#third art tag i’ve used now i think

[mnt-eevee]

i don’t post art often, especially not on tumblr, but i REALLY wanted to participate in cuddlesworks 3 year anniversary dtiys !!

@cuddlesworks your art is a big inspiration to me and im so so glad i managed to actually participate in this dtiys :3

[veinpursuer]

WHERE’S MY FUKING CAPO

[linderosse]

Super valid question that doesn’t really have a set answer.

The Wisdomverse definitely started off as an LU spinoff, since it was always planned to progress in parallel with The Secrets We Keep.

But since then, I’ve changed quite a few things to fit the story I want to tell. These changes largely stem from actual Zelda canon, or certain fan canons that have been around in the LU fandom for some time. Back when I began planning this AU, many of these things hadn’t been confirmed for LU yet, and fans had their own theories. I chose the ones I liked, and also ones that maximize emotional damage (😇) and better match the stories I want to tell.

Spirit and Phantom are not Wind and Tetra

The FSA manga is canon

FSA takes place directly after FS

Legend and Fable are siblings

All relevant characters remember Hyrule Warriors (if they’ve already fought in the War of Eras)

Echo is Aurora, not Fable. Cadence of Hyrule is canon now, and is Echo’s second adventure (AoL is her third).

Smash is peripherally canon and some characters can remember it.

As I go on, I’ve sort of been viewing this more and more as its own thing that is also compatible with the LU Links. I’ve been using tags like #wisdomverse, #wielders of wisdom, and #wis sun or #wis echo for a while now, to differentiate the Zeldas from the potential LU versions.

That said, I still don’t mind folks tagging this as Linked Universe content when applicable, and I’m still going to be keeping the crossover going with the paired arts and The Secrets We Keep. This really still is an AU of LU, even if it’s also its own thing.

Essentially, full credit to @linkeduniverse for the awesome Links-meet idea that I’ve taken my own spin on. Mad respect to them; I’m a huge fan of their ideas and content.

And shoutout to the rest of the LU fandom for the Zelda names (Sun, Lullaby, etc). I continue to stress that, though the personalities, characters, stories, designs, and profession-titles (founder, rogue, etc) of Wisdomverse are either motivated by canon or a creation of my own, the Zelda names in particular were created by the LU fandom as a whole, and I’m using them as a tribute, and to maintain consistency with LU.

Tl;dr: Wisdomverse started off as an LU AU, but it has since sort of evolved into its own thing. The LU Links are still going to be in TSWK and crossovers, and I don’t mind folks tagging LU when relevant. Though some of the details may not match up anymore, I still think of these Zeldas as compatible with the core personalities and adventures of the LU Links.

Masterpost

[foldingfittedsheets]

An FAQ!

Does your ask tag stand for "Folding Fitted Sheets" or "For Fuck's Sake"?

Both! I had been using the handle Foldingfittedsheets for a long time and someone shortened it to FFS and I immediately realized that it was hilarious. All ways of reading it are valid.

Before asking a bed question:

Here’s my helpful guide, I may have covered your question already. There’s also a “bed talk” tag full of info and advice!

Before asking a sex ed question:

Here’s my other helpful guide! Includes lube tips etc.

Can you actually fold a fitted sheet?

No. I thought it was a funny handle that was easy to say and hard to do. A metaphor for life being messy and complicated. A task that you can only ever try your best at although failure in inevitable.

When I moved in with my beloved I packed the linen closet and told them that I didn't know if we'd have enough room. They spent a day refolding everything beautifully and it took up a third of the closet. So some people are just built different.

Have you seen this guide on how to fold them??? It's easy!

I am content at my current levels of adequacy and would prefer to spend my time on other pursuits. Thank you for thinking of me, but I'm good.

Will you put a read more on comics?

No. I have tried to put out comics under read more cuts and they do not get the same traction. It's also unfair to ask me to change how I present my work. No one will ever have to scroll through them as much as me and I promise it's never more than 30 seconds which does not feel unreasonable.

Tumblr has a setting that will automatically shorten long posts, and I have provided a tag "do you love the color of the comic" so that you can take initiative to reduce the space they take up. You can also block the new individual comic tag after you’ve read it to stop seeing repeats.

Comics take months of my time to produce and I reblog them a lot when they first launch because I'm excited to share something that I worked really hard on.

I won't be offended if you unfollow me, but I will if you ask me to cater to your sensibilities on how long my art should be.

Will you reblog my mutual aid post?

I’m sorry, but no. If I don’t know you I don’t have the time to check for scams and Tumblr just really isn’t the best platform to ask for help if you’re in dire straits.

If you send a link to a gofundme I’m gonna block you. It’s not personal but I have no time to sift through what’s legitimate or not and I’ll assume you’re a scammer who did not read this.

Why don’t you have lesbian flags?

I prefer the rainbow and I have very negative connotations with it, which I talk about more here.

Why are all the ace flag creatures sleepy?

An ace friend loved the ace dragon in the first set and said, “It’s sleepy like my sexuality!” I thought that was very cute and when I did gryphons I made them sleepy too. I’ve since gotten a lot of really cute comments on how much people liked the sleepy ace creechurs.

When I went through and revamped the unicorns I noticed the ace unicorn wasn’t sleepy. I made a poll to ask if I should switch it to be consistent with the dragons and gryphons. It was an overwhelming yes so now all the ace creatures are sleepy.

[acebytaemin]

[end of an era]: closing #analook

first of all, i want to say thank you times five billion to everyone who’s ever tagged me in a post. it goes without saying that i have enjoyed every single one of them and will treasure this entire experience and all the beautiful creations i’ve gotten to see (and discuss in great lengths in the tags of course 🤭). now, that’s partly the reason why i feel like i should wrap it up - you all create such wonderful things and they all deserve my full attention and all the yapping i can muster yet sadly just don’t have the time to type up. it’s silly how much it’s meant to me (i might be tearing up a little) and how much i’m going to miss it, but i really do think it’s for the best. of course, feel free to @ me or send me any post of yours in the future - you know i’ll respond with enthusiasm. though it won’t come close to a gif/edit/artwork, i’ve typed up little thank-you notes to the main contributors to #analook as a token of my gratitude under the cut. love & appreciate you all SO so so so much! 💖

@atlantis-area - my dearest alexa, the reason i even started a user tag and got to experience all this, thank you The most 💖 hopefully you already know how grateful i am for you, so i won’t make it too long. it’s been a pleasure (and will continue to be) to watch your giffing style evolve and to get to be a fan of taemin alongside you. love you! 🩵

@herewegobebe - oh my darling ru where do i start 🥹 i’m soooo so thankful for your wonderful presence and your gifs (as ive already told you numerous times). you’ve been a real highlight of my tag (it’s still a bit of a starstruck moment for me to be your mutual/get tagged in your gifs tbh!) and it’s going to make me really really sad to potentially miss some of your gifs now but best believe i’ll be checking ur blog whenever i can 🙂‍↕️💖

@minhosblr - MAJA my number one gorgeous wino gif source i literally can’t believe you even tagged me in them to begin with i feel like it’s all been such a successful fan moment 🥹🐰🫶🏻 thank you so so much & ofc expect me all up in your tags regardless 😽💓

@kimsuyeon - my lili the absolute master of gifs with gorgeous quality and beautiful coloring and stunning women like you can truly do no wrong in my books anytime i see a gif of yours i get giddy and feel like cracking my knuckles and going IN in the tags. thank you soooo much for gracing me (and everyone else) w your gorgeous gifs 💝

@pink-vacancy - the way im going to miss yuna & mina served on a beautiful platter cannot be overstated.. thank you so much for adding a beautiful touch of cherry red spice to my tag 🙂‍↕️🍒💋 (and kinda beside the point but also for always being SO incredibly sweet & nice to me)

@faunandfloraas - jess my third favorite australian 🤭💕 your creativity and collecting moments/pulling parallels + funny tags have brought me very many giggles, thank you saaaaur much 😽💕

@chanrizard - sa thank you soooo much for my chan gif fixes 💖 and SORRY for all the stuff you’ve had to read in your tags and still tagging me regardless lmfaojfkdjdk you best believe you’ll keep on reading them as i’ll be a frequent visitor of your blog from now on 🫡

@rainknow - your art has been one my favorite things to find in my tag, thank you so so so much for using it! most wonderful capturing of lino i’ve ever seen, no one does his eyes justice like you do 😽💖 (pls if you ever feel like it and i don’t see a post of ur art mention me or send it to me - it’d be highly appreciated!)

@linoyes - thank you SO much for amping up the amount of linos in my tag, it’s been such a delight to see your giffing evolve and im excited to keep yapping in your tags in the future 🤭💞💞💞

@jonghyunluvr - your jjong/taemin posts are always so enjoyable, i love your insights and how you notice the same things as me sometimes hehe 🩵🩵 please do keep sending them to me by all means 😌

@shorelinnes - raf pleaseeee if you want to still send me or tag me in your art.. i’d be so sad to miss it and your gorgeous gifs too! im so very happy to have you around and i appreciate all the posts you’ve tagged me in so so much 💞

@strayklds - em i remember being nervoussss to ask you to tag me hdksjdk i think your gifs are so good and want to thank you Very much for tagging me in them! it’s really been a pleasure 🫶🏻

@briankang - TAY my minchan friend and my bangchan gifs supplier you best believe i’ll be checking your blog 🤭 thank you SO much for all you’ve tagged me in so far 💖 (still thinking abt your minchan ate teasers edits.. changed my life now idk if for the better or worse but. lives have been changed for sure)

@taeiltual - bex your gorgeous edits truly make me think that most of these companies truly need to do better, thank you so much for making everyone look more beautiful and tagging me along (hehe) for the ride! 💖

@ashmp3 @kissoflifes - thank you two SO much for using my tag as intended and for the highest purpose of all - in your gorgeous selfies! (& thank you zaynab for your beautiful gifs too ofc ofc) for sure still send them to me if i happen to miss them we Do Nottt want a tragedy like that to ever strike. love u my beautiful friends 💞💞

@28reas0ns - not directly related to my tag (though you did tag me in a couple of beautiful sets!) but just wanted to once again thank you for my header gif(s) i’ll really treasure them for a long time 💝

and a shoutout to everyone who’s tagged me in a few of their posts, thank you thank you thank you from the bottom of my heart! it’s really felt special every single time and i can’t thank you all enough for thinking of me and inviting me to yap in your tags like one would a vampire into their home. MWAH appreciate you all soooo so much 💖💖💖:

@reiiofsunn 💖 @drzephyr 💖 @hyunjinsource 💖 @minho-knows 💖 @speakofcompersion 💖@linolinoing 💖 @sunugf 💖

[chiyuuchu]

Kazuha meets his match <3 (31st July 2024)

Kadehara Kazuha x Reader

Prompt! Accompanying Aether to Liyue, Kazuha takes an interest in the traveler’s peer.

Aether and Kazuha had just arrived in Liyue, marveling at the bustling cityscape and its rich cultural vibrancy. The sun dipped low, casting golden hues over the rooftops and streets, as they wandered in search of a place to eat.

Aether suggested they visit a quaint diner he’d heard about, known for its traditional Liyue cuisine and warm atmosphere. As they entered, the scent of sizzling dishes and fragrant spices greeted them.

Seated at a cozy corner table, they were served a variety of delectable dishes. Amidst their meal, Aether’s eyes fell on a familiar figure just a few tables away. Y/N, a local dancer renowned for her traditional performances, was enjoying a meal with her friends—Hutao, Yanfei, Yunjin, Xiangling, and Xingqiu.

With a smile, Aether nudged Kazuha. “That’s Y/N. She’s a local dancer and knows all about Liyue’s traditions. She might be able to give us some insights into what i’m trying to figure out.”

Kazuha, intrigued, watched as Aether approached Y/N’s table with a friendly wave. “Y/N! Over here!”

Y/N looked up, her eyes sparkling with recognition as she saw Aether. “Aether! It’s so good to see you! And you must be...?”

Kazuha stepped forward with a charming grin. “Kazuha, at your service. It’s a pleasure to meet you, lady Y/N.”

“It’s very nice to meet you Kazuha. Say, aren’t you that wanted criminal at Inazuma? I’m sure Aether has told me about that before.” Y/n tilts her head with curiosity.

“I must admit, I’ve been told I have a knack for getting into trouble,” he said with a playful glint in his eye. “So, tell me, Y/N, do you think you’re into bad guys?”

Y/N laughed, a warm and melodic sound that seemed to harmonize with the ambient music. “Well, that’s certainly an intriguing introduction. But I do suppose it depends on how you define trouble.”

“Maybe I could show you sometime.” Kazuha said in his soft spoken voice.

Aether thought to himself: ‘He is definitely downbad.’

“Hey Y/n! Do you think we can join your dinner table tonight? I have not been in Liyue for quite some time.” Aether interrupted, clearly trying to get out of the sudden third wheeling position he was in.

“I suppose that I don’t see why not.” Y/n smiles.

As Kazuha and Aether joined Y/N and her friends, the table was filled with lively conversation and laughter. Hutao, ever the playful spirit, greeted Kazuha with a mischievous smile.

“Ah, another traveler! What brings you to our humble gathering?” she asked, her eyes twinkling.

Aether chimed in, “Kazuha here is just tagging along with me. We’re exploring Liyue and thought we’d drop by. Y/N has been gracious enough to let us join in.”

Yanfei, ever the legal expert and mediator, added, “It’s always nice to meet new people. And if Aether says you’re interesting, I’m sure you are.”

Kazuha’s eyes sparkled with interest. “I hope I can live up to the expectations. It seems like I’m in excellent company.”

Yunjin, with her grace and poise, nodded. “Now where were we? Oh! Y/N, tell us about your dance performances. I’ve heard they’re quite spectacular.”

Y/N’s face lit up as she spoke. “Oh, I’m very fortunate to perform traditional dances that celebrate Liyue’s heritage. It’s a blend of storytelling and art that connects us with our history.”

Xiangling, her eyes bright with curiosity, leaned forward. “I’ve heard you’re also gotten even more skilled with your polearm and Pyro vision. That’s a fascinating combination! How does that blend with your performances?” she quickly rambles with her enthusiasm.

Y/N nodded, clearly proud. “Yes, I sometimes do try to apply my abilities to add a dramatic flair to my dances. The fire especially help me to convey the message of the stories I perform.”

Kazuha, intrigued by this revelation, leaned in slightly. “Pyro wielding and a polearm applied into an artistic dance, you say? That sounds like a truly impressive combination. I must admit, I’m quite fascinated by it.”

Hutao raised an eyebrow, teasingly. “Careful, Kazuha. You might end up wanting to join one of Y/N’s performances yourself.”

Kazuha chuckled, his attention fixed on Y/N. “If it means I get to see such a talented performer in action, I just might take you up on that offer.”

As the evening progressed and the wine flowed, Kazuha's flirtatious nature became more evident. With a slightly tipsy grin, he turned to Y/N. “I must say, your talents and beauty are truly mesmerizing. I can’t help but be enchanted.”

Y/N laughed softly, clearly enjoying the company. “And what about you, Kazuha? What makes you such an intriguing person?”

Kazuha’s gaze softened as he took a sip of his drink. “Well, besides my charming self, I suppose it’s the sense of adventure and the appreciation for poetry that drives me. And tonight, I find myself captivated by someone who has stolen my attention so seamlessly.”

With a tipsy grin, Kazuha leaned in closer to Y/N, his words slightly slurred. “You know, Y/N, I have to say, your presence here makes this meal all the more delightful. I can’t help but feel that fate has a funny way of bringing people together.”

Y/N’s cheeks flushed slightly as she smiled, clearly enjoying Kazuha’s attention. “And what do you think fate has in store for us tonight?”

Kazuha’s gaze softened as he looked at her, his flirtation taking on a more genuine tone. “Perhaps it’s simply a chance to enjoy each other’s company. But if you’re open to it, I’d love to hear more about your life in Liyue. I’m sure there’s much I can learn from someone as captivating as you.”

