#to an onlooker it may seem like dan was the one who fell in love with nor at first sight

[cat-with-a-tie]

DenNor, traced from that scene in Princess Mononoke bc it’s a crime this hasn’t been done before.

You’re beautiful.

(first meeting, circa 800 AD)

Norway about six centuries later: ‘Damn really should’ve just killed him then and there huh.’

[kookie-doughs]

Y/N L/N AND THE HALFBLOODS

Percy Jackson X Reader

-Y/N L/N met Percy Jackson and everything was now ruined.

CHAPTER 14: Faith, Trust And A Little Pixie Dust

I'd love to tell you I had some deep revelation on my way down, that I came to terms with my own mortality, laughed in the face of death, et cetera. The truth? My only thought was: Aaaaggghhhhh! Honestly I was having Peter Pan flashbacks and started muttering random happy thoughts in hopes I could somehow fly or something but nope. I'm plummeting down six hundred feet into the water. Oh how I wish Minecraft was real. The river raced toward me at the speed of a truck. Wind ripped the breath from my lungs. Steeples and skyscrapers and bridges tumbled in and out of my vision. And then: Flaaa-boooom! A whiteout of bubbles. I sank through the murk, sure that I was about to end up embedded in a hundred feet of mud and lost forever. But my impact with the water hadn't hurt. I was falling slowly now, bubbles trickling up through my fingers. I settled on the river bottom soundlessly. I still held the knife which continued to glow. At that point, I realized a few things: first, I had not been flattened into a pancake. I had not been barbecued. I was alive, which was good. Then as if the water remembered they hated me. It began pulling me down again. I was immobile. I couldn't see or breath. I was in fear the moment I open my mouth I'd die. Percy Jackson help us. Percy... Please... Anyone... The knife I had been holding drifted away from my hand as if the water took it. I wanted to Thea and take it but I couldn't. Luke's knife. My knife. I was running out of air. Loosing my consciousness. Someone please help me.

As soon as I got air to breathe I regained consciousness. I felt arms around me. I was out of the water but I still couldn't move. I could see a McDonald's come to view. I looked at Percy who was carrying me. He was mostly dry aside from where he had come in contact with me. He was a scared, and vulnerable look. It was almost the same look he had when he lost his mother. A block away, every emergency vehicle in St. Louis was surrounding the Arch. Police helicopters circled overhead. The crowd of onlookers reminded me of Times Square on New Year's Eve. A little girl said, "Mama! That boy walked out of the river with a dead girl." "That's nice, dear," her mother said, craning her neck to watch the ambulances. "But he's dry!" "That's nice, dear." A news lady was talking for the camera: "Probably not a terrorist attack, we're told, but it's still very early in the investigation. The damage, as you can see, is very serious. We're trying to get to some of the survivors, to question them about eyewitness reports of people falling from the Arch." Survivors. I felt a surge of relief. Maybe the park ranger and that family made it out safely. I hoped Annabeth and Grover were okay. Percy tried to push through the crowd in a hurry. "... an adolescent boy and girl," another reporter was saying. "Channel Five has learned that surveillance cameras show an adolescent boy and girl going wild on the observation deck, somehow setting off this freak explosion. Hard to believe, John, but that's what we're hearing. Again, no confirmed fatalities ..." Uniformed officers and news reporters were everywhere. I could tell Percy was anxious trying to look for either Annabeth or Grover. And I could also tell I was close to losing my consciousness again. "Perrr-cy!" "Help!" Percy cried to them running towards them going to a more secluded area. "What happened?!" Annabeth panicked. She was waving her hand at my face. "Y/N can you see me?! We don't have any ambrosia and nectar... What do we do?" Could you help me? I couldn't hear anything. I had closed my eyes. Instead of seeing darkness I saw brightness. Then I saw silhouettes, three of them. Two were together I could only presume were hugging while the other one was looking around for something. Another one came it's darker than the other three. It looked down on me. It knelt down and placed something then gave a nod before vanishing. They came... They were watching. Save us. Behind you, they had brought gifts. I was not wrong on choosing. The three silhouettes made a sharp turn and they all rushed towards something. Next thing I know there was something in my mouth and I was regaining my strength. As if I gagged, I shot up. Coughing whatever I could and I saw water come out. "What...?" I said tiredly. Before I could comprehend what happened Percy had tackled me down. Annabeth stood behind Grover, trying to look angry, but even she seemed relieved to see me okay. "We can't leave you two alone for five minutes! What happened?" "We sort of fell." I explained weakly. "Six hundred and thirty feet?! Who did you think you are?! Peter Pan?! That you'll fly after believing in your parent?!" I got up with Percy's help and we continued to walk. "Yes and no, its somehow like... Arthur Curry and Mera. Except I was actually Jack Dawson which almost got me killed." Behind us, a cop shouted, "Gangway!" The crowd parted, and a couple of paramedics hustled out, rolling a woman on a stretcher. I recognized her immediately as the mother of the little boy who'd been on the observation deck. She was saying, "And then this huge dog, this huge fire-breathing Chihuahua-" "Okay, ma'am," the paramedic said. "Just calm down. Your family is fine. The medication is starting to kick in." "I'm not crazy! This two kids jumped out of the hole and the monster disappeared." Then she saw us. "There he is! Those are the kids!" Percy immediately ran with me, Annabeth and Grover after us. We disappeared into the crowd. "What's going on?" Annabeth demanded. "Was she talking about the Chihuahua on the elevator?" We told them the whole story of the Chimera, Echidna, the high-dive act, and Percy's underwater lady's message. "Whoa," said Grover. "We've got to get you to Santa Monica! You can't ignore a summons from your dad." Before Annabeth could respond, we passed another reporter doing a news break, and I almost froze in my tracks when he said, "Percy Jackson and Y/N L/N. That's right, Dan. Channel Twelve has learned that the boy and girl who may have caused this explosion fits the description of the young children wanted by authorities for a serious New Jersey bus accident three days ago. And the boy is believed to be traveling west. For our viewers at home, here is a photo of Percy Jackson and Y/N L/N." We ducked around the news van and slipped into an alley. "First things first," Percy told Grover. "We've got to get out of town!" Somehow, we made it back to the Amtrak station without getting spotted. We got on board the train just before it pulled out for Denver. The train trundled west as darkness fell, police lights still pulsing against the St. Louis skyline behind us.

