#sorry its late ;-;

[excitementshewrote]

[alwaysurvalentine]

the luck I've had can make a good man turn bad - fic

Written for Day 5 of @steddieangstyaugust - prompt: Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want by the Smiths - word count: 4.1k (this one got away from me) - cw: some cussing, allusions to parents fighting in another room, allusions to money issues, bullying mentioned (nothing graphic)

enjoy! 💛

When Eddie is five years old, his Uncle Wayne takes him to the aquarium. He talks the entire car ride, reading out the road signs they pass and counting the dashes in the road. He’s so excited that he doesn’t have to play the Quiet Game on the way there that he doesn’t even question it when Wayne comes to pick him up.

Eddie’s Mama helped him pack a bag and said he gets to stay with his Uncle Wayne the whole weekend, he’s so excited! Uncle Wayne always lets him stay up late and tells the best bedtime stories. 

They’ve been on the road for a couple hours when they end up in a city. Uncle Wayne says it’s Louisville, but all Eddie can focus on is the tallest buildings he’s ever seen his whole life. They can fit millions of people in there! When he voices this, Wayne says only a couple thousand are in there. Which is basically the same thing - but Eddie’s not gonna correct his math when he sees them pulling into a Denny’s parking lot.

“We get to have Denny’s?! You’re the bestest!!!!” Eddie’s already unbuckling his belt by the time Wayne’s at his door, opening it to help him out. “Can I get pancakes? Please, please, please!” 

Another chuckle and a shake of the head is his response from Wayne, who’s holding out a hand for Eddie to grab. They cross the parking lot together, Eddie skipping with a toothy grin. 

“Well, go on then, find us a table.” At his uncle’s words, Eddie’s brown eyes scan the room. There’s a few tables next to the windows, but most of those already have people there - and then he sees it. The best table ever. It’s closer to the middle of the room but it’s got two booth seats opposite each other. Perfect for him and his Uncle Wayne! He darts over without saying anything and Wayne follows, slower, but still with a quirk of his lip that Eddie’s Mama said means he’s smiling.

He can’t read the whole menu, but he finds chocolate chip pancakes based on the picture on the side - which he points to when he orders from the nice lady named Sarah. When it’s Wayne’s turn to order he just gets nasty coffee. (Eddie snuck a sip of his mama’s cup once - it tastes like dirt.) 

~

“WHAT is THAT?” Eddie yells - tiny finger pointed at the whale shark swimming above them. A couple of people around them turn to look at him when he yells, but Wayne doesn’t seem bothered - pointing at the words on the wall. 

“This says it’s a whale shark. They’re the biggest sharks in the ocean.”

“What’s the ocean?” 

~

There’s a stuffed whale shark in the gift shop when they’re leaving. Eddie’s seen so many fish today, but none of them were nearly as cool as the whale shark. His eyes find it, and before he knows it his legs have carried him over to the stack of them. A couple friendly clown fish sit nearby, but nothing interests him as much as the whale shark. It looks like it’s the size of his bed, but he doesn’t care - he has to take this home. Mama and him can lay on it when she sings him to sleep and he can cuddle up with it when Mama and Dad get loud in the living room. 

“Eddie? What’d you find?” Eddie grins up at Wayne, smiling big enough to cause his dimples to show. He’s holding on to one of the sharks now, and he was right, it’s bigger than he is. The tail is bent slightly on the ground with his arms wrapped around its sewn gills. 

“I love him. Can we get him Uncle Wayne? Mama would love him! I know he’s not as big as the real thing but this will help her believe me when I tell her it was the size of a car! Dad might even like him, since sharks are the coolest animal.” 

As Eddie rambles, Wayne checks the price tag dangling off of the shark’s front fin. He knew his nephew was going to ask for something from the gift shop, and if this had been a planned visit instead of a quick phone call from Eddie’s mom type of visit, he might’ve had the money. But as it was, the only thing he knew for sure he could afford was the tiny key chain he’d grabbed on his way over to find Eddie. Now it’s just trying to convince Eddie that the keychain is just as cool.

~

Eddie’s pouting in his car seat, brown eyes focused on the trees outside instead of singing along to the station Wayne turned on to the radio. He did buy the keychain but that didn’t stop the tears that streamed down Eddie’s face for the first 30 minutes of the ride. The tears have stopped, but Wayne’s heart breaks at each quiet sniffle coming from the back seat.

***

Uncle Wayne is at the door again. Except this time Eddie’s ten years old and he’s the one that called. He can’t stand being in the house all alone. His mom passed four years ago and his dad’s never been the same - not that he was a stand up guy to begin with. Good old dad said he was going out to “shoot some pool with a couple of buddies”, and while this would normally be fine, Eddie’s run out of Kraft mac and cheese to eat.

“Hey, Uncle Wayne. Sorry I had to call, I was just thinking I haven’t stayed over in a little while. Would it be okay-”

“Where’s Al?” As always, his uncle cuts straight to the chase. His voice is gruff, but Eddie’s had plenty of practice now in reading his uncle and can hear the concern laced in his words. 

He scuffs his converse against the floor and shrugs. “I dunno. He said he was gonna play pool with some guys.” Eddie looks up again to see Wayne looking around the trailer. He should’ve cleaned up after he called him; the dirty dishes in the sink and the trashcan full of candy wrappers says more than he meant to share. 

