#remind me to show you who eliza is married to | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

levi-supreme · 1 year ago

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Thank you for tagging me Eliza!!! You all know I talk about Reivi all the time, and I blabber on and on about our four kids all the time too haha. This game is about the first child, but I also have a post dedicated to the Ackerman juniors on my self-ship blog hehe, so you can take a look there as well!!

Leaving my answer below the cut because it's long and wordy and I am extremely prone to verbal diarrhoea <3

Who are you shipping with? The one and only Levi <3

1 Is it a boy or girl (twins?!) and their name(s) and what you call them.

Our first born is a girl, Renée Naomi Ackerman, and her Chinese name is 佳玲 (Jia Ling). She was born on 16 September 2016.

2 How did you come up with their name?

Levi and I came up with the name together! We were looking through French baby names and we both agreed on Renée almost immediately haha.

We also decided on 'Naomi' for her middle name together because 'Levi' is a Hebrew name, and we wanted a Hebrew name for our kids' middle name too hehe. 'Naomi' also means 'straight' and 'beautiful' in Japanese.

I decided on Renée's Chinese name, and the characters in her Chinese name means 'beautiful' and 'tinkling like a bell'.

3 What was their first word?

Her first word sounded like 'blew', but Levi and I thought it might be 'brew' too hahaha.

4 What is their favorite toy and / or activity?

Renée's favourite toy is her stuffed teddy bear called Mr Teddy! She hugs him to sleep every night. She has many teddy bears, but Mr Teddy is her favourite.

Renée also likes to dance, play the piano, and she also likes to tend to our garden with me.

5 What tv show / movie do they watch repeatedly?

Renée's favourite Disney movie is Mulan.

6 What is their favorite baby food / meal?

When she started having solid food, Renée liked eating pancakes made with oatmeal and banana a lot.

7 What is their favorite bedtime story?

The Sleeping Beauty! Renée loves it when Levi reads this story to her before bedtime 🥰

8 What finally gets them to sleep after crying all night?

Thankfully Renée doesn't really cry much, but when she does cry, Levi or I will carry her and gently pat her back, sing her a song, and we do that until she stops. We'll let her hold on to Mr Teddy and after a while, she'll feel better too.

9 Who caves easier when they cry?

Definitely Levi 😂 she's his favourite child and he always caves in first when Renée cries.

10 Who is the stricter parent?

Me of course lol!!! I'm a 100% tiger mum. Levi always has to remind me to not be too strict with our kids. Sometimes when the kids misbehave, I whip out the cane and cane them too.

11 What is your favorite activity to do as a family?

When we're at home, we like to play games together! Renée likes to play Cooking Mama on the switch. When we're out, Levi and I like to bring the kids out to the beach, the garden, the park etc for them to play too.

12 Who was their first friend outside the household?

Her first friend was Theodore, @ack3rlady and Erwin's eldest son hehe. All of us want them to get married in the future when they're older, but Levi seems to be the only one in denial of this 😂

13 Who does more of the gross things? (change diaper)

Levi is actually better than me at changing diapers, but I take care of the kids more so I naturally bathe them and clean them more often. But Levi is a great help!! He does a great job cleaning the babies hehe.

14 How was the first time you left them with someone (and who was it?)

We had Farlan and Isabel (Levi's best friends since childhood) help baby sit Renée back when Levi and I were still working, and my mother-in-law (Kuchel) couldn't drop down to take care of her.

Farlan and Isabel were so worried HAHA because they felt really stressful. Funny enough, Isabel is a preschool teacher and Farlan works in a primary school too. But I guess babies are a whole different league 😂

15 Any future children planned?

Levi and I have three more children after Renée hehe. We have our twin boys Pierre Aaron and Léon Nathan born on 3 August 2020, and Charlotte Rachel born on 4 July 2022!

That's enough kids for now hehe. We're a big family of six (plus three dogs and two bunnies............ hahaha), and that's good enough for Levi and I 🥰

First child self ship

I'm going to try to do one big SS a month like I used to. I hope you want to do this one!

Um so this is not about pregnancy so skipping that part. Think of this as 0 to 1 year or so :) If you like it maybe we can do more like this!

Also if you're not tagged you are still welcome to do this! I never know who wants to be tagged.

Who are you shipping with?

1 Is it a boy or girl (twins?!) and their name(s) and what you call them.

2 How did you come up with their name?

3 What was their first word?

4 What is their favorite toy and / or activity?

5 What tv show / movie do they watch repeatedly?

6 What is their favorite baby food / meal?

7 What is their favorite bedtime story?

8 What finally gets them to sleep after crying all night?

9 Who caves easier when they cry?

10 Who is the stricter parent?

11 What is your favorite activity to do as a family?

12 Who was their first friend outside the household?

13 Who does more of the gross things? (change diaper)

14 How was the first time you left them with someone (and who was it?)

15 Any future children planned?

my answers below the cut!

I'm guessing these will get long so use the read more, and also please don't repost without the original.

Who are you shipping with?

My modern love, Jean

1 Is it a boy or girl (twins?!) and their name(s).

It's a girl! Jane Eloise. We both call her our little princess a lot. Otherwise it's Jane.

2 How did you come up with their name?

I wanted something classic and nothing was hitting with Jean, then I suggested Jane and he thought it sounded like Jean and immediately liked it. I like longer syllables names with shorter ones and we both liked that Eloise is close to Eliza :)

3 What was their first word?

After thinking it was going to be dada, one day our pup Murphy came into the room and she clear as day said dog! Jean was heartbroken LOL

4 What is their favorite toy and / or activity?

Playing on her play pad with Murphy is her favorite activity. She coos at him and bats at the toys, and he is so protective over her and alerts us if she tries to roll off. Her favorite toy is a a little stuffed grey rabbit from her aunt Sasha.

5 What tv show / movie do they watch repeatedly?

She adores Snow White! It's the sweetest thing. Not even the witch scares her! We're kind of picky about shows so she goes old school with Sesame Street. We're not quite sick of either just yet.

6 What is their favorite baby food / meal?

She loves banana baby food and we can make that ourselves easily. She now also loves oatmeal. When we mix them together her face lights up at the taste.

7 What is their favorite bedtime story?

She loves when her daddy reads anything. She loves the sound of his voice. Goodnight Moon is probably the favorite though.

8 What finally gets them to sleep after crying all night?

Walking in place while holding her. It can be either of us but she goes to sleep faster for me. It's tiring at 3am but at least I get my exercise! We just ordered an automatic swing and hope that helps!

9 Who caves easier when they cry?

It's a toss up, we're both a little soft. Being our first child we kind of coddle her. I think Jean caves faster though, but not by much.

10 Who is the stricter parent?

Again, a toss up. I was a little more pushy about Jane bottle feeding when she was old enough, but Jean tries to stick to the schedule more. It depends.

11 What is your favorite activity to do as a family?

Walks in the park! Jane can be sleeping the whole time if it's a quiet morning or more alert in the evening before bed and we point out wildlife and she loves watching the squirrels and daddy Jean play around with pup Murphy.

12 Who was their first friend outside the household?

She has lots of friends now but technically her first play time was with @charlotteplsdosth and Reiners baby girl at their house where we put soft toys down and let them interact side by side. (you can have a totally different answer that's fine LOL)

13 Who does more of the gross things? (change diaper)

Jean does a lot. It's really sweet actually. He knows my gag reflex is non existent so does more of those type things, while also complaining a bit haha.

14 How was the first time you left them with someone (and who was it?)

We left her with uncle Levi and his wife and child. We knew they'd take good care of her and we could have an afternoon to ourselves but we kept checking our phones and it was difficult that first time. After a handful of times with them and then Jeans mom, we calmed down.

15 Any future children planned?

Um, yes. We already know we're having another girl! Lavinia Claire! And Jean is already telling me we're going to be trying for a boy at some point. No matter what I'm done after three though!

tagging: no pressure if it's not your thing!

@levisbrat25 @charlotteplsdosth @chaotic-on-main @humanitys-strongest-bamf @einnyl @perkypink19-blog @levi-supreme @mootheskinnycowsblog @theferricfox @ladycheesington @jayteacups

#rei.reblogs #rei.tag games #levi x rei #reivi #i love this eliza!! hehe

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sometimesrosy · 3 years ago

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Do you still post about The 100? I'm one who has read the books so watching the way they treated Bellamy as well as Bob pissed me off it also didn't make any sense reminded me of how Lincoln and the actor who played him was treated I don't know if I'm the only one who feels that way or not of course I shipped Bellarke and seeing how Jason also baited and trolled the fans I don't like it I think he even said in a interview once that they'll get there with their relationship obviously that was

a lie but seeing their relationship every season you can see how it was getting there only to be ripped away from us I thought at least by the end of season 6 something would happen between them but nope then maybe season 7? Sadly we got nothing and if that doesn't make it bad what's worse is Bellamy's death was basically excused like he deserved it even though later on he was right. Another thing though is the way he acted in the later half of season 7 is nothing like him.

+++

I do still post about The 100, but much more rarely. I'm not obsessed anymore and I'm still a bit pissed about how they ended it, how they treated Bellamy and how they treated Clarke.

I'm mad at JR. Long ago, when he screwed over Ricky, I didn't want to judge because, well, I didn't have enough information to judge. But as JR repeated his behavior with Bob, it turns out that the fans that hated him were correct. He was an asshole. I mean, he's a hollywood director so I assumed he was, as it's like a professional requirement or something, but he was an asshole in service of his ego instead of an asshole in service of his story. So they were absolutely right.

And he DID say Bellarke would get there eventually but it was a long journey. He also had Bob and Eliza act as if they were in love. And he wrote a story with that love at the center-- whether it was consummated or not.

It was NOT a lie. That was the story he was telling. But something kept him from declaring it within the narrative every time. We don't know what it was. Was he afraid of the Moonlighting curse? (where the two love interests lost their chemistry once they consummated? of course those actors HATED each other while Bellarke's actors married each other.) Was he waiting for the BEST moment, and then waited too long? Was he truly just screwing with the Bellarke fans? Did he RESENT the bellarke fans? (they were harassing him so my money is on this. it was revenge.) Did he get angry at Bob for betraying him and taking care of himself? IDK maybe. Seems like. Also I read something anon from people on set, and apparently JR essentially dropped The 100 in anticipation of his NEW series. He sold out his current show so that he could get picked up. And he had plenty of opportunities for Bellarke romance, and chose, each time, not to go there.

I hated how he erased Bellamy from the story and then whitewashed every character who loved him in order to erase his importance. It didn't just affect Bellamy, who was unrecognizable. It also affected Echo, who no longer had a purpose in the narrative, and Octavia, whose very identity was built on Bellamy's love for her, and of course Clarke, who was the head to his heart, and without that heart, she just became.... well, literally crazy.

So disrespectful to the main character. But then that is what happens when someone erases the second protagonist.

...

This is why I don't talk about The 100 anymore. Because every time I do, it devolves into me ranting about how season 7 betrayed the story and characters and became some other kind of show in which the evil cultist is the hero and the rebels who are trying to make a better world are not worthy of heaven. Which is exactly the OPPOSITE of the first 6 years and instead, plays into trumpism and fascism and all the current political bullshit, and that's just too damn coincidental for me. JR sold out and it's all his fault. I will never watch that new show. He betrayed the story and his audience, and lost our trust. And that isn't about bellarke being denied, it's about story for me. Bellarke WAS a love story whether it was consummated or not. All those near misses means that was the story. But he didn't even give us the TRAGIC love story he could have, because he was a dick.

#oops 100 rant

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mrs-theirin · 3 years ago

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wip wednesday

tagged by @merrybandofmurderers and i am super late but it’s fine pretend it’s still 2021 and i’m doing this on the last wednesday of the year. i’ve been struck by writer’s block lately but take what i’ve already written!!

"You look good, baby," she jokes, making a big show of checking him out. Shaun giggles in her arms and she raises him higher. "See? Even Shaun agrees."

Nate grins. "Of course he does. He obviously inherited his good taste from me."

Frowning, she hands Shaun back to Nate. "That would imply I don't have taste, and since I married you, we both know that's not true."

"Sap," he replies before kissing her. Kissing Nate reminds her of the good in the world. If his eyes are the ocean, his lips are the sand; coarse but soothing, sometimes smooth, sometimes rough. She is more than willing to sink into the beach and stay there forever, but the doctor turns back around and claps his hands together.

"All right then!" he chirps, seeming to have recovered from Eliza's quip. "Just step inside and we'll get you situated."

"Situated how exactly?" asks Nate, wiggling his finger in Shaun's hand. "You still haven't told us what these things do."

Eliza clears her throat before the doctor can stammer out some bullshit answer. "Come on, baby, you're ex-military. Don't you like taking orders?"

It's a playful joke, and Nate gives her a don't you dare look before rolling his eyes. The doctor laughs awkwardly. "Right, well. These machines will scan you to make sure there aren't any conditions, injuries, or illnesses we need to be aware of. Perfectly painless, I assure you!"

"I could tell you all that." Eliza frowns. "Or you could look at our medical records. I'm sure you have access to those."

The doctor gives them a grimace in the guise of a smile. "This procedure is a lot faster than both of those options. It won't take but a minute!"

"Hey, honey." Nate grabs her hand, excitement sparkling in his eyes. "Super quick. We can even make a fun game of it; I bet you have more injuries than I do."

Eliza scoffs. "Baby, you fought in the Navy. Pretty sure that ups the possibility of injury."

"Uh huh. And who has that scar across her eye?" As he speaks, his kisses follow his words. "And the one on her lip?"

She giggles despite herself, and shoves him away, careful not to disturb Shaun. "All right, shut up. 50 bucks says you have more."

He links his pinky with hers. "You're on."

tagging @trvelyans @magebastard @queenofbaws @montliyets @veorlian and whoever wants to do it!!!

#wip wednesday #tag game #surely nothing bad happens in this chapter. everything is fine #fallout 4

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lightcomingthroughthedarkness · 3 years ago

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No, but it is seriously very disturbing to me that pineapples can’t let this go. The show is over, it’s been over a year, and yet they are still at it. Do they not have lives or better things to spend their money on? 💀

As @otp-armada so eloquently put it

"And who are any of his haters? Strangers on the internet with no direct pipeline to their lives to distinguish fact from fiction. We do what we can with the very limited information we have access to make a decision on how best to proceed. For ourselves. It’s how it should be. If I could, in good conscience, no longer follow them, I’d do what pineapples pretend they’ll do and walk away. Move on. Nobody should be projecting their personal hang-ups onto these people’s lives, but that’s exactly what pineapples are doing. Pretending they’re on some righteous crusade, hatred spreading rampantly in every corner when their real issue is and has always been their inability to separate reality from their fantasies or their incessant craving for validation. Eliza aka Clarke married Bob aka Bellamy, thereby “validating” Bellarke. She didn’t marry Alycia aka Lexa, therefore “invalidating” Clexa.

Get a fucking grip, I beg. Bottom line? Eliza Taylor and Alycia Debnam-Carey do not exist to be your wlw rep. They are not your dolls to twist and contort however you want. They and Bob are not their fictional characters, nor should they be treated as such. The revelation may shock you to your core, but, as it turns out, they happen to be human beings. They’re in control of their lives, not you. They get to fall in love with whoever they love. Marry whomever they want. Such is the nature of the autonomy of one’s personal life. The self-entitlement of toxic Clexa/Elycia stans is real. And it needs to not be. I promise you won’t expire from this mortal realm from the lack of Elycia. The world will keep churning on for you with you in it, unscarred."

