#please ignore the awful shading i hate the art too okay

[qiekzart]

draw len falling down a flight of stairs

day 29 drawing len until my preorder arrives

yea sure man here u go 😭 enjoy

u can send requests in my askbox (●'◡'●) (4 requests in askbox as of writing)

[thetwoplayergays]

RFA with a royal MC 👑

Quarantine has thrown me back into my old fandoms, as I’m sure it has for many, and I’ve been reading Mysme headcannons all week so I thought I’d throw my hat back into the ring

Yoosung

Yoosung’s been working for the royals since the day he was born, being from a poor family

His parents were the personal servants for the king and queen back in the day, that’s how they met.

Naturally, when the two best servants of the castle had a son, they had their eyes on the boy

Rika was Yoosung’s mentor and taught him all he needed to know to get comfortable in the palace

He still can’t cook though

“Rika look what I made!”

“...Yoosung are you trying to poison the princess?”

“Princess??”

The first time Yoosung meets you, he bumps into you in the corridor carrying a load of clean sheets

You both end up on the floor, sheets flying everywhere don’t worry Yoosung Jaehee will take care of it

The poor boy is already apologising before he even looks up and realises who he just bumped into

Now he’s not just sorry-

He’s horrified

He knocked over the princess!!!1!

Immediately he’s on his knees, gathering up the sheets and apologising over and over- poor boy looks like he’s about to cry.

But you aren’t angry at him. No- you start to laugh

“Mistakes happen! It’s okay- here let me help you!”

Yoosung watches in awe as the princess starts to help collect the laundry for him

She’s not meant to do that?!?

“I-it’s okay it was my fault-“

“Nonsense. I wasn’t watching where I was going, I am just as much at fault as you are, okay? No hard feelings!”

And then she

giggles

Yoosung’s down for the count- game over

He meets you again the next day and his face just bursts into a bright shade of red

“It’s you again! Looks like we keep bumping into each other, huh?”

Hahaha kill me now Rika quick my heart can’t take this

It takes Yoosung a few weeks to get used to seeing you around the palace without making a total moron of himself every time

You even manage to have a few delightful conversations before you’re whisked away for some royal duty

It took even longer for him to actually introduce himself to you

“Yoosung? What a sweet name...”

Good job MC you killed him again

Zen

You already know this dork is the most famous actor in the whole village

He puts on a play every week in the town square and the people love it

He eats up all the ladies’ attention, I mean,,

Are any of us surprised?

“Zen! You were amazing tonight! If I didn’t know any better I’d say you’d even have impressed the princess if she saw you!”

Little did he know, she did see

When you heard about this so called ‘handsome actor’ down in the village of course you were going to go investigate for yourself

With the help of some of the maids who you confided in Jaehee, you manage to sneak down into a village just in time to see the performance for yourself

Naturally, you were hooked

Good job Zen you made the princess horny have a cookie

Of course Zen continues to perform every week, non the wiser to the newest addition to the audience

That was until one night where you accidentally locked gazes with eachother and he saw this girl smile for the first time

Dumb bitch forgot his next line and got a deadly glare from his co-star

After the performance, Zen immediately ran into the audience, ignoring the swarm of fans that surrounded him as he looked around for the girl he saw in the audience

In that brief moment, Zen was so entranced by her that she hadn’t left his thoughts since. She was so beautiful, she even reminded him of the princess.

Funny how that is

That’s when he spots you, diving into the dark streets of the village in a dark cloak

“Excuse me- yes I’m so glad you enjoyed it- yes- excuse me- coming through!”

He pushes past all the fan girls and full on sprints after the princess, ignoring the shouts coming from behind him.

This lovesick fool is convinced he just met the love of his life and he wasn’t about to let her get away

Eventually he manages to catch up to you and grabs your shoulder before you can leave again, giving him a brief moment to catch his breath.

“Why princess, leaving so soon? I never even got a chance to say hello~”

He meant it as a flirt.

He didn’t expect to look up and be talking to the actual princess

Shit fuck shit shit oh fuck-

“I- I mean- um-“

“They did warn me you were bold...”

You tease him with a small smirk on your face, watching Zen’s face morph into panic upon realising who you were.

“I normally hate being called princess... I’m open to making exceptions however. Your performance was incredible.”

You lean forward just then and place a chaste kiss on the actor’s cheek, pulling away with a small blush on your face.

“Perhaps we’ll meet again at your next one.”

And just like that- she’s gone

Zen is left in the empty streets, stunned, flustered, and completely convinced this princess was going to be the death of him.

Regardless, he’s practicing for next week’s performance before he even gets back home

Jaehee

Everyone in the royal family knows that maid Jaehee is the best in the kingdom.

She’s perfect at her job in every way, and always knows how to make the royals feel as comfortable as possible living in the castle.

Need something cleaned up? Call for Jaehee.

This food doesn’t taste quite right? Call for Jaehee.

Princess needs a personal maid? Call for Jaehee.

When the king and queen first approached Jaehee on the subject, she initially refused, telling them that although she was extremely flattered they had thought of her, she didn’t want to abandon the rest of the duties around the castle.

But the king and queen insisted, only wanting someone they trusted to help their daughter.

And who would be stupid enough to deny a request from the royals themselves

Jaehee was forced to accept the position.

It was difficult having to adjust her priorities with the new job. Jaehee no longer was in charge of the castle as a whole, but rather her focus had to be entirely revolved around you at all times.

Though you were incredibly nice to her, she tried her best to keep things professional as one should. She never spoke up, never crossed her line as a maid and always did her job perfectly.

....at first

One night, you requested for Jaehee to accompany you on a walk around the castle, and of course the girl was happy to oblige.

She quietly listened as you rambled on, talking about your passions, listing all the things you had to do that day, etc.

Everything was fine until Jaehee spotted a rather shady individual approaching you two from behind, but was a second too late in realising they had a knife.

Within an instant, they aimed the blade at Jaehee’s throat and ordered the princess to come with them peacefully, or the maid ‘gets it’

Oh no honey, you don’t threaten Baehee

This girl takes down the man in a flash, barely giving you time to realise what had just happened before guards were surrounding them.

“Oh I- I learnt a few martial arts moves from the knights when I was younger.. it was simply a hobby..”

“YOU HAVE TO TEACH ME JAEHEE!”

“I couldn’t possibly Princess-“

“PLEASE!”

....

The next thing she knew, the princess and her maid would sneak out every night for private self defence lessons

The maid grew to look forward to those evenings, the one-on-one time with eachother giving you and Jaehee time to bond and properly grow as friends rather than simply working under the professional environment of the castle.

Jaehee was able to relax and show her true colours to the woman she was dedicating her live to every day, which only made your ‘friendship’ stronger.

“My father told me today that he’d have to start looking for suitors for me to marry soon..”

“Oh... have you got anyone in mind, your highness.” Why do I feel so upset

“...perhaps.”

You never spoke of that conversation again.

That didn’t stop it from keeping Jaehee up at night though

Jumin

Oh this boy is already a royal. I mean.. do I need to explain myself?

You and Jumin actually met when you were just children, your families visiting eachother often in order to form alliances.

Everyone always said how cute of a couple you two would make when you were older, cooing over the two children who just wanted to play swords.

Let the children play swords King Han come on!

Eventually, the alliance that Jumin’s kingdom and your kingdom had broke apart over petty quarrels, and the two children were ripped apart, likely never to meet again.

“Jumin!! I don’t want you to go... I thought we were going to play king and queens...”

“Don’t worry MC, I’ll become the greatest king of my kingdom, and then I can visit you whenever I want. Doesn’t that sound wonderful?”

...

As the years flew by, Jumin’s childhood friend became nothing but a distant memory, his future as king being his primary focus.

His father was constantly bringing many woman into the castle, claiming to his son that she could be the new queen until she disappeared a few weeks later when he got bored of her.

It made Jumin despise the idea of marriage, making a silent promise to himself that he would never marry once he was on the throne, no matter how many woman threw themselves at his feet.

One day, King Han recieved message that another woman had arrived at the castle, asking to visit the prince.

Jumin initially marked it off as another woman trying to convince him to marry them so they could become princess, and told his father he was not interested.

“My son, one day you will take over this kingdom of mine, and when that time comes you will need a woman to help you bear an heir. Send her in!”

Mr-I-Won’t-Marry remained in his chambers during the woman’s visit, refusing to even give her the piece of his attention.

But he couldn’t avoid her forever, eventually having to leave for supper, where he discovered the woman having a polite conversation with his father.

Great. Another one had fallen for his tricks.

“If you have come here to attempt to marry into the royal family, I suggest you leave this instant before I call the guards.”

“Oh Jumin.. you don’t recognise me do you? It has been a long time. You haven’t forgotten me entirely, have you?

“.....MC?”

Surely enough, once the pieces began to fall into place, Jumin instantly recognised the kind and beautiful woman standing before him.

How could he possibly forget such beauty?

“I’ll leave you two alone to catch up! It has certainly been a while, princess. Please make yourself at home.” Use protection son

Once you and Jumin had started talking, he quickly fell into his old habits of conversating with the princess, having forgotten how easy it was.

“Remember when you told me you would become the greatest king of this kingdom Jumin? Oh naive we were back then..”

“Yes. Though I still plan on taking over my father as soon as possible. I think it is about time that the contract of our kingdoms’ alliance is revisited, don’t you?”

“I couldn’t agree more.”

Saeyoung

Every good kingdom needs a little spy dog- Right?

At least that’s what your kingdom agreed upon when they hired a young boy off the streets to come work for the palace

Saeyoung had a pretty good life growing up amongst the court, which was a startling difference to the village below. He wasn’t there just for fun though.

The king and queen needed to keep the village in check, to make sure there were no riots or attempts to overthrow them. That’s when Saeyoung came in.

This redhead acted as the kingdom’s informat, regularly taking visits down into the streets to chat up the royals, learn of any criminals who had plans to tarnish the good reputation of the court and quell any possible rumours of a rebellion amongst the common folk

He was real good at it too, and everyone in the kingdom loved Saeyoung with all their heart.

Protect the boy

One day, he was taking his weekly trip down to the town when he sensed he was being followed, and immediately put himself on high alert.

He would wonder through alleyways, zig-zag through the busy streets in the hopes of losing them. Nothing worked however, which forced the redhead to confront his stalker head on.

To his surprise, upon cornering the figure in a dark alleyway in town, he was met with the face of the princess, full of guilt and annoyance over being caught.

You explained how much you had wanted to visit the town and see the nitty-gritty of what it was really like to live there, something that was always hidden from you during royal visits.

And Saeyoung had to admit, this chick had some real kick to her

He still dragged you back to the castle though

He thought that would be the end of it, but the very next day he felt the same stalking presence behind him as he left to go into the village

That sneaky little-

“My my~ Princess, if you wanted to spend time with me all you had to do was ask.”

Your face blushed a bright red at the comment, coming out of your place of hiding in defeat at being caught once more.

You waited for Saeyoung to take you back to the castle immediately, however, the sturn instruction never came, and you look up at the boy to see not anger, but a large smirk on his face, a hand outstretched towards you.

“One day. That’s all you’re getting. Got it, Princess?”

To say you were overjoyed was an overstatement.

At the end of the day, Saeyoung was almost disappointed to have to take you back to the castle, finding the two of you made incredible companions together. Spending time with you was one of those few moments where he could genuinely smile and laugh, not forcing it politely in front of the royal family or a group of rioters who he needed to win over.

No, this was new.

The next time Saeyoung had to visit the village, he was almost disappointed to find that you weren’t behind him. So what did this idiot do?

Continue to do this job alone like he was being hired to?

Or climb up the side of the castle towards the princess’ chambers?

If you answered B, congratulations

Luckily for both parties, You were sat on the balcony, looking longingly out into the world like a Rapunzel waiting for her Prince Charming.

“Hey Princess!” Oh would you look at that

“I heard there was a group of bandits that were going to rob a local store tonight. It would be a shame to have to stop them alone.... unless purrrhaps you felt it was necessary for me to be accompanied by someone?”

“Oh, do you need a guard?”

“Wha- no, Princess I meant-“

“Can the great Saeyoung Choi not beat a group of bandits on his own? Or does he need the fragile princess to beat them for him?”

“Marry me”

Jihyun

It was your birthday and your whole day was filled to the brim with celebrations of every kind

It was exhausting

All you wanted to do was to sit down for more than ten minutes without a guard finding you and dragging you back for your next activity.

You even tried to hide in the maid’s quarters until Jaehee found you and scolded you 

After a long day, the royal family was finally able to sit down and relax for an hour or two for the last activity of the day.

What was the last activity you ask?

What kind of a birthday would it be without having your portrait painted by the finest artist in the kingdom.

The idea of having to sit perfectly still and look regal for god knows how long wasn’t the most appealing thing in your opinon, but it was better than standing on your feet for any longer, so you took what you could get.

Of course, when the painter walked into the room for the first time, your attitude definitely changed.

“MC, this is Sir Jihyun Kim. We will be sure to make you look magnificant.”

On the outside, Jihyun was calm and collected, being professional in the presence of the princess.

On the inside, this boy was panicking

What if his work wasn’t good enough? What if he made the princess look ugly? Can you be executed over a bad painting?

You noticed a few minutes into the session how his shoulders were extremely tense and how he would barely make any conversation with you. 

Sorry Jihyun, but the princess gets what she wants on her birthday

You began to talk him up more, complimenting him on his other paintings that you had seen around the castle, asking him about his life at home and why they had never met before despite him being the best painter in the kingdom.

Eventually he explained to you that Rika, one of the royal advisors, had recommended him to the royal family back when they were engaged, but now that the couple had split under rather unfortunate circumstances, he wasn’t as comfortable as he used to be in the castle and only visited to paint for the King and Queen occasionally before leaving again.

He expected after admitting all of this for the silence in the room to return, but to his surprise, you continued to talk to him, expressing sympathy over the situation and how you would have liked to meet him sooner.

