#the earth tries to reclaim us too soon sometimes

[batrachised]

Going to jump on the please-read-Rebecca campaign!! I didn't realize you hadn't! She's a very British version of Shirley Jackson imo--slightly queer vibes, anthropomorphic houses, incredible prose voice, claustrophobic female POV--I think you'll really like it!

@no-where-new-hero

oh ho! you inspired me to go get rebecca from my library today, so I am now the new possessor of that and The Mill on the Floss, very excited to begin!

I will say, as someone who spent the whole morning doing yardwork, reading the first chapter of rebecca was chilling for entirely different reasons than the author intended - here I am thinking "man that's gonna be a lot of work to clean out" 😭

[butter--peanut]

Could we have the pov of the goddesses watching over Kakashi/Obito? Would be so interesting!

I loved this request. Yes, here, for you!

Kamui Blues prompt request #7 (previous requests), goddess pov. (and possibly a reveal of the biggest easter egg hidden in the fic). ~650 words, g rated.

She wasn’t prideful. When her temple had burned, with all written knowledge of her destroyed and all verbal knowledge discarded, she had felt no fury for the outcome, no dismay but for the anguish she could feel in the minds of her true believers. Worship had come to her by accident rather than design; from nomads noticing too many moments of fortune and connecting these coincidences. Now that no worship remained, she was free of their prayers, their dreams, their blame when these dreams were not realised. Free to wander the earth, in human form sometimes, when the impulse hit her.

She wasn’t prideful, but she did play favourites, and oh, she loved to play. The Uchiha had always drawn her close, their emotions bubbling near to boil, flipping one minute from passion to rage to despair. She held a different set of morals to mortals, and she cheered their tears as much as their laughter: the goal, always, to feel deeply. She told the Sage that he’d fathered one interesting son and one cheerful bore. He grumbled like a deity Millenia older than his real age. (She was much older than chakra, although she learnt to play with this new energy too, linking it to emotions in her favourite family, making pretty patterns in their red eyes.)

She played favourites, but one day two favourites played her. They tugged on her incorporeal heartstrings and widened her all-seeing eyes and made her breath catch when she didn’t need to breathe. Gods cannot intervene directly, but within the scope of her abilities, she helped them. Where before she welcomed any outcome, now she wished for their love to last, despite all trials, despite the world. She gave them the same gift that she had, of feeling and connection, and she gave them space when they needed it.

They played her, and they changed her, just as much as she changed them. After they returned to the world they fought to fix its injustices, and by the time they passed she saw humanity differently, truly felt for their suffering. As a god she could not directly intervene, but in human form, with human limitations, she was free to write the score just as they could. She walked the earth and tried to live what they had taught her, though the goal remained, as always, to feel deeply.

She had longed for them to return, as people touched by gods sometimes did, but not like this. Not with their tragedy worse and their torment tearing them apart so soon after they had been drawn together. Not with one tipped so deep into loathing and the other to self-loathing. But because she knew what their love could become, she kept her faith. In human form she cleaned up after the damage left by one of them, and she hoped that somehow, like before, they would find their way back to each-other.

And they did.

She watched as they reclaimed their shared space. She listened to their banter and bickering. She felt emotions transform and evolve. She witnessed their conflict and their reunion. She rejoiced as they returned to the world, reunited and, like before, determined to fix what went wrong. She shamelessly cheered their kisses. She felt their delight, their suffering, and their love, as they once more came to understand what it meant to feel deeply.

She wasn’t prideful as a god, although she would sometimes feel pride when thinking of all she had achieved while human, using none of her skill as a deity. But whatever the form, she played favourites. These two had helped her to feel true compassion for others, and now she helped them in turn to fix their world. They didn’t know her true form, and they never would.

That would take the fun away, and she did love to play.

[sloppyplanetary]

Holding On to Fate, Chapter One

rating: mature (smut later), pairing: rick sanchez/morty smith, tags: memory loss, angst, summer knows, intergalactic road trip, content warnings: drinking, puking implied,

Morty groaned, face contorting into a grimace as he slowly woke up to a pounding headache. Sleep dragged at his eyelids, protesting the morning light shining through his bedroom window. He really didn't want to wake up- he was having such a good dream. The dream was already fading from his memory, but the warmth of a body, the feeling of security, and lingering rough fingers drawing patterns on his back remained, a much better alternative to Morty's current dry mouth and throbbing head.

But, all good things must come to an end. His mom opened his door and softly called his name.

"Morty? You awake?"

He rubbed his face and cracked open his eyes begrudgingly. "Barely." 

Beth's brow was pinched, face displaying a rare level of concern. She opened the door wider, and spoke quietly. "Hey, if you want to take today off from school, you can." She paused, seeming to debate her next words. "You don't have to talk about it. But remember, I know how it feels." 

Morty held in a snort as she left the room. He doesn't remember much of anything that happened last night, but his hangover made it obvious. Of course she knows how it feels, with all the wine she drinks. 

Morty felt a wave of bitterness. It was nice of her to not bug him about school, but she didn't even question why her sixteen year old son got drunk last night. Wait- why did he get drunk? He tried to remember what happened yesterday, but was hit with a fresh wave of nausea, barely jerking out of his bed and into his bathroom on time. 

Fifteen minutes later, he padded downstairs with a freshly brushed mouth in search of advil. The family was seated at the kitchen table, and their conversation abruptly stopped as soon as he rounded the corner. They all looked up at him, Summer off of her phone. 

"W-what?" Morty demanded, his patience wearing thin from dealing with his pounding head.

Summer raised her eyebrows. "Surprised you're still here."

"Where else would I- would I be? Mom gave me the day off of school." He took a seat across from Summer, noticing for the first time how big the kitchen table was. Surely they didn't need that many chairs- it was only the four of them, after all.

She opened her mouth to reply, but was cut off by Beth hissing her name. Summer shot her a glare, and Jerry, sensing the rising tension, spoke up. 

"Well I, for one, am glad you're okay, you’re doing okay. Have some pancakes,” he said, gesturing to the stack on the table.

Morty glanced between Beth and Summer, who were still having an argument through facial expressions only, but he was too tired to deal with this. He grabbed a few pancakes and started eating them, tuning out the room. His mind wandered back to yesterday, trying to grab onto the last thing he remembered, but his head still hurt too much. Suddenly, the chair next to him being empty made him uneasy. He really just wanted to go lay back down and nap. Sighing, he pushed his half-eaten plate away and stood up.

“Wait,” Beth said. She went to the kitchen and returned with a blue gatorade and two small pills, holding it out to him. “Take these and drink this, it’ll help.”

Morty stared at it, a pit in his stomach telling him not to drink it, the color making his head swim worse. “Do we have any other flavors?”

Beth retracted her hand in surprise. “This is your favorite type. It has been for years.”

“Sometimes thing just- they just change,” Morty replied with a shrug.

Beth nodded and switched it out for a purple one. This time, Morty accepted it, and chugged half of it in one go. “Thanks, Mom. I’m going back to bed.” He slowly made his way back up the stairs, pulled his curtains shut, and fell into bed, only to land on something hard. He shook his blanket out to discover a strange small metal flask, the sight of which triggered another throb of his head. The empty flask got tossed across the room into the dirty clothes pile, and Morty finally laid down, sleep quickly reclaiming him.

*****

Morty still couldn’t remember what happened that day, and it made him a bit uneasy, but he wrote it off as getting black-out drunk. His headache faded, and he was back at school, going through the classes on rote. His nights were spent playing video games and watching t.v., but the feeling that something was missing from his routine lingered each night as he tried to sleep. Sleep was hard to come by, and his dreams kept repeating, fading as soon as he woke up but leaving those same feelings of comfort.

Summer was back to normal, Jerry was Jerry (albeit seeming happier for some reason), but Beth seemed like she was constantly tip-toeing around Morty. Her bottles of wine still made appearances at night, and occasionally, Morty would be the cause of an abrupt conversation end just by showing up in the room. It was frustrating, but he tried to ignore it.

One night, Beth cornered him, already a few glasses of wine in. "Listen, I know you don't want to talk about Rick leaving, but it hurt me too. At least he told you to your face, instead of leaving a note."

"What? W-who?" Morty asked, suddenly lightheaded.

Beth just laughed, an airy laugh that felt out of place. "Right. 'Just don't think about it'." She patted his head and walked off, still giggling.

Morty shook his head and retreated to his room. Beth's confusing behavior was worrying him a bit, and he had no clue who she was talking about, but his recurring minor headaches were worrying him more at the moment. It seems like they randomly come and go, without any obvious reason, and he was sick of it.

As he sat on his bed, his eyes landed across the room on the strange silver flask he found in his bed. His headache worsened, but this time he was angry, and stomped across the room the grab the stupid thing. He jerked it up and a splash sounded- it wasn't completely empty like he thought it was.

Curiously, he screwed open and sniffed it. It didn't smell like any alcohol he's ever smelled before, or anything familiar at all, really. It smelled like a thousand things that he's smelled before but couldn't identify now, even though he knew he hadn't. His head throbbed, but he didn't care. He had to taste it

Morty pressed his tongue to the opening and tilted it up, just looking for a drop. He quickly moved his tongue and chugged the rest of the flask when liquid practically melted on his tongue, tasting sweet and warm and comforting and almost immediately making his head stop pounding. He smiled, feeling at ease for the first time in two weeks, and laid on his pillow, empty flask in hand.

*****

Last night after the flask incident he actually got a full amount of sleep, and was staying after school in the library today, when Jessica approached him.

“Hey, Morty,” she said, smiling.

“Oh, J-Jessica! Hi.” Morty shut his book and stood up, waving at her. Maybe it was just a part of getting older, but recently, he hadn’t been getting the same waves of butterflies in his stomach that he used to get any time she came near. “What’s up?”

“Well, I’m free tomorrow, and that new science fiction movie is coming out, and I know you're like, into that stuff."

Morty nodded, confused, not remembering when he'd given her that assumption but rolling with it.

"So anyway, me and a bunch of friends are going to it, and we wanted to invite you."

A weird feeling spread through his body. It wasn't the same giddy anticipation he would've gotten a year ago, and the change threw him off. Did his crush just… go away?

"Earth to Morty," Jessica prompted.

"Haha, sorry, was trying to- to remember if I had something planned for-for tomorrow or not," Morty lied. "But I don't, so, sounds good!"

"Alright, cool! Well, I have your number, so I'll text you the deets later."

"You do?" Morty asked.

Jessica looked at him strangely. "Yeah, don't you remember that whole Healthy Morty situation?"

He didn't, but didn't want to make Jessica think he was dumb, so he nodded and laughed. "Oh yeah, that's good then! Yeah, just call- just text me whenever. Bye!" 

She waved and left the library. Morty's smile faded as she disappeared out of sight. Healthy Morty? Sci-fi enthusiast? Beth avoiding him, her saying something about someone named Rick, the strange flask, whatever Summer was going to say on that first day before she got cut off- his growing feeling of unease over the past two weeks peaked, leaving only one conclusion.

Something was wrong. Something was missing from his memories, and Beth knew what it was. Probably Summer, too. Jerry was debatable, but Morty figured his best bet was to ask Summer first. 

He grabbed his bag and nearly ran out of the library, eager to get answers.

[monicawoe]

spn fic masterlist

(updated 5/29/21)

I’ve written over 100 spn fics (ranging from ficlets to 70k big-bangs). Most of them are Sam-centric, largely featuring powers!Sam. The whole collection can be found here on AO3

newest fics:

Between Hell and the Hunt - Dean's deal is due, but Sam has found a way to save him. He's made a deal with someone else - someone Lilith can't touch. (2k words, Wild Hunt season 3 AU)

Closer Than You Think - Five times Sam’s eyes were demonic, and one time they weren’t. (3k words, boyKingSam AUs of multiple eps)

Behold the Beast, Behold the Lamb - Season 4 AU.  Sam tried to free Dean from Hell, but angels intervened and took Dean for their own purposes. Sam is determined to get Dean back and will do whatever it takes, embracing his abilities fully. The more demon blood Sam drinks, the more demons he kills, the more he changes inside and out until it’s impossible to hide his monstrous side. Ruby, Uriel and Castiel push Sam to fulfill his destiny and become his true self—the Beast of the Revelation. (gen, Sam/Ruby, 20k words; featuring art by @quickreaver​)

Prayers Answered - written for the boy king Sam discord server prompt: Sam has grown up in a very religious environment. He's devoted, he goes to church, he prays. He knows that God is with him, because he listens to his prayers. But as Sam grows older, he realizes it's not God that's been listening. And he realizes that he's not asking - he's been ordering, and his loyal servants would never deny their King. (2k words; gen)

Sin Eater - Sam has a different plan to cure demon Dean, but Dean doesn't want to be cured. (Sam drinking blood from demon!Dean, written for @quickreaver​ for her artwork Bitumen Kiss)

On His Head a Crown - written for the 2019-2020 SWBB, art by @slytherkins​ Hunters drug Sam, force-feed him demon blood, and bring him to where they’ve captured Brady. Brady tells Sam he knows how to stop the Apocalypse, and Sam, despite his better judgment, hears him out: Sam himself is the horsemen Conquest—aka the Antichrist—and he alone can bring Lucifer’s apocalypse to a grinding halt. Sam resists, but when he discovers the good he can do with his new powers, he decides to use them to atone for all his past mistakes.   (21k, Sam/Brady, gen, AU of 5x03-5x04)

Many more under the cut

Best Self - written for @alyndra9​​  for the prompt: King of Hell Sam meets Kale!Sam and they have many differences of opinion to work out. (aka the only one who knows what Sam really wants is Sam.) words by monicawoe banner by @quickreaver​​! (~4k words, Sam/Sam)

All You Have Is Your Fire - written for @quickreaver​ for the 2020 Supernatural Spring Fling Dean has known fire all his life. Sometimes it sounds like his brother. (~2k words; gen)

Tear You Apart - written for @wetsammywinchester​ who wanted Soulless!Sam/Brady & Soulless!Sam taking on the mantle of King of Hell:  Sam doesn’t want his soul back. He resurrects Brady who helps him figure out a way to outsmart Death: by damaging his soul so it can’t be reintegrated. With Brady’s help, Sam reclaims his power, and takes his soul apart one piece at a time. (8k words; Soulless!Sam/Brady)

Hellbound - Sam is in Hell, and then he isn't. He's standing on a sidewalk with a stranger looking back at him—a stranger that has his face. My 2020 spn-summergen fic! Featuring soulless!Sam, disembodied soul-Sam and amnesiac Dean. (gen, 8k)

Lakeside Fishing - written for @denugis​ - After defeating Famine, after days of suffering through demon blood withdrawal in the panic room, Sam needs time to clear his head. Early in the morning, he heads to a small lake seeking solitude, but instead finds an unexpected ally. (4k words; Sam/Patrick; set after My Bloody Valentine; witch!Sam)

His Soul to Keep - art by @sketchydean​​ - written for the SPN Eldritch Bang horror event - Dean’s deal is coming due soon. When he finds out from Ruby that Hell will turn him into a demon, he refuses to accept it, even though he can already feel pieces of his soul starting to crumble away. Sam is his only anchor to the world, and Dean finds it harder and harder to leave his side.    After Broward County, after watching Dean die a thousand deaths, Sam decides he’s not going to let Dean go to Hell. He’ll do whatever it takes, even if that means allying himself with Ruby and using the darkness inside of him. Sam casts a soul-binding spell on Dean; they might not be able to break the deal, but they can change who Dean’s soul belongs to. (13k, Sam/Dean, hard-gen, AU of season 3))

Last Drop - art by @quickreaver​ -written for the Twisted Tropes event - Sam/Brady AU set while Sam’s at Stanford:  Sam is slowly adjusting to his new life at Stanford University. He’s left his life of hunting behind, and traded it for endless studying and tests, but he’s plagued by dreams of Dean and Dad in danger, dreams of blood and violence. Then he meets Tyson Brady, who’s always there with a smile and a cup of coffee to get Sam through all-nighters. Sam’s dreams start to fade, but just as he’s getting used to a nice normal life, he starts to develop abilities—powers he can’t control. Brady thinks they’re great, but Sam knows power never comes without a cost. (14k, Sam/Brady)

