#or they think I’m not ‘good’ enough for my mom???

[writingwisterias]

New Beginnings

Leon Kennedy X AFAB!Reader (Pictured Leon between Re2 &RE4R) Warnings: FLUFF, Slight Angst, Dad Leon, Summary: After being sent to training, he returns home to meet his new girl for the time.. This is based off this ERAs and requested by anon to extend it!

Leon,

I’m not sure if you will get this, mom wasn't sure if they would let you have these whilst you were in training but I wanted you to get the updates still. I went for my first scan today, they said everything looks good. I've been craving lots of cucumbers. Mom said she thinks I'll turn into one if I keep going. They also lied about morning sickness…it's all the damn time. The first trimester is almost over, I've sent you a photo of the scan and the bump 

Stay safe.

Your love <3

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

Leon,

I’ve been missing you a lot recently, our little girl is kicking all the time. I think she gets it from you! Oh no, I revealed the gender…I can't believe we are having a little girl. Mom and Dad helped me set up a new nursery in a flat that I managed to get close to them. I’ve given you another photo of the bump and the latest scan. I think I've popped now...cravings are still cucumbers and morning sickness has subsided. 

Stay safe, 

Your love xx

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

Leon, 

Not long to go now, the nursery is all setup. I chose an enchanted woodland theme. Lots of little creatures hiding around the room. Filled with greens and it just feels cosy I can't wait for you to see it. I think she's about ready to come out now, she's kicking like mad and dropped really low. I'm scared but I know that you have been brave all this time so I'll do it for us. I really hope you are okay…I miss you like crazy. Even though she feels like I have a part of you with me. 

Stay safe 

Love 

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

Leon, 

Wow, what a whirlwind, our little girl was born a couple of months ago. She's been a handful so it took me a while to write this letter…if they even give them to you! The delivery is rough but worth it. She has the cutest blond hair and blue eyes you wouldn't believe! I've picked my favourite pictures of the past few months…I know they'll be returned to me soon enough anyway. 

See you soon

Love xx

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

Leon stared at the letters from where he spread them out on the little tray on the plane. His reflection is sharper and colder than when you last saw him. Guilt and nerves collided through his system like a drug, his stomach bubbling with anxiety as they announced the landing. Your handwriting hadn't changed over the years, always the same cursive font that was written in the margins of his textbooks. He smiled at the small doodles decorating the edges where he knew you were just thinking of what to say. It felt unreal like he was going to wake up to some sick dream the world decided to play on him. To take away this tiny lifeline of happiness he had left. 

He wondered what would happen if he didn't return if he left you both untouched by the taint that he carried with him. The rucksack of nightmares he had seen in the past two years, the one he had to train his shoulders to carry. His hands were rough, his eyes piercing. Would you even be able to find the same soul that you fell in love with before? 

And then there was his daughter, something born out of pure innocent love. A romance blossoming on the white picket fence fantasy he always dreamed of…only to now have a father who was unsure if he could provide that for any of you. If he could even step up to be the man she needed. The one she would run to when she needed help with boys or the kids bullying him. The few campmates he did get along with told him that he didn't miss the precious moments. That there was still time for him to form a loving bond between father and daughter. A small part of him inside hated the photos as they were evidence of everything he missed, all the small kicks and the cravings you experienced. Not being able to soothe you when it all got too much just like you did that night. 

The attendant announced the plane landing, the runway coming into view masking his reflection. Leon folded all the letters again, having remembered every letter and word you imprinted on the page. The ink smudged on some of them. The pictures were tucked in the cheap wallet he bought when he was at the airport safe for when he needed them. His movements were calculated and careful, Leon's mind already aware of everyone around him as he moved. He helped the older lady next to him with her back, his arm held out to guide her off the plane. He watched the bittersweet reunion as her daughter found her. Their cries of happiness blend into the chaos with the other people around them, the further he gets away. Worry settled when he thinks about accidentally walking past you as he left the gate. His eyes scanned for any figure he remembered. The silhouette that visited him in his dreams was like an angel. Leon often swore he could still feel your phantom touch the next morning as his cheek always felt slightly warmer as he completed his early laps of the base. The warmth was always welcomed, however, instead of the coldness of Krauser's stare or his words as he corrected him again. 

Then he saw it, the cursive writing of some paper sign in the corner of his eye. The bold letter was held by a woman who scanned her eyes over the crowd. His name and the fingers that grasped the sign were yours. 

Leon took a moment, watching as people continued to move around him. Taking advantage of his hardened appearance to watch you. His eyes are not failing to notice the young girl on your hip. The now two-year-old waved at people as they passed, her hand grasping the charm on your necklace tightly. The photos didn't do her justice, she looked exactly like him. Her piercing blue eyes met his. They always said kids notice more than adults. 

He watched the way her curious stare ran over him, trying to figure him out…almost like he was familiar to her. You had noticed she’d gone quiet. Turning your head to look at where the young girl had now rested it on your shoulder. He watched as you asked her what was wrong, shifting her in your arms slightly. Your hip jolts out to support her weight better. Leon's feet didn't move, they couldn't. Right, there was all he ever wanted. Did he deserve it? Was it actually his? The perfect dream, the one he saw every single night in that stupid bunk amongst the snores of his bunkmates. 

His whole body froze as you looked at him, the whole world stopped. Your love washed over him like a tide crashing against rocks. It was fierce, strong and unstoppable. The current is already pulling him into your ocean of affection. His little girl began to cry as you passed her to your mum. Your feet are already pounding on the airport carpet as you bolt it to him. He didn't know what else to do but welcome you, like the hole in his heart was finally filled. The two years apart suddenly ended with a new beginning.

You collided into his chest with such force he stumbled. His own emotions leak out into the softness of your skin. Words failed him, they seemed to fail you as well as you held him in silence. Your smaller frame fits against his own with no change. However, you could feel the new muscles. His hardened grip is proof of his changes not that you cared about them. You would learn to love this new version just as you promised on that one night. Your promise was never forgotten when he left in that black car. Your heart is still soul-tied to him. 

Leon's breath faltered when you pulled away, his biceps subconsciously pulling you in closer. Your eyes met his, your warm smile melting his tough gaze. “There he is,” you whispered. At your words, he crumbled, his frame shaking as tears leaked from the corners of his eyes. He tried to smile, to muster up the courage to say anything. Part of you regretted bringing your daughter now fearing he would be overwhelmed in meeting her in this state. Yet to his credit, he stood up straighter, a small smile filling his features. His hand cradled your face bringing you into a long-awaited kiss. He didn't need to speak. You knew exactly what he wanted to say. You could feel the love radiating from him, pouring it into the first kiss. His soul begging for redemption from situations you didn't know he had experienced. His hands were almost afraid to touch you, to swallow you in the darkness he had retreated himself into. 

You heard her before you felt her, the small stumbling steps of your two-year-old as she collided with your legs almost taking you off your feet. 

You watched Leon's eyebrows pinch in concern as he felt your body buckle, hands sprawled out on his chest to catch yourself. Your daughter's hands gripped at your legs, small tugs on your shirt as she whimpered to be picked up. Leon's demeanour changed when you did. His body regained the stiffness as he looked at her closely. Their eye contact was intense both trying to figure out what to make of each other. “Baby, This is daddy remember?” You prompted, eyes solely focused on the small girl. Leon was grateful for that, you couldn’t see his flinch at the word. The small girl nodded her hand outstretched to him. 

That was the thing about children, always curious. No matter if they were reaching out towards unknown danger. You would have protected her if you thought it was dangerous. Part of him wanted to back away, careful not to let the innocent fingers touch his blood-stained skin afraid if they pulled away her tiny hands would be strained red. You knew otherwise, you always did. Allowed these hands to cradle your face, to hold you when he finally returned home. Her hand touched the stubble that coated his cheeks, the small strands of hair prickly against her tiny fingers. You watched him process the touch, his frame softening arms finally wrapping around the both of you.

“Daddy” The girl muttered, a small toothy grin growing on her features. Her small arms wrapped around his neck as he swung from you to him. She was so small against him, his large arms hiding her from the surrounding crowd. His other one holding you close. “Thank you…I’m sorry I wasn’t..” Leon finally spoke. You shook your head, “You were always here, How do you think she knows who you are?” You smiled. He was home, different, but home. Your parents picked up his bags as they followed you both home. He was too busy carrying his whole world in his arms anyway.

[wafflefries13]

Asking Out the Twisted Wonderland Cast (Multi TWST cast X Reader)

Summary: Sometimes, you can't just wait for good things to happen to you. Time to screw your courage to the sticking place and finally ask out that boy you like!

AN: I meant for these each to be like 200 word drabbles. Some of them kind of got away from me, lol.

Cross-posted on my AO3 TheGhostInTheKitchen

Warnings: Fluff, AFAB reader with she/her pronouns.

Part 2: First Dates

The sounds of the NRC cafeteria clattered around the group of first years. Utensils scraping on plates, sizzling from the open window to the kitchen, a hundred different conversations from all sides. Their small group sat clustered around their table, nestled close together to be heard over the general din. 

“I’m just saying,” Ace said, mouth half full. 

“You’re always ‘just saying’,” Deuce said. 

Ace shoved him. “I’m just saying, if you want to try out for the anchor position on the track team you have to actually ask for it. Get Coach Vargas and don’t stop bugging him until he sees what you can do! No one’s going to just wait for it to happen.” 

“And I’m saying it doesn't do any good to be a nuisance when I don’t even know if I’m good enough yet. I might as well wait till tryouts next semester.” 

“No, no, he’s right,” (Y/N) said, distantly. 

“Yeah!” Ace said. “Wait, right about what?” 

“You can’t just wait for stuff to happen to you. If you really want something you have to go and take it for yourself.” She stood abruptly, face determined. “I need to ask something.” 

Ace:

“Ace!” 

Ace jumped, brushing off crumbs from his jacket. “What? What did I do now?” 

“Do you want to go out with me?” 

Epel choked, Jack thumping him on the back. Deuce looked like she had just insulted his mother. Sebek rolled his eyes as he took another bite. Ortho gasped, leaning forward, eyes wide and excited. 

“I-What?” Ace stuttered, his face rapidly turning red. “Where the heck did that come from?” 

“You were just saying you shouldn’t wait for something you want. I like you, I have for a while now. So, do you want to go out?” 

Ace stuttered out a reply, slapping on his normal cocky smile but decidedly not meeting (Y/N)’s eyes. “I mean, yeah, of course you fell for me! It’s about time you said something. But, um, yeah, I’d like that. A lot.” 

“Well,” Deuce said, rolling his eyes. “It’s about time one of you said something.” 

“Hey!” Ace shouted. “What’s that supposed to mean?” 

(Y/N) playfully shoved him. “Oh, please, don’t act like I haven’t noticed that you like me too. You’re not subtle about it.” 

“What made you think that?” 

“Ace, within the first week of me being here you asked to sleep in the same bed as me twice.” 

From another table, definitely not eavesdropping, Riddle fainted. 

Deuce:

“Deuce!” Deuce jumped at (Y/N) suddenly shouting his name. “I need your help with something. Can you come with me for a second?” 

“Oh, yeah, sure, of course.” Deuce ignored Ace’s pointed look. Deuce followed (Y/N) out of the cafeteria down the halls. “Where are we going?” 

(Y/N) suddenly turned around, Deuce almost colliding with her. Before he could apologize, she took his hands, looking up into his eyes as he felt blood rush to his cheeks. 

“I just wanted somewhere more private,” She said. “Deuce, I really like you. Will you go out with me?” 

“I-huh?! I mean, yeah, yes! I like you, too!” He rubbed the back of his head and looked away shyly. “Man, I wanted to ask you out first.” 

(Y/N) grinned. “Really? How were you going to do it?” 

“Well, my mom said that when my dad first asked her out he got her this big bouquet of flowers. But he ended up being allergic to them so he kept sneezing the whole time. She took him to the infirmary at their school and he had to write it down since his face was too swollen to talk.” 

“Well, I wouldn’t say no to flowers. Maybe we can skip the rest of that, though.” 

Deuce marched over to the cut out window of the hallway, opening out onto the quad. Reaching over, he plucked a fluffy pink peony from one of the bushes. He came back to (Y/N), suddenly very flustered, and held it out to her. 

“(Y/N),” He began. 

She clasped her hands together. “Yes?” 

“Would you do me the honor of - Ah!” Deuce yelped as a bee flew out of the peony blossom, shooting for Deuce’s face to sting him. 

Turns out, they did spend time in the infirmary. But, after (Y/N) kissed his cheek and gently held the flower, Deuce didn’t seem to mind too much. 

Trey: 

“Ow!” 

Trey paused outside the Heartslabyul kitchen as he heard the exclamation from inside. He was planning on testing out a new bread recipe his parents had sent him and wasn’t expecting anyone else to be using the kitchen that day. He peaked in, seeing (Y/N), Grim, Ace, and Deuce crowded around the island in the middle. (Y/N) was blowing on a burn on her hand, Grim rifling through the pantry for various sweets, and Ace and Deuce waving away smoke from a burnt pastry freshly pulled from the oven. 

“I told you!” (Y/N) said. “You can’t just raise the temperature for it to cook faster, it’ll just burn!” 

“Well, sorry for trying to make your confession go faster before you chicken out,” Ace said. 

“I’m not going to chicken out! Probably. Maybe. What if the pie burning is an omen?” 

“I wouldn’t read too deeply into it,” Trey said, entering the kitchen. The first years jumped, (Y/N)’s eyes going wide and she stared at the floor. 

“Well!” Deuce said, grabbing Ace and Grim and hurrying them out the door. “Omen or not, that’s our cue to leave. Good luck, (Y/N)!” 

Silence echoed around the two of them as the door of the kitchen thunked closed. (Y/N) fiddled with her fingers, still not looking up. Trey walked around the island, looking at the smoldering pie. There was a mostly neat lattice across the bubbling fruit, with extra crust cut into letters around the rim. 

“‘Trey,’” He read. “‘Will you-’”

“Ah! No, wait!” (Y/N) jumped forward, covering it with her hands. She jumped back as her palm accidentally hit the hot pie tin, giving her another burn. 

“Oh, wait, hang on.” Trey quickly went over to the sink, grabbing a clean towel and soaking it in cold water. He gently took her hand, pressing it to the burn. (Y/N) chewed her lip. “You know, I’d be happy to help if you want to try again. I’ve been wanting to try this new butter pie crust that’s good with custards and-”

“I really like you!” (Y/N) blurted out, face going as hot as the burn on her hand. “Would you want to go out with me? Please?” 

Trey tightened his grip on her hand, careful to avoid the injury. He smiled, laughing. “I was wondering if I should say it first. I guess you beat me to it. Yes, (Y/N), I’d love to go out with you.”  

Cater: 

Cater was relaxing in the Heartslabyul gardens, a can of red paint discarded beside him. He hummed something the pop music club had been working on as he scrolled through Magicam. He took a quick selfie, winking, tongue out with a peace sign, before refreshing his feed. 

He paused when he saw (Y/N) come across his dash. She was smiling brightly, one arm arched above her head and the other held down at an angle to create half a heart. The word ‘Will’ was written in bubbly cartoon letters in the middle. A few posts later, there was a second photo, an almost perfect mirror of the first to complete the heart. The word ‘You’ was written in the middle of this one. 

Cater almost felt like he was solving a puzzle as he searched the rest of his feed for more posts. Each had (Y/N) in a dramatic pose, adding another word to complete the sentence, ‘Go,’ ‘Out,’ ‘With’, ‘Me.’ When he realized it was a request to ask someone out, he couldn’t help but feel a little deflated. He shook his head. Of course (Y/N) would be crushing on someone. With all the adventures she had gone on during their time at NRC, it would make sense to develop strong feelings. He tried to quiet the voice in his head that hoped those strong feelings would go his way. Well, whatever, that just meant he had to keep a close eye on whoever had earned her affections, maybe give them a good threatening to treat her right while he was at it. 

Cater tapped on her name, taking him to her Magicam profile. It felt like just the other day when he was helping her set it up. He sighed at the happy memory. For a second, it occurred to him that the message (Y/N) had been spelling out in pictures didn’t end with a question mark. He thought it was weird. Was it a mistake? Then his eye caught on the latest picture, posted just a second before. 

It was a selfie of (Y/N) holding a large bouquet of yellow and orange flowers, marigolds, daisies, and buttercups. The majority of the frame was over her shoulder, showing Cater himself sitting against the hedges. His name was drawn in the same cartoon font with a question mark, surrounded by a heart.  

Cater snapped up, whirling around. He quickly whipped away the happy tears budding at the corner of his eyes as he saw (Y/N) waiting for him. The flowers were crushed between them as he scooped her up in a tight hug, both of them laughing. 

(They both carefully rearranged the flowers after to be presentable for the mandatory #TogetherForever couple photoshoot after.) 

Riddle: 

Riddle frowned at the commotion building from the Heartslabyul common room. He could make out the familiar rising sounds of Ace and Deuce’s voices. He began marching to the source of the racket, faltering a little when he heard (Y/N)’s voice joining in. Mentally scolding himself from eavesdropping  (it wasn’t eavesdropping, he was keeping tabs on his dorm mates, that’s it) he hovered near the cracked open door. 

“No, wait!” (Y/N) said. “We can’t use coral roses! I said pink!” 

Ace huffed. “What’s the difference?” 

(Y/N) tapped a small dark red book she was holding. “Coral roses symbolize desire, pink roses mean admiration and happiness. I’m not trying to scare him off before I can even ask him out!” 

Before he could even think about it, Riddle threw open the door, shouting, “Just what is going on here?” 

Everyone inside jumped. Riddle swept his eyes across the room, taking in the bundles and bundles of roses in multiple colors carefully poised on every surface. Ace and Deuce were meticulously balancing a bouquet in the chandelier, plucking out the offending coral colored roses. Cater was smirking in the corner, phone poised to capture everything. Trey chuckled behind his own large bouquet of yellow roses.. 

“Um,” She said, startled by his interruption. Taking a deep breath, she set the book down and picked up a bouquet of lavender roses, shoving them in Riddle’s direction. 

‘Lavender,’ He thought. ‘Love at first sight.’ 

“Riddle!” She said, probably a little too loudly. “I really like you! Would you go out with me?” 

The silence that followed was deafening. Cater tried to break the tension with a laugh. “Aww, (Y/N),” He said. “What happened to that whole speech you had?” 

“He surprised me!” She said. “Oh, wait, hang on, I still have it.” Without thinking, she shoved the bouquet in Riddle’s arms, searching her pockets to pull out a neatly folded piece of notebook paper. “Ahem. Riddle, I have struggled in vain and I can bear it no longer. These past few months have been a torment. I came to Heartslabuyl with the single objective to see you. I-” 

“Everyone out!” Riddle shouted. As the group scuttled to the door, he pointed at (Y/N). “Not you.” 

The door thudded behind them, Ace and Deuce giving a quick thumbs up and what was supposed to be a confident smile as they left. (Y/N) crinkled the paper in her hands. 

“It gets better,” She said meekly. “The speech. Although I guess in the movie it ends with a rejection too. I should have used the one from the end, or Shakespeare maybe. Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more - well, I guess you're not very temperate. Wait, let me try again.” 

