#to trusting each other without question and one of them being the godparent to the other's kid

[letmetellyouaboutmyfeels]

I really am a sucker for two people going from hissing like cats at each other to "due to deeply unfortunate events, I now trust this person with my life." And I'm all for shipping but I mean this platonically, as well, two friends that started out thinking the other person is the most annoying individual on the planet and ending up at soft smiles and warm hugs and "you trust me right?" "absolutely."

[blu-joons]

The Boys Meet Your Newborn For The First Time ~ Kim Youngkyun

All eyes were on your daughter as Youngkyun moved around you in order to tidy up the last little bits of your apartment before welcoming the boys. You’d waited for the perfect moment, settled, and content before inviting them round to meet your new addition.

“Seokwoo says that they’re in the car on the way here now,” Youngkyun informed you as he checked his phone, taking a seat on the end of the sofa beside the two of you carefully.

His eyes instantly fell on your daughter too as she stared up at the ceiling. The both of you couldn’t help but chuckle at how clueless she was to the mayhem that was about to come her way in the form of eight excited boys who had been desperate for the chance to meet her.

They had all been incredible throughout your pregnancy, helping the two of you whenever you needed it. So, when you told them that you wanted a bit of space when your daughter arrived, they were gutted not to be right by your side.

As your daughter’s eyes flickered across to Youngkyun, he leant forwards and began to tickle over the top of her chest. “It won’t be this quiet soon,” he whispered down to her, “it’ll be carnage.”

“I don’t think even she could prepare for how much attention she’s about to get.”

“She’ll love it, having all eyes on her is perfect for her.”

The two of you continued to entertain your daughter until a knock at the door dragged Youngkyun away. You hadn’t even heard the handle go down before the volume went up with the mutterings of the boys.

Your eyes looked up to greet them, widening when you saw how many bags and gifts that they all held onto. “The boys have bought one or two presents for Y/D/N,” Youngkyun joked as he followed behind them all back into the living room.

Straight away, you lifted your daughter up into your arms, with eight pairs of eyes following every little thing that she did as she shuffled in your hold.

“You guys, she’s beautiful.”

“Damn, she’s got some good genes.”

You smiled down at her as she looked around, giggling gently at the funny faces that all eight of them pulled across at her. “Take a seat guys” you instructed as you moved off of the sofa and onto the floor, “we’ve got a lot to catch up on.”

As soon as you sat down, Taeyang was straight by your side with a keen smile on his face. His hands slowly edged out, silently letting you know what he wanted, waiting until your smile grew before stretching them out for you to place your daughter into.

“Be careful,” Youngkyun nervously called out as soon as he saw what was going on, “the last thing we need is any accidents today.”

“It’s only holding a baby,” Taeyang assured him, “you can trust even us idiots to do that without any harm.”

Your head nodded as Youngkyun looked to you for reassurance, making sure that you kept a close eye on Taeyang, just to be on the safe side as they all got used to your new arrival being around.

“Have you guys thought about what you’re going to do for godparents?” Inseong suddenly asked as the room fell silent. “Are you guys even on planning on having godparents, it’s not as much of a tradition anymore, is it?”

“Why? Are you putting yourself forwards for the role?” Chanhee challenged, seeing right through Inseong and what his intentions were.

Your eyes rolled, knowing that a question such as Inseong’s was only a matter of time with how competitive the boys were. “We’ve not given it much thought,” you replied, keeping the atmosphere calm, “we’ve got more important things to think about right now.”

The two of you had predicted as soon as your daughter was born that there would end up being some sort of competition between the boys as they all fought for the role of the best uncle. They always loved to be above each other, despite the two of you warning them several times that your daughter would be brought up not having favourites.

With a tray of drinks, Youngkyun soon arrived to join you on the floor, handing glasses out to everyone. “I’m impressed by how quiet you’re all being.”

“We’re not monsters,” Jaeyoon quickly interjected, “what did you expect to happen? We’d all come in shouting our heads off and overwhelm Y/D/N?” He then asked, shaking his head when Youngkyun nodded back at him.

Your hand nudged against his arm as he moved it around your shoulders to pull you closely into your side. “You know them too,” Youngkyun reminded you, “when have you ever known there to be a time when all of these guys have been quiet?”

“There’s a first time for everything,” Sanghyuk then interrupted too, “plus, you know that all of these guys are being quiet to impress you and try and get picked for the role of godfather, it’s written across all of their faces.”

All eyes stared across at Sanghyuk as they spoke, with defences and protests being put in from them all. Both you and Youngkyun had picked up on how attentive they were behaving too, knowing exactly what the reasoning was for it as well as Sanghyuk did.

As the group soon became obsessed with your daughter, it gave you and Youngkyun the chance to talk alone, sliding away from them slightly. “This doesn’t surprise me at all from them.”

“They’re excited, that’s all it is.”

Youngkyun’s head nodded in agreement with you, “I knew that they were all keen to be the top uncle, but godfather just feels like it’s a bit too much. I want them to be equals, I could never pick just one of them to put into the role of godfather too.”

You knew exactly how Youngkyun was feeling, you couldn’t bring yourself to do it either. All of them had looked after you and supported you at one time or another, not one of them hadn’t been there for you both whenever you needed them to be.

“I think it’s best if we don’t have godparents,” Youngkyun then whispered, “our little girl is lucky enough to eight uncles who will protect her, I don’t think a godparent is what she needs, she’s already spoilt beyond belief.”

“I think that’s a really good idea.”

“As do we,” a voice suddenly spoke up from the group. You both looked to Juho as he cleared his throat. “You guys are right, all eight of us will do our best to take care of Y/D/N, not one of us more than anyone else, and that’s all that she needs.”

The rest of the group all nodded in agreement with what Juho had to say, assuring the two of you that they were all more than happy just being able to call themselves uncles.

“She’s very lucky,” Youngkyun reiterated once again as he glanced across at your daughter’s soft smile, “trust me, after being with you guys for so long, I know deep down eight uncles is all that she’s going to need.”

“She’ll have you all wrapped around her little finger in no time,” you added, “you’ll be glad to just be uncles one day when she starts growing up.”

Their heads all shook back at her, “even when we’re all old and grey, and she’s the one looking after us, we’ll do her best to protect her.”

“We know you guys will, that’s why you’re the best uncles ever.”

---

Masterlist

[liptonsbabe]

Chains of a family [B.W]

Bill Weasley x Grant! reader

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4

Summary: Molly thinks that Bill’s and the reader relationship is a mistake so she wants them apart from each other. Bill’s against his mother wishes and he find a way to drag the reader into the Weasley family officialy

Word count: 1.9K

Warnings: none

A/N: Hi! Part 4 of this thing lol. I’m so happy that you guys like this story. It’ll have like 20 chapters or so, i’m still deciding that so yeah, that’s pretty much the thing. Btw, from now on chapters will be more interestings... i hope so lol. Again, english not my mother language. Please let me know if something’s wrong. Aaaaaand if you want to be tagged in the next chapters tell me and i will add you! Enjoy!

Chapter 4: Arguments

The rest of the afternoon passed as normal as the days before your arrival. Arthur Weasley made sure of it. Even if Molly attacked you with her dagger gaze when you and Bill hugged each other after you were done with dessert.

You didn’t know what Mr. Weasley had talked about with his wife while you were taking a shower, however, you noticed the tension rising from their bodies after you sat down at the table next to Bill and saw an annoyance sign on Molly’s lips. Her temple was frowned, reminding you of your own mother's gestures. Those flaming eyes, cleft chin, and pinion lips. Both women contract their features too much when they were upset and in your distress, you knew that they must not be disturbed.

The last thing you wanted was to hurt a marriage as solid as the Weasley's. More than once you heard your mother talk about it with your nanny making a powerful emphasis on how Molly and Arthur were able to carry out their marriage even if their economic conditions were precarious and the war was on their heels. They were an envied couple. Few dared to expand the family as much as they did without money in their pockets and spreading their progeny like a plague. No one was surprised, not even your mother, not when her marriage to Evan Grant was merely for financial advantage. Now Arthur and Molly looked upset, too upset for your understanding and you just hoped they could get along soon.

You weren't sure you deserved the sacrifice Bill's father had made for you, yet a flame of hope lit up in your chest. If Mr. Weasley started to trust you that was a good sign for others to do as well, right?

The afternoon continued as normal, seeing how Bill's plans to distract you from the fervent harassment of his mother was marred by the twins intervention. They had just finished a new product for their store and needed a good taster to certify the quality of their merchandise. It was a bad idea, he told himself, because twins were just a disaster and you didn't know them well enough to deny their good-natured pretensions.

"Be kind!" He yelled at them as Fred and George pulled you into their. Bill exhaled, pleading that his brothers wouldn't bother his girlfriend more than his mother already had.

Before taking you home, he thought about the pros and cons of your stay in the burrow. His conclusion was based on the fact that his entire family welcomed Harry Potter with open arms, so you didn't have to be the exception. He knew the difference in conditions in which his theory developed, yet he put his trust in the good judgment of his family even if the Grants' past left much to be desired. Bill didn't talk much about you with his mother, in fact, your presence at home was the last of his worries, the real problem came at the time of joining the Order of the Phoenix, would you be willing to fight against your relatives even if that mean betraying your own blood? Bill hope you will

Coming downstairs, Bill found his mother storing the leftover food in the fridge while the dishes soaked in the sink. Then he watched her clean each plate with her bare hands, no magic. William knew his anger was real.

"Want some help with that?"

"I'd love to, honey, thank you," his mother answered without looking at him. Bill raised the sleeves of his shirt to his elbows, dipping his hands into the tide of water and bubbles that flew across the kitchen. Molly was silent, drying the dishes and flying them to her place in the display case across the kitchen. Bill cleared his throat doubtfully "It never hurts to help, much less when I have so many things to do before the rest of the Order arrive"

"Don't worry, I'll help you with that too."

"Perfect"

"Mom, can we talk?"

"About what?

"You know what," Bill clicked his tongue, passing her the last plate from the sink to continue with the spoons. "(Y/N)..."

"Your father has scolded me enough about that girl, I don't need you to do it too"

"I wouldn't if you had a little consideration with her."

"More consideration?" Molly asked in a squeak. Bill shook his head. "I'm letting her stay at my home!"

"Our home, mom, ours," he corrected, drying his hands with a cloth. "This house also belongs to my dad, my brothers, and me. It's the burrow, a family property, not a secret club where some people can get in and others cannot."

"You know what I think of her"

"And you know I don't care." Molly looked scandalized at her son. She didn't understand what he had seen in someone like you or what you had given him to come out and defend you as he did "I don't ask you to love her, but at least you have to try...

"Have you ever wondered what will happen when she betrays us?"

"That's not gonna happen"

"You're very sure of that, William"

"I'm convinced, Mom. You don't know her like I do and, you know what? I see that wanting to talk to you was a mistake"

"Moody thinks like me," Molly stopped him when Bill was ready to go upstairs. The woman clung to the railing watching her son standing in the first step out of the kitchen "(Y/N) Grant is a danger to the Order"

"Really? Like Mundungus Fletcher? I beg your pardon, mom, but if there is anyone who represents a latent danger to the Order of the Phoenix, it's him and yet you have assigned him for the mission tonight"

Molly's lips parted and if it weren't for the fact that Bill knew her mother too well, he might think the woman was about to throw herself on the floor in a tantrum. Still, she clenched the bars tightly, her brow furrowed, and the redness on her cheeks washed over her forehead.

"William!" Don't talk to me like that!"

"I wouldn't if you had a little more respect for my girlfriend."

"Don't you understand? I care about you! For all of us!" She snarled angrily. "Having a Riddle in this house..."

"A Grant, mom, (Y/N) is a Grant and that's not the same." Bill descended his steps, approaching her mother, returning that angry look that she had inherited from him. It was a strange sensation. A dyad of emotions between joy and fear where the composed emotion was guilt. He had never exploded that way with his mother, but Molly hadn't behaved that way with anyone either "His grandfather is Lord Voldemort's half-brother and his brothers are all Death Eaters, what does it matter? (Y/N) is not. And when do we judge others by where they come from? If so, we could start with half of us. Being a Weasley is equivalent to being a blood traitor"

"William!"

Molly's face went from fury to shock to fury again. Bill's eyes were twinkling and Molly swore she had never seen any of her children this angry, or worse, this determined.

"What would you have done, Mom?" Bill questioned taking his mother by his arms in an attempt to make him feel her despair. Molly opened her eyes, scared. "When your family tell you not to accept dad? When your brothers object to your engagement, just 'cause the Weasleys have long been considered blood traitors?"

For the first time that day Molly's mind went blank, Bill guessed, rewinding the memories of how difficult it was for the Prewetts to accept the marriage. Bill pleaded silently, but pulled away from her when his mother gave no indication to be a little more respectful with you.

"We aren't like that. We don't separate people by where they come from, we hug them" Bill resumed his way towards the stairs, stopping a couple of steps up, turning to take a look at Molly's stunned figure "As you did with Hermione, Remus and Harry when you and Dad became his godparents after Sirius died. (Y/N) is no different"

"She will turn her back on us when the Order fight the Grants. That moment will come and you know it"

"Don't worry, i'll make sure that doesn't happen"

"She is not part of this family"

"That can be solved very easily," he said and the smile he wore gave her a terrible chill down her spine. "Because I'm going to ask her to be my wife."

Molly's gasp was the only thing Bill heard before climbing the stairs and heading to the twins' room. He always respected his mother a lot and even thinking of opposing to her wishes was inconceivable, but your well-being was something that was involved and Bill couldn't just let her mother control his life at her will. Maybe the mistake he made was not telling his parents the truth about you from the start or, in that case, mentioning that the woman he loved was the fucking niece of the strongest fucking dark wizard of all time.

Bill Weasley rubbed his face as he reached the twins' door. He no longer had to torment himself, it was done and the only thing pending at the moment was to get Harry out of his uncles' house, take him safely to the burrow and find the courage to do what he told his mother he would do.

Would you agree to marry him? He hoped so and if not, he wouldn't pressure you. You were young - even a little younger than him - and it would be understandable if you refused to tie your life to someone else's from one moment to the other. The war progressed every day and if you were going to do it, you would do it as soon as possible.

Loud laughings brought him out of his thoughts to observe you and his brothers sitting on the floor, right in the center of both beds, laughing at each other and touching your faces. From the doorway Bill can't see the full painted room, however George's face showed a rather abstract mural full of bright colors when he felt the presence of his older brother. Fred did the same showing his face in the same situation and then you turned to Bill, still laughing and your face smeared with paint. It seemed the twins had created a paint bomb in millimeter pills, that explode when you put a little bit of pressure. You tried to clean yourself with the sleeve of your sweater but you spread the paint even more. Fred and George laughed and so did Bill.

His heart swelled with love as he saw that at least someone in his family - besides him and his father - had hope in you. God, he may have even cried with happiness.

Bill never understood how a sunshine as beautiful as you was never accepted in your entire life.

Tags:

@purple-vodka-99

@vampirestrawberries

Thanks for the 100 followers!❤

[ateezmakemeweep]

richboy!yeosang (part 5)

word count: 6k

angst, fluff (tw: postpartum depression)

(part 4) (miniseries masterlist)

kang jang-mi was born at seven pounds, four ounces on what felt like the hottest day in june. 

your friends sat anxiously in the waiting room, the last remaining quarrels about if it’s a boy or a girl quietly spoken and much more positive. mingi and yunho could only sit there sharing side-eyes and smirks, your slip up in the coffee shop filling them with excitement. 

“i still think it’s a boy,” jongho says, “i’m confident.”

“i already bought the it’s a girl balloon so it better be.”

“well i bought the it’s a boy balloon so...”

yeosang walking into the waiting room stops the conversation immediately, a smirk crossing his face at the two different types of balloons. the boys are up and out of their seats immediately, rushing over to the new father with a flurry of questions and comments. 

but the man is used to this type of chaos from his friends, silencing them with a single finger before attempting to get to all of their questions - or at least some of them. 

“y/n and the baby are okay. she can only see two people at a time and she personally requested mingi and yunho first.” 

disappointed sighs and groans leave the other boys as mingi and yunho shoot up from their seats, scurrying over to yeosang who shares a knowing smile with the couple. 

“wait, wait, wait,” jongho says when the three men turn to leave, yeosang looking him over questioningly. 

he watches with a growing smirk as his youngest friend grabs a blue balloon before snatching away san’s ‘it’s a girl’, offering them both to him expectantly. 

“which one?”

multiple heads of innocent bystanders and smirking staffs snap to the big group of men, surprised gasps leaving all of them when yeosang wordlessly takes the pink balloon and pushes mingi and yunho toward your room.

chaos erupts from the other group of boys being left in the waiting room, other bystanders and nurses watching along with wide-eyed expressions. 

“i told you, you silly fuck!”

“they got it wrong. i was- i was so sure.”

“did she really ask for us or did you feel bad that we were stuck with them?” yunho chuckles out, yeosang sharing a smirk with the boy as they walk down the hall.

“a little bit of both,” he says, stopping in front of the door and peeking inside. 

he can see through the window that your eyes are shut, the sweat once dripping down your face gone as you lay completely still and relaxed. 

the labor had been hard but you’d gotten through it well, to no one’s surprise. 

you squeezed his hand while you screamed and cried, swearing you were never gonna do this again and will only trust in condoms from here on out. you blamed him for his “kink for elevators” and only didn’t burst out laughing because he knew you were in pain. 

but now as lay still and healthy, your baby in the newborn unit adjusting to the new world, he feels a different type of content. all the fear and anxiety about the unknowns settled with the simple fact that you’re okay and the baby’s okay. 

“they’re both doing really good, though. y/n’s not mad at me anymore for getting her pregnant so that’s a good sign,” yeosang chuckles, his eyes looking toward you lovingly before meeting yunho and mingi’s gaze again.

“we got to talk and we wanted to ask you two something,” the boy says, his eyes moving from yunho to mingi before hardening slightly. 

“i wanted yunho as the god parent but y/n insisted that you have to be as well,” he says, underneath the mock look of disdain and irritation an intense happiness and warmth everyone can clearly see. 

“i don’t know want you thinking this was my idea. so... what do you guys say? wanna be godparents?” yeosang smiles, the overwhelming look in yunho and mingi’s eyes making him chuckle; they both look ready to cry and scream in joy. 

“maybe try to not let my daughter now you’ve tried to kill me on multiple occasions,” he adds to mingi, the boy rolling his eyes despite the way he reaches out and pats his shoulder. 

the movement’s a little awkward and unfamiliar but neither of the boys say anything, an unspoken respect and liking for each other that’s come about within the past years.

both of them know the other would never do anything to hurt you purposely and they know the same will be said for jang-mi. 

“of course, are you kidding me!” yunho chuckles out, pulling yeosang’s smaller boy into his. “thank you, yeosang. that’s so... this is gonna be so cool.” 

yeosang smiles and nods his head, looking back at you to see you’re now sitting up awake and stretching your arms up.

the three boys bursting through the door cause you to look over and smile lazily, a quiet, “hi,” before you’re promptly pulled into a hug. 

“be careful,” yeosang growls at mingi, the taller boy ignoring him completely; of course he was being careful, you just pushed out a baby a few hours ago. 

“how you feeling?” yunho asks before his smile widens. “i’m asking as, you know, the godparent...”

“you... asked them without me?!” you whined softly at yeosang, smacking him in the stomach as he throws his arms up defensively. 

“you were sleeping, baby, you said it was okay,” he whines back, bending down to peck a kiss on your head. 

“i know but i still wanted to-” 

the nurse knocking on the door rips your attention away, eyes wide and alert as you think she’s about to tell you something is wrong; but then she’s there smiling softly, holding a pink blanket with your baby wrapped up in it that causes mingi and yunho to gasp quietly. 

“oh, my god.... she’s so small,” mingi whispers, yunho snorting next to him as he throws his arm around his shoulder. 

“what’d you expect? she’s a baby,” he responds, watching as you so naturally take the baby in your arms. 

you’d always been a little scared of just how delicate newborn babies are, feeling awkward or nervous to take them or hold them in the wrong way. 

but it’s like the eight and a half month journey had made everything easier and more natural, the simple inclination you have even just to hold her properly something you couldn’t have ever imagined.