Make Angels of Us All - art by @amberdreams1960​  - Sam has a guardian angel. It’s been with him his whole life, trying to keep him safe. The angel gives Sam power he can’t control: power to move things with his mind, power over fire, and wings that nobody else can see—bony and jagged with scaly feathers. Dean says monsters aren't real, but Dad thinks they are. Sam's power scares him, and he’s not always sure what's real, but what he does know is people keep trying to kill the three of them, and he won't let that happen. (~20K, gen)

Burdens, Doublefold - cowritten with @quickreaver​, art by ileliberte What if Dean left Sam at Stanford after the fire, hoping it would keep his little brother safe and make things better? Somehow, 'better' never seems to be in the Winchester Family cards. Sam gets tangled up with his ex-roommate Brady, tracking psychics, but dealing with demons is never honest business. Dean carries on until his father is put in grave danger. He is left on his own to deal, stumbling into Harvelle's Roadhouse for help, where Dean gets just a little more than he bargained for. Eventually, the brothers’ paths twist and turn their way back to each other, but the results could mean the End of Days. (67k, gen, AU of seasons 1-2)

Before the One You Serve When Dean comes to get Sam at Stanford, he finds him living with Brady. And Dean doesn't trust Brady, even though he can't quite put his finger on why. Not at first. (5k, Sam/Brady)

He Who Fights Monsters - cowritten with nwspaprtaxis, art by @quickreaver​ AU of the summer between Seasons 3 and 4. Dean's dead, dragged down kicking and screaming to Hell. Sam's not dealing well. And Ruby’s got her work cut out for her. (52K, Sam/Ruby)

John Winchester is Dead They say those Winchester boys're crazy. Drive around in a big black beast and drink too much and laugh about mean things. They say their daddy's worse, but you never see him. He's just a voice on the other end of the phone or a darker shape in the back seat of their dark car. They say John Winchester died two years ago. (2k, gen, horror)

Breathing, Talking, Dead Man Walking   -  John Doe, male, approximately thirty-seven years old. Subject was found by EMTs in close proximity to the site of a sizable explosion in Lebanon, Kansas. (2k, gen, Sam & Dean)

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea - featuring art by @quickreaver​ When Sam opened Lucifer’s Cage, the only thing he found inside was Lucifer’s grace – his grace. With the return of his grace, Sam remembered his past – his war against the Host, his Fall, and his plans to bring about the End. The thing is…he doesn’t want the Apocalypse anymore. He likes things the way they are, and tries everything to keep his identity a secret- especially from Dean. Of course, the four Horsemen, Hell and Heaven have other ideas. (13K, gen)

The Last Days in the Land of Nod - comic adaptation by @quickreaver​ The year is 2014. The Devil is wearing his finest, the Angel is human, and the Brother protects the survivors at Camp Chitaqua.

The Two Ravens - art by @quickreaver​ Your brother he is, and heir to my throne. He’ll feed on the damned and he'll turn them to bone. (4k; fairy-tale)

Counteroffer About two weeks after Sam gutted a hellhound, completing the first trial, he started acting weird. (5k, psychological horror, gore)

Pattern Recognition: A Hannibal/Supernatural fusion AU  -  Sam and Dean split after River Pass, and their confrontation with the Horseman, War. Since Will’s escape from the Baltimore Institute for the Criminally Insane, he and Sam have been in hiding. They have a cabin, in the middle of nowhere, that keeps them off the radar; they find comfort in each other. But they can’t stay off the chessboard forever, especially not when Lucifer, wearing Hannibal Lecter as a vessel, is tearing the world apart around them. (33k, Sam Winchester/Will Graham)

Impala's Run - cowritten with @quickreaver, art by adrenalineshots Sam and Dean Singer (aka Winchester) aren’t your average young Kansas farmers. Their home is very, very far from Kansas, in fact. Many light-years worth of ‘far’. The boys may look human, but certain talents set them apart: Dean speaks the language of machines, and Sam can heal through manipulating energy. Hidden on Earth by their father, their agricultural lifestyle gets rocked when warring alien races discover where they’ve landed, and Sam and Dean are forced to make the run of their lives. (23k, gen)

All Our Wrath and Cutting Beauty - art by @quickreaver - Sam killed Alistair, but not before Alistair reminded Dean of who and what he’d become in Hell. Dean knows Sam can take down Lilith, and he’ll make damn sure Sam gets strong enough to do just that. They’ll stop the Apocalypse – together, no matter how many bodies stack up, or how much blood is spilt.(11k, horror) 

Diary of a Madman -Lydia’s newest patient, Sam Winchester, suffered from hallucinations, delusions, and regular bouts of insomnia. He also thought he was Lucifer. (4k, gen, horror)

Some other bundled links, for your convenience

Demon-blood Sam

King of Hell Sam

Powers!Sam

Horror

Crossovers & Fusion ‘verses

Hannibal|SPN

SPN/Preacher

SPN/Hannibal/MCU

[elles-writing]

Night skies and stars - Kili x reader - Day 9

Night skies and stars

Pairing: Kili x reader

Warnings/triggers: -

Genre: a bit angst, fluff

Word: Spiders – Day 9

Word count: 1986

A/N: My intention was to make this angsty a bit, but turned out to be fluffy.

Tags: @dumbassunderthemountain​ @moony-artnstuff​ @artsywaterlily​ @claraofthepen​

Message me if you want to be added/removed from taglist.

„-and then, there were those huge spiders!“ Kili threw his hands up. Fili and others chuckled.

„I think you’ve got enough of ale for today,“ He said.

They didn’t knew you were there. You’ve had your hood on, so nobody would recognize you. The journey was over, Erebor was reclaimed, Durins survived. You could go home.

But, there was a problem.

You had no home.

When you were younger, you‘ve decided to leave your village. Your family wanted to marry you off, with a man, who was known to be cruel and often drunk. That was the last drop. You runned away, and what you overheard in different tawerns, where you would stop rarely, to get a warm meal, it brang a huge shame on your family. That thought made you grimace.

You met Gandalf once before the quest. You were captured by orcs, and he helped you out. A few months later, you, in exange, decided to help out the dwarves on their quest. They quickly became close friends to you, perhaps a family.

And here you were, running away once again. You weren’t sure what it was or why. It was difficult to put a finger on it, but you thought perhaps because you’ve seen many lovely places of Middle-Earth, you wanted to re-visit at least some of them. You thought of Rivendell. Such a lovely place, that helped you to relax. Though Shire was also nice...

You looked up. Kili was in the middle of another story, though Fili stepped in, and Bofur too. You deeply sighed and looked down. All you were waiting for were Gandalf’s fireworks, and then you’d go to sleep, to rise early and leave.

You stood up, any of the dwarves didn’t noticed you. How could they, there was many people and dwarves in that pub, plus you had your hood on. You paid and left.

However, you didn’t noticed a pair of sharp eyes, that recognized you earlier and followed you, until you were out of his sight.

You climbed up on one roof and sat comfortably to chimney. You were looking up to the night sky, constellations, stars, moon.

When you left it wasn’t easy, obviously. You thought about going back, not because of the marriage of course, but because you were alone in a wild, and the darkness and cold during nights would be unbearable, until you decided to look up for the stars.

They became your friends, when no one else was around. You would often talk to them, about your family, your life, past, present and future, what were your hopes, dreams and wishes. Sometimes it would be something as simple as bright, cloudless night, then it would be a friend, a book, that someone lost on a road, or a food.

While on the quest, sometimes you would sneak a little futher, just to enjoy the stars. They were your hope, they knew what you’ve never told anyone before, your lights.

Once, Kili was on a night watch and freaked out, when he found your bed roll empty. Luckily, he didn’t woke up the whole Company, because you’ve heard him calling your name. You explained to him, why you were away, and so whenever it was Kili’s turn for a night watch and cloudless night, you would go and enjoy the stars. Sometimes, you’d teach him some of the constellations.

Meanwhile, in the tavern, Kili looked around. He already had some ale, but not that much to unnotice you in your cloak, with a hood on. He forrowed his brows. Why you were trying to be unnoticed? Thanks for being an archer, he could watch almost anything from afar without being noticed.

His brown eyes followed you, paying, and quickly walking away. He told Fili and Bofur, that there was something going on with you. You never worn your hood on, you’d usually put your cloak on when you were cold or when was windy.

It didn’t took long, and they‘ve decided to find you. They got up, saying goodbye’s and farewell’s to dwarves who came to Erebor from Blue Mountains and were sitting here with them during the evening.

Once they were out of the tavern, Fili furrowed his brows, just like Bofur and Kili did.

„You sure it was the lass? There was a lot of people inside,“ Fili said. Kili shook his head.

„No, I’m sure it was her. That cloak, I would recognize it anywhere,“ He said. Bofur placed his hands on his hips.

„What would happen?“ Kili scrunched his face, deeply in thought.

„She looked like she was about to leave, but why would she wanted to leave?“ They all were quiet, after this Kili’s statement. The only sounds was loud speaking from the tavern and some singing, coming from a distance, perhaps some street musician or somebody who wanted to make their evening nicer.

„Did you noticed if she was unhappy?“ Fili asked.

„Aye, I didn’t think she was. She was smiling all the time, cheerfull, especially when the town and Erebor recovered a bit.“ Bofur commented. Kili nodded.

„Since the end of the battle, especially. I believe she was relieved,“ He continued.

„Yeah, she’s been happy. But why would she wanted to leave, then?“ His face scrunched once again. Fili shrugged his shoulders and shook his head.

„We need to find her, that’s the first thing. I will go this way,“ He pointed to one of the re-builded streets.

„I will try this way,“ Bofur pointed to another street. Kili looked to the direction he was about to go, and they three nodded.

„If any of us finds her, then maybe we should take her to Erebor, she will maybe feel better in her chambers, perhaps she will tell us what happened,“ Bofur suggested. The brothers nodded and soon, they were on their way to find you.

You were sitting on the roof and didn’t even noticed you’ve started humming a song. It was a song you’ve overheard in one village, and couldn’t get it out of your head. It was a soft, calming, though sad melody.

Kili stopped in his tracks, when he heard that humming. He knew that voice. You’d often be humming some song, when you were on a night watch, to perhaps ease your mind. Especially after the orcs and goblins.

He scrunched his face. The sound was coming somewhere from a roof. He looked up and noticed a silhouette, sitting by a chimney, looking up to the stars.

He looked around and noticed a few barrels. His lips tugged up in a grin.

You were looking around over the town, when you noticed a movement by the corner of your eye. You quickly hid behind the chimney, which was big enough to cover you when you scrunched.

„Don’t worry, it’s me, Kili,“ Your body relaxed. Kili climbed to you and sat next to you.

„Why are you here, Kili?“ You asked him. You liked Kili, how could you not – he was nice, friendly, brave and knew how to make your cheeks heat up by flirting – but you couldn’t imagine he would feel the same way.

„I’ve noticed there was somethin‘ goin‘ on, so I wanted to check on you.“ You couldn’t help but smile.

„Well, I’m sitting up here, waiting for the firework. Gandalf promised it will be worth it.“ You pointed towards the sky. He nodded and for a while, you were sitting in a comfortable silence. Then he spoke.

„Are you going to stay here, with us?“ You shrugged your shoulders. Why did he made it more difficult than it needed to be...

„Well-I thought I would visit some of my favourite places in Middle-Earth, and then I’d decide.“

„You know, it’d be great if you’d stayed for Durin’s Day.“ Kili was trying to come up with a reason for you to stay. He said this nervously. Why was talking to you, out of all women, so difficult? He liked you, especially after you became better friends. Though, Fili would ocassionally tease him, it always looked like you two were best friends.

„That’s not for another few months, Kili.“ You said. He frowned and the tip of his tongue appeared between his lips, as he tried to think of another thing.

„Oh yeah, sure. But you can stay, I mean, everyone would be happy if you’d stayed-“ He started to talk.

„I told you I-“

„Is there anybody waiting for you, back home? And you don’t want to tell?“ He asked. Through his voice was quiet, you could hear everything. He was glad you couldn’t see his red cheeks and wide eyes in shock. He wanted to slap himself to face. You lowered your head.

„Uhm-no. I don’t have anyone, and a...home anymore,“ You whispered. His jaw fell.

„Wait-what?“ You quietly explained to him everything. You didn’t told too much to any of them then, they just knew you traveled by yourself for a few years before you joined them. You were surprised that the talks about family never turned towards you, but perhaps you were lucky.

„And so, here we are,“ you ended, blushing. Kili was silent for a while, processing it.

„That’s...how dare they.“ He growled. You placed your hand on his shoulder.

„It’s been a few years. That’s also why I adore stars so much. Thanks to them, I wasn’t alone,“ You whispered, remembering Kili flirting with that she-elf back in Mirkwood, and talking about something with starlight. He surely likes her, you thought.

„But you do deserve a home, after everything, and-“ You shook your head and smiled.

„I need to find out which place of Middle-Earth would be the perfect home for me. Now, don’t get me wrong, I like it here, but I need to find out where I would feel the most ‚at home‘,“ You quoted. Kili leaned closer.

„What if it’s not a place? What if it is a person, or a group of people?“ You looked at him, trying to figure out where he was going with it.

When you didn’t said anything, his cheeks deeply flushed.

„It’s...I, uhm...I like you Y/N, I-I love you,“ He said, eyes wide in realization that those words slipped out, and he groaned internally. He wanted to slap himself again.

„I-what did you just said?“ Your mouth opened in surprise. His cheeks reddened even more, if it was even possible.

„I-uh-I’ll tell everyone you’re okay, I didn’t wanted to interrupt you-“ He quickly stood up.

„KILI, NO-“ You catched his hand when he was about to lose balance and fall down. Instead, he fell back next to you.

„Uh, that was quick...Thanks, Y/N,“ You shook your head.

„Kili, don’t do this ever again! You could fall down-“

„But I didn’t!“

„You almost did! I was worried about you, you dork!“ You sighed, and before you could stop them, the words left your mouth.

„Why do I love you,“ You looked up with wide eyes. Kili’s eyes were wide as well, as you noticed the moonlight.

„Y-you love me?“ He asked. You nervously nodded.

„But you have your she-elf, so just igno-Mpf!“ He quickly interrupted you by a kiss. You slowly melted into the kiss, feeling happy. You didn’t even realized the firework started!

„So, will you stay here?“ Kili asked when you pulled away for air. You playfully rolled your eyes.

„Hmm, I do want to see those places, but I will come back.“ You said. He kissed your cheek.

„Can I accompany you?“ You smiled and pecked his lips.

„Sure thing,“ You placed your head on Kili’s shoulder and looked up, to see the fireworks.

Meanwhile, Fili and Bofur found you (thanks to yours and Kili‘s bickering).  When the fireworks were almost over, they noticed you were about to kiss again, so they yelled:

„Wasn’t it enough snogging for tonight, you two?“ You and Kili just sticked out your tongues on them.

[idjitlili]

Heat of the moment

Thorin x reader

As requested on quotev , by a lovely reader, they wanted more thorin so here you are.

Summary: you end up in middle earth , only to fall for the dwarven king.

N/o/p= number of pillows Chips= fries , we British here, plus in lotr Sam calls them chips so that's how it's gonna be. Fries are skinny chips. Word count:2673

It was a day in July , well night you had fell asleep in your bed in your room on your n/o/p ,nice and toasty. You had been dreaming about eating a nice bunch of chips , golden thick potatoes. They tasted like keanu reeves love in a potato. oh how you wish to real live that, but you were roughly awoke by something prickly poking you. "Five more minutes ,mummy /mommy/mama." You groaned as the thing stopped poking you, you felt rough ground stabbing your back as you rolled over.

