#well I just looked up her recipe and it has 13 ingredients

[airyairyaucontraire]

Julia just exclaimed "Fuck a duck!", a lovely expression that I feel deserves greater currency.

[gyusrose]

➵ 5-star michelin -> p.js

⚠︎ smut (mdni) , sprinkle of angst

✎ teacher!jay x student, slight age gap (25 & 23), jay is kinda mean, dom!jay + sub!reader, jealous!jay, praising, dirty talk

summary: achieving your dream of becoming a chef is not easy, even worse when your teacher’s always up your ass.

{btw! i don’t cook like at all so bear with me 🙏}

(non!idol jay x fem.reader)

~ late christmas + new year’s gift *ੈ✩‧₊˚🥂*ੈ✩‧₊˚

wc: 4.2k

you love the kitchen, you pretty much live there day and night. it’s no surprise to anyone that your dream job is eventually becoming a real chef. that’s why you’ve spent almost your whole life perfecting the one skill you’re good at. most of the recipes you use come from your mom. before she passed she left a whole book of recipes in it and what a hell of a good time you had with it.

it helped you cope, that’s what drove it. you feel sad? make something yummy. you feel mad? bake something nice. you feel happy? cool something delicious. your problems seemed to fade away while your cooking.

over the last year, you’ve started attending culinary school. obviously, you’re not perfect and you still need some work on your dishes but you’re not doing too bad to say the least. now though, it’s a new chapter opening for you.

you’ve been wanting to get out of your hometown for a while and move to the city as there were more opportunities down here and to your luck, you got accepted into a (very prestigious) culinary school nearby your apartment, a win-win situation.

like anyone, you were scared, scared to make new friends, scared to meet new people, scared to start from zero, a new place, a new routine. but it’s all for the better.

you sighed as you tied your apron around your waist, almost heading out the door to your first day of school. boxes were still unpacked all around your floor, it was a total mess, you literally slept on the floor last night. it was definitely not the best case scenario for a great morning but eh.

you finally caught your breath trying to calm down grabbing your tote bag and leaving your messy apartment.

the school was no more than five minutes away walking. at least you’re gonna be on time.

your entered the glass doors of the huge white building. the receptionist noticed you, you quickly showed her your ID, which they gave you during your orientation last week. she gave you a nod and you headed into the elevator, pressing the number 13.

your hands were shaking and sweaty. coming into a new school in the middle of the year has got to be the worst scenario for an introvert like you. you finally reached the room where the class will be taking place ( i genuinely don’t know what culinary school is like pls) as soon as you stepped in, all eyes were on you. including the head chef’s.

“you must be the new student right? happy first day you’re late.” one of them spoke, your cheeks couldn’t have become any redder than what they already were. you hated all the attention on you.

late? didn’t class start at 7:30? you thought.

“class started fifteen minutes ago, take a seat and catch up.” almost like he could read your mind he responded.

you muttered a low ‘sorry’ before heading onto an empty seat trying to take as much attention away from you. of course his happens to you.

you gathered all the ingredients you were told to get and set them on the table in front of you. mimicking what the other students were doing. as you weee doing that the chef came up to your side, an evident scowl noticed on his face.

it was until then you realized how handsome he was, he looked very young as well, not someone that you would expect to be a head chef. his jawline was sharper than the knife on your hand. you shook those thoughts away quickly though, he’s your teacher! what are you thinking?

“i’m just letting you know, whatever you did today can’t happen anymore, attendance is very important everyday, this is a very advanced class so you might not want to be missing any of it, got it?” even though he whispered, it felt like he was yelling at you. it was very aggressive and harsh making you flinch.

you quickly nodded, now scared of him even more. suddenly you want to change classes with another chef. finally leaving you let out a big sigh which you were holding in ever since he came over, and resumed cutting your vegetables and stir frying them.

“you need more seasoning on that, it’s too bland!” the chef, which you now you know as ‘Chef Park’ said as he tasted your chicken. you were almost sweating, from the way he speaks and acts, you felt nothing but intimidated by his presence, even more when he’s tasting your first dish for him. throughout the whole lesson today, he seemed to be only picking at you, he didn’t taste any of the other student’s food, only yours. you found it kind of irritating but tried not to think much about it.

“i’ll definitely note that chef.” you smiled at him bowing.

“ i’m expecting a lot from you, ______” he said before heading back to his space.

you were confused. why you? you’re probably the least talented person in this room right now so why you? you had so many questions but decided that maybe you just needed a good nights rest and starting packing up your stuff on your bag.

jay sighed at the empty room in front of him. it was currently 1 am, and he couldn’t find the urge to go home. he was just thinking, thinking about you.

he was the one that read your application into the school, he read your recommendation letters from your past teachers. you were put into his advanced class for a reason.

what he didn’t expect was the glory of a woman that was going to get in that door. it was as if the universe slapped his type right in front of him. that’s what he saw. how could someone look so beautiful in such a simple uniform? he also wonders that.

he can’t let down his demeanor though. yes he finds you attractive, but he can’t soften up just for you, that’s unfair to the rest of the students that have to put up with him. plus he hasn’t forgotten that he’s the teacher and you’re a student, it’s unethical for him to even be thinking of you in that way.

it’s been approximately a month since you’ve started going to this new school and to be honest, it was eating you up. chef park kept nit-picking everything you did, which honestly is what’s. teacher should do but not to that extent. you saw the way he was always looking your way when you were cooking. how he would yell at you across the room when you did something wrong ( even if other people were also doing it) it’s driving you insane to the point that you’re about to actually request for a change of teacher.

you were struggling to cook the steak to chef park’s desired temperature when you felt someone tap your shoulder. you turned your head around to see a boy. if you’re not mistaken his name is jake.

“i see you’re kind of struggling with that, there’s a trick i do that always manages to cook the steak to chef’s park liking. may i?” he asked if he could touch the knobs of your stove. you nodded and he turned the heat to the maximum for a few seconds, turning the steak over on both sides while bathing it in butter , then he turned it to low heat, repeating the same action.

jay obviously noticed this and did not appreciate it. he should be happy seeing another student sharing tips with you but that wasn’t the case this time. without thinking he walked over the two of your laughing figures.

“sim! it’s very inappropriate of you to be talking with your little friend when you should be cooking..”

“oh sorry chef park. i was just giving her a hand. i thought you wouldn’t mind.”

you looked at chef park, noticing his glaring eyes on jake. is it that bad for a student to help another student out?

“well i do! back to your place.” he said not sparing you a glance while jake decided to not respond back and just gave you an apologetic smile before heading off.

“alright everyone, that would be it for today, but don’t forget that by the end of the semester you’re gonna have to cook something of your own, impress me okay? “

as students left you decided to have a word with the chef, wanting to know if he just truly just didn’t like you or if he had a problem with you being here, so you could change chefs.

there was another girl talking to him before you. he acted so different with her, so respectful, kind and smiley. his face sours up every time he’s talking with you, so you barely see him smile and you almost melted at it.

“is there a problem miss ______?”

you jumped out of your other world and looked at him. suddenly feeling shy. you felt your confidence slip away as he was now looking straight at you, waiting for you to speak.

“ well-uh i’ve been noticing how harsh you’re on me compared to the other students, did i do something to cause that?”

jay was taken aback from your straightforwardness, but he responded either way.

“ you just need more toughness out on you _____, do you want to be mediocre?” he was lying through his teeth. jay knew you were if anything, the best of the class, he couldn’t just say that out loud.

you on the other hand, were crushed. was mediocre all he saw in you? have you been lied to by your other teachers?

“ is the yelling necessary though ? there’s way to effectively communicate without yelling.” you hated being yelled at. every time someone raised their voice at you, tears would just fall like a waterfall. thankfully, you’ve managed to hold in your tears during class so chef hasn’t seen you cry.

“are you questioning my teaching skills now? “

shit. now you offended him.

“n-no that’s not what i meant, i just-“

“you don’t think i’m a good teacher ?” he said getting up closer to you, pretty much standing inches in front of you. suddenly you felt your heartbeat fasten.

“i d-do chef, i just kind of find it unfair?” you said, trying to not stutter all your words.

jay smirked, now standing less than a feet in front of you, grabbing your chin and holding it up, making you look straight at him. jay could definitely see your rosy cheeks that you were so embarrassedly trying to hide.

“am i making you nervous miss _____?” you only gulped, you didn’t even know what to respond to that, even though it was bluntly obvious based on your state right now.

the both of you didn’t say anything for a moment, the two just stared at each other, waiting for one to make a move first.

you don’t know exactly where you got the guts to actually make the move. you engulfed your chef into a suffocating kiss. the kiss itself was enough to show how much y’all were yearning for each other. jay was dying to do this ever since he laid his eyes on you, but you on the other hand, didn’t know how much you actually wanted to do this until now. sure you found him handsome and smart and literally perfect but you never expected for him to think of you the same way to the point we’re he’s actually kissing you back and heating up the kiss you once started. his tongue grazed over your lip. his hands moved from your face to your waist, pulling you closer, melting into his embrace. your lips tasted so sweet, jay felt insatiable.

both of you forgot about the fact that this was very much not allowed. the world ceased to exist to exist at that moment. there were no boundaries, no constraints, just the two of you.

jay’s hand traveled down further and further, now down to your ass, giving it a light squeeze. the small action made you moan into his lips. even though your eyes were closed, you could feel him smirking at you.

your own hands travelled along his broad shoulders, down his shoulders. once again, confidence shot through you. your fingertips found their way to his belt buckle, about to undo it when his fingers wrapped around your wrist. stopping your movements.

“see you next class.” that’s all he said before gathering his things and leaving you there. high and dry.

that’s when you woke up. realizing what you were about to do, more like who you were about to do it with.

embarrassed. that’s what you were. he could literally lose his job what were you thinking?!

you let out a shaky sigh and left the empty room. all you need right now is a hot shower and sleep, you need to forget this ever happened. the worse thing is that tomorrow you still have to face him in class.

you knew showing up in the classroom that the two of you almost fucked in yesterday was going to be hard to show your face in. although no one noticed you, you just felt exposed. you refused to make eye contact with jay the whole time. jay definitely noticed this right away. he felt kind of bad in leaving you like that, but he knew that if he stayed there a little longer, he wouldn’t have controlled himself. he did think though, you looked kind of cute all shy and red, avoiding his eyes the whole class.

he took matters to his hands and approached you for the first time today, which was odd since he would’ve already yelled at you for something at this point.

“what are you working on miss ______?” his voice startled you, not even noticing he walked over to you.

“ just finishing the sauce for this.” you shortly said looking down at your food. jay’s stare didn’t leave your face once. and you could feel it very much. it felt hard to breathe at that moment. you have no doubt your face is boiling at his simple presence.

“ look at me when i’m speaking to you.” you didn’t want to. but he was still your teacher and the last thing you want to be is disrespectful so you looked at him. and god you wished you didn’t. those brown eyes have a world of its own. you found yourself staring at him shamelessly, forgetting he was speaking to you.

“are you even listening?” of course you weren’t yet you nodded assuringly.

“great then see you friday night.” you nodded but it took you a moments to realize what he said.

friday night? for what? this is what you get for daydreaming. embarrassingly, you asked him what he meant after you just told him you were listening to what he was saying.

jay chuckled and shook his head at your lie. “ i said if you were coming to the dinner i have set up for the class, since christmas is coming. and you responded yes, so you better be there miss ______.” he said with a smirk, palming your cheek. your eyes widened at his move. you looked around to see if anyone noticed, to your relief no one did as they were too focused on their food. “someone could’ve seen!” you whisper-shouted your chef. he just rolled his eyes and said “ just be there on friday, i have a gift for you.”

the last thing he said before walking away. you were left dumbfounded. what did any of that mean? you didn’t notice that you’ve doesn’t about 10 minutes just standing there thinking until you smelt something burning.

“your meat is overdone _____!!!” jake told you walking up to you turning the stove off.

shit.

you weren’t the one to like social events much. as a teenager, you barely went out with your friends. you were a proud nerd. always focused on school, that’s how you were thought to be, which explains how you’ve only made one friend (jake) ever since been here for months. now you’re gonna be forced to socialize for a whole evening.

you weren’t unprepared thankfully. you brought a couple of classy dresses with you, you could imagine that things like these were gonna happen. you eventually decided on a white silk dress. it was elegant yet comfortable for you. not too short or not too long as well. you decided to not do anything special with your hair and let it down.

you suddenly felt the urge to not go. the last person you want to see is your chef. you don’t see the point of going yet you kept doing your makeup, you just want to change into your pyjamas and lay in bed all night. a ding in your phone caught your attention, revealing a text message from jake.

-I’m here

it seemed like you have to go now. quickly you gathered your things and left your lot.

jay kept waiting and waiting. you was all he was waiting on. a bunch of people kept coming up and talking to him but he didn’t care. girls showed up trying to impress him, but nothing. he wanted you to come up to him, impress him.

what he didn’t expect is you coming in with some company. jake was obviously invited but not as your date, he thought. he could see his hand on your back as he said a few sorry’s for being late due to traffic. jay couldn’t focus on anything but you. what the fuck was jake saying to make you laugh so hard. was that on purpose? to see how he would react? jay couldn’t tell. it didn’t help how beautiful you looked tonight, more than usual. that fucker doesn’t get your beauty like he does.

the whole night jay kept quiet. stealing glances towards you and jake. when someone talked to him he kept his reposes dry. for a moment he could swear you stared at him.

jay didn’t miss when you stood up to go to the bathroom. he obviously took this opportunity to talk to you, if it wasn’t right now then it was never.

you left the bathroom, as a soon as you turned around, you were encaged. your breath hitched seeing who it was.

“c-chef?”

“oh please don’t act all innocent _____, i know what you’re trying to do.”

“i’m sorry..? i don’t know what you’re talking about?”

“coming in here with jake, wearing such tight dress showing off just enough to make me go crazy. do you realize how much power you have over me hm?”

you didn’t know what to respond to that. deep down you loved the way you made him feel. it was planned, at all, but it felt nice knowing how much little effort had an effect on him.

“ it’s not my fault that’s the way you think jay.” honourifics dropped. jay wasn’t expecting that response from you. the alcohol running through your blood was showing at the moment.

jay grabbed your neck and pulled you into a heated kiss. unlike your first kiss, this one was emerged in lust. both of your tongues entangled with each other. your hands rummaged through his hair pulling him closer to you.

all it took was a simple “wanna get out of here?” from jay for you to weaken in the knees, allowing your full submission to him.

“fuck jay, right ther-shit!” so much happened in the last thirty minutes, nothing could’ve prepared you to be eaten out by your teacher at that time.

you don’t even know how jay didn’t crash the car while driving to his house and completely stripping you in seconds. he ate your pussy like he’s been starving for months (which he was) your eyes rolled back, pulling his hair, engulfing him into you, wrapping your legs around his neck. jay was in fucking bliss.

“shit baby, you’re such a mess, so fucking sensitive.” he said pulling away from your cunt, earning a whine from you.

“such a desperate little brat. tell me, what do you want baby.” he said caressing your lips. you couldn’t stop biting them. from your angle, you could see everything of him. his sharp eyes staring down at you, his biceps, his chest, his abs, fuck you could cum right there.

“fuck me jay, i want you to use me.” unlike other instances, you didn’t break eye contact making him moan before grabbing your thighs and spreading them around his pelvis. your core was dying for his cock, it was noticible from how swollen it was.

jay rubbed his head along your folds before looking up at you for reassurance. you nodded, desperate written all over your face.

the first thrust in you was insane. the stretch felt like he was ripping up your insides. it was painful, a good type of pain. “fuck you’re so fucking big jay.” jay only groaned. he couldn’t even say anything, this was better than anything he could ever imagine.

once he was fully in he started to move in and out of your core, grabbing your waist, feeling himself in you. the crude sounds coming out of the both of you echoed throughout the house. jay’s hands played with your tits while you grabbed his waist, making sure he stays inside you as much possible.

“shit you’re so tight, that’s pussy’s all mine ain’t it?” his hand left your tits and started rubbing your clit while his thrusts turned very hostile you couldn’t even form words from the immense amount of pleasure.

“yes yes, it’s all your baby.”

jay didn’t think it could get better than this, but it did.

he flipped you over, now on all-fours, back arched. not wasting any time in fucking you from behind. he groped your ass, leaving his hand marks all over them.

you were about to explode when a ring could be heard, more specifically from your phone. you looked over it on the night stand seeing ‘jake’ displayed on the screen. shit you completely forgot that you just left him at the restaurant. you could call him back lat-

“answer it.” jay said from behind you sternly, fucking you even deeper.

“i don’t think i ca-“

“answer the fucking phone, it must be important.” as much as he didn’t like jake, it turned him on the way you could barely breath let alone speak while he’s fucking you restlessly.

you could barely talk but you managed to grab the phone and answer it, trying to sound as normal as possible.

“ sorry jake, i just wasn’t-hmp feeling well.” your hand went over your mouth to stop you from moaning into the phone. jay was just laughing in the background at your state right now.