Before you knew it, you both had fallen into a comfortable conversation with eachother and the hours that you had previously been dreading had flown by.

“Sir Jihyun, how’s my portrait coming along?”

“Oh- uh...” 

He’d finished it hours ago. He just didn’t want to stop talking to you

When he finally gathered up the courage to show you the final product, he was incredibly relieved to see the smile on your face as you praised it, thanking him for such a beautiful piece of art.

“Sir Jihyun this is wonderful! I can’t thank you enough.”

“It was no trouble, your highness. I enjoyed painting such beauty.”

“What?”

“What?”

Saeran

Okay so maybe attempting to break out of the castle prison early wasn’t  the best idea

But in his defense, his backup team was being too slow to rescue him, so he took matters into his own hands

Saeran wasn’t the most noble of people by far, oh no, but he’d never done anything worthy of the death sentance

Just a few robberies here and there, maybe a heist or two.

Did he have some of the crown jewels in his pocket when the guards caught him?

Maybe...

Regardless of what happened, here he was now, running through the halls of the castle after lockpicking his way out of the dungeon, with the guards close behind.

Stupid dork didn’t think this far ahead.

Turning a corner, Saeran spots the handful of guards facing away from him at the end of the hall, and knowing how close the ones behind him were to catching him, he knew he was trapped.

There were no windows to jump out of either, only a door beside him leading to who knows what.

What other choice did he have?

Saeran yanks the door open and sneaks inside quickly, hoping that he was quick enough not to get caught as he closed it behind him. He leans up against the wall in an attempt to hear the guards outside passing the room, non the wiser to where he had gone.

Success! 

Well... almost

What Saeran hadn’t accounted for was you, who had watched the whole ordeal go down from the foot of your bed. In your room. Which he had just trapped himself inside.

Slow clap for Saeran everybody

“To what do I owe the pleasure?”

Saeran’s victory smirk was quickly wiped from his face as he turns to face you, a brief expression of panic flashing across his face as he took in where he was.

Oh fuck

“I don’t owe you anything, princess.”

“Are you sure? Because it’s seems you’re losing your little game of hide and seek with the guards.”

“Alright listen here you little-”

You were right though, the guards outside had slowly begun to narrow down the short list of possibilites where Saeren could have hid himself, and it wouldn’t take long for them to burst into the princess’ chambers looking for him.

Of course, you knew that, evident by that smug look on your face.

The boy had no choice

“...What do you want?”

“I want to come with you!”

.........what

“You can easily escape them if you climb down the balcony, but only if you take me with you.”

“...Why would I take you with me?” More importantly why would the princess want to leave with someone like him

“You know your way around the village don’t you? I want you to show me what it’s like down there. What it’s really like. It’s a small price to pay for letting you escape don’t you think?” 

Oh this one’s fiesty. I like her

“Alright then princess, you got yourself a deal. Don’t come crying to me though after this. It can be rough down there.”

just how she likes it

[captainjimothycarter]

Drabble idea: Steve and Peggy meet each other when they get assigned as lab partners in college.

So I uh never did something in college or HS that needed lab partners sooo this might be lacking. This might not be what you expected.

--

“You like him,” Angie giggled behind her blueberry muffin. Her eyes were bright with the glee of a new topic to gossip on for that hour.

Peggy, for her sake, rolled her eyes as she stabbed at a piece of chicken with her fork and waved it threateningly in front of her roommate’s face. “We are lab partners. That’s it. Mr. Gregg, just thought it was a good idea to pair us together to be lab partners for this upcoming project. That’s it.” 

“Aw, c’mon, Pegs. You don’t see what I do. You go googley-eyes on him!”

“I do not.” 

“You talk about him all the time.”

“Because he’s in four of my six classes so I see him ninety percent of the week. It doesn’t mean I have some school-girl crush on him.”

“And,” Angie continued, promptly ignoring Peggy’s rebuttal. “You sit next to each other in class, even French. Face it, Pegs, you have a grade-A crush and it’s nothing to be ashamed about. It’s adorable.”

Peggy had no response as she bitterly shoved the chicken into her mouth for one reason - Angie was right and she hated how right she was.

--

“Whose the girl?” Sam asked Steve on his second day of classes after he’d waited for the blonde outside the room.

Steve peered up from the last-minute notes he was reviewing, watching Peggy walk by him after meeting her roommate. “Oh, uh, Peggy.”

“Peggy, huh? You sure spending lots of time lookin’ at her.” Sam was teasing, he could hear it dripping in his voice and Steve hated it. This would of course find its way back to Bucky to tease him about during his weekly phone call while out of state in the military.

“Sam, stop it. We’re just friends, ain’t nothing to it.”

“Sure, buddy, whatever you say but sooner or later it’s turnin’ into something else. I can see it happening. Just make sure I’m the best man at your wedding.”

“Please, you know that spots reserved for Bucky when I wound up marrying my easel.”

Because who’s gonna want to marry a 5’4, asthmatic, 92-pound guy that can’t even see straight without glasses? Not that Steve minded, he was happy alone and with friendships, but sometimes that loneliness did catch up to you.

And damn Sam to hell and back for being right.

A month and a half later, as Peggy walked away after promising to email him the extra credit assignment for Art History, Steve was fully aware that he had a crush on her.

And it was pathetic.

--

“So,” Bucky sighed over the phone three months later. “Sam says you got a date with your lil’ crush tonight.”

He was going to kill Sam. “No, I have a lab assignment with Peggy tonight. It’s not a date. And she’s not a crush.”

“Even over a thousand miles away, Rogers, I can tell you’re lying. Sam, are his ears turning pink?”

Goddamnit, Steve regrets putting Bucky on speaker. Or even introducing Sam and Bucky. 

“Yeah, man. Bright shades of pink, oh his cheeks too. And his neck - hey you’re a full-body blusher. Pegs is gonna love that!”

As the boys laughed, Steve drew the hood of his jacket over his head and grumbled, shoving his books into his bag. “You two are idiots. I’m going to Peggy’s, don’t wait up.”

Before Bucky could respond, he hung up on him and then three minutes later sent him a text about how he missed him and how Sam really seems into him.

That’ll shut him up.

--

Eight o’clock on the dot. Don’t you dare be late.

That’s what Peggy had told the asthmatic blonde when they met up after Astrology 101 to discuss the lab. Steve would be coming over to her place, they would go over their notes, the assignment, and then head down to the lab at their scheduled time.

It was not a date, no matter what she told Angie. This was not a date. This was just two friends, no two co-students, acquaintances getting together to complete an assignment. 

So who cared if she couldn’t stop thinking about him? Or if she wondered at times if his lips looked as soft as they felt. Or worried about him when he wasn’t in class or late and looked so flushed and yet relieved when he saw her there. Or the time she skipped class because her period cramps were too much and Steve looked so relieved to see her the next day. 

She thought about that look in his eyes often and hated how it gave her goosebumps, she hated how it made her stomach clench and butterflies to form. She tried to talk to Michael about it, but the man was just as hard to get ahold of and when he wasn’t, he teased her as all big brothers did.

Then proclaimed if she fell for a Yank, he was gonna revoke her English rights.

The prat.

8 o’clock and no Steve.

Peggy thought about calling him, a little worried because he wasn’t the type to be late. She decided to wait until half an hour. Half an hour and if Steve wasn’t’ here, she’d call him. Luckily, she didn’t have to because at 8:18 Steve showed up, face flushed, wheezing, and his hair sticking up in all directions.

“Oh you poor thing,” was the first thing out of her mouth, the worry and anxiety melting off of her. She should be mad that he was late or mad that she thought he stood her up, but she was just relieved. “Are you okay? What happened?” 

Taking him by the arm, she leads him inside and straight on her couch, bustling off to the kitchen to get him a glass of water and a snack cake. The guy looked peckish.

“Oh, I…” He shouldn’t like the fact she was doting over him, in fact, he should hate it, but by her doting, over him, it meant she was touching him and he liked that. “I had an asthma attack.”

It sounded like it took everything in him just to admit that and Peggy tried to ignore how that kicked-puppy look tugged on her heart. Steve hated pity and she wasn’t pitying him, she was worried. There was a difference.

“I’m okay now,” he continued, sipping on the water. “I guess I just got worked up and kinda lost and…” His thin shoulders shrugged as if to brush the fact he has a medical emergency off. “I’m sorry I’m late.”

“You’re sorry?” The words came from her before she could help it. He was sorry for what? Having a medical emergency? 

It didn’t do any good when Steve flinched at her accusing tone.

“Steven, by no means should you be sorry. Yes, I was worried but you’re here now and you’re okay. It’s behind us. Do you still want to go to the lab? I could just reschedule us.”

“If we reschedule now it might take us two weeks to get a spot and we’ll be crunched for time.” He looked genuinely worried, eyes wide. “I’ll be fine. We can head over now.”

There was little argument from Peggy on that end. Steve was right, if they rescheduled then it could take them a while but that’s not what sold the deal. The fact she got more time with him as of right now was better than waiting.

--

“How’d you get lost?” Peggy asked, driving a stoic Steve from his thoughts as they braved the cold air after spending three and a half hours in the lab. It was now officially Saturday, meaning they could sleep in. Angie wasn’t home and wouldn’t be home until noon tomorrow, so she was looking forward to peace and quiet. 

Steve drew his scarf tighter around his face, looking up at her with cocked eyebrows. It was going to snow, he could feel it in his aching bones. “Oh. Uh, when I get an asthma attack I get...disorientated. Everything looked the same, I didn’t wanna call for help cause I was fine.”

Peggy couldn’t help herself in rolling her eyes. “I think we both have a different definitions of fine, Mr. Rogers. You are certainly not fine. I can still hear you wheezing and you had a hard time concentrating on the measurements tonight.”

She frowned as she watched him pat his pockets, obviously searching for something. “You okay, Steve?”

“My inhaler! I thought I had it on me, but I think I left it in your dorm. I-I’ll be fine without it, I can get it in the morning.”

“Steven Grant Rogers, you are not waiting until morning to get a life-saving device because of...what? You don’t want to be seen in my dorm? It’s co-ed, I can assure you that it’s fine!”

“I just don’t...want...people to assume or-or get you in trouble. Or...or…” His cheeks were heating up bright pink, Peggy found she adored the color on his cheeks.

“Or…” She clicked her tongue on the roof of her mouth, her hand snatching out to grab at a lamp post to keep from falling on a section of ice. It was already starting to snow around them, the ground cold enough to make it stick.

Steve cursed as he wrapped his arms around her chest, preventing her from falling. Both of their faces flushed, Steve’s more than Peggy’s at this point. The second they both were stable, he let go and took an unnecessary step away from her.

“Thank you,” she breathed, clearing her throat. “I think that decides that Steve, you’re staying with me tonight. Don’t worry, Angie is out tonight with her gal. I’m not risking you out in this storm.”

There was no point in arguing with Peggy, Steve knew this by now. He’s seen her debate lesser and greater minds than his in class and absolutely destroy them. Besides, part of him liked this idea, staying with her for the night. Maybe if he got enough courage he could ask her out, tell her how he felt or something. 

If he was anything like Bucky, he knew what he’d do. He’d whoo her and kiss her. But he wasn’t Bucky or Sam. He had no social skills with girls but he liked Peggy. 

“Home sweet home,” Peggy sighed when they were finally inside, their wet clothed stripped off and drying on the heater now. She sat Steve on the couch and bundled him in a bunch of blankets, coming back from the kitchen with two steaming cups of hot chocolate.

Sitting on the couch, she wiggled under the pile of blankets, not to much of Steve’s protest. Her thigh was touching his at this point. “Oh, you’re warm,” she breathed, sounding surprised. 

“Amazingly,” Steve laughed, rolling his eyes. “I think it’s the third cup of hot chocolate you’re forcing in me.”

He yawned as he said this, his face was suddenly drawn in a show of how exhausted he was. He looked so adorable when he yawned, his nose wrinkled up. He still had a smudge of ink on his forehead from when he was rubbing his brow in frustration.

“I’ve always said hot chocolate is good for the soul. Much better than any tea you have here.” Tapping on her laptop screen, she was happy to get Netflix up and hit the next episode on Chopped. 

Steve didn’t even make it to the second round of the episode, unsure of who was sent home for an overcooked risotto or missed basket ingredient. He was asleep, slumping into Peggy.

He was quite warm, Peggy noted, easing Steve down to her lap. He was warm and looked so adorable when asleep. That walk and asthma attack must’ve taken a lot of out of him, regardless of what he told her. At least he was resting now in her arms.

This isn’t where Peggy thought she’d end up tonight, but it’s a place she’d glad to be.

[omega-deku]

So I would love to progress on my art and try comics any tips? ÙwÚ

Hi! I’m so sorry about the late reply. D: I hope you don’t mind if I take this opportunity to address all the anon messages about how we can improve as artists. 

I have a tough time answering this question because there is so much I need to learn. I’m super flattered that some of you feel that my art is good enough to ask me for tips, first of all!! So thank you, guys.

It’s a struggle because I only recently started taking up art again. So I’ve forgotten a lot of the things. So I’m probably not the best person to ask about this.

I used to draw all the time as a kid, but after high school, I stopped drawing. I stopped drawing for almost a decade, pretty much. I really regret it. I feel like I could have come such a long way if I did keep going. My parents really discouraged me from pursuing art, even just as a hobby, too. Even when I left home (I’m back now tho), my ex-spouse, greatly discouraged me from doing art too. I mean, “proper” art. They told me my art wasn’t “real art” because it’s not studio art, it’s “sellout” art, like anime/cartoons/fanart. I had even worse self-esteem as I do now, and I listened to them and gave up. I convinced myself I hated drawing. 