You felt under you with your left hand to only to feel your mattress sheet not your mattress , and just your fluffy blanket you used in the summer instead of the duvet somethings. You slowly opened your eyes , as the bright light hit your eyes , causing you to groan again rubbing your eyes to make them focus. When you opened them again you were faced with a bunch of short men and an old man and an even shorter man. You look at them wide eye, as hatted dwarf held a stick that poked you they look at you in confusion some held weapons.

"Why are you in my room?!" You had almost shouted , grabbing a pillow holding it up in defence,you looked pretty bad,what you gonna do braid eachothers hair and have a pillow fight. Its only lucky that you had put your new pair of shoes in their box on the other side of your bed ,with socks so you could cherish them. Well be ready for the next day,to wear them inside.Little did you know would be travelling with these short men,due to the wizards say so. "uh,lass this is the forest." the short man with the stick and hat had spoken up causing you to gasp when noticed you were in a forest,and so was your bed,you could ony come up with answer to this mess...

"HElp! I've been kidnapped." you had shouted,remove your blanket pulling on your socks and shoes ,standing up,before you can run the majestic hair dwarf shouts. "circle her lads," and with that a barrier of short men surround you. You stood on your bedding ,luckily in clean shoes ,and your night clothes aka a strappy top,with your favourite tv show characters on it,and the shorts that come with,and yeah they are short. You were exposed by strange men ,and you didnt like that,your bust on show and yours ass if you bent over. Thats what she said.

You picked up your blanket ,placing the pillow down,wrapping it around you ,to cover youself. "what do you want from me?" you had spoke anooyed by the sitution,though the majestic man was quite the looker,if you were honest."your the only that fell out of the sky,what do you want?" A short ginger one had growled ,pissed off."what Gloin is trying to say is that we never touched you ,Dwalin was on watch when you fell ,we do not know how you didnt wake up from the impact." the shoretest man that reminded you very much of John waston from sherlock.

You didnt know what to think of the sitution ,then the man that was apparently a wizard spoke to you and the majestic man privately,saying that he was going to try get you home ,after you admitted you never had heard of Rohan ,or erebor or middle earth,concluding you werent from this world. So basically the wizard you know as now Gandalf is forcing this other dude who is a dwarf , a dwarf! Can you believe it? on this journey to reclaim his home ,he wasnt impressed but soon enough he agreed.

Gandalf had forced the company to stop at a small village :so he could buy you clothes,a tooth brush,cleaning supplies and womanly products,you had thanked him dearly. You now wore ,your small trainers with these legging pants and a tunic plus a coat but it was too hot for that right now,during the day anyways. Then you all were back on the road ,and you would have to share a pony with one of the dwarves,which ended up with you sharing with Thorin's youngest nephew.

It didnt take much for you to lift yourself up on the pony,well actually you just swung your leg up and boom you sat upon it as kili mounts behind you struggling a bit. "damn ,miss y/n those are some long legs." he had smirked from behind ,you felt like he was going to be doing a lot of flirting. "uh yeah ,puberty does that sometimes." you spoke gripping the rains of the pony lightly,as the company began to move.your coat in your new bag on the side of the pony hanging,leaving you in your tunic and pants,kili pushed at against you back,one arm around your waist.

"I would sure love to get lost in them." his grip tightened a little,as fili laughed at his brothers remark,your face screwed up."..uh...how long do dwarves live generally?" you questioned,to anyone in ear range. "around 200-250 years ,lassie." Bofur spoke up behind you ,you hummed in response. "and how old are you kili?" Thorin was listening in on the conversation as the whole company had went silent to hear it too. "77." he was confused at what you were gettingat ,he was a little scared even.

"right so the average human lives for 80 years ,right. So if you was to date or court me ,i'll be dead before you mature." bilbo laughed at you ,with some of the others. "what are you getting at?" he stated his face like pink with embarrassment. "if i was to get with any dwarf ,they would be older."you had smirked thinking of someone in mind,Thorin smiled to himself only Dwalin was able to see,he smirked at him,for Thorin to give him a look which almost told him to drop it. Which he didnt later he would tease him.

Thorin had grew to like you more than a member of his company,in the past couple of weeks ,as did you he was very attractive how could you not. Now you were in Rivendell,in which Elrond had supplied the company with food as he talked to andalf about you.It concluded he had no idea how this could happen and then later they would talk to lady galadriel about it. she didnt have a clue,except galadriel thought there was a reason you were brought to this world and you should carry on with the company.

After that you had been led to your room,which had a bloody bath,oh my you were so glad about. Once you had finish you had wrapped a single towel around your body,going to get dressed ,at this point it was late at night everyone would have been asleep by now.However before you could even dress,your bag was gone,with all your clothes ,and an elf had taken your dirty ones when you had gotten in the bath. You had no clue what to do,you would not go to sleep naked in the elves guest bed,not that they werent clean,youjust never know whos been in there or done what.

You decided the best thing to do was go wondering around until you found someone,just in a towel and your shoes,wet hair sticking to your skin ,making you shiver. Opening the beautiful carved pine door,quietly ,before shutting it behind you walking down the hall. It was more than cold out in the hall,your room had a fire lit by the same elf that took your clothes. In honesty you knew you have to go ask onee of the dwarves if they had a spare tunic or something;but that was an incredibly awkward and emabarrassing.If you went fili he would tell kili and then they would tease you,kili would tell everyone how those legs looked in just his tunic,you didnt want it to happen and you didnt want them laughing at you.

Thorin.

You felt like you could trust him,but you felt like if he saw you like this he would never like you back,and you had developed big feelings for him. Even though you barely spoke,he would check on you regularly not when the others where around,when bathing in the rivers he would stand watch, Apparently just incase you drown ,or the others especially his nephews tried peeking or you got attacked. Some how he would know when you got your period he take your watch ,lay hot stones in your bed ,he even made you tea.Dwalin would grin,knowing his bestfriend deeply cared for the human from another world. Damn Thorin and those thic-

you were so deep in thought you didnt notices a figure walk out thier door as you walked down the hall,causing you crash into them. You had lost grip of the towel ,only for the figure to pull you against them holding the back of the towel up,pulling around your sides. You gasped,scared the figure had seen your breasts,but their actions were so sonic speed they hadnt and you were pressed against their muscular chest. You had looked up to see Thorin ,your eyes had widened,you had taken the sides of the towel wrapping around yourself again ,as Thorin looked away. "I-im so sorry." you had spoken stuttering slightly,looking at the floor,before going to walk away,but Thorin had gripped your arm stopping you. "what are doing out here,y/n,in just a towel." he had asked sternly,he thought you were to no good,if you get me,and he was not impressed.

"uh..well.um I had a bath went to get dressed but my bag was gone,so it turns out they had told me that they were going to gift me stuff..but they  must have used it for my measurements,okay so I dont know.All i do know is I am search of something to wear,Its freezing." you spoke still not sure on your own words,it didnt seem right that the elves would take all your clothes. "stupid bloody elves,just leave you naked to freeze to death.I have some spare clothes if you need them." he hated the elves more that they had taken your belonging ,yet didnt he liked the way your hair fell once wet and the shine on your skin from the now cold water.

You had nodded eagerly ,he hadled you into his room,guiding you to sit down in the chair next to the fire,whilst he got you cllothes.He had came back with only only his dark blue tunic,handing it to you."I'm sorry ,my spare trousers are currents drying since kili decided to jumped on me covering me in mud like a dog." he spoke turning around allowing you to dress quickly infront of the fire,you let out a small giggle. "its fine,you have helped me so much,i would be laughed at if i had ran into anyone else. Doesnt matter what anyone else says you are very nice dude. thank you so much,goodnight." you had hugged him,he stood there a little taken back at your words hugging you back wishing you goodnight as you went back to your room.

He had watched you leave ,he like seeing you in his tunic,which only reached barely your mid thigh. He knew he wouldnt be sleeping soon,he was glad you bumped into him and not anyone else,he already thought you were beautiful from your personality but now you were bodacious.

In the morning your clothes still hadnt turned up,and an elf had knocked informing you for breakfast ,so you had no choice but to try sort your hair and go to breakfast in just a tunic and shoes.You looked like you were really at home and sorta a whore. Not that it was your fault at all. You had walked there crossing your arms looking down ,mulitple gasps were heard as you arrived.You had quickly sat down to the closest open sit which turns out was next to Thorin. "lass where are your clothes?"

"yeah you are practially naked."

"damn those legs bend over for me." kili had smirked saying the second,only to be kicked hard under the table by thorin ,who you sent a smile to him thanking him.

"treat her with some respect,shes not some bloody toy." Thorin had spat angrily at his nephew ,who looked down in embarrassment. "BAHAHAH YOU MUST  BE SO EMBARRASSED." You were tempted to say,pointing at him while laughinghysterically at him,sound like someone? yeah i would show you a picture but he stands to still I cant see him."im sorry ,miss y/n," he spoken sincerely towards you. "itsfine,dont worry about it." you had stated you were embarrassed by the sitution too.

After a few minutes Dwalin decided to break the silence,"lass where are your clothes,seriously?" he asked,he knew that wasnt your shirt.Damn the elves appart from elrond ,and Lindir looked at you in disgust. "uh well,I actually dont know,i got of the bath and then asked couldnt find my bag anywhere." you spoke looking at the fruits that sat infront of you,eating a piece of mellon. "oh miss y/n,i had an extra bag in mine and kili's room,i didnt know where it was from. I'll go get it,it must be yours." and with that fili rushed off to get it fpr you,soon returning passing it to as you place it on the floor. "thank you,fili.2 he had sent you a smile that reminded you deeply of seth rogen ,you couldnt help but picture him as seth rogen if you thought of him,you didnt know why.

And with that everyone was back to eating breakfast;oh what until someone questioned you again. "wait is that uncles tunic?" kili had questioned you ,causing a small blush to apear on your face,you nod going back to eating.Fili and Kili snickered,you looked up glaring at them wanting to know what was so funny. "did you happen to stay with him last night.?" and with that they burst out laughing again ,now with bofur.  "are you still tight about me not wanting you to get lost in my legs?hm" you had spoke annoyed ,causing bilbo to luagh,gandalf smirking at you.kili and fili stopped laughing,kili just blushed again. "nothing did happen,but I would mostly definitly enjoy having him in my legs." and with that you got up ,crouching down to grab your bag before heading to your to your room.

Only for Thorin to run after you,you were about to walk into your room,only to be smashed into the wall,lips pressed roughly against yours,you knew who it was from his beard ,and his strength. Your legs wrapped tightly around his waist,as his hands cupped your bare bottom gently,before taking you into your room. In the end you did get a proper apology from kili and life was swell.

that was until,HEAT OF THE MOMENT 'rise and shine y/n' joking joking.

Turns out your purpose in middle earth was to save Thorin and his nephews,

idk what happened it went pretty shit.

[write-it-good-imagines]

Cappuccino and a cookie - Park Jinyoung

Synopsis: Park Jinyoung is a silent observer and things rarely catch his eye. However, when they do, it’s frustrating.

Alrightie! This is another one-shot for our dearest peachy prince, Jinyoung. I was daydreaming, again, and this idea shot me dead. I hope it is fit to your liking. Enjoy!!

sheer fluff i’d say? 1.8k words

It drove Park Jinyoung crazy.

Constantly thinking about it made him even crazier. Sometimes he’d just become moody without any logical explanation.

Why did he have to play the uninterested card so often?

JYP’s new building was located in a nice area and the members had already found their way to secure a café nearby as their own little escaping place, just as they did back in Gangnam. But they weren’t the first ones there.

Taking a much-desired break, all of the boys decided to go for lunch at that certain place. The menu offered good and cheap food and the coffee was to die for, according to the rumors; it was just perfect. The atmosphere was cozy. People did not seem to mind they were there at all and the personnel was nice, too. Apart from the relaxing music and comfortable setting, one thing caught Jinyoung’s eyes the moment they seated themselves: there was a sole cup of coffee with a cookie placed on a table where no one was sitting.

He ignored it at first, joking along with the members. Soon afterward, an unknown silhouette entered the café and claimed the seat at the table. He wouldn’t normally pay attention to people he didn’t know, although he analyzed them a little. Instead, that person made him look twice. You were instantly greeted by a staff member, who also happened to be a man, and you quickly said something to him. Your bright smile, directed at said person, made him cock his eyebrow.

It was the same process every day. You were always ten minutes late to the same order placed on the same table, always with the same warm greeting and the usual routine you had. You’d take out a book, which most of the time would be a psychological study, and take notes here and there. Your forehead would wrinkle a little at times, then re-read what you thought you didn’t understand.

But your messy hair always tugged in a bun, with a sole strand tickling your face, the small smile you always wore on your lips and the gentle movement of fingers turning pages? Absolutely mesmerizing.

The guys liked it there and much to Jinyoung’s satisfaction, they always came around for lunch. Luckily, you came too, to study. Or read something of your choice. Two weeks later, Jinyoung read ‘F. Scott Fitzgerald’ on the cover of your book and wondered all of a sudden how romantic you might be. It shocked himself. He widened his eyes at the thought and quickly shook his head. Why was he getting curious?

Each passing day, he’d start noticing the little things. The way the foam would linger in the corner of your mouth, or the way you twisted the pencil in between the fingers, even how you took your time to savor your sweets. The members would start noticing how Jinyoung’s eyes lingered a little too long towards that particular table where you always sat alone.

They tried squeezing information out of him. God knows how curious Bambam and Yugyeom were. No success. Then Mark tried a softer approach; a failure as well. Jackson took his chance, to no avail. Even Youngjae who had a certain way with words. He never spoke about you. Not even the pestering questions that started appearing in his own mind about you would get him flustered.

Until suddenly you didn’t come.

It was a shock for him altogether. That day, he only dropped by with Jaebum for a casual chat about their projects and a good cup of coffee. It was around the same time you made your appearance, and the usual order would be there.

Jinyoung waited for a while, bracing himself for you. Fifteen, twenty minutes, half an hour passed. And someone else seated themselves at your table. So the male employee that always greeted you took away your order.

As soon as the said employee came to bring their orders, Jinyoung’s frustration surfaced without him realizing.

“Excuse me, did the lady that always sits right about there come earlier?”

Jaebum’s expression changed at his friend’s words. Then a smirk followed that Jinyoung noticed firsthand.

“Ah, no. She didn’t come today. I had to put away the order. It’s strange, she’s been our regular.”

Jinyoung nodded and thanked him. Jaebum leaned over the table, his elbows placed on top of it and his hands locked. He oozed with curiosity.

“So…you’ve been eyeing her.”

Jinyoung’s chances for escape were minimal. “What are you talking about?”

“Stop playing it cool.” Jaebum laughed and folded his arms over his chest. “I genuinely thought that if you didn’t tell Jackson anything, there really was nothing going on. Aish, I almost gave up, too.”

Jinyoung scratched at his nape and looked away. Being a good actor wouldn’t make him avoid the situation. “I lost it at Fitzgerald, though the psychology studies are impressive on their own.”

“I knew it! I could have bet money on that.” Jaebum snapped his fingers, annoyingly satisfied with himself. “You know, anyone else would have ignored those little glances of yours. You almost fooled me. Why didn’t you go introduce yourself?”

Jinyoung perked up at his friend’s words as if he was told the Earth is flat. “That’s utter nonsense, hyung.”

“Why?”

“Why?” Jinyoung was getting frustrated. “Did it look to you as if she had any interest in either of us here?”

Jaebum took his chin in between his fingers and nodded. “No.”

“See?” the other sighed and leaned back in his seat, defeated. “She won’t look at guys like me.”

“I think you’re being delusional.” Jaebum scolded his friend. “She was not looking at anyone, not only us. You can clearly see she’s focused on whatever she does.”

That she practically ignores everyone but the damn employee. Jaebum noticed the little flinch. He continued. “What if she stopped coming for good? You’d regret it.”

