#though... i'm glad that the full moon has passed.

[usarinnpa]

whines and paws at you and paws at you and paws at you

[wordsofelie]

Chapter 8

🌅Don’t you dare run away (A Phoenix and Ashes Sequel)

Miya Osamu x f!reader

Summary: Miya Osamu thinks some things will never change— Atsumu will always be annoying; his Ma’s food will always be the best and you will always be his favourite sunrise.

Content Warnings: Timeskip Setting, Manga Spoilers, ex!Suna, Swearing

Words count: 5k

chapter 1 - chapter 2 - chapter 3 - chapter 4 - chapter 5 - chapter 6 - chapter 7

Osamu doesn’t talk about what happened.

The main reason is that he wants to believe it was only a one-time thing. You were simply surprised to see your ex after who knows how many months or years; your relationship with Osamu is only starting even though you’ve known each other for a long time. Osamu wants to respect your boundaries; he wants to give you the time you need to get used to this new life. He’ll be patient (for once, his mother would say).

But that one-time thing lasts longer than expected.

Four months pass, you’re well settled in Tokyo, well integrated into your new team and Osamu has become a regular on the Omiya-Shin Osaka shinkansen line. He alternates between his shop in Osaka, where he has taken on a new full-time manager (Sato and Nagisa love her), and his new premises in Tokyo, which are still in the restoration phase. Osamu opted for a smaller place close to a university and a business district (strangely close to Akaashi's offices), the goal being to focus on takeaway food rather than a familial restaurant. Kita is getting ready to supply twice more rice and he’s just waiting for his former teammate to open the new shop.

By the time the Olympics end, everyone is aware that you’re dating. Bokuto couldn’t help but tell Hinata and Akaashi, Hinata couldn’t resist sharing the news with Kageyama during their game against Argentina, claiming it just slipped. And, from there, the secret practically ran itself through the team. By the time it got to Atsumu, he’d almost passed out from shock. The setter had cornered Osamu one evening. “Are ya serious? My own twin, my own flesh ‘n blood, and ya didn’t even tell me?”

But as soon as he finished his tirade, he sighed heavily and clasped Osamu on the shoulder. “Ya know, ‘Samu, I’m glad it’s ya though. She deserves it. Just... don’t mess it up, alright?”

And Osamu promised he wouldn’t. They went out to have dinner that night and Atsumu’s eyes got wet when the waiter served the plates.

“Yer leavin’ me again,” he whines to his twin.

Osamu groaned, “Stop bein’ such a crybaby for fuck’s sake. How am I supposed to beat ya if I get stuck in the same place? It’s like we're runnin’ a race but with our shoelaces tied together. One of us has to get past the other.” Because it sounded too serious, or maybe because his eyes also got wet, Osamu stretched out his arm on the chair and his voice turned to tease mode again, “and I guess, I'm just better with women than ya.”

Atsumu got mad and they acted like themselves again, as if nothing happened, as if they weren't on the verge of tears at the idea of being away from each other. 

His mother, of course, was over the moon. She’d even sent a few of your favourite treats because according to her, this announcement warranted a full family celebration. “We always hoped, ya know,” she’d told Osamu with a soft smile, “that you’d end up with someone just like her. Maybe even her, actually.” She winked, and before Osamu could stop her, she was already planning the next family gathering (and a wedding.)

No need to mention Umi who was the first to know. Osamu received a text from her early one morning, saying how happy she was for you and hinting at his potential murder if he ever broke your heart. He didn’t know whether to laugh or hide.

The only person still completely out of the loop remains Suna.

For some reason, the thought doesn’t worry Osamu. Wordlessly, you both agreed to let things settle naturally. It’s only a matter of time before you tell him, or at least, that’s what Osamu believes.

But it’s now almost November and the guys from Inarizaki High have organised a team reunion in Tokyo when Osamu officially opens his new restaurant. Your boyfriend tries to ignore the feeling, but it does sting when you seem to avoid his gaze whenever Suna is nearby. At some point in the night, Gin—who’s the only other person not aware of your situation—wraps his arm around Osamu’s shoulder and asks him, “So, what about you, man? Got anyone special?”

Osamu pauses, his hand lingers just a little too long on his glass. He catches your eye across the table, but you look away. Something twists in his chest.

That evening, you fight for the time.

When you return home, Osamu is quieter than usual, barely meeting your eyes.

“Are you mad?” you ask, watching him from the doorway as he sits on the edge of the bed, hands in his lap.

But he doesn’t look up. “That you acted as if I didn’t exist in front of yer ex, again? Huh, nah.”

You move closer to him. “Osamu…”

“Look, it’s fine,” he replies, and it breaks his heart not to look at your face. You’re probably hurt right now, but if he lands his eyes on you, he will probably just want to apologise and kiss your lips and your eyes and your cheeks to make the sadness go away, “I’m just tired.”

“Let’s talk about it.”

He huffs a sigh through his nose, “I said it’s fine.”

Then he gets up, his back is facing you now. Osamu feels his blood rushing through his veins, both out of frustration and guilt, “I get it if yer disappointed in this relationship.”

The words cut deeper than either of you expected, and for a second, you stay silent. A bitter laugh leaves your mouth.

“Disappointed? You’re not the one who’s felt neglected these past few weeks,” you reply, and your voice raises just slightly higher. “Whether you’re in Osaka or here, it’s like I barely exist to you. I mean, at least when we were just friends, I felt like I had some part of you. Now… I don’t know, Osamu...”

Your shoulders slouch and your brows furrow. When he takes a glimpse at you, the frustration is fully replaced by guilt. 

“My love…” he begins, reaching for you, but you cover your stomach as if to shield yourself from him.

“No, I… I guess I should’ve seen it coming. Maybe it was a stupid idea to let you follow me to Tokyo. I was selfish. And if you want to leave me, I understand-”

Miya Osamu has heard some stupid things in the past (especially coming out of his brother’s mouth), but leaving you has to be the craziest one. How in the world could he want someone else other than you? Now that he had a taste of what it’s like to be by your side, how could he ever think of leaving?

It’s been a decade, ten full years, that Osamu has been watching you from the sidelines. He saw you being almost chosen, half-loved by Suna. He watched you break and then pick yourself up before falling into the arms of your good-for-nothing ex again. It was unfair, it was infuriating to see you look at him with stars in your eyes when you obviously deserved so much more—the whole universe even. And then, without trying, he fell head over heels for you. He started yearning after you, desired to be the one you go home to every day, the one who makes your heart flip in your chest.

Now, in all modesty, Osamu can say he is no longer on the sidelines; he’s with you and he’s yours.

But words aren’t enough thus, he moves toward you, so quickly that it startles you. His hands find your neck delicately, his fingers get tangled in your hair and before you can pull away, he says, “Hey, I’m not goin’ anywhere. Ya understand? Yer it for me.”

You can’t help the tears that well up in your eyes. “But I don’t want to be a burden,” you respond in a murmur. “You work so hard, and I’m so proud of you. I don’t want to be just one more thing you have to worry about.”

“But that’s exactly my role.” His forehead meets yours, “listen here, sweetheart, I would burn down the restaurant for ya.”

“But I don’t want that.” He makes you smile wide through your tears.

“No, me neither.” He chuckles but after, his voice softens, “What I mean is that startin’ today and for all the days that come, yer the one I’ll choose over everything. If I had to relive my life, I’d choose ya again and again, I’d probably choose ya earlier. Please, now tell me when something is wrong because nothing could ever make me fall outta love for ya. I’m not him.”

You put your hand over his, and squeeze tightly, “And I don’t want anything else, Osamu. Just you.”

“Then that’s what ya got. And promise me one thing.”

You nod and he brushes a tear from your cheek. “Anything.”

“Let’s just tell each other when something’s wrong. It’s shit to argue like that. I’m sorry if ya felt like I wasn’t here enough, I’ll make it up ya, okay?”

Your arms wrap around him tightly, as if letting go would make all of this disappear. “You don’t have to, I didn’t mean what I said… I was just hurt, and I guess, I just miss you. We don’t see each other as much those days, but I know it’s for the better. As for Rin,” you look up at him and Osamu realises he forgot what the argument was about in the first place. He gulps loudly. “I’ll tell him, soon. But I just need a bit more time. I guess I'm just worry it'll make things awkward between you too...”

He presses a gentle kiss to your forehead. “Take all the time ya need. And ya know, we're grown men, okay? No one’s gonna punch the other... he’d get hurt anyway.”

You laugh, (and avoid reminding him that Suna Rintarou is a professional athlete, probably for the sake of his ego) and only hug him more.

Feeling your skin against his as you slip under the sheets, is the only thing that matters now. You chose him, not Suna, and the thought is enough to make his whole body shiver.

You fall asleep first and Osamu, in an unusual moment of gratitude, wants to thank the gods for being able to see your pretty face everyday. Make it last forever, he wishes to ask them. When he closes his eyes later, he is convinced that they heard him.

The gods are funny entities. Maybe they did hear him and maybe they’re trying to impulse your relationship on the right path.

At least, that’s the conclusion your boyfriend comes up with when on a calm Saturday morning, as he is making breakfast while you’re taking a shower, someone knocks at the door.

Osamu sets down the bowl of batter he is holding, turns off the stove to prevent the baking pancakes from burning, and walks to the door.

The door swings open, and he has to take a step back in surprise when one Suna Rintarou appears in front of him.

“My mum wanted to give you – Osamu?”

Both men seem to be equally surprised. Osamu tries to hide his displeasure. He just wanted to spend a quiet morning with you, eating breakfast and cuddling, so why the hell is your ex in front of him right now?

“Oh Suna, hi… hm…”

“Dearest are you-” your voice chimes in but stops as fast. “Rin?”

Osamu widens his eyes and looks at you, he scratches the back of his neck nervously. “I’m- hm- thank you for letting me sleep here yesterday. I’ll leave now.”

His excuse doesn’t seem to ease Suna’s doubts as the man with his usual sharp-eyed self, throws Osamu a side-eye. But soon enough, his attention falls on you and he crosses his arms, waiting for an explanation.

Osamu’s face swings from you to him a few times. It’s clear that you’re speaking to each other without words. Whatever space he takes in your heart now, Suna has been here before and the string that once led you to him could never truly be severed.

“Osamu lives here.” You take his hand, “we are dating.”

There’s a long silence. It’s awkward and heavy. Osamu suddenly wants to pinch his arm, hoping none of this is happening. The man understands why you kept putting this moment off for so long.

But you’re brave enough to continue, “Did you come here for something?”

“My mum found that bracelet you lost.” He takes the jewellery out of his pocket. It’s discreet but Osamu and Suna gazes meet, probably to prove to your boyfriend that he didn’t just come to see you out of the blue.

You take the bracelet from his hand, thanking him a several times and claiming you were still hoping to find it, even after all those years.

“Please Rin, enter.” 

Suna is quick to take his shoes off and step into your living room, “She also baked you this.”

Your eyes shine when you see the box he is handing you, “Auntie’s cookies? Gosh, they’re the best. I’ll warm them up.”

You turn to your boyfriend with a smile. “I can’t wait for you to try them.”

Osamu clears his throat, “Yeah, me too…D’ya want a cup of coffee or-”

“I’m fine,” Suna replies with nonchalance as he passes past Osamu to follow you in the kitchen. The latter has to hold back a groan. It’s a good thing he started meditation because right now, he really needs to keep his calm.

Suna only looks at you as the three of you stand in the kitchen, waiting for the cookies to be savoured, “my mum didn’t put any peanuts in the cookies, you still think it tastes like soap, right?”

Osamu raises an eyebrow.

“Yes, I do, it’s so considerate of her.” You give Suna a cup of tea.

“Lemon tea, my favourite, you remember.”

You smile gently at him in response, but Osamu can see that your lips tug into a thin line after. Suna is acting out of character, and it’s confusing you as well as your boyfriend.  

“Angel,” Osamu starts and from the corner of his eyes, he can see Suna’s shoulders tense. “I also made pancakes; we can share it together if ya want. I went to the market this morning to buy raspberries. I’m sorry, I know ya love blueberries more but- ”

“She prefers strawberries.” The middle blocker mumbles, though it’s unmistakably aimed at reaching Osamu’s ears.

“Wait, wait, guys, what are you doing?”

The boys look at each other and just when they both open their mouths, ready to justify their actions, your phone rings.

“I have to take this, it’s for work – Hi Kuroo-senpai.” You say as you escape to your bedroom.

Osamu wishes he could follow you, but instead, he sighs. He, who waited all week to spend this morning with you, now wants it to be over.

He turns to Suna, but your ex doesn’t move even with those two eyes staring at him, as if deadpan. He’s not going to talk first and Osamu summons up all its courage to start the conversation.

“Listen man I-”

“I’m not really surprised.”

Osamu blinks a few times.

“You guys always had that weird relationship. Ever since high school, I tried to keep her away from you, when we used to walk home together, she wanted to wait for you, but I often said you wanted to stay to practice more. I never told her that but when I moved to Hiroshima and she started spending all her days with you, I hated it. I tried hanging out with girls to make her jealous-”

“That’s a shitty move.”

“Oh, shut up, we were nineteen.” Suna’s voice sounds frustrated, it’s a first, Osamu thinks. He never saw that look on his face before, even when they shared defeats together. Maybe, he did truly love you? “And I regretted acting like that… anyway, she dumped me in the end. I guess that’s what you call karma.”

“Yer the one who dumped her first.”

He rolls his eyes in response, “I know. Biggest mistake of my life. But I’ve moved on now. I’ll go.”

Osamu is taken aback by his last words but realises he heard it right when Suna makes his way to the genkan again.

