#thanks for the support grandpa it means a lot

[hylianane]

I have an opinion about Holly Kujo and I’m a little scared cause I dont know the Jojo fandom enough to come in with what I think is a hot take.

I’ve noticed that, in fanworks, a lot of people portray Holly as tougher than she is in the show. And it makes sense, cause the idea of her being so weak-willed that she couldn’t handle a stand when even baby Shizuka could manifest one is kinda bs and a testament to Araki not being very confident with writing women at the time (thank GOD he got better though, so, so much better).

But. What always gets me is when her relationship with Jotaro is written to be a little more standard, still loving but with the child having a healthy fear of their mom’s anger- unlike what we see in Stardust, with him constantly being a brat, calling her “bitch” and her shrugging it off with an “Okay!”. And also him getting himself thrown into jail while she still can’t bring herself to get mad, just upset. And that’s a very fun play on them too, but I just worry that people who default to this dynamic for Jojo and Holly might not see how the canon characterization of their relationship is interesting in its own right.

Because even tho Holly being a doormat is a creative choice born from Araki pussying out of giving her a stand, it doesn’t change the fact that once he made that choice he gave it great importance. I think the fact that Holly’s idea of supporting her son is just accepting everything he does without any anger, is central to their relationship. It’s how, despite having a mother who loves him unconditionally, Jotaro is still a very troubled teen and emotionally withdrawn. Though it’s easy to blame it on Sadao’s implied absence, or troubles in school, we don’t have a lot of textual evidence for that.

But kids who are raised without at least some semblance of discipline and structure typically stop seeing their parents as authorities, and most importantly, protectors. A more textually-backed explanation for why Jotaro is always acting tough and independent is because he doesn’t have any adults in his life who he would trust to help him. He loves his mom, he traveled the world to save her life, but while doing that he saw himself as her protector, not the other way around, not the way it typically should be.

Think about, for example, how the adult he mouths off to the least in his life is probably Avdol. And I think part of that is because Avdol walked into that police station, took one look at Jotaro, and instantly clocked everything I just said. Because while Holly and Joseph tried to to get him out with simple words (and for Holly, tears), Avdol was there to force him out. And at first Jotaro says, “If he tries to force me out, I’ll just stay here even longer”, but Avdol doesn’t give him choice. And he doesn’t win by overpowering him (if he had, I dont think he’d have gotten the same positive result, I am not pro setting troubled teens on fucking fire) but he outsmarts Jotaro and doesn’t quit the fight until his goal is achieved. He stays in control of his emotions when talking to him, and proves himself to be someone strong and assertive. So later, on the trip to Cairo, Jotaro is more willing to rely on him than he is to rely on his own grandpa. (+, it’s a similar thing with Kakyoin, who he trusts almost more than anyone else, because he saw Kakyoin’s will and power first-hand when they met, and left with the lesson that Kak is someone he can rely on to protect of both himself and Jotaro. Someone with strong convictions, but most importantly, willing and capable of clashing with Jotaro if necessary.)

All this to fucking say. In a world in which Jotaro was raised to fear his parent’s reprimands (and I don’t mean fear to an unhealthy amount, an abusive amount), he would act very differently than he does in the show, and his relationships to other characters would probably look very different. Holly’s personality and parenting might seem like it was an afterthought to Araki, but I think he truly did take great care in making it consistent with her son’s character. She is a very loving mom, who is very loved in return, but what I think a lot of people perceive as a flaw in her writing is actually just a flaw in her character, with narrative weight and interesting consequences. And I’m not sure how many people are really aware of that.

[basketobread]

shout out to my first playthrough with lotus where they killed everyone and made no allies so only withers showed up to the end of the world ceremony

[anonymousewrites]

A Not-So-Disastrous Romance (Book 1) Chapter Twenty-Four

Kusuo Saiki x Reader

Chapter Twenty-Four: Celebrations

Summary: (Y/N) meets Saiki's grandfather, and his friends celebrate his birthday.

Mouse Note: Thank you so much for everyone's support on this series, it means the world to me. Don't worry, the story isn't over, we'll return to Saiki and MC soon, but first I'm going to have an AOS! Logos and Pathos book and then a One Hell of a Love book and maybe some other things going on. I hope you guys enjoyed, I was super surprised by the support of this book, but it was so wonderful, and I hope you guys like this end

            (Y/N) walked through the shopping center, humming along to the song playing in their earbuds. They had gotten all the ingredients and supplies to try making macarons, so now all that was left was to go home and make them.

            Should I bring them to school and hand them out to people? thought (Y/N). In that case, I should get some bags to put them in.

            They paused as they passed a sad-looking man sitting dejectedly on a bench. “Excuse me, sir, are you lost?” they asked, stepping forward.

            “Huh?” The grey-haired man looked up. “What do you want?” he said grumpily.

            “I was wondering if I could help you at all,” said (Y/N), still friendly. They were used to people being rougher around the edges—Saiki was like that.

            “I don’t need any help. Leave me alone,” huffed the man.

            In a store nearby, Saiki was struck by a sudden feeling—something was going on with his grandfather. While his mother watched his grandmother try on teenager’s clothing, Saiki slipped out to check on his grandfather. He rounded a corner to look at where Grandpa Saiki had been left to fend for himself. Saiki nearly groaned. (Y/N) was speaking to him. Somehow, his family—weird as they were—kept meeting (Y/N). (Yes, his parents both liked (Y/N), but this was his tsundere grandfather. He couldn’t let (Y/N) get scared off by Grandpa Saiki’s outward rudeness). Saiki needed to intervene before Grandpa Saiki hurt (Y/N)’s feelings.

            “Well, sir, you look lost, and I don’t want to leave you to fend for yourself. Are you positive you’re alright?” asked (Y/N), smiling. “I know Shibuya can be a bit confusing sometimes. I got lost the first few times I visited.”

            Grandpa Saiki stared at (Y/N), still so friendly despite him being rude. “…I’m just waiting for my family. They went in without me.”

            “That’s too bad,” said (Y/N).

            “I fought with my grandson,” admitted Grandpa Saiki.

            Saiki stared in shock. (Y/N) had easily gotten along with Grandpa Saiki. It seemed everyone they met liked (Y/N) (or almost all). Not that Saiki could blame anyone. He liked them for a reason (innumerable reasons, actually).

            “That’s too bad,” said (Y/N), sitting down next to Grandpa Saiki.

            “He’s seventeen years old, and he’s my adorable grandson,” said Grandpa Saiki sadly.

            “You seem to care about him a lot,” said (Y/N).

            “But we fought, and now he doesn’t like me,” said Grandpa Saiki.

            “I’m sure he still cares about you,” said (Y/N) encouragingly. “Families have little quarrels all the time. You just have to make it up to him so that he knows you’re sorry about it all.”

            “But how?” said Grandpa Saiki.

            “A gift is always appreciated,” said (Y/N). “And if you want, I could help you pick something out. Your grandson and I are the same age, so maybe we have similar interests.”

            Saiki watched all of this unfold, dumbfounded. Grandpa Saiki was never so reasonable, and somehow, (Y/N) was handling him like any other person—easily, kindly. Curious, Saiki followed (Y/N) and Grandpa Saiki as they walked into a store.

            “What does your grandson like?” asked (Y/N). “Clothes, accessories, games, sweets?”

            “I’m not sure,” said Grandpa Saiki. “I know that he wears barrettes and glasses with all of his outfits and that he likes when my wife bakes.”

            (Y/N) chuckled. “He sounds like my friend. He really likes sweets and has glasses.”

            You’re so observant and yet so oblivious, thought Saiki fondly.

            (Y/N) led Grandpa Saiki to the grocery aisle of the store to show him the options for sweets. “There are brownies, cupcakes, coffee jellies, candy, all sorts of things. What do you think?”

            “Hm…I’m not sure,” said Grandpa Saiki. “What does your friend like?”

            (Y/N) laughed. “Well, my friend is really unique and has an obsession with coffee jelly. But I don’t know if every teenager has the same tastes as Kusuo.”

            Grandpa Saiki perked up. “Kusuo? As in Kusuo Saiki?”

            “Yeah,” said (Y/N), nodding.

            “That’s my grandson,” said Grandpa Saiki. I met one of my beloved grandson’s friends!

            “Really?” (Y/N) laughed. “What a coincidence! I’m his friend, (Y/N) (L/N).”

            “It’s nice to meet any of my grandson’s friends,” said Grandpa Saiki.

            You’re only saying that because you met (Y/N). They’re the best of my friends, thought Saiki. They’re the one he loved.

            “It’s a pleasure to meet his family,” said (Y/N), bowing politely. They grinned. “And now you know exactly what to get him!” They nodded to the coffee jelly. “Get him some coffee jelly and he’ll forgive you for anything.”

            “Thank you,” said Grandpa Saiki, picking up a package. “You’ve been a great help,” he said as they headed towards the counter to pay.

            “Of course,” said (Y/N). “Tell Kusuo I say, ‘hi!’ ” They bowed. “And, again, it was nice meeting you.” With a final wave, they headed off.

            Saiki watched his grandfather pay for the package and walked out. Somehow, this situation had turned in Saiki’s favor.

            When (Y/N) is involved, everything gets better.

            That night, as he ate his grandfather’s apology, he smiled and thought of (Y/N)’s kindness.

l

            Saiki sighed as he got up to leave class. Everyone had been bothering him today. Even minor characters like Amp and Kusuke had made an appearance. The cameos were off the charts, and Saiki knew that meant trouble, so he wanted to escape.

            Additionally, though, people had been acting strangely around him. His friends (bothers) weren’t hanging around quite as closely as normal and avoiding being around him. Ordinarily, that would be a good thing, but…

            “Hey, pal, let’s go home together. The runt says we should talk about tomorrow,” said Nendou.

            “Wha—?!” Kuboyasu stared at Nendou in alarm.

            “You idiot!” said Kaidou. “What are you doing?! That’s not what we planned.”

            “Huh? But it’s my pal’s—”

            “Shut up! Let’s go,” said Kaidou, dragging Nendou towards the door.

            “Come on, you guys,” said (Y/N), ushering them away. “Bye, Kusuo! See you tomorrow!”

            Saiki sighed. With his telepathy, he knew exactly what was going on, and despite his current respite from their bothersome schemes, it was just going to come around and become an even bigger problem for him in the long run.

Yare yare.

l

            “Nendou made me nervous,” said Kaidou as he looked out the window with the group by his side.

            “He almost ruined our plan,” said Hairo, shaking his head.

            “You almost ruined it, too, Chiyo,” warned Teruhashi.

            “I let my guard down. I’ll be more careful,” said Yumehara.

            “So where’s Nendou?” asked Kuboyasu.

            “I sent him home. With his brain, he can’t keep up with this plan,” said Kaidou.

            “That’s for the best,” said Hairo.

            “We’ve been preparing this for a week,” said Kaidou gravely. “We can’t afford to fail.” He unraveled the plans. The top read “Operation: Surprise Birthday Party for Kusuo Saiki.” “We can’t afford to fail. Now, let’s start the strategy meeting…for Operation Surprise Saiki, which is taking place tomorrow!”

            (Y/N) shook their head and chuckled. They had tried to intercede, but at this point, they were going to let the plan go through. They’re all put too much work into it.

            “Tomorrow, after school, Aren and I will lure Saiki to the location of the party, which is my house,” said Kaidou. “We won’t talk about his birthday at all. When we get to my house, I’ll go get something to drink, Aren will take him to the room. When the time seems right, Aren will set off a cracker. That’ll be the signal to say, ‘Happy Birthday!’ Then, I’ll bring out the birthday cake, and the surprise will be a big success. I wonder what the look on his face will be…”

            Poor Kusuo. (Y/N) smiled to themself. Hopefully he’ll remember they all have good intentions. I mean, even if his birthday is actually in August…

            Outside the door, Saiki sighed as everyone went on and on about their excitement and the gifts they prepared. At this point, he couldn’t tell them they had the wrong day. Not when Kaidou read aloud his proclamation of friendship. Not when (Y/N) was involved and so happy (even if he did wonder why they hadn’t corrected everyone about his birthday).

            A little smile appeared on Saiki’s face. Yare yare. So troublesome, and yet he was willing to put up with them. For some reason, anyway.

l

            “Saiki went home?!” cried Kaidou.

            “Yeah,” said Kuboyasu grimly.

            “I warned you, he likes to leave school as soon as possible,” chuckled (Y/N).

            “What do we need to do now?” said Kaidou.

            “Do we put a stop to it?” wondered Kuboyasu.

            “Not after all this time. Time for plan beta!” said Kaidou.

            “We have a plan beta?” wondered (Y/N).

            Sure enough, the entire group—Yumehara, Mera, Kaidou, Kuboyasu, (Y/N), Hairo, and Teruhashi—was soon crouching around the corner from Saiki’s house.

            “I’ll explain again,” said Kaidou. “First, we ring Saiki’s doorbell. When he comes out, we all pull the crackers. The Emotional Saiki Plan.”

            “What if someone else answers?” asked Kuboyasu.

            “We will explain it and make them let us in,” said Kaidou. “Let’s go!”

            The group headed towards the door and rang the doorbell. (Y/N) smiled and shook their head. Whoever opened the door, they knew Saiki had a trick up his sleeve. Going along with something so steeped in emotions was not Saiki’s way.

            The door swung open, and Saiki stood there.

            “Surprise!” called everyone, cracking the crackers.

            Saiki’s eyes widened in surprise, and he smiled. “What? What is this?”

            “Today’s your birthday, right?” said Teruhashi brightly.

            “Yes, but…”

            Aha. (Y/N) giggled behind their hand. That wasn’t Saiki. It was Mr. Saiki since today was his birthday.

            “We came to celebrate your birthday!” said Hairo.

            “Wow, really?!” said Mr. Saiki, beaming from Saiki’s face. It was odd to see it, but (Y/N) at least could see through it. “You know my birthday?”

            “Of course, Saiki,” said Kaidou.

            “ ‘Saiki?’ ” repeated Mr. Saiki, still happy.

            “Hey, pal!” Nendou walked up. “I heard it’s your birthday!” He held up a watermelon.

            “Nendou, you came, too?” said Mr. Saiki.

            “He managed it,” said Kaidou, nodding.

            “Come on in, all of you,” said Mr. Saiki.

            “Thanks, Saiki!” said Yumehara, heading it.

            Wow, no one has noticed how differently “Kusuo” is acting, thought (Y/N).

            “You seem to be enjoying yourself, (Y/N),” said Teruhashi curiously. “You keep smiling and laughing.”

            “I’m just having a really good time,” chuckled (Y/N).

            It’s still going? thought Saiki. He had thought this would end quickly.

            “Thank you all so much,” said Mr. Saiki. “I would never have expected Kusuo’s friends to celebrate my birthday. I’m deeply moved.”

            (Y/N) coughed at the mention of “Kusuo’s friends,” but luckily, no one seemed to notice.

            “You’re our friend,” said Mera.

            “Happy birthday,” said Hairo.

            “Yes, Saiki!” said Kaidou. “By the way, Saiki, are your parents here?”

            “My parents don’t live with us,” said Mr. Saiki.

            “Whoa, really?” said Hairo.

            “My mother lives in the family home, and my father is no longer with us,” said Mr. Saiki.

            He’s walking right into trouble with that one, thought (Y/N). They decided to step in. “Oh, yeah, he’s traveling for work right now.”

            I’m glad someone has worked it out and is helping.

            “What? No, he’s—”

            “Come upstairs,” said Saiki directly to his father’s mind.

            “Huh? Is that Kusuo?” wondered Mr. Saiki.

            “Kusuo?” repeated Kuboyasu.

            “I need to head upstairs for a moment,” said Mr. Saiki awkwardly, leaving the room.

            Alright, I’ll hold down the fort. I wonder what Saiki’ll do now. Have his dad continue the party or end it or…actually come down himself? (Y/N) hoped he would. Even if it wasn’t his birthday, they wanted to spend some time with him and give him the present. All of his friends did.

            Upstairs, Saiki explained the situation to his father, who nodded.

            “Oh, I see. That’s what I thought. I thought it was strange,” said Mr. Saiki.

            “You were totally into it,” said Saiki.

            “The surprise is over, so you want to switch places?” said Mr. Saiki.

            “No. Keep going,” said Saiki, giving a thumbs up.

            “You want me to keep going?!” exclaimed Mr. Saiki.

            “It’s not my birthday. I can’t pretend it is,” said Saiki, pushing his father back down the stairs.

            “I’m not you, Kusuo. I can’t pretend that I am. I think (L/N) already figured it out,” said Mr. Saiki.

            “They did. They’re observant. But they won’t say anything,” said Saiki. “I’m counting on you.” I can’t respond to their kindness.

            Pretend to be Kusuo, thought Mr. Saiki, standing before the door. He opened it. “Yare yare. Sorry for the wait. Yare yare.”

            I don’t say yare yare that much.

            “We’re sorry for interrupting your birthday while your father is away,” said Kaidou.

            “Oh, it’s fine. He’s coming back today,” said Mr. Saiki quickly.

            He’s really not like Kusuo at all, thought (Y/N).

            “And why’d you used the term ‘not with us?’ ” said Kuboyasu. “That sounds like he’s dead.”

            “You shouldn’t talk about your dad that way,” said Hairo, shaking his head.

            “M-My apologies,” said Mr. Saiki.

            “Well, anyway,” said Teruhashi, trying to break in.

            “Look, we finished the cake!” said Yumehara brightly, holding up the box.

            “It turned out great,” said Teruhashi.

            “Especially the face,” agreed Yumehara.

            They took the cake out and put it on the table. It was all smooshed and melted.

            “Oh, no,” the girls said, deflating.

            Oh dear, thought (Y/N) sympathetically. It’s so hard to shape cakes and keep them looking good.

            They should have gotten (Y/N) to help them.

            “It got smashed in the transit,” said Teruhashi in disappointment.

            “But you made it with lots of love, so that’s what matters,” said (Y/N).