Jinyoung sighed. He knew his friend was right and he knew how stupid he was for not shooting his chance. He acknowledged what Jaebum said and pondered over it, but he wouldn’t accept that Jaebum was right. And he was miserably right. That week you just wouldn’t walk in the damn café and it drove him crazy.

By the end of the week, he wanted to stop coming to the café just so it wouldn’t remind himself of his foolishness. If it wasn’t for Jackson that practically dragged him there because the sandwiches were ‘ just so good ’, he would have gotten angry with himself. Because you came back. He noticed you positioning yourself behind him in the considerable queue that was already formed.

Jinyoung panicked. He did not expect you to be back and certainly not in such proximity. If anything, he considered saying something to you if you were seated at your table. He was pretty well-read himself, so he’d ask your opinion on a common topic. Or he’d say he happened to notice what you were reading and appreciate your choice, depending on the book. And with a little bit of owned experience, the conversation would carry on.

But what was he supposed to do now?

You carried all your baggage in your arms. Should he offer to help and say it would have been hard for you to get your order? No, that would be barbarically direct, although it could have worked. Yet as he was busy sketching his little plan, the chance arrived a little earlier than expected.

Jinyoung felt you being pushed into his back, most likely by an impatient bystander, and all of your things clattered to the floor. You gasped softly and knelt to the ground, in an attempt to gather your stuff hurriedly.

“Oh come on, can’t you move faster?” the same person who was guilty of bumping into you roared at you.

The audacity.

You didn’t get the chance to open your mouth to counter his words because the person who you bumped into quickly took charge. “Excuse me sir, but you are at fault for bumping into her. You shouldn’t pose into the victim here.”

You looked up at him and suddenly felt weak in the knees. The impatient man behind you opted to click his tongue and not continue the argument. He probably realized he wouldn’t have stood a chance.

Jinyoung knelt down to gather all of your things instead. “I’m so sorry this happened,” you blurted out, hoping he would not be mad at you. You were fed up with situations like these and it probably showed on your face, as it usually did.

Jinyoung smiled at you, his eyes curling into crescents. He saw the fire burning in your eyes, covered tactfully by the silent apology your expression offered. He was proud of himself for stepping in. “What for? Even if it was a mistake, no one should treat a lady like that.”

“I know, right?” you rolled your eyes and heard him chuckle. You were careful with words, but your face would betray you shamelessly. You mentally cursed yourself.

“Looks like it’s our turn. Do you want me to place your order while you grab a seat?”

Jackson was watching the scene with a silent smirk on his face. He was impressed with Jinyoung.

“If it’s not much trouble for you? I want a cappuccino and a cookie, please!”

Jinyoung eyed Jackson before he could say something along the lines of ‘he knows that already’. Jackson took the hint and walked away.

“Perfect.”

Jinyoung watched you reclaim your spot and placed your order just as requested. Jackson dramatically extended his hand for a shake, his lips pursed in a proud expression. “That was first class flirting! Damn.”

Jinyoung laughed and raked his hair with his fingers. “It was cool, wasn’t it?”

“Go get it, actor Park! You smooth criminal. I’ll just walk to the practice room silently with just my sandwich unlike you who just won the lottery!”

“Ah, Seun-ah, it’s not like that.” Jinyoung tried to deny the facts, although the smile glued to his face said otherwise. He glanced in your direction and caught you staring. He expected you to break the sudden contact; you didn’t. He would not deny fate, not again.

“Or you know what?” he hissed as he grabbed the tray with both of your orders. “I’ll tell you what winning the lottery feels like.”

[ft-dads-au]

Turn the Tide

Gratsu Summer Solstice 2020 - Prompt: Fun in the Sun Gratsu Week 2020 - Prompt: “What’s with all the noise? I’m sleepy” Pairing: Gray x Natsu

A Collaboration by @mdelpin​ and @oryu404​

AO3 | FF.Net

Summary:  Natsu has hated his birthday for years. It served only as a a painful reminder of the day his father abandoned him and Erza. All he wants is to get through the day with the least amount of fuss possible, but Gray has other plans. 0-0

July 7th, 2021

What’s with all the damn noise? I’m still sleepy…

Natsu groaned as the annoying beeping noise that had woken him up refused to stop, and he soon realized it was coming from his phone. He glared at the device, but as expected, it did nothing, the beeps continued as text after text came in.

What the hell is going on?

He stretched his arm and grabbed his phone from his nightstand, fighting the urge to throw it across the room...

Happy Birthday, Bro! 🎈🎉✨🎁 Where the party at? 👀🧁🎂 Gotta do rounds, but I’ll call you later!

Happy Birthday, Natsu!

cat_birthday.gif

Another year older, Firefly! I’ll stop by Sorciere and buy you a drink tonight...

Happy Birthday, dude! Get Gray to blow your 🕯️!!! 😂😏

Natsu scrolled through the texts that kept coming in from his friends and family, rolling his eyes at the last one, not even having to look at the sender info to know it was Loke’s contribution.

As nice as it was to receive well wishes, rather than cheer him up, all they accomplished was to envelop him in a cloud of gloom that was very familiar. Still, he replied to all the messages and got up to start his day.

At least it was a Wednesday, which meant that Gray would soon arrive with Aki for one of their study sessions. It was the first time in a while that he was impatient for Gray to visit, not because he wanted to see him, but because of the distraction that studying for the GED would provide.

What he really wanted was to get out of the house. To escape the memories that refused to let go.

The previous year he’d been too numb from everything else that had happened in his life for it to sink in that he was back in his childhood home, sleeping in the very room his father used to call his. The last place he’d seen him before he’d disappeared from his life, leaving him and Erza behind without any warning or explanation. For so long, he’d held on to the belief that his father was coming back, but no matter how many nights he’d waited for him, he never did. And so his birthday became a day Natsu resented, a painful reminder of his abandonment.

The doorbell rang, startling Natsu out of his gloomy thoughts. Atlas raced towards the door at the noise, chanting the name Aki over and over in joyful anticipation.

Natsu ran down the stairs to head him off, knowing from experience Atlas would open the door regardless of who might be on the other side. It was much too early for Gray to arrive for their study session, and given that it was his birthday, the idea of an unexpected visitor set him on edge.

He got to the door just as Atlas opened it and was surprised to see his boyfriend was indeed standing on the other side of the door.

“Hey,” he greeted, feeling slightly puzzled but no less pleased, “Are we starting early today?”

“Nope,” Gray smirked, “You’ve been working pretty hard for the past few weeks. Today you get the day off. We’re going to the beach!”

“Beach!” Aki repeated, and now that Natsu looked at him, he noticed he was dressed in a swimsuit and holding a colorful bucket and shovel like the ones sold at the grocery store.

“Beach?” Natsu parroted in disbelief, “With three kids? Are you insane?”

“Four, you forgot to count yourself,” Gray teased, entering the house and closing the door behind him. He pulled Natsu to him for a quick kiss, “Hey.”

“I don’t know, I’d have to pack stuff for the kids and get them ready,” Natsu hedged, not feeling up to such an involved outing.

“Nice try, Sunshine,” Gray turned him around and nudged him towards the stairs. “All you have to do is get yourself ready; Erza already took care of the rest.” Gray walked over to the small closet that sat at the foot of the stairs and opened it to show that indeed there were two bags packed along with Atlas’ car seat.

“We’re going to the beach?!” Hana squealed behind them, and at that point, Natsu realized he’d already lost. Hana had always loved the beach even though her skin was so fair she had to be slathered in sunblock constantly, but she hadn’t voiced any interest in it since her mother had died. Knowing that, he didn’t want to disappoint her.

“Looks like it,” he replied with as much enthusiasm as he could muster at the idea. It might even be a good thing. If he were chasing after the kids, he wouldn't have time to think about anything else.

“That’s the spirit,” Gray remarked, his words dripping with sarcasm, “Go get ready, and I’ll start putting stuff in the car.”

Now that the decision had been made, Natsu went along with it. He’d wanted to get out of the house, after all. Changing into swim trunks and a t-shirt, he quickly tossed a change of clothes and a towel into a bag. He searched around for his sunglasses and sunblock, and when he heard Gray yelling for him, he hurried down the stairs to find everything had already been packed up, including the kids.

“Why today?” he asked, gazing at his boyfriend with suspicion.

“Because it’s going to get super hot, and you’re too cheap to install an air conditioner.” Gray retorted, “Since nothing’s getting into your little brain today, we might as well have fun. Now come on.”

He grabbed the bag from Natsu’s hand and led him to his car, making no mention of Natsu’s mood. Natsu relaxed, he’d never told Gray when his birthday was, and he hadn’t gotten a text from Lyon, so it was possible he didn’t know. The people in his life always wanted to make a big deal about his birthday, but all Natsu wanted was to forget it, let it pass quickly and quietly. And who knew? A day of fun in the sun might just do the trick.

0-0

“Beach!” Hana ran off towards the sand the moment they stepped outside the air-conditioned train station and into the summer heat.

“Hana, wait!” Natsu ran after her, terrified of losing her in the crowd of people. He glanced back to see Gray trying to handle the boys and the remaining bags, and he flashed him an apologetic smile.

Gray hadn’t been exaggerating. It was a hot day. Thankfully the beach wasn’t too packed yet, and once he’d gotten Hana to stop, he rented a large umbrella for them to sit under, knowing the heat was going to be too much for the younger kids and for Gray, who was as fair as Hana.

He was already applying sunblock on Hana when Gray finally arrived with Atlas and Aki, dumping all their bags on the sand. “A little help would have been nice,” he grumbled.

Natsu glanced up to see his boyfriend was already flushed. “Go sit,” he ordered, pointing towards the shade the umbrella provided and handing him a bottle of water from one of the bags Erza had packed. He managed to get all three kids ready and sent them off to play in the area in front of them.

Natsu grabbed a new bottle of sunblock and knelt behind his boyfriend, who had already taken off his shirt, “Are you feeling better?” he asked as he spurted some of the contents of the bottle into his hand and began to apply it on Gray’s shoulders.

“Mhmm,” Gray groaned in appreciation, “That feels nice. Thanks for getting the umbrella, that was a good idea.”

“Well then, it seems my little brain is good for something after all,” Natsu retorted.

“Your hands aren’t bad either,” Gray observed, leaning forward so that Natsu could apply sunblock on his back. “Hana really likes the beach, huh?”

“Yeah, back when we lived in Edolas, Lis used to take her to the beach all the time,” he explained, watching as Hana examined some seashells she’d found. “It’s nice to see her excited about it again.”

“What on Earth is Atlas doing?”

Natsu turned his attention to his son and had to laugh, “He’s digging a hole, obviously.” One that only seemed to get bigger by the minute now that Aki had caught on to what his friend was doing and had begun to help.

“Shouldn’t we stop them?” Gray asked worriedly.

“Why? They’re not hurting anything,” Natsu shrugged, “or are you worried they’ll end up upside down on the other side of the world?”

“Smart and funny, how lucky am I?” Gray answered drily.

“I used to like to do that too,” Natsu muttered, ignoring the barb as he remembered beach trips with his own family.

He used to dig holes deep enough that he could hide in them and startle his mom as she walked by. Sometimes Igneel would even help him, laughing just as hard as Natsu when his wife squealed in fright as Natsu grabbed her leg. He hadn’t thought about that in years. A lump lodged in his throat at the thought of his mom, and he couldn’t help but reflect on how much Erza resembled her these days.

“Here, let me put some on you,” Natsu felt Gray’s hands on his back as he rubbed the cooling lotion on his warm skin, interrupting his train of thought. He closed his eyes briefly, enjoying the glorious sensation of those fingers kneading his muscles.

It was much better to focus on what he had. There was no reclaiming what he’d already lost.

“You know,” Gray declared as he continued to cover Natsu in sunblock, “there wasn’t an amusement park the last time I came here, it’s too bad the kids are too little. That could’ve been fun.”

“Well, maybe we can come back another time,” Natsu suggested, shading his eyes with his hand as he tried to locate Hana amidst the growing crowd.

“You mean like on a date?”

“Why not? I bet Sting and Rogue would love to come too.” He found his daughter talking to another little girl, not too far from where they were sitting and relaxed.

“Maybe,” Gray wrapped his arms around Natsu’s waist and pulled him closer to his chest, “I don’t get you to myself often enough, though.”

Natsu rested his hands on Gray’s and smiled, “You, my love, get most of my spare time. You’re just greedy.”

Gray chuckled, “True enough. Want to go check out the water? The kids look like they’re getting restless.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Natsu agreed, stealing a quick kiss before grabbing Atlas under one arm and racing towards Hana at full speed as Atlas yelled her name out joyfully. She squealed at their approach, running away from them and towards the water.

He could hear Gray grumbling behind him and grinned.

“Daddy, no!” Hana shrieked as he put Atlas down so he could join the chase and continued to charge after her.

“Don’t worry, Hana, I’ll get him for you,” was all he heard before being picked up from behind and tossed over Gray’s shoulder.

“What are you gonna do now, Sunshine?” Gray snickered, holding on tighter as Natsu did his best to get loose, “What do you think, Hana? Should I throw him in?”

“Yeah!” Hana giggled, “Throw Daddy in the ocean!”

“You heard the lady; you’re going down!” Gray turned them around, and Natsu could see that Hana looked positively gleeful at his predicament. All three kids cheered as they egged Gray on.

“Traitors!” He called out in mock dismay, as he flailed around, trying to mess up Gray’s balance. His efforts proved pointless, however, as the next thing he knew, he was falling, but only for a short second until he landed face-first into the cold water. Moving quickly, he turned himself around, snaking his arms out and grabbing Gray’s legs while he was busy laughing at him.

Using Gray’s distraction to his advantage, Natsu pulled, taking Gray down with him.

“Come on in, the water’s fine!” Natsu couldn’t help but cackle at the surprised expression on his boyfriend’s face.

“That’s it, Dragneel, you asked for it,” Gray announced before splashing water at Natsu’s face.

They wrestled in the water, both laughing too hard to be able to gain any advantage over the other. Soon they were joined by the kids who were more than happy to enter the fray.

After a few minutes, they each grabbed one of the boys and placed them on their shoulders so they could wade deeper while keeping an eye on Hana, who swam beside them. Both boys were overjoyed to be up so high. They eagerly called out every wave that rushed towards them.

Natsu was having such a great time that he completely forgot to keep track of Hana’s skin, and when he noticed the telltale redness on her nose and the back of her neck, he decided it was time to get back to their umbrella. Gray wasn’t doing much better, which made Natsu smile. The guy might be thirty, but he was still young in all the best ways.

Gray treated them to lunch, and they all sat together under the umbrella munching happily on pizza and chicken nuggets.

“Are you having fun?” Gray asked while helping Aki eat a slice of cheese pizza.

“Yeah,” Natsu answered honestly, “I have to admit, you had a good idea for once.”

Gray rolled his eyes at his response but chose not to protest. They shared a fun afternoon building sandcastles with the kids, collecting shells, and helping Atlas dig ever deeper holes, which Natsu made sure to refill once his son had moved on to the next one. Much too soon, it was time to get on a train as Natsu had to return to Magnolia in time for his evening shift at Crime Sorciere.

Natsu sat on the train, feeling content as Hana leaned against him, and Atlas snored in his lap. On the opposite bench, Aki was also K.O. in Gray’s arms, while Gray gazed out the window with a serene smile. Natsu watched him for a while, mesmerized by how breathtaking Gray looked when he was at peace. It didn’t happen nearly often enough for his liking, and that always saddened him. Gray deserved the world, and Natsu was determined to get it for him. Someday.

They made it home with enough time for Natsu to take a shower before leaving for work. He noticed a notification on his phone as he was getting dressed, and seeing that it was a text from Gray, he scanned it immediately.

Happy Birthday, Natsu! 😉

Natsu realized then that he hadn’t thought about his birthday once since they’d arrived at the beach. He was touched to learn that Gray had been aware all along, choosing not to treat the day any differently because he’d remembered how Natsu felt about it.

