#thank you so much for letting me talk about orpheus' dancing i love him so much

[doctorhouse5343]

I Need A Moment (Love In The Lab)

Dr.Endlesstein had just finished taking out a freshly baked batch of brownies out of the oven when the angry mutterings of his husband broke the still air. Removing his cat paw-shaped oven mitts, he called out gently "Bad day?" The reply quickly came, frustrated and annoyed "The stupid printer ended up having a stroke again even though it was supposed to have been fixed. So thanks to that, we are behind with our articles. It's a mess!"

More angry mumbles came as the journalist walked in the kitchen, untying his bun and running his hands in his long hair with a sigh as he sat down at the counter "On top of that, Sharron and her friends kept talking on and on instead of doing their part and one guy kept asking me questions every few seconds. I swear, I was this close to make him the modern day Headless Horseman" That comment almost made the doctor chuckle but he refrained from doing so, it was clear to him that his husband had a very bad day at work and needed to let it out. So he did. Morpheus listened while sipping a cup of herbal tea, it was only them in the manor at the moment since Orpheus was at his favorite aunt's house along with Cori (he asked to bring the hamster with him and since Hob wanted a break from that evil critter, they let him tag along) so they had all the time in the world. "Sorry about that" Hob said after having gotten everything off his chest, sighing a bit as he took a sip of his own tea, feeling his nerves relax a bit. He closed his eyes, savoring the moment before he felt hands lifting him up in a bridal carry

"M-morpheus?!" The journalist squeaked in shock, looking up at his lover's gorgeous face "What are you doing? " He asked, getting no answer as the impossible man that he loved carried him to the couch, sitting on it with Hob still in his arms. The doctor then wrapped him up in a warm blanket and sat him down on his lap with a hum "What movie would you like to watch, Robert?" That name;one that he didn't like many using; sounded magical out of his lover's lips, making his heart flutter with happiness "The Labyrinth. I know, I know, we have already watched it a dozen times but I really need it now". Morpheus agreed and soon put on the movie after dimming the lights. Hob rested his head against his lover's chest smiling as they both sang along to the songs of the movie, they even danced along to that one scene in the movie (if Cori had witnessed that, he would have stared in judgment).

When the movie ended, the journalist felt much better than he felt before, smiling happily as he took a bath with the man he loved and ate the brownies that were actually good and not rocks masquerading as a dessert. That feeling followed him in his sleep, nestled in the arms of his beloved

[ash-soka]

31, 38, 42 for the oc ask meme?

31. Pick one OC of yours and explain what their tumblr blog would be like (what they reblog, layout, anything really)

this question made my go and make a whole fake blog for my first ever dnd oc, Myrah (pronounced meer-uh). this is her:

(picrew by nudekay)

her blog would look like this:

she'd mostly blog about fashion, interact with her handful of friends, and advertise her youtube channel. she's an elf bard in canon, so she would put a lot of violin content on youtube, and maybe the occasional harp piece.

if you want to see the kind of posts she'd reblog/her aesthetic, you can check out her blog here!

warning though, it only looks good in desktop, and i will also probably never post to it again

38. Which one of your OCs would be the best dancer?

Oh, Orpheus by far! He's spent 10 years as a professional dancer in his canon setting, and he always still dances in any au I put him in. And that was always the plan for him, right back to his earliest design concept—

^I almost never post my art so most of you have never seen this but here's my first ever drawing of one of my favourite boys! excuse how lq it is, this is just a screenshot, the original is on my old laptop, it was that long ago. He's evolved somewhat from this original concept, but he's very much still a dancer!

Orpheus is my water genasi bard OC from @literalpotatx's dnd campaign. Ash very graciously let me make him a dancer instead of a more traditional type of bard.

Orpheus joined a dance troupe when he was around 17 or 18, and within the next year or two they were invited to perform for the royalty of his home kingdom. He spent the next 10 years, basically the entirety of his 20s, as a dancer for the royal court of Pythos, so he's pretty good. I do have some unfinished art of him when he was first invited to the palace with the other dancers:

which i also posted here!

I flip flop on what styles of dance he'd like in a modern setting, I think he'd like the control that ballet requires you to have, but i could easily see him liking other styles as well. I keep coming back to these two videos (one, two) as possible dance inspiration for him in his canon setting! i think he'd strive to master a few different styles over time. sorry this got so long��� my dancer oc is one of my favourites!

42. Which one of your OCs would be the most interested in Greek gods?

okay i really love this question, i can answer it in a few different ways,

1) if taken completely literally then, it's him again, my beloved Orpheus:

(picrew by baydews, colours slightly edited by me)

so. funny coincidence. my Orpheus is not the Orpheus of greek myth, I just personally love the myth of orpheus and eurydice and thought it would make a good name for a bard, even though my bard is a dancer. I named him that, and had him ready to go as a character the next chance I got to play someone new— so when I got invited to play in a new campaign, I decided to use Orpheus, and later found out this campaign would be incorporating Greek gods.

really funny to me how that happened. and the funniest part is that it happened AGAIN, another player in the same campaign decided to recycle her oc from years ago, named atlas, the next chance she got, and had decided to play as them before finding out this was a Greek gods campaign [doofenshmirtz "two nickels but weird that it happened twice" meme]

so, if i take "which oc would be most interested in greek gods" completely literally for their canon settings, the answer is Orpheus because those are the gods in charge of the world he lives in. funnily, if you'd asked this a few weeks ago i don't know if i could have said as much dkhgbdfkhb. yes, the Greek gods are real in the world he lives in, but. Orph didn't really care about them in more than a vague sense until Thanatos did him a favour last session dkghbdk. Thanatos isn't even the first god he's met, he's met Hermes and been in the vicinity of Artemis, he just wasn't that impressed before now i guess kdhfgbdk. to be fair, idk if he fully realised hermes was a god, and he didn't properly meet artemis. He's also met some? demi-gods I guess? it's complicated to explain, but I think one of them kind of did also put the fear of the gods into him a little bit so. he does care more now because of all that's happened. and i think that counts as being "most interested" out of all my ocs in their canon settings.

2) if taken in a. kind of literal but kind of meta way? it's complicated hold on.

if I had a nickel for every time a friend told me about their idea for a modern greek gods au, and let me come up with a concept for how my personal favourite god would fit into that setting, i'd have two nickels. which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice.

but anyway, my favourite of the Greek gods is Thanatos, the god of death. i just really like psychopomps, and although he's nearly always present in some way or another, he's rarely actually mentioned, which basically makes him free real estate for this kind of thing.

(was I smug that orph had a really positive interaction with my favourite god so i could let my favouritism bleed into him? yes, thank you for asking!)

and i always say the same thing for him in a modern setting as a human, he'd be the hard working employee of a funeral home that Hades owns. his twin Hypnos works there too, mostly on reception but he helps his brother out when he's not sleeping on the job instead. back in like, 2018, a friend asked what i'd do with him and this is what i came up with, and i've stuck with it. (also a good excuse to bring up any knowledge i've retained from watching askamortician over the years).

also the part of my brain that wants me to go "i liked it before it was cool" is forcing me to say: i've never played that hades game. this is just from my own interpretation

i've been thinking about it recently because a different friend asked a few weeks ago, which prompted me to actually do designs for Thanatos (left) and Hypnos (right) in this setting.

(picrew by cosmitasia)

so in a weird way i think this version of Thanatos who's basically an oc would count as "most interested in the greek gods" because basically every other character we worked into this setting that he'd be interacting with is another greek god, lmao.

3) but, if i take this the way i think the question actually intended, as in, in a modern setting, which of your OCs would be the most interested in Greek Mythology, then the answer changes again!

In that case the answer is probably my mc for the exile, Dimitra "Mimi" Vamirel, she really loves reading and I think she'd take a real interest in mythology in general in a modern setting! i'll add a picrew of her here too:

(picrew by djarn)

thank you so much for sending this!!!!! 💖💘💝💞 i appreciate the chance to talk about my brain blorbos

link to the oc questions, in case anyone else wants to send them!

i have 1, 2, 24, 33, and 44 sitting in my inbox though! i will get to them asap <3

[winter-fox-queen]

Kisses Like Wine Part 7

Thank you, thank you for all the kind words, clever tags…I hope this ending is a good one for all of you. <3

Summary: We end where we begin…at a party. Will the Thief get everything he came for?

Warnings: Making out…I don’t know why, the man exudes pure sex, but I couldn’t fit the smut in. Stealing things. The reader is female, blank canvass, no y/n.

I stared at the card.  All that blackmail, clever managing to break into a warehouse, avoiding getting killed…and all I had to show for it was an empty chair and a card.

A King of Spades. What the hell did that even mean?  It’s been a few days, and I had no idea where he was, if he was alright, anything.

But I did have a bit of luck.  I learned that there was to be a ball…and it was tonight. The Heart of the Rhine would be on delicious display, around the neck of a lady who claimed to be one of the “Last Habsburg Princesses” — though people made fun of her for her grandiose claims.  But still.  She was going to the ball, wearing the Heart, and I was going to steal it.

I had a glass fake.  It wasn’t a very good glass fake, but it would do with the time I had.  I also had a beautiful dress, a soft, filmy green that clung where it should and sparkled like a thousand diamonds had been sewn into it.

I then tried to treat myself to dinner, but the card was declined…finally, my father had cut me off.  I laughed…I had bought everything from the skin out for the ball, made sure I was the most beautiful and elegant I could be, and it was the MCDonald’s cheeseburger that got declined.

I told myself I was dressing for the part, not for the man.  I hadn’t picked out the most beautiful lingerie to wear under the dress that I could just in case he would get to see it.

I’d give my soul to know his name, and it scared me, how far I’d gone.

How much I wanted him.

So, there I was.  At the entryway to the Great Ballroom (which I’d cleaned yesterday, and helped set up this morning before collecting my paycheck and canning my maid outfit and wig for good, thank you very much) I paused.  It was going to end the way it began.

I told myself I was ready.

“I thought you’d be in the corner, singing to yourself, angel.”  His voice was like a heavy velvet wrap around my heart.  I was suddenly so very aware.  Aware of the warmth of his body near my back, the feel of his hand as he moved to take mine, bending low and kissing the knuckles, the dark pools of his eyes never leaving mine.

“It’s not a masquerade, this time.”  I was proud that I almost sounded unaffected.  Almost.  He was wearing a jacket of silvery grey, it shimmered a little in the light.  “All masks are off.”

“Are they?”  He presented me with a little pouch.  Smiled down into my eyes, his eyes so deep and dark — but warm, like summer shadows.

“What’s this?”  I took it gently.

“A thank you present, for later…hide it in one of the pockets you had sewn into your gown.”  He caressed my cheek gently.  “Thank you for rescuing me.”

I tried to feel it through the velvet of the pouch as I stowed it…paper?  Around something hard?  His caress distracted me.  “I can’t believe you got caught.”

“Perhaps it is time for me to retire.”  He held out a hand.  “Shall we?  We did not get to dance properly last time, and tonight, we have time to kill.”

I let him lead me out on the floor.  His hand on the bare skin of my back was warm, intimate.  He’s held me close before but this is different…my breath still came faster, heat still pooled in my belly at his touch, feeling his body move against mine, but it felt like home just as much as it felt like lust.  Would he move this smoothly, if we were alone in his bed?  Would be be this gentle, but this firm as he lead me?

“How…”. I shut myself off.  I had been about to say, “How do you fall in love with a Thief?”

“How do I plan to take it?”  He tapped his forehead to mine gently.  “You know better than to ask.”

“Well.  She has four guards around her everywhere she goes.  She’s never alone — someone is always talking to her, always saying something.”

He turned me gently in his arms, and now I was back to his front, as they continued dancing to the music.  His cheek was pressed against mine, and I felt the bristle of his beard.  “They’re all men.”  I said softly.

“Good.  Good.  And see how much she drinks?”

I spin away, his hand gently guides me back and we are face to face again.  “That can’t be it.  That’s too easy.”

“Sometimes it is.”  His nose brushed mine.  “Enough talking.”  He kissed me.  I stopped right in the middle of the dance floor.  The world was spinning, but I was still, tucked up against him, his mouth exploring mine, his hands pulling me close.  When I opened my eyes I realized he’d guided us off to the side, in a shadow created by one of the pillars that lined either side of teh room.  He looked down at me, as if trying to say something, then sighed, closed his eyes and placed his forehead to mine, cupping my face with both of his hands.

“Will you ever tell me your name?”  I whispered.

He pressed his face against my neck, I felt him smile.  “Maybe,” he said softly.  “Or perhaps you should make one for me.”

“I’d rather know yours.”  I wrapped my arms around his shoulders as he started kissing my throat.  I was pretending to keep my eye on the mark, but failing.  “Stop distracting me…anyway…I am tired of calling you The Thief in my head all the time.”

He looked up.  “Really?  Is that all you call me?”

“Yes.”  I drew it out.

“Liar.��  He said, and kissed me on the nose.

“This is not what I expected.”

“And what did you expect?”

“Well.”  I played with the satin lapel of his jacket.  “I thought you’d drag me off to some quiet corner and have your way with me.”

His hands closed in on my waist, and squeezed.  “Is that you want, my darling?  To hide somewhere and taken so passionately that I need to keep my hand over your mouth to stifle your moans?”

I looked up at him.  “Sounds lovely.”

His mouth twisted into an oddly alluring smirk.  “Well.”  He said softly, leaning closer.  His eyes dashed a quick glance over my shoulder, and his frame sank.

“Is she heading for the restroom?  Already?”

He nodded.

I held up a finger.  “Hold that thought.”  I moved through the crowd, muttering about woman and their humming bird sized bladders.

I went in.  There was an attendant, the black cloth of the uniform shirt a little too snug around her arms and shoulders.  She was built like an amazon, and I thought, That is not coincidence.  I used the restroom, washed up, and was checking my makeup as my mark approached mirror.

My body was between the attendant and the mark.  Could I do it?  Dared I?  “Excuse me…the clasp of your necklace looks undone…”. I reached over to fix it, thankful that she had worn her hair upswept.  The fake was palmed in my hand.

“I’ll see to that,” the attendant said, pushing me aside gently.  “It looks alright.”  Her tone was less gentle this time, and she frowned at me.  The Hapsburgh Princess — the papers said her friends called her Norri — gave me a glare in the mirror, then kept fixing her face.

“Must have been a trick of the light.  I’d hate for you to lose your necklace, it’s really pretty!”  I backed to the door.  “See you around!”

He was leaning against the wall next to the door.  “Attendant?”

“How’d you know?”

He put an arm around my waist.  “You need work on your poker face, my love.  Which is a shame, because our next shot at the jewel is during the poker gamethey have set up for later.”

I let him lead me away.  “What?  You think to get her to add it to the pot?”

He shrugged elegantly.

“Oh, come on.  Tell me.”  He lead me to a balcony, overlooking the city.

“I have a plan.  You know how to play, right?”

“I do…I am adequate, but…”

He handed me a card.  “This is so you can join the game.  The chips have been purchased.  Just collect at the end and cash them in.”

“What happens if they figure out that I’m your accomplice?”

He reached over and tucked some hair behind my ear.  He looked very sad, in the golden light.  “They won’t.”

I cupped his face in my hands.  “Why are you so sad?  What are you going to do?”

He shook himself and gave me a blinding smile.  “Nothing!  Everything will go according to plan.  Now…”. He sat down in one of the wicker chairs on the balcony.  “Come, let me hold you for awhile.”  He unbuttoned his coat with careless flicks of his fingers, then looked up at me, held out a hand.

“Well.  We do have to kill an hour…” I sat down carefully.

“Shhh.  Give me your whole weight, my dove.  None of this awkward half sitting, eh?”  I shifted as his arm closed around me, and he traced my jaw with his knuckles, and kissed me.  His mouth was hotter and sweeter than sin, I shifted to get closer, pressing my chest to his.  I ached to be touched, as those soft lips met the skin of my neck, nipped and licked, burning a path that made me moan softly.

“That’s it, my beautiful girl.”  He whispers in my ear.

“What do I have to do to get you to tell me your name?  Just the first.  Lie.  It’s fine.  Just tell me…”

He’s playing with the strap of my gown, he’d been in the process of pushing it aside.  “I will not lie, not to you, not about that.  But I have promised myself — I will only tell my name to the woman I love.  The woman I want to…”. He cut himself off and looked at me.

“Alright,” I gave him a brave smile, trying to cover the hurt.  “Tell me something else.  Anything.”

He ran his hands up my arms.  “That you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.”

I let him pull me back, kissed him.  “I love you, but I know nothing about you, and I hate myself for it.”  I whispered in his ear.  His hands stilled and I slipped off his lap, made a point of looking through the glass door.  “Ah.  It looks like they are opening the poker tables.  See you there?”

The angle I was at, I couldn’t see his face.  I kissed the top of his head, enjoying the feel of his soft curls.  “It’s OK.  It really is.”

And I went inside.  I heard him follow, but like Orpheus, I did not dare look back for fear of losing everything.

In this case, everything was my sanity, my will not to start crying, not to berate myself…You know, no-strings screwing could be a ton of fun.  I felt a bit like Anne Boleyn, leading Henry the 8th of a merry dance to get what I wanted…knowing full well he could kill me if he felt like it.

I knew he wouldn’t kill me.  But I knew he’d probably leave me.  Maybe that was why he looked so sad.  Could the world’s greatest thief feel regret?

He across from me at the table.  There was another guest, then Norri, the mossy green diamond glowing.  I felt an unreasonable hatred for it, for her, for the whole place.  For diamonds worth millions but still not as unattainable as one Thief.  Hell, the moon would be easier to get.

Another man, me, the dealer.  I ran my hand over the tray that held my chips, the rough edges cool against my palm.  If I walked out with this tray I could get home.

We started playing.  I was surprised.  I expected silence, quiet desperation…but no.

The table wanted to talk about love.  LOVE.  I threw in some chips.

“I have been in love exactly three times in my life.”  The Thief said idly, accepting new cards and inspecting his hand.  The pile of chips in front of him was respectable, but not gross.  He was winning just a little more than he was losing.  Me?  I was annoyed and out for blood.  “The first one poisoned me.”

“Really?” Norri was fascinated.  So, of course, was I.  “Why?”

He nodded and threw some chips in.  “Difference in opinion about how to run the family business.”

“The second?”  I asked, despite myself.

His eyes flickered down to his cards.  “I made her sad.  She could not bear me, the way I am.”  He gave me the sweetest of smiles.  “It happens.”

“I’m calling.”  Norrie says.  “And you must tell me the third?”

We paused to show our cards, or not.  I had a full house, and won, scooping my chips in.

“She is the one I love most.”  The dealer was dealing cards again.  “I did not know how much I loved her, when I first met her I saw a beautiful woman, inside and out, underappreciated, stuck in a cage when she would be so much more.  I thought, I could give her a way out.”  He grinned.  “Vanity is one of my many, many vices.”

Everyone laughed.  Except me.  He reached over and took the cards from the dealer, despite the man’s protests.

“I wish I could start over,” he says, shuffling the cards.  He looked into my eyes.  “But it is almost midnight, Cinderella, and the fairy tale is over.”  I realized the backs of the cards were different…when had he changed them?  “I am so sorry,” he said, and raised his hands, and rained the cards over us.  The power went out, and the cards, as they flew into the air hissed and spat, flaring with fire for a second before becoming sparks and ash.  Norrie screamed next to me.  I felt a touch as light as feathers for the briefest of seconds.  A kiss on my temple.

And then the lights came up again, and the greatest thief was gone again.

I was searched…we all were.  The fake necklace was gone, but this time it was me who hid it in a small panel I’d found while cleaning.  The going away present he’d left me, the little pouch, was well hidden in my dress, so I was snot surprised that they did not find it. They also did not find the playing card.  I found it later, where the first card was.

The Queen of Hearts.  I never knew that looking at a playing card could feel like a kiss and a slap at the same time.

