#olivia broome

[keepingitneutral]

"Brutalist Plants"

Reinforced hillside, Aogashima, Tokyo, Japan. Photo © Yasushi Okano,

Bucharest, Romania. Photo © Bogdan Anghel,

Casa Alférez, Cañada De Alferes, Mexico. Architect Ludwig Godefroy. Photo © Rory Gardiner,

Monumento a Azeredo Perdigão by Pedro Cabrita Reis,

Casa de Vidro, São Paulo, Brazil. Architect Lina Bo Bardi. Photo © Celeste Asfour,

Artwork and photo by Karsten Födinger in La Vallée, Basse-Normandie, France,

Jurong Bird Park, Jurong, Singapore. Architect John Yealland and J. Toovey. Photo © James Wong

Courtesy: Olivia Broome (Hoxton Mini Press)

[sproutandroid]

I couldn’t resist to get this book. I love eco brutalism, the mix of concrete and plants 🌱

Brutalist Plants by Olivia Broome (Hoxton Mini Press)

[sanccharine]

13 | winners and losers

hogwarts au

pairing: hufflepuff!tzuyu x slytherin!reader genre: fluff, slice of life word count: 3.3k

warnings: brief descriptions of injuries, swearing, and stupid angst :D

summary: whether on the field or during class, you never shied away from trouble. and in your sixth year, trouble seemed to follow you like a shadow, though you couldn’t complain. especially when that series of misfortunes led you to the transfiguration prodigy, chou tzuyu. includes: red velvet’s yeri, ateez's san, txt’s yeonjun, viviz’s sinb, loona’s olivia hye

status: ongoing a/n: happy pride month yall, tho there is nothing happy about this part i fear, very homophobic of me ik, time i out myself

masterlist | chapter 12 | chapter 14

More than anything, it was instinct that saved you. 

Well, instinct and the cushioning spell. 

You couldn’t have cast it even if you wanted to. Not that you didn’t know the spell, you simply forgot it existed. You were more than all right taking the fall, can’t be more dangerous than usual. But, you really did appreciate the softer landing. One moment, you were free-falling with the ground rising at insane speed and the next, you’d hit the land, rolling around as you kicked sand up. 

With a defeated groan, you stopped on your back. Coughs sputtered out of you, no doubt a result of all the sand you ate, while your hand gently let go of your broom. The whine was clear even between the sounds of an ongoing match. 

In your hands, lay your broom—your gift—cracked in two.  

That’s it. 

You were done. 

And so was your broom. 

Maybe you hadn’t broken any bones, but your back was gone. There was no way you were going to class the next week. Lying on the sand, still running on adrenaline, the pain hadn’t settled. You were sure, all through next week bruises of all colours and various levels of pain will bloom much like flowers during spring. But at least, you were done. 

You were done!

A relieved sigh escaped between the panting as you squinted up at the players. Most of them had stopped to see if your fall had been fatal. The game was momentarily paused for you.

Eunbi was the first to arrive. Where from is a question you will never have answered. 

“Told you we’d win,” she said with that wicked grin of hers. 

She was standing at your side, leaning down enough that her face made up most of your vision. From her neck to her ears, she was flushed. It was a scarlet so dark it was almost concerning. She was bearing all her teeth, something between a smile and a method to catch her breath. Exhaustion or elation, it wasn’t clear. Eunbi looked at you all expectantly, as if you had to share the excitement. You weren’t privy to what was running on her mind, you seldom were. 

“No,” you groaned, grappling at the strap digging into your chin. The helmet had done its job. “No, you didn’t.”

Eunbi pouted. 

You sent her a look at the expression, though she just let her smile grow again. The referee landed a few meters away from you. Before they could ask the relevant questions and make it a whole thing, you were quick to give them a thumbs-up. The crowd erupted at your sign, the game didn’t need to be stopped. Still grinning, Eunbi stuck out her hand. The quicker you get out, the quicker the game ends. You took her hand. 

“And,” you paused. 

Something stopped you from fully clasping her hand. 

Something round. 

“We… didn’t win.” 

Staggering, you came to stand, your helmet slipping behind you. Toe to toe, you stood with Eunbi, hand still gripping hers. This close to her, you could really see the specks of light catching in her eyes, her iris alight with mischief. A sight you only witnessed on the field. 

Gulping, you looked down just as your conjoined hands pulled apart. 

Golden wings unwrapped and fluttered, the singing ball floated right up to your eyes as if it were greeting you. And then, it was turning towards Eunbi, circling around her as if begging for her attention. 

“There is no way—!”

The referee blew the whistle. 

“You can’t be serious.”

The points dinged as they rose. 

“You’re insane.”

The crowd was raucous. 

“Told you we’d win,” Eunbi smiled before looking up at the rest of the players. Widening that bright grin, she caught the snitch again and then held it up high. 

To say the Slytherin team were dumbstruck would be a very easy statement, but a lie. Every member of your team was agape, frozen. To be fair, even you couldn’t move—and no, it was not because of your injuries. 

When Slytherin did begin to lose their stupor, Gryffindor was still fuming. 

You could understand them… just a little bit. 

“Did you really need to do all of that?” you asked, cringing at her dramatics. Of course, she pulled stunts like this. That’s how she won her first game. Though they mostly happened to be tricks of the mind rather than extravagant displays. 

“The game was boring,” she shrugged, glancing at the crowds and then at your broken broom. “Probably, the most interesting thing was you struggling for half the game and then plummeting.”

Addressing the jab with a roll of your eyes, you asked. “When did you even get it?” 

“Maybe around ten minutes ago,” Eunbi shrugged again, smiling and waving at our teammates who were landing. The snitch responded with her. “Everyone was too busy focusing on you. Soobin never announced his spotting of the snitch, if he even spotted it, and you were unpredictable. Gryffindor was struggling to get around you and Yeri—a smart choice to change plays in the middle, by the way. Good distraction. So, yeah—”

You put it together quickly. 

“You used me,” you stated, kind of hurt. A lot, hurt actually. Eunbi just shook her head. “Yeah, you did! Ten minutes ago—You could’ve stopped the game, you know I was struggling and you even removed our substitutes—”

Eunbi turned to you with a dead stare. All of her mirth from the previous seconds was gone. A look saved just for you, moments before the team engulfs the two of you with praise. 

“You were finally getting out of your head, finally playing the game,” she said. “I wasn’t going to stop that.” 

And then she pointed at your left hand. And you followed her finger.

It wasn’t shaking at all. You hadn’t even noticed. 

You didn’t know what to say. 

When you looked at Eunbi, she must’ve recognized some emotion in you. Perhaps, gratitude, maybe fondness, either way, she couldn’t handle it, so she turned away. 

“Besides,” she cleared her throat to salvage herself. “We were twenty points behind and I—oof!”

Eunbi went down. Olivia had basically pounced on her. 

You let out a snort. “As if that mattered with the—!”

Yeonjun slammed into you and down you went, for the second time that day. 

Turns out your injuries weren’t too bad. Nothing a little magic couldn’t fix, right? Though you guessed it was more that Madam Yun was sick of you wasting space in her wing. 

The weekend after the game, Slytherin dorms had their wildest party yet. Your team finally was allowed to let loose, going all out and doing the most. Yeonjun had challenged Olivia in some muggle game, clearly baiting her into some easy bet. Olivia, being the competitive spirit, fell for it headfirst. Your beloved first-years just watched their seniors with glassy wide eyes. You doubt there was anything admirable about their seniors, but you weren’t going to burst the first-year's bubble. Minwoo had gained another chocolate frog from you (stolen from the hospital wing, of course) but he let the frog sit atop his shoulder. He’ll have to learn the hard way why that was a terrible idea. 

From time to time, your housemates dropped by to drag you into the revelries but you just shook your head. You were quite comfortable on your couch. After the week you’ve had, you appreciate the stillness. Speaking of…

Your hand was fully under your control. 

Holding both your left and right up, you turned them over and over again to study them. No trembling at all. There were faint shots of pain, more memory than actual pain. 

You were clenching and unclenching your fist when someone whacked your hand away. 

Yeri propped herself on your lap and nestled in, making herself comfortable at your expense. Her legs hung over the couch as she sighed at the ceiling. 

“Happy?” she asked, looking at you upside down. 

Rolling your eyes, you gently moved around her straying strands of hair and she closed her eyes. 

“We won, didn’t we?” 

Yeri hummed. “Not what I was talking about.” 

You paused your ministrations. You weren’t sure what she was talking about.  

With a sigh, Yeri reached out to take your left hand in hers. Intertwining her fingers from the back, she showed your palm to her face so she could trace the lines with her index finger. 

“I feel like you worry over nothing,” she said, suddenly deep in thought. “You know, no one on the team doubted you for a second.”

Now she was drawing random shapes on your palm, from stars to smiley faces. 

“I don’t understand how every year you keep second-guessing yourself,” Yeri said with another sigh. “Eunbi was adamant on it—kicking Hyukwoo out, that is.” 

Your whole body tensed. On a mind of its own, your eyes found Eunbi all the way across the common room. And as if she felt your stare, she looked back at you, coolly.

“No one was against it, but everyone knew it was a dicey move,” Yeri confessed. “Whether the fight happened or not, I think she would have done the same. It just so happened she got lucky—an easy reason—no one could refute her argument. That is, even if it meant it would burden us.” 

Now this was going beyond a simple school game, beyond your personal squabbles. 

“She shouldn’t be playing games like that, her actions will get back to—”

“Eunbi has already been scouted, her position is already confirmed—”

“Alright, then what about the team? What about us?” About me? was the unspoken question. “This year won’t be easy, they won’t make it easy—”

“Then, we’ll just have to wait and see,” Yeri concluded at the same time she dropped your hand. Your best friend stretched like a cat, before turning over to lie on her stomach. Propping her chin on her hand, she kicked her feet as a shiny gloss lit her eyes. “So how do we feel about Tzuyu?”

“That’s quite the topic change,” you pulled a face but she continued, undeterred. 

“And your detention with her?” 

“I don’t,” you paused to think about it. What did you feel about it? “I don’t really feel anything. It's just detention.”

“Yeah, somehow I doubt that,” San’s voice chirped from your right as he seated himself on the armrest, his shoulder bumping into yours. 

“You know there are perfectly empty chairs right across,” you said, faking your derision. 

“Yeah, but I just want to snuggle close to you like—” You shoved San’s face away before he could plant a kiss on you. Though it was proving to be difficult when both his hands were already wrapped around your shoulders. 

“Oi, don’t change the topic—we’re talking about Tzuyu,” Yeri swatted at his arms, but with no real fight. “Seriously, how do you feel about her?”

“I thought we were talking about how I feel about detention with her?”

“Same difference,” both your friends said at the same time. 

You frowned at that. 

“What exactly am I supposed to be feeling?” you asked, in a way to stall so you could honestly bring out your thoughts of her. It was all too muddled, unfortunately. 

San rounded himself and took a seat on the coffee table, your knees almost touching. 

“Well, you like her, don’t you?” San asked as if it were so simple. You were already shaking your head but he just continued. “You’re always worrying about her.”

“Well, more like worrying about how Tzuyu sees them.” At that, you shot Yeri a questioning glare. “Don’t act like it’s not true.”

“I’m not, is it so bad that I don’t want to look like a fool in front of her?”

“Well, you’ve never cared about it before—”

“Well, I guess she’d never been on my radar before—”

“Alright, then, what changed? Why is she on your radar now?” 

You purse your lips. 

They’d caught you. 

You didn’t have an answer. 

What was different now?

“I don’t know,” you admitted. 

The confession made you feel more bare than you’d like.

San and Yeri shared a look. 

“It is clear how much you care for her,” San says so sweetly, you shudder a bit. Care for her? Of course, you do! You just don’t understand the distinction that deserves a whole conversation. 

“Teasing aside, it's good for you—I mean you’re studying and working harder than ever,” Yeri said, “but most of all you’re finally stepping out.”

Before you could ask what that means, she continues. 