Just like that, Gray had understood what he’d needed, something Erza and Lisanna had struggled with for years.

For the first time since Natsu was nine years old, he’d had a birthday he could look back on with a smile. And that was the best present he could have ever asked for.

A/N: We had started this one for Summer Solstice but ran out of time, luckily Gratsu Week gave us the motivation to finish it! This fic marks 200K words in our AU!

[bluebellhairpin]

Follow You

Thorin Oakenshield X Reader

A/N: Angsty then Fluffy. Exactly how I like it. - Nemo

Request: Hi could you please write a story about reader and Thorin... Reader having War scars on all her body.. And she is scared that Thorin might be put off by it and he shows her that it's not true.... -  @curioiscat

Summary: Erebor has been reclaimed, but not without some loss, mostly taken via bodily harm. However, celebrations are set to be held, and one dwarrowdam isn’t too keen on the idea. Thorin changes her mind. 

Masterlist  

The Company almost couldn't believe it. 

Erebor was theirs. 

It didn't belong to a dragon anymore. 

It wasn't being attacked by Orcs. 

It was home again. 

The Dwarfs from Middle-Earth had all come back, the mines in the mountain back up and running, and the trading towns of Dale and Laketown were flourishing and filled with forms from all walks of life once more. A celebration was held. It was for everyone, after all in a way everyone did help reclaim the mountain in some way.

Dwarves, Humans, and Elves alike would journey to Erebor, even Thranduil had made sure to get there early (thanks to some bribing) so as to not miss anything. But despite the buzz of excitement over the grand party, there was one that was more anxious about it than joyous.

(y/n) wasn't too keen on the idea of a party, especially when Thorin's sister, Dis, arrived at the mountain and took her - the only dwarrowdam of the Company - under her careful watch. (y/n) had no idea about how to act around royalty or high-courteers, Thorin and the rest of the Company weren't half as concerned about titles and formalities during the journey compared to what was expected. So Dis taught her, and for that she was grateful. Without Dis, she would've made a fool out of herself at least four times now, and still counting. 

But still, (y/n) had yet to be seen outside you quarters wearing clothes that weren't traveling clothes. 

Most of the other female courteers wore dresses that could've been woven from the gemstones in the mines. They sparkled and shone, they swished around their ankles like waves lapping at the shores, and the worst part for (y/n) - they often had nothing to cover their shoulders, and sometimes even a length down their back. 

(y/n) didn't like that at all.

She had no problem with the dresses themselves, she thought they were amazingly beautiful, but she just couldn't help the feelings of what others might think of her if she wore one outside of her room and Dis' company. Not that she didn't look good in the dress, in fact she was told frequently by Dis that she looked stunning. 

She was covered in scars, and she didn't think that looked good at all. 

The scars that littered her back, arms, torso, and most of her body were all from battle. Oh the stories her skin could tell. Somewhere old and white, some were faded, others left ghosts of scars that ached when the weather changed, others were from the journey to Erebor, still pink and fresh, and yet others newer, still tender and sore from the Battle of Five Armies. 

Even (y/n) didn't escape harm, no matter how hard she tried. After all, it was part of her duty to make sure the King and Dis' two sons didn't die, and if she gained some new scrapes and bruises from it then it didn't worry her. Not until now, when she'd have to practically show them off to everyone she walked past.

Now music echoed through the stone hallways, and (y/n) was stuck in front of her mirror again, Dis was nowhere to be seen, probably already downstairs in the hall with Fili and Kili, so encouragement wasn't coming anytime soon. Not from Dis. 

Thorin had been looking for (y/n) since before the party even started, he didn't feel like celebrating if she wasn't there too - even if she was halfway across the grand room enjoying herself with others. He hadn't been able to spot her in the hall, and no one else he asked could point to where she was. He was getting a little worried. Then he asked his nephews, and they pointed him to Dis, who then told him to check (y/n)'s quarters. 

So he did, and Dis was right. Thorin should've known, Dis always knows where (y/n) would be nowadays. 

Before he was halfway down the hallway to her door, she stepped out of her room, and Thorin felt his breath catch and his heart skipped a beat. 

Her hair was half tied back in loose braids, ribbons of golden yellow and blue twisted into the strands. Her dress matched her hair ribbons, a beautiful shining gold, with navy blue lace surrounding the bodice, sheer sleeves and the fabric edges. She was beautiful. 

But Thorin could tell something was wrong, she was wringing her hands, breathing deeply, and staring ahead at the wall. She shook her head, then quickly went back into her room, skirts lapping at her ankles. 

Thorin followed, stopping just shy of outside her door where he could hear her light mutterings. 

"I can't do this."

"It's so stupid, why can't I do this?" 

"It's not like I need anyone to hold my damn hand!" 

"I've taken on an army of Orcs, what makes this any worse?" 

Thorin watched her through the ajar door as she sighed, slumping onto the edge of her bed and rested her hands on her bare shoulders, head tilted back and eyes closed. He debated whether to confront her or not, from what he could see there was nothing wrong - to him she always looked perfect, and now she looked like nothing less than a goddess. But he of all people knew that what you feel can sometimes not be said though words. 

She was stressed, nervous, anxious, and any other word of the like, and he didn't know why. But he wanted to know why. 

"I've been looking for you." he said quietly, pushing the door open to give her time to compose herself. She shot up to stand, hands not moving from the skin of her shoulders, and she was as stiff as a board Thorin noticed. She was hiding something. No one stood like that on instinct. "It really is some celebration you're missing." he added. 

"I'm," she started, looking off to one side for a moment, "I'm not too keen on parties. Too loud." She was a horrible liar. Thorin tilted his head at her, quirking up an eyebrow with a small smile.

"You love it when Fili and Kili pull you into their shanties. Those two are as loud as it gets." ( y/n) relaxed slightly, defeated.

"I just," she sighed, "I don't like the dress. It doesn't suit me at all." Thorin shook his head.

"Mahal, you're wrong. You look gorgeous." 

"You're saying that just because." A moment passed after she spoke.

"What's really wrong?" Thorin asked, throwing formalities and subtly right out the window. (y/n) gaped at him for a few moments, and then her hands came loose around her shoulders.

"The bare skin. I'm... Not used to it very much." she said, shifting on her feet as she looked up at him. Thorin frowned, stepping further into the room. She looked at him, seeing in his eyes he still didn't understand, but wasn't going to ask her to explain. She sucked in a breath and let her hands drop, revealing scars that started on her shoulders that crept down onto her back. The most prominent one was her newest, one he'd heard of but hadn't had the chance to see.

She was helping the Elf Legolas up at the frozen waterfall when she was - somehow - caught blindsided and almost had an Orc's axe go through her neck. If Legolas wasn't able to stop the Orc's momentum in time, her head would've rolled instead of just getting a sizable cut. She had to stop fighting, but she was still alive, and that's what mattered to Thorin. Her injury was much like his foot; not deadly, still a nuisance, but at least they were alive. 

"The scars. Everyone will stare." She mumbled, going back to fiddling with her hands. 

"People will stare, but not because of your scars." Thorin said, taking her jittery fingers in his hands. (y/n) looked down at where their hands met, and let out a contented sigh that Thorin almost missed. "You beauty is only added to by the things you'd call flaws that mar your skin. They tell a story of you, and no wall paintings, folk stories or inscriptions can do that well. Not even if there was a hundred of them." Thorin rested a hand to cup her jaw, tilting her downcast eyes to meet his.

"Thorin..."

"You are you, and I-" Thorin stopped for a moment, leaning forwards to gently press his forehead to hers. "I love you." She leant back, looking up into his eyes, her own wide in awe.

"You love me?" she asked, letting out a breathing laugh.

"Scars and all. I wouldn't have you any other way." he said smiling, bringing her hand up to press a kiss to her knuckles. 

"Why, my king, I'm honored." (y/n) giggled, bowing in a jest. Thorin sighed, rolling his eyes at her before tugging her hand as he started walking towards the door. (y/n) still seemed reluctant, but with Thorin pulling her along, she didn't fight against it.

"I am no king to you, only a dwarf asking the most precious person in his life for a dance." Thorin offered, looking back at (y/n) as she closed the door behind her. "All I ask is one dance, maybe share a drink if you want, then you can come back here if you still feel off. Okay?" Her smile was small, but her eyes told Thorin that she didn't mind his proposition.

"One dance and a drink." she nodded, taking his hand in hers and pressing a kiss to it, just like he did to hers. "I was able to fight Orcs alongside you. I followed you across Middle-Earth and into battle, for you I've been able to do things I never quite thought I would." 

"You could do all those things on your own. But if, for this, you need someone by your side," Thorin started, "I walk with you forever." 

"You were my king first, then my friend. Now you say you love me and will stand by me," (y/n)'s smile was wide, she couldn't stop the words coming out of her mouth, and Thorin couldn't help the mirrored smile that formed on his face too, "And I know I'll follow you anywhere you want me too."

[what-big-teeth]

Imprint (Asrai Girlfriend, pt. 2)

Female Reader (POV) x Female Monster [Part 1]

Lime ; NSFW-ish

The next day is awkward in noticeable ways.

Your idea to prepare homemade, fruit-filled pancakes is halted when you spot Silas slumped over at the dining room table. The empty whiskey glass near his head tells you plenty, as much as you’d rather not know. As a courtesy, you place the tumbler in the sink and decide to munch on a large apple in your room instead.

Come midday, as you sit on the porch swing enjoying the fresh air and texting your parents, something shatters. Your hurry back inside, finding Silas staring down at a pile of ceramic shards and a ruined breakfast sandwich. Like the plate, he looks utterly broken.

“Sorry.” His tight voice trembles. “I’ll get a broom and dustpan.”

You try to offer your assistance, but he turns his back to you and trudges towards the washroom. Watching him clean up his accident will hurt more than help, so you return to the front porch.

After a simple late lunch, one which you offered and Silas accepted, you hold a video call with Dr. Harn about your exposure therapy in the living room.

“I managed to stay at the pier’s end for a few minutes,” you say.

With Maris serving as an incentive, how could you not? You don’t mention her to Dr. Harn though, knowing her existence is something straight from a fairy tale.

“That’s a rather happy expression,” Dr. Harn says. “Did something good happen?”

You start to think of a more, mundane white lie. A deafening “no” from upstairs interrupts you.

Dr. Harn calls your name, concerned. You quickly assure her of your safety and promise to call her back. Laptop secured on the couch, you climb the stairs two at a time and swiftly reach the smaller guestroom. You see Silas through a gap in the opened door, his cheeks flushed an angry red.

“Sara, if you would just—”

You hear a sharp click and a monotonous dial tone. She’s hung up. Silas stares down at his smartphone with red-rimmed eyes, mouth opened.

“Damnit!”

He throws his phone, drops onto the bed and presses his face into his open hands.

The phone skitters to a stop against the door. Using that as a cue, you slowly step inside. You squat down and pick up his phone, sad to see a noticeable crack stretching across the touch screen.

“Silas?”

“Don’t.”

His fingers dig into the bare flesh of his upper arms.

“I bet you’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

You’re too stunned to answer. Silas barks out a sharp laugh.

“I treated you like shit when we were kids,” he says. “Seeing me like this must be great. The childhood bully getting his comeuppance later in life. Sweet karmic vengeance, right?”

You don’t reply. Instead, you close the distance between you and him then offer his phone. Silas stares at the device in a quiet stupor.

“Why?” he croaks out.

“Because there’s nothing to enjoy.”

It isn’t hard to overpower his pitiful, weakening stare. His gaze drops and he reclaims his damaged phone. You feel your anger building deep from within, thick and heavy. Jagged remnants from your childhood attempt to seize hold, but you hold them at bay.

“If I was still a kid, I probably would enjoy this. God only knows how much I hated you guys for bullying me so much. But I’m not. I don’t enjoy seeing you like this, Silas. If anything, I feel sorry for you.”

You take a deep, shuddering breath.

“That’s why I want to know if there’s anything I can do to help.”

The lake house falls silent. Not even the usual creaks and groans make themselves known. Silas’ shoulders tremble and he buries his face in his hands.

He tells you of the disagreements between him and his wife that have led to full-blown arguments. How he involved their daughter one too many times; how his wife kicked him out of the house without a shred of regret.

“I keep trying to tell her my side of things,” he says. “But she never listens.”

It’s sad. The answer is so simple that you wonder how Silas never saw it. But then, you remember how Simon would pose as the leader when it came to his brother, including how they bullied you. You wonder if things could have been different if Silas stood up to his older twin brother.

“Have you tried listening to her before telling her your side of things?”

Silas stills. He peers up at you, looking confused and lost. It confirms your suspicions.

“Relationships are a two-way street,” you say. You think back to the incident on the tire swing. “When you don’t listen to someone, you make them feel less than. Like they don’t matter. So when they need you the most, they feel like they can’t depend on you.”

You hold his gaze, your lips thinning into a line.

“And when you confirm that belief, they’re left feeling betrayed.”

Silas’ eyes begin to fill with tears and you know you’ve said enough. You’re inches from the guest room door when Silas laughs once more. Strangely, it’s tinged with awe.

“God, you’ve really changed, haven’t you?”

You look over your shoulder and manage to give him a small smile.

“That’s usually what happens when someone grows up.”

Later that night, you prepare a comforting dinner and call to Silas from the dining room. He approaches the table in an odd timid manner, quietly asking to take his food upstairs. You let him and he thanks you sincerely, promising to handle his own dishes.

After cleaning up and tucking yourself into bed, you allow the muted sounds of the lake lull you. Before sleep takes you under, you think you hear Silas murmuring from across the hallway. But as your eyes close, you aren’t certain.

The next morning brings an odd surprise. Silas, looking much more composed than before, stands in the kitchen doorway with his luggage in hand. You wipe your washed hands with a dishtowel by the sink.

“You’re leaving?”

He nods. “Sara and I made headway last night. And it’s all thank to you.”

The sincerity in his voice catches you off guard. It’s an anomaly, one you never expected to ever hear. You honestly aren’t sure how to feel.

“Uh, sure thing. No problem.”

“There’s also something else.”

Silas steps into the room and stands arms’ length away from you. You bite at the inside of your cheek, unsure of what he’ll do.

“I’m sorry for bullying you when we were kids,” he says. “And I’m sorry for not speaking up or stopping Simon when I had the chance. I knew what we did was wrong; I just never thought about how it would affect you.”

He rubs at the back of his neck, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

“If you decide to forgive me, that’s fine. And even if you don’t, that’s fine as well. I’ll leave that up to you.”

For the second time, Silas leaves you standing before him, utterly stunned. Silas nods at you and walks past, pulling his luggage behind him. Your throat finally opens as your mouth closes with a soft click.

“W-wait.”

Silas pauses with his hand on the door knob. He doesn’t look back at you and you find yourself feeling grateful for his consideration.

“Is…How is Simon doing?”

Silas’ head bows a few inches.

“He’s still facing his own demons from that day,” he says.

You inhale a deep, silent breath and smile.

“Then I hope he conquers them.”

Moments later, Silas leaves, all traces of his visit gone with him. It’s only when the sound of his truck’s departure fades completely that your wrist cools and tingles.

The sensation guides you to the pier’s edge where Maris is waiting for you. It’s then you realize the sky is overcast like before, overflowing with darkening clouds. She floats in the water, her body utterly still and tilts her head.

“Is everything well?” she asks.

Warmth blossoms in your chest. Your smile is small, but genuine.

“Not everything,” you say, “but it’s a promising start.”

Maris grins.

You sit down and soon learn more about her. Her kind has existed since the creation of nature, before humanity. Born of dew and moonlight, they wandered the earth, finding homes in lakes and sea. But because of their nature, they sleep underwater in the shadows during the day and only emerge when the sun is tucked away or nighttime reigns.

