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littlemisslipbalm · 4 years ago

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I live in the neighbourhood - Part 3

What happened to the cycling classes after work and the occasional drinks with coworkers? Now it was flying to Italy to vacation for the December holidays with Harry and his family and friends.

Ok part 3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and the final part of ilitn i believe! let me know what you think! plssss! Not proofread, but your support means the most and it means the world to see your thoughts, literally anything about it, and this little harry I always have to remember that’s the simp your honor ^ right there! anyway happy reading!

Read Part 1 | 2

Word Count: 10.9k | Warnings: swearing, smut! (finally) - oral (m+f receiving, dirty talk, choking? i can’t remember ngl there might not be, sloppy sex, outdoors by the pooldeck just btw, christmas, idk but hopefully nothing I missed, feelings! happy ending (possibly rushed

“You’re really flying to Italy and then traipsing around the Italian countryside for three weeks with Harry and his family? I cannot believe you’re leaving me behind.”

“You’re gonna kill me for saying this, but he had said I could invite a friend or two if I wanted. But I thought it’d be weird with his family so you literally can’t be mad at me!”

“Fine. I’ll move past it, but how did you move past the whole panic attack? Like you barely spoke to him for a month and then he’s on your doorstep and you’re kissing and agreeing to a Roman Holiday?”

“It’s Harry,” she sighs, laying down on her couch. “How could I not, I got scared because he was gone, but once he was back, nothing else mattered.”

“I guess,” Cate mumbles.

“Oof, sorry Cate I have another call, I’ve got to go…”

By the time she tries to pick up the other line has gone to a message and she’s left to listen to her boss over a voicemail:

“Hey Y/N, I know your holidays have just begun, but I wanted to inform you that you’ll be getting a new client in the new year. Big artist! Anyway, just wanted to inform you that I’ll be emailing over some of their paperwork. Feel free to ignore it until the new year! Have a nice trip.”

She sighs. “Interesting...but will definitely be waiting for the new year to even think about work,” she says to herself.

She throws her phone to the side. Tired of all the phone tag and messages she had begun to have to deal with as the Holiday season dawned more and more upon her. She had more important things to think about. Most important being the suitcase laid out before her and the flight she was bound to be taking in less than 24 hours. This time, she wouldn’t be picking Harry up from the airport. No, this time they were flying out of London Heathrow together.

Together together? She wasn’t sure. The kiss on her doorstep and plea of Italian holiday meant a lot to her, but did it scream committed relationship? She had no idea when it came to Harry. Maybe it was better not to ask and just wait until he told her. Wondering had gotten her in a pit last time and she never wanted to feel the way she had over the last month while he had been gone.

She sleeps in her bed for one last night before leaving for a month. Harry had managed to convince the airline to allow Rori to ride with them in first class, so she wouldn’t have to leave her dog in a kennel or with friends during the holidays. She was grateful for that and she just didn’t understand how she had gotten so lucky as to have someone like Harry in her life.

They fly first class and while Harry had secured her ticket last minute, she insisted that he take her money to pay for the ticket. She was determined to not lose herself in this process. She would happily go along with Harry’s crazy life as long as she maintained her constitution. And paying for her own ticket was one of her ways of doing that.

The flight is short, a quick jaunt compared to the arduous trips across the Atlantic, both her and Harry were quite used to from their work and family lives. He smiles at her throughout the journey, coming across the aisle often to check on her and pet Rori. He would make little jokes that wouldn’t make anyone else laugh but them and he would grab the airpod she would take out and play whatever she had been listening to and offer a dance. His little dances were so sweet, if strange and awkward in the small flight cabin.

She wore grey marbled leggings and a matching thick strapped tank top beneath a nondescript hoodie. Harry’s dressed quite nice for traveling, she presumes in case he’s papped. Linen trousers, a collared coat, and some beaded necklaces he had taken to wearing over the last few months - each month seemed to add on another necklace, but she wasn’t counting.

He had reminded her to bring large sunglasses for the airport.

He had said “I don’t care if we’re seen together, but it’s more for your comfort. I hate when my friend’s lives are put on display for the whole world. You’re not the one who signed up for this.”

She had been appreciative and grabbed her largest pair of sunglasses because truthfully she didn’t want to be seen with Harry. She didn’t want the whole world knowing her or her business, it wasn’t who she was. No, not at all. So when they step off the plane and head to baggage claim after customs, she feels aware of her surroundings in a way she never has been. It reminds her of the way Jeff, Charlotte, and Mitch had conducted themselves in the bar that one time. Extremely alert. Watching people’s eye movements and considering whether they recognized her companion. She trails behind him a fair amount, three paces at least. Harry glances back every few moments, checking in to make sure she’s still with him as they move through the bustling airport.

They make it to baggage claim with no stops, but sadly Harry’s luggage seems to give him away. That or just his presence, he was a 6 foot tall and extremely broad man who gave off this energy that couldn’t help but turn eyes. And all it took was one of those eyes to recognize the fluff of hair, the olive-y skin, the peaking bird tattoos and colorful necklaces to alert the world of just where he was.

He doesn’t get stopped for any pictures, but she feels the number of eyes on him grow. She also watches as Harry doesn’t shrink from the growing attention. If anything, it simply makes him move quicker, but only slightly. He glances at her once to see her hood up and big green glasses covering up half her face. Rori has left his carrier and is covering the other half as she pushes a cart in front of her. He makes a nondescript nod and then sets off towards the exit, she follows behind easily.

By the time they’re in the car that was waiting to drive them to Harry’s villa, he’s gotten buzzed by Jeff just to check-in since a few photos have been uploaded of him at the airport. People were so fast. She shook her head in disbelief as she looked up Harry Styles on twitter and saw the scene she had just been apart of minutes ago on her screen now. She’s unrecognizable in the photos she happens to appear in and to everyone else she looks like another traveler instead of Harry’s companion or whatever she was to him. Instead of his friend.

Harry calls Jeff as they’re driven to his lovely sprawling home near Lake Como. He informs him they’re fine - he is quick to ensure that Y/N is well after asking her himself once they had gotten into the confines of the small car. She thinks it’s sweet especially because she was sure that Jeff really was more focused on Harry and his well-being since he was both his friend and his client while she was just an extra. The two men talk about the flight and customs and what Jeff will be doing with his holiday since he had turned down Harry’s invitation to come out to Italy as well. This leaves her to stare out the window at the passing scenery. She and Rori are completely content with this as they watch the tranquil life around them as they pass by little forests and towns over cobblestoned ground.

The colors seem brighter throughout Italy compared to the sad and gloomy winter of London. The dreary scape traded for something far more picturesque. Italy growing ever more beautiful the closer they drive to Harry’s home. Everything was so radiant, from the sun shining above her head to the little dew drops still pooled on the perfectly green leaves of plants she knew not the names of.

The car pulls up to the long driveway to Harry’s place which he insisted was just a house, but she knew better. The driveway felt like half a mile of perfect cobblestones, seemingly handpicked to make the smoothest drive. Outside the house sat a gorgeous little convertible that was in between steel and cream and sparkled in the sun. The top was currently up, but she could tell the interior was just as nice as the exterior. Harry had a thing for cars and she suspected that no matter where he was, he managed to keep his cars in perfect condition.

The house was breathtaking due to its simultaneous simplicity and intricacy. It’s coloring was variations of cream and gold and some terra cotta. But it sprawled into the hillside behind it and wrapped around the nature to the side of it and the pool to the back right of it. There also was a little separate shed like thing that also seemed to be a residence. Harry insisted it was just an extra bedroom, but it looked like almost another house to her.

As she stepped out of the car, she thought that she might get lost in that house if she was left to wander around it by herself. A feeling she feared to get accustomed to.

The door of the house was a dark green that seemed oddly familiar to her as she walked through it. And when Harry looked back to make sure she had gotten in the house alright she recognized it. His door somehow matched the color of his eyes in dark lighting. A green that was timeless and ancient at the same time. A green that was unnerving yet inviting. A green that was Harry. She never thought she had a favorite color, but in that moment she was sure it was his eyes.

Harry calls her name and she realizes he’s been saying it for awhile.

“Sorry?”

He smiles fondly at her confused face and leans towards her as if he might kiss her. She stops breathing in that moment, wanting more than anything for that to be his next move. His chest brushes against hers, his warmth invading her space. His face is a mere milimeter from hers and she can count every speck of stubble on his jaw. But his lips don’t brush gently over hers in a way that she knew was addicting. Instead, his strong hand reaches past her and shuts the entrancing green door gently.

His eyes flicker back to her face when he pulls back, taking a single step backwards to allow for a comfortable space between them. Still close, but not like he’s about to embrace her expecting frame and kiss her.

“I asked if you wanted a tour of the house? Or if you just wanted me to pick your room.” His eyes are crinkled at the corner, a smile on his face even though his mouth is hung open in a lingering question.

She blinks her eyes and twitches her head to glance around the rest of her surroundings. Rori had run off the moment they had gotten in the door. The hallway Harry and she found themselves was narrow and simple, a single painting right behind Harry’s head was the sole decoration and a tapestry style rug beneath their feet. She nods after a moment, feeling all her words caught somewhere in her throat for no reason at all.

“Good,” he nods and gives her a funny look, trying to understand her quiet demeanor. “Just drop your stuff here for now,” he adds.

His hand encircles her wrist, as it had grown accustomed to, to lead her through the house. She bites her lower lip to muffle the little giggle that somehow escapes her as he tugs her playfully down and through the house.

He goes on about almost every piece of art and trinket he has hung and placed throughout the house. Each thing has its story and Harry waxes eloquent on every single one. He shows her each room in the house and then leads her outside through the single door of the master bedroom on the second floor. The door takes them onto a small balcony that overlooks the center of the estate which included the pool and then a garden to the left of the converted poolhouse - what Harry insisted it be called when Y/N had told him it was a mini house.

His hand has traveled down to intertwine with hers as the tour had drawn on. So as he leads her down the little spiral staircase to the ground floor, she hums at the warmth his thumb rubs into her skin ever so softly. His eyes flicker to her face and hold her gaze for a moment as he watches her descend the last two stairs.

She smiles at him, her cheeks rosy from the air outside. They walk between the garden and the pool to reach the “converted pool house” and she stops for a moment to dance her fingers through the perfectly clean pool water - he must have had a housekeeper who came by recently to open everything up and clean it all.

“This is truly amazing, Harry,” she sighs as she stares out at the entire house from the single stone upstep to the little cottage. It gave her a view of the entire place besides the front of the house. It was gorgeous.

Harry nods, tucking his head to his chest slightly, possibly feeling a little bashful. Behind the successful man that stood before her was a young boy with a dream that had made this possible and he never forgot that.

“Thank you,” he says sincerely and unlocks the door of the cottage, a similar green is painted on this door as well.

She goes ahead of him at his request and he watches her fingers on the green paint, caressing it softly, each finger never wishing to leave it as they slowly depart its surface. This place is just a microcosm of the house they had just been. A kitchenette, a living area, a bedroom, and a full bath - including a freestanding tub.

She all but runs around the place, fingers running over the countless spines of books that Harry mindlessly chose to store there in ceiling high bookshelves and eyes taking in prints of personal photography he had been too nervous to store anywhere but here. There were larger poster sized prints as well as smaller ones, all black and white, of different scenes on the walls of the living area. Some were portraits of loved ones, others were landscapes of cities and countryside alike, and some were of past lovers with their hair swept behind them as they looked back at Harry in some beautiful place. She smiled at these obviously film photographs and turned to Harry after a moment, almost mirroring the people in the more personal pictures.

“When’s the last time you used your camera?” She asks.

Harry’s figure is perched in the door, his body slightly slumped on the frame while he rolls his lower lip between his thumb and forefinger. He hums, thinking back to the last time he took out his camera.

“Last tour...I think. I got film back with Camille in it and I just didn’t feel like putting more in it after that,” he rasps out and clears his throat at the end, clearly unnerved by the topic.

“Well, these are beautiful, you have a smart eye for catching precious moments,” she smiles softly, understanding Harry’s apprehension.

“Thanks,” his voice still a bit deeper than usual, “I still use my Super8 pretty regularly when I’m doing things for work. Like when I shoot music videos, I usually bring it along to get my own footage for later.”

She only nods and watches him enter the room, moving closer to her to gaze at the images more up close as well.

“I like to have something to remember it by. Just in case, someday,” he starts and sighs, eyes trained on the wall of memories, “My mind isn’t what it once was.”

She watches him delicately place his hand on the couch behind them to brace himself and she notices the slight fear in his face as he says it. She blinks at the scene in front of her. A man in an amazing moment in his life fearful that it might all disappear from his vision someday. A horrible thought that seems to plague him more often than one would expect.

She nudges closer to him immediately. Her shoulder brushes his arm as she presses her head to his own shoulder and stays there firmly.

“Thank you,” she whispers and his head drops down to look at her face now radiating warmth against him. “For sharing this with me.”

His hand on the couch moves to wrap around her shoulders and pull her closer. Instinctively, she wraps her arms around his waist and he rests his head atop of hers. He stays silent but places a chaste kiss in her hair. She squeezes harder, telling him everything is alright and all he had to be with her was himself.

He switches his gaze between the girl wrapped up in him and the pictures of the rest of his life in front of him and he takes it all in. He feels safe, a comfort he was hard pressed to find with his life always on the move. The bustling change felt eons away while he was wrapped up in her. She was constant and kind. Understanding. She took him as he was, no expectations. That realization has him melting further into her, his head dropping down to her shoulder and nosing into her hair. His hands cusping at the back of her neck and the small of her back. And he presses firmly yet gently.

They stand there, swaying slightly to an unknown tune that played only in their private world of just them two.

A branch sways too and breaks them out of their reverie when it taps against the French doors that lead out to somewhere else in Harry’s estate.

“I think I’d like to stay here, if that’s alright,” she says, pulling back from him only slightly.

His hands migrate from their embrace around her back and neck and slide to her hip and her shoulder separately. Her hands both rest on his chest and she feels his consistent heartbeat that she had been listening to for the last few minutes against her ear.

His eyes sparkle at her suggestion. “Really? There’s plenty of spots in the main house,” he rushes.

“No, I love this place,” she glances around once more, soaking in the cozy room that housed Harry’s art. “Plus, your family will be here tomorrow and you should all be together under one roof for the holidays. I know how rare that can be.”

He nods in agreement and twists a tendril of her hair around one of his fingers slowly. She doesn’t notice until he makes an experimental and playful tug on it. Her lips purse at the feeling and her eyes narrow.

“You’re an evil little thing under all those layers of niceties and kind words, Mr. Styles,” she says as she pulls away from him.

Now that it was decided on where she would be staying for the next few weeks, she wanted to get her things settled and take a shower possibly. She also needed to check in on Rori and see what he had gotten up to while they had been wandering.

Harry laughs, filled with an unmatched glee as he follows her out of the cottage and back into the main house, “I can show you evil if that’s what you want, dove. I’ll give you anything you want.”

And while she knows he’s saying this in jest, she knows he’s also telling the truth. He’d give her just about anything she wanted, all she had to do was ask.

After settling the house a bit, finding where Rori wanted to sleep - he chose inside the main house, and some showers, she and Harry both felt refreshed.

She walked out of the front door of the cottage and crossed to the French doors at the middle point of the house. They had them open to get fresh air in the house and she walked right through and into the kitchen where she found Harry and her dog happily perched on the countertop.

Rori batted at Harry’s hands and nuzzled into his scratches as Harry cradled him to his chest. It was criminally sweet and she knocked on the door frame to pull Harry’s attention away from her furry friend.

“You look nice,” Harry smiles.

She glances down at her outfit; a cashmere olive colored sweater and high waisted cream corduroys along with her sneakers of choice. She thought it was casual, but she appreciated the compliment nonetheless. She murmurs a thanks and a quick “you too”, she didn’t even need to look at what he was wearing, he always looked good. Her head tilts to rest on the door frame as well, her eyes trained on Harry’s face.

“Do you want to go for a drive?” He inquires as he places Rori back on the ground.

The dog scampers to her side for a moment before running off to do his own thing. Her lips quirk up on the sides and her eyes narrow slightly. He’s looking at her with a quiet confidence set in his jaw that she doesn’t quite understand.

His smile makes her bite her lip, slightly unnerved by the energy he was giving off. Maybe it was because they were completely alone - not something new to them since that’s how they interacted almost solely, but something about being in Italy seemed to have shifted the dynamic. Something in the water or whatever that saying was.

“Do I get to drive?” She stands from her leaning position and crosses in front of him.

His laugh comes out quickly and heartily. “No chance, dove.”

She groans and pushes at his shoulder.

“Trust me, you’ll like it better. Can just enjoy the scenery, don’t have to focus on the road.”

He wraps a hand around her waist and then scoots her towards the door that would lead them out of the house. She giggles at the contact and she feels him watching her. It felt nice, felt simply theirs.

He drove her down the driveway and onto a country road until it merged into a road by the lake. He brought the top down so the wind rushed around them, blustering about as he drove at a quick yet somehow leisurely pace. She glanced at the scenery and took a few pictures, but something else kept demanding her attention.

Harry. He was a quiet kind of handsome in this moment. It wasn’t in your face, it was just how each curve of his skin seemed perfectly placed. Every pore was clear and every mole had a reason. His tattoos peeking from his collar and shirt sleeves were that perfect inky black that remained smooth. It was consistent, the way his hair fell over his forehead and he would smooth it back without even thinking. His eyes were focused and bright, yet slightly stormier than normal. It was beautiful. He was beautiful. And she wondered what she had done to be beside him at that moment. Wondered what it was that she had done to be cared for by Harry.

His hand on her leg brings her out of her mind once again. His looks always seemed to get her lost in thought. He was just that special. No one else had ever caused any similar reaction. His fingers splay on her thigh, no rings on them today. He rubs his thumb back and forth softly and she leans closer to him to whisper in his ear. They were completely alone, but it felt like something even the wind didn’t deserve to hear.

He tilts his head to her, eyes flickering to her movement for a moment and then back to the road. His hand on her thigh slips upwards with how she moves.

“I’m the most lucky girl in the world,” she says, her lips brushing the shell of his ear as she says the words.

She pulls back and stares at him, her hand going down to her thigh to play with his lovingly. He looks at her again and sees her serious expression. This causes him to pull over on the side of the road by the water. He rubs at her thigh again with his thumb and she shifts in her seat.

“And why’s that?” His voice low as he asks and shifts the car into park.

“Because I’m here, with you. And I wouldn’t trade that for anything in this world.”

He hums in response and licks at his lips when her sweater happens to fall off her shoulder. She notices the slip, but doesn’t bother to fix it since she also saw how Harry’s eyes danced over the newly exposed skin.

“I wouldn’t trade this either” the words dance slowly off the tip of his tongue. His accent fuller as he says the last word. “Let’s walk around,” Harry suggests when he sees her eyes flicker between his and his lips.

They explore the grassy area that lives just before the dip of the water at Harry’s request. He guides her along with his hand entwined with hers. Her eyes stay on only him still, the scenery unable to compare to the beauty of him that she was just fully realizing how bad she wanted to be enveloped in. His profile is illuminated by the sun shining above them and she swears he’s sparkling under the light.

The fear of what they were and all of the things that came along with labels were the furthest away thoughts. The man who had been the quirky neighbour had transformed into the man she was pretty sure she was in love with. Too afraid to say those three words, she decided the best thing she could do was to show rather than tell.

“Harry,” she calls and he stops his wandering, turning to face her instead.

A hand reaches up to trace over his strong cheekbone and caresses down the side of his face and cradles his slightly stubbled jaw. Her thumb rubs over the place where his dimple often showed up. He sighs into her touch and says her name back. His voice fails him as he gazes down at her, everything he means to say dies in his throat, for once at a loss for words.

She purses her lips and reaches up to connect their lips, having missed his sweet lips touch. They were meant to press against hers. Harry seems to forget how to breathe, her initiating the kiss between them, something foreign to him, but not unwelcome. He leans down to make it easier on her and she glows in his reciprocation. His hand shifts to cradle the back of her head as the kiss continues. Their lips dance, brushing back and forth, tongues slightly licking into one another’s mouths ever so delicately, playfully even.

A specific clash of teeth as the kiss continues leads to a breathless laugh from her as Harry presses himself closer to her. His other hand pressing her waist safely into him. She happily obliges, sinking one hand to rest over his backside which makes him smile.

“Naughty,” he mumbles against her brightening lips, eyebrows bobbing over his closed eyes.

She laughs now, her head tilting up for a moment, eyes opening to look at his face, yet up so close it's just his eyes and upper cheeks. His eyes are extra large from this angle and the grey green they had been dancing between had merged into a darkening seafoam green that was rather rare for them. She wanted to take an inventory of every color his eyes managed to be, but she was sure the list would never end.

“You like it,” she quips back, a peck sneaked at the corner of his mouth. That little love touch leads to more minutes of making out. Her supple and soft chest against his strong one, hands roaming the other’s body searching for purchase. Soft sighs and gentle moans leave Harry’s mouth when she nibbles at his ear and leaves loving kisses to his neck and collarbone. She makes similar sounds when he laves his tongue over the hollow of her neck and mouths happily on her neck.

The sight of them is two lovers enthralled in each other’s mouths and bodies in a meadow beside a lake. The sounds of nature are only overtaken by their happiness with each other.

When he ruts his hips against her body and she writhes against him with eagerness previously not seen, Harry realizes just how in public they are and he pulls away. A whine of discontent falling from her lips before she can control herself.

“We should…” He falters again, staring down at his neighbour he had begun to want more than anything else in the world, “Should head back.”

“Right,” she nods curtly.

Hands falling back to her sides, but Harry grabs one of them and intertwine their fingers as they had them before. She smiles so wide her eyes crinkle at the corners and he can’t help himself to peck at the left side of her temple.

They drive back to the house and Harry suggests a dip in the pool which Y/N agrees to easily. Something to cool them off from the heavy makeout session they had partaken in down by the water.

“Everyone else is arriving tomorrow,” Harry says after he surfaces from his expert dive into the deep end. He treads water lightly and drifts towards her.

She’s floating on her back a little ways from him. Her hair was shimmery all wet again and the skin of her face glowed with tiny droplets. Her eyes were closed as she moved her hands back and forth through the comfortable water.

She feels his eyes on her, burning into her, waiting for a response. She peaks open one eye and looks at him. His cheeks pinken quickly from the slight embarrassment of being caught, but he doesn’t look away.

“It’s going to be really fun, Harry,” she rights herself and swims closer to him causing him to smile happily. “I’m really happy to be here.”

“It won’t be just us anymore,” he says, swimming backwards and creating a slight chase for her as she follows after him.

She narrows her eyes at his tactics, but still follows as he swims to the edge of the pool where they could both stand.

“Nope, but we’re gonna really get the holiday spirit flowing. Family dinners and games, shopping for gifts...this really is one of my favorite times of the season,” she smiles back at him and puts her hand against the edge of the pool, her chest emerging from beneath the cooling water.

Droplets roll down her chest, racing down her body and in between her cleavage. Harry’s eyes follow the water droplets disappearing beneath her bright red tied bikini top. He gets distracted when the air pebbles her nippls beneath the thin wet fabric, his tongue darts out to wet his lips at the sight. The round of her breast was especially full in the thin fabric. He had never seen this much of her despite their friendship lasting for many months now. It was...mouthwatering and his eyes stayed trained on her breasts as they rhythmically moved up and down with her breathing. It was like a spell.

That he was brought out of when a splash of water flicks at his face. She gives him an obvious look saying she had caught him staring and then she rolls her eyes at his smirk obviously not embarrassed by his latest fixation.

“We won’t be alone like this,” he steps closer to her, his own chest running with water droplets. His hair messy and wet atop his head as he pushes it off his forehead. “Possibly at all for the next three weeks,” he continues and hears her breath catch as he moves even closer. His body hovers a moment away from hers as he stares down at her. His nose almost brushes hers as he starts to lean down. She stays almost completely still. Her head moves though to allow Harry access to where his mouth seems to be headed, the side of her neck.

“After today,” he whispers before smudging an open mouthed kiss just below her ear.

A small gasp escapes her at his hot breath and a searing kiss against her chilled skin. She feels his smirk on her skin as he continues down her neck, leaving spongy eager kisses down the column.

“Well, I don’t think that’s a problem,” she tries to remain composure, feeling the burn inside of her pitch back up. The fire had dulled from the kissing by the lake once they had swam, but here he was pressing into her once again. Suddenly more eager and forward than he had ever been. Her breathing is hard to regulate with his expert hands running along her naked sides below the water and his legs backing her into the edge of the pool while his lips make love to her neck.

“Oh?” Harry hums, moving a hand up to fiddle with a strap of her top, the wet nylon twisting easily and then he lets it snap back softly. Her arousal only grows from the tiny smack. “Not a problem, eh?” His lips travel down between her breasts and she gasps in anticipation.

“Won’t be able to make you feel this good anytime you want,” he breathes and then ghosts over her covered pebbled nipple.

“You’re a tease, Harry,” she grips at his shoulders that are hunched to allow him to kiss on her. Her eyes having the perfect view of his curved neck and spine, the skin an expanse of clear perfect flesh, no tattoos in sight from this angle. The little curls at the nape of his neck trickling with spare droplets as he sucks on her own skin.

“Hmm…” his lips travel back up to the underside of her jaw causing her to tilt her head back and her stimulated chest to press into Harry’s. A chuckle passes against her skin as he feels her two points press into him.

Then, suddenly, he pulls back and grips at the back of her head to make her look at him. His eyes are deep and dark as the day starts to wear on, the sun beginning to set off in the distance.

“Maybe I need to demonstrate just what you’ll be missing out on?” He tilts his head at his suggestion and the glimmer in his eyes shows that he knows exactly what he has to say to get his friend - and soon to be lover - riled up.

Her chest heaves once, longing for the warm touch of Harry’s lips again. “What are you getting at?”

“Wanna make you feel so good you’re begging me to call my family up and tell them to not bother coming because we won’t be leaving your bed for the next few weeks.”

A breathless laugh leaves her, in disbelief, but also in wanton need. Her desire for him grew tenfold in the last ten minutes. His last sentence leaves her itching with longing. For his touch as he promised it.

“Give me the best you got then,” she challenges, her conviction never wavering despite her needy state.

That little sentence is what sets Harry’s eyes ablaze and has him gripping her waist and picking her up and setting her on the edge of the pool.

A quick press of his lips against hers and a “wait here” before he’s pulling himself from the water and shuffling to grab one of the towels he had laid out. She watches him curiously, confused why he had just promised to ravage her but was pausing to towel off.

He comes back with the towel and lays it behind her.

“Harry, what are -”

A finger presses to her swollen lips as his other hand goes to her shoulder and lays her back.

“Do you trust me?” He asks.

She nods, eyes wide and glassy as she stares up at him kneeling over her, his body between her bent knees. He leans down to press another kiss to her lips and then begins his decent.

“Gonna make you feel so fucking good, sweetheart,” he whispers.

Down her throat that he had happily been sucking on. His lips ghost over her still hard nipples and his hot breath has her arching off the ground immediately. A whine leaving her lips when he mouths between her two breasts in the valley just above the tie of suit. His fingers dance around on her skin, playing with her swimsuit fabric and she wants to scream at him to just untie it and really touch her, but she refrains. He continues his assault down her body. His hands grip at her knees when his lips travel below her navel. Her breaths have grown more strained as he’s gotten closer and closer to her heat. The cold wet fabric that covered her was a poor substitute to what she wanted to rub against her.

“Please,” she begs in a sigh as Harry’s lips skip where she wants him, instead traveling to her upper inner thigh.

He spreads her legs wider with his arms and her back arches further, her body just about fully on display for Harry. His eyes flicker up to her face that was staring right back down at him, watching his every move.

The cheeky bottoms left little to the imagination and the ties on the sides were so enticing Harry’s fingers smoothed up her thighs and began to toy with them. His face now hovering over her clothed center. His breath fanning the flames of her arousal just below the cherry fabric.

“See,” he smirks, eyes back on her face, “I haven’t even touched you yet, but you’re already begging.

“You’re an ass,” she grits out, trying to not be bothered by how easily he has gotten her in this position.

He clicks his tongue and tugs experimentally at one of the bottoms ties, “S’not a very nice thing to say to the man who’s about to stick his tongue in ya’?”

She gasps and slaps at his right shoulder at his crudeness. “You’re dirty!”

“And you’re wet,” he says confidently, smirking up from between her legs.

His fingers finally tug the ties undone and pull the fabric away from her center. The red bikini bottom falls limply to the ground and Harry’s eyes train on her glistening mound. Wet with the pool water as well as her arousal. To add to the cool air ghosting over her newly exposed skin, Harry blows his own breath over her. She writhes at the sensation, she bites at her lip to hold back any possible moans.

He glances at her face again and settles one arm to be wrapped around her leg and pressing down on her left hip. His other hand snakes between his face and her body and lightly drags between her folds. She bucks her body again, completely in need of some friction after all of the build up and teasing of today. Every nerve down there was electrified at the possibility of Harry finally touching her like this.

His finger pulls back and a string of arousal clings to him, a testament to the filthy thoughts she had about her neighbour. Thoughts she had pushed away for so long until recently. Thoughts she only indulged in in the dead of night, when she was exhausted but her mind insisted on wandering to the green sharp eyes that might stare at her if he ever were to delve into her depths. Her hands would travel to where he was now and rub out a triumphant shake of her thighs and heaving chest all in hopes that maybe he would bring her to that euphoria himself one day. Well that day was today.

He filthily takes that finger into his mouth and grins. “So wet,” he corrects.

His eyes disappear from view as he launches into his work. His drying curls flop over his forehead and tickle at her lower stomach slightly. He flattens his tongue and licks a strong stripe between her folds. The wet from her weeping hole spreads to her lips and around her clit as his finishes the lick with a little swirl. He uses his free hand to spread apart her lips a little more and takes the new angle to suck on the little puffy nub that is already throbbing. She gasps audibly when he pulls off of it with a squelching sound.

“Fuck,” he sighs and goes back to eating her out, happily pressing his tongue into her.

His hand on her hip travels to grope at one of her breasts and he deftly pulls at the top’s tie and grips onto her skin underneath the fabric. The strong grip mixed with his expert work between her thighs has her moaning loudly and her body writhing as he builds her up.

“Yeah, sweetheart,” he rasps, thumb on her nipple flicking happily back and forth. “Scream it out,” he says into her quivering center, “Nobody around to hear you, be as loud as you want.”

She moans louder at his words, her hands gripping harder into his hair. The thought of this scene turns her on even more. In all honesty, if someone did hear them she’d kind of like it. If someone walked in and saw her stretched out next to the pool with their wet bodies writhing against each other in pleasure. Harry’s head buried between her thighs making her feel better than she ever has, her breasts falling out of their top as he massages them harshly.

“Taste so sweet,” he groans, lapping at her tight hole, the muscle contracting against his tongue’s invasion.

She liked how messy he got with it, not that she really had much coherent thoughts in this moment. But his hot tongue swiping up and down and back and forth over her glistening lips and sucking on her clit left her breathless. Her juices and his saliva were making a mess of her thighs and the towel below her. When Harry felt her getting closer he’d back off and pay attention to another part of her and then go back to sucking and nipping perfectly into her.

She was eventually stuttering out, “I’m going to cum, Harry.” Breathing becoming uneven as she was about to tip over the edge. He nods, sucking harder at her clit one last time before taking his tongue and pushing it in and out of her hole, one of his thumbs traveling to rub over her clit in quick succession.

“Cum for me, dove,” he mumbles quickly before going back to making her feel good.

She grips her own nipple now with one hand and Harry’s hair with the other, her hips pushing up into Harry’s face over and over again. And then she’s hitting her climax and tipping over the edge, a moan ripping from her throat and freezing on her face as Harry eats her out through it. His tongue licking over her quivering pussy. His thumb rubbing comforting circles around her clit until she stopped shaking. Her breathing slowing down, eyes fluttering open eventually. They lazily stare at the man below her who’s lips and chin are slick with her juices as he grins up at her.

“Do you want me to call my mum now or wait until you’re fully back on earth,” he says slyly and kisses the inside of her thigh once more. Eyes lovingly staying on her pleasured out face.

“Seriously talking about your mom while you’re still between my thighs,” she breathes out, completely in disbelief. Harry and her had never gone that far before and it was life changing. He had been right, even if she didn’t want to admit it, she wasn’t sure if she could go three weeks without that again.

