#queue the challenger approaching song

[doctorbitchcrxft]

Reflections | Dean Winchester x Fem!Reader

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Fem!Reader

Warnings: alcoholism, toxic relationship dynamics, mentions/descriptions of smut (MDNI 18+ ONLY), angstangstangst, the crippling reality of being broke and in your twenties, an ambiguous ending! Up to your imagination what happens next :)

Word Count: 5026

A/N: For a lovely nonnie!! This fic hits close to home LMFAO as does the song the fic is inspired by. Not to call you out nonnie but tell me you’ve been in a situationship that ended horribly without telling me you’ve been in a situationship that ended horribly… lol. Anyway, i hope y’all enjoy this absolute angst cesspool of pre-season one Dean!! 

Songs of the fic ! (did anyone else’s exes listen to the trifecta of male manipulator music aka car seat headrest, cigs after sec, and the neighbourhood? bonus points if chase atlantic is thrown in there, too)

Reflections by the Neighbourhood

Casual by Chappell Roan

Working for the Knife by Mitski

It’s Only Sex by Car Seat Headrest

Cry by Cigarettes After Sex

Queue up your favorite music streaming service if you’d like, and have a wonderful read!

Meeting Dean Winchester was among the more wonderful things that happened to you. After graduating from college, your life had been complete hell. Between non-stop job interviews, working shifts at a crappy restaurant job you’d had since sophomore year to be able to pay your rent, and a crumbling relationship with your family, you were drowning. Needing a night off, you decided to go out with a few of your friends. 

It was that night that you met Dean. As soon as you walked into the bar, he caught your eye. He was busy chatting with a pretty blonde with long, toned legs, but you hardly noted her. He was all muscle, tall, freckled, and had probably been sculpted by the gods. 

Men didn’t usually hold your attention. You were too busy and had too many previous relationships with frat boys and abusive idiots to worry about or focus on another one. Dean, however, was different. 

Through the night, you tried to just enjoy your time with your friends, but every piece of you was hoping that the beautiful stranger would come over and talk to you. And finally, finally, your silent prayer came true. 

His confidence was intimidating. Your friends all blushed and giggled when he approached, and your best friend pulled your other two girls away to another table to let you and Dean talk. 

“Your friend seems disappointed,” he said evenly. 

“In what?” you asked, a smile pulling at your lips. 

“That I’m talking to you and not her,” the man replied. 

Oh, god. You knew his type. You knew he’d be horrible for you, but you couldn’t bring yourself to care. “You’re very sure of yourself…” you trailed off, waiting for him to tell you his name. 

“Dean,” he told you. 

“Dean.” The name felt good rolling off your tongue. “Nice to meet you, Dean.”

“Trust me, pleasure’s all mine,” he replied. 

You rolled your eyes playfully. “You can drop the cheesy lines.”

Dean furrowed his eyebrows. 

“C’mon, you know exactly what I’m talking about,” you smirked, taking a sip of your beer.

“Most girls like ‘em,” he said, confidence unwavering. 

“Do you think I’m like most girls?” you asked, eyes challenging and lustful. 

“No,” he smirked. 

***

That night was officially marked in the calendar as the night you had the best sex of your life. Dean was incredibly giving in bed, and he wouldn’t let himself finish until you did. He knew when to be gentle and when to be rough with you, and you appreciated how attentive to your reactions he was. 

After that, Dean came over to your apartment every night for four days. And yet, you still knew very little about him. 

“Where ‘re you from, Dee?” you asked, sitting on the couch across from him with a beer in your hand. 

“Lawrence. In Kansas,” he replied shortly. Dean normally wasn’t as curt with you, and you knew you needed to press further into that.

“We’re a long way from Kansas, Toto,” you joked. “What’s got you out here?” 

“Eh, y’know. My brother’s off at Stanford, my dad’s a dick when he’s not around, and I just needed to get away for a bit,” Dean explained, shrugging. 

“Brother?” you asked. 

A smile spread across his face. “Yeah, uh, Sam’s his name. He’s in undergrad for law. His freshman year.”

“Oh, damn. He must be really smart, then,” you prompted. 

Dean nodded, still grinning. “Yeah, he is.”

“What about you?” you asked.

“What about me?” he replied, taking a sip of his beer. 

“College?” 

He shook his head. “Nah. Dropped out as soon as it was legal to.”

You snickered. 

“What about you? What are you doin’ out here?” Dean asked, sinking further into your couch. Even the way he sat emanated confidence. 

You sighed. 

“Oh, sorry. Didn’t mean to upset you—”

You shook your head. “No, no! It’s okay. It’s just— It’s complicated.” Dean allowed you to collect your thoughts for a moment. “Went to school, got myself a degree, and I graduated last year. And now, I’m barely keeping myself afloat. Applied to tons of places, got interviews at some, and all of ‘em fell through.”

“Oh,” he said quietly. “I’m sorry.”

You shrugged, taking a deep breath. “It’s alright. I’m sure every new grad goes through this shit.”

“What about your family?” Dean asked you. “You close with them?”

You scoffed. “All of them can suck my dick.”

Dean chuckled, clearly caught off-guard. “Jesus. That bad?”

“Absolutely.” You stretched and put your empty beer bottle down on the coffee table. “Life’s not all bad, though.”

“Oh?” Dean prompted. 

“I met you, didn’t I?” you smiled lopsidedly. 

The man chuckled but said nothing. 

Immediately, you felt embarrassed. “Sorry, I— I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable if I did. I know we’re just hooking up, and—”

Dean shook his head. “No, no. It’s okay. Just… I wanna be upfront with you. I’m just rolling through. I’m never gonna be in one place for long.”

Your heart sank. “Oh.”

“It’s nothing against you, trust me. You’re—” Dean cut himself off, sighing. He sat up fully, put his beer down, and turned to face you. “Trust me. It’s not you.” He put his hand over yours, making you look up at him. 

‘Damn his gorgeous face,’ you thought. You would never be able to stay angry with him for too long. You surged forward and pressed his lips to yours, pushing him down on the couch. 

***

If you couldn’t have anything else with Dean, you were going to have sex with him as much as humanly possible. Slowly but surely, he was giving you indications that he was forming feelings for you, too. 

Dean started staying the night around a week into the two of you hooking up. You were pleasantly surprised when he’d hold you while you slept, too. The sex became more passionate as opposed to rough and hard, even though you thoroughly enjoyed both. He asked you questions about your upbringing and your job, and was giving you every signal that he was interested in you for more than just sex. 

And then, he disappeared. You called him several times, but you never got an answer. To say you were crushed was an understatement. 

Even though you’d only known Dean for three weeks, you were falling hard for him. He had an effect on you that no one else did. Dean was kind, compassionate, funny, smart, and although immature at times, he had all the makings of a wonderful man and partner. And just like that, he left. No word, no note— nothing. Just the night before he was telling you how glad he was that he met you. Maybe that should have been a sign that something was wrong, but you supposed hindsight was 20/20. 

At work that day, you were a complete mess of smudged eyeliner, knotted hair pulled back in a claw clip, and puffy eyes from crying. 

“You good, (Y/N/N)?” one of your coworkers asked when she found you on your smoke break. 

The cigarette trembled between your fingers, and tears poured down your cheeks. Your only response was a frantic head nod. 

She gave you a deadpan look. “What’s wrong?” she asked. 

Holding the cigarette away from your face, you scrubbed your hand over your eyes. “Just this fucking guy.”

She grimaced, sucking in air through her teeth. “Shit. That’ll do it.”

“Yeah,” you sniffed. “On top of everything else that’s fucking falling apart in my life, I thought—” you cut yourself off, sighing. “Whatever. He’s a dick.” You took in a deep breath, trying to steel your nerves, and took a puff of your cigarette. You let out all the air and smoke from your lungs and turned to face your friend. “I gotta get back. I’m sure table twenty-five needs another fucking bucket of Michelob.” Having smoked almost the entire cigarette, you dropped it on the ground and stomped out the remaining embers.

Your coworker laughed as you opened the back door to the kitchen for her. “Let me know if you need anything,” she told you. 

Nodding, you smiled in thanks for her kindness.

***

Truthfully, you were drowning. Bills just kept piling up, two more job applications had fallen through, and the restaurant had been slowing down on the weekdays steadily since summer ended. Tips were shitty, and your situation had gotten so bad, you’d need to start working a second job and taking the bus to work. If you couldn’t find a second job or a job your degree suited soon, you were screwed.

After yet another fight with your parents over how much of a screw-up you were in comparison to your brother and sister, you were done. You needed something to numb the world out. None of your friends were able to go out, seeing as it was a weeknight, and they all had “real” jobs. 

And so, you sat on your couch and drank alone. You didn’t want to run up your power bill any more than it would already be this month, so you sat in silence with candles lit as you drank. Your logical mind knew this was a horrible idea— combining emotional exhaustion, fire hazards, and alcohol— but you couldn’t bring yourself to care.

***

Your next late-night escapade with drinking came when you discovered you could numb out the feeling of being hungry with alcohol. The fridge and pantry were virtually empty, and you hadn’t had enough time or spare change to go to the grocery store after barely scraping by on rent and your bills the week prior. 

Drinking also helped you to sleep through breakfast, so the only time you really needed to eat was lunch before going to work. You’d stopped responding to your friends’ texts, and your routine didn’t consist of anything aside from working, drinking, and applying to jobs. 

The weeks droned by, and despite the chaos in your life, your thoughts were still of Dean. Why did he have so much power over you? You didn’t even really know him, and here you were, a complete fucking mess because he left without a word. You knew you couldn’t have been in love with him; maybe infatuation was a better way to describe your feelings for him. 

Finally, your friend, Melanie, came over to drag you out of your misery. She did your hair and makeup, forced you to eat something, and brought you out on a Saturday night with your friend group. Her kindness was very much appreciated, and you thanked her profusely for it. 

Your night out with your friends relit a bit of a fire in you. What kept you on even more of a high note was the interview you had a few days later at a bar. It had gone incredibly well, and the manager told you to expect a call very soon. Hope filled your chest at the thought of being able to have more than just a few cents left in your pocket after the monthly billing period. 

***

You’d done it. You got the job! Your friends took you out once again as a celebration, and you felt like you were finally getting back to your old self. However, that was when your friends noticed something was wrong. You’d never been the friend to get blackout drunk; you were always holding your friends’ hair back while they threw up in the bathroom. And yet, you were as sloppily drunk as ever. 

The next thing to catch their attention was you stumbling over to them with a seemingly arrogant prick’s arm around you. 

“Guys,” you swallowed, “guys! This is…” you trailed off, not exactly sure what his name was. “Sorry, handsome, what’s your name?”

That was when another of your friends, Syriah, pulled you aside and away from the man. “(Y/N), what is wrong with you?” she asked. 

Your eyes were immediately dewey. “What? What’d I do wrong?”

“Babe, you’re all over the place. What’s happening to you?” she asked compassionately, steadying you with her hands on your shoulders. 

Tears slipped down your cheeks. “I don’t know,” you said earnestly, collapsing onto her shoulder when she pulled you into a tight hug. “I don’t like how this feels, Riah.”

She petted your hair and just held you against her. “Look, I’ll get you a cab. We just need to get you home safe, okay?”

You nodded into her shoulder, still hiccuping. 

Once you got back to your apartment, you flopped down across the couch. Against your better judgment, you called Dean. Of course, he didn’t answer, so you left a voicemail. “Hey! Hi, Dee.” Your voice sounded funny because your cheek was pressed against your couch, and you laughed at yourself. “Sorry for calling, I, um—” you swallowed harshly, “I just miss you. A lot. And I don’t know why. ‘Cause I kinda hate you for leaving me, y’know? Like, what the— what the fuck is wrong with you? I’m a catch, okay.” You paused, hiccuping. “And another thing, it’s rude to leave without saying anything. I thought we were better friends than just fuck buddies. Why wouldn’t you— why wouldn’t you say something? Anything?” Sniffles and tears escaped you. “You suck, okay? But also, I miss your dick. Bring it back, okay? But fuck you.” And then, you hung up. 

***

Thankfully, you woke up just in time the next day to get to your new job for training. You looked like a complete trainwreck, but you did your best to smooth out your hair and conceal the bags under your eyes on the bus ride there. 

You went about working absentmindedly and did your best to smile and joke around with your trainer. After an exhausting day with little time to recount the events of the night before, you went back to your apartment to catch up on sleep. However, your nighttime routine was interrupted by frantic knocks on your door. 

“Alright, alright I’m—” You cut yourself off, mouth going slack when you found Dean standing in front of your apartment. 

“Dean?” you breathed out. 

“Hey, sweetheart,” he smirked awkwardly. 

You suddenly snapped yourself out of your surprise and became incredibly angry. “You have a lot of fucking nerve showing up here, do you know that? What the fuck is wrong with you?” 

“I know, I know, I’m sorry. Can we— Can we just talk, please?”

“Why should I even give you the time of day?!” you snarked incredulously. 

“ ‘Cause you told me you miss me. And my dick,” he tried to charm you. 

You scoffed. “What?! No, I didn’t.”

He clicked his tongue. “Yeah, you did. In your voicemail last night.”

Your heart dropped to your stomach as you remembered flashes of leaving that horrifically embarrassing voicemail. “Oh, fuck.” You dropped your face toward the floor, pinching your temples and thinking. “You’ve got five minutes,” you finally told Dean, letting him into your apartment. 

“Look,” Dean began while you closed the door behind him, “I didn’t wanna leave.”

You scoffed again. 

“I know. But I had to,” he explained. 

“Why?” you asked. “If you had to leave, fine, but why couldn’t you at least call me back?”

“Because this isn’t good! For either of us,” he responded, voice rising slightly. 

“Why?!” you pressed. “And what gives you the right to make that decision for me?!”

“Because I can’t give you what you want!” Dean argued. “I can’t stay for longer than a few weeks at a time. I can’t. And I can’t tell you why. And I’m making that decision because I know you won’t make that decision for yourself.” 

“You don’t know me, Dean! We hooked up, for like, two fucking weeks!” you laughed incredulously. “I am perfectly capable of making decisions for myself, thank you!”

“I do know you. God, we are so much alike, and that’s just another reason why we don’t fucking work,” he responded. Then, Dean’s voice quieted considerably. “And, sweetheart, it’s not that I don’t want you. ‘Cause I do.”

“But we can’t see each other. ‘Cause you’ll just leave again,” you nodded, hugging yourself protectively. 

Dean nodded, his hands in his pockets. “I’m sorry I left like I did.”

“I’m sorry I called you,” you told him. 

He shook his head, eyes still fixed to the floor. “Don’t be.” Tears began to cloud your vision, and you couldn’t bring yourself to look at him. “What are you still doing here, Dean?”

He didn’t respond for a moment. When he finally spoke, your breath caught in your throat. “I don’t wanna leave you.”

The next thing you knew, his lips were on yours. Through the rest of the night, the two of you apologized and made up and apologized again with deep kisses, your bodies connecting, and words murmured through shuddering breaths. 

***

To your surprise, Dean was still in your bed the next morning with his arms wrapped around you. As much as you were angry at him for a little over two months, the night you shared and words you exchanged had you forgiving him easily. 

He hummed, alerting you that he was awake, before promptly pulling you closer to him and burying his face in your neck. You giggled as Dean’s breath tickled your neck, and he peppered kisses against your skin.

“Mornin’,” his deep voice rumbled against you. 

“Mm, morning,” you replied, a smile stretching across your face. You bit your lip, and you tugged at Dean’s hair while he sucked a dark mark onto your collar bone. “I better be able to cover that up with my work uniform, or I swear to god, asshole—”

“It’ll be fine,” Dean replied, kissing your collarbone. “You got work today?”

“Yeah,” you sighed. “New job.”

“Oh, wow! Good for you,” he told you, picking his face up from your neck. 

“Eh, just another gig to make ends meet. Bar this time, though.”

“And the other one you work at’s a—”

“Restaurant—”

“—restaurant, right.” 

You smiled at the fact that he remembered. “I’m working, like, fifty hours a week, now. But I gotta keep my lights on, y’know?”

“Jesus, that’s a lot,” Dean grimaced.

“What about you? You never told me what you do for work,” you told him. 

“I don’t,” he replied quickly.

“Oh, god. Just what every girl wants to hear,” you joked. 

Dean chuckled. “My dad’s settin’ me up to take over the family business since Sammy’s off to be a lawyer, or whatever.”

“Family business?” you prompted, hoping he’d explain a little bit more. 

“Yeah,” he responded. You could tell he was dodging your question, but you wouldn’t make him talk if he didn’t want to. “For now, I’m just road-trippin’. Makin’ the most of my youth.”

“Well, I don’t know that hangin’ out with a girl like me is ‘making the most of your youth’,” you joked. 

“What?” he replied. “You’re awesome, what are you talking about?”

You shrugged, getting out of your bed. Dean’s eyes followed you as you moved around your room trying to get yourself ready for the work day ahead. “I mean, I ain’t got much. Two bucks to my name, a useless ass college degree, fifty-thousand dollars in debt, and two siblings with a long list of accolades that make me look like literal sewer trash in comparison.”

Dean nodded. “In case you haven’t noticed, sweetheart, I’m pretty much in the same boat.”

You turned to him while you brushed your hair, struck by his words. “Yeah,” you nodded. “I guess you are.” A smile began to tug at your lips. “Makes me feel a little better knowing I’m not the only disappointment to their bloodline out there.”

Dean laughed. “Amen to that.” He then noticed the bottle of beer you’d pulled from the fridge across the small studio apartment from his position on the bed. “Whoa. Little early for that, isn’t it?”

You shrugged, “It’s five o’clock somewhere, I guess,” and took a large swig. 

***

That day at work had been okay, and you were exhausted when you got back to your apartment. Dean was coming over, but you told him ahead of time that there would be no sex happening since you needed to get up early the next day. He’d given a petulant yet funny response but seemed eager to get over to you. 

And that was how your routine continued for a few days.  He would come over after you got off work, you’d have sex, rinse, and repeat. Then, after a particularly rough day, Dean found you indulging in the binge drinking habit you’d adopted. 

He burst through the door to your apartment concerned only to find you watching the television with a beer in your hand. “Holy shit, (Y/N), why the fuck didn’t you answer?” Dean then seemed to notice the several empty bottles on your coffee table. 

“I just didn’t wanna talk tonight, Dean, take the fucking hint,” you grumbled before finishing off the bottle in your hands. 

“Okay, you’re cut off,” he told you, trying to help you up from the couch. 

You jerked your arm away from him. “Don’t fucking touch me.”

Dean seemed angry, but his expression melted into something else. “How long has this been goin’ on?”

You scoffed. “Why do you care?” The words came out slurred. “You’re not my boyfriend or anything.”

“Dammit, (Y/N), that shouldn’t matter,” Dean insisted. “You know this isn’t good for you, right?”

A laugh escaped you. “You said the same thing about you, and you’re still here, aren’t you?”

That caught Dean off-guard, and he was silent, for once. 

“Just go away, Dean,” you said quietly. 

And he did. 

***

The next day, you were horrified by your actions. You called Dean once; no answer. The second time you called, there was still no answer, but you left a voicemail. “Dean? Dean, I’m so sorry. I— I remember what I said to you last night. God, that was fucking horrible of me. Please come back. I’m so sorry. I’ll, uh, I’ll talk to you later, please?” You hung up, running a hand through your hair. 

You did the only thing you could think to do in the moment and pulled out another beer. Your tolerance had certainly increased since you started binge drinking, and a bottle in the morning had become the equivalent to a cup of coffee. 

Against your better judgment, you called out of work. You needed the money from both shifts you were scheduled for today, but you couldn’t bring yourself to go in. 

Finally, Dean called back. 

“Dean!” you squeaked as soon as you answered the phone. “God, I’m so sorry—”

“I know you are,” he told you. The silence between you was thick; neither of you completely sure what to say. “How long you been actin’ like Lebowski?”

That actually made you laugh despite the perhaps tone-deaf nature of the joke. “Meh, I’ve always liked to drink.” You considered your next words carefully. “It, uh, it started after you left.”

Silence encapsulated the two of you again. 

“I’m so sorry,” was all Dean could say to you. 

“No, no no!” you said. “It’s not your fault. I’m just a fucking mess, ‘s all.”

“Yeah, but if I would’ve picked up the fucking phone—”

“Dean,” you asserted. “It’s not your fault.”

He sighed heavily. “I’ll be over later, okay?”

“Okay.”

You took the day to try and get yourself together a bit. By the time Dean arrived, the apartment was sparkling, the empty beer bottles were picked up, and your hair and face had been washed. 

Dean smirked lopsidedly when he noticed the work you’d been doing. “Good for you, sweetheart.”

***

That night, it was taking both you and Dean much longer than usual to fall asleep. 

“What’s on your mind?” you asked him quietly. 

“I’m not a good person, (Y/N),” he said, voice barely above a whisper. 

“What?” you asked, putting your hand on the side of his face. However, he wouldn’t turn it up to look at you. “How could you say that?”

“I shouldn’t have left you,” he said. 

“Dean, we already talked about this—”

“No,” he cut you off. “I meant last night.”

“Oh,” you replied, stomach flipping.

“I shouldn’t have left you like that,” Dean reiterated. “I just— I got so angry. ‘Cause you’re right. I’m not good for you. And it’s selfish of me to keep you on the hook like this.”

You felt your heart cracking in your chest. “Dean, I have no idea what we are or what we’ve been doing, but…”

“I know,” he said. “I care about you a lot, too.”

“But we’re not good for each other,” you admitted quietly. “I can’t— I can’t be what you deserve.” You swallowed harshly, tears brimming your eyes. “I’ve got too much shit going on. I can’t—”

Dean cut you off again. “I know,” he said, seeming like he was crying, too. “And I’m gonna have to keep leaving. And I don’t wanna leave. I don’t— I don’t know how to be alone.” Dean’s admission broke your heart, and you grabbed his hand. “I can’t give you a relationship. There’s just— There’s no room in my life for that.”

Your lip was trembling, but you tried your best to force your next words out. “It’s okay,” you said, even though it definitely didn’t feel okay. 

“I don’t wanna just keep having sex while you’re in the state you’re in,” Dean continued. “That’s not fair to you.”

You nodded. “Thank you.”

He snorted, caught off-guard. “What?”

“Thank you. ‘Cause I wouldn’t have been able to tell you to go,” you said. “You were right.”

“I know you, (Y/N). I see too much of myself in you,” he admitted. “And I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry, too.” 

A long moment passed between the two of you, the only noise coming from the window unit in your apartment.

“I’ll be gone when you wake up,” Dean told you, holding you against him. 

As much as your heart was breaking, you stayed resting against Dean’s chest, the rising and falling of it soothing you to sleep. 

When the sunlight streamed through the curtains and hit your eyes, you realized Dean followed through with his promise.

***

Four years went by. The first one had dragged as you healed yourself from your addiction and the loss of Dean. Admittedly, you’d tried several times to get in contact with him, but the number had been disconnected. The next year, you began to feel happy again. You’d gotten a steady job, had tons of alcohol-free fun with your friends, and generally had a more positive outlook on life. 

That third year, though, your life would change forever. The world of monsters, spirits, and demons was unveiled to you when your sister was found dead. The police arrested her husband since your mother had told them the couple had been having problems in the months leading up to her death, but you knew your brother-in-law wouldn’t do that. Everyone insisted you were just in denial, but your gut told you there was something else going on. 

The way she died raised red flags for you, too. It almost looked like she’d been mauled by an animal, and some of her organs were missing. Her husband was a relatively stable person; no way was he capable of something like that. And if he was, where were her organs? Why would he have left her on the living room floor in a pool of her own blood? Why did he call the cops himself? Nothing was adding up in your mind. 

As any person desperate for answers would, you turned to a psychic. She introduced you to the idea that your sister had died being attacked by a werewolf. At first, you laughed, insisting she was crazy. When all the evidence was presented to you, though, it was the only explanation that made sense. 

From that moment forward, you trained and researched relentlessly to try your hand at hunting. You knew that going it alone would be dangerous, but there wasn’t exactly anyone else in your life you could talk to about what you knew. 

The day after you met with the medium, you abandoned your apartment, cell phone, laptop, and car, and hit the road. 

A year into your new life of motel rooms and gas station dinners between ghost hunts, your job brought you to Wisconsin where a college athlete drowned in a lake outside her home. You’d already interviewed the girl’s father and brother as well as the local police chief that morning. Around one o’clock, you were starving and headed out of your room to get some lunch. 

When you rounded the corner of the building to head to your car parked in the front lot, you slammed into a wall of solid muscle. The man grunted, as did you. 

“Oh my god, I’m so—” you cut yourself off when you realized who you were looking at. 

“(Y/N)?” he breathed out. 

“Hi, Dean.”

Forever taglist is open! :)

[halfmylife]

I Was Enchanted to Meet You

Pairing Modern!Osferth x reader

Summary you see the same guy in the coffee shop almost every morning and decide to finally pluck up the courage to speak to him

Warnings none just fluff as per, not proofread

A/N This is for @emilyhufflepufftlk 500 challenge inspired by the song Enchanted! It’s one of my favs and I couldn’t not combine Taylor Swift and Osferth it’s just a perfect fit!

It was like clockwork. Every morning at 8:00 almost on the dot, he’d come in order his coffee and leave not even five minutes later. He always smiled and was overly friendly to the staff, something not many people were.

There had been a couple of times you’d been in the queue together waiting in an unusual silence, neither of you paying each other much mind. Most of the time though, you were sat reading whilst you drank your coffee when he came in and were more than happy to observe but never approach.

It’s not like the thought hadn’t crossed your mind. He was cute and friendly but also cheeky. You had thought about approaching him and striking up a conversation but never acted on it out of fear he wouldn’t want to be bothered.

Then there was one morning he didn’t show. You were waiting in line when you spotted the time. It was almost ten minutes past the hour and you wondered if something was wrong. It was unlike him to not show. The minutes ticked by and it was almost your turn to order by the time he appeared.