            “What?! Love?! No, no! It’s just friendship! A friendship birthday cake! Besides, Chiyo made it with me! We put a ton of work in together!” rambled Teruhashi in a panic.

            “We’ll make another,” said Yumehara, looking at Mr. Saiki. “I swear, it looked perfect!”

            There’s no choice.

            “Wow, look! The cake is reforming!” said Hairo, staring at the cake.

            “The sponge cake is rebounding,” said Kuboyasu.

            Thank you, Kusuo, thought (Y/N). They knew he’d save his friends’ feelings after they worked so hard for him even if misguided).

            “Wow, this is amazing,” said Mr. Saiki, looking at the Saiki-shaped cake. “It looks delicious.”

            That is something Kusuo would say, thought (Y/N), grinning.

            “Just wait, you’ll really be moved!” said Mera.

            “We have a surprise for you,” said Kuboyasu. “A video letter—”

            Mera held up the camera, and Nendou’s face hit it. It fell to the ground, broken.

            “Oh,” said (Y/N), disappointed since Mera and Kuboyasu had worked hard on it.

            “Oh, no, that’s no good,” said Mr. Saiki.

            “Sorry, Saiki.” Kuboyasu took off his glasses. “Go on. Hit me. Everyone, hit me.”

            “Kuboyasu, there’s really no need for that,” said (Y/N) quickly. “It was an accident.”

            Yare yare.

            “Hey, look! It’s working,” said Kaidou, staring at the TV screen as it displayed the video letter.

            “It’s fixed,” said Hairo in happy amazement.

            “Alright!” said Kaidou. “Raise a glass and let’s start the feast.”

            “Cheers!” Everyone lifted their glasses.

            The party was in full swing. (Y/N) hung back since they felt awkward interacting with their crush’s father in such a context (also, they were disappointed Saiki himself wasn’t there), but everyone was having a great time. Some people armed wrestled, they joked, they laughed, and they bonded with one another—already a tight-knit friend group getting closer.

            Upstairs, Saiki sat and psychically monitored the party so that his dad didn’t screw anything up for his reputation or give away his psychic abilities.

            “Oh, there you are,” said Mr. Saiki, popping his face upstairs. “Your dad’s a star!”

            “Good for you.”

            “Well, you want to switch soon?” said Mr. Saiki.

            “No thanks. Hurry back now,” said Saiki. “I would only be a buzzkill.”

            “So what?”

            Saiki looked up at his dad in slight surprise.

            “Go on, Kusuo,” said Mr. Saiki. “You must feel some gratitude toward them. You didn’t want to hurt their feelings, so you asked me to cover for you. But that’s not right. They all came here for you, Kusuo. Even if you do hurt their feelings, you should go to them.” He turned and walked away.

            Saiki paused and watched him go. “Who are you to lecture me?” He stood.

            “I’m your father!” exclaimed Mr. Saiki.

            Saiki glanced at the stairs and walked down. He paused outside of the living room. Now, how do I get rid of them?

            “That was a huge success,” said Kaidou.

            “Saiki seemed really happy about everything,” agreed Teruhashi.

            “(Y/N), you didn’t give him his present,” said Yumehara.

            “I’ll give it to him later,” said (Y/N), smiling.

            “He seemed very energetic. He must have really liked all of this,” said Hairo.

            “Yes, but something didn’t seem quite right,” said Nendou.

            “That’s true. It’s like the walls around him are stronger than ever,” said Kaidou.

            “Maybe he was trying to hard to go along with us,” said Kuboyasu.

            “Oh, no, that’s terrible,” said Yumehara.

            “He should just be himself,” said Hairo.

            (Y/N) nodded. “We accept him how he is.” For who he really is.

            Yare yare. You’re the ones who are acting strange. Saiki opened the door.

            “Hey, pal, what took you so long?” Nendou grinned at him.

            “Saiki!” The group beamed at him.

            “Yare yare.” Saiki shook his head and sat down.

            He watched as everyone eagerly chatted and joked, leaving him a little more alone—not wanting him to “put up his walls again.”

            “Do you want a piece of cake?” said (Y/N), sitting down beside him and lifting a plate.

            “Yes,” said Saiki, instantly taking it and taking a bite.

            (Y/N) leaned in, smiled, and whispered, “Welcome to the party, Kusuo.”

            Saiki looked at them and nodded. Ah, well. He could avoid them all tomorrow. He supposed this wasn’t terrible.

l

            “Why didn’t you tell them it wasn’t my birthday?” asked Saiki. He floated the plates he was cleaning to (Y/N), who set them in the drying rack. “You know when my birthday is.” It wasn’t accusatory, just a plain question.

            “They made the whole plan before they even told me,” said (Y/N), shrugging. “At that point they’d put so much work into it that I couldn’t help but let it keep going.” They chuckled and nudged him. “Besides, that’s the exact same reason you let it go on.”

            “No, I just couldn’t convince them not to,” said Saiki.

            “Uh-huh,” said (Y/N), rolling their eyes with a laugh. “You know I see through you by now.”

            “See through me?”

            “Yep,” chirped (Y/N), grinning.

            Saiki looked at them, nearly asked them a question, and then stopped.

            “Oh, Kusuo, before I forget, I got you a gift,” said (Y/N), heading back into the living room.

   ��        Saiki followed. “But it isn’t my birthday.”

            “I decided I might as well get into the spirit of things,” said (Y/N) brightly. They held up the present. “Tada! Open it up.”

            Saiki curiously opened the box and found a book(?) inside. He glanced up. This wasn’t a sweet or something themed on a sweet like (Y/N)’s usual gifts.

            “Look inside,” said (Y/N), grinning.

            Saiki lifted the album out and opened it. He stared. It was a photo. Of Café Mami. He turned the page. Now there was a photo of the sports festival, him running his race. Christmas with his friends. The beach. Okinawa. Karoake. London. Him having…fun. His friends with him. People celebrating, smiling.

            “I know you’re not big on being with people, but I know I really loved—liked having these moments with you,” said (Y/N). They smiled sheepishly. “So I guess this was partly a gift for me, but I, uh, I hope you can see these moments as fondly as I do.”

            Saiki looked between the photos and (Y/N). No. He wasn’t an extrovert. He didn’t seek others out. He found most incidents bothers. But…

            But.

            But in every one of these memories, there was something Saiki did like. Yes, he was…fond of his friends. This was the only moment he’d admit that. However, more importantly to Saiki, (Y/N) was in every one of those memories. They didn’t feature in any of the photos, but he knew they were behind the camera with a smile on their face. That was the reason Saiki instantly loved the photos. They held (Y/N)’s joy.

            And that was the reason Saiki loved them.

            “I love it, (Y/N),” said Saiki.

            (Y/N) beamed. “I’m glad.”

            “…I love it because you made it,” said Saiki. “You always put so much heart into what you make.”

            (Y/N) blushed. “Thanks, Kusuo.”

            “Even when I’m ungrateful, you’re still so kind,” said Saiki, stepping forward.

            (Y/N) looked at Saiki. “We’ve talked about this before, Kusuo, I don’t care that you’re not into words of affection. That doesn’t matter to me.”

            “It does. It does to me. Because you deserve to know that you’re a good friend and that I…I value you.” Saiki swallowed. This was it. “I like you, (Y/N).”

            (Y/N) started as they heard Saiki speak without telepathy. “You—You what?”

            “I like you,” repeated Saiki. “As…as more than a friend.”

            “You do?” A smile spread across (Y/N)’s face. “Really?”

            Saiki nodded jerkily.

            “Oh, Kusuo. I like you, too,” said (Y/N). They let out a joyful laugh. “I really, really like you, Kusuo. I have feelings for you.”

            “I do, too,” said Saiki. “I didn’t phrase it right.”

            “You phrased it just right,” said (Y/N), stepping up and taking Saiki’s hand daringly. They cleared their throat. “Can I-Can I kiss you, Kusuo?”

            Saiki looked at them, and he found that the idea of affection with them was as appealing as ever. He nodded and held their hand tighter.

            Saiki and (Y/N) leaned, hesitant, unsure of themselves, but perfectly comfortable with one another. They were willing to try something new with the person they loved.

            Their lips touched, and Saiki and (Y/N) pulled back for a moment. But the separation lasted for but a second as they leaned back in, kissing once more, more confidently, more eagerly.

            When they finally separated, (Y/N) and Saiki were both pink, and (Y/N) let out a little laugh at the rush of joy. Saiki felt their hand in his and gazed at the beautiful smile he had fallen for. There was only one thing he could say.

            “Oh, wow.”

Taglist:

@elaemae

@painstakingly-juno

@characterreaderwriter

@melovepurple

@sleep-7372

@w0mank1sser

@geminigengar

@noodleryworld

@leonardo-dabitchy

@janezee12751275

@xenop0p

@ex160-blog1

@boogiemansbitch

@dmitrytherat

@yuriisclumsy

@sixxze

@constellationguy

@k03ume

@sweatyinternettrash

@paastaboi

@unorthodox-gob

@girlswhopanic

@h-i-g-h-w-a-y-t-o-h-e-l-l-l

@drowningfishy

@rinwho

@izzieg3987

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@jmclouds

@ittomain1

@justamina-blog

@newtscreatures347269

@digital-dumbass

@chronovala

@yappydoo

[eroscomet]

Make it Right

Chapter two- Hauting for Home

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Paring: Astrid Deetz x Fem!Ghost!Reader

Warnings: Mentions death, a bit angsty, bad writing. (Let me know if I missed anything!)

Word count: 3k+

A/N: Hello, lovelies! I'm so sorry that this chapter took a while to make. I was busy on the weekend; however, I found time to finally finish the chapter for you all! I really do hope you guys enjoy this one! I will try to get a specific schedule for updates on certain stories. If you guys are wondering about updates for 'Picking Up Pieces That Aren't Yours,' I will try to update that as soon as possible. I will also be doing a couple drabbles on different characters and or drabbles of characters I've already written for. I would also like to thank you guys so much for all the support you all have been showing me! I am so thankful and grateful for each and every one of you! Thank you so much for every like, reblog, and comment, it means a lot to me!

╰┈➤Series Masterlist

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┏━━━✦❘༻♡༺❘✦━━━┓

"You talked to my dad?!" Astrid had exclaimed with an amused smile on her face. There it was, that twinkle in her eye that you had missed so much. She hadn't been very happy recently, with you not around and everything else in her life that had been happening.

"Yeah, when I had first died. I got sent to the immigration office, and what do you know? There he was behind the glass. He's just as kind as you always told me he'd be. Surprisingly, he immediately recognized me. He told me that he had been watching after you and practically watched our love 'blossom,' as he put it." The two of you continued walking outside.

You couldn't help but think about how people must be seeing this. Astrid looked as if she were talking to herself from an outside perspective. Aware of her past, you knew people had a tendency to bully her, so when nearing Miss Shannon's School for Girls, you tried to get her to talk as much so that others wouldn't look at her funny. So, you took up most of the time on the way there, talking as much as she could so that she didn't have time to talk. Which was odd because she was usually the one who'd talk while you'd listen.

"He said he liked me, which is a relief. Sometimes, I feel like your mom is more confused but is trying to be supportive. I mean, remember when I had first come over, and she started talking about how she too 'experimented' as she said. Anyway, that isn't the point. I met your dad, and we actually frequently visited you together. It's funny, sometimes we'd bond over how much we missed you."

Astrid's eyes had furrowed as she had begun to notice that every time she began or wanted to speak, you only spoke faster, almost sputtering out information. A frown tugged at your lips as she had caught on.

"I just don't want people to look at you even more weirder than they already do. If you're talking to yourself, they'll find that an easy target. Try...putting on some headphones and pretending you're on the phone? Or you can just put your phone up to your ear?"

She smiled as she took her phone out of her pocket and brought it up to her ear.

"Thanks, you're right. So, what else did he say about me? Did you see my grandfather? What's the afterlife like?" Astrid felt like she had a million different questions to ask.

"Your dad says he's proud of you and that he sees himself in you all the time. As for your grandpa, no. I mean, I feel as if it's harder to find him since he did lose his head to a shark. The afterlife is a bit weird. I can't tell you much about it since I haven't exactly crossed over. I basically only know what headquarters and a few shops look like. I mean, there's a 'Soul Train' which essentially takes you to the 'Great Beyond,' but I never went because I don't want to risk not being able to watch over you."

You grabbed Astid's shoulders, moving beside her to walk toward the street end of the sidewalk. Even though you were dead, the sidewalk rule never really left you, even while Astrid couldn't even see you.

"Yeah, I figured. I almost can't believe that a shark bite ended his life, I knew my family wasn't normal, but we can't even have a somewhat normal death? The Great Beyond, huh? Soul Train is a clever name though. Does no one know what's on the side?"

"I mean, I've never seen someone leave then come back from the train in the full year, almost two years that I've been here. I'm not taking the risk and crossing anyway, I can't lose you again after we just got back to each other."

"You're right..." Her eyebrows furrowed, her attention on the sidewalk as they continued to walk. She thought to herself for a moment before speaking again.

"So, you don't have any ghost tricks you learned?"

"Of course, you'd ask that, would you be disappointed in me if I said I didn't?"

"I mean, you've been gone for a year almost two, I'd expect you to know at least something to make me feel better for all the time you've been gone."

"Okay, uhhh... I can walk through walls and, I guess, float a bit."

"That sounds like every other ghost."

"Just because i'm a ghost doesn't mean I have super powers, Astrid."

"Just saying."

"I mean, I do have this nasty scar from the accident." You lowered your shirt neckline, showing the scar on the lower part of your neck. Astrid winced at the scar before looking away.

"Right. Weird how all it took was one neck twist for you to die.

"Well, it's more like my neck twisted as if I was a cartoon character that got punched, and my head began spinning-"

"Ew, shut up. Don't talk about it like it's something light."

"I'm sorry, you're right."

It was silent for a bit as you guys walked into the school, Astrid opened one of the doors while you phased right through the other door. Astird put her phone back into her pocket as she walked upstairs and past the other students. You followed after her, your eyebrows furrowing at the other students nearby her dorm. Some of them whispering to each other while giggling.

That's when Astrid opened her dorm room's door, a bedsheet attached to the ceiling by a rope coming straight towards her. The bedsheet makes out a ghost with a 'Boo' sign in its chest area. Astrid stumbled back before turning around and looking at the other girls, who began to burst out into laughter behind her.

"When you're all driving carpool and banging your pilates instructor to fill the empty voids in your life, we'll see who gets the last laugh."

The girls smiles and laughs quickly died as she finished speaking. Astrid turned around as she went into her room, shutting the door behind her. You smiled proudly, a laugh escaping you as you saw the looks on the girls faces as they disburst from Astrid's door.

"Witty as always." You said as you phased through her dorm room's door. The make-shift ghost on the ceiling startling you a bit as you had almost 'ran' into it. Sometimes you forget you're a ghost even if it's been a year.

"They have not toned down with the comments? You had always been careful about this topic, not wanting to bring it up too much with Astrid.

"No." It was a simple and straightforward answer that made you not want to question further. A part of you felt angry that you were helpless to all of it now that you're dead. You had gotten so used to defending her against everyone but now your words would only fall on deaf ears.

You sighed as you plopped yourself onto her dorm room's bed, thinkiing for a moment on how to steer away the conversation of bullying that she obviously did not want to talk about.

"Did you hear that my sister's pregnant? I know that I shouldn't bother looking over them since they're perfectly fine.."

"I'm not surprised."

"She's naming the baby after me."

"God, that's ridiculous! Naming their kid after a relative who isn't even dead yet-" Astrid's voice faltered for a moment. The fact that you were dead and have been for almost two years was still a punch in the gut after all this time.

"That's what I said, baby." You offered her a small smile as you played into the bit that you were still alive for Astrid. She still wanted to make her at least feel a bit better.

'Baby.'

Your words - and your smile, even if it was for her benefit - just made Astrid's heart twist further in her chest.

"You're killing me here."

"Why?" Your head tilted to the side as you looked at her.

"Because you're supposed to be dead." Her voice came out in a strangled whisper as she looked down at the papers scattered on her desk.

You bit your lip, you didn't want to show that what Astrid had said hurt you. Even if you were dead, you still had emotions and feelings. You paused for a moment before deciding to drop the topic.

"So, they're having a baby shower. You should go."

"Oh god, a baby shower? Is it too late to make you disappear again?" Her face had immediately scrunched up with distaste at the idea of being forced to go to a baby shower - especially your self-centered sister's baby shower where she'd name her child after you for her own gain.

"Come on, you couldn't see me for a whole year, and now that you're finally able to, you already want to get rid of me? That's cold, babe, even for you. Even for me who's dead cold. Get it? Huh? Dead cold. Because i'm dead? And i'm cold now because I have no blood. No? Okay."

"Oof, that was horrible." She said as she shook her head and grumbled in response.

"Come on, admit you missed me. I heard all your late-night talks that you thought weren't reaching my ears."

"I did miss you - I've missed you for a whole year." She confessed, sounding a bit surprised by her own confession. The room fell silent, the weight of everything that had happened falling onto the both of them. Neither of them wanted to address it, though, they didn't want to have to deal with it now.

"Did you ever-" She paused for a moment as she thought of the right words to say, "When I'd lay in your bed and mope, were you just...watching me?"

"No, I hated that. I'd still do what I would've done if I were alive. I tried holding you and whispering sweet nothings into your ear that never got to you."

"Sweet nothings, huh?" She teased, which earned an eye roll from you. Again, the room had fell silent as the two were lost in thought before Astrid spoke again, breaking the silence.

"How bad did it hurt?"

"Uh.. Well... I just remember being on the ground one second, then in the air the next. I landed, and well- You know what. It had hurt for that second that I was alive, but it had been an instant death if anything."

Having to talk about your death wasn't an easy topic. It was a reminder of how quick you had lost it all. The blood in your system, the beat of your heart, Astrid. The sight of you nervously fidgeting with your own fingers made Astrid's heart ache.

