#probably because of the fact that she looked too tall for me in the third img sigh

[submaskudari]

Bunch more recent stuff!!

[stomach-bugg09]

hi omg i love your oldest sister fics!!!! Maybe another where she is one of the most feared warriors in the clan ? and when they leave rhe forest she meets someone (romantic) at the new clan ? the sully family is probably not accustom to seeing her be romantic and in love.;)

summary: [y/n] sully is in love, and everyone is scared.

a/n: I LOVE THIS IDEA. LIKE SO VERY MUCH. thank you so much anon for this beautiful experience, it was so fun to write. i actually am really proud of this, given it's pretty long ( 4.6k words, oml !! ) and i put a good ( insane ) amount of effort in. i also kept using this as a way to take a break from studying, so thanks for keeping me from burning out anon! feedback, reblogs, and reqs are always appreciated !!

tags: @pinkhotdogsfr @eywas-heir @historygeekqueen

warnings: literally none, maybe some language, a bit of angst at first ( just sad — i made myself very unhappy ), emotionally hurt + comfort, a sickening amount of fluff, really long, [y/n] x oc but this oc is actually such a sweetie pie i love him, [y/n] being the cutest little patootie of all time

change is scary

every omaticayan knew of [y/n] sully. they knew she was a fierce warrior, a strong warrior. they knew she took after her mother, the archery gene running strong through her veins right next to her urge to protect.

they all knew that, being the oldest child of their olo’eyktan, she was expected to fill the position of the tsahik one day in the far future, and her training reflected just that. not only was she deeply connected with eywa thanks to the teachings of both her mother and grandmother, but she was intelligent when it came to war. she sat in at every single war meeting with her father, silently taking note of everything that was exchanged.

after seventeen long years of listening and learning, [y/n] was considered one of the strongest warriors in their clan. she was well respected, more respected than even some of the elder warriors.

part of her soul felt pride. pride in herself, in her abilities. but, another part of her soul felt empty. almost like she’d missed a third of her childhood because she’d been busy shaking the hands of generals from other clans.

but now… now all of that, all of that time wasted as she straightened her shoulders and stood tall in front of clan leaders, time wasted as she stared at raid maps, time wasted as she trained with the most skilled warriors of the omaticaya… it was all going down the drain.

“we must leave. it is unsafe here.”

she fought tears, told herself she was far too mature for them. she swallowed screams, told herself she needed to set an example for her siblings. the only time she broke was the night before they left, leaving her on her knees before the tree of souls, begging eywa, “why? why must you do this to me? just when i was this close?”

[y/n] was not sad. no, she was angry. but she had nobody to be angry at. it wasn’t like her parents were wrong for wanting to keep her family safe.

maybe if i’d killed that avatar when i had the chance, she cursed herself, remembering when her arrow’d been pointed directly at the heart of quaritch, only being interrupted by the other avatar that shot at her. thanks to the will of eywa, he was a terrible shot and she came out unscathed.

she held a stoic look upon her face during the ceremony in which her father passed along the title of olo’eyktan to tarsem. it wasn’t that she had anything against tarsem and his mate—in fact, she thought they were considerably good choices. but that was supposed to be her. that was supposed to be her ceremony.

by the time they had to leave, [y/n] had nothing left, no energy left to try and hold it down. so, instead she remained silent, because if she decided to say a farewell to even one person… she knew herself well enough to not trust the floodgates.

as they flew, her butt growing sorer and sorer by the second, she remained distant. the air was calming, the breeze allowing her a moment to breath.

she was so wrapped up in her own thoughts she didn’t notice her family exchange glances, all silently deciding to leave [y/n] to work through it herself. they knew her, and they knew she would not let them help. i’m fine, she would say, and she would keep saying it until they finally gave up.

it was only when they reached their new home in the metkayina clan that she began to show herself again, but even that was the tiniest peek.

as ronal circled the group of foreigners, her hands trailing over them as to check out what features they offered, [y/n] immediately felt on alert. her ears perked, eyes narrowing at the tsahik, a growl growing at the back of her throat.

when she held up lo’ak’s hand for the entire clan to see, as if shaming him for his lineage—a lineage that he was born into without a choice, [y/n] stepped forward, teeth bared. immediately, neteyam pulled her backwards, just as jake did with neytiri.

her action pulled ronal’s attention, their eyes locking. the tsahik circled her, watching as [y/n]’s tail swished, lip curled in disgust.

ronal did not miss as her eyes flared for even a split second as she stopped in front of the girl, grabbing [y/n]’s face with one hand. the air immediately got tenser, tonowari and jake sharing very similar expressions of concern, the latter grabbing his mate before she could make any dumb decisions.

[y/n]’s tail fell to a pause, her air stuck in her chest as she stared directly into the metkayina woman’s eyes.

“if you are seeking refuge, i suggest that you don’t threaten anyone.”

[y/n] bared her teeth at that, fangs making a show just for her. “if you are seeking to make enemies with the toruk makto, then why don’t you just say that?”

now, in this moment, most members of the metkayina clan were justifiably upset. speaking to their tsahik like that? well, of course they would be angry. but, in the crowd of metkayina stood one boy, his eyes unable to leave that girl. that girl who was full of anger, of spite, of bitterness for the world. she was captivating.

as the rest of the crowd gasped at the seventeen year old’s words, he couldn’t help but laugh, immediately covering his mouth as his friends sent him a look and an elbow in the ribs.

the only other person to smile at her words was, shockingly, ronal. the tsahik felt the smallest grin rise to her lips, taking her hand off of the girl’s face and taking a step back. as soon as she was back with tonowari, it was like the look of amusement had never been there.

once she’d stepped back, silence seemed to settle in the air. it was heavy, weighing on [y/n]’s shoulders just as much as the look her father sent her. behave, remember? he seemed to be telling her.

her mother’s look of pride made her feel a bit better, though.

as a way to regain the attention of the crowd, tonowari cleared his throat. “toruk makto is a great war leader. all na’vi people know his story.” he then locked eyes with jake. “but we metkayina are not at war.” [y/n]’s eyes followed tuk, watching as the small girl walked over to her father, allowing for the father to pick her up and hold her in his arms. “we cannot let you bring your war here.”

jake nodded in agreement. “i’m done with war, okay. i just.. want to keep my family safe.” at that, they seemed to pull closer together, neytiri grabbing the hands of her two eldest daughters.

“uturu has been asked,” the mother added, her eyes meeting those of tonowari.

the silence was deadly. [y/n] could feel pins of anxiety, her breath getting shallower. and what if they send us away? where else would we go? just keep trying and trying to find someone to take us?

after what seemed like forever, tonowari turned away from them and towards the people. “toruk makto and his family will stay with us.” immediately, relief flooded her body, her head dropping in appreciation. “treat them as your brothers and sisters. they do not know the sea, so they will be like babies taking their first breath.” at that, [y/n] felt her mother cringe beside her. and, as a wonderful way to finish their introduction to the metkayina people, he added, “teach them our ways so they not suffer the shame of being useless.”

she felt neteyam’s grab her tail at that, tugging it to keep her from saying anything stupid.

“okay,” jake sighed, relieved. he turned to his family. “what do we say?”

“thank you,” they all mumbled except for tuk whose tone was very genuine.

[y/n], however, remained silent. at a sharp look from her father, she swallowed. “thank you,” she added, exhaling a deep breath.

beside tonowari stood two kids, a boy and a girl. “my son ao’nung and my daughter tsireya will show your children what do,” he informed the family. [y/n] stifled a chuckle as the boy, ao’nung, tried to argue his way out of it. “it has been decided,” tonowari shut him down.

tsireya, however, looked more than happy to do it, and based on the way her baby brother was staring at the metkayina girl, lo’ak didn’t seem to mind either. “come, i will show you our village.”

if there was one thing that shocked [y/n] during her time in awa’atluI, it was that she horridly terrible. terrible at everything. from riding an ilu to being a quick swimmer. it was awful. and maybe the whole brink of the problem was the fact that she could barely hold her breath for a time, making it nearly impossible to learn to do anything else.

it’d been a few weeks of relearning the ways of life, and it felt as if she was making absolutely no progress. the simple things, such as food and even dancing, came easy to her. but learning to make food and dance was not going to make her a successful warrior, and even tonowari knew they needed to train her to fight with them based on the stories that her father told of her. ( he also recognized her the moment that ronal faced her off—how could tonowari forget the face of one of most mature eight year olds that he’d ever met way back in the day when he visited the omaticaya for a war meeting. )

but, for the love of eywa, [y/n] was useless. completely and utterly! and the fact of it made her sick to her stomach.

ao’nung was her first teacher, and he was a complete imbecile. tsireya was patient with her, but her optimism made me feel even guiltier by the day. eventually, one day out of the blue, the two children of ronal and tonowari brought forth a male.

this male was around [y/n]’s age. he was tall, muscular, and based on his tattoos, he was an announced warrior of the metkayina. tsireya introduced him as fali.

it turned out, based on further conversation between [y/n] and tsireya, that fali had grown up with the two kids. he was the son of respected warrior, a warrior that was considered ronal’s best friend. in a way, fali was like their big brother.

at that, [y/n] thought that… maybe they could be friends. maybe they had more in common!

she was wrong, and after a days of knowing him, she came to the conclusion that their older sibling roles happened to be the only thing in common.

while [y/n] was smart, responsible, respectful… fali was stupid, annoying, and careless. it was driving [y/n] up the wall! if he was the “older sibling,” why did he egg ao’nung on? if he was the “older sibling,” why did he dare the younger boys to go beyond the reef? if he was the “older sibling,” why was he so… reckless?

so, to say that [y/n] was exhausted with both him and the entirety of trying to rewire her brain, well… that would be a major understatement.

but, alas, she was still expected to learn. unfortunately for her, she took the role as the older sibling quite seriously, and she tried to set a good example out of herself!

now she treaded water in the middle of the reef, the sun beaming down on her face and shoulders. in front of her floated fali, the boy drifting stomach up with his hands rested behind his head.

[y/n] did not look amused, as unfortunate as fali found it. he was letting the sun practically burn his face off, and she wouldn’t even smile!

after an excruciating amount of time, fali let out a yelp of surprise when he felt her hand grab his tail, yanking him downwards. when he resurfaced, she had the faintest shadow of a grin. she nearly drowns me and she still can’t smile fully. what is wrong with her?

while [y/n] thought fali to be reckless and far too carefree, fali found her to be way too uptight. i mean, sure, old habits die hard after being raised as the future tsahik, but couldn’t she let loose once in a while?

“can we please start?” the girl asked, tone exasperated.

he rolled his eyes, a smile playing at his lips. “well, i apologize. i didn’t realize you were so eager to learn. i mean, you usually just complain.”

[y/n] sighed, sending him a look of annoyance. he does not shut up, does he? but, he wasn’t wrong… however, she didn’t let him know that her heart dropped once he decided to actually start teaching her for the day.

it was an unusually long lesson, but it was filled with the same issues as every other day. fali telling her what to do, [y/n] being unable to do it, [y/n] getting mad at herself, fali trying to help her fix it, [y/n] telling him that she’s fine, fali stepping back and watching her battle herself… it was always a pleasant time.

this time, however, things just seemed to be a little more on edge. she seemed to be a little more annoyed. at him, at herself. she was a balloon ready to burst, and fali was bracing himself for the moment that she did.

it was after the sixth time in which she failed to breath correctly that he knew it was going down. he watched her face flush, eyes narrowing as she continued to try and fix it.

“no, [y/n],” he offered, voice soft. she always made him feel guilty, guilty of ever getting annoyed. he knew that she was trying her best. “just… breathe from here. pretend as if there’s a flame within your belly, offering your lungs support and warmth.”

“i’m trying!” she snapped, eyes brimming with tears before she quickly turned away, eyes avoiding his eyes.

the two faded to silence, simply sitting on a rock in the middle of the reef, staring at the setting sun ahead of them. the horizon was gorgeous, a beautiful orange contrasting the blue of the sea.

they sat there, in silence, until just before eclipse.

as they neared curfew, [y/n] inhaled deeply, preparing herself to get up and leave. but, a gentle hand on her knee stopped her. she turned to fali.

“do you know what i think?” he began, voice gentle. “i think that you are more than capable to do this.”

[y/n] scoffed. “if that were true, i would be out there, not stuck with… with you!”

at that, he huffed a laugh, running his fangs over his bottom lip. “i’m going to ignore that comment and continue getting to my point,” he jokes, his eyes widening at the smallest flicker of a smile on her lips. “i believe that something, whether you realize it or not, is keeping you from being successful—my guess being that it’s subconscious—but i digress. i believe that you are scared, [y/n]. scared of doing it right, scared of becoming one of the metkayina because once you are one of our people, you feel like you are betraying your home.”

the girl beside him shook her head in disbelief. “you believe? or you know? because you sure said that—that soliloquy—as if you know me.” [y/n] stood up, taking a few steps backwards. “i have known you for seven days, fali. seven days! and suddenly you decide that you can analyze me?”

fali laughed at that. “seven days is enough for you to decide that you hate me!” he pointed out, a disbelieving smile playing on his lips.

“well, you wear everything on the outside. every bit of stupidity, recklessness, carelessness.” she grit her teeth. “you are an open book, and i am closed. that is the truth.”

“i wear what i want to wear,” fali argued, standing up to face her, the two getting closer by the second. they got closer by the insult thrown. “you think i am dumb, but i am not. i am smart enough to make it so that people like you—people who do not care to look past their own bubble—cannot see my vulnerabilities.”

[y/n] bared her teeth. “you think me ignorant? blind, even? i have seen more of the world than you, i have fought dream-walkers, watched as my baby siblings had death looming above their heads. you are clueless to what is beyond awa’atlu.” a growl built in the back of her throat, their faces extremely close together. “i build my—my ‘bubble,’ as you called it—because i know what is beyond your dimwitted understanding!”

the two were silent, the tension electric between them. behind them the sun was set beyond the horizon, eclipse having already passed. waves lapped at the rock, the incoming high tide making it so their feet were splashed with the salty water.

as they stared at each other, a sense of understanding seemed to bless both of them. fali’s eyes never left those of [y/n]... her ( beautiful ) narrowed eyes. and [y/n] didn’t miss the way that the moons reflected on fali’s aquamarine skin, his bioluminescent freckles splattering the sides of his face.