“You never really cared for anyone but us, Slytherins, or quidditch players—I could even argue anyone but our team doesn’t really register as important in your mind,” you had to bite back the nerve to ask, why would they? “But standing up for those first-years—”

“Anyone would’ve done that,” you rolled your eyes. 

“Alright then, on top of that, studying with Tzuyu? Practicing with Yeosang!” Yeri stressed the last point while San nodded. “They’re small changes to you, yes, but to an outsider, it looks like it is really helping you.” 

Helping you? Helping you for what? 

You narrow your eyes at Yeri, but she doesn’t shy away from you. She just kept staring at you as if she heard the question in your mind. As if she was urging you to think about what she meant. As if you had the answers. 

So you did. 

All the way back to how you befriended Yeri. 

Or more so, how she had befriended you. She had clambered onto the train, wide-eyed and loud, instantly recognising the name embossed on your suitcase. She hadn’t even asked to enter the cabin or if you were waiting on anyone else. Yeri asked a million questions, all of which you ignored until she called you out. On your passive expression, on your unfriendliness, and on how you stared out your window when your parents didn’t even wait to see you depart. When you finally deigned her with a response, she grinned, having struck gold. 

Later in the year, she revealed that you’d met her before. None of it rang a bell to you, but by that time, she’d grown to be someone quite important. You found yourself clinging on to her more than she did to you. Besides, it did help that whatever trouble you caused or didn’t, she was always the first to back you up. Very quickly, you found yourself doing the same—a loyalty so unwavering, that you didn’t really care for anyone else. 

That’s how it went with Yeri. That’s how it went with everyone else. Every single one of your close friends. 

How San introduced himself with a snack because he’d bought too many, (he had lied, he believed sharing snacks would help him make friends if his words failed). Or how Yeonjun had passed you notes because he was bored at the back of the first History lesson, (you both had been kicked out and never earned the professor’s trust ever again—not that either of you cared for it). How Eunbi made a singular comment on correcting your form when she’d caught your practising spells late at night, a throw-away note, she hadn’t even stopped to say it (and you never got to thank her after the Charms professor praised you).  

All of them had approached you first, regardless if their intention was to befriend you or not. They come to you, befriend you, and you just let them… Or more that they’d broken through. Seen you through your passiveness and unfriendliness as a young Yeri had put it. 

How many more were there? How many more interactions filtered through your mind as irrelevant much like how you’d met Yeri before and had no recollection of it? How many more friends had you lost because you were busy picking and choosing who to speak to and how to speak to them? Whether they deserved your response, being selective on whether they deserved to take up space in your mind? 

When put in words, it sounded awful. Even if it wasn’t your intention, it seemed so so awful. Almost like… your parents. 

“I hope they help you. Help you understand that the world doesn’t end when you make one wrong move. Help you understand that you’ll be fine if you fail from time to time,” Yeri paused to let out a deep sigh. You knew she was thinking about your parents too, but she didn’t feel like saying. Why, when you knew already? “I hope that they help you understand that you’re more than just some Quidditch player, or a decent Transfiguration student, or another L/N.” 

“That’s not her job,” the words escaped you before you could even recognise what you were saying. 

You’ve truly lost where this conversation was going. 

“That’s not their job,” you corrected. San and Yeri shared a look while you folded your arms. 

Weren’t there bigger problems to concern yourselves with than whatever you had going on with Tzuyu? Which wasn’t much. 

“That doesn’t matter! Focus on how I broke my broom—”

“We all saw that, don’t change—”

“Yeri, I’m just saying Tzuyu is not a concern—”

“Our next game is not a concern! It isn’t for weeks! Plus we have school brooms,” Yeri said.

“And spare brooms,” San added, knowing he could ask his parents to send some for you. 

“That still doesn’t guarantee a smooth game, I mean this game we barely—”

“I don’t understand why you won’t let anyone near you,” Yeri shuffled back, now kneeling on the couch. 

“And I don’t understand what you’re talking about,” you flashed San a look, hoping he’d help you in some way. Nothing. “Seriously, what are we even talking about now?”

“I forget how you can be so clueless,” Yeri shook her head and moved away from the couch. She gave you one last look before leaving. “That’s my bad.”

You watched her disappear into the crowd with a sour taste in your mouth. This fight was not a new one. Every year something along the same lines always came up, but truly this time there was no root to it. At least, not one you could pinpoint.

“You’re distracted,” San offered kindly. When you pursed your lips, he sighed. “Tzuyu has been distracting you.” 

“Is she helping me, or distracting me? Which is it?” you asked, and a passing look on San told you he didn’t appreciate the tone. You mumbled your apology before running your hand down your face. “I’ve been practising the best I can, studying the best I can, what are you saying—”

“It’s not a bad thing,” San stopped your words. “Anyone with eyes can see the two of you have been circling each other since the start of the year, though it's become so tense—”

“Yeah, well, I was injured because of her,” you emphasised the point as much as you could. Then you brought your hand up to unfurl a finger every time you made a point. “And then, she went and took the blame. And I don’t even know why she bothered to try to make a friend out of me—”

“Don’t you think these are things you should be talking to her about?” 

Then you froze. 

Whatever you’d said you didn’t feel at the start of the conversation had just poured out of you, out of nowhere—no, from somewhere deep in you. 

“That’s what Yeri means, though she put it less kindly,” San said, placing a hand on your knee. He furrowed his brows, debating if he should say the thing he was thinking, far too gentle to not mince his words, far too different from Yeri. “You can confront people without your fists connecting with their face.” 

You stared at the hand on your knee. “Does it matter?” 

“If you’re so wound up over it, I’d say it does,” and then San reached for your left hand. 

And with horror, you felt it flinch away.

any feedback is much appreciated.

a/n: i said two months but it was three guys im sorry im such a liar ;-; lol anygays have a good day/night everyone !

taglist: @someone-who-likes-broccoli @tatliegilim @nanabongos

send an ask to be added !

[upstairsdownstairsandinbetween]

Mill Owners’ Association Building, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India.

Architect: Le Corbusier,

Image: © Nathan Willock-View/Alamy,

Courtesy of Olivia Broome and Hoxton Mini Press

[monsoon-of-art]

When was Olivia’s first appearance as Dragonfly? What was it like? Also, conversely, what was Lee’s first outing as Hayday like?

After training for a few years, her first outing was...a bit of a rollercoaster, physically. Her first time using her wings, she spent a good chunk of her first night flying around the city to get used to them. (You can't exactly test them inside, but you can't test them too early to draw suspicion!)

It certainly got the city buzzing with rumors, because The Dragonfly had been gone for years at that point. The corrupt police force and politicians and criminal underbelly were less than enthusiastic, but the people of the city were definitely interested.

Hayday's first outing was...less than glamorous. Mostly out of desperation. Basically taking apart and using an old scarecrow they had in storage, Hayday's first crime was probably mugging someone in an alley. No scythe, no broom, he didn't even have a name for himself. Once the whole 'hey this masked crime thing might be helpful', that's when he started actually putting in effort.

[rip-us-xoxo]

Georgie- George Weasley x Reader (REPOST)

Posted DECEMBER 27, 2020

Reposted APRIL 16, 2023

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Warnings- FLUFF

Prompt is in bold: “You’re too good for the world”

A/N- This is for @/dracodear‘s lucky number sleepover & writing challenge! Sorry it took so long!

Enjoy!!!! And I hope you like it Olivia!

_______________________________

1st Year

“Georgie, let’s just go,” you heard Fred Weasley say from behind you. “What are you wearing, Weasleys? Hand me downs?” you heard a Slytherin boy cackle, making his friends cackle. 

You were sitting down at the Hufflepuff table, talking with some of your new friends when you heard the bullying. As a true Hufflepuff (as your friends liked to call you), you embodied what Hufflepuff was all about. The sorting hat did sing “You might belong in Hufflepuff, Where they are just and loyal, Those patient Hufflepuff’s are true And unafraid of toil;” and that’s exactly what you were. 

Now, you had exchanged words with the Weasley twins, but the words that were coming out of the vile Slytherins mouths were making you feel like they were your best friends. 

The words were making you very angry inside, so angry that you needed to go and do something about it. 

“I’ll be back,” you told your friends with a smile before putting on a determined face and walking over to the scene. 

“Hey!” you called out, making all of the students stare at you. You gulped, “Don’t make fun of them! That’s not nice!”. 

“That’s not nice!” one of the Slytherins mocked and took his knee off of the bench that it was leaning on and walked over to you, towering over you, “Whatcha gonna do about it, Huff?”. 

You gulped once more and your eyes flickered over to the boys, locking eyes with George for a few seconds before looking back up at the Slytherin, “What you were saying to him was not okay, and I came to put an end to it.”. 

You shivered at the look that the boy gave you before laughing and pushing you ever so slightly but making you tumble backward. “Oof,” you grunted when your butt hit the ground. 

He and his group all threw insults at you about how you were “a weak Hufflepuff” before turning around and leaving you there with everyone looking at you. You started to try and get up by yourself but you heard someone quickly scurry over to you and before you knew it, you were being pulled up by your bicep off of the ground. 

“Are you okay?” the person asked. You looked up to see George Weasley, one of the two boys you were trying to defend. “U-Um yeah, I’m sorry,” you said sadly and looked down. “Hey, it’s alright, thank you for defending us. My family isn’t too well-liked by purebloods, which is what all those boys are,” George said while patting your shoulder. You looked up into his eyes but quickly looked back down. 

Your face went red and you turned your body slightly toward him, still looking down, “I just don’t understand why everyone can’t be nice to each other, it’s not that hard.”. 

“Yeah,” he chuckled. You smiled at his laugh and looked back up at him, “I’m Y/n.”. 

“Yeah, I know, we have herbology together,” he informed and thought back to all of the times you were praised for being a child prodigy in herbology. 

“Oh, well, I’ll see you later George,” you said with a smile that made his heart thump before giving him a quick hug, not even giving him enough time to hug you back, before letting go and running back over to your friends.

2nd Year

“Georgie!” you screamed as you watched your red-headed friend fall off of his broom after getting hit in the chest by a bludger. 

It was only his second game of the year, or, ever, and it was against Slytherin, who was never fair during quidditch matches, so someone was bound to get hurt. You just hoped that it wasn’t going to be George, but from the gasping of everyone in the crowd to the boy literally on the ground, you knew that he was the unlucky duck. 

“Excuse me!” you shouted while walking through the crowd in the Hufflepuff stands. You got to the stairs and quickly climbed down before running onto the field. To your horror, George was knocked out on the ground. 

“Ms. Y/l/n, move! We need to get Mr. Weasley to Madame Pomfrey!” Madame Hooch declared and motioned for you to help her. You put your limp friend on your shoulder, his other arm slinging around Madame Hooch, and you both headed off for the hospital wing. 

You were panicking the whole time, you immediately thought the worst, contrasting the positive mindset that you had about everything. 

“Madam Pomfrey! We had a bit of a mishap during the quidditch match,” Madam Hooch announced while you both laid him down on one of the beds. “Oh boy, a bludger, I’m assuming?” she pitied while looking at his face that had scratches all over it from the impact he made with the grass. 

“Exactly that, the poor boy was doing great, but he got a little distracted and missed the bludger heading straight for him,” Hooch cooed while patting his face, “Well, I have a match to get back to refereeing. I’m sure Weasley will be fine, I’ve seen worse.”. She took one more look at him before patting you on the shoulder and walking away. 

“Will he be okay Madame Pomfrey?” you asked, voice shaking from your nerves. “Yes, he will be just fine, Ms. Yl/n. As Madame hooch said, there has been much worse,” she said while finishing up cleaning his cuts. 

After the final dab of alcohol she stood up and studied him for a few moments, “He should wake in a few hours.”. 

You breathed a sigh of relief and watched as she walked away before grabbing a chair and sitting beside him. “Thank Godric you’re alright,” you chuckled and studied his sleeping face, “Well… kinda, I guess, I don’t know.”. 