“yea yea i-i’m so sorry, have f-fun though.” you nodded at his last sentence before hanging up and glaring at jay from behind you.

“fuck you!” you said then slamming your head into the pillow letting out muffled moans.

“i’m quite literally doing that baby.” you rolled your eyes in pleasure and annoyance. your orgasm was very close, even jay could feel the way you clench around him.

“fuck i’m cumming, so fucking close.” your weak voice said .

jay was on the same boat, he would’ve cum way earlier but it just felt so damn good, he wanted to treasure every moment.

“me too baby, c’mon cum all over my dick, do it baby.” that’s exactly what you did. your body twitched at the sudden feeling. your body going limp.

jay was also on edge, with a few more thrust he pulled out of you and came all over your back moaning in the process.

after the two of you balanced your breathing, jay laid next to you caressing your hair, the both of you were just giggling like little kids.

“so this was the gift you were talking about?”

[binniebakery]

🇫​​🇱​​🇴​​🇺​​🇷​ ​🇫​​🇴​​🇷​ ​🇲​​🇾​ ​🇫​​🇱​​🇴​​🇼​​🇪​​🇷​? ❀🥐

Non Idol AU Soobin x Fem!Reader, Fluff!

♡ Summary: For years, Soobin has had the biggest crush on the daughter of the town's local bakery and flower shop. Just when Soobin decides he's comfortable settling with being acquaintances, a misunderstanding drives him to reveal the feelings he's kept hidden for so long! ♡ Recipe Ingredients: tooth rotting fluff, featuring yeonjun as soobin's unofficial rival, soobin pining, slight cursing!, not proofread ♡ Recipe Notes: guess whos baccck!? woo its FINALLY out! I'm so sorry for the wait everyone! this is probably the only wip that i was continuously motivated to write for.. so i hope this wasn't too cheesy >< enjoy!

It all started the first day he ever laid eyes on you.

That charming smile that captivated his attention the second he walked through the door, your face lighting up at the sound of the bell chiming at his arrival.

“Welcome to Flowers and Flour! How may I help you?”

It was over for him the moment your warm voice hit his ears, the tenderness and soft notes that brought immense joy to his day whenever he walked in.

Soobin was the son of the town’s local catering service. If he wasn’t busy with school, he was helping his mother organize her clients and help deliver and pick up orders for her on that moped his father got him for Christmas years ago.

You were the daughter of the town’s local bakery and flower shop. It was an odd combination really, a bakery downstairs with a flower shop running in the back? It worked well though, Soobin had more than one reason to visit you. His mom needed extra cupcakes for a wedding? He was always the first one to run to your shop. His mom wanted some flower decorations for an event? Once again, Soobin ran through the double doors of your establishment.

For as long as Soobin could remember, he had the biggest crush on you. It was obvious to everyone else in town, except for you.

Though he never really was good at flirting was he? Soobin’s first delivery was almost a disaster, he was 13 when he started helping his mom with her catering. Luck wasn’t on his side that day as he proceeded to fall off his bike and drop the entire box of dozen glazed donuts he was supposed to bring to a child’s birthday party.

Of course, he was a quick thinker. So the first thing Soobin did was bike his way over to the small bakery and flower shop his mother always worked with, rushing in through the doors as he was covered in cuts and bruises. It didn’t matter, no pain could be worse than the scolding he would get from his mother if she found out.

There you were, freshly, first day on the job and your father had just taught you how to use the cash register. You twiddled your thumbs nervously as he worked relentlessly in the back to finish baking that afternoon's set of cupcakes. 

So when you hear the familiar twinkle of bells ringing you feel the color melt off your face as you look up. This was your first day after all, what was the slogan your parents taught you to say to guests? Were you even supposed to take orders? You were only twelve!

“H- hi!.. Um.. welcome to flour and flower— no! Flowers with flour?...” You furrowed your eyebrows and look at the small napkin filled with your scribbled notes. “A- ah sorry! Um welcome to Flowers.. And Flour! H- how can I help you!?” Your voice shook as you sat straight up, giving your best (and awkwardest) smile.

You weren’t expecting there to be a boy with messy hair and cuts on his knees and a half-empty box of donuts standing in the doorway. The way his hoodie fit him slightly too big, something that he would grow into as he got older and taller. 

Slight sweat formed around his forehead and neck from the summer heat. His denim shorts wore a slight tear on the hem from the fall he had from his small bike. His cute button nose scrunched up as the stinging sensation on his knees reminded him of why he was there in the first place.

And Soobin wasn’t expecting such a pretty girl his age to be working the cash register.

“Uh– yes! Um..” Soobin sheepishly scratches the back of his neck as he looks around the bakery to avoid your large innocent eyes staring at him curiously. He’d never been inside actually, the colors were bright, sweet, and pastel– and most of all welcoming, just like your smile.

You’re tilting your head at the way the boy’s worn-out sneakers shifted in his spot. What were you supposed to do when a customer didn’t answer you?

“C- C-an.. um I..” Soobin’s face is flushed red and your eyebrows furrow together even deeper. Just as you are about to turn and call for your father to come help, Soobin immediately reaches over the counter, dropping the crushed donut box, and covers your mouth.

“Shhh!! D- don’t tell anyone! If an adult finds out they’ll tell my mom! And m- my mom cannot know about this” the young boy rambles. Your large eyes flicker between the door behind you leading to the kitchen and back to Soobin. You nod your head in agreement to say silent.

“S- sorry..” Soobin mumbles as he pulls away, wiping his hands on his baggy shorts. He explains everything to you, from the birthday party to his failure to properly ride a bike. You couldn’t help but feel pity for the boy. It was your first day too after all so you would definitely feel the same way if you were in his shoes.

“I think I can.. Maybe give you some donuts?” 

Now, looking back on this now as an adult, you would have charged the young man, or at least given him a discount. But.. as a young innocent pre-teen.. the thought didn’t cross your mind once.

After all, on your first day working you weren't expecting an odd, clumsy, and cute boy would pop up in the shop. So were you really going to be thinking rationally?

So you gave Soobin a fresh box of donuts right from the shelf. Even offered a muffin for his safe journey.  All for free.

Of course, your father notices the missing pastries, one thing leads to another and both you and Soobin end up getting into a lot of trouble.

What you didn’t know is that later that evening Soobin found himself thinking about the cute girl with pigtails that was almost too short to reach over the counter. Even blushing at the thought of seeing you again and vowing to himself he would marry that sweet girl who looked past his awkward exterior and gave him that gentle sunrise of a smile.

Years later, Soobin’s promise to himself is looking less and less possible by the day.

You looked forward to Soobin’s visits. Although you two weren’t close, you’ve always considered him to be a friend. Throughout the years, you managed to form a small bond with him whenever you had the chance to see him. You both went to different schools and were simply too shy to ever ask to hang out outside of the shop, so your relationship stayed the same.

“Hey y/n.” Soobin gives you a shy smile as you finish setting up the display for the morning. Perfect, just like you were. And with the way you turn to him, hair pulled in a messy ponytail, face flushed from the physical work, and apron wrapped perfectly tight around your waist, you couldn’t have gotten any better in Soobin’s eyes.

“Hi Soobie! Here for those muffins?” You chirp as you lean over the counter to greet him. His heart flutters at the nickname. No matter how many times you’ve said it, you always manage to make his heart stop. Nothing was better than your voice calling out his name, especially the nickname you gave specifically to him.

“Mhm, large company party I think? I’m not too sure. Apparently, the guy’s been really pushing my mom’s buttons with his demands.” His laugh is airy and soft and you can’t help but feel your cheeks warm from the way his dimples dig deep into his cheeks. Of course, the boy fails to notice.

“Ah, I see. Give Mrs. Choi my hellos then.” You giggle, handing Soobin several large boxes. Said boxes were indeed quite heavy, your delicate fingers almost dropping them as you handed them over.

“Sure will. Oh, careful–! Gotcha!” Soobin is quick to place his hands under yours, helping you lift the boxes. You look up at him with eyes wide and mouth agape, heart pumping rapidly from the sudden contact. Soobin mirrors your expression and the two of you stay that way in silence for a few seconds.

The young man blinks and immediately flushes once more, face heating up more when he realizes he was touching your hand for too long. “S- sorry! U- um.. I’ll see you later yeah? Have a good rest of your day y/n!” Soobin fumbles as he quickly shuffles out the door to his moped.

You mentally kick yourself for letting the seconds pass without saying anything and Soobin gently plops his forehead on the handle of his vehicle, debating on just slamming his head on a brick wall for settling with the silence.

It was always like this, constant instances where he would get the perfect chance to confess but he always failed to let his feelings reach you. So after years of failed attempts, he settles with what you have. He’s just happy he gets to see you.

⋆｡°♡

It was Friday, the first day of your town's weekend summer festival. Soobin’s mother was as busy as ever, therefore so was he in trying to help her get things done. 

“Soobin! Can you come here please? I need you to run an errand for me!” Mrs. Choi calls and Soobin comes shuffling in from his room, slightly groggy from the nap he just had.

“Yeah? What’s up?” He mumbles as he rubs his eyes, fluffy hair sticking out in all directions.

“Could you run down to the grocery store or the bakery? It doesn’t matter I just need you to buy me flour.” Mrs. Choi mumbles as she digs into multiple containers. “Mr. Phillips is running some baking event but he’s already at the fairgrounds so I’m doing this as a favor. Could you just bring it to him for me?”

Now, Soobin was content with his position in your life. He was just glad he was able to get to see you any chance he got, and that you were still single. He’s (not-so) casually questioned if you’ve had a boyfriend before, and with a strawberry-red face you mumbled about your failed love life.

Don’t get him wrong– Soobin would always support you as long as you were happy, but something inside him feels a sense of relief knowing that there’s somewhat of a chance for him.

So of course instead of going to the closest grocery store, he’s going to stop by your place all the way across town to pick up some flour.

Soobin speeds down the street as quickly as the law would allow him. His anxious fingers tapped the handle of his moped as he waited for the light to turn green.

The festival was on your side of town, so the streets were busy, therefore causing horrible traffic as a result. Soobin groans as he taps his foot impatiently, here’s to another day where he was the cause of his own downfall!

It takes 15 minutes to reach that familiar street he grew to love. The festival around the area begins to grow more lively and both the bakery and flower shop seem to be flooded with visitors.

Soobin feels himself tensing up as he approaches the glass double doors that lead inside the bakery.

The bell rings as he makes his way inside, but the loud buzz of people’s demands and your poor mother running around the floor delivering orders as you ring up the other customers distracts you from noticing the tall boy. Your father bursts through the door right after Soobin, boxes with vases waiting to be decorated and used for arrangements in his arms. Soobin nods a hello. “Hey there Soobin! Nice seeing you!” He shouts above the noise with a grin. “I’m a little busy right now so I’m afraid I can’t help you with anything! Y/n is right over there if you need something!” He nods towards your direction and rushes past the doors leading to the flower shop. Soobin’s face holds a puzzled smile and he glances towards the checkout counter you were currently standing at.

That’s when he sees the bane of his existence. Soobin’s worst nightmare. Choi Yeonjun.

Soobin didn’t speak to Yeonjun often, but he knew two very important things that were all he needed. That Yeonjun was interested in you, and him and Soobin went to the same school. (Soobin cringes at the possibility of Yeonjun ever going to the same school as you. He’s thankful.) Yeonjun would visit your dad’s flower shop often. Even going as far as hinting multiple times if you’d like to go on a date. Luckily for Soobin, you never got the hint– and unfortunately for Soobin, that just made Yeonjun want to try harder.

What made Soobin tick even more was that Yeonjun flirted with everyone he saw. It was just a part of his charm, and as much as Soobin hates to admit it he wishes he had that same ability Yeonjun had. To speak to you freely and smoothly hint towards a date instead of the casual and mundane conversations he settled for every time he saw you. He wanted to be cool and charming, wanted to be outgoing and good at everything he did, just like that Choi Yeonjun.

But Soobin knew he would never get to that point, he considered himself clumsy, unathletic, nerdy, and awkward. All of the things that Yeonjun wasn’t.

So when Soobin spots Yeonjun cracking yet another flirty joke just to see your cheeks flush and you shyly tucking your hair behind your ear he makes it his personal mission to intervene.

“Look at you slacking off. Should get back to work instead of talkin’ to me so much y/n.” Yeonjun teases you and you roll your eyes with a smile. You weren’t exactly close but he was friendly and often offered to help your dad anytime he needed it.

“Well Yeonjun, I’m trying! You keep distracting me..!” You nudge him as you loudly respond over the customers' chatter. “You’re lucky nobody needs me right now. What did you want anyways?” you inquire with a tilt of your head. Soobin sees this from afar and finds it endearing, and much to his dismay so does Yeonjun.

“Nothing today actually–” “What?!” “I said nothing today! I wanted to ask if you wanted to go to check out the festival with me?!” You furrow your eyebrows as your brain attempts to decipher Yeonjun’s words. “Check out what?!” 

Yeonjun lets out a laugh. Soobin bites his lip as his body unconsciously moves closer to the checkout counter. “The festival! You’re about to close soon right? Let's go, you and me!” Yeonjun repeats. This time he’s leaning over the counter, lips dangerously close to your face, and Soobin is about to explode from the sight.

“Well, actually I-” “Y/n! Hi! You’re not busy right?” Soobin blurts out as he shoves himself between Yeonjun and the counter. Yeonjun shoots him a puzzled look.

“Oh! Hi Soobin!” You smile, sheepishly rubbing the back of your neck at witnessing the sudden interjection. “Um.. How can I help you?” Soobin’s adrenaline is bursting through his veins, sure he saved you from Yeonjun’s invitation, but now what?

Suddenly, two other customers walk into the store and the place seems to inconveniently become more lively by the second. Soobin feels his anxiety bubbling in his stomach as he stares at your face, how was he supposed to look at you with your hair softly tousled into a ponytail and your pretty lashes blinking against your cheeks? He wonders what you look like outside of uniform.

“Uh, Soobin? I kinda– Yes sir one moment!” You call out to an older gentleman requesting your attention. Soobin blinks and realizes he’s been standing awkwardly for too long, Yeonjun is currently watching the whole situation unfold with a lifted brow and arms crossed.

“Uh– My mom–!.. I want to tell you that I kind of– The festival–! Um..” Soobin grows more flustered by the second, unable to get anything out. He wants to tell you he needs flour, he wants to tell you he traveled all the way across town just to see you, he wants to tell you to ditch Yeonjun and go to the festival with him instead. But words seem to fail him in the moment.

“Soobin?.. Are you alrigh–”

It finally hits Soobin that if he wants to confess, he needs to do it now. He should have realistically done it sooner but the poor boy genuinely felt like your relationship would never get anywhere past “somewhat friends”. Now that Yeonjun is here though, he feels like if he doesn’t say anything now, he’ll be forever doomed to be second to Choi once again.

“Y/n… I um–  L- like you! I need flour.. Too!”

Soobin’s words sound jumbled but it’s enough to get the point across. At least that’s what he thinks.

“What?! Sorry, I can’t hear you!” You shout over the bakery ambiance.

“Flour! Uh.. Flour! I just um.. I need that! Yes! That thing you sell! Ha…” Soobin wants to curl up and rot in a hole. Both of you miss the way Yeonjun’s lips curl up into a small smirk.

“A Flower?!” Your eyebrows furrow deeper. Why would Soobin need a singular flower? You wonder.

“Ah! What? Uh fl- flour! Y- yes!” Soobin stutters once more and you nod confusingly, turning to the shelf behind you. Soobin’s eyes flicker to Yeonjun, mentally high-fiving himself for stepping in at the perfect time. He feels slightly bad but in his defense, he had eyes on you first!

Before Soobin’s guilt settles in for thinking such selfish thoughts, you hand him a sunflower.

His eyes widen and he looks back at you. Did you end up hearing his confession after all?

“Sorry guys I can’t talk! Soobin I’m sorry but this is all I can offer on such short notice! Yeonjun, I’ll speak with you after my shift is done! Just give me 10 minutes!” You flash an apologetic smile and head over to the small line of customers waiting to pay.

Soobin’s mouth hangs open, did you just reject him? Were you so guilty you couldn’t reject him that you just gave him a gift in hopes he wouldn’t take it too harshly? Is that why you said it was all you could offer?

Soobin stands dumbfounded. Yeonjun sighs and grabs him by the arm, pulling him out of the store to allow the other customers to squeeze in their place.

“Hey–! I- I need to talk to y/n wait!” Soobin yanks his arm away from Yeonjun with a huff.

“Can you chill for a second?! God, seeing you stand there looking like a fish out of water is stressing me out, dude.” Yeonjun sighs and rubs his temples in frustration. Soobin swallows and looks down at the floor, twiddling with the sunflower you gave him between his fingers. “Look. I know what’s going on here man, you’ve got a crush on y/n don’t you?”

Soobin’s jaw drops once again and he feels his face grow impossibly red. “H- how do you know?!”

“You literally said it inside the store just a few seconds ago..not to mention your game is the worst I’ve ever seen in my life.”