“Eddie, how-”

“Just forget it. I shouldn’t have called - it was stupid.” Brown eyes meet Wayne’s green ones defiantly, daring him to finish the sentence. 

“Alright, c’mon boy. Let’s go get Denny’s.”

~

The pancakes on Eddie’s plate are drowned in syrup, chocolate chips smeared across the top of them. A cup of black coffee sits in front of Wayne.

“What time does school start on Monday?”

A disbelieving smile starts to spread on Eddie’s face. “I can stay with you all weekend?!”

Wayne nods and sips his coffee, a small smile of his own hidden by the lip of the cup. “We’ll leave a note for your dad, but yeah. I don’t see why not.”

~

Unfortunately, Al Munson is at home when they get back, and with him comes the end of all of Eddie’s weekend plans. Al pitches a fit, sends Eddie to his room so he and Wayne can “have some words”. Eddie doesn’t know why he bothered sending him to his room when his dad’s shouting can be heard through the whole trailer anyway. 

“Don’t need you telling me how to raise my own damn son!”

Wayne’s words don’t carry as well as his dad’s but he can hear some kind of murmur in response. 

“Fuck off Wayne, you always thought you were better than me. I don’t care what you think, he lives under my roof so he follows my rules. He doesn’t need somebody babying him!”

Another murmur. 

“Get the hell out of my house! Don’t even bother coming back! I don’t care if that brat calls you or not!”

Eddie’s back is pressed against his door, knees tucked to his chest as he listens. He was stupid to call Wayne. Stupid to think his dad would let him go stay the weekend with him. He’s just tired. 

He’s tired of having cereal and mac and cheese for dinner. He’s tired of having to eat off of his friend’s lunch trays because his dad hasn’t paid for his school lunches. He’s tired of using duct tape to keep the bottom of his shoes attached because Al won’t buy him more. He’s tired of being left alone for days on end. His dad is right, he can take care of himself - he just doesn’t want to. 

He misses his mom.

***

“Eddie? What happened?” 

The teen brushes off his uncle’s words and heads into the trailer, bee-lining to his room. Eddie knows he looks rough, but seeing his reflection from the mirror on his dresser tells him not about this with Wayne isn’t going to be an option.

“Eddie, can I come in?” Speak of the devil; there he is knocking at Eddie’s door. 

“Yeah. C’mon.” He sits back on his bed, eyes focused on the floor instead of the man stepping carefully into his space, and Wayne lets him sit in silence for a moment before sitting at the foot of Eddie’s bed. 

“You gonna tell me what happened? Or are we just acting like your nose isn’t a bit more crooked than it was this mornin’?” Eddie stays silent. “I know you’re about as graceful as a bull in a china shop, but normally it’s your knees coming home bloody - not your nose. If you’re not gonna talk about it, you gonna at least let me have a look?”

“Why does it matter? No one cares in this fucking town anyway. Everyone always has something to say. Oh did you hear that Munson boy had to move because his dad’s in jail? Eddie’s a weirdo, don’t be friends with him. Have you seen his clothes? Doesn’t even have enough money to get new pants when he rips out the knees. Oh well, I heard that his uncle took him in just for the tax benefits - Lord knows it wouldn’t be worth it to have him otherwise. He’s going to be just like his daddy when he gets older, scamming people - don’t listen to a word he says.”

“Shut your mouth, boy!” 

Eddie’s mouth clamps shut, teeth slamming together with an audible click. He’s shaking slightly, fists clenched at his sides. He can’t meet Wayne’s eyes. 

“You listen to me, and you listen good.” Wayne’s voice is stern but like always, Eddie can hear the affection in it. 

“Look at me,” Eddie raises his eyes slowly, jaw tense even if it causes his nose to throb.

“You ain’t nothing like your daddy. You’re your mama through and through, God bless her. And just because people can’t see past their own noses don’t mean you need to be listening to their shit. You’ve been nothing but a good kid since I met you, so unless you committed some crazy crimes that first week of your life then I think I’m good authority on this. I mean it, Eddie, you’re nothing like him. You keep being you, and you never will be him. Now lemme take a look at your nose.”

***

“Welcome to Family Video!” Eddie looks to the counter, eyes locking with none other than Steve Harrington’s before smirking.

“Is that any way to greet me? Your favorite customer?” He saunters to the counter, limp slowing him down only slightly - physical therapy the past 3 months making it possible at all.

Steve rolls his eyes but the huge smile on his face gives him away. “Sorry, let me try again.” And then he turns around, hazel eyes catching Eddie’s again, fluttering his eyelashes. “Oh! Hello Eddie!” He finishes his new welcome with a wink and then leans against the counter. The sun coming in through the windows makes Steve look like a painting, a modern day Adonis. He’s made to be in the sunlight.

“Anyway, what’s the occasion today? Came to finally return Alien?” Steve’s hair is a little floppier than usual, and he’s been letting it grow out since the end of July so it’s curling up slightly at the end of his neck. It doesn’t cover the two moles on Steve’s neck, the perfect place to bite - and Eddie’s getting off track. 

