#she’s so pretty and i’m proud of her she’s grown so much this summer and she’s so big and her leaves are as big as my hands

[iknowwhereyousleepatnight]

ngl i’ve grown incredibly fond of the poison ivy that’s taken like a third of the house. like she’s ruining the gutters and shit but i love her

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Know Your Place 1

Warnings: non/dubcon, power dynamic, age gap, and other dark elements. My username actually says you never asked for any of this.

My warnings are not exhaustive but be aware this is a dark fic and may include potentially triggering topics. Please use your common sense when consuming content. I am not responsible for your decisions.

Characters: Walter Marshall, destroyer!Chris [for the purposes of this AU, I will give him the last name Jackson] (Professor AU)

Summary: after a life time of home schooling, you finally get to experience the real world in college. (petite reader)

Part of the Bad Professors AU

Note: Please leave some feedback and reblog <3 As always, I love to chat with you all. 

The noise all around has you reeling. You’re not used to so many people. So many voices and smells and sights. The frantic action of it all reminds you of a mid-00s movie about a high school. The coeds are like animals milling about in groups with the odd single body rushing between with a mission stitched between their brows. 

You sit with your thermos of tea and try to focus on your schedule. You have a campus map from the Student Support Centre next to it, trying to map out your route for each day. Momma said you should try to get ahead, figure out where you’re going. She’s always right. 

You have two classes that day. As you find the buildings on the map, planting a finger on each, you find that they are on completely different ends of the campus. Of course. Well, momma didn’t know that where they would be, did she? She said you have to balance your load; if you’re going to be an English major, make sure you take some math and science for your electives. 

You circle the two buildings and put lets beside them denoting which day you need to be there, numbering them in the order the classes occur. A burst of laughter breaks your concentration and you look around, trying to find the source. You almost miss the calm isolation of your childhood living room. 

No, you’re grown now and you begged Momma to let you go to college. Not online, but in person. You even worked all summer at the deli so you could live in a dorm. She was proud but worried. She’s never been good at letting go. She’s already called three times today and it’s not even noon. 

As the crowd blurs around you, a sudden gust blows over the table as someone sits across from you. You stare back at them with a gasp. They must’ve mistaken you for someone else. You blink as the man tugs on the front of his letterman jacket and smiles. He doesn’t seem mistaken. 

“Hey,” he leans forward on an elbow, “you waitin’ for someone? Got some cute girlfriends on their way?” 

He’s so forward, he has your brows as high as they can go and your cheeks are on fire. It’s not much of an introduction. 

“Excuse me?” You eke out. 

“Ah, I’m sorry, hon, I’m getting ahead of myself,” he smirks as he crosses both his arms on the table. “I’m Colin. You looked lonely.” 

“Oh, uh, I’m just... figuring out my schedule,” you utter dumbly. Yor brain isn’t clicking. Why is he talking to you? 

Your ears tweak and you notice a group in similar jackets, sitting just across the dining area, gabbing loudly, snickering. You wonder why he isn’t over there with them. You wiggle your pen anxiously. 

“Ah, you’re not gonna give me a name for that pretty face?” He says. 

“Huh?” Your brows drop, “what?” 

Your momma’s voice echoes in your head. ‘Be careful of those college boys. They only want one thing.’ You didn’t believe her. They don’t want that from you. You were sure once you saw the other girls in their tight leggings and short tops. 

“Your name, baby? Gotta be something sweet, huh?” 

Your face ripples as you wade through surprise, confusion, then something else. You’re almost giddy. This man, with his mussed blond hair and bright blue eyes, and his chiseled features, is asking you your name. It’s flattering. 

“Mauve,” you can’t help but smile as you answer. 

“Oh, yeah? That’s pretty, well, Mauve,” he takes out his phone, “me and my buddies are having a party tonight and we’re supposed to find a hottie to bring with us. I’m having no luck but if I show up alone, well... I might not get to stay in the frat. You get it?” 

You stare at him. You're confused. You don’t really understand frats and whatnot. They just seem like clubs people join so they can drink. 

“You wanna do me a favour? Come with me?” He asks. 

He’s bold. Bolder than any one you’ve ever met. You sputter but can’t come up with any words. 

“Please,” he pouts, “promise, I won’t try anything, I just gotta get these guys off my back.” 

He looks over his shoulder at the table of rowdy guys. You squirm in your seat, uncertain. You’ve never been to a party. Wow. 

“Here, I’ll get your number,” he taps on his phone screen, “I’ll send you the details--” 

“Leave her alone,” a grizzly voice undercuts the frat across from you. 

A thick man stands behind him. He has a cardboard cup in his hand as he glares down at the coed. His burly figure is swathed in a dark green sweater and grey slacks. He’s older and his dark curls are threaded with subtle twinkles of silver. 

“Huh? Who the hell are you?” 

“Why don’t you show her those pictures you were snapping of her? The ones you and your pals were laughing about?” The other man growls.  

You frown. What? You don’t understand what’s going on. You look from one to the other. The younger man sat across from your sighs and rolls his eyes. 

“Fuck it. Whatever. Lots of pigs to go around,” he shakes his head and stands, facing the other man. “You know, bro, just cause you’re too old to get with any ass around here, doesn’t mean you gotta ruin it for others.” 

“Get out of here,” the thicker man snarls. The other winces just slightly before puffing up his chest and stomping away. 

You remain as you are, aghast and lost. The man with the dark curls looks at you. You shrug at him. 

“I’m sorry, sir, did I do something wrong?” You ask. 

The harsh angles of his scowl ease and he lets out a long breath, “uh, no, not you. That boy, you know, any one that wears one of those jackets, they’re no good. Just some advice.” 

“Oh, right,” you look over at that guy, Colin, “sorry, I didn’t know. He just started talking to me. I was being polite.” 

“Seem like a nice girl. Just tryna look out for you.” 

“Yeah, thanks,” you chew your lip and sniff. “Are you... are you teacher?” 

“I’m a professor,” he confirms as he holds his cup close to his chest. He's one of the biggest men you’ve ever seen. And his eyes are as blue as the ocean. “Professor Marshall but unless you’re a psych student, you can call me Walter.” 

“Walter? My neighbour is Walter. At home. He’s eighty-one and he collects baseball cards,” you let yourself smile. You always felt more comfortable around older people. You never had many friends your own age. 

“Don’t mind some baseball myself,” he dips his chin. “Well, you look out for yourself and avoid the Greeks.” 

“Greeks?” You make a face. 

“Fraternities,” he says. “And sororities, if you can help it.” 

“Oh, okay. Thank you, sir,” you feel a little better. You think he’s right and he is a professor. He would know. “I’ll do that.” 

“Sir? It’s Walter,” he corrects you. 

“Oh, sorry, Walter,” you smile. “I’m Mauve.” 

He nods and shifts his cup, “Mauve,” he repeats, “well, nice to meet you.” 

“You too, sir, er, Walter. Thank you,” you say. 

He hesitates then steps back on his heel, “yeah, no problem.” 

He slowly retreats and you watch him, your heart playing like a drum. You did it. You spoke to strangers and you didn’t melt. Things are getting easier. If you could get through that, you’re sure you’ll make lots of friends in your classes. 

[whateverisbeautiful]

♥️Reveling in Richonne - TOWL

#62: The Happy Beginning (1.06)

gif cred: @andy-clutterbuck

Richonne got their much-deserved happy ending, and better yet, I adore that Richonne and their children's happy ending is really a happy beginning. 🥹

Because now, the everyday life with their family truly starts. So rather than feeling solely like a closed chapter, the story lands on a hopeful and positive note that feels like “...and so it begins." The life Rick and Michonne always wanted to live together can now begin again.

So while it’s also a perfect final note for us as we (seemingly) no longer get to go with them into the next chapters, I appreciate that we always get to know that there are more bright and hopeful chapters for our Grimes family, together at last 🙌🏽🎉...

I announced these RIR-TOWL posts on July 21st and now they conclude today, September 21st. And I’m super grateful to you all for reliving this TOWL experience with me in-depth for the last 62 days of summer. 🥹🙏🏽

As you can see, saying I have a novels-worth of thoughts on this show was not hyperbolic. 😅 And that's because if this is it, I wanted to go as all out as I could. And because Danai, Andy, & Scott gave their all in creating this love letter to Richonne, I especially wanted to give my all in dissecting, reflecting, and reveling in The One Who Live. If only those three could know how grateful I am to them for this show because it really was a beacon of light during this time in my life. ☀��

In this real world, I’d say love matters most. It’s what makes life worth living to find people and things you love. Love in its many forms, including in fiction, is worth celebrating and enjoying to the fullest.

So that’s really what I’ve tried to do with all these posts over all these years - celebrate one of my favorite ways I’ve ever seen love take shape. It’s been a joy to watch two beautiful characters inside and out depicting the most beautiful love. Falling in love never looked so exquisite. And finding family never felt so rewarding. 😌

And we're finishing strong as we talk about TOWL's final moment where Rick and Michonne embrace the beautiful family they created. 🥹

So - still hugging, Judith and Rick look over at Michonne and RJ. And on top of it being surreal to see Judith grown up now, you can tell for Rick it’s extra surreal to be looking at this little boy who's comprised of him and Michonne and dressed like Carl. 😭

gif cred: @twdfranchise

That’s something that’s also really cool, is after going on this journey of losing and then regaining the image of Carl, Rick now gets to see this child who is Carl’s little brother and has his attributes. And just like Carl always wore Rick’s sheriff hat to feel close to his dad and strong like his dad, Rick gets to see that his youngest son has also done the same. 

I love that Judith looks at her mom and gives her her flowers saying, “You got him back.” It was a hefty task but Michonne pulled it off and brought home the Brave Man just like she set out to do. And I love how you can tell Judith is very proud of her mom for that.

gif cred: @twdfranchise

Then it's so sweet seeing Michonne smile at Judith and say, “You told me to.” Best mom/daughter duo, y’all. 😭 Plus, TOWL said let us give the viewers one more reminder that Judith wanted her mom to go find their dad. Like this was never an act of abandonment, going after Rick was Michonne’s daughter’s request.

I like how Michonne saying this also feels like she’s saying that knowing her daughter believed she should go was part of the fuel to do it. She did it for her daughter. And for her son. And for her husband. And for herself. For all of them. And Michonne’s giving Judith her flowers too for the way she gave her the push she needed to go get him. 

gif cred: @twdfranchise

I love the way Rick is holding one kid and Michonne is holding the other. You know these four are about to be pretty inseparable for a while.

And then you can visibly see the moment they all realize that the time has come for Rick Sr. to meet Rick Jr. 

gif cred: @twdfranchise

Rick looks at RJ who is smiling up at him while holding onto his mom and then, Michonne has such a happy and proud expression as she presents RJ to his dad.

Michonne definitely has such a sweet “look at this life we made” vibe as she holds onto RJ and steps to the side for the two to have their moment.

It’s sweet how RJ seems understandably reserved at first and holds onto his mom until the last second. And then I love seeing Michonne still keep a comforting arm on her son as Rick stands before him. 

Any time I’d picture Rick and RJ’s first interaction, I always pictured one of the first things RJ would note is that this man in front of him is The Brave Man - and sure enough😊. RJ looks up at Rick and the first thing he sweetly says to his dad is, “You’re The Brave Man?” 

gif cred: @riickgrimes

This moment is surreal for Rick, and surreal for me too because we're finally seeing a scene with Rick and RJ, the son he created with Michonne. 🙌🏽😭 And I'm so so happy that Rick was able to come into RJ's life while he's still so young. Rick will get to have an active role in RJ's core childhood and adolescent memories now.

Then, I adore Rick’s response to his son's first words to him. He’s immediately emotional and so he takes a breath and instantly looks right over at Michonne - the mother of his child. 🥹

I love the way you see him again find his center when looking at her during this emotional moment. Michonne really is like the glue between them all in this scene. And I like how she has her arms wrapped around one or more of her children at all times during this reunion. 

There’s just so much communicated in Rick’s look over at Michonne. It was another "Baby, we made a baby" moment between them as you can see it truly hitting Rick that he's meeting the son he made with his soulmate.

gif cred: @riickgrimes

After Michonne had reassured Rick that he really is the Brave Man that his kids believe him to be along their journey home, I love that Rick now gets to hear it directly from the source. 

Rick then looks back at RJ with so much emotion etched on his face as he responds, “I am.” 😭 He doubted if he was the Brave Man before, but I think especially now hearing his little mini-me say it, Rick knows he too can believe that’s who he is.

gif cred: @riickgrimes

And then I love the way Michonne again expresses how highly she views Rick as she says her final line of TOWL, looking to RJ while holding onto Judith as she smiles and says, “He is.” 🥹

It’s fitting for Michonne's last line to again be one that expresses her utmost belief in Rick. She wants her son to know that this father in front of him really is The Brave Man from years ago and still is The Brave Man right here and now. In fact, now more than ever. 

gif cred: @riickgrimes

RJ smiles over at his mom and then looks back up at Rick just adorably beaming. And it really feels like he’s meeting his hero.

gif cred: @riickgrimes

And then it is precious beyond words when Rick adjusts RJ’s hat just like he’d do with Carl. 🥹

gif cred: @riickgrimes

Rick then leans down and places a hand on RJ's shoulder just like he’d do with Carl too. And I love that Rick is so seamlessly back in father mode.

(Side note: It hit me that Rick will now get to have bonding moments of telling RJ stories about his big brother 😭)

I adore this hat moment between Rick and RJ for so many reasons but especially because we were introduced to Rick Grimes in that hat from the very beginning of TWD. And after going on this years-long whirlwind journey with him, it is so extremely special that Rick's final scene includes him getting to see that hat on his youngest son after it was such a staple to him and his eldest son. 🥲

Rick securing the hat on RJ's head really felt like he wanted his son to know how proud he feels to see him carrying on this Grimes heirloom.

And then Rick so tenderly says, “But maybe you can call me Dad.” 😭😭😭😭😭😭

gif cred: @riickgrimes

I love that Rick is so ready and eager to be a dad to his son. And I just know he and RJ will have such an incredible bond. Like Judith and Carl definitely felt like true blue Michonners lol, and RJ is too, but I also like to think RJ’s going to end up really gravitating to Rick. I can fully envision them being a super close father and son. 🥰

Then RJ says with certainty, “I knew you’d come back.” And I love the framing of this scene where you can see all four family members in the shot as they look at the youngest member of the Grimes.

It’s so sweet the way Michonne and Judith are holding each other tight and the way Rick has that fatherly hand on RJ’s shoulders as he looks right at him, likely still marveling that he’s looking at his own flesh and blood right now. 

gif cred: @ricksmarlene

And when RJ says he knew Rick would come back, they all look curious about how the adorable baby of the family knew this. So Rick says his final line of TOWL as he asks RJ, “How?”

Y'all, I love that this is what Rick says for his last line because again, it makes me think of the end of season 4 - the pivotal era when Richonne fell in love with each other - and the classic scene where Michonne says she knows Rick's okay and he asks her "How?"

And just like back then when Michonne gave a beautiful answer to Rick's question and said, "Cause I'm okay too," - Their baby boy RJ also has a beautiful answer to Rick's question.

RJ replies with the final line of TOWL, saying, “I believed.” 

The sentiment of RJ revealing that he too was believing a little longer this whole time is so special. 🥹 And it's touching that Rick and Michonne's son gets the last line of this epic love story.

gif cred: @riickgrimes

RJ saying 'I believed' is beautiful because he’s what his parents believed in for the future all those years ago and now his mom and dad get to hear that he believed in them back.

It’s heartwarming thinking first Rick had to believe a little longer that he’d reunite with his family, and then Michonne had to believe a little longer that Rick would reunite with their family, and then they get to see that even the child they created was believing right along with them. A child born from their belief.

As two characters fueled by believing, it really is powerful to see the final note being Rick and Michonne's son doing just that - believing his dad would find his way back to their family. That's the very mission Rick went on since the pilot of this franchise, and his story ends with him succeeding. Rick found his family and isn't going to be taken away from them this time. 🥹

gif cred: @riickgrimes

Rick seems deeply moved to hear his son say this and so he has this emotional smile at him and you can tell he so badly wants to finally hug his son. But again he lets RJ set the pace. And RJ sets the pace perfectly with the best hug. 😭

I adore the way this little boy hugs his dad for the first time. It just was so moving and so clear that he’s been wishing to be able to have his dad in his life for a long time. He needed his father and now here Rick is. 🥲 And Rick wanted this child long ago and now here RJ is.

Seeing Rick finally getting to hold his son, his 'other way to build for the future,' - it's clear Rick needed this too. 🥹

gif cred: @nat111love

Rick really is RJ's hero already, so RJ embraces him fully. And, of course, Rick is immediately reciprocal as he embraces his son and kisses his hat. 😭

I think about how Rick gave Carl that hat after he'd been shot in the woods. Giving Carl the hat was one of the ways Rick aimed to comfort his son during an extremely trying time. And then Carl wore that hat everywhere after. And when he died, it was hard for Rick to even look at the hat. But now the hat has become a positive symbol again as Rick gets to kiss the hat on his youngest son and honor the memory of his oldest son.

It’s so evident Rick and RJ already love each other. And I applaud both actors for only having one hug to show how much they love each other and pulling it off so completely. This Rick and RJ hug is everything, truly. 🥹🙌🏽

I love the way the theme music swells and rises as Rick and RJ stay in that heartfelt embrace, never wanting to let go. And I love Michonne and Judith’s reaction to seeing these boys finally get to meet and appear so instantly bonded. Rick's family means everything to him and in this scene, he gets to see that he means everything to them too. 🥹

gif cred: @andy-clutterbuck

Judith’s emotional response to seeing her little brother meet and hug their dad always puts a lump in my throat. 🥲 Again, it was the perfect big sister-type response. She’s probably felt like a stand-in mom for RJ while Michonne was gone and has been really protective of him and just again wants to know he’s okay. And it’s like in this reunion moment she’s aware that her baby brother really will be okay because now RJ gets to experience a family with both his parents, like she did when she was younger.

And Michonne just seems so happy to see her husband and son be so instantly connected. It has to be the greatest feeling ever to know that this baby she brought into this world alone will now have his father who adores him in his life.

And to see the love of her life, who she knows has been through so much, including the loss of Carl, get to now embrace his son and be a father to their kids again like he most cherished and was devoted to being. 🥹 Michonne so earnestly wanted Rick to have the chance to see the beautiful family they created. And now Rick is seeing it fully. And that visibly brings Michonne's heart pure joy. 

gif cred: @kris-lulu

So then, after Rick and RJ get their own moment with this wonderful hug, Michonne and Judith join in for a family group hug and it’s just the epitome of a joyous conclusion for Rick and Michonne and the Grimes family’s story. I adore it. 🙌🏽

Michonne and Judith wrap their arms around Rick and RJ and Michonne and Rick share their final sweet and super married-with-kids kiss. I love the way Michonne smiles as they lean in for the kiss. 😊 And the way Rick of course doesn't stop at one as he leans in for the second kiss. 😋

It's great that after over 100 TOWL kisses they still included one more. It's only right to end the show with a kiss since, again, it's canonically one of Rick and Michonne's absolute favorite things. 😊

gif cred: @riickgrimes

This last kiss is really special because it just again feels like Rick and Michonne having a moment to acknowledge that despite all the odds and obstacles over their many years in TWD, their many years apart, and then on their TOWL journey reuniting - they overcame, fell in the deepest love, and created this beautiful family together.

And now they get to live out their lives with this blissful Grimes family, loving on each other as hard as they can while they can. 🙌🏽

This family hug is just such a sweet moment of connection. I adore the way it’s filmed where it feels like Rick is holding his family and his family is holding him back. The shot with all three of their arms on Rick’s back is art. After a long and epic journey, these three are Rick Grimes' incredible reward. 🥹

(Side note: one of the things I think Rick probably will most like about Michonne's wedding ring is that it can be seen from a very far distance which means everyone from even miles away will know Michonne is taken lol.)

And then we get one more confirmation that Richonne are and always have been magnets. 🧲 Because as the camera pans out from the greatest family hug in history, Rick and Michonne both lower their arms down at the exact same time and do that little comforting thumb rub. You know my extra self is always here for even the subtlest of magnetic synchronicity between the two.

Y'all, this really is the perfect visual to conclude their story to me. 🥹

gif cred: @lousolversons

Like seeing Michonne with her wedding ring-clad hand holding onto RJ while he holds onto his dad and Judith holds onto her and Rick, fills me with joy and emotion when I think about Michonne's whole journey.

Losing a partner and a young son, Mike and Andre, shutting down and living isolated for a while, showing up to a prison with formula for her future daughter Judith, building such a special bond with her son Carl, falling in love with her soulmate Rick, becoming a great leader, and resiliently bringing another son into the world, RJ. She's been through a lot on her journey and I adore how love and family found her and wholly embraced her as she fully embraced them right back.

