#would i have thought i would’ve got this

[gay-dorito-dust]

hopefully tumblr doesnt eat this up again 😭

i was wondering how the batfam would reacted to getting caught watching edits of celebrity!reader

I’m just going to put them in a relationship with Celeb! reader just to make things easier for myself.

Dick doesn’t give a fuck if he’s caught watching edits of you! You’re his spouse of course he’s going to save each and every edit there was of you because it’s be a crime if he didn’t.

He’ll even show you the ones where he thinks you’re the hottest in shamelessly with a smile. He honestly can’t get enough of the edits that his FYP is filled with them and snippets of interviews that transition to the edits as well.

Dick has no shame in being caught because why would he? You deserve to have a thousand of edits in your name and Dick has one too many edits saved in his phone, so much so that your surprised his phone still somehow has storage for the next wave of edits that he’ll be saving should he deem them worthy.

‘Babe come look at this edit of you! You look hot!’ Is the most often used when Dick is showing off an edit of yourself to you in hopes of getting your opinions on it. You don’t mind people making edits, especially didn’t mind them now when Dick would shout ‘my spouse is fucking gorgeous! God damn’ out of seemingly nowhere.

You’re not even surprised when his Lock Screen is a live wallpaper of the edit itself, dick really didn’t have any problems showing you off in any capacity at all.

Jason is either calm with being caught or he’s wanting to strangle Roy because who else is going to rat him out to you about watching edits of you other than him?

‘Chipmunk I can explain-‘ Jason would start.

‘There’s no need, I know you watch edits of me sweetheart there’s nothing to be ashamed of at all.’ You tell him as you cuddle up to his chest. ‘It’s complete fine I’m not going to shame you in watching them, I think it’s flattering that you do.’ You add and Jason couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief as he held onto you, kissing your forehead.

‘It’s not my fault you’re perfect and the edits happen to capture that beauty sweetheart.’ Jason replied and you couldn’t help but chuckle as you looked at him sweetly, not knowing how much more you could possibly love this beautiful man as much as you could, especially when his cheeks flush with a red colour while he scratched his nose sheepishly.

You didn’t mind that he was watching edits and while he was glad about that he was more than certain to watch them elsewhere, more specifically away from Roy before he can rat on him…again.

Tim is terrified the moment you catch him watching edits of you, so much so that he completely forgot to pause the edit as you stare at each other, accompanied by music playing in the background.

It’s hilarious to you but embarrassing to poor Tim who believes that you’d see him as a weirdo for watching them, but all you do is laugh and kiss the side of his head before fiddling his hair affectionately. ‘Watching edits of me are you? And here I thought you couldn’t get more adorable Timmy.’ You tease as you kiss his cheek.

‘You’re not weirded out?’ He’d ask, holding his phone to his shirt, not wanting you to know that he was more or less the one making them rather than watching them. He’s literally got several usb drives worth of edit material to make, no joke.

‘Nope just flattered.’ You replied before leaving Tim be before he passes out from embarrassment. Little did you know he’s making about ten more edits as we speak, all of which have to be perfect and he’ll watch them ten times over if he must, for no specific reason at all.

Bruce is just admiring his beautiful/ handsome spouse. That is all.

Alfred would’ve most likely told you that he’s been watching edits of you when you’re away. It’s adorable and you couldn’t help but smile at how your handsome boy has an hidden file on the bar computer dedicated to your edits. (Dick and Tim found it by pure accident and dick couldn’t hope but tell you about it.)

Needless to say you won’t see him watch the edits but you’ll hear from everyone else that he watches them and that about the closest you’ll get to catching him in the act of watching edits honestly. However don’t be surprised when you see a video from Stephanie of her filing Bruce somewhere as he watched the edits of you on the big screen of the bat computer, his eyes filled with pride and awe of his pretty/ charming spouse looking so effortlessly ethereal.

While you might not have caught him in the act yourself, you still found yourself smiling at Bruce smiling up at the edits of you -and sometimes him because you’re a power couple- as a warmth encased your whole being, buts that’s more than enough for you as it can act as your own little secret.

Damian is good at keeping his little secret safe, so you seeing him watch edits of you were slim to none, and even if you did you catch him in the act you would have to have been blessed by Lady Luck herself.

He’s a little embarrassed that you caught him in the act, mainly because he thought he was better than this to let his guard down to be caught in an act like this, then he’ll become irritated at the fact that you had came into his own room just to catch him watching edits of you.

‘You’re watching edits of me.’ You said.

‘And? Did you seriously come into my room to tell me that? What happened to respecting my privacy?’ He retorts, arms cross over his chest. He didn’t care that you caught him, he’s just more or less annoyed with his privacy being violated.

‘Sorry my sweet I should’ve knocked, but you haven’t answered my question.’ You apologised with a little hug and a kiss to his forehead and Damian found himself forgiving you in an instant as he brought you back into a short lived hug, hiding his flustered face in the depths of your neck, tightening his grip on you.

‘Tim hacked my phone.’ He says in response and you just let it slide, knowing that he’ll admit to it sooner or later and not when he’s being cornered into talking. You knew he watched the edits because he’s totally infatuated with his spouse and Damian knew it too, but wouldn’t dare tell you until this moment has passed you both by.

So until then he’ll watch the edits in secret because he can’t get enough of how gorgeous you looked in them.

[prentisslvr]

NOT STRONG ENOUGH

summary: you got injured whilst on the job and spencer isn’t to pleased (post!maeve)

pairings: grumpy!spencer reid x sunshine!reader

genre: hurt/comfort?

warnings: mentions of maeve’s death, and canon complicit violence

authors note: i saw someone in the spencer reid tag ask about a fic like this and it gave me inspiration to write my own!!

you hadn’t noticed the tight grip spencer had on the steering wheel when he drove you and him home, nor did you notice his face; if looks could kill, the car that was driving extra slow in front of the two of you would’ve spontaneously combusted.

however you did notice, the slam of his door as he got out the car, his clenched jaw and avoidant gaze as he helped you out, with your broken leg and crutches.

you were used to spencer’s grumpiness, he’d had such a pessimistic view on life, and you didn’t know if it was the optimist in you, or the young naivety, but you had always thought you could fix him.

you had grown to fall in love with spencer in all his grumpiness.

you enjoyed getting to kiss away his angry pout and massage his scalp as he grumbled about how awful his day was.

you enjoyed getting to listen to his rants and just smile and kiss him and take all his problems away, being his source of comfort, like he was yours.

you always loved how even though he was so grumpy, he managed to reserve some sweetness for you, it made you feel so loved, so seen.

spencer on the other hand couldn’t believe he managed to have you as his girlfriend, after maeve, he wasn’t sure he was made for love, it wasn’t meant for him.

but you were meant for him.

he was immediately taken aback by you, the new intern at the bau, so bright and happy, he’d wondered what someone like you was doing at a job like this. someone so young, so happy, so optimistic.

he remembered thinking about how this job would tear you in half, like it did him.

he vowed not to let that happen.

but as he watched, helplessly as you tackled the unsub to the ground, and getting into a literal tussle, he was filled with so much anger, at the unsub, but mainly at himself.

he knew when he was new, he wanted to do his best to stop the bad guys, even if it meant putting himself in danger, he knew the sings of a reckless intern.

why didn’t he stop it.

now you were half black and blue, and walking around the house, well, less walking, more being carried around by spencer, and he really just wanted to scream.

“that was so stupid, you know that.”

you blink, the food on your for you were about to shovel into your mouth forgotten. “i’m sorry?” you say confused, dropping the fork, it clattered loudly against the plate.

“that stunt you pulled.” he gritted his teeth. “i mean, what were you thinking, that you were gonna save the day?” spencer asked, tilting his head in such a way that made you feel taunted.

almost, belittled.

“i was thinking about that girl.” you say, brows furrowing, “and how nobody was doing anything, we were just standing there waiting, negotiating, i saw an opportunity and i took it, the girl is safe now and he’s going to be locked up for the rest of his life.”

“you’re not a hero.” spencer scoffed. “you got lucky, what would you have done if you died out there?”

“nothing, because i’d be dead.” you say, as nice and as kind as you were, you had a quick mouth and it drove spencer insane. “what’s up with you, why are you so upset over this.”

“upset!” he slammed his fist against the table standing up, causing you to flinch, and some cutlery to fall on the floor, your heart thumped in your chest, you weren’t scared of spencer, you had faith he would never hurt you, but he’d never been thing angry with you before.

“i am not upset.” he spits out. “i am enraged at how after all this.. after, me, you could still go out there and risk your life like that! after all i’ve done to protect you!”

“protect me..” you stare at him through a glare standing up yourself. “i chose this job, spence, i chose this profession, i knew what came with it, and i do not need to be protected!”

spencer’s chest heaved as he stared at you, in silence.

“i-” you huff. “i knew the risks that came with the job spencer, and out in that field, i knew what i was risking, but it’s my life spencer. i’m perfectly aware of what i am doing.”

spencer closed his eyes and heaved out a long breath, pinching his nose. “you don’t get to make reckless decisions like that!” he screams clenching his fists. “not when it comes to your life.” he whispered softly, slowly sitting back in seat, as if he’d folded completely.

“i don’t know what i’d do if i lost you..” he says, licking his lips. “when.. when you think about losing someone you love, you can’t imagine it, what it would be like, but i can, because i have, i have lost someone, multiple people.” he says.

“in that moment, when i watched you tackle.. tackle that guy.” he squeezes his eyes shut, tears threatening to spill, as you watch him intensely. “i knew what it would be like spend the rest of my life without you, and i don’t think i’m strong enough to come to terms with that.”

spencer’s admission makes your chest hurt, it never occurred to you what something like taking a risk could do to him. spencer already had lost a lot, and you didn’t want to become a reason he loses another.

you step forward nudging his chin so his eyes were looking up into yours, his cheeks were wet with tears, and for the first time you didn’t see a grumpy man, a pessimistic man, you saw a man who’d had his heart broken far too often.

you gently stroke his cheek. “hey, i’m not going anywhere anytime soon, i’m an intern, today was just an off day.” i raise my brows. “i doubt i will be allowed in the field for a long time.”

he smiled, his eyes still red from tears. “i know you love your job, and i won’t try and stop you from doing it, but please, be careful, if not for you, then for me.”

“i’d do anything for you.” you say, kissing him on the lips. “i’ll be careful for you.”

[emmyrosee]

“Hey.”

“Hi?”

This is the first time in four weeks you’ve answered his phone call. He never thought he’d be the one to break no contact first.