Please don’t deny yourself things that make you feel engaged and connected. If drawing makes you feel good, if it makes you not realize how much time has passed and makes you feel like you’re accomplishing things, even little by little, please don’t stop. Even if you suffer from depression and feel like things like this are pointless, remember that just doing things in general will help you. Drawing is an awesome way to get into the flow state. To me personally, it’s almost like a meditative state and I find it helpful in dealing with chronic pain and mental health issues. 

Anyways, I’ll try to compile some advice sort of things.

ART IN GENERAL

1. Draw what you enjoy! I think the most important thing is to draw what you like. It’s okay if it’s “dumb stuff”. Draw your favorite characters or pairings from your favorite tv shows if that tickles your fancy! You’re much more likely to be spending more time drawing if you’re drawing stuff you like. And as long as you’re drawing, you’re improving. (But still, challenge yourself and get out of your comfort zone!)

Especially for those of you who are planning to pursue art as a career, it’s essential that you don’t view practicing art as a chore. 

2. Draw from life. If you really want to take your art to the next level, drawing from life is vital! I think many of us have come across artists who are just amazing, but there are things that look a little “off”. For example, the anatomy doesn’t look quite right, or the perspective is a little wonky. Things like that can be a tell that they’ve learned to draw from other people’s art rather than from life. Or just haven’t practiced the basics enough. (My art isn’t amazing or anything close to that lmao, but it definitely suffers from this. I need lots of life drawing practice.)

There is nothing wrong with learning from your favorite artists, but to really train your “artist’s eye”, you need to strip away all the stylistic choices and go back to the basics. Training that Eye is one of the most crucial things you could do as an artist. 

Just take a piece of paper, a pencil and start drawing what you see. If you can, take figure drawing classes at your local community college, or draw the animals you see at the zoo. Sit on a bench and draw the scenery in front of you. Over time, you’ll start to recognize common patterns, simplify/think of things in terms of lines and shapes.

If you can’t afford a class or have the ability to go outside easily, drawing from photographs can be the next best thing. (See the Resources below for an online figure drawing tool.) I’m not experienced enough to definitively say why this isn’t the #1 idea, but from what I hear, there are things that you’ll miss out on, such as subtle shifts in shadows, colors, and other things that will happen from small movements in pose changes, a cloud moving, or whatever else. A different “feel”, if you will.

With the digital art boom, a lot of artists are learning how to do cool digital effects and fancy things, but forgoing basic anatomy, perspective, shading, etc. Which is all fine if you’re just having fun, but isn’t the best idea if you’re really serious about improving. Practice the fundamentals!

(If you have been dreaming about CalArts at one point like I did when I was in high school, one advice I came across from everyone who went there was to draw from life. All the time. It’s not an answer I expected from people who draw funny looking characters all day. You mean all these people who draw such simplified cartoon people and animals can actually draw like masters? Perfectly rendered bowls of fruit? I didn’t realize how much work goes into animating simple characters.)

3. Put in the time. 

It’s really easy to get suckered into just watching “how to improve” videos all day and thinking about improving. Watching how other artists work is an important learning tool, but you’ll never actually make progress if you aren’t practicing. 

Sometimes, the best thing to do is to not think about it. Just do it. 

It’s like when I’m spending a whole lotta time thinking about getting physically fit than just, you know.. just doing it. “Tomorrow for sure.” 

It may seem like it’s worthless, but doing those lame 5 push-ups a day instead of the 20-minute workout you wanted to put in, is better than nothing at all. You are making progress, no matter how small it may seem.  

Make it a habit to practice every day. That way, you don’t even hesitate. It’s as automatic as brushing your teeth.

All the artists you see who have fantastic, awe-inspiring art may seem like Unreachable Gods sometimes, but those artists didn’t just pull that out of their ass one day. They put in hours and hours and hours of work. Let’s not disrespect other artists by ignoring that and chalking it up to “talent”. No one is born with an innate ability to draw. WE can get there too if we practice!

I want to get good enough to draw the things I have in my head one day!

Some resources that may be helpful:

Draw a Box - This is a site for free lessons for absolute beginners. Look under “Lessons” to learn. The creator of the site is the mod for r/ArtFundamentals. You can post your work there to get critiqued.

Check out Proko’s videos on gesture drawing, art fundamentals, etc. Daily routines of successful artists.

Use this site to practice figure drawing, gesture drawing - Set aside some time to practice drawing people and animals every day. Start trying to see things as lines, shapes, and go big. Don’t get too caught up in the details, and tiny drawings. Learning to draw fast (not draw FAST as in speed, but as in capture the gesture in a post, the “feel” of the movement) will force you to do this more, and with more experience, make your figures less stiff looking. 

And it’s okay if you’re aren’t good at it. You’ll make loads and loads of shit drawings until you can get decent. 

I’m most definitely in this stage right now, trying to train my Artist’s Eye. As in, I can’t just draw a figure from memory. I don’t really know what goes where without a reference, or how they move, etc. You can tell by how stiff my drawings look.

Lulusketches How to Improve video - She has similar advice, but her point about looking at “Art of” books something I have come across from multiple professional artists; Her advice on worrying about finding your own “style” is really good too. Do challenges like she said!

Her playlist of art tutorials & advice is great. They’re short and sweet. Her beginner digital art tutorial got me started on digital art (the one with Ginny Weasley). 

Not free ($30 a month), but these online Schoolism classes look helpful. It’s run by Bobbie Chiu. I saw some great reviews and I want to try them someday. They’re taught by artists in the animation/film industry. But you gotta have a basic grasp on digital art/photoshop for many of the classes, I think? I’m not 100% sure. They’re pre-recorded video lessons. 

You can pay more for feedback from the teachers, but you can also just use it as a self-learning guide. 

This drawing faces from any angle video was pretty helpful for me. The artist has loads of other tutorials.

COMICS

I don’t feel qualified enough to give much advice on comics. I mean, I don’t even draw the lines for the boxes, haha.. However, these comic books are basically required reading for some courses:

Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics & Making Comics.

I can’t remember which one it is that I read, I think it was Making Comics? But wow, if I remember correctly, it was FULL of really useful things about how to make effective comics. I lost the book while moving years ago, but it was FANTASTIC learning material. I loved every panel of it. 

He talks about everything from perspective, placement of characters, speech bubbles, how big panels should be, etc. 

If you can afford it, get a used one and start reading! Even if you don’t want to make comics just yet, it’s super interesting. 

[nad-zeta]

hi there! I’m a new follower but oml I love your blog already. umm may I request a match-up? I’m an infj, super introvert. I love to read and write; I’m not very social at all. very anxious and I have some medical conditions that hinder me from going out. I adore animals though, and soft music. and I surprisingly have a temper and a protective streak. thank you so much 🙈❤️

Hi, there love! Welcome to my blog, thanx so much for the follow! Awww you are too sweet *blush*. Thank you so much for the matchup request! I hope you didn’t have to wait too long .^_^

So I match you with..................... Kenshin  

The first encounter the two of you had with each other was a local teahouse in Azuchi. You are just quietly sipping on tea minding your own business when some creepo starts hitting on you. Hideyoshi had insisted you get out a bit despite your medical condition. He thought a change of scenery might do you some good. You were too shy to refuse, so now here you sat book in the hand, warm tea on the side and peaceful music playing in the background. You hated to admit it, but Hideyoshi was right, the change in scenery definitely sparked some inspiration. You pulled out your journal and started to write! But now all that was ruined… Hideyoshi had stepped out for a moment to sort out some dispute, which gave this creeper the perfect opportunity to make his move. The more you tried to get away from him and ignore him, the more he pestered you. You lost your temper cause you were feeling scared and uneasy at the whole situation. Plus, you thought if you created a scene, maybe Hideyoshi would hear and come help you out! Things were getting out of hand, and when all of a sudden, a sword was at the creepo’s throat. “What shall you do to make up for spoiling my drink, I know perhaps you could pay with your life.” All the blood drained out of the creep’s face. Heterochromatic eyes narrowed to look at you. You were breathless, he was beautiful, he looked like an ice sculpture cold and sharp, yet graceful, a true work of art. “You, woman, are you okay.” You only managed to give him a small nod. The creep was now begging for his life, Kenshin simply took him by the collar and threw him outside, while threatening to kill him if he ever came back to the tea house. You could only manage a small thank you as he walked back past you back to his own table. It was around this time that Hideyoshi returned, and you kindly asked to be taken back to the castle. Kenshin noticed that you had forgotten your writing book on the table when you left. He paged through it, grunted, and placed it in his pocket while leaving to go back home.

In the days to follow Kenshin much to his frustration couldn’t get you out of his head. At times he could be found reading your writing journal completely in awe. You had such a rich imagination, and the way you were able to bring a story to life had him hooked. The others had noticed the shift in Kenshin and his behaviors, he was more aggressive and frustrated. He would look for fights more often, drink twice as much, yet nothing helped. His mind still kept wandering towards you. Twice as much now that he has found out you were the princess of the Oda forces. His first instinct was to kidnap you and lock you in a dungeon, but he thought better of it. It was now Shingen’s turn to intervene once again for his old friend. He sent Sasuke and Yukimura to go and retrieve you from Azuchi, and within a few hours, you were now resting comfortably in one of the castle’s rooms.

The next night you were invited to one of their banquets as a surprise to Kenshin so he could calm the hell down. When he saw you sitting there, the room immediately dropped by 20’C., “what is this woman doing here,” he demanded. Shingen used your status as a motivating factor to the reason behind having kidnaped you, although no demands were made to Nobunaga for your return. You sat there quietly, observing everyone and everything. You were feeling pretty anxious at everything happening around you. Kenshin low key noticed this and started talking to you in his own clumsy way. He shared his most precious pickled plumbs with you, cause you like him hadn’t eaten anything yet for the day. You looked so small and fragile he couldn’t help but be overcome with the feelings of wanting to protect you. As conversation flowed you slowly started opening up to Kenshin to the point of being able to consider him a friend. You found out he loved pickled plums, fighting, and sake. You spoke about the books you’ve read, your writing and all sorts of little hobbies you had. He confessed to you that he had found your journal the first day you met. And that he was enchanted by your writing style. You could see the reluctance in his eyes when he gave it back to you. You couldn’t help but blush at the compliment. You pushed it back towards him, saying, “if it manages to brighten your day even a little bit, then please keep it.”

In the days to follow Kenshin started taking quite a liking to you. The two of you would work in his room together. You would read and write, and he would work on the boring admin parts of being a warlord. When he was with you, he let his guard down, and his usually hard sour expression turned soft and gentle. One day while you were reading in his room, a little rabbit hopped it’s way up to you and started sniffing you. Your eyes went wide in surprise. You loved animals. Trying not to scare him off, you stayed super still. That is when Kenshin entered the room with what looked to be a mountain of fluff entering behind him. Are those all BUNNIES. You died and went to heaven at that moment. Kenshin explained that the little creatures just started following him around. He proceeded to sit next to you, and his full army followed suit. Before you knew it, you were covered in soft fluffy bunnies. Kenshin’s heart was racing at the sight of your radiant smile and excited energy. He had fallen in love with you long ago, but seeing you in moments like this made him fall in love all over again. You and Kenshin spent the afternoon playing with the sweet little rabbits, stroking them and naming those without names. Kenshin couldn’t help but think how much you reminded him of a little rabbit. You were cute and sweet yet protective and quick-tempered, just like a bunny. At that moment, he couldn’t stop himself. He slowly leaned in with one hand on your cheek, giving you time to pull away. And then, he kissed you. It was a small gentle kiss, but it sent butterflies to both your stomachs. As he pulled away, you just gave him the brightest smiles that he had ever seen. The bunnies must have felt jealous of your sudden shift of attention from them to Kenshin, cause next thing you knew they started nuzzling you and giving you small bunny kisses. You giggled at the small gesture, never have you felt so much love in one place before.

You were incredibly protective, a quality that Kenshin really loved. You protected him from the demons in his mind. You protected him from those dark thoughts and insecurities. And you protected him from his fear. The two of you made a pact to protect each other from all the evils of this world, both the seen and unseen. You two were an incredibly affectionate couple. He loved it when you would help the maids to bring tea to every during war councils. He loved how you would always serve him last and then give him the smallest kiss on the cheek before you left. It would provide a sense of renewed energy. You loved to spend time snuggling and cuddling him while reading. Your most favorite spot was sitting in his lap, his arms wrapped around your waist, reading while he would occasionally nuzzle into your neck. The two of you could often be found outside in the shade playing with the little rabbits. Occasionally you would let him rest his head on your lap to give him some much-needed rest while you would just pull your fingers through his hair. You would always laugh at the little buns that would get jealous and jump onto Kenshin’s face as if to say that only they were allowed to be petted by you. He would glare at the small animals nuzzling you. You would just smile, give him the brightest smile, kiss him on the nose, and break out into giggles at how cute he was. 

Other potential matches................... Mitsunari 

I hope you enjoyed it! <3

[sebthesnipe]

A Not So Nice Warning

First // Previously // Next

My Dearest Procyon

Other works by me

Chapter 19

Original story based on this wonderful post by @underdog-arts

“You’re lying,” Roman accused flatly, pinning the flamboyant man with an unamused look. 

“Psh! You're one to talk, Princey!” Remus scoffed, his incorporeal form moving to sink down onto the disheveled bed. “Listen, as much as I’m enjoying our little chat, I don’t have much time for this much fun. Can we move this along?”

“No,” Roman replied, sifting the raccoon in his arms for better purchase. The prince was careful not to jostle the beast too much, fearful he might aggravate his wound. “You’ll answer my questions; beginning with who you really are!” 

Remus rolled his eyes, starting to pick at his teeth absently. It was a disgusting sight, causing Roman to crinkle his nose in response. 

“You always did have a flare for the over-dramatic, Roman,” The obnoxious man pointed out. He gave a small giggle, wiggling his shoulders as he did so. “Then again, so have I,” he teased with a wink. “Sorry to break it to you Prince Charmless but I really am your brother, though I am a bit offended that you would assume I’m one of those,” he gave a shiver of disgust, “abominations.”