“come here,” you mumble softly, yunho and mingi moving closer to the bed to get a good look at her.

and as far as babies go, though they think they might be a little biased, they have to imagine she’s the prettiest one they’d ever seen. a head full of hair already and eyes gazing up at them curiously, alert and calm and making them coo quietly at her. 

“are we allowed to hold her?” yunho asks.

but before he gets the chance, five bodies barreling through the door with the nurse’s “wait, two at a time please!” distract all of you, the rest of the boys rushing through to get a look at you and the baby. 

“let us see, let us see!”

“i can’t believe it’s a girl.”

“wait.... don’t tell me they’re the godparents.”

if you thought the bickering that went on after the boys found out about who you chose as god parents was bad, you weren’t nearly prepared enough for your first month as a mother. 

your once peaceful and quiet apartment had quickly turned into chaos. it was the 7th night in a row you were awoken by your little girl’s screams and you weren’t sure if you could take much more of it. 

the first week was strangely blissful, you and yeosang taking shifts to feed her or check on her in the middle of the night. 

“mom, i’m telling you, everything is strangely.... really good?” you said on the phone foolishly, going on and on about how easy your baby was. 

how feeding her always went smoothly, how she basically slept through the night unless one small cry echoed through the baby monitor.

how you and yeosang loved just sitting around the house and watching her sleep or look up at you two curiously. 

how you couldn’t believe you’d gotten so lucky to have, both, an understanding boyfriend and well-behaved infant. 

but that all quickly changed one night, a summer thunderstorm you’re almost positively traumatized your daughter to the point of tarnishing her near-perfect sleep schedule. 

now she cried on the hour to just be held, feeding her at the normal times but then screaming her head off when you tried to place her back down. you’d fallen asleep in the chair holding her one too many times to count, tired and drained and just wanting to relieve your heavy eyes. 

yeosang admired your composure and helped along side the way, waking with you and kneeling down watching you hum softly or rest your eyes; but then you cracked the 7th night and, similar to your pregnancy outbursts, it seemed almost out of nowhere. 

it’d been his turn to get up and feed her, the wailing and screaming that’s kept you up for nights silencing just a few moments after it started. 

whether it be your own curiosity or your new mother’s protectiveness kicking in, you peeked inside the nursery to see yeosang staring down at your daughter. both of them are completely calm and relaxed in the darkness, only the sound of her soft breathing and yeosang’s gentle hums. 

as you lean against the door and watch them, you feel a strange mix of warmth and sadness.

you knew you were right in your assumption that yeosang was gonna be a great dad. he was kind and nurturing and sweet, you saw it in the way he took care of you and the other people in your lives.

and jang-mi from the moment she was in the world loved him, looked to him and was easily soothed by him - you could just tell they were gonna have a great relationship.

but you.

you felt as if you were failing. 

the nights you woke to feed her, she typically screamed and cried for what felt like hours. she’d only settle down in your arms when you’d start to hum the same tune as yeosang right now, something you both did during your months of pregnancy. 

it felt as if at nights, that with her new fears and rocky sleeping pattern, that in times of crisis, she wanted yeosang. 

and a part of you loved that but another part of you couldn’t help but feel powerless. that even after a month of bonding with your baby, smiling and laughing and holding her, after months of carrying her and helping her grow, she didn’t seem to like you. 

yeosang caught your gaze and you smiled at him softly, giving him a tired thumbs up before trekking back to bed. 

you tried to push down your feelings and felt bad for feeling this way, a knot in your stomach and pain in your chest; it wasn’t about jang-mi and yeosang or you and him as parents as much as it was about you feeling completely incompetent. 

you couldn’t even get your own baby to stop crying faster than yeosang; everyone says a mother has a natural tendency to do that so why does it feel like you don’t? 

the tears in your eyes are unaware to you until you push your face into your pillow and feel the wetness seeping through. you can only stay there buried in shame and defeat and embarrassment, knowing that while you’re in here crying, your baby is doing fine without you.

yeosang comes in a few moments later, only small whines from his daughter as he placed her body in her crib. she looked up at him and he smiled softly, reaching out to pat the peach fuzz on her head until she fell fast asleep.

the past month has been tiring but worth it, crawling in beside you and wrapping his arms around your waist. 

“hopefully she’s good for the night,” he mumbled in your ear, his lips pressing against your head chastely. you only hum in response and at first he thinks it’s just because you’re tired but then he feels how tense you are.

how your shoulders are tight and your face is buried and it causes him to call your name gently. 

you’re not surprised that he’s able to tell something’s wrong, rolling over wordlessly and allowing him to see your tear-stained face. it immediately makes his heart sink, lips turning into a frown as he reaches out to dab at the wetness. 

“hey, hey, what’s wrong?” he asks lowly, voice sweet and tone deep and it only makes you break more. 

“you’re... you’re so good with her, yeosang,” you whimper out, his eyebrows pulling together as he wipes at your tears and pulls you closer. “you’re so good with her and she barely cries when you go in there... but when i go in there... i feel like i’m doing a terrible job.”

“what?” yeosang asks, genuine confusion in his voice as he pulls your face to meet his. there’s anxiety and sadness and defeat in your eyes, his hold on you tightening as he shakes his head. 

“no, no, baby. you’re doing so good and she loves you,” he reassures gently. 

“no i’m not,” you cry out, shaking your head as you feel all the stress and fear and anxiety from this pat month hit you. “i don’t know what the hell i’m doing.”

“neither do i, baby,” he says, a pout on his lips as he looks over your teary face. “we both still don’t know what we’re doing but it’s going well, no? i love you and she loves you.”

“no, it’s not,” you whimper out, burying your face in his shirt and feeling him sigh against you. “and she hates me. she only wants you at night and screams when i go in there. why else would she do that?”

your words are wet and muffled but he’s still able to make each one out, his heart breaking as he gently runs his fingers through your hair. 

“every day and night has been different, my love. some days she’s been good and others she’s been cranky. we’re all still adjusting and that’s okay,” he says quietly, reminding himself these exact words in his own fits of panic.

because of course he’s panicking half the time too but he tries to be strong for you. be a rock for you in a way you’ve always been for him. 

“you’re doing so good, baby, i promise. she wants you every morning, have you noticed that? i can go in there and pick her up but she cries. she only stops when she sees you walk through.”

“that’s only because she’s hungry,” you mutter, a humorless chuckle leaving yeosang’s mouth as he shakes his head. 

“no. because i feed her, too. she just wants to see you in the morning, baby,” he mumbles, holding himself above you so his eyes can roam your face. he presses a kiss on your cheek, then the other, until he’s pressing them all over you and you’re pushing him away playfully. 

“you’re doing great, love. we both are and she actually likes us, i think,” he says, flopping back down before pulling you on his chest. similiar to his movements from just moments ago in the nursery, his hand runs through your hair gently and you fall asleep to the sound of his heartbeat.

and sure enough, when you wake up, you hear cries coming from the nursery that have you springing up and out of your bedroom. yeosang’s holding jang-mi and he smiles knowingly at you, pressing a kiss to your head he passes her to you and her wails stop.

the next few months, you both became a little more confident in your parenting abilities. 

changing diapers was easier and waking up for nightly feedings was like clockwork, falling into a steady routine that consisted of yeosang taking online classes and going to work three times a week. 

on the days he was out, one of the five boys would come over and keep you both company - yeosang’s demand that one of them keep his girls busy and happy while he’s out. 

jang-mi was a little over six months now, laying on the floor with mingi while you cooked for the three of you. your days were the same at this point but you loved each and every one, cooped up in the apartment as you watched your baby grow and meet all her milestones. 

you’d been there for all of them and you prided yourself on that. the first time she smiled at you, the first time she reached out for the toy san had gotten her, the first time she-

“y/n!” 

you ran from the stove to the living room at mingi’s loud voice, rushing inside to see your best friend looking down at your child like she’d grown 3 heads. 

“what? what happened?” you ask frantically, rushing over to get a good look at her; she’s not crying and you don’t see any blood, those are already two reassuring signs.

“she just said my name!” 

and it’s at that you start giggling into your hand, covering your face and shaking your head because “mingi, she just turned six months. she can’t talk yet.”

“but she did! she just did! i swear she said-”

there’s a pounding on your front door before seonghwa, san and wooyoung enter, the three boys not even acknowledging you as they rush over to the baby on the floor. 

“hi to you guys too,” you huff, watching the boys crowd around the jang-mi with shouts of “hey, y/n!” a giggle leaves your mouth before you ditch the meal and order pizza instead, calling yeosang to see if he’ll be home soon.

“hey, baby. how it’s going?”

“the boys showed up so i just ordered pizza,” you tell him, watching as jang-mi giggles at san and wooyoung making funny faces at her. “are you gonna be home soon?”

“what, you miss me or something?” 

because after all this time you spend together now, more often than not during the week, leaving each other proves to be more difficult. you’d think you two would want a break from each other but him leaving is by far the worst part of your days on monday through wednesday. 

“yes,” you admit softly, his deep chuckle causing you to giggle softly. 

“i’ll be home soon. probably 30 minutes, just finishing up some stuff. will you be able to last that long?”

you roll your eyes and let out a scoff as you make your way into the living room, insisting to your boyfriend you’ll do just fine before your eyes catch mingi and jang-mi smiling at one another.

“oh. and you’ll be happy to hear that mingi thinks jang-mi’s first word was his name.”

“oh, bullshit,” yeosang snaps, a loud chuckle leaving your mouth that grabs said man’s attention. 

“it was! i heard her say it!” 

“she doesn’t even like you!” yeosang says loudly through the phone, the image of him screaming in his office making you giggle. you hang up before the two can start to bicker more, sliding your phone onto the table before sinking down onto the couch.

you’re still tired these days but the boys coming over helps, allowing you to relax while also watching jang-mi play and have fun. 

you don’t know when or how you doze off with the chaos, you just know that one moment you’re watching seonghwa tickle jang-mi and the next, you’re waking up to yeosang placing a kiss on your lips. 

“hey, love,” he mumbles, kneeling down to meet your gaze on the couch. you smile tiredly as you bury yourself into the cushions, pulling him closer to you and mumbling that you missed him.

“i know, baby, i missed you too,” he hums. 

because if there’s one thing he noticed throughout parenthood, it’s that, somehow, your relationship has only gotten stronger. 

you both have the same fears but also have the same things that make you happy - and that’s each other, your baby, and the headache inducing friends currently talking shit to your child. 

“they’re so gross, you’re gonna have a brother soon, mark my words, miss jang-mi.”

“nah, it’ll be another girl, i know it for sure now,” wooyoung says, dabbing at her face full of applesauce. “you’ll be an older sister, little lady.”

“he thought you were a chicken, mi, you really can’t take his word for anything.”

you and yeosang share an amused look before he pulls you to your feet, guiding you over to the table before quickly pecking your cheek. he takes jang-mi for a diaper change as you talk and laugh with the boys, everything about your life right now far too perfect.

it was a rough start but they all made it a little easier.

you were lucky to have a great support system, albeit a little insane, that made this transition easy. 

there was nothing but love and admiration between all of you, their eyes lighting up every time jang-mi giggles or concern flashing when she stumbles down clumsily. 

like when yeosang comes back into the main room without jang-mi fifteen minutes later, they all jump up and demand to know where she is. 

“you idiots tired her out, she fell asleep in the middle of a diaper change.”

and with the baby sleeping and the rest of the night to yourselves, you and yeosang are quick to all but kick everyone out of the apartment. there’s loud protests and mock hurt from the boys but they know deep down, you two rarely get a minute to yourselves these days. 

mingi gives you a parting wink and you roll your eyes, waving goodbye to the boy before yeosang closes the door. he turns to see you cleaning up the table and quickly stops you, tugging you by the waist before promptly throwing you down on the couch.

you land with a giggle as his body covers yours, lips meeting yours in a kiss that quickly has your legs wrapping around his waist. 

it’s been a while since you two were able to do something as simple as make out, feel him under you as you straddle his lap or suppress your moans as his kisses down your neck. 

but right now, something as silly as kissing and giggling and roaming hands on the couch feels exciting. it feels the same way it did in the pool house all those years ago, fresh and fun and exciting. 

full of a passion that you hoped even then would never burn out. 

and not even now with a baby has it. not even with a real ‘adult’ life have you two ever felt as if that connection was gone.

“i love you, you know that?” he mumbles into your skin, your cheeks warming and stomach fluttering as you look up at him. there’s a soft pink glow to them that makes him smile fondly, his hand cupping your cheek gently. 

you can only nod shyly, your own softly spoken “i love you, too,” mumbled into the living room. 

the sky is an array of pink and orange, the sun just about to set before darkness paints the windows of your apartment. 

it’ll be a night for movies, snacks and resting your head on his lap, his hands playing with your before one of two things happens: jang-mi wakes up and you bring her out or you fall asleep and yeosang carries you into bed for the night. 

the latter had seemed to happen a few hours later because one minute, your head’s resting on yeosang under a blanket and the next, you’re placed down on your soft, cold bed. 

you let out a tired whine and yeosang smiles down at you, mumbling that you fell asleep before quickly joining you; it’s wednesday which means yeosang’s home for the next four days, your smile widening at that reminder before you move yourself closer to him. 

his days off now don’t mean you can sleep in but instead, wake together. make breakfast for each other while watching your child giggle and smile in her high chair. 

you used to go to the park on the days it wasn’t too cold but now with winter approaching, you’re usually cozied up in your house with the fire place burning and a cartoon on. 

switching between giving attention to each other and jang-mi, who promptly wakes you both up at 5:30 in the morning. 

you insist that yeosang sleeps in more, pushing him back down numerous times before he pins you to the bed and demands for you to go back to bed; a pout covers your lips as you shake your head but it’s like your tired eyes don’t get the memo.

“you worked for the past three days, you need to rest,” you whine tiredly, his eyes rolling because he’s positive sitting behind a desk and talking with his coworkers is a lot easier than taking care of a baby.

“i’m well rested, thank you, love,” he mumbles, pressing a kiss to your cheek before pulling back. “mi will have to settle for her dad today.”

the two and a half hours of sleep were great but when you woke up and saw pancakes ready for you and yeosang and jang-mi laying together on the couch, you could’ve burst into tears on the spot.

he was talking softly to her, singing her name in a little tune before you heard his deep chuckle.

“what’s so funny?” you ask, both, his and jang-mi’s smiles brightening at the sound of your voice. she immediately opens her arms up for you and you take her happily, pressing a kiss to her head before looking at your boyfriend. 

the scent of pancakes is more prominent in the living room, looking over to see a plate of pancakes sitting atop the stove.

“thank you for breakfast,” you say softly, the smell filling the apartment making your stomach growl. 

“thank you for finally listening to me and sleeping in.” 

you roll your eyes before bringing your food over to the table, sitting on the floor as you watch jang-mi babble and play with her toys next to you.

she’s been babbling for the past few weeks now so when you hear her quiet, little “gigigi,” you don’t think much of it; but then when yeosang bursts out laughing again, you have to look to him with your mouth stuffed full of pancakes.

“what?”

“do you think that’s why mingi thought she was saying his name?”

a loud laugh bubbles out of your mouth causing jang-mi to jump before joining along, her own giggles and your reaction causing yeosang to snort into his hand. 

he’s quick to whip out his phone and record her, her smile and giggles quickly shifting when she rolls on her back and starts to play with her toes. 

and when mingi watches the video yeosang sends him a few moments later, he can’t help but gleefully send back that not only does his own child like him more, he said his name first.

it was a nosy, crotchety old woman at the food store that sparked the conversation of marriage between you and yeosang. 

you two were shopping for jang-mi’s first birthday tomorrow, her smiley and giggling form in the front of the cart, when an older woman commented on how beautiful she was. 

“thank you,” you smiled politely, you and yeosang sharing that same, warm look any time someone compliments your child. 

“you must’ve been a young bride, dear, you look like a baby too,” she chuckled, a smirk on yeosang’s lips as you let out a forced, almost strangled laugh. 

and it’s then the woman’s eyes move down your body to your ringless left hand, a look of judgment crossing her face quicker than you can believe. 

“oh... or not a bride, that’s....”

“none of your business, now is it lady?” yeosang says, his tone just as deceptively kind as hers even with the bite in it. 

she walks off with a huff and dirty look thrown your way, a smirk on your face before you push him down the cereal aisle. 

it bothered you a little bit when you first found about jang-mi, getting pregnant and not being married, but those feelings quickly went away when you thought about how silly that was. 

marriage is something that’s different for everyone and for you and yeosang, even with a baby, it’s not something you inherently need. you already live together and live your life as a married couple - all that’s left to do is blow money on the ceremony and go away to a tropical island. 

yeosang can’t help but be a little bothered by the woman’s words throughout the day, though probably because they were directed toward you, but he noticed you weren’t upset at all about it. 

you carried on in the store and at the house like normal, setting up decorations and planning the meals while he put jang-mi to bed by wrapping her in her birthday onesie. 

“hey, baby,” you hear him say, turning from your spot at the stove. 

he presses your back against it and you smile into the kiss, tilting your head coyly when you pull away. your eyes roam his face because you could tell that woman’s comment irritated him, you just weren’t sure why. 

“are you okay?” 

“mhm,” he hums lowly, his hands reaching up to run through your hair. “why wouldn’t i be?”

“i don’t know...” you mumble quietly, a smirk pulling at your lips before you bring your hand next to your face to wiggle your fingers. “maybe because we’re sinners who aren’t married.”

a snort leaves yeosang’s mouth as he shakes his head, pulling you by the waist in typical fashion to bring you over to the couch. you two plop down as you get comfy on him, resting your head on his shoulder and basking in his comfort and warmth. 

you’re not sure how long you sit in a comfortable silence for, you just know that everything is calm and quiet and it’s such a contrast to this time last year. when things were chaotic and you felt like you wouldn’t be able to handle motherhood.

when you weren’t sure how you and yeosang would be, if the dynamic and household was gonna be so different that it ended up breaking you guys down as a couple. 

and while things changed, it seemed to be for the better. it only made you two more happy and more secure, wedding band and your official last name as kang aside. 

“i don’t mind not being married,” you assure him quietly, because you know that’s the elephant in the room right now. 

“i don’t... want us to get married because we had a kid. i want us to get married when the time feels right. maybe when we’re both actually out of school or something,” you chuckle out, remembering when that was your original plan for popping out a kid. 

yeosang feels a weight lift off his shoulder as he looks over at you, unsurprised in the slightest that you not only knew what was wrong, but that you were able to calm him down.

assure him in a way that made him know you guys always seem to be on the same page when you effectively communicate about things. 

“i feel the same way,” he says to you, tightening his hold on you before pressing a kiss to your head. “even though if you wanted... i’d go out and-”

“buy a ring right now,” you tease, shimming over until you’re sitting on his lap. you twirl your fingers through his hair. “i think you’re just eager to buy the wedding ring.”

“duh, it’s gonna be flashy as fuck.”

your face pulls into one of disgust and he can’t help but laugh, knowing on more than one occasion he’s thought about what kind of wedding ring you’d want.

“i’d kill you,” you mumble, the last of your sentence getting cut off when he slams his lips on yours. 

“shut up,” he mumbles back, you giggling against his mouth before you move your hips over his teasingly. 

your clothes become littered on the living room floor before your naked body runs into the bedroom to grab a condom, the promise that you screamed through labor every bit true as you roll the latex over yeosang. 

“are you ever gonna trust birth control again? i miss feeling your warm, tight pus-”

you sink down on him and chuckle when he lets out a moan, rolling your eyes and riding him on the couch with the reassurance that, a month later, you won’t be needing to get another pregnancy test just yet. 

“no, no! say wooo-young!” 

“gi....gi.”

“woooo-young.”

“gi.....gi.”

“wooyoung.”

“gigi.”

everyone around the table snorts at the look jang-mi throws her uncle, her sweet little voice just as stern and face just as dumbfounded. 