“As if. That movie’s basically mine and Wayne’s now. No point in trying to get it back.” Eddie shrugs, shaking his head mockingly. He and Steve know he’s had it checked out for at least a year now. They both also know that Steve waived his late fees the moment he got promoted to manager. 

“Just came to bother Hawkins’ favorite babysitter.” Steve’s eyes narrow at him now, leaning away from the counter to peer outside. 

“Which one put you up to this? What do you need?” His hands are on his hips, opening the green vest to tease Eddie with the broad expanse of his chest hidden by a light blue polo. Eddie’s mouth feels a lot dryer than it was when he walked in. Okay - stop looking at the silver buckle on his belt, look at something else. Yeah, yeah, the tangled phone cord - that’s interesting.

“Why does it always have to be something?”

Hazel eyes level him with a look that paints a blush on his cheeks, causing Eddie to cough. 

“Okay, maybe Will’s got a campaign planned for us to play. Buuuut-”

“But the cabin isn’t big enough for all of you to play in?” Steve cuts him off, crossing his arms over his chest instead. Which does nothing to help Eddie’s blush, eyes now distracted by the bulge of his arms. Which makes him think of Steve’s arm behind his back during the last group movie night. Which then makes him think of Steve offering his arms during physical therapy, easily holding Eddie up as he stumbled along. Which then makes Eddie think of how easily Steve was able to help him into the wheelchair he had for a few weeks. 

“-ie? Are you okay? Do you need to sit down for a minute?” Eddie blinks and shakes his head, bringing into focus Steve’s brows furrowed in worry.

“Yeah, no, I’m okay. Gotta head out - Wayne’s waiting in the van. So we can host it at your place? Thanks!”

And then Eddie’s limping back towards the door, thoroughly embarrassed. Leave it to him to get a massive crush on THE Steve Harrington and become a huge idiot in front of him. Screw Robin for making him realize he’d fallen for the guy in the first place, no more late night smoking sessions with Birdie. 

“Yeah, okay. Tell Wayne I said hi!” Steve calls behind him and he flashes a smile over his shoulder as he steps through the door. 

~

There’s an open notebook to Eddie’s right and a pencil tucked behind his ear while he sits crouched over his guitar. He hasn’t written anything new in the last 30 minutes, his mind wandering to Steve again. He wishes he and Robin hadn’t decided to play truth or dare last night. If he’d only picked dare! Instead he picked truth and just like the teenage girl she is, Robin had to ask about crushes. And then he just - started talking about Steve and couldn’t stop. Robin got this weirdly focused look in her eyes and then just cryptically said that he should “tell Steve how you feel!” which had him choking on air. 

“I’m sorry, what?” Brown eyes widened, staring into Robin’s blue ones. 

“You should tell him how you feel!” She’d grinned, eyes red rimmed but nonetheless sincere. 

“Birdie…he doesn’t even know I’m like that…what if he acts weird after? I can’t lose him.” 

“Eddie.” Robin placed her hand on his shoulder, peering into his eyes, close enough that their noses were almost touching. 

“He knows about me. And he’s my Platonic soulmate, knowing this isn’t going to do anything but make things better. He’s a good guy. I promise Eddie, nothing bad is going to happen if you tell him.”

And then she’d backed up to her side of the couch again, reaching for the bag of popcorn they’d made earlier. 

“Eddie! Phone for you! Sounds like your boy!” Wayne’s teasing voice calls through the trailer and Eddie almost drops his guitar in his haste to grab at the phone on his bedside table (a perk from being stuck at the house for recovery).

“Waaaynee!” His voice comes out like a petulant teenager but he doesn’t catch his uncle’s response because he’s already holding the phone up to his ear.

“Hey, Stevie.” He’s breathless even though Steve hasn’t said anything, face warming just like earlier.

“Eddie! Hey! So I said I’d host, but you didn’t say what day.” 

He can hear the smile in Steve’s voice, can imagine him peering into his fridge with the phone tucked in between his shoulder and ear. Eddie sets his guitar against the end of his bed and leans back against his pillows. 

“My bad, yeah, Will the Wise said he wanted to do it next weekend, that work for you?” 

“I have to open next Saturday but if you guys are okay with starting around dinner time, that works for me? I can talk to Mrs. Byers and the Sinclairs about doing a sleepover, can you ask Dustin’s mom and see about giving Max a ride? I’m sure Nancy can let her mom know Mike will be staying over. What kind of snacks do you guys need? I can go to the store on Thursday when I’m off. I can rearrange the living room too…I’ll have to tidy up the guest rooms. Maybe Hopper has some extra firewood we could use and have a little bonfire too? I’ll see if Robin wants to come, we could watch some kind of movie while you play.” 

Steve’s in his own world and Eddie can almost hear the faint scratch of the pen he knows Steve is using to write out a checklist. The list will help keep Steve from forgetting anything, something that Steve has admitted he’s had some trouble with. Remembering the small things, that is. Has to write down dates and specific plans otherwise the day will creep up on him and he’ll only remember when one of the kids contacts him on the radio. It’s happened more times than he’s comfortable with, and now he writes everything down. Has a notebook near his home phone and even keeps a small handheld notebook in his car just in case. Eddie saw it once, accidentally sitting on it; got to see a page covered in bullet points. 

Eddie Physical Therapy MWF 2-3 PM!!