Sukuna tried, god he’s tried so hard to keep no contact, but there’s something about your saccharine voice that lures him back like a siren. He can’t get enough of it, and the lack of it in his life drove him crazy.

What you don’t know, is how often he clicks on your contact, how many times a day he dials your number, how much his fingers long to text you.

Even if after four weeks, he’s gone without it.

It’s hitting the call button that he hasn’t done. Until tonight, of course.

His mind scrambles to find an excuse for calling you, jaw opening and closing like a fish, and eyes darting around, even if you don’t see it. His gaze falls onto his sleeping dog, and he sinks his teeth into his lip.

“I just wanted to let you know, I finally got Titan to do that trick. You know-“

“Wow. Thanks for letting me know,” you say sarcastically. “Are we done here?”

“Yeah,” he says, gnawing at the tip of his thumb. “Yeah. Sorry to bug you. I just… thought you’d like to know.”

But neither of you make a move to hang up. He was positive you would immediately, sick of his voice and his attitude, but you don’t. Maybe you needed this as much as he does.

“No,” he finally croaks. “No okay? I’m not done. I fucking miss you.”

“Sukuna, stop-“

“No, you stop,” he snaps, voice tight with emotion. “Because if this is the last time we talk, you’re going to listen to me and you’re going to listen good.”

You go silent. He hears you breathing, and you don’t make any noise to indicate you’re going to hang up. He lets you sit there, pondering, he wants to leave the ball in your court, even if ending the call is his worst nightmare right now.

“Speak.”

He shudders at the coldness in your voice, he rolls his shoulders and slumps back.

“You… are all that I think about,” he says firmly. “You and I, we are golden. I can’t imagine my life with someone else, I fucking hate to, there’s no one for me but you, and the fucking fact that I have to wake up to a cold bed because of something I did, is something I hate.

“I miss you. I miss you so fucking much, I miss your voice and your laugh and your eyes. I miss your cold hands sneaking under my shirt, and I miss the way you fit against me when we cuddled. I miss you so fucking much, I hate this, I hate it so fucking much, and if I could fix it I would, I want to, please let me fix it-“

“You can’t.”

You shut him up.

“There is no fixing it, sukuna. You broke that trust, shattered it. You think I don’t miss you? You’re crazy.”

He calls your bluff, “you’re full of it. You want to get back together so bad it makes you sick. I know it does, I know you.”

“And how exactly have you come to that conclusion?” You scoff.

“Because you picked up the phone.”

You’re silent at that. He sinks his teeth into his lip, “you’d never answer the phone on someone you want out of your life. You’ve ignored people for less, you don’t fool me for one second.”

You’re still silent. He hears you breathing, as if waiting for him to keep going, read you like a book and prove you wrong.

He rests his head on the wall and shakily calls out your name, letting the vowels feel foreign on his tongue from lack of use. Pet names became so popular, his mouth almost forgot how to say your name. “I can fix this, if you’ll let me. I fucked up. But I know I can fix this.”

“You can’t fix shit,” you scoff. “You would’ve never let it get so bad in the first place if you cared.”

“I couldn’t fix what had already been destroyed,” he snaps. “But we know where we went wrong. We knew what went right. We can do this, do not send me away.”

There’s hesitation on your end. He feels it, he feels your reserve crumbling as he speaks.

“Please… don’t send me away,” he whispers.

You sigh. He sucks in a breath in preparation.

“I miss Titan,” you confess. “If we’re going to talk, we’re doing it at your place, so I can see your dog.”

He smirks.

“And I make no promises,” you hiss. “You don’t get the satisfaction of thinking we’re automatically getting back together because I don’t want to do this over the phone. We’re not. Not yet. Not now. But this isn’t a conversation to not do face to face.”

He closes his eyes and lets his body relax.

“It’s a date.”

“Don’t call it a date.”

[band--psycho]

Rafayel x Reader - Change Of Plans

Part three of my 'They find out you got hurt on a mission' series. This will include Zayne, Sylus, Xavier and Rafayel! I'll be posting the other stories over the next few days, please let me know if you want to be tagged in any of them!

This is also my first Rafayel story so please be kind, reblogs are always welcome and greatly appreciated!

Thank you all for the continued support! I hope you all enjoy this! 💛

Requests are open so if you have any ideas/requests, you're more than welcome to send them over (thank you to everyone who's requested a story so far, I'm working my way through them!)

I do not give permission for any of my works to be copied or translated onto this site or other platforms!

L&DS Masterlist / Rafayel Masterlist / Join My Taglist

Warnings: Hospitals, discharging ones self from hospital, mentions of pain medication, mentions of injuries

You knew discharging yourself from the hospital wasn’t the most logical thing to do, especially when the nurses were so insistent on you staying there for observation. 

But you weren’t exactly a big fan of hospitals and you weren’t dying, you just had a slightly nasty cut on your side, one that the nurses had already stitched and bandaged up. 

So as long as you were careful, you saw no reason why you couldn’t leave, which is why you were getting a taxi to Rafayels place. 

Perhaps you would’ve stayed, had it been any other day. 

But today, you couldn’t. 

Today, you had a job to do. 

Rafayel was going to a gallery opening tonight, and as his bodyguard, it was your job to be there and ensure nothing happened to him. 

You were well aware that Rafayel could handle himself well enough, but nevertheless, protecting him was still your job…and you knew you’d never forgive yourself if something happened to him and you weren’t there to stop it. 

People at events like this could get nasty, jealous of the success Rafayel had as an artist; you’d seen your fair share of angry competitors attempting to confront him; not that they ever really got very far. 

You were always there to stop them from getting to him. 

90% of the time, people would just walk away, muttering curse words under their breath; then there was then the other 10% that thought it would be easy to take you down, of course you proved them wrong every single time, much to the delight of your boss.  

You sucked in a small, sharp breath as you carefully exited the taxi, making sure not to pull any of your stitches. 

Part of you was regretting not taking any pain medication before you left the hospital, because now that the adrenaline had worn off, the pain of your injury was beginning to set in. 

Another small wince fell from your lips as you knocked on Rafayels door; waiting patiently on the doorstep to be let in either by him or Thomas.

You heard footsteps walking down the hallway before the door opened to reveal your boss standing in the doorway. 

“There you are,” 

You could hear the relief in his voice as he looked at you with a small smile.

“Normally you’re the one chasing me to be on time,” he joked lightly; and you smiled back at him, knowing it was true. 

You’d lost track of the amount of times Rafayel was the one who ran late to these events; quite often you had to lure him away from his sketchbook with the promise that if he was bored in the first half an hour then you two could leave. 

“I’m sorry, my mission ran over a little,” 

You could feel Rayafels eyes on you, his expression remained neutral but you could see in his eyes that he didn’t believe your reason for nearly being late.  

But he didn’t push the matter any further, which you were grateful for. 

You knew that if he knew that you were injured, he wouldn’t go to the event tonight at all. 

That was even more of a reason why you just needed to focus on the task at hand; and hope that that would distract you from the pain you were in. 

He invited you inside; and the two of you were discussing the exit routes from the gallery as well as some of his competitors who were bound to make an appearance tonight; that was until you both heard a car pull up outside. 

It was Thomas. 

You slowly rose to your feet, assuming that you were both going to be leaving to go to the gallery, but instead, Rafayel put his hand on your shoulder, gently pushing you back down to the seat you’d been sitting in. 

“Stay here,” he said softly, vanishing behind the door and heading outside; you saw him talking to Thomas through the window, you didn’t know what Rafayel had said to Thomas, but you could tell that whatever it was, Thomas wasn’t that pleased about it.

When Rafayel came back into the room you were in, he had a beaming smile on his face as he flopped down into  the chair opposite you, “So, what do you want to do tonight?” 

“We’re going to the gallery opening?”  

The confusion in your voice was palpable; not even five minutes ago you were discussing the necessary safety precautions to take at tonight's events, now you weren’t going atl all?

You were used to Rafael changing his mind about going to events like this, but it just never normally happened this quickly.

“No we’re not,” he answered simply, picking up a nearby pencil and twirling it between his fingers, “I don’t feel like going anymore?”

“Why?” You questioned, mentally preparing yourself to have to persuade him to go. 

“They happen quite often, I’m sure I won’t miss anything,” he nonchalantly answered; before his enchanting pinkish-purple eyes met yours, “Besides, I think you could use some rest,miss Hunter” 

“I’m fine, Raf,” you countered back, a little too quickly, an action that wasn’t missed by Rafael

“Is that so? He asked quizzically, narrowing his eyes slightly,before putting the pencil on the table in front of him before taking a few steps towards you,his eyes never leaving yours.“Then why were you wincing earlier,”

You could have stuck with what you’d originally said; that your mission had simply taken longer than planned, but you knew Rafayel would see straight through your white lie as he already had. 

You hated having to tell people that you’d been injured during a mission, you were a hunter, you were trained to avoid getting hurt; so when situations like this happened, it made you feel slightly humiliated. 

And now you were going to have to tell the person who hired you to be his own personal bodyguard, that you got hurt during a mission and ended up in hospital.

“What happened?” 

You noticed a slight change in the colour of  his eyes; it wasn’t the first time you’d seen it happen, though it only ever seemed to happen when he was worried about something. 

And right now, that something was you. 

He was worried about you. 

“I…I got hurt on my mission,” you mumbled your admission almost so quietly you weren’t sure if Rafayel had even heard it. 

“Why aren’t you at the hospital?” he asked, placing his hand on top of yours gently, running his thumb just under one of the cuts on the back of your hand. 

“I was,” you admitted, “But I discharged myself.” 

“Because of the gallery opening?” 

You nodded simply to his question. 

“Your commitment to your job is admirable, cutie, even if a little foolish,” he praised, moving his other hand to the side of your face, cupping your cheek delicately as though you were going to break if he held too harshly. 

“You should’ve told me,” he whispered, “I would’ve come and kept you company.” 

You couldn’t deny how his words, along with his actions, made you feel…

A feeling that you’d been trying to push away for the past few months.

“Raf, that’s sweet, but we both know you have better things to do with your time than sit with me in the hospital,” you stated matter of factly; making a small chuckle fall from your bosses lips. 

“Spending time with you is one of the best ways I could possibly spend my time,” he cooed, leaning his head down slightly before pressing a soft kiss on your cheek. 

“Raf-” you breathed, feeling the heat rush to your cheeks as you savored the closeness of him. 

“Get some rest, cutie,” he quietly said, before grabbing the blanket that was behind the chair and placing it over you, “I’ll wake you up in a little while when our food is here.” 

You could’ve argued with him; but arguing would’ve been useless; and in all honesty, you were exhausted, so you complied with what your boss was telling you to do; you got yourself settled in the chair and slowly let your exhaustion take over. 

