#thread (wise men say)

[clambuoyance]

[DC] doodled these two a lot this week

[lcngstcryshcrt]

@david-kawena

Nani kicked her feet up on David's coffee table, sinking back into his couch, nursing a glass of wine. She still got a little thrill every time she caught sight of him, shock and joy registering as chills all over her body.

Reorienting her world to recognize that he was here. In the flesh.

She darted her eyes across the room and blushed. Just the broad expanse of his back, still standing at the counter in the kitchen.

Since she was a teenager, David had always been there. The last year and a half in Evermore had been the first time she'd been without David. And it had been... hard. Really really hard.

He was her rock, her north star. He'd been there through the worst of the storm, right after losing her parents, learning how to be not only a big sister but a parent to Lilo.

He'd been there when Stitch had crash-landed, when Jumba and Pleakley had barreled into their lives, when she'd almost lost her baby sister.

And she loved him. So much.

"Cute place," she called to him, wiggling down into the cushion a little further.

[ohxnxnani]

@pudgefeeder

Weeks had passed in frosty silence after Nani and Lilo's fight. Stubborn as mules, both Pelekai sisters. The semester was drawing to a close, Nani's plans for summer work looming on the horizon. She'd submitted her application and was waiting anxiously. And with the end of her school work, came a gnawing guilt growing with each passing day.

Finally, she caved, bringing home a bundle of grocery bags, putting her bundle of nerves into slicing all the fruit she could find and piling it into a bowl to share.

Nani walked down the hall, pausing briefly before knocking on Lilo's door.

[chanelrolls]

Love & Deepspace Men reacting to you giving them head while they drive

warnings. mdni, nsfw, explicit content, sexual themes, blowjob, dick-sucking

pairings. sylus, zayne, rafayel, xavier, caleb (separate) x reader

notes. it's my first time to write a full-blown nsfw piece so please excuse me if it doesn't come as good. anyway, requests are very much open.

SYLUS

Sylus is focused, one hand on the wheel, the other resting against the gear shift—relaxed, poised, in control. Or at least, he was.

You lean in, lips ghosting over his thigh, barely a whisper of contact. At first, there’s no reaction—no sharp inhale, nor a startled twitch. Just the steady, unwavering presence of him, ever composed.

You press another kiss, this time firmer, lingering just a little longer against the fabric of his pants. His grip tightens. "You’re playing a dangerous game, kitten."

His lips curl into a slow, knowing smirk. His leg shifts slightly, as if to subtly press closer to your lips, but before you can take the invitation, his fingers suddenly catch your chin, tilting your face toward him.

He doesn’t look away from the road, but his grip is firm, thumb brushing against your lower lip with deliberate slowness. "If you’re going to test my patience," he murmurs, voice impossibly low, "at least be prepared for what happens when you lose."

"By all means, don't let me stop you," Sylus would purr, a wicked glint in his eyes as he watched you work on his shackles. "In fact, I insist you continue. Show me what that pretty mouth of yours can really do." He'd chuckle darkly, the sound rumbling through his chest.

Sylus would make no move to stop you, instead watching with a critical eye as if evaluating your performance. His breathing would remain steady, his heart rate barely increasing, a testament to his ironclad self-control. He was Sylus, after all. Nothing could ruffle his feathers, least of all a little roadside dalliance.

"Faster," he'd command, a smirk tugging at his lips. "Put your back into it, sweetheart. I know you can do better than that." His fingers would tighten in your hair, guiding your movements, pushing you to take him even deeper. "That's it, just like that."

He'd grip the steering wheel harder, his knuckles turning white as he fought the urge to surge forward, to take over, to claim his pleasure for himself.

And when he can't hold himself back anymore, he forces the tip to rub against your throat, and you wince in response, but he doesn't bugde, no, he keeps you there. "Keep going," He'd say, teasingly rubbing his tip against your throat, not caring about the way that you're already tearing up. "Don't you dare stop now. I want to see you finish what you started."

And then, suddenly—the car swerves. You barely register the motion before he pulls onto a quiet side road, the tires crunching against gravel as he slows to a stop.

Then, finally, he turns to you fully—one hand still on the wheel, the other trailing down your jaw, tracing the line of your throat before gripping the base of your neck. His touch is light, teasing, but there’s an unmistakable warning behind it.

"Congratulations," he murmurs, tilting your face up, "You got my attention."

ZAYNE

Zayne drives with precise, almost mechanical ease. One hand rests on the wheel, the other draped over the console between you.

Your fingers skim along his thigh first, light and teasing, tracing patterns against the fine material of his slacks. He doesn’t react. Instead, he exhales steadily, like someone who anticipated your next move before you even thought to make it.

Lips grazing over the fabric, the warmth of your breath seeping through, so close yet still not quite enough. Then, his fingers flex. "Do you think this is wise?"

A few beats pass in silence, and you almost think he’s going to ignore it completely, let it roll off his shoulders like he does with most things. But then, suddenly, his hand moves.

Not in warning. Not in restraint.

But to press you down. Fingers threading into your hair, keeping you close, firmly and deliberately, like he’s giving you a choice but already knows what you’ll pick.

"You're trying very hard to test me tonight," he murmurs, and now his voice is lower, rougher, something just a touch undone.

And when you finally took him into your mouth, he'd let out a low, sharp inhale through his teeth, his jaw clenching as he fought to maintain control. He'd say your name, voice strained, "we're in the middle of a..." He'd trail off, his words lost in a soft groan as you took him deeper.

Despite his initial surprise, Zayne would make no move to stop you, instead trying to focus on the road ahead. He was a pragmatic man, after all, and he knew the dangers of distracted driving. But damn if your sloppy mouth wasn't making it hard to concentrate.

"Careful," he'd warn, his voice a low rumble. "I don't want to cause an accident." But his words were undercut by the way he rolled his hips slightly, pushing himself deeper into your mouth.

Suddenly, he lets his grip loosen, fingers tracing the nape of your neck before slipping away entirely.

And then—just as quickly—he accelerates. The car surges forward, the sudden force pressing you back against your seat, "That's enough," the air shifting around you as he drives faster, sharper, more reckless than before.

He exhales slowly, smoothing a hand over his tie, regaining that signature poise—but when he finally speaks again, his voice carries that same unshakable authority as always. "Seatbelt on," A small pause, then, "You’ll need it."

RAFAYEL

He’s humming some tune under his breath, something slow. Then, your hand moves first, fingers gliding over the firm muscle of his thigh, innocently enough that he doesn’t react right away. But when your lips followed after, pressing into the fabric of his slacks, his hum falters.

Then stops entirely. For a moment, all you hear is the steady hum of the engine. The way his grip subtly tightens on the wheel. Then—

"You’re a real menace, y’know that?"