[y/n] could have sworn she felt herself lean in, towards him, until the familiar call of her mother brought her back to reality.

“[y/n]?” neytiri called from their marui.

the girl swallowed, stepping back quickly. she cleared her throat before yelling back, “coming!” and with one last look at fali, she dove into the waters.

the next few days were odd, to put it simply. suddenly, there was no aggravation towards each other, but it was much more tense in an… awkward way.

a part of [y/n] was filled with spite, and by the time they got to working again, she was doing better than she had been for weeks. she was actually making progress! and it was all to shove it in fali’s face.

unfortunately for her, fali was much more hesitant when it came to helping her. he refused to touch her stomach as to help her breathing, his movements stiff and scared, resembling that of a baby hexapede.

but, [y/n] didn’t need him…? the others found it extremely peculiar. one day, she’s out past curfew, and right after she suddenly fixed nearly all her mistakes. very odd indeed…

it did not take long for her first free dive. her breathing improved astoundingly, her swimming technique also getting better from watching tsireya when she showed kiri and tuk around the reef.

“do you see this shell?” fali held it up, the sunlight reflecting off of its shiny exterior.

she rolled her eyes. “yes, i see the shell.”

“that’s good.” he blinked, eyes shifting away from her’s with a sheepish grin. “uh, anyway,” he continued, clearing his throat. “i assume you understand the drill? i drop it, you find it.”

“yes, fali,” she sighed. “i am fully aware of how this works. now, i would rather get it done with soon so i don’t have to live in anxiety anymore.” [y/n] locked eyes with fali. “please just drop the shell.”

and he did. she swallowed as she watched it float down, the depths looking much more abyssal-like than they normally did.

“remember,” fali’s soft tone grabbed her attention, “there is nothing to fear. you are stronger than you know, and if you begin to doubt yourself… think of you returning with the shell and rubbing it in my face.” at that, [y/n]’s face flushed, embarrassed. he smiled at her expression. “yes, i know that’s the only reason you’ve suddenly been trying, but… if it works, it works.”

and for once, she smiled. actually smiled. and fali felt himself burst with pride. somehow, it felt better that it wasn’t one of his stupid jokes, or his silly slip-ups. no, he made her smile just by talking to her. by being fali.

stunned, fali only remembered that he was supposed to be helpful when she stared at him expectantly with those bright [e/c] eyes of her’s. he lifted his hands, miming lungs filling with air as he reminded, “deep breath. this is all yours. nothing to fear, only to look forward to.”

with that, the girl dove in.

underneath the surface, she felt at peace. for the first time ever, [y/n] wasn’t freaking out while submerged in the salty water. instead, her jaw seemed to gape in awe at the scenery around her.

the deeper she went, the more starstruck that she was. there were layers to this reef that she hadn’t even been aware of. layers that she’d only heard from tales of her siblings, not truly understanding how magical they actually were.

as she kicked her feet towards the ocean floor, she heard fali’s voice in her head. “the way of water has no beginning and end.” she caught sight of the shell. “the sea is around you and in you. the sea is your home, before your birth and after your death.” she stifled a cry of joy as a school of fish swam around her, tickling her sides with their soft touches. “our hearts beat in the womb of the world. our breath burns in the shadows of the deep.” she was nearly there, her hand outstretched to grab the small artifact. “the sea gives and the sea takes.” she got it! oh, eywa, she got it! it was in her hand! oh, how proud fali will be! “water connects all things.” she began to swim up, a smile stuck on her face. “life to death,” she resurfaced, “darkness to light.”

“fali!” she cried, spinning around in a circle to catch the eyes of the boy. “fali, look!” she held it up, her expression beaming with pride.

and fali couldn’t help it either, his own smile taking over his features. “[y/n]!” he exclaimed, jumping off of the rock and swimming to her. “you did it! oh, eywa, you actually did it!” he stared at the shell as they tread water. “oh, how proud i am!”

her silence caused him to turn, staring her in the eyes. “[y/n]?”

she swallowed, her eyes locked on the shell in her hands. “fali,” she began, voice quiet. “i have a wallowing fear that you were right.”

at those words, fali gaped silently. instead of answering right away, he began to tug her towards the rock, allowing for them to get out of the water so her could properly comfort her.

once she was settled on the rock, she carefully placed the shell down, pulling her knees close to her chest. she felt like a child again, helpless against her emotions. “i was scared. not of the ocean, not of swimming, not of drowning.” she looked up, locking eyes with fali. “i was scared of abandoning my people.”

a tear dropped from her eye, and fali immediately had her hands resting on [y/n]’s biceps. “hey,” he called softly, forcing her to look him in the eyes again. “you are not abandoning them. you are… learning. you are learning how to adapt, how to survive. in fact, i think that is more in touch with your culture and ancestors! you are just like them, trying to adapt and survive in a world that is trying to kill you.” she smiled a little at that. maybe he wasn’t so stupid. “you are not weak for fearing change… you are normal. it is okay to be normal every once in a while, as much as you enjoy being the big sister that is oh-so mature and oh-so strong.” his finger lifted her chin up, a soft smile on his lips. “because people who love you do not mind how mature, or strong, or stupid, or careless, or responsible, or up-tight you are. because you, [y/n], are what you are.”

once he was finished, he noticed that [y/n]’s tears were dried, a smile on her face. a look in her eyes had him floored… oh, she was so beautiful, wasn’t she?

luckily for fali, she seemed to think the same of him, raising her arm, grabbing the back of his head, and bringing his smiling lips against her’s.

the sully family knew and loved [y/n]. of course they did! she was their’s, afterall. but, they also knew that she was never this easy-going or even this happy.

both jake and neytiri knew they’d seared little moments of trauma into the brain of their eldest daughter, and they hated knowing that, but parenting is never easy. especially when she was expected to become the tsahik way back when.

but, ever since a few weeks ago, ever since she finally overcame her own issues regarding leaving the omaticaya, ever since she finally found someone that she loved as much as she loved her family ( and he seemed to love her even more ), she was a new person. a better person. a person who actually seemed to enjoy life.

neteyam and lo’ak were the first to become skeptical. ever since her successful free-dive, she’d been so.. giddy. it was not their big sister.

kiri started to catch on when she noticed [y/n] disappearing four hours at a time, and when she came back, she was ten times happier.

neytiri and jake were so wrapped up in the fact that their eldest was finally living a happy life, they didn’t once question, “hm, why could that be?”

it was only when [y/n] returned home a little late one night after the rest of the family, minus tuk since she was still quite young, had a busy day full of duties. she blamed it on finishing an errand with her new best friend, fali, but neytiri scanned her daughter’s body for any sign of injury. neytiri was just that type of mama bear!

“[y/n],” she began, eyes narrowed at her neck. “did you get bitten today? are the bugs bad on that side of the island?”

[y/n]’s face flushed almost immediately. she swallowed, grabbing her hair to cover her neck. “yeah—” she attempted, before tuk interrupted. [y/n] immediately cursed herself, remembering the stupid excuse that fali and her’d made up to cover-up their “hang-out” when tuk had walked in unexpectedly.

“uh, no, mom,” the youngest said matter-of-factly. “she was playing shark with fali. obviously.”

immediately, the sully family burst into confusion.

“[y/n]!” neytiri scolded, although her eldest daughter didn’t miss the amused smile that played on her lips.

kiri burst into laughter. “that’s why you’ve been so happy? because a guy? who even are you?” she teased.

lo’ak was absolutely losing his mind, face flushed from the laughter he was overcome by at the reality of it all. his big sister, little-miss-uptight, getting her first kiss before him and neteyam? unbelievable!

neteyam was absolutely shocked, face frozen in disbelief. “you? fali?”

jake, of course, was on immediate protective dad mode. “fali? the son of vi’ieo and fpai?” he questioned, eyes squinted at [y/n].

all [y/n] could do was sit there, a hand covering her mouth. of all people, tuk had to expose her. it’s always the ones you least expect.

but, despite the surprise of it all, the sully family was extremely happy. [y/n], the one who entered the metkayina by trying to one-up the tsahik and also deal with her own absolute soul-crushing homesickness, was making a life here in awa’atlu. and they couldn’t be more proud.

someone was suckered into a part ii

[angstywaifu]

The Lost Sister - Part 36

Synopsis: Xaden is known as an only child due to his sister who 'died' during the Rebellion. Little do they know she didn't die and has been so close this entire time.

Garrick Tavis x OC (Ophelia Riorson)

The Lost Sister Masterlist | Masterlist

I’m thankful Garrick had gone full mother hen all those months ago, meaning I had flight leathers here to change into instead of my dress uniform. Though I know Garrick would not have minded seeing me in that again tonight. Garrick who had gone to let Xaden know what was going on. Something I did not want to go do with the lighting we had seen while pulling on our flight leathers as fast as we could. And with how close it was I knew they we’re next door to us right now. Thank god for silencing wards.

I slip into the hallway full of riders. Everyone rushing everywhere. A mix of flight leathers and dress uniforms rushing down to the rotunda. A familiar hand grasps mine and I look up to see Garrick looking down at me, a tight lipped smile on his face. We both knew the chances for him getting sent out to defend against the attack were high. And with graduation not far away, this could cut out last few days together extremely short. With a quick kiss to the top of my head, Garrick heads off towards the rest of leadership forming at the top of the Dais while I join the rest of my squad. As I step into place next to Imogen I notice the smirk on her face.

”What are you smirking at? We’re being attacked.” I ask Imogen.

She chuckles and shakes her head. “Oh I know. But I see your plan worked. Better than expected as well.” She teases as she takes in my appearance. Which I’m sure is slightly dishevelled.

I can’t help but smirk back despite the situation. “The out come was definitely better than expected.”

Movement catches my eye as Ridoc and Violet slot into formation. Violet who is clad in a jacket that is far too big for her.

”Looks like I’m not the only one.” I say to Imogen, nodding my head towards Violet.

Imogen follows my gaze and chuckles. “Good to see they sorted out whatever was going on.”

”I wouldn’t go that far just yet.” I joke earning a proper laugh from her causing the others to look at us.

Rhiannon jogs up to us, taking her place between Violet and I. Her head whipping back as she takes in Violets appearance.

”Violet Sorrengail, are you wearing Riorson’s flight jacket?” She whispers, trying to keep her voice low.

I muffle a laugh as Liam’s head snaps towards Violet, clearly hearing Rhi’s comment. Violet looks over to me for help, probably hoping to say it was mine. But with those three stars and a wing leader emblem on them, there was no hope at passing it for mine. Also the fact it was freaking huge on her, and despite being taller, I was nowhere near as tall or big as Xaden. Nice try Violet.

”Why would you say that?” She mumbles as she fiddles with the jacket before shoving her hands into the pockets.

”Oh I don’t know. Because it’s huge on you.” Rhi points out as she pulls at the leather.

”Also three stars on the collar.” I point out, joining in on the chaos that was forming.

”It could be any third-year’s.” She says while shrugging. A miserable attempt at trying to throw us off.

”And with a Fourth Wing emblem on the shoulder?” Rhi cocks her eyebrow at Violet. She was not fooling any of us.

I watch as Violet swallows nervously. “That does limit it a bit.”

”Oh and don’t forget the wingleader emblem beneath those stars.” I point out as I smile cheekily at Violet whose glaring daggers at Rhi and I.

”Fine, its his.” She whispers quickly as movement on the dais catches our attention.

Up front Commandant Panchek takes the dais, followed by Colonel Aetos and the wingleaders. Despite how calm and collected Xaden looks, I can tell he is pissed. Something about this situation feels off. I reach out with my mind, all four wingleaders are annoyed and irritated. While Panchek and Aetos seem quite proud of what ever is about to happen. Too calm for us to be under attack.

”I knew it!” Rhi whispers excitedly. “Tell me it’s good.”

”I do not need to hear about you fucking my brother!” I exclaim, Rhi waving me off dismissively.

”I broke his window.” She winces as her cheeks start to flush.

”Like…. you threw something at it?” Rhi’s brow furrowing as she tries to figure out why or how Violet broke a window. I already know how. Her signet.

”No. As in, lighting struck…. A lot, and I shattered his window.” She mutters before looking towards where he stands on the dais. “And look, there he is now, all calm, cool, and collected.”

”A word of advice Violet.” I say as she looks over at me. “Get use to it. He’s always been like that, even as a kid.”

She almost looks annoyed at my statement, but she must realise I’m right as she briefly nods before turning her gaze back to Xaden who is staring right at her.

But not for long as his gaze shifts to mine. His eyes going wide momentarily as his gaze trails over my hair. Taking in the now black strands. The corner of his mouth curves up in a slight smile as he nods approvingly before tearing his gaze from mine. I had hoped he’d see the hair under different circumstances, but this would have to do.

”Damn, I wish someone made me shatter windows.” Rhi says with a grin as she looks over at Xaden.

”Oh please, you’ve had way more-”

Rhi and I go to react at the same time as Dain approaches our squad, and close enough to see whose jacket Violet was wearing. Rhi being closer quickly leans into Violet and draping her arm around Violet so her hand hides Xaden’s insignia and rank from him. “Good morning, huh?”

I have to stop myself from cringing at her choice in words. I prayed Dain was as tired as the rest of us were and put her weird behaviour down to being drunk or over tired. And by the look he gives her I know that’s exactly what he’s thinking. Her behaviour distracting him from Violet easily.

”Not really, no.” He states dismissively as he scans us. “I know its early… or late, depending on your night, but we’ve spent all year training for this, so wake the hell up.”

As he turns to face Panchek I see Violet and Rhi sag in relief out of the corner of my eye. Thank god. If this had been any other day Dain would have be concerned about their behaviour.

”Riders Quadrant!” Panchek’s shout echoing around the rotunda. “Welcome to the last event of this year’s War Games.”

A murmur rips through the formation. My signet picking up on relief and annoyance mixed through the crowd at his words. He’d clearly interrupted a few riders plans this evening.

”The alert that was sounded is similar to what it would have been if this was a real-life attack. To see how fast you could muster, and we will continue this exercise as if it is. Were the borders to be simultaneously attacked, and the wards faltering, you would all be called into service to reinforce the wings. Colonel Aetos, would you do us the honour of reading the scenario?”

