#when he genuinely loves bella and wants to protect her

[goldeneyedgirl]

okay, I need to know what sex worker alice is

Sex Worker Alice has had a few forms, but the current one is basically looking at how outdated and rigid the Cullens' view of sex and relationships is; and how Bella acts like she's very alone when she's so loved and supported by many non-Cullen characters.

The premise is that Alice - a year younger than Bella - is a foster kid in Forks, who has a relationship with Jasper. They have a lot of plans for the future until Breaking Dawn; afterward, the Cullens pack up and leave suddenly without telling Alice, convincing Jasper and themselves that this is to keep her safe from the Volturi. Being a foster kid, Alice has no support in a post-high school world and ends up moving to Seattle to take up sex work to save enough to go to college. Alice is nearly twenty when she runs into the Cullens in Seattle (back to visit Charlie).

It's kind of interesting writing that dynamic because you've got Rosalie's history, you've got Emmett who has supported Rose through her trauma, you've got Esme's trauma, you've got the religious views of Carlisle and Edward, you've got Carlisle's savior complex, you've got Bella who has essentially been bubble wrapped by the people who love her, you've got the entire family's very old fashioned views on women and sex, and then you've got Jasper who is not only emotionally invested, but also knows what it's like to hit rock bottom in hell and have to carve out some kind of life with the tools at their disposal.

And then you have Alice, who is angry and hurt and trusts none of them. She's making reasonable money in the hopes of going to college for a career that she has no passion for but will guarantee a home and a paycheck. She's dealing with a lot of very banal and ugly human problems that the Cullens have never dealt with or think themselves above. Plus 2 years for the Cullens? Barely noticeable. Two years for a human, especially at 18-20 years old? Formative.

So yeah, totally self-indulgent, overly dramatic and angsty but I'm having a good time.

I sat opposite Emmett and Rosalie, and I didn’t have the energy to leave as the waitress brought me some food. Grilled cheese sandwich and iced tea. I was exhausted and I wanted to go home, even if home was half a jar of peanut butter and passing out on the futon without taking my shoes off. 

“What do you want to know?” I asked, reaching for a napkin to wrap half my sandwich in to save for breakfast. I’d have to get some groceries in the morning. 

“Well, we don’t really,” Emmett said, frowning as I tucked my sandwich half in my bag. He wouldn’t get it - he didn’t eat food, and if he had, there was no way a Cullen would ever go hungry. “We kind of got all of Bella’s story and none of yours.”

I took a bite out of my sandwich. “Just ask Jasper,” I said. “He knows pretty much everything. I’m not that interesting.”

“We’d like to hear it from you,” Rosalie replied, and I reached for my tea.

“Why now? Because you have some moral objection to how I earn a living? Because you pity me?” I shrugged. “Foster kid my entire life. Working to save for college. That’s it, there’s nothing else to say.”

“We feel bad,” Emmett supplied, “that Bella…”

“Got everything?” I said conversationally. “The ring, the wedding, the family? The money, the education? That you all know her middle name and her mom’s name and whatever name she gave her first goldfish?” 

They both looked stunned. “What? I’m not going to make myself a liar and say that it doesn’t hurt or that I wouldn’t have liked those things. You bonded with Bella. That’s good - you’ll be stuck with her for a while.”

“Yeah, but we could have…” Emmett began, and I shook my head.

“What, taken an interest in the junior that your brother was hanging out with? Why?” I drained my drink and reached for the last bit of my sandwich. “Unless there’s a specific detail you want, this just feels like some kind of pity party, like I’m the current Cullen charity case.”

“Don’t be such a brat,” Rosalie snapped. 

“Don’t be so entitled,” I retorted. “You don’t get me to spoon-feed you my story because you cornered me after work. The cost of a sandwich doesn’t entitle you to my trauma because you’ve all suddenly come to the conclusion that disappearing without warning was a shitty thing to do.”

“Alice, we want to help,” Emmett pleaded, looking so sad. And I ignored that, picking up my bag and coat and sliding out of the booth. I tossed some crumpled bills onto the table. 

“And I’m sure the Alice from two years ago who thought maybe she’d finally found some people who could one day be her family would genuinely appreciate that,” I said, not unkindly. 

[twisted-confessions]

I just found this really cool picrew and wanted to try and make an Overblot version of my Twst/HTTYD OC Bella and it turned out SO GOOD!!! (Lore dump about her Overblot below the cut)

Anyway, new tag game! Use this picrew to make your own Twst OC's before and after their Overblot then tag some fellow twst friends to make theirs as well!!

Tagging: @oyatochie @oya-oya-okay @boopshoops @sweetbunpura @kirexa @valy-gc @winterwriterstudios @hyp3rf1xat10ns @idiazhroud @masked-tornado @patchyegg87 @teapot-tyrant @unity-obj

And then Open Tags for whoever wants to try!!

In my au, Bella's Overblot is inspired by a few different characters, however the main elements for her outfit are Dire Crowley and Toothless while her attitude would match Drago Bludvist since all three of them triggered major life changing impacts, 2 negative and 1 positive. She also gets two set of wings (Night Fury and Raven) to mimic her mother Valka's dragon, Cloudjumper, while gaining some white horns to match Valka's Alpha Bewilderbeast. In the Overblot image she's doing the hand pose Crowley does when he pulls someone out of the coffins and I can totally hear her saying "Aren't I just sooo kind to lend you all a helping hand?" to mock the Bird man lol. The first one is ironically just her genuinely wanting to help someone out lmao. I love making parallels.

I can imagine her Overblot rampaging including her Bewilderbeast Abilities with her commanding all dragons nearby (including Malleus rip-) to capture NRC students so she can steal their magic to force the Mirror of Darkness to send her home, as well as to capture Crowley so she can kill destroy him for using her and lying about letting her go back to New Berk, while also using her Ice Breath to tear down the entire school. Her Phantom though, despite her Night Fury design and wings, would actually be The Bewilderbeast soul inside of her taking physical Blot-form so unlike the other Phantoms, this one is tied to her life in a very different way, keeping her soul(s?) protected while still draining her life force the more she uses it's powers. So destroying Bella's Phantom might have some very negative consequences...

>:)

[threebooksoneplot]

what draws you both to jalice/makes you so feral about them as a ship?

you should know we had an entire meeting in order to answer this ask. no this could NOT have been an email (unlike new moon) 🤭

Secretary G took notes. they are as follows (read the bolded parts for a tl;dr)

we kind of see it as though jalice got the traits that edbella weren’t allowed to have, either due to their status as protagonists or because smeyer's mormon background causes her to view these qualities as too sinful/negative for her wholesome Waiting Until Marriage main couple. (examples: alice's materialistic, "shallow," hyperfeminine qualities, her character flaws (especially her manipulativeness), and jasper's aura and history of fucked up violence closer to what you'd find in traditional vampire stories/horror/adult gothics/books not written by a mormon author)

in terms of how much screentime the non-main-love-triangle canon couples get, their relationship is kiiiinda given the next-most weight to edbella’s (examples: jasper's extreme overprotectiveness, the New Moon chapter 19 moment where alice prioritizes jasper and bella is like “yeah I get it, I would do the same.”) basically smeyer gives jalice's relationship a lot of the qualities she finds romantic/ideal, (and which are either similarly romantic to us or entertainingly toxic/a good source of drama), presumably because alice is like her 4th-favorite character after the main love triangle and she wants nice things for her

we both really love how, superficially, as presented in the books, jasper and alice seem to have this almost “courtly love” that smeyer has described as "spiritual." yet when you look closer, their relationship has so many darker undertones—the deep codependency bordering on obsessiveness (mutual, but especially the way it manifests on jasper's end—"I will kill this random teen girl who witnessed edward's jean valjean moment™ because any means are justifiable when the ends are Protecting Alice"), the dark sides of both of their powers, the idea that jasper is only a cullen and/or only a vegetarian for alice's sake, etc. hell, even the fact that they're the only Cullen couple who we know had (gasp) premarital sex 😏 (I mean we assume rosemmett did too, but alas, they don't have that hilarious "carlisle convinced jasper and alice to get married" quote from smeyer)

partially summarized: "jasper’s general desperate willingness to sell everyone to satan for one corn chip if it keeps alice safe (carlisle: I know this and I love you)"

we're forever smug that the movies gave us even more jalice screentime (especially remarkable in such a protagonist-centric universe), including jasper being in the same grade as alice/bella/edward, and the extra jalice kisses in Eclipse and BD 🥺

what we wrote down as the “who’s protecting whom" phenomenon, as coined by G in this old ask. (shannon: "jasper is the toddler you've given the PS2 controller that's not plugged in")

we also like the characters individually. jasper is for the girlies with competency kinks—a stoic caretaker who speaks little and mostly expresses himself via acts of service. we also both love the way in which he needs protection from his own uncontrolled violence (slipping up and killing humans, suffering the pain and fear he inflicts, etc.) he is, in the words of our beloved @liceparade, the "line cook trauma boyfriend"

“It’s hot when there’s a fictional violent man who wet babygirl 😌” —shannon

and alice, unlike bella, genuinely loves being spoiled and bossing people around. she's brat-coded, she's confident and secure in who she is, her god complex ("I'm close enough [to omniscient]") causes fascinating conflict, bella eats drywall from sheer horniness at her merest movement, she dresses like a slut in the Mormon YA Novels and yet somehow escapes authorial condemnation, she has a sickass gothic heroine backstory, she's "annoying," aro started a whole war over her (eat shit helen of troy 🖕), she spaces out in public and has to be led around by jasper, she's one of the most powerful vampires in the world, she's in high school getting a C+ on her precalc test 💅🏻

it's appealing that smeyer frequently puts alice in the center of the series' various conflicts (james' singer and "one that got away," the accidental cause of all the drama at the end of new moon, one of aro's secret True motives for starting the conflict in BD.) this is mostly as a consequence of smeyer using alice as a plot device and/or deus ex machina, but it is in fact interesting

is alice jasper's morality chain? we love pondering this question via fic, meta, etc (especially because...alice ain't exactly a model of ethical behavior herself)

together, the two of them exhibit lots of classic tropes. they're grumpy x sunshine, chatty x silent, opposites attract, etc. to say nothing of that height difference 🥵

we love the yin/yang symbolism of a character with a horrific past paired with a character with NO memory of her past, who is focused on the future and all about potential. not to invoke an ancient phrase but POETIC CINEMA

the next note just says “POTENTIAL in general.” I assume we meant how all of the above stuff creates potential for interesting stories, conflicts, metas, art, fic, etc

G has brought this up in the past, but we love the irony of jasper, a character whose chief desire is to be left in peace, being soul-alteringly in love with the one character who will always be a giant glaring target through no fault of her own. hilarious

[ameriatenebrae]

Bellamort is so perfect... He couldn't love her the same way... but he did care, they were very close. He loved her in his twisted way. He was even mad at himself for being so vulnerable, for caring too much, maybe he wanted to kill her at some point for making him feel that way. But he couldn't do anything about it. Maybe he tried, in the beginning, distancing himself. He must have tried many times to fight his and Bella's feelings… But he couldn't. He couldn't punish her for her loyalty, that would be very stupid of him and Tom was everything but stupid. Her devotion was what made him respect her even more. He couldn't kill someone who genuinely loved him. He couldn't kill her for trying to protect every single part of him, including Delphi. That wouldn't make sense. Again, Tom wasn't stupid. And yet he risked everything for her. And the very last thing he did before his own death was try to avenge her death. It wasn't your typical relationship... it was very unhealthy, toxic and twisted, but we're talking about two of the darkest wizards of their time... and yet we can say; Lord Voldemort was helpless when it came to Bellatrix.

[jogetsobsessed]

Hi! I saw your requests are open, I would like to request with paul with fem!reader if you're interested. Some agnst with paul's anger issues, like they argue and he lost it and hurt reader she's gonna have a scar like a reminder for it. But with fluff in the end?

It's okay if you don't want to, I give it a try! Have a lovely day/night!😊 (English not my first sorry if it doesn't make sense)

The car swerved across the faded yellow lines as more and more tears began to cloud your vision. The pain that was radiating across the left side of your body was paralyzed, and while all you wanted to do was curl into a ball underneath your covers and disappear from the world you knew you couldn't. You weren't really planning on bleeding out tonight. 

Blindly you turned off the road, tires rolling a bit to gain traction once they hit the gravel road. Low-hanging branches were narrowly missed as you charged up the driveway, praying that they wouldn't care about your car spraying gravel everywhere. 

Slowly you put the car into park, grimacing as your body minorly twisted. Heavy breaths left your lips as you gathered the strength to push the door open. You didn't know how long you were actually sitting there in your parked car because every second felt like a month. 

But you could make out the car door clicking open, feeling it softly pull away from where your body was slouched against it. Worried murmurs were all you could make out, as your own breathing was all you could hear in your cloudy eardrums. 

Your body was lifted from the seat, which was easy considering you were already curling into a ball and hadn't bothered to put a seatbelt on. The frigid skin you were pressed against was such a stark contrast from what you were used to being pulled against that it only added to the shock you were in. 

Concerned faces stared down at you, like patrons at a zoo. If you were competent you would have hated this, hating being looked at as weak. But now isn't the time for ego fragility. 

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

You woke up two days later. 

Laying in one of the Cullens guest rooms you slowly opened your eyes listening for the familiar sounds of the pack, only to be met with radio silence. You had been confused at first, but once you noticed your left arm bandaged everything slowly came rushing back to you. The physical pain of your newly stitched arm mashing with the emotional heartache that you were feeling was overwhelming. 

It was sometime around then when the Cullens made themselves known. The comforting presence of Esme and Alice soothed you slightly as you bit back the waterfalls of tears that no doubt would be released the second you stepped foot behind the solitude of your own home. 

You had to practically get down on your knees and beg Carlisle to let you leave, he wanted you to stay for observation but you needed to get out of there. 

He let you go on the condition that one of his children drive you home, Edward volunteering so Bella would be able to get you inside your house and help you settle in. 

“Y/N are you sure you are good to be by yourself? You can come back to mine, Charlie wouldn't mind”, she was genuine for once, it looked good on Bella. 

“Bell’s as much as I love your dilf of a father, I really just want to be alone”

Her laugh was soft and brought a smile to your face. The two of you hadn't always got along but the both of you realized along the way that having an ally in the girlfriends of supernatural beings club was beneficial. Different struggles took place, but she was easier to relate to than someone like Jessica. 

---------

Bella hadn't been gone for more than an hour when you heard the banging on your front door. Panic shot through you at first. You were lounging in your living room, your brain foggy from sleep and the pain medication Carslile had been kind enough to prescribe for you. 

You felt vulnerable, which was something that you weren't used to, since you normally had your protective presence around you.    

It wasn't stopping, only getting louder and more urgent. 

So in a great effort, you pulled yourself up from the couch, hobbling towards the door. Glancing through the peephole you saw the one person that could stop your breath every single time. 

Even when you thought you hated him, he still had the same effect on you. 

He heard the lock click and pushed the door open, barely giving you enough time to move out of the way. 

Instantly his arms were on yours, as he looked you over. He was visibly wincing at the sight of your heavily bandaged arm. 

“Why are you here Paul?”, the swooning effect was gone, and all the emotions that you had been harboring were coming forward. 

“God Y/N, I was coming to see you, there's no reason to be so hostile”. 

“Hostile, I am being hostile? Paul, I have every reason to be hostile. Last time we were in the same room it didn't exactly end well”, you yelled gesturing towards the bandage. 

He was at a loss for words. 

He opened his mouth and started to speak but nothing came out. 

You couldn't bear to look at him. The look of absolute regret and sadness was shattering your heart. His soft cries were the final straw for you. 

