness/wanting to die, mention of major character death, and the occasional bad word. Oh, and flowey being flowey, so you know, psychological/physical trauma. I really don’t want to say much more since I really don’t want to spoil anything further down the road…

You can read it on AO3! Here is Ch 13 Ch 12 Ch 11 Ch 10 Ch 9 Ch 8 Ch 7 Ch 6 Ch 5 Ch 4 Ch 3, Ch 2, and Ch 1on Tumblr.

Random thoughts from the writer about this chapter: I’m not dead and I did not abandon this fic. I was just lazy and lacked motivation. I love this fic though, so don’t think I won’t finish it. I might take 20 years, but it will be written.

It had been another dull day in the Ruins. The most exciting thing that happened was her finds while bug hunting. She caught a fairly large snail and a few unique bugs that she eventually released after looking them up. One was one of the smallest beetles she had seen, but it had the shiniest golden shell of all she had ever caught. It was mesmerizing, really, and she couldn’t help but hang onto it for a while to marvel at it as it crawled over her paw pads.

Because the day had been dull, she tried thinking up new and good funny puns and jokes to share with her friend since she wouldn’t have anything new to discuss. And while her friend did seem to enjoy hearing about her days in the Ruins, it didn’t seem fair to bore him with such meaningless drabble as what bugs she caught day after day. As kind as he was, even he must have limits on how much of this nonsense he could take.

When the time came she walked down the hall, hoping to hear her dear friend really let loose with his laughter. It had been a while since she had heard a good laugh from him. It wasn’t like when they first met anymore. She feared he was getting tired of this but was too kind to tell her so. The last few days his laughs had started sounding a bit…. forced.. It can’t be fun or pleasant for him, sitting out there in that cold snow every day just to entertain some silly old woman, such as herself. And yet he made the trips, sat out there, made her laugh, listened to her stories, and stayed for hours for her benefit.

Back when he laughed hardily, she knew he was enjoying himself, but ever since his laughs started weakening… well, it just seemed like he no longer found a reason to come out here. And she couldn’t blame him. He always sounded so tired, too. She knew he had several jobs and yet, she doesn’t insist on him taking a break. Instead, she eagerly awaited him and encouraged him to ignore his own needs. All of this must be putting too much stress on him, especially since she made this an everyday thing. Maybe she should ask him to come out every other day instead? That would give him a day to rest and a day without having to listen to her prattle on about nothing. When she gave him the option before, he had insisted that meeting every day was fine. But she really doubted that now, and was sure she would have to set the schedule. Her dear friend was just too kind to say ‘no’ to her.

Well, as she thought about it, even every other day sounded like too much. She can’t just base her happiness on him. She needs to pull herself together and let him make the schedule. He will know what is best for himself, even if it means they part ways. She will just need to be insistent that he needs to step up in scheduling their meetings in a way that doesn’t make things hard on himself. And, if he were to say he was done, well, at least, for this short time knowing him, she had some laughs and fun times.

That decided, she knocked on the door twice to see if he was there, “Knock, knock!”

“who’s there?”

His voice tore at her soul. It was so heavy with tiredness and sadness that he didn’t sound like the monster she first met. Was this because of her? It seemed hard to believe that she had caused him sadness as well, but perhaps this was getting in the way of other plans? Rationale told her it was something else. This had been a growing problem with him. He hadn’t said that anything was upsetting him in his life but she could hear it in his voice. There was no mention of anything other than work wearing him out. He might not be the most open and talkative about himself, but he did share some things that clearly mattered to him. But this, whatever was causing this, he didn’t share.

Paranoia made her worry that it was her. She wondered if that was why he kept it all a secret. Because she was the source of this sorrow. But, why? Had she done or said something that would hurt him so much?

“Friend,” she started, and he began to reply thinking it was part of the traditional joke, but it wasn’t. Instead, she continued, “What is wrong? Have I done something to offend you? Is this taking too much time out of your day? Truly, you have done so much for me already, you do not need to keep this up if it is a burden for you.”

“lady?” he sounded confused then she heard him shift, his voice getting closer to the doors, “no, lady, it’s… it’s not like that.”

“Then what is it?” She felt tears forming in her eyes as she placed a hand where she hoped his hand might be. Her nails scratched the door as it tried in vain to grab his hand.

Just open the door, you coward…

She couldn’t… for the safety of any other human that fell… and for her people, she couldn’t open this door unless it was an emergency.

“Day by day you are becoming less and less like the monster who first made me laugh so hard. While you are bringing me joy, I fear you are only receiving misery.”

He was silent and she closed her eyes, resting her head against the door, waiting. If he needed a moment to answer then she will give him the time he needed to think over what he wanted to say. After all, he had been too kind of a monster to her. It would not be easy for him to say she was boring and that he didn’t want to visit her anymore. So, she will let him better formulate an answer for her to tell her what she already knew.

But as time ticked by, and the silence grew, she decided to add softly, “We may not know what each other looks like, or actual names… but I still consider you my friend.”

“you’re my friend, too, lady… meeting you here is one of the main reasons i’m able to get out of bed in the morning. sorry, i don’t mean to worry you, but… no matter how i sound, i want to make sure you know doing this, being here… it makes me really happy,” he replied, and she heard a “thunk” as he likely placed his head against the door. “lately... a lot has been happening that is hard to explain and it’s, well, making things difficult. and... it was really… really hard... today. so, uh… heh,” he sounded on the verge of tears.

“Oh, Dishes, I’m sorry,” she replied. Her claws continued to scratch the door as her hand started to ball up with frustration. Again, she wanted to open these doors and comfort him, but…

“don’t worry about it… i’m sure it will work itself out eventually,” he said, but he didn’t sound any more convinced than she was.

“You are truly my friend, Dishes, and I want you to do what is best for you. So, if you need the day to yourself,” Toriel started but her friend cut her off there.

“that’s not really going to help, old lady… being by myself lets my mind cause some… skulduggery,” he said with a soft, chuckle.

The pun earned a soft giggle from her but she still couldn’t help but feel sad by that information. Her poor friend…, “In that case, I will keep you company then.” She tried to push away her saddened thoughts to feel happier for him. “Shall we tell some jokes,” She asked, hoping to cheer him up.

“alright, after that, how about telling me about your day? had to be better than mine,” he inquired.

“Oh, well… I really just went bug hunting and nothing much else,” she apologized.

“that sounds interesting,” he truly did sound interested in hearing about that. Whether he actually was or wasn’t, she didn’t know. But at that moment, he made it sound like it was the best thing he heard all day...

It was nice to just be back in their room at the castle, but not quite like how it felt being in her home in the Ruins again. Toriel was sure Sans also just wanted to return to the Ruins and let it just be them again. She would be lying if she said the thought didn’t cross her mind, and still lingered there. But, as it was, and with everything known, a sense of duty kept her here. There was still a bitterness in her that made her want to neglect this duty. It was the monsters that called for the death of all humans then forced her off the throne after she came back.