“i told you guys, i’m her favorite,” mingi boasts, taking jang-mi from her seat and smiling when she clings on to him.

her first birthday consisted of cake, bickering and pink decorations placed throughout the apartment. her pile of toys in the living room and nursery doubled from the amount of gifts today alone, a giant dollhouse taking up a good portion of her room now.

it’s where she’s currently dragging mingi and, begrudgingly, wooyoung off to, showing them all her dolls and cars that they’ve gifted her throughout the first year of her life. 

you and yeosang watch her walk off, the two boys crouched and awkwardly walking like crabs so they’re down to her level. you both share a smile before yeosang pecks your cheek, cleaning up the leftover cake and plates while you share a smile with yunho. 

“can you guys adopt a baby?” 

you’ve never seen yunho’s face turn a brighter shade of red in your life, his hand reaching out to smack your arm lightly. 

“are you crazy?”

“oh c’mon,” you whine, a playful smile on your face as you poke his stomach with both pointer fingers. “isn’t it sweet watching mingi with a baby? he’s barely grouchy anymore.”

“maybe around her,” he scoffs, your eyes rolling because you know mingi isn’t as happy and pleasant around anyone as much as he is his fiancé - though next month, you’ll be able to say husband. 

it was quickly planned but the two decided to have a summer wedding, july 21st with none other than jang-mi as the flower girl. her dress is yellow and has been hung on her door for weeks, excitement rushing through her every time she sees it. 

“okay well then after the wedding, of course,” you wink, his eyes rolling; but you also don’t miss the shy smile and warm blush on his cheeks, knowing very well those two would create the best home for a child. 

yunho thinks maybe they would too, watching how quickly and naturally mingi surprisingly is with children. 

yeosang plops down next to guys and chastises you for bringing it up again, knowing from the look on yunho’s face you were probably begging him to adopt a cousin for jang-mi.

“oh c’mon, but wouldn’t it be cute?” you say, smiling up at yeosang in a way that causes him to tap your nose lightly. 

“it would be,” he mumbles, before pulling you closer to him. his lips ghost over your ear and it’s probably far too intimate a move with all your friends here but he does it anyway, having no regard or care in the world.

“or she could just... get another sibling.”

you narrow your eyes and smack his arm lightly, reminding yourself to stack up on more condoms when you go to the store tomorrow. 

“yeah, right. not for another year, yeosang, i’m serious.”

a smirk crosses his face as he nods his head, pecking your lips lightly before watching your daughter run clumsily to him. 

he scoops her up as her giggle rings through the air, his lips smacking loud kisses on her cheeks as she squeals loudly; and it’s upon seeing that you don’t think you’d mind having another baby again.

because planned or not, confident in your parenting abilities or not, you know you and your little family are always gonna be okay. 

jang-mi reaches out for you and you immediately rise to your feet, fixing the tiny ponytail atop her head right before her and yeosang place simultaneous pecks on your cheeks.

“cuteeee!” wooyoung squeals, looking over at you before squeezing past and poking jang-mi in the arm lightly. “now tell me, little lady, who’s your favorite? mommy or daddy?” 

she narrows her eyes at the man like he asked her something unholy, looking between you and yeosang before throwing her arms around both of you. you share a small giggle and place a peck on her head, your eyes catching yeosang’s just as he smiles back at you. 

“both. i love mommy and daddy,” she says, her squeaky little voice causing your smile to widen. 

“and gigi,” she quickly adds, a laugh bubbling out of you when everyone, including yeosang, let out groans and smack the favorite uncle in the arm. 

complete

tag list: @mirror-juliet​ @toffee-hwa​ @valhoez​ @miatsubaki23​ @mydaintydaisy​ @treasurehwa​ @markleeyeosang​

[imaginationintowords]

Folklore [song series]

epiphany

Modern Day AU! Bucky Barnes x Natasha Romanoff; Steve Rogers x OC!Reader

Plot: Inspired by Taylor Swift’s new album Folklore. The story follows the timeline of Bucky and Elizabeth’s life throughout the years

[warnings: death]

word count: 3168

Age: 21 Year: Sep. 2015 Location: Brooklyn, NY

"So I was thinking, godparents," Bucky spoke up. He and Natasha were currently finishing setting up the baby's nursery in their new apartment.

They had found a nice two bedroom apartment in Brooklyn, much to Natasha's dismay. Bucky thought it was the perfect place to start their new little family. It was also about a 20 to 30 minutes drive to Bucky's work and University campus. His mom and stepdad had even offered to help them out financially for a bit, just as long as Bucky continued on his path to graduate with his Masters in Music Technology in the Spring.

Bucky had managed to finish his bachelor's and masters program in just the span of 4 years, a whole year earlier than originally planned. He was proud of himself, if there's one thing he hadn't screwed up yet, it was his education. He had fully devoted himself to his education the last four years and it clearly paid off. He had also managed to get a good paying job at a studio as an engineer. He had his whole future all planned out, the pregnancy might've been a curve ball at the beginning but with the help of his family and therapist, he was handling it all so well.

"Oh you don't need to worry about the godparents, I have it all figured out already," Natasha tells him as she folds baby clothes, "I picked Abigail and Dylan."

Natasha on the other hand had decided to put her education on hold. Deciding she wanted to be a stay at home mom, Bucky constantly made sure that that's what she wanted. And she insisted every time that she was "made to be a stay at home mom". So Bucky had to reluctantly allow her to make that decision. 

Which was one of the reasons why his parents had offered to help out for at least the first year or two, they had known their son was already stressing about finances, and trying to respect Natasha's decision. They figured two years would be a good enough time for the couple to build up their savings.

Bucky didn't like the fact that his parents were helping out with money, but he knew him and Nat wouldn't have been able to make it just on is current income alone. At least not until after he graduated, his boss had already promised a raise once he graduated, but that wasn't until May and the baby was due in the next two weeks.  He promised to pay his parents back every cent they gave him, but they told him to just focus on being a good father.

"Abigail and Dylan?" He questioned.

"Yeah," she shrugged her shoulders.

"The same Abigail and Dylan that showed up to the baby shower high, and proceed to get drunk, because and I quote 'babies are so boring'. That Abigail and Dylan?"

"Come on James, they were just joking, plus baby showers aren't necessarily the most fun thing in the world," she rolled her eyes.

"Can we at least each choose one godparent?" He suggested, "You can have Abigail as the Godmother and I can choose The Godfather."

"Like Sam?"

"No, not Sam. Steve," Bucky tells her.

"Oh, then no," she simply said, turning her back to him to continue putting clothes away.

"What's your problem?" Bucky asks annoyed, finally having enough of her attitude, "This entire pregnancy you've been against everything I've suggested."

"Hey, you got to choose Brooklyn," she turned around pointing her finger at him.

"Yeah because I couldn't fucking afford Manhattan Natasha," he stressed, trying not to raise his voice at her, "You didn't want to know the gender of the baby? Fine. You get to name the baby? Fine. You choose the color scheme of the nursery, fine. You choose the hospital. You choose the apartment. God damn Nat, I haven't done a single thing but pay for everything."

"And I thank-you for that," she rolled her eyes.

"But you don't," he shakes his head in disbelief over her reactions, "You haven't thanked me once. I get that you're carrying our child, and I'm appreciative of that. But god damn Natasha, show me some respect. Show my family some respect!

"You didn't thank my mom, Rebecca, or Keith for everything they've done for you. For us. And I can't keep making up excuses to defend you," he raises his voice a little bit.

"If this relationship is ever going to work, you need to be respectful. You need to stop being so selfish. I get this isn't easy for you, but trust me, this isn't easy for me either. But I agreed to do this. I am stepping up. I want to be a part of my child's life. And I want us to be together and be family," he calms down, "But if you continue to act this way. I won't stay in this relationship."

"You're just going to abandon us?" Natasha asks grabbing her belly, suddenly realizing the reality of the situation.

"No, I won't abandon you both. But we won't be together," he explains, "I will always be in my child's life. I will always be there for them. I'm not going to put my child through the same thing I went through growing up. I promised myself I would never do that."

"So if that means that you and I break up, then so be it Natasha, I'll do it," he tells her, "My child will not grow up in a toxic household."

"Okay," she agrees, tears in her eyes, "I promise I will be better."

"Don't promise me Nat, just show me."

Two and a half weeks later Bucky found himself rushing an in-labor Natasha to the hospital, it was a quick k10 minute drive from their apartment. He quickly called his mom as the nurses wheeled Natasha away, with Bucky following.

Bucky's mom arrives within the next 10 minutes, as the nurses begin to prep Natasha in her hospital room.

Bucky sent a quick text to Steve and Sam, letting them know it was showtime and that he'll call them once the baby is here.

"How's Mama doing?" The doctor asked while entering the room, quickly taking her spot at the foot of the bed to examine Natasha.

"It hurts," Nat cried, as Bucky tried to soothe her.

"I know, but unfortunately you were too far dilated when you arrived, that it's too late for the epidural," the doctor softly explains, "But the good news is I feel Baby's head, so it's time to go."

Natasha looked over at Bucky, completely scared.

"It's okay," he assured her, "I'm right here. Everything's going to be okay."

He leaned down an placed a soft kiss to her lips, helping her relax a bit.

"Ready?" The doctor looks up at Natasha.

"Yes," Natasha nodded, grabbing a hold of Bucky and his mom's hands on either side of her.

10 minutes later, a soft cry was heard in the room. Bucky quickly glanced over to where the doctor was had finished pulling the baby out.

"Congrats Mommy and Daddy, it's a girl," she announced.

"A girl?" Bucky whispered in awe, tears filling his eyes. He looked over at Natasha, who looked a lot paler in color.

"Nat?" He called out for her.

Her eyes fluttered shut, her limbs went limp, and all the monitors started to go crazy.

The doctor quickly cut the umbilical chord and handed the baby off to an awaiting nurse.

"What's going on?" Bucky panicky asked.

"Get them out," the doctor told a nurse, ignoring Bucky's question.

A nurse quickly escorted Bucky and his mom out of the room.

"She's going to be okay right?" He asked his mom, tears streaming down his face.

"I don't know honey," she honestly said, wrapping her arms around her son. She never thought the first hug they shared after him becoming a father would be like this.

She continued to hold him, soothing him as she made silent prayers pleading for Natasha's safety.

10 minutes later. The same 10 minutes it took for them to arrive to the hospital. The same 10 minutes it took Natasha to bring their daughter into the world, the door opened.

Bucky quickly pulled apart from his mom to see the doctor walking out of the room.

The doctor's face was filled with sorrow. Bucky's mom immediately put her head down, already knowing the outcome.

"How is she?" Bucky asked.

"Mr. Barnes, Natasha had a postpartum hemorrhage, due to issues with her placenta," the doctor carefully explains, "Unfortunately, there was too much blood loss. We weren't able to save her. She died."

Bucky immediately broke down, his mom quickly caught him. The doctor placed a reassuring hand on his back.

He quickly pulled away after a couple of minutes, "The baby. How's the baby?"

"She's good. They took her to get checked just as a safety procedure," the doctor tells him, "She's on the pediatric floor. Would you like to meet her?"

"Yeah," he says, then pauses, "What about Natasha?"

"We can come get you to say goodbye once we get her cleaned," the doctor tells him.

"Okay, thank you," he says.

The doctor takes him and his mom to the pediatric floor. The walk was silent. No one knowing what to say. Bucky was no longer crying, but he felt numb the entire short walk. The doctor knocked quietly on a door, before opening.

"Doctor Monroe, this is Mr. Barnes, the baby's father," the doctor said, before stepping aside to let Bucky in, "Mr. Barnes, I'll have someone come get you when it's time."

"Okay, thank-you," he nodded his head.

"Are you ready to meet your daughter?" Doctor Monroe asked, Bucky nodded his head.

"Meet your Daddy baby girl," the doctor said, gently handing the baby over to Bucky.

Bucky looked down at the small baby in his arms. He was instantly overcome with so many different emotions. The doctor walked out of the room, while Bucky's mom watched from outside threw the window.

"Hi baby girl," he whispered, sniffling back his tears, "You're so beautiful. I'm your dad. And boy am I lucky that you chose me to be your Dad. I always imagined this day would've turned out a lot differently. But life sure knows how to throw some real curveballs."

"Your mom would've loved you," he paused, letting it all sink in. His daughter will have to grow up without a mother. No little girl should have to be without a mom.

"I'm so sorry," he cried, as the baby was lulled to sleep, "I am so sorry your mom won't be able to physically be here. I am so sorry you'll have to grow up without her. No one should have to grow up without a parent. And trust me, I know what that's like. But lucky for us, I had the greatest pleasure of being raised by the most strongest and kindest mother. She taught me everything I know. Your grandma is the best lady you will ever meet. Lucky for us because god knows we're going to be needing her a lot.

"But you and I are incredibly fortunate that we won't ever be alone. We have so many people who care about us. You'll have all the female leadership you can ever need. We can do this," he strongly said to the sleeping baby, "You and I. We can do this. And I promise you this, that no matter what happens, you will always have me. You're stuck with me for the rest of your life. My love for you is greater than anything, anyone I've ever loved. My love for you will always be easy and unconditional. You'll never have to prove your worth to me. You're worth more to me than you can ever possibly imagine. I love you."

Bucky placed a soft kiss to his daughter's forehead. The first kiss he will ever give her, but definitely not the last.

There was a soft knock at the door, he gently called for the person to come in.

His mom quietly opened and closed the door behind her, stepping to her son's side.

"She's beautiful," she smiled down at the little baby.

"She really is," Bucky beamed. He looked over at his mom and noticed she was holding a clipboard, "What's that?"

"Birth certificate," she tells him, "One of the nurses gave it to me. They said there's no rush to fill it out. You have time."

"Here, I can do that," he said gently holding the baby out for her to take.

"Are you sure?" She asked, switching with him.

"Yeah, I have a name anyways."

"What is it?" She looked over at the name written down:

Poppy James Barnes.

[flashback]

After that talk Bucky had with Natasha, he noticed a serious change in her attitude. She was beginning to be more relaxed and more selfless. Bucky felt a tiny weight lifted off his shoulder. Hoping that these changes in her personality would stay.

"So what do you think about James for a boy?" Natasha asked one night, as she and Bucky made dinner together in their small kitchen.

"For a middle name?" He asked confused.

"No, his first name."

"Oh," he paused, "I actually have never liked the idea of giving a child their parents' name. I feel like it doesn't really give them a chance to be their own person. If their parent is successful then they feel the stress of always having to live up to that. And if their parent is crap then they're forever stuck with that reminder of that person."

"That makes sense," she agreed, understanding where he was coming from,

"Then how about James for the middle name. Whether it's a boy or girl."

"I would actually really like that," he smiled at her, "I would like that a lot."

They gathered up their own plates, and sat at their small round table.

"So what other names have you come up with?" Bucky asked her as he took a bite of his chicken.

"Truthfully, I haven't found any good names. All the girls keep making suggestions and they're way too out there," she tells him, "I don't want them to have a name that's too hard to pronounce or spell."

Natasha's phone started to ring, Bucky got up to grab it for her from the living room. By the time he handed it over to her it stopped ringing.

"What kind of flower is that?" He asked her, noticing her phone's Lock Screen background.

"The California Poppy," she tells him.

"Why do you have that as your background?"

"Well my mom was actually from California," she says, "She met my Dad when they both went to Harvard. They fell in love, so she decided to stay out here on the East Coast.

"The only clear memory I have from her was all the stories she used to tell me about poppy season. How the color just made everything so lively. Her parents would take her every season. I remember seeing all the photos of her as a child surrounded by all the flowers. We looked a like as children," she fondly smiled,

"She always talked about taking me to go see them, but she and Dad were always so busy. Then she got sick and there just wasn't a way for us to go. My grandparents tried to get some out here but it was too late. I never did get to see the poppies."

Natasha was silent for a moment, letting what she said sink in. She's never told anyone that story before, the memory would always make her sad. But now sitting here with Bucky, pregnant with their child, for the first time in her life her mother's death didn't bring her such sadness. She could smile at the memory and know she had the utmost best time with her mother, even if it was short lived, she knew her mother loved her. And she can't wait to shower that love onto the baby inside of her, once they were out.

"We should go," Bucky says, "Once the baby is here we should go when it's poppy season. Plus it'd be nice seeing Steve and Liz's life out west."

"Yeah, that sounds nice," her eyes teared up, seeing how generous this man was in front of her, "I'd really love that."

"Poppy, that's cute," Winifred smiled.

"Yeah, Nat would've loved it."

"They said if you were ready, you can say your goodbyes," she carefully said.

"Okay, you're good with her?"

"Yeah. Do you want me to go with you? The nurses can watch Poppy."

"No. I'd feel much better if she was with family," he tells her, "I'll be fine mom. I can do this."

He gave her a kiss on the cheek before leaving the room.

"Take all the time you need," the nurse told Bucky, as she led him to the room Natasha's body was in.

"Thank you," he quietly said.

She opened the door for him, and he carefully stepped inside.

He walked closer to the body on the bed. He immediately started crying at the sight of her lifeless body.

"God Nat," he cried, "I am so sorry. We never even discussed the possibility of this ever happening. I never even thought of this happening. God I don't know how I am going to ever do this alone. I never imagined myself ever raising a child alone."

He takes a moment to catch his breath.

"She's beautiful Nat, so incredibly beautiful," he tells her, "I wish you would've been able to see her. Hold her. I'm going to make sure she knows everything about you. There's not going to be a day where she doesn't know about her mother."

"When poppy season arrives I'm going to make sure to take her. Every year," he wipes away a tear, "Oh, I also named her Poppy. For you. For your mom. I promise I won't let you down. She's going to have the best life ever. I'll make sure of that. Thank-you for everything you've given me. I truly did love you. Goodbye Natasha." _________________ Age: 22

Location: CA

Year: May 2016

The car comes to a stop, parking in a spot next to a bunch of other cars. Bucky, Liz, and Steve get out of the car. Steve and Liz grab a few things from the trunk, while Bucky gets the smiley baby out of the car seat. Bucky places the baby into the stroller, Steve had gotten out. The three of them began to walk towards the field of poppies.

"Wow, there's a lot this year," Liz says, "Do you want to take her out?"

"Yeah, I'll grab her," Bucky says grabbing Poppy.

He walked ahead of Liz and Steve, taking in the moment with his daughter.

"Look at all the poppies," he whispers to the almost eight month old. She had a huge smile on her face taking in the sight around her.

She was making some babbling sounds, as if to agree with her dad.

The weather was perfect. The sun shining down on them, it wasn't too hot or too cold. Bucky just stared at the flowers, with a peaceful feeling washing over him. The last few months haven't been the easiest, but he was making it. They both were making it. Being here, gave him the reassurance that he was doing good. He could feel Natasha's presence with him there. As if she was silently saying how proud she was of him.

"We're going to be fine," he said to Poppy, placing a kiss on her head.

[babymetaldoll]

Hii gorgeous!❤

I say this with all the love that you know I have for you, but every week you test my patience😂🤭

I loved this chapter, I know it's a long one but it feels like it was 4k, the fluidity, the dialogues, the povs, it was incredible, you're fantastic writer❤, you have me screaming so loud while reading this chapter

I definitely don't trust Seaver (more now), like she looked up Spencer's address in the system and went to his home at night to see him without asking him first, that's super creepy. And she should also have a minimum of respect for herself, she shouldn't settle for being the second best, girl please!!! that was embarrassing!!! 👀although I know someone (Reader) who would have loved to be there to see how Spencer rejects seaver

💖Hotch my beloved💖, my king💖, I think I have never loved him so much, I am so grateful, and I am curious to know what he had planned

I also want to thank Frank, Lu, Penelope and Derek💖💖💖💖 what they did was so necessary, again i'm so grateful, such great characters

I don't know how Reader and Spencer are going to choose who is going to be the godparents of their children, but that is going to be a very difficult decision

i love it when you give us drunk spencer, and derek's reactions to seeing him like that, seeing him screaming his love for Reader, that was everything

And Spencer hit someone in the face, I need to say something else, wow!!!!