Michonne Grimes' journey ending with her wrapping her arms around her babies and husband is just beautiful. 🥹🙌🏽

I also love that Judith and RJ will now get to experience their mom having the love of her life back in her life. The kids will see their mom happier and more loved than they’ve ever seen her now that Rick is back with them.

The Michonne they knew was one who was resiliently trying to live in the thick of a unique, lonely, and crippling grief. But now she can be all of her again because her other half has returned and is fully prepared to make up for lost time and love on her and their kids the way they all need.

gif cred: @nerd4music

And seeing Rick be so loved and held by his family after everything in his journey means the world. 🥹

Waking up from a coma to learn the world had ended, refusing to succumb to defeat as he searched for his family, finding the people closest to him from the world before, Carl, Lori, and Shane, and then having to put together that Lori and Shane had fallen for one another in his brief absence. Experiencing the relationship with Lori and Shane crumble and result in death (one of which he had to kill because his 'brother' tried to kill and replace him), going through a mental breakdown but still having to lead, protect, and raise his young son and his newborn Judith.

Then, meeting the love of his life Michonne when she shows up at the prison fence, trying to have opposition with her at first but then falling head over heels in love with her, and no longer having to carry the weight of the world alone because now he has a soulmate who can lead him, lead others, love his children, and love him back to life time and time again. Losing his son Carl twice, realizing his son and family were always with him, and then getting to look in the eyes of his youngest son and finally hold RJ.

Along his journey, Rick endured many opponents, adversity, and painful losses, including losing himself when stripped of his family for nearly a decade. He had many fascinating arcs, many ups and downs, and managed to keep his signature good kind heart intact which is true strength. And no matter who thought they were bigger, better, or badder than him, Rick always proved to be the bravest. And it's the love for his family that made him brave and made him ultimately come out on top.

So Rick Grimes' journey ending with his wife, daughter, and youngest son back in his arms and loving him like he never left is just perfect. 😭🙌🏽

gif cred: @riickgrimes

That final image of the four of them in this family hug amid the lush greenery truly looks like the embodiment of ‘things break but they can still grow.’ And this whole new plant - this wonderful family Richonne grew - is so well-deserved. Rick and Michonne truly triumphed.🎉

I think about how in 9.03 the song that played over their Family Fun Day with Judith was "All We Ever Wanted Was Everything" and seeing the Grimes family hugging and happy at the end of TOWL is all I ever wanted for them. 🥹

(That's part of why my stance on the future is - whatever it looks like, be it Richonne returning in a quick cameo, or returning for even more than that, or not returning at all, I just want Richonne and their kids to be happy, together, and at peace).

Also, I’m telling you right now, from here on out if Rick can’t get to someone named Michonne, Judith, or RJ within 5 minutes or less, he’s going to feel he’s gone too far away because you know he’s about to be attached to the hip to his family. 😊

I really feel like Rick is going to live out his life just healthily & happily obsessed with his wife and kids and so deeply grateful to Michonne every time he looks at their family and the life they have. Like the way he stays giving Michonne her flowers, you know he’s never going to forget that it was her fighting for him and their kids that allowed them to live out this beautiful life they have now.

As the camera pans out, the four stay in this embrace and it’s just such a bright and rewarding shot. Then they show the sky as helicopters are seen flying ahead, no longer with bombs but with resources. As people noted, Richonne would be the type to not just bring themselves back home but bring back whole helicopters with loads of valuable resources too. Baddest to ever do it. 👑

Seeing the sky with those helicopters is a reminder that the world has gotten a lot bigger since those early TWD days. And after having everything but the kitchen sink thrown their way along their path, here Richonne stand, with their son and daughter, happy, healed, and whole because they’re the ones who live and the ones whose love lives on forever. 

And while this might be the end for us getting to follow their story, I again appreciate that Richonne's story closes with not just a happy ending but a happy beginning. The best years are ahead of them now that they get to all be together. And you know this gorgeous family uniting makes Carl beam from ear to ear up above. 😇

Oh and there’s also that deleted Grimes family picnic scene which is a canon moment to me. And I adore it. 🤩 I’d been hoping they’d return to doing those lovely family picnics so I was glad they filmed one. Also, it makes me so happy to remember that RJ is a part of both this current Family Fun Day picnic and the precious one from years before. 😊

In this unaired TOWL picnic scene, I love seeing Judith laughing and relishing Mom and Dad being back with them like she always believed they’d be. She grew up on these Family Fun Day picnics and now years later she gets to enjoy them again. 🥲

I love seeing intelligent little RJ holding the Rubik's cube and wearing the signature Grimes Sherrif's hat in between his mom and sister. And I especially love seeing RJ already seem so comfortable and smiley with Rick. (I love how they said the young actor Antony really gravitated to Andy. 🥹 This picnic clip definitely gave a glimpse of that)

I love seeing Michonne wearing that pretty and colorful dress and smiling so brightly with her family reunited. The flowy outfit choice is meaningful to me because, at the top of TOWL, she was given this guarded armor and similarly had to live with figurative guarded armor since Rick’s TWD departure. But now that she’s got her loving husband and kids back she gets to just fully take down all armor and be so free, open, safe, and loved as a woman, wife, and mother. 🙌🏽

And I love seeing Rick look so relaxed, playful, and elated to be here with his wife and kids. He looks like he's once again winning that Husband & Dad of the Year title. And the way he’s smiling and laughing basking in this moment, you can see he adores his family so much. This Grimes family moment is everything Rick and Michonne wanted for their lives. And this is everything I wanted for them too. 🥹

gif cred: @nessawakenobi

In the actual TOWL ending, as they panned out from the Grimes family hug, it doesn’t feel like they're becoming distant from us but rather we’re seeing the full picture and letting the Grimes family love fill the entire space.

And as the Grimes family embraces and fills the screen with love, the music rises and the show fades to black, officially concluding The One’s Who Live. 👏🏽😭 BEAUTIFUL. 

That also concludes the TOWL season finale revelings and The Ones Who Live revelings as a whole. We made it! 🥳 What a series. What a journey. What a gift Richonne is. 🥹

You know I gotta happy dance one more time over Richonne, TOWL, and the epic love story we've been blessed to witness from 2012 when Michonne and Rick's paths first crossed to 2024 when their love story reached its highest heights, and concluded perfectly.

If you had told me when I started documenting my Richonne observations back in 2017 that years later there would be a whole miniseries dedicated to Richonne’s epic love story, I would have been pleasantly surprised but I’d also believe you because Richonne is truly the gift that keeps on giving. 🎁

I adore how TOWL really came and checked so many of the Richonne wishlist boxes. Rick calling Michonne his wife ✓, the proposal and wedding ring ✓, the RJ reveal ✓, the improved lighting ✓, the scenes with impactful, unvague, and rich dialogue ✓, the intimacy ✓, the Grimes family reunion ✓, the Grimes family reunion with all the original actors ✓, and much more. They gave Richonne their things, honey. 👏🏽😌

And I especially love the way The Ones Who Live ultimately landed on a message of love being what comes to the rescue when the world falls apart. Love is what it's all about at the end of the day.

Along their years-long journey, the way Richonne fell in love was beautiful. And the way they stayed in love was just as beautiful. I’m so grateful to have witnessed Rick and Michonne Grimes' powerful journey from first locking eyes at a prison fence in season 3 to looking into each other's eyes with such adoration and appreciation as they agreed to have a child together in season 9. To now reuniting with that lovely child and their dear daughter in TOWL.

Rick and Michonne have remained such captivating characters over the years, and so much of that has to do with the incredible artists that bring them to life.

Andy and Danai are generational talents with such compatible gifts - exceptional eye acting, line delivery, vulnerability, physicality, and raw honesty infused in their craft. And then you add to that playing compelling characters in love, allowing them to tap into their rare and extraordinary chemistry. You’re bound to get something special when pairing them together like this. 👏🏽

So I'm grateful to the whole TOWL cast & crew, and most of all the captains - Andy, Danai, and Scott. We really got to see Richonne through their eyes with TOWL. 🥹 And the way those three view Richonne and bring this love story to life is resplendent. I love that with The Ones Who Live they told the story they wanted to tell - and we Richonne fans were just happily in alignment with the vision. 😌

They’re the type who put thought into even something like Rick and Michonne's hand placement in bed at the end of TWD 6.10 because they care about how Richonne is portrayed in every frame. And I will forever appreciate their attention to detail with Richonne. All these RiR posts really are my way of saying that the thought and care put into crafting these exceptional characters and their exemplary love story don't go unnoticed.

Andy and Danai have given us so much as Rick and Michonne over the years so whether this is 'goodbye for good' or 'goodbye for now,' I respect it.

The iconic roles of Rick and Michonne were truly meant for them. Danai and Andy approached these characters with love, respect, thoughtfulness, and passion, and ensured Rick and Michonne were in good hands. So I just can't thank them enough. 🙏🏽🥹

Also, a big thank you to the gifted Richonne GIF creators. 👏🏽🤩 You are invaluable staples to this fandom and your gifs of Richonne's TOWL & TWD moments are beautiful. Linking to your amazing gifs helped me elevate these posts and string this all together. My posts wouldn't be the same without you, so I'm very grateful to you. 🙏🏽

And sincerely thank you to everyone who took the time to read these posts and to everyone who commented, messaged, PM'd, reblogged, and followed. Your thoughtful insights, reactions, and support really have always made the days brighter both over the last two months and over all these years of reveling in Richonne.

Hearing your takes on Richonne helped me see things from an even fuller perspective. Hearing that these breakdowns were looked forward to and even uplifting to read during hard times really moved me and made me feel less alone since reflecting on Richonne has also helped me focus on the bright things in this world when life feels dark. I've loved hearing what you love about TOWL and about these RiR posts. Thank you for sharing with me. 🫶🏽 Your words of encouragement have meant a lot to this Words of Affirmation girl. 😊

There were times when I was working away at these posts and wondering if I'm certifiably crazy for writing whole 'dissertations' on every second of Richonne's love story. 😅 (i think the answer is yes lol). But the encouragement I'd receive over here was a big motivator to follow through, give every scene its flowers, and share these in-depth breakdowns with you all. So please know that you and your good kind heart are super appreciated. 🙏🏽 I hope you remain blessed in all ways and on all days. 💗

And to Future Me - hi 👋🏽 I wrote these TOWL novel-length breakdowns for the fandom and for you too. For those times when you’ll want to make your day a bit better by revisiting these posts and remembering all the thoughts and elation you had over Richonne - your favorite thing - shining the brightest it’s ever shined in a 6-episode epic love story. 🌟

Rick and Michonne Grimes and their captivating story are extremely dear to my heart and always will be. And this miniseries that gave them and their love the spotlight means so much. The Ones Who Live is a true treasure, and I’m so glad we’ll have it forever. 🥹🙌🏽

After hundreds of 'dissertations' and years of pursuing a Ph.D in Richonne (😋📚🎓), I just have to say that breaking down the beginning, middle, and end of this epic love story with this fun and insightful fandom has been such a joy. Has me feeling like...

There will be people who come around to watching TWD/TOWL now or years later who weren’t keeping up with the show when it first aired. And some of those people are bound to get bit with the Richonne bug just like I did several years ago.

So my hope is that anyone, be it new Richonners or long-time Richonners, whoever wants to reminisce and revel and relive each and every moment of Rick and Michonne’s iconic, powerful, and stunning journey can always come back to these RiR breakdowns whenever, and feel like they’re 'read-watching' the show, and dissecting and celebrating whatever is beautiful about Richonne with a good friend. Because Richonne is timeless and a little reveling is good for the soul.

I hope these plenty of posts brought and continue to bring enjoyment, insight, laughs, light, and just the best warm feelings because in the words of my beloved Michonne - It did for me. 😌

Always and forever, thank you so much for reading & Long Live Richonne. 👑🧲🥰👌🏽

[digitaldiarystuff]

Enemies (To Lovers?)

so i’m shocking myself with how many stories i upload in one day but let’s not jinx it lol

this was a request but i can’t find where, anyways hope you enjoyy💖

————

pairing: Declan Rice x Y/N

summary: you and Declan never really clicked but now that you’re locked in a room what other option is there than to talk it out

genre: slight angst maybe also slight smut

————

“Ugh I hate him” you told your friend Ariana the minute you entered the villa.

“Who?” she asked not understanding how you got involved in beef even before talking to anyone at the party.

“Who do you think?” you asked her in a duh voice.

“Dec? Girl you two seriously need to drop this petty act.” she whined fed up with you.

But you couldn’t. You couldn’t just stop this childish hate for Declan Rice, the Arsenal ‘superstar’ You have been in the same friend circle since last summer. When your friends first told you about him you were pretty optimistic actually, everyone told you what a great and genuine guy he was and you thought ‘wow we’d get along well’ but it wasn’t the case. From the moment you first met, Declan had a weird vendetta against you. He showed how much he didn’t like you from the first day you met by spilling his drink on you, granted he might’ve accidentally do it but his actions after were enough.

“Stop laughing” you snickered trying to get the red stain out of your white blouse but Declan kept on smiling.

“At least now you have some colour in your life.” he bit back and you couldn’t believe this was the guy everyone told you about. He certainly didn’t look that great to you, apart from his piercing blue eyes and charming smile that obviously didn’t work for you.

If he’d just apologized like a normal person you’d of course let it go but he didn’t, in fact he constantly made fun of how angry you were and poked fun about it. That’s why you didn’t want to be here today, at his multimillion dollar mansion celebrating his team’s newest win but all your friends, especially Ariana, told you you had to be there. They had this weird fantasy about Declan actually liking you more than you realize and trying to show it like a third grader, pulling your hair and throwing erasers at you. You found it stupid, he was a grown adult and showed how much he disliked you like he was and you returned his hatred by hating him.

“Did I hear my name?” Declan suddenly appeared behind you and put his arm around Ariana and you were thankful he didn’t try it with you.

Deep down, what upset you the most was his behavior towards everyone else. He was seemingly cute and warm with everyone else while he always made fun of you and that made you feel uneasy, what was it that made him dislike you this much? You felt left out but you’d never admit it of course.

“Y/N was just telling me how proud she is of you.” Ariana tried lightening the mood and offer peace but Declan had to ruin it by rolling his eyes.

“Yeah, I’m so proud you make millions by kicking a ball for 90 minutes a week. That’s really noble of you.” you sarcastically said.

“Not all of us has to be chained to a cubicle 40 hours a week” he quipped back and you felt even more angry at him.

“Yeah because some of us need money to pay for real things like rent and food.”

He thankfully left you alone after that and went back to being his other persona.

“Y/N I know you don’t want to hear this but you need to stop being so hostile towards Dec. He’s really not that bad.” Ariana said.

“You’re right Ari, I don’t want to hear it.” you shut her down and grabbed yourself a drink.

You weren’t usually this cold but he had something about him that made you snap instantly. But there was no way you’d be the person to break the friend group so you were just going to have to deal with him.

It was well into the party and you felt the buzz from all the alcohol you consumed which was a lot. You needed it very much to calm your nerves and not start any more fights. You were just sitting on the sofa humming to the song in the background when one of your close friends Kayla suddenly turned to you.

“Y/N can you grab me some painkillers from the guest bathroom? My head’s killing me.” she whined.

You really didn’t want to go snooping around Declan’s home, one because you didn’t know the house quite well and two because you didn’t want him to say anything negative about you.

“Is there anyone else who could do that? I don’t know the house well enough.” you tried but she insisted everyone was either too drunk or outside so you reluctantly agreed. She even gave you the directions to the room and you went upstairs, you’d never admit it but Dec had a good taste in interior design. He didn’t have one of those all white lacking personality type of home, his space had character with some pops of colour in every room including the guest bedroom which was the size of your apartment. You cursed yourself for liking something about him and went into the en-suite connected to the guest bedroom trying to look for the painkillers Kayla described.

You were shuffling around the cabinets having a hard time because you had to steady yourself a few times a minute when you heard some footsteps and figured you took too long and she came to get them herself but as luck would have it, it was actually Declan.

“Oh, it’s you” he said with more softness than he did when you first walked in so you figured he must be intoxicated as well.

“I thought someone was trying to steal something.” he said as he walked over to you.

You didn’t stop looking around to look at him.

“I’m surprised you didn’t accuse me yet.” you scoffed.

“Oh I’m getting to it.” he laughed dryly. “What are you doing here anyway? Trying to see if I have a girlfriend?”

You couldn’t even comprehend his sentence when you heard the door shut. You immediately looked back and saw Declan lean against the en-suite door with his arm. His muscles were flexed as he turned to the bedroom door surprised it has shut down.

He made his way over to the door trying to open it only to be unsuccessful. He wiggled the door knob a few times.

“Why don’t you open it?” you asked and he looked back at you like you were stupid.

“What do you think I’m trying to do?”

“I don’t know, you look like you built those muscles for nothing.”

He tried again but in vein. The door was stuck.

“What the fuck?” he said still trying and you started laughing at your faith.

“You’d think after spending millions of pounds the doors wouldn’t be stuck.”

“Would you stop whining?” he asked clearly agitated.

“Only if you open the door.”

“Do you think I want to be stuck here with you?” he harshly asked and you felt your confidence slipping. You were always self conscious when drunk.

When you didn’t respond he turned his attention to you.

“Y/N, I-

“Why do you hate me so much?” you asked finally trying to get an answer to the question you’ve had for months.

“What?”

“Why do you hate me so much?” you repeated.

“I- I don’t hate you.” he murmured but you knew it was a lie.

“Yes you do, you love everyone else. You’re so nice with them but you’re rude to me. I know I’m not the best either but I feel bad when I see you with the others. What is it about me that you hate?” you felt the weight lifting off your chest as you spoke. Yes it was the alcohol that made you say those things but they were true.

“I think we should talk later when you’re not drunk.” he dismissed you and it only angered you more.

“I’m not drunk.”

“Yes you are, you’ve had a million cocktails.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I watch at you anytime you’re not looking!” he raised his voice startling you. In all the time you’ve known Declan he’s never even gotten mad.

“Why? So that you can use the things you see against me?”

“Do you really think that’s what I’m doing? You can’t seriously think I’m going out of my way everyday just to argue with you. I’m watching you because I like seeing you interact with people and it kills me that you’re not that kind to me. I wish you’d be like that with me but if bickering is what gets you talking to me I’m okay with that.” he finally let go of the door and went over to the bed sitting on it without looking at you.

You were in shock about all the things you just heard.

“Declan you’re being mean, you can’t play with me like that!” you shouted at him thinking this was his way of messing with you.

“Do you really think that low of me?” he finally looked up at you and you saw the sincerity in his eyes that everyone was talking about. He looked more genuine than ever. He combed a hand through his hair.

“I- I don’t know.” you murmured conflicted about the whole situation. On one hand you really didn’t think he’d stoop so low but on the other hand you couldn’t believe his admission that easily.

“Why do you act like a prick then?” you asked trying to get to the bottom of it.

“Because that’s the only way you’ll talk to me even if it’s to argue.” he admitted with his head low.

You stood in front of Declan with your hands against your hips trying to wrap your head around the situation but it was hard considering he was wearing a tight shirt hugging his body perfectly and his hair disheveled. With a sudden confidence, you walked closer to him and stood in between his legs and he immediately looked up at you with confusion. If you didn’t have any alcohol in your system you’d never be this forward but with it you could actually do something you actually want for once. You placed your hands on his shoulders as his hands went over to your hips. He was still wary of your reaction but you threw every sane thought away and pushed him onto the bed he was sitting on. He pulled you with him so now you were straddling him, both of you were shocked by your sudden boldness but he didn’t complain. In fact, he never said anything but sat up properly holding you down and started devouring your lips. You kissed back immediately with months of pent up frustration and infatuation.

“You’re so perfect.” he complimented you as his lips found your neck kissing and sucking on your skin. You felt electricity from his touch and cursed yourself for not doing this earlier.

By this time he was slowly pulling your dress straps down your arms and continued his kisses against your chest and you hastily lifted his shirt finally coming in close contact with his abs.

“You have no idea how much I’ve wanted this.” he murmured as he rolled you over so he was on top of you.

“Then why didn’t you?” you asked.

“Because I thought you’d slap me.”

“I’d much rather if you slapped me.” you said without thinking and his eyes turned even darker if that’s possible. His movements became more rough as you gave him the permission and he peeled your dress down your legs leaving you only in your underwear. You’d normally feel vulnerable and exposed if it was any other man but given the circumstances you just felt hot because Declan told you a million times.

“You’re so beautiful.” he kept telling you as you tried reaching for his belt. He let you take it off and now you were both in your underwear.