This, all of this comes down to the fact that pineapples feel so invalidated and so offended, they cannot separate their own self identity from that of a fictional ship/character. They literally put Eliza on a pedestal of their own self validation, regardless of her own feelings as a real human being and crucified her the moment she stepped outside of the projected idea they had of her. They already hated Bob. So the betrayal was even deeper for them. Not only was she married to a man, she married Bob of all people. Their self proclaimed enemy.

They latched on even harder after the drama of last year and ever since, their one and only goal is and always have been to destroy Beliza, Bob and save Eliza from herself. And they will chase after ANY chance they can to get access to ANY information that will confirm their hatred and narrative of who they believe Bob is.

That means, yes, even paying money to watch him on a live event, in his own home, to analyze him and his marriage with the intent of destroying him and them. Because their existence reminds them of their invalidated feelings and projected idea of what they believed to be true in a fictional TV show. As long as Bob is successful, Beliza exist and Eliza is with "the enemy" these people won't stop. Because that means it's a constant reminder of what they have lost because they just couldn't separate reality from fiction.

#fandom wank #beliza #ask answered

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shesamreads · 1 year ago

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Ok, first of all, "Finding God, that mischievous imp. Hiding where we least expect it. Not in a church, not on a slap, but inside us. Right there, next to our hearts." How dare you write this absolute banger in a monster romance.

There's so much that reminds me of the movie, obviously, but it was interesting to see behind the movie. I enjoyed seeing more of the characters, and their motivations and thoughts. Everything was written with care, and even if you didn't like the character (looking at you, Strickland) you still find them intriguing, and you understand them.

Giles retelling the Tantalus hurts, but hurts even more knowing what happens next in the movie.

I would HATE being married to Richard. What a dick husband.

I don't really drink, but now I'm a little interested in a Bandy Alexander.

I was told, from one of my facebook book groups, that we'd get more background about Strickland, that' he'd get more fleshed out and we'd have more sympathy for him.

And we do get background, and he does get fleshed out. But I really don't have any more sympathy for him.

NOPE. Still a garbage person. Interesting, but garbage.

I like Eliza's some of dreams. They seem soothing? I like water.

God, I love this movie. I love the interactions between the Amphibian Man (the asset?) and Eliza.

You know what Strickland needs? THERAPY.

(what is likely PTSD, the attraction to things that repulse him, the anger, the possible addiction. The general *gestures at everything*)

"All feminine minds were fragile."

Get fucked, doc.

You know who else needs therapy? Timmy. Good god, Strickland. What are you doing to that boy? What are you doing to this family?

"Accepting a woman's lure is like taking an enemy's bait."

Goddamn, Strickland. This is your wife! It's not gross or weak to be attracted to your wife!

Once again, Strickland:

"Maybe she can learn to like it, too." Baby, you don't deserve this. You deserve a better man. I'm so sorry that this is your life. I'm so proud that you got that job.

"She looks around like this is a trap. Why would she think that?"

Because it is, asshole.

"If she's not wearing them for his enjoyment, then whose?"

Women enjoy things, you know. Even shoes. All on their own. It's true!

Strickland went from "I'm gonna park here to show off my car." to "Oh shit, my car!" real quick.

oh no, it's The Asset's point of view. 😭😭😭

the narrator has been great this whole book, but goddamn she is FABULOUS as the Asset.

I was driving when this part happened so I don't remember the exact words but "his parts, right where they should be. her parts, right where she left them" is my absolute favorite.

"Finding God, that mischievous imp. Hiding where we least expect it. Not in a church, not on a slap, but inside us. Right there, next to our hearts."

How dare you write this absolute banger in a monster romance.

It's weird to see Strickland redeemed and not redeemed at the same time. I'm glad that he felt at peace for once, and that the Creature helped him move on.

"Yes, she has arrived! She is full, she is perfect. She reaches out to him, to herself. There is no difference. She understands now. She holds him, he holds her, they hold each other..."

One last time as The Asset, The Creature, The Amphibian Man, The Devonian.

"we welcome you. come with us."

What a dreamy, lovely ending.

I absolutely adored this movie.

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mldrgrl · 4 years ago

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Broken Things 9/24

by: mldrgrl Rating: varies by chapter, rated R overall See Chapter 1 for summary and notes

He likes her more and more with every minute that passes. In some ways she reminds him of his sister. Samantha was such a determined and spirited little girl and he can see the same qualities in Katherine, though it’s clear she tries to suppress them. He suspects that’s a product of both her upbringing and her previous marriage.

He’s excited to get her settled on the ranch and to have her there. As a man raised by a strong woman of considerable influence, he’s missed both the female perspective and the companionship. There is a different energy that women bring with them that has been inspiring poets and heroes throughout history. Perhaps that energy is what Monica Doggett was referring to when she was talking about auras.

The ranch is alive with activity when he arrives. Jesse and Jimmy are training in the corral. Richard is mending fence posts and Trevor is moving the sheep from grazing back to the pen, with Queenie keeping the small herd in line. Melvin is nowhere in sight, which could mean he’s getting supper together or tinkering in the barn.

Mulder stops the wagon just outside the barn. He helps Katherine down and she waits to help with the unloading of her things. He gives her the valise and insists on doing the rest even though it will take a few trips.

“Go on ahead,” he tells her. “I’m going to see to the horses and I’ll be along in a minute.”

Trevor comes along as Mulder is unhitching the wagon and he takes the horses away to be watered and fed. Before he unloads the packages he stops by the corral and checks in with Jesse and Jimmy on the training.

With his arms loaded with packages, he steps into Katherine’s room, but stays just inside the doorway to wait to be invited in. She has removed her hat and has the valise opened and is standing before the open wardrobe.

“Looks like Melvin has been busy,” Mulder says, noting the vase of fresh wildflowers on the side table and the quilt folded at the foot of the bed. The room smells of lemons and a feather duster has been abandoned on the side of the wash stand.

“He shouldn’t have gone to any trouble on my account,” she says.

“I’ll be sure to scold him later and send him to bed without supper. Where would you like these?”

“I’ll take them.”

He hands off the packages to her and she places them almost gently on the bed and then touches one almost reverently. He wonders when the last time she had something new and for herself was. He hopes she got everything she needed and at least a few things that she just wanted.

“I need to take care of a few things with the horses so I’ll let you settle in.”

“I’d like to get started on my responsibilities as soon as possible.”

“You wouldn’t like a day or two to yourself before you start taking things on?”

“No, thank you, I like to keep occupied.”

“I’ll track Melvin down and send him to you.”

“I’ll put my things away then and wait here.”

Mulder takes a few steps to the bed and then twirls a bit of the twine knotting one of her packages around one finger. “This is your home now,” he says. “You are the lady of the house.”

“Are you trying to gently remind me that I should not act as a guest here?”

“Or reminding myself not to treat you like one.”

“Then I will find Mr. Frohike as soon as I have unpacked my things and have him show me what needs to be done.”

“As my lady wishes.” Mulder smiles and then bows slightly. “I will see you at supper.”

↭

She doesn’t have to find Mr. Frohike, he finds her, whistling as he enters the room and then stops when he sees her. He’s carrying two oil lamps, one in each hand. She has just finished putting her packages away in the wardrobe and is folding the paper and balling the twine to repurpose at some point.

“Mr. Frohike,” she says. “Please, come in.”

“Pardon me for not knockin’, Madam,” he says. “I didn’t know you was here. And we’re not big on formalities, you can just call me Melvin.”

“Only if you call me Katherine. Could I help you with those?”

“These are for you, actually. I was just makin’ sure they were filled and the wicks were cut. Got one for the table and one for the desk. I can rustle up a few more, I think, if’n you want.” He sets the lamps down where he said they belonged and then grabs the feather duster that was left behind and shoves it handle-first into the back pocket of his pants.

“No, I can make do just fine with these. I’m glad you’re here, I was just going to come look for you.”

“Me?”

“Yes, I’m ready for you to show me what my duties are.”

“Duties, huh? What kind of duties you after?”

“Cooking, cleaning, mending. Or anything else you think I should take care of.”

“Oh, so Mulder brought you here to overthrow me, did he?”

“You can think of it as lightening your load.”

“Alright then, I’ll give you the rundown on who does what ‘round here.”

Katherine learns that Trevor is the youngest and newest hand on the ranch. He’s sixteen, orphaned from a tender age, and came through town at the beginning of summer, looking for work. Melvin happened to be at the sawmill that day for some lumber when he came asking. He took one look at the boy and knew he was still too puny for hard labor, so he brought him to the ranch and Mulder put him to work seeing to the livestock.

The livestock, she soon learns, was also unintentional. They started with keeping chickens for the eggs, but then Mulder started taking in injured or abandoned animals. It was fairly common for folks to pick up stakes after some time and turn their stock out when they left. And there were also folks who Mulder may have nursed a sick horse back to health for and they may have shown him their gratitude for his time with a pig or a goat.

“That old gal right there,” Melvin says, pointing out a grey goat mixed in amongst the sheep. “She’s called Lucy, which is short for Lucifer. Folks dropped her off with us and said she was the devil himself and they were either going to put her down or see if Mulder could tame her, since he’s so good at breakin’ horses.”

“She looks alright to me.”

“Oh, she is now. Sweet as pie. Mulder knew there was somethin’ bothering her from the start. Said she was buttin’ and stompin’ because she was mighty afraid and just pretendin’ not to be. Turns out, them chickens at her old place were harassin’ her and causin’ the terrible disposition.”

“How did Mulder know that?”

“He says he asked her and she told him.” Melvin laughs. “Likely he just observed that she got ornery when the ladies of the coop got to cluckin’ and put two and two together. He moved the goat pen to the far end over here, away from all them chickens and now she’s got no worries as long as they keep to their end of the ranch. The folks said we could keep her and so we’ve had her with us since.”

“He really cares for these animals, doesn’t he?”

“That he does.”

She learns that Jesse and Jimmy are brothers, the youngest of a family of eight. Their parents have a sheep farm about fifty miles out on the way to Fort Worth. Their two oldest brothers and their wives run the place now and Jesse and Jimmy figured it was time to set off and do for themselves. A lot of mouths to feed out there and there wasn’t much of a place for them any longer. Jimmy is the same age as she is, twenty-two, and Jesse is only a year older. They’ve been working for Mulder for more than two years and spend most of their time helping with the exercising and training of all the horses. At Mulder’s insistence, they ride out and spend at least one week’s end with their family every few months.

Mulder met Richard in Fort Worth when he was there doing some trading. He was skin and bones and crazy whiskers when he boldly went up to Mulder’s wagon, opened the jockey box, and started tinkering with the wheels. When Mulder asked him just what in the hell he thought he was doing, Richard shrugged and said that the pivot was loose and the pin needed fixing.

Richard could fix just about anything, but he’d been kicked out of the army for arguing with the sergeants one too many times. They don’t know nothing about nothing, is what he will say about that.

“He’s a bit of a lone wolf,” Melvin says. “Set in his ways and nobody can tell him nothin’ when he’s tryin’ to solve a problem. Got hisself a temper, but only takes it out on hisself too. Got a wanderin’ spirit, and I think he would pick up and go sometimes if’n the streets hadn’t been so mean to him, poor beanpole.”

“What about you?” Katherine asks.

“I’ve been here from the beginning.”

“But, what’s your story?”

“Bah. I ain’t got a story.”

“You don’t have to tell me. I know that some things have to be kept inside.”

“It’s time we started on supper, let’s get on in the kitchen.”

Katherine follows Melvin into the house, noticing as he walks up the stairs that he has a hint of a limp. He shows her where pots and pans are, where the dishes are, where the spices are kept, how to open the cellar door for the canned vegetables and salted meats. She learns what the boys like for breakfast, what a typical noon dinner is like, and when supper is served.

Melvin is slicing beef steaks and she is slicing potatoes when he starts to talk. “I had a wife once,” he says. “Eliza. Her family settled near ours in what’s now called Lee’s Summit in Missouri. She showed up at the schoolhouse one day with her sister Becky and I was smitten.”

“How old were you then?”

“Nine. She was eight, but she was one of them kids that takes to book learnin’ like a duck to water, so teacher put her next to me to share my reader and work on sums together. I knew I was going to marry her the day I met her.”

“And you did.”

“Yes, we did. I was seventeen, she was sixteen. I got a little plot of land to start a farm and she wanted to be a teacher. We did good that year. The crops were profitable and she was teachin’ at a nearby settlement called Blue Springs.”

“Excuse me a minute, I’m going to put these potatoes on to boil.”

“Almost done with these steaks here and I’ll help with the carrots.”

They move about the kitchen in silence for a few minutes as they tend to supper. She checks the fire on the stove while he greases a pan and then she starts to chopping up carrots and he joins her.

“We weren’t too far off from Independence,” he says, continuing his story from where he left off. “People were comin’ through all the time gettin’ themselves ready to head out to the Oregon territory.”

“I’ve heard tales about the journey. They say it was long and harsh.”

“Yes, it was.” Melvin stops chopping for a moment and looks off into the distance.

“You went to the Oregon territory?”

“Eliza had an adventurous spirit. As a girl, her family come to Missouri from Wisconsin, and I think she remembered the trek with a child’s excitement. All them folks comin’ through, eager for new land, new starts and the like, it caught her like a fever.”

“She wanted to go, but you didn’t?”

“I wanted what she wanted. We waited until the followin’ spring, sold the farm, and then headed out to join a caravan up in Independence. Our parents begged us not to go, said it was too dangerous and we ought to stay right where we were with our nice farm and all our family and our friends. But, Eliza could not be swayed and so neither could I.”

“You were eighteen then?”

“Just turned nineteen. We left the day before Eliza’s eighteenth birthday, the twenty-sixth of April, 1850.”

“I bet that feels like a lifetime ago for you now.”

“Several lifetimes. You know, I just had a thought, if we peel up them apples Mulder brung in, we could spice them for dessert. The boys will like that.”

“I’ll get them.”

Melvin gathers the carrots into a bowl to boil when the potatoes are finished and he checks the fire in the stove this time while Katherine gathers the apples. It takes her some time to find the peeling knives, and she makes a few mental notes on how she’d like to organize the kitchen when she takes it over to maximize efficiency. She’ll have to ask Melvin about it later so as not to cause any offense.

“What happened next?” Katherine asks, as they sit down to peel the apples.

“The first part of the journey weren’t so bad,” he answers. Nothin’ real excitin’ to look at, but the journey itself was excitin’ enough, I think. We got to Fort Kearney where people did some swappin’ and then we followed a river up to Fort Laramie. I got a little worried because even in the summer it was so cold up there, but Eliza said it was nothin’ what compared to a Wisconsin winter. And the rain was just...so many folks got themselves stuck in mud and we had to leave them behind and hope they’d catch up down the way. We come close a few times, but I think I had the strongest oxen on the earth and they managed to pull us out. I wish they hadn’t, though.”

“You wanted to be stuck?”

Melvin is quiet for a few moments. “We carved our initials on this great big hump of a rock they call the Register of the Desert. Soon after we made a slow climb up into the mountains and on to Fort Hall. By that time there was only half of the caravan left. Some folks just gived up a long way back and turned for home, some folks just died where they was because it was too hot or they were too sickly or it was just too dadgum tough.”

“Did you ever think about turning back?”