I don't know how I'm going to live with that ending you gave us, I don't know how I'm going to function, I'm just going to be thinking about what will happen in the next chapter until the next week, for real 

(nsfw?) I need to say this, but when we get to the point of they confess their love for each other, they should take at least a two week off, cos they will be like horny teens, rabbits, there’s a lot of longing tension between them👅🔥

Like I don't know what would be more annoying (for the ones that work with them) before they weren't (painful) together or when they finally get together but in they're in their honeymoon phase (is going to get really steamy)

this series is so well done, is so entertaining, i love everything about it, so thank you for this story❤

i love you and this series so much

❤❤❤❤

Hi pretty!!!

I LOVE your reviews of each chapter!! You keep me writing! I swear!!

The next chapter is... I haven't... and then... shit, I don't wanna spoil it!!! I'm taking this weekend off from my life just to write the next chapter.

Hotch and Frank are my favorite humans on C13. They were the voice of reason. Reader needed to be threatened to set her mind, and Frank HAD to tell Spencer the truth.

Now we'll have to wait and see if Hotch will have to push those two...

Can you picture Spencer on her bed, realizing she might love him 'cos she had all his clothe there with her?? I thought she might find him there, but... that wasn't going to end up well. I also imagined reader had dressed a pillow in Spencer's clothing like Lilly did with Marshall in how I met your mother. 🤣

I don't wanna write the end of this story! So I'm planning a sequel... I need to know what will happen with my babies!! How will the BAU react? Will things change drastically? What will happen when Emily is pretending to be dead? There are too many questions!! And I think I need to write the answers!

Have a great day!! love you!!!

[official-weasley]

The Irreplaceable Charlie Weasley: Pt. 8, Ch. 11

PART 8: WHERE IT ALL ENDS

Chapter 11 - Now, Then and Forever

Charlie

After I made sure everyone was asleep and I heard my mum finally go to my parent's bedroom, it was time for me to sneak back downstairs to regrow my hair. When I got down, I found Fleur sitting alone on the sofa.

“Oh, 'ello Charlie.” She smiled, sipping her tea. “Going to regrow your 'air?”

“Yes.” I smiled back, reaching for the mirror Ginny left on the kitchen table.

“I am zo zorry for before.” She sighed, looking at her cup. “I shouldn't 'ave said anything.” I could see she felt bad.

I took the mirror and brought it to the coffee table, sitting down in the armchair opposite her.

“Please, don't beat yourself over it, Fleur.” I smiled at her before looking back at the mirror.

“It's just zo tragic.” She said, half into her cup. “You dezerve to be 'appy, Charlie.”

“Thank you.” I couldn't stop the smile spreading across my lips. “I'm fine, don't worry.”

“I am zorry if I am too intruding...” She cleared her throat. “But do you zink you will ever...”

“Fall in love again?” I finished her question. She nodded carefully.

I didn't answer, focused on my hair that was now of the length to my liking. It wasn't as long as before mum cut it but I decided to meet her halfway. Otherwise, she would find the time tomorrow to cut it again anyways.

“No.” I finally said. “Nova was the love of my life. I have come to terms with it and I thought about it, but I don't want to be with anyone else.” I said slowly but determined.

“I zink you are very brave, Charlie Weasley.” She smiled at me as she put her cup down. “I can imagine, it waz not an easy decision.”

“It wasn't.” I agreed. “But I know it is the right one.” I put the mirror down, finally satisfied with my look.

“What are you doing up, anyway?” I decided to change the topic. I could see she wanted to know more about Nova but I wasn't in the mood to tell her more. I was rarely in the mood to talk about her.

I had no problem remembering her and going through my memories of her but talking about it to someone else, especially when they had the look in their eyes that was saying that they felt sorry for me, was something I dreaded every time. There was nothing I could do and them pitying me didn't do me any good.

“I am nervous.” She giggled.

“You are going to do fine.” I smiled at her. “You are going to look so beautiful and I have seen Bill's dress robes, he is going to blow you away.” She chuckled at my words.

“Zank you, Charlie. Bill did ze right zing, making you 'is best man.” She looked up and I turned around.

“Of course, I did!” Bill beamed, sitting down next to her on the sofa. Fleur and I laughed.

“Can't sleep, sweetheart?” He kissed her forehead and her cheeks turned pink. A grin spread across my face. Nothing made me happier than seeing them so happy.

“I zink I will do better now.” Her eyes locked with mine and I knew she felt better apologizing to me again, even though she didn't really need to.

She kissed Bill and stood up. She put her hand on my shoulder and squeezed it as she passed me.

“You will be fine, Charlie.” She whispered in my ear and went upstairs.

“She felt so bad saying what she did before.” Bill said when Fleur disappeared on the stairs.

“I know. She didn't need to though.” I reassured him. They were making a much bigger deal out of it than it was.

“And I'm sorry I never told her about Nova.” Bill's lips curved downwards.

“Not exactly a conversation starter, I know.” I forced a smile.

“Do you miss her?” Bill asked gently after a moment of silence. “Every day.” I said honestly. There was no reason to lie about it.

“Did you talk to mum about...you know...” He cleared his throat. “What you told me?”

“Not yet.” I shook my head. “I decided to wait until after the wedding, before I leave.” Bill nodded in understanding.

“Hey, do you remember when I gave her my jumper and you freaked out?” Bill tried lightening the mood. He was the only one I liked reminiscing about our years at Hogwarts with.

“Yeah.” I chuckled. “Or when you said I was going to make her an official Weasley.” Bill laughed.

“Or when you lost 100 points to both Houses because Snape caught you sneaking around.” He winked at me.

“How do you know that?” I tried putting on a serious face but remembering how angry Snape was, I just couldn't do it.

“Penny.” Bill answered.

“Of course!” I didn't expect anyone else to share that information.

I missed my friends. I finally started to talk to Penny about a year ago when she wrote to me that she was going to have another baby and asked me and Tonks to be Godparents. I corresponded with Tonks regularly and was so happy and excited for her when she told me that she has started falling for someone who was assigned on regular Order missions with her. I got the feeling she liked Remus a lot and wished her nothing but the best. She deserved it.

Tulip and I wrote to each other more as well. Jae told me that they eloped together in America and tried apologizing for not inviting any of us but nobody was really mad. Well, perhaps Penny a little. Jae and Tulip joined the Order after Nova passed away and got the same job as I did.

I liked the fact that none of them were asking me questions anymore, that we could all talk like friends instead. Reminding me constantly that one of us wasn't with us anymore was something none of us wanted or needed. I knew they missed her as much as I did.

“How about when I let it slip that Nova and I were going to the Forest.” Bill frowned at the memory.

“When you made me teach you spells because I thought you two were going to join the Duelling Club.” He facepalmed himself. “I should've known better.”

“But you went into the Forest with us anyway!” I laughed.

“Yeah!” He shook his head. “I still don't know why I pressed the matter so much.”

“Because you're the best older brother.” I said matter of factly.

“Listen, Charlie...” The smile the compliment gave Bill faded from his face. “I know you're doing fine and I support the decision you have made.” He cleared his throat. “I just want you to know that I'm here for you. Whenever and for whatever.”

“I know, Bill.” I nodded.

“I know there are moments when you miss her more than usual and that's okay. I just want to be there for you, if you need me during those times.” He forced a smile.

“Thank you.” I didn't know what else to say. He understood me better than anyone.

“I miss her too.” Bill whispered, lowering his head. “Sometimes, when I get a letter, I catch myself hoping that it's from her. That she will tell me all about what you are doing in Romania and ask me at least 10 questions about Egypt.” I smiled.

“Trust me, you're not the only one.” I admitted.

There were many times when I did the same. Catching myself thinking about when she will finish working or hoping she will be there when I wake up in the morning. I was happy to know I wasn't the only one who missed her so much. Bill knew her for as long as I did.

“If I miss her, I can only imagine how much you do and it's important to me that you know that you can talk to me if you have the need to.” We stood up simultaneously as he finished talking.

“As I said...” We hugged. “You are the best brother I could ever ask for.”

—

Even though we were attacked and I was interrogated by the Death Eaters about Harry’s whereabouts while still being a bit tipsy, I could say that the wedding was a success. As I predicted, Bill and Fleur looked great and even more so together. The ceremony was beautiful and since Ginny didn't shed a tear during it, I blinked as much as I could not do so. I wasn't going to go down known as the best man who cried at his brother's wedding!

It was also great to see Tonks, who was the only one of our lot who could make it to the wedding. She told me that she secretly married Remus and put a hand over my mouth, trying to calm me down as I wanted to jump for joy. I can't express how happy I am for her!

She told me that she is worried about her husband as he thinks he made a mistake marrying her despite loving her because of his condition. But I knew Tonks. I knew how strong and stubborn she was and I knew that they are going to be just fine.

I am not going to lie, we were all pretty shaken by the Patronus saying that the Ministry has fallen and the Death Eaters interrupting the wedding moments after. Seeing them, without knowing their faces brought back memories of when they attacked the Sanctuary, and even though my dad tried his best to make us all stay calm by just looking at us, I was shaking with fury.

I wanted to hurt them. To get back at them. Even though it was Dragon fire that killed Nova, it wasn't Thor's fault. It was the monsters hurting him and trying to immobilize him. I was holding to Bill's words that I will get my chance to fight again and since it looked like all they wanted from us was to know where Harry was, I decided to stay calm...for now.

After everything was over and we cleaned up the mess the Death Eaters made, I was getting ready to go back to Romania. I already said goodbye to Bill and Fleur and my siblings. I was thinking of Ron, Hermione, and Harry and hoping they were doing alright. Dad told me that Dumbledore trusted them with a mission and I wished them nothing but good luck.

I had my bag packed and ready to go and I knew I only had one more thing to do before I walk back up the Hill to the Portkey.

“Mum, can I have a word.” Before I left I wanted to talk to my mum. I needed to tell her something and with everything that is going on, I wanted her to know I was going to be okay. I knew she worried about me, not just because I lived so far away but because of Nova being gone as well.

“Of course, dear.” She said softly. She shooed everyone from the kitchen and pointed for them to go upstairs, gently grabbed my hand and we sat down on the sofa together.

“What it is Charlie, dear?” Her eyes were full of worry and deep understanding and I don't remember her looking at me any other way since Nova passed away.

“Mum, I've been doing some thinking.” She nodded, tightening the grip on my hand.

“When all of this is over and we can go back to our normal lives, I will return to Romania and bury myself in my work like I wanted to since I was six.” She nodded again and I knew she was waiting for me to tell her more.

“And I...” I looked down in my lap as it still wasn't easy to say it out loud. “Mum, you won't be mad if I never bring another girl home?” She let out a little cry and the tears, that were blurring her vision before, escaped her eyes.

“It's okay mum, really.” I smiled faintly. “I am content with my decision.” She pulled me into a tight hug, not saying anything.

“Are you sure, dear?” She whispered in my ear. I pulled away and handed her the handkerchief she always had on the edge of the sofa.

“I am. I know I will never be able to love anyone as I loved her and it wouldn't be fair to any girl to not be loved to the fullest.” She wiped her nose.

“Well, I guess I understand.” She said gently after a moment of silence. “If something ought to happen to your father...I wouldn't be able to...you know...either.” She tried her best to talk between her sobs.

“I was going through all my memories of her and I remember so vividly how she came to find me in the Forbidden Forest.” She frowned when I mentioned that we were in the Forest. “Mum I am an adult now, you have to let it go.”

“When we made up after that nasty fight we had in our Fifth Year.” I continued. “She told me I was irreplaceable to her and she gave me a kiss on the cheek.” My mum started crying again, now even louder. I knew this was killing her as much as it was killing me. She loved Nova as much as she loves me or any of my siblings.

“I knew at that moment that we were going to end up together. She might've not been there with her feelings yet like I was and she might've not realized she fancied me yet, but I knew that Bill and Penny and Olivia and you were all right when you wanted us to be together. I don't know how I knew, I just did.” I stood up and walked to where my mum had aprons hanging in the kitchen. I knew she had a handkerchief in every single one and the one I gave her before was soaked. I brought it to her and sat back down.

“Thank you, dear.” She blew her nose again.

“Mum, are you going to be okay if I don't marry and don't give you any grandchildren?” The tear that I was blinking away since we started talking ran slowly down my cheek. It hurt saying that. It hurt when the memory of Nova and I talking about it, rolled in front of my eyes.

“Oh, Charles!” She cried and pulled me back into a tight embrace. It was breaking my heart talking to her about what now seemed like the biggest decision of my life. My chest felt like collapsing and I needed to take deep breaths to stop myself from suffocating, that's how painful it was for me but I knew I was doing the right thing.

“Are YOU going to be okay with that, Charles?” She pulled away and tried her best to keep her eyes on mine.

“I will.” I swallowed hard. “I've given it a lot of thought and that's what I decided.” I faked a smile just so that she would think I am completely okay with it. Even though I knew nothing could fool her.

“You know that ever since I was little all I wanted to do in life was to be surrounded by Dragons.” She nodded and gave out a small chuckle.

“Up until the moment when I told Nova how I feel and she returned my feelings all I wanted to do was be a Dragonologist. I was never interested in dating and I hated myself for having a crush on her since Third Year as I saw it as a distraction. But she proved to me that I could have both. She showed me love that I never expected to have and didn't know I wanted and I cherish those moments and hold them close to my heart and nobody is more heartbroken to what happened to her than me and nobody can blame themselves as I do.” She hastily squeezed my hand as tears started to pour down my cheeks.

This was the most painful conversation I had ever since Bill visited me a few months after Nova passed away and I told him how she died.

“I know I shouldn't blame myself, mum, but to some degree, I always will. She was what I never knew I needed and before she passed she made me promise that I will stick with the only dream I ever had before falling for her and I want to keep that promise.” She blew her nose again, wiped her eyes, and hugged me.

“Then I support your decision completely. I just want you to be happy Charlie, as much as you can be.” She whispered and stroked my hair. And for the first time, I think she didn't think about cutting it.

I felt better talking to her. It felt good telling someone about my decision out loud as the only other person who knew was Bill but I told him about it in a letter. Now more than ever I knew I have made the right decision and I was happy with it. And I knew I can start working on being the best uncle to all the children my siblings will have.

[seriouslysam8]

Since you opened the door to ask the millions of questions in my brain :P I thought I’d ask a couple ;)

You may have already answered this question but it didn’t stick in my brain, does Remus have Teddy’s abilities? Did Victoria get Fleur’s Veela abilities and subsequently pass them to Dora?

How is Harry’s relationship with Rose? In Kalopsia, you mentioned that Harry was Rose’s godfather but it seems like Lily holds a small grudge against her for how she treated Albus in school (and it’s likely that Harry probably knows about that too?). Also since Rose is dating Reed, I can tell the family is pretty obvious with their distaste for her relationship. I wonder if any of those issues affected how close him and Rose are? It seems like in the general fanfic world, it’s a tendency that Harry and Hermione grow apart a little in the adult world maybe because of Hermione going back to Hogwarts and the fact that they don’t work together like Ron and Harry do. It seems like a lot of authors change the dynamic to where instead of them being the Trio, it’s more like Harry, Ron, and Ron’s wife which subsequently affects how Ron/Hermione interact with the potter children and how Harry interacts with the granger-Weasley children. Just wanted to know your thoughts :)

Lastly, I think Demelza is a contender for one of my favorite characters you have in your series. I was wondering if you could share a little bit more about her and how she became so friendly with Ron and Harry. Is she close enough where she’s going to family/friend get togethers or is she just a coworker? Did James know her before he started working as an Auror? In Legendermain, does she have a significant other yet or has she still not “settled down”?

No, Remus does not have Teddy’s abilities. It always irked me that Teddy did because it’s supposedly so rare. So it definitely is skipping a generation.

I would think Dora would have some Veela in her. It’s genetic right? So if Fleur is a quarter Veela that would make Dora… an eighth Veela? Help! Math! I am not a mathematician, just a writer. I did make Dora blonde as well while Remus has Teddy’s naturally black hair.

I think Harry and Ginny are as close to Rose as they can be. Their relationship took a hit when Rose and Albus were on the outs for a while, but Rose still loves her godparents and they love her. You saw her last chapter show support for Harry, James, and Albus. She is clearly choosing her family over a boy (Gastrell by the way not Reed. Reed is Head Auror. Gastrell is just an Auror.) If Rose called them for help, Harry and Ginny would be there in a heartbeat for her. They’re not holding grudges and, as an adult, Rose knows she was in the wrong with Albus all those years ago.

I do think Harry and Ron are closer than Harry and Hermione. I think that was true in the books as well. But I do think they are still close and love each other.

So Demelza was on the Quidditch team at Hogwarts with Harry and Ron. In my universe, Ginny and Demelza were in the same year and friends. I think having known her at Hogwarts, being teammates, and then working together just made them close. She’s one of the few people Harry actually trusts other than Ron at work. Demelza attends birthday parties for the kids, she’s actually Albus’ and Hugo’s godmother, and very close to both families. James definitely knew her before he was an Auror and, I’ve written scenes for other yet to be published stories where James can sometimes be too friendly or familiar with Demelza at work and it annoys her because she’s still his boss. I may have one of those in a future chapter of Legerdemain but I’m not 100% sure without looking through my scenes I have written.

Demelza is not married but she has a long time boyfriend. I mentioned him in passing in Brontide, I think? I’d have to look it up in my character chart what his name is because I don’t remember. Maybe I should have waited to respond to this when my computer was handy??

[ineffable-endearments]

Good Omens and the prolonged story of Leaving The Garden

Last week I had this weird episode where I felt like my third eye popped WIDE open and I suddenly started making all these loose associations that I believe are nevertheless relevant between Aziraphale’s entire story and his role in the Garden of Eden. I don’t know if other people will find it agreeable, but I became very fixated on it.

Aziraphale, Guardian of the Eastern Gate, formerly on Apple Tree Duty. Guardian of forbidden Knowledge, the Knowledge of good and evil. Comes to Earth and sets up a store full of Knowledge that he doesn’t actually want to sell with his desk on the East side.

Tries to protect the Serpent from his own questions. What if we made our own Side? It doesn’t matter, they’ll kill us for asking that. Tries to keep the Serpent away from his own damn fruit.

Discovers the location of the Antichrist. This, too, is a kind of Forbidden Knowledge; the Antichrist is the key to the war between good and evil, after all, and no angel is supposed to be able to find him. Aziraphale is on Apple Tree Duty again. Struggles with who should rightfully have this information. Should he give it to the Serpent, orchestrator of the Fall of Man and chaos agent who kickstarted everything Aziraphale loves? Or should it be reserved for Heaven, the ostensible “greater good”?

Maybe this dilemma brings up painful old questions. For example, did Crowley’s effective temptation of Eve make Aziraphale a fuckup, a failed angel? If he was put at his post to fail as part of the Great Plan and then he did, was it actually a failure? Would it have been better for the original Knowledge to remain in Heaven’s hands? Is it wrong to prefer life here on Earth, is it wrong to love Crowley, if it means accepting and embracing his own incompetence*, the Fall of Man, and all the horrible things that came thereafter (war, famine, pestilence, pollution, death, traffic)? Who is really responsible for all that? And even assuming humanity’s Fall is part of the Great Plan, what about giving them the sword? Was that part of the Plan, too, or is Aziraphale’s tenure on Earth a punishment for that incident? If that’s the case, then is his protective behavior toward Crowley also wrong?

Anyway, now that he knows where Adam is, Aziraphale once again has Forbidden Knowledge. Is he going to fail in his guardianship again?

Don’t get me wrong. The Serpent is already in the Garden. Part of preserving the Garden is preserving the Serpent. The guardianship part is whether Aziraphale actually allows that one fruit to be plucked from that one tree.

If Aziraphale puts the Knowledge he’s guarding in Heaven’s possession, they can be persuaded to destroy the boy (he thinks). They can cancel the war between Good and Evil. That would effectively maintain the status quo. There would be no leaving the garden.

In a certain way, it would almost, sort of, “cancel”(?) the Fall of the rebel angels, wouldn’t it? It’s far-fetched, but bear with me for a moment. The point of the Fall is this notion that Hell will be a place of disgusting godless castaways for a while and then there will be an eventual reckoning. If Heaven enforces the status quo, protecting the world and the Heaven/Hell duality, then Hell is what it is forever, but it loses the impending doom of possibly being exterminated by Heaven, and Heaven has to concede that Hell belongs in this world. Hell is no longer made of mere castaways; they are openly, if perhaps grudgingly, given a place in the universe. The Fallen angels don’t ascend, so it is not a “reversal” per se, but they get a measure of acceptance (not necessarily friendliness or camaraderie - just acceptance). There are implications of this when Aziraphale says, “We can Save everyone!”