Collapsing on the couch you placed your head in your hands sobbing, shaking your entire body. 

No matter how much you had cried since the incident you still had so much emotion over it.  

He mirrors your actions, falling down next to you. 

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

“I don't know how I will ever make this up to you. It's not excusable, but I just don't know what came over me”. 

You knew that it wasn't excusable. He had come home and made an over-pack business. You had been cleaning the kitchen, completely minding your own business. But when he burst through the door, he made his business your business. 

You had asked him what was wrong and received no response. He stomped through the house and out the back door. Something came over you and you followed him. In hindsight, you don't know why you did. But once you got out back you saw him throwing stuff into the woods, clearly not caring about breaking anything. 

It was then that you yelled at him to knock it off and act like an adult, not a three-year-old throwing a tantrum. 

Within an instant you were lying on your back, the wind completely knocked out of your lungs. 

“Dr. Cullen said that it could have been worse. Only the upper portion is going to scare. He was able to stitch the lower part tightly enough”. 

“Y/N, every single day I am going to make this up to you if you let me. The scar… it's going to be a reminder that I have to try harder and that I have to be better”. 

“You have to prove it to me Paul. We are not going to just go back to how we are. We need to work past this. But I know we can”. 

“Thank you Y/N. I love you so much and please believe me that I will make it up to you”. 

-----------

There wasn't much fluff at the end, sorry. Let me know if you want a pt 2 potentially to get the full amount of fluff.

[sugarsnappeases]

bellareg marriage. thoughts ?

don’t think i don’t see right through you…. but yes i (we) have many thoughts and i would love to talk about them xxxx

bellareg could have such a good marriage!!! like i genuinely believe they could work so smoothly together.... bella and reg who get married bc bella was supposed to marry sirius (the two first-borns of their respective branches... could do amazing things for the bloodline) but then sirius leaves and bella is fuming and reg is miserable and she basically gets foisted off on him instead alongside all the other Heir duties and no one is particularly happy about it but, in the end, both of them end up more or less getting what they want and need out of the marriage.

like bella absolutely refuses to play the role of the good little wife who follows her husband's lead and agrees w everything he says. she's got her own ambitions and plans and she's too much of a force to ever take anything lying down. but luckily reg doesn't want to lead anyone, or be the heir, or be a big strong husband figure and he's super malleable and easy to 'gently' persuade into things and it could all work out very nicely. like bella being the Man Of The House and the Husband behind closed doors while reg is her pampered little wife. also bella gets to be the kinda by-proxy heir/lord which is obvs v important to her. in a way, she's the head of the family ish and that's like. the power she's always wanted and was jealous of when it came to sirius. and now even if she doesn't properly have it (something that could potentially cause a bit of tension??? but also like. reg wants her to have that power too, he absolutely doesn't want it himself so it would be more of a shared woe ig?? like both of them would love it if they could just have a complete role reversal thing), she still has much more power than would have been possible in any other marriage

anyway bella also kinda guides reg (he goes willingly) into being more embroiled in the death eaters, doing what she thinks is best for him and for them (acting as his husband-wife) and making him better and lavishing him w luxury and basically just holding the reins of the marriage. and reg is happy bc he's safe and protected and bella is enough like sirius that he can ultimately fall in love w her and she's happy to dote on him and she does also love him even if she's maybe not in love w him. bc like you said. he's her cousin of course she loves him but also she loves how successful their marriage is. it's harmonious, easy, simple. it just works.

i think the only potential issue in their marriage is the lack of kids. bc bella to me never ever has or wants kids, but she's married to the heir of the black family and reg also defo wants kids. but i agree w you i think that w the level of influence bella has over reg she'd be able to convince him like 'let's wait until after the war' and there'd just be more and more excuses. like the two of them climb the ranks of the death eaters together (mostly bella but she uses reg and also takes him w her) and she couldn't possibly take the time off to be pregnant, reg, don't you believe in our lord's goals?? and reg of course does bc like. w bella acting as the Husband and the Heir/Lord, she would be the one who dealt w the whole kreacher scenario w voldemort and reg would've never found out about the horcrux or had to question his fanaticism, and also bc of bella he's even more fanatical than he normally would be and so this is a very short conversation and reg never brings it up again lol

but anyway yes i just think they could be so content and it's defo a much better marriage than the one that bella would've had if sirius had stayed bc she'd never be able to take on that Husband role w him and they would've probs ended up killing each other but w reg they can kinda complement each other and work well together and be more or less happy :))) yippeeeeee

anyway here are some more screenshots from our texts bc you’re hilarious and a genius and always completely correct and the other half of my soul and i’m obsessed with you <3

[orchideous-nox]

Thoughts on the Black sisters??? < 3

I know you sent me this after a conversation (which was now like 2 weeks ago) where I said I would talk about them when I've got more opinions but goddammit Alex 😂

Bellatrix

I think Bella was very insecure during her Hogwarts years. She is the eldest of 3 daughters and gets a lot of pressure from their parents to be a certain way. Whilst they were all close, I think their parents put a lot of the weight of the Black family legacy on Bellatrix more than Narcissa and Andromeda and she kept a lot of that from her sisters to protect them. She sought validation a lot from her parents, which she rarely got, and relies heavily on Narcissa for emotional support as she gets older.

Her marriage to Rodulphus isn't a love match and I think she resents that a lot but doesn't resent him necessarily. They did what they had to do for their families, a lot of what Bella does is for the sake of her sisters. When she joined the death eaters to gain power and respect, she realised that fear was much more effective and this was her downward spiral. She'd spent years trying to do things right and properly, she'd gone through with a respectable marriage, she was the eldest daughter who did what was best for the family, but it wasn't enough for her. A lot of what she does is still routed in her loyalty to Narcissa, only made stronger after Andromeda leaves, and when she gets out of Azkaban she sees Draco and doesn't want him to be like Andromeda and to end up with no family.

I love seeing content about Quillkiller and, while it's not something I'd write myself, I think it's something that makes sense. With Bella having this strong sense of duty to the family that eventually shifts over to Voldemort, I feel like both her and Narcissa gave up one love for another, Bellatrix giving Rita up to marry Rodolphus and become a Death Eater, the final straw for Rita. There's potential that Bellatrix would resent her sister for still being able to marry for love, but this disappears over time, especially in Azkaban.

Narcissa

She's probably the sister I have the most thoughts on already. I've not really delved into this generation much because they're a bit older than the Marauders characters, but I kinda vibe with the idea of Nobleflower and Narcissa having to give that up to marry Lucius who she did come to genuinely love. I think Narcissa and Lucius are really lovely, they have genuine adoration for each other and it doesn't feel like the kind of marriage where Narcissa sticks with him because the family believe in duty over happiness. While yes, Narcissa appreciates the security of being married to Lucius, she cares deeply for him and their child and stands by him. She calms him and is with him during Death Eater meetings, she supports Lucius after he returns from Azkaban. Yes, she does ultimately put her own values above his sometimes, but she loves her family so much because they're hers.

I think she struggles with parenting Draco because of her own family and her upbringing. This gets worse after Bellatrix is sent to Azkaban and all eyes are on her and Lucius and their child, expected to be the future of both the Black family and the Malfoy family as everyone else is either dead, in Azkaban or disowned. Narcissa is so loyal, she protects her husband, her son and her sister for as long as she can. She's brave and isn't scared of lying to Voldemort by saying Harry's dead if it means protecting Draco and knowing he is okay.

Being the youngest, I think she looked up to Bellatrix massively and after Andromeda leaves and is disowned, they grow closer. She doesn't always agree with Bellatrix's ways but she can't lose her like she lost Andie and wants to help her in whatever way possible. However, I do think out of Bellatrix and Narcissa, the latter would be more likely to attempt amicable contact with Andromeda, I think motherhood would give her a new understanding. That being said, I don't think it would be an easy "you're forgiven", it would be a long road to even tolerating each other's presence.

Andromeda

I think the films do Andromeda so dirty, Sirius clearly saw a lot to love in his favourite cousin and seeing her marry Ted Tonks gave him the courage to leave home knowing it would be okay, and yet she's left out. We know that she looks a lot like Bella and I think there is so much that could be explored within that, no matter the distance she tries to put between them her older sister still follows her everywhere.

She's always been the most gentle of the sisters and I think Narcissa would go to her for comfort over Bella, but she certainly has a temper that makes Bellatrix roll her eyes whilst secretly being proud. I think she was quietly strong until her last year before being disowned when she became much more vocal, saying no to things she didn't want to do. Obviously, her parents didn't like this and neither did Bella because she took the brunt of their frustration when she'd hide away from them all. I can imagine Cissy knew where all her hiding spots were though even as a kid, and would hide with her or would bring her food or treats to coax her out.

In the same way that people think Narcissa and Regulus were close, Andromeda and Sirius were close. We know that they have a lot in common in terms of leaving the Black family and Sirius considers the Tonks' to be his family over his other two cousins, and I think Andromeda feels the same about him. She didn't believe he killed James and was probably heartbroken when she found out what had happened. People get angsty about Tonks being killed by someone who looks just like her mother, but Sirius was killed by someone who looked just like the only family he had left, and this would have broke her heart knowing her own sister did that.

[prettypinkporkchop]

Jared cameron x fem reader

Safe

"He's just a young man! He's showing off." Embry laughs, grabbing a muffin off of Emily's table and eating it.

"Being an imprint, I figured he'd be more loving." You frown and cross your arms. "No, trust me. He will be. He just wants you to really understand what we are capable of. It can be dangerous." He raises his eyebrow with a mouth full of muffin.

"Woowoo!" Three dudes walk in and sit at the table. Paul, Quil, and Jared. Jared sits next to you and grabs a muffin. "Embry, you totally missed it. Paul totally lost it." Jared laughs. "Dude, she pissed me off." Paul growls.

"What happened?" You ask, looking at Jared. He smiles down at you and wraps an arm around your shoulder. "Something you should never do. Bella slapped Paul, and he phased, almost attacking her."

All the guys start laughing.

You huff and get up to walk out the door. He doesn't show affection it's just things like, 'We could hurt you.'

'Stay away from us when we get rowdy.'

'I could hurt you at any time.'

You walk to your car, passing Bella and Jacob as they're talking. You get in the drivers seat and begin to cry. You just want to be like Sam and Emily, or Paul and Rachel. It's not fair! You crave his lips, but he doesn't give it to you.

Your door opens, and you look up to see Jared, he's looking at you with genuine concern. He bends down and puts his hands on your arms. "Baby, what's wrong?" That was the first time he's ever called you baby. It made you blush, and it felt amazing.

"How come you don't act like you love me. All you do is show off, brag, and tell me how you guys can hurt me. I understand by now! Have I not shown you? I'm never around when you guys are doing whatever wolves do." You sob.

He pulls you out of the seat and wraps you in a tight hug, holding all of your body. His warmth spreads all over you. "I'm just scared. I love you. I don't want you to be subjected to all of this. You deserve a normal life. But, I refuse to let you go. So, all I can do is keep you on guard. If I show you my soft side, I'm scared that will make you too comfortable and end up like Emily.'' His voice cracks, showing that he's upset.

"I love you, Jared." You look up at him. "I will always be careful. You can protect me, and you will. I won't get hurt. Just please, love me.'' You almost cry out. He grabs your face and presses his lips on yours gently. You wrap your arms around his neck and pull him tighter. His lips are full and soft. The kiss is so perfect, you could stay like this forever.

He pulls away and puts his forehead on yours, staring into your eyes. "I'm yours." He says. You smile at his words. He pulls away, grabbing your hand and leading you back inside. At the entrance, he turns to look at you like the gif above.

"I don't mind PDA." He admits, signaling he wants you all over him in front of the pack.

He sits back down at the table and pats his lap. You gladly take your seat, and the boys look at you two smirking. "Jared, your thoughts are loud." Paul points out. "Yeah, yeah. Keep them to yourself, Lahote." He holds onto you tighter.

[futuremrsdrcullen]

This Love Came Back To Me - Chapter 2

It's Finally Here!!!! I can not apologize enough for how long this took to get out. But here it is! I hope you love it.

Summery- I was completely overwhelmed with this looming dread. This wasn’t just about Bella anymore. Though that was bad enough, this involved me now. Despite how often Edward disregarded my safety and despite how desperately Carlisle tried to protect me from this;

My life was in danger.

It was never going to end was it?

Word Count- 8,775

Warnings- Vampires- and all the things that go along with vampires (blood, biting, age gaps, sparkling, dramatics) a lot more swearing this time. There's some minor injuries and some very minor character death. mentions of vomiting (2 actual vomits, due to injury) Battle, fighting and planning. It's all very happy I promise.

There is no imprinting and there never will be <3

Notes from me- My name is Claire and this! This is finally my third love child. I started writing this on the 27th of July in 2022. I lost hope a few times but it's here and I hope you love it. Thank you, so so much for staying with me.

As always, I DO NOT own The Twilight Saga. All rights go directly to S. Meyer.

Read on AO3 <3

Masterlist <3 (Preface, Ch 1)

I love you <3 Thank you for still being here <3

I had gone home for most of the duration of the school day. I wasn’t sure what to expect when Alice called me halfway through folding my laundry.

“Is everything alright?” I barely had enough time to get it out before she was yelling on the other end of the line.

“If I lose this car because of Jacob Black-”

“Alice, could you please calm down for a second?” I could hear the sound of her heels on the hardwood floors as she paced. “What is going on?”

“Jacob Black showed up at the school and Bella ran off with him.” I had to bite back a laugh. Somehow I knew she would manage to escape. I stayed as quiet as I could manage while Alice continued, “Edward is going to kill me and take away my Porsche all because Bella wants to throw herself head first into danger.”

“It will be fine, Alice. Just… don’t call them, okay? I’ll go down to La Push and check on her and report back.”

“I don’t think that will make anything better. Carlisle will just be angry at me too.”

“He’ll… get over it.”

She sighed, “Just make it quick, okay?”

“Of course.” 

I did not leave as quickly as I could have. I stayed long enough to switch over the laundry. I did the dishes and cleaned out the leftovers from the fridge. I hoped that my stalling would give Bella some time. I wouldn’t drag her home if she wanted to stay, but I also didn’t want to ruin her time.

They weren’t at the Black house when I got there. I waited for a few moments, just in my car, not wanting to chat with Billy if it wasn’t necessary. I could wait here and hope they come by, but couldn’t return to Alice empty handed.

Of course, I wasn’t there for five minutes before Sam was knocking on my car window. I sighed but got out as he held the door for me. 

“Y/n? What’s up?” He almost sounded concerned.

I crossed my arms across my chest. “I’m just looking for Bella.” I said like it wasn’t

obvious.

“She isn’t here, but I’m sure they’ll swing by later. Did your leech send you out here to scope out the situation?”

I pulled my lips into a tight line. “No one sent me. He wouldn’t be all that excited to know I was here.

“He doesn’t know?” He smirked and I wanted to smack him. “I didn’t take you for a rebel.”

I forced a laugh. “I’m not rebelling. I can do whatever I want- Could you just drop the wolfy bullshit and tell me where my sister is?”

His grin didn’t falter. “Probably on the beach, but you don’t have to worry about her.”

I moved to get back in my car but he still held the door. “I’m not-”

“She’s safe here, you know?” I nodded. “There probably wouldn’t be a safer place if Jacob had his way.”

“She’s happy with Edward. She’s safe with him too.”

“Sure, Sure…”This time I smiled warmly at him. I knew he was being genuine. I was still annoyed but I could appreciate his efforts. “I might agree that you’re safe with Carlisle… But Edward and Bella?”