“All the time. I think I knew it was a mistake before we even set out, but Eliza was as certain as I was skeptical.”

“What happened, Melvin?”

“They’re called the Blue Mountains. Steep, hard to navigate, rough terrain. I told Eliza to get on in the back of the wagon because I was afraid she’d fall off the seat, it was so uneven. The oxen were slippin’ and I could tell they were tired, but we couldn’t stop. I’ve never been so grateful for anything in all my life when we reached the top and I figured the way down would be easier. It was just too narrow. Too dadgum narrow.”

Katherine stops her peeling and puts a hand over Melvin’s. He lays down his peeling knife and lifts one arm to wipe his eyes on the sleeve of his shirt. She finds that her own eyes are wet and she doesn’t need him to say anything else to know the rest.

“I’m sorry,” she says. “You don’t need to tell me anymore.”

“It’s alright. It’s been thirty-six years, but it stays fresh in my mind. The back wheel went off the path and I know them oxens tried real hard to pull it out, but the fact is, it was just too heavy for them and it happened too fast. We overturned and providence saw to it that I landed with no more than a busted ankle, but Eliza was inside the wagon. I always wonder if things could’ve turned out different if’n I hadn’t told her to go on and get in back.”

“I ask myself a variation of that question all the time. I try not to think like that, but I know it’s harder said than done.”

“It pains me the most that I was spared, and not her. I made it to Oregon with a family that carted me and my busted ankle in the back of their wagon, but she was the one that wanted to go. I spent a lot of years after that feelin’ sorry for myself, roamin’ around this country and refusin’ to settle.”

“You didn’t go back to Missouri?”

“Not ever. I couldn’t face Eliza’s parents after what happened. Or her sister.”

“And you didn’t remarry?”

“There’s no one compares to Eliza.”

“How did you end up here?”

“Same way you did, I guess. Or Richard, or them goats or the whole lot of us. We was in the right place at the right time and we run into a collector of broken things.” Melvin wipes his eyes once more and then lightly slaps the table. “So, that’s my story. Maybe one day you’ll tell me yours.”

“Perhaps I will,” she says. Unlikely, she thinks.

#i wrote this #broken things #chapter 9 #AU #MSR

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dreamwritesimagines · 3 years ago

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okay but if we're talking poetry i obviously have Opinions and the main one is that shakespeare's sonnet 130 reminds me of anthony so much i don't know why but it feels like him

then there's lord byron's 'she walks in beauty' and i KNOW byron is criticised in the show but i love him and also i think that something as cheesy as this would definitely suit either pierre or elias (there's obviously also shakespeare sonnet 18 which i unironically adore but including shakespeare several times feels like i'm being biased towards him (which i kind of am but still!!))

eliza barret browning was slightly too late to be actually historically accurate but i still feel like her sonnet 14/if thou must love me should be mentioned because the slightly more mature view of love feels like cecily who knows she'll probably not actually marry for love and i feel like she, like anthony, knows how fleeting love can be

browning's sonnet 43/how do i love thee is tbh a perfect one for cherie too bc honestly it's just full of the cliches and idealisms she seems to love (though i'd say she would enjoy near any sonnet bc they're full of those cliches)

yeah anyway we've studied sonnets last block if you couldn't tell and i have many thoughts about them 😭😭 it's no hour-long research into french poetry (which i probably could not handle with my extremely limited knowledge of french) but still!!

LOVE I'M ALWAYS READY TO TALK ABOUT POETRY I'M ALREADY FANGIRLING-

Okay so let's delve into it! 😍

First of all, I love "She walks in beauty" as cliche as it is, I know it's used a lot BUT STILL😂❤

Oooh I still have sonnet 18 memorized! ❤❤

Browning's sonnet 14 OMG YES?! "If thou must love me, let it be for nought, Except for love's sake only." this fits them so well! ❤❤❤

Sonnet 43! 😱 I feel like Chérie would love it AND Shakespeare's sonnet 116 ❤

Thank you so much for this! ❤❤❤

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therachelperspective · 4 years ago

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FILM | Little Women (2019, dir. Greta Gerwig) I remember fondly my years as a kid when I used to read the Great Illustrated Classics version of Little Women. I can’t recall exactly how I felt about the story while reading that abridged version, but I do remember picking it up repeatedly. Maybe it’s because it has been a revered classic for decades and my young mind was just trying to enjoy it at that same level. Regardless, having finally viewed a Little Women film – this one by Greta Gerwig – for the first time, my interest in the tale has been renewed. Maybe it’s high time for me to read the novel again. The true, full version as it was intended. (I have a project in mind for this; details to come).

This film, while I have nothing to compare it to, felt incredibly well done; a product of its time. Where the other renditions seemed stuck in their respective years when made, old and aged from years passed, this version seems much more... timeless. The actors involved, especially that of the four sisters, seemed far too perfect for their roles. (Although I still struggle to see Emma Watson as anyone other than Hermione Granger). Combined, these four ladies portrayed sisterhood in such a believable way, more than I think I’ve ever seen in some time. The mannerisms acted so naturally between them, the embodiment of each sister captured so perfectly by Emma, Saoirse Ronan, Florence Pugh, and Eliza Scanlen. Even the supporting actors were quite expertly chosen in Timothée Chalamet, Laura Dern, as well as Meryl Streep starring as Aunt March in the limited screen time she had (but really, who dares speak ill of Meryl Streep? Not me).

What I think I missed most when I read the novel (possibly because the book didn’t include it at all or because I was too young to register any symbolism) was the air of feminism and the power of women found in a handful of scenes within Gerwig’s Little Women. The most foremost in my mind is, of course, the speech given by Amy to Theodore “Laurie” Laurence about a woman’s economic standing, how women of that time period were quite powerless and their pursuits for marriage were really all they had to bargain with. As Amy reminds audiences, women really had no way to earn money at the time, not enough to make a living and definitely not to support a family. And when a woman of that time period married, her money, belongings, and even the children produced immediately became the property of her husband. While not nearly as drastic as the years surrounding the Civil War, I dare say that today’s times have not done much to change this disparity. That is to say, some of what Little Women touched on in material is still entirely relevant. Women still seem to earn less than men professionally; some men, despite the progression in a metaphorical handful of them, still believe they own and can demand women for their bidding. I know that is a generalization and not meant to disregard the good apples that can be found in the orchard of the male sex, but these ideals can be seen as recent as the 1950s, if not later, which is a whole 100 years after Little Women takes place (set in the 1860s). I can say, from personal experience, that not much has changed since these times. Marriage may not be as extremely pursued as it was back then, but women of the 21st century still bear the ever-constant question of “So when are you getting married?” (and even “When are you having kids?”) as though it is still the only significant thing we have or should ever strive for. As with each March sister to which this topic is relevant, today it is also merely a matter of how we’d pursue it. By way of Meg, in becoming a debutante, or by way of Jo, in avoiding it with vigor.

And really, to discuss Little Women without mention of Jo would just be wrong. Her character is written (at least for this film) quite magnificently, but I believe the energy brought forth by Saoirse Ronan really made this rendition shine even more. While I again would need to reread the source material in order to truly make comments about it, the way her loneliness was approached, despite her fierce independence, was something that hit me deeply as I watched. Because it was something I personally have also experienced this before in my life. I dare(d) to reject certain societal norms, yet still always felt the yearning for deep companionship and love as strongly as Jo did.

With such exquisite acting and storytelling, Greta Gerwig’s Little Women was also wonderfully filmed. Aesthetically beautiful, the littlest things that provide such fantastic details to the overall story (i.e. Jo and Laurie wearing each other’s clothing to show just how close their relationship was); it reminds me of the same joy I feel when watching the 2005 version (aka the pretty version, let’s be real) of Pride and Prejudice. As such, I would very much like to partake in viewing more of Greta Gerwig’s work after seeing this film.

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schrijverr · 4 years ago

Text

'Till Death Do Us Part

Part 1 out of 13

When Alex has to bring Philip to work, he and Thomas discover that they both have something in common: they lost their love. They form an unexpected bond and connection about this that grows into something more.

A medium burn with parental feelings about Philip and flowers.

On AO3.

Ships: Jamilton

Warnings: mentions of grief and death

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

Chapter 1: Canterbury Bell Means ‘Acknowledging’

Alex ran a hand through his hair as he thought of who to call. Philip’s teacher had just called that today school would be canceled due to a mishap yesterday, but his usual babysitter wasn’t available on such short notice.

Maria and Eliza would usually be up to babysit, but they were away on their honeymoon, Angelica worked with him, so she was out, Laf was in France and Herc had that fashion show. He cursed, then looked at Philip to check if he’d heard.

Philip was oblivious. The five-year-old was happily munching on soggy cereal as he watched some kids show.

He was a well behaved sweet child.

Alex smiled and watched his son. It ached how much he looked like John with his freckles and little curls and in moments like these he wished the other was still there, so he wouldn’t have to deal with everything on his own.

“What are we doing today, Papa?” Philip asked.

“I’m going to work, do you want to come with me?” Alex made up his mind, he was sure Washington wouldn’t mind seeing Philip again and he knew Philip would be on his best behavior in the office.

“Yeah!” Philip cheered happily, starting to munch on his food slightly faster.

Alex chuckled at the sight, before sending Angelica a message of why he would be slightly late and who he would have with him.

Then it was bustling through getting the sock on the right foot and the shoes on, making sure Philip’s jacket was on correctly and his shirt not inside out, before almost forgetting his keys as they made their way out the door.

It was the first time since John’s death that Alex was late to work. It was only a few minutes, but it was more noticeable since he was usually way too early.

With Philip on his hip he rushed to his office where an email informed him that the meeting of the afternoon was rescheduled for now, but he could still make it if he hurried.

“Should we go see Grandpa George? Would you like that buddy?” he asked Philip.

He grinned as the boy’s eyes lit up and he bounced so much, he almost fell out of Alex’s arms as he chuckled: “Okay, okay, let’s go.”

Alex opened the door with an apologetic grin as he said: “I’m sorry, the morning was a bit hectic, I just got in.”

Philip wiggled out of his arms and ran to Washington, who caught the boy easily as he assured Alex: “It’s alright, son. Angelica told me already.”

With a sigh of relief Alex set his stuff down, not even bothering to correct Washington about the moniker, before calling Philip over to him and explaining: “I have to do boring work now, but I have some paper and pencils for you, so that you can color. Does that sound fun, Pip? Will you tell me if you need to pee?”

“Yes, Papa,” Philip promised, taking the coloring materials and settling down in Alex’s lap peacefully.

The love he had of drawing was something he shared with his Daddy and Alex always choked up slightly when he saw that concentrated face and the pencil. He was quickly distracted, however, by a certain Virginian saying something stupid and he mostly forgot about Philip in his lap as the meeting progressed.

About an hour into the meeting, Philip pulled on Alex’s jacket and whispered: “Papa, I have to go pee.”

Alex cut himself off mid sentence and smiled down at the boy: “I’m sure, Grandpa George wouldn’t mind if we take a small break to go pee. You hungry, Pip?”

“A bit,” Philip confessed.

“Well, then it’s a good thing, I have a little snack for you,” he said, as he got up, putting Philip down on his two feet as he took his hand, “Come on, buddy.”

Philip followed his Papa contently as Washington cleared his throat: “I think we can all do with a break, gentlemen.”

Thomas frowned. He already thought it quite irresponsible to bring a kid to work, but he supposed the reason must be good enough if Angelica agreed, however stopping a meeting right as they were getting somewhere was annoying.

The kid was cute though. Thomas had no clue who the mother was. Hell, he hadn’t even known Alex was married, or divorced with how he was married to his work.

Also, Grandpa George? Talk about nepotism.

He blinked as Alex got back with Philip. The kid seemed less fidgety and was eating a granola bar with little chocolate chips in it as Alex smiled down gently, not at all like normally. Though, Thomas supposed, he only got to see Alex when the other was yelling or presenting.

It was strange to see Alex so domestic. He had often pictured the other like that, but now it was even easier to picture him – sadly – with a faceless woman, which send a pang through Thomas. It was pathetic how he was crushing on an already taken coworker who hated him.

Though Thomas would never act on those feelings, so it shouldn’t – didn’t – even hurt... that much.

After Martha, he just didn’t know if he could move on like that, but he could allow himself to watch, to torture himself with what he never had or will have.

The rest of the meeting went smoothly with everyone pretending they didn’t notice the small boy crawling under the big table with play cars as he made soft ‘vroom vroom’-noises.

When everyone was leaving Alex squatted and called out: “Hey, Pip, you having fun there?”

“Yes, Papa,” the little voice called back.

“That’s great, buddy,” Alex smiled, “Would you mind moving? We need to go back to my office now, but you can keep playing.”

“But then my cars can’t go to their base under the chair and they need to, because the evil monkeys are after them and they have to go back to defend it,” Philip explained.

Alex listened closely and nodded: “Seems like they’re hardworking cars, Pip. Remember when I was working hard and then we went on a vacation to that cottage in the forest?”

That was a lie, sort of. He had been throwing himself into work because John’s death date had been coming up and Angelica had forced him to take a vacation, sadly backed up by Washington, though Alex had to admit it had been for the better.

“Yes?” Philip was obviously confused about the question.

“Maybe your cars also deserve a vacation,” he said, “They can go on vacation in my office and take a rest from fighting the evil monkeys.”

“Ooh, yes,” the little boy exclaimed as he made his way to his father, who double checked if all their stuff was with them.

When he turned to the door, he was surprised to find Thomas there, soft smile on his face as he waited. Thomas noticed and held up the keys: “It’s my turn to lock up.”

“Ah, well, thank you for waiting,” Alex said awkwardly.

“I didn’t know you had a kid,” Thomas started, trying to fill the strange silence.

“I’m not much of a family talker, but Philip is my pride and joy,” Alex told him, “He’s very smart, isn’tthat right, Pip?”

“Yes, my teacher says I’m very good, one of the bestest in class and I can already write my name. I also draw very good already,” Philip bragged, “And Papa always says I will blow eeeveryone away.”

“Oh, wow, kiddo, that’s pretty good,” Thomas humored the kid, charmed by his smile and excited gestures as he talked, kind of like Alex in a way.

“Well, bye Hamilton.”

“Ah, yes, bye Jefferson.”

They awkwardly went their separate ways, not used to the fact that one of them wasn’t stomping away angrily while the other yelled at them.

Alex shook his head, he felt weird with Thomas being nice to him. He had smiled at Philip and it was genuine, not his normal ‘I’m better than you’- smirk that made Alex want to punch him. It looked good on him and Alex hated how good it looked on him.

Sure, he’s always known Thomas was attractive, but he had a soft spot for people who were good with kids and it didn’t help the stupid feelings he thought he’d suppressed well enough. God, the other man hated him, what was he even thinking?

He tried to let go of the thought as he set Philip down with all the stuff to keep him occupied as he got to work, hoping to get his proposal for the financial planning of the company done.

Philip reminded him to eat lunch, because he was hungry and he went to Angelica, because Philip wanted to see Auntie Angie. For Philip he would do anything, the little boy had him wrapped around his finger.

Angelica was more than happy to eat lunch with them and humored Philip when she listened to his explanation of his car story line until he got distracted by the coloring place mats they had at the restaurant.

Then she turned to Alex and asked: “How are you?”

“I’m doing good, Angie, really. This is not me not taking care of either of us, I swear,” he said, already knowing why she was asking and slightly annoyed, “The school canceled last minute and the babysitter couldn't come and everyone else was busy.”