If Aziraphale shares this newfound Knowledge with the Serpent...well. What happens then? They still have no plan. Neither of them wants to destroy the Antichrist, but if they did, they’d still be in trouble. They’d be kicked out of the garden on their own in a hostile universe, and this time there’s nobody to offer a flaming sword for their protection against the angry legions of Heaven and Hell. This is to say nothing of the fates of Adam and Eve’s descendants - their own descendants, in a godparenting sort of way - on Earth. There’d be no way to protect them.

Aziraphale is a guardian. He chooses what he thinks is going to be his best shot at preservation. Aziraphale offers Heaven what he believes is a chance to use their judgment (the forbidden fruit), a chance to avert the war, and they reject it; they want the same prescriptions and myths they’ve always had.

Aziraphale thinks, for a while, maybe there’s a compromise. Maybe the Serpent can earn Heaven’s favor again, or maybe he can escape to the stars completely. Maybe Heaven will battle Hell without destroying Earth. But the Serpent does not want Heaven’s favor, nor does he want to leave the garden without Aziraphale. And Heaven won’t make exceptions for humans. They love their dogma, the prescribed actions; their sense of meaning comes from following prophecies. The only judgment they will follow is judgment that will lead specifically to What Is Written playing out, and What Is Written is the world’s end in fire and flames.

So Aziraphale decides he’s going to have to make a moral judgment for them and try to avert Armageddon. In my opinion, this is one of the key moments when Aziraphale partakes of the forbidden fruit himself**. He makes a judgment even though he’s supposed to leave judgment to Heaven, just as (in some fairly common Biblical interpretations) when Adam and Eve learned the difference between good and evil, they essentially “fired” God because they learned to judge good and evil themselves. (Not trusting God’s judgment is existentially threatening to Her, as Her whole purpose is sort of to be the ultimate judge. Deciding to avert Armageddon, Aziraphale discovers, is existentially threatening to Heaven because it deprives Heaven of what it has always seen as its whole Purpose. I think God and Heaven can both get over it and find other Purposes just like everybody else who gets disappointed sometimes, but that’s for another discussion.)

So but. BUT. Here’s the REALLY GOOD PART.

After Armageddon is thwarted mostly by Adam’s love for his world and with spiritual inspiration from his godfathers, Crowley and Aziraphale find themselves alone in a hostile universe. They’re being chased by metaphorical lions, basically. And who saves them from this hostile world?

Each other, with Adam’s help.

See, Adam gave Aziraphale his corporation back. And Aziraphale kept trying to protect Crowley until the very end. When Crowley assumed it was time to give up on life, Aziraphale threw himself into pushing Crowley to keep trying. When Crowley suggested staying together for the night and for the foreseeable future, Aziraphale reminded him that Heaven was still a danger. And they shielded each other from their Sides - from the wrath of God and Satan alike - with their own bodies, Aziraphale even going so far as to tell Hell they’d better leave Crowley alone from now on.

I’ve heard “Crowley is the Forbidden Fruit” before and it knocks me out every single time. Aziraphale could be said to be the flaming sword who keeps himself and Crowley safe. And Adam Young has become the angel on the gate of Eden who gave it to them.

ASTERISKS:

*“Imagine how terrible it might have been if we’d been at all competent.” Perhaps there would be no Earth at all.

**I’d argue that because it’s a complicated story and involves multiple layers of disentanglement from dogma, Aziraphale in fact has a number of “forbidden fruit” moments. But this is the one that Heaven is most aware of. I like to think of Crowley’s handing over of the books in 1941 as the moment that Aziraphale can’t take back from himself, and the decision to swan-dive out of Heaven as the moment Aziraphale can’t take back from Heaven. It’s almost like...in 1941, Crowley plays the role of Eve, offering Aziraphale something he realizes he wants (Crowley himself) but fears that they’ll both be damned if he accepts. In 2018, he realizes that Heaven’s garden is nowhere he wants to stay, nor is it anywhere that he actually wants to inflict on Earth or Crowley, and so he finally eats the forbidden fruit.

[dallasurr]

Which member of the best friends squad you think seahawk is closest to? Or what's his relationship with each one of them? ( Also I've rewatched S2 E5 and his bromance with scorpia is literally friendship goals )

it has been a minute since i’ve been in canon spot land so excuse me for probably missing things but

I’d say he’s closest to Bow for a number of reasons!

Neither of them have magical abilities so they both rely on their physical abilities, melee attacks and skills they’ve acquired and refined over time during fights.

They are both bisexual men in relationships with women who chug respect women juice. In general I feel like bisexual men are treated like they’re just gay but not willing to/ready to admit it, so these two both shatter that stereotype and tell bi erasure to fuck right off. I

They are both “commoners” who are in serious relationships with high ranking and powerful women, future Kings/Queen Consorts of their respecting kingdoms. This puts a lot of pressure on both of them and they both have a lot to learn about how to support their women in their roles without running over them, and I think they can lean on each other for it.

In Bow’s eyes, Sea Hawk Can Do No Wrong, Has Done No Wrong and Sea Hawk is Here For That Energy.

The stars are back, and I headcanon that Bow is going to find some literature on naval astral navigation and he and Sea Hawk are going to spend a lot of time remapping the stars since they’ve most likely changed a bit over the last millennium, especially with the discourse space has gone through. So I see the two of them growing even closer as they revolutionize navigating the seas of Etheria together.

They’re the best man at each other’s respective weddings.

it’s fun to be friends with friends!

Catra

We don’t see these two interact much, or at all? But I think once Mermista is able to forgive Catra they’ll become good and lifelong friends because they have very similar personalities, and Sea Hawk will eventually grow on Catra.

Sea Hawk is definitely one of the first people to forgive Catra outside of the Best Friend Squad and Scorpia.

Scorpia seems to like him and vibe with him, so naturally Catra will trust Scorpia’s judgement.

They are both hard working and determined when it comes to achieving their goals, and I think will have a mutual respect for each other in this regard.

Their relationships mirror one another—both Sea Hawk and Adora are canonically pure of heart, dumb of ass and Catra is going to begrudgingly like him because of this.

Plus, the way he annoys Mermista and Glimmer is kind of hilarious to her and she will egg him on with Bow.

Adora

These two are constantly in friendly competition with each other—be it arm wrestling, racing to a destination, trying to surprise their SOs with a more extravagant gift, whatever. They almost always have a bet of some sort going on. Between Bow and Adora, Mermista almost never sees Sea Hawk in the daytime when they’re in Bright Moon.

Mini HC: Adora once read that it’s an old tradition to give kittens as a wedding gift (it’s an ancient norse tradition!) so sometime during the reception after Mermista and Sea Hawk’s wedding she brings Finn over to them and hands him to Mermista. Mermista is confused but Sea Hawk is excited because “this means we are his godparents now.” and Adora’s like “please give him back though he’s the only one i have ):” Mermista is still like ?? but remembers that once Adora tried to give Frosta a tree branch for her birthday so she’s like ok whatever. Sea Hawk meanwhile is holding Finn like “I will protect you with my entire being, Mista, he’s even named in your likeness! Finn!”

Glimmer

They both talked about and helped each other work through their insecurities and anxiety about not being good enough in the Sea Gate, and Glimmer comforted him a little bit in White Out, so I see this continuing into post-canon too.

Glimmer figured out Sea Hawk’s fighting and battle techniques pretty quickly and encourages him to use them to the Alliance’s advantages. He even made an effort to convince Mermista to join the alliance and then she did, so I think he’d be the one Glimmer would go to with more difficult/touchy decisions when Salineas or Mermista were involved.

Glimmer goes to him with a lot of her relationship questions/problems she might run into with Bow because, while sometimes his advice isn’t exactly kosher or even works, he can at least help ease her mind about it and eventually help her through them.

[calpalirwin]

Little Star

Summary: Ashton isn’t the only one wrapped around his little girl’s finger. 

A/N: My brain child with @creator-appreciator​ grows. 

Word Count: 2.9k

__

Part 1

“I want about 6. 8. I’m gonna go hard,” Ashton’s voice said through Sam’s phone. From on the other side of the couch, Ashton’s real voice asked, “Why are you watching that interview? It’s like… 2, 3 years ago.”

“6 or 8 kids, huh?” Sam asked in lieu of answering him.

Ashton shrugged. “I mean, I dunno. Be nice I suppose. But also I was just being stupid.”

“So, like 1 would be fine for the time being?”

He cocked an eyebrow. “Are you saying you want to have a baby? Like now?”

“Well… not now now. But like 9-ish months now? How would you feel about that?”

“A-are you saying what I think you’re saying? Are you pregnant? Are we having a baby?”

“I have an appointment tomorrow to confirm. But yeah. Pretty sure.”

“I-” he started, but launched himself across the couch to give her a hard kiss instead. “What time is your appointment?”

“You want to come with me?”

“Of course I want to come with you! We’re having a baby!”

“Fletch, you’re crying,” Sam said, wiping her thumb across her husband’s cheek.

“Good tears,” he sniffed, his hands rubbing along her stomach. “Oh, I can’t wait to meet you.”

~~~

Ashton’s hand tightened its grip on Sam as they heard the rapid “swwwoooop swwwoooop swwwoooop” of their baby’s heartbeat on the monitor. “You okay?” Sam chuckled, flexing her hand.

“Terrified,” he whispered back in awe. He crooked his index finger at the screen in a little wave. “Hey, sweetheart. I’m your daddy.”

Sam swallowed thickly, tears forming in her eyes. “You are already so loved, little one,” she choked out.

~~~

The wait to 12 weeks to break the news to everyone was nothing short of torture for everyone all around as Ashton and Sam didn’t trust themselves to be around their friends without blurting out the news. So when Ashton finally corralled everyone over, Calum hugged Sam tightly before slugging Ashton in the arm as hard as he could, Luke and Michael following suit, the girls much nicer in just giving the couple both a hug hello

“Ow!” Ashton hissed through his teeth, rubbing his arm. “The fuck was that for?”

“Haven’t seen you guys in like a month. So what the fuck is going on?” Calum demanded, getting straight to the point.

“Sit down. We have presents for you all to make up for being shitty friends these last few weeks,” Sam said, gesturing for them to have a seat.

“You’re not a shitty friend, princess,” Calum told her.

“Gee thanks…” Ashton rolled his eyes. 

Michael laughed. “Seriously what Cal said. You guys just got married. Of course you’re gonna fall out of contact for a while.”

“Will you two shut up? If they feel bad and want to give us presents, let them give us presents!” Luke put in.

“Oh relax, you’ll get your present, partner,” Sam chuckled. “Fletch?”

“Yep, on it.” Ashton gave each couple a small little box. “They’re couple gifts, so sorry about that part. But we’re pretty sure you’ll love it.”

“Do we all open them together or?” Calum questioned.

“Yeah, you can open them all together,” Sam suggested, sitting back, excitement coursing through both her and Ashton as they awaited their friends’ reactions.

There was a sharp intake of breath as the lids popped open and the sonograms fell into laps. Then, “DIBS ON GODFATHER!” Calum, Luke, and Michael all shouted at once.

“What?! No! Fuck you guys! I’m godfather!” Calum claimed.

“Fuck you, Crystal and I are actually married too. We should be godparents.”

“Sierra and I are engaged! That should count!” Luke protested.

“No! I’m godfather. I’m original bub. Em’s is Sam’s childhood best friend. I officiated their fuckin’ wedding! I should be godfather! It makes the most sense,” Calum kept defending his stance.

“Would you three shut up?” Emily asked with an eye roll. “They’re having a fuckin’ baby!”

“Yeah, we’re supposed to be congratulating them,” Sierra put in.

“Oh, a baby!” Crystal beamed, her eyes watering. “Michael isn’t that great?!”

“See?!” Calum pointed a finger at Michael. “Your wife wants a baby! You can’t have a baby and be godfather to Ash and Sam’s baby, you greedy fuck.”

“Okay, but if Crystal and I have a baby then we should definitely be godparents because we’d be actual fuckin’ parents,” Michael pointed out. 

“I want to be godfather!” Luke pouted.

“You can all be godfather,” Ashton and Sam compromised.

“Unacceptable!” the guys screeched, rising to their feet. “There’s only one way to settle this,” Calum decided. “Godfather Olympics. Diaper changing. Feeding. Taking care of one of those robot babies,” he ticked each idea off on his fingers. “And… something else. We need at least 4 in the event of a tie. Oh! Best lullaby to soothe the baby with.”

“Someone get me a tortilla, and a bottle of mustard and ketchup,” Michael said, seeming to agree with Calum’s demands. “Gotta put it in writing.”

To give them all fair enough time to write a lullaby, the events were spread out over a course of the next four months. The problem ended up being that Calum won diaper changing, Michael won feeding, and then they both tied with the robot baby. The lullaby was supposed to be the tie-breaker, but Luke pulled through for his first victory- after literally crying to Ashton to help him win at least one event.

“Well, Mike and I are still tied for first, so good job to Luke, I guess. But he still lost,” Calum said, his arms crossed over his chest.

“Yeah, that’s nice,” Sam said, not really paying attention because Duke was curled up on her swollen abdomen. “Yeah, you love your baby, don’t you Dukey?” she asked, scratching the dog’s ears. Blue was too big to lay on Sam, but the pup’s ears perked up at the word “baby” and her nose came up to nuzzle into Sam’s ribs. “Oh, yes, Blue, that’s your baby too, I know,” Sam told her, petting Blue’s head with her other hand. 

“Looks like the dogs are better godparents than the actual humans,” Ashton giggled.

Sam gasped, “Fletch! That’s a great idea! What do you think, Dukey? You wanna be the baby’s godfather?”

“What?!” Luke cried in outrage. “You’re gonna pick the dogs?!”

“You lost!” Calum and Michael told him.

“So, why aren’t you angry?!”

Michael shrugged, “Honestly, it sounds like something we’d do.”

“Yeah,” Calum admitted with a sigh of defeat. “No one gets their feelings hurt this way.”

“Okay, but it’s still kinda unfair to me because I only have 1 dog,” Luke chimed back in.

“So do I,” Calum told him.

Michael snorted, “Yeah right. Blue is basically your dog like Duke is, Cal. Leaving me and you tied again at 2 a piece, and Luke with his sad 1 point.”

“Okay, but they’re dogs. They’re not gonna know the difference,” Calum said.

“So, why don’t we all just share being godfather?” Luke suggested.

Ashton shared an eye roll with Sam before going, “Genius idea, Luke! Can’t believe we didn’t think of that before.”

“I sense sarcasm.”

“Whatever,” Calum said, moving past the Godfather Olympics that declared no real winner. “Now, that we’ve decided we’re all gonna be godfather, can we know what our godkid’s name is?”

“Well, we don’t want to know the gender because Sam-” Ashton started to explain but Sam cut him off.

“Because gender is a social construct. So we’re doing it old-school and waiting.”

“Okay but do you have name ideas at least?”

Ashton smiled sheepishly, shaking his head. “We’re still figuring that out. Sorry guys.”

“A nursery theme then?”

“Space,” they both answered.

The guys nodded in agreement. “Alright, we can work with that.”

~~~

As Operation Starry Night Nursery went underway, Ashton brought up the topic of names. “We only got a couple more months until this little one makes their appearance. They kinda need a name, baby.”

“I know,” Sam said with a weary sigh. “I kinda like the name Stella if it’s a girl.”

“Stella? That’s not even your favorite All Time Low song.”

Sam laughed, smacking his chest lightly. “Not after an All Time Low song! It means ‘star.’ Like how the nursery is spaced-themed.”

“Well her middle name can’t be Rosa because I don’t want people thinking I named my daughter after a beer.”

Sam gave out another snort of laughter. “No! Jesus, Fletch. Stella Grace.”

“Oh! Yeah, that’s really pretty. But what if we have a boy?”

She shrugged. “I dunno. And I don’t know if it’s because I just don’t like my ideas. Or if it’s because I don’t think we’ll need a boy name.”

“Weeeeeelllllll…” Ashton said slowly, drawing out the word, his gaze flickering over to the nightstand littered with sonogram pictures and an envelope that held the gender. “We could find out. If you want.”

Sam raised an eyebrow, “You really wanna know, huh?”

“I really do,” Ashton told her, pulling the puppy dog face. “Like so fuckin’ bad. And I know I shouldn’t. But… yeah.”

“Oh, thank God!” Sam laughed in relief. “I want to know too. Gimme the damn envelope!”

Ashton quickly gave it to her, drumming his hands on his thighs for a drum roll, adding to the effect by beatboxing a drum beat to go with it, while Sam tore into the envelope. “Baby Irwin is… a girl! We’re having a girl!” she cheered with a gleeful laugh.

Ashton let out a choked giggle, a tear sliding down his cheek as his hands flew to Sam’s stomach. “Is that what you are? Huh? Are you my little star, Stella?”

There was a ripple of movement underneath his hands that had him and Sam both giggling more. “Yeah? You like that name? Oh, there are so many people waiting to meet you, Stella. People who love you more than you’ll ever know.”

~~~

“Twinkle twinkle, little star,” Ashton sang softly as he danced slowly around the room with Stella in his arms.

“Ashton Irwin, professional rock musician, singing lullabies in a hospital room,” Sam teased lightly. “Someone pinch me, I must be dreaming.”

“If it is a dream, let me sleep,” he answered. “I don’t ever wanna wake up from this.”

“Well, get your time in now. You know once the guys get her, you’re never getting her back. Shit, Calum and Emily might move in if we’re not careful.”

Ashton chuckled at the thought. “Might just all move into Mike’s. He’s got enough rooms.”

“While that’s not half bad, I’d rather not raise my baby in a mansion. She’s gonna be spoiled enough as is. Would like her to have some semblance of normal.”

“When have we ever been normal?”

Sam laughed, “Yeah, I suppose your right. But you guys did work hard on the nursery. So we probably shouldn’t move.”

“Yeah, plus I kinda like our house.”

“Me too.”

“Knock, knock,” Calum announced softly, rapping his knuckles against the open door, Emily behind him.

“Hey,” Sam greeted with a smile. “Where’s everyone else?”

“We didn’t wanna crowd you guys, so we’re taking turns. Michael and I played Rock, Paper, Scissors for first slot.”

“And what about Luke?” Ashton asked with a giggle.

“He cheated at Godfather Olympics so he was disqualified. You’ll see him last. Now gimme da baby.” He made grabby hands before taking the bundle from Ashton, cradling the infant carefully to him. “Oh, hey there, little one. I’m your Uncle Cal. And this is your Auntie Emily.”

“Can you say hi to them, Stella?” Ashton asked in a quiet, but higher pitched tone, the type of voice one adopts around newborns.

“Stella?” Calum asked, raising an eyebrow at Sam. “That’s not your favorite All Time Low song.”

Sam facepalmed herself. “I did not name my daughter after an All Time Low song. I gave her that name because her father loves space and her name means ‘star.’ Jesus…”

“Her middle name isn’t Rosa, is it?”

“Jesus, it’s like you two are twins…” Sam said with an eye roll as Ashton busted up in a fit of giggles. “No. It’s Grace. Stella Grace.”

“Beautiful name for a beautiful little girl,” Emily commented. “Now gimme that baby.”

“Fine, fine,” Calum huffed, handing over Stella. “Oh, Mike said he had news. Won’t tell us what. Said he wanted to tell you guys first.

“Oh?” Ashton and Sam asked.

Calum shrugged. “No idea. But he seems excited.”

The rest of the short visit passed in silence aside from the cooed voices at Stella, asking her if she knew that she was the cutest little girl. At the fifteen minute mark, Michael appeared in the doorway with Crystal and a teddy bear. “Time’s up, Cal,” Michael said with a knowing smirk.

“Kiss ass,” Calum scoffed, jerking his chin at the teddy bear.

“It’s not from us,” Michael answered innocently.

“Whatever,” Calum rolled his eyes playfully. He crossed the room to give Sam a kiss on the cheek. “Congratulations, princess. She’s gorgeous just like her momma.”