He sits up and begins to gently pull back on her swim bottoms and tie them back up. She lays there watching him work.

“How about now?” He asks with a smirk, moving to sit beside her and help her sit up when her bottoms have been readjusted. The fabric against her newly sensitive area was definitely interesting, but she couldn’t care with Harry beside her. She ties off her top on her own, even though Harry gestured that he could do it.

“Shut up,” she laughs and takes a hand to caress at his cheek.

He nuzzles into her touch.

“You forget I’m staying in the cottage...separate from everyone else,” she winks at him.

“Think they’ll still be able to hear ya’ from in there, dove. You’re a loud one,” he bites the inside of his cheek as he teases her.

She huffs and drops her hand, “I was gonna return the favor, but now I don’t think so.”

It’s Harry’s turn to laugh and reach out to her face, he pulls her face close to his, bringing her eyes level with his. “I’m just teasing. Plus, you don’t need to return the favor, I’ve been wanting to do that for ages.”

A laugh bubbles from her lips at the thought of Harry wanting her as much as she wanted him and she pecks at his lips. She grimaces only a little, tasting herself on him still.

“We’ll just have to be sneaky,” she pulls back and rests her forehead against his.

“Yeah,” Harry breaths out. His breath hitches when he feels her hand begin to trail down his chest and fiddle with the hem of his shorts. Her eyes are trained on his, expressionless like she wasn’t beginning to palm his hardened length over his sticky swim shorts.

“I told you,” he musters, “You don’t have to.”

“But,” she rasps, finally. “I want to,” she licks her lips with determination, “Want to make you feel good, too.”

He hums as her soft fingers go back up to the hem of his shorts and he helps her pull them down as he gives a nod of approval to her watching eyes.

Her eyes widen when his length is finally revealed and its bright red tip stands tall and strong against Harry’s stomach, placing itself slightly just below one of the ferns. Harry watches her lick at her hand and then places it between his thighs, her body positioned right next to him. On her knees, she makes an experimental first pump, seeing how his body responded. Her eyes mainly watch his face and an open mouthed smirk twitches onto his face when he notices her gaze. She pumps him again, twisting her wrist this time and swiping at the precum leaking from his tip. A groan leaves Harry’s mouth at that and his stomach flexes, the skin beneath his many tattoos hardening.

“Feel good?” She inquires.

“Great,” he breathes out as she leans forward on her knees and attaches her mouth over his head.

She slowly moves her head down and attempts to fit his entire length into her mouth, but despite her best efforts, she can’t quite get her throat to open up for his entirety yet. After holding him there for a moment, his head scratching at the back of her throat, she pulls off. Heaving a sigh and continuing to work him with her hand, her now glassy eyes look at him. Saliva gathers at her mouth and Harry can’t help himself but reach one of his hands from behind him to her lips. He swipes at it and presses the wet to her lips which she sucks at eagerly, a whine hidden beneath the action.

When his hand pulls away she says, “You’re quite girthy.”

“Girthy?” He sputters, both at the funny comment but also that she’s said it while still jacking him off.

“Mhmm,” she nods seriously, “Couldn’t get you all in.”

“That’s alright,” he starts, but falters on a specifically masterful tug. She grins, knowing what she's doing to him. “You seem to excel, no matter the setbacks.”

“I’ll get it eventually,” she begins to speed up her strokes, “Just need a bit of practice.”

Then her lips are pressing back onto Harry’s prick. She sucks solely at his head and Harry moans out as he gets more sensitive. Then she slides down further and bops her head vigorously. She wants Harry to come undone for her just like she had for him. Make him feel like she had moments ago. And within a few more minutes of enthusiastic sucking and pumping of her hands, even some fondling of his balls which Harry had been extremely receptive to, she has him stuttering beneath her.

One hand gripping at her hair, while the other keeps him upright, Harry’s head is thrown back on his shoulders as he tries to keep his eyes open and trained on the girl taking him so well down her lovely little throat.

“I’m almost there, sweetheart,” he pants, his hips bucking up once as he begins to lose control.

This only spurs her forward, spit drooling down his cock every time she pulls back from his slightly. Her ass is high in the air now as she arches over his length, trying to get him to unload.

“Taking me so well,” Harry praises. “Fuck,” he exclaims at another squeeze of his balls.

She swirls her tongue around his runny head and then hollows her cheeks and sucks on him with everything she’s got. This has Harry cursing and repeating her name, his load spurting into her mouth as she stays still. His chest now covered in beads of sweat as he tries to catch his breath after tipping over the edge himself. His eyes are trained on her. She keeps her lips diligently around his cock, wanting to swallow everything he’s just expended. When he’s done, she pulls back and sits on her legs, swallowing quickly and staring at Harry as she does it.

His eyes bug at the sight. She was the hottest woman in the world and she’d just sucked him off so well that he’s pretty sure he saw stars. Then she made eye contact as she swallowed his cum with her pretty little bikini barely covering her anymore, as she seemed to shift slightly uncomfortable in her drying bottoms. God, he was fucked.

“Shit,” he says, still trying to catch his breath. “You’re an absolute angel.”

Harry’s family arrives the next day and the pair have a hard time keeping their hands off of each other. She doesn’t know why they decide to start this little game where they pretend like they don’t want to jump each other’s bones each minute of the day. But as the days go by, they maintain to his family and chosen family that they are only neighbours who became friends. Anne gives a knowing look to Gemma every so often and Gemma’s boyfriend whispers in her ear sometimes, but for the most part they buy it.

No one notices that some nights Harry’s or Y/N’s beds are vacant sometimes. They don’t see him descend his spiral staircase at midnight or see her scamper next to the pool and slip into her cottage in the wee hours of the morning.

In the nights, it’s Harry’s soft lips pressed against her hot skin, panting praise and leaving little bite marks that can’t be seen with clothes on. Her lips mouth at his shoulder when fills her up and she exhales a breath that feels like she’s been waiting to let go for her entire life. They make each other feel good and they don’t talk about it but the secrecy of it makes it all the more enticing.

At least that’s what she thinks. Harry had been completely ready to tell his family about him and Y/N, at least that things were new between them, but when she introduced herself to his mum and Gemma she had said she was a friend. Harry had gulped, his adam’s apple bobbing hard, taking in the change of direction and agreeing with Y/N immediately. “Just a friend” he confirmed with a nod of his head and glance at her. She had smiled wide and given a hug to the other most important women in his life like she’d known them forever.

He didn’t understand why she wanted it this way, but his objections would be forgotten when night fell and she’d do the things he’d only dreamt of. Her breathy whimpers and pliant body would all but wipe his mind of any other thoughts but her and then he had no complaints, just a wish for the night to never end.

Y/N doesn’t even tell Cate when she calls her a week into the trip. It’s just something she wants to keep to herself and Harry. Their own private world.

It’s Christmas Eve when that bubble pops. The Champagne has been flowing for hours non stop - well only stopping when a different drink is in their hands, whether that be red or white wine or a mixed drink Harry has decided to concoct.

In the big Italian house, he’s free of prying eyes and he’s able to truly spend quality time with his loved ones. They have fancy dinners at private restaurants, go on gorgeous hikes, swim, and relax. They have a good time with playing holiday games, which they do most nights when they stay in.

Tonight’s the first night that Harry and Y/N haven’t ended up on the same team. He fears that most times he cheats it by swapping a paper or two, but tonight the alcohol has fizzed his brain and he forgot. This shouldn’t be a problem, not really. Except that everyone in the house has learned over the past week and a half that besides being perfectly matched in almost everything else, Harry and her are both equally and extremely competitive. Being on the same team has both advantages and avoids squabbles like the one the house has found themselves in at half past 11.

Harry’s arguing that his team got the last question before the buzzer went off, but she won’t back down. She is sure that Gemma had said the correct answer, but after the timer had run out. Everyone else was too sauced to care, but Harry and her were adamant and passionate about game play. As the argument heats up, Anne gives Gemma another one of those looks.

Y/N has stood up and crossed the short distance to Harry. She’s a breath away from him and he puffs up his chest, his eyes dark and serious as he’s ready to fight for this win all night.

“The time was out,” she says simply, but her eyes are beginning to glower.

“No. It was not.” He states back.

His eyes narrow at her as she stares right back at him.

“Was too.”

“Was not.”

They go back and forth, rapid fire as the alcohol in their veins flows straight to their mind and hearts.

“Children please!” Gemma exclaims, finally growing tired of the bickering. “It’s Christmas. Harry show some spirit and let your guest have the final say.”

They think she’s done but then adds, “Or else she might never want to come back here.”

Harry exhales harshly through his nose as his gaze flickers to his older sister and listens to her scolding. Handing over the timer to Y/N, which had been what kept them from moving on, he turns on his heel and walks out of the room.

“Oh gosh,” Y/N says after a moment, her frazzled mind processing that Harry’s leaving has something to do with her. A hand goes to her lips for a moment, a ghost of his warm breath still there, but gone too soon.

“I’ll...I’ll be right back,” she confirms and exits the room, following Harry’s footsteps.

She finds him on his front porch step, his breath misting in the cold air, much like it would back in London when they’d walk the neighbourhood streets together.

“I’m sorry, Harry,” she says, placing a hand on his left shoulder to really get his attention.

He turns from looking out at the clear night sky, his nose and cheeks already pinkened from the night breeze. His eyes are still dark out here, but there’s no malice or anger behind them. His lips tilt up on one side for a forgiving half smile, but there’s also some pain mixed in there.

“You wouldn’t not come back, right?” He asks helplessly, his smile faltering.

She swallows, taken aback by the question, both unsure of where it came from but also how exactly her drunk brain was supposed to respond with the double negatives.

“I’d come back next Christmas and the Christmas after that, Harry,” she whispers, “If you wanted me to of course.”

“Of course I’d want you to. I want you, sweetheart. All the time.” His voice isn’t slurred, but it’s raspy, a slight dry mouth from all the alcohol consumed tonight.

“Okay,” she confirms, “Then I’ll come back.”

They stand on the porch silently for a few minutes, eyes on one another, but no movement towards anything. It’s not a profound moment for their hazy minds, despite the meaning behind their words. It’s not quite clicking for them, but maybe tomorrow when they wake up with massive headaches it will register.

“I really am sorry,” she repeats when she sees little goosebumps begin to prick at his skin.

He had forgotten a jacket. And while his drunk blanket makes him immune to the feelings, her brain still registers that she doesn’t want him to get sick.

“S’alright. For what it’s worth, I was being a little childish. So, m’sorry too.” He says sincerely, maybe a little slurring of words slipping in.

He reaches a hand out of his pocket to touch at her upper arm. She can feel his warmth from beneath her thin long sleeve. They smile at one another and turn to reenter the house, feeling the giggly tide of alcohol wash over them again. Euphoria on their mind rather than family game malice.

Just as they’re about to open the door to the house. The two of them at the precipice of a house, a place they often find themselves, Gemma swings it open face and with little care for its heaviness. She glances between her brother and his “friend” and then up to the top of the door.

The top of the door? Why was she looking at the top of the door? Mistletoe.

“Mistletoe!” Gemma exclaims, pointing between the two of them. “You’re beneath the mistletoe, go on!”

Harry shakes his head in protest, falling onto the sword of friendship again. But then Y/N is grabbing at the back of Harry’s neck and pressing her lips to his. It’s a little sloppy, but Harry can’t help but enjoy the taste of her against him. They slot together like they usually do, but this time his sister is watching them, which is a little odd, but his muddled mind quickly forgets that fact. Her tongue is the deciding factor as it licks into his mouth and he licks back, pulling her closer by the waist. They get lost in the kiss and only pull apart when they hear a cough.

Gemma is now accompanied by the rest of the household watching them in disbelief. Everyone’s eyebrows are raised and even Rori is standing with the group, confused that the humans didn’t know they were doing this.

“Erm…” Harry has no idea what to say, shifting to face his family more fully.

Y/N blushes and shrinks into Harry’s chest, feeling like a teenager caught in the closet with her crush.

“That’s not how friend’s kiss one another,” someone murmurs.

There’s a few “I knew it”s mixed in as well with the rest of the chatter.

“Well…” She finally musters and throws a hand out to her side in a ta-da motion,

“Happy Christmas!”

After the revelation on Christmas Eve, everyone won’t stop teasing Harry and Y/N. The two laugh it off but something always nags at the back of their head. What they were to the other person. The status of this relationship. This friendship that had taken a turn to something else entirely.

It’s another Eve of a holiday when Harry finally musters up the courage to ask her directly. They learned from Christmas day that they couldn’t drink as much as they once did for multiple reasons. So on New Year’s Eve, they both choose to only consume a couple glasses of Champagne.

It starts with “Can we talk about us?” right after midnight. Right after Harry’s just started the New Year with her lips on his. She hears his question and takes it in, her stomach twisting with nerves and possibly excitement as well, and nods.

They slink off to his bedroom, but not for the activity everyone else was certain they were engaging in.

He sits them on the edge of the bed, both her hands clasped in one of his. He’s been quiet all day, she just realizes as he stays silent another moment longer.

“I love you,” he says in his dimly lit room.

Her jaw drops slightly, not quite expecting those three words yet.

“You don’t, don’t have to say anything yet. I just wanted you to know that,” he continues. “And that I want to be with you.”

“Harry,” she starts, breathless at his words.

“No,” he stops her again, “I felt something draw me to you the day you moved in across from me on Sherwood, like I was meant to know you or something. Then I met you and you made me feel so comfortable, all I wanted to do was be with you and that month when you didn’t really talk to me...dove, those weeks were wretched. But when I came back, it was like nothing happened and I was so happy because I couldn’t fathom life going back to the way it was before you. When we kissed, I felt overjoyed, I was so happy that you liked me like that because every time you called me friend...felt like a knife in me. I don’t want to be just your friend,” he pauses to say her name again, “I don’t want to be just your lover, I want to be your boyfriend or whatever they call it now - If you’ll have me.”

He takes a deep breath and blinks away the little well up of water that had grown in his eyes. He had forgotten to blink for a moment he realized.

His stare had been intense as he’d confessed all of his feelings to her, but she didn’t feel intimidated, his gaze had warmed her with its sincerity. It had strengthened his confession.

She sighed, her own eyes not as strong as his, unable to hold his gaze as she herself said her own confession.

His hand rests between them on the bed, steadying himself upright with it. She places her own hand over it and their fingers slightly intertwine. She feels him begin to fiddle with her fingers like usual. Like normal.

“Thank you,” she starts, “Of course I’ll have you. All the time, Harry.” She repeats his words from Christmas Eve back to him.

He starts to interject, the rambling thing, but she tugs at his pointer finger and he takes it as a sign to be quiet.

“I want to be your partner, too. I want it all with you, lover,” she gazes at him now, his free hand reaching up to caress her cheek in that moment. “Want it all,” she repeats in a whisper before he’s kissing her again.

Kissing her and kissing her. Over and over again. Because she was his. And he was hers. And it was a happy beginning. A happy new year and a happy new beginning of a relationship that was bound in friendship, born out of proximity, and nurtured by two kindred souls.

And it all started with her parents making her take her dog. Harry really needed to thank that dog for being the best wing man to ever run around on four legs.

Who knows who that new client of Y/N’s might be...

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imlovethomassanders · 4 years ago

Text

Eyes are the Windows to the Soul(mates) - Chapter 5 (FINAL)

You can also read on ao3

One last huge thank you to @strongindependentcheesecake for beta reading this whole thing. I appreciate it.

Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4

Summary: The lucky few who have a soulmate are born with heterochromia, with their left eye being the color of their soulmate’s eyes and their right eye being their own color. Not only was Virgil one of the lucky few to have a soulmate, but he was given four. His left eye changed colors every time he blinked, rotating between his four soulmates’ eye colors. His rotating eye colors caused him to be a bit of an outcast growing up, but when he finally leaves for college, things start to fall into place. This is the journey of five strangers finding each other.

Pairings: DLAMP with background Remile

Warnings: None I believe

Words: 4999

Taglist: @touchstarvedvirgil @lamp-calm-sanders @ninjago2020 @confinesofpersonalknowledge @secret-novelisthost18 @phander-sides @sherlock-lives-on-bakerstreet @bookbingingproblem @viana-dascolli @sharktryingtofly @crofters-n-falsehoods @turnedthefreakingfrogsgay @little-kat07 @romano-hottopic

Patton was very, very, very excited. It was finally time. They had all finished school and they were finally moving in together!!

Patton couldn't help but be giddy as he helped bring up boxes into their shared condo. While it was more expensive than getting an apartment, with four of them (hopefully five, soon!), the extra space was very much needed.

Patton was just so happy to finally have his three soulmates together. He couldn't help but constantly be hugging on one of them. While it was a bit inconvenient while they were unpacking boxes, none of them dared complain about it when Patton was pressing such soft kisses all over their faces.

When they had unpacked enough boxes to be considered livable, they all collapsed onto the mattress on the floor, their bed frame coming later that week.

"We need to go grocery shopping tomorrow. We can not live off the snack cakes and cheez-itz Patton brought," Logan said.

"That's how I lived throughout high school," Virgil said.

"I can not and will not let you resume such a diet," Logan responded.

"Well tonight, I'm ordering take-out," Roman said as he pulled out his phone.

Nobody objected. They were all too tired to even think of going to buy things to cook with. And then they'd have to unpack the dishes and dear god Patton was getting exhausted just thinking about it.

Forty minutes and a bunch of Chinese take-out containers later, the four of them were back on the mattress.

"The spare room can be a studio!" Roman mused. "Logan and I can use it for our writings while you two can use it to paint."

"I am quite excited to get the bookshelves up," Logan said. "The new ones we bought are very nice."

"I'll finally have a good place to keep all my records, and- hey, Pat? Are you okay?"

Patton wiped the tears that had quietly fallen down his face.

"It's just... I'm so happy to finally have all of us in a home together."

Virgil gave him a lopsided grin and pulled him against his chest. "I promise, the feeling is mutual."

"Well... almost all of us," Roman said, a hint of sadness in his smile. Patton paused to look at all of them, their beautiful eyes along with the golden one of their unfound soulmate.

"We'll find them soon," Patton whispered. "I'm sure."

"...I wonder what they'll think," Virgil muttered into Patton's hair. "When they find out that the four of us have been together for a while."

"I pray they're not alone," Roman muttered as he moved to spoon Vigil, reaching for Logan over Patton. "We've been so lucky to find each other..."

"It accomplishes nothing to fret over it," Logan said as he turned on his side beside Patton and took Roman's hand. "We will meet them when the time is right."

"I know," Patton huffed as he leaned against Logan. "But I can't help but be impatient."

"I wonder what they're like," Roman mused.

"Lovely. Amazing. Perfect," Patton suggested.

"Let's not set too high expectations," Logan said. "Whoever they are, they will be wonderfully flawed and wonderfully human. Not perfect."

"Hmmm, I don't know about that, Specs," Roman said with his cocky grin. "You all thoroughly and fantastically beat all my expectations."

Logan scoffed, but didn't feel like starting an argument.

Patton yawned, soon followed by Roman, then Virgil, then finally Logan.

"We really should put sheets on the mattress," Logan said, though made no effort to move.

"Yeah, probably," Patton sighed. No one moved.

"Okay," Virgil said after a moment as he pushed himself out of Roman's arms, causing Roman to whine at the loss. "Let's go get ready for bed. We can not afford a dentist's visit for cavities so get up."

Roman groaned as he fell on his back, but eventually pushed himself up alongside Patton and Logan.

Logan did manage to persuade them to put bed sheets on the mattress, and as soon as the four of them had their arms around each other they immediately fell asleep, the busy day finally catching up to them.

Virgil huffed as he pulled his hoodie tighter around him. Though he had lived here for a few months now, he still wasn't used to the large crowds and today the crowd seemed worse than usual. People were touching him from all angles and he just wanted to get home.

He stared at his phone, doing his best to text Patton while watching where he was walking. He thought he was doing an okay job when he accidently hit shoulders with another pedestrian.

"Shit, I'm so sorry," Virgil said as he quickly got on his knees to help pick up the things that had fallen out of the stranger's arms: a book on philosophy, a stack of notes titled "Moral and Political Philosophy", a copy of "Lord of the Flies," and a pamphlet called "How to Care for Your Royal Python."

The stranger said nothing as he pushed up his sunglasses and quickly grabbed the papers on the ground. Virgil glanced up to see sharp cheekbones and scarring on the left side of the stranger's face. He glanced back down before he could observe much closer details, not wanting to be caught staring.

He handed the last of the papers to the stranger, and the stranger walked off with a huff. Virgil, rattled by the whole encounter, now really just wanted to get home.

"Hello!" a chorus of calls came from the living room when Virgil opened the front door. Virgil smiled as he slipped off his shoes and he heard the sound of Patton running up to him.

Patton wrapped his arms tightly around Virgil's neck and Virgil held back, grin growing larger.

Patton eventually pulled back to press a quick kiss to Virgil's lips, then leaned back to look at Virgil's face when his smile dropped and his eyes widened.

"What?" Virgil asked anxiously as his grip tightened around Patton.

"Virgil, your eyes!" Patton exclaimed. That got the attention of Logan and Roman, and Virgil heard the couch shift before the two walked around the corner.

"What about them?"

Patton frowned. "You... you don't know?"

Roman gasped and Logan's eyes widened as well, and Virgil ran to the front bathroom.

His face paled when he saw what they were talking about. In the mirror, two gray eyes were staring at him.

It could've been anyone. How many people had he talked to today? The attendant at the subway, the woman he sat next to, the barista, the employees at the art store, the man he bumped into, the woman at the crosswalk-

"Virgil?" Patton asked quietly. Virgil glanced to the doorway to see the three of them looking at him with worried expressions. It was just then that Virgil realized he was struggling to breathe.

He reached for them and immediately Logan took his hands in his, guiding him to sit on the toilet lid as Logan led him through his breathing.

"I- I don't know who," Virgil said. "I never noticed anyone's eyes today. I wasn't paying attention, I-"

Roman shushed him gently as he squatted down to be eye level with Virgil. "It'll be okay, love," he assured. "We'll find them. We know they're here, in the city. I'm sure one of us will run into them soon."

Virgil just nodded as Roman ran his hand up and down Virgil's arm. He let himself lean against Roman, head resting on his shoulder, trying to ignore his running thoughts of what is their soulmate is just a tourist and they leave the city before they get to meet them, or what if it's forever until they meet again because the city's population is so large and-

"Virgil, dear, you're spiraling," Logan said as he squeezed Virgil's hands, causing Virgil to blink back into focus.

"Come to the couch with us, hm?" Roman asked as he placed gentle kisses on Virgil's head.

"We'll watch your favorite movie?" Patton asked. Virgil couldn't help but smile. They were trying to distract him from his own thoughts. It wasn't easy, but a few kisses and cuddles were usually enough to at least quiet them down a bit.

"Yeah, okay."

It was only a few days later as Roman was rushing down the subway station steps. Today was an audition he really wanted to make, so of course it was just his luck that he was almost running late. He quickly swiped his card and went through the turnstile, running towards the subway platform.

Panic rushed through him as he saw the doors closing. And in a move that he would call "brave" and Logan and Virgil would call "idiotic", he risked it. He ran towards the door and just barely made it through, though his momentum caused him to run straight into someone standing, causing them to let go of the hand rail and stumble back.

The man glared at him as he pushed Roman off, dusting off his shirt and readjusting his messenger bag.

"Oh, my sincerest apologies. I didn't... mean... to..." Roman trailed off. He saw a man with a large scar down the left side of his face, sharp cheekbones, and some of the prettiest eyes he had even seen. His right eye was golden brown, while his left was Patton's green. The man's eyes widened as he watched Roman's left eye morph from his gold into Roman's own dark brown, and a large grin grew on Roman's face.

The subway started and Roman was jolted forward. His soulmate reached out and steadied him.

"Hi," Roman said breathlessly.

"...Hi."

Neither said anything for a moment when his soulmate realized he was still holding onto Roman and quickly let go.

"I'm Roman."

"I'm-"

"One of the most gorgeous men I've ever had the privilege of seeing?" Roman said, so quietly he was almost worried his soulmate didn't hear it, but the slight blush growing on his cheeks told him that he did.

"I'm Janus."

"You have no idea how wonderful it is to have finally found you."

"I believe I have a better idea than you think."

Roman flushed.

"I see you've met the others," Janus said, just a hint of bitterness in his voice. "Which one did I happen to run into that day?"

"Virgil," Roman smiled. "You met Virgil. He'll be really glad I found you. He was really freaking out about it."

"Virgil," Janus repeated quietly to himself.

"And there's Patton, the green, and Logan, the blue. Oh, you must let me bring you to the apartment, they'll adore you. They'll be so excited when I tell them-"

Roman was interrupted by the subway intercom announcing its arrival to the next station. Alarm shot through Roman when he realized this was his stop, but he had something much more important to attend to now.

"This is your stop?" Janus asked, though it wasn't really a question. "Where are you headed?"

"An audition," Roman said as the subway came to a stop. Roman hadn't grabbed hold of the handrail and had to be yet again saved by Janus to keep from stumbling. "But it's not that important."

Janus raised his eyebrow, clearly not buying it.

"I can skip. Let me take you somewhere. Have you had lunch yet? I-"

"Oh, stop," Janus said as the doors opened. He grabbed a pen from his bag and took Roman's arm, pushing up his coat sleeve to quickly write his number. "I have a job interview to go to. And even if I didn't, I would not let you sacrifice your audition for a date."

Date. Date. It clicked in Roman's mind that he would not be able to take this gorgeous man out on dates and he felt his face grow red again.

"Call me when you're finished," Janus said as he pulled Roman's coat sleeve back down.

He then proceeded to take Roman's hand in his and bend down to kiss it gingerly. "And good luck," he looked up and said with what he knew was a charming smirk. He then proceeded to nearly push Roman off the subway right before the doors closed, Leaving Roman a bit flustered and speechless on the subway platform.

Roman walked out of that audition room fucking delighted. Using his newfound excitement and adrenaline, he felt he did really well at the audition, and the director and casting director seemed to like him pretty well. He was feeling good about his chances.

But now he could finally do what he truly wanted to do the whole time. He pulled out his phone and called Janus.

"Janus?" Roman asked as soon as the line was answered.

"Hello, Roman," Janus replied. And though Roman barely knew him, he could already hear the confident grin that accompanied the lilt in his voice. "Doing well?"

"Doing fantastic. I think it went really well. I think I really captured the intricacies of the character, and not to brag but I'm pretty sure the director loved me. She said that I- Oh. Uh. How did your interview go?"

Janus chuckled. "It went well. I'm glad to hear your audition did, as well. Care to tell me about it over tea?"

Roman was already too far gone. "I'd love that."

"I picked a spot a few blocks away from the subway station you got off. I'll text you the address. Shall I order you a drink?"

This cafe was not one of the quick and cheap coffee grabs Roman and Virgil would go to each morning. This one was larger, not crammed between two other buildings. It had floor to ceiling windows with hanging plants surrounding the edges. And inside, sitting at a table by the window, was Janus - sipping a cup of tea and reading.

Roman couldn't help the large grin that grew on his face when he saw Janus. The bell above the door dinged and a smile also grew on Janus' face when he looked up and saw Roman.

"Don't screw this up, don't screw this up, don't screw this-"

"I ordered your tea," Janus' smooth voice interrupted Roman's thoughts. "I also asked for honey. I know actors swear by it."

"Thank you," Roman smiled as he sat down, rubbing his sweaty palms on his pants.

"So you're an actor?" Janus asked as he lifted his tea to his lips. Roman flashed a grin he hoped was confident as his hands gripped his pants.

"Indeed I am!" Roman said. "I have a degree in theatre and have been acting my whole life."

Roman's knuckles turned white in his lap. He was unfamiliar with nerves that weren't the exciting rush before going onstage - these nerves made his leg shake and teeth clench, no matter how hard he tried to smile his mouth into relaxation.

"What about you? What do you do?" Roman asked as he made sure his hands weren't shaking before picking up his own cup.

"I'm getting my doctorate in philosophy, but with exams coming up I'd rather not spend a second thinking about it longer than I have to. Please, I'd love to hear more about you."

Roman desperately tried to think of anything he knew about philosophy, but of course his final soulmate would major in the one class Roman had to drop in college.

"What would you like to know?"

"What about me scares you?"

Roman quickly looked up from his teacup to look at Janus' face.

"Wha- Nothing about you scares me! Why would you say that?"

"Honey, your leg has been shaking nonstop and you won't look at me."

Roman gaped as he put his cup down. Janus' face fell just a tad, and Roman wouldn't have been able to tell if he hadn't been only focusing on Janus' expression.

"It's the scar, isn't it? I know it's off putting-"

"No!" Roman exclaimed, a bit louder than he meant to. "No. Trust me, I have been taken by your beauty the moment I saw you. The scar doesn't bother me at all."

Janus blinked in surprise before quickly recovering.

"If not that, then what's got you scared, dear?"

Roman hesitated before sitting back in his chair.

"When I met Logan, I met up with him in a coffee shop. I then proceeded to thoroughly fuck up the entire conversation. It took two weeks before we were able to spend time together like soulmates are supposed to."

"And you didn't want to fuck up this one?" Janus asked. Roman nodded, avoiding Janus' gaze.

Roman was startled when a gloved hand reached over and gently tiled his face up. Janus was looking at him with soft eyes, juxtaposed only by the huge smirk on his face.

"Roman, honey, I don't know the situation with Logan, but when a handsome man literally falls into my arms, what else am I supposed to do but be utterly taken?"

Roman blushed, and his embarrassment only grew when he chased after the hand that Janus took off his face. Janus chuckled and took Roman's hand across the table.

"The man the universe just gave me then proceeds to compliment me then offers to drop everything to spend time with me? How sweet. Naive, and a bit foolish, but so incredibly sweet."

Janus ran his thumb over Roman's knuckles the whole time. He leaned in across the table, and Roman couldn't help but follow.

"Trust me, dear Roman. Beautiful, courteous Roman. You don't have to worry about me."

And Roman was already gone.

Virgil was just lounging on the couch, scrolling through Tumblr when Patton got the phone call from Roman. He was going to bring their final soulmate to their home.

The first thing Virgil felt was relief. Relief that he hadn't screwed up, and that he hadn't missed the chance to find their final piece.

The second thing Virgil felt was joy. The three of them were ecstatic as Patton and Logan quickly tried to tidy up the apartment. Finally, after so many years of waiting, they were finally going to see them - they were on their way to their home.

The last thing Virgil felt was, unsurprisingly, anxiety. What if their final soulmate didn't like him? What if he somehow screwed up the introductions and their soulmate decided they didn't want anything to do with him? It didn't matter that Virgil had done this three times prior - meeting new people always stressed Virgil out, especially when the person was so important.

After what felt like an eternity (but was probably only twenty minutes), they heard the lock on the front door click. Patton reached for both Logan and Virgil's hands and squeezed them, and Virgil didn't know if it was to calm him or Patton himself.

Roman walked in with a wide smile on his face, and the man who followed behind him made Virgil's breath hitch.

He was even more gorgeous than Virgil remembered from the day they had run into each other. Here, Virgil could truly appreciate his features. And with no sunglasses to cover his eyes, Virgil got to watch as his eye faded from green, then blue, and finally into his own light brown.

Virgil couldn't help but glance over to Patton and Logan. Their eyes were both now only green and blue respectively, and Virgil felt a wave of fondness tighten in his chest. Their eyes were so perfect, so them. Part of Virgil knew he'd miss seeing his partners' eyes in each other, but most of him now was just in love with how beautiful they were.

Roman closed the door behind them.

"So this is-"

Before Roman could finish speaking, Patton cried out an "Oh!" and launched himself at the unsuspecting man, wrapping his arms around his neck and hugging him tightly.

The man was startled, and awkwardly patted Patton's back, but did nothing to push him away.

"I'm so happy to finally meet you!" Patton was crying. Their soulmate's mouth twitched up in a small smile.

"It's nice to meet you, too."

Patton reluctantly let go of their soulmate and gave him a sheepish smile.

"I'm Patton."

"Janus."

"Logan." Logan stepped forward and held out his hand. Janus shook it while Roman bit his lip to keep from laughing. It was an odd time to be so practical, Virgil thought, but another fond wave washed through him because that's just how Logan was.