“Right..” Soobin sighs and drops his shoulders in defeat. “Was it that bad?” Yeonjun grimaces, “Want me to tell you the truth?” Soobin groans, he already knows what’s coming. “Just say it already.”

“That was absolutely horrid to watch. Never seen a guy fumble that badly..” Yeonjun pinches the bridge of his nose and Soobin plops down on the bench next to them. He rests his head in his hands, maybe now would be a good time to just move cities. Forget today ever happened. Forget about the festival. Forget about you. Not to mention he’s even more embarrassed at the fact that Yeonjun was there to witness it all. The last person he wanted to see.

“Hey, hey. Look, there’s a bright side to this and I don’t think you realize– I don’t even think y/n realizes what just happened in there.”

Soobin’s head perks up, his face scrunched up in confusion. “What? Besides the fact that I just got horribly rejected– Oh God AND she doesn’t even give me the flour I needed! Y/n probably thought it would be awkward to keep talking to me and just sent me off with this.. pity gift!” Soobin exclaims as he waves the sunflower in his hand around.

Yeonjun slams his palm into his forehead and sighs, “No! Dude she misheard you completely, I’m almost certain y/n thought you wanted a flower from her, not flour.” It takes a few seconds for Soobin to properly register Yeonjun’s words. He replays the situation in his head, the way that none of you could possibly hear each other that well given how busy the bakery was in that moment. 

It would make sense. Yeonjun was standing right next to Soobin so he was the only one that would be able to properly hear him.

“Oh.. shit..” Soobin slumps further into the bench. “Really?”

“Yeah, and frankly can I be honest?” Soobin nods. “I didn’t know you even liked y/n like that. You seem to sort of keep things plain with her when you guys talk.” Soobin pouts at the comment. “Well, I try!.. was kind of playing the long game… I don’t really have the type of charisma you have Mr. Festival Guy!” Soobin retorts and Yeonjun gasps dramatically.

“Hey! Don’t blame me for your incompetence man... Plus, even if I do sort of like her, I know when to back out if it’s just going to end up as a competition. I’m not a douchebag.”

Yeonjun chuckles at Soobin’s shocked face. He notes that Soobin seems to be very expressive despite not speaking about his emotions. It seems to explain a lot about Soobin. “Wait, seriously? You’re willing to give her up that easily?” 

Yeonjun shrugs, “I mean don’t get me wrong she’s a cute girl, but I just wanted to get to know her more as a friend, what’s the harm in that?” Soobin bites his lower lip and looks away from Yeonjun. He feels awful now, assuming Yeonjun was the player type and you were just his next target. They never spoke at school but that was simply because while Soobin was shy and hung out with the nerdy and introverted students– Yeonjun was popular, and had many friends. Not to mention plenty of girls fought for his attention at school.

“Yeah.. guess you’re right.” Soobin mumbles. “Well… now what do I do?” Yeonjun taps his index finger on his chin. “I mean, she said she gets off work in a few minutes right? Why don’t you tell her what you really meant to say.”

Soobin scoffs as if Yeonjun’s idea is completely unrealistic and ridiculous. “Yeah right. You saw the way I get when I speak to her. I can’t even think properly..” Yeonjun sighs. “Well, you have to do it sometime dude.. Unless you want someone like me to scoop her up.” He teases.

Soobin’s eye twitches, he was definitely not going to give Yeonjun another chance to ask you out.

“Hey– okay, okay, fine I’ll talk to her.. I guess..” Soobin runs a hand through his hair. He honestly felt like the entire situation was a lost cause. “So just how am I going to confess to y/n?”

“Dude, I can’t help you with everything! Just speak from your heart.. Or whatever those cheesy romance movies say.” Yeonjun pats Soobin’s shoulder and stands up. “Look, you’ll figure something out. Tell her what comes to mind, that’s the way I roll at least.” Soobin stares at his feet in thought. He had so much to say, and quite frankly his feelings were so strong and complicated he was scared it would ruin the relationship you both currently had. 

“All I’m gonna say is if you don’t do it tonight, I will. Get in there and grab what you originally came there for.” Yeonjun nods towards the sunflower resting in Soobin’s hand. ”And I’m not just talking about the flour either. Be yourself.” Soobin looks at Yeonjun for the last time and stands up.

“Right. I’ll uh.. See you then. Thanks.” Yeonjun pats his shoulder and Soobin almost winces at the pain. “No problem Choi. I’ll leave you to it. See you around.” Yeonjun winks and strolls off. Soobin cringes at how nonchalant the other male is, more so at the fact that he genuinely couldn’t tell if that wink was flirtatious or not.

Regardless, Yeonjun’s words were enough to boost his confidence slightly, and thus Soobin made his way back to the outside of the bakery.

20 minutes had passed and you finally were able to usher the last customer out of the store. Your father had already left to promote business at the festival grounds and your mother had offered to finish cleaning up so you could enjoy some time to yourself after a long day of work.

The summer heat hits your face as you open the heavy double glass doors, pouting as the fresh indoor air slips away. You let your hair down so you can arrange it into a neater ponytail, feeling at least feeling somewhat refreshed after quickly changing out of your work uniform into something more comfortable.

Soobin hears the familiar jingle of the bakery doors and he looks up, if he wasn’t nervous already he definitely was now. His face flushes as his eyes scan your figure, pretty face concentrated as you tie your hair up, thin summer shirt slightly lifting to show the slightest bit of skin as if you wearing those small denim shorts wasn’t enough to have him practically fainting at the sight.

You look up and the expression on your face changes to a warm smile upon seeing Soobin. 

“Soobie, hi!” Oh! The nickname too! Soobin was doomed.

“H- hey, um y/n.. Before you lock up can we go inside? I need to speak with you..” You tilt your head and look around the area. “Sure? Oh but I think Yeonjun was waiting to talk to me too? Did you see him?” Soobin almost lets out a groan in discontent but hides it with a bite to his bottom lip. Why were you asking about Yeonjun? Was it because you were hoping he’d be waiting instead of Soobin?

“He uh.. Decided he had something to do–  It wasn’t important anyways..” Soobin scratches the back of his neck with an awkward smile. “Ah, okay! Let’s go in then.” You smile and open the doors for him. Soobin fumbles to one of the glass doors and holds it for you with ears tinged pink, nodding as you thank him when you walk inside.

Soobin doesn’t even remember ever being this nervous before in his entire life, his first catering delivery, the handful of speeches he’s stuttered through when speaking in front of his classmates, or when he spilled juice on his mother’s most prestigious customer.

You prop yourself on the counter, your eyes now able to meet his without either of you adjusting your height. You swing your legs as you sit, oblivious to Soobin’s inner turmoil. “Sorry, I wasn’t about to talk with you outside in that heat. You must have been sweating so much out there!” You apologize with a light laugh, and the tall boy's heart soars, touched by your consistently kind and caring nature.

Soobin’s brain is currently in overdrive thinking about the way your delicate fingers twiddle in your lap waiting for his response. You notice that his breathing has grown quiet and slow, as he avoids your gaze while in deep thought.

“Is something wrong? Did something happen to Yeonjun or–?” You innocently question. Soobin can’t help but feel his jealousy peak. Why were asking about that guy when it was just you and him? Why couldn’t you ever focus on him instead?

“Soobie.. Tell me what happened, please?” You bring your hand up to rest on his arm, shooting jolts of electricity throughout his entire body from the small touch. It was light, but it was also the first time you’ve ever made an effort to touch Soobin in such a delicate manner. It may have meant nothing to you but to him, it was more than enough to send his mind reeling even further.

Soobin was a patient man. In case you couldn’t tell from the way he’s waited all these years for the perfect moment to confess. Yet, at this moment he feels his emotions bubbling up, his jealousy of Yeonjun, his overwhelming affection towards you that never ceased to stop growing over the years, and the overwhelming anxiety threatening to burst through his stomach.

Your eyes widen as Soobin places both of his arms on the counter, caging you in with his own body.

‘Be yourself Soobin. If she doesn’t like you for you then she’s not the one. If she likes Yeonjun then so be it.’ Soobin is chanting so many affirmations in his head and nothing seems to work. Seconds pass and he notices the heat spread across your face as you stare into his gentle brown orbs.

The bakery is silent, its ambiance a complete contrast to almost 30 minutes ago. Everything had been turned off, with the only source of lightning coming from the sunset peering over the horizon outside. The rays barely peeked through the partially closed blinds and the glass doors leading into the bakery. 

“I- .. look I honestly h- have no idea how to go about this..” Soobin begins, his breathing now ragged and his body so close to yours that his scent begins to fill your senses. You’ve never been this close to Soobin and can’t help but take in the gentle light floral scent. It’s warm even, like a cotton shirt left out in the sun on a summer afternoon.

He presses his forehead against yours, his breath now gently tickling your features. “Y/n.. I’ve liked you f- for a really long time.. And I mean this more than a friend.” His eyes are screwed shut, almost as if he was afraid that if he opened them he’d be met with a look of disappointment from you. “I tried telling you earlier, I saw Yeonjun try to hit on you and I freaked out. Of course, shit hits the fan too because with my luck you didn’t hear me.”

“Soobin..” Your mouth opens before you can fully process what you want to say. “Y- you don’t have to respond y/n. If anything I know you probably have feelings for Yeonjun already– Just p- please.. I-” His voice is shaky, his intense fear of rejection pouring out of his body in a sweat.

Soobin’s eyes flash open when he feels both your hands gently holding both sides of his face. “Can I tell you something?” You smile warmly. Soobin’s heart feels like it's going to jump out of his chest. “I only keep working here so I can see you.”

Soobin’s face turns a bright red, his mouth agape. “Wh- what?”

“My parents tease me about it all the time. About the boy that I fell head over heels for since the day he first walked through those stupid glass doors. I don’t let them hire anyone else because I didn’t want anyone talking to you that wasn’t me!” You chuckle, recalling the slow days when you paced across the white bakery tiles, waiting for him to walk through those doors with a list of items he needed.

“I’ve liked you. I always have.” Your voice comes out in a whisper. Soobin’s ears barely pick up the sound as a group of children run by the shop, loud screeches and giggles as they pass.

“Wh- what?” Soobin stares into your eyes in complete disbelief. “I said I like you too, Choi Soobin.”

He’s silent, a car passes by and you almost jump from the sudden noise. Soobin doesn’t flinch, and for a moment your expression turns into one of fear– afraid that you said the wrong thing until Soobin lets out a series of soft chuckles.

“What is so funny!?” You pout, immediately removing your hands from his face in embarrassment. The audacity of this guy! To just laugh in front of your face after he himself nearly pissed himself from confessing to you.

“Y- you have no idea– no idea!” He begins, his forehead bumping into yours again from laughing. “Y/n, I’ve been going out of my way, doing the stupidest things just to get myself to tell you how I feel.”

You scoff and look down at your lap. “Well.. at least now everything is cleared up.. Right?”

Soobin’s head pulls away, his arms still trapping you in his presence. ‘O-oh um about that..” 

“Earlier.. I was asking you for flour.. Y’know the stuff you bake with? .. You sort of misheard that too.” You cover your mouth with a gap. Soobin senses your guilt and immediately shakes his head.

Soobin finally pulls his arms away and you feel your tense body loosen up. It seems he had no clue of how close he was due to the adrenaline of his confession. “No no! Please don’t worry about it– it was seriously my fault, I couldn’t even get a word out and it was super loud and busy earlier!”

“L- let me get that for you! Gosh, I’m so so sorry!” You exclaim as you jump off the counter to run to the back room to retrieve the said bag. You find Soobin with his hands covering his face in embarrassment as you walk up to him. It seemed you two were more similar than you expected.

“Let's go deliver the flour then, together.” You smile shyly, attempting to lighten the mood. “Before we do though.. Let's make a trade.” You take the forgotten sunflower Soobin had been holding the entire time and hold it to your chest. “You can give me this, and I’ll give you your flour.”

Your voice is warm and oh-so-sweet to Soobin’s ears. He was so used to hearing you speak in your ‘customer service’ voice that being able to have you finally speak to him, and only him, in that gentle tone that made his legs turn to jelly and his heart thump ever so harder.

“Deal.” Soobin smiles and he takes the sunflower from your hand. He gently places the sunflower behind your ear, pushing back a strand of your hair at the same time and your eyes meet once again. His eyes were mesmerizing, almost as if they were pulling you closer. You didn’t even realize how close in proximity you two were now.

Soobin closes the gap between you both, your lips finally connecting for the first time. Your plush lips are soft against his and it’s everything Soobin could have imagined and more. The kiss isn’t perfect– with teeth slightly clashing every few seconds and you giggling in excitement. Both your lips were slightly chapped from the summer heat and the conversation you just had. It didn’t matter to either of you though.

It was summer when Soobin met you for the time, with cheeks flushed and shy lingering gazes. He smiles, dimples on full display at the thought as he stares up into the sinking sun in the distance as you both head towards the festival. 

It’s also summer when the two of you confess and share your first kiss. Soobin comes to realize that summer might just be his favorite season. After all, over the years nothing has ever changed, besides the feelings he’s had all this time now growing ever stronger. And of course, breaking the curse of forever being just the clumsy boy who visited you.

[countessofravenclaw]

The 2023 writing Advent calendar: Day 13

13. Hot Chocolate

So, this is going to be direct continuation of the Day 21 of the last years calendar.

“Matteo is going to freak out when he sees what we have cooked!” Luna squealed excitedly as she picked up the recipe, “So, how do we start?” 

“First we need to boil water,” Ambar pointed to the step one. “Can you pur the water while I chop the chilis?”

“Yep!” Luna said enthusiastically and grabbed the biggest pot she coil possibly find.

“Okay, is it now done?” Luna asked after she and Ambra had finished putting all the different components into the pot. Luna’s apron was almost completely covered with different sauce spotches. 

“No, now you need to leave it to cook,” Monicaa said whole looking at thier concoction. “But I congratulate you. This is actually quite impressive for beginners. You can just add the salt later.”

“We forgot the salt?” Ambar looked at the counters. 

“But, didn’t we cookit it already? Luna asked confused, “I mean we put the meat on the pan.”

“Yes, but that was just the precooking,” Monica explained, “This is a stew that needs to be slow cooked so the meat is tender. It will take about two hours

“Two hours?” Luna  exclaimed, “That long?”

“Well, it is only just 8 am,” Ambar pointed out, “And the everyone’s coming at 12, so there is plenty of time.”

“Oh, okay,” Luna nodded while Monica put the pot on the stove on a low heat, “But what do we do next?” 

“What do you mean?”

“I said I’d be cooking Christmas dinner.”

“It’s boxing day.”

“I know, but it doesn’t matter.” Luna continued, “I can’t leave it to one dish. Mom, what else can we do?”

“Well, everything else is pretty much prepped,” Monica looked around, “They won’t need anything done for another hour…”

“There has to be something! I don’t want just sit around for an hour.” Luna kept insisting. “I need to surprise Matteo. I can even peel potatoes.”

“Actually,” Monica kept pondering, “there is something. I haven’t had the time to start the hot chocolate yet, and we’re going to need a lot of it, meaning multiple batches.”

“We can do that!!” Luna jumped up on her feet, “Where’s the recipe?!” 

“I don’t use one more often than not so wait a moment so I write some ingredients down for you.” Monica grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. “Here. I have made some modifications since the few weddings we catered during the winter.”

“Is it going to be hard?” Ambar took the paper from Monica and Luna was craning her neck to see it. 

“Not hard, just precise,” Monica answered, “Measurement need to be right and you need to be careful about burning the milk. It also can get messy, but I have faith in you.” She leaned toward Ambar briefly and whispered, “You’re in charge.” 

“We got this,” She nodded and handed the paper to Luna so she could take her weddings and engagement rings off and put them on a chain on her neck. She really didn’t want lose them in a vat of boiling chocolate. “Luna, you might want to take your rings off too.”

“Why?” Luna raised her nose off the paper. 

“Do you want Matteo’s mother’s ruby get incased in chocolate?” Ambar looked at her, “Have fun explaining that to him before the wedding next year.” 

“Oh, you are right,” Luna finally seemed to understand, “But could you imagine how cute rings made of chocolate would be?”

“I can but lets focus on this,” Ambar took the paper back, “Okay, first we need milk.”

“On the fridge!” Luna jumped up ready for action. “How much?”

“Two litres,” Ambar answered and grabbed a pot and put it on the stove. Monica’s recipe wasn’t that complicated, but it included all sorts of things that you didn’t put in your everyday store-bought cocoa

“Here’s the milk!” Luna came back with two cartons of milk. “Do I just pour them in there.”

“Yes,” Ambar nodded and started turning up the heat. She though better that she would keep the eye on the milk, while Luna prepared other things. Not that Ambar was some sort of a michelin chef, after she and Simon and had moved into together, she had burned her fair share of different food she had tried to cook without his help… “Next we need to melt a bag of marhsmellows into this and then two bars of chocolate. She chocolate will probably need to be grinded coarsely.”

“I can do that!” Luna said, after dumping the bag of marshmellows into the milk. “I love all the Christmas cooking. I already came up with three different ideas for a gingerbread house for the next year.” 