Did she really owe them anything? Did she really need to sacrifice her happiness for these monsters who turned on her so easily? She wasn’t their queen, she wasn’t in the guard, nor was she in any position that made her obligated to care about their welfare. And yet, here she was caring about them. She couldn’t just abandon them to a potentially dark fate. At least, not again. This was different than them seeking the blood of innocent children. This was them needing help from a potential threat that even she knew nothing about. A being that could remove her happiness even if she did try to hide. While Sans seemed more willing to accept his fate, she was not. Just as she rebelled against Asgore to try to rescue the humans, she will push her love to protect the peace they had instead of just letting what may happen, happen. So, as much as she wished to return to the Ruins, she couldn’t turn her back on them now.

Besides, it’s not like their time together was limited. That thought was silly. There was supposed to be no more of these “resets” that had plagued Sans and, unknowingly, her and everyone else in the underground. And that also meant they had plenty of time to share.

Well… not completely.

While she was a boss monster, sentenced to continue to live on and never age, Sans wasn’t. Over time he will grow old and die… That thought caused a shiver to travel up her spine. She didn’t like the idea of watching her dear friend and loved one slowly fade in front of her, but she loved him too much to not want him around. That is the sad trial that now was her life, one she will have to accept. She will watch the ones she knows and love wither and die while she will live on, ageless.

Chara’s body seemed to wilt to the illness they had had that resulted in such a horrible and painful death. Asriel, bloodied and broken, stumbling into the throne room and collapsing on the floor only to then dust in her and Asgore’s hands. Then there was Asgore himself, he changed before her own eyes from the monster she loved to… a creature filled with hate and anger. By what she was told by Sans he didn’t stay that way, reverting to his more meeker nature, if not more so.

Looking over at her dear one, she saw he was clearly exhausted and she scooped him up without a complaint. There was that tired, husky chuckle of his that only encouraged her to cuddle him close. She nuzzled his cheekbone and he started to laugh in reply while leaning into her touch. His boney hand reached up, petting the soft fur just behind her ear, and she hummed contently. Her dear, sweet skeleton, all dressed up as a cat, half curled in her arms in an adorable manner, was too much for her to let go. Placing him in bed and going about her own business will not do. So, she moved over to a chair to sit down. She felt well overdressed in this beautiful gown at the moment, but that didn’t matter. It was nice being the white queen with her Cheshire Cat for the moment. She hoped he felt the same as he cuddled close to her.

Soft snores signaled to her that he had fallen asleep and she was happy. Closing her eyes, she held him and thought about all she had learned, all they had been through, and all they will need to go through. If only things could be easy for them for the remainder of their days. But there were still matters left unsolved, things that still needed to be dealt with. There were obstacles that would interfere with their peace. Also, the mental and emotional wounds that were best solved out here before retiring away in peace. Once these matters have been resolved, and once they had true peace, she really saw no reason as to why they couldn’t just retire away to the Ruins once again.

Maybe she had grown used to her self imposed isolation; that being out here, among other monsters, was far more tiring than she remembered. She once was queen and did many things with her people. She didn’t really enjoy crowds then, but she still thrived in them and never avoided them. But now, she would far rather be alone with a good book and those she loves than be among a crowd. She had forgotten what it was like dealing with her people, and now… they weren’t even her people.

Their ruler is Undyne. Yet, even if she was not currently in charge of their well being, there was still a sense of responsibility because she once was. Even if they weren’t her people, they still felt like they were. Although she had turned her back on them, feeling betrayed that they chose to kill humans along with Asgore, humans much like her own Chara, she still didn’t hate them. And while they despised her declaration that monsters should no longer be at war with humans but instead ally with them once more and then sought to overthrow her… she still wanted what was best for them. She was angry with them, as angry as she was with Asgore, but she did not wish harm upon them, just as she wished harm hadn’t befallen her ex-husband.

And perhaps Sans helped with that. She had closed herself off from everyone, even emotionally from the innocent monsters in the Ruins. They knew little of the world beyond the doors; yet, she treated them as if they were as guilty as the ones she heard calling for the death of all humans. But Sans… knocked on the door she used as a physical reminder to close herself off. He invited her to open herself up again, which she accepted. He then made and kept a promise she thought she would never be able to get another monster to accept. He showed her that there was still something to be hopeful for, even though he clearly had little hope himself.

Her dear, dear sweet Sans. She highly doubted he knew how much of an influence on her he had been, and for once she wondered if the same could be said the other way around. Was it possible that she has been an influence on his life and she simply didn’t see it? He had said that before, that she had already repaid him for anything he possibly could have done for her. Sans even expressed that he owed her. Perhaps they were both right, they both have been a great force of good in each other's life.

Yes, it did seem that way, and she was finally now just seeing that. They had helped each other, made each other stronger and better monsters. Neither are in debt, neither owe each other, but both want nothing more than to pay the other back for what they did.

At this realization, she giggled softly before nuzzling her beloved skeleton on the top of his skull. They really were a silly pair of monsters.

…

Oh…

Oh dear…

In her haste to sit down with him, she forgot to grab a book or anything to occupy herself as he slept. With a sigh, she sat there in thought. She could get back up. If there was one thing she knew about her skeleton, he didn’t wake up easily. Though she was comfortable, and getting up just wasn’t something she wanted to do. She was just so content the way she was, even if it meant she was sitting there with nothing to do other than hug her dear skeleton. He was cuddled close, his slow breathing calming her troubled heart and thoughts.

How badly she needed this before. All those nights in the ruins when she couldn’t sleep would have been easily rectified had they only reached this point in their relationship sooner. Toriel closed her eyes, resting her cheek on his skull with a content sigh. How dearly she loved him. She hoped he felt that from her soul. A small green bullet of magic, in the shape of a soul, floated from her to him and she felt her face flush with embarrassment. Normally she was far better at controlling her magic, but at the moment she might as well be a lovesick child again.

To think she would again be like this. Some would think she should feel shame for it, but she really just giggled. It was a pleasant feeling, one she missed. As their relationship matures, they will advance past this, but she will enjoy this for now. She felt everything around her start to fade away as her own tiredness started to catch up with her. Tomorrow morning they were to meet up with Alphys to have a pleasant picnic. For now, though, they can rest. As she drifted to sleep, that is exactly what they did. It just felt like such a beautiful moment, that Toriel clung as long as she could to the edges of wakefulness, to savor this. Their breathing matched, his weight pressed against her, and her arms enveloped him. Soon, she couldn’t fight it any longer, as his soft snores guided her to sleep.