“Dontcha wanna wait til her call is finished?”

“You want me to stay?”

Osamu hesitates and it makes Suna chuckle. 

Once he’s done putting his shoes on, he looks behind his shoulder at his former teammate.

“You’re a lucky man, don’t you dare run away.”

A warm feeling spreads through his stomach, and something clicks in his brain as if he just remembered a happy memory from his childhood. He has no idea when and where, but Osamu feels like he heard those words before. Maybe from a dream.

“I won’t. I really love her.”

“The first match of the season is next week, I’m playing against Atsumu, if you guys want to come.”

“We will.”

“Don’t be jealous if she supports me though,” Suna smirks slightly and it pisses off the other man who can’t help but grin wider.

“Ya? Against the team she works for. When her brother-in-law is playin’, I didn’t know ya were so delusional dude.”

“Brother-in-law.” Suna laughs, but it’s scornful this time, “Don’t act like you’re engaged man. I’m going now, see you.”

This is the last thing Suna says before he gets out of your shared apartment.  

Engaged?

For the second time, a warm feeling hits him. It feels good, even if the thought sends a rush of nerves along with it. He doesn’t have the time to analyse it because you go out of the bedroom and scan the kitchen.

“He left,” Osamu explains as he wraps his arms around your waist. His nose finds your neck, breathing in your scent as if you’d been gone far too long—as if he’d been waiting for ages to feel you again.

“What was that about?”

He knows exactly how you’re looking at him right now, he doesn’t even need to meet your eyes. That's why, instead, he stays nestled in the crook of your neck, pretending to be oblivious.

“Hm?”

“With Rin?”

“Suna.”

“Rin.”

He clicks his tongue and finally looks at you, “Rintarou.”

“Alright, with Rintarou.” You’re holding back your laughter at his childish jealousy, “Why were you acting all ‘I know her more’ like two prepubescent teens?”

Your impression of him only makes you look cuter. His fingers trace light circles against your waist and with a side smile, he replies, “What can I do? I’m a weak man sweetheart, I love ya so much.”

“I love you too.” You kiss his cheek and just when you’re about to get away from his grip, he pulls you closer, “I have to work a little bit.”

“But it’s Saturday.” He pouts.

“Kuroo needs me for a project,” your phone rings again. Before you can reach it, Osamu puts his hands under the back of your thighs and lifts you.

“Osamu, put me down, I need to take this call.”

“Mister bedhair can wait.”

“That’s rude.”

“But I wanna take care of ya.”

He starts kissing your neck once you’re sat on the counter. You don’t stop him.

You spend your first Christmas as a couple at his parents’ house. You insist on helping his mother prepare dinner, pushing Osamu away every time he dares sneaking into the kitchen to ensure everything is going fine. “It’s better to fry the chicken like that,” he says, or “I’d recommend a pinch more salt in those mashed potatoes.”

Finally, his mother sighs and shoos him away. “Osamu, let her breathe, for gods' sake!”

You can’t help but grin as you catch his eye, pleased to have his Ma’ on your side.

The dinner is great. Your relationship with his mother is clearly turning into an effortless connection. So, when dessert is served, and she starts telling you awkward moments of his childhood, that Osamu would rather leave forgotten, the man eventually excuses himself to “go to the restroom.” (Even if you both know he’s just escaping the spotlight.)

As he wanders down the hallway, Osamu glances into his old bedroom and spots Atsumu fiddling with an old suit. “Ya don’t want dessert?”

“Am on a diet,” his twin says.

“What’re ya doin’?”                           

“Am tryin’ on one of Pa’s suits. Got Meian’s wedding next week.” He gives the blazer a tug to smooth it out.

Osamu leans against the doorframe, “Didn’t ya just buy a new one like a month ago?”

“Yeah but…” The blond grins as his gaze meets his brother’s reflection in the mirror, “I’d rather keep the new one for yer wedding.”

Osamu is left speechless; he doesn’t even try to contradict the setter—why would he anyway? Wedding isn’t something the man even thought about in the past, but when it comes to you, it seems evident, right—like something he didn’t know he’d wanted all along blossoms in him. He can’t pinpoint why, but loving you always feels new, like he’s constantly discovering pieces of his heart he hadn’t known were there. He’s so in love, and maybe this love does deserve a proper ceremony.

The idea doesn’t leave his mind, even as you’re on the doorstep, ready to go home. You’re bidding goodbye to Atsumu when his mother tells him to drive safely.

“Ma’?” He tries to pipe up with confidence, but his mother discerns his discomfort with ease, “Would ya…I mean- d’ya still have yer mother’s ring?”

A smile blooms on her lips, it’s almost as wide as when she congratulated them for winning the Nationals a few years back. In a subtle move, she disappears inside and comes back with a bag.

“She would have adored her,” she simply declares in a murmur and it’s enough to create a wave of emotions in the man’s heart—sadness, nostalgia, pride, and above everything else, happiness.

So he takes the bag claiming later that inside his mother put “her favourite cooking book”, when you ask what she gave him. He’s not lying though, the older lady did put a cooking book in the bag, to avoid arousing suspicion, but what you don’t know is that it is accompanied by a small, black box tucked discreetly at the bottom, and that it contains a delicate gold ring. Later that night, before going to bed, Osamu opens the box in the soft light of your bedroom lamp. The ring is beautiful, but it’s also intimidating, even for a guy who has never shied away from a challenge. He’ll ask you one day, but it’ll take courage, more than he’s ready to muster right now (a little voice inside of his brain also wonders what he’ll do if you reject him).

For now, he’ll keep it safe, hiding in his nightstand, under an Onigiri Miya cap (you never asked questions on why there was a cap in there, much to Osamu's relief), so it’s close enough to reach whenever he finds himself ready to shut down the little voice. It's easier said than done, but someday—he hopes—he’ll find the right time to make it real.

And just like that a year passes and the box remains hidden.

It’s winter again when Osamu decides that if he doesn’t do it now, he’ll just keep on delaying the moment. He’s in Osaka for work when he calls to ask you to spend the weekend with him in Hyogo. You are quick to say yes and buy the train ticket.

The cogs can be set in motion and the first knot in his stomach releases.

You arrive the next morning with a packet full of cannelés to offer Sato, Nagisa and Tano, their new manager. Everyone’s excited at trying the pastries but Osamu refuses to try one.

“We should go,” he informs you and takes your hand. You’re confused but follow him inside the car anyway.

The three other employees’ wave at you with wide smiles, it’s a good thing that their enthusiasm to see you leave doesn’t alarm you. Only Osamu knows why they’re so eager to see their boss get out of here, after all, they know what he’s about to do since they have been his trusted confidants this past week. In truth, Osamu has been practising his speech for days, first with Tano, the calmest of the three, who listened quietly as Osamu stumbled through his words. And then with the other two, who were more than happy to help him prepare for the big moment, his private rehearsal quickly turned into a bit of a group affair. They even spent the entire morning insisting that never in a million years you will refuse his proposal.

You spend the first twenty minutes of the ride trying to guess where you are going.

“Kobe?” You first ask, “Or Kyoto? Oh, that would be so nice, I’ve not been in Kyoto in ages.”

You seem convinced that it will be a city, but instead, he drives you to the countryside.

The road becomes familiar, Osamu can see in your eyes that you’re starting to recognize the landscapes; the fields of rice or matcha or flowers (he still doesn’t know which one it is, even in the daylight).

“Are we going to Kita’s farm?” You finally figure. “Don't tell me, I know it is Kita's farm. See, told you I’d guessed.”

You look so sure of yourself, cute, he thinks, and it makes him want to leave kisses on your grin and all over your face.

But the surprise only begins and when he pulls over to the side of the road, near a cliff, you start assaulting him with questions again. Osamu doesn’t answer, he just gets out, opens the passenger door and gently leads you out of the car.

“D' ya know where we are?” He says a few minutes later.

You glance around to look at the view and open your month, but he trails you off.

“This is where I feel in love with ya. Well- I guess I feel in love before, though I was very slow, but this is where I realised I was in love. Since then, I’ve not stopped falling for ya and for … well, everything about ya.”

“Osamu?”

He keeps going even though his heart threatens to explode in his chest, “I’m kinda nervous, but I really wanna do this. Yer the one for me, and I know I don’t always give ya the time ya deserve and I’m jealous sometimes… but I love ya and I’d like to laugh with ya for the rest of my life. So…”

He takes a little box from his pocket and gets on one knee (a little bit too harshly, he'll probably get a bruise tomorrow). The look of surprise—or rather shock, to be completely honest— on your face tells him you hadn’t realised what was happening until this moment.

“I’ve been thinkin’ about this for like a long time, and I really hope ya would accept to become my fiancé and perhaps my wife someday… if you’ll have me.”

You jump into his arms and Osamu fears he’ll fall down—not that he would mind. He would drown in oceans with you, get into a tornado, jump off a cliff, just to feel you against him.

“Dummy, idiot, argh you-”

“Why’re ya insultin’ me woman?”

He looks at you, there’s tears in your eyes, in this light, they look like stardust.

“I really want to be your fiancé and your wife and your everything.”

You already are, he wants to say but you shut him up with a kiss and he thinks you’ve never tasted so good. All the knots in his stomach can relax (because you said yes!)

The colour of the ring on your finger, golden, suits you. It reminds him of the sunrise and of the promise that you’ll be here next morning, and the one after, and the one after.

For the rest of his life, Osamu can fall asleep at peace because he knows you’ll always be the first thing he’ll see when he wakes up.

The wedding is planned for the following summer. You opt for something small and intimate, with family and close friends. His mother and yours help with the preparations, Umi chooses your dress, Bokuto does his bit too by ordering a cake from the patisserie  that's just opened next door to Onigiri Miya (this is entirely out of friendship for you, and not because he has a huge crush on the shop's owner), and finally Atsumu helps his brother find the wedding venue.

Everything is perfect, except for…  

“You said you wanted to invite the guys from high school.”

A sigh escapes from his nose and he avoids your gaze, “I know but-“

“The guys from high school that also means Rin.” He raises an eyebrow and his jaw clenches, “-tarou.”

“Alright, alright… Let’s invite Suna. It’s just, ya know, I want a very small weddin’, I’m not like ‘Tsumu.”

You cup his cheeks, “My love, I’d feel bad if I invited your team and not him. Don’t tell me you’re afraid I’ll leave with Rintarou just before the wedding, huh?”

His ears suddenly feel warm, and he tries to hide the shade of red that invaded his face by lowering his cap, you burst into laughter.

“Oi!” he barks, offended, “stop makin’ fun of me or ya'll never hear my vows.”

Your teasing smile turns into a pout, and you look at him with puppy eyes. With that face, Osamu knows he’s screwed. “I’m goin’ to bed now,” he informs.

But before he can run away, you grab his arm and with your other hand, you trace a line from his cheekbone to his jaw. He can feel the coldness of the golden ring against his skin. He closes his eyes for a second and lets you whisper a few sweet words in his ear.

"You make me happy,” you tell him in the end.

“So do ya,” he breathes. His lips find yours; you quiver helplessly beneath the touch. He smiles, “And it’s only the beginnin'.”

a/n: I may or may not have shed a tear haha

I hope you guys are happy with this ending, if you're interrested to read more I can always write some short extra stories about them

thank you for reading, liking and commenting, it means a lot to me <3

taglist: @wolffmaiden, @teyvatsunsets, @obibiwan, @sugacor3, @sunahsvt, @iluv-ace, @cinnamonruts

[shadowqueenjude]

A compilation of sassy Lucien

“My apologies, lady. I’m Lucien. Courtier and emissary. Your eyes are like stars, and your hair like burnished gold.” “Then you’ve got your work cut out for you, old son. I’m sure her life will be a fine replacement for Andras’s—maybe she can even train with the others on the border.”

“I told you so, Tamlin. Your skills with females have definitely become rusty in recent decades.”

“Well, you don’t look half as bad now. A relief, I suppose, since you’re to live with us. Though the tunic isn’t as pretty as a dress.” “We’re not going to bite.” “Won’t you stay for wine?” “It’s been a few decades since I last saw one of you, but you humans never change, so I don’t think I’m wrong in asking why you find our company to be so unpleasant, when surely the men back home aren’t much to look at.” “True. But indulge me: you’re a human woman, and yet you’d rather eat hot coals than sit here longer than necessary. Ignoring this, surely we’re not so miserable to look at. Unless you have someone back home. Unless there’s a line of suitors out the door of your hovel that makes us seem like worms in comparison.”

