#top ship that i want to see married with kids

[jackiepackiee]

Telemachus SFW Alphabet

an- some are way longer than others, but I didn’t have ideas for some… sorry!!

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

Being a prince, Telemachus has an important image to hold. Especially with the suitors around, he wants to be seen as strong. So he keeps the affection in closed doors. There are a lot of ways this could go.

With the suitors on a normal day he will simply walk with you. Knowing it’s best to just stay normal for avoid any comments.

If (and when) the suitors get snappy or make comments he’ll hold your hand to quickly pull you out of the situation. He’d fight, but his top priority is you being away from danger

So if it’s just you two, in his room, he’ll do very comforting acts of affection. Back rubs, playing with your hair, forehead kisses, holding your hand and rubbing your hand with his thumb. Sure, he’s a soft guy, but he’s a prince who likes feel like he’s protecting you.

Now, when Odysseus gets back he’s much more affectionate. Seeing how his dad treats his mom, he does the same for you. Like a mini Odysseus, copying all the loving things he does for his wife.

B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

Lots of sneaking around and sharing secrets like kids. He would be the most supportive person you’ve ever met, lending you a hand in every way possible for all you want.

He’d love to train near you, he’d never want to spar or anything of the like in fear of hurting you. But you’d both spend afternoons in the courtyard with you petting his dog and him swinging his sword at a dummy you built of cloth and wool.

Your friendship could’ve started a multitude of a ways, he’d a kind person so it’s unlikely he’d turn down any genuine offers of friendship.

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

Certified lover boy is a fan of cuddling. His favorite being these three

He loves the “honeymoon hug” your face in his chest or his in yours. He loves being able to hear your heartbeat and know you’re with him. When you’re in his chest he’s as ease knowing you’re safe from the world around you

The “half spoon” is a close second, both for when you’re lazy after a long day and unable to energize yourself for more than simple conversation. Your calmest moments are spent here

When he’s in your lap he feels the world melt around him and is surrounded by you. When you’re in his lap he plays with your hair. Either way, in this position he’ll talk for hours about anything you want. Smiling at your with a lovestruck expression

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)

You “dating” is you courting and it’s practically guaranteed your marriage will follow. He’s a royal, and it’s expected of him to be married. It’s not that he doesn’t want that though! He’s very excited to get married, even offering to send ships to fetch the best seamstresses to make your wedding attire

But… your marriage will wait until Odysseus returns. He can’t imagine such a large part of his life without his father, and he wants him to meet you. Knowing his family is complete is all he wants.

As for cooking and cleaning? Don’t worry, he has servants and your hand and foot if you so wish for them to do anything. He’s not a great cook…

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

…that’s not happening. Just like his dad he is loyal until death, and he’d escape the underworld to see you again if he had to

F = Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)

You’re both getting married, and you’ll become apart of Ithaca’s royal family like I said before, it’s going to wait until Odysseus is back so he can witness your marriage.

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

Physically he touches you as if you’ll break. Only a few times he’s truly used his strength. The first time he truly touched you was when his dad returned. He was so overwhelmed from both you being safe and him family being complete that he practically lunged at you in a hug. Other than that, it’s soft pats and gentle hand holding

Emotionally he has a gentle soul. Despite being a fierce and dangerous warrior of Athena, he is always looking for the good in the world. And he sees the good in your heart. His first priority is your wellbeing, so he’ll do anything to make you happy. No yelling at disagreements, no overly rude teasing, only compliments and soft comments when you get embarrassed at kisses

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)

One of his favorite things to do is hug, it serves two purposes in your relationship

Either he feels at ease knowing you’re in his arms, he’s keeping you safe and the world around you won’t reach you as long as he’s around

Or he just needs a minute to rest and you’re a sanctuary for him. Giving him the affection he so desperately needs

I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

Two months into the relationship is when he says I love you

It’s no heated and crazy confession, but instead a cute and shy one that he plans. Secret is he’s loved you from the beginning, but he hasn’t been able to express it

He gives you an apple (a sign of love to do with Aphrodite) and stammers out the three words, looking at you as if you hung the stars in the sky

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)

He’s not that jealous, but it not impossible for him to be. While he may be shy, he’s doesn’t doubt you love and knows you’re loyal to him so he doesn’t worry

Although, if another prince tries to woo you, he gets mildly frustrated. In this case he’ll tell them to leave his kingdom, and that you’ve already taken your home with him

He wouldn’t fight the princes he gets jealous of, that would be stupid and reckless. Instead he proves to them you aren’t leaving by passive aggressive words (Athena taught him)

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

His kisses are like the touch of sun when it meets the mountains of Ithaca in the early morning. Soft, gentle, and full of love

His favorite places to kiss you are your forehead, cheek, and the crown of your head since it’s very affectionate

His favorite places to be kissed are his lips, knuckles, and shoulders. He’s very ticklish so if you kiss him anywhere below his jaw he’ll giggle

L = Little ones (How are they around children?)

Seeing him around kids makes you want children so so badly. With babies he’ll hold them in his arms, always sitting so he doesn’t risk dropping them. His cooing is adorable, always him and the baby giggling at the infants meaningless babble

With older children he’s playful, and it’s not crazy for when you two visit the market for him to be swarmed by 8 year olds who climb him like a tower

He has the cutest smile around kids, and he would be an amazing father (it’s all he wants)

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

He’s a morning person, always waking before you. Half mornings you’ll wake up to him staring at you with this sickeningly lovestruck smile. He’ll nuzzle his cold nose into your neck and laugh when you whine at him for 5 more minutes

Sometimes though, after your late night sneak outs when you sleep in, Penelope and Odysseus will come in early just to see their son and his lover so peaceful. Smiling as proud parents (if Telemachus knew this the blush on his face would be permanent)

N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)

Lazy cuddling, with you in his arms while he dotes on you. You kissing his bruises he got from training in days prior while he is too tired to blush so he just embraces your love

He likes to let the moonlight into his room so he can still see your face in the dark night right before he falls asleep

O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)

A bit sad but one night everything just kind of comes out. He’s upset and looks to you for comfort, spilling all his heartbreak to you. This isn’t a time thing, but rather based on what happens in the events of the day. He trusts you with his life when you get together, otherwise he wouldn’t have asked for your hand in the first place. But his true feelings are like a tidal wave

P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)

With you? He’s only gotten slightly frustrated with you a handful of times. A few grumbled sentences before he sees your upset (sad or mad) expression and hated it so much he all together lost his aggravation and apologized

In general he’s docile, not wanting to start anything with anyone for no reason. But as we see with the suitors, he doesn’t take rudeness lightly and is willing to fight back, just not with you

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you?)

Everything you mention about yourself he remembers

Every reaction you have, such as a slightly disgusted face at a food or a smile at a certain compliment, he remembers

Every piece of advice he gets about you from his mother, Athena, and eventually his father, he remembers

He is whipped for you, and wants to know any and everything there is to know about you

R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)

A bit NSFW… (he’s 20, it’s okay 🫡)

After your first time together (and his in general) when you’re sleeping against his chest. He can feel everything, your soft skin on his, gentle lips still ghosting over his in memory, breaths leaving and igniting in your chest.

He never felt more in love, knowing he could trust you completely and you’re both each other’s everything

Seeing you be so vulnerable with him, trusting him, leaves his heart running fast

Not his favorite for physical, selfish reasons. But instead his favorite because he knew in that moment you’re there and forever will be

S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)

When the suitors are still in his home he is incredibly protective. Now he’s no idiot, and knows fighting the suitors for you isn’t ideal. He’d hate to see you upset at him being hurt, and no way he’d win in a fist fight against a group of grown men. So his protection is more planned out. Sneaking you around, never letting you around without him or a guard. Of course you’re free to do as you please. But he’s nervous

If it came to it though? Be it a threat to you, a comment on your honor, or someone gets too close he will fight. With his anger he’ll have a fighting chance

When Odysseus is home he’s much more calm. Knowing he and his father will care for you. (Odysseus is willing to kill for you, you’re part of the family now and anyone his son cares for he cares for)

He’ll still make sure you’re in someone’s protection though

As for himself? He just tells you not to worry… he wants to be able to get strong and needs to experience danger to grow

Though if you pet his hair after a fight, praising him for his effort? He’s melting like putty in your hand

T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

He will buy ANYTHING you want, spend as much time with you as possible

Dates consist of sneaking out of the palace to the gardens to pluck flowers and fresh fruit or mountains to watch the waves hug the shore. You’ll share soft kisses. You go on dates at night, liking the solidarity. Little do you know Penelope and Odysseus are always watching and smiling at their son so in love…

On anniversaries he’ll take you sailing, walk you through your soon to be kingdom, and finish the night off with a gift. It’s always something insanely expensive, and he just shrugs

“Expensive? Don’t worry about the price, it’s for you!”

He’s royalty, he has sheep to bargain and gold to trade for the finest luxury for you, so what if he’s a little oblivious to the material world?

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

Idealism - Telemachus tries to see the best in every situation, and it can be hard for him to know what is realistic. Especially going into being king, he needs to learn how to be realistic and not stuck in fantasy

Anxiety - He’s overly protective of you, suitors there or dead. It doesn’t matter, even since he’s known such a great threat he doesn’t let the people close to him near anyone he doesn’t trust

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

He’s not too concerned with his appearance in terms of vanity. He wants to look clean, and he is. Being a prince he’s usually dressed nicely, with gold pieces adorning him. But he doesn’t put effort into his “handsome,��� as Penelope calls it, face or anything of the sort. He focuses on being strong and naturally gains a lean and muscular build

W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

110%, Tele is very family oriented and you’re his family now. He spent a lifetime without his father, and everyone he holds in his heart can’t leave like that again or he’ll break. The longest he can take is a few weeks when he has to leave the island for royal issues

X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

He’s adored music ever since he was kid. Singing, instruments, anything to do with art. But he can’t for the life of him play the lyre. If the string wasn’t so tough Penelope swears the lyre would’ve snapped when a young Telemachus tried to strum a tune

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)

Disloyalty - He’s not asking for blood sweat and tears, all he wants is one person to stay by his side of the rest of his life. He’ll never get with someone who betrays someone without good reason, even if it was just a friend or acquaintance. Loyalty is important to him!

Apathy - He believes every person should feel strongly for something. After all, it’s love that pushed his father to survive and his admiration of his father/protection of his mother that made him want to be a hero. He couldn’t be with someone who didn’t care about at least a few things strongly

Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habits of theirs?)

It’s a bit different depending on the situation. In most cases it’s you two cuddling with his dog at the foot of your bed

Suitors (normal day) he’ll sleep lightly. Chest rising with a steady rhythm that puts you to sleep in minutes. He wakes up in the middle of the night at least twice a week. He’ll check over the room to see everything is fine before he drifts off again

Suitors (after a fight) he’ll be on edge. Coddling you as if to reassure himself you’re okay. Sometimes he’ll leave you for a few minutes to check his mother’s room to see if she’s okay. On the worst nights, after a scary interaction, you’ll both go to Penelope’s room. Her petting your heads until you both drift off

Without his dad he spends some nights awake. You in his arms, or without, he’ll stare at the ceiling and just think. Think about any and everything to do with his life and the lives of those around him. It’s best you stay asleep, he finds comfort in sleeping you so peaceful

After Odysseus returns this poor boy sleeps like a rock. Arms cradling you as if he’s awake while in reality the gods themselves could shake the earth and he’d be less the wiser. No snoring, only soft breaths and cute little mumbles when he first falls asleep. In the morning he’ll recount all his wild dreams to you in detail.

[epickiya722]

You know what the reactions to the epilogues to JJK and MHA taught me?

That certain cues that people who clearly feel some kind of way about certain ships can only be romantic for their ships and their ships only and said cues are only "romantic" for them and they get off feeling "right" and actually just enjoying whatever they have.

I'll explain.

There was a time that a ship had to be canon if they kissed or got married onscreen. If not that, them being canon will be stated by the actual creator themselves.

Regardless, that wouldn't stop shippers of shipping who they wanted because, at least for some of us, shipping is fun. It should be.

Shipping stemmed from characters, regardless of gender, having intense moments, or acting a certain way around another character they wouldn't with others, and sometimes even their character designs and traits will tie into another character's.

Those kind of things is what some would say a ship is implied. It could be canon, it could not be.

Implied, I say, because at the end of the day the creator didn't confirm anything and even still said cues like that can be seen as romantic or platonic.

But this also those same cues don't have to mean anything. They could just be mere coincidences because hey, sometimes the creator doesn't keep track with everything when creating characters and writing stories. (I would know.)

"Implied" cues don't just stop for same gender ships. This goes for different gender ships, too.

I'll say it, I feel like nowadays, people confuse "implied" with "canon".

Oh, yes, MHA and JJK fandoms, I am saying those ships to me feel more implied because of the openness of them.

See, what's funny to me is I have seen people say a certain green haired MC with freckles blushing at any other time will mean nothing with other characters, but with a certain pink themed space girl and I'm not talking Ashido it means something romantic.

That is entirely unfair to me. So it's only romantic for just you and your ship, but not it can't for any other ship and someone else? Why do you get to dictate that?

Personally, I see blushing as just a physical reaction with multiple meanings. It's the meanings of that blushing that may get me to go "Oh, see how he/she/they are around this character". But at the end of the day, that doesn't mean for me my ship is canon because no matter it's status, if I like it and it's my preference, I'm shipping it.

"They held hands!"

So did green boy and boom boom boy and y'all didn't say they were anon! So did green boy and glasses class president! Does that mean they're canon? Trying to figure out why holding hands can mean your ship is canon, but not for other ships.

"They got married at the end and had kids!"

First off, grandkids. Not kids. We don't know how many kids that sword-wielding, don't get no sleep, wore skinny jeans and high tops guy had. We just know he had at least one kid to who then had children of their own.

Second, if that was canon, I'm sure the mangaka would have mentioned the grandmother. But we didn't even get a hint.

"But the grandson looks like---"

Ah! But who said it was through the grandmother though? Couldn't the kid's mom or father been a distant relative to that family? Or even there just happen to have been someone unrelated to that family, but happens to have similar physical features?

"Can't believe the mangaka would betray us like this."

But how? Did our pink haired MC expressed romantic feelings at all for her? No. Not even in the middle school flashback.

Honestly, it's gotten to the point that whenever someone says a ship is "canon" regardless if they hate it or not, it's annoying.

Over the past few months I have felt nothing but disappointment. Not surprised by anything, but felt disappointment.

"Implied" is a word that does exist. And "canon" shouldn't stop you from having fun with your ships.

And people, just because your ship is "canon" doesn't mean you have to act like a complete asshole to others. You just look like disgusting, frankly. And you don't look happy.

See someone who is happy about their ship wouldn't harass and laugh at people. They would just rejoice and post cute little edits and art and whatnot.

You harassing someone like "Ha ha, my ship is canon and yours is not" is you being childish and feeling insecure about your ship. You had that fear of your ship being canon when whether or not it was you should have just enjoyed it. You harassing someone is just you being more satisfied being right than the actual ship itself.

[r0ryy]

Aria and Jacqui my original otp for ship bingo 🙏

I LOVE THHHEEEEMMMM!!!! The way they find family in each other makes me WEAK

[allbark-no-bite]

on the brink.

jake seresin x reader (wc: 2.6k)

summary: having children was never on the table. you never had the maternal instinct that most girls seemed to have growing up and you had no interest in the mundane tasks that came with acting as a mother in a plastic playground house. but when you're forced to choose between your husband's and your own dreams, the decision gets a little bit more complicated. aka the unplanned pregnancy fic that no one asked for

warnings: angst, unplanned pregnancy, mentions of abortion

author's note: okay i know this is not the fic that i've been promising yall, but i swear i'm working on it. this is pretty different than a lot of things that i've written before. a bit of self expression and indulgence if you will so just bear with me (if you hate it don't tell me)

————————————————————————

"I'm never having kids," you had admitted suddenly into the darkness of the cabin, staring up at the ceiling. The waves lapped at the sides of the ship, swaying the carrier just slightly. There was nothing, not even the faint footsteps of a sailor patrolling on night duty overhead, just the sounds of the vast open sea all around.

You could practically hear Bradley's eyebrows furrow, his voice of surprise coming out a bit loud considering the sailors that slept all around you. "Why?"

"Isn't that what you said to Maverick?" you retorted.  "'No wife, no kids to mourn you when you burn in'?"

Even in the dimly lit bunk room, you could see Bradley sit up, his broad figure washed in blue moonlight. "That's not— Maverick's a—"

"A man?"

Bradley doesn't answer.

"Fuck you, Bradshaw."

As the years progressed, that was the typical response you received when you expressed your reluctance to have children. After a while, you grew used to it, being made out to be a monster, being told you would change your mind. You knew you wouldn't of course, but your act of considering the suggestion eased the consciences of those who thought they had carried out their duty of convincing you otherwise.

You never had the maternal instinct that most girls seemed to have growing up. You had no interest in the mundane tasks that came with acting as a mother in a plastic playground house or pushing a doll in a stroller. Because you never leave that plastic playground house. Not even when you grow up do you escape those four suffocating walls.

Because once you become a mother, that is all you are. Because that's who a mother is. Someone who devotes every single waking moment of the rest of their lives sacrificing for their children. Who you were before, your past, your achievements, that's not who you are anymore. You are 'Mom', 'Mommy', 'Mamma'.

You give it all up to be a mom. Because there is nothing worse than an absent mother. You had experienced it first hand, and you wouldn't do that to your children.

Your mother sacrificed to be a mom. But there wasn't a day that she let you forget it.

One thing you feared was the havoc it would wreck on your career. You were selfish in that way. Setting aside your career was not an option, not when you had worked so hard for so long. On top of being in the military, not wanting children was another blaring red flag. The combination didn't exactly lend itself to many dating opportunities.

Therefore, when you first met Jake, you weren't looking for anything serious. You knew how these kinds of things went. It would be fine at first. He'd be smitten with you, enamored even. You'd see each other for a while, maybe even start dating if things got that far. And then more serious conversations would happen, and he'd realize that no man wants to marry a woman who puts herself first.

Except Jake didn't seem to mind.

"Okay," he had replied without much hesitation. Dare you say without any hesitation.

"Okay?" You echoed in response, the confusion in your voice evident.

He'd shrugged, tipping back the last of his beer before standing up. "Yeah. Okay." You craned your neck to follow him. Jake stopped in front of you, leaning over to peck your lips. "We'll figure it out, okay?" And then he'd turned to take his righteous place at the dart board, as if it was as easy as that.

And for a while it almost was.

The Uranium mission came and went, deployments passed, and it all was just that easy. With the Commander of the Pacific Fleet on your side, it was never too hard to get assignments relatively near to each other, and even then, Jake was only ever a flight away. Even in the years before the two of you got around to getting married, when your chances of getting deployed halfway across the country from each other were high, it was all just so easy.

It was laughable how well things worked out between you and Jake. And maybe that sort of ease came with being in the same line of work and understanding the stress of the job, but even outside of that, life with Jake was ridiculously simple. As strange as it was to admit, your life didn't change drastically when Jake came into it. Jake liked to sleep by the door so the left side of the bed was still yours, Jake got off of work at the same time as you so you weren't stuck waiting around for someone to come home, he didn't speak to his family much so there were never any obligatory family gatherings to attend, and like you, he was in no rush to buy a home or get married. The only reason the two of you did finally get around to getting married was because Nat was convinced the two of you would just stay engaged forever and so she planned the whole ceremony herself. And there was no saying no to Nat.

Even after you married Jake, nothing changed. You moved in together sure, and with that came the assurance that you'd be the first person the Navy notified if anything ever happened to him and the same for you, but that was about it. All of the terrible things people warn you that will happen once you move in with your partner never happen. It's so fucking easy.

Until it isn't.

Jake is away on a mission when you start having symptoms. Not really even symptoms, just a bit of nausea here and there, an odd feeling in the pit of your stomach. Call it intuition if you will, but you know something is wrong. You dismiss it at first, put it off because you can. It's only once you start puking after every early morning hop that you come to terms with the fact that you've been avoiding the truth. And as much as you'd like to pretend like it isn't happening, you have to do something. You make an appointment at a clinic for the following week.