She wasn't sure how long she had slept before a loud knock woke her up. Toriel felt herself jump and Sans shifted on her lap, muttering something that, if she thought about it, sounded like a plea for a few more minutes. This made her laugh softly and she nuzzled her poor dear, enamored about this adorable behavior. Still, the knocking repeated itself and Toriel knew she was going to need to answer. It was obvious that the sleeping skeleton on her lap was not about to get the door. She lifted Sans from her lap and set him in the chair, though she could feel him move again in her arms, hinting that he was really awake. He just fought against wakefulness which took over in the hopes of going back to sleep.

Toriel walked over to the door and opened it to find... well, a monster she had never seen before. "Hello?" She asked before the odd rectangular monster wheeled past her.

"Hello, darling! I hope you don't mind me interrupting your evening but I just heard you were in New Home. I must have you come by my station for an interview. I'm sorry we didn't meet during your time as Queen," He said in a strange, static tinged voice.

"Oh, well, I suppose we could arrange that," Toriel replied, though she was unsure what to think of this monster or what he was saying. She then smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry, but who you are?"

"I'm Mettaton," he said as if that was supposed to mean something to Toriel. When that didn't get a reaction he then added, "The biggest star in the Underground?" Toriel's continued confusion didn't seem to make him happy. Though how she knew that with his faceless features, she didn't know.

"heya, ti-83, what brings you here?" Sans asked from the chair, pulling attention off her and on to him. Toriel was thankful for that, to say the least. She seemed to remember Sans saying something about a robot who was famous in the Underground, but she wasn't expecting this to be him. There must be something about him that the other monsters saw that she didn’t.

"Hello, Sans," the robot said and his tone sounded not that happy about this interaction. "I was hoping you would have come by the resort now that you’re back on this side of The Ruin's doors."

"yeah, well, talk to undyne about that. i was a little locked up in her business," Sans replied. "anyway, i'm free now, what's up?"

"Well, you know your 'show' was popular, for reasons I'll never understand. I want to see what times you would like to book." Mettaton pulled a booklet from some compartment and from the look of it, it was a schedule book.

"huh, i thought you said my show was a waste of time," Sans chuckled then shrugged. "sorry, but i'll pass."

"Look, I know we have our differences, but this is for the people. They miss your stand up and your odd science talks," Mettaton plead but Sans looked away, leaning on the arm of the chair.

"um... yeah, still not feeling like doing it."

"You did stand up?" Toriel asked, surprised by this. "I'm sure you were very good."

"Yes... I suppose you could say that it was good," Mettaton replied. "It was more of a variety show he did. Not even I knew what he was going to do each time... One time he just slept standing up the whole hour."

"heh, good times," Sans chuckled.

"I'll pay you double if you come back," Mettaton bargained. This seemed to catch Sans's attention and the skeleton looked at the robot.

"double, huh? sure, for that much i'll do a show."

Toriel stood back and watched as the two then discussed the when for Sans's show that he will put on. Mettaton tried getting Sans to say what he would be doing, leaning toward a comedy act, but Sans just gave a non-committed shrug. It was clear he didn't know what he wanted to do, and Toriel wasn't sure he really wanted to do this show. Knowing he decided to do it based on the increased pay made her wonder what he wanted the money for as well. They were doing well financially, Toriel had more than enough money for the two of them. And yet, she didn't feel the need to bring that up at the moment. In truth, she felt it would help Sans to do something more than just hide here. Once the two had their business sorted out, Mettaton turned back to her.

"Shall we schedule our interview now?" Mettaton asked. He started jotting down something in his booklet. To her surprise, Sans spoke up before she could.

"i think we'll take a raincheck on scheduling that. i'm sure tori wants to focus more on assisting empress undyne," Sans said, again, leaning on the chair's arm, with his head on his hand, looking disinterested with all of this.

Something about what Sans said, though, interested the robot and he wrote some more. "Oh, you are assisting Undyne, darling?" Mettaton asked while turning back to Toriel. Why had Sans said that? He was also here to help, but the way he said that hinted that it was her responsibility alone.

"Well, yes, we-" She started but Sans got up and walked over.

"we are staying at that castle under undyne's direction so tori can help out with some matters is all. and she needs to focus on that," Sans said, putting an arm around the robot as if they were buddies. He directed the other monster out the door with a kind goodbye though she knew he didn't fully mean it.

There was silence for a moment, Toriel had to admit she was annoyed that Sans had interrupted her and she put her paws on her hips and glared at him. "What was that about?" She asked.

"sorry tori," Sans apologized and shuffled back to the chair. "mettaton was more of a fan of asgore's plan, even if he wanted to be a star among monsters and humans. i guess he just saw asgore being more likely to get him to the surface. do what you want, but i don't suggest going on any show of his for an interview, he'll just make sure the narrative he wants is the one heard."

That troubled Toriel, knowing that some monsters still feel that way about her. It was more than just Undyne who did not like her, and while Toriel never asked to be a loved queen, it still hurt to be so hated. She walked over and scooped up the skeleton to place him back on her lap. He leaned against her, and she could feel contentment from him. "What about telling him I was here to help Undyne?"

"it gives you an excuse to be too busy for him, and it is true... and it was a dig at undyne. one that, even if he supports her, he won't be able to help but spread." Sans chuckled softly before adding, "i made it seem like she needs someone else to help her with the ruling, and, well, who better than you?"

"Sans, that was rather mean to do to Undyne. She," Toriel then sighed and nodded a bit. "I'll admit she deserved it, after all she put us through, but that was still rude to do."

Sans just chuckled and shrugged, "yeah, maybe, but as you said, she deserved it. anyway, she's pretty good at running damage control. and if you decided to show pity on her you can set the story straight yourself. until then, though, let her deal with it."

"I will make sure the true story is heard. I'm not that vindictive. Though, I suppose that can wait until after the picnic tomorrow," Toriel said tapping her chin. It was better than just leaking the truth of what Sans had been through, even if it should be known. It would cause others to have trouble trusting the Empress. This, while rude, won’t be as shocking and it won't be as likely to destroy the faith of monsters in their ruler.

Morning activities were never something he enjoyed, they denied him the ability to sleep in and made him feel tired the rest of the day. Sans wasn’t sure how he got roped into this, but he tagged along with Toriel and Alphys as they found a spot to “stargaze.” This brought back some old memories that felt much older than they truly were, he remembered all the times he took his younger brother out here to look at the crystals and pretend it was the night sky. It was one of the things Papyrus insisted on doing because Sans was interested in stars. Though they did it in the evening and “camped” in Waterfall for the night. Alphys and Toriel somehow came to the decision that morning would work best for them.