Your nerves were getting to you again, but not because of the fact that George was hurt, it was because you were just near George. You’ve recently been slipping up while talking to him, always being mesmerized by his very handsome face. You would get all blushy when you two were close, not something that used to happen before. 

You stayed there for hours, watching as people walked in and out and occasionally talking to George. “Ms. Yl/n, it would be a good idea to go back to your dormitory. You’ve been here all day, you should go and get some rest,” Madam Pomfrey coaxed, but you didn’t budge. 

“I don’t want to leave him here, he’s my best friend,” you informed her with tears brimming your eyes. “Go get some sleep, Y/n,” you heard a tired voice say from beside you. 

Your head shot sideways and you smiled brightly when you saw Georges smirking, and slightly concerned face. “Georgie!” you exclaimed and jumped to hug him. 

He grunted and hugged you back, pouting small when you pulled away. “How long has she been here Madam Pomfrey?” George asked. 

“Since ten in the morning, I’m afraid. She hasn’t left your side all day,” Madam Pomfrey recounted. George looked over at you with a look on his face that said “Really?”, but it was like you were stupid, stupid to be there all day with him. 

“What? I was terrified! You think I was just going to leave you here?” you asked perplexed. He shouldn’t be surprised that you stayed all day with him, it’s just in your nature to take care of people. 

“Go and get some rest, Y/n, I’m fine,” he beseeched and made a motion with his hand, telling you to go. “Are you sure you’re alright?” you questioned, not believing him. You wanted to make sure he was at 100% before you left him alone. 

“Yes, Y/n, I’m fine!” he assured you, “Go and sleep, please, for me?”. He made puppy dog eyes that he knew you couldn’t resist. 

“Fine,” you breathed out after his cuteness became too much. “Thaaank you,” he mused. You gave him a small nod before slowly, and reluctantly standing up from the chair you were sitting in. 

You turned around quickly so that you wouldn’t look at him anymore, you felt bad for even leaving his side. You walked hastily out of the hospital wing and got pretty far down the hall before your guilty conscience started going a million miles a minute, making you feel horrible for leaving him there. 

You stopped in the middle of the hall, fiddling with your fingers, debating whether you should keep walking or if you should go and sit with George. You started bouncing up and down, the guiltiness eating you alive. 

You let out a whine before running back to the hospital wing. George looked at you disappointed when he saw you walking toward him. 

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t leave you,” you apologized and sat down next to him before laying your head down on his stomach. 

“It’s alright,” he chuckled, “just get some rest.”. You nodded your head before letting out a cute yawn and drifting off to sleep.

3rd Year

“Georgie, that’s too funny!” you laughed as you, Fred, George, and Angelina were walking through the corridor. “I am pretty brilliant,” George boasted, laughing too. 

“Ah shit!” you heard someone groan from across the corridor. Your head looked toward the direction of the words to see a Slytherin boy looking down at a bunch of books scattered all over the ground. 

You left your position beside your friends to go and see if he needed help. “What do you think about that, Y/n?” George asked before looking sideways to see that you weren’t there, “Y/n?!”. 

He looked over to see you walking toward the Slytherin boy and quickly followed behind to make sure that he wouldn’t touch you. Fred and Angelina followed closely behind too, to make sure that George wouldn’t do anything stupid. 

“Are you alright? Do you need help?” you asked the boy. He glared up at you, making you gulp. It was the boy who bullied the twins in your 1st year. “I don’t need help from a dumb Hufflepuff,” he seethed and bent down to pick up his books. 

“Now you listen here!” George growled and walked toward him, but you placed your arm in front of him, holding him back. “It’s alright George,” you told him. 

“But he just insulted you!” George chided and pointed toward the boy who was struggling to pick his books up from the floor. 

“Here, let me help you,” you told the boy, ignoring George. You picked up some of his books and stood up at the same time as him, handing his books to him. He took them reluctantly from you and looked over at his friends to see them laughing at the scene. 

“Stupid huff,” he mumbled and stomped back over to his friends. “That’s it,” George seethed and pushed past you. 

“George, please don’t! He’s probably just having a bad day!” you called out after him. George turned toward you and walked back to you, “How could you be so optimistic? He just called you stupid!”. 

“Yeah, Y/n, I couldn’t see a good reason why he called you stupid even if I wanted to,” Fred chimed in, Angelina nodding in agreement. 

“Everyone has their bad days. And besides, it’s not worth hurting someone for it. Kindness always wins,” you informed them and grabbed George softly by the forearm, pulling him closer to you. 

“I can’t believe you,” George scoffed, amused by just how optimistic you could be. You gave George yet another smile that made his heart thump, as did every other smile you gave him. 

He just rolled his eyes, trying to hide the red that flushed his face, and walked ahead of the three of you to lunch. 

4th Year

“Georgie!” you called out after George, flower crown in hand. He turned around to see yellow robes running toward him, making him immediately smile. “Yeah?” he asked, watching as you finally got up to him. 

“I made you this,” you told him sheepishly and held out the flower crown. “Thanks!” he beamed, “What’s the occasion?”. 

“Well, I thought I might make something for my new boyfriend,” you told him, giggling when you saw blush spread across his cheeks. “Well, I love it,” he told you and set it on top of his head. 

“How does it look?” he asked and struck a funny pose. “Lovely,” you giggled and walked up to him. “Hold on,” you said and stood on your tippy-toes to adjust it on his head, your tongue slightly sticking out because of how hard you were focusing. 

You looked down slightly to see that you and George were face to face, and also that George had been staring at you admiringly the whole time. You became shy under his gaze and quickly looked back up, “There,” you breathed out and looked back into his eyes. 

He smiled slightly at you before grabbing you by your waist, catching you by surprise. “Now or never,” he mumbled and brought his hands up to cup your cheeks before pressing a kiss onto your lips. 

Although you two had been dating for a few weeks, you two hadn’t kissed yet. You didn’t know when it would be the right time because this was both your guys’ first relationship, you didn’t know how any of it worked! 

Once George pulled away, you frowned a bit, already missing the feeling of his lips, not knowing when you would be able to feel that again. 

“Wow,” he breathed out and looked at you. “Yeah, wow,” you giggled, causing him to giggle too. 

“When can we do that again?” George mused. You just laughed and shook your head before pressing another quick kiss on his lips, catching George by surprise. 

“Later Georgie,” you giggled and ran past him. George looked around, blushing like mad, making sure that no one saw the state he was in; A complete and utter mess for you.

5th Year

“Georgie! Don’t put that in-!” was all you got out before George poured a random ingredient into the potion you were supposed to make, making it explode. You and George both froze while Fred’s laughter erupted from behind you both. 

“Good job George!” Fred cackled, “Now Snape’s gonna have your head!”. And Fred wasn’t wrong, within a matter of seconds, Snape was in front of you both scolding you two. 

“I assume it was your doing, Mr. Weasley. Putting… whatever you put into the potion!” Snape scolded him. 

The wave of guilt went through you, although it wasn’t your fault at all, you didn’t want George getting in trouble. You should’ve just stopped him and not have let him pour that ingredient into the potion. 

“No, Professor Snape, I did it,” you told him shakily, making Snape’s eyebrows furrow in confusion. You were one of the best-behaved students in his class. “Well, Ms. Y/l/n, I guess I will be seeing you in detention after class, and taking 5 points off of Hufflepuff,” Snape ordered and gave you and George a glare before walking dramatically back to his desk. “Dangit,” you whispered and slumped back in your chair. 

“Why would you do that, Y/n?!” George scolded you, “We both know that I did it! Why would you take the blame?!”. “I didn’t want you getting in trouble,” you shrugged and looked into his eyes. 

He just sighed and pulled you into a hug. “You didn’t have to,” he whispered and put his head in your shoulder, looking down at where he was stroking your bicep. 

“I know, but isn’t that what girlfriends are for?” you chuckled, making George look up at you sadly. “Thank you,” he mumbled and kissed you on the cheek. 

“I’d do anything for you, George,” you proclaimed and kissed him on the cheek.

6th Year

“Georgie, help me please,” you laughed as you walked up behind him where he was standing by a tree talking to a few quidditch teammates. George turned around and started laughing as well, “Looks like you’ve got your hand full there,” he chuckled. 

You had 5 first years all hugging you at the same time. Over the past year, the first years have come to like you a lot. Ever since you helped one girl with her homework, all of them asked for your help and now every day you’re hanging out with first years, which you don’t mind. 

“Do you think we could sit here? It’s the biggest tree for shade and it’s pretty sunny out,” you asked him. “Yeah, of course,” George said and motioned toward the ground. 

You gave him a thankful smile and looked down to the first years piled on you, “Alright guys, sit down and get out your books.”. They all quickly let go of you and sat down on the floor before rummaging through their bags. 

You sat down too and looked up to see George still standing there, his quidditch mates now gone, just looking at you. “You wanna stop staring at me and sit down? Maybe help me a bit?” you laughed and motioned toward the 5 eager first years. 

“Sure,” George chuckled and sat down behind you, spreading his legs out so that they were on either side of you. He then scooted up and pulled you into his chest so that you had room in between his legs to write down things for the first years. 

You giggled a bit and leaned back, holding a book up so that you could read it. The first years’ assignment was to read one of the sections in their textbooks and answer questions for History of Magic. 

“Alright? Who wants to read first?” you asked the students. One of the girls, Alexia, immediately raised her hand. When you nodded your head and motioned for her to go, she smiled and took a breath before beginning to read. 

After everyone got a turn to read, including you and George (who didn’t want to read at all but did it because you asked him to), you all started answering the questions. But unfortunately, that is when George started getting ancy. 

“Y/n, are we almost done?” he whined, bouncing his right leg. You put a hand on the bouncing leg, making it immediately stop, “No, George, we have 20 questions to answer, and then they have a potions essay to write.”. 

George groaned and threw his head back, his right leg starting to bounce again. “You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to,” you told him softly and brought your hand behind your head to pat him on the cheek, “I’ll be fine by myself.”. 

A few minutes later, you heard snoring coming from George. You felt bad that he was sitting on the ground sleeping, but then again, these first years needed your help. You sighed and kept helping them, but trying to stay as still as possible for George. 

“No, I want to stay with you,” he whined and put his head in the crook of your neck. You just giggled and went back to helping the first years. 

Around 3 hours later, as the sun was beginning to set, you decided that it was enough homework for today. 

“Alright, guys! Good job today, I’ll pick you up from the great hall at the same time tomorrow and we can keep working on your potions essay!” you told them as cheerily as possible, you were tired out of your mind. 

“Thank you, Y/n!” they all said in unison before each of them giving you a tiny hug, considering that George was behind you, fast asleep. “Bye guys,” you whispered and gave them a tiny wave as they all ran off. 

You chuckled when you heard the snoring from behind you get louder. “Georgie, wake up,” you whispered and maneuvered your body around to face him. His face almost hit the ground when he woke up, “What, what?! I’m up!”. 

You giggled at his quick reflexes and blushed when he looked at you, he looked adorable. “Oh, hi, love. How long was I out for?” he asked before yawning and outstretching his lanky arms. 

“For about 3 hours, I’d say,” you told him while looking down at your watch. “Oh okay, wait? Where are the first years?” he asked, noticing their absence. 

“They just left, I’m gonna help them again tomorrow, if you want to come and snooze on me again,” you joked and ruffled his hair. “Sorry about that,” he apologized. 

“There’s nothing to be sorry about. You’re like a giant cuddly teddy bear,” you giggled. “Oh yeah?” he chuckled and tackled you to the ground, making the both of you roll around on the ground while laughing. 

“George!” you laughed as you had rolled around for probably the 5th time. He stopped and hovered above your face, “Hello,” he giggled and placed a quick peck on your lips before hopping up to his feet and outstretching his arm to you. 

You took his hand and he pulled you up quickly, making you fall into his arms. “Now let me get you back to the Hufflepuff common room and then I’m going to sneak into the kitchen to get some cookies,” he said and put his elbow out for you to link with. 