“Just checking, ‘Lex. We know how hard it’s been since John passed, we just worry,” she soothed his ruffled feathers.

Alex sighed: “I know, I know. I still miss him, but it’s getting better.”

“How much better? Not to be rude, ‘Lex, but you’re wound up. You need to get laid,” she said bluntly.

“Angie!” he exclaimed, glancing at Philip, “There are children here.”

“Yes, and he’s been too focused on his drawing for the past five minutes to pay attention to us,” she rolled her eyes, “But I’m assuming that’s a no to the getting laid.”

“I’m too old for casual hook-ups, Angelica,” he told her, “If I’m going back into dating, I’m going to look for something serious. But no one is looking for a widower in his thirties with a five-year-old kid. And I can’t commit to someone who isn’t going to commit to Pip. He doesn’t need that.”

Angelica nodded: “You’re right, just try not to turn into a sad lonely old man.”

“Like you’re becoming a lonely old woman?” he teased.

“Alexander!” she swatted him lightly.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, you’re as radiant as ever, a beacon of beauty and youth,” he retracted his statement with a grin.

“That’s better,” she grinned back.

“Papa, I finished my drawing,” Philip interrupted the two adults, almost spilling his drink when he proudly held up his place mat.

Alex smiled: “That’s beautiful, Pip. Want to take it home tonight?”

“Oh, can I?” the boy asked.

“Of course, buddy,” Alex ruffled his hair, carefully putting the drawing in his briefcase with his other papers, so that he could hang it on the art wall.

They returned to the office and said their goodbyes to Angelica, before Alex got back to work.

It was quiet for a while, then Philip said: “Papa, I’m bored, can I walk around? I can go to Auntie Angie? I promise not to dis- dis- bother other people.”

“Disturb?” Alex asked.

Philip nodded that it was the right word, then asked: “Please, Papa. I promise I’ll be good. I know where Auntie Angie is and if I can’t find you I’ll go to Grandpa George after.”

The boy put on his best puppy eyes, which he had inherited from John, and Alex had never managed to say no to those eyes, so he relented: “Be back in an hour okay? That’s when that big arm is at the four, alright? Be sure to tell Auntie Angie.”

“Alright, Papa!” the boy said, already bouncing out his office with the pent up energy of a small child who had sat for nearly the entire day.

Alex smiled and watched him go. He contemplated getting up to check if Philip made it down the hall alright, but stopped himself.

A memory flashed through his minds eye of John holding a baby Philip and smirking: “You can’t always be there, ‘Lexi. You gotta let him be his own man at some point.”

“But he’s a baby,” he had protested at the time.

John had leaned forwards and kissed his nose: “But he won’t be forever, he’s gotta grow up just like you did. Ain’t nothing wrong with a bit of independence, sweetheart. Letting go is good at some point, just start small.”

He could let go.

Walking down the hall of the office to an adult he knew wasn’t the ultimate danger Philip would face, this was good. A small start just like John had said.

So, with reluctance he focused back on his work and easily got into the zone again as he did. It was easy to loose himself into his work. He was sure that if Philip hadn’t been there, he would have worked himself to death.

Meanwhile Philip walked down the hall, skipping and jumping just because he could and wanted to. He was really planning on visiting Auntie Angie, but he’d already seen her at lunch, so when he saw something more interesting, he stopped.

It was the Mister from before, Jeff- something, it was a long name and Philip hadn’t been paying attention, though he recalled it being a familiar name. He felt bad now, the man had seemed impressed with him.

Maybe he would want to play with him? But he’d promised Papa not to disturb the other people.

Apparently he’d been standing in the man’s doorway long enough for him to notice and ask him if he needed anything and where his Papa was.

“Papa said I could go walk around a bit,” he told the man, “My cars are on vacation and it’s a bit boring and I don’t feel like coloring. Do you like cats, Mister?”

It seemed the man was startled by his sudden change of topic, but he smiled easily and said: “You can call me Thomas.”

“Okay, Mr. Thomas,” Philip nodded, “Do you like cats?”

With Mr. Thomas not actively telling him to go away, Philip decided it was safe to enter the office and Mr. Thomas just pointed at a chair for him to sit in, so he did. He looked at Mr. Thomas awaiting his answer.

“Sure,” he said, “Why do you ask, kiddo?”

Philip shrugged: “Uncle Laf calls Papa petit lion and Uncle Herc explained to me that it’s a type of cat. Auntie Eliza and Auntie Maria wanteda cat, but Auntie Angie is allergic to them, so she doesn’t agree. But Grandpa George and Grandma Martha have cat, though Papa doesn’t like him very much, even though he likes other cats. So I wondered what you thought about cats.”

“Well, I think cats are nice,” Mr. Thomas said.

“Do have a cat?” Philip asked.

Thomas gave up any pretense of work, he hadn’t wanted to do anything anyway and the kid was way more interesting. He shook his head: “No, my friend, Jemmy, is allergic too and I like having him come to the house.”

“Can’t do that if there’s a cat,” Philip said, nodding his head sagely as if he had all the wisdom in the world.

“Yeah,” Thomas laughed at the display, then said: “I don’t know if sitting in my office is going to be very entertaining, kiddo. I don’t really have toys lying around.”

“That’s alright,” Philip said, “You’re Jeff-” he hummed trying to find the name, “Jefferson?” he suddenly remembered, but he didn’t sound very certain.

Thomas nodded: “Yeah, Thomas Jefferson. Why?”

“Papa talks about you lots,” Philip confided in him, recalling why the name was familiar, “He says you’re a meanie, but I think you’re nice, Mr. Thomas. I think Papa does too, he just don’t wanna say it. He says you’re smart, he only says that about Auntie Angie.”

God, the secrets this kid had from Alex ranting at him would be enormous, but Thomas wasn’t going to interrogate a kid about what his father thought of him. A small part of him, however, preened slightly at the indirect compliment from Hamilton.

He pushed the thought down, the man was married and had kids.

“I don’t know, kiddo. Me and your Papa are,” he hesitated, how do you tell a kid that the most talking you do with his father is yelling insults at each other, “We’re not the best buddies,” he finished lamely.

“That’s sad, I think you and Papa would get along greatly. I like you and Papa says I have good taste,” the kid sounded proud of that and Thomas couldn't help but smile, “I think you have good taste too, Mr. Thomas.”

“Really?” Thomas asked curiously.

“Yes, I like your flowers,” Philip pointed to the vase Thomas had filled on a whim, because he’d been sad a few days ago.

“Thanks, kiddo. They’re Canterburybells,” he said, then had a bright idea, “Hey, since you and I have such fantastic taste, why don’t you help me pick out the colors for my presentation? Then I can read you a story if you’d like. I got books.”

Philip lit up and bounced to the other side of the desk, already telling Thomas loudly about which colors were the bestest.

In the end the presentation was yellow and magenta (Thomas was going to have a field day with that) with neon green letters. It was disgusting to look at and Thomas knew he was going to keep and treasure it, especially because Alex couldn’t say anything of it.

He had mostly stuffy old literature on his shelves in the office, but there was also a fairy tale book for when he needed to calm down, not that anyone knew about that, and he read Philip the tale of Hansel and Gretel.

When they were done Philip asked for the time, saying: “Papa told me to be back in an hour, when the big arm was on the four.”

Thomas checked the time, it was five to four. He turned back to Philip: “Well, then young man, you must be going. Here, I’ll accompany you.”

The five-year-old didn’t seem to mind him tagging along as they walked down the hall to Hamilton’s office.

What Thomas hadn’t expected was for the office to be empty. The laptop wasn’t there and only papers and empty mugs scattered the desk. Thomas quickly glanced down to Philip, who looked confused as he asked: “Where’s Papa?”

“I don’t know, kiddo,” Thomas told him honestly, he spotted a phone on the desk and mentally cursed, if Hamilton had forgotten his kid and phone he was going to scream. Though it was highly unlikely the man would leave that early.

Then he spotted a note on the desk: Angie or Washington, I don’t know which one of you Pip will look for. I got called by fucking Lee for an emergency (I doubt it actually is, but you know how he gets, the prick). I’ll be back before five, please just watch him for me. I’m so sorry.

Relief coursed through Thomas’s veins that Alex had at least been responsible enough to leave a note.

He turned to Philip: “Hey, the note says your Papa has been called away for a bit.”

“Oh, okay,” Philip replied, “What do I do?”

Philip really was a smart kid, probably got it from his dad. Thomas smiled: “I don’t mind hanging out with you for a little bit longer, but maybe I could call your mom?”

It was an acceptable time to be done with work earlyand Thomas knew Lee was as much of a prick as Alex’s note had claimed, and the man hated Alex. Ifhe could keep him busy, he would, just because it would piss Alex off.

“I don’t have a mom,” Philip told him.

Thomas knew Alex was bi of course, but with the kid he’d made the assumption. He quickly adapted and said: “Do you have a dad then?”

Philip nodded and Thomas was about to ask if he knew how to contact him, trying to ignore the pang of jealousy, when the kid said: “But Papa said I can’t see Daddy, because he’s living with the angels now.”

Oh fuck, Thomas had not seen this coming and he was floundering.

“According to Papa, he didn’t mean to go, but he can’t get back to us. We visit his special place sometimes,” Philip was oblivious to all the emotions Thomas was experiencing, “There are a lot of stones there, but we always go to one with Daddy’s picture on it and Papa cries.”

That was probably much more than Alex wanted him to know. He briefly thought of Martha and how they’d never had kids. He didn’t know how he would have explained her death to them if they had.

“I’m sorry, kiddo,” he said instead, “Must be hard with one parent, though it seems your Papa loves you very much.”

“He does,” Philip smiled widely, “He takes me to the park on Saturdays and we run around. He teaches me about all sorts of stuff, like dinos. Do you know about dinos, Mr. Thomas?”

Thomas was glad for the change of topic and nodded: “I’ve heard of them, but I don’t know much. Why don’t you tell me more about them?”

“Well, they come from eggs. I did too, did you know? Papa said he froze eggs and I came crawling out, just like a dino,” Philip told him excitedly. Thomas was confused about what on earth that could mean, but just nodded along to the kid’s babbling.

An hour later Alex stomped into his office, grumbling under his breath about what an asshat Lee was.

He stopped at the empty office, he knew Philip must be with Angelica or Washington, but with the note still there, he didn’t know which one. He went back into the hallway and saw Washington walk by. Stopping the man he said: “Perfect timing. Is Pip with you? I got called away and told him to find you or Angie.”

“No, son, he must be with Miss Schuyler,” Washington smiled, “How was it with Lee?”

“Sir, if you don’t want a verbal essay, I suggest you don’t ask,” Alex sighed tiredly. He just wanted to go home and sleep.

Washington chuckled then stepped into his office as Alex made his way over to Angelica’s office, he knocked on her door and opened it with a: “Hi, Angie, I’ll take Philip now, thanks for watching him.”

Angelica looked up from her work with confusion: “Philip? I haven’t seen Philip since lunch, Alex. What are you talking about.”

The blood in his veins turned to ice as he said: “But, he was going to you. He said he wanted to say hi. He’d be back by four, but I got called away. I left you a note. Are you sure you didn’t see him?”

“No, I wouldn’t lie about that,” Angelica said, “Why didn’t you walk with him?”

Alex was already beating himself up over it: “Fuck, I’m so stupid. I thought he would be fine, that I should let him go, be independent. I’m a terrible father and now something might have happened to Pip. God, what if he’s dead?”

“Hey, none of that, calm down, just breathe,” Angelica put her hand on his shoulder, “He probably got distracted. He’s still around, I’m sure. Someone else must have seen him.”

They got distracted by a southern voice floating down the hall: “Hamilton, there you are. I was wondering if I should start charging hours.”

“Papa!” Philip yelled excitedly, running up to his Papa, who crushed him into a tight hug with a sigh of relief.

“There you are. Pip, I was so worried. You said you were going to Auntie Angie,” he scolded the boy, “Don’t scare me like that again. I thought something had happened.”

“Sorry, Papa,” Philip sounded genuinely upset.

“It’s okay, baby, it’s okay. Papa didn’t mean to make you upset, I was just worried,” after soothing his son, he turned to Thomas and glared, “Do you often kidnap children?”

Thomas looked up shocked and in an offend voice replied: “Excuse you? I didn’t kidnap him. He showed up to my office telling me he was allowed to walk around. He asked me about cats and I just made sure he was okay. You should be thanking me, it could have gone a lot worse.”

Alex eyed him suspiciously, but was distracted by Philip: “He’s right, he listened to me back at the room with the table and I was just wondering what he thought of cats, then he let me help with his presentation and read me a story and then I told him about the dinos.”

“I know we have our disagreements, Hamilton, but I’m not going to be an as- meanie to a kid,” he said.

“Nice save,” Angelica smirked.

“Oh shove off, Angelica,” Thomas rolled his eyes good-naturedly, he liked the eldest Schuyler. He had met her a long time ago, back when Martha was still there.

Alex checked over Philip one more time, before begrudgingly acknowledging that Thomas had done him a favor. So, he said: “Thank you, Jefferson. For making sure Pip was alright.”

“No worries, man. I have a lot of siblings,” Thomas shrugged.

Angelica looked between them and smirked, before saying: “Here, I’ll go grab your stuff, ‘Lex. You and Thomas make sure you’re on the same page about this. I don’t want to have you screaming because of a misunderstanding, you do it enough without them.”

Philip walked off happily with his Auntie Angie, leaving Alex and Thomas on their own.

“Did he behave well?” Alex asked, breaking the silence.

Thomas looked confused for a moment, then smirked: “Yeah, he’s a sweet boy. Certainly didn’t get that from you.”

Alex chuckled: “No, he got every good bone in his body from John,” his smile was far away and soft, before he shookhimself out of it, “I’m glad you listened to him, he’s a good kid.”

“No problem, really,” Thomas shrugged.

It was quiet for a moment.

“Can I ask why he thinks he crawled out of an egg like a dinosaur?” Thomas asked, unable to help himself. He was just too curious and it was weird for a kid to think that. He just wanted to know what an earth Alex had told the boy.

The random question startled Alex, who laughed after a second. He explained: “Kids at school were asking how he could have two dads, so I told them that I froze some of my eggs and his other Daddy made sure they would work, before Auntie Eliza hatched him. I compared it to dinosaurs because he understands them and thinks they’re cool. I guess he only picked up some parts.”

“So, he’s not related to the Schuyler's?” Thomas asked, then elaborated, “Just with the whole Auntie Angie and Auntie Eliza he was talking about, I assumed his other parent was one of their sibling hoard.”

“No,” Alex said, “He’s completely mine and Johns.”

It was quiet for a beat, then Thomas said: “I didn’t know you were trans.”

Alex shrugged: “It’s not really something I tell people, especially with how they start calling me a mother, no thanks. Besides, it’s none of their business anyway. Philip is mine and they can keep their opinions of my parenting to themselves.”

Thomas nodded: “That makes sense. For what it’s worth, you’re a great dad. Philip is lucky to have you. I know you didn’t want me to know, probably, but he told me his other dad was living with angels. I’m sorry for your loss.”

“I don’t need your pity,” Alex bit out after a hard swallow. He didn’t need Thomas treating him differently just because his husband was dead, he got that enough as it was. He missed John dearly, but he was healing and the special treatment just made it harder.