“(Y/N),” He said. He held the lavender flowers tightly. “You know what this means?” 

“Oh, the flowers? Yeah, I, um, I’ve been studying.” She picked the book back up, shyly holding it up. Riddle could read the title now: The Queen of Hearts Guide to Courtship and Love. 

“You,” Riddle said, feeling his face heat up. He held up the flowers. “You mean it? Really?” 

(Y/N) took a step towards him, understanding softening the worry on her face. “Of course. I wanted to ask you out and I thought, well,” She waved at the multicolored roses, laughing. “Go big or go home, right?” 

“It certainly is a statement.” Riddle picked up a yellow rose with red tipping the petals and handed it to her. (Y/N) recognized the colors immediately as meaning ‘Falling in love.’ She gasped in happiness, jumping forward to wrap Riddle in a tight hug. 

Leona: 

“Ruggie!” Ruggie paused as he heard (Y/N) call his name. She jogged over to him where he held Leona’s typical boxed lunch order. “Hey, that’s for Leona, right? Do you mind if I bring it to him? There’s something important I have to talk to him about.” Ruggie considered it for a moment before shrugging and handing it over, but not before stealing a couple of chips to pop into his mouth as he strolled away. 

(Y/N) found Leona in his normal spot, a hidden alcove in the gardens in the biodome. He was laying on his back, arms crossed behind his head, and eyes closed as he dozed. He cracked his eye open as (Y/N) approached. 

“Hi,” She said, kneeling down beside him. 

“Hmm,” He replied. 

“I have something important to ask you.” 

“Are you going to try and make me get up?” “No.” 

“Alright, ask away.” 

“Will you go out with me?” 

Leona’s eyes snapped open. He pushed himself up on his elbows to stare at (Y/N), smiling sincerely at him, and maybe holding his lunch hostage until she got an answer. 

“I really like you,” She continued. “You’re brave and confident and know exactly who you are. Sure, you can be stubborn as hell, but you also really care about people close to you. Don’t make that face, you can’t fool me. You could have easily thrown me out when Grim and I needed someplace to stay when Azul took over Ramshackle, but you didn’t. You didn’t even kick us out when we were making so much noise and annoying you, you helped us break Azul’s contracts instead. You joined the Culinary Crucible because Epel did and you wanted to keep an eye on your team mate. Please, as if you ever need to learn how to cook, I know you can’t even use a microwave. And you pretend not to notice when Ruggie steals your credit card. And there was that time you followed all of us to Playful Land because you were worried we were going to get scammed. You didn’t have to do that, but you did. You’ve got a big heart of gold under that spiky exterior. And I really admire you for that. I… I really love you, Leona.” 

“Well,” Leona said, laying back down, tail flicking. “I suppose going on a date wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.” (Y/N) decided not to point out the content smile stretching across his face. She made a move to stand up, but Leona shot an arm out to hook around her waist, pulling her down next to him with an “Oof.” “Now don’t tell anyone else about all that,” Leona grumbled without any real heat. 

Ruggie: 

Ruggie was in Leona’s room, folding laundry while the house warden took a nap behind him. Ruggie stretched his arms above his head, sighing when there was a satisfying pop in his back. Suddenly, the door to the room slammed open. Ruggie yelped and Leona woke with an undignified snort. 

“Gah, what now?” Leona mumbled. 

“Ruggie!” (Y/N) said, standing in the doorway. She was panting as if she had just run across campus (she had). 

“Uh, what? Yeah? Whatever it was, I didn’t take it!” 

Unperturbed, (Y/N) marched over to him, taking both his hands in hers. “You did take something.” Ruggie frantically tried to remember if he had stolen anything from Ramshackle recently. He tried not to, knowing (Y/N) was pretty much as broke as he was. It didn’t seem fair. And maybe he liked her a little too much to swipe something. “You stole my heart!” (Y/N) continued dramatically. “Will you go out with me?” 

Behind them, Leona coughed to unconvincingly cover up a laugh. 

Ruggie’s ears flattened to his head in shock. He reached back and batted at his tail as if that would get it to stop wagging. “I - what? Are you sure? Me? What?” 

“Of course! You’re resourceful, you work hard, you’re clever, and you care a lot about your family back home. I really admire all that about you and more! Not to mention you’re super cute. So, will you go out with me?” 

“Oh, just say yes already, Ruggie,” Leona said, settling down to continue his nap. “At least then I won’t have to hear you being such a sap all the time.” 

Ruggie let out his signature laugh. He tightened his grip on (Y/N)’s hands. “Well, sure then, why not? As long as you’re paying, right?” 

Jack: 

Jack and Vil were out on their daily morning run. The sun was just beginning to rise over the horizon, casting the Night Raven College campus in a warm golden light. At their halfway point, they took a break, Vil stretching in his cooldown. 

“You sure you don’t want to keep going with me?” Jack asked. 

“No,” Vil said. “I’d rather stay slim than bulk up like you. I have my status to maintain. And besides, it looks like I would be interrupting something rather important.” He smiled knowingly and pointed with his chin a little ways down the sidewalk. 

Jack turned. He felt his tail start to wag on its own when he saw (Y/N) standing by one of the Great Seven statues, drawing circles in the ground with her foot. She looked up, breaking out in a warm smile when she saw him. Vil chuckled under his breath and waved as he headed back to Pomfiore. 

Jack clenched his jaw, willing his tail to stay still as he approached her. “Good morning. You’re not usually up this early, right? Is everything okay?” 

(Y/N) jutted her arms out completely straight, offering up the flowering Chin cactus in her hands. “Jack!” She said. “I really like you. I love how brave you are. I love how you’re dedicated to the people you care about. I love how you can be sweet and kind even when you try to act tough all the time. Would you go out with me?” 

“Yes!” Jack replied, almost before the words had even left (Y/N)’s mouth. He put his hands over hers, cradling the cactus. “I mean, yes, I would like to go out with you. Very much.” 

Azul: 

Azul jumped as (Y/N) slammed her hands on his desk in the VIP room of the Monstro Lounge. He quickly gathered his composer, pushing his glasses back up his nose. “Well, Prefect, to what do I owe the pleasure?” 

“I have a deal for you,” She said confidently. 

“Oh? I’d love to hear it.” 

Smiling, she whipped out a sheet of paper and slapped it on top of the other documents Azul had spread over his desk. On the top of the page in an elegant script were the words ‘Contract of First Date.’ Azul felt a lump form in his throat as his heart sped up. He quickly scanned over the rest of the ‘contract,’ outlining the proposed date. 

“Terms of the deal,” (Y/N) continued. “You, me, romantic night out. I know a guy in Craneport who said we could use one of their rowboats and I found this really cool pond with all these willow trees and fireflies. Plus I have this cute picnic basket all set up. Jamil has been teaching me how to cook, you know? Can’t say it’ll be as good as his, if we’re being honest about the terms of agreement. And the contract leaves an opening for future dates depending on the success of this one! Of course, success is not really a super definable term but you get what I mean. So, do we have a deal?” 

Azul covered his face with one hand, trying desperately to ignore how red his face must be at this point. He couldn’t seem to meet her enthusiastic and twinkling eyes. 

“I, uh,” (Y/N) continued, shyer this time as Azul scanned over the contract. “I really like you, Azul. A lot. So, will you go out with me?” 

He looked back down at the contract where her name was written in elegant script at the bottom with space for his next to it. He cleared his throat, bringing back his practiced (definitely not shady) businessman smile. With a sweep of his pen, he said, “It’s a deal.” 

Jade: 

(Y/N) marched across the cafeteria, determination in her eyes. She stopped in front of a table with Jade, Floyd, and Azul. “Hi!” She said, maybe a little too loudly with nerves. Jade and Azul looked up from their conversation, Floyd pausing his efforts in making a castle out of mashed potatoes. “Jade, I really like you. Do you want to go out with me?” 

“Oh?” Jade said, a brief moment of genuine surprise crossing his face before he schooled his features back into pleasant neutrality. “Well, what a pleasant surprise.” 

Floyd snorted and elbowed his brother. “Shrimpy’s got a crush,” He said in a sing-song voice. 

“I must admit,” Jade said, pouting with one hand on his cheek. “I always did imagine a more theatrical confession. Nonetheless, I happily acc-” 

“I can do that!” (Y/N) interrupted. Holding on to Floyd’s shoulder for balance, she climbed on top of the table. She clapped her hands loudly, shouting, “Attention! Attention, please, everyone! I have an announcement!” She cleared her throat as the room fell silent. “I would like to declare my unequivocal, utter devotion and love for Jade Leech.” She heard a choking sound below her but continued on. “I am hopelessly in love, helplessly enraptured, and absolutely head over heels. And it is my deepest hope that he could return my affections. Thank you.” With that, she hopped down, beaming. There was a smattering of applause and laughter from around the room. Epel whooped from back at the first year table. 

Jade’s hands covered his blushing face, fierce sharp eyes peeking out between his fingers. His mouth was split in a wide smile, sharp teeth glinting in a mixture of bashfulness, excitement, and desire. 

“Congratulations, (Y/N),” Azul said. “I can barely remember that last time Jade was actually flustered.” 

“Aww, look at him, he’s speechless!” Floyd teased. 

(Y/N) winced. “Sorry, was that too far?” 

Jade shot out with lightning speed, crushing her in his tight eel grip. “I should let you know,” He whispered to her. “I expect this level of dedication for the entirety of our relationship.” 

Floyd: 

Floyd darted through the stacks of the library. He could have sworn he saw Goldfish in here earlier, and he was in the mood to mess with the easily angered boy. And, while he didn’t find Riddle, he did pause as he saw (Y/N) between the books. He paused, pushing a few books aside to rest his chin on the shelf, an easy smile crossing his face as he spied on her. 

She was hunched over one of the study tables, a large book propped up and open in front of her. She was diligently working on something in her hands, tongue poking out between her lips (lips that Floyd found himself thinking about more often than he would admit), looking back up at the book in front of her every so often. 

Dropping down low, Floyd carefully made his way behind her, silent on his feet. Rising up to his full height behind her, unsuspecting, he jolted forward, wrapping her in a backward hug and pulling her back so the chair careened back on two legs. 

“Shrimpy!” He said, taking delight in her startled squeal. “Whatcha doin’?” 

“God, Floyd,” (Y/N) said, putting a hand to her chest to calm her raging heart. Her eyes suddenly went wide and she lunged forward to cover what she was working on with her arms. “Ah! Don’t look, don’t look! It’s not done!” 

Floyd grinned again. “Aww, it’s not nice to keep secrets.” His hands shot out, pulling out the thing she was hiding. (Y/N) covered her face as Floyd inspected the object. It was a thick piece of twine, various polished shells, sea glass, and dried shiny scales strung throughout. Although it wasn’t exactly neat, the way it caught the sunlight cast tiny rainbows and simmers around the library. Floyd peered at the open book. It was a cultural history of merpeople in the Coral Sea. The opened chapter described mer courting rituals and marriage traditions. Floyd started cackling as (Y/N) buried her face further in her hands.  

“How old is this thing?” Floyd asked, poking at the book. “I don’t even think my grandparents made courting charms.” 

“Shut up,” (Y/N) mumbled. “I was trying to… Forget it.” 

Floyd slipped the haphazard necklace over his neck, prying her hands away to hold them tightly in his. “I accept!” He said brightly. “This was for me, right? It better be, Shrimpy.” 

She smiled and flicked his forehead. “Possibly against my better judgment, I wouldn’t want to be with anyone else, Floyd.” 

Kalim: 

Kalim knew he should probably be studying, but every time he opened a text book or looked at the notes Jamil had oh-so-carefully marked and tabbed for him, he felt his eyes start to droop and mind get fuzzy. A good after lunch walk was just what he needed, and he definitely wasn’t just saying that to put off work. 

He stopped when he realized he had wandered outside Ramshackle dorm. Was that on purpose? Did he subconsciously come here, with the hope he might see (Y/N)? Kalim walked up to the front door, knocking before opening the door and calling inside. 

“Hello! It’s Kalim! Can I come in?” 

There was a squawk of surprise from the front sitting room. (Y/N) poked her head around the corner, flustered. 

“Hi. Sure, come on in. Uh, sorry, I’m kind of in the middle of something.” 

“Can I help?” Kalim asked, walking over to her. Peering into the sitting room, Kalim’s face lit up. Every available surface, and a few unavailable surfaces, were covered in colored and patterned paper. There were stacks and crowds of tiny paper birds littered between everything. 

“I don’t know if it counts if more people make them.” 

Kalim sat on one of the plush chairs, picking up a flowery piece of paper. “If what will count?” 

“It’s an old superstition from my world. If you can fold 1000 paper cranes, your wish will come true. Or something like that.” 

“Ooh, origami! I’ve made decorations using that before! I’m not super good at it, but I’ll help if you want.” 

(Y/N) smiled and sat next to him and Kalim felt his heart flip. “Yeah, I’d like the company.” 

They lost track of time folding cranes, the sun beginning to set high above the dilapidated house. They talked the whole time, jumping from topic to topic, joke to joke, without any real sense of flow. It was warm, there in the small room, not only due to the crackling fireplace. 

“So,” Kalim asked eventually. “What wish were you wanting to make? If this dosen’t work out, I can help you with it!” 

(Y/N) suddenly went bashful, turning away to pay extra attention to the folds of her bird. “I…” She muttered. She took a deep breath, turning to fully face Kalim. “I was going to ask you out. You have all these elaborate decorations and parties all the time. I was going to string all of these together and hang them in your room then ask you out. But, now that you’re here… Kalim, would you go out with me?” 

Kalim dropped the paper crane, flinging himself across the couch to wrap her in a tight hug. “Yes! Yes, yes yes! Oh, I would love to! Huh, I guess that means I need to cancel that order of doves now. That’s how I was going to ask you out next week. Hey, we both thought of birds! That must mean we definitely belong together, right?” 

Jamil: 

“Be right back,” (Y/N) said, standing from the first year cafeteria table. She walked across the cafeteria until she stopped in front of Kalim and Jamil. 

Jamil was shoving a napkin at Kalim. “Careful, you’re going to get sauce all over your shirt.” 

“It’s fine, I’ll be careful! And besides, it’s a pretty color, right? Oh, hey, (Y/N)!” 

“Hi,” She said, looking solely at Jamil. “Jamil, I really like you. Would you want to go out with me?” 

Kalim gasped, hands to his cheeks as he looked excitedly from Jamil to (Y/N). Jamil sucked in a sharp breath, clenching his hands. “I…” He started. “I’m sorry, (Y/N). I can’t.” 

“Oh.” Jamil looked down, but not before he caught the hurt confusion on (Y/N) face. “That’s okay. Thanks for hearing me out. Bye, guys.” She walked back to her table. 

Jamil only looked up again when Kalim slapped his arm. “Jamil! That was your chance!” 

Jamil scowled. “There is no chance. I said no, she accepted it. Drop it.” 

“But you told me you liked her!” 

“I said no such thing.” 

Kalim waved his hand dismissively. “I read between the lines.” 

“There were no lines!” 

“Jamil.” He looked up at Kalim. It wasn’t often the other boy used such a serious voice, or had such a set expression on his face. “You can’t keep doing this. You can’t keep yourself from being happy because you feel like you don’t deserve it.” 

Jamil flinched back, standing suddenly. A million retorts zipped through this mind at once, all of them falling flat and dying on his tongue. Before he could say something he would regret, heart thundering in his ears, he fled the cafeteria, ignoring the stabbing looks from the first year table as (Y/N)’s friends gave her sympathetic pats on the back. 

Jamil couldn’t sleep. He tossed and turned in his bed, listening to the soft, even breathing of his roommate. Huffing in annoyance, he threw off the covers and left his room. He thought he would just take a walk, just get some fresh air. Without paying attention, Jamil’s feet took him out of Scarabia, across campus, and, before he knew it, in front of Ramshackle dorm. His fist hovered in front of the door, internally debating whether or not he should knock. He startled when he heard talking behind him, spotting (Y/N) and Malleus making their way up the pathway. 

(Y/N) stopped when she saw him. “Oh. Hi, Jamil.” 

“Hi,” Jamil said, limply lifting a hand in greeting. 

Malleus looked down at Jamil, glaring. “Viper.” It sounded more like an insult than his name. 

“Did you need something?” (Y/N) asked. “It’s kind of late. Is everything okay?” 

“I-” Jamil started. “I need to talk to you.” 

Malleus stepped in front of (Y/N), but stopped when (Y/N) put a hand on his arm. They had a quick and quiet conversation, Malleus nodded and walked away. (Y/N) came up to the front door, opening it for him. 

“I’ll make some tea,” She said as they stepped into the entryway. 

“Wait-” Jamil said, catching her hand. Everything tumbled out of him all at once. “I wanted to go out with you. I like you, so much so that it scares me sometimes. That’s why I said no earlier. I just think - I thought you would - should - do better than me, after everything that’s happened. But I -” He paused, only realizing now how out of breath he was. (Y/N) looked up at him and he felt breathless all over again. “I want to do better. I want to be better, for you if not for anything else. I know I probably don’t deserve it but, (Y/N), will you go out with me?” 

(Y/N) laughed, wiping away tears at the corners of her eyes with the heel of her hand. “Yes, I’d like that a lot.” 

Vil: 

Something was wrong, Vil could feel it. After all the chaos of his time at Night Raven College, he had almost developed a sixth sense for this type of thing. 

Vil narrowed his eyes, sweeping them over the Pomfiore sitting room. A group of students were sitting around one of the tables, studying. A few others were in front of the fireplace. A couple others were performing some viral dance for a Magicam reel. Nothing seemed amiss here. 

Vil walked down the hall of the dorm, heels clicking against the marble floor. With a missed step, Vil realized he hadn’t seen Epel or Rook in quite some time. That was… concerning. He quickened his walk. 

Vil almost gave himself whiplash as he passed by the ballroom. The door was cracked open ever so slightly so he could peer through. He felt slightly ridiculous, eavesdropping as if he wasn’t the caretaker for the dorm and all those in it. But his thoughts faltered as he observed the scene inside. He found Epel and Rook, as well as several other Pomfiore students, constructing elaborate sets out of painted cardboard and repurposed decorations from the dorm. Was that…? Something about this all seemed eerily familiar. 

“Wait, wait! You’re early!” (Y/N) said. She appeared in front of him, waving her hands to try and block his view. She grabbed his hand, tugging him out of the room. “Don’t look!” She pushed him back into the hall, disappearing back into the ballroom. A second later, she emerged with a chair, setting it down and waving to it. “Just another few minutes.” The door clicked closed behind her before Vil could say anything. He thought about barging in, demanding an explanation. But his curiosity got the better of him. And besides, he always loved to see what (Y/N) got up to. Huffing in amusement, he sat down, crossing his legs at the ankles. 