Dustin back from Camp Know Where on Tuesday the 17th

Eddie says to listen to Black Sabbath ??

Will and El staying over on the 3rd so Hopper and Mrs. Byers can go on date

Give Eddie back his vest ???

Oil Change

Ask Eddie

  But he couldn’t finish reading the list before Steve had grabbed the notebook to shove into the center console. 

“Stevie, sweetheart-” and he swears he can hear a stutter in Steve’s breath, “we can just order a couple pizzas and be fine. Don’t worry about getting specific snacks or anything. I’ll talk to Claudia and you know I’ll make sure Max gets there in one piece. Everyone’s gonna be excited just to play, let alone stay the night and get some of that breakfast casserole you always make for us.” He’s joking with his words and is rewarded with a chuckle from Steve. 

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll make it only when I get some help in the kitchen. Peeling and cutting all those potatoes is hard work. But yeah, we can order pizza for the group.” The stress has eased from his voice, and the Steve in Eddie’s mind’s eye is ripping away the previous notes to replace it with one that just says pizza for dinner and the ingredients for Steve’s breakfast casserole (potatoes, eggs, shredded cheese). 

“Uh-huh. You tell me when you stop needing the potatoes in perfect cubes and I’ll help. Little Stevie Homemaker has to have his food perfect otherwise no one’s allowed to eat it.” He teases again, pulling a strand of his hair to his mouth, chewing on the end slightly. 

~

Steve’s messing with something in the kitchen when Eddie and Max walk in. Max beelines to the living room, circling the coffee table before plopping down on the left side of the couch. Her hair is in two haphazard braids that Eddie knows El will offer to fix as soon as she walks in. She cuts her eyes to him and nods towards the kitchen, a knowing smirk on her face.

“Don’t look at me like that, Mayfield.” He pokes a finger in her direction and squints his eyes. The effect is lost on her though because she’s already turned back towards the TV, remote in hand, while he heads towards the kitchen. 

At least three cabinet doors are slammed shut before Eddie steps into the kitchen. Steve’s back is to him, a green T-shirt stretched across his back - his shoulders are tense and Eddie can almost see an exact outline of the boy’s shoulders. He can’t make out what he’s saying, but Steve’s mumbling as he works. There’s a towel covered bowl behind him on the island, but he’s pulling out smaller bowls and setting them on the counter next to the fridge. 

“What’s all this, Stevie?” And Steve jumps about 2 feet in the air at his voice, whipping around quick enough that his bangs settle back down on his head while he scowls at Eddie. 

“I thought I told you to be here at 6.” 

“And I thought I told you that we would order pizza tonight.” Eddie’s looking down at the homemade dough he sees sitting in the bowl he uncovered. Now that Steve’s turned around, he can see that he was pulling bowls out to dump toppings into. A jar of olives, cut green peppers, mushrooms, a bag of pepperoni, and a large bag of cheese - all the makings of a pizza, just no sauce. When he looks back to the boy in front of him, he’s wiping his hands on a gray towel he had over his shoulder. A light blush is on his cheeks, traveling down to the collar of his shirt - Eddie thinks if he didn’t have it on that pretty pink would travel further down his chest. He hears another mumble from Steve but he turns as he’s talking so he misses it, and Steve’s shoulders seem more tense than before. 

“What was that? Hey, please?” Eddie rounds the corner of the island and reaches a hand out to rest on Steve’s shoulder, turning him slightly. He’s looking down but lets Eddie turn him, hands slowing their fidgeting with the towel. 

“Mario’s pizza has too much grease, and this way all of the kids can put their own toppings on theirs.” 

Again, Eddie is reminded of how sweet Steve really is. He’s so glad he’s gotten to know this Steve instead of the “King” he thought the younger man was. His hand travels from Steve’s shoulder with a mind of its own, resting against his right cheek. If he moves his thumb slightly he could cover up the moles right there on Steve’s left cheek. Hazel eyes are hidden from him, Steve’s eyes closed as he leans slightly into the contact. 

Eddie really wants to kiss him. 

“Stevie…” His voice is little more than a whisper but Steve opens his eyes regardless. The light from the kitchen window highlights the gold in Steve’s eyes and Eddie’s breath stutters at what he sees there. 

Does Steve want to kiss him?

Loud knocking shocks both them and Eddie drops his hand like it’s been burned. “STEVE!! Why is your door locked? Let us in!!” Dustin’s voice is muffled only because there’s a door and room between them, and Steve rolls his eyes. 

“Let me go let them in, can you stir that for me?” Then he just nods towards a simmering pan on the stove like nothing happened. And Eddie can do nothing but nod once before watching Steve walk away. He hopes he’s not imagining how red Steve’s face is before he leaves the kitchen.

Maybe after the kids leave he and Steve can have a little chat - seems like Robin might be right. If he’s lucky maybe he’ll even get to kiss Steve before the night ends. 

But until then, he’ll stir Steve’s homemade pizza sauce and play the most distracted D&D game he’s ever played. He might’ve been through hell and back, with or without the Upside Down, but things might just be looking up for him now.

(Now with a part two!)

[haruspeks]

@startrekwintergiftexchange

my gift for @monsterfisken

[halopako]

rhhhhggghh in. the closet?? ahhhghgh!?

[vinnybox]

Trick or treat!