“They’re young and in love. We’ve been there.” I pushed his arm lightly; He barely moved. I did not think too much about what he’d just said about Carlisle. “Sometimes we choose what's wrong for us… Sometimes what’s wrong for us is exactly what we need.”

I didn’t mean it as a jab, I didn’t know the whole story between him, Leah, and Emily, but he winced. “Maybe you’re right.” His voice was less cocky. I might have felt bad, if it wasn’t Sam.

I didn’t have time to dwell before Bella and Jacob were pulling up. When she got her helmet off I couldn’t tell if she was happy to see me or annoyed.

She walked over to us with her hands in her jacket pockets. “If you’re here to kidnap me again, I won’t go.”

“I’m not. I’m just here to check in… And then I got caught up chatting with Sam.”

If she knew I was lying she didn’t call me out. She just bit her lip and nodded. “I’m okay.”

“I see that.” I tried to smile at her, but the rain was picking up so I only winced. “I’ll be at the Cullens, to help soften the mood before you get back.”

“Did Alice… Call him?”

I shook my head. “No, thank god. She called me and I told her I’d come check on you as long as she promised she wouldn’t call them. It’s best to try to not make things worse for ourselves.”

She smiled, “Thank you… I will be back later.” They drifted towards the house and Jacob opened the door for her.

“Have fun!” She didn’t turn back around. I pushed off the side of the car and tried the door again. Sam hadn’t moved.

“Y/n…” he hesitated but took a step back and let go of the door. “Don’t be a stranger.”

“You either, Sam.”

He looked like he wanted to say more, but I didn’t stay long enough to hear it.

~~

Alice was still pouting on the hood of her car when Bella got home. She must have seen her coming because she didn’t budge, if anything the pouting only became more theatrical.

“I haven’t even had a chance to drive it.” She sighed

“Sorry,” Her words were acid.

She was soaking wet and shivering. “You should probably take a hot shower.” I tried.

“Yep.”

Alice could tell as well as I could that something happened with Jacob, but where I was more covert about it, her curiosity was plain on her face. “Do you wanna talk about it?”

“Nope.”

“Do you want to go to Olympia tonight?”

“Not really. Can’t I go home?”

Alice and I both winced. “Bella…” I tried.

“Nevermind,” Bella said. “I’ll stay if it makes things easier for you both.”

“Thanks,” She sighed in relief.

Bella went straight upstairs and took a shower before going right to bed. Even Alice didn’t stay in the main living space for long. I went to Carlisle’s room and fell asleep reading in our bed.

I felt a shift in the mattress just as the sun started to peek through the trees. I smiled up at him, more asleep than not, and rested my hands on either side of his face. 

He kissed me quickly. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“I’m glad you did. I missed you.” He kissed me again. “Did Alice fill you in on the weekend's events?”

“She filled us all in on the key points. She also said you’d have more to tell me. Edward laughed. Should I be concerned?”

“Hmm~ Maybe~” My sleepy smile didn’t go away. “When were you going to tell me you bought me the Prius?”

“Oh… Well.” He laughed nervously, knowing he’d been caught. “Are you certain I haven’t told you about that before?”

“Nice try,” I kissed his nose. “but I think I would have remembered you mentioning it before.”

“I apologize for not telling you, though I think you would have questioned my sanity If I had.”

“I do that anyway, so that’s not really a valid point.”

He laughed loudly at that and kissed me again. “I promise I will tell you before I buy you a car next time.” 

I giggled against his lips. “That’s all I ask.” I could feel myself falling back asleep so I lightly pushed him so he’d lay flat. When he did, I laid my head on his chest. “I went to La Push.”

“I’m aware.”

“I spoke with Sam for a while.”

I let my eyes close as he ran his hand through my hair. “How did that go?”

“ ‘s Weird…” I didn’t try to stop myself from yawning. “I feel like we really could have been friends, but it's too complicated now to try.”

“He was nice, though?” His arms tightened around me slightly. It made my heart flutter.

“Yeah he was nice. He even kinda said that we were good together… in not so many words.”

He sighed and I placed a soft kiss on his chest.

“I know you guys don’t think it’s safe for us, but I saw her with Jacob today, I saw how Sam felt about it, and I truly think it will be okay.”

“I trust your judgment on this.” I knew he did. It was more Alice and Edward that put up a fight. “I think Edward is coming around. I think if she really wants to go back, he’ll let her go.”

“Good.” I didn’t feel the need to voice my opinion on him letting her. Carlisle knew how I felt about that anyway.

I yawned again and Carlisle chuckled. “Get some rest, Mon Coeur. Everything else can wait until the morning.”

“I don’t have any more stories to share. I just missed you.”

“I won’t have to go into the office tomorrow. We’ll have the whole day.”

I leaned up and he met me halfway. The kiss was slow and made my heart skip a beat. I wanted to stay right there forever, but I was officially too tired to keep my head up. I snuggled back into his chest and slept for a few more hours.

~~

Carlisle woke me a few hours later and convinced me to go downstairs where he was finishing up the breakfast he’d made for me. We very often had the best conversations over my breakfast, so that particular morning I used the time to bring up Bella and Rosalie's conversation from the other night. 

She had filled me in on most of her backstory in small ways throughout our almost friendship, but I was still pretty lost on his part in it all. I never wanted to press, but that morning, with it so fresh on my mind, I couldn't help my curiosity. 

He let out a heavy breath and for a second I thought he might not tell me anything. I didn't want him to feel like he had to. I almost told him to forget it, but right then he started, "I was just a simple family doctor when Esme, Edward and I moved to Rochester, New York. Our family was still so new, but I was overcome with pride in them. More importantly, I was satisfied with what we had built together. 

"At the time, I didn't see that this wasn't the life they would have chosen for themselves. I had no idea, despite the fact that I felt the same way." They had all made this very point multiple times. It's why we needed Bella to be sure; Why I needed to be sure. I never wanted to regret him.

He continued, "Edward had just returned to our little family but he was still angry. When I brought my concern to Esme she seemed to think he was just lonely and if I found him a companion to share a love like ours he would be happy." His phrasing was delicate, like he was afraid I would be upset by it. When my expression remained unbothered, he went on. "I should say, the night I found Rosalie, I wasn't looking for her. I had honestly brushed Esme's comment aside, knowing it was far too selfish to turn someone for that reason alone.

"As I was walking home that night, suddenly all I could smell was her blood. I followed it to her almost on instinct. I found her lying on the ground dying, and I didn't even consider that she might have preferred to die. I just wanted to save her." 

He sighed as he took out a plate for the food he'd made for me. "During her transition Esme's previous comment surfaced in my mind. Maybe she was the missing piece to our family. Maybe she could help Edward in a way Esme and I could not. I found comfort in the fact that I had at least given her a chance.

"That's not to say that I regret turning her. I love her and she is such an important part of this family. I could never regret her. I do wish I had considered her wishes."

My chest tightened as he spoke. He had carried this guilt with him everyday for all of these years and it made my heart break for him. Of course, I didn't believe he was entirely without fault here, but I also didn't entirely believe that she hated her existence. Maybe it wasn't the life she would have chosen, but I knew, and I think a part of him knew as well, that she had found happiness in this life too.

"Carlisle… You couldn't have known." I tried to assure him but he smiled softly at me and brushed past it. I thought he might change the topic completely, but he expertly plated my omelet and slid it across the table to me before continuing her story from his perspective.

"Edward’s immediate upset was very disheartening and now, with hindsight, probably should have been the first clue that this wouldn't work out. I wanted her to live, I wanted her to be happy. He was certain my actions would affect our lives negatively. I suppose, in a way he was just being selfish, though I’d never tell him that.

“I think that’s when the guilt set in. I’d taken this young girl with her whole life ahead of her and cursed her with this life-”

I had to stop him. I said his name,  the disbelief  heavy in my voice. Despite this, he still smiled. “It was a long time ago, Dove. We’ve all grown to think differently over time.”

“But you still hold all of that guilt. I can see it. I don’t think you’re being fair to yourself.” I was soft. I wanted to be comforting even if he swore he didn’t need it.

 “I’ve had many years to look at the whole picture. Every single one of them that I’ve turned, hate this life.”

“Emmett doesn’t” I added.

He laughed, “No, I guess not. Rose and Esme, on the other hand, never stopped longing for basic human desires. Edward still believes himself a monster. For a long time I couldn’t help but blame myself for that. 

“Eventually I came around.” He mentioned quickly, soothing just a bit of my frustration. He continued, “Rose continued to be so strong. She got her revenge on all the men who had hurt her all the while never tasting human blood.” He was clearly very proud, even if he didn’t entirely approve.

“She killed them?” I asked.

“She did…”

His grin didn't falter and for the first time this whole conversation, I smiled too. “Good for her.” I added.

He laughed. “I can’t say I was necessarily excited for her to go out and kill them, but I couldn’t fault her after what they’d done. And she never considered leaving us. Even when I told her we’d have to leave New York, or that we’d have to change our names and abandon everything. She handled it all with grace and she never expressed an interest in going her own way. I offered her that choice and she laughed and politely declined.” The guilt on his face turned into fondness.

No matter what these kids did, he loved them more than anything. They were the reason he is the compassionate family man I knew and loved. I leaned across the bar and he met me in the middle for a quick kiss.

When I sat back still smiling at him, he finished the rest of the story. “I was very surprised when she brought Emmett to me. I never expected her to want to change another human, but she looked me in the eyes and said the very thing I had said to Edward about her. ‘I couldn’t just let him die, it was too much.’

“He surprised me too. Not only did he survive some gruesome injuries long enough for Rosalie to bring him to me, he also handled the transformation like a true fighter. He hardly called out and his heartbeat was strong and steady until the very end.”

“Perfectly matched, aren’t they?” Like they were meant to find each other- as cheesy as that was.

“They brought out the best in each other and, in turn, the best in our family. I’d like to think that after all this time, Rose is content with her life. Even if she still wants more for the other still-human women in her life” The way he put that was very pointed at me and Bella- I chose to let it be. Rosalie was allowed her opinions. I, of course, wasn’t running headfirst into immortality, so most of her opinions were mostly directed at Bella.

 Sometimes though I still caught on to her lack of enthusiasm for my choices as well.

I was all too content in my life as it currently stood for any dramatic changes, so I let it be; he continued to talk about our family and the changes he began to see in Edward. He moved to sit next to me as I ate. I leaned closer to him as he finished.

I wanted to kiss him again. And this time I wanted to kiss him and get lost in it for a very long while.

But Carlisle froze in his spot. His eyes went wide before they squeezed shut. He had stopped breathing.

“When was this?” He waited a tiny second. “How?” I wondered who was answering his questions and from where- and if it was the reason for his sudden change in demeanor.

His hands tightened slightly around mine and he pulled me up. “Carlisle?”

Without answering, he pulled me into the living room where Alice and Jasper sat perfectly frozen on the couch. I tried again, “What is-”

“It’s all right, Y/n.” I sighed impatiently at his interruption. I wondered if he’d forgotten I couldn’t hear the other end, and at that point, had no idea what was going on, but I didn’t speak again. I could tell just how wrong something was. Alice sat half in Jasper's lap, leaning against him like she needed the support. Her face was in her hands.

I wondered if she had a headache. I wondered if they could get headaches. 

Jasper's powers danced in the air. I felt it swirl around me. I wished I could feel the calm it offered, but like always, I didn’t. I nodded in thanks to him anyway. 

Then Rosalie and Emmett came into the room. Rose sat next to Alice on the couch to offer her more support. Emmett stood causally on my other side. Though the reason was still unknown, his presence added a bit of comfort.

“Another day, another crisis…” Emmett joked and bumped me with his shoulder. Despite my panic, I managed a chuckle.

Carlisle hissed, “Emmett. Not now.”

He was angry- outraged really. I had never seen him like this and it really drove my worry home. I placed my hand on his arm. “Carlisle… What is going on?”

He softened immediately, as if he really had forgotten I couldn’t have known. He pulled me closer to him. “It will be fine.”

“Edward will be here soon. He wants you two to follow the scent.” Alice mumbled from her spot on the couch, vaguely gesturing to Emmett and Jasper.

“Sure thing, Boss. We’ll be back.” He leaned forward to kiss Rosalie. Jasper followed him out the door.

Carlisle led me to the couch. “You should sit.” I closed my eyes so I wouldn’t roll them, but sat anyway. He stayed standing next to me.

I felt Alice get up from the couch at the same time Rose’s hand held mine. I turned towards her as another wave of panic hit me. Even Rosalie was trying to comfort me, but no one would explain what was going on.

A blanket of silence covered the room and it made me so uncomfortable I wanted to scream just to tear it apart. I almost did. I almost screamed the same question again, but then Edward was there next to Carlisle and Bella sat next to us.

And when Edward demanded to know what happened, Alice answered him.

“I have no idea. I didn’t see anything.” She crossed her arms and chewed her lip. I couldn’t tell who was more angry between the three of them, Carlisle, Edward or Alice. I just wished I knew why.

“How is that possible?” His patience had clearly run out.

“Edward,” Bella said with quiet disapproval.

I, again, wanted to make them tell me something- anything, but Carlisle interjected before I got the chance. His voice was significantly calmer than before, as he tried to mediate. “It’s not an exact science, Edward.”

“He was in their rooms, Alice. He could have still been there- waiting for them.” my brows furrowed. My heart rate accelerated.

“I would have seen that.”

Edward threw his hands up. I wanted to do the same. “Really? You’re sure?”

I finally broke, “For the love of god! Can anyone tell me what the fuck is going on?” Alice held back a laugh at my outburst, but it was Bella who finally answered my question. 

“When Edward came over earlier, he noticed another vampire- we don’t know who- had been in the house.”

I forgot to breathe, my eyes were locked on her. “Dad-”

“Is okay. He was home but had no knowledge of the intruder. Whoever it was looked in every room, but mainly in yours and Bella’s.” Edward filled me in on the rest, clearly very annoyed- or maybe just worried. He added, “And Alice missed it.”

I was suddenly freezing cold and shivering hard. Carlisle was next to me on the couch with both of his hands clasped around mine. I let myself lean into him.

Alice’s voice was cold when she answered. “You’ve already got me watching the Volturis’ decisions, watching for Victoria’s return, watching Bella’s every step. Do you want me to watch Y/n’s too? Because we already know how well that will work. What about their rooms or the whole damn house? Edward, if I try to do too much, things are going to start slipping through the cracks.”

“It looks like they already are,” he snapped.

That’s not fair, I thought but I couldn’t make the words come out. Edward huffed a laugh.

Alice retorted, “She was never in any danger.” By she, she meant Bella, I had been here. Of course I hadn’t been in any danger, but it still sounded like she was trying to comfort both Edward and Carlisle. “There was nothing to see.”

“If you were watching Italy, why didn’t you see them send-”

“I don't think it was them,” Alice insisted. “I would have seen that.”

“Who else would leave Charlie alive?”

I winced. Carlisle squeezed my hands. “Who else would have bothered with my room? No one has been interested in me before now.”

Alice sighed, “I don’t know.”

“Helpful.”

“Stop it, Edward.” Bella whispered. I wanted to thank her. He really was being unreasonable. His head jerked in her direction. He was still so angry he almost looked like he was going to yell at her too. I probably would have lost it, if Carlisle didn’t have my hands.

But then he took a deep breath and relaxed a bit. “You’re right, Bella. I’m sorry.” He looked at Alice. “Forgive me, Alice. I shouldn’t be taking this out on you. That was inexcusable.”

“I understand,” Alice assured him. “I’m not happy about it either.”

“Okay, let’s look at this logically.” Edward took another deep breath. I was still shivering. “What are the other possibilities?”

As if on cue, everyone softened a bit. Carlisle kissed my hair and sat back leaving only one hand on mine. Rosalie got up and stared out the window. I wished I could comfort her. 