“If you insist Kazuha.” Y/n can’t help but smile.

The evening continued with laughter, stories, and more wine. Kazuha’s charm and Y/N’s warmth created a delightful atmosphere, making the night unforgettable for everyone involved. As they parted ways, Kazuha made sure to express his appreciation.

“This has been a delightful evening. I’m grateful to have met such fascinating individuals. And Y/N, your company has made the most of my night.”

Y/N’s cheeks flushed slightly as she smiled. “I’m glad you enjoyed it, Kazuha. It was a pleasure getting to know you. If you’re ever free, you know where to find me.”

With a final wave, Kazuha bid farewell, leaving Y/N with a memorable impression and a sense of anticipation for what future encounters might bring.

The next week, Aether, having wrapped up his business in Liyue, went out in attempt to find Kazuha so they could sail back to Inazuma. The sun was setting, casting a warm glow over the city. He decided to check in with Beidou at her dock, hoping she might have seen his friend.

“Beidou, have you seen Kazuha around?” Aether asked as he approached the ship captain, who was overseeing the final preparations for departure.

Beidou looked up with a knowing smile. “Ah, Kazuha? He’s been out and about with that dancer girl—Y/N, right? They seemed pretty interested in each other’s company. I got to give it to him, I never took Kazuha as a guy interested romance.”

Aether’s curiosity was piqued. “A dancer girl? Where might I find them?”

Beidou pointed towards a nearby park. “They were headed towards the fountain area. You should find them there.”

Aether thanked her and made his way to the park. As he approached the fountain, he noticed Kazuha and Y/N sitting on the edge, laughing together. The fountain’s soft splashes and the twilight cast a romantic glow over the scene.

Kazuha was holding a small, wrapped bundle and, with a playful grin, presented it to Y/N. “I made this for you. I hope you like it.”

Y/N’s eyes sparkled as she unwrapped the gift, revealing a delicate handmade bracelet. “It’s beautiful, Kazuha. Thank you so much.”

As they continued to exchange laughter and warm words, Aether decided to make his presence known. He cleared his throat, walking up with a friendly smile. “Kazuha, we’re about to set sail. Time to come back to Inazuma.”

Kazuha looked up, slightly startled but still smiling. “Ah, Aether. I guess our time here has come to an end. But I’m glad we had this moment.”

Y/N gave them both a warm smile. “It was lovely meeting you, Aether. I hope you both have a safe journey and do let me know when you both will visit again.”

Kazuha rose. “I’ll make an effort to make that soon, my lady.” Giving Y/N one last, lingering glance before following Aether. As they walked away, Aether couldn’t help but ask, “So, how was your little date?”

Kazuha chuckled, his gaze still drifting back towards Y/N. “It was quite delightful. I believe we made some.. rather interesting memories.”

The two headed back towards the docks.

“I’d definitely come back just to see her dances again and perhaps maybe more.” Kazuha smiled mischievously.

[cyberaxolotl]

Boombox Phucks Up!

Phighting! Romance/Drama (Boombox/Slingshot/Skateboard)

Warnings: Alcohol/drinking, brief (1) mention of substance abuse

Brief summary: Boombox falls in love with his best friends and it sucks… Maybe?

Words: 8.9k

Illustrations: 0 in fic, 1 cover art

See AO3 Version for detailed summary and tags

Fic below the cut.

If you were to ask Boombox who their two closest demons in Inpherno were, the answer would immediately be obvious; Skateboard and Slingshot. At any given time, if you were to look for one of the three of them, there was a high chance that one of the others would be there too. They were, on all fronts, very best friends.

Well… Boombox was best friends with Skateboard and Slingshot, at least. The other two, however, were much more than friends. Despite the assumption that the DJ would feel like a third wheel around the other two, their thoughts had always been much, much different.

”I was there when Sling and Skate became a thing, it was kinda funny!” They would recount happily, “One moment the three of us are at a party, I talk to Valk and Dom for a half hour, and then I come back and my best friends are telling me they’re a thing now. Happened so fast, but we were all drunk, and it was obvious that they liked each other, so it wasn’t really a surprise.”

And for quite a long while, that was that! Skateboard and Slingshot were a couple, and Boombox still hung out like they were one of them, given the dynamic had hardly changed. As far as they could tell, all that had changed were more pecks on the cheek, and happy recounts from one or the other (or both) about a date going extremely well.

…But it was only that way for a while.

”Get it, Skate!”

”You can do it!”

At the BOGIO Skatepark, two sat on the edge of the highway overpass, gazing down at the other. A hip-hop beat was playing, and below them, the shredding and skidding of a skateboard sounded up. Rails sparked from friction and velocity as Skateboard attempted trick after trick, leading up to one of the greatest ones he’d ever attempt…

”…SHIT!” And promptly fail. With a sharp screeching of wood on brick, the side of his board hit the edge of a wall, coming out from under him.

Slingshot leaned forward, “You alright, Skate?”

”I’m fine!” He picked himself up off of the cement, looking up at the two, “Almost had it that time.”

”Should I turn the music down?” Boombox tilted their head, “Seems like the extra speed is throwing you off.”

”Nah, gotta get used to it! I could take someone down with this trick if I’ve got all your speed.” Looking around, he found his board, dusting it off.

They smiled, “Alright!” Then turned to Slingshot, “He’s crazy, huh?”

”Hah, don’t have to tell me.” He laughed, “I just hope he doesn't slam into a wall again…”

”Yeowch, yeah…” Boombox grimaced, looking down. When their stomach growled, another thought came to mind, “Are you getting hungry, Sling?”

”Hm… I could eat. Hey, Skate?” He called for attention, “Are you gonna be ready for lunch soon?”

”Me? Yeah! Are you two?” He asked back, getting two nods, “Alright, lemme practice a little more, I’ve nearly got it!”

”Don’t hurt yourself too badly.” Slingshot leaned back, but still kept his eyes on his boyfriend. After a moment, he smiled, “He’s handsome when he's practicing.”

Despite knowing it wasn’t for them, and was an indirect statement, the DJ gazed down as well. Skateboard WAS an attractive guy, with short curly hair, and a heavy-set, muscular build. The confidence in his moves when he’d practice, the grin he had on the whole time… “…Yeah.” They muttered under their breath, “-!”

”Eh?” Seeing them flinch out of the corner of his eye, the baker glanced over, “You okay, Boom?”

“…Uh, yeah, I’m cool!” They put on a smile, laughing, “Bug landed on me, I think.” Having no reason not to believe them, he gave a small hum of acknowledgement, then turned away. They looked at him, ‘I just… I just called his boyfriend handsome and he didn’t notice.’ They thought, staring at him. Though, suddenly… At least under the warm sunlight, Slingshot’s eyes glowed, only slightly overshadowed by his long, black hair. He was just as handsome as his boyfriend.

They picked up their water bottle, quickly taking a drink. They had to be dehydrated to be thinking like that, surely! They’d never looked at either of them that way before, except… They did, occasionally, admire the two’s physical shape, but they were phighters! They were muscular and strong, how were they not supposed to admire that?

”Alright, check this out!” Snapping out of their thoughts, Boombox quickly leaned forward, scanning down for Skateboard. And just in time, too, “HEEELLLL YEAH! Did you two catch that?!”

”Saw it! That was INSANE, Skate!” Slingshot smiled, chuckling, “Guess they really do call you the pro skater of Playground.”

”Fuck yeah they do! Tell him, Boom!”

They grinned, “I think you’re the pro skater of Playground! Coil’s still out on that, though.”

”Ehhh, he’ll turn around eventually.” Skidding to a stop, he got off of his board, “Alright! Who’s got a lunch idea?”

“I was thinking, this place gets me in the mood for subs. Boom?” Slingshot prompted, standing up.

”Subs sound good!” They followed after him, “You gonna walk to the intersection, Skate?”

“Well, it's not like I can get up there. I’ll meet you two at the end, though!”

”Alright. Guess we’re going music against a board!” The baker smiled.

”You’re on!” Promptly re-boarding, Skateboard bounded off, leaving the two on the overpass.

”Snrk- aaand now he gets to wait for us.” Not even running, Slingshot turned, walking by Boombox’s side down the road, “That trick was pretty good though, huh?”

”Sure was!” Thinking back, their thoughts returned, a soft blush dusting their face, “I- uh, heh, knew he could pull it off!”

”…Is something up, Boom?”

”Whuh?”

”Eeeh, could be nothing, but, you don’t usually splutter like that. Got something on your mind?” Slingshot’s attention to detail struck them as another thing they admired, always able to notice the slightest shifts in mood.

Most of the time, the DJ felt validated by being read, but right then, “Oh its… Uh…” There hadn’t really ever been a time where they denied him their feelings, but now, it felt far too awkward to go any route BUT denying it, “It’s nothing, hah.”

That only made it worse. Stopping completely, he looked back at them, “Hey… You know you can tell me anything, right?” He put his hands in his jacket pockets, taking on a soft expression.

”Uh, I know.” They hoped their visor wasn’t showing as nervous an expression as they felt, “Just… Not right now, okay?”

”…Alright.” He smiled at them, then turned back around, “Just don’t feel the need to hide it.”

Slingshot… Such a wonderfully caring friend. Boombox could only imagine the affection of being not just his friend, but his lover, and… ‘This better just be a today mood…’ They thought, looking away.

Against all his wishes, Boombox’s sudden feelings did not go away when the day ended. The next morning, receiving a message from Slingshot, all that happened was that they came back.

”Sling:

Hey

Hope you’re doing alright. I know you cheered up a bit yesterday but you still seemed kinda nervous all afternoon

You wanna talk about it when we have the time?”

His care for them only made it worse. Of course Slingshot cared for them, they were best friends, and he always had, but now… It tugged at their heartstrings. They weren’t sure they could take the further reassurance of talking to him, and so, quickly,

”You:

that??

i dont even remember what i was worried about lol!!

sorry for worrying you though

Sling:

Ohh its fine

You got plans today? Skate and I were gonna go phighting

You:

maybe some other time! i just wanna chill today

Sling:

Sounds good

Talk to you later”

God, Boombox wasn’t sure he could handle a phight… The idea of seeing the two in action flustered him out of nowhere, especially now that he realized he admired their athletics in quite a different way. He DEFINITELY didn’t want to deal with the embarrassment of getting distracted by them either…

Suddenly, another text came through,

”Skate:

BOOMBOX

sling and i are going phighting you should come

NEVERMIND he just told me you said no i didnt know he texted you

You:

LOL you’re fine skate

have fun!!”

They didn’t realize what they were doing when they started rejecting invitations to go phight. All they were trying to do was avoid embarrassment, but in turn… They found themself spending less time with their best friends. It didn’t feel good, or right, to spend so much time away from them, but… What were they supposed to do? They just hoped they'd get over their feelings, one way or another.