Virgil gave another hiss, clawing at Roman’s arm to try and get at the intruder. Roman held strong, worried what the man might do to the raccoon if Virgil tried to attack him again. 

“Aw!!! He’s so venomous! Please, Ro?! Let me keep him! Why do you always get to keep the fun ones?!” Remus practically whined, pushing to his feet once more to stoop to get a better look at the raccoon.

Roman pulled Virgil back further, away from the man’s attention. “No. You can’t have him and witches are not abominations; and you are not my brother. ” the prince added with his own venom infecting his voice. The words earned another eye roll from his twin. 

“It doesn’t matter what you believe, brother.” Remus straightened, folding his arms over his chest, the motion causing the frill of his shirt to bounce.

“I don’t have time to explain everything and even if I did, I wouldn’t,” he chuckled eerily, “I can tell you this though, wherever you’re headed; whatever you’re doing; stop.”

“What?” Roman mumbled, brows furrowing. The man was certainly odd, but he did seem familiar somehow, not that Roman wanted to admit it. He studied the stranger’s features carefully, catching the subtle differences between his jawline and Roman’s, the shade of his eyes compared to the prince’s. Suddenly, something shifted in the intruder’s gaze, something serious, something dangerous. 

“Ditch the witches, Roman. They’re going to be the death of you; the death of us both,” Remus warned, the playful macabre dissipated. 

“You don’t know what you’re talking about!” Roman pressed, feeling Virgil still in his arms as the raccoon listened intently as well.

“You don’t know it yet, but they’re leading you to a fate that is worse than you could imagine, worse than any of you could,” Remus continued. “The lanky one is lying to you, he knows your fate if you keep following them. You need to get out now, Roman.”

“I won’t leave them!” the prince snapped, barely registering the growl Virgil supplied. It didn’t seem to have as much conviction as the last defensive snarl. 

“You couldn’t even protect that one!”Remus countered, his own voice raising with desperation. He pointed an accusing finger at the raccoon who suddenly fell silent as Roman held Virgil closer to his chest almost instinctively. “You can’t do anything for them, Roman. You need to leave them. Let them move on with their idiotic quest without you. They’re just another set of strays. You’ll find more.”

Roman was quiet as Remus continued, the intruder’s voice returning to its normal volume. The words chipped away at the prince’s composure, tears threatening to fall as his gaze moved to the floor. Maybe he was right. Logan, Virgil and Patton didn’t need him. He was useless, always had been. How long would they put up with him trailing along, using up rations and just taking up space. Maybe it would be better if he just-

“Son of a-!” the prince cried as the beast in his arms sank his sharp fangs into his hand. The jolt of pain had Roman almost dropping the creature in shock, just managing to keep his hold on the monster. “What the heck in hightower, Virgil?!” the prince demanded.

Virgil ignored the overly dramatic man’s production as he gave a small chirp, tongue darting out to sooth the injured hand softly. The action seemed to sooth Roman emotionally just as much as it did physically. Virgil could spot a downward spiral easily enough and though his comforting tactics were a bit unorthodox they seemed to work well enough on the royal. 

“I’m not leaving,” he informed the projected man before him confidently. “I don’t know how you know so much about me, or the others, but whatever you’re planning isn’t going to work.”

“Roman-” Remus began.

“No,” the prince interrupted once more. “I don’t care, I’m done listening.”

Remus’ frown deepened into a grimace as he glared between Virgil and his brother. They were all imbeciles! Why did no one ever listen to him! 

“Fine!” he spat angrily. “But don’t come crying to me when I end up right, as usual! As for you,” he added, pointing at the procyon, “Maybe you should ask that partner of yours what he’s really hiding. At least then you might listen to reason, since this blowhole won’t! I’ve done my part! Don’t say I didn’t warn you!” Remus finished before simply vanishing from the room. 

Roman’s gaze shifted over the room as if half expecting the man to reappear. He had seemed like the type that would have enjoyed scaring others for the shock value. However, after a few moments, the prince began to relax, his hold on the raccoon loosening. 

What the hell had just happened?!

He sank down to the floor slowly, letting Virgil wiggle out of his hold to sniff around the spot Remus had been occupying only a moment ago. 

Roman didn’t know what to make of any of this. Was Remus his brother? If so, wouldn’t Roman know? Remus had acted as if he knew Roman as well as any brother should and yet… The prince couldn’t even place the man. Surely, this was some kind of trick. Remus wanted something from Roman, but what?

“He’s right you know,” Virgil’s voice came, making Roman give a small jerk of surprise, his gaze lifting to the smaller man, dressed in a pair of Roman’s trousers that were obviously too big for him. When had he switched back? How had Roman not noticed? 

“Virgil!” All of Roman’s concerns seemed to evaporate as he drank in the sight of the melancholy witch, his expression brightening to the point it was almost blinding. He scrambled to his feet, obviously preparing to embrace the hesitant man. 

“Whoa, whoa!” Virgil warned, lifting his hands up in defense. “Slow it down a bit Sir hugs-a-lot. I’m still hurt.”

“Oh,” Roman breathed, obviously disappointed. “Right, sorry.”

Virgil eyed him a moment before giving his own eye roll and sighed, “I didn’t say you couldn’t hug me, just not too tight, alright?” 

Roman’s smile returned full force as his arms wrapped around Virgil’s shoulders carefully. He made sure to apply just enough pressure to feel the way the witch pressed against his body, but not enough to cause him any undue discomfort. Still, he felt Virgil shift to cover the redish-pink expanse of new skin that marked the place he had been stabbed protectively. 

Roman held him there just for a moment before the now human procyon managed to wiggle out of his hold. 

“You good now? Got it all out of your system?” Virgil huffed, his cheeks flushing slightly, though Roman wasn’t sure if it were from embarrassment or pain. 

“Not entirely, but I’ll manage,” the prince chuckled. The tease earned a small glare which Roman couldn’t help but savor. He wasn’t sure how long he would have Virgil in his human form, but he was determined to make every second count. 

“He had a point, Roman,” Virgil offered, ignoring Roman’s playfulness. “I mean, he said a lot of junk that was bull but…” the witch hesitated glancing away from the prince to glance out their small window overlooking the alley behind the inn. “I dunno, Logan’s been hiding something for awhile now. I was hoping to figure it out before… well before everything happened.” 

Roman considered the words carefully, brows furrowing in thought. He didn’t know Logan well enough to know when he was keeping something from them. However, Virgil did and if Virgil was worried then maybe he should too. Then again, Logan didn’t seem the type to hide something without reason. 

“Patton is a dragon,” Roman offered simply.

“What?!” Virgil snapped, gaze shooting to the prince in surprise. 

“Well, I assumed you didn’t know because you kind of passed out, but Patton is a dragon and helped rescue us from an angry mob in the last village,” Roman explained with a shrug, studying the man’s reaction. 

Virgil stared at him for a long moment, the words soaking in slowly before he scrubbed a hand down his face in exasperation. “Okay…” He breathed slowly. “That is… That is a lot to process.”

“Yeah, I didn’t exactly handle it well either,” Roman offered with a small huff of embarrassment. “I think he thinks I hate him.”

Virgil scrubbed his face once more before letting his hand tangle in his dark locks, messing them even more than usual. “Okay,” he repeated. “Patton is a dragon,” he nodded.

“Yup,” Roman replied.

 “Patton… is a dragon…”

“Yes.”

“Patton. Tiny, horrible-joke-telling, far-too-chipper-to-be-anything-less-than-annoying Patton is an ancient creature capable of mass destruction with nothing more than a sneeze.”

“Um, Virgil… are you alright?” Roman asked hesitantly.

“Yup, yeah, great, fine, perfect,” Virgil answered in far too quick a succession, “I just found out that dragon’s can shapeshift and that I’ve been traveling with one that could kill us all at any moment, but I’m good.”

“I doubt Patton would harm us intentionally,” Roman offerened in a tone he hoped was reassuring. 

“You could have left out the ‘intentionally’ part, thanks,” Virgil grumbled in response.

“Sorry,” the prince whispered softly, shrinking in on himself a bit, unsure of what to do. 

“It’s fine. I’m just freaking out a little, sorry,” Virgil sighed, rubbing his arm subconsciously. “Let’s backtrack a bit. So… Logan knew?” the witch asked, glancing up at the man next to him expectantly. 

“I dunno, I mean… it looked like he knew when they showed up in the village,” Roman offered, with an arched brow. 

“So, he lied to us about what Patton was from the beginning,” the witch huffed in disbelief, giving a shake of his head. “Unbelievable. Well, I guess we know why he couldn’t see past the cave in his visions. But that still doesn’t explain…” Virgil trailed off as he became engrossed in his thoughts.

“Explain what?” Roman pressed impatiently, causing Virgil to glance up at him once more. It was almost as if he had forgot the prince was there, not that he ever actually could. Roman took up far too much room as he crowded near the smaller man, smelling of mint and cedar and giving off such delicious heat. 

“He was acting really weird after we arrived at the first village. At first I thought that it might be Patton, but the way he talked to him… It just didn’t make sense,” Virgil explained, “Then when you offered to go with me to run errands, he seemed almost panicked. I dunno for sure, but I don’t think that Patton is the only thing Logan is hiding from us… I think Lord Grass-stain was right, at least about that.”

Roman listened intently to Virgil’s concerns, taking them to heart. He had faith that Logan was doing what he thought best for them, despite his actions. Still, he found himself growing concerned. If Remus was right about Logan, could he be right about everything else?

“Then maybe it's about time we asked him,” Roman offered.

To be continued...

Taglist:

@hiddendreamer67 @nightashes @aequinoctiale @sumersnowlilly

[jazy3]

Thoughts on Grey’s Anatomy: 15X15

I liked this episode for the most part. It wasn’t as strong as it could have been, but it was good. At the beginning of the episode we find out there’s been a fire at Catherine’s party and then are taken back in time to five hours earlier. Catherine throws shade and says she didn’t want a party. Says the woman who specifically asked for a party. She was a real jerk to Jackson and all of her family and friends this episode.

There was great fashion in this episode that I really enjoyed! The wardrobe department really outdid themselves. I loved Maggie’s green jumpsuit with the gold jewellery. It was stunning! Bailey and Catherine’s outfits were also amazing! Jo’s outfit is also gorgeous! I love the safety pin top with the pink jacket! I like Amelia’s outfit too. That grey silver blouse looks really nice on her. In the evacuation scene at the end there’s a woman in the background wearing slippers, a funky patterned hair towel, and a bathrobe with cats on it! It’s epic! Maggie’s purse, which we catch a glimpse of at the end, is Devine!

Jackson shows off his privilege when it’s revealed he’s so privileged he doesn’t even know how to make a candle stand up straight in its holder. There’s some great African Art in the background of Jackson’s place that I really love. Bailey had some great lines in this episode. Some of my favourites were, “You shoulda lead with limo!” and, “She’s your problem now.” I love Bailey. She and Catherine spend most of the episode enjoying themselves in Catherine’s limo and it’s amazing! More of this please! At Catherine’s encouragement Bailey buys her $799 blender with her golden butt cork money! Haha! Catherine confides her fears in Bailey and Bailey speaks the truth to Catherine! I love her!!! Also Bailey listing a robot attack as a possibility is my new favourite thing!

I hated pretty much everything surrounding Meredith and DeLuca dating. There were a few moments that were enjoyable to watch but most of it was just cringeworthy. We find out that Meredith and DeLuca are officially dating now. Yuck. She tells Alex and she looks a scared kid whose misbehaved. Spoiler Alert: If you feel or look that way when you tell your BEST FRIEND that you’re dating someone you should NOT be in that relationship.

Alex then calls Meredith on her BS about DeLuca. He thinks the fact that they’re dating is laughable. It is. Alex speaks for all of us here. But he’s still supportive of her as her friend and he hopes he makes her happy. Because Alex is a great best friend. I love their friendship. Helm is a true idiot in this episode. If more than one person has the same last name you include their first name as well. That’s just common sense. And Alex’s Mom Helen Karev appears! Welcome back!

We also find out that Betty has recovered and that her parents who suck are taking her and Leo to go and live with them. We never see a Social Worker or a judge or a lawyer in any of this. Super unrealistic. Betty’s parents continue to be insensitive jerks throughout the entire process. Also the man they cast to play Betty’s Dad has clearly never picked up a baby before. Jennifer Grey was phenomenal as Betty’s Mom, but the actor playing her Dad was poorly cast. Betty leaves without saying goodbye and it breaks Amelia’s heart. Back at the party we find out that Maggie’s nemesis KeKe wrote an article about her but made herself the star. That bitch. She’s the gift that keeps on giving. Alex shows up checks Jackson on his privilege and then goes to play some ping pong! I love him! Meredith and DeLuca arrive at the party. As they are standing in the hallway we find out that for once Meredith’s house is empty because her sisters and children are elsewhere. DeLuca then declares that he doesn’t want to go to a party in Catherine, Tom, and Amelia’s honour because Meredith’s house is empty and he wants to go back and have sex with her instead.

Remind me how I’m supposed to like this guy? He actively dislikes being around her family and friends and is super selfish all the time. Ugh. Amelia is Meredith’s Sister in Law. She’s there to support her. She’s also a friend of Catherine’s and Jackson’s. Richard is the only father figure she’s ever known. Her and Tom are on friendly terms. She’s going to this party to support them. She loves them. They are her family and DeLuca has no interest in being a part of that scene for some reason.

Tom and Teddy arrive at the party and are making out in the foyer just as an upset Amelia and Owen show up. Cue the drama. We find out that Tom surprised Teddy with a trip to Palm Springs before the baby comes. Which is really sweet! He really cares about her. Awww! Owen decides to be a jerk to everyone in response. While at the party we see Meredith talking to Ellis on the phone! She calls her Elle Belle! I love it! She’s such a loving Mom. She is nothing like her parents. I’m glad we’re learning more about Bailey and Ellis this season. We find out that Zola and Bailey are at a sleepover and Ellis is with her babysitter Tanya at her place and both Maggie and Amelia are at the party which is why her house is currently empty.