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[sassycassie-s-writing]

American Princess

By: SassyShoulderAngel319

Fandom/Character(s): YouTube - Dan Howell/danisnotonfire feat. Phil Lester/AmazingPhil

Rating: PG

Original Idea: Modern Royalty AU! (Also I watched Cinderella again)

Notes: (Masterlist)(About Me) This was originally gonna be a short series, and it may still become one, but for now it’s just a one-shot.

^^^^^

The one upside of being royalty was the parties—even if half of the guests spent half the time Snapchatting the event instead of paying attention or participating. Luxurious balls with each detail attended to and good company. Not to mention it was hilarious to see some of the nobility drink too much and see usually serious men and women tipsily make their way through the night.

Dan stood on the balcony overlooking the ballroom. The peace summit had been going poorly, but the ball was going to lift everyone’s spirits and make them feel better so that, hopefully, the summit would improve.

Delegates from all countries of the world milled over the ballroom floor, hosted by the UK. Dan still felt too young to be king, but the crown had been passed onto him, and he was going to do the best he could. He looked around at the assembled crowd—trusted advisor standing behind him—and narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “There’s someone missing,” he told Phil, wiping his sweating palms on his trousers.

“Who?” the advisor wondered.

“The American delegation.”

That was the moment the doors reopened, and in walked a single girl—who looked much different than usual. At the peace summit she’d been wearing skinny jeans and baseball shirts with combat boots or Converse—and her hair in a raggedy braid because she didn’t care how she looked. Usually she sported an American-flag design somewhere. Dan had never seen her look like this.

Her long, thick hair fell in a single curtain to her waist and her eyes seemed more intense than usual, enhanced by her makeup. He couldn’t see her shoes but he could guess that she wore heels of some sort. A tiara of diamonds rested gently on the top of her head, tucked snugly in her brown curtain.

But her dress was what really caught the eye.

It was the grandest ball gown Dan had ever seen—a rich shade of violet with an enormous skirt and tiny crystals all over it. There were several layers of tulle over the silk base and a tightly-fitted corset bodice. The whole gown seemed to glimmer and glisten and sparkle in the light. There was a beauty to it, of course, but also a sense of gracefulness. Despite the princess wearing it being one of the clumsiest people Dan had ever met—besides his advisor Phil, of course.

“There she is,” Phil remarked, almost sarcastically. Of course she had to make an entrance.

Dan rushed off the balcony, down the marble steps, and into the main body of the ballroom. He strode across the floor to where she was standing, alone, near the door. He extended his hand to her and gave her a slight bow.

“Dance with me and pretend like the world doesn’t exist,” Dan instructed the American princess. “Your Highness.”