And then, a fateful night came.

~~~~~~

”I’ll be our designated driver.”

Pulling up to a bright, retro bar, Dom slipped the car keys into his pocket, turning to the other two.

”Aaalright! I heard there’s karaoke tonight, you gonna sing, Boom?” Valk excitedly put her arm over their shoulder, walking up to the glass entryway with them.

”Maybe!” They smiled, “Nah, that's definitely, actually.”

”Hell yeah! We gotta do a duet.” Stepping inside, “I think one of my friends is here, can you get me a drink while I save us seats in the lounge?” She turned to her brother, holding out a few bux.

”What dr-“ Dom started, but his sister was already walking off, “…Are you gonna get one too?”

”Yeah, but I don’t wanna drink for long. I don’t think anyone I know is gonna be here, do you mind if I hang around you?” Boombox looked up at him.

”Nope. Valk is gonna be the only one running off doing her own thing.” Going up to the bar as a duo, they got up onto the stools.

Relaxing, the DJ nodded their head to the music. Club music was exactly their style, loud, hard bass, putting them perfectly in the mood to dance and drink. They felt very in-their-element there.

”Welcome to Club Dance, what can I get you today?” The barkeep walked up to them, turning to Dom first.

”Evening, can I get a shirley temple and a…” He paused, trying to think of something for Valk, “…Screwball cocktail?” He shrugged, “Boom?”

”Can I get a mintini?”

”Of course, can I get an ID from the green one?”

Boombox couldn’t say they were surprised, pulling up their bag and reaching for their wallet. They also saw that they received a text message and hadn’t heard it, making a mental note to check it after. They held their ID up, getting a nod from the barkeep.

”Alright, that’ll be five minutes, and seven bux.”

”You’re lucky. When Valk gets her ID checked, they REALLY check it over.” Dom laughed, handing his sister’s given bux and some of his own over, and getting a chuckle back.

”Can’t say I blame them, she looks just like a teenager trying to sneak a drink in!” Putting their ID back, they picked their phone out, “Hopefully she won’t get picked on when she gets her…” Their voice trailed off.

”Skate:

boom can we talk for like a minute”

”…Uhh, when she gets her drink.” They lowered their phone, putting on a half-smile.

”Jeez. I might get arrested for providing alcohol to a minor.” He completely didn’t notice their demeanor shifting, which they both relished, and disliked. He turned, looking around the room, “…I should probably find out where she's sitting before I try carrying two drinks around. Can you stall for a minute?”

Boombox did NOT want to be left alone, “Go ahead!” But they waved him off, feeling their phone buzz in their hand. They turned it over,

”Sling:

Just to check up, we’re not upset or something

Skate:

yeah we needa know if youre doing alright”

Gulping, they opened up their messages,

”You:

huh?? im fine

did something happen?”

Surely, if they played it cool, it would be resolved easier-

“Sling:

Boombox you haven’t really talked to either of us that much this week.

We haven’t seen you in person at all and every time we text you’re busy”

…Uh oh.

“Skate:

and nobody has seen you phighting in a while either, you usually come out at least a few times a week

we’re worried about you dude”

They were worried about him. That simple phrase put his stomach in a twist, every time they noticed his feelings, it was hard to put a name to how he felt. He didn’t want them to worry, but he appreciated… Being noticed, the attention of it. It felt weird to think about liking being worried about, but it meant they cared about him, didn’t it?

Part of them wanted to continue to act like nothing was wrong, the other… Wasn’t sure what to do. He couldn’t just tell his two best friends, who were ALREADY DATING, that he suddenly really liked both of them. That just wasn’t how it worked… Right?

”You:

sorry that i worried you two, i”

”Alright, sorry about that.”

”Gah-!” Startled, Boombox turned over their shoulder, quickly putting their phone away, “Uh- where’s Valk?”

”In the lounge, I just had to find what seat she was in.” Dom got back next to them, and they put their casual smile back on, trying to ignore the heavy feeling in their chest, “Didn’t mean to scare you while coming back.”

”Nah, it’s fine.” They chuckled, “I was just thinking about something.”

”Yeah?”

”Yeah.”

”…Are you gonna tell me?”

”What? Oh,” They realized how awkward they sounded, “Uh, I just… I’m just thinking about Slingshot and Skateboard.”

“Can’t say I’m surprised. Did you three hang out this week?”

”…No.” They looked away, sighing, “Dom, I know you don’t really like any demons like this, but, have you ever felt like you’re… Like you can’t… Ugh.”

”Think before you talk, it’s fine.”

Boombox paused, taking a deep breath. They turned back to him, “You know how Sling and Skate are a thing and there’s kinda this joke that I’m their third wheel or like, some honorary part of them because of how close we are?”

”I think I know where you’re going, and if this is about romance I’m not really your guy, but, continue.”

They huffed, “I realized that I’m into them. Both of them. More than like friends.” Leaning onto the bar, they put their cheek in their hand, “I have ONE passing thought about Skateboard being kinda handsome and then suddenly I think BOTH of them are really handsome, and muscular… And care about me…”

“…” Awkwardly, Dom shrugged, “Well, it’s rough, but, what are you supposed to do about it?”

“That’s what I’m stuck on!” They sat up, “I used to be so chill around them and now I just- keep stressing myself out when I think about them! And I don’t want to embarrass myself by freaking out around them but… Now I haven’t seen them in a while. It’s-“

“Here we are, a shirley temple, mintini, and a screwball cocktail.”

Boombox stopped and took their drink, “Thank you, sir.” While Dom thanked the bartender, “I think, maybe you should just… Not worry about it tonight? You’re out, you’re with us, we’re here to sing and dance, and not to mention, drink. There isn’t much else you can do about it.”

“You’re probably right but… Yeah. You’re just right.” They got down from their stool, “Let’s go find Valk and her friend.” With their phone left back in their bag, they followed behind him, carefully holding their drink.

Entering a room that was only slightly quieter, but less bright, he took them both to a set of lounge couches. Valk saw them quickly, smiling over at them, “Hey! What’d you get me?” She held her hand out.

“Screwball cocktail.” He handed it to her, sitting down. There was another demon there who the DJ didn’t recognize, with darker green horns that framed their face, but they were giving him a friendly smile.

“Sweeet. Oh yeah, Boom, this is my friend Poison Picnic.” The musician noticed their unfamiliarity, pointing them out to each other, “Poison, this is Boombox, he’s one of our music friends.”

“Good to meetcha!” They said happily, getting a greeting nod back.

“Nice to meet you too. Valk and I were just talking about majors.” Their voice was raspy, but quiet, the same way they imagined a snake would sound. Looking closer, they had their snake-like tail wrapped around their legs, curled comfortably on the side of the couch. That explained it.

“I am SO impressed by everyone who takes up science majors. Seriously!” Valk grinned, “I’m an arts gal and that’s it.”

“What’s your major?” Dom asked, taking a sip of his drink.

“Clinical and counseling psychology. I’ve been working on a thesis about the clusters of personality disorders as well as how we need to change the way we treat demons with them.”

“The… What now?” Boombox’s eyebrows furrowed.

“Personality disorders. They’re three clusters of disorders that, well, can often define or change a demon’s personality. Some demons won’t even realize that they have one and, unfortunately, that’s partially due to how they’re treated and stigmatized socially.” Poison started, then stopped, “…Sorry. I shouldn’t ramble about it.”

“No, you’re good.” Dom said, “Valk and I have a cousin who’s a narcissist. It probably helps that we’re related, but he's not a bad guy when you get to know him.”

“As are most people with narcissistic personality disorder, what you have to remember if you’re someone who doesn’t have a PD is simply… To treat them with kindness and respect, and if they’re a friend or family member, to lend them your support, as you would any other friend.” They smiled softly, then sat back, “I’m really trying not to ramble here, but it’s been all that’s on my mind lately.”

“Huh. I know, uh, nothing about any of this.” Boombox chuckled, “But, I’ve always tried to treat everybody well!”

“That’s good! Keep doing that!” They took a sip of their drink, flapping their hand, “It’s a worthy topic to do research on in your own time. You’ll learn a lot of new things, and if something clicks, you might even go down the road of finding something new out about yourself. Remember to do research, in all cases.”

“Dom and I have already gotten screened by professionals a couple times for a couple things, it comes with our lifestyles. The only result?” Valk started,

“Autism.” Dom finished, “Both of us.”

“It’s a genetic thing, so, it makes sense for it to be in both of you.” Poison looked at Boombox, “Do you have any two cents?”

“I’ve got ADHD, and that’s it! I think.” He shrugged, “Haven’t really had a reason to look into anything else!”

They flapped their hand again, “ADHD and autism have a high comorbidity rate with each other as well as with other disorders, but there’s also no cause for concern if you don’t think there’s anything extra impeding your life. If anything does come up, though, looking into comorbidities with a disorder you DO have can make it easier to find if there’s something else you’re dealing with.”

“Hm…” Looking away, he thought about it for a moment. He didn’t think anything was really troubling him, aside from, well… But that wasn’t a disorder problem. But it did sound like it’d be interesting to look into, “Maybe I’ll look into it later! Nice to learn about something new, though.”

“Speaking of learning!” Valk suddenly leaned in, “Are you gonna sing with us, Poison?”

“Um… No.” They shook their head, “I think I’ll stick to dancing.”

“I can join you there. My throat is shot.” Dom said, then took a sip of his drink, “We had a full-announcements round of phights earlier and it was… Loud.”

“Aww, Dom!” His sister pouted, “Guess it’s just you and me, BB.”

“That’s fine by me! Do you wanna hit the stage once we finish our drinks?”

She grinned, “Sounds like a plan!”

Able to easily sink into the world around them, Boombox didn’t realize that there was a question they had, very much, left unanswered…

A couple hours passed of drinking, singing, dancing, and talking, and nobody seemed to watch or pace themself as the night went on. It was only Dom, staying sober, that paid attention to anything.

And eventually, “Uh, Boombox?”

“Hhuuuh?” They were slouched on the couch, previously having their eyes on the stage, until he got their attention. Their visor was showing swirls for eyes, their reddened face translating the screen color to a pinker hue.

“You don’t look good.” He sat next to them, “How much have you had to drink?”

“I’ve beeen drinkinnn’ at the same pace as Vvaalk and Poison havve..!” They smiled in a derpy manner, “Exceeept for like… a couple shots! But onlyyyyy a couple~!”

“Right. Poison?” He looked past them, looking for a different answer from Poison Picnic.

They shrugged, “They’re right, they’ve only had a couple extra, but… I’m gonna guess that they don’t have as good of an alcohol tolerance.”

“Whaaaat? Snrk-“ They laughed at nothing, “Valk and I have the saaame tolerance for this stufff~!”

“…Have you been drinking any water?” Dom raised an eyebrow.

“What?” Their eyes on their visor turned from swirls to dots.

“Yup. That’s the ticket, Valk has a glass of water after every song she does. Says it’s better for her throat.”

“What about me and a glass of water?” Just as her name was uttered, she came up to the couch.

“Boombox hasn’t been drinking any. Look at him.” He motioned.

“I’m fffffiine!”

“…Yeah, no, you’re not.” Joining them on the couch, she picked her phone out of her pocket, “Maybe we should think about leaving soon, it’s getting late… Or, well, it’s only eleven PM. Maybe we should think about getting YOU home.”

“I sssaid I was fine!” They laughed, “You don’t gotta worry about me, I can- hah- I could even sssing another song like this!”

“Please don’t embarrass yourself like that…” Poison muttered.

“Maybe you should see if Skateboard can come pick you up and take you back to Playground. He’s one of your best guys, ain’t he?” Valk proposed.

“He is THEE best guy, actually!” Not caring for what they said in their drunken state, their face got redder, “Neext to Slingshot, they’re bothh… They’re BOTH best guys~!” With that, they picked their phone out, their worries not appearing in their daze, “…Oh FFFFUCK.”

The last thing Boombox had texted anyone was sent in an unfinished state, and as to be expected from the conversation they were supposed to be having, it was met with immediate concern.

”You:

sorry that i worried you two, i”

A couple minutes passed as just that,

“Skate:

boombox???

Sling:

You what? Boombox? Are you okay?”

When thirty minutes had passed with no reply,

“Sling:

Boombox you’re scaring us

Can you tell us what’s happening”

Over the next hour and a half that they had spent at the club getting drunk out of their mind, they’d missed several attempts at calling them to check in, all of which they hadn’t heard over the music and through their bag.

But in that ditzy of a state, they couldn’t find a way to respond seriously. Every part of them just wanted to laugh it off and be picked up. They had to look kinda dumb right there, didn’t they? Wasted, slumped over the back of a couch?

“You:

Sorey im with clak and dom itght now

weere at the club

IM DRUNK AS FUCKJ but valk wasnts to stay

i needa be pcked up

can soemone pcikk me up”

It didn’t even cross Boombox’s mind how awful that response was to all of their concerns. If he was sober, he’d be horrified, but that was future him’s problem. Anyone would be frustrated to get that as a response after hours of silence, but…

“Skate:

holy FUCK dude glad you’re alright

Sling:

We’re gonna come get you. Which club?”

A dorky smile crossed their face, “My frieeendss are gonna come get meee, my bessst friendss, heehehehe…” They said to nobody, only gathering odd looks from the friends that sat around them.

“You:

clcub dnace

it’s ontnhe outskirrts of Blackrock

youllnk know it whenya see it

Sling:

We’ll be there soon.”

“Mmhhhh… I love my friendss so muchhhhh…” They whimpered slightly as they said it, a heavy feeling in their heart.

“Are they… Usually like this when they’re drunk?” Poison quietly asked.

“Kind of, but he also told me he was having a hard time with his friends lately, so it could be that too.” Dom shrugged, “One of us should stay with them until their friends arrive.”

“I’ve got it.” The psychologist got up, holding their hand out to Boombox, “We should wait at the door, friend.”

He took their hand without a second thought, using their assistance to get off of the couch. He smiled clumsily at the siblings, “Byeee~!” And with Poison’s support, they made their way out of the lounge.

Quickly, they reached and stepped out of the glass doors, staying beneath the awning. He turned to them, “Ssso, what’s the psychology behind being drunk?”

“Um… There’s not exactly a psychology to it, but, drunkenness is the effect of ethanol, or alcohol, on primarily the cerebellum part of the brain.” They explained.

“Coool~! Is it any different if you’ve got liiike… Disorders?”

“It can be, actually. Though, unfortunately, the most common link is that those with ADHD or autism are more likely to experience substance abuse at some point in their life.”

“Awh… Bummerrrr…” They hung their head, looking away, “Drinking is fun, but, sssinging is more fun, so I do a LOT more of one thaaan the otherrrr~!”

“I… Can tell. Did you meet Valk and Dom through music?”

“YESSS I did! They fffound me online firssst, how did YOUU meet them?”

“I’m only really Valk’s friend, but we met at a concert. Not one of Flipside’s, another artist’s, and we bonded over, uh… Band merch.”

“That’s sssick! I don’t remember the lasst time I went to a concert.” They looked up, thinking about it, “Ohhh, maybe I should go with my friendsss… Hehe… That ssounds nice.”

“The same friends who are picking you up?”

“Yeaaah, hehe~”

“That’s good. It’s very nice to have reliable and trustworthy friends.”

“Heh…” Staring at nothing for a few seconds, their smile went derpy again, “I wisshh we were more than friendss, but they’re already a thing with eaachotherr, soo, can’t really do thaaat.”

“Oh.” Poison looked away, “That must be difficult, but who knows, your friends could always turn up polyamorous.”

“…OHH FUCK.” His eyes widened, “I FORGOT THAAAT WASS A THING. I’ve jussst been moping this whooole time!”

“Save any actions until you’re not wasted, please…” Putting their hand on his shoulder, they looked down the street, a pair of headlights coming over, “Do you know what car your friends are in?”

“Probably Sling’s, heeee’s got this REALLY nice one, looks…” He looked at the car coming down, “Jussst like that one, actually… Heeey! My friendsss are here~!” Stepping out from under the awning, he waved at the car.

It slowed to a stop, “Boombox!” And Slingshot immediately got out of the driver's seat, “Is everything- uh-?”

To his surprise, he was immediately taken into an affectionate hug, “Sliing~! I’m sooOOO glad you’re heeere, I would’ve had to wait hoursss to get home if you didn’t come!”

“…Yeah. Yeah, I know, dude.” His concerned expression quickly softening, he put a hand on their back, looking over his shoulder, “Skate, can you sit in the back with them? Bring back the water bottle from the front.”

“Got it.”

“Skaaate’s here too?” Boombox asked, letting him go, “Why’d you both come?”

“Because we were both worried about you. Come on, let’s get in the car.” Putting his hand around them, he took them to the backseat, opening the door.

Skateboard had just gotten into the middle seat, holding an open bottle of water, “Hey, Boom, how ya feelin’?”

“I’m gooood~!” They got in, letting Slingshot shut the door, “I had a gooood night, till I drank too much, buuuut, I’m fiiine!”

“Fine enough to drink this, hopefully.” Carefully, he held the bottle up to them, “You're gonna want this.”

“Thaaanks~!” Taking it, they took a hefty drink, then slouched in their seat, “Wooow, after a whole night of martinis, water is SOOO much better than usuaaal…”

“Glad you think so, keep drinking it.” Buckling in, the baker glanced into the car mirror, “What were you up to tonight?”

“I was with Valk and Dom, duhhh~! We were sssinging and dancing and drinking together, except Dom, he was sssupposed to drive ALL of uss home, now look where I am!” They laughed, “I’m with… Uh… You two.” Suddenly, they slowed down.

“…Yeah?” Skateboard tilted his head, “You asked us to come get ya, of course we came and got ya.”

“…” A wave of guilt came over them. They spent a whole week without them, and now, without a second thought, the two came to their rescue. Hell, they had worried them both about their safety for hours, “I… I should’ve ssstayed with Valk and Dom until they were ready to leaave…”

“What? Boombox,” Not having started driving yet, Slingshot looked over the side of his seat, “By how you sound, you would’ve drunk yourself into a hospital bed if you stayed. I’m glad you called for us.”

“Buuut, all I did was worry you twooo! For hoursss! For daaays, maybe!” They leaned against the car door, “Aaand now I come back, jusssst… Wasteeed, really wasted.”

“Dude.” Skateboard leaned closer to them, “We’re just glad you’re OKAY, at all. Doesn’t matter that we had to come get you, now that we know you’re safe.”

“Skate’s right. Everything we were worried about can wait until you’re home and you’re sober.” Slingshot turned back to the front, “We’re gonna take you back to your apartment complex, alright?”

“…My keeeys are at Vaalk and Dom’s place.” They realized, “I lefftt them there becaussse we were gonna go baack.”

“…Then we’re gonna take you back to one of our places.” He shrugged it off.

“We can do mine.” Skateboard offered, “It’s closer to your home.”

“What about Coooiiil..?”

“What about him? If he complains aboutcha sleepin’ on the couch, I’m gonna call him a jackass. That simple.” He chuckled slightly, “It’ll just be a sudden sleepover! Not a big deal.”

“…” Staring at him, Boombox felt their chest well up, their face reddening again. They were ready to cry. Without a care, “Mmh…” They whimpered and wrapped their arms around another one of their best friends, leaning onto his shoulder.

“Woah.” He was surprised for a moment, and then, “…Glad you’re alright, Boom.” Putting a hand on their back, he let them lean in, then glanced up at Slingshot. He motioned for him to not start the car yet.

“Mmhmh…” They continued to whimper sadly, comforted by the feeling of arms around them, “Hmmh… You’re really waarm, Skaaate… And strong… And fuckinnnn… Fat.” They said drunkenly, “It makesss you nice to hold…”

“…You know what, I’m gonna take pride in that.” He smiled, “Take your time.”

“They aren’t wrong.” Slingshot tried to lighten up, looking back.

“Ssshhhh, this is our moment…”

“Ohh, come on, I’d be back there too if I wasn’t about to drive.”

“…Can you come backkk here..?” Boombox perked up, looking over, “I like the… The thought of both of you holdingghh me right now… Makes me feel like you both caree, a lottt…”

“…Yeah, hold on.” Disregarding that they were still in front of the nightclub, the baker unbuckled, carefully picking himself out of the seat. Easily, he vaulted into the back, and the two made room for him.

With Boombox sandwiched in the middle, both Slingshot and Skateboard put their arms around them, and they let their arms fall limp. A dorky smile came over their face, “Thaaanks guys…” They leaned against the seat, letting the other two close in on them.

“Hmmh… We both care a lot about you, Boom. Don’t forget it.” Slingshot reassured them, leaning into the back of their head.

Letting them lean onto his shoulder, “Ya got that, right? We ain’t gonna let you go if ya don’t!” Skateboard added on.

“Hehe~” They chuckled, “I got it, I got it… Sliing, um, you shoould move the car before you get ffffined for parking here…”

“Ohh, right.” Holding them tightly for another moment, he paused, “…You’re gonna be alright if I start driving?”

“Mmmhhhmm.”

“Alright. Open the window if you might throw up, okay?” Letting them go, albeit hesitantly, he got back into the front, “Keep drinking water.”

“Youuu got it~!” Taking another sip right then, Skateboard let go of them as well, and they leaned the other way, slouching onto the door. When the car started moving, they shut their eyes, quickly nauseated from looking out of the window.

All of their worries had simply… Disappeared, as quickly as they had returned. They felt very comfortable in that car, knowing that they’d soon be home, or… Not home. Skateboard’s home.

…Nah. They still felt like it’d be home.