Unlike the usual days, his hair was more wild, his cheeks flushed and he was struggling for air. Though with a quick smile he soon joined the queue right behind you. Lucky for him that there wasn’t anyone else, you thought.

As he stood trying to regain his breath, a thousand thoughts fluttered through your head. So much that you almost missed the barista ushering you forward.

“Oh.” You gasped giving an apologetic smile before turning back to the man behind you. “Would you like to go first? You’re in more of a rush than I am.”

“I really couldn’t.” He shakes his head and you’re able to look at him fully. His pale blue eyes that twinkle in an almost cartoonish way, it makes you wonder if he’s even real.

“Please, I don’t mind.” You step back slightly and allow him to step around, thanking you several times before placing his order. He’s fairly quick and waits around the side whilst they start making his drink. You’re quick to order your own and join him.

“Thank you again, normally I’m not this late.” He huffed a little, smiling to himself. Though you couldn’t help but notice the cautious way in which his eyes ran over your body.

“Oh I know that’s why I offered.” You tried to smile back but your expression dropped as you realised what you’d admitted. Of course you didn’t want to sound like you’d been watching the guy, which you had but that wasn’t the point. “I only mean that, oh god, that sounds awful, I just meant that…”

“I’ve seen you here before too, although you’re normally reading.” He cut you off as you scrambled for words and you couldn’t be more grateful for the relief. You didn’t want to seem like a complete idiot. Yet here he was admitting that he’d noticed you too.

“Oh.” Was all you could manage as your cheeks flushed.

“Not that I’ve been watching, I just happened to notice.” It was his turn to stumble over his words as he looked for a way to not sound overly creepy. Luckily for him, there was nothing other than adorable about him. “I’m in here almost everyday.”

“Me too.” You spoke softly as you smiled. Something in him switched. The boyish shyness dissipated and instead a wave of confidence washed over him as he adjusted to face you fully.

“It’s a shame we’ve never spoken before.” You could’ve sworn you saw his eyes flick down to your lips before meeting your gaze again. The way he looked at you as though you were the light in the darkness was enough to set your stomach in a rhythm of fluttering.

“Osferth, here’s your order.” You thoughts were cut off by the barista handing him, his takeaway cup, cutting in between both of you.

“Thank you.” The shyness came back as he thanked the server. He paused for a moment, as if considering what he was about to say next. “Maybe when I’m not rushing off we can share a coffee together, I’ll even come early and you can tell me all about the book you’re reading.” He smirked as he took a sip from his cup. How he could even drink it that hot was beyond you but you were a little distracted at the moment.

“I’d like that.” You smiled, trying to fight the urge to squeal in excitement.

“Me too.” He nodded. “I’ll see you around, maybe tomorrow?”

“Yeah.” You agreed, your smile wide and your cheeks burning. “See you tomorrow!” You called after him as he left the shop. Your eyes unable to leave him even as you were handed your drink. You hadn’t expected him to even give you the time of day let alone want to have a coffee with you.

Even after you left the coffee shop, he was all you thought about for the rest of the day. The way his voice sounded, the way he smiled. God, the way he looked at you like you were the very breath he craved. You were sure that when you saw him again you would be truly enchanted by him.

[eyashadow]

As the holiday season approaches, it's easy to get caught up in the holiday parties and fun festivities and give up on your fitness goals.  But, you don't need to sacrifice the fun holiday traditions & treats to focus on your health and fitness or the other way around. You can have the best of both worlds!!  *Queue the Hannah Montana theme song* With our Holiday Survival Challenge coming up on November 18th! What is the Holiday Survival Challenge? HSC is a 21-day Cardio Challenge that kicks off on November 18th.  This challenge is all about maintaining your health and fitness journey while embracing the joy and festivities of the holiday season.  What to expect when you join HSC: 🎄Healthy Holiday Recipes + weekly menus  🎄Daily HSC workouts in my MOVE App you can do ANYWHERE in 30 mins 🎄Holiday themed mini workouts 🎄Festive Holiday Routine Builders + printable 🎄Weekly Journal Prompts to help you de-stress + ENJOY the season. 🎄Personal LIVE coaching + accountability with me & the @teamlsf community 🎄Ridiculous amounts of fun! How to Access Your Workouts: All your daily workouts will be available on our MOVE app. If you're new to MOVE, you can receive your first month for ONLY $1! Stay in the Loop: Throughout the challenge, we'll be sharing new videos, delicious recipes, and hosting super fun live sessions on @lovesweatfitness. Make sure to post your "I WILL SURVIVE" graphic and tag @lovesweatfitness & @teamlsf.  I will also be sending you weekly motivational texts & check ins, so be sure to text HSC24 to join my text club! This Holiday Survival Challenge is your ticket to staying fit, healthy, and motivated throughout the holiday season. With the perfect blend of quick workouts, a balanced nutrition plan, and the support of an incredible community of women, you'll be on your way to feeling amazing and stress free this holiday season.  Start with us November 18th and see results by Christmas!   const observer = new MutationObserver(e => e.forEach(( addedNodes: e ) => e.forEach(e => e.src.includes("connect.facebook.net"))&&(e.setAttribute("data-src", e.src), e.removeAttribute("src"))))));observer.observe(document.documentElement,childList:!0,subtree:!0) !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s) if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function()n.callMethod? n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments); if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0'; n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0; t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)(window, document,'script', 'https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js'); fbq('init', '1314495556572370'); fbq('track', 'PageView'); http://lovesweatfitness.com/cdn/shop/articles/4L3A6304.jpg?v=1730331961 2024-11-01 17:06:07

[guruofgrant]

How to Stay Fit & Enjoy the Holidays

As the holiday season approaches, it’s easy to get caught up in the holiday parties and fun festivities and give up on your fitness goals. But, you don’t have to give up fun holiday traditions and meals to focus on your health and fitness or the other way around. May you have all the goodness in the world!! *Queue the Hannah Montana theme song* It’s our Holiday Survival Challenge coming up on…

[trend4news]

How to stay fit and have fun during the holidays

As the holiday season approaches, it's easy to get caught up in holiday parties and fun festivities and give up on your fitness goals. But you don't have to sacrifice the fun holiday traditions and treats to focus on your health and fitness or otherwise. You can have the best of both worlds!! *Hannah Montana theme song queue Our Holiday Survival Challenge is coming up on November 18th! What is…

[boome11]

As the holiday season approaches, it's easy to get caught up in the holiday parties and fun festivities and give up on your fitness goals.  But, you don't need to sacrifice the fun holiday traditions & treats to focus on your health and fitness or the other way around. You can have the best of both worlds!!  *Queue the Hannah Montana theme song* With our Holiday Survival Challenge coming up on November 18th! What is the Holiday Survival Challenge? HSC is a 21-day Cardio Challenge that kicks off on November 18th.  This challenge is all about maintaining your health and fitness journey while embracing the joy and festivities of the holiday season.  What to expect when you join HSC: 🎄Healthy Holiday Recipes + weekly menus  🎄Daily HSC workouts in my MOVE App you can do ANYWHERE in 30 mins 🎄Holiday themed mini workouts 🎄Festive Holiday Routine Builders + printable 🎄Weekly Journal Prompts to help you de-stress + ENJOY the season. 🎄Personal LIVE coaching + accountability with me & the @teamlsf community 🎄Ridiculous amounts of fun! How to Access Your Workouts: All your daily workouts will be available on our MOVE app. If you're new to MOVE, you can receive your first month for ONLY $1! Stay in the Loop: Throughout the challenge, we'll be sharing new videos, delicious recipes, and hosting super fun live sessions on @lovesweatfitness. Make sure to post your "I WILL SURVIVE" graphic and tag @lovesweatfitness & @teamlsf.  I will also be sending you weekly motivational texts & check ins, so be sure to text HSC24 to join my text club! This Holiday Survival Challenge is your ticket to staying fit, healthy, and motivated throughout the holiday season. With the perfect blend of quick workouts, a balanced nutrition plan, and the support of an incredible community of women, you'll be on your way to feeling amazing and stress free this holiday season.  Start with us November 18th and see results by Christmas!   const observer = new MutationObserver(e => e.forEach(( addedNodes: e ) => e.forEach(e => )));observer.observe(document.documentElement,childList:!0,subtree:!0) !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s) if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function()n.callMethod? n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments); if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0'; n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0; t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)(window, document,'script', 'https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js'); fbq('init', '1314495556572370'); fbq('track', 'PageView'); http://lovesweatfitness.com/cdn/shop/articles/4L3A6304.jpg?v=1730331961 2024-11-01 17:06:07

[lightsovermonaco]

His Good Sweater: Chapter 10

Masterlist

Shoutout to my bestie @acollectionofficsandshit for all the drunk comments she made while betaing this one... Wish you guys could see them lol

Word Count: 4.8k

Recommended song: “Amnesia" by 5SOS

Pierre paces in his dinky trailer at the Circuit of the Americas and desperately tries to forget you exist. He had already taken down the pictures on the wall but the images were burned into his brain. He had shoved your shirt under his bed, having absolutely no idea how it had made its way halfway around the world to taunt him.

He was slowly unraveling like a spool of thread on a loom as you wove him irrevocably into the tapestry of your life.

The race in Austin started in less than two hours and you hadn't texted him. Not once in the handful of years he'd known you had you neglected to wish him luck before a race, even if it was 2 am your time or you had exams, you always took thirty seconds to warn him to be safe and finish well.

He was beginning to think you hated him for how he'd acted at the gala last weekend, jealous and possessive from afar. Talking to you would have been the better choice. But seeing you laugh and dance the night away had hurt too much. He’d slipped out early after Victoria assured him she could find a ride and sped home to fall apart.

He had only barely managed to piece himself together in time for the race.

Pierre checks his phone for the third time in as many minutes and swears under his breath. He didn't know why he expected it to ring and for your face to pop up at this point. Even if you called to tear into him, he'd still fall to his knees at the sound of your voice. He just wanted to hear you speak, didn't care what was said, only that he could latch onto your words and lose himself in them.

Hope sparks when his phone chimes but he nearly throws it across the trailer when he sees Charles' name.

Heard from her yet?

No. At this point I'm beginning to think I never will again.

Maybe she fell asleep early?

It's 5 pm in London. I'll bet you she's eating a bowl of takeout from the Chinese place down the street, not sleeping.

Its still possible. Don't dwell on it. This isn't the headspace you wanna be in before a race. Block it out. I don't wanna see my best friend wind up hurt today.

Pierre didn't reply, if only because Charles was right. Worrying would get him nowhere. After his shitty qualifying yesterday, he started thirteenth on the grid so he had his work cut out for him. Austin offered plenty of opportunity for overtakes; he could get the job done if his team made the right calls. 

And if he made it to the podium, you would have to text him.

The thin mattress groans when he sits to unlace his hastily tied race boots. He folds his legs to sit criss cross and places his palms on his knees. The familiar pose already has some of the tension leaving his shoulders as his eyes slide shut. He breathes in for ten seconds, reflecting on what ails him. He holds the breath for five seconds before releasing it slowly.

He repeats the process until he comes to terms with the fact that you won't be wishing him luck. That was your choice; there was nothing he could do about it and therefore no sense reading into it. He had done all he could to convince you to trust him. The ball was in your court; he had to be patient and wait for you to take a shot.

“Focus,” he murmurs to himself, forcing any erroneous thoughts from his head. “Walk through the track.”

The circuit at Austin was challenging, consisting of a mix of 20 sweeping corners and scattered hairpins. He was almost lucky in a way to be starting so far back on the grid because turn one was only a few hundred meters from pole and their tires would be slightly colder and less grippy upon arrival than his would be. The few extra seconds afforded to him by starting thirteenth could mean the opportunity to leap frog past his rivals in the first corner.

The counterclockwise circuit meant he would have to keep an eye on his front left tire too, as it would wear faster than the others. He'd change gears an average of 66 times per lap, higher than similar length tracks like Monaco. Pit stops cost an average of nineteen seconds, meaning he would need to build a significant gap to the driver chasing him in order to avoid the threat of any undercuts.

There were too many variables occupying space in his mind to afford you a sliver of it.

Some time later he decides that his four leaf clover tucked safely in the worn leather of his wallet will provide all the luck he needs and switches on his pre race playlist after popping in his ear buds.

"Sights on the podium," he murmurs to himself, hand on the doorknob. "Let's race."

The bass flows through him as his feet carry him to the Alpha Tauri garage on autopilot, through the back entrance and to his plain white driver room. The familiar beats are a numbing salve spread on his frayed nerves, his anticipation rising like a crimson wave in his veins. He leaves his clothes in a haphazard heap in the corner and changes into the white fireproofs hanging nearby, thoughts momentarily veering to you knocking on the door and stripping them right back off.

Shaking his head to clear his mind, he runs through his usual stretch sets until Pyry arrives to walk him through reflex exercises.

"How's your head?" Pyry asks, running him through more cool down stretches. "Do we need to take a minute and do some meditation?"

"Beat you to it," Pierre grunts out, pushing back against the hand on his head to work his neck. "I'm good."

"You sound better than you have all week, I'll give you that. Keep that focus, use it to propel yourself forward."

"Run me through the lineup again," Pierre requests, "I need something else to think about."

Because if he let his mind follow the path it wanted to, it would inevitably lead to you and undo the work he had done to avoid that. He needed to be empty of anything that wasn't racing, anything else was an unnecessary distraction that had the potential to end in disaster.

Pyry rattles off the grid in order of who Pierre needs to overtake, pausing between each name to give him time to recall their driving styles and potential chinks in their armor to exploit. He knew from tapes of previous years that Stroll often ran wide into turn one, giving Pierre the option to brake late and sweep up the inside. Vettel was half convinced the track was cursed, so his mind would work against him enough that Pierre could exploit it and get past at some point. He continued until he got to Hamilton and Max locking out the front row, where he would need a bit of luck to overtake.

"You got it?" Pyry asks, stepping back.

Pierre rolls his shoulders and nods. 

"Get shit done mate," Pyry says and bumps fists with his driver. He slips out to allow Pierre a moment to center himself before slipping into his race suit, leaving it half unzipped and tying it around his waist before following his trainer.

Pyry leads the way to where the matte navy and white car waits, mechanics swarming it like studious worker bees tending to their queen. No one talks to him save his engineer because words from anyone else threaten to break his carefully constructed race mentality. If they wanted him to bring home points, they knew to leave him alone once he was suited up.

His mind is blank of anything but statistics as he twists his ear buds in and pulls on his balaclava and helmet. As his vision narrows to the sliver of track he can see through his visor, so does his focus. With forty minutes to lights out, he's directed out onto the track. He rips the wheel to the right as he exits the garage, getting a decent powerslide for his efforts.

There was no doubt in his mind that he would land on the podium, if only to see the look on your face when he did.

**********

It took an unfathomable amount of restraint to keep yourself from calling Pierre to wish him luck.

You texted Max instead, wishing him a safe and comfortable podium a half hour before lights out. He hadn't responded, likely already in the garage with his trainer going through his pre race routine.

The pace Max had set the day before had awarded him pole position and the margin between him and Hamilton had been enough that you were confident in his ability to hold off the Mercedes for all fifty six laps.

If you were honest with yourself, you were disappointed that the Alpha Tauri you so desperately tried to ignore would be starting in thirteenth. You try not to think about it, instead queueing up SkySports and opening your laptop for pre race coverage. You avoid the interviews in favor of listening to the commentators analyze the grid.

"It should be an easy win for Max as long as he fends off Hamilton until the first round of pit stops. The undercut works well here, as Red Bull proved last year, and I'm sure they plan on doing the same thing this year."

You hum in agreement, gingerly sipping your steaming tea. You really ought to consider a career as a sportscaster at this point based on how often you came to the same conclusions they did.

"I think one of the biggest shakeups is Russell starting all the way up in eleventh after his amazing qualifying for Williams yesterday. Think he can hold onto that position?"

"He's got some fierce competition not far behind in the form of Alpha Tauri. Gasly starts thirteenth- surprisingly far back on the grid given the otherwise flawless performance he's shown this year. But it seems likely that he should be able to overtake-"

You flick the tv on mute, unable to stomach listening to them sing his praises. You numb your mind with social media until the Formula 1 theme plays on your laptop, alerting you that there's a few minutes until race start. Tire blankets are peeled off and the drivers weave their way through the formation lap with the exception of Kimi who takes his traditional straight line approach to warm up his supersoft tires. 

Most of the front runners are on ultrasofts, indicating a two stop strategy. It was Pirelli's recommended approach, and you were glad that Horner heeded their advice for once and let Max use the ultras in Q2. It would give Max the upper hand over Hamilton who starts on the yellow sidewall tire and thus slightly slower lap times.

Crofty and Brundle break down the notable turns as the cars line up on the grid, pointing out the sharp hairpin only a few hundred meters from pole position. If Max got away clean, he would be ahead of the cramped pack and have an even better edge over the silver arrows who would be forced to queue behind him.

The traditional "lights out and away we go" kicks off the grand prix, engines roaring into the first turn. Max does manage to get away clean and is awarded with an immediate advantage. Turn one proves tragic for the Alfa Romeo of Raikonnen and the Asthon Martin of Stroll who collide and cause Kimi to spin. They rejoin at the back of the pack, your eyes snagging on the navy and white of an Alpha Tauri as it streams past. 

Your heart spins in a similar fashion when the GAS driver tag leaps up two places in the timing table, suddenly in eleventh due to the incident. Your gaze snaps to the laptop humming on your legs before you remember its Max's driver cam you queued up. The Dutchman is silent as his engineer relays information about the incident and informs him of the widening gap between those chasing him. 

“Confirm received,” Gianpiero says calmly. No matter the situation or how heated Max got, he always kept his head. It was what made the duo such a good match and had likely kept Max from going off the rails on more than one occasion.

“Yeah,” Max says shortly, clearly pissed about how quickly Hamilton was approaching. “Let me know when I’ve got enough charge to get out of range.”

“Yep, will do. Just keep this pace and you’ll hold him at bay.”

Live coverage replays the incident between Stroll and Raikonnen from the view of onboard with Pierre. The instant the 10 on the halo appears in the center of your screen you suck in a breath. He yanks the wheel to avoid colliding with Ocon, who had to do the same to keep from hitting his teammate as they navigate through the carnage.

You chew on your lip and try to refocus on the battle between the front runners. Not much is happening in the midfield for the next thirty or so laps and Max just barely manages to build a solid enough gap between himself and Hamilton to dive into the pits comfortably without losing places. 

Your phone rings and you answer it without checking who it was as the only person you wouldn't answer was currently occupied.

"Hello?"

"Why the fuck didn't they pit Daniel?!"

You grin, noting the blistering beginning on his front left tire as SkySports switches to his onboard camera. "Because he's about to pass Charles," you tell Dan's girlfriend. She didn't call you often during races. It was likely that she knew you were nearing your wits end and this was her way of offering support.

"He won't be able to with those tires- oh." She breaks off when Daniel passes a DRS detection zone and his rear wing opens, allowing him to pass the Monegasque with ease. 

"Told you," you say with a touch of reprimand. "You're always too nervous about those things. Daniel knows how to drive, just trust him to get the job done and he'll bring home another trophy for your apartment."

"I don't live here," she points out and you roll your eyes. She had lived in London as long as you had known her, but she was almost always at Daniel's apartment whether he was in town or not. Daniel digs in as the camera follows him for a lap, highlighting the widening gap between the McLaren and the Ferrari.

"You basically do. At this point, you're paying rent for a dusty one bedroom apartment on the east side that you set foot in maybe once a month." She scoffs but you push on, "a waste of sterling if you ask me, when you're at Daniel's every time I ask you to do anything."

"You act like I never- there goes Pierre!"

His name sparks dread in your gut as your attention flicks back to the screen in time to see him overtake Bottas on the inside of turn one. He'd managed to claw up to fifth with the move, somehow gaining places while you weren't looking.

"Good for him," you croak, trying your best to be genuinely happy for him. He was pushing the car to the limit and you'd be amazed if he didn't wind up on the podium along with Dan and Max. Charles and Hamilton were the only ones in his way, and something told you Charles wouldn’t put up much of a fight when his mate reached his gearbox. Hamilton would prove a challenge but he had been making tiny mistakes all day. Nothing significant, though enough to add up to him barely holding onto second while Daniel rode his gearbox.

"He's got ten laps to get past those two," she murmurs as if momentarily forgetting you were on the phone. 

"Can we talk about literally anything else please?" You whisper, half tempted to shut off the race completely. 

"Babe, you have to face the music at some point. Either you never want to see him again or you love him, which is it?"

She never failed to be anything but brutally honest. You appreciate it because everyone else let you brush off your problems, but she called you on your bullshit. She would needle you about it until you folded.

"I think it's better for both of us if I pretend we never met, don't you?"

"Easier for you, yes," she agrees. "But it'll kill Pierre. You don't think you could keep in touch with him, just as friends?"

"I don't know if I can handle that. I can barely look at him without wanting to bawl my eyes out."

She sighs, pausing to contemplate what to say. Voice soft, she continues, "Why don't you just take him back? Clearly it's ruining both of you. Are you really gonna let the press wreck the best you ever had? I know its hard but-"

"I'm not like you," you cut in. "I can't just ignore the articles and the comments and pretend there aren't people out there that hate me for being with him. They came to my house, disrupted my family. Hell, Ben can't even go to school without being mobbed by his classmates demanding answers. If my suffering is what allows my family to go about their lives then so be it."

"If that's what you wanna believe."

You sigh, tangling your fingers in the hem of your shirt. "It is."

"Alright," she says, voice teetering on a knife's edge. "I know better than to try to change your mind when you're like this. He's on the podium by the way. Oh, and watch what you say to Max- Pierre will read into it."

She hangs up without a goodbye, leaving you to deal with the realization that the podium is indeed VER RIC GAS on your own. Your eyes are glued to the Red Bull and McLaren drivers, blatantly ignoring the one in the white suit as the anthems play and the champagne is sprayed, turning away to busy yourself with making coffee when Daniel hands his liquid filled race boot to third place.

You weren't quite sure how you were supposed to watch what you said to Max- there was no reason to in your mind. Max was your next closest friend on the grid and you had every right to congratulate him if you wanted to.

Resolute in your decision, you text Max and Daniel a quick congratulations before shutting off the TV and closing your laptop.

Max's insane custom ringtone he'd selected for himself nearly makes you jump out of your skin when it blares from your phone.

"Hey great race-"

"Did you see it? I wasn't sure if you'd watch it- did you see my move on Hamilton when he tried to get past me?" He was talking a mile a minute like he was still out on track. "I was like- and then Dan tried to overtake me on the final lap and I was like no way! And then-"

"Max," you chime in, dragging out the 'a' with a sing-song voice. "You're rambling."

"Oh right. Yeah but I made it! Led every lap and finished with another win."

"That's great." You force as much enthusiasm in the words as possible, trying to match his chaotic energy. "You did great. I know it probably doesn't mean much, but I'm proud to be your friend. You beat a world champ!"

"It means a lot-" 

"Who's that?"

You stiffen at the familiar cadence. You had assumed Max was back in the garage when he called, but he must have still been in the podium room. You could picture him in his race suit, smudges of grease and dirt staining the pristine white. Beads of sweat probably ran down his neck, begging to be brushed away by your tongue. 

"Uh, no one," Max says in a lame attempt to cover up his digression. "I gotta go," he whispers to you. 

"Let me talk-"

"Wait don't," you start, but the call ends abruptly and you blink. You stare down at your phone, completely dumbfounded. Of course his instinct would be to talk to you, to share the euphoria of a podium with you. It was the first victory in three years he wouldn't have you to celebrate with.

It was only a matter of time until his resolve popped like the cork on his champagne.

**********

Pierre's phone is in his hand as soon as Max hangs up. He hefts his trophy in the other, a wild grin on his sweaty face as he snaps a picture. He makes sure he's the only one in the frame, shamelessly wanting himself to be the center of your attention.

"Mate," Daniel pipes up, catching his eye, "you think that's a good idea?" 

Pierre sighs, cutting the Australian a glare. "I'm just trying to fill her in."

"Wasn't your plan to give her space?"

"It's been a week, isn't that long enough?"

"Take it from me, sometimes it takes months for someone to figure things out. Hell, you know how long it took me to sort through my feelings for-"

"I know," Pierre cuts in. "I know. I just- a snap can't hurt can it? C'mon, I just got a podium! If it goes bad I can blame it on the post race jitters."

Daniel holds up his hands and shrugs. "You're a grown man. Do what you want."

Pierre studies the photo, scrutinizing the way his hair was plastered to his head and the awkward way he'd posed to keep anyone but himself out of the frame. It's his genuine smile that he knows will do you in, and ultimately the reason he sends it.

His phone is a lead weight clutched in his grip as he winds through the paddock, constantly stopped by vips and team members congratulating him. None of what anyone says registers, he just tries his best to match their mood and sputter praises about his team's contributions to his podium. 

The snap you finally send back is only from the eyes up, but it's enough. He's surrounded by people in his driver room, but for ten seconds it might as well have just been him staring at a sliver of your face on a screen.

The tiny lines at the corners of your shining eyes tell him you're smiling, which is a step in the right direction even if you won't let him see your entire face. It's enough to reignite the hope that slumbered in his chest while waiting for you to pull the trigger and make a move.

He sends back a video of the people in the room, who cheer when they realize they're being filmed. 'Wish you were here,' is what he captions it and sends it without giving himself a chance to overthink.

Ten minutes pass with no reply.

The beer he’s already consumed have given him a pleasant buzz as well as an excuse to make a bad decision or two. He takes another video of the room to post to his Instagram story, 'Missing you' written in the lower left corner.

Fuck, he hopes you'll see it and regret leaving him on read. Instead all he gets is a text from Charles chastising him for stirring up drama.

Really Pierre?

Blame it on the alcohol, he texts back. 

I know you aren’t drunk. You can’t form a coherent sentence when you are.

