#the one where the snowman turned back into a kid

[sagesturns]

Snowy Affections

Summary: You build a snowman in the snow while Matt watches, then the two of you share a playful snowball fight, laughing in the winter chill.

contains: fluffy fluff fluff!

Soft and densely packed, snowflakes fall from the sky blanketing the entire earth in white color. The atmosphere is comforting and refreshing; the kind that makes one on someone’s breath foggy and even turns the end of their nose red. You are all smiles and excitement, almost jumping in the snow, your hands in the air scooping newly fallen snow and packing it into a ball with remarkable precision that is hard to ignore. 

“Matt!” you exclaim cheerily, like a kid who has just found a hidden treasure “Come help me with the snowman!” A few steps back, Matt regards you, quite amused, his smile dancing on his lips. He is wearing a heavy coat, his hair wind-swept, his hands deep in his pockets, looking at your artistry.

Determined and focused you are, presenting the best snowman possible. Grasping the last cylindrical piece of snow rolled across the backyard. 

The thing is already taking shape—lopsided but full of personality, with twigs for arms, a scarf wrapped haphazardly around the middle, and your trademark grin plastered on its round, snowy face.

You catch Matt staring, a soft, fond look in his eyes as he observes you, watching the way your hands move as you build. The snowman may not be perfect, but you are—at least in Matt’s eyes.

There is a short break where he gets rid of the thought of helping you at all. He loses himself in the picture of you, beaming with a glow on your red cheeks that he could only imagine thanks to the winter and your messy hair strands which are settled around your face. He appreciates the way your nose wrinkles each time you laugh, and how very handsome his smile is, whilst quite a cold winter surrounds them and yet it is so warm within the bubble that is surrounding the cold. 

“Matt?” you call out again after a small pause though this time a tad more desperately. “What the hell are you doing over there? Come and help me lift my snowball’s head!”

He came back to his senses, blinking, thankful that he was forced to take in the sight for not that long.

“Right! Head,” he says, shaking himself from his thoughts. He takes a few hurried steps toward you, scooping up some snow and quickly starting to form the snowman’s head.

But before he gets all that far, he pauses again, watching you in that quiet way that makes your heart flutter. You're so free, your laughter ringing out like the jingle of bells, and he can't look away.

His movements slow down, and before he realizes it, Matt walks over to you where you're kneeling by the snowman. In complete silence, he slides his hands around your waist, pulling you toward him. You freeze for a moment, in pure surprise, but then the warmth of his touch makes any hesitation melt away, and you find yourself pressed against his chest, face slightly tilted upwards to meet his gaze.

Your breath catches in your throat, and you feel the soft blush creeping up your cheeks as his eyes soften, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

“Hey,” he murmurs, his voice low and warm, “you look really cute when you’re all wrapped up in snowman-building mode.”

Your heart flutters at the compliment, and you blink up at him, feeling your cheeks warm even more. “I—uh, I’m not that cute,” you stammer, suddenly self-conscious.

Matt just smiles, his thumb gently brushing across your cheek, wiping away a stray snowflake. “You are,” he says softly, “more than you even know.”

And before you can respond, before you can even gather your thoughts, he leans down, his lips brushing softly against yours. The kiss is tender and delicate; it stays on for a brief while like someone is trying to remember the moment, remember you. He concludes the kiss, and pressing both foreheads together, you both try to catch a breath. In the outside world, all is still, the soft and airy flakes of snow falling down, but at that instance, all that can be heard is the warmth of his hands on your lower body, the gentleness of his hands and the hidden love in his eyes. 

You part your lips most probably to tease him, or to let him know exactly how sweet that was, but just before you speak, he grins most unexpectedly. “Let’s have a snow fight!” he exclaims with a mischievous grin and without wasting any time, fills his palms with snow and aims it at you with a quick movement. “Matt!” you shout with laughter as the ball of snow collides with your clothed shoulder. 

You step backward struggling to keep from falling in the snow, your eyes round in playful anger. “You—!” But Matt is already retreating, laughing and putting his hands up in defeat. “Aww, you look so adorable when you’re angry!” he said looking teasingly. You can't stop yourself from laughing more, looking at him with a very derogatory look. “Im gonna get back revenge I swear to you Matthew Sturniolo!,” yelling as he runs further away while you're softly giggling, already preparing the snow for the counterattack.

But Matt, ever the playful troublemaker, is already a step ahead. He takes off running, dodging your next snowball with a laugh that fills the air like music. You chase him again and the crunching sound of the snow beneath your feet makes you run around, jesting and dodging snowballs in a blissful white mess. 

While you both carry on with the snow play, an realization strikes you: It really doesn’t matter how high the snow is around you and how many snowballs are being thrown at you, there are such moments — eager, warm and filled with Matt’s love — that are going to stay with you forever.

word count: 1k (1,099)

tags: @sweetshuga

a/n: first Matt fic and it's a fluff! Lowkey it's ass LMAO. Im gonna try to write a couple more stories before making my masterlist! Thank you soso much for all the love on my recent fic. I aprecciate and love you all!

@sagesturns

[angrybatart]

"Hey, dude! Is that hot chocolate? I love hot chocolate! Can I have some? Hey, did you get taller? Boy, it's hot in here."

"... *looking at the trail of melted snow across the floor* ...Performance is going to have a fit..."

[bluefunkybeats]

ZAYNE DOMESTIC HEADCANONS

~ PART 2

cw: suggestive +18 below cut!!!

Zayne who, when he doesn’t want to read research articles to get you asleep- due to how monotonous and tedious they get- instead reads ‘The Little Prince’ to you. Sometimes to tease you he turns the book and points to the picture like he’s reading it to a little kid or something. If you react with a warning paw to his arm he’ll respond with a breathy chuckle.

Zayne who always steals a sip of your drink with your straw when you’re out on a lunch date. Will tell you that a variety of liquids is good for the diet if you call him out.

Zayne who responds to the doodles you make on the calendar hung on his kitchen wall with his own snowman doodles. You can tell there’s a lot of love behind them but certainly also a lazily held pen (which you’ll allow since he does these very early in the morning before work). Other times he’ll just respond with comments like “oh really?” to the nonsense you write and graffiti on that thing.

Zayne who enjoys all kinds of sweet cold treats but always has some classic Magnum ice creams in his freezer drawer because it’s a reliable choice. He can’t nag you and will just give a touché happy sigh about any sort of snacks you store next to his beloved Magnums: it’s your checkmate.

Zayne who has a small potted plant in the desk of his office. He’s never really went too long without watering it, but ever since you’ve put a plant poke with a cute little character to give company to his plant, he’s never been more motivated to water it. It certainly adds a bit of you to his space, and he has the habit of stroking the little plant’s leaves in caress when he thinks of you during work.

Zayne who packs your bag for uni or work if he knows you’ll be too busy to attend to it until the morning or if you’ve dozed off already.

Zayne who readjusts your sleeping positions with the most gentle hands, otherwise he can’t be soothed to continue doing anything else. He gets prickles on his back just to think about you waking up with a hurting back.

Zayne who feels contentment he can’t describe when he slides his closet door open and opens the shallow little accessory drawer, and finds your jewellery in a specialised velvet tray and his prescription glasses on the other end.

Zayne who because of you, has a little egg timer resemblant of a chicken to help out when he cooks. He used to just use alarms on his phone, but ever since your silly little gift, he won’t use anything else. The first thing he did when he found the incongruous little chicken character was ask if you if it had a name.

Zayne who picked up your little habit of storing socks as little balls. When you’re both sat on the bed balling up his and your socks, he’ll grab one like a snowball and boop it to the side of your cheek.

Zayne who when he sees you really sluggish coming out the shower, will get you dressed and have you sit cross-legged on the edge of the bed mattress as he stands and dries your hair with the hairdryer.

Zayne who once put your soiled slippers in the washing machine while you slept before leaving for work in a really early dark winter morning. He kissed your hand and jotted down a little note on the bedside table for you to use his slippers instead, which were faced outwards from where you’d naturally put your feet to get up from bed.

Zayne who has a regime with you of cutting and peeling fruits for each other back and forth. Once outdid you by making his orange to you look like a water lily, knowing and having schemed that you couldn’t do anything more creative. The bastard. All your oranges from henceforth were like that, to rub it in your face with the excuse of vitamin D. Yeah right. You’ll get him.

Zayne who involuntarily (or voluntarily, who knows) flusters you when removing your underwear from the plastic peg rack. Upon meeting your dazzled face, holds the cloth almost touching the side of his cheek.“Should I not take this garment to face value?”

[m0nsterqzzz]

(wife) Natasha Romanoff x reader

word count: 1.8 k

- Snow Day -

summary - snow days with your wife and kids

a/n - ahhhhhh i love snow and natasha.

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The moment Natasha jumps on top of you at 7am is the moment you decide to divorce her. 

Not seriously, but you did threaten to as she shook your body and practically screamed, “It’s snowing detka!” You opened one eye and sure enough, there was ice frost covering the outside of your bedroom windows and you could see snow covering the trees. 

“That’s nice honey. Now go back to bed.” She shakes her head, jumping off the bed and yelling as loud as she can- which is pretty fucking loud if you didn’t know-, “Kids! It’s snowing!”

Just like Natasha, your kids love the snow more than anything. Probably more than they love you. It's a few seconds before the cheering begins, and then your oldest sons come running into your room and jump onto the bed. “Wake up! Wake up!” Lev, the oldest, practically screams in your face, and then Andy- short for Anthony-, the middle child, lays his whole body weight on top of you. He’s fourteen years old, only two years younger than his older brother and eight years older than their little sister, but after years of working out with Natasha, he’s very strong and putting his whole body weight on top of you means basically cutting off your ability to breathe.

The sound of little footsteps entering the room makes you all stop, and Lena, your six year old daughter and youngest child, enters the room with her stuffed monkey in hand and crawls into the bed next to you. She loves the snow, but she also loves sleep just like you.

“Come here принцесса.” Lev mutters, grabbing his little sister from the bed and holding her in his arms. Her big brothers are her protectors, and if you and Natasha aren’t there to treat her like a princess, her brothers are.

“You wanna build a snowman little spider?” Andy asks, tickling her stomach as a method of waking her up. She giggles, a tired grin taking over her face as she looks out the window. “Snow day?” “Snow day Lena.” She nods, suddenly much more awake as she climbs out of his arms and back onto the bed. You think she's coming back to cuddle with you, but you should know by the devilish grin on her face- one very similar to your wifes- that is not true. She stands up on the bed, then lets her small body free fall onto yours. Was naming her after your sister in law (the one that totally did this shit to you a few months ago) a good idea? Probably not.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

And that's how you ended up gathering up all the scarfs in the house, which only turned out to be 4. Luckily, one of them was really long so you and Natasha can share it once you get outside. While the kids are in their rooms putting on thousands of layers, Natasha is in a tank top and leggings like she's about to go out on a run in the summertime. “Natalia. Where is your sweater? Sorry I meant, where are your sweaters? Plural because it’s fudging freezing outside.” 

She shrugs, continuing to make six cups of hot chocolate despite it being 7 in the morning. You chuckle. “The kids only need one cup each Nat.” She nods, looking down at the cups with a nervous smile. “I know…..three of these are for me.”

You grab a few sweaters for her, forcing her to put them on and then standing in front of her holding in a laugh at the now balloon shaped form of your wife. “You look um….you look amazing honey.” She can't see you considering the beanie going down to her nose and scarf up to about the same place but she can hear you searching through your pockets for your phone. “I know what you’re doing! Do I look stupid to you detka?”

“Yes….and this is going on the Avengers Christmas card.” You snap the photo, running away from her when she begins waddling towards you. 

You go stand out on the porch with her, waiting for your kids to come out and join you in the cold. Why they love the freezing temperatures will always be a mystery to you. When they come out, each kid is handed one cup of hot chocolate that they pull down their scarves to chug. They boy’s aren't too big as they’ve grown a lot over the years since you bought the pieces of fabric, but the new one you bought for Lena when winter season started is practically covering her whole head and Natasha has to pull it down in order to see the little girl's bright smile.

You take your seat at one of the rocking chairs you and your wife bought for your wrap around porch, piling several blankets over your lap and watching with a smile as the kids- that's including Natasha- run out into the chilly forest. When Lev was two years old and you had first adopted the few month old baby Andy, Natasha retired from her job as an Avenger and bought you and your kids a large piece of property and a big house. The land is filled with trees that kids spend evenings placing hide and seek in, and in the summer they go horseback riding with their mom. Natasha takes care of all the animals that live around the property and in the barn, and you spend days doing whatever you wish whether it's helping her or staying inside the house relaxing with the kids.

A snowball flies past your head, and you look up to glare at your wife. “Hey! Why are you looking at me? Look at them!” The redhead points to the kids, who stare at her bewilderment. “You know what? Fuck this.” You mutter, removing the blankets from your lap and running out into the snow. You form a snowball, hiding with your kids behind a stack of hay that Natasha left out the other day. Your wife was an Avenger, a spy, and a shield agent. That's all true. But you live with her. It’s not too hard to pick up on her habits. 

You can hear her crunchy footprints coming up behind the hay, but the kids have already formed even more snowballs so you hold up three fingers, slowly putting each on down until you have zero left. They all jump up, practically yelling war cries as they hit their mother with snowball after snowball. You take this chance to run into the forest nearby, hiding behind a tree with several snowballs in hand.

Once they run out of snowballs and the laughter dies down a bit, you sneak out from behind the tree and begin throwing the snow at the back of your wife. The children laugh, but she turns to you with a devil-like grin and you instantly know you’re in deep shit. “Okay Nat….Nat….our kids are watching. They can't see me go like this.” You dramatically tell her, only bringing more giggles out of your kids. 

“Get her mom!” Lev cheers, and your eyes widen as you look at him in mock offense. 

“Whose side are you on kid?” You ask. He shrugs, holding up another snowball and throwing it at Natasha's head.

“Neither. Every man for themselves!” He sprints into the forest, Andy close behind him and Lena standing out in the open with no snowballs in hand. 

Natasha grins at her, opening her arms for a hug. “Come here and give me a hug, little spider.” The six year old narrows her eyes at the Russian woman before sprinting after her brothers, but Natasha is already forming four snowballs when the little girl gets to the edge of the tree line.

You watch with a grimace as your wife throws each snowball at the back of the little girl, and the force of the snow makes Lena fall face first into a pile of coldness. You smack Natasha’s arm. “Natalia! She’s six years old!”