Rafayel watched you for a little while; until he was certain that you were asleep.

He knew that you were fine. 

But that didn’t stop him from worrying about you. 

When he saw you wince as you got out of the taxi, he felt his heart ache, he knew that something had happened, that was why he told Thomas that he wasn’t going to Gallery Opening tonight, he didn't want to put you at risk of getting hurt anymore than you already had.

He wanted to keep you safe. 

And he was going to ensure that that happened; that you were safe, no matter what.

Tagglist:

@xacatalepsyx @stiltdeer-snootnoodle @deathkat657 @book-dragon03 @fangirlsfandomsss @evilldentists @hao-ming-8 @worm-in-a-bug @babygirl-panda19 @tasha-1994 @popcorn-mochi01 @cheesemachine44 @thegalaxysedge22 @chubby-bun-bun @whimsiecat @callme-amaya

[novvabee]

The Boys in the Band

AN: I got carried away with this one, but here is the second part to the band au

word count: 2.8k

cw: language? there is nothing really bad about this one.

Since your first show, you had been quite busy. You had opened for a couple bands at The Common Room, you booked a few nights at the popular club, The Hog’s Head, and managed to snag a spot in another festival. You had become popular very quickly amongst the girls, gays, theys, and young people in the city. Each gig you noted more and more fans, crowds growing, singing so loud and dancing so hard. 

This is what you always dreamed of, performing and making people happy. You lived for the drama and theatrics of it all, dressing up on stage and singing your heart out. The girls felt the same electricity, the same passion as you. That made your bond as a group that much stronger.

Not to mention, you were all good friends. Lily had mentioned to you that she and Mary had been messing around and found out they actually sounded really good together. Then they asked Marlene if she would play drums, which she said yes to in a heartbeat. And then Lily realized they needed a front woman, someone who could sing and bring the most energy. She thought of you, your bold and fierce attitude, your flirty and fun personality. And that is how you started.

The four of you wrote all the music you performed; the fun and girly songs by Mary, the campy over-the-top songs about women by Marlene, the sad and slow ballads by yourself, and the thought provoking and experimental ones by Lily.

Mary had the upbeat, girly, pop songs down. Her personality just flowed with inspiration for them, so those were the types of songs that you mostly sang and performed. You weren’t complaining, her songs were half the fun.

Marlene was full of something you all liked to tease her about; lesbian angst. But all that angst made for great songs to perform and were usually the crowd favorites.

Lily was slightly different, she was full of thoughts and ideas about the world, and her medium to get them out of her brain and into the world, was through music and lyrics. She wrote a lot of songs for women, for rights for all and for political change. If you had to pick, you would say hers were by far your favorites. She didn’t write often, but when she did, she had a message, something to say. You loved that about her.

Your songs were all ballads and sad. The girls teased you about that too, saying you shouldn’t let a man make you cry. It wasn’t exactly your fault, you had just gotten out of a long term relationship, and were drawing inspiration from all the confusing, mixed feelings that came with that. 

You had been dating this boy, Matthew, for about a year and a half, but everything seemed to take a turn for the worse a couple months ago. Your once sweet and charming boyfriend had turned into this cold, vacant man right in front of you. You two argued all the time, about small things as well as very important, serious things. He started accusing you of sneaking around, hiding things from him, cheating on him. None of it was true, and you tried to tell him that, but he wouldn’t listen to reason.

So you had enough. You told him that if you two couldn’t work things out, you didn’t know if you could continue on. He said nothing, just agreed with you. He didn’t try to mend the broken relationship, didn't try to fight either for you or with you. You would’ve taken either, but he just walked away.

As much as you tell yourself you’re doing so much better, that you have moved on and don’t care about him anymore, that isn’t exactly true.

You leaned into the band to distract yourself, putting everything you had in it so that you wouldn’t be left with those feelings. You’re just glad you had your friends, your girls who not only could help you through it, but also help you see this band through. They ignited you.

You felt that way even just sitting on the floor of Mary’s apartment. The space was cute and cozy. You girls were sprawled out over fluffy rugs, a plush couch, and two oversized bean bags. 

Mary was nodding her head along to a beat that only she could hear, writing down what you could only guess were new lyrics. Lily was strumming a tune she had been working on for over a week. You and Marlene were talking about what to wear for your upcoming show. 

“I think you'd look good in that pink leotard with the matching cowgirl boots.” Marlene recommended.

“The pink tassels or the pink heart?” you asked.

She thought for a moment, then her eyes lit up. “The tassels, that way you can wear the boots and maybe a cowboy hat,” she paused looking at the other two, “maybe we can try out Pink Pony?”

Excited, you clapped your hands together. You had been dying to perform this new song in front of a crowd and this was the perfect opportunity. You were playing at The Common Room again, but this time it was only you. Unlike every other performance you had, this time there were no openers, and no one else after you. You got a whole set for yourselves and the whole night to perform and party with fans.

The night was going to be nothing short of magical.

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

James followed Remus and Sirius into the stage door of The Common Room.

All three boys wanted to come and see the performance that The Pixies were giving tonight. They had gained a lot of traction recently, seemingly overnight.

James didn’t feel at all jealous or threatened, they were doing just as well themselves, and they made entirely different music. He was more curious as to the fact that this band came out of nowhere.

The Marauders were used to competition revolving around the music world. They had been doing this for a while now, they understood the fight to fill spots and book sets. This band was just another contender now.

James was more frequently used to The Snakes stealing their gigs or spots in festivals, but now even they were pushed aside for this new band. The Snakes was led by Sirius’s little brother Regulus, another person on the list James hadn’t spoken to in a while. James knew that Regulus was a grudge holder, hell, he was related to Sirius, so he shouldn’t be surprised that Regulus cut all contact.

He fucked up, he knew he did. But he still wasn’t ready to think about it.

Slipping through the crowd and continuing to follow as best he could, all three boys ended up in the back of the already packed room. 

“Holy shit,” Sirius began, “there are so many people. How much were tickets?” He asked Remus.

Remus answered with a head shake. “Don’t know, Lily told me to come in through the back door so we wouldn’t have to pay.”

James’s stomach sunk, maybe he shouldn’t have come. Lily didn’t even invite him, he just tagged along with Remus. But, she had to have known that would happen, right? The boys didn’t do anything or go anywhere without each other.

“Oh my god! Hi,” came a voice from a girl to his right. “You’re The Marauders right? I love you guys. I’ve been to, like, a bunch of shows.” James recognized this girl. She was always front row or close enough, always giving Sirius a look that showed she wanted to fuck him, or at least become a groupie. “Could I get a pic?” she asked.

Sirius smirked. “Course you can sweetheart.” he said while she handed her phone to someone she was with. She stood between Remus and Sirius for the photo, then thanked the boys, obviously wanting the interaction to continue. 

James did not. He would look like such an asshole taking pictures with fans at Lily’s show.

The thought was cut short when the house lights dimmed and the stage turned a hazy pink color. James lost every thought in his head when you came out on stage.

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

Walking out onto the stage, you were met by a wall of sound, cheers and screams. Your nerves and butterflies instantly fluttered away. This is where you were meant to be, up here on this stage, in front of a crowd, making music. You had dreamed of this since you were a little girl.

You pranced yourself out in a cowboy hat and high heel boots, a matching sparkly and intricately tasseled leotard to top it all off. Your ass may be out, but that was the fun of it, the aesthetic. Especially for the new song you had prepared for the night. 

“Hello my friends.” you said, the cheers and screams somehow getting even louder. “We are The Pixies,” you introduced, “and we are here to give you the night of your life.”

You looked around the crowd to see so many faces enhanced with intricate and beautiful makeup looks, so many fans copying looks from your previous performances, so many bodies in bright colors. So many people who felt confident in what they were wearing and how they looked. 

“We’re gonna start off with a new one if that’s ok with you.” You announced you got an astounding amount of cheers, noting many phones launch into the air to record this new one. “This song is a fun one but more importantly,” you paused, the whole crowd hanging on your breath, “it is about what my mother thinks I am doing with my life. Here is Pink Pony Club!”

The girls started playing the intro and you walked to the front of the stage, sitting down, legs dangling off.

I know you wanted me to stay

But I can't ignore the crazy visions of me in LA

And I heard that there's a special place

Where boys and girls can all be queens every single day

You stood, walking back to center stage.

I'm having wicked dreams of leaving Tennessee

Hear Santa Monica, I swear it's calling me

Won't make my mama proud, it's gonna cause a scene

She sees her baby girl, I know she's gonna scream

You whipped around to the audience

God, what have you done?

You're a pink pony girl

And you dance at the club

Oh mama, I'm just having fun

On the stage in my heels

It's where I belong down at the

You started dancing and jumping around stage, Lily and Mary joining you, smiles plastered on their faces

Pink Pony Club

I'm gonna keep on dancing at the

Pink Pony Club

I'm gonna keep on dancing down in

West Hollywood

I'm gonna keep on dancing at the

Pink Pony Club, Pink Pony Club

The audience had settled into the performance, had gotten into the groove of the song, and joined in the dancing and the fun.

I'm up and jaws are on the floor

Lovers in the bathroom and a line outside the door

Blacklights and a mirrored disco ball

Every night's another reason why I left it all

I thank my wicked dreams a year from Tennessee

Oh, Santa Monica, you've been too good to me

Won't make my mama proud, it's gonna cause a scene

She sees her baby girl, I know she's gonna scream

God, what have you done?

You're a pink pony girl

And you dance at the club

Oh mama, I'm just having fun

On the stage in my heels

It's where I belong down at the

Pink Pony Club

I'm gonna keep on dancing at the

Pink Pony Club

I'm gonna keep on dancing down in

West Hollywood

I'm gonna keep on dancing at the

Pink Pony Club, Pink Pony Club

The crowd was going crazy, right along with you, until you slowed down and the girls played quieter for the bridge.

Don't think I've left you all behind

Still love you and Tennessee

You're always on my mind

And mama, every Saturday

I can hear your southern drawl a thousand miles away, saying

God, what have you done?

You're a pink pony girl

And you dance at the club

Oh mama, I'm just having fun

On the stage in my heels

It's where I belong down at the

You jumped up and danced like crazy, the crowd joining in, loving this new song. Some picked up on the lyrics and were singing them back to you, the feeling indescribable.

Pink Pony Club

I'm gonna keep on dancing at the

Pink Pony Club

I'm gonna keep on dancing down in

West Hollywood

I'm gonna keep on dancing at the

Pink Pony Club, Pink Pony Club

I'm gonna keep on dancing

I'm gonna keep on dancing

You kept dancing as Lily and Mary played the outro, out of breath and so happy. Once the song was finished, the whole building was filled with cheering. You looked to Mary, then over to Lily, they looked just as ecstatic, you could imagine Marlene felt the same. 