Janus then looked over at Virgil.

"I've met you."

"Yeah, um. Sorry about that. Running into you I mean," Virgil said and immediately winced. Janus raised an eyebrow.

"Come sit!" Patton said as he ushered the four of them into the living room. "I'll make coffee! Or tea. Or cocoa. Which do you like, Janus?"

Virgil watched as Janus placed his now empty tea mug on a coaster. He couldn't help but watch him, even if it made him feel extremely creepy. He was a bit overwhelmed from the suddenness of everything, so he wasn't speaking very much. Janus didn't seem to mind as he conversed with the others.

Virgil could tell the others (and himself, if he was being honest) already adored Janus. With his smooth voice and sharp wit, it was easy to be captivated.

Patton, who was sitting in between Janus and Virgil on the couch, heard Virgil's stomach grumbled once the afternoon started to meld into evening. With all the excitement earlier in the day, Virgil had forgotten to eat lunch and hadn't thought about it until now.

After shoving a granola bar in Virgil's hands, Patton offered to pick up food from a nearby restaurant. Logan went with him, and Virgil graciously let Roman lead the conversation.

"I just prefer the more classic musicals of Broadway," Janus said with a wave of his hand as he reclined into the couch. "Many of the new musicals are too poppy for me."

"Even so, the new ones are so good!" Roman said as he leaned forward in his chair. Virgil himself leaned against the arm of the couch, waiting for a moment he felt comfortable interjecting. "Modern musicals may not have the same charm as the classics, but that doesn't make the music or script any less enjoyable."

"Don't even get me started on the Hollywood takeover of Broadway," Janus said. "I am so tired of these musical adaptations of movies. We need to stop letting film companies take the theatres and give chances to new playwrights and original stories."

"That... you're mostly right on. But the Mean Girls musical has some bops."

Janus opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by Roman's phone ringing. By the scowl on Roman's face, Virgil knew he was going to decline, but then Roman hesitated.

"I don't mind if you take the call," Janus assured him. Roman gave him a grateful smile and answered it just before the final ring.

As Roman went to take the call in the bedroom, Virgil tried to quell the anxiety rising in him. It must've been important for Roman to have answered it at this time. Virgil hoped it wasn't an emergency. Maybe it was Remus calling him just to propose another crazy scheme of his - Roman could never ignore his brother. But it also could've been a phone call bearing bad news - Something happened to Remus, or Remy, or Emile, or something else terrible that would warrant Roman to interrupt his time with his new soulmate-

"Are you alright?" Janus asked, snapping Virgil from his spiraling thoughts. Virgil grimaced but gave him a smile anyways.

"Yeah, sorry. Just got lost in thought for a moment."

Janus looked Virgil up and down, making Virgil squirm under his gaze.

"Do I frighten you?"

"What? No! Of course not!" Virgil said. He sighed and turned more towards Janus. "I'm sorry. I just get inside my own head and freak out sometimes. You've been nothing but wonderful this whole time. I'm sor-"

"You don't have to apologize if you're anxious, Virgil," Janus said. "It's nothing to be ashamed of."

Virgil gaped for a moment. While of course the others accepted his anxiety, it took a bit of a learning curve for them to get used to it. No one had immediately told him before that they didn't mind.

"But I shouldn't be," Virgil eventually huffed, sitting up straighter and just a bit closer to Janus. "We're supposedly made for each other - I know we're going to get along so why does my brain tell me I'm going to mess it up?"

"That's what anxiety does, babe."

Virgil barked out a laugh.

"Yeah, you're right."

"So let me ask again now. Are you alright?"

Virgil thought for a moment before nodding.

"Yeah. For real this time."

Janus opened his arms, and Virgil graciously accepted.

"I'm so happy we found you," Virgil murmured into Janus' chest as Janus wrapped his arms securely around Virgil. "I had been so worried these last few days - worried that we'd never find you again, or that it'd be years-"

"You don't need to worry anymore," Janus said with a smile. "I'm right here where you need me."

The bedroom door opened, and Virgil automatically went to sit up, but Janus gently coaxed him into leaning against his side - not tightly enough to force him, just enough to show him that it's fine, and Virgil reminded himself that neither Janus or Roman would judge him.

Roman smiled when he saw the two of them, but his eyes were heavy and Janus and Virgil frowned.

"Is everything okay?" Virgil asked. "Who called?"

"Yes, everything's fine. Don't worry, my little stormcloud. It was just audition results from the one last week. I didn't make the callback."

"Oh, Roman. I'm so sorry," Virgil said. He sat away from Janus, who moved to encourage him back, but stopped once Virgil waved Roman over. Roman immediately moved to sit between them, laying his head on Virgil's shoulder as Virgil held him and Janus took his hands, running his thumbs over Roman's knuckles.

"You'll make one of them someday. You're so talented." Virgil assured him.

"It's so hard to get started," Roman sighed. "They're more likely to cast people they know, but how are they going to know me if I never get casted?"

"The people that ignore your talents aren't worth your time anyway," Janus said. "If they're more focused on relations rather than talent, that's not a production you want to be associated with."

Roman gave him a weak smile and went to sit up straight.

"Don't let me burden you both with my dilemmas this joyous night," Roman said. "Please, continue telling me about your classes, Janus."

Janus just sighed. "I just told Virgil not to be ashamed of his anxiety. You, Roman, do not need to be ashamed of being disappointed.

"I hate to bother you-"

"You're not bothering me, nor Virgil I'm sure. There's no shame in seeking comfort when you need it," Janus leaned closer to Roman. "I want you to take care of yourself. No bottling up feelings, okay?"

Roman nodded.

"Good."

Janus sat up straight.

"Also, if you'd like, I'd be happy to help you with your monologues and scenes. I myself used to do theatre work."

Roman's face lit up again. "Oh really?"

Janus nodded.

Virgil was almost as happy as Roman to hear it. While of course he and Logan and Patton helped Roman when they could, Virgil knew they weren't exactly the best scene partners to work with.

"I would love that. Is there a chance I could also get you to sing for me, my star?"

It was Janus' turn to blush, and with that Roman seemed to have gained his confidence again as he sat up to tease Janus, who snapped at him in return, but his smile showed it held no real malice.

Virgil rested his chin on Roman's shoulder as the two quipped back and forth. Logan and Patton got back home shortly after. Janus encouraged Roman to tell Logan and Patton what happened over the phone, and two of them took no time to comfort him.

Once dinner was done, Patton was insistent on making Roman's favorite red velvet cupcakes.

"You don't have to put in that trouble for me," Roman had said.

"Your smile is worth it," Patton replied. Roman had gone a deep red and couldn't muster up any further protests.

It was cramped in the kitchen. Virgil was sitting on the counter, mostly just handing utensils to who needed it, while Patton and Janus made batter. Logan had started on frosting while Patton insisted that Roman did need to help - these were for him, after all! So Roman floated from person to person, stealing hugs and kisses where he could get it.

Patton booped some batter onto Janus' nose and kissed it off, which had been too adorable to process.

Virgil watched as Roman made the rounds into Janus' arms. Janus was the only one tall enough to be eye level with Roman. Roman's expression turned from blissed to thoughtful to hesitant. Janus, ever intuitive, knew what he was thinking and leaned in to press a quick, chaste kiss to Roman's lips. Roman's smile grew wide and his cheeks grew red as he rested his forehead on Janus'

Virgil himself could feel his heart swelling with happiness. He watched as Logan and Janus were able to discuss and debate about far more things than the rest of them could understand. Janus and Roman were able to throw clever nicknames at each other, their sharp wits bouncing off the other's. Janus was able to make Patton grow blushy and giggly almost as fast as Roman, using that smooth lilt in his voice to fluster him almost immediately.

Then Janus thought back to their brief time together on the couch - when strong arms held him tightly and grounded him, letting him know that he was safe - and Virgil knew that they were finally complete.

108 notes · View notes

selfdestructivecat · 4 years ago

Text

@the-local-lunatic13

THAT’S GOOD ENOUGH FOR ME!

Ok so this is gonna be a long list, since my head is only empty when it’s of greatest inconvenience.

Also please read the tags for potential triggers! Lmk if I missed any and I’ll add them right away.

Without further ado, here’s my interpretation of a Sanders Sides Pokemon AU!

* Ok so first of all, the sides are all gym leaders.

* I picture this in the Galar region, but probably with different towns and the like because I don’t remember any of them.

* Basically, just assume that all of the towns are made up, but that Dynamax still is a thing.

* Let’s start with Patton because his story is the least sad.

* His family runs a Fairy Type gym/pokemon nursery.

* Patton is the eldest in a large family, so he eventually became the new gym leader following in his father’s footsteps.

* He has two dads, one who was the gym leader and the other who is a pokemon breeder. They’re both pokemon breeders now and work in a Pokemon Center.

* They are definitely responsible for Patton’s sense of humor.

* Patton and all of his siblings are adopted, but they’re so close that they might as well be related by blood.

* Patton loves taking care of pokemon and would be a pokemon breeder full-time if he could

* But he also loves his family so he continues to run the gym to raise enough money to keep them comfortable and happy

* The Pokemon team I have come up for him is:

* - Togekiss

* - Boltund

* - Greninja (cuz frog)

* - Altaria

* - Frosmoth

* - Hatterine

* (If anyone has any better ideas for pokemon for any of the sides, feel free to throw your suggestions in the notes!)

* Moving on to Logan...

* Like Patton, he also inherited his gym, a Psychic Type gym, from his parents

* However, his family life isn’t nearly as happy...

* Ever since he was old enough to throw a pokeball, his parents have trained him rigorously to become the next gym leader

* They handpicked all of the pokemon in his team

* Except for a Lucario, which Logan caught as a Riolu when he was very young. His parents only let him keep it because of its battle prowess

* So Logan’s team is:

* - Lucario

* - Gardevoir

* - Alakazam

* - Raichu (alolan)

* - Malamar

* - Onix

* (Also this should be obvious by now but not all the pokes will match the gym’s type cuz that’s boring)

* Logan took over the gym when he was 15 and has been running it basically on his own ever since

* His parents still get the final say in all major decisions, even though they don’t really do anything

* Logan resents them, but doesn’t have the courage to stand up for himself

* ENTER PATTON

* Logan is at first pretty skeptical regarding Patton, since he doesn’t seem to take his job seriously

* After challenging Patton to a battle, however, that stance changes remarkably fast after facing a narrow defeat at the hands of Patton’s pokemon

* Even so, he tells himself that he doesn’t have time to become more than colleagues. He must be cordial with Patton so they can coordinate as gym leaders, but that’s it

* Meanwhile, Patton takes one look at this emotionally-repressed man and thinks to himself

* “Oh, this is the guy I’m gonna marry.”

* He then takes literally every opportunity to flirt with Logan

* And he is not subtle AT ALL

* Like he literally goes up to Logan one day and is like

* “I know you’re not ready for it right now, but one day I’m gonna marry you and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

* And Logan is VERY confused and VERY flustered because feelings? What is happening to my heart!? Am I getting sick!?

* (And his parents would absolutely disapprove because they are huge homophobes and want Logan to have an heir to pass on the gym to)

* But eventually Patton manages to break Logan’s walls down and they become close friends

* (And eventually more)

* Now, the twins!

* Their situation is pretty similar to Logan’s, at least to a certain point

* Their parents own a Fire Type gym, and were so excited to have a child who would eventually take over the gym

* Two things happened that they did not anticipate

1) They ended up having twins

2) The mother died during childbirth

* Driven by grief, stubbornness, and resentment, the father had the idea that, in order to make the twins as strong as possible, he would put them against each other at every opportunity

* They would constantly be competing to become better than the other, creating an extremely toxic rivalry

* It didn’t work... at least, not at first.

* When they were very young, Roman and Remus were inseparable.

* Even when their father tried to put them against each other, they would rebel against him and not listen

* (Remus had no issue with this, but Roman quietly longed for his father’s approval, even though he knew it was wrong)

* They had a dream that they would run the gym together, and they would talk long into the night about the gym they would create and the pokemon they would train

* That was, until their father started to take a different approach

* He noticed that, despite the two boys receiving the same education and training, Roman had a better affinity for battle (at least when it came to fire types)

* So he started giving Roman more praise and attention

* Roman was thrilled to finally make his father proud

* Remus, on the other hand, was tossed to the side

* Roman was reluctant to give up his father’s attention now that he had received it

* (Looking back, Roman wishes more than anything that he had given it up)

* The twins were driven apart, Roman being trained to take over the gym, and Remus being completely ignored

* One day, Remus ran away, disappearing in the middle of the night.

* Roman was devastated

* He wanted nothing more than to search for Remus, but he knew that if his brother didn’t want to be found, he could vanish off the face of the earth

* Years pass, and Roman takes over the gym

* His father passes away from illness when he was 16

* He can’t find it in himself to grieve

* Roman continues running the gym, hating how quiet the halls are and missing his brother terribly

* One day, he receives news of a new Poison Type gym being established, one heavily criticized for its unorthodox (and, some complain, absolutely disgusting) gym structure and puzzles

* For the first time in years, Roman smiles

* Their relationship is not nearly as close as it was when they were children, and they still have a lot of that competitiveness that was hammered into them, but they’re trying

* And of course, their pokemon teams!

* Roman’s team is:

* - Charizard

* - Wigglytuff

* - Aegislash

* - Milotic

* - Gallade

* - Butterfree

(Maybe he should have more fire types but I like all of these Pokémon for him and they don’t really have a common type among them and ahhhhhhhh...)

* While Remus’s team is:

* - Garbodor

* - Muk

* - Tentacruel

* - Gengar

* - Mawile

* - Venomoth

* While catching up on everything that happened while they were separated, Roman asks Remus how he managed to establish his own gym so quickly

* Remus smirks, saying that he had a little help from a certain dragon...

* WHICH IS JANUS! HE HAS A DRAGON TYPE GYM!

* And this is where we get into that sweet sweet angst

* Janus was born in a small village surrounded by mountains

* A few months before his birth, a disease spread throughout the village

* This disease would coat the skin in angry red boils and drive the infected delirious with sickness

* One day, Janus’ parents found him shivering with a fever, the left side of his face covered in boils

* Fearing for their lives should they catch the disease, they brought the child into the mountains and abandoned him in an old, dark cave

* He wailed in pain and terror until his throat was so hoarse he couldn’t cry anymore

* Dialga, the legendary dragon-type pokemon with power over time, heard his cries and took pity on the child

* Dialga reversed the effects of the illness, curing the child but leaving shimmering scales where the boils used to be

* Dialga then tasked the dragon type pokemon in the cave to look after the child, not trusting humans to ensure Janus’ well being

* A family of Dreepies, Drakloaks, and Dragapults takes a particular liking to Janus, raising him as one of their own

* Eventually, when Janus is a bit older, he goes to visit the town he was born in (supervised by his dragon family, of course)

* Only to find that the village was gone, abandoned by the few survivors of the horrible plague that spread throughout

* Janus felt no remorse

* He knew that he could only rely on himself, and that if he wanted to survive in this world, he needed to be aggressive

* The following week, he said goodbye to his family, only taking with him his best friend, one of the Dreepies in his family that was now a powerful Dragapault

* It wasn’t easy, as he had to learn the language and social etiquette of the people around him (being raised by pokemon would do that to you)

* He even had to resort to stealing in order to survive, which kept him on the run

* Until one day, he met Remus, another kid on the run

* Together, they were an absolute menace. To this day, the two of them have never lost a double battle

* Eventually, they both opened their own gyms, Remus a poison type and Janus a dragon type

* When not busy with the typical duties required of gym leaders, they’re basically inseparable

* Remus is the one person Janus trusts whole-heartedly

* I headcanon them as either really close friends or queer-platonic partners, but I’ll leave it up to you to decide their relationship!

* By the way, Janus’ team consists of:

* - Dragapult

* - Mimikyu

* - Zoroark

* - Arbok

* - Salazzle

* - Kimmo-oh

* So that leaves one side left...

* Ima be honest, I based Virgil heavily on Piers, but bear with me ok?

* Virgil grew up in a very poor town with his mother, as his dad abandoned them when he was very young

* And when I say poor, I mean that there wasn’t even a Pokemon Center

* Even so, he didn’t wish for anything. He didn’t care about traveling or becoming a great pokemon trainer. He just wanted to be with his mom

* (His anxiety made it hard to leave the house, anyway, so he was in no rush to go on some grand adventure)

* His mom had a dream to open a pokemon gym that both 1) incorporated music and 2) was more down to earth than the grand stadiums that were now the norm for gyms

* When she was pregnant with Virgil, she was more than happy to give up that dream for her family

* However, when her husband, their main source of income, abandoned them, her dream became more of a necessity

* The entire town was on her side, knowing that a gym could bring money to their town

* Their “gym” was nothing more than a small, outdoor stadium, but his mother loved it

* The few curious pokemon trainers who decided to challenge the unofficial gym absolutely loved her, and slowly she started to gain a bit of notoriety

* Virgil was terrified. He was afraid that his mom would get hurt by the powerful pokemon that constantly challenged her

* (And he missed her terribly. She still made time for him, but it wasn’t as much as before she took on the role of unofficial gym leader)

* And so, his mom brought him his very first pokemon: an Eevee that always seemed to know exactly how to calm him down

* He loved his Eevee, and he felt a little bit less alone whenever his mom had to leave for work. He was ok.

* Unfortunately, fate had cruel plans for the young boy

* His town was cast into shadow as a maddened Dynamaxed pokemon appeared a few miles away

* His mom, the strongest trainer in town, left to take it down, despite how much Virgil begged her to not go, or to take him with her

* (She had to go. The second-closest city to the dynamaxed pokemon was still very far away. Help wouldn’t come for a while. She was all her small town had.)

* (...She didn’t return)

* The entire town was in mourning, holding a huge ceremony to honor her memory.

* Virgil was inconsolable, barely speaking and refusing to leave his room for almost an entire year

* If it wasn’t for the people in the town, who cared for him as deeply as they did his mother, he probably wouldn’t have eaten.

* The unofficial gym, without a gym leader, was abandoned, and its small glimpse of fame was lost, plunging the town back into a seemingly inescapable pit of poverty and obscurity

* Until one day, a group of thugs came and terrorized the town, letting loose their pokemon and stealing everything they could get their hands on

* Virgil was terrified, but he couldn’t just stand there while people got hurt. With only his Eevee and his only experience being watching his mom in her matches, he challenged the thugs

* He didn’t stand a chance. His poor Eevee was at its knees within moments

* Virgil was distraught, hating his weakness and how he couldn’t protect the town that had become his family. He tried to fight the thugs himself, only to be knocked back by one of their Pokémon’s attacks.

* He got back up and charged again, tears in his eyes and bile rising from how scared he was

* His Eevee, terrified for its master and inspired by his bravery, began to glow...

* ...and in its place stood an Umbreon, body pulsing with newfound power

* This scene rallied the other people in the town, who banded together to drive the thugs away, Virgil and his Umbreon leading the charge

* From then on, Virgil vowed that he would become a strong Dark Type gym leader and create the gym his mother never got the chance to

* He trained hard, swallowing his fear to capture and train more pokemon for his team

* Which consists of...

* - Umbreon

* - Houndoom

* - Galvantula

* - Gothitelle

* - Corviknight

* - Noivern

* The townspeople, much like Team Yell in Pokemon Sw/Sh, would often go to other cities singing Virgil’s praise and unwittingly causing all sorts of problems

* Virgil has no idea that any of this is happening

* Eventually, word gets out again regarding this unofficial Pokemon gym, attracting the attention of the other gym leaders

* Roman is sent to investigate

* He doesn’t expect much, given the general appearance of the town (it doesn’t even have a pokemon center, after all)

* He’s even more put off when he recognizes the outfits of the trainers in the “gym” as the strange people who have been causing trouble all over Galar

* Even so, he has a job to do, so he dons a disguise and plows through all of the trainers, eager to finish the gym so he can go back home

* His desire to leave vanishes faster than a Pikachu with Agility the moment he lays eyes on Virgil

* Just like his mother wanted, Virgil’s battles take place during a rock concert, so Virgil waiting on a makeshift stage with a guitar in hand

* (Virgil feels like he’s going to explode with nerves, just like he does every time a trainer challenges his gym, but the memory of his mother gives him courage)

* As his Umbreon leaps into battle, he begins to sing

* And holy shit Roman is in love

* The small area is filled with spectators cheering and singing along to the song, and despite it being a far cry from any grand stadium Roman has ever battled in, it has more spirit than anything Roman has ever experienced

* It’s the most fun he’s had battling in years

* Virgil is a tough opponent, a testament to his years of pushing himself, but in the end Roman has more experience

* Virgil is devastated at the loss, knowing it would be a blow against the gym’s reputation, but manages to put on a smile and offers Roman a pin: their unofficial gym badge

* Roman smiles, removing his disguise to pin the badge to his clothes and Virgil is like “holy shit that’s Roman the famous fire-type gym leader oh no he’s really hot oh no what have I done I GAVE HIM A HANDMADE PIECE OF SCRAP METAL OH NO”

* And Roman, ignorant to Virgil’s crisis, is like “cmon, we gotta get the paperwork done to establish this place as an official gym!”

* When later asked, Virgil would firmly deny it, but at that moment he had literally burst into tears

* Roman still wears the badge Virgil presented to him to this day, even though Virgil has repeatedly offered him one of the higher-quality badges they now give out as an official gym

* Virgil’s gym is the only one that doesn’t have Dynamax, since he still has some trauma from his mother’s death

* Prinxiety eventually happens because I say so

* And all of the gym leaders are friends also because I say so

I might add more to this AU if people are interested! And feel free to add your own ideas! I’d love to hear what you think!

Sorry for rambling, but if you managed to get this far, thanks for reading! :D

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kim-ruzek · 3 years ago

Text

sometimes you just don't know the answer

Summary: But typical Kim, typical naive, always believing the best in people Kim, thought that even though Adam and her have been out of sync, even though any time any serious conversations comes up it seems like Adam doesn’t listen or pay attention, even though things haven’t been exactly good, Kim thought they both had the same end goal. To be married, happy, in a strong relationship.

Evidently, she was wrong.

Set in S3, fix it bc it circumvents the breakup.

Warnings: Bob Ruzek's A+ parenting, alluding to sexist thoughts, swearing

Word Count: 4k

Read on AO3

Notes: So. A few days ago Lexi ( @adamruz ) answered an ask and said her hc about Adam is that he never actually told Bob about the dinner with her mom and well.... My mind ran with it. And thus this was born.

I hope y'all enjoy (especially you Lexi ♥️)

“Coffee?” Kim looks over at Officer Samuel Innings, her assigned partner for her overtime shift. It’s the first time on the whole shift that Kim is glad, not irritated, at the sight of him—although it’s more to do with the coffee cup he’s holding out for her than him.

“Thanks.” She gives him a smile—he may be one of my most irritating people she’s ever met, but she’s still polite, especially when there’s coffee involved. Innings only needed to go into the shop because he needed the toilet—or, ‘needed to take a whiz’, as he so elegantly put ten minutes earlier—she didn’t expect that he’d pick her up a coffee. From what she had seen from the hours she’s already been on this shift, he’s annoying and she had thought not very considerate.

“It’s two sugars, no cream, right?” Innings double checked.

It’s not, but coffee is coffee so Kim smiles gratefully at him, nodding, before taking a sip, feeling better already knowing that coffee will be soon coursing through her body.

“Do you think we’re gonna get a call?” He only gives Kim a few seconds peace of silence before he speaks again and she has to resist so hard to not roll her eyes. Innings is young, green, and maybe his eagerness could be seen as admirable if it wasn’t so grating. He has no restraint, nattering on and bothering her, and offering his unsolicited complaints about what members of public they’ve dealt with in this shift.

He’s not the kind of partner she’d like on her regular shift, but even more on this graveyard shift, when she’s tired, when she’s already in a mood, when all she wants is just peace and quiet.

He almost makes her wish she had taken Sean up on his offer to join her on this shift. Kim had turned him down, stating she didn’t want to take away his day off just because she’s giving it up—and of course, that was a reason for it, but it wasn’t the only reason.

She just wanted silence, monotony, and she wouldn’t get that with Sean. Her mind is clouded, and he—as well intended as Kim’s sure he is—would only make it worse. But she hadn’t anticipated Innings, and is debating if the devil she knows would’ve been better than the devil she doesn’t.

“You never know.” She says in answer to his question. Her voice is dry, plain, monotone, not having it in her to bring any fake interest or life into it, even if she’s making sure she’s still being polite. Officers talk, and she doesn’t want to be known as a bitch who was in a mood—even if she’s very much feeling that way.

“I hope we do. But nothing like that last call, breaking up drunken sluts is no fun. Like they’re so dramatic, just go home with whatever man you picked up and fuck him and leave us out of it.” Kim screws up her nose at his words, taking another sip of her coffee to hide her disgust at his attitude, making a mental note to tell Trudy about it.

Not that she might necessary be able to do anything about it; Kim’s been outsourced to a beat in another district, Innings not working at hers. Trudy’s wrath would come down like a wall of bricks on any officer in the twenty-first that she gets a whiff of this kind of attitude, but Innings reports to a different desk Sargent.

Although, Trudy Platt is a formidable woman, and Kim knows that she’ll take this up with the other desk Sargent, and god help him if he doesn’t at least hear Platt out.

Even when Kim was new at the twenty-first, she was glad that she had Platt as a desk sergeant, admiring her no nonsense personality. She’s exactly the kind of Sargent cops need, and as Kim listens to Innings prattle on, it makes her wonder whatever possessed her to sign up for this overtime, to willingly seek work—willing seek to interact with officers who aren’t Trudy’s—outside her district.

Of course, Kim does know what possessed her. When seeking this, she had told everyone—well, Platt, Adam and Roman—that she wanted the overtime money, for the expenses in her near future. It’s believable, and it won’t hurt to have the money, of course.

Even though Kim has her doubts whether or not she’ll actually need it—those expenses will only happen if they can actually set a date for their wedding and pick out a place to live. And as more time goes on, the less convinced she becomes that it’ll actually happen.

Which, really, is why she chose to work on her day off.

Everything in her life, her feelings, her relationship, Adam, it’s all very confusing in her head currently and the thought of sitting at home, doing nothing but letting it continue to fester, was an unbearable one.

Kim can’t help but feel guilty, though. It’s also Adam’s day off, and since Intelligence has been thigh deep in a case recently, they haven’t spent much time together and the time they have, all they’ve done is fight—if they’ve even done much talking. It’s usually silent, even when they’re curled up on the couch together, the silence permeates through the air, making it feel like they’re worlds apart.

But she also knows it being Adam’s day off makes this a good decision even more. There’s some serious questions that Kim’s having to ponder upon, and she fears that if they were alone, no work or distractions, they might truly fight. Most of their fights end before they begin—verbally, at least—them exchanging a few heated words before they let their deafening silence say all the things they don’t.

But if they were alone, Kim fears that things might come to blows. And as much as she’s questioning her relationship with Adam, questioning his commitment to them, to her, to their future, she really doesn’t want that to happen. She doesn’t want to call quits on their relationship. And she knows how dangerously close they are to that happening; all it’ll take is one wrong thing to occur.

Like her, accidentally, in anger, yelling her half formed thoughts, her ineloquently put feelings about all what is annoying her.

They need the space, that’s what she tells herself. In a few days, Adam—and Bob Ruzek—will be meeting her mother, and while that won’t fix things, or makes her think they’ll set a date—even if that’s what Roman assumes she thinks—but it’ll be a hurdle they’ve gotten over, which means there’ll be one less hurdle in their way.

One hurdle closer to getting their relationship back in sync, to return to how they were, to being married and happy, even if it feels like they’ll never get there in this moment.

“Burgess? Burgess?” Kim is pulled out her thoughts by Innings, him lightly prodding at her. She’s alert straight away, going to her radio, assuming she had missed a call.

She hasn’t, as Innings quickly explains. He had just been talking to her and she had zoned out. He did, at least, apologize for alarming her.

“Sorry, my mind was somewhere else. What was you saying?” Kim really couldn’t care less what he was saying, but the politeness in her overrides.

“Your ring. I was asking if you’re engaged.” Innings indicates to her ring, and Kim smiles down at it for a couple seconds, reliving the happiness she felt when Adam first gave it to her months ago in her memories.

“Yeah, I am.” There’s a slight giddy feeling in her stomach, like butterflies flapping their wings, at the thought of Adam—her fiancé—and it’s the feeling that is what keeps her wanting to wait out this storm—even if she runs away like this on their days off—because surely, if she still feels like that, even if it’s lessened, if it’s hiding more from her, then the relationship is worth fighting for.

“What does he do?” Innings then asks.

“He’s a cop too. A patrol officer assigned to Intelligence.” Kim answers, while thinking that the pride that still swells in her heart as she talks about him is another reason to keep fighting. And suddenly, the guilt over leaving Adam alone on their day off surges and all she wants to do is go to him, to cuddle up and kiss him all over his face in apology—even if he didn’t know she needs to.

“Wow. Snagged yourself a good man, there.” Innings says and she’s annoyed at the words he used, at his tone, how Kim gets the impression that he’s more impressed with Adam’s achievements than he would be hers, but she repeats his words in her mind, because she has, and she wonders if her forgetting that might be the reason for their problems.

Luckily, they get some calls after that, and Kim doesn’t have to deal with just how much Innings irritates her—although his attitude towards the public really rubs her up wrong.

“Kim? I didn’t know you worked nights.” It’s a few hours later, and they’ve stopped into a twenty-four hour diner to get some coffee and a bite to eat and right as Kim gets served, she runs into Bob Ruzek, her future father in law.

As if her night couldn’t get any worse.

Adam’s father is not one of her favourite people, to say the least. She’s accepted that he’ll have to be a part of her life, of her children’s, and that Adam loves his dad but unexpectedly running into him is not something she’s very happy about.

“Bob, hi,” That politeness overrides again, and she greets her future father in law with a smile. For Adam, she reminds herself. He’s Adam’s dad, and Adam’s going to have to deal with the neuroticism that is her mother soon, so she can deal.

“I don’t usually, I’m putting in some overtime. The wedding won’t pay for itself,” Kim answers him, cracking a light smile, laughing slightly.

They chat for a few minutes, nothing too deep or substantial. Kim always wanted to have a good relationship with her in-laws growing up, but she’s glad that Bob seemingly doesn’t want to spend much time getting to know her like she feels towards him. From the corner of her eye, she sees Innings looking at her, and them, clearly trying to work out how they know each other.

“Right, I should be off.” Kim tells him as her food is handed over to her.

“Yeah. Tell Adam I said hi.” Bob nods and she forces a smile, hoping it doesn’t seem strained.

“Will do. Bye—until this Saturday, of course.” She says, referencing their arranged meal. Bob frowns, looking confused.

“What’s this Saturday?”

“The meal with my mom?” Kim prompts him, but Bob’s face is looking blank. Annoyance bubbles up in her, at him forgetting but then dots connect and she realises that Bob isn’t being the worst father in law right now—that he hasn’t forgotten, he just hasn’t been told.

Adam didn’t tell his dad.

Adam lied to her that he did.

“Never mind,” Kim waves him off, casually, even though her world is crumbling around her. They had discussions about how important this dinner is, how it’ll be unpleasant but they need it, and Adam had looked her in the eye and said his dad was on-board.

And he hadn’t even bothered to ask him, to tell him.

Roman had been saying from the start that Adam is just in this for the fun things, not the commitment, not the gruelling stuff. Her partner means well—even if sometimes it feels like he’s being contrary just for the sake of it—and Kim always listens to him because, well, because he’s her partner, but even when Adam failed that push test Roman recommended, she didn’t put much stock in what Roman had been saying.

She really should’ve.

But typical Kim, typical naive, always believing the best in people Kim, thought that even though Adam and her have been out of sync, even though any time any serious conversations comes up it seems like Adam doesn’t listen or pay attention, even though things haven’t been exactly good, Kim thought they both had the same end goal. To be married, happy, in a strong relationship.

Evidently, she was wrong.

Even though Adam has been letting her talk about this dinner. Even though he knows how nervous she is for him to meet her mom. Even though he knew all this, he still looked her in the eye and he lied to her.

Had told her he talked to his dad. Had told her Bob agreed. Had told her all this, had told her that he understood how important this was to her.

He had held her in their—his, because they still haven’t found a place that is theirs—bed and told her this all while knowing he was lying.