I traded in my chips.  I took my money.  I walked out the door, and thought, I am done with all of this.

There were no more diamonds.  No more clues to follow.  A black car was waiting outside.  I quickened my steps, wondering, hoping.  The door opened, and all hopes were dashed.  My brother came up to me, looking…relieved.

“Are you alright?”

“I am.  I failed.  So maybe not for long,” I joked.

“It’s time for you to come home.”  He looked so serious.  “No one’s mad…we just miss you, and this was good…you had fun, we tried to get the diamond back, but…enough is enough.”

“I hate to give up now…”

“It’s OK.  Just come back.”  He gave me a tentative smile.  “Where else are you going to go?  It’s your home.”

“I have options.”  I said.  I hugged him…it was as stiff and welcoming as I expected it to be, so it was short.  “I think…I think I’ll take a rain check.”

“Dad’s frozen your cards…”

“I know!”  I said cheerfully.

“What are you going to do?  I don’t understand…I…”

This time, I petted him, and my “I know” was far more serious.  I could never make him understand.  He was as much a prisoner as I was, but no one saw enough in him to show him a way out.  I started walking.

“Did he seduce you?  Is that what this is?”

“Sadly, no.”  I said over my shoulder.

As I walked, I took the pouch out.  Under a street lamp I looked at it.  A signet ring.  Heavy.  Old gold.  I held it up to the light, and etched in the blood red ruby was a little devil’s head.

I knew where he was.

And I knew his name.  I’d seen it — and the little sigil from the ring — enough times, researching the Midas’s Rainbow.

There is, if you know where to find it, a castle.  It overlooks a formidable bay that had been the bane of many a ship, in the old days.

It looks abandoned.  The land for a good distance around it is private, and it is very hard to get to.  People at the closest town will tell you it is haunted by a man who sold his soul to the devil, and that he has lived there for hundreds of years.  That his castle has a vault full of cursed treasure.

There are people there who will tell you the story with an almost mocking twist.  And you — and I — both know that these are the people who have been paid, and paid well.  To spread the legend.  To bring in supplies.  To try and dissuade lone women from walking the long, rutted path into the woods, to climb past rocks to the lonely castle over the ocean.  To approach it, the red painted drawbridge bound in black iron.

There’s a door, set in the drawbridge.  The knocker looks like the heraldic devil’s head in the ring I wear on a chain around my neck.  No one answers my knock.

It does look abandoned.  Quiet.  But I hear a song, sung softly, and I walk around until I am in a garden.

I call his name, and when he turns, he laughs, a sound of relief as much as pleasure.

I drop my bag, my purse, and throw my arms around him.  He crushes me to him, and I can barely whisper his name, over and over, and that I love him, I love him.

“Welcome to your home, my love,” he says, in a pause between kisses, “Thank you for coming to find me.”

The End.

(Unless the actual commercial gives me thots)

With extra, most loving thanks to the people who have been following this and loving it:

Thank you to you lovely people for being on my tag list, if you want added or dropped just let me know.  <3

@grogusmum @mishasminion360 @hnt-escape @littlemisspascal @pedro4ever @writteninthestars18 @fromthedeskoftheraven @sharkbait77

@quica-quica-quica @eri16 @the-blind-assassin @ayoungpascallover-readings @songsformonkeys

[mikauzoran]

Lukadrien: Zebras Can’t Change Their Stripes: Chapter Seven

Read it on AO3: Zebras Can’t Change Their Stripes: Chapter Seven

“Aren’t you done yet?” Luka half laughed, half groaned, banging his head against the bathroom door.

“Perfection takes time,” Adrien informed primly from within. “It’s my first show. I want to make a good impression.”

Luka clicked his tongue. “Perfect Fifth, they’re going to love you, but you take longer in the bathroom than my ex, and I still need to do my makeup.”

There was a beat before Adrien tentatively asked, “…Are we at a point where we can make jokes about your ex?”

Luka contemplated this for a moment and winced, admitting, “No. No, I actually don’t think we are.”

“…Okay. That’s okay,” Adrien assured, opening the bathroom door.

Luka, still resting his head against the door in question, nearly fell over into Adrien.

Afterwards, he was equal parts glad and disappointed that he hadn’t crashed into his roommate because, if he had, Luka would not have been able to control himself.

As things stood, Luka got an eyeful of Adrien in ripped, black skinny jeans and punk couture topped off with messy, wild hair and a generous helping of eyeliner.

Luka’s temperature shot through the roof as all the blood in his body rushed south.

A frown slowly knitted Adrien’s eyebrows together as he watched his friend closely for a reaction and didn’t seem to get a positive one.

“…How…do I look?” he pressed tentatively, beginning to shift his weight uneasily back and forth, fidgeting under Luka’s intense gaze.

Luka was preoccupied with fantasies of pushing Adrien up against a wall and sticking his tongue down Adrien’s throat.

…Better yet, Adrien pushing Luka up against a wall and sticking his tongue down Luka’s throat.

“Is it that bad?” Adrien demanded, beginning to panic as he took the shocked silence the wrong way. “Did I put on too much eyeliner? I’m sorry. I should have asked for your help, but I thought I knew what I was doing because I’ve seen the way you dress, so I thought—”

“—Sorry. What?” Luka cut him off, managing to shake himself loose from his daydreams. “I’m sorry. I spaced for a minute there. What are we talking about?”

Adrien blinked twice slowly. “…Um… Do I look bad? You were staring.”

“Oh! No! Nonono,” Luka assured, waving his hands in an attempt to clear up the misunderstanding. “Sorry. NO. You look great. I was just…”

Some of the blood deigned to come back up into his face to make him look like a cherry tomato.

He cleared his throat. “Sorry. I’m a little out of it. You look perfect. I love you—your eyeliner. And the hair,” Luka covered, mentally smacking himself.

“Oh,” Adrien responded uncertainly. “Thank you? I was kind of going for a Chat Noir vibe.”

“You look amazing.” Luka finally got it together and replied with an earnest smile. “You really nailed it. Jacob and Josie are going to coo and fuss over you.”

“Are you going to coo and fuss over me?” Adrien hummed, resting his forearm on the wall and leaning so that he very much resembled Chat Noir: lithe and predatory and very dangerous to Luka’s sanity in such tight clothing.

“I don’t think your ego really needs it,” Luka countered, “but I’ll consider it if you don’t make us late and we have a few minutes before we need to leave for the show.”

Adrien pulled out his phone and winced at the time. “Looks like my ego will have to wait to be stroked because we’re cutting it close as is.”

“Pity,” Luka sighed, not sure if he’d dodged a bullet or been deprived of an opportunity.

 True to Luka’s word, Josie and Jacob did, in fact, coo and fuss over Adrien when he and Luka arrived at the bar where they’d be playing.

“Look at him!” Jacob exclaimed, showing Adrien to Marc like a prize being revealed on a gameshow. “He’s so precious! He looks like a real baby punk!”

Josie shot Luka a lascivious grin and quietly teased, “So, how are you holding up with him wearing those pants?”

Luka took her by surprise by answering honestly: “I’m going out of my freaking mind. Thank you for asking.”

The smirk promptly dropped off of Josie’s face to be replaced by a look of concern. “Luc, are you okay?”

Luka shook his head. “Adrien is the guy Marinette never got over, and Adrien had feelings for her too in the past, so when they meet up again, I can only guess at what will happen.”

Josie winced. “That…really sucks.”

“Yeah, so there’s no point in letting my feelings for him come back only so he can break my heart too,” Luka sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Kind of hard with him looking like that.”

“Everything okay?” Marc called out, drawing Jacob and Adrien’s attention to Luka.

Adrien’s eyes narrowed, and he came over to touch Luka’s cheeks and forehead, testing for fever. “Are you still feeling out of it, Orpheus? You do feel a little warm.”

Adrien’s hands on Luka’s skin only served to make Luka’s temperature jump an additional degree or two.

“I’ll be all right. Thanks,” Luka lied, slipping out of Adrien’s reach. “Probably just a twenty-four-hour bug. I’m going to go start the equipment check.”

Jacob opened his mouth to comment, but Josie caught him by the sleeve and whispered in his ear.

Marc quirked an eyebrow, and Josie repeated what Luka had told her for him as well.

Collectively, the group grimaced.

“What’s going on, guys?” Adrien inquired, looking back and forth worriedly between Luka’s retreating back and the rest of their bandmates.

“He’s just feeling a little depressed and hopeless right now,” Marc explained with a sad but kind smile. “We’ll have to figure out some way to make him feel better and lighten up a bit.”

“We should do something fun together,” Jacob agreed, going to sling an arm around Adrien’s shoulders. “No need to worry about it now, though. Right now, we just need to get through the show.”

Adrien nodded as Jacob led him over to the equipment to prepare for the performance.

 “That was amazing!” Josie squealed, throwing her arms around Adrien as soon as they made it off stage.

“I can’t believe we pulled that off without a hitch,” Jacob laughed giddily, carding a hand through his spikey hair.

Marc rolled his eyes, giving everyone pats on the back. “I mean, we have been practicing every day this week for hours.”

“Still, Adrien was incredible,” Luka chimed in, giving Adrien’s arm a squeeze. “That was flawless.”

“Not completely flawless,” Adrien protested sheepishly. “But thank you. Seriously. Everyone…”

He looked around at his bandmates with an enormous, grateful grin. “Thank you so much for your patience with me this week. Thank you for letting me be a part of your group. This was really a team effort, and I never could have done it without you.”

“Aww. He’s so modest,” Jacob chuckled, pulling Adrien into a side hug and ruffling his hair.

“You could have managed without Jacob,” Josie snickered, giving the bassist a teasing elbow.

“Josephine, play nice,” Marc sighed in exasperation, shaking his head with a fond smile.

“We should celebrate!” Josie announced, pointedly ignoring Marc’s reprimand. “Who wants to get some drinks and dance?”

“Me!” Jacob’s hand shot up, and he proceeded to bounce up and down in place. “Me-me! Me!”

Luka winced. “I…can’t. I drove over here, and I need to be able to get Adrien home safe.”

“I could get you guys home,” Marc volunteered. “I need to bow out so I can go tuck my little girl in, but I can come back later and drive you home.”

“Hold up,” Adrien demanded. “You have a daughter?”

“I’m surprised he hasn’t shown you pictures yet,” Josie scoffed.

“Her name is Antoinette,” Marc gushed, beaming with pride. “She’s two years old, and she’s the best thing I’ve done in my entire life.” He whipped out his phone and navigated to his photos.

“Aww,” Adrien cooed as he looked at the picture of a pale toddler with ink black hair and even darker eyes in a green party dress with her arms wrapped around a fluffy white Maltese. “Marc, she’s adorable!”

“Thank you,” Marc preened. “I wish I could take the credit, but that’s all my wife Wakana.”

“Her smile is yours, though,” Adrien observed.

“You are the sweetest thing,” Marc laughed, patting Adrien on the shoulder before turning to Luka. “I should be back in about an hour, but you can stay later, if you feel like it. You feeling emotionally well enough to drink responsibly?”

Luka’s teeth sank into his bottom lip. “Maybe?” he fibbed.

Honestly, he was on the edge and could easily go either way. It could turn out to be a fun night with friends or the start of another drunken grief spiral.

Marc pursed his lips.

“Don’t fret so much,” Jacob chided, clicking his tongue as he slung his arm around Luka’s shoulders. “You’re no fun, Maman. I’ll look after Luc.”

“This does not inspire confidence,” Marc sighed.

“I’ll keep an eye on Luka,” Adrien volunteered. “I don’t drink, so I can play babysitter and make sure everyone’s okay until you get back, Marc.”

“Thank you,” Marc replied, only slightly exaggerating his relief. “I feel better leaving an adult in charge.”

“You don’t drink?” Josie pressed, ignoring Marc’s slight as she looped her arm through Adrien’s.

Adrien shook his head and smiled in embarrassment. “Yeah…I kind of don’t like not being in control. It’s dangerous, making yourself vulnerable like that. It would be different if we were somewhere safe and it was just people I trusted, but…”

Josie’s eyes narrowed. “Chéri, are you okay? Who hurt you?”

Adrien shrugged, averting his gaze, still not quite ready to admit that he’d been on the streets until just a few days prior.

Luka broke away from Jacob and went to Adrien’s side, resting a hand on his shoulder and looking him in the eye intently. “We don’t have to stay, if you’re uncomfortable. Just say the word, and I’ll take you home. It’s totally fine, Perfect Fifth. I don’t mind, honestly.”

“No, no,” Adrien assured, waving away Luka’s concern with one hand. “It’s good. I’m not uncomfortable, but thank you so much for always being so considerate. I appreciate it. No, I like dancing, so I have no problem hanging out with everyone.”

Luka let go of the breath he’d been holding, and the tension slowly faded from his body. “Okay. Good. Just let me know if you start feeling uncomfortable, though. Any time. I want to make sure you feel safe.”

Adrien smiled brightly, gratitude and affection filling his eyes. “Thank you.”

“Can we meditate for a moment on the fact that he calls him ‘Perfect Fifth’?” Jacob demanded, unable to hold in his laughter. “That is the sappiest thing, and I’m kind of jealous because I never got a cute pet name like that when I was dating him.”

“Ouch,” Adrien snickered, pulling away from Josie to wrap his arms possessively around Luka. “Sucks to be you. Guess Luka just loves me more.”

Marc shoot Luka a pitying look as he wondered if it were really okay to let Luka drink that night after all.

Meanwhile, Jacob cackled. “Ow! I am wounded. Even more so because it’s probably true.”

“So…if you’re Luka’s perfect fifth,” Josie puzzled, “does that make Luka your tonic?”

Adrien hummed softly in thought, not noticing as Luka tried not to spontaneously combust in mortification.

Not for the first time, Luka thanked the heavens that he was taller than Adrien so that Adrien couldn’t see the look on Luka’s face as Adrien embraced him.

“I mean…yeah,” Adrien replied softly, resting his head on Luka’s chest. “Luka’s always been my ‘tonal center’ in a way. Whenever I felt frazzled or lost as a teen, I knew I could go to him to help me find my way again…so I guess he is my tonic.”

“Aww,” Josie cooed. “That’s adorable. I was teasing, but you are just too cute.”

“Yeah,” Jacob sighed with a shrug. “I know when I’ve been beat. You win, Adrien. I could never say something that gooey with a straight face. You and Luka deserve each other.”

Adrien made a move to pull back to reply, but Luka hugged him in tighter, afraid that how he felt for Adrien was written plainly all over his face and that if Adrien saw it, he wouldn’t feel comfortable sharing a flat with Luka anymore.

“Sorry,” Luka whispered, burying his face in Adrien’s hair. “That’s…That’s really sweet. It means a lot to me that you think of me that way.”

“Of course,” Adrien chuckled, not minding the affection in the least. “You’re one of the few people in my life I’ve always been able to count on.”

“Okay, seriously,” Josie huffed. “Who hurt you? Who do I need to go beat up?”

Adrien broke away from Luka and turned to placate Josie. “It’s really not that bad. Please don’t assault anyone on my behalf.”

Luka turned away and quickly attempted to compose himself.

Marc gave him a questioning look, a silent offer of assistance, but Luka shook his head.

Jacob quirked an eyebrow.

“I reserve my right to assault whoever I determine deserves it,” Josie insisted indignantly, reaching out to ruffle Adrien’s hair.

Adrien gave up and submitted to Josie’s attentions with a small sigh and a reluctant smile. “Thank you, but I really am fine.”

“You’ll never convince her of that,” Luka informed, briskly changing the subject. “Let’s go get some drinks, shall we?”

 Luka had regrets.

At that moment, his regrets were named Whiskey and Adrien.

More specifically, Adrien’s dancing.

Adrien dancing like that while wearing skinny jeans that reminded Luka how he had worshipped Chat Noir’s butt back in the day.

Luka didn’t really dance, but Jacob and Adrien had hit the dance floor, and seeing them together made Luka irrationally jealous, so he’d gone over there and started dancing with Adrien…and the alcohol in Luka’s blood was trying to convince him that it would be a good idea to tug Adrien in gently so that their bodies were pressed flush together and then kiss him for all he was worth.

Objectively, Luka knew that this was a very, very bad plan…but the way Adrien was swiveling his hips gave Luka ideas that would be easier to shake if he were sober.

And Luka was not sober.

“Where did you learn to dance?” he asked over the music in an attempt to distract himself from the bad ideas.

Adrien’s face flushed. “Mostly Chloé. She had alternating phases where she was really obsessed with pole dancing, belly dancing, and burlesque.”

“Oh,” Luka replied dumbly.

“Alya taught me a little too, though. Nino tried, but our styles are different,” Adrien elaborated, body flowing like liquid to the beat as he spoke. “I don’t think all of my lessons in ballroom and Latin dance count, but…I’m sure you’ll recognize where I stole this cute butt wiggle from.”

Luka did indeed recognize Marinette’s patented butt wiggle, and it made him feel all kinds of things he didn’t want to feel.

“Is that Marc over by the bar?” Luka asked, craning his neck as if trying to get a better view.

Adrien frowned and stopped dancing to look too. “…I don’t…think I see him?”

“I think that was him,” Luka lied. “You go ahead and keep dancing with Jacob and Josie. I’m going to meet up with Marc and take a seat.”

“Are you sure you’ll be okay?” Adrien inquired uncertainly. “Want me to walk you?”

Luka shook his head, needing to get away so that he could stop feeling so much. “Nah. He’s just over there. I can make it across the room by myself. You keep having fun, Angel.”

“O…Okay,” Adrien replied, still uneasy as Luka smiled reassuringly before turning to go.

Luka was quickly swallowed up by the crowd, and Adrien couldn’t quite relax after losing sight of him.

Luka made a beeline for the bar, numbing himself with more alcohol.

Fortunately, Marc really did show up within a few minutes and found Luka before too much harm could be done.

“I take it the evening took a turn for the worse?” Marc sighed, gently taking Luka’s glass away from him.

Luka groaned, resting his forehead on the counter. “I’m in love with him. I never stopped loving him, and now he’s going to start dating Marinette, and I’m going to have to pretend to be okay with this, to be happy for them, and I can’t do it. I can’t do this.”

“I think you’re catastrophizing,” Marc informed softly, reaching out to rub soothing circles between Luka’s shoulder blades. “I know it feels hopeless now, but hang in there, okay? Things will look a little less dark in the morning. You’re going to get through this.”

Luka shook his head.

“Shhh,” Marc cooed, giving Luka’s shoulder a squeeze. “Yes, you will. You’re strong, Luc. You’re tough, and you’re going to make it if I have to drag you out the other side.”

 “What happened?!” Adrien gasped, stunned at the state he found Luka in fifteen minutes later.

Marc winced. “I think the alcohol suddenly hit him all at once.”

“Luka, are you okay?!” Adrien was at his side, fussing and carrying on, in seconds.

“No,” Luka moaned.

“He’ll be okay in the morning,” Marc promised through a doubtful grimace. “Or…at least by tomorrow evening. He just needs to throw up and sleep it off.”

Marc’s reassuring words did nothing to loosen Adrien’s pinched frown.

“Don’t worry,” Marc soothed, reaching out to rest a hand on Adrien’s upper arm. “He’s going to be okay. Trust me.”

Slowly, tentatively, Adrien nodded.

 They packed Josie and Jacob into a cab to Josie’s house to take care of one another for the night and then loaded Luka into the backseat of Luka’s car, most of his weight supported by Adrien.

“You’re beautiful,” Luka purred as he played dazedly with Adrien’s hair. “So pretty.”

“Thank you,” Adrien replied self-consciously, not sure how to respond. “You’re pretty too.”

“You’re going to-to hurt me,” Luka chuckled darkly.

Adrien gave a start. “No, I’m not. I would never do anything to hurt you, Luka.”

“Not on purpose,” Luka hummed, dropping his head to Adrien’s shoulder. “Not on purpose…porpoise.” He laughed at that.