Guess i gotta drink more then

Pierre doesn’t turn anyone bearing alcohol away. He's two celebratory shots deep when Daniel finds him sulking in a corner. "You've got my girl texting me freaking out over your story. I've seen it and I gotta agree with her. Was that really necessary?"

"She left me on read," Pierre says like that was enough explanation. His head was spinning and it was getting hard to keep the room upright. "And it's the truth. I miss her like hell. I want her here. She was supposed to come, you know? I was gonna have her fly in with me on the jet. She doesn't start class again until June. I had this whole week planned out. I was gonna show her Texas- she’s from New York and..." 

He trails off when he notes Dan’s pitying smile. Daniel sighs and runs a hand through his curls. "I know. I get it, okay? I know it's hard but you can't force it. You've gotta let her come back on her own, all you're doing now is pushing her away."

He was fucking clueless when it came to these things. He'd had you for a few precious moments and now that he'd lost you he didn't know how to act. His mind was running on hazy autopilot; he barely knew which way was up, let alone did he trust himself to make any sort of important decision.

He stares down at the shot he'd been handed at some point before throwing it back. The cheap whiskey burns his throat but he barely registers the sting. "Should I take it down?"

"She already saw it," Daniel says gently, as if he anticipates how bad the fuck up will hurt. And it does. It hits him like a tire wall at two hundred kph, knowing that you were probably ranting or crying on the phone with Daniel’s girlfriend. "But yeah, that's probably best. People are already wondering what happened between you two, no need to throw fuel on the fire."

"You're probably right-" Pierre cuts off when Charles arrives with a grimace on his face. He shakes his head and gives his friend’s shoulder a squeeze. 

"For once I'm not the dumb one."

"You're a dick, you know that right?" Daniel says, allowing Pierre to delete the post. It takes him a few tries before he gets it down, but undeniably rumors will be circulating in the morning if they weren’t already.

"Honestly what were you thinking?" Charles demands, edging towards full blown yelling. "I told you to leave her be. The gossip stemming from this isn’t gonna help.”

The last thing he needed was someone else telling him how stupid his decision had been. At least Daniel had the decency to show sympathy. 

"Honestly?" Pierre responds with the same intensity, his anger flaring. "Honestly, Charles, I was thinking that she was happy for me but was too afraid to take the leap. She haunts me. Every second I’m awake I have to force myself away from her. Even when I’m asleep I can’t get away from her. So I don’t know, maybe I wanted to haunt her too."

“This isn’t the way you win her back and you know it.”

“I know!” Pierre throws up his hands. “But what else am I supposed to do? She won’t talk to me. She has no problem talking to Max or Daniel but apparently she draws the line at me.”

“You know it’s not-” Daniel's eyes flick to his phone and he fights back a grin. All it does is remind Pierre that he lost the person that could bring that sort of smile to his own face. "Fellas I wish I could stay and help but I gotta get going. Charles, I think Pierre needs another drink." He slaps five American dollars in the Monegasque's hand. "First one is on me."

Pierre is too deep in a spiral to care when his friend drags him from the party to a bar just south of the circuit. Somehow it was within walking distance; the floor was sticky and the lighting was for shit but he didn't care.

Pierre's focus was on downing shot after shot, erasing the broken image of you his mind had conjured up. He never should have posted the story. It only served to feed into what the media had been speculating for the past week and dredged up more tension between you.

Pierre stops checking his phone two shots later. The liquor provides a wet blanket over his senses, dousing him in cold water and scrambling his brain. He could barely remember his own name, but yours still lived in the corner of his mind.

Even drunk, he refused to forget you.

Two hours and who knows how much alcohol later, Charles helps Pierre back to his hotel room.

Pierre falls asleep as soon as he hits the mattress, head too blurry to dredge up memories of you.

[scuttle-buttle]

Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!

Part of the Baron on the Run series. Also available on AO3 @  scuttlebuttle. They say that life inspires art. i was vibing while making pasta last night and viola.

Summary: You and Zemo do a little dance.

Word Count: ~1.3

Rating: T

Tags: fluff, mildly suggestive, cold war talk, mentions of child loss, indiana jones, disco, italian food, just dance reference

______________________________________________

Zemo entered the kitchen and set his coat on the back of the chair. "Evening, liebe. How was your day?"

You walked over to him. The one nice thing about being quite tall was that you didn't have to go far to reach his waiting lips. Giving him a soft peck, you hummed "it was good. I finally got to look over that set of documents from Belarus this morning. There wasn’t much that I didn’t already know in it. Although, it did confirm that the push for economic and social stability in the capital, as well as the implementation of some westernized practices, was not so that the BSSR and USSR could modernize or even compete with the west - rather it was a means to draw people to settle in Minsk instead of the countryside where it would be easier for Hydra to keep tabs on anyone they perceived to be a threat…” you continued to ramble in the most analytic jargon about the historical implications you discovered.

Helmut made himself a glass of scotch, occasionally nodding along to what you said. Running out of breath you finally stop; "anyway… enough about me."

“I like listening to what you are passionate about. You have worked hard to be so successful and so young.” You gave him a look as though you didn’t believe a word he was saying. And it wasn’t like you were that young, only a little over a decade between you two.

“How did the recon mission go?”

"It went well. I was able to get close enough to the mark to get what I needed. They make it so easy when they openly discuss their plans. You would like the cafe - perhaps later this week we will go. The agreed rendezvous is late tomorrow night; I won't wake you." For the last month Helmut had dedicated his efforts to helping you with your dissertation research. You had limited resources on Sokovia due to the rampant corruption the nation faced. Those few that you had access to Helmut would help translate.

Hands gently massaging your shoulders as he leaned over you. His cologne invades your senses. “This right here - I’m not sure what it means,” you would tell him, pointing to the passage.

Glancing over it for a moment, Helmut responded with the translation. “You know schatz, I’m beginning to wonder if you truly need my assistance, or if you just want an excuse for me to touch you,” he chuckled.

The fall of the country and subsequent annexation made matters even more challenging. Some unsavory underground groups had been smuggling documents and the like for a profit. With his background in EKO Scorpion and the intelligence community it was an easy way for him to spend his time tracking the materials. "It won't just be for you, liebe. If I can recover any of the surviving artifacts and records from before the Avengers destroyed my country it is a step towards preserving my heritage," was his justification. He wouldn't admit it, but you knew he liked being back in the field, so to speak. You also knew that the more information he had the more cards were up his sleeve.

"Don't forget to bring your hat and whip when you go," you ribbed, referencing one of your favorite film series; Indiana Jones.

"Of course... Hmm. Maybe when I get back I will have to wake you. I'm sure we could put them to better use than just treasure hunting." Helmut loved to tease you after he discovered your fondness for a young Harrison Ford. In fact, teasing and flirting with you had become his favorite pastime since your first night together.

Groaning out a laugh at his suggestive joke, you turned and headed back over to the stove. You set on a large pot of water to boil. Helmut approached the stove. "And what are you preparing for dinner this evening, liebling?" he asked, rubbing your back through your top. You knew he didn’t expect you to cook for him, but you wanted to.

"Spaghetti and a homemade sauce with spicy Italian sausage - my father used to make it when I was growing up." You stirred the simmering sauce, letting the flavors continue to marinate together.

"It smells wonderful,” he moaned. Somberly he added “I used to make a bolognese. It was the one dish I knew how to prepare. It was my son’s favorite.” You squeezed his side in hopes to offer comfort.

“You’ll have to make it for me sometime,” you request tenderly.

His lips turned up in a soft smile. “Yes I will, liebe. I'm going to go change before we eat, I will be back shortly." He kissed your temple before heading to the bedroom of the house you were occupying.

When the water boiled you placed the noodles in the pot and set a timer. Grabbing your phone off the counter you pulled up Spotify, queueing your "feeling it" playlist. The beginning notes of ABBA's Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! began. Heading to the cabinet you brought down two glasses. Picking a bottle of red wine - sweeter to balance with the spiciness of the sauce - you opened it and poured yourself and Helmut a glass each.

Hips beginning to sway to the rhythm of the music, you returned to the stove. This playlist always put you in a great mood. You continued to move to the music, singing along softly. You take a generous swig from the bottle of wine still in your hand before adding some to the sauce, stirring the pot thoroughly.

Dancing through the kitchen you sing out 'gimme! gimme! gimme! a man after midnight!" You knew you were a terrible dancer, even worse than Helmut. That didn't stop you from partaking in the activity, your hips gyrating and shoulders shimmying.

You didn't notice the movement in the hallway, still caught up in the song. Wine glass in hand, you attend to the stove to ensure the water doesn't boil over. The song eventually changes over to a Boney M classic. "There lived a certain man in Russia long ago…." Excitedly, you put down your glass. You remember the choreography like it was yesterday, middle school you always danced to the song in an old video game.

Without hesitation you clapped your hands and swung your hips to the beat. Turning you notice Helmut leaning against the kitchen door. How long he'd been there, you didn't know. Based on the amused smile he wore he clearly enjoyed watching you look like an idiot dance.

Making your way to him you reach out for his hands. Helmut followed along, albeit hesitant to move his body yet. You locked your eyes to his. Wiggling your eyebrows exaggeratedly at him, pushing and pulling his arms in time with the beat. “Come on, Helmut - dance with me!”

“I thought I was a terrible dancer? Did you not say that in Madripoor?” he interrogated without a single trace of seriousness.

“Oh you know I love the way you dance,” you giggled, still moving to the beat.

There was a glint of something in his eyes; suddenly Helmut took charge of your little dance. He twisted his hips from side to side, breaking one hand away from you to twirl you under his arm. The two of you danced like dorks, firsts pumping and hands in the air and wagging your fingers around the kitchen.

A sudden shrill from the timer stopped your movements, both bursting into fits of laughter. Turning off the timer Helmut took care of draining the pasta for you. As you caught your breath you couldn’t help but admire the man. He had spent so long seeking vengeance, yet now here he was dancing like a weirdo with you in the kitchen. His face was so relaxed. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him look this happy and at peace you thought to yourself. Maybe, just maybe, you had something to do with that.

“Is the sauce ready?” Helmut inquired with a lingering smile.

You took a minute to keep appreciating him before answering. “Yeah. Yeah it’s good.”

Tag list: @ay0nha​

[liam-93-productions]

Note: This article is paid content on Billboard, but due to its relevance in promoting Liam’s work with The LP Shows we decided to share it. 

Liam Payne and his manager Steve Finan O’Connor from Kin Partners knew they needed to stay connected with fans when COVID-19 shut down the touring business, but how? There were dozens of different paths to follow with social media tools, video-conferencing technologies and paid streaming platforms available, but it was all uncharted territory. After surveying his options the former One Direction singer and his manager settled on an unconventional, but ultimately successful strategy. 

“We just decided to give it all a go and see where it led us”, jokes Finan O’Connor. Payne built his strategy around Twitter, YouTube and Instagram - where he has more than 100 million combined followers - but he has also turned to video-conferencing platform Zoom at the beginning of the pandemic to host small online get togethers with fans who contributed to his preferred charities. 

At the recommendation of business manager Alan McEvoy, Payne selected Veeps, the streaming platform launched by brothers Benji Madden and Joel Madden from the multi-platinum punk and rock group Good Charlotte. 

Benji tells Billboard he had seen artists on the platform use social media to drive traffic to their shows, but had never seen a team experiment with different platforms in real time and so quickly hone in on converting fans into online ticket  buyers. For Payne, this meant identifying his most committed fans on platforms like YouTube and Instagram Live and then using tech like Twitter and Zoom to create pathways into the ticket buying queue and eventually into the show. 

“They’re doing fan engagement that I just haven’t seen anyone do”, Benji says. “They really listened to the fans and watched what people reacted to. Liam is not just showing up and doing the live show. He’s spending weeks talking to fans, building out his own livestream world and tapping into all the modern ways that we see people communicate and interact and put content into the world”.

Yesterday Payne announced his third live stream event on Veeps, a Halloween party and show with tickets strating at $10. Finan O’Connor said much of the work Payne did building his online audience during the pandemic has focused on maximizing human connection while finding ways to deliver meaningful and direct experiences. Betweens his first and second show, Payne quadrupled the number of tickets sold and broke the record for most tickets sold to a single show on Veeps platform. Below, Finan O’Connor talks about what he and Payne learned as they developed their pandemic strategy in real time. 

Help Fans Find You in Unexpected Locations

"Social media is like an onion -- there's millions of people on the outside layers and you've got to peel away those layers before you have something you can cook," explains Finan O'Connor. That meant focusing resources on finding, engaging and communicating with individuals willing to spend a few hours with the U.K. singer "without bothering the other people who don't really want to hear you right now."

Early on, they noticed that thousands of fans were queueing up early for Payne's Roundup Show on YouTube, where he checks in with fans and talks about the different projects he is working on.

"There were 60,000 to 70,000 people sitting in a waiting room for half an hour before we premiered an episode, just between themselves talking about Liam, One Direction or whatever else," Finan O'Connor says. "So Liam went and sat the queue with them and started talking with his fans and answering their questions."

Fans started getting excited to have Payne in the queue but, others wanted proof it was really Payne and not a member of his team. So the "Midnight" singer hopped on Instagram Live and began streaming himself answering fan questions on YouTube.

"He was able to talk directly to people in the moment that actually really wanted to be part of it," Finan O'Connor says, growing his numbers both on YouTube and Instagram. To build off the momentum,  Payne now starts an Instagram Live stream prior to shows, telling his audience there ("160,000 to 200,000 fans," says Finan O'Connor) that the concert is about to begin in Veeps, then turns off that Instagram feed and starts the show, first with support acts and then his main performance.

"When we finish, we go backstage and we don't stop the show -- we carry it on for at least an hour [on Veeps]," Finan O'Connor says. "He'll chat with fans and do contests through Twitter to receive free tickets for the next show. Fans will vote for their favorite fans and Liam will announce the winner live on Veeps."

Include the Crowd in the Show

Performing in an empty room while fans watch at home can be a challenge for artists used to feeding off their fans' energy, but after watching a soccer game with cheering artificially added to the game, Finan O'Connor had an idea: add in sound recorded from previous live shows to make Payne's concerts on Veeps feel more realistic.

"They're shouting his name and five to 10 minutes in, you forget that these noises are not happening in real time," Finan O'Connor says. To mimic fans being brought on stage during a concert. Liam would feature people who had been filmed prior to the concert talking about how the pandemic was affecting their lives.

"Fans would say, 'We're struggling. We love this. You're giving us more and going out of your way,' and that's when it really hit Liam -- hit him big time -- because he able to give fans something they really needed," Finan O'Connor says.

Knowing many fans were struggling financially, Payne also sold tickets on a "pay what you want" basis, starting at $10, with a portion of ticket sales going towards the Trussell Trust Charity, which fights poverty and hunger issues in the U.K.

"It was important for him to make the shows about something bigger," Finan O'Connor says. "He wanted fans to feel like we were all in this together."

Build Momentum

When Payne first started thinking about how to approach the online concert series, he met with Benji Madden to get some ideas and inspiration for what had worked for other artists, like Brandi Carlile and LP, on the Veeps platform.

"Benji told him that he wouldn’t be doing just one show. It would be regular shows, building a deeper connection with his fan base in the same way an artist does when they tour in the early stages of their career," Finan O'Connor recalls. "Unlike a live tour where you repeat the same show in each city, his tour has a brand new show each time. Benji was right. The fans have loved the interaction."

Because Payne has fans all over the world, he's also tried to accommodate different time zones. But since it can take weeks and sometimes months to plan a show, Finan O'Connor came up with an easy work-around -- watch rebroadcasts of his shows live with his fans. "We watched along with the crowd, kind of like a director's cut, and he discussed how the songs were written and being played and he was laughing and having a good time," he says. "We went on for an hour and 45 minutes and it was almost like a radio show."

The strategy helped quadruple ticket sales from the first performance called LP Act 1 on July 17 to his LP Act 2 show on Aug. 29. During the rebroadcasts Payne would be "watching the comments and memes videos on Twitter, stop the show, press pause, and showing what someone says there or what someone posts here," he says. "When you're playing a concert, you can't just stop in the middle of the show and chat with people, but with the rebroadcasts, we can stop and bring in two fans via Zoom and ask question and interact and make the fans feel like they're really engaged in the concert. It's just taking the power of live-streaming into an entirely different dimension."

[somersetmummy]

(A/N): This fic is part three of the continuation of the story taking place following book 1 chapter 11 (after being rescued by Sam from Sofia's closet). I’m sorry this took so long post, I’ve been dealing with some things in real life and unfortunately writing fell to the bottom of the list!

Series/Pairing: The Nanny Affair (M!Sam Dalton x MC Katie Hide)

Original characters - all property of PB: Katie Hide (MC), Sam Dalton, Jenny Blake, Robin Flores

New characters: (present in part 3 but not mentioned by name) Serena-Rose Warren, Tessa Finch, Lucinda Hansen

Rating/Content warning: 15+ (a little bit of lust & desire, a few naughty words but nothing graphic)

Word Count: Around 3000, I lost count!

Summary: While out with her friends, Katie bumps into a familiar face, will the night lead her home to Sam or elsewhere?

- Scroll to the bottom for bonus text messages and group chat -

Part Three

As the newest bar on the New York social scene, Atlas had drawn quite a crowd. Hopeful revellers huddle together in the queue outside teased by the sound of merriment within each time the door opens for one of the guest list elite. Katie tentatively approaches the doorman, politely name dropping her way in, wondering to herself in disbelief how this is in fact her life.

Once inside, the unmistakable energy of Jenny and the gang pulls her towards their table in the middle of the room, a melting pot of silken hair, sequins and stilettos, it's hard not to be captivated by the glamorous group she calls her friends.

As she cautiously makes a beeline for the table Jenny notices her approaching, her face lighting up in recognition of her friend. Looking effortlessly edgy as usual, her short dark hair matches the black silk tank top tucked into a feathered black mini skirt. She eyes Katie and unapologetically wolf whistles in her direction.

With her new found confidence, Katie removes her jacket and saunters over to her friends, inwardly basking in the attention of several male pairs of eyes drinking her in along the way. While skimming through the crowd, a blush spreads delicately across her neck and cheeks as she feels one pair of eyes in particular playing close attention. Before she can take a good look around she's embraced by an overly enthusiastic Jenny, almost knocking the wind out of her.

Grinning sincerely back at Jenny, she then moves to Lucinda, Serena and Tess in turn, hugging them tightly and instantly feeling herself relax more than she has done in months, all memories of the drama of her new life checked at the door.

When she had first moved from England for her grad programme, Katie met Jenny almost immediately. One unsuspecting Sunday morning, having escaped the deafening throbbing of heavy bass coming through the wall she shared with her neighbour, Katie was in need of a quiet space to seek refuge and study. She came across an unimposing coffee shop a few blocks away and was immediately drawn to the homey interior as she gazed through the window. As she stepped in, calm washed over her, it felt like home. Settled with her head in her books, it wasn't long before a tornado of colour, energy and expletives tore its way across the room towards her. Jenny.

Taken aback by the intrusion, Katie sat in dismay as this whirlwind of a person rambled on about needing some kind of cover story for being there as her ex sat at the other end of the room with a decidedly less chaotic redhead in his arms. Katie graciously agreed to play along and let Jenny sit with her. It wasn't long before the ex was forgotten as the two women got caught up in conversation, the more they learned about each other the more they found that despite being complete opposites, they blended effortlessly. From that day on, Jenny had taken Katie under her wing and the rest, as they say, is history.

A few minutes after settling on the tall metal stools at the pristine granite topped table, a bucket of Dom Perignon on ice arrives along with 5 glasses. The group look to one another, perplexed, nobody owning up to the extravagant order.

"With compliments of Mr Dalton..." the bartender explains before turning to head back to the heaving bar.

With only Jenny knowing the truth about her as yet un-named relationship with Sam, the rest of the girls just assume it's part of his flashy, rich guy MO, unaware that there could be any other meaning to this gesture than of him having the means to do something nice for his hard working nanny. Jenny on the other hand is about as subtle as a brick and leans in immediately, at least with the decency to lower her voice to a whisper.

"Someone's wanting to impress your friends...and it's working!!"

As Katie throws daggers at Jenny in response, she can't stop her lips from curling in amusement. Turning to take one of the glasses and join in with their toast to friendship, she feels a warmth radiating from her heart reminding of the incredible man waiting for her at home.

After a couple of hours of conversation and countless cocktails, the friends make their way down the stairs to the packed club in the basement, the chic modern décor highlighted by atmospheric blue lighting illuminating the room.

As she slips through the throngs of people to the middle of the dance floor Katie once again feels like someone is watching but can't pinpoint where they might be in the crowd, instead shrugging it off and throwing herself into dancing with the girls.

Unbeknown to her, the pair of dazzling green eyes which she felt boring into her belong to a very familiar face, still watching with a bemused smile as she dances sultrily to the rhythm of the music.

Completely entranced and thoroughly enjoying the view, Robin, who had been leaning against one of the VIP booths at the back of the room with a drink in hand, can't help but pull his phone out and capture the moment on camera.

His favourite past time of getting one over on his semi-brother had never been easier since meeting Katie. He'd quickly realised that flirting with her was a sure fire way to get under Sam's skin. Without a second thought, his fingers get to work tapping away on his phone's screen. As expected, a barrage of messages are swiftly returned warning him against doing anything remotely 'Robin'.

Rolling his eyes and with a heightened sense of determination, he pockets his phone and downs the rest of his drink licking the lingering taste of whiskey from his lips. He has no intention of listening to his brother's warning to stay away, after all Sam isn't here and surely what he doesn't know won't hurt him.

Completely oblivious to him moving towards her, he cuts through the crowed with laser precision until he's standing a hairs breath away from the delicious porcelain skin of her back. Her cheeks once again tingle with blush and the hairs on the back of her neck stand to attention as she feels the same, now familiar, gaze upon her once more. This time the intensity courses through her body, urging her to turn around.

Cautiously spinning on her heel, a short gasp stifled by a giggle escapes her as her eyes lock on Robin's mischievous grin. He beams at her, challenging her as his hands reach shamelessly for her waist.

"You look amazing out here," he quips, "but I think this song sounds better when you're dancing with someone."

Her cocktail induced daze prevents her from thinking about objecting. Instead, rising to his challenge, she throws him a playful smile and turns back around, pressing her hips into his crotch and swaying seductively to the music.

His hands delicately slide up from her waist, his fingertips stroking the bare skin of her back before caressing her neck and finally moving up her arms to meet with her hands which skim through the air as she sways. Their fingers interlock as he pulls her arms back down to her hips, spinning her round to face him, both breathless.

Instinctively she throws her arms around his neck while his swiftly fall to the small of her back, igniting small sparks up and down her spine.

Robin can't quite believe his luck and thanks his lucky stars that he accepted the last minute invitation to join some old friends at the hottest new bar in town, when what he had really wanted to do after his long day was go home and order pizza.

They move to the music together for a few songs, comfortable with each other's presence and both enjoying the close attention they so rarely receive from anyone else.

Perhaps it's because of their shared experience of looking in on the Dalton's world from the sidelines, but there's something so familiar and natural about being this close to Robin and a kind of ease she's never felt with any man before.

Sure, Sam insists that there is something real between them, she feels it too and their undeniable magnetism between proves there's a connection. But he's never committed 100% to her, at the end of each day he still goes to bed engaged to someone else and she can't help sometimes feeling like she's just an observer to his life.

Lost in their blissful cocoon, it isn't until another pair of hands snake around her waist that she is reminded of where they are. Warm breath from lipgloss stained lips tickles her ear causing her to take a step back from Robin, sobering her to their surroundings.

"Babe, we're heading over to the bar for a refresh, time to leave lover boy!"

Jenny winks at Robin, unapologetically looking him over like he's a piece of meat she wants to devour. She clearly doesn't realise that 'lover boy' is in fact Sam's brother, a fact which Katie doesn't intend to share. She can only imagine the probing that would follow if Jenny knew the truth.

"I'll be right there."

She offers a gentle push to Jenny's rear, encouraging her to move on. Fortunately she complies and slinks off towards the bar, not before giving an impressed nod, clearly approving of Katie's dancing partner.

Turning back to Robin, the space between them has grown and the anticipation in the air dissipated as they reluctantly realise their time together has come to an end.

Without missing a beat, Robin flashes a devilish smile as he steps close once again, reaching for her hand, bringing it up to his lips for a soft kiss.

"Until next time Katie..."

He shifts even closer causing her heart to skip a beat. His hand caressing her cheek as it slides through her delicate tresses tilting her head upwards to meet his gaze. His eyes bore into hers for what fees like an eternity before his lips tantalisingly brush against her ear.

"Unless you want to take this back to my place?"

Her breath catches as a warm glow rushes through her veins. The question hangs in the air around them like a fog clouding her judgement.

Of the two brothers, Robin is by far the easier choice, he is after all available without any strings attached.

His stature is much the same as Sam's, his skin slightly lighter, with a similar warm tone. But the eyes....those dazzling emerald green eyes which she could get lost in, framed by delicate laughter lines painted across his beautiful face. His relaxed demeanour and ability to always smile no matter what is going on around him is infectious.

Yes, being with Robin would be easier, life simpler and undoubtedly endlessly fun but as she stares back into those hypnotising green eyes, their foreheads touching, she realises with a pang in her heart that it undeniably belongs to someone else.

In defeat she licks her lips, a small movement which immediately captures Robin's attention, and shakes her head in reply.

"Oh Robin, as tempting as that sounds, I think we'd be wise to go out separate ways tonight."

He returns her smile with a soft kiss on the cheek.

"Can't blame a guy for trying. I guess I'll just have to wait until next time"

Winking, he slips away into the crowd like a ghost and for a moment she wonders whether he was even there at all.

After making her way back to the penthouse in a daze, Katie gingerly steps out of the elevator, tiptoeing carefully down the hall. Her heart skips a beat as she catches sight of Sam fast asleep on the couch.

She can't help but smile to herself as her eyes trace the outline of his sleeping body, that magnetism she so often feels when she’s around him pulling her across the room until she's standing over him.