“Thank you, thank you!” you said into the mic. “Well, if you like that Common Room, we’re just getting started.”

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

James had never seen a concert, a band like yours. There was no way to describe it, you were just, stars already. 

The rest of the concert was filled with just as much fun, joy as the first song. The dancing and singing and laughing was indescribable. 

The boys waited after the concert, waited until the last of the fans trickled out, then they made their way backstage. Walking down the halls and to the dressing room that had a piece of paper with the word “Pixies” in bold letters, Remus knocked on the door. 

The giggling and sounds of excitement were radiating from the room, loudly even with the door shut.

They waited for a moment before the door pulled open, revealing Mary. The smile dropped from her face for a moment before she put another one in its place, this one though, was more of an uncomfortable grimace more than anything. “Hey! I didn’t know you guys were here.” Mary said, opening the door to let the boys slide through. She hugged each of them on their way in.

James made eye contact with Lily who was on the couch with Marlene. She didn’t break away. He quickly looked over to Marlene and smiled. “We wanted to come and say great show!” he said, directed at them all, but not being able to look away from Marlene, who just smirked, knowing the situation and that James was incredibly uncomfortable right now.

“Thanks.” Marlene replied smoothly. 

Sirius noted the tension and decided to break it. “Where is she?” he asked.

All eyes went to him as Mary asked “Y/N?”

He looked at her and rolled his eyes, “No, the queen.” he said sarcastically.

“Are you going to try to sleep with her?” Mary asked, not holding back.

“What, no!” Sirius denied as if it wasn’t exactly something Sirius would do. “I just want to meet her. ‘Know thy enemy’ and all that.”

Lily scoffed. “She’ll be out in a minute, I think she's taking off her makeup.”

And as if right on que, you waltzed right out of the connected bathroom and into the dressing room. Smiling, you looked at the boys standing across from the couch. 

“Here she is!” Mary ushered you over, chipper and still energized from the performance. “This is Y/N, Y/N these are the boys in The Marauders.”

Your smile grew. “The Marauders? You guys were amazing at the festival.”

Sirius smiled back at you, charming as ever. “‘I'm Sirius.” you looked to the next boy, who was glancing at a fuming Lily.

“Uh, I’m James.” He smiled, seeming to come back to reality and out of whatever thought he was lost in. 

You looked at the final boy, tall and leaning against the wall. “And you’re Remus, right?” you asked.

He nodded. “Yeah we met a while back, lovely to see you again.”

“Lovely to see you! And it is lovely to finally meet you two.” you said to the newly acquainted Sirius and James, they nodded and smiled politely. There was a noticeable tension between everyone in the room, was there really that much of a rivalry?

“I think the boys were just heading out,” Mary said to the three boys standing in front of her. “Isn't that right?”

Sirius huffed and led the other two out throwing a “See you all soon.” over his shoulder as Mary escorted and followed them out into the hallway, shutting the door beyond her.

“That was… strange.” you said to Lily and Marlene. They just looked at each other and laughed, rolling their eyes. You didn’t understand.

“They're idiots.” Marlene supplied.

“They're boys.” Lily corrected.

Taglist 💌:  @adharalikethestar @mayuwolfstar @ieatboysalive @maraudereestauderelb @bugg06 @slytherinambitious (yell at me if I forgot anyone)

[fandomnerd9602]

Parents & Kids

Bambi!Wanda x Reader

It started out as such an innocent question. Born from the curiosity of one of your twin deer, hybrid boys, Billy.

“ what happened to my father?” he asked his voice rimming with uncertainty.

That question really struck a nerve with your mate your wife Wanda Maximoff-(L/N). You could see the color practically drain from her face as soon as the question left Billy‘s lips.

“Look at that,” you quickly covered, “boys you’re gonna be later for school”

The twins ran for their backpacks. You gave Wanda a reassuring kiss on the lips and touched your forehead to hers.

“I’ll take them to school,” you whispered, “just worry about Natalie, okay?”

“Okay” Wanda whispered back, her voice shaking as small tears made their way down her face, “thank you”

You drop the boys off at their kindergarten class and haul back to the house. You give Natasha a call saying that you and Wanda need to take a personal day.

“I know Chief,” Natasha replies thru the phone. “Wanda told me about it. Take it slow, okay?”

You arrive home to find your doe pacing back and forth, her usually giddy tail is hanging down rather depressingly.

“Natalie is down for her nap,” Wanda explains as she walks up to you, wrapping her arms around your waist. She just collapses against your chest, little sobs escaping her lips.

You wrap your own arms around her, rubbing her back reassuringly. “I know. I know”

“I-I always thought I’d have more time, my buck” she cries against your chest softly. “I-I barely talked about him with you and…and…”

“Wanda, I know,” you reply. “I know about Vision”

“You do?”

“Pietro filled me in on him. Who he was to you and him. I’ve known since before Natalie was born”

“Why did you not tell me?” Wanda asks.

“You were already under so much duress with the pregnancy,” you wipe away her tears with your thumbs, “I didn’t want to add to it”

“How do I tell our boys the truth?” Wanda wonders, her worries leaking through, “d-do I tell them every detail? Do I tell about my captivity? Do I tell them how…how..?”

Your wife tears up. You hold her tight, gently rocking her back and forth.

“I mean I liked Vis. He was a good family friend,” Wanda tries to explain, “but we were together one time and that’s what led to the boys”

“I have to be honest,” you said with a shrug, “I was always afraid that our boys’ father would come back and take you all away from me”

Wanda lets out a little sad chuckle, “my love for you is deeper than any love I’ve felt for anyone in my life”

You touch your forehead to hers, “our boys deserve to know about him.” You try to formulate, “We’ll just tell them that he died before they were born and never got the chance to know them.”

“But he would’ve loved them too” your doe adds.

“And that this doesn’t change the dynamic of the family we built.”

“Agreed” Wanda says with a sad little smile. You hear the gentle murmurs of your infant daughter from her crib. “Natalie’s up!”

You both rush to the nursery, both of you tending to your daughter’s needs.

School comes to an end. You and Wanda pick up your boys from kindergarten and bring them home. The car ride was unusually quiet.

You gently guide the boys to your couch as soon as you walk through the door. You and Wanda made a quick stop at the Sanctuary before picking them up.

“Billy, Tommy,” you gently tell them, “your momma and I have something to show you-“

“I’m sorry Poppa” Billy says, “I didnt mean to make Momma cry. I just wanted to know who my father was”

“But you’re still our Poppa, right?” Tommy asks. “We think you are.”

You smile, “yeah I’m still your Poppa and you’re still my boys.”

Wanda sits in between the boys, clutching a Polaroid. “This is your father.”

The boys stare at the picture of a blonde haired male deer hybrid. You could tell that he hailed from Great Britain just by his body language and smile in the pic.

“This was Vision,” Wanda explains, “he was…a good friend. Kind, supportive, caring, helped out me and your uncle Pietro when we needed it most.”

“What happened to him, Momma?” Billy asks.

“He died before you were both born,” Wanda replies, her voice dripping with tears and sadness. “But I know he would’ve loved you both”

You wrap your family in your arms and hug them tight, “I know I’m not your birth father but I will always be there for you both”

“That’s why we like calling you our Poppa” Billy replies. A few tears made their way down your face.

Pietro was closer to Vision than Wanda was. The boys would occasionally ask about their birth father but they always reiterated how much they loved you still.

It was circumstances that led to the boys’ birth but it was the love that you and Wanda share that led to a whole family.

A family that you treasure more than anything in the world.

Tags @lifespectator @supercorpdanbeau @scarletquake-n7 @olsenmyolsen @idkwhatever580 @moonlit-imagines @multi-fandom-enjoyer @family-house-of-m @holiday-house-of-m @pinklawyerwinnerzonk

[dolliels]

third times the charm.

azul x reader

synopsis: azul likes you. and he’s been trying to ask you out for a while.

a/n: okay guys im not dead wtf. posting this fic to prove i didn’t kms 💀💀

azul had only three goals in mind: prove his bullies wrong, become rich and die rich.

his love life was the least of his worries. he’d probably swoon over some wealthy girl and marry her for connections. done deal. nothing much to think about.

azul thought about the huge house he’ll eventually own. he even has the measurements and everything down in his head.

everything would be at the grasp of his hands. no children, absolutely not. everything would be perfectly spread out just for him. he’d die on his deathbed with a huge grin on his face, knowing he’d only get the best even after he has left the world of the living. perfect.

so sometimes, he’d find himself wondering why he would be in a dazed state, daydreaming about a modest, happy future with you.

everything was laid out. his entire future was laid out. then suddenly, you decided to waltz into his life, and all he thinks about is you. waking up, he’s wondering if you’re sleeping in. or when he’s eating, he’d be trying to guess what you’d be buying to see if he actually knows your tastes. or during work, gazing around mostro lounge, seeing if you’d decided to take a visit to his beloved café.

ugh, it infuriated him.

sometimes, it would go as far as thoughts of marriage, which completely ruined him.

see, the thing is, he hasn't even asked you out. you and azul were not at all close intimately in any way. friends? sure. but not close like that.

so why was his mind leaping so far? did he really want to have such a commitment with you? after all these years of obsessing over his future?

he wanted to live such a luxurious life of power and money. so everything he’s done to build all the way up here seems to tumble down when in his head, azul seemed to feel much happier in a modest life with you. he felt his heart warm at the thought of being beside you even in his death.

he hasn’t daydreamed this much since middle school, when he’s had violent thoughts about ruining anyone who’s bullied him.

so, after much contemplation, he decided to confess.

the first time, he decided it was going to be simple. he was gonna hand you a bouquet of flowers afterschool, and ask if he could court you. simple enough, right? he’s look clean and awesome.

but when the time finally arrived, he found himself to have cold feet.

yes, he’d have the comfort of knowing he would have composure, but what if you reject him? then can he keep going on with the calm, collected manner? would you think a simple bouquet of flowers would be too little?

fortunately for you, you ended up having a pretty vase of flowers. unfortunately for azul, you wouldn’t know who it came from.

the second time, azul went on full glam.

it’s be an incredibly romantic setting. It's just you and azul, chatting away after hours of mostro lunge and you’d fall right into his trap of charms, and just when you’re feeling him, he’d confess. so while you have a good impression of him, would you receive a confession from him.

fancy food, calm, quiet setting.

azul was so sure he’d be able to do this that he even let jade and floyd intervene and help out.

yet when you and azul were talking, he found himself stuttering, quite a hot mess.

although you seemed quite confused and calm, azul was in a nervous state.

he’d start overthinking again, his head wandering off to merry land, thinking about the possible results of this confession. perhaps this was too excessive? Maybe the simple bouquet of flowers from before would’ve been better. you seemed to have enjoyed them.

no! azul already got this far, he has to do this!