“Not on porpoise,” Adrien agreed, still feeling like he was on shaky ground.

“…I love you,” Luka snickered, giving Adrien’s neck a wet kiss.

Adrien gasped, his nerve endings lighting up as his stomach flipped involuntarily.

It wasn’t like the other times Luka had said those words or given Adrien a platonic kiss on the cheek or temple or forehead. It felt different and wrong and right all at the same time.

Adrien wasn’t quite sure what to make of it.

“I…I love you too, Luka,” Adrien answered in the most conversational tone he could manage.

Luka only laughed, further unsettling Adrien.

When they got back to the apartment building, it took both Marc and Adrien to awkwardly trundle Luka up the stairs, down the hall, and into his bedroom.

That accomplished, Marc turned to Adrien with a delicate smile.

Adrien recognized it as the kind of smile he’d often received when the person smiling was about to attempt to manage Adrien.

His defences automatically went up.

“I think I’ve got it from here,” Marc informed with a tired sigh. “Thanks for your help.”

Adrien blinked, thrown off balance. “Uh…you’re welcome. I was actually about to say the same thing to you. I think I’m okay now, if you want to go home.”

Marc shook his head. “It’s okay, Adrien. I’ll stay with him.”

It sounded like a polite implication that Adrien should leave, and Adrien wasn’t sure how to feel about that.

Luka had repeated over and over again that this was Adrien’s home now as much as Luka’s, but, suddenly, Adrien was feeling like an intruder all over again.

He turned to Luka. “Orpheus, do you want me to stay with you, or do you want Marc?”

“Marc can stay,” Luka grumbled out from under the arm he had tossed over his face. “Go ahead and go to bed, Perfect Fifth.”

Adrien pulled away, averting his gaze and wrapping his arms around himself. “Well…okay, then. I guess I’m no use here, so…um…I’ll just be in the other room if you need help finding things or something.”

“Thank you, Adrien. I’m pretty familiar with the house, though,” Marc replied with a strained smile.

“Right. Of course,” Adrien muttered, cheeks bursting into flames of humiliation. “Sorry. I’ll just…I’ll get out of your way.”

He’d gotten halfway to the door before Marc caught up and caught Adrien by the shoulder.

“You are not in the way, Adrien,” Marc assured gently, quietly so that Luka wouldn’t hear. “I have no doubt you’d do an amazing job of taking care of him. It’s not about you being capable or not. It’s just that he’s going through some stuff, and he wouldn’t want you to see him like this. He cares about what you think of him, and he doesn’t want you to see him as a mess.”

Adrien’s eyes rounded as he saw the sincerity in Marc’s expression.

“He doesn’t care if I see him gripping the edges of the toilet seat and puking his guts out,” Marc explained, “but he’d die if you saw him like that. He wants you to respect him and think he’s cool and all that.”

Adrien gave a soft snort. “I do respect him and think he’s cool.”

“Good,” Marc chuckled tiredly. “I’m glad to hear that…but he probably still wouldn’t want you to see him like this…you know?”

Adrien stuck out his lip in a pout but begrudgingly nodded anyway. “I just want to help, though.”

“You have been helping,” Marc assured, resting his hands on Adrien’s shoulders. “Everything you’ve done for him since you moved in has been tremendous. Trust me. I’ve seen him before and after you coming back into his life, and he has been doing so much better these past few days. You are a miracle worker…but I think it’s best if I take this one tonight…if that’s okay?”

Reluctantly, Adrien agreed. “…Yeah. I don’t like it, but I get it. I’ve…I’ve not reached out for help before when I needed it because I was afraid to let people see how bad things had gotten, so I do get it.”

“Good.” Marc gave Adrien’s shoulders an encouraging squeeze before pulling back. “You can help out again in the morning. He’ll need breakfast and aspirin and plenty of water. I’ll turn him over to you in the morning, but I’ll go ahead and take the night shift, all right?”

“All right,” Adrien affirmed, finally feeling a little better about it all.

So long as Luka still needed him. So long as Adrien wasn’t in the way.

“Perfect Fiiiiiifth,” Luka groaned deliriously.

Adrien was back at his side in an instant. “I’m here. What’s wrong? What do you need?”

“I love you,” Luka choked, and it sounded more like a lament than an affectionate remark.

“Love you too,” Adrien answered anyway, leaning in to press a light peck to Luka’s forehead. “Marc’s going to take care of you now, so you be good, okay? See you in the morning.”

“I love you,” Luka repeated balefully.

Adrien gave Luka an encouraging smile and patted him on the shoulder. “I love you too. Feel better, Orpheus.”

On his way out, Adrien sent Marc a worried look.

Marc did his best to inspire confidence and optimism, but Adrien wasn’t easily convinced.

Needless to say, no one slept well that night.

[sunnysviolin]

*frothing at the mouth* .... ♫ heromari

*also frothing at the mouth* why must you mention my OTP....I’ll never shut up about them now....

Okay I’m gonna limit myself to five songs at most on each post because I don’t want these to become unbearably long for people who dont care LMAO SO

Kosame No Oka by David Mansfield- I listened to this religiously on repeat when I wrote the flashback scene in Promises. It had the perfect quality of stillness that I think Hero and Mari had with one another. Their world was fast and energetic and completely perfect in its chaos, but the moments where it was just the two of them were still and quiet and they treasured that

Saving All My Love For You by Whitney Houston- I’ve talked about this before (I? Think?) but like just look at these lyrics. Like. This is literally Heros love letter to Mari (gender is dead ignore the references to that) it’s their song. He heard it for the first time while washing dishes with her after a movie night with their little group of six. Mari called it cheesy, but Hero was instantly caught because it reminded him of her. Hero physically cannot listen to it after Mari is gone. On the days he lets himself grieve her he will sometimes listen to it

Wait for me (Reprise) from Hadestown- I’ve! Said! It! Once! I’ll! Say! It! Again! Heromari a r e Orpheus and Eurydice. Honestly pretty much any song from Hadestown that has those two is their song in my opinion, but this one specifically gives me them vibes

Cant Take My Eyes Off You by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons- This song is just. Yeah it’s the puppy dog love that they are. Also can’t you just imagine them dancing to this song in socks sliding around the dining room floor breathless with laughter......;-; I want them to be happy. Mari gasping for air while trying to get the lyrics out between giggles. Hero answering her with his own little out of tune melody holding onto her hands right so they don’t both topple over.....I’m s a d

Vincent by Don McLean- this isn’t exactly heromari but it is Hero about Mari. This is in the four years when he thinks she killed herself. He hears this song and it just. Cracks a part of him

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE ASK!!! This is my favorite topic and I’m so excited by this ask game. The perfect way to spend my last hour being twenty years old 🤩🤩🤩

[itskyleeyo]

hadestown brain dump (songs)

SPOILERS FOR HADESTOWN/THE STORY OF ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE

ok so it may have been more than a few days, but what're you gonna do about it?

so i wanted to do another brain dump, and i wanted to listen to hadestown, so i'm doing a song by song brain dump as i go along. this means that my thoughts are going to be even more stream-of-consciousness style (if that's even possible.) also i'm talking specifically about the original broadway cast recording bc i haven't listened to any other version. (also this was completed across multiple months so it is even more chaotic lmao).

also i highly recommend that you listen to the musical and/or pull up the lyrics as you go along! enjoy!

road to hell. the way andre brings in the chorus is flawless please. also the way that hermes is both a narrator and a character in the story he's narrating? beautiful. "the king of the mine." he sounds so nice here for some reason. also love his self-introduction "maybe it will turn out this time" no it won't but thank you for trying. also breaking the fourth wall to acknowledge the chorus and crew is so nice, here comes reeve ;) mans sounds like an angel. you can hear amber's voice stick out of the chorus and i literally love it so much. i'd die for amber gray but we'll get to that later.

any way the wind blows. the fates literally sound so perfect together. Eva's intro throws me off every time, she sounds so pretty. dear god the harmonies with the fates hit so different. can this cast please narrate my life? there's the wind comparisons ;D the "ooos" are so good. "and it ain't because i'm kind" idk i just like how andre sounds here. oh and the funny behind "so i took him underneath my wing" because hermes has wings on his helmet and shoes.

come home with me. orpheus is so oblivious but i love it. also eurydice is literally such a mood. the wordplay with "come again". the "oh, he's crazy" is my favorite part of the whole song. also eva's voice acting is so good.

wedding song. the way she says "lover"? my ass cannot handle this. eva sounds so smug in the beginning of this song and i love it. "sing the song ;)" eurydice is so fantastic. the chorus of "la" is so pretty. eva joining in during the end is just. so perfect.

epic i. hell yeah introduce the king and queen (both literally and figuratively). reeve's falsetto <3 the way orpheus looks to hermes for approval throughout the musical. hermes narrating over orpheus singing.

livin' it up on top. HELL YES THE QUEEN HAS ARRIVED. i love amber gray so much. the gravel and the rasp. please step on me. also i love the idea of persephone being the wine aunt, especially because media usually portrays her as soft and breakable. the way she says "haaard". the way the music gets more upbeat and energetic when hermes says "the world came back to liiife!" the instrumental/dance? break is so good. please kill me with that trumpet good sir. the leadup to when amber starts singing again. orpheus really knows how to give a speech. "i will ;)" amber please step on me i am not joking.

all i've ever known (intro). thank you for the intro king. the music is so pretty. the way it picks up with the piano part <3

all i've ever known. eva sounds so pretty dear god. yay more wind references! the wordplay with "hold". and also the references to hot and cold throughout the musical. "i don't wanna ever have to let you go." lol ironic because she ends up going with hades. "i knew you before we met, and i don't even know you yet." the fucking wordplay. like holy shit. the "love at first sight" feelings. this line gets me every damn time. the wordplay from 2:10 - 2:38 is so fucking incredible. i lose it every time istg. the instrumental portion is so pretty. the wind! "we'll always be like this" i fucking love irony so much. its so underrated and adds so many layers to the story.

way down hadestown. amber gray. that's it. "you either get to hell or to hadestown, ain't no difference anymore". i fucking love this line so much. not really sure why but the delivery is perfect. also the whole thing with it being a train? i love that so much. all the allusions and comparisons they can make are fantastic. more amber gray appreciation. and ofc. the fates. more fantastic instrumental breaks. "and you better forget about your wishing well." this line is so good but so sad because its literally persephone saying that "hey, fair warning, life is shit down there" and i feel bad for her. like the way she's super sassy and shit, but just stops singing when hades gets there, you can tell that she's definitely not ok. speaking of hades, holy shit patrick page. sounds so fucking fantastic. thank you for existing good sir. eva with the breathtaking single lines. and eva's voice standing out when she sings "ground".

a gathering storm. the constant references to weather and nature throughout the whole musical. eurydice with the common sense. the wind again! "did you hear me, orpheus?" he did not, in fact, hear her.

epic ii. the different names for hades in each epic make me so happy. hades thoughts: "i think my wife might not come back cause i'm super controlling. whatever shall i do? oh, i know! be even more controlling!" lmao dumbass motherfucker. that might not work out so well. i fucking love the transition into "chant" so much.

chant. this is one of my favorite songs from the musical. the wordplay within the entire song is so fucking fantastic. hades singing about desire and then orpheus singing the "song of love" was definitely done on purpose and i'm living for it. every single one of eva's lines make me emotional. ma'am why are you good at everything?? the band! more weather references! patrick page singing "lover" hits different. orpheus singing about hades and persephone being blind and deaf. lmao irony because he's not paying attention to anything around him. the wind! weather! "the song of love" is what brought orpheus and eurydice together, but orpheus' devotion to finishing it is what drives eurydice to hades. "did you think i'd be impressed" i was right ;) it didn't work out so well.

hey, little songbird. the strings <3 patrick page is a god (lol i'm so funny). how does he manage to make manipulation sound so good? bird references! the vocal contrast! eva's voice has this kind of "innocence" to it. especially compared to patrick. not sure if that's on purpose or not, but i love it. also the low note kills me every time. the octave jumps between patrick and eva's voices is just. ugh. and also eva's entire second verse is so fucking good. the emotion she portrays in her voice is so spectacular. seriously hades with the manipulation is so interesting and its so good. (manipulation is not a good thing i just mean that its done so well in the show. do not manipulate people!)

when the chips are down (intro). "your ticket ;)" yes pls sir i'll take a ticket cause life sucks ass.

when the chips are down. i fucking love the fates dear god. gambling references! eva has literally one line and still owns my heart. the band! "shoot to kill" sounds so good like i love it so much pls. also this fucking line "cast your eyes to heaven, you get a knife in the back" is so good. i'm gonna have to get into quite a few lines throughout the musical in a different brain dump because i have so much thought.

gone, i'm gone. darling eurydice. its not your fault that you're starving stop apologizing. "talk of sin" lol she do be going to hell. that's funny. the harmonies.

wait for me (intro). the piano. heremes trying to change the subject hurts my heart. and orpheus' reaction is so sad please. "no.." just rip my fucking heart out, why don't you?

wait for me. the transition. andre coming in clutch with the narration. reeve sounds wonderful, as always. the fucking fates. just kill me already. they literally sound so good. the strings' build up between the "la"s. the chorus. the buildup at the end.

why we build the wall. the total 180 in the vibes. call and response has a special pace in my heart. mr page killing it again. god, hades is such a piece of shit and its perfect. he really is a master manipulator. fuck capitalism. the chorus sounds so good. i want to platonically smooch all of them. jesus fucking christ burn capitalism to the ground. the end is amazing. also the not-so-subtle references to slavery/forced labor.

why we build the wall (outro). i'd die for andre. "anybody want a drink?" yes ma'am. yes please. (don't drink, kids) i love you so much.

our lady of the underground. its so jazzy! jesus fucking christ. oh my fucking god. i would literally sell my soul for amber gray. what did we ever do to deserve her? god the raspiness fucking kills me. also love that she breaks the fourth wall to acknowledge the band. when she comes back in after the instrumental break? consider me dead. "what the boss don't know, the boss won't mind" she sounds so good here. also i love that she straight up doesn't give a fuck about hades here.

way down hadestown (reprise). hell yeah i love reprises. the fates. andre. the chorus. i love them all. i'm such a whore for reoccurring lyrics. the strings! fuck capitalism! eva's emotions are just so fucking good. "you've already forgot?" holy shit. this shit hurted. the "ahh ooh"s are so good.

flowers. the intro <3. eva sounds so pretty. the fucking symbolism in this song is incredible. i'm gonna get into this in another brain dump bc it's a very sensitive topic. the fact that she can't actually fully remember orpheus makes me so sad. so pretty <3

come home with me (reprise). hell yeah another reprise. the way the music is much more upbeat when orpheus shows up. their excitement! eva's vocal emotions are literally so fantastic pls.

papers (intro). "young mannn" kill me patrick. train references! hell yeah persephone. the way andre gets louder when he says "raised up his voice." eva <3. reeve just always sounds so pretty. ohmygod the laugh. kill me good sir. mans straight up admits to owning people and is like "it's cool tho cause they signed a piece of paper. def not taking advantage of people that are literally starving or anything. it's fine." fuck you hades. go step on a fucking lego. orpheus is so sad :(

papers (instrumental). yes. sounds so good. i'm imagining an epic chase scene. the transition into nothing changes <3

nothing changes. respectfully? the fates could kill me any day and i'd thank them. the weather reference! that "anyhow" is so fucking good istg.

if it's true. another one of my favorites. pop off intro. the broken "is this how the world is?" sadly, yes. "but everybody knows that walls have ears." is literally such a powerful line to me for some reason. it does a great job of bringing in the chorus. and by calling the workers "walls" it shows that hades views them as "less than." they aren't even referred to as people. "what's the use of his backbone if he never stands upright." oh my god. because they literally cannot stand upright. anais mitchell is literally a fucking genius. fuck the 1%. gambling references! the chorus backing him is just so pretty. the way orpheus looks to the chorus for advice and support. "we're standing." ugh its so good.

how long. oh my fucking god. amber fucking gray. (that's it, that's the post). the way she sounds resigned/disappointed when she says "i've had enough" makes me so sad. there are no words to describe how i feel about 0:25 - 0:41. like their relationship is strained, and super mega fucked up, but it's obvious that they still care about one another. the emotion in their voices throughout this song is fantastic. the play on light and dark. also more bird references! how they view themselves/their self importance. hades is a most importantly king. persephone is most importantly a wife. it really show that hades views power as more important than anything else. "nothing comes of the songs people sing." holy fucking shit. cause their song is the "song of love," but they can barely stand each other and their relationship has fallen apart. persephone commenting on his love of power over his love of her. amber's voice during "the earth must die" is so nice and for what? god i love her. they sound so nice together <3

chant (reprise). another favorite hehe. the strings! it's all just so pretty. when the piano comes in i die a little. the self realization coming from the chorus when they're like "oh shit, this is wrong. i don't deserve to be treated like this." is so fucking fantastic. the "young mannn" again! hades really be like "manipulate her! make her depend on you financially! i've been ding this a while kid! i know how to successfully control women!" reeve sounds so pretty pls. the way that eurydice has basically become part of the chorus (since she's just another worker now). more self realization! the different ways that hades and orpheus view the "song of love." "sing before i kill you so i can use it to manipulate my wife and make her feel like shit." patrick's voice tho.

epic iii. reeve coming in with that falsetto like nobody's business. orpheus really about to bite you in the ass with your own damn song. amber gray <3. the "ooo"s in the background. the way the music picks up when reeve gets to the "la"s. it's just so fucking good. that falsetto again. orpheus really looked at the king of hell, a literal god, and said "i want to ruin him psychologically" and it fucking worked. which is some of my favorite irony because hades wouldn't have shit if it weren't for that fact that he's a good manipulator and takes advantage of the needy. that last line <3

epic iii (instrumental). i have no words for how fucking beautiful this is. i so desperately want an extended version. like for real love this so much. if i get married, i want this to be the song for the first dance.

promises. eurydice is so proud of him for finishing. the way that eurydice realized that she cares about him more that material objects. wind and weather references! "if we can do it so can they!" she sounds so excited. :( "hand-in-hand" lol nope. not them refencing wedding song, anyway the wind blows, and then giving their "i do"s. absolutely heart wrenching.

word to the wise. the fates. pls step on me ladies. the lyrics throughout this are so fucking good. lol hades being damned. cause he's the king of hell. honestly its solid advice tho. humans are really fucking stupid.

his kiss, the riot. give us them adjectives king. " how dare people want rights! >:(" hades is really trying to make himself the good guy rn. the music! 2:15 - 3:03 is so good pls. the lyrics are just so spectacular.

wait for me (reprise) (intro). hello again andre! hermes literally says "he's trying to psych you out and manipulate you. he wants you to doubt everything" and orpheus says "are you sure tho?" and then procedes to doubt everything. the way the music changes is <3. the song transition.

wait for me (reprise). my absolute fucking favorite song in this musical. the first fucking lyric is so good. it really sets an expectation for the song and i am not disappointed. lyrics that talk about how fucked up any single person's brain is are so fucking cool to me. god i love this song. how soft the first set of "wait for me"s are. the support/pressure from the chorus. the entire exchange between hades and persephone. the way amber's voice sticks out of the chorus. the fates coming in clutch again. train references! more brain talk! amber gray please end me. eva sounds so pretty. and the final note is so good!

doubt comes in. the long intro that builds up suspense. the first time that orpheus's "la"s aren't echoed by the chorus/music. wind! weather! the fates sound so pretty like always. reeve genuinely sounds so scared. the way the music picks up and the chorus joins in when eurydice starts singing. the music is so unsettling and i love it. god i love his voice. 3:44 - 3:57 always hits so different. you realize just how much she means to him. how it all goes to shit when the music reaches the climax. the fact that the music clashes on purpose. the sadness in their voices.

road to hell (reprise). it all comes full circle. god andre sounds so sad. the way you come to really hear the lyrics because there's no upbeat music to distract you this time, "its a tragedy" lol because the actual written story is a tragedy. "i learned that from a friend of mine" poor orpheus :(. the way the chorus slowly joins in and the music slowly picks up. the "can you feel it" is literally so fucking powerful. fuck yes amber. fuck it up queen. amber and eva sound so nice together. the "its a love song, its a sad song" is so sad. the final lyric is just. ugh.

we raise our cups. yes pls amber. this song is so pretty. good night queen.