The redhead just laughs, turning her back to the forest as she grins at you. “She's my daughter. She can handle a couple snowballs to the face.” While she was defending letting her child get hypothermia, Lev and Andy were sneaking up behind her, each with a large pile of snow in their arms.

“Um….Nat-” You start with a giggle, but it's too late and the boys are lifting up the piles to drop them on top of her head. It breaks over her head, falling down in front and behind her like snow and leaving it all over her head and shoulders. “That was for Lena!” Andy yells and then they take back off to the forest, Natasha not far behind.

A few hours later, you watch as Natasha and the kids come back out of the forest, and then plop down in the snow with erratic breathing. You get up from your seat on the porch, walking onto the cold field and then laying down in it right next to your wife.

It's silent for a few minutes, but then the sound of shuffling begins. You look to your side to see Natasha moving her arms and legs, forming an angel looking shape in the snow. You all spread out a little before copying her movements. So that's what you guys do for like three minutes, before standing up and admiring your guy’s work. There are five different sized angels in the snow, the perfect replicas of you and your family.

“Mama. I’m cold.” With a small smile, Nat grabs her by her under arms and hoists her up on her shoulders. 

“I think that calls for more hot cocoa.” “Tasha-” You go to tell her that they’ve already had too much sugar and that Lena is practically shaking due to a sugar high, but she’s making her way into the house with the boys trailing behind her before you can say anything. You chuckle to yourself, following after them.

She’s already grabbing the packets of cocoa powder once you get inside, and the boys settle themselves on the couch as you snatch them from her. She groans, sending you her best pout. You've been married to her for a very long time though and rarely fall for that anymore. “No. They can have something else.” The redhead widens her eyes, trying to put on a puppy dog's face that has you laughing harder than you ever had.

“Fine.” You’re not going to tell her that the only reason you said yes is because Lena was doing the face too. The little girls were much cuter. They cheer, beginning to heat up some milk to put in the hot drink as you go sit down on the couch with your boys. 

Natasha and Lena join you guys, the older of the two sitting behind you on the couch so you can lay your back on her chest, and the boys let their little sister choose a movie which is why you end up watching How The Grinch Stole Christmas. Your wife isn’t focused on the movie though. She’s admiring you, how you chuckle at the funny parts as your eyes sparkle with joy.

Snow days are her favorite thing, but it’ll never compare to you.

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[topherwrites]

SNOWFLAKES IN MY STOMACH WHEN WE'RE KISSING

summary - spending the holidays with jake's family isn't always smooth sailing, but little else matters when you're grossly in love. (also - jake dresses up as santa for his nieces and nephews, you're real into it.) pairing - jake seresin x (fem!)reader word count - 2.7k rating - nsfw content, 18+, mdni! content warnings & tags - no use of (y/n) / mostly fluff / jake being super in love / jake's family celebrates christmas / very brief angst / me being incapable of giving jake a good childhood / brief mention of childhood abuse / swearing / alcohol consumption / dash of smut / fingering / lmk if i missed anything! a/n: a little belated christmas one shot for you all. reblogs, comments, and likes super appreciated! TOP GUN MASTERLIST / LIBRARY BLOG

Heat audibly blasts through the vents, the entire house sweltering. A solid summer day indoors. His mother won’t even let anyone touch the thermostat. In her defense, she grew up without a lick of snow on the ground and now it’s fifteen degrees in December, a real white Christmas.

Which isn’t exactly ideal for Jake considering he’s been roped into wearing a Santa suit for his young nieces and nephews. The suit is all red polyester—the least breathable material known to man—and thick faux fur cuffs. It’s causing him to start perspiring where sweat simply shouldn't be, his white undershirt clinging to his back and his crack.

“It’s too goddamn hot in this thing.”

Unbuttoning the jacket, he airs it out, the relief near immediate. 

Over his shoulder, he catches sight of you lounging on the guest bed—the one his mother oddly insisted that you could share—odd because that’s been a hard and fast rule for all the non-married seresin kids since his older sister began dating.

When she’d pointed him to the room, he’d paused, waiting for her to tell him which room would be yours, separately. Exactly like the sole previous time a girlfriend had stayed the night, way back in college, he figured you’d be placed in the room past his parents so no premarital shenanigans would occur. When that moment didn’t come, he’d stood there stupefied till you bumped his hip, nodding in the direction of the room.

Then he found out that with his brother and sister, their spouses and kids, and a few stray cousins and aunts staying, every other room was already occupied tenfold when he showed up with you in tow. 

He wasn’t sure if he would actually come down until a few days before, on the fence about spending so much time packed together with his family. But you’d volunteered to go along with him, meeting everyone besides his mother for the first time. Offering yourself up as a buffer.

It gives him pause less and less, just how much you care about him. Warmth spreads through him at the memory.

He was thankful that you had a bunch of airline credit banked, otherwise booking so late during the peak holiday season flights would’ve cost an arm and a leg.

Your feet kick back and forth as your eyes drag up his back, not put off in the slightest by his melting-like-frosty-the-snowman state, meeting his gaze with a heat you don’t attempt to hide. His irritation at the outfit dispels at your attention, melting away into something far sweeter.

“Is this doing it for you?”

“Oh,” your voice strained, “yeah, absolutely.”

And while there’s a bit of humor to the whole situation, what with the whole ‘being dressed as Old Saint Nick’ thing, your attraction to him isn’t a joke in the slightest. Sweaty, sunburned, exhausted. You seem to take a liking to any form Jake comes in. 

You continue, twirling your finger in a slow, instructive circle, humor alighting in your eyes, “Do a little twirl for me, baby.”

He laughs but gives in to your borderline indecent direction, turning steadily on his heel. He does a slow three-sixty, letting the jacket fall to his waist so your eyes can freely roam. Turning back to you, he takes you in the sight of you before he closes the gap, crawling over you to give you a kiss.

Things are so simple with you, you never make him work for your affection, it’s always present, even in your teasing. He doesn’t feel that pang of being inadequate that his father instilled in him when he was young—the pang that he let drive him for far too long into his adulthood. He can breathe right around you, loosen his tongue, soften his words. He can be a good man, not just a good pilot.

He loves you. You love him. Everything is right in the world.

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The kids love the whole theatrics of him dressing up like Santa, faux beard, and all. He answers their inquiries into whether or not he’s their uncle Jake with a falsely grandiose tone, handing them their presents—you’re not sure if they fully buy into it, but they all seem to be having fun.

Sipping on a mug of coffee, warm in your palms, you watch him from afar as he juggles holding two of his nieces, one dangling off of his arm like it's a monkey bar and the other calmly being held on his hip.

Ainsley and Avery—without judgment, you wonder what the reasoning is to name all your kids with the same first letter, like Pokemon evolutions.

“He’s always been good with them. Kids.”

Ah, the dreaded (potential) future mother-in-law ambushing you about kids part of the day. You had that penciled in for sometime around… now, generally. You look over at her. She looks back at you with a familiar glint in her eye. God, Jake looks just like her, same straight nose and dimpled smile and hooded eyes.

Mae doesn’t mean any ill will. You’re aware. But it all still settles ominously on your shoulders. The breadth of the unknown, what the future could hold, kids or not—whether or not you and Jake will even get that far, you hope so.

You nod slowly, calmly noting, “That’s not surprising.”

You see the way he is with them, how much they adore him. It’s a nice picture. But you're both still undecided on whether that’s one that you want of your own.

She seems to detect that you’re not going to humor her about the subject, dropping it. She looks at your empty mug, “Do you want a refill?”

────────────────────────

You casually gesture to the sprig taped to the doorjamb above you, “Is that what you were up to earlier?”

You note the little red berries, the toothed leaves, and the bush-like appearance.

“Maybe.” With a self-satisfied smile, he shrugs. His large palms grip at your waist, gently pushing you against the doorway.

You scratch at your cheek. “You know that’s not mistletoe, right?”

Holly. It's a frequent mistake, mostly from movies that wanted something to hang with a little more visual pop than actual mistletoe. He sighs, head falling back as he glares up at the traitorous plant. You’d never pass up the chance to poke a little fun at him, but now you want to bring the smile back to his face.

You poke at his side, bringing those pretty green eyes back to you, “But I suppose I can spare a kiss regardless.”

A smile creeps onto his face, warmth clear in his gaze. He leans his weight into you, not enough to crush but enough to let you feel all of him. Tilting his head, his voice drops as he questions, “Oh, will you make an exception? Bend the rules? For little ‘ol me?”

Breathing the same air, his nose nearly brushes yours. Everything but him, every sound and sight is extraneous—it all just turns to static.

You hum in agreement, “For you.” You brush the pads of your fingers along his cheekbone,  intentionally gentle, enjoying the way his lashes flutter at the gesture. “Now give me a kiss.”

Like the ever-dutiful soldier he is, he dips his head in assent, “Yes, ma’am.”

He takes the green light, gently molding his mouth to yours.

────────────────────────

His sixteen-year-old nephew, Sam, heckles him across the dinner table, quietly calling him a “fucking simp” as he hands you a refill of eggnog with a quick peck—that becomes two or three at his insistence, his lips chasing yours. His tone isn’t cruel, just an attempt at embarrassing his uncle.

He gets a smack upside the head from his dad—Jake’s older brother, Matt—for the language at the table, quick and sharp. Recycled material from their own childhoods. He tries to suppress the instinctual flinch, annoyance burning in his chest at how years later his heart is still sent racing. Jake wonders if he too, will become like their father. If it’s unavoidable. Something built into him. The apple didn’t fall far from the tree with his brother.

He knows that he has the capacity for cruelty in him and though it doesn't come as quickly these days, he still has to make an active effort to not be a dick sometimes, especially with Bradshaw.

And then, a hand, warm and stabilizing, slides across his thigh, squeezing tenderly. His eyes bounce around the table, everyone pointedly looking at their plates, just like when they were young and his father thought that one of them needed corporal punishment for acting like a kid. 

Except for you, whose eyes are focused on Jake with so much understanding that he can’t help but knock his boot into his brothers.

“Don't do that shit.”

A tense moment follows. The clatter of forks stop, drinks pause at lips, and everyone’s eyes plant on him, perplexed that it’s been acknowledged in the slightest. Matt levels a stare back at him, and he wonders if he’s going to hear their dad’s signature line come out of his brother’s mouth—don’t tell me how to discipline my kids—leveled at anyone who ever expressed concern for the way their father treated them, teachers, other parents, their own mom.

His brother is the one to blink first, dropping his eyes down to his plate as he stabs at a piece of asparagus. The festivities resume around them. Quieter. 

It’s not a real acknowledgment. But he’s drawn a line in the sand.

Sam continues looking at him for a few more moments. He wonders if his nephew knows just how similar their childhoods were, why his father is the way that he is. Not that it would make it better, but it might help him to know that it’s not him, some fault of his own. 

Jake always thought that it was him. He knows a little better now.

────────────────────────

After all the kids have been bundled up in beds and the adults break out the liquor, it doesn't take long for Jake to crash. Sprawled on the couch next to you, his arm draped around your shoulder becomes less of a pleasant weight and more of a log hanging around your neck. 

You tap his stomach, softer and less-toned after the holidays—at your insistence that he actually eats some sugar for once and doesn’t, under any circumstances, wake you up at five am during your vacation so he can go for a run. You’re glad that he’s taken the threat seriously, that he’s taking it easy and actually relaxing while you’re here. He grumbles at your touch but barely stirs, about eighty percent tired, twenty-percent drunk.

“Christ, when did he become such a lightweight?” His brother directs his jibe disguised as a question to you.

Rolling your eyes, you sigh, standing up. You pat his thigh, holding your hands out. “Up and at ‘em, lieutenant.”

His eyes peel open at the use of his rank. Blinking awake, he flops his hands into yours, not taking a strong grip. You're thankful for the fact that he barely relies on you to help himself stand, swaying minorly as he does so. You’re not particularly eager to see what’d happen if you had to haul all two hundred pounds of Jake upright on your own.

You both trod up the stairs. His hand caressing the silver tinsel wrapped around the banister as you go, the Christmas lights hung from it setting the staircase in a warm glow. With your arm looped around his waist and his looped around yours, you make slow progress towards the room at the end of the hall.

He toes off his boots as you shut the door to the bedroom, flopping backward onto the bed. Eyes fluttering sleepily, a hint of a smile on his face, he sighs out a breath. Voicing his inner thoughts aloud, his voice is gentle, “I'm so happy.”

The statement settles sweetly in the air.

Taking hold of your hand, he pulls you on top of him. His eyes heavy, he isn’t particularly conscientious about where you’re going to land, so you have to catch yourself before you knee him in the dick. Straddling him, you find your place in his lap. Affection, as it always does, blooms in your chest at the sight of him.

“Are you as happy as I am?” His question is gently curious, none of his old insecurity laced through.

You slowly nod, hands smoothing over his chest as you lean over him. “Yeah, I really am.”

Under your palms, you can feel him huff a pleased sigh.

Large hands land on your thighs, smoothing up and down the bare skin under the hem of your skirt. His eyes roam over your figure, from your legs, your waist, your chest, finally landing on your face, “You look so pretty. Have I told you that?”

Suppressing your smile, you squint as you tilt your head, imitating deep thought. You hum, “Mm, about twenty times today.”

“I think you could stand to hear it one more time.” He sits up on his elbows with surprising swiftness, his nose brushing along your cheek before his lips settle next to your ear, “You are so pretty.”

He pulls back just enough to kiss you, lips gliding softly over yours. He tastes like rum and vanilla. Under you, you feel him grow half hard. It’s one of the things that you never really expected from him, just how needy of a drunk he is.

He slips his tongue into your mouth, large palms squeezing at your hips as he guides you to rock over him. His breaths mingle with your own as he pulls back, panting, “You wet for me?”

Rucking up your skirt past your hips, his hand slips into your underwear and he swipes two fingers through the wetness collected there before you can—for the sake of his sleep schedule—gently turn him down. You fold over him, smothering your moan into his shoulder as he pushes in, his palm immediately harshly grinding against your clit. With your own buzz sliding through your body, you melt into the pleasure, task entirely forgotten. 

Burning heat spreads through your core, your cunt clamping down around his fingers. It’s so good—it’s always this way, like he’s read the manual on your body.  Slick sounds echo in the otherwise quiet room; your gut twists, high building.

Just as you're about to fall over the edge his movements slow, and the peak he was working you to begins to dissipate. But you're left on the edge as his brain seems to intermittently connect to its previous task, working over your pulsing clit. Your hips kick into his palm, the not quite enough stimulation tortuous. You try to roll off of him, but the arm around your back stays put. He grumbles for a moment. You nearly yelp at a shift of his palm shoots electricity up your spine.