Amelia walks up to her and she tries to tell Amelia about her and DeLuca but doesn’t get the chance because Amelia’s upset about losing Betty and Leo and how Owen’s being a complete jerk. Meredith’s is supportive because she loves her. Next we see Teddy rightfully upset because of how awkward and difficult Owen is making everything. Tom comforts her and Jackson overhears him making a joke at exactly the wrong time and his reaction of, “Why?” is perfect and hilarious. Jo and Helen arrive and converse in the hallway with Alex. He tells Jo he didn’t see her calls because he was playing ping pong! While they’re talking Helen wanders into the party.

Owen continues being a jerk as Amelia attempts to talk to him on the balcony. He asks if she’s okay as if that’s normal. Why would Amelia be okay right now? She’s sad and angry. They both are. Amelia says some really important and truthful things and Owen completely doesn’t listen to or hear her. She calls him on his crap and it is fantastic! Yes! I am here for this! And Bokhee’s in the background! Hi Bokhee!

Owen continues to be selfish, makes everything about himself, and ignores what Amelia is saying. Why are they together? Then he completely gaslights her like an asshole. Run Amelia Run! Teddy and Maggie talk about the article and Teddy is very confused by Maggie’s response and it is hilarious! Teddy’s response to herself is, “I do hate this party.” Teddy is great. I love her. Meredith speaks the truth to Amelia about Teddy. However, I disagree that Amelia should have to make peace with it. She doesn’t have to make peace with the fact that the person she loves is in love with someone else. Neither did Cristina or Beth. Teddy shouldn’t have to put up with this either. She does have another option. She can step away which is what she eventually decides to do.

Alex and Jo finally find Helen talking to DeLuca on the balcony. She knitted them wedding present scarves! My heart is bursting! We then see more of Bokhee who is there with her husband Jay. I wonder if Jay is her husband in real life or an actor? Bokhee tells Jay in another language that based on his actions DeLuca is in love with Meredith. I think it’s interesting that the use of the word ‘love’ is always one sided from DeLuca’s end. He says it but she doesn’t. Other people say it about him but not her.

To me that indicates that he’s in love and infatuated with her but she’s just having fun dating him. That can only end in disaster. DeLuca doesn’t seem very concerned that his mentor isn’t doing well. He seems very self absorbed these days. Meredith does seem happy though which is nice. She’s been sad for a very long time. Owen, Jackson, and Richard have an “I hate Tom Koracick” club meeting by the food table. Jackson is so self absorbed he makes inflammatory comments about Tom which only eggs Owen, whose been drinking quite heavily, on further. Recognize the signs Jackson! Sheesh. Jackson says Tom took advantage of April during a vulnerable time. However, we the viewers know that Tom did not take advantage of April. Jackson believes that because he’s never asked her about it.

Richard’s pissed because Tom keeps making flirty comments to Catherine which is valid. But the party is partly in his honour so raging on him right now is in really bad taste. At this point Owen is super jealous of Tom and Amelia has totally figured that out. When he goes on about Tom to Amelia she defends him because they are friends and tells him that he was there for her after her tumour. Owen is further pissed off that Tom was there for Amelia after her tumour but Owen wasn’t there for her by choice. Even when Megan urged him he wouldn’t go. He has no one but himself to blame for the mess he’s gotten himself into.

He calls Amelia insecure and completely gaslights her again! The difference is that Amelia is now sober, clean, and sane. She can finally see Owen’s behaviour for what it is. Wrong. Amelia calls out on this and reminds him that she encouraged him to go to Germany and that was only 7 months ago not 7 years like Owen seems to be pretending. Now he’s acting like she’s crazy for speaking the truth. What were hearing from Amelia is wisdom not insecurity.

She tells them she’s done and that they’re done. You go Amelia! You do you! This is Amelia at her best. It’s been a long time coming. She deserves stability and happiness and she’s not going to get it with Owen. I hope her and Link get together. After Amelia says this and leaves Owen acts all offended as she doesn’t have the right to leave him. What an asshole. Aw Jo and Alex are wearing  the scarves Helen made them! I hope Meredith gets a scarf. Alex and Jo are worried his Mom might be able to split from reality. His line, “She shouldn’t have needles,” is the best. It’s not funny but it is. We cut to a scene with Meredith and DeLuca making out in Jackson’s guest bedroom. Yuck. I hate this scene. She’s setting boundaries and he’s pushing them. No does not mean convince her which is what he’s trying to do.

DeLuca gets a call from Carina, but ignores it. If Carina’s calling this late from Italy he should answer it. It’s probably important. Be an adult not a horny teenager DeLuca. And then Richard walks in on them! Why does this always happen to Richard? Meredith and Derek. Maggie and DeLuca. Now Meredith and DeLuca. He has the worst luck. As the saying goes, “If a relationship has to be a secret you shouldn’t be in it.” Meredith looks like a kid whose been caught doing something she shouldn’t like she did when she told Alex.

She tells Richard that Alex knows as if that makes a difference. She’s making excuses. If you have to do that and you’re this embarrassed you shouldn’t be dating that person. She does seem happy though which is good. They leave and go back to the party. DeLuca for some reason thinks it’s weird that Meredith is flustered. Why does DeLuca think it’s weird that Meredith is flustered after what just happened? His reactions make no sense.

Also why didn’t the staff take the spring rolls back out of the oven? That’s what they are paid to do. Maggie is still pissed about the article so Webber gives her some Webber Wisdom on taking her anger and making it productive. Then Alex’s Mom smells the fire but Alex thinks it’s in her head. Now we’re back to Owen and Teddy. He’s pissed that she’s taking this vacation and tries to make it about her putting the baby in danger. She points out in response that they have hospitals in California too.

Not only do they have hospitals in California, but Megan, Nathan, and Addison live there. Addison’s is one of the foremost neonatal surgeons in the country. If Teddy went into labour in California. She would have excellent care. He’s way out of line here. She wants to take a nice vacation like a normal person. He doesn’t get a say in this. Then he calls Tom a dirt bag even though he doesn’t know him at all.

Tom comes over and he and Owen start to argue. Catherine and Bailey finally arrive at the party and Jackson chooses this moment to be an oblivious ass to both Alex and Helen and Teddy, Tom, and Owen. Tom calls Owen on the fact that he’s done nothing to get to know him even though Tom and Teddy have been dating for several months now. Owen completely ignores this fact and starts yelling at Tom as if he knows anything about him.

This culminates in Owen telling Tom he’s not a father when he knows absolutely nothing about him in a room full of people at a party in his honour. Wow. Just when you thought Owen could not be more of an asshole he is! Tom’s finally had enough at that last comment and punches him hard. I don’t condone violence but I understand why Tom punched him. I think I would’ve too in that situation. He is a father. He lost a child. He’s not preying on Teddy. He will be in their baby’s life. Those are the facts and Owen is being an unforgivable asshole here.

To which Amelia responds from afar, “Okay. I’m done.” Yes Amelia. You go! You deserve better. And so does Teddy godammnit! Alex, Jo, and Helen are leaving just as Helen spots the smoke and points to the very real fire. Alex is so excited his Mom is right and she’s not hallucinating. I love him! His smiling face as they evacuate is the best! After the building’s been evacuate we find out from Ben that DeLuca and Meredith started an almost fire in Jackson’s oven with those damn egg rolls! Hahaha! Turns out the tray was plastic not metal.

The party breaks up after that and Alex comes over and introduces him Mom and Meredith to each other. It’s a beautiful and so well done. I think it’s interesting how DeLuca is framed out of the shot. They keep emphasizing how DeLuca doesn’t want to be a part of Meredith’s family or group of friends. But she does seem happy though for the time being so that’s good.

Maggie’s still has her glass of wine! We get some hot and sexy banter from Ben and Bailey! Catherine apologizes to Jackson by having the two of them and Richard and Maggie go get trashy foot and eat it in her limousine as they drive around town to celebrate. Catherine takes Maggie’s side on the KeKe/article issue and it’s awesome. They decide to spend the time after each of her scans, good or bad, like this. It’s very sweet.

Owen returns home to find that Amelia’s there because Betty’s parents brought Leo back! They decide at Betty’s request to give Leo back to Owen permanently so that they can help Betty stay sober, recover, and heal. Betty tells Amelia she wants to be a real teenager and make normal mistakes. She says goodbye to Amelia and hugs Owen, Amelia, and Leo one last time and then leaves with her parents.

Then we cut to Jo and Alex’s loft and he’s set his Mom up on the couch for the night. They’re still worried about her. Awww and there’s a picture of Meredith marrying Alex and Jo on their nightstand! We cut from there to a scene of Meredith and DeLuca arriving at his house. Carina pulls up in a car and she and DeLuca start arguing in Italian. This is why he should have picked up her calls. This is not the fun time Meredith came for.

Oh and it’s DeLuca’s Dad! This is why he should have picked up Carina’s calls! As Meredith says, “The bad times are going to find you all on their own ...” Now let’s take a look at next week’s promo. Oh it looks like they’re developing Jackson and Link’s friendship! Cool! It also looks like we’re getting some good jolex scenes and we get to see more of Alex’s Mom! It also appears that Amelia does in fact call it quits with Owen and call him on his BS! Yes! Finally!

Until next time.

Au revoir!

[rainagainstmywindow]

All Shades of You (Chapter 1)

This is going to be the first chapter to a percabeth AU based on @ofswordsandpens ‘s  post (she was also nice enough to read it over and discuss ideas with me) This is my first chaptered fic so I hope you enjoy it! 

(please search #ramwfics or #ASoY for previous chapters)

                                                 *****************

Annabeth saw color for the first time when she was seven. It was before her brothers had come along. Her father had just barely met her stepmother and she’d invited them to her family’s beach house. Annabeth’d been so focused on building the perfect sandcastle that she’d completely neglected the ocean in front of her even though it was her first proper visit to the beach. It wasn’t until her father called her from the water that she looked up. 

It was unlike anything she’d ever seen. From her father’s bedtime stories she knew that the ocean was supposed to be blue or green. She never imagined it could be so many at once though. Deep green tinged with blues looked back at her. The colors were alive. She tried to mask her utter amazement but it must’ve shown on her face. Her father called to her once again, asking if anything was wrong. She forced herself to peel her eyes away and went back to her castle, never once mentioning it to anyone.

°°°°°°°°°

Percy had started to give up hope he’d ever see color. He’d spent so long in black and white that he’d started to believe they weren’t real, just something his mother had made up to get him to sleep during thunderstorms.

During one such storm, when Sally Jackson wasn’t there to lull him to sleep over the roar of lightning, he began to hope once again. It was too early for it to be light out but lightning lit the clouds every few seconds anyways. He’d buried his head in his pillow in an attempt to block it all out, but his heart continued  to beat too furiously for him to go back to sleep. Finally, he braved a peek through his curtains and threw them all the way back with a gasp. It wasn’t color, he was sure he’d know the difference right away when he finally saw it, but it was the brightest Percy had ever seen anything be. It shone with fierce life. Maybe he was being too hopeful, but it tugged at his heart anyways.

°°°°°°°°°°°

“This is nice.” Annabeth doubted that Thalia thought her neat, bland dorm room was nice but it was to her. There was also the added bonus of the peace and quiet she’d probably get without her brothers next door. “I can’t believe you’re actually here.”

Annabeth has been coming to New York since she was seven. During the summers for camp mostly, and that one time her family stayed for a full year. She’d met Thalia at one of her Dad’s charity dinners the first year they’d come to New York. Even though Thalia had been twelve, both girls had taken to each other right away. Thalia’d been there with her mother, whose career as a television actress had just started to fade, so she listened to the little blonde kid go on and on about the history of the Golden Gate Bridge. They had been like sisters ever since.

Thalia was the first person Annabeth called after a particularly nasty argument with her stepmother. She had helped Annabeth finally enroll in the New York boarding school she’d been eyeing for a while as a compromise.

“You’re actually pretty close to Grover’s school.” Thalia told her. They’d been pretty close with Grover Underwood before Luke died. They had all gone to the same summer camp. Annabeth had kept going even after Luke, but Thalia had stopped. She was surprised to hear Thalia still kept tabs of where he lived. She didn’t know if they were still talking. Grover had always changed the subject when she tried to bring it up. 

Her anger at her father rose again with full force when she thought about the summer with Grover she didn’t get to spend. She made a mental note to call Grover up to hang out as soon as she was done moving in. Hopefully he figured out her Dad was acting crazy again and he wasn’t mad at her.

“What about you? How far away are you?” Annabeth asked. She hoped her nerves didn’t seep into her voice, but of course Thalia noticed.

“Close enough, kiddo. Don’t worry.”

°°°°°°°°°°°

“Aren’t you worried that once you see color it’ll look awful?” Percy wasn’t sure if Rachel was paying him any attention. She was glaring at the canvas in front of her, twirling her paintbrush too close to her nose.  

She shrugged. “Maybe I’ll never find out.” She probably thought Percy was talking about the unfinished painting in front of her.

“Don’t you want to?”

Rachel put her brush down, turning towards Percy. “It’s not that I don’t want to. I just know that if I don’t I won’t be too beat up about it.” He didn’t know if he’d made a face, but Rachel seemed to notice something was up. “Why? Would you?”

“No-I mean- I don’t know…” Rachel was cool, but he’d only known her a few months. It felt too personal to talk about with her. He’d wanted to tell someone about the thunderstorm but the more he thought about it the more he convinced himself that he probably imagined it. Maybe he would tell Grover once school started.

Rachel sighed, going back to her painting. “We’re sixteen, Perce. If you really want it to happen, you’ve got time.”

