#who needs books when I can read about knight!ghost and love. | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

hxnneydew · 6 months ago

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JAGJABBSJASJA- SCREAMING. God, I love this so much!! Knight!ghost is another level. This entire thing might just be next to shakespeare. Speaking of...some of my fav parts cus this is my fav now!

~☆~☆~☆~☆~☆~☆~

You watch the crackle of the fire, your finger tapping against your cheek. If you are truly to be a thorn, then you’ll need more than a simple favor to gift your knight. There must be a grand gesture, or some higher level of humiliation.

I love this. The acceptance that if she is gonna be a thorn then she might as well make it sharp. She's gaining confidence in her own power and i loveee that!!

“If you haven’t, then you have nothing to fear.” You smile at her, “Just see that he gets the letter, and sleep well knowing you would not betray me.”

Honestly. Girlboss. Such a power move I love her. I'd be shaking if I was the maid and rightfully so

But he should have known. His lips find their corners quirked into a smile at the orders written on the front. “Should this seal be broken, take the hand that delivered it.” He only wishes it was. Carrying out your orders is such a joy. Why would your hands ever need to touch a blade when you wield his so well?

Okay ik there was a threat but dam?? The right to be scared is there. Scary princess = best. Queen. AND THE LAST LINE?! WHEN YOU WIELD HIS SO WELL??? DEAD. HAJABNAA. MASTERPIECE OF A LINE.

Ghost jerks his head down the hall towards Keegan's room. Special privileges afforded to the Princess's guard. The maid turns to look in the same direction. “Two doors down on the left, I'll send ‘im your way.” He offers. The easiest way to get rid of one problem is to solve another, he'd have to be blind not to see the way those two looked at each other.

Oooo keegan and his angel snippetsss yesss. Yes Ghost. Set them up.

God. God. He’s never seen anything like you before. Divinity in the flesh. Perfection in every dip and curve, in the flicker of candle light over your skin, in the press of your fingers against his chest plate. He must have been born a sinner to be tested like this, to be shown what he can’t have, dangled like a carrot while he waits for the stick. He would ruin you.

The "he must have been born a sinner to be tested like this" ?? GHOUL. This entire thing was already so good and then you add that?! Idk but i love that sooo much.

He would break you, pluck every petal until there were no flowers left in the garden, leave your skin scarred with his bites. He could eat you whole, and you’d let him. You’re asking him to. Aren’t you? There’s fear in your eyes, trepidation, that batters him. Aren’t you standing here because he’s led you to believe he would? Because he told you he loved you. Because he kissed you, and held you, and comforted you. Because he’s kept you from seeing that there might be someone else, someone more worthy of you.

UGH. JUST UGH. LITERALLY SO GOOD. I DONT EVEN HAVE WORDS BUT I LOVE THIS TOO.

“I’m afraid I ask too much of you,” You swallow. Ask anything of me, he wants to beg, grant me some kind reprieve from the wanting, give me a task to occupy the hands that want to grab for you. “I’d like you to wear my crest for the tournament.”

Omg princess just give him everything and he'll do it. ALSO CREST?! YES. WHATEVER PLAN I HOPE YOU DO AMAZING PRINCESS.

That roots him in place. A slap in the face to your father, a renouncement of his allegiance to the throne, proclaiming him a dog to only one master. There’s a determination in your eyes, buried beneath the swell of fear, that he’s never seen before. He nods once, of course he will, he’d strip naked in the palace garden if you asked it of him. Strip you bare here and now if you called his name properly.

God, the willingness 😩🥵

There’s something weighing behind your eyes, some scale that’s tipped, a decision made. He’s never seen you look so serious. Where did his soft girl go? Ghost’s brows draw together. His thumb brushes over your cheek, trying to find some comforting action to settle the determination in your eyes. Whatever needs doing he’ll do it, you only need to ask.

Jagajbqjanw. I love how he knows that she's got something planned and that she's more determined.

"I need you to win the tournament.”

OKAY. GHOST BETTER WIN THIS FOR HER.

~☆~☆~☆~☆~☆~☆~

No but really this is a masterpiece and i love this.

Your Strength Tags: Knight!Ghost x Princess!Reader, politics, Ghost having dirty thoughts, threats of violence, period typical misogyny, knight!Keegan, König mention Summary: You're nothing more than a doll to be sold and traded, and for too many years you've been content with that knowledge. Now, with Ghost on the line, you can no longer stand by and let your life be dictated for you. It's time to cement yourself in the monarchy. It's time to start acting like a Queen. Prev Part art is "Strength" by Alexander Groznov A/N: This chapter will not make much sense without reading the rest of the Knight!Ghost au. We're in the meat of the story now, and rapidly heading towards the end of the second act, I anticipate maybe 2 more chapters before we get into Act 3 and the end of our story.

You are not strong, not the way knights are. You’re not brave, you’re not clever, you’re not even trusted to leave the castle on your own. Your whole life you’ve been told exactly who and what you are, exactly the purpose you must serve. You are a princess, and the best you can do is pass on your father’s divine right to the next generation. You made a mistake, miscalculated the sway that you had, the power you had over your match making. You pushed too hard-

No. You didn’t push hard enough. The divine right which is your fathers, which is yours by blood, was underestimated. Your faith in your own power led you to weakness, led you to your own ruin by the hand of your heart. You are to blame for your misery as much as your father. No more. As König's pointed out, you're running low on time. You hate to admit that rabid dog might be right, but he is. If you don’t begin acting like a proper monarch you’ll lose everything.

You just- you just have to figure out how to do that. You’ve never coveted the throne, always assumed that whoever you married would have more ambition towards it than you do. You’ve been groomed to be nothing more than a pretty figure, a prize to any man brave enough to claim it. You’re a bird in a cage, meant to be traded for a crown.

Ghost is the only person that’s ever treated you like a human being. The only person that’s ever looked you in the eye, ever spoken to you like you were royalty. You love him too dearly to lose him. At least to lose him like this, without even trying. You can only hope he won’t hold it against you that it took this long to realize he was slipping through your fingers.

Ghost makes you want to be better, be stronger. You shouldn’t have to rely on him, though you know he’d argue otherwise. “Let me,” was a constant refrain with him. You wonder if you took it for granted, or if it was pride in your knight that made you so weak. God. König is right, your compliance, your despair, has ruined you. Your weakness is Ghost’s weakness, and you can’t afford him that.

You take your breaths with purpose, each one a bitter taste of the gilded cage you’ve been enjoying until now.

You take stock of the things you know. There’s going to be a tournament. Ghost is going to participate and you expect he’ll win. The “prize” will be getting carted off to a different kingdom and broken in like a dog. You know that your father is determined to get rid of Ghost, which means Ghost is a threat to him. You know that Ghost is a threat to any man that would harm so much as a hair on your head, which puts your father in that category as well and you can’t mourn the loss of two men.

You know that Ghost loves you, or you think he loves you. He said he did in not quite so many words, and you have to trust that as much truth as your knight hides from you he’s never told you a lie. You know that even if you didn’t love him, allowing anyone this power over your life will never bode well for you. If your father can send away one man he deems unworthy, and dangerous to his crown, what’s to stop him from sending away another?

You worry your thumb nail between your teeth, pacing your quarters as your lady’s maid sits beside the fire with her embroidery. You recognize the soft threaded pattern as your own crest taking shape on a handkerchief. A favor for the upcoming tournament. Your brow furrows. Ghost no longer wears your crest on his coat, but that doesn’t mean he can’t carry it with him. If you bestow it upon him, then there’s little argument your father can kick up without losing face.

“Your pacing will wear a hole in the carpet,” Your maid tells you over the soft pull of her thread. It doesn’t matter if your pacing wears holes in the stone floor, you would take a chisel to the castle walls if that helped your cause. Still, you pad over to her, and she glances up from her sewing as you settle on the chair across from her. You lean against the arm of the chair, push your cheek against your balled fist. Ghost would scold you for your slouching, but your maid only raises her brows. She didn’t used to stay so late in the evening with you. You wonder if your father asked her to keep an eye on you. If he did, you were a fool taking her with you to see Ghost.

Is there truly no one you can trust to be on your side? No one that serves you alone? This castle is full of eyes that watch you as if you were nothing but a thorn in the monarchy’s side. Perhaps you aren’t. You suppose nothing you wish for is in line with your father’s interests.

“Do you know Sir Riley’s family crest?” You ask your maid, turning to gauge her reaction for yourself. She blinks at you in confusion. “They’re a small family I believe,” You reiterate, “I haven’t seen them in our genealogy books.”

“I’ll look into it my lady,” You maid acquiesces.

“See that you do.” You nod. She hesitates before looking back at her sewing. “Now.” You order, forcing the command from your chest. She startles, looks at you again and settles her hoop to the side. She stands and curtsies.

“Of course my lady.” She turns towards the door and your stomach twists uncomfortably at the use of your power. No. No, you must get used to exercising your authority. Divine providence, you’re meant to give orders. You stand as well, and take a few quick steps towards your underused desk.

“One moment,” You stop your maid, scratching out a quick letter. You fold it neatly, and tip a nearby candle over the edge to seal it. Another quick note over the wax seal, and you hold the letter to your maid. “Deliver this to Ghost.”

She takes the letter, her eyes darting to the threat you’d scribbled on the top edge. The color drains from her face and she looks at you with fear in her eyes. “My lady, have I ever given you reason to believe-”

“If you haven’t, then you have nothing to fear.” You smile at her, “Just see that he gets the letter, and sleep well knowing you would not betray me.”

She curtsies, her head bowed, and scurries from the room.

The hand that knocks on his door is trembling, Ghost knows that much by the softness of the pattern. He barely hears it, the slide of cloth over his sword feels deafening when his mind is so full. His senses are on high alert though, and when he tugs the door open he’s faced with one of your maids. Whichever is closest to you. He’s never found it necessary to learn the woman’s name. At best she’s a nuisance, and at worst she hovers when he wants nothing more than a moment alone with you. She holds up a letter.

“My lady bade me to deliver this,” She explains. Ghost nods his head, a short half-thanks as he takes the folded paper. The wax is white, no seal impressed upon it, if he hadn’t been told it was yours he might not have been able to tell from handwriting alone.

The maid hesitates in the hall. Ghost pays her no mind, breaking open the seal and scanning the letter's contents. He can see why the threat was needed. A request of his presence in your quarters is more than treasonous. The King would execute Ghost himself if he knew. An order is an order though, and Ghost follows your tug on his leash with the strictest obedience.

“Keegan on duty tonight?” Ghost asks. Your maid stiffens.

“He is.”

There's a long moment of hesitance, the maid covering her face as she considers his offer. She nods shortly, one tight movement of her head. “Alright,” she says quietly, “but be quick.”

Ghost waits only long enough for the maid to step aside before stalking down the hall towards the castle. Quick… If Keegan has any brains at all he'll keep occupied as long as possible. You requested Ghost to your quarters, and he can only suspect one thing. If he's going to have you, he's going to enjoy you.

Keegan is smart enough to stand aside when he spots Ghost stalking towards your quarters. Smarter still to offer a nod and a, “standing watch, Sir.” He'd like the man if he wasn't on your guard, but circumstances are as they are.

“I'll take over,” Ghost offers, “left you somethin’ in your room.”

“Sir?” Keegan raises a brow over his mask.

“Don't keep ‘er waiting.” Ghost pushes. A moment of hesitance before Keegan salutes and turns to make his way back to the barracks. Should keep those two occupied for a while. He turns his attention back to you, to your quarters. His hand rests on your door, his mind debating his body. If this is the right path to take, if he's damned to suffer for this simple action. If he can live another night without seeing your face.

Ghost doesn't wait to be let in, wouldn't dare have you rushing for the door. Ghost gives your heavy wooden door a knock before pushing it open. You rise from where you'd been sitting by the fire as he turns to check the door's lock. You're too close when he turns back, your skin illuminated by candlelight and your eyes so blessed to be laid on him again. You're far, far more bare than he's ever seen you.

“I hope I didn't wake you,” your voice is so sweet it's cloying, drowning him in the syrup that drips from your lips. What he wouldn't give to taste it.

His jaw clenches, words trapped in his chest. What can he say in the face of such a beauty? In the soft glow that seems trapped under your skin, warming you as well as a fire ever could. Distance truly does make the heart grow fonder. He’s never wanted you more than after being deprived of you. You're fidgeting. He wants to correct you, aches to correct you, to remind you that a princess doesn't fidget, just to see the way your motion stops. You're so obedient, so good for him. His perfect girl.

You twist your fingers into the lace netting over your hair, your elegant arms raised to lengthen the lines of your body. Ghost tightens his grip on his sword, his jaw clenched tighter and his teeth creaking under the weight of his nerves as he tries to keep his eyes on your face. You may as well be naked for all that you're wearing. His eyes dart to the gold that seems to be painted onto you, buttery silk that clings to your every curve. Fabric that surely cost more than his life if only for what it so barely covers. Your shy confidence is almost more enchanting than your exposed skin. Give the word and he will ravage you.

You teeter on the edge of self assurance, your hands dropping from your hair to brush shyly over your slip, unused to being so bare around a man, before you reach for him. Nerves root Ghost in place, his muscles tensing as your fingers press gently to the steel plate over his chest. You take a step closer, and his breath stops. Every inch of him constricting to keep him from pouncing on you. Never has a man been so conflicted than when offered everything he ever dreamed of.

“Ghost,” you start, your voice as soft as rain(as soft as he's sure your skin must be). He wishes you'd call his name like this, that your eyes would shine at him from the bed and not from where you stand, so unsure. He’s sure he must be choking on whatever words his throat attempts to force.

It only makes the truth more bitter on his tongue when he thinks of what the kingdom would be told afterwards. Love isn’t the story that the King would go with.

They’d say Ghost forced himself on you, that his jealousy, his own lust for you, drove him to take you. They’ll say he wants the throne. They’ll say you were too weak to fight him off, too trusting, that he took what he wanted and convinced you that you wanted it too. They’ll hang him, behead him, draw and quarter him. You’ll be left alone, sold off to whoever had enough pity in their heart(enough ambition in their cold soul) to take you.

Ghost holds you tightly by your shoulders. Your warmth soaks through his gloves, poisons his resolve. You look at him, wanting, pleading. Scared. He knows you too well.

“I’m sorry,” You tell him, your lips parted on kindness rather than damnation, “You’re in this mess because of me and I-” You press your fingers to your lips and Ghost can’t stop the way he brushes his fingers against your cheek. The soft swell of your lips, the tug of them under your teeth, the gentle sparkle of held tears behind your eyes, what could he do in the face of you? He’ll fold every time, all you need to do is look at him.

Simon. Simon. Simon. He wants to carve it into your skin, trace it onto your cunt before he buries himself in it. There’s no singular wanting, only the desperate howling of a beast denied too much for too long.

His eyes settle on your breasts, his mouth watering at the soft swell of skin. He’s only a man, isn’t he? A man in the presence of a woman he’s wanted since he met her. A man who still fists his cock to the wayward touches you once caught yourself against him with. The press of your body so rarely felt, the soft fat of your hips under his hands as he lifted you onto your horse, your soft sigh over a cup of tea, his brain conjures terrible images with the mundane and yet here you are like a wife greeting her husband. It’s improper to want to lay his head against your chest, to want to feel the shudder of your breath as his hand slots between your legs.

Dreams above his station, thoughts which will never be acted upon, a maiden who so trusts he will never touch her that she would bare herself to him like this.

“-and I can’t lose you,” You swipe your fingers against your eyes, your tears bringing him back to reality.

Can't lose him? Why would you lose him? Even with your father's meddling he couldn't leave you entirely, wouldn't retreat further than the barracks, wouldn't stand where he could never hope to see your face.

“I'm not goin’ anywhere.” He reassures you, gloved hand cupping your cheek. His thumb swipes to catch the tear that slips past your lashes, and you press into the touch. Greedy for it. He wants you to be greedy for him, to succumb to even a quarter of the greed he holds in his heart, the clawing darkness that begs to dig its teeth into you.

“No,” you agree, “you’re not.”

“What do you need me to do?” He asks. You turn your head to kiss his palm, the plus push of your lips against well worked leather a small comfort. Still, you hold yourself there, breathing in the softened material. Something seems to soften in you as well, your shoulders drop, your eyes close, and you look yourself for a brief moment before you return to your determined tension. Ghost wishes it wasn’t cold steel he’d be pulling you against if he wrapped his arms around you, wishes he could offer more than this small comfort.

“I need you to win the tournament.”