“Were you admiring my sword, or just contemplating killing me, Feyre?” “So young, and so grave. And a skilled killer already.” “We also dance with the spirits under the full moon and snatch human babes from their cradles to replace them with changelings—” “No ash arrows today, unfortunately.” “Well, you certainly have the quiet part of hunting down." “Well? No game good enough for you to slaughter? We’ve passed plenty of squirrels and birds.” “Tamlin said as much, which was no doubt why he brought you here. Or maybe you looked so pathetic in those rags that he took pity on you.” “So, when are you going to start trying to persuade me to beseech Tamlin to find a way to free you from the Treaty’s rules?” “Well, thank the Cauldron that you didn’t. Cleaning up that mess would have ruined the rest of my day.” “Would you like me to teach you how to wield a blade, or do you already know how, oh mighty mortal huntress? If you took down Andras, you probably don’t need to learn anything. Only where to aim, right?” “I suppose you humans are such hateful cowards that you would have wet yourself, curled up, and waited to die if you’d known beyond a doubt what Andras truly was.” “Back off? Back off while you seal our fates and ruin everything? I stayed with you out of hope, not to watch you stumble. For someone with a heart of stone, yours is certainly soft these days. The Bogge was on our lands—the Bogge, Tamlin! The barriers between courts have vanished, and even our woods are teeming with filth like the puca. Are you just going to start living out there, slaughtering every bit of vermin that slinks in?” “I had to go sort out some hotheads on the northern border—official emissary business. I got back in time to hear your little spat with Tam, and decided I was safer up here. I’m glad to hear your human heart has warmed to me, though. At least I’m not on the top of your killing list.” “I’ll be conveniently hunting on the grounds, and with my superior hearing, I might be feeling generous enough to listen if someone screams from the western woods. But it’s a good thing I had no role in telling you to go out today, since Tam would eviscerate anyone who told you how to trap a Suriel; and it’s a good thing I had planned to hunt anyway, because if anyone caught me helping you, there would be trouble of a whole other hell awaiting us. I hope your secrets are worth it.” “I might die of surprise. You made a joke, Feyre.” “Well, I’m late for something incredibly important." “If I offer you the moon on a string, will you give me a kiss, too?” “Unfortunately for you and your neck, tonight’s just a party.” “So there’s singing and dancing and excessive drinking. And dallying,” he added with a wicked grin. “I’ll have you know that while you two were dancing with the spirits, I was stuck on border patrol. With some company.” "I'm trying to eat." “What do you know about anything? You’re just Amarantha’s whore.” “Those clothes are enough to convince me I never want to enter the human realm.” Lucien told her to go back to the shit-hole she’d crawled out of. “Fixed—as pert and pretty as before.” “I’ve seen enough of you through that gown to last a lifetime.” You might as well look good if you’re going to arm yourself to the teeth. “Isn’t that what all human women wish for? A handsome faerie lord to wed and shower them with riches for the rest of their lives?” “If you expect our gratitude, you’ll be waiting a while, Ianthe.” “Whatever you’re planning, it’ll land us knee-deep in shit.” “I knew. I knew you were lying the moment you unleashed that light in Hybern. My friend at the Dawn Court has the same power—her light is identical. And it does not do whatever horseshit you lied about it doing.” “You have the gall to question my priorities regarding Elain—yet what was your motive where I was concerned? Did you plan to spare me from your path of destruction because of any genuine friendship, or simply for fear of what it might do to her?”

[poppyclangen]

"Hello Visitor!"

Meet PoppyClan's StarClan Guide, OleanderPaw; brother of FallenStar, PoppyClan's first leader, and judge of the dead.

OleanderPaw was killed by the flood that swept the founders away, and used his power to give FallenStar her nine lives, and grow the first poppies that now populate the moor where PoppyClan lives.

His reddish orange coat can be seen in many of FallenStar's children, proof of his bloodline and strong ties with his sister. He does not often visit the clan medics, though when he does, it is considered a great honor and not to be taken lightly.

Leader of those who live in StarClan, OleanderPaw has let the thrill of spiritual power go to his head a bit. Each time FallenStar visits, he grows more 'holy' in appearance, followed by stars and a glow that most of the other dead do not have. His scent is hidden beneath the flowers growing from his pelt, and he become more eloquent and stiff with each passing day- to be frank, he was very different from the brother FallenStar remembers. She figures that was just what happened, though, as a spirit ages; while he may look rather young, he grows older still.

----

What power does StarClan have over living cats?

"Oh, a good question. I myself have found that I can effect many little things that the living see and touch- though it takes a great deal of energy. When I gave FallenStar her nine lives, I was dormant for many moons after, unable to protect those who walked the earth. While we may not need to eat or sleep, we StarClan cats are powered by... an energy. Perhaps it is belief?"

What was it like, being the first StarClan cat?

"It felt like a betrayal of sort, at first. Throughout my short life, I had been promised a rich afterlife, full of loved ones and an endless paradise. When I awoke, I was alone, in the dark. I built our paradise. I shaped it from the energy I found within my spirit. I am glad to have company now, my sisters kin, though there are times where I fell that emptiness once more. I built this place, yes, but... it has left a part of me hollow."

What about the StarClan of the past?

"I do not know what became of the cats that ruled the StarClan of our ancestors. I do not know if it was destroyed, as the living had been destroyed. I do not doubt there are other afterlives, though; after all, if I could do it, so can any cat who has been remembered and cherished."

Do you dictate the future of PoppyClan?

"Oh, no, goodness no. While I may have dominion over this plane, I cannot influence the actions of the living, outside of the way any cat may influence another. I cannot change the outcome of the seasons, though I find through intense emotion, I can effect the atmosphere of this territory. When I mourn, the clouds grow heavy with rain. When I am angered, the sky is dark and the moon is hidden. When I rejoice, the poppies of the land bloom more quickly. My influence seems to end there; though, the more I try, the more I learn. Recently, I've found the dreams of my Clan's cat's are just out of reach, drifting closer every night. The more who die and come to StarClan, the more I've found I'm able to do. I cant help but be curious...

Back to the question at hand. I know much more than I could have known as a living cat, but I do not know the future. I cannot predict what is coming, though I have my hunches and instincts, as a cat who has lived a long time would. When spirits come to rest here, I am blessed and burdened with their memories; their lives, their deaths. I am a collective of their stories, and at times, I fear I will forget my own, as short as it was.

What's that shadowy place?

"Oh, pay no mind to that. That's just a little project of mine, though I don't think I will finish it. There is no need to worry. I have it contained. It is empty."

[moonlightgrisha]

Everybody knows

Ch. 9 You decide to take your destiny into your own hands, even if it means disobeying the Darkling's orders. [Masterlist] Previous - Next

You have never been scared of darkness. It didn't scare you when it was a childish game with your cousins, and it still didn't when you grew up and faced long starless nights all by yourself.

But the darkness you dive in, this time, is different. It's thick and cold, and you won't remember anything once you wake up, but just a glimpse of the horror. Shadows. Monsters. Blood.

You finally wake up, and you are not in your tent. It takes you minutes to start recalling the events that led you here, on this unfamiliar bed, with a dry mouth and a strange feeling in you gut.

Your abdomen is bandaged, and when you pass your hand on the linen, it doesn't hurt as much as you expect. You had good healers, but they are not here anymore. You look around and see nobody.

You sit on the edge on the bed and things finally begin to fall into place. You recognize the sober furnishings, especially the war table, filled with papers and notes.

As you are wondering where the the host has gone, you turn to look behind your shoulders, and you see the Darkling lying on a couch. It's more of a bench, actually, and it's impressive how he can rest on such an uncomfortable surface. He seems fast asleep, though. You take your time, looking at him. He sleeps on his side, arms folded, and when you notice a scrap of paper in his hand, you realize that he probably had no intention to fall asleep whatsoever.

You also realize that it is his bed, the one you slept for... how long? You wish you knew. But you are not going to wake him up. The things you discussed - the things that happened - it's all coming back to you, and you have no idea how to deal with all of it.

Someone tried to kill you, and you killed them instead. No, it was his doing, actually. But you signed them up for the execution.

You stand up, feeling overwhelmed, then glance at the General once more. You also found peace in his arms, for a brief moment. Isn't that the scariest thing of all? And while you push away your desire for another embrace, you spot something on the paper in his hand. You bend and gently remove the paper from his hand. He doesn't even flinch, but you feel the touch of his breathing, so close, and conjure all your will not to get distracted.

It looks like a leaftlet, but it is actually a holy picture, like the ones you have seen all your life. But this one is different.

This Saint in the picture holds the full moon on her hands, and her figure is surrounded by pitch black darkness.

"You are awake".

His voice startles you. The Darkling is sitting up, looking at you with hope. No, not hope, relief. You are finally awake, that's what he means to say.

His hands filled with your blood, when he found you in the snow, and there are many things you could tell him. Instead you show him the image and ask: "What is this?"

"That is you, according to some". He stands up, and he would probably come even closer, if you'd let him. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine". Right now you only care for this paper in your hand. "Please, explain this."

"Rumors fly". You let him remove the paper from your hand, while he looks at you and says: "I'm afraid we cannot keep discretion any longer, although the King might wish otherwise. Your... spectacle, has been seen by the whole camp".

"I blew up my cover", you exhale.

"You survived", he points out.

You sit on the bed, searching for a place inside your mind for the reality you woke up in.

"Healers worked on you until this very morning", he explained. "That is why I would advise to take it slow".

"I do feel fine".

"I'm glad to hear it". His face suddenly clouds over, and for a moment he's about to speak, but he stops, like he changed his mind.

"What is it?"

"I must leave, now". He gets up and quickly wears his kefta, throwing his heavy black cape on top of it. "But my oprichniki are right oustide. You will be safe. We'll return to Os Alta in the morning".

"And then, what?"

He stops to stare at you. "I'm going to find out now".

There is something he's keeping from you and it makes you mad, but before you can enquire, he's back at your side. You stop breathing, expecting something you just once dared to dream about, and for a moment it seems he will make that dream come true. You feel his knuckles gently caressing your cheek, and it's all very fast, almost like you imagined it. He says nothing, and then he's gone.

You lie back on the bed and time slows down. Too many questions roam in your mind. You want to know who tried to take your life. You want to know where the Darkling is going right now. Are you now his guest, sleeping in his own bed, in his own tent, or are you back to being a prisoner, guarded by oprichniki?

You need to take charge of your own destiny.

When Genya suddenly enters the tent, you think you might have got also hallucinations, now. But she sits next to you and leans over to inspect your face, and you realize she is real.

"I thought worse", she says.

"What are you doing here?" you reply. "I mean, I'm so glad to see you. But shouldn't you be in Os Alta?"

"The King and Queen have moved to the Winter Palace in Ulensk for a few weeks" she explained. "Officially, it is a late winter vacation, but rumor is, it's about something else entirely".

The way she looks at you says more than her words.

"This can't possibly..." you begin, but you don't know how to end. Because Genya is right.

"Everybody knows", she adds. "Everybody is talking about it. The General himself was on his way to the palace, an hour ago. They are hosting a reception tonight, but I think there will not be any other topic of discussion than the Moon Summoner".

You instantly know what to do. "I must go".

Genya's lovely face turns a little pale. "I think you should not".

"These people are deciding my own fate, and I'm not even present".

"Listen". Genya's voice is just a whisper, now. "I am only telling you this so you understand how important it is that you stay here and follow the General's orders. Those men that attacked you... it seems they were Ravkan".

It is your turn to get pale, now.

You never had enemies. And nobody knew who you were, back at home. Except for...

Can it be? Is it such a shame, to have a Grisha in the royal family, that she would have you killed before anybody could find out? She must be so mad, that her plan had the opposite effect.

"Let me go to the Winter Palace", your voice tremble. "Let me look at the Queen in her eyes".

"I just told you this so that you would desist".

"And it didn't work".

"You don't have a proper dress for attending a reception".

"I do, actually. I brought one."

Genya's eyes open wide. "You brought a gown at the battlefront? Saints, why?!"

You feel yourself blushing. "I thought... If something happened to me... at least I'd have something decent to be buried with".

Genya hides her face in her hands, exasperated. "The General will kill me for this".

"I'll do it without your help, then".

She hesitates. She knows you mean it. Then, she gives you a long, assessing look.

"It would be a crime to let you go to the Winter Palace in this state".

This is the moment in which you know, you finally have a partner in crime. You know something inside Genya longs for taking her revenge on the Queen, the King and the whole rotten royal court. The two of you are on the same side, now, and maybe you've always been.

She helps you get ready and slip out of the tent unnoticed, right into her carriage. This is the trickiest part, but Genya knows how to make people see only what they want to see.

Now, on your way to the Winter Palace, you start to feel scared. What on Earth do you think you are doing? This is the most reckless thing you have ever done in your life. You could end up in a really bad place. Also, the Darkling won't like it. But when Genya says: "Maybe we should turn back", you immediately answer: "Not a chance".

And that's settled.

When you arrive at the palace, Genya lets you in the service entrance. She whispers a good luck, before vanishing into the grand hall. You take your time, before following her.

If you do this, there's to turning back. You become the Moon Summoner and you face the consequences.

But destiny is calling you. You hear it, now. It echoes with shadows, monsters and blood, with screams of mad men and whispers you have yet to decipher.

It is now or never.

You follow that call.

Entering the majestic grand hall, everyone turns to you. Some of them look horrified, others are in awe, some are mumbling: "Sankta". Everybody knows who you are.

You silently thank Genya for making you presentable and you march straight to the other side of the hall, where the King and Queen are seemingly conferring with the Darkling himself.

The look on his face when he sees you is indecipherable. He must have worked hard for all his long life, to prevent his emotions to come spilling out in situations like this.

But when you meet his gaze, just for a moment, you see a flash of blazing rage. It breaks your heart, and this is how you know this man has become to you more than you can handle.

You have no time to deal with your heart, now, shattered or not. You turn to the King and Queen, savoring their puzzled look, the utter fear in her Majesty's eyes. Then you give them the humblest smile and kneel. "My King. My Queen".

They definitely did not expect this.

"Raise", speaks the King. "We thought you were still recovering from your battle wound, as General Kirigan was just telling us".

"I feel much better, thank you, moy tsar", you respond. The Queen says nothing, and you take pleasure in her puzzlement, looking at her right in the eye.

It's the hardest part, now, as you shift your gaze to the Darkling, facing him, knowing so many things cannot be spoken, but hoping he will understand.

"I ask the General's forgiveness for disobeying his orders." He can't help but frown a little. You try to smile, but you know you won't charm him that easily. "He had indeed advised me to rest, but I felt compelled to be here today, in your presence."

"How thoughtful of you, dear cousin", the Queen has finally got up the courage to speak. She smiles, fake as her pretty lashes. "You shouldn't have bothered".