He was surprised by Thomas’s reply: “I’m not pitying you, Alex. I just wanted you to know that he told me and that you can talk to me.”

“That’s-” Alex hesitated, slightly confused, “That’s… nice? I suppose. But you’re not really my first confidant.”

“I know,” Thomas shrugged, he seemed to be preparing himself for something, “I just know how some people don’t get it and it can be annoying, so if you ever just wanna talk, please do,” he pulled out a necklace from his shirt, on it were two golden bands, “I’m not messing with you, or pitying you.”

“I didn’t know,” Alex mumbled, feeling a bit sheepish for his earlier reaction, “How- How long ago?”

“Seven years,” Thomas answered, “Martha- she was the best, but she had heart problems. I knew we didn’t have long, but it still hurt. She was just too young.”

There were tears in his eyes and Alex could feel himself tearing up as well. He said: “The better ones always die first somehow, fuck. John- John died four years ago. Wanted to do one last tour, before settling down. They were already retreating when-”

He couldn't finish the sentence, but Thomas understood. It was weird how much it made sense that Thomas understood.

They’d always been each others equal. Both in debate and passion. They knew how to push the other and got why. They were the same, just different, so of course Thomas of all people would understand.

Both stood there in silence, tears still in their eyes, but content to just stand there.

At that point Angelica came back with Philip. She was about to start a sentence when she saw the state they were in: “Jesus, are you two alright? I swear, I leave you for a few minutes and-”

“We’re fine, Angie,” Alex quickly wiped away his tears and attempted a smile.

Philip ran up to him and with his arms demanded to be carried. When Alex obliged he asked: “Are you okay, Papa?”

“Yeah, Pip, Papa’s fine,” Alex assured him, “Remember how I told you about the missing sad. It was that.”

“Like when I can’t see Sockie at school and I miss him, right?” Philip asked.

“Exactly that, Pip,” Alex agreed, “Now, what do you say about going home, buddy? Does that sound alright? We can watch Moana.”

“I love Moana!” Philip chirped.

Alex turned to Angelica and Thomas and said: “We’re gonna go. Uhm, thank you both and, uh, I might take you up on that, Thomas. Now say bye, Pip.”

“Bye Auntie Angie, bye Mr. Thomas,” Philip said with a wave, a quick yawn escaping him after all the excitement as he burrowed closer into his Papa’s arms while they walked out of the building.

When they were gone, Angelica turned to Thomas with a raised brow: “So, Mr. Thomas,” she put extra emphasis on the name, “You’ve got yourself a social upgrade.”

“Shut up, I should have never told you about that stupid crush,” Thomas hid his head in his hands.

“I think you two would be cute together,” Angelica said, then she asked: “Why were you two crying, by the way? Are you okay?”

He put the necklace back and said: “I told him about Martha, seemed fair after the kid told me about John. I didn’t know Alex was a widower, nor that he had kids.”

“Yeah, ‘Lex used to love bragging about John and Philip, but ever since-” she sighed, “Well, you know. He hasn’t been the same.”

“I don’t think anyone can stay the same after living through that,” Thomas told her, “I was always saddened I had no kids with Martha, but after today. Fuck, I don’t know what I would have told them. I don’t think I could have handled it.”

Angelica shrugged: “It’s different for everyone, I think Philip saved ‘Lex’s life. He got up each day to care for him. Don’t tell him I told you that, I will slap you again.”

“I won’t, I swear,” Thomas held his hands up in surrender and luckily Angelica believed him, because she smiled: “Good, I know where you live.”

“You are terrifying,” he informed her.

“That’s why we’re such good friends,” she merely smiled, “Now, let’s go, you still owe me dinner for giving you private time with Papa Alex.”

Thomas flushed a bright red and told her he hated her, before following her out of the building as she cackled at his misery.

After that things went back to normal.

Mostly.

Somewhere he had imagined the interaction would be some revelation or something and the next day would be completely different.

But it just wasn’t.

They had a meeting in the morning, it was the first time they saw each other that day and within minutes it had turned into an argument.

Though, perhaps the arguments had gotten less personal. They had always thrown in slight digs at the other, believing themselves to know the man before them and judging the person they’d built in their mind, but when that fell away, it was hard to make digs at someone who understood.

So work returned to normal, with arguments echoing through the halls, which were now followed by civil conversation as they walked to their offices.

It was only a month later that it changed.

You know, this fic is getting much bigger than expected and has gotten severely out of hand. It was meant to be a cute Philip at work fic, but then I thought about past John/Alex (and not fucking Eliza over bc I love her too much for it) and now it hasturnedinto a gigantic angst pile turning fluffwith a slow burn thrown in there, something I have never written before, but I’m having fun.

#RR writing #Hamilton #alexander hamilton #philip hamilton #thomas jefferson #jamilton #Hamilton AU #angelica schuyler #george washington #'Till Death Do Us Part #'Till Death Do Us Part AU #'Till Death Do Us Part Part 1

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ladyhindsight · 3 years ago

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Hi 💆🏽‍♀️ feeling like talking over Robert again.

While I do believe off-page statements by writers are valid, I do agree info should be at least hinted on page. It made me think on the matter of Michael's sexuality.

After CoHF, CC talked off-page about how wrong it was to assume Michael was gay because he loved Robert and to assume he loving Robert and having married a woman is contradictory of him. She is obviously right of saying that and people shouldn't assume for sure he was gay and had a unhappy/"platonic" marriage when other sexualities exist. Then... she also said Michael had a specific sexuality but would let it for TftSA.

Now I do know Michael is bisexual and that his marriage was real, but I only know it because CC stated it off-page afterwards. It's something easy to anyone find out checking the character's wikipage, and while his sexuality not being totally clear still doesn't excuse people assuming he was gay (and that being something one can check very easily on internet) the matter still botters me because The Evil We Love didn't make Michael's sexuality clear as CC hinted it would do. That's not a problem on The Evil We Love for me, actually it makes far more sense that it doesn't — because Robert was very smart at the same time he struggled with understanding his and Michael's romantic stuff, and I think The Evil We Love did really great on it all. This novella is what started my deep love for Robert, I do really like it very much 😅 (But I can accept some thoughtful criticism, I love overthinking on anything about Robert)

By The Evil We Love, I don't think one can know for sure Michael felt anything for Eliza Rosewain (who became his wife, another off-page info but not as harmful). The romance conversation between Robert and Michael (NAME A BETTER DIALOGUE IN THE ENTIRE TSC UNIVERSE, I'LL WAIT!!! 😭😭😭😭) Michael seems to hope and maybe even believe Robert reciprocates his feelings

“Have you ever been in love? For real?”

“You know I haven’t. Don’t you think I would have mentioned it?”

“But how can you know for sure, if you don’t know what it would feel like? Maybe you have without even realizing it. Maybe you’re holding out for something you already have.”

😭😭😭😭 and generally trying to figure out if this possibility is real. That was right after Michael told Robert about liking that Eliza is odd, what Robert does understanding as Michael being "into" Eliza, but

She’s very odd,” Michael said. “I like it.”

“Oh.” It was a surprise, a not entirely pleasant one. Michael never liked anyone. Until this moment, Robert hadn’t realized how much he had counted on that. “Then you should go for it,” he said, hoping he sounded sincere.

“Really?” Michael looked rather surprised himself.

“Yes. Definitely.” Robert reminded himself: The less certain you feel, the more certain you act. “She’s perfect for you.”

“Oh.” Michael stopped walking and settled under the shadow of a tree.

Michael's reaction here totally shows he was hoping another reaction from Robert — most likely Robert's true inner reaction 😫 What I'm saying is that Michael talking about Eliza here is far less about Eliza and far more about Robert, so it's definitely not clear if Michael has true feelings for Eliza.

No, I do not mean Michael is acting in a malicious trying-to-make-Robert-jealous way, and more about genuine concern about what he liking Eliza would mean to Robert, something obviously of his interest to know. We know Michael does not act with malice.

Thinking about Michael's character, it's funny how most people reading TEWL "fall in love" with him and believe he's too much of a perfect angel to our flawed Robert, when indeed we have this genuine idea of him because Robert having this idea of him was well written. Michael could be written as being only weird and quiet from the perspective of a character who doesn't like him or just don't care about him, but from Robert's perspective we see how of a lovely person he looks to Robert. This is in no way Michael being too good for Robert, it's Robert loving him as he is — as Michael aknowledges it and does the exact same according to himself ("Love, real love, is being seen. Being known. Knowing the ugliest part of someone, and loving them anyway")

......I ACTUALLY HAD MORE STUFF TO SAY TODAY BUT I'LL CRY OVER THIS NOW BYEE 😅🌹

Hellooo! 😊

Stiefvater is one of the authors who do not put much weight on their own ideas and views regarding her series and characters when it’s not included on page. I’ve always got the sense that Clare rather is the opposite in that sense, if her Tumblr and Twitter is anything to go by.

It’s a bit sad for Michael that readers had to ask separately whether Michael was truly in love with his Eliza because Michael is more of an accessory than a character whose motives, thoughts, and intentions are represented expressly in the story. All this off-page stuff does no favors to anyone, and I understand that the love between Michael and Eliza seemed very suspect until years later when Clare confirmed it on her Twitter page.

I imagine Robert was, in some sense, Michael’s first love, and his love for Eliza came on and grew later. That whole interaction is full of Robert somehow being jealous of Michael liking Eliza. :’) But Michael and Eliza’s relationship is such a nonexistent thing that is accessed through Robert rather than any other part of the narrative. It’s difficult to imagine Michael’s feelings for Eliza the same way we see him feeling about Robert because their relationship and the progression of it hasn’t been relevant as to the overall story it seems, so there’s that disconnect.

Robert and Michael were in a situation where their feelings were too tangled, unrealized, unaccepted, and neither could help it or mend it afterwards. And that makes me saaad. Robert’s perspective gives such a kind and persevering image of Michael, and I think if any character is to go by, Robert was the one who knew Michael truly (until Eliza later on, I imagine).

Love, real love, is being seen. Being known. Knowing the ugliest part of someone, and loving them anyway is a good quote. The essence of Michael’s love for Robert, really. I think the idea of Robert not being good enough for Michael is because Robert, in the end, wasn’t much liked character, unlike those brief moments we had with Michael that made him far more cherished.

#Robert Lightwood #Michael Wayland #Reply

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jamilelucato · 4 years ago

Text

Satisfied [F. W.]

Summary: y/N Bilmes is the daughter of the owner of the Zonko’s Joke Shop, Bilton Bilmes, and, in her sister’s wedding day, she remembers a night with Fred Weasley when she learned she would never be satisfied.

Pairing: Fred Weasley x Bilmes!reader (platonic)

Musical Hogwarts Series || Harry Potter Masterlist

A/N: it’s angsty because this song is angst! But I hope you all like it! It has an open end, where you can interpret it as you see fit. PS: gif is not mine so I have no idea if that’s really James (Fred) or Oliver lol. PS 2: Bilton Bilmes is the guy who works at Zonko’s when you play the app Hogwarts Mystery and my quick research told me that Bilmes might be the owner now, who knows.

Based on the song Satisfied from the musical Hamilton (no need to like the song to read/understand the fic!)

“Alright, alright. That’s what I’m talkin’ about! Now, everyone, give it up for the maid of honour: y/N Bilmes!”

Lee Jordan’s voice echoed through the ballroom, accompanied by clapping. You stood up, wiping your hands on the skirt of the blue dress, chosen by your sister.

It was a beautiful model, with a slightly rounded skirt. The blue subtly highlighted your skin tone, but it certainly wouldn’t have been the colour you would’ve chosen.

Taking your wand out of your pocket, you marched to the small arranged stage and subtly cleared your throat.

“A toast to the groom!” you exclaimed, as soon as you chose a place to stand. You were in front of your sister, who had one of the most beautiful smiles on her face. You were avoiding looking at the groom, though.

The crowd of guests — your sister could not limit herself to inviting only the most intimate — echoed your words, raising her glasses of champagne. “To the groom!”

“To the bride!” you continued.

“To the bride!” mimicked the crowd.

“From your sister, who is always by your side,” you allowed yourself to smile while keeping your eyes fixed on your sister. “To your union!”

“To the revolution!” added some guests.

You shook your head, pretending not to mind the interruption of the guests.

“And the hope that you provide!” unconsciously, you brought the tip of your wand closer to your neck and the sensation was uncomfortable, but you kept smiling.

It was a beautiful scene, after all.

Your youngest and only sister was getting married. And she was a beautiful bride...

“May you always...” you couldn’t avoid the groom any longer, “...be satisfied.”

The groom you were avoiding looking at was none other than Fred Weasley. And he was the love of your life. But the love of his life, unfortunately, was your sister.

He was beautiful that night. He had combed his red hair back and was probably using hair gel. His black suit clutched in the right places, enhancing the muscles earned in puberty.

In that light of the ballroom, his appearance reminded you of a night not long before this one...

You remember that night, and you just might regret that night for the rest of your days. You remember those soldier boys, believing they were the kings of the world just because they battled in the Battle Of Hogwarts. They were tripping over themselves to win the praise of the girls.

Hogwarts had been just reconstructed, but it looked as beautiful as ever. Generally, you and your sister avoided attending these types of social gala events, but as your own father said: the occasion was worth it.

The new Great Hall was decorated with dreamlike candles, like a dream that you can’t quite place.

You could have been distracted by the setting for hours and hours. Of course, that would have been if Fred Weasley hadn’t come in the front door as if he owned the space.

Fred, I’ll never forget the first time I saw your face, you thought.

Since that night, you have never been the same. He had intelligent eyes in a hunger-pang frame. He was saying hi to everyone, smiling brightly. Apparently, everyone knew who he was. You weren’t familiar with him, however.

When he walked towards you and said “Hi,” you forgot your social manners. It was rather embarrassing.

He chuckled at your blushed cheeks.

You weren’t used to talking to guys, but he had set your heart aflame, every part.

“Dance with me,” he asked, noticing the songs had changed.

Hesitantly, it took you a second to regain your courage and accept the hand he held out to you. The band played a song with an unromantic but slow-paced lyrics, so several other couples were clinging to each other on the improvised dance floor.

Fred was a gentleman, holding you close to him, but with an impressive delicacy. You didn’t have much experience with men, but you knew from your friends’ stories in France that they could be quite inconvenient.

The dress you were wearing was a red a shade darker than the boy’s hair, which made it look like you two matched even more. He wore a two-piece suit with an orange shirt, but the suit was slightly greenish.

He didn’t try any risky dance moves, he just swung you from side to side, and you were grateful for that. He had a worse effect on you than drinking a whole bottle of alcohol, and if he tried a more difficult dance than that, you were sure it would be shameful.

“You strike me as a woman who has never been satisfied,” he whispered, close to your left ear.

“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean. You forget yourself,” his commented made you feel offended for a split second, so you leaned away from Fred a bit.

“You’re like me,” he said, in sweeter tone.“I’m never satisfied”

He was trying to show you that being satisfied was not a bad thing. It meant you always wanted more. And he could be right about that.

“Is that right?” you tried to sound as charming as you could, using all of the flirting tactics that your Beauxbatons friends taught you.

“I have never been satisfied,” he sighed, not in a tired way, but in an enchanting way like he was playing the same game as you.

The song, unfortunately, was over and the band drastically changed the tune to something more agitated. Some couples left the dance floor, but you and the red-haired boy stayed there, only letting go of each other but remaining very close.

You decided it was time to present yourself. “My name is y/N Bilmes.”