Bella and I shared a long look. I was forever hoping she knew how happy I was to have her with me in this- even when it was awful like this. I knew I couldn't do it alone, so I was happy to have her at my side.

Carlisle spoke first. “Victoria?”

I shook my head. “She’s never been interested in me before. She’s never even thought twice about me.”

“Maybe she’s considering you an easier target now.” His voice was so soft, like he was tiptoeing past a bomb. He could probably tell I wanted to scream again. 

“But I didn’t know the scent. He might have been from the Volturi, someone I’ve never met…”

This time Alice shook her head. “Aro hasn’t sent anyone to look for them yet I will see that. I’m waiting for it.”

Edward’s head snapped up. I waited for him to be mean again, but he wasn’t “You’re watching for an official command.”

“You think someone’s acting on their own? Why?” Carlisle questioned so I didn’t have to.

“Caius’s idea,” Edward suggested. His panic cracked his resolve again.

“Or Jane’s…” Alice added. “ They both have the resources to send an unfamiliar face…”

Edward scowled. “And the motivation.”

“I don’t see the point though. If they were meant to wait for me and Bella, Alice would have seen it. Obviously they had no intention of hurting us- or Dad for that matter.” I said. A small part of my panic turned to basic confusion. 

Bella winced when I mentioned Dad again. I pulled away from Carlisle to hug her while whispering, "It's going to be fine, Bella." It had to be.

"The question remains, What was the point?" Carlisle asked. I was glad he understood my confusion. 

"Checking to see if we're still human" 

"It's possible, and would explain why they checked Y/n too."

Rosalie sighed and it was loud enough to make me and Bella jump from across the room. For the first time since the boys left she turned away from the window and looked towards the kitchen. I guessed that Emmett and Jasper were back, and from the annoyed look on Edwards face, they didn't have an answer he wanted.

"Long gone, hours ago." Emmett announced, disappointed. Rosalie moved to his side and he threw an arm over her shoulder. "The trail went east, then south, and disappeared on a side road. Had a car waiting."

"That's bad luck," Edward muttered. "If he'd gone west… well, it would be nice for Jacob and the others to make themselves useful."

I kinda wanted to laugh, it always sounded silly when Edward tried to insult Jacob, But Bella winced at his words so I didn't. I just rubbed her back between her shoulders.

Jasper looked at Carlisle. "Neither of us recognized him. But here." He held out something that looked similar to a tree, just a small tree. I wanted to laugh again. When Carlisle took it from him and held it to his face, I did laugh. He turned his head just slightly away from me to hold back a laugh as well. "Maybe you know the scent."

"No," Carlisle said, serious again. "It's not familiar. No one I've ever met."

"I mean… Hypothetically, couldn't it just be some random passing vampire?" Everyone turned to look at me like I'd lost it, so I added "Of course not in that they just happened to pick our house to drop in randomly. Just maybe this person was a bit curious. All of your scents are all over us. Maybe they wanted to know why."

"Why wouldn't they just come here then? If they were curious?" Emmett challenged.

I laughed softly. "Not everyone is as brave as you can be, Emmett. But from an outside perspective, our family is huge and consists of mainly gifted vampires. They might be a bit intimidated. Dad wasn't hurt. They didn't stick around for us to get home. It could be someone who's just passing through. Someone who caught our scents and wanted to see what was going on.”

I think I was trying to convince myself that there was no immediate threat. It was an easier pill to swallow that someone was passing through rather than someone with malicious intent. I looked at Bella for backup, but she looked like she was plotting. I didn't want to know what was running circles in her mind.

"I don't think so, Y/n…" Alice interjected, pursing her lips. "The timing of it was too perfect… This visitor was so careful to make no contact. Almost like they knew I would see…"

I shivered again, pulled completely out of my false sense of security. I knew it was improbable. I knew they were trying to get to the bottom of this. Deep down, I knew that this person definitely had bad intentions.

But I had to hope, if only so I wouldn’t start screaming.

Carlisle squeezed my hand. "He might have had other reasons for avoiding contact." He reminded her and reassured me. I smiled at him in thanks. He kissed my hand.

"Does it really matter who it was?" Bella asked and I squeezed my eyes closed and placed my head on Carlisle's shoulder. "Just the chance that someone was looking for me… isn't that reason enough? We shouldn't wait for graduation."

"No, Bella," Edward and I said in unison. I didn't look up.

He continued. "It's not that bad. If you're really in danger, we'll know."

"Think of Charlie," Carlisle reminded her. I could kiss him. "Think of how it would hurt him if you disappeared."

"I am thinking of Charlie! He's the one I'm worried about. What if our little guest had been thirsty last night? As long as I'm around Charlie- as long as we're both still human- He's a target too."

"Nothing is going to happen to Dad, Bells. He's lived in this supernatural infested town long enough without problems." I tried to sound comforting.

"His daughters weren't bringing them to his house then." She clearly wasn't comforted.

"We're just going to have to be more careful." Edward added. He had faith in our family. That was comforting; at least to me.

"More careful?" Bella repeated in disbelief.

"It's all going to be fine, Bella," Alice Promised.

Bella sat back, accepting we wouldn't budge no matter how much she begged. That night at least, she would stay human.

~~

I drove home early the next morning, but I still managed to miss Dad on his way out. Bella said that he was gone before she woke up too and, knowing him, he probably left before the sun was even up.

I walked into the kitchen to find Bella and Edward discussing why he had to leave just because Jacob is stopping by. I rolled my eyes at the cliche, but appreciated Edwards diplomatic approach.

I did wonder just how far he planned to go. I doubted he would leave us completely alone, but I also knew he wouldn't stay close enough for Jacob to know. I assumed that he would lurk back with Jasper, but stay ready to spring into action if need be. He nodded once in my direction with just the tiniest smirk on his lips and I knew I had guessed correctly.

He turned his attention back to Bella. "I'll be right back." I heard him laugh as she walked him to the door.

I figured it was as good a time as any to pick Bella's brain a bit about Jacob; Even if it meant I had to interrupt her grumpy grumbling as she cleaned the kitchen.

"Hey, Bells?"

She jumped and nearly dropped the glass she was placing in the sink. "Y/n! I thought you'd gone back upstairs."

"Nope… Still down here." I giggled. and waited a small second for her to get her breathing right. When she smiled at me I continued, "So, why is Jacob coming over?"

"He wants to check our rooms for the scent of that vampire…" I cringed at how nonchalant she said it. "And I decided to forgive him. For what he said before…"

I didn't mention that she never told me what he'd said before, I knew it wasn't kind. I let it go. "I think… I guess it wouldn't hurt to have their help in this too." I pulled my lips into a line and she nodded. "Though, it would be much easier if they could just get along- if the three of you could get along in general." I paused to gauge her reaction but when she laughed so did I.

"Wouldn't it?" She bit her lip and looked at the dishes in the sink. I thought for a second that she was going to say something more, but she didn't. She got lost in her thoughts and I didn't want to bother her again. She focused back on the dishes and I started to help by putting away what was already clean.

There was a kinda demanding knock at the door and before I could go answer it, Bella was calling for Jacob to come in. I wanted to vanish. It's not that I had anything against him, I just didn't trust myself to not tell them to get over themselves. 

Despite just telling him to come in, she still jumped when he spoke. "Should you really leave your door unlocked like that?" And when he noticed he made her splash dish water on herself, he added "Oh, sorry."

"It's not like a locked door would stop anything after us anyway." I said while she tried to dry the front of her shirt.

"Oh… Good point, Y/n," He agreed before adding, "I didn't see you there."

I had to laugh. "That seems to be pretty common." I nodded.

Bella squinted her eyes, like she was judging him, clearly in her own world. "Is it really so impossible to wear clothes, Jacob?"

I laughed out loud. If they were going to discuss Jacobs nakedness, I definitely did not need to be in the room. I left them to talk and, for the first time in the hours since I'd gotten home, I went upstairs. 

I hesitated by my bedroom door. I knew that no one would be in there and yet, I couldn't make myself open the door. I stood there and looked at it and even reached for the handle, but that was as far as I got. 

Instead, I turned on my heels and walked down to Dads room. His door was already open and, of course, he was not inside. His bed wasn't made, but his room wasn't messy. It smelled like him- Warm, musky, and dusty. It smelled like home. I wondered how much it smelled like him to the others if it smelled this strongly to my human nose.

He'd never lived anywhere else in his adult life. He probably smelled like this place. It was probably one in the same. I heard Jacob's heavy footsteps as he stomped up the stairs. I laid on Dads bed in an attempt to stay out of his way. 

It was comforting in a way I hadn't really expected. Like how it was when I was a child and I'd run in there to hide from the monsters under my bed- Only this time there really had been a monster in there. I shivered and pulled his blanket up around my face. I couldn't let myself cry; I knew I wouldn't be able to stop.

It wasn't long before Jacob poked his head in anyway. He was quiet then he kinda took a sharp breath. "Hey, Y/n. I didn't know you were in here-" I laughed, he continued. "This rooms clear- No vamps in here. Is this Charlie's room?"

I nodded.

"That's good. That they didn't come in here…" He looked across the hall towards the other rooms. "Your room reeks though. Like they were in there for a while. Touched a lot of stuff too, like they were looking for something."

I stared at him, eyes wide open. "I-" I wanted to scream again.

"But it's good! ‘Cause I can really smell them in there. Bella's room reeks of Cullen, so it's hard to get only this new one. But it being all over your room… helps." I knew he was- however unsuccessfully, trying to calm me down.

I sighed and smiled softly at him. "Thank you Jacob."

He grinned wide. "No problem! Hey uh… Sam asked if I would mention that he needs to speak with you."

"Of course he does…" I shook my head, already annoyed.

"There's a bonfire tonight. You could come-"

"I couldn't." Mostly because I didn't want to deal with Sam, but also I didn't want to impose. "I've got plans with Carlisle."

"Sure. Sure. But could you at least call Sam so he'll get off my back?"

"I'll consider it."

He grinned again. "Thanks, Y/n!"

Then he left before he said anything else. I threw myself back on the bed. I didn't want to go back down there while Jacob was still there and as soon as he left I heard Edward get back. So I stayed in my dads bed trying to convince myself to go into my own room.

Eventually I decided to just rip the bandage off. I walked to my room and again, hesitated by the door. Only this time, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath and swung the door open on the exhale.

Jacob was right. My room was a mess. It was honestly so much worse than I could have expected. My dresser drawers were open. The closet was open and missing some of its contents. Even my laundry basket was knocked over. 

But what shocked me the most- My entire bed sheet and my pillows were gone.

For a long moment I was just frozen in the doorway, staring at the mess my bedroom had become. I didn't notice how bad I was shaking. I kept thinking I wanted to clean up my room but it was too overwhelming. 

Whoever this was, was in my room.  They went through all of my things. They stole my bedsheet. And I could not fathom why. I think that's what scared me the most.

All this time, even though I had been running with them too, the rogue vampires only wanted Bella. So I didn't understand why they were suddenly interested in me.

I stood there for a long while until I couldn't handle it anymore. I went far enough into my room to set my laundry basket up right. One of the only things still in it was one of Carlisle's sweaters- A navy blue one he'd worn when we'd gone to the library. He swore it looked better on me and he didn't need it anyway. I agreed to take it because it smelled like home. It still smelled like him.

I threw it over my head, decided the mess could wait, and went downstairs to meet up with Bella and Edward.

As I drifted downstairs, Bella was explaining to Edward why she thought Alice had cleaned her room. "-that was lying around, my shirts, my socks, and I don't know where she put them."

As I approached Edward went rigged. 

“No, I think Y/n is right. When did you notice your things were missing?"

"When I got back from the fake slumber party…"

Then Edward looked at me, which made Bella look at me. My eyes went wide and I guessed that he wanted me to answer the same question. "Oh… I-I haven't been home. So. Today? My bed sheet is gone and some of my clothes…"

I hadn't considered that maybe it was Alice, but Bella was known for not looking at the whole picture. I didn't think that made much sense anyway.

Edward shook his head. "I don't think Alice took anything. Not your clothes, or your bed sheet. The things that were taken, these were things that you'd worn… and touched… and slept on?"

"Yes. What is it, Edward?" I didn't know how she hadn't pieced it together yet.

I couldn't tell if Edward was angry or confused. Or both. "Things with your scent?"

"Oh!"  She breathed and I knew it clicked for her. They stared at each other for a while and If I didn't know better, I would have thought he was reading her mind. “The visitor…” she muttered.

“He was gathering traces… evidence. To prove that he’d found the both of you?”

Again, I found myself at a loss for why.

Bella actually whispered, “Why?”

“I don’t know. But, Bella, I swear I will find out. I will.”

“It also doesn’t make sense. Why did they clean up Bella’s room and tear mine apart? Why do they care about me at all?” My questions were mostly rhetorical. I knew there weren't any real answers yet.

He was kind enough to entertain me anyway. “You’re right, I have no idea why their focus has extended to you as well. But the state of your room makes a bit of sense… Your scent is hard enough to trace as it is , but if you haven’t been sleeping here and because you always smell like Carlisle- I would guess he couldn’t find a solid trace of you-”

“And then he got frustrated and trashed my room?”

“Maybe. It’s just a running theory. I will bring it up with Carlisle.”

Bella sighed and laid her head on his chest. I was already overwhelmed and I’d only dealt with it for a day. I didn’t know how they had managed it for so long.

Edward pulled his phone out right as it started ringing, only briefly checking the number. “Just the person I need to talk to,” Once he answered my heart started to race a bit. “Carlisle, I-”

I could hear his voice over the phone. It was low and fast. Edward looked very focused. I hoped nothing else was falling apart. “I’ll check it out. Listen…” 

He went on to explain mine and Bella’s missing things, though it sounded like he was just as confused as we were. Carlisle sounded very concerned about my situation. I wished I could kiss him.

“Maybe I’ll go…” His eyes drifted to Bella. “Maybe not. Don’t let Emmett go alone, you know how he gets. At least ask Alice to keep an eye on things. We’ll figure this out later.”

Carlisle said something made Edward look at me. “Yeah. I’ll have Jasper go with her. I think that’s a good idea. I’ll talk to you soon.” He got off the phone, sent a quick message to Jasper I guessed, then turned to Bella. "Where's the paper?" he asked her.

"Uhm, I'm not sure. Why?"

"I need to see something. Did Charlie already throw it out?"

"Maybe…"

Then he was gone and I looked at Bella to see if she had any idea what was going on. I don't think she did. Half a second later, Edward reappeared with Jasper in tow. Despite my utter confusion I smiled warmly at Jasper.

"Hey, Y/n. Carlisle asked if I could bring you to meet him at the hospital." I wasn't sure how it would work or why exactly he wanted me to meet him there but I was more than willing to go. So I just nodded and he grinned. Any ideas to call Sam and see what he wanted went out the window.

"I'll-... just need to grab some things." I walked upstairs before anyone said anything more to me. I heard them resume making plans, I really just had to grab my keys and bag from Dads room. I couldn't even look into my own room again. 

I went back into the kitchen and they were still talking, but I only caught the end of it. "I'll have to tell you soon. When there's time. It's a bit lengthy…"

She sighed and set her head on the table "What a mess."

Both of the guys chuckled softly before Jasper turned towards me. "Ready?"

"Sure…"

I said my goodbyes to the others. I told Bella I loved her and then we drove to the hospital in silence. He drove my car with the windows rolled down, so it wasn't terribly awkward. I thought that the windows being down might help ease some of his tension, and he was breathing so I figured I'd guessed right.

Though it was a bit strange, I was grateful he was willing to bring me to Carlisle. When we pulled up to the main entrance, I thanked him before I got out.