"I hate that." She muttered, her voice coming in strained, almost as if she was forcing herself to get the words out.

"I'm sorry." Your words were mumbled as she continued to fidget with your fingers, now more anxiously than before. The apology caused Astrid to shut her eyes, trying to hold herself together. She felt that now was not the time to start breaking down.

"Don't. Don't apologize." She had almost snapped at you as she opened her eyes to shoot a glare at you.

"Okay." You were never one to go against her word, you didn't want to start a fight. Especially not now. All you could do was bring up one of your hands, beginning to gently pull on the hairs on the back of your neck as you avoided Astrid's eyes.

"Is that a nervous habit of yours now? Pulling your hair." She asked as she reached her hand out idly to brush your hair out of your eyes.

"I had gotten it when I first reached the afterlife. When you watch the people you love hurting, and all you can do is ghost around them..." Your voice had faltered, forcing yourself to clear your throat and then begin to speak again.

"You feel so helpless. Watching everyone who used to be around you and love you so miserable about your death. It makes you feel guilty but, most of all, useless. There's no way to hold, touch, talk to, comfort them... It's hard."

The room had fallen silent after your words. Astrid's fingertips gently brushed along the back of your head - tracing the place that you usually pulled at. She let her hand rest there, trying to keep you from pulling at your hair again.

"How cold am I?"

Your words made Astrid pause for a moment. Leaning closer to you as she wrapped an arm around her now ghost girlfriend. The chill of your skin made her shiver involuntarily - but Astrid tried not to show the way her body automatically wanted to shy away from the cold.

"Really damn cold. It's like you're an ice cube almost." Her words a mumble as she got closer to you, laying next to you as she rested her head on top of yours.

"I'm sorry that I'm not warm anymore." Your own words come out as a mumble as well, instinctively, your head rests on her shoulder.

"I know you don't much like when it's really cold. I thought I was keeping myself with this sweater but now that someone's actually able to touch me, I realize it's doing nothing for me."

"Gosh, you don't have to apologize for that. At least you're here." She pulled you closer against her, her arms wrapping around your waist - burtying her face into your shoulder, even if your skin was freezing and caused a slight burn against her own warm skin. She ignored the way that her body had involutarily shivered at the contact - focusing instead on the fact that her girlfriend was here.

"Barely." You mumbled quietly as you gently pulled away from your girlfriend, knowing that you were probably burning Astrid's skin with your own cold, dead skin that was now a pale blue hue.

"Don't be like that. You're talking as if you have no more hope."

"Death has a way of doing that."

Astrid let out a quiet huff at your words. Her eyes flickered back and forth from you and her own hands that were now gripped tightly on her bedding - but in the next moment, she let go. Almost as if with a full burst of speed, she darted to you. Her arms wrapping around your body, hauling you into her bed in a tight, crushing embrace.

"Astrid-" You had said in surprise and protest. You knew that you were cold. Dead. The cold would burn Astrid at one point, and you didn't want that. Not when you used to be alive and warm for her. You used to keep her warm and now you can only burn her with your icy dead skin.

"Don't even think about complaining. I don't care if you're cold." Astrid snapped as she held you impossibly close against her. Her body shivered once again as your cold skin was like a bucket of cold water dumped over her body - but she ignored the cold, focusing on the sensation of her girlfriend in her arms.

A frown had tugged at your lips, knowing that eventually, Astrid would get too cold, but after a year of being a lone ghost who watched your loved ones move on or suffer because of you, you couldn't help but be a little selfish. Your arms wrapped around her as tightly as you could.

You missed your girlfriend so much. Watching over her for a year, her suffering for a full year over your death, had done a number on you. You'd cry if you could, but all you felt was this deep internal sadness. You had no heartbeat, you had no blood to warm your body, you had no tears to shed from your dry eyes. Your chest was the most still it had ever been, you had no air to breathe anymore.

It had begun to feel like too much for the both of them. Being this close to each other after a year of thinking they'd never be able to have contact again, feeling each other's skin despite the feeling of a small burning on her own skin from your own. It was almost enough to make Astrid cry.

The cold was beginning to seep into her skin - making her shiver and leaving her skin prickled. But Astrid wouldn't - couldn't - let go of you. Not when it had been a year since she was able to hold you. You had only frowned as you held her tighter. A small hiss escaped Astrid from the cold contact as she tried to get herself impossibly closer to you.

"Damn it, it's getting too cold." She hissed, speaking between clenched teeth as she tried to bury her face into your shoulder further.

"Warm up with the blankets, I'll just lay beside you. I promise I won't disappear." You pulled away, gently moving Astrid off of yourself as you carefully pulled her bedsheets over her body. When you finished tucking her in, you lay beside her, admiring every detail you could land your eyes on.

She only huffed a bit, feeling oddly petulant about the fact that she had to let go of you However, she did as she was told. A small shiver rattled her body as her eyes locked onto yours. She managed to mumble something incohereently as she reached for you, trying to tug you close again.

"Too cold, baby. Just give it a moment. I'm here, you see me." You tried to reassure her as you gently tugged a strand of hair behind her ear.

'Baby.' The soft nickname only made her want to pull you close again, but she knew that you were right. Her boy was cold - skin still pricked and burned from being in contact with her girlfriend. She snuggled further into the bedding, her hand gently reaching out to yours. Linking her own pinky with yours, causing you to smile. Her eyes looked into yours as if asking if it was okay to which you had nodded.

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A/N: I don't know why this felt like such a short chapter to me despite it being the most words I've written so far?? I might have some filler chapters for this and 'Picking Up Pieces That Aren't Yours' sometimes. Then again, there is still a lot to write for the storyline themselves. Thank you, lovelies, for all the support on my posts! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I'm so sorry if some days I do not have time to update. Also, if there's anyone that wants to be tagged for updates on this story, leave a comment saying so! Bye, loves!

[writingforatwistedworld]

Hii, I'm glad you're back . Even if it was for a few days you really left a place in tumblr not just for your work but for your presence itself.

I had a question for a while and I'm sorry if you answered it before and I seemed to not notice , if that's the case then forgive my ignorance but I was wondering , since sebek seems to respect his grandfather alot and has inherited the hate for humans from him and it's a known fact in self-aware au that the faes 'love' the overseer alot I must say.. does that mean that sebek also inherited his 'love' for the overseer from his granpa? If so how did green grandpa see the overseer, what made him 'love' them and how does he show it .

If you don't want to write this then feel free to ignore it , hope you have a great day and don't forget to drink water and eat well<33

Hi there Anon. It's so sweet of you to say that. I didn't think I would have made such an impression on anyone. But I completely forgot to write about Sebeks grandfather -_-

Well, better late than never.

Self-aware au

WARNINGS: Jp-version spoiler (like, the whole thing!!!), (Platonic!) yandere themes, war, religion, unhealthy mindset, isolation, unhealthy family dynamic

(Platonic!) Yandere headcanons

Ah yes, our local way too loud and loyal member of the reptilian family. No need to to worry about him. I mean, what could go wrong? (Hehe…)

Baul was not from the Valley of Thorns. Growing up in Sunset Savannah he did not grow up with the beliefs of the Faes (in other words, he was not part of a religious cult)

So imagine the huge shock he felt when he finally became a solider under the Draconia banner and started to become more and more like the other Faes

Well, for starters, yes, he wasn't indoctrinated into the whole church thing since birth but also wasn't raised to see you as an equal like the beastmen of the Savannah

You could say that he was a healthy mixture of both

Emphasis on the “was”

You see, isolation and being the only one sticking out (if we discount the humans invading the valley) does leave you open for a lot of things

If we count two (being the surroundings he was in) and two (his more or less unnoticed loneliness) together, we can see pretty fast where that led

Never mind his superior (and friend I mean come on they might as well be brothers) Lilia constantly rambling about the Overseer, savior of all, and how you accepted everyone in your kind embrace

Ok. Nice. Neat. Great. In the beginning, Baul wasn't very interested in joining any kind of religion

But the longer the war held on, the more he wished there was someone he could ask for help in his task of protecting those he deemed close to himself (you see the generational pattern?)

At some point, even the proudest of all can't hold on for forever

So he turned to you, the supposed God that was on so gentle

And goddamn that religious gaslighting and placebo effect worked damn well

Not only did he feel like there was someone there who supported him from somewhere in the universe (even though that was just him believing too much but let have him have some hope, ok?) but also he finally had a community

Whenever he would leave one of the many churches in the valley a Fae would approach, thanking him for protecting their home

Sooner than later did the former non-believer think of himself as your chosen shield of the valley

The war came and went away

If only the same thing could be said about Bauls new religious beliefs

And when he saw that grandson of his, cute little chubby hands that gripped a wooden toy sword tightly, he knew that his position as the valleys shield would not cease

Yes, even Baul would die one day. Fae or not, he was at the end of the day mortal

But that talent of his grandson would surely be of use to you, right?

If his younger self would see him like this, would it run away? Would it feel disgust at the thought that his future self would use his own grandson for selfish, religious reasons?

If only Baul knew that “God” didn't even know they were living beings that existed in a different world…

[ms-demeanor]

Atheist condolence card like "sucks that your grandpa no longer exists and you'll never see him again, oh well"

I mean, I'm looking for a condolence card for a Jewish family (found a pretty good one, will be adding a note about a shared memory of the deceased and hopes for the mourners that their memory may be a blessing).

But also I have no idea why people find the concept of an afterlife comforting. Legitimately, that is unappealing to me and the idea that I would be artificially separated from the people that I love and reintroduced to them after a period of separation if there was no need for that time of mourning and loss seems. Bullshit? It seems like bullshit? Capricious and cruel at best?

Anyway when my grandpa died we got a phone call when they tossed is ashes into the ocean and we never saw him again! Being reminded that we wouldn't see him in an afterlife wasn't the sad part, the sad part was knowing that we wouldn't know him anymore, that we'd be on one side of a growing divide, that there was a before and an after and we had left him behind while we had to move forward. It wouldn't have been comforting to think "well perhaps someday when I have lived my life without him, I will see him again in a place where nothing from this life (all the things that I have done, all the things that he taught me) will matter because they were worldly and unimportant."

What was comforting at that time, and after the very many family deaths that I have experienced (and I've experienced a lot! I've been comfortable with the idea that I'll never see my loved ones again when they're gone since I was a very small child!), and what I suspect is comforting even for religious people who have experienced a loss is to be reminded of the people who are still on the same side of that dividing line, who we can still love and adore and support and make memories with.

Anyway. I'm an atheist at least partially because of my grandfather, who was a magician and a skeptic and took great joy in skewering the supernatural. It would be an insult to his memory to think that he was an angel lighting up a star in heaven or whatever the christian condolence cards say.

My grandpa did a sexy comedy magical immolation of my grandmother in front of crowds; there was a devil on the flier.

(grandma's the one on the right)

Pictured: Not someone who had much reverence for death or much patience for the supernatural:

(Funny story, when my dad came to visit this week he saw a 2-post 52U server rack on the driveway from a distance and asked me "where did you guys get the guillotine? Did I leave that here?")

But my family is probably *unusually* atheist and irreverent.

For atheists in general I don't know why people think that it's more upsetting to acknowledge the truth (that once people are dead you won't see them anymore) than to be told "comforting" lies (that you will see dead people again at some mystical place that you have no access to or proof of).

I *hate* hearing "they're in a better place" when I'm mourning someone I loved because that's something that's comforting for a religious person to say but dismisses both the way that I mourn and (frequently in my family) the beliefs of the deceased. They are not in a better place, they are *gone* and I don't want to imagine that they're somewhere waiting for me to join them again, I want to remember them for who they were and accept that they aren't in my life anymore.

"They're in heaven now" "they're with the angels now" "they're with their maker" - none of those things are true and they reflect an extremely limited worldview that I don't share and find pretty insipid actually! Thank you for trying to comfort me you are doing a poor job of it I'm going to go hang out and talk to someone who actually knew them and we'll share stories of what an asshole they were and what kind of crazy nonsense they got up to and what a big, important part of our lives they were and we'll start trying to make sense of how to fill the hole left behind with something practical and joyful and fun and honest that they would have loved instead of cardboard angel wings.

[solecize]

  ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ  𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐀𝐑𝐌𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐄 | 𝐣𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐤𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐱 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐘. every summer on your grandpa's farm was real-life magic to your younger self, who left a piece of her heart in amber valley when the years went on and the town became nothing but a faint childhood memory. soon enough, you become rocked by his death and realize the dead end in your bustling city world. this leads to you making an abrupt decision. despite knowing nothing but designer purses and the corporate ladder, you uproot your entire life to take over your grandfather's old farm in the town you were desperately trying to remember - alongside a familiar face from your youth that permanently finds his way into your heart. 𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆: jungkook/reader 𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐒. inspired heavily by stardew valley, friends to lovers, childhood friends, cowboy jungkook, small town alternate universe, slice of life, grief, growing up, mutual pining, jungkook as a parental figure 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐓. 9k 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐒. i don't even know what to say. i normally don't talk a lot and i'm mostly very unserious, but this is the last chapter of the farmouse and honestly, i'm super emotional about it. i'm really grateful for those of you who took the time to read and support this fic, every kind word has meant everything to me. i wrote this fic during a tough time when i needed warmth and joy, so i hope that this fic was able to bring even just a little bit of that for you while reading. (the writing of this chapter was quite literally delayed because my three year relationship ended midway through lol) this was also my first piece of writing in years and it's safe to say that i was able to fall in love with writing again because of this fic, so it'll always hold a special place in my heart. thank you times a hundred again <3 

part ten: the midsummer festivalㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ   ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ   ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ  ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤ   previous. epilogue. masterlist

  xxiv. the midsummer festival

squeezing through bodies in the stands, it took all of your focus to not drop the popcorn and drinks wedged in your arms. you should have asked someone to come with you, but you were in such a rush, not wanting to miss a thing. finally, you made it to your seat, plopping yourself in between jiwon and yoongi, and your eyes remained fixed on the lawn the entire time.

  amber valley had the most beautiful days you’d ever laid eyes on and today was no exception. you weren’t sure if it was because of the natural charm in the sleepy town or a biased sense of nostalgia towards the countryside that you carried. the midsummer festival was held at the peak of the season, where humidity was as thick as honey and not a single cloud escaped being casted away from the cerulean of the sky. you had no choice but to throw on a tank top and shorts because anything else would feel like suffocation.

  “i didn’t miss anything, did i?” you didn’t mean to scream, but there was no other way for your voice to beat the crowd amongst yourselves.

  jiwon shook her head, her hair splaying from underneath the baseball hat that she so obviously stole from her brother. “no!”

  the show-jumping competition was one of the newest additions to the fair and it proved to be one of the most popular. not only did the majority of the town come out to observe, but the fair also drew in an impressive number of visitors from elsewhere - some of which attended the fair specifically to watch the show-jumping. 

  “LETS GO KOOKIE!” screamed hoseok at the top of his lungs, holding up a customized poster board with a printed picture of jungkook and leo, depicting the words ‘go jungkook!’

  yoongi groaned, “can you sit down? they haven’t even finished setting up for the jump-off yet.”

  at this point in the competition, it was down to jungkook and another competitor, a man a few years younger named yesung. up until now, they both achieved the same score after the round performance and both cleared nearly perfect showings. the jump-off was a shortened course with tighter turns and higher jumps, intended to break the tie and determine the winner.

  the crowd began cheering when jungkook and yesung reappeared, standing and waiting for instructions. you found jungkook adorable in his outfit, a dark green show jacket and breeches that emphasized his leg muscles. you had to catch yourself from staring too hard at his thighs because it seemed like yoongi caught you, waving a hand in front of your face with a snicker. you only glared at him.

  it was mayor kim with the microphone, explaining the rules to the crowd. “and, to decide the order for performance, we have conducted a random draw. as a result, we will see. . .choi yesung go first!” he proclaimed, eliciting another round of cheers from the crowd.

  from where you stood, you noticed jungkook naturally relax his shoulders. for that, you also breathed out a sigh of relief. he stepped away to where leo was, making way for yesung to complete his round.

  when it was time to begin, everyone rose to their feet. from what you saw and heard of yesung, he was also a well-seasoned equestrian. he wasn’t as decorated as jungkook, but he had the advantage of winning the last show-jumping competition in the spring. you didn’t realize jungkook was out for vengeance, but he was indeed looking to reclaim his name.

  every fraction of a second mattered in the jump-off round and so, your eyes were glued. the pressure was on and you watched yesung charge ahead. he decided to take some risky turns, likely to shave off time. the first one was executed perfectly and you nearly jumped at the second, challenging turn. it was not calculated well, as it resulted in a rail down at the penultimate fence.

  “oh shit!” one of the boys yelped, watching the unfortunate accident. 

  yeung finished the course at a respectable, but flawed time. it was shame, since his speed and ability could have easily secured a victory. he knew it, too, judging by the disappointment in his eyes. you almost felt bad for him, if it wasn’t jungkook off to the side and gearing up for his turn.

  now, it was jiwon screaming as loud as she could. “YOU CAN DO IT!” she screeched, cheering for her brother and you joined in. 

  already mounted on leo, jungkook looked up, right at your section. he gave a small wave and you all went wild - even mrs. oh, who brought her own sign to cheer him on. you guys weren’t the only ones, though, as it seemed that jungkook was a favourite amongst fans.

  “jeon jungkook, jeon jungkook, jeon jungkook,” chanted the boys and you weren’t sure who started it, but you also began chanting, too.

  he readied himself and at the sound of the horn, blasted off. the tensions were thicker, with the stakes at hand and the pressure on a seasoned competitor looking to re-establish himself. you couldn’t imagine the weight of the crowd under the beating of the july sun, considering the heat made you already down your water bottle by the first hour of the competition and were in half the clothing jungkook was in. between you and jiwon was a shared usb handheld fan, as the two of you silently took turns holding it - eyes too glued to the show and shouting jungkook’s name.

  he was fast and sharp, yet every movement of his was so well thought out. at full force was a risky approach, but was so far bearing perfect results. you felt your heartbeat getting louder and louder, making your head pound with adrenaline. the last few seconds, the world became quiet and all you could focus on was jungkook. then, the eruption snapped you back into reality.