You shake his shoulder, “Jake, Jake.”

“Mm,” he hums, “no, no.” He blinks himself only half-awake, eyes still drooping, “Second wind.”

You reach behind your back, sliding his arm from around you, pressing it to his chest. You draw his hand out from under you, the drag of his fingers sending waves of heat through you. Pressing a kiss under his jaw, you whisper, “Go to sleep.”

Eyes still closed he slides the fingers that were just inside you past his lips, casually cleaning your arousal off them. You have to pretend like that doesn't make your cunt pulse with need. He rolls onto his side, then mumbles into the pillow, “Fine, but I’m going to rock your world in the morning.”

You pat his stomach, placating him—sure that in the morning he’ll remember that he’s surrounded by his parents, siblings, and their offspring, that the walls are a little too thin for what he wants to do to you.

You collapse on the bed beside him, already nodding off.

You're proven wrong in the morning. He sends you over the edge twice with his head trapped between your thighs and his palm sealed over your mouth. And at breakfast, you have to play off the flush he carries as the AC putting out too much heat, smiles barely suppressed.

e/n: thank you for reading!

tagging those who liked the teaser: @mamachasesmayhem @pricelessemotion @sorchathered @dizzybee03 @always-and-forever-at @ofstoriesandstardust @sunlightmurdock @withahappyrefrain @aworldwideapart @shamelessghostwagonwobbler

[fullofgutsndopamine]

Happy Holidays (Let’s Hope For The Best)

or: You always hated the holidays. Schlatt tries to change your mind

originally posted on a different blog of mine. i’m well aware it’s september.

i hope you enjoy! I've never written for Schlatt before, so I hope it's okay and i got his voice right

tw/cursing, angst if you squint, ‘jay’ for schlatt

schlatt knew your hatred towards the holidays.

long winded rants when you were less than sober, talking with your hands about how this holiday had become more on gifts than the actual spirit of christmas, the idea to stay in and be with your loved ones on a holiday-

and in his defense, for a long time, he listened.

eyes slanted as he slowly shook his head as you ranted, an occasional, “yeah, no. right-“ so you know he’s listening.

it started small, he didn’t force it.

“Jay,” The sigh is evident in your voice, “what the fuck is this?”

you hold the tiny culprit in your hand, a miniature snowman, made of ceramic and chipped with age, no larger than your palm.

"What do you-" He sets his phone down, eyebrows one, genuinely confused for a second before the smallest smile you've ever seen pulls gently at the tips, threatening to actually smile-

"Jay." You say gently, simply.

He gives himself away.

"I dunno who would do that," He shrugs, eyebrows knit as he stares at his phone again, "Especially knowing they live with the actual Grinch."

"Do you?" You tease, hope he doesn't see as you pocket the snowman, bury him deep into your jean pockets, a new lucky charm for you. Some of the ice melts away, slowly, a little crack falls off, but you wouldn't let him know that.

"Yeah," He snorts, pads over to the couch where you sit, wiggles his toes to be buried under your thighs, "Tried to fuckin' evict 'em, but it was too much work."

Days pass, and you almost forget about it.

Every time you slip into the jeans for work, you remember the small snowman buried deep into your pocket, rub it like its some sort of worry doll.

The snowman was the first, but not the last.

Second, it was the creepy santa soap dispenser shoved in the corner by your sink in the bathroom. Schlatt left the rest of the bathroom untouched, and when you squeeze it into your hand, your immediately hit with the smell of marshmallows.

“who the fuck is putting christmas shit out?” he says again, bites his lip to hide the smile, “Especially in the grinch’s lair.”

“yeah,” you tease back, “and i used it and it smelled like fuckin’ marshmallows.”

“marshmallows?!” he buffs, “that’s it, i’m writing the landlord.”

and he kisses the crown of your head and pads downstairs.

from then on, he gets bolder.

You come home and he’s gently wrapping christmas lights around the bush in the front yard, sees you coming and speaks first: “to keep the fuckin’ kids away.” with a wink, as if he has something figured out.

he has a stupid santa hat on top of a baseball cap, teetering, threatens to fall off any second, and his face is pink from the cold, his fingertips are ice and it’s obvious, from how lit up the house looks, that he’s spent a lot of time planning and putting this together.

“I don’t think that’s how it works.” you tease back, grabbing him by his coat and pulling him in for a kiss.

“what?!” he yells back, “that’s not how it fuckin’ works?! shit!” he teases back, the smile gives him away.

when you pull away, he takes the santa hat off his own head, shoves it over yours, and turns away, back to the bushes with a smile on his face.

You make your way inside, towards the kitchen to make him some hot chocolate to enjoy as the temperature falls more, and the sun slowly sets, and act as if you don’t see the mistletoe in the threshold of all the rooms, or the lights hanging around, even the little christmas village knick knacks that hang onto every surface-a post office shoved into the corner of the kitchen, and Santa’s Workshop sits in the front room-

days pass again, and you finally give in.

“Look,” you lean against the door as Schlatt comes in, a mixing bowl against his hip and a kiss the cook apron around his waist. “promise me you won’t make this a big deal.”

“okay,” he licks his lips, nods, “that’s ominous as fuck.”

“Just-sit on the couch, close your eyes, and promise to not make a big deal about it.” you grab him by the hand and gently lead him to the couch, have him sit on the edge of it and lift his hand so it rests over his eyes.

Schlatt bites his lip to keep from smiling as he hears something being dragged against the floor of the living room, before you speak again, obviously out of breath from the mini work out.

“Okay, don’t read into this,” you say one last time, “Open your eyes.”

he obeys, slowly blinks them open and sees the cardboard half busted tree box, and lets out a loud laugh: “Guess the grinches heart did grow two sizes larger, hm?”

he stands, pulls you close and kisses you on the lips, his voice drops, which is rare, his voice comes back gentle, which is also rare, means he means what he’s about to say, listen up: “I’m glad you changed your mind. Was worried id gone to far.”

you snort, “You? too far? never.” and your voice drops as well, “besides, had to give in eventually. make new traditions with you, or something right?”

you’re obviously referencing to the first few weeks of December, when he all but begged for at least a free, a string of lights-something, anything-is use to these lavish holiday traditions-only to be met by your stubbornness, the sting and ache of lonely holidays, another regular day too much for you-

“we can make new traditions,” he insisted one night, curled into you in the too small bed, the only light coming from the street light outside that flares into your eyes if you move your head the wrong way, “it doesn’t have to all be bad. let me help-“

“leave it, Jay,” you huff, shake your shoulders so his chin falls off form your shoulder as you flip to face the wall, sick of this discussion.

“that’s right-“ he smiles, surprised you were listening, “that’s exactly right, yeah.”

And he helps you drag the box into the corner, sets up his phone to play all his favorite christmas music, tells these stories of songs he loved growing up, doing certain activities to certain songs-

The music plays and though it doesn’t cal for it, Schlatt stops you every once in awhile, spins you around on your heels and dips you to a song, only for you to stand back up straight and slowly hang up the small collection of ornaments he stock piled away.

The night ends with cookies in the kitchen, the pre made kind that he bought the day after halloween and you kept shoving further and further back to try and forget of their existence, little cherry santa’s with crooked hats and little snowman placed on a tray as you two wait for them to be done, suddenly little kids again, the excitement of waiting up all night to try and find santa hangs in the air-

schlatt plates the cookies, makes hot chocolate and pads to the front room, throws a blanket over the two of you as you clink cookies together as a gentle cheers, settling on whatever movie hallmark is playing, even if it’s half way done.

schlatt is quiet next to you, plays with your hair as you rest your head on his chest, enjoying the sight of your new tree before you crane your neck to look up at him-

“i think i like our tradition now.”

he smiles, runs the pads of his thumb over your face gently, “Yeah? You a christmas fan yet?”

and you want to say the truth, how it’s hard not to be when your in his presence, how it’s hard to not smile and want to embrace every cliche, but instead you snort: “let’s not get carried away.”

he rolls his eyes, “of course not,” but his voice drops as he drops his head, rests his lips against your forehead as he speaks: “Im glad you’re enjoying it though, you deserve some good holiday memories instead.”

and he kisses your forehead as he settles back in, pulls the blanket togetber over you, and hangs you the obnoxious santa mug he had stored in the cabinet for you for when you finally came around

[rachalixie]

eight days of christmas carols - day 7

seungmin - santa tell me

to you, kim seungmin was - complicated, to say the least. he’s the picture perfect boy-next-door, wide and awkward braced smiles turning into the elegance with which he carries himself as the years passed by. 

you can’t remember when you first fell in love with him, but with every passing winter you fell harder and harder into his charm. from the neighborhood christmas parties that you only attended so that you could talk to him to the present he would drop off for you in the earliest hours of christmas morning, there wasn’t a single thing he did that turned you away from him. 

except for the fact that you didn’t know how he felt about you. 

when you were younger, you would write about him in the letters that other kids would wish for gifts in. santa, tell me, you’d pen, keeping your handwriting neat so that whoever received it would have no guesses as to what you wanted to know. does he really care?

now, you knew better. you knew he cared, he was your best friend in so many different ways. the lingering question remained, though, of whether he wanted more.

a question that kept you distant from him in times where you wanted nothing more but to melt into his stupidly boyfriend-shaped hoodies. times like right now, as you were hiding behind your decked christmas tree, peering out at the lingering crowd of party goers that were slowly leaving one by one as the christmas day passed. 

you find seungmin among them, his parents somewhere not too far, and he’s kneeling on the hardwood petting your dog who looks like he’s having the best day of his entire life. he’s smiling up at your parents while he scratches at your dogs ears, and they look so right together - like they were family. 

it’s not an uncommon sight, since your family held this party year after year. and year after year without fail, seungmin attended like he had nowhere else he would rather be, like he was where he belonged. 

you take an ornament into your hand, your oldest one that’s stayed with you almost as long as seungmin had. it was a plush snowman with a santa hat, threads along the edges fraying with age. 

santa tell me, you whisper to it, feeling a bit silly. is he really there? 

seungmin glances in your direction as if he heard you over the chatter in the room, a frown on his face as his eyes dart back and forth until they land on you. immediately, a smile takes over his features, his eyes brightening like the lights in front of you and his spine straightening in excitement. he holds a hand out to you, beckoning you over with not a single question of why you were hiding in your own home, and you know this is your sign. 

play it cool, you mutter to yourself as you detach your body from its position behind the tree. this was your chance. 

you approach him with a question on your lips that you hope above everything else he says yes to. 

—

carols masterlist

[thebisexualdogdad]

One piece preferences - snow day (GN!reader)

Luffy -

● starts the most intense snowball fight ever

● he's climbing into trees to hide and launches snowballs at you from above

● he accidentally hits Zoro with a snowball and yells “Y/N did it!” before falling out the tree and running away

● rolls a snowball the size of him that completely buries you when it hits

● builds a huge snow fort that resembles the

Going Merry

● “Luffy how did you get this so detailed”

● “I used to build a lot of sand castles when I was a kid”

Nami -

● wants to spend all day by the fireplace

● makes you guys hot cocoa with the secret marshmallows Sanji was hiding

● and you get snuggled up under some blankets

● Luffy begs you guys to come and play with him

● “no way Luffy I am not getting sick just because you want to play in the snow”

● “what about you Y/N??”

● “go out in the cold with you or stay in here all warm and cozy with my girlfriend… sorry Luffy gonna have to pass”

Sanji -

● spends hours making the best soup you've ever tasted

● you were busy outside playing with Luffy and Usopp and he yells from the ship deck “Y/N my love dinner is ready!”

● and you have nice hot soup to warm you back up after being out in the snow

● Luffy “where's our soup Sanji??”

● “Sorry, did you guys want some?”

● Luffy and Usopp look at each other dumbfounded and you laugh

● “I'm only messing with you guys I made enough for everyone”

Zoro -

● thinks the snow is a great opportunity to do endurance training

● he trains in the snow for hours in minimal clothing to build an immunity against the cold

● “Zoro please come inside you're gonna get sick”

● “I barely feel a thing”

● “that's not a good thing!”

● “yes it is it means I'm getting stronger”

● “no it means I'm going to have to take care of you when you catch the flu”

● “well you taking care of me doesn't sound like such a bad thing”

Usopp -

● immediately plops down into the snow to make snow angels

● you make one next to him and afterwards he draws a giant heart around them in the snow

● “aw how cute Usopp”

● but then Luffy goes running directly through your snow angels

● “Luffy what the hell man!!”

● “sorry Usopp let's have a snowball fight!”

● Usopp huffs but then you hit with a snowball and he laughs “game on!!”

Shanks -

● wants to spend all day in bed with you

● “where are you going love?”

● “to get ready before we set sail”

● “it's snowing outside we won't be able to sail until tomorrow which means today you and I get to stay in bed and do absolutely nothing”

● he pulls you back into bed with him and you only leave to get food

● and he shoos off any members of the crew that try to disturb you

Buggy -

● he doesn't just build a snowman he builds a whole snow castle

● and you don't know how he does it but he somehow makes working snowball canons

● he makes his crew run around while he's shooting snowballs at them

● “did you see that Y/N! I hit Cabaji right off his unicycle!”

● “nice shot babe let me have a turn”

● he comes up with an entire point system and you compete to see who can score more points

Mihawk -

● is completely unfazed by the snow

● “mihawk where are you going?”

● “I've got a man to kill”

● “but it's snowing outside”

● “so? Some pesty snow won't stop me”

● “can you at least wear a shirt under your coat so you don't get sick out in the cold”

● “... fine but only because you asked me to”

[mam-te-moc]

Do you remember Open Gates Festival story ?

There is a second part that starts exactly where the first one ended.

On the way back home from Valley of Living Rock they discussed how to celebrate the tenth anniversary of open gates. "Before we had no contact with our subjects and they didn't know us" Elsa said. "And then was a turn" Anna realized.

Along the bridge citizens of Arendelle welcomed both queens with lit candles.

Anna invited everyone for next day festivities.

Then they sent invitations via Gale mail. (It's interesting that everyone got invitations but Northuldra. They don't exist in this story... again)

Guests started to arrive. "I have a feeling that this will be a great party" said Elsa while holding Anna's hand.

Then Anna and kids recreated scenes we know from various songs.

Kids asked Ice Queen to make magic and she created snow.

"Do you want to build a snowman?" called Anna and everyone started playing with snow.