“Thanks, bub. Em. See you guys later?”

“Yeah, we’ll all visit again when you guys get settled back home,” Emily promised.

“So who’s this?” Michael asked, taking Stella from Calum in a gentle manner and Calum and Emily made their exit.

“This is Stella Grace. And Stella, this is your Uncle Mike and Auntie Crystal,” Ashton introduced.

“Oh, well aren’t you precious!” Crystal exclaimed, tears brimming in her eyes. “Isn’t she the sweetest, Michael?”

“Yeah, she’s a cutie,” Michael agreed. “Hey, Stella, we brought you a present. Only it’s not from us. It’s from a friend of yours, actually.”

“Yeah, Cal said you had news? Is that tied to the bear?” Sam prompted.

“Yeah. So, when you guys announced you were pregnant, Crystal and I got to talking. And we didn’t want to feel like we were trying to upstage you guys or anything, so we kept talking. But then talking got carried away. And… well, I'm sure you can guess.”

“Pregnant?” Sam croaked at Crystal.

Crystal nodded shyly. “Yeah. Just passed the three month mark.”

“Oh, that’s great!” Ashton said with a big smile, clapping Michael on the shoulder, before giving Crystal a tight hug.

“Oh, congratulations, guys!” Sam told them. “Another little one, Fletch, can you believe it? Stella, you’re getting a cousin!”

Stella opened her mouth in a tiny yawn, making Michael giggle with glee. “Yeah, that’s right! We’re getting a friend just for you. They won’t be here for a bit to say hello, so they asked if we could give you this teddy bear for now. Is that okay? Can the teddy bear be your friend until your real friend gets here?”

“That’s fuckin’ awesome, Mike. I’m so happy for you guys,” Ashton said, his cheeks sore from his grin.

“Thanks, mate.” Michael gave Stella over to Crystal, and then sat down on the hospital bed next to Sam, pulling her towards him in a side hug. “I think I officially won on the nicknames, queen. You got quite the princess over there.”

Sam laughed in agreement, “Yeah, I think you did too. Just don’t tell Cal.”

He held up a pinky for her to interlock hers with. “It’ll be our little secret.”

“Is it my turn yet?” Luke’s voice piped up.

“Get in here,” Ashton beckoned, wrapping an arm around Luke’s shoulder. “Come meet Stella.”

“Aw, cuz she’s a star!” Sierra connected the dots.

“Huh, I thought it was cuz of All Time Low.” Michael shrugged. “Oh well.”

“Jack Barakat from All Time Low?” Luke asked with a dumb grin.

“Oh, shit!” Ashton said, clapping a hand to his back pocket for his phone. “That reminds me I have people to call. Fuck, Mum’s gonna be so pissed I spaced… I’ll be right back. Baby, you good?”

“Yeah, I’m good, Fletch.”

When Crystal handed Stella to Luke, he made big eyes over at Sierra. “Oh! Can we have one?!” he pleaded.

“Funny story,” Michael coughed.

Sierra tore her eyes away from Stella to shoot Crystal a look. “Are you pregnant?!”

“13 weeks tomorrow,” Crystal confirmed.

Luke broke down sobbing, and from the hallway they heard an angry, “Oh, come on!” from Calum before the man appeared in the room. “Luke found out before me?! Luke?!” he whisper-shouted at Michael.

“What were you doing in the hallway?” was the deflection.

“Well, after you came in here, I went to the gift shop since how someone broke the no gift rule. And when I went to the waiting room, Luke was gone, so I figured he was here.”

“Wait, we were allowed to bring gifts?” Luke asked in confusion, passing Stella to Sierra. “Damn it! No one tells me anything!”

“You’re telling me! Mike, seriously? Luke?!”

“We were planning on telling everyone later on. With the exception of Ash and Sam of course,” Crystal explained. “But Luke just asked Sierra for a baby, so it slipped out.”

“I guess that’s fair…” Calum huffed.

“Wait, so are we allowed to bring gifts or not?” Luke repeated his question.

“No,” Calum and Michael told him. “Mike and Crystal broke the rule on a technicality. Their gift to Stella is really from their baby. And the gift shop sucks. Can find better shit online for half the price,” Calum furthered explained. “Where’d Ash go?”

“I stepped out to call my Mum,” Ashton said from behind Calum. “She wants pictures. Sam, you up for that?”

“Yeah, I’m good, Fletch.”

“Alright, family photo time. Get in,” Ashton directed and set up his camera, before sitting on the other side of Sam and taking Stella from Sierra. “Say ‘twinkle twinkle little star.’”

“Twinkle twinkle, little star!” everyone grinned as the camera went off in a series of little spurts.

__

Tag List

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[queentargary3n]

unfaithful

Sasusaku Fan-fiction AU Lawers Rated M 

FF.net      Link to Chapter 1

Chapter 5

Naruto walked out to his porch, to find Sakura and Sasuke having an amicably conversation, which made him glad, not only because he didn’t want to lose any of them in the firm, just imagining how difficult the office would become if these two didn’t make up made his head spin, but also because he was concerned for Sakura, Sasuke could be a complete asshole sometimes, but Naruto knew his heart was in the right place, he usually didn’t mean the insults he threw around.

“There you are Sakura-chan, come back in, Hinata wanted to show you some baby pictures” Naruto said to the pinkette.

“Yeah, coming” Sakura responded to the blond, then turn over to look at Sasuke one more time before going back inside. “You need to ice that, bring down the swelling”

“So…? Everything Ok now?” he asked his brooding friend after Sakura was gone.

“Sure. I think” Sasuke replied. Although he wasn’t, really. There were many things going on in his life right then, things he needed to figure out, starting with what he had found in Karin’s bed, and the fact that instead, all he could think of was Sakura’s delicate hand touching him, it was very concerning for him. I’m messed up. He thought

“You think? You did tell her you are sorry, right?” Naruto asked, crossing his arms around his chest and closing his eyes, trying to figure out this whole drama.

“Yeah… were on friendly terms I’d say”

“Friendly huh? That’s unlike you” his blond friend mentioned.

“And what makes you say that?” Sasuke questioned.

“You’re a bit of a…” dick he wanted to say but decided against that. “Loner…  I remember when we hired Shino it took you a whole year to learn his name, and even then, you barely even acknowledge him, it’s like you didn’t even noticed he was there”

“That’s because I didn’t notice he was there, he’s too quiet!…” Sasuke defended and continued. “but… I should tell you something, I guess…” Sasuke began, trying to find the best words to describe his past relationship to Sakura. “Sakura and I know each other… from before”

“You do? From…?” Naruto asked, confused and scratching the side of his cheek.

Sasuke took a deep breath, formulating the best response he thought necessary to give Naruto. The two men didn’t have any secrets from each other, at least not intentionally, Naruto had definitely earned Sasuke’s trust, he had saved him from a life of criminal activity Sasuke didn’t know how to disentangle from. But this, his past with Sakura felt too personal, too intimate to share. Even so, this was Naruto, and Naruto always managed to get the truth out of him, one way or the other, so Sasuke choose the path of least resistance.

“Sakura and I used to be together” The Uchiha said quietly.

“Huh? Together like together? when?” why Sasuke always felt the need to give Naruto incomplete information, he never knew.

“We were together back in high school, before I left, I hadn’t seen her since” he offered in explanation.

“No Freaking Way!” the metaphorical gears started to turn inside Naruto, he started to remember his last own love confession to Sakura, during their Junior year in college.

It had never been a secret that Naruto was in love with Sakura, they spent every free moment they had together, and during the third year in college, during a drunken bender, he began to question her about her feelings.

“I just… love you so much Sakura… why don’t you want me…?” He couldn’t bring himself to care what he sounded like under the influence of copious amounts of alcohol.

“I do love you Naruto…” Sakura said as she hugged him gently. “It’s just… not the way you do… or deserve… I’m broken Naruto”

“You’re not broken Sakura-chan… you are … you are perfect” He drunkenly offered.

“Naruto… I used to be in love with someone else… he left… he abandoned me, he left me in the middle of the road, all alone, to go do…doesn’t matter, the thing is I haven’t gotten over that. And you can’t wait for me to do… not when there is someone wonderful waiting for you and you’re too stupid to notice. Please just… notice her” She seemed to sober up by explaining.

“Wait! Are you the asshole who abandoned her in the middle of the road? How the fuck?” Naruto marbled at the improbability of the whole affair.

“She told you…” it wasn’t a question; it was a statement mostly to himself.

“Yeah mentioned it back in the day, ya know? Who would’ve thought were the prickhole? that’s what we used to call you back in college by the way”

“Did she say why?” Sasuke asked, wondering how much Naruto already knew about his past.

“No, but I can imagine” Naruto said, remembering first the time he met Sasuke, handcuffed to his hospital bed, police officer standing watch at the door, bloody bandages covering the remnant stump where his left arm had been.

Sasuke was the very first pro bono case, Naruto’s godfather made him take right after graduating law school. According to Jiraiya, he was just a kid, and he showed a lot of promise. apparently, he was some kind of genius who had just made all the wrong decisions in his life.

“He reminds me of you” His godfather had said. “A kid without a family, he’s got the same look on his face you had when I got you. Makes me think what would’ve happened if you’d stayed all by yourself”

Naruto made a commitment to his godfather, and to himself then, to help get this guy out of whatever mess he’d gotten himself into. Starting with the law, Sasuke was wanted for being associated with a motorcycle gang suspected of dealing guns in the black market, between other more gruesome things speculated. He was caught fleeing the scene of suspected arson, a police cruiser had rear-ended him on the road, casing the motorcycle Sasuke was riding to slid under an 18-wheeler. He was extremely lucky to be alive; he was told by the doctors.

“You need to tell me everything so that I can help you, ya know” Naruto had said, taking a seat next to the black-haired guy’s hospital bed.

“I don’t need some kid attorney to represent me” Sasuke responded with disdain.

“grrrr…. You really do get on my nerves ya know? And we’re the same age asshole” Naruto responded; he’d memorized Sasuke’s file a soon as he got it. But he was going to need more than his background to help him. “I think we can get you out of this easily, no matter what you did, that police officer shouldn’t have rear-ended you like that, we can get all of this thrown away claiming police brutality, I mean you lost your damned arm…”

“I don’t want your goddamned help!” Sasuke lashed out at him.

“It doesn’t matter if you do, you have it, deal with it” Naruto said, standing up from where he was seated and taking one last look at the 22-year-old man in bed, before leaving him.

There was something about him that made Naruto not want to give up on him. His godfather had been right, he reminded him of himself, but a different version, a version of himself who had just given up hope things will get better. He couldn’t handle that.

He was there throughout Sasuke’s entire recovery. Everyday seated by his bed, talking about anything, where Sasuke mostly stayed quiet, but more present than any attorney would have ever been for a client. He paid all of his medical bills and years forward of rehabilitation therapy. And when Sasuke questioned him about it, finally deigning himself to offer a word to the blond attorney, he simply said “Have a lot of money, inheritance ya know? Don’t know what to do with it” and shrug him off.  

It sounded supercilious, as if bragging about how much money he had, but Sasuke understood the meaning behind the words, inheritance… He was alone too. He later learned that Naruto had lost his parents at a young age. Going up and down the foster care system until his godparent was able to get custody. Even then he was nothing but trouble, until he reformed himself. Stipulations left by his late parents mentioned he needed a college degree to be able to get access to his inheritance.

“At first it was all for the money, ya know?” Naruto told him sadly. “But then I started to make friends, real friends who were smart and made me want to be better for them too”

“I don’t have any friends” Sasuke answered. He had people he used for his means. And while Orochimaru claimed, everyone who entered the Brotherhood, as he called the gang, was like family, he never gave a damn about any of them. He didn’t have anyone he wanted to be better for, not anymore.

“Well you do now.” The blond one gave him a smile that for some strange reason made him want to smile too. “Now how about you tell your friend why you joined a gang?”

“Asshole” Sasuke exhaled, irritated at how stupid that line was.  He fisted he bedspread of the cheap motel he was currently living in with his sole remaining hand and began “I was 8 when my parents passed away, leaving my brother to raise me, he was only a few years older, but we did good for some time, then he left me too, just out and left, didn’t even get a reason or goodbye, just one day… he was gone, I had to keep that a secret if I didn’t want to be put in the system and keep my parents home. After I graduated from high school, I found that he died. Orochimaru came to me then, said that Itachi had joined the Brotherhood and was killed by a rival gang. He offered me a chance to get revenge. I took it. My brother was a good man, he didn’t deserve to die, I didn’t understand why he’d even joined the Brotherhood in the first place, I guess I joined too to figure that one out”

“Is that what you want, to get revenge? No matter what happens to you?” Naruto asked him.

“I don’t even know what I want, I don’t have anything else to do” Sasuke responded.

“I can help you figure out what happened to your brother Sasuke, and get justice, not revenge but justice, you don’t have to throw your life away for that” He offered.

x

“Does Karin know that?” Naruto wondered about Sasuke’s wife, with both girls working at the office, and how dramatic Karin tended to be, drama was bound to ensue.

Sasuke shook his head no. “I hadn’t seen Sakura until you brought her to interview, and I never told Karin”

“Should we keep it that way?”

“I don’t know, it doesn’t matter either way” Leaving a crying Sakura in the middle of a dark empty road had been one of the biggest regrets of his life. It was a terrible thing to do to a girl, but he needed to be terrible, otherwise she wouldn’t have let go. And with Karin, he didn’t currently feel like opening up about his past to her, besides she was keeping secrets of her own.

“Well she works with us now; we don’t need that kind of drama around the office” Naruto said. “Just… try to be nice to Sakura, or at least your normally aloof self, she’s a good person, and a good asset for the company, she doesn’t need you mistreating her like that, I care about her”

“I’m a professional, if you’re suggesting I can’t keep it that way…”  

Naruto interrupted him. “You know very damned well what I mean asshole”

And he did, he didn’t exactly keep it professional when he called her a whore. He still had the feeling he needed to make amends for that. He didn’t know how or why, but he would try, it was the least Sakura deserved of him, and he knew, but he simply told his friend “Yeah” and went back inside.  

x

Thank you so much if you are still reading this. Please leave a comment so I know you’re still interested! constructive criticism is always appreciated. Is this were you thought the story was going? What do you think should happen next?

[violetsystems]

#personal

I’m not in a terrible mood this week although I am completely exhausted with everything.  Home is great when you have internet.  Not so great when people try to disrupt it by setting up service on top of your address.  People can be terrible communicators especially when they are focusing only on themselves.  We live in isolated times I understand.  The idea that people ‘project’ all the information you need is incredibly exhausting to have to read into all the time.  Especially when no one bothers to read what you project back.  I often wonder if it will get exponentially worse when people feel safer returning to a public facing world.  I’ve been public facing throughout all of this and for many years prior.  You can’t travel the world alone and develop some sort of toughness.  The real trick is being able to turn your defenses on and off.  It’s a reflex.  Like how in one breath I can tell somebody to fuck off then turn my head and help a kitten from the sidewalk.  If it were called acting then I would have a job already.  I often have to look back at how I’ve grown over time to figure out the headspace.  I’ve always been sort of awkward.  Mostly because I was sensitive to what others thought of me.  I’ve always been bullied as long as I can really remember.  I grew up in an Irish Catholic suburb filled with white people, white pride and whiter drug problems than they cared to admit to.  Most of my friends were losers and rejects.  I kept to myself and listened to hip hop on a broken yellow sony walkman.  People would call me the n word every morning on my way to school proudly claiming I was going to hell.  I was a shy and nerve racked honors student.  I grew up an only child who wrote poetry and science fiction.  I played pen and paper role playing games by myself because nobody shared the same interests.  At times, the friend groups that I did find had group agendas that dwarfed my social needs.  This never really changed.  I spent most of the last ten years revisiting this sort of solitude.  I travelled Korea, Japan and China by myself.  I stayed in hostels in group situations where I still felt uncomfortable.  I developed skills to talk to people.  I met a lot of weird people.  I met a lot of nice people too.  In Seoul particularly, I found a normal that I’d never really understood before.  I’d go out and actually do things with people I didn’t know.  I went to a guitar cafe once in a basement in a small neighborhood called Hyehwa.  The group was myself, a hostel owner, a soccer fan from Dalian, and a random guest.  We sat in silence as a small old man played “Goodbye to Romance” on a small guitar as silent Pink Floyd concert footage played out on the tv behind him.  I escaped to Korea for a long time.  I’d go every six months for two to three weeks on vacation.  At the time I had the vacation from my job to use with impunity.  If I stayed home in the states, people would follow me.  I realized this later when I switched my trips to New York.  My boss and my CIO would stop at nothing to contact me on my vacation to write emails they couldn’t formulate.  Ask questions about things they already knew the answer to.  Looking back on it, there are so many times people made my life miserable enough to make me quit.  I never really got the message because I’ve been so bullied over my life that I learned to ignore it.  My CIO famously cornered me in a hall once and asked what was wrong.  He told me point blank I didn’t have a good poker face.  I replied I wasn’t aware we were gambling.  It was so subtle I don’t think he understood I wasn’t bluffing.  I lost that hand six months later when he fired me over video chat.  Nine months later I’m dead to an entire twenty years of friendships and professional connections.  If I don’t look surprised or scared, it must be the poker face I’ve been working on.

This is to say I understand or process none of anything that has happened to me anymore.  It hurts beyond hurting.  And I’ve become an expert at dealing with it all alone and in silence.  So much so that people follow me around like lost puppies thinking I can offer them clarity.  Or treat me like a practice dummy in their attempt to haphazardly attack the real problems in society.  I’ve never been so tired, done and particularly bored with everything until now.  And yet the bitterness never really gets me anywhere except physically sick and depressed.  Throughout all of this as the situation in society starts to worsen, I see people looking to me for leadership or guidance.  This is often without even asking or having consent.  They think I’m part of some revolution that they’ve never asked about.  Nobody has ever asked my name.  They just know me as the guy they see around all the time.  That I’m some wise and silent protector of things when I’m just some regular person suffering just like everybody else.  If you really added it all up and put these chapters I write together, you’d see an alarming trend.  That for whatever movement people include me in, I’m expected to fight all of this alone.  And me knowing full well how well movements and revolutions have left me completely insignificant and invisible after the things I have done is disheartening.  People enjoy getting a reaction.  Pushing all the buttons every time you step outside your door.  Sometimes it’s a hundred yards before someone starts trouble.  Sometimes it’s the minute you step outside either porch you share with your neighbors.  The lack of dignity and respect is something I deserve because of my supposed position of power.  America is like that.  There is so little to go around that everything is a Hunger Games glorification. Classes need to provoke each other not identities.  And yet we measure each other’s value by our differences and not our common strengths.  America has always been a paradox in this way.  The magical chaos of Anarchy that allows everyone to be free at the expense of others.  The real way to be free in America is money.  And money locks us out from the dialogue more often than not.  It’s a great narrative that people can start their own businesses here in America when all the contract work is locked behind corporate recruiters, headhunters with signing bonuses and worse.  That somehow at the end of a pandemic I’ve survived almost completely alone in I’m supposed to give in at the end.  It’s like the clown in It gnashing it’s teeth as it shrinks into a harmless baby.  I feel a bit sorry for America right now.  And yet that clown has become less menacing to me and has been forced to feed on others.  After all I’ve seen and been through I have no luxury to be afraid of anything or anyone.  I have completely lost my innocence in that respect.  And the face I put on for society when I walk out the door is one of stone.  It is futile to expect that anyone can engage me with respect, humility and courage.  Nobody can ever say my name.  I have not heard my name spoken in forever by people I know well.  I hear it spoke when I get Korean food down the street.  My neighbors simply tell things to me.  Or give me a longing glance like I’m supposed to read their mind, their agenda and trust their nosy intentions of being there at exactly the right time.  We’re all in this together.  We’re all connected.  And yet after all of this I’ve realized no matter how well and good that may seem, it’s a liability to be social without a proper level of respect for your right to be human.  Acting like the neighborhood secret police is not revolutionary. Acting like I owe anybody anything in this city after what IT has put me through is subliminal torture.  I’ve told it like it is more than often about my life here in America.  So much so that it echoes around the globe at this point as an anomaly.  Is it really true that this guy clearly does not give a fuck about what anybody thinks of him?  Yes.  This is how I stay the fuck alive out here.  I need you to understand just how desperate that sounds.  Then I need people to realize that the only thing I’m desperate for is to be left alone at this point.  