She smiled. “It would be my honour, Your Majesty,” she replied, taking his hand.

At that signal, the orchestra began to play. The American princess and the British king started to waltz over the floor. “So, princess, how are you enjoying London?” he asked conversationally as she struggled a bit to keep up with his much longer legs.

She chuckled. “I’ve been enjoying it immensely. London is one of the only places I have ever truly wanted to travel to. I love the culture and the rich history and the scenery and the people and the sense of humour. I’d love to live here. But, the downside to our lives is that we can’t just live wherever we want. I have to stay in the country I may one day have to help my older brother run. I can’t be here. Unless—” She cut herself off but they both knew what she was going to say. She couldn’t stay in London unless she married a member of the British royalty—and Dan was pretty much the only one left.

“And what do you think of the peace summit?”

“Oh let’s not talk about politics tonight,” she implored. Dan couldn’t help but smirk.

“Okay,” he relented. “But, if I may ask, why not send your older brother here? You seem to spend half of the talks sitting with your knee on the table scrolling through Tumblr on your phone.”

The American princess snickered. “Oh, Your Majesty, I am listening to everything everyone says. My parents decided not to send my brother because he’s a hothead with very strong opinions and a temper. I’m much more moderate, relaxed, and willing to listen to what other people have to say. Not to mention I’m more logical than he is—and think outside the box for solutions to problems.”

Dan nodded understandingly, sweeping her out of the way of the edge of the onlookers. The first dance was reserved for the host monarch and whomever they chose to dance with—in this case, King Dan of the UK and the princess of America. Once they finished, everyone else could dance.

It was a stupid tradition that happened at every single peace summit for the past three hundred years—neither Dan nor the American princess liked it.

Which was the sole reason Dan had been reluctant to host the summit in London.

But with the clumsy American princess in his arms as they twirled over the marble floor, he found he didn’t have to worry as much as he thought he would. She was small and fit perfectly in his arms. So even though he was so much taller than her, he could guide her through the gentle waltz without too much trouble. She was quite adept at following him and seemed to know what he was going to do before he knew. She had almost perfect rhythm and kept up well without losing her steps.

When the orchestra led the waltz to a graceful close, Dan spun the princess under his arm and bent her back over his leg, letting her hair hang in open air as the violin music faded against the acoustics of the ballroom.

The next song came on and was a bit livelier. Dan popped the American princess back upright and bowed to her as the other delegations and attendees swarmed the floor to dance. This song wasn’t played by the orchestra—instead the DJ started a very popular song. With the modern music clashing with ball gowns and tuxedos, Dan felt it looked a bit like a secondary school prom.

“Thank you for dancing with me!” Dan shouted over the blasting speakers.

“Well, thank you for asking me!” she called back with a smile.

Dan glanced over both of his shoulders at the rest of the people. “Come with me! I want to show you something!” he suggested, offering her his hand. She raised one eyebrow and took it, letting him weave her through the mass of people on the dancefloor and out of the grand ballroom.

They wove through the palace and out onto a balcony. A light breeze fluttered the tulle on the princess’s dress and the tiny flyaway hairs on the top of Dan’s head.

London sprawled out before them—the massive metropolis glittered with light like the stars above them. The princess looked fondly out to the city while Dan watched her. There was an innocent, enchanted expression on her pretty face. She looked like she should one day run America. Dan had heard stories growing up about her father’s younger sister when she was young—a bit of a wild one with a plastic surgery addiction—and saw none of that princess in the one standing before him on his favorite balcony besides the one just outside his bedroom. The princess he watched stare in wonder and delight at the city was a relatively normal kid with a dose of common sense more than most of the other dignitaries.

“Y’know…” he started, jarring the girl from whatever reverie of London she was in. She turned to look at him with eyebrows raised expectantly. “If the message came directly from me… I could convince your parents to let you stay in the city for a while after the summit is over. Under my supervision and protection, of course.” The princess couldn’t help but give him a sarcastic expression.

“They would never agree to that. I’m not even the heir to the country but they still want me to learn how to run it.”

“What if… what if I gave them a legitimate reason to keep you in the UK for a while?”

“I don’t know if you could come up with one legitimate enough for them. They’re quite insistent on me learning as much as I can about the country in case something happens to my brother—leaving me to be queen.”

Dan cleared his throat awkwardly. “Would they agree if I said I wanted to… court you?”

That pulled all of her sarcasm and skepticism up short. She blinked in surprise and looked up at him, her eyes glimmering in the light from the city and stars. “They, uh… they might,” she admitted. If there was one thing her parents wanted more than her learning how to run America so that it wasn’t run into the ground by her hothead of a brother, it was to marry her off to an equally powerful ruler, guaranteeing her to become a queen.