“Maybe that one won’t topple down,” Ambar laughed slightly. At this point everyone had seen the disastrous contructiona attempt that Luna, Jim and Yam had made. Luna had started chopping chocolate bars down with such a force, you’d think that she was trying to cut down a tree.

“Here, what’s next?” Luna gave Ambar the chopping board and started scanning the paper again. “Peppermint extract, and then sugar… Who knew this many things went into hot chocolate.”

“I think we need to boil this now until the chocolate is melting,” Ambat stirred the pot. 

“This is so much fun!!” Luna did few twirls, “Maybe I should go wake up Matteo and show him what we have been doing.”

“He’ll so grumpy if you do that,” Ambar noted, “Wasn’t this supposed to be a surprise. If I’d try to wake up Simon right now, he’ll fall right back to sleep, even if I put vat of caramel on front of his nose.” 

“Yeah, i’ll let him sleep,” Luna nodded, “Only because I want to party till next morning. Is it done soon?”

“I think so…” Ambar looked at the pot. 

“Uuu, let me taste!” Luna jumped up again. 

“Go ahead,” Ambar nodded and handed Luna the ladle.

“What giant shovel have you been stirring this with?” Luna examined ladle. “You could serve porridge to all the elves at the North Pole with this. I think—”

“Wacth out!” Ambar exlaimed a nanosecond too late. Luna flingled the ladle around in a way that cocoa splattered to almost everywhere. Ambar was able to dock just in time. Luna on the other hand got almost completely douched. “Are you okay? Did you get burns?” 

“I don’t think so…” Luna licked her lips. Maybe the licquid had cooled down enough, thankfully. “...this is delicious.” 

“Yeah, I’ll put this to cool,” Ambar took the ladle from Luna, “You should probably go change.”

“Okay, see you in a bit.” Luna shrugged and dashed to upstairs. Since she and Matteo would be staying the night, she had plenty of clothes. 

“What happened to you?” Matto raised his head off the pillow and Luna crashed inside her room where he had been sleeping, “I though you were decorating, not playing in the mud…? You know what … Do I want to know?”

“It’s a surprise,” Luna said simply as she pulled some clean clothes out of the bag.

Well, well, well... This is what you get when you let Luna lose in the kitchen

[ntmpremium]

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exfoliating with a lip scrub to hydrate and fight flakiness, Philips recommends applying a rich, clear lip balm like Rouge Satin "no" lip balm. too glossy, not too matte" by Dior for a bit of "light glow". And remember to maintain your skin care regimen for a smooth foundation and cumulative results, because as Philips says: "Makeup is just a cover up if you don't do the whole process. . But this is no ordinary YouTube vlogger success story. Petite and almost platinum blonde with a loud, clear voice, Chamberlain wore a life jacket over a tank top and jeans when I met her in a nearly empty dining room at Tower Bar history of West Hollywood. So, what is the recipe for success that will take these local heroes beyond their borders? It will likely lead to the right blend of ancient Chinese traditions and healing ingredients as well as a strong forward-looking approach to the formulation. Here, to celebrate the Lunar New Year, Vogue China's beauty team has selected 13 local products to keep in your sights as

[rp-meme-central]

B. Dylan Hollis’s baking TikToks (continued) - sentence starters

1. “Boy, ______, this sure does smell like a cake, huh?” 

2. “Are you ready for bologna? Good, because there’s a pound of it!” 

3. “Your friends are going to love the circles of indistinct mammal.” 

4. “This is giving me emotions previously unknown to man.” 

5. “Are you supposed to eat this on crackers or on drugs?” 

7. “Normally I’m quite comfortable handling meat, but this is physically disturbing me.” 

8. “You know, a lot of things start with potatoes. French fries, hash browns, famine, communism...” 

9. “Now, I say that disrespecting doughnuts should carry a life sentence, so let’s see if we’re going to jail today.” 

10. “If I have to beat anything else in this recipe I’m going to be charged with domestic violence.” 

11. “Not sure if I’m curious or scared.” 

12. “I wanted to make this last year, but I couldn’t because there was a toilet paper shortage.” 

13. “Don’t look at me. I couldn’t tell you where this is going, I just know it’s the wrong destination.” 

14. “This has to be the most complicated laxative on the planet.” 

15. “You see this? This is concern.” 

16. “The author calls this her comfort food. I call it a mistake.” 

17. “It doesn’t need salt, it needs help!” 

18. “If there’s one thing that I’ve learned, it’s that Jell-O is inevitable!” 

19. “How am I supposed to survive the apocalypse if I can’t survive oats?” 

20. “In my personal experience, depression and ice cream are a match made in Heaven, so I have high hopes for this!” 

21. “I’m going to assume we have the same size package - although, the last time I made that assumption, I ended up stunned and quite self-conscious.” 

22. “Just like my relationships, candy is inevitably unhealthy.” 

23. “This recipe only has three ingredients, so I’m a bit scared.” 

24. “Are you a sorcerer?” 

25. “Well, at least you specified the appliance. I was going to bake this in the dishwasher!” 

26. “It tastes like an identity crisis on a plate.” 

27. “Celery’s just like your parents - dirtier than you think.” 

28. “Good morning, it’s time for mayonnaise.” 

29. “If I cut off my feet, do we still have to do this?” 

30. “This stuff is great, you know, you can run your tractor on it!” 

31. “This is from _____. It’s only electrocuted me twice.” 

32. “What is it with dead people and their obsession with this?!” 

33. “I hereby sentence you to be overcooked.” 

34. “Is this bread going to space?” 

35. “Yes, I know it’s hot, you git, it’s an oven!” 

36. “Just imagine cooking this and trying to tell yourself that everything is okay.” 

37. “There is no suitable amount of lard! Never has been, never will be!” 

38. “How long does sadness take to cook?” 

39. “Now we seal and shake vigorously, preferably to kill whatever demon we’ve summoned.” 

40. “It tastes like sunscreen!”  

[drarrily-we-row-along]

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (Part 13)

Part 13: Mulled Wine

Harry didn't like to let himself think about being in love with Draco Malfoy.

If he didn't at least try to stop himself from thinking about being in love with the other man, Harry was quite certain that he'd never think of anything else.

Today has been one of those days when Harry couldn't quite take his mind off of Draco. Whenever he wasn't helping a customer (or sometimes even when he was) he was watching Draco; watching him laugh and talk with the people in their shop, watching the way his hands moved, confident and graceful as he worked. He couldn't help but wish that Draco's eyes were looking at him, sparkling with mirth as he laughed; he wanted his capable hands to touch him, to hold his hands, to wrap around his arm, to trail his fingers over his face and neck.

Draco looked up and caught him looking while Harry was straightening after they closed, and smiled at him; expression open and eyes crinkling around the corners, and Harry's breath caught in his chest. Helplessly, he smiled back and time froze in one of those moments that he and Draco seemed to be having more and more often lately.

"What's on the list today?" he finally asked, forcing himself to look away.

Draco hummed and wandered closer, grace sewn into every line of his body. "Mulled wine and Christmas cards, I think?"

"Mulled wine," Harry repeated, "That sounds lovely."

He laughed, "Yes. It's my great, great aunt's recipe."

"What should I bring?" he asked, feeling that tug of inadequacy that was always at the back of his mind.

(Read more below the cut)

"Yourself," Draco replied, nudging Harry with his shoulder as he moved around the counter to help tidy the gloves Harry had been working on. "But I wouldn't say no to Thai from that place near your house," he said with a little grin.

Harry felt his shoulders relax and he nodded, "Pad See Eiw for you?"

"What was that soup you got last time?" Draco asked, eyebrows furrowing as he tried to remember. "Coconut and curry?"

"Khao Soi?" he laughed, "You complained that it was too spicy every time you stole a bite."

"But it was so good!"

He shook his head, it was ridiculous to feel this fond of someone.

"Are you getting it again?" he asked.

Harry shrugged, "It was the special last time, I don't know if they'll still have it. I was thinking Massaman Chicken Curry."

"Well if they have it, I wouldn't object to sharing a bowl of that, too."

"Alright," he agreed. "Do you want me to just go pick up food and then come straight over?"

Draco nodded, "I can take Helmi with me, if you want," he added. "That Thai place is muggle, right?"

"Yeah," he said, glancing over at Helmi who'd perked her head up out of her nest at the mention of her name, "That would make things easier. Thanks."

"Go on. I'll finish straightening up and meet you back at mine."

"Are you sure?" Harry asked, glancing around to see how much was left to do.

"Positive," he said easily. "We'll see you soon."

----------------------

Draco and Helmi seemed to have been at Draco's for a while by the time Harry arrived, carrying take away bags that he'd put under stasis charms for good measure. He came in to find Draco standing in the kitchen, organizing supplies for the mulled wine; at least, that's what Harry assumed the ingredients were for.

Draco had changed into a cozy jumper and jeans, but his feet were still bare and Harry's heart tripped in his chest at the sight.

"Hey," he said, setting the bags down on the island where Draco was still setting spices out.

"Hi," he said with a little smile in Harry's direction as he tucked a loose strand of hair behind his ear. "I thought maybe we should get the wine on the oven first and then eat? It's supposed to cook low and slow."

"Yeah," Harry said, as he took off his jacket, "Whatever you think. The food's got a stasis charm on it, so it'll keep."

"Okay," Draco said as he hauled out the dutch oven from under the counter and put it on the burner. "These two oranges need to be sliced first," he said, rolling one to Harry and keeping the other. "Like quarter inch slices," he added.

Harry carefully sliced his, measuring them against Draco's before bringing them over to the stove.

"We're going to squeeze out the juice a bit without wrecking them too much," Draco said as he did just that, "And then put them straight in."

Draco finished first and grabbed the bottle of wine off the counter, "Here, you uncork this and pour it in, I'm going to measure out the brandy."

"Brandy?" Harry laughed as screwed in the corkscrew.

He nodded, "The heat makes some of the alcohol evaporate out of the wine," he said. "But brandy also just has that warm, festive feeling, you know?" He shrugged, "Besides, it's only like a cup of brandy."

"Only," Harry echoed with a chuckle but did as he was told and poured in the wine and Draco dumped in the brandy next.

"Okay," he said, checking a recipe card that looked a bit faded. "Then four tablespoons of honey," he said, handing the jar over to Harry. While Harry was measuring that out, Draco added six cinnamon sticks, a small handful of star anise, and a small handful of cloves.

"Seems very official," he said, nodding at Draco's hand as he dumped in the cloves. "Is that what the recipe card says?"

"Actually," Draco said, holding it out to show him, "it is."

Harry laughed, "This doesn't seem like a Malfoy family recipe."

"It's my mother's side, actually," he said with a little smile, "And she was a bit of a black sheep."

"Oh?" Harry asked, intrigued.

Draco nodded, "Everyone thought she was an old maid. She never married and lived alone, or at least that's what everyone believed."

"Sounds ominous," he said as he stole a cranberry out of the bowl Draco was bringing over and popped it in his mouth.

He mock glared at him, "We need to put half a cup of these in."

Harry grabbed the measuring cup and Draco continued.

"She apparently had very little contact with anyone in the family. Around the holidays she'd visit with everyone but never for parties," he said as he took out a spoon and gave the mulled wine a good stir before turning on the burner.

Harry went over and started unpacking the food, "So that's how you got her recipe for mulled wine?"

"Yes," he said, "but mother told me that there was more to the story. Apparently," he continued, "In the year before she died, she brought her partner with her to all of the family gatherings. A lovely woman named Matilda, who was a skilled cook but hadn't a magical bone in her body."

"No!" Harry gasped, "What a plot twist!"

"I know," he laughed, "Apparently, it was shortly after Andromeda had told the family that she was going to marry a muggle and got disinherited. My mother actually reached out to them and went to visit several times before she passed away. She and Andromeda inherited everything from her after Matilda died."

"Wow," Harry mused. "Seems like there's one in every generation."

Draco swallowed a bite of his food and speared a piece of chicken on Harry's plate before saying, "Only on mother's side. On father's side, no one put a toe out of line; which is why only having one heir is traditional for that side of the family but having multiple children is the tradition for mother's side."

"Interesting," Harry said, because he found that there were so many things about pure blood culture that he didn't understand.

Draco hummed, "Yes, imagine father's disappointment that I've taken after my mother's side and become the black sheep."

He reached over and covered Draco's hand with his, "It's all nonsense anyway."

"Right," Draco said, nodding, "But it's not to him so," he shrugged. "It's hard to always be a disappointment."

Harry's heart twisted hard in his chest, "You're not-"

"I am," he interrupted, "as far as my father is concerned. But I always have been, so," he lifted a shoulder again, "It is what it is."

"You," Harry started, shaking his head, "Draco, you are the best person I know. You've changed my life in so many ways and I-" he broke off, not wanting to show his hand too much. "I owe you a lot," he said after a moment. "I'm proud that you're my friend, work partner, and fake boyfriend."

That was enough to surprise a laugh out of Draco. "Thanks, Harry," he said, squeezing his hand back before clearing his throat and saying, "So, this is not the soup you had last time," as he pointed to the container on the table. "What is it?"

Harry grinned, "Tom Kha Kai," he said, "It's the special today. Coconut based and more mild."

"Excellent," Draco said as he took a spoonful.

He watched him and he loved him a little bit more for all of the ways that he was brave.

----------------

Later, when after they'd finished the first batch of mulled wine and were halfway through the second, they'd collapsed on the floor in the living room, pushing the Christmas cards aside for later, Harry couldn't resist staring at Draco again.

He looked so pretty in the soft lights that decorated the room, his hair mussed and cheeks rosy, mouth stretched too wide from smiling as he stared up at the ceiling. And Harry couldn't help it, "You're so pretty," he murmured.

"Hmm?" Draco asked, turning his sparkling grey eyes on Harry once more.

"You're," he sighed and rolled so he was laying on his side, looking at the other man properly, "You're just so beautiful."

The flush on the other man's cheeks deepened, "Harry," he whispered.

And Harry did the only thing he could, the only thing that made any sense at all, and leaned forward to brush his lips lightly over Draco's.

Draco inhaled sharply and it knocked some sense into Harry's thick skull.

He pulled back, ready to apologize profusely, but Draco followed him, rolling onto his side and chasing Harry's mouth with his own, surging against him the way the tide crashes to shore.

Harry's fingers grasped at him, clenching in his jumper and pulling him closer as Draco's mouth moved against his, grounding himself to Draco. He opened his mouth, running his tongue along Draco's bottom lip and Draco let out a soft, desperate sound, opening for him and drawing him closer still.

After a long moment, Harry broke the kiss to trail kisses along Draco's jaw and chin.

The other man tipped his head back, his fingers sliding into Harry's hair as Harry pressed kisses all along his gloriously long neck.

"Harry," he whispered, so soft and reverent that Harry was fairly certain he'd never heard anything sweeter in his life.

He buried his face in the crook of Draco's neck, breathing him in, as his hand skimmed up his side. He could feel Draco's breath hitch and it made his heart beat faster in his chest, imagining that Draco wanted this, too. He moved his fingers a touch lower, toying with the hem of Draco's sweater, imagining the miles of soft skin underneath.

"Wait," Draco said, voice coming out raw. Then, "wait," he repeated, pulling back slightly. "We've had too much to drink and-"

Harry was snapped back to reality with the force of a comet hitting the earth. He pulled away from Draco, "Sorry," he said quickly, "Shit. Sorry," he repeated as he pushed himself up off the ground. "Godric," he said, tugging at his hair, "I've got to-"

"Harry," Draco said, reaching out for him.

He pulled away, "Sorry. I didn't-" he shook his head. "I wasn't-" he summoned his jacket and hissed at Helmi to come. "Forget this," he begged, "Please."

"Harry-" Draco tried again, but he had already grabbed Helmi and was apparating back to his house.

He collapsed into bed and Helmi crawled in with him, settling close and nudging his chin with her snout. His eyes stung and his chest felt too tight as he tried not to start crying. He couldn't believe that he'd been such an idiot. Draco, beautiful, graceful, intelligent Draco, he didn't want him; of course he didn't.

Years of self control wasted in a single, stupid moment, he groaned and rolled onto his side. Harry curled around Helmi and cried himself to sleep.

Part 12: Ice Skating | Part 14: Coffee

[buckyodinson]

Would you write pre- age of ultron Zemo (or whenever you want) and pregnant reader. I really think he'd be the softest expectant father 🥺

Hello, my lovely! I ended up going for current time Zemo for this, since I think the loss of his family is an important part of Zemo’s story and character! So we’re just gonna ignore the end of tfatws ep 5, and pretend you’re on the run with Zemo instead lmao!