Kim spends the rest of her shift in a daze, trying to wrap her mind around this. Trying to process that everything Roman said was right, that Adam isn’t serious, that he doesn’t want to be married, that he doesn’t want to be on the hook.

That Adam’s just prolonging and putting off the wedding, doing everything he can too, because he doesn’t want to marry her.

Even though he was the one who proposed.

Kim’s mind wasn’t even thinking about marriage, before he proposed. Yes, the thought that she would like to—one day—marry him had propped up, of course it had. Adam is sweet, loving. He made her laugh, smile and comforted her when she had nightmares. And he was vulnerable around her, not afraid to show his softness... Of course thinking about making that man her husband had crossed her mind.

But as a serious thought, as a thought to happen at this time... That wasn’t even near close to being a thought in her head into she saw that ring.

Why would he do that, why would he introduce marriage into the equation, if it wasn’t serious about marrying her, about making her his wife and building a life with her?

It’s the morning when Kim’s shift finishes, and Adam’s still slumbering away in their—his—bed when she comes home. Normally, she’d concentrate on how cute, how peaceful he looks when he sleeps but she feels sick at the sight of him, all these thoughts and questions flooding her mind.

There’s room in the bed for her to climb into, but she can’t—she just can’t. Not when she’s just learnt this. She can’t lay her head next to his with betrayal sits in her heart, burning like a fierce woodland fire.

She grabs some spare blankets and pillows and sets up something on the sofa. She knows that when Adam wakes up, and sees her there, he’ll know something is up, something is wrong but Kim can’t find it in herself to care—not even with the knowledge that she had told Adam that she was sleeping for, hopefully, twelve hours today, so he’d know he wouldn’t get an answer to why she was on the sofa for hours.

When Kim comes too, it’s not the uncomfortable sofa lying under her back, but the nice comfortableness of Adam’s bed. She frowns slightly, as she sits up, confused to as she got here. She wonders, briefly, if she had imagined falling asleep on the couch before her mind wakes up properly and she realises that Adam must’ve carried her in here.

A sweet gesture like that would usually dampen the angry fire burning away in her heart but it doesn’t now; she’s too angry for it to. In fact, Kim thinks, it spurs on the fire, adding kindling to the flames, because how dare he move her? How dare he act as if he cares for her, as he clearly doesn’t, if he can look her in the eye and lie to her.

It’s not long before Kim’s heading out the bedroom, going to the living room. Sounds of Adam’s video games rings out and a darkness grips her heart as she wonders if the gesture wasn’t even that sweet, if it’s just because he needed the sofa to play his stupid games.

The gesture did nothing to melt her heart, but the thought of Adam not being motivated with kindness makes it more stony.

Kim is glad she doesn’t enter the room, guns blazing, as when she does, she sees that Adam is not alone, that Kevin is over, playing with him. She normally loves seeing the two most important men in her life hanging out, the sight always making her heart twist, but just like when she woke up in bed, in does nothing for her now.

“Hey, darlin’,” Adam spots her first, glancing briefly away from the TV to give her a smile. Kevin is then greeting her and she wishes she wasn’t so angry that she could even think about greeting Kevin back.

“You’ve been asleep for ages—I’m sorry about taking up all the bed. I assume that’s why you were on the sofa?” Adam continues talking, his eyes still looking at the TV as he does so, having not realised that something is up.

“Adam, stop the game.” Kim’s voice is devoid of it’s usual warmth.

“I will in a sec. Sorry, darlin’, I’m just so close to beating Kev,” Adam still doesn’t realise.

“The game’s not over yet, Ruzek.” Kevin apparently hasn’t either.

“Adam.” The word is chilled. “Turn it off. We need to talk, now. Kev, please, if you could leave.”

The game is paused then, the two turning to look at her. It’s almost comical how identical their oh fuck expressions are, and if Kim wasn’t so angry, so betrayed, so confused, she might’ve laughed at it.

Kevin moves first, quickly scrambling to get his stuff together, clearly seeing she means business. “Yeah, I should get home before Vinessa and Jordan do and wants dinner. Uh, nice seeing you. Bye.”

Kevin is not someone anyone messes with, even Adam having a moment of being spooked by him and the damage he could do to a person. But he looks like nothing more than a timid schoolboy now, as he hurries on out.

“What’s wrong, darlin’?” Adam asks as soon as Kevin shuts the door, having turned off the TV. He rises and he goes to come near here, his arms out, looking concerned. But she steps back, not wanting him anywhere near her.

“Why didn’t you tell your dad about the dinner?” She cuts straight to the point. Kim can see the moment, the oh shit moment, that Adam gets what she’s on about, but he plays dumb because apparently he wants to anger her more.

“What do you mean?”

“You know exactly what I mean. On my shift, I ran into your dad and I mentioned Saturday—only he had no idea what I was on about. So yeah, Adam, I know you know what I mean.” Really, Kim is surprised how even she manages to keep her voice.

“I..uh.. I...” He flounders and Kim’s anger rises.

“It’s a simple question! You had a reason for not telling him, so tell me it.” when continues to flounder, Kim snaps. “Or don’t. It’s okay. I know why—you don’t want to marry me.”

“I—what?” Adam stares at her.

“I knew this was coming, I guess. But just answer me this—why lie? You do realise I’m going to have to tell my mother this? My mother! And she might not be your mother in law, now, but she’s still my mother and god, I thought you’d care enough about me to at least not create another thing for her to hold over me. And what was your end goal, tell me that? What was you going to do, on Saturday, when you needed to explain why Bob wasn’t coming?” Kim rants at him, letting all her hurt and betrayal out.

“I, uh. I was going to say that he cancelled, for overtime?” Adam looks sheepish, his expression showing he knows he fucked up.

“So, let me recap. Instead of just saying you don’t want to marry me you: lied, ensured you’d break my heart, make me think your dad prioritised overtime over his son and his son’s fiancée and what? Was you going to ditch my mom and I, as well?” Kim had thought her last boyfriend had told her the most outlandish lie ever, that she had left those days behind her.

“I’ll admit, it wasn’t very well thought out. But, baby, I promise you, it wasn’t because I don’t want to marry you. I love you, I want to marry you. With all my heart, darlin’, I swear.” She has to admit, with his earnest he sounds, how genuinely distraught he looks, Kim almost believes him.

“If that’s true, then why? Why would you ever lie about this? What do you have to gain from it?!” She asks, desperation and confusion clawing at her voice. Adam runs a hand through his hair, and it takes a few seconds, with a lot of hesitation, but then he’s speaking, explaining himself.

“Because! Because I was scared. Scared that if you really got to know Bob Ruzek, and saw how rude he no doubt would be to your mom, that you’d realise what kind of man he is? That he’s a screw up and not a particularly good man—or dad, honestly—and that... I was scared that you’d see who he really is, and think I’m the same. That you’d jump ship before you got yourself locked in with the junior Ruzek screw-up.” Adam started off loud, desperate, but ends so quiet, so sad it immediately puts out the flames in her heart, and her heart twists and all what she was feeling fades away, her love coming back tenfold and she questions why she ever doubted him.

“Adam. I already know that. Do you really think I like your father? I’ll deal, because he’s your pops, but I know who he really is.” Adam’s head jerks up at her words, a look Kim has never seen on his face before appearing and she realises that he hasn’t quite understood.

“But Adam, Adam look at me,” Kim moves towards him now, gently resting her hands on either side of his jaw, making him look at her. “And I know who you are. I know you’re not your father, because you are not a screw-up. You are a good man. Today? My partner asked about my fiancé, and I was so filled with pride at even the thought of you because I know exactly who you are.”

Kim knows she’s going to have to spend time questioning why she didn’t think to hear Adam out first, she knows it as she says this and realises the answers to all the questions she’s been having lately doesn’t lie in her head, or in the mouth of others like Roman, or even in Adam’s actions that initially confuses her, when she doesn’t give him a chance to explain; the answers aren’t anywhere but in her own heart.

Because she knows Adam Ruzek, her fiancé. And he is a good man, a man who loves her, who would never hurt her. A man who loves her so much that after just a year wanted to make her his wife.

A man who’s not perfect, who’s flawed and human—just like she, and everyone else is. And that means his behaviour will hurt and be confusing, but that doesn’t negate what she knows is in his heart.

“Kim, darlin’. If that’s true, then why would you think I don’t want to marry you? It’s okay, I know I’m a screw up and that I’ve been on borrowed time to have even a bit of you.” Adam says, quietly, resting his forehead against hers and her heart aches, hurts, as she realises just how much he hurts inside, how little he thinks of himself.

And that’s when she knows she doesn’t care when they get married, or move in properly, or any of that—all she cares about is making sure he knows, for the rest of his life, that he’s a good man, a definitely not a screw-up.

“I thought it because I was being stupid. I got caught up in this whole thing, this rut we’ve been in. I probably put more stock in other’s opinions more than what I know in my heart. But, baby, I know now. I promise. I love you,” Kim gently tilts her head to kiss him, softly, on his lips. She used to think the most love was in the passionate, all consuming kisses.

But loving Adam taught her that it’s these kinds of kisses that show the most love. The soft, gentle but oh so filled with love, affection, adoration kisses. The only kisses done when you truly know someone, when you love them all the way down, deep into your bones, your soul.

And that’s how she loves Adam.

#burzek #adam ruzek #kim burgess #chicago pd #kim burgess x adam ruzek #chicago pd fanfiction #fuck bob ruzek #ree writes #ree's.writing

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sleepless-in-starbucks · 5 years ago

Text

Far Away but Not Apart

Ao3

Summary: Roman loved Logan with all of their heart, even if they had only ever seen him through a computer screen. Content: Nb!Roman, don’t think there’s anything else really Pairing: Romantic logince Notes: This is the amos prize minific for @averykedavra who requested long-distance logince. I’m not certain I stuck properly to the prompt, but I do hope you like it, Avery!

“-I’m just saying, there is no crueler mistress than the one that would place soulmates such as ourselves so far apart!”

Logan sighed, rolling his eyes in a way that Roman was fully aware was amused, not annoyed. Though he had started the facetime sitting up and back in his fancy office chair, he was now leaning forwards, elbows on the desk, supporting his chin with one of his hands. “If fate were as cruel a mistress as you claim, Roman, then why would she allow us to meet each other at all?”

“To torture us!” Roman replied dramatically, grinning when Logan chuckled. “It is only in knowing the other exists that we suffer! To be so close in heart but so far in distance-”

“A pity, yes, but one we will survive.” Logan said, scoffing when Roman pouted at him. “You will only make yourself feel worse about our situation the longer you dwell upon in it.”

“I have dwelled upon it every day since the one I met you, and suffered it every day since the one you allowed me to call you mine.”

“We’ve only been dating for four months, Roman.”

“And friends for two years!” Roman added on for him. “And never once during all of that time have I so much as held your hand! It is a crime, my beloved, a crime, a sin, a defiance against all that is good and pure!”

“You’re overexaggerating.”

Roman sighed and collapsed backwards on their bed, hand splayed over their forehead. “No, I’m suffering.”

Logan laughed, and Roman lifted their head just enough that they could see him as he did so, their faux pout dropping so that they could smile at their muse. People who didn’t really know Logan said he was cold, unfeeling, logical to a fault. That was because people who didn’t really know Logan had never seen him smile brighter than the sun and laugh prettier than any angel could.

Roman didn’t realize they had gotten lost in their thoughts of loving Logan until the object of their affections coughed and said, “You’re staring.”

“How could I not?” Roman replied without missing a beat. “You are beauty incarnate, my sweetness, figure carved from smoothest marble and face painted with finest hues. I cannot help but to stare.”

“You really are too much.” Logan told them, but his cheeks had flushed a dark red that let Roman know their words had had exactly the impact they had hoped for. “I was asking you what you were doing this weekend.”

“Losing myself within worlds far more interesting than ours for but the fact that they do not have you, my angelic love.”

“So… binging Netflix?”

“My way of describing it was better.”

Logan chuckled. “If you say so, dear.”

Roman smiled at the petname. They had always loved how it made them sound as if they were an old married couple (which Roman fully intended for them to be one day). “And what are you going to be doing over your break from work-aligned existence?”

“Not really a break, I’m afraid.” Logan said, prompting Roman’s smile to become a frown. “I’ve got a business meeting on Saturday, leaving Friday night.”

Roman’s frown deepened. “Does that mean virtual movie night is off?”

Logan nodded, now frowning himself. “I’m sorry to say, but yes. We’ll have to reschedule for another week.”

“Well that sucks.” Roman said, trying to keep the majority of their disappointment out of their voice. They knew it wasn’t anything that Logan could change, so they didn’t want to make him feel bad about it. “You better get me a souvenir though. To make it up to me.”

“If a ten dollar bobble-head will fill the hole in your life that is our Friday night virtual movie marathon, then I am glad to oblige.” Logan returned, briefly looking away from the camera to check a paper on his desk. “Your address is the same, yes?”

“Don’t know how I could’ve changed it without you knowing.”

“Just checking.” Logan said, marking something down before he turned back towards the camera. “Now, I hate to once more be the figurative bearer of bad news, but I must take my leave- I have a client call in a few minutes here.”

“Skip it.”

“I do have to keep my job, Ro.”

“Your new job can be loving me, twenty-four seven, benefits are spending all your time with me.”

“And how much does loving you pay?”

“Did you not hear about the benefits? They’re better than money!”

Logan just laughed fondly. “You are cute, I’ll give you that.’

“So you’ll take up my offer and your new job?”

“Sadly, to function in the real world, I need a cash-paying job.” Logan told them, smiling at Roman’s following pout. “But if it alleviates your pains, know that I already love you twenty-four seven.”

At that, Roman allowed their pout to morph into a smile. “Well, look at who’s being cute now.”

“I’m simply stating the facts.” Logan replied, glancing at his watch. “One of which is, unfortunately, that I really must go now. I’m worried I’ll be too busy tomorrow to chat- I’ll call you on Saturday, alright?”

“Oh, my star, my sun, my only light through the darkness and troubles that are this world, however will I survive a whole day without any contact with you?”

“You are strong, my knight, I’m sure you’ll find a way.” Logan told them in return, grinning when Roman blushed. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Roman responded, blowing Logan an imaginary kiss. Logan, as always, indulged them by ‘catching it’ before he turned his camera off, Roman’s screen going dark soon after. As soon as it darkened, Roman sighed, falling back against their bed and shutting their laptop as they did so.

It was going to be a long day and a half.

“Roman? Wh- Why are you calling?”

“Because I miss you!” Roman whined, not bothering with pretending to not be clingy. “Yesterday was long and dull and completely devoid of true joy and true love! I simply could not bear to wait til you called me! Oh, how I have missed you, my world, my stars, my universe-”

“It’s barely been a day, love.”

“Love!” Roman said, ignoring the majority of his sentence and latching onto the important part of it. “I haven’t heard you call me that in over a day! Possibly two! Hell, darling, I’ve been in absolute hell without you.”

Logan laughed at that, and Roman had never before so desperately wished they were on a facetime, just so they could see the absolute glory that would be Logan’s face while he was laughing. It didn’t matter how many times they had seen him laugh- it would never be enough. Before Roman could say something to that extent, however, their doorbell rang, grabbing their attention.

“Damnit.” They said, annoyed. Did they have packages coming today? They didn’t think so. And they really, really didn’t want to get up.

“What is it?”

“The doorbell- it’s fine, probably just a package or some door-to-door salesperson. Just annoying, interrupting the melodic sound of your laughter-”

“You should probably get that.”

Roman groaned and threw their head back. “But I don’t want to!”

“It could be someone important.” Logan told them. “Don’t worry, I’ll still be here when you get back.”

Roman groaned louder, but they still swung themself off their couch. “Fiiiine. But when it turns out to be nothing, I’m going to… I’m going to…”

“Yes?” Logan asked, in a much too smug way that suggested he knew perfectly well Roman had no way to end their threat.

“...I’ll think of something.” Roman said vaguely, ignoring Logan’s following chuckle of disbelief and amusement. Shaking their head, Roman moved the phone from their ear to the side of their neck, muffling the speaker as they opened the door. “Okay, listen, I’ve got some important stuff going on so-”

Roman cut themself off as soon as they saw who was standing on their porch. Because it wasn’t a salesperson or a dropped-off package- it was a man with a suitcase by his feet, a phone in his hand, and a face Roman would sooner die than forget.

“Surprise?” Logan said, and that was all he was able to get out before Roman had flung themself at him and wrapped them up in what Roman was sure was the biggest, tightest, most important hug they had ever given.

“You’re here!” Roman said after a minute of just basking in the magnificence of the moment. They still refused to let go of him, having dropped their phone so that they could hold on solely to Logan, keeping him as close to their chest as possible. “You’re really here!”

“Well I’m certainly not a hallucination or someone pretending to be your boyfriend.” Logan said, having managed to get his phone into his pocket before returning Roman’s hug. “So I should hope I’m really here, yes.”

“Yes- but- you’re here! I can see you! I can hug you! I AM hugging you!” Roman exclaimed, knowing they were getting repetitive at that point but not caring at all. They were currently hugging their boyfriend for the first time ever, after all- how could they care about anything else?

“That you are.” Logan agreed, voice still a professional neutral before he tightened his grasp on Roman and added, “So I am as well.”

Roman giggled, a mostly involuntary sound that was brought about the sheer joy of the moment. They pulled back from Logan, just a bit, just enough that they could see his face- his beautiful, lovely, gorgeous face, a face that was a million times prettier in real life. “Can I kiss you?”

“Mhmm- not on the lips. Weird texture.” Logan said, but he was still smiling, unbothered by Roman’s question.

Happily, Roman pressed a kiss to Logan’s forehead, grinning when they saw Logan’s smile grow. “I can work with that.” They said before moving to pepper the rest of Logan’s face with kisses.

“If I- if I knew you were going to be this persistent I- I would’ve stayed home.” Logan protested, having broken down himself and begun giggling in between Roman’s kisses, rendering his protests unbelievable.

“My most beloved, you are a horrible liar.” Roman told him, pressing an extra special kiss to his nose before saying suddenly, “Hey, wait- don’t you have a business meeting you’re supposed to be at?! You can’t be here!”

Logan laughed. “Roman, my prinx, this is the business meeting. I lied so I could surprise you.”

Both Roman’s eyes and smile widened as they dived back into scattering kisses across Logan’s entire face, only stopping when Logan pulled far away enough they could no longer reach his face.

“We are going to get absolutely nothing done if I allow you to kiss me all day.” Logan said, though at Roman’s pout he did lean forwards to kiss Roman’s forehead. “I did take Monday and Tuesday off, but I can’t be here forever, you know.”

“You say that as if it would be a waste of our time if I used it for little more than showering you in all the affection you deserve.” Roman returned, attempting to resume their attack of Logan’s face.

Logan pulled back once more, chuckling when Roman immediately began to sulk. “There will be plenty of time for that. But there is also time for other activities, such as one that might have been missed recently…?”

Roman blinked at Logan, frowning for a moment in confusion before their face lit up in a grin. “Oh! Movie night! We can have a real life movie night!

“Only if we don’t spend our entire weekend standing on your porch.” Logan pointed out. “So… may I come in?”

“Of course!” Roman said, finally (albeit regrettably) letting go of Logan so that he could grab his suitcase and come inside. The moment he was within and Roman had closed their door, however, Roman had their arms wrapped around Logan’s waist, smiling as Logan laughed and put a hand backwards so that he could hold Roman’s shoulder.

“You’re very touchy.” Logan commented, though he didn’t sound annoyed.

Roman just held him closer. “Two and a half years, my heart and soul and life! So long have I waited for this moment- you wouldn’t hold it against me that I wish to cherish it, would you?”

“It’s actually been two years, four months, and three days since our first interaction.” Logan corrected them before softening, leaning back and more into Roman’s hold. “But no, I won’t hold it against you.”

“Good.” Roman said, pressing a kiss to the top of Logan’s head. “Because I have no plans of letting you go anytime soon.”

Logan tilted his head back so that he could smile at Roman. “Well I should hope you don’t.” He responded, looking fondly at Roman. “Four days aren’t that much time. It would be a shame to waste even a second of them.”

Roman grinned. “Aw, you do like being cuddled!”

At the claim, Logan looked down, trying (and failing) to hide the blush Roman could still see blooming in his cheeks. “Maybe just a little bit.”

Grin widening, Roman shifted as quickly as possible, eliciting a small yelp from Logan as they lifted him up and held him against their chest. “Don’t worry Lo,” Roman began, using their new position to kiss Logan’s forehead, “Four days may not be a lot of time in the grand scheme of things, but it is plenty of cuddle time.”

Roman expected Logan to protest that, to say that time was the same whether it was in the ‘grand scheme of things’ or in ‘cuddle time’ or any other definiment of time, but he didn’t- instead, Logan just let out a small sigh and rested his head against Roman’s shoulder. “We’re watching Big Hero Six first.”

“Of course!” Roman agreed enthusiastically, leaving Logan’s luggage behind on the floor as they walked over to their couch before adding (just because he could), “Anything for you, my love.”

Because Logan was right- four days wasn’t that much time.

But Roman had plans to make the most of every second.

#logince #ts logan #ts roman #nb!roman #ts sides #sanders sides #fanfic #fanfiction #the cryptid speaks #amos minific #i haven't written logince in forever #gosh i missed these bois #averykedavra

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birlcholtz · 5 years ago

Note

78 for the prompt list? Whatever you're feeling for the ship

78. “You always find a way to surprise me.” from this prompt list!

here is nurseydex with a side of them managing their conflict way back in their frog year instead of having it explode in their junior year with dex constructing a studio apartment in the haus basement oops, this one managed to crack 3k words because once i wrote the first scene i had to keep going, so enjoy!! ao3

“You always find a way to surprise me,” Dex snaps. “What is this, pretend to sympathize with the gay kid and then make it all about you?”

Which is a dumb ass conclusion to get from Nursey trying to share feelings and empathize and shit. I told Dex I’m bi for this? “Chill, what the fuck? I was not making it about myself, I was trying to make it clear that I fucking understand how you feel.” And Nursey hates that his voice is starting to get a little louder, a little pitchier, but this is so like Dex, to take the first thing he thinks and run with it, and it’s kind of fucking upsetting because Nursey had just been letting himself think that maybe Dex and his fiery hair and his freckles and his smart mouth and his energy didn’t just fall into Nursey’s orbit in vain, that maybe this stupid crush he had on Dex (and the fiery hair and the freckles and the smart mouth and the energy) could go somewhere, and now, well, Dex has taken that bit of hope and stomped on it.

It’s something he’s very good at. Stomping on hope, that is. Nursey has watched Dex dismantle forwards’ goal-scoring ambitions like it’s as easy as breathing. He’s helped Dex do that, and Dex has helped him in return.

“That you understand how I feel? You have two moms, Nurse. You—” And then Dex blows all the air out of his lungs in one breath and half-turns away, enough that he’s not looking at Nursey, enough that Nursey can barely see his face. “It didn’t really help,” he adds, and Nursey is about to say ‘duh, thanks, Captain Obvious’ when Dex adds, slowly, “Um. But. You made an effort. Thank you? Sorry.”

“Uh?” Nursey manages. Both because of the quick 180 and because he’s never heard Dex sound so tentative in his life. He half-wonders if the Haus is going to fall down around them, because the Haus, like Dex’s general conviction in him being right, is an institution of the Samwell Men’s Hockey Team. If one can fall, so can the other. “You’re welcome?” And it comes out just as tentative from him as it did from Dex. “Sorry it wasn’t helpful. I thought it would be.”

“Yeah, that’s pretty clear,” Dex says, but without bite. “I appreciate you wanting to help, though.”

Okay, this is just too weird. “Sorry, did you wake up today and decide to just be a different person? I mean, I feel like this is an improvement, but if you’re actually just possessed by some sort of weird demon I might have to put a stop to things.”

Dex scrunches his nose up like he can’t decide whether to be angry or amused and says, “Uh, no. Well, kind of. My mom told me to try taking out my anger on the other team, not my own defense partner. Ironic, right?”

Considering that Dex’s mom’s blissfully ignorant questions about girlfriends had sparked Dex’s whole frustration-driven coming out to Nursey that morning, yes. Nursey nods. “But I’m glad you, like, felt like you could come out to me. Even though we fight all the time and shit.”

“Not on the ice, anymore,” Dex points out. Which is true. The first time they’d really clicked on the ice was during a game, with Samwell two points behind and Chowder, in the net, only just having recovered from a minor freak-out after the second period. The other team hadn’t scored at all, Wicks had gotten one goal, Bitty had gotten one, and Jack had gotten two, and Nursey had felt incredibly awkward afterwards as he realized how well he and Dex worked together if they actually, you know, worked together.

Dex had probably realized that at the same time, because they’d managed to keep fighting during practice to a minimum.

Maybe it was only a matter of time until one of them figured out the same thing applied even when they didn’t have their skates on.

“Not on the ice,” Nursey agrees. “If we both try and fight the other team instead of each other, we probably stand a chance at not fighting at all.”

Three months later, Nursey discovers that was bullshit.

Sure, they’re doing better. They’re actually doing so much better that Coach Hall called them into his office to tell them he was proud of their progress, and once Nursey gave Dex a fist bump and pretended not to see Ransom and Holster silently losing their minds over it.

But they still fight. That’s just how things work with Nursey and Dex.

(He’s even getting used to hearing their names said together, as a pair, like RansomandHolster or OllieandWicks. Even if his and Dex’s friendship is much less… well, solid.)

“I can’t believe you actually like the top bunk,” Dex says, taking a bite out of his apple with more force than the situation calls for. “We’re the same height, how do you not hit your head every time you sit up?”

“I’m careful?” Nursey notices he’s not sure exactly when Chowder left the Haus kitchen. He definitely did, though, because all three of them came in together, but whatever, Chowder’s an adult, and Nursey has a debate to win. “Besides, if I have the bottom bunk I always wind up sitting in my bed doing homework and stuff—”

“Which is nice.”

“But then my brain associates being in bed with doing homework and not with sleeping and when I try to sleep I can’t because my brain is like oh, it’s time for… fucking Ovid or some shit.”

“And then you fall asleep because you skated suicides for half an hour and did planks on your breaks and had an entire hockey practice and then went to class for the whole day,” Dex says.

“No, then you stay awake for at least an hour because your brain is rehashing your entire seminar on Roman historians and then for good measure it goes through your entire life and shows you a greatest hits reel of your embarrassing moments, and then you can’t fall asleep because the people across the hall are having a party.” Nursey pauses. “I think I had a point in there somewhere but I got distracted talking about why falling asleep is hard.”

“Bunk beds,” Dex supplies.

“Right. So top bunks are ideal because then I can maintain the separation between work and sleep.”

“Like the separation of church and state.”

“Yes. Also no because that’s completely different.”

“But they are separations. You cannot deny that.”

Which is true. “I cannot.”

And Dex smiles a little at that and takes another bite out of his apple, and Nursey finds himself a little too absorbed in watching as Dex sticks the apple in his mouth and bites down to keep it there, then pulls out his laptop from his backpack and sets it on the kitchen table.

The apple looks dangerously close to falling out of Dex’s mouth, and Nursey stops himself from reaching out to take it before it lands on the floor.

It doesn’t, anyway. Dex gets his laptop open and then keeps eating his apple one-handed as he types something.

Becoming friends with Dex erased Nursey’s distant, unfortunate, aesthetic-driven crush on him, but it was quickly followed by something worse: a real crush. Because underneath the prickly exterior, when Dex is actually making an effort to get to know someone, he’s just… nice to be around. He worries about what other people think of him as much as Nursey does, even if he hides it in a different way. He cheerfully disagrees with Nursey on inane topics, and they get each other into long arguments with the same fervor— passion, Nursey’s brain supplies unsolicited— as the great Attic vs. Roaches debate, if not the same scale. Because it’s just Nursey and Dex, not the whole team.

He kind of likes it that way.

Coming back to campus for pre-season means a couple of things. It means Nursey has to get back on a regular schedule, after doing pretty much nothing besides sleeping, working out, and relaxing. It means he gets on campus before most people, so he can move in in relative peace. And it means he sees his friends. He sees Dex.

It’s been a long summer. Nursey isn’t really sure how he’ll feel when he gets back to campus. At this point, he’s not even really sure what he’s hoping for— the idea of feeling secure in a platonic friendship with Dex and not having to worry about any crush-related feelings is tempting, sure, but Nursey feels like if he gets back to campus and Dex is just another friend, he will have lost something.

Or maybe that’s just the romantic in him talking. Either way, whatever happens happens and Nursey is just going to have to deal.

That mindset lasts all the way until he’s walking to the Haus after unpacking in his dorm room and hears someone yell “Nursey!” from behind him.

He turns around, and there’s Dex, barreling towards him with a lot more freckles and sun-kissed red hair and a t-shirt that is a little more snug than is probably decent and a huge smile, and Nursey has barely registered all of this before Dex catches up and hugs him.

Excuse me?

Even after Dex had come out— and Nursey doesn’t even know how many people on the team he’s out to, it doesn’t seem like many— he still hasn’t been a touchy person. Especially not to Nursey, barring fingers pointed in faces and things like that. And funnily enough, they’d touched each other even less once they stopped fighting all the time. But now…

Now, here they are, and Nursey would be lying to himself if he said he didn’t want to be here.

So he hugs back, and tries to keep his voice calm as he says, “Dex! Hey, man, how are you?” and hopes Dex can’t feel his heart hammering in his chest like if it beats fast enough it’ll convince Dex’s heart to match.

Fuck.

The night before Ransom, Holster, and Lardo’s graduation finds Nursey and Dex sitting in the Reading Room and talking options.

They’ve never shared a room before. They’ve shared spaces, and sometimes they both crash in Chowder’s room at the Haus after a kegster, and once Nursey brought Dex leftover pie while he was cramming for a midterm and wound up hanging out in his room for a while. That’s about it.

“If we do a bunk bed, we’ll have a lot more floor space,” Dex says. “And then you can have the top bunk you’ve always dreamed of. Although I’m still not sure I believe you about not falling out.”

“Aw, William, you remembered? I’m touched.” And Nursey tries his best to make sure that comes out sounding funny and not sad or wistful or anything like that.

This is something he’s considered, and then immediately decided to ignore. It will be harder to hide his crush on Dex if they live together. It’s already hard now, after a full year of spending more and more time together. Nursey has never appreciated plaid flannel shirts the way he does now, after mentally cataloguing Dex’s entire collection (he has eight, but don’t let that fool you, he wears the same three over and over and breaks out the other ones for special occasions). Every day he gets a little more worried that Dex will catch him staring and Nursey won’t think of a witty remark in time.

And it’s not just Dex he’s worried about, because Holster has definitely started to give Nursey Looks when he catches Nursey staring at Dex. Someone has clearly caught on to what’s going on, and the only good thing about it is that Holster hasn’t tried to say anything about it to him.

Well. Holster’s graduating, and next year Nursey will have a whole new crop of teammates who will be blissfully in the dark. And isn’t that a terrifying thought.

“I don’t want them to leave,” he says, but he doesn’t explain why.

Thankfully, Dex doesn’t ask. “I was just thinking that. But we’ll cope.” He says it so plainly, like it’s already a foregone conclusion. “Even if Bitty makes us get up at four AM for… what did he call them?”

“Soviet calisthenics.”

“Right. How could I forget?” And he smiles, and even though Nursey is pretending to look vaguely across the street in the direction of the LAX house, he sees it and he immediately wants to smile back.

So he does. What’s the harm?

“But anyway,” Dex says. “The room. I don’t think we can compete with Ollie and Wicks for interior design, Wicks showed me his Pinterest board and I’m pretty sure it was just to intimidate me? But it fucking worked, so. Let’s at least make our room a place we can both live in.”

“What was on the Pinterest board?” What aspects of interior design intimidate Dex, is what Nursey really wants to know, because he always wants to know everything there is to know about Dex. But he’ll settle for this clue instead.

“A chandelier and hand-knitted throw blankets. Also, shiplap.“

“I… only have a vague idea of what that is.”

“That’s okay, all you need to know is that it’s very popular on HGTV home makeovers.” Dex scoffs. “Waste of time and money if you ask me.”