Ok this time I have snacks :]

[mha-spinning-wheel]

Day One Hundred Fifty-Six

Daigo is OUT!

Purple Hulk, basically. 266 Characters Remain...

[frankensteingirlseamstress]

So here is my extremely late Easter offering which I started on Good Friday. This painting features Top Hat from TUGS with some Easter bunnies who, rather than hiding eggs, are hiding themselves under his hat.

There is also a small tribute to my much missed rabbits; Ronnie (black buck) Peaches and Ivy (both brown does).

Aside from the obvious Easter celebrations, this was inspired by the connection between rabbits and top hats in association with magic.

Happy belated Easter, everyone.

[littlebeeguyah]

Day 3: Honeybees (Apis mellifera)

Honeybees are about 15mms long and can be found in every country save for Antarctica, and are the most common bee in the world. They enjoy wooded areas to build their large hives.

They are social bees and are mostly indifferent to humans. If you don’t bother them, they won’t bother you. It is unlikely for them to sting you if you leave them alone.

These guys have brown bodies and a sort of hourglass shape to their bodies. Their thorax’s are long and pointy and have alternating dark brown, light brown, red, and yellow stripes.

As you may be able to guess, these guys create lots of honey. But not only that, they pollinate an estimated amount of 20 billion dollars worth of crops a year.

Like most bees, these guys have many variations. Above is the Western Honey bee (apis mellifera) as previously mentioned, these guys are the main kind of honeybee.

This guy is the Italian Honey Bee (apis mellifera ligustica) and is found all over the world

This is the Russian Honey Bee (apis mellifera artemisia) and are known for being able to withstand harsh, cold climates. They originate from the Promorsky Region of Russia.

This is the Carniolan Honeybee (apis mellifera carnica) these guys are found in Slovenia, southern Austria, parts of Albania, Croatia, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, and North-East Italy.

This is the Buckfast Honeybee (apis mellifera buckfast) It is the crossing between an Italian Honeybee and a Western Honeybee.

This is the Caucasian Honeybee (apis mellifera caucasia) These guys are found in eastern Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan.

[darkacademicvibes]

We Think Similar Thoughts

Part Two

Lonely!fem!reader x Lonely!Remus

CW: sweet!Remus, swearing, mentions of The Prank, arguments, blood, kinda protective!reader, a hint of teasing!James, fighting, also a lot of mean!Remus...

☕︎︎

You never say you hate anything. It's the way you were raised, but Merlin's pride did you hate them.

You send yet another disappointed scowl at the three boys, and Remus can't help the warmth that spreads through his chest. It's been two months of getting to know you, and then once he was sure he could trust you (he was sure after you went on a rant about unfair rights for magical creatures which ended with you sending vicious glares to Malfoy for the rest of the day) he told you everything. He got quieter as he went on, despite your understanding behavior. As soon as he mentioned The Prank, you were ready to go to Azkaban. You were ready to use cruciatus curse on Sirius Black, and then stand in trial and declare proudly why you had done it.

As soon as he'd told you Sirius' excuse, his reasoning, you were ready to add murder to your charge.

You started staying with him in a room hidden behind the tapestry of Billigor the Jolly instead of your dorm, much to the anger of your older brother, who sent a strongly worded letter reminding you of the prank the marauders pulled on you last year, which you promptly ignored and left on top of your trunk, a mistake you don't intend to make again after you walked in on Remus staring at the floor with his head in his hands.

He spent the next three days apologizing and though it was unnecessary, it made you smile.

Remus' hand wraps gently around your wrist, and it sends tingles up your entire arm. "Stop glaring before your face freezes that way" he murmurs. You glare harder. "I'll live with it" you huff, and it makes him laugh. The sound has you turning to him with a small smile, which he returns as soon as he stops laughing.

"Don't look, but the boys are staring" Remus sighs. Sympathy curls along your shoulders, and you huff, standing up and making your way over to the marauders. Remus watches you walk, curious.

"Either stop staring or come sit with us" you state plainly, and Remus frowns from your table. Sirius moves to stand up and you point at him, "not you, Remus doesn't need you, he doesn't need anyone who uses his insecurities as some sort of sick personal gain" you snap before turning on James and Peter. "If you come sit with us, you cannot speak of what happened, you shut up and study, or you apologize and make normal conversation, like normal people. Talk about the weather for goodness sake" you make your way back to your table and Remus welcomes you back with a gentle smile.

"What was that about?" He murmurs as you both watch Sirius pack up James and Peters bags, Peter argues, but James allows it easily, tidying up his essay papers. "It's okay, Rem, just wait" James stands up and makes his way over, but Peter stays sitting with Sirius.

"Hey, can I sit?" Remus sends an unsure look your way when you smile and shuffle closer to Remus to make room for James. "Thanks, I'm James, it's nice to meet you" he introduces himself to you "officially" he adds. You nod, "y/n y/l/n, nice to meet you" Remus shuffles and his knee knocks yours gently. "Officially" you tack on jokingly, and his shoulders relax a little as he let's out a small laugh.