Helmut Zemo x Pregnant!Reader Headcanons

Zemo had been a mess when you told him the news

He was ecstatic at the news, kissing you with so much force he almost pulled the air out of your lungs

He was also incredibly concerned

A life on the run was no life for a child

So he knew he had to find a way for you all to be safe somewhere once the baby arrives

Once you get to your second trimester, he’s found somewhere for you to live out in the middle of nowhere, in the countryside somewhere in Germany

And you’re in an expansive cottage, with a huge garden and wide open fields surrounding you

Zemo wanted lots of green space for your child to play in

And maybe even to keep some animals too

During the whole pregnancy, he is an absolute sweetheart

He does not stop doting on you

Literally does not let you lift a finger

Is more than happy to wait on you all day long, bringing you whatever you may want or need

He’s always rubbing moisturisers and lotions on you, paying extra special attention to your growing bump, littering it with kisses whenever he gets the chance

You especially love when he talks to the bump

The sweet things he says about how much he already loves the little one

And how he absolutely can’t wait to meet them

And what good care he’s going to take of them now and when they’re finally here

And he’s always telling the bump how amazing you are

And what a perfect family you’re going to be altogether

Zemo is convinced it’s a girl

You don’t want to find out until the baby actually arrives

But he is convinced

Zemo is always cooking you foods, and he’s always double-triple checking recipes to make sure every ingredient is safe for you to eat

He’s quite fond of baking with you, and baking often devolves into food fights

Where you’re each covered in flour or butter or you have smears of chocolate all over your faces

And he’ll put whatever it is you’re baking in the oven and go run you a bath

He helps you wash where you can’t reach as well anymore because of the bump, and will bring the baked goods fresh out of the oven up to the bathroom for you to enjoy, and then he’ll hop in the bath with you, getting himself clean too, and just relaxing with you

He’s fiercely protective over you

He lost his family before, he certainly won’t let it happen again

He would kill anyone who came in between him and you

Without hesitation

If anything threatened the life you were about to embark on together

He would do literally anything to protect that life

When the baby finally arrives, he’s whispering praises into your ear throughout the entire labour, telling you you’re doing amazing

When the baby is finally born, and the midwife announces it’s a girl, he has a very brief smug look on his face, before he actually lays his eyes on his daughter

And he promptly starts to cry

As the midwife cleans your daughter, he turns to look at you, beaming from ear to ear

“I’m so proud of you, my love.” he whispers and kisses you

Your daughter is laid against your chest, and you’re pretty sure Zemo doesn’t blink for like 10 minutes, just staring at the tiny little girl in awe

You had discussed some names previously, but in that moment, you knew what you should name her

You hadn’t brought it up with him yet, but as you laid there watching Zemo rock your daughter softly in his arms, you suggested it

“We should name her after your wife”

He looks up at you shocked, and tears begin to pool in his eyes,  “Are you sure?”

“Yes, Helmut. I’m sure.” you reach a hand to wipe at the tears that had fallen, smiling at him

“I love you so much. Rest, my love. You did so well.” he leans over and presses a soft kiss to your forehead

It doesn’t take long for you to fall asleep, the exhaustion kicking in quickly

As he looks at his tiny daughter in his arms, and looks over at you in the hospital bed, he can’t quite believe how lucky he is

Of all the people in the world, he can’t believe he has this wonderful second chance at life

And he knows he isn’t going to waste a second of it.

Zemo taglist (please comment/message/ask if you want to be added/removed):

@noavengers @let-me-read-fanfiction-in-peace @zemodaddy @lulu-yuming @ichigomiluku @multiyfandomgirl40 @gwenebear @aisling1985 @booklover2929 @myeternalsin @moongirl1313 @angiekurosaki @lieutenantn @hibiscusgardenia @plantpottt @whatiswrongwithpeople @writeroutoftime @maldita-insonia @fandomxreaders @loudbluepancake @montypythonsholysnail @bel-13 @ayuoudro @leblubbles @marvelsvision @there-will-be-p-e-a-c-e @and-claudia @multifandombtch @sinister-sleep @moonstuffsteve @endorpuff @thanoshadtosnaptwiceforyou @cryinggarbagebag @eristudytime @grifffins​ @reichelhache @whoreforsamwilson @booksarekindaneat @ajeff855 @sapphiredreamer26 @marvel-trash-bin @tendertales73 @nocturnal-world @buckys-sugardoll @galaxypox @valeskasgf @mochminnie @cheekybluefox

(tumblr won’t let me tag some of you for some reason, maybe check your visibility settings - I’ll keep trying!!)

[queensoybean0724]

Succession Chapter 20 (Karl Heisenberg/female reader) Resident Evil Village fanfic

Title: Succession Chapter 20

Characters: Karl Heisenberg, female reader, the Duke

Rating: PG-13

Summary: you discover a long lost relative has died and made you his sole beneficiary.  While flying to collect your inheritance, you crash in a village in Romania.

Author’s Note: I do not own the characters from Resident Evil Village.  This is a work of fiction.  Anything remotely similar to anyone living or dead is purely coincidental.

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter 20

Heisenberg pulled a clean undershirt from the tall, five-drawer chest next to the bed.  You lay naked, your head in your hand and your elbow on the pillow.  The sheets were pulled up over your breasts as you watched him put on his clothes.  Despite lots of begging and pouting from you, Heisenberg had to attend to his metal army and continue his work of vengeance on Mother Miranda.

As much as you loved watching him remove his clothing, there was something equally arousing watching him put on his clothing.  He stepped into his underwear and khaki pants, grabbing his belt and sliding it through the pant loops.  He pulled the undershirt over his head and buttoned up the khaki shirt, tucking them both into his pants.  The three items he always kept around his neck were next, followed by his hat.  His sunglasses followed and lastly, his long overcoat.  The ensemble was complete.

Heisenberg sat next to you on the edge of the bed, putting on his socks and boots.  “I need to continue my work down in the lab, but I need supplies from the Duke.  He’ll be here in a few hours.  But time is of the essence and what I have to accomplish will take all day,” Heisenberg said.  The last few days were less working in his factory and more fucking your brains out.  He wasn’t complaining in the least, but he knew that lots of work still needed to be done and he wasn’t forgetting the inevitable clash between him and Miranda.  The feeling in his gut was growing; the battle needed to be fought and he needed to vanquish her.

“Well, why don’t you give me a list and I can get everything from the Duke,” you offered as you sat up in bed, “and while I’m there, I would like to see if he can get any toiletries and other items I’m running low on…”

Heisenberg was quiet for a moment as he tied his boots.  You could see him mulling over things in his head...whether or not he should let you go on this little excursion.  Everything he needed were things that he had bought several times over, so he knew the Duke would know exactly what was on the list.  But the worry of you running away was always in the back of his mind.  He felt certain that with everything that had happened between you and him and the confession of love on both sides that you wouldn’t want to leave even if the opportunity presented itself.  Heisenberg knew that you would get what was needed and return to the factory.  But there was also the possibility of Mother Miranda snatching you the moment his back was turned.  He would never forgive himself if she got her hooks into you and used you for one of her sick, delusional experiments in order to get Eva back.

In the end, he did trust you and he wanted to show you that trust.

“Okay, I’ll give you a list,” Heisenberg said, “just give it to the Duke and he’ll know exactly what I need.  But the moment you are finished, march right back to the factory.  Close and lock the doors and hit the red button to the right.  It will signal an alarm and let me know that you are safe…”

“I promise,” you said.

Heisenberg smiled and leaned forward, placing a gentle kiss on your lips.  You lifted your hands to his face, moaning softly.  The sheets fell into your lap, showing your tits to Heisenberg.  A soft giggle lodged in your throat as he opened his eyes and looked down.  He growled softly and broke the kiss.

“Such a cock tease,” he muttered playfully.

You chuckled as Heisenberg went to the table, grabbed a piece of paper,  and wrote his list of supplies.

*

The sliding double doors were heavy and it took a lot of your strength to push them open one by one.  The biting cold air rushed through the doors and nearly took your breath away.  It was cloudy and chilly.  The wind gusted in the distance.  You hadn’t been here that long, but long enough that you could tell snow wasn’t too far off.  Zipping your oversized jacket and making sure your wool gloves were on your hands, you exited the factory and made your way to the gate.

The Duke was seated in the back of his carriage and waiting as always.  You smiled and waved as you got closer to him.  Heisenberg had opened the gates earlier before making his way down into the depths of his factory.

“Well, good morning, Y/N,” the Duke greeted, a smile on his face, “is it just you today?  Is Lord Heisenberg not going to grace me with his presence?”

You shook your head, digging in your pants pocket for the list.  “Not today.  He’s busy and I told him I could get everything.”

“That’s fine with me...gives us some time to get to know one another…” he smiled.  You stood on your tiptoes and handed the Duke the list.  “Oh yes,” he said, looking over the items, “these are supplies that Lord Heisenberg is always in need of.  I know them all very well.”

The Duke handed you a burlap sack and showed you all of the things that Heisenberg needed.  One by one, you placed the items in the bag.  You also looked around at things that might catch your eye.  Thankfully, the Duke had toiletries and supplies that you needed.  You placed them in the sack along with the rest.

“Duke,” you began, “I also wanted to see if you could help me with something.  I wanted to do something nice for Karl.  Do you have anything that he likes that he doesn’t always purchase?  Maybe ingredients for a meal that he likes to splurge on from time to time?”

The Duke thought for a moment.  “I do happen to know that Tochitura de Pui is one of his favorite dishes!  I can’t remember the last time he bought ingredients for that meal.  Here…” he handed you a rectangular piece of paper with ingredients and directions for preparation.  The Duke went through the recipe and gave you all the products needed, giving you instructions on how to prepare it.  “Also…” he added, “another thing he doesn’t splurge on often is Asbach Uralt!  It’s a German brandy that his father and grandfather loved.  Lord Heisenberg buys a bottle of this a few times a year.  This would be a lovely surprise for him...and coming from you, it would make his day!”

He handed you the bottle of the alcohol and you inspected the writing.  It was in German, of course, but it filled you with excitement.  Heisenberg had cooked for you ever since he brought you to the factory.  Aside from the occasional meals you fixed yourself when he was off working, it was always him cooking.  You wanted to do this….to cater to him and make him happy with something he loved and would never see coming.

“Thank you so much for everything, Duke,” you said as you reached into your pockets, “I have some American currency, I hope you can use it or exchange it…”

“Not necessary,” he said, putting up his hand to stop you.

“Oh, please, take it,” you insisted, “you let me have that bracelet that I gifted to Salvatore.  I insist you take this!”

“Y/N,” he began, “I am more than happy to help you free of charge.  I do feel sorrow for the circumstances that brought you here.  I can’t imagine how traumatic a plane crash is.  But in the few times I have seen you here with Lord Heisenberg, I can sense a difference in him.  For years, he has been unhappy.  I assume he has told you what happened to him…”

You nodded your head.

“...then you know the horrors he has seen as a young child and growing up under the rule of Mother Miranda.  It has hardened his mind and his heart.  But since you have been here, I’ve noticed that icy exterior he has put up has slowly begun to melt.  You are a kind woman, Y/N, and you two are good for each other.  Consider these supplies as payment from me…”

You had to swallow the lump that formed in your throat.  The kindness and generosity he has shown you had not gone unnoticed.  Between him, Heisenberg, and Moreau, you have been lucky enough to see the small ounce of good this village had to offer.

“Thank you so much, Duke,” you said, “and if there is anything I can do for you, please let me know…”

The Duke smiled.  “Of course, I will.  Is there anything else you might need from me?”

“I think that’s it,” you smiled, holding the bottle of Asbach Uralt in one hand and pulling the hefty sack over your shoulder, “I’ll see you later!  Goodbye!”

“Take care,” he said as you closed the gate behind you.  He watched you walk up the path to the factory, making sure you were okay.  Once inside, you gently placed the sack and the bottle on the ground and closed the sliding double doors, locking them securely.  Lastly, you pressed the red button, alerting Heisenberg that you were safe and sound.

Heisenberg was pouring liquid metal into the press, making a cog for a broken machine.  He smiled when he heard the alarm.

[aseioh]

Of Cakes and Late Celebrations

Author’s Notes: This was supposed to be posted on Mother's day. But just like this fic, I got derailed and ended up being late. (picture taken from the internet)

It was Mother's day.

Or to be precise it will be Mother's day in 15 hours 25 minutes. It shouldn't be a problem for Alcina, she usually just buys something from the Duke to give to Mother Miranda.

Unfortunately, such a thing is not possible right now. The Duke was delayed with his routine arrival at the castle opening, something about a spooked horse and lycans trying to get a nibble.

Honestly she lost interest after the word delayed was spoken through the phone. How is she going to remedy this. The gift itself was one of the finest silk she was able to obtain, she was sure Mother would appreciate a new ritual robe.

This is bad. To show up without a gift on this special day. She was sure she would be made a mockery during the gathering. Whats worst was that fool Heisenberg would be the first to lead with his pathetic insults.

Just the thought made Alcina's blood boil.

”I should send Bela to switch that man's shampoo with dog shampoo. Although the man still smells like wet dog. No. I'll think of something more devious.“

But back to the matter at hand. It's almost Mother's day and she doesn’t have a gift. Taking a deep drag off her cigarette, she considers her dwindling options.

At western part of the village

Donna is also facing a similar problems.

"What do you mean you're not coming?! Where am I supposed to find a present at this hour?!" Angie's raspy voice filtered through the phone "do you know how hard it is to find a 1st edition book on occult and rituals."

"Apologies Miss Angie, but the horse spooked and the carriage suffered a broken wheel. Even if the servants manage to haul themselves your house to the Duke's location and back it would still be too late." The main servant said trying to sound as apologetic as he can come across.

"This would not do" Donna said finally in her normal voice.

Somewhere inside the Stronghold.

Karl Heisenberg was having a meltdown.

"YOU STUPID LYCANS! I GAVE YOU ONE JOB AND YOU COULDN'T EVEN DO IT RIGHT!!" Heisenberg paces around the small assembly hall. Ten Lycans looked very apologetic, although it was very hard to tell from their looks. One even lets out a soft whimper.

“I told you to stall The Duke for a while. I didn’t said to derail him completely. The man has a package for me, now how am I supposed to get it!?” Heisenberg seethes.

His plan was a simply one really. Stall The Duke so that he would arrive at Castle Dimitrescu late, that way Alcina would not get her package and present it to Mother Miranda. That would show her, a little payback for calling him a child.

What he didn’t count on was the utter incapability of the Lycans to follow simple directions. Now even he doesn’t have a gift. Oh Miranda’s gonna blow a gasket.

“Augh... I hate the consequences of my actions” He lamented

 At Moreau’s Reservoir

“NOOOOOOO!! That’s not fair, that’s not fair!!!” Moreau starts throwing his stuff on the floor. He had finally saved up his money to buy Mother Miranda that nice jewelry that would go perfectly with her black wings.

“Someone’s gonna pay” He vows to take revenge on the Lycans responsible for his problem.

 After all his pet fish has been hungry for some Lycan meat.

 Castle Dimitrescu (13 hours until Mother’s day)

“I have gathered you here today for a very important meeting” Alcina starts looking at the sad (Donna) and tearful (Moreau) faces of her so called ‘siblings’. Heisenberg is surprisingly calm which puts Alcina on high alert, but lets it slide in favour of the more pressing matter

“We have a big problem. The Duke will not arrive on time for Mother’s Day. That means all the presents we bought for Mother will not arrive”

“We need a solution, any ideas?”  

“We kill the Lycans responsible and feed them to my fish”

“Yes Moreau, but that’s after we solve this problem” Donna said and tries to placate a Moreau by patting him at the back.

“Whoa, that’s a bit dark but I like it. And Moreau is right, we’re gonna make fish food out of those Lycans” “Better off those basdards, after all I don’t want to implicate myself” Heisenberg thinks

“People, you’re missing the point here” Alcina says pinching her nose to ward off an incoming headache. “Listen, we don’t have time. You know Mother Miranda, She’ll say she wasn’t really expecting something and then low-key punishes us for missing the day. We don’t want a repeat of the 1967 incident do we?”

Moreau whimpers from the trauma.

Donna goes into a slight trance and starts to shake.

“Alright, alright, that’s enough” Heisenberg stands. “Why don’t we just bake something and say it’s from all of us”

 *beat*

“Do you know how to bake?”

“I work at the Factory, I make steel molds for a living how hard could it be?”

“That doesn’t answer my question Heisenberg”

“We could make a small doll” Donna pipes up

“Sorry Donna that would still take time. And I don’t think we have the right materials on such short notice.” Alcina says

“For someone who’s looking for a solution you sure are shooting down all of them”

“Because it’s not feasible Heisenberg.” Alcina huffs “Can you gather all the materials in less than 10 hours? No? Of course not”

“And I keep telling you just BAKE A CAKE!”

“I don’t know how to bake, child! I’m a BLOODY COUNTESS not hired help” Alcina bellows at Heisenberg

“I know how to bake”

Everyone turns to Donna.

“Really?”

“Of course, I used to watch my Mother bake cakes before the accident. I just need help decorating. I never got a hang of that part” Donna beams with pride as she explains the basics of baking

“And we can gather the ingredients no problem. You have a pantry here somewhere right Alcina?” Moreau asked

“Of course. We always have a full pantry for the servants.” At that Heisenberg looks at Alcina with a hint of disbelief

“What? We need them healthy to serve us. I’m not a complete monster.” Alcina defends

“In any case we should start early. It takes time to cool and decorating is hard”

 Castle Kitchen (12 hours 30 minutes before Mother’s Day)

It was truly a sight to see. In a way it was enough for the Castle’s servants to wet themselves in fear when they saw the 4 Lords gathered at the kitchen in various forms of concentration. Needless to say, everyone was warned to steer clear of the kitchen for now.