And that’s so like Dex that Nursey can’t help but laugh and say, “I can’t believe I didn’t like you our first semester.” When Dex raises his eyebrows, he says, “Like, our opinions clashed and all of that, but you’re just so…” Passionate. There’s that fucking word again. Big nope. “Sure of yourself.” It had pissed Nursey off at the beginning, before he’d realized that most of Dex’s strongly held opinions were either correct or just… totally irrelevant to them being able to get along. Like the fucking bottom bunk thing. Dex is clearly wrong, he just hasn’t accepted it.

Dex’s voice sounds a little odd when he says, “That doesn’t sound like a ‘but’, that sounds like another reason you didn’t like me.”

“More like… fuck. No, that’s not the right word to use, sorry.” Nursey’s going to have to fucking say ‘passionate’, isn’t he. The universe is against him right now, but he doesn’t know what that weird tone is in Dex’s voice and he doesn’t want to turn and look at him to find out. “Not sure of yourself. You’re just… when you care about something, you really care about it, you know? I admire that. Being… passionate.” Fuck, he said it. Fuck fuck fuck.

Dex’s voice still sounds strange when he says, “I admire you too, you know.”

And that makes Nursey whip around faster than he has ever turned in his life.

Dex is sitting cross legged, wearing his preferred red flannel, looking right at Nursey, and his face is flushing a little but he repeats, “I admire you too. Because you’re really dedicated to, like, growing as a person and shit. You want to be your best self. It makes me want to do that too.”

“…Thanks.”

With that, Nursey resigns himself to the conversation being over, but he hasn’t turned back to stare vaguely in the LAX house’s general direction before Dex says, fingers twisting in the hem of his flannel, “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” Nursey says, and hopes he won’t regret it.

“Is something wrong?”

“Huh?”

Dex stops twisting up the hem of his flannel and laces his fingers together like he’s trying to keep them still. Which he is, Nursey realizes, because fiddling with clothing is one of Dex’s nervous tics. (He has several.) “You haven’t wanted to hang out as much lately. And you seem stressed about something but I don’t know what it would be since our finals are done and our season’s done and everything. You don’t have to tell me the details, but… is there something I can do?”

Well. Nursey regrets this already. But… no better time to say things you might regret than in the middle of the night before leaving for an entire summer, right? Worst case scenario, all he has to do is get through the graduation ceremony, then he’ll be back in New York and he can text Dex sometime in July and say he’s over him. Even if it’s not true.

“Uh, there’s nothing wrong, really, but…” If he’s going to do it, he needs to be all-in. “Sorry about avoiding you, I don’t think I even consciously realized I was doing it? But I just… I’ve been really stressed about getting through next year. Because I’ve had a huge crush on you for like a year and I don’t know what’s going to happen next year if we’re living together and don’t look at me like that, I’ve been coping fine, and I don’t want to make you uncomfortable or anything, I just… Well, you asked,” Nursey finishes lamely, because he doesn’t know what to say to get that look of shock off Dex’s face. “Sorry.”

He waits for a moment before actually looking at Dex becomes too much, and he gets up to go inside. Coping with commencement and texting Dex he’s over him in July it is.

“Wait,” Dex says, urgency coloring his voice, and Nursey stops almost before he’s got the syllable out of his mouth.

And he turns around, and Dex is standing too, and he says, “There is something I can do.” And before Nursey can ask what, Dex continues, “I’ve been telling myself for months to just let it go away, but… I have had a crush on you for so long—” and then he stops abruptly, and Nursey doesn’t know what to think for a second, and then Dex says, “Sorry, I was going to call you Nursey but then I wasn’t sure if that was the right choice given the context so I just kind of froze?”

“Oh my god,” Nursey says, and that’s as far as he gets before he starts to laugh and also maybe tear up a little because he has been stressing about this ever since that dib flip. “We’re so dumb.”

“Complete idiots,” Dex agrees, and his voice sounds a little shaky, which just makes it match Nursey’s own. “Oh, God, I think I’m going to sit down.” And he sits back down, and Nursey joins him, only a lot closer than the careful two feet he had left between them earlier. “I am so glad I asked.”

“Speaking of asking things, what do we do now?”

“You mean about the room next year, or just in general?”

“Both, I guess.”

Dex contemplates it for a second. “I’m pretty sure we can handle sharing a room. Like, all we have to do is communicate with each other, right?”

“It’s been working pretty well everywhere else in our lives,” Nursey agrees.

“So that’s that for the room. And in general… I guess that just depends on what we want.”

Nursey considers that. “Well, what I want right now is to ask if I can kiss you, and I think the rest can wait until tomorrow.”

“That works for me,” Dex says, and he smiles when he pulls Nursey in for a kiss that feels like it validates every minute Nursey spent pining. He’d do it all again for another chance to throw his arms over Dex’s shoulders and pull him closer, and closer, and closer, until there’s no space between their bodies at all.

Nursey is pretty sure junior year is going to be great.

#nurseydex #my stuff #fic #omgcp #quarantime

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notveryglittery · 5 years ago

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@sleepless-in-starbucks: If i write in submission box I can trick brain into writing more because silly brain says ‘you’re being watched- finish for VALIDATION’ so hi Dani I’m back. I’d tell you to say if you get sick of me but I come bearing The Boi so today I cannot be stopped

Anyways! Roman! Roman and GAYS. But in bullets because like I said if I try to actually write the muse will vanish but if we do bullets very slowly she might be confused and tricked into helping

dani: folks, lia has done it Once Again. i said i was missing roman and they wrote this and i’m smitten, i’m in love, i’m full of feelings and fluff and happiness, and everything is soft and gay and good, please read this if u have the time, i promise it’s worth it

-Imagine: A prince, in grand splendor, not necessarily decked out in jewels or gold so much as he is brimming with confidence, shining with pride, gleaming with pure beauty -Now imagine: Reality- Roman, sprawled across the couch in a wrinkled tank top and torn jeans, lazily eating a pizza slice as he tries to figure out what to do with the rest of his Saturday -But the confidence, the pride, the pure beauty? that’s still there -And to his roommate and his roommate’s two boyfriends, it’s more or less the ‘corporate wants you to find the difference between these two photos/there’s no difference’ meme -It really is problematic. Roman can be doing pretty much anything and they’re screwed (brain cells? absolutely YEETED)

-Patton just wants to get his leftovers out of the fridge?? Too bad so sad for him because Roman’s fumbling with properly putting butter on toast and his face looks stupidly cute when it’s screwed up in confusion and concentration and oh darn has Patton been leaning weakly against the wall for five minutes and now just has enough time to run back to his room before he’s caught staring? looks like he won’t be having that leftover Chinese for a bit -Remy come over for a visit and notice his jacket missing, so he goes looking for it to reclaim what is his??? Well once he finds Roman strutting around the living room like the absolute PEACOCK that he is, winking and posing for his reflection in the turned-off tv screen those goals are CRUSHED- no ma'am he ain’t taking that jacket back, not now, maybe not ever if Roman takes a real liking to it. He’ll just stand there, happy to watch until Roman sees him and looks away and smiles like the goof he is an apologizes while Remy, as smooth as he can while he’s dying from oh my gosh I love him more than espresso on the inside, tells him it ain’t no problem, sweetheart, especially not when you wear it as well as you do ;) -(the wink is a lie. Remy is not flirty. he is gay and dying) -Deceit’s trying to minutely shiver on the couch because his boyfriends had to go grab something for the movie night, leaving him alone and a whole couch apart from Roman, and very cold because he is a cold babey? well no need to worry, because Roman noticed anyways! -and suddenly he’s pressed against Deceit’s side like 'don’t worry I’ll keep you warm til they get back :) don’t want you to freeze :)’ -Deceit is dying of gay and Roman is absolutely CLUELESS so really it’s just the best of all worlds -Even better when Remy and Patton get back and find??? their collective crush?? wrapping an arm around Deceit’s shoulder and tucking him against his side??? while he watches the movie blissfully ignorant -Deceit looks at Remy and Patton like 'I don’t know if you should help me or leave me here to die’ -Turns out he doesn’t have to choose! -Because as soon as he sees them Roman’s beckoning for Remy and Patton to sit down, come lean against his and Deceit’s side, and are Patton and Remy going to turn this offer down??? -No -So, yeah -These are just a few incidents -One to five of them happen on the daily -How Patton/Remy/Deceit have any brain cells left is unknown, even to them -They figure eventually something will break, one of them will say something on accident, and then they’ll know but… -Well -That’s never how these things work, is it. Simply asking Roman if he likes them???? Unheard of, get out of here -So instead, they’re watching -Crowded in the hallway, peering around each other, watching Patton’s roommate and all of theirs’ crush cram a whole pizza slice crust into his mouth -They’ve never seen someone so beautiful, so confident and dazzling, so bright and wonderful -He catches them eventually, surprise surprise -He looks over the couch edge and catches them, quickly swallowing down the pizza before he smiles at them and waves them over -They shuffle over to the couch because I think it’s more or less Science that they cannot say no to Roman -He moves his legs so they can sit down but immediately drops them back down over Patton’s and Deceit’s laps when they take the seat -Remy sits on the arm of the couch by his head but Roman tugs on him a bit and suddenly Roman’s head is in Remy’s lap and he’s blushing a minor fire storm at being so close to such beauty but Remy’s still starting to run his hands through Roman’s hair (I mean, if he’s got the chance, he might as well take it, right?) -Roman seems quite happy with the intention, happy to press his head against Remy’s stomach and bounce his legs in Patton’s and Deceit’s laps and smile prettily at all of them -For a moment, it’s nice. Perfect, even, despite the fact that Roman’s the only one who isn’t blushing -Then Roman speaks up -'I’m so happy you guys are my boyfriends’ :) -For a second, nothing -Then -'WHAT?’ from all three of them, more or less at once -Roman pushes himself into a sitting position, looking between the shocked faces of Remy + Deceit + Patton -'I’m happy you guys are my boyfriends?’ He repeats, now unsure 'what, did I say something wrong-’ -nervous laughter, awkward glances, Patton finally saying, 'sweetie, did you mean boy friends, like… friends who are boys, or…?’ -Roman, ’…no, I definitely meant romantic partners’ -more awkward, flustered glances, before, Remy this time, 'hun, uh, how do I, um, sweetheart, ah-’ -Deceit: 'we’re not dating????’ -Roman: ’…yes we are.’ -Remy: 'since when????’ -Roman: 'since that night?? we were playing truth or dare??? and I dared you all to talk about your ideal third boyfriend??? and you basically just described me???? so when you inevitably asked me what I’m looking for in a boyfriend I just described you guys??? you all blushed and got awkward and giggly??? and then I said I thought you were all beautiful and everything got real quiet and you all said I was beautiful too and then we just kinda piled onto the couch for movie night???? duh???’ -Patton + Remy + Deceit: -Patton + Remy + Deceit: 'WE THOUGHT YOU WERE DRUNK ON SODA AND SLEEP-DEPRIVATION’ -Patton + Remy + Deceit: 'WE CALLED YOU BEAUTIFUL BACK BECAUSE WE WERE CRUSHING GAYS WHO JUST GOT CALLED BEAUTIFUL BY THE LITERAL PRETTIEST MAN WE’VE EVER COLLECTIVELY SEEN’ -Patton + Remy + Deceit: 'AND YOU’RE TELLING US WE’VE BEEN DATING YOU FOR TWO MONTHS??????’ -Roman: ’……………I kinda thought we might have been dating longer I just KNEW two months ago’ -Patton + Remy + Deceit: :0 -Roman: 'you guys always stare at me,,,, and Patton you always turn pink when you see me do anything,,,, and Deceit you always press really close to me when I try to keep you warm,,, and Remy you only ever let your boyfriends steal your jacket,,,,’ -Patton + Remy + Deceit: ’,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,we crushed on you so hard you thought we were dating omg’ -Roman: 'I see’ -Patton + Remy + Deceit: -Roman: -Patton + Remy + Deceit: -Roman: 'so would you like to be my boyfriends for real…?’ :) -Patton + Remy + Deceit: -Patton + Remy + Deceit, while blushing furiously: 'yes very much so please’ -And then they lived gaily ever after because the author has to go get ready for bed and doesn’t know a better way to wrap this up shfbsjf

Also may I just say I loved that I came here to write about Roman,,,,,, and got distracted by other characters being gay about Roman instead jshfbdcfbds

Anyways sorry for bombing your submissions again but hey! I wrote something. go me. hope you liked it :) (also no editing because we die like men)

#lia #fan fics #ot4 #creativisleep #sleepality #royality #roceit #moceit #remceit #submission

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spicy-mbti-memes · 5 years ago

Conversation

How the Types Dump You

ESTJ: As you walk into the room, he is sitting at an office desk. He motions for you to sit down. (This confuses you greatly, because you don’t even have an office desk in your house; did he buy one just for this occasion?) He takes out his reading glasses and pulls out a file folder that you can see is extensively tagged with color-coded index notes. He opens it up and begins reading from a double-spaced, 5,000-word essay written in size 12 Times New Roman with in-text citations and a bibliography written in APA format. His essay lists every way in which you’ve ever failed to live up to his expectations in the relationship; the report concludes that there is no other rational choice but to fire you as his companion. He thanks you for your time and writes you a severance check (aka first and last month’s rent) before leaving. You shrug casually because, well, hey, it could’ve been worse: you could’ve been broken up with the way that the ENFP girl’s boyfriend on this list did.

ISTJ: ISTJs don’t break up with you. If you end up with an ISTJ, you’re either going to have to do the dirty work yourself, or you’re going to be stuck with them until you die.

Either that, or they’ll e-mail you from work while they’re on their lunch break (because they can’t send a personal e-mail during work hours, obviously).

ESTP: You walk into your apartment to see your ESTP boyfriend in the middle of having a literal orgy in your living room. “What the fuck are you doing?!” you scream at your ESTP boyfriend (and the twelve other people in the room, too, I guess), who seems genuinely confused somehow. “But I don’t even love them!” he continues to insist, not understanding how you could be so upset about this. “It’s just sex, what’s the big deal? Here, how about this: why don’t you join us? Would that make you feel better? The bowl of condoms is over there. They’re just for decoration and we’re not using them, but I thought I would show them to you anyway.”

ISTP: Sends you a letter in the mail from a clinic advising you to get tested for STDs.

ESFJ: You’ve been talking about starting to try for a baby for a while now, so you and your partner begin to make some preparations to help protect your future family - stashing away money for the down-payment on a house, trading in your car for a family van, filling out life insurance policies; routine stuff. But then, little things started happening; things so small that you only noticed in hindsight. The new lock on her phone that wasn’t there before. How often you caught her smiling to herself as she was texting. How much more often she was suddenly going on out-of-town work trips, or going out for a lady’s night, or having to stay late for work. How irritated she always seemed to be with you, and how little you were having sex despite actively trying to get pregnant. You were in denial at first, but slowly, you’re starting to put the pieces together. You make up your mind to confront her on the weekend, in case anything goes wrong and you suddenly have to go stay somewhere else.

Except you never get a chance to, because one morning, you wake up and your world looks completely different. You aren’t in your bed; in fact, you don’t seem to be anywhere at all. And that’s because you’re dead, because your wife poisoned you so that she could move overseas to be with her new hot 23-year-old boyfriend from Spain, and the money she got from your $250,000 life insurance policy.

ISFJ: Does it the proper, old-fashioned way: by sitting you down and explaining to you why it just isn’t working out. Fuck ISFJs and their wholesomeness and perfection preventing me from shitposting about them. =/

ESFP: Sends you a picture of themselves flipping the bird while sucking your best friend’s dick. Afterwards, texts you a detailed play-by-play of everything they did, and how much of a better lay he was than you. Oh, and how much bigger his dick was than yours, of course.

ISFP: Breaking up? Us? Oh, honey. Honey, no. You’re not going anywhere. I will murder your entire family if that’s what I have to do to stop them from being able to take you away from me. The police? Lmao, that’s cute. Let them come and watch me win the Oscar performance of the year as I cry about how you beat me, and drag you away to jail instead. No, baby, you’re not going anywhere. We’re never breaking up. We’re always going to be together. Forever.

ENTJ: He’s a wildly successful entrepreneur who ended up becoming a multi-millionaire. You’re the beautiful philanthropist and socialite trophy wife and stay-at-home mom who takes care of the kids. Together, you own homes in four different countries (one for each season, and several in Aspen and Montauk - just for the weekends, of course), a yacht, multiple sports cars, an entire room just for shoes, ties, and handbags, and a chef, a housekeeper, and a full-time, live-in nanny. Everything he owns is shiny, new, the latest model - everything, that is, except for you. So he cheats on you behind your back, divorces you when you find out about it, and then replaces you with a hotter, younger replica of yourself.

But hey, at least you got half of everything in the divorce. At least he was gracious enough not to have you assassinated, I guess.

INTJ: Calmly and rationally explains to you why it just wouldn’t work in the grand scheme of things. I mean, for one thing, having a wife (or even a serious girlfriend) just wasn’t a part of the life plan that he created for himself in the first grade; hell, it wasn’t even a part of the ten-year plan that he drew up for himself on the first day of high school. He’s not trying to be rude or insensitive, but he just doesn’t have the time to waste on pursuing empty, meaningless pursuits like social relationships or having a girlfriend. How is he going to meet his goal of becoming the youngest PhD holder in his state if he has to waste time doing things like talking to you?

Joke’s on him, though, because this is exactly how the movie Legally Blonde started, and doesn’t he know how that movie ended for someone like him?

ENTP: ENTPs don’t break up with you, because ENTPs don’t date anyone seriously in the first place. If, by some stroke of (horrible) luck, you actually did manage to get an ENTP to agree to hang out with you often enough under a context that could reasonably be construed as the two of you being “in a relationship”, they would probably get bored and cheat on you within weeks. But hey, if you’re a masochist and getting your heart broken repeatedly is your thing (lookin’ at you, INFxs), then do what makes you happy, man. I’m not judging.

INTP: Meh. Doesn’t really bother to break up with you. Continues to co-habitate with you while ceasing to continue putting any effort into the maintenance of the relationship, and just kind of letting it die a natural death. By the time it’s over, neither of you have cared for months.

ENFJ: Leaves you a length, caring, compassionate, “It’s not you, it’s me” goodbye letter on your bedside table in an attempt to soften the blow of gently explaining that she has decided to leave you and your life together in order to pursue her dream of cultivating relationships with multiple wealthy Sugar Daddies who fund her extravagant, globetrotting lifestyle.

INFJ: INFJs never truly break up with anyone. They keep the door open just the tiniest sliver, so that they can keep you around as their potential back-up plan in case their current relationship falls apart. After all, where are they going to get their identity and sense of self from if they’re alone?

ENFP: You come home after work and she isn’t there. None of her stuff is missing, so at first, you aren’t worried - she must just be running late, or made an impromptu decision to go see a friend. By 10 PM, you’re riddled with anxiety and the fear that something has gone horribly, horribly wrong. You call her friends. You call all the local hospitals and jails. You file a police report. But nothing ever comes of the investigation, and no one can figure out what happened to her - it’s like she dropped off the face of the Earth. The whole ordeal is emotionally devastating for you, but eventually life goes on, as it inevitably must.

Years later, you turn on your computer and have a new friend request on Facebook. It’s your ex-girlfriend. You find out that she’s been living on a hippie commune in the Costa Rican rainforest for the past three years. She felt “stifled and trapped” by her old life, she tells you, and felt like she “needed a change from the oppressive grind of daily life”. She can’t understand why you’re so upset about it; shouldn’t you be happy for her for finally getting to live out her dream?

You hang up the phone and never think about her again.

INFP: Ghosts you.

That’s it. That’s literally it. You’ll never hear from them again. It’s like they just never existed. After a while, you start to wonder whether they ever really did, or if they were just a figment of your imagination.

(If you’re an INTP, then this is probably true. Your caring, squishy uwu INFP senpai girlfriend was all a product of your lonely imagination.)

#mbti #memes #shitpost #intj #infj #intp #infp #funny

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neopolitans-neo · 4 years ago

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The Misfortunate Adventures of Miss Ice Cream and Mr Torchwick: Act I

This is my back story for our favourite partners in crime, criminal masterminds and rivals of Team RWBY. Not sure how many chapters it will be, guess it’ll depend on the feedback I get and my creativity and patience.

This first chapter I am picturing a young Neo before she has the pink in her hair. The subtle changes of appearance will come in a later part, I already have it planned out in my head. c:

For as long as Neo was alive all she could feel was constant burning in her throat. She had never been able to speak. Even as a baby, apparently she never cried or screamed or made any noises at all. One would think it was a parents dream but ... apparently not. Some people are not made to have children. Among those are parents who do not wish to deal with any specific needs their child may have that they were not anticipating. When doctor after doctor said that there was too much damage to the young child’s vocal cords to fix without extensive surgeries and excessive healing and down time, her parents gave up on her. They put up with their mute child for six months, before deciding to leave her on a neighbours doorstep and skipping out of town. She had no name left with her, no trace of her family. Nothing except her inability to cry out for help.

The neighbours did not ask for a child so they dropped her off a at a hospital, who then transported her to child care facility and eventually she found herself in an orphanage, with countless other children screaming for attention around her. There was no way for her to get any medical attention there, and so even as a baby, she learned that being nice and patient never got you what you wanted. Many times she would not get any food, because the other kids were louder than her. She learned to crawl and walk on her own with no one noticing, or caring. The other kids talked and the young girl tried to copy their mouths but no words or sounds ever came out. On her third birthday they brought in a speech therapist, who said that the girl was a lost cause. On her forth birthday they brought her to a doctor who said that he could try an experimental and expensive surgery but there was no guarantee of it working. The orphanage did not have the money to do any such thing and so she suffered in silence still without so much as a name.

No kid had the patience to become friends with the weird kid who did not talk. And no adult wanted to adopt a child that they did not know how to speak with. By the time she was five she had learned that this would be her life. The last one for everything, the one who had to sneak food and break into the office after hours to get any type of colouring book and be able to play with the toys. She learned all the in’s and out’s of this orphanage. Being mute also meant that she was constantly underestimated. Although she was lonely, she did not know any other way and so, she learned to be happy in her own strange ways.

But then one day, there was a fire. The orphanage was burned to the ground and she herself barely escaped. Of course during roll-call, she was forgotten, but she snuck out through a back entrance and ran away in terror. She was now seven years old and didn’t know any better. She ran and kept running, wanting to scream for help but not being able to. Since she had left through the back she did not see where all the other kids went and ended up lost, afraid and completely on her own. Her bright brown eyes danced around for somewhere safe to go but came upon nothing. They grew heavy and tired, her body ached and she longest for her small, uncomfortable, cold bed. Instead she found a tree that cast a long shadow and someone’s lost sweater to use as a blanket. It would have to do. She curled up, eyes pooling with tears and eventually fell asleep.

When she awoke it was to someone sliding the sweater off of her, trying to be sneaky. One eye popped open and she saw a tuft of red hair going through the pockets. In a split second she decided to jump up, grab the sweater away from the boy and then twirl it around fast enough that it came back and tripped the young man.

Her plan worked and he fell on his bottom. With a scowl he said, “What was that for?”

She could not reply to say that it was him who started the altercation so instead she held the sweater to her chest and glared, daring him to try something again. It didn’t go as she had expected cause now that he could get a good look of her he sighed, “Dammit, you’re one of those orphans aren’t you?”

She tilted her head.

“In the fire? Heard the place burned down and now our home is overfilled with you guys. Guess that means you won’t have any food to take.” He crossed his arms and sat on the ground next to her. His stomach rumbled and Neo continued starring at him out of curiosity. He went on talking, “We had lots of food before you guys all came and lived with us. This morning I only got scraps for breakfast and they told me to get used to it. Lots of kids will be living here now, we will have to share our space, food toys. So I was hoping that I could find at least an apple or something out here. I’m starving.”

Now she understood, this boy was also from the orphanage. From a different one from hers but she supposed that all the kids from hers just moved to his. At least she knew where to go now though. She sat beside him then pointed behind them, trying to ask if that was where he came from. Now it was his turn to look at her weird. “Can’t you talk?” He asked abruptly.

She shook her head and pointed to her throat.

“You can’t talk? And you’re an orphan. Jeez, you’ve got it worse than me kid. My parents died last year and no one wants a nine year old. Now I’m ten, practically an adult and will never be adopted. But they’d probably take me before they’d take a deaf kid.”

She stood up and put her arms on her hips, pointed to her ears and at him, then at her throat again.

Somehow he seemed to understand what she meant. “Okay okay, not deaf but- well you know what I mean.”

She didn’t answer him but looked around again before shrugging and pointing in a direction.

“Are you asking... where the orphanage is?” He guessed and she nodded enthusiastically. “It’s this way,” he got up and led their way back.

When they arrived one of the women let out a sigh of relief when she saw her. “Oh thank goodness the mute girl is back. We all thought you burned in there.” She was getting scolded... for nearly dying. If she could speak she would scream at the top of her lungs about how unfair everything was, but instead she just had to take it. “You should know the plan little girl. When there is a fire you go to the front door and we escort you out. The insurance nightmare if you had burned to a crisp... I am having a heart attack just thinking about it. Now go inside and have your lunch and do not put a toe out of line again.”

“Sheesh,” the boy whispered to Neo once they were out of ear shot. “Did you start the fire or something?”

She shook her head and looked down, then back at them and shrugged her shoulders.

“Must be tough not. being able to talk for yourself. Do they always treat you like that? I know they’re not very nice but... they seemed extra mean to you. Do they even know your name?”

She shook her head more sadly again. Ever since she arrived at the orphanage, she had always been referred to as ‘girl’, ‘child’ or simply, ‘mute’.

He asked something she didn’t expect next, “Do you know your name?”

Again, all she could do was shake her head and the boy frowned.

“Well, mine is Roman, if you ever think of yours maybe you could write it down for me!”

Her brows furrowed and she shrugged.

“Like, with a pencil or something... do you know how to write?”

A stiff head shake this time.

“Maybe I can teach you some time- you know when we could at least pass notes or something and I don’t have to always guess what you’re saying?”

This made her whole body perk up, did this boy- Roman, intend to keep on talking to her, almost like a friend? Didn’t he have some of his own already?

“If you wanna try to communicate that is. I’m not really friends with any of the other kids here, they’re too young. Not many older kids, they usually run away. I was thinking about it but I don’t know where to go.”

They took their seats in the cafeteria and received their lunches. Three apple slices, some leftover porridge and a quarter sandwich. “Is this it?” He complained loudly and one of the women took away his sandwich.

“Not if you complain Torchwick.” The lady said harshly and gave the sandwich to someone else instead.

He whined out loudly but beside him, his new friend passed her porridge to him. She hated hot foods, it hurt her throat to eat. Plus he had been nice to her so far and she wanted some way to repay him. He looked puzzled at her gesture. “Won’t you be hungry?”

With a shake of her head she sucked on her apple slices instead and pushed it closer to him, insisting that he took it. He did and they both ate contently and ended up spending the rest of the day together.

And the day after that, the day after that, the week after that and nearly a year later they had never been apart for more than the few hours of sleep that thy got since the boys and girls had to sleep in different rooms. But sometimes they would meet up at night and sneak into the kitchens for snacks, her favourite was always ice cream and Roman would tuck some crackers or bread in his pockets to save or later. The two became the best of friends. And when she was ten and he was thirteen he decided that he was now an adult. Neither of them were ever going to be adopted and adults certainly did not need to live in dirty orphanages. The problem was lien... but he found a job for the both of them. It was a shady man who said he sold dust and needed them to help transport dust from their ‘factory’ to their ‘customers.’ Roman and the girl had over heard him whispering to his boss that he had the perfect solution since no one would ever suspect two kids and they barely had to pay them anything cause kids were dumb and didn’t know any better. Roman did not like that implication but did see how he could make some extra lien out of it. In the end they came to a deal. The man rented them a small room to share and supplied them with food. While the two of them now had to work seven nights a week making these special deliveries and never saying so much as a word about it. Everyone was happy. Roman was glad to have a place that him and his nameless best friend could live and the man was happy to have someone who literally could not speak and someone else who would not speak, working for him.

They did this job until Roman was 18, legally an adult and now with 5 years behind him of getting to know all the shadiest people of Vacuo. She was still a kid, at fifteen, but the pair of them had discussed in length what they would do when he was old enough to get a real job. They knew that what they were transporting was not dust. Or perhaps just not legally dust. And they knew that the cut their employers was getting was much higher than they were. They wanted in. They wanted to be able to take Neo to a doctor and see if they could do anything about her speech and then move into a nicer place and make actual money instead of being paid in cheap, probably stolen, groceries. And now it seemed like the best time to do it. All the contacts knew and liked Roman and his nameless friend. (She could never decide on a name she liked and also did not see the need of having one, he would just call her ice cream due to how quickly she always ate all the ice cream and her employers just called her brown eyes or mute.)

Roman tried to strike a deal, it didn’t work and instead he lost their ‘job.’ Apparently criminals did not like to pay their staff very well and also did not like being called criminals. But this did not bother him. He could get a real job now, save up money for Miss Ice Cream and they could start a real life together.

tbc

#neopolitan #roman torchwick #RWBY #fanfiction #partners in crime #roman ice cream #creaminal #partners in cream #ffa #rwby fic

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youtuberswithalex · 5 years ago

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PRVL Vol. 3, Ch. 2: New Challengers...

(A/N: "I'm not gonna update every week" I said, before I proceeded to scramble to finish this chapter today so it could go up one week after the first chapter)

Summary: On their way back to their dorm, Team PRVL meets a couple of interesting characters that teach them a little more about one of their teammates.

Word Count: 4,168

Warnings: Fighting (in a tournament), cursing

Taglist: @haikyuupaladin @an0therrand0 @isabel3710 @ilia-a-isms (Let me know if you want to be added or removed!)

Masterpost – Volume 1 -- Previous -- Next

—–

Stepping off of the airship, Virgil wrapped his arms around himself. “You guys really don’t have to come, if you don’t want,” he said. “Seriously, I’m fine.”

“It’s okay, Virgil,” Patton insisted. “We could all use a break. Maybe we can even go to the fair grounds to get something to eat!”

Roman gasped as he jumped to hover in front of them. “Ooh, doesn’t Simple Wok have a booth?! We should check that out at some point!”

“Ah, yes, over-priced and over-salted noodles,” Logan grumbled. “What a wise use of our Lien.”

“There’s more than just noodles in them, Logan,” Roman shot, crossing his arms. “Have you ever had the seafood special? The fish is cooked to perfection!”

Patton paled, and his voice cracked. “What?!”

“Uhh, I mean…”

Virgil grunted and took a step away from them. “Look, you guys go wherever you want. I’m going back to our room.”

“It would be beneficial for you to eat something,” Logan pointed out.

“I’m not hungry.”

“You may not feel like it, but after a panic attack like that—”

“Logan, I’m not eating!”

The other three froze, and the air around them grew tense; other students passing by shot them a look, to which Virgil curled away from. He let out a huff and frowned, rubbing his face.

“Look, I’m sorry,” he sighed. “I’m just…”

“Overwhelmed,” Patton softly finished.

Virgil slowly nodded. “Yeah.”

Roman let out a hum and landed. He placed a hand on Virgil’s shoulder, but when he ripped away, he settled for placing it on his own hip instead. “Maybe taking a break isn’t such a bad idea.”

Letting out a slow, shaky breath, Virgil let his arms relax a bit. “Yeah, that… That sounds good. I just don’t want to keep you guys from anything.”

“Personally, I don’t know of anything that would require our presence immediately,” Logan said. “You have nothing to worry about.”

“Logan! Logan!!”

“Logie!!”

Logan froze, eyes widening as he spun around. The others followed suit.

“Uh, Lo?” Patton asked. “Do you know them?”

Further down the path, and man and a woman were sprinting towards them. The man’s face was mostly covered by a dark blue cloak and medical mask, and the woman’s head by a hijab, but Logan didn’t need those details to know exactly who they were.

He blinked.

“Ah,” he said. “It’s my parents.”

“Your parents?!”

Before he could respond, the two tackled him to the ground.

The other three let out yelps and jumped to get them off, but were stopped by the sound of laughter. Logan wasn’t cringing or trying to get away; instead, his arms wrapped awkwardly around theirs, and he was laughing softly.

“Father, Esther, please!” he chuckled. “You’ll draw attention!”

“Oh, who’s gonna care?! All they’re seeing is a family that’s been separated for too long!” the man laughed.

Regardless, they pulled apart and climbed to their feet, pausing when they saw the wide eyes of the other three. The man gasped and pointed at them.