“It’s not like I’m dying for it to happen or anything.”

She chuckled. “Okay, Percy.”

“I’m not!”

Percy really hated the summers sometimes. Sure, having no school was awesome, but it’d always meant he’d have to work. Anything to get out of the house and not be with Smelly Gabe. He realized “Smelly Gabe” was a pretty childish nickname for his disgusting stepfather but he’d been eight when he thought it up, okay?

It also meant Grover was off to his summer camp, with his ‘awesome friends’ that he always went on about. Percy was pretty proud of himself from meeting Rachel this summer. Well, more like crashing into her since he did almost run her over with his skateboard. It’d been quite a sight having a frizzy-hairedm shiny (he imagined she’d been covered in golden paint from the sheen of her skin and his mother’s description of the color) girl yelling at him. She said she’d forgive him if he donated to her cause (“Save Public School Art Programs”) but seeing as he was broke she settled for him giving her his honest opinion about her art. He’d been coming to her apartment each afternoon after his dog-walking job ever since. So far he’d helped her finish two paintings. 

He hadn’t really stuck around for the art though. Percy was pretty confused as to why Rachel valued his opinion when he clearly didn’t know the first thing about painting, but she did. She made him feel smart, and she was pretty smart herself. Rachel was also attending Percy’s new school: Goode High School. They weren’t supposed to start for another week but Grover got back today and Percy was excited to have his two friends meet. He tried to ignore how lame it was that he only had two friends. 

They were meeting at Rachel’s penthouse because it was big enough to fit two of Percy’s apartment in it and because it was always empty. Rachel’s parents tried to make up for leaving her alone all the time by providing her with endless amounts of cheese plates and all the take-out she wanted. Percy was also excited to see Grover’s face when he saw the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Percy’s phone buzzed with a text from Grover.  I’m at the lobby. U sure I got the right address?

Percy smiled to himself and answered:  Yep I’ll buzz u in

Grover’s face when Rachel opened the door for him was definitely worth it. Percy didn’t miss how uncomfortable all the attention seemed to make Rachel though, so he smiled at her and she couldn’t help but laugh along at Grover’s cry of excitement when he saw the enchiladas they’d ordered. “Whoa!” He hesitated but Rachel, clearly embarrassed insisted he’d go ahead. “What a great day. First Annabeth texts me she moved here and now enchiladas!”

“Wait.” Percy said, “Annabeth’s here?”

[breeeliss]

[Miraculous Ladybug]: The Perks of Being a Rich Kid

short commission i did for @leoqueen082​ :) 

fun fact: people really forget that these two kids are filthy rich and probably run in the same circles all the time. which makes for some interesting convos :P

Link to Archive of Our Own: [AO3]

Title: The Perks of Being a Rich Kid Pairings/Characters: Gen fic, Chloe & Alix Summary: Chloe and Alix bond after getting sent to the principal’s office

The Perks of Being a Rich Kid

Useful bit of information that Chloé learned today: there was a limit to how much trouble her last name was capable of getting her out of.

Which, seriously, how ridiculous was that? What was the sense of being the daughter of the most powerful man in Paris if she wasn’t going to be totally immune to punishment? She tried to explain that to her teacher but he didn’t seem to appreciate it very much because here Chloé was, getting sent to the principal’s office with a bag full of extra credit homework that was going to take her hours to do.

Sabrina really picked a horrible day to be home sick with the flu. Chloé had been doing her nails during history class this entire quarter and now she had to write a whole paper by Thursday.

To be fair, Chloé kinda toed the line a little close today. Not that she’d ever admit that to anyone other than her father who was going to love an explanation for the mess she’d gotten herself into. That was going to be a fun conversation. She wasn’t sure if her justifiable hatred for Marinette Dupain-Cheng was going to be enough to let her off the hook, and that was the real travesty of the day. Because seriously, this was all Marinette’s fault.

But whatever. At least Chloé got her revenge. Definitely worth potentially losing her credit card privileges over.

M. Damocles was busy scolding a student in his office while another three sat right outside the door awaiting their own lectures. Chloé snorted when she realized that one of them was Alix who was crouched over her handheld and growling at the video game she was playing while she waited. Well, that explained why she wasn’t in class last period.

It was funny that people complained so much about Chloé (almost) never getting in trouble because of who her father was. Alix got sent to the principal’s office at least four times a week and only ever left with a slap on the wrist because of who her father was.

Figures. M. Kubdel gave a monster of a donation to the school last year.

Chloé laid her jacket down on the floor and sat down next to Alix. “You know he’s going to confiscate that when he comes back out here, right?”

“Eh, I’m already up shit creek as it is, can’t possibly get any worse.” She waited until she was finished passing the level she was on before she looked up. “The more interesting story is the fall from grace you must have suffered to be sitting out here with us.”

Chloé rolled her eyes. “Don’t rub it in.”

“I can’t believe that the one time Chloé Bourgeois gets sent to the principal’s office, I miss it. Talk about shit luck. What’d you do? Curse out Mme. Mendeleiev because the lab goggles messed up your foundation?”

“Would you let that go?” Chloé glared. “And no, that’s not why I’m here.”

“Yikes,” Alix laughed. “Who’d you kill?”

“No one. It was a brief altercation.”

“Brief my ass. You wouldn’t be here if it was brief. Spill.”

Chloé shifted. “I...may...have gotten into a fight with Marinette.”

“Yeah, dude, that happens like every five seconds.”

“No like an actual fight. Like I might have lunged over the desk and yanked at her pigtails.”

Alix’s head snapped back as she cackled loud enough for it to echo all the way down the hallway. “No you did not!! You catty maniac!!”

“She called me a soulless hag!” Chloé defended. “How was I not going to put my hands on her?”

“You need a therapist,” Alix suggested. “Like I’m talking thousands of euros in anger therapy. You’re a liability.”

“Screw you. What are you here for?”

Alix shrugged. “Rollerblading in the courtyard. Kim dared me. Couldn’t say no.”

“You mean you did it because you knew you wouldn’t get in trouble for it.”

Alix pointed in Chloé’s face. “Hey, Damocles is afraid of my father because he needs to keep the donations coming. You make him afraid of yours. Don’t lump me together with you.”

“Please, just admit it,” Chloé smirked. “You’re a rich kid with perks.”

“Of course I’m a rich kid with perks. You, on the other hand, are a rich, annoying, prissy, spoiled kid with perks. And guess who everyone hates?”

Chloé gasped. “No one hates me!”

Alix stared at her for a long moment. “Dude….do not start with me right now.”

“They don’t!” Chloé insisted. “They just….they’re jealous. Because I’m famous and Daddy gets me whatever I want.”

“God, I’m gonna vomit. Here, open your bag so that I don’t get it on the floor.”

“Gross!! Stop it!! You’re such a freak!!”

“You sat down and started talking to this freak so joke’s on you, my dude.”

Chloé pursed her lips. “Force of habit. Don’t read into it. Besides, what’s your excuse?”

Alix squinted her eyes and tilted her head. “It’s weird because you’re like ridiculously annoying and I kinda wanna run over your face about ninety percent of the time, but the other ten percent of the time you’re oddly entertaining. Like if I needed a good laugh, all I’d have to do is insult your contour.”

“My contour is immaculate!”

“See?”

“Shut up.”

Alix stuck out her tongue. “I will say: the level of shade you dish out during all those benefit parties we hate going to sustains me.”

Chloé smirked. Their fathers had been friends for years —  long before M. Bourgeois got into politics and M. Kubdel became an art curator. That meant that every art exhibition, campaign fundraiser, charity gala, and Christmas party that either man decided to hold, you could bet that Chloé and Alix were both going to be there suffering through the entire thing with no one but each other for company. Alix told her that the momentary truce was worth listening to Chloé roast all the pathetically dull boys that always asked Chloé to dance, and Chloé had to admit that watching Alix threaten to scoop out old men’s eyeballs with a melon baller was quite satisfying.

“Daddy forces me to go to those parties because he wants me to be nice to the sons of all the politicians he tries to cozy up to,” Chloé shrugged. “Not that I don’t want to see him reelected, but I only have so much patience.”

Alix shrugged. “I think my mom just wants to see me in a dress for once. Everytime I shop in the boy’s section she has an aneurism. It’s great.”

Chloé nudged her. “Remember that time you panicked and invited me over to your house because you had to get ready for our New Years’ party and you had no idea how to do your makeup?”

“Um,” Alix glared, “the whole point of that momentary lapse of judgement was that we were never supposed to talk about it. Like ever. To no one.”

“Who doesn’t know how to put on mascara? I learned that when I was ten.”

“Not everyone sleeps with a Lanc ô me palette under their pillow, Chloé . But anyway. I had a point I was arriving at before you distracted me.”

“The anticipation is killing me.”

Alix ignored her sarcasm and waved her in closer so that the other students in the hallway wouldn’t hear them. “I have to ask because sometimes I think your stupidity is genuine and not you pretending to avoid conversations that bother you. You... do know that no one in class likes you, right?”

Chloé straightened her shoulders. “That’s not true. Adrien and Sabrina like me.”

“Sabrina doesn’t count, she’ll shine your shoes if it meant getting on your good side. And Adrien likes you because that kid’s got too much faith in the world and thinks you’re gonna do a huge turn around any day now. Everyone else low key wants to smash your face through a window everytime you so much as open your mouth.”

“Gee. Thanks.”

Alix lifted her hands. “Listen, I’m being honest with you. And I’m only telling you this because I happen to know that you’re not a total brat.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, when we go to those parties? You’re like...not awful. You’re kinda tolerable to be around. I think it’s because there you’re not trying to impress anybody and here you’re forcing everyone to kiss the ground you walk on because you value your school reputation over all else. You try too hard and you come off as a total pain in the ass. It’s starting to seriously piss everyone off.”

Chloé blinked. That was a disturbingly thoughtful answer, especially coming from Alix. “Since when are people pissed off at me?”

Alix’s face fell. “Are you seriously that clueless?”

“If people were so mad about my behavior, they’d tell me,” Chloé reasoned. “Marinette’s the only one who hates me as far as I can tell.”

“That’s because Marinette’s a badass who isn’t afraid to say what everyone else is thinking,” Alix pointed out. “They just don’t want to say it themselves.”

“Why wouldn’t they want to say it?”

Alix rubbed her hands down her face and groaned, slapping her cheeks a little at the end. “Ahhh, okay, okay, you’re blonde so I guess I have to dumb this down for you.”

“Oh screw you!”

She snapped her fingers. “Okay. You know that Italian art collector that my dad invites to art exhibitions all the time? M. Fellini.”

Chloe pouted. “Not ringing a bell.”

“He’s the one that always sounds like he has a sinus infection.”

Chloe face lit up. “Oh my god, yes!”

The joke was fresh in their minds because they both pinched their noses, lifted their chins, and said “Ah, buonasera mademoiselles, don’t you just look lovely this evening!” before collapsing into laughter when they heard how ridiculous they sounded. Honestly, that never got old. Chloé was half tempted to tell her father to send him some cold medicine for Christmas.

Alix rubbed away the tears from her eyes. “Anyway. We can agree he’s a total asshole, right?”

“He’s an old, skeezy, misogynistic snob. Asshole is too tame an insult.”

“Everyone and their mother is on the same page as you,” Alix explained. “But no one ever says that to him. People either ignore him or keep being nice to him no matter how much they wanna punch his face in.”

“I’m assuming there’s a point in you bringing him up.”

“People don’t confront him about being a jerk because he’s one of the richest and most successful art curators in Italy. Insult him and you can say goodbye to doing any kind of meaningful work with him in. Which, in the art world, is social suicide. It’s the same with you.”

Chloé scowled. “You’re comparing me to that wrinkled old sack of broken dreams?”

“It’s a perfect comparison. You got Alya suspended for taking a picture and you tried to get Marinette arrested for supposedly stealing your bracelet. Like, come on dude. People are terrified of you.”

Chloé crossed her arms. “They both deserved that! Alya was invading my privacy and there’s still no proof that Marinette wasn’t involved in that whole bracelet nonsense.”

“And I’m assuming Marinette also deserved you attacking her in class today and that you sitting here is an injustice to humanity. Pretty sure Damocles and your dad are gonna totally side with you when they hear you put your hands on someone because she said something a little mean.”

Chloé looked down at her nails. “You’re being sarcastic…”

“Yeah no shit, queen bee,” Alix scolded. “Here’s a wild concept: if you want to make friends, you have to actually be nice to people. Crazy, I know! Life hack of the year!”

“I try to be nice to people!” Chloé said. “But you’ve got people like Marinette who — ”

“Nope,” Alix interrupted. “Stopping you right there. Marinette has never done anything to you. Marinette’s a freaking angel. She’s nice to everyone who’s nice to her back. The only reason you hate her is because she’s more popular than you are, so you overcompensate by trying to make yourself seem like you’re better than everyone else. Except that doesn’t make anyone want to be friends with you. That makes people wanna stay away from you.”

It was only because Alix lecturing Chloé was such a bizarre occurrence that Chloé stayed quiet and let her words sink in. She wanted to brush it off and assume that Alix was just over exaggerating the situation, but then Chloé remembered a conversation she had with Adrien during his first week of school. She warned him about how hard it was to make friends when you were as perfect, beautiful, and rich as they were because everyone was automatically jealous of your success. That was why it was so important for Chloé and Adrien to stick together because she thought he’d suffer the same fate she did. But Adrien was as quiet, polite, and soft hearted as he’d always been as a kid, and that seemed to have waltzed him straight into the hearts of everyone else in the class in a matter of days. Chloé hadn’t quite figured out how he did that or how she was supposed to follow in his footsteps.

Chloé had always been more abrasive than Adrien — louder, more sarcastic, and harder to get along with. Maybe that was the problem. Although, Alix seemed to do just fine on her end.

She flipped the questions around. “Well, how did you make friends?”