You wait until Jake's stateside to tell him. Not because there's any decision for you to make, or that you want to give him the opportunity to change your mind because you know he won't, but because you're established enough in your relationship that you know that this isn't going to change anything. As Jake had reassured you years ago, it was okay. You'd figure it out.

Jake had gotten back home early in the morning, but because you'd been assigned an early hop and then agreed to take on some of the newer pilots in some dogfighting, most of the day has passed by the time you're leaving base and you've still yet to see him. Just as you're grabbing your things and leaving the locker room, planning on calling him on the way to the clinic, he catches you in the hall.

You're mid stride when he saunters around the corner, moving with just enough comfortable confidence in his walk that it comes off as cocky, like he owns the place and hasn't been gone for a month. Jake breaks out into a grin. "Ah just who I was hoping to see."

"Jake!" you state in surprise, barley registering who he is before he wraps an arm around you, pulling you into a long overdue hug. One of his large hands comes up to pet your hair, the other squeezes your waist. Relaxing, you breathe him in, musky and familiar. You've been slightly on edge all day and a hug from him was just what you needed.

Phoenix huffs from behind you, breaking the silence. "That's funny because I was hoping not to see you, Bagman." The gleam in her eyes is affectionate. The Dagger Squad has remained close in the following years but that's not to say that old rivalries fade.

Jake releases you from the embrace for the most part but keeps his heavy arm draped across your shoulders, holding you close. "You been takin' care of my wife, Trace?" he asks, his voice warm and heavy.

Natasha glares at him playfully over her shoulder as she pushes past the two of you. "She was my wife before she was yours, Seresin. You stay gone too long again and I might steal her back."

You smile privately to yourself as they banter back and forth, watching as Phoenix finally disappears down the hallway. For a moment you forget about what you're about to do. Jake looks down at you, his grin stretching widely across his face, once again as he squeezes you in close. "Ready to head home?" he asks, his arm dropping from around you so that he can grab your bag.

Suddenly you hesitate, the words caught in your throat.

Immediately, Jake's smile falters just slightly, his brow creasing in worry as he steps back towards you. "It's everything okay? Did something happen?"

A sudden on rush of tears are stinging at your eyes and you struggle to get the words out of your closing throat.

"I think I'm pregnant, Jake."

At first you can't tell what he's thinking because the look on his face becomes immediately serious. His smile vanishes and his brow lifts in surprise. "Oh."

"Oh?"  You echo, panic that you hadn't thought existed rising in your throat. Was he angry?

"No, I mean, fuck, that's great, baby," he quickly clarifies, reaching out to take your hand. "I just wasn't expecting that."

You stare at him, your panic rising even more now. Because that was not what you were expecting. "Great? No, it's not great. What do you mean, great?! I thought you said you didn't want kids?!"

Jake shrugs, throwing his hands up slightly in exasperation. "I mean maybe I didn't at one point, but things change, (Y/n). This isn't a bad thing."

Your eyebrows shoot up. Because this is quite possibly the worst thing that could have happened. "Are you kidding, Jake?! I can't be a mom! I'm a fucking fighter pilot!"

Now it's Jake's turn to look confused, like he's not quite sure where you're heading with this. Again, he shrugs, tossing up his hands. "So? I mean you would have to take some time off, but it's not unrealistic. People do it."

You look at him as if he's suddenly grown two heads. "Jake, you don't just "take time off" to raise a kid. That's not a temporary thing. That's the rest of my life."

Jake crosses his arms, going quiet for a moment before he sighs. "Okay, so quit. It's not like we need the money."

And suddenly everything you thought you'd ever known comes crashing down. There goes your career, your relationship, and the rest of your life. Your heart sinks to rock bottom in your chest because this is not how this was supposed to go. A broken, "What?" is all that escapes your cracked open chest.

Sensing your panic, Jake reaches out, his large, gentle fingers brushing your wrist. His voice is soft. "Look, I know this wasn't in the plans, but that doesn't mean it can't be. We could make it work."

You step back, pulling away from his outstretched hand as if he's burned you. "I can't believe that you would even suggest that," you say, the words 'so quit' ringing in your head. "Do you know how hard I worked to get to where I am right now?!"

Just being in the Navy as a female was hard. Even with going to the academy, the military was a man's world. You had to fight tooth and nail for every ounce of the respect that you deserved. And now to be here, where you are today at Top Gun, you've more than earned it.

Jake sighs heavily, his fingers coming up to pinch the bridge of his nose in frustration. "I'm not telling you to quit. It was just a suggestion since you seem to think that you can't do both."

It's then that you come to the realization that he doesn't get it. No one gets it. 

"I don't think you understand, Jake. I don't fucking want to do it. I don't want to be a mom."

And to that, Jake doesn't say anything. He just stares at you, his usually warm green eyes void of the typical playful gleam that they hold. The two of you stand there in silence for a long time, allowing the the thick blanket of realization to finally settle over you.

"So that's it?" Jake finally asks, his voice sounding closed off and hurt. "I don't even get a say?"

"Don't try to guilt me here, Jake. You knew how I felt about this, and you still married me. So no, you don't get a say."

Jake looks down at his boots, hands braced on his hips as your words process. He swallows, and you know he's fighting the tears in his eyes. "Okay."

"Jake—"

He picks your bag back up from the floor and turns his back towards you, heading for the exit door. "Go do what you have to do, (Y/n). I'll see you at home."

——

When you get back home, Jake is sitting alone at the kitchen table. From the looks of the empty bottle of beer beside him, he's been there for a while. Head in his hands, as if to ward off a headache, he only looks up once you approach the table. His fingers twist at the ring on his left hand.

Quietly, you place the ultrasound prints on the table—face down so that you don't have to look at them. You open your mouth, the words 'six weeks' about to escape, when Jake holds up his hand.

"Don't— (Y/n). Just don't."

You know he's hurt and you understand why. But when it comes down it it, this is your life. No matter how much you love Jake, you aren't going to suffer with a child you don't want to have out of the obligation of your relationship. You cross your arms defensively in front of your chest. "Then what do you want, Jake? Because I don't know what to do," you admit.

Jake stares across the table at you, his gaze unflinching, before his eyes fall to the black and white prints.

"I'm all in, (Y/n). I meant that much when I married you." His fingers tug at the ring on his finger and this time it slips past the knuckle and into his palm. "Either you're in or you're out."

You stare at the golden band and his suddenly bare finger and realize that you hardly remember a time that it wasn't there. With your throat constricting, you look back up to the face of the man that you love.

"Jake," you begin, and your voice breaks as you say his name. "You're asking me to choose between you and my job. That's not fair."

Jake sighs. He sets the ring down on the table and stands up. You watch him with a sinking heart.

"It seems like a pretty easy choice to me," he says finally. "Because I would choose you every time."

The thought hits you that maybe this is you being selfish. You have always been a selfish person, even your mother had always told you so. Was it so selfish to choose yourself—your career—over a hypothetical future? The military was not a kind profession to females who wanted families. You had seen too many women settle for less in their careers because they decided that the timeline of rising in the ranks was too long to wait and they chose to have children instead. A coworker had confessed to you that despite how much she loved her husband and her children, her life ended when she had them.

Realistically, you couldn't have both. Jake knew that. You knew that.

You can't even look Admiral Simpson in the eye when you had him your letter of resignation.

[penkura]

Everybody Knows

Summary: You want to keep it a secret as long as you can, but living on a pirate ship makes that difficult.

Warnings: Pregnancy, mentions of vomiting, slight food aversions, loving husband Sanji (not a warning tbh haha)

Note: Everyone, hi!! I wrote this before I ever finished 'knowing', and I just couldn't help but to share it here now that that's completed! I loved writing this so much, and yes, this is one of the two one-shots that are connected to 'knowing'! I'll post the second next week most likely! This also takes place about four to five years after the end of 'knowing'! I hope you all will enjoy this!!

“Sanji, look, look!! It’s positive!”

“Wait. No way, really?!”

Your smiling and giggling while showing off the positive pregnancy test ended up being contagious, Sanji grinning when he saw it as he wrapped you in a tight hug and spun you just a little. He couldn’t do it too much after all! You’d just found you were likely carrying a precious blessing, he didn’t want to make you dizzy or sick or anything!

It’d been nearly four years since your wedding on the Thousand Sunny after the events in Wano, and just about two years since you decided to start trying for a baby, but now! Now you were pregnant! Finally, after what felt like so much longer than it should have been. You hadn’t told anyone that you two were even thinking about having a baby, you wanted to keep it as secret as possible, and it taking almost two years to even get to the point of a positive test was definitely keeping it secret.

Honestly, when you’d told him you wanted to try having a baby, Sanji was ecstatic and nervous all at the same time. Of course he wanted to be a dad, he’d thought about it for so long, especially once you two married. But, with the life of a pirate, it couldn’t be that safe, could it? Obviously others had done it, Gol D. Roger had kids on his ship, Whitebeard did too, and Big Mom had all her kids (don’t remind him of that though, poor man thought he’d never see you again). The world had become moderately safer, people weren’t as terrified of pirates anymore, specifically your crew with how much you had helped others.

When you did tell him, you had made sure no one else was around and that it was about bedtime for most of the crew. You’d stay in the kitchen with Sanji while he finished off the dishes, telling you what he was thinking about cooking the next day for meals most nights, and that was the perfect time. A few of your crewmates came through to wish you both goodnight. Nami had done so early so she could check the map and log pose, making sure you were heading in the right direction. Zoro had the first night shift and had, like always, just requested someone bring him some sake after a while. Brook had chosen to spend some time playing his violin on the deck, Franky was likely in his workshop you thought. Robin came and said goodnight a bit later, saying she’d be joining Zoro in the crow’s nest for a bit with her latest book. You hadn’t been entirely sure about where Jimbei was at first, then heard him on the deck with Brook. Luffy and Usopp had tried to sneak in with Chopper to get a late night snack, making you giggle softly when you saw them come in the door as quietly as they could, before Sanji threw bread at them and chased them out, shouting “that’s all you get! The kitchen is now closed, goodnight unless you want to work!”

Hearing your giggle made Sanji turn back and smile at you, his lovely wife! He still couldn’t believe you two were married some days, just about two years at this point. Before he even started on the dishes, he stopped and gave you a kiss on the top of your head, saying “Once I’m done with the dishes we can head to bed, okay?”

“Sure!”

You tried to keep your focus on your own book while he worked, but your thoughts kept jumping around. You started one thought and lost it, wondering what it was before it came back, and your face heated up at the thought you’d been having the last few weeks anytime you were alone with your dear husband. Every time you’d try and bring the subject of having a baby up to Sanji, someone would interrupt and you’d back down, nervous they’d hear and it would spread around the ship before you even started trying.

You just wanted to be a mom on top of being a pirate, nothing more to it. And you knew Sanji would be an amazing father. No matter how his biological father was, Sanji would be different, he’d had Zeff as his chosen father, his real father. You knew he would be okay.

When Brook started to play what sounded like a familiar lullaby from the East Blue, it made you smile. You checked around quickly to make sure the coast was clear, before getting up from your spot at the table and walking over to Sanji, giving him a hug from behind that made him greet you.

“Sanji~?”

He hummed a bit while finishing drying another dish, “Yes, darling? What can I do for you?”

Smiling just a bit and burying your face in his shirt, you quietly made your request, “I want us to have a baby.”

It was loud enough for him to hear it, nearly causing Sanji to drop the plate in his hand as he choked a bit on his cigarette. Carefully, he set the plate down before turning around and taking your face in his (still damp) hands, trying to make out if you were joking with him or not. All you did in return was smile softly, nothing but love for him in your eyes. Once he realized your smile was sincere and that’s what you really wanted, he smiled widely and nodded, kissing you all over your face.

“Of course, of course, mon amour!!” he was almost as quiet as you were, he could tell you didn’t want anyone else to hear this precious desire yet, “Absolutely, whatever you want, as many as you want!”

You giggled while he kept kissing your face and you wrapped your arms back around his shoulders. "One would be a good start."

Now, you finally had the positive test you’d been anxiously waiting for. Every other one you’d taken that came up negative frustrated both of you at times, but every time it happened, seeing how upset you were, Sanji would just hug you and say it would happen one day, he just knew it would. You’d just keep trying and praying and hoping until it did.

And finally it did. The second line on the test was faint, but you could see it. You had a positive test!

After you two had calmed down from your excitement, you decided to keep the news secret for the time being. You wanted either Chopper or a doctor at the next island to confirm that your test wasn’t a false positive before you told anyone. The ship was due to land at an island that had a large town on it the next day, so Sanji agreed on taking you to a doctor once you did, under the guise of getting some ingredients to store (of course he did need to do that shopping, but making sure you really were pregnant was top priority). You absolutely trusted Chopper as a doctor, but you knew it was likely word would spread sooner than you wanted it to, so you made the choice to go to a doctor once you docked at the next island instead.

Some of your crewmates picked up on how you two acted through the day, but didn’t think too much of it. You guys were sickeningly sweet to each other most of the time anyway, it was gross how lovey-dovey you were (to Zoro anyway). A few times you’d be doing your chores, and someone, namely Robin or Nami, would catch how Sanji, who had been handing drinks and snacks to those who wanted them, would catch you out of the corner of his eye, before quietly watching you for a moment, deciding to go over and offering to take your work off your hands. You just smiled and said he could help if he was that bored and he looked like he wanted to say something, but instead gave a smile and a nod, helping you finish your chores a little faster.

Nami noticed first how weird Sanji was acting towards you. Normally he'd be his regular self, providing her and Robin with drinks and snacks in his normal way, before going over the top to do the same for you. It made sense since you were his wife, but that day he seemed…off? Almost like something had happened to calm him down. His normal acts of treating them like queens were a bit more subdued, and then with you, the one he almost treated like a goddess, he seemed like he'd been hit with a tranquilizer that made him more gentle, soft. It was very odd.

“Hmmm, Robin? Do you think those two are being…weird?”

Robin looked up from her book just enough to see Nami watching you two again; you were playing a card game with Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper, while Sanji stayed nearby just watching. This was the most they'd seen him out of the kitchen in a while, it definitely was odd.

“Sanji is being a bit more protective of her today.”

“Is [Y/N] sick or something?”

“She seems normal to me. Maybe she’s pregnant.”

Nami laughed a little louder than she intended, but it didn’t gain yours or Sanji’s attention. It did gain Luffy's, who looked over wondering what Nami was laughing about before returning his attention to your card game.

“That’d be something.”

Neither girl dared to ask you about it that day, just in case they were incorrect and said something that could be considered offensive. They didn’t even know if you two wanted to have kids in the first place, maybe you just didn’t feel well and Sanji was just being the overprotective husband to his sick wife. The last time you'd been sick he barely left your side and got some help with the cooking so he could take care of you.

When it was dinner time, you were very careful to not let anyone notice how the smell of the fish you were having was making you nauseous. When Luffy asked why you weren't having any, you made the excuse of not feeling very well, deciding to forgo the fish to keep from making yourself sick. It wasn't technically a lie, you just made it sound convincing enough that no one questioned you further.

A silly argument broke out about who would get your share since you weren't eating the fish, and it made you laugh along with Nami. Luffy and Brook both wanted it, Usopp said it should be left for the next day because maybe you'd feel up to eating it then, while Chopper tried to ask you what was wrong and you just told him your stomach was a bit upset, he said he'd give you something to help if you wanted.

You really did impress Sanji with how well you were keeping your little secret. If it weren't for your restraint, he'd have told everyone by now, he was sure of it. It was taking everything in him not to pick up a transponder snail and call Zeff to let him know the good news. He knew you'd let him as soon as it was really, truly confirmed, he was just so anxious to tell someone.

Everyone cleared out after dinner minus you and Robin, she decided to stay behind and help with clearing the table, something you normally did to spend some extra time with your husband that he greatly appreciated.

However, this time, Sanji kept trying to make you stop helping.

"[Y/N], please, sit down! Robin and I will take care of the table." Sanji really, really wanted you to sit down and take it easy. If you were pregnant, you needed rest! You might be growing a whole new person inside you! You'd need all the energy you could have over the next few months!

"Sanji, it's ok! I can help."

"[Y/N]," Robin gave you a smile as she looked between you and Sanji, "if you aren't feeling well, I don't mind helping tonight. You should go let Chopper check you though, just to be certain it's not something to be worried about."

You bit the inside of your lip, wanting to tell Robin why Sanji was being so much more protective over you, but you weren't sure if you should. You viewed her like an older sister, and knew that if you did tell her, she'd keep your secret. Robin would take any secret you told her to the grave. Instead, you looked at Sanji with a slightly pleading look that caused him to just know what you were thinking. Sanji gave you a smile and nodded, which made you smile in return.

"Robin, the only reason Sanji is like this right now is because we got a positive pregnancy test this morning."

Honestly, Robin was joking earlier when she made that suggestion to Nami, but hearing you confirm her silly thought actually made her smile even more at you.

"Really? That's wonderful!"

Nodding, you started to almost beg for her silence on the matter.

"We don't want anyone else to know yet, so I haven't gone to Chopper for real confirmation. We're going to go find a doctor on the next island tomorrow to get a blood test done."

"That's a very good idea, to make absolutely sure your test was positive."

Sanji nodded, setting a hand on your shoulder. "So…could you keep it a secret please? Just until we have it confirmed."

"Of course. Your secret is safe with me."

Robin then joined Sanji even more in telling you to sit and relax, to the point you decided to head to bed with a laugh when Sanji said he didn't mean you had to leave. All you did was kiss him and say you'd see him when he finally came to bed himself.

You took a quick shower, before changing into your pajamas and choosing to lay in bed, hair still a bit wet but you didn't care. You wanted to see that positive pregnancy test again. It still felt surreal to you that it might be happening. You might become a mother in a few months.

The two faint, pink lines were still there, you hadn't been dreaming all day.

Gosh I hope it's not a false positive…

Eventually Sanji did come to bed with you, after his own shower and with his hair still damp too. You barely even moved when he laid down next to you, setting his hand on your stomach while you kept staring at the test.

"It's so weird."

"Hmm?"

"To think that we might be having a baby. It feels weird, doesn't it?"

He nodded a bit, while you finally laid the test back down on your nightstand and turned to face your dearly loved husband with a smile.

"You might get to be a dad soon."

"And you might get to be a mom soon."

Your giggle never failed to make him smile, even more than he already was. Sanji wrapped his arm around your waist and pulled you close to him, hugging you and burying his face in your hair.

"I love you…no matter what we find out next, I love you so much."

You returned his hug and sighed happily, content with where you were now. You really hoped and prayed your test was accurate, that soon you'd be parents, you'd have a baby of your own to care for and love as well.

"I love you too, Sanji."

All would be well.

+!+

"All right everyone, I have your allowances for today!"

The normal culprits of bad spending habits cheered or thanked Nami, while you gladly took your decent sum and pocketed it immediately. Of course you wanted to look for some clothes, but you had no idea how much a doctor would charge you for a test, so you hoped the allowance Nami gave to you would be enough for both.

Usually you'd join in on drawing straws to see who stayed on the ship to guard it, but before you even could take one from Usopp, Sanji took your hand and told everyone you had decided you were going with him to get groceries this time. Not a single one of your crewmates questioned it, the rest of them drawing straws and Zoro and Jimbei being the lucky ones to stay on the Sunny. Once everything was settled, the rest of you left the ship and broke off in different directions. You stopped a local and quietly asked her where a doctor or women's clinic was, and she was kind enough to lead you and Sanji there.

After the kind older woman left you, the two of you didn't go inside yet. Your nerves had picked up and Sanji could tell. He felt the same way, you both had the same thought running through heads.

What if it was a false positive? What if all your hopes you'd had over the last 24 hours were about to be dashed and you weren't really going to have a baby?

Despite all the fears and worries, Sanji held your hand just a bit tighter and it brought you out of your thoughts and you looked at him.

"Do you want me to go in with you?"

You thought for a second, then shook your head. "It's ok, I can go. You need to go grocery shopping so we're back on the ship at the meeting time."

Although he really did want to go with you, Sanji nodded and gave you a tight hug, kissing your forehead. "No matter what they say, I love you. You know that right?"