#need me a man like knight!ghost #who needs books when I can read about knight!ghost and love.#MMMMMMMM #Ghoul. amazing. I hope your pillow and bed are always comfy for you and you sleep wonderfully.#LITERALLY EATING THIS #want this implanted into my brain #hwjannd a #favs #simon ghost riley x reader #cod x oc #knight!ghost #princess!reader #f!reader

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unadulteratedsoulsweets · 1 year ago

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A DC X DP #18

You want a taste of my brain? Okay, it's yours anyway.

Imagine dis…

This time I get inspiration from an A03 fic, and some of its parts just stuck with me and now I’m writing about it, if some of you want to read it go for it. If you are asking for the name don’t ask, I am not going to sell my soul to the devil to find it in my ever-growing history. If you do manage to find it, kudos to them.

TELL ME I AM GETTING DESPERATE OVER HERE

Credits to them as well. Also, as you’ve noticed I decided to post less, now it is due to a good old lack of inspiration. So, don’t go getting your hopes up on this one.

…

Ever since Danny Phantom had become the Ghost King he repeatedly entered the reincarnation cycle willingly to retain his morals when he was human. He still retained his ability to stay in the middle of life and death. But when he as the High King of the Infinite Realms gained immortality he found himself losing his ideals and values, he began forgetting. With Clockwork’s insistence, every few hundred years he would become human to experience a lifetime. Sometimes he would go another round in the same dimension, but only when he needed to finish an unfinished business.

Sometimes he is lucky sometimes he is not.

Sometimes he would be born into a loving family with either as the only child or him having siblings. He has experienced the life of royalty as the heir prince. He experienced the life of a knight who was known for his skills with the sword. He was born into a normal family which made him second guesses his every choice due to his lack of normality in his life. He was also born into some wild dimensions that of which could look like it came from a book. From wizards and sci-fi worlds, he never had the time to sit and be an extra.

But there were also times he was born far too unlucky.

He was born in a salve ridden society, a parent who were core members of a rebellion so when his current parents died, he was expected to be like his parents. Born in a society where the rich trample the poor and he was forced into early child labor as expected in society to work at a very young age. Born where he and the people around him had never seen peace in a war-consumed country, a war that separated his family from each other not knowing whether one is alive or not, leaving only him and his siblings to stay alive. Being abandoned by a pair of druggies for his parents left alone inside a dumpster and died in the middle of the night, looking through the dimension he saw that some homeless people found his body and reported it to the authorities leaving his parents in jail while some prisoners seem to leave them at the near bottom of the hierarchy in prison.

…

It seems this time he was born in an assassin cult this time he wasn’t alone. A twin, an older sibling that was with him in the womb and both came into the world together. The moment he laid his eyes on his grandfather he can already tell that he is a major fruit loop from the way he both look at both of them.

His name is too formal for his liking, Dylan Al Ghul, he already convinced Damian to call him Danny when it was just the two of them. Danny tries to downplay his abilities both ghost and human seeing that his grandfather is too power-hungry to the point of misusing ectoplasm that is corrupted but still ectoplasm to achieve some sort of immortality, he tried to give Damian a childhood in the form of showing him the stars whenever he could sneak him outside. He saw the absolute worship and awe Damian would give to their mother and their grandfather whenever they visit or supervised their training, Danny didn’t care for their approval nor their presence but seeing his brother seem to at awe and do anything to please the two made his heart shatter, his older brother never needed to prove anyone something.

Danny has repeatedly shown his disdain for the two most powerful people in the organization yet it is a miracle he still lives. It is because he is a spare, a spare yes not the heir but a useful spare one, twins one who specialized in stealth and espionage a twin who is a perfect copy of Damian aside from his eyes mirroring their supposed father. Both Talia and Ra seem to make it their life mission to drill his only purpose in his head, it may have never worked due to his adult mind but he pretended it would be as to not raise any suspicion.

…

The day Deathstroke attacked not only he dared to kill the demon head but also choose to kill the chosen heir, by removing an eye and some of his organs as a form of slow torture but also killing him as he made the organs unable to go back to their owner’s body.

Danny couldn’t look away from his bloodied brother, Talia slowly approached him from behind and put her hands on his shoulder, and whispered some honeyed words on how his role as the spare will be fulfilled at a much earlier date and promptly injected with a sleeping drug.

…

Danny was already awake when he noticed the cold metal bed behind him the lack of clothes as well the number of doctors seemingly in a rush to prepare for a last-minute surgery. He saw the unconscious form of Damian on the other side and suddenly heard the loud ticking noise of a grandfather’s clock.

It seems that it was meant to be, Danny thought as an image of Clockwork flashed in his mind.

He fell back asleep knowing that Damian lost an eye, kidney, a lung, some ribs as well an ungodly amount of blood, possibly more. Danny knew that this vessel of his wouldn’t survive at the sheer need and he already felt that he would not leave the room alive. So, he took one last peek at the sleeping Damian and promptly closed his eyes, the moment he opened his eyes once again he was back in his chambers in the Infinite Realms clutching his left eye in his face whilst looking at the mirror as he felt his eye be the first one to be removed.

It seems this time he died months before he and his brother celebrated their 10th birthday.

…

Damian woke up with a pounding headache being the assassin he is he immediately looked around seeing that his last memory is being tortured by Deathstroke.

He immediately took notice of his loose clothing and tried to walk towards the door but his knees immediately gave out. As he tries to gain his bearings, he noticed a scar right in the middle of his chest, it couldn’t be from the time when he was captured by Deathstroke as he noticed that this scar is too clean, too sterilized as if someone had just come out of a surgery type of scar. As he tries to loosen his shirt to take a better look at his scar when he noticed a mirror facing his way and noticed his eyes, instead of his usual pair of emerald eyes he was greeted with an emerald eye of his own and his brother’s icy blue eye in his left eye.

Damian remembered that Deathstroke took out his eye, as according to him it reminded him of the Demon head, and decided to promptly pull it out with his bare hands.

Dread began to fill his very being and tried to go and look for his brother but deep down he already knew what happened to him after all, he is the heir while his brother his beloved younger brother is just a spare.

…

When Damian had met his father’s wards most of them commented on his heterochromia eyes and promptly greeted back with his sword in their faces.

The rest grumbled that Damian couldn’t take a tease or two, but immediately chased the demon brat as he chases each and one of them with the intent to kill.

Damian couldn’t tell them; another son was hidden from Bruce. Another son he had failed, another son who died before they could even meet him.

From the first few interactions he had with his father when he first met him, he knew where his brother’s bleeding heart came from.

Sometimes he could still see him, Dyl- no Danny, every time he looks in the mirror. The constant reminder that his brother was seen by the league as nothing but a spare. Whatever love he had for his mother disappeared the moment he laid his sight at his brother’s eye embedded in his supposed empty eye socket.

The constant reminder that shows every time he looks at the mirror and the scar in the middle of his chest, Danny’s organs that were used on him to ensure his survival while Danny was left behind.

…

He was 14 years old when he went wide-eyed at the stranger across him and his brothers in a heavily populated area.

A teen looks exactly like him with a medical eyepatch on his left eye as he sits in a wheelchair chatting idly with an older man.

Damian heavily thought of a clone, did Talia, not mother never mother, make another clone after him after weeks of silence?

Damian still remembered the first time he encountered a clone with blue eyes, his running theory is that due to his new organs have bonded with him thus creating a batch of clones with blue eyes. Timothy had spoken up that since babies have a 50/50 chance of inheriting the colored eyes of either parent made a new branch of clones.

Damian was already planning on disposing of the supposed clone when the said clone suddenly laughed exposing his neck that have a feign white line across indicating a scar. But that scar made Damian double guess, all clones he encountered are scarred free thus leaving him to have no trouble disposing of each and one of them but the existence of the scar he barely caught is something both brothers swore secrecy to it.

The laugh oh god, his laugh, only his brother laughs like that, Damian thought mournfully.

As he tries to look the other way, he suddenly faced the same doctor who was the assistant doctor that foresees his surgery years ago. He may have distanced himself from the League after he had fulfilled his debt but it was no mistaking that it was the same doctor that operated him that time.

A chemist they said, an insufficient man who is more cowardly than any other man yet his talent in poisons made him quite a gem in the League.

A clone who had broke out of their collective mind control? Possible, but why this clone? What made this look alike so special that this man dared to leave the League?

…

Robin began to follow the two, the other bats thought that he had a new case on his lap that requires recon. They didn’t question Robin’s new behavior as they have seen him do the same actions when he landed himself a case or when he was following a lead. Yet they couldn’t shake the feeling that something is not right, whether it is the fact that Robin refused any assistance or just the fact they have no idea what kind of case Robin is working on.

They should have listened to their guts then maybe they wouldn’t be surprised at the bat screen, showing a maternal and paternal match to a picture of a blue-eyed black-haired kid with a medical eyepatch on his left eye looking like Damian in a good day.

…

Danny was doing some paperwork when a flying thought passed by him about his last reincarnation. All memories from his adventures when he got reincarnated are usually put behind the back of his hand yet worries about the well-being of his brother made him distracted, and kept close a special one-way mirror to monitor his baby brother.

Danny felt nostalgic at the family drama and chaos that he can’t help but cackle at each interaction Damian has with their father’s adopted children and wards. He found himself majorly of his time watching for hours and hours, he can’t help but wish he was there. As if he was summoned Clockwork appeared in front of him and told him to go back, which confuses Danny since it was Clockwork who implemented that he cannot go back to the same dimension/ world if his body is too far gone to be revived by him, yet Clockwork told him to give someone named Alfred his regards and vanished. Looking bewildered at his mentor/ grandfather he tried to sense his vessel with little to no hope seeing that the League has his body, but surprises himself when he felt his own body submerged in a portion of the Lazarus pit.

…

Going back, he was greeted by an assistant doctor that used to be in the League due to his ancestor’s debt. He explained that he cannot in good conscience do what he was instructed to after the operation, stole his body, and submerged it in an undiscovered pit due to its small size, enough to dump a child not enough for a grown adult.

After an initial check-up, both he and the doctor discovered that the mini Lazarus pit regenerated all of his organs except his eye seeing that it was his entire body submerged excluding his head. The assistant doc theorized that those organs of his may be weaker since they were generated from nothing, Danny in all his eldritch glory as well as being the most powerful being across the Infinite Realms played his part perfectly of a now disabled child.

After all who would accuse this disabled child putting the daughter of the Demon Head in an endless nightmare by his command to Fright Knight? Who would accuse that innocent blue eye of his that he had killed any assassin in their tail ever since he and his now temporary guardian began exploring the world? Who would accuse an adorable child that he was the one who had put the Joker in a definite MIA? Who would accuse this child who smiles like the sun despite his setbacks be the one who tortured Deathstroke to the brink of insanity? Danny is pretty sure his temporary guardian knew of his secret endeavors but remained quiet due to his habit when he was in the League or just to prevent any grayer hairs from growing in.

…

Now if only his brother stopped moping around the building across their apartment complex and just come inside, he made his infamous fudge to share with his brother. His brother didn’t have to drag the rest of the bat brigade in watching him across the building, he even made extra fudge, if only they could just go through the front door instead of rescuing him first in every rogue attack and pretend, they don’t him. Well, if they are playing a game then count him in to win. But for some reason all of them made a face of being constipated whenever they talk to him, Danny is so sure he used clean ingredients to make his fudge…

God dammit just enter the front door like a normal person, better yet tell Batman to stop looking at him as if he died! Those windows are not paying to fix themselves each time one of them decided to stop dropping and roll every other night!

…

PS: If someone out there wanted to continue or make a fic about this you are free to do so, don’t forget to tag me though.

#dc #dc x dp #dc x dp prompt #danny phantom #dp #ghost king danny #batfam #danny fenton #op danny #damian wayne

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lavalais76 · 8 months ago

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I was reading terrible things about Sansa Stark and now my blood is boiling. How could people HATE an 11 yr old child who has absolutely no control over her own life. They went as far as to saying the mountain-clan will kidnap her and she will marry Timit!!!!😳

They also say Sansa will remain in the Vale until the end of the last book, but have no objections to Arya and Dany on a revenge killing spree. And for God's sake don't mention Sansa with Jon. They absolutely go INSANE, saying Dany and Jon will save humanity. Dany can't save anyone if she is killing millions of people and burning others alive.

Sansa will kill LF with the help of Timit is what they say and OHHH, Jon will marry Val. How TF can Val be QINT when she is a wilding and no real princess. She looks the part as Jon says, but we ALL know what kind of woman Jon REALLY CRAVE. A high born willowy creature who brushes her hair waiting for some knight to save her.

Jon craves Sansa Stark aNd I personally believe he always HAVE. My response to "these idiots was this: (and I could be wrong) but who knows.

Alyas Karstark was a red herring. Sansa is definitely the girl in grey. Miranda also has a grey cloak that went missing and WHY would Miranda mention Jon being LC to Sansa? There is a reason for all of that. Just like Arya and Jon were to fall in love in original version, it's going to be Sansa and Jon.

Jon even says he has no sister (,5Never considered Sansa a sister) he then says “my half sister truly” (that's what he and Sansa referred to each other as) He mistakes Melsandra for Ygritte, and says all robes are GREY in the dark, yet suddenly hers were RED. Martin is a hell of a writer, and I was in denial about Sansa being the grey girl as well. Not anymore.

Sansa is getting the hell out of the Vale. There will be no kidnapping from mointain-clans or falling in love with a secondary character such as Timit. What sense would that even make? Some people act as if Sansa doesn't matter, or she is some side character when she has one of the most tragic SAD stories in the whole series. She is scared and do whatever she has to do to survive, even if it means allowing LF to kiss her and molest her in which she has NO CONTROL over. It also blows my mind how people were “shipping” (and I hate that word) Sansa Stark and the HOUND of all monsters. Sansa has had 4 FALE BEASTS in her life. Joffery, Tyrion, The Hound, and LF. These men are evil and takes advantage of a young lonely 11 yr old girl who has been captured like a butterfly in a Jar. They are evil, YES; BUT they are NOT the real BEAST.

The real BEAST is Jon Snow. As we know, Jon was already a bit ruthless before the stabbings. (I do not think Jon died that night) For ONE: We need to think about the SNOW and hypothermia which can save the lives of people who are bleeding by knife wound or gunshot would. It's simple Science. Will Jon be on the brink of death and have a Near death experience? YES. There will be a lot of chaos at Castle Black and the wildings are very loyal to Jon. Eventually they will be ruling the wall while Jon recovers along with a few other loyal CROWS that love and respect Jon.

Master Ameon had a dragon dream when him, Gilly and Sam sailed off. He couldn't shake the feeling that he needed to tell Jon Snow that “ the cold preserves.” A fan asked GRRM about Jon's resurrection, and Martin said, “You think Jon is dead do you?” Maybe he was toying around, but everyone automatically assumed he DIED when there is absolutely NO EVIDENCE.

“He never felt the 4 knife only the cold” How do we even know there was a 4th knife or any other knives afterwards? Why was Jon’s hand clumsy when he tried to pull his sword out? Did they drug him? Why was Ghost acting hostile before the stabbings? Of course Ghost knew what was up. There is no telling who is involved in the attempt on Jon's life. Melsandra told him to watch the ones who smile in his face while they sharpen their daggers. I don't even rule Satin out, as Ive said many, many times.

On the show, Ollie was Satin in my opinion. They did not want to give it away. Back to Jon and Sansa and a few other things. First I want to say, Melsandra will definitely burn Shrinee thinking Stannis is actually dead. She will play absolutely NO PART in bringing Jon back from his “coma”. It's going to be Jon's wolf who saves him and release his soul back into his body, and Ghost will die, also sliding his shadow into Jon because Jon IS GHOST.

He will definitely be a beast and he will not be the same Jon as we know him. This is where Sansa Stark ( girl in grey) will come along and temper Jon just like she did the hound. They will eventually work together and fall in love and struggle with these feelings because keep in mind, Jon and Sansa does not know each other AT ALL. Yes, he will welcome her in open arms and be extremely protective of her, and yes they will fight while trying to get their home back or when they have to rebuild Winterfell together. (The blood of Winterfell)

Sansa Stark is destined to go North because she is the only one out of all the Stark children who has her wolf buried at Winterfell, and as Melsandra like to say: “the bones remember"

#jon snow #jonsa #jon x sansa #sansa stark #jonsa meta #girl in grey #jon x sansa meta #i dont think jon died the boy in him did #jon is in a coma like bran and will warg ghost

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autumnmobile12 · 1 year ago

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Human turned Vampire variations

From the classic bite of Bram Stoker's novel explained to some really convoluted metamorphoses, here are 6 ways humans are turned into vampires throughout modern media.