You turn to her, relieved to escape the Darkling's glare. "I didn't want to miss the chance to pledge my allegiance to Ravka's rulers, now that I found out I wield this great power"

"A great power?" The Queen does her best not to sound surprised, but she is not the actress she thinks.

"Please, let me show everybody". You gently raise your hand, and something does not go as you planned. The King's guard point their guns instantly, and someone in the crowd screams.

That's when the Darkling finally intervenes. He grabs your gloved hand, takes it down slowly. You look at him, hoping to find an ally, but he's cold as ice. "The Moon Summoner is only going to give a little demonstration", he says. "I assure you, it will be harmless".

His eyes are merciless. You swallow down the hard feeling of pain that just came from your heart, and nod.

He summons his shadows with a flick of his fingers, almost annoyed, giving you a black stage to perform on. You do your best to shape moonlight into a beautiful, gleaming globe. It is a miniature moon, slowly rotating above your head. A pretty trick you did sometimes in your room, as a kid.

The Darkling looks unimpressed. He called you 'Moon Summoner' without any sentiment. You feel something has broken, and while you are filled with wicked pleasure at the clapping of the crowd, you wish he would look at you like he used to. But dreams are useless, and you are in trouble.

You dissipate your moon without driving anyone mad, and the crowd is simply bewildered.

The King is much simpler than his consort, and somehow believes it a declaration of peace. He stands clapping, too. "We are honored to have such a great, rare power at our service."

"Let everybody know that I serve Ravka", you conclude. It is true. A half truth, actually.

The Queen stares at you with a little smile. Unlike her husband, she knows that this is war.

You bow to them while the crowd is still clapping.

As you and the Darkling take your leave, he whispers, so that nobody might hear, but only you. "Why did you come here?"

"You know why", you answer. "To take a stand".

"It was unwise and unnecessary. Also, you disobeyed my orders".

"I'm not your soldier".

"You are now". His words are as sharp as the night breeze that takes your breath away when you step outside. "You choose to fight, and you will fight. You will start training as soon as we reach the Little Palace".

He stops to stare at you, so full of contempt you almost burst in tears. "Welcome to the Second Army, princess".

He never talked to you like this before, and he never called you "princess", until now. You won a battle, tonight, but maybe you lost a war. And you feel so stupid that your dress, the beautiful gown you brought on the battlefield for your burial, worn on the night of your consecration, is black.

Taglist

@mysweetlittledesire@budugu@flostvs1508@aoi-targaryen@sakshi2005@rainy-day-lady

[cosmic-kinglet]

Moon...I know the problem before was that you were keeping information from Lunar...

But that was NOT the time to give the "we could just send him off somewhere" response. Like, even though that's how Moon is feeling right now, that's a truth that needed to be said after some more time had passed.

I'm also so glad that Lunar has more openly established, not only that he isn't a kid, but that he acts like a kid because he, "doesn't know how to be big." Acting like a kid is comfortable for him, but he also sort of wishes that he knew how to behave any differently than that.

I really never expected there to be any explicit mention of the full scope of the manipulation that Lunar suffered. Like with a lot of abuse victims, he has this small part of him that wants to forgive Eclipse and crawl back to him. That part of him was made to believe that he NEEDS Eclipse, and that is a very real aspect of toxic and/or abusive relationships of any kind.

I was honestly waiting for Lunar to burst at some point while Earth was mediating. I love Earth, and I know she's been really effective in helping before, but she has a tendency to speak for other people. I'm guilty of the same thing, and it's something I'm trying to not do as much, so it kind of upset me to see that being presented as helpful. Plus, so much of this felt like Earth was treating Lunar's reaction as unreasonable. I know that isn't the intention, but it really felt like both sides of the issue were not being treated equally. I don't know, I'm just not very happy with how this whole thing was handled.

[notsoblackandwhite101]

I love your fic. So glad to read new chapter. I also love your worldbuilding. Especially family trees. Honestly, I'm dying to know more about Demelza and David. How did she became kinda snotty yet caring, and whether Dylan knew his grandpa, if I remember correctly Dylan might have taken after him when it comes to scifi

I'm glad your enjoying the story!

I can't quiet remember if the boys were born before David passed. If any were, I'd say he likely passed away when Dylan (And possibly Dawkins) were very young. Too young to understand death or its ramifications. However everything he has left behind has had a huge effect on them to this day! His study is full of science and history books. As well as his telescope and some nerd memorabilia here and there! Even if he was gone before they were born his memory has had a lasting impact!

As for Demelza, its a sort of Nature and Nurture situation. A lot of it has to do with who raised her and how. Her parents were a big influences, but so were her Uncle Radcliff and Aunt Dot.

Her mum, Orie (Oreo), is really instrumental. Orie grew up in a poor family and had, what I like to call, terminal eldest daughter syndrome. Not terminal in that it will kill you, but in that it will kill your relationships. Orie's parents were the lowest rung on the social ladder. Both working hard at menial jobs for long hours and very little pay. Her parents were happy though, loving each other and their children. It was just that Orie (Oreo) was the eldest, so when her parents were at work, she was raising her siblings. Unlike Dolly and Dylan years later, she had NO time off because her parents took NO time off. She also started caring for them when she was very young. She was basically parenthesized against her will with zero ability to punish them. Her siblings always acted up when she was caring for them, but became angels when her parents were home, with her parents downplaying the misbehavior they didn't see when Orie complained about it. Orie always had issues with her parents because of this and a few other things. (Including her birth name Oreo, which got her picked on a lot.) So as soon as she turned 18 she left, and hardly talk to any of her family again.

However that childhood made Orie dream of a Cinderella life. Where she'd marry well and never have to cook or clean. Never have to care for a flock of screaming children, with a nice big house. Not to say she'd marry for money alone. She just knew what she wanted. Patch certainly didn't match many of these prerequisites. He wasn't rich, just well off. He didn't have a huge house, he lived in a nice one with his sick parents. He had to do some cooking and cleaning, but it wasn't alot. However he did save her life and was very kind to her. (They met during an air raid and had to take shelter in a doorway together.) At first Orie just volunteered to help him with his block captain work, but they got to now each other, fell in love and married.

It wasn't a fairytale marriage, but it worked very well! Patch was passive and indecisive, but kind. Orie knew what she wanted and wasn't afraid to get it, even if she was a little rough around the edges. They worked together very well, even if it was Patch saying 'Yes dear.' most of the time. When the subject of children came up however, Orie was not interested... at first. She spent her childhood and teenage years raising her siblings, she didn't want to do it all over again as an adult. She was finally enjoying life for dogs sake! However as time went on, Patch's siblings had children.

Orie supposed Little Dipper and Domino were cute... Plus now that she was an adult they actually listen to her. Not to mention Patch was so good with them... hmmm...

Eventually she pulled Patch aside and agreed to have ONE child. Patch was over the moon, he just wanted one anyway! They ended up have Demelza and Patch loved her to bits! Orie went through a weird phase after Demelza was born where she didn't really ... love her baby? Not that she hated Demelza, it was just she didn't feel this instant love that she expected? (This is called the baby blues and its actually really common for many mothers!) After a week though the feelings came and Orie started to bond with Demelza!

Orie was content to let Patch do most of the emotional rearing for Demelza. She took over schooling, manners and other things. She had a pretty good life... but Demelza's could be even better. She was the one who pushed her daughter to climb the social ladder. Not wanting her to be stuck with tons of kids and house work when Demelza grew up. That mixed well with Uncle Radcliff, who had just moved back into the house after a stress stroke. Uncle Radlciff owned a factory and mingled with the upper crust a lot. (He and Orie got along swimmingly, both being a bit cold and grumpy, if well meaning.) Demelza looked up to Uncle Radcliff, whatever he and mum said was gospel just about. This also coincided with Aunt Dot moving in after her husband died suddenly. She was a bit like Patch, a push over and soft spoken. However unlike her three siblings she didn't work. So she took over cooking and cleaning, much to Orie's delight. (Orie got along best with Dot and Radcliff of all of Patch's siblings. Not that she argued with any of them much.) Dot wanted children but never had any, so she enjoyed helping to raise Demelza, which did help soften her demeanor greatly.

So yeah, it was a HUGE mix of four parental figures in her life that caused this. Her friends also play a part in how snooty and uptight she can be. David used to be able to settle her, but he's no longer around...

Oh and fun fact! Demelza was named by her mother. Orie, as I said, was bullied a lot as a child because she was named after a ridiculous, American snack cookie. (Oreo) She insisted that her daughter have a refined, dignified name! So Demelza it was.

(God I love exploring generational trauma with characters!)

[faceglitchsworld]

In the 9th of January, a group was born to bring us joy and wonderful music. This group came from the moon. Each member had bond with it. And today, they're celebrating five years together with their precious moon, us.

Happy Anniversary, Oneus 🥺

Last year I decided to dedicate a birthday letter for each member of the group and now I want to give a last tribute by writing another letter to them. And I added a drawing of mine here.

I don't post my drawings on main, I have a sideblog for it, but for this anniversary I decided to do an exception. It's not the best drawing I made since I didn't hold a pencil in months and I still need to work on their officials mascots' designs better. Surely you'll see them a little different if I'll make fanarts of them more often.

But wait, the drawing is just a part of this post, there something more to add here.

Dear Oneus, another year has passed and you've turned five years old. I wanted for this day to come. The number five has become a very special number for you and, on a minor part, to me. I confess that I'm a little biased because your brother group has five members too along with another group who's very special to me. But it's not only that. I always loved and appreciated all the effort you've put last year, you worked hard on everything you put. Seeing all of you putting all these energy in everything, even the most simple one, made me wish for a break for you. I'm still saying it, even though I know you're quite slowling down a little with your activities recently. But I can't trust you. You're always so full of energy that you don't want to stop, aren't you? You love us to the point that you would spent every inch of energy just for us, am I right? But despite this, I really want all of you to take a little break, something that would made you recharge and coming back fresh and with new energy. Last year you finally got the occasion to see Europeans ToMoons showering with love during your concerts, I'm petty sure you've been surprised by how the crowd cheered you. I wasn't there, sadly. But during the tour I always had you in my mind and my heart, hoping that each concert would have turned to the best. I really wish that you'll come back here and, who knows, maybe you'll finally see me in the crowd too. I'm just another fan for you, I already know that, but I would be very happy if I'll finally have the occasion to see you. You're special to me, you've become one if not the most important group I could find, I don't know what would have happened if I couldn't have found you. Maybe my life would have been the same but probably less colourful than what it is now. I wouldn't have found the same joy I have now just by being by your side.

I already wished the best to each one of you last year, writing all my birthday letters and making the best wish I could say to each one of you. But I want to renew my promise.

Seoho, I hope you'll give us more and more songs where you can show us your voice and comfort us when we are at our lows. You have millions of fans who love you and thank you every day just for existing. Please, when you feel down, think about us and the lovely messages we send to you every day.

Leedo, I wish you'll write more and more songs for us as time passes. I've fallen in love with your poetry and your way to express your inner world and I want to see more of it. My biggest wish for you is that, one day, I'll see your name on a Oneus' title track. You deserve to show us more of you and I assure you that, no matter the result, I'll be glad to see you express yourself more through the music.

Keonhee...I would be repetitive with you. I already expressed my love to you when I celebrated your birthday. And like that day, I can't express how much I love you. You comforted me so many times this year, especially towards the end, that I can't thank you enough. I just wish that you'll be always protected and that you'll find the same comfort I found. But I know that you already found your special place. Oneus is your special place and I wish it will always be.

Hwanwoong, I wish for you that more and more people will appreciate how much artistry you are when you dance. It's sad that last year not so many people understood that but don't make it too much of a worry. Your moves, even the littlest one, show how much effort and creativity you give to us every time. Please, don't give up. You are our little tiger, our special tiger, a tiger with the biggest fierce and strength we can never see.

Xion, this is the first time in ages that I call you like this instead of Dongju. You don't know how many times your stage name brought to me the memories of Kingdom Hearts and you keep doing it. I just wish that, this year, you'll finally have your moment; your "main protagonist" moment where you'll finally shine and prove to everyone how much you've grown. If I'm here, it's also thanks to you. You've been the key who opened the door to the world of Oneus.

I think I've spent too many words already. I really want to say more but my language can't contain or express the love I have for each one of you. I can't say more, except "I love you".

Happy anniversary, Oneus, for the next five years and beyond.