He did everything right in that moment, making you reach your orgasm multiple times even before he entered you and made everything about making you feel good. Even if it’s the first time you’ve ever had sex with him, it felt like he knew you better than anyone and you loved the feeling.

After both of you reached your highs moaning each other’s name once more he finally pulled out and laid on the bed pulling you to him. Your head was resting on his chest as he played with your hair occasionally leaving small kisses on it.

“I hope you know I meant everything I said.” he whispered and you looked up at his beautiful eyes knowing he wasn’t lying.

“I know.”

“And I’m not letting you go now that I have a taste.” he smiled.

“Does this mean this isn’t a one time thing?” you teased with a smile on your lips.

“Oh definitely not, in fact I was thinking about having a second round right now.” he wiggled his eyebrows as you laughed and lightly smacked his chest.

“Are you guys cool now that you’ve had sex?” you heard someone yell from outside of the door startling the both of you.

“What the hell?” Dec asked with his eyebrows furrowed.

“Yeah idiots, we locked you in there hoping you’d talk it out but this is even better.” you heard Ariana yell and your cheeks flushed knowing they must’ve heard somethings but right now you were more thankful than angry.

“Now come out we’re starving.” one of your friends said and you got out of the bed putting your clothes back on with a smile on your face.

Declan Rice wasn’t that bad after all.

[chlobliviate]

Wolfstar Microfics - Penpals

Words: 792

@wolfstarmicrofic

🌙✨🌙✨🌙

21st August

Moony,

Please tell me you’re still coming this weekend. Evans actually replied to one of James’ (many) letters, and not just to tell him to fuck off, and he is being unbearable. If I have to hear one more sentence that starts “She said” I might just unforgivable myself. Please put me out of my misery, I’ve been helping Effie cook just to get away from the lovesick prick. Note that I can cook now. I’ll show you this weekend, I asked her to teach me how to make Samosas and they’re surprisingly easy. So I can make you samosas now! Hope the moon wasn’t too bad, wish we could have been there.

Padfoot

✨✨✨✨

21st August

Pads,

I’ll be there Friday night, I promise.

To be fair to James, it’s a pretty big deal for him. But rest assured I’ll tell him to shut up if you need me to. Lily didn’t tell me that she replied to him, so now I need to fire off a letter to her and ask her if she sustained a head injury. Please don’t off yourself, I don’t want to spend the week with lovesick Prongs on my own.

Samosas! For me? I’m glad James’ arseholery has resulted in something good at least. I will never tire of Effie’s Samosas, so the bar is high! I hope you’re practicing ready for the weekend, I expect to be wowed.

The moon wasn’t great. I have two ugly new scars on my jaw/cheek, just to prepare you for the weekend.

The wolf misses his friends, and I miss mine.

Moony

🌙🌙🌙🌙

21st August

Dear Lily,

I have received news that you sent a letter to James, and I was so concerned that I had to write to you immediately. Are you alright? Were you injured? How bad was the head injury? Do they think you’ll ever gain back full brain function?

But seriously, what the fuck? He won’t shut up about it and he’s driving Sirius mad. I’m spending the week with them and if he’s as insufferable as Sirius claims, I will be blaming you.

Hope you’re enjoying France.

Also, I told you so.

Remus

🌺🌺🌺🌺

22nd August

Moons,

Sorry the moon was shit. We’ll be back at school by the next one and it’ll be better. Also, I won’t tell you again, your scars aren’t ugly. They’re cool and rugged, and make you look distinguished and mysterious. I will hear no arguments on this subject, thank you. I also meant to ask how many books you’ve read this summer. I think you’ll be incredibly proud that I have read seven whole books in the last month. One of them was mostly pictures, but I think it still counts. I’m agonised that your only issue with my death is that you’ll have to cope with Prongs’ pining alone. Do I truly mean so little to you, Remus? I fear I shall never recover from this slight.

Yours,

Pads

PS: I made another batch of samosas and honestly, you’re going to swoon when you taste them. They’re so good. Effie seems to love bonding with me over a hot stove, and it’s very sweet. I love living here so much. I try not to think about what I’d be doing if I wasn’t here, but sometimes the comparison is helpful. Well, that got sappy. My next letter will only be discussing Quidditch and boobs to make up for it. Counting down the hours til Friday.

✨✨✨✨

23rd August

Pads,

Not long to go now. Can’t wait to see you later, and for samosas.

Seven books? Wow. That’s impressive! I’m a few ahead of that, but I’ve literally had nothing to do but read since July. Moony and Padfoot book club, when?

Can you believe it’s been over a month since I saw you? Maybe you’ve finally had that growth spurt you’ve been hoping for. My mum seems to think I’ve grown, but she always says that.

It wasn’t enough for me to tell you not to top yourself in general? Do you need me to tell you how much I’d miss you creeping into my bed at 3 am and hogging the blankets? Or how sad it would make me to not have to share every cup of tea I make? Weirdly, I would actually miss that, to be fair, so please be alive when I get there.

If I wanted to hear about Quidditch and boobs, I’d write to Prongs. Please spare me. I’ll probably be with you before it arrives, so there’s little point. I might send this right before I floo so you don’t get chance to reply. If so, hi, I’m already here!

Looking forward to swooning over you! your samosas!

Your

Moony

🌙🌙🌙🌙

[guessimjoiningthespidermanfandom]

Hey! For your Miles requests, I'd love to read about what it might be like for the reader to watch Miles transfer to Visions if they both went to Brooklyn Middle together.

Not This Time

Miles Morales x fem!reader

Miles Morales x black!reader

Word Count: 1.4k

Warnings: none

Requested: yes

A/N: GUYS PARTICIPATE IN MY 300 FOLLOWER SPECIAL PLEASE also hope you guys enjoy electro because I had to make something up.

300 Follower Special <3

Masterlist

“You’re not gonna forget me right?” You wondered. 

It was the last week of summer and you were clinging to the last few days you had left with Miles. Sitting on his building’s rooftop you stared down at the Brooklyn you’ve known your whole life. You and Miles were the fastest of friends since your first day at Brooklyn Middle you genuinely couldn’t imagine not seeing him every day. You were still proud of him, however. Getting into Visions was a pretty big deal. 

“Why would you ask me that?” He glanced at you offended. 

You simply shrugged, pulling your knees up to your chest. “I dunno, you’ll go and make new friends and I won’t be so important anymore,” 

“No,” He shook his head, turning to face you. “That would never happen,” 

You looked back at him, maintaining eye contact. 

 “I’d never forget you,” He promised. 

The first week of freshman year was finally over. It wasn’t as bad as your middle school teachers tried to make it seem, you’d made a couple of new friends, and none of your teachers were mean.

Realizing you hadn’t spoken to Miles yet today you pulled your phone out to message him. 

you: how was your first week? 

miles: my science teacher was on my ass but my roommates not bad

miles: he doesn’t talk much 

you: i told you, you’d be fine

you: wanna go the end show w/me tonight in golconda

you: it’s at 7 

miles: im sorry I cant :( too much hw 

you: oh no don’t worry maybe next time

Putting your phone back down on your desk with a huff you tried not to feel disappointed. There would be other opportunities to hang out. It’s not like this was the end of your friendship. 

The excuses and cancellations only grew in numbers. Soon you’d gone from seeing Miles every day to barely holding a virtual conversation once a week. 

You weren’t going to sit around and wait for the crumbs of attention Miles was willing to give you. This would not be a one-sided relationship, you had too much self-respect for that. 

But just because you weren’t actively talking doesn’t mean you didn’t care. You’d just care from afar. 

—————-

You weren’t one to watch the news but the TV was open to Channel 12 when you made it home from running errands. Placing your grocery bags on the couch something compelled you to tune in. 

Seeing PDNY cars surrounding a crazed man wielding what looked to be lightning bolts sent you into a state of controlled panic. You practically sped to Miles’s apartment to check on Mr. Morales. 

He wasn’t there when you got to the apartment but Rio informed you he was okay and she’d just spoken to him on the phone.  

Letting out a sigh of relief you relaxed your shoulders. Slumping to sit down next to her on the couch she gave you a once-over 

“You’ve grown so much since I last saw you. How’s high school?” She asked, now getting a better look at you. 

“It’s definitely different,”

“We’ve missed you around here, Miles has been acting so different lately, he’s not my little boy anymore,” She sighed wistfully. 

“I miss you guys too,” You pouted.

 You didn’t want to get emotional but you really did miss your second family. And you weren’t trying to take it personally but Miles avoiding you truly hurt. “It’s so weird not seeing Miles anymore,” 

“Seeing him a couple times a week must be very different from every day,”

A couple times a week? You hadn’t seen him at all this month. Even if you were pissed at him you didn’t want him in trouble so you just agreed. 

“Yeah, I’m still not used to it.” 

You weren’t leaving until you saw for yourself that Mr. Morales was okay. Your stubbornness and unwillingness to take things as you’re told kept you from being able to fully believe Mrs. Morales’s promise of her husband’s safety. Anything could’ve happened between their phone call and now. 

Waiting on the couch listening to Mrs. Morales talk about work and her conniving coworkers. You felt the most at peace as you’ve had in a while. 

The peace didn’t last long as Miles came bursting through the front door adorning his red and black jacket with oversized sweats and his backpack slung over his shoulder. Mrs. Morales immediately stood up and moved towards him, the picture of concern. 

“Mijo, what’s wrong, what are you doing here it’s a school night?” 

Instead of answering her he just threw himself into her arms and wilted into her chest. 

From your place on the couch, you couldn’t hear the muffled conversation or anything at all, which only amplified your worry. 

“What happened? What’s wrong?” You found yourself calling out standing from your spot on the sofa. 

The sound of your voice snapped him out of his reprieve. Miles pulled his head from the crook of his mother's neck. He let his eyes roam over you attempting to assess if you were real or not. 

Once he decided his eyes weren’t deceiving him he practically launched himself into your arms. 

You stumbled back with the force of his weight and despite your anger and confusion, you hugged him back. 

Evidently, something was wrong but he wasn’t going to talk about it anytime soon. You tried to hold out and let him feel his emotions but- 

“Miles,” You wheezed out into his chest. “Can’t breathe.”

He released you the slightest bit but didn’t let you go. 

“Sorry,” He muttered to the top of your head. “Missed you so much,” 

“Missed you too,” 

As much as you loved Mrs. Morales, she was a chismosa and every conversation was not for her ears. 

“Let’s go outside,” You suggested grabbing his arm to pull you with him. 

You hadn’t made the climb to the water tower in a while and you weren’t as fit as you were a month ago. Trying to hide it out of embarrassment you switched the topic. 

“You cold?” You asked panting as you found your footing. 

“What?” He questioned looking down at himself.

 As if he just discovered the zip-up he was wearing he answered. “Oh! Yeah, yeah it’s really chilly out here,” 

Even without the years of knowing Miles under your belt, you would’ve known he was lying but you didn’t feel like starting an argument the first time you saw him in a while so you just dropped it. 

The two of you easily fell back into the swing of things as if there were never any distance between the two of you. You were glad to be talking again, now knowing his issue wasn’t due to anything you’d done. 

He was catching you up on everything you’d missed in his life when he went ghost on you, but he still wasn’t hinting at what was bothering him. He was using you as an alibi and not even telling you, it was so unlike him. 

Even his mom noticed a change in his behavior so why wouldn’t he just talk to you? You had to bring it up or you’d regret it once you’d gotten home. 

“You know you can tell me anything right?” 

He hummed in acknowledgment.

 You should be furious he’d ghosted you for so long. And now he won’t even talk to you? but looking at him now he looked so upset and broken you couldn’t feel anything besides concern. 

“Miles please, tell me what’s going on,” You begged. “We tell each other everything,” It was true you even told him when you had started your first period the summer before 7th grade. You never felt the need to hide anything from each other. So why start now? What happened between the start of high school to now to make him stop trusting you? 

“Is it me? Can you just not tell me?” You attempted to rationalize his behavior. 

“It’s not you,” He promised. 

“So then talk to me please,” You whined. 

“I can’t tell you. Not this time,” 

The last person to learn he was Spider-Man died. In the same month, he watched Spider-Man and his uncle die in right front of him. All his other friends left him and maybe it was selfish but you were the only one he had left. He refused to lose you or have you look at him differently. Maybe telling you would lift some of the burden of having a secret identity as just a child, but he couldn’t risk it. Not this time. Not with you.

©guessimjoiningthespidermanfandom

[averagemrfox]

2 for the ask game for each member of team RWBY!!!!!

Alright I’m home from work and have had time to think

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

First of all this goes for every single one of them and my individual answers might overlap with this we’ll see. I love how much they’ve all grown and persevered! They’ve been through so fucking much both together as a team and separately and have come out on the other side of it. They were kids!! They made bunk beds and had food fights and were starting to figure out the types of people they wanted to be and then got thrust into Remnant’s Worst Divorce™️ and throughout all of it have only grown closer as a team (not friends family!!) and still have hope that they can make the world a better place (Keep moving forward!!!) (They all need therapy tho fr)

Ruby: she’s perfect just the way she is!! This is supposed to be about the canon things I love about these character but god do I want Ruby to see herself as an individual separate from Summer. I think she’s getting there after her talk with the blacksmith. She’s just so accepting of people without hesitation. Penny is a robot? Don’t care new best friend. Little is a talking mouse? Don’t care new best friend pt 2. I’m sure there’s other examples but she’s always so ready to just let people be who they are and I wish she’d give herself that same grace

She’s also just a giant fucking nerd. About weapons about comics about video games

Weiss: 🗣️🗣️I DONT KNOW WHO YOU THINK YOU ARE BUT LET ME TELL YOU WHO I AM. I AM THE GRANDDAUGHTER OF A HERO AND THE CHILD OF A VILLAIN. I AM A CITIZEN OF A FALLEN KINGDOM AND AN HEIR TO NOTHING. I WILL NOT BE DEFINED BY MY NAME BECAUSE I WILL BE THE ONE TO DEFINE IT. I AM WEISS SCHNEE AND I AM A HUNTRESS🗣️🗣️

Also I love that she’s canonically a fairly well known (at least in atlas) singer. Now I’m not sure she’d do that by choice based on what we saw in v4 but it’s super cool that that This Life is Mine is canon to remnant because of that. Also Jacques made her sing and she was like alright bet and then roasted him in song on stage in front of all those people and we don’t talk about that enough I think

Blake: I say that’s my baby and I’m really proud

Blake tells Sun she joined the white fang 5 years ago in v2. She was TWELVE she was a BABY!! If I had to give Blake a word the way she gives others a word it would be conviction. She never gives up on what she believes in. And she does her best to support others in doing the same, in v7 she tried to encourage ironwood and in v9 she tried to encourage Ruby poor girl got shut down both times but she tried!!

I also love how Blake is canonically a good artist and would like to see more of that. crwby show us a drawing Blake made of Yang

These:

Yang: this girl can fit so much love in her god. She goes to any and every length to protect the people she loves even if it’s to her own detriment (which someone really needs to have a conversation with her about) the Yellow Trailer tells us straight away that there’s more to her than meets the eye and yet there are people who fell into that trap anyway and criticize her character for “not being fun anymore” as if that isn’t the point!!

She’s so confident and cocky until a pretty girl Blake flirts with her I love the disaster lesbian representation.

She punched god in the tiddies!!! And she’d do it again I bet! Maybe we’ll see her punch one or both of the Brothers next I’d like that

This:

[bridgyrose]

Hear me out, Ruby is a clone, but not a "grown in a lab" clone. More a "let's force the child Summer has to be stillborn and then use a prototype aura transfer machine to ensure that her child has silver eyes" clone. That's why she looks pretty much exactly like Summer despite being Tai's child too. (this is a writing prompt, btw, not a discourse thing)

(You have given me something painful fun to work with)

Ozpin smiled as he watched Ruby rush around the targets he had set up, his eyes staying glued to her as he watched her swing Summer’s axe. It was almost like watching Summer as the girl rushed around in a flurry of petals, slicing each target cleanly in half. He checked off a few things on his scroll, proud of the achievement. 

“Dont you think we’ve taken things a bit too far,” Glynda asked as she watched Ruby fold up her axe. “If Summer knew-” 

“We had to make sure we had a backup in case Summer died. And now that she’s missing, we can start using Ruby to defeat Salem.” 

“And that is exactly my point.” 

Ozpin sighed and lowered his scroll as she watched Ruby take a breather. Maybe he had gone too far with making sure Summer’s child was stillborn and used Atlas tech to try to revive it, making it into a clone of Summer, but it was all for the greater good. “If we didnt do this-”

“If we didnt do this, this girl could’ve been raised with her family!” Glynda said angrily. “Instead, you’ve raised her in secret to be a weapon to the grimm.”

“I needed to make sure the silver eye bloodline would continue and this was the only way.” Ozpin pressed a button on the console overlooking the training room and spoke softly into the microphone. “Ruby, you did wonderful today. You may go back to your room and rest. I’ll bring your dinner to you in a few minutes.” 

Glynda shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Her family needs to know about this. You took their daughter and turned her into a weapon.” 

“I havent turned her into a weapon,” Ozpin responded as he walked out of the control room. “I’ve kept her safe from Salem.” 

“And when are you going to let her be a child? She needs friends.” 

Ozpin sighed and walked down the hall quietly as he made his way to get something for Ruby to eat. Of course he allowed Ruby to have friends, however, she tended to keep to herself instead of making her way to those that were closer to her age. And now that she was seventeen, it was time to enroll her into Beacon and allow her to experience the world in a way her training hadnt allowed her before. He quickly grabbed a meal from the cafeteria and made his way to Ruby’s room, gently knocking on the door. “I brought you dinner.” 

“You’re late today,” Ruby said as she opened the door. “You’re never late.” 

“Professor Goodwitch had a bit more to talk to me about after your training session,” Ozpin replied as he walked in and sat the tray down on a table for her. “You did well. You’re getting better with that axe of yours.” 

Ruby nodded and sat down, looking over her food before taking a quick bite. “Its helped that you’ve let me take it apart and modify it. My mom must’ve been strong to use it. I had to change the way it locks so I can bring it back into rifle form mid swing.” 

Ozpin smiled as he watched Ruby eat, every facet of her reminding him of Summer. “Speaking of your mother, a new semester for Beacon starts soon. I was hoping that we could enroll you so you could get to know the school she went to and follow in her footsteps more.” 

Ruby paused mid bite, silver eyes almost staring into his soul. “Does… that mean I’ll have to meet the other students?” 

Ozpin gave her a small nod. “And then you can make friends with others-” 

“Then I dont want to.” 

“Someone your age should have friends to be yourself around.” 

“I’m fine on my own. Besides, arent you the one who keeps telling me that I need to be careful with who I’m around?” 

“Well, yes… but-” Ozpin stopped speaking for a moment as he realized what he had told her. “-you are still allowed to get to know others. Especially other huntsmen in training since they’ll be the ones you’ll be interacting with most.” 

“Alright,” Ruby answered in a defeated tone. “I’ll attend Beacon.” 

“I promise, all of this will make sense to you soon enough, alright?” 

“You’ve been telling me that for years.” 

“I know, but I promise you’ll be ready for what you’ve been training for.” Ozpin put a gentle hand to Ruby’s cheek and smiled at her. “Alright, my rosepetal?” 

Ruby nodded and pulled Ozpin’s hand away from her cheek. “Alright dad. Once I’m finished eating, I can go to the workshop, right? I saw a couple of weapons I liked from the huntsmen that came to visit you and I want to upgrade my axe with another form.”

“And what form did you have in mind?” 

“That one huntsman with the red cape, his sword turned into a scythe. Think I can make that work and he can train me to use it?” 

Ozpin paused for a moment, recognizing the small description of Qrow that Ruby gave. “I’m not sure he’ll have time to teach you, but I think I can put in a word to him and see if he’ll agree. But eat first. You’ll need all your strength.” 

[moody4world]

Got my twin with me like the parent trap (pt.4)

A/N: I know it took forever to post this and I sincerely apologize. I was super busy and couldn’t find the time to sit down and write how I wanted to. Hope this makes up for it🤍

Once Jack was done helping Andre unpack he went downstairs to his studio to continue on a new song he was writing. As much as he tried he couldn’t get the thought of Hayden looking and acting different out of his mind. “I go a few weeks without seeing the kid and suddenly something’s off.” He says to himself. He shakes the thoughts off and goes back to writing.

Meanwhile Andre just walked outside to the pool in his swimming trunks ready to test out the pool. As expected, Stephanie was also near the pool with his dad, on one of the fancy chairs that his uncle Jack definitely did not choose on his own. “Come on Hayds let me introduce you to a friend of mine. This is Stephanie Walsh.” Urban wrapped his arm around Andre’s shoulder pulling him closer to Stephanie.