Shiki

This series had a slow process, similar to the classic Dracula. The shiki chooses one victim to feed off of over the course of three nights and holds said victim entirely under their sway through a means of hypnosis. Growing increasingly more anemic and unable to tell their family and friends what's happening, the victim eventually passes away from heart failure.

However, the vampire bite itself doesn't guarantee a new vampire. It's caused by an unspecified genetic factor that responds to a vampire bite. The shiki in the series gather around the grave of their latest victim and wait for signs of life, digging up their new member if they do and giving up if they start to smell the body decaying.

It led to a pretty devastating moment for one of the vampires who desperately tried to turn the rest of her family, but none of them had the genetic factor and she ended up killing all of them for nothing.

Hellsing

Vampire bites virgin human of the opposite sex.

Okay, seems simple enough, but what exactly are we considering virginity here? This is an arbitrary concept with a definition that has changed multiple times over history, not to mention the 'loss of virginity' definition today varies according to who you ask. What are we considering gender? Are we strictly adhering to an individual's biological characteristics or is transgenderism/gender-fluidity at play? What about intersex individuals?

This one seems straightforward until you consider all the non-heteronormative angles, but really...I'm pretty sure no one watches this series for the plot. I think we all just showed up to see a vampire annihilate the Third Reich.

Twilight

I've never read/watched the books/movies, but I've heard it's venom in this series. Is it venom? If so, that's an interesting take.

Vampire in the Garden

Saliva.

The vampires of this series are the result of a genetic mutation and can change another human into a vampire by introducing an unspecified pathogen/chemical found in their saliva into the human's bloodstream.

Soulless (or the Alexia Tarrabotti novels)

All right, this book series is fun and I highly recommend. British sass, steampunk Victorians, LGBTQ+ representation, fabulous vampires, and dorky werewolves, I love it.

Anyway, vampires in this series have what's called 'feeder fangs,' but the female vampires have a second smaller set called 'maker fangs.' So only a female vampire can create a new vampire.

Also, the supernatural system of this world revolves around souls. People can have an average 'amount' of soul, for lack of a better word, an unknown percentage of people can have 'excess soul,' and a rare number can have no soul. Excess soul lingers after death, so people with excess soul become ghosts when they die. Or, if they are bitten by a vampire or werewolf, they can become that supernatural being and gain immortality.

But since there's no feasible way to measure how much soul one has, becoming supernatural is a roulette with death. Similar to Shiki, immortality by vampire bite is not guaranteed.

Vampire Knight

Vampires can reproduce with each other and give birth to children, essentially making them just a long-lived, virtually immortal sub-species of humanity that needs blood to survive.

There's also a vampire hierarchy of which only the rare 'purebloods' can create new vampires, but the former human vampires are unstable and often become mindless, blood-driven monsters, adding to the classicism of the upper hierarchy.

(If I remember right, it's been awhile since I read these.)

...

These are all the methods I can think of, but reblog if you can think of another method or one that's similar to the ones above.

#dracula #vampires #vampire media #vampire human metamorphoses #vampire knight #shiki #hellsing #hellsing ultimate #soulless #alexia tarrabotti #vampire in the garden #twilight

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arwainian · 7 months ago

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Reading This Week 2024 #22

This is the first week since the spring semester ended that I really felt like I read a lot, and a decent amount of books that really grabbed me made that possible

Finished:

The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu, audiobook read by Corey Brill & Joy Osmanski Reading this was a great time. It's been a while since I've read a collection of short stories and it was so great to read so many things that set out to tell a story and just goes forward and does so. Notably, two different stories in this collection follow the formula of "white American girl child makes friends with an old magical Chinese man who teaches her about Chinese culture through stories of magic." I liked both of them, but it was kinda funny to read two stories by the same author, in different settings, with essentially the same central relationship. I will also repeat that the title story made me cry

A Guest in the House by Emily Carroll This is a horror graphic novel about a woman falling in love with the ghost of her husband's first wife, imagining herself as a knight and the ghost as a princess. it's a very tense character portrait, though I'm a bit confused and dissatisfied by how it ends. This is worth reading for the sake of the art alone. It's both gorgeous and creepy in exactly the measure this story needs.

The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System, Vol. 1 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu My friend Tort recommended that I read this isekai webnovel for the purpose of giving them my analytical thoughts on it. This backfired because it hit the off switch to my brain and I had a wonderful time just along for the ride, which I think is exactly what I've been craving from a book. I will be reading the next three volumes as soon as my holds from the library come in

Murder Crossed Her Mind by Stephen Spotswood So, technically I had an ARC copy of this book before it was published (because my mom is awesome and sometimes uses her book reviewer clout to get me early copies of books from authors I love), but I delayed reading it for so long that its publish date past! I spent all yesterday afternoon reading it because I was craving a mystery and sapphism, which this series always delivers for me. Now that I know the cliffhanger, I'm kinda glad I delayed so there will be less time between reading this, and the next book getting published next February

DNFs:

The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, audiobook narrated by Jayne Entwistle This was too be expected, I'm just marking that I won't be continuing it for the sake of organization

The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older, audiobook read by Lindsey Dorcus Abandoning THIS book however was really unexpected for me. I remember seeing so many good reviews for it when it came out, including from some of my favorite authors. it's a mystery novella set on Mars with a sapphic investigator! that seems so my thing! but unfortunately literally nothing about it caught my attention in the first four chapters, even after I switched to the audiobook. the silver lining is that being disappointed by this lead to me finally reading Murder Crossed Her Mind to fill my craving

Started/Ongoing:

Rape and Representation edited by Lynn A. Higgins and Brenda R. Silver while my hunt for summer jobs is not going very well, I can at least start up on my summer research. This a collection of essays, and I've so far read the first two, which are grouped together for being stories from Greek and Roman myth

Reading Plans: I will be trying to read about one section of the Higgins and Silver collection per day, and overall try and read a full book for my thesis research each week (with several article length works serving as appropriate substitute). I'll be looking at the bibliography of each to try and find good readings to follow up. I'm also going to work my way through different books that have been lingering on my bookshelf for a while, since i have the free time for it!

#cal reading log #arwainian princessoid decrees

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lightwise · 1 year ago

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Ahsoka Episode 4 Spoilers/Thoughts

This was...a big one, to say the least.

Also note to self do NOT open tumblr while in the middle of watching an episode or you will be spoiled for that epic ending *sobs* oh well...

SPOILERS BELOW THE CUT

2/2 Star Wars characters repairing ship wiring on their back...v nice

Sabine, you realize none of you would be in this position if you hadn't squirreled away with the map in your tower...jus sayin...

"Can I count on you?" Yeah I'm gonna say that's a no...

Sabine loading her blasters is super cool but also giving me flashbacks to trying to reload staple gun or nail gun cartridges and hoping you don't launch them into your face in the process

Natasha plays Sabine's nervous energy very well and Rosario is showing Ahsoka's own unease, reserve, but also very caring concern, extremely well. I really wish we could see the history between these two--animated in between series anyone??

I wonder why Dave doesn't bring up the fact that Ahsoka owes Ezra her life. It's only focused on what Ezra means to Sabine, but he means a lot to Ahsoka too.

Huyang's lil hands on hips...you can tell he's a full practical build here.

Speaking of...I REALLY want to know if the practical robot was used for this fight scene, or if they switched to someone in a costume/CGI. It seems like the HK droids are people/CGI but I could be wrong about that. Either way, go Huyang go!

It's always a treat to see Mandos and Jedi fighting styles together. And Sabine's Wonder Woman vambrace block was great.

Ahsoka's white lightsabers are so stunning in live action.

"May I make one request of you both?" LISTEN TO HUYANG. HE KNOWS WHAT'S UP. "Stay together." And WHAT ARE THEY NOT GONNA DO SMH

"Mom, how come I have to do what I'm told and you don't" lmao

Jacen is so spunky and I'm so glad Dave is having him be a full part of the series.

Carson Teva my man! And Brendan!

BUT WHERE ARE ZEB AND KALLUS. WHERE ARE OUR MARRIED BOIS

"Faith? I lost that a long time ago" Baylon's backstory pleaseeeee. Who was his master. How far did he get in training. Was he knighted? Did he have a padawan pre-order 66? Where was he during the war? Where was he during Order 66? When did he walk away, and what did he walk away to? What are his goals now? How did he find Shin/why did he want to train her? We desperately need a comic or a book here Lucasfilm

The graphics for the countdown clock (and the droids manning them) are super cool

Shin dear lord can you be any more dramatic

Sabine and Shin running off like rabid wolves while Ahsoka is just like, oh please, do I really have to deal with this right now

Ahsoka > any inquisitor, dead or alive, magic or real, anytime, any place, any age LOL

Ugh the parallels to Obi-Wan and Maul are impeccable.

So I totally knew Marrok would be a nobody/throwaway character but a nightsister necromancer ghost??? Did not see that coming at all. Eerie

Shin seems honestly disturbed by seeing Marrok fall. I wonder if the body that was used was someone she knew or had a connection to.

The lightsaber usage in this show is so interesting and such a unique blend of samurai techniques, OT trilogy techniques, and more realistic stabbing and swiping and slicing motions. I love the choreography and cinematography of Shin and Sabine going at it as well as how the trees and landscape are used in their fight.

Looks like Shin got her dramatics from her master. Sitting there with his hood up for effect lol

Definitely getting flashbacks to Ahsoka's sass in her fight with Maul in TCW.

Baylon's textured armor is so incredible. I want to see him leading a 13th century cavalcade

Can he read people's minds? Or does he do in depth research like Thrawn does so he knows the weak points of his opponents?

“One must destroy in order to create.” No. You are incorrect sir. One must die. One must morph, must change, in order to create. But that is different than destroying.

Again with the one saber. It's such an odd choice for Ahsoka to do that, and it honestly feels like an excuse for Baylon to be able to overpower her later. I don't quite like it.

It is very interesting how Baylon views Ahsoka, and tells her that her legacy is death and broken promises. What exactly does he think her legacy is? Because that is Anakin's legacy, not hers (at least through Rebels). What has happened since then?

He looks so sad, honestly.

There's way too much leaving oneself open to attack in this episode.

The fight scene definitely looks slowed down a little, and it's a little clunky, but man Baylon is brutal with his saber. Again why is Ahsoka not using both of hers to combat is strength??

Either there's a trailer shot that never made it into this fight, or Baylon and Ahsoka fight again. I'm missing where she kicks back against one of those tall rocks and flips over. That was such a cool shot.

I honestly can't believe Shin was able to block the whistling birds lol. That would be an intense hit to the face. Also I love how much of the shots and sparks in these shows are practical. It makes it feel so much more real.

The map burning Ahsoka is wild. It makes sense but very unfortunate.

Hot damn Ahsoka! She definitely was tapping into some anger there. In real life that hit to the back of the head should have seriously injured Shin. Filoni is really being gritty and brutal with the fights in this show, they're raw and dirty in ways that the trilogies were not.

Aaaaaand while I know Ahsoka isn't dead yet (there's no way Filoni would kill off the title character halfway through a first season) holy cow that was heartwrenching

Baylon is a master manipulator. He makes Maul look like a babbling teenager. And yet he doesn't seem to derive any twisted pleasure from it. He just is doing what he thinks he needs to do.

I'm sorry Ahsoka had WHAT to do with Sabine's family dying???? In the Purge??? Ugh geez that's awful.

Gah DAMN it Sabine!! C'mon girl!! Bad decision, bad decision!

WHAT IS THIS GREATER GOOD BAYLON

I would have loved to see Obi-Wan face off against Baylon. The quiet patience and calm strength...too much for one room

He is just not done digging at Ahsoka is he. Again, master manipulator, but why?

Huyang's little magnifying glass!

Dave definitely nailed the lighting in this show. Even if the volume is still apparent in some shots, the lighting is finally dialed in and soft and realistic and atmospheric. That shot of Baylon after decimating the map is epic.

Yeahhh, Hera, ya'll might want to skedaddle right quick before you get....oh, too late....

"Mom? I've got a bad feeling." Me too kid, me too.

"Lady Wren, Lady Tano" *sobbing* Hera make sure Huyang makes it back pls

This transition.

Oh boy

I know what's coming bc I got on tumblr too early but OH MAN

ahhhh it's so gorgeous

it's here, it's finally here and it's BEAUTIFUL (The World Between Worlds, who did you think I was talking about, Anakin? ;)

I'm KIDDING ANAKIN IS BEAUTIFUL TOO OMG I CAN'T BELIEVE MY EYES

"Hello Snips" I can't I truly can't

"I didn't expect to see you so soon" so is she dead? Dying? Disassociating while drowning? Dave if you kill Ahsoka off in this show I will never forgive you

She is in shock omg look at him she is reunited with her brother, her master, her friend!!

We think--DAVE WHAT DOES VADER THEME MEAN. DAVE, SIR, HOW DARE YOU KNOW HOW TO LEAVE US ON SUCH A CLIFFHANGER IT IS UNFAIR.

Welp I have no idea what to do with myself until next week and we find out what's going on here. I swear if that's not the real Anakin I will be beside myself.

Let's get ready for flashbacks folks. What an episode.

#ahsoka #ahsoka tano #ahsoka show #ahsoka series #ahsoka spoilers #ahsoka series spoilers #ahsoka show spoilers #huyang #sabine #sabine wren #baylon skoll #shin hati #morgan elsbeth #hera syndulla #jacen syndulla #carson teva #some light ramblings #somelightramblings

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kanthonyficrecs · 2 years ago

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Masterlist: Historical/Fantasy AU

updated 4/29/24

All the Magic We Made by iwishyouwouldstop Rating: E Status: WIP Summary: Kate and Anthony grow up together, learn to harness their magic together and are certain nothing can tear them apart. Until something does. Now they are strangers who occasionally publicly humiliate each other in between finding means to survive in a world that is increasingly hostile to their kind. Then Anthony commits the ultimate betrayal and Kate's retribution results in a life-threatening curse that forces them to work together.

Blood and Chrome by juniper5x5 Rating: M Status: WIP Summary: Anthony and Kate are hotshot pilots on the Battlestar Galactica, trying to save humanity from total extinction. One of them is a Cylon. (or, the Battlestar Galactica AU that only one person wanted)

dancing bears, painted wings by booksandrings Rating: T Status: WIP Summary: an anastasia inspired kathony au: in which kate has been missing for well over a decade and her family is desperate to have her back.

Dragonslaying by PenguinofProse Rating: T Status: Complete Summary: Kate is the village dragonslayer, and she's doing just fine on her own. She certainly doesn't need the help of a foolish knight.

every time a bell rings by starkswinterfelling Rating: M Status: WIP Summary: Christmas Eve, 1945. Anthony Bridgerton, after a lifetime of unfulfilled dreams, disappointment and sacrifice, reaches the end of his tether. A timely meeting with a strange, mysterious woman puts into perspective the vast reach love can have, and shows him that he really has had a wonderful life. An It's a Wonderful Life (1946) AU.

Give Me Your Eyes, I Need Sunshine by Hauntess, theshadowpuppet Rating: M Status: Complete Summary: Kathani never fit in with her sisters. She could never bring herself to lure human men only to kill them. Not after she was caught in a net when she was only a child and a kind human boy named Anthony saved her. Years later, when his ship is sinking from a storm and her sisters pick off the crew one by one, she risks everything to save him. The connection they formed years before never faded and under the full moon, they bound themselves together forever so she can live as a human with him. Their happiness is short-lived when her siren powers are no longer under her control as a human and Kate fears she ruined the life of the man she loves.

I've Just Gotta Get A Message To You by Searching4paradiso Rating: E Status: WIP Summary: Anthony Bridgerton meets Kate Sharma while preparing to ship out for Vietnam. They have a magical summer together that ends when he leaves her a letter, but Anthony doesn't know all of what remains in the aftermath.

Impossible Hazel Eyes by Mx Kate B Rating: M Status: Complete Summary: The war isn’t going well. Kate’s a guard. Anthony’s her prisoner. He’s a pacifist and done with killing. She’s mostly just bored and wants to read her book. What could possibly go wrong?