His voice is airy, light—like he’s amused, pretending to be unfazed. But you don’t miss the way his breath hitches when you press another kiss, this time dangerously close to the inside of his thigh.

He exhales sharply, tongue swiping over his bottom lip. "Go on," he muses, tilting his head slightly, glowing eyes flicking down at you, and dark with something indulgent. "See what happens, cutie."

You know exactly what will happen. Because Rafayel is all bark until he’s bitten. Until he’s whimpering, breathless, fingers trembling with the effort of keeping control he never really had in the first place.

And when you do press forward, when you start to eat him out, he lets out a sound—soft, bitten off, caught between a laugh and something much filthier.

Rafayel lets out a startled gasp as your lips wrapped around his sensitive cock, his hips jerking forward involuntarily. "H-hey, what do you think you're doing?" as if he didn't challenge you outright.

He tangles his fingers in your hair, not pushing you down, but not pulling you off either, torn between his desire and his stubborn pride. "I never said you could just... just do this, you know," His nose wrinkles in a mixture of annoyance and arousal. "Such a bold little thing, taking what you want without asking..."

But even as he spoke, Rafayel's body betrayed him, his cock twitching and throbbing against your tongue, growing harder by the second. He bites his lip, trying to stifle the moan that threatened to spill out while you swirled your tongue around the sensitive head, lapping up the bead of pre-cum that had already formed at the tip.

"Nngh... y-you're not going to distract me that easily," Rafayel insisted, even as his grip on your hair tightened, his fingers trembling slightly. "I'm not just going to let you... ah! ...just take control like this, without even asking me first!" He tried to sound indignant, all the while rocking his hips to match your movements.

"Y-you're... hah... you're not going to win this way," Rafayel panted, his face flushed and his eyes glazed over with lust. "I won't let you... just... just have your way with me like this..." But even as he spoke, his head fell back against the headrest, his eyes fluttering shut as the pleasure entirely consumed him.

XAVIER

The night stretches long ahead, the road open, the streetlights casting fleeting shadows across Xavier’s sharp profile. His hand rests on the wheel, fingers drumming idly, while the other is perched casually on the gear shift.

Leaning in, you press your lips against the inside of his thigh, soft and fleeting, just enough for him to feel it. Then, his whole body goes rigid.

His foot presses down a little too hard on the gas before he corrects, rolling his shoulders back like it was nothing, like you didn’t just do that.

A muscle in his jaw twitches. "Don’t start." His voice is firm, clipped—but there’s something beneath it, something unraveling at the edges.

You don’t listen. You never do. Another kiss, slower this time, your breath warm against denim.

His fingers tighten around the wheel. "I said—" He stops, inhaling sharply through his nose. A slow, controlled breath—like he’s trying to center himself.

But then he does something unexpected. He shifts in his seat, just slightly—just enough for his thigh to press closer against your lips.

Your lips curl. "Thought you said not to start," you murmur, letting the heat of your breath fan against the fabric of his jeans.

Xavier smiles to glance at you—a short, breathy huff coming out of his lips, almost like he hates that you caught him. "I also told myself I wouldn’t let you get to me."

He keeps driving. Still in control. Still composed. But you can feel it—the tension in his shoulders, the way his body is slowly but surely giving in. "...Keep going," he murmurs, almost absently, like he’s already resigned himself to the inevitable.

He would keep himself unnervingly still and eyes on the road while you lap up his girth, but barely seeing it. "When have you gotten good... at this?"

As Xavier would reach his peak, he'd let out a sharp, hissed intake of breath through clenched teeth, his body going rigid for a moment. He'd rasp, your name a little more than a breathless whisper.

Then, with a sudden, violent jerk of his hips, he'd bury himself deep in your throat, his thick, hot seed erupting forth in thick, heavy spurts.

Xavier's eyes would flutter shut, his head falling back against the headrest as he rode out the intense waves of his climax.

A low, guttural moan would rumble in his chest, a sound of pure, unadulterated pleasure that seemed to echo through the confines of the car. His fingers would tighten in your hair, holding you in place as he emptied himself into your eager mouth, ensuring you took every last drop of his essence

As the final, weak spurts dribbled out, Xavier would slump back in his seat, his chest heaving as he struggled to catch his breath.

A sheen of sweat glistened on his brow, and a faint flush colored his usually pallid cheeks. He'd shoot you a heated look, his eyes half-lidded but intense as they raked over your face. "Swallow it."

CALEB

Caleb would react to a sudden blowjob while driving with a mix of intense arousal and possessive desire lurking beneath the surface.

His eyes would flash with a fierce, hungry light as he glanced down at you, grip tightening on the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white.

"Oh, you're brave, huh?," he'd growl, your name falling from his lips like a dark promise. "You're playing dirty, my love."

Despite his words, he made no move to stop you, and instead of grabbing your hair, his veiny hand finds your nape, holding you in place as you worked over his throbbing cock. "Silly girl, trying to distract me like this..."

Caleb's hips would start to rock, fucking into your hot mouth with a growing sense of urgency. "Fuck, baby, your mouth feels so good," he'd pant, his voice rough and strained with pleasure.

As his climax approached, Caleb's eyes would darken, a fierce, almost manic light burning in their depths. "You're mine, you're... mine." he'd rasp, his voice a dark, dangerous rumble. "Only mine. And I won't let anyone, not even you, take that away from me." He'd tighten his grip on your nape, a touch of pain mingling with the pleasure.

He always had a habit of continuously praising and showering you possessive nothings while reaching for his climax.

With a harsh, animalistic cry, Caleb would reach his peak, his hot seed spurting forth to fill your mouth. "Fuck, yes, take it all!" Even pushing himself deeper to the point you wouldn't be able to breathe anymore.

And after he cums? "I'm not done yet." He pulls over the side of the road, and gets on you. Literally.

[potchi-fics]

note: this is all i got cus im really busy this week. ill probably write them having sex soon, just not right now. listened to do i wanna know by hozier while writing this

part two

      the warlord, ambessa medarda, has never encountered someone bold enough to stand their ground against her.

til she met you. an empress of a nation, never afraid to stand up for your people. so when you held your chin up high, chest out, gaze never wavering when you spoke to her, it sparked interest within her soul.

“pride like yours is a death sentence, general. i cannot give you what you want as it endangers my people.” not once did your voice falter, you bring your hand to gesture to your guards, “leave us. escort the general’s as well.”

a wolfish grin takes over her features, “is that your way of saying that you want me all to yourself, your majesty?” her eyes never left yours even when her men are gone, “i must say, i have some thoughts about professional entanglements.”