~~~~~~

The next time they woke up, Boombox heard the soft sound of walking around, and of hushed voices. With a heavy fog over their mind, they came-to without movement, able to tune into the conversation before actually really being conscious.

“-gonna come phighting?”

“Nah. I’m waiting for him to wake up, don’t wanna leave him alone.”

“Eh, if you say so, but they’ve been asleep for a while.”

“They were wasted, obviously they’re gonna sleep till noon, everyone does.”

“I don’t.”

“You’re not old enough to drink.”

“Which means I don’t sleep until noon when I drink.”

“Dude… Go phight.”

“Yeah, yeah, got it. Seeya.”

Boombox heard the sound of a door opening and then shutting, and turned over, facing the other way. Part of them wanted to act like they were still asleep, but the other wanted to get out of Skateboard’s hair.

“…Mmh.” With a low groan, they turned over again, opening their eyes slightly.

“Boom?”

Looking over the room, they saw Skateboard standing a bit away, looking back at them. Blinking, they moved their hand, “Hey.”

“Hey. Did Coil and I wake you up?” He walked over, taking another seat next to the couch that they were on.

“Noooo, you’re good… Ow.” Pushing themself to lean against the couch arm, they reached for their head, “I feel awful. Do you have my visor?”

“It’s right here.” Picking the accessory off of the coffee table, he held it out to them, and they clicked it into the mechanical bases of their horns. Taking a moment, they blinked a few times, and then it turned on.

“That’s better… Ughh…” Sitting up, they groaned again.

“You need some water?” He asked, getting a nod, “You’ve got it. Do you… Remember what happened last night?”

“Um..?” Did they? Trying to think, “I remember… Doing a lot of drinking and singing, and then… You and Sling came and got me. Thanks.”

“…Aaaanything else?” He came back with a cup of water, putting it down in front of them.

What was he trying to get them to remember? They took a sip, their head aching while they tried to think, “Um… I left you two on read for hours and then almost broke down in the car?” After they said it, they felt a tug at their heart, “S… Sorry for that…”

“Oh, don’t- don’t apologize for that again, dude. It’s alright.” His face shifted empathetically, “Any last thing you remember?”

“We… Both of you held me for a little bit, and then I fell asleep.” They shrugged, “That’s all that happened, wasn’t it?”

“…Yeah.” Glancing away, he put on a smile, “Don’t worry about it, I just wanted to see.”

“…Hey,” Boombox smiled softly, “I’m sorry for worrying you two last night, and I’m sorry for not spending as much time with you guys. I’ve just… There's been a lot on my mind.”

“We could tell, dude. We don’t want you to stress out about it, but… Kinda hurts when your best friend suddenly stops showin’ up, y’know?”

“I know. I’m sorry.” They held their arms, an ache in their head and a sickness in their stomach, “I… I’ll tell you two about it eventually, alright?”

“I hope you will. It feels better knowing that something’s actually happening rather than you suddenly hating us, heh… Eh.”

“…What’s wrong?” Despite his usual smile, they noticed a hanging discomfort in the air, and how much his tail hung low.

Skateboard looked at them again, a pensive look on his face. His eyebrows furrowed, “You REALLY don’t remember anything else last night?”

“Not with you two.” Boombox suddenly felt a strike of guilt, “Did I do something-?”

After a pause, he sighed, digging through his pocket, “Hold on, it… It was caught on my door camera.”

“Uh oh.” Their eyes widened, “Is- is Sling okay?”

“Everyone’s fine! You didn’t do anything terrible, you just…” He held his phone out, “Here.”

It was camera footage from the previous night. It started as Slingshot’s car pulled in, and with him quickly getting out, going to the back. He opened the door, “Boom? You gotta wake up now, we’re here.”

“Hhuuuhh? Ohh!” After a moment of silence, Boombox stepped out of the car, immediately leaning on their friend for support, “Thaaanks~!”

Skateboard got out behind them, putting a hand on their shoulder, “Careful, walk with us.”

“Hehehe… You’re both sooo nice to me, I’m so… snrk, heh, I’m so glad you two are here~”

“I’m glad we’re here too. Come on.” The baker helped the most as they got closer to the front door, “Do we have to be quiet, is Coil asleep?”

He got a shrug in return, “Probably? It’s hard to tell with him.”

“Hehe…” Still drunkenly giggling, the DJ turned to their friend, “Skate?”

“Hm?” He paused while getting out his house keys, “Wh-“ And quickly, a small kiss was put on his cheek.

“Thaaanks~” They slurred.

“Woah. Keep it together, Boom.” Not looking upset, but more perplexed, Slingshot nudged them a little.

“Ohhh, sorry,” But instead of focusing, they leaned over and kissed him on the cheek too, “Isss that better?”

The boyfriends gave each other a glance, both frozen from what they were doing. Neither of them looked upset at all, just kind of… Confused. In the camera footage, it was impossible to tell if they could’ve been blushing, or paled in displeasure. Silently, except for the DJ’s drunken giggles, they went inside.

“…” In the present time, Boombox was HORRIFIED, turning completely red in the face, “I- I did- I don’t remember doing that?! I’m sorry!” They looked away, biting at their knuckle.

“Hey- hey, chill!” Putting his phone down, Skateboard put a hand on their shoulder, “You’re cool! I just wanted you to know that that happened.”

“But I- gah!” They covered their eyes, “I sounded like an idiot last night, and then I did that. Sling’s probably horrified that it happened.”

“Dude- calm down, hey.” Carefully, he grabbed their wrists, moving their arms, “It’s probably a dumb as hell idea, but he wanted me to do this when you woke up.”

“Whuh- -!!” Just as quickly as they had last night, a kiss was put on their cheek, their face igniting with red again.

“There, now we’re even until Sling gets to ya.” He leaned back, “Told ya, it doesn’t matter! We’re chill, I… Boom?”

They had their hand on their cheek, looking away. Being fully conscious of it, they felt the heat in their face and the warmth in their chest, and part of them desired it again. They wished Slingshot was there too, giving them the same. It sounded wonderful.

“Fuck- god, damnit, I knew it was a dumb idea.” Boombox was snapped out of their flustered haze, looking over. Skateboard looked frustrated, “Sorry, shouldn’t have done that.”

“What- no! No, no, no-“ They turned to him, “No, that was- I-“ How were they supposed to explain it? They didn’t know what to do, when it was far too obvious that it affected them deeply, how could they pass it off as a positive without revealing how they felt? They spluttered, “I- it wasn’t- I’m- oh, screw it,” And their mouth moved before their mind, “I’m- I have feelings for you and Sling!”

“Ah-“

“I realized a little while ago that I admired both of you more than I thought I did, and it wasn’t admiration for my best friends, it was ATTRACTION, but you two are already a thing, so I didn’t WANT to tell you two, but I’m bad at hiding my emotions when I’m around you, so I stopped being around you, but that just made it worse-“ They held their head, “And to know that it ended up with me kissing you two while DRUNK when I shouldn’t have- gah- this is the worst-!” Their head was pounding, stomach aching from how long they’d gone without eating, it made them feel weak. And now, they really had broken down.

A sob coming out after their rant, they folded over, everything falling crushingly quiet as they whimpered. When they heard the sound of Skateboard getting up, they only felt more worry overtake them, but- “Hey.” A hand was gently placed on their back, “Calm down, dude. There’s nothing to worry about.”

They sniffled, feeling him move his hand up to the back of their head, running his fingers through their hair. They felt so horrible, and yet… His touch had never been more comforting. They picked their head up, looking over.

“Sling n’ I realized last night, from when we held you between both of us and then the kisses… We didn’t really feel any differently about ya than we did each other. It prolly helps that we were all best friends before, but, all of that just felt kinda normal. Like it was supposed to happen, y’know?” He continued scratching their head as they sat up, looking at him with wide eyes, “If something changes and you don’t actually really like us like that, it’ll be fine and we’ll still just be best friends, but… If all three of us can talk about it, and we decide we want to, we can…” His voice trailing off, he shrugged, “I like the sound of it.”

“What..?” Boombox stared at him, blinking slowly, their sniffles slowing to a stop. After a moment, “…And- and Sling knows about it too-?”

“It was Sling who told me first.” Skateboard smiled.

“…Thank you.” Dropping themself over, they leaned onto him, falling onto his shoulder, “I was… I was really… I was scared.”

“It’s alright, Boom. I’m just glad you said it instead of goin’ ahead and stayin’ away from us again.” Putting his arm around them, he held them close, “Sling’s workin’ today, but… I’ll let him know to come by when he’s off. You can hang out here till you can getcha keys from Valk.”

“Thanks. My body is still killing me…” Carefully, they reached over, picking up the cup of water. He moved slightly to let them get a drink, but didn’t let them go yet.

“Are ya hungry? I can microwave some pizza.”

They smiled softly, “Pizza sounds great.” They leaned back, and he let go of them, getting up. They watched him walk away, “Thanks, Skate! I…” They started, then paused, “…I love you.” They said quietly, barely loud enough to be heard.