A while later, Epel, Rook, and the other students fled the ballroom, giving Vil knowing looks as they passed. With skepticism, Vil stood up and made his way inside. Standing in the doorway, he was suddenly hit with a wave of nostalgia. Taking a better look, he recognized the replica set. It was from one of his first ever movies, a children’s adventure called The Heist of the Everlasting Rose. This particular scene was set in a museum where the Everlasting Rose was kept. It had been a supporting role, where, ironically, he had played a child actor in part of a crew to steal the titular Rose to pay for the main character’s sister’s surgery, or some other such justifiable nonsense like that. It was his first big screen production, although it was a relatively low-budget and minor movie. He remembered after the film had come out he and his father would pour over reviews praising his performance. At that moment, he felt like he was on top of the world. 

Vil was brought out of his reminiscing by (Y/N)’s voice. “Hello, sir!” She said. She had put on a tour guide’s jacket, once again modeled after the one in the film. “Welcome to the museum! We have our prized exhibit right this way.” Vil smirked, humoring her, if nothing else than to see where this was all going. Linking their arms, (Y/N) brought him through the makeshift museum. “Legend has it that this rose was given by a cursed prince to his beloved, who saved him from the brink of death with its magical powers. Since then, it has been a symbol of pure and everlasting love.” She carefully lifted the cloche from the silk flower, tiny fairy lights arranged around the base. She held it out to him, one hand dramatically pressed to her chest. “And now, I’d like to give it to you, Vil, to profess my everlasting love. Would you go out with me?” 

Vil couldn’t help it, it was all too much. The extravagant set, (Y/N) memorizing specific passages from such an old and now obscure film, the entire production. He burst out laughing, pressing the back of his hand against his mouth, eyes closed. “Well,” He said, catching his breath. “After such a wonderful effort, how could I possibly say no? Yes, my dearest (Y/N), I would love nothing more than to be with you.” 

Rook: 

“(Y/N), you’re gonna shoot your eye out.” 

“No, it’ll be fine. You have to take risks for the sake of love.” 

“Oh, Seven, we don’t need two of you.” 

Rook’s ears picked up, hearing Epel and (Y/N) talking in the back gardens of the Pomefiore dorm. Smiling, he crept around to (definitely not) spy on them. (Y/N) was struggling with a large bow, an arrow flopping around as she tried to aim it. Pomfiore had a small target practice area set up in the back of the dorm. (Y/N) was trying, emphasis on trying, to shoot arrows at one of the red and white round targets. After her latest arrow struck the ground in front of the target, Epel sighed and walked to the target, collecting other fallen arrows. He stabbed them into the target in the shape of a heart, a letter with Rook’s name pinned to the bullseye. 

“Don’t say I never did anything for you,” Epel said. 

“Oh? And what favor are you performing, Monsieur Pommette?” Both of them jumped, Rook smiling wider at the surprised squeak (Y/N) made. 

“You’re on your own, (Y/N)!” Epel said before rushing off. 

(Y/N) huffed. “Traitor,” She said under her breath. She turned to Rook. “Hi.” 

“Bonjour, Trickster.” 

“You’re, uh, early. I thought you were going to be at your club for a while longer.” 

Rook waved a hand. “There was an unexpected explosion and we had to evacuate. But I am much more interested in what you’re up to here.” 

“Ah, well…” She trailed off, limply pointing to the letter stabbed in the target. She covered her face with her hands, heat rushing to her cheeks as Rook elegantly plucked the letter up and began reading. 

(Y/N) could basically see the hearts forming in his eyes as he finished reading her confession. He dramatically clutched the love letter to his chest, pressing the back of his hand to his forehead. “Oh, mon amour le plus cher! Comme c’est merveilleux de lire vos sentiments les plus caret! Je n’ai jamais vu quelque chose d’aussi beau!” 

“So,” (Y/N) asked nervously. “Is that a yes?” 

“Oui, oui! One thousand times oui!” He cheered as he gathered her in a swinging hug. 

Epel: 

Epel found the first note the day after (Y/N)’s announcement in the cafeteria. Whatever she had wanted to do was apparently pretty important, as she had grabbed Grim and they left immediately. Epel hadn’t seen her the rest of the day, but he would recognize that handwriting on the paper wrapped around his dorm room handle anywhere. 

He looked around to make sure no one was watching before unfolding the paper and reading. ‘Epel, I have something important I need to ask, but before that I have a simple task. Take this first note of the set and go to the place we first met. Love, (Y/N).’ Epel tried not to think too much about that ‘Love’ part. Where did he and (Y/N) first meet? At this point it almost felt like they had known eachother forever. 

Would that be, maybe, the well in the quad? Epel remembered meeting her, Ace, Deuce, and Grim there when he was rehearsing singing, using the well’s acoustics. But, no, they had seen each other somewhere else first. Epel blushed in embarrassment at the memory. He had been crying, frustrated to hell and back with Vil’s lectures right after coming back from winter break. He’d run into them at the Great Seven statues. 

Epel went to the statues, deciding if he didn’t find anything there he would try the well. But, lo and behold, another note was waiting at the base of the Fairest Queen’s statue. He read, ‘Epel, Congrats on finding your second clue! By now you have an idea of what to do. For the next place I want you to go, think of the place we lived side by side before the show. Love, (Y/N).’ 

That one was easy, Ramshackle dorm. As Epel sprinted across campus, both notes held tightly in his fist, he reminisced about spending his days training for the VDC in Ramshackle. Most of the time there seemed like torture, running endless dancing drills, feeling constricted by Vil’s lessons whose purpose he still didn’t fully understand at the time, worrying about the whole dorm falling down around his ears at any moment. But there were plenty of good moments too. (Y/N) making them - Vil approved - breakfast in the morning, her encouragement at each of their rehearsals, how she would slip them treats when Vil and Rook’s backs were turned to help boost their mood. 

Sure enough, Epel found his next note on the Ramshackle front gate. There was another rhyme instructing him to go to another location, also connected to his and (Y/N)’s relationship and past. That lead to another and to another and another, each unlocking a precious memory between the two. Eventually, he unfolded the final note, the sun just starting to set, casting NRC in beautiful golden light. ‘Epel, I hope by now you get to see exactly how much you mean to me. We’ve been through a lot and I’ve enjoyed every and I’ve enjoyed every second, and… Okay, I can’t come up with any more rhymes. Just turn around!’ 

Lowering the paper, Epel turned, opening his arms just in time to catch (Y/N) in a big hug. They spun around each other for a second with the momentum, finally coming to a stop and looking to each other's eyes. 

“Hi,” (Y/N) said. “Did you like my scavenger hunt?” 

“You’re bad at rhyming,” Epel said with a crooked smile. 

She wacked his shoulder. “Hey, I meant what I wrote, though. I really like you, Epel. Would you go out with me?” 

Epel squeaked her tight. “Only if you promise not to write any more poetry.” 

Idia: 

Idia was holding out in his room, huddled under a blanket, his phone clutched tight in his hand. He was watching a live stream from his favorite idol group, Premo. He smiled as the group answered fan questions, talked about their upcoming tour, and demonstrated how to perform some of their most famous dance moves. 

The viewer chat scrolled across the side of the screen. Donations and chat reactions popped up in various animations across the screen. Idia hit the donate button, sending a flurry of roses blooming along the edges of the screen. He smiled as the idols thanked Gloomurai for his support. 

One of the idols leaned over, checking the chat feed. She gasped, flapping a hand at the others and enthusiastically pointing at what she was reading. They all started smiling and giggling, whispering to each other. Idia shuffled closer, as if that would let him read whatever message they had gotten. 

“Hey, everyone!” One of them said. “We’ve got a super special shout-out! This is from (Username) to… Gloomurai!” 

Idia’s heart raced as he sat up in bed, blanket draped over him. (Username), (Username)... Wait, he recognized that. That was your username! He had helped you set up your account to the MMO he played a while ago. He remembered helping you through the intro stages, stumbling over the tutorials. He had laughed at your frustrated frown as you died on the same boss for the third time. 

“Aww,” The second idol said. “This is sweet. It says, ‘Gloomurai, I thought about telling you this in person, but I wasn’t sure when that would actually be. And sometimes big feelings require big gestures. I like you, I really, really like you. I think I have for a long time. I love your smile, I love your hair, I love your brain, I love that you’re such an amazing big brother. Will you go out with me?’ Well, Gloomurai? Tell us your answer! We’re waiting on pins and needles here!” 

“Oh, wait,” The third idol said. “There’s more. It says, ‘PS, check your door.’” 

Idia yelped as he shot up, the blanket falling to a heap on the floor. Heart thundering in his chest and head starting to go fuzzy. He almost felt like he was in a daze as he walked with trepidation to his door. Slowly opening it, Idia saw a basket placed just in front. It was filled with his favorite snacks, small acrylic standees of characters from his favorite games and anime, and studded with bluebells, irises, and blue asters. A large paper heart was pinned to the front with her and his initials drawn in the middle. Hair flaring pink, he quickly brought the basket back into his room before any of his dorm mates would notice. 

He heard commotion from his phone, Premo and the chat all eagerly awaiting his response. He sent in another donation with a simple, “Yes.” The idols cheered and squealed. 

He swiped out of the livestream, opening his messaging app. (Y/N)’s name popped up with a new message, a cheering emoticon with three blue hearts. 

He subconsciously covered his face as he smiled wide, typing back, “You’re so cringe. Can’t wait for the date.” 

Silver: 

(Y/N) sprinted across campus, heading whipping around to try and catch a familiar shimmer of silver white hair. She skidded to a stop when she saw a black Diasamonia coat draped over a low tree branch, a pair of shined boots sticking out behind the trunk. 

(Y/N) rounded the old oak tree. “Silv-! Oh, sorry.” 

Silver was reclining against the tree, hands folded across his stomach, chest rising and falling with deep even breaths, eyes closed and lips slightly parted as he slept. A few songbirds and a pair of squirrels congregated around him, looking up with big eyes at the newcomer. 

(Y/N) shifted her weight from foot to foot before screwing up her courage and sitting down next to Silver. She shuffled down so she laid next to him, still leaving enough room to not cause too much of a scandal if anyone walked by. She settled down, closing her eyes and relaxing, taking in the sounds of the woodland animals around them, the talking of other students in the distance, the wind whispering through the trees. 

A short while later, she heard stirring next to her. (Y/N) blinked awake quickly, propping herself up and leaning back on her hands as Silver woke up beside her. 

“Hi,” She said. “Would  you want to go out with me?” 

Silver blinked the sleep out of his eyes, looking up at her. “I must still be dreaming,” He muttered. “If I am, then…” He reached forward, cupping the back of her head and pulling her down. She gasped as their lips brushed. Silver’s eyes suddenly shot open and he jerked back from her as if burned. “I- uh-” He studded, pale skin turning a ruby red. 

(Y/N) giggled at his embarrassment. “Well, I guess that’s a yes, right?” 

Sebek: 

“Be right back!” (Y/N) said as she suddenly stood from the first year cafeteria table. Before anyone had a chance to say anything, she was off like a shot. 

“Any idea what that was about?” Epel asked. The others shrugged. 

Grim reached over to snag half (Y/N)’s sandwich from her discarded tray. “Probably going to go ask out that boy she keeps talking about,” He said nonchalantly, mouth full. 

Sebek choked, standing fast and slamming his hands on the table so all their plates and cutlery clattered. “What!” 

“Chill, man,” Ace said, waving him down as people across the cafeteria turned to stare. Ace smirked. “Unless you’re particularly invested in (Y/N)’s love life?” 

Sebek blushed and slammed back into his seat. He picked his knife and fork back up and started sawing at his Salisbury steak. “No,” He snapped. “(Y/N) can do whatever she wants. What do I care?” 

“Sure,” Epel said. 

(Y/N) reappeared in the cafeteria a short while later, Malleus in tow. She was talking with him, gesturing with her hands. Malleus had a wide, amused smile, nodding along. 

Sebek stood again, at attention for his prince. “Good afternoon, Lord Malleus!” He said. “To what do we owe the pleasure of your presence?” He scowled at the other first years rolling their eyes at his formality. 

“Hello, Sebek. I’ve come to give my blessing.” 

“Blessing?” 

“Sebek!” (Y/N) said brightly. She took both his hands in hers as he sputtered and blushed. “I really like you. Would you go out with me?” 

For once, Sebek was speechless, mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. (Y/N) squeezed his hands tighter as Malleus chuckled next to them. “Well, Sebek? It’s not polite to keep a lady waiting.” 

Life seized back into the knight. He tightened his grasp on (Y/N), pulling her closer. “Yes! Absolutely! I mean, ahem, I accept your offer of courting, since you went so far to get my lord’s blessing, after all.” 

Lilia: 

Lilia wouldn’t call what he was doing skulking, exactly. More like surprise chaperoning, keeping an eye on the youngsters of Night Raven College like a good upperclassman should. And, if he just so happened to pop out and scare the living daylights out of whatever unfortunate student happened to be nearby, well, more fun for him. 

So it wasn’t especially surprising when he heard Silver and (Y/N) talking to each other in the courtyard. As a sly smile stretched across his face, he floated to a hiding place in the shadows of the flying buttresses, resting on his stomach to kick his feet, chin resting in his hands, as he observed the two. 

“You want my permission?” Silver asked, an amused smile on his face. 

“Of course!” (Y/N) replied. “I wouldn’t want to make it weird by dating him while we’re all still students together.” 

Lilia faltered. That was the problem with spying, sometimes you heard things you didn’t want to. So the Prefect was romantically interested in someone, eh? And if they were asking Silver for permission, it must be someone close to him. Sebek, maybe? Or, oh dear, Malleus? Lilia knew for a fact that both of the boys thought of (Y/N) as a close and dear friend and nothing more. His heart panged in sympathy at the idea of rejection. And, if he was being honest with himself, it panged with something else as well. 

“You don’t think he’s a little old for you?” Silver asked teasingly. 

“Maybe I like a silver fox,” (Y/N) teased right back. 

Silver laughed. “I don’t think I ever want to hear my father described as a silver fox ever again.” 

Lilia lost his concentration, falling with a yelp against one of the chandeliers hanging in the hallway. 

“Lilia?” (Y/N) asked with a gasp. 

Lilia smiled, trying to regain poise as he floated down to them. “Looks like I’m not as slick as I used to be. Now, what were you two discussing just now?” 

(Y/N) look startled. Silver gave her shoulder a reassuring pat and left with a wave. Just the two of them now, (Y/N) took a deep breath, building up her courage. 

“Lilia!” She said, probably a little too loudly with nerves. “I really like you! Would you go out with me?” 

Lilia chuckled, leaning close to enjoy the shy and flustered look on her face. “Well, if you have my son’s blessing, how am I to refuse? Besides, I think I rather like being called a, what was it you said? A silver fox?” 

Malleus: 

Malleus looked up from his book, looking around his room for the source of the noise that disturbed his studying. There, another sharp ‘ping’ from across the room. He looked to the window, noticing a small pebble hitting the glass. He walked over and opened the window, dodging just in time to miss another pebble. 

“Oops! Sorry, Horton!” He looked down, a smile automatically crossing his face at (Y/N)’s voice. But his expression quickly changed to puzzlement as he looked down at her. (Y/N) was standing in the courtyard of the Diasomonia dorm, inside a giant heart made of dozens of tiny tea candles. 

In a swirl of green light, Malleus appeared next to her on the ground floor. She jumped a little bit at his sudden appearance, but quickly recovered herself and beamed up at him. He felt his heart flip in that pleasant way it always did when he was near her. 

“What’s all this?” 

She cleared her throat dramatically, dropping to one knee. “Dearest Horton, you have bewitched me body and soul. I would like to officially court you. Would you do me the absolute pleasure of accompanying me on a date this weekend?” 

Malleus blinked down at her for a moment, basking in the admiration and adoration filling her eyes. He laughed, reaching down to take her hand and pull her to standing. “My, how formal,” He said. 

She smiled, shrugging. “I wanted it to be memorable. Couldn’t manage the fireworks, though. Sorry.” 

“I can rectify that.” With an elegant sweep of his hand, sparks erupted from Malleus’s fingertips, shooting into the dark sky around the dorm to explode in fantastic colors. Students from in the dorm leaned out windows to admire the impromptu show. 

Malleus drew (Y/N) closer to him, admiring the multicolor flashes playing across her face. “I would adore being anywhere with you.”

[catherine-sketches]

I know in the original concept the creators imagined Viktor having both of his parents

But I can’t shake the image of a single mother from my mind (perhaps because there is so many single parents over here. Vander, Silco, Singed, Ximena, Jinx and Sevika to some extent)

Have you guys ever thought about Viktor’s mom?

Who was this woman? What was she like?

Who was this woman whose response to her baby coming to her saying that he wanted to go to the academy to learn is “say less baby” and make/buy him a academy uniform and probably instructed him to “fake it until he made it”?

Did she cross the bridge with him, fixed his brand new tie and, after kissing him in his forehead, in an accent thicker than his, reassured him by saying:

“When you’re going to change the world, don’t ask for permission”

She clearly had fate in his intelligence to send him there with only his cane, an uniform, a thought and a prayer

How much of her son is her doing? He is confident about his intelligence, sure in his capabilities as an scientist and engineer.

Was it her doing? Did she look at her very tiny boy with his twisted leg and think to herself “I’m going to encourage this passion! My baby will never doubt how smart he is even if he has none of the resources of topside!”

Were those same encouragements that backfired later as Viktor’s internalized ableism? After all, even his mother only valued his intelligence, so maybe…

Did she die before she could notice? Before she could grab him by his bony shoulders so much like her own and shake sense in to him? “My idiot boy, you are as precious to me as you always where. With or without your smarts I would love you regardless with all my heart”

Would she even say that? Or was the internalized ableism that Viktor displayed also present in his mother? Perhaps a even more explicit form of it maybe.

Was their condition genetic? Did Viktor learn to walk with a cane by copying what his mother did with hers?

Did she have a mind like his but never had the resources to chase her aspirations?

Did she want to be a scientist as well? An engineer? Perhaps a doctor even

Did she craft Viktor’s very first cane with half ass knowledge, some drift wood, blood, tears and all the love she could give since she could not afford the cane much less a doctor for her baby?

Did she know about Singed?

Did he tell her about the strange man he meet at the caves?

Viktor, does your mother know that you are creating drugs with a strange man in the fissures?

Where was your mom? Why were you all alone?

Her baby was alone, playing by himself with a tiny boat he made.

Was she at work? Did Viktor had to spend long periods of time alone as his mom was out trying to make the ends meet?

Was this job, possibly the mines, that made her prioritize encouraging his intellect instead of reaffirming to him that he is already enough? Something not out of malice but out of limited time together?

If you only see your baby every morning before work and every night after it how would you know that he is starting to believe himself broken and imperfect?

Did she get to know Singed? Did she approve of her son being his apprentice for a while? If she did what is wrong with her????

Was she like “any knowledge is good knowledge! Go and make some illegal drugs honey. Just come back home in time for dinner.” ?

Were she in another timeline, in another possibility, the Herald to Ximena’s Defender?

Is there a reality were she is the one to rise as machine infused in flesh because she expected the Talis boy to help save her son only to watch his face get plastered everywhere while her baby rotted in his shadow?

Did this version of you, mother of Viktor, become infuriated when that same Talis boy came to you with condolences in his lips and a clear broken heart with the weight of “if onlys” on his large shoulders when your baby succumbed to his illness?

Did that enrage you?