Her parents were very political.

“But, they’d have to actually see us… courting in order to believe it. And I couldn’t ask you to do that,” she remarked.

“No. No. You wouldn’t have to ask,” Dan put in quickly. “I, er… I would like to court you.”

The American princess’s lips parted in surprise. “I… I… okay!”

[themusicenthusiast]

Sunday, January 8th, 2017 – Madisons Crank Out a Smorgasbord of Classics and Offer a Taste of New Music During Set at Dan’s Silver Leaf

All photos by Jordan Buford Photography After a little more than six months, Madisons was returning to Dan’s Silver Leaf in Denton, the Austin-based Americana outfit making a weekend out of their trip to North Texas, which had begun with a Dallas gig the night prior. Perhaps it had something to do with the colder weather the region had been experiencing over the last few days, though there were a lot more people packed into Dan’s on this Sunday evening than the last time around. Along with seeing a great show (at no cost!) it was also as if people just wanted to get out, go somewhere where they’d see some familiar faces and mingle. Many of the tables were in use, plenty more people milling around the venue or hanging out on the patio; the patrons being treated to a brief set by Denton’s own Kim Nall, who doled out some brand new songs. Some were so new she had just finished them within the last couple of days. While plugging the CD release show she’d be doing there with her band in exactly one week, she laughed at the fact that she didn’t intend for this show to be a depressing one, despite how the melancholy mood and often more heartbreaking lyrics portrayed it. “…But Madisons will be really fun!” she noted at one point, insisting it would be worth sticking around. She may have been uncertain of the nature of her new music, though the audience sure wasn’t, loving the handful of songs she played, all sounding quite raw, while the solo acoustic setting made them all the more striking. By 5:48, the eight-piece ensemble that is Madisons was on stage and ready to run through what would be a 65-minute long set, their Denton friends and fans having been chosen as guinea pigs to hear some of the new songs they have planned for their upcoming fourth album.

“…Calm down. What do you think this is, a wrestling match?!” singer and acoustic guitarist Dominic Solis quipped, the room being near silent at that moment. He quickly shared an anecdote of a friend from back in his youth, his friend hosting a party that eventually attracted the cops due to all the cars parked out front. Solis said the guy was adamant he and his parents were the only people there as everyone else had hid, something the police didn’t buy, especially after they heard, “Shut the fuck up! They’re gonna hear us!” Laughter abounded, from both the crowd and his band mates; the sounds of the violin, trumpet, guitars, banjo, and bass gradually swelling as they kicked things off with the more folk-y “You'll Never Know”. Their set was a pretty even spread from everything they’ve released thus far along with what’s to come, no one album receiving much more attention than the others. It felt as if Cass Brostad had taken on an even broader role with the group since the last time they were in town, supplying plenty of powerful backing vocals during that number, sans accordion at that moment, she just danced about the stage.

After easing everyone in to it, they struck with something a little more forceful, the candid and autobiographical sounding “So Long West Texas” creating more of a charged atmosphere as they cut loose; Solis breaking away from the mic when he could, trekking across the stage and attacking his ax. They had most everyone’s attention by that point, and Solis spoke of how important Denton was to them, mentioning a tour they had embarked on near the start of their career, with a show at Dan’s Silver Leaf being the biggest of the run. The problem was it was double-booked, though he expressed his gratitude to Hares On the Mountain for letting them play the eight songs they knew at the time. “…This was one of those eight. We’ve had some time to polish it up since then,” he said while grinning as they journeyed back to their debut record, Desgraciados. “I sent him a letter from Rotan, Texas with a picture of me sighin’ drawn on the outside. It said ‘being with you is being married to a fire burnin’ through the best years of my life…” Brostad began, her commanding voice giving the duet a new flare from the five-year-old recording; Solis taking over on the second verse of the song about a couple who fell out of touch. “…And the worst thing I done was tell you I’s in love when what I meant to say was I’s scared to be alone…”

The heartbreakers continued as Solis commented the next song was about being in love with someone who was too good for you. “Parasites” captures that perfectly, painting the picture of a bottom-of-the-barrel mortal pining after a near goddess, hoping there might be some way they could wind up together. The harmonies sounded great, particularly at the start as violinist Heidi Garcia and Brostad chimed in. Moments after finishing it, much of the band broke in to an energetic clap, drummer Mike Rothschild, electric guitarist Patrick Davis, banjo player Nick Kukowski and most everyone else participating, some of the onlookers even joining in; the fans recognizing it as “Growin Up”. It was another oldie of theirs that had been given a bolder sound, the prominent backing vocals pushing it to new heights. “We're playing all originals…” Solis informed everyone afterwards, quickly shouting out a friend (and future brother-in-law) who had penned “Parasites”. That brought them to a string of new songs, Madisons opting to knock them all out at once rather than spread them out; Solis mentioning they’d be going into the studio in a few weeks, the first of the new ones being dedicated to “all the narcs”. “Kiss our ass!” he shouted and laughed before they broke out a rollicking number that stood as one of their most dynamic cuts of the night and saw them holding nothing back.