  “LET’S GOOO!”

  if someone was somehow not on their feet watching the final round of the show, they certainly were now, as jungkook zoomed to the end with no flaws and an incredible time. even you had to blink a few times, trying to see the time recorded clearly and realize your eyes were not deceiving you.

  “there’s no way that’s not a record!” you heard jimin exclaim and you didn’t doubt him.

  there was a hushed murmur over the crowd, as mayor kim stepped to the podium once more. tapping the microphone a few times, you and the rest of the crowd winced at the feedback that came with it. then, mayor kim spoke.

  “ladies and gentlemen. . .” he begun, loud and clear.

  jungkook was still catching his breath to the side, having yet to even take off his helmet. all eyes were peeled on mayor kim, as he took an extra pause for dramatics. if you weren’t also about to jump right out from your skin, you’d roll your eyes.

  “. . we have a winner AND a record setting time. jeon jungkook, young man, please join me on this stage.”

  no longer holding your breath, you roared along with your friends and the earth practically rumbled. jungkook’s smile was as bright as the day, as he whooped in response and raised his fist in the air. you were filled with nothing but joy. 

  before he stepped up onto the stage, jungkook displayed his integrity by walking towards yesung and enthusiastically shake the other man’s hand. yesung didn’t look too upset, more bewildered at the quality of performance that his opponent put on. they exchanged words, smiles reaching their eyes.

  “that’s my brother!” screamed jiwon, as if no one knew the obvious.

  jungkook then took mayor kim’s hand in one and attempted to balance his new, golden trophy with the other arm. in a split second, your friends, jiwon, and the oh family began filing out of the stands and you could hear hoseok yelling for you to follow. you widened your eyes, shuffling out of your seat as quickly as possible.

  of course, jiwon was the fastest and made it to the lawn first. she squealed, as jungkook embraced her in a hug and spun her around. the cheers didn’t falter and only grew when namjoon and taehyung momentarily put jungkook on their shoulders.

  you trailed behind everyone, nearly stumbling on your way down. you couldn’t see much, tiptoeing as far as you could. the chatter was still loud, but then the small crowd parted as you heard jungkook call out. it was your name. he was calling for you to come to the front.

  “oooooh,” someone said, but you ignored it.

  there was no doubt in your mind that your cheeks were a cherry red, but you refused to look anyone in the eye - even jungkook. you and your friends gathered around the podium with jungkook, as the event photographer asked you to move closer for a picture. everyone made way for you, as jungkook gestured for you to be the one on his right side, while jiwon and mrs. oh were on his left. 

  “congratulations,” you finally said, straining for your voice to be heard over the cheers. you still did not meet his eyes, finding yourself in a kind of shyness that was unknown to your normally headstrong personality.

  that was something that came natural to jungkook, having an innate ability to bring out parts of you that you didn’t even know existed. before moving back to amber valley, you walked around with your chin up, thinking that you knew everything you needed to know. 

  now, at 25 years old, you knew harvesting soybeans and playing cards at the local pub with your new friends. you knew the smell of the ocean in the sweltering summer and you knew riding horses in sunflower fields at sundown. looking at jungkook, you knew what it was like to be slowly, but surely, swept off your feet. the realization creeped up on you, a sneaky little thing.

  namjoon was the one holding onto leo, as your group huddled together for the picture. you instinctively hugged into jungkook’s touch, holding them in front of the camera.

  jungkook spoke, right into your ear. “i’m so glad i was able to have this moment with you.”

  that made you finally look up at his eyes and in that moment, a flash went off. this is when you also snapped out of your daze and despite his stare unwavering, you turned back to the photographer.

  “oh, maybe we should take another -” you started, knowing that neither you or jungkook were looking in the camera, but he waved you off.

  “no, no! this picture came out perfect,” the photographer winked at you and asked for everyone to disperse, before you could argue. something told you that you were going to see a picture of you and jungkook gazing into each other’s eyes on the front cover of the local newspaper.

  he proceeded to take a few more solo pictures of jungkook with leo, followed by some shots with the mayor. jungkook was supposed to be kept busy, but he continued sneaking glances your way.

  it was mrs. oh who gently tapped your shoulder. “now’s the time, honey. come to the store quick before he notices.”

  beside her, sangwoo rolled his eyes. “he’s going to notice, he hasn’t taken his eyes off of her.”

  regardless, you scrambled to follow behind mrs. oh. you weaved through the crowd, who all wanted to take a look at their champion in disbelief of the amazing time jungkook scored. the show began relatively early in the day, too, so the streets were only now becoming more and more full with the midsummer festival in full swing.

  the roads were blocked off for pedestrian access only, as the fair was one of the busiest times of the year for amber valley. today was a day that drew crowds from outside of town, as the festival was an adored regional celebration and served as a tourist destination. you wouldn’t be surprised if you were told that the midsummer festival attracted the highest visitors of any other day in the year for the town.

  carnival games, market booths and amusement rides were already set up since the morning and it was already getting tiresome to navigate through the festival goers. but, of course, you were trailing behind the force that was mrs. oh, who made way with ease with her commanding voice. 

  “time to get to work,” she sighed, pulling out a key from her pocket upon reaching the general store.

  you said, “it’s a shame you can’t enjoy the festivities, mrs. oh.”

  “oh, i don’t mind. i’ve lived in this town all my life, i’ve been here, there and everywhere when it comes to the fair,” she mused, unlocking the front door for the two of you. “business is business, the traffic the store will get is more important.”

  a cool blanket enveloped your skin once you stepped in and you were never more grateful for the invention of air conditioning in your life. she was right, though, as you noticed some people nearby the store and already eyeing it.

  “most businesses are closed today, but not us!” mrs. oh smiled, as she turned the sign by the window from ‘closed’ to ‘open.’

  this is how you knew how much jungkook truly meant to mrs. oh. “jungkook is real lucky for you to open late just to watch him,” you said, examining the front counter and spotting a pair of jungkook’s work gloves.

  “the store opens late every time he has a competition. sangwoo adores him and that young man and jiwon are family to us,” mrs. oh mused, seemingly lost in thought, before blinking back into the moment. “ah, don’t mind me. i almost forgot why you’re here, sweetie - the flowers are in the back room!”

  you thanked mrs. oh, following the direction that she pointed towards. jimin called you corny for getting jungkook flowers for your first official date, but you thought it was fitting, given the competition. it was even better with the results of the show and you could only hope that jungkook liked the ones you picked out. you figured that men deserve to get a nice bouquet of flowers at least once, too. 

  the bundle of fresh sunflowers were actually your favourites, but that wasn’t important. you grabbed them from the backroom fridge, wrapped in cellophane and yellow paper. this was when you felt your phone vibrate in your pocket and your eyes widened, hoping it wasn’t jungkook just yet.

  unfortunately, your hopes disappeared, but the text still put a smile on your face - just because it was him at the end of the day.

  are you at the store? i saw you and mrs. oh lol i can be there in a few minutes. 

  you replied yes and came out to wait. the store already had its first customers within a few minutes of opening and mrs. oh was ringing them out. she met your eyes and winked, mouthing some encouraging words to you. 

  with the same smile on your lips, you mouthed a ‘thank you’ to her. 

  although you would have loved to loiter inside the store for the air conditioning, you were already bashful enough from everyone watching you and jungkook at the show and you would have rather met jungkook away from mrs. oh’s nosiness. she was lovely, but she appeared to be one of your and jungkook’s biggest fans and you didn’t want to act awkward, knowing that you were being watched.

  the bouquet was hidden behind your back, as you patiently waited outdoors. you didn’t know what to expect out of your day, but the longer you waited for jungkook, you grew more and more nervous. it was odd, knowing that the anxiety pooling at the bottom of your stomach was because of your childhood best friend. 

  the thoughts were promptly swept away when you caught sight of jungkook approaching you. he changed clothes from his riding gear, sans his favourite dirty boots that remained on his feet, and was now wearing a plain white t-shirt and denim jeans. you always had to take a moment to admire the definition of his muscles and his sharp gaze that left you breathless, but you were distracted this time by the bundle of golden flowers in his grasp.

  jungkook looked a little bit concerned at your expression, as you were stifling a laugh. you almost felt bad, but the sight was too funny for you to ignore.

  “hey - uh, what?” he furrowed his eyebrows at you.

  you revealed the identical bouquet from behind your laugh and he, too, looked dumbfounded. the wrapping and greenery differed from one another, but it was clear that the two of you picked your flowers from the same field by your houses. it was the same field the two of you rode on the past summer and played in as kids.

  “congratulations again for first place,” was all you could manage to say, offering your flowers towards him.

  jungkook finally broke out into a chuckle, shaking his head. “thank you. congratulations, for uh. . “

  “for what? being jeon jungkook’s date to the fair?” you chided, as you took his flowers in your hands.

  “shut up. am i not original or something?” jungkook asked. “like, come on, we got each other the same thing. i’m already failing at this date thing, aren’t i?” he joked.

  you rolled your eyes and flicked his arms. “it’s been, like, five seconds.”

  “ow!”

  “we’re not just on a date today, jungkook. we’re on a mission to win some prizes,” you declared. 

  jungkook tilted his head slightly with a smile growing. “oh, are we?” he paused. “then, am i allowed to hold your hand during this mission?”

  the idea startled you, but you didn’t shy away. nodding without a word, this was the signal for jungkook to pick up your free hand and interlock his fingers with yours. somehow, it wasn’t a moment that sent ringing sensations in your ears nor was it one in slow motion. it was familiar, almost, and felt. . . right. it felt natural, like it was coming home after a long day.

  you leaned in to whisper in his ear, “and thank you for the flowers. you remembered my favourite.” you weren’t even sure how he knew, but you knew that jungkook would only give you a gift with a well-thought out meaning behind them. 

  this time, it was jungkook’s cheeks who reddened slightly. he didn’t say anything else, only squeezing your hand and leading the way.

  ***

  jungkook was tired. you were tired of telling him to suck it up. you had gone two summers in a row without winning a single prize and you were determined to walk away from the fair with at least one thing. albeit, at this point, you ran out of tickets to play games and you knew jungkook had extra, since he received some from his parents, but your grandfather also gave him some. he was your last hope, as you begged him to use the last of his tickets to get you something.

  “hoseok hyung told me these games are rigged. can’t we just go do bumper cars, bunny?” jungkook groaned, as the two of you walked away empty handed from balloon darts.

  you pouted. “no. i just want one of those big charmander stuffies, i know you can win them!”

  “why don’t you play the games?”

  “because i’m bad at them, how do you think i lost all of my tickets so quickly?” you responded, crossing your arms over your chest.

  jungkook grumbled more complaints under his breath, while you forcibly dragged him towards the ring toss booth.

  “hey kids! giving the ‘ol ring toss a try?” beamed the booth attendant, who was the same every year.

  you weren’t entirely sure what his name was, but you and jungkook collectively agreed on calling him “carnival man” and he recognized the two of you each time the festival was in town. though you were about four feet of fury at the time, you had quiet rage against carnival man. you were convinced he cheated you out of getting the xl sized penguin prize last year and you wanted revenge. 

  “kookie will do it!” you exclaimed, smugly pushing your best friend forward.

  “yeah, whatever, kookie will do it,” jungkook rolled his eyes and handed over a single ticket to carnival man.

  carnival man happily took the ticket from jungkook. “it’s nice to see you kids again. you’re always together, huh?”

  “unfortunately,” the two of you said in unison, only for you two to shoot each other identical daggers.

  at this, carnival man guffawed in amusement and gave jungkook his sets of rings. 

  here, jungkook did not win. in fact, he didn’t win you a single thing that summer and you didn’t speak to him for the following day because of it. only a day, though, since carnival man was right - the two of you were always together. you eventually gave in after the first day of silent treatment and showed up to jungkook’s house with your horse, marshmallow, and convinced him to join you by the sunflower fields. he had scoffed, called you stupid, and then without missing a beat, came outside to accompany you.

  ***

  “kookie! and. . .bunny? is that you?”

  carnival man was a lot older than you remembered, but you weren’t sure if it was just the tricks of time playing a game on you. it seemed like everything was so much more youthful and bright in your childhood memories. however, the brightness in carnival man’s smile didn’t falter and it only widened upon laying eyes on you and jungkook. then, his eyes trailed over to your clasped hands together and it widened even more.

  “you remember me?” you gaped, as carnival man took your hand and shook it vigorously. 

  “of course i do! well, i remember the two of you, specifically,” he exclaimed. “i see jungkook here, but i’ll always remember how you two kids came around together every summer! you’re all grown up now!”

  although lines of age creased his smile and streaks of grey contrasted against his black hair, seeing carnival man again made you feel like you were ten years old all over again. the fair seemed so much more larger than life and this moment was one of those moments that reminded you of why you loved summer so much.

  jungkook smiled, “it’s nice to see you, mr. lee.” he appeared to be a bit shy, as the older man was fixated on the sight of you two holding hands.

  it occurred to you that carnival man was never his real name and meeting him as mr. lee felt like a call to the reality in which you were now a grown up. you realized that jungkook continued to see mr. lee at the fair over the years without you and didn’t feel the same rush of nostalgia.

  the only reason why jungkook couldn’t also shake mr. lee’s hand was the abundance of prizes nestled into his arms. the two of you left your sunflower bouquets at the general store - luckily, it was now busy with tourists wanting water bottles or sunscreen and the two of you avoided any gushing or questioning from mrs. oh - and thank god you did because you did not expect to be carrying around so many things. a mini teddy bear, a sheet of temporary tattoos, a t-shirt, some gift cards, and a larger kuromi plush toy that was double the size of your head.

  thankfully, jungkook held onto everything without complaint and remarked that you had no business carrying anything so long as he was there. the funny part was that you two had barely visited all of the games and the only reason why you’d won so many prizes was because you two were competing at each one.

  “and you know i refuse to lose,” jungkook said at the first game, which was a basketball shootout. 

  with the same competitive spirit, the two of you both did very well at each game and walked away with a prize from almost every one. it also probably helped that you were now adults with disposable income and could pay to participate in as many games as you wanted. jungkook had announced that he was ready to make up for his past failrures, never forgetting the summer that resulted in your silent treatment because of his inability to win you a prize. you didn't think that meant struggling to carry around your prizes within the first hour.

  now, mr. lee began setting up the ring toss for the two of you. “so, you moved back to amber valley, young lady?”

  “yes, sir. i’m running the family farm now,” you replied.

  “congratulations, bunny. that’s some hard, honest work, my best wishes to you!” mr. lee said. “you know, i always thought you two had quite a special bond, even at a young age.”

  jungkook avoided eye contact. “mr. lee, you’re kind,” he chuckled, nervously. 

  “i mean it! it fills my heart with joy to see you two here after all these years.” there was twinkle in mr. lee’s eyes as he spoke. “for some people, their universes are stitched together with unseen threads that will always lead them back to where they belong.”

  it was your turn to squeeze jungkook’s hand and neither of you said anything more, only exchanging a look.

  ***

  jungkook wouldn’t stop pouting and you weren’t sure what to do about it. it really wasn’t your fault, you couldn’t help the fact that, like most young girls, you got your growth spurt earlier than your male friend. you were a few inches taller than jungkook at this point and he was deflated to learn that you were tall enough for the rollercoaster, while he had yet to measure up.

  “sorry kid. maybe next year,” the ride attendant gave jungkook a small smile.

  you were disappointed, as well, as you and jungkook had waited nearly thirty minutes in line. all for jungkook to not be able to ride the coaster. you turned to him, who sighed.

  he said, “it’s okay, bunny. you can go on without me.”

  a part of you did want to get on the ride, especially after waiting for quite some time, but you didn’t hesitate to shake your head. 

  “no. i won’t go on without you,” you stressed, to which jungkook looked at you in shock. 

  he shook his head. “no, it’s okay. just go, we waited for so long.”

  “i said i’m not going,” you said, standing your ground.

  instead, you walked off from the front of the line, ignoring jungkook calling your name until he ran up to catch up to you. 

  “hey! what are you doing?”

  “i said i’d go with you. if you’re not there, there’s no point,” you shrugged, as if it was no big deal. “we’ll go next time. hey, wanna go see carnival man and do ring toss?”

  you didn’t wait for an answer, as you made a beeline for the ring toss booth. jungkook jogged up to you and you noticed that he was trying to hide the smile on his face.

  ***

  “jungkook. . .this is the kid’s roller coaster.”

  everyone else in the line was about half jungkook’s size, unless they were one of the parents giving the two of you a dirty look for getting on the kid’s coaster. there was no explicit rule that adults couldn’t ride the rollercoaster, but it was a very popular ride and jungkook had the privilege of cutting the line, as the two of you were given a free “fast lane” pass by mayor kim for being local small business owners.  the fast lane pass was costly and the majority of fairgoers opted to wait in the long lines.

  jungkook didn’t seem to care too much, though. “yeah, so what? you picked the giant swing and said the next ride was my choice.”

  “you’re pissing off the kids,” you whispered in a lower voice, as the attendant let out the last party from the rollercoaster. you guys were up next. “i thought you would want to do the drop tower or something.”

  “you promised me that we could go on the ride the last time we were here. remember, when i was too short?” he casually whistled. 

  “jungkook, that was, like, seventeen years ago.”

  he continued, “and i wrote it for our summer bucket list! you may have never seen it, but i was dying to go on this ride.”

  and that was how you found yourself crammed into a kid-sized rollercoaster at the very front with jungkook. with impeccable timing, it looked as though some of the boys were passing by. seokjin caught your eye first and tapped taehyung’s shoulder beside him, who then got namjoon’s attention.

  “oh my god,” you groaned, watching the three of them wave wildly at you and jungkook. 

  on the other hand, jungkook found this hilarious. he waved back and you covered your blushing face with your hands. you were already embarrassed from the cut eye given to you by the parents in line, now this.