"Moon- uh, Remus?" Amber eyes meet hazel ones, and James smiles weakly. "I'm sorry, I know we shouldn't have forgiven Sirius so easily" he admits, and Remus' hand rests gently on your knee. "It's okay, Prongs, I know he's like a brother to you, especially when you told him you-" Remus cuts himself off, glancing at you before looking back at him. "Y'know" he finishes, and you frown before deciding not to ask. You didn't ask about Remus' scars or why he disappears once every month and turns up in the hospital wing the next morning and he told you in his own time.

James smiles sadly, "yeah" Remus sends you a greatful smile, and sadness prickles at your palms. You're glad Remus has one of his old friends back, but what if he gets them all back and then disappears? What if he gets his friends back and suddenly has no time for you anymore? As much as you hate it, doubt manages to lodge itself in between your ribs.

You continue your alchemy essay on the pidiflud potion, which forces the drinker to say whatever is on their mind, no matter what it is. Hungry? Announced. Insecure? Announced. Busy? Announced. Disgusted? Very much announced.

Remus stops talking to James for a moment, placing his hand on your back gently as his right hand points out a few mistakes, telling you how to fix them. "Thanks" you murmur distractedly, and Remus frowns, staring at you for a long moment.

Remus leans into you, mumbling into your ear, "you okay? You're real quiet" you pause for a moment, almost dropping your quill. "M'fine, Rem, just keep talking to James" you don't mean to sound bitter, but even you can tell that you sound hurt. Remus frowns before chuckling softly, his hand slipping further around your back to dig his fingers into your side. "You want my attention?" He asks teasingly, and you shrug, nodding a little.

"Want as much as I can have before you forget about me" you sigh quietly, and he frowns. "M'not gonna forget about you, y/n, you're my friend now, that's not gonna change just cause I have James again" he assures you, but something in you whispers the opposite, and you sigh. Remus shakes his head and pulls you into his side, resting his chin on your shoulder as he returns his focus on his herbology essay. James sends you a knowing smile as you relax into Remus' side, fixing the last mistake Remus pointed out to you before continuing your essay.

James's knee bumps yours and when you look up at him, he grins cheekily, glancing down and Remus' left hand, toying with the hem of your skirt with his arm wrapped around your back, you frown, confused. Sitting like this is pretty common for the two of you, it has been ever since you found a muggle book on love languages and found that yours is physical touch while Remus' is words of affirmation.

You shrug it off and turn back to your essay, feeling a little more reassured.

☕︎

You miss Remus.

It's been twelve days and seven hours since you managed to get James to sit with the two of you (but who's counting?), and a few days later, Sirius' encouragements convinced Peter to apologize to Remus as well and now both you and Sirius have been left behind. Remus tries making time for you, but he's trying to make up for two months of missed time with two of his best friends, you can't bring yourself to be mad about it, especially when he looks so happy, but he eats with them, walks to class with them, studies with them, and he's moved back into the dorm.

The most time you've spent together over the last two weeks was in alchemy when he sat beside you before being pulled away by professor Featherton, who paired Remus up with some Ravenclaw girl, and watching them laugh together makes your stomach twist.

"You okay?" You jump and turn to face the voice, frowning when Sirius Black stands in front of you, looking tired and miserable. You turn away and start packing up your things. "I'm fine" you mutter, sending one last longing glance at the way Remus leans closer to the Ravenclaw to read over her paragraph. You scoff when she shuffles closer than necessary to ask a question, and Sirius let's out a small laugh. Remus glances over just as Sirius helps you tidy up, frowning when he sees the way you pause before hesitantly allowing him to help you.

"Thanks for caring about Remus, I know it's one of the easiest things in the world, but I'm still glad he has you" Sirius admits as you finish packing your bag, handing you the last essay. You take it with a sigh, holding it close to your chest. "When he wants me, I'm here. Just like I am for everyone else" you smile sadly, and Remus tenses as he hears you. Did you really think you would have to write him first if you wanted to stay in contact? Did you actually believe he was like your other 'friends'? The thought makes bile rise in his throat.

It gets worse when he hears Sirius comfort you.

"I'm sure he's just catching up with the guys, I see the way he is with you, he really cares" Sirius smiles and steps back. "I know I'm not someone you wanna a be around, anyway, so I'll go. But if you ever need anything, feel free to ask. I owe you, even if it wasn't for anyone else" Remus stands up, making his way over to you and tossing an arm around your shoulders.

"Oi, bugger off, yeah? She doesn't want you around" Remus snaps, and you frown. "Remus, I know you're mad at him but he was just helping me out" you huff, pushing his arm off of your shoulders, as soon as his arm falls to his side, you regret it.

"I'm not defending him, but he was just trying to be nice," you add on, and Remus scowls, crossing his arms. "Yeah, bein' nice, that's how he gets girls into his bed just so he can ditch them after." Remus glares at his old friend, and Sirius looks away, ashamed.

"Remus!" You hiss, shocked at his words. The way he said it sounded like he was accusing you of something, and you almost flinched. "Pump and dump, right Pads?" The way Remus spits out the familiar nickname has Sirius clenching his jaw, both anger and guilt forcing their way down his throat.

"Y'know. One and done, love it and leave it, nut and bolt, hit it and quit it, smash and dash" Remus snaps, "whatever you call it, it's still Sirius' specialty, ain't that right, Black?" He asks. It's rhetorical, but Sirius nods once anyway, refusing to look at either of you.