Moreau was together with Donna supporting her with mixing the wet ingredients. Meanwhile, at the other side of the cooking station Alcina and Heisenberg are charge of measuring out the dry ingredients.

“You need to be precise, don’t put too much. Remember what Donna said and look at the damn recipe”

“I know what I’m doing you damn woman. I’m all about precision. Why don’t you move away and get that mixing bowl at the top shelf.” Heisenberg grouched

“I’m not your servant. And I certainly will not start fetching stuff for you” Alcina shot back

“Alcina, we need to work together. We don’t have time and you’re the tallest of us all. Please cooperate with Karl just this once. Please?” Donna implored

“Once. I’m helping him for this one time only. When I get my hands on the Lycan responsible for this problem, I’m gutting him and throwing him at Moreau’s reservoir.” At Donna’s admonishment of Alcina, Heisenberg gives a shit eating grin, showing some rather very pointy canines.

“And Heisenberg, stop provoking Alcina.” Donna adds

“Fine, you’re no fun Donna”

Suffice to say, the baking went well. Who knew that the 4 Lords working together would be a great success? If only Mother Miranda saw her children working together peacefully she might have had a heart attack and thought that she suffered one as well.

Or she might have been dreaming.

 Castle Kitchen (6 hours before Mother’s Day)

“Alright, the cake has cooled down completely, So what color will be the icing?” Donna asked

“Yellow” “Cream” “Light Blue” the other three said simultaneously.

 *beat*

“Light blue? Really? Not everything needs to be manly Heisenberg”

“And not everything needs to be boring like your color, Alcina”

“It should be yellow, like Mother’s sunny smile” Moreau explains

“And in which ever universe has Mother ever smiled like the sun?” Heisenberg counters Moreau

“Hey now. No need for that tone!”

“Tsk, sorry Moreau” Heisenberg apologizes to a quiet Moreau

“Fine, let’s do pastel yellow it’s easier for the eyes anyway” Donna supplies, getting ready to start coating the cake with the yellow cream

 Inside the Sanctuary

“Happy Mother’s day”

“We hope you like the cake Mother”

“Yes, we poured out our love in baking it. I hope you appreciate it” Heisenberg said

“Why thank you loves. This is a wonderful surprise. And Moreau said that you all worked together in baking it. How wonderful!” Mother Miranda said grateful for once that her children worked together without collateral damage (that she knew of).

“Although Heisenberg, I heard something interesting from Urias” Mother Miranda looks pointedly at Heisenberg, who for some reason starts to sweat and turn pale.

‘oh shit’ “Really Mother? Good news I hope” Heisenberg tries to bluff his way out.

“Why it was quite peculiar really. He said that you got 10 of his Lycans for a special project. I wasn’t aware that you have some side projects”

 The 3 Lords turn to Heisenberg

“Wait what?”

“I KNEW IT!!” Alcina unsheathes her claws

“You’re responsible for this mess in the first place!!”

“Really guy relax, if anything I just proved that we need more than one traveling merchant in the village for a successful and on time delivery” Heisenberg starts to carefully ease his way to the nearest exit.

 “GET HIM”

In the end, Alcina was more than ready to feed Heisenberg to Moreau’s pet fish. Only Donna stopped her, citing Moreau would probably be inconsolable if his pet got indigestion from all the metal.

And that is how Heisenberg saw himself in doggy jail for a week along with his Lycan cohorts. Mother Miranda did get her Mother’s day gifts from her children although a bit later than expected.

 And the cake?

 The cake was surprisingly delicious.

[1plus1kiyoomi]

Chapter 8: Actions Speak Louder Than Words

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[masterlist]

“Are you sure your grandma won’t mind taking care of Rice today?” You ask Kita as you two go back to your car. He humms, starting the engine of the car. “She’s really nice and down to earth. No wonder why you’re such a good boy.”

“You call me good boy as if I’m Rice,” Kita sighs, and follows the map on the monitor.

“Well, like father like son,” you chuckle and you hear him click his tongue in annoyance.

“Where are we going anyways?” Kita changes the topic, eyes on the road.

“You’ll see when we get there,” you say excitedly.

Kita continues to drive for about 10 more minutes until the navigation devive announces that you two have arrived at your destination. You hop out of the car and Kita follows behind you. You skip going to the elevator of the building, thrilled about the date you planned.

You two arrived in front of the entrance of the store and Kita reads one of the posters posted outside in confusion. “Learn how to bake treats for you and your furry friend...”

“If you wanted to bake, we could have just done it at home,” he tells you as you enter the store.

You sushed him and proceeded to the counter. “I don’t want to do the dishes.”

“Lazy ass,” he mumbles, but you hear, making you kick his calf weakly. You continue to speak with the lady behind the counter to confirm and pay for your reservation.

You have rented the whole place for a time period for the two of you. Since you’ve posted that video with him, fans have been speculated on who he is and are making theories. Being seen in public and risking his privacy are two of the things you least want on your date right now.

“You’ve reserved the whole place this morning, Miss (L/N). And you wanted to make dog treats, and cookies?” The staff confirms with you and you just nod and hand her your card. Kita sighs in disbelief. He didn’t want you to spend so much on your date. “Please come this way.”

She leads you to the kitchen where all baking needs are arranged. It was like the Sugar Rush kitchen but in brighter colors. “You requested for the recipe only tutorial so here is the tablet where you can find all the recipes you’ve requested. Your aprons are here. If you need anything, just press this button and we will assist you.” The staff instructs before leaving you and Kita alone in the kitchen.

Once she’s out of sigh, Kita turns to you. “Isn’t someone supposed to teach us or something?”

You look away, your lips pressed into a pout. “I wanted to spend this time alone with you so I kind of reserved a different type of class,” you explain to him.

He chuckles and messes your hair. “Let’s start baking then. Since you wanted to make a lot today.” He goes at the counter where your aprons are located.

“Can I set up my camera here? Just for documentation. I won’t post it,” you tell him and he nods. You set up the camera and go to the counter as well.

The pink aprons had your names embroidered on it as it’s included in your package. He puts it on without hesitance and hands you yours. While you are trying to tie the back of your apron, Kita approaches you and ties it from in front of you. Basically, he’s hugging you.

He notices your red face and asks you about it. “What’s wrong with you?” You don’t answer him and hold up the tablet to your face. You aggressively look for the first recipe, not able to look at him in embarrassment.

“First, we’re gonna make the sweet potato biscuits. Baby, can you get these ingredients for me? 1/2 cup peanut butter, then sweet potato puree in the same measurement. 4 eggs. 6 cups of whole wheat flour,” you narrate and Kita goes to the shelves to get them for you. You start preparing the ingredients while Kita preheats the oven and cleans the baking trays.

“These are a lot. I don’t think Rice can finish all of these,” Kita states, scrolling through the tablet to check the next recipes you will be following.

“It’s not all for Rice. It’s for the dogs I’m going to adopt.” You start and Kita has his eyebrows raised already from the word dogs. “I’m actually planning to start a foundation on stray and unwanted dogs. I plan to adopt all the dogs in the city compound and provide them a safer and friendlier shelter before they find a home. I found this abandoned land near our place and bought it last week. I’m still looking for someone who can feed and look after the dogs full-time since I’m busy with school.”

You mix the puree, peanut butter, and eggs first. Then, add the flour last. Kita just watches you, admiring you from the side. You sounded so proud and passionate about your plan. His heart beats faster just from the thought of it. He knows how busy you are with school and your work, but you still manage to spare some time in helping these dogs.

“Don’t just look at me, babe. Help me shape these treats,” you complain and he stands next to you. The new pet name causing him to smile for a bit. He starts rolling the dough in silence and you wait for him to finish, the cutter shaped in a dog bone in your hand.

You put the treats in the oven to bake for 13 minutes. While you two wait, you start making the frozen. Your eyes are stuck on the screen, looking for the perfect flavor for Rice. “I think he’ll like the peanut butter and banana more.”

“Nope. Strawberry and mangoes.” Kita disagrees with you.

“I know our son better than you. We’re making the banana and peanut butter,” you argue but he doesn’t give any reactions. “Fine. Let’s make both and see which he likes more later.”

You both start making the dog-friendly frozen yogurt. Your recipe only needed a cup of yogurt, 1/4 cup peanut butter and one mashed banana. ‘It seems edible,’ you think before taking a spoonful and eating it. ‘Weird but not bad.’ Kita catches you on act and he grimaces at what you just did. “It’s human food!”

“We’re making this for a dog,” he rebuts. You take a look at his yogurt mixture, and stretch your arm to his mixing bowl. He moves it away from you but you go after it. He stretches his arm up, holding his bowl in the air. “No. This is for Rice.”

“It’s just yogurt with mangoes and strawberries!” You fold your arms together, glaring at him.

“Are you Rice?” He deadpans so you turn and go back to your area. Kita puts the bowl back on the counter top, looking at you from time to time to make sure you won’t eat from it. He looks at the mixture he made and pokes his spoon in it. He licks the back of the spoon and you see it.

“See! You’re doing it!” You point and try to take a spoon from his bowl again, but he quickly hides it from you. “You’re a meanie!” You stick your tongue out at home and he mirrors your action, annoying you. “It doesn’t matter. Rice will like my frozen yogurt better.”

You hear the oven’s alarm go off so you forget about your little banter and run to the oven. You open it and quickly touch the steel tray, forgetting that it’s hot. You wince in pain and Kita clicks his tongue before going over with oven mitts. He takes the trays out and puts it on the counter to cool.

“Let me see your hand,” he orders you, removing the mitts from his hand and placing it beside the trays.

“It’s fine. It was a quick touch anyways,” you put your hand behind your back but Kita gently grabs your wrist to expose your burnt fingers. He slowly pushes your head back with his finger on your forehead, causing you to giggle because you know what’s about to come. Before he can start to scold you, you beat him to it. “I’m so clumsy and excited. I should be more careful next time.”

He narrows his eyes at you before giving the treats his full attention. Yours is also back on the treats, not minding the uncomfortable burn on your fingers. You don’t want to ruin your date just because you got hurt from your very own actions.

“Try it.” Kita takes one piece and hands it to you. Shaking your head, you for an x using your arms. “Why not? We made this with human food.” He tries to convince you using your own words. Hesitantly, you take the treat from his hand and take a small bite. You spit it out immediately and he starts laughing.

“It tastes awful! It’s like dirt!” You complain, running to the water dispenser at the corner of the room. “I hate you!” You stay away from him, upset.

“Come back here,” he tells you but you shake your head. “I’ll take a bite, too. Just come back here.” You slowly take small steps towards him, a cup of water ready for him. He takes a small bite from the treat and then another one. You gasp in disgust, moving away from him again. “You’re over reacting. It does not taste that bad. It’s actually pretty good.”

You gag from his words and he pulls you back by your wrist. You offer him the cup of water and takes it. “No wonder why Rice likes eating dirt.”

“How do you know what dirt tastes like?” Kita asks you, turning the tables. You chuckle sarcastically before looking at him.

“Oh, you’re changing the topic now, baby?” You give him a sly look and he just shrugs. You leave the treats alone to cool and you two proceed to making the cookies.

The Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Ingredients

227 g unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup caster sugar (or white sugar)

1 large egg

2 Tbsp water

1 and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups flour, sifted

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp kosher salt

chocolate chips

“Okay so first you cut the butter into smaller pieces and cream it with both of the sugar,” you read the instructions on the tablet. Kita takes a whisk and starts creaming it manually. “You’re not going to use the electric mixer babe?” You look at his arm and his sleeve is tightening on his bicep from whisking. “You know what, stick to what you’re doing. You’ve already started it.” You lean your elbows on the counter, and goggle on his arm muscles. ‘To be held by those arms and chok-.’

“Done. What’s next?” His voice snaps you out of your thoughts. You hurriedly look for the tablet, obviously distracted. ‘She really was just staring at my arms the whole time.’

“Next is to add an egg, water, and the vanilla extract,” you instruct and he follows. You on the other hand, prepare the dry ingredients. You sift the flour, salt and baking soda, creating a fog made of the powders.

“(Y/N),” Kita calls you sternly so you carefully do it this time. Scared, you clean up the dusts of flour on the counter. You give the dry ingredients to Kita and he mixes it together. It’s time to choose to the chocolate chips.

“Milk chocolate.”

“Dark chocolate.”

You competitively stare at each other before Kita grabs both. He puts 1/4 cup of each, but you’re unsatisfied. “More.”

“If I add more this will just become a chocolate chip with cookie,” Kita tells you. You take the jars of chocolate chips and pour more. Kita takes a deep breath in, extending his patience. He mixes the chips with the dough then puts it in the fridge so you’ll stop adding more chocolate to it.

The dog treats have dried so you look for a packaging. You find a cute little paper pouch and decide to use it. You grab a random tape and pen from the stationary station. You sit on one of the stools and put your phone on the counter.

“Baby help me name the dogs.” You request to Kita and he obliges. He sits beside you, very much interested in naming the dogs with you. “So luckily, there are only 20 dogs at the pound. So we need to put three pieces of treats per bag. You put the treats in and I’ll write their names on the bag.”

“Okay,” Kita complies and you scroll through your phone to find the photo album of the dogs. This is one of the times he finds you serious and loves the look on you. He likes you being playful and childish, but he digs this relaxed and composed personality as well.

You show him a picture of a dog, a smile growing on your face. Your smile is infecting him, he can’t hold his in. “She’s cute right? Should we name her Carrot? She has a brother who we should name Pumpkin.”

“You’re naming the dogs after crops?” Kita raises an eyebrow and you nod eagerly. “It’s because of Rice’s name, isn’t it?”

“They’re Rice’s siblings, babe. It’s normal to name them after crops.” You explain, writing the name Carrot on the paper bag. He scoffs, his smile growing even wider. He leans his elbow on the counter, the side of his head on his palm. A strand of hair drapes on your face, so his free hand tucks it on the back of your hair. You eye from the side, his stare and action causing you to turn red.

“We should name the dog Tomato,” he suggests, obviously making fun of your blushing face. “To give tribute to your face right now.”

After baking the cookies and putting them in packages, the two of you head to Osamu’s store for takeout and give him your baked goodies. You then head to his grandmother’s house to pick Rice up.

“Oh, it really is not Ayako,” his grandmother, says and Kita stiffens. “I was wondering why she was acting like a stranger this morning. What’s your name dear?”

“(Y/N),” you say politely, suspicious of Kita’s sudden change in behavior.

“Are you my Shinsuke’s girlfriend?” She asks you and you look at Kita. This will determine your relationship.

“She’s a friend,” Kita answers, breaking your heart. And you thought you were something after that kiss and your date today. “We’re heading out now. I’ll visit you soon. Don’t forget about your checkups, okay?”

Your can’t even think of anything. Kita’s words are repeating in your head like a broken record.

‘She’s a friend.’

‘She’s only a friend.’

‘She’s only my friend.’

‘I’m a friend.’

‘I’m only friend.’

‘I’m only his friend.’

“(Y/N), let’s go,” Kita calls you, Rice already in his arms. You politely bow to his grandmother before following after him. You go back to your car, more quiet than usual. Rice is sleeping on your lap, probably tired from playing with Kita’s grandmother the whole morning. “You’re quiet. What’s wrong?”

“Do you really see me just a friend?” You finally ask, looking out of the window. He puts the gear on parking mode, and his hand goes reaches out to squeeze your cheeks before he makes you face him.

“I only said that because my grandmother watches your videos. If I say yes, she’ll most likely share it to her friends, the nurses and doctors at the hospital, and pretty much anyone she knows,” Kita explains, letting go of your cheeks.

‘You didn’t even answer my question.’ You give up from fighting any further, already tired from baking. You close your eyes and force yourself to sleep so you won’t think about his words. Sleeping the whole ride, you are shock too see that you’re already back to your house.

The three of you enter the house, and head straight to the dining room to eat. After eating, Kita hands you the frozen yogurt he made at the baking studio. “I made another one for you. It’s with your favorite fruits.”

You are still sulking from his words, but you are weak for his actions. You take a clean spoon and start munching on the frozen yogurt. He takes your burnt hand, so you stop eating. He puts your fingers near his lips and he kisses them. You choke on the yogurt, surprised by his move.

“I wanted to do that since a while ago but we were in public,” he tells you, then shifts his body closer to yours. He cups your cheeks and pulls your face close to his. “This, too.” He plants a short kiss on your lips then moves away from. “Get some sleep. You look tired.”

‘Actions speak louder than words, (Y/N). Actions speak louder than words.’

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Facts:

It's important to mix your dry ingredients in the right order, because all of your ingredients are fighting for water.

The absence of sugar in a confection allows flour proteins to create gluten, which is why gluten-free foods contain high amounts of sugar.

Egg yolks contain something called lipids, a special kind of fat that adds color and flavor to cookies.