The reason I’m invisible to many people is that I’m not worth shit.  We are all technically not worth shit.  This might be news to all of you who read these.  Because I generally feel the most care from people on this platform.  I’m baffled by my own thoughts on this.  How a click can mean more than the world to me than a bunch of people in real life shouting or glaring at me with hidden intentions.  A glare and a hidden message on the internet is most likely spam.  A glare in the streets with a knowing look is basically an invitation to fraud for me at this point.  If you’ve seen me all over the place maybe you should ask my name or introduce yourself.  And yet in Nazi Germany, you wonder if the secret police felt the same.  The overall effect of having people follow, watch and keep tabs on you has this lofty narrative.  Don’t you feel important now that secretly you are being watched?  Don’t you feel special?  I have travelled all over the world by myself at this point.  I paid off the credit card bills to prove it.  Do you think I don’t know what it is like to be surveilled and followed?  Do you think in an era where white people actively target people and hurt them I feel any safer than anyone else?  I am appalled at what I’ve heard in the news.  And yet it is always the same root.  White extremism.  White culture.  White people.  Power abused.  Defenseless broken down worthless trash in rebellion.  Poor me for having a bad day.  In my admonishment of my mother’s call for information for Ancestry dot com, we had a conversation about family.  There are huge segments of my family I stay away from.  My cousin who I have not spoken to for years lives out west.  I learned last night that he sells guns for a living.  My mom told me a story of his father who was an avid gun supporter.  My parents approached him about being godparents.  He replied that he would only accept on one condition.  That when I came of age he would teach me how to shoot a gun like a real man.  I’ve never touched a gun in my life.  I’m a registered conscientious objector.  I swing a hammer in game more often than not though I’m known to creep around with a sniper rifle in Cyberpunk.  That’s a fucking game.  My cousin is out there somewhere at a gun show with a Trump flag and an internet connection just like every other right wing troll on the internet.  And I have to deal with the Fallout just the same.  Everyone bangs away at their status messages and twitter feeds and accomplishes more of the same.  Fear.  It froths over.  It never goes away.  It burns into hatred.  It becomes a righteous cause for which to stand behind.  My rights to be free.  As if holding a gun protects you.  As if wasting your prayers on causing harm to others really heals the world.  As if playing power and mind games on people you don’t know is somehow an act of liberation.  As if boring me the fuck to death with how cool you think you are by thinking you on anywhere near my fucking level helps my situation.  I have a right to be exhausting with all this performative bullshit.  And yet the world keeps upping the ante.  Like we’re in some high stakes Hunger games casino and the reward is your freedom at the expense of others.  We are not all in this together until we can look each other in the eye and understand the cause of each other’s pain.  The pain is that we do not communicate like human beings.  We skitter and prey upon each other like animals.  Animals remember when you feed and protect them.  Humans are worse.  If I know one thing about Planet of the Apes is that not even Mark Wahlberg can save you now.  Just let me exist outside the dome and forget I’m somebody important.  I’ve got my own life and loves I have to protect.  You don’t know what I go through daily to honor that.  And that secret is nobody’s business but mine.  Since there are no jobs left in America, I’ll settle for that one. I don’t need a letter of recommendation.  I write one every week.  Yeah we all float down here.  You’ll float too.  Better than sinking.  <3 Tim

[navalcriminalimagines]

What are we?

Hi guys! This is my first NCIS work! I’ve been thinking about it for a very long time and I thought it was time to write it down. I really hope you’ll enjoy it!! Please, tell me what you think!!

Prompt: your best friend McGee becomes a dad and it makes you think about what you really want

Gibbs x Reader, Pride x Reader

Words: 3,339

“Y/N?” McGee called you for the third time. You were so focused on the little girl in your arms, you completely avoid everyone around you. You finally heard your name and hummed in answer, without raising your head. You couldn’t stop staring at Morgane and how beautiful she is. “Y/N, I know my daughter is beautiful but can you look at me for a sec?” Tim asked and you finally looked at him. You also saw Delilah on her bed, with John in her arms, smiling at you.

“Is everything okay?” You wondered. “Maybe you want me to leave the four of you alone?” You exclaimed, cause you realized that everyone was gone except you. And you haven’t put Morgane down since you picked her up an hour ago.

“Not yet. But soon,” Delilah joked to reassure you. “Tim and I have something to ask you,” You looked at them, questioned.

“Do you want to be their godmother?” Tim finally asked. You stayed stoned for a few seconds until the information came to your brain. If you weren’t carrying one of the twins, you probably would have jumped in the air, excitingly. But instead, you simply looked down at Morgane again to hide the tears forming in your eyes. “I’d love to you,” you tried to say as casual as possible. But Tim was no fool and he was your best friend for over 10 years now.

“Y/N, are you crying?” Tim asked. You turned around to the window, avoiding the newly parents. “No,” you lied, crying.

**

That night, you stayed awake for long hours, probably more than usual. Your work at NCIS prevent you from sleeping correctly since you first started, but you were used to it by now. You started as an Agent the same year as Timothy, the two of you were the Probies and probably due to being a woman, Tony gave you less hard times than your coworker. You grew up with Tim, you became adults and good agents together. And now? He is married to a wonderful lady and father of twins. You? You are just in the same place you were ten years ago, single, no kids and in love with your boss. At first, it was just a crush and you thought it would go away, but it never did. It increased. Which explains why you’ve never been able to date a man more than 6 months. It always end with guys breaking up because of your job, how invested you are in it, and two guys found out about you being in love with Gibbs.

Why can you not move on for those feelings? It’s ruining your life. Everything you thought you’d have by the time you’re 35, you don’t. You and Gibbs built a very special relationship through the years. Sometimes, it looks like a romantic relationship, with flirtation and tenderness, but sometimes, it feels like friendship. You figured out everyone knows about your feelings for him and the relationship he doesn’t have with anyone else, but no one dare to say anything about it over than casual jokes, like calling him your ”work husband”. Husband. It sounds so wonderfully when you think about Gibbs. But you’re not a redhead, like his ex wives.

**

You take your godmother’s role very seriously. You spend as much time as possible with the twins, helping Tim and Delilah every time they need it. Just like tonight, the twins are now five months old and the parents could really used a date night so you offered to babysit. The beginning of the evening went good, you managed to feed John first and then Morgane. Thankfully, Delilah gave them a bath before they left so that was something you didn’t have to do. But putting them into bed was complicated. Neither of them wanted to sleep, and when one cries, the other cries too. Rocking the two at the same time was impossible, they were moving so much while crying, you were scared to let them drop. You considered calling Tim but you didn’t want to ruin their night, so you could the other person that came to your mind. You can never forget how great Gibbs is with kids, no matter how old they are.

By the time your boss showed up at the apartment, you had vomit all over your shirt - thanks to Morgane - and the twins were still crying in their room. Gibbs laughed when he saw your face and followed the sounds. He picked up the baby girl and started to rock her in his arms. ”Take John and follow my lead,” he ordered and you did so.

Rocking John, you couldn’t help but stare at Gibbs with Morgane. He was so kind and soft, he’s meant to be a father. A part of you understand he doesn’t want to have other kids after what happened to Kelly, but your brain just imagined what if those twins were yours and his. What if the two of you were married.

”Uncle Gibbs is here, baby girl,” he whispered to Morgane who was calming down, just like John. ”Did aunt Y/N cook for you? Is that why you’re so mad?” He joked.

”Hey!!” You exclaimed, offended. It’s not a secret how bad of a cooker you are. Or, were. Because of all the teasing through the years, you took cooking class a few months ago. But nobody knows about it. You kept thinking about how great it would be to cook again for Gibbs without setting his kitchen on fire. ”I’m much better than I used to,” you said. ”Right, my loves?” You said to the twins who were falling asleep.

”Is that even possible?”

”Let me show you whenever you’re free,”

”I’m always free. But at your place, I don’t want to rebuild my kitchen again,” he smiled at you, teasingly and you rolled your eyes. ”Let’s try to put them in bed,”

As softly as possible, you and Gibbs put the twins in bed. They seemed to be in deep sleep now, but you know they may wake up in a few hours. You let a small light in their room and went back to the kitchen with Gibbs on your toes. You tried to wipe the vomit stain away from your shirt but it was obviously ruined. Gibbs took the towel from your hands, wet it and replaced what you were doing. The stain is right above your left breast, his body was so close to yours, just like its been so many times. His smell was intoxicating like always.

”Thanks for the help,” you whispered.

”What kind of godfather would I be if I didn’t show up?” He said. And your heart skipped a beat. Tim and Delilah has been telling you they haven’t agreed on who to choose as the godfather yet. But obviously they did? Since when?

”You are— I didn’t know you were their godfather,” you confessed.

”They asked me the same day as you but I wasn’t sure I wanted to have this responsibility,” Gibbs said, still wiping your shirt.

”Why?”

He hummed but didn’t say anything. He is not a big talker, everybody knows that but he also knows sometimes he doesn’t have to talk with you. You just understand. You know things. And that’s something Gibbs really loves about you, between many other things. Of course, he loves you. He has for many years now. Which is exactly why he never tried anything. He avoids love since Shannon died. Sometimes, he wished you’d leave NCIS, before realizing he absolutely can’t live without you. Whenever you mentioned a date or a boyfriend, it felt like someone shoot him right in his heart. Selfishly, he is glad you haven’t date anyone in almost two years now. It feels like you’re all his, even if there’s no romantic relationships between you, or at least, not clearly.

”So— we are godparents of the twins,” you smiled.

”That, we are,” he answered, smirking.

”Is that all we are?” You whispered without restraining yourself. In the same second, you wish he didn’t hear it.

”What?”

”Nothing. Have you eaten?” You asked, taking a few steps away from him.

”Not yet. You?”

”I’ve been babysitting for the last three hours, so no, I didn’t even have time to pee,”

”Very romantic,” he smiled.

”It’s not a date, I don’t have to be romantic. Plus, I’m a total mess right now. But— I’m going to show how my cooking skills improved,” you searched into Tim and Delilah’s kitchen the ingredients you need to make a nice dish.

”You’re never a mess, even full of mud,” he laughed, recalling the memory of you falling into the mud during an investigation years ago.

”Oh my god, don’t remind me that day please.” You started to cut onions. You could feel Gibbs’ gaze on you but you tried to avoid it. He intensely watched you perfectly cutting the onions.

”Y/N?” He asked.

”Yeah?”

”Did you learn how to cook?” You felt your cheeks turning into shades of pink but you didn’t say anything, just smile.

Gibbs quickly offered his help and you cook together, or at least you gave him orders. Once it was done, you settled on the couch, set the coffee table and used Tim’s Netflix account. Months ago, you spent the night at Gibbs’ and you made him watch La Casa de Papel. Actually he pretended to like it, but what he enjoys is to cuddle with you under blankets and watching you enjoying the show.

That night feels like you and Gibbs are parents who enjoys a peaceful and calm night. After eating what you cooked, you got closer to him, and he put his arm around to let you rest on his chest. This is where you belong. You know it deep inside you. You belong with him. Why can’t he see it?

Around 1am, Tim and Delilah came back home to find you and your boss sleeping on the couch, your head on Gibbs’ chest and his arms holding you close, with Netflix still on. They smile at each other and Delilah went to check on the twins while Tim woke you up. ”What time is it?” You mumbled and when Gibbs spotted his male agent, he immediately sat up.

”1am. Everything went well?”

”Yeah, I save your place,” Your boss said and you hit his arm.

”Now, I have to clean the entire apartment tomorrow,” Tim said. You looked at him, confused. The apartment was not a terrible mess. ”I lost the bet. Delilah was sure you’d call Gibbs for help,” She came back at the same moment.

”Thank you for your trust, Mrs McGee.” You said, falsely offended and she laughed.

”I know what it’s like to take care of two babies, you have no idea how many times I want to call Tim for help,”

”Tim can take some time off, you know,” Gibbs said to Delilah, before turning his attention to you. ”Ride home?”

You nodded, went to kiss the twins and left with Gibbs.

”Do you mind sleeping at my house?” He asked. You live further than him, and you could see on his face he just wants to go back to sleep.

”Fine by me,” you agreed.

His house is practically yours, to be honest. There are some of your clothes somewhere and you just do whatever you want to do, when you want to do it. Which explains why you directly went to his bedroom to grab one of his shirts and you found a legging that belongs to you. Downstairs, Jethro was almost sleeping on his couch, you considered go upstairs to sleep in his bed but his voice stopped you before you left the room.

”Where you going?”

”In your bed— if that’s okay?”

”Come next to me, instead,” he opened his arms.

The small size of the couch forced the two of you to be really close, not that you mind. Apparently, he doesn’t either. He kissed the top of your head, one of his hand was stroking your hair while the other was on your back. Your face was buried in his neck. ”Jethro?” You whispered, and he hummed in answer.

”What are we?”

He took a moment to answer. ”Coworkers? Friends? Best friends?” You could feel tears forming in your eyes and you sat up, turning your back to him.

”Is that it?” You asked with a small voice but he didn’t answer. ”I want more, J. I need more,” you confessed. You don’t really know why it’s coming out right now, tonight but it does and you can’t stop yourself. ”I love you. A lot. And not like a friend— Tonight with the twins, that’s what I want. But with kids of our own. I mean— you’re the only reason I’m still single. Cause no matter who I’m with, you’re all I can think about. You’re the only one I want, Leroy.” Tears were now streaming down your face and you couldn’t turn around to look at him. He hasn’t move. He hasn’t spoke. ”If you don’t feel the same way, that’s totally okay. But you have to tell me. It’s been ten years and I can’t keep going like this. I need something concrete, something real, you know?” Still nothing coming from him. Not a move, not a word. You stayed a moment like this, waiting for him to do something, anything. But he didn’t. So you stood up, take a look at him but he avoided your gaze. You sighed and grabbed your things. You stopped for a moment before leaving, giving him another chance to speak but he stayed silent, so you left.

**

The next week seemed to be too long and awkward. You and Gibbs barely talked, a part of what needed to be say to do the work. A few people asked you what was going on but you just raised your shoulders and stayed silent. Nobody needed to know what a ridiculous declaration you gave to Jethro. It could be like nothing happened, like you haven’t say anything, but he changed. He’s avoiding you. No smile, no looks, no time alone. Nothing. And everyday you feel worst than the day before.

A new case came in and you had to work with the New Orleans team. Thanks god, you thought. It will change the mood from the past few days and you could used the distraction from Dwayne and Tammy. You already met them, you even spent around two weeks in there town. They are completely different from your squad. Work hard and having a lot of fun. One night there, you got drunk at Dwayne’s bar and almost hook up with him if he hadn’t stop you.

“You’re drunk, I don’t want you to wake up tomorrow and regret this,” he told you back then. The next morning, you regretted to have ridiculously kissed him. But a part of you regretted not to have sex with him too.

“Hello my darlin’” Dwayne greeted you. You literally jumped from your desk to hug him, he kissed your cheek and you did the same. You hugged Tammy too while Dwayne said hello to the rest of the team. Him and Gibbs are old friends, they started together in NCIS.

“What’s happening to the Marine haircut?” Dwayne joked. Gibbs hasn’t been to the hairdresser lately, and you found him even more attractive like this. But you can’t tell him, of course.

You all quickly had a brief update on the case, but it was getting late already so Gibbs called it off for the night. ”I guess you’re sleeping on my couch?” Your boss said to Dwayne. ”Gregorio, you staying at Y/N’s,” Tammy looked at you to be sure it was okay. Of course it is, but the fact that Gibbs didn’t ask bothered you.

”Boss, what if I’m not alone tonight?!” You lied. You secretly hoped it would make him jealous but nothing appeared on his face, he stayed neutral just like he always does.

”Aren’t you?” He simply answered.

”I guess now I’m not, for sure,”

”Good.”

Gibbs started to walk to the elevator, but Dwayne didn’t follow yet. ”I thought we could have dinner all together?” The New Orleans boss said. Gibbs turned around, apparently not interested in that offer.

”I’d love to,” you smiled to Dwayne. ”Tammy?”

”I’m in!” She answered.

Tim declined the invitation, Delilah and the twins were waiting for him. Ellie joined in, as well as Nick, Reeves and Abby. Usually, the squad never met to have dinner or just a drink like this. Gibbs reluctantly accepted after Dwayne made him to.

**

Gibbs kept ignoring you, so you started to drink. A lot. You hoped it would make you stop looking at him, searching for anything on his face, in his moves. Eventually, it made you flirty with Dwayne just like you were in New Orleans. There were laughs, looks and small gestures. You quickly were on your fourth mojito, you felt dizzy but at least, you didn’t care about Gibbs sitting right in front of you. All your attention was on Dwayne and all of his was on you. ”Wanna dance?” D whispered in your ear. You smiled, grabbed his hand and walked to the dancefloor. It was a sexy dance, Dwayne’s body was against yours, his hands traveled your back and waist, while yours touched his torso and neck. One moment, one of his hand was almost on your butt, but he stopped himself before going further. You laughed, ”I don’t mind you touching my ass. I can’t remember the last time someone did it,”

”I’d love to, especially without the fabric between our skins— but I can feel a lot of eyes on us,” he said in your ear.

”How about you stay at my place tonight and Tammy goes at Gibbs’” you offered, flirtatious.

”Hmm— I’m not sure Gregorio would like that,”

”Then, you two at my place, but we’ll have to be quiet,” you smirked, your mouth was almost touching his.

”Y/N, you’re drunk,” he said. ”Would you still want to have sex with me without any alcohol?”

”I could prove it to you, tomorrow morning,”

Dwayne snorted, still swaying with you but the music was now a slow dancing. You stayed in his arms for a moment before he took a step away, ”Wait, my driver’s taking off,”

You turned around to see Gibbs leaving the bar. Dwayne chased him and you don’t know why but you followed them. They were already talking when you reached for them, you were standing behind Gibbs who hasn’t seen you unlike Dwayne.

“She’ll drive you,” you heard Gibbs say, bitterly.

“Is there a problem, Jethro? Don’t like what you saw?”

“What? You almost fucking her on the dance floor? I loved it,” he answered sarcastically.

“It’s my fault you don’t have the guts to tell her how you feel? She’s so into you. Why do you think she drunk that much and flirt with me? Because you’re a stupid stubborn pain in the ass,” Gibbs stayed silent. “Fight your fears or let her go,”

By the time they ended their little fight, you were ugly crying behind Gibbs. You’re pretty sure he knew you were there from the beginning. Maybe he used Dwayne so you could hear some explanations? Of course he is afraid. He was so in love once and she got killed, with their little girl. He can’t take that risk again. He is too afraid.

“He’s right, J.” You spoke up. “If you don’t want to be with me, let me go. And I mean— fire me.” He turned around to face you. You were about to take back what you just said but you didn’t. It may be now or never.

“Fine,” he breathed out. “Clear your desk first thing in the morning,” he said before leaving you — and Dwayne — on the sidewalk.

[onigirisuna]

blue ivy

a contribution for @zutaramonth, quarantine edition, day 15: trust. view my other work for zutara month (quarantine edition) here.

this isn’t sad this time, i promise!

modern au. cw: cursing. long fic ahead.

“See those other morons over there?” Toph says; she lowers her voice down to a pseudo-whisper. “They’re stupid as fuck.”

Akira coos in response. Toph continues her rocking back and forth, tickling her belly as she says, “Yeah, that’s right. I’m gonna be the dopest auntie you’ll ever have. You know that bitch, Martha Stewart? She won’t even know what’s coming for her.”

“Two strikes, Toph,” Katara says with her arms crossed. “I gave birth three days ago and now my baby’s gonna say fu– the f word before she says ‘mama’ or ‘papa’.”

“No, Katara,” Toph says, still cradling the now-sleeping Akira in her arms. “She’s gonna say y’all are fucking wussies when she realizes how lame her parents are.”