Also kids were fascinated by Nokk's beauty (if they only knew 😂) . Meanwhile Bruni (consistently going by she/her) got stressed by a big crowd and statred to burn.

Elsa distinguished the fire and took care of Bruni. Meanwhile Earth Giants arrived causing a little earthquake which almost closed the gates. The sisters ran to keep the gates open and with the help of trolls they did.

Some notes:

Sorry, I don't have time so the translation is not full and precise.

This is interesting that at this point these stories seem to show that Anna and Elsa are co-queens of Arendelle 🤔.

Also the constant absence of Northuldra brings a question if this is a result of a deal Disney made with Saami (as in consultation of a story that includes Northuldra and stories in comics are too small to start the procedure) or Disney put a ban on them for other reasons (like after F1 there was a ban on Hans and Elsa's love life).

Here's a bonus poster "Festival of friendship" 😏

[leossmoonn]

snow day | mike schmidt

summary - abby has a snow day and spends it with you and mike

warnings / includes - not edited

————

“hey, abs,” mike whispers, shaking her away. she groans and pushes his hand away. “i don’t want to go to school.”

mike glances at you, seeing the excited smile on your face. “you don’t have to, abby.”

she opens one eye. “why?” “your school called and cancelled school. you have a snow day!” you exclaim.

abby sits up in bed, a big smile on her face. “we can build a fort and a snowman!”

“you got great ideas, babe,” you grin at her. “do you want to sleep in some more or are you hungry?”

“i’m hungry,” abby says. “can i have waffles with chocolate chips?”

“you sure can. get to work, chef,” you turn to mike. he chuckles softly. “i need my sous chef.”

“alright. you need any help getting ready?” you ask abby. “no,” she says, hopping out of bed and heading to her closet.

“okay. call us if you need anything. we’ll be in the kitchen.”

you and mike make your way to the kitchen, grabbing a box of pre-made pancake mix and putting some milk and eggs into it. mike’s hands rest on your waist, his chin sitting on your shoulder as you both wait for the batter to cook. you lean into his chest, enjoying the warmth radiating from him. it’s so cold in his house during winter time since he tries to cut down on the electric bills, but you don’t mind. you had him as a portable blanket and he doesn’t mind. it’s an excuse for him to be closer to you.

“you sure you can take work off today?” you ask. “yeah,” mike nods. “even if i couldn’t, i am not driving in that mess.”

you both look out the window. you got eight inches of snow. you didn’t even want to try and walk in it, much else drive.

“well, i’m glad we can take the day off.” you spin yourself around, leaning your back against the counter. mike smiles, “me, too. it’s well-deserved for both of us.” he leans in, pulling your lips in a slow kiss. you sigh into him, your eyes fluttering shut like you’re in a movie. his kisses always make your brain feel numb and body tingly.

little footsteps pad behind two. mike is quick to pull away, positioning himself to where he’s beside you, his hand resting on the small of your back.

“did you out chocolate chips in the waffles?” abby asks. “yes, ma’am,” you answer.

she sits down at the table, placing her crayons and blank pieces of paper in front of her. after the whole freddy’s fiasco, she’s stopped drawing those kids and now has started drawing her friends from school and her teachers. she’s been very into drawing you and mike, as well as your cat that you and mike are 99% sure she’s plotting to steal.

“you should show that drawing to cornelius, abby. he’ll probably be confused that there’s two of them,” you remark.

“or you can bring him here and we can keep him,” abby says.

you can’t help but snort at her request. “maybe if mike invites me to move in.”

mike rolls his eyes, flipping the waffle maker and taking the waffle out. “you basically already live here. your cat probably thinks you’ve abandoned him.”

“not true. i haven’t stayed a night here in a couple weeks.”

“mmm, yeah. what’s up with that?”

“been busy. you miss me or something?” you grab some plates and silverware, starting to set up the table.

“maybe,” he says. you glance at him, catching the coy smile playing on his face.

“after breakfast can we make a snowman ?” abby asks.

“sure,” you nod. “it’s cold, abby,” mike says.

“there’s nothing else to do here. and i want to build the fort after we go outside.”

“that’s not a bad idea,” you look at mike. “i’ll look if we have a carrot for the nose.

abby eyes light up and mike shoot you a glare. you pat his back gingerly, grabbing some napkins and cups.

“you have to put on a sweatshirt and coat, okay? and a hat and gloves,” mike says. abby let’s our a big sigh. “fine,” she says, knowing it’s part of the seam.

abby gobbles down a waffle and a half before she pops up out of her seat like a jack-in-the-box, running to her room and putting on all her warm clothes. she throws on a beanie and grabs a scarf, having you help her tuck it into her coat.

“hurry up, guys! the snow will melt!” abby exclaims, running to the door.

“hey, hey, hey,” mike stand up. “i’ll get my coat on so at least one of us is outside with you.” he goes into hips room and grabs his winter coat and some boots.

“here, you need this.” you slip a black beanie onto his head. “i’ll be fine.”

“you made abby bundle up, so you need to, too,” you say. “fine. don’t worry about the dishes, i’ll clean them up after this.” mike kisses you on the cheek before going outside.

you at least put the dishes in the sink before getting yourself ready to go outside. you close the door behind you, seeing the bottom hall of the snowman already standing.

“that was fast,” you say. “abby was very enthusiastic. now she’s a little tired i think,” mike says.

“it’s hard to roll snowballs, even for me. they always fall apart when i do it,” you sigh.

“ah, finally something you’re not good at,” mike grins at you. you roll your eyes and punch his shoulder, a smile breaking the straight line on your lips. “i’m pretty good at this.” you say as you bend down and pick up a handful of snow, molding it into a small hall and throwing it right at mike’s face.

“hey, i’m right next to you! that not fair!”

you give him a wink, walking over to abby to help her roll a snowball. you’re almost done when you feel snow it the back of your neck. you gasp and look up, seeing mike’s hands in his pockets.

“what?” he asks, a telling smile on his face. “abby schmidt, would you like to form an alliance with me in a snowball fight against your brother?” you turn to her as you help her put the body of the snowman on.

“yes, duh!” she giggles. “looks like you’re alone, micheal,” you look at him, putting your arm around abby.

he shrugs, making another snowball. “i’m not worried.” he hits you in the face like you did to him.

“looks like we have a war on our hands,” you remark.

you and abby end up using half of the snowman as your shield. mike is careful not to knock down the snow balls, but he has impeccable aim from playing little league, so it’s no sweat for him. abby is your snowball supplier. her little hands mold them quickly, handing them to you one after the other as you aim them at mike’s face and chest.

“you getting cold with all the snow in your clothes, schmidt?” you ask.

“nope. i’m pretty warm, which means you suck at this.” he throws a snow ball at you, hitting your shoulder. the snow fans across your neck, hitting a sliver of skin where your scarf doesn’t cover.

“we need to make a huge snowball,” you whisper to abby. “on it,” she nods excitedly. she’s already lined up 10 snowballs for you to use in the meantime.

“no conspiring secretly!” mike says. “we can do what we want!” you laugh, throwing another snowball, throwing it with too much force to where it lands behind him.

mike ends up using a tree as his shield. even with it’s small branches, you find it more difficult. you look down at abby, seeing a snowball half the size of your snowman.

“good job, babe,” you pat her back. “after this can i have some hot chocolate?” abby asks.

“of course. we can celebrate with it,” you grin. you look back at mike who aims a snowball at your head, knocking your beanie off. “oh, it is on.”

you and abby stand up, carrying the big ball of snow. it’s heavier than you thought it would be, but you’re hopefully that this will work.

“woah.” mike’s jaw drops. “this is really not fair. i don’t have a teammate to do that with!”

“sucks to suck i guess,” you laugh. you and abby count down and throw the snowball at mike, causing him to tumble over. it covers most of his body, his face covered in snow now. “we won!” you exclaim, high-fiving abby.

“alright, nice play guys. next time i’ll get you,” he says, dusting himself off.

“we’ll see about that,” you grin.

you three make the rest of the snowman, using a carrot for his nose and blueberries for his eyes and smile. you grab your scarf and wrap it around his neck, mike grabbing a baseball hat from his closet and putting it on the snowman’s head.

“very nice,” mike remarks. “let’s go inside. i’m so cold,” abby says, running to the door.

“yeah, i’m going to take a shower,” mike says as you all step inside.

“me too,” abby says.

you and mike let abby shower first. mike showers after her and you make all of you hot chocolate and bake some cookies in the shape of christmas cutters.

you take a quick shower after mike, more so to warm you up than anything. you pull on one of mike’s sweaters and some pj pants. when you exit the bedroom, you find abby and mike building a fort over the tv.

“good idea, guys,” you say, grabbing your mug and sipping some hot cocoa.

“can we watch a movie?” abby asks. “of course,” you nod.

abby puts on a christmas movie, laying on her stomach in front of you two. mike is laying against the bottom of the couch with you in his arms.

“mm, i’m so sleepy,” you yawn, snuggling up to his chest. “that snowball fight wear you down?” mike asks.

“unfortunately, yes. i’m surprised you’re not snoring already.”

“i do not snore.”

“oh, yes you do.”

“well, you sing in your sleep.”

“you’re making that up,” you laugh. he shakes his head. “the other night you were singing ‘crazy train’ or something.”

“that is…” you breathe out, “a lie.”

“i’ll record you next time, how about that?”

“okay. prepare to be wrong.”

he chuckles and kisses your forehead, hugging you tighter. “i love you.”

you hum and smile, reaching up and kissing his lips. “i love you more.”

————

taglist

@celestbarnes

[arverst-aegnar]

Day 30: Time Loop/Time Travel

heck yeah, i completed two days this year!!

the ending is a bit more abrupt than i wanted, but it just was not cooperating with me, and i was afraid that if i left it too long with my other incomplete Zutara Month ideas it might get infected with "takes too long to finish -itis". so here it is.

The word spreads quickly, covering the entire Earth Kingdom in a matter of days and reaching the Northern Water Tribe’s court within a week. Even the remnant of the Southern Water Tribe, all but forgotten at the bottom of the world, hears about it before the new moon.

Fire Lord Ozai is dead. His successor, Fire Lord Iroh, has declared his intentions to put an end to his nation’s war of domination. Petitions for peace and offers of reparations are being extended to all world leaders.

The Southern Water Tribe elders suspect a trap of some kind. Some think the proposed Peace Conference is actually an opportunity for him to kill the other nations’ leadership, leaving them vulnerable to his armies. Others suspect a subtler scheme to conquer the rest of the world through diplomacy, or perhaps a combination of culture and technology. 

For Sokka and Katara, who only hear the news by listening intently outside the elders’ meeting tent, there are more pressing matters at hand.

“Dad’s going to need me with him at this Peace Conference,” Sokka declares. He pulls out his boomerang and takes aim at a snowman some of the little kids built last week. “Whatever the Fire Nation’s planning, it’s no match for Southern Water Tribe ingenuity!”

Katara worries her bottom lip with her teeth. “What happened to Fire Lord Ozai?”

Sokka scoffs. “Who cares? He was a big, fat jerkbender like all of them. Probably set his bed on fire ‘cause he was roasting the Earth King in his sleep.”

She says nothing as her brother goes to pull his boomerang out of the snowman’s head. Nor does she say anything when her father announces that he and his entire family will be attending the Peace Conference, along with several of his best warriors. 

On the ship, she delights in opportunities to use her waterbending to speed it on its way, or to play pranks on Sokka, but often she is found deep in thought, wearing a pensive look much too old for her.

“You’re strangely quiet,” Kya observes as they prepare to disembark. The voyage is over, but the journey to Omashu will take at least another day. “Something eating you, sealpup?” She pokes her daughter in the side, which provokes a giggle that quickly fades. Face unusually solemn, Katara shakes her head. Kya frowns, but leaves the matter be.

The entry into Omashu is packed like salted fish in a barrel, people from all over drawn to the Peace Conference, but an envoy from the king gives their delegation precedence over the rest. Sokka cranes his head back to take in the architecture. Kya’s gaze flits around, trying to take in the variety of clothing worn by native and visitor alike. Hakoda’s attention is on his family, but he makes sure he knows where all his warriors are at the same time. Kanna, riding an ostrich horse graciously provided by the king, seems mostly interested in staying upright, but her head turns every now and then when a familiar scent wafts in from one of the market stalls. Katara, kept at the center of her family unit, has no interest to spare for any of it.

When they reach the palace, they are immediately brought to the main hall, where King Bumi, Chief Arnook, and three of the Earth Kingdom’s Council of Five await them, as well as Fire Lord Iroh. No sooner are the official introductions made than Katara turns to Fire Lord Iroh and, with a hasty bow, demands, “Did Zuko come with you?” A half-second later, flustered, she stutters, “I - I mean Prince Zuko.”

In the chaos of the sudden trip, some things were left to the last minute, and that includes the talk Hakoda and Kya intended to give their children about how to behave in front of foreign royalty. The blood drains from Kya’s face. Hakoda, his face a storm of anger stirred up by fear, takes a step toward Katara, prepared to pull her back to safety. But before he can, to their astonishment a broad smile spreads across the Fire Lord’s face. With a shallow bow, he waves a hand toward a door behind them. “Prince Zuko is in the garden, but I am sure he would not mind the company, if your parents think it acceptable.”

Katara is running towards the door before he finishes speaking.

*****

Katara knows she’s going to get in trouble for this later. It’s her own fault, putting off the explanation for so long, acting like the little girl they believe her to be -- as much as she can, at least. But whatever punishment they think up is nothing compared to what’s waiting for her in that garden.

If he doesn’t remember, if she’s still all alone in this, then no punishment could be worse. If he does …

She’s never seen the garden in the Omashu palace before. It’s more ornamental than the ones she’s used to, and the main features seem to be rocks and crystals more than trees and flowers. But she can sense water -- a fair amount of it, too, like a small pond -- and she doesn’t have to follow it far before she sees him.

Zuko is next to the pond, his back to her. He’s smaller than she’s ever seen him, and not just because he’s sitting down. His hair is long enough to brush his shoulders, even pulled up into the traditional topknot. Like his uncle, he is dressed in Fire Nation red and gold, but the cut of his robes looks different to her untrained eyes -- Earth Kingdom style, perhaps? Surrounding him are half-a-dozen turtleducklings, and the wave of affection that sweeps over her freezes her in place.

“Hey now.” She recognizes that mildly scolding tone, even if his voice is a little different than the one in her memory. “You have to share with your sister. You’re not getting more seeds just because you’re bigger.”