“Hi, well well well if it isn’t the famous Hayden, I have been hearing things about you all summer.” Was the first thing Stephanie said to Andre. He didn’t like how she spoke in a baby voice to him as if he was a little kid, not even his own parents did that to him. If he was raised a little less proper he would’ve been a bit mean towards his dad’s supposed friend but he was raised right so he kept his composure to the best of his abilities. “Well here I am.” Andre said with some fake enthusiasm.

“Oh Urban he is adorable.” Urban had a proud smile on his face, however Andre was not as amused. “You know, your father talks about you all the time. I was convinced you’d be a little daddy’s boy but you are so grown up.”

Her tone was really getting on Andre’s nerves. “Yeah, i’ll be seventeen soon. How old are you, thirty seven?” Andre could see Stephanie’s eyebrows go up in shock. “I’m twenty four actually.” “Oh so only seven years older than me..how old are you again dad?” Urban noticed that there was some slight tension going on and immediately got up at that question. “Wow suddenly you like math, uhm i’m gonna go inside and get some more pizza and maybe a couple beers to celebrate.” “What are we celebrating?” Andre asked all confused. “Your homecoming of course.” Stephanie answered obviously. “Be right back.” Urban left the two alone as he went inside.

Just as Urban walked away, Stephanie’s phone started ringing. “Stephanie Walsh” She raised a finger towards Andre in a ‘give me a moment’ gesture and continued her call. Andre decided to go on and dip his toes in the water to check the temperature. His ears however were listening to Stephanie’s conversation. “Hello Mr. Tanner, oh yes of course.”

“Mhm i’m writing it all down.” At that sentence Andre turned to look at her, knowing that it was a full on lie. “Oh of course it’s a great plan and I agree but unfortunately Mr. Wyatt and Mr. Harlow will be out of the country those days.” This also caught Andre’s attention. “Yes I will pass the message to him, thank you.” Once she hung up and set her phone aside she decided to engage in more conversation with Andre as if nothing had just happened.

She scooted to the end of the poolside chair so she could be somewhat closer to where Andre was sitting at the edge of the pool. “So Hayds, how was camp? Was it adventurous?” Andre did not answer the question, instead he decided to ask what really interested him. “My dad’s going out of the country?” “Oh no, I just had to tell a little white lie to get him out of something.” Stephanie giggled awkwardly. “You know, I have never heard a man talk about his kid the way your father talks about you, you two seem pretty close. Even your uncle speaks very highly of you.” Andre stood up, getting ready to jump into the pool. “Well you know, we are pretty close. We’re all each other have.” He shrugged with a mischievous smirk before cannonballing into the pool, splashing water all over Stephanie’s dress.

She squealed and hurriedly stood up from her chair. She grabbed the nearest towel on the other chair and started patting herself dry. Once Andre got back up he acted shocked and sympathetic. “Oh sorry, did I get you wet Steph?” He asked in a mocking tone. Stephanie sighed frustratingly and replied “Oh just a bit Hayds.”

“You know, your dad took me riding the other day and he let me borrow your bike. I hope that’s okay with you.” “Oh sure. The bike did feel strange when i used it earlier..not that you’re strange or anything. Actually compared to the others you’re pretty normal.”

Stephanie raised an eyebrow at that. “Others? what others?” “I mean… if I was a woman I would want to know about the other women if I was number twenty nine in a man’s life.”

“I’m number twenty nine?” Stephanie asked offendedly. “Yeah, it’s always the same routine. Bike riding, take her to the studio, romantic dinners multiple nights.” Just as Stephanie was about to ask another question Urban came back out with a pizza box in one hand and some bottles of beer in the other.

Later that night Andre texted Hayden who was more than happy about being in London and meeting his mother.

Andre 💂🏽‍♂️

Facetime me right now!!!

Hayds🤞🏽

uhhh you know it’s day time over here right? do you want my ass to get caught?!

Andre 💂🏽‍♂️

It’s really not that hard Hayden just facetime me this is a serious problem!!!

Hayds 🤞🏽

ok ok damn chill with the exclamation marks btw thank god we both have the same phone with a clear case because i completely forgot that our people could notice that

Andre 💂🏽‍♂️

Thank god one of us has a brain. I noticed that from the beginning which is why I never bothered about it and could you PLEASE use commas when you text? You’re making my life harder than it is right now. FACETIME ME.

Hayden rolled his eyes at his dramatic brother and finally face timed him.

“What was such a big problem that it had to be over facetime? You better not ruin this for the both of us.” Hayden said as soon as Andre accepted the call.

“Well you’re going to want to hear this so brace yourself. Dad has a girlfriend.”

The reaction that Andre was waiting for never came. Hayden simply stared at him, sort of waiting for him to say something else. “Well? Aren’t you going to say something about that?” Andre asks annoyedly. “Nope, dad has a new ‘girlfriend’ every other month Andre, it’s nothing to worry about.” Hayden shrugs

“You told me that but this one seems like a serious thing Hayds, he let her borrow your bike.” Unlike the first announcement, this time Hayden definitely reacted. He was shocked that his dad would let someone borrow his bike that was so precious to him. “MY BIKE?! My precious baby, is she okay?! Did you check everything for me?!”

Andre rolled his eyes. “Yes I checked your precious baby for you…weirdo.” “It’s so funny when you say shit like weirdo with your british accent. So what are we gonna do about this girl? What’s her name anyway and what does she look like?” “Her name is Stephanie Walsh, some type of banker. Long black hair, kinda looks like Vanessa Hudgens.” “Banker?! that’s new.” “Exactly. And get this, no bbl and no fillers either. “No bbl AND no fillers? That’s definitely new when it comes to dad. We might have a problem on our hands Andre.”

“Ya think?! You HAVE to bring mom over here immediately.” Andre demanded. “Andre are you crazy? I’ve only had one day with her. I can’t and I won’t. I wan’t to spend more time with her.” “But dad’s in love!” “Dad doesn’t fall in love, we’ll be fine. Just break them up, lie about something if you have to.”

“Well I would but i’m clearly at a slight disadvantage. I only met the man less than twenty four hours ago.”

“Oh sorry what was that? My airpods cut off I can’t hear you Andre.”

“Can you hear me now?”

“I- connection- hear- you” Hayden lied while turning his wifi on and off.

“Hayd-“ Hayden hung up the facetime, cutting his brother off. He was having so much fun getting to spend time with you that the thought of going back to a life without his mom really saddened him. He wasn’t ready for that.

The next morning in Louisville, Andre was with Jack in the kitchen while Jack was making breakfast for the two. “Your dad wanted to go for a bike ride with you but you overslept so he asked you to meet him in the backyard with your bike later when you’re done with breakfast.” “Oh okay sure.”

“But of course I would oversleep too if I was up at three in the morning on a phone call.” Jack said suspiciously.

“Oh that.. I was calling my friend from camp. They forgot about our time difference so they called me.”

Jack stared at Andre hoping that he would crack but the boy did not budge. “Okay, if you say so.”

“Meet your dad when you’re done with breakfast.” Andre took one bite from his toast and said “All done” and ran to the door. Andre pulled and pulled on the door but it wouldn’t move. “Push bro.”Jack said watching him from the kitchen. Andre pushed the door and it opened with ease. Well that’s embarrassing. “Oh..right I forgot.” He ran out to the backyard to meet up with his dad. Jack shook his head at Andre’s actions. He couldn’t help but wonder “What has gotten into that kid?”

Urban and Andre were riding their bikes to a nearby park where Urb would usually do bike rides with Hayden. “Hayd I wanna talk to you about Stephanie.” Urban said out of the blue. “And I want to talk to you about my mother.” Andre said. Urban glances at him quickly before looking back to where he’s riding. “What about your mother?” “Well I still haven’t met her and i’m turning seventeen soon. Dad I really thinks it’s about time I have a mom.” “I do think it’s about time you have a mom.” As they pulled up to the parking lot, to Andre’s surprise, Stephanie was also there but she had another man with her. They got off of their bikes and went to Stephanie and her friend.

“Hey honey.” She greeted Urban excitingly with a huge smile on her face. She hugged him and kisses his cheek, leaving a print from her red lipstick. “Hi Hayd.” Andre simply nods curtly to her. “Stephanie.”

She falsely smiles and turns back to Urban. “Have you told him yet?” “About to.” The two whisper to each other with Andre and the other man standing there awkwardly. “Why don’t the three of us go out to dinner tonight?” She suggested out loud. “Oh no can do Steph I promised Hayd we’d hang out all day today.” Urban declined. “That’s fine, I have plenty of work to do. We’ll talk later Urby.” Stephanie turned around and walked to what seemed to be her car followed by her friend who Andre assumed was her assistant. Once they’re in the car, Stephanie lets out an annoyed groan. “Step one, get that annoying and sassy little boy into a far away boarding school.” She started the car and they drove off.

As Urban and Andre are taking the usual path, Urban makes a stop once they reached the top of the path. “Are you excited for our camping trip?” “What camping trip?” “What camping trip?” Urban repeated in offense. “The one we take every summer before you go back to school.” He says. “Oh yeah that camping trip. Yeah i can’t wait!” He lied.

“So uh Hayd, what do you think of Stephanie?” Urban asked him. “As what dad? Your financial adviser? Your friend? Your-“ “No just in general Hayd, what do you think of her? As a person.” Andre did not like where this was going at all. Was he really so smitten over this girl??? “Well, she’s cute, she has nice teeth. Honestly dad Stephanie’s a complete stranger to me. Why do you want my opinion on her anyway?”

“I’ll tell you why Hayd.” Urban turned to Andre. “Hayd, believe it or not.” Andre didn’t let Urban finish his sentence. He refused. So he did the next best thing he could think of. “RACE YOU HOME DAD” he said as he took off on his bike, paddling as fast as he could so he can get home. “HAYD i’m trying to tell you something” Urban called after him but Andre paid no mind. Urban started paddling as well but Andre was already far gone. Once andre got to the yard he threw his bike down and ran into the house.

He was walking back and forth in the living room completely stressed. “This is too much for me to handle! I can’t handle all of this i’m just a kid!” He told himself. He leaned on the back of the seat, taking off his hat to scratch his hair. “You got something you wanna share with the class, big man?” Andre gasped and jumped from shock. He had no idea Jack had been sitting in the exact seat he leaned on. “Jack! you gave me a fright.” He said breathing heavily while he held his chest. Jack frowned and stood up from the chair with his hands on his hips. “I gave you a fright?” He asked all perplexed as he crossed his arms. “I mean you scared me, I didn’t know you were sitting there.” “Are you sure there isn’t anything you wanna talk to me about?” Jack asked him once again.

“Like why you don’t ask about my songs anymore or how your appetite has changed and why you’re using expressions like ‘you gave me a fright’?” Jack asks while circling him intimidatingly. Andre was undoubtedly nervous. “Jack I changed a lot over the summer…that’s all.” He said calmly and surprisingly Jack accepted it. “Okay.” or so Andre thought. “Well if I didn’t know any better i’d say it’s almost like you were…” Jack stopped himself. “Forget it, it’s impossible.” He turned around to walk away. “Almost as if I were who, Jack?” Andre asked him curiously. “Nobody, nobody. Forget I mentioned it.” Jack laughed nervously and turned back around. “Almost as if I were…Andre?” At that moment Jack froze.

He turned around and took a couple steps closer to who he thought was Hayden. “You know about Andre?” He asked him surprisingly. Andre took one deep breath before telling Jack “I AM Andre.” Jack’s eyes had never been so wide. He couldn’t believe it but it all made sense now.

Before he could say anything else, Urban stormed in, startling them. “Hayd, why did you take off like that? I told you I wanted to talk to you about something.” Urban noticed Jack still standing in the same spot he was in when Andre told him the truth. He had a look of admiration in his eyes. Like a father holding their child for the first time. It was almost as if he had tears in his eyes. “Jack why are you staring at him like that?”

Andre begged Jack with his eyes to not say a word. “Like what? I’m not looking at him in a special way. I’m looking at him the same way I have in 16 years.” He swallowed down his tears. “Since the day he came back from the hospital. Seven pounds, eleven ounces and twenty one inches, this is how I look at him.” He said as he teared up uncontrollably at the end. “Can I hug him?” Jack was an emotional wreck. He hugged Andre super tight as he rubbed his back. “He’s so awesome. And so grown up.” Jack sobbed.

Andre hugged him back with a very happy smile. It felt good that he could finally officially meet a family member as himself. Jack accepting him with literal open arms was such a nice, warm, reassuring feeling that he will never forget. Jack finally let go of him and started making his way towards his room. Still facing them he tells Andre “I’m gonna order something special for you to eat. What would you like? Anything? You know what? It doesn’t matter, i’m just gonna order everything I can.” And he was gone.

Urban simply shook his head at his weird best friend. “Come here Hayd” He guided Andre to the sofa nearby. “We have to talk.” Andre took a seat on the sofa and Urban sat on the coffee table directly in-front of him. “Okay, shoot.” “Buddy, I wanna know what you think about making Stephanie part of the family.” “Part of OUR family?” Andre asked skeptically. Urban nodded his head. “Yeah.”

Andre pretended to think for a few seconds and replied. “I think it’s an awesome idea.” “Yeah?” “Inspiring!” “You do?” Andre thought of another word. “Brilliant!” He said, full of enthusiasm. “You do?” Urban asked excitingly. “Totally! I mean it’s a dream come true, i’ve always wanted a big sister.”

Urban’s smile dimmed a bit as he laughed nervously. “Uhm Hayd I think we missed the point.” And Hayden said “No we’re not, we’re going to adopt Stephanie. That is so sweet dad.” Urban shook his head immediately saying “No, i’m not going to adopt her. I would like to marry her.”

“MARRY HER?!” Andre jumped up from his seat. And started pacing angrily. “That’s insane! You can’t marry a woman young enough to be my older sister.”

“No puedes hacerme esto.” “Hayd” “Y mi mamá?!” “Hayd” Urban tried to grasp his attention but Andre was rambling non stop. “Nunca estuviste enamorado de nadie, que ves en ella???” “HAYD” Urban finally got him to stop pacing and calm down. “Was that spanish?” Urban was very confused. Since when did his son speak spanish. “I uhm I learned it at camp. Look i’m sorry. Let’s just discuss this calmly and rationally.” He said as he took a couple deep breaths. “Yeah and in english if you don’t mind.” Was Urban’s reply. “Bud what has gotten into you?” “Nothing, it’s just..dad you can NOT marry her it’ll ruin everything.”

Andre couldn’t take his anger anymore and decided to step outside. Urban sighed out of frustration and got up from where he was sitting. As he turned around he caught Jack staring at him from the kitchen opening. “Don’t look at me, I know nothing.” Jack rushed and walked out of Urban’s sight.

Just as Urban was stepping out into the porch, a bright red mustang pulls in. It’s Stephanie. Urban took a seat and stretching his legs out. “Hey Urby!” “Hey” Urban was obviously tired. “You sound stressed.” Stephanie says while taking a seat on Urban’s lap. “How about a drink?” She suggested. “Can you make mine double?” Stephanie giggled before pulling a bell out of her bag and started ringing it loudly. “Jack~” She yelled simultaneously. She repeated this process three times until Jack finally came outside with an annoyed facial expression. “You rang?” He asked sarcastically.

“Could you pour us a drink please? And make Urby’s double.” Jack looked at her as if she just lost her mind. He turned to Urban to see if they were serious. “Please Jack?” Was all Urban said and Jack rolled his eyes and walked back inside as he shook his head in disbelief.

“I told Hayden.” Urban sighed to Stephanie as she played with his hair. “And how did that go?”

[stargazer-sims]

Journal Entry #59

Journal Entry #58 // STORY INDEX

Victor

We’ve been having an amazing summer.

Yeah, I know we’ve been neglecting our journal again, but in a way I feel like maybe we’re outgrowing it. We’ve been chronicling our life this way for over a year, and so much has changed for us in that time. So much has changed about us as well. We’re not the same people we were a year ago, and that’s a good thing.

I started this journal for fun because I wanted to do some travelling that wasn’t connected to a snowboarding competition, and I thought it'd be cool to document my adventures. I did get to go to Sulani, but in hindsight, now I see how unrealistic it was to think I’d be jetting frivolously all around the globe.

But, starting the journal wasn’t a wasted effort by any means. Looking back on it, it’s a reminder of how far Yuri and I have come, what we’ve learned and how we’ve grown as individuals and as a couple. I love us, and I'm proud of the progress we’ve made together.

It’s been interesting to share a part of our story with everyone, but I feel like we’re moving into a different stage of our life now. I don't know if we'll keep recording our journey like this in the future. We'll see.

Anyway, we're still doing it for now, so let me pick up where I left off back in June.

After Mom and Julian's wedding, Yuri and I had a few days together before he and his family returned to Japan. I had a great time showing them around, and I think Mr. and Mrs. Okamoto fell in love with Willow Creek a little bit, because they said they wanted to come back for a longer visit in the near future. Yuki's favourite thing was actually the amusement park in nearby Newcrest, and her parents really seemed to enjoy the scenic walking trails and the farmers market.

Before they left, Mr. Okamoto asked me if I'd like to stay with them when I returned to Mt. Komorebi instead of moving back into Uncle Kaz's house for what might end up being only a couple of months. My knee-jerk reaction was to say no, but I'm glad I managed to keep that to myself. The offer did make a lot of sense, after all. If Yuri and I both stayed with his parents, we wouldn't have to pay rent on top of our mortgage payment for the haunted house, and we could pack up the rest of our stuff so we'd be ready to leave whenever we reasonably could. I just didn't know how I'd feel, being in such close proximity to my in-laws for an extended period of time.

I told Mr. Okamoto I'd think about it and get back to him, and he seemed satisfied with that.

Grandpa Michael also hung around in Willow Creek for a while after the wedding. I said he could stay with me, but he declined, claiming the house would be too crowded with all Yuri's family members staying there too. I found that a little odd at first, until I discovered that he somehow managed to hook up with someone at the wedding and got invited to stay in her guest room for a few nights.

"She's a younger woman, and she’s hot," he told me confidentially. "Her name's Juliet. How about that?"

"Uh... how much younger are we talking?" I asked.

"She's sixty-six."

"Don't you think you're moving kinda fast? Like, sleeping over at her place after you literally just met her?"

"Listen," Grandpa Michael said. "At my age, you gotta move fast so you don't miss the good opportunities."

He's seventy-three. If he was in a contest for old people who move fast, he'd probably win a medal.

Still, he deserves to find happiness and have fun. It’s been seven years since my grandma passed away, and I’m pretty sure he’ll never stop loving her, but seven years is a long time to be alone if you’re used to being with somebody. If he feels like he's ready to get back into the dating scene, who am I to tell him not to?

When I met the aforementioned Juliet a couple days later, I totally understood the attraction. Although ‘hot’ wasn’t exactly the first word that sprang to mind, I could definitely see why Grandpa Michael would think so. She was elegant and confidently attractive in the way women are when they embrace aging with grace instead of engaging in a useless battle with it. I could easily imagine her being a knockout in her younger days. When she was my age, I bet she turned every head in every room she stepped into.

Beyond my initial impression of Juliet Picard, I was startled to realize I recognized her. She was the woman who'd been in charge of all the flowers for the wedding. Turns out she owns a florist shop called Hearts and Flowers, which happens to be down the street from Mom and Julian's clinic. Coincidentally, the flower shop also occupies the same building as the flat where Davian St-Jean, a friend of mine from high school, lives.

I used to say Willow Creek was the most boring place on Earth, that nothing ever happens there, but that's when I was viewing it through the eyes of a guy who thought events didn't have much meaning unless they were big and exciting and important to everyone. I was wrong about that. Sometimes the most seemingly insignificant thing carries the most weight.

A lot happens in Willow Creek. It's a town of connections, of opportunities small and large, the sort of place where a chance interaction could change the course of somebody's life in ways they might never have been able to imagine.

I mean, I was in Willow Creek when I met Yuri. Sitting alone in my sparsely -furnished unit at the Sage Estates apartment complex, scrolling through a forum for snowboarding enthusiasts, I had no idea I was going to see a photo of this impossibly cute Japanese boy doing a silly pose with his board. My impulsivity made me message him, and his curiosity made him message back. Prior to that day, if anyone had suggested I would meet my soulmate through a random encounter on the internet, I think I would've laughed out loud.

But now? Don't tell me stuff doesn't happen in Willow Creek. Dreams are born there, and nobody will ever convince me to change my mind about that again.

The day after Yuri and his family headed home, Grandpa Michael and I departed for Brindleton Bay. He returned his rented car, and then Juliet met us for breakfast and dropped us off at the bus station afterwards.