As for Maris herself, she has known about your family since she was just a child, when her older sister was still living with her in the lake. She never took much interest, more so as her sister was highly protective. But that all changed when she first saw you.

To say her words flatter you is an understatement. A cool touch caresses your heated cheek. Maris sits before you, face to face, using the lake water as a seat once more.

“Can I ask…” You wet your lips. “Is your sister still here?”

Her thumb stops skimming your cheek.

“No,” she says. The light in her eyes dim. “A trespasser captured her on a sunny day. She faded away before they could reach the lakeside.”

Your throat tightens. No matter how much you swallow, the lump refuses to sink. You reach up and hold Maris’ hand in yours.

“You’ve been lonely since then, haven’t you?”

She nods, attempting a smile; it falls short. As her gaze shifts away, you vow to never see that heartrending expression again. Not if you can help it.

“Can I see again tomorrow? And after that?”

Maris’ mouth falls open. She doesn’t move for the longest of moments until she nods.

“Yes. I would like that immensely.”

You squeeze her hand and let it go just as a peel of thunder rips through the air. You bid her farewell and hurry back inside the lake house just before the sky cracks open.

During your week-long stay, in-between checking in with Dr. Harn and your parents, you spend the rest of your time at the lakeside.

On clear days, Maris only appears at night, when the sun has long sunk beneath the horizon. She welcomes you every time, sometimes with a bright smile and other times with a soft yawn. Both are endearing and you find yourself recalling those moments and many more.

Learning more about Maris—how her nose crumples when she laughs, her innate curiosity about people, her deep insights when speaking of nature, her otherworldliness; it all pulls you closer to an edge that your heart has slowly led you to.

You fall completely during your last night at the lake house.

Maris stands on the water’s surface, her face tilted her face tilted up towards the full, bright moon. Strands of moonlight weave together across her form and hair, making them softly glow. Her hands skim across her body, trapping the light underneath her skin.

The entrancing sight draws a faint gasp from you. Maris pauses and she turns towards you. She smiles and slips into the water without causing any ripples. Moments later, she appears next to the lakeside and sits on the water’s surface.

It takes every ounce of your self-control to not run. But your steps are still hurried as her sweet smiles holds an unspoken promise. Perhaps a lingering kiss or a gentle caress. When she calls your name, your heart leaps. As you near closer, she speaks.

“This is your last night here, correct?”

Your thundering pulse calms. You nod, sitting on the lush grass.

“That’s right. I have to head back home. To get ready for graduate school.”

Maris closes the distance between you both by twining her fingers with yours. You shudder pleasantly at her cool touch.

“I am glad to have met your properly. And I am happy I had the opportunity to learn more about you.”

Her gaze boldly meets yours as her grip on your hand tightens ever so slightly.

“I hope you will not forget me.”

You open your mouth to reply. But you’re left speechless. Because in this moment, knowing what your heart wants and hoping she’ll reciprocate, words would fail.

This fact emboldens you to act instead.

You pull away from Maris, unsurprised at how empty your hand feels without hers in it.  But you need both hands to shuck off your shoes and remove your socks. Keeping your gaze focused on Maris’ questioning expression, you scoot closer to the lake’s edge. You dip your legs into the water and extend your arms towards her.

Maris is quick to fall into your embrace. And to your immense happiness, she presses a kiss against your lips.

From there, you both soon fall into a tangle of bare limbs, warm and cool, intermixed with large tendrils of water arising from the lake.

Your lips move from her mouth to her neck, down, down, down until you taste her and nearly fall drunk. Her sighs and mewls are lyrical, a song only meant for the two of you. And the more attentive you are, the more beautifully she sings.

With your guidance, she takes you apart with clever fingers and her cool mouth. Then she makes you whole with gentle words, soft kisses, and chilled caresses. You know you’ll not want for anyone else.

So you voice your decision, despite being dazed from her teasing kisses.

“I’ll find a way,” you breathe.

She steals your breath soon after with a light laugh.

“To do what?”

Your gaze meets her without wavering.

“To be with you.”

Maris stills, shifting back so she no longer leans over you. Her vivid sea-green eyes are wide and the light in them is unreadable.

“I’ll find a way,” you say again. “My family owns the land around the lake. I can have another house built in the future. Or move into the nearby town. Get a job and visit—“

Maris wastes no time in interrupting you. First with her lips then with the press of her fingers against your heat. You moan; the chilled contrast of her against you makes you shudder.

“I accept,” she says. “I wish for that, too.”

Backlit by the full moon, its light casting a beautiful glow onto her skin, she smiles. The sight emboldens you in more ways than one. First, you vow to accomplish your goal no matter. The next, Maris is able to guess without you needing to say a word.

She leans down and presses a sweet kiss against your pulse, grazing your skin with her sharp teeth. Her mouth lingers as your heart flutters.

“Come into the water with me,” she says, cupping your cheek. “I’ll keep you safe, beloved.”

Your answer is nearly silenced by her attentive touch.

“I know you will.”

You angle your face towards her, meeting her in a languid kiss as your bodies slip underwater.

And you only know of shared breaths and sweet pleasure.

[flutteringphalanges]

Summary:  After centuries together, an unexpected astronomical event occurs that causes the Earth to slowly be absorbed by the Sun. As the end of the world draws near, Dracula and Agatha spend their final moments together. Embracing their love in an otherwise chaotic conclusion. *Warning: Major Character Deaths*

Rating: T (M is if I choose to release the alternate ending)

Ship: Dracula/Agatha Status: Complete

Read on FFN and AO3

A/N:  This is a rather dark, but romantic one shot. Yes, I know the sun wouldn’t do this, but for story purposes and how the Sun played an important role in Dracula, it seemed fitting. I hope you guys like it (or find some sort of appreciation since, well, two major character deaths). Might consider releasing the M rated ending that goes along with the picture above. Feedback is greatly appreciated! Enjoy! -Jen

                                        When We Collide

In reality, something was bound to happen eventually. As the years wore on, the planet had become more and more of a wasteland punished by mankind. Overpopulation. Pollution poisoning the very air needed to flourish. The sands of time had been emptying away for decades. Centuries. The only surprise was how quickly everything came crashing down.

Agatha carefully examined every dress hanging from the rack in her closet. Her eyes studied them, feeling the fabric between her fingers. Humming a nameless tone, she finally decided upon a dusty blue summer dress. It felt fitting all things considered. A smile graced her features as she took it down and began to change.

Colonizing on other planets had been a failed task. For a few decades, a select few had been sent to live on Mars. But the experiment only lasted for so long before the leaders of the world and scientific communities pulled the metaphorical plug. Earth proved to be the only habitable planet. A place that too soon would be just as lifeless.

She decided to leave her hair down that day. Usually how she always wore it. No silly updos or complicated styles. Just normal. How she liked it. How Dracula liked it. Smoothing out the creases on her dress, the former nun exited the room, closing the door one last time.

The television was on in the living room programmed to the news. Her eyes flickered briefly to the screen, taking in the images of panic broad-casted across it. Even with less than twenty four hours left, some people still seemed to have hopes of escaping. Hiding. While others just wanted nothing more to add to the mayhem and disorder. She turned back around, paying no mind to it as the sound of footsteps pulled her attention away from the distorted screams.

"You look utterly exquisite."

Dracula smiled broadly as he strode over and took her hand in his. She was unable to suppress a small chuckle when he brought it to his lips and kissed the top gently. How gentlemanly of him. Letting her arm fall back to her side, she looked her husband over. Well-groomed, as he always was. For a moment, a wave of sadness fluttered in her still heart as she gazed into his dark eyes. Even though she'd known him so well for centuries, she couldn't bear the idea of being apart. But she quickly pushed past that, not wanting to upset him too.

"You look quite presentable yourself." And she pressed a chaste kiss to the corner of his mouth. "Always have a way with cleaning up nicely."

The Count smiled before a flash of recognition crossed his features. "Oh, I got you a little something." Agatha watched as he hurried back into the kitchen only to return with a bouquet of fabric lilacs. "I know they aren't the real thing," he admitted as she took them. "But you can't find live flowers nowadays."

"They're beautiful," she smiled. "Thank you."

Dracula walked over and turned off the television just as the sounds of gunfire and screams vibrated through the speakers. He made his way back over to her, reaching down to interlock his fingers with her free hand. She felt his cool skin against the rising heat of their very home. The hot temperatures didn't bother either of them. Their flesh void of blisters and burns. A vampiric perk.

"I was doing some deep thinking this morning," Dracula began. "About where we should go? I thought about the shore, but it'll most likely be crowded. People are throwing parties. An interesting way to celebrate the end."

"I've never been one for parties." She admitted, squeezing his hand. "Where else?"

"The old abbey is out of the question for obvious reasons." He glanced down at the watch on his wrist-a gift from Agatha from years ago. "Fylingdales Moor in Scarborough? It'll be a walk, but we have all the time in the world." The vampire snorted at his morbid joke. "What do you say?"

Agatha pondered his words before giving him a smile. "It's a good thing I have my walking shoes then."

When the word broke out about what was happening, the media ate it up alive. Theories. Conspiracies. Not a place, person, or thing was safe from being blamed. In the end, no one knew exactly why it was happening. Why the very star that provided so much for life was now about to extinguish it all. The outcome was simple, the Sun was absorbing the Earth at record speed. As it turned out, the damned thing was really deadly to vampires after all. Oh the irony of it.

The earth and its vegetation surrounding the little manor Dracula had built for the two of them had grown brown and dusty. As the sun's rays drew closer, everything had begun to wilt away. Agatha tried not to look at her garden, at the ruined flower beds she'd put so much effort into. Even the vegetables she'd tended to-all of the produce she gave away for free at the farmer's market-gone.

"You always had the prettiest roses," Dracula said, breaking the silence. "I don't care what the judges at the festival said. You should've let me take out Mrs. Robertson when I had the chance."

"Murder is not the answer when winning a competition." His wife stated, rolling her eyes. "Besides, she was old. I would've had an eternity to beat another."

Dracula visibly flinched and Agatha felt a pang of guilt. He had, after all, promised her the world. Enteral life. Immortality. And yet, she felt truly fulfilled. Her experiences, her memories, how she treasured them. It was for those reasons she was at peace with what was coming. Agatha only wished Dracula felt the same.

"Dracula," she began. "I think we should talk…"

"No," the vampire said abruptly. "We agreed that today was going to be a good day. Let's not ruin it with such discussions." Agatha sighed in defeat as the man pulled her along. "Remember our trip to Sweden?"

"You mean the one where I refused to let you feed off an innocent Swedish man and thus you were unable to successfully pick up the language?" She smirked at the memory. "If I recall correctly, I believe you called our innkeeper a 'rotten potato'."

"You're lucky he didn't kick us out," Dracula remarked. "We would've been forced to sleep on a pile of rotten potatoes then." He couldn't help but smile at the sound of Agatha's laugh. "Quite frankly, I don't know how I've managed to put up with you for so long. You can be quite domineering you know."

"If it weren't for me, you've been lost a long time ago," she countered. "You're lucky to have me around, Count Dracula."

He met her eyes, his mouth curving into a genuine grin. "I suppose I can't argue with that."

Besides the sound of their footsteps, the environment around them was quiet. Many of the animals had succumbed to rising climate change. As water sources dried up, the creatures that depended on them died too. Agatha distinctly recalled walking by Whitby beach one afternoon to find that much of the shore had been covered with decaying fish carcasses. The smell was almost so unbearable that her stomach lurched. There weren't any visitors that day, or even the week that followed.

"We really should have reconsidered going back to Transylvania," Dracula stated, breaking the silence. "It would've been nice to see the castle again. Or even Hungary?"

"Yes, because we had the greatest time in Budapest." Agatha replied, giving him a look. "No, England has been our home for so long. It seems fitting that we stayed here. It's nostalgic."

"You and your sentimental nature," he husband scoffed. "Sometimes I wonder if you reverted back into your human form."

"And would you still love me if I had?" She questioned, studied his face carefully. "If I was human?"

"Even if you put a stake to my chest and called me a despicable beast-which, I might have, you've done in the past, I would most certainly." The vampire smiled and took her into his arms, kissing her softly. "You were always my most promising experiment."

"You and your elegant way with words." Agatha smirked, rolling her eyes. "I should have worked with you on that. But it would've taken away from that charismatic charm of yours."

"Are you mocking me?" Dracula asked, a brow cocked.

"Just merely stating a point." She answered, reaching down to once again reclaim his hand. For a second, her eyes glanced up towards the sky noting how scarlet it'd already become. "We should hurry. I'd like to enjoy the fields before it's too late."

It was odd that despite the millions of people who called England their residence were not out and about. Not once since they'd left their house had they come across another person. Not that they were complaining, both Dracula and Agatha wanted privacy. And as they approached the rolling hills of their destination, the vampires stopped.

"This looks like a lovely place." Agatha said, turning to Dracula. "Wouldn't you agree?"

The elder vampire's face had fallen void of emotion. He let go of his mate's hand and stared upwards, the corners of his lips turning downwards into a frown. Agatha forced a smile as she watched him, trying to hide her own disappointment. The air was getting hotter and they both knew their time was closing in.

"I lied to you."

At first, Agatha wasn't quite sure if she heard him right. It was an odd statement, something she hadn't expected. When she tried to catch his eyes, he didn't meet hers. Instead, he continued to look off into the distant as if deep in thought.

"Dracula…" She said hesitantly, reaching out to grab his arm. "What are you talking about? What do you mean you lied?"

The man merely sighed, pinching the brim of his nose before finally finding it in him to face his wife. "I promised you forever," he exclaimed. "From the moment I turned you, I assured you that I would make you last. Bond together for eternity. But this," he wildly motioned at the sky. "Is not what I meant."

"No, you're right…" Agatha began, moving closer. "It wasn't what either of us expected. But my dearest Count, you did give me a full life. Centuries that I would have otherwise never had." She reached up, resting a hand against his cool cheek. "I'm not upset or scared about what is to come. I'm not alone. I have you, don't I?"

"Well yes," Dracula agreed, still grimacing. "But now I've doomed us to becoming nothing more than ash-if we are lucky to become only that."

"Then let us become ash, or particles, or whatever else happens when we burn," she murmured. "If this was what life had intended for us, then in the end, I'm glad I was with you." Agatha chuckled softly, shaking her head. "Funny to think I wouldn't have agreed to that those many, many centuries ago. Back at the convent. You remember yes?"

"How could I forget," he smirked. "What a feisty personality you had as a nun."

"We went from wanting to kill each other to wanting to die together." Agatha sighed, gazing deep into his eyes. "Irony has truly followed us throughout the years. But I wouldn't change a second of it. Not a moment." The ground around them began to smoke, but she ignored it. "Do you love me, Count Dracula?"

"More than I'll ever be able to comprehend." He answered, pulling her close. "You, my beloved, have always been my true bride."

The air was scorching now, a blinding orange glow radiating from every direction. The skirt of Agatha's dress was now encircled by a brilliant ring of red flame. She didn't seem to notice though as she pushed herself up to kiss Dracula on the mouth hard. His arms wrapped around her as he held her close.

"Don't let go." she whispered, allowing her eyes to close for one last time.

"Never," he answered. "Not in a million years."

And together, as the mighty star drew in closer, the lovers were pulled into the Sun's welcoming embrace. Forever lost in their eternal love.

[princesssarisa]

10 facts about Shana and her mother Darika. Plus the full OC interview with each of them :)

Here they are! Shanna, the “Beauty” of my wlw Beauty and the Beast retelling (which still lacks a definitive title, though I intend it to include the word “rose”), and Darika, her mother.

Shanna 10 facts 1. She is 14 years old during the story’s prologue, 17 when the main plot starts, and 19 by the end.

2. My facecast for her is the late Israeli singer Ofra Haza (best known to some of us for providing the voice of Moses’s mother Yocheved in The Prince of Egypt) when she was very young.