“so, uhm… prefect…” azul behind, breathing in deeply.

you turned to look, and blinked at him. “yeah?”

…fuck.

it was like you wanted him to fail, batting your eyelashes (you literally just blinked) and looking so cute in front of him (you just inhaled a shit ton of free food)

“a-ah… is there anything else you want? I’m feeling quite generous.”

azul wanted to sprint out. he messed up again! It seems that the words “i like you” weren’t coming out of his mouth anytime soon.

you frowned. “really? you really don’t have it out for me?”

azul shook his head, and smiled. “you can trust me.”

you shrugged. “oh well. whatever debt I have to pay will be something future me can deal with.” you flapped the menu open.

It took quite a bit of convincing for the twins to drag you here, since you were suspicious as to why azul wanted to suddenly meet you, offering free food out of nowhere. azul was wasting all of it.

the twins will never let him see the end of it.

…and never seeing the end of it was he right.

even after such a mess up, predictably, the twins kept teasing azul about it. they’d even use it against him sometimes.

“ah…you’re making us do all of this when you helped you prepare a confession for the prefect and you didn’t even confess… and wasted our time…sigh….”

it was horrible down here with jade and floyd.

if he… possibly tried confessing to you again… would they stop?

although it seemed azul was in the dumps of announcing his love for you, it made him think about it again. freedom… from the twins… is this what heaven is like?

it wasn’t like azul completely stopped thinking of you, in fact, you appeared in his thoughts even more now, which seemed impossible already but who’s to tell?

you slowly consumed his mind, it drove azul insane. what’s even worse is that you’re completely blind to it, so he can’t even go to you for comfort from this madness.

it’s technically your fault, and also not your fault at the same time!

the days went by, and azul couldn’t tolerate it any longer.

yes, he wanted to appear as awesome and composed as he could in front of you, but you were driving him nuts without trying— azul just liked you so much. He couldn’t just hold inside him, of course he would go mad!

and anyways, third times the charm, right?

however, for the unlucky octopus, he just can’t seemed to find the right time. you were constantly surrounded by people, and if you were, for the rare occasion, alone, azul would freeze up at the unexpected chance.

this crush on you got even worse as well, turning more red by the second, compared to his slight discomfort from his early days.

he was already imagining a relationship with you, embarrassingly giggling to himself like a little girl with his eyes closed in bed. it was starting to take a toll on him when his head wandered astray to thoughts of marriage… it was like the world slapped him in the face as if to say hey! your life plans are totally going down the drain because you are pathetically in love!

he's spent many days mumbling to himself like crazy. stuck to be a paranoid businessman, considering every possibility and outcome he might receive if he ever told you his feelings, especially if you were to reject him. his eyes burned from being unable to sleep at night from overthinking and the stacks of papers he had to get through because he lost track of his focus thinking of you.

now you were ruining his life.

and what were you doing? nothing.

it's like whenever you were bored, you decided to prance around the daises of his life; an unstoppable force, preventing azul from functioning normally.

this isn't like him.

"this isn't like you." said jade, leaning towards azul so that he could hear jade's hushed voice over the chatty crowds of the mostro lounge. "you're not still stuck on about the whole prefect thing, are you?"

azul sighed. "admittedly, i am." he took off his glasses and massaged his temple. "i have barely gotten any work done. what is wrong with me?"

jade chuckled. "why are you so worried? honestly, you should just walk up to them and ask. that's what i would do."

"i'm not you, jade" azul groaned. “I can’t just confidently stride to them and ask them out.”

“well of course you can’t!”

“ouch.”

“my apologies. let me reword that. you can’t do that because you’re not me. how about you do it in a way that doesn’t make you look so cool? after all, you’re quite the opposite of that. wouldn’t the truth be more endearing?”

still… ouch. but it wasn’t like jade was wrong. azul is, unfortunately, far from cool. Even though that is what he likes to display.

“and what if the prefect says yes after you ask them out with that mask of yours? are you going to keep pretending until they get sick of you?”

azul couldn’t reply. what could he say?

“just be normal. after all, i couldn’t stand to watch you like this after you made me and floyd do all that work and was still incapable of asking them out. do you know how difficult it was for me to drag the prefect here? uhehehehehe.” jade wiped away a fake tear.

azul just groaned and walked away.

a little frustrated, a little annoyed, his courage seemed to have broken the roof when he saw you walk in with grim, bickering about who knows what.

he thought back to his daydreams. the images of you smiling, holding hands, soft kisses in secret, his heart was not well.

he slowly dug deep into his head to take out a precious daydream of his;

nothing special,

it was you slowly mouthing the words “I. Love. You.” to him.

“prefect,” azul said, tapping your shoulder.

you gave your full attention to him, happily. “what’s up azul?”

“I like you. would you allow me to take you out on a date?”

a/n hi guys.. shoujo bf is coming im serious pls b patient w me 💀💀

[syrupfog]

Sometimes Usopp has nightmares.

Not ones of his mom dying— no, those are no more than a dull ache now. But nightmares of being thrown at the feet of the man who single handedly started off the worst week of his life. Made him feel useless and broken.

Franky.

Usopp doesn’t think Franky bothers to remember how they met. In the grand scheme of things, it’s not important, right? They’re on the same team now, on the WINNING team. Franky built them the best ship in the world, and even made Usopp a tribute to Merry with the mini merry.

But sometimes at night, he’s trapped in that moment again, where he’s thrown at the feet of the man who was head of the Franky Family, who looked down on him like he was dirt, and scoffed when Usopp demanded their berri back.

And it happens all over again; getting attacked, hit again and again until he feels the crack of his bones and darkness billows into his vision, until the last thing he sees is Franky, behind that iron mask he wore, looking down at Usopp with, somehow worst of all, INDIFFERENCE.

And Usopp wakes up with a gasp, clutching his heart, sweat pouring off of him, only to find Franky snoring peacefully in the bunk below him.

And somehow that. That hurts.

It shouldn’t. They’ve made amends. They’ve reconciled. Franky has time and again wept with him and for him.

But that moment started off the worst week of Usopp’s life, and Usopp cannot help but wonder if everything would’ve gone down differently if Franky’s goons hadn’t touched him. If he’d had the same time to process as everyone else, had heard the news with everyone else.

Would he have still left the crew? Fought Luffy?

The fight still haunts him. He’s always been a useless failure of a pirate, but—

Usopp’s just not sure why Luffy even let him back.

And as his thoughts spiral and his pounding heart rate slows, Usopp blinks crusted tears from his eyes and wishes, DESPERATELY wishes, that he could have just BEEN Franky from the beginning.

He’s good with his hands. Maybe if he had just started studying to be a shipwright they never would’ve gotten to that point. Franky’s all but replaced him on the ship anyway, hasn’t he? He’s like everything that Usopp is, but better.

Stumbling out of his bunk, trying and failing to be quiet about it, Usopp slinks out of the bunk room and onto the deck. It’s a night so foggy that not even the moon lights their path. The lanterns hung on either side of the door to the kitchen the only things casting hazy light.

Which is why he jumps out of his skin when Brook appears in front of him like a ghost in the night.

“Yohohoho,” Brook laughs softly. “I’m sorry to have startled you, young master Usopp! I was simply out for a midnight stroll!”

Usopp blinks. “You’re not on watch?”

“No, it is our Captain’s turn right now. He’s up in the crow’s nest. I was thinking I might play him a tune— I’m not in need of much sleep these days— but perhaps you might be in need of it a bit more than him?”

Usopp doesn’t feel in NEED of a tune. He feels in need of sticking his head in a bucket of ice water, perhaps, to get his thoughts out of the dark place they’re spiraling towards. But he doesn’t want to disappoint Brook. “Sure,” he says. “What have you got cooking up?”

Brook’s violin is out in a heartbeat— although he has no heart— and after a few tuning notes, he begins a slow, deep rendition of Bink’s Saké. Usopp recognizes the melody but Brook has managed to turn it almost into a funeral dirge. Something mournful, crying out.

He feels like he’s intruding just by listening to it.

When the song is finished, Brook seems to breathe out (can he do that?) and with his breath his whole skeleton collapses down, like a marionette with all but one of its strings cut.

“I think, sometimes,” says Brook, “that I am not worthy of being the one who survived.”

Usopp wants to jump to his defense, tell him that Brook is NEEDED and NECESSARY and they COULDN’T DO THIS WITHOUT HIM.

But he remembers how empty those words sounded in the moment as Chopper yelled them, as Usopp left the crew on Water 7. Like empty appeasing platitudes.

“I think…” Usopp says, slowly, carefully, “that worthiness isn’t something that matters, in the end.”

He’s sitting on the deck, the chill numbing his feet. Brook goes to sit, gingerly, next to him.

“I think that the only thing that actually matters are the choices you make— and not EVERY choice. But the most recent choices.” He peters off for a moment. Brook looks especially creepy in the fog. “Whatever happened that led to you being here doesn’t matter. What matters is your choice now. And tomorrow. What matters is continuing on.”

He doesn’t believe it, not really. His choices haunt him. Every lie haunts him.

“I don’t make good choices,” he concedes, looking down at his calloused hands. “But I want to. I’m trying.”

Even if he doesn’t want to keep trying, sometimes.

Brook leans back, silent as a ghost for a moment, and then, quietly, “I know you are, master Usopp. You are not as lost as you think.”

Usopp doesn’t say anything after that.

Brook doesn’t either.

The morning comes with hot sun and the pounding of feet across the deck. Usopp wakes with a crick in his neck and shade over his eyes.

He blinks, inhaling the scent of pancakes. As his vision clears, he realises he’s only able to have slept so long because a straw hat had been placed over his head, hiding his face from the worst of the morning sun.

Usopp groans.

He pulls it lower, hiding the heat in his cheeks

“It’s the choices you make today,” he tells himself. “Not the old ones. Just the ones today and tomorrow and tomorrow.”

Because maybe if he tells himself that everyday, someday he’ll even believe it.

And until then, he can lie.

[padmeanddorme]

DO YOU KNOW WHAT WE NEED???!!????!!!?

A series (or even a book) that follows Padmé from when she learns she’s pregnant to like idk when she finds out Anakin’s back on Coruscant. Like I’m pretty sure Natalie Portman said in a relatively recent interview she’d be happy to return to Star Wars if they asked her to!