[elementclangen]

Moon 287-Leaf-bare

After many moons of not having any kits, the nursery is full!  In addition to Whorlstorm’s (32) three kits, a ChaffinchClan queen leaves her litter with the Clan and Downgaze (68) and Sweet Marmalade (72) adopt them.  One of them, the sweet Hopkit (5), is water-blessed while the other two, who are both polite, are fire-blessed.  The she-kit is fittinginly named Emberkit (5) and the other is named Echokit (5), after Echomoor, Downgaze’s dead brother.  Additionally, Kestrelcreek (76) has announced that she is expecting kits!  Almondback (58) is excited.  And nervous.  He tries to set a good example for the younger cats in the Clan.   As a break from the business of Clan life, Kestrelcreek and Almondback have a nice little training session before Kestrelcreek moves to the nursery.  Almondback feels wild and free as he playfully pounces on Kestrelcreek.  He doesn’t know the last time he’s felt this light. However, all this good news is tempered by Whorlstorm’s death.  She couldn’t recover from giving birth and passed away, leaving her kits without their mother and Hatchswipe (32) the only survivor of Downgaze and Rootwing’s litter (look at that, more trauma in the Brightfalcon family).  Copperkit (3) misses cuddling with her mom and wants to learn more about what her mom was like as a kit.  Downgaze, who’s also in the nursery caring for his new kits, is glad to share what he remembers.  Hatchswipe has decided not to deal with her sister’s death and is instead sparring with Kestrelcreek.  She does make time to help care for her sister’s kits, though, and helps Boulderkit (3) pick burrs out of her fur.  Downgaze, having decided to help care for his orphaned grand-kits,  is feeling a little overwhelmed with six kits under his care and asks Sofanthiel (76) for some help.  She’s surprised, as she thought he had everything figured out, but helps out with the kits willingly.  It seems there may be a bit of a polycule brewing.  Downgaze is crushing on Alderflight (43) while his mate and Lakepelt (95) are crushing on each other.  Maybe he’ll have better luck than his great-grandparents? While Cavecatcher (45) is trying to be more mature, Greenrapid (43) is still acting like the young warrior she is.  She steps on Aries’ (53) foot and pretends not to notice.  Creekstar (141) just can’t seem to get along with her deputies.  First, she and Primcrest fell out, and now she’s fighting with Skipneedle (62).  Skipneedle feels like Creekstar needs to step down and/or take a break.  She’s been sick/grieving for moons and Skipneedle thinks a break would really help with her mental health.  But Creekstar is determined to serve her Clan until StarClan takes her.  

Healer’s den: Creekstar (whitecough), Pebbletuft (claw wound), Sweet Marmalade (whitecough), Brightmouse (mangled tail), Tanglechirp (yellowcough), Kestrelcreek (pregnant), Downgaze (stomachache), Cavecatcher (stomachache)

New personalities: Copperkit (lonesome, quick to make peace, and interested in Clan history)

Meta: Echokit’s original name was Fawnkit, but he looks like Echomoor and was adopted by Downgaze (Echomoor’s brother).  Also, the parent listed for the litter is a male loner but the game says that a Chaffinchclan queen left her litter with ElementClan, so the loner is their bio dad. Additionally, I'm going to start noting when a cat gets a new personality or trait, so that's why Copperkit is mentioned.

[shebeafancyflapjack]

Once In A Deathtime

(Based in @idiotwithanipad 's Corporeal AU, where the ghosts get to have a physical body and be able to leave the grounds on their birthdays. But as my oc Silver sleeps through most of her birthdays due to her curse, the rare ones where she is awake on a full moon, she gets a bonus).

-

If anyone had asked Danita Kaur last week if she'd ever see herself going on a blind date, she'd probably have choked on her Dr. Pepper. The idea of dating on its own was tricky enough, but figuratively going into one blind? She couldn't think of anything more anxiety inducing.

To be fair, this hadn't been pitched to her as a blind date. More of an escort request with the bonus of a trip to London, two tickets to a West End show and dinner in the Shard, all expenses paid. With that kind of incentive, she'd have gladly agreed to accompany an ogre.

Thankfully her date was far from that.

"Does your aunt always spoil you like this then?" She asks it somewhat teasingly.

The girl sat across the table from her doesn't look like the sort who is used to money and privilege. If anything, she looks as out of place dining in one of the most expensive restaurants in England as Dani feels. But then again, she's been rather nervous and jumpy since they got off the train at Victoria station.

Dani had been prepped for that though.

Robyn has been through a lot. Can't really go into the details but this is gonna be her first time in the city...and also out of her room, for a while. I was meant to take her out for her birthday but somethings come up with Mia - and I think you two would have a lot of fun together.

The pink fringed girl shakes her head; "Nah. I mean, she does a lot of things for me I'm super grafeful for, but this is a...very rare and special treat."

"Oh it's been 'special' has it? Glad I impressed."

A giggle passes between them, Robyn's cheeks flashing rather adorably, before the waiter brings out their desserts.

They both went for the chocolate lava cake. As with the last two courses, Robyn eats like someone who hasn't had a meal in weeks. Dani doesn't want to make any assumptions, but given how skinny the girl is she can't help but wonder if she's been recovering from some sort of eating disorder.

It earns them a few looks from some of the upper class prats who probably eat here two or three nights a week.

Robyn catches their sneers and quickly wipes the melted chocolate from her lips, uttering an apology to Dani.

"Pfft. Fuck 'em." She grins back before shoving a huge mouthful of the dessert between her lips, making just as much of a mess.

Her date giggles some more. She has the most infectious laugh Dani thinks she's ever heard, and the way her unnaturally blue eyes sparkle each time is mesmerising. Those must be contacts, but Dani can hardly judge with her hair extensions.

They discuss the musical they'd finished watching just over an hour ago, when they'd left the theatre with Robyn dabbing at the tears making her eyeliner run.

"I cried the first time too." Dani had confessed, though she'd been thirteen at her first viewing. This was her third.

"It was soo good! Totally lived up to the hype. I just wish Glinda and Elphaba had-."

"Gotten together?"

"Yes! I'd only ever seen a few clips on YouTube, I thought that it was a gay Wizard of Oz fanfic musical!"

Dani chuckles; "One day someone will make the real version where she runs away with Glinda instead of the scarecrow. I'm sure someone from TikTok is already on it."

"Is that a band?"

"No, I mean...the app?"

"Oh! Yeah, of course! Apps! I know all about those..." She grins, sounding more like Dani's grandfather when he tries to be 'down with the kids slang' rather than a nineteen year old.

There's been a few weird moments like that today. Like when Robyn had been stressing about needing to buy a ticket to ride the tube only for Dani to explain how she only needed to tap it with her phone. Despite having one of her own, Robyn seemed at a loss of how to use it, like when Alison called to check on them earlier and she couldn't seem to work out how to press and drag the answer icon.

"My parents were super strict and anti-technology. They've not let me have anything more advanced than a Nokia since I was a kid." She'd explained.

"And I thought my folks were backwards! But honestly, probably better for you. Most people these days can't get off their phones." Dani had that same problem when she was younger but was proud to say she'd massively reduced her screen time since getting her job as a greenskeeper at the Button House golf course.

Most of the time she was on her knees in the grass and muck, picking up lost balls and litter, but other times she was tending to the plants and trimming the bushes. She had no shortage of fresh air, even on her break she preferred to sit in her quiet spot in the woods and read rather than scroll through social media and vids.

Only yesterday she'd been sat in that spot when the former owner of the hotel who visited often had approached her to ask for this very favour.

Once they've finished their desserts and ordered their second round of cocktails - Robyn reassures her that Alison said they could "go nuts" and so they do - Dani has enough Dutch courage to ask the question that's been on the tip of her tongue ever since she first laid eyes on Robyn getting out of the cab in her stunning, rather New Age dress and chunky knee high boots.

"So. Cards on table. Did your aunt intend for this to be a blind date?"

Robyn bites her bottom lip; "Uhh...maybe. I mean it was definitely her idea. And she knows I'm into girls so...I hope she didn't make any assumptions about you though?"

"I wear a lesbian badge pin on my coveralls. I'd be worried if she came to any different assumptions."

"Oh, yeah, 'course you do! I mean...she might have mentioned that..."

Another weird little moment. Dani frowns as Robyn sips at her White Russian. From the moment they met, she was certain that she'd seen this girl before....somewhere....

But they didn't live anywhere near each other. Robyn was a few years younger than her, thankfully not too much to make Dani feel like a cradle snatcher.

"I mean...is it okay with you that it did turn out to be...that?" Robyn asks, swirling the ice with her finger.

Dani smirks; "Think it's been pretty fun so far. What about you?"

"Oh, yeah, yeah, I....This days been fucking ace, hahaha."

"Ace? You're so retro, I love it."

"Y-you do?" Robyn tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"I really do." Dani dared to reach across and take the pale hand on the table, covered in a translucent long sleeved glove that went with her dress.

Robyn was nearly scarlet as she let their fingers link up.

Was that electricity she felt running between their hands? Dani had always thought that to just be a cheesy metaphor. But something about touching Robyn made her feet truly tingly all over.

Perhaps she was magical. She was a 'witch' after all. Dani had asked about her pentacle necklace shortly after meeting her and Robyn had been rather open and eager to talk about her faith.

Dani had been brought up Sikh and would still identify as such if asked. But there was so much beauty to be found in all the many, many religious myths and stories that she felt like they all had some sort of truth to them. She wasn't sure if she believed in some of the spiritualist spell stuff but the way Robyn spoke about it made it sound fascinating.

"I do kinda believe there's a world beyond what we see, you know? It's not exaxtly what I was brought up to believe but I do feel like spirits from those who've died are watching over us. Does that sound crazy?" She'd asked Robyn.

The pale girl had gulped, her lips curling a little; "Not crazy at all."

They moved out to a private lounge Alison had booked for them with a stunning view of the city at night. Light pollution made it seem as though the stars had fallen from the heavens and were scattered out before them either side of the Thames.

Both of them were truly tipsy now, knees knocking as they sat on a comfy sofa. They were doing their best not to get too shit faced, Alison had text to let them know a cab would pick them up outside the Shard just after midnight.

"Proper Cinderella vibes. You're not gonna turn into a pumpkin on me, are you?"

"What version did you see where Cinderella becomes the pumpkin?!"

"The cool version, shut up!" They crease up into giggles as they start to lean in closer to each other.

Robyn brings her fingers up to stroke against Dani's neck.

"This has been the best birthday ever." She sighs.

"I didn't even get you a present!" Granted she didn't know the girl existed before yesterday.

Robyn smiles; "You did. You came."

Dani blinks. Robyn speaks as if her specifically coming had been her desire. But they'd never met before. Had they? The girl was more than a little unique, no way would Dani have met her before and forgotten about it.

She's about to lean in to kiss the girl when she notices a tear fall from her eye.

Dani pulls back; "Hey. You okay? We don't have to..."

Shit. Alison's words about her niece having been through something repeat in her brain. What if it was something more traumatic than she'd thought?

Robyn shakes her head; "N-no...I want to, I really do, it's just...."

"Just what?" Dani squeezes the other girl's hand.

"I....I feel like if I kiss you, I'll want to do it again."

Dani frowns, then chuckles; "And that's a bad thing?"

"Yeah...Because I can't. Not after tonight."

A cold beat.

"What do you mean? You really are gonna turn into a pumpkin? Or whatever happens in the dumb story?"

Robyn shakes her head; "Not quite. I just...we can't see each other again."

"Why not? I thought you'd had a good time. I know I have. It's been strange but....a cool strange."

"I know. But I...I have to go away, after tonight. Really far away. I can't say where."

Dani felt herself begin to sober a little, in the worst way; "Uhm...okay. But I'm gonna be working at the hotel for a while, I mean if you could ask your aunt to book you a room or if you're ever in the area-."

"No. I'm sorry."

The girl can't even meet her eyes now. Dani let's go of her hand and sits up.

"Did I....Did I do something to upset you?"

"What? No, gods, Dani, you've....You've been everything I hoped for."

"So you did go into this knowing your aunt was setting us up? Even though you knew it wasn't going to go anywhere?"

Robyn wipes at her cheek; "I....I didn't expect you to like me back. Fuck, I wasn't even expecting you to say yes to coming!"

"Is that a low opinion of you or me?"

"Me, obviously."

"Why? Robyn, we've spent the whole day together and I've never clicked like this with anyone. There is nothing wrong with you."

The girl scoffs, "Oh, you have no idea..."

Dani knows she shouldn't say the next words. Don't assume. Don't let her imagination run away. But fuck it. Someone got into this gorgeous girl's head.

"Were you in a cult?"

Robyn stares and touches her pentacle; "What?"

"No, I don't mean Wicca, I mean...I might have just read too many novels but...You just seem like someone who's been shut off from the world? If you're in some kinda trouble then-."

The girl laughs. And then Dani does too. It was a pretty wild theory.

"No cult, honest. Though I do have some...rather weird friends. But they're good. You can ask Alison. I really wish I could tell you more. Fuck, I wish this night could last forever-."

"Then let it!" Dani encourages, taking her hand again, "Robyn, I've only recently felt comfortable being out. I never thought I'd be lucky enough to actually find a girl I like this soon...I dunno if I believe in fate or maybe it's just the vodka talking but...This feels like we were meant to meet each other. Doesn't it? I feel like I've known you for months."

"...Thirteen, in fact."

"What's that?"

"Nothing." Robyn shakes her head, peacock feather earing tickling her bare shoulder.

Dani wipes her tear with her thumb and guides her face towards hers again.

"C'mon. It's your birthday. Whatever happens next, let me at least give you this."

Robyn's sapphire eyes sparkle as Dani moves in closer, hands beneath her jawline, before their lips connect. There's tension at first, her companion awkward and stiff, hesitant, before leaning in and moving her own fingers up Dani's sides. It feels like both of their first kissed with another woman, and the first of any to matter. Robyn smells of magic; of sage and lavender incense. Dani hopes the perfume she borrowed from Shanon at Reception is masking any nervous sweat.

There's that tingling again. That fizzle of energy that doesn't quite feel normal. She doesn't pull back from it, instead letting it vibrate through her bloodstream and to her pounding heart beneath her ribs. Robyn's fingers are touching the fabric over her breasts. Fuck, why couldn't they have booked a hotel room? Couldn't Alison have sprung for that little bit extra for her niece? As the clock strikes midnight, Dani realises she wants to explore everything and everywhere with this girl with skin like the moon.

Her eyes are closed when they finally pull back and Robyn takes her hands away.

"Thank you." She whispers.

Dani opens her eyes.

She blinks. She sits alone in the private lounge. Alone with the dazzling view and an untouched White Russian vodka on the table.

"Robyn? Robyn?!"