“You’re his teammates!” he exclaimed. “Patton, Roman, and Virgil, right?! You kids were fantastic today!”

The woman beamed and nodded, holding up a pair of balled fists. “A set of promising Huntsmen for sure! You’re the perfect team for our Logie!”

Virgil raised an eyebrow, smirk forming. “’Logie’?”

“Yes, it’s a term of endearment Esther has attributed to me,” Logan explained.

Patton smiled, leaning out just a bit from where he was hidden behind Roman. “Aw, that’s sweet.”

“You know what else is sweet?! That knock out you made!” his father laughed, punching Logan’s shoulder. “What a hit!”

“That Sanders kid really had no idea what was coming!” Esther added. She pulled him into a headlock. “Way to beat the competition!”

He grabbed him from the other side before pecking Esther on the lips and ruffling Logan’s hair. “Where’d you learn to fight like that?!”

Logan rolled his eyes. “Oh, I may have gotten a few tips over the years from a couple of exquisite Hunters…”

“You two are Hunters, aren’t you?” Roman asked. “What in the world are you doing here? I thought Logan said you were on a mission in Vacuo of some sort!”

Logan’s father scoffed and waved his hand. “And miss the chance to watch our son in his first big league tournament? Never!” He yanked the medical mask down to his neck and beamed a bright, white grin. “You can call me Virtus. Really, it’s so great to meet you guys! Thanks for taking care of our son!”

“Oh, we’re not—”

“We aren’t really—”

Virtus let out a loud laugh and threw his head back. “Humble kids, huh? Reminds me of my days back at Haven!”

His hood tipped over, causing long, dirty blond hair to spill out and over his shoulders. Logan ripped away and scrambled to snatch it up, stuffing it back into place without missing a beat.

“Father!” he hissed. “You must keep your hood up! What if someone saw?!”

Grimacing, Virtus clung tight to his hood and spun his head wildly; as soon as he was sure no one was looking, he let out a breath.

“That was a close one,” he muttered. He reached up and ruffled Logan’s hair. “Thanks, kid.”

Logan pulled away and fixed it, but not without a small smile. “Just be careful.”

“Hey, that’s our line!” Esther laughed. She ran a quick hand through his hair, as well; he sighed and let it remain mussed.

“Um,” Roman said, “Why, exactly, is it, that you have you keep yourself hidden at all times?”

Virtus winked. “Well, when you’re Hunters like us, you gotta keep your potential enemies on their toes in case they’re searching for you!”

Virgil paled. “What?”

“You never know who’s after you,” Esther added, leaning forward and waving her fingers. “Someone could be right here, hiding in the shadows, just waiting for their moment to strike!”

“Please, you two. We aren’t children,” Logan said. He crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow at them. “We know the dangers that come with being Hunters. I would appreciate it if you didn’t attempt to frighten my friends, especially considering the fact that we’ve already had a few encounters with people trying to kidnap us.”

Virtus grinned. “How can you be kidnapped if you’re not kids anymore?”

“Father.”

Patton let out a giggle and slammed his hand over his mouth; Logan shot him a sharp glare.

“Do not encourage him, Patton,” he huffed.

He coiled back further behind Roman. “Sorry…”

Roman paused, glancing over his shoulder as Logan’s parents went back to doting all over him. Patton had his arms wrapped around himself as tight as the film that he could still practically feel yanking the sword out of his hands. He was chewing on his lip hard enough that Roman feared he was about to draw blood; his brows were furrowed, and his eyes wide, glued to Virtus’s boots.

Ah, Roman thought.

He pushed his wing back to cover Patton’s field of vision, and then he let out a wail, throwing a hand over his forehead.

“Oh, how parched I am after all that fighting! And how foolish I am for having left my water bottle in our dorm!” he cried. He fell back against Patton, light enough to keep them from falling over. “Please, Patton, I beg of you, go fetch it for me before I perish!”

Virgil raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms. “Roman, you can fly.”

“I beg thee, Patton!” he repeated. “And please, take our dear Virgil on this perilous journey! It could take weeks! Or months! Or however long it will take for a nap to replenish your energy!”

“Aw, you poor thing!” Patton exclaimed, muffled by the wing pressed against his face. “Of course we’ll go! Where’d you leave it?”

“I’m afraid I can’t remember! My mind is far too gone to recall! You’ll just have to spend however much time is needed to search for it!”

Logan rolled his eyes.

Patting Roman on the shoulder, Patton peered around and gave him a reassuring smile. “Don’t you worry, kiddo. Virgil and I will find it!” he declared. “Where can we find you? You probably need to sit somewhere…”

“Oh, thank you!” Roman stood up straight and turned, keeping a wing out between Patton and Virtus. “Just contact me on my scroll, I’ll let you know! You are a saint, dearest Patton!”

He nodded and grabbed Virgil by the hand, dragging him off without another word. As soon as they were out of sight, Roman smiled and turned back to the Lyceums.

“I hear Team AMBR is about to have their match,” he said. “Would any of you like to join me in watching what is sure to be an almost flawless victory from two skilled students, one handsome boyfriend, and their wonderful yet irritating leader?”

Logan raised an eyebrow. “I thought you were dying of dehydration?”

“Oh, no! That was just a ploy to get those two to go take a nap!” Roman admitted. “I don’t even own a water bottle, truthfully!”

“Roman, you realize that Patton is just going to spend his whole afternoon searching for that nonexistent water bottle instead, right?” Logan pointed out.

He paused, and then he shrugged. “I’m sure Virgil will figure it out and explain it to him.”

Logan sighed. He turned to face his parents and placed his hands behind his back. “Well, if it’s alright with you two, I would like to watch some more matches and evaluate the students of the other schools. I know you’ve probably seen more than enough fighting out in the field and aren’t too excited to watch more—”

“Are you kidding?! I was worried you were gonna say no!” Virtus exclaimed.

Logan and Roman blinked. “What?”

Esther laughed. “Oh, come on, you think it’s like this out in the field? It’s life or death out there!” she said. “Here, there are rules! You can root against your favorite team without worrying about the danger!”

“And your partner getting knocked out doesn’t mean they’re going to be killed,” Virtus added, shooting a wink at Roman.

“Besides, we’re not going to be here for the whole competition. As long as we’re spending time with you and your friends, Logie, we’d love to do whatever you guys want while we’ve got the time!”

“Oh. Um, well,” Logan stuttered, “Then I suppose we’d better get back to the colosseum before we miss many more matches.”

Esther and Roman cheered; she held up a hand, which he gave a high five with a twirl in the air. As he shot off back towards the airships, she grabbed Logan’s hand and dragged him along, pressing a rough kiss into his hair. He let out a noise of protest, but followed along anyway.

Virtus stayed still for a moment and crossed his arms, watching them go with a soft smile. A warmth settled in his chest; he glanced up at the clouds before looking back at Logan.

A flash of magenta caught his eye. His smile dropped.

A woman with a long ponytail was stepping off the ship just in front of his family. Her back was turned, but her tattered, pink cloak revealed enough armor and ammo for him to take note.

She looked to the side. Sunlight glinted off of the metal guard over her mouth.

“Father?”

Virtus blinked, glancing to where Logan stood, raising his eyebrows at him. By the time he looked back to where she was, the woman was gone.

Narrowing his eyes, he pulled the medical mask back over his mouth and headed towards the ship.

----

New Message from: [Deleted]

Hey!

New Message from: [Deleted]

How have you been?

New Message from: [Deleted]

I hope you’ve been good. We’ve been doing alright here!

New Message from: [Deleted]

We love and miss you a lot

New Message from: [Deleted]

Call me sometime, okay?

Delete Messages?

>YES< >NO<

----

“And that’s it! Team SVIJ wins the match for Haven Academy!”

Nila leapt out of her seat, throwing her arms out. “What?! No way! He totally had her cornered!”

“Were we watching the same match?!” Roman shot back. “She wiped the floor with him!”

“Um, did you see his use of Fire Dust?!”

As the stage began to reset, Logan slid down and pinched the bridge of his nose. “At this rate, the two of you are going to start attracting Grimm…”

“Oh, it’s all in good fun! Haven’t you ever placed your bets on a match?” Virtus asked.

“Considering you never allowed me to go to matches by myself, no, I haven’t.”

On the other side of Logan, Thamir laughed. “We can bet on this one, if you’d like.”

Logan raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t we both rooting for the same team?”

“Eh, like your dad said, it’s all in good fun. I’m sure they’ll understand,” Thamir replied. “Wanna wager… a cup of coffee?”

Logan smiled. “That sounds adequate.”

Thamir grinned and looked back at the field. “Good,” he said, “Cause I happen to know a nice little coffee shop down in Vale that’s got some pretty good stuff.”

“Oh? Which shop would that be?”

“Up next, we have Team SAMM of Atlas versus Team AMBR of Beacon!”

Roman screamed and shot into the air, gesturing wildly at the teams coming onto the field. “That’s my boyfriend!” he screeched. “That’s my boyfriend!”

“And your brother,” Lloyd called.

“Right, right, of course—Oh, look at how the light just accentuates his eyes! Look how handsome he is!”

“No wonder Anole doesn’t like them dating,” Thamir muttered.

Esther snorted and snuggled into Virtus’s arm. “That’s just young love.”

Riad turned around and waved up at Roman; in return, he beamed and shot a kiss. Grinning, Riad moved to give one back, but Anole grabbed him by the shoulders and turned him around to face the other team before he got the chance.

“C’mon, dude, focus,” he huffed.

Riad let out a soft laugh and got into a fighting position. “Right. I’m all ears.”

“No, you’re not,” Marjani giggled, pulling her swords out of their sheaths. “You’re a whole body!”

“Babe, please,” Bora sighed.

Across the way, one of the four girls in front of them laughed.

“Thank the gods you clarified. I would have shifted my whole strategy to fighting a giant ear if you hadn’t have said something,” the girl in pink said, pointing to her faded, cloudy eyes. She raised her eyebrows and smirked. “Might’ve just ruined your chances of winning, though.”

Anole returned the look. “Oh, I wouldn’t bet on that.”

The one in the long, purple dress chuckled. “I certainly wouldn’t, either. We’re practically guaranteed to win, regardless of what Sakiz thinks she’s dueling against.”

The smaller screens popped up around the stage and began to spin, and the two teams turned to watch them slow to a stop.

“What do we got?” Sakiz asked.

“They’ve got the Volcano Fields,” the girl with feathers poking out of her scalp answered. “We’ve got… Shit.”

“What?”

“The pirate ship,” the one in purple said. “In a pool.”

As the floor began to recede, the girl with feathers looked down at her metal arm and leg. “Shit,” she repeated.

The girl in all black turned to glare at AMBR, but kept her face towards her teammate. “Don’t worry, Myrtille,” she said, “we’ll keep you out of the water.”

As soon as the stages were set in place, the two teams jumped into their battle stances.

“What’s the plan, Anole?” Bora asked.

“Operation Four Square,” he answered. “Let’s knock these girls out as quick as we can.”

“In three… two… one…”

Myrtille looked to their leader. “Sakiz?”

“BEGIN!”

“Mauve, Ash, go!”

The girl in black shoved her chain into the hands of the girl in purple, who wrapped it around an arrow and fired it into the birds’ nest at the top of the mast. Ash spun her arm around Mauve’s waist and lifted her into the air just as the chain sent them flying after it.

“Don’t let them get the high ground!” Anole shouted.

Bora and Marjani sprinted towards the ship, each going in a wide arc on opposite sides of the remaining members of Team SAMM. Sakiz and Myrtille drew their weapons—a pair of machetes and an ice saw, respectively –and charged towards the boys.

Riad lifted his mace. “Plan?”

“Keep Myrtille out of the water and Sakiz out of the lava,” Anole ordered.

“That’s it?!”

Myrtille threw her saw down between them, and the two leapt apart.

“Do you have a better idea?!” Anole shot back.

Riad opened his mouth to respond, but Sakiz swung her machetes at Anole, drawing his attention away to dodge. Myrtille shot towards him just a second later, and Riad had to throw up his mace to block.

In the stands, Roman punched the air. “That’s right, don’t you touch my boyfriend!”

“Roman, this fight couldn’t continue if there was no contact,” Logan pointed out.

Calanthe let out a yell and began to repeatedly smack Lloyd’s arm, grinning as she pointed towards the ship. “Look! Look! They’re about to do that—that bounce-board thing they do!”

“Bounce-board thing?” Virtus repeated.

As Bora and Marjani made it to the bottom of the mast, Bora held out her scythe, and Marjani hopped onto the blade; she swung as hard as she could at an angle, and Marjani leapt off at the peak, sending her flying to about the height as the bird’s nest. As she began to descend again, she drew her swords and wedged one in between the planks.

Marjani glanced up just in time to see Mauve aiming an arrow directly at her face; she gasped and flung herself under the post, digging her other blade into the wood of the mast. The arrow slammed into the sand, just barely missing Bora as she sprinted her way up the mast. As soon as she was close enough, the girls latched hands, and Marjani pulled Bora up to stand next to her.

“What do you think, should we pull a ‘Bi-Bi’ on them?” she asked.

“You read my mind,” Bora replied.

She swung to the other side of the mast and threw her scythe up to the edge of the bird’s nest while Marjani jumped back and stuck both of her blades back between the boards. The two launched themselves into the air…

…Only to find Ash and Mauve standing back to back with their weapons already pointed towards them.

Mauve fired a black arrow, to which Marjani spun and sliced in half as Mauve hopped onto the edge and flipped backwards; she twisted to shove Marjani’s head into her bow and held it tight against her neck.

At the same time, Ash flung her chain to wrap around Bora, the sudden pinning of her arms causing her to drop her scythe. She yanked, and Bora went flying around the other side of the mast, slamming into Marjani just as Mauve leapt off of her, kicking her forward in the process. The chain continued its momentum, and within just a few seconds, the girls were wrapped tight around the mast.

“This is homophobic,” Marjani grunted.

Anole dove backwards and rolled as one of Sakiz’s blades swooped by, just barely tweaking the tip of his nose. As he slid to his feet and ground to a stop, he felt one of his shoes crunch at the very edge of the lava field. He shot it a glance and cursed, moving to raise his bow to push Sakiz back, but she slammed both of her machetes down and pushed him further onto the rock.

She gave him one final shove before spinning and raising her weapons; Anole took this chance to snap his bow apart, and he flung one half around her wrist just before she could strike.

He whipped her around, realizing a second too late that they’d been standing mere feet away from a bubbling lava pit. Holding back a yelp, he fired a shot of Gravity Dust and yanked her back just as her foot scraped against the drop. She slammed into his chest with a high-pitched yelp, and he held her tight. A plume of lava shot into the air.

“Watch yourself!” he exclaimed.

Sakiz slammed the top of her head into his chin; as he stumbled back, she slammed a punch into his stomach, and a knee into his face.

“Don’t make those jokes,” she growled.

Guilt and heat shot up his spine, and he waved his hands.

“I—N-No, that—That wasn’t what I meant!”

Letting out a yell, she whirled around and kicked him in the head, knocking him to the ground.

Metal clinked and clanked as Myrtille and Riad parried, inching their way back and forth into each other’s space with each hit. They glared and kept their eyes close on the other’s, neither daring to look away. The strain and the autumn heat mixed into sweat dripping down their foreheads; a drop fell into Riad’s eye, but he forced himself to ignore the intense stinging.

Myrtille suddenly reached way back and spun her ice saw before gripping it tight with two hands and stabbing it towards Riad. He twisted just out of reach; while she readied another attack, he pressed a button on his mace and slammed it into the ground. She jumped just in time to avoid the sheet of ice spreading, but slipped as soon as she landed, hitting the ground with an Oomph!

Riad took a second to glance up at the scoreboard, and then over towards the bird’s nest; eyes widening, he whirled around towards their leader.

“Anole, the girls!”

He snapped his head up to follow his teammate’s gaze, letting out a curse as soon as he spotted them. Sakiz let out a yell as she slammed her machetes down; he rolled out of the way just as they made contact with the floor. Anole used the momentum to slide to his feet and sprinted forward, tackling her just long enough to wrap his bow string around her waist. Firing another Gravity Dust bullet, he leapt into the air, dragging her with him, and twisted.

As soon as he unwrapped his weapon, he put his feet on her stomach and kicked her, sending her into the Volcano Field and him towards the water. He watched close to make sure she landed safely—if roughly —on one of the rocky hills.

“Don’t move!” he yelled, before he sunk into the water.

Riad threw his hands out, glancing back at Sakiz before shooting a glare towards where Anole had disappeared. “Bro!”

His legs were suddenly swept out from underneath him, and he and Myrtille slid across the field, him struggling to get his calves out of her grip while she kept pushing them towards the edge of the ice. He dug the spikes of his mace down to try to slow them, using a bit of Fire Dust to help the cause, but she punched it away with her metal arm. The force ripped the handle from him, and he watched with an outstretched hand as it slid out of reach.

They finally made it to tile; the rough tiles burned Riad’s bare arms as they skidded across. He moved to kick Myrtille away, but she held him firm stood, pressing a foot onto his chest.

“Ha! Gotcha!” she exclaimed.

Movement caught his eye; he looked over to watch Sakiz as she carefully felt her way around and tried to find a way down.

“Don’t move,” she mockingly said under her breath, using her foot to search for a good place to put it. “How about you don’t tell me what to—”

A shriek slipped out of her throat as a rock crumbled; she slid down a steep edge, digging her fingers into the ground as her legs and torso began to dangle in mid-air, right over a bubbling pool of lava.

Riad let out a yelp of his own and snapped his head to look at Myrtille. “Dude, your leader—!”

“What, do you think I’m an idiot?!” she snapped. “I might be a starling, but that doesn’t make me a birdbrain! You can’t trick me into looking away as I’m going for the kill!”

Sakiz tried to pull herself up, only to lose her grip and fall another few inches. A pebble dropped and bounced off of her foot at just the right angle, landing on a loose boulder that was just out of her reach.

Myrtille lifted her ice saw like a golf club; Riad refused to look, forcing himself to try to remember anything and everything from those seemingly pointless math classes they’d all been forced to take.

Roman jumped to his feet. “Riad, get out of there!”

With a deep breath, Riad summoned as much aura into his fist as he possibly could and slammed it against the floor.

#sanders sides #sanders sides fanfiction #rwby #rwby au #prvl #alex writes

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needscaffeine · 5 years ago

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What if like,,,,, Roman's gonna propose to Deceit but starts to doubt self so Remus helps him get over /most/ of his fears about what could go wrong the best he can. Like just Roceit fluff basically with supportive Creativitwins(for the prompts, you really don't need to do any of this if you'd rather not! Or if my thought process is too weird to understand- have a wonderful day/night!! ❤💛

Your thought process is amazing and I hope you're having a good day/night also. (Sorry this took so long)

-----------------

Roman was a man of pride. But sometimes that pride didn't matter and you need to rant to your twin and have him help you through a panic attack. And that's exactly what he was doing at the moment.

He was pacing the living room of Remus' apartment as he vented.

"It's just like, what if he does say no? I'll look like an idiot and I'll be heart broken. I'm not sure it's worth it. My wallet really didn't think it was worth it. By the way, why do rings even cost so much? I mean seriously you go in asking for a custom ring and you get charged more than you make times five. Oh. My. Zues. If he says no what am I going to do with the ring? I could pawn it but I won't get the same amount of money. And I'm not sure I'd want to pawn it. I don't want to do anything with it besides slide it onto his finger after he says yes, but what if he doesn't say yes?!"

"Dude, if you don't calm down I'm going to smack you", Remus stood up from where he was laying on the couch, watching his brother pace.

"But-", Roman tried to say but his brother stuck his, probably dirty, hand on his mouth.

"But nothing. He's going to say yes. Because you two are gross and in love. It's disgusting to watch and that makes me certain that he'll say yes. Also it's not like you haven't talked to him about it before, right?", He removed his hand.

"Of course we've talked about it. And he's always said that he wants to get married and that he wants it to be me but that doesn't mean anything. What if now isn't the right time? What if he's changed his mind? What if-"

"Roman, shut up. You're working yourself into a panic. Sit down. I'll be right back", Remus said, pointing to the couch. After Roman sat down he made his way to his room, where his phone was because he forgot to charge it. He dialed a number and waited for an answer.

Roman looked toward the room where his brother had disappeared. He wasn't panicking. It was more like freaking out because this could be the worst idea of his life but it could also be the best and he really wanted it to be the best. He also really wanted his brain to shut up before he sticks a sword through his ears.

Unfortunately his train of thought continued until Remus came back.

"Okay, so I called Logan and he says that one, you need to chill out because it'll be fine, and two he told me I need to be nicer", Remus said as he sat down on the couch.

"He's not wrong about that", Roman mumbled.

"I'm trying", Remus pouted but then turned to face Roman, "Look, I know you're stressed about this. Anyone in their right mind would be, though I'm not sure you are, but what I'm saying is that this is normal. So you need to take some deep breathes and really think this through"

"Okay", Roman nodded, and then began to do the breathing exercise that he's seen Virgil do, a lot. Once he felt a bit better he looked back at Remus expectedly.

"I'm going to ask you a couple questions, okay?"

"Okay"

"Have you and Dee discussed getting married before?"

"Yes"

"And what has he said about it?"

"That he does want to marry me"

"So why're you so nervous?"

"I don't know. It's just a really important step in our relationship"

"Are you ready for marriage?"

"Yeah. At least I think so. I want to get married. And I want it to be to Dee"

"So, you ready to propose?"

"Yeah... Yeah. I'm ready. Because he's going to say yes.

"That's the spirit!"

Roman wasn't sure why that worked, but he was really glad it did. He was a lot calmer. At least until he looked down at his watch.

"I gotta go! Thank you for talking with me. I really appreciate it", He said quickly while sliding his jacket on.

"Don't sweat it! I better get grossly adorable pictures after he says yes"

"Of course", Roman waved back at him as he walked out the door, "Bye!"

Remus returned the goodbye. As soon as Roman was gone he sink back into the couch groaning. He loved his brother but he was a disaster sometimes.

-----

Roman was ready. The talk with Remus had helped a ton but it was wearing off and he needed to do this now.

It had taken him a long time to come up with the perfect way to propose. He had gone through several ideas. Most of which were crazy, insane grand gestures. A flash mob sounded fun. But eventually a different idea popped into his head. And once it took root and bloomed into a wonderful flower of amazingness, he picked it. It was perfect, beautiful even. And a lot easier to pull off.

They were curled up on the couch in their apartment watching Disney movies and had been since Dee had gotten home. There was a half eaten pizza sitting in front of them, next to there cups of soda. Both were forgotten because cuddling was more important.

Dee was curled into Roman's side with his head on his shoulder. Roman had wrapped his arms around his boyfriend. It was wonderfully domestic.

Tangled was the movie playing at the moment and Roman was waiting for the right moment to ask when his boyfriend accidentally gave it to him.

"This is my favorite Disney movie. Do you know why?", He asked looking up at Roman.

"The music?"

"No. It's because their relationship reminds me of us. You know the egotistical bad boy falls for the innocent cinnamon roll that teaches him what's really important in life? That's totally us"

"You are my innocent cinnamon roll, huh?", Roman pulled him closer.

"Not anymore", Dee smirked at him. Roman laughed. He would gladly admit that he tainted his boyfriend. It was bound to happen at some time.

He was about to make a retort when he realized this was his moment. He needed to do it now.

"You know, we aren't exactly like them. There's one major difference"

"And what's that?", Dee asked raising his eyebrow.

"They're married and we're not"

"Oh. Yeah I forgot about that"

"But I know how we can fix that"

Dee sat up. He wasn't sure if he was understanding Roman correctly. Was he proposing? Right now?

Roman sat up to face him, reaching behind him and grabbing the ring box out from behind the books on the side table.

Dee watched as he gracefully slid off the couch onto one knee as he held the ring box open towards him.

"You know, I had a whole stupid, dorky speech written, but all I can think of now is dumb Disney puns. So I guess all I've got to say is, will you marry me?", Roman asked.

He wanted to cry. Here he was, sitting on the couch surrounded by food and random junk, his boyfriend proposing in his Mickey Mouse pajamas, I See The Light playing in the background, and it was perfect. He had pictured this moment before and it was never like this, but this was so much better than anything he could've dreamed of.

"Dee?", Roman waved a hand in front of his face. Instead of responding verbally, Dee tackled him in a hug. One that Roman returned grinning.

"Should I take that as a yes?", He asked smirking.

"Yeah, you should", he smiled back, "I love you"

"I love you too", Roman then held up the ring box again, "I've been waiting to put this on your finger, so may I?"

"How long have you been waiting?", Dee asked as he held out his hand.

"A couple months. Logan's been holding on to the ring for me", Roman shrugged.

"I'm surprised that you were able to keep a secret that long"

"I can keep a secret. This is proof"

"I guess it is. By the way I'm really glad that you asked at home"

"You are? I mean I'm glad because I wanted you to like it, but why?"

"Because I can do this", He kissed Roman quickly on the lips, "And not feel self-conscious about it"

"You know that is an upside I didn't think about", Roman smiled.

"We should take advantage of it", He smirked.

"We should", Roman smiled connecting their lips again, this time the kiss was a lot more passionate. They only separated when the sound of Mother Gothel screaming reminded them that there was anything else going on.

It surprised them, making them jump. There was a few moments of silence, besides the movie, before they started laughing.

Roman stood up pulling Dee with him and sitting back down on the couch. The immediately curled back into each other again, like it was natural, and at this point maybe it was.

The movie came to a close soon after. Roman smiled at his fiance, "This is my favorite Disney movie too".

#deceits name is dee because im too lazy to use an actual name even if a couple of them are common in fanfics also dee is a real name so #also Remus calls logan to help help other people because he's just not good at being very nice not that hes not nice its just hard you know #roceit #asks #roman x deceit #sanders sides #roman sanders #ts deceit #deceit sanders #soft deceit #sympathetic deceit #i guess #remus sanders #marriage proposal #creativitwins #ambersky0319

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coffeebased · 4 years ago

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Hey! Wikathon na! I’ve started reading Relocations by Karen Tongson, about a third through now, but I had to take a little detour through Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir like I said I would. I’ve finished reading HtN but I’m not quite done experiencing it, so I’ll probably pick Relocations back up tomorrow.

But here’s what I read in July! What’s a segue?

1. Haikyu!! Volume 44 and 45 by Haruichi Furudate

A chance event triggered Shouyou Hinata’s love for volleyball. His club had no members, but somehow persevered and finally made it into its very first and final regular match of middle school, where it was steamrolled by Tobio Kageyama, a superstar player known as “King of the Court.”

Vowing revenge, Hinata applied to the Karasuno High School volleyball club… only to come face-to-face with his hated rival, Kageyama!

And with those two volumes, Haikyū has ended. I’m really glad that my cousin got me to catch up to the series because being a part of the sheer joy and love that’s poured out the fandom these past few months has been refreshing to my spirit. I enjoyed the way Furudate brought the series to its conclusion, by giving all the characters a future and room to grow. I hope to hear more from him in the upcoming years.

2. Looking for Group by Alexis Hall

I read Looking for Group because I was reading up on Alexis Hall in anticipation of Boyfriend Material, which I will talk about later, and saw the synopsis:

So, yeah, I play Heroes of Legend, y’know, the MMO. I’m not like obsessed or addicted or anything. It’s just a game. Anyway, there was this girl in my guild who I really liked because she was funny and nerdy and a great healer. Of course, my mates thought it was hilarious I was into someone I’d met online. And they thought it was even more hilarious when she turned out to be a boy IRL. But the joke’s on them because I still really like him.

And now that we’re together, it’s going pretty well. Except sometimes I think Kit—that’s his name, sorry I didn’t mention that—spends way too much time in HoL. I know he has friends in the guild, but he has me now, and my friends, and everyone knows people you meet online aren’t real. I mean. Not Kit. Kit’s real. Obviously.

Oh, I’m Drew, by the way. This is sort of my story. About how I messed up some stuff and figured out some stuff. And fell in love and stuff.

And I knew that I had to read it. Immediately.

I enjoyed it way too much. The characters were adorable, the conflict was done well, the geeky gamer wrapper was AMAZING and the author never dropped the ball on integrating the online game into the narrative. It was very readable and I enjoyed the atmosphere of the book immensely. I also may have spent a heady week or so thinking of playing WoW, but I avoided that temptation. Made me miss uni too, and the way my friends and I would spend countless hours with each other.

3. Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall

Wanted: One (fake) boyfriend Practically perfect in every way

Luc O’Donnell is tangentially–and reluctantly–famous. His rock star parents split when he was young, and the father he’s never met spent the next twenty years cruising in and out of rehab. Now that his dad’s making a comeback, Luc’s back in the public eye, and one compromising photo is enough to ruin everything.

To clean up his image, Luc has to find a nice, normal relationship…and Oliver Blackwood is as nice and normal as they come. He’s a barrister, an ethical vegetarian, and he’s never inspired a moment of scandal in his life. In other words: perfect boyfriend material. Unfortunately apart from being gay, single, and really, really in need of a date for a big event, Luc and Oliver have nothing in common. So they strike a deal to be publicity-friendly (fake) boyfriends until the dust has settled. Then they can go their separate ways and pretend it never happened.

But the thing about fake-dating is that it can feel a lot like real-dating. And that’s when you get used to someone. Start falling for them. Don’t ever want to let them go.

I came into this book with high expectations after Looking for Group, and my expectations were mostly met. The few issues I had were ultimately negligible, probably cultural differences or conventions of a genre that I’m not familiar with. The characters were strong, and I found the book funny. I know it sounds as though I’m damning it with faint praise, so I’ll say it plainly: it was an enjoyable read and I was totally invested in the romance. I think it’ll make a really good film as well.

4. The Subtweet by Vivek Shraya

Everyone talks about falling in love, but falling in friendship can be just as captivating. When Neela Devaki’s song is covered by internet-famous artist Rukmini, the two musicians meet and a transformative friendship begins. But as Rukmini’s star rises and Neela’s stagnates, jealousy and self-doubt creep in. With a single tweet, their friendship implodes, one career is destroyed, and the two women find themselves at the center of an internet firestorm.

Celebrated multidisciplinary artist Vivek Shraya’s second novel is a stirring examination of making art in the modern era, a love letter to brown women, an authentic glimpse into the music industry, and a nuanced exploration of the promise and peril of being seen.

If you’re a millennial and if you’ve ever had complicated friendships, this book will ring really true for most of it, I think. I kept wincing at the characters’ actions and “mistakes”, recognising them as things I or my friends have done, but there are portions of the story that I found inaccessible because Neela, the main character, just seems really opaque even when they’re the ones speaking. The music Shraya made as a companion to the book slaps and can be found here.

5. Empowered 11 by Adam Warren

Costumed crimefighter Empowered finds herself the desperate prey of a maniacal supervillain whose godlike powers have turned an entire city of suprahumans against her.

Not good! Outnumbered and under siege, aided only by a hero’s ghost, can Emp survive the relentless onslaught long enough to free her enslaved teammates and loved ones, or is this–*gulp*–The End?

From comics overlord Adam Warren comes Empowered, the acclaimed sexy superhero comedy–except when it isn’t, as in this volume’s no-nonsense, wall-to-wall brawl guaranteed to bring tears to the eye and fists to the face!

Warren’s tying up a lot of loose ends and answering a lot of questions and I’m wondering if that means Empowered‘s ending soon. I haven’t seen any info regarding this, even though the words “The End” are right there in the summary, because comic books always lean on the whole the hero could die! thing, and more often than not they never do. But Emp has come so far in the past 11 volumes, and I think that she’s ready to confront a lot of the stuff that Warren’s only hinted at in the past. Most of Empowered is about how Emp deals with failure and how she rises above it, and recently it’s become about how other people have failed her, rather than how she has failed, and how she deserves better. I’m worried about her, but at least we are another volume’s worth of evidence for the Emp/Thugboy/Ninjette OT3.

6. Sex and Vanity by Kevin Kwan

The iconic author of the bestselling phenomenon Crazy Rich Asians returns with a glittering tale of love and longing as a young woman finds herself torn between two worlds–the WASP establishment of her father’s family and George Zao, a man she is desperately trying to avoid falling in love with.