"I'll be back," he told her as we were about to board the bus, and I swear it was totally dramatic, like something out of a movie. He was dead serious, though, so I had to do my best not to laugh.

"I'll be looking forward to it," she said.

I reached into my bag and pulled out the keys to the house. "Here," I said, handing them to my grandpa. "Consider my place your place until Yuri and I come back. Feel free to use it any time."

He grinned at me, and for a split second I could've sworn I saw the face of a man half his age. "Thanks. I'm sure I'll enjoy that heated swimming pool, and your fabulous kitchen. I'll make myself at home."

"Go for it," I said. "Just don't use the red mug, and don't sleep in the basement bedroom."

Juliet raised an eyebrow. "What an odd thing to say."

"It's only odd if you don't know about the ghost," I told her.

"The ghost?"

"Victor's house is haunted," Grandpa Michael said cheerfully. "Cool, don't you think?"

"Really?" Juilet looked intrigued. "Well, I can't wait to see that."

"Victor, I presume I'm allowed to have houseguests?"

"Go for it," I said. "Far be it from me to cramp your style."

He winked at Juliet. "Heated swimming pool."

"Oh, lord..." she responded, but she was laughing. "I think I'll have to keep him, Victor. I wouldn't want to unleash him on anyone else."

"Consider me kept." Grandpa Michael put the keys into his own bag, and then gave me a thumbs up. "Just let me know when you're coming back. I'll make sure I'm there, so you can get in."

"Don't worry," I said. "Mom has the other set of keys. We'll be able to get in. I'll let her know you'll be coming and going, though. We don't want her to think somebody's trying to break into the place."

"Imagine explaining that to the police," he said, and the look on his face implied he'd very much enjoy stirring up a little trouble like that.

Mom says I'm just like Grandpa Michael. She's probably not wrong. Aside from sharing an almost obsessive passion for snow sports and being international competitors — he was a world champion slalom skiier back in the day — we have the same love for food, the same enjoyment of being with other people, the same sense of humour and, I think it's safe to say, the same impulse control issues.

I love him. I mean, I love my other grandparents too, but I think I have a deeper bond with Grandpa Michael than with the others. We get each other on a fundamental level.

We had a blast during the week I spent in Brindleton Bay with him. We passed a lot of our time at the local fitness center, and every morning we had tea and breakfast with his friends at a café in town. His friends are awesome, for the record. After the first day, I kind of forgot I was hanging out with guys in their seventies. One afternoon, we all played golf together, and on another day we went deep-sea fishing with one of the friends who owns a boat.

When we weren't socializing, we managed to get loads of yard work done, and we did plenty of cooking. Oh man... the cooking. It was so nice not to have to worry about ingredients and portion sizes and making sure everything had the right balance of protein and carbs. We cooked whatever we felt like having, and trust me, we had a lot of it. I'm pretty sure I've never eaten so much in a week in my entire life. With my belly full, I slept like a dead man every night, and it was absolutely satisfying.

On the evening before my flight back to Japan, Grandpa Michael and I were sitting on his back doorstep, drinking some fruit juice and staring out at the ocean. If I thought sunsets over the lake in Granite Falls were beautiful, let me tell you they've got nothing on sunsets over the ocean. The last time I'd seen anything like that, I'd been in Sulani, but somehow this was better. It wasn't that the sunset itself was any more gorgeous, but because I was seeing it with someone I care about and who I know cares about me.

"It's been a long time since I got to sit here and enjoy this with another person," my grandfather said, as if he were reading my thoughts.

"I'm glad I get to watch it with you."

"Me too," he said. "I hope you'll come back here more often, once you're all settled into your new home. Bring your husband too. He seems like a sweet little fellow."

I laughed at that, thinking about how Yuri would respond to being referred to as 'a sweet little fellow'. He'd probably love it, and I could picture him blushing.

"I will," I promised. "But I guess you'll be coming to Willow Creek more often now too, won’t you? So we'll have extra chances to see each other."

"Hmm..." Grandpa Michael leaned back in his chair and stretched his long legs out in front of him. "I never thought I'd find someone I wanted to be with after your grandmother. I didn't think I'd ever want to love anyone that way again, honestly, but I might have changed my mind."

"You think love at first sight is a thing?"

"No," he said. "You never want to say 'love' too quickly, but it's okay to think about it, and I've got a good feeling."

I smiled. "I'm really glad you met Juliet."

"So am I. She made me remember that being alive and living life aren't the same thing," he said. "You know, it's easy to give up on living when you feel like you've lost your reason to live. But, I think we forget that we've got more than one reason. There's more to live for than that one person or thing we lost."

I thought about Yuri. He'd been at his lowest point this past winter, and for a while I'd really been afraid that he'd given up on wanting to be alive, not just on living. Nothing I said or did seemed to matter, and it was scaring me more than anything else ever had. But then, just when I was wondering what would become of him, of us and the future we’d planned, his reminder to live came from the most unlikely source; his father.

If somebody asked me to guess who'd save Yuri in the end, I never would’ve predicted it’d be his dad. Their relationship was practically non-existent up until this year.

It’d taken some pretty horrible events to make them take the first tiny steps toward fixing their broken trust, but all the pain and suffering was worth it if Yuri and his dad learned how to communicate with each other. They’ve both found hope and renewed determination to make the most out of their time in the world, and I’m thankful.

Since March, their relationship has grown by leaps and bounds, and it's been truly amazing to observe. Yuri is happier than I've ever known him to be. He's looking forward, rather than being stuck in a bubble of self-pity and going nowhere. Even the smallest things seem to bring him joy now, and I can't even begin to describe how full my heart is over that.

I want this to last. I want him to be happy forever, and I don't even care if I'm not the catalyst. Seeing him happy makes me happy. The reason for it doesn't matter, as long as he's thriving.

Of course, I'm enough of a realist to get that it's not always going to be sunshine and strawberry milkshakes. Yuri's chronic illness will never go away, so it's inevitable that he'll have bad days or weeks. Plus, we're doubtless going to have to deal with difficult stuff that's completely unrelated to Yuri's health.

That having been said, I'm of the opinion that happiness is a state of being. Like, even if we're not constantly cheerful and we're navigating scary or unpleasant situations, we can still be happy. There's always something to be grateful for, always one more reason to keep on living, and that's what I want for Yuri. My wish for him is that he'll finally understand happiness is something he can choose for himself, and even if everything around him is dark and bitter, he can still find his own metaphorical sunshine and strawberry milkshakes on the inside.

When I shared that with Grandpa Michael, he told me he was proud of me and said I should be proud of myself too.

"You've grown up a lot since you've been away," he commented.

"Thanks. I've had a lot of people helping me."

"Other people can only get you so far. You have to want to do it."

"I don't know if I wanted to," I confessed. "Being an adult is hard. Part of me wishes I could just stay a kid forever, Know what I mean?"

"Believe it or not, I do," he said. "But you know what they say. You don't have to stop playing just because you're growing up."

With that in mind, I've made it my mission to get in as much playtime as possible this summer and to bring as many people along with me on my adventures as I can.

I made up my mind to stay with my in-laws when I got back to Mt. Komorebi, and I have no regrets. Yuri and I have been filling our days with all kinds of activities from long walks on the mountain trails, to visiting local museums and galleries, to picnic lunches by the lake near his parents' house. I returned in time for the Festival of Snow, and the whole family went to it together. We were out all day, and it was even more fun than last year.

A few weeks ago, Yuri and I took a weekend trip to Kyoto for shopping, sightseeing, and a classical music concert. Yuri convinced me to go back to the spa we went to on the day before we got married, and afterwards we bought dango from a street vendor and ate it in the little park where we had our wedding pictures taken.

We've been spending time with our friends as well, and it probably goes without saying that Sakura and I are training on the mountain as much as we’re reasonably able to. Last week, Yuri told me that he thought he was finally feeling strong enough to get back on his board, so I called Sakura and asked her if we could skip training for the day so I could take Yuri snowboarding. She sounded only too glad to oblige, and said she might come out to join us, if Yuri didn't mind. He said he didn't, so Sakura met us at the intermediate slope, and the three of us had one of the most wonderful mornings I've had in a long time.

Yuri was exhausted by the time we were done, but even more importantly, he was hungry. He practically begged me to take him to a local ramen house for his favourite meal of the moment, kake udon. That's a kind of mild noodle soup that can be served with different toppings like tofu, sliced fish or shrimp tempura. Yuri likes it with scallions and fish. He somehow talked me into buying him strawberry daifuku as well, and then he didn't even share them with me. Like... the nerve! When it became clear I wasn't going to get even a bite of one of his, I had to order my own. I pretended to protest, but I was secretly thrilled, if you really want to know.

Yuri's been doing so good with his eating that Dr. Kasongo thinks she might be able to remove his feeding tube by the end of the year. He officially finished the first phase of his nutrition rehabilitation therapy in mid-July, so that means no more food intelligence classes and no more weekly visits with the nutritionist and psychologist.

He's happy about not having to meet with the psychologist every single week, but he's nervous about not seeing the nutritionist as regularly. She's been like a safety net for him, I think. He had to be accountable to her, and now he's worried that he's not going to be able to do it without her encouraging, reminding, and occasionally scolding him about his food intake and eating choices. He's supposed to continue with his daily food diary, and at this point he's supposed to start planning his own weekly menu or at least contributing to the planning of a family menu. He has a short consultation with the nutritionist every two weeks, usually ten or fifteen minutes by video call, so he can go over his food diary and meal plans with her. It's nothing like his previous hour-long weekly in-person sessions, and he's stressed.

Everyone in the family is cheering him on, though. We all know he can do it.

His current goal is to go sixty consecutive days without a single tube feeding. That, and his general overall health, are the criteria for having the tube removed. He looked like he was about to panic when the doctor told him that, and on the way home from his appointment he cried while telling me he didn't think he was ready to go sixty days in a row.

"It's okay," I said. "If you're not ready yet, that's not a bad thing. Just do the best you can."

"But, I'll be delaying our move even more if I can't do this," he said.

"No, you won't. We've got the date for your first appointment with Dr. Kim now, don't forget. We can move any time between now and then, and if you still have your tube when we move, I'm sure Dr. Kim can take it out just as easily as Dr. Kasongo could."

As a matter of fact, he'd received the email from Dr. Kim, the gastroenterologist at Willow Creek Regional Hospital, just the day before we last saw Dr. Kasongo. Yuri's initial appointment with Dr. Kim is scheduled for the twenty-second of October. While I wanted to leave Japan before autumn, I had to acknowledge there really was no rush, and if we didn't get to Willow Creek until mid-October, that would still be fine.

When we got back to Yuri's parents' house, we told them all about how it'd gone with Dr. Kasongo. Mr. and Mrs. Okamoto agreed that it was okay if Yuri didn't think he was ready to commit to the sixty-day home stretch yet, but they also said they were confident in his ability.

Yuki, who had overheard part of the conversation, later offered the helpful suggestion of making a sticker chart. "So every day you go without formula, you get to put a sticker on it, and at the end, you get a big reward!"

I thought she meant the 'big reward' was having his tube taken out, but Yuki had something else in mind. She conspired with her mother to create the most fantastic sticker chart I've ever seen. They drew it on poster board, and blocked it with six rows of ten squares each. Every tenth square had 'reward' written on it, and the sixtieth square boldly proclaimed 'BIG REWARD!!!' in alternating yellow and pink letters, Yuri's favourite colours. They bought an assortment of stickers for him to use on it, including ones with pink ice cream, seashells, glittery rainbow stars, cute baby animals, and — to his obvious delight — sparkly musical instruments, including violins.

"Look at this, Yuri. We have a plan," his mother said, as she went about hanging the chart on the wall in the kitchen. "Whenever you're ready to start counting your sixty days, let me know, and I'll give you the stickers."

To my surprise, it was less than a week later when he told her he was ready to begin.

Today is the ninth of August. We're on day eight of the first ten days today, and the full sixty days will bring us up to the first of October. We’ll be sure to keep you informed about how it’s going, but so far, so good.

We're tentatively planning our move for the middle of September, and I'm cautiously optimistic. Everyone who's watching this, please wish us luck.

There are people who say luck isn't really a thing, and that we can only get ahead by persistence and hard work, but I think it's a combination of the two. Like, I think it's true that our own efforts and our determination to succeed is the real driving force, but who would ever say no to a serendipitous stroke of luck? Even the hardest worker needs a helping hand now and then, and I'm not too proud to accept a well-meant wish for good fortune and success.

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Pretty Petals 26

No tag lists. Do not send asks or DMs about updates. Review my pinned post for guidelines, masterlist, etc.

Warnings: this fic will include dark content including rape/noncon, kidnapping, violence, sexual acts (fingering, oral, anal, dp), coercion, bondage, and more tags to be added as the series progresses. PREPARE YOUR PANTIES, HOES.

This is a dark!fic and explicit. 18+ only. Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Warnings have been given. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Summary: You go on a self-improvement retreat, but not all is as it seems.

Girls and Flower Name List HERE!

Characters: Ransom Drysdale, Lloyd Hansen, Lee Bodecker, Curtis Everett, Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Loki, Andy Barber, Hela, and multiple OFCs

Note: double chapter day!

As per usual, I humbly request your thoughts! Reblogs are always appreciated and welcomed, not only do I see them easier but it lets other people see my work. I will do my best to answer all I can. I’m trying to get better at keeping up so thanks everyone for staying with me <3

Your feedback will help in this and future works (and WiPs, I haven’t forgotten those!)

Love you all like birds love to appear everytime you are near. Take care. 💖

“It was so lovely to come see you all, to see how you’ve grown,” Hela preens as she stands at the head of the table. “Immaculate, every one of you.” 

Dahlia pokes her cheek with her tongue and Bucky snatches the fork she twirls in her hand. He knows her well. Maybe he even fears he’s at the mercy of the tines.  

You turn your attention back to your matron of dishonour. Her black bob is wavy and her skin freckled from the sun. She’s beautiful for someone so wretched. You can’t help but wonder if you’re the only ones. You know you can’t be the first. It’s all too orderly, too planned, too perfect. 

“Do make me proud, petals,” she claps her hands together and her pretty lips curl, “I may just return at Christmas with some gifts, eh?” 

Christmas. It’s still a ways off but the fall is setting in. The summer is in its last dregs and you find yourself shivering in the morning as the night cools. Not a single voice rises to answer her farewell. You all just stare, rather glare, at her. 

“Well, then, I’ll be off.” 

“Sister, I’ll show you the door,” Loki rises and beckons her away from the table, “I must thank you for coming so quickly and bringing a fresh stem...” 

His voice trails off and you glance over at Zinnia, sitting by his empty seat. She mashes down her eggs with the back of a spoon. The other girls keep there hands away from their plates. You don’t have much of an appetite yourself. 

“Boring,” Lloyd says suddenly. “How about we do something fun?” 

The other men seemed agitated by his suggestion. Strange how they seem to share the same malaise. Ransom’s arm drapes over the back of your chair, Curtis has Violet in his lap, Lee keeps jabbing Marigold and whispering at her. Your eyes meet Steve’s as he watches you in turn. You quickly look away. 

“I’ll clear the table,” you offer as you stand and lift your plate. 

“Ugh, boring,” Lloyd spits again, “Christ on a dildo, why are we sitting here playing Brady Bunch? Let’s get fucking wild.” 

“Shut up,” Bucky growls as Dahlia rubs her faded bruises. 

“Oh, shit, you know, I got the perfect fucking game, girls, follow Lily’s lead and clear the table.” 

The mustachioed man stands and breezes away. The other women look at each other. You nudge Azalea and she stands with her head down. She takes her plate and Lloyd’s. The other girls follow in a long train to the kitchen. Andy gets up to follow, keeping watch as you cluster together to divvy up the leftovers into containers. 

You hate to agree but it is dull as hell. You finish stacking up the dirty plates but none of you are eager to go back into the dining room. Only bad things happen there. The games they play aren’t much fun for you. 

“Go,” Andy demands. 

Dahlia goes out first, angling her head back and forth defiantly. Zinnia follows after her, Daisy, Rose, Violet shuffles noisily and clings to Azalea’s hand as she drags her, then you, and finally Marigold. As you come out, Lloyd stands in front of his seat, jiggling a pair of dice in his hands. 

The other men share your level of enthusiasm. Bucky’s arms are crossed, Ransom yawns, Lee rubs his belly, Curtis picks his thumbnail, Loki untangles a shank of his long dark coils, and Steve peers over his shoulder to stare at you. You don’t like that. 

“Right, simple rules, guys,” Lloyd rattles the large pair of plastic dice, “choose a girl, roll the dice, and let fate decide. I’ll go first since it was my idea.” 

You nearly let out a groan. You’re so tired. Ransom points you next to him and you sit. The others follow suit. Andy stands behind his chair and watches as Lloyd tosses the dice. 

You notice the imprinted images on the sides of the cubes. Various positions and words. You hold your breath and sense the rest of the room doing the same. 

“Hey, Zinnia,” Lloyd calls as the dice bounce over the wood, “how about we get acquainted?” 

The plastic cubes still and shows a man with his head between a woman’s legs as she sits on a chair. The other dice reads, ‘until orgasm.’ 

Zinnia whimpers and Loki sniffs. He stands and drags her chair away from the table. She grips the sides to keep from sliding off. He veers her around to face Lloyd as he struts behind the other seats. He snickers as he drags his hand over his mouth. 

“Come on, let me see the kitty, just wanna give her a pet,” he gets down to his knees and Loki catches Zinnia’s shoulders before she can sit up. She writhes helplessly as Lloyd’s hands crawl up her thighs. He tickles the front of her panties and glances over, “hey don’t let me have all the fun, unless you wanna watch.” 

There’s a moment of indecision. Then Steve reaches across the table and scoops up the dice. He examines each then cradles them in his large hand. Zinnia’s murmurs underline the lull as Lloyd growls deeply, his mouth making unsettling noises. 

“Lily, how’s it we’ve never had any fun?” He asks and tosses them. They only roll a short way before stilling. 

You stare at the top of the first dice. A couple in doggystyle. You clamp your lips and try not to shudder. You glance over at Dahlia and she shakes her head. The other girls slump and shrink, knowing their own turn is imminent. 

The second dice makes you blanch as it lands flat; ‘backdoor’. 

“Perfect,” Steve growls, “don’t worry, sweetheart, I’ll be nice.” 

He stands, pushing out his chair and waving towards the seat, “get on your knees, I’ll be right back.” 

“The fuck, Steve,” Ransom sneers. 

“We’ll trade,” Steve offers. 

“Mm, thanks but I think I’ll try something new. How about you, Statue of Liberty?” He looks at ass, “you think you can stay awake for some good dick?” 

You get up as Ransom swipes up the dice. This is humiliating. It’s one thing to be dragged off behind closed doors but these men are as good as starting an orgy. For what? Because they’re bored? 

Steve helps you onto the chair. You brace the back as you sit on your knees, shaking. You don’t know if you can handle this. He rubs your shoulder, gripping it hard enough for the tendon to tweak. You wince and he lets go as he walks away. You watch after him as Azalea starts to snivel. 

You look over as Lloyd keeps his face buried between Zinnia’s legs, his hand on her tits as he devours her. She puffs and pouts and squirm as Loki pets her cheek and coos. Ugh, god! You can’t keep doing this.  

For now, you have to. You have to bide your time. You have to get rid of these necklaces and those damn cameras. You have to wait for these men to turn their fangs on each other instead of you. 

Steve comes back as Dahlia’s snarl rolls through the air. There’s a struggle behind you on the floor you can’t see. Andy’s no longer by the kitchen door. It must be him. His voice confirms it as he calls for Rose too. 

Shit. The chaos breaks out quickly. Steve startles you as he squirts a slick flow between your cheeks. You squeak as he pushes his fingers along your ass as rubs your tight hole. He clicks shut the bottle of lube and reaches to put it on the table. 

He grips the back of your neck and forces your head straight. You his and latch tightly to the chair. You sit on your heels as he bends against you, contorting so he’s flush to your back. He pushes his head next to yours and growls. 

He rescinds his touch for just a moment as he jostles around. His brings his firm tip up along your cheeks and presses against your ring. You babble and reach back to press on his hip. 

“Please, no--” 

He loops his hand around the front of your neck and chokes your voice away. You gasp and wheeze as he pushes into you. He stretches your ass just around his tip, just enough for your to let out a whistle through your tight throat. Ow. Oh shit.  

He rocks and dips a little further inside. Your eyes prick and you shake your head, grinding your teeth as you quake. He thrusts again, deeper. Several more times, sinking in as your insides burn. Even the lube can’t help the resistance of your body. 