[everettlance]

instructions for dancing // self-para

It didn’t take long for Everett to find Maverick. They shared a floor in the Tower; technically Maverick’s stuff was still in his room, the trainer’s room, on the second floor, and he had to return sometime if only to grab his bag before retreating back to Seven.

Mav hadn’t been hiding. He’d just spent the day before primarily with Alder, which happened to be on the seventh floor and not the second. In part, he wanted to keep the conversation with Everett at bay for as long as he could. He had to get his head straight, figure out what the hell he was going to say, how he was going to explain himself. He knew that Everett would see his being with Alder as a betrayal, but he had never meant to betray him, had never meant to hurt him — he’d been dead, that was a pretty good fucking defense, wasn’t it? And sure, he’d been wracked with guilt for it, on and off, had hesitated as long as he did before admitting his own feelings to himself because Alder was, after all, Everett’s killer.

But if Mav had been taught anything, any core value, at the Academy, it was that the Games were a different world. They were a world in which you could kill and be lauded. On the outside, killing was a punishable offense, would get you thrown in jail or worse, facing down the firing squad. But in the Arena it was different. The rules were erased. Alder had had no choice.

Everett had shot first.

Of course Maverick missed his best friend, of course he fuckng did. It had been 18 months of grief and mourning, the sort that could ebb but never entirely leave him. He knew he’d never have full peace nor would he be able to forget Everett. Ev was his first for so many things. His first friend, his first crush, his first love. Though the feelings of infatuation could and did fade, he maintained love for him in his heart and knew that he always would. The fact that he was back now in a new body identical to his old one didn’t change it. He was his best friend. He always had been. Everett knew parts of Maverick that he had never shown to anyone before Alder. That was significant.

But it didn’t make it any easier when he was finally faced with Everett, who was standing in the lounge, wearing the Capitol-issued pants and t-shirt that they gave to the tributes for training. Maverick had just wanted to grab his things, to get changed before heading down to the training center to begin work. (Not that he wanted to train anyone else. He selfishly wanted to give only Everett a chance. It was the least he could do for the guy who had died for him. The guy who had died so he could live.)

“Sorry,” were the first words from his lips, while Everett stared as if he were the one seeing the ghost. The ‘sorry’ wasn’t meant to cover everything, but rather, what you say when you’ve interrupted someone, when you want to excuse your presence and move on as quickly as possible. If Maverick didn’t make a move to continue to his room, then it was because of Everett’s stare, which seemed to somehow pierce through him and pin him to the wall.

It was the stare of someone who knew.

“Sorry?” Everett repeated, his tone tilting up at the end, turning it into much more of a question, one that asked everything he wanted to know. Jeanine had pointed out that he had been dead, that it couldn’t be out of spite that Mav would be with Alder because he was simply gone, and he could fathom the idea that the entire world didn’t revolve around him but he couldn’t put these pieces together. Each of them had jagged edges: Maverick was dating Alder, had been for a year or so, as far as Everett could tell; Alder had killed Everett.

There was room inside of him for many things. For guilt at his own killing: Carlos. Travela. Memphis. Marino. His first two kills had been in the bloodbath, had been in a moment of panic, he’d been swept up in it all. But those last two… he had known them both, talked to them both. Memphis had simply been in his way. Marino had been an accident.

The dart was meant for Alder, but Everett was not an idiot, he knew what he’d have done had it met its target. His sights would have shifted to the other boy. He was a killer. He had simply wanted to survive.

Somewhere he knew that it was possible that Alder had wanted the same. Or maybe he’d just wanted revenge for Marino. But Everett had talked to Alder, he fucking knew him, was it possible that he and Maverick could really have something together?

“Okay, I assume you found out about Alder and me,” Maverick said, stepping forward, his hands up like he was proclaiming his innocence with the gesture while simultaneously revoking it with his very statement.

“Cain told me.” The words clipped, short. Everett could do nothing but stare. Maverick looked older, his hair was longer, his edges seemed softer somehow, how was that possible? The world had only ever made either of them harder.

“I’m sorry, I wanted to tell you myself.”

“So you avoided me.”

“You avoided me too.”

They had always been too similar. Growing up you become a mirror of the people around you and attached at the hip as they’d been, they couldn’t help but grow in the same way, towards the same source of light. Both of them clinging to the violence they were taught to speak in. Was that what Maverick did with Alder?

“I wanted to find you,” Maverick said, “I wanted to teach you some stuff—” He hadn’t planned the words, hadn’t really thought about it, but it was true. He wanted to work with Everett. He’d watched his every move in the Games enough times that he knew exactly where his weak spots were. With three days of training, he could strengthen those places, if Everett would let him.

“I don’t need to learn anything.” Everett was aware of his own weak spots, of course he was, he’d gotten killed. You don’t die and think yourself a god.

“Why did you volunteer?” The question came from Maverick’s lips almost unbidden, and yet it felt like it’d sat there for 18 months, waiting to be spoken. To speak it at last was a relief; to face down a potential response, less so.

“I have no fucking idea.” Everett’s gaze faltered, he looked away finally. “Why the fuck did you kiss me?”

“Why did you kiss Orpheus?”

There were too many questions. Too much confusion on both sides. The air between them was filled with it. The uncertainty too thick to wade through. It’d take more than a few days. It’d take more than a few years.

“You don’t know Alder,” Maverick said, as if the conversation were progressing in any linear way. “He’s different from the person you met.”

“He killed me.”

“He was in the Arena.” A pause. It didn’t feel like enough. “And believe me, I fucking hated him at first.”

“So what changed? You’re his boyfriend now.”

“I got to know him.” Maverick couldn’t plead with Everett to understand, didn’t need him to understand. He’d already made his peace with the fact that he’d never have Everett’s blessing, though the reason used to be because Everett himself was dead. The dead do not forgive, they don’t have the capacity. Perhaps the living didn’t forgive either.

That would need to be okay.

“Why?” Everett had meant the word to be like a dagger, the weapon he’d wielded through the Games, the one he’d have killed Alder with. But it wasn’t as sharp. He was looking for answers, not looking for another kill.

“I didn’t mean to,” Maverick said, not wanting to apologize and yet knowing that Everett was owed at least a partial explanation. “I swear, I never set out looking for him except to beat his ass at his Victor’s Ball. I was pissed. So fucking pissed. But — you know, you volunteered, too, I was pissed at you.” His gaze tried to find Everett’s but Everett couldn’t look at him directly, the question of his own volunteering too difficult to face.

“You might have died,” Everett said. The conversation’s veering off its intended path was typical for them, often on the same wavelength growing up, not needing to draw one another a map to get from one thought to the next. Even now it was easy to find old patterns.

“I might not have.” Maverick knew that surviving meant Alder’s death, though. He knew that he owed Everett a thank you.

“I couldn’t just let you die,” Everett said, stepping around Maverick’s statement. “Because you — you, I mean, you could have been, you can be somebody, but I was just gonna be a Peacekeeper, just a brute. Just a no one. You could have done anything. It’s not — I’m not like some martyr or some shit, I didn’t even think it through, Mav, I just… you fucking kissed me, you dick, and I — I don’t know, next to you, who the fuck am I, what the fuck am I? I’m just a stupid fucking soldier.”

It wasn’t true, Maverick didn’t think any of it was true, Everett had never just been a soldier, nor was he a brute. He was a person. Just as capable of great things as Maverick was himself. But Mav’s great thing was going to be the Games. It was going to be a Victory. Enough time had passed that he wasn’t still angry with Everett for taking that away, but there was still a place in him that held something akin to resentment. Resentment for the fact that he had made the choice for both of them. Resentment that he’d done the right thing when Maverick wouldn’t. Resentment that he’d died. The tangle of it was too much.

“You’re not a stupid fucking soldier,” Maverick said, “you’re a stupid fucking volunteer.”

“This time I didn’t ask for it.” There was almost pride in Everett’s voice. Pride that he’d been thrust here without making the decision for himself. Maverick knew that pride masked something else, something much more real.

When had Everett been given a choice? When in his life had he been allowed to decide his own fate? Only once. Only once, and he’d died.

“You gonna train me?” Everett asked after a silence. “I heard you work at the Academy.”

Maverick didn’t know if he should be ashamed of that or not. He never had been before, not around anyone from Two, but was this what Everett tried to give him when he’d volunteered? Was this the ‘more’ of which he was supposedly so capable? He felt, for a moment, like he’d been given a gift and had squandered it.

“I do,” he said, “I brought home a Victor. I can do it again.”

Everett shook his head, just once. “You can train me, but don’t expect shit.”

Maverick wasn’t sure what that meant. What would he expect? A Victory? A willing participant?

“We’ll see,” he said, knowing that they hadn’t come to any conclusion, that nothing had been decided or resolved. But that was okay, it didn’t need to. For now, it was time to train. “I’ll see you downstairs in ten. No, five. Be ready to fucking work.”

[whorphydice]

Marketplace

Hey everyone! This fic is just some domestic orphydice! In this house we love Orpheus talking to all the townspeople in the morning. I wrote this for @waitformereprise because if there is anything we enjoy its domestorphydice.

“Orpheus…” Eurydice crooned, taking her place on the edge of their small bed, hand coming to cradle her husband’s face. “Orpheus..” She coaxed, crossing her legs on the thin mattress, hands coming to rest on either side of his face. “Wake up, my love..” Her voice is airy as her lips find his jaw, trailing down to kiss along the exposed skin of his neck and chest, smiling against his skin as she feels him begin to stir. She’s resting her chin on his sternum, humming looking up at him with wide eyes and a contented smile as she yawns into consciousness, lifting his head to look down at her. 

“‘Morning, Rydice.” He calls back, sweet voice lulled by the haze associated with coming out of sleep. He raises an eyebrow, lips turning up in a smile. “You aren’t usually up before me..” Orpheus notes, raising his hand to brush some of her dark hair behind her ear. “Do you wanna-”

“Mmm, not this morning...we have to get to the market before they’re out of everything again. Can’t repeat last week’s nightly potato dinners, can we?” Eurydice muses as she crawls back up his chest, resting her elbows again beside his head as she dips her head down to catch his lips with her own, smiling as they effortlessly melded together. She pulls back again, smiling down at him as she brings a finger to bop his nose. “Besides. Baby’s awake.”

“Where is she?” Orpheus questioned, raising his head to glance around the bedroom. Now that his judgement was not hazed by sleep nor other activities, he noticed that his daughter was neither in the bed nor in her permanent spot on Eurydice’s hip. 

As if she knew she was being talked about, tiny footsteps echoed through the tiny two room cottage they called their home, and excited baby babbles grew louder as tiny legs carried the toddler to her parents. Little hands gripped the door frame, before bright hazel eyes peaked around too. 

Eurydice put her fingers on her lips, looking at Orpheus. A coy smile graced her face as she looked away from the door. “Do you hear something, Orpheus?” She teased loudly, looking around the room playfully. 

“Me? No. Must be the wind.” He replies, a giggle on the edge of his airy voice. “Do you hear something, Rydice?” 

“Nope, nothin, must be some birds.” She plays, before she feels tiny hands  hit her thigh. 

“me, mama!” The toddler exclaims, bouncing excitedly at the bedside. “Up?” She requests, holding her arms up to both her parents. 

Eurydice doesn’t hesitate before scooping Ophelia into her lap, kissing over her face and making her erupt into giggles. 

“ ‘mornin dada.” She coos to Orpheus, lunging at him with open arms, wrapping them around his face in her own version of a hug. 

“It IS you, sunshine girl.” Eurydice teases, tickling her foot as she buries her face into Orpheus’s shoulder. 

“Good morning, Ophelia!” Orpheus greets brightly, joy leaking into his voice. He was always so happy to see his daughter in the morning, even if it was usually a result of her kicking him awake much like her mother. “What have you been doing with your mama?”

“Someone was supposed to be eating her breakfast.” Eurydice raised her eyebrows at Ophelia, who just giggled and hid her face. “Did you finish your eggs, baby?” It had been her fear most of Ophelia’s life. The baby she loved so dearly going hungry in the way she had, or not having enough to make it through a particularly rough winter. 

“Noooo mama.” Ophelia admitted, resting her little body on her father’s , kicking her feet innocently. “Want boo-berries.”  

Eurydice sighed, shaking her head as she reached her arm out to smooth Ophelia’s wavy hair. “Well honey, i’m sorry, we don’t have any blueberries right now. But if you can get your daddy out of bed..” She poked Orpheus’s exposed side, making him jump slightly. “We can go get some before they’re out again this week.” 

Ophelia lifted her head excitedly, bringing her pudgy hands to Orphues’s cheeks. She squeezed her hands on his face, smiling down at him. “Dada, its booberry time!” She kicked her feet in time with her little hands patting on his face. “Booberry time..booberry time..” 

“Hmm, singing to get what she wants, wonder where she learned that.” Eurydice mused, reaching down to grab Ophelia and pull her onto her own lap. “Come on, baby, lets go finish your breakfast,  while your father gets dressed, then I will go get you as many blueberries as your hands can hold.” 

Eurydice winked at Orpheus as she stood, kissing Opheila’s temple. “And maybe Persephone will let you play with Winter tonight, huh? So that your mama and dada can finish what they started earlier.” 

Not long after, Orpheus joined them in the kitchen meets living room, that really comprised the rest of their little home. Eurydice is sitting on the floor with Ophelia, clapping excitedly every time Ophelia took another spoonful of breakfast, the high giggles of his daughter reach his ears as she excitedly bounces around her mother, dancing in little circles around Eurydice. 

Eurydice may notice him staring, but decides not to comment as she pulls Ophelia into her arms and stands in one fluid motion. “Looks like it’s time to go, O.” She comments, adjusting Ophelia’s tiny pigtails atop her head. “Do you want the baby or the bag, Orpheus?” She asks softly, gesturing to the cotton grocery bag hanging on the doorknob. 

“She seems plenty happy right where she is.” Orpheus leans down to kiss Eurydice’s forehead before kissing Ophelia’s nose as well.  He slings the bag over his shoulder, before extending a hand to his wife. “Ready?” 

Eurydice wordlessly takes his hand, leaning her head against his arm. On her opposite hip was Ophelia, babbling happily as they began the short walk home. 

Eurydice could remember her very first walk with Ophelia through this town, a little infant who slept at her chest, bundled under all of her clothes and blankets to keep her warm. She could still feel her, that tiny human, the soft shallow baby breaths against her skin, tiny baby fingers drumming along her chest. It was so different from now, yet so similar. Ophelia, at nearly two, is perfectly capable of walking, holding conversations with her parents, and requesting whatever she wanted. Yet she still found her comfort in her mother’s arms, still slept the best with her head over Eurydice’s heart, and preferred to be carried on one of her parent’s hips. 

Orpheus didn’t need to say much, just bringing their hands to his lips, drawing her out of her thoughts. They reach the market quickly, their home not terribly far from town, just enough that they could raise their daughter in the peace of the country. 

It was a busy day, considering the ideal summer weather warming the street of the market place. He lead her towards the first booth, where summer berries were advertised. They had a short shopping list, and their daughter’s favorite fruit was a luxury they were glad to splurge on. 

“Well good morning Miss Eurydice, Orpheus. And to you too, pretty girl.” The old woman at the booth greeted, adjusting her light cotton wrap around her as she leaned back into her chair. The booth was well designed, with a shady over hand protecting her from the summer sun. “Lovely day to see you three out.” She remarks, her gaze bouncing between the three of them. “That girl of yours is getting so big. And she’s lookin’ more like her mama every day.” It’s a normal comment. Part of their weekly trips together. 

“Oh she’s your twin, Eurydice. ‘Cept for her daddy’s eyes.”

“She’s getting so big, you’ve done such a good job with her.”

Orpheus smiles as their daughter waves shyly, fishing his shopping list from the bag. “Eurydice’s to thank for all of that, trust me. Do you remember when I used to bring Ophelia by before… before Eurydice came home? All she needed was her mother, and look at her now.” He’s always so proud, when he muses on and on about his daughter and wife, offering the woman at the stand some coins. 

“She was asking for your blueberries this morning. They’re her favorite thing. She’d eat nothing but them all day, for every meal.” Eurydice explains, kissing Ophelia’s fists gently, the toddler not fighting to run today, instead she is happy to be close to her parents. 

“Boo-berries?” Ophelia asks, tilting her head to look at Eurydice. 

“Yes baby, we’re getting you berries.”  Eurydice promises, offering a kind smile. “Orpheus can you finish up here, I’m going to get some eggs before they run out again.” She waves to the elderly woman running the fruit stand, Ophelia doing the same. “We’ll see you next week.”

“You take care of yourself, girl.” 

Eurydice arrives at the stand a few down, thankful to see they are not out of stock again. “Mornin!” She greets, shifting Ophelia from her left to her right hip. 

“Good morning, Eurydice. And to you, Ophelia.” The woman running this stand was not terribly older than Eurydice, though she had four boys running about behind her. “You two have the most well behaved baby in this town, I swear. And look at her. How old is she now, two? Thinkin’ about giving her a sister?”

Eurydice smiles at the compliment, before shaking her head. “Thank you..yeah she’ll be two this fall. Hard to believe..” It was hard to believe that two years prior she was in an apartment in Hadestown, begging any god who would listen to let her baby be able to go to Orpheus. Even more hard to believe was that she had been home for just over a year now. Life was funny that way, how it escaped you when you tried to cherish every moment. “Any more? Gods, no, she is more than I ever thought i’d have. And We’ve finally got her to sleep a whole night. And it’s nice, to not be her personal dairy, you know?” She waves off, letting Ophelia down to go chase the chicken that the merchant brought with her. “She’s a dream, we aren’t gonna get greedy… Ophelia be gentle.”

The merchant just smiled at her, shaking her head. “I understand. She’s a good girl, you did a good job. And look at her. She’s gotten so big. I remember Orpheus coming through here, this tiny peanut of a girl in his arms, trying his damndest to find something she could eat. Noone knew how to explain that an infant couldn’t eat fried eggs. He has loved her so fiercely ever since.. I could see it in his eyes those first days. LIke he’d jump in front of that train for this baby of yours.” 

“We love your daddy very much, don’t we Ophelia?” Eurydice knelt to Ophelia’s height, gently helping the child pet the feathers of the bird. 

“Should we get you a bird to play with, honey?” Comes Orpheus’s voice, as he kneels down beside his wife. 

“We are NOT getting her a chicken, Orpheus. Chickens are for food, not pets.” She teased, glancing at his bag. “orpheus..How many berries did you buy?”

“Ophelia likes them, I want her to have enough!” He defends, standing and offering Eurydice a hand to pull her to her feet. “We may..just be having a lot this week.”

“You can’t say no.” Eurydice teases, kissing his cheek.  Though she understands. If they can manage it, they will. There is no length they will not go for each other and their little family, if they can manage. She remains holding Ophelia’s hand, as she talks to the chicken as if it were her peer. 

Orpheus completes the transactions as he watches his wife with their daughter, Ophelia’s dissenting whines hurting him as they pull her away from the birds. He scoops up their daughter, his other arm wrapping around Eurydice’s shoulders. 

They make their way through, exchanging for what they need for the week. They by no means live lavishly, but they have what they could want. By mid day, the sun is beating onto their skin, as they start the short walk home. 

Orpheus’ nose is burned, and Eurydice’s hair is curling tighter  in the humid heat. They are not paying attention to that though, only to the soft singing of their daughter, as she swings her arms between them.