The Colonel steps forward, in a way so similar to me that I know I’ve seen Dain do it before. It was almost eerie how similar he acted to his dad.

”The moment we’ve dreaded has arrived. The wards we’ve dedicated our lives to upholding are falling, and there has been an unprecedented, multilevel attack along our borders, putting villages under siege from drifts of gryphon riders. Mass casualties among civilians and infantry are already being reported, as are the deaths of multiple riders.”

I had to give it to him. He was laying on the dramatics pretty thick for this. If they hadn’t revealed this was War Games it would almost be believable.

”As we would if you were a battle-ready force, we are sending your wings in every direction.” His eyes scanning across the four wings assembled before him, before landing on fourth wing. “Fourth Wing to the south east. Each squad will pick which outpost they will reinforce within that region. Choices are first come, first served. Wingleaders, however, will be assigned to theirs for the purposes of determining a headquarters for this exercise.”

Something is off. Something is wrong about this. Colonel Aetos’s eyes scan over the wings before turning to Xaden. My heart drops as their eyes meet and the way the Colonel smiles at him.

”Riorson, you’ll establish your headquarters for Fourth Wing at Athebyne.”

I barely register the rest of his words. Other than Xaden is the only windleader told where to go. And to a place I know he’s been with helping the rebellion. Athebyne. Xaden’s face remains calm. But I feel the way his fear rises to the surface as I reach out to him. The Colonel knew. And with the way his eyes locked onto Dain before moving to Xaden’s I knew it was because of him. As I look to Dain his face reveals nothing. But I note how scared he is as well. Definitely behind Xaden being sent to Athebyne. I feel something nudge my hand and I look over to see Imogen look at me. We both know what’s just happened. They’ve found us out. They’re sending Xaden beyond the wards to hopefully die. And if that’s his head quarters that means…. I snap my gaze to the front of our section to see Garrick already looking at me.

They know don’t they? I ask even though I know the answer, but needing confirmation of my thoughts.

Garrick slowly nods. Yeah. They know.

You’ll be going with him. Won’t you?

Where he goes I go.

I go to object, but Dain is already giving us orders.

”We’re going to claim the outpost at Eltuval, the northermost one in our assigned region,” He informs us as he turns to face us all as Rhi drapes her arm over Violet again.

It’s then I notice the fear in Violet’s eyes. Something she shouldn’t be feeling. She shouldn’t know about Athebyne. But she does. The look in her eyes tell me she does. Xaden told her. Xaden and Garrick we’re going to kill me for doing this, but I had to know. And if Xaden had trusted her to know, then he trusted her with my signet.

You know about Athebyne don’t you?

To her credit she barely flinches as I speak in her mind, her eyes snapping to mine.

Yes. How… Is this your signet?

Only a small part of it. When did he tell you?

Her brow furrows as she recalls the memory. The night I killed Jack.

Swear to me you told no one. Because if you have anythin-

I didn’t tell anyone. I swear. I promised I wouldn’t.

Good.

I retract from her mind as formation breaks, everyone rushing to be flight ready and on the field in thirty minutes. A very rushed thirty minutes at that. Thanks to my stuff being split between mine and Garrick’s room. But despite rushing between the two, I don’t run into him. Probably just missing him due to going to my room first. Also missing my squad who have already left when I make it back to the first year floor. Leaving me to make the walk to the flight field on my own. Which I honestly needed despite how much I wanted to see Garrick, and even Xaden before they left. I knew they could handle anything thrown their way, but something about the way the Colonel had smiled and the look in his eye told me there was something at play here. And there was nothing we could do to stop it from happening.

As I walk into the flight field I can’t help but be in awe at the sight before me. Every single dragon in the quadrant is in the flight field, assembled in the exact formation we keep in the rotunda. The only exceptions being Tairn and Mealladh who stand either side of Cath, as if reminding him he’s not the most powerful dragon in the squad. What surprises me though is the small golden dragon at Tairn’s feet. Andarna. I’d barely seen her since Violet had bonded her, due to being too small to keep up with the bigger dragons just yet.

As I fall into spot next to Violet, Dain begins his probably well planned out speech. “Second Squad! Prepare for a four hour first leg of our flight. We’ll need to keep a tight formation for the first fifteen minutes as the squads disperse.” Something behind Violet and I catches his eye as he looks past us. “Wingleader?”

Violet and I turn eerily in sync to see Xaden striding towards our squad, Garrick a few steps behind.. A look of determination on both their faces. They aren’t here to say goodbye. Xaden has something planned, and I know it’s about to involve us and annoy Dain. But it wasn’t hard to do the latter.

”How can I help you?” Dain snaps out, straightening his shoulders and adjusting his stance to try appear bigger and taller next to those two.

Xaden ignores him as he turns to Violet and I. “I need you two.”

”I’m sorry?” Dain retorts, stepping forward.

”Relax, he just wants to say goodbye.” Violet explains, but the flicker of amusement in Xaden’s eyes tells me all I need to know. We’re going with him.

”If you’re saying goodbye, it’s to him.” He corrects her as he nods towards Dain. “I’m constructing my headquarters squad and you two are coming with me. So are Liam and Imogen.”

Despite not reaching for any emotions, Dain’s anger flairs at the edge of my mind. “The fuck you are. Violet’s a first year and Athebyne is beyond the wards.”

Xaden just blinks at him as Garrick steps forward. “I don’t hear you giving me the same argument about Mairi and Riorson.”

”Liam is the one of the best cadets among the first years, even with him assigning him guard duty over Violet.” Dain argues back at Garrick, crossing his arms across his chest as if trying to imitate Garrick’s stance

”And Sorrengail wields lightning. And Ophelia can do a lot more than you know.” Xaden counters, causing Dain to look over at me. Dain who still has no idea what I can do, but looks surprised Xaden knows. Idiot. Why wouldn’t my brother know. “And not that I owe you an explanation, second year, because I don’t, but Sgaeyl and Tairn can’t be separated for longer than a few days-”

”That you know of!” Dain exclaims as he cuts Xaden off. “Or can you honestly tell me Sgaeyl was at her wit’s end when you showed up at Monsterrat? You’ve never fully tested how long they can be apart.”

”Feel like asking her yourself?” Xaden challenges, arching a brow.

I can’t help but chuckle as Sgaeyl stalks forward, head low with a menacing gleam in her eyes. Blue Dragons were not to be messed with. But especially not Sgaeyl.

”Don’t do this. Riders are known to die during War Games and she’s safer with me. Anything could happen once we’re away from Basgiath, let alone you taking her beyond the wards.” Dain pleads.

I don’t miss the way he emphasises ‘Anything’. He knows what were about to go up and face. A sentence only meant for only for Xaden.

”I’m not dignifying that with a response. This is an order..”

Dain narrows his eyes at Xaden, his anger hitting me like a tidal wave. “Or has this been your plan all along? To separate her from her squad so you can use her to get your need for revenge on her mother?”

”Dain! You know that’s not going to happen” She says while shaking her head at him.

”Do I?” He snaps back at her. “He’s made a big deal out of the whole if-she-dies-I-die thing, but do you know it for a fact? Do you know Tairn won’t survive your death? Or has it all been a ploy to earn your trust, Violet?”

Violet sucks in a sharp breath as he words definitely hit a nerve. She goes to retort, but I quickly step between them, standing toe to toe with Dain.

”Pick your next words wisely Aetos. Or you might not have any more to say.” I warn him, the ground shaking as Mealladh stalks forward like Sgaeyl did, positioning herself behind Dain. I don’t miss how Cath almost cowers away now Sgaeyl and Mealladh are involved.

”Please, do quit while you’re behind, Aetos,” Xaden seethes behind me. “You want the truth? She’s a fuck of a lot safer with me beyond the wards than she is with you within them. We both know it.”

I turn to see Xaden looking at Dain with a look I had seen in our fathers eyes many times before. He would do whatever it took to dispose of whatever stands between them and what they want. And right now Dain is what stands in his way. The only reason he hasn’t is because of Violet. Their friendship might be strained right now, but he still means something to her.

”Stop.” Violet states as she steps forward, putting her hand on Xaden’s arm. “Xaden, stop. If you want me to go with you, I’ll go. It’s that simple.”

As his eyes shift to Violet they immediately soften. He was wrapped around her finger. I knew because Garrick gave me the same look.

”No fucking way.” Dain whispers, in disbelief as to what is happening. Also not missing the look in Xaden’s eyes as he looks at Violet.

As Violet drops her hand from his arm I know she’s realised he’s made the same connection. “Dain….”

”Him?” Dain’s eyes widening as they dart between Violet and Xaden. “You and…. him?” He shakes his head as if trying to wake himself up from a bad dream. “People talk, and I thought that’s all it was, but you….”

I go to step up to Dain again but Garrick grips my shoulder, pulling me back towards him. He clearly knows I’m about two seconds away from punching Dain in the face.

”Don’t go, Violet. Please. He’s going to get you killed.”

”I know you think Xaden has ulterior motives, but I trust him. He’s had every opportunity and has never hurt me. At some point you have to let this go.”

We all stand in silence as she steps towards Dain, both just looking at each other. Despite how much I dislike Dain and how he’s acted towards me, I can’t help but feel sorry at the hurt I see in his eyes before he quickly masks it. “If he’s what you choose…. Then I guess that has to be enough for me, doesn’t it?

She nods. “Yes.”

He quickly leans in to whisper something before pivoting on his heel and walking towards Cath who is still cowering.

”That could have gone worse.” Garrick mutters behind me.

”It could have also gone a lot better.” I retort as he snickers at my remark.

”Get ready. We have a long ride ahead.” He tells me, placing a brief kiss to the top of my head before turning on his heel and following after Xaden.

”I made the right decision. Right?” Violet asks as she watches Xaden walk away from her, not even glancing at Dain.

I smile at her and nod which seems to ease her nerves about what just happened. “He might be my brother, but regardless of that, I think you made the better choice. You need someone who will help you flourish and grow. Dain wouldn’t let that happen.”

”Yeah… you’re right.”

@riorgail @going-through-shit @fw-gt @bbkissme99 @xceafh @leptitlu @came-to-laugh-but-cried @onthewaytotimbuktu @daardyrnitta @lovemesomevesey @mxtokko @krowiathemythologynerd @callsign-blue @1islessthan3books @side-angel @wolfbc97 @just-an-ace-elf

[quodekash]

yeah so im gonna make my silly little commentary posts for we are sometimes but not all the time

he stared at his friend's water and started smiling like a fucking idiot 💀

h2o just makes him giddy like that 🥰

also I genuinely fucking adore Pham and Fang's dynamic, they care about each other so much (I might cry)

I JSUT FUCKING LOVE HIM SO MUCH CAN YOU BLAME ME

im sorry, i cant get over the fact that q fuCKING SANG SOUND’S SONG FROM MSP IN THE THIRD FUCKING EPISODE OF THE SHOW

HES JUST SO SMOL I FUCKING ADORE HIM SO MUCH DUDE

here to pick up his twink

HES JUST SO SMOL THO LIKE CAN YOU BLAME ME???

I JUST WANNA RUFFLE HIS HAIR AND PINCH HIS CHEEKS HES SO FUCKING ADORABLE

i think i just really love satang cos during msp every time sound was on screen i lost my shit and now every time toey is on screen i lose my shit

btw i fully had to rewatch that entire scene, i was entirely focusing on satang’s little adorable fuckin face that i forgot to read and process the dialogue lmao

his expression is like “did you bring me here to do your chores, or are you gonna be honest and just say you want to makeout"

the real answer is just that he wants to spend time with him btu doesnt know how to do that normally 💀

(and also that he wants to make out with him)

WHY IS EVERYONE SO FUCKING SMOL TODAY

HES TINY

HES THIS BIG 🤏

OML IT HAPPENED FOR LESS THAN HALF A SECOND BUT I PAUSED IT AT THE EXACT PERFECT MOMENT

I genuinely adore accidental kiss tropes in bls, its just so unrealistic its fucking amazing

[insert image of phum's friends walking in here (I had to delete some of my screenshots because I can only do 30 and I dont want to do more than one post for this)]

AND THEN HIS FRIENDS WALK IN, CLASSIC

it's so awkward and I am LIVING for it

people in bls always walk in at the WORST possible moments and its AMAZING

THIS WHOLE SITUATION IS SO RIDICULOUSLY FUNNY TO ME

phuwin’s character trying to cook is so me

and also my sister, one time she was making spaghetti bolognese for us for dinner and she put way too much salt, and then to attempt to solve the problem, she put water into the pan to "evaporate the salt" 💀

the best part is I didnt even realise why that wouldnt work until my brother started laughing

anyway, back to the ep

WHAT DRUGS ARE IN THIS EPISODE TO MAKE EVERY SINGLE FUCKING CHARACTER SO BABYGIRL

THEYRE ALL SO SMOL AND ADORABLE AND BBG WHAT IS GOING ON

HES SO TINY

Youre fucking KIDDING

IM SO SUDDENLY INVESTED IN THIS MAIN COUPLE

THAT WAS SUCH A SUDDEN SWITCH BRO

literally last week I was like "yeah okay I like it" and then suddenly im on the verge of tears when they make physical contact???

[insert image of pun eating]

PUN !