He brings his other hand to your throat, crisscrossing his fingers in front of it as he forces your head up and back. Your spine arches as his pelvis claps against your ass and he grunts. The chair rocks with his motion, teetering dangerously as your tears stream down your cheeks. 

The pain is blinding. Your eyes roll back as you puff out shallow breaths through the constriction of your throat. He snaps his hips harshly and you spasm. Again, again, again. Each time crueler than the last. 

Steve shifts his feet and moves closer again. He bucks into you so that the agony radiates from your core. You would sob if your could breath. He adjusts his hands, wrapping them full around your neck. Your lashes flutter as your vision speckles with black dots. 

“Steve, take it easy--” you hear someone warn but you can’t make out their timbre. 

“Hey, whoa, slow down. She’s--” 

Your tongue lolls out as all the air traps in your chest. The heat in your lungs is as fiery as that in your ass. The slap of flesh and the cracking force mingles with the swirling in your head. Your eyelids close of their own volition as all resistance gives out and your body goes limp. The world fades though the pain remains. 

🌸

“You could’ve fucking killed her,” A snarl seeps into your ears, making them itchy. “What the fuck are you thinking?” 

“Whatever. We can get another--” 

“Fuck off. The new one’s already pissing me off,” Bucky’s deeper tone breaks through the veil over you. 

“Like you even like the one you got--” 

“Lily,” another voice drifts in and your eyelids part, your vision hazy as Dahlia’s blurry figure sits over you. 

“Keep it down,” Lloyd sneers, “some of us are trying to eat.” 

“Don’t be a jackass,” Andy barks as he stands behind Dahlia, looming over you both, “if we lose another one, maybe you should just sacrifice the tall one.” 

“Don’t be so fucking dramatic. He was getting kinky--” 

“She’s awake,” Steve looks over at you, his pants still undone but his dick tucked away. 

“Fucking lucky,” Ransom shoves him and sidles through. “Lily pad, you okay down there?” 

You blink at him as Azalea sways nearby, twisting her hand around her finger. You look at the faces you can make out and Dahlia helps you sit up. You nod and rub your temples, wincing as your ass throbs. Oh, yeah... 

“Come on,” Ransom bends over you and hauls you up, “someone send that douchebag to his room.” 

“Who put you in charge?” Steve growls, “not my fault she can’t take it. Maybe you’re getting soft.” 

“Some of us don’t wanna fuck a corpse,” Ransom retorts as he wraps an arm around your back and lifts you. 

“I’m sure you do so much work, pillow princess,” Lloyd cackles from his knees. He has three fingers inside of Zinnia as she continues to squirm and squeal. 

Ransom huffs and carries on past the others. You lean your head against him, blocking out the rest of the room with his body. You can’t look. It hurts even more to see the rest suffer. 

He takes you into your room and elbows the door shut with a quick jerk of his body. He tuts and put you on the bed. You can’t help but curl up, hugging your legs as the ache pulses from within. 

You’re groggy with the aftermath of Steve’s strong hold. You rub your cheek, trying to get some sense back. Ransom paces, a hand on his hip, the other opening and closing in silent monologue. He’s uptight. You haven’t seen him like this. 

“I told him to stop. Fucker. Can’t fucking listen to save his life,” he snarls and stops, facing you as he stomps. “You heard me tell him to quit.” 

You bat your lashes and nod. Slowly, you muster your strength to sit up. You wince as you do. You stay balled up small as Ransom pushes his chin up and heaves once more. You consider him and his frustration; the words from before. How the men constantly battle for control, not just with you but each other. 

“He should listen,” you croak, coughing and rubbing your throat, “they should all listen to you.” 

He lowers his head and looks at you with an arch in his brow. 

“Sir, I’m sorry,” you drop your shoulders. 

“No, what are you saying?” He narrows his eyes. 

“It’s only... Maybe... if you’d been upstairs, you could’ve saved Iris. And... and if they’d all just listen it wouldn’t all be a mess. You always tell them not to... not to go so far,” you temper your words as you speak them, uncertain and yet you think that makes them seem more genuine. “They don’t listen. First Curtis with Violet, now this.” 

You chew your lip as he stares. Your heart pounds in your chest. Does he know what you’re doing? You’ve never been a very good liar. 

“They’re all breaking the rules but didn’t you all agree to them?” 

He comes forward and you fight not to cower away. He reaches for you and you expect a slap or a grope or jab. Instead he strokes your cheek and bends to meet your gaze. He looks you in the face, his blue eyes searching. 

“You know what, lily pad, you’re right,” he sits lightly on the edge of the bed and draws you close. “that’s why I like you. ‘Cause you know better. You listen.” 

He shifts and lays on his side, pulling you with him. You let him. You put your hand on his chest and rest your head on his shoulder. 

“You’re... you’re the only one who doesn’t hurt me,” you say. 

He hums and sucks his teeth, “I know, lily pad.” He exhales and closes his eyes, “this can’t go on. I gotta get these guys in check.” 

You nod and nestle closer. Not because he makes you feel safe. Not because you meant any of it. Because it makes him think you do. That sliver of doubt is under his skin, it will only continue to poke until he has to rip it out. 

[agirlwithbigdreamsforher]

CHAPTER 7

THE NANNY: CHAPTER 7

Pairing: Andy Barber x Annie Johnson (OFC)

Summary: Working and single parenting is not easy. Andy needs to find a nanny for his son Jacob. Annie, an education degree student at Lasell University, comes to their lives just in time for the big changes in Andy’s life.

Warnings: none… ok sex hahaha.

A/N: I had a dream a little similar to this chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not give permission for any of my works to be copied, used, translated nor reposted anywhere else but here on this blog. Do not steal what you didn’t work for. Minors and ageless blank blogs don’t interact with me or my works. Reblogs and likes are always welcome. Thank you for reading this work of fiction.

Word count: 2093

GIF not mine, if it is your, please let me know so i can give you credit :)

                                    ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Another day at the Barber’s house. Andy was sitting in the living room with a cold beer in his hand, the summer breeze calming the heat on Andy’s forehead, the TV was on when the sound of footsteps made him turned around. Annie was walking towards him with a smile on her face, he loved when she smiled; he thought it was one of the most genuine smiles he had ever seen. She picked her jacket from the couch.

“Jake is sleeping” she put her jacket on, “Do you need anything else?”

“Stay” he thought, “No, I think I’m ok.”

He stood up and walked Annie to the door. They were in silence looking at each other and then to the closed door.

“Well, I should go” Annie stood on her tip toes and kissed him on the check. He could smell the fresh scent of her body spray, a scent he has grown to love.

“Stay” he said out loud this time and took her hand.

“I thought you’ll never ask”

Andy grabbed her by the waist and kissed her roughly, like if his life depended on it. He pinned her against the wall while his hands roamed all over her body.

“Wait,” Annie stopped him, “We have time, do it slowly.”

Andy took a breath and kissed her again, this time he did it slower, enjoying the feeling of her lips on his. They walked towards the couch and Andy lay on top of her. His kissed her neck and heard her moan his name, and that was enough to make him hard. Soon their clothes were scattered all over the floor. The tip of his cock was grazing on her entrance; Andy slid slowly into her, feeling the warm embrace of her walls around him, but when he slid out he came.

Andy opened his eyes abruptly, it was the third time this week he had this kind of dream. It all starter after he share a bit of his personal life with Annie, up to this day he didn’t know why he did it. She was an amazing girl, kind, smart, and she loved and care for Jake, it was not hard for Andy to start feeling more than just friendship for her, but she had a boyfriend, and he was her boss so it was not appropriate. After a couple of days, he thought his infatuation will banish, but one night he dreamt about her. His dreams were innocent at first, the two of them watching TV, she snuggled by his side; or having dinner, or the three were just running and playing around the backyard. Soon those dreams started to became more intense, first it was just kissing and now he dreamt he had sex with her in every room of the house, Jake’s room included, and he wasn’t proud of it.

Summer was coming, the nights were getting warmer; Andy had showered and slept naked the night before. He rubbed his eyes and when he sat, he saw the tent on his sheets and a small wet stain where the tip of his dick was, he kicked the sheet off and took his semi hard member on his hand and started to stroke it; he was focused on the dream he just had, it wasn’t long before he came all over his stomach. It’s been so long since the last time he slept with a woman, that he actually wondered if sex had changed in all the years he hasn’t had any.

Andy stood and took a cold shower before getting ready for work. His days were pretty much the same. He woke up at 6, some times, if he was in the mood, went for a run, other times he lifted weights on the guest room, took a shower, changed and then woke Jake up and got him ready for daycare. He arrived at the office at 8 every day, worked on his cases, sometimes he had meetings, some others he talked to his clients, and he picked Jake from daycare, had lunch with him, waited for Annie and then came back to the office.

Today it was a slow Thursday at the office it was 4 and he was doing nothing, he was sitting in his office listening to music from his laptop in a low volume. He closed his eyes, stayed like that for a moment and then opened one of the drawers in his desk. He took out the folder where he had the report he made about his now nanny, he opened it and there it was the picture he stole from her Facebook page, she was looking straight to the camera and fully smiling. He smiled at the picture when Anthony and Sebastian came in, and he closed the file.

“What are you doing?” Sebastian asked.

“Why don’t you ever knock?” Andy said a bit annoyed by his friends’ attitude.

“Cuz if we knock you won’t let us in.” Sebastian said proud of his answer and smiled, “so, I will ask again, what are you doing?”

“Ammm nothing… there’s nothing to do today.” Andy was trying to hide the folder under his laptop.

“What is that?” Anthony asked, pointing to his desk.

“What?” Anthony pointed to the folder, “oh! This is nothing… new case… I was reading it.”

“What is it about?” Sebastian said.

“It is about… ammm a woman… and his ex-husband,” Andy didn’t know what to say, even though he was a lawyer he was a terrible liar. “You know… a bad divorce; and he attacked the woman.” He finished.

“Can we look?” Sebastian kept talking, “We are very bored.”

“No, this is private.”

“Come on man!” Anthony said, “It’s not like we are going to be talking about this case outside this office, let us look.”

“No, why don’t you go to your department, I’m sure Pam will give you something to do.”

“Actually, she kicked us out because we were playing hockey” Sebastian commented.

“How were you doing that?” Andy raised his brow, crossed his arms and turned to see Anthony.

“We made a ball of paper and grabbed some brooms from the closet.  And I was winning! But mister sore loser here decided it was a good idea to throw the broom up in the air, and well we broke a computer.”

Andy was paying attention to Anthony’s story when Sebastian interrupt them.

“Your client looks so much to your nanny.”

Andy turned to see Sebastian reading the file he had on Annie.

“Gimme that!” Andy tried to take the file away from Seb but he was faster.

“So, since when you use your free time to dig into your nanny’s life?”

“I told you to gimme that!”

“No, I’m Reading it.” He sat on the couch across the room, “the nanny’s name is Annabelle Marie Johnson, how cute.” Seb smiled to Andy.

“Dude, did you really make a file on your nanny???” Anthony said, “That’s…”

“Creepy” Seb finished and showed the picture that a moment before he was looking at, “She is pretty, Andy.”

“I’m not creepy,” Anthony snorted at Andy’s statement, “I wanted to know if this girl was not a psycho and if I could trust Jake to her.”

“Sure, sure,” Sebastian said. “Boyfriend, Daniel Mathews; argh sounds like a douchebag name. Criminal Justice… Maybe is he who you should be digging Andy not your nanny.”

“I’m not going to do that.”

“We can do it!” Anthony said clapping his hands. “Let’s found out, who your competition is.”

“No! She is happy with this guy, so cut it out.”

“Where did you get this picture?” Seb asked Andy.

“Her Facebook.”

“And did you send her a friend request?”

“Of course not, I made this file before I hired her, that was months ago.”

“You should totally do it now dude.” Anthony said.

“I won’t. You know what, now I totally understand why Pam kicked you out of her department.”

Andy leaned on his desk and rubbed his temples. He felt embarrassed; he snapped back to reality when he heard the click of a camera going off.

“What are you doing?” Andy asked Sebastian.

“If you are not going to date her, maybe I will.”

“Don’t you dare!”

“Why not? Sebastian smirked, “gimme a good reason, why I shouldn’t call her and ask her out?”

“Because,” Andy head was going fast, but couldn’t think of a good excuse, “because, she has a boyfriend, and she loves him.”

“That never stop me before.” Seb stood and gave Andy the file back. “You know what I think?” Seb paused for a moment, “I think you like her.”

“Well, you are wrong,” Andy lied, “We are just friends.”

“Ok then so, since you two are just friends I could give her a call.”

“Who is just friends?” Pam came into the office.

“Andy and his nanny,” Anthony said, “did you know he made a research about her?”

“Did you really?” Pam asked Andy, “I told you she was a nice girl, and to be honest I thought you were joking when you said you’ll do it.”

“Why are you all here?” the four turned to see Lynn at the door, but she wasn’t alone, another woman was with her. “Shouldn’t you be working?”

“They broke a computer.” Pam told her.

“Traitor!” Seb said.

“Look,” Lynn said annoyed, “I still don’t know how you two,” she stared at Anthony and Sebastian, “Passed the exams to become detectives, cuz you act like children. And as for the computer, you’ll pay for it, both of you, understood?”

“Yes, ma’am!” Anthony and Sebastian answered at the same time.

Both left the office to go back to their department upstairs.

“Are you really going to call that girl?” Anthony asked Sebastian once they were out Andy’s office.

“Of course not, Andy likes her.”

“I don’t think he does.” Anthony replied

“Dude use your eyes! Didn’t you see Andy’s face when he saw her on poker night? His eyes lit when he saw her.” Sebastian told him,

“He was acting kind strange a while ago.”

“Exactly and I think he needs a little push.”

“Come on man, don’t do anything. It’s Andy’s life, if he is not ready to move on you can’t force him, no matter if he likes this girl or not, is his choice, not yours.”

“Fine! I won’t do anything.”

Lynn waited till the two detectives were out of sight and looked back to Pam and Andy.

“Well, now the reason why I’m here. As you know, Mrs. Stevenson retired so let me introduce you to my new secretary, this is Stacy, she just moved here, and I hope you all make her feel welcome.”

Stacy was skinny, had black long hair, pale skin and a pointy nose.

“This is Pam Duffy, chief detective, she works upstairs with the two men that just left.” Pam smiled and Stacy bowed her head. “And this is Andy Barber. He is the ADA.”

“How you doin’?” Andy extended his hand and a flirty smile spread across her face and answered his handshake.

“I’m well, thank you.”

“So,” Lynn continue, “since you have nothing better to do Andy, would you mind give Stacy a tour, when you’re done, you can go home.”

“I better go and check on those two before they break another computer.” Pam left and leave Andy alone with Stacy.

Andy half smiled at Stacy and started walking and showing her the building from the reception up to where Pam’s department and office was.

“What brings you to Newton?” Andy Asked.

“A new start I guess, I recently divorce.”

“Sorry to heard. Amicable I hope.”

“Not quite, but it was for the best. I really hope this place allow me to have a better life.”  She said without stop staring at Andy.

Andy was not sure what it was but he didn’t like the way Stacy looked at him, nor the way her voice sounded when she talked, but again he just met her, maybe she was like that on a daily basics.

“I’m sure you will be comfortable here, everyone in Newton is very welcoming.”

“I’m sure they are.”

After they finished their little tour, Andy said goodbye to Lynn and headed to the elevator. Meanwhile Stacy saw Andy up and down while he walked away and smiled to herself, she took her phone out of her purse and dial her client’s number.

“Just meet him, the new ADA. When I have more information I’ll call you back.”

[leebrontide]

Secondhand Origin Stories, Chapter 9

Here's this week's chapter! Reblogs welcome!

For those of you just joining us, I'm posting a chapter a week of my free near future scifi/low neon cyberpunk YA/NA novel, Secondhand Origin Stories, which has been described as

"-a character driven, compelling story full of family, queerness, corruption, brain altering nanites, secretly teen parenting AIs, and taking aspects of the superhero genre to their very human and rarely-explored natural conclusions."

For content warnings and more, check here:

You can follow along by following #SHOSweekly

Chapter 9

Martin’s voice in the elevator was enough to put Opal on edge again. The unexpectedly plush chairs of the clinic waiting room weren’t enough to fix it. The staff here all seemed so grim, somehow. And up this high, the sound of the storm blanketed every other noise with the static, as if it was keeping secrets in the constant shushes of rain and the grumbles of thunder.

She’d settled on calling her mom. Mom’s ridiculous sheep-patterned pajamas and her enthusiasm for Shani’s history project helped. Apparently Opal would be getting a lengthy account of it whenever she managed to reach Shani between summer sleepovers. 

“Everyone still treating you all right?”

Opal smiled, trying to get comfortable. “Aldis and the guys have been great. You got the pictures I sent you of the VIP suite? Oh! Did I tell you Capricorn said he thinks I have grit? And Helix agreed with him.” She couldn’t mention the rest of it-- not here, at least. She couldn’t make up her mind what she really should say. 

“Oh, baby, I’m so proud of you. Are they as handsome in person as on TV?”

Opal laughed. “Mom. They’re all like, 40 and up.”

“And that might as well be a hundred to an 18-year-old. Yeah, yeah.”

“Hey, have you--” 

“I still haven’t heard from your dad. I promise I’ll let you know the minute I do. But you know how this goes. Any little thing.” And they’d revoke his phone “privileges.” It’d been months, once or twice before. Then he’d reappear, looking a little older, a little less steady, chastising Opal for having worried. She hadn’t gotten any letters, either. It was never good when he couldn’t even send letters. But she’d sent hers. She hoped he got them. 

She glanced up as a familiar figure ghosted through the edge of Opal’s line of sight. “Jamie?” Jamie turned, looking haunted. “Hey, Mom. I’m sorry, but I’ll call you later, OK?” 

Martin had said there was a family emergency. If Jamie was down here, it must be a bad one. 

Jamie was, impossibly, paler than usual. She seemed almost blue. Her posture was hunched, as if she was expecting to have to bolt at any second, with her elbows pulled in tight against her body. She also seemed to be by herself. “Hey, are you OK?”

“I’m trying to find Issac’s doctor, but they just keep telling me to go wait with…I need to tell them what happened with Issac. I’m the only one who was there.”

A nice, straightforward request. Opal stood, flagging down the nearest medical professional who didn’t seem to be rushing. She put on her most professional tone. “Excuse me. Ms. Tillman-Voss needs to speak with the treating physician for Issac Tillman-Voss right away. She has important information relevant to his condition she needs to share.” Hanging around Mom’s job when she was little had given her a few tricks, at least.

The woman nodded, and led them to a nurse’s station before disappearing to find the doctor. 

“Ms. Tillman-Voss?” Jamie asked under her breath. “I think they think you’re my bodyguard now.”

Bodyguard? She’d been going for PR intern. “Whatever works,” she muttered back. 

Jamie’s smile was tiny and wobbly. “You do look really grown-up in that.”

“You look like you’re going to faint. You’re not, are you? My mom’s a nurse, but I am very much not.”

“No. I need to talk to the doctor.”

“Are you going to faint after that?”

“I hope not. They won’t treat me here. I’m not altered.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure if LodeStar’s kid faints in their waiting room, they’ll pull something together.”

Jamie muttered under her breath, “Not sure he’d care.”

That didn’t sound good. The doctor showed up before Opal could ask, and then she was too busy keeping up with the story Jamie was telling. Every bit of which sounded 100% illegal. By the end of it, Jamie’s voice was painful to even listen to, it was so high-pitched and breathless, but Jamie pushed through. She even brought them a copy of a thesis Issac had written on the subject. It’d be impressive if it wasn’t so horrifying. Brain-changing nanites? You didn’t have to try to think of all the ways that could be misused.

The doctor rushed off as soon as Jamie was done. 

Opal was hit with more doubt than she’d ever had before. What and who had she gotten mixed up with? OK, the Sentinels as a family struggling to cope, she could understand. But a family that attempted to cope by developing more and scarier technology, and testing it on themselves in secret?

Then again, that was how Bion had started. But that was back before altering tech laws had been around. Issac must have known what he was doing was illegal. He should even know why it needed to be illegal. His family took down people conducting illegal alterations all the time. 

But maybe those rules didn’t apply to their son.

She shivered. Exactly how many rules didn’t apply to them?

Jamie didn’t notice Opal’s existential crisis. She was staring down the hallway towards the handful of private waiting rooms like she was expecting a firing squad. She took a tiny, unconscious step backwards, towards Opal. 

And all Opal could remember was Jamie’s comment that nobody would even notice another couple of bruises on her. All three of the kids seemed incredibly isolated. How many laws could the Sentinels get out of?

Opal put a hand on Jamie’s shoulder. Leaned in to ask quietly, “Are you OK?”