[askthedustbowl]

friend of yours

persephone waits at a bar for hades to finish work. the owner is out, so she starts talking to the seventeen-year-old boy at the register while waiting for him to come back.

———

“goodnight, khaila.” persephone called to khaila as she watched her stride out of the six seeds, raising her hand in a wave. khaila waved back with a smile. outside, the sun was setting. the february sky glowed pink and blue, and persephone watched it for a second before closing up the store.

it was too cold for the light jacket she was wearing. hades had told her that he would send her a message at sunset, but when she looked at her phone, there wasn’t any word from him.

oh, well. she needed a drink, anyway.

crossing the street, she set off towards the bar she had seen while walking to work that morning. a sign hung in the window with “REOPENED” scrawled on it in big letters. come to think of it, persephone couldn’t remember the last time she had seen the lights on inside.

warmth greeted her as she opened the door, and she welcomed it by slipping off her jacket. the bar was full of people talking and laughing after work. in the corner, she saw some of her husband’s employees sitting together.

the atmosphere was comforting. it felt like home. persephone smiled to herself as she sat down at one of the barstools.

“he’ll be back in a minute.” a voice from behind the bar said softly. persephone looked up, then to her left. three stools away stood a boy behind the register.

“who will?” she asked.

the boy looked up from a notebook he had been writing in. “mister hermes.” he answered. at persephone’s confused expression, he added, “bartender. he’s just picking something up.”

“ah.” persephone drummed her fingernails on the bar. “that’s okay. i’ll wait.” she looked away, taking in her surroundings. something kept nagging at her, though.

the boy’s eyes looked so sad. sadder than any eyes persephone had ever seen. he seemed...hollow.

“so, what’s your name?” she turned back to him.

the boy didn’t look up from his notebook.

after a few moments, persephone tried again. “kid?” she asked. “what’s your name?”

the boy jumped when he realized she was talking to him, and persephone leaned back in her seat. “didn’t mean to scare you, sorry.”

he blinked. “orpheus.” he murmured.

“your name is orpheus?”

“yes.” he set down his notebook. “what about you?”

persephone smiled. “i’m persephone.” she almost saw orpheus smile back.

almost.

“nice to meet you,” he said softly. “miss persephone.”

her name sounded sweet in his fragile little voice. persephone felt something bloom in her chest, something kind and affectionate. she looked pointedly at the stool directly in front of him. “mind if i...?”

orpheus shook his head. persephone took her jacket and moved three seats down. “so you work here?”

orpheus nodded. he sat down on a stool beside the register.

persephone tilted her head. “how old are you?”

orpheus started fiddling with his pencil. “seventeen.” he mumbled.

“is that even legal?” persephone asked, raising her eyebrows. “are you even out of high school?”

at the wounded look in orpheus’s eyes, she wished she hadn’t said anything.

“mister hermes is my...” he paused. “my godfather.” orpheus put down his pencil and started playing with the hems of his sweater sleeves.

“you call your godfather mister hermes?” persephone didn’t know what was going on, but she desperately wanted to know this boy. he haunted her. “where are your parents?”

orpheus avoided her gaze. “do you want some water while you wait?”

persephone felt guilty. she shouldn’t have pried. whatever this kid had going on would take more than a casual conversation to explain. he looked kind of lost, so persephone agreed to the water, just to give him something to do. “sure.”

orpheus took a glass and pitcher of ice water from behind the bar. carefully, he began to pour her a glass. persephone watched him do so. his hands shook ever-so-slightly, and he seemed to notice. orpheus stopped halfway and switched hands. persephone couldn’t look away.

finally, he slid the glass across the bar towards her, almost as if he didn’t trust himself hand her the glass himself.

“thanks, kid.” persephone took a sip.

“you’re welcome.” orpheus replied. he clasped his hands together and set them on the bar.

they lapsed into silence while the rest of the bar teemed with life around them. it seemed strangely shameful to keep talking to orpheus after persephone had obviously upset him. luckily, it wasn’t her that broke the silence.

“hey, orpheus!” a man’s voice called from behind her. orpheus looked up, grateful for a distraction.

“mister dionysus.” he said, relieved.

persephone turned. a tall young man walked up to the register and held up his hand for orpheus to give him a high-five. to her surprise, orpheus granted him one, weak as it might be.

“how are you, kiddo? feeling alright?” dionysus spoke to orpheus easily, but there was a note of paternal affection in his voice.

orpheus nodded, smiling sheepishly. “yes, sir.”

“that’s what i like to hear.” dionysus grinned and put some money on the bar. “keep the change, orpheus. tell your godfather i’ll see him tomorrow.” he winked.

orpheus waved halfheartedly. persephone watched him leave.

“friend of yours?”

“i think so.“

persephone smiled. “he’s nice.”

orpheus nodded. “he left early today. usually he’s the last one in here.”

his words prompted persephone to look around. she was one of the only people left in the bar. “what time is it?” she asked.

orpheus glanced at the clock and persephone saw his mouth moving as he assessed the time. “it’s nine-thirty.” he said.

“is your godfather okay?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. “it’s been a while.”

orpheus looked around. “you’re right.” he murmured. persephone saw his eyes widen. “he...he should be...” the color drained out of his face. “he...”

“hey, i’m sure he’s okay.” persephone tried to calm him. “traffic is crazy this time of night. people are getting back to their families from bars like this.” she looked at the clock. “he’ll probably be back soon.”

“he’s never late, miss persephone.” orpheus said, fear creeping into his quiet voice. at this point, she was the last person left in the bar. he scanned the place desperately as if he could find his godfather hiding behind a table or underneath a chair. persephone watched as his chest began to rise and fall faster and faster.

“orpheus, hey.” she put a hand on his. “he’ll be back soon. look at me.” orpheus’s wide eyes met hers. persephone had only known him for a few hours, but it felt like he filled a hole in her heart that she didn’t know existed. he was just a kid, and she felt for him. “breathe, sweetheart.”

orpheus heeded her suggestion and took a breath.

“he’ll be back soon.” as soon as the words left persephone’s lips, the door opened and a man that she assumed as hermes rushed inside.

“orpheus.” he exhaled in relief. orpheus looked like he could cry at any minute. hermes quickly let himself behind the bar and hugged orpheus tight. “i’m so sorry, orpheus. traffic was hell. i’m so, so sorry.” he pulled away and cupped orpheus’s cheek. orpheus closed his eyes. after a moment, hermes relaxed and dropped his hand, breathing a sigh. “are you okay?”

persephone looked at the floor, her glass of water, the register, anything to avoid looking at orpheus and his godfather. she was witnessing something she wouldn’t have been privy to under normal circumstances, and she was painfully aware of it.

hermes pressed his lips to orpheus’s forehead. “go upstairs and get into bed, okay? you haven’t stayed up this late in a while.” he hugged orpheus one last time and then let the boy go. once orpheus was out of sight, hermes put his head in his hands.

persephone tried to put on her jacket to leave without making any noise, but the legs of her stool scraped the wood floors as she stood. hermes looked up in alarm.

“oh, gods. i’m so sorry, i didn’t see you—“

persephone shook her head. “no, no, i was just leaving, it’s fine.”

hermes shrugged off his coat and held out his hand. “i’m hermes.”

persephone took it. “persephone.” she said. “you own the place?”

he nodded. “yes, i do.”

“nice place.”

“why, thank you.”

they were dancing around what had just happened, and they both knew it.

finally, persephone spoke up. “is he okay?”

hermes shook his head, a gesture that seemed to be directed more at himself than at persephone. “he’ll be alright.” he turned and adjusted a picture frame on the top shelf behind the bar. persephone couldn’t see all of the photo, but it looked like a woman smiling and waving.

“he’s quite a kid.” persephone said.

hermes turned back to her. “you stayed with him.” it wasn’t a question, but a realization. he offered her a grateful smile. “thank you so much for doing that. you didn’t have to.”

“i didn’t mind at all. he’s...good.” simple as it was, there didn’t seem to be a better descriptor for orpheus. the boy was genuinely good. she saw it in his sad eyes.

“he is.” hermes nodded. “persephone, if you want anything, it’s on the house. i can’t thank you enough for staying with him.”

persephone shook her head. “i couldn’t, really. it’s fine. thank you, though.” her phone buzzed in the pocket of her jacket, and she fished it out. the screen was alight with a text from hades.

running late, my love. is there somewhere you can get a drink while i deal with a mistake my secretary made? send me the address and i’ll pick you up as soon as i can. i don’t want you walking home this late.

her face must have showed her disappointment, because hermes brought out a tall bottle of vermouth. “just picked this up for business purposes, but i think we both need some right now.”

persephone gave in. “agreed.” she accepted the glass that hermes handed her. “thank you.”

hermes took a sip and closed his eyes as he swallowed. persephone nearly downed her glass in a matter of seconds, but held back.

“you’re his godfather?” she asked

hermes nodded. “we live upstairs.”

persephone took a sip of her drink. “convenient.”

he dipped his head in acknowledgement, but persephone could tell there was something else on his mind.

“he lost his mother two months ago.” hermes said gravely. “it’s been difficult.”

persephone felt like she had just been hit in the chest. that explained so much.

“i’m so sorry for your loss.” she reached over the bar to touch hermes’s shoulder. “that must have been terrible.”

“he didn’t take it well.” hermes added, shaking his head slightly.

“i don’t blame him,” persephone replied, her voice dripping with sympathy. “he’s so young.”

“there was a while there where i didn’t think he’d make it, either.” hermes poured himself another drink. “he didn’t leave the house for a month. i had to close the bar.”

persephone nodded.

“that’s why he was so upset when i was late. i can’t believe i did that to him.”

“that wasn’t your fault.” persephone frowned. “you couldn’t control it.”

“i suppose. but he gets this look in his eyes, like he’s lost or something, and it just kills me.” hermes looked at persephone, and she saw his eyes were glassy with unshed tears. he blinked. “i’m sorry. i don’t know why i’m telling you this. we just met.” he chuckled, a sad sound given the circumstances.

“no, it’s okay! really, it’s okay. i can’t remember the last time i had a genuine, human conversation.” she echoed his halfhearted chuckle.

hermes sighed. “i haven’t really talked to anyone about this since the funeral.” he admitted.

“i can only imagine.”

“thank you, persephone. for listening.” he straightened up and closed the vermouth bottle, walking out from behind the bar “please, take what’s left of this. i have a dozen others in the trunk of my car.”

“are you sure?” she eyed the bottle. “it looks expensive. i would hate to hurt business.” hermes smiled at that, and persephone felt an odd sort of pride.

“it’s the least i can do.”

“thank you, hermes.” she took it carefully. “i promise i’ll use it to its fullest potential.”.

“you’d better.” hermes replied easily. before he could say anything else, persephone’s phone buzzed.

“that’s my husband,” she told him. “he’s outside.”

“don’t let me stop you.” hermes held out his hand again, but persephone hugged him instead. he wrapped his arms around her, too.

persephone pulled away and touched his shoulder as she stepped back. “i’ll see you tomorrow night.” she said. hermes smiled and lifted his hand in a wave.

outside, hades greeted her with a kiss. “sorry it’s so late.” he apologized.

persephone looked at him with a newfound appreciation. hearing about poor orpheus’s mother made her realize that each day with her loved ones could be the last. “don’t worry about it, my love.” she said, to hades’s visible relief.

he looked pointedly at the dust bowl, where hermes could be seen in the window, locking up. “a friend of yours?” he asked.

persephone watched hermes disappear into the back room as the lights in the bar shut off.

“i think so.”

[lepidotrichia]

almagest

Summary

"So you know how life is made up of stardust? Like you and I both are made up of the same things that used to make up a star, right?" "Right." "And you know how people make wishes on stars?" "...Yes?" "What if someone ends up being made up of the stardust from one of those wishing stars?" Snorting, he said, "You calling me a dream come true?" "No. I'm a dream come true. You're probably made of the stardust of an evil sun that cursed every living thing around it." "Fuck off."

They were both laughing, music dancing through the night.

Characters

Noriaki Kakyoin, Jotaro Kujo, (BRIEF APPEARANCE) Joseph Joestar, Mohammad Avdul, Jean-Pierre Polnareff

Relationship(s)

Noriaki Kakyoin & Jotaro Kujo (If you wanna read it that way. Technically Pre-Relationship)

Themes, Motifs, and Additional Info

Stargazing, Constellations, Mention of Nightmare, Comfort

Takes place after the fight with Death 13

Word Count

2312

Story below the break! You can also read it here.

While collecting the stars, I connected the dots     I don’t know who I am, but now I know who I’m not     I’m just a curious speck that got caught up in orbit, in orbit     Like a magnet it beckoned my metals toward it, toward it  

Joseph’s snores sounded throughout the campsite, harmonizing with the crackling campfire. Jean, Mohammad, and Iggy were huddled nearby, the fire’s steady light dancing across their sleeping figures. A rock’s shadow loomed over the ground. Perched upon it were Jotaro and Noriaki, huddled in a blanket to keep out the January desert night’s chill.  

The average seventeen-year-old isn’t equipped to fight a living god. Fear of what’s to come, of what failure would mean for the world, keeping them awake. Both of them were too proud to name that fear out loud, but they knew. Specters tearing apart everything and everyone they ever cared for haunted their dreams.  

At times like this, the company of another was a small mercy.  

“And that one,” Noriaki continued, pointing at the diagram Hierophant had drawn in the sand, “is Lyra. The one that looks like a parallelogram with the line sticking out of it.”

Hand pressed against his cheek, Jotaro mumbled, “What’s it supposed to be?”

“A lyre. Have you heard of it? It looks like a small harp, but its structure is more like a lute. It was commonly used during the Greek classical period.”  

Jotaro carefully considered the sky etched into the ground. Noriaki had wanted to tell him about all the constellations they were missing out on since it wasn’t the right season to catch a glimpse of them in this hemisphere. Breathing out another cloud of smoke, he replied,“I don’t see it. All just looks like a bunch of dots to me.”  

Noriaki shook his head. “You’re not looking hard enough. I mean, they are just “a bunch of dots, but humans always manage to find patterns. We find icons and symbols, make stories out of them.”

“What’s the story for this one?”  

Noriaki grinned, “I’m glad you asked!”

Gazing into the peaceful darkness, Jotaro eased into his skin. He’d much rather be in a hotel room right now, but he had to admit, he was glad he was here to see the night sky. It looked so vibrant. He’d never seen the milky way in person like this. The city lights back home overwhelmed the stars’ distant glow, rendering them invisible. Here, there was no excess light or noise. Just the stars, the campfire, and Noriaki’s soft voice streaming bits of trivia.  

“Do you know the story of Orpheus?" Noriaki toyed with his hair as he began. "Supposedly, he played the first lyre ever made. Legend has it, his music was so beautiful that it charmed even the sirens and the gods. When his lover, Eurydice, died, he went to the Underworld to beg the god of the dead, Hades, to bring her back to life. Can you guess how he got Hades to say yes?"  

Without waiting for a reply, he answered, "By playing for him on his Lyre! Thus, Eurydice was allowed to leave the Underworld under one condition." Noriaki leaned in, the dim glow of the campfire casting a shadow on his face. "Orpheus couldn’t look at her until they were back to the land of the living.”  

Taking a breath, he continued, “Of course, like most of these stories, it ends with a tragedy. Orpheus couldn’t help himself. He’d missed Eurydice so much. He just couldn’t believe that they’d be together again. And you know, it’s hard not to want to reach out towards someone you’d loved and lost. So Orpheus ended up looking back at Eurydice as they were leaving the Underworld, despite Hades’ warning."

Noriaki leaned back on his hands, tone turning nonchalant as he finished. "So Eurydice was sent back, never to return to the land of the living. Orpheus would spend the rest of his life wandering around aimlessly while playing his lyre, and no one lived happily ever after. The end."

Jotaro’s mouth twitched into a frown, “That’s stupid. If I was Orpheus, I just wouldn’t have looked back.”

“Wouldn’t you?” Noriaki inclined his head as if to say "really now?".

 “No. I mean, why would I go through all that trouble just to fuck up and do the one thing I wasn’t supposed to do? What’s the point?"  

“Well, it’s a story in the end.”  

“Hmph, dumb story."

“It was probably a rhetorical question—” Jotaro nodded, “but the point of the story is to talk about how death is absolute. At least, that’s what I think. No matter how much Orpheus and Eurydice loved each other, love alone wasn’t enough to overcome death.”

Jotaro furrowed his brows. “But it was Orpheus’s fault.”  

“Was it?" Noriaki rebutted. "Gods are supposed to be omnipotent. See, I think Hades knew that Orpheus wouldn’t be able to resist looking back, so he gave him this impossible condition to follow. He was humoring the funny little man with his pretty-sounding lyre. I mean," his hands were animated now as he spoke excitedly, "how are you just going to waltz into the realm of the god of the dead demanding your lover be brought back to life just because you miss her? Hades was never actually going to bring Eurydice back to life.”  

Bringing his hands back down behind him, skin pressing into stone, Noriaki gave Jotaro a sad smile and said, “No matter how brutal it is to have someone you love ripped away, the universe doesn’t grant any favors.”

The two sat in contemplative silence. Hierophant’s tendrils shifted beneath the sand, mapping out their surroundings out of habit.  

“I still wouldn’t have turned around”, Jotaro broke the silence.  

“Hmm?”  

Turning to face Noriaki, he continued, “I wouldn’t have turned around. Orpheus was thinking about how much he missed Eurydice. That’s why he turned around. That was his mistake.”

Noriaki tilted his head, a teasing gleam in his eyes, “You’re saying Orpheus was being selfish?”

“I’m saying he cared more about how much he missed her than actually bringing her back to life.”  

“You’re telling me he deserved to be punished for missing someone?”  

Jotaro sighed irritably, “I’m saying he put his wants before someone else’s needs. His feelings shouldn’t matter when someone’s life is on the line.”

Noriaki hummed. “Impressive, Jotaro. You know, Mr. Abdul told me how you locked yourself up in jail after you found out you had a Stand because you were afraid you’d hurt someone." He reached out to sweep aside a curl resting uncomfortably on Jotaro's left eye. "Something about an “evil spirit”? Did you have the same mindset when you did that?

Jotaro pulled back. “Fuck off”, he dismissed, stubbing his cigarette against the rock’s side, dropping it into the sand below. Noriaki winced as the cigarette landed on a part of Hierophant, ashes burning into their tendrils. Hierophant quickly withdrew themself.  

“Shit", he breathed in sharply." Fuck, sorry.”  

“You’re fine you’re fine", waving the incident away. Stifling a yawn, Noriaki closed his eyes, chin dropping. His loose curls fell against the side of his face, the red of his hair burning bright against his silhouette. Basking in the faint warmth of the fire, he spoke slowly, apologizing, “Not much I can tell you about the sky right now. I’m only really familiar with the summertime constellations.”

Pressing his face into his palm more, Jotaro stared at him, jaw tensed in quiet worry. “Kakyoin.  

"Yeah?"  

"Go sleep.”  

“What?" Noriaki opened his eyes, sitting back up. "No, I’m fine.” Jotaro gave him a side-eye. “Dude, I’m wide awake.”

A wicked grin took over, as Noriaki pressed, “Is it that you’re tired, Jotaro? Is it past your bedtime? I know Ms. Kujo wouldn’t want her baby boy up so late—”

“Oh my  god, I’m going to kick your ass”, Jotaro complained, shoving at Noriaki. There was no hiding the smile growing on his face. Noriaki’s laugh carried in the air as he pushed himself back to lean into Jotaro, the latter dissolving into silent, shaky laughter himself.

After some time, the two caught their breath. Below a sky full of stars, they sat resting against each other. Noriaki spoke gently, “Are you worried about her?”

Jotaro huffed, “Don’t ask stupid questions.”

“We’re going to win, you know. We’ll save her.” Noriaki squeezed the other’s arm, “You hear me, Jojo?”