Now that he was here, though, Sans remembered the nights he and Papyrus would spend in the field the three currently stood. Though, at that time he was just a child. Sans and his brother would lay in the grass for hours, imagining they were looking at an actual night sky, and the glowing stones above them were real stars. They even made their own constellations and Sans, for the fun of it, charted them. There were many cool and unique ones, along with a few that, as they grew to teenagers and young adults, clearly lacked maturity when named. The earlier ones they made as children had eventually be traded out for far better constellations, far more suited for The Great Papyrus and his brother, astronomer Sans.

Well… the “Butt” constellation with “Fart Gas Cloud,” or F.G.C. for short, were still up there, and still right next to each other. Papyrus had tried making them into something else, but even he admitted, it was a butt. Either that was the extent of their creativity, or that was undoubtedly what it was.

Tori, Alphys, and Sans rested in the grass, looking up at the crystals above. And, upon Tori’s request, Sans began pointing out all those constellations, saving the best for last of course. He heard Tori snort while Alphys rolled her eyes and sighed.

“S-seriously, Sans?” Alphys sighed, “I bet you n-named both of them, didn’t you.”

“actually, i named f.g.c. but paps named butt,” he said with a wink. Relaxing back, Sans sighed, looking back up at those two. He then said, “he named it when he was young… and we couldn’t rename it.”

“Well, it does look like one,” Tori said with a laugh. It was nice to know her humor matched his so nicely. It might seem silly to laugh at a group of glowing crystals that happen to make the shape of someone’s backside, but at least they could laugh together.

“we did argue over the ownership of them. i figured since pap spotted and named it, it should be his. but he didn’t like my fart by his butt,” at the drop of that punchline Toriel burst into a fit of laughter.

Alphys groaned and glared at Sans and Toriel. “I’m h-happy you found someone t-to share your humor with.”

Before Sans could reply, Tori wrapped him up in her arms. Her hug was tight but comfortable, and she nuzzled the side of his skull. Sans cuddled close, enjoying the warmth and softens of the monster he loved beside him. “I am as well,” Tori then said. She looked over at Alphys, who was clearly enjoying every second of this scene. “For the longest time, I thought I would never laugh again. Then… I met Sans. It doesn’t matter to me if our humor is childish to some… we laugh and that’s all that matters”

"heh, and when i heard that first laugh of hers..." Sans sighed wistfully as he thought back on that odd braying sound the had heard through the door that day. That beautiful noise that brought such light to his tired and dark soul. "well, i promised to myself that i would make her laugh again."

Toriel smiled at him and he smiled back at her. It really was a scene that would be thought as overly mushy if viewed by a non-romantic. Sans never thought he was much of a fan of romance until he found Toriel. She had brought forth this want to spend time with her, cuddle with her, court her. And with that came the romantic desires that he never once knew he had inside of him.

He then settled beside her as he listened to Alphys and Toriel as they point out more possible constellations in the crystal ceiling above them. It was fun seeing what their imagination would find among all those tiny lights above them. A few made him chuckle but, for the most part, they were either sweet or anime related. Toriel pointed out the brightest crystal and suggested it be named after Papyrus. Sans did say it should be fully called "The Great Papyrus" to which both Toriel and Alphys agreed with him. Sans then smiled and looked up at the crystal named after his brother. It was now his favorite one up there, and he hoped his brother was happy with the honor of having that crystal named after him.

As he watched the crystal he felt himself slowly drift off to sleep. Well, Tori and Al were doing well enough so he saw no reason why he should force himself to stay awake so he let himself rest. It was pleasant here, in the dark of Waterfall, cuddled close to the monster he loved so dearly, and under the light of The Great Papyrus. If Sans could fall asleep like this every night, or morning, he would be more than happy. He only fought to stay awake a while longer so he could soak in this moment as long as possible before falling asleep.

He should have stayed awake a bit longer, as he woke up with a start when he was assaulted by Tori and Al tickling him awake. Sans rolled around trying to get away only for nothing to work. No matter how hard he tried protesting the fairness of this attack it didn't work. It wasn't until he was out of breath, which was an odd feeling for someone who didn't need to breathe, did Tori pull him up onto her lap and hug him tightly. "Oh, my dear, I couldn't help myself," she giggled and nuzzled him.

"Y-you were snoring over our t-talking," Alphys said, arms folded as if annoyed, but she grinned away.

"eh, sounds like a reasonable reaction, then," Sans chuckled and nestled the back of his head under Tori's chin.

"By the way, S-sans, I'm surprised to see you are w-wearing that hoodie again. Did you like it?" Alphys asked, looking over Sans in the Cheshire cat hoodie she had made just for him to wear.

"More like his needed to be washed and I liked it," Tori said for him and he chuckled and shrugged his agreement.

Alphys giggled at what Tori said and Sans knew at some point he was going to have to get even with his science buddy. She had seen and been able to laugh and tease at a few too many things at his expense to just let it go. Or, he could just let it go... That would be the easier thing to do, really. Besides, in the long run, they are friends, and even though they had prank wars in the past, he just wasn’t feeling that up to it anymore.

“as tori said, mine just needed to be washed, but i’ll admit, al, you do make a cozy hoodie,” Sans replied with a shrug.

Tori and Al started to set up for lunch now that it was close enough to “brunch time” to qualify for a picnic lunch. Sans sat back and watched, intent on having a slice of pie over any of the other foods they set out. A sound caught his attention though, and he turned his head to look and spotted Undyne heading their way. He still had no desire for Undyne to see him dressed as a cat. With that, Sans saw it was time to see himself out. He knew a few good spots around here he could watch them and remain hidden. Perhaps it was silly to care about Undyne seeing him dressed as a cat, but after how she treated him, he just didn’t feel the need to show her any more weaknesses.

He grabbed a slice of pie then stood and saluted Tori and Al with his free hand. “welp, i’ll be around. i’ll see you but you won't see me. have fun.” And with that, he took a step while he used a shortcut to move to a ledge where he could watch everything going on and stay unnoticed.

Tori looked perturbed, but he did warn her earlier. He took a bite of the pie as he watched Undyne walk up to Tori and Al. She started talking with them and looked around as if looking for him. He wasn’t surprised since Sans was not about to leave far from Tori and he was sure Undyne knew that. Alphys gestured to the area around her then Undyne laughed. He figured that was about him, but still, he'd rather be considered a coward than let her see him like this. Besides, he already knew she thought of him as a coward so it was no big deal. Keeping the reputation of a coward is better than adding cute.

“Golly,” A voice said from just behind him. He didn’t need to turn and look to know who it was. After nightmares as severe as the ones he has had, the voice had been ingrained in his skull. “You sure did skedaddle out of there fast,” It said, mockingly.

“heya, haven’t heard from you for quite a while,” He turned and looked at the flower, looking down at the anomaly formed by misguided DT experimentation.

End notes: thanks again to @obsessedkatie for beta reading. Hope you all enjoyed!