  “have fun, lovebirds!” called namjoon, as seokjin and taehyung proceeded to take several pictures of you and jungkook from afar.

  ***

  “my tooth hurts!” you whined, shoving your cotton candy into jungkook’s hands.

  at seven years old, it was on the later side for you to lose your first tooth. you’d been wiggling it for weeks, but cried when jimin offered to rip it out of your mouth for you. this happened just a few moments ago, before jungkook yelled at him to go back to his mommy. 

  jungkook didn’t seem bothered and was actually pleased to double fist two sticks of cotton candy. “thanks bunny!” he ignored your complaints and happily continued snacking away.

  this was the first year that you and jungkook were permitted to roam around without adult supervision - kind of. as long as you were in vicinity of ten year old hoseok, who was sitting on a bench and playing on his gameboy advance, the two of you were free to play together.

  “this isn’t fair, i’m not allowed to eat anything,” you huffed. your grandfather warned you that any sort of sweet will just hurt and you were better off enjoying other parts of the festival.

  “don’t tell my parents, they said i could only have one cotton candy,” jungkook said, as he observed your sad appearance. “why do you look like that?”

  “like what?”

  “you look sad. it’s ugly on you,” jungkook mindlessly commented and you flicked his arm. “ow!”

  you glared at him. “don’t call me ugly!”

  “i said looking sad is ugly on you. so, don’t be sad,” jungkook replied, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

  when your expression didn’t change, jungkook sighed and looked over to where hoseok was sitting. the older boy’s eyes were glued to his screen and was now joined by jimin, who was cheering him on in whatever game he was playing. then, jungkook turned back to you.

  “what?” you asked.

  “wanna go watch the magician show?” he asked, grinning. “so you can stop being sad.”

  your eyes widened, as you took your turn to look over your shoulder at hoseok. “your mom said to stay nearby! what if we get in trouble?”

  “i dare you to come with me to the magician show,” jungkook countered, knowing that was the secret word that made you do just about anything. you hated the idea of losing dares to jungkook and had yet to do so.

  you knew you were going to get an earful if you left hoseok’s sight, who was supposed to be watching over you. then, you remembered that, earlier that day, hoseok refused to let you play a level of mega man on his gameboy and decided you didn’t care if you got him in trouble.

  “okay! let’s go!” your features suddenly brightened and you let jungkook take you by the wrist - not the hand because, ew, it was jungkook - towards the other end of the fairgrounds. 

  the cotton candy had already been consumed and jungkook tossed the paper sticks into the nearest trash can, as the two of you quietly giggled about your mischievous sneak-away. 

  ***

  unlike jungkook, jiwon had no trouble tracking down her sibling at any given moment, even with the large crowds gathered for the festival. she also didn’t seem to care that her brother was in the middle of a date, as you were the one to first notice that she was dragging sangwoo by the wrist in your direction. 

  “is something wrong, jiwon?” jungkook asked and there was a tinge of annoyance in his voice at the appearance of the younger girl. the two of you were engaged in somewhat of a flirtatious conversation and jiwon’s premise immediately killed jungook’s mood.

  “hi y/n!” she greeted and then she turned to jungkook wearing a sickly sweet smile. “oppa, may i have ten bucks?”

  “i gave you twenty bucks this morning,” he raised an eyebrow at her. 

  meanwhile, sangwoo was in awe of the amount of prizes in jungkook’s arms. “woah! you guys won all of those?” at this point, there was an addition of a frisbee and a stuffed octopus. 

  “i won most of them,” both you and jungkook said at the same time, resulting in a shared glare. 

  jiwon cleared her throat. “so. can i have ten bucks, please? we wanna get cotton candy!”

  “what did you do with the first twenty bucks?”

  “we went on the teacup ride! oh, and we got rice cakes and funnel cake and actual cake,” jiwon explained and went a little too fast, so you didn’t doubt that the kids did, in fact, consume all that sugar.

  it seemed like jungkook also didn’t doubt it and while you knew he wanted to scold her, you were taken aback to find him letting go of your hand to reach for his wallet in his back pocket. he sighed and, as he was still carrying all of your prizes, merely held it out for jiwon to fish a twenty out of. 

  “only because today is the festival,” he warned and muttered a second part under his breath, “and only so you can leave us alone.”

  you also had the same feeling that jiwon and sangwoo were not going anywhere without their ultimate goal, especially since the former seemed to have the same persistence that her brother had.

  “thank you, i love you!” jiwon declared, handing the wallet back to her brother and planting an exaggerated kiss on his cheek. “thank you, thank you! we’ll leave you alone now!”

  the pair scurried off together, as sangwoo also yelled out his thanks. they ran through the crowd together, giggling amongst themselves. when jungkook took your hand again, you were still lost in thought, watching the two purchase cotton candy from far away. sangwoo handed the first stick to jiwon and the two talked with one another, cheerily enjoying their treat.

  “don’t get me wrong, making sure jiwon is eating healthy is important to me, but today’s the fair. it’s special for her and sangwoo like it was for us, might as well let her off the hook for today.” he noticed you watching them and followed your stare. “they’re cute, aren’t they?”

  “they are. how long have they been that close?”

  “since they were born, basically. they’re always with each other,” jungkook shook his head.

  “do you think jiwon has a little crush?” you wondered aloud, as jiwon shoved sangwoo playfully for whatever joke he might have had made. 

  jungkook asked, “did you?”

  he was referring to the two of you as kids, as it was clear that your shared wistful stares at jiwon and sangwoo were a product of looking back at your own childhoods. two best friends that stood by each other’s sides at all times and grew up together. you had to admit, you saw your and jungkook’s reflections when you looked at jiwon and sangwoo. 

  upon hearing the question, you rolled your eyes. “you wish, jeon jungkook.”

  but, you weren’t entirely sure. adults joked that you and jungkook would grow up to marry each other, just from watching you two play chess or ride horses together. there was a magnetic force that naturally stuck the two of you together, from day one. you cared deeply for jungkook before you could have a comprehensive understanding of what it was like to have love for someone beyond your family.

  “pretty sure i had a crush on you. that’s probably why i was devastated when you stopped coming to the valley,” he casually mentioned, but you turned to him in surprise.

  “were you really?”

  “yeah. you were my closest friend.”

  “i’m sorry,” you said. “you were mine, too. i just thought you would forget about me, i guess. then, i don’t know - “

  jungkook cut in, “- we grew up. that’s what happened, it’s okay.”

  that was the reality of life. it was sad to look back on, but it was overshadowed by the incredible forces that brought you and jungkook back together. never, in a million years, would you have ever imagined standing in the middle of the amber valley midsummer festival with jeon jungkook ever again. 

  “ever since i came back, you became my closest friend again. even with all the weird stuff going on between us,” you admitted the last part with the roll of your eyes.

  although you were just teasing, jungkook’s expression turned serious. “hey, i am sorry about that. but, honestly. . . “ he sighed. “like you said, we became close friends again. and so fast, too.”

  “it got confusing, didn’t it?” you asked, looking at your feet. “when things seemed like it could be more, i kept trying to convince myself that, you know, this is just how we are. we’re friends, this is how we act and nothing more.”

  “you read my mind. you really did,” jungkook said, looking at you with a surprised expression. “i think i always knew, though. from the moment i saw you again.”

  you thought back to the first time you met jungkook again. you remembered how soft his hands were and how he managed to make you smile on one of the worst days of your life. that was just jungkook, though, and his way of bringing sunlight into your life, even when it was raining. 

  “i. . .i think i knew, too. but, i thought you just saw me as the little girl who used to play with you in your backyard.”

  he shook his head. “i thought you had so much on your plate. and, well, i’ll admit, i’ve had trouble even considering a love life since becoming jiwon’s guardian. she’s always come first in my life before anything else.”

  “i don’t blame you, i can’t imagine what the past few years have been like for you,” you said. “but, you were a tad bit stupid. let’s be real.”

  jungkook snorted. “yeah, i know i was stupid. believe me, the last thing i wanted to do was fully push you away. my childhood best friend came back into my life and i had to confront that she was now a strong, beautiful and incredibly intelligent woman that i had feelings for.”

  this was the first time that things were finally being said aloud and it was as if a thousand pounds was being lifted off of your shoulders. you were light, you were flying. 

  “but,” he continued. “i also had to confront that you were still my closest friend, the person who i can turn to when things go wrong. you were my friend who i laughed with and shared things with and i couldn’t lose that. i have the guys, but no one compares to how in sync we are.”

  “i know what you mean. we complement each other in this crazy way. . .” you trailed off. 

  mr. lee spoke about destinies stitched together and things meant to be. holding jungkook’s hand felt meant to be in a way that it was just natural. so did laughing with him and making him dinner and letting him do things for you, simply because he didn’t want you to do it by yourself.

  jungkook said, “do you see why i was afraid of this?” he gestured to the two of you holding hands. “if i fuck this up with you, i’ll lose both my girlfriend and my best friend. if i fuck this up with you, i’ll have let you down during a time where you just moved to a whole new town for a job with all these expectations that everyone has for you.”

  “you don’t have to be afraid of those things,” you murmured, gently placing your free hand on his arm.

  “i’m not. not anymore, when the what ifs and the idea of missing out on something good with you is even scarier.”

  suddenly, you took a look around your surroundings. it obviously wasn’t planned, but the two of you were having quite the intimate conversation just across from the face painting booth and the craft stalls. you tugged jungkook into a random corner, where there was a lone chair in between walls.

  “can you put the prizes down for a second?” you asked.

  jungkook was confused. “huh?”

  “can you put the prizes down so i can kiss you?” you commanded, giving him a pointed look. 

  then, he chuckled and without hesitation, placed your various trinkets down on the chair. you rolled your eyes with a smile and jungkook hooked a thumb on one of the belt loops of your jean shorts, using it to pull you closer. he leaned in, placing his other hand at the small of your back.

  jungkook, too, smiled into the kiss and like everything else, it felt natural. it felt like home. you melted into his arms as you always do, softly kissing back. 

  although you could have stood there forever with him, lost in his touch, you had to pull away. “you scared of that?” you raised an eyebrow.

  “shut up man,” jungkook said, but stole a quick peck from you before he let you go from his embrace.

  you thought you would never stand in the middle of the amber valley midsummer festival with jeon jungkook ever again. the world worked in mysterious ways and you were proven wrong. more so, you weren’t just standing with jungkook. you were a woman standing in the middle of the town that built your hopes and dreams. you were standing in middle of the fair that never shook off its magic, even years later. you were standing with the man who made you realize that home wasn’t just a place.

  ***

  it was safe to say that you freaked out when jungkook showed you what he stole from his dad’s tool box. you were so scared that jungkook had to beg you to not snitch on him and even threatened that he would tell your grandfather that you’d been making him help you complete your chores in the chicken coop. 

  “it’s just a pocket knife, bunny.”

  “it’s sharp! you could hurt yourself!” you hissed, stepping a few feet away from him like he had mad cow disease.

  jungkook sighed and ignored you, walking over to where your sitting spot was. this year, the midsummer festival fell on what was easily the hottest day of the summer. the heat wave was unlike any other you’d experienced so far and you were surprised that the fair was still going on. the two of you had completed just under ten minutes at the bouncy castle before you insisted you needed a break.

  the two of you had found a random tree to sit under, as you split an ice cream float to beat the heat. this is when jungkook said he had “something cool” to show you.

  you had no choice but to leave your grumbles under your breath, finding your place beside jungkook since the ice cream float was in his hand. “you’re hogging it all,” you complained and he handed it over to you.

  “are you done freaking out?” he asked.

  “what are you even gonna do with that?”

  it was as if jungkook was waiting for you to ask the question. “this.” he clicked it open and turned behind him, to the lower part of the tree of which you were leaning on. 

  your eyes were wide, as jungkook began scratching away at the wood. the first letter you could make out was “J” and you nervously looked around your surroundings. it didn’t seem like anyone was paying attention to the two of you, occupied with the festivities or trying to not pass out from the sun. 

  jungkook completed a “K” and moved on to slowly carving out your initials. “so we remember today!”

  “it’s gonna be there forever,” you sputtered. “my grandpa says that trees last forever if no one cuts them down. . .so, since our names are there, we’ll be best friends forever!”

  a toothy grin stretched across jungkook’s face. “yeah! we are. we’re going to be best friends forever.”

  ***

  considering jungkook’s victory earlier in the day, several people stopped to congratulate him throughout the afternoon. he was hard to miss and he was also just a generally well-known person around town.

  that was precisely why you were scared shitless that someone was going to recognize either of you committing vandalism. 

  “you’re covering me, right?”

  “i am, but can you hurry up?” you demanded through gritted teeth, trying to look over your shoulder to see if anyone was looking your way without looking suspicious.

  from the unassuming eye, it looked like you and jungkook were merely engaged in conversation. . .but facing the tree. you were sat cross-legged, turned to the tree as if it was another person talking amongst yourselves. instead, you were trying to cover jungkook carving into the wood.

  you shook your head. “i can’t believe our names are still on this.”

  “we did say it would be forever,” jungkook reminded you and if he wasn’t holding a pocket knife in his hands, you would’ve shoved him over.

  you always remembered that your and jungkook’s names lived on the bark of a random tree in town. there was no way you could forget the scolding the two of you received for defacing town property. 

  “what if they notice? we’re adults now, we could get charged for this,” you said.

  “then we say it was always like this,” jungkook concluded and caught your eye. “what? what are they gonna do, tell my mom and your grandpa?” 

  at that, you did let out a laugh. “i can’t imagine what they’re thinking, watching us from up there.”

  then, jungkook clicked his pocket knife close and scooted over on the grass, as he’d been blocking his work from your view the entire time. he made the initials deeper into the wood, ensuring that it wasn’t going anywhere, and added a heart around the letters. once depicting you and jungkook as friends “4ever,” it was now framed by the heart and shifted its meaning altogether. 

  “they likely made a bet about us getting together and the winner is probably rejoicing,” you suspected and jungkook nodded in agreement, snickering under his breath. 

  your hands grazed over the carved design and you thought back to the moment where the two of you first sat under the same tree. 

  jungkook said, “pretty good first date, huh? scammed some booths out of their prizes, pissed off the entirety of amber valley elementary and we vandalized town property.” he looked pleased with himself leaning against the tree and wrapped an arm around your shoulders.

  with your legs stretched out and the crime completed, you were able to relax underneath the protection of the leafy branches. “mhm, definitely a first date that i’ll never forget,” you laughed, placing your head on jungkook’s chest. 

  the two of you bought an ice cream float for old times sake and jungkook brought it closer to you, so that you wouldn’t have to move. it seemed to be a constant - jungkook doing things for you just because. just because he didn’t want you to do it yourself. just because he wanted to do something for you.

  “i have arms, you know,” you joked, but took a sip regardless. 

  he responded, unfazed, “i know.” 

  the smile the two of you shared confirmed your thoughts. whether you were kids and jungkook walked you home every time just because or you were adults and jungkook wanted to spend his whole day fixing your windows just because. that was just how he was always going to be for you.

  “well, do you know that a first date implies that there’s going to be a second date?” you decided to be bold for once, as all your anxieties evaporated when you accepted that jungkook was both your best friend and a person you held feelings for - a coexistence that you realized was possible and even exciting.

  jungkook scoffed. “second date? did you not see the tree, you’re stuck with me forever.” his joke resulted in you playfully hitting his chest. 

  “did you just curse me with some witchcraft on this tree or something?”

  “rock hard, huh?” he asked, ignoring your accusation and was referring to you hitting his chest. “trust me, i know.” jungkook flexed his arm muscles and although he was kidding around, it was quite impressive and distracting.

  “i’m totally objectifying you right now, by the way. i can admit that now, right?” you smirked. “‘cause i’ve been checking you out for months.”

  at that, jungkook genuinely appeared to be a bit sheepish, his ears first turning pink like they always do. “drink your float, man,” he insisted, using it as a tool to shut you up. you nearly choked from holding in your laugh as you took another sip, which made him laugh, too.

  you sat up slightly, but still mostly laying your body weight on your jungkook, only to crane your neck to see the letters carved onto the tree. the carving waited for you two for years to return. a part of you couldn’t believe that it was jungkook you were stealing kisses and blushing from. 

  “but, for real,” jungkook spoke, now also looking at his handy work. “a second date is nothing when the tree says you’re stuck with me. that means you’re my girl.”

  he held your chin with his free hand so that you could look into his eyes as he declared the last part. jungkook’s gaze was warm and you now understood what it was like to feel butterflies in your stomach. it was always one of those things that you read about in books and couldn’t comprehend. you understood the moon and stars and you understood economics and science. this moment with jungkook was a pair of fresh eyes that opened your heart to a feeling of completeness that felt like it had always been there. 

  “wow, you’re not even going to ask me? this is the worst confession ever,” you managed to tease, your smile failing to fight the happiness spreading throughout your body. 

  jungkook retorted, “i saw it in your eyes, you were about to ask me first. i had to beat you to the punch, you know i hate letting you win things.”

  “i think i won either way here,” you beamed, placing your head back onto jungkook’s chest. you could feel his heart beating loudly, but he didn’t seem to mind and planted a kiss on your forehead. jungkook wanted you to know how much this moment meant to him, too. 

  your first summer back in amber valley was nothing you expected. your grandfather’s last wishes for you were for you to discover nature and what it meant to make real connections with people. it was a head first journey that you embarked on, all by yourself. yet, months later, you found yourself surrounded by a family you found yourself and the beauty of a town that you thought was forever going to only live in your memories and dreams. you found belonging. 

  jungkook taught you that home wasn’t a place. home was the sunday market with friends. home was doing things you would have never imagined yourself doing, like salsa dancing and paddle boarding. home lived in watching your hard work bloom into something greater than yourself, with each harvest and each morning you spent feeding your animals. home was even a person - a horse-riding man who was unselfish at his core and loved breakfast for dinner. 

  you dreaded the end of the night, as it seemed like the midsummer festival was a blissful magic that you never wanted to end. you could have lived in this moment forever. 