Alix shrugged. “It’s not like I tried. I don’t act different depending on the situation. I just am and people just come. Kim was my first friend because we loved competing with each other. Then Kim’s friends became my friends and it just kept going.”

“That’s what Adrien said…”

“That’s pretty much how everyone makes friends,” Alix said. “Putting people down to lift yourself up doesn’t make people starstruck by you. It just makes you seem like a bitch.”

Chloé sighed. “Daddy says that in politics, in order to win, you have to show how bad the other candidates are in order to make yourself seem better. That’s why people vote for you.”

“This isn’t politics. Making friends isn’t about crushing the competition. You just….act normal and find people that vibe with your flow. Like I said. You’re chill when you aren’t trying too hard.”

“Seriously?”

Alix grinned. “You’re surprisingly hilarious. You’re also an enabler and a bad influence, but that’s a check in my book. Gotta appreciate people who talk you into stealing a thousand euros worth of silverware just to see if you can get away with it.”

“Can’t believe you actually did that,” Chloé laughed.

“Hey, like I said. I can’t turn down a challenge.” She paused for a moment and nudged her foot against Chloé’s knee when she saw her growing quiet. “Hey. I’m not telling you this stuff to make you feel bad or anything. I’m just telling it to you straight. But I also think you can do a turn around and start being nicer to people and make more friends if you cared enough to. You’re stubborn enough to pull it off.”

Alix wasn’t the type of person to put in this much emotional labor into another person, and Chloé knew that the polite thing to do was to at least thank her. But the words felt awkward on her tongue and betrayed her inexperience, so she decided it was best to just not say anything for now. Instead, she followed up with a question that was bugging her. “Why are you telling me all of this now?”

“Dude,” Alix snickered. “You got sent to the principal's office . That’s like the turning point of the century. Might as well take advantage of the momentum and use it towards something productive.”

The door to M. Damocles’s office flung open before Chloé could say anything else, and the student he’d been speaking to slunk through the hall with his head down and a slip of paper crumpled up in his hands. Probably a letter for his parents to sign. “Mlle. Kubdel!” M. Damocles’s voice rang. “It’s your turn. Please come in.”

Alix winced as she collected her bag and stood on her feet. “Womp. Time to face the music. Wish me luck.”

“You know damn well you’re not going to get in any trouble.”

“Wow, fine, I’ll wish myself luck.” She held out her fist. “Hang in there, you frilly little nightmare. If you apologize and cry a lot he’ll probably go easy on you.”

Chloé gently tapped her fist against Alix’s and have her a crooked smile. “Alright.”

Alix gave her a short salute before throwing her arms wide and skipping into M. Damocles’s office as if she were greeting an old friend. Chloé shook her head fondly and tried to think of what excuse she was going to open up with before it was her turn to go inside and explain herself. If spontaneously bursting into tears was all it would take to walk away with nothing more than a stern warning, Chloé was fully prepared to polish off all those acting lessons she took when she was little.

She hummed to herself as she pulled out her phone and started typing out her script. “Turning point, huh?” she muttered. Chloé was pretty sure Alix didn’t mean for that to be a challenge, but for some reason Chloé wanted to treat it like one. Alix’s specialty was planting seeds in people’s heads and sitting back while she watched them try to pull off the impossible. Chloé could always resent the fact that Alix was trying to get in her head, but it would be much more satisfying to exceed the girl’s expectations just so she could shove it in her face.

If Chloe could convince Alix to sit still long enough to put eyeliner on her for a party, she could handle being nice for one day, right?

[paperficwriter]

Shades of Red and Blue

I’m ruined by McHanzo, y’all. Sorry-not-sorry. Please enjoy these drabbles about a certain surly warrior and his lovestruck cowboy boyfriend (or future boyfriend, in some of these cases). Cut is for length, not for content.

Cards

“Full house!” Jesse crowed, delighted with himself as he slapped his cards on the table between them. “Pay up, sugarplum.”

Hanzo let out a deep, concentrated breath, dark brows knit over stormy eyes as he stood up to untie his obi, adding it to the growing pile between them that consisted of his bow, his quiver, both of his re-enforced boots, and his hair scarf. Jesse’s cheshire cat grin widened as he wiggled his socked toes, the only item of his between them being his boots, which now Hanzo was certain was because he let him win the first round.

“I do not appreciate being taken for a fool, Jesse McCree.”

“Aw, c’mon!” Jesse laughed, taking a sip from his glass of whiskey. “We ain’t gotta play much longer.”

Hanzo was unconvinced. “Is that so?”

“Yeah. Just…” He glanced around the table at the remaining pants and tunic that Hanzo wore. “Like two more hands. Maybe three. Never can tell with ya, darlin.’ I have been surprised bef-- hey now!”

He just barely caught the empty teacup as it was hurled at his head.

---

Ink

The rain falling outside created the perfect atmosphere for Hanzo to settle himself down at the low table and write.

There was a time when he only brought out his paper and ink when something was troubling him, when he needed to refocus and find his center once more. As a child, he had loathed the practice. It was too still, too calm, and it required a steady hand that his young self did not possess. And the fact that Genji excelled at calligraphy only made him rebel all the harder against it.

“You do not need to run from those feelings, Hanzo,” his mother had said patiently when he approached her on the subject. “Use them. Write the words that capture your emotions.”

“But I hate it,” he insisted, defiantly.

“Then it sounds like you have a good word to start with.”

Now, his days were filled with different words. And names. As his brush flew across the page, he felt an arm around his waist, a comforting weight on his shoulder. Jesse was entranced, watching him, and in the stillness of steady raindrops and the soft caress of bristles, he could even tell that his lover was holding his breath, only daring to inhale when Hanzo returned the brush to the ink tray.

“That’s really somethin’ else,” he said quietly as Hanzo turned to regard the side of his face. “My handwritin’ looks like chicken scratch. That’s art.”

“Thank you.” Hanzo kissed his cheek softly, fingers lacing with his, thumb stroking the hair on the back of his hand.

“So, what’s it say?”

Hanzo only smiled and leaned back to close his eyes, basking in the warm presence at his side.

Peace.

---

Garden

“Easy!” Jesse blocked the incoming attack of the frenzied man who had evidently had a problem with him scouting through his garden. “I’m jus’...whoa! Cool it with the kickin’!”

Maybe Jesse should have listened when Gabe told him to stay off the palace grounds. And he probably would have, if he hadn’t told him not to, but...curiosity and cats and all. And had he managed to scale the far wall, it would have given him the best view of the sprawling streets below. Tactical advantage.

He just...hadn’t succeeded in getting that far.

He certainly had still gotten quite a view, though. Long, dark hair that flew with each relentlessly punch and kick, each packed with precise and perfect force, blue robes creating sounds like a mighty wind. His thin, furious mouth was set in an angular, pale jaw, and, damn, he had eyes you could get lost in for hours. Even if they were flashing with bright, hot anger.

“Omae!” The man snarled - well, young man, Jesse guessed, he looked to be about his age - as a fist hit Jesse in the cheek. “Usero!”

“I don’t know what the hell you’re sayin,’ but it don’t sound very polite!” Jesse grabbed his hat out of the air as a sidekick nearly blew it off. All right, enough was enough. His hand went to his hip, pulling his revolver free, and he was about to fire off a warning shot, when --

“Ryuu ga waga teki wo kurau!”

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” Jesse took off at the fastest sprint he ever thought possible, not entirely believing that there were two giant roaring blue dragons chasing him down. Ducking into a roll, he dove away from the garden wall, watching dumbfounded as they flew past into the night sky and disappeared into nothingness.

The gate closed behind him with a satisfied clank of a metal lock.

“Do not return,” a cold voice said to him from the darkness on the other side.

“I think I love you,” Jesse mumbled, still staring awestruck where the creatures had faded.

“Nani?!”

“I mean, look at that moon! Gotta go!”

---

Try Again

When Hanzo agreed to join Overwatch, it was as if Jesse had decided that he had to redouble his efforts in wooing him.

First, it was ignored invitations to the best steakhouse in the region. “Han, I’m tellin’ ya. You’d love it. They get a perfect sear every damn time. Come on!”

“Maintain radio silence.” If that wasn’t a ‘no’ then Jesse wasn’t sure what was. Maybe the middle of a mission wasn’t the best time to propose a date...

Then, he had decided to go the ‘classy’ route and sat under his window with a guitar, singing an old song that he knew, but replacing the name in it to ‘Hanzo’ (even though it threw off both the rhyming scheme and the melody as well). The arrow that splintered the instrument was powerful enough that it knocked Jesse entirely off his feet.

Okay, so, something a bit more indirect. So, he left a bottle of wine at the door to his quarters. That had gotten him a note in Japanese. He sent a picture of it to Genji while he was on a trip to Nepal. “Translation?” he asked.

“Literal or figurative?”

“Both.”

“Literally: your taste in wine is reminiscent of the taste a gardener has in providing for his plants.”

“Uh...huh.”

“It means it’s shit.”

“Thanks, Genji, I got it.”

“Do you seek my honest advice?”

“Yeah, that’d be helpful.”

“My brother is a man of simple tastes. He enjoys the quiet. He hates crowds. And if he feels he is being pursued, he will flee. Or fight. That is his way.”

“So he’s like a cat.”

“A surprisingly apt analogy. Yes. You have made your desires known. Now you must let him come to you.”

“I’ve always been a dog guy myself.”

“Then let this be a practice in patience for you, Jesse McCree.”

Patience. His old nemesis.

Against his better judgement, Jesse left Hanzo alone. They worked a few missions together, passed each other occasionally in the halls of the HQ, and Jesse always fought the urge to beg him for a chance.

Finally, after he thought perhaps he had to give up entirely, Hanzo approached him in the mess hall, carrying a small black lacquered box. “May I join you?” he asked, nodding at the seat opposite of him.

Internally screaming, Jesse nodded. “Sure.”

Jesse glanced between his plate of spaghetti and what he realized was a box broken into compartments in front of Hanzo. Each had something different: rice, fish, pickled vegetables and some kind of seaweed salad.

“Fancy,” he commented.

Hanzo hummed in acknowledgement, picking up his chopsticks before hesitating, then sliding the tray over to him. “Would you like to try?”

“Um...okay! Yeah!” Jesse grinned and wiped his fork on his napkin before taking a piece of fish. Salmon, probably, based on the color. And he immediately wondered what the hell he was thinking. Why? Why had he gone for the fish? Of all the other innocuous items he could have picked, he had to go with the one thing he had zero experience with.

And boy, did he regret it. As soon as the pink piece of meat hit his tongue, his entire body shuddered. It was the combination of the texture, the taste, the...everything of it, and he could tell his smile wasn’t at all convincing because Hanzo’s eyes went wide.

“It’s a real…” Oh God, don’t gag, don’t gag, don’t gag… “...Acquired taste, ain’t it?”

“Sou desu,” Hanzo said, his mouth starting to turn up. When Jesse swallowed and very nearly lost it, his chest hiccuping with disgust, Hanzo actually laughed out loud. He kept laughing as Jesse took a large gulp of water, forcing the slimy bastard down the rest of the way.

It would have been charming if he weren’t so thoroughly grossed out.

“If noodles are more to your taste,” Hanzo said, still chuckling, “I know of a very good spot for ramen, if you would care to join me.”

Was he hallucinating from nearly dying of fish poisoning?! “That would be great,” he said, smile faltering as his stomach grumbled irritably. “But it’s...all cooked, right?”

That earned him another moment of laughter. “It is. You have my word.”

“How ‘bout tonight?”

Hanzo nodded as he stood up again, clearly too amused to finish his meal. “Hai. Dēto da.”

...Did he just say ‘date’?

[sigurdjarlson]

We need to talk about Kevin fandom (tw: rape, abuse, pedophilia mentions)

this discourse gets me so pissy so here’s a vent post

(1) "They're coping mechanisms are unhealthy’ it's only unhealthy if it harms them or someone else. Ask any decent mental health professional.

(2) you don't get a say in someone's mental health. Maybe it is unhealthy for them but unless they're causing REAL harm to someone or they ask your opinion it's none of your business. You are not their mental health professional 

(3) using abuse/rape in fic to cope has been proven beneficial for many survivors. It's a way of taking back the power they've had taken away. There's a lot more to it as well.

(4) "you can only do this if it's for coping" how do you plan to enforce this rule? Force every single person to talk about their incredibly private traumatic experiences just so you seem whether or not it's okay for them to do something? I'm sorry that's disgusting. That's absolutely disgusting. 

(5) You do not speak for all survivors even if you are a survivor yourself. Your experience is not universal. Everyone's experience is different and everyone copes and reacts in different ways. I am one and I don't speak for all of us.. 

(6) it makes you uncomfortable? Okay!! That's alright. Totally understandable!! You want to police others because it makes you uncomfortable? No!! Not okay. 

(7) you have the responsibility to take care of yourself. There are steps you can take to avoid this kind of media. Trigger warnings, tags, summaries, blocking systems..those are all there for a reason. Please make use of them.

(8) "think of the children" this could be used for any kind of adult content. "Violent video games cause violence!" First off no they do not and also they come with ratings that blatantly say it's not for children. Its properly rated. It's not the creator of the game's fault if a child gets hold of it. To sum it up: that's the parent's job. I read erotic fic before I was 18 and it's not the author's fault lmao.

(9) "people will act it out" oh my god oh my goddd I can't stand this. No!! They won't. If they do? They already had very severe problems to begin with. It was not caused by this "problematic" piece of fic or art. Do NOT take the blame off the people that actively choose to hurt others by saying ~they read some problematic things so this must have caused it uwu~ you know what caused it? Them choosing to do the act. Most people have a healthy distinction between fiction and reality. 