"Remus!" You stare at the - usually - sweet boy, astounded, and disappointed. Remus turns to you, anger flaring in his amber eyes. "What? I'm just saying what we're all thinking. Sirius Black is a whore, nothing new about it" he snaps, and your jaw drops. "Anything to disappoint his family, not that he needs any help with that" Remus growls out.

Sirius delivers the first punch.

"Fuck you, Remus." Sirius snaps back. You gasp and take a step forwards. "Stop it, both of you!" You shout over their insults and threats. Remus steps towards Sirius and you place your hand on his chest to stop him, this is escalating too quickly for you to keep up.

Sirius gently pushes you back before Remus punches him in the stomach, ignoring the part of him saying it was because he touched you, Sirius staggers before punching Remus in the nose.

You try to grab Remus' arm as he stumbles, his eyes watering, but he pulls his arm out of your grip roughly, and it pushes you back.

You trip over your bag, and halfway down, you feel something, and then everything goes black as you briefly hear the two boys fighting.

☕︎

"-all your fault" someone snaps.

"I know, believe me, I know" another answers, voice cracking.

"If you'd just-"

"James, he knows! Get off his back, it was my fault, really"

"No, it wasn't, I pushed her. I should have noticed"

"No, I hit you first, she was trying to stop it, just blame me"

"Great fucking godric! It was both of your faults, now shut the hell up and get over here, she's waking up"

You huff and slowly, open your eyes. The stupid hospital wing ceiling stares back at you, reminding you of the familiar phantom pain the marauders caused so long ago.

Your head pounds and you close your eyes again. Someone takes your hand and you glance at them, pulling your hand out of Sirius Blacks. "What happened?" You sit up. Remus tries pushing you back down gently, but you swat away his hand and look at the four boys surrounding you. You decide to turn to Peter.

"Peter?" He nods and steps forwards, sitting on the edge of your hospital wing bed and explaining what happened when you hit your head.

"I'm so sorry" Sirius mumbles as you lift your hand to brush over the cut on your head, you wince at the pressure and James hands you a small mirror. You thank him and look into it. There's a thin cut along your temple, curling slightly, and surrounded by a harsh yellow and purple bruise. You sigh and place the mirror down, making to stand up. Sirius tries to stop you but you bat his hand away too.

"Quit it you two, I'm fine" you huff, standing easily, despite the pounding in your head. You knew getting between two people fighting was stupid, but you didn't want either of them getting hurt.

You glance at Remus and Sirius, noticing Sirius' bloody knuckles and black eye, and the blood staining Remus' shirt, some left over dried blood just under his nose, his own knuckles bruised to all hell.

"You idiots" you huff, rolling your eyes. "I swear on James' life, if you ever fight each other again I'll whack you both around the head." James sends you his best what-the-fuck-am-i-included-for look and you shrug silently, grabbing the familiar jumper off of the chair beside your bed, and pulling it on, wincing when it brushes your temple. Peter huffs and steps towards you, tipping your head up to look at him, and turning it to the side. "That's my work you're bein' so careless of" he huffs. You'd forgotten he offered to help Madam Pomfrey when she first arrived as the new healer.

"Sorry Pete" you sigh, looking up at the boy. He smiles down at you, his shaggy dark blonde hair starting to fall into his eyes. "You've not messed the tape up, but be careful, Remus said you don't want magical healing so I've tried it the muggle way, it might scar" you shrug as he let's go of your chin, stepping back. "I'll be all cool and tough, like Rem and Sirius" you grin. Sirius pauses, frowning, before glancing down and realizing what you mean. The nasty scar on his wrist his mother gave him the first time she ever use a certain unforgivable on him, he'd fallen into the dining table and shattered an old vase. He doesn't remember much after that.

"These two are friends again" James announces, clapping his hands awkwardly after a long moment of silence, and you scoff. "Men, smack each other silly and you'll be just fine again!" You state, your voice rising a little as you roll your eyes.

Peter shares a knowing grin with James. You certainly didn't need to know that Remus and Sirius both care for you, in different ways, and for different reasons, yes. But care is still care, no matter what kind.

"Yeah, you know us men, a good punch solves a bunch of problems" James snickers.

You send him a suspicious glance and he smiles innocently at you as Sirius and Remus share an awkward smile.

"Boys are so weird" you mutter, making your way past the four boys in question. They follow after you and you allow them, waving goodbye to Pomfrey as you pass by. The boys talk quietly, catching up and making silly jokes, making sure to include you, and warmth spreads through your stomach when James tosses an arm over your shoulder and asks you to hang out with them at breakfast tomorrow morning.

"I guess" you sigh dramatically. "But if anyone throws a punch I'm just gonna watch this time" you joke weakly, but the four boys laugh, and you can't help but grin.

"Y/n? Hey, can I talk to you?" You turn around, and the boys stop as well. "Oh! Hey Corey, " you smile at your alchemy partner. "Ask away." Corey grins and steps closer, glancing nervously at the four boys with you. "Will you go out with me this weekend?"

"The fuck did you just ask her?"

[venusiinfurss]

*twirling lock of hair around finger* you’re soooooo funny ahaha. you’re like soooooooo funnyyyyy… *notices your lit cigarette* it would so weird if you like. put that out on me. like hahah it would be so funny. like if you put that out on me lol. put that out on me haha. put that out on me.