MY LITTLE GUY

I ADORE THEMMMMM

oh fuck yes I love this friendship already and it just started

AND CHAIN'S GETTING JEALOUSSSSS FUCK YEAH

they look like tired dads fr

is phuwin just fuckin short or is pond like 3 metres tall cos holy shit

LOOK AT HIM

SMOL BITCHES

EVERYONE'S FUCKING TINY TODAY

woah he really just went for it there

HOLY FUCK HE SAID YES

TAN IS LOSING IT HES SO HAPPY I LOVE HIM SO MUCH

great frame

[insert that entire scene with the jump onto him and the holding hands and the FUCKING CHEEK KISS]

HES MY LITTLE FUCKING GUY

HES SO NEURODIVERGENT AND I ADORE HIM

KICKING AND SCREAMING MY FEET RN

he's jealoussssssss

I love pun so much, I truly would die for him

Welcome back to another episode of Toey Thinks Peem And Phum Are Dating (And He’s Right)

Im gonna be completely honest, if pond looked at me like that, id probably do whatever he tells me to without a second thought

thats all im saying

LOOK AT THAT LITTLE FACE

HES SINGING THE FUCKING ABAAB SONG

IM CRYING DUDE THIS IS AMAZING

ARE THEY JUST GONNA SING SONGS FROM OTHER BLS FOR THE QHOLE SERIES? IM FUCKIN DOWN FOR THAT DUDE

this song is so out of winny’s range tho 💀

so fucking SMOL

also chains hand just always naturally rests on pun’s shoulder

literally all the time

what im saying here is I think they should kiss

HE DIDNT JUST GRAB HIS WRIST HERE HE GRABBED HIS HAND ERIJKGBNREJB HOLY SHIT

Cool! 👍

im glad they finally got there

FUCK YES NEXT EPISODE WE'RE GETTING THE SCENE FROM THE PILOT THAT MADE ME LOSE MY SHIT

PUNCHAIN FOREHEAD KISS AND QTOEY CHEEK KISS BITCHES

okay now I just have one final question before I take my leave: what the FUCK was the song playing in the background of the qtoey scene near the end of the episode

it was just electric guitar and I KNOW recognise it but I cant figure out what fucking song it was (literally I finished the episode at like 1:30 but didnt go to sleep til 3 because I was trying to find the song)

so please, if ANYONE recognises it and knows what it is, tell me as soon as you can cos Im fucking dying

update: a moot is pretty sure the song played over other qtoey scenes earlier in the show (the same way msp did with noelm) so now im fuckin PSYCHED for the new song that’s gonna come out eventually

[agendabymooner]

colour me your colour || toto w. x ofc (1)

Summary: Tilly Marie nearly loses faith in her passion as she refuses to listen to everyone who told her to quit. Everyone but one. And it’s the man she met years ago at a racing event she didn’t want to attend. Who would have thought that her father’s partial ownership of three brands could take her to the zone of Mercedes and meet the love of her life?

Content warning: Age gap, mentions of an absence of a father figure, brief use of explicit language, mentions of nepotism. Fictional family and business involved (Hearth family and Hearth Automotives Group).

Note: I did a funny haha series. I literally just started on this yesterday. I'm writing the third part right now, hoping to work on this as much as possible. Again, I am still new to F1?? Please forgive me.

Enjoy! xx

i. what a beautiful sight that was

   It was the year 2006. The 21-year-old me did not want to attend on behalf of my father’s role to whatever this business was he was handling. I remember being extremely confident about walking up the stage to get my master's. 

I had always been told to be an intelligent girl. One that utilizes her skills in any way possible. Everyone praised me, and my maternal grandparents encouraged me to continue my education. My paternal grandparents expressed their admiration with a pat on the head and a kiss. My mother hugged me tightly and hung nearly every certificate I had captured. My father, however… he couldn’t get over the fact that he never had a son—one who would run the company someday and perhaps become a world champion. 

He lacked boys for his fatherhood experience, so he turned to me and set a list of expectations he had of me. He was still as healthy as ever. He could bench if he felt like it. But he still wanted to instill some responsibility in his companies and passed it on to me. 

But I earned my master's in Journalism and was halfway through my Bachelor's in Marketing. What did I know about motorsport? 

This didn’t mean anything to my father. He wanted me to handle the business and pass it off to the next person if needed. He just wanted his surname to remain known in the industry and public. He trusted me to handle particular areas that he thought I could do. 

But it was 2006, and I wasn’t given the responsibilities until years after. I was simply in Dubai to watch and entertain myself while cameras tried to get a glimpse of me—the Heiress. I was the next to become a shareholder in the businesses my father and grandfather (and his father) had put their money on. I was an eye candy—the strong woman of the Hearth family. And I was just in Dubai to watch men race lap after lap while they stayed there for hours, like mad men. 

And my father didn’t even tell me anything. I’ve only been exposed to observation. But my brain wasn’t made to be awake for a day, and my eyes preferred a piece of entertainment from my research paper. 

But my mind gave me a little nudge and turned my head to look at the man who’ll have me thinking for years. His helmet was on his side, his fingers tapping to keep him focused. He was tall. He was tall and handsome—a deadly combination.

The combination was too deadly, and I only realized this when he caught me looking. I hadn’t turned my head quite fast enough as I continued to examine and annotate my anecdotal record, pretending that my face wasn’t blushing.

It turned out he was just as intrigued as he was handsome. Fucking great. He sat across the chaise lounge I stiffly sat on, his smile I could barely see from my peripheral vision. 

Knowing he probably wouldn’t leave, I stopped pretending I was studying and looked up only to see his lips spread in amusement. His smile. Oh god. Couldn’t this man be the perfect man to have existed?

“You’re not here to study,” he chuckled softly, “Because you’d be in the wrong place otherwise.” 

Of course, I hadn’t passed up the chance to roll my eyes jokingly. 

The conversation lasted forever, and not once did he gloss over the screens to see how his team was doing at the track. He listened to me as I complained about the research I had to do for book publications. He wondered how I’d gotten through my master's at 21. Then he decided to guess while I provided my answer too.

“You’re gifted.”

“Generational wealth.” 

Then silence filled the atmosphere as if we could only hear the people talk in the background. My laughter after the pause made his mouth grin as he silently laughed. One of us was more biased than the other, I thought to myself. My success at school came from the high 90s that I achieved. My family's money made it easier for me to get in without any trouble with tuition. 

But the conversation didn’t last as long as I thought it would have, as someone who wore the same racing suit came barging at the door. The man frantically gestured for my company to follow him. 

He looked at me, his eyes keeping me in one place as I shifted. He could only say, “It was nice talking to you.” 

And all I could offer him was a stutter of, “Y- yeah, a pleasure to meet you. Y- your name is…” 

But his teammate beat him to it before he could utter his name. “Torger!” 

Then he looked at me again with a brief nod as he walked out of the room. 

He was a lovely man. There’s nothing nicer than an equally attractive and genuine man. I liked every single second that I spent with him. And I’ve only known him for fifteen minutes. 

And that remained as that. We’ve only known each other for fifteen minutes. When they announced the race winners, I was already on my flight back to England. I was already reporting to my father about what I saw. 

I told him about what I saw and experienced. But never once did I say to him about a driver of the winning team and how I’ve practically fallen for him. Because I haven’t fallen, he was just lovely. 

What a beautiful sight he was. 

[deejayrockz]

PAIRING — wilbur x mermaid!reader

SUMMARY — while taking his niece on a trip to a mermaid aquariam, wilbur meets one of the workers on the other side of the glass.

NOTES — shy-ish!wilbur, mermaid worker (was going to be real mermaid, but they kinda scare me sorry), third person because i forgot .., SHE/HER PRNS FOR READER

EXTRA — i watched the little mermaid the day it came out in cinemas and IMMEDIATELY added this idea to my notes 😭, not sure how this will pan out, also sorry for spelling mistakes, have nails on rn

"Will, Will, come look!" His niece, Adelia, smiled, pointing at the tall glass that showed the fish behind.

"careful, don't bang on the glass," he muttered, watching the group of fish pass by, almost as mesmerised as his niece.

Wilburs niece, Adelia, was a five year old girl he had promised to look after while his sister went out on some overnight trip. He held her hand— well, she was more holding onto just a few of his fingers, but it'll do. He led her to the main attraction, the mermaid cove.

Adelia gasped, watching the mermaid workers swim around the large tank, accompanied by a few fish.

"Will, look!" She smiled, he smiled too, despite the fact he wasn't a five year old girl interested in mermaids.

One specific mermaid however, had swam closer to them, waving at Adelia. He let go of her hand so she could walk closer, making contact with the glass. The mermaid placed her hand on top of Adelias, despite the glass separating

The mermaid then looked behind the younger girl, making eye contact with Will. It wouldn't take a genius to notice how gorgeous she was, despite the fact she was underwater, her makeup very slightly smudged. His breath seemed slightly caught in his throat as Adelia dragged him closer to the glass.

She waved at him, causing him to wave back, feeling slightly ridiculous interacting with a mermaid entertainer. Her tail was a teal colour, with slightly purple accents. She winked at him, before leaving the glass and swimming off, presumably to get some air, but obviously she had made it look as if she were simply swimming into the cove.

"I think she had a crush on you," Adelia smiled, moving away from the glass, still a bit starstruck from her mermaid encounter.

Wilbur laughed, holding back onto Adelias hand as they walked to the other mermaids. Some other kids had crowded round a group of 3 mermaids, however, Wilburs mermaid wasn't apart of it.

He was reading the signs, which introduced the mermaids, as if they were real fish, but hadn't yet come across his.

"Look, there she is!" Adelia pointed at the sign, the one that had introduced the very certain mermaid he had just waved to.

As he read her introduction, he felt a small tug on his sleeve, causing him to look down at Adelia, who was pointing (yet again) at the glass. He followed her finger, seeing her there again, pointing back at Adelia in a joking manner.

Adelia giggled, going back up to the glass. A few kids gasped and also went up, but the mermaids eyes were stuck on Will's, as his face flushed slightly.

She blew a kiss, bubbles erupting from her hand as she did so. He smiled, his cheeks beginning to hurt from the strain. She blew another, then pointed at him. It took him a minute, before he caught on to what she was saying.

His cheeks flushed, slightly embarrassed as he blew a kiss back, earning a smile from the mermaid, causing the kids watching to giggle in amusement.

She placed her hand against the glass, slightly too tall for any of the kids to connect it. Adelia grabbed Wills hand, pulling him closer to the glass, and connecting his hand to it, in the exact spot the mermaids hand is.

She smiled at him, winking, before swimming away, back to the cove. Wilbur felt his heart start beating again.

When did it stop? Is that normal?

He should probably get that checked out.

The mermaid cove show was coming to a close, meaning Wilbur and Adelia were led to the outside pool where people could say goodbye to the mermaids.

He had never been so excited to see a mermaid before in his life.

"Will, look, she's over there!" Adelia smiled, dragging the older boy towards the edge of the pool, his jeans and her tights getting slightly wet. It didn't take the mermaid long to recognise them and swim to the surface.

"Good evening, i'm [...]," she smiled, holding her hand out to Adelia, who shook it softly with her mouth wide open. Wilbur had to nudge the younger girl slightly in order for her to introduce myself.

"I'm Adelia, this is my uncle Will, he has a crush on you." She whispered the last part, but Wilbur still heard, causing him to tut and roll his eyes. The mermaid just giggled, looking at Will.

She pulled herself up, sitting on the edge of the pool, similar to how a few other mermaids were. Her tail was more blue out of water, and Wilbur noticed the small bracelets hung through a loop at the top of it, almost reaching out to trace them, but holding himself back.

She seemed to notice him looking at them though, as she smiled and pulled on one, before holding his hand and wrapping the braided string around his wrist. He felt the slightly salty water on her hands as she held his palm, but he didn't mind. In fact, he was more focused on the love heart pattern braided into the bracelet.

She pulled on another, wrapping it around Adelias wrist, as the younger girl giggled and thanked her.

"Hopefully we'll meet again, Adelia," The mermaid whispered, tucking a strand of the young girls hair behind her ear, "tell your uncle I may have a crush on him too."

Wilbur heard it loud and clear, despite the fact it was whispered softly. He watched the mermaid wink, blow a kiss, then dive back into the pool, going inside the cove and disappearing from sight. He knew she was most likely just giving Adelia ideas to tease Wilbur with, but the thought of them two together made his hands sweat and his heart race.

"You should become a merman, then you can date." Adelia turned to Will, who raised his eyebrows in amusement.

"I can date her as a human?" Will argued, leading Adelia out of the aquarium, mainly to save himself getting stuck talking to other random women in tails.

"Well, you can, but her dad might get angry," She said, obviously referencing The Little Mermaid as if it were real.

Which it is, by the way.

"Right, well, I'm sure i'd find a way," Wilbur played along, looking at their bracelets they had both been given by the beloved mermaid.

[quibbs126]

I know you've done this before but can you please maybe make a darkwhip kid, but with the basis that Whipped comes from the Millenial Tree family?