"It's really no problem, Y/n." He was the perfect southern gentleman as always. "I'll drive your car to the house. Carlisle will probably want you to come home with him anyway."

"You're right. Thank you… again." 

He laughed, "Of course. One last thing… When I tell Bella my story, I'd like for you to be there as well. I think it might help clear some things up."

"Oh! Sure. We can make that happen."

"Alright. Then I'll see you later?" He gave me another crooked smile and I got out of the car. I thanked him again and he just laughed and drove towards his house. 

I went straight to Carlisle's office. The receptionist was expecting me and informed me that Carlisle was in a meeting, but should be done quickly. I sat in his office chair and pulled the sleeves of his sweater around my hands before laying my head down on his desk. 

He really didn't take long- Five, ten minutes tops- and when he was finally in the room he crouched down right in front of me.

"Are you alright, Dove?" His voice was heavy with concern. He placed a steady hand just above my knee.

"I'm okay- overwhelmed, but okay." I moved my head from his desk and rested it instead against his forehead.

"I am so sorry, Y/n. I'm going to get to the bottom of this."

My heart broke for him. "I know you will." I whispered. I smiled softly at him to really express my point and when he pulled back to look into my eyes, I kissed him. It was really cathartic. All I wanted to do was wrap myself up in him and hide from whatever was after us this time. Kissing him felt like I could do just that.

Remembering where we were, I eventually did pull back. "How much longer do you need to stay here today?"

"We're actually good to go now. They'll call if I'm needed, but I don't imagine they will. I thought we both would feel a bit better if you were here with me. He brushed my hair back and kissed me quickly before he added "If I'm being honest, I think I would feel significantly better if you were with me more consistently." There were a lot of implications in his tone but my brain was too cloudy to decipher his meaning.

When he saw how confused I was he continued. "If you were willing… If you wanted, I would be elated if you moved in with me."

As his words processed my eyes went wide. I held up one finger so I could think. I believe he chuckled and told me to take my time, but I couldn't be sure; I was too focused.

I spent most of my time at his house, moving in with him wouldn't be a huge change- if it didn't feel like a huge change. It felt official. I wasn't ready for marriage and I think most would agree that for our particular circumstances, marriage could wait. 

But I did want to live with him. I knew that meant living in a house full of vampires, but they were my vampires. I wondered how they would feel about living with me. I hoped it wouldn't bother them too badly. I hoped it wouldn't be unbearable for Jasper.

Because I really wanted to live with them. I thought about my Dad. Bella would also move out in a few short weeks. If I moved out, he would be alone. I'm sure he knew we'd move out at some point. I still felt guilty that it was now. For now at least, I wouldn't be far.

And I wanted this.

I wanted this.

I wanted this. 

I felt my cheeks warm as I blushed. I smiled at him and realized he was speaking again. His sentences were jumbled and he hardly put spaces between each word.

"-you do not have to. I know that we've only just gotten back and I would completely understand if this is too soon. I just want you to be safe and comfortable-"

"Carlisle." He froze and saw the smile on my face. He almost cracked a smile too. "I want to. If you're serious, I would love to move in with you."

For a second, he looked like he was processing. I gave him the time he needed, just as he had with me. When it cleared he held my face in his hands and kissed me. I melted into him immediately.

Sure, we would have to tell my dad eventually, but for right that second I could just focus on him. Whatever came next we would face it together.

~~

I caught Dad right before he went to work one morning, though he was already in uniform and only had to lace up his shoes. I floated down the stairs just before he could reach for the door handle. 

I took a deep breath and rushed the words out, “Hey, really quick before you go… I was kinda thinking about moving in with Carlisle.”

He raised his eyebrows and turned to look at me. I couldn’t quite read his expression. “Oh, really? When?”

“I-I. Well, he asked me- a few days ago now. And I thought about it and decided I really did want to, so-” I stammered my way through my response a bit taken off guard. Thankfully he interrupted me with a laugh.

“No, Y/n, I mean when were you planning on moving out?”

“Oh…” I didn’t know. I hadn’t really thought past telling him. I'd basically already had started living there, without out-right saying it. "Most of my things are there, so I guess now." I waited for him to react, but he just nodded.

"Will You need help with your furniture? I'm sure Bella won't mind if we use her truck."

"No, No. I think I can leave most of it here… If that's okay with you." I threw the last bit out in a rush. I didn't want to assume I could.

"Of course, Kid. It's not like I've got plans to turn your room into an at home gym. You'll always have a space here."

I bit my lip, suddenly fighting back tears. "You're not mad?"

"Mad? Why would I be mad?" His confusion was genuine. 

"I…" I took a steady breath. " I just thought you might still be upset that they left. I mean they haven’t been back that long and I wasn’t sure you’d be ecstatic about me moving in with him right now… And also you haven’t been alone in a long long time so-”

“Y/n, Honey, It’s okay. He crossed the room to wrap me in a tight hug. “It’s not like you're moving to a different country; you’re just going across town. I want you to be happy, I want you to start your life.”

He leaned back and smiled at me before wiping a tear from my check. I wasn’t sure when I’d started crying. He continued, “Now I won’t lie to you and say that I’m all that excited for you to get this serious so soon after they hurt you but- I do trust your judgment. I know you’ll be okay.”

I nodded and said, “You’re right, I will be.” then quickly asked, “Will you be alright?”

He laughed. “I will be alright, too. And, in the worst case, you can always come back.”

It was my turn to laugh. I pulled into him again and hid my face in his chest. “I love you, Dad.”

“I love you too, kid. I always will.”

Taglist!

@jakanddexter67 @a-not-so-poetic-poet @bridge597 @cestlavie03 @gaymazinglula @short-potato @jennyamanda8 @daisydreamingsims @arg888cam

[livinggeekchic]

I’ve been thinking a lot more about Harvey on my most recent reread of Purple Hyacinth. He is set up as this kind of bumbling but good-natured kid, whose death hits us hard—only for us to later find out that he was a spy for the Phantom Scythe all along. And we, like Lauren, feel betrayed.

But we are given clues that everything is not as it seems. To start, Bella tells Kieran that Harvey was eliminated because he wasn’t useful.

That got me thinking about this set of panels. March and Hermann are having a conversation about Lune. This is surely information that the leader would be interested in hearing about. Harvey is in the perfect position to listen in, walking by with a stack of papers. But instead, he hightails it out of there. If you zoom in, you can see the “spinning” of his feet, he’s booking it so fast out of there.

So while he was a spy, he either wasn’t a very good one, or he didn’t really want to be one. We also see Harvey mentioning that he has to do his best for his grandpa--is it possible that his grandfather needs money, and that's why he's doing it? This is just one possibility of many. Kieran says as much to Lauren, after she tells him that Harvey was a mole. Kieran knows there are many reasons someone might join the Phantom Scythe, but Lauren is still thinking in black and white--right and wrong. While it makes sense that Lauren feels betrayed, she's failing to grasp the nuance of the situation.

Nothing showcases this better than Harvey’s funeral. We see Harvey’s grandfather violently sobbing, obviously devastated. He says “you didn’t need to try so hard.” (Another indicator that Harvey was likely making choices for his grandfather’s benefit.)

And how does Lauren react? Her expression here doesn’t look like one of sympathy, or even pity. She looks shocked and almost affronted. She’s so consumed by her hatred of the Phantom Scythe, for what happened at Allendale, that she can’t even see Harvey as a person. She can stand by and watch his close family member grieve, and all she thinks is, “they don’t know what I know.” But regardless of what misdeeds Harvey committed, he was still loved. He still deserves to be mourned.

She calls him a traitor. She’s almost disgusted by the fact that everyone is mourning him. But was he really a traitor? How much information did he actually give the Scythe? He was "useless" after all. Even if he did help the Scythe stall the APD's investigations, we know he wasn't this inherently evil character. He was genuinely concerned for his coworkers' safety. Lauren tells us that he never lied or showed any signs of being part of the PS. She sees this as evidence that she was blind to the truth, but I think she's actually blind to the fact that not everyone in the PS is "the enemy." Their motivations can be complicated.

In S1, Lauren views Kieran similarly. He’s an assassin, and therefore, he is reprehensible. She can’t understand why it's so important to him that he kills only when ordered or when it's the only solution. She doesn't really attempt to unearth his reasoning for wanting to take down the leader, beyond asking about it just once. She is inflexible, and rigid in her thinking: good people don't work for the Phantom Scythe. But of course, we come to see that it's more complicated than that.

A lot happens in S2 that helps open her eyes to this, which I won’t go into now. But I will leave you with a quote from Kieran in episode 93: “all these years within this wretched organization have taught me…it’s not a monolith. Not everyone agrees nor is aware of what is truly going on.”

Perhaps Harvey truly didn’t know the half of it. Maybe he was given a chance to provide for his grandfather and took it. Maybe he was told that the Scythe was helping the poor, and he related to that struggle. Maybe he was told they would only use the info he gave them to protect themselves from the APD, and wouldn't ever go on the offense. Ultimately, we don’t know. But what I do know is that if Harvey was outed as a spy in S3, I think Lauren would try harder to understand.

[bellysoupset]

For the mini-fic, could I ask for tight loud belly gurgles with sick Jon and Leo? (If Luke and Bell were there too would be super fun, but whatever works for the scenario, I love me some sick Jon).✨️💙 @writing-whump

Making the most out of my little weekend at the cabin scenery!

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

"C'mere," Leo chuckled, grabbing the back of Jonah's sweater and tugging on it with all his force, causing the other man to let out an strangled, offended noise as he fell down on the big cushion Leo was sitting on as well.

They were all outside the cabin, sitting around the fire pit. It was a chilly night, after a full Saturday of activities and Leo was more than a little tipsy, happily pressing his lips to Jon's cheek when the other man let out a scoff and grumbled about him stretching his sweater.

"So you're going to specialize in entertainment?" Luke asked, eyebrows raised and Leo was reminded he was actually holding a conversation to begin with.

"Not entertainment," Leo yawned, downing the rest of the wine in his mug — yes, mug, much to Jonah's horror —, "intellectual property law. Everything surrounding things people have created and must be protected-"

"That's really cool," Vince praised, looking genuinely impressed, "so authors and stuff?"

"As well as brands, artists..." Leo shrugged, then let out a surprised chuckle when he felt Jonah all but collapse against his side, completely giving up on the conversation.

He looked away from their friends — Bella was sprawled on the grass, only her head resting on Luke's lap. Leo was pretty sure Wendy had fallen asleep against Vince's bicep, the poor girl was worn after having just recovered from strep and driving 4 hours on top of a hospital shift — to Jon.

Jonah looked almost as tired as Wendy, but unlike her slack, peaceful face, Jon had pained lines around his mouth.

"You alright?" Leo whispered, trailing a hand up his boyfriend's back and frowning, tuning out the others.

Jonah started to nod, but then he shook his head, sitting up straight, "I'm going to bed," he announced.

"Already?" Bella pouted, wide awake, "it's only 9, old man."

"I overdid on the wine, I'm sleepy," Jonah cleared up, then waved Leo off when he went to stand up as well, "no, stay, I'm just gonna sleep it off-" he yawned again and then walked back inside.

Leo sighed, not happy to be dismissed, but also not wanting to go in just yet either. It was a really nice night, just chilly enough for the bonfire and so there were no mosquitos, with the stars dotting the sky.

They talked for another hour or so, Leo sliding down the daybed cushion until he was practically fully lying down, talking about work — Luke was particularly interested —, about Bella's new RPG campaign-

"I really cannot wrap my head around you playing table top RPG. Like those kids from Stranger Things?" Leo frowned.

"I'm not a loser boy and it's not the 80s, so no," Bella scoffed, "I'll have you know I'm a super hot barbarian."

"Of course you are," Vince teased her lightly, "I need you to help me run a campaign with my thirteen year olds."

"Are you on some contest for coolest teacher?" Bella poked fun at him, "damn, buy the kids ice cream while you're at that-"

Leo laughed at them, turning his head towards the large cabin up the hill and frowning as he realized the room he guessed was his and Jon's still had the lights on.

"Y'all, I think I'm going inside," Leo decided and heard a chorus of Goodnight Leo as he walked away.

True to what he expected, Jonah was still awake. The lights were on and he was lying on top of the blankets, in his pajamas, an arm thrown over his face in order to block the light out.

"Sleepy, uh?" Leo asked, stumbling inside and grabbing on the doorway to steady himself. He hadn't felt just how sloshed he was while sitting down, but standing it was painfully obvious.

"I am sleepy," Jonah groaned, "but my stomach won't let me sleep."

"Aww angel, what's wrong with your tummy?" Leo cooed, closing the door and crawling on the bed, immediately grabbing the silk shirt of Jon's pjs and pushing it up to his chin.

Drunk, he didn't bother biting down a dreamy sigh at Jon's exposed midriff. Despite Leo's teasing about him abandoning gym, that wasn't exactly true. He no longer exercised every day like Leo still did and he no longer weight lifted, but he did still go in once a week, for the aerobics. On top of that, Jon had joined Bell's boxing class.

His stomach, that once had a hard six pack that was akin to Leo's, now was soft, a little squishy, and tonight it was bloated and round.

"What are yoOU DOING?!" Jonah squealed, as Leo didn't think twice before leaning in as if to kiss his belly, but instead opted for biting it, "Leo!"

"Your tummy is cute," he smiled, pressing a kiss to where he had just bit and slumping across the bed, half his body resting on Jonah's thighs and trapping him in place, "you're cute."

"You're drunk," Jonah groaned, blowing out a little queasy burp, "and it's not cute, I feel really gross."

Leo trailed his fingers up the middle of his boyfriend's belly, as if they were walking. Even bloated by the wine and soft by the lack of exercise, there was still a concave line there, marking the quadrants of his abs.

Once he almost reached Jonah's chest, Leo opened his hand flat against the other man's skin, rubbing a soft circle there, "help- Oh ow," the blonde raised his eyebrows when his touch caused a gurgle to ripple through Jon's tummy, emitting a whine.

Jon brought a fist to his mouth and burped into it, making a face at the taste, "ew."

"Let me know if I'm making it worse," Leo mumbled, looking away from his face and focusing his whole attention on his boyfriend's belly. He continued the gentle, strong circular rubs on his upper stomach, until the gurgles died down and then moved his hands down, searching for another tight spot. As soon as he touched Jon's belly button, the other man darted a hand up and cupped his mouth, letting out a wet, sickly belch.

His tummy gurgled and whined, vibrating under Leo's touch, "sounds so upset..." Leo whispered, mesmerized, then digging his thumb on Jon's side and rubbing little circles from the side towards the navel.

"Gentle, you're gonna make me puke," Jon groaned, as his belly whined again, "Leo..."

"Sorry, sorry," Leo eased up the pressure, before slightly lowered on the bed and planting an elbow on the mattress, supporting his head with his free hand. He leaned in and kissed Jon's softer under tummy, right where his pajama' pants met it. This close he could feel and hear the constant gurgling and whining coming from the sickly organ, "you poor thing-"

"Yeah, you sound very sorry about it," Jonah scoffed, but didn't push him back, "you don't think it's disgusting?"

"Your tummy?" Leo blinked owlishly at him, bewildered, "no?!"

"But it's making all sorts of gross noises..." Jonah's cheeks turned dark with a blush and Leo let out a scoff, moving again and then resting his cheek against the other man's belly, now hearing very clearly every upset gurgle.

"I think it's super cute," he clarified, "hell, I never think any part of you is gross, Jon."

"Aren't you a romantic," Jonah scoffed, but even without looking up Leo could hear the relief in his voice. He reached in without thinking, starting to pet Leo's hair, not telling him to move, "the pressure is helping, don't move."