He looked over his shoulder, and they saw clearly as his dog-like tail started to wag. He grinned, “Love you too, Boom!”

~~~~~~

Left unattended while they both waited for Slingshot to come over, Boombox was on their phone, checking their social media. As to be expected, Valk had shared pictures of the previous night, including several of her with Boombox and Poison Picnic. They felt a little bit of guilt, but they pushed it off, “Ah, I never said goodbye to Poison… Hm.”

He thought back on what he’d learned from the psychologist, a lot of things that hadn’t even crossed his mind before. Disorders, and how demons with them were treated… Closing social media, his curiosity won, opening it up and searching just “ADHD comorbidities.”

“Hm… I don’t have an anxiety disorder, I’m not depressed… Eh?” Personality disorders was one of the listed comorbidities. Poison Picnic had mentioned those, right? They were studying them, so… Maybe it’d be interesting to look into. Either way, he didn’t have much else to do.

Going through the list with broad definitions of cluster A, none of them particularly stood out to him, but he made a mental note to learn more later. Starting on cluster B, he was uninterested again, until…

“Histrionic?” They raised an eyebrow. While they’d heard the terms for some before, they’d never heard of that one at all. Opening another tab, they searched for just what that one was.

“Histrionic personality disorder is a personality disorder characterized by theatrical or dramatic behavior and attention seeking.

A demon with HPD may:

Always seek to be the center of attention and feel underappreciated or depressed if they are not, have rapidly shifting or shallow emotions, be dramatic and extremely emotionally expressive, speak dramatically and express strong opinions without any backing, be gullible and easily influenced or suggestible, think relationships with others are closer than they actually are...”

Boombox sat up, staring blankly at the traits. Their eyebrows furrowed, “Doesn’t… Everyone feel that way?” They muttered. Admittedly, yes, they liked being the center of attention, but that was only on stage, wasn’t it? Or, no… They also enjoyed being their loud and upbeat self to Valk and Dom, and especially to their best friends. But they weren’t distressed if it WASN’T on them.

“…” They thought about that idea. They did get kinda twitchy last night, and other nights, when Valk would be on stage and everyone focused on her… They tended to try and get back up there right after she was. But, it was fine- they weren’t dramatic or overly expressive! They wear a visor that hides their eyes, for goodness sake, “…A visor that’s programmed to change with my mood.” They realized. There wasn’t really anything MORE flashy than a screen that changed shape and color to how they felt.

They went over every point in their head. They DID tend to not be sad for long, or really happy, it was pretty easy for them to feel better or feel worse out of nowhere. Being suggestible was something all of their friends had pointed out to them, they’d agree to almost everything… And BELIEVE almost everything… And they had gotten pretty buddy-buddy with Poison Picnic, just last night, pretty fast…

“What’s up?”

Boombox had almost forgotten that they were at Skateboard’s house. They looked up at him, “Nothin’ much.” And put on a smile.

“Y’sure? You looked kinda confused just a second ago.”

“I was just looking something up. Valk had a friend at the club last night who was a psychologist, and they made me wonder about that stuff, so I was doing some searching.” They put their phone down.

“Ohhh, that makes sense. So what had ya all…” He motioned at his face, his eyebrows furrowing, “Your visor was showin’ swirls.”

“Was it? I must’ve been thinking harder than I thought!” They looked away, “Um… Hm. Maybe you could help me, Skate!” They weren’t sure how well they could figure it out alone.

“Whatcha need?”

“Would you say I’m… Hm,” They checked their phone, looking at the list, “Do you think I have a “larger than life presence?””

“Oh, definitely.” Skateboard didn’t even hesitate, laughing, “Not in a bad way! But you put yourself out there pretty wildly. There’s a reason you’re always the life of the party.”

They smiled, glancing down again. They read over some words that concerned them a little, “I… Is that ever embarrassing to you?”

“Huh? No?” He tilted his head, “Hell, it’s a lot easier to be as crazy outgoing as you are when you’re there.”

Their smile returned, “Good, thanks!” Trying to talk while typing, they opened up their messages with Valk, “I’m not super concerned about it, just saw something I related to a little.”

“You:

hey girl!! i still need my keys from your place but i’ll deal with that later

do you know any doctors who will screen for personality disorders?”

“Whatcha lookin’ at, anyway?” Skateboard prompted.

“…” Boombox looked at him, and then a sly grin crossed their face, “It’s a surprise.”

“What? Ohh, come on!” He smiled playfully, “Now I’m gonna be thinkin’ about it!”

“Surprise~!” They sang, “You’ll find-“

They both turned over as a car pulled in front of the house, able to hear it coming in. They both perked up, “Sling’s here!” And the skater got up, heading over to the front door.

Staying back on the couch, they watched the front door as it opened, “Hey, babe!” And Slingshot and Skateboard shared a hug, before the former stared out into the room, “And, Boombox!”

“Heeey!” They waved, waiting for the other two to come in, “So… Did Skateboard tell you? The thing?” They blushed softly.

“He did,” The baker slouched comfortably into a chair, looking at them, “So like… You’re really sure you’re into both of us?”

They nodded, “I want to try it, if both of you are into me.”

He smiled, “I felt like making sure. Oh, and also,” He got up, walking over to the couch. Holding one of Boombox’s cheeks, he kissed the other, “Payback.”

“Heheh~!” They couldn’t resist a delighted giggle, their visor turning pink, “Jeez, to think I was scared shitless about this a week ago!”

“Not gonna lie, even if you had told us about this a week ago, when we hadn’t realized that we were into you, I probably would’ve been like… Woah. Boombox is kinda cookin’, Sling.” Skateboard joked, a grin crossing his face.

“I am SO GLAD I’m the one who brought it up first.” Putting his head in his hands, Slingshot sat back down, “But, yeah. We’re up for trying out a polyamorous relationship if you are.”

Boombox smiled, “I’d love to be in a polygon with you two!” They chuckled, then winked.

“…So close! That’s a shape.” He laughed back.

“Nope, we’re a polygon now. Accept the triangle life or forever hold ya peace.” Skateboard added, still grinning.

“Ohhh, no, I just realized.” The baker said, getting two concerned stares, “Double the partners means double the flirtatious jokes that Skate gets to make. How will we manage?”

“Oh, no, that IS scary!” The DJ played along.

“Ooh! I can make the Tennessee joke.” The skater proposed,

“Do NOT make the Tennessee joke, it’s not even a real place.”

“Hey Boombox-“

“No-“

“Are you from Tennessee?”

“The pun is stupid-“

“Because you’re the- snrk-“

“Stop-“

“The only ten I see.”

“GOD.” Slingshot leaned back, “He said that to me on our first date after getting together.”

“Wonderful. I loved that.” Boombox was blushing brightly, “Hey Slingshot?”

“Boombox.” He stared at them, “Is this a punny one-liner?”

“If you were a fruit you’d be a fine-apple.”

“Nevermind. It’s torture.” He leaned back as Skateboard laughed, “I’m changing the topic before you two kill me, I had a long day at work. Mind if I crash here until later?” He turned to the skater.

“No problem! Boom is hanging out until Valk can come give them their keys, so you’re fine. It’ll be our first hangout as a polygon.” He winked at them when he said it.

“Snrrk-! Oh, you guys,” They started flapping their hands, “I know we just got together but I love you two sooo much~!”

“We love you too!” He said back, his tail wagging quickly. He got up and then down onto the couch, “C’mere!”

“Ah-!” Boombox was pulled into a hug, a kiss being put on their chin, They laughed, squirming, “Heeey-!”

“Didn’t miss it last night, not gonna miss this now.” Getting up, Slingshot threw himself over, and once again, they were sandwiched between their now-boyfriends. Held and peppered with kisses from both sides, they did their best to give kisses back through laughter, overwhelmed by the immediate surge of love in their heart.

“You gu-u-uys-!”

“Oh, great,” A new voice entered, stopping all of them in their tracks, “I get home and the whole zest fest is on the couch.”

“Coil!” Skateboard looked at the front door, “Uh… Welcome home, fuck off.”

“Fuck you.” Coil gave him a middle finger, but turned away, heading over to the door in the basement, “I kicked ass in my phights today, by the way.”

“If I was there I would’ve been able to beat your ass.”

“I’d love to see you try!”

With that, he went down to the basement, “Wow. You and Coil talk to each other waaay differently than me and my housemates.” Slingshot remarked, looking over.

“We’re bros, it’s a bro thing.” He smiled.

“…Can we keep cuddling?” Boombox asked.

“Hell yeah!”

The End

[helsex]

So I saw your tags under the mcytblr confession blog and I agree. As much as I love zines I’ve noticed three had guest artists and writers and sometimes would have the same people. Like the first two might have the same guest artist and then the third one has a guest writer that’s in one of the previous zines. I know the way to fix this is to run your own zine but there’s not a lot of resources on how to run a zine.

I say this as someone who was in the Geminitay zine, there was not a lot of us compared to bigger zines, I think there was 30 of us max? All of us had different skill ranges and I don’t think anyone from that zine is in the upcoming zines as well (going off the ones with public contributors)

Yeahh...

I have never really been in other fandoms so I can't speak for if or not it's a common issue elsewhere but it's definitely a common issue in the mcyt community (specifically hc I suppose because that's predominantly my fandom). I said it in the tags and I'll say it again, this place can feel very... clique-y.

I'll be the first to admit my art is not very good so the fact that I've been rejected from a ton of zines isn't something I take personally, but I know several artists way more skilled than me who have also been rejected because they just aren't 'In' with the right circle. I've completely stopped applying to any because I can literally always predict exactly the people who are gonna be in it, and it's always the same handful. Zines started as something small, physical, and sometimes rough. When they moved to an online thing they were for the community, but now...now they just feel like the same circle of friends working on a collab project.

Which is fine! I have absolutely nothing against the popular artists in this fandom, they are so creative and skilled I have a lot of admiration and respect for their art.

But at the same time it feels a little like they do have a 'monopoly' on the entire zine space as it were. Same moderation teams, same participants. And absolutely yeah you can make your own but because the focus is so much on the 'main' zines it may never get traction or participants.

Not to mention, running any project or managing any amount of people especially people you don't know is hard (speaking from experience), and a lot of people in this community are young. Personally I do not think it would be wise for someone younger to undertake such a thing, but because of the current biases they're never getting in a zine any other way, you know?

I hope this doesn't come off as me whining or shitting on popular folks because I'm not, I'm just pointing out something I've noticed after being here years that's kinda sad and disappointing.

But on a positive note, the Gem zine was really heartening to see, so many smaller artists I'd never seen before finally getting their chance :) I hope we can get more like it

[welcome-to-green-hills]

So if you’ve had any guesses on how the story and plot for Sonic 3 would be, what do you think that it would be?

Hi Hon!❤️✨

I’ve thought about this a lot these past couple of years. Reading through interviews, gathering concept art, and reading tweets from the production crew of SCU, I think that I’ve got an idea of what Sonic 3 will be about. I’ll put a “read more” section down below in case y’all don’t want spoilers.

I think that Sonic 3’s going to be a massive mind-fuck. I think that we’ll be on an emotional roller coaster with Shadow’s story and gain some details that were lacking on his creation. Even though it will be movie-canon, it might provide a sense of closure in exploring Shadow’s relationship with Maria and what happened to him a bit before being sealed away by the government. I also think that we’ll experience a reality check with Sonic on this one too. We’ll see how Sonic processes this information and help resolve the issue in the end. Shadow and Sonic are often perceived as reflections of each other. I think that we’ll explore what happens when the universe gives you a chance to be good (Sonic) and a chance to be bad (Shadow).

The message of the movie might reflect the importance of team work, maturity, and acceptance. Teamwork being that it’s okay to accept help from others when needed—you’re not weak when you ask. Maturity being that not everything is fun and games. Some situations can’t be relieved with humor. Acceptance being that not everyone can be saved, not everyone is worthy of chances, and not everyone can live up to being and having something that they want. However, acceptance can also lead to a new purpose and wish if one is open to it.

I definitely feel like “teamwork” will be a message for this film as well. In “Drone Home,” we’ve seen that the boys struggle to match each other’s strengths and abilities. However, when they’ve communicated with each other they worked fairly well. Teamwork doesn’t necessarily mean that you have an appointed leader. It could mean that you’re all equals; you all know your strengths, weaknesses, and how to build each other up. Communication is key! It looks like Sonic has a pretty good idea of how to help, but it’s up to him to encourage Tails and Knuckles to tag team.

I think that Sonic 3 will explore the world a bit more. Most Sonic games take place on earth, not Mobius. “Mobius” is an Archie concept, not a game concept. The places that we see in games are zones on earth. This is what the movies get right—we explore different zones while on earth. These “zones” are locations in which the chaos emeralds were sent to. In 2022, Tyson Hesse explained on Twitter that Super Sonic scattered the emeralds across the world and broke the bond that they had with the Master Emerald (this means that they are separate objects now instead of one). I think that zones will be utilized in this third installment by having us travel around the world to collect the emeralds. Have the emeralds warp reality a bit and make each encounter a bit chaotic/fun.

I think that we’ll see more of Longclaw. I hope that she has something to do with Shadow’s creation. The books heavily imply that she not only knew of humans, but have engaged with them. I’m willing to argue that she’s engaged with Gerald Robotnik and informed him of the Master Emerald, which could lead him into creating artificial chaos in the first place. That, and the need to have ultimate power for his experiments. This would be a good explanation on how Shadow has chaos-like abilities similar to Sonic and Knuckles. On top of that, Shadow’s spinoff game is also an element used for this story. Use this interaction between Gerald and Longclaw to educate him other extraterrestrial entities in the universe.

I think that Shadow’s purpose of creation for SCU could go in many directions. However, the main point(s) would be for him to be a revolutionary discovery in immortality, a cure for Maria, and a weapon used for Earth to fight against extraterrestrials. Gerald—if existing—discovered aliens and caused the catastrophe in 1974 in Reno that put the government’s eyes on him. (Because why not? It would be funny if Gerald did). It’s been established in the Knuckles show that Dr. Robotnik had some sort of connection with his group of henchmen and G.U.N. Granted, G.U.N. is a newly established branch in the military, and nearly everyone involved with Dr. Robotnik was killed, but the concept has been around for years. I feel that same group is what helps fund the government research project for Shadow. Make Shadow an X-Files.

I think that Tom and Maddie might have smaller roles—mainly there as emotional support for the fluffers—but might have roles that were similar to Mr. Steward and Scarlet Garcia in Sonic X. They help pick up the bits and pieces of Project: Shadow to relay to Sonic and Co. in order to save the day. I don’t see either Tom or Maddie being the ones to give the (supposed) humanity talk to Shadow, but I can see them dropping hints to our anti-hero about saving the world.

Dr. Robotnik’s arc is all about revenge. He’s furious that the government wiped his existence clean from any existing record, as well as angered by Sonic. He could use this as a motive to seek vengeance on the world. His fuel could also be driven by seeing The Buyer’s past events as a “final tipping point.” Have him see that the Buyer tried to play the same game as himself and get angered over an Eggman-Wannabe. This should be what sets him off. Make that the tipping point in unleashing this crazed revenge story from Dr. Robotnik and seek out a need to eradicate the world. And use this energy for him to raid G.U.N.’s facilite to find Shadow and more about his family’s history with the government. Dr. Robotnik’s revenge is more like, “I won’t have you forget about my existence and I WILL enslave this entire world no matter how many times you try to rid me.” Oh, and have Agent Stone be a little gremlin as well😁

I don’t see Shadow dying. I think that Shadow’s arc can go in either two different directions: 1). Shadow has a supposed death and leaves everyone in a depressive state, but we see in a post-credit scene that Shadow did survive and goes off on his own; 2). Shadow thinks that he might die, but Sonic saves him just in time and they part ways. Shadow needs to part ways with Sonic and Co. at the end of the film. This separation is not a form of punishment. Shadow needs space. He needs that alone time to reflect upon everything that has happened, as well as what he strives to do in life. If he wishes to commingle with Sonic, he will come to him on his terms.

If we get a fourth movie, I think that this will make room for either Metal Sonic to appear or have Silver appear. Both have great potentials to be added to SCU. The quills that we’ve grown accustomed to in their glass-like chambers resemble too much like Chaos Drives. We’ve seen that when they’re plugged into machinery they match the same power that Sonic and Knuckles possess. This would be a great way to bring in Metal Sonic; he could be powered by quill energy become the next villain. This would also be a great way to bring in Amy Rose. Tie in both Sonic CD and Heroes to the story. With Silver, we have the Flames of Disaster. Other than the low-budget rock opera from the Knuckles series, we don’t have a true explanation of what this concept is in SCU. Have Silver travel through each zone to claim and defeat Iblis.

And… yeah! That’s what I’ve got! I do hope that this answers your question, my dear. This was a lot of fun to write! When I’m not tired I’ll explain my drabble on how Perfect Chaos can fit here too…

[ladykailitha]

Oh For a Muse of Fire! Part 2