#undertale #fanfiction #the door #soriel #sans #toriel #myfic #alphys #mettaton #Well #um #normally this is where I ramble on about stuff #but got nothing #so...#enjoy

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quinnlocke · 7 years ago

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Fic Writers Week Day 1

Words of Validation

Comments truly are the things that keep you going. Whether its a quick “I loved this” or a long paragraph detailing everything, they truly can make the difference between having inspiration and wanting to abandon a work.

Some of my favorites under the cut, names omitted for the sake of privacy.

Falling’s Not The Problem - “ahhh I've been looking for a multi chapter soukoku fic to invest too many emotions into and thiS IS THAT FICI love the premise and I already love your writing style. I can't wait to see where you take this!”

“Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees I love this and I love you.”

Tender and Semi-Sweet Love - “This fic is ridiculously cute, oh my god. Tendou was trying so hard to get his attention and Semi knew exactly what he was doing. When you mentioned he still had his bowl cut I audibly went "Awww." Bless his nerdy little soul. Also, I am in love with this version of Semi. Eyeliner and piercings and tattoos are the way to my heart, and apparently to Tendou's, too. Oh, and I liked the part at the beginning when Suga pushed Tendou out to the counter. Suga was really cute in this, too. Hell, everything about this was cute. I love it.”

Sincerely Yours - “HOLY HELL I LOVE THIS!!!! fuck this is amazing. i am going to come back and comment cuz i cant find words big enough to express how amazing this isHOLY FUCKING HELL THO I CANT WAIT TO READ MORE HOLY SHIT I AM SQUEALING AND I HAVE SUBSCRIBED AND THANK YOU SO FUCKING MUCH FOR WRITING”

“So good, so good!!! :) I can't wait to see more!“

“Iwa-Chan doesn't deserve any of this, you monster!”

“Oh my god I'm dYiNg”

“I LOVE THISSSSSSSS”

“DUDE DUDE DUDE AHHHHH YOU ARE ALWAYS SO EN POINT WITH THE CURVE OF EMOTIONS AND HOW EVERYTHING FITS TOGETHER YOU'RE AMAZING”

Honestly there is probably so many more comments on Sincerely Yours that I could make a whole post dedicated to them. Needless to say every comment is loved and appreciated.

Tooru’s Toil and Trouble - “THIS TURNED OUT SO WELL! I seriously love everything about it, you did an amazing job Quinn!!! ... Is it terrible that I want more? Lol sorry but it's just that good.”

“Thanks for all the IwaOi love! Let me love you~ (づ￣ ³￣)づ”

Recipes for Love and Disaster - “whAT THE HECK THIS IS SO CUTE you've really built up a world and all the solid backstories make me fall in love with these characters more?? i love the easy interactions between kuroo and kenma, and kuroo and bokuto's friendship is so believable and made me smile a lot! and the fooooooood mmm i'm so hungry now ahaha. the entire scenario of kuroo showing up at kenma's door and demanding to cook for him and then the reveal that kenma isn't the actual food critic aAHAHAH smooth kuroo smooooth. they're really cute?? gosh i'm just really in awe at how together and detailed the backstories lined up with the characters and their interactions!! aaaaAAAA”

“I had coherent thoughts to comment but lost them by the end of the chapter...Oh! I love how your Akaashi is slightly nervous as he would be and how bo switched to Japanese for a bit when he realised Akaashi was from there, that's so sweet. And I feel like a lot of the time when authors transplant characters into English settings they don't think about things like which characters are more recent immigrants and stuff (which I don't blame them) but I like that you've taken the time to consider it! Makes the characters feel real and really takes into consideration their Japanese heritage“ (NGL this might be one of the best comments I have ever gotten. Simply because someone noticed that one little detail.)

“Okay, okay okay okay. There are a few things I don't think I will ever get over in this fic, ranging from Bokuto's quest to eat literally every apple dessert to the fact that he named his cilantro, because they're just so ridiculous and adorable and so quintessentially Bokuto. I love the interaction between Akaashi and Bokuto in general, as well as Akaashi's quiet steadiness. Also, that ending bit: "Akaashi nodded in answer and brought his hand up to stroke through Bokuto’s hair. “You… still owe me dinner,” he declared breathlessly, “Though, I did enjoy having dessert first.”" made me giggle. Heck yes on this entire fic :D”

“Kuroo having a crisis over seeing Kenma curled up and sleeping" fjfhdkd honestly, who can blame him though. This was so sweet, and so well written! Honestly the friends-to lovers trope with all the angst and pining within will never get old so thank you so much for sharing! ❤️ “

“UHMMMMMMMM that bit at the end??? when they hug????? too sweet??? too pure??? i'm actually tearing up wtf, quinnn i love this so much holy hell <333″

“*hyperventilates* it's finishedddd ahhhhh now you know yams, the key to tsukki's heart is his stomach haha”

Six Minutes to Say Goodbye - “aaaAAAAAHHHHHHH PAINNNNNNN WHYYYY MUCH PAIN”

“I see someone who is about to punch their senpai.”I love Akaashis snark so much(I'm commenting on just the things that are making me laugh btw in a meagre attempt to not be really sad over this fic ;;;... I'm not succeeding but damn is it good)”

“I must be a masochist. Because you're being mean and I love it.”

“You've given me so much angst and I nearly cried. Oh Lord this is one of the best things I've ever read! Thank you.Keep writing <3″

“I cried when his heart started beating again god bless your soul. this was so amazing you're a fantastic writer“

As much as I would love to share the comments from You Found Me, there are over 600 to go through and honestly we’d be here all night if I tried. Needless to say, to any of you who have been with me since then.

Thank you. Seriously to everyone who comments it means the world. It truly is the reason we keep writing. So again from the bottom of my heart.

Thank you

#ficwritersweek #haikyuu!!#bungou stray dogs #dragon age #comments are the lifeblood of any writer #so thank you to those who comment

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captainoftherollyjoger · 7 years ago

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Flight: Chapter 5

Hi guys! Hoping to get quite a few chapters out tomorrow. I also have another fic in the planning! Something a little bit different, as much as I’ve enjoyed the fluffiness and sweetness, I have toothache from this fic :D. I loved writing it though, but I fancy myself some dark Hook next.

This chapter features a lads night and some cockblocking Robin!

Tagging @thatwolfbookgirl, @kmomof4, and @followbatb. Thanks for all the support guys!

Prologue : Chapter One : Chapter Two : Chapter Three : Chapter Four : Chapter Five : Chapter Six : Chapter Seven : Chapter Eight : Chapter Nine : Chapter Ten : Chapter Eleven : Epilogue

The week went smoothly. They were babysitting on the Saturday for the night, and Regina had moved into Robin's. Killian had gone back the day after and helped again.