Lost, Drifting by Stars_of_Kyber Rating: G Status: WIP Summary: The Bridgertons were told war had taken Anthony from them forever. Miles and miles away, a man was found almost dead at the Sharma family property with no recollection of who he was. When Colin comes face-to-face with someone that could only be a ghost from his past, Anthony Sharma knows his quiet country life is about to be turned upside down. But will the family he has no memory of even recognize who he is now?

lover, please stay by wafflesandkruge Rating: T Status: Complete Summary: Daphne gestures exasperatedly at him. “You taught me yourself, brother. I am not mistaken. Love is when your eyes meet and your heart begins to beat faster–” “My heart,” Anthony snarls, “beats faster because she is aggravating!” aka the very self-indulgent and niche bridgerton grishaverse au

Mea Vita, Mea Lux by RosesAtDawn Rating: M Status: Complete Summary: An Ancient Rome AU of a lost childhood love fought for once more on the bloody stage of the Colosseum

Miss Sharma's Murder Mysteries by thequeenofgondor Rating: NR Status: Complete Summary: 1920s. London. A maid has gone missing from Bridgerton House. Eloise has called upon her friend, detective Kate Sharma, to solve the mystery. The sleuth’s ruby-handled switchblade is no sharper than her wit. When she meets Eloise’s eldest brother, the viscount, she finds that there is no greater enigma than… love.

Mistaken Identity by PenguinofProse Rating: E Status: Complete Summary: Infamous Count Bridgerton has a plan to kidnap the Crown Princess, but it all goes horribly wrong.

Never Tickle a Sleeping Bridgerton by Aurelia_Borealis Rating: G Status: WIP Summary: A Bridgerton AU set at Hogwarts, sometime in the 20th century - starting with Anthony/Kate.

Of Noble Blood by Stars_of_Kyber Rating: T Status: WIP Summary: Sir Anthony Bridger’s one and only responsibility in the Royal Guard is to protect the heir apparent to the throne, Princess Kathani Sharma. When an attack on the Palace threatens the life of the Royal Family and King Arjun is murdered in his own bed, Anthony will do whatever it takes to keep the princess safe. Even if it means returning to a place he’s been trying to avoid for the past 9 years of his life. Even if he might lose his life doing so.

Of Wolves and Women by anonymous Rating: T Status: Complete Summary: Anthony Bridgerton is a werewolf. Yes, it's confusing for him too.

pacific bridge by nighimpossible Rating: E Status: Complete Summary: “I think Anthony Bridgerton refusing to Drift with me is perhaps the first bit of sense he’s ever had,” Kate says stiffly, turning her back on the sergeant and filing out of the command center with one feeling coursing through her body: pure, unadulterated hate. (The Pacific Rim AU nobody asked for).

Redemption Is For The Lost by kateandanthonyaremyparents Rating: M Status: WIP Summary: As a former winner Anthony tries to protect his family from the cruelties of the Capitol. Kate, knowing damn well how his family saved hers after the death of her father, is determined to help him.

someone to watch me die by wmthackeray Rating: M Status: Complete Summary: kate and anthony at the end of the world. a modern!apocalypse coworkers-to-lovers au.

The Head Boy Who Charmed Me by doodlingaway Rating: M Status: Complete Summary: Kate’s final year at Hogwarts looks promising. She loves her spot on the house Quidditch team, she’s setting herself up for a career in wizarding advocacy, and she’s excited to discover that she’s been made the Head Girl. The only catch? The Head Boy is none other than her long-time nemesis, Anthony Bridgerton.

the light by which my spirit's born by ladykathani Rating: M Status: WIP Summary: Kate Sharma has lived her whole life isolated from the world. Stuck in her tower for as long as she can remember, she has long given up hope that she will ever be able to touch the grass, swim in lakes, or attend one of the ton’s balls she’s read so much about. But on her twentieth birthday, after unceremoniously hitting a viscount against the head with a pan, she finds that perhaps her life may turn out to be far more than she had ever imagined.

The Prophecy by Destroyedrecord Rating: E Status: WIP Summary: The old man finished his prayers, took the crown made of gold and rubies, and softly crowned the Queen. “Please kneel before your new sovereign. Queen Kathani Sharma, first of her name, Heir of the Fire and Protector of our Realm.” Everybody kneeled in respect and Edmund could feel anger color his cheeks as he noticed that both Mary and Edwina weren’t kneeling before their new queen. Maybe it was a good thing that Kate was sending him back home.

The Queen Who Loved Me by CherriesOnTheCake Rating: M Status: WIP Summary: The ‘females rule the world AU’ meets the ‘colonialism turned on it’s head AU’ OR Kate is basically Ghenghis Khan and Anthony is her not so blushing ‘bride’

The sleeping Viscount (OR the importance of being witness) by PortiaMargarita Rating: T Status: Complete Summary: The viscount Bridgerton was cursed to a hundred years of sleep, until a kiss from the Queen's diamond broke the spell. Exactly nothing is as it seems.

The Spy Who Loved Him by LoveIsStrong Rating: T Status: Complete Summary: Absolutely unserious mix of Kanthony, James Bond, Mission Impossible, Pride and Prejudice + What happened in Budapest.

The time traveler's wife by limon97 Rating: G Status: WIP Summary: After the death of his father, Anthony discovers he has the gift of being able to travel to any time in his life. The only problem is that his emotional instability and grief make him impossible to control, until he meets Kate Sharma.

till forever falls apart by Moomin_94 Rating: T Status: WIP Summary: And she could have gone her whole life without wanting to see him again, until a pilot was brought in, suspected paralysis from the waist down, with no one any the wiser as to how he survived at all. And she looked at his sleeping face, hollow and gaunt and still so handsome, and her heart stuttered. Anthony Bridgerton. The WWII AU absolutely no one wanted

To Grandfather’s House We Go by jashman19 Rating: G Status: WIP Summary: Anthony Bridgerton is trying to make it home for Christmas Day but is held up when, in the woods, he is led to a beautiful woman who is cursed to perpetual sleep.

Twisted Bonds by collectionoftulips Rating: M Status: WIP Summary: Witches are being hunted across the land, but Kate Sharma had to learn this forbidden ancient craft to help her family. She manages to keep her secret fairly well until the region gets a new nobleman who has been sent by the king to wipe out magic use in their area. Anthony Bridgerton hates witchcraft, ever since his father was killed by a witch over a decade ago. Therefore, he might not be pleased with this new task given to him by the king, but he understands the necessity. It seems, however, like fate and other forces might have other ideas, as he seems irrevocably drawn to a mysterious young woman he meets in the woods.

until i find my way to you by booksandrings Rating: M Status: Complete Summary: Reincarnation AU as we watch Anthony Bridgerton and Kate Sharma maneuver through their various lives.

War Wounds by Allatonceyouaretheone Rating: T,M Status: WIP Summary: Kate Sharma meets a handsome and charming man. But she has no interest in starting anything with him. Until she sees him dancing with an elegant petite lady.

#masterlist #historical/fantasy au

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happymeishappylife · 4 days ago

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Books I've Read in 2024 Part 4

1. Ghost Stories by Jim Butcher (#13 of the Dresden Files)

This might have become my favorite Dresden Book. And the twist and departure from normal Dresden stories worked really well to not only challenge Harry, but allow other characters to step up and have agency. So first, I forgot that we left Harry shot at in Thomas’s boat in the last one, but we pick up with Harry’s shade who has been summoned to find his killer and help his friends as a ghost. This poses challenges because as a ghost, Harry has to navigate how to operate in the world, including the loss of his powers. He finds an ectomancer Morty who Harry will be able to speak to and speak through. His friends naturally doubt this is the real Dresden and really who could blame them when Harry’s been gone for six months. Murphy especially being so guarded is exactly what I expect. But Molly is the first to warm to him and as we find out later, its because she knows how Dresden dies, but hasn’t told anyone. In his absence she has grown incredibly even though she’s been in constant danger, but that’s what I loved. Finally Molly got to show off her own magic skills and take on enemies of high caliber and she wins all but one time. And really, trying to take on Corpsemaker would be a big challenge. I’m just glad that Uriel had someone intervene to save her and save Butters from her wicked schemes. I definitely did not miss her. I did miss Thomas and thought at the end, Harry actually unpacked a lot of the shit he forgot when he went after his daughter. Which was, Maggie has two blood relatives. Though granted seeing Thomas in the sorry state he was in after Harry’s death was hard, I hope the two can reconcile soon. But now that Harry has become the Winter Knight, we’ll see how that goes.

2. New York 2140 by Kim Stanley Robinson

I really enjoyed this novel. Granted, it took me until about 200 pages to get into (there are 600 total…) but once I was, I was invested. For a Sci-fi future novel, this was refreshing in that it wasn’t a dystopian future society, but more so our society continuing on, through the disasters. In the 100 year future, the Earth has gone through two events that has changed it forever, that being the First Pulse and the Second Pulse where sealevels rose over 58 feet which is what scientists predict will happen. Which means all the coastal cities as we know them have changed and the land where the richest and most secure individuals in the US, live in Denver. Manhatten is underwater. The sea level rise goes up 5-7 stories on the giant skyscrapers and instead of subways and roads, people now travel by skybridges or boats. And we follow the lives of ten people who live in the Met, that starts without being connected to each other, and shows how people do come together and form a community. Each of the people’s chapters have a different tone of voice and writing style which is also why it was hard to get into, but fit each of the characters really well. From a self-absorbed finance guy in first person, to a genuine New York citizen who sounds like he’s standing on a street corner talking to you, its clever. The other part of this story is as the events unfold, that want and need to change the way the world works takes over, but instead of revolution in the form of battle, it truly is a revolution in the power in democracy which comes off as very hopeful and something I would like more people to implement before we get to 2140. I highly recommend this.

3. You Are Destined To Be Together Forever by Dean Koontz (Odd Thomas Short Story)

A quick read and interval before the final book which has a younger Odd romping around his hometown Pico Mundo with Stormy solving a quick ghost case before going to the carnival. It was cute, but also sad since there was a lot of emphasis about Stormy’s plans to open an ice cream parlor and franchise by the time she’s 24, and yet we know what happens to her. Though this raises some questions for me as to how the final novel is going to end. Because Odd emphasizes each book that supposedly these memoirs only get released after his death so we know its coming in the final novel and we know he is going back to Pico Mundo, so I think the endgame is he dies and meets back up with Stormy as the ending to the series. Its sweet and bittersweet and that’s what I’m expecting. So we’ll see.

4. We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo

A fascinating, heartbreaking, and interesting read about a girl named ‘Darling’ and her life in Zimbabwe and her move to the US. As a kid we see how she plays with her game who all have nicknames as they explore their world. They hunt for guavas in the richer part of town, play ‘andy-over’ and also pretend to be world leaders in their games. But we also see the hard parts that they wrestle with, even if its not deeply explored. For instance when Darling and her girlfriends try to help their friend Chipo from having a baby because they heard it might kill her and they don’t want their eleven-year-old friend to leave them. But when an elder sees and hears this, she stops them and we all feel the heartbreak of Chipo’s situation. But after a raid on a rich person’s house and the political world growing ever more turmoil, Darling is excited to go to the US. Her experience in the US however, covers much of the feelings of all of the people in the diaspora that can’t feel 100% connected to their new home and start to feel alienated by their old home. Darling struggles with this while trying to help her Aunt and Uncle, eventually learning she can’t go home because her visa would never allow her to come back. But while at first saddened by this, she gets chewed out by Chipo who says she doesn’t even know the country she complains about or feels empathy about. It’s a great read to help understand the difficulties of immigrants, but its also gut wrenching like many of those tales

5. The House of Hades by Rick Riordan (Book #4 of the Heroes of Olympus Series)

Oh Man. This is the first in the series to get really heavy. And that’s because poor Percy and Annabeth have to travel through Tartarus, a living god they are literally walking upon until Tartarus decides to become an actual figure and try to kill them. It’s horrific, hard, and if it wasn’t for the fact that they are together with Bob to help them, they probably wouldn’t have made it. But it is going to drastically change them. Already, we saw how Percy nearly lost his heroeness by learning to control liquid poison. Annabeth keeps her head, but is sad when her plan works and that means sacrificing Bob and Damasen. And Percy doesn’t like the feeling of having almost tricked Bob into it. Meanwhile their friends are still trying to make their way to the House of Hades. Hazel learns from Hecate that she can control the Mist and that’s an incredibly powerful skill. Frank learns to embrace his Mars side and in the process undergoes a transformation from cautious soldier to newly promoted Praetor. Piper feels like she is lesser in the group, but learns to swordfight and enhance her charm speak. Leo accidentally gets plunged onto Calypso’s island after Khione attacks and in the time he spends there, he falls hard for her. And I think he will be the one to break her curse since unlike all the other heroes who met her and left, including Percy, Leo and Calypso spent a lot of time learning to love each other. Jason finally figures out that he doesn’t want to be a Roman and would rather be a Greek, living at Camp Half Blood should it survive. But he also learns Nico’s secret and oh man. I know of Nico’s sexual identity because of future storylines, but hearing it and having Jason point out that not only did he hide it because of being afraid of coming out, but because he comes from the 1930s where it was punishable made it hit harder. And of course Nico fell for Percy. Who wouldn’t, lol? But will Nico ever say? Hard to tell. I really can’t wait to see his perspective on things and it looks like I might get that chance in the next book as he and Reyna begin shadow travelling back to Camp Half Blood to deliver the Athena statue. It also all wraps up in the next book, so can’t wait to see how the war with Gaea comes to an end.

6. Typical American By Gish Jen

I have mixed feelings about this novel. On the one hand, I do appreciate another interesting telling of immigrant life in America and especially coming from the time period that this novel is set in which is early 20th century. But following the lives of these Chinese immigrants gets a little muddled and not in the usual way. Yes, we see the struggles to fit in and how to cope with American society. Theresa, Helen, and Ralph even joke about being a ‘typical American’ before they settle into their life. But when Ralph makes the switch from being a tenured professor to falling under the con of Grover and opening his own chicken shop, it becomes more than just an immigrant story. It becomes a story of heartbreak, because you can see it won’t end well. No one that greasy is ever going to help you. So when they lose the shop due to bad land, see Helen falling for Grover (gross), you knew it wasn’t going to end well. But the bigger question, is did the book even end? Yes it ends on Ralph’s musings of how he got there, but it felt like I was missing pages because we were talking about the color of people’s bathing suits in a memory and then it just ends. So it was very weird.

7. Mistworld by Simon R. Green (Prequel #1 of the Deathstalker Novels)

I haven’t been able to find Deathstalker Honour which is why I haven’t been reading this series. But since I was tired of pushing it off, I figured reading the prequels could get me back in without spoiling the future books. And hopping right in, it was easy to be back in this Universe. We learned how dangerous the rogue planet of Mistworld was in the first few novels, but I liked having it be a setting and getting to see how its inhabitants dealt with the problem of Empire invasion without our heroes. Though it was nice to see Jack Ransom get mentioned. I enjoyed the way the mysteries all tied together too. From Jamie’s backend deal with Dr. Vertue which ultimately leads to his death, to Topaz’s husband getting murdered by Vertue’s bounty hunter, to Cat being the one who burgled Topaz, and to Cyder trying to swindle Steel at the end, bringing all of them together to stop Typhoid Mary. It was also a story about personal gains and while yes there was a threat of the Empire because of Blackhawk’s plot to destroy Mistworld to end his exile, the Empire really took a seat back to the threats. Yes of course Mary was programmed by them, but it felt more like all these people trying to save themselves than the planet. Even Mary’s pursuit to get her sapphire, subverting her programing felt like a personal move. Still, the one thing being back in this universe that made it hard was the brutality and the death. From the duels, to the assassinations, to Typhoid Mary’s esper attacks, there is a lot. And it doesn’t hold back and nor should it, because that’s Green’s style. And I’ve missed it in this universe.

8. Doctor Who: Peacemaker by James Swallow

This was a great story to feature the Tenth Doctor and Martha Jones. And while I’m irked that this writer continued on with the show’s poor handling of Martha’s love interest in the Doctor, I understand this was written at the time of the show, and honestly I thought he captured both their personality’s really well. After being let down to go see an Old West movie, the Doctor takes Martha to the scene in Redwood, Colorado. But they soon learn the town survived small pox even though a cure won’t be available for 60 years. Plus the people cured with it are having horrific nightmares they can’t describe but sound like futuristic wars. So the Doctor and Martha investigate. And they soon learn an alien war weapon which can latch on to hosts and control their bodies, have infiltrated this part of the region which is causing the chaos. Two of them have inhabited outlaws and are trying to track down the miraculous doctor who cured the people. And the snake oil salesman, is slowly succumbing to his device and making bank off it. It’s a good period story with great suspense and action, but it was hard at the end because Martha almost dies and the Doctor has to fight off the Clade and nearly loses himself if not for her quick thinking. Still it was fun and I would love to read more with this pair.