When she asks the waiter where her 'friend' went, he gives her an off putting look like she's insane. Her temper rises when she goes to the bar and demands for someone who must have seen something to tell her where Robyn went. Then to check the CCTV if necessary.

But it brings her the same answer that chills her to the bone.

"Miss...You've been dining alone this entire night."

As promised, there is a cab waiting for her on the street eighty seven floors below.

Alison is waiting for her in the backseat.

"You probably have questions."

Too fucking right she does.

-

Silver opens her eyes. The gate which she'd rode out from in the back of Alison and Mike's car earlier that day stands before her. She glances down at her outfit. Her dress is gone. Back to her regular gear. Back to Button House.

Back to being invisible.

For a dead girl, her heartbeat still echoes in her head as if it continues to thump away. The tingle of Dani's lips remain on her own mouth. She brushes her fingertips against them. She cries.

It was the best birthday ever. Why did that mean it had to hurt?

Tentative footsteps approach her.

"....Good trip?" A gravelly voice asks with a hint of humor.

Silver turns to her friend whose name she'd borrowed for a day in case either of hers was too obvious. Had he been waiting up for her? At the sight of her tears, his face falls with concern, the paw stroking at his front reaching towards her.

She runs to him and let's him embrace her tight. He doesn't ask anything. Good. She can't begin to describe what this day has been.

Incredible. Spellbinding. Devastating.

-

Dani stares at the sketch. She knew she'd seen the girl before. And she had. Many times. Every lunch break where she'd sat beside this memorial, this bed of flowers and statuettes of Greek gods, the sketch of the sleeping girl on the tree had been in the corner of her eyes.

The girl who she'd sat on a train with and watched her look out the window, eyes wide, like a dog allowed on a car ride. The girl she'd linked arms with as they walked around London and laughed at the street performers and bought sweets at Covent Garden. The girl who'd cried watching Glinda and Elphaba sing their goodbyes. The girl she'd sat at the top of the world with and had her first real kiss.

The girl who died when Dani had only been a toddler.

"You should have told me the truth." She whispers towards the bed, hoping the pink haired Wiccan is there, "I'd have been cool with it. Okay I might have freaked and called your aunt...I mean, whoever Alison is to you...but I'd have chilled out after a bit...I think."

She takes a seat on the grass beside the flowers.

"Alison told me everything. About this...stupid curse you've got. She said you'd be awake for today so I hope you're here. Otherwise I guess I'll just have to keep repeating myself next time I'm working on the full moon." She smiles, "So ghosts get one day a year to feel things like a living person....and you sleep through yours? That fucking sucks. But on the flip side...You get to be seen too? Once every...twenty years or so? Still sounds like a rubbish deal but...Hey. It means we got to meet, so..."

Dani moves her hand through the flowers, gently, trying to imagine Robyn...No- Silver's hand there.

Tears blur her vision.

"It was a pretty amazing day wasn't it. I guess I can wait twenty or so years for the next one. Give me enough time to plan how to treat you." She smiles, her chest aching. "Typical. First pretty girl I kiss is a forty year old ghost. Didn't know you were a cougar too....that's kinda hot."

She gets out her phone. All the photos she took of the two of them together throughout the day are now mere selfies with a curious empty space beside her.

But she remembers. She'll always remember.

[dana-chan-the-control-brain]

It's time for Bob questions 'cause he's the new blorbo in town lol

Did he always want to be a mechanic or did he want to do something different as a kid?

Does he have a favourite colour?

What does he like to do in his spare time? Does he read books, play games, watch tv?

What was he like as a kid? Was he less grumpy back then?

Does he have a favourite hobby?

Did he always like robots?

Bonus joke question:

On a scale of 1-10 how gay is he for dadler lol

BOBERTTTTTTTTT!!!! <3

Glad I'm getting Bobert questions. Lol I like the grump a lot.

Did he always want to be a mechanic or did he want to do something different as a kid?

I'm not for certain if Bob always wanted to be a mechanic or not. But I don't think he ever planned on working for Fazbar Entertainment. While Ted had childhood nostalgia for Foxy, and wanted to work with his robot blorbo, Bob doesn't have the same attachment for the place.

I don't think he went to college like Ted. If anything, the guy probably went to trade school or vocational school to get a practical job with a steady income and good benefits.

It wasn't really a "dream job" for him. It was more, "I'm good at fixing shit, and this is what I'm good at, so best to go all in than not"

I could see him being a guy who fucked around and modded with older cars a lot rather than invent anything himself.

He figured he would have probably worked as a factory mechanic fixing their automated machines but the Pizzaplex was hiring and he figured “working on robots would be cool”

Does he have a favorite color?

Pink...

Yes, really.

What does he like to do in his spare time? Does he read books, play games, watch tv?

He likes to read on occasion and watch TV about as much as the average person.

He likes watching crime drama shows and sitcoms. Sometimes those animal cop or I shouldn't be alive shows and documentaries.

He's more a casual gamer though. he doesn't own any major consoles or any major things on his PC or anything. He's more a guy who's into those little farming simulators he can have on his phone.... He avoids the monetary purchases tho.

He also likes to go on long walks and has recently taken up cooking a bit more.

What was he like as a kid? Was he less grumpy back then?

He was definitely MORE grumpy back then. Lol well, grumpy isn't the word for it.

More like, FULL OF RAGE.

He would often get into fights at school and had a lot of anger issues.

But he also had a magnetic personality that made you feel good being around him. Like if you were on his good side, and he liked you, he'd probably beat up whoever you asked or was picking on you. He usually beat up bullies and didn't hurt anyone for no good reason.

He was an alright student. His grades weren't honor roll or anything, but he passed by okay.

Does he have a favourite hobby?

Spoiler. :3

Did he always like robots?

He thought robots were kinda cool, but he grew a deeper appreciation working with Fazbear Entertainment and finding out all their little weird personality quirks.

It takes him a long time to start treating the Animatronics as people. (Like it's a multiple year long development that happens of screen) And you can see his dismissive attitude towards Sun and Moon in the first chapter of Lofi.

He gains a more deeper appreciation for the AI as time goes on.

On a scale of 1-10 how gay is he for dadler lol

Fucking 11.

[arcplaysgames]

okay with THAT dissertation done, the rest of the shit I've done so far, which is finishing up a lot of SLinks! I have now completed Temperance, Sun, Moon, and Death. Let's go over them.

GET READY FOR SOME CARTOMANCY TAAAAAALK

who me? what? don't know WHAT you could be implying Kawakami hahaha anyway how about this weather, btw i'm super happy for you. wow what a crazy random happenstance! you deserve it, i love you.

I KNEW IT, SHE KNOWS

When asked how she figured out, she points out that the thing with Takase's guardians worked out way too well for her and Reverie was the only person she told. Which... yeah, that makes it p5retty fucking obvious huh.

lmao as if Reverie going "I need their names," in the previous scene wasn't a massive flag. I am not playing this subtle but also Kawakami is smart and I adore her.

Her SLink is complete!!!! So far, she's the best one in the game, to my utter astonishment. I'm glad I muscled through the awful start because this SLink has everything: mocking the player's teacher-maid fetish, an incredibly mouthy cool millennial lady, a genuinely tragic backstory without being soap opera-y, sympathetic portray of sex workers. IT'S GOT IT ALL.

Kawakami was kind of a very Standard portrayal of Temperance. It's not a super interesting card, it's just about having the emotional strength to find the path forward and to find balance in yourself spiritually and materially. It's often portrayed as an angel passing water between two cups-- cups are the suit of emotional intelligence. And they're my favorite suit, personally.

Kawakami starts the arc solidly in a reversed Temperance, she can't balance anything, the goblets are overturned, and all of her emotional strength is just pouring out onto the floor because she is so overworked, there is no well for her to draw from. Through the arc, she actually shares her troubles with Reverie, which in of itself is a show of emotional strength, and with his help manages to rebalance herself. Finally, she can take her eyes off the cups and look ahead to her future.

TEN OUT OF TEN, SO FAR SHE'S MY FAVORITE CONFIDANT.

I haven't been recapping it because it's.... genuinely not a link that's easy to summarize bc its a lot of politics and small moments, but I finished the Sun too!

OH SO THAT'S THE JOKE OF EVERY LINK HUH, EVERYONE KNOWS WHO REVERIE REALLY IS that's pretty cute actually, I like it.

Yoshida was this failed politician who got disgraced twenty years ago in a finance scandal, now returned to try and take office again. His whole arc is about his new ideals of empowering the youth and taking care of the elderly, and with the rise of the Thieves, he acknowledges them as a symptom of a broken system that needs massive reform.

You follow him through some intra-party political issues and his recurring thing is that he sticks to running instead of being someone else's right hand man, even when doing so would clear his name from the finance scandal that ruined him.

I'm NOT gonna lie, his final speech is good. He speaks about Reverie, "a certain young man" he met who is aspiring to change the whole, and though Yoshida cannot follow the same path as this young man, he hopes they will meet again at the top of the mountain they are both climbing together, separate.

It's really good honestly. And for the curious, Yoshida is a very interesting Sun to me. The Sun comes at the end of the Star-Moon-Sun sequence and those three cards are basically their own mini-journey. The Star is the herald that the story isn't over and you must continue. The Moon is the darkness that follows, full of illusions and distractions and madness you have to navigate. And the Sun is the light that comes after, is exuberant and joyful, and more than anything it is certain in itself. In the light of the Sun, all is revealed and laid bare. (Which is why it leads into Judgement soon after.)

Yoshida works for the Sun really well because the twenty years of scandal and shame have already happened to him, and he has made it out to the other side. Now, his ideals and purpose are illuminated under the Sun and he never strays from his path.

It's good! Eight out of ten on him!

DEATH! Goth Doctor!

lmao she figured it out too. I guess that's just the joke of every max rank, huh?

Anyway, I loved Tae for The Unnamed Arcana. She's great. I love that she's actually a goth, actually has a very morbid sense of humor, actually talks about death a lot. They really leaned into the whole vibe and I appreciate that.

Also her look is impeccable obviously.

Tae's whole thing is that she's undergoing the process of Death, the transformation the card deals with. With the lost of her prestigious position at the research hospital, she is stuck working in a small back-alley clinic.

She definitely goes through a period of real mourning for her past self, resisting the forward motion of her life. But slowly she begins caring for the locals around her and builds a new patient base. Really, the drama with her past patient and the miracle cure for her is an afterthought; the Death aspect is definitely rooted in Tae herself. And by the end of the link, she is still dour and morbid, but there is life to her voice again.

She's great. Seven out of ten.

So Mishima.

SIGHS. Okay. I hate Mishima as a character and I think he represents everything that is bad about the Phantom Thieves and it's his actions (which were completely unasked for and unprompted) that leads the plot to the clusterfuck we're about to enter with Okamura's imminent death. Fuck the phansite and fuck this phuckboy.

BESIDES THAT

yeah he's a half-decent Moon? It's complicated, actually.

So his set up as the Moon is pitch-perfect. The Moon card is a place a person comes to after great upheaval in their life. It's a dark, quiet place for contemplation and reflection. Best case scenario is that it's a stepping stone in your journey towards the new dawn and the Sun.

But there are strange images in the reflection and the reflected light of the Sun in the Moon can lead a person astray and into madness.

Again: the Moon is an environment of possible madness. The Hanged Man is a risk taken that might led to madness. The Hanged Man goes into the deal eyes open, knowing the stakes. The Moon doesn't know the danger around them and has to keep from lingering.

So as the Moon, Mishima goes from being Kamoshida's punching bag into this dark, quiet place where he doesn't know what to do with himself, only that he needs a purpose. He settles on the Phansite.

Now, I think the game is arguing that running the Phansite gives Mishima direction and purpose, letting him move forward in his path.

I think that's undercut by how much the game itself points out Mishima's actions led to various fuck ups. Remember when Reverie had to be the one to tell him to give back the fucking money he'd collected from "donations"? Honestly, most of the conversations in this SLink are just trying to drag Mishima away from his worse impulses.

Which... also kinda works! I say the game's intended portrayal of the Moon is dumb, but my own is just as valid. I don't think Mishima has moved on and grown at all. I think he's been dazzled by the false, reflected light of the Moon (metaphorically, the allure of his nebulous fame re: the Phansite and his repeated misunderstanding of how to use it without being a malicious prick) and instead of continuing on his journey, he is staring slack-jawed into the illusion.

Sooooooooooo.... Nine out of ten, honestly!

But also I hate Mishima.

ONWARDS, INTO IMMINENT DISASTER!

[jvstheworld]

The Buffy Re-watch: S2E15 (part 3)

Phases

I'm going to start this post with a bit of a rant: Willow asks Buffy if making the first move makes her a slut. What the ever loving fuck! Why was this line included? Was it necessary? How would making the first move make her or anyone a slut? It's such a horrible fucking question. There was no need to phrase it like that. There are better ways of asking if she could make the first move than that. It just caught me off guard. I get that Willow is a bit nervous and new to these things, but come on! It does not make you a slut if you make the first move. You are just clearly showing your interest in a person who hopefully has similar feelings as you and wants to reciprocate them. There is nothing wrong with that. Jesus fucking Christ though.

Yeah, Buffy and pals, you sort of jumped the gun on the whole Theresa thing. There are still vampires roaming around. A werewolf might be high priority right now but you can't assume that it killed her. Also Willow can access coroner's reports, she could have looked it up.

It's good that the werewolf didn't kill Theresa but bad that Angel did because he wants to start his reign of terror against Buffy.

How long does it take for people to go from the coroners office to a funeral home? Theresa has only been dead less that 24 hours and she turns in that time too. Yet, some don't turn until after they are in the ground. Do some vampires wake up in the funeral homes, realise where they are and then go back to sleep so they can have the full newbie vampire experience?