I finally finished her, this lady is Whipped Ganache Cookie

Fun fact, Whipped Ganache was one of the first fankid names I came up with when I first made my list, which was a little before I opened up requests, I just didn’t get requests for darkwhip nor did I have ideas like I did for pureraisin and darklico, but then I finally ended up getting this request, so I could use it

So basically ganache is like this chocolate sauce or icing or filling, it has a lot of uses, and whipped ganache is this whipped version with more cream than chocolate. I picked it because it seemed like whipped cream but chocolate, perfect for darkwhip

The thought occurs to me that maybe chocolate mousse could have worked too (mainly due to my roommate saying whipped ganache reminded her of it), but I like Whipped Ganache. And I can save it for later (but not the other darkwhip kid, and I don’t need a third one)

Whipped ganache:

So this is technically my second time drawing her, with my first attempt only getting as far as the hair sketch. I couldn’t figure out what to do for her outfit, so I just left her for some months until yesterday

But I had a good idea of what to do for the hair (even if I changed it somewhat)

But let’s get to the outfit. Yet again, I didn’t really know what to give her, other than she probably wears dresses. I put her in a hanbok since I was like “I dunno, that’s an outfit she could wear”. And sure it looks fine, but I wasn’t really sure it fit her, specifically with the request of her having some relation to Millennial Tree Cookie, but you know, no one gave me a goddamn answer when I asked (well other than my friend who said keep the hanbok, but she also said she was biased so) so I just had to stick with the hanbok. I’m still not sure it works to be honest. I mean, if she’s going for a formal event/festival in the Dark Cacao Kingdom, sure, but I’m not sure it works as her default. Maybe if I can come up with something better I can make a new design with that, but for now, this is what I have

I’m also not sure about her outfit colors to be honest. I wanted her to have pinks, but I also wanted her to have browns (and also that purple I got that looked neat), and I’m not sure I found the best balance in the end. But I asked my friend and she said “look good” so I kept it

I like the mountain pattern on her hanbok, I got that straight from Dark Choco’s costume

Sorry, I don’t have much to say. I came up with the hair months ago and don’t really remember all the logic other than it being long sort of like Millie and having pearls because Whipped Cream, and I have more complaints about the outfit because I don’t think it fits. But I like everything else about her aside from her outfit

Anyways, character time

So I think I came up with some ideas for her back in July when we were coming back from England, though I soon went on to work on Vanilla Lily/Witch Hazel (and fun fact, I haven’t looked back at those notes until right now as I’m writing this)

So first thing about Whipped Ganache (that I probably should have mentioned in the design section), she is very tall. She isn’t necessarily wide, but she is tall, taller than either of her parents. I just wanted to mention that

But anyways one of her main things is that she has healing magic, which is what she’s supposed to be doing with the flower in the sketch (wasn’t sure how to give off the glowing effect though). But also, while her magic is healing, it’s deadly towards things of dark magic, like what healing magic does to undead things in old games (actually as far as I’m aware that’s only FF7)

I’m remembering now, I think one thing I envisioned with her is her summoning a giant ass laser like what Millennial Tree does in his Skill, and when she fires it, her allies caught in it would be healed while her enemies (presumably made of dark magic) would be harmed

Whipped Ganache is generally a very serene and kind person, has the patience of a saint. I’m not sure she has a breaking point, she probably does but I haven’t thought much on it. She’s very attuned to nature as well, maybe not to the point of being a tree hugger, but enough that she doesn’t like blatant exploitation of it. Also she’d survive very easily by herself in the wild

Another thing about her is that she plays a harp. Not a lyre like what Carol or Lilybell uses, but a full giant harp. I got that from listening to Millennial Tree Cookie’s theme

Anyways, I think that’s about it for her. But also just a note, she’s not the only darkwhip kid I plan to make, it’s just that she doesn’t necessarily follow the same rule of being related to Millennial Tree. I mean she and Whipped Ganache live in the same timeline, they’re sisters, but she doesn’t have much that makes that trait noticeable, so she’ll get her own thing

But yeah, I hope you enjoyed Whipped Ganache

[lorkonsghost]

Here's a sneak peek into April dating a Wayne kid au I'm writing. Title work in progress

The Red Hood, The Red Head, and The Big Green Turtles

He just wants to be Jason again

Jason has no idea why he’s fighting alien robots with almost 6ft tall turtles, or why the girl he started dating a month ago dating is also fighting said alien robots but he wasn’t really going to question it. He was fighting alien robots makes a lot of things easier if you don’t question them wait are those fucking ninjas and why did the turtle in red say their name like it’s a bad thing. Jason really rethinking coming to New York to go drinking by himself was a bad idea maybe if he at least brought Roy he wouldn't be in this mess.

 

1 month ago, and 2 weeks after Jason’s 21 birthday

 

Jason was getting sick of always having someone tag along everytime he went drinking, for his 21st birthday wasn’t the problem, but the 4 times he tried after that doing it solo was the first time he tried it Dick showed up not 10 seconds after his first shot the next tine he did it was in star city and Roy showed up before even his first shot. The third time it had to be a joke because why did Rose fucking Wilson show up at the bar he was drinking at in central city she normally never even visit central city. The fourth time he knew it was joke because he went to the most swear rat bar in Gotham and for fuck sake why was Bruce their wearing a fucking fake mustache. Jason wasn’t really annoyed at not drinking alone if he actually wanted to do that he would just stay home and buy a few beers with Bruce’s credit card but it was the fact that he kept running into people he new he just wanted to get drunk and make a few mistakes but no now somebody he new was their and he can’t go embarrassing himself in front of them he had reputation to up hold. So that’s why he’s in New York he knows almost no hero’s who even touch New York so he thought no problems.

 

Jason was a few drinks in when he first saw her it looked like the first time she ever been in bar by herself and Jason thought why would she choose such a warn down bar like this. Jason took a shot for confidence and approached her thinking the most he could do is keep her company.

 

“Hello their beautiful looking kinda lonely mind if I join.” Jason say with his buzzed confidence

 “Hmph ha ha ha are you serious my ex had better pick up lines.” the red headed girl says

“Sorry I never been the kind of guy to try pick up a girl this way.” Jason says with a slightly bruised pride

“Oh so how you do it mister aren’t you look lonely miss.” Her blue eyes smiled behind her glass

“honestly most of the time we just start dating or they fall for bad boy charm” Jason with a cocky smile

“Sorry dated one bad boy don’t know if I need another” her red hair drops a bit but she says with a cheer in her voice

Jason doesn’t know actually why he tried flirting with her Jason knew it wasn’t good to get involved with a civilian Isabel taught him that he missed the flight attendant. But maybe it was the alcohol In his system, or it was the fact he wanted to ignore the hero stuff that’s also probably why he wanted to drink  without anyone he new he just wanted a night where he’s okay to be somebody other than Jason Todd the red hood son of Batman in somebody’s eye just Jason.

 

“I never introduced myself I’m Jason I’m not just a bad boy I also happen to read pride and prejudice.” Jason says in half cocky smile with another swig of his drink

“Okay mister Jason tell me your favorite quote and I’ll tell you my name” Her smile softens

“I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun. I know the original quote is about falling in love but it’s like I lived my life by it”  Jason says trying to hide the emotions he feels when he says it

“My names April so you where telling the truth about reading it” April say with a reassuring smile

Jason collects himself for a moment he’s kinda surprised how far he’s come along in this conversation. Jason really was only Jason right now no baggage to unravel yet and he’s okay with that right now it only him, April, his slowly blurring vision, and the hope maybe he could get a date out of this.

“So miss April tell me something other than your name please”. Jason say with a half smile

“Well currently I’m trying to be a journalist but get the last 5 credits of my degree I need to intern under another journalist for a year.” April says with a slight annoyed frown on her face

“so what’s the problem can’t find respectable enough journalist or something else” Jason says trying to offer A chance to vent

“It’s not that it’s just any intern ship I apply for needs me full time and my home life just doesn't allow that right now* April says with happier expression

Jason wants to call in a favor from Clark or Lois so bad right know he really could solve this girls problems with a phone call. But Jason was taught by Bruce, Ras, Dick, and Talia you can’t solve all the problems even if two them he would stab and not regret it and Bruce and Dick have been off his shit list for a good minute. But all of them where right he can’t just solve her problem for no reason but Jason wanted to do he makes a compromise.

“Okay that’s problem I could possibly help with” Jason says with cockiest smile yet

“Oh how so” April says with curiosity

“So a family friend is a journalist I could put in a word for and give you a chance at something buuut with it would be uup to you to convince them to agree to whatever youuu propose” Jason say with seriousness but with slurring

“Are you serious why would you do that for me” April says questionably

“Well I could ask you for a date as compensation but instead here’s what in going to do I give them a word if they give you a chance you go on date with me as celebration if they don’t drop my number we never talk again” Jason says with a smile

“Well mister Jason you got a deal and if don’t get I might stillll give you a chaaaasnccce for at least not being a creeeep” April tries to say a little flirty

Jason grabs a napkin and calls the waiter over to closes his tab and ask to borrow a pen and writes his number down

“call me in the morning I’ll set up an interview” Jason say as gets and walks over to April

Jason kisses the back of April hand and says as looks into her eyes once more ”Did you admire me for my impertinence?”

April laughs “yeah I did.”

Jason offers to pay for April’s tab as well but she’s says it’s okay and as Jason leaves he wonders if he’s doing the smart thing involving April in his life.

[magicrainbowkitties]

I might be biased because I'm transmasc and it's somewhat The Goal for me to "look like a man," but it's high time we put a stop to "you look like a man" as an insult towards women. Not just trans women, but cis women too. Most often I hear/see it used by women against other women, usually some gender crit weirdos with an unhealthy obsession with other people's genitalia, and I find it imperative that we wrest any and all power away from such creepy, horrible people. And so, here's my dissection of the phrase.

First of all, masculine-presenting women exist. Some are so masc-presenting that they do in fact get gendered as men in everyday speech, to dismay or pleasure depending on the woman you're dealing with. But. What exactly does spitting "you look like a man" at her do? Congratulations, you have eyes and understand that this woman is gender-nonconforming. What now, asshole? All you've done is either state the obvious or said some bullshit she's heard a billion times before.

Second, some women are simply born with features we collectively decided are "masculine" traits. I know plenty of tall, muscular cis women. I've met cis women with facial hair, with big hands, with broad shoulders. How in the fuck do these features and more suddenly disqualify them from womanhood? And to tell such a woman she "looks like a man" is to join in a chorus of bullying she's been experiencing for a long fuckin time (and in many cases, since she was a child) over something she literally has no control over. But it wouldn't help if she just "decided" to be a man, would it, because now they don't know what they want and need to learn to "accept her womanhood," even though you never did when they said they were.

But this leans into my third point, which gets at the core of the problem:

Why is "looking like a man" a bad thing?

Outside of trans people and misgendering, I mean. Because that's just a weapon for getting at a specific aspect of that type of womanhood. However, when it's said to a trans woman, or a cis woman with traditionally masculine traits, it's usually "you ARE a man." Not "you LOOK LIKE a man."

And the only conclusion I can draw, from both my experience and others, is that this is just a long, drawn out way to call people ugly. Because often in these terfy circles, you will find some of the most vile, disgusting things said about men and their bodies. I mean... They get gross about trans women, sure, but remember... They think trans women ARE men. Monster creepy men with horrible delusions, sure, but still men. And then they discuss cis men as if they're all either sex pests, monsters, or weak-willed idiots with no place in the world.

Now I will not discount the fact that many gender crits/terfs are recruited after severe trauma of several stripes inflicted by men, and that men are encouraged in our society to treat women as objects and tools rather than thinking people with their own needs and feelings, thus causing a feedback loop of neglect and abuse that leaves everyone miserable. Not to mention, most people saying shit like "not all men" when you're talking about women's issues probably don't actually care, they just want you to stop talking.

All of this is true. HOWEVER. It comes to a point where you stop criticizing specific men for their behavior, or society at large for making men that do awful things, and you start mocking men for their appearances, disabilities, weight, body parts, ect. That's just not ok.

To anyone who's been told you "look like a man" to make you feel small and horrible:

You are not ugly. Features that society has decided are grossly masculine are not ugly. Being a feminine person with masculine features does not mean you have failed to perform femininity.

You are gorgeous.

And don't let someone that believes looking like a man is the worst thing one could possibly do tell you otherwise.

[ericaand]

i am so sorry for the comment i left, i was jus too excited!! no seriously though, i apologize. but since your taking requests for Kayce Dutton…

I would love it if you could write a bsfs to lovers??

Like maybe reader grew up on the ranch with the Duttons bc she had some connection to one of the ranch hands or jus was bsfs with one of the Dutton siblings so she became Kayces bsf. Maybe he and Monica split up or they were never together (you decide) and maybe some SERIOUS AMAZING TENSION WITH THE BEST LOVE CONFESSION😍

again, thank you! and i’ll keep requesting as long as this writers block is here bc i need me and love me some Kayce!!

Seriously had a ton of fun writing this. Enjoy, and send MORE! Please.

Pairing: Kayce Dutton x Fem!Reader

Words: Almost 2k.

Warnings: slight mentions of blood. underage alcohol use. That's about it.

"You know, I hate how much I care about you." Kayce's eyes burn into yours, scanning from right to left continually.

He balls his hand into a fist and speaks through clenched teeth, "Because I know..."

He pauses, loosens his stance, and hangs his head sighing, "I shouldn't."

Earlier that day:

Driving down the familiar driveway, you began to reminisce on all the time you spent on the ranch as a child. With each spin of your tires, the car filled with dust; the smell taking you back to a time when things were easy, and playing with boys was just that: playing.

You hadn't returned to the ranch since your best friends, Kayce and Monika, married. It was too much. Too much pain. Too much hurt. Too much love.

In fact, you weren't even sure you could consider them your best friends anymore. Now, they were each other's best friend. And you? You were just the third wheel now. Sure, you talk to Monika on occasion, mostly through texting. But even that hadn't happened in months. There hasn't been any contact with Kayce at all. Except for the occasional grocery store visit. But even then, it's not like it used to be. Your hellos now feel hollow. But at least the goodbyes don't hurt as much anymore.

You weren't really sure what to expect when you got to the ranch. You knew John and Beth, and Rip would probably be happy to see you; you never really saw them at all anymore. The ranch hands were always fun to spend time with. But now, it feels different. Now, the childhood magic has drifted away, not just from the ranch but from you.

You continue to drive, spotting the tall white silo. Instantly, you're envisioning three little kids chasing after each other, round and round the silo. The side of your mouth curves into a smirk.

You put it in park and take a deep breath, leaning your head back and closing your eyes. When you've conjured up enough courage, you step out and make your way toward the corral. Your steps are slow, hands in your back pockets, head down; until you hear someone yell.

"Y/N! That you?"

You look up to see Rip, slowly trotting over to you with a smile. You tilt your head and smile with a shrug.

"Well, I'll be damned! If it ain't little Y/N." He swings his leg around the horse and graciously hops down. He wraps his arms around you, as you wrap yours around his waist.

He grips your shoulders and pushes you away from himself. "Let me get a good look at ya." He clicks his tongue a few times as he shakes his head.

"You look just like your momma. Beautiful. Whatcha doin' here, kid?"

"Well, looks like you and your boys are obviously starving." You say sarcastically, waving your hand toward the horse corral. "You're lookin at the new Dutton Ranch chef. John called me a while back and asked if I could come help out while Gator was away. I couldn't turn it down. I mean, who says no to John?"

"I sure as hell don't." Rip lets out a quick breath. "See ya later, kid. Can't wait for dinner. I always miss your mommas cooking."

You make your way to the house slowly, letting the wind flow through your hair. You stop dead in your tracks when you spot the small circle of Adirondack chairs in the front yard.

You recall it being the last weekend of summer, all those years ago. A soda bottle filled with whiskey from John's stash was being passed around between the three of you. The fire gently lights the faces of your friends. All that was heard was the crackling, the laughter, and the crickets.

"Dance with me?" The boy with dusty blonde hair reached his hand out to you. You took his hand as he delicately helped you out of your chair.

You draped your arms over his shoulders, as you began to sway slowly. Although the musk of whiskey was strong, you could smell faint bits of his cologne; pine began to fill your nostrils.

"I've gotta pee!" Monika shouted, stumbling toward the house.