LOL! I love how much you guys are loving this. I took the idea for the names at the bar from a fantasy novel called The Lark and the Wren (I’m pretty sure) by Mercedes Lackey (only in that case it was a brothel).

Also guys: If I have you on my list but you didn’t get the notification for the tag it means one of two things: it’s a side or secondary blog and tumblr doesn’t tag those. Or and this far more likely you have it set that you’re undiscoverable through tumblr. Under settings go to your blog then scroll all the way down to visibility and make sure both are grey. (Or secret third thing that your blog is set to 18+ because tumblr hates porn.)

Part 1

*

Steve was trembling when he got to the apartment he shared with Robin. So badly that he was struggling to put the key in the lock. After the third failed attempt, he let out a sharp cry and sunk to the floor, his back pressed against the door.

He knew that he wasn’t the best person in high school. He did. But he had changed his senior year. Stopped hanging out with Tommy and Carol. Started focusing on his art. Meeting Robin.

Hell, as far as Steve could remember they hadn’t even gone after Eddie and his friends. He would like to say that it was because he had a crush on the guy. But no, it was just they ran in different circles and were just outside their purview.

He held his hands up and while they still shook, they weren’t as bad. He got up and tried again. With some effort he managed to get the key in the lock. He sighed in relief as the tumbler slid and allowed him to open the door.

As badly as Steve wanted to grab the six pack out of the fridge and down the whole thing, wallowing in self-pity. He couldn’t because he actually had work.

He had to train his replacement. He worked at an upscale bar close to campus, bar-tending. It was good money and he was able to work nights and go to school during the day. But if everything went according to plan, at the end of summer Steve would be starting his student teaching position. So the bar needed a new bartender.

He pulled on the black slacks and white button up that his uniform and his white sneakers. He rolled up his sleeves and checked his hair really quick in the mirror.

It would have to do.

He splashed water on his face to wash away the tears and clear his mind of cobwebs. He didn’t have the liberty of fucking up.

Steve grabbed his car keys and jumped into his BMW. The last remnant of his father’s hospitality. He had gotten the car when he was sixteen and the car was nearing its first decade. He kept his fingers crossed that it would last until he got his first full time teaching job.

When he pulled up the bar, he could see her waiting for him by the door. She was pretty blonde with bright eyes and a cheerful expression. She was wearing a short black skirt and high heeled shoes.

Steve shook his head. She was in for a rough time tonight if that’s what she was going to be wearing.

He trotted up to her. “Hey, you must be the new girl.”

“Yeah I’m C–”

Steve held up his hand. “If you’re going to tell me your real name, don’t. The boss doesn’t like us knowing each other’s real names, says it distracts from the ambient feel. I’m Garnet.”  

She blushed. “Right, right. He said. I’m Opal.”

Steve nodded. “Or at least at first hopefully by the time I leave you’ll be upgraded to a nicer gem.”

Opal fell instep with him as he led the way through the bar. “Have you always been Garnet, then?”

Steve licked his lips. “Yeah. It’s something of a running joke now. I’m the best bartender this bar has ever had and I’ve never been upgraded to Ruby or whatever.”

She nodded.

“Truth is Diamond respects me, but he sure the hell doesn’t like me,” he explained.

“You think Diamond is his real name?” Opal asked eagerly.

Steve shrugged. “Could be.” He grabbed two aprons from their hooks and tossed one at her. “This will help prevent you going home smelling like the bar.”

She nodded, tying it deftly around her waist.

“Diamond said you’ve done this before?” Steve asked, pulling out two white towels and tossing her one.

Opal nodded. “At my last job. It closed up because the owners retired.”

Steve nodded. “So then this won’t be too difficult. This will just be me showing you were everything is and showing you how to make the house specials.”

“Pretty much,” she said cheerfully.

Steve looked down at her shoes. “Your last place make you wear heels to tend in?”

She looked down at her feet. “Yeah, said I was too short to see over the bar otherwise.”

He cocked his head to side. “But you aren’t that short...”

Opal laughed, clear as a bell. “Oh I know. He was just a misogynist pig. I do have flats with me since I take the bus.”

“Put them on,” Steve instructed. “We move way too fast for you to be in heels. I don’t want you breaking your ankle or have blisters by the end of the night.”

She nodded and pulled out a pair of black flats and slipped them on, shoving the heels back in the purse.

“You’ll want tennis shoes or any other comfortable shoe from now on,” Steve explained. “You’re also allowed to wear slacks if you want. The patrons aren’t going to see below your waist and the apron covers your chest. Your tips will come from you being fast and good.”

Opal saluted. “Aye, aye Captain!”

Steve laughed. “Yeah, I think you’ll fit in just fine.”

“Garnet!” a uncoordinated blur shouted and jumped into his arms. Steve caught her deftly and shook his head.

“Hey, Pearl,” he said with a grin. He set her down. “Say hi to the new girl.”

Pearl turned slowly to see that yes, someone was with Steve.

“Uh, hi,” she said, shyly. “Garnet’s my best friend.”

Steve gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Yes, you are. Pearl, this is Opal. She’s my replacement come August. Opal, this gangly giraffe is one of the best waitresses the Queen’s Crown has to offer.”

Pearl smacked Steve’s arm. “Pay no attention to him.”

Opal laughed. “Kinda hafta because he’s training me.”

“Well besides that,” Pearl said. “He’s just a big dingus with a bigger heart.”

Steve blushed.

“Aww...” Opal said, “you two are cute together.”

Pearl made a fake vomiting noise. “We’re just best friends. Platonic with a capital P.”

Steve shook his head. “Ignore her.”

Opal laughed. “Five minutes in and I’m already ignoring everyone. This must be quite the friendly place.”

Just then a large man came out of the back and threw his arms wide open.

“Opal, my pet!” he boomed. “You made it. These two haven’t been giving you a hard time, have they?”

Opal shook her head. “They’ve been sweet.”

“Good, good,” Diamond said with a grin. “The bar opens in an hour. Garnet will show you everything you need to do to get stared.”

He gave them a wink and lumbered back into office.

Steve cleared his throat. “Right. So everyone pitches into to step and take down everything. Take down will include wiping everything down and sweeping and mopping the floors. Even Diamond comes out and helps wash glasses.”

Opal’s eyes went wide. “Seriously?”

Pearl nodded. “He’s kinda a if you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself kind of guy. Not always, he does trust us to do our jobs, but he’s  very hands on.”

“But he doesn’t help set up?” Opal asked,

Steve looked back behind him and then back at her. “He gets the drawers ready for the day. He counts it all before hand and then we count our drawers with him after. He also counts the tip jar in front of everyone and gives everyone their percentages.”

Opal’s jaw dropped and she stared at them in shock. A man came out of the back dressed similarly to Pearl in a black button up and black slacks. While Pearl had black boots, this guy had white sneakers.

“This is Topaz, one of the other waiters,” Pearl said as the guy came up to shake her hand. “This is Opal, Garnet’s replacement.”

The guy lifted an eyebrow. “That’s some pretty big shoes to fill.”

Opal blushed. “I’m just surprised you guys are hiring six months out for that.”

Topaz shook his head. “That’s Diamond being a worry-wart again. If you don’t work out, he wants time to hire someone else.”

“You know,” Opal said, putting her hands on her hips, “for someone who insists everyone go by gem nicknames Diamond is sounding more and more like the perfect boss.”

The other three laughed.

“Pretty much,” Pearl said, “He may be an annoying hipster, but he’s good boss and he’ll take care of you.”

Topaz hip checked Steve. “Unless you’re Garnet, here.”

Steve pushed him playfully. “Shut it, man.”

Topaz laughed. “This idiot accidentally hit on Diamond’s daughter.”  

Pearl grinned. “In front of her fiance no less.”

Steve threw his arms in the air. “No one told me who they were. I had been here for like a week. And every signal she was sending me was that she was interested.”

Topaz patted him on the back. “You keep telling yourself that, man.”

Steve shook his head. “Let’s get to work before Diamond comes out and starts yelling at us.”

Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6  Part 7 Part 8 Part 9  Part 10  Part 11  Part 12 Part 13  Part 14  Part 15  Part 16 Part 17 Epilogue

Tag List: @artiststarme @allbymyselfexceptformycactus @spectrum-spectre estrellami-1 @swimmingbirdrunningrock @gregre369 @itsall-taken @m-owo-n @zerokrox-blog @runyousillydetective @grimmfitzz @wonderland-girl143-blog @sapphirecobalt-1@scheodingers-muppet @victor-thee-corvid @apricottree @bookbinderbitch @sleepyboosstuff @biatcgh @pixiefallingupthestairs @grtwdsmwhr @thepainisspicy @carlyv @eboyawstenn @bisexualdisastersworld @bidisastersworld @abstractnaturaldisaster

[thecoolersouthparkforeignkids]

Hi, welcome to the blog!

We’re the cooler group of foreign kids at South Park elementary!

“Because we aren’t total losers like those other guys.”

Technically only two of us are, by definition, foreign immigrants, but all these american kids don’t care about the literal definition, so we’re all foreign kids!!

“Hi I’m Angel, I moved to America from England when I was eight, so when I was in the third grade. I live with my parents and my older brother and younger sister, who I unfortunately have to share a room with.”

“I’ve been friends with Jo ever since moving here, we tell everyone we’re cousins because my family is from near enough the same place that Jo’s dad is from. And I’ve been friends with Tesni ever since she tried to sue me for sexual harassment… We’re good friends now, we even have matching necklaces!”

“A’ight? I’m Jo. Idk why I let these two talk me into this, but oh well I’m here now… Me mum is Scottish and me dad is from England. They moved to South Park when me mum was pregnant with me because they didn’t wanna pay their telly licence, but now they’ve gotta pay for healthcare so I guess they didn’t really think that through.”

“Me mum an’ dad are alright though, even if they are a bit daft sometimes. They’ve been propper sound with me being trans. Told them I was a lad when I was in kindergarten, they just told me it was sound and asked me if I wanted to watch the footy with them. It’s funny though, because whenever someone asks me if I used to be a lass I just say nah and make them question their sanity. Propper funny to watch that.”

“Trying to get Declan to join in with us, but he’s a bit of a prick sometimes. Love him though.”

“You’re a fucking prick… Love you too.”

“Hey cuties, I’m Tesni and I’ll be your serv- Fuck, force of habit… I’m Tesni and I’m literally one of the hottest girls in our grade, no joke. Like, I might not be a cheerleader or anything, but I work at raisins and I get the most tips, so yeah… Ugly girls don’t get loads of tips, not how it works in this society, unlucky for all those ugly girls.”

“Tesni, be nice. You’re trying to show off again.”

“Ugh, whatever. Anyway. My parents decided that this shithole town was better than their old house in Wales, and they brought me along with them in the womb. I’m trying to get as much money as possible so I can move away and become a rich model in like LA or something and forget all about this bum-fuck town.”

“I might bring Angel along with me too, she’s alright I guess…”

OOC vvv

Angel’s speech, actions, etc will be pink, Jo’s will be green, Declan’s will be blue and Tesni’s will be orange

Keep the asks tame please, nothing weird

I’ll be posting rp posts of each of them, art I make of them and maybe some sort fics of them being inserted into specific episodes but idk about that yet

This is my first time making an rp blog :0 and I’m very excited to interact with other south park rp blogs ^o^

Tag list:

#the cooler south park foreign kids = all posts

#this message is jo wilkinson approved = Jo’s posts

#angel posting = Angel’s posts

#that’ll be twenty five dollars please cutie = Tesni’s posts

#cousins are a social construct anyway = Jo & Angel posting together

#quit telling everyone we’re dating it’s hurting my tips = Angel & Tesni posting together

#why do we care about the same english girl? = Tesni & Jo posting together

#oocmoment = self explanatory

#for the last time I’m not a fucking leprechaun = Declan’s posts

#homiesexual got a bit too homosexual = Jo & Declan posting together

#Jo said I’m not allowed to make you cry anymore = Declan & Angel posting together

#just cause we’re queer doesn’t mean we’re nice = Declan & Tesni posting together

Pinterest boards:

Jo

Angel

Tesni

(In the process of making a Declan one)

[faegoddessog]

Day 5: High as a kite. 

Ok loves, I've decided to try something to stretch myself creatively with this challenge. I'm gonna dribble my drabble and see if I can tie each theme into an actual story that I'll write day by day! We'll see how it goes! Wish me luck!

Here is my ongoing masterlist of this project.

My other works are here if you are interested!

Check out the fun challenge here by @slowsweetlove . Feel free to jump in too!

Day 5: High as a kite. 

 Your apartment was modest by some standards, but it was perfect for you. Austin loved it, smiling at your one of a kind art on the walls, the view of a park across the street and the old school charm you had insisted on keeping. 

Austin had cooked, making due with your little used hardware. He made the most delectable brown sugar salmon with roasted baby carrots. He had picked up a bottle of wine, which was quickly drained by you both as he cooked. 

After the air had been cleared between you, it was like old times as you caught up. 

You tell him about how you worked in Milan for several years after graduating with your MBA in fashion management.  Opening a second bottle of wine that you had on hand, you explain that now you do sustainable fashion consulting for several of the big houses as well as some of the smaller start-ups. 

After dinner, he tells you about his latest projects playing Elvis then a WWII bomber pilot back to back. He’s on probably his third or fourth glass of wine as apposed to your two and you can tell he’s feeling it.

“I have one other big budget one lined up that I have to really get in shape for and another one that looks really cool where I’ll get to ride motorcycles. I’m really excited about them both. I’ll have to prepare them, like at the same time and one is a villain, oh my god I'm so excited! I feel like it might actually be really happening for me but I’m trying to just like.. Put my head down and work and not to get my hopes up because what if Elvis is a flop ? I mean it would seriously mess me up if it were, not that I’ve not been a part of things that didn’t do well, it’s just I spent so much time obsessing so hard on him and I didn't really think about anything else for like years. But I don’t know, Tom says that I did great and he’s got real big hopes for me!” He chatters on, you had no idea he was so talkative with a little drink in him. 

“Tom?” you prompt, sipping your wine, enjoying the info dump of his brain. 

“Yeah, Tom Hanks, didn’t I say that?” his brow creases as though he’s trying to remember what he just said. 

“Wait, wait, you worked with Tom Hanks??” you said incredulously. You had heard about a new Elvis movie coming out, but you really hadn’t paid it much attention. 

“Yup, and for him with the pilot thing” he says slurring his words a little, “he is amazing. And  Elvis, I could not have done it if I’d not done the play with Denzel-” 

“Denzel…. Like the Denzel?” you ask? What the actual fuck, Austin was getting his big boy acting pants. 

“Uh huh, that was here in New York. They both like fucking changed me, changed my whole acting…. thingy thing,  It’s like he was with me the whole fucking time. In shutdowns and shit… kept me sane,” then he starts laughing. “If… if wandering the beach laughing like Elvis is at all sane.”  

You shake your head.

“Oh hunny, I think you are as high as a kite,” you get up and get him a glass of water. 

“What? I’m not! Three sheets to the wind maybe, but I wouldn’t count it as high!” he giggles. 

“Here drink this,” you giggle back. 

credit to @saradika for the graphic!

Always tag me: @purejasmine, @slowsweetlove, @richardslady121, @austinbutlerslovers, @tadpoleteef, @allittakesisoneflight

"I've been tagged by you before Lumiere!": @thisworldisntrealhoney,  @1nho,  @megangovier, @briaandthephantoms, @andro-inherdreamworld @callumsgirl @blombardo  @fefeisastar @hacunamy @nestito702 @denised916 @jayydep @r0m4nitcl0v3r @heyidc03, @secondchild-2, @flander42 @natural-born-rebel-spirit @lecosymood @kathrynzaragoza @bsunshinexo @jayydep @ifyouloveweedletsgosmoke

[mk-writes-stuff]

OC Interview Tag

Rules: answer the questions as an OC

Thanks @kaylinalexanderbooks and @pluppsauthor for the tags! Having trouble with these last few book 1 characters but I think it’s Ricinus’s turn

Are you named after anyone?

“Noble families don’t follow that peasant tradition. Ricinus is the name of a poison, as are all the names of my house.”

When was the last time you cried?

“That’s very personal for an interview.”

Do you have kids?

“A daughter, Belladonna. She’s twenty-two and going to marry Lord Narcissus of Third Station, as she’s not fit to rule Seventh Station. I also have another child on the way, so someone can take over the leadership when I’m gone.”

Do you use sarcasm a lot?

“No. I have no need to.”

What’s the first thing you notice about people?

“What authority they wield.”

What’s your eye colour?

“Slate grey. It runs in my family.”

Scary movies or happy endings?

“Neither. I prefer documentaries.”

Any special talents?

“I’ve picked up several magics over the years.”

Where were you born?

“Here on Seventh Station, as my family always is.”

Do you have any pets?

“No. Such things are a waste of space and resources. We don’t have pets on the stations anymore.”

What sort of sports do you play?

“I used to do mixed martial arts when I was younger, but I’m too old for it now.”

How tall are you?

“I am six feet tall.”

What was your favourite subject in school?

“Sociopolitical theory always fascinated me.”

What is your dream job?

“Running Seventh Station, of course.”

I hope this one was good! I’m worried it was a bit bland :)

@illarian-rambling @nebula--nix @sunset-a-story want to play? Questions are below the cut

Are you named after anyone?

When was the last time you cried?

Do you have kids?

Do you use sarcasm a lot?

What’s the first thing you notice about people?

What’s your eye colour?

Scary movies or happy endings?

Any special talents?

Where were you born?

Do you have any pets?

What sort of sports do you play?

How tall are you?

What was your favourite subject in school?

What is your dream job?

Are you named after anyone? When was the last time you cried? Do you have kids? Do you use sarcasm a lot? What’s the first thing you notice about people? What’s your eye colour? Scary movies or happy endings? Any special talents? Where were you born? Do you have any pets? What sort of sports do you play? How tall are you? What was your favourite subject in school? What is your dream job?

[writingwell]

20 13 fanfic questions

Thanks to @randomfoggytiger for the tag. I didn’t do all of them, just the pertinent ones, and I modified those just to include ffnet as well. 