Emma was sitting on the couch with her legs tucked under her, thinking about taking on more hours at work. She wasn't struggling with her workload, but she didn't want to miss more time with Henry because of it. She felt her ponytail moved to the side and a kiss to collar bone, Killian was leaning over the back of the couch. "What's on your mind?" He whispered. Henry had just nodded off after a spectacular tantrum. His arms came around her and she leaned back. "Me?" She chuckled at him. "Work." "You still thinking about the hours?" She nodded. "What's your gut telling you?" "That I should take them. It's more money, and I'm getting paid more for being overseas. Plus, we can say you're working more. I just don't want to be one of those people who works all the time. I have Henry and you. I don't want to miss out on that." "You won't. Because you have these moments and then you're immortalising them in this magazine. They're not going away. It's like our own little treasure chest of memories." "So poetic." She said, sarcastically. "Maybe I should be the writer." He chuckled. "What are you doing about teaching?" She asked. He came around the couch and sat next to her. "I haven't thought about since I started getting paid by Graham. I wasn't going to apply for a job." "I thought you really wanted to teach." "I do. But I really want to look after Henry. Who would care for him? Plus, I love seeing him grow everyday, I have all the time in the world for him. I don't want to lose that." "What about teaching?" "I can always teach. I can't always watch Henry be a baby. They grow so quickly." He smiled. "What if you teach part time? Or be a supply teacher? Then you get the best of both worlds." "Who would look after Henry when I'm working?" "Me. We'll work around each other. I managed for the first eight months, Killian. On my own. I'm grateful you're here now, but since you came along I was on my own for a long time."

"I know. I forget you had a bad past, I know I don't know a lot of it yet. If I have my way you'll never be on your own again." "You can't say stuff like that. We've only known each other for six weeks.”

“Haven't they been the best six weeks ever?” He laughed.

“You know I think they have. It's just… I was promised the world by one guy and it went wrong.”

“How wrong?” He asked.

“I went to prison.” She had kept that fact bottled up inside her for too long. She should have told him sooner. She just didn't want to know how he would react. It felt as though a huge weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. He looked shocked. That's not what he expected. “Because of him.”

“What happened?” Shock still on his face. She didn't know if he believed her.

“I was eighteen. Neal had stole some watches and they were stashed in a locker. I went to get them, so we could have a fresh start, then he left me to take the fall. I came out just before I turned twenty.”

“But, I thought Neal was Henry's father.”

“I was on my own until I was twenty four, working as a security guard, quite ironic isn't it and Neal found me again. He apologised, said he was sorry, begged me to forgive him. Told me all his plans, how he wanted me to be a part of them. How much he missed me. I'd been alone so long I fell for it. I got pregnant with Henry at twenty five. I turned twenty six, when he was six months old.”

“When did he leave?”

“I told him when I was eight weeks pregnant, he left that night. I had to go through pregnancy on my own, I had awful morning sickness. I landed the job with Graham a year before. Neal was jealous of him, so I always worked from home. I was worried Graham would fire me if he found out I was pregnant, but he sort of took me under his wing. Only as a boss. He didn't help me in any other way. We have a good working relationship.”

“So you only heard from Neal again when he called you?” She nodded. “He sounds…”

“Let's not talk about him. I just wanted you to understand that I find it hard to trust people.”

“Of course I understand. If I have to spend the rest of my life proving I want you, then I will.” A playful smirk appeared on his face and he moved closer. He pinned her under him and kissed her jaw.

“So cliché.” She laughed.

“Why don't you ring Graham and get it over with?” He was back to her work, how could he be thinking about that when he was kissing her?

“Do we have to discuss this now?” She pushed his chest so he looked at her. “Can’t we discuss something else?” She teased.

“No.” He leant back down and kissed her lips. “You need to make a decision. You’ll feel so much better.”

“I’ll feel better when you stop mixing business with pleasure.” She pushed him over so she was on top of him. “I’ll think about it later.” His hands went to her waist. “You’re too distracting to make any rational decisions.” She laughed.

“Why don't I show you just how distracting I can be?”

Knock, knock, knock. Killian and Emma were snuggled up on the couch under a blanket. It was six in the evening and couldn't be bothered doing anything. They weren't expecting any visitors either. Emma had been dozing and stirred when she heard the door.

“You go.” She groaned.

“I’m afraid, love. I’m not adequately dressed, which was not my fault.”

“You're a pain.” She threw the blanket off, she had put on some pyjamas because Killian appeared to like a freezing cold apartment.

Knock, knock, knock.

“Coming!”

She opened the door. It was a man she hadn't met before.

“Hello? Who are you?”

“Hi! I’m Robin Locksley. You must be Emma?” He took her hand and kissed it.

“Robin! I've heard so much about you. Come in.” She smiled. He followed her through to the living room where Killian was lying under a blanket quite obviously shirtless.

“My, what have you been up to?” Grinned Robin. Killian was shocked to see him standing there. Especially when he himself was nearly nude apart from some boxers.

“What are you doing here? Go away.” He was embarrassed, Robin didn't need to know anymore about him and Emma.

“I’ve clearly intruded. I thought I would be welcome.”

“You are welcome, Robin. Ignore Killian.”

“How are you already on his side?” He looked offended but jokingly. He sat up with the blanket around his waist. His shoulder feeling tender.

“I’m just being nice to our guest. Need to make a good impression on your friends. Would you like anything? A beer, tea?”

“A beer sounds lovely.” He smiled. “Got yourself a keeper here, Killian. She's way too good for you. You can do much better, Emma.” She laughed as she handed him the beer opened.

“I often feel it’s the other way around.” she smiled.

Killian walked to his bedroom to throw on some clothes, smiling because of Robin's approval of Emma. He wasn't bothered if he didn't like her but it made life easier that he did.

“To what do we owe the pleasure?” He asked, returning from his bedroom.

“If the lady here doesn't mind. I want to steal you for a night.”

“Robiiin. No one was supposed to know about that.” He teased.

“You’re such a jerk. I meant for a lads night out.”

“Ooo, that sounds fun.” Smiled Emma, disappearing to her bedroom.

“I was going to spend the evening with Emma.” He said.

“Come on. David and Will even managed to persuade their wives.”

“Who else?”

“Jefferson, Liam, Arthur.”

“Whale?”

“He's too busy with Ruby. Come on.”

Emma returned with Henry in her arms. He’d had a long nap and it was time for his dinner. Killian smiled when he saw him, he knew how he felt for both of them and really wanted to tell her, but he knew she wasn't ready.

“I know who this is.” Smiled Robin, placing his beer on the counter and walking over. “May I?” Emma passed him over with a smile. “I’ve heard so much about you, Henry. You little cutie. Roland would love to meet you I’m sure.” He looked at Emma. “Roland's my son. He's seven now and growing fast.”