“arrogance, pride, egotism. thread lightly, general.” you cross your legs on where you sit, the back of your hand supporting your chin—your throne, looking down at her, “i will simply propose a contract. one that would…benefit both our nations.”

you see her raise an eyebrow, the scar above just barely stretching. “and what is that exactly?”

“resources. i know your kind, general. you desire to have power, to control, to take over, and i will not simply let that happen. i will lay down hell on you if you even dare to think of doing that to my land.” eyes devoid of warmth or life, you threaten the warlord standing before you, taking notice of her tensing shoulders, “i know that you are capable of doing that, however, IF we do come to that, i’m afraid the effects of the aftermath will last for more than a lifetime to our nations.”

ambessa’s glare sharpens, your words striking a nerve, “it is not wise to threaten me, your majesty.”

“i am not.”

“what do you call that?”

“the truth.”

      you are bold, confident, daring; it sends shivers up her spine. you are staring daggers at her from where you sit, unmoving, assessing her from head to toe. she should be insulted, but she’s not.

oh, she will have you. 

“i am in agreement with what you have proposed, your majesty.” she bows her head, refusing to kneel to you. 

      you swear on your life that you will have her on her knees for you. 

you rise to your feet, descending down the stairs to stand in front of her, she never took her eyes off of you. ambessa leans down as you signal for her to do so. gently, you take her face in your hands, turning her head to the side so that you can press your cheek against her.

her towering figure presence easily overshadows your entire frame. but you are not intimated—matter of fact, it entices you. 

your whisper caresses her ear like the wind, “wonderful. consider this a treaty of peace, general.”

      the faintest sensation of her jaw clenching against your cheek reaches you. you are playing a dangerous game; dousing a fire with fuel never ends well.

she slowly wraps an arm around your waist, her fingers lightly grazing against your back.

“careful now, lamb.”

[lcngstcryshcrt]

Steering her sister through the throng, Nani glared at anyone who even looked their way, single-minded on getting her away from here and home, where she could fuss over Lilo and truly make sure she was okay.

"Yes, we'll go straight home," she reassured her again, squeezing her shoulders as they dodged around a few more people.

What Nani didn't add, and was trying so hard to keep down, was this:

And I swear this will never happen again. I'm never letting you leave my sight again.

She knew this was ridiculous, that she was just overreacting, but still the thought pounded through her head with such intensity. All Nani had ever wanted was for Lilo to feel safe and the very thought of there being some kind of... Power? Force? Entity? Out there beyond her control that could make that untrue absolutely killed her.

And she'd do anything for her sister.

(END)

The knot of panic she had felt swelling in her chest unraveled when Nani told her not to worry, knowing that her sister would go as far as she had to, to stop them from taking Lilo away. Not that they could, now... but she wasn't sure that feeling would ever truly go away.

And really, she didn't have anything useful to say. All of her memories were just broken up, they didn't make much sense. They would be better off interviewing everyone else first, maybe someone knew something she didn't.

Standing silently as Nani scribbled out her number and willed the man away, her eyes wandered, watching the others around them. So many people, but she couldn't recall seeing any of them where she was... "Can we go home?" She asked softly, her eyes moving back to Nani, ignoring the officer's presence completely.

[lcngstcryshcrt]

@david-kawena

It was just a regular Thursday morning.

Nani was just walking to the office, swinging her briefcase with a lightness in her heart that she hadn't felt in a few months, the cool air sneaking down her collar to kiss her collarbones and send shivers racing up the back of her neck as the wind plucked her hair, shoving it back over her shoulders.

It was nothing like the brisk wind off the ocean, tinged with salt, but it still felt good to turn her face into the breeze, breathing deep and feel like it was cleansing her heavy soul.

Nani's eyes opened and landed on a familiar figure coming up the sidewalk toward her. She froze in place, lips parting in surprise and for a moment, thought she might have to pinch herself.

Because there was no way that this was her David walking toward her, face so familiar that her heart twisted as though it was trying to flee her chest.

All the air left her lungs in a whoosh, then pulled back in sharply as she gasped,

"David?!"

[ohxnxnani]

The missing posters rustled as Nani dropped the remainder of her stack on the table. She rubbed a hand over her face, heaving a sigh.

Maybe a hot shower would help her relax for a bit. Then she immediately felt guilty for the thought, when Lilo was God knows where. Was she hurt? Was she hungry? She swallowed hard, clutching the back of one of the kitchen chairs to re-ground herself.

Whirling on a heel, Nani started down the hallway toward the bathroom. As she passed Lilo's room, she noticed the door hanging open, the sunlight illuminating the room. Hadn't she closed it before she left?

She pushed the door open, heart speeding up, half expecting to see Lilo cross-legged on the bed, looking up at her with an expectant grin.

Instead, she found Stitch. Sagging against the door frame, she cleared her throat.

"What are you doing in here?"

@626bxtch

[shootingstarpilot]

Do you have any advice for writing Mace Windu?

Hello friend! I've been sitting on this for a while, because everyone's got their own interpretations, but mine is based on an idea I was struggling to put words to.

(Caveat that I have not read Legends material, that people can write what they like, etc. etc.)

The way I see it, Lucas specializes in writing stories in terms of themes and archetypes. This is why certain dialogue choices or the development of certain relationships can be... clunky, let's go with that. Characters (Obi-Wan and Anakin fall into their own category, sure) are written primarily as archetypes. You have Yoda as the wise old sage, Sidious as the ultimate evil-

And Mace Windu as the ultimate good.

We see this in the Chancellor's office, right? During the final showdown. This is the moment where Anakin makes his choice- stay in the Light or Fall- and the characters visually representing that choice are Palpatine and Mace. He's the Master of the Order. He's raised a Padawan who sits on the Council with him. He's an incredibly skilled swordsman- hell, his fighting style of choice (Vaapad) epitomizes how clearly he's mastered the art of internal balance!

All of that to say- his whole character is built around the idea that he is the Good Guy. That would be the one piece of writing advice I would give. If you're wondering how to write him, start with that idea- that he is written to represent the absolute opposite of Sidious. He's the ultimate good. He is the illuminating Light to Sidious' corrupting Dark. This is why antagonistic portrayals of him never ring true to me- they're coming from a foundational understanding that I simply do not subscribe to. It reeks of a fundamental misunderstanding of his character and of the whole saga's themes.

(And also racism. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the racism that too often plays a significant role.)

All of that being said, what might it look like to write from the foundation of Mace being the representation of ultimate good? The good thing about characters being written as archetypes is that it gives us fans a significant amount of freedom in determining what those characters look like when they're written as characters. Different people will have different takes, but for me:

Well, first off- he's the epitome of a Jedi. So all of what that entails- he is fundamentally kind, fundamentally compassionate, and fundamentally in control of himself.