“How gentlemanly of you,” you giggled and linked your elbow with his before walking into the castle.

7th Year

“Georgie, do you have everything set?” you asked him as he was packing his bags to leave Hogwarts. The plan would be set into motion in about 3 minutes. “Yep, I think so,” he sighed, his voice laced with sadness. 

He turned toward you and grabbed your hands, “Why can’t you come with me? There’s enough room in the flat above the shop! You could get out of here, Umbridge will never hurt you again and you can be with me!”. 

You looked up at him, eyes starting to brim with tears, “You know I can’t. I can’t leave the first years behind. They need me.”. 

He nodded sadly and pulled you in for a passionate kiss. “I’ll see you in a couple of months. Make sure to owl me every day. Or at least every week,” he told you and grabbed your hands once more, moving them as he was talking. 

“I promise,” you smiled up at him, “Now go! Go and make your dream a reality!”. 

He smiled brightly at you before giving you another kiss and grabbing his broom. 

“Ready Fred?” he asked, “Ready George,” Fred confirmed. George threw the firework so that it would fly into Umbridge’s class and within seconds, the boys flew off and made their final ruckus at Hogwarts before flying off, the gigantic ‘W’ in the air really making their final mark. 

You cheered along with the others and immediately went to go write a letter to George so that it would be there when he arrived at their new premises.

The Night After the End of 7th Year

“Georgie!” you squealed as you saw him standing outside of the shop. The moment you got off of the train, you apparated to Diagon Alley. 

“Sorry!” you apologized as you ran into someone, but you just kept running toward George. You opened your arms as you rammed into George, nearly knocking him over. “Y/n!” he exclaimed and squeezed you as tight as he could. 

You let a few tears slip out of your eyes, you missed him so much while he was gone. You couldn’t stand not being with him almost every second of every day. You couldn’t stand him not sneaking into the Hufflepuff common room almost every night so that you two could cuddle. 

You both pulled away and looked at each other, the amount of love between the two of you was almost too much to handle. You both grabbed each other’s faces and slammed your lips together, almost completely forgetting you were in public. 

When you two pulled away, people were giving you weird looks, but you two couldn’t care less. “I missed you so much,” he breathed out and pulled you in for another hug. He looked so grown up, he had a suit and tie on and everything. All while you had a dress on that made you look like a little girl. “I missed you too, Georgie,” you proclaimed and nuzzled your face into his chest. 

“Y/n, I have something I want to do,” he told you shakily. You looked up at him, worried. Was he breaking up with you? No! He couldn’t! He just said he missed you. All of your worries drifted away when George got down on one knee and pulled out a tiny black box. 

“I’ve wanted to do this since I first laid eyes on you in first year,” he began, making you tear up. “I love you with everything I’ve got, and I know it’s not much, but my Heart aches sometimes because of how much I truly love you. You, Y/n Y/l/n, have had me wrapped around your finger since we first exchanged conversation. You’re too good for the world and that’s why I love you so much. You’re too good for me, honestly,” he chuckled, you couldn’t believe it. 

“You’ve stood up for me when Slytherins denounced Fred and I, you were there for me when I got hit by a bludger and cared too much about me to leave my side, you helped a foul Slytherin who hurt you just because he needed help. You didn’t care that he called you mean names afterward, your heart was too big to accept that there was any evil in this world. You made me a flower crown for me when we first started dating, you saved me from getting detention by taking the blame for a potion mishap that I caused, you would always help first years and even refused to leave school with me because you knew that the first years needed you more than I did.”. 

His words were making your heart swell. “You’re too good for me and there’s nothing I could ever do to fully deserve you, but I’m glad that you’ve given me a chance to try,” you were now sobbing at this point, “I guess what this is all leading up to is… Y/n, the love of my life, the girl who owns my heart, will you marry me?”. 

You wiped a few tears from your eyes, “Yes, Georgie, of course, I will!” you squealed through tears and let him put the ring on your finger before letting him pick you up and spin you in the air. Once he sat you down, you grabbed him by the collar and kissed him like it was the last kiss you two were ever going to share. 

“Yes! You finally did it!” you heard Fred cheer from beside you two. “Hi Fred!” you greeted him and showed him the ring. 

“Holy crap, did you steal that thing, George?! It’s gorgeous! There’s no way you could afford that!” he gasped. “Only the best for the best,” George told him while still looking at you. 

“Mhm,” he eyed George suspiciously and walked over to you, giving you a hug, “Well congrats, Y/n, make sure to hide that ring when you go out, you don’t want to be caught with stolen jewels,” Fred told you and walked back into the shop. 

“I didn’t steal it,” George told you, “I know,” you mouthed while giggling, making him chuckle too. 

“I love you so much, more than you will ever know,” he expressed, the tears that were brimming his eyes now starting to pour down. “I love you more, my Georgie,” you said in barely a whisper, trying not to sob again, and kissed him once more. 

He was your Georgie forever and he could barely believe it. The purest, most positive, and good soul in the world was his fiancé, soon to be wife. 

Georgie was a very lucky man indeed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

xoxo

[madneurologist]

Varian meeting Olivia would be like

"HUGO YOU HAVE A RAT ON YOUR SHOULDER LET ME GET IT OFF FROM YOU"

he's about to hit her with a broom as he approaches hugo from the back but then hugo turns to him to stop him and goes on an angry rant on how she's very delicate and varian is like ?? tf you're talking about bro youre going to get salmonella

but then he looks closer and notices she's actually a mechanic rat so he throws the broom away and starts inspecting her in fascination and being touchy like he's a kid in a museum and the exhibits say look BUT DON'T TOUCH but he still does it anyway

[flimflamfandom]

Washboard Blues, and other Vignettes

Vignettes (I guess they call them Imagines these days?) I wrote in the Lackadaisy Discord, plus one that’s original on here.

There are 4 on offer: -You’ll Thank Me When You Grow Old (Discord) -If Only She Knew (Discord) -Washboard Blues (Discord) -You’re Gonna Look Fine (new for this post)

I also allude to an original character from @ladybugkisses ! I don’t really include her, it’s mostly about Rocky, but she’s there so I’m tagging it and mentioning Ari. Give her a follow if you haven’t already!

You’ll Thank Me When You Grow Old

Rows of sunlight snuck through the blinds in the dorm. It was cold - drafty, and wet outside, with typical dorm room quality insulation (that is to say - bad insulation) made for a rather frigid experience. 

Still, Helen was wrapped up in the covers, Olivia was in a thick bath robe - And Ivy was nowhere to be seen. That is, until the door crept open, revealing a rather bleary eyed Ivy, still in clothes from the night before - party clothes, with a hastily thrown on tweed jacket. 

Olivia peered up from her glasses while reading, like a disappointed mother. "You're home early." She said, a snide lilt in her voice. 

"I...stayed at a friend's place." 

"Sure you did." Olivia stood. "And I bet you sat there and played dominos all night, too?" Olivia walked over to her bed, and got a few things from the shelf nearby. 

"Olivia, what does it matter if-" 

"It matters that you're out so late! I was worried sick!" 

"Freckle is nothing to worry about, he's a good man!" "He works at that no good, low down Daisy-whatever. I bet he'll die in some awful shoot out anyhow." 

"Olivia!" Ivy gasped, as she removed the jacket, and her evening sleeves, "How dare you say something like that!" 

"It's true! What's next? He gets you tied up in it?" 

"...well..." 

"...IVY. MICHELLE. PEPPER." Olivia seemed mortified. "You're NOT gonna keep doing that! You'll get killed!" 

"What does it matter to you!?" 

"We're your FRIENDS, Ivy! Don't we mean ANYthing to you?" Olivia fought on a sweater, and got her shoes on. "...I'm going to class. I don't want to hear about...mobsters or whatever." Olivia put her hands on Ivy's shoulders. 

"You'll thank me when you grow old." 

Olivia walked out the door. Ivy stood there. She sniffled. Helen rubbed sleep from her eyes. 

"...oh, morning Ivy," She yawned, "Did you...see Oli? She wanted to talk to you." 

"...how did you sleep through that?" 

"Sleep through what?" 

"Nevermind.”

-

If Only She Knew

Calvin sat there as the record player warbled. Something about a washboard. He sat, nervously, in Mitzi May's office. Ivy was there, too. The two seemed to be in fairly hot water. Calvin and Ivy'd been caught by Mitzi in the broom closet as it were. Ivy, still in her green dress, looked up at Freckle. 

"Think you'll have to stop working for the Daisy?" 

"Maybe." 

"Well. Always the Marigold." She said. 

"Not in my life." He said. "If I'm forced into retirement I'm going-" 

The door opened. Ivy gripped Clavin's hand. Mitzi stormed in. "I must admit, I'm awfully cross you two chose to do this on the clock." 

"Mitzi, with all due respect, Calvin's hands were hardly near my-" 

"It's not about that!" Mitzi said. "I do NOT want to hear the details! What's important is that you should NOT be doing that at work!" 

"I'm NOT on the job!" Ivy remarked. "It's my night off!" 

"Calvin is very much on the job." Mitzi replied. 

Calvin looked down. "...I, eh...I was...staking someone out." 

"...why didn't you say something!" 

"I tried, but you kept kissing me before I could say words!" 

"I do have a nasty habit of that." Ivy said. 

"I like that nasty habit." Freckle went a bit red, and drooped his ears. 

"Aww, Calvi-" 

"Excuse me." Mitzi said, sternly. "...I'm not gonna make you two stop seein' each other, that'd be too much. But Ivy, you ask me if Calvin's workin' next time." 

"...fine." 

"And you, Mr. McMurray." Mitzi said. "What are your intentions for my daughter?" 

"...beg...pardon?"

 "Your intentions." 

"...for your daughter?" 

"No, I haven't got a daughter." 

Ivy blinked. "...you said daughter." 

Mitzi's ears stood up. "...I said Ivy." 

"You called me your daughter!" Ivy gasped. "Does that mean-" She smiled brightly, "You love me like a mom!?" 

"Ivy, please, I-"

 "Does THAT mean I'm Ivy may? I like that! I like Ivy Mcmurray more, though~" She cooed. 

"Ivy, I-" 

"You two GET OUT!" Mitzi nearly chased them out with a stick. She sighed. 

"...that girl..." 

If only she knew.

-

Washboard Blues

Glitz. Glamor. Fame. Fortune. All these things came with running the newly successful Daisy. The dresses, the drinks, the fine friends, the gorgeous parties. 

And Mitzi was stuck washing clothes, before such a party, because Wick was 'indisposed'. 

"...You've got 3 maids and a secretary." She grumbled as she scrubbed. "And none of 'em could come to help with things?" She hung something else out. She huffed, and let out a sigh. "I ain't some dainty little housewife, Wick," she spoke, to no one in particular, "if you're not even gonna marry me why make me wash the clothes?" She sighed. "Atlas never made me do that." She grumbled. "I bet ZIB wouldn't! She yelped. "I bet he'd LOVE to wash the clothes from time to time! Closest he gets to a goddamn bath." She sighed. 

"...no, no." She shook her head. "Wick's...injured." She rolled her eyes. "Here I go again, cursing the sick and needy." She got back to scrubbing. She hummed to herself, and sang. 

"Mornin' comes with cloudy skies and rain...my poor back am broke with pain....My man's sleepin', I just scrubbin', chillin', weepin', I do rubbin' age a-creepin', clothes a-tubbin', all day long..." 

She sighed, alone in the back yard, stretching her back and grunting. Her joints cracked. And then... 

"...You know, Zib," She looked over to him, "You really don't have to play that on sax." She said. 

"How am I not gonna play Hoagy Carmichael?" He walked over, and put his instrument down, carefully. 

"What're you even doing here?" 

"Band's entertaining here tonight...I see you've got a bit of the washboard blues, huh?" 

"He's got a bad back, his maids are all sick, and Lacy is already on cooking duty..." She shook her head. 

"Just bad luck on his part." 