Xander coming in with the save and killing a vampire. I should start keeping a tally of him being actually helpful (I won't that is too much work).

Sir, I hope you have some good ventilation in that van if you're using a bunsen burner to make bullets. Also does a bunsen burner produce enough heat to melt silver? And how much time is passing in this scene because there is no way that he can melt down the silver pour it into the mould, then take it out and it be cold to touch in the space of a few minuets like the scene is suggesting.

Also, it is dark outside Cain's van, which means sundown and moon up. Shouldn't Oz be in wolf mode by now? Because other times in the show he changes as soon as the sun is down, yet here he doesn't change until after Willow gets to his house.

Where did Oz get the chains from and where is he anchoring them to stop himself from getting out and attacking people?

Bad time for angry speeches Will. Oz really is going through some changes and you don't want to be around when it happens.

Giles coming through with the tranquiliser gun.

Willow shooting Oz with her eyes closed, that's pretty good aiming. Her 'I shot Oz' was adorable.

Larry has stopped being an ass. We like to see personal growth.

Is Xander worried that because Larry thinks he is gay that Larry likes him now? Or just that Larry might tell people that he is?

Oz is the loyal type, until season 4.

I'm glad nothing is up to Xander, because then life would be shit.

Oz and Willow talking about their relationship like normal people should do. And they get to have their first kiss. Yay for happy endings.

So, the next episode is one that I do not like. It will not be talked about favourably. And it serves to make me feel even more ick towards Xander.

[dinoplantsghost]

pairing: Tom Riddle x fem! original character

warning(s): tom is a warning in itself, 1940s: time-accurate prejudice, violence: t0rture (Cruciatus Curse), teenage behavior: drama and language

word count: ~2112

Disclaimer: I have a huge google doc that holds all of my drafts and I'm quite literally just copypasting everything, so if there are any typos/errors, no there isn't!! :)

-- omg this chapter is so short but im absolutely so tired with school so this is all im dropping right now unfortunately. maybe ill drop another one after this, idfk, we'll see !!! :D

Chapter List

The Magic of Friendship [6]

Tom enjoyed his quiet walk to the Astronomy Tower. He always preferred the nighttime over day. Though, it was only during his stay at Hogwarts. Anywhere else and he would choose sunlight over all; the sirens always went off at night. 

Hogwarts had changed his perspective on life, how special it was—how finite it was. You were only given one life, and you were expected to live it to its fullest potential; and Tom was full of potential. He was destined for greatness. 

One lifetime is too short for him. He needed more; more time to conduct his plans to bring the Wizarding World to its fullest capacity. Muggles were mean, crude, and above all, ignorant. They knew nothing of what they were afraid of. They were all going to die by his doing sooner or later. Surely, in a far away universe, his mother would be proud of him. 

When he turned the corner to round up the staircase, Tom saw a blur of blue illuminated by the moon before a pair of jade was shoved into his vision. 

“Where is Patrick?” The girl asked, her frames sliding off her flat nose. “I never got to catch up with him after the Quidditch match.” 

“Nott caught a stomach bug from dinner, and so did Mulciber.” Tom said, slipping past Saoirse as he made his way to his assigned telescope, far away from the nuisance that was she. 

“From dinner,” she echoed, unaware of the sigh that fell from the boy’s nose. “Are they okay? Maybe I should go check up on him—well, them—after class.”

“That won’t be necessary, they’ve been admitted into the Hospital Wing already.” 

Saoirse’s brows furrowed. “I know that tone; that’s the same tone my father uses when he’s lying. Why are you lying to me, Riddle, what happened to Patrick?” 

Tom fought the urge to roll his eyes. “Darling, why would I ever lie to you,” he said condescendingly. “All of this concern for a boy you just met; I dare say you fancy him.” 

“I don’t fancy him, whatever that means—” 

Saoirse was cut off, a tall and awkward man standing behind her in the shadows of the night. “You two,” Professor Jensen said. “Why haven’t you started your assignment? Class started ten minutes ago.” 

“Our apologies, professor,” Tom hummed pleasantly. “Unfortunately, Saoirse’s partner has fallen ill, and we were merely discussing temporary arrangements until Nott is better.” 

Jensen nodded, his shoulders relaxing at Tom’s soothing words. The boy always had a way with adults. “Well, then,” he smiled. “I’m glad Riddle is kind enough to offer assistance to you, Miss Saoirse; five points to Slytherin.” 

Saoirse couldn’t focus anymore after Riddle’s sass. The rest of class was silent between the two, their hands occasionally passing by as they reached over to grab something. She enjoyed it more when Patrick listened to her talk about whatever she felt like chatting about at the moment. It helped her practice her English. 

She was nothing but worried for him. Surely, he was smart enough to keep his mouth shut around someone as temperamental as Riddle, right? Whatever the case may be, she only hoped she didn’t find the boy dead on the ground somewhere. 

“You know,” Tom muttered, his first words after the first hour or two of class. “Nott is awfully fond of you; he’s been reading in the romance genre lately.” 

Saoirse’s cheeks turned hot, brighter than the moonlight that reflected off her cheekbones and forehead. “That’s not a funny joke, you know…”

“It’s not a joke; it’s the truth. He’s usually by himself most of the time, but now he spends all his time with you. It’s amusing to see, actually.” 

Saoirse scoffed, “Well, I think that’s really sweet of him. Of course, you wouldn’t get it; you don’t seem like the type to believe in love or anything romantic. I actually can’t believe that girls waste their time with you.” 

“At least they have good taste.” He muttered, his ego flaring until fading away immediately when Saoirse whacked his arm.

 TR~S 

The first smell in the Slytherin dungeons that fills the nose is the pungent, stagnant water lingering from the dripping sewage pipes. The wear and tear of the castle is very noticeable since the school keeper deliberately avoids dirtier places that need more work than usual. However, the students of green and silver try their best to maintain the elegance that comes with a pureblooded community. 

The interior of the Slytherin common room differed from its outside completely; with pristine furniture and glistening marble columns, it was the home of a tight-knit group, often used for gossip and other disparaging remarks that are meant for the common room and the common room only. 

Somehow, by some miracle, Saoirse was able to convince Tom to let her in the snake den. She was too determined, too worried about Patrick and his friends—well, more of Patrick than his friends. 

The culture surrounding the Slytherin’s fascinated her. When she walked into their awfully green living space, Saoirse saw a couple of upperclassmen standing by one of the many glass windows that protected them from the Black Lake. Looking on and into the murky water, Saoirse saw merpeople waving their hands at the children, forming signs. 

The Ravenclaw shook her head, stomping her way to the left staircase that wrapped around the bulky statue of a man whom she assumed to be Salazar Slytherin. Remembering Riddle’s words, she walked down the hall to inspect each door, finding the one with the silver number of thirteen before knocking softly. 

“Hello? It’s me, Saoirse.” She waited patiently, nibbling on her nail folds before the door swung open, a weak and defeated Abraxas frowning at the girl. 

“What do you want?” He asked, his voice so unlike his usual tone of pride and ignorance. His hair was oily, slicked back and pushed behind his ears as bandages sat on his face and neck. 

She walked in, gently moving the taller boy out the way. “I heard what happened, so I came to see you all.” 

“No, don’t look at us; we’re ugly…” Groaned Eloise, his pillow muffling the sounds of his growing pains as it sat on his face. 

“That’s just what you look like, Avery.” she sighed. “Where is Patrick?” 

“He’s right there,” Abraxas said from behind, walking around to lay back down on the bed already occupied by Miles. “He knocked out cold after Tom left; he usually doesn’t get punished, so he isn’t used to the pain.”

Saoirse frowned, slipping her flats off before sitting at the head of Patrick’s bed. Her weight caused the duvet to dip, his limp body following its contours. With gentle hands, she picked up his head to rest in her lap as her fingers lost in his hair. She took his bent glasses off his nose and set them down on his bedside drawer. 

“Does Riddle always lash out like this?” She asked quietly, her wand in hand as she slowly healed his wounds, from the small scratches littering his skin to the large bruise under his left eye. 

“Not usually,” Orion uttered, “but it’s always harsh whenever it does happen; he has major problems.” 

Miles chimed in, his body rolling over to face the girl. “He used the Cruciatus Curse, if you’re wondering. It feels like a bunch of knives and needles are being stabbed into you all at once. It makes you lose track of time after a while.” 

Saoirse nodded, her eyes tracing the lines of Patrick’s pale and sickly face. “Why did Riddle get mad anyways?” 

She was met with silence from the boys. 

“Well, it’s complicated.” Louis coughed, his hair out of its usual tight bun as he rested on Cassius’s shoulder, who just so happened to be sitting next to him. “Tom was angry at us for not doing what we were supposed to, and he was mad at Patrick for hanging out with you.” 

“Why would he care who Patrick is hanging out with?” 

Eloise sighed. “Because we’re supposed to be ‘focusing on other things’ as he put it…like how we’re supposed to be looking for the Chamber of Secrets—” 

The rest of the boys, save for Patrick, groaned in disbelief as their friend was too delirious to realize his mistake. 

“Excuse me—Chamber of Secrets, what is that?” Saoirse asked, confusion written all over as she watched Abraxas throw a weak attempt at hitting the heir of Avery in the face, his deflated pillow plopping onto the floor. 

“It’s something Salazar Slytherin made when Hogwarts was built long ago.” Abraxas said. “The other founders: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, and Rowena Ravenclaw, had differing opinions from Salazar concerning half-bloods and Muggleborns. He harbored resentment towards anyone without a pure magical lineage, and so he created the Chamber of Secrets to house a monster that was supposed to rid the school of those he deemed unworthy of magic.”

“Why are we telling her this, this was supposed to be a secret.” Pressed Orion. 

“There’s no point in keeping it a secret, she’s already involved; it’s Eloise’s fault anyways.”

“I’m sorry that I feel like my head is about to explode, chicken boy.” Cried Eloise. 

Saoirse sat in thought, contemplating the information she was fed. Riddle, who made it his mission to be calm and collected, the epitome of gentlemanly perfection and the poster boy of Hogwarts, was merely a boy loyal to his peers and had major anger issues, it seemed. Why he was determined to open the Chamber himself was unknown to the girl, but he was playing his cards wrong. Riddle was driven by emotion in times of stress, as seen by how weak and fearful his posse was. Patrick was still out cold, Lestrange and Malfoy were hanging off the bed they were laying on, Black was sagging into a fluffy, oblong seat; Avery was on the bed diagonal from where Patick’s bed was, face down, and Rosier and Mulciber were in their own world directly across. 

“Does Riddle force you all to do things for him,” she whispered, breaking the silence between the group of boys. “Why do you put up with him? These abusive outbursts seem to be commonplace.” 

“Because at the end of the day, we trust him; he’s our friend.” 

Saoirse felt the weight on her lap shifting, causing her gaze to follow. Patrick sat up slowly, palms on his sheets in search of his glasses. The girl was quick to hand them to the boy. 

“Tom,” Patrick continued. “is very complicated, to put it simply. We know that we shouldn’t put up with his anger—his obsessions, but he has good reason to be obsessed. He promised us that he would do the world good, and if that means a few punches and spells here and there, then I would do anything to make sure his goals are accomplished.” 

The other boys made affirming sounds. Louis pulled away from Cassius, his back straighter and his eyes brighter than before. “Before we met Tom, we were nothing but a bunch of rich boys with a reputation to uphold. In our families, there are definitely other people our parents are proud of. But with Tom, he gives us hope; a purpose. Tom has pushed our boundaries time and time again, only to prove that we are worthy of our names, of this privilege he’s given us to be his followers—the Knights of Walpurgis.” 

Saoirse hesitated to speak, her thoughts running many miles an hour before she opened her mouth. “If I became one of his followers,” she started. “Would that help? I don’t like that you’re all beat up, Patrick.” 

The boy in question stuttered, “What? No, I don’t want you involved, Saoirse.” 

“Actually, it would help us,” said Orion. 

Everyone turned to face the melancholy teenager in the corner of the room. He leaned forward, forearms pressed against his knees and his palms clasped together. He blinked once, then twice, until Eloise stupidly made a noise of acknowledgement, slapping his forehead and then regretting it immediately as his head pounded against his skull. 

Avery tossed in the bed, his hands in prayer as he knelt in Saoise’s direction. “Please, lady of the exotics, I beg of you! Aid us with your pretty magic ways and your dainty, womanly touch; heal us!” 

As Saoirse begrudgingly raised her wand, Patrick sat beside her with a heavy heart. “Saoirse, please don’t tell me you’re thinking about joining,” he whispered. “The things we do, what we stand for—it’s nothing you want to be involved with.” 

“I can handle myself, Patrick; nothing bad will happen.”

Credit(s): Dividing banner (^^^) by Chen Lu (1436 - 1449) - "Plum Blossoms in Moonlight" scroll painting; sourced through Pinterest

[sissytobitch10seconds]

Eve With You

Fandom: Secrets of Soulford Summary: Cody has a lot of memories from his childhood. Most of them aren't great, even though he knows that his father was trying his best. Still, he wants to make sure that his children don't carry the same weight with them. Warnings: Mentions of pregnancy and childhood illness Word Count: 2,660 Ship(s): Felicity Laegiver/Cody Garriford

Archive link!

A/N: Full disclosure here, I'm not super into Secrets of Soulford so it's possible that I messed up some of the canon or the world. I just wanted to write this for my brother as a Christmas present because he really loves it. I hope that it's somewhat enjoyable! Stay sissy and bitchy everyone &lt;3

To my little brother: Thank you for teaching me how to expand my horizons and being so patient. I hope that you have a wonderful Christmas and know that I love you to the moon and back.