  “goodnight, bunny. i’ll see you tomorrow,” jungkook said, as the two of you stood at the doorstep of the farmhouse. he leaned down and met you in a soft kiss, where he murmured a thank you against your lips for the perfect day you shared.

  there, you realized that the magic didn’t have to end. there was always a tomorrow to look forward to when everyday was a new day to fall more and more in love with your best friend. the magic in the air didn’t even have to end when the last of the summer heat turned into the first chill of autumn, amidst the shifting hues of the leaves. the magic kept you warm throughout the winter and blossomed in the springtime. 

  for the first time in your life, you no longer had to walk away from jungkook come the rain of september. when you were younger, it seemed like the magic of amber valley only existed in the warmer months. summer was a special place in your heart and the memories of your youth, but home was something that stood by you through the changing seasons.

𝐓𝐀𝐆 𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓. @shellyyy177 @myseokjinji @teddybeartaetae @jalexad @sstrongstyle @wobblewobble822 @seokout @taiwan0618 @firelcrds @xwniazx

[zyonsay]

hellooo, i loved the max verstappen nsfw hcs and alphabet! could you do some fluff hcs? especially cute moments if they are out to the public :)

Fluff Hcs MV1

Fem aligned people may read but not f3tishize my work!!

Summary: Read above! <3

Warnings: Sweet stuff, Max Emilian Verstappen

Now playing: 'Radio' by Lana del Rey

AN: Hey anon! Thanks for the request! <3

As mentioned many times before, he loves to touch you, no matter when, no matter where. Max loves brushing trough your hair or having a hand on your thigh on car rides. Your warmth and love is what he strives for. In every photo taken by the paparazzi he has an arm around you.

He adores helping you get ready. Like closing the clasp of a necklace for you or tying your tie. He’ll for example also help you shave before going out; He’s sitting on the sink, while you stand in front of him, warmly smiling at his concentrated gaze.

During his streams he’ll let you sit on his lap while he plays with his mates or he’ll let you play while he needs to go to the toilet. “Omg hello y/n!” Lando secretly loves playing with you.

Nights out are always nice with you, but he adores staying in with you too. You both will be cuddled up with blankets and Chinese take away, while jimmy and sassy sit by your legs, craving yours and Max’s body heat. He’ll put on one of your favorite movies while it pours down outside.

Before every race he’ll give you a sweet kiss, or if he already has his helmet on, he hold out his head for you to give the helmet a light pat. This became a sort of good luck ritual and he won’t race without it.

I think I’ve added this to many fics before, but I’m convinced he loves cooking together with you. You’ll be telling him the ingredients you need while lighting the stove and he’ll immediately go and get them from the cupboard. Or during the Christmas season you guys will for sure be baking loads of cookies together; though it most definitely will end up in both of you giggling and covered in flour.

Max isn’t one to post a lot about his private life, but his Instagram could as well be a fan account of you. He takes pictures of you holding Jimmy and post it with a caption like ‘Love both of them’ with cheesy emojis like a grandpa.

He loves sharing his passions with you and he’ll also happily indulge in yours. He talks about playing paddle? You make sure to come along the next time he goes to play with Charles. You like arts? By the next day there’s tickets to a Theatre night stuck to the fridge.

Showering or bathing together is one of his favorite intimate moments with you. It doesn’t have to be any sexual, he just loves the serene feeling of you rubbing shampoo in his hair or the warm water running down both of your bodies while you smile at each other. Max also loves to wrap you up in a towel after getting out of the shower/tub.

Max loves to see you interact with his two Bengal cats. The way they rub against your legs or lift their chins for you to scratch them shows him how much they trust you. Jimmy and Sassy have accepted you as part of the family, which makes him feel proud.

A habit you both picked up since the start of the relationship is leaving little notes for each other. Short messages like ‘I’m at the grocery shop. I’ll be back soon <3’ or ‘Hope you have a great day! See you in the evening.’

He definitely convinced you to wear redbull merch in public. I mean most of his wardrobe consists of red bull polo shirts. The ‘Max stigma’ is a running joke in the fandom, referring to him making you wear the merch. But it’s not like he forces you, no. You’re proud of his achievements and don’t mind showing your support this way!

[friendly-neighborhood-boricua]

[7] Kindergarten Graduation

Summary: Liam graduates from kindergarten, and another thing changes in your life.

Notes: Marauders modern elementary school AU, kindergarten teacher!James Potter x nurse!single mom!reader.

A/N(18/8/2024): GUYS I FINALLY FINISHED IT!!!!! ok maybe not really finished, I think I may continue to add to this au as I think of ideas and please please please send me ideas/requests if you have any and I'll do my best to write them :) thank you all so much for reading my silly little story, I really appreciate all the love and support you've given me, even when I take months and months to update (sorry) all my love to each and every one of you <3<3<3<3

Previous Part: You Get A Visitor in the ER This is the last one as of right now! Click here for the series masterlist

Alright it’s taken a hot second

But we’re here guys

The end of the year!! *jazz hands*

The school year, that is

Liam has been getting more and more excited for summer break as the weeks pass by

You promised him that you’d visit your dad, whom Liam hasn’t seen since he was two because he lives so far away

You and your dad aren’t exactly the closest but you get along well and your son thinks grandpa’s the funniest thing since sliced bread

And it’s about time that you visit him anyway

But first, Liam needs to get to the end of the school year

And he has! Yay!

The administration at Liam’s school likes to put on a little graduation ceremony for the kindergarteners and the departing fifth graders, and that ceremony happens to be today

And it’s as if your car knows that you have something important to do today

Because she’s just refusing to start up

The engine makes a horrid whining-grinding sound when you turn the key in the ignition, and it makes you a little nervous that the whole thing is gonna blow

So you’ve resigned yourself to finding a different way to get to Liam’s school

Side note: you have the misfortune of being very anxious to get to events quite early in an effort to make sure you aren’t late, and you’ve definitely imparted that worry onto your son

Which means you have a nervous six-year-old switching between pacing back and forth beside your useless car and wrapping his arms around your thigh in an anxious iron grip

At least you’d left your apartment early, so there’s still some time to figure out a solution

You run through the list in your head: the school is close enough to walk to but it would take too much time, Tonks and her parents are at her own high school graduation so that’s obviously not an option, Poppy is working today so she can’t pick you up, and you absolutely refuse to ask anything more of Ms. Hope since she already does so much for you with Liam

The idea dawns on you to take an Uber just as the front door to your apartment building opens

And of course, a solution on legs walks into the parking lot

(Even if you don’t like burdening him by asking for his help)

James smiles as soon as he sees you and Liam

Liam’s face also lights up like a Christmas tree as he waves enthusiastically from his spot attached to your leg

You shouldn’t be surprised when James saunters over to you both to say good morning

And you especially shouldn’t be surprised when he offers help with your car troubles

(You were terrified slightly worried when James had left the ER that you’d crossed a line when you kissed his bandaged palm, and maybe you did, but James didn’t let it change your dynamic—if anything, he was just more and more happy-looking to see you every morning, and it was hard not to let his happiness spread to you too)

You refuse James’ help at first under the guise that his hand was still healing from that cut, but he just laughed and reminded you that he’d cut himself a month ago and his hand is perfectly fine

Which is how you’ve ended up here

The hood of your car propped up, Liam peering eagerly at the engine, James in a very nice-fitting crewneck t-shirt and formal slacks poking around inside the car, and you holding the suit jacket he’s planning on wearing to shake his kids’ hands as they walk across the gymnasium floor and blushing furiously as you try not to stare at the way the short sleeves of James’ shirt fit so nicely around his biceps

You’re plenty familiar with human anatomy, being a nurse and all, but jesus christ—

After a minute or two, James hums in understanding and Liam replicates the sound, trying to look where James is looking

You do your best to school your face, and you succeed for the most part even if you can’t really get rid of your blush

James explains to you and Liam that the bearings in your alternator have broken down and you sigh deeply

He says he’d offer to fix it but—he laughs a little sheepishly—he’s not the best with cars

Still, his friend Sirius, an administrative aide at Liam’s school, is pretty good at car mechanic stuff and James could probably ask him to do it

You aren’t super keen on agreeing (again with the asking for help thing) but either way, getting your alternator fixed right now isn’t a possibility because all three of us have a kindergarten graduation to get to, Mr. Potter

James’ eyes go wiiiiide lmao but you reassure him that you have enough time to get to the school just in time if you leave now

And of course he offers to drive you both there

You accept (not like you have much of a choice) and quickly find yourself on the way to Liam’s school with Liam in the back, sitting in James’ “emergency car seat”

(He explains that he keeps a kids’ car seat in his trunk in case he ever needs to drive a kid anywhere and that this is the car seat he used to drive Liam to and from school that one time)

(You feel alarmed and then thankful and then terribly guilty when you realize you’d never even thought about if Liam was sitting in a car seat that day)

After all that hassle, you, James, and Liam finally arrive at the school building and hurry to the gym, where the ceremony will be taking place

You send Liam down the hall with James with a kiss on the forehead (James thinks about asking for a kiss himself but thinks better of it) before going to sit in the rows of folding chairs set out for parents and family members

You sit with Molly and Arthur, the parents of Liam’s good friend Ron

Arthur is very jolly and cheery at all times and Molly, while occasionally judgemental, is usually quite kind

This graduation ceremony is very abbreviated just because six-year-olds can’t sit still for four hours like they would have to if this was a real graduation

The event starts with a few quick words from Principal McGonagall about how hard the kids have worked this year and how they deserve to enjoy their time off from school

Then it’s time for the kids to walk across the “stage”, which is really just a mobile raised platform

The principal calls a name, hands the child their very own kindergarten diploma, and sends them to have their photo taken with their respective teacher

James (now with his suit jacket back on) has a wide smile on his face as he stands with the other three kindergarten teachers

You cheer for Ron with Molly and Arthur as he walks across the stage to take a photo with his teacher, and when it’s Liam’s turn, Molly and Arthur (and Ron from the side of the stage) cheer with you

When the ceremony is over, Ron and Liam come running to you, Molly, and Arthur asking if they can go to the playground across the street to play for a while

Molly and Arthur agree to take Liam and Ron while you go let James know where you’re going and that you and Liam can walk home if he has somewhere he needs to be

It’s pretty clear from the look on James’ face that he thinks that even just the idea of leaving you and Liam without a ride is atrocious lmao

He just shakes his head like it’s the most ridiculous thing he’s ever heard and promises to meet you at the playground once he’s done dealing with Draco’s overbearing parents

You laugh and nod in agreement

The playground across from Liam’s school is really fancy

The city built it pretty recently, so it’s tall with a merry-go-round and a tire-swing and metal slides that you’re sure sear children’s skin off on hot days

Liam and Ron are having the time of their lives already, and you sit with Molly and Arthur on a nearby bench under a tree

It’s easy to talk with them because they ask the same questions whenever you talk

How are you? Oh I’m good. How’s Liam doing? He’s good too. Everything good at the hospital? As good as it can be, yeah.

They’re easy to talk to but it’s difficult to relate to them sometimes

Molly and Arthur are so old they could be your parents, and they have seven kids, the oldest of which is only a couple years younger than you

But at the same time, they’re really rather cute

They’ve been married for who knows how long and they’re still so in love (even when Molly threatens to decapitate her husband)

It’s sort of inspirational in a way

Liam and Ron call over to the three of you saying they’ve found a frog under one of the slides

You sigh and get up, knowing Molly doesn’t want to see any sort of amphibian and Arthur has some back problems so he probably couldn’t bend down to see the frog anyway

By the time you reach Ron and Liam, Ron’s got the poor frog cupped in his hands, and you tell him he may want to put it down since it’s scared

Ron understands and finds a puddle to release the frog into

Molly, Arthur, and Ron end up having to leave pretty quickly

Their oldest is graduating today too and they need to make it to his ceremony, so you and Liam bid them farewell and promise to make plans to hang out over the summer sometime

James sees you being dragged by Liam towards the swings as he crosses the street towards the park

Neither you nor Liam realizes he’s there until he sits in the swing next to you

But Liam’s flying into James’ gut with the tightest hug ever as soon as he sees him

You laugh and James hugs Liam back and thinks to himself that this is just the best thing ever

He couldn’t be happier in any other place with any other people

Liam tells James about the frog and that somehow evolves into thanking him for being "the best teacher ever, not the bestest because of grammar"

(James thanks Liam for being such a good student, and Liam has the biggest smile after that)

Watching Liam talk to James makes a warm fuzz rise up in your chest

They’re just so sweet with each other :(

James is so attentive with Liam and Liam talks to James like they’re both adults and it’s just the cutest sweetest nicest thing ever

Liam decides to go searching for more frogs in the wooded park near the playground, and you and James are left watching him from the swings

It’s quiet for a little while between you and James, and James suddenly becomes starkly aware that this is the first time you’ve been alone together in the month since his ER visit

Usually you have Liam or maybe Remus, Sirius, or Ms. Hope as a buffer, but now?

Now it’s just him and you

But if there’s one thing James is good at, it’s making people feel comfortable in sorta uncomfortable situations

So he makes some cheesy joke about you being the parent of a kindergarten graduate, and you laugh along and say you couldn’t be more proud of your little boy

And just like that you two are talking like best friends again

You thank him for the kind note he wrote about Liam’s performance in school that he included in the report card from the most recent parent-teacher conference

He recommends a new kind of breakfast cereal you’d seen him buy at the grocery store a couple weeks ago

You update him on the gossip and drama between Poppy and your CNO at work

He thanks you for the black-and-white cookies you made for him as a thank-you for the oatmeal raisin cookies several months ago

You tell him about a large black dog you’d seen waltzing about in Ms. Hope’s front yard once

He asks you to check on the very-much healed scar on his palm (just to be 100% sure it’s not infected, you know?)

You laugh at his jokes and he smiles at your laugh, and eventually, you fall into a silence more comfortable than the last

Eventually, James speaks up

“Hey, um …” He sighs, unsure of how he wants to go about this. I mean, it’s fine now, isn’t it? He’s no longer Liam’s teacher; you’re no longer his student’s mom because Liam isn’t his student anymore. So it’s fine. Right?

“You alright?” you ask, brows pulled just slightly together in concern. James takes a long look into your eyes before turning and setting his gaze on Liam. Your son is crouched under a wide tree, eyes trained on the dirt and mud underneath in search of frogs.

“I … yeah, I’m alright,” James says. “I, uh … I … god, this is so much more difficult than I thought it would be.” He laughs quietly at himself in a way that’s a little too self-deprecating for you to approve of, but he starts talking again before you can comment.

“Okay.” James is firm in his resolve, but he refuses to meet your eyes as he speaks. “I—I’m gonna say something, and I’m not one hundred percent sure how you’ll react, so if I say something wrong or make you uncomfortable in any way, please—please—just tell me and I’ll never bring it up again, but I wanted to tell you how—how I’ve been feeling these past couple months and I hope you feel the same way—I think you do, but maybe I’m just reading into things—but I just wanted to say that, you know, I started to think of you as my friend when we started talking in the mornings, but as soon as I saw you at parent-teacher conferences I knew you were just the kindest, most hard-working, most beautiful person I’d ever had the honor of meeting and—and over the past year, I’ve begun to have these feelings that—but it’s been so hard because I would never ever voice them while Liam is in my class because that would be terribly unprofessional and completely unfair to you, and I just—” James heaves a breath, suddenly sharply aware of the fact that he hadn’t been breathing enough, and gasped for several deep breaths.

He looked into his lap with a self-pitying laugh. “I … sorry, I’m rambling.”

James dug the toe of his shoe into the wood chips, pushing his swing lightly. Why had he done this again? Liam was barely out of his class and he was already hounding after you. God, how desperate and creepy was that? He hadn’t even truly confessed and he was sure he’d already ruined every chance of you even talking to him again, let alone—

The crunch of wood chips made James wince. He closed his eyes, certain you would simply leave him on the swings without so much as a goodbye, until he heard your steps stop abruptly somewhere in front of him. Carefully, one eye peeked open, and he saw your ballet flats standing directly in front of his seat on the swings, facing him. He looked up.

James felt like he knew you pretty well at this point, but the face you were making was one he wasn’t familiar with at all. One moment he thought it was hope, but it would switch and look like fear next, then reluctance, then … was that excitement? Happiness? Eventually, you took a deep breath, shoulders squared and ready to speak.

“Do you like coffee?”

There was a moment of silence before James very eloquently responded, “What?”

You smiled—genuine this time, if awkward.

“I mean, if you don’t, that’s totally fine, I just … figured we could go somewhere to get coffee or—or tea, or a muffin or something before I go to work rather than just, you know, talking by the mailboxes.” You let out a meek laugh, and James feels his shoulders melt away from his ears.

“Do you like coffee?” he asks back.

“I’m a nurse—coffee is the only thing keeping me from falling apart at the seams,” you quip. James outright laughs, which makes you smile, which makes him smile.

“We can go for coffee,” he agrees. ��I know a café that has muffins and stuff that’s pretty close to the hospital if you’d like to go there. The Leaky Cauldron. Have you been?”

“Oh, yeah,” you say with a nod of recognition. “Me and Poppy went there for lunch once. They have a rather nice quiche.”

“Alright, it’s a date—”

James’ eyes widen as soon as the words are out of his mouth, and he looks at you like he’s in trouble. The same look of reluctance and a drop of fear clouds your eyes once more, and James finds he loathes it. He prepares himself for the worst.

“I want to say, before we … before we move forward, there are some ground rules.”

James nods quickly, eyes wide as he peered up at you. “Anything.”

You try to strangle the blush that creeps up your neck at that.

“Well, really only one ground rule,” you amend. “No matter what, I’m Liam’s mother first. Always. He already likes you, which is part of the reason I offered to get coffee—I would never go out with someone he didn’t approve of—but when it comes down to it, he’s always going to be my top priority. No matter what.”