“Fred Weasley,” he informed smirking.

“Weasley?” you repeated. The name seemed familiar.

“Yeah, but don’t let it fool you. There are a million things I haven’t done, but just you wait,” he shrugged, nervously, and offered to get yourselves a drink which you accepted.

While he was gone, somethings started to click in your mind. Your eyes wandered the room, looking for your sister. Would she like to know that you finally found someone at your level?

Fred made you feel the feeling of freedom, of seein’ the light in just a couple of minutes, perhaps a bit more. Every word said was in total agreement; he seemed to know more about you than you did yourself.

But then, you asked about his family, and his answer wasn’t promising. His hands started fidgeting, he looked askance — but his words were just trying to distract you. An attempt of making you forget who the Weasleys were, but with him away from you, the information appeared. The Weasleys were penniless, and a big, huge family.

But he is so handsome! Yeah, there was a peach fuzz that he can’t even grow, but somehow, that didn’t erase his charm. You wanted him. You desired him.

Maybe he could be yours, at least for the night. Your French friends did it all the time... Sure, you were bound to catch feelings, but he could catch them too, right?

Then you turned and saw your sister’s face, and she was helpless. She was following Fred with her eyes, and you needed no more signs of how she was feeling. Probably because you were feeling the same.

You realized three fundamental truths at the exact same time…

Fred came to you, giving you the second drink in his hands, but you barely grabbed before reaching for his arm and making him walk.

“Where are you taking me?” he asked after sipping his drink.

“I’m about to change your life,” you forced yourself to smile when he stared at you.

“Then, by all means, lead the way,” he smiled back.

The first thing you realized: You were a girl in a world in which your job was to marry rich. Not that your father would be mad if you didn’t, but the family had a significant debt that no one knew about, and it was you the one suppose to pay it.

You were the oldest and the wittiest, and the gossip in the Wizarding World was insidious, and Fred was penniless. As a Weasley, anyway, he had to be very much poor...

Perhaps he was rising... Wasn’t he one of the owners of that Joke Shop in Diagon Alley that your father was bothered about?

Ha! That doesn’t mean I want him any less, you thought.

You had approached your sister, who exchanged looks from you to the handsome boy. You raised your brows and tilted your head, wanting to say: present yourself.

She gulped before offering him her hand. “Elizabeth Bilmes. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Fred handed you his glass as he grabbed her hand with both of his.

“Bilmes?”

“My sister,” you explained, but he still seemed confused.

“No, it’s just... the name sounds familiar.”

“Oh! Our father owns the Zonkos’s Joke Shop!” exclaimed Eliza, happy to help. “Perhaps you know him.”

Fred turned his face to you. “Why didn’t you mention?” he asked, but he wasn’t mad — he was excited.

There was the second thing you realized:

He’s after you because you’re a Bilmes heir, which would elevate his status— you’d have to be naïve to set that aside.

Maybe that is why you introduce him to Eliza, and, now, that’s his bride.

Nice going, y/N, he was right — you will never be satisfied.

Eliza was smart enough to continue the conversation while you were spacing out. “Thank you for all your service.”

It was well-known that the Weasleys played a significant part in the Battle, primarily because they were Harry Potter’s family.

“If it takes fighting a war for us to meet, it will have been worth it,” Fred kissed her hand, but he kept his eyes on hers.

You were about to roll your eyes or vomit — which one was going to happen first you had no idea— so you decided it was time to leave.

“I’ll leave you to it.”

They didn’t even look back at you, so you just turned and walked away. With both Fred’s and your drinks on hand, you drank them fastly, not even caring for the bad taste it left in your mouth.

You couldn’t look back; you couldn’t let your mind wander about the likelihood that your sister and Fred were already kissing.

Eliza has always been more proficient with boys than you, even though she was shy and humbled, her face called attention, and it didn’t take long for a brave boy to court her. Even more different from you, she always accepted.

The third thing you realized that night:

You knew your sister like you know your own mind — you will never find anyone as trusting or as kind. If you told her that you love him, she’d be silently resigned — he’d be yours.

She would say, “I’m fine”, but she’d be lying.

You walked directly towards the bar, getting yourself a couple more drinks. You would need it.

Your father bumped into you, asking what was wrong, but he would never understand. He just couldn’t.

Maybe your mom would, but at the moment, she was back in Paris.

But when you fantasize at night, it’s Fred’s eyes, as you romanticize what might have been if you hadn’t sized him up so quickly.

At least your dear Eliza’s his wife; at least you keep his eyes in your life…

But you knew, as you watched their relationship grow — as you were obliged to listen to your sister ramble to you how gorgeous and romantic Fred was — you knew he would never be satisfied. But so wouldn’t you.

Shaking your head for a what felt like a full minute you were finally able to look way from Fred and so finally able to lock the memory of that night forever in your mind.

Putting the wand back in the dress pocked, you walked down the stage towards the couple’s table, and you let a tear go down. Eliza would think you were moved by the wedding; only you would know the truth.

You could hear claps, but you didn’t care.

“I’ll always be by your side,” you whispered to your sister as you hugged her tight. She cried too, but she was way more emotional than you.

You knew who you had to hug after her.

And he was already up waiting.

“May you always be satisfied,” you whispered to Fred as you hugged him, letting yourself breath his perfume guiltless.

You felt him gulp to your words, but he said nothing and pressed his hands on your waist harder than before.

The door of the ballroom was abruptly open, and every face in the place turned to see who it was. Fred let go of you and smiled when he noticed who was walking.

Eliza seemed to be smiling too, and she rushed to the door, following her groom.

“Who’s that?” you asked the lovely woman sitting down closer to you, but she was also so happy that you thought she wasn’t going to answer.

“Fred’s brother,” she explained to your surprise.

You looked at her table where already five of Fred’s siblings were sat.

“Another?”

The pretty red-haired girl answered after giggling.

“That one is his twin,” she said while you both — and all the guests — watched the touching hug Fred shared with the man walking in. “He left just after the war; he was so traumatized with almost dying and almost losing Fred.”

“He wanted to calm down alone,” added one of the red-haired boys who was seating next to the girl.

“Harry did the same, so the whole family understood George’s point,” finished the girl.

You stared back at Eliza, Fred and Fred’s twin. Eliza did mention Fred had a brother just like him, but you thought she meant like someone with similar personalities, not the same face.

The three walked towards the family table, and all of the red-hairs got up.

“Oh, Georgie!” gasped the elder woman before hugging the tall man.

He hugged everyone, even your parents and he stopped next to you.

Eliza made the introductions.

“George, this is y/N, my sister,” Eliza said, putting a hand on your shoulder while you offered your hand to the man.

George looked down at your hand, but completely ignored and pulled you in a hug, that made you gasp in surprise. He had a tight embrace.

“We’re family now, y/N. Get used to hugs,” he muttered before letting you go.

You smiled, sympathetic. He was as beautiful as his twin, but somehow his eyes were... better.

“She’s like my own twin,” continued Eliza to George who chuckled at the comment. “Sure, we don‘t look alike. But she’s everything to me.”

“Thanks, sis. You’re all to me too.”

The twins laughed at your exchange of love with your sister, and you two pretended to be angry. Then your father asked for the floor, and the whole moment was interrupted.

Someone got George a chair right next to yours, so you were both facing your father, and he kept thanking the boys for buying the Zonko’s and restoring it.

“I knew my best costumers would be my bosses one day,” he said, and the whole place laughed.

It was George who requested to talk after, and he made such a cute speech that even you were moved. It seemed that George was the emotional one from the twins, much like Eliza was the emotional one from you and her.

“And I’m sorry I came a little late,” George continued just before ending. “Forgot the address I had to Apparate.”

As expected, he finished making everyone laugh.

The night went on better than you imagined. There was a moment there when your French friends made you embarrassed, then it was your parents’ opportunity to make you ashamed, but after a couple of drinkings, you were laughing at their dance moves.

All the Weasleys were marvellous, and all of Fred’s brothers danced with you, even the married one — even though the dance you two shared was much more to make everyone laugh at your moderns moves than anything else.

You knew Fleur, his wife, from back at school, so you two talked for a couple of minutes about the time at Beauxbatons.

And you also danced with George, who was a fun guy with a beautiful smile. He talked about his time away from home — how much about himself he learned, like how different from his twin he was.

“But at the end of the day, I missed him more than anything,” he had said, and you could only imagine how hurt that boy must have been to feel like leaving all his friends and family behind.

You laid your head on his shoulder while he moved around you, and the music slowed down. He realized that you were breathing hard.

“What’s it?’ asked George whispering.

“My sister,” you said simply. That was all you could tell.

Your sister was still beautiful, even after sweating on the dance floor, and now she was tied to Fred, just as you clung to George. They suddenly turned, and you looked at Fred, who smiled sadly in your direction.

“She’ll be happy as his bride,” you said to George, taking your head off his shoulder and looking him in the eye.

George seemed to agree, but he said nothing.

“And she’ll be satisfied.”

He then tilted his head, firming his hand on your waist.

“What about you?”

“Huh?” you frowned, confused.

“Are you satisfied?”

You took one last look at Fred over his twin’s shoulder before facing George again. And what seemed unlikely, happened — you smiled, this time, truly happy.

“I’ll never be satisfied.”

#fred weasley #fred weasley fanfic #fred weasley x reader #fred weasley x you #george weasley #Fred and George #Fred and George Weasley #george weasley x reader #satisfied #hamilton au #hamilton #battle of hogwarts #harry potter #harry potter fanfic #zonkos joke shop #zonkos #bilton bilmes

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ugly-crying-over-bucky-barnes · 4 years ago

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The Love Not Yet Known Part 1

Summary: Tommy Shelby needs to make sacrifices to ensure the safety of his family. So he concocts a plan to marry off his sister to the one and only Alfie Solomons.

Requested by @freaknik97

Part 2 will be posted here and on my masterlist

“Remind me why we’re not doing this at the office?” Arthur grumbled as they watched the car pull up the gravel drive.

Tommy stood beside his brother in the doorway of Arrow House. His hands were clasped in front of him. “The Italians are here and they’re going to look for allies or enemies. They might see Alfie as a way to weaken us. We need to make sure there’s no chance of that. We can’t have him making side deals like he did last time with the Russians.”

“Still doesn’t explain why he’s here. This could’ve been done in Birmingham.” Arthur muttered, still not a big fan of Alfie.

“You’ll find out soon enough, brother. Now let’s greet our guest.”

At the same time, Eliza Shelby was in the garden with her nephew. They had laid out a blanket and she was reading The Wind in the Willows to him. Although, the little boy wasn’t really paying much attention to his aunt. He was more focused on his toy horses, making them jump little obstacles he constructed out of a pencil from Eliza’s bag and rocks from the lawn.

Eliza didn’t mind too much. She was a quiet young woman, the polar opposite of John Shelby, her twin. As rowdy as her brothers were, she was eager to please her parents and wanted to show them how grown up she was. She found solace in books and used them to escape the unstable life of Small Heath. As she grew, her concern shifted to bettering herself rather than trying to please her family. After all, they didn’t see much merit in education. She wanted to lift herself out of the poverty she grew up in and the stigma surrounding her family. But she learned that the last name Shelby was nearly impossible to shake off. As Tommy wreaked havoc, she dealt with the consequences.

Besides, her heart would always be with her family, so she couldn’t exactly abandon them.

Charlie set his toy horse aside and flipped onto his back to look up at the sunny sky.

Eliza paused her reading to smile at him. “Can you see anything in the clouds?” She asked.

“I was looking for mummy. Daddy says that’s where she is.” The little boy pointed up at the sky. “In heaven. Says it’s above the clouds.”

Her smile faded sadly. “Oh, yes. That’s where she is. She’s always looking down on you to watch after you and keep you safe.” She said gently.

“Yeah, that’s what Pol says too. Says she’s an angel.”

Eliza wasn’t sure what else to say. It was difficult talking about Grace to Charlie because he was too young to understand what happened. Eliza treasured her nieces and nephews, treating them as if they were her own children. Of course, in her mid-twenties, it was assumed that she would already have children. All of her siblings, aside from Finn, had children. John had a litter of them. But now they were gone. Left with Esme after John passed.

She felt her heart sink. It was what made her so wary of relationships. She had known so much loss even at an early age. When she lost John, her twin brother, it felt like a piece of her died. It wasn’t meant to happen like that. They were supposed to grow up together, watch each other’s children, have each other over for holidays, and have the age-old argument about who was really the oldest. Now he was gone and Eliza felt so lonely.

If she were to find someone and marry, have children too, what if something happened to them? What if she lost her husband or a child? It was possible. Ada and Tommy had both lost their spouses. She saw the hurt in their eyes every single day. Perhaps it was wise just to stay single.

But unfortunately, her brother had other plans for her.

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

“Y’know, Tommy, when I heard you bought this place I thought it was a bit out of character for you, right? Tommy Shelby tryna act like an aristocrat? Pft. But looking ‘round here it suits you, don’t it? Cold, empty, dead inside. Just like you, ain’t it?”

Tommy looked mildly amused at Alfie’s ramblings as they walked into the study. “It’s nice to see you as well, Alfie.”

“Yeah, well. Thought you’d forgotten ‘bout me.” Alfie turned his attention to the eldest Shelby brother. “’N you, mate. Arthur, I’m so pleased you’re still willing to speak with me.” The graciousness in his voice was obviously just a ploy to rile the man up. It was like a game to him. See what shade of purple he could make Arthur Shelby’s face turn.

Arthur just grumbled an incoherent response.

“You’ve been very forgiving, lately haven’t you? Your whole family has. Think if I ever had a noose tied ‘round me neck and I walked free, well I’d kill the man who put me there in the first place.” Alfie shrugged as if it were nothing more than a casual thought and not a deep cut into the Shelby’s current tension. “But that’s just me, innit?”

“Alfie, we’re here to discuss a proposition for you,” Tommy said. “

“That right? Well, I suspect you’re gonna offer me something nice, Tommy, seeing as what a pain in the arse it was driving out here.” Alfie replied. “Sitting in the car that long really does a number on me hip so don’t waste me time.”

“I know you’re aware of the situation we’re in and I’m sure you’ve already thought of what you’re going to do should you be involved.” Tommy started.

“S’always good to have a plan for everything, just being savvy,” Alfie replied as he sat down with a grunt.

“Seeing as our business relationship has been rocky due to some betrayals…”

“Aw, now, Tommy don’t say it like that. Little missteps, that’s all they were. Forgiveness, right.” He glanced over at Arthur who looked grumpy with his arms crossed over his chest.

“I’d like to extend an offering to you that would secure our relationship. Prevent further missteps.” Tommy knew that he had to speak in a way that aligned with Alfie. That way, he would be more inclined to accept the offer.

“I’m listening, mate.”

“My sister, John’s twin, has never married. I’d like to offer her hand to you.”

It was like setting off a grenade in the room. “What!?” Arthur roared. “Tommy, you can’t fucking do that!”

“Easy, brother,” Tommy replied in a calm voice. “I’ve made up my mind.”

“Made up-are you joking me? She’s not some pony you can pawn off to someone! Especially not this fucking monster!”

Alfie appeared thrown off guard. Certainly, he had expected Tommy to offer him something nice to assure there would be no ill will between them. Alfie was prepared to accept whatever it was, not that it would really change his mind about what he might or might not do regarding the Italians. But the offer of marriage was completely out of left field and rendered him a bit speechless.