Katara tries to say something, but it seems all the words she wants to say are trying to come out at once, and have jammed up in her throat. She stumbles back half a step.

The crunch of the gravel under her feet gets his attention. His head turns slightly in her direction, then he’s leaping to his feet, turning towards her -- 

Oh.

He doesn't have the scar.

For one moment, Zuko stares at her with wide eyes. Then in the next, he’s closed the gap between them, pulling her into the tightest hug she’s ever had. Katara wraps her arms around him and buries her face into his shoulder. “Katara,” he breathes, and a little sob escapes her at the familiarity and warmth in that single word.

“Zuko,” she manages. Her voice wobbles but does not break on the name like she thought it might. “Oh, Zuko.”

He pulls back too soon, but he cups her cheek with one hand while the other brushes her hair out of her eyes. Katara tries to smile at him, but it’s hard when every emotion of the past three years wants to pour out at once. Instead, she reaches up and gently touches his left cheek. The skin is smooth and whole under her fingers.

Zuko closes his eyes, but not before she catches a flash of pain. Immediately, she knows what must have happened. Why he has no scar. How Ozai must have died.

“I thought I was dreaming at first,” he says hoarsely. “I told him off. Yelled at him for being a terrible father and a worse Fire Lord. Then -”

Katara shakes her head and pulls him back to her. This time he’s the one to bury his head in her shoulder. “I know,” she tells him, her throat still choked. “I know. I did too.”

Later, she thinks, she’ll tell him about Yon Rha. About how in her determination not to relive the worst day of her life, she had pulled on his blood with a ferocity she had only seen herself use in nightmares. What his corpse had looked like, afterwards, and the look on her mother’s face. How what had once been a fantasy of power and relief had, if only for a little while, become a horrifying reality. Maybe she’ll finally find the words to describe the contradictory emotions that have been warring in her ever since, but even if she doesn’t, it will be okay, because now she has someone who will understand.

For the moment, she holds him close as they both succumb to tears.

[montrealmadison]

in your palace warm, mighty king

okay i’ve recently found myself on angel tree tiktok. if you’re unfamiliar with the concept, basically, some stores will put out a tree around the holidays with gift tags for anonymous local kids, and people coming in to do their own shopping can take a tag off the tree and buy kids gifts off their wishlists for the store to pass off to them. (the linked video shows it in action!)

anyway this got me thinking about jack zimmermann at the beginning of his career. he has been fabulously wealthy and privileged for his whole life, but he’s only recently started earning a massive salary of his own and has no real idea of what to spend it on. he’s comfortable. he has a car and a nice apartment and an engagement ring hidden somewhere in said apartment. he knows he should probably donate to a worthwhile cause, but he hasn’t figured out what.

one day, though, bitty’s visiting for the weekend and comes to the store with him, and right there in the entryway, he just… stops. jack doesn’t notice and consequently almost runs him over with the cart.

“you alright? careful, eh?”

bitty does not respond, because he’s looking at the tree.

“bud?”

jack follows his gaze. it really doesn’t look like much. it’s fake, unlit, and has seen better days if the way it’s a little flattened on one side is anything to go by. there is an equally squashed-looking stuffed snowman sat on the floor next to it. it’s the kind of thing your eyes slide over easily, hurrying from one place to another. blink and you’ll miss it.

bitty isn’t blinking.

“lord, i haven’t seen one of these in years,” he says. his voice is soft. he still isn’t looking at jack. “do you know what it is?”

jack doesn’t, so bitty explains. and when they inch closer, jack sees that all the ornaments he thought were plain paper before are actually printed with ages, shoe sizes, requests for warm coats and toys and cute jeans and deodorant. here and there is a specific wish—a bluetooth speaker. a particular board game. one kid, age eight, is fervently hoping for a bike.

and—okay. here’s the thing. they’ve been together for more than a year, and bitty is pretty willing to go along with jack’s desire to spoil him. but although he’s so open and accepting when jack wants to kiss him, or cook dinner for a change, or lay him out on their bed and make him feel good—he will always, always get uncomfortable where significant amounts of money are involved. it was the subject of the one and only fight that sent them to bed still heated. the fundamental difference between their upbringings is the hardest for them to grasp: jack has never known a life without plenty. and bitty—

“i think my parents put me on one,” bitty says. “the year we moved back to madison, after—”

the closet looms between them, black and yawning.

“well. you know. coach had to leave a good job in lawrenceville. took us a while to get back on our feet, i think. and that year, they couldn’t—i mean, i heard them talking at night about how we might not be able to make christmas work, when they thought i couldn’t hear them. but i still wrote my letter to santa, and there were a couple presents when i woke up christmas morning, so.” he scuffs one shoe on the industrial carpet. “maybe an angel sent ‘em.”

the words make something sizzle down jack’s spine and settle low in his gut. he steps forward, reaches out, turns over the nearest tag.

boy, age 11. shoe size: 8. wishlist: sneakers, earbuds, basketball, patriots merch, chapter books. loves fantasy and mythology.

once upon a time, jack spent three months in a rehab center designed specifically for the privacy needs of celebrity clients. his parents footed the bill, had the windows on all their cars tinted for him to hide behind when he got out. at the same time, thousands of miles away, bitty sat at the top of the stairs in his parents’ house and listened to them wonder if they could afford to keep the magic of christmas alive another year.

people are stepping around them to get out of the cold, now, their eyes skipping right over the tree and the boys in front of it. once upon a time, strangers on the street picked apart jack’s overdose like a piece of tabloid gossip. strangers on the street made sure a thirteen-year-old kid had something to unwrap with his family on christmas morning.

“bits?”

bitty sniffles, swipes at one eye with the sleeve of his sweater. “yeah?”

jack lifts the tag gently off its branch, catches bitty’s gaze. bitty’s intake of breath is so sharp it’s audible over the music playing overhead. do you see what i see?

“what do you think? wanna go get us another cart?”

[logan-fields-official]

Do you wanna build a snowman?

Tyler x reader

Tyler had always been the responsible one in the family. His family’s anchor after the death of his father. At a young age, he had sacrificed the carefree joys of childhood to step into a caregiver role, often prioritizing household chores and family including the group over indulging in simple pleasures. As fresh snow continued to cover the world outside, Y/N glanced out the window, their heart filling with excitement. They turned to Tyler, who sat on the couch, his brows furrowed as he scrolled through his phone for one of his few breaks at home. “Tyler, It’s snowing! We have to make a snowman!” Tyler barely glanced up, his brown eyes narrowing, with a sarcastic lift of his brow. “Making a snowman? Really? Isn’t that for little kids? I’m pretty sure we’re too old for that,” he scoffed, a hint of amusement barely breaking through his usual tough exterior. Y/N pouted, crossing their arms. “You’re only fifteen, Tyler. Plus you’re never too old for a snowman, especially not with your twin sister and your S/O. Besides, it could be fun! Just think of it as a way to connect with your inner child or something.” “Yeah, what inner child? And I’m pretty certain that all you have is an outer child.” he retorted, rolling his eyes dramatically. “Plus my inner child is buried under a lot of responsibilities, thanks to everything that’s happened.” His voice softened for a brief moment as he glanced toward the kitchen, where a picture of his father hung. The playful spark within Y/N widened as they took the opportunity to reconnect with the part of Tyler that was still capable of joy. “Come on,” they urged, their tone light-hearted. “How about this, I pretend to be a little kid, and you can play the big old mean snowman? Just imagine all the excitement when everyone sees our masterpiece! Besides, Taylor would definitely have more fun if her twin helped her build a snowman.” Their bait worked; Tyler sighed in mock defeat, a tiny smirk breaking through. “Fine, but I’m only doing this because you won’t stop pestering me. Let’s get this over with.. I guess.” With an excited squeal Y/N grabbed Tyler’s hand and dragged him outside as the snow swirled around them. The crisp winter air bit at their cheeks as Tyler, Y/N, and Taylor gathered clumps of snow. Taylor laughed and giggled as she rolled a large snowball across the yard to make a body. Tyler was working on the torso while Y/N rolled a smaller clump of snow for the head. After they had all finished rolling their clumps of snow they got ready for the more challenging part; putting the snowman together without breaking him as Taylor wanted to make a big snowman. As the Tyler started to put the torso of the snowman on the whole snowman crumbled. Y/N gasps dramatically and takes what was supposed to be the snowman’s hair and drops it’s on Tyler’s head, giggling as it crumbles on him. Tyler tense for a moment looking at Y/N before letting out a slight chuckle, grabbing a handful and hurling it towards Y/N, who barely dodged it as they ducked and fell back on their ass laughing. Maybe it isn’t a good idea to give a baseball player a reason to throw a snowball at you, but the warmth of their laughter lit up the wintery scene, turning a simple day into a memory that will be forever cherished.

[sanjisboyfie]

๑ keep safe : new crewmate, tony tony chopper (11)

one piece x male reader

you lost your way, just take my hand

you're lost at sea, 

then i'll command your boat to me again 

『 prev 』

now, [name] would never call himself a heavy sleeper. in fact, he used to wake up to every sound that was around him when he was a child. but that was also due to the fact he had to be kept on his toes almost 24/7 when he was a kid.

dangerous environment and all.

so, he was really shocked to learn about all that had happened while he was resting. it was probably due to the exhaustion he was facing, especially the physical aspect of that, but still! he slept through cannons being fired, a major fight going down, and a bunch of shouts of determination.

it was a wonder how he slept through it all. and it seemed also a key event for some mockery from everyone’s favorite chef.

“what a lazy ass!” sanji said, grinning at the look on [name]’s face.

“i’m not the one who has to crawl everywhere, shut it, shitty cook!”

“shitty cook!? alright, if that’s what you really think, i’ll just feed you rat shit when we get back to the going merry!”

“oh, you think you can make that trip that easily?! considering you’d have to crawl there like a spineless vermin!”

“i’ll really kill you!” sanji shouted, but [name] only walked past him, sauntering in his steps to emphasize the fact he could walk freely while sanji was restricted in his movements.

after his back bone had given out on him, sanji was bound to crawling on the floor everywhere. and [name] took every opportunity he could get in making fun of sanji’s carelessness. like how sanji was making fun of [name] for sleeping through an entire battle right outside his window.

when he stepped out into the courtyard of the castle, it was nighttime. he had the blanket tightly wrapped around his person and looked around, trying to find anyone in the crew. but, his search was cut short when he heard luffy’s yelling.

“hey, reindeer!!! come be pirates with us!!!”

[name] smiled at the invitation, walking through the big doors and seeing luffy, usopp, and zoro all gathered in front of the castle.

“you’re so loud, luffy,” he yawned, chuckling when he saw his breath turn into puffs of white.

“woah, are you really supposed to be walking around, [name]? doctor said your injuries were pretty severe,” usopp said, looking at [name] as he stepped out in only a blanket and pants, “plus you’re really underdressed, what the hell?!”

“well, aren’t we leaving soon anyway? i got everything i need here, so let’s get to merry - where it’s nice and warm,” [name] opened up the blanket to show that he had his essentials, which really was just his sword, and grinned at them.

“doesn’t explain why you’re naked,” zoro said unimpressed.

“zoro, y’know, i missed you!” [name] cheerfully exclaimed, a complete contrast to the swordsman's disgruntled demeanor. 

the swordsman made an obvious sound of disgust at the confession, sticking his tongue out as if he was about to barf, “fuck, i think i’m gonna vomit everywhere,”

“hey!!!” [name] scolded, not appreciating that negative reaction to his confession. zoro simply held up his hand though and covered his mouth, really selling the part that he was going to vomit. or, maybe he really was going to — he didn’t seem the type to be good with sentiments.

“that’s pushing it a bit, don’t you think, seaweed?!” [name] said, turning angry. he began to chase after zoro, who threw a snowball right at his face to stop him, shouting about how he didn’t want [name] near him.

as the two were chasing after each other, usopp went back to building his snowman.

“come on, zoro, admit it you missed me too!”

“i don’t even fucking know you!!!”

they were so focused on cursing each other out, they didn’t notice that both of them had rammed into usopp’s snowman. the sniper got involved by nailing them each in the forehead with a snowball, getting revenge.

as the two then began chasing usopp, vivi and nami came out of the castle as well. but behind them was a immobile sanji, who they had to drag by his feet in order to get him places.

“hey! reindeer!” luffy said in surprise, a grin still on his face.

“tony-kun?” a genuine look of surprise was on nami’s face. she didn’t think chopper was really going to join them.

[name] stopped running after usopp, looking at the still reindeer in anticipation.

“it’s not possible!” chopper said, turning down the offer with his head held down, “i’m a reindeer, i have antlers and hooves! i even have a blue nose! it’s true that i wanna be a pirate, but i’m not even a human! i’m a monster! i can’t become your friends, so i just came to say…thank you…i do appreciate you guys and thank you for inviting me.”

[name] bit his lip to hold back his laughter, finding the sight of chopper both amusing and greatly depressing. the way chopper was so obviously fighting against his own desires, wanting to sail out to sea, just so he could appease the expectations that were set for him on the island. to see such obvious repression of freedom made [name] almost laugh at how chopper's world was going to be flipped upside down. luffy would never take no for an answer.

the zero self assurance chopper had in himself made [name] sad. chopper was special and he might have been a monster, but the reindeer failed to see the beauty in both of those things. now, [name] didn’t get the chance to see chopper fight anyone, as he was passed out completely, but he was sure it was impressive.

“so one day…if you feel like it, stop by agai-”

“shut up! let’s go!” luffy shouted, spreading his arms out into the air and stretching so far back that his hat had fallen off of his head. [name] chuckled, along with many others in the crew, before looking back at chopper’s now teary eyed form.

finally, chopper stopped fighting his hopes and nodded his head. an unhealthy amount of tears streamed down his face as well as snot, but [name] could only think of how heartwarming the sight was.

so as chopper ran back inside the castle, the rest of the strawhat crew awaited his return. [name] picked up luffy’s straw hat and secured it on their captain’s head, “nice job, captain,” he said, making luffy smile and laugh.

deciding to prepare their ascent down the castle, usopp and him worked on getting the ropeway ready.

“i feel like you definitely shouldn’t be doing any heavy work,” usopp grumbled, showing [name] how to get everything set up, “i mean your hand! aren’t there still stiches in there?”

[name] shrugged, “something as small as that isn’t gonna make me stop from helping,”

“something as small as that?! i get it, you’re insane just like those three,” usopp said, dejected at the thought of someone so strong also being on their crew, “i mean, your bounty isn’t a joke, but really? a stab to the hand isn’t a big deal to you?”