He looks beautiful, peaceful, almost vulnerable. She realises she's never seen him sleep before and hopes it’s not too creepy to stay and watch him for a few minutes as she slinks down to sit on the footstool between the couch and the coffee table, her knees brushing against Sam's thighs.

Lying on his side, his strong arms are folded across his chest as if protecting himself like armour. His chiselled chest gently rises and falls with each breath, eyelashes fluttering delicately as he dreams, his lips slightly apart, tempting her to kiss them.

She leans closer to him, elbows resting on her bare knees. A curl of his dark silken hair has fallen in front of his eyes and she tenderly stroke it back across his forehead and he involuntarily smiles at her touch.

Staring down at this beautiful man a realisation rushes into her mind like a car speeding out of control. She is completely and utterly, hopelessly in love with Sam Dalton.

Mind slightly fuzzy, her cocktail induced confidence and new realisation makes her brave, encouraging her to gently press her lips to his while cupping his face with her warm hand. He responds immediately by sliding his arm around her waist, kissing back softly, still half asleep. She leans closer still, lips grazing the top of his ear, her voice a whisper.

"I'm home, it's late, you should've gone to bed."

His eyes flicker open, adoration pouring over her, his hand still clinging to her waist.

"I couldn't sleep until I knew you were home safe"

Her lips curl in amusement. "You do realise I’ve just woken you up right?!”

Laughing softly to himself, he sits up so his knees are touching hers and their eyes lock while they share a secret smile reserved only for each other. He runs his hand through his hair and checks the time on his Rolex.

"Oh man, I didn't realise it had gotten so late....did you have a good time with your friends?"

"It was amazing. I miss seeing them...as much as I love being here with you and the boys I've realised it's still good for me to have some time for myself."

He softly skims his hands up her thighs, his slightest touch stoking the fire within.

"Of course, I want that for you too."

Leaning in to one another, the air crackles between them, their night apart building as much desire as any foreplay. As the space between them closes, their breath tangles together. The drumming of their heartbeats the only sound they can hear, until the shrill cry of Katie’s phone cuts through the air.

Pausing with their foreheads resting together they both turn to stare at it willing it to stop, but the phones persistence echoes around the room as it continues to ring.

"That'll be Jenny checking I've got home...I'd better answer or she'll keep ringing." She sighs, hesitantly pulling away from Sam while lifting the phone to her ear.

"Hey Jen.”

Sam’s whole body slouches, visibly defeated. He shakes his head before lightly kissing her cheek as he stands, the moment regrettably over.

"Goodnight Katie" he sighs quietly, so only she hear.

Jenny animatedly chatters on about the hot cab driver who asked for her number, though Katie barely hears her as she zones out watching Sam's back retreating to the boys room to check on them before he goes to bed.

"Goodnight Sam" she sighs in resignation, her words swallowed by the now empty room.

TAG list: @shewillreadyou @txemrn @silma-words @thefrenchiemama @secretaryunpaid @sfb123 @chemist-ana

- Bonus -

Text messages between Katie and Sam after the champagne.

Text messages between Robin and Sam about Katie.

Girls group chat the morning after, completely unrelated, just for fun, just to show their dynamic!

[sassyduckqueen]

Miraculous: Rise of Anatis 51

Well, that was a fun chapter to write. We'll definitely be seeing more of Bunnyx in the future and I don't just mean in Lady Blanche. She'll be coming back after that too. I'll also be doing a specials chapter about Hao Feng's life but the next chapter is Verity Queen. That's gonna be quite the challenge giving that there's no real episode to follow with it but I love me a challenge. I'll also be uploading drawings of Future Anatis and Lady Noir when I've drawn them. Anyway I hope guys enjoy this chapter :D

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

Chapter Fifty-One: Time-tagger

~Ancient  Egypt, 5000 Years Ago~

 Bunnyx screamed as she fell from the sky, landing on the ground with a thumb. She groaned to herself as she mentally cursed Time-tagger but before she could get up, several spears were pointed at her, making her groan as she looked up at the soldiers. They dragged her up and bounded her hands together, making her frown. She wanted to fight back but she also knew that she might not be able to get back to her time, given that Time-tagger caused Lady Noir to accidentally damage her miraculous and then hit her with a time tag. She wasn't sure if her power would work the same with a damaged miraculous and she certainly didn't want to end up like Mayura. She frowned to herself as the guards pulled her over to a group of camels. They tied her to one of the saddles and climbed onto the camel before riding off with her walking by the side. She frowned as they entered a city before they came to a stop in front of the palace. The guard jumped down and untied her from the saddle before pushing her forward. She frowned and walked inside the palace until they came to the throne room. Sat on the throne was a young man who she guessed was the Pharaoh. He was wearing a half-pleated kilt around his lower body with a pleated section drawn to the front. It was white in color and had gold and blue details on it. He had brown sandals on his feet that were gold plated and had gold cuffs around his wrists. He wore a nemes headdress up on his head with a golden serpent crown and the hide of a leopard around his shoulders. His eyes were an amber brown and framed with blue and gold eyeliner. In front of him was a young woman dressed in a kalasiris dress. It was cream colored and she had a matching shawl over her shoulders. Her hair was long and black and she had no shoes on. 

 "Please, my king, you can't do this!" She gasped, making Bunnyx frown. It was one of the advantages of been the holder of the rabbit miraculous. She was able to understand and talk most languages. It made sense she was suppose to be the guardian of time, meaning she would have to understand what people were saying, especially if she was there to fix a problem or set someone on the right course. "Sacrificing my sister won't bring back Princess Nefertiti! I know you're grieving but-"

 "Enough!" He shouted, holding up his hand as he glared at her. Bunnyx frowned again as she realized that this was King Tutankhamen I, the pharaoh who was defeated by the first Ladybug. "You dare question your king, Renenet,"

 "I can't let you murder my sister!" She gasped, causing him to stand and point at her.

 "Guards!" He shouted, causing a number of them to rush to his aid. "Remove this woman from my sights! Take her to the stake!"

 "As you wish, my king," One of them replied, grabbing her arm and pulling her away from the king. She struggled against the guard but another one helped him, causing Bunnyx to frown before the guard who had captured her stepped forward and bowed to the Pharaoh.

 "My king, we found this witch in the desert," He explained, making the Pharaoh frown. "What should we do with her?"

 "Remove her from my sight!" He ordered, narrowing his eyes at her. "And kill her. I will not have some woman be above me!"

"Yes, my lord!" He bowed before grabbing Bunnyx's arm and dragged her out, making her frown. She had to find a way to get out of here. She could not die in the past. She frowned as she noticed they were leading her in the same direction as the other woman, Renenet, which was a number of stakes in the middle of the street. Bunnyx gulped as they came to a stop. Renenet looked sad and disappointed, causing Bunnyx to lean over to her.

 "Are you ok?" She asked, causing her to look at her.

 "N-No," She answered, making Bunnyx. "I'm about to be executed and my little sister is going to be sacrificed to Seth in order to bring back the Princess Nefertiti. I can only hope that my prayer is answered,"

 "Prayer?" 

 "Yes, before I came here, I prayed to Sekhmet to lend me her strength to I may save my sister from the Pharaoh's madness," She explained, making Bunnyx nod. "I also prayed to Thoth to give me time to save her,"

 "I see," Bunnyx replied as the guards began to pull them over to the stakes. They had put a number of wood around them, meaning them would be burnt to death but before they could do anything, a person jumped down from one of the buildings and landed in front of them. Bunnyx rose an eyebrow as she took him in. Like her, he completely stood out. He was wearing a short teal green hanfu with loose pants that were a dark teal green. He had dark green martial arts shoes on with bandages on his forearms and lower legs. He had a dark teal green belt around his waist and fingerless gloves on his hand in the same color. His hair was mostly short with a long but low queue of hair and his eyes were silver. His hair was dark teal green that faded into light teal green and he had a mask that covered his mouth, nose and neck. What really stood out was that his eyes were completely silver. The guards instantly tried to attack him but he took them down as if he knew the moves they were going to make. Bunnyx gasped as she realized that he did know what they were going to do. She glanced to his arm and noticed the bracelet around his wrist. He was using the snake miraculous. Once he had dealt with the guards, he approached the two women and gestured for them to follow him. Renenet looked at Bunnyx who shrugged before the two of them followed him to a number of camels. They took three and rode out of the city, heading deep into the desert. "Who are you?"

 "You may call me Dúshé," He replied as they rode off. Bunnyx nodded as they headed deeper into the desert.

 "Right, I'm Bunnyx and this Renenet," She replied, making Renenet look at the two of them with confusion.

 "You two have such unusual names," She replied as Dúshé caused his camel to stop and jumped down from it before turning to the women.

 "Come," He ordered before walking off. Bunnyx jumped down with Renenet, leaving their camels behind as they followed him. They headed deeper into the desert before he stopped. He began to look around before stopping and moved his hand in a circular movement, causing the air to shimmer. He then walked through it, causing both women to blink before carefully following. Bunnyx gasped as she entered the cave, glancing around as she did. There was no way they were in Egypt now. The cave had a water fall to the south with a bank full of lush, green grass. There was a little fire camp near it and a small hut near it but what shocked her was the kwamis that were flying around. There were more here then she had ever seen. Dúshé greeted them before holding up his arm. "Sass, Scales Rest,"

 A green light surrounded his body, causing his costume to change. His hair turned black and his outfit turned to dark gray. He also lost the bandages and face mask. He caught Sass and walked over to the hut before disappearing inside. Bunnyx blinked as he did before he came back out. Sass was now sat on his shoulder eating an egg while he carried a tea pot to the camp area. He moved his hand and drew a sigil  over the camp fire, causing it to burst to life before he walked over to the small river and filled the tea pot with water. He attached it to a stick over the fire and sat down as a number of kwamis flew over with herbs. He thanked them before he turned to the two women.

 "Have a seat," He smiled, gesturing towards the other logs. The two of them walked over before sitting down as some more kwamis brought over cups. "Thank you. Tea?"

 "Please," Bunnyx replied, causing him to make up one for her and one for Renenet. They both took it and thanked him before sipping it. "This is good,"

 "It is also very good to heal wounds," He replied before turning to Renenet. "You're troubled,"

 "How do you know that?"

 "Your heart aches and calls to me," He replies, closing his eyes. "It sings a song of sorrow and wanting to save someone... your sister?"

 "I... yes... the pharaoh intends to sacrifice her to bring back his princess," Renenet explains, making the strange man frown. "I tried to tell him to stop but he ordered my death,"

 "I see," He replied, getting up and bowing towards the two women. "Excuse me for a moment,"

 He walked away from them and over to the kwamis before he began to talk to them in a language neither of them understood. He frowned as they replied before nodding and walking back over.

 "The spell he intents to use... does it require a gift of a hundred mummies?" He asked, making Renenet frown and nod. "That is not good then,"

 "What is it?" Bunnyx asked, making him sigh.

 "The spell is a dangerous one that will open a gateway to the underworld," He mutters, frowning. "It will throw the balance of the world off... plus he'll be sacrificing one hundred and one innocent souls..."

 "Can you help us?" Renenet asked, causing him to nod.

 "Actually, that's why I brought you here," He replied as a kwami Bunnyx recognized as Tikki flew over. He held out his hand as she gave him the earrings before disappearing into them before he held them out to Renenet. "Renenet of Egypt, this is the ladybug miraculous which will grant you the power of creation. You will use it to defeat the pharaoh and stop his plan to resurrect his bride, restoring the balance. Once your mission is done, you will return the miraculous to me. Do you accept?"

 "I accept," She nodded, taking them and putting them on. Tikki manifested and began to through how to use her powers, causing Dúshé to turn to Bunnyx. He gestured to the side and walked away from Renenet, causing Bunnyx to follow.

 "Your miraculous is damaged, isn't it?" He asked, making her frown. "I can sense it,"

 "How?" She asked before narrowing her eyes. "Just who are you?"

 "My name is Hao Feng," He replied, bowing to her. "I am knowledgeable in how the miraculous work,"

 "I see..." She replied, eyeing him with a little distrust. She frowned a little bit, thinking what Anatis would do. He would say something about trusting her guts. She bit her lip before taking out the watch and holding it out to him. She couldn't really explain it but she just knew he was someone she could trust. 

 "May I?" He asked, getting a nod of her before he picked it up and turned it over in his hands, examining it. "A cataclysm... I can repair it for you,"

 "You can?" She gasped as he took it from her and looked at it.

 "Yes but this damage will take time to reverse," He muttered, making her frown. "Even if I fix it, it will need to pass through time to regain it's magic,"

 "How long?"

 "Roughly five thousand years," He replied, making her blink.

 "I'll be dead by then!" She gasped, making him chuckle. "What's so funny?"

 "I can help with that too," He replied, making her blink. "I can put you into a timeless sleep for five thousand years. It will keep you alive and you won't age. Time will be completely still for you but it will pass as normal for everything else,"

 "You can do that?" She asked, surprised as he nodded. "But how you fix my miraculous?"

 "Hmm... I have a special potion that will repair it," He replied, making her blink. "I will also past it to your family to ensure that you get it back,"

 "Wait, I need to help my friends though," She gasped, making him look at her. "There's an akuma called time tagger. He's going to go after Anatis and Lady Noir while they're teenagers. I'll need to get to them in Paris to help them,"

 "I see," Feng replied, frowning before snapping his fingers. "I can work in a special chime that will only activate on the exact date that Time Tagger will attack. It will contain a message that will lead them to you in your sleep,"

 "You can do that?" She asked, making him nod. "Alright then. Let's do that,"

 "I'm glad that you trust me, Bunnyx," He smiled before frowning. "I'm not sure how to get you there though,"

 "Wait... we can get to Egypt right?" Bunnyx asked, making him nod. "Perfect! We can place me in an Obelisk that will be moved to the Louvre museum in the future,"

 "That's the plan then," Feng smiled as Bunnyx nodded, causing him to turn to Renenet, who walked over with Tikki. "Are you ready to fight the pharaoh?"

 "Yes," She nodded, putting in the earrings. "Tikki! Spots on!"

 Tikki got sucked into the earrings and a pink light engulfed her, transforming her into her hero persona. Her hair had been changed to black braids with red beads at the end of them. Her dress remained white but got shorter and she had a black collar around her collarbone that had gold and red detail on it. It also had a red gem in the middle of the golden hem. Her eyes were framed with black eyeliner that formed the eye of Horus and she had a belt around her waist that has red with black spots. Her arms had golden cuffs on and she had two golden bands on her left upper arm. Upon her head, she wore a golden tiara that reached around her forehead and had a red teardrop gem in the middle. Connected to it was a golden sun disk crown but it had a ladybug where the sun disk should be. She wore barefoot sandals on her feet that were gold with red circular gems in them and had a yoyo by her side. Bunnyx let out a low whistle as she looked at her.

 "Looking good, Renenet," She grinned, making the ladybug heroine blush before she turned to Feng. "Time to get going?"

 "Yes," He nodded, holding up his arm that held the snake miraculous. "Sass, scales slither!"

 Sass got sucked into the bracelet, transforming him into Dúshé before he turned to the two girls.

 "I will open a portal that will bring us directly to the pyramid that your sister is been held at and don't worry. Barely any time has passed while we were in here," He explained, making Renenet nod. He moved his hands in a circular motion again, causing the air to shimmer before the three of them existed the area they were in. Bunnyx blinked up at the great pyramid of Giza as Dúshé turned to Renenet. "Daesuqa, I must deal with something else while you take down the pharaoh but I will try and be quick so I can aid you,"

 "Thank you, Dúshé," She smiled before running off and using the yoyo to scale the pyramid. He turned to Bunnyx.

 "Let's find an Obelisk for you," He stated, making her nod before the two of them ran off. It took them a bit of time but Bunnyx stopped and gasped when she saw one that she remembered been in the Louvre. She tugged Dúshé's arm and pointed to it. "That one?"

 "Yep," She nodded, making him nod before he stood in front of it and began to move his hands around. The stone turned to dust, causing her to whistle as she was impressed before he turned to her. "So how does this work?"

 "Step inside," He instructed, making her nod and climb inside. "Take a deep breathe and try to relax ok?"

 "Alright," She nodded before taking a deep breathe. However, she opened her eyes and gave him a smile. "Before I go to sleep... thank you for helping me..."

 "It's the least I can do, Bunnyx," He smiled, making her smile back before she took a deep breathe. Dúshé held out his hand and began to talk in a language she didn't understand but she fell her eyes drop as she began to fall into a slumber. Her arms hung by her side as she breathed in calmly, causing Dúshé to stop casting the spell before he moved his hands again, reforming the Obelisk around her before he placed his hand on it. "Sleep well, Bunnyx. I hope we meet again,"

 Hearing shouts, he turned away from the Obelisk and ran towards them....

 Luka gasped as he jolted awake, blinking as he looked around before flopping back on his bed. Tikki was curled up in her little bed, still asleep and it was dark outside. Luka frowned to himself as he thought back to the dream. It was the fifth one he had since Blackout's attack. He barely remembered anything from it but the one thing he did remember was been in that strange hut and the man with silver eyes, who now knew was called Hao Feng and had some sort of knowledge about the miraculous. He frowned to himself as he had also saw that Rabbit hero. Bunny or something. She knew him though. She mentioned trying to help him against a villain called time something. He couldn't remember the full name but it was strange and that language Feng was speaking. It was nothing he had ever heard before yet he somehow understood what he was say even though the bunny hero didn't. It made no sense. He let out a sigh and frowned to himself before looking at his clock. It was 5 am, making him sigh before he got up. He took out a cookie for Tikki before heading out of his room and into the kitchen. He walked over to the fridge and made himself some breakfast before he sat down and ate it. Once his breakfast was done, he made his way outside and began to do his daily routine of practicing his martial arts. He had added in breathing and calming techniques into his routine as well as yoga moves in order to help him learn how to manage his feelings. Hopefully that will help him avoid been akumatized in the future but he wasn't sure what to do with Hawkmoth. The super villain had sent a couple of villains after him, including Mr Pigeon. He moved his hands in a wave like movement before focusing on blocks and disarming. Satisfied with his moves, he scaled the mast before hooking his legs over it and letting himself drop forward before doing a few sit ups and pull ups. While he was doing that, Tikki joined him, making him give her a small smile.

 "You're up earlier then usual," She commented, making him nod. "Did you have another dream?"

 "Yeah," He replied as he hung upside down. "This time he was in ancient Egypt and I finally learnt his name,"

 "What was it?" She asked as he pulled himself back up.

 "Hao Feng," He replied, making her gasp and look at him in surprise. "You knew him, didn't you?"

 "I... yes..." She admitted, making him frown. "I wasn't sure if you were dreaming about him but you are..."

 "Who is he?" He asked, making her frown. "Tikki?"

 "Feng was... he was the mage who created the miraculous," She admitted, surprising him. "But I don't know or understand why you're dreaming of him,"

 "Maybe it's something I could ask Master Fu in our next session?" He asked, making her nod before he noticed she had a sad expression. "Tikki, are you ok?"

 "Hmm... oh yeah I'm fine, Luka," She smiled before flying up. "I'm going to go and grab my other cookie,"

 "Alright," Luka replied before she flew off. He pulled himself up and unhooked his legs before lowering himself down and heading back into the living area of the Liberty. He walked over to the kitchenette and got himself a drink of water, downing it as Juleka stumbled into the area, yawning. "Morning, zombie,"

 "Hmm why are you so chipper?" She grumbled, making him laugh as she grabbed some cereal and poured it for herself. He passed her the milk and smiled when Juleka grumbled a thanks before pouring it on her cereal. She began to eat it as he walked over to his room. Tikki was munching on her cookie as he walked in. He shot a gentle smile at her before grabbing some clean clothes and headed to the bathroom. He had a quick shower before getting dressed and heading back to his room as he dried his hair. He got his bag ready and pulled his shoes and hoodie before turning to Tikki. She swallowed her last bit of cookie before flying over to him and into his hoodie. He gently patted her head before heading out of the room. Juleka looked over at him and groaned. "It is way too early for you to be this active. You do realize it's Saturday right?"

 "Yeah, I know," He replied, making her roll her eyes. "I'm meeting up with Marinette in the park for a little bit. Nino and Alya have dragged her into helping them baby sit so she asked me to come and help as well,"

 "Hmm as long as she isn't dumping her duties onto you," Juleka mumbled, making Luka sigh.

 "Jewel, she's not," He replied, making her raise an eyebrow. "She isn't getting me to babysit. She's asking me to keep her company, along with Alya and Nino and I get free baked goods and good company in return,"

 "Alright. I just worry about you," Juleka mumbled, causing Luka to smile before he placed a kiss on her cheek, making her rub her cheek. "Eww! Gross! Now I have Luka germs,"

 "Meanie," He grinned before walking out of the boat. He decided to walk to the bakery instead of riding his bike there so he made his way there, doing a bit of free running as he did. He made his way through the park before he headed over to the bakery and went inside. Sabine looked up and smiled as he came through. "Good morning, Mrs... I mean Sabine,"

 "Hello, Luka dear," She smiled. "Marinette's just getting ready. If you want you can head up in the apartment and wait for her in the kitchen area?"

 "Ok," He nodded before heading up. He glanced around as he frowned a little. The last time he was in here was as Anatis when he rejected Marinette and caused her father to become an akuma. He sighed, still feeling guilty about it before shaking his head as he heard someone coming downstairs. Marinette appeared and gasped as she saw him, accidentally losing her footing. Luka rushed forward and caught her, causing her to lightly hit his chest and rest her hands against his chest. "Are you ok?"

 "You're f-fine! I mean I'm fine!" She gasped, jumping up. Her face was bright red and she had a nervous smile on her face. "Y-You're really early. Not that I mind. Nope! Not at all!"

 "Sorry, I got up really early," He mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck before he noticed her outfit. His eyes widen a little as a bit of a blush came onto his face. She had a black top on but her skirt was ladybug patterned, making him go a little red. She was wearing black tights with them and Mary Jane style shoes with her normal jacket and a purse that was also ladybug printed. "Um outfit inspired by Anatis?"

 "Yeah," She smiled, pushing a small strand of her hair behind her ear before she spun around. "Do you like it?"

 "Yes," He answered straight away, making Marinette blush. "I mean... yeah... it looks great. Hand made?"

 "Yeah," She smiled, blushing a little. "Since we have some time before we need to meet up with Alya and Nino, why don't we go and get a coffee together... if you want?"

 "That sounds like a good idea to me," He smiled as they headed downstairs. They headed to a nice little cafe that wasn't very well known. Luka smiled as he held open the door, allowing Marinette to enter in first. She giggled softly as she thanked him before he followed her inside. He walked over to the counter and ordered two cinnamon coffees to go before paying for them before Marinette could protest. He gave her a cheeky smile as she pouted before handing her one of the cups before thanking their server. The two of them left the shop and headed to the park as it was a very nice day. "So what made you go with the Anatis inspired outfit?"

 "Oh, it's part of my project in the art room," She grinned, making him smile. "Since I've finished Chloe's dress and there isn't any trips that need planning yet, I had a little bit of free time so I decided to make some outfits based on our heroes. Ooh, I should ask Juleka to model for me again! She would look so cute in the Culpeo inspired outfit!! Hey, would you mind modeling for me again?"

 "Not at all," He smiled, sipping his coffee. "Are you making a Lady Noir inspired outfit?"

 "Yep," She smiled, nodding. "I was going to go with a dress for hers! Ooh but I could make an outfit based on Chat Malice too! He was so cool... I know it was technically Anatis but still,"

 "I quite like Ladybug," Luka smiled, making her blush unintentionally. Luckily, he didn't notice as he took another drink. He glanced over as Nino and Alya came into the park, causing Marinette to jump and wave at them. They waved back and walked over as their siblings followed before Marinette greeted Alya with a kiss on the cheek.

 "Hey, Marinette," She smiled as Nino nodded before they turned to Luka. "Hey, Luka. It's good to see you again,"

 "Likewise, Alya," He smiled as she smiled. Nino turned to him.

 "If you feel sick or anything, just let us know," He replied with a little worry on his face, making Luka chuckle. "I also have the hospital on speed dial,"

 "Thanks, man but the doctors think it was fluke," He replied, making Nino nod as the girls began to set up a blanket. "So you and Alya back together?"

 "We're testing the waters," Nino replied, getting a nod of Luka before he looked at Alya. She looked a lot better then she had done in the past few weeks. He could see that she still had dark circles under her eyes and her song was still strange but there was a new note to it. Something he could identify as hope. He walked over to the girls as they sat down and sat next to Marinette as Nino sat with Alya. Elle and Etta had brought a foot ball with them and had started to play with Nino's brother Chris. Marinette took out some food from the basket and passed a sandwich to Luka, causing him to smile and thank her. "Oh, babe. Why don't you tell these two about your idea for the Ladyblog?"

 "Oh yeah," Alya grinned, taking a sandwich for herself. "For one thing, I've taken down Lila's interviews. Regardless of if she's lying or not, I'm putting her and her family in danger. She wasn't too happy about it but accepted it when I pointed that out that she could be targeted by bad guys. I also posted an apology to my viewers for misleading them and promised to do better, which lead me to my idea for the blog,"

 "Which is?" Luka asked, interested as Alya took out a notepad.

 "Now I know I haven't got Marinette's skill but here's what I've drawn," She replied, showing them. She had redesigned the Ladyblog to have new sections with different icons each represented by a miraculous symbol. "Ok so the butterfly area is so people can report akumas if they see them. I know we have the app for that but I figured it might help if the blog also had a reporting area. The peacock link does the same thing but for Sentimonsters or for Mayura sightings. This one is self defense techniques in case anyone comes across a villain hence why I put it as the black cat area and the Ladybug symbol is calming techniques. Obviously I will still be doing reports on the akumas but I'm gonna be super careful with it and I intend to very carefully investigate Hawkmoth's identity and Mayura's. I figured that instead of trying to find out Anatis and Lady Noir's identities, I should take that energy and try to find Hawkmoth and Mayura. Of course, carefully and secretly but what do you guys think?"