"Hmm." Zib shrugged. "You're right, you know." 

"Hm?" 

Zib cupped her chin. "I wouldn't make you wash nothin'." 

"...su...stop." She batted at him, playfully. She smirked. "You're too much." 

"If you say so."

-

You’re Gonna Look Fine

“...Rocky?”

“Hmm?”

“You’ve been looking in the mirror for something like 30 minutes.” Mitzi said, crossing her arms. “What’s got into you? You got a court date or somethin’?”

“Not a court date,” Rocky said, “A REAL date!”

“With who?”

“Ari!” “...it doesn’t ring a bell.”

“You wouldn’t know her, anyhow.” Rocky said, dismissively. “She’s beautiful! She’s got this fiery red fur, and white tailtip, like a...fox or something! How wonderful she is, how delightful, how-”

“Rocky,” Mitzi shook her head, “I understand you got a date goin’ but frankly there’s an awful lot of work to do and I don’t want you mussin’ that suit beforehand. I-...where are you even goin’ at this time’a day that requires that sorta dress?”

“Why, only the finest establishment in town!”

“...”

“HERE!” Rocky said. “For pancakes.” He suavely straightened his tie.

“...for pancakes?”

“She never had ‘em.”

“Rocky-” Mitzi pinched the bridge of her nose. “I do hope she likes you, because I can’t imagine a lotta other women doing so.”

“Do I look okay?”

“You’re gonna look fine.” Mitzi said. “Maybe a little over dressed for a breakfast...you look like you’re on your way to your wedding!”

Rocky sighed dreamily. “I suuuuure aaaaam...”

Mitzi chuckled a bit, and batted his arm. “You really are perplexing.”

“Is that her in the window?”

Standing there was a girl, with...fiery red fur, and a white tailtip. She looked reluctant to enter. Mitzi looked over. “Well, Rocky, you know how to pick ‘em, I’ll give y’that.”

“What if she thinks WE’RE talking though?”

“...despite my better efforts I look like I could be your mother, Rocky. Go ahead, open the door for her!”

“Alright...wish me luck, Miss May, ol’ boss ol’ pal o’mine!”

“Mhm.” Mitzi walked up to the office, and sat in her desk.

“...if THIS doesn’t work out for him, nothin’ will.”

[mrs-luigi-vargas]