[name] laughed, a very hearty one as he slapped usopp on the back, “it’s never a big deal if it’s for the safety of your friends. you’d do the same thing, wouldn’t you?”

[name] tugged and pulled on the rope, looking up when he realized usopp had stopped working for a moment.

“i don’t know, stuff like that seems out of the question for me…i mean!! i am a brave warrior of the sea, so doing little stuff like that — pft! i don’t even-”

“usopp, you are a brave warrior of sea, why are you mocking yourself?” [name] said, tilting his head ot the side in confusion.

“i wasn’t mocking myself!” usopp said, trying to sound confident as he felt [name]’s e/c eyes boring into him, “i was confident,”

“whatever, usopp, you’ll see in the future. i’m sure you’re even more capable than me,”

“well, obviously the great captain usopp exceeds all standards!” usopp said once more in that loud voice of his, the one he used whenever he was telling lies.

“i believe you,” [name] said with a grin, finalizing the ropeway and sighing at the exercise, “this weather isn’t good for my heart, where’s chopper? we should go now,”

“it’s also not helping you’re not wearing a shirt, idiot!” usopp cried out, making [name] laugh in return.

“everyone! hop on the sleigh! we are going down the ropes!” chopper’s sudden yell made everyone turn their heads, but then their jaws dropped to see the circumstances in which they were leaving.

dr. kureha, for whatever reason, was throwing endless amounts of weapons at chopper’s running form and yelling profanities at the reindeer. chopper was running with his four legs and carrying a sled with him.

“oo! free ride!” [name] cheered, running forward and being one of the firsts to get on board. the others soon followed, zoro carelessly throwing sanji inside, and then they were off.

chopper ran at a remarkable speed carrying all of them, but it seemed he was only focused on getting to the bottom of the rope. he didn’t look back even once.

[name] laughed the entire way down, finding the urgency to leave hilarious. seeing dr. kureha so determined in driving chopper out was funny, but also sad.

he hummed in thought, not particularly liking how this island had a terrible habit of making funny things just as funny as they were depressing.

but as they were finally on solid ground, there were several bangs that were going off and they were coming from the castle. chopper eventually stopped, turning into his small form and walking towards the light that was emitting from the castle.

everyone else on the sleigh stayed behind and allowed chopper to process it by himself.

“it’s beautiful,” nami breathed out, eyes enamored with the light show.

“awesome!!!” luffy shouted, zoro nodding in agreement.

“that lady sure is funny,” [name] said, leaning against his seat on the sleigh, completely focused on the lights.

chopper began wildly crying at the sight.

”doctor! doctorine!” he shouted into the cold winter air, bellows of crying following soon after.

[name] remained silent, eyes dimming at the heartfelt goodbye. he held his open palm out to catch some of the pink snow and chuckled as he saw it melt in his hand. with the water in his hand, he focused on shaping out a jolly roger.

he smiled softly as he saw it turn solid, the pink strawhat jolly roger freezing in place.

“hah, i hate pink,” he said under his breath, making vivi turn her head towards him.

“what was that, [name]?” she asked smiling softly, not hearing what he had said. when she caught sight of the small piece of art he made in his palm, her eyes sparkled a bit.

“nothing, princess,” he assured her, pinching the ice in his hand and sadly watching it melt at his natural body heat. “nothing,”

it continued to rain pink snow until they made it to the ship, all of them leaving chopper alone to take in his farewell. well, that only lasted for so long before [name] was smothering him.

“hey, chopper, let’s go party!”

“yeah, yeah, come and sing with us!” sanji joined in.

“here, drink!”

[name] took the jug usopp was offering to chopper and handed it to zoro (who gladly took it), giving usopp a disapproving look.

“he’s too young to drink that, usopp!”

“no way, how old are you, chopper?”

“i’m-”

“here, stick these up your nose!” luffy said, breaking into the conversation and holding a pair of chopsticks for chopper to take.

the poor reindeer, who was overwhelmed by it all, had backed away slowly before he was caught by the ship’s navigator.

“you made friends with some pretty crazy guys, huh?” she asked teasingly, although there was a soft way in which she spoke. she understood that chopper was still sensitive to the goodbyes he had to share so she, unlike the men on the crew, tried to make him feel somewhat comforted.

their festivities didn’t die out one bit, usopp leading the toast in bringing chopper on board.

[name] had his own mug of coffee, lifting in up as he held chopper on his shoulders, and crying out with the rest of the crew, “cheers!”

chopper had a pair of chopsticks still in his nose and mouth as he shouted, making [name] laugh at his slurred words. the laugh seemed to infect the reindeer himself as he was left clutching his small, furry stomach in glee.

“you’re gonna patch me up after every fight, right chopper?!” [name] asked the new doctor, earning a nod in response.

“do you get in fights often, [name]?” chopper politely asked, making [name] grin so wide his eyes had crinkles at the end.

“i’m the strongest on the crew!”

“really?”

“liar, he’s a liar, chopper! don’t believe him!” luffy said, stretching his head to literally butt into the conversation, “i’m the strongest!”

“[name]’s definitely just a pain in the ass, he doesn’t know shit about fighting, chopper, don’t believe him,” zoro said, waving his hand at chopper’s question.

"[name] can’t even-”

“alright, no more shitting on me! i’ll beat all of you up, how about that?!” [name] said, throwing his mug of coffee on deck, throwing his hands up as if he were going to box.

the three seemed to take that as an invitation and before they all knew it, their four crewmates were all fighting each other. it more so  turned into a fight between zoro and sanji, as they were focused on one-upping each other, and then luffy and [name] wrestling across the deck.

“i bet [name]’s gonna win!” nami said, beris in her eyes.

“zoro, cut him up!” usopp drunkenly cheered, focusing on the other fight instead.

“is this really okay?!” chopper cried out, watching as they were all tumbling around deck to fight.

“it’s alright, chopper, just place your bets!” nami said, beri being the only thing in her eyes once more.

as they all continued to fight and laugh, [name] came out on top.

“that’s what i thought! suck my dick, you annoying assholes!” he crudely shouted into the night air, choking luffy with his own arm and having his feet planted on the back of both sanji and zoro’s heads.

“this isn’t over! i never lose!” luffy said in fury.

“why are you interfereing with our fight, idiot!?” zoro shouted.

"you won't be so confident when i kick you overboard into the freezing ocean! ” sanji threatened.

“see that, chopper! i’m the real winner!!!” [name] said confidently, grinning from ear to ear as he showed chopper his strength, “be like me, okay?!”

nami sighed and shook her head as [name] began infecting chopper’s naive mind whilst vivi only could chuckle behind her hand.

sanji and zoro both tackled [name] after his proud exclamation, ruining the pedestal [name] had put himself on for chopper. the reindeer still was looking at him in amazement though as he now was fighting both zoro and sanji at the same time.

despite their violent celebrations, though, all of them gathered in the boy’s dorm and shared their company with one another. there were enough hammocks for everyone and the going merry finally got to hear some peace and quiet.

well, as peace and quiet it can get with zoro snoring loud enough for everyone to hear.

the next morning, everyone was still upbeat and energetic over their new crewmate, plus the fact nami was feeling much better now. [name] brewed himself a cup of coffee, sliding one over to nami, “look, i saved enough for the two of us to drink!”

the orange haired girl grinned, nodding her head in thanks and taking a sip of the mug. she blinked, pleasantly surprised by the taste.

“woah, [name] this is really good,” she praised, making him shrug in response, “make my coffee from now on, alright?” a cheeky grin was on her face and [name] had a feeling that there was some underlying motive. just as he was about to question her, she continued on, “you know, i couldn’t properly calculate how many coffee beans of mine you had eaten…so let’s just mark the total to: 100,000 beri. for every cup of coffee you make me, i can take that price down 3%.”

“oi!!!” [name] said, jaw dropped as she revealed it was all a ploy to get her money’s worth.

“now, now, i don’t want to hear complaints! that’s even after my discount since you nursed me back to health! just be glad i’m even applying a low fee,” she said, taking the cup of coffee and waltzing out of the kitchen as if she didn’t send [name] into an impossible debt.

he was still standing in place and looking at the coffee in his hands, deflating at he knew that nami was dead serious when it came to getting her money back. well, he may as well make the most of his delicious coffee as it may be the last he’ll have for a while.

if nami was charging him for the individual coffee beans, he didn’t want to think about how much a whole cup would cost.

he met the rest of the crew on deck, eagerly walking over when he saw them sitting in a circle with cards.

“ah, don’t join us, we already gave out the hand,” zoro said, already predicting what [name]’s first words were going to be.

“i’ll watch!” [name] said, taking a seat right behind the swordsman. zoro couldn’t do much to shoo away the man from there, allowing him to look at his hand.

“don’t say stupid shit now, this is for real beri!” zoro said, a smirk on his face as he saw the unfolding of the rest of the cards. “i’m gonna win! i think i owe that greedy hag some money anyway…”

“hell no, i’m taking all the winnings, nami is gonna do my head in if i don’t repay her soon…” usopp whined, seemingly dejected at the sight of his cards.

“don’t bad mouth nami-san! i’m happy to be in her debt,” sanji said, ever the prince, “if it means she’ll look my way again for another day, i am eternally grateful!”

as expected, it seemed everyone was in debt to nami.

[name] looked on with wide eyes as the rest of the cards were shown in the middle, eager to see sanji and usopp’s.

chopper came running to them and around circles, yelling about something regarding luffy, but unfortunately, the game was just getting interesting and no one in their circle was willing to move.

[name] prodded at zoro’s side, making the swordsman scowl at him. but then he saw [name]’s satisfied smile and then returned it. zoro’s hand was really, really good actually, and there was no way he’d lose it. he would definitely win! their matching mischevious grins showed how confident they were.

just as the trio were going to reveal their hands, luffy and the “trouble” he got himself into came crashing into all of them. it left them all sprawled out on deck, the cards that they were holding now loosely flying in the wind.

“huh? are you guys sleeping?” luffy’s oblivious voice asked.

“it’s your fault!” they all shouted, springing into the air and angrily glaring at their captain.

“how are you gonna fix this situation! i had a good hand!” usopp shouted.

“really? sorry!” luffy said and at the sight of his wide smile, [name] felt his annoyance bubble down.

instead he came running over and looking at the “catch” up close. he kicked it a couple of times with his foot and suddenly felt himself get hungry.

“that’s pretty huge,” zoro commented, a smirk on his face, “now we can have some decent meals,”

“sanji, cook it now!” [name] childishly commanded.

briskly walking over to the bird, and slapping his hand down on [name]’s head as he passed, sanji commented on how they didn't have time to prep a whole bird for feasting on.

“oh, but i bet if nami-san or vivi-chan,” [name] said in a mocking of the blonde’s voice when he spoke their names, “asked, you’d do it right away, perv!”

“come on! let’s fight right now, shit for brains, i’ll throw you overboard!” sanji said, about to kick [name], if it weren’t for nami’s interference.

“guys! we are about to land at alabasta soon, this isn’t the time to be joking around. come on!” she commanded, successfully getting sanji off of [name]’s back and gathering them all at the center of merry.

“so what’s alabasta?” chopper asked curiously.

“alabasta is a country that vivi’s dad governs,” nami patiently replied.

“there’s a rogue named crocodile that’s trying to take over it right now,”

“i hear that crocodile is one of the sevel warlords of the sea,” sanji added in, but chopper only seemed to become more confused.

“seven warlords of the sea?” he echoed, a blank look on his face.

“they’re pirates that are under the world government,” [name] said, a smirk on his face as he thought of the seven pirates, “they’re a bunch of dogs, basically,”

“hey, hold on, that’s really undermining them,” nami said, a pointed look on her face, “chopper, the seven warlords are really strong people.”

“i could take them,” [name] said, making chopper turn to him in shock.

“really? [name], you could?!”

just as [name] was going to reply, usopp knocked him on the head to interrupt, “don’t pay attention to this guy, he’s not normal, chopper. he’s insane, even. the seven warlords are crazy strong, they can easily crush any other pirate — that’s why the government employs them in the first place.”

“my point still stands, they’re just dogs,” [name] shrugged, showing clear dislike to both the world government and the seven warlords.

vivi, who was curious as to why, was about to ask what grudge [name] had against both parties, but luffy had cut her off, “crocodile, huh…? i can’t wait to see him!” the fist luffy was holding up seemed to emphasize his point.

“crocodile is a hero in alabasta because he crushes the pirates that attack towns,” vivi explained to the crew, “but that’s only his public act! behind the scenes, he’s the one pulling the strings that caused the civil war in alabasta, in order to take over alabasta. no one has noticed it…the citizens, my father…no one!!!”

[name] grinned sadistically, licking his lips at the thought of beating a warlord.

“all right then! in any case, all we have to do is beat up that crocodile, right?” luffy exclaimed, punching his fist into his open hand. he had that same stupid grin on his face, but seeing it only made [name]’s grin turn wider.

“yes, if we can first stop the civil war and expel baroque works…” vivi said, a determined look in her eyes.

“well, i already promised you i’d beat crocodile up, so taking care of his underlings shouldn’t be too bad,” [name] said, imagining the many weaker and fodder pirates that were acting under crocodile.

“hey! i’m gonna be the one to take down crocodile!” luffy shouted stubbornly at [name], “he’s my enemy, i put dibs on him since the beginning!”

“well, i told vivi i’d take care of crocodile the moment i saw him, so you can take your dibs back, luffy,” [name] said, not at all intimidated by luffy’s childish nature.

“i’m the captain, whatever i say goes!”

“why do you always pull the captain card at the most inconvenient times?!” [name] snarled.

“see chopper, i told you, [name]’s an insane man. arguing with our own captain on taking down a warlord…a bad example, indeed,” usopp whispered to their newest crewmate, who seemed to simply nod his head in agreement. “these are the qualms of strong men,”

“well, vivi, explain to us the system that the organization works in,” nami said, punching both luffy and [name] for arguing in the middle of a serious conversation. it effectively shut the two of them up. “if we are going to take down the whole system, as [name] said.”

the h/c haired boy grinned in reassurance, “i’ll kill them all,”

it was unsettling to see such a serious and violent sentiment be conveyed through a friendly smile.

“well, the actual system is simple. at the top, there’s crocodile, mr. 0, the boss. then there are 12 agents and one animal who receives orders from the boss directly. each of the 12 agents operates separately with a female agent.