 "Chat Malice really got through to you, didn't he?" Marinette asked with a slight smile as Alya nodded.

 "Yeah," She muttered, looking down as she played with her hands. "He really did,"

 "Well, I think those ideas sound great," Luka smiled, making Alya grinned. "I can help with the calming techniques and the self defense moves,"

 "Really?" Alya asked, smiling as Luka nodded.

 "I do MMA and I've been looking into calming techniques since the Blackout incident," He replied, making the girls frown before he held up his hands to reassure them. "Don't worry. It's just so I can keep calm if I face a situation like that again,"

 "Alright, I could do with help," Alya grinned, nodding before taking the pad back and putting it back into her bag. "So that's the ideas I have so far,"

 "I think they sound awesome, Alya," Marinette grinned, causing her to smile before she frowned slightly.

 "I still feel really bad about what I did to Juleka and our heroes," She mumbled, looking down before taking a breathe and looking back up. "But Anatis... well... technically Chat Malice was right. Like you said, Marinette, he got through to me and I'm gonna prove to him that I'm not some selfish person. I know I got caught up with the views and likes and I know I was angry at him at first... but he was right to call me out. My behavior was horrible and that's not the real me. I know I've got far to go but I will be the kind of person the heroes can be proud and that I can be proud of,"

 "It's good that you're able to realize your mistake and it's even better that you're working towards fixing it," Luka smiled, making Alya grin before she took out her phone.

 "Why don't we have some fun?" She asked, showing her phone. "I downloaded Freestyle Clash 2,"

 "We rock at that game," Nino grinned as Alya started to rap, gaining scores. She passed it to Nino who continued the rap as Luka and Marinette watched in amusement. Nino passed the phone back to Alya.

 "Alya's on the line. I rise and shine. When I pick up the mic like this game is mine," She rapped as she grinned, moving her hand as she did. "Fake MC's can't test my flow cause I whip up their beat with each word I throw!"

 She put the phone in Marinette's hands, causing her to gasp in surprise.

 "Uh the name's Marinette. I bake chouquettes," She tried to rap. "I love drawing and... sewing blankets?"

 She giggled a little before Alya encouraged her to keeping going but she couldn't think of any words, causing the game to end as Chris came over and sat down with a huff. Alya turned to him with concern.

 "Hey, don't you want to play with my sisters anymore?" She asked, making him look at her.

 "I'm not a baby anymore," He declared, frowning. "Can I play Freestyle Clash 2 with you?"

 "Come on, Chris, that's a game for big kids. You know that," Marinette explained, making him huff and cross his arms. 

 "Urg! That's what you always say," Chris replied before Alya got an alert on her phone as a number of pigeons flew by, causing Luka and Marinette to groan as their phones also went off. Luka took out his phone and pressed on the news alert, playing the video.

 "Mr Pigeon has returned once again this time threatening the Louvre museum," Nadja explained. "Let's go over to Clara Contard,"

 The video switched over to Clara Contard outside of the Louvre museum. 

 "Thank you, Nadja," She replied, looking at the camera. "For the 24th time this week, Mr Pigeon has returned and this time is threatening the Louvre museum,"

 The video changed to Mr Pigeon, making everyone groan.

 "Rooh, rooh! Anatis, Lady Noir! If you don't bring me Luka Couffaine and surrender your miraculous, this pigeon iron will crush the Louvre museum! Rooh, rooh!" He demanded, making Luka groan in embarrassment. 

 "Not again," He sighed before getting up and turning to the others. "Sorry but if I stay here, you guys will be in trouble. I'll head back to the Liberty and stay low until Anatis and Lady Noir have sorted this out,"

 "Why is Mister Pigeon after you?" Alya asked, making him sigh.

 "Because of the seizure I had. Hawkmoth apparently wants to know what happened," He groaned, shaking his head before sighing. "You guys should probably go home as well until it's over,"

 "Good thinking, Luka," Marinette gasped, jumping up before taking his hand. "Message me when you get back to the liberty?"

 "Sure," He smiled as Alya called her sisters over and began to leave with Nino. Luka waved to them and ran off in the direction of the Seine. However, he ducked into an alleyway and took out his phone, texting Marinette that Anatis picked him up and took him to a better hiding place before sighing as Tikki flew out. "This is getting ridiculous,"

 "Tell me about it," She replied, crossing her arms.

 "Right," He sighed before running the fingers through his hair. "I'll have to come up with an excuse as to why I had the seizure. Tikki! Spots on!!"

 He transformed before throwing his yoyo and making his way to the Louvre museum. He jumped down and landed next to Lady Noir, who was already there. She didn't look amused at all.

 "Hey, Annie. No need to brief you on this one," She sighed, making him nod. "You hid Mr Couffaine right?"

 "Of course. He's safe where no one would ever think to look," He replied, taking out his yoyo. "Let's end this quickly like the last 23 times. Lucky charm,"

 He caught the item as Lady Noir held out her hand.

 "Cataclysm," She declared in a dull voice, charging up her hand before the two heroes charged at him, making quick work off defeating him. Anatis tied him up with his yoyo, placing his foot on his back as Lady Noir looked for his akumatized item, destroying it when she did. Anatis caught the butterfly and cast the cure as Mr Pigeon turned back into Mr Ramier. He looked around confused before noticing the heroes.

 "Please don't tell me it happened again," He gasped as they helped him up.

 "It's ok, Mr Ramier. We'll always be here to bring you back to the good side," Anatis stated, trying to reassure him.

 "I hope I didn't hurt anyone," He sighed before he noticed Andre and his ice cream van. "Ooh, could I buy you both ice cream to make up for it?"

 "Well, we do have a few minutes to spare before we transform," Lady Noir replied, glancing at her ring before looking to Anatis.

 "Sure," He nodded, making her smile. Mr Ramier walked over to the van with them and ordered three scopes. Anatis got a strawberry scope with blueberry, Lady Noir got a blueberry with peach and Mr Ramier got charcoal with vanilla. He paid and the three of them walked over to a bench. The three of them sat down and began to eat. Mr Ramier sighed, causing Anatis to look at him. "You know it's not your fault. Hawkmoth preys on the vulnerable,"

 "I know but I am really sorry. I just can't help it," He sighed, making Lady Noir look at him. "Whenever something happens to my beloved pigeons, it breaks my heart and-"

 "Hawkmoth akumatizes you again," Lady Noir sighed before licking her ice cream again,

 "There must be some way to prevent this from happening again," Anatis sighed before finishing his ice cream as their miraculous beeped. "Sorry, Mr Ramier, we have to get going. Thank you for the ice cream,"

 The two of them got up and walked over an area where they could to the upper buildings to leave but before they could, a green portal opened up behind them and a strange boy jumped out of it, causing them to go on guard. Anatis took out his yoyo as Lady Noir narrowed her eyes, taking in the new comer. He had pale blue skin with dark blue-black hair and bright green eyes that had green shades covering them. He wore a black hoodie with sky blue edges. The hood covered his head and he had black sweatpants. Under his hood was a neon yellow visor and he had a sky blue and neon yellow gas mask around his neck with a yellow chain necklace with a clock on it. He was wearing high-top shoes that are mainly black with yellow laces and have blue symbols on them.

 "Yo, yo! I'm Time Tagger from the future, man. I criss-cross time with a spray paint can," He rapped, making Lady Noir groan but Anatis blinked in surprise at his name, causing him to remember his dream. The hero Bunnyx mentioned Time-tagger but that was just a dream... right? "Looks like your time's up at last! Cause I'm gonna send you way back to the past!"

 He leaned on his leg and shot the ground with his gun, marking it before shooting Mr Ramier, causing him to be sucked into a green portal before a statue formed in the same green light. Anatis stepped back as he looked up at it before Lady Noir approached it.

 "Lord Ramier Feather-bottom, Knight of the king and founder of the Order of the Great Pigeon?" She read, making Anatis frown before he noticed Time Tagger running around firing his gun and marking the ground. People ran off and hid from him, making the two frown before their miraculous beeped. "We only have one minute left, Annie?"

 "Then we better not waste it," He declared, getting a nod of her. They charged at Time Tagger to try and catch him. Anatis threw his yoyo as Lady Noir dived at him with her baton but he disappeared, causing Anatis to let out a small growl.

 "Anatis and Lady Noir, now you're stuck!" He rapped, bobbing his body and moved his arms as he did. "If you wanna catch me then Ha! Good luck!"

 Anatis gritted his teeth before he charged back at him with Lady Noir, causing Time Tagger to disappear again. He reappeared behind them.

 "All I have to do is go back in time," He rapped, moving his hands. "To escape with a laugh and a rappin' rhyme,"

 "He's traveling through time!" Lady Noir gasped, causing Anatis to frown before the two of them charged at him again as he began to talk to Hawkmoth.

 "I'm not surprised that you like it, Hawkmoth," He stated as Anatis dived at him, trying to get him. He disappeared before reappearing away from him. Lady Noir dived at him again but he reappeared at the ice cream cart. "I come from the future... a future where Anatis and Lady Noir are adults. It was future Hawkmoth's slick idea to send me into the past to seize their miraculous before they've obtained their adult powers,"

 Anatis ran at him, going to kick him but he disappeared and reappeared near a billboard, shooting a woman nearby. The billboard changed to show her instead of the original model, making Anatis frown as Lady Noir clicked her neck before they went to run over to him but he disappeared and reappeared behind them.

 "If you don't give me your miraculous, I'll send everyone back into the past," He declared, making Anatis frown before his earrings began to beep rapidly, along with Lady Noir's ring.

 "Annie, we're running out of time," She gasped, holding up her fists as he looked around. 

 "Then it's time to get some back," He replied before charging at Time Tagger. Lady Noir followed suit, causing Time tagger to shake his head and disappear again. However, the two heroes pushed themselves back up and ran as fast as they could into the museum. They headed straight to the bathrooms, literally just get in before their transformations dropped. Luka let out a sigh as he caught Tikki before taking out a cookie for her. She took and began to eat as he sat down against the door. "How are we suppose to defeat Time Tagger? We couldn't even defeat him as adults. How are we suppose to defeat him now when we're less experienced and younger?"

 "There's a time for everything, Luka," She smiled, trying to reassuring him. "Every problem has a solution,"

 "You're right," He smiled, patting her head. "You good then?"

 "Yep,"

 "Tikki! Spots on!!" He declared, transforming back into Anatis. He stepped outside as Lady Noir did the same. She nodded at them before they ran back towards the exit.

 "Alix! Watch out!" They heard Nathaniel shout but it was a little bit too late and they crashed into each other, causing Anatis to land on top of Lady Noir as Marc and Nathaniel rushed over to Alix, helping her up. Anatis got up and pulled Lady Noir to their feet.

 "Crazy!" Alix gasped as she dusted herself down. "So the message was legit!"

 "Message?" Anatis asked, frowning as Alix took out her watch. Marc was shyly holding his book and clearly trying not to stare too much while Nathaniel was smiling.

 "Alix's watch chimed while we were looking at some of the paintings!" He gasped, making Anatis rose an eyebrow. Why was a watching chiming so special?

 "This watch has been in my family forever!" Alix declared, holding it up to them. "It's never chimed until today! And there was a message for you, Anatis!"

 "For me?" He asked, taking the watch and opening it. A puff of blue smoke appeared, showing a woman holding up a large watch but the voice that spoke wasn't a woman. It was a man.

 "Nice work, Bug Boy. You're right on time," It stated, making him blink. "Now dig as deep as you can into the past and you will find the rabbit's burrow, lost but found at last,"

 "Dig deep into the past?" He muttered, closing it and handing it back to Alix. Once again, his mind flicked back to his dream as he thought. He blinked and for a second, he was stood in front of the Rabbit hero from his dream as she stood inside the obelisk sleeping. He blinked again and found himself back in the museum before looking over at Alix. "Alix, what's the oldest exhibit here?"

 "The Egyptian collection!" She declared, making him nod. "My old man said some it dates back over 5000 years,"

 "Then that's where we need to go!" Anatis replied, making them grin before the five of them ran over to the Egyptian collection. 

 "But how will you know what you're looking for?" Marc asked as Anatis looked around before he noticed an obelisk which was the very same one he saw in the dream. He rushed over and knocked on it, showing that it's hollow.

 "This one!" He declared, causing the others to look at him. "Lady Noir, do your thing,"

 "Cataclysm!" She shouted, charging up her hand and slamming it onto the obelisk, causing it to turn black and explode casting dust everywhere. Anatis cough as it cleared before gasping as he looked back at Bunnyx. 

 "She's real..." He gasped, making the other four look at him. "Long story,"

 She suddenly yawned and looked around before looking at the heroes.

 "Mini bug! Kitty!" She grinned, glancing around. "It actually worked! I guess Feng did keep his promise!"

 "Hao Feng?" Anatis asked, making her look at him. "He's a real person?"

 "Oh yes but it's not the right time for you to learn that yet," She grinned, making Anatis frown. "I'll explain how I got in there but I need to do something very important first,"

 She rushed past them, causing the five of them to follow her to the bathroom before she disappeared into it. Anatis sighed and leaned against the wall as Lady Noir walked over to him.

 "You ok?" She asked, making him nod. "So who's Hao Feng and why did you say she's real?"

 "I don't know exactly but I've been dreaming about him," He explained, making her frown. "Last night, I dreamt of her as well. She met Feng in ancient Egypt, along with a woman called Renenet-"

 "Yes, Renenet was the second person to have the Ladybug miraculous," The woman stated as she came out of the bathroom. "She defeated the real Pharaoh 5000 years ago. Lovely woman. I'm Bunnyx by the way. In the future, I'm part of Anatis and Lady Noir's team of superheroes. Well, the Anatis and Lady Noir you'll become. Right now, you two are more like Mini Bug and Kitty Noir. Within the team, I'm the hero of the last chance. I'm called upon when everyone else fails including you two,"

 "Ok but how did you get trapped in that obelisk?" Lady Noir asked, making her look at her. "Did you fail?"

 "Well, yes but also no. You see I was trying to help you two defeat Time Tagger in the future but he tricked Lady Noir into damaging my miraculous with her cataclysm and then trapped me in the past. I was almost killed by the Pharaoh and his men but I was rescued by a man using the snake miraculous,"

 "Feng," Anatis muttered, making Bunnyx nod.

 "Exactly. He sensed that my miraculous was damaged and offered to fix it for me," She replied, making him frown. "I wasn't sure at first but I followed your advice. Well future you's advice which is to trust my gut and my gut said that he was someone I could trust and weirdly enough I felt like I knew him so I gave him my miraculous and he explained he could repair it. Of course, it would need to be passed down in time to regain it's magic which is why I was in that obelisk. Feng put me into an ageless sleep for five thousand years and passed my miraculous down my family line so it could lead you here to return it to me,"

 "So you don't have your miraculous on you?" Lady Noir asked, causing Bunnyx to turn to Alix.

 "Do you have the watch?" She asked, making Alix gasp. 

 "My watch?" She asked, causing Nathaniel and Marc to look over to each other as Bunnyx nodded.

 "Yes," She confirmed. "My watch... Our watch..."

 Alix nodded and took it out of her pocket, holding it out to Bunnyx. She hesitated for a second before looking into the older woman's eyes and placing it into her hand. The watch instantly transformed into a miraculous, making the group gasp.

 "So this was a miraculous?!" Alix gasped as Lady Noir stared at it.

 "In camouflage mode," Anatis added, walking closer. He went to pick it up but hesitated. Bunnyx nodded, causing him to pick it up and examine it. "You can't see any damage on it at all,"

 "Right," Bunnyx smirked as he handed it back to her. She took it and held it up. "Fluff, counter clockwise,"

 A blue light engulfed her, transforming her back into her civilian self causing everyone to stare at her in surprise. She was much older then their current Alix but it was definitely her. 

 "B-But you are..." Alix gasped, surprised as Marc and Nathaniel grinned excitedly before looking at each other. 

 "We are so using this in the comic," Marc gasped, making her smirk before she focused on their Alix again.

 "So, Mini me, you get it now?" Older Alix declared as Fluff bounced around the area. "You're me and I'm you. Well, more precisely, I'm you when you grow up,"

 "Wow," Alix gasped as she looked at her future self with huge eyes and admiration. "I can't believe how cool I'm gonna be when I'm older!"

 "I don't get it," Lady Noir gasped, scratching her head as she looked between the two Alixes before she turned to Anatis. "You didn't give her... mini Alix a miraculous, did you?"

 "He hasn't given it to us yet," Older Alix stated, making Lady Noir look at her. "Because he hasn't realized just how awesome I really am yet but don't worry... he will one day,"

 "I'm gonna get a miraculous!" Alix declared, moving her hand around happily. "So cool!"

 "Fluff, snack time," Older Alix declared, taking out a carrot and holding it to Fluff who had settled on her shoulder. "You need to recharge your batteries,"

 Fluff floated up and practically inhaled the carrot before blinked and look around.

 "Mm... was it breakfast or dinner? What time is it yesterday? Is it tomorrow already? When it will be the day after tomorrow, it will be yesterday again!" Fluff declared as she looked around before spinning upside. She suddenly gasped as she saw Anatis and floated over to him. "Master Anatis! Why are you so young?! Why just yesterday I'm sure you were twenty-one!"

 "Um..." He replied, unsure what to say before Fluff fluttered back over to Older Alix. Lady Noir frowned and cleared her throat, making everyone look at her again.

 "Your miraculous seems very powerful," She stated, making Anatis nod in agreement. "How come we don't use it more often?"

 "Because travelling through time is very dangerous!" Older Alix declared, making the two younger heroes nod. "Interfering with events can have dire consequences,"

 "Ooh," Lady Noir nodded before her ring began to beep. "Ah, sorry. I need to go feed Plagg,"

 She rushed off as Marc and Nathaniel looked at Older Alix.

 "So time travel has rules?!" Nathaniel asked, making her nod. "Wow..."

 "There's one thing I don't understand, Bunnyx," Anatis stated, making her look to him. He was holding his chin with his hand and had a serious expression. "If you're from the future then you must know how this ends. I mean your younger self has seen this with her own eyes so you should remember... right?"

 "Well... no," She admitted, rubbing the back of her neck. "I'm afraid my memory has been affected by the sleep I was in. I may have been put in a timeless spell but five thousand years have still passed,"

 "I see," He sighed, nodding.

 "But I think the logical thing to do would be for me to take Time Tagger back to his own time so he can be taken care of by heroes his own size," She declared, causing Anatis to think and nod. "I'll take care of this,"

 "Awesome!" Alix gasped as Marc scribbled in his notepad.

 "One thing I do remember is Mini me, Marc and Nathaniel were all there in my memory," She explained, making Anatis frown a little. It's not that he didn't like them. He did but he didn't want them to get hurt. However, if they were in her memory then they had to be there. "If they're there in my memory then they must play an important role,"

 "Good!" Alix declared, grinning. "There's no way we're sitting on the bench time!"

 "Well... since it's in your memory then I guess they have to be there," Anatis muttered as Lady Noir ran back over before he turned to the three of them. "But I want you three to take precaution and keep out of the actual battle, got it?"

 "Yes sir!" The three of them gasped, making him smile a little before Older Alix held out her watch.

 "Fluff, Clockwise," She transformed back into Bunnyx and the six of them ran from the bathroom and towards the exit but Lady Noir came to a stop and gasped.

 "Annie! You need to see this!" She declared, pointing at one of the banners. He stopped and looked over before gasping as well. The bard on it resembled Jagged. "He sent Jagged Stone back in time!"

 "And look, that's Nadja Chamuck!" Alix gasped before they looked over around. A tablet from Egyptian times changed as well.

 "Andre Glacier!" Nathaniel gasped, pointing at it.

 "And Mayor Bourgeois," Marc added in, causing Anatis to frown.

 "He's destroying our present by changing the past," He muttered, frowning deeply before turning to Bunnyx. "Bunnyx, since the future me hasn't been able to stop Time Tagger from coming here then I must not be that powerful... I'm sorry to have failed..."

 "Are you kidding me?!" Bunnyx gasped, surprising him as she placed her hands on his shoulders. "Anatis, you're... I mean you will be the most awesome team leader and the greatest superhero ever!"

 "But Time Tagger..." He sighed, looking down.

 "Time Tagger only got away because he tricked Lady Noir into using her cataclysm on my miraculous," She explained, making Lady Noir frown before she looked at both of them. "That isn't on either of you. Time Tagger is tricky and cunning but you two are greater then he is. In the future, you've defeated Dr Sadness, the eclipse invaders, Pain and Tears the twin queens of the inner dimension and Ignoblia, the evil sister of Majestia so believe me, you're not going to be intimidated by Time Tagger. Oh and I even forgot Monsieur Rat,"

 "Monsieur Rat?" Lady Noir asked with a grin. 

 "Yep," Bunnyx grinned. "You can always count on Anatis. With him around, there is always a solution,"

 "I'll say," Lady Noir grinned, making his cheeks go red before he let out a sigh.

 "But how will I even become like that?" He asked, looking down. Bunnyx walked over and placed her hands back on his shoulders.

 "By growing up, Mini bug," She smiled, making him nod as Lady Noir trapped her chin.

 "So in the future... me and Annie are still partners?" She asked, grinning. Bunnyx chuckled.

 "Can't separate the two of you even if we tried," She replied, shaking her head. "Honestly though, you two have the strongest relationship I've ever seen. You never hesitate to help the other and always have each other's back no matter what the situation but enough chitchat! We need to go!"

 The six of them ran outside of the Louvre, only to gasp in surprise as they saw that Time Tagger had marked the whole floor with his gun. 

 "We've taken too long," Bunnyx sighed, frowning before turning to the others. "He's had enough to weave a giant time web around us,"

 "Surrounded by one guy?" Anatis frowned before glancing over at Bunnyx. "That's mean he can attack from anywhere right?"

 "More like any time," She replied, making them all frown. Time Tagger suddenly appeared in front of them.

 "Give me your miraculous! Don't make me ask! It’s pretty clear you’re not up to the task!" He rapped, making the younger Alix, Nathaniel and Marc blinked in surprise. They definitely didn't expect that. "When I bring them to Hawkmoth's door, Anatis and Lady Noir will be no more!"

 "Does he always do that?" Alix asked, leaning towards Anatis, who nodded as he took out his yoyo. "Weird,"

 "Stay where you are," Bunnyx ordered, making him look at her before he nodded and put his yoyo back. "I'll deal with him take him to the future you. It means nothing must happen to you in the meantime... but first..."

 She suddenly grabbed Alix and jumped across to the ice cream van, placing her down before jumping back and grabbing Marc and Nathaniel, bringing them over to her as well.

 "Stay right there, ok?" She ordered, getting a nod of the three of them. "Then it will be exactly as it was in my memory... And now!!"

 She lifted her hand in the hair, summoning a blue light before making a circular movement with her hand, creating a glowing line.

 "Burrow!" She shouted, causing it to turn in a glowing white circle before she dived through. A second glowing circle appeared, right near to Time Tagger. She dived out of it and went to attack him but he disappeared before reappearing to attack her. However, she dived through another 'burrow' then dived at him from behind. He disappeared then reappeared again, landing a punch this time but she disappeared through another burrow before reappearing and punching him. He landed a kick and she hit him with her umbrella. Lady Noir stared in amazement as Bunny and Time Tagger continuously fought.

 "She doesn't need to transform back to use her power again?" She asked as she looked at Anatis.

 "No... She's an adult," He replied, making her gasp before she looked back at her.

 "So cool!" Lady Noir grinned, making him chuckle a little as they continued to watch the battle. The two time-travelers were giving it as good as they got but they were both equally matched. They both gasped as she threw her umbrella, jumped up into a burrow before creating one behind him and hooking the umbrella around ankle and threw him towards a burrow. Unfortunately, he disappeared before he could enter it before reappearing.

 "Bunnyx, you're lame! You don't get that game and now you have to start all over again," He rapped, making her gasp as she turned around before he repeatedly teleported and landed a powerful hit on her, sending her flying. She landed on the ground but jumped back up, charging towards him. Anatis frowned as he watched. Time Tagger was getting the upper hand and Bunnyx was slowing down. Time Tagger managed to throw her over his shoulder and onto the ground before laughing at her. "Where's your sass gone now, Fluffytail?!"

 Bunnyx growled and dived at him, causing Anatis to frown as she continued battle him. She managed to knock him back into a burrow, causing her grin happily.

 "Ha! I knew it! I knew you were gonna do that! Who's the best now?!" She declared, making Anatis and Lady Noir look at each other before they shrugged as she turned to them. "Thanks for your involuntary help, my young friends. Now Bunnyx is going home!"

 Anatis and Lady Noir walked over to her as a burrow opened behind her.

 "Thank you for your help," Lady Noir replied but Anatis was unusually quiet. Both girls frowned and looked at him. "Annie?"

 "It's too easy," He declared, making them both frown before he suddenly pushed Lady Noir out of the way, just before Time Tagger shot at her, causing the hit to land on Bunnyx instead. Lady Noir gasped and jumped back up as Anatis frowned. "Knew it,"

 "Enjoy your trip to the ice age, Fluffytail," He laughed before he turned to them and stalked over to them. "We've wasted enough time! Give me your miraculous now!"

 Bunnyx reappeared and tried to punch Time Tagger as Anatis and Lady Noir moved over to Alix, Marc and Nathaniel to protect them.

 "So the ice age wasn't good enough for you?!" He asked, firing at her again. "Back to the Cretaceous then!"

 He turned back to the heroes and began to walk over but Bunnyx reappeared with a t-rex behind her.

 "Down, Denver! Down!" She called out, getting his attention.

 "Wanna keep playing, Fluffytail?!"

 "Don't call me Fluffytail!" She growled, charging at him but he disappeared and reappeared away from her. 

 "To the future," He declared, shooting at her. "Seventh interstellar war!"

 "Disintegrate! Disintegrate!" Robots declared, shooting at her as she ran through a burrow, causing her to yell.