Here's the fic I wrote for @paper-mario-zine! You can get it here. Check it out for some more awesome art!

~~~ [AO3 Link] ~~~

We Launch in Five

Mario and Kamek have a chat on the deck of Bowser’s airship.

The last remaining of Bowser’s airships capable of flight bustled with activity as minions scurried around getting it ready for liftoff. Kamek stood among them, watching to make sure preparations were going smoothly; as Bowser had been neatly folded into a square shorter than he was with worse mobility, it was up to him to make sure the minions didn't somehow mess something up.

...even if he would rather be sweeping up that conspicuous dirt pile over there.

...ah, but he should focus; he was hardly a groundskeeper anymore. And he’ll hopefully never be again. He’s got enough titles stuffed in his job description as it is.

He glanced starboard and Mario was leaning against the railing, staring off at the other side of the ship. Just standing there, as hard-working members of Bowser’s Army flowed around him like water.

Kamek marched up to him. “What are you just loafing around for?” he said angrily. “Make yourself useful or get out of our way!”

Mario didn't acknowledge his words, lost in his own little world. Kamek’s eye twitched. Back to being ignored, was he?

“Hey!” Kamek jabbed the end of his broom into Mario’s nose. “Are you listening to me?!”

Mario started, looking cross-eyed at the broom in his face. His gaze slid down it to Kamek, who was scowling fiercely at him. Mario’s face turned apologetic in return. His eyes flicked over to what he’d been looking at once more, then he stood up straight and shook his head as if to clear it.

Kamek looked too, to a small crowd of Bob-ombs milling about the door to the cannons. He considered Mario, who was passing him to leave with a face that looked a bit sad, beneath his usual expression.

“Oh,” Kamek said. It sounded amused. “You got attached to one, didn't you?”

Mario stopped in his tracks. He turned around and blinked at Kamek, who smirked at his surprise.

“Yes,” Kamek mused. “It makes sense for a goody-two-shoes like you to do something like that. You know their lives are meant to be short, right? If you start having feelings about that, you'll just find yourself in more trouble than it's worth.”

Eyes flashing with indignation, Mario balled his fists with an impressive scowl of his own. Kamek scoffed at the display, rolling his eyes.

“Seriously,” he continued, “do you even know how many walk out of the factories every day? There are hundreds, sometimes! They’re all disposable! Take it from me, if you grieve after every single one, you'll burn yourself out in no time. Besides” — Kamek crossed his arms — “they hardly do much these days, aside from being sent out to fight you.”

Mario’s glare froze. It melted into something troubled.

“Oh, for the love of —!” Kamek poked Mario’s chest with his broom. “You heroes always make everything about yourselves. It's not like we expressly tell them to blow themselves up for good; it's hardly anyone’s problem if some of them get overzealous trying to defeat you. They're really not allowed to be that stupid unless it's an emergency, which” — Kamek’s face fell — “I suppose this classifies as.”

Mario frowned. He raised his head, looking up at where Olivia was flying up by the mast with Bowser Junior, and Kamek wondered if the emergency the Bob-omb Mario was thinking about had given it their all for had something to do with her.

“Well, all’s unfair in war, it seems.” Kamek sighed. “The Bob-ombs will be in the cannons,” he told Mario. “It’s doubtful we’ll be allowed to storm Peach’s Castle without resistance. So don't waste time in hesitating for them; they'd rather go out with their impact, as you surely already know. And defending us — you — so you can go do your hero thing certainly is an impact worthy of having.

“Falling out of the sky into the ocean would be a most unfortunate fate in comparison,” Kamek added, leveling Mario with a glare. “So you’d better not screw up!”

Kamek didn't take his eyes off Mario until he received a firm nod in answer, after which he stalked away to yell at a stray Shy Guy for making a mess. Mario fell into step behind him, and it admittedly took a while for Kamek to realize he’d done so, caught up as he was in mentally bemoaning the incompetence that surrounded him.

“...What are you doing?”

Mario shrugged, grinning.

Nearby, a Koopa tripped, the crate they were carrying flying up into the air. Kamek drew his wand to catch it with his magic. “Be careful!” Kamek snapped as Mario helped them back onto their feet. They paid him little attention, busy staring starstruck at Mario. Kamek grumbled about being ignored yet again as they scurried away with a blush on their cheeks. Mario jumped up to grab the crate still floating in the air, and waited patiently for Kamek to get the ire out of his system.

Kamek’s complaints petered out as he noticed Mario with the crate under his arm, watching him expectantly. The confused scrunch of his face shifted to mild irritation fairly quickly, though. “I suppose I did want you to be useful,” he muttered. If only everyone was as eager about receiving orders from him. “Put that over there” — he pointed — “and then go get Olivia and talk to King Bowser; we’re practically ready for liftoff.”

Mario nodded enthusiastically and hurried off to do just that. Kamek watched him go with a huff, then went to go chat with the airship pilot.

Minutes after that, the airship took flight, soaring towards the volcano upon which Princess Peach’s Castle sat. As predicted, there were origami aircraft ready to meet them, to knock them out of the sky. And when Mario had to man the main cannon to defend the airship, Kamek was pleased to note that he didn't miss a single shot. A more than adequate performance, if he did say so himself.

[bebepac]

The Moments In Between

I am participating in @choicesflashfics prompt : “I don’t have a date, so would you ... maybe want to be my plus one?” will appear in bold 

I am also participating in @choiceschallenge-may2023 for falling in love.

Letting you know now, this story is probably the most canon I have written. This is not my OG Riley and Liam  and in this universe Liam and Riley did not spend the night together as all my other headcanon stories have them.  Liam has kept his emotional distance like canon.....which has invited the opportunity for Drake to make an appearance.  

This could be seen as a prequel to  If Only for the Night

The Book:  TRR Pairings:  Riley x Drake? Warnings and Ratings:  None! Word Count: 1121 Summary:  Riley meets Drake in the Lythikos wine cellar for a drink Song Inspiration:  That Don’t Impress Me Much by Shania Twain

A/N: I’m sure this title has been used in fics before, so hopefully no one is offended by it, but I’m taking it from the Canon diamond scene. 

AN2:  This story actually came to my mind because of a conversation I had with @angelasscribbles as we were talking about Drake. I had thought then, that conversation would not give me any writing ideas, but SURPRISE!

Original post:  05.27.23 at 9:31PM  EST. 

To be honest, I wasn’t even surprised about how the trip was going being in Lythikos for Olivia’s tribute to Prince Liam.  The room she put me in was basically a refurbished broom closet, dinner was served to my table cold with portions of the entree missing.  

But what struck me and what did surprise me is that Liam didn’t notice, and never checked up on us, supposedly his true blue friends were all sitting at the neglected table and he didn’t even glance in our direction the whole evening.  

And not to mention….the kiss. He let her kiss him in front of the whole court. He genuinely appeared surprised when it happened, but everyone at the table, all their eyes were trained on me for a response.  I mean honestly, what could I say?  

Prince Liam is not my boyfriend, I’m a suitor in this game we’re all playing.  I am competing for a man that at this point has no true allegiance to me.

Nonchalantly I shrugged my shoulders.  “She went for it.  You know, she doesn’t usually get this much individual time with the Prince, so I can’t fault her for shooting her shot.”  

“You’re a lot calmer than I thought you would be, Brooks.”  

“I mean, these so-called 'noble' royals have been showing me who they are this whole time, I’d be a fool not to believe them.”  

“You deserve a drink Brooks,  meet up with me later, and we’ll find where the good stuff you like is stored in this keep.”  

“I really might have to take you up on that.”  

Liam finally cornered me for a brief moment, as I stood on the balcony letting the cool wind in a way revitalize me.  

“Are you angry with me for what happened?”

“No.”  

“I thought you might be.”  

“How can I Liam? you haven’t so much as stated any intentions you have for me, or of any feelings for me because you say, you can’t.  You have a duty to your people and I get that.  But don’t forget, all of us are “your people, and we are getting mistreated by some of these people that are supposed to be the “Nobility.”

“I heard about what happened to you all with your meals by the waitstaff, it’s very unfortunate.”

“You mean what they were told to do to us  by the Duchess of the Keep?”

Liam took his hands in mine.

“Let me make it up to you. Come meet me tonight.  My room has the most beautiful view of the Lythikos landscape and a wonderful hot tub that I have yet to want to use, but would love to enjoy it with you.”

Seriously Liam? That don’t impress me much. 

 I thought in my head.

“It’s been a really long day Liam.”  

Liam frowned for a moment.  His smile returned as he kissed my hand.  

“I promise you it will be relaxing, and I’ll keep my hands to myself, that is unless you want a massage.”

I felt my resolve wavering for a moment but then it recharged when I remembered all the bad treatment I had experienced while visiting in Lythikos thanks to the Scarlett Duchess herself.

“I’ll wait for you just the same.”  

“If I’m not too tired by the end of these festivities, I’ll definitely meet you.”

My mind  was already made up as I walked away from him.

That evening when I made it back to the cupboard under the stairs that was my room,  I freshened up a bit, and changed my clothes.  I had more than one choice and I had decided how I wanted to spend my evening.

And I feel like I made the right decision as when he turned around he genuinely looked surprised to see me.  

“Hey! I don’t have a date, so would you maybe want to be my plus one?”

“Brooks!  I didn’t think you would show.  I had heard Liam had invited you…”

“I could use that drink more, it’s been a helluva day.  This is how the working class unwinds, not in hot tubs and seeing glorious views of the Lythikos backcountry. If we’re being totally honest, the Lythikos backcountry can kiss my rounded backside.”  

Drake laughed.

“I hear that.  Sounds like you’re ready to start popping some bottles?”  

“Hell yeah I am!”  

I started going through the bottles of Wine in the cellar, when I noticed Drake wasn’t doing the same.  

“Aren’t you going to pick some too?”

“Naw, I brought my stash. This was more about you, I know today was a rough day for you.”  

Drake produced a silver and black flask with the Cordonian Crest on it.  

“I mean not really, people have been showing me their true colors since I got here.  And Liam, can’t be who he was when he was in New York here, at least not in public. So is that Whiskey? The third Level of your food group pyramid?”

“Hey if that’s the third level, what are the first two?”

“Isn’t it obvious?  Meat  is level one, Potatoes are level two.”

“You get me Brooks, and yes it’s Whiskey.”  

“So are you sharing that?”

“I can.  You know you’re really a lot different than I thought you were when we all first met in New York.”

“You should know not to judge a book by its cover Drake, as much as the Nobility of Cordonia are constantly judging you here.”  

“You’re different.”  

“No, I’m the same, you just didn’t see me for who I truly was before, and now you’re finally getting a glimpse.”  

Was Drake Walker blushing, and why was he staring at me that way?

“This is me relaxed, just being myself.  Not behaving like a trained dolphin for the cameras.  The moments in between where I get to be just Riley. You know, this is the most we’ve talked Walker, you’re not half bad.”  

Drake was staring at me as if he was in  some sort of trance, after a few moments he snapped out of it.  

“We should toast.  To the moments in between where we can relax and be ourselves, with no added pressure.”

He took a sip from the flask and held it out to me, right when I was about to grab it, he snatched it back.

“Pass it here, I don’t have mouth herpes or anything. Besides, the alcohol would kill the germs anyway.”

He looked to be weighing the validity of the idea in his head for a few moments and then came up to the resolution, nodding to me in agreement.

“Seems legit.”  

I held up the flask and before I drank, I smiled at Drake.

“To the moments in between.” 

[projectourworld]

On her @brutalistplants Instagram page, Olivia Broome collects photographs that combine the angular shapes of concrete with the greenery of the natural world. “I really enjoy the aesthetic of eco-brutalism and tropical modernism,” she says. “I love mezzanines and ziggurats, and when you pair them with plants it softens them up. Brutalism can be this quite harsh, austere architecture style, but with nature involved, it balances it all out.” “It’s a pleasant movement that people can get behind, especially in smaller spaces and modern cities – it’s nice to fill them with plants and nature.” Courtesy The Guardian

[moonlightreal]

Midnight in Salem

HerInteractive was churning out games three a year, and then… they weren’t. I don’t know the details but it probably had something to do with the Mysterious Benefactor no longer benefacting. The next game was going to be Midnight in Salem, and it didn’t appear and didn’t appear and the fandom assumed they’d solved their last puzzle.

The it did appear.

And it was disappointing.

That’s what I knew already but come on, Nancy Drew and witches, of course I was going to play it.

It was indeed disappointing, but not nearly as much as I’d feared. My verdict is that the game is fun but true blue Nancy Drew fans will have moments that just kinda make them twitch because the writers just did not quite get what they were supposed to be going for.

The worst twitch is Nancy herself. She has a new voice, with Lani Minella having retired from the role so she doesn’t sound right. And the writers don’t quite “get” Nancy. Or I guess you could say they’re trying to let her grow as a character, from a teenager who kind of chuckles about mysteries finding her wherever she goes and being “a bit of an amateur detective” to a young woman who is thinking about going into business with the Hardys as an official detective. At the end of the game Nancy makes a quip about wanting to ride a broom because it would be good for “getting an overview of crime scenes” and I just feel like the old Nancy doesn’t think in terms of crime scenes. Our girl has taken a step towards CSI and away from, well, Nancy Drew. A really small step, but enough to be jarring.

Oh, and there’s also a mild subplot where Ned is somewhere else in company with another girl who playfully steals his phone, and he’s concerned that Nancy is hanging out with Frank Hardy. It’s only a few phone calls, doesn’t take up much of the game, but again it’s a jarring change and it kinda makes me clutch my pearls and go, “The real Ned and Nancy would never!”

But Nancy also sounds more… human? Than Lani’s Nancy. She has longer conversations and comforts other characters who are scared. She freaks out when she sees the ghost—she still doesn’t believe in the supernatural, Nancy’s a confirmed skeptic, but in the moment she believes and is really freaked out. Which is how a real skeptic would react, I think. So if the idea is to make Nancy grow as a character, it’s not all bad.

(I, a confirmed magical being, love how Nancy is a confirmed skeptic and there’s always a rational explanation.)

The plot of Midnight in Salem went through some rewrites, so I’ve heard. Apparently the original was more concerned with the witch trials and some of the characters had the same names as historical figures. Knowing that you can kind of see it, there is a lot of witch history in the game but it sort of feels like there was more, more plot threads that were snipped along the way. The story that came out the end of the focus group was about arson at a historical house, a stolen book written by a judge apologizing for, y’know, sending innocent women to their deaths, a witchy tourguide, a girl with strong intuition, and a ghost. The spooky stuff is everywhere but the mystical minigamnes were a bit disappointing. There is a minigame where you make herbal remedies and that’s great but there was room for more ingredient gathering and potion making. You get to do some ghost hunting with a ghost-o-meter but Joe Hardy’s one homemade gizmo is kinda pathetic to everyone who’s played a Darkling Room game. Joe, props for trying but you gotta level up!