You rested your head on his chest as you both continued to sway in sync, his hands resting on your hips.

"This is so perfect, Kayce. I don't want it to end. The stars. The fire. You." You mumbled.

Kayce stopped moving and lifted your chin with his finger. "What?"

"You heard me." You smiled.

Kayce slowly began to dip his head down, until you both heard Monika assert herself by asking when it was her turn for a dance. Kind and caring Kayce pulled you back into a hug and kissed the top of your head, barely whispering, "Me neither."

"You gonna stand there all day? Or are you gonna come cook some supper?" Someone hollared from the porch.

You blinked to reality, seeing John leaning on one of the stone pillars. You smiled as you began to walk towards him, him now walking toward you.

"How are ya, darlin? We sure have missed seeing you around here." John says, pulling you in for a hug. "I'm sorry about your Mom. She was my favorite chef, you know. Well, you might change that."

"Thanks, Mr. Dutton. I missed it here, brings back a lot of memories though." You spoke into his chest.

"Its John, especially to you. You know that. Where's your stuff?"

"It's, uh, in the truck. Should I -" He cuts you off.

"Eh, well have Rip grab it later. Let me just show you where you'll be staying real quick."

John escorts you up a log staircase and to one of the bedrooms. After informing you where everything was, he motioned for you to follow him to the kitchen. Nothing had really changed in the Dutton home. Maybe some updated furniture, but that's about it. You almost felt like it was a time capsule.

The kitchen was small but extremely functional. You walked through, gently grazing your fingers across the beautiful stove. You turned to meet John's gaze.

"Things have changed a bit, but this will work for you, right?" He asked.

"Absolutely." You said with a smile.

"I'll leave you to it." He said, turning and walking away.

You pulled ingredients from the fridge and various cupboards, chopping and prepping. You began to feel the frustration build in you from not knowing your way around the kitchen. You grabbed a bottle of beer from the fridge, popped the top, and chugged as much as you could down in one gulp.

You tilted your head back to finish the bottle and turned to put it in the sink, only to be met with another body next to you. There stood Kayce with his back and hands leaning on the counter, smiling cheekily at you.

"Just like I remember." He said.

"Hi, Kayce." You replied, placing the bottle in the sink and going back to the stove.

"You know, I thought I was seein' a ghost." He laughed. "What're you doing here?"

Not taking your eyes from the stove, you replied. "You're looking at the new chef. I'm filling in for Gator while he's gone."

He nodded with pursed lips. "Well, I'm gonna go get washed up."

You turned and nodded with a smile, as he began to walk away. Why was Kayce here? Last you heard he was living on the reservation with Monika.

You filled large serving dishes with the meal for the night and began to place them in the middle of the table, in front of John, Kayce, and Beth.

"Enjoy, guys." You forced a quick nod, wiped your hands on your apron, and moved to leave the room.

"Y/N, stay. Eat. Please. You're not just a chef here. You're family." John spoke.

"Oh...okay. Uh, thank you." You said meekly, pulling your apron over your head and laying it over the back of a chair. Kayce slid the chair next to him out and gestured for you to sit. You obliged.

As you sat and ate, everyone caught up with each other's lives and reminisced about the good times that were had years ago. You noticed that your wine glass never seemed to be empty, but you didn't mind. There were a lot of emotions going on, so a little numbness was welcomed.

You couldn't help but notice that Kayce continually touched your shoulder with his, and you seemed to be the focus of his attention tonight. During dinner, you found out why Kayce was here, and not with his wife and son. He expressed that Monika wanted nothing to do with the ranch and didn't feel it was a good place for Tate. She told him she needed space.

As dinner finished, you piled the family's plates on top of yours and began to balance them into the kitchen, only to realize upon standing that you were much more inebriated than you thought. Before you could even stop it, one plate fell right after the other; shattering on the ground.

The tears began to flow, out of embarrassment and fear combined. You quickly dropped to your knees and attempted to pick up the tiny pieces scattered all around. Unknowingly, while picking up the shards of plates, you were also cutting small slices into your hands. You felt hands on your shoulders.

"Y/N? What happened? Stop, stop. It's okay." Kayce shouted.

You stood and brought your shakey hands over the sink, small drops of blood dripped into the basin.

"I thought I could do this. I thought I could come back here. I figured it'd been enough time. I didn't know it would hurt so much. Between everything that happened with you. And now with Mom..." You cried.

Kayce stepped behind you, his chest pressed to your back. He turned on the faucet, took your hands in his, and gently rinsed each finger and cut slowly. You leaned your head back against his collarbone, wincing at the water stinging your nerves.

After he finishes rinsing your hands, he turns you around and blots your hands tenderly with clean paper towels.

"You know, I hate how much I care about you." Kayce's eyes burn into yours, scanning from right to left continually.

He balls his hand into a fist and speaks through clenched teeth, "because I know..." he pauses.

He loosens his stance and hangs his head sighing, "I shouldn't."

You rest your forehead on his.

"Why?" You ask.

You both pull away to face each other, the eye contact almost unbearable.

"Because I fucked up...I fucked up a long time ago. And if I didn't, well, maybe things would've been different." He shook his head and stared out the window behind you. "I wouldn't trade Tate for the world. But I don't know why I didn't just speak up. I didn't want to be with Monika. But we were having a baby, what was I supposed to do?"

"Hey, you did the right thing." You cupped his face in both your hands, forcing him to look at you again. "You were having a baby! What else were you supposed to do?"

"I was supposed to be with you. I wanted to be with you. I love you, Y/N. There's no one else I ever saw myself making a life with." He lamented.

You moved your arms to drape over his shoulders, memories of that night flooding back to you again. In the same fashion, Kayce hooked a finger under your chin to align his lips with yours. Warmth flowed to your cheeks. His lips met yours, soft and tender. It felt like home.

MASTERLIST

[gtzel]

Without the Sun- a Nico Di Angelo GT Fanfiction

I. Undead Mice Bring Me Kit-Kats

First/previous/next

It's just a crush, how bad could it be? This was my mindset before everything went wrong. If you think this book will be some kind of sweet sappy romance novel, then by all means close it and go back to whatever you were doing before you decided to read it. Mine is a story that you probably don't want to read. Honestly I wouldn't even be writing it if it wasn't that i felt it was absolutely necessary to inform the young of my kind of the woes they will endure. You may be thinking "Oh please, you cant have it all that bad, your just a kid" and only the ladder would be correct. You see, I'm not just any kid, oh no, I'm worse, and I've gone through things I can guarantee that you've never even imagined. So turn back, look away, unless you want to go through the rollercoaster of emotions that is my life.

    My name is Nico Di Angelo, and this is the story of how I lived, when everyone I loved died. It all started about two weeks ago. The people previously living in my house decided to move out suddenly for no apparent reason.

    My mom later found out that they had been evicted which, basically means that they weren't paying to stay there anymore and had to be kicked out. I had asked my mom why we weren't evicted. You see, we don't technically pay to live in this house. In fact, the owners don't even know we exist. No, we aren't ghosts, though those also live here, we are Borrowers.

    Let me explain, we Borrowers are tiny people about as tall as your finger, we live in the walls and borrow things you won't miss. And yes, I already asked my mom if it was counted as stealing. The answer is no because its so small you won't even notice, so don't get petty.

    Anyway, I had been out playing with my sister Bianca while my mom was out gathering supplies. We were playing that we had seen the human kids playing when we heard the sound of a car rolling up the driveway.

    "Nico, we have to go" my sister whispered as she grabbed my wrist and pulled me into the nearby brush.

    "Wait Bianca, I want to see what it is." I said breaking from her grasp as I ran to see what was happening.

    I ran over to the corner of the massive house and peeked over the side to try and catch a glimpse of who was coming. A red '78 Camaro was parked in the driveway. There was an awful stench emitting from the car, like gasoline and burnt cigars. A fat man who honestly looked- and smelled- like someone who hadn't bathed in years, he had maybe three hairs on his head that were slicked to the side with globs of hair gel. I already didn't like him.

    "hey sally, you and the kid unpack while I get the guys over to play poker, and don't be loud!" The ugly man snarled as he lumbered into the house.

    after seeing the man, I dreaded what the others looked like, but to my surprise, the woman who emerged from the passengers side was actually really pretty. She had golden brown hair and eyes that sparkled with kindness. She reminded me a lot of my own mom, but bigger. For a human she actually seemed decent. Sally- I recall that was her name- walked to the trunk of the car and began to open it.

    Then the third began to emerge from the car, I had only caught a glimpse of his jet black hair when I was suddenly. Tugged back by my arm.

    "Nico, you cant just run for like that, what if someone saw you?" My big sisters panicked but stern expression made me drop my gaze.

    "Sorry, I was just curious" I muttered guiltily.

    "it's okay, but you have to be more careful next time." She looked back to where I had been "common, we need to get home before mom gets too worried" she said gesturing to the entrance near the sewage drain.

    We walked to the entrance and bianca went in first, but before I entered I looked back and gasped. There all the way on the other side of the house, peeking out from behind the corner wall, was a little boy. The human child had the most piercing sea green eyes, he looked about thirteen and his skin was a beautiful hue of olive. He was staring right at me, his eyes wide as saucers, and mouth agape in shock.

    Startled, I broke the gaze and quickly darted into the entrance. Bianca was not too far away from me and walking with her back to me. I shook my head and tried to act normal as I ran up to meet her, but I couldn't get that boys face out of my head.

    "What took you so long?" She inquired as I caught up with her out of breath.

    "Thought I-" I huffed "saw something" I took in a sharp breath "gods, why are you so fast?"

    My sister laughed "its only because your so little, don't worry, when your big like me you'll be the fastest borrower ever" she patted my head lightly ruffling my hair in the process.

    "even faster then you?" I asked eagerly, filled with a new desire to run.

    "maybe~" she said before yelling "tag!" And racing off.

    "hey that not fair" but all she did was keep running and giggling.

    Once I finally got home Bianca was sitting at our dinner table happily slurping up soup my mom had made. My mom was working in the kitchen and she smiled when she saw me.

    "Nico darling, could you pass me the Basel leave please?" She said, and her eyes crinkled in a warm comforting way when she smiled. I reached over to our pantry box and sorted through it until I found the Basel, then i handed it to my mom "Thank you dear, why don't you go join your sister at the table, your dinner will be ready soon"

    I walked over and sat down next to my sister "why'd you ditch elite that?" I scowled at her.

    "it was just a joke" she giggled "but I'm sorry or ditching you, I just wanted to show you that you're not faster then me yet" she smiled sweetly and I sighed in defeat.

    "it's okay,just don't do it again k?"

    "okay," she said.

    My mom brought the food to the table and sat down, we all ate together. And for that moment everything was perfect. After I went to bed though I just couldn't get those eyes out of my head, something about them. They were striking like they knew things, so many things, yet still so innocent.

    I tossed and turned for a few hours but just couldn't get to sleep. It had always been something I struggled with. Finally I gave up on sleep and walked out to get some fresh air. If I couldn't sleep i could at least practice.

    The night air was risk and chilly, but not uncomfortably so. I stood on the space between thee entrance of our house and the grass of the side yard. I exhaled a focused breath and held out my hand palm down and focused on the dark aura coming from the ground.

    Then it began to happen, a light rumbling coming from the ground. Small bones began to emerge and collect themselves together until they finally created a complete skeletal mouse, with glowing orbs where the eye sockets were.

    "Welcome Prince of Darkness, how can we serve your highness?" They both spoke in complete unison which, yeah I get it, a little creepy, but thats just my life.

    "I need you take me inside the house, I trust you know a way" I spoke with complete confidence. Now that I think about it, I was a freaky eleven year old, raising the dead and all. The mice nodded then let me mount one of their skeletal backs.

    We set off, the mice were quite happy to be able to run again. That's one thing I've found about the dead, they are usually pretty cool with helping you out as long as they get to be sort-of-alive again. Though there was this one guy who kept talking about getting revenge on some Di-noi-ssi-us guy, I didn't really understand him all that much so I just. Buried him again.

    We hadn't been going very far when I spotted my target, a Kit-Kat bar that had been dropped beneath the counter. I ordered the other undead mouse to carry it and they obliged, then we continued on. I really wanted to see that boy again when he couldn't see me. We searched around the whole house and finally found him in the room to the far right of the front door.

    The mice helped me get unto a nearby empty bookshelf that had been recently moved. I looked down to the corner of the rom where the boy's cot lay, with him sleeping in it. It's not stalking if it's for research right? I watched his relaxed breaths as he dreamed peacefully. I opened the kit-kat bar as quietly as i could and began munching on it as I observed the boy.

    In the moonlight his lips looked soft and his hair lightly brushed across his face. I sighed longingly, I wondered what it would be like to be his size, or even better, his friend. I began to zone out but snapped back to reality when I heard a sharp intake of breath from the human boy. I looked to see what he was looking at. Crap.

    One of the mice was skittering around not a foot away from his face. I observed as he carefully snatched up the undead mouse, and examined it as it crawled around his hand. He giggled quietly as he tiny mouse touched noses with him. The sound was like the freshness o a morning breeze. A quiet sigh escape my lips, he was perfect. I wished that I could be in the mouses place.

    "Hey there little guy" he spoke softly, and his voice was so beautiful. "Where'd you come from, and how are you moving?" The mouse didn't reply, simply sniffing his hands instead.

    I rested my hand behind me but froze when I heard a crinkle behind me.

[sotwk]

Hi!

OC Matchmaker with my latest OC.

Her name is Faelivrin—everybody calls her Fae—and she's the third child and second daughter of Faramir (his second biological child). Her older siblings are Elboron and Elenna "Enna" (my main OC in my current WIP "The Lady of Ithilien"). As Éowyn died giving birth to Elboron, Faelivrin is the daughter of Finduilas of Lamedon (my OC, youngest daughter of Angbor the Fearless). Theirs is an arranged marriage Faramir accepts because of *things that happen* and for Finduilas is basically a gift from the Valar since she's pushing 30 and still unmarried (it is my headcanon that Gondorians marry VERY young and all of her older sisters are already married with children while she's still a maid at 28/29).