Make this series show more of her work in the Senate. Show her planting seeds of the rebellion (we were robbed when Lucas deleted those scenes from ROTS). Show her thinking of baby names and getting excited about being a mother. Show her fretting over Anakin’s safety. Of course include Anidala crumbs- them on holocalls, talking about anything and everything (and Anakin mentioning how Rex is helping him secure these calls with her 🥰🥰🥰). Show Padmé debating over telling Anakin she’s pregnant, and ultimately deciding not to- knowing it would distract him during battles and thus endanger him. Have her come this close 👌to telling him when he mentions something about wanting to start a family with her. Show Padmé interacting with her handmaidens more. Give Padmé a mission and show that even while pregnant she’s still a badass. Let her visit Naboo, and her family. OMG- show Palpatine noticing/sensing something is off with Padmé, eventually realising she is pregnant, then devising his plan to use this information to turn Anakin to the dark side.

I would DIE if we got this series. I miss live-action Padmé sm. Please, please, PLEASE Lucasfilm log onto Tumblr, find this post or other ones like it and decide to use our ideas. I’m begging 😭😭😭

(And in an end-credits scene show a newly suited Anakin visiting Padmé’s mausoleum, pouring his heart out to her and their ‘baby’, leaving flowers on her sarcophagus, literally being the biggest emotional mess in the galaxy. Then, after he slowly says something so heart wrenching- i.e. your love could’ve saved me…but I didn’t listen, I would take your place even if it meant losing you, I thought I became strong enough to save you, but maybe love is what would’ve saved you, idk still working on this bit- and after he walks away, the camera zooms out and shows a flower falling off the sarcophagus, or something like that 👀)

Sigh.

[esmereldapearl]

I feel like two things COULD happen in the TSATS sequel

SPOILER WARNING FOR TSATS, TOA, AND BASICALLY THE ENTIRE SERIES (especially Jason Grace)

(Also this is just a theory and what I think— if you have any ideas feel free to lmk— I really want to hear ideas on this stuff)

- I’ve said since I finished the first one that this whole thing with Nyx isn’t over yet. I don’t feel like it is— I feel like she’s not just going to stop where she is.

- Something will happen with Jason. I feel like this plot point has been opened since Apollo asked if it was Jason instead of Bob. I feel like the fact that Jason cannot be located is also something. There’s this part of me that would find it AWESOME if he was in Valhalla but also, Jason wouldn’t age if he were there. The difference between Magnus and Jason is that Magnus has his friends there with him— none of them will age. But Jason’s friends aren’t there— so he’d have to go through it the same way Thalia will.

(As a valgrace shipper— or even not as one, it would be painful to loose like that all over again)

I really like the point that @aroaceleovaldez brought up (hoping I tagged correctly)

Originally, I would’ve thought Orpheus until one of their posts. (Don’t know when it was posted, but they brought up how there are already at least three-ish parallels to Orpheus so maybe it wouldn’t be that way)

Nico was angry at Leo for what he pulled at the end of BoO— but that could’ve been because he didn’t tell him- but maybe also because Leo cheated death? Idk. But, if Nico is less inclined to pull strings— what if it comes up that he has to?

Like, last time, Nyx had made it so Nico had to revisit bad memories— what if it’s more? What if she brings Jason along for the ride— it’s the newest wound that Nico has.

So what if that leaves Nico with no choice but to bring Jason back somehow— for a while I wondered if Nico could like raise the dead and Will would heal them but I’m not sure that’s how it works.

But the biggest thing is that I don’t think it’s specifically known where Jason is and I feel like that could play a key role.

Jason has such a bad narrative— he’s down the same one Bianca had gone down. Their deaths were only in there to raise another character up. Apollo to change once he got back to Olympus and Nico to be a hero. This is a chance for Jason to have a new narrative— he had to live through the Jason in mythology’s story so what about rewriting his narrative. A chance to change the story.

Jason’s character was “boring” because Jason didn’t know who he was. Jason had no memories and didn’t have a personality. (Mean that nicely) The reason why all of the characters are lovable is because they have personalities that make them stand out.

My overall point is: I feel like Nyx is going to be bringing more trouble to Nico and Will. I feel like it may include Jason as well since it was sort of alluded to when they 1) Don’t know where he is and 2) Apollo and Nico both wondered if Jason would play a part into the original Tartarus expedition.

[glisten-inthedark]

It kills me that the GA doesn’t fully understand or appreciate the significance of Mike being in the shed with Joyce and Jonathan in s2.

They could have easily had just Joyce, Jonathan, and Hopper in there because Joyce and Jonathan are his family and Hopper is there to ensure their safety and help restrain Will.

But Mike is there.

Despite the fact that Dustin and Lucas are also Will’s friends, Mike is there.

Will was unconscious. He didn’t ask for Mike to be there. Mike was there. Mike wanted to be in there. The writers chose him to be there, with Dustin or Lucas.

They could’ve had a scene where each member of the party recounts their first or most precious memory of Will. It would’ve been beautiful! But other than Will’s family, they only wanted Mike there.

Only Mike.

Once again separating Mike as Will’s most important relationship outside of his family. Once again having Mike show that Will is special to him—their their bond is significant and goes beyond just best friends. Because in s1 Mike insists that Dustin and Lucas are his best friends, which would implied that they’re also Will’s best friends. So why aren’t they in the shed too?

Why just Mike.

Oh, to add more about Mike being in the shed:And to reference this ask you got a while back because I just rewatched the shed scene and thought of this ask: https://www.tumblr.com/glisten-inthedark/766608866928623616/joyce-informs-will-of-his-birthday-and-how-heJoyce says Will drew a rainbow ship when he was little. Which adds to that other anon pointing out that every memory they mention to Will has become significant later (Will coming out and also the rainbow room and how that + the other rainbows peppered throughout the show is likely used to reinforce the queer symbolism & narrative within the show)Well, Mike also brings up a campaign that involved sewers and insects, and iirc there’s a sewer-looking tunnel w/ a ladder like from a manhole in the bts video for s5. He also says that Will cast “fog cloud” and “saved us. You saved the entire party.” And I would love if that’s somehow foreshadowing something Will does involving a smoke bomb/screen in s5And Jonathan playing Should I Stay Or Should I Go foreshadowed the significance of music “reaching a part of the brain words can’t” in season 4Also once again even after they figure out Will is using Morse code, the writers don’t have Mike stay with the others in the house helping to translate/transcribe. He stays in the shed and we see him once again being shown as one of the integral, essential people there to help reach Will. And again, Will didn’t choose for him to be there! This isn’t an example of Will being in love with Mike. This is an example of Mike’s love for Will. (And honestly this whole thing probably helped facilitate Will falling in love with Mike because Mike did so much for him in s2 out of his love and care for Will, how could Will not fall for him??)

Hello! Oh, I think you may have read my mil*ven post? And yes, that's one thing I legit don't get too!

Like, did absolutely no one stop and ask themselves why did the writers choose to have only Mike there when it wasn't a choice Will made?

Because I'm not joking, I was already pretty suspicious of Will and Mike at that point but that scene pretty much solidified for me that there was something there. I'd be always like: OK but why is he the only one there?

So yeah, I'm constantly wondering how no one seems to notice it that he didn't have to be there, so why is he?

[sepublic]

According to some FtF storyboards that were cut (presumably for time), Manny met Camila twenty years prior to the start of the series; And since the show takes place in 2022, this would’ve been during 2002. And since Luz is 14, this means Camila and Manny knew one another for six years, and at some point married during that time before eventually having Luz.

Season 1B had an episode that was scrapped called Homesick, which would’ve had Luz discover a Healing Glyph and also reflect on her parents; At this point in production, Camila was a nurse before that got retconned, but it was revealed that Manny was an ambulance driver. The FtF storyboards are much more recent and borderline canon, so we can surmise Manny and Camila did meet at a Cosmic Frontier convention, and their workplaces didn’t happen to intersect.

But if we still want to retain this detail on Manny, you can guess why Camila resonated with him and vice-versa, as people who both had a very compassionate spirit. Manny especially as someone who builds people up.

And there’s a dark irony in Manny always bringing people to hospitals, because he would be quite familiar with those who are on the verge of death, who might be skirting close to it, maybe even people who did die on the way… So he was always aware of mortality and he’d have to consider his own. And so after all this time, he would be the one being brought to a hospital, different ones, it’s why they chose Gravesfield specifically. His life and death, defined by hospitals; His peak and decline, defined by hospitals. How does Luz feel about such buildings now?

Manny would’ve empathized a lot with those in charge, but did he ever imagine he would empathize like this? Sometimes I think of the little fan theory that the Abomaton alarm genuinely triggered Luz because it reminded her of an ambulance that took her father to the hospital during a sudden medical emergency. These alarms are never pleasant anyway, nor is their context, but on some level it must hurt for something tied to her father and how he helped people to just be a reminder of how he couldn’t be helped. The hospital was once associated with her father’s heroics, but now…

On a brighter note, you could say that after helping people, Manny gets helped in return; But in the end it wasn’t enough. Or it did help, because it still got him some extra time with his family, enough to figure something out for his daughter that would keep her alive. Looking at the parallels to his daughter that he consciously taught, I wonder if Manny also wanted to be a hero; Luz’s obsession came from the book specifically, because it came from her dad.

Was Manny drawn to the medical industry to also help people? If so, he actually understood what people needed, which was more healers who could build people up. He didn’t become a cop or anything. And such a mundane and unglamorous way of life is better for the world; Because I think of how Luz wanted to be a hero, but aside from one gag with the Gildersnake, her focus has always been on helping people and not destroying her enemies.

You can see this in the good Luz has done, which comes more from helping others, some of whom were her enemies, than destroying or taking down people; The final enemy she can’t really help, Luz doesn’t even destroy herself, nor directly at least. And I think that hearkens a lot to what her father and mother do, and I wonder if that’s a specific ideal Manny had. Azura, as Luz describes it, is someone who befriends people and even enemies.

So I wonder if Manny actually read though the book, if he thought consciously what his final message was because it’s not just the act of giving the book itself, its what the book says, it’s how he’s choosing to impart his final beliefs by choosing something he thinks reflects them.

He’s not afraid of weird looks, it’s already acceptable for an adult like Mildred Featherwhyle to write this and consider her messages anyhow, so yeah he’ll read it in his hospital bed and place this under a critical lens. If anyone looks at him funny, Manny will snap at them unapologetically, Hey I’m dying, lemme have this! He wouldn’t need death as an excuse, mind you.