“Robin was in a similar position to you but under different circumstances. I clearly like picking up the single parents.” They all laughed at the bizarreness of the situation. Killian had befriended Robin when Roland was one and they had been close ever since, until he left for America.

“What is it? Three now?” Laughed Robin. Killian didn't. Three? What did Robin mean?

“Robin.”

“Oh, sorry. Urm, so Emma. How do you like England?”

She hadn't missed Killian's serious tone or the fact that Robin said three. She wasn't going to pry. He had his past. She knew. He hadn't forced hers out of her, she wouldn't do the same to him.

“It’s great. Very welcoming. Thanks to this guy.” She patted Killian's chest and gave him a reassuring look. He smiled and relaxed. “The weather is touchy.”

“That's Britain. We've had some lovely weather recently.” Robin still had Henry who was pulling at his green scarf. “So, you coming out, Killian?”

“We were going to watch a film.”

“Go. We can watch a film anytime. Have fun.” She smiled. She took Henry off Robin and pushed Killian towards the bathroom to shower.

Whilst Killian was getting ready, Emma and Robin sat on the couch chatting.

“So, what happened to his mother?” Asked Emma.

“She died. Unfortunately. A car accident.”

“I’m so sorry. That’s awful.”

“What about his father? The same?”

“No, he took off.”

“Oh, well, I’m sorry.”

“Killian's been great though. I don't know how he was single. Good with kids, good cook, easy on the eyes.”

“He got hurt. It's not my place to tell you. But he got hurt bad and went off the rails a bit.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, that's why he went to America to clear his head. Don't hurt him, Emma. He wouldn't manage it again. If you don't want to be with him one day, tell him. Don't betray him. For me. Best friend to girlfriend.”

“I won't. I promise. He's been too good to me to intentionally hurt him.”

“Thank you. I know I wind him up but I love him like a brother. He really likes you. I’ve never seen him like this with anyone.”

“Anyone?”

“Anyone.”

“Wow, thanks. I guess. So, how did you meet?”

“We were both working in a bar at Uni. I had a one year old son who I had to bring with me and I really struggled. Killian sort of helped me with that. Gave me some respite. Not only did I have a one year old son, I had lost the love of my life in a car crash.”

“He likes to take in the strays.” She smiled. They heard his bedroom door open.

“What are you two gossiping about?” He was wearing a dark blue button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up and some dark jeans.

“Nothing.” Said Robin.

“You look handsome.” She smiled as he walked over. He picked Henry up and gave him a cuddle. “Enjoy yourself.”

“I think mummy wants to be rid of me. What's she hiding? Or does she want you all to herself?” He placed little kisses on Henry's head which made him squeal.

“She wants you to have a good night out. Don't worry about us.” Emma smiled, kissing him and taking Henry.

Robin noticed the way Killian looked at her. Not even with Milah had he seen him look like that. He knew his friend was in deep, he just hoped Emma's promise was sincere.

“Ready?” asked Robin.

“Aye. Which pub?”

“Murphey’s.”

“Oo good.” Emma followed them to the front door. “See you later, love.”

“Goodbye. Look after him, Robin. Don't let him do anything you wouldn't do.” She smirked. “Or at least bring him back in one piece.”

“Two pieces?”

“Three if you avoid the face.”

“I’m right here.” They ignored him.

“Curfew?”

“He's a big boy. He doesn't need one.”

“Again. Right here.”

She laughed and kissed him goodbye. He kissed Henry on the head and him and Robin walked off down the street.

The lads were a few drinks in. America and London had been discussed as well as jobs and careers. David revealed that Mary Margaret was pregnant with their fourth child. They had a boy, two twin girls and another on their way. Will was still with Belle. Arthur and Gwen were newlyweds. Jefferson had an eight year old daughter. Liam and Robin were satisfied with their lives, it was Killian’s turn for questioning.

“So, what's this bird of yours like, Killian?” Asked Will. Only Robin, David and Liam had met her out of his friends. And David was only briefly.

“She’s out of his league.” Said Liam. “Way too good for him. She's funny, intelligent, and beautiful.”

“May I remind you that you have a wife.” said Killian.

“Aye, well Emma can't be compared to my stunning wife. But for you, she's too good.”

“Emma really has a sense of humour. If it wasn't for her, he would have been boring and stayed at home.” said Robin. “Liam's right though. She's a really nice girl.”

“Great at football.”

“Or soccer in her case.” Laughed Will, attempting an American accent.

“Not your usual type.” Said Liam.

“And what's that?” asked Killian.

“Curly dark hair, dark eyes. Bit curvy. Quite serious, quite mature.”

“And what's Emma like?” asked Arthur.

“Blonde. Quite lean. Physically fit. Wouldn't fight her.” Chuckled Robin.

“Deep green eyes.” said Killian.

“Serious when it comes to her son, but more carefree than his previous women. She enjoys herself and lets herself loose. Like she isn't worried to make a fool of herself, whereas some of your previous girlfriends were a bit uptight.”

“I haven't even had that many. Three main ones aside from Emma.”

“You look at Emma differently.” Said Liam.

“And talk about her differently.” Said Arthur. “You always kept quiet about your others. You can't seem to contain yourself about this one whenever I see you.”

“Could she be the one?” asked Jefferson.

“Oh yeah.” said Liam.

“Can I get a word in?” asked Killian. The men obliged. “There was nothing wrong with my previous girlfriends. One cheated. One got bored of me. One had a secret husband and child. Emma is a single mother, who is strong, funny and beautiful. She’s had a bad history, same as me. She's extremely out of my league, but she thinks the opposite which is bonkers. Her son is the most delightful little boy and yes. I do believe in time, she could be the one. She's incredibly caring, flirty, supportive and we get on great as friends. Does this answer all your questions?”

“When do we get to meet her?” Asked Jefferson. “She sounds perfect for you.”

“What was her last name?” asked Arthur. He had been listening intently, Killian noticed.

“Swan.” Said Killian, taking a sip of his beer. “And you meet her when you meet her. I don't want to frighten her away with you lot.

“Emma Swan. That name sounds so familiar.” Arthur had been the only calm one when interrogating him. “I knew an Emma Swan when I was working as a security guard in America for a few years. She sounds like you describe, one day she disappeared. Never came back. We got on quite well. We worked the night shift together. She told me she went to prison.” The men gasped. “Some arsehole set her up when she was really young. Left her to take his fall.” Killian was pale.

“Is it her?” asked Will.

“I… yes. It must be.” Said Killian.

“Emma was in jail?” asked Liam.

“She was eighteen. It wasn't her fault. Don't let that change your opinions of her. Please, don't tell everyone. It's private and she's sensitive about her past. She had an awful upbringing, it was a rough part of her life.”