Jamie didn’t look at her. But she pressed her lips so tight they almost vanished. Her eyes were pink. She shook her head, still staring down the hall. 

Maybe it was nothing. Jamie’d had a terrible morning by anyone’s standards. 

Maybe it wasn’t nothing. 

Jamie started, looking at Opal. “My dad! He needs a doctor, too. If he’s in the waiting room, then they must not know. His collarbone’s broken.”

“What? How did that happen?”

“Yael.” Jamie said, flinching as she realized too late that that was bound to beg questions. “There was a-- xe was afraid he-- but that doesn’t matter. He needs a doctor!”

This time it was even easier to get someone’s attention, but Jamie was a lot lighter on the details. She didn’t even mention Yael. Whatever had happened, she was less likely to explain it than she was Issac’s breach of international laws. Nobody pressed her for more details. Doctors rushed to help the injured superhero, and Opal and Jamie stayed put.

Neil Voss passed by a few minutes later, escorted by a nervous-looking medical person and Capricorn. Capricorn looked grim, and had a hand on LodeStar’s arm. LodeStar ignored Opal completely, his attention stitched tightly to his daughter as he passed. Neither of them said anything to the other. 

Jamie watched him with her own intensity, and a disquieting stillness. LodeStar looked half possessed. His eyes burned blood-red where the whites should have been. His steps were unsteady and slow, but the muscles in his shoulders were coiled, prepared to strike, his hands working themselves into huge metallic fists. Flexing again. Stretching, as if he was imagining grabbing something. Opal had never seen anyone more terrifying in her life. 

He was cordoned off in another room after what felt like an eternity. The two of them both exhaled at the same time. 

Oh God. Opal was in a Gothic novel. And the head of the house was as powerful and utterly unhinged as any she’d ever read. And she’d spent the last...more than two weeks now, trying to move into his house, work under his orders? This was not going to work. She could never trust the orders of someone like that. She could never hurt or arrest anyone on his say-so. She didn’t even want to be in the same room with him.

She’d go home. Go back to Detroit. Save up, and try another team, later. They couldn’t all be like him, could they?

Jamie sat suddenly, barely catching a chair instead of landing on the floor. She was struggling to catch her breath.

Shit. None of the doctors had even looked at Jamie. No one was going to check in on what was happening in LodeStar’s home. What made Jamie look like that? What drove her brother to experiment on himself, rather than have something he might see as a vulnerability in that household?

Opal reached for the only failsafe she could think of close by. “Hey, maybe we should go find your mom?”

Jamie cringed, but nodded, dragging herself back upright. Opal followed close behind, hoping to find some kind of resolution.

* * *

Issac drifted in and out of consciousness several times. Reality had turned slippery, and even awake, he couldn’t seem to grasp hold of it. This time, when he woke, the ground under him felt a little more solid. Time felt a little more linear. 

He kept his eyes closed, trying to shut out reality. Trying not to notice what he couldn’t detect. He tried to focus inward. His mouth and tongue hurt, as if he’d cut them. A seizure, he remembered. Someone had told him he’d had a seizure, one of the other times he’d been awake. He must have bitten himself. His mouth tasted like blood.

He shifted his attention again, but his body was no refuge. His pulse was speeding; his back hurt like hell. There was a needle in his arm. His torso was canted upwards. Another hospital bed. 

More missing monitor noise. 

His mind had never been good at silence. He’d never been able to get it to shut up. To stop noticing. 

Then again, at least it was still working right. At least he did still notice things.

At least he’d woken up. 

Tears pricked at his closed eyes. He’d failed. Air escaped his lungs unevenly, and he sucked it back in, straining against ribs that whined about it, just like the last time. 

Whoever was in the room with him-- there must be someone-- didn’t notice his tears or any unwanted noises. There was no touch to his hand or face. No anything. If he wanted something, he’d have to signal it. He’d have to open his eyes and face whoever was there.

He pried open crusty, itchy eyes. This time, his vision landed first on his own paper-clad lap. 

There was a card in his hand in unfamiliar handwriting. Issac - you have had a seizure. Some confusion is normal. It will go away in a while. Please stop trying to remove the monitoring equipment. Your family will return soon. 

Soon? None of them were even in here with him? He looked up.

There was a man in the room. He was wearing a three-piece suit in brownish gray, with graying, sand-colored hair, and a severely bleached smile plastered on his face. He was sitting in the chair between Issac and the door with his ankle on his knee. As if this was a perfectly normal way to meet someone.

This was not a doctor. 

Issac gasped as his vision developed sudden spots. Black fractured the image in front of him. 

It was text. Good afternoon, Mr. Tillman-Voss.

Issac was wearing contacts. Revulsion rolled through him. He wanted to pull them off. He couldn’t stand the thought of touching them. Either the stranger knew he had them, or he thought Issac could hear. The man stood, still smiling. He reached into his blazer pocket, producing a little slip of paper. He walked the few paces between them, holding it out. A business card. Before Issac could read it, more text crowded the image out. I’m Frank Lasansky of Lasansky Security Technologies. Sorry if I’m catching you at a bad time.

A bad time? Issac wasn’t even wearing pants. How did these contacts end up on his eyes? Where was his family? I heard a while back about what happened to you and I think that’s a shame. Just a real shame. Still smiling. Issac would have punched the guy if he was more confident in his ability to stand up without falling down. There was something off about him-- a fakeness that went beyond his over-bleached teeth. Issac took the business card, but kept watching the man’s face.

It didn’t move right. Some kind of partial paralysis? 

And I thought, there’s a young man I’d like to meet. And my lucky day, I come to find out you’re in this very building when I am! Well, I couldn’t pass up an opportunity like that, could I? Huh? Right?

Issac didn’t know what else to do, so he shook his head “no.” Did this guy not know Issac lived in this building? How could he possibly not know that? It was Sentinel Plaza.

Lasansky. That name was familiar.

The weird smile stretched wider. Great! Glad to hear it. Because I am just dying to chat with you about those nanites of yours. Issac went cold. The nanites. He must be from the APB? Maybe he was here to take Issac away. Issac felt an irrational urge to check to make sure all his arms and legs were still attached. That they hadn’t been replaced with weaker models. He knew better, and he was being watched. Now, I already heard that this trial didn’t work out. That’s why I took the liberty of providing you with some hardware to help us out in our little chat. He tapped the space next to his eye, looking pleased with himself.

Issac recoiled. He would have assumed that either his parents or a nurse had put the contacts on him. That would have been bad enough. But to think that this random businessman had been touching Issac while he was either asleep or too out of it to have a say sent a spiky, electric chill up his spine. OK, he had his legs, but it felt that much closer to Jenna's fate, all the same.

Lasansky continued, either oblivious to Issac's alarm or electing to ignore it. But hey, these things happen. You can’t get it right on your first try every time, right? Issac wondered whether he was supposed to shake his head again, but this time Lasansky didn’t wait. I want you to know I’m not going to judge you for that. You know? I want you to hear that it’s not your fault. You didn’t have backup. No support. No team. 

Issac's horror ebbed a little, and he tried to shove it down faster. Don’t think about his eyes. This was obvious, and well-thought-out, flattery. This total stranger knew exactly what Issac wanted to hear. The polar opposite of what he’d be forced to sit through whenever his parents showed up to replace the stranger. 

Why was he flattering Issac?

Issac studied the man. The suit was high-end, and almost perfectly tailored, but cut a little too big in the shoulders. There was the smallest of silver roots visible at his hairline. His hands looked noticeably older than his face.

Ah. His face. He’d had too much Botox, too many face-lifts, or both. That’s why his expressions seemed off. Everything about him was pretending. 

Lasansky. Lasansky. He knew that name.

But a little birdie gave me some good news. Word on the street is, it’s your biggest birthday today! He leaned in conspiratorially. Issac leaned in, too, as if it mattered what volume the man spoke at. You’re a free man, Mr Tillman. The world is your oyster.

A free man. So, not arrested, anyway. Lasansky stood. Now I know this is irregular, God knows it’s not usually how we run things at Lasansky Security International, but you, young man, are special. I couldn’t run the chance of them squirreling you away in the attic all alone without my having spoken to you, first.

Of him being sent away like Jenna. 

Mr. Tillman, I am here to make you an offer.  Because the problem with working for the family business is, you have to work for your family! You have to be the baby at work and at home. Have your boss at the dinner table. Be constantly surrounded by people who have what they think are your best interests at heart, but who, deep down, can’t appreciate you for the adult that you are! Now the fact that you had to run this all by yourself tells me that they already gave you the vote of no confidence. They only see Issac the boy, not Issac the man. But I have seen your patent list, and I am ready to give you my full vote of confidence. I believe in your tech. I believe there’s a need for it, and I believe that with the right support, you can deliver your gift to the world. I am prepared to offer you just that support. 

This stranger-- this fake man in a thousand-dollar suit-- understood. Had grasped the whole dynamic of the situation without ever even meeting Issac. Issac glanced down briefly, thinking, and his eyes landed on perfectly shined shoes with a subtly higher-than-average heel. Trying to look tall.

Lasansky was the head of what had to be a huge, heavily politically-connected company, but even he had to pretend to be taller, healthier, younger than he was. No wonder he could understand Issac’s need to fix himself. Even Lasansky wasn’t high enough in the hierarchy to risk exposing even the smallest, most irrelevant weaknesses, like wrinkles or narrower shoulders. 

Well, even Mom wore tall shoes and sought the occasional nip and tuck, didn’t she? She just wore it better, or maybe invested more. 

If even the people at the top-- everyone who wasn’t altered-- had to protect themselves with artificial health and height, where did that leave someone with an actual weakness?

Lasansky approached the tilted hospital bed. Issac had to crane his neck back to keep watching him. He smiled down at Issac with gleaming teeth. Mr. Tillman, how would you like to join the Lasansky Securities family?

* * *

Time bled by Yael at an agonizing crawl. Xe didn’t know how long xe’d been sitting on the cool tile floor of xyr bedroom, not really seeing anything. Xyr back was still against the door, where it was easiest to hear Papa not coming after xyr, not trying to argue through the door. Xe’d let xyr mind go blank, listening to that silence.

When xyr phone went off, Yael jumped so hard xe banged xyr head against the door. Xe grabbed the phone out of xyr pocket, answering to stop its intrusion. Xe forgot all about Papa for a moment when xe realized it was Issac. Or, at least, Issac's phone.

“Hello?” xe asked cautiously, not sure who to expect on the other end.

Issac himself answered. “Yeah. Uhm. Hi.”

Yael's head dropped back, hitting the door with another bang. “You’re OK. You’re OK, right? Oh my Gosh, can you hear me? You’re on the phone!”

There was a pause. “I…no. I have translation software. I can’t hear you.” 

“Sorry it didn’t work.” And xe was, a little. Mostly, xe was happy he was conscious, coherent and alive. Now they just had to get through the fallout with the APB. Nodiah wasn’t going to be happy.

Issac didn’t even try to hide his discomfort, which was refreshing. “Yeah.” Yael looked behind xyr, as if xe could see through the door. Xe had no idea where Papa was, if he was hearing all of this. “I need your help.”

Yael crossed xyr legs, straightening. Trying not to think about how “helping” him this morning had gone. “What do you need?”

“An escort? I, uhm. I got a job. Just now.” Yael pulled the phone away from xyr ear, and stared at it, baffled. Was Issac actually coherent? “I know that’s weird. But it’s this guy who works with the APB, and he actually believes in my research. Wants to use it to help people.” Official approval! Thank heaven. Issac would be safe, now. Problems were knocking themselves out left and right. 

 “I’m eighteen. I can move out, any time I want to. They can’t stop me. But it’s like… I’ll have to live in just like…a place. Just standard security systems. I’d feel better if you came along, too. You’re almost eighteen. Can you?” A flicker of hesitation. “Will you?”

Yael rushed the phone back to xyr ear, glancing back against the door again. Hopefully Papa hadn’t heard that.

Xyr first impulse was to tell Issac “no.” He was hurt. He needed his family. He needed to be protected, here at home.

Except now, home wasn’t safe, either. He needed safety and family. Maybe Yael really was his best bet for both. Papa wasn’t listening to Yael-- maybe none of the others would, either. 

“On one condition. We have to bring Jamie, too. We can’t leave her here.” Xe hoped Melissa would protect her, but if nobody but Yael saw the danger--

“What? I. But. I mean. If she wants to…You think she would? But she’s sixteen.”

“We have to try.”

“Uh. Sure. Try away.”

“Is…Your mom isn’t with you, now.”

“Obviously.”

“You’re alone?”

“I…I guess they came in earlier. I don’t remember.”

“Have you seen Neil?”

“I guess.”

“Jamie?”

“I don’t remember, OK? Seizures can do that. Just…pack up. I’ll get home when I can to do the same.” He said his goodbyes, which Yael echoed in a haze, then hung up.

Moving out? Xe’d never planned to leave. Xyr room had always just evolved with xyr. This was Yael’s home.

But a home wasn’t such a big thing to sacrifice for your brother and sister. 

Xe heard shuffling outside. Papa’s normally light footfalls were slow and plodding, either because he was just that tired, or to warn xyr he was coming.

The handle beside xyr head turned, and Yael looked over at it as the door tried to shift inward. Yael was more than heavy enough to keep it closed.

Papa’s voice was muffled, but only a little bit irritated. “Yael, I’ve bought you a very large bed, two futons, and an office chair. Why do you insist on sitting on the floor?”

Xe didn’t even bother to pretend to be angry. “I’m being a barricade.”

“Well, stop being a barricade and go back to being my daughter. I need to talk to her.”

Maybe it was just because xe was so upset about everything else, but xe was suddenly annoyed by his misgendering, and didn’t watch xyr tongue. “I’m not your daughter.”

Shit! Yael’d said it before thinking, then realized how Papa would hear it. Xe scrambled to xyr feet and threw the door open.

He was standing there, half turned from the door, his expression a broken attempt at stoicism. He met xyr eyes with a piercing, angry gaze and a mouth that tugged down at the corners, obviously hurt. 

This time xyr blurted words did better. “I didn’t mean it like that! I meant-- ugh. You’ve heard Jamie and Issac use non-gendered pronouns for me for five months now. Take a hint!”

The pain in his expression cleared, some, replaced by sincere confusion. “You never asked me to call you that.”

“I thought it would be obvious.”

“I didn’t want to assume. Sometimes siblings have things they don’t want to share with-- I was trying not to intrude!” He shook his head. “This is absurd. Yael, aren’t we having enough fights today? Let’s put this on hold.”

Surprisingly diplomatic of him, even if he was sidestepping something important to xyr. Xe tried to stay calm. Xe crossed xyr arms. “All right. Which fight do you want to have first?”

Papa replied with an exasperated, but not entirely unamused sigh, and stepped forward. Xe let him in. He paused. “How about the one about how your room looks like you’re afraid of drawers, closets and boxes?”

“Really?”

He shoved over a pile of hoodies and sat on one of the futons. “No.” He rubbed his face. 

The silence stretched out. Papa was lost in thought. Yael collapsed onto the opposite futon, toying with the corduroy.

Finally he looked to xyr. “Which do you want to start with?”

Yael spread xyr hands helplessly, shaking xyr head. Xe had no idea how to untangle all of this. But xe didn’t want him to leave.

Xe didn’t want to leave.

To xyr amusement, he pulled out a coin. He looked at xyr. “Heads, your fight with Neil, tails, the…the other thing.”

Xe nodded, and he flipped the coin, catching it and slapping it to his hand. “Heads,” he announced. 

They looked at each other, bracing for a fight neither of them wanted to have. “Tell me what happened. I won’t say anything until you’ve finished. Just this once.”

Too good an offer to pass up. “Issac was following in his father’s and Jenna's and Drew's footsteps. He decided to fight his limitations directly, and he had the science. He limited the MARTIN sensors and used his nanites to try to repair his audio nerve.” Xe refused to look ashamed. “Jamie and I helped him, and kept his secret. And I am not sorry we did.” That was much easier to say now that xe knew he really was OK. “He has the right to try to better himself.” 

Xe couldn’t read Papa’s reaction, so xe just kept going. “But he had a seizure, Jamie used the failsafe, and we called for help. The EMTs got Issac, and Drew went with them, and as soon as Neil and Jamie and I were alone, he started shouting at her, and then he lunged for her. I intercepted him and tried to make him back off. He wouldn’t. That’s pretty much when you came in.”

Papa might not have interrupted, but now he was shaking his head. “You misinterpreted. You were upset and you misunderstood.”

“How would you know? You weren’t there!” xe challenged. 

“Neil wouldn’t. He adores Jamie. He loves all of you kids.” Yael shook xyr head, glaring daggers at the floor as he continued. “You’ve known him your whole life. You know he would never hurt any of you.”

“I’ve been trying to believe in that, and in him. This whole time I’ve been trying. But he’s not the man I grew up with. That man would never abandon Issac for days at a time like this. Not for any reason. And today-- I’ve seen enough film of your missions to know he can kill with less rage than that. I wouldn’t let anyone looking like that near Jamie or Issac.”

Xe readied for arguments and shouting yet again. Instead, Papa looked distracted and troubled.

Deep down, part of Yael wanted to be wrong. Even hurting Neil unfairly would be better than Neil being a real danger to Jamie. Neil would heal. If he was the person Yael thought xe remembered, he would even forgive.

But Papa had stopped arguing. Xe couldn’t imagine a more hollow victory.

They sat in painful silence for a moment. 

“I…I’ll talk to him. And Melissa,” he promised.

“There’s more.” 

He looked horrified. “More? How could there possibly be more?” Realization dawned. “The phone call.”

“It was Issac.”

“Well then, that’s good!”

Xe nodded, hesitantly. “Yes, that’s good,” xe hedged. “You know it’s his birthday.”

“What a birthday.”

“He’s eighteen. He called me to say he’s not coming back, except to pack his things. He’s moving out. And he sure is Melissa’s son, because he’s somehow landed himself a job since this morning.”

Papa’s mouth dropped open. “You can’t be serious.”

Yael threw up xyr hands. “It wasn’t my idea!”

“Well, tell him not to!”

“When has that ever worked? At least it’s APB-backed, so he won’t get arrested for this morning.”

“He can’t just go out there, alone.”

Here it was. “He won’t be alone.” Yael gulped, but raised xyr chin. “I’m going with him.”

Papa rocketed to his feet.“The hell you are!” All his bombastic energy was back from before. “This is absurd! We had a fight! That is no reason. No. Reason.”

Yael didn’t have it in xyr now to fight about this. Instead, xe kept xyr voice low, which had the surprising effect of making Papa pause. “I know. I’m not going to get away from you. I’m going to protect him. Because he shouldn’t go out there alone.”

“I forbid it.”

“Then be prepared to fight me with real force every single day. Be prepared to break my legs faster than they can heal, because that’s what it’ll take.” 

Papa was visibly repulsed. “This is no time for dramatics.”

“I’m being sincere. I know you don’t have a lot of recent practice with honesty, but try and remember what it sounds like. If you’re not willing to go that far, then you won’t keep me here. And you don’t want to.”

“Of course I want to! You’re my--” Xe had to hand it to him; he stopped before ‘daughter’ this time. He was trying. “Family. And you belong here.”

“Do you want to leave Issac unprotected? Out there? He’s your family. He’s hurt. Are you going to abandon him?”

“This is madness.”

“I told you that I’d defend them. From anyone and anything. I meant that.” Not a hero’s oath, but the one that came from xyr heart.

“What about Jamie?” 

“I don’t know yet. But you’ll protect her, won’t you?”

Papa sank down on the futon, hands over his eyes. “There is nothing about this that I don’t hate.”

“But you will.”

He scowled at the ceiling from behind his hand. “Yes, of course I will.”

Silence swallowed them up, and Yael noticed the rain for the first time. Rain was supposed to cleanse. Yael didn’t feel cleansed, but at least some things between them were out. The inside of xyr head felt a little cleaner for it. 

Eventually Yael commented, “I think that was the quietest fight we’ve ever had.”

“I think I lost.”                          

* * *

“Ms. Tillman-Voss? Your brother would like to see you.” The nurse looked at Jamie and Opal, and all the empty chairs in the private waiting room. “Is your mother not here?”

“She went for coffee,” Jamie answered automatically. That had been three hours ago, but it still stood. Jamie had no doubt that wherever Mom was, she’d have a cup of coffee with her. Jamie explaining the morning to Mom hadn’t gone well. Jamie stood, then hesitated, looking back at Opal. “Can you--?”

“I’ll wait here,” Opal assured. It helped. Opal had been sitting with Jamie this whole time, even though Jamie was too full of waiting to be any kind of good company. She’d spent most of the last hour giving Jamie entertaining summaries of Gothic novels with unflattering appraisals of characters’ decision-making abilities. She’d kept it up, even though Jamie didn’t have it in her to laugh at anything right now. They made her almost smile and kept her partially occupied, and that was more than Jamie could have asked for. 