3. She’s mixed race. Her mother’s ancestors were white pseudo-Europeans, while her father’s came from a Middle Eastern-inspired culture. Both practiced the same Judaism- and Shamanism-inspired religion, though. She’s her world’s equivalent of a Jewish person who’s half Ashkenazi, half Mizrahi.

4. Her name is partly a variant of the Yiddish “Shaina,” meaning “beautiful,” and partly an abbreviation of the Hebrew “Shoshanna,” meaning “lily” or, more significantly, “rose.” It has nothing to do with the Hebrew “shana,” meaning “year” – they’re just almost-homonyms.

5. Unlike most traditional Beauty and the Beast Beauties, she’s the eldest of three sisters, not the youngest. Her two sisters aren’t wicked, but they are a bit of a handful because they’re so young, and she’s had to be their responsible caretaker. She plays that role well – her little sister Zuri sooner calls for her than for their mother when she needs help – but it’s kept her from fully exploring her own potential, which she finally does get to explore during her time with Liriel, the lady beast.

6. Her personality is very much like Disney’s original animated Belle: bookish, sweet, emotional, full of dreams, yet intelligent and strong willed too. She’s more socially awkward than Belle, though, and unfortunately, she also has the self-doubt of Robin McKinley or Megan Kearney’s Beauties. Unlike Belle, she’s internalized the idea that she’s odd and oversensitive, so she tries to act like a “normal” down-to-earth villager, until the year she spends with Liriel makes her realize her worth just as she is.

7. She’s an aspiring author and poet. At age 13, before her family fell into poverty, she wrote a play based on the popular story of the heroine Lady Yasfira, portraying her as more flawed and dynamic than in most retellings, giving more sympathy than usual to the “evil” queen who opposed her, and portraying them as having once been friends. (Think either The Prince of Egypt or Wicked, or both.) The play was never performed at the time, but years later, with Liriel’s encouragement, she fine-tunes it, and then they perform it together for Liriel’s animal servants – this plays an important role in their growing feelings for each other.

8. She rarely lets herself get angry, but when she does, she can verbally annihilate you.

9. She realized she was bisexual at age 11 when, after her first crush on a boy at her school ended, she developed a new crush on a girl. She probably realized this more quickly than most real-world bi girls do, because the setting, Zalina Island, has no homophobia. She never acted on her crushes, but only out of shyness, not because she saw anything wrong with liking girls.

10. Despite her gentle personality, she’s not especially femme: she’s more soft butch, or maybe futch. She dislikes dresses (fortunately, Zalina Island has no taboo against women in pants) and generally wears just one or two feminine articles, like a shawl or earrings, with otherwise boyish clothing.

Interview (as she would answer it around the middle of the story)

What did you want to be, when you were a kid? There were so many things I wanted to be at different times. A queen, a princess, a duchess, a prophet, a traveling bard, an actress, a shepherdess, a farmer, a lady knight, a prime minister, a priestess, an acrobat, a cook, a kitchen maid, a dressmaker like my mother, a merchant like my father, a doctor, a midwife, a goldsmith, a fairy… and eventually, I realized that the one way to be all those things was to be a writer.

When did you know you wanted to be a writer? As soon as I was old enough to realize that stories didn’t come out of thin air, but where written by people. I wanted to do it as soon as I knew I could.

Who inspires you? My mother, my father, and a wide array of fictional heroes and heroines.

If you got to choose, where would you like to live? With whom? I’d love to live in a castle. I try not to care where I live as long as my family is with me, but my dreams of living in some splendid beautiful place never seem to die. I wouldn’t want it unless my family was there too, though.

Which item would you never give away? My journal, where I write down my secret thoughts, poems and stories.

Tell us about the biggest mistake you made in your life. Until recently, I might have cited the time I forgot to write an important history essay for school because I got lost in writing my play Yasfira and Anefri. Or else the time I lost my temper with my three-year-old sister Zuri and hurt her feelings so badly that she ran away and was missing for over an hour. But now, there’s no doubt that my worst mistake was asking Mama to bring me back a unique flower if she could find one on her trip to the city. Who would have thought a flower would cost so much?

Did you ever fear for your life? Yes, the moment when I saw Lady Liriel for the first time, after I followed Mama back to her lair – half wolf, half dragon, and entirely terrifying – and even more so, when she sniffed the air and I knew she smelled me hiding there.

There’s people who say you’re strange. Do you have any comment on this? I’m afraid it’s true. So often my imagination feels more real than the real world, my mind flies off to places that no one else believes exist, my emotions swell and crash like tidal waves no matter how much I try to swallow them and put logic first, I’ve always asked too many questions, and I feel less alone with only my books, paper and pen than I do in crowds of people.

Tell us something about you that nobody knows. Well, not many people know how strange I am anymore. I’ve learned to copy Mama and pretend to be as sensible and down-to-earth as she and our neighbors are, instead of spewing my feelings and dreams the way I used to. If the villagers knew about my romantic fantasies or the stories and poems I write in my head, they would laugh or scold even more than the people in the city did when I was small. 

What would make a perfect day for you? A few hours spent reading, a few spent writing, and maybe a trip to the theatre in the evening, with people who understand me and let me feel free to be myself.

Darika 10 Facts 1. She takes on the father’s traditional role in the Beauty and the Beast story. Her husband was a merchant, but he died in the same shipwreck that destroyed his merchandise and left the family impoverished. But a few years later, she learns that one of his ships survived after all, has to travel to reclaim its cargo, but gets lost in a forest… and we all know the rest. Recent BatB retellings have put a lot of effort into answering the question “What happened to Beauty/Belle’s mother?” in interesting and poignant ways. To be different, I thought “Why not make her mother the living parent?”

2. My facecast for her is the New York City Criminal Court judge Rachel “Ruchie” Freier. Not that I know much about Judge Freier, but her face look right for the character.

3. At the beginning of the story, she’s 35 years old. By the end, she’s 40.

4. She was born in a small, poor village at the base of the White Pine Mountains. Her parents died when she was a baby, so she was raised by her grandfather and her older sister, who have since died too. 

5. She worked as a seamstress in the village until she met and fell in love with a wealthy young traveling merchant from an elite port city. Despite the disapproval of his social circle, they married. After his death, she took their daughters back to her home village to start a new life.

6. Her impoverished upbringing and family tragedies have toughened her. She takes a very practical, hardworking, no-nonsense approach to life, tries to teach her daughters to do the same, and is calm and resolute in the face of hardship, focusing on “What are we going to do about it?” She sometimes loses patience with her daughter Shanna’s dreaminess and sensitivity, which makes Shanna, who adores and idolizes her, feel inadequate and weak.

7. Inside, though, she feels just as deeply and intensely as Shanna does. Her love for her family is limitless and she’s actually very dependent on Shanna, who fills the role of the family’s nurturing caregiver more than Darika’s temperament lets her do.

8. One thing she and Shanna have in common, which Shanna learned from her, is strong integrity and deep compassion for others. For her, the best part of being rich was all the good she could do for the poor, while the hardest part of becoming poor again was having so little to give to those even poorer.

9. Her sewing is more than just her job – it’s an art. She embroiders the clothes and quilts she makes with all kinds of colors and unique designs. The vibrant images she creates are an outlet for the emotions she doesn’t express.

10. Her personality is inspired by assorted beloved literary heroines, both classic (Jane Eyre, Elinor Dashwood) and modern (Tamora Pierce’s lady knight Keladry of Mindalen). For all their differences, and though they’re much younger than Darika, all these heroines are quiet, practical, dignified, staunch in their integrity, deeply caring and passionate on the inside, and yet with masks of stoic self-control that they only drop when intensely provoked. I like those heroines and admire them, yet sometimes their popular role model status annoys me, because it’s hard for a highly sensitive, naturally effusive person to act like them. So Darika pays tribute to them, but the story will also emphasize that her daughters don’t need to be like her.

Interview (as she would answer it around the middle of the story) What did you want to be, when you were a kid? A forest sprite or a good witch. I had a wild imagination in those days, before the real world tamed it.

When did you know you wanted to be a seamstress? When I first learned that the flowers and birds on my childhood quilt hadn’t sprouted there by themselves, but were embroidered by my mother, and that the storytelling tapestries that hung on the village temple walls were sewn by other villagers in the same way. I wanted to create beauty like they had, and to tell stories through pictures, while at the same time creating useful things for others: clothes, blankets, handkerchiefs, etc.  I think I willed my own talent for sewing into being to do just that.  

Who inspires you? My older sister Shanna; the namesake of my daughter. We lost our mother very young, so she took on the role of mother for me, and every day her love and strength have inspired me as I’ve raised my own children.

If you got to choose, where would you like to live? With whom? I would live in a clean, elegant, comfortable house with my daughters, a servant or two, and my husband, if only I could bring him back.

Which item would you never give away? My wedding ring.

Tell us about the biggest mistake you made in your life. Three of them, one directly after the other. First, when I was lost in the Great Forest during a storm, I took shelter in what I thought was an ordinary cave. Then, when I found that the inside looked like a castle, I should have turned and left; even then I knew that such an enchanted place would be dangerous. But I was cold, wet, and afraid I would die if I went back out into the storm, so I stayed. Last but not least, when I discovered the greenhouse garden in that castle-cave, I crept in and picked a rose as a gift for my daughter Shanna. Who would have dreamed a single flower would cost so much?

Did you ever fear for your life? I feared for my life when I was lost in the storm, but even more so when I came face to face with Lady Liriel. I’ll never forget the sight of her matted fur and vampire-bat fangs as she glared down at me.

There’s people who say you’re cold and stony. Do you have any comment on this? They don’t really know me.

Tell us something about you that nobody knows. Very few people fully know me, not even my daughters. I play the role of the calm, practical peasant woman, but it’s only skin-deep. Shanna thinks all her wild passions and romantic dreams came from her father, but really she inherited them from me too. My grandfather knew the secret me, and so did my sister, and my husband. But they’re all gone, and as I’ve buried each of them, I’ve buried those aspects of myself more deeply.

What would make a perfect day for you? A quiet day of embroidery by the fire at home, with my daughters all near me and all happy.

[monicawoe]

Supernatural fic masterlist

(updated 12/20/2020)

I’ve written over 100 spn fics (ranging from ficlets to 70k big-bangs). Most of them are Sam-centric, largely featuring powers!Sam. The whole collection can be found here on AO3

newest fics:

Closer Than You Think - Five times Sam’s eyes were demonic, and one time they weren’t. (3k words, boyKingSam AUs of multiple eps)

Behold the Beast, Behold the Lamb - Season 4 AU.  Sam tried to free Dean from Hell, but angels intervened and took Dean for their own purposes. Sam is determined to get Dean back and will do whatever it takes, embracing his abilities fully. The more demon blood Sam drinks, the more demons he kills, the more he changes inside and out until it’s impossible to hide his monstrous side. Ruby, Uriel and Castiel push Sam to fulfill his destiny and become his true self—the Beast of the Revelation. (gen, Sam/Ruby, 20k words; featuring art by @quickreaver​)

Hellbound - Sam is in Hell, and then he isn't. He's standing on a sidewalk with a stranger looking back at him—a stranger that has his face. My 2020 spn-summergen fic! Featuring soulless!Sam, disembodied soul-Sam and amnesiac Dean. (gen, 8k)

Sin Eater - Sam has a different plan to cure demon Dean, but Dean doesn't want to be cured. (Sam drinking blood from demon!Dean, written for @quickreaver​ for her artwork Bitumen Kiss)

Best Self - written for @alyndra9​​  for the prompt: King of Hell Sam meets Kale!Sam and they have many differences of opinion to work out. (aka the only one who knows what Sam really wants is Sam.) words by monicawoe banner by @quickreaver​​! (~4k words, Sam/Sam)

All You Have Is Your Fire - written for @quickreaver​ for the 2020 Supernatural Spring Fling  Dean has known fire all his life. Sometimes it sounds like his brother. (~2k words; gen)

Tear You Apart - written for @wetsammywinchester​ who wanted Soulless!Sam/Brady & Soulless!Sam taking on the mantle of King of Hell:  Sam doesn’t want his soul back. He resurrects Brady who helps him figure out a way to outsmart Death: by damaging his soul so it can’t be reintegrated. With Brady’s help, Sam reclaims his power, and takes his soul apart one piece at a time. (8k words; Soulless!Sam/Brady)

Prayers Answered - written for the boy king Sam discord server prompt: Sam has grown up in a very religious environment. He's devoted, he goes to church, he prays. He knows that God is with him, because he listens to his prayers. But as Sam grows older, he realizes it's not God that's been listening. And he realizes that he's not asking - he's been ordering, and his loyal servants would never deny their King. (2k words; gen)

On His Head a Crown - written for the 2019-2020 SWBB, art by @slytherkins​ Hunters drug Sam, force-feed him demon blood, and bring him to where they’ve captured Brady. Brady tells Sam he knows how to stop the Apocalypse, and Sam, despite his better judgment, hears him out: Sam himself is the horsemen Conquest—aka the Antichrist—and he alone can bring Lucifer’s apocalypse to a grinding halt. Sam resists, but when he discovers the good he can do with his new powers, he decides to use them to atone for all his past mistakes.   (21k, Sam/Brady, gen, AU of 5x03-5x04)

Many more under the cut

Lakeside Fishing - written for @denugis​ - After defeating Famine, after days of suffering through demon blood withdrawal in the panic room, Sam needs time to clear his head. Early in the morning, he heads to a small lake seeking solitude, but instead finds an unexpected ally. (4k words; Sam/Patrick; set after My Bloody Valentine; witch!Sam)

His Soul to Keep - art by @sketchydean​​ - written for the SPN Eldritch Bang horror event - Dean’s deal is coming due soon. When he finds out from Ruby that Hell will turn him into a demon, he refuses to accept it, even though he can already feel pieces of his soul starting to crumble away. Sam is his only anchor to the world, and Dean finds it harder and harder to leave his side.    After Broward County, after watching Dean die a thousand deaths, Sam decides he’s not going to let Dean go to Hell. He’ll do whatever it takes, even if that means allying himself with Ruby and using the darkness inside of him. Sam casts a soul-binding spell on Dean; they might not be able to break the deal, but they can change who Dean’s soul belongs to. (13k, Sam/Dean, hard-gen, AU of season 3))

Last Drop - art by @quickreaver​ -written for the Twisted Tropes event - Sam/Brady AU set while Sam’s at Stanford:  Sam is slowly adjusting to his new life at Stanford University. He’s left his life of hunting behind, and traded it for endless studying and tests, but he’s plagued by dreams of Dean and Dad in danger, dreams of blood and violence. Then he meets Tyson Brady, who’s always there with a smile and a cup of coffee to get Sam through all-nighters. Sam’s dreams start to fade, but just as he’s getting used to a nice normal life, he starts to develop abilities—powers he can’t control. Brady thinks they’re great, but Sam knows power never comes without a cost. (14k, Sam/Brady)

Make Angels of Us All - art by @amberdreams1960​  - Sam has a guardian angel. It’s been with him his whole life, trying to keep him safe. The angel gives Sam power he can’t control: power to move things with his mind, power over fire, and wings that nobody else can see—bony and jagged with scaly feathers. Dean says monsters aren't real, but Dad thinks they are. Sam's power scares him, and he’s not always sure what's real, but what he does know is people keep trying to kill the three of them, and he won't let that happen. (~20K, gen)

Burdens, Doublefold - cowritten with @quickreaver​, art by ileliberte What if Dean left Sam at Stanford after the fire, hoping it would keep his little brother safe and make things better? Somehow, 'better' never seems to be in the Winchester Family cards. Sam gets tangled up with his ex-roommate Brady, tracking psychics, but dealing with demons is never honest business. Dean carries on until his father is put in grave danger. He is left on his own to deal, stumbling into Harvelle's Roadhouse for help, where Dean gets just a little more than he bargained for. Eventually, the brothers’ paths twist and turn their way back to each other, but the results could mean the End of Days. (67k, gen, AU of seasons 1-2)

Before the One You Serve When Dean comes to get Sam at Stanford, he finds him living with Brady. And Dean doesn't trust Brady, even though he can't quite put his finger on why. Not at first. (5k, Sam/Brady)

He Who Fights Monsters - cowritten with nwspaprtaxis, art by @quickreaver​ AU of the summer between Seasons 3 and 4. Dean's dead, dragged down kicking and screaming to Hell. Sam's not dealing well. And Ruby’s got her work cut out for her. (52K, Sam/Ruby)

John Winchester is Dead They say those Winchester boys're crazy. Drive around in a big black beast and drink too much and laugh about mean things. They say their daddy's worse, but you never see him. He's just a voice on the other end of the phone or a darker shape in the back seat of their dark car. They say John Winchester died two years ago. (2k, gen, horror)

Breathing, Talking, Dead Man Walking   -  John Doe, male, approximately thirty-seven years old. Subject was found by EMTs in close proximity to the site of a sizable explosion in Lebanon, Kansas. (2k, gen, Sam & Dean)

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea - featuring art by @quickreaver​ When Sam opened Lucifer’s Cage, the only thing he found inside was Lucifer’s grace – his grace. With the return of his grace, Sam remembered his past – his war against the Host, his Fall, and his plans to bring about the End. The thing is…he doesn’t want the Apocalypse anymore. He likes things the way they are, and tries everything to keep his identity a secret- especially from Dean. Of course, the four Horsemen, Hell and Heaven have other ideas. (13K, gen)

The Last Days in the Land of Nod - comic adaptation by @quickreaver​ The year is 2014. The Devil is wearing his finest, the Angel is human, and the Brother protects the survivors at Camp Chitaqua.