He's funny. I think he has a very dry sense of humor, and that he finds joy in the smallest things.

He loves so much. He loves his Padawan, he loves his friends, he loves his family, he loves the Republic- he loves the galaxy enough to go to war for it, and he loves the men who'll kill his people.

There will never be a situation where he has the capacity to help and chooses not to.

And last but not least, I choose to believe that this man can bake pastries with the best of them. In my heart of hearts, he's a stress baker, and he mends his socks with purple thread.

Hope this helps!

[ohxnxnani]

Guilt flooded Nani as the words flew from her mouth, cheeks flushing red as the shop owner took the paper from her hand and looked down at the picture she'd chosen. A moment frozen in time, Christmas presents cropped from the frame, features as clear as she could find. She'd been working so hard to keep that fiery temper in check, breathing exercises and pauses to stop the flash fire that burned through her veins and sent her hurtling over the edge of her patience.

Nani met his eyes, chin set stubbornly, swallowing hard.

"Thank you," she clipped back, swiping the roll of tape. Her hands shook as she curled the material over itself, meticulously lining up the corners so it would look tidy in the window.

"Nothing useful. The mayor claims he's dumping all his resources into this. The police told me to put up these posters, so I'm sure others are as well. They told me to keep the lights on at night in case she wanders back to the apartment, like she just went for a walk," Nani replied, voice choking on the last sentence. She stopped, breathing deeply and blinking back tears.

"You lost someone?"

More a statement then a question, but Nani pulled herself together and looked up at the shop owner again.

the stranger's return of angered words was not something hook was well equipped to handle; not in a way that was socially acceptable, anyways. it wasn't something he had ever acclimated to — defiance — not used to the resistance of his rage or the reflection of it back at him. however, now, the fury was blinding. there was no sense, no reason, no time to fine tune or manipulate how he was perceived for the sake of keeping his agendas hidden . . . all he knew now was the ache of loss and the grief of confusion coupled with the catapult of anger that came in the form of a speared tongue in the stranger's direction.

however . . . hook's gaze lowered to the flyer, the face of a round-faced girl with bulging cheeks as her smile pushed up the apples grinning back at him, the glow of her eyes and the excitement that sparkled in them apparent even in though it was just a photograph. whilst hook wasn't the most empathetic or the most sentimental in the slightest . . . he tightened his jaw and drew back in the pain-struck wolf within long enough to tear his eyes away from the photo and meet the stare of the woman adjacent to him. " you can hang it in the window , " he barked, gesturing with a hand towards the glass. he turned, moving behind the abandoned counter, grabbing a roll of tape from the drawer before slamming it haphazardly atop the counter. " have they told you anything ?? " his tone was sharp, unwavering, stern. perhaps family got a more detailed report than the public . . . and hook knew for certain that zarina didn't have him listed as her emergency contact.

[laurasimonsdaughter]

Crying pearls in folklore

I've always loved the concept of tears turning to pearls. It shows up scattered across various folklore traditions, but I never realised how often it is linked to laughter that turns to roses, until I stared actively collecting them. I've got 9 so far, and also some interesting variations on the theme!

● Woud and Freid (Bavaria Germany, collected by Schönwerth in the 1850s). A variation on the saga about Freya and Odin, one account written in the 14th century, in which Freya/Freid gets a magnificent necklace by sleeping with the dwarves who made it. The powerful Woud leaves his equally powerful wife Freid for this infidelity, causing her to weep pearls while she searches for him. When she finds him she has wept as many pearls as there were in the necklace. They reconcile.

● Pearl Tears (Bavaria Germany, collected by Schönwerth in the 1850s). A girl, Maria, has the Virgin Mary for her godmother. After staying with her for a while she goes home to her father and step family and finds out she now cries pearls and laughs roses. After escaping their abuse the Virgin Mary gives her a castle to live in and she spends her days helping the ill and the poor.

● Rose Laughter and Pearl Tears (Muradina nail olmayan dilber [The beauty who did not gain her fortune], Turkey, collected by Saim Sakaoglu in the 1960's). The gifts of this heroine are roses when she laughs, pearls when she cries, grass growing wherever she walks, and her bath water turns to gold when she's done. She goes through a false bride/true bride plot that ends in a Sleeping Beauty plot before she is woken and married.

● The Goose-Girl at the Well (Die Gänsehirtin am Brunnen, Germany, printed by the Grimms in 1815.) In this story the youngest of three princesses is born weeping pearls and gems. She is driven away by her father after saying she loves him like she loves salt, but is found by a young count while she tends the geese for a wise woman, and reunited with her sorrowful parents.

● The Three Gifts, (Poland, from: Folk-Lore and Legends: Russian and Polish, 1890). A mistreated stepdaughter gives alms to an old man and is blessed by three mysterious young men to have her tears turn to pearls, her laughter produce roses, and to have golden fish appear in whatever water she touches. The girl's stepsister gets cursed like in Diamonds and Toads/The Two Fairies and a false/true bride plot follows. [Almost identical to Tears of Pearls, from: Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen, 1896. (Thank you @rabbitwhiterabbit!)]

● The Golden Duck (Die Goldne Ente, Germany and/or Czechia, from: Jacob Grimm's 1810 handwritten manuscript, at least partly based on a literary version of the tale in Sagen der böhmischen Vorzeit, 1808. Available in Dutch as a footnote to The White and the Black Bride.) A woman with one daughter takes in her orphaned niece and nephew. One day a good fairy disguised as an old woman asks for hospitality and rewards them for their kind treatment of her. The foster daughter gets blessed above all: her tears will turn to pearls, she will comb gold thread from her hair, and her saliva turns to silver. She must be veiled and protected against fresh air to keep the magic intact however. What follows is a rather complicated version of the "true bride switched for false bride" plot.

● The Sisters Who Envied Their Cadette (Histoire des deux sœurs jalouses de leur cadette, from Antoine Galland’s French One Tousand and One Nights, collected from 18th century Syrian storyteller Hanna Diyab). The ruler of Persia overhears three sisters talking, the youngest of them declares that if she got to marry the king she would give him a child with hair of gold and silver, their tears will become pearls and whenever they smile, rosebuds will appear. It happens like she predicts, but her envious sisters steal the baby and fairy tale (mis)fortune ensues. [Thank you @tattedpetticoats!]