“YOU DONT GET TO MOUR MY VIKTOR! YOU WERE THE ONE THAT LET HIM DIE! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO HELP HIM, MAN OF PROGRESS, BUT INSTEAD YOU LET YOUR EGO INFLATE TO THE SIZE OF A ZEPPELIN WHILE MY BABY STRUGGLED TO BREATH ! ALL IN THE NAME OF THE PROFITS OF THE CITY THAT STOLE HIS BREATHE IN THE FIRST PLACE”

Did you rip your own heart of your ribs so you couldn’t feel this heart break no more? So you could have a clear mind as you vowed that your Glorious Evolution would make damn sure that no mother from Zaun would suffer the same fate?

Would you have loved Jayce as your son in law in any other circumstance?

Who were you mother of Heralds?

What’s your name?

[iheartsteve0704]

The Family Stone - Agathario AU

Rating: Teen & Up

Summary: Wanda brings her girlfriend Rio home for Christmas. The only problem is that she's not really Wanda's girlfriend and Rio is helplessly in love with Wanda's older sister, Agatha (who she can't even look in the eye).

Note: This is loosely based on the movie The Family Stone (2005)!! This is also not beta read, I'm sorry haha but I will probably go back and fix things!

“This is stupid, Wanda! Just tell them the truth!” Rio said as she jogged circles around Wanda who was struggling up the large hill. It was an unbearably hot day in California but somehow Rio still convinced her going for a run was a good idea. 

“I can’t! My mom thinks- and my sisters they- ugh please, Rio! Just this one last time. Please!!” Wanda had to stop, panting as she put her hands on her needs to catch her breath. She looked up at Rio and gave her an exaggerated pout. 

“No! Wanda, would they truly give a fuck if they knew you were single??” 

“I don’t know! I think my mom would be a little disappointed yeah but the point is that I told them like 2 months ago that you’d be coming with me so I cannot go back now! They’ll just bombarded me with a bunch of questions and grill me non-stop and it’ll truly be hell for that entire week.”

“DID YOU SAY 2 MONTHS AGO???” Rio’s jaw dropped, eyes almost building out of her head. She looked at the girl who has become her best friend in this shitty town and found that she couldn’t say no. They met years ago in a shitty bar and both got wasted and shared their deepest darkest secrets and they never spent a day without each other. They were like sisters at this point. That’s why fake dating her felt so weird. “Fine. Fine! But you fucking owe me.” 

“Yay!! I love you!” Wanda jumped up and kissed Rio on the cheek, who quickly wiped it off with the back of her hand. 

“And I’m out after this, I swear! This is the last time!!” Rio warned and Wanda just nodded her head as she tried to bite back her triumphant smile. 

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

“I can’t believe Wanda is really bringing her!” Agatha scoffs as she picks away at her salad. “She’s so… eccentric.”

She watches as her mom, Lilia, shuffles around the kitchen and tosses ingredients into a bowl. Agatha sees the slight up and down movement of her mom’s shoulders and knows she got a good chuckle out of that one. 

Wanda was the baby of the family and she is also the most MIA. She lives a luxurious life abroad doing business of some sorts when she’s not living it up in California. She rarely visits home and rarely answers her phone. The Harkness girls only found out Wanda had a girlfriend because one of the red head’s friends had tagged her in a questionable Facebook photo with a mystery brunette hanging off her arm. They kept grilling Wanda over the phone until she just admitted it. 

The youngest Harkness was similar to the eldest, hard to please and hard to tie down. So when Lilia caught word of her youngest’s new found love life, she was over the moon. Practically already imagining their wedding in her mind. 

Agatha found Wanda’s girlfriend, Rio, strange to say the least. No one has met her other than Agatha, for a brief moment in New York when Wanda was in for work and Rio had tagged along. Rio seemed antsy, almost nervous but Agatha was nothing but kind to her. The entire night was odd, Rio barely holding conversation with her or coding she existed. While it was only one night, it had been a long one and Agatha had told the rest of her family of the cautionary tale countless times, which they had all gotten a kick out of. 

Lilia doesn’t even bother wiping away her smirk when she turns around to grab the flour and address her eldest daughter. 

“Agatha, your sister is welcome to invite anyone she wants. Plus she’s pretty from the photos you’ve shown us.”

“She’s pretty? That’s enough for you? We don’t know anything about her! What if she’s like a serial killer???”

“Oh shush. We should just be happy your sister has finally found love!” 

“Love? Jesus, Mom. Do you really think that’s what this is?” 

“Well she’s inviting her home for Christmas. She’s never invited anyone home for the holidays before! And they’ve been together for over a year, right? Maybe she’ll ask for Grandma’s ring…”

“Grandma Evanora? She was a cunt. You were the one who told us that!” 

“She was! But the ring is to die for and Jen didn't want to give it to Alice! Someone has to take it or else I'll bring it to a pawn shop soon and move to Costa Rica!" They laugh together. 

“I don’t know about marriage. Rio is just so weird! And it felt like they had nothing in common! I mean come on Mom, you weren’t the one who had to endure that painful dinner with them. She kept doing this weird mouth thing where she’d poke the side of her cheek. And I swear to god that girl was staring into my soul! She wouldn’t even talk to me! She was so quiet, I felt like she was silently planning my demise.” 

“Oh be nice, Aggie. But… perhaps she was. You should probably sleep with one eye open, just to be safe.” Lilia tries to bite back a smile but they both end up laughing when the front door swings open. 

“Mom? Agatha? We’re here!!!” Jen says as walks through the door first with her wife, Alice, following behind with their adopted teen son, Billy. 

When they reach the kitchen it is a jumble of hugs and welcomes and then Jen is going up to Agatha and punching her hard in the arm before bringing her into a tight hug. 

“Hey loser, missed you kind of sort of.” Jen said as she hugged her sister and Agatha melted into her arms.

“Ew getting soft on me, Jenny? Grow up.” Agatha jokes and tickles her sister's sides before Jen playfully shoves her away. 

“And how’s my favorite nephew!” Agatha looks Billy up and down, taking in his new appearance. 

“I’m your only nephew Aunt Agatha.” Billy beams at her. 

“I see we’ve gone… goth!” She notices upclose that he is clearly wearing eyeliner and one singular hoop earring. 

Jen shoots her a warning look. 

“I um love it!” Agatha tries her best to be supportive and Billy must buy it because he just smiles widely and starts talking about his different rings and what eyeliner he likes using. 

“So is it true Aunt Wanda is bringing her weird girlfriend?” After talking Agatha’s ear off, Billy steals a bite of her salad and addresses the rest of the room. 

“Billy.” Alice turns and gives him a warning look. 

“What! It’s what Aunt Agatha keeps telling us! She’s weird!” Billy argues and then Alice turns to Jen for help but the woman tries and fails to hold in her laughter. 

“Yes she’s coming. Unfortunately” Jen chuckles and earns a smack painful smack on her bicep. Agatha and Billy laugh at Jen’s comment. 

“You two behave.” Lilia warns but there’s no bite to her voice. 

“We need to be open minded guys! It’s not easy being an outsider.” Alice adds.

“You’re one to talk! Mom welcomed you into this family the first week you guys started dating. Literally gave you the blessing to marry Jen the first time you came over for family dinner. ” Agatha says, stealing back her salad from Billy. 

“Okay! Whatever! I just mean let’s give her a chance!” Alice rolls her eyes. 

“Sure.” “Okay.” The two Harkness sisters say at the same time and Lilia gives them a warning look. 

“We’ll behave! Geez!” Jen puts her hands up in defense. 

“We’ll be perfect angels, mother.” Agatha’s voice is laced with sarcasm which earns her a whipped towel to the arm.

A car door slams. 

“Ooo! That must be them!!” Billy gets up from his seat next to Agatha at the kitchen island and moves towards the living room to peek through the curtains of the window. The women all follow behind him and do a poor job at pending not to catch a glimpse of the couple. 

They watch as Wanda steps out of her expensive car wearing a pressed suit, heels, and gucci sunglasses and then there is Rio. Rio who is wearing a chunky knit sweater that has probably seen better days, a pair of well worn jeans, and combat boots. They couldn’t have looked more dissimilar. 

Agatha had to check herself because she found herself lingering in Rio. The way her dark hair kept falling into her face. The last time she had seen her, her hair was bob length and now it was well past that and really suited her. Then her big brown eyes that she remembers so well that rarely met hers but she’s seen in photos. And then the way she looked so cozy in her outfit. Agatha convinced herself she was just noticing things about the girl. That was all. 

Wanda is directing Rio to pull their bags from the trunk and doesn’t even bother to help her as she starts making her way to the front door. The women, and Billy, panic and move around to all sit somewhere around the living to make it seem like they weren’t just watching them. 

“Family! Your favorite child is finally here!” Wanda says playfully and bounds through the door. They all go to hug her, Lilia holding onto her baby a little longer than the rest.

They all turn their heads when they hear the loud bang of suitcases hitting the floor. An awkward Rio stands in the doorway, expression unreadable. 

“Guys, this is Rio. My… girlfriend!” Wanda smiles over at the brunette. 

They all introduce themselves and Rio acknowledges them with a polite nod and smile, very limited words. Billy looks over at Agatha and they share a look, biting back laughter. Then Lilia tries to go in for the hug and before Rio could reject, she’s being crushed into a tight embrace. 

When it’s Agatha’s turn, the younger woman freezes and she can feel her cheeks start to turn pink. She stares at Agatha momentarily with a gaped, surprised expression and wide eyes before her gaze casts down to the floor.

Agatha watches this happen but assumes it's her nerves, Agatha was a very intimidating presence that she’s been told about time and time again. Lilia gives a pointed look to her eldest daughter who sighs dramatically and takes a step closer to address Rio. 

“We’ve met once before but you probably forgot since it was so long ago. I’m Agatha.” She tries but the younger girl just glances down at her feet and says nothing. Agatha cocks her eyebrow up at this. Everyone stands there uncomfortably. 

“Okay then!!! Everyone is here and must be starving! Go ahead and pick your rooms and freshen up, I’ve left fresh linens on the bed but let me know if you need anything else. I’ll have dinner ready in half an hour.” Lilia claps her hands together and it gets everyone moving throughout the house. 

Everyone has dispersed but Agatha and Rio. Agatha, being the first to arrive, was already settled in and decided on reading her new book. 

Agatha can feel a pair of eyes on her and she knows they belong to the younger girl. After a moment, out of the corner of her eye, she couldn’t help but watch Rio struggle to gather Wanda’s luggage. She looks away when she hears the faint footsteps of Rio going up the stairs. 

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

Later at dinner, the Harkness girls are all catching up and having a ball while doing so. Telling stories about their separate lives and then laughing until their stomachs ache over reliving old ones. 

When the conversation dies down, Lilia takes it upon herself to lead the next conversation. 

“So Rio, tell us about yourself! What do you do for work?” Lilia looks over at the brunette who was slouched in her chair and extremely quiet this whole time. 

Rio looks up and she looks almost startled to be called on. She tries to paint on a smile and looks around the table until she realizes Agatha is staring right at her and brown eyes looks down at her plate as she pushes around the food nervously before speaking. 

“I’m a botanist.”  Rio’s voice is small but sure and all the women around the table hum and nod their head at her answer. 

“What? Like you work at Home Depot or something?” Billy asks but both his mom’s end up smacking him on the back of the head. 

Agatha snickers at the comment but Lilia kicks her under the table. 

“Rio actually works for the government! She leads the botany team at the US Forest Service. She’s a big shot, aren’t you honey?

“Well that’s very impressive! What a cool job!” 

Rio smiles at Lilia but doesn’t elaborate, choosing to look back down at her plate.  

“Agatha is a teacher!” Jen says and Agatha looks up at her in question. “Agatha, didn’t you tell us you were teaching your kids about trees?” 

Agatha glares daggers at her but Jen just smiles over at Rio. 

“Oh that’s nice. It’s important for kids to learn about nature and how to treat our planet.” Rio addresses Agatha, looking at her briefly before looking away again. Everyone waits for Agatha to say something but it never comes so Jen clears her throat. 

“So Agatha, guess who we saw on the way here?” Jen looks over at their oldest sister, mischief glimmering in her eyes. 

“Oh god, who?” Agatha rolls her eyes in response, knowing she’ll hate whatever is to come. 

“Dottie! And she looks great and I heard she’s single again.” 

“Oh I loved Dottie! She always let me check out as many books as I wanted at the library. She actually still does! I think she’s holding out for you, Aggie.” Lilia smiles at her daughter who rolls her eyes again in disgust. 

Wanda laughs and glaces at Rio beside her  and sees the brunette white knuckling the fork in her hand. She raises her eyebrow at the action and gives Rio’s shoulder a little shove, which seems to knock her out of her thoughts. Rio gives her best friend, and fake girlfriend, an unconvincing smile. 

“Well she can keep holding out because that’s never going to happen again.” Agatha says as her mom and sisters groan. 

“You’re not getting any younger, sweetheart.” Lilila says from the goodness of her heart but still it pisses Agatha off. 

“Well thanks mom!” 

“That’s not what I meant and you know it! I just mean you deserve a nice woman in your life to make you happy! Or man! If that’s of interest to you!”

“Oh fuck no! No men. No thank you. No offense, Billy.” 

“None taken. I get it. Straight men are a nightmare.” He says and everyone erupts into laughter. 

Agatha looks over at Rio and assumes she’s staring at her again but instead she’s laughing at something Wanda whispers into her ear. Agatha pushes down the disappointment she feels inside because it’s stupid, why should she feel that way.

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

Rio offers to do the dishes after dinner and Billy volunteers to dry. The rest of the Harkness ladies are cooped up in the living room, laughing loudly at a stupid story they tell every time they’re together but never gets old. 

“Hey. It’s nice having you here.” Billy says sweetly and it genuinely makes Rio smile. 

“Thanks. It’s nice being here. Your family is so great.” 

“They are.What’s your family like? Are they upset you aren’t spending the holidays with them?” 

“I don’t- um. My family, they passed when I was super young. I grew up in the foster system and then aged out and that was pretty much it. No other family other than… Wanda.” Rio says and she means it. Wanda was her best friend, her family.

“Oh I’m sorry.” Billy feels flustered but Rio offers him a smile to know it’s okay. “I was in foster care too. For a long time actually. My parents died in a car crash and I didn’t have any other family. I thought I was just going to age out, like you, but on my 10th birthday the agency told me two lesbians wanted to adopt me and I met them and couldn’t say no. Alice and Jen, they’re just the best.” He smiles to himself, recalling back to that special day. 

“That’s sweet. I’m happy for you. They seem like really great mothers.” 

“They really are.” Billy kept the wide smile on his face when he looked over to the living room where his moms are cuddled together on the couch.

“You’re nice to talk too. It just feels easy. You remind me so much of my Aunt Agatha.” 

“Oh? How come?” Rio keeps her voice neutral, busying herself by washing off a plate that was already clean. 

“I don’t know. Something about your energies are similar. I think you’d get along with her if you gave her a chance. She’s not as scary as she pretends to be. She’s a big softie. Promise.” Billy says and Rio just nods her head. 

Rio chances a glance into the living room and catches Agatha throwing her head back in laughter. She looked so beautiful it made Rio’s chest contract in her chest. She then saw movement to Agatha’s left and caught Wanda watching her with a curious look. Rio quickly looked away and went back to washing the dishes.

—————————————————

When everyone is turning in for the night, Rio walks into the bedroom she’s being forced to share with Wanda (since they are a ‘couple’) to find Wanda sitting on the bed with her arms crossed and a knowing smirk on her face. 

“You’re into her! Aren’t you!!” Wanda whispers but still gets shushed by Rio.

“Can you shut the fuck up?” Rio covers her hand over her mouth, tackling her onto the bed. She releases her hand when Wanda tries to bit it and they end up sitting next to each other. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“Surreeeeeeeeeee.” Wanda raises her eyebrows. “How did I not know this! How long?! Oh my gosh you need to tell her!”

“Are you insane?! I’m here as YOU’RE fake girlfriend! Remember?!” Rio reminds her and it seems to bring Wanda back to reality who makes an ‘O’ shape with her mouth in realization. 

“Fuck, yeah. You’re right.” Wanda taps her chin before looking back at her with a wide smile. “BUT YOU DO LIKE HER! YOU DIDN’T DENY IT! Oh my god. If you guys get married then you’re forced to be in my life forever!! OH MY GOD WE WOULD ACTUALLY BE SISTERS!!! AND THEN WE COULD-” Wanda’s voice is getting louder and louder in excitement until Rio grabs one of the pillows and shoves it over Wanda’s face, effectively silencing her. For only a minute before she resurfaces. 

“So when??” Wanda smiles and Rio just groans and leans back onto the bed and covers her face with her hands. “WHEN DID YOU START LIKING HER!!!???” 

“If I answer you will you finally shut up?!” Rio glares at her but Wanda’s smile persists, nodding her head. “When we met her for dinner like a year ago.” 

“THAT LONG AGO?!??! OH MY-” Wanda can’t finish her sentence because a fluffy pillow meets her face again. 

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

Late at night, Agatha is scrolling aimlessly on her phone when her door cracks open. She’s about to reach for the baseball bat behind the dresser when Wanda and Jen all sneak into Agatha's room. They squeal as they snuggle under the covers and into their older sister. Agatha complains about their cold feet and hands but secretly loves it. They lay in silence for a couple of minutes just enjoying each other's company as they stare blankly at the ceiling. 

“Can I ask you something?” Agatha asks, turning her head towards Wanda, who nods her head. 

“What’s Rio’s deal?” Agatha starts and the mention of the girl makes Wanda look over.  “She doesn't acknowledge my existence. Does she just hate me so much that she can’t talk to me directly?” 

Agatha looks at her baby sister who worries about her bottom lip between her teeth before looking back up towards the ceiling. 

“She spoke to you a little!” Jen tried but Agatha looks at her “okay yeah it was… weird.” Jen comments and Wanda groans, shoving her face into the pillow below her.

“She just seems pretentious to me. Like she thinks she’s better than us.” Agatha adds.

“Better than you, you mean.” Jen adds and Agatha pinches her side. 

“Yeah whatever. I don’t like that she keeps staring at me and not saying anything. It’s just… unsettling.” 

“She’s nice but it takes a minute for her to warm up to you but she’s a great person. No matter what you guys think about her. Just give her a chance.” Wanda makes it a point to look at Agatha when she says the last part. “She could surprise you.”  

Agatha rolls her eyes before pulling the covers tighter around herself and snuggling closer to her sisters until they all fall asleep. 

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

In the early morning, Lilila is walking around the house looking for her girls when she finds them curled up in Agatha’s bed like when they were little. It warms her heart so much and she can’t help but whip her phone out and take a photo. She blames her age for forgetting to turn her sound off. 

The girls stir awake and audibly and dramatically whine when they see their mom smiling in the doorway, phone in hand. 

“MOOMMM!!!!!!” The girls shout and Lilila laughs before taking a few more photos and putting her phone away. 

“Okay! Okay! My goodness! Still my little witches!! I’m going to get breakfast started my loves, it’ll be ready in about an hour. Go back to sleep.” She smiles, looking over her kids one more time before closing the door and making her way downstairs. 