The Two Ravens - art by @quickreaver​ Your brother he is, and heir to my throne. He’ll feed on the damned and he'll turn them to bone. (4k; fairy-tale)

Counteroffer About two weeks after Sam gutted a hellhound, completing the first trial, he started acting weird. (5k, psychological horror, gore)

Pattern Recognition: A Hannibal/Supernatural fusion AU  -  Sam and Dean split after River Pass, and their confrontation with the Horseman, War. Since Will’s escape from the Baltimore Institute for the Criminally Insane, he and Sam have been in hiding. They have a cabin, in the middle of nowhere, that keeps them off the radar; they find comfort in each other. But they can’t stay off the chessboard forever, especially not when Lucifer, wearing Hannibal Lecter as a vessel, is tearing the world apart around them. (33k, Sam Winchester/Will Graham)

Impala's Run - cowritten with @quickreaver, art by adrenalineshots Sam and Dean Singer (aka Winchester) aren’t your average young Kansas farmers. Their home is very, very far from Kansas, in fact. Many light-years worth of ‘far’. The boys may look human, but certain talents set them apart: Dean speaks the language of machines, and Sam can heal through manipulating energy. Hidden on Earth by their father, their agricultural lifestyle gets rocked when warring alien races discover where they’ve landed, and Sam and Dean are forced to make the run of their lives. (23k, gen)

All Our Wrath and Cutting Beauty - art by @quickreaver - Sam killed Alistair, but not before Alistair reminded Dean of who and what he’d become in Hell. Dean knows Sam can take down Lilith, and he’ll make damn sure Sam gets strong enough to do just that. They’ll stop the Apocalypse – together, no matter how many bodies stack up, or how much blood is spilt.(11k, horror) 

Diary of a Madman -Lydia’s newest patient, Sam Winchester, suffered from hallucinations, delusions, and regular bouts of insomnia. He also thought he was Lucifer. (4k, gen, horror)

Some other bundled links, for your convenience

Demon-blood Sam

King of Hell Sam

Powers!Sam

Horror

Crossovers & Fusion ‘verses

Hannibal|SPN

SPN/Preacher

SPN/Hannibal/MCU

[gaysparkler]

"you have forgotten me or you love someone else" from the Sappho one for Miri and Mandisa ;)

Just for some context – Miri Lavellan is @aveline-the-dragon-slayer‘s Dragon Age OC, and Mandisa Trevelyan is mine. Mandisa is somehow a vampire because sometimes you just have to be self-indulgent. 

Suggested listening: Epilogue - Dark Souls III

Miri had grown old.

Decades passed; the world changed. She changed. Her fiery red hair now all white, her skin wrinkled, her joints tired. But Mandisa was the same—everything about her remained as if she were still twenty-five years old. Though she had tried, Miri was never able to convince Mandisa to leave her. All those years as Keeper, Mandisa stood by her side, aided the hunters to repel shems, traveled impossible distances to find resources, used her charm to reclaim stolen artifacts. With each passing day, Mandisa loved Miri just the same, despite the side effects of aging.

It was not age that took Miri’s life, in the end. A disease, passed down from her father’s side, eating her from the inside. Something impossible to cure—something Mandisa had never seen before. When Miri had called her in her Aravel, Mandisa knew what would happen. The wood creaked under her as she entered. Miri was on her bedroll, her eyes glassy. Mandisa knelt by her side.

“Hello, ma vhenan,” she simply said. She lifted a hand. Mandisa immediately took it in hers, brought it to her lips.

“My love,” Mandisa replied. Already, tears were rolling down her cheeks. She had seen everyone she loved die before. It never got easier. Miri turned her head to look at her. Her lips were cracked. She had lost so much weight that Mandisa could see every part of Miri’s skull.

“I was lucky to have all this time with you—” she paused to cough. “I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”

“Let me change you,” Mandisa pleaded. “We could stay together—”

“Immortality is not for me,” Miri replied, gently pulling her hand away from Mandisa’s grasp, instead to put both on either side of Mandisa’s face.

“But I can save you—you could survive this,” Mandisa protested.

Miri smiled. “We talked about this, ma vhenan. I do not wish to live forever.”

“What will I do without you?” she whimpered.

“You will live. Explore the world, meet new people. Soon, I will simply be a memory—someone from your distant past. You will—you can love again.”

“I don’t want to,” Mandisa held Miri’s wrists, keeping her hands on her face. “Please…”

Miri gasped, took a long breath in. There was a breeze in the Aravel. “Falon’Din is coming for me, ma vhenan. Promise me—promise me to keep living. You can’t remain in the past forever.”

Mandisa blinked back tears. “I’ll try,” she whispered. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Miri smiled at her again, then the light in her eyes was gone. She was gone. The hands against Mandisa’s face lost their strength. She slowly lowered them. Carefully, she closed Miri’s eyes. She stood on shaking legs, and exited the Aravel, where the clan were waiting.

“Your Keeper is with Falon’Din,” Mandisa said, bowing to them. “Ir abelas.”

She stayed long enough to see the clan bury Miri with the traditional oak staff and cedar branch. On top of her grave, a jacaranda sapling was planted in the earth. Though it barely had branches, small purple flowers were starting to bloom.

~~~

Mandisa put her hand on the bark. It was rough and brittle, scarred by the years. Countless branches poured around her, a shower of purple petals. She had forgotten how long it had been since she was last here.

After—after Miri’s death, she remained close to the Lavellan clan, helping them as she did before, only interacting with those she knew best. With time, she grew increasingly distant. She needed to leave, so she did. Keeping in the shadows, she traveled the continent, never staying too long in the same space, feeding on whatever animal she could find, until she found an abandoned cabin by the ocean in Rivain. There, Mandisa hid as the world changed around her, plagued by visions of Miri. Walking on the beach in a white dress, barefoot, collecting bright shells. Waiting for her at the table, running her fingers on the wood, hissing at the sting of a splinter. Standing on the tall cliffs, her arms open, laughing in the sun.  Every time, Mandisa shut her eyes tightly, blinked the tears away. All those years, and Miri never left her.

Mandisa’s hand was on the bark—on the tree standing as Miri’s grave. It had grown so much, but Mandisa was the same. The same as when the tree was planted, the same as when Miri died. Such was her curse. She rested her forehead against the trunk.

“Hi, my love,” she whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks. “It’s been a while.”

Behind her, a gust of wind shook the branches. Petals fell slowly. Mandisa turned sharply.

A few steps away from her was—Miri. Just as she looked when they had first met—no signs of age or disease. Mandisa could not tell if it was a trick of her mind, or if it was really her. She carefully walked closer. Miri smiled, her tears twinkling in the moonlight.

“Ma vhenan,” Miri said.

Mandisa choked on a laugh of disbelief as she reached for Miri, but her hands never touched her. So it had been a vision after all. Mandisa clutched her arms to her chest and stepped away from Miri. She closed her eyes again.

“I’m here, Mandisa. It’s really me.”

Mandisa kept her eyes shut.

“I was hoping you would forget,” Miri added.

Mandisa scoffed through her tears. Her visions had never spoken before. “I could never forget you. I never forgot anyone.”

“I’m sorry, ma vhenan. But you knew what would happen.”

Mandisa finally opened her eyes and marched back to Miri. “I couldn’t just—leave you! You’re,” a pause for a shuddering breath, “you were the love of my life. I couldn’t give that away, immortality or not.”

“You promised me you would keep living.” Miri stood closer, put her weightless hand against Mandisa’s cheek. Neither could feel it.

“I tried,” Mandisa cried. “I can’t—not without you.”

“Yes, you can.” Miri’s smile was sad. “You have to move on.”

“I can’t forget you.”

“I know. It was foolish of me to think otherwise, but—” Miri’s form grew more translucent. She winced, as though she was in pain. “You can’t stay alone forever, not because of me.”

“Please don’t go,” Mandisa pleaded.

“I’ve spent more time than I should have already, ma vhenan. Remember what I said.”

“I love you,” she said. Miri smiled at her once last time before she was once again completely alone. She fell to her knees and wept.

~~~

Deep in the Tirashan, west of Orlais, Mandisa found a cave in the mountainside, where she should hide during the day, and explore the forest at night. With rumours of the Forgotten Ones’ worshippers living within these woods, she knew no human would be bothering her.

Though she had found some non-humans. Others, like her, who did not kill humans for sustenance. They had a network of caves, some old forgotten section of the Deep Roads, ignored by darkspawn since, technically, nothing lived there. There was nothing to corrupt.

They were about eleven, a small community hidden away from the world. They welcomed her with open arms, greeted her saying “welcome home,” though she had never met them. Mandisa accepted their invitation to join, them. She had spent enough time alone. For once in her life, she had found a family that she would not outlive.

Months after her arrival, when she ventured outside, she saw Miri for the first time in years, basking in the moonlight. The sight of her did not hurt as much as it did before. She would smile, wave, and keep going. Though she had never forgot about her, Mandisa had respected her promise. Just not in the way she had expected.

As the sun began to rise, Mandisa returned to her home, where she was greeted by the smiling faces of the people she had come to love. Her family.

[motleymoose]

Homecoming Pt 4: Nevarro Ch 4

Chapter 4 The Family Business

Fandom: The Mandalorian, Star Wars Characters: The Mandalorian (Din Djarin), Gender-Neutral Reader Words: 900+ Warnings: Fighting, Blood, All the anger

Summary:

I'm on my own from now on.

Notes:

Guys.... I think maybe I'm working through some things with this fic??? I don't know why this character is just always so... angry... and sometimes unrightfully so.

I promise, it will get better for them. There's still one more chapter in this part, and at least one, maybe two parts after this one ends. Things will be happier, I swear.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Homecoming Masterlist

“No,” I spat, unsure of what else to say, chest and mouth full of a lifetime of unplaced rage waiting to spill out and smother everything in its path. I clenched my fists into my pockets in desperation, to keep them from shaking, to keep me from doing something rash.

Din groaned in annoyance, his helmet sagging wearily between his shoulder blades. “What else do you want from me, vod? A certificate stating that you and I are of the same clan? A holo from Reyn? Or better yet, the man himself, come to reclaim what’s his?” His growling baritone threatened darkness and destruction, but he couldn’t possibly know the inner turmoil I was already experiencing. Nothing he could do or say would change the way I felt about the mess I was unwillingly dragged into. Hell, even I didn’t understand all of my feelings, not totally, and that just made me all the angrier.

Neglected emotions tended to do that for me, no matter how hard I tried to find peace.

Scowling, I closed the space between us until we were almost chest-to-chest. “I mean, no. You may not use me for bait to get Drys. I don’t give one flying frag what he did in the past,” I lied. “Not my bluurg, not my moisture farm. Tayli’bac?” When he didn’t answer, I nodded curtly, taking a step back and crossing my trembling arms over my ribcage. “Good.”

Sighing, Din rubbed at the face of his helmet with the palms of his hands. Probably wishing I was anywhere else but in front of him.

I had the same exact sentiments.

“You don’t really have much choice in the matter. Reyn is a war criminal, a demagolka,” he murmured, the frown plain in his tone. “Finding you has renewed the Covert’s hope for justice. You can’t abandon your people now.”

“My people?” I sneered. “Where were they when I had to fend for myself? When I had to do things no child should even know about, just to survive?” I threw my arms out wide, gesturing to the wider covert. “Y’all have been here this entire time, and what? Just stayed hidden?” It was too late to back down now. The rage all-consuming, I continued to dig the hole I was in. No use changing what you’re comfortable with, right? “Mandalorians have the skills to make the galaxy a better place, but it’s easy to see you’re just a bunch of hut’uun’e - “

The uppercut just barely grazed my chin, brushing roughly against my nose. I sprang backwards to get into a defensive stance. However, I was not counting on the bunk being so close behind me. As soon as I had jumped out of the way of his fist, I tumbled backwards onto the hard bed, narrowly avoiding the jab aimed at my solar plexus.

“You have no right!” Din roared. “You don’t know what my people have suffered, what we’ve had to endure during the Wars.” He lunged over the footboard, landing on my middle, knocking the air out of me. What we’ve had to do…”

With his full weight on top of me, I couldn’t do anything more than flail my legs and let my fingers scrabble for purchase against his beskar.

“You seem to forget, I lived in those areas, Din! I was caught in the middle of those war zones.” Hooking two fingers under his belt, I jerked, knocking him off balance just enough to wedge a knee between our bodies.

“Mando’ad draar digu, vod,” Din huffed. “How can I forget something I never even knew?”

I heaved with all my might, shoving him off of me. The momentum caused him to topple off the backend of the bed with an earth-shattering oomph. In a flash, I rolled off the side of the bunk, landing hard on my knees and scrabbling away from him. My pack lay where it had been tossed, and I snagged at the straps, pulling it towards me. Shield or weapon, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with it, but surely it was better to have it than to not.

“At least you have people,” I gasped, scrambling stiffly to my feet. I chucked the heavy pack at him, catching him square in the chestplate as he struggled to rise. Din caught it, hugging it to his middle in surprise before tossing it aside and coming at me again.

And this time, the punch landed.

His knuckles connected to my jaw so fast that I didn’t immediately register the pain. Blood spurted brightly from my mouth, covering his bare hand in beautiful, glossy red. Stunned, I gaped at him.

Equally stunned, Din’s arms hung loosely by his sides. His shoulders trembled with each rasping breath he took. Was he surprised that he finally drew blood?

I worked my jaw back and forth until I felt confident that it wasn’t damaged beyond repair. “This isn’t working out for me,” I breathed, touching fingertips lightly to my lips before looking at them. Dazed, I admired the shine of my blood dripping slowly from my fingers in the dim light. “I’m done,” I said simply, almost giggling. “Consider me dar’aliit.”

And with that, I picked up my pack and strolled calmly through the door.

___________________________________

Notes:

vod - comrade, *mate*, sibling Tayli’bac? - Got it? Okay? Understand? (Often very aggressive.) demagolka - someone who commits atrocities, a real-life monster, a war criminal - from the notorious Mandalorian scientist of the Old Republic, Demagol, known for his experiments on children, and a figure of hate and dread in the Mando psyche hut’uun’e - coward (worst possible insult) Mando’ad draar digu, vod - A Mandalorian never forgets. dar’aliit - [just makin’ up words…] No longer Clan