Cheesecakes date back to Roman times, when mild, milky cheeses got a jolt of sweetness from honey.

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Note: I was supposed to post this chapter 3 hours ago, but I fell asleep watching this ASMR baking video HAHAHAHAHA

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[aiweirdness]

A big neural net reviews a smaller neural net's recipes

I’ve used various neural networks to generate recipes, to varying degrees of success. My earliest recipes were generated with char-rnn, which had to learn everything - spelling, punctuation, words - entirely from scratch. Its recipes were terrible (Swamp Peef and Cheese, anyone? Or Chocolate Chicken Chicken Cake?). Later when I started using GPT-2, I was using a neural net that had already seen a lot of recipes online during internet pre-training, and its recipes looked a lot more realistic (although not entirely realistic - there was that recipe for Black Forest Cake that suggested pouring the batter into a toaster, or the jello recipe that starts with “remove all internal rinds”).

GPT-3, an even more powerful text-generating neural net, has seen so many recipes during its internet pre-training that its recipes are boringly plausible. Bake its Black Forest Cake recipe and you’d probably actually get cake at the end, even if it’s not the best cake in the world. Its recipes aren’t funny at a glance, which is why I haven’t posted any of them - until internet linguist Gretchen McCulloch suggested that, rather than have GPT-3 generate its own recipes, I have it rate char-rnn’s recipes. Readers, it worked.

I prompted GPT-3 with two example recipes from allrecipes, each followed by 3 of their human-written reviews. Then, for the third recipe I inserted one of char-rnn’s recipes:

Chocolate Chocolate Cake

1 cup sugar 1/4 cup butter 1 cup margarine 1 cup cocoa 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup margarine 1/2 cup pecans, chopped 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 egg yolk 1/2 cup sugar 1/4 cup chopped pecans 1 cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup cocoa 1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, salt, and salt in a large bowl. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils and stiff peaks form. Add milk and cook until mixture is completely melted. Remove from heat and stir in sugar and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Spread in batter. Sprinkle with pecans.

Yield: 1 servings

And then I let GPT-3 add reviews. Would it mention the excessive lakes of vanilla? The complete lack of flour? The foolhardy reliance on the heroic efforts of a single egg yolk to hold things together?

oxtailsandturnovers Rating: 5 stars 03/04/2007 delicious chocolate recipe!!! and the perfect balance between cocoa and chocolate. and they sure were LONGNECKS! big time rave here. lazy w birthdays w friends and family, try this recipe for something chocolate sweet the ppl will talk about over and over.

AKEMIYUNA Rating: 5 stars appraisal 12/03/2008 Excellent for the kids Halloween party. Everyone got so thrilled by seeing something new on Chocolate in sponge. He even likes nuts separately but it will taste good..

BYOMFYABF Rating: 2 stars 10/01/2008 I could only give it a 2 as I had to make changes to it due to ingredients I had. First, I used Dove Dark Chocolate cocoa instead of Hershey's, no nuts, and the mashed bananas and caramel topping were a must. I did use coffee instead of the hot water, and dark margarine instead of regular, therefore I could not use light whipped cream, but I made homemade whipped cream. It had WAY too much flour in it, but i guess it could have been me measuring heavier than I should have. I also only used 2 cups of flour. it was my first bundt cake, so it was huge!!!

Here’s another batch of reviews, this time of a more chaotic char-rnn recipe:

Simple Soup Alaborate Soup Pie

6 each chopped white perserves; ** (optional but ring) 1/2 cup chopped fresh marjoram 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme 1/3 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup thinly sliced onion 1/4 cup onion (chopped) 1/2 teaspoon garlic; minced 2 small carrots 6 can dry white wine 1 tabasco sauce 1 tablespoon sugar 1/2 cup flour, whipped topping 2 tablespoon chili powder

Marinate: Serves 4. Whip and short under boiling. Add the sliced mushrooms and peppers and stir to coat. Stir the sugar and carrots. In large bowl, beat the egg to make a 1 1/2 tablespoons of the flour. Add shanks and stir it well. Spoon into a frying pan before serving.

Recipe By : DonajehLi Koubmanda

Yield: 8 servings

JEFFREY97389 Rating: 2 stars 03/03/2006 Even though everyone said this was great, I thought it was just 'OK!' The perserves gave a strange flavor to the sauce.

MATTJANDTRACER Rating: 2 stars 01/02/2009 This recipe sounded good. When it came out it tasted a bit like a casserole and not a stew. I used venison instead of deer and pork. I liked the way it turned out, but it wasnt very French.

Hammy Rating: 5 stars The g iving this as a gift as it takes about 10 less minutes but using American cheese and not blended with parsley flakes, lime-flavored gelatin, which is my husband's favorite dish from SuperValu. Just happens to be the creamy sauce. Don't worry about a pie crust.

In fact, the more chaotic the char-rnn recipe, the more chaotic the reviews tend to be, as if GPT-3 has picked up on the chaos and is trying to somehow produce reviews that could plausibly be written by whatever weird humans are visiting this mangled recipe website.

Geilded Peanuts & Crabmeat Basil

3 beef, boneless chops, or thyme, 1 lamber and flince of fresh diced in diagonal 1 parsley 2 large leeks (for garnish) 3/4 teaspoon sesame oil, seeded and peeled 1 any jeans'l-tortilla 1 pepper or cinnamon 1/4 cup baesly pinto beans. (Crushed and thawed; minced fine you recipe) 1 tomato base 1 fat in the last 5 inch plates 1 garlic clove; crushed 1/4 cup dijon mustard

In a large bowl set aside. Remove the sides from the heat and saute with a fork and cover and cook on Low for 6 to 6 hours.

Yield: 6 servings

Morales Rating: 0 stars 03/30/2008 I had high expectations for this recipe, but it was an outright flop. I don't know if the measurements were somehow incorrect or what, but I ended up with a watery mess that certainly wasn't crab salad. My girlfriend, who is a new chef liked it fine, but I really wish that the recipe didn't claim that it made six servings when it really made enough for one, if that's what we were going to call it.

Carole Rating: 5 stars Glorious sobs! This recipe will be delicious for a minumum of 1½ Hours to maximum 2½ hours Time to bring lots of fresh sized potatoes in the house or grow in the age may become quite famous

Amanda Rating: 3 stars 11/13/2009 My friend is having a birthday party and will celebrate with Camping. She's in charge of the dishes and wanted to serve food at the campfire. I'll 10th grade, my easy information for her party. It will not sound strange anyway test this task with a note to work rationally.What to take trees, portable tables for chairs, the main meal, food. I personally love the taste of it but has anyone seen a shepherd (wasn't any spices), oysters. It is sufficient

It does kind of make sense that GPT-3’s recipe reviews aren’t directly complaining about the utter weirdness of char-rnn’s recipes. Probably very few of the recipe reviews in GPT-3’s training data involved baffled complaints about nonexistent or repeated ingredients, or apocalyptic levels of recipe failure. So GPT-3 has learned that even the critical reviews tend to fall within a certain sentiment range. It’s interesting that it tries to emulate char-rnn’s primitive neural net glitchiness - I’ve noticed before that GPT-3 seems to be capable of pretending to be a much simpler neural net.

Subscribers get bonus content: After generating a few reviews, GPT-3 would sometimes go on to generate new recipes (such as “BBQ Cheeseburger Salad” which contains lime jello, whipped topping, and sliced black beans). It may have been deliberately trying to make them terrible to fit in with char-rnn’s recipes.

Speaking of AI-generated recipes: there are some absolute disasters in my book on AI, You Look Like a Thing and I Love You: Amazon - Barnes & Noble - Indiebound - Tattered Cover - Powell’s - Boulder Bookstore

[mavkasilas]

The Perciver that lives in my mind.

About the beard and shaving part:

Well, I kinda thought that Percy is the one who will shave his beard and prefer a clean face. He's definitely that type of gentleman that always want to look neat and tidy.

And then, Oliver is the one who will keep a little bit beard (that kinda short and thorny beard, idk how to describe, my vocabulary is so poor). He will shave his beard too, but before the shaving time he will keep it as long as he could.

Then, Percy always the one shaving Oliver's beard in the bathroom a night before Oliver's Quidditch match. Oliver will lean at the sink, hands on Percy's waist, and playfully stare at his boyfriend. While at the moment, Percy tie his curly hair into a small messy bun, very concentrate on shaving Oliver's beard.

About the style and costume part:

My thought is, for the working day Percy definitely choose the suit ( just imagine the Peaky Blinder style). The colours for the suit are black, dark navy blue and brown.:

When wearing the black suit, he will choose a silky red colour tie

When he choose to wear the dark navy blue one, it will be a white tie AND A TINY GOLDEN SNITCH COLLAR PIN ON HIS SUIT(because, well Puddlemere is navy blue and gold, so.....);

For the brown one, it's kinda like Hufflepuff's vibe but add a little bit Molly vibe, that means u might found a little pumpkin on his sleeves.

For the weekend/holiday, Percy will choose the turtle neck or baggy shirt, just depends on the weather. Idk why I feel the earth tone really suits percy, he gives me a very warm autumn vibe, so I will always stick the colour to those warm colours.

Here we come to Oliver's side, definitely sporty vibe, I have the imagination but sadly I can't describe it. But there's one thing Im very sure that is, Oliver has a bunch of Puddlemere United jumpers with different design.

The most important part is, whenever they are at them, they always wear each other clothes.

About the eating habits and cooking:

Percy is a sweet tooth person, but not so sweet tooth. Like, you thought that he looks like he's drinking a cup of black coffee, but actually he puts spoons of sugar and cream inside of his "black coffee".

On the other side, Oliver is a tea/juice person. Every teatime, he's the one that makes the tea and prepare the desserts, like fruit tart and fruit cakes, well some times maybe fruit tea too.

Percy can eat spicy foods, but Oliver can't

Oliver likes sour flavour, but Percy always can't used to it

Both of them are beer person

Not so into healthy food style but still eat salads every morning

Cooking part, here's quite hard for me. Since Percy grew up in a big family and he is the 3rd brother, I somehow think when he's like 12 or 13, he will help Molly wash the vegetable and prepare the ingredient. Good at preparing those ingredients? Yes, but cooking? Maybe not.

Oliver, a Scottish boy. I believe he has a great bond and relationship with his mother and grandmother. His mother probably taught Oliver every Scottish dish that she know, and his grandmother will taught him all the Scottish dessert, then monthly owl every new recipe to Oliver that he don't even has a clue where his nanny found them.

The Burrow feast part:

So when the burrow is having their monthly feast again, everyone will just get Molly out the kitchen and let her play with her grandchild. The persons that are only allow in the kitchen are:

Percy, who in charge washing/cutting the ingredients

Oliver, own the stove to prepare some Scottish cuisine

Hermoine, in charge of the dessert part

Ron, is only allow standing near the kitchen and passing whatever the people wants

Fleur, helping Hermoine get out those desserts before they got burn in the oven and decorate them.

yea that's it, hope u guys enjoy. I think it's not head canon, just me sharing what will perciver looks like in my mind.

[fortisfiliae]

Promised Part 10 - Tom Riddle x reader

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Masterpost | Masterlist

Summary: In this story, Tom didn’t grow up as an orphan, but with his grandfather and uncle. Reader’s sister got very sick and the Gaunts offer their help. But not without asking for something in return.

Disclaimer: Please be aware that I don’t condone any of this in real life. (GIF is not mine)

Warnings: Arranged marriage

Word count: 3k

Part 10 - Mors Grano

The days after Avery’s poor attempt of gathering information went by quite eventfully. Not only had Avery and Lestrange almost gotten expelled by Dippet for what they had done, but had received the worst detention you had ever heard of. 

Every day, up until the N.E.W.T.s would start, they had to help Mr Carpe, Hogwarts’ caretaker, to clean every last bit of the castle. Without magic of course. And when they weren’t scrubbing floors, cleaning windows, or polishing trophies, they were copying the school rules on parchment, by hand. The amount of paper they had to fill looked like it wouldn’t even fit into an entire classroom, had it not been rolled up. 

Even if they still wanted to, their new schedule didn’t even give them enough time to trail, or even think about you. They barely had enough time to finish their homework before tumbling into their beds.

You would have felt sorry for them, but Tom’s snarky grin, which he wore every time you saw the two in the hallways, reminded you that you didn’t have to. 

Thank Merlin you hadn’t told Avery much when he had disguised himself as Tom. You had just confirmed that the engagement had been arranged but thankfully hadn’t said anything about your sister. There had been worse rumours going round about Tom and you. 

Camille almost didn’t believe you when you told her what they had done. After a lot of head shaking and “no, they didn’t”s she just stared at you with her mouth open and proceeded to laugh for a full minute or two when you told her about their punishment. 

It was a lucky coincidence that she had found an interest in Ben, as she didn’t mind now that you were spending a lot more time with Tom. She was preoccupied as well by the looks of it. 

After the accidental sleepover, you had stayed in Tom’s dorm overnight more often. Not on accident though. It had become a routine to you, to have another quick chat with Camille after classes, arrange some dates for when you wanted to study together and then make your way to the Slytherin common room, where Tom’s dorm was.

Tom was sitting at his desk when you entered the room, apparently deep in thought and studying the Potions book he had gifted you.

“Alright?” you said when you closed the door.

He nodded as you went up to him.

“Found anything interesting for the Moly?” you asked. “It still looks quite healthy to me.”

“Not really,” he answered and turned towards you. “Nothing specific.”

“Oh, I just got an owl from my parents. ” You crammed the letter out of your bag and handed it to him. “They’ve fixated the date. For the wedding.”

Tom read the letter quietly, his eyebrows twitching slightly once or twice.

“June 30th,” he said.

“That’s only one day after we graduate,” you stated and tried to lighten the mood by joking. “Seems like they can’t wait for the big day.”

He nodded as he gazed into the flames inside the fireplace, a tiny grin pulling on the edge of his mouth before he looked up at you. “Can you?”

To prevent the chuckle that built up inside of you from bursting out, you took Tom’s hand, lightly pulled on it and gestured towards the couch, where you wanted to sit. He closed the Potions book, but kept one finger inside it and took it with him when you led him over.

“Well, I don’t know,” you said as you let yourself fall onto the cushion. “It still doesn’t feel real, does it?”

“True,” he simply agreed. 

“I can’t wait to try on the dress, though. That’ll be exciting,” you went on and noticed him smiling. “And then there’s the most important part, of course.”

He gave you a look as if to say he didn’t know what you meant.

“Elsie,” you explained. “Your uncle will lift her curse completely then. Or so I hope at least.”

Morfin had to, didn’t he? It was part of the pact after all. Tom and you would get married so that they would free your sister. As much as you wanted to believe that the Gaunts were trustworthy, there had been a nasty sting in your stomach ever since the engagement. Would they really give up, even when they had won? They wouldn’t be able to control you anymore afterwards, or Tom, or anyone but themselves. Marvolo’s filthy grin appeared in your head. Would he ever give it a rest?

“He will free her, won’t he?” you asked.

Tom looked into your eyes for a moment, then cleared his throat. “Well, it’s what they agreed on.”

“But?” you asked. 

“But,” he went on, “You’ve seen how they are.”

An invisible weight seemed to pull on your limbs and the sting in your stomach got more intense. 

“They’ll never let go,” you breathed. “But how-”

Tom shook his head and exhaled slowly. “I have to show you something.”

He gave you the Potions book and opened it at the page where he had put his finger before. “I thought you’d come across it on your own, but as I noticed you wouldn’t… Just see for yourself.”

You stared at him for a moment, wondering what Morfin’s book had to do with anything, before looking down at it. Tom pointed at a recipe, written in scrawled handwriting:

Mors Grano or The Dust Of Slow Death The dust is used to be scattered over an item and will cling to the first person that touches it. Vanishes the second the victim comes in contact, which makes it very hard to be detected and cured. Victims will suffer from a distinctively harsh cough, as well as pain and flu-like symptoms, which will worsen each day, until they become fatal. Average time until death is around three weeks after the first encounter with Mors Grano. In most cases, the victim will lose their life before the appropriate antidote can be given. 

You didn’t bother reading the list of ingredients, as your hands were shaking far too much to even detect another word. You had heard of Mors Grano before. Professor Dippet had brought it up in History of Magic when you had learned about the Passing of Men in 1760. Hundreds of witches had poisoned their abusive husbands with it when the dust had been invented. It had taken years to figure out what had caused such an increased amount of deaths, which happened to involve male wizards only. The potion and most of its ingredients got banned afterwards and you had never heard of another case since.

Until now. It suddenly all made sense. The Gaunts had sent the letter and had coated it with Mors Grano. They had known how to cure Elsie all along and had patiently waited, days and weeks, had let your sister suffer until Father had contacted them. No wonder the owl had given the letter to her, even though it had been addressed to Father. They had specifically chosen her. A ten year old, innocent, little girl. 

You weren’t sure if you had to throw up, or just needed to punch something really hard, but your stomach did twists and turns that you had never felt before. A thin layer of sweat had formed on your forehead and your hands were still shaking.

“They…” you whispered. “And you knew?”