1. How many works do you have? 26 on AO3 (for my mature rated Spy Castle stuff); fanfiction.net has 278 Castle fics;and about 300ish archived at Gossamer for X-Files.

4. What are your top fics by kudos/reviews? The Return of Vulcan Simmons, Tempest (not a spy work!) on AO3; ffnet would be One Hundred Days of Summer (co-authored with SandianeCarter) and Dash It All.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? Yeah, I think if you take the time to contact me, you deserve the respect of hearing from me. It might not be a full-blown conversation, but I’ll do what I can with a full-time profession and a writing one as well. Also, suuuuper sorry, just discovered AO3 has an inbox. 300 days ago, some of you messaged me and I am just now seeing those. Lol. 

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? I have a spy fic where the two of them are just so at odds, so grieving with and over each other… okay that’s most of them. But I try not to end on angst, as it’s supposed to be the journey not the destination. (Angst is a twisting of the heart, not a place where you stay. According to me.)

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Dash series has the ‘happiest’ endings. Not because life is happy, but because they figured out how to create contentment within what they’d been given/dealt in life. And in ways other versions of the Castle characters hadn’t accomplished. They did the work.

8. Do you get hate on fics? Oh definitely. A while back, I turned off comments on tumblr for about a year as I processed and healed from some targeted attacks, and I can say that I came out more certain of myself and my writing. But I was also an adult who had not been forced to weather these attacks as a vulnerable 13 y-o on social media (as so many of you are unfortunately dealing with). I was able to detach, center myself once more, and rise above because I’d grown up IRL, so to speak. I have a faith in something bigger than me which, while it doesn’t look like what it did, has sustained me and given me the confidence to know my worth even as it spurs me to be/do better. 

9. Do you write smut. If so what kind? Oh definitely, lol. It’s on AO3. Usually I like to explore M/F with a third in there for kicks, as the concept of generosity and giving within the sexual relationship/experience is intriguing to me.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? I objected to the term ‘stolen.’ I’ve had my fics, without my knowledge, posted elsewhere, translated without my knowledge, and changed to other fandom characters to be posted elsewhere. However! I’ve had loads of people ask me too, and I really appreciate being able to go visit them. (Stolen would indicate I somehow own these fanfictions, and I do not, as that would be a legally difficult hill to stand on. I also do not perceive collective fan art in this manner, because the world is all of ours.)

15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will? Oh there’s a co-written story that me, carto, and muppet47 started and have NEVER finished. We all know Castle has to go to jail, but we can’t write it.

16. What are your writing strengths? Writing it the first time. Correctly. As in, it comes out the way it should or ought to or how I am seeing it in the moment. I have the right rhythm, I can spell and I have the grammar skills. My first draft is fast and good enough for submission. Of course, I go back and edit, and I have to, but I’m very blessed in not ever going through anything like writer’s block.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? Secondary characters. I have a tendency for tunnel vision, where all I want to do is talk about and to and for the main characters. If they have friends or family, I barely include them. I can’t manage to care that they exist. But all of us live in a complex web of relationships and community; no one is alone. My last novel, Taste of Salt, was an concentrated effort to include as many other perspectives as possible, so it was told through the POVs of the two main characters and interspersed with flashback chapters from the POVs of their friends, family, coworkers, chance encounters, medical personnel, kids, support networks… there you go.You have to do the thing that’s hard. Write it out, over and over, keep practicing.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic? Yeah, sometimes it becomes necessary for the character. But please keep it to a minimum (imo) as it detracts from the reader’s understanding and experience of reading. It ought to be rather easy to understand what the person is saying due to context or just the flow of the scene. If you’re writing in English, and you have a character visiting France, then obviously some of that ought to be in French, but after a while, you can indicate that the language is being used while writing it in English. I say this because most of you are fandom writers who are not writing for literary audiences; therefore, don’t ruin everyone’s fun my making it incomprehensible or inaccessible. Please.

20. Favourite fic you've ever written? Don’t ask me to choose between my children! I can tell you that Dash holds a special place in my heart due to the amount of readers who said it gave them understanding of their own sensory issues or their child’s autism, etc. Spy gave me one of my greatest friends, carto, who continues to love and support me and my writing. 

I won't tag anyone, because I deleted so many of these questions, but feel free to answer or share or talk with me about them!

[devoted-book-nerd]

Candy Hearts Letter

AO3: Rinadoll

Dear writer,

I’m so excited for this exchange! Thank you so much for writing for me. I love these three fandoms so much, and can’t wait to see what you create. Please don’t feel constrained by the fandom prompts--use whatever inspires you from this section of likes or any of my posts here–everything is organized by season and fandom on my tags page. I’d love any of it! .

Snow is my all time favorite thing, so I would love a winter story. Being snowed in/cabin fics tend to be my favorites, but blizzards, flurries, snow dandruff, it’s all wonderful. So are winter activities–ice skating, sledding, playing in the snow, warming each other up after being outside in the snow, cuddling by fires while snow falls outside, enjoying the hush of snow, etc etc etc. (I was in NYC once when the entire city shut down because of a blizzard and it’s still one of my all time favorite memories. Walking down the middle of a completely empty and desolate 6th Ave was an incredible thing. And the next morning, with Central Park functioning as a neighborhood park and everyone leaving love notes in the snow and cheering on sledding kids, etc. Beautiful.)

The other big thing I love is touch and caretaking–sensory descriptions of hugs, massage, snuggling, kissing, swats and spanks, hair brushing/washing, bathing, spa days, caretaking of all sorts, h/c with an emphasis on the c, etc, make me squee. It’s my favorite thing after snow, and I search these things out by tags when I need a happy boost. (I watch a lot of ASMR vids, ngl. So relaxing.)  The day I found cuddle service fics was a red letter day, let me tell you. I am always open to cuddle service AUs.

Other likes: banter, flirting, romps, shenanigans, humor, affection, teamwork, friends falling in love, competency, fake dating turning real, There’s Only One Bed, mutual pining with happy resolution, established relationships, abandoned buildings reclaimed by nature, nature (rain, snow, forests, beaches, bodies of water), and happy endings. Sex and other intimate scenes are fine if they push forward plots or character development, but definitely aren’t necessary to include. I love Hallmark style (romance or murder mystery) plots or AUs, too.

All of the above would be welcomed as art, too! My requests are fic, but I am always delighted with treats! Anything drenched in the spirit and colors of winter and/or coziness is wonderful. I’m not great with knowing how to describe styles, but I’ve saved a variety of fan art favorites in a tag! https://devoted-book-nerd.tumblr.com/tagged/fan%20art

Please note: I am clearly obsessed with 911 right now! But I promise you that I love my old favorites just as dearly, and genuinely would love to receive something for any of these fandoms.

DNW: dub/noncon, non-canon character deaths, PWP, self-harm, humiliation/extreme embarrassment, gaslighting, character bashing, unhappy endings, homophobia, anything Covid related, and dark, dystopian, mobster, werewolf, omegaverse, or supernatural universe AUs. 

9-1-1, Betsy-Tacy, Hawkeye TV, MCU, Schitt’s Creek, Ted Lasso

911: Buck/Tommy, Buck/Tommy & Eddie & Chris; Buck/Tommy & Maddie, Buck/Tommy & Eddie, Buck/Tommy/Eddie

“This show is my newest obsession, which is pretty clear from my A03 and tumblr. I started watching last spring and have already watched the whole series twice! I really love the relationships with Buck, Tommy and Eddie–I think they had the potential to be the new Michael and Bobby with the ridiculous shenanigans they could get up to. Eddie and Tommy cracking up over Buck’s theory made me laugh so much, and I could see any two of them ganging up on the third in that way. I love the friendships that Buck and Eddie and Tommy and Eddie have, and see so much potential for a happy future for Buck and Tommy. Or, hey, Buck and Tommy and Eddie! Bring on the triad relationship.

I’d love to see any of these groups getting sucked up into something ridiculous–like when everyone broke into groups to find the buried treasure, when Bobby and Michael re-enacted Rear Window, when Hen and Karen went “undercover” to get her ID back. Who instigated it, who pushed it forward, is anyone a rational voice anymore? And how could Chris end up involved? Is he an instigator? Did he and Buck discover something and get the others dragged in?

I also love seeing them all be so competent at their jobs, so maybe they’re at work or out together and get pressed into action. There aren’t enough teamwork disasters in fic lately! 

I do love winter, so maybe a romantic cabin getaway for two (or three) sounds like a dream, but then comes the blizzard. What goes wrong and what goes very right?

My favorite things to read about are seasonal romances/activities and sensory descriptions of touch and caretaking. Go as iddy as you like! Bring on wintery dates, coziness, trips, accidents, disasters, plans gone awry, a Hallmark kind of plot (romance or murder mystery), I'll love it all."

It will surprise no one that I started watching when Buck met Tommy, and instantly fell for both of them. I love how much growth Buck has had, how he’s settled into himself at work and in his relationship, and how he’s still a bit of a golden retriever. He still looks for the good. He and Eddie remind me a lot of me and my best friend, and I love how he has a separate best friendship with Chris that’s outside of his friendship with Eddie or the relationship with the three of them. (I don’t see Buck as a co-parent, but a trusted adult and friend that he can rely on. Something closer to godfather or older brother/uncle.) 

Tommy’s growth has blown basically everyone’s out of the water, though. It’s incredible what a backstory and arc they gave him way back in S2, when we saw him change through ten years at the 118, and how much he’s continued to work on himself since then. I love his bitchy, deadpan dry humor, and I love how that balance’s Buck’s personality. I also really love how he listens to Buck, and shares his own feelings with him right from the start. I have a lot of sympathy for him, his issues, and his self-sabotage. 

Eddie is a sassy bitch and I love him to bits. His one liners and facial expressions delight me all the time, but I also have loved seeing him breakdown and start to build himself back up again. I hate that Chris is with his grandparents (I see them as harmful caregivers), but I’d love to see Eddie have a chance to be messy and put himself together much healthier than he’s been since he had to get married at age 19. 

Maddie and Buck have such a special relationship, and I love how much she cares for him, and how he can trust her and that love. Her gentle prodding and confusion during S7 before and after Buck was realizing his bisexuality were hilarious and wonderful. It’s always broken my heart that we see in the Buck flashbacks when she was a young teen that she had already been conditioned by her parents to believe that sometimes people can only show their love by being mad. She was set up and harmed just as much as Buck, but I’m not sure she knows how much. I’d love to see them together, and how Tommy fits into their little family. Does she tell Tommy stories of baby Buck? Are their parents involved somehow?

I just love and adore each and every character on this show, basically! Include anyone you like. 

Betsy-Tacy: Betsy Ray/Joe Willard, Emily Webster/Jed Wakefield, Gwen Fowler/Miss Sparrow, Tacy Kelly & Betsy Ray, Tacy Kelly/Betsy Ray 

“I love this series, and I love winter in Deep Valley! There’s a quote from Betsy Was a Junior: “The holidays struck Deep Valley like a snowball, exploding with soft glitter in all directions. There were family dinners, visits to country relatives, parties for old and young." 

I want to know all about these dinners, visits, and parties! Bundling up, sleigh rides, walks in frosty twilights, old fashioned ghost stories, ice skating, playing in the snow, being snowed in, sharing a bed for warmth (which maybe starts practical and ends romantic?), love. What do they get up to curled up in front of a winter fire, perhaps during a snowstorm? Give me anything winter trope related and I’ll be delighted.

In my latest rereads of Emily of Deep Valley, I have found myself drawn to two unmarried women: Miss Sparrow is the town librarian, Miss Fowler is the well-traveled high school English teacher, they are both part of Emily and Miss Fowler’s Browning Club. Ships have sailed on less. I am very intrigued by the possibilities for these two.

Do they agree to chaperone high school or library winter activities so they can spend time with each other, maybe on a date? Do they become “roommates”? How did they meet? What is life like for a “bachelor woman” in turn of the century MN? 

My favorite things to read about are seasonal romances/activities and sensory descriptions of touch and caretaking. Go as iddy as you like! Bring on wintery dates, coziness, trips, accidents, disasters, plans gone awry, a Hallmark kind of plot (romance or murder mystery), I'll love it all."

I have had the joy of visiting Mankato (Deep Valley) in a gorgeous October twice now, and the vibrancy of the colors and rushing waterfalls is mesmerizing. So close, and yet still not the Mankato winter I dream of, ha. I’ve also stood behind the real Miss Sparrow’s desk in Betsy/Maud’s library, which was so much fun. I’ve been really loving following Betsy-Tacy-society.tumblr.com and seeing real life photos and all the book quotes. It’s made me love the books even more.

Because I really do love these characters. I love that the books show the varied ambitions of women of the time, and how the Misses Sparrow and Fowler are well respected with no men ever mentioned. I’d really like to learn more about them in Deep Valley. What do they get up to in their own time besides the Browning Club?

Both characters appear in various high school books, but most of Gwen’s characterization comes from Emily of Deep Valley, which is still in print and available as an ebook, so check out your local library.

Emily and Jed are also only in Emily of Deep Valley, and I love how this quiet girl becomes a passionate reformer, with a fiance who cheers her on. I'd love a happier future for Emily and Jed than real life!

And while I adore Betsy and Joe, there's just something special about Betsy and Tacy's connection, whether as friends or romantically. Let's play with it!

Hawkeye tv: Clint Barton/Kate Bishop, Clint Barton/Kate Bishop & Lucky, Clint Barton/Laura Barton/Kate Bishop 

“I love Kate and Clint so much. I loved them in the comics first, and I was fully delighted with the Hawkeye show, including how they essentially traded personalities. I’m here for their dynamic and banter, cases together and time on the farm. Kate trying to seduce him and Clint is in favor but hiding his amusement at Kate's antics? Has Clint asked for help and is super annoyed by it? And I’d love to see how Clint and Laura could slot her into their lives and marriage. 

Banter and tropes and love, oh my!

My favorite things to read about are seasonal romances/activities and sensory descriptions of touch and caretaking. Go as iddy as you like! Bring on wintery dates, coziness, trips, accidents, disasters, plans gone awry, a Hallmark kind of plot (romance or murder mystery), I'll love it all."

It took me a while to warm up to MCU Clint vs comics Clint, but Hawkeye TV really cemented it for me. With Clint romance fics, I prefer that either Laura is fine with his outside relationships, or Clint and Laura’s romantic relationship has ended and they co parent as friends. No cheating.

I really love how Clint is such a caregiver and Kate accepts it—I imagine few people are allowed to bandage her up. I’d love to see some great caretaking, especially Clint towards Kate. Bandaging each other up, stitches, concussion support, sickness, any hurt/comfort scenario that makes your heart sing. There’s just something about Clint that lets strong independent people allow him take care of them. Major dad energy.

(Speaking of, I like Clint’s kids, in small doses—include them as you like, just not as the center of the fic.)

MCU: Clint Barton/Kate Bishop, James "Bucky" Barnes/Clint Barton 

“I love how Bucky and Clint are so over absolutely everything and everyone. I love their relationships with Kate and Sam, but I’d love to see these two grumpy cats working together and complaining and falling/being in love. Do they have to fake date for some reason? Stuck together in a cabin? Bucky ends up at the farm or Clint is stuck in NYC? How does Clint take care of Bucky and how grumpy does Bucky get while allowing it?

I love Kate and Clint so much. I loved them in the comics first, and I was fully delighted with the Hawkeye show, including how they essentially traded personalities. I’m here for their dynamic and banter, cases together and time on the farm. I especially love hurt/comfort for them, because I don’t think there are many people independent Kate will let bandage her up like Clint did.

My favorite things to read about are seasonal romances/activities and sensory descriptions of touch and caretaking. Go as iddy as you like! Bring on wintery dates, coziness, trips, accidents, disasters, plans gone awry, a Hallmark kind of plot (romance or murder mystery), I'll love it all."

It took me a while to warm up to MCU Clint vs comics Clint, but Hawkeye TV really cemented it for me. With Clint romance fics, I prefer that either Laura is fine with his outside relationships, or Clint and Laura’s romantic relationship has ended and they co parent as friends. No cheating.

I really love how Clint is such a caregiver and Kate accepts it—I imagine few people are allowed to bandage her up. I’d love to see some great caretaking, especially Clint towards Kate. Bandaging each other up, stitches, concussion support, sickness, any hurt/comfort scenario that makes your heart sing. With Lucky, if you like, because he’s a very good boy. Does Bucky submit to caretaking, too? (I didn’t mean that sexually, but I am also game for that!) There’s just something about Clint that lets strong independent people allow him take care of them. Major dad energy.

(Speaking of, I like Clint’s kids, in small doses—include them as you like, just not as the center of the fic.)

Schitt’s Creek: Patrick Brewer/David Rose 