 "Maybe we should give her a hand," Lady Noir suggested, causing Alix to look at her.

 "You heard her!" She declared, making the heroes look at her. "She's the only one who can solve this time problem! She can do it! Go Bunnyx!"

 Bunnyx dived at Time Tagger but he fired at her again.

 "The heat is on," He declared as she reemerged from another burrow but this time she was smoking. She dived at him but this time, he simply stepped aside, causing her to fall down and slowly look up at Anatis.

 "Sorry, Mini bug... I just can't..." She gasped, making him frown as Time Tagger smirked. "Looks like I don't have a solution after all,"

 "Then let me give you one," He replied, making her look at him in surprise. He threw up his yoyo into the air. "Lucky charm!"

 A notepad landed in his hands, making him frown as Time Tagger laughed.

 "What are you gonna do with that? Sigh a defeat treaty?" Time Tagged laughed as Anatis looked around. He frowned deeply as he couldn't see any solution. He kept looking before Time Tagger pointed his gun at Bunnyx. "Now give me your miraculous or I get rid of your friend by sending her back to the big bang!"

 Anatis stopped and frowned as he looked at Time Tagger. He had no solution to defeating Time Tagger. Nothing was lighting up, making him frown. He felt powerless and useless. How was he suppose to defeat all of those villains when he can't even save Bunnyx? He closed his eyes, causing Lady Noir to gasp as he went to open his mouth but he stopped when he felt a hand on his shoulder. It definitely wasn't Lady Noir's hand. 

 "The three most powerful warriors are patience, time and trust in oneself," A voice whispered, making him blink in surprise. "So work with all three..."

 The hand pulled away from him as he glanced down at the notepad before letting out a sigh.

 "Time's running out, Bug boy," Time Tagger grinned, ready to pull the trigger.

 "All right," Anatis gasped, making him look at him. "You win. We'll give you our miraculous. All I ask is that you give me a little time to write a letter so I can apologize to my future self,"

 "What?" Alix, Marc, Nathaniel and Lady Noir gasped in surprise and horror.

 "Think of something!" Lady Noir gasped as Anatis closed his eyes. "You always think of something!"

 "Fair enough, Anatis. Wish granted," Time Tagger agreed before the purple butterfly mask appeared around his eyes as Hawkmoth communicated with him but he laughed. While he was listening to Hawkmoth, Anatis took the chance to glance around at the time web, committing it to memory. "If he thinks he can trick me, he's wasting his time. Pun intended,"

 He laughed as Anatis opened the note pad before he sighed, making everyone look at him.

 "I don't have a pen," He mumbled, looking around before he looked to the other four. "Could anyone lend me one please?"

 Marc instantly handed over his pen, making Bunnyx gasp as Anatis reached over and took it, thanking Marc as he did. He looked at the note pad. It lit up along with the pen then finally Bunnyx and Time Tagger themselves before he began to draw the whole time web and marking one of the spots that was right next to Time Tagger.

 "Time's up! My moment of victory has arrived!" Time Tagger declared, holding out his hand as Anatis sighed and tore off the paper.

 "I couldn't find the words," He muttered, screwing up the paper into a ball as he frowned. "It's pointless anyway. I won't even be Anatis in the future after we've given up our miraculous,"

 "Please don't do this, Mini bug!" Bunnyx gasped as he walked over to her.

 "Some problems just don't have a solution," He muttered sadly, making Time Tagger smirked before he knelt down to Bunnyx. "Go back to your own time, Bunnyx. You deserve to enjoy the time you have left,"

 "No, I refuse!" She gasped, shaking her head until he placed his hand on her shoulder and carefully past the ball of paper to her, making her look at him in surprise before he leaned in and hugged her, surprising her again.

 "Can you take that to the team leader in the future, Bunnyx?" He whispered, causing her eyes to widen once more. "It's all I could write,"

 "Ok, Mini bug," She replied, nodding sadly before letting go of him before looking to the side. "Burrow,"

 A glowing circle appeared as she looked back at the scene before sighing and diving through as Anatis turned to Lady Noir and the others. The three civilians looked like they were about to cry and Lady Noir looked defeated. He held out his hand to her.

 "Come on, Lady Noir," He stated, making her frown. "We better give him our miraculous,"

 She nodded sadly and walked over, taking his hand as he looked at her before winking at her, making her look at him in surprise before the two of them began to walk over.

 ~Future Paris~

 Bunnyx frowned as she exited the Burrow before looking up as Anatis, Lady Noir and Kujaku stood in front of her. She looked down in shame as Kujaku walked over and gently placed his hand on her shoulder in a comforting manner. 

 "I'm sorry, Anatis," She whispered, slowly glancing up at him. "I didn't deliver,"

 "I could go back with her this time and create a sentimonster to assist her," Kujaku suggested, looking at Anatis. "We'll defeat Time Tagger in no time!"

 "No need, Blue," Anatis smiled, using his nickname before walking over to Bunnyx. "I believe you have something for me,"

 She nodded and held out the ball of paper. Lady Noir glanced at it as Anatis took it and unrevealed it, smiling as he did. 

 "Is that?" She asked, looking at him.

 "Time Tagger's Time Web," He replied, looking up at Bunnyx. "Bunny, we need another burrow opened,"

 She looked at him in surprise before nodding.

 ~Back to Present Paris~

 Anatis and Lady Noir walked over to Time Tagger, stopping on the tag that he had picked out. Lady Noir let out a small sigh, keeping her hand tightly in his as they stood in front of the villain. She prayed that whatever plan he had it worked because if not this would be the end of the line. They looked up as the butterfly mask reappeared on Time Tagger.

 "You're right on the first account... but not on the second. The miraculous are not for you," He declared, making the two heroes frown before he laughed. "I said that I was sent by the Hawkmoth of the future but I never said that the Hawkmoth of the future was you,"

 The mask disappeared as he looked over at the heroes with a cruel smirk on his face.

 "She'll be very pleased with this," He replied, making both Anatis and Lady Noir stare in surprise. The Hawkmoth of the Future was female?! He laughed again before walking over to Anatis and Lady Noir. "Your earrings are mine, Bug Boy,"

 Lady Noir growled a little, making him laugh.

 "Don't worry, Lady Noir," He smirked, looking at her. "Your ring will be mine next,"

 He reached for Anatis' earrings but before he could take them, a burrow reappeared and a yoyo flew through, wrapped around his arms and pulling him away from Anatis, making him smile before a baton flew out and hit the gun, sending it fly as Time Tagger yelled out. Anatis jumped up and grabbed it.

 "Lady Noir!" He shouted, throwing it to her.

 "Cataclysm!" She yelled, catching it. It turned to dust, allowing the akuma to crawl out before Anatis took out his yoyo and captured the akuma before freeing it as Time Tagger turned back in his normal self. Lady Noir helped him up as Anatis walked over to Marc and gave him his pen back. The young man who was Time Tagger blinked at Lady Noir before looking over at Anatis.

 "Anatis? Lady Noir?!" He gasped in surprised. "Why are you so young?! Where am I?"

 "A better question would be when not where," Anatis replied, walking over to him as Bunnyx came out of the burrow and walked to the young man.

 "Come on, Chris," She stated, gesturing towards the Burrow. He looked in before disappearing inside. Bunnyx glanced over at the small heroes and gave them a smile before the older version of Anatis stepped out, making the current one blink. He didn't look much different compared to his current self but there were differences. He was obviously taller but his hair was still black and red in color and still messy but was a little bit shorter. His costume had changed slightly too. His boots were completely black instead of black and red. He still had the black panels across his sides but they no longer curved on his thighs. Instead they just got thinner until they met his boots. The middle of his suit was a slightly dark red with spots and his gloves were still fingerless. However, he was now wearing a biker jacket as part of his suit. It was most black but had panels on his arms that were ladybug patterned. His yoyo was hooked on his belt and his mask had remained the same. He also had snake bite lip piercing but what really surprised Luka was the color of his eyes. They were a silvery blue, making Luka look at him in surprise.

 "I believe this is yours," He smiled, chucking the ball of paper at Anatis. He caught it as another person stepped out of the Burrow, causing Lady Noir to stare at her future self in surprise as she stood next to Anatis. She had also changed in the future. She still had her plait but it was no longer impossibly long. Instead it came down to her waist. She still had the cat ears on her head but her suit had changed too. She had a middle panel that was black but side panels across her ribs that were a very dark gray. She had a black belt with green details on around her waist that also doubled up as her 'tail'. Like her torso, her arms had panels in dark grey and panels in black and she had black thigh high boots. One thing that remained the same was her outfit still had bright green tail but her eyes were slightly different. They were more of a turquoise green then an electric green. Alix couldn't help but grinned excitedly.

 "Hey, Future Anatis," She gasped, making him look at her. "When am I gonna get my miraculous?!"

 "When you're as cool as our Bunny," He replied, glancing over at Nathaniel and Marc with a friendly but knowing smile before Lady Noir nudged him lightly. He turned to her. "Time to go already?"

 "Yep," She nodded, making him sigh a little as he smiled. She grinned and laughed a little, making him look at her and nod before she turned to their younger selves and waved at them. "See ya, Mini Kitty and Bug boy! Keep up the good work!!"

 Older Anatis grinned and saluted them before following Lady Noir into the burrow. Bunnyx chuckled but shook her head before turning to the younger heroes.

 "That was a great plan, Mini bug," She smiled, making him smile. "You really had me convinced,"

 "I had to," He replied, making her nod. "Time to go?"

 "Yep," She grinned before waving to them, causing them to wave back. Satisfied that it was the right moment, she walked through the burrow before it disappeared, causing Anatis to glance at the notepad in his hand before throwing it up in the air.

 "Miraculous Ladybug!!" He declared, causing it to burst in the air and rush throughout Paris, fixing in everything in it's path. Alix, Nathaniel and Marc rushed over to the two of them.

 "That was so cool!!" Alix declared, grinning happily as Marc nodded.

 "I can't wait to write up time travel for the comic," He smiled as the two heroes shook their heads. Lady Noir leaned next to Anatis.

 "So the future Hawkmoth is a chick?" She asked, making him frown a little. "Think Time Tagger was telling the truth,"

 "Maybe... but the future isn't settle in stone," He replied, making her nod. "Besides... if it is... it means we defeat the current Hawkmoth,"

 "That is true," She replied, making him nod before their miraculous beeped. "Ah time to run! See you soon, Annie!"

 She turned and ran as he turned to walk away.

 "Hey, Anatis," Alix called out, making him look back at her. "Will I get to see you again?"

 "No doubt about it, Bunny," He grinned before throwing his yoyo and swinging away, causing Alix to grin excitedly as Marc and Nathaniel smiled too. Though Marc couldn't help but wonder why future Anatis looked at them like he knew them. Sure, he technically did know them but the look he gave them was one of friendship and he looked like he knew something that they didn't know yet. Marc had the feeling that Anatis might have given them a miraculous in the future but surely, he wouldn't give them a miraculous.... would he?

 ~Gabriel's Lair~

 "Nooroo, Dark Wings fall," He declared, causing his transformation to drop and Nooroo to manifest. He frowned deeply as he glared at the kwami before he narrowed his eyes. "I think it's time you and I had a talk,"

 "M-Master?" He asked, making Gabriel glare at him. "Y-Yes, Master... what do you need to ask?"

 "I have a lot of questions but my main concern is what happened with Blackout," He replied, making Nooroo frown deeply.

 "But the future ha-"

 "Isn't here yet and I am still Hawkmoth!" He shouted, making Nooroo before he smiled wickedly. "Of course, me not been the future Hawkmoth could simply mean that I saved Emile,"

 "Or that you failed, Master," Nooroo replied, making Gabriel growl. 

 "I will not fail!" He shouted, making Nooroo shake and nod his head. "But right now, I have more pressing concerns then some wannabe in the future which I should have asked you straight away. That Couffaine boy... he resisted an akuma and not in the same way as Miss Bourgeois. Why did he have a seizure? And just who's voice was in my head?!"

 Nooroo gasped as he had felt it as well but unlike Gabriel, who didn't know who it was, he knew exactly who it was. Gabriel looked at him and narrowed his eyes again.

 "Nooroo, you know who that was, didn't you?" He asked, making Nooroo gasp in fear. "Who was it?"

 "I.. I..."

 "Tell me!"

 "I c-can't, Master I swear," He gasped, making Gabriel frown. He knew Nooroo couldn't lie. "T-The Guardian ordered me not to,"

 "Well, I'm ordering you too," He growled but Nooroo shook his head. "Nooroo!"

 "T-The guardian's orders overrides any holders' orders, Master... even yours," Nooroo explained, looking down. "I'm sorry,"

 "I see," He replied, frowning before clicking his fingers as he stood on the platform. Nooroo flew over to him before the platform moved and brought them back into the manor. Gabriel walked over to an armchair and sat down, getting Nathalie's attention as she walked over with a jug of orange juice. He placed his hand on his head as she put it down. "If I'm not Hawkmoth in the future then that means I have failed,"

 "Or that you have succeed," She replied, walking over to him. She placed one of her arms on his back and the other over his heart. "The future is not set in stone, Gabriel,"

 "Thank you, Nathalie," He replied, looking up at her. She nodded and gave him a small smile.

 ~A Few Days Later~

 Anatis ducked into an alleyway as Lady Noir chased Mr Pigeon before glancing around and taking out his yoyo, going into "civilian" mode. He dialed Marinette's number and placed it to his ear as it rang, making him bit his lip. He let out a small sigh as it went straight to voicemail.

 "Hey, Marinette. It's Luka," He stated after the beep. "Um just wanted to apology for rushing off again and wondered if we could maybe meet up later? You know when Mr Pigeon isn't after me. Um... so let me know if you're interested, ok? Anyway, I'll talk to you later. Stay Safe, melody,"

 He hung up before rejoining the battle. He summoned his lucky charm before him and Lady Noir made quick work of defeating Mr Pigeon before he released the cure. With everything restored, Mr Ramier offered to buy them ice cream again. Anatis smiled as he ate his.

 "I'm so sorry," He gasped, looking down.

 "Don't worry," Anatis smiled, causing Mr Ramier to look at him. "Every problem has a solution and just because we didn't find it today, doesn't mean we won't find it next time,"

 "The problem with pigeons in Paris is they have it too hard here," Lady Noir stated, causing Anatis and Mr Ramier to look at her. "You could move to the suburbs, get a pet or befriend a new animal,"

 "Befriend a new animal?" Mr Ramier asked, thinking as Anatis nodded. "I never considered that before... but that's actually a really good idea, Lady Noir. I'll think about it,"

 Lady Noir nodded as Anatis got up.

 "We should get going," He stated, making her nod and jump up. "Thank you for the ice cream, Mr Ramier,"

 Lady Noir nodded before the two of them walked as Mr Ramier looked down at his pigeons. He let out a little sigh as he threw some crumbles for the pigeons before another creature came over, scaring them off. Mr Ramier gasped a little and took some crumbs in his hand, holding it to the creature. It sniffed his hand before climbing it and eating the crumbs.

 "Oh, what a cutie," He smiled happily as Lady Noir and Anatis came to the edge of the bridge.

 "You know I was thinking about what Bunnyx told us," She replied, making him look at her. "Does it seem crazy to you? I mean I know we defeat villains pretty much everyday but those ones had some really weird names. I mean there's Doctor what's his name and Monsieur Rat? Monsieur Rat?! What kind of code name is that?"

 "Maybe he's Mister Pigeon's cousin?" Anatis suggested as he smiled, making her look at him before the two of them laughed as they walked off. "Either way, we've defeat him,"

 "Yeah!"

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

Next Chapter: Chapter 52

[moondustaeil]

If your moots (or blogs you want to be mutuals with) were fanfics, what would they be? I personally think you'd be a 'royalty au, protective brother king!Kun × princess/prince!reader × suitor!Sangyeon' fanfic! 📚

You just seem very mature and put-together to me.

hihi, my love!! This was so nice to do even if it took a long time, I loved it so thank you. Also thank you for saying what fic I would be, I wish I could live in that fic 🥺💙

If you’re not in here, I’m so sorry, I’ll still add you if you want or next time someone asks me this, I’ll add you!

you can find the fics and moots under the cut! I didn’t go in any particular order, just who popped in my mind at what moment and émi last bc she’s my world yes. This is way longer than expected

@sunhyuck

Au: soulmates 

Pairing: wanderer!Haechan x Kei 

Backstory: ever since Donghyuck accidentally met eyes with a stranger on the street, he is greeted with sunflowers scattered along his path. Young sunflowers dance under the sun, turning to the source of warmth and light. Just like the sun is all you've been gazing at ever since you walked on the same path as your soulmate. 

Why: because I truly think of Kei as one of the people I'll always go to and when thinking about soulmates, I think of people who find each other and accept each other despite different lives. That I will connect to the weird variety of subjects we talked about. I love you, my angel (if you're reading this). 

⠀

@neo-cult-ure 

Au: demonic entities , haunted house , roommates 

Pairing: composer!Taeyong x journalist!Ley 

Backstory: Taeyong has been shouting over his music to you for over half a year, almost begging you to dedicate a column to him and his music. When his equipment starts picking up the strange noises coming from the house, it becomes clear that the clock hasn't been stopping at 3:19am for nothing. With Taeyong discovering the entity living among you, you decide to dedicate the article to Taeyong and your invisible roommate. 

Why: do I even need to explain, this queen owns horror and the horror concept. She's the one I'll bow to because I owe her a lot and she's freaking talented.

  ⠀

@ceruleanskies 

Au: secret relationship 

Pairing: soloist!Yuta x stylist!Kai 

Backstory: ever since Yuta appeared on the red carpet with a short haircut, fans hunt for the person that made the decision to get rid of his mullet. All fingers point towards you, stylist of Nakamoto Yuta, from each finger a new opinion flows into your ears: too short, not the right colour, better looking with the mullet. Though one finger shoots the arrow right in the heart "they're dating." 

Why: because I truly adore Kai even though I'm way too scared to actually tell, I don't want to mess up and make her think that I'm some kind of weird person. In my eyes, she sparkles through my screen. 

⠀

@neonun-au 

Au: dating app 

Pairing: photographer!Johnny x Mads 

Backstory: just like he with a button alters between the different pictures on his camera, Johnny alters between the different profiles, swiping them in his desired direction. That's how you strand in his life and mostly his camera roll: the pictures he takes, one by one, capture you. 

Why: because even though we don't know each other well, I truly want to capture her in my memory and think about the smiles I had on my face when reading her messages. 

⠀

@flowerhyucky 

Au: arranged by fate (you can call this soulmates but I'm calling this arranged by fate)  

Pairing: Hendery x Ana 

Backstory: one day, the flowering plant amaranthus caudatus settles itself in the middle of an empty field. Another day, someone else's birth flower is planted next to the amaranthus caudatus. The young miracles of nature grow just as their owners do, however, they don't bloom until the love between you and Hendery starts to bloom. 

Why: I really like Ana and her URL actually inspired the story, I could write so many adorable aus to fit her but nothing would compare. I truly like her vibes and her personality is so beautiful, like wow. 

⠀

@smileyjaeminies 

Au: university , writer 

Pairing: writing student!Jaemin x student!Alex 

Backstory: exam season is closer than expected for you, with only a few days to go until you scribble your knowledge down on the exam sheet and a week to go until you need to hand in your paper. However, someone is willing you help you with that paper. Na Jaemin, student and writer who seems to have more control over his life than the earth has over global warming. As the word document increases in pages, so does your liking towards the young writer. 

Why: I met Alex thanks to thesunnyshow that we're both co-admins of, and it immediately felt as if we were friends. Alex helped me through the screen when I fell off my bike (yes haha, a 21-year-old one took the wrong brake) and I try to make it work when she's busy with uni but we have a shift. So I think we're a great team and that's why I picked this au. 

⠀

@fruityutas 

Au: broken relationship 

Pairing: Taeil x Emily 

Backstory: "Can I go on?" Taeil asks himself every morning, gazing upon your sheet-covering body as you drown in the world of sleep. The wind howls outside the window, and Taeil wishes the wind would push you towards him, but the soft blowing only pulls you further away from him. You feel a soft breath against your neck, the soft lips murmuring "without you, there's no way." 

Why: I don't know why I chose this particular plot, maybe it was because I was listening to a song and based it on that. Initially, I wanted to go for a cheerful and happy plot that reminded me of her URL, but I ended up with angst. I remember we had this talk about angst and went from that. Also, I adore her so much, I probably expressed that once in a gc already but I'm saying it again. 

⠀

@afishcalledfatin 

Au: friends to lovers

Pairing: Jungwoo x Fatin 

Backstory: for as long as you can remember, you've been friends with Kim Jungwoo. In your childhood and teenage years, the term BFFs would be engraved in each object you gave to each other, but now that you two are adults, life is different. You want to give him the world because he deserves everything, he wants to give you love because his heart is longing for yours. 

Why: because she feels like a friend that I've had for years, we don't always talk but when we do, it just feels like we've been friends since forever. I love that a lot about her and I love how easy she is to approach and talk to, she's a true darling. 

⠀

@heartyyjeno 

Au: strangers to lovers 

Pairing: Sungchan x Alesha 

Backstory: trainee life is tough for Sungchan, even thinking about having to walk for over half an hour to get to the dance studio is something Sungchan stopped looking forward to. However, he meets you on his way, walking along the same path to get to a different location. One step a day with you along his side is all it takes for him to look forward to it again, to walking with you and getting to know you better. 

Why: because Alesha is a great friend and we, unfortunately, don't talk as much as we used to, but that doesn't take away I'm always there for her and she's always there for me. Sungchan's walk resembles the many different talks that we had together and not all of them were fun, but we walked the path together.

⠀

@jimjamjaemin 

Au: youtuber , vlogger 

Pairing: vlogger!Mark x vlogger!Mona 

Backstory: Mark and you have been a couple for over a year, with the growing interest in your relationship, you and Mark start a YouTube channel. From a look in the life to fun challenges, you and Mark take over the crown of cute YouTube couples. 

Why: Mona and i didn't meet in the best situation, we started to talk when there was quite some drama in the fandom. But I love Mona and the thing she made me for my birthday reminded me of an editor which led me to a youtuber au!

⠀

@chaoticdeobi 

Au: bakery/coffee shop (bc how can I not, she kicked me out of the coffee queue) 

Pairing: soft-spoken!New x coffee shop owner!Bea 

Backstory: the coffee quote that hangs inside your coffee shop, is something that Chanhee cites every day. With a soft voice, he orders his coffee and then flashes you his smile when you proceed to tell him that the cookie is on the house. As you bring the coffee to his table, the last minute of your shift ticks by, and when you sit with him, you start your shift as girlfriend. 

Why: I literally love love love Bea, sometimes she reminds me of a soft-spoken person and other times she reminds me of a chaotic deobi. I still laugh to myself thinking about our talks, thinking about having fun together. We don't get to talk as much as I'd like, but when we do, I wish we could talk forever. 

⠀

@juyeonzz

Au: criminal , badass , something chique  

Pairing: criminal!Jacob x partner in crime!Qiu

Backstory: pointing the gun at his future victim, Jacob awaits your return. You explore the house: tugging at knobs of money-filled drawers, opening jewellery-clad treasures. But you are looking for the key to Jacob's heart, a golden key dusted with scratches, poisoned with old blood from when someone else locked his heart and pulled the key out harshly. 

Why: because Qiu really gives me chique and sad vibes, when I think about her, I think about a longing feeling described with poetic words. Qiu wasn't my first mutual but if I need to mention my first mutuals, there's a big chance I'll include her because it feels like she was one of the first people I got close to. 

⠀

@atbzkingdom

Au: dream 

Pairing: Haknyeon x Dee

Backstory: if Haknyeon were to have one more day on this earth, how would be spend it? He would make a timetable of which you are the only returning factor, because he would like to drown himself in time with you. Twenty-four hours in which he is the sun that illuminates each part of the world, the world that is you, rotating until the sun is replaced by the moon. 

Why: I don't know Dee that well because we haven't talked overly much, but whenever I think about her, I think about references with the earth, sun and moon or natural things. She's just a sweet person, and it seems really natural to talk to her! 

⠀

@127-mile

Au: muse , painting 

Pairings: Ten x Émi (but there's also Renjun in here)

Backstory: from the brush that Renjun manoeuvres, droplets of paint colour the blank canvas in a self-made story. Ten, the master that learned Renjun how to portray his muse, is now standing next to Émi, the young woman returning in each painting of Ten. Never had they stood next to each other: artist and muse. Never had they consciously smiled at each other. Never had they been real. Until now. Immortalised on the canvas, Ten hugs his Émi, they might both be droplets of paint with a shadow, but behind the canvas Renjun bids farewell to his last painting. His tear streaks the painting, blurring the line between reverie and reality 

Why: because Émi and Renjun are both my muses in life and writing, creatively but also in daily things. I proclaim my love for Émi a lot but that never takes away how genuine it is, because I genuinely love her and sometimes it seems so surreal that she's in my life. Sometimes I'm afraid that she's a dot, a droplet of paint that will fade by time until I have no more remains of her. But however long we have left, I will cherish and love her each day just like she loves Ten (isn't that a sad love story, I literally cried for like five minutes after this 😂)

[myghostmonument]

13xReader: Inhibitions

Notes: I’ve been writing a lot more “canon” pieces recently (non-readers, posted on my ao3), but it feels nice to go back to my fandom roots, so to speak, and finish off some requests like this one! Each style has its own challenges to work through, and it’s fun to move between them and keep things interesting. I plan to keep writing for both, so no worries to anyone who prefers one over the other. This is, as always, gender-neutral for the reader, and is also border-line a disaster!reader fic, a loose characterization style created by the incredible @lilaccoats​ that I stole bc she loves me 

Summary: The Doctor takes you and the fam to a trendy bar, promising a night of relaxation and fun. Shenanigans ensue when you maybe-not-so-accidentally get a little too inebriated. 