Facts about Faelivrin "Fae":

• She absolutely adores her older sister Enna. The feeling is mutual and Enna, despite her many issues and things she has to deal with, tries her best to be a good sister. She and her mother try to raise her as a proper lady and Enna will be an extremely hands-on sister as far etiquette and protocol are concerned. Though they won't see much of one another because of *things that happen* (if you want spoilers, you're very welcome to text me privately, but I don't want to spoil the story for those who are interested and may have not read the chapters that I've already posted), they'll remain very close throughout their lives. Fae also worships Elboron who's of course very protective of her and jokingly disapproves of all her suitors.

• She's Faramir's little baby and he worships the ground she walks on and their bond gets stronger as time goes by. As Enna falls out with basically almost her entire family, Fae becomes his only comfort. She's his baby, his happy place and his sunshine. She loves it when he reads to her and she'll become one of few reasons he still keeps going after some of his grandchildren, his son-in-law (Eönwë, Enna's husband. Yes, the Herald of Manwë. There's a Middle-earth Maiarin/Noldorin invasion in the Fourth Age basically) and *possibly* some of his grandchildren by Enna die (courtesy of a Maia with a fascination for smithing and jewelry).

• She loves singing (Enna taught her) and one of her favorite songs to hum is the lullaby Enna used to sing to her. She's also very good at drawing and sewing. Also, similarly to her beloved older sister, she's a historian and would read every book ever written by anyone. She's a decent dancer too.

• She's tall with dark hair and blue/gray eyes (not much else to add about that. She probably has a birthmark somewhere)

• She wears a pearl necklace with the initials of her siblings. She loves pearls.

That's her teenage/early adult version (she looks particularly young. Actress: Isla Merrick-Lawless)

I'm not including an adult version because, although I have a vague idea of how she might look like, I'm still unsure. I was thinking of Jennie Jacques (Princess/Queen Judith in the show "Vikings" but I'm not 100% convinced yet. I'll keep her as an option and I'm still on the lookout for someone else. It should be someone who wears a lot of pearls 🤣)

That's all for now! Thank you!

Oooh! It's tricky to find a match for a young Fourth Age character, since most canon characters even named or mentioned past the War of the Ring have sparse details written about them (but you know all this, since you write mostly for the Fourth Age!). Only my Éomer fic is set post RotK, but as it happens I do have an "obscure canon" that I would like to propose for a match!

The SotWK Matchmaking Machine pairs Faelivrin with:

HALETH, Son of Háma!

In the SotWK AU, Haleth (movie character) not only survives the Battle of Helm's Deep, but he also becomes the squire of Éomer King himself! His career as a Rider only continues to rise from there, as he earns himself plenty of honor on the battlefield. Taking after his father, Haleth is brave and kind, and fiercely loyal to Rohan.

It would take quite a bit of charm for someone not from Rohan to win this Rohan loyalist's heart, but Fae has beauty and grace, so who knows? I think the bigger issue would be whether her family would allow her to love a "lowly" rough-around-the-edges cowboy from Rohan--even if he does become one of Éomer king's most trusted and formidable soldiers.

(Note: This picture of Haleth is of Callum Gittens, the very same actor who played him in the Two Towers movie! He grew up WELL didn't he??)

Thank you for trusting me to match up your OC! :)

This OC Matchmaking game is part of SotWK's Summer Campfire Sleepover 2024. (Requests accepted only on July 11-15, 2024.)

[ms-nesbit]

moulin rouge (chapter 2 of empire records)

a jason todd x reader fic

summary: reader and jason embark on their second date at the Gotham Library, where Jason indulges reader on a secret.

rating: 18+ (minors kindly fuck off)

warnings: masturbation, sex worker!jason todd, cam model!jason todd, reader is plus/mid size

ao3

note: please support by reblogging, and don't be a dick by reposting elsewhere! thank you so much!

Whistling wind carrying Jason’s loose strands of hair to and fro on his head, mimicking a wind vane atop a tall barn, he strolled peacefully toward the brick building’s double doors, pulling them wide open (without the assistance of the turbulence - wretched equinox) before entering.

Jason was no stranger to the library, and he nodded to the librarians at the circulation desk, who (uncharacteristically) stopped to all wave at him; he was a frequent patron, and attended whatever event he was able. “High noon, Fred!” he beamed at the security guard upon passing through the theft-deterrents that failed to draw up to Jason’s figure, making it to his torso.

Fighting his instinct to tread to the third floor and sit in his unassigned seat near the retired fireplace, Jason planted his steel-toed feet to the ground, second guessing his outfit choice. “Oh, look at you!” A librarian walked by, commenting on Jason’s attire. “Are you going out this evening, Mr. Todd?”

“Just have someone I’m seeing in a few minutes, Luz.” Jason replied, wiping down his mahogany button up. “How ya doin, though?”

Luz stopped her mission to the circulation desk, various media in hand, as she pondered, sticking out one of her mustard flats. “Probably nothing as exciting as what you’ve got going on. Oh, to be young!” she suspired jokingly, walking away. “Good luck!”

“Thank you!” From a young age, Jason was taught by his adoptive father’s butler to speak to elders with respect, especially in a formality such as the library. He disagreed with many of his father’s views, eventually leading to the pair having a final quarrel before Jason’s departure from Wayne Manor and into the Gotham flats.

In fact, it was why Jason stumbled into camwork in the first place: he found himself quitting each and every dead-end shift, arguing with the boss or co-workers. Jason was a hothead, escalating otherwise mundane and calm situations simply because he was tired of feeling trapped by others. 

Perhaps y/n felt that way, too. Even if she hadn’t, it seemed she respected his space, something that most close to him refused to do. “Jason?” he responded to the voice behind him like a dog upon his owner’s arrival, tail wagging. When he turned, his eyes laid on y/n, wearing knee-high platform boots, sienna tights underneath an umber A-line skirt decorated with paperclips, a rust-colored top under a leather jacket, and a thick knitted scarf in deep brown.

Y/n was an angel rejected from heaven, bestowed upon Jason, and he could not shake the downright corrupt images that projected in his mind. “Wow.” he said, hiding the other words under his tongue for later.

Y/n checked him out unabashedly, licking her lips. “I could say the same, Jaybird. What do you wanna do here? Read me a bedtime story?” she wiggled her eyebrows comically, triggering a blush from the tall man before her.

“Well, you chose somewhere you go to often, so now it’s my turn. May I?” Jason extended his elbow for y/n to take, and led them to the elevator, where Jason punched the Four that was missing its vowels on the button.

If it wasn’t for the guidelines previously set, y/n would have jumped his bones in the elevator, ignoring the security cameras that would have recorded the uncensored evidence. “So you come here often?” the sentence was worded deliberately, a juxtaposition to her compassionate voice.

“I have since I was little. Helped a lot to just disappear in a story, as much as it sounds like a line for a goddamn Hallmark greeting card.” Jason rolled his eyes at himself.

“What did you read?”

The elevator dinged and doors opened, gesturing for y/n and Jason to vacate the confined space. Jason led y/n past the rows of encyclopedias and historical archives and into a crossroads of shelves divided by a set of armchairs. He walked at a sharp angle with y/n, leading her away from the world and into his nook, where his lounge chair waited for him.

And there it was, in front of the decommissioned fireplace. Jason pulled out the other chair for y/n, which she sat in, before pushing it lightly and sitting in the one adjacent to hers. Immediately, as if at home, he reclined and shut his eyes, inhaling deeply.

Y/n watched closely as he made himself comfortable. His lips parted and adam’s apple bobbed, reminding her of the videos she stared at the night before, Jason’s hand slowly stroking his cock, head thrown back, letting out guttural, obscene noises. Y/n shifted uncomfortably in her seat, moisture collecting in her underwear.

“When I was a kid, I thought librarians lived here.”

The confession came out of nowhere, and it drew a chuckle from y/n. “Like with teachers?”

Jason nodded. “Yep. And I, for some fucking reason, built this fort in the corner by the fire exit. I remember my dad and Alfred looking for me for hours, even calling the police because they thought I ran away again.” he smiled, eyes still closed, and it warmed y/n’s bosom. “One officer came right by me and put out his hand for me to take, and I was freaking out, y’know? ‘Cause fuck cops, right?” Y/n nodded in solidarity. “And I bit his hand. I bit it.”

Y/n erupted into laughter, which was quickly hushed by Jason. “No fucking way.”

“Way.” Jason’s eyes shot open and looked directly at y/n with as much seriousness as he could. “And he cussed and swore, saying ‘fuck’ this and ‘fuck’ that, and it was the funniest shit I went through. Though at the time I was scared shitless because I just wanted to stay and sleep in the librarians’ home and see what they did after the library closed.”

Y/n gazed at Jason. She swore she heard a harp playing. “That is so dorky, but so…fucking romantic.” The response caused Jason to grin at y/n shyly, smile lines forming on his cheeks. “What happened?”

“Al‒my butler‒found me and talked me down from it. A couple of weeks later, he spoke with the district director, and they arranged for me to have a sleepover.”

“And?”

Jason took y/n’s hand in hers, bringing it to his lips to place a small kiss on the underside of her hand. “I pissed my pants in the sleeping comforter.”

Falling forward, y/n laughed silently, wheezes and snorts disturbing the peaceful atmosphere. She couldn’t contain herself, and why should she? Jason adored how pleasantly she felt in her skin, and it showed in that moment: her bright smile, full cheeks, broad hips wiggling in her seat…she’s an open book, and it inspired him to do the same.

But he hesitated. It was the battle he faced, him and his fears: he didn’t want to repeat the past, spend another week isolated and hiding from the sun in an attempt to starve and deprive himself from sanity. Jason knew he was attractive - his followers and bank account reflected it - but he was used for it. Misled, and then taken advantage of, and for what? Momentary bliss? Clout?

A cloud formed over his head as he began to swim in the pool of decrepit thoughts that gathered in him. Why was he used? Why wasn’t he enough? Would y/n treat him the same way? Paranoia was his kryptonite, but it was hardwired in him from his early childhood years spent in the streets, abused by his biological parents.

Y/n saw the gloominess ruminating on the tall man beside her, and she halted her laughter, cupping his chin with her hand. Jason felt the touch, skin burning hot, as he faced her. “I once was jealous of Ally Snow, the horse girl of our fourth grade class, so I accidentally committed arson to her camp bunk site.”

Jason’s jaw dropped, skies in his mind clearing before a funnel cloud could form. “Arson?!”

“Mmhmm.” Y/m hummed. “I was lucky that: a) Ally’s camp counselor bailed that night, because I may have miscalculated and lit fire to the counselor’s bunk, and b) nobody found the culprit.” her eyes may have been the blaze of fire itself with the way she glared at the ground in immense passion.

Jason patted her hand, her nails now clawing at his cheek. He temporarily thought of her nails digging into his back while he… he blinked away the thought. “So you weren’t caught?”

Y/n shook her head. “And I got to watch my best friend, Yessica, punch her in the fucking face the following fall.”

They sat in their chairs, alighting the fireplace with their embarrassing stories, taking turns laughing and poking fun at each other. Before they realized, the library announced its closing time soon, and they gathered themselves, exiting the library in a fit of giggles. The librarians at the circulations saw this, and exchanged knowing looks, telling without words being spoken.

“Can I see you again soon?” it was y/n’s turn to ask when they stepped down from the platform of the library.

Jason stepped forward, closing the gap between them as he pulled her into a kiss, their lips locking instantly. “Anytime.” he grinned when he pulled away, their faces mere inches from each other.

—-

One notification. 

Y/n checked her phone as she closed her loft door, tossing her keys on the kitchen table nearby. Do you want to do something specific for our next date? Food? Entertainment? Guns? Riots?

Y/n smiled and rolled her eyes at the question. I’m down to clown at a riot. Maybe a clown riot? Dunno how that would go though.

A reply appeared. Fuck clowns. I’d rather be dead than be seen with one. How about a cemetery for our next date? Picnic?

Abso-fucking-lutely. y/n agreed, her heart fluttering at the idea of a moonlit picnic at the Gotham cemetery. She spun as she held her phone close to her chest, before another notification appeared.

Robin Hood is now live! Tap to check in now.

Thoughtlessly, y/n tapped the badge on her phone, opening an app she downloaded a few days ago to streamline Jason’s webcam streams.

The stream began in a dimly lit room with tools hung on the wall in the background. Y/n squinted at the array of tools, recognizing the brand. “You gonna make me beg, Baby? Make me beg to come? Hmm?” the words shook y/n, no longer distracted by the Craft tool kit hanging neatly on the wall, and eyes fixating on the tall brunette stripping himself from his button up and slacks.

Y/n watched closely, so closely, she worried, she didn’t blink - she soaked in the sight of Jason’s fingers finagling with his own clothes, revealing himself to her in an intimate way as he spoke so titillatingly. For a man with an intimidating figure, he was so submissive, and y/n wanted to explore it as much as he allowed.

Right now, it was about him though, and Jason was already stripped from his slacks, which gathered by his ankles on the ground, his shirt unbuttoned, but still worn. “Come on, Princess. Make me come, please.” the begs were earlier than last time, and y/n hoped she was the source, listening with open ears for her name to be called, chanted so beautifully like last time.

He didn’t stroke his cock this time, either; he thrusted into it, head tilted back to expose his neck, the adam’s apple bobbing again. He donned a flushed face that was so euphoric, y/n wished he could open his eyes so she could swim in his glossed over irises. “‘M gonna come, fuck.” his breath wavered, thrusts methodical but ruthless.

It was obvious he wanted y/n, and the feeling was mutual, y/n resisting the urge to touch herself until after she saw him reach his breaking point. And it was soon. “G-god,” he whispered shakily, “y/n” he was louder with the name, calling to her as if she was watching, “please let me come.” the words carried so much weight, so heavy as they fell into y/n’s ears, as if he wanted her to tell him to come.

And she opened up the chat, which was flooded with comments about the ‘mystery girl’ Jason was thinking about, or sexual compliments that made her blush. Wanting the command to be more intimate, she opted for a text message instead: come for me, Jason. Let me see you come.