“mr. 1 and miss double finger, then mr. 2, who doesn’t have a partner…”

“mr. 3 is the candle man we met in little garden, right?” zoro interrupted, making vivi nod her head in confirmation.

“yes, he was paired with miss golden week,”

sanji and [name] looked at each other, blank expressions on their faces as they didn’t get the chance to meet — or even see — the pair that the crew were talking about.

“mr. 4 is paired up with miss merry christmas, i don’t know much about these two either.”

“then there’s a snot guy!” usopp proudly proclaimed. making usopp turn to him in confusion.

“snot?”

“yeah, when he sneezes there are sharp knives that come from his nose,” [name] said, lying to the poor reindeer.

“don’t lie to the new member!” nami scolded, bringing her fist down onto [name]’s head once again.

“well, [name] wasn’t too far off, his whole body is a weapon,” vivi explained in a more refined way, “miss valentine has the powers of the kilo-kilo fruit.”

“stupid ass fruit,” [name] said under his breath, making luffy laugh at his crude words.

“the woman that can change her weight freely, right?” at the question, vivi simply nodded.

vivi went on to explain more of the agents, but [name] felt himself zoning out. whoever their opponents were, it didn’t matter. he’d crush all of them. it sounded like an easy enough mission.

he leaned on the railing of the merry, looking out at the vast ocean. mindlessly, he caused some shapes to form in the ocean, grinning as he saw the water fluidly obey.

defeating devil fruit users, or anyone for that matter, was easy when you had the sea at your beck and call. [name] had perfectly good reason to be confident. hopefully, he’d get to show off some of the reason as to why the world government so badly wanted his head on a platter.

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Summary: Everything is all set with the first snowfall coming around, now all you need is your husband to come home.

Pairing: Sebastian Vettel x Reader

Word Count: 3.8k

Warnings: cursing, angst if you squint (I think?), teeth-rotting fluff (hopefully), strangers to lovers (kinda) bee- cause why not hehe, and Seb being adorable >:(

A/N: I know I said this was meant to be out on Seb’s birthday but I got caught up with college work and got lazy, so I apologise to those who waited. This is not proof read or beta read (so advance apologies for the terrible writing).

Comments and reblogs are deeply appreciated!

December finally came around Switzerland, and you were currently residing on the couch, holding a mug of hot chocolate as you tuned in on the television listening to the weather news report. When you heard the announcer mention that the first snowfall will be seen sometime this week, the corner of your lips curled upwards, forming a grin as you squealed like a little kid getting candy.

While others dreaded the coming of winter and its sub-zero temperature, it was no secret to anyone that knew you that it is your favourite season. From its white snow covering the houses and streets that allows you to make snowmans and snow angels to the Christmas lights that brightened up the long, pitch black, endless nights, to the cold weather that makes it absolutely perfect for cuddling.

Now all you needed to make everything complete was for your husband to return to your arms. Actually when you first met your now husband, it was like a usual cliché love story.

You were ordered by your boss to fly all the way to the Netherlands for an official work trip. Or well that was what you were supposed to be doing when you arrived in Amsterdam until the client you were supposed to meet up with ditched you.  

Now here you are miles away from your hometown, lost in a whole new foreign land with only a fair amount of pocket money and few changes of clothes.

You staggered along the streets, your phone in your hand as you made your way to the busy and crowded area trying to find the hotel your office booked for you while on the said trip.

Looking back on your phone, you sighed as you followed the directions on Google Maps. But after a few more minutes of this wild goose chase, you gave up and sat on a bench somewhere. Leaning your head on the bench, you rubbed your eyes, completely exhausted and jetlagged from the flight.

When you opened your eyes, you saw the setting sun slowly descend towards the horizon, casting a warm golden glow across the vast expanse of the sky. The sky transformed into a canvas of vivid colours, blending shades of orange, pink, and purple, creating a breathtaking display that captured your heart and soul.

You exhaled heavily, getting up from where you were seated as you carried on your venture to seek for your hotel. Turning on your phone, you followed the nearest route shown on the screen.

“You’ve arrived at your destination.”

Your ears perked up as soon as you heard those words. But the moment you looked up, the excitement you regained dissipated in a blink of an eye as you wince at the sight of the hotel. While you expected a cosy hotel that exuded an immediate sense of warmth and comfort, that would create an ambiance that felt like a home away from home, instead you were greeted by an odd and peculiar hotel that stood in stark contrast to its surroundings, defying conventional architecture and exuding an aura of eccentricity.

And as if the world knew your reluctance to step in, rain began to come down from the sky.

“Just my luck! Don’t tell me it can get any worse than this, right?” You groaned to no one in particular, your things starting to get soaked from the pouring water.

But like jinxing yourself as you said those words, it did in fact get much worse because when you went up the steps and tried opening the front doors, it was shut tight.

You kicked the door out of frustration before remembering that your things might be wet. Grabbing your luggage, you carried it up and placed it under the portico of the hotel before sitting on one of the steps, letting your skin seep the rain.

A few moments have passed and your body started shivering from the cold. You placed your arms on your thighs as you buried your face on your shaking hands, trying your best to warm yourself up.

“Stupid boss sending me on this stupid business trip. Fuck me!”

“You know you shouldn’t say that out loud when you’re alone in the dimly lit part of this street.” A voice suddenly piped up, making you jump from where you were seated, your hand holding your chest as you felt your heart race.  

You quickly whipped your head to where the sound came from and you saw a man with a messy, short light brown hair and blue eyes that was sparkling even in the darkness. He had a stubble growing on across his defined jaw that made him look mature.

“Don’t do that! Are you trying to kill me?” You sneered at the man who was holding back his laughter.

“Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. I saw you as I was walking past and I heard you say that, so I just wanted to warn you…”, he explained, looking genuinely sorry for his sudden appearance.

When you felt no rain on your skin, you looked up to see a black umbrella over your head being held by the stranger who frightened you.

“A-and you were getting drenched from the rain, so I was going to offer my umbrella…”, he proceeded to explain, gesturing at the umbrella he was holding up for the both of you.

There was a deafening silence that came after what he said as you pressed your lips in a tight line.

“Sorry, I should have minded my own business.”, he spoke up once more when he realised that he won’t get anything from you.

You let out a soft chuckle that only the two of you can hear before turning to face him, “You talk too much.”

His eyes widened at your remark, his cheeks turning into a shade of light red as he became flustered and self-conscious.

“It’s okay though… It’s honestly quite comforting that someone would be so kind to tell me.”, you followed up, noticing his embarrassment from your comment.

Now it was his turn to stay quiet, stunned as he heard you speak. He looked away, hiding a small grin that was forming on his lips. When he managed to control it, he turned back to you, tilting his head as his gaze fixed on you.

You felt his eyes bore holes into you and you can’t help but feel naked. Never in your wildest dreams did you ever think of finding yourself in this situation, but here you were with a stranger who was willing to share his umbrella with you, observing you like a hawk.

“I’m assuming you have a question…”, you spoke out, returning his stare.

His lips fell into a thin straight line as he realised that he must have been obvious. “I… Well, I was curious at why you were sitting here all alone at night. That hotel has been under renovation for months already…”, he explains in a small and soft voice.

You looked at him appalled, completely speechless at what you heard. “Y-you’re telling me that this place has been closed for months?” He nodded meekly in reply, seeming embarrassed as he moved his hands to his nape and rubbed it softly.

There was silence that surrounded you both as everything happening to you started sinking in. This must have been a set up from your company, knowing how much they despised you and wished for your downfall.

As the man beside you felt that you were in distress, he removed his coat and immediately placed it over your shoulders, squeezing it gently. “I know it’s not my place to ask, but if you want you can stay over my place? It’s not that far from here.”

He pursed his lips as he awaited your answer. He knows he’s just a stranger, but he couldn’t help feeling pity towards you. Besides you seem nice enough to be a killer acting helpless, so what could go wrong right?

“How am I sure you’re not some sort of murderer trying to lead me into a death trap?”, you ask after a few moments that definitely assured him you were not a killer.

He lets out a soft chuckle that breaks the stillness and awkwardness of the atmosphere. There was something about his laugh that made you feel warm and fuzzy despite the cold settling on your bones.

“Fair enough, but trust me if I was a killer, I would have gone a different way.” He says reassuringly before standing up and grabbing your luggage.

“Come on! Or would you rather stay here?” He gestures, carrying your things as he goes down the step.

Shaking your head in utter disbelief, you stood up and followed him, keeping a safe distance in case he tried to do something. You heard his laugh as he led the way, the fuzzy feeling growing and when he looked back at you, he gave you a wide and goofy smile that made your heart flip.

“Oh by the way, I’m Sebastian Vettel. But you can call me Seb.” He mentions before turning his back on you and starts walking again. You suppress a smile as you calm yourself down, reminding yourself that you just met the man and you should not trust him easily.

You quietly continued following him, shivering as it got colder even though it stopped raining already. As you both approached an apartment building, you felt a light and cool touch against your forehead.

As you look up to the sky, you witness a mesmerising spectacle unfold before your eyes. Delicate snowflakes, like ethereal dancers, descend from the heavens, gracefully floating in the air.

“S-snow?”, you said dumbfoundedly, halting in your tracks.  When Sebastian noticed that you weren’t following him anymore, he turned back to look at you looking enthralled as snow continued to fall.

“First time?”

As he broke your train of thoughts, you hummed and nodded in response as your eyes never left the sky.

“Guess I’m lucky that I’m the first person you get to experience a White Christmas then, huh?” He chimed, his tone filled with excitement as he watched you.

A few days after the weather report, you started setting up and decorating your home for Christmas as you waited for your husband to come home.

Grabbing your phone from the side table, you texted a message to your husband.

You: Love, when will you be back?

Sending the message, you threw your phone to the side, as you stood up from the couch, and started pacing back and forth in your living room. Minutes have passed and you looked at your phone for the nth time, debating whether you should send another message as you waited for his response.

As you were about to grab your phone and decide to send him another text, your phone notification pinged.

Seb Sugar Pie Honey Bunch: Sorry, liebling. I don’t know if I’ll make it in time to spend the first snow with you. I know how much this means to you, but I promise to make it up to you once I get home.

Can’t wait to be back in your arms. I love you xx

Reading his message, you couldn’t help but feel bummed down. The first snowfall was a special moment you annually celebrated with your husband. You shared many memories with him that included the first winter fall. Your first meeting, first official date, when you answered ‘yes’ as he asked you to be his girlfriend, when he proposed to you, when you got married, all those things happened during the first snow.

And experiencing the first one this year without him, it felt dull and meaningless. So as the next days came by, you did nothing but mope around, spending your morning and afternoon sleeping in your bed or eating ice cream while snuggling under a blanket as you sobbed to cringe, sappy romantic movies.

When the day of the predicted snowfall arrived, you excitedly hopped off your shared bed with your husband and ran down to the living room, waiting by the window.

An hour came by and seeing that there wasn’t any snow yet, you went to the kitchen to prepare yourself something to eat. Opening the fridge, you looked for ingredients you can use to make the easiest and lightest meal possible. Once you got it cooked and prepared, you sat by the island counter, beginning to chow down on it as your gaze never left the window.

Finishing your meal, you washed the dishes and cookware you used, placing them inside the dish dryer and wiping the kitchen and island counter. After cleaning up, you shuffled back to the living room and sat on the sofa as you looked out and waited for the snow.

While anticipating for the first snow to arrive, you kept yourself busy and distracted with everything you see, as well as trying to stray away from your phone. Turning on the television and stereo, you started playing music to liven up the mood, dancing around the living room.

Later when you checked outside, you saw little specks of white falling to the ground. Feeling the course of excitement filling your body, you grabbed the nearest shoes and slipped it on, not bothering to change out of your pyjamas before running to the front door.

As you emerge into the stillness of the wintry landscape, a hush blankets the surroundings. The familiar sounds of everyday life are muted, replaced by the gentle whispers of falling snowflakes. The world seems to hold its breath in awe of the transformation unfolding before your eyes.

While everyone went indoors, preparing for the incoming chilly weather, you stood in the middle of the lawn piling with snow, capturing the beauty it provided. Each snowflake falling from the sky, a unique masterpiece, intricately crafted by nature's hand. They fall gently onto your face and eyelashes, instantly melting upon contact, leaving a cool kiss on your skin. The air feels fresh and invigorating, carrying the scent of winter and a hint of pine.

Letting out a soft sigh as you let the cold envelop you, seeping through your skin, settling deep within your bones. Your breath becomes visible, a cloud of mist that hangs in the air for a fleeting moment before dissipating into the icy abyss. And looking around, you witness the gradual metamorphosis of the scenery. Every surface becomes a canvas for the delicate white flakes, transforming the landscape into a pristine, ethereal landscape. Trees, rooftops, and the ground itself are gradually covered in a soft, velvety layer of snow, as if nature has carefully tucked the world in for a peaceful slumber.

As you stand still, you can't help but be captivated by the silence. The snow absorbs the sound, creating a serene and tranquil atmosphere. The only audible presence is the gentle whisper of snowflakes landing on the ground, adding to the symphony of nature's delicate touch.

Looking up, you see the sky adorned with a tapestry of white, as countless snowflakes continue their descent from above. The world feels transformed, as if transported to a realm where time slows down, and worries and stresses melt away in the purity of the moment.

You hold your palms out to catch the falling snow, closing your eyes in the process as the cool snowdrops meet your skin. You let another sigh out as snowflakes gently make contact with your cheeks, nose, and eyelashes. At that moment, time seems to slow down. You become fully present, completely immersed in the serene beauty of the winter moment. The world around you takes on a dreamlike quality, as if you've entered a quiet sanctuary, a realm where worries and cares momentarily fade away.

Shortly after settling down with the cold, you felt something heavy on your hand, startling you as your eyes jolted wide open. Looking down you see your husband and his chin placed on your palm. You closed your eyes and took a deep breath, thinking that you might be hallucinating from missing him too much. But when you opened your eyes the second time and still saw his goofy grin, your eyebrows furrowed.

When your significant other saw the perplexed look your face held, he pursed his lips tightly thinking that he must be doing something wrong.

“Is this not how I’m supposed to be doing?” He asked, looking at you through his eyelash.

You blinked a few times, your face contorting into an even more confused expression as your eyes showed mixed emotions at the thought of the man who told you that he won’t be home is the same man right in front of you right now.

“S-Seb? You’re-”

“Home... Surprise, liebling.” He interrupted, finishing your sentence as he suppressed a smile.

Still resting his chin on the palm of your hand, he tilts his head slightly, his famous gummy grin once more appearing on his face.