[dragooned-speaks]

Day 25: ImpulseSV!

[orchid-151]

Hey Jay, has there ever been a time where Ari nearly gave you and Valkyrie a heart attack by doing something reckless and dangerous?

Valkyrie: "Jay had thought he lost her one day..."

Jay: "Aaaaarrrriiiiii?!?! Where are you?!?!?"

Valkyrie: "But don't worry, he eventually found her... haha."

Jay: "HOW DID YOU GET UP THERE!?!?!?"

Baby Ari: "Da~❤️"

[merlin-canon-divergence-stories]

Shield of Camelot

Chapter 8 Lost

Percival groaned as he felt something wet hit his face. His abdomen felt like it was on fire, reminding him of his wound. He opened his eyes, and saw it was still dark and felt the wet hit him again. It was raining, and he realized the thicket wasn’t giving him as much protection as he thought it should. He needed to move, to find better shelter. 

He forced himself to move, but his limbs felt heavy, and he felt disoriented. He needed water, the river was nearby, but which way. He knew he had to get there, to drink some. It’d help clear his mind and ease his parched throat. 

He slowly dragged himself out of the thicket. He found instead of the river he was expecting, nothing but forest, and realized He’ exited a different way than he’d entered the thicket. He tried to force himself to stand to get a better view of his surroundings, but the pain that shot through his abdomen caused him to fall back on his hands and knees. This isn’t good. He thought to himself, as his body shook. He couldn’t stay here, he had to find something, anything better than the thicket for shelter from the rain. 

The dagger must have punctured something and whoever tended to me didn't realize it. He reasoned in his mind. I should have stayed put. Maybe they would have found me by now. Maybe it wouldn't hurt this much. He shook his head as the rain started to hit harder and tried to get his body to move. Another wave of pain went through him and he fell face first. As his consciousness faded he thought about his friends. If they'd ever find him, and if they'd be able to save him. 

Gareth sighed as they reached the bend alongside Merlin and Elyan. He quickly saw signs that someone tall had definitely been laying there. Merlin looked and nodded, “well, the fact he woke up is a good sign.”

Elyan nodded. “The fact He wandered off isn't though.” 

Gareth nodded. “There's tracks though. He may be looking for shelter.” He said, studying the ground. 

Merlin looked And nodded. “It’s very well possible, but with a wound like Ealdor described, if he were to brush up against anything, even if tended to, it would irritate and aggravate it, making it even more painful. Certain plants as well.” softly, eying the surroundings 

Gareth nodded, looking at the sky. “True, and I don’t like the looks of that either.” pointing to the sky, where the sun was coming up, a bit of pink in the sky showing gray clouds as well, and Gareth knew that they weren’t like that just because of the rising sun. 

Merlin nodded. “The sooner we find him, the better. Elyan, stick with the plan and stay here, Gareth and I will follow the tracks.”

Elyan nodded. “I hope you guys find him before the weather turns.” 

Merlin nodded, watching the sky. “Same here.” Then noticed Gareth's already ahead of them following the tracks. He goes to catch up, taking note of the plants that had been disturbed along the way.

[sacrosaenct]

HALLOWED GROUND / @lostw0n

if one was to take the time to examine the fact that there is a tiny, decrepit little chapel on the outskirts of town, long abandoned, it might be somewhat bemusing. after all, while catholicism has it's hold in the country, it hardly has the same european saturation, particularly in regard to religious structures. nevertheless, there it is. maybe someone, at some time in onyang's infamous history, had sensed the presence of whatever it was that lived in the forest (whatever it was that lived in her head) and had made an attempt to counteract it - one which perhaps went as well as the largely ignored temple further up the mountain. regardless, the hollow structure carried with it just enough promise of a familiar sanctity that yunseol had taken to spending time there, lighting candles to ward off the dark, falling back into old habits (as evidenced both by the rosary twisted around her wrist and the shattered bottles in the back of the room, a dichotomous as she herself). the flicker and glow of the candles, set up akin to those meant for offerings, is the sole light in the room. there's a camping lantern somewhere, but it's dark enough to dig it out yet. she sort of wishes she had it in hand to bludgeon with, however, when the sound of footsteps approaches, the drag of a door against the ground heralding an intruder on her brief moment of quiet. dark eyes narrow with something between suspicion and skepticism as her gaze falls upon a once familiar visage, her lips pressing together thin before she decides that isn't enough, takes a swig from the bottle in her hand instead. "it's rude to interrupt someone's prayers," she informs him, tone tilting frostily between them even as the soju warms her inside-out, brows lifting slightly. "so you'd better have a compelling reason to be here.

[monitorchakas]

@khaaans-pecs For Cruelty and Creativity Forerunner Saga fandom exchange, Bornstellar Makes Eternal Awkward face while flexing 🤣

This was fun bestie!!!

[astro-inky]

i love my little sister so much but i always feel like i can never connect with her. i adore my older sister. shes my favorite person.

one time my big sister told me that my little sister was her soul mate and there was just something different with her, that she loved her like her own child. i think about it a lot and get this dreadful lonely feeling.

i wish i could connect with her to that point. i wish i could be like that to both of them. i dont think i ever will. i dont think i ever will for anybody.