“This is definitely one of my happy place fandoms! I fell for Patrick’s dry sense of humor pretty fast and was sold on the pairing when he confidently told David he’d get those grants. I love his love of control, and his deep love for David combined with their banter and his tendency to troll him so affectionately. I love how David cares so deeply for so many and refuses to admit it because of his history, but won’t stop, and is always there to step up when Patrick is feeling like he lost his control. 

What if David’s anxiety is heightened and Patrick takes him to one of Twyla’s partner yoga classes, or gets some poses from Twyla to try? A romantic cabin getaway for two sounds like a dream, but then comes the blizzard. What goes wrong and what goes very right? Honestly, just some fun ice skating on a pond/creek, snowballs, winter games, fires and hot chocolate, s'mores, kisses and cuddling, etc, would be fun.

I love the Apothecary, too--road trips to check out some great winter/Valentine vendors would be a delight. They host classes at the shop—maybe knitting, Valentine’s couples yoga with Twyla, more open mic nights, and what else? A season and its holidays through things sold in the store: vendors they meet, items they select, people who buy them, what David and Patrick buy for themselves. Bring on the hygge! And some mundane things Patrick throws in to annoy David. How do they compromise on decorating for Valentine’s Day, and what sort of things end up in the front of the store like the plungers?

My favorite things to read about are seasonal romances/activities and sensory descriptions of touch and caretaking. Go as iddy as you like! Bring on wintery dates, coziness, trips, accidents, disasters, plans gone awry, a Hallmark kind of plot (romance or murder mystery), I'll love it all."

I really love Patrick and David. Their dynamic is really fun—Patrick as service top and caretaker with sass, David needing all the praise and support, but they are good about switching as needed. (Loved Patrick telling David to think about what he’d done, in The Olive Branch.) Patrick is such a troll, and he gets so grumpy when emotions are involved. He’s better at hiding his issues than David is, but they’re still there. David can get pretty tunnel-visiony about himself as a defense mechanism, but I love how he steps up for Patrick whenever it’s needed. I wonder if he’ll get better about stepping up before those low moments as he settles into their future. And honestly, he really is correct a lot of the time, ha. 

I love romance, but I also love all of the friendships in this show, and their deepness and importance. I love winter and Valentine’s day, so feel free to also lean heavily on my general likes!

Ted Lasso: Roy/Jamie, Roy/Jamie & Georgie

“I adore this show, and Roy is my favorite. I love the way he and Jamie grew, and grew together, and their whole relationship. Amsterdam! And Georgie was just such a lovely person (and Roy so hilariously couldn’t decide if he wanted her or wanted her to be his mum). 

This is a new request for me, which means that I don’t have as many prompts here, but that does not mean I want this fandom any less! This is a great fandom to lean into the likes in my letter.

One of them plans a super wintery date, or mini break. They’re snowed in! They go up to visit with Georgie and Simon for a weekend. They go up to visit them and all four get snowed in. Massages after ice skating. One of them gets sick, and the other takes care of them (maybe with Georgie helping, in person or via phone support). Phoebe insists they help her work on class Valentines and they get roped into helping in her classroom. Sexy Valentines Day goes awry. 

My favorite things to read about are seasonal romances/activities and sensory descriptions of touch and caretaking. Go as iddy as you like! Bring on wintery dates, coziness, trips, accidents, disasters, plans gone awry, a Hallmark kind of plot (romance or murder mystery), I'll love it all."

Again, this is a very new fandom, so while I am very enthusiastic, I’m still trying to figure out what to say. My letters grow each time I request a fandom, ha. Plus the last time I requested it, it was filled with Halloween themed prompts, lol.

I love Roy’s take charge, bossy leader nature, but how he let Jamie teach him how to ride a bike. I love his swearing and his gruffness and that he cried during his retirement press conference. I love that he’s trying to work on himself, and hasn’t quite figured out that he’s already a good person. I also love that Roy has a bit of a mommy kink (Jamie’s mom, Mary Poppins), so maybe he and Jamie play with that, ha. (That one is a without Georgie prompt, please!)

Jamie is also the absolute best, though! I love how he can really feel his emotions, like with his mum, and how he is actively working to be a team player and a person who can be counted on. But he can also totally be a twat, because he contains multitudes.

I like Keeley, so feel free to include her as a friend, and I also love every other character, so bring in any and everyone!

[mckiwi]

An Angel and a Demon Walk into a Hotel

(Chapter 1: Gabe's POV)

Gabe is just trying to get through his shift as a hotel Front Desk Agent when two strange men come in looking for a room. Just when he thinks his night can't get any weirder, life finds a way to prove him wrong.

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: None

Category: Multi

Fandoms: Good Omens

Characters: Original Characters, Aziraphale, Crowley, Gabriel, Beelzebub

Tags: Hotel, Outside POV, There Was Only One Bed, Oneshot, Crowley's Bentley, Elements of Uncanny Valley, Post Season 1, Pre Season 2, Miracles, Domestic Aziraphale/Crowley, Comedy, Psychological Horror, Supernatural Elements, only a bit at the end, emphasis on uncanny valley effect, Human Narator, Unreliable Narrator, POV Third Person Limited, Minor Beelzebub/Gabriel

Words: 2,451

It was nearing the last hour of Gabe’s shift when a black Bentley pulled up under the canopy. The sun had long since set and Gabe had already assigned every reservation a room for the night, ready to get this night over with. “Oh, well this is nice!” A man with an affinity for light-colored clothing and fluffy hair said as he walked through the sliding doors into the lobby. 

Another man with an affinity for dark-colored clothes and ginger hair followed in after him, “Sure, if you call a hotel that’s a few decades old ‘nice’- don’t answer that.” He interrupted himself as he saw the other open his mouth to speak. 

Gabe amped up his ‘Customer Service Voice’ and smiled, “Hi, welcome in! Do you two have a reservation?”

“I’m afraid not. We’ll be needing a room for two, please.” The one in light clothes said, coming up to the Front Desk and resting his adjoined hands on the counter while the other man wandered over to the coffee machines. 

Gabe gave what could be considered a sympathetic grimace and shook his head, “I’m sorry, we’re actually completely booked up for the night.” As he had said for about the seventh time that night already, and it surely wouldn’t be his last. 

“Oh,” the man said in an off-put tone. Not at all the disappointed or frustrated tone Gabe normally heard. “I do believe you’ll find you have one room left.”

“No, sir. I doubt it. I’ve been booked for hours now and I had just checked my page not that long ago,” Gabe answered. 

“Check again,” The man in black deadpanned from the coffee machines. Something about the man made chills run up Gabe’s spine.

The man at the counter somehow also had that effect but for a completely different reason. Regardless, Gabe checked his system again, and sure enough, “Oh, I’m sorry! We actually do have a room left. It’ll be our standard King bedroom.” 

The ginger man had come up to the counter just then with a steaming cup of black coffee, “Just one bed then?”

“One king-sized bed, yes.”

His head rolled to the side dramatically and glared at his partner. The other tisked at him and bristled, “Well how was I meant to know? And what would our head offices think if we shared a room.”

Ah, so that was it. Two coworkers who weren’t comfortable sharing a room. 

“It’ll be fine, Angel. Just get the room.” 

Oh, or maybe not. 

The blonde sighed shortly, “Fine. We’ll take the room, please. Under the name A. Z. Fell.”

“Perfect. What’s a good phone number we can use?” 

“You can use my bookshop’s number. +44 20 7440 3248.” 

“Excellent, and what kind of vehicle are you driving?”

The ginger spoke up, “We’re in my car. Issa Bentley. A black one from 1933. Plate is NIAT RUC. Name’s Anthony Crowley, by the way. If you need to put that in your notes, or whatever.”

“Is that ‘curtain’ backward? Are you a patron of the arts, by chance?” Gabe asked. 

“Ngk, well… you ah, you could say I’ve put a certain investment into Shakespeare,” Crowley answered as Fell chuckled softly. 

They gave the final details of their reservation, paid, and were given their key cards. “Here you are! Room 119. That’ll be down this hallway to your right. The WiFi password and breakfast hours are inside your card envelope.” Gabe handed the keys over to Fell. 

“Wonderful! Thank you ever so much! And what was your name again, dear?”

“Gabriel.”

“Oh,” Fell said sourly, “that’s unfortunate. No matter. Well, I hope you have a nice rest of your night.”

“You as well,” Gabe returned, slightly offended on his name’s behalf.  

Crowley announced, “Right, well, imma go park the car. Angel, you can go look at the room or something. I’ll catch up.”

“Okay, dear. See you in a tick.”

“Hmmk,” Crowley responded eloquently and left to go presumably park their car. Fell in the meanwhile thanked Gabe again and went back to find their room. It wasn’t too much longer before Crowley came back in, made another coffee as well as some tea, then headed in the direction of their room. 

Gabe thought the interaction was strange, sure, but he’d been in customer service long enough that it was far from the strangest. He’d just begun to finish closing up his shift when another man walked through the sliding doors. The man wore light-colored clothing, much like Fell had, but this one was far more modern, and Gabe could’ve sworn his eyes had a purple hue. “Hi,” the man greeted, distinctly American, “I find myself in need of one of your meeting rooms.”

“Alrighty, sir. And when would you be needing it?” Gabe asked, pulling up the tab to reserve meeting spaces. 

“Now, obviously.” the man answered and gave a humorless smile. 

Gabe paused and glanced at the time. 10:14 pm. “You want to host a meeting at ten at night?” The man nodded affirmatively. “Okay, then. Umm, 

how many people are you expecting and what time would this take place?”

“Just me and one other. They didn’t want to meet at our usual spot, so I suggested a formal meeting space. We agreed to meet here at 10:30.” 

“Perfect. So that’s gonna be £40 per hour. What’s your name?”

“Gabriel.” The man, Gabriel, answered.  

“Oh, nice. That’s my name as well.” Gabe commented.

“Ah, wonderful! Another follower. Blessings be upon you.” Gabriel said, and Gabe felt that now familiar yet uncomfortable prickling of his skin. 

Gabe couldn’t help but blink at him a few times, “right. Okay, well. You’ll be in Room 3. You’re given a 10-minute grace period to access the meeting room, then your time will officially start at 10:30. In the meantime, you’re welcome to some coffee or tea.”

Gabriel grimaced, “no, thank you. I don’t sully my holy temple with gross matter.” About that time, Fell came around the corner of the hallway with Crowley in step behind him, looking down at his shoes and ranting about something indiscernible. Fell made eye contact with Gabe and smiled, then saw who Gabe was talking to and went wide-eyed. Crowley yelped as Fell jerked the duo back around the corner. 

This night was slowly creeping up on Gabe’s ‘Weirdest Encounters’ list. 

At 10:28, a shadow of a figure walked through the front doors carrying a clipboard of papers, completely undeterred by the swarm of flies around them. They leveled him with a look that couldn’t necessarily kill, but definitely maim, “have you seen a guy with an annoying smile recently? Dressed entirely too brightly?” 

Gabe perked up from behind the desk, glad the flies decided to stay outside, “I believe I have. Is the name Gabriel, by chance?”

As if summoned, Gabriel approached the Front Desk with the aforementioned annoying smile, “Ah! There they are! Beelzebub, do you have the reports?”

They held up the clipboard with a little shake, “the photographs too.”

“That is perfect! Alright- Oh, and meet a new follower of mine,” Gabriel gestured toward Gabe, “his name’s Gabriel! Isn’t that great!” 

Gabe gave a small wave, “Hi. Love the makeup, by the way. It suits you.” They didn’t thank him, but the murderous glare did soften slightly. 

“Right,” they cleared their throat and turned away, “let’s get this done. I haven’t got all day.”

Gabriel tsked, “Well technically-”

“Well technically you need to shut up and show me where we’re having this ‘meeting’ at.” They snapped, though Gabriel seemed to have expected this and wasn’t affected. The duo made their way toward Room 3 just as Gabe’s earlier duo came back around the corner.

Fell and Crowley hesitantly came up to the desk. Eventually, it was Fell who spoke up, “Hello again, dear. I um, I understand if you can’t answer this for… patient confidentiality or what have you-”

“He’s not a doctor for Go- for Somebody’s sake, Angel. Just ask him the bloody question.”

“Right, yes, I was getting to that. Anyway, could you possibly tell us why Gabriel and Beelzebub are currently in your establishment?” Fell asked, to which Crowley sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. 

Gabe considered how to answer the question. Sure, there were the normal protocols and regulations in place to protect a guest’s privacy, but then again, nothing about this last hour has been normal, and Gabe would be lying if he said he wasn’t curious himself. “They said they were having a meeting,” he answered vaguely. 

Crowley spoke first this time, “Did they say how long this ‘meeting’ would last? Did they say anything about what the meeting was over? Did they mention our names at all? Did they ask about us?”

“No, sir. As far as I’m aware, they’re having a meeting about some kind of report.” Gabe looked between the two. “They haven’t said anything about either of you. Should I tell them you’re here?”

“No!” They both shouted, before promptly shushing each other and grabbing at each other’s sleeves. Fell cleared his throat, “best not, dear boy. That wouldn’t bode over so well for either party.”

“Right, okay, well…” Gabe had no idea how to continue the conversation. His lips formed different words restlessly in an attempt to fill the silence. 

Thankfully, Crowley broke it, “Angel, with me,” and all but dragged Fell back towards their room.

The little clock at the bottom corner of the computer just ticked over to 10:47 when Gabriel and his guest walked out of the meeting room. “Well, it was lovely to be able to see you again, Beelzebub.”

“Eugh, don’t say that. You’ll give me hives,” the other said and wrinkled their nose in disgust. Gabriel just smiled at them all the while. “So, same time next month? Our usual place?”

“Yes, I’ll be there. Thank you,” Gabriel said softly, then cleared his throat and straightened his clothes, wiping off the nonexistent dust. “Right. This meeting is now adjourned. I’ll be seeing you.”

The other nodded, “See you then. There’s just something I have to do before I leave. Have to cause discord and unrest, you know. This place reeks of blessings.”

Gabriel gave Beelzebub a last, knowing look before turning away to leave, with the latter following shortly after. Gabe felt that weird tingle again, stronger this time and more insistent, like a limb losing blood circulation. He was left to process that entire interaction for all of 68 seconds before noticing a strange light coming from the parking lot. He nearly cursed at the sight of flames. 

Crowley peaked around the corner, “are they gone yet?”

Gabe exclaimed, “There’s a car on fire outside!”

“What!” Crowley was at the nearest window before either of them could comprehend it. He practically plastered himself to the glass to peer out, then peeled himself away with a sigh of relief, “Whew, it’s not mine. Almost had a heart attack there, and that’s saying something.” 

“What’s going on here?” Fell asked, having followed Crowley out a moment later. 

Gabe shrugged, “There’s a car on fire, apparently. I don’t know what to do, I- I mean,” he gestured cluelessly, “guess we should see who’s it is.”

Crowley moved back slightly to give Gabe room to look outside and laughed, “I’d hate to be that guy.”

Gabe paled, “that’s my car.”

Crowley shifted uncomfortably, “…oh.”

Fell came up behind Gabe and rested a hand on his shoulder to turn him away from the window, “Don’t fret. I’m sure your car is just fine.” He made a weird motion with his free hand and Gabe felt that tingly feeling up his spine strengthen. 

“What was that?” Gabe asked.

“What was what?” Fell returned. 

“That thing you just did with your hand.”

“I don’t believe I know what you’re talking about.”

Gabe narrowed his eyes in confusion before looking at Crowley, who shrugged noncommittally, “didn’t see a thing.” He turned back to the window only to find his car perfectly fine and definitely not on fire. He shook his head and rubbed his eyes. He found the same sight when he looked again. His ears started to ring. 

“No, you did something. I’ve been getting this weird feeling ever since you came in.” Gabe spun back around and looked at Fell properly for the first time. Fell’s brow was creased in worry and his lips pinched. His curly hair was the definition of orderly chaos. His stance was Protective. 

“Are you feeling alright?” Fell asked. Gabe looked into those ocean-blue eyes. It felt like looking at those antique photographs his grandmother kept. 

Those eyes were Old. 

Gabe stepped back and inhaled shakily, cocking his head to the side and eyeing Crowley warily. He’d stepped up to Fell’s side. “Think we might have another one, Angel.” 

Fell sighed, “Seems like it. That’s what happens when you get blessed by an archangel, I suppose. Gabriel never did have a touch of subtlety.” Fell took a step toward Gabe, “Come here, dear.”

Gabe shook his head vehemently, “why?”

“Don’t be afraid,” Fell Said. 

For whatever reason, Gabe felt compelled to trust him, which was terrifying in its own right. Nonetheless, Gabe moved toward the Light, unafraid. Fell held one of Gabe’s hands in both of his. 

“May you go home, and dream of whatever it is that you like best. Be well and go in peace.”

Fell released Gabe’s hand, and Gabe clutched it with his other at his chest. Once he had a few moments to collect himself, he looked up to see he was now alone in the lobby, left only with a slight ringing in his ears. Maybe he should get his hearing checked. 

The front doors opened to reveal his shift relief, Rebekah. “Hey, man. When’d you get that dent in your car fixed?” They both went behind the Front Desk. She clocked in while he clocked out. Rebekah stopped to look at him when he didn’t respond. “Gabe? You good?”

“Yeah,” he rubbed his thumb over the healed scratch on his hand, “yeah, really good, actually.”

She didn’t seem to believe him, “Right. Umm, is there anything I should know before you leave?”

He thought for a second, “Nothing that I know of. Oh, wait! There’s something with room, uh, room 119. Can’t remember what, though… I don’t know, I’ll text you later if it’s important.”

“Alrighty then. Guess I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“We’ll see. Have a nice night!” Gabe called. 

“You too!” She returned as Gabe walked out the front door. 

It was nearing the first hour of Rebekah’s shift when a silver Toyota pulled out from under the canopy.