"Of course I do!" You laughed a bit, leaning up to give your sweet husband a kiss. "I love you too, and I know it's all gonna be okay. Meet you here in about an hour?"

Sanji nodded, letting you go but letting his fingers linger on yours as you turned and walked into the clinic. He stayed for a few minutes, before turning to go find the shopping district and get his grocery shopping done by the hour time was up, saying silent prayers that the news you brought back would be good.

+!+

The hour you had agreed on had passed, Sanji was waiting for you outside the clinic nervously. He'd honestly expected you to be outside and waiting for him already, but maybe something was wrong? Did something happen that was keeping you there longer than you expected? He prayed it wasn't something along the lines of you getting your pregnancy confirmed but being told you'd lost the baby already. That would devastate both of you after the time you'd had even just trying to get pregnant.

No, no, don't even think that. Everything is fine.

Every time someone exited the clinic and it wasn't you, Sanji got even more anxious, wishing you'd finally step out. He'd nearly gone through another two cigarettes while waiting, knowing you'd be upset with him over it but he couldn't help it. The nicotine was at least calming his nerves somewhat.

I'll have to apologize to [Y/N] later.

Finally, after another almost twenty minutes, you left the clinic and his nerves calmed a bit more but his heart started racing, wondering what you were going to tell him. You hadn't even looked up from whatever papers you had been given, you were still reading them it looked like. But once you did and saw Sanji was waiting for you, you gave him the brightest smile he thought he'd ever seen from you, even brighter than the one you had when you two got married.

"Sanji!" You ran to him and threw your arms around him, causing him to do the same. He tried to ask you what the doctor said but the words wouldn't come out, but once you pulled back from your hug, you didn't stop smiling. "It was right! We're having a baby!"

Actually hearing you confirm that your pregnancy test was positive made Sanji unbelievably happy. Even though he could feel tears starting, he smiled at you, hugging you again even tighter than before, picking you up and spinning you a bit, and telling you how happy he was. He set you back down and released you from the hug, kissing your face and thanking you for this blessing while you laughed a bit. He didn't need to thank you, not even a little bit. It was your choice and you were glad to be having a baby with him.

After one more kiss, he ended up pulling away from you with a grin, throwing his arms in the air with tears in his eyes.

"I'm gonna be a dad!!!"

+!+

Usopp and Nami were the ones to find out next. The two had been wandering the town when they came up near the clinic Sanji had dropped you off at, not thinking much about it at the time. You had a doctor on the ship, Chopper was the best one possible!

…so why was Sanji standing outside this clinic like he was waiting for something?

"What's he doing?"

"Why would I know that?"

The two were obviously confused. Had you gone inside? Were you that sick? Why didn't you tell Chopper or anyone else?? You could have stayed on the ship instead of letting Sanji drag you to town! Granted yes, he was your husband and you didn't seem to mind at all, but still. If you weren't well, you could have stayed behind and rested instead of running through the town in the few hours Nami had given you all to explore. She had just learned it would take two days for the log to reset, so you had plenty of time to explore! Honestly, sometimes Nami thought Sanji of all people could be a touch more considerate when you said you weren't feeling well.

"[Y/N] did say she had an upset stomach last night," Usopp remembered while watching Sanji light a second cigarette, "maybe they didn't want to bother Chopper and brought her here?"

"Oh come on, they have to be hiding something." Nami was trying to think what could be so important that you two would come to a random clinic on this island instead of just going to Chopper, just as you stepped out and ran to hug Sanji. The two of you were full of smiles and excitement, making her tilt her head. "What's going on?" Nami was trying so hard to hear, she was about to just discreetly walk by and eavesdrop.

"I don't know, I can't hear them." Usopp leaned in a little more, still trying to stay hidden.

The two didn't need to wait any longer to know what you two were saying, as Sanji's outburst of shouting that he was going to be a dad told them everything and Nami gasped while Usopp's jaw dropped almost to the ground.

"She's pregnant!!"

"Did…did they plan that?!"

"Who cares, Usopp! There's gonna be a baby on the ship soon!"

The two were conflicted on if they should confront you now or wait until you told everyone, while they were deciding you and Sanji had started walking back towards the farmer's market to finish the grocery shopping, neither Nami or Usopp noticing until she went to shout for the two of you.

"They're gone! Dang it!"

"Well…I bet they'll tell us later, Nami."

"If they don't," Nami's berri eyes didn't get past Usopp, "I can try offering them some baby funds, at an interest."

"Nothing gets by you."

+!+

Getting back to the ship, you helped Sanji put away all the groceries (despite him telling, begging you to rest), before putting away the very few clothes you ended up purchasing. After paying for your appointment and the prenatal vitamins they gave you, your allowance was about half gone, but you were able to find a few cute clothes you could wear now and some pieces to put away for later on. It was a bit difficult for you to find some maternity clothing items, but you did find some cute pieces! Even more difficult was keeping those pieces hidden when you were showing the other items to Nami, Robin, and Chopper. You made the excuse that they were more intimate items which flew over Chopper's head but made Nami pull a face while Robin laughed a bit.

Nami did keep pestering you about what you did and how you spent all your money this time, but it wasn't that weird to you, she normally asked if anyone had anything left from what she gave them, and if they wanted her to put it away for the next island stop. You almost, almost told her, but just claimed your clothes were more expensive than expected.

Robin was the only person who you pulled aside and confirmed you were pregnant to. She gave you a hug and congratulated you properly, sitting with you in the room you shared with Sanji to get a little more information from you.

You'd told her that yes, this was planned, about two years later than you had originally hoped. You were nine weeks along, and intending to keep it a secret from everyone else until your first trimester was over just to be safe. The doctor you saw had said everything looked good so far, and it gave you immense relief to hear that.

Your plan was to stay on the ship the next day and tell Chopper so he could start to prepare for whatever he'd need to do to help you through your pregnancy and delivery, but you wanted to wait and tell everyone else once you passed the twelve week mark. Robin said she'd absolutely help as well, she even gave you a few books on pregnancy that you and Sanji could read through.

The rest of the day, Nami and Usopp wondered if you or Sanji were going to say anything about your having a baby. Not one word slipped from either of you, and it was starting to frustrate both of them. At dinner you were able to eat, Sanji quickly catching on that fish was making you nauseous, so he ended up making some meat instead which greatly pleased your captain.

"Sanji!! Seconds!" Luffy whined a bit and Sanji told him to hold on while he got a bit more ready, making Luffy lean over on you, "[Y/N]~~~ can I have some of yours??"

"No, Luffy!" Sanji looked over his shoulder and set a small glare on him, "[Y/N] needs her dinner!"

"But she always shares it with me~!"

"She can't right now!"

"Why not???"

"Because she–"

"--I'm starving after being sick yesterday!"

You nodded, eyes slightly wide as you realized Sanji was that close to revealing your pregnancy earlier than planned. He covered his mouth when you shouted over the two, turning back to the stove and cursing at himself.

Almost blew it, holy crap.

"But I want meeeeeaaaaat."

"You can have some vegetables, Luffy."

Luffy made a face and decided it wasn't worth it, he'd wait for more meat to be cooked. Franky was willing to share with him though, which made your captain happy at least. Once you had finished eating, you took your plate to the sink and stopped to give Sanji a hug, he whispered sorry to you, but you just shook your head, leaning up to kiss his cheek.

“No worries, my dear.”

“Yohohoho, you two are so loving even with a baby on the way!”

Everything went silent. Your crewmates all stopped eating, the sound of silverware on plates was quieted as they stopped to stare at you with widened eyes, and both you and Sanji went completely stiff, you started feeling ill.

How the hell did Brook know?! You hadn’t told anyone apart from Robin, and were fairly certain Sanji didn’t tell anyone after you left him alone earlier to start on dinner. Nami had been a little persistent with you, asking you a lot of questions earlier but you didn’t tell her anything, and you didn’t know at the time that Zoro had even questioned Sanji about why he wasn’t smoking as much. Usopp knew Sanji was close to shouting at Luffy that you were pregnant, and now Chopper realized you feeling nauseous last night made more sense. Robin smiled a bit since she already knew, and Franky hadn’t thought to question anything yesterday or today, honestly thinking you were sick and Sanji was just trying to quit smoking. Jimbei had noticed you feeling sick earlier than anyone, but assumed you’d just caught something since you all were constantly out at sea and stopping at various islands, you could have picked up any kind of illness.

Luffy never questioned a thing, but hearing Brook’s statement made him break into a large grin.

“You guys are having a baby?!”

Your nausea was back, and Sanji could see it in how pale your face was becoming as you, back still turned to the table, tried to figure out whether to confirm, deny, or start asking how Brook knew.

“I…” You felt worse while trying to decide what to say, covering your mouth with your hand.

“[Y/N]? Are you–”

“I’m gonna be sick.”

You pulled away from Sanji and ran out of the kitchen with your hand still over your mouth, making several of your crewmates yell for you, while Robin had run after you. Sanji almost ran after you as well, before realizing he needed an answer from a certain musician first. He set a glare on Brook that made him shudder.

“You. Who the hell told you that?!”

Brook continued to shudder while everyone else couldn’t believe the glare Sanji was giving him.

“T-t-the test was still in the bathroom trash this morning! I-i-it was only n-natural for me to assume!”

“Damn it,” Sanji pulled at his bangs, cursing himself for not suggesting you threw that in the kitchen trash or hid it under your bed until you were ready to tell people, and really wishing he could light a cigarette right then, “Fine, all right?! We’re having a baby! She’s nine weeks and we were gonna tell you all once she was past the first trimester, but guess everyone knows now!”

“Sanji–”

“You guys take care of putting the food away and the dishes, I’m going to go comfort my pregnant wife!”

Sanji threw down his apron and ran out of the kitchen after you and Robin, causing Nami to shout for him, but she didn’t follow him.

Everyone that was left, was completely silent, all mulling over the news that you and Sanji were going to be parents soon.

“S-so,” Brook was still a little shaky after seeing how angry Sanji was, “uh, did anyone else know?”

Nami and Usopp raised their hands, heads down. They only found out by mistake, but both felt awful at your precious secret basically being revealed against your will.  Surprising everyone though was Zoro who nodded.

“Wait, how did you know Zoro??”

“He told me earlier.”

“He what?!”

Rolling his eye a bit, Zoro nodded again while taking a drink of his sake. “I mentioned that he hadn’t been smoking and he ended up telling me. I didn’t want all that information dumped on me but he seemed like he was anxious to tell someone. I just happened to be the first person he talked to.”

That made more sense than Sanji just deciding Zoro would be the first person he told. It became quiet again, Luffy was thinking and pressing his index finger to his forehead before he finally said something.

“So…why did Sanji say they were waiting?”

“Well,” Chopper spoke up, a little shell shocked that he was going to have to take care of a pregnant woman on the ship, but a bit excited about it, “A lot of couples wait until after twelve weeks because the chance of miscarriage is higher before then. It’s never really zero, but waiting until after the first trimester is common practice, by then they’re more confident that the baby will make it.”

“Oh, I see!” Luffy started laughing after that, a grin on his face that seemed to start spreading to his crewmates as the information sunk in. “They’re gonna be awesome parents! I bet it’s a boy!”

“Oh no,” Nami shook her head with a small glare, “It’s got to be a girl, we need more girls on this ship!”

“I can make some SUPER toys for them!”

“I’ll make sure the baby and [Y/N] are both healthy!”

“Would playing lullabies for the child make up for this?”

“Imagine if the cook’s kid wants to be a swordsman.”

“I have some great stories of bravery and adventure to tell them!”

“I’m sure they’ll be great no matter what the child is or what they decide to do in the future.”

The other eight members of your crew continued discussing their own ideas of what your child would be like, working to clean up dinner, when Nami stopped and bit her lip.

“What’s wrong, Nami?” Luffy tilted his head at her as she stopped gathering the plates.

“I feel bad that she got sick because of this. We all made [Y/N] so nervous after Brook said they were having a baby. I hope she’s not too upset.”

“Even if she is,” Zoro had started to leave, but stopped to listen to Nami’s concerns, “the cook will take care of it. He’s her husband after all.”

+!+

“Can I get you some water, [Y/N]?”

“Thank you, Robin, but I’m fine at the moment.” You sighed a bit and leaned against your pillows, Robin nodding as she sat beside you on your bed. You’d completely lost your dinner after you ran off, Robin staying with you to keep your hair back and help you get back to your room until Sanji got there.

He almost burst into your shared room a few minutes later, running over and hugging you close.

“Are you all right, mon amour??”

Nodding, you just hugged him back. “I’m okay. I’m…upset, but otherwise just fine.”

"Rightfully so," Sanji nodded, stroking your hair a bit, "We've barely had time to process this and it's already out."

"How did–"

"The test was still in the bathroom trash can."

Hearing that, you realized it was your fault in the end, for not being more careful about how you disposed of the test. Whining a bit you leaned against Sanji again. "I'm an idiot. I didn't even think about someone seeing it there…"

"Hey, you're not an idiot. Anyone else would have done the same thing," Sanji leaned down just enough to kiss your forehead which made Robin smile before she took her leave, knowing he would make things right, "it didn't even cross my mind that we should've put it somewhere else."

"I should've tossed it overboard."

"I don't think any of the fish want something that's been peed on, love."

That made you burst out laughing, so hard you almost felt like you were going to be sick again but you knew you weren't. Seeing you smile and laugh made Sanji smile as well, as he crawled into bed by you and pulled you back into his arms. He was glad to see you smiling and laughing after the disaster that had been dinner. You deserved to be happy about having a baby, not stressed because it got out earlier than you had planned.

Once you calmed down, you laid there and stared at the ceiling for a bit, Sanji still holding you and rubbing your arm to help comfort you as you thought.

"I'm not that mad at Brook for bringing it up."

"I'm pissed at him."

"Sanji."

"It wasn't his secret to tell."

You sighed with a nod, turning to be face to face with your equally as upset husband, wrapping your arms around his shoulders. "I know…but now I don't feel like I have to agonize over how to tell everyone."

"I…suppose that's true…"

Thinking about the reactions you got from your crewmates, you smiled a little.

"Luffy sounded happy."

"He did, didn't he?"

"He probably thinks this means new crewmate, instead of what is essentially his niece or nephew."

Sanji laughed, nodding. "That's exactly what he thinks, I'm sure of it."

The two of you spent what felt like hours just talking about your day, the insanity of it all. Finding out you really were pregnant, that secret getting out during dinner and making your morning/evening sickness come back, and the likely reactions of your crewmates. You talked until you started dozing off, Sanji quieting his voice when he noticed you were falling asleep. Once you were asleep, he stayed at your side a few minutes longer, before deciding he needed a shower and to check the kitchen before bed.

Before he got up and left, Sanji tucked you in a bit, kissing your forehead with his hand resting on your stomach lightly.

"Sleep well. I love you both so much."

+!+

Breakfast the next morning was weirdly quiet. You'd helped Sanji get everything ready, once again despite him telling you to sit down and relax, to rest since you know, you were growing a whole new person in your womb, you needed as much energy as possible. You just ignored him, smiling and setting the table quickly as everyone else started to file in. Brook had found you earlier in the morning and apologized for the night before, which you accepted with a bright smile, telling him everything was fine.

Sanji still was angry but couldn't find it in him to glare at the skeleton anymore. If you were willing to forgive, Sanji would find a way to do that himself.

During breakfast, Luffy stood up with his drink in hand, making everyone look at him while he grinned. He wanted to toast something obviously, and everyone else raised their drinks to his.

"To Sanji and [Y/N]'s baby! Our future crewmate and niece or nephew! Hopefully nephew though!"

Everyone else laughed and shouted cheers, taking a drink, while you were fighting back tears. You hadn't fully expected all of them to be so accepting of the idea of a baby on board, but what else did you expect?

This ragtag group was your family now, your baby would have no shortage of protectors or joy in their life.

Sanji, the ever attentive husband he was, smiled just a bit seeing the happy tears in your eyes. He leaned over with a kiss to your temple, whispering "It's ok to cry if you're happy."

And you did, just a bit. You thanked Luffy, thanked everyone for being so wonderful and accepting of your baby, who hadn't even been born yet. Most of your crew responded in kind, telling you their thoughts of how they could help when the baby was born, offering to decorate a nursery, asking if you want a boy or girl. Everything they could think of that would help you and Sanji to settle into your roles of mom and dad in a few months. They offered to split up your chores among them, something you asked them not to do until later into your pregnancy. You still wanted some semblance of a routine before you gave birth and had to devote all your time to a tiny human.

Eventually, breakfast had its own little squabble as Luffy snatched the last piece of bacon when Usopp and Franky were reaching for it, a small brawl breaking out. It made Sanji yell for them to be careful around you, leading Franky and Usopp to drag Luffy to the deck to continue their little spat.

You laughed, leaning back in your chair and giving Sanji a smile.

"I love our weird family."

"Hmmm, so do I, mon amour."

All would be well, when you had your baby in a few short months. They would be welcomed with a flurry of love and adoration, not just from you and Sanji, but from everyone else as well.

Can't wait to meet you, little angel.

[mysunshinetemptress]

Smarter

Smarter

Insight 1 Insight 2

Leah Williamson x ??

Warnings: family argument, rushed writing it’s 1am

Leah hadn’t seen any of her family in weeks, not since her granny had come to the house demanding her ring back but today was importation, today was Jacob’s day and she had promised to be there, you had promised to be there and so she found herself stood on the sidelines of her brothers champion ship final with his team. Her family stood on the other side, with no sign of you.

The match is a blur for everyone, for Leah, her family and her brother whose playing, her brother whose playing his championship match but all he can focus on is the tension between his family and his sister.

His sister who he has idolised since he was a little kid, who he wanted to be just like when he grew up.

Leah had walked down to the sidelines when the match had finished Jacob’s team coming out on top, “Jacob, Jacob, Oye Jacob.” Leah yelled across the field trying to get her younger brother’s attention only he ignored her, he couldn’t look at her, he felt sick to his stomach every time he did.

But it was Leah, and so he found him self stopping momentarily meters away from everyone else. That was all Leah needed to race towards him running up to the younger boy “Hey mate I’m talking to you.” Jacob rolled her “what do you want.” Leah can’t say she’s surprised by his reaction but it hurts her none the less “I just-well I wanted to see you-see how you were, to eh to congratulate you-it was great game mate.” Jacob shakes his head before turning.

Leah grabs his arm panic flaring within her at the thought of losing her younger brother too, “Jacob please.” Jacob harshly tugs his arm away from staring at her like she has caused him harm “no Leah, I-why-how could you” Leah shakes her head her mind racing “I-i don’t know, I can’t lie to you-I don’t know.”

Jacob scoffs “Bullshit, of course you know, this isn’t some one night mistake Leah, this has been going on for ages, and you-you have the nerve to say you don’t know, you don’t know why you cheated on a woman who loves you more than anything, a woman who has given you everything been there for everything, for everyone and asked for nothing in return, the woman you married” Jacob’s squared up to her now, taller now than he was when they first started to have arguments.

Leah feels her throat closing “ it-I made a mistake, but I don’t love her-it’s Y/n.” Jacob hates the way his heart breaks at the sight of tears welling in Leah’s eyes but he doesn’t stop “no it was, you’ve fucked it up, you cheated on your wife, your pregnant wife might I add.” Leah shakes her head “I-I didn’t know.” Jacob lets out a humourless laugh “why cause you would have stopped then.” Leah doesn’t say anything “oh my god, you would have stopped cheating on her, you wouldn’t have said anything, you would-you would have dumped that slag and gone on like you had done nothing wrong.” Leah tries to grab his hand as he begins to walk away again.

“Jacob please.” Jacob keeps walking as Leah chases him “Have you stopped seeing her.” Jacob hates that he’s asked such a question but he needs to know, and the silence is all it takes “She-she’s helping me get through this I-i have no one.” Jacob scoffs “I wonder why.”

Amanda watch’s from a distance her heart breaking at the sight of her kids fighting, at the sight of her youngest slowly starting to hate his favourite person in the world.