"Yeah.” He was quieter now.  

“I promise.”  

Hiding below the brim of his hat, he mumbled, “Thanks, Kakyoin.”

“Do you wanna play a game?” Noriaki poked up at the hat’s brim so he could see Jotaro’s eyes again. “Let’s make up our own constellations.”

“That sounds stupid.”  

“Exactly. Haven’t you ever tried to do something stupid to cope with something serious? It’ll be fun.”  

Sighing, he gave in, “Fine.”

 “You first?”  

“What? Why? I don’t even want to pl—”  

“You’re older, so you go first.”  

“That’s so stupid. This is so stupid.”  

“If you complain or say “stupid” one more time, I’m going to have Hierophant pour sand down your uniform.”

“You’re one evil bastard.” Noriaki grinned as if he’d just been complimented. “Fine. Okay um”, Jotaro squinted at the sky before him. “That one looks like a cat stretching.”

“Really? It looks more like a horse to me. See, its face is too long to be a cat’s.”  

Jotaro sneered, “Hey, it’s my constellation. I’m the one who says what it is.”

“Okay okay!” Noriaki laughed, raising his hands in surrender. “What’s its story?

“Fuck, I don’t know. It’s just a cat. Does it have to have one?”  

“It’s more fun if it does.”  

“I think our definitions of “fun” are very fucking different, Kakyoin.”

“Fine! You’re taking too long anyways.” Noriaki scanned the scene before him. “That one looks like someone asking for a dance.”

“How do you even see that?”  

“See? That’s his arm and it’s outstretched. He’s in a dancer's pose, and anyways, it’s my constellation. I’m the one who says—”  

“You’re so annoying.”  

“So I think his story is that he was this great dancer, so great that he could never find a dance partner. He always performed alone. No one could ever understand him because no one could ever keep up with him. One day, during one of his performances, he was suddenly overcome with so much grief that he danced himself to death. So now he dances in the stars.”  

“That’s dark. How did he end up in the stars?”  

“Even though he always felt lonely, the people around him admired him a lot. They loved to see him, even if they didn’t really understand him. So although he lived as this untouchable being, he still left a mark on his admirers’ lives. So now he dances with the stars for the whole world to see.”  

“That’s depressing.”  

Noriaki grumbled, “Come up with a cheerier story then.”

“I’m not good at storytelling.” After searching for a moment, Jotoro said, “That one looks like a fish.”

“No story?”  

“No…but I can tell you what kind of fish it is.”  

“How do you know about the kinds of fish?” Noriaki questioned curiously.  

Jotaro shrugged, “I’m getting into marine biology. Anyways, we’re near the Red Sea, so I’ll say it’s a Bigeye Houndshark.”

“Why a shark?”  

“I like sharks.”  

“I learn something new about you every day”, Noriaki nudged him with a smile, pulling the blanket tighter around them. “One more?”

“Sure.”  

“Hierophant”, Noriaki called out. Hierophant materialized before them, starting at the two. Messages seemed to pass between the Stand and their user, and, after a moment, Hierophant chirped affirmingly. Floating higher up, they unraveled themself, aligning their tendrils to match what the boys saw as the position of the stars. Jotaro blinked at Hierophant as they settled themself in, seemingly pleased with their work.

“What’s this supposed to be?”  

Noriaki smiled and replied, “If I remembered it right, it’s supposed to be a map of our journey so far. See that bright star near Hierophant’s head? I recognize it. Polaris, I think. People used to use it to navigate.”

"What’s it supposed to stand for now?”  

“Cairo, or our end goal in general. The story of this “constellation” is the story of our crusade, I guess.”

Jotaro stared for a moment longer, trying to think of something to say. A certain feeling tugged at his chest, and in his rush to beat it down, he was rendered speechless.

“We’re awfully close to figuring out how this story ends, don’t you think?”  

Jotaro scanned the distance between Hierophant’s head to Polaris. They weren’t all that far from the end now, were they. “Yeah.”

“Are you ready?” 

Their eyes met. Jotoro shook his head.  

“Me neither”, Noriaki sighed as he called Hierophant back in. “We’ll get there when we get there I suppose.”

“Kakyoin.”  

“Mhm?”  

“We’ll win. Promise.”  

Noriaki stared in surprise before softening his eyes. Smiling, he replied, “Thanks, Jojo.”

"Do you want to stay up a little longer?” It was Jotaro who pulled the blanket around them tighter this time, silently voicing his own answer.

"Please.”  

"Alright.”  

The campfire crackled, sharing in the warmth of its company, both asleep and awake. The Red Sea’s coast was only a few kilometers away. The group's 50 days and 50 nights were drawing to an end. Maybe no one else would witness their efforts to save the world, but the stars above have burned on longer than any human life. Joining together, they form constellations. They are the archivists of times long passed, stories mapped out in the heavens. They are the storytellers of histories long forgotten. They are the witnesses of the things that happen in the dark, hope carried through dots of light.  

Make my messes matter Make this chaos count Let every little fracture in me Shatter out loud 

Author’s Note

If you were wondering, the constellations they're referencing in their game are:

Monoceros

Orion

Pisces

[hadestownmodern]

Wedding

 (literally nobody asked for a wedding fic but someone did ask for soft young parents and...technically...this fits that a little bit?)

It’s a night in the middle of winter; a fresh coating of snow coats the rolling meadow behind Demeter’s tiny farmhouse. She’d offered her house up for their wedding with a wholehearted excitement, borrowed mismatched sets of chairs and tables and set them all out on the lawn. From the moment the day had begun she’d been busy-tending to the animals and putting them away for the night, starting small bonfires and heat lamps to keep the night warm. Fairy lights were strung between the large trees, lanterns hung around the line of the bordering forest. Even the garden, sparse from the winter weather, had been decked in a soft glow of lights among its posts. Bunches of deep purple flowers and earthy sage were scattered along the tables, clipped to the lights. Eurydice had been over during the week, begging to help to no avail; everything was meant to be a surprise.

              “Don’t lift a finger,” Demeter chastised lovingly. “You just take care of that baby of yours. Let us do something for you.”

Hades moved around with a happy display of his culinary skill, having already prepared a decent amount of food throughout the week. It was enough to feed the whole city, they’d joked, and he’d beamed with pride. He set appetizers on whatever sorts of trays he could find, poured drinks into glass jars, set them in a beautiful array around the galley kitchen that made it seem beautifully overflowing. From time to time he’d bustle over to Eurydice and Persephone, shoving spoonfuls of food toward them with urgency, eagerly awaiting the inevitable grins and thumbs-up that would follow. Junie had long since draped herself across a majority of the couch, her own lace-flowered dress a compliment to her head of big angelic curls and the crown of sage-colored leaves around them. Junie’s eyes have been glued to Eurydice since she’d seen her, her hand aching to hold hers, to follow her as she walked.

“You look like a princess,” she’d gasped, reaching up to touch the baby in her arms. Melody wore a matching rendition of the softly flowing lace, a purple headband bow covering the dark hair upon her own head. Eurydice had yet to put her down for more than five minutes-had held her wide-eyed baby proudly as she’d gotten her cropped hair brushed and settled into their natural waves, gone for an earthily toned makeup look, soft and simple. Junie played games with her, hopped up and down and twirled in her dress, entertaining the smiling infant with adoration and purpose.

The guests arrived nearly all at once; friends from work, some of the people Orpheus played music with…the crowd was small, but intimate. Each face knew another, each with their own story to tell of the day Orpheus had told them about this girl in the coffee shop, or her name is Eurydice-I love her more than anything, or we’re having a baby. We’re going to get married. The endless songs of love that came from Orpheus knowing her echoed throughout the crowd, was shown in the way they bustled amongst each other, spoke words of blessing and happiness for the young couple. They poured over the tablecards, each printed with heartfelt photos of the short time they’d spent together-seemingly sprawling, judging on the way the two clung to each other in a photobooth, posed behind the bar, wrapped themselves in each other at Christmas with an ultrasound picture between them. The sunset-evening was glowing with these small sentiments of love, which only grew as a nervous Orpheus stood under the handmade archway beside the garden.

He waited with his eyes trained to the back door of his amma’s house, hands fiddling with the hem of his suit coat. Hermes and Hades stoodd on either side of Orpheus, watching as he fussed around with impatience. Hermes lifted one arm, patting his shoulder with a chuckle. Orpheus looked out at the gathering of their close friends, sat in those same mismatched chairs, arranged from their tables in a haphazardly beautiful sort of crowd with an aisle in between. A pair of musicians played their instruments, a guitar and a fiddle respectively, and the door flung open.

Junie ran out first, in a sort of twirling dance that showed off the carefree flow of lace coming from beneath her warm woolen petticoat. She threw purple petals from Demeter’s greenhouse, petals she helped pick and pluck that morning to keep her occupied. Her feet left tiny tracks in the dusting of snow they’d received; just enough to bless the earth with a perfect white powder, seemingly decorative rather than by the nature of the winter. Orpheus kept his eyes trained on the door, listened as the crowd fell helplessly to the joy she spread. Nothing else mattered except the girl behind the door, which opened only after he heard Hades scoop Junie up in his arms, felt her pat his arm relentlessly.

Everything stopped when the door opened again; a flood of warm light hit the now darkened night, wrapped itself around Eurydice as she stepped out into the snow. Persephone and Demeter stood on either side of her, hands on her back. Flanked in support, Eurydice began her trek down the aisle, and Orpheus wiped feverishly at the tears that spilled openly down his cheeks.

She was ethereal beauty, clothed in a sheer white dress with bell sleeves and a deeply dipped neckline. There are small bits of embroidery, hand-stitched in gold thread to resemble a universe of constellations telling stories of a young Demeter, Persephone about to be born, practicing her hand at a hobby that kept her busy. The dipping neck is hidden by the baby in her arms-their girl, in tiny long-sleeved lace and a completely encompassing petticoat, tucked as close to Eurydice’s chest as possible. He attempted this stand-still moment as he watched all of the important women in his life walk toward him, but then Eurydice was grinning, pausing to gasp, open mouthed and cry with him. His feet move before he can think about the etiquette of it all, meet her in the middle of the aisle. Orpheus reaches his hands to her arms, rubbing her shoulders and kissing Melody’s head.

“Hi,” He breathed, an ear-to-ear grin encompassing all of his features, spreading his own unfiltered joy through the crowd. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” She giggled, shaking her head as he wiped the tears from her eyes. From the archway Hermes cleared his throat, rolled his eyes and called Orpheus’s name.

“Come on, you two. Come up here and get married.”

There was a chorus of laughter, Hermes shaking his head as they stood in front of the crowd, Orpheus with an arm on hers and a hand on Melody’s back. He was shaking, nerves and excitement bubbling within him like carbonation just waiting for its opportunity to meet the open air-for permission to overflow. Eurydice wasn’t much different, then, simultaneously thankful for the presence of their daughter snug against her chest and aching to reach out and fold herself over Orpheus. Her tender poet, soft and adoring, looked between them both with stars in his eyes, content in the moment until Hermes poked at his arm.

“Your vows?” He reminded, and Orpheus took in a deep breath. Feeling the presence of their friends-the bite of the winter air against the warmth of the bonfires and lamps and Eurydice’s soft, glowing smile, he began.

“I know that everyone thought I was crazy when I bought you a ring two weeks after meeting you. I know that they thought it was crazy that four weeks after we met we were engaged, we were going to have a baby. They don’t know what I know. They didn’t get to see the way you looked the night we met, talking about your classes and your degree and your passions. They don’t get to know what it felt like to be loved by someone with every reason to run after I said ‘I love you’ way too soon. They don’t know what it’s like to watch the woman you love tell you she’s pregnant a month in and just feel…joy. Excitement…I was taught from a very young age that love is something rare, and special. That you know when it’s right. I was taught to believe that souls are supposed to meet each other here, that we’re lucky enough to share a physical space for as long as we get. I knew from the moment I met you that you were it. And I didn’t want to waste any more time. You’re it-and I love you endlessly, forever.”

“I’m going to say it before anyone else does-we clearly haven’t wasted any time here.” Eurydice kisses their daughter’s head, their friends and family laughing, Persephone’s distinct agreement above them all. “But I’m glad, because I love you. I love you for speaking too soon-for loving me in a way I’ve never been loved before. I love you for teaching me what love really is, for being the most giving, kind presence of light anybody has had in their life. I love you for your heart; you gave us Melody. You poured yourself into work, you wrote songs and changed diapers and held me even when I was being stubborn. I am so happy that our daughter gets to grow up with a father like you-someone who loves so openly and unconditionally, who speaks with honesty and kindness…when I met you, I met my family. I felt like I was home. And now, I can truly say that. Orpheus, I love you-endlessly, forever.”

Eurydice passes Melody over to Persephone with haste, flies eagerly and wholly into her poet’s waiting arms. She can feel the squeeze of his hug, his hasty lips on hers. She brings both her hands to the back of his neck and presses herself as close to him as possible, the cheering of their friends and family merely a muted background to their own happiness. A tiny squeaking makes its way past them-past the bubble they’d created-and Eurydice pulls away laughing as she takes a fussing mama’s girl away from Persephone. She holds Melody between them, Orpheus kissing her head and holding them both. He’s still holding them as they walk back down the aisle-as their friends begin to move the chairs back around, begin playing celebratory songs, gathering around them to smother them in well wishes.

The crowd is wrapped in doubling of warmth as Orpheus bends over to kiss his wife again, smiling as they laugh through a new round of their own blissful tears.

[yououghtaknow]

15 + 24?

hi!! thank you so much <3

15. introduce us to your version of william

oh BABY!!!!

okay. so. the thing about william is i have always hated him. as someone who has been in a manipulative situation similar to noorhelm, just hated the man. so, i decided to create a new man. a good man. complex, but good.

enter JAMES ABRAHAM COHEN!!!!! he’s introduced to the song teenagers by mcr and is wearing a trenchcoat over his school uniform, not only because he’s edgy, but because he’s cold because he immigrated to the uk from the middle east. he is, at the beginning, a manwhore, yes. but he’s a party boy, a guitar boy, who rori sees and thinks Yes. My Future Husband. meanwhile he’s just having a drinking contest with his Boys and then talking about his favourite comic book character. he’s not a bad boy TM. he’s a Dumb Teenage Boy.

he's a genuinely nice guy. he apologises to rori as many times as he can, and only stops because she asks him to, and they become friends. he falls madly in love with liz as soon as she starts roasting him. he’s just an Understanding guy who’s made mistakes and is always trying to get better and be there for his friends. he literally let jake live in his flat for a good while. 

and, my favourite thing about james is that he forced his friends to audition for a production of grease with him to see the girl he Loves So Much and ends up getting the lead role???? TWICE???? this man is danny zuko and roger davis. 

also, in my personal opinion, i think james is kind of a superior arthur skamfrance. both have a disability (arthur is hard of hearing, james has autism/adhd), both have abusive family, both are in a love triangle with two beautiful girls (one of whom is a wlw chris b). and also a surprise member of the boy squad starting in season 3. 

also, in a way, my william is a william/jonas/eskild combination??? which is very fun. i just love taking all these different skam dynamic, cutting them up and throwing them in a pot and seeing what looks nice.

also, ONE LAST THING, i think my william has the most reasonable reason to go to london. as it is an hour away from brighton by train and he can come back before the day’s over. because he’s a teenage boy. and we will be seeing a lot more of james in season 5. get ready for it.

24. tell us about a ship that is endgame.

i’m going to be real with you all on tumblr dot com on this night. i honestly don’t know what romantic ships are going to be endgame, because i plan the seasons i’m writing as i’m writing them, so i only have the vague framework of what i want for the endgame of skambr as a whole. so i’m just going to talk about the 3 main romantic ships that are canon as of the end of season 4. and i’m gonna Go Off.

esther/sandy:

OKAY. taking sandy’s story as a whole. she’s kissed her best girl friend. she started dating a guy she doesn’t like. she’s desperate for something new to come along. and esther has just moved back from germany. she just wants to meet someone to talk to because she’s so lonely. and boom. they run into each other one night by chance and it’s “oh my god she’s so pretty” at first sight. and then they start talking and become friends so quickly (and esther introduces sandy to the keysmash). also, nooreva should’ve been canon. i have rectified that.

but god. the way they have their conversation in s1 e4 and almost kiss but get interrupted by sophie??? god. and when they actually kiss in s1 e6 and suddenly everything’s Good until they get caught. and sandy Runs because what else can she do? she’s terrified. and esther stays. and when they see each other again, esther doesn’t say anything because she knows sandy can’t talk about it. until sandy gets outed and attacked by the football team, and esther instantly goes to protect her and puts her own feelings aside to make sure sandy’s okay. and sandy just Needed a safe place to land like esther for so long. and when they finally kiss at the christmas fair as “girls like girls” plays????? god.

and their relationship in all of the later seasons GOD. i love them. their fight and reconciliation in season 2. them just being together casually, with sandy healing from her past and learning to truly love herself, and esther opening up and having someone there to comfort her when she needs it. and the fact that they’re still friends throughout it all, because it;s not just friends to lovers. it’s friends to friends AND lovers. also when esther sang “boy problems” by crj at sandy..... ICONIC

liz/james:

GOD. okay these two are really one of my favourite dynamics i’ve ever written. because they start as “oh you’re the annoying guy my best friend’s got a crush on”. and go to “oh you’re the ASSHOLE who broke my friend’s heart”. to “oh she may have forgiven you, but i Have Not”. and james is just like “I Am Being So Nice And She Still Hates Me”. but then we see liz seeing james’s art piece at the end of s2 e1. and she connects with it so deeply. and then they have their first real conversation in the next episode and they have a lot in common. they get each other. and he sings “perfect for you” from n2n to her. and she gets so overwhelmed by the fact that her mind might be changing that she just Runs Away.

and then we get the sleepover scene and GOD. one of my favourite scenes to write. james being a good cook??? james smoking out the window and liz making fun of his guitar. and then liz beginning to play james’s brother’s piano and james making it a duet as they sing “falling slowly” from once together. and then they share a bed and instead of saying something creepy, james just says “i think we might be becoming friends”. and she texts him immediately after the prank on the holiday episode. and their first kiss. GOD. with him always calling her elizabeth and the pride and prejudice parallels and “bad idea” from waitress...... and then them spending the next day together. also, in the first kiss clip liz says that she “hates one direction”, and in the next morning clip, one direction plays as she walks with james. it’s a metaphor baby!!!!!1

and their whole political dynamic GOD. it’s actually based a lot on how my politics have changed from when i was 14, beginning to write the series, and now. with going from the centrist-liberal ideas of “all violence is bad :) racism isn’t that bad guys :)” to liz using her privilege as a rich white girl to fully bail james out of jail for assaulting the man who’s been racially harrassing him for months. and the scene where liz has her meltdown at school and james takes her home, puts her to bed, and sings her to sleep. AND THE SCENE WHERE HE COMES OUT TO HER AS TRANS GOD. also them just being nice in the background of season 3 and 4. delightful.

bree/rori:

THIS RELATIONSHIP IS LITERALLY ONE OF MY FAVOURITES TOO GOD. their DYNAMIC in the scene where bree is introduced and rori is all starry eyed over her and bree will already do Anything for her. it’s about the “i want to be her friend so bad” kind of crushes. and bree and rori getting closer and closer as the season goes on, and they get the “i bet i can make you horny” scene because i just think it’s really fun.

and GOD. the evilde plot in skam og makes me. so Mad. but here...... it’s about the internalised homophobia. it’s about the wanting one good movie kiss. it’s about the them making out to one direction in the middle of a school event. AND THEM DOING THE PRANK TOGETHER ON THE EASTER HOLIDAY EPISODE. QUEEN SHIT! and the scene where bree is drunk and talking to liz about how it feels to be in love...... that was about rori!!!! and when they played sandy and rizzo in grease together. the homoeroticism, the best friendship.

and in season 3 when nick and rori get together and bree is just standing there, jake talking to her and she looks into the camera...... god. and SEASON FOUR RORIANNA. WHICH IS THEIR SHIP NAME IN MY HEAD. GOD. them just being best friends and bree being silently in love with her because she’s happy that rori is happy with nick (who is also her friend). the scene where they “practise kissing” because rori is scared to kiss a girl onstage (we love internalised homophobia), and how bree also ignores it because she’s scared of conflict. and they’re always so there for each other. rori being there to support bree so hard when bree’s at her lowest point. bree being there for rori and ready to fight for her. bree going from waking up next to josh, to waking up alone, to waking up next to rori. them going from slow dancing to daylight by taylor swift to laughing and dancing on a crowded stage in la vie boheme.

quite genuinely? they have it all. evilde. sana/chris b. eva/chris b. noora/chris b. noora/vilde. it’s about girls supporting girls and also them kind of being cut from the same cloth as sandy/esther. one of them having internalised homophobia and running away from the kiss, and the other silently loving them until they get a yes or a no. 

anyways every relationship i write is about having clear consent and respect for your partner at all times. and also about friends to lovers. and also the tenderness of musical theatre couples. oh shit now i want to talk about jake/al. well. this is my tumblr blog and you all have to deal with me.

jake/al: jake and al are currently Not Together as of skam brighton season 4 but god. i love writing their relationship so much. it’s about them meeting when al is in a manic episode and jake is deep in his depression and grief. about the nothing and the everything. it’s about the jason and peter secret gay lovers, the tony and maria falling in love on the balcony and having their first kiss at a pretend wedding, the romeo and juliet whirlwind romance that ends in tragedy. it’s about the bright orpheus al with his music and his bright life and sad, bitter jake, hating everything about himself and holding his own, but then falling in love and finding a way to build himself a new life, while al is falling down into a deep depressive episode. and then jake picks al up and gives him the tools he needs to help him step back from the ledge. and then al, who’s spent the entire season chasing after jake and the joy he gives him, turns around and walks away to better himself. and jake is okay with it, because he also needs time on his own to get better, and they agree to stay close friends, and they do!!! it’s about the gay experience of falling madly in love and then going back to be friends.