The puzzles and minigames are actually good. They’re on par with the puzzles in the rest of the series except for one aspect: their rarity. Midnight in Salem has like half as many wildly unrealistic puzzles as any other Nancy Drew game. Lauren didn’t ask us to help put her teas on the shelf except teas in blue tins have to be next to teas in green tins but teas in purple tins must be on the end of the shelf. Olivia didn’t make us identify crystals in her shop. Teegan didn’t ask us to arrange even one museum display! When we check out the water system we don’t have to reconnect the pipes to find the thing that’s hidden there. The careless judge hasn’t locked the evidence in a safe and forgotten how the unique lock works. Mei didn’t make us beat her at a phone game before she’ll talk to us. How is this even a Nancy Drew game?!

Come on HerInteractive, you gotta up the “Why does Nancy have to do this it makes no sense!” factor. We are not here for remotely realistic. We are here for puzzles.

All that said, I quite enjoyed Midnight in Salem. It’s not a good Nancy Drew game, it’s a fumbling attempt at a Nancy Drew game by people who were trying but didn’t quite get it, and it could have been a better game than it is. But approached with that expectation, accepting that you’ll twitch from time to time, it’s a good game!

And things are looking up for the series! Mystery of the Seven Keys just came out and it’ll be a while before I play it, but I know that HerInteractive did a stellar job of teasing the game through puzzles on the website, bringing the whole fandom together to find clues and solve them to learn hints about the game’s plot. That doesn’t promise a good game, but it’s a really good sign.

[sanccharine]

12 | what the fuck was that?

hogwarts au

pairing: hufflepuff!tzuyu x slytherin!reader genre: fluff, slice of life word count: 2.7k

warnings: brief descriptions of injuries, swearing, and lots of quidditch ·_·

summary: whether on the field or during class, you never shied away from trouble. and in your sixth year, trouble seemed to follow you like a shadow, though you couldn’t complain. especially when that series of misfortunes led you to the transfiguration prodigy, chou tzuyu. includes: red velvet’s yeri, txt’s yeonjun and soobin, viviz’s sinb, loona’s olivia hye, and le sserafim's yunjin

status: ongoing a/n: hi hi, we're back after like two months and there's not a single thought of tzuyu i fear, ha ha ha, read it and weep <3 also @eternallyghosting here you go

masterlist | chapter 11 | chapter 13

You stared at your hands. Your broom in your right, still. Your bat in your left, shaking. 

There was no room for you to fuck up. 

More disoriented than ever, you ran out of the changing room. Eunbi had already disappeared down the corridors. The further you jogged, the louder the shouts became. A collective mass of students and teachers, yelling at the top of their lungs, to start the first Quidditch match of the year. 

Silently and slightly out of breath, you found the empty space behind Yeri, saved for you in the line-up. The Gryffindor team kept stealing glances at you, though you didn’t have it in you to take part in playful banter. It seemed like no one in your team felt that way. Just as you were about to ask Yeri about what Eunbi revealed in private, the referee blew the whistle. Both teams mounted their brooms and filed out. For the first time that day, you didn’t think and let instinct take over. 

Right hand effortlessly steering your broom, you followed your team. While the commentator rambled about the game and introduced the teams, it was customary for players to do a round—permissible showboating. It might be hard to believe, but you really weren’t one to show off, at least not at this stage, though you can’t lie, you did like the attention… sometimes. Often, you’d throw a smile or two, maybe taunt the other team, or go handless when your name is called. 

Today, you did none of that. 

The referee reminded you of the rules and fouls, picking out specific members and reminding them of past mistakes while the commentator kept the audience busy. None of it filtered in apart from the raucous crowd, an overwhelming static clouding your mind. 

You were squinting at the referee when a deep sigh came from your right. 

Just as you turned to Yeonjun, a voice filtered in. 

“Then we have one-half of the infamous Slytherin duo…” the commentator dwindled into a mumble towards the end, “ah, found it! Kang Yein!” 

Kang Yein? Who is Kang Yein? 

Confused, you turned around to see the commentator’s booth. The first thing you noticed was the yellow and black scarf engulfing the face of a boy you sort of recognized. Glasses and striking black hair, you knew him, of course, you did, he hung around with Yeonjun sometimes. But you couldn’t place a name. 

“Did he just…?”

You barely finished the question when Yeri answered. “Yeah, that’s me. I’m Kang Yein.” 

When you turned back around, you and Yeri shared a look.

“And the other half of that duo…” 

Whatever he said was a name alright, just not yours. Though, he did get your last name right. Of course, he did. It was a well-known title. There was no messing that up. 

You threw another glare over your shoulder. The commentator pushed his glasses up as he fumbled over his flashcards. Who let this kid do this job?

“Cut him some slack,” Yeonjun said as if he read your mind and your attention was on him. He was facing ahead, pretending to nod along to the referee, but speaking to you from the side of his mouth. “Soobin’s new to this, he’s just nervous.” 

Soobin. That was his name. 

“Oh, this is my best friend! Choi Yeonjun, my brother, my partner in crime,” you sent an unamused look to Yeonjun while he just hung his head. “Slytherin’s beloved keeper.”

“But I’m the keeper,” Yunjin said from down the line, but Yeonjun just let out another deep sigh. 

You decided it’s best to forget that this Soobin person existed. 

Once the referee blew their whistle, the teams split as the members took their positions. The crowd erupted once more. 

You closely followed Yeri. You were doing pretty well, that is, if you could ignore the way your left hand convulsed, so much more violent than any time before. 

“Did you know?” you shouted over the wind, your eyes flitting between your batting hand and the field around you.

“Did I know what?” Yeri yelled back. 

You had a few seconds before the game started, you quickly sidled up to Yeri so you didn’t have to keep shouting. 

“That Eunbi kicked Hyukwoo out?” you asked, eyes now on the field. The referee was speaking to the two captains of the teams. 

Yeri, who’d been leaning down to ready herself, pulled a face. “What?” she asked, dead-focused on the referee. Ready to fly away at any given moment. “She really did it?” 

“Yeah, she just said—wait, hold on, you knew?” you trained your gaze on your friend and tried not to glance at her batting hand, still at her will. 

Yeri shrugged. “I mean, she mentioned it. I didn’t think she’d actually do it.”

“And you didn’t think to tell her that we don’t have other substitutes?” you exclaimed. “I know we don’t like Hyukwoo, but we don’t have any beaters now and if—”

“Substitutes? What substitutes?” Yeri squinted as she shook her head as if she was trying to get rid of flies around her. “We don’t need substitutes.”

“Yeri, are you serious right now?” At your tone, Yeri finally turned to look at you. Yeri gulped when you turned to show her your left hand, shoulder down, it was trembling. You asked again. “Are you serious?” 

A light flashed across Yeri’s eyes. She didn’t appreciate your tone, but she gulped the emotion down when she glanced again at your hand. She understood where you came from, she really did.   

“Well, tough,” you had to bite your lip to prevent yourself from saying something you regretted. You also understood where she was coming from. Sometimes the worst thing is that your friends just know you better. “We’re the only beaters now, then. Don’t think too hard about it.” 

You couldn’t even get a word in when the whistle blew. Couldn’t even catch the devilish grin she’d sent you because, in an instant, Yeri vanished from your side.

“And the game begins!"

Chasers and bludgers. Bludgers and chasers. That was where your attention was supposed to be. 

Your eyes were roving the arena, dead-set on finding them. From corner to corner, the excited crowd is a blurry mass of flailing hands and team colours. Skies blue, field green and brown, golden rings and colourful banners. Everything filtered in. 

It was concerning how blurry your vision was. You were moving. Your teammates were moving. The bludgers were moving. Yet, none of it registered.

Eunbi was nowhere in sight. Though that shouldn't be a concern, she’d asked to keep chasers in mind. 

Chasers and bludgers. Bludgers and chasers.

“What are they doing?”

Why couldn’t you focus?

“Are they alright—Is this what they’re supposed to do? No, right?”

Your head snapped to the commentator booth. You couldn’t see him, Soobin was only a fuzzy mess of yellow and black, but you did hear him choke on his own spit. 

“Sorry!”

He was right, though. What were you doing?

The static in your head seemed to grow louder than the buzz of the crowd. Light melted in until your vision was white. You were in the air, but you weren’t moving. Floating in place, in the middle of the game. Useless.

You reminded yourself, that you didn’t have room to mess up. You simply couldn’t. 

But how could you do anything when your own hand fought against you. 

On the verge of dropping your bat, on the verge of dropping to the ground yourself, you scrunch your eyes shut. A pain at your temple blooming as the static grew louder. Almost as loud as the beating of your heart, deafening in your ears. 

But then, you heard it. A singular sound. That familiar crack. 

Your broom was already turning—already moving—towards the sound as you opened your eyes. A bludger headed straight for Olivia. 

Olivia, blind to it.

The bludger, a ball on a mission.

And you, ignoring your hand.

All three were flying at unimaginable speeds.

You couldn’t tell if the screaming crowd was the result of your eventual collision or for something else in the field. You didn’t have the mind to think about that. Instead, you did what you did best. You did something stupid and put yourself right before the ball, ready to take the hit if your shaking bat raised to defend didn’t. 

But then, you did. 

Defend, that is.

Sort of.

The bludger hit your bat. 

Except it didn’t defend it at all. Instead, the ball pushed right through you, merely slowing down the ball. 

It was as if the whole game stopped. Your hand thrummed with the effect. How your wrist hadn’t snapped all over again, you didn’t know? Somehow, your arm, in its jelly-like state, was still attached to your socket.

“What the fuck was that?”

No, because what the fuck was that?

In slow motion and with much horror, you watched the ball head straight towards your teammate. Olivia, still oblivious, was ready to pass the ball, her flight slowing automatically to get the aim right. Maybe the hit wouldn’t be fatal, but it would still injure her pretty badly. 

Your eyes were burning. So was your throat. 

The sound hadn’t registered then, but you were screaming Olivia’s name. 

Unfortunately, she turned, more startled by your scream in the middle of a game than anything. 

If your failure played back at a snail’s pace, replaying second by second. Then, Yeri’s success was lightning, blink and you’d miss it. 

And you did miss it. 

You didn’t know where she came from. Or how she came to be there. Or even where she’d gone afterwards. All you heard was that crack, deafening and proud. A bludger successfully being defended by a beater’s bat. 

“Oh, did you look at that? That was so cool!—Wait, that’s—”

“It happens.”

You jerked to the side when Eunbi appeared out of thin air, her eyes on Yeri as she did both of your jobs as one player. 

“Try again,” was all your captain said before zipping away. Within a matter of seconds, you lost sight of her. 

So, you did. And tried again.

You followed that crack. Much closer to you this time around. That was good, you were so fast, this is really good. 

Within moments, you were at arm's length of defending the bludger. Though, the second your left arm swung out, your confidence seemed to plummet. 

Much like before, your hit was bad. But unlike before, you managed to stop the ball from hitting your teammate. The only thing was you hit the ball towards the ground. 

You questioned if you should follow it, bring it back up, maybe try to strike a chaser. But your aim has been so off, and your strength is non-existent, you doubted you could hit an opposing teammate, or worse, what if you hit one of your own? 

But then, very much like before, Yeri flashed in your sight out of nowhere. And in a single clean arch, she thwacked the ball right back into a Gryffindor chaser, their broom careening to the side, making them drop the quaffle. Only for Yeonjun to swoop in to catch the ball for himself. 

This time around, Yeri paused to look at you. Not long enough to catch exactly what she was thinking but enough to know what she had in mind. 

You nodded. You hoped you both had the same idea. 

The next time you heard a bludger, you flew in blind. You swung blind too. Mustering any and all strength you had to deflect the bludger. And it worked!

And right on your tail, was Yeri, ready to aim it at a player. 

It was tiring. Constantly speeding. 

But it wasn’t as tiring as it was confusing for the opposing team. 

None of your hits had any bite to them, not to mention, they lacked any aim altogether. Players, the disadvantage being your teammates included, scattered like flock the second you hit a bludger. They were fearful your shoddy aim would find a target on their back. It was disorienting enough that it bought you time—bought Yeri time to zip in and zip out, a clean hit at a random player. 

And when your aim sent the bludger sky high, the crowd laughed. And when Yeri’s deadly aim shattered a broom in half, the crowd gasped. 

The referee blew the whistle, either a change in broom or a change in player was needed. Regardless, you had a few minutes of respite. Inhaling a deep breath, you chanced a glance at Yeri, tilting your neck all the way to see her flying leagues above you. 

She was grinning like a mad woman, eyes alight, positively buzzing with adrenaline. And when she found you staring, her grin only widened, you didn’t know that was possible. 

You met her halfway when she exclaimed. “Good plan!”

She shouted, before heaving a breath. Both of you were struggling to maintain composure, any more second of this break and you were sure the pair of you would drop like flies. 

You could only nod. 

“Keep doing it,” Yeri nodded, before gulping in another breath. “I’ll find you.” 

You nodded again when the whistle sounded off. 

Taking your position, you were a little bit more confident this time around. 

It just so happens that people got wind of your tactic. Players no longer scattered, their attention was attuned to Yeri, ready to dodge the moment she hit. Plus, both the Gryffindor beaters had their eyes on her too. And it definitely didn’t help that she was slowing down. Yeri was too busy defending herself to attack anyone. And you were getting sick of it.

Without thinking, you headed straight towards your chaser, a stray bludger near you while Yeri was busy. Your best friend was too far to catch it after you failed. It was all on you. 

You didn’t think about who the chaser was. 

You didn’t think about where Yeri was. 

You didn’t think about your arm. 

You swung the bat, with all your might. 

A deafening crack popped your ears.

“Did you—Did you see that?! Oh my—Oh, wait!” 

And then Soobin squealed. Like properly. We’re talking at a decibel only dolphins can reach. You wouldn’t have paid him any mind if he hadn’t sounded so ridiculous. You wouldn’t have paid him mind because you were watching your bludger find a Gryffindor chaser. 

Soobin exclaimed something else, though it got drowned out by the crowd. Their cheers. 

And then they gasped because your hit had been deflected. 

But it didn’t matter. You were finally playing the game. 

Grinning, you tried to find Yeri. She was easy to spot since she was waving her bat in circles as she leaned down. 

Switch back to usual tactics is what she signed. 

Finally confident, you leaned down on your broom as well. 

You were playing well. Perhaps, the best you’ve played all week. 

However, you couldn’t ignore the small voice of doubt in the back of your mind. One that pointed out that your hits were constantly being deflected. That they were weak. 

It was as if your mind were split into two, warring against each other. Were you to rejoice at the fact you were playing, finally playing? Or worry about the fact that you were barely attacking the other team? 

Of course, there was a third, smaller part of your mind wondering where the seekers were. After that first hit of yours, Eunbi made herself scarce. From time to time, you’d see something jet past, a green blur just to know it was her. 

Good or not, playing or not, it was evident that you were tiring out. You were one hit away from succumbing to exhaustion. 

Where was Eunbi when you needed her?

You didn't answer the question. A bludger was on its way. 

They hadn’t hit it yet, but from the way both Gryffindor beaters angled themself, you could guess what was about to happen. They were gunning for Yunjin. 

It didn’t really compute. Honestly. 

Even if it did, you doubt you could make sense of any of it over Soobin’s screaming. 