“I used to idolise you, I -I wanted to be you.” Jacob’s voice is quite as he admits it all to Leah, leah who wants nothing more than for the ground to open up and swallow her whole, to put her out of her misery. “I used to sit and watch you both, watch how soft she made you, how loved up you both were and I used to wish to have that, I used to wish to be you.” Jacob shakes his head “I can’t believe I wasted all that time wishing, when you’ve become such an asshole so far up her own arse that she has destroyed the only thing she’s ever wanted, or at least the old version of her ever wanted.” Leah can’t say anything else can’t move as her heart breaks again like it has so many times recently.

But her phone lights up in her hand as the screen shows HER name and Jacob shakes his head, he’s not angry anymore just sad, disappointed and sad “She hasn’t stopped crying, I-I’m starting to think she might never stop, even-even when the baby comes.” Jacob doesn’t say anything else instead he just leaves her there standing in the middle of the pitch as he walks over to Amanda head, Leah doesn’t try anymore, she’s tired and soaked and her stupid phone won’t stop buzzing and all she wishes for in that moment is for you. But she’s lost you, lost them, lost everyone.

[creedslove]

The Millers 💖

No outbreak!Joel Miller x f!reader

Summary: an insight of Joel's married life with you and fatherhood of a little boy

Inspired by this post after I fell in love with the idea of Joel being a dad to a baby boy 💙

Warnings: fluff and Joel Miller being the best husband and father in the world

A/N: idk besties, I love Joel and I want him to be happy 😭🥺

1.6k words

When Joel had Sarah, everything was harder; he was too young to take that much of a responsibility by himself and yet he did it. Giving up his dream and short term plans, he saw himself seeking a steady job to provide for himself and his baby daughter, and for that he worked hard. Joel Miller had to work his ass off in order to make sure his family would be well taken care of. However, he loved that tiny little baby girl with all his heart, and it was that love that gave him the strength and the perseverance to fight things off and make sure his daughter had everything he could give her. Luckily to him, he did a pretty good job at raising her, stated fact as she blossomed into a beautiful, lovely and kind-hearted young woman, who gave him nothing but happiness and pride when she managed to get into a top-notch university, after all, she was the smartest kid he'd ever met.

He didn't know exactly what to do after he dropped her off in college, returning to the home that had been filled with her presence, her laughter, her joy and her things, was now a home Joel would have to live in alone and occasionally sharing with his laid-back brother. He was still fairly young, he had a successful business and he thought he would spend his next decades leading a quiet, comfortable life, with a lot of work, some fun, some night stands and that was it.

Meeting you wasn't planned, but it ended up being one of the best, sweetest surprises life had given him, and still, he had never thought it would end up in marriage. He figured you two would be together until you got tired of him and found someone better, he wouldn't blame you, he always thought you deserved more, even if it broke his heart. Turns out you didn't want anyone better, younger or wealthier, you wanted him, exactly like he wanted you, so despite Joel being a stubborn man, you showed him your love and you ended up married to the love of your life. Not bad at all.

However, he had never thought of having a second child. Not that he was against it, but he just figured it wouldn't happen at all, he had gone through all of it with Sarah, so he didn't see himself restarting it from the very beginning… that is until you came with a positive pregnancy test and Joel realized he was going to be a father. You were going to be a mother and you two would become parents. It took him some seconds to let the news sink in, he was shocked, he was not going to lie… he knew you two should've discussed the possibility of having kids and how that would affect your marriage and daily life, but since you were already pregnant, he saw that ship had already sailed.

He was terrified, but also couldn't hide the fact he was so happy to be doing that with you, before he knew it would be different than the first time, where he had to handle a newborn on his own and became a single parent, instead you would do it as a couple, together, building up a family, you were about to become The Millers and he fucking loved that.

Over the course of his life, Joel had to learn to be a girl dad, task that wasn't easy at all, he had no idea one day he would have to learn about Disney princesses, and Barbies, and My Little Pony shit and all the sparkly glittery Sarah was so crazy about when she was a kid. And for a rough guy like himself, he had done a decent job. Which was why his whole perspective had changed the moment he learned you and him were having a little boy.

Joel felt like his heart had stopped for a moment, it was the second time you nearly gave him a heart attack during your marriage. It was so new to him, to know that in a matter of months he was having a little boy. He thought of all the things he would like to do some day, such as teach him how to play the guitar, take him to sports matches, play soccer after Sunday lunches, take him to work… there was just an infinity of things he could try. He was excited.

When you and Joel decided to turn the guest room into nursery, was when he began wondering if his son would be the dinosaur kind of kid, or if he would be into space stuff, animals, or whatever, and just to be safe, Joel bought some of each of the items; that way his little boy could choose whatever he wanted and Joel would be a proud dad not matter what.

Three years after you broke the news to him, Joel prepared himself to leave home and come back home every night to his beautiful wife and his sweet little toddler. It terrified him how time flew by and in the blink of an eye, his beautiful Samuel Miller went from a tiny little baby, to a sweet chatty toddler, and in a matter of time he would become a teen and then an adult. It felt like an exaggeration, but that was what happened to Sarah. He just didn't want to miss out on his son's life, he didn't want to waste precious family moments by working too much. Money was a need, but so was his family, and that was why Joel hated the fact he had to work until that late, he knew you would be gladly waiting for him, but Sammy would be just asleep by the time he finally made it back home. He sighed, as he really enjoyed spending time playing trucks, cars, or blocks with his little man.

He got off his truck and walked to the door, opening it to find a nearly quiet home, the sound of TV was there, though it was low enough for him to be aware you were still awake, but he was sure his boy was already in bed. That was why it made Joel so surprise to moment he saw a tiny little thing waddling towards him, his messy little brown curls showed he had already got cuddles from his mommy, which caused him to he sleepy, judging by the way he rubbed his tired little brown eyes - exactly like Joel's.

"Daddy?" He whispered and smiled tiredly the moment he spotted Joel, rushing to him and hugging him tight, giggling adorably the moment his daddy lifted him up and tiny arms wrapped around Joel's neck. "Miss you daddy"

"Miss you too, Sammy… were you nice to your mommy? Did you take good care of her?" He saw his son nodding obediently and you resting against the doorframe, smiling at them. Your heart was a puddle of love each time you saw how good Joel was with your little boy. You walked to them, caressing Sammy's head gently and pecked Joel's lips

"There's dinner for you" you winked at your husband and got his plate out of the oven, as it was still warm and placed it on the table. You walked to him and tried taking Sammy, but he shook his head "no mommy, stay with daddy please" he gave you the puppy eyes and then turned to Joel "can we play trucks after dinner, daddy?" He asked with a yawn and rested his little body against his dad's stomach, fighting sleep as hard as he could.

While Joel ate, Sammy just stayed quiet, his small hands gripping his daddy's wrist and holding his watch. He shook his head when Joel offered him some food, all he wanted was to play trucks with his daddy.

Joel was still hungry and he was eager to finish that amazing plate you'd made him, but he couldn't simply continue eating while his boy wanted to spend precious time with him. He wrapped his arm gently around Sammy's tummy and got up, taking his son with him

"Daddy is done eating, let's play now, okay? But let's play in your room because our trucks are so noisy and we can't bother mommy" he tickled his son, as he used his trick to convince Sammy to play a little in bed before tucking him in. Sammy on the other hand, could barely contain his excitement, he rubbed his tired eyes once more, but this time the giggles came easy as he was taken to his bed by his father. He sat down comfortably and asked Joel to pick his yellow and blue truck: it was his favorite, given by his big sister Sarah on his last birthday. The man smiled at the thought of it, how his kids were adorable, even if the age gap between them was expressive, Sarah was every bit of sweet to her baby brother, and Sammy simply loved her. He handed his son the truck and sat by the edge of the bed. As they engaged in the activity, Sammy told his daddy silly nothings, giggled and smiled, until he was overpowered by sleep. He lay down in bed, and Joel placed the truck on the floor, taking the fluffy dinosaur blanket and covered Sammy. His big hand caressed his son's beautiful face. He might look like Joel, but he was every bit of sweet and lovely as his mommy, you, the woman Joel loved the most and he was so thankful for having given him the best present a man could have: a family.

"Night night daddy"

"Night Sammy, daddy loves you"

"I love you too, daddy"

____

[keyaho]

.summary. it was the start of the new school year. terry & blaire begin the steps of reconnecting as aaron and Brennan focus on branching out. a new family arrives to MPA.

.chapter warnings. themes of sex, slightly vulgar language :: Blaire pov | Brennan pov

co-writer: @zillasvilla

Noah was in bed by eight-thirty. Again, he requested his Dad’s attention and she sat on her bed slightly miffed about it. Prior to her shower, Terry had brought Noah in to say goodnight. She ran her hands over her son’s new cut again. Just a bit longer than his father’s cut but with those infamous little lines cut in. She had thought Noah wanted to sleep in her bed again, but one look from his Dad and he was telling her that he was a big boy and needed to sleep in his bed. Blaire shot a look at Terry then smiled at her son. After a kiss on the forehead, cheek, and a tight hug Noah was bouncing back towards his room. 

Now she was waiting for Terry, again, after her shower. They hadn’t shared a bed since last year and as large as the bed was he made it feel small.  She had some last minute work to catch up on and had those papers spread out on the bed beside her. Blaire chewed on her pen, flipping through files and signing off on important documents. The door was already open so when Terry walked in she didn’t notice him. He ditched his shirt on his way to the bed and she eyed the familiar tattoos that decorated his forearms. The lion had a chokehold on black men. 

“How much do you have left?” Terry asked. He slid in the bed behind her, his chest to her back and his hands resting on her thigh. “I want some attention.” 

“Not much,’ she didn’t want to lean into the embrace but she couldn’t hide that she missed him. She missed him so much. 

She told him as much. The warmth of his body pressed up against her as he looked over her shoulder. His thick arm flexed before he placed his hand on her stomach and kissed the side of her neck. The last thing they needed to be doing was having sex. It was the same cycle and it always ended with make up sex. Hot and intense. Terry was intense. The last thing she needed was a lower body realignment so she pushed his head away. 

“I have to get up early in the morning.” 

“Okay?” 

He pushed the strap of her top down her arm and kissed his way from her neck to her shoulder. His beard scratched against her skin and she shivered, gripping her pen tight in her fist. 

“Terry,’ Blaire whimpered. 

“Mmmhm?” 

“You don’t have condoms.” 

“How do you know what I got?” 

Blaire rolled her eyes. “I was always the one that bought them. I know you don’t.” 

Blaire’s body didn’t do well with birth control, Terry still wanted more kids, so when they were intimate he wore condoms. It made sense. As a married couple, it was their only option for birth control, no matter how much he hated it. He pouted every time he had to remove it and throw it away, but he never wanted to put her health at risk. He’d suffer so she didn’t have too. 

“Just once?” He asked. “I want to reacquaint myself with the way you feel. I’ll pull out.” 

Blaire turned her head to hide the smile on her face. That’s how they ended up pregnant with Noah. He didn’t know what it meant to pull out. 

“The last time you said that I ended up pregnant.” 

“Yeah, the back of my truck.” He smiled. “I married you the following morning.” 

“My Dad still wants to fight you for springing that on him.” 

“Your Dad sees me every day.” He replied, scratching his chin. “He gave me hell before I shipped out though.” 

Impulsive had been Terry’s middle name when they were younger. He made split decisions and acted on his impulses. His selfishness was a huge trigger in their relationship. She was glad when he came home from basic training that had been trained out of him. 

“He had dreams of walking each of us down the aisle.” 

“I still want to see that.” Terry admitted. “I’m always going to come home to you, Blaire. I know it doesn’t look like that but it’s the truth.” 

Blaire turned around and leaned in to kiss his cheek. Instead, he turned his head at the last minute and their lips touched instead. As always his scent drove her crazy. He didn’t understand why he wasn’t allowed to wear cologne. He just smelled good. It didn’t help that he was a good kisser, knowing just how to hold her to keep her there. Blaire pulled him closer with a hand on the back of his head. Her nails scratched into his scalp as he crawled into her lap. She pushed him away when his tongue licked at her lips, hoping to slip between them and into her mouth. She’d be putty in his hands if that happened. 

“Alright,’ she whispered, ‘I need to finish working.” 

Before that, she reached into her purse beside the bed and dropped the next month’s bills into his lap. He had been paying them in two places and with his lease breaking tomorrow he could focus on his main household. Blaire could have easily paid them, however, he had sent her the money for them monthly, refusing to give up that responsibility just because he wasn’t in the house. She wasn’t a single mother and he made sure she didn’t act like it. He picked up Noah from school three times a week, was here every weekend, fixing shit around the house whenever Blaire called her Dad to do it, maintained her car services, and just bought her new tires. Terry wasn’t going to let their arguments come between doing what he vowed to do. 

He paid most of the bills online and did so as she slowly started to finish and pack up her purse and work bag. When she rose up on her knees he realized what she was wearing. A gray lace night dress that had two long slits on the sides. Her thick thigh shook while she moved across the bed. The straps had fallen off her shoulders and the swell of her breast was the only thing keeping the top up. Her hair was in two braids with satin ribbons on the end to roll them up. He watched her over the top of his phone as she bent over to put her bags on the bench in front of the bed. 

Blaire was well aware of what she was doing. Crawling back to her side of the bed, she ignored his eyes and kicked back the blanket, ass in his face, before she crawled under the sheets. Terry passed her the black bonnet on his side of the bed and she slipped it on, turning out the light while he stared at his phone screen. He tossed the mail and his phone to the side, mimicking her by getting under the sheets. 

He didn’t have to reach for her. She rolled into his arms, her head on his chest and her arm thrown over his middle. He didn’t miss how tight she held him and the way her legs tangled up with his. 

“What time do you have to be on site?” 

“I’ll be here to help get Noah ready.” 

“Okay,’ she replied. “Will you be there for picture day? He’s been wanting to spend all his time with you.” Blaire was far from jealous, however, he could hear it in her voice. 

Noah needed his father and she was happy they had such a good relationship. Terry was a bit more structured than she was and had a stricter hold on the seven year old, but he loved his son and made sure he had everything he needed and wanted. 

“He’s growing up, dushi.” 

“He’s my baby.” 

“He’s not a baby though.” 

Blaire lifted her head. “You could have let him sleep in here tonight.” 

Terry rolled on his side, Blaire on hers beside him. He rested his hand on her hip, his fingers snaking beneath her dressed, and moved closer to her. 

“I was hoping to defile this bed tonight. I want to turn you every which way but loose.” He admitted. He licked his lips, and dipped his head to slant his lips over hers. “But you won’t let me.” 

His body covered hers, resting between her open thighs. Her arms wrapped around his neck as her legs went around his waist. Heavy, he rested some of his body weight on her, smiling as she curled her body into his. 

“Just let me push your panties to the side,’ he crooned in her ears. “I’ll slide right in.” 

Nasty didn’t encompass the things he was whispering in her ear. Filth fell from his mouth like a sonnet. 

“You better pull out,’ she warned. 

He in fact, did not, but only because she begged him not too. 

Aaron was an early riser. Usually up by four-thirty to get a workout in and stop and get breakfast–but today, he wasn’t rushing. He laid there a bit longer, feeling Brennan curled up against him. Her arm was draped across his chest. He lifted his hand to rub her arm and wrist, then brought her hand to his lips, kissing the soft skin along the back of it.

“Mmm.” Brennan stirred, turning her head, eyes still heavy with sleep. She met his ocean-blue eyes, squinting to look at the digital clock on his side of the bed. “What time is it?”

Aaron grinned, his lips still close to her skin. “Just a little after five-thirty,” he answered low.“You wanna sleep a little longer?”

Brennan pushed herself up on one elbow. “As nice as that sounds, I gotta get up soon. But I ain’t mad for a few more minutes with you.”

He chuckled, pulling her closer with one arm wrapped tight around her waist. “Aight, a few more minutes it is.”

They settled into a quiet, comfortable silence, the first sign of light spilling through the curtains, casting a soft glow over the darkroom. Aaron watched as she relaxed. He loved the way she looked first thing in the morning—eyes half-closed, her black silk bonnet sliding off her head, his shirt hanging loose off her shoulder cause it was way too big and a small, content smile spread across her face. 

“You make it hard to get outta bed,” she mumbled, her voice still dripping with sleep as she snuggled closer, resting her head on his chest. His hand that had been on her back shifted to rub her shoulder gently.

“Mhm, that was the plan,” he teased, his lips finding her cheek, then her nose, her chin, before landing softly on her mouth. The hand that had been holding hers slid under the hem of her shirt, fingertips grazing the warm skin of her back.

She let out a soft moan, her hand lightly patting his chest before gently pushing him back. “We gotta get up,” she said, a little firmer now, turning her head when he leaned in for another kiss. “Don’t wanna be late.”

It was Open house, and of course, just her luck, it was also picture day. Brennan-being the assistant director had a lot on her plate. She didn’t mind picture days—except for dealing with the parents, especially the dads who seemed to think they had a shot with her. Please, she thought. She needed to get her mind right, though. With a few more lazy kisses, she finally pulled herself out of his arms and headed for the shared bathroom.

“What you wearin’?” Aaron called out as he stretched, getting up from the bed. He headed to the closet on the left side of the fireplace in their room, the light flicking on automatically as his hand reached up to grab a couple shirts from the rack.

“We’re not matching.”

“We’re not matching?” he mocked, holding up two shirts and eyeing them with a smirk. “Woman, what are you wearin’?” He tossed the shirts on the bed with a dramatic flourish before walking around to the bathroom door. Through the mirror, he saw her rinsing her face, steam from the shower already starting to fog up the glass. Her movements were relaxed, like she was in her own little world for a moment. “You lettin’ me drive you today?" Aaron asked, his voice cutting through the quiet.

Brennan didn’t usually let him drive—she liked driving herself, not because she had to, but because she didn’t want anyone at work all up in her relationship with Aaron, even though they all knew. It was just easier for her to handle her own car and with their schedules always mismatched—him being the history teacher for grades fourth to eight and the Athletics Director—Brennan usually trailed behind him in the mornings.. His after-school football practices ran late, and she liked to be home before five.

She looked up at him through the mirror, a slight smirk playing on her lips. “You know I’m more than capable of getting myself to work.”

Aaron leaned against the doorframe, crossing his arms with a knowing look. "I know, but we both know you'll be in a better mood if I take you" 

“Would that make you happy?” Brennan asked, her eyes focused on the mirror as she watched his silhouette shift behind her. Aaron didn’t answer right away, just stood there, a quiet presence in the space between them. His hands come to rest on her waist, his fingers brushing lightly against her skin before he turned her around to face him. 

“What would make me happy…” he began, his voice steady but filled with an underlying heat, “is getting to treat you like my wife and not a girlfriend.”  His lips met hers in a kiss, soft at first, but deepening as he pulled her closer. Brennan melted into him, the familiar taste and warmth of him never failing to make her heart race. The kiss was full of everything they’d never quite said aloud—everything that had been held back for too long.

They’d been through so many phases of their lives together, on and off for years. But despite all of it, Aaron had never stopped wanting Brennan. She’d always been the one he’d come back to, but her stubbornness, her refusal to let herself fall into something too real, always held her back. 

Brennan pulled back slightly, her hands resting on his chest as she studied his shirtless form. “I thought we liked the privacy thing.” Her voice was teasing, but there was something deeper in the words too. She wasn’t ready to let everything out in the open, especially not when it came to them. They had always been private—their relationship was never for the world to see. But Aaron wasn’t the type to sit in the shadows anymore. He wanted more and he wanted it with her.

Brennan’s gaze flicked over him, and she realized—when had he taken his shirt off? She couldn’t help but notice how his biceps bulged with the tension. “How long has it been?” he asked, his voice low but carrying that same tone that always sent a shiver down her spine.

She looked at him, raising an eyebrow. “Are we starting from when we broke up back in school, or…?” 

Brennan hadn’t forgotten their history. Their relationship had always been complicated in the beginning.. They’d grown up together, practically next-door neighbors, but things got messy once they hit college. The jealousy, the fights, the breakups.Brennan was too stubborn to admit she gets jealous and Aaron not knowing how to soothe her insecurities. She shook her head, trying to dismiss the past, but the weight of it was still there. It always would be.