His phone chimed and he read the notification, his hips increasing with speed. “You like seeing my cock like this? Want me to come? I’m gonna come so hard for you.” his grip tightened around his cock as he pistoned his hips, mouth falling open as moans filled the room. “Oh, y/n,” he whined, “yes!” he whimpered, voice unsteady as his hips finally slowed, cum spilling from his cock. His orgasm was powerful, taken from him too soon - yet not soon enough for him - and the sight of his blissed out state was too much for y/n to handle, who rushed to her bed to rub her clit at the thought of him.

[ariadnew]

CTJL 2021: FINALE, PART I

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

2021! I have become aware that it is now 2023, yes, thank you. I promise I am sufficiently ashamed of myself. But not a lot happens in my game these days, which means big things need to be celebrated bigger than usual... which, if you’re me, means you end up confusing your ambitions with your capabilities and end up squashed and discouraged beneath the weight of all the visions you couldn’t achieve, with several painful WIPs relegated to your blackest, backest project folders to show for it.

Fun!

Story-related stuff below the cut, if you’re into that.

Despite missing the opening show in Rio de Janeiro, the little Lowmax team managed to end the 2021 season with two riders on the podium! (Nobody was as shocked as I was) Archie & Speakeasy were awarded champion of the 1.30m class and second place overall, while Agatha & Poquelin won the 1.50m class and were hot on their heels in third place overall. Considering they were pipped by Elizabeth Howell, the face of the tour and arguably, the current face of show jumping itself, being the first losers wasn’t too tough!       Archie (who was almost as tall as Liz while she stood atop the towering first place position, much to the amusement of the press) was ever the professional- and frankly, ever himself- graciously shaking Liz’ hand and offering sincere congratulations, as well as the promise of a celebratory drink at the gala later on. Anyone who can manage to perform so well so consistently is deserving of as much in his book, but the fact Elizabeth (because you know he’s calling her ‘Elizabeth’ and not ‘Liz’) is managing it while still so young is rather impressive. As for Agatha...

There would be those who’d say she was jealous. But there are those who say a lot of things about Agatha. (”She looks like a hair yanker.”) (”Speaking to her is like a near-death experience.”) (”She’d eat him alive.”) (”I’d never want to meet her.”) (”Officially terrifying.”) (”Her favourite food is probably crisp charcoal.”) (...) In truth, yes: being beaten by someone younger than her wasn’t exactly thrilling, and being beaten by Archie again was adding insult to injury (even if it had privately been expected) But Agatha’s comparatively subdued demeanour had little to do with envy, and everything to do with her self-expectations. Self-expectations, and a hollow sort of feeling where there should have been excitement.

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

Big thanks to @calveroterranorasj for collaborating with me, and for allowing me to participate in the CTJL in the first place! I genuinely had a blast travelling the globe with the team and rubbing shoulders with the different characters out in the world. 

Fun bit of trivia for you: all those things ‘said’ about Agatha are all real things said at some point by my so-called friends. I’d be offended if I didn’t find them so amusing. The charcoal one in particular- courtesy of @kullabergs, who has a unique talent for insulting Agatha- has a permanent place in my head. Makes me smile every time. Ridiculous. I can’t even be mad about it.

Finally, I’m just going to say before anyone else asks: contrary to popular belief (the popular belief being that held by 3 out of the 4 people who’ve seen these photographs) Archie is not, in fact, proposing marriage to the 2021 CTJL Champion, Elizabeth Howell.

IT’S A GENTEEL HANDSHAKE, GUYS.

Honestly. 🙄

[everlark777]

holding you is like the new past

next / original post

chapter one

“shots, shots, shots” the screaming was ear splitting.

i threw back my third shot of the night as my eyes found mikasa and felt the grin spread from ear to ear. she was the one familiar face in a crowd of at least a hundred people that i would be spending the next four years of my life with.

i found myself taking my jacket off and throwing it on a counter with no regard to how i would find it later. i couldn’t tell if the temperature rising was from the amount of bodies in the room or the alcohol in my system.

energy was running rampant, the adrenaline high of the people in the vicinity had me feeling bubbly as i made my way through the crowd to where mikasa was standing.

“you are so getting plastered tonight,'' mikasa screamed over the music.

“that was in fact the plan.”

the room had definitely started spinning more than it was just seconds prior, and i had begun to lose my bearings of the room around me when mikasa reached out and put her hand on my arm to steady me, “woah, how many shots have you had? might want to start slowing down”

my wide grin turned into a pout, “okay, mom.”

i snapped a hand over my mouth. immediately as i said that i could hear the slur in my voice and knew that mikasa was right. one more shot in such a short amount of time would surely lead to a blackout.

mikasa had her arm around my shoulder, keeping me steady, guiding me through the crowd. i took in my surroundings again watching as people entered and exited the room. all dressed differently, all living their separate lives. i would get to know and work with at least a dozen of these people. it felt weird like i could tell this was an actual path i was stepping on. i felt mikasa’s grip move from around my arm down to my wrist pulling me to an abrupt stop. figuratively and mentally.

i looked over at mikasa to see what that was about to find her almost frozen in place.

“OH MY GOD, did you see him? '' mikasa's eyes widened like saucers. “that has to be the most attractive man I have ever seen in my life.” mikasa was practically ecstatic with joy.

“where?” i frantically looked around trying to catch a glimpse at who she was so excited about.

the crowd surrounding me was much larger than before but i followed mikasa's hand as she pointed out a taller guy with short brown hair. he was mikasa's type to a tee. tall, lanky and probably an asshole.

“he’s definitely your type” i offered halfheartedly.

“see this is why we are friends, we will never have to fight over a man” and that's when i noticed the guy standing behind him with his back against the wall.

i took in his medium length blonde hair and black rimmed glasses. he was cute in his own way. a rare kind of cute. he looked kind and he had an expression of boredom like coming to this event was not by choice. the way he stood was almost casual but i noticed the awkwardness in the way he held his arms. he definitely did not want to be here.

“he’s going to take shots, come on.” mikasa pulled my wrist and suddenly i was being pulled through a crowd of people with no remorse for my heavy stumbling and sudden clumsiness. as i reached the table, mikasa was looking up at you with puppy dog eyes and you knew what she wanted.

“hey, would you mind if we took shots with you?” i hoped he heard me so i wouldn’t have to repeat myself because thinking too much on the matter would make me overthink taking another shot.

without a word he poured two shots and slid them down to the both of you. “sup, names eren”

his arrogance fit him. the words slid off his tongue like confidence was all he had ever known. i got why mikasa felt drawn to him but i found myself taking quick glances at the blonde standing less than ten feet away.

“hey, i’m mikasa” her once strong headed personality faded into a stuttering mess.

eren didn’t seem to pay much attention to her and turned to the blonde to bring him over to the table. i quickly picked up the shot glass and held it up to tap against mikasa’s glass before tossing it back. i hated the taste and made a face and laughed at the embarrassing trait.

looking at mikasa i could tell she was waiting for her in to talk to eren, and that’s when one of my favorite songs came on.

the alcohol was settling in my stomach so i didn’t think much about what i did next. i sized up the blonde one last time and walked over to grab his hand.

“let’s go dance” i eagerly grabbed the blonde’s hand and drug him out to the middle of the floor where other people were dancing. he acted surprised like no one outside of eren talked to him at parties like this.

a faint blush spread across his face “i’m armin”.

armin, the name suited him, his voice was cute, he was cute.

“hey sorry for this. i guess it was kind of weird to just drag you out here. i didn’t even ask if this was okay.” i knew the embarrassment would hit in the morning but right now my favorite song was playing and i wanted to dance.

“no it’s fine, it just surprised me” he was being nice about it. of course he was being nice.

i offered him a faint smile but the moment felt tense like whatever happened next was completely out of my control.

he wasn’t a dancing type, his once hidden awkwardness as he was standing still became prevalent when he was forced into the middle of the room. conversation slipped my mind, but i was used to this. the gut feeling when i knew there was nothing else to say, but armin saved the day.

“so what’s your major?”

“i’m a bio major with a concentration in mechanisms of disease”

“no shit me too”

a smile spread across my face. i would be seeing him around, maybe this wasn’t such a bad idea. i needed more friends than just mikasa after all.

“let me guess someone in your family died too?”

he had a questioning look on his face and you thought maybe this wasn’t the best choice of words.

“damn guess no one has individual experiences” he grinned and i realized i had more in common with him than i thought i would.

“or maybe we just have a lot in common? favorite color 3…2…1”

“blue,” you both said in unison.

“totally unfair, you heard what I was going to say.” armin protested.

“you totally waited until you heard me say bl and then finished with me.” i said feigning innocence.

“how in the world would I have done that? you gave me no reason to think that we were supposed to say it together.”

“okay fair, fair,” i glanced over to check on mikasa and eren and saw that mikasa was alone and eren was nowhere to be found. i guess armin thought i was looking for a way out because from the corner of my eye i saw his smile fade.

“it’s okay you can go back to your friend, guess talking about school isn’t what you want to be talking about at a party,” armin seemed as if he might be disappointed. his smile had faded and he tried to play it off as annoyance.

“oh no, I was just checking on my friend to see if she was…” as i turned back i saw that he was gone.

my heart was caught in my throat, i looked around to see where he ran off too, but he was nowhere to be found.

i caught mikasa’s attention and she walked over to where i was standing.

“no luck?”

“none at all, some bitch beat me to him, while i was trying to hype myself up she just swooped right in.”

mikasa had begun to slur her words and i knew she was catching up to me.

“bitches totally ruthless” i shook my head.

“soooo are we going to talk about what just happened with you and the blonde”

“nope, way too humiliating. another shot?”

“another shot!”

as i took my next shot, the rest of the night became hazy and i still don’t quite remember the details.

i figured armin got sidetracked and left. surely i would see him around and talk to him then but that was years ago and i haven’t talked to him since.

[sariahsue]

Let Me Count the Ways

Chapter Thirteen - The Ice Cream Da- Uh, Platonic Outing. As Friends.

[Ch 1] [Ch 2] [Ch 3] [Ch 4] [Ch 5] [Ch 6] [Ch 7] [Ch 8] [Ch 9] [Ch 10] [Ch 11] [Ch 12]

Andre was thrilled to see them. He gave them both complimentary ice creams, so tall Chat Noir was sure they would fall over before they had a chance to melt, and of course based on each other's costumes. Strawberry, black raspberry, and blueberry for him. Banana, mint, and black vanilla for her.

As they strolled across the bridge and away from the crowd Andre's cart had attracted, Ladybug grabbed his hand, and Chat Noir had his first out-of-body experience.

Mechanically, he kept walking like nothing was wrong. Internally, he was on at least three different planes of existence simultaneously.

One was existential bliss. Their hands fit together perfectly. The sun warmed his face. Their steps echoed down to the water in perfect harmony.

The second was a detached "huh, that's weird" state of calm.

The third was frothing-at-the-mouth hyper analysis. Was he not walking fast enough and she was afraid their ice cream would melt? Could there be a hidden meaning? Did she simply not want to be separated, so she was leading him? Was he squeezing her hand too hard? Was she wishing he was someone else? Were other people seeing this? Was she becoming self conscious?

"Here," she said when they reached the far end of the bridge. She slipped her hand out of his (and took his heart with it) and handed him her ice cream. "Hold this for me and I'll lift us up."

He took it, then registered her words. "What?"

But Ladybug had already grabbed him around the middle and thrown her yoyo. The ground fell away under his feet and his stomach dropped with the sudden lurch, but he thankfully dropped zero desserts. He would have blamed the swing of the yoyo if he had. The press of her hip into his side would have truly been to blame.

From their highrise vantage point, the Seine was wide and dark. The streetlamps below flicked on one by one, creating tiny bubbles of light. The best part was they were much too high to be expected to interact with anyone else. A few people stopped and looked up, but they were too far away for even Chat Noir's enhanced hearing to pick up the camera clicks and yells of hello.

It was nice to sit with her, and to be seen sitting with her, quietly licking their ice creams, knees occasionally bumping together.

It almost felt like a date.

Except for the fact that she had no romantic interest in him whatsoever. He took a big bite of his ice cream, so cold his teeth ached, to keep himself from sighing like the lovesick idiot he probably was.

Ladybug didn't talk much. At first he thought it was because she was eating, but her dangling feet kicked against the side of the building, and whenever she wasn't holding her cone with both hands her free fingers started to drum her leg. She was jittery, and the longer they sat in silence, the worse it got.

So he talked to fill up the space between them. About what he thought Paris looked like tonight and how dumb the latest akumas were and about his favorite desserts. It helped. The longer he talked, the more natural the slope of her shoulders became and the slower the drumming of her fingers.

Even if she didn't return his feelings, hanging out with her like this was nice. For a few minutes, the girl of his dreams gave him her undivided attention and shy smiles. (Maybe he could let his imagination sweep him away a little. Just this once.)

When the sun was completely set and their cones were long gone, it was time to leave. Chat Noir was the first one to stand up. Someone would probably check on him soon, if only to tell him to go to sleep.

"I had fun tonight," Ladybug said, getting to her feet.

"Me, too. Maybe we should do this again sometime?" He motioned to the space between them, in case his meaning wasn't completely clear.

The nightlife of Paris lit up the streets far below them. Ladybug's eyes sparkled in the reflected glow. "I'd love to!"

Two feelings hit him in rapid succession. One was the swoop of excitement, as if he didn't get to see her almost every day already. The other was worry. Why was she so excited to spend time with him? She wasn't feeling lonely in her civilian life, was she?

"Great, it's a date then." He put his hand on her shoulder (instead of her cheek like he wanted to). "I love spending time with you, and I can't wait to see you again." He hoped she heard his sincerity, that it was something she could carry with her when she felt alone. That she would know there would always be someone longing to see her.

Ladybug took a step closer, placing a hand on his shoulder.

He leaned in.

And he turned to offer his cheek for a farewell kiss.

Ladybug's nose rammed into the side of his face.

"I'm sorry!" she squawked. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" She danced back, holding her hands over her nose, and then covering her entire face. "I thought you–"

"It's okay," he said, rubbing his cheek. "I must not have turned enough."

"No, no! You– I didn't think–" Her eyes peeked over the tips of her fingers. The skin above her mask was flushed bright red, all the way up to her hairline. "G-goodnight!"

She left him with many questions. The biggest: He'd been French his whole life. How had he managed to mess up la bise?

---

A/N: I love how they're living in two completely different realities. XD

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