“Don't worry, Killian. We won't tell anyone. It's a secret between us men. Agreed?” said Will. For once Will was the mature one in the situation but he could relate. “All of us here have had a bad part of our lives. I was in jail like her, Robin and Jefferson have lost their loves, David lost his brother, Arthur you went to a dark place, Liam and Killian you had a tough upbringing, Killian had Milah and a three year stint in America. We should respect Emma. To Emma.” he toasted.

“To Emma.” All the men repeated. Killian and Will had a rough start in their friendship and found it hard to get on at first. They had come to blows sometimes.They slowly warmed to each but weren't the closest. But right now, he had never respected someone more. Killian patted his shoulder and Will nodded at him.

The conversations split off and different men spoke to each other.

“Thank you, Will. You didn't have to do that.”

“Don't mention it. It was for Emma. I know what it's like. Being locked up.” Will had been locked up twice for thievery. A year each. “I cleaned up my act. I deserved to go. Emma didn't. She doesn't need discriminating against.” Killian smiled and bought him a beer.

“We didn't have the best start, did we?” he chuckled.

“I’m surprised I don't have the bruise from the first time you hit me still.”

“I’m sorry. I was upset.”

“Well, I should never have insulted Milah. I deserved it. I don't want to make the same mistake with Emma.”

“Shall we put all that to bed?” He smiled.

“Go on then.” They clinked their drinks and had a brotherly hug.

“Killian. I’m sorry about before. I didn't mean to drop Emma in it. I just… I remember her being so lovely and I'd love to see her again.” said Arthur. He looked really guilty.

“It’s fine. It's the women I don't want shunning her. I knew you lot would okay. I was more worried about if she makes friends with the girls.”

“You know the girls aren't like that. If it really is the same Emma, you're a lucky man.”

“Thanks, Arthur. You must come and see her. I'm sure she would love a familiar face.” He smiled.

“Definitely. Maybe we can arrange something next week?”

“Of course. I’ll leave it as a surprise. How does that sound?”

“Thanks, Kil.” he smiled.

“Oi, oi, lads!” Will walked over with a very large tray of shots. Seven each. “Time for a little brotherly bonding.”

“Why do you insist on playing this game?”

“Come on. Seven shots. We each go around saying one thing we’ve done and if one of us can think of something we have all done, they can leave theirs for the next game.” said Will. Will was well known for his party games.

“Okay, you start. Mr Alcoholic.” said Liam.

“Okay, drink if you have hit two people in this group.” said Will.

Killian, Will, and Robin drunk. They had all hit each other but Killian had also hit Liam.

“Drink if you’ve slept with someone on the first date.” said Robin.

All but David and Liam drank.

“You two are such goodies. No wonder you hate this game.” said Arthur.

“Drink if you’ve been in handcuffs.” said Jefferson.

They all drunk except Killian.

“You all have? Liam? Oh… ew. No. No.”

“What can I say. Elsa likes it.”

“Stop.”

“I can't believe Liam has but Killian hasn't.” said Robin.

The men all had a laugh. There was a variety of reasons each man had been in handcuffs.

“Drink if you’ve showered with someone else other than any lover.” said Liam.

Liam drunk, he said his navy days. Will - prison. Then Robin and Killian looked at each other guiltily, then drunk

“You two showered together?” asked Liam.

“It was in uni. It was a dare. We had boxers.”

“Now they do it on a regular occasion.” Laughed Will.

“Drink if you know one Bieber song all the way through.”

Everyone drunk but Will. Most of them claimed it was because of their children. Killian had no excuse. Will didn't drink stating if you knew any of his songs it meant having a higher stab rate.

“Drink if you’ve ever been caught in the act.”

Everyone drunk apart from Liam. Most had been caught in uni or by family members.

“Can Killian break us all?” Smiled Will.

“Drink if you’re currently in love with a woman.” That did it. All the men drunk.

“You love her?” asked Liam. “You love Emma?”

“Aye. Everything about her. I know it's soon. But I do.”

“She really has got you, hasn't she?”

“Indeed. I don't know what to do without her. She really has pulled me deep. She's not ready to be told yet. I know that.”

The men played a few other games and by the end of it they were getting quite drunk. David was the first to get drunk, then Arthur. Robin and Will were trying to out drink each other. They all stumbled back to Will’s apartment. Belle was out, so they had no worries. They continued drinking at his, until they were all jolly.

David and Liam were singing their hearts out. Killian was watching from the couch. He had a beer in his hand but wasn't drinking much of it, he was tired now. He wanted Emma and his bed. Robin had been sick along with Jefferson who were now feeling sorry for themselves in the corner.

Arthur sat by Killian, nearly on him he was that far gone.

“Go-” hiccup. “Home.”

“I’m fine. Just content actually.”

“I know, but you look bored and tired.” He burbled.

“I am tired. I guess. I’ll say goodbye.” He gave Arthur a partial hug and a pat on the back and the same with Will, Jefferson and Robin. David gave him a long speech about wooing Emma. Liam protested about him leaving.

“This isn't the Killian I know. He would be out all night being the life of the party.”

“Maybe he grew up. Maybe I have someone I want to get home to.”

“You mean your twue love?” Teased Liam.

“I never said that. Now, I’ll see you tomorrow. Elsa won't be happy if you aren't well for your date tomorrow. I’m baby sitting remember.”

“Damn. Oh well. See you tomorrow, baby bro.” He gave him a hug goodbye.

Killian walked home. He was fairly drunk. Maybe not as bad as some of the men, but he was still stumbling about and hiccuping. He fumbled with his keys in the door and dropped them.

“Bloody hell.” He tried again, success. The apartment was dark. It was 3am. Emma wouldn't mind. As long as he was quiet. Or as quiet as a drunk man could be. He walked to the bathroom and washed his face, drunk some water and brushed his teeth. He missed putting his toothbrush in the pot but insisted he would sort it tomorrow. He stumbled to his room. No Emma. He wasn't sleeping on his own. He knew that for sure. He went to Emma's room. Henry was sleeping sweetly in his cot, his night light shining. Probably more for Killian's benefit than Henry's. He pulled the cover up on him, but didn't attempt a goodnight kiss. He wasn't risking headbutting him.

Emma had left his side of the bed with the covers pulled down, ready for when he returned. He pulled off his shirt and pants and snuggled into bed. She was fast asleep, his drunkenness clearly hadn't disturbed her. She was wearing some shorts and a tank top. Less than she usually did, but then again they usually slept in his room which was freezing. Hers he noticed was quite toasty. He didn't care. He wanted her in his arms. He inched closer and snaked his arms around her, snuggling into her. He let out a sigh and closed his eyes. It didn't take him long to fall asleep.

#cs ff #captain swan #flight cs fanfic #cs fluff #killian jones #emma swan #captain swan ff

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