9. Seawitch by Kat Richardson (Book #7 of the Greywalker Series)

I always knew that Solis would get pulled into the world of Harper Blaine full throttle and I always hoped that he wpuld become one of her allies so this book was great because we finally get that. And unlike other storoes, I appreciate that Harper slowly introduced him to it and talked about it before some big crazy event. It really shows how they have always had a professional respect for each other and I like that it also helped put them on friendlier levels because I think having Solid on her sode is really going to help when the big prpblems come back. Now all that said, the actual case/mystery felt really lackluster. Most of the action doesn't happen until the last couple chapters and the plot of Fielding and the Seawitch wasn't that interesting especially because he was a terrible person. Still, this one is setting up for some bigger overarching plots and the one I am most intrigued by is Quinton's dad, because I really have no idea where that will go but ut sounds like Harper might get trapped by the government and thats a really interesting turn.

#2024 rewind #books I've read

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notmuchtoconceal · 1 year ago

Text

youtube

This is going nowhere.

I'm spelling it out, but you're not listening,.

Your troubled schooldays. How you're conflicted about marriage. Your denial of death. The unfounded guilt. Abnormal sexuality.

18 years of denial.

A whole universe of fantasy in that thick skull of yours. A skull teeming with agents of repression. Blind children clutching photos in the dark. Pale freaks, goggle-eyed from watching home movies on loop.

The term is complicated grief. But it's simple, isn't it?

A young girl. Her parents don't get along. She blames herself, as all children do. Then daddy dies. What's a girl to do? Deny that daddy died. Denied who daddy was. What seven year old actually knows who their parents are, anyway? So she obsesses and obsesses over this fantasy dad, propping up her make-believe with scraps. Scraps of a happy life that never was. Scraps of a happy life that never existed.

WAKE UP.

Your dad wasn't a hero. He wasn't your knight in shining armor.

[ [

He was a human being. You never knew him. And you never will.

The dad walking around inside your head isn't even a ghost. He never existed. A Frankenstein's monster. A child's fantasy.

But you're alive. Your mother is alive. She's not the monster you make her out to be. You need to live your life. Cheryl.

...

You've been with me for so long.

I always will be.

...

[[[ ]]]]

\ Why did you have to die?

It wasn't my fault.

Someone has to take the blame.

Forget me.

[[[ ]]]

/ Dad.

You are a hero.

The man who died? That wasn't my father.

That isn't who I remember. Those memories are all I have.

You're all I have.

... I'm not even a ghost?

| ((( )))

/ ... /

aha haha

sweetie

daddy?

i love my daddy

/ . / You'll be careful...?

Sure.

Harry.

We've said enough. Let's just...

Sweetie, don't film this.

You know this has nothing to do with you.

Even though mom and dad don't love each other anymore, we'll always love you. And we always will.

\ . \

Action.

Come on, girls! Introduce yourselves!

I'm Michelle. And I'm Midwich High's Prom Queen.

And our next star ... ?

haha I'm Lisa. I'm a nurse.

And I'm Harry Mason!

Famous author and seducer of Prom Queens and Nurses!

Can we be in your next book?

Suuuure.

Can you dedicate it to us?

Nope. Dedications are always to my wife and daughter.

It's only fair.

Ahahahahahaha

woooooaaah

\ . \ You piece of shit. When are you gonna bring in some real money.

[ ]

You think your crap is Shakespeare? Your piece of shit novels?

NOBODY EVEN READS THEM!

[ ]

BE A MAN!

COME ON FIGHT BACK!

You're pathetic.

To think I used to hang off your every word!

DICKLESS WASTE OF SPACE

...

/ . /

, , ,

What the hell are ya filmin me for?

Am I suppsoed to dance for ya?

ya ya hey hey hey hey

' ] [

GAGH

Be a good girl for daddy, get him another drink, will ya?

NOW

GIMME A DAMN BEER

no i wonder i drink with a family like this...

. ,.

This.

This is it?

After all we've said, all we've discussed...

You honestly believe ... that your father was abducted by aliens?

It made more sense when you were talking about cults and demons!

This whole town... It's really a giant spaceship :D

[[[ ]]]

James?

Wrong day again?

See you tomorrow, James.

]]] [[[

One of my couples therapy patients.

Haven't seen his wife in a while...

Where were we?

(woof-woof-woof)

My mother was a bitch.

((( ))) )))((( ((()))

Go on. I'm listening.

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thebubblesareevil · 2 years ago

Text

How Can You Resist?

To say the library was extensive would be a severe understatement. The whole room seemed to expand as Kaldur wandered throughout the stacks. There was only one other visitor to the library who sat at one of the tables perusing a rather large tome. He was a rather large ghost who appeared to be male and wore a long purple cloak. Eventually Kaldur came across a section of Atlantean text, much to his surprise, many of which appeared to be romantic poetry and love stories. Kaldur came across one of his favorite novels and sat down to read, not noticing when the only other occupant stopped paying attention to his book and began watching him instead.

But then again can people so rarely tell when he’s watching.

————————

Three hours, Danny had been stuck in this meeting for three hours. Why the Second Brother felt the need to go on a tangent of proper wing care, Danny’s not sure, but it had been going on long enough. Once the Second Brother paused Danny jumped in before he could continue.

“I am incredibly grateful that you took the time to inform me of such important traditions, however it seems we have run over our allotted meeting time and I must attend to some urgent duties.” Both Spirits rose from their seats and grasped arms. “It was an honor to meet such an accomplished warrior Lord Second, may your wings never falter”

The large winged man replied “And may the wind carry you far. Thank you for this opportunity, it was a pleasure speaking with you.” He hesitated for a moment before letting go of Danny’s hand. With those parting words Danny exited the room and is greeted by the Fright Knight.

“My liege” he greeted with a slight bow “how did it go?” He asked eagerly.

Danny gave a short chuckle “It went well, he seemed to be preening throughout the meeting with how much he boasted about his realm. That’s 2 out of the Twelve done. I need to see if there’s anything I can to speed these along, I made a promise to Kaldur and I intend to keep it.” He grinned at Fright Knight “Speaking of meetings, how did your meeting with the Knights of Mattingly, any suitable knights? How IS Dora doing? Did you ask her?” Danny raised his eyebrow.

Fright Knight gave a slight echoing cough “There are a few promising candidates that stood out, though none who stood a chance against my prized pupil. Truly your daughter takes after you, my King, as she quickly sent them running for their shields.” Danny sent a proud smile toward Fright Knight.

“Well she’s had a great teacher, we’ll have to set up a date for a proper sparring session. We haven’t really been able to spar together since the coronation.” Danny smirked “Now stop using Elle to dodge the question, how did it go?”

If it was possible for the knight to blush he would make a tomato jealous, instead his flames flared up as he responded “Queen Dorthea has granted me the honor of being her escort to the treaty celebration.”

“Congratulations Fright! Now that you have a date to the ball I gotta ask when was the last time you went to a ball to actually dance?” Danny asked as he walked only to stop as he realized he lost his companion. He looked at Fright Knight and carefully asked “You do know she’s gonna want to dance with her right?” Never before had Danny seen the grand knight look so nervous. “Don’t worry big guy there are still 10 more meetings to go before the Ball, you’ll have time to practice.” He said with a laugh. The two ghosts continued down the hall, seemingly unaware of the shadows that stalked them, waiting to strike.

———————

Kaldur was just finishing his book when the other occupant of the library approached him.

“A lovely story, if a bit tragic” Kaldur looked up in surprise as he did not notice the stranger approach.

With a cautious smile Kaldur responded “Perhaps, but it is one of my favorites.” The other man stands there for a moment staring at Kaldur as if trying to figure out a particularly interesting puzzle.

“How are you finding Phantom’s Keep? I trust you are making a speedy recovery.”

“Between Frostbite and Danny, I should be fully recovered before I return to my team. It’s interesting so far, I have not been able to explore much yet but it’s been interesting so far.” Kaldur sighs “In truth I find it difficult to relax, not knowing when I will be returning and being in an unfamiliar environment.”

The stranger nods “Completely understandable, I believe Danny sometime forget how the zone affects others. After all, the Infinite Realms were not meant for the living, though none shall be turned away.” He pauses “What do you intend to do with your newfound knowledge of the Realms Kaldur’ahm?” Kaldur looks at the stranger confused and suspicious, he grins in response. “The Realms are an extremely difficult place to reach… while alive, and many people would positively kill for the chance to learn even a fraction of what you have seen. In fact a few have killed for that knowledge, not that it helped them any.”

Kaldur is getting ready to answer when the stranger interrupt him. “No need to answer now. When the time comes you’ll know your answer, besides I think your time would much be better spent rushing to the aid of our dear King.”

“What do you mean?!” Kaldur demands

“We’ll you see, at this very moment Danny is being viciously attacked by a group of assassins. If you hurry you should be able to assist him.” The stranger says with a smirk.

“Where is he?!” The smiling stranger just floats away and Kaldur immediately gives chase until he comes across an empty courtyard, the stranger gone. He doesn’t have to wait long before a massive form comes barreling through the the castle doors before falling to the ground.

“Oh woe is me! I have been beset upon by assassins! Thieves in the night!” He bellowed he turned very dramatically throwing an arm over his eyes falling to his knees. A group of flying children surround him

“Avast ye matey! Surrender the princess and we shall spare your life!” Cried the child dressed as a pirate

The giant paused in his dramatics uncovering his face to reveal Danny himself as he replied “Sorry Youngblood, Elle’s not here today.” He then struck a dramatic pose pointing at the pirate “You shall never take the princess from these lands! I will forfeit my life before I forfeit my daughter!”

The pirate seemed to pause for a moment. “Your life shall be spared this day, but in exchange you must surrender to us your cookies instead!”

Danny nodded and then called out “Very well Captain Youngblood. Garçon bring me the finest cookies in all the land!” Kaldur couldn’t take it any longer as he let out a laugh. The pirate vanished from his sight and the rest of the children fled to hide behind Danny. Danny looked sharply until he saw Kaldur, then he turned towards the children. “Hey, hey calm down, it’s okay. This is just my friend Kaldur he’s not gonna hurt you I promise. Would you like to meet him?” He asked softly.

Danny turned around and slowly made his way toward Kaldur, shrinking to normal size as he walks towards him. A little ghost girl peaking out from behind his cape. Kaldur crouched down to greet her. “Hello, my name is Kaldur, what’s your name?”

“Mama says I’m not supposed to tell my name to strangers…” Danny then turns to the girl

“That is exactly correct! So what do we say when people ask for your name?” He asked with a wide grin. The little girl jumped into the air causing Kaldur to look up.

“I am the mighty Box Lunch fear me and meet your boxed lunch doom!!!” Kaldur looks surprised while Danny fell to the ground laughing. When he finally got a hold himself he turned to Kaldur

“Would you like to join us we were about to go raid the kitchens for cookies? I have a little time before the next meeting.” Kaldur stood and looked at Danny with a raised brow.

“Don’t you think it’s a little early for dessert?” He teased

Danny then picked up one of the children and held him in front of Kaldur “Look at him! He’s practically skin and bones we need to fatten them up and if I have to eat cookies before dinner, well that’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make.” He said solemnly. Danny grinned and whispered something into the child’s ear. The young ghost then looked at Kaldur with what had to be the biggest pair off puppy dog eyes he had ever seen. “C‘Mon how could you resist these eyes?” Kaldur looked Danny right in the eyes for a moment. Danny gave a slight gulp.

“I don’t think I can.” He held out his hands for Danny to pass him the child. “Shall we go get some cookies before you all wither away?” The children cheered and jumped on Kaldur clinging to his arms. “Lead the way your majesty.” Danny’s face was ablaze as he turned around sharply and coughed.

“Alright everyone, FORWARD MARCH!! To the kitchens!” They all disappeared into the castle laughing.

—————

From the roof of the castle Clockwork watches the interaction.

“Every moment he is here, a new branch is formed in the timeline. I can’t wait to see what happens next” he stated before taking a bite of a rather chewy glowing cookie.

In the distance the sound of drums is heard.

#danny phantom #ghost king danny #cold current #dc x dp #danny/kaldur #kaldur'ahm #cross posted on ao3 #pt 6

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attherowndtable · 2 years ago

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Bluebird Reading List

Well, I've shuffled off from twitter and what better first post than to bring the reading list with me?

But who is Bluebird?

Harper Row AKA Bluebird is a member of the Batfamily. She grew up in The Narrows, Gotham City's poorest neighbourhood, with a deadbeat criminal absentee father, a hardworking loving mother and the cutest baby brother she could ever hope for. After Batman saved the lives of her and her brother, Cullen, from a homophobic hate crime, she endeavoured to become Batman's partner, offering her gift of mechanical engineering to his services by improving his CCTV scramblers. After some pushback from the Dark Knight, he reluctantly agreed to take her on as a partner, though her identity as Bluebird would be formed on her own much later, when an attack from the Mad Hatter rendered Cullen comatose and she took matters into her own hands to save him.

Under the break is a fully detailed reading list of all appearances that will spoil some plot elements, but this is the short version. The best thing about Harper is also the worst thing: she's got nothing. Her major appearances amount to a grand total of four books:

Batman Eternal - the first book she has something of a starring role in. It sets into canon her personality and skill set, which started off as a mechanical engineer and then James Tynion IV, main writer on Eternal, switched it to hacking very abruptly. Presumably this was because she was being partnered up with Tim Drake and they had to show she wasn't useless. I have my issues with this but I'll get mad later.

Batman & Robin Eternal - continuing on, Harper returns in her supporting role, an opportunity that is exploited to explore her backstory and solidify the first moment she truly got to be a hero.

Punchline - the first issue of Punchline was a standalone, the rest of the book got turned into a backup story in The Joker (which was actually a good book, you should read it). By far her worst appearance. Everything Tynion did in the Eternal books with Harper, he just shredded all of it. She's been written as utterly incompetent just to make Punchline look better and the only times she gets to do something is a bit of DIY and the very end of the book. Just insulting characterisation.

Punchline: The Gotham Game - and somehow that shit got a sequel too. Solicits just came out and she will indeed be making her reappearance in Gotham Game #3.

And now, the full reading list.

First is the People In The Dark backup* from Batman (2011) #25. This is a story from Harper's childhood, and displays how she first got into engineering, along with some relationship work between her and Cullen.

*If you've found this reading list because you're new to comics and are looking for characters to get into, a backup, or b-story, is an unrelated, or only tangentially related, short story that you can find after the main plot of the comic.

Next is Batman (2011) #12, titled Ghost In The Machine. Fun fact (but also a sad fact), this issue was drawn by Becky Cloonan, the first woman to ever do art for a Batman story. This issue marks the first time Harper saves Batman's life and her first meeting with the Dark Knight!

Batman (2011) #7 - The Talons Strike! - is Harper's very first appearance! Batman escapes the Court Of Owls' labyrinth and dies from exhaustion and physical and mental torture. Harper drags his body out of the river and saves his life a second time by restarting his heart with a car battery and jumper cables.

Resolve is the story told in Batman (2011) #18. Harper begins training herself (I like to headcanon she used fighting game moves), donning her black stealth suit and homemade gear and Batman breaks her nose for it, partly still lashing out from the mental torture the Court Of Owls put him through, partly because he doesn't want to see any more good kids enter this life. Not one to be set back by a mere Batbop however, she yells at him and gives him some much needed tough love to put him right.

Shadows And Ghosts (Detective Comics (2011) #21) is Harper's next appearance, chronologically. Batman has since confiscated her gear and she fills us in on what she's been up to since.

Not much happens.

Batman Eternal! Starting from #5 in which she saves Vicki Vale's life and meets Red Robin for the first time, Harper appears consistently throughout, beginning first in her starter gear that Batman returned to her after the events in Detective Comics. From #15 onwards, she switches to a prototype suit with a mask that I believe to be an homage to Cole Cash AKA Grifter, one of the main characters of the Wildstorm Universe, which was later acquired by DC, and another favourite of mine. Harper's prototype mask is a carbon copy of Cole's but coloured light blue in place of the con man's red. She dons the first real Bluebird costume in #41. Most are minor appearances amounting to just a page or two but if you want specific issues, she can be found in issues 5, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 19, 25, 36, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 48, 49, 50, 51 and 52.

In issues 48-50, she can be seen battling Mr. Freeze in a handful of panels!

Batman Eternal tells Harper's story as she grows into a hero and becomes Bluebird. Like most of her decisions, she decided to do this because she loves Cullen, her baby brother, and wanted to help him, though wanting to help Batman too was a strong part of it.

I should also mention that Batman (2011) #28 is a teaser for Batman Eternal called Gotham Eternal. It tells the same event as Batman Eternal #43, the script and art are just changed in Batman Eternal for reasons beyond my comprehension.

In this, Bluebird and Batman break into The Egyptian club.