(10) "this happened to me" I'm sorry you went through something like that. I truly am. But you still don't have the right to tell other people what they can and can't do. Take steps to protect yourself. No one else can do that for you. Your mental health is your responsibility and yours alone. You do not have the right to put that responsibility on complete strangers. It's not their job. The world cannot nor should it have to cater to you..

(11) "this thing makes me uncomfortable so therefore it must be bad and if it's bad the person writing it must be bad" is the logic here and it's incredibly faulty. Once again. Your experiences are not universal. Something that makes you uncomfortable might not make someone else feel uncomfortable. For things that have a tendency to make a lot of people uncomfortable there are these things called trigger warnings and warnings in general.

the person is not bad. They are not supporting or normalizing this behavior just by writing a fanfic. Are they saying "it's okay to rape people everybody should go out and do it"? No? then no they're not.

(12) fanfic, fanart, etc are such small medias that they don't effect or influence society In the way something like say "50 Shades of Grey" would. That's the stuff we should be concerned about and focused on criticizing. It's blatant misinformation.

(13) if half the effort people put into these crusades against ships was used to help actual survivors..there would be a lot of good being done in the world. These are fictional characters. We joke around a lot but you don't have to protect them. They are not real. Real people are more important than fictional ones. So, please if you spend so much time and effort on these things, channel that energy into something good and positive instead of harassing and harming real people on the internet over /fictional things/.

(14) “Fiction effects reality.” You’re right it does. However it does not directly cause these bad things. It’s what people choose to do with fiction that matters. Choices. Choices. Choices. 

(15) Fiction does not have to be pure. Fiction has always been a platform where people can explore the darker things in life. It’s interesting to some people. Personally I like a lot of dark shit because it’s interesting. It’s so incomprehensible to me that people can do these awful things that I find it interesting to explore why these people may have done them through fiction. 

(16) Liking something in fiction does not mean you support it. I’d hate most of the fictional characters I absolutely adore if they were real. 

(17) Some of the kindest people I’ve ever met are part of problematic fandoms and some of the worst are the people who scream that they’re trying to protect the world from that problematic fandom. You see there’s no correlation between what you like in fiction and what kind of person you are in real life. You know what is a great indicator of what kind of person you are? How you treat real, live people and the choices you make.

(18) I get it. These things elicit very strong emotions in people and for very valid reasons but that does not mean it should not be allowed to exist. Like I said it is your responsibility to create your own safe space. Blacklist/block/unfollow do whatever to keep those things out of your space. And...Don’t go looking for these things god damn it? If you see (tw: rape) and then go into the fic anyway and get upset? That’s not the author’s fault. They put the proper warnings in place. You ignored them. 

If there isn’t a proper warning. Perhaps consider kindly asking them to put some up? Maybe they forgot. It happens. People make mistakes.. If they refuse to do so they’re kind of a dick but it’s better to just ignore/unfollow/avoid/block that person and move on. 

(19) Lets make a summary.

You are responsible for your own safe space and taking care of your mental health.

Fiction does not CAUSE bad things to happen. People who choose to do those bad things do.

“This upsets me” does not = “it’s bad and shouldn’t exist and the person making this thing is bad” your logic is faulty m8

If something is properly tagged and has the proper warnings then it’s not the author’s fault if others ignore it and get upset. They did their part.

Fictional characters are not real. You don’t have to protect them. Harming real people over fictional ones is absolutely reprehensible. 

It’s no one’s job to parent other people’s children. No, children shouldn’t be looking at this content but it’s the parents’ job to keep their children away from those things. (proper warnings, tags, etc are important too but that itself is not a guarantee) 

Liking something in fiction does not = supporting it, condoning it, normalizing it. It just means you like something in fiction. Most people have a healthy distinction between fiction and reality. If someone does act on it..they already had very severe issues to begin with. 

Survivors are never obligated to reveal their personal experiences in order to be “allowed” to consume or make certain things. 

A coping mechanism is only unhealthy if it’s hurting the person or others. (it’s not hurting anyone by existing) It might not be healthy for you but that does not mean it’s not healthy for that person. AND it’s not your job or place to decide whether or not something is healthy or unhealthy for a person unless you are their mental health professional. Stay in your lane.

People don’t have to be using it as a coping mechanism! Maybe something really is just their kink. Maybe they find it interesting or whatever. Who cares as long as they’re not out doing it in real life. Who cares as long as they have a healthy distinction between what is okay in fiction and what is okay in real life. Mind your own business honestly.

I think some of these people really do have good intentions. They think they’re helping the world or others somehow. But having good intentions does not mean you are right. Be aware of what you’re doing and how it’s effecting others. Channel all the energy you put into hating things into doing something good in the real world. Or use it to create and enjoy things you do like or enjoy. Why focus on the things you hate?

And some of these people don’t have good intentions. For some it’s just a self righteous circle jerk. It makes them feel better about themselves. It’s a “I’m more morally enlightened than you” contest. These people don’t care about the issues they claim to care about or the people involved. They just want to make themselves feel good by making others feel bad. And that? That’s horrible.

They’re just using serious issues as buzzwords (which takes away the impact that word makes and THAT is a bad thing) Rape, pedophilia, abuse, etc. These are very, very serious issues. 

When people roll their eyes when they see someone claiming “pedophilia’ because there are people on here seriously accusing people of being pedophiles for shipping a 17 year old with an 18 year old or shipping some characters with an age gap? 

(which for the record. Talking about people who are of age and with a partner that’s significantly older than them. it’s untrue that all relationships with an age gap are unhealthy. is there a possibility for it to be unhealthy? certainly but that’s not a guarantee that it is. Your experiences are not universal. Every situation and every person is different.)

There’s a problem because you’re making people take these things less seriously. Have you ever heard the story of the boy who cried wolf? 

You do that and sadly no one will listen when you actually find something to worry about. Is that right? No. But it’s the truth. No one will take you seriously.

You don’t accuse people of these things willy nilly. You can ruin people’s lives. Are they doing those things in real life and hurting real people? Do you have solid proof that they are? Yes? (Fictional media is not proof unless they admit to doing something) By all means step in and get the authorities involved. That’s absolutely awful.  Is it just fiction? Take a step back, block/unfollow/blacklist and move on. 

What people do in real life matters. That’s it. That’s the key. Stop harassing people over fictional crap because THAT...shows what kind of person you are and it’s not a good one. 

[teachingoutsidethebinary]

Insomnia Cookies: Nice to Meet You

Summary: Bucky wakes up after an awful night and Y/N helps him get back home.

Characters: Bucky Barnes, teenage reader, Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, Natasha Romanov, Tony Stark

Warnings: lil’ bit of angst

Word count: 1625

Read the other parts here

Bucky woke up buried under a blanket that was unfamiliar and in a room that definitely wasn’t his. He sat up and quickly assessed his surroundings. The room was small but comfortable. There were no pictures on the walls or any defining clues as to whose room it could be. He looked out the window adjacent from the bed and saw his car next to the sidewalk below. Across the street was the familiar sign of the cookie shop. This has to be Y/N’s house, Bucky thought. After determining there was no immediate threat, he racked his brain trying to figure out how he got here. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and it all came back to him. The nightmare, the late night trip to Y/N’s, the meltdown. He opened his eyes trying to figure out what to do next.

Bucky gently pulled the blanket back and climbed out of the bed. He could hear noises on the other side of the closed door at the opposite end of the room and decided to take his chances and open it. Even though he was a highly skilled super soldier, he could feel his heartbeat pounding in his chest. He opened the door and walked into the living room.

Y/N was sitting on the couch reading in her pajamas while a man was putting what looked like art supplies in a backpack. Bucky sighed when he saw that she was okay. Last night hadn’t been a dream after all. The man was the first to notice Bucky come out of Y/N’s room. “Hi there,” the man said. Y/N turned her head and smiled at Bucky. “Hi Bucky,” she said quietly. Bucky cleared his throat. “Um, hello.”

He didn’t really know what to say next, so he was relieved when the man held out his hand. “Nice to meet you James. I’m Poe.” Bucky shook his hand and Poe smiled. “So, Y/N brought us up to speed about you last night. Nothing bad, just how you met and about what happened,” he added when Bucky’s face went ashen. “You doing okay today?” Bucky nodded. “Yes, sir. Thank you.” Poe laughed. “You don’t need to call me sir, James. I might technically be older than you but there’s no need for formalities. I can’t imagine last night was fun, but I’m glad you were here when it happened.”

Poe walked over and squeezed Y/N’s shoulder. She smiled shyly up at him and he went back to packing his backpack. “So, Finn left early this morning to teach a yoga retreat. He’ll be sad he missed you. There’s food in the microwave if you want to eat. Y/N is going to go with you back to your house or tower or whatever you call it, and then she’ll take the subway home.” Y/N frowned at the last sentence. “Don’t give me that look, Y/N. You need to practice getting home on the subway. Finn and I aren’t going to be around as much in the summer to drive you places. Take your pepper spray, please.” Y/N nodded, admitting defeat. Bucky felt like he had to be dreaming. He certainly wasn’t expecting this type of reaction from Y/N’s foster dad after what happened last night. All he could do was stare while Poe finished getting his stuff ready to leave.

Poe took one last look around the apartment and nodded in satisfaction that he had everything he needed. Then his eyes lit up. “Oh! I know what you can do Y/N! There are some great stores around the Avenger’s Tower. You can get some decorations and stuff for your room! Most of those shops deliver, so you won’t even need to take it home on the subway.” He pulled some money out of the wallet in his back pocket and put it on the table in front of Y/N. She looked at it nervously, but Poe didn’t seem to notice. He grabbed his backpack and walked to the front door. “Any problems call me. Okay, honey?” Y/N nodded. “James, I wish I could stay longer, but I have a meeting downtown. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to come by again. Y/N can give you my number if you need it.” He opened the front door and smiled once more before leaving.

Bucky stared at the door in shock. “He used to be in the military.” Y/N said after a moment. “He told me last night he knows what it’s like to have nightmares.” Bucky replied, “He seems like a great guy.” Y/N nodded. “Yeah, he is. They both are.” She stood up. “I just need to change and then we can go. You can eat the food Poe left in the oven.” She slipped past Bucky into the room where he had spent the night and closed the door. With nothing to really do, Bucky walked into the kitchen and opened the oven. He took out a plate of eggs and pancakes, sat down at the table and began to eat.

Y/N came out of her room just as Bucky finished up. He put the dish in the sink and stood in the living room. The apartment was small, but he liked it. It felt cozy, safe. As much as he liked being here, he really needed to get back to the Tower. A change of clothes and a shower would be nice, especially after last night. “You ready to go?” Y/N asked, breaking the spell. “Yeah. Thanks for bringing me up here last night,” Bucky said. Y/N replied, “I just didn’t want you to try driving home like that. Poe and Finn are nice. They won’t say anything to anyone.” She opened the door and Bucky followed her down the stairs of the apartment building out to his car.

The drive back to the Avengers Tower was mostly quiet. Bucky was confused by Y/N’s newfound silence. Sure, she was shy, but she had been fairly talkative the last two times they’d met. “You okay, kid?” he finally asked. “You were really quiet back at your place.” Y/N didn’t answer right away, and Bucky was worried he upset her somehow. “I have a hard time talking to them,” she said, quietly. “Why?” Bucky asked.

“I like them a lot. I like living with them a lot. I’m scared I’ll say something to mess that up.” Bucky was confused. “Mess what up?” he asked. “This isn’t my first foster home,” Y/N said, a hint of shame in her voice. It was like a lightbulb went off in Bucky’s head. He might not be a foster kid, but he remembered all too well when he used to be punished for doing or saying the wrong thing.

“I get it, kid,” he said. “But from what I saw back there, he really seems to care about you, and I bet his husband does too.” Y/N swallowed and blinked back tears. “I don’t want to talk about it anymore, please. Are you okay?” she asked, changing the subject. “Yeah kid, I’m okay,” Bucky replied, giving her another glance. “I’m sorry I dragged you into my mess.” Y/N giggled. “Us messes have to stick together, right?” she said. Bucky smiled as he watched her demeanor change back to her old self.

About fifteen minutes later, Bucky navigated his car through the security garage at the Avengers Tower. He insisted Y/N come upstairs with him so he could change and then walk her to the shopping district. When they got off the elevator, they could hear a commotion in the other room.

“Of course something is wrong!” Bucky heard Steve yell. “He’s never gone this long!” Oh great, Bucky thought. This oughta be good. He and Y/N walked into the common room and saw Nat, Tony, Sam and Steve standing in the middle.

“Speak of the devil and he shall appear!” Tony exclaimed, turning Steve around. “Bucky, are you okay?” Steve asked, walking over to his friend frantically. “Yeah, Stevie, I’m fine,” Bucky sighed. “Just had a bad night and couldn’t make it home.” Steve shook his head. “No call? Nothing? Buck you really had me worried…” he paused when he finally saw Y/N standing behind Bucky. “Grocery store girl!” he said, pointing at her. Everyone else turned and stared. Y/N turned a deep shade of red and hugged her arms in front of her chest. “Look I’ll explain everything later,” Bucky said, ignoring the confused looks on everyone’s faces. He turned to Y/N. “Give me twenty minutes to shower and change, then we’ll go. There’s a TV or books or whatever. Don’t mess with her, guys,” he said to the remaining group.

Sam pretended to look offended. “Now what on Earth makes you think we would do that?” he asked, incredulously. Bucky sighed and went to give a smart reply, but Steve held out his arm. Bucky looked like hell, but at least he was home. And somehow, Y/N was partly responsible for bringing him here. “She’ll be fine, Buck. Take as long as you need.” Bucky took one last look at Y/N who gave him a tiny thumbs up. The faster I go, the faster we can leave, he thought. With one final glare at Sam, Bucky made his way to his bedroom, leaving Y/N with the rest of the group. Tony stared at Steve, Sam, Nat and Y/N. Clearly he missed something, and if Tony Stark hated anything, it was being out of the loop.

“Soooo, is somebody going to explain the kid?”