She turns the corner into the kitchen when she’s startled by Rio sitting at the kitchen island sipping on some coffee. 

“I’m sorry.” Rio says looking quilty and starting to get up from the stool to leave. 

“Hey! No, it’s okay!” Lilia recovers. “Please stay! I was just going to get breakfast started.”

“Would you like some help?”

“Oh that would be so lovely, thank you Rio.” 

They cook together with ease. Rio slowly drops knowledge of her amazing cooking skills that thoroughly impress the mother of 3. Lilia also learns that Rio actually is a lot more talkative than she lets on and that Rio is actually a really nice and funny girl. While all that is true, she doesn't quite understand how Rio fits with Wanda. Lilia can see now more than ever how different they are but she decides to put that on the back burner for now. If anything, Rio seemed more similar to Agatha. They had a similar sense of humor and something about Rio reminded Lilia a lot of her eldest in a way.

“My Jenny and her wife Alice have been together for 8 years now and they have a lovely son, who you met yesterday. And now Wanda has you and all that is left is my Aggie.” Lilia says, smiling over at Rio who was flipping a pancake on the stove top. 

“Has she ever um-” Rio stutters over her words but Lilia gets what she’s asking. 

“Aggie has always been a tough cookie. She’s a hopeless romantic, don’t tell her I said that to you but I think she’s really waiting for that perfect person. You know?”

“And do you think it was that Dottie person you mentioned last night?” Rio asks. 

“Oh no.” Lilia chuckles. “We just like to mess with her. Dottie was Agatha’s first girlfriend and things got super messy when Dottie broke up with Agatha to be with a boy she swore she didn’t like.” 

“That’s messed up.”

“Yeah it was.” Lilia thinks it over. “Since Dottie, she hasn’t brought anyone else home or mentioned someone so we just all assume she isn’t seeing anyone serious at the moment. Unless she’s hiding a secret family inside her tiny apartment in New York.” 

“Are you talking shit about me again, mom?” Agatha yawns when she walks in, stretching her arms above her head and causing her t-shirt to ride up to expose her midriff. Rio’s eyes go to the exposed skin and she swallows a lump in her throat, looking breathless before clearing her throat and looking back towards the stove. Lilia watches this all unfold and raises her eyebrow. 

Jen walks in with her arms draped around Billy and Alice and Wanda follows behind. Wanda awkwardly walks up next to Rio and kisses her on the cheek. 

“So I was thinking of doing something fun tonight.” Jen says as she walks over to the coffee maker and pours her and Alice a cup. 

“Ew.” Billy, Agatha, and Wanda all say in unison. 

“Not that your pervs. I mean go out! I think we should go to Mephisto’s tonight!” 

“That gross hometown bar? We’re bound to see at least 18 people Agatha’s slept with or ghosted.” Wanda says and it earns her a scolding glare from her older sister. 

“Yeah no, I’m not stepping foot in that place. You’re out of your fucking mind, Jenny.” 

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

Mephisto’s was so fucking crowded. Of course it was, it was Christmas so that meant everyone and their mothers would be back home for the holidays looking to escape their families and get wasted. 

“This is hell on Earth. Why are we doing this right now???” Agatha looks around and doesn’t even try to hide the disgust on her face. 

“Oh come on! It’ll be fun!!” Alice hugs Agatha and tries to get her to smile but it doesn’t work. “I’ll get us all a round of shots!” 

“Okay now you're talkin my language, sister.” Agatha finally lets up, smiling as Alice and Jen walk over to the bar. Now it was just Agatha, Wanda, and Rio. 

Wanda was too busy typing away on her phone to acknowledge they were even there and Agatha resumed her mission of figuring out what Rio’s problem was with her. Agatha turned in Rio’s direction and took in her form. She was wearing tight black jeans, those ratty combat boots again, and a tight low cut black long sleeve that (Agatha hated to admit this but she was a woman lover, sue her) did great things for her chest. Rio looked pretty. 

Just when Agatha was going to try to make conversation with the younger girl, a short red head in a tight tank top approached them and all but threw herself onto Wanda. 

“What the- Nat?! Is that you??” Wanda pulled the figure back and smiled widely at the tiny red head in front of her. 

“Long time no see stranger.” Natasha winked at Wanda which caused the taller redhead to laugh nervously, a response both Agatha and Rio both had never seen before. 

Natasha brings Wanda into another hug that lasts a little too long and looks a little too intimate. It’s Agatha who clears her throat and makes the two separate, giving Wanda a murderous look and tilting her head towards Rio. 

“Shit sorry! Nat, this is my um my girlfriend, Rio.” Rio just gives Natasha a tight lipped smile and nods her head. 

“Lucky girl, Rio. Would you mind if I had a little dance with your girl?” Natasha is already pulling Wanda towards the dance floor before Rio could even answer. 

Agatha shakes her head and rolls her eyes before checking on Rio, who doesn't even look bothered at all by what just happened but Agatha still feels the need to say something, anything to break the awkward tension. 

“Hey. You look really nice tonight!” Agatha offers a warm smile but when brown eyes finally meet hers they are unreadable. It makes Agatha’s smile falter and before she can apologize or say anything, Rio is pushing past her and walking towards the exit. 

“What the hell did you just say to her?” Alice and Jen arrive back as soon as she leaves with a tray of shots. 

“Nothing. I don’t even- excuse me.” Agatha is frustrated and finds herself following Rio’s trail. 

When the cold air hits her, she sees Rio leaning against the car they all arrived in smoking. Agatha, filled with anger, approaches her with a scowl on her face. 

“What’s your fucking problem?!” Agatha shouts and it scares Rio, who jolts back against the car and causes her cigarette to fall into the snow below her. “I’ve been trying to be nice to you this whole time but you have some fucking stick up your ass and can’t even look me in the eye because what? You’re so much better than me? It’s below you to even acknowledge my existence???” 

In response, Rio just scoffs looking away and shaking her head. 

“Huh?! What is it then? What’s your fucking problem with me, Rio?!!” 

Rio finally looks over at Agatha and for a minute she swears she sees something flicker in those brown eyes, something she knew she shouldn’t want.

“Nothing, Agatha.” Rio FINALLY speaks to Agatha but it’s not enough. Rio goes to walk past her and back into the bar when Agatha roughly grabs her wrist and pulls her back, making their bodies collide together. Agatha’s breath hitches at the contact and Rio’s eyes gaze down at Agatha’s lips. Agatha reaches up, cupping her face gently with her breath becoming shallow. Then something takes over her when Rio melts into her touch, her face pushing into her hand. Agatha finds the courage to bring her thumb to Rio’s plump lower lip and the way Rio’s eyes bore into her own create a fire within her. It’s Rio who starts to lean in when the loud sound of giggles tumble out of the bar and they force themselves a part. 

Agatha looks over and see’s Wanda and Natasha practically intertwined, leaning against the building and kissing. Agatha makes it a point to pull the car keys out of her pocket and relock the car, making Wanda’s head snap up and knowing she’s been caught red handed. 

Rio pulls Wanda aside. Tells her this is stupid, that Wanda should be able to fuck Natasha without feeling obligated to keep up the fake girlfriend facade and Wanda just agrees, being tired of the act (horny). She lets Rio break up with her that night, loud enough for her sisters to hear. 

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

The next morning, Rio is lugging her own suitcases down the stairs and heading towards the front door. 

“Rio, you don’t have to leave! Please stay for Christmas. No one should spend the holidays alone. We can even padlock Wanda into her room if it’ll make you feel more comfortable.” Lilia jokes with a warm smile and it does make Rio chuckle. 

“I love Wanda.” Rio says and she means it. “I always will. No bad blood, I promise. Thank you for welcoming me into your home. It meant so much, thank you again Ms. Harkness.” 

“Please! It’s Lilia! And at least let… ah Agatha! There you are dear. Can you drive Rio to the train station please.” Agatha just came down the stairs, still rubbing sleep from her eyes. When she sees Rio with her suitcases it seems to fully wake her up.

“Yeah. Of course.” Agatha doesn’t even let Rio get a word in before grabbing one of the suitcases and going out to her car. 

The ride is eerily quiet except for the soft tunes of the Christmas radio. They arrive at the station after a few minutes and sit in silence. Rio suddenly goes to pull the door open but Agatha speaks up. 

“I’m sorry about Wanda.” 

“It’s fine.” 

“Is it?”

“Yeah. We weren’t meant to be.” Rio says truthfully, fiddling with her fingers. They fall quiet again when Rio reaches for the door again. 

“Are we going to talk about it?” “Thanks for the ride.”

Rio lets go of the door handle and makes an action to look over at Agatha but instead looks down at the console between them. 

“Agatha.” 

“You almost kissed me last night.” Agatha tries to duck down and look at Rio. “Hey. Can you please look at me.” Agatha slowly reaches out, her pointer finger touching Rio’s chin and tilting her head up until brown eyes meet blue. Agatha can drown in those eyes if Rio would let her. 

“And you almost let me.” Rio’s voice is barely over a whisper.  

Agatha’s eyes soften and her eyes fall to Rio’s lips. Agatha lets out a shaky breath before leaning in. Her breath hitches when Rio cups her face with her right hand. 

“Agatha. I need to tell you something.” Rio starts but a loud knock is heard on the driver’s window. 

They pull apart and Agatha turns a murderous look towards the window and sees Dottie smiling and waving from the other side. Agatha closes her eyes, letting out a sigh, before rolling the window down. 

“Dottie. What do I owe this pleasure?” Agatha says with an annoyed tone that Dottie doesn’t seem to catch on to. 

“I heard you were back in town but I had to see it for myself! How are you? You look really… hot.” Dottie smirks, leaning on the window and purposefully flashing her cleavage towards Agatha who rolls her eyes and leans back in her seat to create space. 

“My train is here.” 

Rio rushes out of the car before Agatha could stop her. 

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

When Agatha gets back, everyone is in the living room. Wanda is sitting in the arm chair that had been moved to the center while everyone takes their turns berating her. 

“I knew you were a cunt but this is next level, Wanda!” Jen scolds and Lilia smacks her arm for the bad language. 

“Sweetie, you should’ve just broken up with her instead of cheating! Cheaters are the WORST type of people and I know that isn’t you. Wanda you are better than that!” Lilia says desperately, looking at her daughter with so much disapproval and it makes Wanda sink in her seat. 

“I’m actually disgusted with you. I can’t even look at you!” Jen adds and Wanda puts her head in her hands, staring at the ground. 

Agatha makes her presence known, walking into the living room with caution and they all turn towards her. Wanda sits straighter in her seat when she sees the look on Agatha’s face. 

“She told you. Didn’t she?” Wanda asks and they all look at her in confusion. 

“What are you talking about?” Agatha asks. 

Wanda sighs and comes to terms with her actions, realizing it’s better to confess than be seen as a cheater (which she’d never be). 

“She was never my girlfriend! Okay!” 

“WHAT?!” The Harkness women shout and stare at the youngest. 

“What the hell do you mean by that?!” Agatha gets closer, crossing her hands over her chest. 

“I mean… ugh. Okay. So. We were just pretending to be together to get you guys off my case. We never dated. We never even hooked up. She’s strictly my best friend. That’s it.” Wanda explains and the room falls quiet. Agatha moves to sit on the couch where Alice and Billy resided, cradling her head in her hands and thinking. 

“You didn’t have to do that, my love. We don’t care if you’re seeing someone or not. It doesn’t matter. So long you’re happy.” Lilia softens and smiles at her youngest, who smiles back. 

“I told you, mom. You owe me $30 bucks.” Billy whispers to Alice and Agatha whips her head up to look at her nephew. 

“You knew???” 

“It was kind of obvious. From the lack of PDA to the way Rio would practically drool when you walked into a room. I mean I thought we ALL knew.” Billy says.

“Drool? What are you talking about? Don’t be ridiculous. She’s like 10 years younger than me.” Agatha asks and Billy just stares at her. Agatha looks around the room for help and they are all giving her the same look. 

“I did notice her oolging you too and thought it was odd since at the time I thought she was with Wanda but it makes a lot of sense now.” Lilila agrees, sitting on the arm of the chair Wanda was sitting in. Moving the red hair out of her face and kissing the top of her head. She whispers ‘my baby’ into her temple and the youngest throws her arms around her waist. 

“Agatha.” Wanda speaks up and they look at each other. “She likes you. A lot. That’s her problem with you. The problem is that she’s liked you since we met for dinner all that time ago. The problem is she likes you too much.” 

Agatha’s mouth falls open, a whole new world has just been opened to her and she feels frozen in place. 

Then before she can comprehend what is happening, she is being pulled up from her seat and shoved into the car. They all manage to fit into Jen’s van and they zoom down the street. 

“Where are we going!?!? It’s Christmas morning?!” Agatha asks, still in shock of what was happening. 

“We are getting you the girl!!” Billy smiles as she says so, pointing to the train station once they arrive. 

Agatha’s eyes widen and she shakes her head. 

“No.” Agatha says weakly. 

“What? You don’t like her?” Wanda raises her eyebrow. Agatha doesn’t say anything but looks down at her ratty uggs boots they shoved onto her feet before leaving the house. “Then go get her!” 

“Her train already left. I saw it leave.” Agatha said, feeling her heart break at the memory. Trying to get rid of Dottie but she wasn’t fast enough. 

They fall silent, taking in the moment but then Alice sits up in her seat. 

“Wait. Isn’t that her?” Alice says and they all crowd the left side of the car windows until Agatha pushes her way through to see and it is her. Rio sitting sadly on a bench, kicking her feet and wiping away a tear. 

Agatha is pushing through the bodies and throwing herself out of the car. She rushes the station and all but body slams into Rio and brings her into a tight hug. 

Rio is alarmed at first, scared she was just attacked by a stranger but she notices the hair and the waft of her scent and melts into her arms. They stay there for a moment before Agatha pulls back and cradles her face in her hands. 

“What about Dottie?” Rio’s voice is so small and then Agatha laugh and Rio starts to shrink away.

“There’s nothing there. She’s no one. I promise.” Agatha says, watching the way Rio looked so unsure at first but finds confidence after Agatha’s confession.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Agatha says, voice laced with longing. 

“Well I was fake dating your sister.” Rio says plainly but a small smirk on her face. 

“You’ve really liked me all this time?” Rio just nods her head and Agatha settles with a sweet smile on her face. 

“Sorry if that’s lame.” Rio laughs, looking down at her sneakers but Agatha forces her eyes up. Face serious. 

“It’s not.” Agatha assures her. “It’s romantic.”

“I- You’re so beautiful, Agatha.” Rio says almost breathlessly and Agatha can’t help herself when she crashes her lips together and kisses her deeply and it immediately feels like coming home even though this is their first kiss.

Rio throws her arms around Agatha’s neck and Agatha tilts her head, changing the angle of the kiss and slides her tongue inside. They are making unholy noises in a public space but they don’t care. They only pull a part when they hear the sound of a loud horn and people cheering. They look over and see the Harkness clan hanging out the window and cheering them on. 

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

Two Years Later:

“Class please welcome our guest for today! My special friend, wildness explorer Rio!” Agatha stands at the front of the class, clapping along with her students who all cheer when Rio walks in in a silly outfit Agatha made her wear. She has on tan khakis, a white button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and a red scarf wrapped around her neck. Agatha wanted her to wear a boy scout sash too but Rio drew the line there. 

Rio planned on being bratty about the situation but once she saw the excited faces of Agatha’s first grade class, she couldn’t find it within her anymore. They were all so cute and ecstatic to be learning about nature and it warmed her heart. 

She settled at the front of the class, asking them to join her on the reading carpet, as she read to them a kids book about plants. She was using silly voices for each character and it made all the kids giggle. She glances over at Agatha, who was biting back a wide smile as she watched her with loving and adoring eyes. 

Agatha had on her big glasses, that were now slipping down her nose, and Rio's heart felt like it was bursting through her chest and she hated to admit this (it being inapropriate in this moment) but she was always endlessly turned on when she slide her glasses on her face.

When the last bell rang indicating the end of the school day, the kids didn’t want to part with Rio but Agatha promised she would be back soon. Once all the kids had been picked up or shipped onto a school bus, Agatha started to gather her stuff as Rio collected the things she brought to the classroom. 

“Oh wilderness explorer Rio?” Agatha sing songed and Rio turned, to see the woman all ready to go. Perched on the side of her desk, arms crossed, not even hiding that face that she was checking Rio out. She crooked her finger, asking Rio to come closer. 

Rio smirked, leaving the books on the floor, and slotted herself between Agatha’s legs. Agatha pulled her in closer, roughly by tugging on her neck scarf, and kissed her simply before pulling back a little. Rio tried to go in for another but Agatha put a hand on her chest, stopping her. 

“When we get home, I want you in our bed with this-” Agatha tugs again on the scarf, “on you, nothing else, and I want you to put a baby in me.” 

Agatha bites the bottom of her lip, knowing the darkening look in Rio’s eyes. She yelps when Rio kisses her hungrily and then grabs Agatha’s bag, slinging it over her one shoulder and picking up Agatha and slinging her over the other. Rio’s smacks her as playfully before leaving the comfort of Agatha’s classroom and bringing her home. 

Much, much later when Agatha is happily fucked and staring down at her sleeping girlfriend, she reached over for her phone and pull up her mom's contact.

Agatha: Hey Mom! So about Grandma's ring...

[emsprovisions]

❄️ Day 19 - The Perfect Gift ❄️

🎁 Today's fic is dedicated to @henrygrass!

Summary: Carlos goes Christmas shopping with his mom.

Word count: 980

24 Days of Tarlos Masterpost

Carlos really doesn’t want to be here. But when his mother caught wind that it’s his day off, she showed up at the loft ten minutes faster than he knows it should’ve taken her to get there. 

“Do I need to write you a speeding ticket, mamá?” Carlos jokes, kissing his mom on the cheek before rolling the loft door closed behind her. 

Andrea clucks her tongue and rolls her eyes. 

“Between my husband and my son, you think I don’t know my way around traffic cops?” She winks at him. “I was already in the area. Where’s TK?”

That twists the knife still plunged in Carlos’s heart, just when he almost forgot for two whole seconds that there’s a gaping chasm in his chest that’s TK-shaped. 

“At work,” Carlos supplies lamely. 

He’s never been good at lying, but he’s not great with the truth either. And anyways he has good enough reason to assume TK probably is at work. It’s a safe bet. Safer than to assume he’s at the gym, or on a date, or somewhere else where other men could look at him and try and get with him and TK could let them because he’s single. 

Carlos pushes the thought from his mind and shakes himself out of it as he realizes his mom just asked him something. 

“I’m sorry, what was that?”

“I asked if you’ve bought him anything for Christmas yet?” Andrea repeats herself. 

More pain and guilt just roil together in Carlos’s stomach. 

It’s not that he doesn’t want to tell her he and TK are no longer an item, it’s just that saying it aloud will make it real, and also, he really doesn’t want to tell her. His parents finally were so accepting and supportive of who Carlos is, and who Carlos wants to date. They love TK. He worries it might break their hearts irreparably to find out how big of a failure their son really is. He already couldn’t keep a wife. Now he can’t keep the most perfect man either.