[hollywoodx4]

Our Garden

I haven’t written in a long time so I thought I’d sit and try and wow I’m sorry.

----

She’d been having nightmares again; rampant and burning, causing a turn that brought their well-loved bedsheets between her legs and flung them off the bed-nightmares that woke him up every time she began to stir beside him. Orpheus was well-practiced in the art of patience, although it wore his heart down to its most brittle state to watch her, helpless, as the sleep-dazed mutterings broke through. It was still in that half-sleep stage, the cracked version of her voice, but it didn’t project the same enamoring power as it does when she looks at him through half-opened eyes, yawning as he shifts to brush a kiss over her ear, then her nose and lips as she wakes. This version…the broken, the scratched, the harrowed helpless cries…Orpheus could only watch, shaken in these moments where his lover was in pain.

              He’d start with a gentle hand on her; her back, her shoulder, her hair, anywhere he could find and settle the gentle breath of his weight. Not enough to rest his hand, not enough to apply more than a feather-light pressure. If she didn’t kick, or writhe, then he could say her name. He’d start soft, then crescendo as her shifting stopped or quickened or changed in any way (sure, he was practiced, but Orpheus still found heart-pounding fright and immense guilt in letting her stay in this nightmare-land too long).

              There were times-most of them right after their return from Hadestown-where she wouldn’t say anything at all. “I don’t want to talk about it.” She’d say, “You’re here. I’m here. Everything else can stay in the past where it belongs.” Orpheus chose not to push her-would never dream of pulling her into the place that made her sit by the window facing the garden, eyes glazed to the world. But she’d go there often, to that place, and it worried him.

              So Orpheus sat. He’d have something to do-a song to strum, a hem to butcher (she’d fix it later, laugh her soft, songbird laugh and kiss the tip of his nose and tell him he’d done a good job trying anyway). He’d occupy himself in the space around her while she sat looking at nothing in particular, her lips drawn to a slightly hardened line.

              “I think my grandfather used to garden.”

              One morning, before the sun had come up, she’d found herself weeding the rows of seeds they had planted just as the frost had ended in the beginning days of the first spring they’d been able to prepare for. She’d climbed out of bed long before then, putting the kettle on and taking a steaming cup out to the bramble-filled yard they’d had yet to clear. The ground was sodden with dew, her boots covered in the mud of the morning. Her fingers chapped with the brisk air, and the straw hat they’d been gifted from a shop keeper in the market did nothing to keep the flyaway hairs from her face. But she’d sipped her tea, let it warm her insides, and began tending the moist soil that held the saplings of food they would have at their disposal after weeks of care.

              “I think-I remember the smell of the soil. When I’m out here, when I’m working, it just…it hits me.” She stops, sits on the stump of a small tree that winter had taken to the ground. He’s holding the mug that she’d left for him and a scarf he wraps gently around her neck and hair, protecting her wind-reddened ears. Orpheus does not speak but stands beside her, watching her eyes scan the rows of soil tilled from the barely warmed earth. Her breath comes from her in hazy waves of fog, and then she makes a noise of resolve. “You know, I’m pretty sure he was the only man in town that let a woman into his field-a girl, I mean. I was so young back then. And he taught me everything he knew, even though I wasn’t supposed to be out there. They didn’t care-my parents-I don’t even think they knew where I was half the time.”

              Her fingers trace the rim of her cup and her eyes go to that faraway place-he can almost see the transition, the way her body falls slightly and the softened alto of her voice dips into a slow, lowered tone. He sits on an empty sliver of stump-just enough for half of his body to hang on, one gangly leg kicked out to the side and an arm propped in the space behind her. There’s a pause-she’s thinking, gathering and sorting and deciding, and he waits. Then, her lips curve slightly.

              “The things he’d told me-about Persephone, about the gods…I believed in them like they were fairy tales. Everything was magical in that garden. I could go there at any time of the day and there he was, plucking away at some little weed that only he could see. And then one day, he was gone. And then the magic was gone, too. Someone from the next town over had his house, had my garden. And I had…well, I had nothing. Staying where my parents were. Stuck. I don’t think I realized how bad things were until I couldn’t escape anymore. So I left.”

              She goes to the garden a lot that spring, when Persephone finds them again and showers them with affection. When summer comes and she and Orpheus marry in their backyard, with hefty stalks of vegetables grown all around them and the oat-white lace of a long, slim gown dragging in the thick green grass. They often tend to the earth together, her smaller fingers working to pluck the weeds while he wrapped twine around the taller stalks, tethered them to old wooden rods hoping they would continue to grow to the sky. Each morning, as the sun kissed the sky, they would kiss each other over the rows and rows of their labor before setting out to start their days. At dusk they would come home, always stopping to walk among the plants. Eurydice thanked them, touched their vibrant leaves and grinned.

“I’ve still got it.” She’d whisper, and with the sun and the abundance of their crops, the faraway place seems to disappear. Eurydice laughs fully and freely. They indulge in Persephone’s ambrosia-a wedding gift they sip sparingly-and she cups his cheeks with her hands and pulls him to her to dance. In the garden in their bare feet on their wedding night, they dance under a full sky of stars with the light of candles in their window serving as an ambient glow. She thanks Persephone for her gifts, thanks her for being more than a figment of magic she’d loved once long ago. They send their regards to Hades, thank him for the chance to have this life-the chance to bring another life into this newly reformed world. Eurydice laughs as the gathering of people at the train station-their chosen family-place work-hardened hands on her stomach and bless the new little life that’s barely changed her figure. She feels new. Orpheus wakes not to her nightmares, but to her prodding him to feel the kicking and rustling in her stomach. They’re happy.

 When winter comes, she wakes to a dark sky and stumbles to the snow-covered ground, haphazardly wrapped in her old woolen jacket, and lets the snow soak into her skin as she mourns the loss of their child. She’s somewhere between where the cabbage had been; she’s sure of the ground they’d walked all summer, knows the land like the back of her hand and the body that had taken her happiness once again. He finds her this way, not much later. He hasn’t been sleeping either. They find their way back to the kitchen. He puts a kettle on the stove. They cry. She finds that faraway place again.   But this time, she lets him in.

When spring shows its first small signs of its return-the snow melts, the birds return to their chirping, the sun stays out longer-Orpheus and Eurydice sit on the stump seat that last year had created and sip their tea. They watch the steam mix with the brisk air. He kisses her head, brushes back her hair, kisses her ear. She rests her weary body on his as they count the rows of their garden, newly revealed by the sun melting its cover. They talk of what they missed-what they can plant to utilize their space. Neither moves to till the earth. Persephone comes to find them in that faraway place, Eurydice not any rounder than she left. She sits on the ground beside them and doesn’t say a word.

“We couldn’t stop it. We couldn’t change it.” Eurydice’s voice is cracked from hours without using it, the sun in full bloom through their window. They’ve lain in bed most of the day, flipping between fitful sleep and soft whispering and kisses on foreheads. Spring has come fully now, Persephone setting up residence in town, the people rejoicing upon her second return. Orpheus waits-he’s waited so long to see her return from that faraway place they’d both resided in together through the tumultuous winter. There’s a flash of something within the deepness of her eyes; resolve. Determination. He feels his heart swell with the love of a man unhinged, who has been able to do nothing else in the season that’s passed but to love his wife and feel her love in return.

“We couldn’t.”

“I used to think that these things were handed to us as an unfair gesture-that fate threw me the last end of the stick as some kind of joke. But Orpheus, life gave you to me. Fate gave us a second chance up here. All of this-our house, and our garden, and you sitting next to me and us loving each other? This is somewhere I thought I’d never be. This is the magic land.

In the spring, they tend their garden. In the summer, they hold each other and dance in the long grass. In the fall they harvest. They prepare. And in the winter, Orpheus and Eurydice build fires. They sing songs, have friends over. They laugh over bowls of hearty winter soup and kick the sheets from their bed as they love each other. And when the spring comes back around for the third time in this new schedule of life, they sit on their tree stump and smell the freshly tilled soil, talking of what’s to come.

[another-star-eyed-kid]

ice and honey - secret songbird 2019

happy holidays !! for my secret songbird i got the wonderful, amazing @dwarnian !! i love hanging out with you on the hadestown discord. you are always infinitely sweet and you always comment on my writing which makes my heart soar. to quote oli, “nothing but respect for my grandpa piss.” love you lots you wonderful human and enjoy a lil modern fluff thing of the kiddos (feat. an oc i hope you don’t mind adhjfhdbfjka)

-Kiz

—⛸—

gods he was so warm. how in hell was that even possible? it was practically thirty degrees out there. yet, here was her poet, warm as the sunlight of spring.

she pressed her face to his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his. the life of the city park was evident in all that was around them. a bike sped by them, undoubtedly almost running over a poor squirrel; a child laughed in the arms of her mother; and her orpheus was smiling at his visible breath in the cold. eurydice reveled in the presence of her lover and the modern magic of the place she called home. how did she ever manage to get so lucky?

“oh my gods, look, love!” orpheus said in a childlike tone, and pointed towards something.

she turned her head to spot a few lamp posts, decked with garlands and red bows for the holidays, all surrounding an ice rink with a few dozen people skating on it. some were unsteady on their feet, slipping and falling to the ground, but most were gliding carefully, chatting while they skated.

“i didn’t know they were setting up earlier this year.” the young man grabbed her hand and started pulling her toward the rink. “c’mon we have to go.”

the girl was left baffled for a moment. orpheus had almost tripped over his own feet trying to say hello to her, could he really skate without collapsing? and if he could, she couldn’t. after years of moving from place to place, when would she have found the time— or money— to learn to skate? gods, trying that would be so embarrassing. eurydice watched a small child of about three with a helmet stumble and fall to the ice. great, she had the skating capacity of a three year old. that was a wonderful boost to her confidence.

she stumbled out an excuse, “honey, there’s no way we can afford that right now. skates are like ten dollars, and it’s eight bucks for every hour.”

please, please, please get me out of this.

orpheus turned around and smiled. how could she ever say no to him when he was like that? “i have a solution for that love.”

his grin widened, and he squeezed her hand tighter. then, he ran towards the counter dragging his girlfriend along with him. a small giggle escaped eurydice’s lips. she couldn’t possibly believe what she was about to do for him.

when the reached the counter, a girl roughly eurydice’s age with dyed white hair and a bored expression on her face went on with a speech she had probably been saying all morning, “welcome to boreas’s ice rink, the best place for skating in all the city. do you need skates?”

“well it’s nice to see you too, khione,” the singer said.

seemingly snapped out of her uninterested daze at the sound of her name, the white-haired girl, khione, eurydice assumed, stared at orpheus for a second and let out a small laugh. “look who’s back for his yearly trip?” she laid her gaze on eurydice. “and you’ve brought yourself a girl. about damn time, music man.”

his face reddened, and he scratched the back of his neck. a bubbling of envy found its way into eurydice’s gut. she knew that she didn’t have to feel threatened by what was probably an old friend of orpheus, but that didn’t stop eurydice from reacting her tiptoes and planting a quick kiss on his cheek.

“man, a mighty good one too. mind introducing me, lover boy?”

he let out a nervous laugh and gestured towards his lover. “khione, this is eurydice, my girlfriend. eurydice, this is khione, a childhood friend of mine.”

they reached out to shake each other’s hands and exchanged small greetings.

“hermes used to take him here once a week when we opened for the winter. where is the old geezer anyway?”

“he insisted on keeping the bar open today while we went out.”

“pfft, sounds like him.”

“HEY CAN YOU TWO HURRY UP WE’RE WAITIN’ OVER HERE!”

khione simply rolled her eyes and yelled out at someone else to take over for a bit. she then gestured for the two to come around the little booth and follow her. “dad is teaching a class right now until noon, but i’m sure he will be thrilled to see you when he’s finished.” she handed asked them both for their sizes and handed them the according skates. “you two are on the house. family-friend discount for this idiot.”

“thank you so much, khione. it was awesome to see you again. we should really catch up some other time!” orpheus said, his gleaming white smile an apparent contrast against his frozen red face.

more jealousy at their friendliness infected eurydice. that was her poet, damnit. but she quickly distracted herself by examining the skates in her hand. they were a bright white with a shining silver blade on the bottom. the grayish laces crept up it until they came together in a neat, tidy knot. c’mon she could do this. it’s just walking on ice. it couldn’t be too hard...right?

“speaking of lunch, eurydice,” the sound of her name threw her out of her daze. khione continued to address her, “you are so pretty. i don’t even know how this bumbling idiot-” orpheus’s eyes met the floor “-managed to score someone like you. anyway, this is all to say...do you possibly have a friend of yours you could set me up with...like...a girl friend?”

oh. well, that made things a lot easier.

“oh, uh, yeah! probably. i can give you her number after we finish up. you are absolutely gorgeous also. if it weren’t for my favorite bumbling idiot-” orpheus eyes grew even wider as he continued his staring contest with the floor. “-i would probably end up sweeping you off your feet.”

orpheus piped up, “she-she could definitely do that. she’s done that to me before.”

eurydice let out a small laugh and continued talking, “we will definitely take you up on that lunch thing.”

the white-haired girl smiled at both of them, said a quick goodbye and went back to the ticket booth.

orpheus gripped her hand and started running towards the little seating area where people were putting on their skates. despite the existential dread, seeing her lover so excited for something he used to do in his youth put a smile on eurydice’s face.

“come on ‘rydice. we gotta get on the ice before it’s too crowded.”

they shoved on their skates and wobbled their way to the entrance of the rink. the young girl made sure to never let go of her lover’s hand the entire way there. she wasn’t even on the ice, and she already hated this.

without a trace of thought, orpheus jumped on the ice, letting go of eurydice’s hand in the process, and seemed to glide around like he was flying. for a man who could barely walk without tripping, he was really good at skating. orpheus spun around to look at eurydice, who had the first half of her foot on the ice and her hand gripping the railing so hard, it was turning white. she couldn’t possibly believe she did this with minimal objection.

“isn’t it just a perfect day to skate? the sun- oh, uh, i-i probably should’ve asked if you knew how to skate first, huh?” the young man said with a hand scratching the back of his neck.

“you think?” she retorted, sarcasm blazing. she attempted to put her whole foot on the ice before quickly retracting it again.

nope nope nope nope nope nope nope

“here-” he outstretched his hands “-you can hold onto me until you get the hang of it.”

the young girl ignored his hands and went straight to his upper arms and held on like her life depended on it. which, in fairness, it felt like it did.

after a generous amount of coaxing from orpheus, eurydice managed to put both of her feet on the ice. she stood there, unmoving. orpheus started to skate backwards and, in turn, dragged eurydice along with him. this seemed simple, if he could do it, so could she. it was just walking on ice. she lifted her right foot and started to place it down again. however, the front of the blade got wedged into the ice, and she stumbled, her grip of orpheus getting tighter as she attempted to steady herself again.

orpheus simply smiled apologetically and continued to skate backwards as she kept her feet firmly planted on the floor.

show-off.

they continued like that for another ten minutes or so, eurydice occasionally trying to lift her foot and stumbling again, until the young man’s face seemed to light up. the girl knew that look. she had seen it multiple times whenever he was scribbling songs into his notebook: he had some sort of ingenious idea.

“so, poet, you going to tell me why you got that look on your face or am i gonna have to give you a penny for your thoughts?”

“you know how we dance in the living room sometimes when i sing?” he asked, continuing to round the corner backwards.

“of course.”

“it’s just like that. i’m gonna sing and you just move your feet to the beat.”

she let out a soundless laugh. leave it to her lover to figure out a problem with music and a loving smile. “okay.”

a melody the young girl knew very well escaped orpheus’s lips. his voice was like honey: sweet, smooth, and leaving you wanting more. it ebbed and flowed and overcame her. despite the bitter temperature, eurydice felt a warmth move through her body. the feeling alone was intoxicating, but being there, with orpheus, she felt spring in the ice. la la la la la la la.

picked up her feet and placed them down again to the rhythm of his song in dance-like movements. one foot in front of the other gliding across the floor. what magic her lover could create. it all seemed easy with orpheus. so natural. like all she had been doing throughout her life was this. la la la la la la la.

they continued like this for a while, her grip becoming lax and their movements like children dancing under the glittering of the sun. he continued to sing. slowly, orpheus turned around to face forward, and eurydice’s hand moved from his forearm to a careful grasp of his hand. la la la la la la la.

“see, that wasn’t too hard was it.”

the sudden switch from singing to speaking caught her off-guard, and she quickly felt herself stumbling and reaching for orpheus. this time, however, he was not in front of her, but beside her. the young man, seemingly refusing to let go of their intertwined hands, faltered as well. and together, they fell towards the floor, orpheus the first to make contact with the ice. eurydice followed soon after, although, she had her lover to break some of the fall. carefully pushing herself onto her hands, she examined his tomato of a face. she had him pinned.

“i don’t know, might need a bit more practice,” she said, the breath from her voice visible in the cold.

eurydice reached down and met his mouth with a fiery kiss. his singing wasn’t the only thing about orpheus’s lips that was sickeningly sweet.