Tommy continued to take the rage from his brother, waiting for a pause. When Arthur stormed out of the room to go get Polly, Tommy cleared his throat. “Well?”

Alfie raised his brow. “Now, mate, I dunno if you’re still suffering from that brain injury of yours or you’ve really lost the plot. But, why on Earth would you think I’d be willing to marry one of your kin? A woman with hot blood like that?” He pointed to the door where Arthur had just left from. “Fucking hell, it’d be like tryna tame a feral wolf.”

“She’s me sister, Alfie, not a dog.”

“Then why’re you giving her over to me like she’s yours to give, mate?” Alfie confronted.

“Come with me.” Tommy stood up and led Alfie out of the study. The man followed him to the solarium that had a good view of the back garden. “There she is.”

Alfie stepped up to the glass to see a dark-haired beauty sitting amongst the flowers. She had pale green eyes that sparkled in the summer sun and when she smiled at Charlie, Alfie noticed his heart skipped a beat.

When was the last time the sight of a woman had made him weak in the knees? When he was just a kid? Maybe as a young soldier trying to get a pretty nurse’s attention. As sinful of a man as he was, he was still a man. A man who craved companionship, someone to be there for him when he got older. As it stood, he would end up alone when his life began to wind down to the last days. He thought he deserved such a fate. It was fitting.

But seeing Eliza in the garden was like opening up a new door of possibilities. One where Alfie didn’t end up alone. Where he had a wife and children always there for him.

He frowned and turned away, thinking he was crazy for ever having the thought. “You’re desperate enough to give over your sister to a man like me?”

Tommy didn’t like to admit defeat. “I’m doing it for the benefit of both of us and for my family.”

“Fucking hell.” He laughed bitterly. “You really are that desperate. Those Italians have you spooked, then, aye? Think you’ll regret this decision in a couple of years?”

“I have faith you’ll treat her right.”

He scoffed. “Really?”

Tommy nodded. “In the bakery, you told me men to stay away from the women in Camden. You put on a good act, Mr. Solomons, but I know you would never harm a woman.

Alfie wasn’t going to disagree with him, because it was true. He would never do harm to a woman. But he didn’t want to appear weak. So, he tried to give himself an out. “That’s all fine and good, but she ain’t Jewish. So I can’t marry her.”

Tommy was about to remedy the point when he heard quick footsteps chasing him down.

“Thomas Shelby have you lost your mind!?” Polly smacked him when she got close enough. “That girl is innocent, you fucking keep her out of this!”

Eliza could hear shouting from inside so she looked up to see her family was in the solarium along with an unfamiliar man. Her aunt was shouting at her brother but Eliza couldn’t quite make out what they were saying. “Charlie, why don’t we go find Mary so she can take you for a walk?” She stood up to take her nephew’s hand.

“How dare you even think of something like this? You can’t just sell her off. I will not allow this; do you hear me?”

Polly continued to yell at Tommy until he noticed Eliza enter the room with a confused look on her face.

“What’s going on?” The young woman asked.

Polly turned. “Go back outside.”

“Why? What-what’s wrong?” After John’s death, Eliza was very timid and worried about what might happen to her family next.

“Eliza, come here.” Tommy beckoned her.

“Thomas, no, that’s enough!” Polly grabbed her niece by the arms and kept her away from Tommy and Alfie.

“Pol, you’re scaring me. I don’t get what’s going on.”

“Liza, this is Alfie Solomons.” Tommy continued as if everything was calm and no one was flying off the handle. “We’ve been talking about a potential arrangement.”

“Tommy…” Polly said in a warning tone.

“Arrangement for what?” Eliza was still puzzled.

“He’s going to marry you off like some gypsy bride!” Arthur snapped.

Her eyes widened. “Tom? Is that true?”

Tommy sighed and removed his glasses so he could pinch the bridge of his nose. “Could I have a moment with her alone?” He requested. “Alfie, feel free to walk the grounds, you two,” He pointed his glasses at Polly and Arthur. “Go to the big room.”

Arthur wasn’t prepared to let Tommy talk their sister into marrying Alfie, but Polly steered him towards the study.

Eliza was frozen in place with shock, but her eyes moved to the stranger by the glass. Alfie met her eyes for a moment. She took in his appearance. Although much more rugged than she was used to, he had a certain charm to him. There was a mystery about him as well. Eliza was suddenly very curious as she was when it came to characters in the books she read. She wanted to know everything about them. Unravel them to see what made them tick. She wanted to know where the scar on his right cheek came from. Or why he covered it with a beard. She wanted to know why he wore so many rings on his fingers. She wanted to understand the hesitation in his teal colored eyes when he looked at her.

But that didn’t mean she wanted to marry him.

When they were alone, Tommy pulled up a chair for his sister. He took a moment to breathe and light up a cigarette.

Eliza allowed him some space to think. She quietly waited, her eyes continuing to flick to the glass, watching as Alfie walked through the garden. He seemed as if he was trying to appear busy. But his movements showed that his brain was elsewhere. She couldn’t blame him.

“We’ll be returning to Birmingham tomorrow. I need to have a secure area for the family. But I want you to go to London with Alfie.” He explained steadily.

Eliza’s stomach was in knots. “I want to stay with everyone else.”

“Alfie is a wild card, Liza. Either he helps us with the Italians or he hurts us. There’s no staying neutral. I need to make sure that he’s on our side.”

“So, if he’s married into the family, he won’t betray the family.” It was easy to follow Tommy’s logic. He had done the same thing to her twin. How fitting it was to face the same fate John did. Still, he ended up married to a woman he loved. Maybe it was destiny or simply a coincidence. Eliza just wasn’t sure she wanted to run the same risk.

“Right.”

“But even when this is finished, I’ll still be married to him.” She pointed out.

Her brother didn’t look angry or pleased with himself. His wrinkled forehead showed the conflict he was facing internally. Of course, he didn’t want Eliza to marry Alfie. Every brotherly instinct told him to keep the young woman far away from the gangster. But he needed the threat wiped out. It would just be one less thing to worry about. “There are sacrifices we all need to make. Every single one of us.”

Eliza swallowed and felt a tear slip down her cheek. “I don’t even know him.”

Tommy steeled himself. They needed to go through with this. He couldn’t back out. “It’ll be alright.” He promised her gently. “I just…I don’t what else I can do to keep him loyal to us.”

She wiped her eyes with the edge of her sweater sleeve. “I don’t want to lose anyone else.” She sniffled. “So, I’ll do whatever I can to keep everyone safe.”

To be continued, part 2 will be up soon.

Permanent Tag: @papa-geralt-of-cirilla @giftofdreams @biba3434 @kimmietea @karmezii @enrapturedbythemoon @vampgirl1997 @tarafaithe

PB Masterlist

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highladyluck · 4 years ago

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Fortuona Athaem Devi Paendrag playlist

Direct link: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5KLghlM9nCF1WLKBNoLt5z?si=b1e1d244810e4ae9

26 songs, 1 hr 23 min. A character playlist for Tuon Athaem Kore Paendrag, aka the High Lady, aka the Daughter of the Nine Moons, aka “Precious” but only if you’re Mat Cauthon, aka Fortuona Athaem Devi Paendrag, aka the Empress of Seanchan.

She’s a fascinating mixture of good and evil, person and tool, sympathetic and unsympathetic by turns. I tried to capture that in this playlist, which is organized roughly chronologically by her personal timeline.

There are spoilers in the playlist and commentary for Winter's Heart through A Memory of Light, since this is meant to mirror the narrative.

Track List:

1. Second Child, Restless Child – The Oh Hellos

2. Game of Survival – Ruelle

3. Sit Still, Look Pretty – Daya

4. When I Rule The World – LIZ

5. Bad Moon Rising – Creedence Clearwater Revival

6. The Thief and the Moon – Shawn James

7. Pomegranate Seeds – Julian Moon

8. Zebra – The Magnetic Fields

9. Jolene – Dolly Parton

10. Maybe, This Time – OK Go

11. Big Guns – Ruelle

12. Fascinated – Ivy

13. The Bullpen – Dessa

14. Pretty Little Head – Eliza Rickman

15. Greek God – Conan Gray

16. Emperor’s New Clothes – Panic! At The Disco

17. Rat Queen – The Mountain Goats

18. Carmina Burana: O Fortuna – Carl Orff

19. you should see me in a crown – Billie Eilish

20. Muse with a Dagger – Taylor Castro

21. Please Don’t Say You Love Me – Gabrielle Aplin

22. Daisy – Ashnikko

23. Mother’s Daughter – Miley Cyrus

24. I Walk The Line – Halsey

25. Glory and Gore – Lorde

26. Trouble – Stripped – Halsey

Commentary and lyrics underneath the cut. Listen to it here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5KLghlM9nCF1WLKBNoLt5z?si=b1e1d244810e4ae9

1) Second Child, Restless Child – The Oh Hellos

See, I was born the second child With a spirit running wild, running free

The Empress’s second child, the only one who goes across the ocean.

2) Game of Survival – Ruelle

Are we the hunters? Or are we the prey?

"Keep this doll to remind you that I will always hear you if you say my name. If I am still alive, of course."

3) Sit Still, Look Pretty – Daya

Oh, I don't know what you've been told But this girl right here's gonna rule the world Yeah, that's where I'm gonna be because I wanna be No, I don't wanna sit still, look pretty

Tuon wishes she looked more intimidating, and threw a full-blown temper tantrum when she was told who she’d have to marry.

4) When I Rule The World – LIZ

When I rule the world, then I'm gonna make you sweat Dog collar 'round your neck, on your knees and scrub the deck

I promise I didn't forget about the sul'dam thing. This should be as jarring as her initial POV in Winter's Heart is.

5) Bad Moon Rising – Creedence Clearwater Revival

I see the bad moon a-rising I see trouble on the way I see earthquakes and lightnin' I see bad times today

Such a good “Seanchan invade Ebou Dar” song! I definitely stole this from someone else’s Mat playlist, but I don’t think it’s on 8tracks anymore.

6) The Thief and the Moon – Shawn James

Said the Thief to the Moon "I'll extinguish your light soon I'll put an end to all the light that you shed On this world in its darkened state"

I can imagine this as a Seanchan myth; covers Tuon's opinion on her prophecy & getting kidnapped.

7) Pomegranate Seeds – Julian Moon

Kore, Kore, fauna and flora How did you get your throne? (Hey!) You made a deal You traded daffodils For a kingdom of ash and bone

Had to sneak in a reference to Tuon's middle name. Tuon's POV on her bargain with Mat.

8) Zebra – The Magnetic Fields

so there's one thing I crave when my days become ho-hum and blah I want a zebra

Took this from my Mat/Tuon book playlist because it is truly the funniest song on there. It's a zebra in our hearts!

9) Jolene – Dolly Parton

Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene I'm begging of you please don't take my man

This is very tongue-in-cheek, but at the same time, if you pay attention you can see that Tuon's particularly annoyed by/threatened by Joline Maza.

10) Maybe, This Time – OK Go

So listen, I'm not trying to prove anything at all here But don't you think that maybe, this time, you were wrong?

Mat to Tuon after confiscating the a'dam from her.

11) Big Guns – Ruelle

Every little move is fixed Like a game of chess The blood on your hands is thick And you're placing bets Can't hide in the den of lions

A really perfect song for Tuon's 'lion on the high plains' realization; I know technically Mat doesn't have cannon or grenades yet, but shhhh, the rapid-fire crossbows are more or less machine guns. Let me have this. Call it foreshadowing if you must.

12) Fascinated – Ivy

Never turned out like we talked about Never could tell how to read your mind Never found out what you're all about In this lifetime, baby, you will be mine

Tuon's POV on the marriage ceremony.

13) The Bullpen – Dessa

Forget the bull in the china shop There's a china doll in the bullpen

Returning to Ebou Dar to kick ass and take heads. This was the song that made me create this playlist, because of "china doll in the bullpen," which is such a great description of Tuon.

14) Pretty Little Head – Eliza Rickman

Catch yourself a looker, let him go, go, go Wanna have your baby, but I'm so, so slow

Tuon misses Mat, but don’t you dare breathe a word about it. Besides, it’s just business.

15) Greek God – Conan Gray

And since you always swear that you wanted me gone Then why don't you go get your gun? 'Cause you don't really hate me (You're a little baby) You don't wanna end me (You wanna befriend me)

The Tuon vs Rand confrontation (take two, where Tuon's actually there.) Rand has quite enough confidence, really, but most of the song really works.

16) Emperor’s New Clothes – Panic! At The Disco

Welcome to the end of eras Ice has melted back to life Done my time and served my sentence Dress me up and watch me die

Declaring herself Empress after meeting with Rand.

17) Rat Queen – The Mountain Goats

We who have never once tasted The stench of defeat Victory sweet as the dregs of the fast food dumpster Look how they jump when we show up Like they've just seen a monster

H/T to @anyboli, who first suggested this to me as a Tuon song. This is a good soundtrack to planning the raid on the White Tower…

18) Carmina Burana: O Fortuna – Carl Orff

O Fortune, like the moon you are changeable[…]

I literally cannot imagine a Tuon playlist without this song. It’s White Tower raid time!

19) you should see me in a crown – Billie Eilish

Count my cards, watch them fall Blood on a marble wall I like the way they all Scream

Yeah, this was inevitable too. I’m using it for that absolutely horrifying POV of hers where she's in the damane training room and decides it's time to plan a full-out attack on the White Tower.

20) Muse with a Dagger – Taylor Castro

You're making fun of my people Pretend I don't hear you Cause I won't forgive myself For fueling or burning you

Tuon's thoughts on Mat in the garden. This didn't lean as as far into the dagger/knife imagery as I'd hoped for- remember, this is the blog that insists Athaem means Magic Dagger Curse- but it seemed so strangely apt for the two of them that I had to include it.

21) Please Don’t Say You Love Me – Gabrielle Aplin

There's no need to worry when You see just where we're at Just please don't say you love me Cause I might not say it back

Her conversation with Mat in the garden.

22) Daisy – Ashnikko

Respect a bitch, I'm a maverick Flexible, so elastic But don't you dare bend a bitch backwards

This is what you married, Mat. (The Mat POV version of this character sketch is probably Cake's Short Skirt Long Jacket.) I will not apologize for the number of #girlboss songs on this playlist.

23) Mother’s Daughter – Miley Cyrus

Oh my gosh, she got the power Oh, look at her, she got the power So, so, so Don't fuck with my freedom I came up to get me some

The confrontation with Egwene. I see this as mostly Egwene's POV, with Tuon doing a sort of echo, the way she does in the original scene. They are fascinatingly alike here, and the way Egwene controls the scene and gets in Tuon's head- when that's Tuon's signature strategy- is amazing.

24) I Walk The Line – Halsey

You've got a way to keep me on your side You give me cause for love that I can't hide For you I know I'd even try to turn the tide

Tuon admitting that her heart tells her to return to save Mat (and the armies of the Light).

25) Glory and Gore – Lorde

Glory and gore go hand in hand That's why we're makin' headlines (Oh! Oh!) You could try and take us (Oh! Oh!) But victory's contagious

The Seanchan army comes back for the kill.

26) Trouble – Stripped – Halsey

Don't forget me, don't forget me I wouldn't leave you if you'd let me Hmm, when you met me when you met me You told me you were gonna get me

Death threats are just their deranged way of flirting; if Tuon wanted Mat dead she wouldn't warn him, you know? And in that final scene with the fireworks Tuon's telling Mat that she wants him around, and he understands it as such.