● The Snake (La Biscia, Italy, composed by Italo Calvino in the 1950's from a Piedmontese and Tuscan variant of Straparola's literary fairy tale Biancabella and the Serpent). A snake blesses a kind farmer's daughter with three charms: shedding tears of pearl and silver, shedding golden pomegranate seeds when she laughs and producing fish of every kind when she washes her hands. Her envious sisters see to it she is locked up in the attic, but a magic pomegranate tree grows from the seeds of her laughter and the prince wishes to marry whoever can pick its fruits. The sisters try to kill and take their younger sister's place, but of course she prevails. [Thank you @m-siecle!]

The Rose-laughing Queen (A Rózsát Nevető Királykisasszony, Hungarian, many variants exist.). A princess who weeps pearls, laughs roses and leaves gold where she steps is betrayed and abandoned on the way to her fiancée the prince, and switched with a witches' daughter. She is saved by a kind gardener, becomes a maid to the false bride, and is revealed when the bride hits her and she weeps pearls in front of the prince. [Thank you @susannaius!]

Stories I've seen mentioned have this motif but that I haven't found yet:

Apparently some Polynesian mythology features gods crying pearls.

Chinese folklore to do with jiaoren and dragons is referred to as concerning tears and pearls.

The Golden Girl, from Uzbekistan.

The Maiden Who Laughs Roses and Weeps Pearls, from Greece, indexed by Jack Zipes.

The relatively new ATU tale type The Blinded Bride includes the heroine producing gold, jewels, flowers or pearls from her body in some way, including crying. (Research by C. Goldberg.)

A Persian/Iranian tale indexed by Ulrich Marzolph under type 403, Die Mädchen Blumenlacher.

Several variants of the tale type "The Maiden (Youth) with a Separable Soul in a Necklace" mention the heroine also being blessed with weeing pearls.

Some interesting variants with gems instead of pearls:

● The Fairy who cried Gems (Ladakh, several variants exist). A boy fiends a fairy weeping from loneliness in a beautiful palace. Her tears all turn to gems. After comforting her she gifts him a single tear shaped gem. Possession of the gem leads to the boy being threatened by the greedy land owner, but the fairy helps the boy defeat him. (A more elaborate version The King and the Jewel, can be read in: Folk-Tales of Ladakh, 1975)

● The Legend of Apache Leap and the Apache Tears (Apache, origin presumably 1870). Around seventy-five Apache warriors, killed or driven to their death by the US Cavalry, are mourned by their families near the cliff where they died. Their tears either turn to obsidian or are embedded into obsidian stones, preserving their translucence. These obsidian tears are said to bring good luck (or prevent sorrow needful of tears) to those who find/carry them. (Thank you @rabbitwhiterabbit!)

● The Golden Necklace (Afghanistan, collected and translated by Wahid Omar from Jhanara Amin in 1992). A merchant's wife hides her newborn baby girl in the cellar so her father will not kill her. Growing up pale and sickly in the dark, five angels find her and bless her with the Necklace of Life to make her healthy, golden bricks wherever she walks, laughter that turns to flowers, and tears that turn to emeralds. When she is a young woman her mother sends the girl to her uncle, a king, begging him to protect her and let her marry his only son. But the girl's nanny betrays her and a false bride/true bride plot follows, with somewhat of a Rapunzel flavour mixed in.

Tales which feature a similar gift, but without the tears:

● Diamonds and Toads, or: The Fairies, French literary fairy tale by Perrault: jewel or flower falls from the blessed girl's mouth at every word.

● The Three Little Men in the Wood, the Grimms, blessing from three little men in the woods is she will grow prettier every day, gold will fall from her mouth at every word, and she will one day marry a king.

● The True Bride, Nlakapamuk tale from North America that features a protagonist who spits nuggets of gold.

● Biancabella and the Snake, Italian literary fairy tale by Straparola, in which Biancabella gains the power to have pearls and gems fall from her hair when combed, and roses, violets and other flowers spring up around her hands when she washes them.

● Gulkhandaran's Flower, a Kurdish folktale in which a beautiful ifrit has a jewel fall from her mouth whenever she smiles or laughs, her cousin Gulkhandaran has flowers fall from her mouth when she laughs.

[for-a-longlongtime]

Hey Anon, I saw your message this morning! 💜

You pointed out "Yall need to be careful of bi erasure" and linked to a post someone made about me. I appreciate the heads up! To be honest, I’m not concerned about people suggesting that I’m doing bi erasure. Whether it’s regarding Pedro characters in canon, head canons, or bisexuality in any other way. But hey, everybody can have their opinion about things, including what they think about me.

I dont talk much about myself here, but my tumblr bio has said from day 1 that I’m a bi woman. My master list mentions most of my fic “is queer (m/m, bi4bi, m/m/f, non-binary and trans characters)”. Folks who have read my fic know I've written pairings where every character is explicitly bi ( Frankie x f!reader x Santi; Peña x Rockford x OFC; Ezra x f!reader x Benny Miller, and WIPs with Joel and Marcus M, Frankie x f!reader x OFC and Maximus x Acacius x Lucilla).

Can bisexual people still do bi erasure? Sure!

Do I worry whether straight folks or other random folks online think I'm involved in bi erasure? Nahhh.

Anyway, I did make some posts the other day based on anons submitted to me about issues re: queer representation in this fandom. Let me just direct you to the several posts I made on that day, which started in response to a question about Renaldo:

"Was Renaldo Gay in the SNL sketch?? I've seen a lot of blogs saying he wasn't?". TL;DR version of my response: the ending of the song states "word to the wise, if you've got wives, hide them from the three bros!" suggesting that Renaldo, Domingo, and Santiago all hook up with women/wives. Considering Renaldo hooked up with Matthew, that probably makes him bisexual (and not the fact that he had Sophie, aka Sabrina's character, dancing up on him) - or queer, or someone who doesn't like to label himself. However, while 'hide your wives' works linguistically as a great punch line to wrap up the song, it does not refer to Renaldo's affair with Matthew (now that is bi erasure, if you wanna be exact), so I did point out that 'hide your spouses' would've been more accurate - but understandably, that's not as catchy. I'm currently writing a Renaldo x Matthew one shot, and I said my headcanon has Renaldo as gay - but that's my interpretation/hc/fic.

Someone wrote to me: Some blogs in the fandom is hellbent on taking away any attention away from anything mlm based with his characters anyway so it wouldn't matter in Renaldo was gay - someone would find a loophole to make him like women. TL;DR I agreed, because there are people who definitely do that. It became part of a longer thread of reblogs with some other folks in which we talked about how Pedro's mlm (men loving men) characters, such as Oberyn, Dieter and Silva in particular, either tend to be canonized primarily as bisexual by people but in fic are almost always paired with women (f!reader or OFCs). Which is fine, but people are definitely interested in seeing more m/m representation for those characters. Someone also brought up that when Pedro characters are paired with non-binary reader inserts or OC, it tends to be mostly afab!nb (or afab!trans characters), and that they were surprised that there weren't more amab!nb characters - that's a great point too.