Jamie glanced back over her shoulder as she followed the nurse out, getting one more sympathetic smile and encouraging wave from Opal before following the nurse down the same hall her dad had disappeared down three hours ago. She hadn’t seen or heard from him, since. She told herself it was because a broken bone could take a while to treat.

Issac was sitting up, awake and lucid, when Jamie slipped quietly into the room. The nurse shut the door behind her, leaving the two of them alone. His lips weren’t blue. His eyes were focused, if bloodshot. He had on two medical bracelets and a white paper card in each hand. One large, one small. The sensors were still on his forehead. He watched her with trepidation, licking his lips. 

Jamie almost tripped over her shoes crossing the space between them. She wrapped both arms around him and pulled him close enough that she could tell that he was warm, that he wasn’t shaking. She tried to make out a heartbeat, but her own heart was pounding too hard. He put one hand on her back, hesitantly. The hand didn’t shake or jerk. It was steady. 

She took a deep breath, pulling away, and grabbed his pillow from behind him. She cataloged all the sensors on his head, his sternum, and his wrist bracelet. She aimed for his forearm and stomach, and hit him with the paper-wrapped pillow almost as hard as she could. “Never! Again!”

Issac raised his arms, trying to fend off the unexpected attack, but neglecting to grab the pillow. She gripped it, dragging it off the side of the bed, glaring at him with stinging eyes. Even if he didn’t know what she’d said, he should be able to work out why she was mad. 

He was still for a second, hands still raised defensively, not sure whether she’d strike another fluffy vinyl blow. That was fair; she wasn’t sure she wasn’t going to hit him again. She was gratified to see him frantically searching for an appropriate response. 

Tentatively, he reached out a hand, and that was enough invitation. She grabbed him in another tight hug, dropping the pillow back on the bed so she could grab him with both hands and be sure she could feel him breathing. “You jerk. I threw up four times because of you. If you ever try that again, next time I’m just going to let you--” She couldn’t finish the sentence. Couldn’t even finish the thought. Didn’t want the twitching, blue-lipped vision it conjured up. She realized belatedly there was no way he could hold a tablet, because he was actually hugging her back this time. She was just as happy he hadn’t heard her threat. She sniffed hard, trying not to get snot on his paper pajamas, and squeezed him again. 

He answered anyway. “I promise not to ask you to do something like that again. Sorry.”

She muttered with her head on his shoulder. “You better not. Practically gave me a heart attack.”

“Liar. Your cardio system is like the only thing on you that halfway works right.”

Jamie startled, letting go. “You heard me!” Oh thank G-d, it was over. Whatever came next, it would all have to work out. Issac's gambit had paid off. Mom and Dad would have to forgive them for it eventually, now. She was almost lightheaded with relief. 

“No. I’m wearing the contacts.” 

Shit. She could see it cost him to even say it. But seeing him turn red in the face was good. Red wasn’t blue.

“Oh. Well. I’m glad you can use those now. I can’t even tell the difference!” He couldn’t hear her tone, but she was pretty sure it was still unconvincing. Not because it wasn’t true, but because of everything she knew would come with it. She gripped the paper of his hospital gown. “So…are you OK?”

He didn’t look at her this time, watching his own hand tap the sheets. “Well, I’m not dead. There doesn’t seem to be any more brain damage. Still can’t hear. So, mostly the same, I guess. My back hurts,” he added offhandedly. Jamie’s gut flipped, remembering the unnatural looking way it had bowed off the bed. “But I guess…mostly the same.” 

He turned his hand over. There was a handwritten notecard in it, in an unfamiliar handwriting. You are in the hospital due to a seizure. Some confusion and soreness-- He closed his hand around the card, then looked at the other card, which seemed to be a business card. He didn’t turn that around, so she couldn’t read it. 

“So uhm. I guess my experiment got someone’s attention at the APB--”

Her hand clenched around the paper of his shirt again. She looked down at his wrist. He wasn’t cuffed to the hospital bed or anything. Looked around the room. No sign of any security measures beyond the default. 

Issac was OK, but would he stay OK? Would they ship him off to some hellish prison in Detroit? Issac couldn’t make it in a place like that-- hearing or not. 

Jamie couldn’t protect him from that. From anything. “We’re at the APB,” she interrupted. He paused, then looked around the room, realizing it was true. “MARTIN called them,” Jamie added furiously. Stupid super-intelligent security system didn’t understand the risk it was putting Issac through.

“Oh. MARTIN.” He was quiet so long she had to squish the urge to bend over and check his eyes, to make sure they weren’t rolled back. Then he took an expansive breath. “Anyway, this guy who works with the APB is interested in my research. He offered me a job.” His eyes skittered up to meet hers. “And I took it.”

They stared at each other. He had the good sense to look a little hangdog. Finally, Jamie spoke, trying to sound as even-keel as possible. “I don’t want this to sound mean, but I think they should scan your brain for injuries again.”

Issac looked supremely unimpressed, but pointed at a monitor with a display that meant nothing to her. “Read all you want. I have.” He held up his phone. “I even got some notes from them.” He shifted, sitting straighter and warming to his subject. “Look, this is what I need. Just…some space to figure things out. Some backup so I can work without…” He gestured at the machinery behind him without actually looking at any of it. Jamie's eyes skimmed along them. There were a lot of them. A lot of things the doctors were worried about.

Legal protection. That was worth a lot. Was it more than their family could provide? 

“But you live with Mom,” Jamie attempted to reason. “She owns everything in your lab.”

He frowned. “Well, obviously I’m going to have to move out. That’s fine. I’m old enough.”

Jamie thought of Mom’s torn up cuticles and the cracks in the dark glaze on her nails. This morning, the cracks had been gone, and the plum glaze traded out for a less obvious nude color. Tidied up, but with the expectation of future chips. 

“I was going to move out soon, anyway. What’s a few months’ difference?”  

“Mom’s going to see a difference.” 

“Well, then that’s her problem,” he answered with attempted glibness. Jamie’s heart sank. “Yael wants you to come. With us. Xe’s moving out with me. As a bodyguard kind of thing. I don’t mind. If you want to.”

She made up her mind in an instant. She’d failed Issac once already today. She couldn’t quit now. She nodded, just once, and he seemed both pleased and surprised. 

She’d figure this out one way or another.

[foxandthesoldier]

My Boyfriends’ Ex-Partners Deserve to be Happy

So this may be weird for some people, so bear with me. It’s 4 am, and I’m on my first coffee as my boyfriend (secret fiance) is sound asleep before I have to wake the grouchy man up for work at 6. I haven’t been able to sleep because my throat is screaming at me for no reason. Great, it’s one of those days.

I sit at my desktop and browse through Facebook with classical music humming in the background. (Off-topic, but Nocturne by Frederic Chopin will forever be a favorite of mine.). I get a lingering thought coming to the front of my mind.

“Check his ex’s accounts.”

Why? I have absolutely no idea. But because I’m a weak-minded individual, I do it. We start with the most recent.

Let’s call her Apricot. It turns out Apricot is now in a new relationship. Soldier (my partner) was meant to meet back up with Apricot the day we met, and it turns out she blew him off for a date with this new current partner. Now, if that isn’t funny, I don’t know what is. She seems happy, and honestly, I’m delighted for her. I’ve held this very random bitterness towards her since I met Soldier. Maybe it’s because she’s pretty or artistic like me, or perhaps it’s just because if she didn’t cancel that day, I would never have met my soulmate. Whatever the answer, it has lessened now. For once, I am seeing her as a human-made me feel better about her. She seems like such a sweet soul and the kind of person I would go up to in an art gallery or museum and compliment her clothing.

The next was Victory. From what I’ve been told from Soldier, Victory wasn’t treated right by him. They met in a time of discourse (possibly including illegal substances, but I shan’t confirm nor deny anything). Hence, their foundations were highly rocky from the beginning. From what I was told about her, seeing her now makes her unrecognizable. This woman with her life together. A boyfriend who constantly takes her out on adventures, and the most amazing pair of glasses I have ever seen. This woman has gone from the wreck I have been told about many times before to a strong and well-off woman with the world at her fingertips. If Victory, for whatever reason, comes across this post and somehow knows this is about her, well done. And I’m sorry for the way the Soldier treated you. He has grown into a much better person, but I wish you could’ve gotten that when it was your turn. You deserve the best, which I’m glad you’ve found.

The third person is Lady J. Lady J was horrible to Solder. TL; DR is that she broke his heart by cheating on him and is who kickstarted his chaotic era he has (thankfully) fully recovered from now. I didn’t go into her page with much optimism. I think I was bargaining on her doing badly, that maybe she would be suffering some tragic storyline or something. This was a selfish thought for me, and I should know better than to pass judgments like that on people. However, I’ve found out she is in a long-term relationship with someone. She seems to have improved and has become very successful in her career path and relationship goals. Good on her. I still reserve full judgment on Lady J because of how much she put Soldier through. However, he has had his fair share of inhumanity, so it’s unfair to label her evil when he has been very much the same.

Lastly, we have Lilac. Now Lilac wasn’t an ex, but a fling from the summer me and Soldier met. I still see her as a threat even though I do not need to. She has the most beautiful cotton candy pink hair I have ever seen. It makes me envious (even if my hair is the same color.) She resembles a Disney princess mixed with a gothic fairy. She is the kind of girl I would date myself. Maybe that’s why I’m threatened? Because I can see her appeal? Who knows? Lilac is “single and proud,” as her bio states, so good on her for that. She has this aura of unwavering optimism that I envy greatly, but I won’t hold that against her. My envy in no way discredits her achievement of peace.

Overall, I’m glad these women are living their best lives. This early morning peak in their lives has made me appreciate how human they are. I used to see only faceless bodies when I thought about them. But now I can see them: their smiles, their imperfections, and their radiant positivity. I’m glad I belong in the same category as these women. And I hope they would be proud to be in the same category as me.

[clementines-writing-corner]

attempting to edit my mistakes + a new character!!

Hello friends!!

For this week’s progress report I have finally decided to reveal my failed writing attempt from over the summer. Last week’s inspiration to continue trying to flesh out and create this story has not died down and I am finding myself increasingly more excited to write which is super awesome!! So, I decided to go back and try my hand at editing what I had written down for the uncompleted scene and it…went. It didn’t go poorly, but it didn't go well.

It still needs a lot of work before I’m happy with it, but here it is nonetheless:

Scene

“You love him, don’t you,” a voice called over her shoulder. Ailidh started, turning her head away from the scene below to face Ruslan.

“I… don’t know,” she responded, hesitantly, her grip on the parapet tightening as she was suddenly unable to meet the piercing gaze of her betrothed. “But… I think I could.”

She looked back at the man in the courtyard, kneeling in front of a giggling elven child, a soft smile on his face. “I dearly wish to,” she whispered softly. 

Ailidh tensed as a hand was placed upon her shoulder. She looked up once more to see only kindness and understanding in Ruslan’s face. The corner of his lip twitched upward, and her lips parted softly, exhaling in relief. He had become very dear to her heart in the course of their engagement, and while she did not harbor any romantic feelings for him whatsoever, she would hate for their friendship to be lost entirely. She could marry him for the sake of her people and be content for the rest of her days. 

And yet…

Ruslan turned to the guards behind them. “One of you, go and fetch the good Lady of these lands and my advisor. Tell them to meet us in the study.” 

“Yes, sir.”

His gaze snapped back to Ailidh’s as she inhaled sharply. “Do you have your  copy of the marriage contract?” 

She blinked. “...Yes. In the study.”

“Good. Let us make our way there before your mother and my dearest shadow arrive,” he said, holding out his arm with a lopsided grin. With a hesitant smile, and one last hastened glance at her knight below, Ailidh took the offered arm, the pair beginning to walk briskly off the balcony and down the hall.

*~*~*

I don’t usually write romance so it was really interesting that this was the inspirational itch I decided to scratch over the summer. ᕱ__ᕱ 

However, that wasn’t the only thing I did this week. I also started to create another character! I don’t have a drawing for him yet but I do have some visuals floating around in my brain for what he looks like. Once I have time to do some graphic art for fun, you may be blessed with another mediocre headshot.

Character

Ruslan (roos-lan)

Ailidh’s betrothed

From a different nobel family

His family presides over a much more militarily focused fae village/area

This is why Ailidh is betrothed to him as his people could provide her people with much more protection against the growing unrest

Oooo plot!

Highly skilled in the more assassin area’s of fighting

Prefers knives

He and Ailidh make a terrifying duo (poison’s knives!!!!!)

Personality wise he is very dutiful but more laid back that Ailidh

Very dry, sarcastic sense of humor

Boyish charm pokes out every once in a while

Very popular with the ladies but doesn’t care for it (he laments to Ailidh constantly when they become closer friends)

Honestly he's a pretty chill guy

*~*~*

I’ve grown very attached to my guy Ruslan in the time I’ve started to craft him. I’m excited to work on his and Ailidh’s relationship/friendship. But whomst is this mysterious knight I wonder??? ᕱ__<

Finally, I did a little bit of world building as well… but I’m going to keep that to myself for now. (I’m just keeping all the secret’s from you guys today).

All in all, I’d say this was a pretty productive week for me and I’m quite proud of what I have accomplished. That’s all from me for now!

But remember, dot your j’s and cross your t’s!

~Clementine J Quincey🪷

[shvdwscng]

𝐇𝐄  𝐖𝐎𝐔𝐋𝐃  𝐍𝐎𝐓  𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐈𝐌  to  be  an  avid  reader,  but  as  the  adopted  son  of  the  precious  high  lord  of  day,  declan  felt  he  had  a  duty  to  make  this  adoptive  father  proud.  although  he  had  been  quite  the  troublemaker  as  a  child,  but  he  never  forget  once  what  he  was  given,  that  his  adopted  family  loved  him  as  if  he  were  their  own,  his  brothers  did  not  treat  him  any  differently.  that  he  had  grown  up  looking  up  to  both  his  adoptive  father  and  his  eldest  brother,  cedrian.  it  was  also  his  duty  on  some  level  to  aid  his  brother,  his  court,  in  any  way  he  could  so  he  had  taken  his  studies  seriously,  but  his  knowledge  was  limited  simply  because  he  was  neither  a  high  ruler  nor  a  scholar.  the  younger  high  fae  had  no  doubt  in  believing  this  summer  court  scholar  loved  his  books,  loved  being  around  text,  lived  and  breathed  books  which  hadn't  changed  much  even  after  becoming  the  spymaster  of  his  court.  dec  did  foresee  learning  much  from  the  other  male,  his  curiosity  guiding  him,  as  well  his  enjoyment  of  the  summer  lord's  company.  it  was  perhaps  entirely  thoughtless  to  have  such  a  thought  at  this  time,  but  quite  honestly,  declan  was  just  a  bit  fed  up  with  how  mostly  everyone  seem  to  walk  about  in  such  sour  dispositions.  daxton  seems  to  be  among  the  few  who  was  in  better  spirits,  despite  the  circumstances  even  as  he  aided  his  high  lady.  "you  can’t  forget  where  you  came  from."  he  mused,  in  his  eyes  the  spymaster  had  best  of  both  worlds  the  skills  his  took  prided  him  while  being  allowed  another  to  flourish.  daxton's  next  statement  caused  his  ears  to  perk,  "so  there's  a  chance  these  lands  existed  long  before  we  know  them  as  they  are  today?  ancient  then  mother  herself?"  now,  declan  was  aware  just  about  anything  was  possible  in  their  mysterious  lands.  "what  if  the  cauldron  created  something  else  not  even  mother  saw  coming?"

  "that  does  not  surprise  me,  i've  not  spoken  to  any  of  the  royals,  but  i've  heard  enough  bits  here  and  there  about  the  mother  queen's  rather  secretive  nature  to  keep  records  of  her  land  hidden."  the  day  lord  catches  the  other's  irritation  at  this,  "between  us,  we  can  maybe  coax  her  highness  into  allowing  us  access."  it  was  a  long  shot,  while  declan  could  be  quite  the  charmer,  he  was  not  so  arrogant  as  to  believe  a  few  pretty  words  and  charming  smiles  from  him  would  have  sitara  let  them  into  their  hidden  records.  the  youngest  day  lord  could  see  the  disappointment  in  the  other’s  gaze  as  well  as  his  longing  to  access  the  old  libraries.  a  brow  slightly  slow,   "you  will  have  your  chance,  perhaps  now.   if  the  mother  queen  wishes  to  keep  steady  relations  with  the  courts,  she  will  have  to  relent.”  He  released  a  soft  tsk  noise  to  the  spymaster,  looking  a  bit  mock  disappointment.  “don’t  tell  me  you’ve  placed  your  enthusiasm  for  this  visit  all  into  this  particular  wish.   i  do  think  you  need  a  proper  outing,  Daxton.  If  we’re  all  to  be  struck  here  for  the  foreseeable  future,  we  might  as  well  make  full  use  of  the  time  in  a  far  more  enjoyable  manner.  i’m  sure  your  high  lady  can  spare  you  for  a  few  hours,  tomorrow,  while  I  take  you  around  what  the  capital  has  to  offer.”  the  elder  high  fae’s  words  pull  a  grin  from  dec,  well,  there  was  one  soul  who  didn’t  take  offense  to  his  rather  thoughtless  words.  “i’ve  have  heard  but  i  didn’t  know  it  was  true  until  now.  i  will  be  taking  you  upon  that,  perhaps  I  might  not  be  the  only  one  who  will  visit  if  our  high  rulers  continue  to  mingle.”  declan  had  caught  his  brother  retreating  to  the  balcony  with  high  lady  of  summer  during  the  ball,  now  he  wasn’t  quite  sure  if  that  was  a  friendly  or  a  political  exchange,  but  they’d  find  out  soon  enough.

daxton  did  not  have  many  friendships  outside  of  the  tomes  he  adored.  he’d  never  been  a  child  to  run  around  outside  and  play  with  others,  but  rather  to  focus  on�� whatever  book  he  was  allowed  to  read  next.  it  came  as  a  surprise  as  to  how  he  managed  to  be  so  well  fit  in  social  situations,  speaking  to  the  day  lord  perfectly  fine  in  the  ballroom  previously.  his  charm  was  well  noted,  and  perhaps  why  alina  had  seen  fit  to  promote  him.  even  still,  he  wasn’t  sure  how  to  act  with  actual  friendships,  or  candidates  for  it.  finding  a  friend  in  the  day  court  could  be  beneficial,  but  did  he  really  desire  to  take  advantage  of  another  ?  it  was  a  moral  dilemma,  one  he  knew  what  alina  would  think  of  and  therefore  would  not  be  asking  her.  a  chuckle  works  its  way  from  his  chest,  it’s  too  true  of  a  statement  not  to  be  rewarded  with  amusement.  “  so  i’ve  been  told.  ”  now  he  got  to  play  double  duty.  “  perhaps,  we  aren’t  sure  she  was  the  first  being  to  grace  our  lands.  ”  hints  of  otherwise  were  found  in  forgotten  texts,  slight  mentions  in  an  ancient  language  that  could  be  hard  to  translate.  most  had  forgotten  the  old  tongue,  daxton  only  learned  it  from  his  father.  he  wasn’t  even  sure  alina  could  speak  it,  though  would  not  be  surprised  if  she  could.

“  they’re  playing  defense  right  now  of  their  oldest  books.  as  if  learning  how  to  get  out,  learning  our  history,  should  be  a  crime.  ”  he  hated  it,  irritation  clear  on  daxton’s  face.  the  newly  minted  spymaster  would  always  feel  knowledge  such  as  their  past  should  be  widely  spread.  did  another  scholar  not  say  those  that  forgot  their  past  were  doomed  to  redo  it  ?  prythian  seemed  to  not  heed  those  warnings.  “  i  hope  she  will  change  her  mind  soon  enough.  ”  he  adds  on.  all  they  could  do  these  days  was  hope.  “  it’s  interesting,  but  i  have  long  been  trying  to  access  the  old  libraries  here  and  been  denied,  so  my  trip  has  been  full  of  disappointment.  ”  admits  he.  it  was  quite  sad.  a  chuckle  slips  from  dax  once  more.  ah,  these  two  would  get  along  so  well.  “  come  visit  the  summer  court  some  time,  our  parties  are  quite  legendary.  ” alina  wouldn’t  mind,  she’d  tasked  him  with  learning  of  the  day  lord,  after  all.  dax  may  feel  odd  about  using  a  friendship  in  such  a  way,  but  he  would  admit  that  it’d  be  easy  to  learn  if  the  lord  of  day  had  nefarious  intentions  based  off  his  brother.