Katara rolls her eyes, too tired to argue with the blind girl. Toph deposits the sleeping child in Katara’s outstretched arms; as Toph unfurls her arms from the infant, she says, “I’m tellin’ you, Sugar Queen. I’m out here being Solange Knowles while you guys fight over which Kardashian you are.”

Zuko walks in with a two mugs of coffee in hand. “I think Kourtney’s pretty cool.”

Without looking back, Toph points in his direction. “Exactly.”

Katara smirks. “If you’re Solange, that means Akira’s Blue – making me Beyonce.”

Toph pulls a face. “Your husband just walked in claiming Kourtney Kardashian, so that makes you Travis Scott–”

“Scott Disick,” Zuko corrects her, handing Katara a mug.

“–And he’s pretty problematic.”

“We’re all kinda problematic Toph,” Katara says, her voice muffled as her lips rest on the rim of the coffee cup. 

"Right,” Toph says, reaching for her wallet. “Anyway, gotta go. A precinct proposed another turnover to Major Crimes and I gotta go over it.” Toph gave both her friends side hugs before making her way to the door. Katara sees Zuko wince from the force of her grip and Akira smiles at the warmth.

“Thanks for breakfast, guys!” she says over her shoulder, closing the door behind her. Katara and Zuko stare at the door for a few moments.

“You want Toph to be Akira’s godmother,” Zuko says, raising his brow at her. “Do you really trust that she won’t drop our kid head-first?”

“Shut up, Jay-Z. Beyonce didn’t make a whole diss album for you to tell me what to do.”

Akira cooed, seemingly in agreement with her mother.

—

“Oh my spirits, Zuko, Akira’s lustration rites is three months away and we haven’t decided on her godparents,” Katara says, frantically pacing around their room. Zuko mumbles in response as he hunches over the latest bill on economic reform.

“Are you even listening to me?”

Zuko shoots his head up. “Kat, calm down – three months is more than enough time to choose her godparents.”

“No, it’s not, Zuko!” Katara says, pulling at her hair. “We still have to figure out the arrangements, the celebration afterwards–”

“The Fire Sages have that sorted for us, Kat. They’ve conducted thousands of baptisms of fire before,” Zuko says pointedly, returning to his work. He keeps his head down as he mumbles, “For all I know, they’re immortal and feed off of dying royals.”

“What? I didn’t catch that,” Katara says with her arms crossed. Zuko sighs and rubs his eyes, saying, “Nothing.”

Katara rolls her eyes. He continues, saying, “You know, the best set of godparents for Akira would be the ones we trust her life with.”

Katara huffs and keeps her arms crossed. “Well, I already have a list. Could you at least help me with that? I need to add more people.”

That wakes Zuko up. “How many godparents do you want our kid to have?”

Katara pulls out a sheet of paper from her own desk and slaps it onto Zuko’s. Zuko’s eyes widen.

“Akira‘s gonna have twenty godparents?” Zuko asks incredulously. “And you want me to add more?”

“You’ll never know, Zuko,” she says, biting her lip as she resumes pacing around their room. “We need more people to protect her.”

Zuko lets out a laugh. “We’re friends with the world’s largest leaders, Katara,” he says with mirth. “Three of them would be twenty to anyone else.”

Katara juts out her lip in thought as Zuko’s words sink into her; he gets up from his desk and gathers her into his arms. “Besides,” he says. “There won’t be enough people for the next baby.”

Katara untangles herself and places her hands on her hips. “Yes, there will.”

“No, there won’t, Kat. You’ve already listed my friends,” he says, grabbing her list and pointing to top. “All six of them.”

—

A few days later, Sokka bursts through Zuko’s office in song.

“Am I original?”

Sokka is met with silence.

“Am I the only one?”

The silence continues.

Sokka gives Zuko an exasperated look. “You’re supposed to sing yeeeeaaaaah after each question, Zuko.”

“I know.”

With that, Sokka starts laughing and Zuko breaks out into a smile. When Sokka comes up to Zuko’s desk, they bump fists and shake hands; Zuko leads Sokka to the chair in front of his desk. “So,” he says, settling back into his own chair. “What brings you back here? The lustration rites are still three months away.”

“I thought I’d stop by before I head over to Republic City for the Union’s Economic Council,” Sokka says, inspecting his boomerang. “You’re coming, right? Aang’s gonna be there.”

“I wasn’t going to,” Zuko admits. “I was going to send over my minister for economics. With the reform bill we’ve been reviewing, though, I feel a hell lot more inclined to go.”

Sokka hums and looks at Zuko when he says, “How bad?”

“They won’t let go of the dead war factories and they aren’t getting any cheaper.”

Sokka winces. “Yikes. Be careful, though, the Council might kill you if you raise that.” Zuko nods somberly with the thought.

“I won’t actually be there for the Council, Sokka,” he says, folding his arms over the table. “I’ll just show up because I have to. I’m actually going to Republic City because I need to have a talk with Kuei; they wouldn’t let go of the war factories because of foreign investors from his country.” Sokka nods his head in understanding.

An attendant knocks softly on the door. “Come in,” Zuko says.

“Dinner is ready, Sir,” she says. “Lady Katara and Lady Akira are already in the hall.”

“Is there an extra setting for Chief Sokka?” Zuko asks. The attendant blanches and wrings her arms behind her back. “N-no, Sir, I’m afraid we haven’t prepared for the Chief’s arrival.”

Zuko softens; Mira, the attendant, is new and was handpicked personally by Katara. “It’s fine, Mira. The Chief didn’t make his arrival known,” he says, throwing an accusing look at Sokka. Sokka shrugs. “Please tell Tako and the rest to prepare an extra setting and a room for the Chief. He will be spending the next couple of days here.”

Sokka starts. “Wait–”

Zuko holds up a hand. “That will be all, Mira. Thank you.”

Mira bows and leaves the room, closing the door behind her.

“I already booked a hotel, Zuko,” Sokka says, leaning back on his chair as he feigns disappointment.

“Ask for a refund, then,” Zuko says, getting up from his desk. “I know your cheap ass is glad you don’t have to pay for accommodations.”

Sokka gets up from the chair. “You are the best brother-in-law.”

Zuko smiles. “And you,” he says as claps his best friend on the shoulder, “Are going to be Akira’s godfather.”

Sokka’s jaw drops and Zuko backtracks.

“I-if you wanna be, of course.”

Sokka throws his arms around Zuko in response.

—

Much later, Sokka runs into the common room carrying a wailing Akira in his arms. “I swear I didn’t do anything,” he says. “I promise it isn’t my fault that she hit her head with a boomerang.”

Katara and Zuko shoot up from the couch. “She what?!”

“She was playing with Boomerang! I was showing it off, but then she reached out for it and bonked her head in the process,” Sokka says defensively. Katara picks up Akira from her brother, inspecting her for any injuries.

“In what world is it okay to play with a boomerang with a three month-old baby?” Katara asks, trying to soothe the crying baby.

“My world, Katara! Matok and Kira love Boomerang!” Sokka exclaims, throwing his hands up for emphasis.

“Sokka, she won’t even remember the names of her cousins because you shrunk her walnut brain,” Katara says, giving Sokka an accusing look. Sokka barks out a laugh.

“Kat, you’re being too generous. She’s related to me, remember? Her brain’s probably pea-sized, tops.”

Katara hurls a pillow at him.

Akira coos and smiles against her mother’s shoulder.

—

Aang visits the Fire Nation one month before the lustration rites.

“What’s up, little buddy?” he says, picking up Akira from her crib. Akira starts to giggle when she sees her uncle, and Katara smiles fondly at the sight.

“Are you here for another meeting with Zuko?” Katara asks, carrying a tray of durian tarts as she makes her way to Aang.

“Kinda?” Aang says, lilting his voice up. “I’m actually here to talk to his minister of economics, about the dead war factories.”

“Namato? Poor guy,” Katara says. “He’s smack in the middle of Zuko and Kuei’s hot shots.”

“I know,” Aang says, lightly pinching Akira’s nose. “Kuei’s not the bad guy though.”

“We know,” Katara responds, setting two durian tarts on a dessert plate. “That’s another poor guy.”

Aang hums in agreement; he starts reaching for a tart just as Zuko walks in. Aang takes a bite off the tart and pretends to offer some to Akira.

“What’s up, buddy?” Aang says, greeting Zuko with a bright smile.

“Could be better,” Zuko responds, sulking as he sheds his suit jacket. Sensing an incoming change in mood, Katara quickly attempts to brighten it by asking, “Aang, you’re gonna make it to Akira’s lustration rites, right?”

Aang brightens even more, seemingly oblivious to Zuko’s damp mood. “Of course, Katara! How could I miss the baptism of the first mixed-blood princess of the Fire Nation?” Aang lightly tickles Akira as he lilts his voice with every word. Zuko softens at the sight.

“Well, that, and the baptism of your first godchild,” Zuko says as he settles beside his wife. Aang almost drops the kid in surprise.

“Crap, Aang, watch it!” Zuko cries as Katara kicks his shin. “Ow! What was that for?”

Katara looks at him pointedly. “There‘s a baby in front of us.”

“Yeah, and our friend almost dropped her!”

“Aang would never drop the baby, Zuko. He can’t even drop a spider.”

The sound of sniffling cuts their conversation short; when Katara and Zuko turn around, they find Aang at the brink of tears.

“Y-you,” Aang starts, his voice shaking. “You want me to be Akira’s godpoppy?”

Katara and Zuko give him a look. “Godpoppy?”

—

Three weeks later, Aang is whizzing through the halls of the Royal Palace on an airball; as soon as he accepted his role as Akira’s godpoppy, he declared himself as the lead organizer of the celebration. “Mira, don’t forget to contact the caterer!” he says to the pair of attendants. “Tako, the decorators will be here in six days. You hear me, buddy? Six days. We need the plaza cleaned up before that, okay?”

“Yes, Sir,” Mira and Tako respond just as Aang whizzes past them. They bow respectfully to Katara and Zuko as they come up the hallway.

“What kind of sound system is this?” Aang exclaims, the echo of his disbelief reverberating through the walls.

Katara and Zuko laugh at their friend’s torrential barking, watching as Zuko’s staff scramble about trying their best to keep up with Aang’s incessant demanding. Akira laughs with them and Zuko brushes his nose onto his daughter’s. “He can hire Beyonce if he wants to, you know,” he tells his wife as Akira plays with his hair.

“What do you mean? I’m right here,” Katara says, the ghost of a smile on her face as she points a slim finger to it. Zuko laughs and kisses the top of her head.

—

The day of the lustration rites come, and Akira is placed in the center of a ring of candles. The ceremony is private, with only her immediate family, godparents, and the Fire Sages in attendance. 

The Head Sage says the invocation in ancient Fire Nation tongue, and the ceremony concludes with Zuko bending the candlelit flames; they briefly shoot up in streams of fire before Katara bends water around each stream, evaporating them into the air.

“Congratulations, my lord, my lady,” the Head Sage says, leading a bow. Katara and Zuko bow in response. As the Fire Sages head to the balcony doors to reveal the child to the public, the royal family’s friends and family begin to swarm them. Sokka starts taking photos with his phone.

“Calm down, guys,” Katara says, holding Akira protectively as Aang and Toph wrestle over her. “The people are waiting.”

When the doors open, Katara and Zuko are greeted by a miles-long crowd of Fire Nation citizens. The couple smile amidst the raucous cheer, gracefully waving at the crowd; cameras and reporters are dotted around strategic points of the plaza. 

“I present to you all,” the Head Sage bellows from the parapet. “Fire Lord Zuko, Fire Lady and Master Katara, and Princess Akira!” The raucous cheer magnified, causing Akira to stir uncomfortably. Katara and Zuko wave for a few more moments before being ushered back inside to the hall.

“Hey Kourtney,” Toph calls. Zuko turns around just as Aang and Sokka begin arguing who gets to carry Akira first. “If anyone dare touch little Blue Ivy,” Toph says, pointing her thumb towards the now-sleeping infant. “I will beat them up.”

Zuko smiles. “Okay, Rocky,” he says as he accepts Akira from his wife, who has since moved on to accommodating their guests.

“That’s right, Sparky. I’m Rocky fu–”

“Toph,” Katara says.

“–cking Balboa.”

[draculaurennn]

1; jun 50; cress, 29; luc 43; pad 2-; fuu 10; siona

—Super detailed questions about your OCs— jun-ki — 1 ;; what’s their full name? why was that chosen? does it mean anything? Jun-ki’s full birth name is Tsutsumi Junko. She was born on the border of the Tokyo-Kanagawa prefecture and spent most of her childhood in Tokyo’s better hospitals. Most kids in her class, when she got to see them, just called her Jun. Jun-ki was a name assigned to her by the Fujiwara Technologies Oni-ki project, which she unwittingly paid her way into around the age of eighteen. Her full assigned name was Type-05 Jun-ki, following the four others who were built in her specific hybrid bio-tech format (depending on their degree of human degredation.) One was developed for each of the grand demons said to have been tamed by Fujiwara no Chikata, and each were designed with combat prowess and technique in consideration with that. Jun-ki’s was actually the only one to have no pre-existing oni, but she was not going to be the last in this project line. 

However, she abandoned the project by literally breaking her way out of headquarters before her complete redevelopment was complete. For some time, she operated under the online handle of Sxrapper Midori, and typically does not disclose either her project name, and even less so her birth name. She has, however, chosen to continue using Jun-ki as her identifying name. She feels it best represents her now, both herself and her reality. For Jun-ki, it represents her current state of degredation, a human beyond repair with an almost fully obsolete robotics system operating inside of her. It’s put together with scraps and junk, all of which she painstakingly harvested and reworked to continue powering her Fuji-tech without support from the company or its project. It represents her strength, as a berserker and front-line combatant, an ironically demon-like strength in her small, once-fragile body. Keeping it speaks to some semblance of her self-loathing and self-respect, all at once.

cressida — 50 ;; if they could only take one bag of stuff somewhere with them: what would they pack? what do they consider their essentials? Cressida is a very materialistic girl, so this is definitely a hard question. She values her intelligence and her appearance above all, and which she values more is not really clear. If she has them, immediate essentials for her bag are rouge and a kohl tin. Keeping her unruly curls under control is also important, and difficult without supplies. Secondary to those are a mother-of-pearl comb, pressed rose oil, and some herby hair powder. Those would probably be the most immediate options if the apothic suite of personal hygiene is not available to her (and, as Inquisitrix, it has often not been).

In terms of fashion, she’s not so vain that she feels she has to pack a different dress for every event of the day, thank the gods. In an immediate need to move, Cressida is fine with a change of clothes and something else to sleep in, as long as she’s given some opportunity to wash things. Otherwise, she does prefer two or three outfits. A hat is also an essential need, partly for fashion, but mostly to protect her very fair skin. (Luckily, if there’s no bag space, this can just go straight on her head.)

 The other bag essentials for Cressida are a journal, an entertaining book to read, a dagger, and a non-functional compass. Journaling helps her organize her thoughts for the day and plan her next steps, so often it looks like some bizarre mix between a diary, a day planner, and a to-do list. For books, she usually prefers novels of the picaresque sort, but she is prone to rereading the Black Fox tales over and over. Extra weapons as a given, the most unusual piece in her bag is of sentimental value, and she has done well to not lose it after sixteen years. It was her father’s nautical compass, which she’d stolen from his quarters to play with the night he passed away. She was lucky to have kept it in her pocket, though it was waterlogged when she finally got herself to shore, and no longer works. She keeps it in her travel bags for safe keeping, but if she isn’t sure her bag will be safe on its own, then it’s always removed and placed into her pocket instead.

lucid — 29 ;; what do they do when they find out someone else’s fear? do they tease them? or get very over protective? It could depend on the fear, but more than likely, a fear is something Lucid will keep to herself unless discussed with the person who possesses it. Somewhat frosty though she may appear, it has never been in her nature to hurt others or belittle them for the way they feel. That being said, she isn’t always the most tactful lady, and her attempts to address a problem (if the fear is really that critical) can often come off as hurtful or insensitive. Her other short-coming is her occasional inability to understand exactly what the fear or problem may be, which has led to accidental dismissal or downplay of the severity. But regardless of her fumbling ways, Lucid’s care and concern for others who would confide that information in her has always been with their best intentions at heart, and she would take the information to her grave if it was asked of her. Her nature is to protect and nurture first, and her determination to maintain love and trust for her companions can outweigh the value of her own life, at times.

padrika — 43 ;; are they religious? what do they think of religion? what do they think of religious people? what do they think of non religious people? Padrika’s family was religious. Her parents were casual worshippers of Verna, but she didn’t really live long enough to fully understand the concepts of religion or to make an executive decision on her beliefs. In Litwin, they had very little in the way of organized religion save for what drifted over from the Skelligan collections, but there was a small cult formation following the usurping ruler’s enthusiasm for Padrika’s visions, which was off-putting for her. It was never a fully developed religious practice, or anything, but idea of people putting such fantastic veneration in visions that were, in her opinion, just mystifying and unclear dreams from no one was scary. Most popular in this perception was Freya, goddess of clairvoyants, speaking words of conquest and glory through this unassuming water-being. Less common was her connection to Melusine, as a fellow siren (even if that was also incorrect.)

Unsurprisingly, religion tends to make her uneasy. She never, knowingly, lived with less erratic devotions. Litwin was a clutter in major part due to her own presence, which has caused Padrika to recoil from the concepts of greater beings out of fear. She wants no grand destiny, no great mission or job that she must fulfill for a greater god who hand-picked her for what she represented. She also doesn’t know if that means that divinity and monstrosity are something that are codependent or mutually exclusive. How do you explain a divine monster? Where is the line for goddess and a child who drowned in a mire?

All of that said, she doesn’t necessarily use that as a judge against others, nor does she fault people for having beliefs - Padrika also thinks that having no beliefs is a belief, and admittedly, she herself does believe there must be some strong presence in natural phenomenon. The greater questions of it are ones she just doesn’t feel keen on answering, or having an opinion on. Whether or not others do may be something that makes her wary, but it does not always define their character, and she can look past differences. A belief in something is not the only thing about others that makes them them. 

fuu — 20 ;; do they like musicals? music in general? what do they do when they’re favourite song comes? Fuu likes music to what she considers a normal extent. She was classically trained in piano as a child at her parents’ insistence, but her interest in that was passable since she didn’t find it engaging, and when she took up swim, she managed to weasel out of those lessons all together. She’s spent money on high-tech buds that actually work under water, and likes to listen to her favourites while she studies, works out, cleans, or is on her commute. (She’s also been known to put in earphones to avoid conversations she’s not engaged in or to deliberately ignore someone out of annoyance, boredom, or complete disagreement.) She isn’t the liveliest person in a lot of ways, and that extends to her musical enjoyment, though, but if the song is one she really enjoys, Fuu doesn’t mind turning the volume up over a speaker or tapping the piece out with her fingers. 

Despite that, her interest in musicals is practically non-existant.  Besides her struggle to sit through films, she finds the insertion of musical numbers in a narrative actually erases the tone the film was setting and breaks a greater immersion for her. They’re just jarring and almost upsetting, even if she understands most people don’t perceive them that way. She watches them at the behest of friends or if, for some reason, they’re assigned for an arts course, but otherwise will not pick one up or go see one of her own volition. 

siona — 10 ;; do they like children? do children like them? do they have or want any children? what would they be like as a parent? or as a godparent/babysitter/ect? Siona loves children, but most children don’t like her. She tends to find children charmingly curious, thought-provoking, and squeezable. However, Siona is often perceived as one of two things by children - a fairy or a monster, and depending on the local perception of fairies, both can be bad things. In Castle Town she was very uncomfortably received by local children (and adults, but that’s par for the course at this point), though in Vazaar, many of the little girls thought her small stature and pale hair meant she was just a sickly Gerudo sister. 

Siona has never personally given children much thought. The circumstances floating around her existence have been a little more pressing and dire, and trying to lead a life of some sense of normalcy hasn’t been at the forefront of her imagination. But if asked, she’d certainly be agreeable, and Siona’s cautiously optimistic, adventurous, but ironically grounded disposition makes her a very loving and communicative mother-figure. Alongside that, her protective nature is counterbalanced by her indecisiveness, allowing her child to explore and experience while still receiving guidance when asked or needed.