"Okay," Leo whispered, closing his eyes and allowing the little symphony of gurgles to lull him to sleep.

[rose-of-oz]

𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗡 𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗘 𝗗𝗘𝗦𝗖𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗔𝗡𝗧𝗦 𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗧 𝗕𝗨𝗡𝗡𝗜𝗘𝗦

Turns out my brain never knows when to stop (😅), so now I have even more plot bunnies for Descendants and I thought I’d share them with you!! Keep in mind that I probably won’t do official intro posts for most of these, but you can still feel free to ask me questions about them if you want!!

Bella Wolf, daughter of the Big Bad Wolf, poly Carlos/Jane ship, Fivel Stewart FC. A member of the VKs, despite being a total sweetheart for a villain kid and never really wanting to be evil, because she was the only kid who tried to befriend Evie when she had her mother were exiled and she and Evie have been stuck like glue ever since. Not originally selected to go to Auradon, but the VKs managed to sneak her through the barrier and Ben decided to let her stay. Genuinely befriends Jane pretty quickly since they’re both really sweet and quiet, and doesn’t necessarily like her friends using the girl, but she goes along with it and it breaks her heart to distance herself from Jane after Family Day. Has also had a crush on Carlos forever but doesn’t realize she likes Jane too until after Jane and Carlos start dating, and she thinks she’s missed her chance with both of them until they approach her about being a part of their relationship. Has been purely in human form, like her dad, for most of her life because of the magic blocker on the Isle, but when she gets to Auradon she discovers that she can shift into a wolf and back at will, and also has heightened senses and reflexes, which she uses to join the tourney team after it becomes more inclusive after the second movie.

Charlotte Cogsworth, daughter of Cogsworth, Gil ship, India Eisley FC. Homeschooled in Auradon’s palace for most of her life, because she’s been in training to follow in her father’s footsteps and become an advisor in Ben’s future court and also because Cogsworth is a very protective father, but Ben manages to convince his parents to convince her father to let her go to Auradon Prep shortly before the VKs come to Auradon (and she almost gets pulled out of school again when Cogsworth learns about villain kids coming, but thankfully it doesn’t happen). A bit socially inept since she hasn’t spent a lot of time around kids her age other than Ben, but a very sweet and fiercely intelligent girl who’s accepting of the VKs right away. Offers to tutor the Sea Three and catch them up on any education they might lack after Ben brings them to Auradon after the second movie, and falls in love with Gil that way. Absolute besties with Ben since they grew up together, and is also really good friends with Lonnie and Evie and Doug (and also forms a kind of unexpected friendship with Uma after a while). Her father nearly has a heart attack when he finds out she’s dating Gaston’s son, but he eventually comes around.

Beauregard “Beau” Beast, son of Belle and Adam, poly Harry/Jay ship. Younger than Ben by less than a year, but has always grown up in his brother’s shadow as the “spare heir”; even though Ben never tried to make him feel less than, he’s always known that his father didn’t care about him the same way, that he was meant to just be Ben’s right hand and nothing else. Inherited his mother’s love for reading and knowledge and has spent most of his life locked in his room or the palace library studying history and politics, hoping that he could become a well-known senator or ambassador to another kingdom. A bit wary of the VKs at first, but eventually befriends all of them and starts dating Jay (to Adam’s consternation, especially since Ben’s already dating Mal), and winds up being the one Uma’s pirate crew kidnaps instead of Ben when they go to the Isle to bring Mal home. He and Harry are intruiged by each other and flirt a little while he’s captive (awkwardly on Beau’s part), but he finds out after the Sea Three come to Auradon that Jay and Harry were actually involved for a short while before the fight between the VKs and Uma’s crew got really bad. Eventually Jay and Beau realize that they (still, on Jay’s part) have actual genuine feelings for Harry, and invite him to be part of their relationship. Beau is very sweet but intensely awkward and insecure due to never being the first choice growing up, but as he gains more friends and starts dating Jay and Harry he’s able to come out of his shell and starts being able to stand up for himself.

Wesley Darling, son of Wendy Darling, Mal ship, Tom Holland FC. The son of Wendy and the man she married after becoming a writer and putting Neverland behind her, but there are rumours that he’s actually Peter Pan’s son because of all the mischief he gets into. Hates Auradon’s thinking of “moving past” magic and how perfect and prim everyone pretends to be, so he’s constantly pulling pranks and getting into trouble with Fairy Godmother. Immediately recognizes that Ben’s under a love spell because he sees him eat the spelled cookie and approaches Mal about it, not to confront her or rat her out but just because he’s impressed by her prank skills (he obviously doesn’t realize that it’s part of a bigger plan). He and Mal fall in love leading up to the coronation, and Wesley is so relieved when she chooses good and admits to Ben that she doesn’t have any feelings for him - which he’s fine with because he’s a good friend and genuinely likes Wesley - so they can be together. The very definition of a class clown, laid-back and mischievous and doesn’t take a lot seriously, but also a lot smarter than most people think and would do anything for the people he cares about.

Aurora Andersen, daughter of Ariel and Eric, poly Mal/Evie ship, Zendaya Coleman FC. Ariel and Eric’s younger child, after her older sister Melody who’s already graduated Auradon Prep. Shares her mother’s curiousity and sense of adventure, and so she makes a strong effort to befriend the VKs when they first come to Auradon. Realizes she has feelings for both Evie and Mal after they almost steal the wand at the coronation, and is thrilled when they choose good and decide to stay in Auradon. Confesses to them sometime between the first and second movies, and they all become Auradon Prep’s power throuple. Pretty much exactly like Ariel in terms of personality, bold and inquisitive and kind, but with Eric’s occasional recklessness thrown in. Can change between mermaid and human forms at will, thanks to Fairy Godmother’s magic. Wanted to be on Auradon Prep’s swim team but it was deemed unfair since she’s a mermaid, so she settles on joining the R.O.A.R. team after Lonnie becomes captain.

Delfina Madrigal, daughter of Dolores Madrigal, Lonnie ship, Rachel Zegler FC. Daughter of Dolores and Mariano, and the oldest of the five children that her father always wanted. Received a gift from the family miracle on her fifth birthday like the rest of her family, becoming able to create illusions through her singing voice. Homeschooled for a good portion of her life, like most Madrigals, but Mirabel, now head of the family, decided she and a few of her cousins should be allowed to go to Auradon Prep after the coronation, since she thought that King Adam’s attitude towards magic might be changing. A clumsy lesbian disaster, a bit like her Tía Mirabel, who gets an insta-crush on Lonnie and whose brain tends to stop working when she’s around her. The two of them get together shortly after the events of the second movie, and Delfina attends all of Lonnie’s R.O.A.R. tournaments religiously despite not really knowing anything about the sport. A bit quiet and nervous like her mother, but also has her quiet strength and her tía’s tendency to let her mouth run faster than her brain. Joins Auradon Prep’s acapella club and makes them into sensations, due to her gift making their performances into full spectacles.

Theodore “Theo” Maldonia, child of Tiana and Naveen, Chad ship, Jonathan Daviss FC. He/they kid of Tiana and Naveen and heir to the throne of Maldonia. Very studious, quiet, and dedicated to learning how to be the best ruler he can be, but also doesn’t have very many friends as a result. Unexpectedly winds up becoming close to Chad after being assigned to tutor him when he starts failing a class, and actually helps him to reconsider his ways and mindset when the VKs come to Auradon. They develop a crush on him eventually but acknowledge that he still has a ways to go before becoming a better person, so it’s a while before he asks him out, but they’re very cute when they do get together. Through dating Chad, Theo starts to come out of their shell a little, and becomes really good friends with Doug and Carlos. A member of the Auradon Prep student council, and eventually becomes the tourney coach’s assistant as an effort for them to better learn how to plan strategies.

Maizie Hatter, child of the Mad Hatter, poly VKs ship, Erin Kellyman FC. Wacky non-binary sweetheart, and a complete outcast in Auradon, as most kids from Wonderland are, due to their odd style and outlandish personality. When the VKs originally come to Auradon (already all dating each other), they try to befriend Maizie because they figure it will be easy to convince them to help them steal Fairy Godmother’s wand, but all four of them find themselves falling in love with Maizie over time. After they all choose good at the coronation - and Mal profusely apologizes to Ben for the love spell and explains that she doesn’t really have feelings for him - they ask Maizie to be a part of their relationship, which they’re only too happy to do. An incredible artist and lover of tea who forms Auradon Prep’s art club with Mal and gets all four of their partners addicted to rose hip tea. Exactly what you’d expect the child of the Mad Hatter to be, wacky and curious and often living inside their own head, but also a lot more observant and smart than people expect. Becomes besties with Ben after the events of the first movie when they start to become more accepted by Auradon society and, later, the Sea Three.

Tagging my Descendants besties: @auxiliarydetective, @dancingsunflowers-ocs, @ginger-grimm, @ginnystilinski-reblogs, @cecexwrites, @come-along-pond, and @manyfandomocs!!

[bbygirl-aemond]

bella i need the faith of the seven parallels with the targaryen parental figures IMMEDIATELY

…I admittedly put way too much thought into this, but I will seriously never tire of the religions themes/parallels in Stormbreak. Plus, there's about to be a ton of religious stuff happening in upcoming chapters, so it's just on my mind. So here are all seven of the parental figures of Team Black & Green, as members of the Seven!

The Father- Aemond Targaryen.

The Father Above is known for being stern, but not unnecessarily so. He has a strong sense of justice, and considers it part of his duty to enact said judgment. At the same time, he's a protector, particularly of children. Aemond is similarly very reserved and righteous, but is deeply protective of children in every possible way (physically, but also mentally and emotionally).

The Mother- Rhaenyra Targaryen.

The Mother Above is known for being very loving and merciful. She's strongly associated with families and motherhood. Rhaenyra is a kind parent who can sometimes coddle and shelter her children. She's probably the best example of a Targaryen parent who loves her children unconditionally. Despite initially being wary of motherhood, she genuinely comes to love the act of building her own family, her own little clan.

The Warrior- Daemon Targaryen.

The Warrior is a study of opposites. On the one hand, he is associated with the most violent aspects of humanity, such as bloodshed and battle. But on the other, he is also one of the most compassionate faces of the Seven. He is the one who brings peace to the souls of those slain in battle, and who comforts the grieving loved ones left behind. This suits Daemon so incredibly well; he encompasses both of these extremes perfectly. It's also very clear that he identifies himself as a protector of his family, in part specifically because of his battle prowess.

The Smith- Alicent Hightower.

The Smith is, at his core, the mender of broken things. His entire purpose is to fix, to repair, to heal. Because of this, he is associated with incredible inner strength and selflessness. Alicent spends her entire life desperately trying to solve the problems of everyone around her. She is a natural caretaker and feels personally responsible when members of her family are unhappy.

The Maid- Criston Cole.

The Maid is associated most strongly with innocence and virginity. She embodies the value of chastity, and is also connected to children and marriage. Criston is a very religious and conservative man who views everything through this lens of righteousness and purity. His downward spiral after he sleeps with Rhaenyra and his devotion to Alicent are both directly related to the violation or fulfillment of this value. He also falls very naturally into a nurturing and guiding role for Alicent's children.

The Crone- Helaena Targaryen.

The Crone is associated with unparalleled wisdom. She is the one who knows the path ahead, and guides those around her along that path. There is an element of mystery to her; the idea of forbidden or secret knowledge. Helaena, as a very powerful dragon dreamer, has access to information about the path ahead in a way that no other Targaryen does. And we see her use this knowledge to influence the directions of those around her, always trying to nudge them towards the right path.

The Stranger- Aegon Targaryen.

The Stranger is part of the Seven, but is simultaneously completely unique. Unlike the others, they have no gender, nor do they have a face. They are the outlier, and this makes them the patron saint of outcasts. They do not decide where the souls of the dead go, but they lead them to their final resting place. Aegon feels isolated from his family, as if he is the lone black sheep within the herd. He distances himself from the other members of his family, and from his Targaryen heritage. He wants to support his loved ones, but thinks it is no one's place to decide or influence another's path.

Hope this fulfilled your brainrot the way it did mine!

[lovelyladyabsinthewrites]

Love Song for a Vampire Pt.26

Pairing(s): Edward Cullen x Wolf!Reader Words: 1920  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  Part 18  Part 19  Part 20  Part 21  Part 22  Part 23  Part 24  Part 25  Part 27  Part 28  Part 29  Part 30  Part 31  Part 32  Part 33  Part 34  Part 35  Part 36  Part 37  Part 38  Part 39  Part 40(series finale) 

Carlisle couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen Edward smiling, his shoulders relaxed like some great weight had been lifted from him. When gold, immortal eyes meet one another, that smile waned.

Hopping from her seat, she goes to him. “Did you. . .”

And Rosalie, despite many complaints made about the wolves, leaned an ear in interest. Her gaze pretends to be busy with inspecting her claw-like nails.

Slowly he nods, that smile of his returning. “I stopped her.” Then to the rest of his family “We’re going to try and see how things work between us. I’m. . . Excited.” When was the last time Edward had experienced such a thrilling sensation that didn’t correlate with bloodlust. Nothing genuine like he felt when he though about a future with (y/n). If things worked out. . . They could protect each other through thick and thin. He wouldn’t have to worry as much about a mate being killed easily. Were his vampiric strength proved to fail him one day it would not be the end. He would have a proper partner capable of protecting the other.

Her son was so happy, how could Esme not feel some sort of joy at his beaming face. Fingers brushing against her neck anxiously, she shoots her eyes to Carlisle who stared at Edward. This change in girlfriends would prove to be dangerous when the Volturi found out. Ultimately they would. They were running on borrowed time now.

Baring her teeth at Edward, Rosalie hissed and pounced onto her feet. “You idiot!”

”Come on, Rose.” Emmett pleads with her, his hand bravely positioned on her back in a reminder to have some restrain. “This is good for him. At least (y/n) is already a part of our supernatural shit. She’s made to survive in it.”

In return Emmett receives a withering glare from her. “Has it really come down to choosing between a dog and a human?”

Before tempers could really boil over, that familiar wave of calm envelopes the group. Power emanated from Jasper who was their personal soothing balm. Grudgingly, Rosalie steps down and retrieves her seat next to here mate but her grimace remained.

Edward focuses on Carlisle who had yet to say anything as the patriarch of the coven. “Not only will the Volturi be furious that you and Bella went back on your word, but they will also want to do something about the wolves. They will come after us.”

”I know.” He knew what he would be doing once Edward made his decision. The consequences that would follow them. But there was the witch now who promised to help them. Her wards could guard against not just other vampires, but creatures like those of Xiomara. Evita had called it a Lechuza. A common enough monster from her region of the world.

Esme wasn’t so sure about the young girl’s powers. “She’s just so young. . . So many people are putting faith in her hands. Evita is nice enough, but she’s still a stranger to us.”

Shaking her head in disagreement, Alice says so assuredly “I can feel her power. See her future through it. She’s capable of such a feat.”

“I didn’t come to this decision so easily. I know what lays ahead of us. And I’m sorry. Sorry for everything I have put everyone through because of my selfishness.”

Standing quietly atop of the staircase, Carmen and Eleazar drop in on the family discussion.

“We really have to help them now.” Eleazar quietly tells his mate, burned gold glanced down the steps to the voices drifting from the sitting room. “Carlisle is right about the Volturi coming and borrowed time. Especially when they learn about (y/n) being a wolf.”

Carmen nods. “One little witch will not be enough. The problem will be the trio. If they don’t agree to helping the Cullens and if we do, then it will be a crime against our coven. They might kick us out.”