On her very first morning on the jewel-like island of Capri, Lucie Churchill sets eyes on George Zao and she instantly can’t stand him. She can’t stand it when he gallantly offers to trade hotel rooms with her so that she can have the view of the Tyrrhenian Sea, she can’t stand that he knows more about Curzio Malaparte than she does, and she really can’t stand it when he kisses her in the darkness of the ancient ruins of a Roman villa and they are caught by her snobbish, disapproving cousin, Charlotte. “Your mother is Chinese so it’s no surprise you’d be attracted to someone like him,” Charlotte teases. Daughter of an American-born-Chinese mother and blue-blooded New York father, Lucie has always sublimated the Asian side of herself in favor of the white side, and she adamantly denies having feelings for George. But several years later, when George unexpectedly appears in East Hampton where Lucie is weekending with her new fiancé, Lucie finds herself drawn to George again. Soon, Lucy is spinning a web of deceit that involves her family, her fiancé, the co-op board of her Fifth Avenue apartment, and ultimately herself as she tries mightily to deny George entry into her world–and her heart. Moving between summer playgrounds of privilege, peppered with decadent food and extravagant fashion, Sex and Vanity is a truly modern love story, a daring homage to A Room with a View, and a brilliantly funny comedy of manners set between two cultures.

This was the third romance novel I read in July, and that’s honestly the highest concentration of romance novel I’ve ever had in my life. I know that I’m supposed to find romance novels like super kilig and stuff, but so far I am just very anxious for romance novel protagonists all the time. I think that the whole thing about the romance novels I have read is that they’re mostly about how deeply anxious people learn how to allow themselves to be loved and that is tough! I wanted to protect Lucie all the time! I was Invested in her Welfare, and I don’t think I cared about Rachel Chu from Crazy Rich Asians half as much, even if you condensed all my attachment from the entire trilogy. Also, small spoiler, there is a hint that Sex and Vanity is in the same universe as Crazy Rich Asians, which I think is awesome.

6. Trust Exercise by Susan Choi

Pulitzer Finalist Susan Choi’s narrative-upending novel about what happens when a first love between high school students is interrupted by the attentions of a charismatic teacher

In an American suburb in the early 1980s, students at a highly competitive performing arts high school struggle and thrive in a rarified bubble, ambitiously pursuing music, movement, Shakespeare, and, particularly, their acting classes. When within this striving “Brotherhood of the Arts,” two freshmen, David and Sarah, fall headlong into love, their passion does not go unnoticed—or untoyed with—by anyone, especially not by their charismatic acting teacher, Mr. Kingsley.

The outside world of family life and economic status, of academic pressure and of their future adult lives, fails to penetrate this school’s walls—until it does, in a shocking spiral of events that catapults the action forward in time and flips the premise upside-down. What the reader believes to have happened to David and Sarah and their friends is not entirely true—though it’s not false, either. It takes until the book’s stunning coda for the final piece of the puzzle to fall into place—revealing truths that will resonate long after the final sentence.

As captivating and tender as it is surprising, Trust Exercise will incite heated conversations about fiction and truth, friendships and loyalties, and will leave readers with wiser understandings of the true capacities of adolescents and of the powers and responsibilities of adults.

This is a book I could not stop reading and I felt gross after I finished it. I think that I enjoyed it and that the narrative flips were well-done and it was engaging, but Choi writes teenage trauma in 3D, and you can smell her scumbag characters. Very good will never read again unless looking to feel bad.

Re-read:

Temeraire: His Majesty’s Dragon, Throne of Jade, Black Powder War, andEmpire of Ivory by Naomi Novik

Aerial combat brings a thrilling new dimension to the Napoleonic Wars as valiant warriors ride mighty fighting dragons, bred for size or speed. When HMS Reliant captures a French frigate and seizes the precious cargo, an unhatched dragon egg, fate sweeps Captain Will Laurence from his seafaring life into an uncertain future – and an unexpected kinship with a most extraordinary creature. Thrust into the rarified world of the Aerial Corps as master of the dragon Temeraire, he will face a crash course in the daring tactics of airborne battle. For as France’s own dragon-borne forces rally to breach British soil in Bonaparte’s boldest gambit, Laurence and Temeraire must soar into their own baptism of fire.

I started re-reading it because I wanted to introduce it to my girlfriend, and I outpaced her very quickly, and selfishly. She’s still at the beginning fourth of Throne of Jade, and I feel like I blinked and gulped down four of the books in quick succession. I had to stop myself after Empire, in a very belated effort to sync up to my gf’s progress. The series is amazing, and I don’t know if I’ll ever read one like Temeraire again. Being able to revisit it should be enough, really, because every time I do it’s as though I’m caught up in a strong and wonderful wind that fills me up with delight and awe. Novik’s starting a new series this September, and I hope it’s just as good.

That’s it for July! I’m probably going to do two books at a time for my Wikathon posts, just to keep things fresh and current, so keep a weather eye out for those posts!

July, next verse, same as the first Hey! Wikathon na! I've started reading Relocations by Karen Tongson, about a third through now, but I had to take a little detour through…

#books #books 2 #reading #reading 2

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alchemist-shizun · 5 years ago

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I Can See My Kingdom Now

Read on Ao3!

Chapter 3: Time and again boys are raised to be men

Word Count: 10,176

Characters: Virgil, Roman, Logan, Patton, Deceit.

Pairing(s): Eventual Logicality and Prinxiety. (hints to Royality, they’re forced into an arranged marriage)

Warnings: -Mild cursing (there's just one cuss word) -Minor character death -Negative thoughts -Panic attack -Insomnia -Some kind of selective mutism -Toxic parental behavior -Mentions of hallucinations -Food mention -Self-esteem issues and self-deprecation

Summary: Growing up isn't easy for anybody. Especially when you're the new around, when you feel like you lost everything or when it seems you have the world against you.

A/N: Or of how I’m projecting slightly into one of the characters. As for the next update, I don't have much ready so you'll have to be waiting a bit for it, nothing specific this time. I'm currently working on a Prinxiety one-shot that I hope I can release soon, plus in September I'll be participating in the little event with daily prompts dedicated to the series. Also, I'll be soon starting the last year of high school, so updates will be definitely slower, but I won't give up, promise. Thank you for sticking around till now, I'll hear from you soon!

✾

❝ You are broken and callow Cautious and safe You are boundless in beauty With fright in your face ❞

The first years through his “learning how to be a valuable prince” had passed, and Roman was already grateful for the castle servants, who seldom sneaked in his room extra food. It wasn't like they were making it too hard for him and basically throwing knowledge at him or expecting him to be a natural and ace every single lesson.

His teachers adjusted to him, they let him take his time and were more than happy to explain concepts more than once.

It was just that he felt like he had to learn how to live all over again: first came posture, back at the orphanage none really cared if you were walking, skipping along the pavement, even running at times.

Here you had to keep your body in a particular position, your head straight, especially among other aristocrats. Your step had to be measured, every part of your body talked for you most of the times.

A step back could mean disdain, fright, a step forward could be interest, trust, a hand towards you is a chance to dance or an offer for a hug.

Roman had met many nobles, apart from the royals from Tinfea, after he came back to the palace; they all wanted to congratulate his parents and meet the famous lost prince. The story they knew was that a naïve servant had let the gates open and he had wandered outside by himself until he got lost for good.

As a child, he liked the attention of numerous people, but how to behave around them wasn't exactly his expertise.

Every time he did something unusual, the strangers would mention how adorable he was. His parents would smile and stroke his hair gently, a sign that, regardless of his inexperience, he was doing a good job.

To help him to get used to it, servants that casually met him in the hallways reminded him of his posture. Eventually, he got there.

While also practicing that, which reminded him to always look up to people and never look down on them, he learnt what kind of behavior he had to keep during meals, which silverware to use, how many servings there were in each meal, which one was his reserved seat.

To make it fun, he established a game between him and his parents: it consisted on guessing the food that was going to be served by the kitchen servants. It was a secret between him and the cook, but he'd occasionally sneak in the kitchen to get a “general idea”, as he liked to call it, of the possibilities. He totally wasn't cheating. Besides, he loved how his parents compared him to a magician every time he succeeded.

They made everything easier for his age, enjoyable even.

Everyday he learnt something new and everyday he was aghast: it happened even as he woke up in his chambers for the first time.

He had been woken up by the gentle daylight of the morning that was peering through the translucent curtains, pulled apart by one of the servants he had seen going around the corridors before going to sleep.

He had tried to snuggle closer to the covers and the pillows, shielding himself from the eventual tasks he had to complete during the day.

The servant had approached him and, with honey-like words, they persuaded him to get up. Only that he was simply expected to sit up on his bed.

Ever since he came to the castle, a servant would meet him in the morning to wake him up, then they'd be helped by a couple more to bring in the room a dressing table with a mirror, a chair, some objects and utensils they needed, meanwhile one of them would look into a wooden case full of rich fabrics that Roman didn't even know to distinguish.

The servants always helped him get up on his feet, they led him to the chair to sit down and they washed his face, his hair got combed and treated with products that made them soft and perfumed. Different types of oils and creams were smeared every day on his skin as they undressed him, careful not to get the night vest dirty.

No wonder they forced him to take a hot bath every night.

When they were done with that he got up, almost completely naked, and they proceeded to help him put on his clothes, which were layers on layers of various types of cloth. He didn't even know all of their names.

He looked at his minute figure on the tall mirror nailed on the wall which was perpendicular to the bed: splashes of red, gold, white and black blinded his sight as he noticed his hair tied at the nape of his neck.

After breakfast he had his first lessons of reading and writing in the library; his teacher was the same one that taught him about the history of their kingdom. She was an old lady with a streak of bright green in her white hair and a perpetual knowing look that made her seem like she had lived as long as the planet had existed. As if she knew everything there was to know.

Roman had always found her somewhat intimidating, which led to an ever-growing respect towards her: in a couple of months he had been able to read fluently and write with little to no mistakes.

The lady was amazed at how he kept practicing and demanding for books narrating fables. To the point that, unable to stop herself, she finally asked.

« What is it that interests you so much? » she lent him the second book that week, she was afraid she would run out of them soon. She made a mental note to send a man to the nearest kingdom.

« They remind me of the village I was in. » he said, eyeing the book cover with enthusiasm.

« How so? »

« I used to make up stories with a friend! » he looked up at her with a warm smile « Father said I'll visit him soon. » he added, excitement in his eyes.

Something sour set in the lady's mouth. She knew better, as always.

She couldn't help but smile back and place her hands her hips.

« Perhaps after you learn a bit of those history lessons I gave you, will you? A prince has to know everything about his kingdom if he wants to rule someday, understood? »

He let out a small huff « Of course, ma'am. »

She pat his head. « That's good. » and, as she stared at his back to check his posture while he walked away, a sad look couldn't help but make its way through her face.

After Roman had mastered all the first lessons, he was taught how to speak properly in the presence of nobles, elders, young people and the plebs in general. It was a surprisingly young servant that helped him, since sometimes it could happen that some wise and skilled enough servants could be “promoted” as teachers for the king's children.

All the letters in front of the prince seemed to swirl around his head and pressing at both sides when he looked at all the different meanings a single word could have. All the different ways that you could say something so that you could be understood by all types of audiences. The best moments were when he used the wrong linguistic register and he ended up talking to a kid the way you would treat an emperor.

At the same time he took up art lessons with that same servant. Roman found out they were not only good at how to behave with someone but they could also make the nicest instant portraits. The first one she did of him, he hanged it right after in his room, on the side of his half-empty bookshelf he asked his parents to bring in after a couple of gifts from his history teacher.

The second reaction was simply a request to teach him how to be as good as them. So they started going out of the palace daily, then into the gardens, to just sit down and draw from reference. He kept trying, transforming nature in swirls of colors and pencil figures.

Before he could say he was pretty good at it, a couple of years would have to pass, but he was content enough with just staying outside and enjoy the artistic point of view his servant offered him.

Twice a week, on the other hand, they stayed inside and flipped through a history of art book, full of pictures and analysis of the paintings or architectures.

Then, there was one of Roman's favorite things: he began sword fighting lessons. A valuable prince needed to have an eclectic knowledge and skills, but most of all if he wanted to protect a whole kingdom, he had to be able to protect himself first.

One of the Royal Guard's knights was lent to teach him; Roman believed he was going to have one of those basic lessons in which you went into the backyard of the castle, out of earshot not to disturb anyone with the clanging noise of metal.

Never in his life he would have imagined to be led into a ballroom and met with a curly dark petrol-haired man and a mischievous smile: he had two perfectly created wooden swords behind his back, like a ninja about to unsheathe his own katanas.

Roman approached the man with a confused yet composed look and when he stopped a few feet away, he held that stare.

The knight's expression shifted to a thoughtful one, never leaving that slight curve of his lips; he saw Roman, a tiny child, refraining from taking his eyes off of him, a well-trained man from the Royal Guard. And he didn't find fear in those honey-like irises, he was expectant. Rigid, but ready.

At this point silence had been enough to still keep her around. The knight threw a sword at the boy with no warning, it was definitely a test for his reflexes.

It was a habit that he always did with his new apprentices, it felt like some kind of superstitious gesture, if the person didn't catch it was probably going to have a lot of trouble teaching. On the other hand if they did …

The knight could only watch as the hilt of the wooden sword flew in Roman's hand, perfectly adjusting to his grip.

… well, it was going to be fun.

« I like you. »

The prince flashed him a satisfied smile.

The older man got a few steps closer and leaned down, Roman could see the red in his eyes that previously he thought was an unusual shade of brown.

« Shall we dance? »

Always busy with lessons and writing down stories to read to his loving parents, Roman found himself being fifteen, the village and its inhabitants was a distant memory he couldn't have the luxury to think about.

He didn't even realize he stopped asking about Virgil. He didn't realise he stopped thinking about him or the orphanage. It was less hurtful to pretend it all didn't exist than accept he would have never been able to come back. They hated him by now, probably.

His history lessons were so persistent he could now recite all his ancestors' lives backwards. Or in alphabetic order. Or in any kind of order, really. As he let go of the lessons he had mastered, new ones would come up almost instantly and, sometimes, take away even more time than the ones he had before.

Not that he wanted to complain, he'd be exhausted enough to have no trouble sleeping and never waking up a single time in the middle of the night. Which made the actual waking up ten times more challenging.

But most of all, he loved a lot of the lessons he got. Especially singing. You don't know where Roman is and it's time for his daily walk around the front garden's sculptures? He's probably moving around a large room and singing his heart out.

What was frustrating but also very surprising was how good he sang, as if he was a natural, born to entertain those around him with enchanting melodies.

His teacher couldn't believe it the first time he heard him. Soon enough, they had started a duet of voice and harp strings, creating symphonies in every different possible way.

Sometimes they really had to drag him out of rooms to participate to at least thirty minutes of his other teachings, and yes, a prince needs to know about the gods, the pontifex can't do everything by themselves.

Roman walked down the castle's external stairs, as white as the clouds above him, he occasionally thought that maybe there was a spell keeping them so clean and candid.

There was an old sage leading him towards the marble sculptures that ran along the garden's limit. Same impeccable color of the castle.

Nothing got ruined in their royal bubble, it seemed there was an invisible defense around their property. That was were the odd legend of their kingdom came from.

« Remember this one? » the sage, another one of the teachers, pointed to the marble figure they were standing in front of, halfway through the garden.

« Yes. » Roman studied the sculpture, an androgynous-looking anthropomorphic god stared him down, eyes white and empty, they had a crown on their half extended left arm, with bifurcated tips at the top.

The other hand kept their vest up, pressing it on their chest, over their heart. The pattern on it displayed, in a bas-relief, detailed and messy curves and swirls.

« The God of Death, ruler of the Underworld, also called “Dark Kingdom”. That's the reason of the crown. » the old man nodded, satisfied with the answer, but that wasn't where Roman had finished. « The vest suggests the symbol of dark magic, as they were believed to be the First Sorcerer. »

« You could have stopped before … »

Roman arched an eyebrow, it was unlikely for a man like him to be skeptical towards the Forbidden Topic. « I'm not afraid of two words. »

« You're aware of the reason why we refrain to mention it, aren't you? »

« I am. But I don't think it is right to belittle a God, or conceal one of their most important features, only because of a human dilemma. Isn't it impious to bend a deity's description to a mortal rule? » Roman turned back to his teacher, expecting a frown on the man's face.

Instead, the facade the sage was keeping up suddenly fell, only to be replaced by a satisfied and content expression; he pat the top of the boy's head while nodding slightly.

« Very good, Roman. I take you've read those books I suggested? »

The little prince showed a sheepish smile. « I guess I enjoy myths. »

Their conversation went on, the topics somehow brushing philosophy at times, but was soon abruptly interrupted by the loud noise of hooves on the stone pavement between the two sections of the garden.

Their glances turned towards the entrance, where a carriage was let in through the gates.

Both prince and sage straightened their postures and waited for the mysterious person to show themselves. They didn't expect a boy around Roman's age to come out of the carriage, all dressed up as an obvious piece of nobility, by himself.

As he got closer, Roman could notice the sneering look that engulfed him, red hair almost looked like fire under the hit of the sun rays.

The boy stopped a few feet away from them, then bowed down. « I am Desmond Ananke, marquis of the kingdom of Elis. » when he looked up, he found himself transfixed by those pitch-black eyes, as dark as a moonless night, or the moment right before your eyes adjust to the blackness of a room.

He felt dizzy for a second, was that even natural? Magic?

He came back to life when he felt the sage's hand being placed on his shoulder, when he looked over to the teacher he surprisingly found a sour expression. Roman decided to just nod at the boy, a cue for him to state the meaning of the visit.

« My parents agreed upon sending me for the monthly donation we had planned decades ago. » he turned his head to the older man. « I'm positive you wouldn't mind if I helped myself up the stairs to meet the sovereigns. » a smirk was all he needed to show for the man to understand.

He stayed silent for a few beats, then let go of the prince and stepped aside.

Desmond, before excusing himself, got a closer look to the boy. « So you must be the famous Roman Bia, I suppose. » he held his hand towards him, if he expected a handshake, he wasn't ready for the marquis to take his own hand and place a kiss on the top of his knuckles.

He looked up at him, Roman's hand still close to his lips « Your surname means “brutal strength”. I wonder if your delicacy can contrast that. »

Roman had no clue what that meant, he felt Desmond's stare on him, the warmth his hand was irradiating on his skin and the general discomfort of the whole situation. Was he supposed to answer? Was it a compliment? Did he know …

« I wonder if you're aware our prince is only fifteen and has been promised to the prince of Tinfea for five years by now. » Roman was glad his sword fighting teacher had come to the rescue, he was probably being late to his lesson.

The marquis eyed him, his smile slightly faltered and he carefully snatched his hand away.

Without any further word, he excused himself and began pacing towards the palace.

Roman had retrieved his hand as if he had just touched a burning pot, only that the only fire he felt right under his skin was dancing around his cheeks and ears because of the embarrassment. He looked at the place where the marquis once stood with a confused expression.

What was his deal?

« That motherf- »

« Language! »

« Gods! » the knight put his hands on his face and slid them up on his hair in a desperate gesture. « Stop lecturing me, dad. »

« I am not your father. » the sage gave him a puzzled look while the knight rolled his eyes.

« Maybe when you stop treating me like a child, you won't be. Well! » he clasped his gloved hands together and turned to a silent Roman that was wondering whether or not he should have let them have their moment and leave. « Ready for your lesson, kid? » Roman simply nodded.

They excused themselves from the elder and the knight, Crowley was his name, as he finally recalled, slid his arm around Roman's shoulder in a friendly way, only to lower down a little and speak to him more clearly.

« Look, that guy from before? Bad news. » he made a face. « I'll tell you, just because our kingdom is so awesome, the more outer people try to take advantage and benefit from us. »

« They're envious? »

« That's an understatement, but yeah, pretty much. » Roman felt some kind of burning feeling in his chest.

« Can't they just focus on improving their own kingdom instead of taking things from us? »

Crowley grinned. « Oh, is our prince getting bitter? »

« Hah. Not at all. I'm keeping my cool here. I'm in perfect conditions. » he flashed him a perfectly constructed smile. « See? »

« Sure, my lord. In perfect conditions of pretending, should I call the jester and tell him to call some actors to join you? »

« Oh, gladly, thank you so much. »

As they entered the fighting room, chuckling, they made their way towards their steel swords and started their usual sparring.

« Still, you should know … » the swords kept on clashing with no result. « … that boy from before talked about a donation. »

Roman started to lose some ground. « Yes? I never heard of that. »

« In my opinion, it's stupid. Arcadia has to donate part of our treasure to help other kingdoms. »

« What? » Roman's movements looked even more aggressive, tenacious.

« Apparently, it's the only way to assure they don't move war against us. » he sighed as Roman made a mistake in his posture, but regained it quickly.

« Wouldn't that lead us to eventually fall? It's not like the gods gift us gold every month. »

« That's what I've been saying. And the king's advisor too. They're ruining us anyway, this is only the slower method, the king said. »

« This is ridiculous. » the knight noticed Roman was basically throwing all his hits on him.

« I know, not to mention that marquis clearly wanted to woo you. »

« Woo me? »

« He wanted to marry you, to, of course, get your nobility status from the kingdom's alliance. There's no love there. » Crowley noticed Roman's expression hardening with rage. « Only strategy. » the prince scoffed, annoyed. « Like a mere tool. »

That's when Crowley realized his tactic was working and, in a matter of seconds, he found his sword clattering to the floor. Roman stopped moving, awed by his own doing and looked up to his teacher both smiling widely.

« Well done, kid. » he reached to pat his head, but Roman ignored that and wrapped his hands around him in a happy hug. He literally started screaming of joy.

« Gods, I did it! Did you see that? Did you see how I landed that sword? That was awesome! » he trailed off complimenting himself and pacing around the room, excitement printed on his face.

Crowley, amused, kept on watching Roman's little burst of happiness. Still, he realized it was now time for him to let other lessons take up his time. Like …

« Courting. This guy needs to learn courting. »

He was sixteen when it happened. Roman was enjoying one of the books his literature teacher had recommended, sitting at the library's table. He loved those lessons and was waiting for them to start.

His eyes lit up when he heard the door opening, but he never expected to find one of his servants and a gloomy expression. They approached him and took his hand while watery eyes threatened to start tearing up.

« Crowley is dead. »

That was the last thing he heard before zoning out, his heart sank and he felt numb; his hearing stopped working, it was as if the servant was talking to an inanimate object. They continued talking about how he died while helping a kingdom in a battle and was found lifeless, but Roman's mind couldn't process any more information.

Crowley is dead.

He could still see his mischievous red eyes in the corner of his own, now covered by a tragic and dark veil, his mouth agape as if he wanted to say something but there was nothing else to say at the same time. It was written all over his face.

Crowley is dead.

The servant brought him back to consciousness by touching his shoulder, the memory of his teacher doing the same burned in his mind, tears welled up in his eyes and found the strength to sprint away from a startled servant and run down the castle halls.

Crowley is dead.

He knew who he was looking for. His sight was clouded, making it harder to recognize his surroundings. He didn't care he was running, he didn't care his sobs could have been audible from outer space. He received concerned but knowing looks by anyone he crossed paths with. Then he found the room.

Crowley is dead.

His trembling hand turned the shiny and cold handle that almost blinded him. After closing the door behind him he rushed over to the person he knew needed comfort the most, just like him.

Roman hugged the sage, Nicephorus, he hugged him tight and pretended they didn't notice each other's red eyes. They also pretended they didn't hear their crying, seemingly unstoppable. Nicephorus pretended he didn't lose who could have seemed like his son, Roman pretended he didn't lose the brother he never had.

You can never judge whether someone's life was happy until it's gone.

Roman was seventeen. He was also finally allowed to make little trips outside of the palace and meet his people: he went mostly around the center, where his parents didn't prohibit him to go. Seven years kept inside the castle, busy with his education and getting to know his parents and kingdom, and everything about the village was now long gone from his mind, a distant memory he didn't dig into anymore.

Saying that he was well recognized by his people was an understatement. The people loved him. They cheered for him when his carriage made its way towards the center's plaza. He'd greet every single one of them, he let them hold his hands, he kissed little children's heads and willingly let them lead him through the city.

He wasn't like those royal people that looked down on the plebs with indifference from their carriages, he enjoyed interacting with others, being able to confront his life with the one of the others.

He often listened to their problems and realized that this type of confrontation helped the royalty greatly in fixing the kingdom's problems for the better; dealing directly with the people that faced issues that could be resolved was one of their best mechanisms.

And not only had he a great relationship with his people, but also the one with his servants couldn't be of any less importance. They were happy to spend time with him when his parents couldn't, as much as he was grateful for them for anything they had done.

People outside stopped believing he was a real prince, how could someone so kind-hearted have no dark feature?

They didn't know about his nightmares, for sure.

Or all the times he felt like he was remembering something of the night he disappeared, only to break down right after, the only comfort being his mother's embrace.

And despite being surrounded by a multitude of loved ones who loved him back, they didn't know about the loneliness he felt when he finally reached eighteen.

« Roman, dear, the Pais family is coming very soon, will you come to meet them? »

Yes, even with a guaranteed fiancé.

Royal courting was weird in their days: the two promised could see each other little to no time at all, preferably spending as less time together as they could. Meals with parents were fine, they even had the luxury to sit in front of each other, talk sometimes, but out of those? One or two hours a day were enough, thank you very much.

So, what the Tinfea and Arcadia families were doing to follow these unfathomable laws was meeting once a year, celebrating one year less to the upcoming wedding.

And now that Roman was eighteen, well, things were only starting to get faster.

« We're going to speed up the preparations with them today, you can finally spend some more time with the lovable Patton, aren't you happy? » his father was at his left as they made their way towards the entrance of the castle.

« Truly charmed. » he mused, not particularly focused on his question. It wasn't like he didn't want to meet him, or thought he wasn't at all an appreciable companion, but the little time they spent together wasn't enough for him. He wasn't even allowed to send letters; their relationship only started as acquaintances and went back to strangers after a couple of months of not seeing each other.

Roman thought that was ridiculously inconvenient for both of them.

« Wait, is Logan going to be here? »

« Honey, of course, he's always been. » Roman made a slightly frustrated pout at that.

« Don't be like that. He's their closest advisor. »

« I know, but I don't like him. He makes me feel incompetent. »

« He's older than you, Roman, it's normal if his knowledge is higher than yours. »

« And you should respect him as such. Then you will get along just fine. »

The prince sighed, he couldn't argue with that. What they always said was that he could at least act like he was glad to have someone as guest.

Furthermore, he loved acting. He couldn't remember how many times he had sneaked out to get to the local theatre to watch actors perform, or perform himself after he made sure none was there.

« Oh, I forgot to tell you! » Roman's mother turned to him, beaming. « This time, they're going to stay here longer. We're going to put into action what Logan had suggested two years ago. »

Well, that was certainly new.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆

Patton had often wondered why things were a certain way.

He sounded like a kid when he kept on asking different questions about the subject he was debating with someone.

Why were clouds like that? Are stars motionless? Why is grass green and not blue? How come animals didn't talk, do they even understand us?

As he grew up and reached adulthood, the questions would change into more soul-searching ones.

Does happiness really exist? Is the mind more important than the heart? What's the difference between justice and revenge? When is it required to be selfless and when is it allowed to be selfish?

One time at fourteen he found himself stargazing and wondering if he could even reach the stars one day, that sky glitter that winked and smiled at him every night. He had approached Logan's chamber and ran in the room out of breath, at which a startled seer blinked a couple of times, frozen still, and looked at him with arched eyebrows.

« Hey Lo- » a couple of short breaths. « You're a magician, right? »

A slow nod came from the older boy, whose gears began turning in his head, trying to predict which kind of outcome that conversation was going to lead to.

« So can you fly?! » Pat had clasped his hands together in little fists in front of his mouth and leaned in towards the chair his friend was sitting in.

Logan wondered if he could have either expected that kind of question or if he definitely wasn't aware this scenario could have ever taken place.

Eventually, he decided to get up from his chair and, kindly, escort Patton out of his room, while the prince whined about wanting to reach the sky.

After he closed the door behind himself, he pinched the bridge of his nose as he fought back an amused smile that was threatening to form on his lips.

Of course, he lost, but in his defense, he was pretty tired.

After the prince's fifteenth birthday, Logan wondered sadly why they had to unquestionably stop attending lessons together; they had less time to spend with each other now that Patton was up to courting lessons most of his day, while he retreated to his room pretty much always to self-teach himself the remaining of magic knowledge. His sovereigns told him he didn't need teachers anymore, they meant to praise him for his own talents at such a young age. But he didn't somehow feel satisfied.

On the contrary, his heart sank when he stopped in front of their closed room and heard that they were actually glad their son was going to spend less time with him and that they couldn't wait to get rid of him.

He stayed silent and moved on.

When Patton reached sixteen, Logan decided he hated feelings.

He hated feelings because he could not conceive his kingdom's rules and what sometimes they did to people, how it changed them and made them treat him from a respectable member to a simple servant undeserving of any kind of attention. He decided to stop showing such feelings as he now found them useless: what could he do with his emptiness? The anger? Disappointment? Loneliness? All the other emotions he didn't want to name? Things that only slowed down his work?

Well, there was one thing he surely could do, which was bury them deep inside and never listen to them again.

And so he did.

At seventeen, Patton was having a mental breakdown. Too many things were happening at once: preparations for the wedding (already, though Roman was still fourteen), the fate of the curse approaching which he tried to ignore, his teenage mood swings, him reaching soon adulthood and the always more persistent lessons. About literally anything.

It was especially the lessons that stressed him out. In one of them in particular, in which he had to learn how to dance but was failing miserably, he concluded it was best to abruptly storm out of the room and take his frustration out on the grass he was stomping as he made a beeline for the flower garden of the east side of the castle.

Stressful tears were prickling his eyes, he carefully wiped them away on his sleeve, growing discontent was spreading inside him since he didn't want to cry, and yet he was too vulnerable to stop himself. Why did he feel so weak?

Patton took a deep breath and made his way through the garden, hands curled in fists at his side, when he eventually had to stop himself once again.

Logan was sitting on the ground, a couple of feet away from him, he was leaning on some flowers, examining them, while some objects – related to magic, Patton thought – were lying all around him.

Suddenly aware of a viewer, his friend- wait, were they even still friends? How long ago was the last time they talked for real?

Patton grimaced, he couldn't even remember that.

Nonetheless, Logan looked up at him with a blank stare, it only faltered for a moment as he noticed the slight redness around the prince's pupils.

They kept staring silently, until eventually the mage broke the silence between them, after he turned his attention back to the flowers he was observing attentively.

« What can I help you with? » there was no real interest in his voice, no signs of concern (although he definitely knew Patton was missing his lesson), the lack of anything bothered the prince in a way he couldn't comprehend. It's like that uneasiness you feel when someone slightly moved everything in your room and you can't tell what has changed.

Patton as well couldn't tell what had happened to make their relationship so different from before.

And maybe it was exactly because of that, maybe because of how much pressure they were putting in him, the expectation of his parents that he could master all his teachings in no time, the absence of the comfort he once found in friendship with his servants, whatever case it may have been, that he found himself dropping on his knees and throwing his arms around Logan's shoulders.

Patton tried to hide his face on the other's robes, tightening his grip as little sobs shook his body.

Whatever grudge Logan could have been holding against him (which, mind you, he didn't, since Patton was just that impossible to despise), he cast that aside and surrounded the younger one's chest with his own arms, hesitantly.

They sat there for a couple of minutes as the prince let out all the displeasure and the other boy just tried to help with soft rubs on his back.

As soon as he felt an ounce of relief, Patton broke the hug and took a deep breath, after muttering an apology.

« I don't know what's happening. To me, or in general. » he sighed, a hand touching his forehead while he looked down.

Since they had basically been ignoring each other, he was expecting a remark, he thought he was going to tell him he was an idiot and it was his fault, he would have believed that.

Instead, Logan nodded. « That's perfectly understandable. »

Patton looked up at him in confusion and disbelief. « How? »

A humming sound escaped the mage's throat. « How about you describe what is bothering you? »

« Uh. » he was looking at the sky, but focusing on his thoughts. « It's like I'm in a cage. Everybody's telling me what to do, what to wear, how to act. Or who I have to talk to. » he looked Logan in the eyes. « When was even the last time talked properly? » his azure irises darkened in a greyish color. « I feel like I have no friends anymore. »

Logan's heart sank at the words, he knew he was included in that group and he couldn't help but feel ashamed for accepting the distance they suddenly began to keep, instead of doing something about it.