Felicity had been run off of her feet all day, which wasn’t that uncommon given that they had twin troublemakers that had made it their life mission to cause as much mayhem as they could. She was glad that her girls were old enough that they could understand instruction and actually take it into consideration. She sometimes wished that she had chosen a husband that didn’t have such a high stubborn streek in his family, but then she would see Cody carrying around their little ones and every thought would be gone.

She truly couldn’t imagine having a family or being married to anyone but him. They had grown up together and seen the other become the worst and then the best versions of themselves. He had been there when she was so sick that she wasn’t even allowed out of her room into the hallways. He had sat with her and read from the books she had been forbidden to touch out of the fear of a single bruise or papercut. She remembered the choppy way that he would sound out words he didn’t know and the flush his ears would get when she said it properly for him. She had been there to see what he had been like when he and his brother had started their training. Cody had been able to pull his head out of his ass and realize that he had to treat others with compassion and empathy long before Gan had kicked it into Logan.

She was glad that it as all over, that they were finally settled. She wasn’t sure what she would have done if her life continued to be that kind of chaotic nightmare. She had her tinctures to make sure that she didn’t suffer from her condition and she didn’t pass it onto her children either. Cody and Logan had long since gotten their curse lifted from them without a single person having to die, something that was far easier than the Motherless wanted to say that it was. They were able to live happily in their little home on the edge of the Soulford, attending counsel meetings and working to better their community.

One day, her parents would pass or decide that they could no longer rule over the land as they once had. She would have to pack up her family and move into the massive house that she had resided in when she was younger. She would have to attend every meeting instead of just the ones that held some amount of interest to her. One day, Isaac wouldn’t be able to train more Garrons to take over the police force and Cody would have to spend more and more time away from their family.

She knew that it would come one day, but today was not that day.

For now, she had her home. It was a quaint cottage that Logan and Cody had built together as a way of quelling their nerves about their wedding and baby respectively. The walls had been painted over with a lovely bright white that was grimy within toddler reach, despite her attempts to clean it. The floor was covered in rugs just about everywhere that they didn’t hinder movement or make a mess, such as the kitchen and the bathroom. There was a large family room with as many bookshelves as they could fill with things from their life before they became parents. Further into the house was the main bathroom, their shared office, the dining room, and the kitchen. Upstairs was the nursery, the spare room that would be taken by the other twin once they were old enough to sleep apart, and the room that she shared with her husband. She had decorated her space the way that she had liked it soon after they moved in, pleasantly soft colors and eclectic furniture that they had purchased from the local craftsmen.

Currently, her home was decorated for the upcoming Christmas celebration. She had strung red and green tinsel over every picture frame, the tree was sparkling happily with the light from the fire in the living room, and the girls had produced quite a few paper snowflakes to fill any empty space on the windows.

The holidays were different with children than they had been when she was younger, or even when she and Cody had first gotten married. The beginning years that she had spent with her husband were only difficult because they had realized how different their traditions were from each other. They had since assimilated them together into a wonderful amalgamations so that they both felt like the dark winter months were special. Once they had children, the struggle had returned and then quickly faded away.

Cody was able to take the girls sledding and have them help him pick out the tree, two things that Felicity had never been allowed to do. In turn, she was able to read her favorite stories to them and take them to the ball that her mother threw every year. Something new that they had started with only their family, however, was baking Christmas cookies on the eve before the holiday.

With everything else that they also had to do given their stations and the quickly fleeing hours until the big day, they had to rush it. The girls had been absolutely coated in flour, which had made Ella more upset than she had been since Maggie put snow down the back of her coat. Cody had taken them to have a bath while Felicity finished putting the last batch in the oven and cleaning up. It was a lot easier to clean chocolate chips out from between the floorboards when she didn’t also have to worry about how close her four-year-olds were to the stove.

She had just finished placing the mixing bowls back into the cupboard where they belonged when she noticed that she couldn’t hear the noises of bathtime any longer. She wiped her hands on her ruined apron and then reached behind her so that she could undo the strings. She felt a bit of viscous batter that had made its way to her hair that she would have to get out at another time, but for now she wanted to find her babies.

Felicity hadn’t really known what kind of mother she would be when she realized that she hadn’t had a cycle in several months. She had gotten her pregnancy confirmed by the town healer and then had to do a lot of mental work. She knew that Cody would be overjoyed since he already liked playing with Logan and Gan’s little one, but she was still worried about what being full time parents would do to them. She adored her husband and tolerated her father-in-law, but just the change in generations made her a bit stressed that they wouldn’t be as good as her parents had been. Even then, her parents had made some poor decisions about how to raise her that had hurt her for a very long time.

Then their girls were there, finally in their arms with their tiny perfect everything. They had made the biggest decision that they had in a long time and finally named them Cordelia and Margaret, their Ella and Maggie. Felicity had been unable to look away from them and she knew that even if she struggled with parenting them, she would always try. She would correct the mistakes that their parents had made without going too far in the other direction and harming her children in another way. She would be humble and learn from them, she would apologize and be gentle at all times. She wasn’t an outside perspective and she wasn’t in the minds of her still very young children, but she was confident that she and Cody were doing a good job so far.

Felicity’s fingers brushed through her hair to card out any of the leftover cookies that were clinging to her blond ringlets. She tucked the apron onto the back of one of the chairs next to the dining room table. Her dress underneath was still stained with bits of flour and egg, which was why it was the one that she used when she was doing housework. She would have to change it after she found out where the loves of her life had gone.

She walked carefully up the stairs towards the hallway where the nursery and spare room were. She made sure that she was quiet enough that she could pick up on any hushed whisperings. Her beautiful little girls were so close to each other and both so imaginative in their own ways that they would make a game out of everything. They knew that they were supposed to be quiet when they went to bed and thus would try their best to do so when they were playing past bedtime, but they almost always failed. Just last week, she and Cody had caught them playing in the hallway with their little toy soldiers while mimicking their uncle in something that was akin to Cody’s goblin voice.

She was met with a noise, but not what she had been expecting.

Tiny angels - Christmas angels try to sleep

Don't let Santa hear the sounds of little feet

Now its time to close your eyes and drift away

Until you wake tomorrow and its Christmas day

Cody’s dulcet tones echoed through the lofty ceiling of their second story. She immediately realized that he was already in the nursery with their girls, she could hear the underlying snuffling of toddlers falling asleep that proved it. Felicity raised a single hand to her mouth to make sure that she stayed quiet as she drifted closer to where the sound was coming from. She leaned on the door as she took in the scene in front of her, her heart hammering in her chest.

Tiny angels - I have heard you every night

Whispering with bright eyes shining in the light

Daddy, when is it Christmas - will it soon be here?

Well my darlings, it's very, very near

The nursery had changed quite a bit since they had taken their twins out of their room. Gone was the huge crib where Maggie and Ella slept together, holding each other’s hands to comfort the other as they slept. They had exchanged them for twin beds that were tucked under the sloping edge with a huge piece of cloth each so that they created a faux-canopy. The other half of the room held the half dozen shelves that were filled with numerous book and toys, handed down to the twins from their parents and Logan. 

Cody was seated in between the heads of the beds with his back pressed into the wall. He had turned towards Maggie, who always had a harder time falling asleep. His eyes were so heavily glued to his daughter that he hadn’t even registered the fact that his wife was right there, watching him.

As near as you my angels - since you came to me

Now Christmas day and every day is the same to me

The only gifts that I could want are you, my darlings

Cody brushed his fingers over Maggie’s already sweaty forehead to remove some of the dark black locks from where they were falling into her eyes. She gave a little noise of acknowledgement and then rolled over. She burrowed further down into her blankets, her arms tightening as hard as they could around the stuffed animal she had received last year for Christmas.

Tiny angels - Christmas angels sleeping tight

May Santa bring you all the gifts you want tonight?

And some day when you have tiny angels too

I hope you find the joy I found in you

Felicity worried for a minute that she had been found out when she noticed that her husband was turning. She almost let out a sigh of relief when she saw that he was still enamored with their children and she was hidden.

He turned so that he was facing the other twin, singing lightly to her while curled around the side of her bed. If the scene in front of her hadn’t been so sickly sweet, then she would have thought that it was almost comical. The furniture had been made especially for a four-year-old and Cody was a grown man that worked out every single day. He looked massive sitting in between the tiny toddler beds while trying to make himself as small as possible.

You changed the world, my angels - when you came to me

Now Christmas day and every day is the same to me

The only gifts that I could want are you

She knew that sentiment inside and out. The girls had been a surprise to them both, something that neither of them had taken into consideration as early into their marriage as they had come. They had been so worried, so nervous and anxious that they were going to do it wrong. The moment they saw their babies, they knew that they would have to at least try. She remembered it like it was yesterday and likely would for the rest of her life. Their daughters had changed their entire worlds if not the world has a whole.

Tiny angels - Christmas angels try to sleep

Don't let Santa hear the sounds of little feet

Now its time to close your eyes and drift away

Until you wake tomorrow and its Christmas day

Cody finished the last verse and then gave both of the girls a kiss on the head. Ella stretched out so that her foot was hanging out from her blankets, but he quickly tucked her back where she belonged. Maggie gave another stir of discontent but when one of her blue eyes blinked open and saw that it was only Cody, she slipped back into her lull of sleep.

He stood up and watched them for a moment. Both of them had always done that and likely would continue to do so until their girls were old enough to stop needing to be tucked in. Felicity didn’t want to think about them being that grown up though, even the thought of it made her heart ache in her chest.

Cody turned around and walked towards her. She had the common decency to look guilty at being caught, but the only thing that he did was smile at her. He grabbed one of her hands with his own and then used the other to close the door so that they wouldn’t wake their children. “Are the cookies done?”

“Thank the gods, yes,” she laughed. “The girls give you any trouble?”

“You’re asking about our girls? Not Logan and Gan’s hellion?” he asked with a small chuckle. He kissed the knuckles of her hand as he led her further down the hall. “I’m sorry if my singing scared you, I know I don’t have a very good voice. I just… I saw that song in one of the books that Harold gave us and I thought that it would make Christmas Eve even more special. I’ve been singing it to them since they were newborns.”

“Cody, your voice is amazing!” Felicity gasped like she couldn’t believe that he had just said that. “And I think that you doing that for them is so sweet. I’m so glad that I married you.”

He paused and turned towards her, his spare hand coming to rest on her cheek. He traced his thumb over her cheekbone for a few seconds before he leaned in for a kiss. “I love you.”

She closed the distance between them. “I love you, too.”

[oh-three]

Send me headcanons and tell me about your pet for the sleepover asks

Headcanons:

Cobb Vanth has never left Tatooine before.

Din Djarin is touch-starved.

Boba Fett is overly friendly with those he's closest to and randomly bear-hugs them if he's not seen them in a long time. (In the Mandoverse era)

Fives & Wrecker would be chaotic besties.

Young Tech forbiddingly studied a lot of things behind the instructors' backs. The Kaminoans gave up trying to train him out of it.

Omega actually was being trained as a medical assistant to Nala Se, and helped perform many different surgical operations.

Tech also has extensive medical knowledge, having had some extra medical training on top of everything else. (Still, he froze when one of their own was gravely injured for the first time.)

Tech often overextends himself to the point of passing out.

The Bad Batch would visit Cut's family when on leave.

Surface Pau’ans have a naming ritual for their young two-hundred and ten days after birth (six months, they just keep track by the day since full moons don’t work with there being nine of them)

Pau'an features darken with age, becoming more of the gray-white than the pristine white of youth. And their eyes, the irises gradually turn from gray to black.

My pets:

Brandy- the sole dog of the house. She's a cross between a Border Collie and a Black Lab, and almost nine and a half years old. We got her when she was a puppy, one of my mom's friends rescuing her from the home of someone who didn't know how to care for her. (We had another dog named Hardy, he was ten or eleven when he passed in 2020- there was a big change in Brandy's behavior after losing him, because he'd always been here with her)

Clyde- second oldest cat and the one we've had the longest. We got him and his sister from a foster home when they were kittens. She ended up having heart problems and having to be put down before reaching a year of age, and he's doing very well. He's overweight, always has been, but dieting only helps so much. He's twelve, now, and lost a tooth the other week.

Sassy- our oldest cat and the one we've had second longest. She was around three years old when we got her from the shelter, who had got her off of empty land off of the housing areas here. It's taken years to coach the aggressiveness out of her, and she still starts fights with Clyde despite going on thirteen herself.

GrayD- we got him from the same shelter we got Sassy at. Wouldn't stop meowing from the other side of the glass, and my youngest brother decided that's the one we were getting. He has a brother, and we saw him online again last year looking for a new home. Had the same name, coloring and shared GrayD's fur-length (they were kittens when we first saw them). I'm glad it's GrayD that we chose, though, because he has more personality than any other cat I've met. They're turning seven this year.

Rocket- got him from a different shelter, picked out again by my youngest brother. (My other brother picked Sassy out, and I'd picked out Sabrina, who'd passed after less than a year of having her in 2020). His original name was Jansky, and my dad hated it. He's named for his love for running around, and because he does kinda resemble Rocket the Racoon in his facial features. He's the only cat that we haven't declawed, so I still do get scratches by him a bit (he chose me as his favorite person). He's our quietest cat, doesn't meow much- and it's still quite high pitched despite him going on two this year. I carry him around on my shoulder, and he likes to rub his face on the corner of my glasses. My cat bestie.

Top image: Brandy

Bottom image, left to right: GrayD, Clyde (back), Rocket, Sassy