They meander back to the guest room in the Cullen house with Carmen plopping down on the foot of the bed. Her face, normally beautiful and smooth, was crinkled in deep concern as her hands clasp one another.

Puffing out an exhale, Eleazar looked around the immaculately decorated room. Soft gray walls that held up paintings from the many places they had been to. He could guess the country from the brush strokes and work of color.

“Well, guess we’re going to have to convince the other then.”

Scoffing at her husband’s conclusion, Carmen thinks of Irina. “You really think she’d willingly fight alongside the creatures that killed her intended mate? No. Never.”

Turning slyly to her,, Eleazar smiles with an idea on his mind. “Not unless she actually gets to know one.”

Credulously, Carmen squints at him. “You’re not thinking of bringing one back to Alaska are you?”

“Not just any wolf. (Y/n).”

Carmen laughed. “(Y/n)? Oh, yes then we’ll have Tanya hating them as well. You know how much she desires Edward to be her’s.”

“Not if she gets to know her. Tanya is more reasonable then Irina. She’s rational. And once she understands imprinting, I think Tanya will finally be able to move on.” Reasoned Eleazar. “She’ll see the good in (y/n) as will Kate. Irina is more willing to listen to those two opposed to us. They’ve been together longer and have more sway.”

Worryingly chewing on her bottom lip, she still didn’t quite like the idea he was proposing. Things could go wrong. This would be a great risk to take. “I don’t know, Eleazar. . .”

“It’s the best way for them to agree in protecting Forks with the Cullens. She’s the best representative for them.”

**

After yesterday, you hadn’t been anticipating getting a call from Edward so soon. Your morning had barely started when you heard the musical chiming of your phone. Things have happened so fast that you were sure you would never get enough time to really process it. You and Edward were essentially now dating. While there had been no date yet, you would take your time. Edward was still attached to Bella in some ways, how could he not be after spending so much time with her and risking his life several times for her. Surprisingly you weren't even the least bit jealous of this. Talking to Bella yourself had eased whatever jealousy had been brewing inside of you. Bella was older than you by a year but seemed even less sure about her life than you were. So many uncertainties that the vampire world made even worse.

What he told you over the phone did make the swollen balloon of excitement in your chest shrivel. Edward would be going back to Alaska to drop off Carmen and Eleazar; possibly staying over night. That changed when he prompted "Come with us."

You want to say yes right away. Even if it meant your first time alone with Edward in a strange vampire coven's house. Having some insight on the coven via the couple you just met, you knew there were three others. One of them who was not too keen on wolves. Red flags sprung up everywhere. The wolf in you simply desired to be near Edward though.

"I know it's last minute." Edward sheepishly admits. "But Carmen and Eleazar really want you to come with us. So the others can meet you first hand."

Glancing at your bedroom door like you could sense someone listening on the other side, you shift your cellphone to your other ear. "I would love to, but I highly doubt my parents will let me go.”

”I understand.” He says but you catch voices in the background.

Edward pauses then the voices changes to the feminine one of Carmen. “Hello, (y/n).” Her voice is chipper and friendly.

Impossible not to smile from her voice, you greet her. “It’s too bad you guys aren’t staying longer.”

“Yes, we must get going before our coven sisters act hastily. That is why I commandeered Edward’s phone. I think if you tell your alpha what is going on and all of us have a quick meeting with your parents, they will understand the urgent need of your presence.

Pursing your lips, you immediately say “I don’t want them to know about this world. Or the danger I face because of the pack.”

In a more stern tone, Carmen counters with “If Irina gets the idea in her to tell the Volturi, they will find out the hard way about how close our worlds really are.”

You didn’t want that outcome either. Pulse quickening, you mull your mind for what to do. What else was there to do except to agree. She was right. Eventually they would discover the horrors you dealt with.

When you call Sam, he picks up after the second dial tone and you hurriedly explain to him what Carmen said. He didn’t like the idea of you going by yourself with Edward as your only ally. Easier to discuss this in person, you run all the way to Sam’s with a rushed goodbye to your bewildered mom. Soon enough she would understand your flustered appearance.

Edward and the Denali couple were already waiting in his backyard, seated at a wooden table that sported chipped white paint. Evita and Sam were sitting on the opposite side.

“A protective charm wouldn’t be too hard to make.” Evita was in the middle of explaining. She turns to Sam. “I can have it done within the hour.”

Sam prepares a reply but spots you slowly walking closer. “Do you want to go, (y/n)?”

The three vampires whip themselves around effortlessly. “Yes. Yes I want to go.” Being with Edward would be an extra perk, but if you play your cards right to avoid conflict, this could be a successful meeting. Carmen and Eleazar had faith in your personality to win over the other three in their clan.

“You understand my reservations.” Sam carefully says.

You nod. “Yes. If you think you need to come with me then I won’t be opposed to it.” Though some part in you told you that Sam’s presence might make things worse. He was intimidating at first glance, being pure muscle that could kill a strong being like a vampire.

From the wavering glances you caught among the vampires, you knew they were thinking the same. You had muscles as well, your upper arms firm and thighs that could break open a watermelon, you were no where near the stature that Sam had.

He runs a thumb over his bottom lip, hard black eyes flicking away. “We will have to tell your parents the reason of your absence.”

Swallowing back the hard lump that was blocking your throat, you stiffly tilt your head to forward. “I. . . I know.”

“I’m sorry, (y/n).” Edward says catching you off guard. “It must be unpleasant to bring them into our mess.”

You smile softly. “They already have some idea of what our world is like. I just never wanted them to know how often I encounter danger.”

“I’ll talk to them.” Sam gets up. “Maybe when they find out about Evita’s spells they’ll be put more at ease.”

Sam could try but once your parents discovered more about your world, the more danger they will be in. The Volturi didn’t take too kindly on humans having any information on vampires.

The sooner Evita put up her wards, the better.

——

TAGLIST: @saltedcoffeescotch , @dangerouslittlefairy , @burn-crash-rqmance , @casedoina , @avadakadabra93 , @daryldixonstorm , @blue-aconite , @xanniestired666 , @esposadomd, @godinho11 , @arin-swear-rose , @alexizodd , @melaninsugarbaby , @lyeatoalinatoheaven  , @ronwownsme , @itsmytimetoodream , @afro-hispwriter , @mutandis-extremis993 , @hxgemxscles , @nightly-polaris , @corrodedcoffins-slut , @ellesalazar , @itgetzweird08 , @crybabyatthediscooffandoms , @sassyandclassyx , @scarlet2007 , @theroyalbrownbarbie , @jennyamanda8 , @stevenandmarcslove , @biancaindaeyo , @loversjoy , @turningtoclown , @vixorell , @xxthackerybinxxx , @daredevilonmyheels , @dumbbitch-juice , @southern-bell-give-hell , @nat-the-gemini , @imdoingathingmom​

[lexxchinchillaa]

so i havent really be keeping up with the TOTA Takeover (i was watching doctor who all day everyday) BUT i will do this last one.

i think the show is wonderful. it discusses mental illnesses without making it the entire plot or entire personality of characters. it displays it realistically and doesnt romanticise (by this i mean they didnt just show positive things or ignore it completely) or... obsess over it, i suppose. it wasnt completely focused on the characters "flaws" or illness. while they were mentioned, they actually still made the characters relatable and realistic, as opposed to (imo) Heartstopper, which felt to me like it fetished queer people, but thats a discussion for another day.

it was nice for a change in media, because its not often that you get media from the perspective of someone outside of the mental hospital willingly going inside because they genuinely enjoy being there and the people there. thats one of the reasons i love Eddie, he isnt afraid of what people will say about his new job, or if he is, its not stopping him even though (im pretty sure?) he doesnt get paid for it. hes a kind and lovable protagonist and it was interesting to have his side and opinions on things.

the side characters (i suppose thats what they are) are easy to fall in love with because they have so much depth and are genuinely interesting as a whole. it had, i think, important representation of Rosalie's OCD. it was important representation because it doesnt seem like we get a lot of OCD in media anymore (not that we ever really did, at least not in the things ive watched). i personally dont know much about the disorder but the representation still felt... correct, i suppose, to someone who has little to no knowledge, which is still a good sign because it means it was easy to understand and, yes, still seemed realistic. it was easy to feel bad for Rosalie because of her story and because she was treated and written as a real person.

have you ever watched something and thought, "this character is a bit cardboard-esque"? doesnt it make it tricky to actually feel bad for the character in question? its difficult to sympathise or empathise with someone who is uninteresting or unrealistically written. like in the Twilight movies, for an example. its difficult to feel bad for Bella because shes a kind of basic protagonist. she has simple wants and has simple struggles. whereas in TOTA, the characters have different wants than is usually displayed. like Campbell for example. he wants to be a radio show host and whats stopping him? his struggle to find a place that wants to take him and, i would say, his fathers disapproval. while Campbell isnt openly warm with his father, its still difficult for Campbell to ignore him because its his dad, the man who was there, but not necessarily there for him, all his life. its still difficult to get over someone whos supposed to love and support you telling you that you wont be able to do something.

Campbell is another example of a well written character. it was easy for me to love him, and not just because he was played by DT. he was a funny character without just being comedic relief. his bipolar disorder was displayed well according to me, someone with again, little to no knowledge in the subject. it was nice to have a character who has specific wants that are different from other characters in other medias. he was interesting because he was, say it with me, written as a real person. Campbell was easy to love because he was written and played like someone i would personally want to be friends with. hes funny, caring, friendly, unique, and protective. he sort of immediately likes Eddie and is friendly and talkative with the older man. he doesnt hold back and doesnt bite his tongue when he wants to say something.

TOTA was silly and light hearted while still bringing up important subjects that i dont think a lot of media is willing to bring up. i think, unfortunately, it might have been before its time. i think if it was made recently or in recent years, a lot more people would watch it and talk about it. i think its a beautiful show that, while not laying too heavily on it, discusses mental illness in a positive way. it doesnt act like the characters disorders are flaws, it treats it as something the characters have that might make them unsatisfactory to other people but not like it is unsatisfactory and i think it was lovely.

overall, i thoroughly enjoyed watching TOTA. it was different from most things i watch but not in a way where i was reluctant to watch more and only liked it at the end. i thought the ending was brilliant, even if it wasnt a massive everyone-got-their-way sort of ending. it was honestly nice to have media that had only two characters that i can think of getting what they want. TOTA had some sad parts that were so well written i cried. and if something bad happened to a character (haha... ha... hm), i cared about the character and was upset because they were well written and i loved them.

i know i used the words "well written" and "realistic" so many times, but the main things that struck me about TOTA were those two things. while i love sci fi and fantasy, its nice to have a show that felt real, like it actually happened. i loved the characters and the plot. the writing was superb. its an amazing show that more people should watch.

(hi. sorry if this is terribly written, im not great at these sorts of things. i tried keep it focused but if i ever strayed away from the main point, i apologise)

[tropes-and-tales-archives]

Whistle Down the Wind, Chapter Ten

Word Count: 4503

TW:  Idiots in love, angst, smut (PiV, protected). 18+ only.

AN:  Part of a series.  The series masterlist here.

You were late.  Again.

To be fair, though, it wasn’t your fault this time.  When your plane landed at LaGuardia, it ended up taxiing for forty minutes until it found an available gate, and then you had to sprint to baggage claim.  And then you had to find a taxi, and when you did, traffic was so bad that the driver shot into New Jersey and took I-95 to get to Staten Island.

It didn’t matter, as long as you got there eventually.  Sometimes you had to take the long way round.

********

It was a subdued Thanksgiving, which suited Sonny just fine.  Theresa’s daughters, since the divorce, had to split their holidays between their parents, so they were with their father.  Theresa herself had opted to stay in Connecticut and host her own wine-based, solo Thanksgiving for herself.  Gina and her latest boyfriend had stopped in for a quick dinner but had left to go to his family’s house on the other end of the island.  Bella and her baby – a little girl named Moira – were taking a nap upstairs in her childhood bedroom, exhausted by the baby’s awful sleep schedule.  That left Sonny parents and Tommy in the living room, watching the football game and dozing off from their respective turkey comas.

Sonny was so exhausted that he was having trouble sleeping.  It had been an awful year.  He had an undercover assignment with a men’s shelter that left him shaken to his core about the thin possibility of redemption for lost souls.

His sergeant had also been gunned down and killed.  They never replaced him, though, so SVU was running perpetually short-handed.  He rarely had time off, he never had time to recover from one case to the next, and his commanding officer seemed pretty cavalier about the mental wellness of her detectives.

If he ever needed his best friend, it was now, but he respected your choice to move to L.A.

He kept in touch with you, of course.  He called and texted, and the two of you had a few video chat sessions.  You showed him your cramped little apartment a few blocks from the ocean, and once you had a chat from London, where you were working on a limited episode run for a streaming service. 

He loved seeing you, but it left him heart-sore.  Seeing you on the screen of his laptop could not compare to the genuine article.

He held back a lot of his work struggles.  He didn’t tell you how lonely he was, how much he missed his friend.  He didn’t want to make you regret your choice.  All the same, you seemed to sense when he was at his lowest, because a new playlist always seemed to appear for him to bolster his flagging spirits.

The best playlists, though, were the ones he was able to buy after you started your stint on the west coast.  You got work – first with the limited run series, then with a bare-bones action film, then with a larger film.  You scored a documentary, and the haunting piano and string-based score was nominated at some film festivals.  Sonny bought every soundtrack and score that had your name on it. 

He set up a news alert for your name and got some traffic.  The best was a profile about new up-and-comers.  It was a group shot of everyone in the piece, but he was able to crop everyone else out on his computer.  You looked amazing in it:  hair down and styled, in a chic tuxedo tailored to your form, with a slight smile on your face.

Still, he missed you.  And on days like Thanksgiving, he felt your absence more keenly.

He sat with his parents and Tommy for a bit, half-heartedly watching the Lions play.  He wondered what you were doing.  Probably hanging out with your new friends, eating the authentic Mexican food you were always raving about.

He stood up abruptly and made his way down to the rec room in the basement.  Most holidays – and summers when you were in college – that’s where you and Sonny ended up.  It was your movie hub:  just the two of you curled up on the couch together, under his nonna’s scratchy acrylic crocheted blanket (because he cranked the air to an uncomfortable degree on purpose), watching a movie and ignoring the tension between the two of you.  Well, he knew it was tension now.  At the time, he had just thought it was him.

He sprawled out across the old couch and turned on the TV, flipping through the channels until he found something.  “Planes, Trains, and Automobiles.”  Sonny smiled.  It was one of your favorite movies, and he settled down and watched it.  If his mind wandered, it wandered back to your final week in the city.  Those few final days you had spent together, mostly in his bed (and in his shower and on his couch and once on his kitchen counter).  He replayed those moments over and over, but the details had grown hazy over time.  All he could vividly remember was the feeling of completion and contentment when you had fallen asleep beside him.

The movie was about halfway done when he heard people talking upstairs – laughter and little shrieks of joy.  He guessed that Moira was awake and his mother was cooing over her.  Or maybe Tommy and his dad were really getting into the Lions game.

He heard the basement door open and someone take a few tentative steps down the creaky stairs.  It must be time for dessert and coffee, but Sonny wasn’t hungry.

“I’ll be up in a bit, ma,” he called over the back of the couch, focused on the screen in front of him. 

“I’m not your ma, stretch,” a familiar voice replied in a teasing lilt, and he shot up into a sitting position just in time to see you descend the rest of the steps. ********

Your first thought was that you broke him.  He stared at you over the back of the couch so long without saying anything, you worried that he had died in place.

Your second thought, as you looked him over was, Christ, he looks exhausted.

Sonny was as handsome as ever.  His hair was a little greyer, but it made him hotter, in your opinion.  It was soft and tousled, unstyled – your favorite version of his hair.  His eyes were as blue as the ocean.