“Does it even matter?”  Aaron didn’t wait for an answer. His hands moved to sit her on the bathroom sink, moving to stand between her legs. He kissed her forehead gently.” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “How long has it really been?” He didn’t just mean the breakups or the time they’d spent apart. He was asking about them. About this.

Brennan sighed, pulling away just enough to glance up at him-even sitting on high counters, he towered over her.. "Realistically?" she said, her voice quiet but sure. "Since we were 14." 

Aaron’s expression softened, his thumb brushing against her jawline as he studied her. “So, we’ve been doing this for how many years now?”

“Too many,” she muttered under her breath, but her lips quirked up in a small smile. It had been too many years of this—on-again, off-again, never fully giving in to the love they both wanted but couldn’t quite reach. But the truth was, they’d always been connected, always coming back to each other, even when they tried to fight it.

Aaron didn’t let her dwell too long on it. His lips found hers again, soft and slow, but this time with something else—something deeper, like he was grounding her to him. 

“I’m not going anywhere, Brennan,” he whispered against her lips, his hands tracing her back, pulling her in as if he could swallow her whole. “I married you for a reason.” She pressed her hands to his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart beneath her palms. She sighed, her forehead resting against his as she closed her eyes. 

“I know,” she murmured. She pulled back slightly, meeting his gaze. She couldn’t help it—her fear, her uncertainty about fully letting go of all the walls she’d built over the years. But maybe it was time to stop fighting. Maybe it was time to let him love her the way she’d always wanted. He was all she wanted.

He grinned, that familiar spark in his eyes. "I’m a patient man, Bre.” 

She leaned back, her hands resting at his sides as she reached for the clippers. “So am I trimming that goatee or no?” she asked with a smile, trying to lighten the mood.

Aaron chuckled, watching her with an almost lazy smile. “Yeah”

Brennan shakes her head, clippers in hand as she reaches left hand up to hold his jaw. She gently moves the sharp blades along the edges. The tiny hairs falling on his bronzed skin as she focused on nor nicking the skin. She loved doing this for him, something so intimate about grooming his beard calmed her racing nerves. His hands rested on her thick thighs, massaging the smooth flesh between his thick fingers. 

"So, what you wearin' today?" He asked, like it was a question he already knew the answer to but still couldn’t help asking.

Brennan glanced up at him, rolling her eyes but not hiding the smile tugging at her lips. "You already know I’m not matching with you," she replied, the words coming out light and playful, but there was something about the way she said it that made Aaron chuckle. She always acted like she didn’t want to match with him, but deep down, he knew she loved it. She just didn’t like to admit it.

Aaron shook his head, his lips twitching into a smile as he raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, you say that, but you’re gonna be real mad when I walk out with some fly outfit, and I see you side-eyeing me 'cause you wish you thought of it first."

She shot him a look while finishing the other side of his beard. "Nah, that’s you, Aaron. You stay thinkin’ you look fly. I’m just tryna get outta here without having to deal with any of your antics"

Her words made him laugh, and he leaned in, his lips brushing her cheek. "you know I only got eyes for you."

Brennan wasn’t sure whether to roll her eyes or laugh at how smooth he was. The way he said it made it sound so natural—like there was no one else in the world who mattered but her. And while that was sweet, it also made her feel exposed, like maybe she had let him in too much. She quickly shifted her focus, trying to shake off the warmth that spread through her chest.

"Yeah, yeah, sure," she muttered, already reaching for her phone to check the time.

Aaron wasn’t having it. "You sure?" He took a step back, but not without lingering for a second longer, his eyes tracing the outline of her. "You wanna wear something  for me, though? Or you just gonna show up to work lookin' like you rolled outta bed?"

She kissed her teeth–her eyes meeting his after placing his clippers on his side of the double vanity sink. "I do roll outta bed. You’ve seen me."

He snorted at that. “Yeah, but you roll outta bed lookin’ like you belong on the cover of dumpster weekly or somethin’.”

Brennan gave him an exaggerated side-eye. "Aaron."

“I’m playing, nèchi.” He chuckles while leaning in closer, his hands resting on her hips as he kissed her forehead lightly. “You’ve got this effortless way about you. I love it.” His voice softened, the playful teasing replaced by something that sounded almost like admiration. “But seriously, you gonna tell me what you wearin’ today or what?”

Brennan rolled her eyes, but her lips curled into a smile. She shook her head like she was annoyed but clearly wasn’t. "You gonna stop actin' like you  my stylist?"

He raised an eyebrow. "I might have to take that job on, since I’m the only one who seems to care about what you put on."

Brennan groaned and finally gave in. “Blaire and I went shopping Saturday and I got this brown bodysuit and jacket from H&M.” She dusts the cut hairs from around his mouth. “Gonna pair it with some jeans and ankle boots..

Aaron flashed her a grin, his blue eyes sparkling with amusement. “bo ta mustra bon sin importá kiko bo bisti.” He ran his fingers through the short coils of his fro. “But, I wanna stop hiding, nèchi” ”

Brennan looked at him, and for a brief moment, all the walls she’d built up in her mind seemed to fade. She let out a breath and nodded, her voice quieter now. “Okay.” 

Aaron smiled, his arms sliding around her waist as he pulled her closer. "You're still gonna let me drive you today?" His breath blew in her face while his nose rubbed against hers. 

Brennan rolled her eyes again, but her smile betrayed her. “I don’t need the whole school talkin’ about us.”

“Laga nan papia.”

Blaire was up at four. She grabbed her robe and yawned while walking down the hallway. She didn’t notice Terry’s side of the bed was empty. She was so used to getting up and doing things herself, that when she saw Terry in the kitchen pouring coffee into a cup, she jumped. His tall looming figure was missed, but it was odd seeing him back in her kitchen…..their kitchen. 

“Goodmorning, baby.” He greeted, a smile on his face. 

Terry passed her the mug before pulling her into his arms. He kissed the top of her head and she noticed he was dressed. A white shirt, dirty looking dickies, steel toe boots, he was going to work. 

“Goodmorning," she replied. “I thought you,’ 

“I am. I’m going to give them the run down and help them prep to put up the frames so electrical can come in this week. I will be back here by six thirty when you wake him up.” 

“I’ll have breakfast when you get back.” 

“You don’t need to do that,’ he says, ‘I’m not expecting you to jump back into all that.” 

“I’m going to be cooking for Noah anyway and you will need to eat something.” 

“I mean,’ he says, tugging at the tie to her robe, ‘if you want to feed me you can lay down on the dining table.” 

Blaire’s face warmed at his words. She was far from shy but something about the way he spoke to her made her shy. She swatted his hand away and wondered if he brought all his things back yet.

“What are you taking to eat?” 

“I’ll stop and get something.” 

“What about dinner?” 

“Have I ever told you what to cook?” Terry shrugged. 

Blaire turned around and walked to the freezer, sifting through for something to cook later. She ended her days at three so she had plenty of time. Behind her, Terry pulled her away from the freezer and closed it. He pressed her against the counter next to the fridge and untied her robe. The kitchen was cold and she bit down on her lip as his rough hands rubbed up her thighs. He gathered the night dress around her waist with one hand while the other tugged at her panties. 

“What are you doing,’ she asks as he drops to his knees. “Terry!” 

He looked up at her while kissing the inside of her thigh. He drops it on his shoulder and she feels him shrug. Blaire’s other leg began to shake in anticipation. The light above the stove was the only light on as she cupped the back of her husband’s head. His lips worked over her sex slowly, her dampness spreading across his mouth. A warmth spread quickly in her lower belly as he held her up with his hand on the back of her knee. 

He hummed against her sex, smiling as he stroked her with his tongue. Blaire grabbed the counter and squeezed, her knuckles turning white. 

“Should have let me lay your ass on the table," he joked, only to grab her other leg and put it on his shoulders. 

He stood up and she let out a soft squeal, grabbing his head for balance. He didn’t want to risk walking like this with the lights out, so he used the island instead. Laying her down, Terry pushed her legs up towards her chest, then slid them open so they were almost touching the island. She tried to close her legs, not to feel so exposed, but he swatted her thigh. 

“Keep it open for me,’ he huffed. “Are you still hiding from me?” 

He knew her body inside and out, having seen it so much. Last night he did exactly what he said he would; push her panties to the side and slid in. They hadn’t even taken off their clothes. 

“I haven’t shaved,’ she admitted, eyes clenched shut as his thumb worked through her pussy, her slick collecting on the digit he swiped his tongue across. 

His mouth followed the same pattern, hot and wet and she whimpered softly. 

“I’m a grown ass man Blaire.” He turned his wrists and checked the time. “With an extra fifteen minutes to spare, keep them pretty thighs open.” 

Selfishly she missed her intimate life with Terry. He took care of her physically each time and she knew these next fifteen minutes would be the same. He loved all types of physical touch. The dick was heavy. None of the toys Blaire had compared to what was swinging between Terry’s legs and there had been many nights she called him just for dick. Of course he came. She did too, but that's besides the point. He was the only man that could scratch that itch. 

“Okay.” Her voice trembled. 

Her hands rubbed his head, the low cut hairs felt rough against her hands. Rubbing the back of his head, she sat up just enough to watch his tongue wiggle itself into her hole that was already leaking onto the island. For fifteen minutes, Terry penned his apology into her pussy with his tongue. 

He helped her off the counter afterwards and sent her to start getting ready for Open House. Blaire heard his truck leave the driveway and went back to the kitchen. She pulled out boneless chicken thighs to defrost because of course she was going to cook for him. She had plans to meet up with some of the work crew after school for dinner and she wanted Noah and Terry to have their own meal so schedules weren’t off. Plus, he’d have lunch for tomorrow and so would Noah who had taken to his bento box and wanted to use it all the time. 

Blaire had a ton of tasks today as the Open House was going to be hectic. It was an informal “first day” where students' photos would be taken, families could meet teachers, new families would be given tours, and it was going to be a day she probably didn’t get a chance to sit down. That didn’t mean she wasn’t going to wear heels. They were her sneakers, the high heels clicking on the tile of the school was a stim for her. She was that person that walked down the hall jingling keys for no reason. 

After shopping with Brennan, she found a cream dress with red flowers on it. There was some lace around the top and it matched her nude pumps. She’d stretched her curls out and enjoyed the summer weather before fall set in. Blaire walked into the hall bathroom that Noah used. Wanting the day to go smoothly, she ran to his bath and went to wake him up. It was six in the morning and when she opened his door, he was already sitting up in his bed, an anxious look on his face. He jumped when she called his name and concern spread over Blaire’s face. 

“Hey Baby Bear,’ she greets softly as she walks to sit on his bed. 

The red and blue sheets were spiderman themed but lacked the character. Noah was always shifting his interest and it was easier to replace basic sheets than search for appropriate bedding in the style he wanted. 

“Goodmorning, Mommy.” He sighed. 

“What’s wrong?” She asked. 

He crawled into her lap and she hugged him while pressing a kiss to his forehead. 

“Daddy has to work?” 

Blaire rubbed his back and nodded. “Yeah, he does.” 

“Is he coming to school for pictures?” 

“He said he would.”

Noah jumped off the bed after that. He went about his morning routine as usual, having stuck to it even after school was out the previous year. Terry had told her many times how scheduled he was when she let him spend the night with him. He was becoming more self-sufficient, at seven, and that was in part to her involving him in his own care. It also helped that Terry indirectly did the same. He wasn’t as quick to console him when something was wrong like Blaire. He learned all his problem solving skills from his father. He has the emotional development appropriate for his age, but sometimes there was a spark of emotional maturity. 

Noah rambled on about getting Terry a Spider-Man shirt for the pictures and Blaire had to remind him these were for the yearbook, the fun pictures would come later. Over his breakfast he gushed about how Terry did this and that. It made Blaire feel a tinge of sadness knowing that energy hadn’t been in the house. 

“Can Daddy live here,’ he asked suddenly and Blaire almost dropped her coffee cup. 

“Yeah,’ she replied after a beat. His big hazel eyes were just like his Father’s. “Yeah. He can live here.” 

The front door opened and heavy boots filled her ears. She had a plate by the stove ready, knowing he was hungry, despite what he said earlier. Noah slid from his stool and ran over, his arms circling his Dad’s legs. Blaire was glad she had him in pajamas until right before leaving. He’d have black gravel soot and dust all over his clothes right now. 

“Mommy says you can live here!” 

Blaire turned her back quickly to the duo, option to make herself an ice coffee. 

“She did?” He says, dropping him back at the island to finish eating. “Where am I going to sleep?” 

Terry stared at his wife’s back as he walked over to where she was. He kissed the top of her head and his hand discreetly patting her backside. The dress doing little to hide her curves. 

“Mommy has a big bed!” Noah pressed his mother wit a question. “Can Daddy sleep in your bed Mommy?” 

Terry stood by the sink, shoulder to shoulder with Blaire and a smirk on his face. She moved to the sink, then stopped. 

“Yeah,’ Terry added, finally pulling his wife’s attention to his eyes. The double meaning to his words were not lost off Blaire and she licked her lips. His eyes tracked her tongue and his own darted over his full lips. 

“Can Daddy sleep in your bed?” 

"I'm Brennan Anderson, the Assistant Director here at Melanin Preparatory Academy," Brennan greeted warmly as she stood up from her desk.

Her tone was smooth, confident, though there was a softness in her eyes as she smiled at the family entering the room.A small family stepped inside, looking a bit nervous, especially the parents. The kids seemed more interested in the surroundings, fidgeting with their clothes or glancing around the office, but the parents were the ones who seemed to be feeling the weight of the moment.

"You must be the Creed family?" Brennan asked, her voice laced with familiarity, like she’d been through this a hundred times before.

The mother nodded, giving Brennan a polite but anxious smile, while the father stood slightly behind her, his arms crossed as he surveyed the room. “I’m Adonis and this is my wife T’nya.” 

The kids—two siblings, a girl and a boy—hung back a little, still unsure of what to expect. The girl was clutching her backpack, looking around with wide eyes, while the boy stood with his hands in his pockets, trying to seem cool but clearly uncomfortable. “These are our kids. Amira and Kairo.”

“Hi guys.” Brennan smiles, gesturing to the snack bar by the door. “If it’s okay, you guys can help yourselves to some snacks.” 

Adonis nods. “Just one. We’re meeting grandma for lunch later.” 

“Before we begin.” Brennan redirects the parents attention while gesturing for them to sit down. “Melanin Prep is an African American school that caters to black youth from the ages of six weeks to fourteen.” 

“That was mentioned in the pamphlet.” Adonis glances back at his two kids giggling and snacking on bags of chips. “It was a no-brainer to apply.” He looks back at Brennan, eyes flickering from her face to the ring on her hand. “I’m just not understanding why we were on a waitlist for so long.”

Brennan nods, noticing the once over he was giving her. Bold–considering his wife was next to him. “Like I mentioned, Melanin Prep caters six weeks to the age of fourteen, but that is from start to finish. Amira will be going to fourth grade, correct?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“So that means she will be enrolled until eight grade. The same goes for Kairo who is starting first grade. He will be with us until he ages out at fourteen when it's time for him to start highschool.” Brennan explains. “That explains why you were on the waitlist for so long. Our eighth graders have transitioned to highschool and some spaces opened due to a few withdrawals.”

"We understand.” Tnya’s voice a little more guarded than Brennan had expected. "This is... this is our first time going through all this, so we just wanna make sure we understand everything."

Brennan nodded, sensing the nerves in the air. Parents always had a tendency to overthink things, especially when it came to enrolling their kids at a new school. She didn’t mind though; it came with the territory.

"No problem," she said smoothly, reaching toward the stack of files on her desk. The papers were neatly organized with everything from school handbooks to enrollment forms, attendance policies, and the school's code of conduct. She picked up the first file and opened it up with a small rustle, flipping through to the important sections.

"We’ll be going over everything you need to know," she continued, making sure to keep her tone reassuring. "The curriculum, the school’s values, and all the expectations we hold here at Melanin Prep. I know it can be a lot to take in, but I’ll be here to help guide you through it."

T’nya nodded again, though her nervousness hadn't quite eased. "I just want to make sure this is the right place for them. I mean, we’ve heard a lot of good things, but—"

"I get it," Brennan said, cutting her off gently but firmly. She gave a smile that was both warm and confident. "It’s a big step. And trust me, you’ll find that here at Melanin, we focus on not just academics, but on nurturing your kids as individuals. Our environment is designed to help them grow both inside and outside the classroom."

Adonis seemed to relax a bit, but still maintained that guarded stance. "I just want to make sure they’ll be challenged," he said, his voice lower, but not without a hint of concern. "This is a new environment for them. Will they be prepared for the next level?"

Brennan smiled, already knowing what he needed to hear. "Melanin Prep has a strong academic track record. Our curriculum is designed to push students to reach their full potential. Whether they’re excelling in the classroom, or thriving in extracurriculars, we make sure there’s a healthy balance."

“Their last school was rough, so we want to make sure the kids have a chance.”

"Your children will have the opportunity to grow at their own pace, but also be challenged to achieve things they might not think they could. That's what we’re all about here—supporting them as individuals."

They seemed to take in the words,  T’nya’s shoulders visibly relaxing. "That sounds good," she said, giving a softer smile. "I just want them to have a place where they feel like they belong."

Brennan’s smile softened, the understanding clear in her eyes. "That’s one of the most important things we do here. We focus on building community and fostering a sense of belonging, because we know that when kids feel at home, they excel."

The father gave a small nod, as though his concern had been eased. He looked at Brennan for a long moment, his arms now uncrossed, a hint of respect in his gaze. "Well, that sounds exactly like what we’ve been looking for."

Brennan was about to continue with the paperwork when she noticed the kids had started to move toward the desks, exploring the pens and other office supplies, quietly and with more curiosity now. She decided to shift the tone slightly, hoping to bring the focus back to the family as a whole. 

“Before we start. I will need a verbal answer and a written signature on if you guys will be enrolling your children here.” She pulls out a typed document, placing it in front of them.”

Adonis frowns, feeling like he was signing his kids' life away. “What for?” T'nya hits his arm with a nigga really look on her face. 

“What T’nya? She got us signing shit. I thought we were doing orientation.” 

“Mind your language in my office.” Brennan glances at him. “As I mention before our waitlist is extensive. Once your in there is no withdrawing and going to another school and then trying to come back. We have plenty of parents wanting to enroll their kids here.”

“Even if I supply a hefty donation?” Adonis looks at her.

“Adonis!”

Brennan shakes her head with a soft laugh. “Mr. Creed. We are Title 1 Division school, we get plenty of donations from the community and our youth’s parents. We do not take kindly to bribes. That is the quickest way to disqualify your children.” She looks at him. 

Then directs her full attention to T’nya “I understand the reservations, but you wouldn’t have wasted my time if you weren’t going to enroll them here.”

Brennan had her fair share of parents that thought they could pay their way in. She and Blaire had made sure when this school was opened they would keep their morals and integrity.  Taking bribes would feel like a cop out and a insult to everything they worked so hard to build. 

“I’m sorry.” T’nya apologizes. “We would love to enroll our kids here.” She forces the pen in his hand. While they signed the necessary paperwork, she glances at the kids move to the large fish tank she had, several beta fish swimming around eating the food she had put in there this morning. 

“My apologies, Ms. Anderson.” Adonis places a hand over his heart while staring her down. “I just want my kids to have the best opportunities.”

“I want nothing but the best for your children as well.” She places the document in a red scanner connected to her Mac computer. The papers scanning to the harddrive as she gathered several other documents for them to fill out. "Let’s go over some of the policies and guidelines while we wait for the paperwork to be processed," she suggested,. "But first, I’d love to hear a little more about your kids—what are they interested in? What are their strengths? I want to make sure we place them with the right teacher, and encourage extracurriculars.

The parents exchanged a quick glance, the initial nerves now giving way to pride. The father spoke first, his voice filled with a little more warmth than before. "Well, my daughter is really into music—she plays piano and sings. And my son," he looked toward the boy, who was now slouched comfortably in a chair, "he’s all about sports. Football, mostly."

Brennan’s eyes brightened as she jotted down a quick note. "That’s fantastic. We have some great programs here for both. I think they’ll fit right in."

She could tell that they were starting to feel more comfortable now, the worry beginning to lift as they got a better sense of the school’s atmosphere. 