I made a post with an anon message that pointed out "MLM includes bi, pan and queer men. They might like women. (And/or other genders, but they still like men)". Very correct!

Finally, there was an excellent long message from an anon saying "We need more representation of bi people in same-gender relationships represented" and that even in threesomes or throuples (fic) that include two men, there should ideally be more mlm representation. Once again, I fully agree. Everybody should write whatever they want, but I do often see threesomes that are listed as Pedro Character 1 x reader x Pedro Character 2, but in the fic it's more like reader having sex with two straight men at the same time while they're trying to not cross swords, rather than mlm being represented. THIS IS DEFINITELY CHANGING THOUGH: it's wonderful to see a big increase of mlm characters in threesomes/throuple fics over the past year!

So here is my main issue with a lot of people who are raging about 'bi erasure', and why I've made several posts about queerness within this fandom (not just recently, but from the start). Of course bisexual people exist (hello, it me, for one). Pull up some statistics if you want: there are a lot more folks who identify as bisexual than there are folks who identify as gay or lesbian. I'm an older millenial, so if you wanna talk about bi erasure: the measure in which it happens today is nothing compared to the bi erasure and deeply engrained homophobia we experienced in our teens and twenties from society at large. However:

🏳‍🌈 In your rush to point out bisexuals exist, you're shutting down a much broader dialogue with people within the LGBTQIA+ community. 🏳‍🌈

Because have you noticed how gay men, nonbinary/genderqueer fans, amab!trans or amab!nonbinary FANS (not fic characters; I'm talking actual people) are extremely underrepresented in this fandom? In addition to in fic? And that these fans won't have their fiction or actual posts shared all that much? Or that when they carefully speak up, e.g. about being happy to see Pedro portray Silva as a gay character, they're immediately rebuffed and called biphobic or that they're trying to erasure bisexuality?

Yeah. That part.

It's messed up.

Nobody is even making demands. Nobody is even saying "what writers are doing is wrong". They're just saying, "This is a bummer". And some of us are pointing out that mlm Pedro characters in m/m pairings are hard to come by, which is too bad because it's not only us queers who read m/m Pedro character pairings - there are lots of straight fans out there who have indicated they like reading that, too.

Are you gonna call that bi erasure? Or marginalization of women? Or anything really except for what it actually is? Fans are just saying "yknow, I wish there were more fans/fic characters/bodies in fic represented in this fandom that look and feel more like me". People seem to have finally understood that in varying degrees when this applies to body type or racial/cultural background (which took many white people a lot longer to fully grasp; BIPOC folks have been saying this for such a long time already) - it's about diversity and wanting to feel included. But when gay or transfolks say this about mlm, a whole bunch of y'all are crying bi erasure?

In short (and I can't believe I need to even fuckin' say this):

The Pedro fandom or its fic does NOT belong exclusively to women.

It does not belong to cis folks, to straight people, or any other particular group of people.

Aren't we all just trying to be a community? Then stop acting like people reading Silva or Renaldo (or any other character) as gay are erasing bisexuality - that's not the case or the damn point.

And anon-- my critique truly isn't directed at you, I'm not dragging you in any way. You took the effort to bring something to my attention, plus you clearly care about people, and I appreciate that a lot. But there are tons of people who don't dare to speak up about this in public settings, so I can't help but take this opportunity to not only clarify what I said earlier -- but also to address the bigger problem at large. Read or write all the gossip blogs you want, by all means, but maybe also consider using that time to actually connect with people.

[witchygagirlwrites]

Consider me Gone-Part 4

Greg "Mouse" Gerwitz x Reader x Jay Halstead/ Gerstead x Reader

What's worse? Someone you love being out of your reach? Or them being close yet further away than they've ever been?

After you finally got Mouse and Jay to go home and profusely apologized to Maggie for the intrusion even though she told you multiple times it didn’t bother her and that she understood why they had taken over her porch you were about to attempt sleep when Ethan called you. Crap, you’d forgotten the meeting. “Hey Ethan. I am so sorry I forgot the meeting. Is there one tomorrow or the next night? I really need to get into one but I had a lot going on”

He chuckled lightly “Yeah I came by Maggies to check on you” you groaned “Did they say anything rude to you? Because I swear I will get dressed right now and go kick their asses” he laughed “Easy ranger, they were civil enough. We just talked” “Good” you breathed, feeling your shoulders relax a bit to know they weren’t rude to the one person you had who knew exactly what you’d been through and was in your corner on that. “How ya feeling after seeing them? You have laid eyes on them for what, a week?”

“Yeah. I don’t know… how would you feel if it was April?” “That good huh?” he replied and you laughed lightly “Yeah. The only way I got them to leave is by telling them I would consider talking to them” “If it’s weighing on your mind you need to get it off. You’re carrying enough” he offered and you smiled slightly “Wise words Dr Choi” he spoke away from the phone then said “April said if you need her to call and that she loves you” “Tell her I will and I love her”

After you hung up with Ethan you still couldn’t sleep so you texted Erin Babe, you up? And she replied for you? Always you smiled and texted back Can we meet for breakfast before work? You laid back on the couch and leaned your head back on the pillow as your phone chimed Ok but I’m buying the pretty little trauma nurse her food

After you’d had breakfast with Erin the shadows in your head felt a little less dark. There was something about having someone who’d fallen down into her own hole and dug herself up right at your side that helped. She listened to everything you had to say, offered her opinion and never judged you. 

You had come to a decision so at lunch time you unlocked your phone, ignoring where Mouse had hacked it days before and changed the wallpaper to a photo of you, him and Jay and clicked the group text thread. There were dozens of texts from both of them, some you’d read others you’d just swiped so the new message alert would go away. 

You took a deep breath and typed You know that diner down from the precinct? Within seconds messages from them both popped up M:Yeah?  J:Yeah?  You hesitated before replying My shift ends at 6. I’ll meet you there at 6:30 ao we can talk you didn’t wait to see their answers right then you just locked your phone and slid it into your scrub pocket then heard Crocket call your name so happily you had an excuse to fall right back into work. 

BORDER

Jay and Mouse both sat staring at their phones. “I’m reading this right, aren’t I?” Jay asked and Mouse nodded slowly “She wants to talk to us” the only question was what did you want to talk about? “Is she telling us to stay away from her for good?” Mouse asked quietly and Jay shrugged “Your guess is as good as mine. The only person here that would know would be Erin. Hell I heard her telling Al she met her for breakfast. Not like she’s telling us anything though”

“Can you blame any of them for choosing her over us?” Mouse asked, cutting his eyes at him. Jay shook his head “No, I didn’t mean to ever make her think what she went through didn’t matter. How do you think I feel every time I see her without a shirt and know those scars are there because she chose to pull me out?” “How do you think I feel, especially knowing she came here looking for comfort after having a panic attack because of my OD?” Mouse questioned and both men fell silent.