“No,” he says, trying to keep his voice level despite the turbulent emotions inside of him right now. “I just haven’t had the time.”

“Ah, well you’ve both been busy with work and furnishing the loft I’m sure,” Andrea waves her hands in the air. “We’ll just have to do it while we’re out today!”

This is how Carlos has found himself shopping at the Domain outdoor mall in Austin with his mother, feeling not unlike he’s fifteen again as he follows her around and is tasked with carrying her shopping. 

They go into store after store, Andrea prattling off what she wants to get for Carlos’s sisters, and Carlos’s father, and her friends from church and the other various clubs she’s a part of. 

“What do you think of this for TK?” She asks. 

Carlos realizes they’re in the men’s section at Dillard’s and Andrea is showing Carlos a really nice cashmere sweater. Carlos blinks at the sweater. It really is something TK would love, it’s a nice blue color with a cable knit pattern. He glances at the price tag, and shakes his head. 

“He’s already got some like that,” Carlos explains. 

Also not entirely a lie. Carlos bought TK some very nice sweaters when they had to replace their wardrobes after the fire. He remembers the way TK’s face lit up when Carlos surprised him with a few cashmere sweaters.

“Carlos!” He’d said with a big grin on his face. “We’re here to replace hoodies, baby. Not so you can buy me fancy sweaters.”

“You deserve it,” Carlos told him, with a soft kiss to the cheek. And he did deserve it. TK always deserved to feel special.

Carlos thinks he misses being TK’s baby most of all.

Carlos keeps finding excuses for everything Andrea shows him that could be for TK. It just isn’t right, or they’re out of his size, or he already has something similar.

“Enough, mijo!” Andrea finally huffs. “What is all this? You want to buy your boyfriend the perfect gift?”

Carlos just shrugs, a tiny, “Something like that,” slipping out.

Andrea smiles and shakes her head in exasperation at her son. “Perfect doesn’t exist, Carlitos. Heaven knows how much I tried finding the perfect gift for the first few years your father and I were together. What did you get him last year?”

“It was still the pandemic last year, and we were new, I got him a hoodie and some things for him to keep at my place,” Carlos explains. “This year just feels different, you know?”

Andrea nods. “You’re more serious now, living together, owning a place together. You want the gift to be more grownup, too.”

Carlos shrugs again with a vague, “Yeah.”

“I have just the thing,” Andrea grabs Carlos by the wrist and hauls him to the jewelry and accessories department of the store. “You get him a nice watch, and a nice cologne, and pair it with one of those cashmere sweaters we passed earlier. I know you wanted it for him, if the money’s an issue, I can buy it.”

Carlos frowns, “No, mamá, the money isn’t an issue…wait, he really wanted this one.”

Carlos spots a nice, silver watch that had been too expensive for TK to treat himself to when they’d been shopping to replace their things. But now it’s on sale and Carlos doesn’t know why he grabs it to buy for his ex-boyfriend other than to say he’s bought something that will appease his mother. 

“You should get that for him then,” Andrea smiles encouragingly, her eyes bright and happy, as if she’s imagining TK’s surprise when Carlos presents him with the gift he wanted.

“I think I will,” Carlos stares at the watch before looking up at his mom and offering her a tiny smile. “Thanks, ma.”

[writerfae]

Christmas movie au Advent Calendar 🎄

Day Twenty-One: (☃️)Snow globe(☃️)

Christmas special tag list: @bunnymermaidsblog @deadlycupid @dustylovelyrun @ladywithalamp @sleepy-night-child @theguywithnonickname

After dinner, they sat cuddled up on the couch.

Aiden made himself a home in between Talon’s legs, head leaning against his chest and Talon’s arms securely wrapped around him.

Talon wouldn’t mind staying like this forever, freezing this moment in to put it in a snow globe and hold on to it forever.

It felt an awful lot like the calm before a storm and he pulled Aiden even closer to himself.

“What was Christmas like for you? Before your family stopped celebrating, I mean?” Aiden asked and Talon froze for a second.

“You don’t have to tell me, if you don’t want to talk about it,” he added quietly, fingers drawing patterns near Talon’s collarbone as if to soothe him.

“No, I want to.” Talon gulped. “It’s just… it’s been so long…”

Yet he remembered it vividly, he just hadn’t allowed himself to think about it.

“When I was younger, Christmas was my highlight of the year. We usually spent it at my uncle Kieran’s house, because it was big enough to host such an event. And it really was an event. Most of my family was there, as well as my uncle’s friends.

There was a huge Christmas tree in the main hall and decoration everywhere and the largest table I had ever seen, filled with so much food us children thought it could feed a whole village.”

He chuckled.

“Uncle Kieran always hosted nice Christmas parties like this with music and buffet and a present exchange. It was a sight to behold and everyone had so much fun. I think you would’ve liked it. It was like in one of those Christmas movies.”

Talon’s hand found its way in Aiden’s hair as he kept talking.

“But what I always liked best was Christmas Eve before it, where it was just my parents, my sister, Kieran and me.

My mom would’ve prepared dinner and even got dad to help her with it and my uncle played with us children. He taught me a new Christmas song to play on either the violin or the guitar each year.”

He smiled fondly, lost in the memories. He had almost forgotten how he had loved the holiday.

“My sister and me had to play something on the instrument before we got our presents - my family was very traditional when it came to things like this. And then we got our presents.

My uncle always got me the things my dad would never have bought for me, no matter how much I begged him. Stuff like video games or action figures.

One year he gifted me a violin, way too valuable for a child my age, but he said that a professional needed a professional instrument.”

Talon’s father had been skeptical if this was a good present for a five year old, but Kieran had insisted.

He had his first own violin when he was even younger, he claimed.

“Talent needs to be supported,” he said, laying his hand on Talon’s head. “And Talon has plenty of talent.”

Talon wanted to be a musician back then, but that childhood dream had died with his uncle, probably even before.

After all, he’d inherit a family business.

“That sounds nice,” Aiden whispered, as if afraid that him speaking any louder would scare Talon away.

Talon nodded.

“He was. And with his present came a Christmas card. He wrote one for me every year, addressing it to “his favorite nephew”, until the very last Christmas we shared together before he…”

He fell silent.

“I still have all of them, in my apartment somewhere. I couldn’t bring myself to leave them behind when I moved out. It was always our little tradition.”

He hadn’t even noticed the single tear running down his cheek before Aiden shifted in his lap and leaned up to kiss it away.

“You must’ve really loved him. I’m sorry,” he cupped Talon’s cheek with a hand.

Talon leaned into it, closing his eyes.

“I did.” He opened them again to look at Aiden. “Thank you.”

His voice was barely about a whisper but they were so close Aiden understood it nonetheless.

He kissed him then.

Because he wanted to and Aiden was right here, in front of him, and life was too short to miss out on even the smallest chances he got to do it.

After a while, Aiden pulled away, taking Talon’s face in both of his hands and Talon almost started to tear up again just at the gentleness of this gesture.

“Your uncle and the Christmases you shared with him sound really great. I’m sorry that you lost all that. But I hope you’ll at least find your joy in Christmas again. I think your uncle would want it, too.”

He was probably right with that.

For so many years Talon had been busy pushing away all the negative feelings regarding his uncle and Christmas, that he didn’t notice that it kept out all the good feelings and memories he had, too.

All it took for him to achieve this clarity was to be sent into this little Christmas-loving town of all places.

That and the person in front of him.

Aiden had given him so much. He deserved to know the truth. Despite that knowledge weighing down on him, he smiled, putting his hands over Aiden’s.

“I did find it. Thanks to you.”

Aiden let go of Talon and leaned back, just looking at Talon.

“I’m glad,” he said then and smiled.

Shortly after, Aiden excused himself to go get them something to drink and Talon was left alone in the warm living room of Aiden’s house.

It was already cozy to begin with, but the Christmas decorations that were added recently gave the room a whole different charm.

Talon found it comfortable here, there was a feeling of warmth and safety in the air.

Like a magical aura surrounding the room.

Talon let his eyes wander through the room, taking it all in.

This here: this room, this house, the farm… Talon promised himself to find a way to protect it, no matter the prize he had to pay.

His gaze got stuck on something that sat on the mantelpiece of the huge fireplace, something he hadn’t noticed before.

He stood up to get to look at it from up closer.

It was a snow globe, he realized as he stood in front of the fireplace.

A very pretty snow globe, big and heavy enough that he needed both of his hands to be able to properly hold it.

Inside the snow globe was a little scenery:

Snow covering the floor and dusting the four Christmas trees in the background and before it a prettily decorated carriage loaded with a bag of presents, drawn by a single white horse and with no one less than Santa himself holding the reigns.

Next to Santa, a little girl with black curls sat in the carriage. Maybe she was supposed to be an elf or an angel, from the look of her it could’ve been both.

The pedestal the globe stood on was red with little handmade decorations in gold and green drawn on it. In the middle of it stood a name:

Ranva.

It was a pretty sight and as he slowly turned the little clockwork key on the back, gentle glistening snow was swirling around the globe.

He smiled to himself, carefully setting the snow globe down again.

“Pretty, isn’t it?” Aiden’s voice asked close to his ear and Talon was glad he had put the snow globe down already, otherwise he would’ve most likely dropped it.

“Yes, very.” He turned to look at Aiden, who stood next to him, eying the snow globe fondly.

“It was my mother’s,” he said, reaching out and gently swiping his finger over the engraved name on the pedestal.

“She got it as a gift from her parents when she was little, cause the girl looked like her. It was one of the few things she took with her as she came here.”

He smiled.

“It was kind of our tradition, you know? Each year for Christmas she put the snow globe on the mantelpiece.

And each year on Christmas Eve she took it from its rightful place, sat down on the couch with it and let my brother and me cuddle up to her, telling us the story about a girl and how she got to help out Santa.“

A chuckle escaped his lips.

“It was the only time we were allowed to hold it, otherwise it had to remain where it was. My mom wasn’t really a strict mother but she took this one rule very serious.”

He sighed.

“The first two or so year after her death, we couldn’t put the snow globe up for Christmas, because father would freak out about it.

I put it in my room, once, because it made me feel like she was with us for Christmas, you know? But dad saw it and had a mental breakdown. I didn’t dare to put it back up ever since.”

“I’m sorry about that,” Talon said, grabbing Aiden’s hand.

Aiden squeezed their joined hands lightly, then he let go and used it to brush away the tears gathering in his eyes.

“It’s okay. The years after her death have been hard, but he’s better now. Now when he looks at it, he’s smiling, not crying. We have it up for the fifth year in a row this Christmas.”

“That’s nice.” Aiden smiled sadly. “It is…” He looked away.

“What is it?” Talon asked, making Aiden look at him. “What’s wrong?”

Aiden sighed, closing his eyes.

“I was just thinking about how this will probably be our last Christmas here.”

He opened his eyes to look at Talon and for the first time since they knew each other Talon wished those eyes wouldn’t look at him so directly, so he didn’t have to see the sadness in them.

And so that Aiden couldn’t see the guilt in his.

“What are you talking about?”

Stop lying, Talon scolded himself. You know exactly what he is talking about. You need to tell him.

“It’s senseless to keep up hope. We won’t be able to get enough money to save the farm, so we have to take the offer of these people.

Mr. Hawkins made a good offer, it will be enough to start a comfortable life someplace new but… it kills me to think about losing the farm. Not just not living or working here anymore, but it just being… gone.

Thinking about some stupid hotel or mall or whatever it is that they want to build here and that this town doesn’t need standing in its stead. Generations of family history lost…

I don’t want to be the one of my family who failed. I don’t want to be the reason father loses his whole legacy. Our legacy.”

His grip on Talon grew more desperate with every word and Talon’s heart broke at the same time as Aiden’s voice.

“He barely survived losing mom.”

Tears threatened to fall, but Aiden didn’t cry again. Didn’t allow himself too, probably.

Too strong for it.

Too proud.

“I don’t want him to lose the place that he made his home with her, too.”

Tell him, his mind screamed. You need to tell him.

Talon wasn’t as strong as Aiden, he did start to cry, silent tears falling from his face without his consent.

This was it then, the final moment. The one that would ruin everything.

But he couldn’t keep going like this, lying to Aiden about it all.

It would be selfish, dishonest, disrespectful.

It would be no basis for a relationship.

“I’m sorry, Aiden,” he said, grief tying up his throat. “I’m so so sorry.”

His reaction surprised Aiden so much that he let go of him.

“What’s wrong?”

Concern showed in his eyes, concern for Talon, even though it was Aiden who had all the worries.

And Talon was just about to cause him even more.

He didn’t deserve Aiden’s concern.

“Aiden, I-“ Talon took a deep breath.

“There’s something I need to tell you.”

[blackcoldcrackedheart]

So yeah, I wrote a different version in where Tommy adopts Daniel.

(Last post for some time btw)

Tommy isn't religious, but he's praying to whomever can hear him that the boy,who looks barely two or three years old, is okay.

He wants to desperately curse out the parents for being stupid enough to go hiking when the Santa Ana winds were getting stronger.

Tommy picks up the kid gingerly, waiting for his team to pull the parents first since they weren't responding. The kid had a horrible open wound that Tommy was betting was a fracture but the kid's eyes were open and he seemed alert- scared really.

Something about the kid's eyes felt eerily familiar- a sense of deja vu washed over Tommy. The kid's eyes were starting blue and so animated, that Tommy was sure he could read the kid's thoughts just by looking into his eyes.

He gently pushed back the kid's blond curly hair back, pressing against the wound as the kid's eyes could only look around in fear. "Hey, I'm Tommy. What you're name, kiddo?"

"Danny." The kid slurred, his voice barely a whisper. "Mommy and daddy hurt?"

Tommy nodded, "Yes, your mommy and daddy got hurt but my friends are gonna help, okay? We're all firefighters and we're gonna take you to the hospital so you can feel better." He explained gently. He looked up to the helicopter that Lucy was piloting l. The winds were harsh and he had covered Danny's face from having to see his parents sway in the wind as they were being pulled into the helicopter.

"Firetruck?" Danny's eyes were filled with wonder and excitement, of course the kid would love firetrucks.

Tommy laughed, " When we get out of here, we can go see firetrucks with your mom and dad. Okay?"

Danny's eyes drooped close, Tommy patted the toddler's face gently, "Hey buddy, I know you're tired, but I need you to stay awake."

"I'm not tired, Tummy."

Tommy nearly snickered at that, the kid was such a cutie pie. "Hey, what if we sang a song? Want to sing me a song?"

He heard it before he heard his team yell.

The sound of the ground shifting.

"KINARD!"

Tommy shielded the kid and tried to duck into the smallest crevice known to man, he prayed to whomever could listen that the kid would be okay if he wasn’t.

“Kinard, you good?” He heard Milton yell out urgently.

“Never better.” He yelled back, trying to not chuckle at how the avalanche would have definitely hit him if he hadn’t moved in time. He looked down at Daniel, the kid was holding onto his jumpsuit tightly, eyes closed and clearly afraid. “Hey buddy, we’re okay.” Tommy assured him, running his hand through his curls.

“The kid okay?”

“Shaken, but he’s a trooper.”

-

The kid was a trooper, but definitely afraid still. He had refused to move away from Tommy, or as the others were loving the new nickname; Tummy. Ashara was kind about it, fixing what she could as the toddler would cry whenever someone tried to touch him.

“You think he was okay at home?” Ashara asked, looking over the kid with a worried expression, “I’ve never seen a kid so clingy like this before.”

Tommy sighed, “I have…little kids need someone to hold onto when they survive trauma. The kid just witnessed his parents getting buried by rocks and dirt, I’m surprised all he has are just gashes and bruises from what I can see.” He rubbed Daniel’s back soothingly, smiling in relief when he realized that Daniel was sound asleep in his arms.

“Kinard.” Lucy’s voice came through his headset, a gentle but pointed warning.

Tommy rolled his eyes, “Just fly this thing, Donato.”  

-

Tommy had been firefighter for decades at this point. He knew the number one rule.

Their job ended at the glass door.

But this time…

Daniel was still clinging to him once they landed and once they tried to put the toddler onto a gurney, he had screamed his head off till he was red, his arms reaching out to Tommy.

He turned to his team, who were all watching and waiting for Tommy to make his next move, and then turned to the med team.

“You’re serious?” Lucy asked, her eyes wide as Tommy went up to a male nurse.

“Would it be okay if I stay? Until you find his other family?” Tommy asked the man, his badge showing his name as Amir.

Amir frowned, looking back at Daniel and then at him- clearly this was first for the med team. “Okay, but just till we reached the next of kin. I don’t need to traumatize this kid twice over.”

Tommy nodded and rushed back to his team, “Tell the Cap that I’m sorry, I’ll try to head back once they call in his family.”

Lucy, Milton, and Ashara all glanced at each other, the same worried expression passing over their features. Lucy was the first to step up, “Keep us posted? I’ll pick you up if the Cap is cool with it.”

Tommy thanked and rushed off, promising his teammates that he would keep them posted if anything happened.

-

Three hours later Tommy was softly humming to a now calm Daniel.

The boy had been panicky whenever someone dared to even come close. Fortunately the doctors were able to confirm that Daniel was fine- he had to wear a cast on his arm and had to get a few stiches on his forehead and shoulder, but he was fine. In the appropriate weight and height class for his age, no signs of physical abuse that would make his doctor or social worker, Claudia, worried.

“I can’t imagine what he witnessed on that trail.” Claudia sighed, watching as Tommy fed the little boy a cup of mac and cheese.

“I don’t think we want to.” Tommy had seen the parents- those two had to be in critical care by now. He wasn’t sure if they would make it, but he hoped they did and hoped that their family would show support. Those two needed their family to help, especially with explaining to Daniel why he more than likely wouldn’t be seeing his parents for some time.

Claudia smiled, Daniel was adorably enjoying being fed while Tommy made ‘plane noises’ “I feel like he has you wrapped around his finger now.” She teased.

Tommy laughed, he couldn’t deny it really, “You try looking into those eyes and telling the kid no.” he joked, going back to feeding Daniel once the toddler started asking for “Plane?” again.

A part of him wasn’t surprised, he had a niece and nephew that he adored and spoiled. His sister Sarah and her husband Chet (short for Chetachukwu), lived in Napa and were not always too thrilled when Uncle TomTom came to visit because that meant things like…a built from scratch swing set or a treehouse (with furniture, “Because it has to have furniture Sarah!”).

He never pictured himself having kids…

No, he wasn’t going to go there, especially right now.

“He is adorable.” Claudia cooed, “I’m glad he has you right now, unfortunately we can’t always have someone sit for the kids who don’t have their parents or family when they come in.”

Tommy nodded, knowing this was the case with patients he had had brought in before, “Any luck with contacting the next of kin?”

Claudia shook her head ‘no’, “No luck, we’re still trying though.” She promised.

Tommy looked at his watch, it was nearing the end of his shift soon and so far he had only gotten a few messages from his team, particularly Lucy and Milton who had confirmed that the Captain was good with him staying with Daniel and a reminder for Tommy to message either of them when he was ready to head back. “Take your time.” He told her, “I’ve got nowhere to be for now.”

Tommy tried not to wince, knowing how depressed he sounded at that last part.