So Manny is an ‘author’ in a way, creating a message for his daughter, the other hidden author to Luz’s favorite fantasy. And Luz is the author of her own fantasy. Manny’s already a massive nerd, it’s what led him to Camila, to Luz, of course he’ll give that to her; It’s what leads Luz to Amity.

[aisiedaisie]

I’m kinda living for the whole college Sirius you’ve got going. Never would’ve imagined him as a TA but Astronomy fits soooo well. (Very much looking forward to more of that) But just imagine… Tutor reader and one of the other boys is a barista on campus and they just know the readers order as soon as they walk in because it seems like they always stop by before or after work. I think that would be soooo cute!

Also saw you have designated anons can I be your ⏳ anon if that’s not taken already?

Hello hello~!!! I’m so happy you’re enjoying the college AU! I’m really loving TA!Sirius too, so that storyline will definitely continue. Now, as for your ask—when I saw ‘barista,’ my first thought was to make it a Remus-centered fic. But…I raise you social butterfly barista James Potter. With that said, I hope you enjoy my take on your idea!

Also of course you can be my ⏳anon!!!

Barista!James Potter x Fem!Reader WC: 1.1k

It's early afternoon, and the coffee shop tucked in the far corner of the quad is practically deserted. Only a few frazzled students tap furiously at their keyboards, their brows knitted in concentration, while the occasional professor unwinds after a long string of lectures. Behind the counter, two baristas are stationed, chatting as they clean and restock in leisurely rhythm, bracing for the next rush that’s sure to sweep through those double glass doors in a few hours.

When you step into the shop, just as you do nearly every day around this time, you’re greeted by the soft hum of music filtering through the speakers, barely louder than the clatter of laptop keys and the muffled murmur of conversation. Yet, the sound is familiar and comforting, blending seamlessly with the warmth of the space.

You glance toward the bar, and there he is—James, a familiar face, mid-motion as he turns from cleaning the espresso grinder. His brown eyes light up with recognition, crinkling with a smile that’s warm and easy.

"Hey, love," he greets, pushing his round glasses back up the bridge of his nose. "Your usual?"

You can’t help but mirror his smile as you nod, digging into your bag to pull out your wallet. “Yeah, thank you, James.”

At the register, the other barista, a girl with dark red hair pulled into a loose bun, rings up your order. You notice, though, that she pauses as James adds an extra drink to your total. She raises an eyebrow, casting him a questioning look. “She’s only getting one, though?” she asks, her brows furrowing.

“Just trust me, Lils,” James replies, his smile as certain as it is mysterious. With a small sigh, she relents, and you barely notice the extra charge, simply thanking her with a quiet smile before finding an empty table.

You settle in, pulling out your journal and glancing at your phone, gauging how many hours you’ll be spending in the library tonight.

As you begin jotting down notes, your mind drifts to a few concerns your students shared during the last session, the things they struggle with that you’re determined to help them understand. The scratch of your pen on the paper becomes a soothing rhythm until—

A steaming mug lands on a coaster beside your phone, pulling you from your thoughts. You look up, startled, an apology already on your lips. “Sorry,” you murmur, realizing you must’ve missed him calling your name.

James only chuckles, his smile soft yet playful. “Sorry for what, love?”

“Not coming to get my order?”

He laughs, the sound warm and familiar, filling the quiet space between you. “I didn’t even call for you.” He shakes his head, clearly amused. “When I finished with your tea, you were already writing, so I figured I’d just bring it over.”

You thank James with a grateful smile, but he just waves it off, already turning back to the espresso grinder. Lily, meanwhile, busies herself at the small refrigerator, restocking whipped cream canisters with the kind of efficiency that only comes from experience.

You open your journal once more and start drafting a few more notes, tailoring each to help your students in their upcoming sessions. First on today’s list is Evan—a top business student, though lately, he’s hit a wall with Economic History. You’re not entirely sure why. Though the subject is notoriously dry, Evan is bright and usually navigates complex material with ease.

Then again, you’ve noticed a pattern. Every time a certain psychology major sits just outside your study room door, Evan’s focus starts to drift. You’ve seen the stolen glances, the way his attention wavers whenever that familiar face appears in his line of sight.

But you don’t really mind. Evan’s a fast learner, and once he sets his mind to it, he absorbs concepts quickly. With a small smile, you jot down a few more examples, hoping to make the material click despite his latest...distractions.

After some time, you shift in your seat, feeling the strain of being hunched over for so long. You roll your shoulders, feeling a satisfying pop and release of tension. Glancing at your mug, you realize it’s now almost empty; the last bit of lemon mint tea has gone cold, a quiet signal that it’s time to pack up and move on.

You slip your book and journal back into your tote bag and stand, carrying your mug over to the return station, placing it gently in its designated spot. A quick glance at the counter shows James mid-motion, focused on another drink. You approach Lily instead, thanking her for helping out and asking if you could order a tea to-go. Lily just shakes her head, waving you off with a small smile.

“Oh?” you ask, brows furrowing in mild confusion.

Before you can answer, James turns, holding a drink carrier with two steaming cups, his expression radiating a proud, quiet satisfaction. “Figured you’d be heading to the library after this,” he says, a grin tugging at his lips. “So I added a second tea to your order.”

You let out a soft sigh, almost a laugh, and despite yourself, a fond smile tugs at your own lips. “James…”

But he’s already pressing the drinks into your hands, that familiar, mischievous glint in his eyes steady and warm.

“You got the coffee too. Honestly, you’re too good at this job,” you tease, glancing down at the carrier— your usual tea to go and an Americano for Remus at the library desk.

James’ grin widens, his gaze bright with playful pride. “Well, we have to keep our loyal customers around somehow,” he jokes. “Can’t risk you being lured away by another coffee shop on campus.”

You laugh, a soft and genuine sound, as you take the drinks from him. “I don’t think you have anything to worry about. This is my favorite spot, after all.” You give him a small, lasting smile, the comfort of this place—and maybe of him—settling around you.

“Good luck with work,” he says warmly, his voice carrying a note of encouragement.

As you make your way to the door, you catch yourself glancing back, a gentle wave accompanying the smile that lingers, soft and warm, just a little longer than you’d planned.

As soon as she steps out the door, Lily glances over at James, raising an eyebrow. “Do you think she noticed you put your number on the cup?”

James shrugs, a bit sheepish but still with a hint of a grin. “Probably. I mean, I hope so.” He leans back against the counter, his expression a mix of casual hope and quiet anticipation.

“I guess we’ll see.”

[pricetagofficial]

The Little Merman -D.G. Part Five

Warnings: Language, a little bit of angst, some violence (particularly against Wally)

Masterlist

Pairing: Merman!Dick Grayson x Reader

Word Count: 2.4K

A/N: Hello everyone! Look at me being semi-consistent with updates. From where this series is tracking, there is going to be one more part and maybe an epilogue. I hope you all enjoy this!

“Quick! Take a left!” 

Dick nodded and ran, turning left only to be met with a balcony that led out into the shore. 

Turning to face Roy with a questioning look, he saw him turn the corner and stop to catch his breath. “No time to wait, grab your crab and let's just hope we make this jump.” 

Before Dick could even pretend to voice his concern, Roy grabbed his shoulders and launched them both into the ocean. The two of them fell only for a few moments before they crashed into the waves below. 

Dick didn’t have to worry about Alfred as much as he had to make sure he made it back to the surface. His eyes burned, opening them underwater trying to get his bearings to see what way was up. He caught a glimpse of Roy, and swam the same direction as he did. 

Breaking the surface, Dick took a deep breath and fought to keep his head above water. The one thing he missed about his tail was how powerful it was. It easily could’ve kept him and Roy afloat. But here he was, tailless. 

Feeling something nudge his side, Dick saw a familiar orange friend. 

“Long time, no sea.” Wally chuckled, helping keep Dick afloat. “Get it? Sea?” 

If Dick could talk, he would’ve told him how stupid it was. 

Wally only laughed, and pulled Dick after Roy who managed to find a little portion of the beach to take surface on. Letting out a sigh of relief, Dick pulled himself onto shore, with Alfred crawling up beside him, Wally staying nearby in the shallow part of the water. 

Laying back on the sand, Dick draped an arm over his eye trying to catch his breath. There were so many words Dick wanted to yell at Roy, but that would be saved for later. 

Roy took a look around as he wrung out his hair. “Is that big weird looking fish a friend of yours too?” 

Dick simply nodded. 

“Cool, so we have a crab, a fish, a human merman who can’t talk, and a captain of the guard on the run from an evil sea octopus.” Roy counted, putting a finger up for each thing. “Did I miss anything?” 

“It seems I missed a lot.” 

Both Dick and Alfred turned to look at Wally with an unamused look. 

There was a loud foghorn in the distance, Dick and Roy standing to see a large passenger ship taking off into the sea. It seemed in all their scheming, and running from the others, the wedding had been put together and you were off to marry a literal monster. 

Dick’s eyes went wide, his breath catching in his throat. You were so far away, how was he going to ever catch up, and stop it? 

Roy looked over and saw Dick going gray, wavering on his feet. Rushing over, he threw an arm over his shoulders to keep him up. “Woah there, Dick you have got to breathe.” he coaxed. “We will fix this, but you have to keep your cool.” 

Hearing Roy’s voice helped ground Dick to reality, Alfred’s light tapping as he stood on his foot. Taking slow deep breaths, Dick was able to see clearly again and keep himself standing. Nodding a little, Roy hesitated before letting him go. 

“Is there anyone else we can call for help?” 

Dick looked between Alfred and Wally before he nodded. “Master Wallace, you stay here with Master Richard and help him with anything he needs. I will go and alert Master Bruce of what’s going on.” 

Sparing a last look at Dick, Alfred nodded before he jumped into the sea and swam off. 

Letting out a shaky breath, Dick pushed back his doubtful thoughts. He couldn’t afford to think about the possibilities of losing you to Slade, and watching the destruction of his kingdom and yours at his hands. Looking at Roy, he gave him a firm nod. 

“We have to get you on that boat, got any ideas?” 

Dick looked around, they didn’t have much at their disposal. They were surrounded by rocks, sand and some driftwood that rolled in from the waves. None of it seemed useful to them, especially when none of them had magic of their own. 

Slade had to have something to channel his magic through while he was on land. Running a hand through his hair, Dick began to pace across the sand. He hadn’t gotten a good look at Slade before they were chased out, and he wasn’t exactly sure how to act it out to Roy considering he’s never met him before that morning. 

Roy watched as Dick paced, eyebrows raised. He could tell there was a lot going on in his mind, but he was at a loss for communicating as well. Roy had no idea where to start, other than to ask a thousand questions to try and narrow things down. 