#this is my celebration for hitting 200 followers!#SURPRISE IT'S MORE TUON CONTENT #this is what you get for following a blog with a tuon pun in the username #wheel of time #wheel of time playlist #playlist #tuon paendrag #fortuona paendrag #fortuona athaem devi paendrag #tuon athaem kore paendrag #problematic fave tuon #wheel of time spoilers #the gathering storm spoilers

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theotheroccassionalfanficwriter · 4 years ago

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Spring Weddings and Pomegranate

Summary: In which a marriage still occurs on NRC but it isn’t Eliza and Idia getting married.

Tags: Established Relationship, Friends to Lovers, Scheming! Reader, Marriage Proposal via Pomegranates, Big Dick Energy! Reader

Rated: M for the things bought at Sam’s shop and implied sex.

A/N: Written before the entire translations came out. m(_ _)m

---Idia knew that his face was beet red and that his hair had already gone red from embarrassment. Your hands were gripping his waist tightly and though you were shorter than him, he couldn't help but admire how cool you were with your white and gold trimmed twin tailed tuxedo along with the collar cuffs he recognized as his.

"I'm sorry Miss Eliza but this 'prince' is already taken" You apologetically told Eliza.

From the side, the other "Princes" were shocked at this particular development.

"Lies!" Eliza cried as she gripped Idia's free arm.

The other dorm leaders present could feel the temperature drop and couldn't help but wonder how things went to this point.

It had been a fine day, as far as you know, since Idia had happily invited you to his room. As his significant other you had happily agreed and rejoiced over the fact that he had taken initiative, as a purehearted human in love you had come prepared for the day he would take initiative in regards to your relationship. Thus you had come prepared for the date in your most cute, comfy and seductive clothes along with an equally cute and comfy sleepwear. Naturally, you didn't forget to bring the battle weapons of L*be and C*nd*m*.

'At times like this, it never hurt to be prepared' You thought serenely as you calmly and happily bought the items from the Shop.

Your smile was bright as Sam handled your purchases and like a through professional businessman, he even offered you a few toys which you also bought for future uses. The few Ignihyde students who saw your purchase silently prayed for your success and at the same time silently agreed to keep Ortho occupied.

As for the other students from other dorms? They all silently cursed you for having a girlfriend while the rest of them had to settle for a pure loving friendship among men.

In this way, the world rearranged itself to ensure that your desires would be fulfilled. You had stopped by the dorm kitchen to take out the pomegranate napoleons you made before heading to Idia's room.

“Idia~ I’m home!”

“We-welcome home...”

His face was bright red as he greeted you back, compared to his flustered face when you had first done such a thing Idia was calmer now. Though the bashful and joyful emotions in his eyes couldn’t be concealed.

“Isn’t this domestic play so fun?” You asked as you set your clothes down and Idia started to arrange the food and drinks you had brought.

The items you bought from Sam’s shop had been skillfully hidden in calculated places, meant to stimulate your beloved Idia when you weren’t around thus you hummed a soft tune as you plastered yourself at Idia’s back and admired his pleased and flustered look. He really had a face where you can’t help but just want to bully him a little bit.

“Mmnn...you...you shou-shouldn’t just keep on sta-sta-staring at me!” He squeezed his eyes when your hands moved at one of his sensitive spots.

“But I missed you so much! And it’s rare for you to ask me out on date so I want to engrave this particular look of yours in my mind~!” You honestly told him and then tugged at his clothes to make him duck down to your level.

You cheekily looked at his eyes and planted a quick kiss on his lips and stood back as he hid behind the sleeves of his hoodie.

“Tha-that! You shouldn’t just kiss me so easily!” He whined to hide his embarrassment.

“Ara? Then Idia-san should I kiss you deeper then?” Your tone of voice made him know you were teasing him further even so he couldn’t help but want to pay you back thus with great courage he replied,

“Tha-that’s right! Slowly and dee-mphf!!!”

Quickly grabbing the opportunity you did as he told and Idia ended up having a lapful of you on the floor. Idia did his best to hold on as both of you engaged in a heated make-out session but the feel of your ass wiggling on his crotch and the overwhelming feeling of your passionate kiss made him weak.

Seeing that he was at his limit you kiss him for one last time and admired the thin string of saliva that was now dripping from his lips, the flushed look on his face, the dazed look on his eyes and the undeniable hard-on that was poking you on the ass.

“Hehe~ Idia-chan lasted longer this time~♡”

He shyly wiped the drool off his lips and sulked at you.

“Ah~! Idia-chan’s angry look still looks cute!♡” You gently peck him on the forehead before getting out of his lap.

Helping him get off the floor, you guided him to he large bean bag he had ordered for both of you to cuddle on, and gently placed him there. Giving him sometime to finish sulking before you began another round of Private Displays of Affection. At this point in time, you were still confident that your relationship with Idia was unshakable.

There were no threats to his future status as your husband and you had simply continued your usual date routine of flirting, pampering, loving, and doting upon your beloved. The night had been filled with the sweet air of love and Idia had even managed to not shake that much as he held your hand in the middle of a romantic cut scene.

You had kissed him good night after casting a protection spell on him as you slept on his bed and Idia took a nap before heading out to buy his game.

That was the last time you saw him.

“How could my darling be taken?” Eliza pouted as tears gathered on the corners of her eyes.

You felt your heart soften at her heartbroken look before steeling yourself,

“That’s because he’s my lover of 2 and a half years”.

From the sides you could hear Azul’s glasses breaking in shock, the loud gasp from Vil, and Lilia’s words of “So that was who you bought those toys for?”

You made a mental note to drop by Diasomnia once this was over, to bribe Lilia into silence as well as future cooperation. There was certain merit in building connections with someone of Lilia’s peerage.

“Miss Eliza, just like how you wish to wed your ideal beloved, I, as well, wish to do so” You turned and looked at Idia, channeling all the love you felt for him in your eyes before turning to Eliza, “For me, no one else but Idia would do that’s why...as recompense let me help you find your true love!”

You smiled brightly and made sure to up your charm.

Ortho had come to wake you up in tears, effectively rousing you from your sweet dream of eating and enjoying Idia’s body.

“Wa-wake up!!! Nii-san was taking by ghosts!!!” Ortho cried as he shook you awake and you blearily looked at him.

“Idia...got taken by ghosts? Was he mistaken as one of them again?” You asked as you got up and calmed Ortho down.

“Please hurry up! Nii-san was taken by a ghost bride!” Ortho cried harder as he pushed you out of the room and you stumbled as you got dressed.

“Wa-wait! Ortho-chan at least let me put on a jacket!” You begged as tried to stop him from pushing you out.

“Okay! But hurry up! Who knows what’s gonna happen to Nii-san!”

“Got it! Got it! Please stop pushing me already.”

Ortho carried you away as soon as you said you were ready, the next thing you knew, you were already standing right in front of the Headmaster and watching the CCTV recordings with the Headmaster and the young prefect of Ramshackle Dorm once again.

“Yuu-chan since you’re helping us out, you should come and stay over our dorm while Ramshackle is on loan” You kindly offered one of the unused rooms of Ignihyde.

“Sempai! You’re a lifesaver!”

“Not at all, this is just me repaying you for your help later on~ I can’t have my Idia end up on someone else’s hand after all” You smiled.

From the side, Headmaster Crowley watched your clenched fist and hoped that things would end peacefully. Before he could even advise you to not take things too far later on, he was disrupted by the ruckus outside. Angrily opening the door he was once more, greeted by another problem.

“I won’t hand over my love so easily!” Eliza cried and tugged Idia away from you.

“Ara~Ara~In that case, shall we fight for his hand then?” You asked as you let go of Idia to prevent him from getting hurt.

“Ha! Someone like you who can let him go easily won’t win!”

“I’d rather my beloved Idia not get hurt even the tiniest bit, please don’t mistake my utmost consideration for him to be a sign of weakness.” You replied coldly as you took out your magic pen.

“I-Isn’t there another way?!” Idia panicked, “U-um I-I only want to marry (your name) so please stop this already!!!”

You paused at the sudden declaration and beamed at Idia before turning your smug look at Eliza, “Well then, Idia has spoken, so kindly removed your hand from his arms!”

“No, before that, shouldn’t you put down your magic pen?” Azul reminded you, his composure made it look like his earlier reactions were nothing but a hallucination.

“Shut up, this looks interesting. Seeing that bastard get this agitated...heh” Leona stood on the side and watched the show with keen interest.

“No...didn’t we all agree to put that ring on her finger?” Riddle reminded everyone.

Hearing the silence that greeted him, he looked at his companions and glared at them with annoyance as he demanded,.

“Headmaster Crowley! Hurry up and stop those two before worse come to worst!”

“I name this plan…. “Operation: Propose!” Crowley declared and you clapped on the side to show your support for his efforts.

“Are you actually fine with this?” Rook asked you, eyes sharper than usual and you knew that you couldn’t hide anything from him.

So you hadn’t bothered and instead confessed, “I’m a little bit annoyed that someone can easily take Idia from me but I know that right now Idia must be feeling the worst of it.”

“Oh my, what sweet words coming from you, souverain de la mort”

“Fufufu~Is that so but this would also be a good learning experience for Idia, He needs to be aware of his surroundings when I’m not there~”

“There it is~ that tough love that I expect from someone like you!” Rook cheered.

You laughed at his antics and decided to join in on the discussion to take back your boyfriend. It really wouldn’t do if he ended up on someone else’s hand after you took so much time and effort on laying the ground work after all.

Thus all of you burst into the reception hall and began the operation.

You waved at Idia and signaled him to be at ease while each of the dorm leaders and the first years tried their luck.

Ignoring the sound of slaps, you comforted your boyfriend who was near tears. Idia despite standing tall over you acted like an over sized dog and hid his face on your chest. He held on your clothes tight and whined about everything that happened to him.

“I was so scared! I thought I got mistaken for a ghost again and would end on the Underworld once more! I don’t like going there!”

You calmly rubbed his back up and down, occasionally planting kisses on his flaming hair. and generally soothing him to a much calmer state.

“It’s fine, I’m sure our friends wouldn’t fail our expectations and if worse comes to worst...I’ll deal with it personally” You promised him and held him tight.

Ortho came over to hug you both and you welcomed him and pulled him close as well. You wouldn’t deny that both siblings had occupied the soft parts of your heart and you couldn’t help but indulge them every now and then.

“I won’t give up! My love for my darling won’t lose to you!” Eliza declared, grip growing tighter on Idia’s arm.

“In that case, I challenge you to a duel for Idia’s hand in marriage!”

“Eh?! Wa-wait why a-are you shuddenly proposing?” Idia stammered as he ran over to you.

‘He bit his tongue...’ Azul, Leona, Rook, Vil, Jade, Floyd, Lilia, Sebek, Cater, Trey, Ace, and Deuce thought.

“It’s fine to do this but please avoid damaging the school buildings~!” Crowley shouted from a safe vantage point.

You calmly looked at Idia and said, “ I can’t just stand to see the man I love get married to someone else.”

You took a strand of his hair and placed a kissed on it, the warmth of his flaming hair made your lips tingle as it slowly turned red in embarrassment, “Idia, please wait for my triumphant return.”

Idia blushed and quickly peck you on your forehead and said, “For good luck...”

From the side Yuu commented, “If Sempai was single...they would have easily made Eliza-san accept the ring right?”

“What are you talking about?” Ace asked grumpily.

“What sharp eyes you’ve got!” Rook replied, “As a child of the Goddess of Love it’s natural to for them to be brimming with charm however from the looks of it...they might just use their Unique Magic.”

“If that is truly the case, then we are in for a good show.” Lilia floated over, “Their Unique Magic is one of the kind after all, fufufu~ Sebek you should try learning from them~”

“Lilia-sempai just what is Sempai’s Unique Magic?” Yuu asked.

“Hmmm...it’s hard to explain but their Unique Magic is something close to a God’s powers~”

Everyone who heard that looked at you at a new light. Idia and Ortho were the same though for entirely different reasons. Idia had never thought you were considering marriage with him, he was content with being your boyfriend and eventually breaking up once you were tired of him but seeing your gallant figure raising your magic pen he couldn’t help but fall deeper in love with you.

Ortho had been happy seeing how you easily got his brother to go out and mingle with people occasionally and how good you were to his brother but he hadn’t held much hope that you’d stay for forever. He was prepared to do anything to protect his brother’s smile and seeing how you finally stepped up to fight, Ortho could be at ease.

“Well then, I’ll finish this quickly,” You said apologetically to Eliza, “Crush Thy Heart!”

“In life you couldn’t find your love however in the Underworld, your beloved has been eagerly waiting for you, therefore let go of those regrets and pass over. Crush Thy Heart and Free Thy Soul!”

Eliza disappeared in a soft gentle particles of light, her eyes seeing someone who was not visible in their eyes. Dressed in white and smiling with happiness, the Ghost Bride had finally settled her business.

You smiled at her gently, offering a silent prayer to your mother and the God of the Underworld to look after her upon arriving. Then you headed towards Idia and swept him off his feet, uncaring of the public spectacle you were making you kissed his cheek and said,

“Idia Shroud, this event led me to realize I can’t put my guard down when it comes to you.”

Idia was still stunned at being carried by you so easily that his eyes were only looking at you in a daze. You sighed at him, helplessly fond of his endearing traits.

“That’s why let me stay by your side as your spouse, let me dine with you and partake in your wine, share your hearth by your side and that we may welcome Hestia’s and Aphrodite’s blessing upon us.”

Idia, who had understood what you were doing, trembled in your arms and with his shaking hands clutched your lapels and kissed you on your lips.

“If-if you’re fine with me the-then I happily accept!”

“Congratulations on your marriage, Nii-san!” Ortho said as he jumped with joy.

"Husband, it's not that I enjoy being under you but why am I being tied as well?"

Idia merely glared at you, pouting with embarrassment. You observed his flickering hair and noted that only the tips were dyed in red.

'He's not that mad then' you thought as you wiggled around the newly bought queen sized bed that replaced Idia's former bed.

"My love? my Darling dove? Beloved Idia? My Dear Husband? Idia-chan?" You called out to him.

"How could you just se-send the betrothal gifts to my home without telling me!"

"...I didn't...but my mother probably did..." You weakly answered as you magically undid the ropes and pulled him to lie on the bed with you.

He snuggled closer to you like a cat and whined, "It was so scary! Hearing that I had to bring you back home with me! What if you didn't agree!"

With a snap of your fingers, a couple of pomegranate seeds appeared on your palms and you took it from the palm with your mouth. Idia looked at you in confusion and suddenly found himself being kissed. Your tongue swiped on his bottom lip, silently asking, and Idia obliged opening his mouth and letting your tongue in his mouth.

The taste of pomegranates spread inside his mouth as he sunk into the plush bedding. You were straddling his waist as your tongue entwined with his while your hands were already undressing him deftly. Idia could feel his brain turn into mush with your skillful ministrations upon his body.

With a loud pop and the saliva that connected your mouth to his, you ended the kiss knowing that Idia was already at his limit. You wiped the drool off his mouth and said, "You don't have to worry about me leaving your side anymore."

Your pleased smile and gentle reassurance, like always, didn't fail to make his heart skip a beat.

"Mou...you're the more dangerous one..."

#idia shroud x reader #twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland x reader #twst idia x reader #idia shroud

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