Wind thrashing against your uniform. 

Your broom whistling as it sped. 

Yunjin’s horrified expression, at you or the bludger, you weren’t sure. 

The only thing you knew for sure was that you swung your bat. Hard. 

With both hands. 

Then, you tipped. 

And then, you were falling.

any feedback is much appreciated.

a/n: i will say i had more but it didn't fit, we need a cliffhanger you know ? i know you know :] see you in another two months ? lol anygays have a good day/night everyone !

taglist: @someone-who-likes-broccoli @tatliegilim @nanabongos 

send an ask to be added !

[lilacella]

I've got 99 problems, would you like to be one?

Ao3

Chapter 7: Epilogue

Previous

"Sirius!" Remus rushed upstairs to the study, where Sirius was tinkering on his attempt on a magical hand mixer, which so far seemed to be more of a volatile near range weapon than a kitchen utensil ("It's actually a feature, if you think about it!"). He turned around to Remus with a concerned frown.

"What's wrong?"

"Olivia!" Remus panted.

"What's with her?"

"She left!"

"Well, she said she would. She wanted to go play Quidditch with Harry and I allowed it. Did you have an issue with it?"

"No, but I do have an issue with how she is getting there!"

Sirius raised a puzzled eyebrow.

"She took your stupid bike!"

Sirius' frown turned into a grin. "Oh."

"Not Oh! Stop smiling! She could fall from the sky!"

"She won't."

"She is just a kid!"

"She is fifteen, Remus." Sirius got up and put his hands on Remus' shoulders. "And she flies perfectly fine."

"On a broom, yes. This is a motorcycle!"

Sirius shrugged. "Not much of a difference, really."

Remus took a deep breath to calm his anger. Yelling at Sirius (or Olivia) seemed to have an adverse effect, this much he had learned in the past 10 years of living with theses lunatics - and Remus did not even like to yell. But right now he was close to it.

"Oh no, absolutely no difference at all! And besides that, I also wouldn't let her fly eighteen miles to the Potters on a broom! How did she even get to the bike? You shound have guarded it better!"

"How would I do that? It's not like child locks still work on her?"

"Don't pretend like you couldn't have figured out a spell!"

"Remus, relax. She'll be alright! I'll go pick her up later so she doesn't fly back."

"No, you will not pick her up later! Go after her now!"

Sirius raised his hands defensively, as Remus shooed him downstairs.

"Okay, okay, no need to freak out like this."

To Remus great horror, Sirius also seemed to have no intention of using a broom, like a bloody normal person. Instead he walked out to the backyard and unleashed Buckbeak, their foster hippogriff.

Remus let out a resigned groan. "Really? You going after your daughter on a giant bird-horse?"

"He needs some exercise, barely gets out of the yard. That's no life for a hippogriff!" Sirius patted the ginormous beak of the creature and it shrieked in appreciation,  nuzzling Sirius' head with its own.

Remus dragged his palm over his face. "I want a divorce."

Sirius threw him a look over his shoulder but didn't say anything, before he mounted Buckbeak.

"See you at the Potters then?"

Remus nodded. "I'll take the floo."

Sirius nodded as well, clicked his tounge at Buckbeak and they took off.

Their next door neighbours peered after him disapprovingly. Remus gave them an apologetic smile.

A quiet life. That's what Remus had always wanted. A nice little cottage in the cotswolds, with a cozy reading nook, shelves filled to the brim with all the books and various knicknacks Remus liked to collect on his trips to the flea market. A house with a flower garden to spend sunny afternoons and a comfortable cellar to spend the full moons - even a large dog that somehow managed to keep both his and Olivia's wolves in check. He really had gotten it all.

Except for the quiet part.

He pulled the front door shut after him and sighed. He couldn't really complain - although he often did. Sirius and Olivia - and recently the hippogriff, Sirius had insisted on rescuing from a Magical Creatures show - certainly were the main factors for chaos in his life. But also the main factors for happiness.

This house wouldn't even resemble a home without them and eventhough he probably would never admit it, he even liked the chaos a bit. Life would be awfully dull without it.

When Remus stepped out of the Potter's fireplace, Lily was lounging on the couch engrossed in a book. She threw him a surprised look.

"Remus, hi! I thought Olivia was coming over alone?"

Remus huffed.

"She would have, if she hadn't stolen Sirius' bike to get here."

Lily rolled her eyes, but smiled.

"Sirius is really rubbing off on her."

"I think she was always like this...That's why they get along so well. Mind if I wait here until she arrives? Sirius is trying to catch her in air..."

Lily nodded and patted the couch invitingly. Remus slumped down next to her.

"So, how is it going with the other kids?"

"It's going well. I still don't think I should be the one in charge there though..." Remus chuckled.

"You've been doing just fine for the past eight years."

Eight years since AWERE had put him in charge of the shelter project for lycanthropic minors. Remus didn't like to call it a shelter though. It was supposed to be a home. Or at least the closest thing they could provide to it. But eight years, really? God, he was getting old.

"Has it been that long already, huh?"

"It has."

Remus shook his head with a smile.

"Well, we finally made some progress regarding the schooling thing. Hogwarts still refuses to take responsibility for all of them and I can hardly blame Dumbledore for it... If something went wrong and a whole pack of wolves were unleashed on the school grounds... I don't want to be the one that explains that to the ministry..."

Lily nodded thoughtfully. "So you are sticking with the inhouse tutoring then?"

"Yes, it works great for Olivia and I think it's a good way to..." Remus was interrupted by roaring motor noises mixed with stomping hooves. He took a deep breath and got up. "I'll go greet them."

Lily chuckled.

As Remus approached the frontdoor he could hear Sirius' voice from outside.

"You can't just take off like that! What if you fell?"

"Why would I fall, I can fly!"

"This is a bike, not a broom. That's different!"

Remus suppressed a smile.

He heard Olivia groan.

"Dad, I am old enough!"

"You are fifteen!"

"Yeah, so what?" He could practically hear her crossing her arms. "You ran away when you were sixteen!"

"Exactly. Sixteen! So you better behave for at least another year!"

Remus pulled the door open. "There you are. Had a safe flight?," he asked, barely able to hide a smirk. It was always like this. When Sirius talked to him, he always pretended to be relaxed and cool, but deep down he was worried just as bad as Remus, anytime Olivia pulled one of her little stunts.

"I would have, if he hadn't attacked me with a bird, mid-flight!" Olivia pointed accusingly at Sirius who just snorted.

"I didn't attack you! And Buckbeak isn't a bird."

Buckbeak cawed loudly and scratched up the lawn in the Potter's frontyard.

Remus shook his head.

"You can't just take off like this. You should have at least asked."

"You would have said no, anyways."

"You don't know that."

"Livie! Dad, Livie is here! Can we play now?"

Harry appeared at the top of the stairs behind Remus and bounded towards them without waiting for an answer.

Olivia pushed past Remus. "I'll go play. See you."

"Hey!"

Sirius sighed and put a hand on Remus' arm. "Just let her."

They decided to stay a little, partly to make it clear to Olivia that the discussion was far from over, but mainly to catch up with James and Lily, though James was pretty busy playing Quidditch with the kids. So Remus and Sirius were sharing the garden bench with Lily while the other three rushed through the air. Harry was a quite talented player, though he was no match for Olivia. Not yet anyways. He was only eight after all. Really, how time passed...

"We can't let this happen again. Olivia taking off with your bike, I mean."

Sirius shrugged, but looked a little contrite.

"Maybe I can put a charm on the engine so it doesn't turn on when it recognises her..."

"Maybe we could get her her own bike. So she won't take yours."

Sirius and Lily both turned to Remus, aghast.

"When she turns sixteen. Would be a nice birthday present...Don't you think you could do that?" He gave Sirius his sweetest smile, enjoying the confusion on his face.

"You want me to build her a bike?"

"Yes."

"A flying one?"

"Yes."

"Are you unwell?" Sirius put a hand on Remus' forehead.

Remus swatted it away.

"I can be the cool parent if I want to."

Sirius crossed his arms.

"All of a sudden huh? I thought my bike was a safety hazard! A murderous machine! A dangerous vehicle, unfit to transport a child..."

"It is! But you can hardly call her a child anymore. She is a teenager. That's different."

"Oh is it now?"

Lily sighed. "Can't you two stop bickering?"

"No," said Sirius.

"It means we love each other," said Remus.

Lily rolled her eyes. "I'm getting a snack, do you guys want anything?"

They shook their heads, knowing full well they would get something regardless. Lily never let anyone leave the house hungry.

When she vanished through the terrace door, Remus dropped his head on Sirius' shoulder.

"You know I don't actually want a divorce, right?"

"I hope so. It would break my heart if you did."

"As if I'd ever let you get away..." Remus laced their fingers together.

Sirius nuzzled his head.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

The day passed in a sunny blur of Harry's and Olivia's cheers and laughter, endless banter and snacks.

They had dinner together and then Lily took the happily exhausted Harry upstairs to bed.

Remus figured that it was time for them to leave as well, but Olivia had started watching some show on the Potter's muggle TV and refused to get up until it had finished.

"It's just starting to get exciting," she complained. "Can't you just leave without me? I don't know why you stuck around here all day anyways!"

"Because you apparently need constant supervision!"

Olivia groaned. "You are so embarrassing! I'm not a kid anymore. I can get myself home." Suddenly her annoyed pout turned to a mischievous smirk. "You can just leave me the bike."

"Out of the question," Sirius turned up next to Remus and shrugged on his leather jacket. Olivia's face fell.

"But I want to keep watching! You are already talking over it, I'm missing everything!"

Remus huffed. Sirius wrapped an arm around his waist and pressed a kiss on his temple.

"I'll tell James to make sure she takes the floo home. Let's just go. Maybe we could have some tea in peace for once..."

Remus smiled. "Would be a first."

"We won't take the bike," he said as they stepped outside. "I refuse to ride this murderous machine."

Sirius laughed and shrugged.

"Sure, if you prefer to ride Buckbeak, I'll take the bike..."

"No!" Remus decidedly sat on the pillion seat. "Bike sounds great."

Sirius grinned and climbed on in front of him, before signalling Buckbeak to follow the bike.

He turned around to Remus as he started the motor.

"You know, you could have just apparated and let me fly on my own..."

"Where would be the fun in that," Remus replied and wrapped his arms tightly around Sirius' waist, leaning his chin on his shoulder.

Sirius snorted a laugh and slapped his thigh, before they took off, racing towards the sunset, Buckbeak soaring behind them.

As it had turned out, Sirius had some things to offer after all...

[monsoon-of-art]

What’s daily life like for the main three hero ocs?

(i love all of your ocs so much btw they’re so fun to learn about!!)

this was a fun little thing! I put it under a read more, note these are probably rough time estimates!

Olivia (Dragonfly) wakes up around 9 am, feeds her pet insects (still TBD), and starts her day job of being a coding freelancer. She eats a healthy breakfast and checks the news while she works, to make sure nothing super crazy happened while she sleeps. At noon she takes her lunch break and watches TV with Clay and talks to her friends over text. At 3 she clocks out to exercise and train. If it's one of her Yoga Days, she'll go to the rec center to do yoga with her gal-pals, and maybe get coffee after. She'll kill time until the sun sets by checking her gear and the police radio. Once the sun sets, she begins patrols as Dragonfly. She'll continue patrolling and stopping crime until around 4am, where she'll try to retire to the evening to get some sleep. If there's problems she'll obviously try and stay awake.

Clay's schedule mostly revolves around Dragonfly; waking up with her, helping her make breakfast, watering the plants. When he has downtime, he'll "study culture" (watch television) or looking up words in the dictionary/thesaurus. He stays home when Dragonfly goes out, but when she's ready to go patrol, he follows. He sleeps when Dragonfly sleeps as well.

Cornelius (Hayday) wakes up at 6am, showers, gets dressed, and has some coffee. He then walks to work. He works full-time as a cashier, so around 8 to 5pm. He walks home, maybe buying groceries if needed. He cooks dinner for him and his Ma, and the two watch television together. He waits for his Ma to to to bed (Around 6-7pm), and he tinkers with his broom in the meantime. Once his Ma is asleep, he leaves out his bedroom window and the fire-escape to do...Hayday things lol. If the night is uneventful he tries to return home around 3am, and he crawls into bed.

[magickkate]

Hi, I am a baby witch, I don't know if that is an actual thing, that's the problem I don't know what to trust, and there is a lot of sources and not to mention the negative notion around witchcraft in general. Where should I begin, I have done shadow work, learnt about herbs, crystals and their properties, Know my bit on moon phases. I know this process is a life-long learning and one thing doesn't fit all but I genuinely need some guidance. Thank you for your time.

Hello, and welcome to your magical journey! First of all, let me assure you that being a "baby witch" or “beginner witch” is absolutely a real thing, and it's completely okay to feel overwhelmed by the vast amount of information out there and the negative perceptions surrounding witchcraft. It's important to remember that your path as a witch is unique to you, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach to practicing witchcraft.

It's wonderful that you've already delved into shadow work, learned about herbs and crystals, and explored the phases of the moon. These are all valuable foundations for your magical practice! As you continue your journey, here are some suggestions to help you navigate the vast world of witchcraft and find your path:

Trust Your Intuition: Trust yourself and your instincts as you explore different aspects of witchcraft. Listen to your inner voice and follow what resonates with you personally.

Start Small: Witchcraft (like you said!) is a lifelong journey of learning and discovery, so don't feel like you have to know everything all at once. Start with small practices and gradually build upon them as you feel comfortable. I have joined a couple Discord servers for the friendship and the inspirations. I prefer to do the research and all on my own.

Find Your Focus: Reflect on what aspects of witchcraft resonate most with you and where you feel drawn to explore further. Whether it's herbalism, divination, spellcraft, or something else entirely, focus on what interests you the most.

Seek Reliable Sources: With so much information available online and in books, it can be challenging to discern what is accurate and trustworthy. Look for reputable sources, experienced practitioners, and community recommendations to guide your studies. Now, this is usually the most difficult task. There is so much information! What is true? I take everything with a grain of salt, but I respect what doesn't belong to me. Remember, you need nothing but yourself and your intent to be a witch - no candle, no herb, no broom, no cloak, just yourself with your intent. That's the most powerful thing. I know when I was starting out I really leaned into The Witch Of Wonderlust on YT and Chaotic Witch Aunt on YT has grabbed my attention as well. They have great info and resources for beginners! Olivia (TWoW) has a playlist for beginners with lots of notable books, podcasts, and other content creators!

Connect with Community: Seek out supportive communities of like-minded individuals who can offer guidance, encouragement, and camaraderie on your journey. There are some really well put-together Discord servers (and some other that are really "Gaslight, Gatekeep, Girlboss" if I'm being honest)

Embrace Your Path: Remember that there is no "right" or "wrong" way to practice witchcraft. Your path is yours alone, and it's okay to experiment, make mistakes, and evolve along the way. Embrace the journey and trust in your own power and intuition. Just please respect closed practices if they are not yours.

Above all, be patient and kind with yourself as you navigate this new and exciting realm of magic. Your journey as a witch is a deeply personal and empowering one, and I have no doubt that you will find the guidance and wisdom you seek along the way. May your path be filled with magic and wonder! 🌟🔮