“Man, getting in shape was not my new year’s resolution,” he laughed afterwards, taking a quick breather. “Second Chance” was as all-out, though was every bit as great, boasting some lyrics that are pure Madisons. “…I got a liver of steel and a heart of a gold…” That brought them to a couple of songs that put Brostad at the helm, the first of them being the most stunning as she turned into a powerhouse vocalist, overflowing with emotion by the end of it. The next one was every bit as riveting in its own right; a messy start quickly being corrected as they chuckled about it being a new song. Solis commented on how pretty much everyone in the group was a great songwriter in their own right and how they would be utilizing all of that creative input and creativity for their next release, after which he got the reins back for a slightly more tranquil new tune.

What remained was all familiar to their fans, the one-of-a-kind “Me On Fire” (a love song focused on the rapture possibly separating a couple) seeing Rothschild slickly knock out the beats with perfect precision as they brought it to a magnificent finish. Equally as tight was “Losing Pictures”, the opening acoustic riff yielding a rush of excitement from many of the spectators, the song in general sounding phenomenal. They stayed on You Can Take Your Sorry Ass Back To West Texas! with the somber “In My Pocket Forever”, while “El Paso” continued the poignant manner of storytelling. Silence followed the applause and cheering, Solis breaking it with, “Shut the fuck up. They’re gonna hear us!” Laughter ensued.

Things started to wind down with the ruckus “Bar Stool”, the best part of it being the echo-like effect added on the final verse, Kukowski, Garcia, and Brostad collectively repeating, “Then I let myself down,” once Solis had sang it, doing so with, “I wouldn't be the first,” as well. “A Long, Slow Death in San Marcos, Texas” was almost glossed over, though, luckily, they remembered it was part of their repertoire and turned it into the penultimate song of their set. “Hey, we forgot about a song that we know…” Solis remarked after a quick band meeting, the gentler song having Garcia often plucking the strings of her violin. With a final expression of love for everyone, Solis saying how grateful they were to Denton, Dan’s, and everyone in the area that has supported them over the last few years, they launched into their final number the bluegrass influenced “Meet Me By the Riverside”.

It made for a joyous and fun end to the show, its upbeat style being infectious and leaving everyone feeling quite chipper, the onlookers not ready for it to be over just yet. Some hadn’t even set their instruments down when cries for an encore filled the room, the musicians huddling around to discuss what they might have left to do. “Chris 'n' Sally” wound up being the icing on the cake, building upon their standard closer. Complete with solos from the violin, electric guitar, and banjo, it sounded excellent. Thomas Damron was even able to shine as he slapped his upright bass, the funny part of it being that everyone else knelt down for it, even Rothschild, whose head was just barely visible from his drum kit. With that, everyone seemed appeased, roaring fanfare being Madisons sendoff. It was an excellent show that hit all the sweet spots in regards to what people wanted and hoped to hear. It was more than just a fun show to watch, though. Their musicianship was impeccable, and truly something to marvel at. It’s really something when you consider their lineup has changed slightly since they were in Denton last summer, and their shows have been fairly sparse, making the rehearsal room the main place they’ve had to work on that cohesion. That time and effort showed. They were a well-oiled machine, the execution being smooth and flawless, each of them being in tune to what the others were doing. You could tell it simply by watching. The older material was where it was most evident, performing those songs seeming more like second nature to the band as they packed as much vim into them as possible, though even the new songs came across as if they had been played a slew of times. It was surprising, just how polished those cuts came across, further proving what great chemistry the members of Madisons have with one another. I think those who had seen them before wound up falling a little more in love with the band, while some others were surely converted in to fans. Madisons may not be the only ones doing it, though are a great example of how an edgy blend of Americana and folk still exists, and combined with the engrossing manner of storytelling, they’re a force to be reckoned with. Keep an eye on their sites for news of future shows, and check out BANDCAMP to get their music.