Though published after Batman & Robin Eternal had begun, Bluebird's cameos in Batgirl (2011) #47 and #50 is set before the events of that story. Bluebird is recommended to Batgirl by Stephanie as a communications and electronics whiz, then she helps Batgirl when Barbara's enemies decide to group up on her. Bluebird is tasked with the apprehension of Killer Moth.

Much like Batman Eternal, Batman & Robin Eternal has Bluebird show up consistently in the run, this time starting right from #1. Again, a lot of 1-3 page appearances but the specific Harper issues are 1-5, 7-14, 17-20, 22 and 24-26. Issues 7 and 8 feature a scene with Cassandra Cain (now Batgirl, but under the ridiculous Orphan moniker at the time) that may or may not be able to be read as a date between the two.

Batman & Robin Eternal expands on the set up in Batman Eternal, with Bluebird's arc focusing on who she is as a person and adding some extra depth to her personality. In this run, we get to see more of her childhood and even meet her mother, Miranda!

We revisit Harper in Detective Comics (2016) #943-946 and #950. She has since hung up the jacket and shock rifle, and is volunteering in Leslie Thompkins' clinic, believing she can do more good as Harper Row than Bluebird. In #945, we get canon confirmation of her bisexuality!

Four years and a million Batman books later, Harper is forced to pick up her rifle again as Gotham's latest two-bit Joker knock-off comes begging for attention in Punchline #1. With Cullen spiralling further and further into Alexis' toxic ideology, she's got to save her brother once more.

Demoted from a solo to a continuous B-story in The Joker (2021) after just one issue (lol lmao etc), Harper starts to panic as she realises how fast Punchline sympathisers are dragging Cullen onto their bandwagon. Now she has to investigate Punchline as Bluebird and assist Leslie Thompkins to help keep her behind bars in court.

Solicits just came out and Bluebird will reappear this December in Punchline: The Gotham Game #3 and she will be teaming up with NIghtwing.

Now, this is not the end of Harper's tale, chronologically speaking. In Batman (2011) #35, Bluebird makes a cameo in a hypothetical dystopian future with a cool new high tech suit. For all intents and purposes, until we get something in the primary canon, this alternate future is the last chapter of Bluebird's story.

Harper also appears in the WWII AUs Bombshells and Bombshells United, which sit outside the chronology... I got too tired to look for specific issues cause there's like three of em and Bombshells ran for 100 but she is a mechanic who forms a team of Batgirls with Nell Little and Kathy Duquesne after Batwoman leaves Gotham!

I sincerely hope you enjoy reading Batman Eternal and Batman & Robin Eternal, because this little blue bisexual means a heck of a lot to me, and I'd love to share her with all of you, but please, do not start shipping her with Punchline. Enemies to lovers is a trope that requires a certain level of nuance, and they do not have it.

#bluebird #harper row #batman #batfamily #dc comics #grifter #cole cash #batgirl #cassandra cain #punchline #alexis kaye #the joker #dc bombshells

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peachmangopie323 · 2 years ago

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Back to table of contents

Chapter 6: Set him free

(Kirby SST!)

"...Negative energy had took over Void, she is now known as Void Termina, the Dark lord, destroyer of worlds. Void knew that this will someday happen, she told Galacta of this beforehand, she held him close and said

"You have to kill me." She begged.

Galacta's smile warped into a face of horror, he doesn't want to kill the person he loves the most!"

Kirby read his textbook home in curiosity as he lays on the floor.

"Meta Knight somehow knew of this, he started training harder, it was his chance to prove himself that he is strong just like his older brother. He wants to be the one who kills Void Termina.

The ancients knew of Galacta's hesitance to attacking Mother void, they begged and pleaded for him to defend the Galaxy.

"There..there must be another wa-" Galacta panicked.

One certain Priest reached out to Galacta Knight and whispered a powerful sealing spell for him to use,

"You need not to take our Lord's soul, but rather...You could recite a spell that could keep thine beast in it's place forever."

"...Really? Why, thank you, Hyness. I'll be off to put your spell to good use." Galacta felt relief.

It was time, Void Termina becomes this giant scary beast who yearns for chaos and destruction, it's roar echoes throughout the vast outer space, letting Galacta and his army know the battle has started.

And just as Meta knight catches up with him on outer space, Galacta Knight opens a portal with his lance to the other side of the Galaxy and pushed Meta Knight inside.

"You can not defeat Void Termina, this is for your own good." Galacta said.

Meta Knight shouted in anger as the dimensional rift closes, meta knight felt betrayed, he felt Galacta just called him weak, he thought that Galacta only wants the attention he'll get if he defeats such a strong opponent."

"And as Galacta Knight charged his attack on Void Termina, Meta Knight was left lost on the endless darkness of space. Until he saw a bright ray of light, he came across the brightest star of the universe, that's right, it was Planet Popstar."

"And so, Galacta found a way to get rid of Void Termina without killing her off, he sealed her for good.

Galacta got the praise he deserved but The Ancients were unnerved of what Void Termina could do, of how negative energy could influence a god, even more unnerved that the person who could defeat it could potentially use his powers for evil one day.

They didn't take any chances and sealed him away in a crystal. Never to be seen again."

Kirby closed the book as the story ends, though, the ending gave him an uneasy feeling. He felt, guilt?...sympathy? Maybe both.

He wanted to talk to Meta Knight about it.

Kirby looked all over the castle and there was no sign of him, he tried calling him but Meta Knight never picked up.

"There's only one place he usually goes to when he's late..."

He rushed downstairs and into the garden to find a fountain, there should be a hidden button nearby just Incase someone dropped their special button somewhere.

*Hidden door opens*

Kirby's footsteps echoes throughout the underground lair, he gazed at how big in scale Halberd was, he's glad that Halberd is doing well.

*Knock knock* he knocked at the metal door.

"Ah! Who is it?" Sailor Dee opens the door,

"Hi!"

"AAAAH!!! I mean, h-hello Sir Kirby, haha...why are you here?"

"What is all that nois- AAAHH!!!!!!!!!" Captain Vul shouted.

"You guys look like you've seen a ghost or something" Kirby giggles.

"No but we're seeing the mighty ship destroyer." Captain Vul murmured.

"Is Meta Knight inside? I really need to talk to him about something."

"Oh uhh, well...he took off on his own he didn't really inform the team where he went haha! Classic lord Meta Knight!" Sailor Dee said nervously as Captain Vul gestures her to keep distracting Kirby.

"How about we watch your favorite cartoon together, I like cartoons..." She held his hand to lead him upstairs.

"Really!? Okay!" Kirby said in excitement.

They ascend the surface talking back in forth as Meta knight discreetly left with them without Kirby noticing.

☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ*.✧ a little earlier:

"Are you out of your mind!?" Captain Vul exclaimed.

"You haven't even heard of what I'll do once I track the location."

"I know it involves letting him out of that crystal and challenging him on a duel! I know you! I forbid it! Your uncontrollable itch for a battle isn't worth the risk!"

Meta Knight ignored his Captain's words as he checks his personal computer for messages.

"On second thought maybe it is better if you continue sleeping, Captain.

Sailor Dee, are you able to track it?"

"We don't really know where Galacta's crystal is located specifically, Halcandra is way out of our radar...but...*Typing noises*

...We do know a man here on Dreamland who might just be familiar with it."

"Please don't be Magolor..." Meta Knight muttered.

"... His name is Mr. Magolor and given that he's trying to redeem himself he will help you!"

"Goddammit."

"What seems to be the commotion up there?" Sword knight whispered to blade knight on a distance,

"Argdontknewomaybeargboutgalactaknight" Blade replied.

"Well I hope we don't get involved..."

"Meeineitherladsororeighseremei" Blade shrugged.

Meta Knight goes out of his way to ask help from the town shop keeper Magolor, Meta Knight is clearly not fond of the Halcandran but there isn't many options he could choose.

☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ*.✧

"I need your help."

"What do you want sad caped man?" Magolor said in an annoyed tone with his foot on the counter reading a book,

Meta Knight slammed a sack full of gem apples right infront of Magolor shop, Magolor quickly stands up as his mood brightens.

"What could I do for ya? Sir Meta Knight!"

"By any chance, could you use your...Lor Starcutter once again?"

"...for what?"

"I assume that you know the exact location of Galacta Knight's infamous crystal, it would be easier for me if your little ship opens a dimensional rift for me.."

"Woah there...First, Halcandra is in the other side of the universe, not Galaxy, Universe! And second, are you just looking for another rematch? You can't risk the galaxy for that!"

"If you're just going to lecture me I might as well find help somewhere else for free." He said as he's about to grab back the sack of apples.

"Wait! wait wait wait! Of course I'll help you aha! But you have to understand, Lor Starcutter is off limits for now, I don't want to get involved if the great aeon hero starts destroying planets!

....If it makes you feel better, I do know the exact location to where he's sealed, I could tell that your Halberd will suffice. So, do we have a deal?" Magolor added

"Deal." He replied as they shook their hands together.

As Meta knight's mood slowly lights up, he begins to think his plan a bit more realistically. Is beating Galacta what he really wants? He had always wanted to be the Strongest warrior of the Galaxy but now, he's not so sure anymore.

It would be the end of Popstar if he lets an enraged Galacta Knight on the loose it's truly a risk if he doesn't think this through carefully.

☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ*.✧

"Yeah well, since we've never heard anything from Galacta for a thousand years we had to rely on ancient scriptures and interviews to piece our work together." A

Writer said to the knight.

Meta Knight ended up meeting with the textbook's writer, he wanted to know if the writings were reliable in the first place.

"What about 'Dark Matters' was there any writing about that?"

"There's few ancient writing about them and paintings of their appearance, though their origins are left unknown due to some works missing."

"How did you know how both of us were born?"

"From what we could gather our book is heavily based on Galacta's perspective of things, Galacta likes writing he'd always keep a journal or two around.."

"Journal?"

"Some text may get lost in translation and certain words faded in time but the more I read his story the more I feel like he's not like how people portray he is."

"Perhaps you're...a fan of him?" He said with a bit of annoyance.

"Not a fan but, I really feel like this irrational fear that we have of him is from the ancients trying to justify why they have to do such a thing to their protector."

"And you, you portrayed him as this selfish, boastful person when he's more than that!" The writer added.

"Pardon?" Meta Knight felt a bit offended.

"You were blinded by his power and that's the only thing you saw him as, you've never saw what he looked like under that mask and it's just...sad.

it's too bad I didn't have complete control over the book's final draft, but atleast I get to share my side with you."

Meta Knight furrowed his eyebrows and sighed, he admits that Galacta isn't a bad person at all, that Galacta was just specifically mean to Meta Knight because of a yet unknown reason.

The writer leaned and whispered.

"Kirby also needs someone stronger than him to hone his talent, if you somehow unseal Galacta without getting him angry it will benefit us greatly."

Meta Knight didn't want to listen any further but the writer was right. He sat down quiet with his arms crossed.

"He is not immortal, he will slowly and painfully die inside that crystal after eons. Give him another chance in life, he's not evil to begin with hes- he's unfairly sealed after he saves the universe from destruction, he deserves to be free!

Aren't you a knight who values justice?"

The writer explained, Meta Knight paused and said,

"Fine, do not make me regret this." Meta Knight stood up and left,

"It was an honor meeting you, Sir Meta Knight!" The writer waved goodbye.

Meta Knight thought about how if he himself is ought to die earlier than expected, Kirby would have someone to guide him.

He trailed through his past memories and concluded that maybe Galacta was just misunderstood, maybe Galacta was a victim of injustice, that he has the right of freedom somehow.

It's a dangerous task but if he manages to get in his good side things may turn well. They might just earn another protector. He started to believe that maybe he isn't the monster everyone thinks he is.

It is all for the sake of the universe, As so he thought.

"Change of plans, I will not be fighting Galacta Knight." The knight called his team from an earpiece,

"Oh phew..." Captain Vul signed in relief

"But I will still set him free."

"WHAT!?"

Meta Knight cut off the communication before his sensitive ears hear more scolding.

☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ*.✧

"Miss Sailor! The cake is probably cooked can you take it out for me while I prevent the ganache from burning?"

"O-oh! Right away chef!"

The two seemed to be baking a cake using Kirby's Cook ability, the smell of the freshly baked chocolate cake had their Knight following it's scent to the kitchen.

"Meta Knight you're back! Where did you go?"

"Just...had a meeting of some sort, that pleasant smell, is that what I think it is?"

"Mhm! You're just in time for the preparation!"

Kirby poured a pot of hot chocolate fudge on top of the moist thick chocolate cake on a tray, Meta Knight remembered he had not eaten any lunch since this noon, it is almost sunset,

he drooled on the sight of the cake being sliced.

"I saw that you were sad earlier and I thought maybe you need something sweet!"

"That is very thoughtful of you Kirby, thank you" Meta Knight tried to keep his composure as he removed his mask to reveal his sweet smile craving for the cake.

His cheeks are puffed and full of cake, smiling at every bite, it was a rare sight for Sailor Dee and Kirby!

"You two baked it perfectly, it tastes divine...you should have a slice before I finish it all up!" Meta Knight said with a mouth full,

They snapped out of staring and quickly grabbed a fork and plate, everyone enjoyed their slice, this sweet act of Kirby reminds him that he need not to duel people in order to feel genuine happiness, sometimes he just needs some cake!

⭐Notes⭐

Despite me writing about characters eating cake i don't like cake wwww

They just kinda taste like sponges

I like the textures of brownies more

Thank you for the votes, reads and comments!

Next Chapter

#kirby fanfic #kirby lore #meta knight #kirby gijinka #kirby #galacta knight #void termina

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bumbleklee · 3 years ago

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windblume confession(s)

masterlist | 1k prompt masterlist | pregnancy series

request: (@illusory-torrent) can i ask the meaning behind your url?? just curious. and could i also please request some kaeya and albedo getting competitive over the reader? reader can be gender neutral, i just wanna see my two best bois being competitive haha. thank you!

pairings: albedo x gn!reader, kaeya x gn!reader (love triangle)

warnings: none! (1.5k words)

a/n: soooo the meaning behind my url - it’s not that special lol. i wanted to make a genshin pun (klee = bee) and this is the first thing i came up with. also bea/bee, bumblebea/bumblebee, yktv

During the Windblume Festival, bouquets of flowers and letters were spilling off of your desk everyday. Despite knowing that most of the gifts came from anonymous senders, your heart still skipped a beat.

Part of you wondered if any of them were a prank. You didn’t see yourself as anything special, you weren’t as feminine and pretty as Barbara or muscular like Wagner, yet quite a few patrons found you good enough to pine over.

You skimmed through the gifts one day to see if you recognized any of the names. There was a letter from Bennett that was clearly addressed to Fischl so you tucked away the special note in a drawer with promises to deliver it later. You also found a letter from one of the Knight’s on your squad - but he was much younger than you and, frankly, the letter sounded like puppy love. Two contrasting bouquets of flowers sat side-by-side on the edge of your desk so you reached for them.

The first bouquet was about a dozen calla lilies tied together with a blue ribbon and the second was cecilia’s in a glass vase. The flowers piqued your interest, your mind already forming an idea about where they came from, and you read the attached cards.

“Meet me in the library,” You read aloud, your fingers tracing the edges of the cardstock. It wasn’t signed by anyone. The second one has a similar message, “Find me in the library.”

You wondered if the flowers were sent by the same person. But then why wouldn’t they state that? The questions made you wonder, again, if this was a trap. Could the flowers be from someone who wanted to mess with you? But despite your doubts, you grabbed your things and headed down the stairs to the library.

When you pushed open the door to the library, you realized you had no idea who or what you were looking for. The library was decorated beautifully, ribbon and flowers displayed on tables or breaks between the bookcases. The room itself smelled fresh, too, unlike its usual dusty aroma. While you glanced around the library, you saw Lisa sitting behind her desk and went to see if she knew what was going on.

“Happy Windblume Festival,” You smiled warmly at your coworker, “You’re not going to believe what I received.”

Lisa stopped reading her book to look up at you, the ghost of a smirk on her lips, “Hello, there. So many love-birds flew into your office this morning, I can only imagine what they brought you.”

You rolled your eyes, “Too many unrequited confessions.” She laughed softly at your joke, “Besides that, I received two bouquets of flowers that both told me to meet them here. Isn’t that strange?”

Lisa covered her mouth with a gloved hand and giggled again, “I think there’s something downstairs who would love to see you.”

You raised an eyebrow at Lisa but thanked her and took off down the stairs, careful not to slip on the wooden steps. As soon as your foot touched the floor, your sight met two men who had stopped bickering less than a moment ago. Kaeya and Albedo stood in front of a table, trying to put themselves back together in your presence.