Tom swallowed thickly. “I didn’t at first. But then I came across it when Morfin prepared the poison.”

“And you never told me?” you asked, your voice loud and on the verge of breaking, while you attempted to get up from the couch.

“Let me explain,” Tom said and grabbed your hand. “Sit down.”

“What is there to explain?” you asked, trying to pull away from his grip. “You’ve known for months. Even before your first visit. Before Elsie got sick. And you never tried to prevent it, nor did you tell me.”

Tom’s grip around your hand got tighter the more you tried to get him off you. “I said let me explain. I let you explain yourself when I saw you with Avery, didn’t I? Imagine I just ran away then. Now sit down.”

Finally, Tom’s grip loosened, allowing you to tear your hand away from him. Not knowing what to think or say, you sat down but couldn’t bring yourself to even look in his direction.

“Yes, I knew,” he began with a sigh. “And I didn’t care until I found out what they wanted to use the potion for. But I couldn’t tell you. Or anyone. I still can’t. I’m unable to talk about it. They were a step ahead. Understand?”

The Gaunts were a step ahead. They always wanted to be. Just like on Christmas Day, when they wanted you and Tom to do-

“An unbreakable vow?” you asked with wide eyes. “You had to vow not to tell anyone.”

He nodded. “I vowed not to tell. But I didn’t vow not to show.”

He turned one page inside the book and handed it to you again.

Mors Grano - antidote

Ingredients: 

The skin of a snake

2 fresh Foxgloves

3 blossoms of a Moly

4 drops of Moondew

5 tears of a Banshee

“The antidote,” you mumbled. “Full with an ingredient list and instructions. Morfin brewed it already then? They gave it to Elsie, otherwise, she wouldn’t have gotten better.”

“He didn’t complete it,” Tom answered, apparently trying not to say something that would interfere with the vow.

“He left out something? They gave her an unfinished antidote?”

Tom nodded. 

“The tears?” you guessed, solely because it was the most powerful and rare item on the list.

“I’m not sure. They never let me into his chamber after the engagement.”

“Can we… Can we steal it from him? And add the last ingredient?”

“Marvolo has the flask on him at all times. He’s suspicious, even of Morfin.”

Bloody hell. Marvolo’s paranoia was a real pain. You scanned the antidote again, thinking of all the ways you could get your hands on that potion.

“But I could brew it myself. Most of the ingredients are easy to find. Foxgloves are for sale in Diagon Alley, I’ve seen them countless times. The Moly, we have it here,” you listed and looked at it standing on the desk, finally realising why Tom had tried to keep it alive so badly. “Snakeskin from Nagini. We just wait for her to shed. Moondew and the Banshee tears will be tricky, however.”

Tom nodded at every new thing you had said. “You figured it out.”

Your stomach had stopped squirming at the glimmer of hope you had for saving Elsie. You carefully read the recipe for the antidote again, understanding how long it would take and how hard it would be to get the potion right. If everything went well, it would be finished mid to late June at the earliest. Besides, Slughorn had never taught you such advanced techniques. 

Now that you were thinking of your Professor, it began to dawn on you. “Do you think Slughorn has Moondew and Banshee tears in his chamber?”

“Possibly,” Tom answered. “But do you really want to steal from him after what Avery and Lestrange did? I’m sure he’s got it all locked up in his office now.”

“Well, I have to try. Where else would I get those things from? And I better try soon. The antidote will take months to make as it is and the earlier I start, the better.”

Tom took the book, got up from the couch and put it into the drawer of his desk, closing it shut slowly.

“What are you doing?” you asked.

“We’re going to Slughorn then, aren’t we? Come on.”

You followed him out hastily, trying to sort out your thoughts. Frankly, you had not expected to get the ingredients this quickly.

“Wait, how are we going to do it?” you asked, struggling to keep pace. “We can’t just sneak in and grab the things we need. He might be in there.”

“Even better then,” Tom said, not deigning to look at the other students strolling along the hallways. “I talk, you get the stuff.”

As Slughorn’s office was located on the sixth floor, it took some time to get there. Your mind was still racing around the facts you had just been given and you needed to talk about it.

“I can’t believe they made you vow,” you muttered. “Marvolo and Morfin are…”

“Bastards,” he finished your sentence when you stepped from one of the moving staircases to another. “I’m aware.”

“Well, yes they are.”

You were the only people on the staircase, floating higher up towards your destination. Tom looked over his shoulder to double-check if anyone could hear him.

“You know what,” he said pensively. “I actually expected people to ask me what I, or my family, had done to make the engagement happen. Seeing as it was them who got the ball rolling. But everyone suspected you. They all thought your parents bribed us.”

You thought about what to answer for a moment. A sour smile had formed on your face. One that, for all you knew, every woman had worn at least once in her life. 

“A woman's intentions will always be questioned a hundred times harsher than those of a man, Tom. What else is new?”

He pressed his lips together, nodded and kept quiet until you reached the sixth floor.

“Wait,” you said and got a hold of his hand when you had entered the corridor of Slughorn’s office. “I wanted to thank you. For helping me. The book, the Moly and now this. You know you don’t have to.”

He squeezed your fingers lightly in response. 

“Trust me, no one hates Marvolo and Morfin more than I do. If I can make their lives a bit harder, I’ll gladly do it. And besides, I want to see your sister become Quidditch captain one day. That will really piss them off.”

There wasn’t a lot of time to take in Tom’s words, as you had arrived. There it was. The door to Slughorn’s room.

“Get behind me,” Tom ordered. “Make sure he doesn’t see you.”

You did as he said, pressed your back against the stone wall and watched from a small distance how Tom knocked on the door and Slughorn opened it.

“Oh, Tom,” the Professor said. “Good afternoon. What brings you here?”

“Good afternoon Professor. I hope I’m not disturbing you. I have some questions about Avery and Lestrange. I’m trying to sort out some things for Professor Dippet. Would you mind letting me in?”

Slughorn opened the door fully and stepped back. “Of course, boy, of course. Come in.”

Tom had left the door open for you to slip in behind them, which you instantly did. He lured Slughorn to the far end of his office, walking backwards and keeping an eye on you. Slughorn’s potion stock was right next to the entrance, where you knelt down between the shelves, in case he would turn around unexpectedly.

The small drawers weren’t tagged, but you noticed that their contents were sorted alphabetically. As you silently roamed through them, you could hear Tom and Slughorn speak.

“So, Professor,” Tom said. “Do you know if Avery and Lestrange have taken anything else? Apart from the Polyjuice Potion?”

The Professor hummed. “Not that I’m aware of, no. Why?”

Every single one of the drawers was filled to the brim with ingredients, some vials even had completed potions in it, but you still hadn’t seen the things you were looking for. It was a delicate act to go through everything so quickly, while being quiet at the same time and making sure not to miss anything.

“Well, there were some items found. Residues of Moondew and Banshee tears,” Tom explained.

“Banshee tears?” Slughorn asked.

“Yes. We can’t be sure if it was them, but I thought if you missed those things from your supply, the two might have something to do with it.”

“No, everything else is there, I counted it myself,” Slughorn assured. “What baffles me are the Banshee tears.”

Tom was an excellent liar, even though Slughorn would have probably bought anything his favourite student said. The bottom drawer at the penultimate row was stuck. You pulled the handle tightly but it only opened up an inch and gave a screech while it did, making you freeze from fear.

“Did you hear something?” Slughorn asked, his voice echoing your way.

“No, I didn’t,” Tom answered and coughed. “Why are you surprised about the Banshee tears, sir?”

“Well, those tears are rare,” the teacher answered, his head directed towards Tom again. “Very rare and also not very legal, boy. I’ve never seen them anywhere in my whole life. They couldn’t have been from me.”

No Banshee tears from Slughorn then. You pulled out your wand and cast a nonverbal spell to loosen up the stuck drawer. Should have done that right away, you thought to yourself. Eventually, it opened smoothly and your eyes went over all the flasks and their name tags. Mollowsweed, mandrake, maw, mistletoe berry... Moondew. Thank Merlin! There were over ten vials of it in the drawer, so you hastily took out one and put it into your pocket.

You peeked over the counter, locked eyes with Tom, and pointed towards the door to let him know you would leave.

“I see,” Tom went on, his eyes back on Slughorn. “We’ll have to look into that. Anyway, if you do notice some Moondew missing, against all expectations, I’m going to have another talk with Dippet about Avery and Lestrange.”

“I’ll let you know, boy. Thank you.”

“Enjoy your evening, sir.”

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Masterpost | Masterlist

I’m pretty proud of this plot twist, not gonna lie. Please consider leaving a comment and tell me what you think so far :) They motivate me so much to keep writing! Let me know if you want to be tagged, or untagged. Thank you for reading!

Permanent tags: @geeksareunique @ren-ela @marauderskeeper @way-obsessed5 @oreofrappiewithblueberry @draqcnheartstrinq @dogfatherpads @obscurilicious @maralisa124 @theseuscmander @lumos-barnes @theboywhocriedlupin @igotmadskills @jamcspotters @thisismysecrethappyplace @vulpecula-minor @snarledblack @swellwriting @carolinesbookworld @fandomtravels @heartbeats-wildly @clockworkherondale @aikeia @i-padfootblack-things @emmamass24 @sleep-i-ness @miss-theya @gruffle1 @pcseidcnsvoid @buckysblueeyes-18

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[mardereads19]

Elriel Month 🌸🦇

Day 13:

Nuala and Cerridwen were both prepping the ingredients for a vanilla cake on the kitchen counter when Elain turned the corner. Nala was cracking eggs while Wen sifted the flour. Elain smiled.

It was early in the afternoon, and the Wraiths both seemed exhausted from a long morning moving around Velaris before finally coming back to Rhys’s estate. Elain knew they had been up hours before the dawn and they still came here to help her out before retiring to take their naps. Elain couldn’t have loved them more for it, but she also wanted to take avail of the opportunity it presented.

Ever since she had met the Wraiths they had taken advantage of their stealthy feet to sneak up on her. Sometimes while Elain was cooking, sometimes while she was fixing her bed. Elain could be working on the garden and the twins would wait until she was no longer touching thorns to surprise her. Elain had begun to look over her shoulder every time she was alone.

But now... now they were distracted enough to hopefully allow Elain to have her revenge. She had tried it before, of course, but the twins were too aware of their surroundings. They knew exactly where Elain was in the room, from where she would pop up.

But they had yet to look up from their work now.

Elain began to tiptoe her way over to them, as silent as she could possibly be —not even caring how ridiculous she must look moving like a kid who wants to drink milk at midnight without their parents knowing. She got close enough to reach her hand out and—

“You know what gives you away?” Nuala asked and Cerridwen grinned like a fiend.

Elain groaned, lowering her hand and taking a step back. She had been so close. She considered. “My scent?”

Wen looked over her shoulder, her dark ashen skin glowing by the light coming from the window. “Yes, but no.” When Elain raised her brows Wen continued, “Scent is an easy way to confirm someone’s presence, but it’s secondary. If someone isn’t looking for your scent, or doesn’t know it, they might miss it. However, sounds? Those are the primary give away.”

Nala nodded her head. “We can hear you.”

Elain shook her head. She couldn’t hear herself. “How is that possible? I was as silent as I could be.”

“You could still be more silent.” Wen smiled kindly. “But even then, we are trained to perceive sounds that are hard to capture for the untrained ear.” She nudged her chin to Elain’s legs. “We could hear your steps. You shuffle your heels on the ground.”

“Also, your breath,” Nala added.

“My breath?” Elain frowned. “But I wasn’t breathing.”

“Exactly.” Nala stepped closer, took Elain’s hand, and guided it over to her belly. “Do you feel the quick rise and fall of your breath on your belly?” Elain nodded. “When you can no longer hold your breath, you are bound to take a deep inhale and harsh exhale. Your breath is what gave you mostly away.”

Wen snorted.

Elain laughed and shoved Wen, which provoked her to chuckle. “I’d tell you to shut it, but you are actually an expert!”

“That’s right! Take notes.”

They all laughed.

Elain took a step towards the counter between them and began to help with the ingredients. “What should I do, then?” Nala glanced at her. “To properly sneak around, I mean.”

“You wouldn’t learn everything overnight. It would be years until you learn from these conversations alone for you to even have a chance at surprising us.”

Wen nudged Elain with her elbow from Elain’s other side, “You can always keep surprising us with your new recipes, though!”

“Oh, this one’s not new.”

“We know, but the taste will still be delicious enough to take our breath away.”

The wraiths laughed. Elain glared playfully at them both, but her mind kept going back to what Nala said.

Elain had seen her friends move through the estate and sometimes she’d see them move through Velaris, collecting information, checking up on people, and doing Cauldron knows what that Rhys and Azriel asked of them. They were stealthy and quiet and useful. They were quick and efficient and collected. Elain couldn’t help but admire them and wish she could be a little more like her friends.

She also wanted to scare them back. And not in years, but soon.

You could still be more silent.

“Teach me,” she said, a sort of ecstatic anticipation building up inside her. She could feel it in her stomach. Or perhaps she was just hungry.

The twins shared a confused glance before focusing back on her.

“Teach me how to be quiet like you. How to disguise my presence and sneak up on people —sneak up on you.”

Nala grinned, “We’d have to ask Azriel to—“

“Don’t tell him.”

The Wraiths looked at each other again, this time with wariness. “Why not?” Wen questioned.

“Because he doesn’t need to know.” Elain thought that answer sounded too suspicious so she amended, “No one has to know. It can be something just between the three of us. If Azriel knows, then Rhysand will, too, which means my sister will know and then my whole family will know.”

“What’s wrong with them knowing?”

“Well, it won’t be fun to learn to sneak around if I can’t scare the living wits out of people.”

There was a short silence and then they all laughed.

It had not been the real reason why, but it was the one that would work on them.

“Please say you’ll teach me.” Elain pushed the thought of Azriel away as she took up her cup of sugar again.

Nuala and Cerridwen glanced at each other, a secret conversation in their eyes, but there was a smile on their faces. “Fine,” Nala said.

Elain grinned.

“First lesson.” Wen pushed the bowl of flour away. “Never stop breathing if you want to sneak up on someone.”

“Never stop breathing, got it.”

“Never stop breathing, but do alter your breath,” Nala clarified. “You need to extend your inhale and extend your exhale. Breath slowly and quietly.” She demonstrated.

Elain began to mirror her. “No. Here,” Wen pointed to Elain’s belly. “Just breathe to your belly, not to your chest.”

Just breathe. Just breathe.

“Wait,” Elain took in a bigger inhale, much more easily. “Have I been breathing wrong my whole life?”

The wraiths chuckled. “Welcome to day one of stealth training,” Wen winked. “You’ll find you’ve been doing many things wrong your whole life.”

[pennyngram]

Miss Bingley's Herbal Tea - deleted scene, chapter 13

While editing chapter 13, I realized that Elizabeth and Darcy spent too much time being awkward in the stillroom so I had to cut something. Here is that something. Enjoy this deleted scene.

[Contest: Elizabeth and Darcy are in the stillroom. Elizabeth has just swapped the tea leaves in the tea caddy]

What a pity that the night is ending so soon, she found herself thinking. While getting up from her chair, her eyes fell on a piece of paper on the table.

“This is Mrs Nicholls’ scones recipe!” She said with a startle.

“I see…?”

"It is one of the most prized possession in all of Meryton! Surely you have tasted them while at Netherfield?”

“I did. They were quite good.” More like delicious.

Her desire to not let the night end so quickly took hold of her. “Would you mind— Would you mind if I were to transcribe the recipe? It would take but a moment.”

“Miss Elizabeth, are you going to steal a scones’ recipe?”

“Well, Mrs Nicholls stole the Bennet’s recipe for the perfect Christmas pudding. It is only fair.”

Darcy stifled a laugh. “Then, by all means do as you wish.”

Casting aside Mr Darcy’s amused words (but feeling quite offended by them), Elizabeth looked for a blank piece of paper and started to transcribe the ingredients’ list.

Waiting for her, Darcy took back his place by the window, this time sitting on a chair. The fervency of the last day and night was looming over him and he found himself dozing off instead of admiring Elizabeth’s ethereal figure sitting at the desk.

In his state of almost wakefulness, her figure confused itself with the one of another woman, in another stillroom, humming with contentment.

“Mr Darcy. Mr Darcy.” He woke up to see Elizabeth bent down over him and touching his shoulder. “I have finished, we can go now.”

He stared at her in shock for a moment. “I have been in a stillroom before.” He sputtered out. “I have just remembered.”

“Really?”

“I was only a child. With my mother.” Mr Darcy looked around the stillroom, helplessly looking for more memories. “I guess… I guess she was working with lavender.”

“Maybe she was preparing scented soap.”

“Yes. Maybe.”

He looked at Elizabeth now. She was still leaning on him. It would have been so easy to put an arm around her waist, to kiss her, softly this time, and only because he wanted to, and then to whisper in her ear “I lov—”

"Would you like a copy of the recipe for Mrs Reynolds?"

And just like that, the moment was gone.

[Back to our original programming]

You can read Miss Bingley's Herbal Tea on ao3 and ff.net.