As she went on to explain more about the school’s offerings, from advanced music classes to the athletic programs, Brennan felt the shift from tension to trust—a shift she had seen countless times before. It was moments like these that reminded her why she did what she did. Helping these families navigate this new chapter for their kids, making sure they had everything they needed to succeed—it was what made the job worth it. 

"Alright," Brennan said as she closed the last file, "that covers the basics. You’ve got the information you need, and I’ll make sure the rest of the paperwork gets processed quickly. How about a tour for your kids? They can see the classrooms and get a feel for the school before they start school tomorrow?."

The parents exchanged another glance, then looked back at her, the tension from before completely gone now. "That sounds perfect," the mother said, smiling now. "Thank you, Ms. Anderson."

Brennan stood up, offering them her hand. "It’s my pleasure. I’ll make sure we get them set up with everything they need. Welcome to Melanin Preparatory Academy."

a/n: I want to note that terry and blaire's relationship is very much man of the house/submissive wife type shit, BUT done in a more respectful way. as we explore their relationship it will become more clear but I just wanted to share that ahead of things to come. I just wanted a different type of dom/sub dynamic that was rooted in a nonsexual connection.

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[yamujiburo]

✨YAMUJIBURO F.A.Q.✨

Should've made this a while ago! I'm starting to get a lot of the same questions in my inbox nowadays tho and I feel bad for clogging up y'all's timelines with the same questions haha

GENERAL QUESTIONS

Who are you?

I'm Kiana, I'm a queer, Japanese Jamaican woman, and a Director/Storyboard artist at Disney Television Animation.

What are your pronouns

I usually go by she/her but I don't really mind any pronouns~

Where did you go to school?

California College of the Arts (but I dropped out when I was hired at Disney)

How did you get hired at Disney?

My bosses found me on twitter through my Team Rocket fanart. They liked my drawing style and asked if I wanted to take a storyboard test. I did, I passed, I got interviewed and moved to LA two weeks later to start storyboarding.

Is this a repost blog??

No, you might know be better as @kianamaiart. This is just my Pokémon sideblog where I post exclusively (for the most part) Team Rocket and Pokémon art.

What does your username mean?

It's a combination of the main 4 Team Rocket members' Japanese names: Yamato (cassidy), Musashi (jessie), Kojiro (james), Kosaburo (butch)

What program and brush do you use to draw?

Default brush in Storyboard pro

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GENERAL POKEMON QUESTIONS

Who's your favorite Pokémon?

What are your favorite ships?

Any ship with Jessie. Yamushipping, Rocketshipping and Hanamusashipping are my top three!

Who do you ship Ash with?

I was a big Pokéshipper when I was younger but nowadays don't really feel strongly about any of the ships involving the kid characters. I'm also in the "Ash is aroace" camp.

Do you have any trans headcanons?

You can find em here along with other headcanons! It should be noted that I don't usually marry myself to one hc (unless it's for a specific AU I'm trying to build out) and love seeing various interpretations of a character! Trans woman Jessie, Trans woman James, Trans man James, Genderfluid Jessie, give em to me!

Do you play the games?

I've played all the mainline Pokémon games and very much enjoy them! But I am much more invested in the anime and the characters in the anime.

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HANAMUSA AU QUESTIONS

Where can I read all the comics in order?

Here! I update anytime I make a new comic and list them in chronological order (since I just draw comics at random points in the timeline as they interest me). This post also already answers some of the frequently asked questions about this AU like: How did Jessie and Delia meet? What are James and Meowth up to? How old are Jessie and Delia? etc.

What does "Hanamusa" mean?

Hanamusa is a combination of Delia and Jessie's Japanese names, Hanako and Musashi respectively.

When does this AU take place?

It takes place sometime after the Mezase Pokémon Master/To Be a Pokémon Master series. So all the events that happened in the series, unless retconned within the series, happened. Ash is 10 at the start of the comics.

What's the status between Jessie, James, Meowth and Giovanni/Team Rocket?

Not great terms since they were fired, but also not the worst terms. Giovanni just let the three of them go without any further issues. I will say that I've always loved the theory that Giovanni keeps Jessie specifically around because of her parentage and he as a soft spot for her that he keeps a secret. I feel like Matori was the one that got the three of them fired and Giovanni wasn't able to make an excuse for them this time (without showing nepotism/special treatment) so he was forced to let them go.

If you headcanon Delia as a lesbian, how did Ash come to be?

Delia was young when she had Ash and I hc that she just didn’t really explore her sexuality much! I myself didn’t realized I liked women until I was 18 and didn’t know I liked ONLY women until like 2 years ago. She got married, had a baby and realized after her husband left that she liked women (trans people exist obviously but I’m also interpreting Ash’s father as a cis man).

Who do you think Ash’s dad is?

I don’t know and I don’t really care to explore it. I’m going off of the novel interpretation that he’s just a deadbeat that left to be a trainer, failed and never came back because of the shame. He’s not important.

Isn’t Giovanni Ash’s dad?

That’s a common misconception that people remember wrong from the Pokémon Live show. Delia mentions she dated Giovanni but then left him and his gang after meeting Ash’s father. I also don’t consider the live show canon personally! I follow The Birth of Mewtwo timeline where Madame Boss founded Team Rocket.

Do you think Delia and Giovanni dated at least?

Nah, I think he’s too old for her? I always got the vibe from The Birth of Mewtwo that he was quite a bit older than Jessie and it’d be sus if he was dating Delia when she was married to, and had a child with her husband at 18/19. He’s a bad guy but not a BAD guy.

You mentioned you still ship Jessie and James. Why not make a Jessie, James, Delia polycule?

I have a few reasons I’ve mentioned before! 1. I’m in super deep with this AU already and I feel it’d be very confusing for casual viewers of my stuff if James was added into the relationship haha. 2. I’ve drawn Jessie and James together since 2011 and took this AU as an opportunity to try my hand at writing them as queer, platonic besties bc I love that interpretation of them a lot as well. 3. I’m not poly myself and the way I write this ship is largely based off of my experiences with my girlfriend. I just know I’d favor the Jessie/Delia of it all which isn’t fair and not a good interpretation of a poly relationship. All that said, I DO super enjoy seeing peoples’ poly headcanons and art!

Who does James end up with in this AU?

No one. He's aroace and is happy to be single

Do Jessie and James have all their Pokémon in this AU

I think they have all the Pokémon that they did by the end of Mezase Pokémon Master (all their Pokémon that were left at HQ). Most of their released Pokémon have stayed released and the Alola Pokémon are still in Alola. I bring back Arbok and Weezing post-Jessie and Delia getting married. I may bring back Chimecho, Growlie and Cacnea if I think of an idea I like!

What are Meowth and James up to in this AU?

Hop back to the top of this post under the "Where to Start" section. All your questions will be answered.

Does Ash travel with anyone at this point of his life?

I don't have anyone in particular in mind! I could see him making new friends (Nemona???) or traveling with different combinations of old friends. Like him, Misty and Goh, him, Dawn and Cilan, him, Serena and Lillie etc.

Will Delia ever get over her phobia of snake Pokémon

Not fully! I think overcoming fears is fine and good but I think real PHOBIAS are much harder to get past and I don't want to cheapen it. She slowly gets used to Jessie's Seviper specifically and gets to the point where she can pet it comfortably with Jessie in the room. But otherwise, still scared and would need that same amount of time per Pokémon

Is Jessie gaining weight or is it just me?

Not just you! Jessie puts on a bit of relationship weight overtime as you'll see in the later comics in the timeline. Jessie grew in poverty, never knowing when her next meal would be and that continued into her life as a Team Rocket member. Once she was able to settle down (with a woman who runs her own restaurant no less) she's able to live a healthier lifestyle with regular meals and puts on some weight because of that.

Does Jessie ever feel self conscious about gaining weight?

Nope! She feels happier and healthier and hotter. She's also unreasonably excited to clear out her old clothes and get a new wardrobe.

Would Jessie and Delia ever have kids together or adopt?

Nah, Ash is enough for them! I have come up with hypothetical kids for them but they're not canon to this AU. Just a fun little thing for me.

Will you ever put this on webtoon?

Nah. People mostly ask me this because they want to read everything in the order of the timeline but to my knowledge, you can’t reorder chapters or installments which would defeat the purpose. I also don’t think nintendo fan stuff would fly there. Also, also it’s just extra work and another place to upload and I want to keep this all fun for myself~

[rinandsketches]

Still on the train of thought about Blue Eye Samurai. I been seeing people really diss Taigen so...Let's talk about him.

I'm going into a dive into his character cause people only see a bully that might have a toxic relationship to Mizu. I'm going to dive in from start to finish and give my theories and takes on this fisher man's son to where he is know.

Beginning in episode 1-

So..I'm pretty sure everyone's first reaction was like mine. We wanted this guy to be knocked down a peg. Meeting him as that one kid bully who was going to take things to far with a rock. In the adult years he has worked hard and managed to get not only high honors but the love of a princess.

I kinda ship Mizu and Taigen (sue me) but this one episode is where people draw their conclusions to judge off Taigen as mostly irredeemable. He's proud, cocky, a brat, and he openly cheats on Akemi with some girls while celebrating his engagement, he was arrogant, proud of it and had every right to be, this is proof by the size of top not. its bigger then the rest of the students, literally showing his importance as the top samurai in the dojo. Placing my cards on the table here, if Mizu had not shown up, Taigen would have just become like Akemi's father. Its a small hint by the father stating that he also started small and worked hard like Taigen, seeing himself in Taigen.

What saved him was Mizu.

The duel happened and his chonmage was cut off by Mizu. She stripped everything from Taigen. Yet he is a prideful guy, he goes out to try and get back what his. I think the spot where his hair was cut is a way to show he is now ,not only a member of the outcast as a disgraced warrior, but he was ready to regrow again.

during his adventure with Mizu, fighting with her (alongside and against her), his wants begins to change. I don't know how many people noticed this but Taigen's hair does grow back by the last two episodes which is in the span of a few days or Possible a week. It could signal the new change in Taigen, he's softer to Mizu, less arrogant, and despite his feelings towards the fact Akemi is married he still saves her husband. Now he did get mad at Mizu and its kind of understandable, they have been at the forge for a week and she didn't say anything about Akemi and Fowler's plan until much later. Depsite that he fights with her against fowler.

This leads to the final scene with Taigen,

After everything single God damn thing he been through, he's reached this point. As Mizu said, he's not good but he can be great. She was not referring to his combat skills, she was talking about his character. Taigen also comes to figure this out, he doesn't need to be good with a blade to be great nor does he want to. If this had been episode 1 Taigen, I believe he would have thrown a fit if Akemi told him she wanted not be with him instead he must have took her back to her husband before leaving.

To sum up: yes, Taigen was a jackass, and an arrogant one to boot. I believe he was looking for a way to be happy with the options he had. Clearly it wasn't easy for him growing up, as Mizu probably thinks. Speaking of Mizu, the two need to have a conversation. Taigen definitely has regrets about not making her life easy, but Mizu also needs to begin a forgiving process. Its safe to say Mizu has a hard time letting things go..so it might take a while before the two can let their past go and continue to grow as people, and possible companions.

[etoilesbienne]

Forever's Entire Proposal to BadBoyHalo q!BBH Analysis + Transcript below the cut.

Before I start, I want to make clear this is from BBH's perspective + mentality, and I do not speak Portuguese, as well as none of this is intended as character writing criticism. I really like the direction both of these characters are going in, I just want to highlight how much of a horror show this scene is! I'm starting much earlier than what's shown in the clip at the top, unfortunately Tumblr's file limits exist :/ Timestamp for the entire clip I'm using is at here in BBH's vod.

Some preface for everything going on in this scene and context:

For one, Forever's current drugged arc has continued references to the Vargas Era in Brazilian history, which, to heavily oversimplify, is a period when culture was suppressed by Getúlio Vargas, a 1930's Brazilian dictator, and made to look very perfected to the outside world to cover up the many issues from the government at the time. (I really recommend looking more into the Vargas Era on your own, I can say I've found every reading on this topic to be both interesting, as well as gives Forever's current arc a really good layer of historical reference with his presidency. It's a good topic to look into!)

Mostly, it's a representation of how fucked Forever's mental state currently is. Not only is he erratic from the drugs he was put under - He's actively been washed over with nationalistic propaganda. That's fucking horrifying for the President of the island to be under! It gains another layer of horror as well, because to all of the islanders, Forever is the only community member with any perceived sort of power. Him becoming erratic - pulling a gun on Phil, forcing other people to sign up for the drugs and medical procedure he went under - it's something that carries weight in terms of the island being united and working together, and is currently reinforcing the concerns the French group had with seeing him as unfit for power, with BBH included in all of these presidential coup meetings as being a sort of "honorary french" deal.

On Bad's side, however, is the known fact he finds marriage overrated, and meta-wise cc!BBH has mentioned he's playing a "more aromantic approach" because he doesn't want to be another character stuck in the shipping boat. (This isn't a knock against shipping, I just think it's good knowledge to have about q!BBH's character/stance on romance going into this.) And then finally, when the link timestamp starts, but before Forever has truly begun his serious conversation, BBH does this:

He switches out his regular Totem of Undying to specifically a Death totem. It's very quick, but I think it sets up his mentality going into this... I think he expected Forever's final reaction.

Forever: Here, Bad. BadBoyHalo: Hello. F: Hello! F & BBH, simultaneously: So, uh - BBH: Do you know where any of the kids are? F: I know where Richarlyson is, but, oh uh maybe we should go a little bit further there's a translator screen. BBH: Okay. F: Otherwise, I want my chat to know what we're talking about.

[Break for when they move the benches again]

F: Here, nice, nice, nice. F: OH! It's even better! BBH: Yay. F: It's perfect, I would say! BBH: So, you don't - F: Yeah, I don't know where the eggs are, Bad, but I'm really - there's something I know, okay? BBH: Uh-huh. F: I can tell you. BBH: Tell me. F: They are just good and fine, okay? BBH: What do you mean? F: They're fine! They're well! BBH: Look, what do you want, Forever? F: Ah, I want to get married! BBH: No, I mean, like, what do you want? F: Why? BBH: Like, if you know what happened to the - F: Why… don't we just get married! BBH: Do you know what happened to the eggs? Do you know where they are? F: Let's get married. BBH: What's happening, Forever? Etoiles: [mumbling] Fit: Hooray. Tina: Hip Hip Hooray! F: Let's - Let's just get married. Fit: Hooray. Tina: Hip Hip Hooray! Fit: Hooray. Wooooooo. Tina: He saved us. That's crazy! BBH: Okay. Oh, hey Etoiles. You - You're not focused, Forever. Tina: It's probably the most beautiful battle ever! Of all time! In a rose field! F: Yeah, I'm totally focused! I'm happy! Etoiles: Thank you, Tina! Tina: Yes! BBH: No - No, you're focused on the wrong thing - Etoiles: You see, I clicked well! I clicked well! F: Guys, can you give me and Bad a moment, please? - Tina: [Overlapping with Forever] I'm so sorry - F: - We are having a deep conversation, I am asking him to get married! Tina: - I'm so sorry Mr. President, I didn't know. Etoiles: Okay! Okay, Forever, what I, Forever, I - I don't understand, like, there's the code who's attacking us, and you don't give a shit, but you are the president? F: Where - Where is the codes? I want to help you guys! Everything will be perfect! Tell me. Pierre: Congratulations Badboy and Mr. President, congratulations F: If the codes are not here right now, Etoiles, you are just being inconvenient, because I want to get married, and you are just in the way, man - Etoiles: Okay - F: - Go away, please! Etoiles: Okay, okay, I will go away. Okay, okay. F: If the codes show up, you will tell me, okay? BBH: [short confused laugh] F: [cheering as Etoiles walks away] YES! BBH: [looking around at the sky] F: See, Bad? This is how we solve problems. Isn't that perfect? Pierre: Can I be your best man for the wedding? BBH: What? No? There's not gonna be a wedding - F: He asks me for drugs all the time, Bad, he just asks me for drugs. BBH: - okay? F: [laughing] Pierre: Huh? BBH: He's obviously not in his right mind, AyPierre. Pierre: Yes, look at this smile! Must use a lot of uh… BBH: A smile doesn't mean a whole lot. F: Pierre, I will, I will tell Cucurucho, man, I told you already. Pierre: Yes, I want to be happy… F: Cucurucho will come to you and he will put the smile on your face! Pierre: Yes! F: Now go away, I want to get married. Pierre: I want it! F: (Portuguese as Pierre leaves) F: Oh my god, finally some silence. So Bad, BBH: mhm. F: Don't you think this place looks beautiful? BBH: I guess. F: Oh my god, they're still around so the translator is just crazy. Let's change it again please. Sorry, but - F: (Portuguese, I am assuming it is more ooc focused, my apologies. If I'm wrong, feel free to correct me!)

[Break for when they move locations, this is where the clip above begins.]

F: So Bad, BBH: Yes? F: What is it going to be? Are you going to get married, or not? BBH: Why do you want to get married? F: Yeah, because everything's perfect, right? A marriage would be perfect, as well! BBH: Why do you think everything's perfect? F: Why don't you think everything's perfect? BBH: Because we don't have our kids, Forever. They're gone. F: No, no they're just fine, man! You are not seeing the world the way you should, Bad, and I'm going to tell you - BBH: How should I be seeing it? F: I'm here for you, buddy. I'm here for you, buddy, okay? BBH: Is anyone here for you? F: And I'm going to tell Cucurucho that he should help you! Like he did to me. BBH: I don't want his help. F: You need his help, Bad. Just - BBH: I don't need his help, Forever. F: - Bad, you are looking bad, Bad, - BBH: I feel fine. F: - you know? BBH: You know what would help me, Forever? F: So let's get married! BBH: Forever. You know what would help me? F: Hm? What? BBH: Tell that white puffball to give me my son back. To bring back all of our kids. F: White puffball? What does that mean? BBH: Cucurucho. F: Okay. BBH: What does he want? What does he want, Forever? Does he want diamonds? F: Why do you think Cucurucho is the one with the eggs? Why do you think Cucurucho is the one with your child? BBH: I know it was him, Forever. F: What are you guys getting from exploding the whole city? Why did I become the president that's trying to help everyone, and you guys are just exploding everything? This is funny man, this is perfect. [laughs] You know? You guys are just too crazy! [laughs] Man, you guys are exploding stuff, and you all are saying that I need help? [laughs] That's funny, man, that's funny! BBH: We need our kids back, Forever. That's why. We'll stop, all Cucurucho has to do is return the eggs. I want Dapper back, I want Pomme back, all the kids back. F: Why do you think Cucurucho is the one with the eggs? BBH: He obviously is the one with the eggs, okay? F: What proof do you have? BBH: Remember - F: Cucurucho's great, Bad. BBH: - I saw - F: Uh huh. BBH: - It was a strange person in the federation building, Mysterioso or whatever his name was? F: [laughs] Yeah, he doesn't like [I cannot figure out what he says here] BBH: I saw him at the federation building. I bet that's the same person who gave Sofia's plans to Maximus. F: [laughing] BBH: That means the Federation was responsible for Sofia. F: Okay, okay. BBH: That means they're behind everything! There's not anything they don't know about. F: Did Maximus tell you that that man is the same one that gave Sofia to him. BBH: He said it was a mysterious hooded figure, and there's only one - F: There's only - Can only be one - BBH: - mysterious hooded figure. F: - It can only be one. BBH: If the federation does not - did not take the kids, they know who did, and they know where they are - F: Ohh. BBH: - I just want them back, that's it. F: Yeah.