Warnings: Alcohol consumption, drunkenness, hangovers, mentions of vomit, and attempted assault. It’s more an uncomfortable conversation than anything, and nothing graphic happens, but please be warned!

WC: 7500 please don’t look at me like that I just picked at it to unwind as I worked on my zine piece and it got entirely out of hand honk honk goes the clown mobile 

The decision to go to a bar had been Ryan’s. That alone, that the destination had been picked during his turn, ought to have been enough forewarning; it seemed that whenever a trip went sideways, it almost always fell on Ryan’s turn (or the Doctor’s, but you and the others excluded that data — her choices were always catastrophes and not worth including in the risk analysis amongst yourselves).

But faced with the usual question of “where and when to next?”, Ryan had requested a bar, and the Doctor had delivered. You had landed on an asteroid, which according to the Doctor was the location of a top-notch bar, situated along a very popular intergalactic trading route. It was certainly busy, as you all left the TARDIS in an alley and approached the sleek, shiny building; there was a short queue to get in, but people — aliens and humans both — congregated in clumps around it and as you moved through the line and entered the bar, you even looked up and noticed people on the roof.

“So,” Yaz said, propping a hip against the bar counter and taking in the sights. “This is where the great Ryan Sinclair works his magic.” She let her eyes rove around the noisy crowd, and grinned over at Ryan. “You feeling right at home then?”

Ryan shot her a scowl, his hands shoved firmly in his pockets. “Ha ha,” he said. “This is not what I had in mind when I suggested drinks.”

“What?” The Doctor asked, looking around at him. “Really? I thought I did all right.” She put her hands on her hips, surveying the crowded, noisy bar.

“Well I think it’s great Doc,” Graham said, already perusing a menu with interest. She beamed at him.

“Thank you, I try my best,” she said. She had her hands in her coat pockets, something that usually indicated she was being (or feeling) cautious. In this case, you thought she was merely trying to avoid knocking into anyone, or any drinks; the bar (if that’s what it was, it did seem more like a sort of club) was packed with people, and it would be all too easy to hook an elbow or bump a precarious drink.

Yaz and Ryan were still bickering, and although you generally enjoyed wading into those sorts of things, a menu caught your eye and you pulled it closer. You could read it, thanks to the TARDIS’ help, but translation could only go so far.

“Are these all alcoholic?” you wondered aloud, frowning at something listed as a Greyhound.

“Are they even all drinks?” Graham added, and you glanced up with a smile, knowing he was hoping for food.

“I think so,” the Doctor answered, moving over to you. She reached over to pull your menu towards her, and her sleeve brushed against your shoulder. “Hmm,” she said, still standing very close. “Sorry Graham, all liquid.” She didn’t actually sound all that sorry, you noted. Graham obviously noticed it as well, because he gave a theatrical sigh.

“Every drink has an inebriation agent of some sort,” the Doctor continued, scrunching her nose. “Different sorts for different races and species, this is a very diverse bar.”

“Are they all safe for us?” Yaz asked, also crowding your shoulder to look at the menu.

“Y-e-s,” the Doctor said slowly, followed by an “actually no,” and an eye-roll from Yaz. “Well, sort of. Depends on what you mean by safe. Humans are common enough here, but some drinks will still have a stronger or weaker effect than they would for their intended consumer. They’re coded, see?” She flattened her (your) drink menu on the counter and pointed. “This is the symbol for human, with standard colour rankings. Green means intended for you, yellow means it will have less effect, and red more.”

“Get in,” Ryan said, and you knew without having to look that he was perusing the red-coded drinks.

“You don’t want to try a Red,” the Doctor said sternly. “It could have any number of effects.”

“That’s what I’m counting on,” Ryan muttered, and then it was Graham’s turn to bicker with him while you and Yaz  scanned the menu.

“How do you think we order?” you wondered, after deciding to try the Greyhound, which was coded green. Yaz had decided on yellow-coded drink, which cited a lack of alcohol. Its kick came from the flavor combination and carbonation, apparently. Yaz’s particular choice sounded disgusting, and you were very much looking forward to watching her try it.

“Yeah, I don’t see a barkeep,” Graham added, craning over the counter and apparently done with trying to persuade Ryan to make good choices. “Though I suppose you might not be able to pick one out from this mess.” It was true; though you were congregated around a counter, there was no discernible life-form keeping tabs or otherwise running it, and the crushing ebb and flow of the crowd was a confusing riot of clashing voices and species. Over it all thrummed the heavy beat of music, alien but still somehow recognizable as upbeat and catchy. You had the distinct sense that this was a trendy bar, and wondered how the Doctor even knew about it.

“It’s simple,” the Doctor said, and she bent over you to again point at the menu, her arm resting against yours. “You see this bit here? You press it with your finger, then press the box next to the item you want.”

“How’s that work then?” Ryan asked dubiously.

“It’s DNA activated,” the Doctor said calmly, as if that were in any way a normal thing for a drinks menu to be. “We were all scanned when we walked through the doors, didn’t you notice?”

“Did we notice the DNA scanners in an alien bar filled with aliens?” Graham asked. “No, must have slipped my mind Doc, no idea how I missed them. ”

“Well,” the Doctor said loftily, “you were scanned. So order your drink like I said, and it’ll be brought to you.” She bent over her menu, some of her hair brushing against your face. You sat very still, swallowed, then reached for a menu and dragged it towards you (seeing as how your own had been commandeered.)

After some consideration you ordered your Greyhound, and it arrived in an interesting, fluted sort of glass, delivered by a waiter. The drink was a pleasing sanguine colour, complete with a wedge of fruit on the glass rim. The whole effect was quite good, too, which was more than Yaz could say for her yellow-coded drink, which she almost choked on. You didn’t deign to try it after that, but Ryan and the Doctor both made a big show of tasting it and being subsequently horrified. Graham, equable as ever, took the abandoned yellow in hand and sipped it serenely, something the rest of you took in with an impressed sort of horror. The Doctor drifted away shortly after with no drink of her own, which wasn’t too surprising; you rarely saw her ingest anything more than a taste of food or drink before flitting away, like some sort of overgrown and absent-minded hummingbird. Ryan and Graham wandered off too. You lingered at the counter with Yaz for a while, as she ordered a new (and improved) yellow-coded drink. You found your own glass empty, and after some hesitation, shrugged and ordered another Greyhound. It hadn’t been too strong; you simply felt warm, and bright. It was nice. Second drinks in hand, you and Yaz decided to do a circuit, it was dark and loud and you were quickly separated in the swirling crowd. No matter, you thought cheerfully, as you took another sip. You’d catch Yaz up eventually, no doubt. The music was blasting, and you unconsciously matched your footfalls to the beat, feeling it warm and sizzling in your blood along with the drink. You tipped the glass in your mouth at the end of the song, and were surprised to find it empty. “Well that’s rude,” you told the empty glass, which flashed  in your hand in a thoroughly unimpressed manner. You pivoted in the press of bodies around you, trying to find a free table and a menu. You needed replacement drink, seeing as how your current one was clearly faulty. “Must’ve shorted me,” you mumbled to yourself. “Typical. Think I can’t handle my glasses - I mean, hounds. Dogs. Drinks.” You stumbled as you pushed through a group of people, but regained your stride easily enough. You even spotted Ryan in a shadowy corner, chatting with a very lovely alien indeed. She seemed to be trying to entice Ryan to dance; you wished her the best of luck. Ryan was a hilarious dancer. Not bad, but definitely hilarious, and he took some convincing. You reached a table on the edge of the dance floor, and pulled a menu towards yourself. It took you a couple of jabs to correctly order your Greyhound — your finger kept slipping. Or maybe it was the menu, actually. “Faulty drinks, faulty menus,” you complained to the room at large, leaning back against a pillar as you waited. The people swirling around you were difficult to focus on, and you wondered suddenly if the room was tilting — surely the room itself wasn’t faulty! “Have to get the foundations checked,” you informed the alien server who appeared with your drinks. They gave you an odd look and vanished. You reached for your drink, but paused, hand outstretched as you considered the not one but three glasses set before you. Two Greyhounds, and one that was something else, a smaller, opaque glass. The liquid shimmered in a very interesting way indeed, and it was difficult to look away. Well, perhaps they had brought you the extra drinks on the house, in order to make up for all the faults you’d been uncovering left and right. You stumbled as you pondered this, which as far as you were concerned was proof enough of the foundational flaws; you were, after all, standing still, so what other reason would you have to stumble? Unbelievable. You reached for the Greyhound, but your hand paused, then changed course halfway through and grasped the smaller, shimmering cup instead. It was very light in your grip. You tasted it and stumbled again; it had hit your tongue with a wallop, your entire body was fizzing with a bolt of what must be pure electricity, there was no other possible explanation. Everything around you was abruptly brighter, louder, richer. You blinked, fascinated. “Not too many humans can handle their reds,” a voice said next to you, and you set the cup down with a thud, squinting as the alien next to you came slowly into focus. “You usually so squiggly?” you asked him, and he titled his head, dark eyes moving from you to the half-drunk cup, and back again. His smile flashed in the low light, and for a moment it was all you could see, becoming somehow the brightest, sharpest thing in the room. “It’s a curse,” he said, and you nodded sagely, taking another sip. His eyes followed the cup, and his smile sharpened. “Could cut myself on that,” you observed. “Teeth,” you added, when he looked confused. Perhaps he was drunk; it was ridiculous how many people couldn’t hold their liquor! “Want to try?” he asked, and his hand was on your arm. You weren’t sure when it got there. “Excuse me?” you said, loftily, aiming for a bit of the Doctor in your speech. You thought you did quite well, but the alien didn’t look as annoyed as anyone on the receiving end of one of the Doctor’s questions usually did. Rude. “Do I want to try what?” you asked belatedly, and realized that you were being towed towards the dance floor. When had you made that decision? Time seemed to be leaping ahead and then stalling out in great lurches, and everything was fuzzy and dull. You felt the glass taken from your hand, and were vaguely surprised to find that it was empty again. Another faulty glass? Really? You might have to register a complaint. “Not a lot of humans here,” the alien said, and his hands were on your sides, moving you to the music. People pressed all around you, bumping your shoulders and making it difficult to get your bearings. Your shoes squelched on the slightly sticky floor as they moved. You wanted to stop and see if you could get the room to stop spinning so much, but the hands on you kept you in motion. The alien was speaking again, close to your ear so you could hear him over the din. “You come here alone?” he asked, his fingers warm against your side, and tight. You tried to pull back to get a better look at him but he kept you where you were.“No,” you said, blinking as you tried to orient yourself. Your eyes kept sliding in and out of focus. “Came with m’friends.” “And they left you all alone, to drink a red?” he murmured, and his grip tightened. He was pulling you across the dance floor; the light was fading, and you realized all at once, as you moved into a more shadowed section of the room with only the gleaming crescent of his smile visible, that you were actually quite drunk, and didn’t know where any of the others were. “Should - should get back to them,” you tried to articulate, and he laughed, one of his hands sliding lower. “You’re right where you want to be.”  You stiffened, and tried to pull away. “No, I want to find my friends,” you slurred, jerking back. He held your arm, and pulled you into him in a great twirl, and suddenly your back was against a dark, slightly sticky wall. He loomed over you, one hand still vise-like on your arm, the other pressed against the wall by your head. He smiled down at you, except it didn’t really look so much like a smile anymore, but just a lot of very sharp, gleaming teeth. Your face was very cold, and you wished the room would stop spinning enough that you could push him off and find the others. “I could be your friend,” the alien said, his breath fanning across your face, his hand sliding lower again. The hand on the wall touched your hair, curled a lock of it musingly through his fingers. “I just love red-drunk humans, all alone and lost and looking for a friend to help them.” You struggled again in his grip, and this time he let you go. You lurched sideways along the wall, falling against the corner in a heap. You thought you should feel sick, but you only felt annoyed, and cold, and something else, something like confusion that was tipping towards fear. The alien lifted you back up, hands on your arms, then pressed you back against the corner, his weight against you. Annoyance flared and you tried to push him away. “Let go,” you ordered, but he only laughed, touched your face. “You don’t want to be alone right now do you little Red?” he asked. “I’m sure that’s true,” a new voice interrupted. It had a familiar, lilting cadence, but you didn’t recognize the sharpness to it, or the way danger simmered beneath the surface. The alien didn’t glance away from you. “We’re busy,” he said, touching your face again. “Find your own —” but then he was ripped away from you in swirl of grey fabric and flashing eyes. You swayed, then jerked back as hands touched you again, but — “It’s okay,” that voice said, “it’s alright, it’s me,” and you recognized it this time. The Doctor tucked you against her side and you inhaled that familiar scent of tea and vanilla, and it cleared your head a little, enough to let out a shaky breath. “He’s being - rude,” you told the Doctor, your voice muffled as you glared at the alien. “Yes, he is,” she answered. Her voice was still light, and soothing, and you weren’t able to see the way she was looking at him.  He scowled, gaze darting from you to the Doctor and back before making a dismissive sort of hand gesture and melting into the crowd. The Doctor stood very still for a moment, and you all you could hear was the thunder of her hearts. She let out a breath, then turned you. Again you found your back against that wall, only the hands on you were gentle, and cool. The Doctor touched your face as she looked at you, and that was better too. “Are you okay?” she asked, and you wondered at the appearance of that crease in her brow. She looked dangerous, in the half-light, but her hands were still so light. You nodded, and suddenly her grip on you was tight as she kept you from toppling over. “Wouldn’t - leave me alone,” you told her. “Rude.” “You already said that,” she observed, removing one of her hands to fish in a pocket for her sonic. You blinked at her, swaying on your feet as she ran it over you. She read the output and exhaled. “Tell me you didn’t drink a red.” “I didn’t drink a red,” you repeated dutifully, and watched as her entire face scrunched up in exasperation. It was nice.“You’re so pretty,” you informed her. It was important that she knew in that moment how pretty she was, with her face all scrunchy and the flashing lights making a halo of her head. “So pretty. Too pretty.” You stumbled, and again she caught you. “Okay, I think it’s back to the TARDIS with you.” “Says who,” you slurred, even as she steered you away from the wall and towards the exit. “You’re not — you’re not the boss of me.” “I certainly am,” she muttered. “Especially when you’ve gone and had a red, and I explicitly told you it was a bad idea.” Her grip on your arm was firm and cool, and infinitely preferable to the alien’s. The other alien, that was, because obviously she was alien too. So many aliens! “You’re the best alien though,” you mused aloud, and she darted a quick look at you, tongue poking briefly out of her lips. You liked that quite a lot. You wanted her to do it again, in fact, but she had drawn her lips back into a thin line as she watched you. She steered you towards the exit, but the crowd seemed to have doubled in size, and she was forced to shove her way bodily through the dancing, yelling patrons. A much larger person staggered into her and she grunted as she took the blow. “I think I hate bars,” she said, her voice all but inaudible over the din. “That’’s new. Maybe.” Someone else knocked into her, and the force was heavy enough to jar your arms from her grip. She receded from you in a blurry tunnel of light and sound, and then it was just you, pressed between strange bodies on the dance floor while the music thundered through your bones. Huh. Almost everyone was taller than you, and you had no idea which way the exit was, or the Doctor. You didn’t care much about the exit, but it’d be good to find the Doctor; you had felt less…. fuzzy, when her hands had been on your arms, and more like yourself again. And also she was just so pretty. Wandering in a blurry haze of music and voices, you began to wonder if maybe you might locate another drinks menu. You weren’t so sure about another red, but it also didn’t seem like quite as bad of an idea as it had an hour ago. That was interesting. Weaving and stumbling, you tried to push through the press of bodies, and had made a little bit of progress when — — hands, there were hands on you again — You lurched sideways as you tried to bat those hands away, but there was nowhere to go, the wall of people bounced you back, and the lights were flashing and people were shouting and there were hands on you again — “ - alright? Hey?” The hands succeeded at spinning you around, and a person loomed out of the crowd. Two things followed in short order: you recognized Yaz, and you threw out a defensive fist. They didn't happen in the optimal order, however. “Oi!” Yaz cried, dodging your fist and catching it in her own. “It’s me, what the hell?” She was still sliding in and out of focus, but you were aware of the fact that she was quite pretty too. "’M sorry,” you told her, wondering why she was pulling away from you. You hadn’t actually hit her, after all. Had you? “Sorry,” you repeated, swaying.She was peering at you, her hands firm on your arm. Her eyes were very dark, but they reflected the dancing lights all around you and you blinked, fascinated. “Are you okay?” she asked cautiously. “Absolutely corking,” you slurred, proud to remember the phrase you had heard Graham use (and Ryan mock) earlier. You weren’t sure why it made Yaz look so alarmed. “Yaz — oh, good —” The Doctor popped into your view as she squeezed between two dancing aliens who took no notice of her, which was probably good because her expression was quite stormy indeed. She still looked quite pretty. How’d she manage that? It wasn’t fair. “Doctor,” Yaz said, turning, “I think something’s wrong —” “Someone decided that they should have a red,” the Doctor said, grim. “I also had two - three - I had - greens!” you told them both, proud. Yaz’s look of alarm deepened, and it was so comical that you couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled up. When that did nothing except make her and the Doctor’s brows both snap into synchronized, angry little v shapes, you only giggled harder. “Right, TARDIS,” the Doctor said ominously. “Yaz, can you find Ryan and Graham and let them know?” Yaz nodded and between one blink and another, she had vanished again. “Just like magic,” you told the Doctor, wondering why your lips were numb. She gave you a swift, searching look, her eyebrows still angry little vs and her tongue still poking between her lips. “Come on,” she said, wrapping a cool hand around your wrist. The contact was steadying, and very nice. She kept you close, clearly not wishing to be separated again as she towed you towards the exit. “Don’t want to go,” you told her abruptly, and you couldn’t hear your voice over the crowd and the music. You didn’t even know why you said it; it wasn’t true, strictly. You still felt like you could fit in another drink or two worth of fun, but you didn’t really care where you went, not if the Doctor was with you. Even if she looked so angry as she glanced back over her shoulder. She had heard you, evidently. She had very good hearing; you and Ryan and Yaz had been working on an experiment to test the limits of it, but hadn’t put it in action yet. Someone bumped into the Doctor hard and she grunted, but her grip on you remained iron-clad and she pulled you closer, actually folding you into her arms to protect you from the jostling crowd.“This is not what I had in mind,” she muttered, her lips very close to your ears as she spoke. It was nice, and extraordinarily distracting. “Do people actually enjoy these places?” “Ryan does apparently,” you said, remembering him chatting up that pretty alien. “This was his idea wasn’t it?” the Doctor mused, moving again and pulling you with her. You were still very close. “I don’t suppose we’ll be letting him choose the next adventure. Ah. That’s better,” she added as she stepped out of the bar and into the night, towing you with her.  A blast of cool, humid air hit you, wrapping around your body and cooling your cheeks. Even though the bar itself had been fairly dark, your eyes still relaxed as the flashing lights fell away.The Doctor let go, and the sobering effect of the night seemed to pull back, a little, as if you’d lost your anchor. The world tilted around you, the stars overhead wheeling and dancing. It made you feel a little bit sick, but it was also beautiful. The Doctor was talking, and you struggled to focus.“Think we parked just over there, yeah, must’ve. Let’s go — where are you going?” The last was delivered with an air of extreme exasperation as she turned in time to witness you bolting away. “I want to be colder,” you told her as you stumbled through the night. You were on pavement (alien pavement, anyways) but in the distance you could see the shadow of what had to be trees (alien trees) and maybe some grass (alien grass). You wanted nothing so much as to lay down on that grass. The Doctor’s protests followed you as you reached the tree and hurled yourself down at the cool earth. Well, not earth. Whatever passed for earth here. What was dirt on an asteroid called? A shadow fell over you, blocking the stars, and you turned your cheek in the grass to look up at the silhouette of the Doctor, hands on her hips, stray hairs blowing in the wind.“You’re sick, you need to get back to the TARDIS,” she said. “You’re sick, you need to get back to the TARDIS,” you replied cheerfully, and even though you couldn’t see her expression very well in the darkness and swirling stars, you could feel the scrunched-up scowl she leveled at you. “Come on,” she said, and her voice was exasperated but her hands were gentle as they lifted you off the ground. Gentle again, as they caught you when you stumbled sideways. “Careful, now. Come on.” “Don’t feel - so good -” you told her, and it was true; the fuzzy, warm glow was fading and the whirling of the stars wasn’t so much aesthetically pleasing as it was now sickening. “I expect not,” the Doctor muttered. “What could have possibly possessed you to drink so much? To drink a red?” “I didn’t mean t’ order it,” you defended yourself. “It was just - just there.” “And you drank it? Something you hadn’t ordered?” the Doctor demanded. “Surely you know not to do that!” “Just trying to have fun,” you mumbled, guilt rising up in you alongside the nausea. “Just wanted —  didn’t mean to — I wasn’t —” “Okay, it’s okay, I know,” the Doctor said, her voice softening. She shifted you against her as she spoke, and you realized she was fumbling for the TARDIS key. The blue box was humming at an almost inaudible frequency, but you could feel it moving through you bones, cooling your blood, steadying you. “Thanks,” you said weakly, patting a hand on the wood as the Doctor steered you through. The interior slights dimmed as you came in,  and it was a soothing balm on your eyes and raw nerves. “She’s spoiling you lot,” the Doctor muttered, but you could hear the fondness threading through her voice. “She likes us,” you thought, or maybe said. The Doctor made a soft sound, not quite a word, and you weren’t sure if she’d heard you. Weren’t sure if you’d spoken. “Okay, try and eat this,” the Doctor said a few moments later. Or maybe hours, you still weren’t entirely sure how time was progressing. Her fingers brushed your lips as she placed a fizzing sort of tablet on your tongue, and you realized all at once that your lips weren’t numb anymore, but blazing with sensation. “Swallow it, it’ll help,” she added. You blinked, looking into her face, so close to yours. There was still that furrow by her eyebrow but she didn’t seem angry, anymore. Not like she had with she’d stared down that rude alien. Her eyes were bright, glittering like the star field outside of the bar. “Too pretty,” you complained, then promptly choked on the tablet you had forgotten on your tongue. “Swallow,” she repeated, placing two fingers on your mouth. Your breath hitched, which did not help the choking one bit. You did, at least, in the midst of the resulting coughing fit, manage to swallow the tablet,  but it burned and your eyes streamed as you blinked at the Doctor. “Good,” she said, placing fingers under your chin. Her touch was somehow both cooling and blazing, comforting and so very distracting. You made an indeterminate sound, and her eyes flicked to yours, a brief touch, before flicking over your face. “That should kick in soon,” she said, dropping her hand. “Is it — gonna cure me,” you asked, and the breathless quality to your voice was due to the lingering affects of drunkenness, surely, and not the Doctor’s touch. She snorted, pushing hair out of her eyes.“It’ll speed up the process, burn the chemicals out of your system faster,” she said. “And it’ll make for a quicker hangover.” She fixed you with an amused look. “Quicker, but not easier. You’re in for a fun night, I think.” You groaned, throwing yourself down on the couch. You regretted it at once, as your head spun and your stomach roiled, but the drama of the moment had dictated.“I didn’t mean to,” you complained, shutting your eyes as the lights spun around you. The spinning didn’t stop, in the darkness behind your eyelids, but it was a little bit better. Maybe. A cool hand brushed your forehead, and that definitely was better. “I know,” she said, and you could hear the gentleness in her voice. “Am I going to die?” you asked, not because you thought that you were — you’d been sick before, though admittedly not from alien alcohol — but it had the right flair of drama to it. It also made the Doctor snort again, and regrettably, her hand slid from your brow. “You’re drunk, not dying,” she said, and her voice was receding as she moved around the room.  “Humans and their substances, honestly.” Something was placed on your brow, cool and damp and soothing. The Doctor tucked the cloth against your head with deft, gentle fingers even as she continued to explain her thoughts on humans and all of their myriad of flaws. “You’ve never been drink — you don’t drunk —” You stumbled over the words, and felt her fingers still, then fall away from the cloth. You opened your eyes and with the room spinning and the dim light and the serious, difficult to read expression on her face, she looked as remote and otherworldly as she actually was for all that she was your friend. “Time Lords are an advanced race, we certainly don’t have the same genetic predispositions towards inebriation or the desire to attempt so,” she said finally, still looking down at you. You grunted, considering her words as they slid in and out of your head.“Didn’t answer the question,” you observed, and were rewarded with a scowl. “Hm,” was all she said, but she was smiling slightly. “Try to rest now, and if you need to be sick —” she kicked something on the floor that gave a hollow thud. “Try to aim in here, yeah?” “I am not going to be sick,” you said firmly, and the Doctor’s smile flashed in the dim light. “I hope not, the pill’s supposed to help with that but,” she shrugged expansively, and even through the spinning room you were able to focus in shocking clarity on the pull of her shirt across her frame she did so, “I don’t really know what combination of ingredients you drank, and how they’ll react to the other things you drank or your own biology. So. Bin.” She nudged it with a boot again. “I’m going to check on the others, and you’re going to stay here. I’ll be right back.” You didn’t want her to go, but you were feeling worse by the moment as the alcohol was burned out of your system and, as far as you could tell, migrated to your head. You could feel each heartbeat rattling in your skull like knives, and your roiling stomach kept speed with it. You moaned something that the Doctor took for agreement. Time passed, although you weren’t in any way able to keep track of it. You suspected it had been a century based on the pounding in your head, but it could have only been a few heartbeats. Either way, you were still alone when you realized that what you really needed was some water. Nobody was around to hear you, but you still complained and groaned and generally made a spectacle as you swung your legs off the couch, sitting upright. Your stomach made a solid pass at leaping out of your throat, but you steadied yourself with a snarl; you were not going to need the bin, you were not going to be sick. And you were right; all thoughts of nausea fled as you pushed yourself to your feet, because your skull might as well have shattered. Your headache pounded so violently that you thought it might be slamming you through the floor; it felt too heavy, too thick, too white-hot with blinding pain. Death was infinitely preferable to this miserable thing called life. “Never — drinking — again —” you vowed, swaying, hoping the floor might just swallow you whole and end your suffering. “A noble sentiment,” the Doctor said from behind you. “But one rarely adhered to, I suspect. What are you doing off the sofa?” She appeared at your side, a steadying hand on your elbow. “You didn’t sick up somewhere did you,” she added with sudden trepidation, looking around your feet apprehensively. “I just wanted something to drink,” you told her, wretched. Your head was still pounding, and even the dimmed lights were still too bright. They stabbed your eyes with sharp, splintering shards of pain. You groaned, and leaned your head instinctively against the Doctor’s shoulder. “I think you’ve had quite enough to drink,” she said, with a touch of asperity, but her hand was gentle as ever as she smoothed hair back from your forehead. “Water,” you clarified, your voice muffled from the folds of her coat. It was soft, and cool, and smelled like home. “Ah,” the Doctor said, steering you back to the couch. She eased you down again. “Stay, I’ll get you some water and a new cloth.” “Where are the others? Are they coming?” you asked miserably as she reappeared, setting a glass of water in your hands. It had a truly spectacular bendy, swirly straw that was almost as long as the glass itself, a vibrant purple and orange that hurt your eyes to look at, but you appreciated the gesture as you lifted it to your mouth with weak hands. “They’ll be here soon, they’re trying to find Ryan,” the Doctor said. The cushions dipped as she settled on the other end of the sofa. “They might have to expand the search,” you said, thinking of that alien he had been speaking with. You groaned as your head gave another spike of pain, and slid down the couch as sitting became too much effort. “Just rest,” the Doctor said. “It’ll pass.” “Promise?” “I promise,” she said, and your eyes were closed, but you could hear the slight smile in her voice. “I am the best alien, after all.” You could definitely hear the smile, now, and something niggled at your memory; you suspected that the Doctor was poking fun at something you had said while in the bar, but the memory was sliding in and out with tremendous spikes of pain and you let it go. You suspected that you had said many unfortunate things, and you could only hope that the Doctor hadn’t heard or remembered most of them. You drifted for a time, after that, surfacing to occasional bursts of pain or nausea or, more welcome, cool hands on your brow as they took your temperature or readjusted the the damp cloth. Clarity — and more importantly, an absence of that all-encompassing pain — arrived abruptly. You sat up gingerly, feeling weak and shaky and not even remotely good, but it was a normal not-good, not I’m going to die and if not I wish it would hurry up about it not-good. “Ah, here we are,” the Doctor said, and you looked over to see her curled up at her end of the couch, a book in her hand.  She closed it and tucked it in the cushion. “Feeling better?” “Yeah,” you said, peeling off the now warm and dry cloth from your head. You looked down at it, then the mercifully empty bin at your feet. Something else rolled in your stomach, almost worse than the earlier nausea: shame, with a side of guilt. “Ah. Sorry, about all that,” you mumbled, darting another look at the Doctor. She was watching you, a slight smile curving her lips, but her eyes were sharp as they flicked over you, still assessing. “Accepted,” she said, scooting over to you and fishing her stethoscope out of her pocket. “Deep breath,” she said, resting it against your chest. “You don’t have anything to apologize for anyways,” she added.  “It’s not your fault you got served a red, or that someone tried to take advantage of you for it.” You had forgotten about that, had forgotten about that other alien and his heavy, unwelcome hands, and his sharp, hungry smile. You shuddered, and the Doctor’s eyes touched your own, a welcome distraction. “I’m okay, you don’t need to waste time on me,” you muttered, but she was pushing a fresh glass of water into your hand. “Drink. And yes I do, or do you not remember bolting up and trying to climb the  TARDIS console?” You goggled at her. “Apparently not,” she said with a wicked grin. “No, don’t apologize again, it’s okay. You got me out of that bar anyways, I really wasn’t vibing with it. ”You had been awash in horror at your actions, but the Doctor’s last words snapped you out of it. “Vibing with it?” you repeated, incredulous.   She shot you a look, tongue poking slightly between her lips.“Yeah, am I using that right? Ryan taught me.”  You were still goggling at her, but the sound of a door opening and a rush of voices distracted you both. “Ah, finally,” the Doctor said, brushing off her legs and standing up. “I wonder what kept them. We’re in here,” she added, pitching her voice to carry to the others and making no effort to define where “here” was; it was obvious to her, and that apparently was to be enough for everyone else. It was very her. Everything she did was very her, you mused. Not just because it was her doing them, but because she did everything with such one-hundred percent commitment, energy, and enthusiasm. You smiled slightly, watching her as she stood with her hands on her hips. She’d taken off her coat at some point, and she looked smaller without it, more wild and fleeting, something ephemeral. She glanced over her shoulder at you and smiled when she met your eyes. That smile was also wild, fleeting and ephemeral, but it grounded her, a little bit, in the here and now. And you, too. “Hello,” Yaz said, stepping into the room. She looked tired, her hair coming out of its braids, her jacket mussed, but it was a happy sort of tired. “Have fun?” The Doctor asked as Yaz threw herself down on the couch next to you. “Yes,” Yaz said, leaning her head back on the cushions. “Not as much fun as some other people, though,” she added, and turned her head to fix you with her dark, glittering eyes. “How are you doing?” “I feel like death,” you told her, and stuck out your tongue when she grinned. “That’s what you two get for going off-book,” she said smugly, wiggling her shoulders deeper into the couch and kicking off her shoes before lifting her legs and curling them up on the couch. “Oi, I didn’t drink a red,” the Doctor said, indignantly. “Not that I would have been affected, if I had. You humans are so — ” “She been going on like this the whole time?” Yaz asked you, and the Doctor gave her a dark look. You giggled, and it only made your head split down the middle a little bit. It was worth it, for the expression on the Doctor’s face. “Definitely,” you confirmed, wincing as you lifted a hand to rub your temples. “This is the thanks I get, for spending my night chasing after red-drunk humans? Mockery and false accusations?” “Not you,” Yaz said, rolling her eyes. “I was talking about — “ “Hellooooooo TARDIS!” “That,” Yaz finished, turning to watch as Ryan crashed into the room, with an aggrieved Graham in his wake. The Doctor groaned, throwing her hands up. “Ryan! Not you too!” “Guilty your honor,” Ryan crooned, spinning a wild circle and narrowly avoiding the couch with his flailing feet. You hastily copied Yaz, drawing your feet up onto the cushions and settling in to watch the show. “I’m in love, I’m in love, I’m in love! Congratulate me.” “You’re not in love, son, you’re drunk,” Graham said wearily, trying to grab Ryan, but he spun out of reach. And fell over. The room shuddered. You gasped, Yaz clapped a hand over her mouth, Graham cursed. The Doctor closed her eyes. “Ow,” Ryan said, but he was smiling beatifically up at the ceiling. “What happened?” The Doctor asked resignedly, crouching by Ryan and taking his pulse, then pulling out her sonic. He ignored her, still smiling happily up at the ceiling, his toes clicking together as he hummed. He was still firmly in the “fun” stage of the Red inebriation, it seemed. “What do you think, Doc?” Graham answered tiredly, moving to stand by them. “He wanted to impress a pretty girl.” “Did he?” you asked, interestedly. The situation was a lot funnier when it wasn’t happening to you, it turned out. “Well, he chugged a red and challenged some bloke to a dance contest,” Yaz said. She was grinning, and it was the grin of a sober woman witnessing the carnage wreaked by foolish friends. “We almost didn’t get him out of there.” The Doctor stood up, pinching her nose. She came to a decision.“Right. I’ll get him a pill, but I’ve done my babysitting duty for the night. He’s your problem after that.” She stode from the room, and you heard her mutter something about never going to a bar again. Yaz heard her too, and you shared a grin. Ryan, it turned out, had very little interest in taking the hangover-speed-up pill from the Doctor. It also turned out that red-inebriation or no, he could still move very quickly, and it took the combined efforts of Yaz, Graham and the Doctor to get the pill in his mouth. You filmed most of on your phone you'd fumbled quickly out of a pocket, which as far as you were concerned did just as much to help the situation as any of them. The Doctor threw herself down on the sofa next to you with an explosive sigh. “I am never,” she said, tipping back her head, “taking humans to a bar. Ever again.” Ryan moaned from the floor, punctuating the statement with eloquence. Yaz sat down on the Doctor’s other side, then scooted over to make room for Graham who was looking silent and shell-shocked. You found your shoulders rubbing the Doctor’s, and you curled your feet up under you to make more room while leaning your head against her shoulder. You could hear her twin heartbeats, and after a moment she rolled her head so that her chin was resting in your hair.“You’re all on probation,” she said, firmly. You hummed skeptically, and Yaz snorted. Graham was still grimly silent, but you knew he’d come around. Silence, for a moment, interrupted only by Ryan’s increasingly pathetic moans.“Shall I pop in a movie?” Yaz asked finally. “Go on then,” the Doctor said, resigned, but you could hear the smile in her voice. “We’re going to be here for a while.” “‘’m never drinking again,” Ryan groaned from the floor.  He clapped his hands over his ears as you all began to laugh, which did exactly nothing to help. “Humans,” the Doctor said to the TARDIS ceiling, but she was still smiling. “You love us,” Yaz said, standing up and moving to put on a movie. “Yeah,” the Doctor said after a moment, so softly that you thought you might be the only one who heard it. “I do.”