Jay stood up and slapped his leg “C’mon. We got work to do. Sitting here wondering isn’t going to change what she plans to tell us” Mouse nodded, standing up and following Jay out of the tech room and upstairs.

When you finally sat down in your car you pulled out your phone to check the text thread J:We’ll meet you there baby  M:We’ll be waiting sweetheart you shook your head at the names. Yeah this was going to be interesting to say the least but you had to take this step, especially after their performance at Maggies. You were not about to inconvenience your friends like that, not when your name was still on that damn mortgage.

________________

You spotted Jay’s truck and parked next to it. You almost checked your reflection in the mirror then remembered it didn’t really matter. You climbed out of the car and headed for the door. The moment you stepped inside you spotted the two of them. They were sitting in a booth in the corner and their eyes locked onto yours. Same as that day you were introduced to the unit. Sky blue eyes and seafoam blue staring you down. 

You took a deep breath and walked towards them. They both stood up when you got closer but you shook your head “Just sit down. Damn” a slight smile slipped onto both of their faces as they sat down. The moment you were across from them the waitress brought over coffee. You raised an eyebrow and Mouse shrugged “I thought you may need some after a shift” 

“Thank you” you spoke low before making the coffee to your taste. You took a sip before finally raising your eyes to meet theirs. “Do you know how bad that pissed me off, you coming to Maggies like that? Not only did you intrude on my privacy but you intruded on hers and you used CPD equipment to do so”

They dropped their gaze to the table but didn’t reply beyond that. “How am I supposed to stay anywhere when I know you two could show up at any given moment and refuse to leave?”

They didn’t raise their gaze so you knocked on the table “Hey, that wasn’t a rhetorical question. What the fuck am I supposed to do?” “Baby we didn’t know what else to do” Jay offered and Mouse met your eyes “Sweetheart just come home”

You swallowed hard “That’s what I’m here to talk to you about” you saw their eyes light up so you shook your head “Don’t do that. I’m not moving back in. My name is still on the mortgage, along with Jay’s. I’m going to come back and sleep in the guest bedroom until Jay can get the mortgage switched over completely in his name and at that time I can try to get a loan to get my own place then”

Mouse blinked fast a few times and you looked away because you knew he was trying to not cry. You couldn’t let him break your heart. You loved him and Jay so damn much but if they couldn’t meet you halfway, if you weren’t indeed the answer to their hearts then why stick around? You were in a battle with your own head half your days as is, all three of you were. Why be in a relationship that only one of you was in with both feet? 

“So we’re supposed to let the love of our lives sleep in the guest room and I’m supposed to go get your name off the mortgage so you can walk away from us?” Jay asked and anger flickered to life in your stomach as your eyes flew to his. 

Both of you had unshed tears shining in your eyes but your tempers were luckily winning out at the moment “Do you love me Jay? Really, do either of you actually love me? Or do you love the woman who has consistently saved your lives from the moment she met you? The one who ran into firefights to ensure you were ok. The one who disobeyed direct orders to get you two out of that humvee. The one who ran after you while you were fucking everything you could get your dick in to try to feel something just to make sure you weren’t getting yourself killed. The woman who dragged herself off a fucking cliffside in Tennesse when she could’ve ended her fucking pain to come home to Chicago to help yours? The woman who went in a window to find Greg half dead on the floor and didn’t care that he threw up all over her only winter coat? The woman who has put you two back together time and again? Do you fucking love me or do you love being saved?”

“We love you” they spoke in unison, voices low. You nodded slowly “Then do this and prove it. Give me a roof over my head until I can provide myself one. That’s all I ask of you” 

Jay nodded first ���Ok” Mouse dropped his gaze to his hands “Ok” you nodded “Ok. Now, can we leave? I’m not hungry and I don’t want to be in public”

“Of course” Jay spoke and you looked from him to Mouse, gaze lingering on Mouse. You’d held him in your lap begging him to stay awake, stay breathing. He had Jay, he’d make sure he stayed ok. 

“When we get there, I’m just there. I don’t want to talk. I don’t need anything from either of you. Act like I don’t exist” Mouse raised his eyes to you and you could see the tears in them “How are we supposed to have you there and act like you’re not?” you shrugged “It’s that or I have nowhere else to go” 

He shook his head then cut his eyes at Jay. They shared a long look before Mouse nodded “Ok”

“So we just act like she’s not there?” Mouse asked as Jay’s truck followed your tail lights in the direction of your place. “What other option do we have Greg? It’s that or she’s couch surfing or worse. Do you want her to leave Chicago?”

“Of course I don’t but can you really tell me it’s gonna be a walk in the park for her to be there and not have any reaction to her?” Mouse asked and Jay shook his head “She’s coming home. She’ll come around and talk to us” “And if she doesn’t?” Mouse pushed but Jay just shook his head again “She will”

_______________

You parked your car next to Jay’s truck and climbed out to get your duffle bag out of the trunk. Jay took a step towards you and you knew he meant to carry it but you shook your head. He stepped back and nodded. You hoisted it over your shoulder and walked up to the door. Mouse walked up next to you and simply held a key out “I’ll get your key out of the drawer in the kitchen later” 

“Thank you” you whispered before unlocking the door and pushing it open. You could feel their presence behind you and tears started to threaten your eyes. You shook your head and walked straight for the guest room without another glance backwards. If you looked and saw their faces, how broken you knew they looked..there was a chance you’d give in and if they couldn’t prove that they actually loved YOU not just their savior then you didn’t need to be there. Your energy could only last so far burning it off.

 You closed the door and locked it behind you. The lock wasn’t for them. No matter what you trusted those two men with your life. The lock was to give yourself those few extra seconds worth of thought.

____________

Jay and Mouse stood in the center of the living room staring at the guest bedroom. “How do we prove that we love her?” Jay asked, your words echoing in his mind. You thought they didn’t love you. You thought that they only loved that you always saved them. The memories of you fighting some woman he’d taken to bed because her husband had beat his ass when he’d caught him drunk flashed through his mind along with that damned cliff..that cliff that almost took you from them..the darkest time for you. They had to prove it to you.

Mouse remained quiet, memories of you arguing with your C.O. The day of the convoy flashed through his mind because he’d still been semi conscious. How you’d told them they were welcomed to court marshal you but you were saving your boys first. The pain in your eyes when he’d woke up in your lap, how he’d apologized for throwing up on you but you’d shook your head and told him “No, I want you to get that crap out of you”

You thought that they didn’t love you, that they only loved you for what you’d done for them and that crushed him along with the memories of that fucking cliff..they came so close to losing you.