“What’s going on?” You asked, realizing they were probably waiting for you. “Were the flowers from both of you?”

Kaeya and Albedo looked between each other, seemingly glaring dangers at each other. “I don’t know why he’s here,” Kaeya sneered, motioning to Albedo.

“Well, I don’t know why you’re here,” Albedo parroted, crossing his arms. You had never heard either of the men sound as ticked off as they were now.

“You both told me to meet you in the library,” You explained, confused. “That wasn’t planned?”

“No!” They said in unison.

You rubbed your temples, knowing that this wasn’t going to end easily. “I’m sorry,” You mumbled, “But can someone explain what’s going on.”

“Mr. Alberich overheard me planning to surprise you during the Windblume Festival and decided to ruin my plans,” Albedo said. When he spoke Kaeya’s name, there was nothing but venom in his tone.

Kaeya shrugged sarcastically, “I had no prior knowledge.”

“You used Klee to eavesdrop.”

“Did I, now?”

Albedo ran a hand through his hair, aggravated and annoyed. He had never liked Kaeya and this only fueled that fire. Kaeya wasn’t fond of Albedo either. He thought he was overrated in Mondstadt and that his admirers could do better.

“I mean,” Kaeya continued, giving Albedo the side eye, “Was it supposed to be a secret? You were awfully careless with the news.”

“My deepest apologies, I wasn’t aware I needed to broadcast my confession to all of Mondstadt before telling Y/N.”

“Your confession?” You wondered, “So the flowers weren’t a joke?”

Albedo looked at you with curious, and confused, eyes. “A joke? Of course not,” He said. A faint blush crept onto his cheeks, something you had never seen before, and Albedo fiddled with his gloved fingers nervously.

“I wanted to do that first,” Kaeya interjected, frowning slightly.

Kaeya’s words caught you off guard as well. “You like me, too?” He nodded in response and the three of you stood still for a while. Your mind was racing and your heart was beating out of your chest. You couldn’t believe not one but two of your coworkers had a crush on you and were confessing to you. But then the nerve-wracking decision came crashing down on you.

You had to pick one of them, right? The whole point of confessions was to find a possible suitor and here you had two options in front of you. Of course, you could reject both of them and run away but was that how you truly felt?

Albedo was soft and genuine. He often painted portraits of you and took you up to Dragonspine so could have snowball fights with Klee. He paid for dinner for you and recommended new books for you to read during your days off. At that moment, they seemed like friendly gestures. But looking back, you realized they were probably acts to one up Kaeya.

Likewise, Kaeya had his own plans to win you over. He spent exciting nights with you at the tavern and never complained about taking you home when you drank too much. Instead of buying you food, Kaeya bought you gifts like jewelry or artifacts. He often accompanied you on commissions, too.

“I need time to think this over,” You finally said. “Please, just agree not to kill each other in the meantime.”

Kaeya grumbled something under his breath, “Fine.”

“Why do you like me?” You asked, looking at Kaeya. “If you’re going to confess, then confess fully.”

The taller man thought for a moment before sending you his classic, cheeky grin. “I like having a challenge and you, my dear, proved to be that challenge.”

“What?” You asked, slightly offended.

“You play hard to get,” Kaeya continued, using his hands to accentuate his words, “I spoiled you for months and you still acted like we were nothing more than friends. Do friends buy each other gold necklaces in hopes they’ll realize you’ve fallen for them? You even have the necklace on to this day.” Instinctively, your fingers coiled around the dainty necklace around your neck that Kaeya had gifted to you weeks ago. When he gave it to you, you recognized it was a peculiar gift but played it off as Kaeya being extravagant. He sharpened his eyes, “Need I mention you’re the most exquisite looking person in Teyvat?”

Your voice caught in your throat and your cheeks burned with the compliment. You nervously played with the hem of your shirt and looked at Albedo for his answer.

“I just think you’re different,” He said simply, “You’re easy to get along with and I enjoy spending time with you. I feel like we’re compatible puzzle pieces.”

If possible, you blushed harder. Both men were darling and you felt like the luckiest person alive by being adored by both of them. As you glanced between the men, your stomach did a backflip. They were both looking at you with such intent and charisma, as if trying to enchant you. The idea of being with either of them made you feel butterflies.

But they are so drastically different, which made the decision that much harder. If you choose Kaeya, your relationship would be fiery and brand new all the time. He was full of adventure and flirting, favoring nightlife and excitement. And with Albedo, it would be calm and joyous. Your days would be spent in flower fields and underneath trees. Both sounded like a dream to you.

“I don’t know who to pick,” You admitted, holding back a sigh of defeat. “I never thought multiple people would like me at once, let alone you two. I just need more time.”

And with that, you turned on your heel and walked back up the stairs. Your head felt light and your mind was clouded with a million different scenarios. You felt guilty for leaving the men alone but until you could come up with a definite answer, they could wait.

#genshin x reader #albedo x reader #kaeya x reader #genshin impact #genshin writing #genshin x you #genshin x gn reader #albedo x gn reader #kaeya x gn reader #genshin love triangle #i love how this came out #butterfly divider is by hinaolgy #genshin impact x reader #genshin kaeya

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r-h-e-t · 3 years ago

Text

My collection of WoJs about John Marcone.

Please note that some of these quotes no longer have their original source or otherwise come secondhand, and while I consider them to be reliable, you may take them with a fine pinch of salt.

Highlights:

“I don't know if Marcone is a villain or an anti-hero.”

“Marcone was an accident. He started off as kind of a throwaway gangster guy. And then I decided, well, his opening was too cool to leave him like that.”

“He’s the guy that looks at Dresden like the guy that looks at the drunken sheriff in town.”

“He's born in the wrong time. If he'd been born five hundred years earlier, he'd be an ideal leadership-type. They'd have pegged him for officer school."

“He’s going to accomplish what he means to accomplish, and if he has to murder half the world to get there, so be it. He’ll do it humanely and efficiently, but he’ll do it.”

“He’s not going to be giving anyone True Love shields from the Whites any time soon.”

“The character that’s really interesting is the ‘Mirror Mirror’ universe Marcone.“

WizardsHarry.com interview (April 2001(?)*)

Q: How do you come up with the characters for your books?

Callous as it sounds, mostly it depends on what I need them to do in the story. :) I hear a lot of talk about plot-driven books versus character-driven books, but my own impression on the subject leans more towards the idea that plot and character cannot be usefully separated from one another. But from the aspect of a writer who has a deadline and who needs to be able to plan and reliably produce a reasonably good story, I tend to make things easy on myself whenever I can. I figure out what I need a character to do in my story, and then I build a character who would do it.

I needed someone to provide both threat, motivation, and distraction for Harry in "Storm Front," for example, and got two characters who could do those jobs. John Marcone got to show up as the negative criminal element in the story, the human face of lawlessness and crime. Karrin Murphy is his opposite number, representative of the law, society, and order.

Neither one of them seems to do much for Harry that doesn’t make his day worse and worse, nine times out of ten, but no one’s perfect. :)

[Source]

(*I’m actually not sure of the interview’s original publication date. April 2001 is merely the earliest archived version of of the page on Wayback Machine.)

Jim Butcher Forums (now Paranet Online) (April 2009)

The core concept for Murphy was strongly influenced by Elisa Masa, yes. But Susan got her physical appearance. :)

Ditto with Xanatos and Marcone, although in that case, Morgan got his physical appearance.

[Source]

Turn Coat tour - Lexington book (April 2009)

Q: Jim’s favorite recurring villain?

Marcone, when he’s being a villain. And Nicodemus, because he is pure evil.

Q: Jim’s favorite supporting character?

Marcone is really fun to write. So is Nicodemus.

[Original source not available]

Jim Butcher Forums (February 2010)

Regarding the “Even Hand” short story:

That one is forthcoming in the Dark and Stormy Knights anthology. Marcone scares me a lot more now.

[Source]

Changes tour - Powells Books (April 2010)

Regarding the “Even Hand” short story:

It's from the perspective of John Marcone, and sort of shows you what he's doing behind the scenes. And if you read the short story and then go and read the story that's in Changes in Burger King, it has two totally different meanings.

[Source (Timestamp: 0:30)]

Ghost Story tour - Kansas City (July 2011)

Q: I read the short story from Marcone's point of view, “Even Hand,” and I noticed that John Marcone is not his real name. Is that going to be significant?

Sure is if somebody tries to cast a spell at him using the name “John Marcone”! That’ll be a big deal. But we'll have to see how that works out. Actually, the character that's really interesting is the Mirror Mirror universe Marcone, and we'll get to him in a few books.

[Source (Timestamp: 5:03)]

Ghost Story tour - Naperville (July 2011)

Q: You have a big supporting cast of antagonists in the Dresden Files, are there any you prefer writing over others?

(Jim first discusses Nicodemus and Lara.)

Marcone is also one of my favorites. Being able to write the short story Even Hand from his viewpoint was very enlightening for me. Because I had never really been entirely certain what his take on Dresden was until I actually got in his head and started writing him for a while. And then it’s like, he’s the guy that looks at Dresden, like, you know, the guy that looks at the drunken sheriff in town who’s just like, “I just want the shootouts to stop.” It’s like, “Come on. Yes, you keep wining them but come on, there’s gotta be a better way that brakes fewer windows.” But at the same time he owns the undertaker shop so… (Jim mimes with his hands as if balancing scales)

[Source (Timestamp: 10:54)]

Ghost Story tour - Washington D.C. (August 2011)

Where was Marcone and what was he doing in Ghost Story? Check out “Even Hand.” He was doing that sort of thing, if not that specific thing.

[Source (Timestamp: 8:01)]

BittenbyBooks.com online Q&A (August 2011) (Original source not available)

Q: John Marcone has been on the fence for most of the series. Sometimes he does the right thing, sometimes the wrong. Will there be a book where he goes full good guy or bad guy?

I think it’s safe to say that Harry will never get a clear read on Marcone. Sharks aren’t good or evil. They’re /sharks/.

I say this, of course, only because I miss the recently departed Shark Week.

[Original source not available]

Faerie Con East (November 2013)

Q: In Small Favor, it seemed like Hendricks was attracted to Gard, but she didn't reciprocate. And then in “Even Hand” it seemed like she did reciprocate. Are Gard and Hendricks an item now, and if so, how does Marcone feel about it?

Well she doesn't reciprocate right out in front of everybody. She's too cool for that.

Marcone doesn't mind as long as it doesn't get in the way of the job. When things get in the way of the job, Marcone minds. Otherwise, it's kind of useful because he can always threaten one of them with the other one. Not that he would, because that's counterproductive. But there's leverage.

Plus, he doesn't want to disrupt Hendricks too much. He's busy working on his thesis. Yeah, he's working on his thesis for his English degree. Good ol' Hendricks, the “dumb guy.”

[Source (Timestamp: 5:17)]

Skin Game tour - Kiama (April 2014)

Oh, what happened to coma girl in the hospital? We will find out! Uh, not in Skin Game, but we will find out.

[Source (Timestamp: 58:38)]

Skin Game tour - Wyrd Con 5 (May 2014)

Q: What's your favorite villain that you've created?

Nicodemus is fun. Marcone is fun. If I had to meet one of my villains, it would be Lara Raith.

... I'm not proud.

[Source (Timestamp: 1:26:45)]

Skin Game tour - Seattle (May 2014)

Q: Why is Harry such a dick to Marcone? Because Marcone's awesome.

Because Marcone is a paternalistic authority figure and Harry can't help it.

[Source (Timestamp: 1:02:33)]

Q: For the different Big Bads you've introduced and whatnot, which one would you find the most terrifying, out of all of them?

Oh, I don't know. They're all creepy as hell. The one I'd least like to deal with would be Marcone. That would be... Because he's just--He's one of those smart, ruthless, does-not-let-anything-stop-him types. And he's not too proud to just kill you. He's never gonna make an Evil Overlord mistake because it would never occur to him to make an Evil Overlord mistake.

[Source (Timestamp: 1:12:31)]

Twitter post (June 2014)

Marcone was a Marine. :)

[Source]

Once & Future Podcast, Ep. 60 (November 2014)

Q: Was reading "Even Hand" last night, and was wondering if Marcone's real name is pertinent and will factor in later.

It won't factor in later because nobody's getting it. Marcone is the--as far as the series is concerned--he is the most magic savvy mortal that is running around these days. And he is covering his bases and is very good at it. Marcone is the guy who has read the "Evil Overlord" list and would roll his eyes at why anybody would do such a thing.

[Source (Timestamp: 1:00:25)] (It seems like the episode is no longer available online. IDK if it will pop up anywhere in the future, but I could reupload my copy of it somewhere if anyone wants it.)

Eastercon Dysprosium (April 2015)

You get to see most of [the Fomor] during... You get the best glimpse of them during the Marcone short story, which is called "Even Hand," which is one of my favorite short stories, because God, that is a scary guy, he really is. He's a scary individual.

[Source (Timestamp: 12:45)]

The Cinder Spires: The Aeronaut's Windlass tour - Seattle (October 2015)

Q: In [Skin Game], there’s a quote here... “’So this thief we’re meeting,' Ascher asked. 'What’s her story?’” And Dresden says that, “’She used to belong to a gang called the Churchmice. They specialized in robbing churches in Europe’” and “’Nicodemus hired them to swipe the Shroud of Turin for him a few years back.’“ ... That’s not true. Marcone hired them, so was that a really clever lie by Dresden? That’s what [another person] figured you were doing.

No, was that how it worked out...? They swiped it and Nicodemus double crossed them, Marcone went after the Shroud because he knew it was in play but I don’t think he was the one that hired them, was he?

Yeah, Nicodemus hired them and instead of paying them off he sliced that one guy into ribbons so that his flesh fell off his body in little square chunks in Butters’s first scene.

(Relevant note: Dresden Files beta readers Priscellie and Serack have said that Jim had been notified of this discrepancy during Skin Game’s writing, but Jim went ahead with the Nicodemus-as-buyer version of events anyway. Speculation of the whys and hows are best left to another post.)

[Source (Timestamp: 12:05)]

The Cinder Spires: The Aeronaut's Windlass tour - Petaluma (October 2015)

Marcone really bothered me, as a viewpoint character, because he is just so... He's a predator. He doesn't feel a lot. He's got something to get done and he's remorseless about getting it done, and that's all there is to it.

[Source (Timestamp: 3:18)]

Evil League of Evil Writers interview (April 2016)

Marcone is terrifying because he lacks anything like regret. He’s going to accomplish what he means to accomplish, and if he has to murder half the world to get there, so be it. He’ll do it humanely and efficiently, but he’ll do it.

[Source]

Phoenix Comic Con (May 2017)

Writing for Marcone's point of view was very reptilian. That was unpleasant.

[Source (Timestamp: 6:35)]

Q: Do you have a favorite character in The Dresden Files?

It's hard to say. Your asking me about my favorite child. It depends on what I'm doing with them. [...] For sheer villainy, Marcone still creeps me out more than anyone. Because he's not quite as just ruthlessly mechanical as Nicodemus is.

[Source (Timestamp: 21:29)]

Emerald City Comic Con (March 2018)

Q: In Codex Alera, you started out the first book with Lord Aquitanus, the ultimate bad guy--or a bad guy of the series, but by the end of the series, he was an antagonist but not a “bad guy.” [...] My question is, is there a correlation between him and, say, Johnnie Marcone, where he's an antagonist, but not necessarily a “bad guy”?

(Jokingly) Well, you're makin' some assumptions there.

The thing about Marcone is, him doing his job as an outfit boss, he would be considered kind of a very ideal leader, for much of world history, at least much of Western history. An outfit boss and a medieval baron, there's a very close correlation between those two guys' jobs.

Marcone is a real fun character to write, because the problem with Marcone is that he's too intelligent. Once you stop to think about things for a while, and really stop to analyze things, I think most people realize that the smart thing to do, at least in the long term, in almost every situation is also the morally right thing to do. Because in the long term, it benefits you more to do the morally right thing than to do the selfish thing. Almost every time. And it's folks that are too short-sighted to understand that who you see running around doing a lot of the selfish stuff. And Marcone is, unfortunately, smart enough to realize, "The smartest thing for me to do is be an upstanding citizen.” (Jim mimes looking around and sighing.) “Here's my criminal empire. I guess it's a little late for that. And somebody has to run the crime. So I guess that's me.”

So Marcone is an interesting character in my head, but he's born in the wrong time. If he'd been born five hundred years earlier, he'd be an ideal leadership-type. They'd have pegged him for officer school, five hundred years before.