A few hours later Tommy and Daniel were emersed in a Bluey marathon on Tommy’s phone, sharing a cup of grapes and a bottle of apple juice.

‘In all honestly, not the worst way to spend a Friday night post-breakup.’ Tommy thought, the kid seemed to be distracted enough that he even was giggling and smiling at some parts of the show, which was a relief for Tommy.

The door opened, revealing Claudia and a older looking woman. “Mr. Kinard?” the older woman addressed him, “I’m Anita Hernandez, I’m the supervising social worker for the pediatric unit.” She explained,

Tommy could feel his stomach drop, “Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise.” Anita sighed, looking at now nervous Claudia. “I wanted to introduce myself because one, I want to thank you so much for staying with Daniel throughout all this. My understanding is that you’re the one that saved him?”

Tommy shrugged, not liking the attention that he gets from his job, “It was a team effort.” He mumbled. “Well, either way it’s clear that Daniel is very attached to you. Which is why I thought it would be better to ask you, are you in any way interested in becoming the emergency foster parent for Daniel?”

Tommy froze, unsure at who to look at first as he tried to process the request. “What? I-What about his family? The parents didn’t have anyone?”

Claudia shook her head ‘no’, “Unfortunately the father had a fallout with his family a couple of years of ago and they don’t have any interest in taking care of Daniel and the mother’s side seems to be either too far or not physically able to care for Daniel- even temporarily.” She explained, “We know it’s a lot to ask, but considering how bonded Daniel seems to be with you, if you or anyone you know are willing to become an emergency placement then we can-”

“I’ll do it.”  

[livebloggingmydescentintomadness]

Hi! So I’m not sure if you remember me, because the last time we spoke was circa 2013 - I was about 15 and a hot mess of an anxious teenager with a shitty mom. And I followed you for a long time because of supernatural but I also really respected you, that you took the time to talk to me and answer me genuinely even though I was a stranger. You and your blog talked me off a ledge more than once. I’ve been through a lot since then (multiple diagnoses, school abroad, a degree in a field that I love and a job where I get to be outside for a living). I’m going through some health issues now, lost my dream job and I have to move home - I found myself thinking of how I used to cope when I was home as a kid and I thought of your blog. It’s good to see that you’re still here! A lot of the blogs I used to follow are long gone, unsurprisingly. But I just wanted to say thank you and that I’m doing much better. Because if you hadn’t taken the time to listen to a scared 15 year old, I might not have gotten to be a 26 year old who’s been to 9 countries, reconnected with my high school friends and is going to be a bridesmaid in 2 weddings in a few months. You helped me stay here long enough to know that it might not be not okay right now, but that it will be. Thank you. I hope you’re taking care of yourself!

GOD THIS HAS ME SO

i'm so so so proud of you, sweetheart. it means so fucking much to me to know that i helped you get through, but don't forget that you're the one who actually did the work and kept going in spite of it all.

it sucks that you're having these setbacks now, but you're still so young and have so much more ahead of you, i promise. i hope it gets better and better.

thanks so much for coming back to say hi and let me know how you're doing. it really lifts my spirits to know that i've been able to help. take care of yourself as well, darling. <3

[demigod-shenanigans]

Summary: “So, are you going to properly introduce us to your daughter anytime soon?” Leo teased, looking down at the newborn. “I mean, baby McLean is cute, but it’s a bit on the nose as far as names go.”

“You called her Em, right?” Jason asked, apparently eager to get a good grade in uncle. “What's that short for?”

“Technically, her name isn’t officially anything yet,” Piper told them, wiggling into a more comfortable sitting position. “But we’d like to name her Emilia, if Leo is okay with it.”

“Huh?” Leo looked from Piper to Reyna to the baby in utter confusion. “She’s your child. Why would you need my permission to name her anything?”

Piper quirked her eyebrows at him like the answer should be obvious. The gears in his head ground to an abrupt halt. His vision started swimming with tears.

“You want to name your kid after me?”

___

Or: Leo and Jason meet Piper and Reyna’s daughter.

Written for @lost-trio-week day 5: Parents

Word Count: 3.8k

Rating: General Audiences

Gentle CW for mentions of childbirth and anxieties surrounding that topic. I personally think this warning might even be overkill, but as per usual with stuff like this, my rule is better safe than sorry.

This fic is once again dedicated to my friend @queenjunothegreat, because Em was originally her baby (shared custody next gen verse my beloved <3) and she was the one who came up with her name. They also came up with the fic title because I’m useless when it comes to titles lmaooo

Soft married Valgrace & Pipeyna. Also lost trio content, obviously, specific focus once again being Leo and Piper’s friendship (can you tell I care so so much about these idiots?)

———

Leo hated hospitals. A hospital was where he’d spent the first few days after his mom’s death, being treated for smoke inhalation, and it was where his first set of awful foster parents had picked him up. 

To say his memories of that time weren’t the fondest would have been the understatement of the century.

And sure, he knew in theory that this was different. New Rome Hospital had a really low death rate for anything that wasn’t battle-related injuries. As far as he knew, there hadn’t been a childbirth-related death here in a century. Realistically, he knew Piper was fine.

Still, the time the rather frazzled-looking Asclepius legacy that had greeted them was taking to figure out where she was and whether it was alright for her to have visitors made Leo’s anxious brain spiral in all kinds of unfun directions.

“Piper might still want to get back at us for the time we both died on her,” he told Jason, anxiously wringing his hands.

His husband raised an eyebrow at him.

“I don’t think she’d die out of spite ten years after the fact,” he commented, squeezing Leo’s hand. “Besides, Reyna said she was doing okay, and you know how she gets about Piper.”

And yeah, alright, that was a fair enough point, but Leo’s anxiety wasn’t exactly great at listening to reason. It never had been.

Nothing would calm him down until he’d seen with his own two eyes that Piper was doing okay.

“If we ever have a kid, we’re adopting,” he sighed into his husband’s shoulder. 

Jason laughed, nuzzling him gently before leaning down to kiss him.

Jason’s lips were a little scabbed from where he had anxiously chewed on them.

“You’re such a hypocrite, you know that, right?” Leo teased, grinning up at his husband. “Thank the gods I got rid of all the staplers, or you might have started chewing on those, too. We cannot have you set that kind of example for baby McLean.”

“Will you ever let that one go?” Jason groaned, rolling his eyes. “I was two.” 

“What kind of husband would I be if I did let it go, hm?” Leo asked, kissing him again.

Someone cleared their throat. A few years back, this might have made them jump apart like embarrassed children, but now, Leo pulled back slowly, eyes lingering on his husband a while longer.

He’d dragged Jason back out of the Underworld by the collar of his stupid school uniform when they’d been seventeen. He was allowed to be disgustingly in love in public. The people could deal.

The Asclepius legacy stood there again, staring down at his clipboard awkwardly. Leo was pretty sure the guy was younger than him—he looked barely older than twenty. 

“Room 201. I wouldn’t recommend staying long—mother and child are both exhausted and will need plenty of rest. And wash your hands before you-”

“Okay, yeah, we’re not complete idiots,” Leo interrupted him. He’d washed his hands four times since getting to the hospital, just because it had given him something to do. 

He was moving in an instant, dragging his husband along with him. Thankfully, his ankle had the decency not to be too much of an ass today.

“You’re going in the wrong direction,” Jason commented, voice tinged with amusement as he pulled him back the way they’d come. 

“Why do you know that?” Leo asked, raising an eyebrow. “Just how much time did you spend here as a kid?”

Jason ignored him and kept walking.

~~~~

Leo wanted to knock on that stupid blue door. Really, he did.

So he wasn’t sure why it was that, instead of knocking, he stuffed his hands into the kangaroo pocket of his hoodie and just stared at the door like a total idiot.

His outfit wasn’t fancy, but it was clean, which was more than could be said for the clothes he’d worn in the workshop earlier that day. He wasn’t as bad as his husband, who Leo had had to talk out of wearing a suit to the hospital because he was worried about making a good first impression, but he was suddenly worried that maybe he still smelled of motor oil. 

The kid would not remember, obviously, but he thought if the first thing he did was upset Piper’s baby, that would still suck. He wasn’t sure what he’d do if they didn’t like him.

Jason squeezed his shoulder. “Mi vida, you're gonna make a great uncle, you know that, right?”

“Duh. I’m incredible,” Leo announced, continuing to stare at the door. 

As always, his husband saw right through him—not that Leo was making it especially hard to do so right now.

“They’re gonna love you. I mean it.” Jason nudged him. “You’re great with the kids we help at the shelter.”

“I mean, I guess,” Leo mumbled, but his shoulders relaxed, just a fraction. “If all else fails, I suppose I can always bribe them with candy once they’re a little older.”

Jason laughed, and Leo finally managed to make himself knock.

It was Reyna who opened the door. She wasn’t even the one who’d had the baby, but she still looked as much of a fucking disaster as Leo had ever seen her. She had deep rings under her reddened eyes and was wearing what Leo was decently sure were rumpled pajamas. Her hair had come loose from its usual neat braid and exploded in messy waves around her shoulders.

“It turns out my daughter is really fond of my hair,” Reyna explained dryly, but there was a softness in her eyes that was usually reserved for Piper. “Come in.”

She moved back to her wife’s bedside in an instant. 

Piper looked… honestly, Leo had seen her look way worse. Her safety scissors bob didn’t look a lot more messy than usual, if he was being honest. Her skin was sweat-damp and she was obviously exhausted, but no one had stabbed her or tried to cook her into soup, which was definitely a plus.

Well, that and the way she was smiling down at the tiny bundle in her arms.

“Hey Pipes,” Leo said, raising his hand in a ridiculous wave as he moved to stand at her side.

“Hey.” Piper smiled up at them. “Glad you guys could make it. I’d wave back, but I’m holding a baby right now, so.”

The baby was small, but in the way Leo assumed newborns usually were. She had just the slightest hint of dark hair and equally dark eyes and was dressed in a small orange onesie.

She was looking right at him.

“She’s got your nose.” Leo paused. “Well, a very tiny copy of your nose. You’ve kept your own nose, as far as I can tell.”

“You’re lucky I love you as much as I do,” Piper sighed, poking her daughter in the nose in question. “Your tío is a bit of an idiot, but you’re going to love him, too. Trust me.”

The baby cooed happily.

“Great.” Leo groaned dramatically. “I’m being bullied by a newborn.”

Piper laughed.

“How are you feeling?” Jason asked, though Leo knew the baby had about 95% of his husband’s attention right now.

Jason had been pulling faces at her literally since they’d walked in the door. 

He’d always been that way around kids, but babies were especially bad. They activated a protective, wildly affectionate parental instinct that Leo had to assume came from Jason’s wolf boy months because he definitely hadn’t gotten it from either of his parents.

It was endearing as hell, but had the unfortunate side effect that it had always made Leo think about a kid of their own, including back when he hadn’t felt even slightly ready for one.

“Exhausted. Content. A little embarrassed.” Piper burst into another fit of tired laughter. “I sort of yelled at my wife to get out. Twice. Which would have been fine, except I was apparently using charmspeak.”

“That you even told her to get out at all seems wildly unfair towards Reyna considering you guys didn’t even have sex,” Leo commented, raising an eyebrow at Piper. “This is, like, objectively not on her.”

Reyna snorted, which was always a massive win in Leo’s book. He’d had a hard time figuring out what sort of jokes made her laugh, and every time he managed, he felt immensely proud of himself.

“Nuh-uh,” Piper protested immediately. “Em may be a magic IVF baby, but she’s a magic IVF baby we both decided to have, so it’s still at least fifty percent Reyna’s fault.”

“That’s a responsibility I will gladly accept. She’s mine and she’s yours and I would not change that for anything in the world.” Reyna pressed a soft kiss to her wife’s forehead. Then she reached down towards her daughter. The baby happily grasped her fingers. 

Reyna’s usual serious expression had melted away into a smile that was so sweet Leo thought it’d give him a toothache. 

“Yeah, okay, we get it, you guys are adorable,” he commented, because he was a total hypocrite when it came to other people’s PDA. “But what I really want to know is how far out of the hospital you got before the charmspeak wore off.”

“The first time I realized by the end of the hallway. The second time I made it all the way out to the parking lot. How Piper had that kind of energy, I’ll never understand.” Reyna shook her head, a kind of quiet awe in her voice. “Though perhaps worse than me leaving for a few minutes was the fact that the second time it happened, it also affected the midwife.”

Jason abruptly stopped pulling faces at Em to look up at Piper with a horrified expression.

“That sounds terrifying. Are you okay?”

“It was scary as hell at the time.” Piper shrugged. “Looking back on it, it's mostly just funny.”

“You continue to be the strongest warrior I know,” Reyna told her fondly, leaning down to kiss her.

“Love, I was an absolute terror and you know it.” Piper beamed at her wife. “You are cute, though, so maybe I’ll allow it.”

“So, are you going to properly introduce us to your daughter anytime soon?” Leo teased, looking down at the newborn again. “I mean, baby McLean is cute, but it’s a bit on the nose as far as names go.”

“You called her Em, right?” Jason asked, apparently eager to get a good grade in uncle. He looked like he might genuinely explode if he didn’t get to hold the baby within the next three seconds, but also like he’d bravely bear that fate because he didn’t want to be rude. “What's that short for?”

“Technically, her name isn’t officially anything yet,” Piper told them, wiggling into a more comfortable sitting position. “But we’d like to name her Emilia, if Leo is okay with it.”

“Huh?” Leo looked from Piper to Reyna to the baby in utter confusion. “She’s your child. Why would you need my permission to name her anything?”

Piper quirked her eyebrows at him like the answer should be obvious.

The gears in his head ground to an abrupt halt. His vision started swimming with tears.

“You want to name your kid after me?” 

Leo hadn’t gone by Emilio since before he’d met Piper. He’d almost forgotten she knew his full name. 

“Only if you’re okay with it,” Piper told him, suddenly looking awkward. “I know why you don’t use the name for yourself, but I figured just naming her Lea might be confusing. Sorry, I probably should have asked you sooner. If you don’t want-”

“No, no, if you guys really want that, I’d be honored. But like- why?” he asked in utter disbelief. “Why me, out of all people?”

“Because you’re my best friend,” Piper said, smiling at him. “Because you’re brave and smart and the best person I know. Because you defied fate and found happiness despite all odds. Because I’ll be lucky if she grows up to be even a little bit like you.”

Leo turned to Reyna. He could feel the tears running down his cheeks. “You’re okay with that?”

Reyna nodded, her expression solemn. “If names really do have power, yours is the greatest blessing we can give her.”

Leo was absolutely bawling his eyes out. His husband wrapped an arm around his shaking shoulders and soothingly ran a hand up and down the length of his arm.

“She’s the luckiest kid in the universe,” Jason told him, pressing a kiss to the back of his head. 

Leo had thought himself a curse for most of his childhood. He’d gotten better about it in recent years, since he’d made peace with his mother’s death and led Jason back out of the Underworld, but the pain had never fully faded.

Piper and Reyna associating his name with joy—choosing it for their daughter to make sure she’d be happy —was hitting him on a level he couldn’t fully process. 

It had been one thing to know on a theoretical level that Piper wanted him to be her child’s godfather—minus the religious connotations. 

But this? To know his best friend not only trusted him with the smallest, most precious human being Leo had ever met, but that she trusted his name to keep her safe? He genuinely didn’t think he would ever recover from that.

“I love you guys,” he sniffled. “So much.”

He knew that was a deeply uncool reaction. Maybe he should have been all smug and braggy about the whole thing. Maybe he would be, later, once everything had properly sunken in.

But right now, he couldn’t stop crying.

”And we love you right back,” Piper said with a soft smile, leaning forward and holding her armful of curious baby out towards him. “You’re not getting out of holding your niece, you know that, right?”

“Yeah, I know.” He sniffled. 

Leo had been terrified of holding Em basically since he knew she existed. He’d never been able to bring himself to hold Percy and Annabeth’s kid, despite all the times they’d babysat back in college. It had been easy enough to pass the job off to Jason, who loved holding babies.

That way, Leo could avoid any potential disasters. No way he could drop a baby he never even held, right?

He’d known that Piper wouldn’t let him get away with that when it came to her child, and that knowledge had scared the hell out of him for months. What if he screwed up? What if he did it wrong and somehow hurt the baby?

But Piper was holding Em out towards him, an expression of utter trust on her face, and Leo couldn’t do anything but reach out to take his tiny niece from her arms, trying to mirror the way Piper had held her.

Emilia stared up at him with wide, curious eyes. Her weight felt awkward in his arms.

“Gods, I’m totally messing this up, aren’t I?”

“You’re really not,” Piper reassured him. “Just make sure you’re supporting her head. Here, I’ll-” She tried to lean forward, but stopped, wincing.

“Hermosa, you’re supposed to be resting,” Reyna told her, voice firm and concerned. 

She was smiling at Leo, but she was also wringing her hands, watching him closely like maybe she was expecting him to drop her daughter. 

That made two of them.

Leo could easily picture her vaulting over the bed to catch her child if that happened, though that weirdly didn’t make him feel a lot better about the possibility.

“Don’t mind my lovely wife. Rey’s just nervous,” Piper whispered, patting his arm. “You’re the first person aside from us and the hospital staff who gets to hold Em.”

“If you’re trying to make me less nervous, reminding me that I’m messing up one of Emilia’s first experiences with being held was not the way to go,” Leo joked, trying to shift the baby in his arms. This was not very effective, seeing as he had no idea what he was doing.

“I can help, if you want,” Jason volunteered immediately. He waited for Leo to nod, then put his hands over Leo’s and carefully adjusted his hold on Em a bit. “Here. Just support her head a little more. You’re doing great, mi vida.”

Emilia’s weight felt a little less awkward in his arms now. Leo relaxed a fraction, smiling down at her.

“Thanks for the assist.” 

“Always.” Jason nuzzled Leo’s cheek. “You were barely even messing up. You just have a tendency to overthink things when you’re nervous.”

“Says the guy who almost came here in a suit,” Leo commented, but he didn’t look up. His entire focus was on the newborn in his arms. He was mesmerized.

“Hi, sobrinita.” He was still sniffling, but he hadn't made his niece cry yet, so he was counting that as a win. “Gods, you’re a literal baby and somehow I’m the one wailing at you. So much for decent first impressions, hm?”

Emilia cooed at him. 

“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” he agreed, nodding his head at his niece. Holding her grew easier with each passing moment. She was looking at him like he was the only person in the universe. 

Leo loved her immediately.

He couldn’t believe he’d been as anxious as he had about holding her. He couldn’t believe he’d almost made himself miss out on this.

 “Pipes, I hope you’re not expecting me to say no to her, ever, because I can tell you right now that it’s not gonna happen.”

Piper laughed. “Oh, please. Your job was never going to be responsible godfather. If that was what I was looking for, I’d have picked someone else.”

“We’re gonna get into so much trouble together,” he whispered to Em, grinning at her. 

This time, Emilia didn’t smile back at him. Instead she scrunched up her face and started crying.

Leo froze.

“Oh gods, I’m so sorry. I don’t know what I did, I was just-”

“Babies cry. You didn’t do anything wrong,” Piper told him gently. “I can’t believe she’s been as quiet as she has since you two came in, honestly. This is the calmest she’s been since she was born.”

“Oh.” Leo had almost managed to stop crying, but that made him start up again. 

“She cried when I first held her, too,” Reyna told him. When he looked up at her, he could tell some of the tension had gone out of her shoulders, despite the fact that he’d just managed to upset her daughter. “I’m glad she’ll grow up knowing her emotions aren’t something to fear.”

Leo hadn’t even considered thinking about it like that, but it made sense that Reyna would. When he’d first met her, there would have been no way for him to tell if she’d cried—if she’d allowed herself to cry at all.

He looked at her red-rimmed eyes again, the expression on her face genuine and fond, and could immediately feel more tears running down his cheeks. He’d have walked over and hugged her this instant if it hadn’t been for the newborn in his arms.

“Yeah.” Leo sniffled. “Me too.”

He was pretty sure he hadn’t cried this many happy tears since Jason had started reciting his wedding vows in slightly awkward Spanish.

“Can I-” Jason asked, gesturing vaguely towards Emilia. When Leo and Piper both nodded, he took the baby into his own arms, rocking her gently. His expression immediately melted into the world’s softest smile.

Seeing them like this, Leo would have married him again in an instant.

“She’s probably overstimulated. This is the most people she’s ever met in her life,” Jason concluded once he’d managed to soothe her a little. 

“I get it. People are really overwhelming.” Leo wiped at his eyes. “I still can’t believe my stupid sewer rat face is, like, the fifth face this poor kid has ever seen. She did not need to be exposed to sewer rats this early in her life.”

“There’s nothing wrong with your face,” Jason protested immediately. “I like your face.”

“You’re married to me. You’re supposed to say that,” Leo teased, but he still found himself smiling. “We should probably leave you guys for the day, hm? You three all look like you could use a nap.”

“As long as you promise you’ll be back soon,” Piper insisted, smiling up at them as Jason—very reluctantly—handed Emilia back to her. “Hi, sweetie. You’re a little sleepy, hm?”

Emilia yawned in agreement.

“You’re not getting rid of us that easily.” Leo grinned at his best friend.

“Thanks for coming here as soon as you did. And, you know, for all the other sappy stuff I’m not going to say right now because I think we’ve all cried enough for one day.”

“Yeah. Gotta save some of that for tomorrow,” Leo agreed, wiping at his eyes with his sleeve. Then he reached out, gently pressing his finger into his niece’s palm. “Bye bye, Emilia. Be nice to your moms, okay?” 

Her hand closed into a fist, holding his finger tightly. 

Leo let out a startled laugh.

“She’s got excellent reflexes,” Reyna said proudly.

“Yeah, well, I guess that means we’re not leaving yet. I’m really not sure how I’ll ever get out of this finger trap without the ability to turn into an iguana.”

Both Piper and Jason immediately cracked up. Reyna just looked confused. Leo made a mental note to tell her that particular story some other time.

“Anything we should bring you tomorrow?” Jason asked. He looked Reyna over. “Do you want some clothes that aren’t, uh-”

“…pajamas?” Reyna laughed. “Yes. That would be great. I checked the hospital bag about fourteen times to make sure we’d packed everything we might need, but it somehow did not occur to me that we’d be leaving in the middle of the night, nor that I’d need to pack any clothes for myself.”

“I want a large coffee and the least healthy pastry you can find,” Piper said immediately. “Reyna has everything else covered.”

Leo laughed. He reluctantly removed his finger from Em’s grasp, linking his hand with his husband’s as they left.

And, well, if he spent the rest of the evening baking horrendously sugary pastries, that was nobody’s business but his own.

———

Fic Notes:

-Fun fact! I edited this at 3 am last night and then I didn’t even post it because I couldn’t think of a title. It is now, once again, 3 am. My sleep schedule is doing great, thanks for asking.

-The concept of “names have power” is so interesting to toy with specifically in a context like this. Because like, objectively, Leo has had a lot of bad stuff happen to him. He’d never even considered thinking of his name as a blessing before this. But few demigod or legacies lead easy lives, and in the end the thing that outweighs anything else is that he’s managed to find happiness, despite the odds being stacked against him.

-Also, considering Reyna has a prophecy hanging over her head that’s specifically linked to family legacy, it just makes sense for her and Piper to choose Leo’s name. What better way to protect your child from a prophecy than giving her the name of someone who defied his fate?

-Would really like to eventually go into Reyna’s feelings on all this more, but that deserves a whole fic of its own.

-For anyone who’d like context on the Emilio thing, the very basic idea of that being Leo’s full name and him never using it is that his mom always used his full name and he’s terrified he’ll forget what it sounded like if other people use it, because no one ever says it quite like she did.

-Here’s a little fic Juno wrote about Piper finding out Leo’s full name for anyone who wants a little extra context!

-“But canonically his name is Leonidas.” As far as I’m aware, Rick actually confirmed his name is just Leo. Also, this is a fanfic, I can therefore do whatever I want :)

Thank you so much for reading! Comments, as always, extremely appreciated.

[akariarda]

Secret Santa

Ninjas, Misako, Garmadon and Wu play secret Santa. (At the end you have who got who if you want to watch it right away!!)

Request from ao3!

"This is a game where we all draw names from slips of paper, and then each person buys a small gift for the one they picked," Cole explained.

"And it's called Secret Santa!" Lloyd proudly completed the thought.

"Why?" Sensei Garmadon frowned.

"Like Santa Claus," Lloyd lamented.

"And you want Misako, Garmadon, and me to play this with you?" Wu looked at them in surprise.

"Yes!" Jay exclaimed.

"Isn't that a bit strange?" Misako asked, but Jay interrupted her.

"But it's fun! The more people, the better."

"No one is allowed to reveal who they drew, Nya pointed out.

"Unless they need help, but that person can't know," Lloyd corrected her.

"And no swapping," Nya added.

"If we all understand, let's start drawing names," Pixal announced as she stood up, took the box, and handed it to everyone to draw. For a while, they stood in silence as everyone drew their slips of paper.

"So, do we put these under the christmas tree?" Misako asked.

"I propose we exchange them before Christmas dinner," Nya suggested, and everyone nodded in agreement.