“We don’t give up on her like she’s never given up on us” Mouse answered finally after a moment and Jay nodded.

___________________

Jay and Mouse had dozed off somewhere around midnight when the sound of your scream broke through the silence in the apartment. Both men were on their feet and moving without having to say a word to each other. They scanned the living room, front door, guest bedroom door. Did someone come in your window?

They moved towards it and Jay reared back to kick the door in when you made another low pitched whining sound. “Jay, wait!” Mouse stopped him. “She’s hurt!” Jay argued and Mouse nodded towards the door “Listen” they pushed their ears to the door and listened “No no no…please…fucking breathe! Breathe dammit!”

“It’s a nightmare” Mouse spoke low, shoulders dropping as realization sat in at just how bad things were getting for you again. Jay wiped a hand across his face “Should we try to wake her up?” it was breaking both of them to hear you sobbing in your sleep and being helpless. “Let’s go back to sleep out here so if she happens to wake up and decide she wants to talk” Mouse offered and Jay nodded “Good idea”

You were used to not sleeping by this point because even when you slept you didn’t rest. You got up and dug around in your duffle to separate clean and dirty. You would do a load of laundry when the guys left for work, you had a night shift so you could go buy your own detergent and all later. 

You needed a shower. You gathered a bundle of clothes and opened the door. You did not expect Mouse to be asleep on the floor on one side and Jay to be asleep on the floor on the other side. What the actual hell? Didn’t matter. You needed to shower and either leave before they roused or be about to leave. The less time you were in close quarters with them the better because more than once when you woke up the night before, knowing they were that close you wanted them.

__________________

Mouse woke up when the hall bathroom door clicked shut. He glanced up and saw the guest bedroom door was cracked open. Ok, you were awake. He stood up, stretching as he did so and nudged Jay with his foot on the way to the kitchen “Wake up man”

Jay flinched awake “What?” Mouse nodded towards the hall bathroom “She’s up” Jay wiped hand along his face and nodded “You making coffee?” Mouse waved towards the coffee maker in front of him “No, I’m making waffles. What’s it look like” “Smartass” Jay grumbled.

_________________

You stepped out of the shower and could hear Jay and Mouse’s voices coming from the kitchen. Your eyes closed for a moment. Ok, you were ok. You quickly dried off and got dressed. You could do this. Head held high. You put the towel in the hamper, it was the only one in it since this bathroom was rarely used.

You stepped into the hall and could feel their eyes on you. You walked towards the guest bedroom. “Morning” Jay spoke first and you didn’t respond. You’d meant it when you asked them to not speak to you. “Want some coffee?” Mouse asked and you walked into the guest room, closing the door behind yourself. 

You grabbed your keys and purse and slipped your shoes on before walking back out. You didn’t look their way as you walked out the door. You had to keep walking. 

_______________

“We’re losing her more and more each day. You realize that, don’t you?” Mouse asked and Jay spun to face him “Dammit Greg, I know ok! I know. I fucked up thinking she was just angry. Do you honestly think this isn’t killing me too? That hearing her in pain and not being able to hold her for the first time in years isn’t ripping my heart out?”

Mouse felt his shoulder sag, he hadn’t meant to snap at Jay. They were both hurting, scared of losing you.  “She wouldn’t even look at us” he whispered and Jay nodded “I know, believe me I know” 

_____________

You managed to make it far enough down the block you knew neither of them would see you before you had to pull over and park. The tears were blurring your vision a little too much. You were exhausted. The only time you could focus was when you were at work. It gave you a purpose, someone to help. You hadn’t even realized you’d fallen back into that pattern yet here you were. A hull of yourself. For years it was you, Jay and Mouse. One stumbles and the other two pick them up but now you questioned everything. You felt alone, alienated. 

You leaned your head over on the steering wheel and sobbed. Your hands shook as you reached for the phone and hit Ethan’s number. He answered on the second ring “Hey” “When’s the closest meeting?” “Let me make a call. Where are you?” he asked and you swallowed hard “Just call me back, ok?”

You hung up and dropped the phone into your lap. You wanted Jay. You wanted Mouse. You wanted them to wrap their arms around you and convince you that you weren’t broken, that you weren’t a waste but now you even doubted their feelings on that.

@desimarie12

@alterna123

@fifitheragertot

@allisonargent144

[ohxnxnani]

Nani ordered the coffee, contemplating the comment.

"I suppose living and regretting is our decision, if you put it that way," she finally replied, tilting her head as she passed her bills across the counter. She shook her head, trying to break out of her reverie.

"Sorry, I'm usually more fun than this. Just feeling introspective lately. I'm apply to university," Nani apologized, the last part of her sentence just... Slipping out. She wasn't ashamed by any means of going back to college a lot later in her life, but she was nervous.

She pushed the mug across the counter smiling.

"Not sure why I told you that, but here you go! One hang-over cure."

"But do we have to live and regret every weekend? That I am not sure of." Even if it was a pattern, that didn't make it a good thing. Actually, most therapists would say quite the contrary. "Coffee would be incredible, I feel like there's a marching band practicing in my head...very badly."

[lcngstcryshcrt]

@pudgefeeder

Tinny music wafted above Nani's head as she pushed her cart down the bread aisle, hunting for Lilo's preferred brand of bread as always.

She'd begged Lilo to go to the store with her, desperate to keep her baby in sight as much as possible. It felt like the early days, when she was alone with a four year old, anxious to leave her alone or with someone for fear that she wouldn't be there when she returned.

Spotting the packaging at last, Nani steered her cart over and began pulling the loaves from the shelf, finally glancing back over her shoulder to check on Lilo -

Who was nowhere in sight.

Panic overtook Nani before she could stop the tide, abandoning her cart in favor of racing back down the aisle, work boots squeaking on lineolum as she skidded into the main aisle of the store, calling,

"Lilo?!"

[ohxnxnani]

Nani sighed, running a hand through her hair. Application papers, class lists, and pamphlets littered the small kitchen table. This whole process was seriously taking it out of her, especially...

Look, she wasn't exactly hiding it from Lilo, but she hadn't exactly advertised the fact that she was applying to Evermore University for their journalism program.

The front door opened, sending Nani into a tizzy, scrambling to collect her papers back into their folder.

She stood and leaned back against the table, tilting her head and smiling as Lilo entered.

"Hey," Nani tried for casual, crossing her arms.

"How was your day?"

A pamphlet slipped off the edge of the table and fluttered to the floor, landing right between them.

@pudgefeeder