« It is only normal that you're getting badly affected by the situation. Look at yourself, » Patton lifted his hands to observe them. « you're clearly stressed out. Are you getting enough sleep? » there were so many questions he wanted to ask. They barely saw each other out of meals.

« Do I, they expect me to be asleep the moment they escort me to my chamber. »

One problem less ticked off of Logan's mental list.

« We both know your drinking and eating schedules are practically perfect, so I guess this is partially about pressure. Everything at once. »

« Yeah, it's mostly because of this “perfect” you said. Everyone expects me to be perfect, my parents- »

« That's it! » Logan abruptly interrupted, pointing a finger towards the sky, a knowing smile making his way through his face. He dropped the objects he was carefully putting away in his bag.

« Uh? I barely finished … »

« Listen. Don't you think your parents are a bit … too much into this? They have started preparations way ahead of time, they can't stop talking about the wedding's details when neither you nor Roman reached adulthood yet. It seems to me that they want this more than you do. To the point that they don't care about your feelings. » the words tasted sour in his mouth, talking badly about your king and queen wasn't exactly the main topic in a kingdom, but he saw the prince slowly nod in agreement.

It wasn't the first time he had noticed that, either.

« My feelings … yeah, they're definitely messed up. » he found the will to giggle.

After a beat, Logan continued with his reasoning « I can't honestly believe you forgot my most important lessons. » he looked away to open the only vial that was lying on the ground and poured a drop of its content on a dying withered flower that immediately blossomed in a soft pink hue. When he looked back at his friend he met a confused but pensive gaze, mixed with amazement by the little magic trick.

« You're your own person, Patton. You don't have to act like anyone but yourself. Break free of those puppet strings, they're not unbreakable. You can be a prince in your own way. »

Patton showed him one of his brightest smiles, gaining all the inspiration he could have ever possibly asked for. He could still be himself while having lessons or while in front of other nobility members.

« You're right! » he beamed, getting confidently on his feet. He felt like he could take on the world by himself. « Plus, how much can they go against a prince? »

Logan rolled his eyes. « As much as they like if he starts getting full of himself. »

« Aw, come on, I was just kidding. »

They made their way towards the castle's ballroom, while catching up on the things they had been up to in the past year.

Time, of course, flew by in an instant and they were already facing the entrance of the ballroom. They stopped in their tracks.

Patton turned to the magician. « I don't know if a “thank you” is enough. But I appreciate that you didn't reject me being all emotional. » he then shrugged with a small smile. « Sometimes I get overwhelmed by the smallest things. »

Logan shook his head. « You don't have to thank me. I only helped a friend in need. »

The prince almost jumped in joy at the label, it was a sign their relationship wasn't destroyed by outer circumstances, which was what Patton had feared the most. How could he have gotten such an amazing friend? He felt the desire to surround himself with more people like him.

« And remember, if you don't understand something, write it down. Only then it might become clearer. » the seer shared one of the most important pieces of information he could give in order to prevent future breakdowns anytime soon.

Patton considered carefully his words as if he had just found out a glowing treasure, then nodded. « Will do. » he made to turn away, placing his hand on the door's handle.

« Sorry for forgetting what you taught me! » he apologized with a sheepish grin. Logan only chuckled and started to step away, when he got called again.

« And Lo? » he gave him his full attention and suddenly found Patton's hand on his arm.

Patton gazed deeply in his dark eyes. « Please, talk to me more. »

And just like that, he disappeared into the room, resuming his dance lesson with a lighter feeling in his chest.

It was the moment in which Logan felt a colder spot where the prince's hand once was and his cheeks burning red that he decided he hated feelings even more.

At eighteen Patton understood that he could be a bit freer, but his parents wouldn't let it slide so easily. At least not without some guilt trip or psychological pressure.

King, queen, prince and seer (who had also become their personal adviser since they didn't find a way to get rid of him) were sitting on a carriage, seemingly talking about topics of no relevance. But one would know better than believe aristocrats didn't measure their every word, sticking hidden meanings or snide remarks in sentences here and there.

It was their charm, how they could hold a conversation while talking about something completely different.

« Did you hear about this? They say that Roman kid had already caught up with his lost lessons in less than two years, isn't that a prodigy? » their favorite topic was throwing Patton down with their “oh-so-perfect” examples.

They always told him so many things about him, things he wasn't even sure were entirely true. So many voices went around castles. Ever since Arcadia's prince came back, he had been in everyone's words and minds.

Of course, Patton's parents used all the information they could get, thinking they could have been able to attach those puppet strings back to his body.

They tried and sometimes they succeeded in grazing even just slightly his self-worth.

Self-esteem issues weren't late to the party as well.

Patton noticed a pattern in the arguments: they would find anything that didn't please them, blame him and eventually start to criticize him. His looks, his behavior, his intelligence, either the first thing they saw or the first thought that came to their mind.

Initially he apologized as much as it felt fake. But he didn't like lying every time there was a fight, though doing the opposite made the situation worse.

His parents would get frustrated by his silence, the yelling would increase for minutes until they got tired and gave up on him.

So Patton only stared at the marble pavement, his eyes danced around its colored details, a blank expression surrounded his face; when they finally let him free he'd only run back to his room.

After that there were two different outcomes: one would simply picture him crying to let out all of the horrible things they told him, as if he could shake them off and forget about it.

The other would display him lying down with a weird feeling in his guts. It was something that mixed with wanting to fight someone and wanting to fight himself. As if he deserved to feel pain. But the only thing he allowed himself was to think of all the remarks he could have done, if only they didn't make the situation worse.

Many could wonder how he managed to endure the whole thing. Patton had the kindness of his servants to get him through the day, the food they sneaked in every time he left during meals because he couldn't just bear it.

And he had a best friend he could rely on anytime he wanted or needed to vent. Especially when he saved him from annoying situations.

The conversation between his parents continued, their eulogy towards Roman never seemed to stop.

Patton breathed out slow and deep through his nose, he knew the last thing he needed was a reminder of his inferiority complex when he was on his way to Roman.

The funny thing about it was that he couldn't even blame Roman for how he felt, on the contrary the boy was always so sweet and welcoming. It was more how everybody portrayed him to be the perfect prince he could never achieve.

« On the topic of talents. » Logan, the foretold savior, spoke only after giving a sidelong glance to the younger boy.

The sovereigns immediately shut their conversation to Patton's relief.

« Since we are second in prosperity to Arcadia, I was thinking we should value our people more. » he had them hanging on his every word. « Maybe we should organize some kind of event that aims at that specific goal. »

The two adults' faces lit up, ideas flowing in their minds. Every argument on how to somehow be better than Arcadia was valid for both of them, it was the perfect diversion.

« We definitely agree. Please do tell us what you have in mind. »

Instead of going off with one of his explanations, (that often became monologues), he turned to Patton.

« What about you? Would you like that? » a faint smile crossed the prince's lips, ignoring the voices in his mind that said “How can he give his opinion? He understands nothing of it!”

« I would love that, Logan. » he nodded. « It would be ideal for our people to stand out in their specialties. I'd want to know if the best poems ever written belonged to one of our humble and simple villagers. » he stopped looking out the window to glance at his parents' shocked expressions, their mouths left hung open upon hearing his valid opinion. Suddenly they didn't have anything to remark.

He felt something very similar to pure bliss. Then he shifted his gaze to Logan. « Don't you think? »

Pride glimmered in the magician's eyes. « Exactly my thought. We could also participate or just watch, if so you desire. »

« Thank you for your suggestion! » Patton smiled even wider and Logan knew that he also silently thanked him for the attention.

After Logan finished displaying his idea, the sovereigns kept quiet for the whole trip to Arcadia's castle and Patton couldn't have been any more glad about it.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆

How could he have been such an idiot?

Hopes and dreams, fake abstract concepts made up only to ruin people's expectations.

What was hope? It only meant relate to the future in a way that will eventually result in experiencing anxiety and anguish, whether it is a happy future you're looking for or a negative outcome that you're fearing. It is never something that helps you relax, but it keeps you in a restless mood, always unsettled because you know you're waiting for something and you're paying very much attention to it.

It is as if you're waiting for a delivery that has even the infinitesimal possibility to get lost into the nothingness. Or waiting for a person that promised to come back, a promise that has a high percent chance to be broken anyway.

But your hopes get in the way and erase any pessimistic belief, without realizing you're actually deteriorating yourself. With hope comes illusion and after that you're only left with pain.

Growing up, Virgil learnt to take nothing for granted and have very little trust in all the people who presented themselves in front of him.

To say that his parting from Roman had been a hard hit for him was an understatement: ever since then, he had never been able to get close to someone just as much or have any friendship quite as strong. It didn't feel worth it anymore.

Everything constantly reminded him of Roman and he just was so tired, he wanted the world to stop.

There had been many attempts by the school's children to get him to cheer up, but every single gesture failed its goal like they weren't even trying hard enough. But they were, when he wandered in the streets the villagers would greet him with a genuine smile on their lips, Virgil would only nod at them, unimpressed by the sudden interest.

Kids had tried to play with him, offered to go spend time in the woods together, but nothing could do. It reminded him too much of him and their memories were the last things he wanted to experience all over again.

He was eleven when hope started to fade out and disappointment took over him, a wave of sadness brushed his feet as strange thoughts began to force themselves into his mind.

These thoughts were the ones that tried to keep him awake at night, they persuaded him to think that it was better to embrace the darkness of the night, in which none would bother him as they all drifted off to sleep.

At first they scared him, so much he tried to scream to throw them away, panic didn't help his breathing problems and every other night his parents were kneeling down in his room, trying to steady him in every possible way.

At twelve, things were getting impossibly worse, because he couldn't help but comply to those musings. The first time, he found himself getting up from the small mattress, a myriad of thoughts screaming at him, so much that he preferred to stay silent, afraid that if he were to part his lips the harshness of howl-like shrieks would escape his mouth and leave him with little to no voice. The second time, he was found deadly still, bloodshot stapled open eyes, in front of the village's town hall at five in the morning by a pair of very concerned and frightened parents.

At thirteen night didn't exist anymore and the fair skin under his eyes slowly faded into a dark and purple-ish tone, he decided it was not worth to have those oniric impossible encounters in dreams or nightmares, even if his sleep deprivation did quite help making the unreal look real during his waking hours. His daylight hallucinations.

He had stopped talking at all, only considering someone when he really thought it necessary, scared they could catch him interacting with the unreal, unable to tell one from the other.

At fourteen he had visited all the doctors and magicians his family could reach, and at times their solutions were too … expensive. Out of the eight of them, there was one that stuck with Virgil, his words often played in his head as a reminder that, yes, something was definitely wrong with him. He couldn't remember his full name, something with Emile … was it? He was the only one that talked about his head. His mind; Emile's eyes had glowed, a light that made him look quite mischievous, though he truly was kind-hearted, and Virgil felt like he was piercing through his soul.

He had told him it was a mess, inside his mind. Virgil could have sworn he had heard a crack in his voice, as if he had been about to cry or needed consolation, after feeling how he did daily; but then again his reality was fake most of the time.

At fifteen the tables turned. Most of the villagers just chose to avoid him. Even if bullying didn't exist in his school, his classmates would have been too scared to approach him. A little part of him was glad he could occupy his mind with all the issues that rained down on him at once, so that he could shove his oldest problem in the deepest part of his heart and never think about it again.

It had been five years.

He couldn't say he was always successful, the best case scenario displayed a train of different thoughts that would suppress the topic he didn't want to think about. But other times … the outcome would destroy his mind.

He had never gotten angry at Roman for disappearing into the void.

He couldn't help but put the blame on himself; for god knows what reason why, he started feeling like Roman had now found better people, what if they had been friends out of pity? Sure, they were good at make-believe, and yet … Roman had never left him alone. He did feel genuine, after all.

There was too much contrast between his beliefs, but somehow he still couldn't help but crumble down in his own self-deprecation. It was none else's fault but his if he never came back. For all that he could know, by now Roman had probably already found plenty of people like him; better than him, perhaps, which wasn't that much of an impossible quest. It wasn't like he had any particular talent or was special in any way, really. Being replaced could have been just as easy even in his small little village.

He was still fifteen when he finally stepped into their forest after 5 years, for some reason he had gotten sentimental and, almost magically, his feet led him in front of the forest's entrance. He was retracing the same path they had followed the last time they were together, the sparkles caused by the sun hitting the water were already blinding his eyes as he stepped down the hill that now looked much smaller than how he remembered.

And then, the one thing that would change his life forever.

He looked at his left and that same fox from five years earlier was standing there, a cold glare piercing him through golden irises, Virgil thought he had lost his mind and the hallucinations due to lack of sleep were getting worse.

But the creature looked different, yet quite the same, he could tell it was the same one he saw, even though it seemed older.

Black fur was now added to its former colors at the base of its paws. It seemed it wanted to frighten him, but also persuade him.

Virgil held its stare, the animal didn't seem to move an inch.

« What? » he snapped, arms slightly opening in the act.

The yellow-eyed fox started pacing towards him, an elegant posture was still somehow kept in its cautious movements.

Virgil didn't take his eyes off of it, it felt like 5 years earlier: it was as if there was some sort of force tugging him in a particular direction. It was stronger than before and the lingering feeling of the animal's glare on him provoked some sort of persuasion and curiosity altogether.

The little villager just stood and watched as the creature paced forward until little to no space was left between them, then something switched in its expression after it looked around and set its focus back on Virgil with gloomy eyes.

Was it looking for Roman?

« He's not here. » Virgil wished he had said it with the most collected tone, but surprisingly found his voice cracked as if it had been smashed through a thousand palaces. It sounded rough, colliding with the ethereal aura of the place. The fox tilted its head slightly.

« What are you waiting for? It's not like he will come back. » another crash, he felt himself rapidly break down like most of the times when he listened to the thoughts screaming and raging in his head. He let his burning eyes fall to the ground and close, as the dark corners of his mind took completely over him.

« … ever. He won't- » his breath hitched and when he opened his eyes again he was on the ground, almost at eye-level with the pitying creature. He looked at his hands in terror, they were trembling visibly, his breathing grew shorter, sharp, but never like those wheezes he learnt to recognize. This was something else. How long had it been since he had last spoken to someone?

This was worse. So much worse.

His fingers brushed his cheek to find it soaking in overflowing tears already making their way on his skin; he digged his hands in his hair as to hold on for dear life. He hated when this happened. He had no control over himself, he felt hopeless, more helpless than usual, rationality flew out of his body, it was as if all of his feelings had smashed the button of “overload”, while a clutching sensation weighted down his stomach.

His mind raced between flashbacks of his childhood, belittling himself, the urge to just give up and lie down forever until someone would eventually pick him up and live his life in his place.

He was completely huddled on himself when he felt something soft trying to make its way through his limbs, as if it wanted him to relax his body and get his arms away from his face. Virgil had no choice but to comply and let the fox … help him? He felt too weak to care about what was happening anyway.

When the animal started brushing its head against Virgil's hand, he suddenly remembered about one of the doctors' suggestion; he opened his eyes and focused on his surroundings.

Five things he could see. The green blades of grass, the glimmering lake, those funny shaped clouds, the trees all around him and the fox by his side. He took another deep breath that he let out from the mouth.

Four things he could touch. The lightweight of his simple clothes, the soles of his shoes, his bangs brushing his forehead and the soft fur through his fingers. He closed his eyes.

Three things he could hear. Birds flying out of their nests to get some food for their nestlings, his rapid breath slowing down, little fishes occasionally jumping out of the lake and then back on the water.

Two things he could smell. The flowers that had started blossoming in that period, the simple essence of the forest's nature.

One thing he could taste. Oh. Had he eaten yet today?

His evened out and steady breathing had him finally relaxed, he kind of felt a smile tugging at his lips for some reason, maybe it was the comfort of the little animal, maybe because he finally got a hold of himself.

But while he pet the unusual friend, there was something he didn't notice. Someone he didn't see, but that could see him. It was somewhere Virgil had never reached. One of the deepest parts of the forest.

The man grinned in his dark room while the only source of light was a cloud of magic smoke in front of him, beaming with the picture of Virgil sitting on the grass and smiling at the fox.

The brightness touched his face with delicacy, yet you could make out the details of it with simplicity.

Like the burnt skin on the left side of his face that made it look like little scales were all over his cheek. Or the literal glowing, bright yellow eyes that slowly turned into a mild shade of white as the vision and smoke both faded away.

The man in the dark smirked.

« Perfect. »

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jellyfish-neo · 5 years ago

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Recent OC Summaries!

These are all for an urban fantasy or science fantasy setting, not sure yet. Several of them are or could be interconnected. A couple race descriptions may be thrown in. I also may have been inspired by Good Omens to do some angel/demon stuff?? Also i’m gonna add some gender/sexuality stuff not because it’s important but because it’s fun! Anyway here we go:

Race: Astomi

The astomi, originally from Greek/Roman mythology, are mouthless people who live off of sweet-smelling fruit and flowers. Bad smells weaken and can potentially kill these beings, and the pollution of a modern world has made them very few and far between. When one of the few astomi left attempts to warn the public of the very real danger this brings them, they are silenced.

Iovita | Aromantic, Asexual, Agender

Vita is a 20-year-old astomi. They wear a face mask to hide their lack of a mouth as well as shield their nose from the pollution they’re inevitably bathed in living in a city. They communicate using sign language, and their queerplatonic partner, Ashton, acts as their interpreter when necessary. The two work at a small office and art supply store, but also earn some money on the side doing non-criminal forgery. They won’t fake signatures or anything like that, but Vita uses their talent for forging handwriting to write letters, essays, and papers for anyone who’s willing to pay, and Ashton acts as their interpreter and, on occasion, bodyguard. Vita is very tired most of the time due to their weak condition, but they’re calm and observant. Sure, they’re willing to break most rules to get what they want, but they’ve got enough morality to not do anything too bad and enough sense to keep said rule-breaking minor enough to not get caught.

Ashton | Pansexual, Nonbinary

Ashton, a 20-year-old human, dropped out of magic college last year. They wanted to go into combat magic, specializing in fire magic (the coolest kind), but as it turns out, they were okay at plant magic and terrible with fire. This was not all bad though, since they could use it to help their best friend and eventual QPP! This isn’t a one-sided thing, though, since Vita’s survival instincts often help Ashton keep out of trouble. Ashton is very rebellious, and can be rather arrogant and rude at times, getting them into fights. While they’re not great at combat magic, they can certainly hold their own with their fists. If you can get past their somewhat annoying exterior, however, you’ll find an excitable person who’s fiercely supportive and protective of their friends. They also have a girlfriend from magic school named Mari.

Mari | Trans Woman, Bisexual (attracted to women and nb people)

Mari is a gifted elven wizard going to magic college for praecantology (the study of magic) and combat magic. She and Ashton had plans to start an adventuring party together since middle school, but when Ashton started having trouble with combat magic, Mari was the first to tell them they didn’t have to go that route. She would have loved to carry out a career with her partner, but if it wasn’t meant to be, it wasn’t meant to be. She still plans to be an adventurer, and they’ll have to figure out how to do a long-distance relationship when that time comes, but the for now she’s content renting an apartment with Ashton and Vita. Mari is an ambitious person, but she’s still got her fair share of caution. She does, however, have a bad habit of trying to fix other people’s problems. She doesn’t think she knows the best for anyone, but she can spend so much time worrying about issues that have nothing to do with her that she has barely enough energy to do things for herself. When she’s not in such a state, she’s quite responsible. She also bakes. Really well.

Races: Angels and Demons

Angels and demons are viewed as very different beings, and they come in many different forms, but they all share one thing in common: they are forged by gods. Angels are forged in the heat of stars by a god of order, while demons are forged in the depths of the earth by a god of chaos. They’re not as simple as good or evil, either. If the world is bathed in the chaos of war and disaster, angels are the ones to attempt to fix it, while strict regimes and stagnant societies are best fixed by the demons.

Devrim | Demiwoman, Aromantic

Devrim is a humanoid demon who thinks the mortals have gotten too boring for their own good. Sure, they’re not all filing taxes with their money from their 9-5 jobs, but there hasn’t been a revolution in like, four whole years. Not a serious one, anyway. And, even worse: not a single person has stepped up to even attempt the trials of godhood in a century. Even the kid who did it last time was an outlier who was seen as insane. To fix this problem and make those who believe they’re ‘in charge’ a bit less cozy, Dev has set aside her centuries of notable protests, wild parties, and minor crimes to gather a group of mortals to shake the pantheon up a bit! She may seem like the irresponsible “they’ll figure it out for themselves” type, but she’s really the irresponsible “they’ll figure it out for themselves after I shove them in the right direction” type.

Declan | Agender, Aromantic

Declan is a humanoid angel with a poorly-disguised grudge against Devrim. They say everything they do is for the sake of order, and while order may be the lense through which they see everything else, it’s certainly not their only motivator. That other motivator is malice. They may not show it, but they thrive on getting in other people’s way. This is likely because this gets them praise from the higher-ups. Either way, Declan’s got some mysterious beef with Dev, and they’ll stop her with any lawful means possible.

Blaine | Trans Man, Demiromantic

Blaine is an absolute ray of sunshine, or, at least, he tries to be. You see, he’s been half-possessed by a demon rat sent by the chaos god themself for about a year now, and this rat’s intentions are a lot less ‘good’ than Devrim’s. The rat, who Blaine calls Pla, was sent to find a mortal to cause as much chaos as possible, and forcing a person like Blaine to do it was sure to get Pla some extra credit. While he’s not fully possessed all the time, Blaine must do Pla’s bidding, or else they’ll take over his body. The possession is terrifying and painful when it happens, and yields the same result either way, and after a month or two of trying to fight him off, he pretty much gave up and started hoping for someone to stop him. The tasks he is forced to carry out range from spreading panic-inducing rumors to murdering people and sending fake threats. Blaine refuses to let his anguish show, instead showing the world a happy, polite, and positive person when he can. He also tends to believe in other people more than he believes in himself.

Torny | Lesbian

Torny is in a similar situation to Blaine, but she’s certainly not having nearly as bad a time. As a chaotic person who does whatever she wants without any thought to the consequences, an cat-shaped angel whom she calls Peir has taken on the role of her magical therapist while also giving her ‘lessons’ by having her help people. Peir doesn’t control her unless she’s about to do something drastic like hit someone. Torny likes motorcycling, starting fights, and fantasy animal crossing punk rock.

#long post #oc summaries #ocs

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khadij-al-kubra · 6 years ago

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Punk FamILY AU...

If you know me, you know that I LOVE the Punk AU by @asofterfan and I know that they all end up together during college and stuff. So I just couldn’t help imagining all them grown up and becoming parents to a young punkling.

Buckle up friends, this is gonna be a long one. *cracks knuckles* I present to you, A Punk Family AU:

One of the punks is home while the others are at work one day; let’s just say Virgil. And he hears something rifling through their trash can outside. When he goes to investigate if it’s a burglar or a raccoon, it turns out to be a little girl.

She’s skinny with dirty (literally and color-wise) blond hair tucked into a backwards baseball cap, a missing front tooth, beat-up high-tops with holes in them and overalls with a t-shirt that’s too big for her. She can’t be more than 10 or 11.

She jumps at being found and runs, but Virgil follows her. He catches up to her in an alley but as he corners her he holds his hands up and carefully tells her it’s okay. The Girl gets super prickly. Like straight up feral defensive wild child. (more like an angry kitten) She’s clearly been through a lot.

Somehow he manages to gently talk her down, promising he’s not gonna hurt her or call the police. He just wants to talk. He also notices that she’s got a slightly bruised cut on her cheek (something he recognizes easily) and offers her a band-aid and maybe something hot to eat.

She doesn’t know why but somehow this little girl sense she can trust this black clad spiky grown-up. Because even though he looks scary she can see something soft and kind in his eyes behind the purple (her favorite color) bangs; something she’s not used to seeing in adults.

Back at the apartment Virgil gets her cut cleaned up and feeds her some leftovers as well as some of Patton’s cookies. She practically inhales it all. When he gently asks her name she tells him it’s Morgan. That’s all he gets out of her for now, but as promised he wont call the cops. Virgil waits for the others to get back, hoping they can figure out what to do

Logan, Patton and Roman get home and of course are surprised to see Virgil drawing pictures with some strange kid in their living room. Like before, Morgan goes into feral defensive mode, but Virgil tells Morgan. they’re alright. They’re his...friends (getting into the whole polyamory thing isn’t priority now) and promises they won’t hurt her. The punks introduce themselves, and Virgil fills them in.

They all get a sense that this girl is in trouble and want to help. Patton is the most careful around her and Morgan actually softens up a bit. But the second he mentions he’s a social worker she bristles, screaming “I’m NOT GOING BACK TO THAT FOSTER HOUSE! YOU CANT MAKE ME!!” They’re all taken aback. Morgan looks like she’s about to cry but she holds her chin high, fists balled, tough and brave. A true punkling.

Logan calmly tells her that Patton doesn’t work with social services or foster care, and they aren’t going to bring her anywhere she doesn’t want to go. Roman promises on his honor that “you, little princess are safe with us, and may take shelter here for the night.” Logan worries logistically about this but they all agree. Virgil even lets her have his bed.

The next day they eventually get more info out of her. They find out, just as they suspected, that Morgan is a runaway foster kid who’s been in and out of the system. She was taken out of a bad Home situation when she was eight only to be passed around between similar families and people who just wanted a meal card or were abusive or neglectful in various ways to various degrees. After four days in her most recent foster home, she ran away, taking her few personal belongings in a duck taped backpack, and has been living in the streets for a week.

All four of their hearts go out to this tough little girl, but especially Logan and Virgil because SHES JUST LIKE THEY WERE!!! Roman’s a sniffling mess and Patton can’t help but immediately gently hug her, which after a stiff few seconds she melts into because it’s Patton and he’s just magic like that!

And all of them agree to help her somehow. They promise not to take her back and say that ‘if she wants to’ Morgan can stay with them for a while until they find her a safer situation. She looks at all these odd but kind adults, senses something in them that’s the same as her -especially Logan and Virgil- and nods her head yes. Besides, if she needs to, she can always sneak away. It wouldn’t be the first time.

But of course, she doesn’t. Instead they start to look after her. She hangs around and reads or draws or watches tv while they’re at work, and they spend time with her when Home. They shower her with love and kindness and slowly get her to open up to them.

Patton teaches her how to bake, finding out she’s super giggly and clumsy and sweet. When they cut out sugar cookies into shapes (Patton has star, Moon, and dinosaur cut outs) she makes hers look like little monsters and ices them various colors. Its adorable. He calls her kiddo all the time, to which she blushes, but actually really likes it. Better than being called ‘brat’ or ‘that kid’ or ‘good for nothing’ or— Patton stops her there and hugs her. He gives her new compliments and endearing nicknames for every unkind thing that’s ever possibly been said to her. He also tells her lots of Dad jokes, which she finds stupidly hilariously and snort laughs every time. Which makes Patton melt because HOLY HECK SO CUTE!

Turns out she’s also protective like Patton. One day he takes her to the park for fresh air and she pushed a bully into the sand after they were picking on some smaller kid with evident developmental problems, shouting “Eat my fists you monkey faced jerk! I WILL PHYSICALLY FIGHT YOU!!” Needless to say, he’s super proud, but he pulls her off the kid before they both draw too much attention. Then he takes her for ice cream and explains that while it’s great to stand up to bullies you also can’t go around biting people.

Roman practices lines in front of her and she interjects sometimes with her own made up lines that, yes, divert entirely from the plot, but are just too fun and interesting and he just goes along with it. He also brings her to the drama section of the books store to pick out a few plays to read on her own (she stumbles across a copy of Eve Ensler’s “The Vagina Monologues” but he takes it out of her hands saying, “let’s maybe save that one for when you’re a bit older, my little warrior princess.”) He even sews colorful patches onto her old backpack for her and offers to help put studs on her baseball cap.

Logan brings her some small assignments from the middle school he teaches at because runaway kid or not, he’s gonna make sure this little girl learns a thing or two damnit. Turns out she’s super bright and especially loves mythology and history. She’s always asking him to tell her about female historical figures especially, and is fascinated (albeit confused at first but eventually gets it) when he goes on his rants about the stupidity of the binary and toxic masculinity. “Oohhh you mean like how I think boys AND girls are pretty, and how you, Roman, Virgil and Patton all like-like each other?” And Logan’s Punk gay heart is so proud of this perceptive punklet.

Virgil though, oh Virgil bonds with Morgan the most. Not only does he share his past with her and thus she opens up more to him (she even shows him the scar on the back of her shoulder from her first foster parent), but they are SO much alike! Turns out not only do they have the same favorite color, foods and animal, but Virgil finds out that Morgan is also artistic too. She tells him about how she wants to draw comic books when she’s grown-up and they draw together all the time.

In a short amount of time (let’s say a few weeks) all four of them just fall in love with this feisty sweet and artsy little punk!! Suffice to say, they all vote they want to keep her. But eventually someone contacts Patton, finds out (through no fault of his own) that Morgan ran away, and has been with them the whole time.

Her old foster family didn’t report anything till now because they would’ve gotten find or something. Still, she’s in the system so they're preparing to send someone over to place her with a new family. Morgan overhears this and runs to Patton’s arms screaming and crying “DON’T LET THEM TAKE ME AWAY FROM YOU! PLEASE!!” They hug her tightly, promising she never has to go back.

They have to go through a LOT of hoops, paperwork, and red tape to keep their promise. Them being four grown poly men and at least half of them in (to their eyes) dubious jobs (ugh the Man), they aren’t exactly ideal or typical candidates for fostering, let alone adoption. However, they are impressed by and convinced by both Patton’s credentials as a therapist/social worker for inner city kids, as well as Logan’s educational background and teaching degree. (Plus, they are admittedly a bit intimidated by Logan and also Virgil)

Eventually (like say it takes a month or so) they are able to get around the system. They ask Morgan if she would want to be part of their family because, even though they love her so much, ultimately what she wants matters most. And Morgan, this little punk lost girl has come to love them too and practically jumps into their arms!! All four surround her in a hug.

Morgan moves in permanently and even officially gets her own room now (Virgil’s old studio, but it’s cool. The guys all share a bed most nights anyway). She’s also got Dot and Larry and Patton’s Mom as the best grandparents ever (they all adore and spoil her when they come over to visit the boys). And she gets also gets along really well with her uncle Thomas who plays ukulele and sings for her. He also tries to teach her how to sing, but it turns out she’s a bit tone deaf. (Oh well) And she’s got her godparent Elliot and her Aunty Remy too, who offers to do her first tattoo WHEN SHES OLDER! (You know her tattoo artist Dad isn’t gonna be the irresponsible parent and let his daughter do that too young, no matter how Punk a family they are)

Logan eventually enrolls Morgan into the school he teaches at too. Instead of being embarrassed to have her Pop as her teacher she brags about it. Like, “that’s right. My Pop is smarter than your dad. All four of them are! Weeeell maybe not Daddy as much.” (Roman: “Hey!”)

However, he does have to step in sometimes when she starts getting into arguments with the other kids when she starts shouting things like “SMASH the patriarchy!” or “I have the best dads in the world! FIGHT ME!” and “Gender’s a construct! The binary’s useless, bitches!!” First time the four of them have ever been called into the principals office because of someone else’s bad behavior XD. Eventually they teach her to tone it down and that there are ways of being punk and standing up for others without resorting to screaming and fighting first; something it took them years to learn and only now appreciate as adults.

Usually Papa Patton will come to pick her up after school and they’ll either go to the park or to home. Sometimes he’ll gently and subtly get her to talk a little about her past if he sees she’s been down lately and they’ll hug out the bad feelings. Sometimes her Daddy Roman will pick her up and take her to the theater he works at so she can hang out backstage. All the performers love her, and she even starts getting interested in and learning about tech work from the stage crew.

Family time for them includes laughing around the dinner table, them listening to Morgan’s stories, and movie marathons with cuddle piles. Either Disney movies or Marvel movies (usually the latter if Morgan pulled out the kitty eyes; the punks’ kryptonite.)

If she ever does have bad days or wakes up from nightmares about her old life, it’s usually her Dad Virgil who’ll be first to her bedside rocking her in his arms; then all four are there surrounding her with kisses and hugs and love. In short, Morgan is the happiest she’s ever been with her new loving punk family. And all four of the punks found the piece of their family they hadn’t even known was missing.

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