You stayed silently still, pursing your lips as your mind continued to process everything before letting out a soft sigh escape your lips as you come to the conclusion that you must be daydreaming.  

“Pinch me, I must be dreaming. You’re not really here, right? Because you told me that you won’t make it in time for this.” You went on, speaking about how he was not supposed to be here yet and other excuses.

As you were in the midst of your rambling, lost in a whirlwind of thoughts and words, you suddenly heard the unmistakable sound of his laughter. It cut through the air like a burst of sunlight, breaking through the cluttered maze of your thoughts and drawing you into the present moment.

The sound was like a gentle symphony, harmonising with the cadence of your own voice. It carried a warmth that permeated the room, infusing the space with a sense of joy and lightheartedness. In that instant, it felt as if the universe had conspired to align your words with his laughter, creating a perfect harmony.

The laughter flowed freely, like a bubbling brook that cascades over rocks, each note infused with genuine amusement. It was a melodic dance, rising and falling, as his mirth embraced your rambling thoughts. The sound of his laughter was pleasing that it distracted you from what you were saying.

And as the delicate snowflakes descend from the sky, gently blanketing the world around you, you find yourself standing in a moment that feels like pure magic. After months of longing and separation, your eyes finally meet those of your husband, and a rush of emotions swells within you.

The air is crisp and alive with anticipation, as the snowflakes create a soft, ethereal backdrop. The sound of muffled footsteps and hushed whispers seems to fade into the background, leaving only the two of you standing together in this wintry embrace.

As you draw closer, a nervous excitement tingles in the pit of your stomach, a mix of anticipation and relief that the long wait is finally over. The world around you seems to fade away, and all that matters is the connection between you.

Your gazes lock, communicating a depth of love and longing that words could never capture. Time seems to slow as he reaches out; his right hand cupping your cheeks while his left hand makes its way to your waist, snaking his arm around you as if he was afraid to let you go. The warmth of your touch contrasts with the coolness of the falling snow, creating a tender juxtaposition.

“How about I do this instead?” He whispers softly, his voice filled with happiness and love as his face advances to yours, his lips mere inches away from touching you.

And in that magical moment, your lips meet. The softness of the kiss feels like a gentle dance, a blending of warmth and tenderness that melts away any remaining distance or time apart. The taste of familiarity and love lingers, as if reuniting with a part of yourself that was temporarily missing.

As the snowflakes continue to descend around you, he tilts his head as he deepens the kiss, a fusion of emotions and longing that has built up over the months of separation. It's a moment of reconnection, a reaffirmation of your bond and the strength of your love.

The world around you seems to hold its breath, as if honouring this intimate and sacred exchange. The soft sound of snowflakes touching the ground becomes a gentle symphony, underscoring the significance of this long-awaited reunion.

As the kiss ends, a sense of contentment washes over you. The weight of the months apart is lifted, replaced by a renewed sense of togetherness and a shared journey moving forward. The snowflakes continue their graceful descent, serving as witnesses to this beautiful moment.

“Y-you’re really here?” You asked once more as the realisation finally settles down, your voice still filled with disbelief.

“I’m really here, my love”, Sebastian assures you, letting a soft chuckle out as he nuzzles his nose against yours, his arms still not letting you go.

You let out a giggle when his nose touched yours, tickling you in the process. You then wrap your arms around his neck, watching him. As you stare at him, your eyes become magnets, drawn to every curve of his face, every twinkle in his eyes, and every subtle expression that dances across his features. Your gaze is filled with wonder, as if you are discovering a masterpiece that was created just for you.

“I missed you so much, Sebby!” You murmured excitedly against his lips before connecting your lips to his once more.

And under the first snowfall, after months of not seeing your husband, the kiss becomes a testament to the enduring power of love and the joy of being reunited. It's a cherished memory that will forever be etched in your hearts, a reminder of the strength and resilience of your relationship in the face of time and distance.

Parting his lips away from yours, he gazes at you, his crystal blue eyes swirling with love and passion then enveloping you in a tight embrace, placing his chin on your head. He soon realised that you must have been cold to the bones as you shivered against his hug and when he pulled away, he laughed a little, noticing that you only had your sleepwear.

“You must have been quite excited that you did not have time to change clothes, huh?” He jokingly asked, teasing you.

You scoffed and gently shoved him, making him chuckle once more before drawing you near him, his arms wrapped around your shoulder.

“Come on, let’s get you inside and I’ll make you a cup of hot chocolate to warm you up.”

“Cuddles too?”, you meekly ask him and he nods, guiding you towards the porch.

“Mhm. And I missed you most ardently too, schatz.” Sebastian uttered softly, gently planting a tender kiss on your temple as you both made your way inside your sweet little home.

[legendary-guest]

High school sucks, from puberty to petty relationship drama to navigating the cliques - not to mention the teachers! Some so crabby, so lippy, so unfair, so mean that you could swear they were...evil?

Meet Dr. Drew Lipsky and Ms. Shea Go! Other outfits linked here. Lots of text under the cut.

"Mr. Lipsky is my father. You will address me as Dr. Lipsky."

It is difficult to escape Dr. Lipsky on the learning side of the high school ecosystem, he practically runs every class that involves math or science.

Arrogant, grouchy and with a tendency to ramble, Doc runs his classroom with an iron fist and a strict no lip policy. He is seldom seen without his ruler, which he uses to write along the chalkboard with his terrible handwriting, draw diagrams, gesture wildly with and slam on sleeping students' desks to rudely wake them. Despite this unpleasant behaviour, he has obvious favourite students - some of them have gone a long way just by sucking up to him - like not being yelled at and being one of the privileged few that haven't been damned to detention for a minor transgression. He's not just mean, he's also weird.

He likes to show-off the fact that he can draw a perfect circle, free-handed. This impresses a lot of the kids, until it becomes dull - he is workshopping drawing a perfect dodecahedron free-handed (it's not going well). School festivities and similar events, not centred around sport, tend to have him actively organising and participating in them. Always decorates the classroom around Christmas time, becomes unbearably cheery. His love for Snowman Hank is infamous.

Students have figured out an effective method to avoid learning - by getting Dr. Lipsky to talk about himself, or anything that vaguely interests him, he isn't difficult to distract. If he realises what's happening, everyone gets extra homework. If he doesn't and class ends, he seethes about it.

Of course, this means that he's always marking, always busy, a vicious feedback loop. He secretly doesn't mind this, as it keeps him occupied, away from depressing thoughts and crushing loneliness. His job is his social life, but even this is difficult as the only real rapport he has with anyone are the students he rambles to. Well, them and now Ms. Go, whom he carpools with - picking him up and dropping him off 5 days a week, just the two of them. His own car was totalled by Ed, and unable to afford another on a teacher's salary, he'd been catching the bus to and from work. His garage has turned into a workshop, where he tinkers with fixing old computers, building robots, lasers, programming microchips, etc. He really doesn't spend time in his own home.

Drew is dyslexic but doesn't know it - he's found ways to manage this. One of these ways is calling on kids who he knows are in Ms. Go's classes - he always knows them - to help him spell something. “How do you spell it?” “What?” “What do you mean ‘what?’ I know you’re in Miss Go’s AP Literature class, so tell me how to spell it!” “Uh…” [spelling ensues] “That wasn’t so difficult now was it?” “Thanks would be nice” “Detention.” “What?” “I heard you talk back. Detention. I’m old, not deaf.” Unlike Drakken, the subject of his blue skin and scar aren't things he's keen to talk about. He addresses it once at the beginning of every semester to the students to quell rumours and that's it. “Before you all start asking, I’ll tell you. This nasty scar? Lab accident. Blue skin? Lab accident. Is it contagious? No. We’re speaking about injuries, not cooties. So, you know I take lab safety very, very seriously. Gloves, closed shoes and glasses in the lab at all times! Last thing I need is a lawsuit from your parents.” No member of staff, including Ms. Go, know why he is blue.

He is still a college drop-out - his doctorate and teaching certifications are fake. He has never been caught. The inciting incident for dropping out (I have yet to cement whether or not it is the Bebes) has defeated him instead of motivating him. Drew Lipsky is still Drakken, but listless, without real focus or ambition, prone to indifference and depression. As Dr. Lipsky, he is a genuinely good, competent teacher, despite all his faults - the need to explain things, repeatedly, helps him in the profession.

Ms. Go is the hot new English teacher at school! Although she is new to teaching on her own, she is not as naïve as some might think. With her experience as Shego, member of Team Go from Go City, dealing with her brothers and various criminals and villains alike, Ms. Go knows her way around people - the Child Development qualification is merely a bonus.

Staff and students don't know of Ms. Go's hero identity and she goes to great lengths to deceive students that point out her strangely tinted skin - by telling them that it's merely the fluorescent lights in the school that make her appear green, and that, maybe, they should be more focused on what's on the board. Several students have started wearing glasses since her employment. Gaslighting the kids is something she enjoys immensely. Dr. Lipsky has noticed, too, but he doesn't bring it up, accepting her reasoning - for now.

Her attractiveness is no secret, with many a boy harbouring a crush on her, some of the bolder ones hitting on her in class or the hallway. Ms. Go effectively destroys the fragile, male teen ego in a single, creatively worded sentence, leaving a path of bitter, broken hearts (and sometimes tears) behind her. Creative put-downs aren't just reserved for boys that hit on her.

Ms. Go's criteria for her hitlist include: disrupting class, poor enunciation/pronunciation, mumbling, using the wrong words, incorrect/poor grammar, and abuse of teen slang in class.

Anything that isn't a school textbook or notebook that is left behind in Ms. Go's classroom goes missing. Pencils, pens, spare change, personal diaries, MP3 players, CD players, gum (which they shouldn't have anyway!) - gone. Ms. Go picks the room CLEAN as soon as all of them leave - finders keepers! She has an impressive collection, and shares the spoils with Dr. Lipsky. Forgot something in Ms. Go's class? FORGET IT! She gives props to those who can clap back in a creative (grammatically correct, well-spoken) way. For this, she is a very divisive figure, fluctuating between cool-hot-mean-bitchy at all times.

The popular, self-absorbed girls try to emulate Ms. Go, from her mannerisms to her style. She doesn't mind this, and even has some fun in seeing how far she can take it.

Ms. Go runs her classes efficiently and she never assigns extra homework - she doesn't want to mark it. She clocks in at 7am and clocks out at 3:30pm, not a minute before or after.

She has an expensive sports car (I'm thinking a Maserati), which she was able to procure from the Mayor of Go City for her service. Hego was, is, very upset over this. Although she has been out of the hero game for a while, something about the unusually hued Dr. Drew Lipsky had her extend the offer to carpool - just him. Especially after she saw him come to work, late, soaking wet from some surprise torrential rain, snarling and growling and snapping at anyone who so much as looked at him funny - only to be berated by the principal on top of it all.

Her degree in Child Development means that she holds the position of school counsellor. Problem is, no one wants to see her! Who does after hearing all the mean things she says? Her small office is rarely visited, to the point where Dr. Lipsky has moved in with all his stuff, mountains of paper that made his corner of the teacher's lounge very unseemly. Anyone who knocks is met with the Doc's intimidating stature and signature frown.

Ms. Go and Dr. Lipsky sit by themselves in the small office, never in the teacher's lounge. Drew will sometimes stay back and work, catching the bus home, whilst Shea goes home. As they get closer, Ms. Go will sometimes just go for a few hours and return to the school to take the Doc home. Although it seems like she's got it all, at the end of the day, she still goes home to her apartment - alone. Used to being surrounded by her family, as annoying as they are, used to the excitement and rush of hero work, and no longer actively using her powers, Shea is not too sure what to make of normal, civilian life. Especially after hers has been anything but. Partying, clubbing and shopping on the weekends are fun, but the prospect of socialising with others, finding interests that aren't focused on her career is daunting, if not a little frightening, if she were honest with herself. Shego, as Ms. Go, still calls him Dr. D (for 'Drew', she says the alliteration makes it fun to say) and Doc. Drew Lipsky for when she really wants to annoy him.

Drew/Drakken having dyslexia, Drew/Drakken taking the bus and the name Shea for Shego's real name are all lifted from Dwelling by @gogofordrakgo. The AU has been stewing for a very long time, almost as long as I have been reviewing. All elements lifted have been credited. I see several paths for it.

A 'Normal' AU where they exist within the KP world but never become villains, and don't teach at Middleton High School.

An Origin Story of how Drakken and Shego met teaching at some high school and then getting into villainy together.

An AU where they are teachers at Middleton High School and Kim and Ron are students there, still saving the world. They still play an antagonistic role, Drakken more than Shego, with Shego empathising with Kim without breaking her Shego-ness and becoming too nice, still distance between them. Ron would also be Shego's one-and-only student that she sees as a counsellor. Their sessions consist of having him accompany her to the mall - retail therapy. In this version of the AU, the recurring villains would be The Seniors. Senior Sr. is a big name supervillain looking to retire and is training his spoiled, sheltered son Senior Jr. to take up the mantle, but all he's interested in is becoming a teen-pop sensation, even though he learns quickly and can take on KP. Senior Sr. finds Kim Possible, not only a worthy adversary, but the ideal match for his son! He is the number one Kim x Junior shipper. (500k slow-burn, enemies to lovers epic fanfic, babies ever after - 7 for all 7 continents - 4 girls and 3 boys - evil-and-in-love - he's planned Junior's entire life for him, he can't wait to retire!). Dr. Lipsky and Ms. Go become villains at the end, becoming Dr. Drakken and Shego, the new villainous couple looking to rule the world and taking the place of Senor Senior Sr. and Senor Senior Jr.

Alternative to the last where it's all the same but they don't become villains. Maybe they try for a bit and after having their fun, they settle down to have a family. I dunno!

Now, is there more to come? YES! MAYBE! We'll see how I am feeling. Why did I do it this way and not write something properly? Because I don't like writing or plotting multi-chapter fanfic. I really wanted to make something that I could write for in this very casual way, and, if anyone else wanted to write or draw for this, that it would be possible.

Teacher AU is such a strong concept for the characters as they are, I wanted to really have it be true to them, as we see and know them in the show. I didn't want huge differences in their backstories, interests, mannerisms or relationships with other characters, because all those things inform who they are. I love that Drakken is a scatter-brained, easily-offended, easily distracted grouch and that Shego is such an annoying, snarky woman, a staunch grammarian and runner-up for professional slacker (Ron takes the number one spot). I wanted to challenge myself with this and I hope that I have been successful with it, at least initially.