But he looked pale, and he had dark circles under his eyes, and the lines around his eyes were deeper than the last time you saw him.  You knew that his job wasn’t easy, and you knew from Bella that it had been more difficult than usual.  You worried that you hadn’t made things easier on him either.

He continued to stare at you, and your eyes flicked to the TV.  It was one of your favorite holiday movies, and you made a little cry of delight.  You walked around to the couch and made to sit down to watch, but Sonny shot to his feet and pulled you into a fierce hug.  He wrapped his long arms around you and squeezed you so hard you thought your ribs would break again. 

“You’re really here,” he muttered into your hair.

“I am,” you replied.  Your face was pressed against his chest, and you breathed him in.  He wore a cologne that always made you think of growing things – a sort of fresh, green smell that combined with his soap and his own body chemistry.  “I would have been here sooner, but traffic was a nightmare.”

He squeezed you to him for another moment, then pushed you away, his hands firmly placed on your upper arms.  “No one told me,” he said, looking you over.  “You didn’t tell me.”

“I wanted to surprise you.”  You suddenly felt shy underneath the scrutiny of his gaze, and you ducked your head.

He moved both of his hands to either side of your face.  “It’s the best surprise ever,” he declared, and he leaned down to place a gentle kiss on your lips.  You sighed and kissed him back.  You had missed him so much.

He tilted your head, deepening the kiss.  You felt him part his lips and run the tip of his tongue along your lower lip, but before you could open your mouth to him, the basement door swung open again.  A voice – Bella’s – yelled down that coffee and dessert were being served.

“And stop making out, you perverts,” she added for good measure, and you ignored her cackling laughter with all the dignity you could muster. 

********

Sonny sat across from you at the dining room table as everyone gathered for pumpkin pie and coffee.  You immediately scooped baby Moira from Bella’s arms, claiming that you had to make up for lost time.  The baby grabbed at your hair and tried to shove her chubby fist in your mouth.  She was completely enamored with you.

Baby Moira wasn’t the only one.  Sonny felt like he would never be able to look at you enough.  Your hair was just a shade messy – he knew it was from your cross-country flight, but it looked exactly like your usual post-sex hair, and it made him feel more turned on than he would usually like while sitting with his family at the dining room table. 

You were in relaxed jeans and a button-down flannel shirt, partially unbuttoned and revealing a lace-trimmed camisole underneath.  You looked completely comfortable, and maybe for the first time since Sonny met you – completely comfortable with yourself.  You had a relaxed air about you.  Maybe it was all the sunshine.  More likely, it was all those tamales that you raved about.

Bella dished out pie while Dom Senior poured mugs of coffee and passed them around.  Sonny’s mother went to the kitchen and came back a few minutes later bearing a plate of reheated leftovers.  She placed it in front of you with a smile.

“I’m sorry I was late,” you said with a rueful shrug.  “Our plane didn’t have a gate and it took forever to get here.”

His mother waved off your apology.  “We’re just glad you’re here.”

You tucked into your leftovers one handed, your other arm cradling the baby as she dozed off against you.  It made Sonny smile to see it.  You were always such a natural with his nieces – even this one who had just met you.

“How long are you staying?” Dom Senior asked. 

You chewed a forkful of stuffing and swallowed before you answered.  “I fly back on Sunday morning.”  Sonny felt his stomach drop.  You were only here for a few days, and it already felt like time was slipping away too quickly.

You glanced over at him and caught his gaze before you continued.  “I have a few more months on my sublet here in New York, but after that, I’m going to move back.”  You gave him a smile.  “I’ve made great connections, and I’ll probably have to travel back to L.A. more than I’d like, but plenty of composers and musicians live elsewhere.”

Bella scoffed and gestured to the window where an icy rain was pattering against the glass.  “You’re trading in warm weather and sunshine for this?”

“Aren’t you the one who gave me a list of reasons why L.A. was worse than New York?” you teased back.

“I just liked living vicariously through you,” she shot back.  “How many friends run into one of the Marvel Chrises on the way to the bathroom?”

You nodded and took another bite of stuffing.  “True.  But I can’t keep up with the people out there.  Too many diets and workouts.  Everyone assumes I’m a wannabe actress and critiques me accordingly.”  You scowled at your plate.  “One producer told me that I was a ‘New York five but an L.A. two,’ and that was after he realized I was there to score his garbage movie.”

Sonny felt a flare of hot anger to hear that some guy made you feel bad about yourself.  “You’re a Staten Island eleven,” he blurted, making the table erupt in laughter.  He felt his face growing red, and his dad reached over and clapped him hard on the back.

“Smooth, son,” he chuckled, but Sonny’s mom reached over from the other side and smacked her husband. 

“Like you ever did any better,” she teased.  Dom Senior snatched her hand as she tried to draw it back and kissed the back of it.

“I did good enough to get you,” he said with a wide grin, making Bella groan in embarrassment.  Sonny, though, could only watch you across the table.

********

Sonny’s family was old-fashioned, despite having a grandchild out of wedlock and a daughter who had recently divorced.  As such, you and Sonny put up what you hoped was a convincing charade about how he was going to drive you to a friend’s place where you were crashing for the next few days. 

The reality, of course, was that within seconds of returning to his apartment, he had you pressed against his door, the two of you kissing fiercely and pawing at each other like you were each drowning.  There were too many sensations and emotions:  the feel of his warm hands as they untucked your shirt and camisole to touch your back.  His mouth on yours, his lips impossibly soft.  His thigh, as it pressed between your own legs and parted them.

You reached down and tugged at his grey Henley, breaking the kiss long enough to pull it over his head, ruffling his hair even more.  You tossed it aside and then his mouth was back on you, kissing the sensitive spot at the junction of your neck and shoulder, sending chills through you.

“I missed you so much, doll,” he whispered against your neck.  His breath was hot and sent another tremor through you.

You ran your fingers through his hair.  “I missed you more,” you breathed back.

Sonny fumbled at your shirts.  His fingers scrabbled at your button-up, and he mumbled curses when he couldn’t get it undone fast enough.  When he did get it unbuttoned, he tried to pull it off of you, but your sleeves got caught and he cursed again as he unbuttoned the cuffs. 

You pushed him off of you so that you could handle it, so he shifted his attention to his own clothes.  He tugged his undershirt over his head, but slowed and then stopped completely to watch you as you removed your camisole.

You bent over and pulled your boots off, then straightened up to unbutton your jeans.  You looked up at Sonny and laughed at him.  His chest was rising and falling with his shuddering breaths, and his mouth hung slightly agape.

He moved swiftly to you.  He pressed you back against the door, latching his mouth on the pulse point.  You laid your hands on his bare chest and tugged on his sparse smattering of blond hair there.

Sonny’s hands drifted down to your hips and finished unzipping your jeans.  He unlatched his mouth from your neck and worked his way down, pushing your pants down over your hips, down you thighs.  His ran his warm palms over your bare legs before he pulled your jeans over your feet and tossed them aside.

He knelt in front of you, and you laid your hands on the top of his head.  You tangled your fingers in his hair, tugging it gently, trying to get him to stand back up.  He looked up at you, in just your underwear, while he was still half-clothed.

“You need to catch up, Dominick,” you said.  You loved the way his sunny blue eyes turned dark when you called him by his first name. 

Instead of responding to you, he slid an arm behind you, cupping your ass in his large hand and pulled your lower half towards him until his face was pressed into your lower belly.  You ran your nails over his scalp, drawing low groans from him that vibrated through you.  His hot breath made the throbbing between your legs increase almost painfully.  You felt dangerously close to losing your legs underneath you.

“S-Sonny,” you stuttered as he moved his mouth a fraction lower.  “I need you.”

“You have me,” he murmured against you.  He licked along the lace waistband of your panties, making your knees buckle just a bit. 

You tightened your grip on his hair, drawing another groan from him.  You felt almost dizzy with desire and had to press the back of your head against the door and take a few deep breaths to calm yourself.

“Sonny, we have plenty of time,” you told him in a strangled voice.  “But right now, I really need you.”

His other hand landed on your hip, tugging at the edge of your panties and pressing wet kisses on each new inch of exposed skin.  He didn’t reply, too focused on moving his mouth closer and closer to his target.

“Damnit, Dominick!” you yelled, and you pulled his hair hard enough to get his attention.  He looked up and shot you a wounded look, like a puppy that had been scolded, but whatever he saw on your face made him stand up and press the length of his body against yours.  You pulled his face to yours and kissed him breathlessly, without any art or ability.  Just his mouth with his soft lips against yours, tongues sliding against each other, breathing each other’s moans.

“I need you,” you repeated, panting against him.  He shifted his head back to the nook against your neck.  “Please.  I…I’ve waited for this for months.  I’ve missed you, Sonny.  So, so much.”  You wrapped your hand along the back of his neck, stroking between his hairline and the knobs of the top of his spine.  You felt rather than heard Sonny sniffling against you, and you felt the first tears when they hit your shoulder.

“I missed you too, doll,” he said.  “And it’s been a tough year.”  His voice was watery, and you tightened your grip around him, pulling him as tight as you could.  He took deep breaths against you as he tried to regain his composure, and once he was calmed, you took his face between both of your hands.  You forced him to face you, and you looked into his brilliant blue eyes, now rimmed and swollen from his tears.

“I love you, Dominick,” you said solemnly.  “I’m sorry I wasn’t here for you.”

He shook his head gently between your hands.  “I’m glad you went, doll.”  His eyes crinkled at the corners as he smiled at you.  “I’d never want to hold you back.”

You couldn’t help but smile back at him – his namesake sunniness was contagious.  “I’m here now though.”

“You are.”  He reached down to grasp the back of your thighs, and you jumped up into his arms.  You bit back a moan at the sensation of him pressed against your core, and you wrapped your arms around his neck as he carried you into his bedroom and laid you down on the bed.

He stood at the foot of the bed and removed the rest of his clothes, and you wriggled out of your underwear so that when he crawled over you, you were both completely naked. 

You could feel the conflict in him – you knew that Sonny was gentle and probably wanted to take his time, but you also could feel how badly he missed you.  He settled on an uneven middle ground, pressing slow, wet kisses to you while his hands roved wildly over your form. 

His mouth drifted a lazy path from your mouth to your jaw and down your neck, across your collarbones and back to your mouth.  His hands wandered down your sides and up your front to cup first one breast and then the other.  He stroked your nipples until they were peaked and hard under his caresses. 

Spurred on by your moans and your squirming underneath him, his hand glided further down until it was pressed between your legs.  He slid a finger between your folds and groaned at how wet you were.  He pulled his head back to peer down at you, and your face felt red-hot.

“I told you I needed you,” you muttered at him, avoiding his gaze.

“I told you that you have me,” he replied thickly, and he pushed his finger into you slowly, making both of you moan.  Your face grew hotter, which didn’t seem humanly possible, as he stared down at you through half-lidded eyes.  He slid a second finger into you, then shifted his hand so that his thumb was circling your clit.

You huffed out a breath through your nose and tried to calm yourself, but you felt a liquid heat pooling deep in your belly, and you knew you weren’t going to last long. 

“Sonny, stop,” you whispered.  You felt him hesitate and pull his hand away from you.  You looked up and saw the question in his eyes.

“I want to…finish,” you stammered.  “With you, you know.  Inside me.”

He nodded and shifted his weight off of you to reach into his nightstand for a condom.  You used the moment to try and steady yourself again, squeezing your eyes shut as you heard him rip the wrapper.  Then you felt him stretch himself on top of you again, and you felt his hand cup your face, the thumb stroking your cheekbone.

“Hey, look at me,” he said softly.  You opened your eyes and looked up at him.  He gazed down at you as if you were the only other person in the world.

All the years of frustrated longing, all the other people you’d each been with, every conversation and glance laden with unrequited love – it all fell away when he looked at you like that.  You smiled at him and reached up to cup his own face in your palm, and he leaned into it, touch-starved.  After a moment, you simply nodded at him, and he reached down to line himself up with your entrance.

He pressed the tip of his erection into you with a groan, and you felt dangerously close to the edge.  He slid into you slowly – way too slowly.  His position on top of you made the angle shallow, and his length dragged along your sensitive clit as he pressed himself into your molten core. 

You wanted to make it last, but every single sensation was too much:  the friction on you bundle of nerves where the two of you were joined.  His hot breath, panting praise in your ear.  The scent of his cologne and your perfume mingling along with the headier scent of sex. 

He was only halfway inside you, but it was too late.  You gasped his name once, and then shuddered underneath him with a whimper, your legs wrapping around him to pull the rest of him into you in one thrust.  He started to reply to you, but he growled instead as your sheath gripped him, your orgasm ripping through you.  You shut your eyes as you came, moaning his name over and over.  You were distantly aware of him cursing above you, and he gave a single thrust until he came too.

He collapsed on top of you completely, and his weight pressed you into the mattress.  He groaned again, in frustration this time.  You stroked his hair at the back of his head until you both recovered.  He lifted his head to looked down at you.

“I’m sorry,” you each said at the same time, and you both laughed.  He leaned down and kissed you firmly before he shifted his weight and pulled out of you.  He left the room for a moment to dispose of the condom, then he came back into the bedroom.  He laid down beside you, and you each turned on your sides to face each other.

“I’m sorry I came too quickly,” you said with a rueful grin.  “I was too worked up, I guess.”

He pinched your chin lightly between his fingers and kissed you again.  “It’s all well and good for girls,” he grumbled good-naturedly.  “But I didn’t last at all.  Now all my street cred it gone.”  You laughed at this, and he pretended to look angry.

“It’s your fault,” he continued.  “You set me off.”

“Well, I owe you then,” you replied.  You tried to look contrite.  “Since your street cred is gone and all that.”  You snuggled up against him, enjoying the feeling of his skin pressed against yours.  He wrapped a lanky arm around you and pulled you tighter.

You felt comfortably drowsy, the net effect of your flight, Ma Carisi’s dinner, and being back in Sonny’s bed.  He hummed above you contently, and you started to doze off until your cell phone chimed from the other room.  You roused a bit but settled back against him.

Then it chimed again, and a third time.

“You need to get that?” Sonny asked.  His voice rumbled through his chest.  “Your west coast boyfriend, maybe?”  You knew he was joking, but there was still a jealous undercurrent to his tone.

“There was no west coast boyfriend,” you murmured against him.  “Unless you count my detachable shower head.”

He snorted at this but you could feel the relief in him as he relaxed against you. 

Then his phone chimed, one after another after another.

“Is that Nicole?” you asked, only half-meanly.  He snorted again before he untangled from you and grabbed at his pants at the foot of the bed. 

“Be careful,” he said as he pulled his phone out of his pants pocket.  “If you say her name three times, she’ll turn up and haunt your house.”  You laughed at this and sat up.  You wound his blanket around yourself.  Sonny unlocked his phone.

“Is it work?” you asked.  You felt your stomach dip.  You wanted to stay in this little bubble with Sonny for the entire weekend.  A little sex bubble, maybe with the occasional movie and homemade pasta break.

He just chuckled in reply.  “No, it’s Bella.”  He held up his phone so that you could read the screen.  “She tried to text you and you didn’t reply.  Now she’s of the impression that you’re here with me, corrupting her chaste, virginal brother with your wanton ways.”  He typed out a reply, then turned off his phone and tossed it on the nightstand before lying back down.  He grabbed you around the waist and pulled you down beside him.

“What did you tell her?” you asked.

“The truth,” he said.  He kissed you chastely, then tilted his head to deepen the kiss.  He broke away to look down at you, and his blue eyes were glittering with unshed tears again.  “I told her that you’re home.”