[botls]

seeing hadestown 9/29/19 - part one

under the cut is my take on act one of hadestown after seeing it. i didnt really do a play by play of what’s happening in every scene so this is kind of assuming that you have some previous knowledge of the show and focuses on on the cast and the little things they were doing. part 2 here. meeting the cast. meeting tlt cast. if you have more questions or are curious about anything else PLEASE come and ask me in my inbox or messages i could talk about this show for the rest of my life

road to hell:

andre came out and it was AMAZING he held the last note of road to hell for what felt like eight years and it was incredible and for the entire time eurydice and orpheus were STARING at each other with the most perfect awestruck looks on their faces and it was such an incredible shot i was like 🤧 already

during the music part eurydice and the fates all mimicked drumming against the drum box thing at the same time it was Cute

any way the wind blows:

when eurydice lit her candle and the third fate blew it out she whipped her head around to look at the fate who just kind of shook her head innocently like “it wasn’t me” and when eurydice turned back around to light it again she just smiled and shook her head at the crowd like “don’t blame me”

this happens a few times but for the first time at the beginning of this song the fates walk towards orpheus aggressively and he gets so scared and runs back and ouch the metaphor for him being afraid of his fate......no thank you

come home with me:

come home with me was so fucking cute reeve was ADORABLE

this entire song was Fantastic for like half of it orpheus and eurydice are sitting together on the table and orpheus’ little paper flower is so genuinely awful it’s kind of sad ajhsgsvska but it was cute they showed him working very hard on it over on the side of the stage

when eurydice says “oooh he’s crazy” it leaned MUCH more heavily on the side of “i get it now this man is legally insane why are we letting him walk around amongst us” with a much longer pause that included an intense stare between eurydice and hermes that made it even funnier than the obcr

the oh a liar and a player too line genuinely caused me to ascend its better in person than you could ever imagine genuinely out of this world and orpheus sounded SO nervous when he rushed out “ohnoimnotlikethat”

wedding song:

every time reeve or eva sang the word “trees” they like thrusted their hands up violently and so did the ensemble and it was so cute and funny and the part where the table comes up behind eva was so funny and different from london it was just kind of pushed up behind her and it seemed to startle eurydice and as she leaned back she just kind of had this “whatever i’ll go with it” face on but she was Alarmed lmao

eurydice was pushed by so many tables in this song omfg

i wanted to voice record it so bad but i kept forgetting bc i didn’t want to miss A Single Thing but this was the first song where i was really really like “i wish i had recorded this” eva’s voice was chefs kiss mwah and at one part where she sang table her voice was like. palpable and she was like rubbing her hands all over a table it was heavenly

after orpheus gives her the flower in this song she legitimately doesn’t let go of it for almost the entire first act like id always assumed that she put it in her hair or her pocket but she seriously clutches it like a lifeline for a significant part of the first act it was 🥺

epic 1:

it was so stunning nobody ever warned me that wedding song ended with orpheus on his knees and hermes was like interrogating orpheus about his song while orpheus was like holding on to eurydice to not fall bc he was awkwardly balanced and i honestly think that was just reeve and eva being reeve and eva and not being orphydice and it was so cute

the whole company follows orpheus with this song like wherever he walks or turns the whole company is turned towards him paying Attention

livin it up on top:

when persephone comes down with her bouquet of flowers she tosses them over her shoulder and timothy caught them and he looked so happy he spun around in one foot and smiled so wide at the audience before setting them down on the side it was precious

at the beginning of livin it up on top persephone gives eurydice her flask and eurydice smiles really wide and nods at persephone but when persephone turns around she just looks stressed like “wtf should i do with this now”

eurydice gets up and goes right to the side of persephone while persephone is singing and she looks like she’s waiting for something and you kind of assume that it’s to give back persephone’s flask but when persephone finally turns to her at the end of the verse eurydice rushes forward with the biggest smile and presents persephone with orpheus’ flower and persephone smiles so wide and takes it from her and puts it in her hair and it’s the first time eurydice doesn’t have the flower in her hand since she first got it and it’s such a tender and precious moment

right after putting the flower in her hair persephone put her arm around eurydice and when persephone said “some may say the weather ain’t the way it used to be” she turned to face eurydice and gave her a Pointed Look and eurydice literally turned to the audience and made this 😬 exact face i was peeing

when persephone was leaving the balcony she hugged hades from behind and kissed him on his cheek and then as she was leaving he sort of lifted his hand in a mini wave and she gave him the MOST disgusted look ever and waved her hand in what i can only describe as a “fuck off and go to hell” gesture

during orpheus’ toast everyone is pretty much on the platform aside from eurydice who is right in the middle of the stage beaming at him

at one part timothy picks up eva and literally like. throws her i was like eva is flying high rn omfg he literally made it look like she weighed nothing she probably doesn’t but like.

i was wow she does this in real life at one part and i felt so blessed to witness it

all i’ve ever known:

during the intro they are staring at each other and persephone walks to each of them and puts a comforting hand on them like a mom it was Soft

the all i’ve ever known choreo was softer in person than you would ever imagine

the part where eurydice is leaning back and it looks like orpheus is holding her? that we’ve all been talking about lately? this part? they actually start on opposite sides of the stage and eurydice starts to do The Lean and orpheus halls ass and RUNS to catch her before she falls it’s so cute

the whole time for eurydice’s verse orpheus keeps trying to hold her but she keeps him at arms distance and steps back every time she says “alone” or “lonely” but when she moves into the “but now i wanna told you part” she holds him SO tight she was like first grabbing his nonexistent boobs so hard that he was backing up then his suspenders then clutching his arms and finally his hands

during eurydice’s parts the background stage lighting is a soft purpley/pink and for orpheus’ it’s a vibrant blue and then when they sing together it’s a beautiful mix of both

the just music choreo part was magical eva did the lift kick and it was majestic in person she is a Wonder

after when they’re laying down you see them holding hands and the way she sits up literally?? looks like they’re laying in bed having the conversation it’s ?? captivating strangely

after eurydice sits up orpheus comes up to hug her from behind and there is this lovely gif set from it and she holds him so tight and it really is one of the softest parts of the whole show my heart was beating triple speed because eurydice really seems on the verge of tears and orpheus just HOLDS her

way down hadestown:

they are The Most Couple couple ever first of all. after all i’ve ever known they make out for like eight years i was like????? reeva needs to calm down

persephone’s dance was just as amazing in person as you’d imagine

her dress is SO vibrant in person like. the coloring in this show is so fantastic with eurydice and hades wearing the same color and persephone standing out with her green and orpheus’ clothes are more white than the ensemble’s so it stands out wonderfully

eurydice and orpheus got interrupted while making out by being scared to death by persephone yelling at them about hadestown it was so funny

eurydice goes to dance on the platform and she tries to get orpheus to come with her but he’s reluctant so she just pats his stool instead so he sits and she dances in front of him/talks to him/touches his arms and hair it’s adorable

during the pregnant pause when orpheus did his little move in front of eurydice thing he LEPT like a gazelle and landed on one foot that made such a SOUND everyone laughed

orphydice are standing at the front at the end when everyone is saying “way doooooown” and eurydice is staring at hades and persephone descending and orpheus has his arms around her from behind and when he sees her staring he looks at the audience with a scared look on his face

a gathering storm:

when she says “did you hear me” it’s really upbeat but when she turns around and he’s already gone to work she says “orpheus...?” really sad and dejectedly

after she says “okay finish it” she climbs up to the platform and wraps her arm around him and fucking KISSES HIS SHOULDER before leaving stage i was ??🥺?!🤧?💗?!?!????🥺

epic 2:

it’s really cool - a good set up to chant with orpheus’ song finally coming together and the workers in the background really Make the scene

chant 1:

i was not ready for this

you think you understand how good the lighting in the show is but you don’t until you see chant live don’t even get me started

during hades/persephone’s opening part the entire back wall is a orange/yellow and then for orpheus’ next part they turn their backs to the audience and the back lights turn blue and for all eurydice’s parts they’re the purple/pick like from all i’ve ever known again

when eurydice asks “is it finished” her and hermes are walking behind orpheus in that order and then she turns around to ask “is he always like this” and hermes just lifts up his arms to gesture and nod towards orpheus who has already made his way back to his stool and is writing and then it’s eurydice’s verse and she disappears off to the side again after

when hermes says “orpheus? orpheus?” i had always imagined him trying to get orpheus’ attention but in actuality he’s trying to find him - for the first “orpheus?” he’s looking in the opposite direction off stage and then for the second one he’s looking up and then orpheus catches his eye and he turns to him and starts walking while shaking his head to say “poor boy working on a song” and it seems like he’s going to try and warn/help orpheus but then he seems to cave in after saying “look up” and he decides to just walk away like he’s giving up on stopping orpheus

which - if you go by the “hermes remembers the loop” theory can be read as he knows there isn’t any point to trying to stop him but he has to give it at least a shot

eurydice fights HARD for her bag and jacket it takes like three tries for the fates to take it out of her grip and it’s just as heartbreaking as you think to watch her fall i cried

for the rest of the song eurydice tries so hard to keep walking but she’s clearly freezing and keeps falling and she looks like she’s one of the workers at some parts

hey little songbird:

during this song eurydice is SO SAD the second that hades starts shitting on orpheus and saying he’s a penniless poet she turns to the audience with pouty lips and eyes and they don’t leave for the rest of the song it was Sad

for the beginning of the song she’s just more wary but curious but after that she genuinely just looks heartbroken it was soooooo heart wrenching

i think eva actually was crying too during this song and it was hard to tell at first but she was def crying by gone

at the beginning the three fates seem to be talking amongst themselves but at the first three isolated notes they turn to watch eurydice

when she says “weren’t we birds of a feather” she holds the flower out in front of her and looks at her really sadly

hades nods to the fates during “vipers and vultures” and at the piano group of three notes at the end in the higher key right after he says “they’ll pick you clean“ they smile and wave all innocently it’s so funny

when the chips are down:

the fates choreo was FANTASTICCC i cant even explain they were on fireeeee

when they’re trying to convince eurydice she has her hands squeezed against her ears and falls to the ground at one point

i forget exactly what song it was (i think this one but like i said it’s kind of unclear) but at one point eva dropped the flower and i have no clue if it was purposeful or accidental (i was leaning towards accidental) but she snatched it up so quick and gave a dirty look to the fates like warning them to stay away from it

when eurydice says “oh my aching heart” she looks forward at the audience but clutches the flower to her heart

gone i’m gone:

everyone jumped at the train whistles lmao they were LOUD tho

right after eurydice gives her tickets she puts her hands over her mouth like she can’t believe it and they stay there as she goes down

at this point i forget when exactly it happened but the flower had been out of her hair and she was back to holding it

when eurydice was disappearing after she left and the stage was dark hermes fucking picks up the candle he took from her in the beginnning and BLOWS IT OUT ????? FUCKING NOOO

wait for me:

the intro was sooooo sad the flower stood out so well against the ground

after hermes asks if orpheus has a ticket instead of sounding dejected like in the soundtrack orpheus sounds more affronted like “wha-no?!”

hermes picks up the flower and holds it over orpheus’ heart while he says “if you got the heart” and orpheus takes it and holds it for the rest of the time - mimicking eurydice clutching it for the entire beginning

i was seriously concerned about the lamps hitting his head. i don’t know how it doesn’t happen more often and honestly i totally understand that time it did bc i was like ??? how is he avoiding all these giant swinging lamps rn like he was ducking under them diving out of the way lmao well done reeve

during wait for me at one part the stage isn’t rotating so reeve is just running furiously in place and it’s so fucking funny like. he literally looks like a stressed cartoon character or something

the stage was splitting into three to represent his descent into hadestown during it and the fates were each on a part with their lanterns and looking around alarmed at each other like “wtf is happening. how is he doing this. mom come pick me up i’m scared”

why we build the wall:

even more powerful live. it was my favorite song for a long time and it didn’t disappoint

at the beginning when hades and persephone enter the stage from opposite sides persephone is walking a lot faster like “let’s get this over with” vibes and hades is walking more slow and purposefully

eurydice doesn’t join in until the very end when she turns to the front and puts her hand up like everyone else and sings the last line of the song

hermes and persephone look like they would rather be doing anything else in the world than singing this song rip

when eurydice is about to go up to sign the papers she makes eye contact with persephone who gives her a Look and eurydice just slightly raises her arms in like a “calm down” gesture lmao it was kind of funny but then persephone sadly turns away and shakes her head so it got real sad real quick

during intermission i was the very last row of the orchestra so there was a lot of commotion behind me and i heard someone ask “where’s the women’s room” and a random guy points to the line and says “follow the road to hell” i was cackling

[kenzierose53]

Promises (xx)

A week has gone by since I have returned. A week in my poet's arms. A week alive again. This week has been one of the happiest of my life. Orpheus refuses to leave my side, always keeping me in arms reach. Hermes thankfully gave him the week off, allowing us time together. Every night our little family has dinner together downstairs. These are some of the moments that I enjoy the most.

Every day I am slowly getting to who I am. I am getting a better grip on my anxieties, knowing how to distinguish reality from my thoughts. It's been a tough process I will not lie but I have the aid of my love to help me get through it. I was really wanting to get back to work soon.

Work was something I enjoyed doing. When I was working, it gave me the chance to meet this beautiful community and distract me from my negative thoughts. It also helps that I was getting paid to hang out with Orpheus when things were slow. I should talk to Hermes about getting me back to work.

I was also itching to see my friends again. Over this week I have been adjusting to life here and I finally feel ready to see everyone. The late nights spent dancing, drinking and spending time with the people I have gotten close to come to mind. This community made me feel loved and accepted by everyone and I was ready to see everyone again.

Arms wrapped around my waist pulling me into a chest. Instantly I relaxed into him when I caught his scent. A smile came to my face and he swayed us side to side. "Someone is in a good mood," I giggled out.

He leaned down kissing the top of my head. His lips then trailed down the side of my face until he reached my neck. My face instantly lit up like a tomato, I wasn't used to him being so forward. He spun me in his arms trailing his kisses back up my face. His assault was ended with a tender kiss on the lips. "I have the love of my life in my arms again, of course, I am in a good mood," he mumbled against my lips.

I lightly tapped his chest giggling again. He has been much more forward with affection since I have returned, almost like he is trying to make up for the year we missed. "I love you," this time I kissed him.

He hummed against my lips, pulling me flush against him. With each passing second, the kiss got more passionate. The knocking on the door caused us to pull away groaning. I couldn't help the laugh that escaped when I saw his disheveled state. His eyes were wide, hair sticking up in all directions, shirt wrinkled, cheeks flushed. I helped straighten him up before sending him towards the door.

Persephone stood on the other side of the door with a knowing smile. "I didn't interrupt anything, did I?" she said in a teasing tone. Orpheus' face flushed red at the thought of her knowing. He opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of water thinking of a response. "Oh calm down boy I am just teasing," her laughter was infectious.

I couldn't help but join in on the laughter causing Orpheus to shake his head at me. Persephone rested a hand on his shoulder, causing him to jump slightly. "Loosen up poet, how are we going to party tonight if you don't' relax?"

At this, his face heated up again. "Party?" I don't remember hearing about any party? Party for who? Was he going without me or was I just not invited? "What is she talking about?"

"She doesn't know?" she sounded surprised. Clearly, I am missing something. I just shook my head looking at the two, Persephone with a smile on her face and Orpheus looking panicked. She turned to him, a sigh falling from her mouth, a disapproving look on her face.

Quickly Orpheus shot his head back and forth between us. What is going on? "I wanted it to be a surprise," he finally said sadly. Persephone quickly apologized before excusing herself. I found my way over to the poet who had a nervous look on his face.

"How about I pretend that I didn't hear anything and you can tell me what you wanted to?" I tried to cheer him up. From the look on his face when he admitted that he wanted it to be a surprise hurt my heart a bit. I can tell that whatever this party is was something he was really excited to share with me.

His eyes lit up at that, a smile gracing his beautiful face. Taking me by the hand he drug me to the couch giggling. I haven't seen him this excited in a long time, it warmed my heart to see him so happy. "So you know how you said that you miss all your friends and everyone?" his tone was a little nervous but mainly excited. I just nodded my head at him, hoping he would continue. "I wanted to do something special for you so I have been working with Hermes and Persephone and we decided to throw you a party. A welcome home party of sorts."

My heart warmed at his words. He knew what I wanted and he went out of his way to make sure that I could have it. I gripped his face, connecting our lips again. His smile could be felt on my lips causing me to stop. Pulling back I admired his beautiful smile, it was something I could stare at all day.

The sound of music pulled me from my spot on the couch. I had nearly made it to the door when I felt a hand grip my wrist, "Where are you going?"

"We have a party to get to," the smile on his face grew wider at this. I gave him one last peck before pulling him with me towards the stairs. Our laughter filled the empty corridor, getting drowned out by the music the closer we got to the stairs.

The crowd silenced when they saw us on the stairs, all eyes on us. All of my friends were below me with shocked and happy expressions on their faces, a few with tears in their eyes even. "Well, well, well about time you came down," Hermes rich voice flowed through the quiet room.

I leaned into Orpheus, taking in the whole scene ahead of me. "Well I was just informed of said party," my body shook slightly from Orpheus' laugher. The crowd was still silent; I wasn't sure if I was supposed to continue. "Um...thank you everyone for coming," I started unsure of what to say. Orpheus rubbed his hand on my lower back soothing me, "It's so nice to see everyone again. Let's take tonight to dance, drink, and catch up!"

Finally, the crowd broke the silence. Cheers from my friends filled the bar before the music took over. Orpheus led me through the crowd towards the bar where Hermes was. A drink was instantly placed in front of me before I could ask for anything. "Welcome home dear. Drinks on the house tonight," his tone told me there was no arguing with him.

The lively tone of the music was begging me to get out there and dance but I could already see my friend approaching me. I was greeted with hugs and tears and questions on how I was even here. You never realize how much you miss someone until they are gone.

Orpheus was silent as I caught up with them all, his arms around my waist. A few of them went to grab drinks or go dance, the crowd slowly breaking up. Soon they had all told me that they would see me soon and left me with my poet. I looked up at him with the biggest smile, which he returned. "I love you," I shouted over the music.

"I love you," he shouted back before leaning down and kissing me. Sure, before I went to Hadestown we would share quick embarrasses but he never kissed me in public before. This new forward Orpheus is quite intriguing, I love it.


When he pulled back I unwrapped myself from his arms pulling him towards where everyone was dancing. He shook his head at me slightly with wide eyes. Dancing was never something he was super comfortable doing but I wanted to dance. I know that I could have left him over at the bar but I know he was anxious to leave me out of his sight since I have come back.

The crowd parted for us, making the track to the dance floor easy. When we got there I instantly started to dance, the music moving me. Dancing has always been something I have enjoyed. The feeling of freedom I get when dancing is intoxicating.

Orpheus stood awkwardly at the behind me while I moved. When I faced him I expected to see him uncomfortable but I was surprised by what I saw. He was looking at me with such intensity I thought I was gonna pass out. The love and amazement in his eyes were enough to knock the wind out of me. He looked at me as if I was the most amazing thing in the world.

A fire ignited inside of me. No one has ever looked at me even close to this, it was like a drug. I wanted nothing more than to capture this moment in my memory forever. Slowly his body started to move in tune with the music slightly. He stilled moved so awkwardly but he looked much less tense than normal. He looked like he was having fun.

He rested his hands on my hips as we continued to move. Slowly he was becoming more and more relaxed as we moved. The bliss that I felt at this moment was unexplainable. It felt like the world was right and it always has been. All my worries melted away, being here with Orpheus was the only thing that I needed. I am going to hold onto this moment forever.

"Can I have everyone's attention please," Persephone's voice rang out, silencing the bar instantly, everyone turned towards her. "We are here tonight to celebrate the return of our dear Eurydice," the people around us cheered, a smile was brought to my face. "And while we are beyond glad she has returned, I want to thank her as well," she locked gazes with me.

Thank me? "My dear there are many things I can thank to thank you for. You bring so much light to our community, to our family," Orpheus pulled me close to him at this. "You've done so much for Orpheus, for Hermes, for me," she paused sending me a smile. "While Orpheus got my husband and me back together you got me to see to cherish every moment. You taught me to hang onto every ounce of happiness, every memory and never give up on the ones we love. I thank you for bringing light to our world and happiness to my heart. To Eurydice!"

Everyone raised their glasses cheering. A tear came to my eye at this, the feeling of being wanted was overwhelming. Growing up I didn't have anyone who wanted me and now I have an entire community who wanted me here.