BBH: What do they want - What do they want, Forever? Mr. President? You're in contact with them, what do they want? F: Well, Bad, I can tell you something, you know? This is actually quite funny, this is actually quite funny. BBH: What's funny about it? F: So everyone on the island thinks that I, being the president - me, being the president - means that I'm working for the Federation, but do you know what you guys don't see? BBH: What? F: I am the only one working for you guys! A favor(?), you know, the federation does what they want. I'm the only one that tried to represent the people of the island. BBH: So you're trying to get our kids back? F: Oh, they're just fine right now. BBH: Where are they? F: I don't know, sleeping maybe? BBH: How do you they're fine? F: Cucurucho said it's classified! Isn't that funny? BBH: Do you believe it? F: That it's classified? I don't know, is there anything to believe in that? BBH: [sighs] BBH: What happened to you, Forever? F: What? BBH: What happened to you? What did they do to you? F: Uh, I don't know what you're talking about, Bad. I'm just feeling so good, 'cuz everything's so good man. BBH: This isn't like you. You're not acting like yourself. F: Why? Why, I'm happy? I'm not happy? You say I'm not a happy person? BBH: That's just it Forever, you wouldn't be this happy with Richarlyson missing. F: Richarlyson's okay, he's just - BBH: Is he? Is he? F: - sleeping a lot. BBH: Has he gotten up? Has he danced around? Has he put any signs down? Has he said anything to you? Have you built any projects with him recently? Have you done anything with him at all? F: [Deep sigh that turns into a laugh] No, no. BBH: Then how is he fine? F: [long pause] Bad, I have something I would like to show you. Or maybe test on you. BBH: What? F: You know, you guys are just so funny with that clock joke. BBH: Clock joke? F: Yeah, I want to test something. F: Don't you want to get married? BBH: I want my son back. I want Dapper, Pomme, F: [begins launching mines] BBH: [evades, throws health potions] F: STOP THAT FUCKING CLOCK NOISE. BBH: You like your mines, Forever? BBH: It won't bring Richarlyson back.

To start from the beginning, BBH is under no pretenses that this would be a marriage proposal of all things. All he is aware of is that Forever wants to have a serious discussion with him. He's also gone out of his way to put himself on a Death totem, meaning he has every possibility to be downed if Forever were to successfully attack him.

With Forever's current mental state and reinforcing a societal idealism & a desired performance of aggressive happiness and "normalcy" - his character now desiring something like a marriage can be read multiple ways. For one, an imitation of how one of his closest friends, his ex-husband no less, was recently married and is currently considered one of the best federation workers (albeit begrudging on Cellbit's part). For two, a marriage is a pretty huge symbol of a plastique performance of a perfect life. Especially in this context, it's saccharine, it's a status symbol, everyone wants it. With the medication as well, we don't truly know if Forever genuinely feels strongly about BBH to want to marry him, or if he feels he has to be in a marriage for a "perfect" life with BBH being "the best option" as a spouse. (Again, this is not a criticism of Forever's character, this is a very symbolically rich move for him to do, and I, personally, cannot get enough of it.)

Now back to BBH, this is a guy who is admittedly not looking for romance, not trying to romance anyone, and is currently in the middle of a character arc having to do with how pissed he is at Forever for not running the government in a way he approves, and then getting wrongfully jailed by Forever. I do not think BBH is in any way afraid of Forever as a person, but I do think BBH has concerns about what he may be forced to do in an attempt to get his children back. BBH as a character in general has very, very little regard for his own life, watch a pov of himself in a dungeon and just see how many totems pop, but he does care about his kids more than anything else in the world. The way his character goes about his care for his kids isn't something that often occurs in more masculine-presented characters like him either, frankly I think a lot of more ship oriented readings of him end up hyper-feminizing him* because of this "maternal" archetype.

In a return to Forever's saccharine performance of perfectionism, I find the moments Forever makes the both of them move across the rose field - The rose field, previously quite literally stained by blood as Etoiles had just finished another battle with the code there, tensions are running high and everyone is still distressed from the eggs going missing - I realize it's because cc!Forever ooc wanted to move to not have the chatbox be interrupted by other people speaking, but it's just so good thematically. He keeps moving to have a better view of roses. It's never perfect enough. They have to keep moving. They have to be alone. Nobody else is allowed to be around when he corners BBH with the marriage proposal. Nobody can get in the way.

Speaking of people interrupting, the other members appearing in the middle of the conversation adds to the fridge horror that's been subtly happening all the way through. Nobody pauses and makes sure BBH is okay throughout this scene, everybody is extremely sure that he is fine and can handle himself. The only person to even make a criticism of Forever is Etoiles, over being somewhat irritated that it looks like Forever has been doing little to nothing as President to aid new members or former islanders (despite this technically not being true, Etoiles has seen none of it, and has been giving new players items continuously in an effort to help them, as well as has had little time to do anything except fight code entities).

And then onto the rejection, BBH never agrees to the marriage at all, because why would he? I've seen quite a lot of discussion thus far that he doesn't reject Forever outright, but I disagree, it's a little moment in there, and I couldn't get it in the video posted itself, but he explicitly tells Pierre "there's not gonna be a wedding," and then is cut off by Forever. It's quiet, I don't think many people heard it outright, but BBH is right in his assertion Forever isn't in his right mind to be asking for marriage in the first place.

The other side of that, however, is that BBH is very well aware Forever didn't want to hear an outright rejection either. BBH knows what Forever is capable of, and he knows this version of Forever is not his usual self. It's not an easy situation, especially when he's fully under the impression Forever does have some power with the Federation, and fully believes the Federation has the eggs. Whether or not this is actually true doesn't really matter to Bad's perspective here, he's deadset in this belief. With that belief in mind, how is someone supposed to respond to being cornered about marriage - a concept he has little interest in - but the person cornering him is 1. known to be volatile due to recent events, 2. potentially has some form of contact to the people currently holding the eggs captive, and potentially put his children more at risk than they already are, 3. the literal only person in power on the island.

I don't think BBH ever believed he had the option to outright tell Forever no, he's in a depressed state as is, his kids might be dead for all he knows, and he has the impression Forever could bring harm to them.

Admittedly it is interesting how many outright untrue facts BBH holds onto, but cannot change his belief in them. His opinion and perspective of Forever is one thing, but it's much, much more obvious when he brings up the connection between the new Mysterioso and the previous masked person who gave the plans for Sofia to Maxo, those were two separate unknown figures as we know as the audience, but Bad does not know this, and does make assumptions and connect dots in his own right, tending to his own detriment. This is all intended here, he's wrong about Forever factually, but to his knowledge he's acting in the best way he can. He's under the impression Forever is just not telling the full truth to him about everything with the eggs disappearing, and believes the federation is lying. I think it's made even more obvious he's prioritizing the eggs over everything else here, especially with his final statement about Richarlyson. BBH believes the eggs are the only true way to every player's heart, and blatantly ignores the actual romance aspect of what marriage implies, because romance genuinely does not matter to him at all. He doesn't have time to worry about being in a relationship if his son might be dead.

Mostly, I find this scene to be a great relationship horror set up, because damn if I haven't been on dates like this, where I feel like I can't say no or something might happen. I understand the paranoia and anxiety surrounding q!BBH's mindset in the moment. It isn't a rational response by any means, no, but it is a very aggressively human response to this situation for a demon to have.

Basically, I don't think BBH is a fundamentally romantic character in the first place, nor do I think he'd ever be happy in a cutesy marriage position anyway, he never once responds romantically to any of this, and solely prioritizes the eggs, the final Richarlyson line cements this fact. It's not a dig at how Forever will never have BBH romantically - it's a dig at Forever based on what BBH's priority is, his kids.

*I want to be clear this statement is meant to be a neutral fact, it's just worth mentioning in an analysis like this that BBH as a character is more typically set on the feminine side by the fanbase, and how his character's interpretations are influenced by that reading.

[dollhouse-lied]

Random mouthwashing headcannons

All sfw, enjoy!!

Anya

Had a goth phase, still really likes the subculture but doesn't dress like it for work reasons.

Her parents are divorced, and during the divorce she tried self harm to make her parents feel bad but she never did it again

She has a fugly cat at home that she leaves with her roommate while she works. She is very defensive of francis (the cat) and hes her pride and joy

Shes on the aroace spectrum, shes never had a partner and never thought it was necessary.

She values skincare and has so many skincare products on the ship that curly said were “unnecessary”

Constantly warm, she hates the uniform because she gets so hot.

Shes not actually shy and quiet, shes just afraid of slimmothy jimmothy

She gets very heated when its game night and is a sour loser

She doesn't like having no roommates, but is glad she doesn't have to have a boy in her room.

Shes good at nursing, shes just bad at test taking and working under pressure

Her main coping mechanism is retail therapy

Daisuke

Is a dog person, keeps photos of all his dogs on his shelves

All his dogs are from the same litter, a mama and 5 babies. They are all retrievers

Has skincare nights with anya, and if hes lucky she will do his makeup

He likes working out but he likes playing his nintendo ds more

Pretty lazy but is still athletic

He buys multiple of any clothes he likes so he can keep wearing them longer

Dropped out of high school but his mom made him get a ged

Dropped out to be a livestreamer… it didn't go well.

Paints his nails

Hes genderfluid, but mainly sticks to masc presenting and he/him pronouns

He likes sanrio

Is constantly freezing but refuses to put on a jacket (he didnt bring any)

Is roommates with jimmy and hates it because jimmy leaves piss around the toilet and is overall a slob

Loves dancing but is embarrassed to dance in public. Luckily tulpar isnt public so he boogies and grooves

Cheats at every game they play

Curly

Is transmasc but had top and bottom surgery and a hysterectomy so no one can tell

Hes brittish :(

Is very forgiving and kind, always giving 2nd and 3rd chances

Is a workaholic

Super organized, hates clutter

Is a cat person, and has an orange main coon named oakley on earth

Can draw really well!! He doesn't let people see his art though

Likes to work out to release stress, specifically boxing

He likes listening to anya and daisuke talk while they do skin care because it reminds him of when he was young

Likes teenage girl type music

Still gets really insecure about his body shape and face being “womanly” and cant tell anyone but jimmy and jimmy doesn't want to hear it

He and jimmy were childhood friends and jimmy still occasionally misgenders him despite curly transitioning when he was 9

Grew up on a farm

Allergic to shellfish and had to go to the hospital once because of it when he was a kid and it traumatized him so bad he doesn't eat anything that might have touched shellfish

Swansea

Has a wife and 3 kids on earth, two girls and one boy

He loves his wife so much, theyve been married for 30 years

He and his wife got sober together as they were both alcoholics

Is 100% a girl dad, he lets them do his makeup and goes to their dance classes, anything they want

He and his son dont get along very well because he got into drugs and swansea keeps taking him to rehab

Swansea loves Daisuke to death but acts tough to “keep professional”

He feels like daisuke has 0 qualifications for the job but teaches him as best as he can

Gets along with anya but on a surface level, but was there for her when she told him about jimmy

Gets angry easy but has been to therapy for anger management and can keep himself from getting too angry

Genuinely a great guy in bad circumstances, we need more people like Swansea

Jimmy

I hate him

He needs to die

I dont like him one bit

[andreal831]

i have heard a lot of people deny that Marbekah isn't a problematic ship, and if anyone ever discusses the issues it's usually about Marcel choosing NOLA over Rebekah. But never the fact that Rebekah knew him a child.

And usually the defence is that Rebekah (like Elijah) wasn't an active parent after Klaus' jealous tantrum. I admit that Rebekah didn't fraternize with child!Marcel with the sole purpose of dating him, so traditional 'grooming' definition is hard to apply.

But Rebekah never set any kind of proper boundaries between them. When he initially had a crush on her, she should have explained that they're 'family' now and that's not how it works, thus stopping his crush from going further but not drive him away. She was the adult at that time.

On top of it, Marcel grew up watching Klaus-Rebekah's messed up dynamic. He was a traumatized child who watched these stuff being normalized by two of his white guardians. And the show has never been subtle about Marcel being raised in Klaus' image, or how much Klaus & Rebekah date people that look or act like eachother.

Oh and the casual disregard for adopted kids.

Why do you think Marbekah goes under the radar for this, when Caroline+Alaric, Stelena , Delena and Klaroline are often ripped apart for this exact reason?

Does it have anything to do with Marcel being poc or is it the infantilisation of Rebekah's character?

I used to really love Marbekah. They were top 3 TVDU ships for me. But the more I think about it, the more I have to rewrite to keep loving them. And I do want to love them just because it is one of the two ships I loved that actually got an endgame. But in typical TVDU fashion, the ships that got endgames were so problematic.

I don't think anyone can say Marbekah isn't problematic. It's one thing to love them, but they are deeply problematic for several reasons. One of them will always be Marcel constantly choosing either Klaus or New Orleans over her.

But the bigger reason is Rebekah grooming him. Because there isn't another way to say it. Rebekah knew Marcel as a child, helped raise him, and then quickly got into a relationship with him. We don't really know how old he was but he was at least in his early twenties when they first got together.

For the most part, as you said, I just headcannon that Rebekah wasn't an active parent in Marcel's life. But the show actively tries to fight against that narrative. The scene where Marcel is a literal child saying he wants to marry Rebekah was meant to be cute, but it's gross considering they then have a romantic relationship. You do mention that it doesn't fit the traditional definition of grooming, but I think it does because of that scene. Marcel makes a comment about being attracted to Rebekah in a way that he wants to marry her as a child and instead of seeing Rebekah rebuke this, she is flattered and essentially gives him a goal, saying she wouldn't marry someone who couldn't beat her in a duel. Not that she couldn't marry a child or someone her brother was raising as a son. This is then paired with a flashback of them dueling when he is an adult and they begin to kiss. The fact that they are still dueling all those years later make it seem as if she had an active role in his life. Rebekah's failure to set boundaries and encouraging the crush is a form of grooming. As you said, she should have set him down and explained family. But also as you point out, Rebekah doesn't really understand healthy family.

Marcel being raised by the Mikaelsons turned him into a Mikaelson. In some good ways and some bad. Marcel definitely has a lot of similar traits to Klaus. I definitely think there is an aspect of Rebekah choosing Marcel because of that, but also simply because the Mikaelsons had to keep it in the family or Klaus would lose his mind. Even though he also lost his mind here. But at least Rebekah wasn't worried about Klaus killing Marcel like he had killed every other lover she had in the past.

Klaus stans will say he "punished" Rebekah because of the grooming, but that's really ignoring his entire character and the entire show. Rebekah took something that belonged to him, because he viewed Marcel as property more than a child. This is another reason people overlook the grooming, because people don't view Marcel as a Mikaelson or as a child of Klaus. I've always been curious of where the last name "Gerard" came from. Why wouldn't he go by Mikaelson if he was raised by them? Klaus gave him a first name but not their last name? Potentially Marcel dropped it to distance himself, but even in the flashbacks, we don't see him truly being regarded as a Mikaelson. The show did this because they understood they were walking a creepy line of predatory/incest.

I think Marbekah tends to get less judgment than the other ships because people think Marcel and Rebekah are morally superior than the other characters. This is not true for everyone, just something I've seen with both of their stans. I love Rebekah, but I get attacked if I ever criticize her for how she treated the teenagers in TVD. Or the fact that Rebekah dated teenage Matt and used money and the ability to travel to persuade him to be with her. Or when I compare Marcel to Klaus, because they do have a lot of similarities. I've noticed with a lot of characters who may have less terrible deeds under their belt get away with murder, literally. If you criticize them, people will respond with "You like x, and they've done worse," instead of holding their character accountable. Or like with Klaus, their abuse is used to excuse all of their misdeeds.

People will argue that Rebekah was turned as a a 16 year old teenager so she was a teenager and it was fine for her to date teenagers, but then Marcel being with her at 25 years old is problematic as he's an adult sleeping with a 16 year old. Or Even Damon who was turned at 24 years old. So that argument is still problematic.

I do think Marcel being a POC does play a role. POC children and teens tend to face "adultification" in media, so people are less concerned about them being groomed or taken advantage of by adults. I do also agree that Rebekah is often infantilized. I blame a lot of her behavior in TVD for that. She behaved like a child. But in TO, they matured her so much, even in the flashbacks. If TVD Rebekah was with Marcel, I think that would have felt creepy on his part.

Like I said, I do still enjoy Marbekah, but I can't think about it too much or it grosses me out. I do prefer my ships to be age appropriate and contain the least amount of toxicity we can expect from a series like TVDU.

Thanks for the ask!

[kitsuvio]

· ୨୧ · · Yan!hybrid octopus

W/c : 720

A/N ┊ HI! It's my first thingy here auahauah I hope you like my fic. By the way the octopus is a human on top and octopus at the bottom (；´_ゝ`) don't think I made him all octopus. By the wayyy this is heavily based off of the little mermaid ！！(゜ロ゜ノ)ノ NYAHAHAHA also kisses from kitsuvio

PAIRING ┊ Yan!hybrid octopus x you (afab)

TW ┊ Kidnapping, mentions of kids, yandere content!

You were just a little mermaid who was fascinated by the land above. You saw countless ships pass by, and you'd see sailors, buccaneers, and pirates all having fun and drinking their rum. You pondered on how the land above would feel…

While you were in your little reverie about how the land would be; Then you saw a dark and smoky cloud above the water, feeling curious you swam up to the surface to see a burning ship despite the flames, the frigid air from the night made you shiver. The crackling fire raged throughout the ship as it spread quickly. You saw a man struggling to get off the boat as it soon got engulfed in flames… Throughout the wrecked ship and smoke, you managed to save the man who fell from the ship. You brought him up to the surface, far away from the rubble.

Once you had successfully dragged him onto the shore, his body was lying down on the sand. A small flutter invaded your heart and you soon came to grow fond of the man; before you didn't know the consequences you'd face for this silly crush, you had a miniature understanding of the land above and how love worked. When he started to wake up, you dived back into the water, not wanting to be seen by him yet.

Many moons had passed then; your heart still aches for the man. Yearning to be with him on the shore and profess your love. So you desperately tried seeking help, someone who could bring your wildest dream come true you came across a well-known wizard of the sea. With desperation, you visited the mysterious cave where this supposed wizard resided. With hesitation, you swam through the cave; as the light became evanescence to you, it got even more eerie.

This octopus wizard coupled himself up inside his art gallery and painted mosaics and murals whenever he had free time. But he was most known for his potionology and spells…

“H-hello? Is anyone here?”

Your voice echoed throughout the cave; this might've just been a scam, or perhaps whoever was living here didn't want your presence. Then, a large tentacle poked out from a small room in the cave. Suddenly, the cave illuminated. It no longer felt so eerie but majestic in a way.

Unlike the other merfolk, he was a monstrous octopus. Cursed with having eight tentacles instead of a beautiful tail. But when he saw you just swim in here and not even freak out about his tentacles, it made him feel butterflies in his stomach.

“mmh… w-whaddya want?” Internally, he was quite shy but tried to be professional since you were still a customer.

He was heartbroken and devastated once he figured out you were trying to get on land so you could have your happily ever after with a man. He gave you what you sought, a pair of nice legs. In exchange, you had to give up your voice. It was a hefty price to pay, but he wanted to make this challenge impossible… So he added something else, you must marry the man before sundown then you'd be rewarded with legs forever and retrieve your voice.

He wasn't going to let you succeed, no way! The little octopus brewed up a plan and watched you from afar as you tried mingling with the prince. He tried not to look as much because it made him act out. That scum didn't deserve you… oh how desperate he was to have your scales; if he couldn't have them, perhaps his future children would. They'd be a sort of hybrid of a mermaid and octopus.

As expected, you were going to fail. He tried to deceive your crush into liking someone else. A lighthouse girl, the man was completely convinced that she saved him that day, which left you as a heartbroken mermaid.

The sly octopus observed as you were left in defeat, watching your lover marry another maiden; it had already been a week, and the sun had set. Without a voice to call for help the, the octopus saw an opportunity and took you back into the ocean with his slimy tentacle while making sure to let you breathe. He was already planning his honeymoon with you, maybe beside the beach with a few mer-kids running around or two.

@kitsuvio

[fountainpenguin]

☁️ Cloudlands AU ☁️

Fairly OddParents

A serious deep-dive into FOP's worldbuilding, with a focus on sewing seemingly conflicting canon together to create consistent lore. Heavy emphasis on non-human biology and complex magical cultures.

#ridwork guides

What Is Cloudlands AU?

An FOP series ft. detailed lore and character relationships. The goal is fanfics that expand on the show's canon without conflicting it if at all possible, even if that means wild explanations.