James’ eyes soften, and he nods, reassured.

“That was one of the first things I liked about you,” he admits. “Liam is your son—your world—and I completely understand that. I would never ask you to change that, or to think of me before him. Never in a million years.”

James watches your shoulders relax, and you take a small, relieved breath before nodding.

“Thank you,” you say quietly. James just smiles up at you, eyes adoring. You finally allow your own gaze to roam freely over his features, to take in his nose, his eyes, his lips.

You take a step closer, knees brushing lightly against James’ where he sits. Ever so gently, you reach a hand out of your pocket to brush a stray curl behind James’ ear, and your hand lingers there, fingertips brushing against his jaw. James is about even with your sternum, and he can’t help but love with all his heart how pretty you look from this angle.

Slowly, leaving plenty of time for him to pull back, you bend at the waist towards him. You don’t stop until his lips are on yours in a small, tentative kiss. It's gentle and the two of you scarcely move. Just a simple press lasting a handful of seconds before you pull back just enough to look into James’ eyes.

It takes a second for him to come back down to Earth, but you can see the moment when he realizes what just happened because his eyes seem to glow with a radiant sort of joy that has you wanting to kiss him again just so that look never goes away. He smiles broadly, and it must be contagious because you end up smiling slightly too as you slide your palm against his cheek and he reaches a hand up to cup the back of your neck. He simply holds you there for a moment before laughing disbelievingly and bringing your lips to his again.

This is the last one as of right now! Click here for the series masterlist

[moonisagremlin]

insane. TALK TO ME ABOUT YOUR HCS!! ( if you want to) i love spanish speaking mercs in general AWGH

ASDSFGGHGFGFDDDS @bimbombimbo LET ME GO FIND MY NOTES-

okay i found them :D keep in mind this is specifically about which Spain's regions they would be from (because, well, i'm spanish). Also, let's ignore TF2 takes place between 1969 - 1971 because, well, fascist dictatorship, y'know? (it is an interesting concept to further explore, but i'm not feeling like thinking about this rn. i'll make another post i think) ALSO these are mostly based around vibes and how i'm feeling (because headcanons are supposed to be fun).

Offense:

Scout - I couldn't decide between making him Madrileño (from Madrid) or Barceloní (from Barcelona) (but I honestly would ADORE making him from Barcelona so i'm most probably going for that one). I also couldn't choose to make him a cani or a pijo. (I am now realising the amounts of spanish slang i'm saying, so let me explain it to everyone who isn't from spain:

pijo means... umm, kinda like, spoiled rich kid who is kinda mean or an idiot. and cani means, umm... adidas tracksuit, cigarettes, alcohol, horrible music taste, being completely reckless, really disrespectful in general. idk, i think it is because both these kinds of people feel like thery're the best, like, they are really "chulos" and kinda brag about being bad people. i don't know it is so hard to explain slang, let me know if you kinda got the vibe that i'm explaining please thank you)

Soldier - Castellano-manchego. I will just say one thing: Don Quijote de la Mancha. If you don't know who this is, go read the book please, it is the best piece of literature ever, thank you.

Pyro - Extremeño or Murciano. A lot of people joke about Murcia not existing or being like, a Thaumiel SCP, and also about Extremadura being kinda weird(?. honestly, even i do not know that much about it, so yeah, i just think it is funny to make the character we know the least about in canon from the places that i know are kinda weird and unkown (unknown to me at least). I think I'm also leaning for Murcia more because my grandpa was from there and that's cool.

Defense:

Demoman - Gallego. I wanted to make him from Euskalerria, but I think Galicia is more similar to Scotland (and because doing a bomb joke is childish and they're not funny. people have died from terrorism and it is not something from a century ago, this is extremely recent). Anyways, both Scotland and Galicia have really green land, similar weather conditions, amazing culture, and are really unique in general. Also because my grandpa was from there and that's really cool.

Heavy - Vasco. I also didn't make Demoman basque because Heavy fits SO much better. It's, it's the vibes, man. I imagine he would have some trouble speaking spanish because he would be from such an isolated village in an already (geographically) isolated part of Spain that he would be kinda monolingual, mostly speaking basque and knowing some basic spanish. He would be SO connected with his culture, I swear I might do more research and do a whole post about the traditions he would like.

Engie - Andaluz. Andalucia is located in the south and the people there have really good vibes honestly. I think he fits because he's so nice and welcoming, and because I also think him being loud and having such a distinct accent would be amazing. And also I think he would love singing and playing and dancing flamenco. (UGHHHH I LOVE ALL OF THIS HEADCANONS I THINK I MIGHT DO A WHOLE AU DEDICATED TO THIS AAAAGAGAHAHAHHHHHHH)

Support:

Spy - This bastard is still giving me a headache. He's too french 😭. But seriously, I cannot choose to make him andorrano (and I know Andorra is a separate country from Spain but, idk), català (because at least ONE of the mercs was going to be from where I am from, y'know?) or make him catalan but specifically from la Vall d'Aran (a region where, apart from speaking spanish and catalan, aranès, a variation of the Occitan language, is spoken). Making him from la Vall d'Aran would be CRAZY because that would mean he speaks Spanish, Catalan, Aranese, AND PROBABLY FRENCH TOO BECAUSE IT IS RIGHT NEXT TO FRANCE. That would make him (almost) PLURILINGUAL since birth, and i think that is wayyy too cool. Also, IMAGINE IF SCOUT WAS FROM BARCELONA AND HE AND SPY COULD BOTH TALK IN CATALAN AND BOND THANKS TO THAT AND- IMAGINE THE DADSPY POTENTIAL AAAHAAAHAAAAAAAAAAA-

Sniper - Canario. He would be from the Canary islands because, yes. I don't really have a reason honestly, maybe similar climate to Australia? Or, idk, i think it would also be cool to make him have some kind of latin american ancestry because a lot of people from the Canary islands fled Spain during the Civil War and ended up in places like Mexico and Argentina and stuff, so that would be cool. Or I could make him straight up latino, which would fit him honestly. I don't really know, both options are really cool.

Medic - Mallorquí/Menorquí. From Islas Baleares in general. This is because A LOT of germans go on vacation there, to the point this is a huge meme in Spain. So yeah, I think it would be funny to make him balear with german ancestry I guess. He can speak spanish, german but also catalan (because catalan is also spoken there), but he has a really strong accent and sometimes Spy and Scout need to really focus on what he's saying to understand what he means. Seriously, if you hear MY western accent and compare it with a eastern balearic accent/dialect you would say they're NOT the same language because of how different it all sounds.

Bonus characters!

The Mann brothers, possibly the Admin?... blablabla, all of those people - Madrileños (from Madrid). The Mann brothers convinced Zepheniah to buy some land in the middle of Aragón and you know what happened.

Miss Pauling - Valenciana (from Valencia). Idk i don't wanna make everyone from Madrid y'know? And also guess what language she speaks apart from Spanish :)

Saxton Hale - Same thing as Sniper, I don't really know if he should be full latino or canario with latinamerican ancestry.

Merasmus - Idk. Portuguese? Andorran? Asturiano? Navarro? I don't know. Galician would be cool as fuck tho because there are a lot of legends and myths about magic and stuff and idk, i have a book about celtic witchcraft and i could read it i think.

Woah, this is a LONG post I am sorry. I hope you learned something about Spanish culture (which doesn't only surround about paellas and flamenco, please). And I hope I do some fanfics or fanart from this AU (can I call this an AU? i don't really know). And if anyone wants to adopt these headcanons or do a similar kind of post, you have my permission (even though you don't need to) and PLEASE, tag me if you make a fanart or something similar I would LOVE to see it <333

[vendetta-if]

Hellooo, I discovered your WIP recently and AAAAAAAAAAH I’ve been obsessing over it for the past week now, it’s so good! You put so much effort into the flavour text and making the player’s choice come back into play, the MC feels so alive and I love it!

Anyways I’m sorry if this has been asked already, but what are Uncle’s and Дедушка’s opinions on the different ROs(including the poly)? Are they supportive whichever choice MC makes? Or do they have reservations over some of them?

I’ve been trying to catch up with all the asks you already answered but there’s so much content! So again I apologise if you answered this already.

Have a beautiful day<3

Thank you so much for your kind words! 💖 And no need to apologize! ☺️

For the poly for Grandpa and Luka, you can check here. 🤭 I’ll also include Viktor’s, Cara’s, and Grandma’s thoughts about the ROs because I’ve seen a few other asks asking for that as well.

Answers below the cut because they are long.

Ash

Luka: Automatic approval. He has figured out Ash’s crush on MC for a long time and if MC also has feelings for Ash, he’s this close to just tell them to kiss 😂 He knows that Ash prioritizes MC over themself in almost everything and Ash is one of the few people he trusts the most. No shovel talk is needed.

Pavel: Automatic approval. Ash is a really loyal member of the family just like their parents before them, and with their utmost dedication to MC, Grandpa knows that he’ll do whatever is necessary to keep MC safe.

Viktor: Yes! Yes! Yes! After spending a lot of time seeing the two hang out and babysitting them, he can’t help but notice Ash’s crush on MC. And he has witnessed firsthand how many times Ash has defended MC against anyone. He knows his baby will be safe in Ash’s hands and they’ll never experience heartbreak. Honestly, Viktor might be the captain of the ship 💀

Cara: She would be squealing in delight. She has noticed how hard it is for Ash to make friend and she is already happy enough that both Ash and MC can forge such a strong friendship. But them getting together… She’ll be relieved and overjoyed that her baby will finally be able to spend the rest of their life with someone who understand and love them. Ash and MC would be perfect for each other.

Alina: Not many people can impress her, but Ash’s loyalty and dedication to MC does make Ash one of the few people in that short list, and also, in an even shorter list of people she thinks would be deserving of her precious grandchild. It never fails to warm her cold heart inside every time she sees little Ash and MC play together. It is an instant approval from her.

Rin

Luka: Approval. Well, a wedding with Rin is just beneficial for both family all around and as long as MC doesn’t do it out of duty, but out of love, he’ll be more than happy. Plus, it will also make his best friend overjoyed. The only downside he can think of is that he’ll be brother-in-law with Takashi now 😂 Not that he actually minds, of course. He’ll often playfully complains about it, but he’s actually happy (don’t expect him to say it out loud though).

Pavel: Automatic approval. It’s just a very strategic wedding, tying the two families even closer through blood other than simply friendship. Pavel would be very satisfied of the union, although, he also doesn’t want MC to feel pressured to do it. He really cares about his grandchild and doesn’t want to push them too hard like he did Viktor.

Viktor: He would approve but not as readily as Grandpa or Luka. Takashi is a good guy—at least in Viktor’s standard—and he’s sure Rin is a good kid too. However, MC getting together with Rin would mean that it’s very likely they’ll get dragged into the family business. But as long as MC is happy and ready, he’ll support them.

Cara: Even she can’t deny that a marriage between a Morozov and an Aikawa is really beneficial. Personally, she’d like it more if MC can get with Ash because she knows about Ash’s feelings for MC. But as long as MC and Rin actually loves each other, she won’t have problems with it. Although, she’ll be a bit sad too in behalf for Ash.

Alina: Sure, the benefits of MC marrying Rin are good, but she cares more about what MC feels about it. After all, her own marriage to Pavel started out as an arranged one that thankfully ends far better than she expected, even if the road to there has not always been a smooth one. She wants to make sure MC actually loves Rin, and that Rin genuinely loves MC too. If so, then she’ll be more than happy for them.

Santana

Luka: Who? Oh, he thinks they at least know Santana’s father, although he has never interacted with him. Are you sure, MC? Santana is basically a nobody, not to mention, an underpaid detective and black sheep of the whole ECPD department. But seeing how in love MC and Santana are, he’d approve but not before giving a shovel-talk to the poor detective.

Pavel and Alina: Both agree that their precious grandchild deserves someone with far better prospects than a nobody detective. After making sure that Santana is not merely a high-maintenance gold-digger seeking to use MC to climb the ladder, they’ll be more receptive of them—especially since Santana is a polite and well-mannered person. But that won’t save them from a serious shovel-talk.

Viktor: He’ll be more open-minded and receptive of Santana compared to the rest of his family. He honestly doesn’t really mind Santana working a mundane job and he would be pretty impressed by their morals and how they try to stay as a clean cop, even to their own detriment. To him, Santana seems like a good, hardworking, honest, and well-mannered kid.

Cara: Just like Viktor, she doesn’t really mind Santana’s more humble background. And if MC loves them and they love MC back, and won’t try to fuck over the Morozov Family, she won’t have much problem with Santana. But to be safe, she’ll still give Santana a shovel-talk.

Skylar

Luka: Oh, hell no. MC, what the hell are you thinking? Have you not learnt from your dad’s and mom’s disastrous relationship? Luka is pretty sure that Skylar would prioritize their career over MC like Yvette, especially after learning that Yvette is Skylar’s mentor. He’ll relent if MC really insists, but he’ll keep an eye on Skylar and give them a stern shovel-talk.

Pavel: Being the child of Mayor Moore is certainly good. Moreover, their family is one of the richest in the city. But still, it’s barely enough to make Grandpa ignore the fact that Skylar is a superhero, and Yvette’s protégé too. He will certainly use his power to interrogate Skylar until they have nothing left to hide, and by then, if he judged that Skylar won’t hurt, betray, or break MC’s heart, and will always prioritize MC over their career, then he’ll reluctantly approve.

Viktor: Oh, this is complicated. What are the chances that his ex’s protégé getting together with his child? He’ll certainly be wary, even if he’s all charm and smile on the outside, constantly asking Skylar prodding questions in a disarming way. Might get charmed a bit back by Skylar, especially once they talk about both of their interest in photography. But once he saw that Skylar is actually different from Yvette, he’ll approve and be genuinely friendlier to Skylar, but that doesn’t mean they won’t get a shovel-talk from him.

Cara: MC, get behind her! Is this some kind of trick from Yvette? Was Yvette the one who introduced Skylar and MC to each other and tried to get them together? That cruel witch! Is she trying to make MC experience the same heartbreak she dealt to Viktor? Even after it has been proven that Skylar is different from Yvette, she’ll still be a bit suspicious, holding her breath for something that might not happen.

Alina: No, no! Skylar could be the child of the President for all she cares, but she won’t risk her beloved grandchild experiencing the same heartbreak that her son felt at the hands of Yvette, who also happens to be Skylar’s mentor?! After MC talks to her about how much they love Skylar and how Skylar also love them back, she’ll reluctantly approve because she wants MC to be happy. But she’ll always be on a lookout. Skylar won’t be able to charm her.

Ash/Rin Poly

Luka’s and Grandpa’s reactions are linked above 😁

Viktor: It is a pretty unconventional arrangement, that’s for sure. But if MC, Ash, and Rin are all okay and happy with it, then he’ll be happy as well. After all, his precious kid deserves to have two people who would love them fully and look out for them for the rest of their life.

Cara: Well, holy shit. This is such a perfect arrangement. Everyone’s happy, including her. Her child can still be with the person they love the most and who understand them, and that’s enough for her. Although, it still feels surreal that she’ll technically be sister-in-law with Takashi now. Well, she’ll prove she’ll be the cooler and more fun grandma to MC’s kids later on 😎

Alina: After making sure MC is happy with the arrangement, she will feel relieved. Everyone’s happy and get what they want at the end, and most importantly, she knows her beloved grandchild will be in good hands. Now, she hopes she can live long enough to meet her great grandchildren. A big, happy family is all she ever wanted.

[jazzjlan]

ok look, this has been scratching my brain the past few days and i had to let it out, fair warning though it's not THAT shocking it just fascinates me and i was going insane as the damn linebeck stan i am

midway through this blog i just checked the zelda wiki and hyrule historia again and found out 100 years passed since then, so just a small warning this is all BEFORE i found out about the 100 year gap between the games, and theory's rather going with the more "logical" 70-80 years

This is basically related to Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks, and specifically Linebeck himself. Based on some rambles of mine one random night at 4 am, with no prior research but facts from Hyrule Historia, and autism.

In Spirit Tracks, you come across Linebeck III, who looks very similar to Linebeck himself from Phantom Hourglass. He gives you a letter from his grandpa, which is signed "Linebeck Senior". Initially I thought; "Is his grandpa Linebeck's father? Is Linebeck this guy's dad, then?" But turns out I was wrong.

I was reading Hyrule Historia the other day (i have the french version, hence the french screenshot underneath) and it says that Linebeck III is not only Linebeck's descendant as mentioned in-game but also his grandson. Therefore, Linebeck Senior is in fact the guy we all know (and love) from Phantom Hourglass.

don't worry, i got you covered, put a translation at the top as well

But then I was confused. I asked myself; "Wait, how did Linebeck ALREADY have a grandson???"

Putting Linebeck aside, if we pay close attention to Niko, the silly hehe pirate from Tetra's crew who appeared since Wind Waker, we notice that he's aged up, from possibly a child/teen to a grandpa. I'd like to pretend Niko's around 14-15 during TWW and PH.

So if we think about it, a lot of time has passed since the events of Phantom Hourglass, let's say 70-80 years. we love you grandpa niko

Anyway, going back to Linebeck, let's say he's in his 40s, and so is Linebeck III (maybe younger, he seems like it), and if we still say that the average human life expectancy is 80 years, that means Linebeck III is born when his father's the same age, being 30-40 years old.

If we take this same pattern with Linebeck (Senior) and his child (Linebeck II), that means...

Linebeck's a father during the events of Phantom Hourglass???

i'm honestly shook over this fact idk why. it's just so funny to me to think of linebeck as a dad, seeing his personality and the way he acts and so on. i just always see him as some bitchless pathetic stinky garbage man LMAO

With whom did he even have this child? Jolene? Who knows?