“Hey, Dick hold up a second.” 

Dick stopped in his tracks, looking at his companion. 

“We need to stop Spade, right? And he used some sea magic or whatever on Y/N to put her under a spell?” 

Dick nodded, fidgeting with his shirt. 

“How did he cast a spell on her in the first place if he was on land?” 

Dick’s eyes widened. That was a really good question, Dick looked expectantly at his fishy friend to see if he knew the answer. 

Wally just simply looked between them, before he finally got the hint that Dick was now asking him. 

“You know this is better suited to Alfred–” Wally stopped as Dick threw a rock at him, dodging out of the way. “Okay, rude. But all magic has to be used through an object, at least in our world. Slade is from our world, so he has to abide by the rules even on land. For Bruce it’s the Trident, Talia, it’s her emerald necklace, Kori has her massive amethyst crystal, and wasn’t there a Chrysocolla stone you were supposed to inherit when you took over? ” 

Dick stood there and listened to Wally’s ramblings about the various magic users they knew and what granted them their magic. 

He really wished he paid more attention in his studies. 

Going through the items, the only one different was Bruce and his trident. But that was the only legendary item left of their world, the rest destroyed in wars against other kingdoms and humans. 

Emerald, amethyst, chrysocolla, ruby, sapphire, all the major families of the undersea world have a powerful gemstone that was the root of their magic. Was it possible that Slade was in possession of one too?

Looking over himself, Dick wasn’t in possession of anything that could be in relation to a gemstone. Walking over, Dick gestured to Roy to hold his hands up. 

“What are you looking for?” 

Letting out a sigh of defeat, Dick made a circular shape with his hands before pointing at the rocks around them. 

“A round rock?” Dick waved him on, “A stone?” 

Dick nodded quickly. 

“A stone is how you do magic in your world?” Roy watched as Dick nodded his head around, making a so-so motion with his hand. 

“Alright, so Spade has some sort of magic stone. Do you know what it looks like?” 

Dick shook his head, before motioning to places a gemstone would normally be.

“These stones are something you typically wear?” At this, Dick nodded again. 

Roy thought back, he was more concerned for you than he was assessing what the man was wearing but…

“Does the stone have to be big? Like something to fit a ring?” 

Dick nodded enthusiastically. 

“And if I told you he was wearing a ring with an unnaturally blue gemstone on it?” 

Both Dick and Wally were jumping, the latter yelling. “That has to be it!” 

Dick nodded in agreement, finally they were getting somewhere. 

Roy grinned. “Now this is the beginning of a plan my friend.” 

It took them less than half an hour to come up with a plan, and another 20 before they caught up to the boat that was floating just off shore of the castle. With the help of Wally, both Roy and Dick managed to get across the water in a timely manner. 

Gripping onto the rope hanging off the end, Roy and Dick shared a look. After this, there was no going back. They had to get Slade’s ring, break the spell and find a way to fight a sea demon. 

“Once we get on deck, we are going to be found pretty quickly. You leave the fighting to me, and you get that ring.” 

Dick nodded, the two of them sharing a last smile before he began to climb. Once he was on deck, he ducked behind a few barrels and hid from the oncoming guards. He couldn’t risk the chance of them being under Slade’s spell like Victor and Kyle were. 

Quietly, he crept through before he came upon the large open deck where the wedding was taking place. 

“If anyone should object to this union, speak now or forever hold your peace.” 

It was now or never, Dick took a deep breath and ran. Before the guests, you or Slade could process what was happening, Dick dove and tackled Slade to the ground. 

“What the– you!” Slade growled and kicked Dick off of him before straightening out his suit. “You don’t know when to accept that you’ve lost do you?” 

Dick only grinned, with a cockly tilt to his head as he rose to his feet. Behind him, he heard a load of commotion, sparing a glance back to see a variety of sea creatures finding themselves on board to cause chaos and stop the guards from reaching him. 

Hopefully, Roy made it alright. 

Slicking his hair back, Slade grinned a smarmy grin. “You can’t just leave well enough alone, can you? You had the perfect life, but you had to have more. Now look where that’s gotten you.” 

Dick glanced at his right hand, and sure enough there it was. A ring with an unnatural blue stone on it.  Standing up straight, Dick clenched his fist. He had to stop him, time wasn’t on his side and he only had so much of it before the sun set. 

“Dick catch!” 

Looking to his left, he saw Roy tossing him a sword. Diving to catch it, Dick turned back to Slade barely reacting to his attack in time, blocking his sword with his. 

“Seems our young prince has learned a few things, but you won't win this, kid. No one has ever beaten me, and you won’t be the last to lose.” 

Dick glared before pushing him back, gaining his balance before their duel began. 

Slade was the better swordsman, Dick barely able to hold his own. Ducking a slash to his throat, Dick grabbed a vase and threw it at him unaware of others around him. Slade’s attacks were relentless, Dick keeping up the defense. 

Slowly, Slade had backed him to the edge of the boat before disarming him, pressing the blade to his throat, gripping the front of his shirt as he dangled him overboard. 

“You know, I was going to use you to get Bruce to hand over everything to me. But you’re too much of a nuisance to be kept alive, guess I’ll send you back in pieces.” 

Slade raised his blade, to bring it down on Dick who tried desperately to hold back his wrist but his strength was waning. 

Suddenly there was a crash, and water and roses came down around Slade’s head stunning him for a few moments. Looking behind him, Dick saw Tara there, with vase shards in her hands. 

“That’s for trying to hurt my friend.” 

Taking his moment, Dick pushed out of Slade’s hold and grabbed the ring off his hand. The second it was off, Dick felt a rush of wind around him with the sound of distant voices among it. 

A soft blue light rose out of the ring, it swirling around him in the air. The more Dick listened, he realized it was his own voice he heard. 

 “The toughest of sharks, through the darkest of depths.” 

“You look tired Timmers, why don’t you get some rest?” 

 “You what, Bruce? You decided to marry me off without so much as telling me, let alone asking if I wanted to marry her?” 

“You and I both know Bruce is never going to change his mind. I love Kori, but we are just friends.”

“I want you to make me human.”

You watched, your vision coming into focus with the scene in front of you. The black haired man–no Dick, was caught in a whirlwind and...

Why were you in a wedding dress, and why didn’t you remember how you got there?

Suddenly, the blue light went into Dick and the wind fanned out around everyone leaving Dick standing there with a wide eyed look. 

“Dick?”

At your voice, he quickly turned around. “Y/N?”

Dick almost jumped at the sound of his own voice, before he threw his sword and the now black ring aside and ran to you. Meeting him halfway, you ran into his arms as he wrapped them around you tightly. 

“Oh my god, Dick you’re talking!” 

“Y/N, I’m so sorry. I did something incredibly stupid and–” 

“Dick, whatever you did it’ll be okay I promise.” 

Dick cupped your face making you look at him. “No Y/N, you don’t understand. I’ve been trying to tell you this entire time–”

You ran your hands over his chest meeting his eyes. “Tell me what?” 

“Y/N, I’m not from here. I’m–” 

Dick was cut off by a loud crack of thunder before he began to feel his weight get heavier. Hitting the deck with a loud thud, you watched with wide eyes as scales formed on his face, and where his legs used to be was now a large massive, blue tail flapping against the deck. 

Kneeling down beside him, you couldn’t believe what you were seeing. Dick was a merman, you’re merman from all those secret meetings. How did you not put it together, all the signs were there from the moment he appeared on the beach barely clothed and unable to walk properly. 

“Dick, how did you–” 

There was a low chuckle behind you. Turning to look, you saw your almost husband rise to his feet. 

“You’re too late, kid,” he grinned, picking up the discarded ring. 

Dick looked out to the horizon and his blood ran cold. The sun had set, he lost. Dick now was a slave to the sea demon, for all eternity.

Taglist: @offendedfishnoises @littleredwing89 @restwellsoon @bluejay-the-geek @niggxrette @udiudijaye

[heather1815]

Day 3 Aleheather week 2024

Day three, November 13th - Obsession/Therapy

Create something that shows obsession between Aleheather OR some form of therapy for Aleheather.

I decided to go for a deep dive into Alejandro's thoughts back in World Tour. Enjoy!

Alejandro was in distress to say the least. He never felt this way before. He wasn’t supposed to! Everything had been going according to plan thus far in the game. One by one his fellow competitors fell for his wit and charms and were knocked out of the ring. Easy as pie. But he could have never foreseen the one obstacle standing in his way from a total landslide win.

A spunky little minx with cold, slate eyes that dared defy him every step of the way.

And while Alejandro could handle her the best of times, she did the one thing nobody has ever managed to pull off. She got under his skin. She played, seduced, bested, and tempted him until he felt Eros’ arrow pierce him through the back and into his heart, and he knew, the instant she cornered him in the cargo hold with her fiery disposition that he fell in love with her.

This was not in his cards, and that made Alejandro stumped on what to do.

He could still play her, try and get her kicked out of the game. But the stakes were so much higher now. Alejandro wasn’t after just the money now. He wanted her, too.

Heather started out as just an amusing plaything for him. Someone for him to best along the way and show his superiority. But somewhere along the way she managed to sneak through his defenses and steal his heart. Alejandro greatly admired her unyielding spirit, brutal honesty, cunning, and alluring beauty. How can he not? She was his perfect match. A worthy rival. If someone was going to take him down it would be her for sure.

And that’s why Alejandro had to formulate a plan to get rid of her quickly. How can he get both the money and the girl in one fell swoop?

Heather had to go. That was unavoidable by now. She was becoming far too distracting for his own good. She was a weakness he cannot afford to have. Heather was way too irresistible when she was flustered, and it made it hard for Alejandro to hold back from teasing her every time he saw her. Alejandro would be sad to see her go. It would’ve been fun to compete against her in the finale, but he wasn’t going to take any chances.

The hard part is taking her down while also simultaneously winning her over. Heather would never accept being bested. If he boots her off he is losing any chance he might’ve had with her for sure. Alejandro needs to find a way to play smarter, not harder.

Perhaps he is looking at the situation at the wrong angle. What if he made it seem as though her elimination was out of his hands? If Alejandro made it seem as though he were her ally instead, he could get into her good books, while also pulling the strings in the background to pave the way for her elimination. He could exempt himself from all guilt and make himself look good in the process. She would have no reason to hate him then! Maybe this way, when he reached the finale he could profess his feelings for her and she won’t be so quick to turn him down. Alejandro and everyone in the cast knew she had a crush on him. Heather was just stubborn about it. 

Either way, Alejandro is winning this game. He is going to get the million dollars and Heather will be his one way or another!