Why does Crocker's portal to Fairy World have a completely new design every time it appears? Who's that anti-fairy kid Jorgen claims H.P. and Anti-Cosmo raised together? What's up with the Sacred Silver Pencil Sharpener of Canada? And are you telling me Cosmo and Wanda were assigned as godparents to Erg 40,000 years before they were married, presumably while Wanda and Juandissimo were dating? What was that like? We talk about it all!

A carefully considered magic system does a lot of heavy lifting. ❤️

AO3 Series: 130 Station, Rainbow Train, and Other Arcs

FOP blog tag - #FAIRIES!

Tone

Mostly drama with fluff and angst mixed in.

Characters

Mainly Pixies (H.P. & Sanderson), Anti-Fairies (Anti-Cosmo, Anti-Wanda, Foop), & the late modern kids (Poof, Goldie, Goldie's counterpart Anti-Marigold).

Cosmo, Wanda, Timmy, Chloe, and other humans (such as Denzel Crocker, Kevin Crocker, Gary, Betty, and Ed Leadly) also have arcs and messy backstories.

Ships

Canon-compliant, but expanded on. Ex:

- Anti-Cosmo married his childhood betrothed while Anti-Wanda was dating Anti-Juandissimo.

- H.P. and several OCs across his long life. Those romances go... great!

- Shout-out to Mark/Vicky, Poof/Goldie, Foop/Anti-Marigold, Foop/Anti-Coriander, Timmy/Molly & Chloe/Kevin (My beloveds...)

- Also worth mentioning that I treat Wanda/Juandissimo as a sincere and pleasant part of their backstories. They went their separate ways, but had a non-abusive dating life. They were friends :)

- Sanderson has a ton of will o' the wisp dating life issues, but we don't have time to unpack that right now.

Setting

Most works take place in the cloudlands, which include Fairy World, Anti-Fairy World, and Pixie World. Some works takes place in Dimmsdale. Rarely works take place elsewhere, such as alien planets or Unwish Island.

Is It For Me?

This AU is highly detailed. It clings to canon to the point of being ridiculous. It can be tough to get into due to long works and a heavy focus on less popular characters (such as Pixies), but there's a lot to read.

This AU focuses more on magical beings in the supporting cast than it does the main cast, but there are still notable pieces about the mains.

For a breakdown of detailed lore, see the Orange Train post

Major Themes

Growing up, making mistakes, pushing through hard times, recovery, revenge, forgiveness, growth, change, and letting go.

Plot Highlights

- Origin of the Pixies - A young H.P. contracts the real-world bacteria Wolbachia pipientis, which causes wasps to reproduce asexually. Now he's caring for an exponentially increasing amount of pixies he never wanted in the first place, on top of drama like his wife accusing him of cheating and him being kidnapped by Cupid's family because he's the holotype of a brand new species.

- Frayed Knots - Anti-Cosmo, raised in the anti-fairy baby ban era, experiments with Anti-Fairy biology in the hopes he'll discover a loophole to achieve his dream of being a father. In doing so, he finds a breakthrough that could possibly flip biology around so Anti-Fairies are the hosts and Fairies are their reflective counterparts bound to their whims... and he becomes obsessed with fathering a generation whose biology is exactly that.

- 130 Reasons Why I'm Fairy Trash - Happy Peppy Gary and Betty were raised as Pixie tools since they were 10. At age 18, Betty opts to wipe her magical memories, cut ties with Gary, and move to Brightburg. Gary, blindsided and desperate, throws himself down a trainwreck of bad decisions in an attempt to retrieve her memories from Fairy World. Everybody clap for him. (And other stories.)

- Come What May - Kevin Crocker spends the spring with an uncle and grandmother he's never met. Ghosts, the popular kids, an anti-fairy, and his uncle's talking cat make it their personal mission to bother him. It's a good thing he's dead inside.

Ongoing?

This long-term passion project began in March 2016. It is ongoing with intent to wrap up the existing projects in the next several years. Updates tend to come in bursts with breaks in between.

- Want AO3 emails? Subscribing to both the Rainbow Train & 130 Station series will cover everything in Cloudlands AU.

- Or, subscribe to specific plot arcs. Find the list HERE.

Warnings, notes, and explanations below so readers can learn more about this AU. Proceed with caution. Don't like? Don't read.

- There are abused children, neglectful adults, and non-human characters in fanfics for the show about abused children, neglectful adults, and non-human characters?? Scandalous. (Seriously though, this one's a doozy)

👀 Take a Peek

New here? You might like to start with these:

- "Mama's Boy" (G - 3000 words) - A back-and-forth comparison of Cosmo's upbringing against Anti-Cosmo's. Quick and easy read, and definitely a fan-favorite.

- "Make You Proud" (G - 4700 words) - Anti-Wanda is excited that she won a gold medal at the Fairy World Games. She tries to get Anti-Cosmo's attention while he's distracted with the event. Fluffy, silly character study.

- "Step Back" (G - 5600 words) - Foop gets overwhelmed at a party with his extended family. A brief glimpse into Anti-Fairy World and who Foop is shaping up to be as a person. Foop is my favorite to write character studies for and this is an oldie, but a goodie.

- "Solo" (T - 6000 words) - A young pixie answers phones as part of his coming of age trial. Things go awry when Gary and Betty call for help from Florida and the inexperienced pixie is at a loss about how to get them back to California. Takes place during the S4 episode "Baby Face." Huge personal favorite of mine; this is where plot really kicks off. Good introduction to the drama you can expect in a lot of my work.

- "Sentry" (G - 6000 words) - The start of a 3-part arc about Poof, Foop, and their pixie classmate (Finley) at boarding school before transitioning to spring break. The arc starts with Poof getting in trouble for fighting, then moves to Poof reflecting while on the bus, then moves to the three kids spending time with their grandparents.

- Very soft drama with some fluff; a good taste without getting overwhelmed. Also, this arc is more recent than the pieces above, which were posted in 2016. - Takes place at the end of 130 Prompts Arc 2, so it does contain very minor plot spoilers.

Start Reading

Recommended ways to get into the full AU

🌄 First Written - Baby, You're a Rich Man

H.P. and Sanderson got their hands on a baby clown. Now they just have to get him safely back to Pixie World when they've been deprived of magic and damaged their truck.

- Based on the Season 4 episode "School's Out! The Musical" - An introduction to magic basics, biology, and world lore through Sanderson's eyes. - Throws readers directly into the thick of things with Sanderson's meandering thoughts and extremely unhealthy fixation on H.P. and/or taking over as Head Pixie someday

🗑️ 130 Reasons Why I'm Fairy Trash

The 130 Prompts project is a series of one-shots that explores my FOP character ideas and worldbuilding.

- "Excitement" (G - 7500 words) - The first piece written for my series 130 Reasons Why I'm Fairy Trash. It's about the Pixies traumatizing 10-year-old Gary and Betty at an amusement park so they'll cling to safety in the future. From here, you can read the 130 Prompts series in recommended order if you like.

If you're new to my worldbuilding, I recommend reading the prompts in the suggested order instead of chronological order. This way, you'll be given worldbuilding info in order instead of jumping to a piece where that info is assumed.

�� Chronological Start - "First Things First"

A 10k-word piece (G-rated) about nature spirit OCs, featuring cameos of canon characters like Mother Nature, Father Time, and the Grim Reaper. This piece sets up lore for the Fairy zodiac, which plays a role in Frayed Knots especially.

- Each piece in the 130 Prompts series has Previous and Next links so you can either read in recommended order or you can follow the chronology from start to end. - Reading chronologically is not recommended unless you're already familiar with the worldbuilding - Full timeline chronology (Entire Cloudlands AU)

🗺️ Worldbuilding - So, You're Studying the Cloudlands...

A collection of worldbuilding and meta essays covering subjects like biology, culture, history, holidays, magic, maps, and a handbook on new godkid assignments.

You may also like my @riddledeep blog, where I first posted this meta. I'm currently moving things to the guide linked above. This way, the content is backed up and accessible to those who don't use Tumblr. Posts will remain on the blog.

📋 AU Notes & Warnings

Author writes villain encounters & villain backstories about complex non-human societies and does not inherently condone any viewpoints presented by characters or the societies they live in.

- This series focuses heavily on Pixies, Anti-Fairies, and cloudland or Fae culture. There is less focus on human godchildren or the main characters in the show (like Timmy, Cosmo and Wanda).

- This series is built so that many intricate storylines and worldbuilding elements weave together. There's no shame in skipping pieces you don't want to read, but you may miss plot or worldbuilding details important to the larger story. It can be intimidating to get into such a big project.

- This series does have fluff, but relies on drama. Content may be upsetting, and the order you read things may limit the chance for mental breaks.

- Lots of drama and complicated things going on. I recently changed the rating of my longfics to Not Rated & Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings due to the sheer variety of things, such as:

- Fantastic racism (Fairies, Anti-Fairies, Pixies, genies, and others disliking each other)

-> Show canon heavily implies these races have conflict. Jorgen faced no pushback for calling Norm a "filthy genie" on international TV. Jorgen and others refer to Pixies with rude terms such as "cone-headed freaks", etc.

- Social ladder/caste system (Cupid's ancestors organized fae in a list many generations ago to help Fairies find species with heat cycles that overlapped theirs, but the system has been corrupted into legal discrimination)

- Biologically assigned status (Male Fairies who eat a lot of jelly at a young age will develop into gynes: big, tough, freckled Fairies who fight with each other to defend their turf and drone companions. Think how H.P. and Big Daddy have unique body shapes compared to the other Fairies. They're gynes!)

- Some young bees are fed royal jelly so they develop into queens. The name for these "princesses" is gynes, so I yoinked that

- Most of the pixies are drones, apart from a few gynes. Vice President Longwood is due to succeed H.P. as Head Pixie someday, which Sanderson (a drone) absolutely despises.

- Fairies lick each other in greeting to spread pheromones, mirroring a hive of eusocial bees that gather near the queen to lick her

It's basically a non-sexual A/B/O dynamic, which was completely unintentional and I got a good laugh out of it when I realized what A/B/O was years ago. Convergent evolution...

- Mpreg - It's canon in the show that male Fairies give birth. I don't have anything to say about it; just that it's canon in my work too and treated with the same sincerity as everything else.

- Injury - Includes long-term injury, temporary injuries, and self-harm (Ex: Cutting your palm to stop using magic so you won't age). I don't consider this series bloody or gory. Fairies do have rainbow blood that's mentioned occasionally, but they're very elastic and heal quickly. The humans don't really have bloody moments.

- Character death - Most common when gynes fight to the death, but I've written other deaths as well, such as one where the Pixies caused a car crash on purpose because it benefited them.

-> Fairies are very resilient. Anti-Fairies regenerate if they're killed, as they can't die if their host counterpart (the Fairy) still lives. Death isn't overly common in my 'fics, but I'd feel weird warning for other things and not mentioning this one.

- Sexism (Anti-Fairy World tends to look down on women; Anti-Cosmo in particular tends to parrot the sexist beliefs he grew up with and gets annoyed at pushback)

-> Male bats often mate with many females (up to 30 sometimes). I built Anti-Fairy society around the idea that females outnumber males, but males see it as a sign that many women should be subservient to them because "it's nature." Anti-Cosmo is a product of his culture. Diversity loss! The villain has harmful views!

-> Anti-Fairies tend to be less racist and more sexist than Fairies while Fairies tend to be less sexist and more racist.

- Honey-lock - Anti-Fairies get flooded with hormones and magic 3 months after their counterparts mated. The pair are driven to locate each other, mate, and produce children in reflection of their counterparts.

-> what do you mean that's traumatizing? Dang, you guys live like this?

-> Anti-Cosmo's underlying goal in Frayed Knots is to beat the system so the next generation of Anti-Fairies will be born without the honey-lock's effects.

- Sociosexual Anti-Fairy culture - Anti-Fairies have a touch-based society themed around bonobos because I thought it would be interesting, particularly in a society where pregnancy is out of your control anyway (i.e. you can't accidentally get pregnant- It's in your counterparts' hands).

-> I do think "It feels good and we have few consequences, so why not?" is a reasonable direction for their culture

-> I'm not sure I would make that same choice years later, as it can be quite off-putting, but I'm glad I got to worldbuild with such unique building blocks. I enjoy it, but it's not for everyone.

- Infidelity (Anti-Cosmo cheats on his wife before Anti-Wanda and is implied to sometimes cheat on Anti-Wanda)

-> You're telling me the sexist sociosexual culture has infidelity and the evil villain fell into it? Bummer...

- Iris Virus - Having colored eyes in Anti-Fairy culture is played as an STD that's ceremonially passed to new individuals (because... sociosexual culture).

-> Also, what was I supposed to do with almost every Anti-Fairy having red eyes but Anti-Cosmo, Anti-Wanda, Foop, and the occasional background Anti-Fairy have other colors? Genetics? No way! 😃👍

-> RIP Anti-Cosmo. I'm sorry I find it hilarious that you cheat on all your partners and then sob like your trust's been shattered when your wife chooses to pass the virus on to secure allegiance with a valuable ally. Her body, her choice, dude.

- Child, physical, emotional, and sexual abuse (Frayed Knots in particular is not a hunky-dory story; Anti-Cosmo was often hit as a child. Some characters are cruel to Anti-Cosmo and he is cruel to others as well.

-> There are abuse themes in the Fairly OddParents 'fics?? The TV show about abused kids? what won't they think up next.

-> Cosmo's mother is doting in canon, so I portray Anti-Cosmo's mom as abusive to him.

-> Living in a sexist sociosexual culture sometimes leads to sexual abuse?? Also, belonging to a species that is magically forced to reproduce when your counterparts do even if you didn't consent is probably also sexual abuse? wild.

-> In Origin of the Pixies, H.P. was kidnapped by a will o' the wisp in his younger years and pressured into sex while she was producing milk for newborn Sanderson.

-> H.P. is emotionally distant and not the best at coping with what happened to him. He doesn't necessarily pursue help or get the best closure to this story. Don't hold the villains up as role models.

-> Foop has an alternate personality. This is canon; here's a compilation video I made of his appearances in the series (Note, this compilation includes Foop's Terrific Twos and some scenes where his alter is implied with eye highlights and a high voice to be there, but not confirmed). It's heavily implied he gained this personality due to being isolated in Abracatraz since the day he was born.

-> Cupid's family kills any children that aren't born triplets due to a sacred oath his ancestors took to uphold love all hours of the day. Tradition requires three children to split the magic by way of Morning, Afternoon, and Evening.

-> I would say it's also child abuse that Jorgen was raised with all the pressures of being Keeper of the Rules from the moment he was born, including being pressured to cut off his own wings in line with the tradition of "noble self-sacrifice."

- Young characters & implied offscreen sex - Are you seriously telling me the popular teens might've had sex when they were something like 150,000 years old and they'd been together since childhood? What on earth.

-> In Anti-Fairy society, you're recognized as a full adult at age 150,000.

-> In Fairy World, you're recognized as an adult when you moult your juvenile wings and grow your adult wings. This is generally between ages 140,000 and 180,000.

-> In Pixie World, you're recognized as a full adult at age 250,000. H.P. keeps age of majority high to encourage his pixies to establish themselves in Pixie World instead of leaving. These are non-human cultures that each have their own views.

-> Poof and Goldie have an arc about Goldie having Harm OCD over the fear that she'll fall into her will o' the wisp species stereotype and take advantage of Poof. Meanwhile, Poof has panic attacks because he's pretty sure she did, but blames himself for not being more self-aware. 😬

-> Foop gave his lover Anti-Marigold the iris virus when they were considered young adults in Anti-Fairy society (but still in school) to see if his dad would notice. Years later, he has a breakdown over the fact Anti-Cosmo never did, nor does he seem to care if his son is being reckless.

-> The sexual part of the Celebrity Kids arc is kept off-screen throughout the 130 Prompts. This arc is about the stress of being high schoolers treated like celebrities, ambassadors, royalty, and sports stars.

- Implied incest in H.P.'s family line before he was born (In the old days, it was common to marry cousins to preserve money. This custom has ended in modern times, but comes up on rare occasion)

-> It's implied this family history led to the genetic mutation that gave him wasp biology; that mutation plays a big role in his story.

-> H.P. talks about how he admires his counterpart, whom he considers a cousin. Sometimes other characters mock his admiration because of his infamous family history. It's not even important in his present-day life; it's just that my 'fics are full of jerks.

Some topics may make you uncomfortable. You don't have to read them, but that's part of fleshing out these very detailed, long-lived cultures and their messy underbellies. They're Fae. Were you expecting giddy fluff?

- Summaries for my multi-chapter FOP 'fics

- Summaries for 130 Prompts (with emoji guide)

- Want more info? Send an Ask!

You can create works based on this AU. Please cite me and/or the AU as appropriate (i.e. for things very specific to this AU). You are free to expand on ideas you've thought of thanks to my AU as a jumping off point. I'd love to reblog or link things to my AO3 works if I see them!

I write drama content with morally gray characters. Please don't portray my story events or worldbuilding out of context with intentional malice. In other words, I request you do not post things created for the specific intention of mocking me or the AU. It's not to everyone's tastes, but it's built with sincerity and it is loved <3

[eden-writes-stuff]

Hi, I hope you're doing well!

I was wondering if you could write something about Luna and Harry coming up with a plan for their moms to fall in love, and for they can be siblings.

It's an idea I've had for a while and I think it's really fun.

OMG I love this idea. So cute!

Tags: fluff, comfort, kids being silly, setup, Regulus being a great parent / uncle side ships: wolfstar, jegulus

Luna spread the paper on the couch table and placed her crayons beside it.

"Operation: bring Pandora and Lily together so we can be siblings - BPALTSWCBS." 

Harry pulled out his glitter pens. "I did my research over last week."

Research, in this case, being a Romance-movie-marathon with his uncles over the weekend. They had very much supported him when he'd confided in them and told them their plan. Or at least the general idea which they needed the plan for. 

 "Great. Tell me what you've learned." She pulled the cap off of one of the glitter gels and got ready to write.

"Well, most of them were with a man and a woman, but I think it works either way", he started and Luna nodded. "So, there was one where they were working on a project together and then they got locked in at their office and had to cuddle to keep warm." "But our moms don't work together." Harry hesitated for a moment. "we could get them to organise your birthday party together?" Luna thought about it, then wrote it down.

"There was another one with two men where they got locked in together in a room and then some woman threatened their lives unless they kiss." The six-year-old grinned and put it above the other idea.

"For the next one we'd have to wait until yule, but maybe you can convince your grandparents to ask your mum if she has found someone yet and then she freaks out and brings my mum as a fake date, so they stop annoying her." "She doesn't really care about their opinions so that probably won't work..."

"Alright. The one where the woman wants to get married before her sister is also out because aunt Petunia is already married..." "So our only option to make them be happy together is to threaten their lives?", Luna summarised. "Yeah, I think so."

"Great. But we need to make them believe it. Maybe we could get a dragon from somewhere." "Or a serial killer. Hey, papa." Harry looked up from their plan on the table, as Regulus walked in. "What do you need a serial killer for, mon coeur?", he asked, one eyebrow raised.

Harry and Luna shared a glance. "You need to promise not to tell anyone. This is a top-secret mission." Harry leaned in a bit and Regulus nodded slowly. "We're trying to get mom to go out with Panda, so they fall in love and get married and then we can be siblings", he half-whispered. 

"But we're not sure, how to do it yet. Our best idea is to threaten their lives so that they kiss", Luna added, shrugging.

Regulus nodded. It was best not to question a child's logic, not to mention that it sounded like something that might actually work if executed properly. Plus, as Pandora's confidante, he knew that she had fancied the redhead since they were teenagers.

Harry looked up at him. "How did you and dad get together?" The pale man attempted to answer a few times, but eventually just shook his head. "I think that's a story for another time. I do have an idea, however. Do you want to hear it?" They both nodded excitedly.

"Maybe you need to approach it from the other side. You tell them you want to spend a sibling-day with your favourite moms. You know, go to the park, have a movie night... That way you force them to spend time together and see how adorable you two are."

The children shared a few looks. "But then we don't get to threaten their lives..." "We can still do that if plan A doesn't work." "Hmmm.... okay."

Luna wrote it on the paper with a crayon. "Thank you, uncle Reggie. You can leave now. We need to work out the details."