Personally, I just think it's funny to think of Jolene's being after Linebeck's ass because of that child he possibly abandoned. But that's not the canon reason why she's after him, that being just pure revenge.

honestly i'd like to think of it like that it's just hilarious like "LINEBECK FOR FUCKS SAKE WHERES THE CHILD SUPPORT"

However, if we delve into the more canon timeline, being ST happening 100 years after PH, that would mean that Linebeck possibly had his child after finding land, by the end of PH. It's either that, or he could just be much older than I thought (like, maybe 60?) and he's already had his child.

and niko's old as fuck and somehow still thriving

wild

thanks for listening to my rambles baibaiii

[innerloverwonderland]

Something people argue Rhaenyra should have done to secure the throne that i don't really agree with and reasons:

1. Stay in Kingslanding:

I do think it would help, but she left because her and children were in danger thanks to Alicent, and the green faction. It wasn't uncomum for the heir to live in Dragon Stone, specialy when there not expecting a betrayal. Though, i believe she should have kept someone of her trust there.

2. Become Hand of the King:

She really shouldn't have let Viserys appoint Otto as Hand again, but also don't think she should be appointed. The Hand is truely the most important advisor of the king, and the person who rules when the king can't, Rhaenyrah doesn't have the knowlegde nor the experience to be Hand. As heir she already has space in the counsel, all Viserys had to do was make her part of it, she didn't need that position to be aware of how to rule, she needed her daddy to fucking care for her position.

I think she should have persuade Viserys to appoint Daemon as Hand. Say what you want about him, but Daemon has far more knowlegde and experience than Rhaenyrah, and is devoted to her. He is capable and has their house's interests as priority, he'd be able to keep the greens and Alicent in check.

Or, if don't trust Daemon to not grab the throne, she should've pushed for Corlys. He's her childrens grandpa, has interests in making her queen, and is smart enough to know how to keep the kingdom in check. House Velaryon is one of her best allies, it'd made sense to have the head of it as an advisor.

Also, as being crowned she could keep then as Hand, which would help the transition from her father to her. And give her someone trust worthy in Kingslanding when she was at Dragons Stone, before Viserys died.

3. Made more marriage alliances:

Honestly, i think the fandom puts too much trust in this, and ignores other kinds of alliances. For one, they're not that trust worthy in reality (as seen in the Red and Purple Weddings), there's no telling that House Baretheon wouldn't betray her if Luke married one of the girls. Same goes for other houses. As queen there's whole lot more she can offer than her kids: tittles and land, and money, and whole lot more.

Second, most of her children were really young, we'd have either a child marriage, with no consumation, so annualment was right there, at anytime, or a bethrone, which doesn't mean all that much, it can undone very quickly. Of course it would be proposed by other house, because who doesn't want their blood on the throne, but it wasn't the saving grace for the Blacks as it's made out to be.

I do think marriage between the Targaryen lines could have been usefull, to concentrate the power. Letting outsiders who have interest in taking her throne in would just lead to same Alicent/Hightower drama.

3. Lack of allies:

Most of the great house were with her, she didn't lack support, what she lacked was: presence in Kingslanding, and money. She had armies and men and support and dragons, but you need more that to rule. Having support of some other houses would help, but that didn't stop her from reigning.

(That's it for now :) might think of more and make another post later, sorry for the typos)

[almdragonrend]

I have somthing I really need to say, I don't get how FL could be popular, I mean if you think for a moment about it even OG Katarina is morally superior to the Heroine in Maria and all The Capture Targets in the story, I mean nothing against an Evil protagonist or a good antagonist, but than don't portray Katarina as a Villain and Maria as a hero ! That's wrong! Katarina leaves Maria completely alone in both the Nicole and Alan route, meaning she only opposed Maria when she's trying to seduce HER fiancée or mess with her family or do both in the Harem route!

Than the fact that she's accused of bullying those bellow her station is bulls* she only bullied Maria who I just said why she did it and Keith whose arrival at HER HOME turned HER PARENTS against eachother when she was a Child! That doesn't make it right but she couldn't know that this wasn't his fault, and his own original family wanted to kill him! Luigi saved his life and that's how he thanked him ?

than Geordo she gave almost half her life up to that point in complete support and devotion to that mother fu* and he swore an Oath to marry her! I don't think many people get how bad a possible future king breaking an Oath is especially considering Geordo's Grandpa's actions,

further more Katarina actually don't mistreated dose below her status, first her Maid Anne who despite being related to Nobility is herself a Commoner just like Maria and Katarina even in FL verse treats her like a Sister more than a servant!

Next there's Sianna, she's the bottom of the barrel of Nobility and still Katarina cherished her more than anyone else! This makes the claim of her bullying people for their status down right nonsensicaly!

Especially when she's the only one who never partake in bullying everyone's favorite Target Sophia Ascart, since we see in VOD is never once mentioned that she did so when Sophia joined her book club, that would have had to be brought up than ! Meaning is the only Noble Girl who didn't bully Sophia! (Except Marry) and it's even implied she discouraged others from bullying Sophia!

When Bakarina in verge of doom just assumed OG Katarina bullied more people and wanted to apologize during VoD judgment event no one spoke up! And that Is most likely because she never bullied anyone other than the Girl who tried to steal her fiancée and/or shame her family!

Also, it's said that Katarina's bullying was only on the very edge of Criminal, meaning she never really committed a crime, the one attacking Maria with fire was Noelia, who acted on her own accord!

Keith and/or Geordo basically rigged the Trial to get Katarina stripped of her status and exiled which is a way to hard punishment anyway! When she comes back with dark magic she didn't even kill someone for it! She just had it !

And that idiots in the development team must have believe that this made her appear more evil since she's just born with the "bad magic" but instead it just means she didn't kill anybody for it ! Right OG Katarina is not a murderer and the idiots of the FL development believed Katarina being NOT a murderer makes her more evil than people who literally commit murder to get the same magic! what does that say about their Character ?

I heard a lot about people saying something for a Original Katarina redemption arc and I really hope she gets an happy ending, she deserves it but what people need to understand is Original Katarina dosen't need an redemption arc because she has not done anything so bad that she deserved getting to that point anyway, instead she deserved a pretty enormous apology from Geordo, Keith and Maria

To give her a redemption arc basically means recognizing Maria, Geordo and Keith, Cheating, betraying,Oath breaking and manipulate a Chords to commit prejudice as a good thing, Original Katarina shouldn't have to apologize to them! They should have to apologize to her! Even when something like that calls for ways more than an apology! And first of all her entire sentence should be revoked !!!! + there has to be compensation for everything she had to go trough!!!

[xiaojunsdino]

….::::•°✾°•::::…. textbook (love) notes

Ten and Kun were in your room as the three of you put on the final touches on your costumes. Kun sported grey shorts and an unbuttoned cheetah print cardigan, holding a large plastic bone. Ten was ruffling up Kun’s hair, putting gel in it to seem more ‘barbaric’.

“You know if you stood still this would go a lot faster!” Ten huffs, having trouble holding Kun in place.

“I would, if your tie stopped touching me!” Kun squirms away from Ten’s tie, swinging towards Kun’s bare chest.

Doing your makeup at your desk, you turn around. “Guys it’s not that serious, lets calm down,” you roll your eyes and pick up a tube of lip gloss.

“Well, if grandpa here wants to find a date, he needs to look sexierrr,” Rolling the r, Ten pulls away from Kun and makes a cat paw gesture. His tie is hanging loosely around his neck, the lack of a shirt underneath puts his tattoos on full display. His black dress pants hang loosely around his hips, the hem nearly covering his black Doc Martens.

“Dude I’m literally a caveman, how the fuck am I supposed to look sexy?” Kun narrows his eyes and looks to you for support.

Ten steps back towards Kun, pouting. “You’ll look sexier if you let me help you…”

Kun rolls his eyes but is clearly smiling. “Yeah alright man, sexify me.”

You can’t help but smile at your friends, knowing that this is going to be a good night.

~~

“I know I tease you a lot Kun but damn, you know how to parallel park” Sitting in the back seat of Kun’s jeep, Ten leans forward to talk to you and Kun sitting up front.

Kun puts his car in park, smiling a bit. “Thanks man, that’s really nice of you.”

Dreamily, you sigh, “I’m just excited to go and meet my library lover.” You open the car door and brush out any wrinkles on your suit.

Kun looks over quizzically, “what did you say was your plan again?”

Although the three of you had been walking toward the large frat house, adorned with many string lights, you stop in your tracks.

“Y/n, don’t tell us you don’t have a plan…” Kun trails off. You can tell that Ten is trying to stifle his laughter.

Frustrated, you let out a groan. “It’s so annoying when you act like a mom but I’m not supposed to call you that,”

Kun smirks. flicks the back of your ear, and holds your left hand. “You can just text him silly.” Ten then stands to the right of you and holds that hand, “Besides, you know that Xiaojun is always an option.” He wiggles his eyebrows, causing all three of you to burst out laughing.

Still giggling, you mutter, “yeah ok ok I’ll text him.”

~~

An hour later, and library lover still hasn’t read your text. You’re fine (lie) and are enjoying your time at the party (another lie). In need of some air, you wave to your friends across the room and weave your way through the crowd of bodies to the backyard. There is not a lot of activity outside, likely because of the late summer heat. Seeing that the pool is empty, you decide to sit on the edge. You step out of your heels and your feet immediately feel relief. You lean back on the palms of your hands, close your eyes and deeply sigh.

And then you hear footsteps approaching, breaking your peace. You whip your head around and give the approaching person your meanest glare, only to immediately falter. Xiaojun stands tall in his suit but fidgets with his clothing, a reaction from your death stare, you think.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb your peace, y/n,” His eyes shift to the side, and he starts to turn around.

You sit up straight and feel panic creep down your spine. “Sit with me.” You surprise yourself, the way the words sounding more like an order than a request. And seemingly, you surprise Xiaojun as well. And yet, he takes off his shoes and socks, rolling up the hem of his slacks to sit beside you on the cement.

After a few beats of awkward silence, you turn your head to him to speak. “I thought I would see you more, but Ten just had to be a shitty boyfriend,” The way that Xiaojun sucks in a breath, you wonder if that was crossing some sort of line, not that any were established.

“Well, I guess we can fix that now? I don’t know anything about you.” His glossy lips form a slight smile, making your heart (and pussy) flutter.

“We can start with the most basic college question. Year and major?”

The next half hour is spent getting to know each other. You learn that he is a third year behavioral science student, he makes music, and that Yangyang has been his best friend since 2018. A small voice in the back of your head says that this sounds familiar, but you push that voice away as you talk about Moominvalley.

“- and even though it’s a kids show, its so charming and love it so much. Not to mention, the acts of love in the show are so pure and it makes me wish for something like that.” You look over at Xiaojun to see him staring at you, embarrassment floods your body. “Ah, sorry. I was rambling, forget I said anything.” You put your hands over your face and internally scream. You keep finding new ways to embarrass yourself in front of this hot man you barely know.

But then you feel soft hands pull yours down. Xiaojun’s holding your hands between the two of you and whispers, “I think it’s cute when people talk about things they’re interested in. It shows that we’re all human, you know?” If you hadn’t already fallen in love with him outside the student store, you would have now.

“I think I want to kiss you,” he murmurs, eyes locked on your lips.

You suck in a breath, “then kiss me.”

You both lean in, lips meeting in the middle. His lips only brush yours at first, seemingly testing the waters. You kiss back with more pressure, giving him permission to do more, and that was all it took for Xiaojun to put one hand around your waist. He brings you closer to him, feeling the bare skin on your lower back. Your hand comes up and tugs his impossibly soft hair, needing to feel more of him. Xiaojun tries to hold back his groan, but a small noise escapes his open mouth. The sound sends tingles all over your body, and you slip your tongue in, making him groan again. You aren’t thinking when you take his free hand and put it over your clothed tits.

And then the sound of a door slamming shut pulls you and Xiaojun back to reality.

・❥・chapter 16!

・❥・masterlist!

・❥・prev! next!

・❥・taglist: @yang4ever, @phenomenalgirl9, @222low, @blondiedae

AAHHHH when i went to look over the writing for this chapter, i was scared it was going to sound like bad wattpad but i was rereading it and it was lowkey bomb. like if someone else wrote this and i read it, i would be giggling and twirling my hair ・❥・

[shitpostmontgomery]

Ancestral Tips for Obstructing Fascists

The progressive backlash to "It's always correct to punch a Nazi" watered down the fact that it is, actually, always correct to punch a Nazi. Now Nazis are emboldened and think that they're Winning(tm). We didn't punch hard enough in 2016 and now it's going to actively be dangerous to do so, thanks to the Fascists supporting the police in a bi-directional agreement.

So, here are some tips I got from my Grandpa on how to Gleefully Obstruct Fascists (GOF), Tips from a WW2 Vet (who was raised by a WW1 vet, and whose son fought in Cambodia to take down the Khmer Rouge. We got a lot of military history in this family but let's focus on the important stuff).

Take Care of Your Safety Remember how a lot of Trump voters smiled to your face, agreed with you, promised to vote for Democrats, and then straight-up lied because they privately voted how they wanted? Yeah, you need to stop being naive and try it yourself. Especially when your safety is at risk. If you're Queer, Pagan, Gay, Progressive, at work No You're Not. Yes sir, no sir, three bags full sir, the most helpful little idiot you can possibly be. There is a time and a place to feel safe but the public isn't your community, and being 'Out' doesn't mean being public. Public isn't safe anymore. It isn't safe anymore.

Don't Sell Out Your Comrades Just because you're pretending to go along with it, doesn't mean you get lazy and actually just go along with it. My ancestors who went behind enemy lines risked their lives, they didn't magically become Nazis and genociders while they were there. They kept helping while they were behind the lines; they supported their comrades, looked the other way instead of reporting to the 'authorities', and Obstructed.

Fascists are Sloppy, Even When They Look Slick Take a look at your local fascists. Do they know their history? Their Geography? Their Science? How things work under the hood? Of course not. You do. So when they ask you to grease the machine? Apply glue. 'Accidentally' lose paperwork that will get people deported. "Sorry sir, I didn't see it happen" when they try to get you to be a witness to something that shouldn't be a crime. "They were right here the whole time", and "They're with me, officer". Vote in the local elections, the council elections, the state elections, the senate elections. Attend everything, record everything, download and print everything that's important to you.

This is a Great Time to Be Autistic (Unless they go full Eugenicist, in which case you may have to mask for your safety. See point #1). For those who can't successfully GOF while behind enemy lines, be annoying. Lean fully into your desire to nitpick. Ask for specifics, and documentation, every time. Ask for the names of people approving things. Get the transcripts. Insist on full due process, and act offended if the fascists try to waive the process. If they want to change the process, insist on following the process required to change the process. Grind activities to a halt with consultation meetings, amendment meetings, board meetings, review meetings, 'just one more thing before we go', and inviting every man and his dog to those damn meetings so 'everyone has a say! :)'. You ALL know how infuriating it is when managers engage in groupthink and nothing actually gets done, so you know how to weaponise it. And if the approval meeting fails by even one vote, one error, one technicality, let it fall. Due process is due process. If they want to ruin your life make them goddamned work for it. Many of them won't.

Make it Expensive Inconvenience is also financial. They'll gut your healthcare, skyrocket your food and your rent, and generally make it hard to live, so feel free to return the favour. If you're a mechanic, it's your duty to only fix one thing at a time when their car is in the shop. If you're a grocery store worker, now is a great time to get their orders wrong. Misplace their chocolate bars, substitute their bread for tortillas every time. No shampoo, just bars of soap. If you know who your local Fascists are, you know who isn't getting the family and friends discount. Who doesn't get the extra portion of chips for free. Who no longer get your casseroles, who get charged to have a plumber visit their house but 'can't find the blockage', and whose electricians suddenly realize that a LOT of wiring needs to be replaced for safety reasons. Pull the fire alarm for the oil and gas company buildings, just casually. Waste their money, waste their time. If Fascists want community they should have earned it. We live in a society, and society is pissed.

Plan Your Workarounds Fascists like to screw everyone over, so you will be inconvenienced as well. Stock up on Plan B, medications, and masks. Get your hand sanitizer and disinfectant cleaning materials. Clear your devices of any tracking apps like the ones for your period, your health, your sleep, and your location. Memorize the names and numbers of attorneys who will help you if you get arrested. Find the organisations mobilizing to get people access to abortions and healthcare. Print hard copies of your voter registration, your identity documents, and union affiliations. Stash some cash for the possibility of banks going down, even temporarily. Leave sites like X and Facebook, and stop engaging with family/friends who you don't trust to keep you safe. They will rat you out, they will get you arrested, and they'll laugh about it. Prepare for natural disasters to hit your home, because you can't trust the government to save you. Get your tea candles, matches, and terracotta pots for arctic blasts, and get your USB-powered condenser air conditioner units with a high-capacity powerbank (solar powered, ideally) for heatwaves. You'll want high quality masks for poor air quality, bottled water, and a plan in place to evacuate. Find the sites that allow you to monitor conditions for yourself; the state probably won't tell you until it's too late.

Boycott Every time a boycott has been applied en masse, it's worked. Did you know that the term was based on the time it happened in Ireland? How Tumblr's stocks tanked so hard Yahoo was forced to sell, and it became useable again? How Starbucks desperately started donating money to Gaza in an effort to get customers to return? How Macdonald's is scrambling to lower prices to get people to come back? How fuel prices dipped every time there was a lockdown because if nobody buys gas, the gas producers panic? Find a way to work without gas. No more financial support to big corporations that funded this nightmare. No more Coca-cola products. No more Cadbury products. Avoid Unilever, shun Nestle, BP, Santos, you name it. Stop buying fast fashion. Block Shein, Temu, and all that trash from your devices. Stop supporting the celebrities who turned their backs on you. Merchandise is tacky, and so is rewarding people for throwing you to the wolves. I know it's a lot of work. I know it'll be hard, but surviving is the most important part right now. Survive, get through it, and make the Fascists so frustrated and demoralized that they give up. We are more tenacious than them. We are smarter than them. We are kinder than them. We can support each other through this and if they want a crumb of the love we possess for our neighbours they'll need to start pitching the fuck in.