[everything-laito]

could you analyze Q.E.D? owo

Anon, you do not even REALIZE how long I’ve wanted to do this. Song lyrics are always challenging for me though, which is why I’ve never gotten around doing it. But, since I have confidence in Laito’s character and his context, I think I can do it. I get most of my DL song lyrics from Silvermoon on live journal, so special thanks to them! If you wanna listen to Q.E.D, it’s on my Soundcloud!

Please note that this analysis is a lot more loose because it’s from a song. Stuff like this is typically up to interpretation even more than Laito’s regular game script. After writing this, I discovered that @/the-madame21 had her own interpretation that QED is Laito talking to Cordelia inside of Yui. So I’m just getting imposter syndrome thinking that this analysis isn’t good enough because it’s not as “confident” as my other ones, but oh well! I hope you enjoy my interpretation too!

Let’s dive in! (and if you have anything to add on, please do, I had a bit of trouble with figuring some stuff out; song lyrics are pretty much poetry which is my weakness haha) Full thing under the cut!

As time passes, the more it expires, fading away Love dies only when growth stops If everything was laid bare, no matter what, Would the heat of the feelings from that day lessen?

I do believe the first line has to do with Laito being a vampire, with his seemingly eternal life. I don’t know what he means by “that day,” either it has to do with Cordelia or Yui. I had trouble understanding what “if everything was laid bare” so I looked up an alternative translation that said “If everything were gone, and nobody could change what went wrong,” Both essentially say the same thing, so I know it’s just a translational choice. So, I believe this is Laito questioning his emotions and thoughts about how love works. 

His statement of “Love dies only when growth stops” sounds more of a definite one; like he’s confident in it. It’s also an absolute statement, which we should all know that absolute statements should be avoided, because there are always exceptions. To me, this implies that he doesn’t have a lot of experience with love––aside from the feelings he’s experienced. Which we know is true (until Yui really, considering this his his more blood character song) and we know it’s not true love with him and Cordelia. 

I think the “growth” part in that really made me think. What does he mean by growth? I’m not fairly experienced in romantic love, but I do know love of any kind (platonic, family) you both grow together or off of each other. It’s a constructive relationship, but the “when growth stops” stumped me, because people typically never stop growing. But, in Laito lingo I think “growth” might mean until he gets bored? It makes sense to his character but I can’t say for sure. 

Even if my life was surely coming to and end, Entertaining the faint hope that this blood of mine will be passed on, The crystal of love it emitted in your body, “……―――It’s meaningless”

This... Kinda sounds like the hint of getting someone pregnant, but I really don’t think this is the case. The “crystal love” is also hard to say what that’s about, but I believe that has to do with biting/fangs. To Laito, pleasure = love, and in this case specifically, (whether we’re dealing with Cordelia or Yui) pain (typically from fangs) = pleasure = love. As for him mentioning his blood, I’m not sure if that’s a reference to turning Yui into a vampire in the first game (x to doubt kinda) or Yui and Laito “intertwining/becoming one” at the end of his More Blood’s route. But, I’m not sure! Because blood as a motif means many things within DL and in real life. 

I do believe this is Laito going back and forth believing in love or not. He’s been through so much shit which is why he says “its meaningless” despite him “entertaining the faint hope.” He’s shutting down his optimistic thoughts in an attempt to be realistic. 

Ah, as time passes, Even if it was somehow replaced, There’s no proof that I ever loved you or anything “………Because I didn’t want to say it”

THIS. THIS. GOD, it kills me. I do think by this point we know he’s talking about Yui. Sure he’s told Yui that he loves her but it was more of a meaningless thing. Yet again he says it genuinely in the scene where him and Yui do it consensually. So, I don’t know! This whole song is vague!!! But what else do we expect from him. 

He’s basically saying that if he moved on to love someone else, there was no proof that he loved them, but like how he directly says, it’s because he didn’t want to say it. Hesitance like this probably links back to the previous lyrics of him going back and forth with whether love has meaning or not. 

After all, it’s all over, isn’t it? In time, won’t everything disappear, no matter what? So without robbing us of our ‘now,’ stringing the memories together, As the continuous bloodsucking stretched out into ‘eternity,’ If you say you wish for ‘immortality,’ We’ll prove it now! Together with you, Q. E. D. ―――…………!!!!!

Queue “It’s Over, Isn’t It” from Steven Universe This is like... optimistic nihilism (which I so vibe with lol) and I think this is Laito saying he just wants to focus on the present and get rid of the thoughts he previously said in this song (whether it be through healthy ways or unhealthy ways... it’s probably the latter). This does insinuate Yui’s presence, and him turning her into a vampire. This I believe is just another distraction for him to attempt to avoid his circling, depressing thoughts.

Now we gotta talk about what QED means. QED is an acronym for the Latin phrase “quod erat demonstrandum,” which means “what was to be shown.” In math or a philosophical argument, it’s used at the end of an argument or problem to basically say “it’s been proven.” Wikipedia also adds on that it can mean “thus it has been demonstrated” when used in this light. 

Laito’s “QED” is his desperate effort to prove if his feelings and thoughts are correct. Man it’s taken me years to actually figure out what he means by this, but this is my own interpretation. 

As the time of death approaches, the nearer it draws, coming into view There is always light behind No matter who, everyone is praying to someone There is just little remaining of that day, isn’t there?

I’m still so confused what he means by “that day.” I know this is Laito we’re talking about, but come on LOL. From this I have a feeling it’s about Cordelia and maybe the first day she abused him? I’m not sure. Maybe it’s meaning that he’s moving beyond Cordelia. I do like these lyrics because it’s super poetic. As for the “everyone is praying to someone,” this doesn’t mean everyone believes in a god, this just means that everyone has that one person they either look up to or look to gain a moral compass. That’s what a religion (to my understanding) essentially is at its basis. 

Even if we quietly tried to abandon hope, Your lips on mine again and again, as this bittersweet time passes by somewhere, The crystal of love it left within my heart, “……―――It’s worthless”

This is Laito admitting that he’s feeling love really. This is through Yui’s own love too. But him saying “it’s worthless” is another desperate attempt at him trying to be “realistic” and to not get his hopes up. 

Hey―――………Shall we dream? That we fell ill, and there were days we couldn’t see If the proof that the two of us were alive is stained red, “………Forgive me”

The way he says “forgive me” in the song is SO desperate and sad. But I think this implies that he’s asking for forgiveness for his past actions? I do think that he knows he’s twisted but he just doesn’t know anything else aside from his normalcy. Sure his actions aren’t justified but they’re explainable. 

I also think his “dream” he suggests is maybe he wants to feel alive? Maybe him feeling like his feelings “aren’t valid” because he feels that they’re “human” emotions. Because in the games he repeatedly states how he’s a vampire and not alive etc but it’s interesting how he says “if the proof that the two of us were alive” like woah buddy

The tone that depicted the future of tomorrow always shattered in your ear In your torn eardrum, it left behind a dangerous red wish As the continuous whispers stretched into ‘eternity,’ If you say you wish for ‘immortality,’ We’ll prove it now! Together with you, Q. E. D. ―――…………!!!!!

This might reference that really.... awful.... terrible.... scene in ecstasy 04 of HDB. (I think it’s 04 ((edit: its 03 LOL I should’ve checked)) but it’s the really really uh awful one) But again I’m not sure. He does still reference turning Yui into a vampire though which is interesting, because that’s the only thing I can think of an “eternal love” being.

“If there’s no such thing as ‘eternity,’ I want to destroy this time… That’s…what I’d wished……”

This man really just wants to grasp onto things for eternity, goddamn. I think that he still just wants to distract himself or something because I’m not sure what else he would mean by that. 

Only this feeling, Forgetting the ‘warmth’ that lived, Somehow, it’s becoming vague That’s not the only thing―――……!

This seems that he’s slowly forgetting Cordelia’s “love”, which is nice. Because it’s been a long time and the whole “that’s not the only thing” might imply that he’s losing himself in other ways too aside from the feeling of Cordelia. 

After all, it’s all over, isn’t it? In time, won’t everything disappear, no matter what? So without robbing us of our ‘now,’ Stringing the memories together, as the continuous bloodsucking Stretched out into ‘eternity,’ If you say you wish for ‘immortality,’ We’ll prove it now! Together with you, Q. E. D. ―――…………!!!!!

(I already analyzed these lines haha) but wow I love this song. I know this isn’t as confident as my other analyses but I hope this suffices, anon! 

As always, thanks for reading, and the ask box is open for any business you may have with me!

Ciao! -Corn

[zhaozaipalooza]

I saw that there might be more kinds of various paloozas in the future and I just wanted to say that sounds very cool. I also recognize the mods are pouring a TON of work into making this event happen. So I wanted to ask, how did you find each other and decide to do the event? I'd be open to helping mod something in the future, but I think I'm more or less alone in shipping my little rarepair. 😞

ray:

I was a private eye stashed in the seedy district of Rarepair Hell… or so the locals called it. Devils they were, crawling around abandoned tropes and daring dynamics, pushing the boundaries of the unknown like my late partner who went down in ‘42.

Boy, had I hit a goldmine for unapologetic crime. I’d reckon I was home.

Got straight to work defying the anti-shipping crowd. We had canoes, kayaks, sailboats held together by grit and spunk alone, tiny but almighty crews I grew to call mutuals aboard The LuZhao and S.S. Zhaozai. Then hit quarantine, the kind of snowed-in null of buzz and song that had us all baking in burnout. Folks called it the Covid Crunch, a stifling few months colder than my ex’s heart, Val… You’d think it was time to hang my hat.

Instead, the grandest imaginable wellspring of creativity and passion brought every gang and crew of Rarepair Hell together. A glorious time. This frigid heart might have thawed a little. And in walked her, the dame of my dizziest daydreams, looking like a million bucks and then some… at the center of it all.

Ah, did I have a sharp nose for hot leads. And she was, indeed, a brilliant tack. An ember in the concrete jungle, lighting the way for a celebration from sea shanties to love in all shapes and sizes, across all stretches. I never minded the wayward side of the wind again.

Should invite her to dinner sometime… polish my best dress shoes, order us moon peach pie. I’d get Miss Crooked towers of gold if it weren’t for this thin wallet. Dream on, they say.

Half of this Palooza is just Ray and I writing love letters to each other, though she writes them far more eloquently and creatively than I ever could. Bear with us, Anon. Your message is lovely and we do answer it in full. Eventually.  

crooked:

I was a young lieutenant, sifting through the sands of time and fandom, scouring tumblr for early Zhao content with which to stock my queue. Early days for me, naive of the purity police and the anti-shippers, unknowing even of what OTPs lay within my own heart. All I knew was that I liked villains, and I hungered for what others had to say about them.

And behold, glittering within the muck of expedient promotion jokes and sideburn slander, there she was. A light in the dark, a ray of thoughtfulness and taste, humour and brilliance. This gleaming jewel beckoned, promising riches and wonder if I would but only brave the deep. Like any good archaeologist I dug.   

Truth be told, Anon, Ray and I began our journey as mods of this event as so many do. We stumbled across each other’s content for one reason or another, hit the obligatory Follow button after liking and reblogging so many posts it felt weird not to acknowledge that, and have continued to swim in similar pools as mutuals ever since.  

The Palooza itself came about -- in true fandom fashion -- out of sheer bloody-minded spite. 

It came to our attention earlier this year that, quite out of the blue, a Zhaozai Week was being planned. We were intrigued -- after all, most of the villain shipping community knows each other, and yet most of us were unaware who was behind the event, which added an element of mystery to it all. We were also naturally very excited, only to then discover that the organizers were not serious about the event and in fact had designed it as a mean-spirited exercise with the express purpose of mocking genuine participants. It was, as another esteemed Admiral says, A TRAP. 

The open disapproval that followed was sufficient for the organizers to reconsider and cancel, but the damage had been done, the carrot dangled, and it became clear that a week for Zhaozai was something that many desperately wanted and were disappointed to have been deprived of. Not to mention be made fun of for. 

The notion of hosting a legitimate event started floating around, with Ray and a few others leading the charge, but concrete plans seemed illusive, largely due to complicated schedules, availability, and the fact that not a single one of us had ever run a fandom event before. 

Nevertheless, we persisted. Hot on the heels of the wildly successful @avatar-rare-pair-ship-challenge I had an idea of what a fun event looked like and made further inquiries as to how the organizers navigated things and made that possible. Armed with this precious info I approached those early proponents of the event, and from there planning with Ray began in earnest. If you think how we’re running things now is ambitious, you should have seen some of the initial palooza plans...   

To conclude, Anon, circumstances conspired to create a environment that was ripe for Zhaozai, and like Rohan we answered the call. 

Future paloozas or character/ship weeks would be amazing, and we’re sure that there is just as much of a demand for them. All that such an event needs is someone (or a couple someones) willing to champion it -- and most importantly, who will have fun while doing so. When the dust has settled from this inaugural run, we’d love to hear from you (and anyone else) who might like to turn the Zhaozai Palooza into a noble, annual tradition. 

And fear not. If our time in the archives of the internet has taught us one thing, it’s that somebody somewhere ships it. Or shipped it. Or will ship it. You’re never truly alone that way, and the more you openly love something, the more it seems that others are drawn to and share in that love.      

[bisexualhobi]

With the way billboard works and the way the platforms they count work everyone is cheating the game. Army are simply better at it and very organized. Them beating out these labels is shocking if I’m honest. I’m not sure if this is the point your other anon was trying to make, but billboard need to change the entire game to adapt to the current times. To quote you, “billboard needs to do something abt labels using payola and other corrupt practices”. Those corrupts practices you mention are things such as paying Spotify and Apple Music to playlist their artist and/or push them more. In turn that helps them chart higher because paid streams count more. The digital age has made it so everyone can cheat the system easier. It’s time to change the game. If Billboard changed the rules on everything the chart would be a lot more organic as it was pre-2010 from what I can remember. They changed the billboard 200 album chart and now those numbers are a lot more accurate. I understand your hatred for army as that fandom is out of control but don’t let your feelings for them make you blinded to the fact that it’s billboard that needs to change.

hey I appreciate this message and I agree with you but I'm gonna go off on a tangent here, hope it's ok cause I wanna address one of the points you mentioned and I've been thinking about it for ages so this is my chance to try to gather my thoughts.

in my opinion playlisting isn't as bad tho, and I'll tell you why. like I understand paid streams count higher and ofc spotify is putting their best clients at the top of TTH but you can't really blame that on labels exploiting it. more than a corrupt practice that could be "erased" the underlying issue is not something you can change. it's a culture issue I think. passive listening is just the way a lot of listeners engage with music, and in spotify it's way easier to engage in passive listening. that means listening without skipping, or changing the song or finding a different album or playlist to play. it's just following the trend and letting the spotify algorithm do the work for you which is the opposite of how for example, I engage with spotify.

I curate my experience 100% to my own taste. I don't listen to playlists made by spotify, I skip, I change the playlist, I edit my queue, etc. that's why I make my own playlists with the stuff *I* like and not what the app is telling me to listen to. "meant for you/based on your listening/we thought you might like" it's all spotify trying to see how much they can profit off you with their algorithm. listeners like me are a pain in the ass for advertisers lol.

it's not spotify's fault that 80% of their user base engages in passive listening and will only listen to what's on the TTH without a thought. people could literally skip, listen to something else, or make their own playlist. so when Drake's label or Olivia rodrigo's label pays spotify to put their songs at the top of the playlist yes it's 100% done to get them exposure. but if people hated it they could just skip it. there's even an option to hide an artist so their songs won't be played anymore. the fact that they don't means they either like it genuinely or they're sheep just listening to whatever spotify puts on for them.

if it's the first then playlisting doesn't really negate the artist's impact, cause their song is actually being successful with the target audience and the audience enjoys it. if it's the latter then getting rid of the practice of playlisting isn't really gonna do anything bc the sheep will always be profitable and the industry will find a way to force feed them whatever they want. it could be Apple music and spotify putting the songs they're paid for at the top of their most followed playlist, or it could be radios playing what they tell them to, or it could be something else. even tiktok which was somewhat a democratization of this streaming culture has become corrupt, cause now kids with millions of followers are getting approached by labels to make a dance challenge with the song they want so it will catch on and make it to the hot100.

do you see my point here? playlisting isn't the big bad wolf armys make it out to be. butter was on the TTH for weeks. still is to this day I think, I'm not sure cause I don't follow it. do they think it got there magically? Columbia paid spotify to put it there so people outside of the army cult could listen to it. and it worked! my local friend who hates kpop knows butter and bops along to it. but armys are mute about that. playlisting benefits bts too so I don't see why they have to always complain and compare it with artists like Olivia rodrigo. good 4 u isn't the fastest song this year to reach 100, 300, 500 and 800M streams just bc of payola and playlisting. it's cause the song is good and people genuinely like it. but of course since she was pushed by spotify then that must mean all her success is bought. give me a break