[Source (Timestamp: 1:23:11)]

Reddit AMA (June 2018)

Q: How old is Marcone?

If I recall, he was 40 in Storm Front.

Q: How did Hendricks and Marcone meet? How long have they known each other before Storm Front?

In the service. They were Marines together. Marcone was Hendrick's sergeant when Hendricks was a Louie.

Q: Is Marcone genuinely fond of Helen Beckitt, or is their "romantic" relationship for him more about keeping a potential threat close or just a weird guilt trip?

Marcone... does not think like most human beings. For him, there's no reason all of those things can't be true at the same time. But he's not going to be giving anyone True Love shields from the Whites any time soon either.

[Source]

Brief Cases tour - Austin (June 2018)

Q: How soon are we gonna see Harry's next encounter with John Marcone, and how do you think that's gonna go, given that John has actually played a pretty big role in defending Chicago while Harry wasn't?

We get more of him in the next book. [...] And there's more to it than that. And Marcone has gotten a lot of respect from people. At this point, I mean Marcone took down Nicodemus Archleone. That's the kind of stuff that everybody goes, 'Daaamn, kid. Alright!' That's sort of been the response from people. But, he's still, he's not a very nice guy. But, I really enjoyed reading the story though. In the audiobook, I'm the one that reads Marcone.

[Source (Timestamp: 5:13)]

Brief Cases tour - Lexington (June 2018)

Marcone is... I don't know if Marcone is a villain or an anti-hero. You know? It's sort of hard to call depending on what kind of story I'm writing, and how he's connected to it. Although I did enjoy writing Marcone's viewpoint. I enjoyed reading for it, too.

[Source (Timestamp: 45:22)]

Brief Cases tour - McLean (June 2018)

If [Harry] was Lawful Evil I'm pretty sure he'd be Marcone's enforcer.

[Source (Timestamp: 23:10)]

WesterCon: Taxonomy of Villains panel (July 2019)

Q: Heh heh heh heh heh...

Oh, come on.

Q: Okay. So. Super Serious Villain Question.

Oh god...

Q: (Dramatic Pause)

Q: Is Marcone... a Top or a Bottom?

Oh my god! Why do you ask these questions! ... The answer’s obviously: He’s in charge of things all day, I mean, he doesn’t want to do that when he gets home.

[Source (Timestamp: 2:29)]

(In case you did not watch the source video, I want to really emphasize that both the questioner and Jim are very clearly just joking around here.)

DragonCon (September 2019)

Marcone was always--I mean I always wrote Marcone... The model I kind of had in my mind for him in the background was just: He was a medieval baron. You know, by the standards of the medieval times, Marcone would have been a highly respected, competent, and just and fair medieval baron, if he ran his barony exactly like he runs the mob in Chicago. So, uh, when I was building him, I used the model of a medieval feudal lord, and what the ideal medieval feudal lord would be behave like.

[Source (Timestamp: 23:43)]

As far as favorite character (to write) other than Harry, it varies from day to day because of what kind of mood I'm in. If I'm feeling particularly purile and in need of inspiring chaos, it's Bob. If I need to get things done, it's Marcone or Mab, you know, one of those characters.

[Source (Timestamp: 39:08)]

Live Youtube Q&A with Jim Butcher and Priscilla Spencer (March 2020)

Q: Can you tell us why Harry and Marcone are getting dressed together?

No, I can't tell you that. Classified. Until the proper literature comes out.

[Source (Timestamp: 8:48)]

Priscilla: I deliberately shot Marcone so we would see his left side so that I could CG in a tiny little scar on his ear where whatever plastic surgeon had to reattach it after he was kidnapped by the Denarians.

NEEERRRRRRD! YOU ARE A NEERRRD. A HUGE NERD! You CGI'd a scar onto--(Jim shakes his head.)

[Source (Timestamp: 58:51)]

(Not really a WoJ but I’ll take it as tacit confirmation that Marcone did indeed have his ear reattached or at least replaced with a prosthetic after Small Favor, since the only comment we ever got on it is Marcone describing one ear as “scarred” in “Even Hand,” which didn’t quite rule out the possibility he’d simply kept the gnarled ear as it was.)

Mike's Book Reviews interview (December 2020)

Q: Who is your favorite villain to write in the Dresden Files and why is it Nicodemus?

(Jim first discusses Nicodemus and Mab.)

Marcone is probably the most fun to write because he's the guy who is--He has the limited resources and the naked will against all these creatures of incredible power everywhere.

Q: You know, Death Masks was the one where I really was all in the series, because I felt like Nicodemus could have been the big bad on a season of Buffy, and I stick by that. And now Marcone is just the coolest cat in the world. We all hate him, but we all kind of want to be him.

Yeah, I have so much fun with that character, man. Writing the end of Battle Ground was such a blast.

[Source (Timestamp: 13:00)]

Q: Who is your favorite not-Harry character you've created and how did you envision this character while you were creating them? Please be Marcone.

Marcone was an accident. He started off as kind of a throwaway gangster guy. And then I decided, well, his opening was too cool to leave him like that, because we opened with a soulgaze on Marcone. It's like, "Okay no, if I'm gonna make this guy a human predator, then he's going to be a tiger and you will always have to be afraid of him, period. And that meant that he was going to have to grow in proportion to Dresden, otherwise he would not be someone who is scary. So Marcone, as he's been going, he's been gathering resources and various abilities to influence the world around him. Even though he can't do it Dresden's way, he has the advantage of: He has no limits, or at least very few limits. So off he goes to get things done.

That's always terribly fun, writing Marcone, because I can stop and think, "Okay, if I was going up against this wizard, how would I manage it? Alright, now let me stop and think." I'll go and contact some of my sneaky friends and say, "Alright sneaky guys, how do I do this?" And they’ll be like, “Oh, have him operate this way!"

Q: As a comic book guy, the comparison I always made to those two is, some of the best issues of Superman is when Superman and Lex Luthor have to work together. So whenever you've got Harry and Marcone having to work together, and they work really good together, it just puts a smile on my face, I love it.

Yeah that's a lot of fun to write. Frenemies is the best.

[Source (Timestamp: 14:39)]

And that’s what I have. Thanks for taking a look!

If you know of other specifically Marcone-related WoJs not included here, with sources, excluding discussion on hypothetical casting ideas, please let me know.

#the dresden files #dresden files #jim butcher #john marcone

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deerestapologies · 4 years ago

Text

5 times you called him by a pet name + one time he called you by a pet name

(Diluc + Zhongli x GN!Reader)

Diluc

1. "Oh, hey hon." You greet mildly.

The candles have begun burning a bit low, the long shadows making his pout even more obvious.

"I apologize, I was held up for longer than anticipated."

He produces a small bouquet from his coat, a cluster of wildflowers, and approaches like he's about to give an offering instead of a gift. He kneels by your chair, face stoic as usual, but you can see the worry and shame in his eyes.

You twirl the stems to absorb their delicate scent, and then carefully drop them in your water glass. You cup his face in your hands, and press a kiss to his brow.

"It's okay." You kiss his brow again, "I am not mad." You kiss his nose. "I am hungry though."

You laugh lightly at his rush to sit across from you. An evening eating cold roast was worth being able to spend it with him.

2. "I understand your frustration, but perhaps we had best move on." You place a hand on his crossed arms.

"Their behavior was unacceptable, especially for those who would call themselves knights."

The stubborn clench of his jaw tells you just how angry he is. The idiots were lucky to have only gotten the verbal bludgeoning earlier instead of the literal one he wanted to dish out.

"Yes, but you've already made them apologize, and they do seem repentant," the fool knights in training nod frantically, "so why not leave this mess for Kaeya, darling?"

He sighs, but loosens his posture to wrap a protective arm around you. The hell the Knights were going to catch for this was still to come, but at least no one lost any limbs. Yet.

3. Tucked into your pile of pillows, book in hand, you waited as you do most nights. Diluc had a late meeting scheduled after dinner, but he promised it was truly to do with the winery and not of the vigilante variety.

So you bide your time, until you hear his heavy boots come up the stairs.

"I'm home." He calls softly.

"Welcome back." You say just as softly.

He goes through the motions of undressing, refreshing himself, and redressing without missing a beat, but his posture seems wilted. You mark your page, and turn over the blanket for him.

"How did it go?"

He heaves a deep sigh, and crawls over to you. Pulling you close, he lays his head on your chest but doesn't say another word.

"Oh, sweetness." You embrace him, one hand holding his face and the other in his hair. "It's okay. I've got you."

4. You lengthen your steps, but the increased pace doesn't seem to deter the boy following you. He isn't dangerous per se, but his persistence is damned annoying.

"But, if you'll just listen," he jogs back up to your side, "I just need your help for a little while!"

"I am neither a Knight nor an Adventurer," you cut him off with a sharp wave of your hand, "And you have nothing I want. Now leave me be."

He sputters, "M-master Diluc said-"

As if he's had his tongue plucked out, he suddenly stops talking.

You turn around only to find Diluc himself, a stifling hand on the kid's shoulder. His face is a stoic mask as always, but his energy is thunderous.

"I agreed to help you out of deference to your mother, but you," You see the boy wince as the hand tightens, "failed to listen to a word I said. Harassing my staff and my partner has only earned you banishment from all of my properties. Now go, before I report you to the Knights as well."

You both stand stock still as the boy sprints from the winery back to Mondstadt proper.

"Your going to report him anyways, right?" You mumble, after he is just a speck on the horizon.

"Of course," He finally relaxes his stance to look at you, "Though I doubt Jean will be happy about it."

Your chuckle, already imagining her face when the letter reaches her desk. Heaving a sigh, just grateful for the problem to have moved on, you grab Diluc's hand.

"Thank you," You pull him into a tight hug, "for protecting me as always, angel."

5. You gently rap on the door frame to his office. He looks up from his work just long enough to give you a soft smile.

"I was wondering," You lean against the frame, avoiding actually entering lest you get sucked in as well, "If my dear husband was going to come to bed tonight?"

The bright lamp on his desk means you see his blush even from across the room. He huffs an embarrassed laugh, but starts shuffling paperwork into orderly piles.

"I hadn't realized the time, my apologies."

You hum, "It is understandable. But I cannot rest if you are not in bed with me."

You watch as he tucks away his tools, pulls his gloves off, and undoes the tie in his hair, all with a much to pleased smirk on his face.

He pulls you into a delicate, lingering kiss with a hand on your neck. The warmth of his skin makes you shiver. You lean into him, letting him wrap you in his arms.

He chuckles, "Well, I would hate to neglect my husbandly duties."

1. The lingering warmth from your bath and the softness of the sheets has you dozing in minutes. You toss a hand onto Diluc's side of the bed, wanting to be present when he comes to bed as well but the ache of a long day is catching up to you.

After several moments you feel a calloused hand grasp your own. You are too tired to properly see, but feel the dip as he climbs into bed.

Still holding your hand in a delicate grip, he presses a kiss to your palm, and then your cheek.

"Sleep, my love, I am here."

Zhongli

1. Zhongli re-enters the house not even ten minutes after leaving. He is patting down his jacket and looking about the entryway in wonder, and you can't help but chuckle.

"Forget something?"

"Yes," he plants his hands on his hips, "I can't seem to find my wallet. I could have sworn I remembered it this time."

You get up from where you were leisurely awaiting his return, and snag the 'disappearing' wallet from where he left it on the table.

"Not quite, old man." You wave it, teasing.

"Ah, of course."

Tucking it into the pocket of his jacket, you tug him closer to plant a kiss on his flushed cheek.

"My apologies, it seems I was a bit distracted this morning."

He tucks a piece of hair away from your face, gaze so blatantly loving you can't help but crash your lips against his. Damn whatever appointment he may have, he shouldn't be so handsome in your direction.

2. It is not every day you wake up before him, so you try to make the most of it. You prepare his clothes for the day, just so you can pick out your favorite of his shirts. You start a light breakfast, and brew an energizing blend of tea for both of your sake.

You spend some time simply waiting at the table, content to sip your tea and watch the morning birds.

When the soft shuffle of feet brings Zhongli into the kitchen, you stand up. He is mostly dressed, minus his tie and shoes, jacket loose around his shoulders.

You steer him to the table, and press a kiss to his cheek when seated.

He hums contentedly, still a bit sleepy, "Good morning."

You pour him a cup of tea as well, and his smile grows a bit wider. He tilts his head up, "Thank you."

You meet him half way, pressing a firm kiss to his mouth, "Of course dearest. Do you have anything pressing today?"

A hand comes to rest on your hip, preventing you from moving back to your seat.

"No, nothing more important than this."

3. Squished between the mattress and the press of his body, you couldn't imagine being more content. The warmth, the scent, the feel of his breath ghosting across your skin.

You run a reverent hand through his hair, spread loose over his back. It seems impossible for you to be this happy, like you would only read about in unrealistic fantasies.

Amber eyes are already watching you, when you open yours. His gaze is soft, unbearably so, so you look at the ceiling.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

He answers it so easily, as if it is among the many universal truths that exist in his head.

"You must understand," You wet your nervous mouth, "I mean it. Truly, I love you."

You feel his head tilt in confusion, but power on, emotions spilling.

"You are my starlight. My life would be unimaginably dark without you. I am scared constantly by the sway you have over me, but I cannot stand the idea of living without you. I want be here with you, forever, no matter the cost."

You squeeze your eyes shut against the flood of tears that threaten to spill, waiting for his polite retreat. His body lifts off yours and you pull a shuddering breath in, unused to laying yourself bare in this way. He could end you now, destroy you by just walking away.

But you feel tremoring hands grasp your face, almost too tightly. He doesn't say a word, can't, but presses his forehead to yours.

4. "Zhongli?" You call into the empty hum of the parlor, hoping it will carry to his office. It's not far, but he gets absorbed in his work easily.

You lean out the door a bit, and try to project your voice more, "Hey, honey?"

The door to his office clicks open, and his head pokes out. "Do you need assistance?"

"Yes, please," you adjust the pile of books in your arms, "Would you mind grabbing this other pile? A client requested reference material from just about every era, and I don't think I have the wing span to carry all of it."

He presses a quick kiss to your head, and scoops up the remaining books with no problem.

"Of course, would you like me to relieve you of those as well?"

"Not a chance, show off, you're gonna have to deal with the doors."

As if to prove your point, he balances the stack in one hand to hold the front door open for you, smile only slightly smug.

5. Given how busy your lives were, and his propensity for letting time fly, you figured he would forget again. It would not be the first anniversary he forgot, and you imagine it wouldn't be the last.

It's not like you could hold it against him, especially not when he was so earnest and loving all year round.

So your surprise was genuine when he led you, dressed in his best, to a private booth at Liuli Pavilion.

The food was made by the head chef, as a show of gratitude for Zhongli's long patronage (you send a quiet thank you to Childe), and the service superb. The evening is relatively quiet, you converse as normal but with the additional soppiness that comes from acknowledging romance.

You are especially glad for the privacy when you cannot help but practically ravish the man over the table, his face being too handsome to bear just looking at.

Shortly after, he looks at you with burning eyes, and finally says, "I am quite full. Perhaps we should head home."

"That sounds perfect."

You continue to stare, sappy and sated, as he blindly pats at his pockets, equally unwilling to look away.

After several moments, it dawns on you, and then immediately on him.

You can't help it. You laugh. Hysterically, because no matter what Zhongli is Zhongli.

He's standing now, flustered like you've never seen, pacing the room as if his wallet would be anywhere but the table at home.

"This was not my intent." He huffs, "I had planned the evening meticulously."

"And it was lovely," You choke back another laugh, "But, sugar, you are not living this down for the rest of our lives!"

You are laughing as you pull out your own wallet, giggling uncontrollably as you hand over all the money on your person, and can barely walk you're so light headed when he leads you out the door.

He doesn't once let you go, from the pavilion's steps to your front door. Indulgent to the end, your man.

1. It is always a pleasant surprise when your errands overlap. Working nearly in conjunction makes it happen quite often, but still, it makes your day brighter.

You have just finishing bartering your lunch into existence when you spot Zhongli headed your way. Quickly, you slip the chef a few more mora to add another dish.

He is at your side in an instant, bringing your hand to his lips in that coquettish way he has.

"There you are," he lowers your hand but does not drop it, "I've been looking for you, treasure."

You twine your fingers together, relishing the warmth. You snug up to his side, taking the liberty of placing his hand on your hip just to see him blush.

"Have you now?"

"Always."

#genshin x reader #genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #genshin diluc #genshin zhongli #(the chef after zhongli +1: excuse me this is a wendys)#an informal apology

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