~~~~~~

"Misako, who did you get?" Sensei Garmadon asked her when they entered the living room.

"I can't tell you..." Misako smiled softly.

"You must!" Sensei Garmadon insisted.

"But the rules..." Misako reminded him.

"I need help," Garmadon said desperately. "I got Nya, and I have no idea what to get a teenager girl... Please, can we switch?"

Misako contemplated this and nodded. "Then you take Wu, and I'll take Nya."

"Wu!" Sensei Garmadon sighed with relief and suddenly hugged Misako. "Thank you, thank you, this will be perfect!"

~~~~~~

"Ughg..." Kai muttered to himself, frowning.

"What’s wrong?" Zane asked curiously.

"I got someone I least wanted..."

"Garmadon?" Zane immediately guessed.

"Maybe you should ask Lloyd for advice..."

"It feels silly that so many people know, but I’ll have to," Kai sighed. "Who did you get?"

"I don’t want to tell you," Zane winked at him. "Such are the rules."

~~~~~~

Wu was sweating as he walked around the room. "I don’t know, I don’t know..." He did know what to buy, but he was reluctant. "I don’t want to support that kind of behavior!"

~~~~~~

The evening before Christmas had arrived.

"Dad?" Lloyd called as he walked into the living room. "I thought Mom was wrapping the gifts..."

"You didn’t think your father could wrap gifts?" Sensei Garmadon smiled at Lloyd's expression.

"It’s his secret talent." Misako came in from the living room.

"He thinks we’re teasing him!" Sensei Garmadon laughed as he looked at Lloyd. "Let me wrap a gift for you, and you’ll see."

"Okay," Lloyd said, handing over his present.

"Here you go!" Sensei Garmadon beamed as he wrapped it.

"You’re really good at this!" Lloyd noted with enthusiasm.

~~~~~~

"It’s time for presents!" Nya officially announced as she approached the area where the gifts were.

"Who should we start with?"

"You go first," Lloyd suggested, and Nya went to find the gift with her name on it.

"This is really beautifully wrapped," she noted. When she opened it, she found several pieces she was missing for her Samurai X suit to upgrade it.

She was puzzled because she couldn’t figure out who had gotten this for her... She had talked about it with a few people...

"Now it’s my turn," Kai said as he went to his present. "Let’s see..." He smiled and was astonished when he opened it.

Inside was a plush mouse and a training strap with the message: "May your hair no longer get in your eyes as it used to."

"Who did this?!" Kai exclaimed angrily, looking at everyone in turn.

"It’s okay, Kai..." Lloyd tried to calm him, but Kai shot a glare at Jay.

"You... I’ll get you back."

"Enough!" Nya interjected. "Kai, this is a joke, and the plush mouse is really soft."

"I didn’t mean to sound so annoyed..." Jay defended himself.

"In the end, Jay, I’m sorry." Kai said as he sat down.

Next, Jay went and found a gaming console. "Woohoo!" he exclaimed, then read the note.

"Don’t get addicted to this, and let this gift not encourage your laziness!"

"Haha, that’s you, Sensei Wu," Jay smiled.

Cole followed behind him.

"Hmm..." he mumbled as he couldn’t quite figure out what he was holding.

"Need help?" "Press the button in the middle," Pixal suggested, and Cole opened it to reveal a hiking backpack that could hold many things.

"Awesome, thanks, Pixal!"

"Haha, this isn’t really Secret Santa," Lloyd chuckled. Zane went next and found a cookbook and a chess set.

"Someone who knows me well must have gotten this..."

"More or less everyone in this room, Zane," Kai said, and everyone began to laugh.

"Lloyd, it’s your turn now," Cole prompted. Lloyd approached and found a pile of comics. Honestly, he was a bit disappointed.

"But I don’t read comics anymore..."

"These are adult comics; give them a try, and you’ll like them. I promise," Cole said, and Lloyd looked at him in surprise. "You said you drew Zane!"

"I tricked you, didn’t I?"Cole laughed at that.

Pixal went next and found many tools. "This is really useful!"

"You don’t have to sound that surprised," Wu chuckled. "So far, all the gifts have been more or less useful."

"Master, now it’s your turn!" Kai said tensely. Sensei Wu approached his present. It was so beautifully wrapped that he immediately knew Garmadon had done it.

"So, Lloyd, Misako, or Garmadon?"

"Hand it over, Sensei!" Cole said as Wu opened the gift. Inside were his favorite teas and a mug with his embarrassing picture on it, where he was wearing curlers in his beard.

"Brother!" Wu immediately recognized it.

"Admit it, the teas are spot on!" Sensei Garmadon smirked.

"When we swapped, you promised you wouldn’t buy anything silly!" Misako looked at Sensei Garmadon in surprise.

"Swapped?" Everyone glared at them.

"I got Nya and had no idea what to get a teenager girl!" Sensei Garmadon defended himself.

"Misako, you buyed me..." Nya suddenly said.

"Come on, you two!" Kai interrupted.

"Let’s go!" Misako said, playfully patting him on the back.

"Alright." Sensei Garmadon stood up and opened the gift. Inside was a purple blanket covered in blue bunnies.

"Haha." Sensei Garmadon laughed at that.

"When I suggested a blanket, I didn’t mean this!" Lloyd glared at Kai.

Misako was the last to come and opened her gift. "These are some codes?" Misako looked at the book curiously.

"I thought you’d enjoy solving them," Zane said.

"Since this wasn’t exactly Secret Santa, maybe it’s best if we all say who we got!" Sensei Garmadon began, putting his arm around Misako's shoulder.

"I like that idea," Kai said. "Then I got Garmadon..."

"I got Pixal," Lloyd said, and Pixal looked at him in astonishment.

"How did you know?"

"Zane helped me," Lloyd smiled. "Who else doesn’t know who they got?"

"I think that’s everyone," Zane said.

"Then I’ll go get something else," Misako said and went to get a tray, bringing back hot chocolates and teas.

"Merry Christmas, everyone!" Jay cheerfully said once more, and they all settled in to chat and enjoy.

SECRET SANTA

Misako-Nya(Wu), Garmadon-Wu(Nya)

Zane-Misako, Nya-Zane

Lloyd-Pixal, Pixal-Cole

Cole-Lloyd, Kai-Garmadon

Wu-Jay, Jay-Kai

[saintofsacrilege]

Thinking about Jason reading AFTG rn, who would you say is his favourite character? Is there an evolution between kid Jason, Jaybin, pre-flashpoint Red Hood, Rebirth Red Hood? Just mashing the fandoms together in a blender, puréeing them together if you will

mhm, good soup (puréed fandoms).

my interpretation of jason at any stage in his life relies so heavily on personal hcs and cherry-picking canon that these may be the most atrocious takes you’ve ever heard. but here we go!

kid jason: i think he’d feel the most connected to aaron. everyone’s telling you you’ll never make anything of yourself? that your life was doomed before it began? well, you’re not gonna accept that, are you? you’re gonna find a way to prove all of them wrong. you’re not gonna let anyone kill your dreams just because they’re “unrealistic” for someone “like you.” jason and aaron also both have a very strong dedication to their mother, who struggled with a drug addiction. while i don’t believe jason’s mom was ever abusive, i think jason would feel somewhat vindicated by seeing a representation of someone who still loved their mom despite what her illness drove her to do/made her into.

jaybin: neil. a man with a reputation for taking in strays gives you the offer of a lifetime? you get the chance to leave your past behind, even for a little while, and have something good that gives you joy and fulfillment at a level you never thought you’d get to experience? you’re familiar enough with the cruel way the world works to know that happiness won’t last forever, that it’ll have an expiration date, but you want to make the most of it while you still can? yeah, jaybin would definitely see himself in neil. he’d also get a kick out of neil’s attitude problem and continued state of being a pr nightmare.

(outing myself as a fake fan when i admit that i’m not very familiar with the difference between pre-flashpoint and rebirth red hood, so just know that my “red hood” is a mash-up of random fragments of comic canon and utrh)

red hood: this one’s a little more complicated. i think andrew’s system of making deals to feel like he has any worth to others would really resonate with jason. but given the torture the joker put him through, jason would probably have a ton of respect for neil post-baltimore, too. he’d also probably be a bit jealous of neil getting welcomed back with open arms and getting to stay “neil josten” even after nathaniel wesninski came to light. in contrast, jason couldn’t really stay “jason todd” legally or in the eyes of the people who once cared about him after he was revealed to be red hood. he was… someone else, as far as everyone else was concerned. so jason’s favorite would probably be either andrew or neil with some complicated emotions attached to the latter.

bonus: i hc as jason being raised catholic and having a super complicated relationship with christianity because of that, so—like neil—he probably wouldn’t be renee’s biggest fan. maybe a part of him feels like the subliminal messaging of her character is that if he had “enough faith,” he could’ve come back from the dead/his ultimate low point as a comparatively “better person” instead of a more violent one. which. no question why jason wouldn’t appreciate that sentiment too much. still, i think he’d find himself surprisingly touched by renee giving her knives to andrew and sparring with him.

this is really long whoops

[threebyfours]

Crazy how ppl w “bad” moms are always jealous of me and my mom like… I’m sorry but keep that to urself or talk to therapist.

[hyperfixationtimego]

I love you fucked up tv shows I love you gorey movies I love you traumatized characters who perpetuate the cyclical nature of abuse while still managing to remain sympathetic I love you intentionally morally ambiguous media that exists specifically to pose questions about psychology, ethics, and human nature I love you unflinching examinations of what it means to dance the line between acceptable and unacceptable behaviors I love you I love you I love you

[luuxxart]

ok so according to the prev poll it seems like you guys want me to post the pmd comic right here !! (does save me a lot of time coding a new tumblr for comic purposes and setting up CF ;w;)

so just wanted to share some parts/sketches from what I have so far

[puppyeared]

Ouhhhh friendship I love friendship……..

[secretlytherealsonicthehedgehog]

so this is me basically yapping about my queen’s complexity😊 regina mills they could never make me hate you

ANYWAYS. one thing i absolutely ADORE about her complexity is her voice. lana parrilla’s voice consistently changes depending on her scenes and i think it is done absolutely BEAUTIFULLY.

when she’s with cora, her voice is sensitive and quiet, as if she’s afraid to get yelled at but still looking for approval and validation.

with henry, her voice is firm but still caring. it’s her SON, after all.

with daniel, it’s free and joyful and you can just tell the difference when she speaks to him vs to anyone who’s not her family.

her voice is so powerful in so many other ways. it shows weakness, strength, fear, love, and it’s all portrayed and executed in a way that’s purely majestic.

next thing is the parallels.

regina’s greed is eventually fully explained, she loses everything, but something i’ve noticed is that everything she loses is everything she’s never actually had.

her mother’s approval, daniel, henry, hell even graham. something archie says in s2 is that everything she loses is because of magic. i think that’s true and they should’ve extended that theory further throughout the show.

her mother never truly loved her — only taking advantage of her daughter’s weakness, her need for love.

i’m not sure if this is stated, but i’ve always interpreted this way. i don’t believe she and daniel were together very long. yes, long enough to fall in love, but in ouat, that normally seemed to happen rather quickly. anyways, regina was this close to marrying daniel until cora killed him. she never truly had him in the way she wanted — and we all know nothing happened in the way she wanted.

with henry, she, again, never really had him. he was never her son, not in the way she needed him to be. he was always emma’s son, even if it felt like he was hers. yes, henry loves her, he cares about her, but at the end of the day, his determination to stick with emma in the earlier seasons always seems to overcome that.

the last one is obvious but graham could not feel anything. meaning, whatever regina felt for him, whether it was love, lust, or nostalgia, was not real. which, equals in false hope, false love, all that. (i say nostalgia because in my mind, regina sees daniel in all her past/current lovers.)

so, in conclusion to this little yapping session, regina goes several seasons with absolutely nothing. it hurts to say it, but that’s just the way her life was portrayed. now, i’m leading up to how her greed is involved in this, along with her almost drug-like addiction to magic.

she consistently goes after things she cannot have. an example of this is her attachment to children. in season two (?), regina takes away her fertility with magic to piss her mother off. this soon comes to bite her in the ass and leads to her adoption journey with henry.

maybe three times she tried to take someone’s children as her own. yes it sounds bad but there’s an explanation for that. since she can’t have children, regina’s greed for one only grows stronger. the first time she did this was with owen, a little boy who managed to get inside storybrook with his father — whom she framed for drunk driving and i believe child neglect (correct me if i’m wrong) when owen refused to live with her and abandon his father.

another time was with ava and nicolas, at the time known as hansel and gretel. after retrieving the iconic apple from the blind witch, hansel and gretel come back to regina’s castle and as a “reward,” she tries to invite them to live with her. she basically tried to bribe them, but their love for their father was so strong, so out of spite she uses magic to separate the twins from their father.

and lastly, throughout season one, she attempts to kill or frame emma several times. this is because of her attachment to henry — which this time is somewhat explainable. for once, she finally has the child she deprived herself of and all of a sudden, after years of trying to fully connect with her son, she loses him. as she did several times before. hence why i said henry was never truly her child.

ANYWAYS.😊 regina mills you are a being of majestic and conflicting things that make you the woman you are and i absolutely LOVE IT.