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redhairedwolfwitch · 3 years ago

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Doctor Y/n - Residency - 27 - Grey's Anatomy x Fem!Reader

It was very rare to spend a day off by doing anything that wasn't sleeping or house chores.

This meant you'd never actually seen some areas of Seattle, including the Space Needle.

"Y/n... we should get up, if we want to go to the Space Needle today..." Leah whispered, trying to stir you from your slumber in her arms.

"Urf... good morning." Your voice was croaky as you said your first words of the day, shuffling slightly so you could look Leah in the eye.

"Hi..." You murmured as Leah smiled down at you.

"I'm going to go shower. You can join me, as long as you don't bump your head on the tiles again." Leah announced, smiling to herself as she felt your eyes watching her form as she walked to the bathroom.

///

"We totally missed that press conference about Riggs and Grey saving those people on the plane." You realised as the two of you began to head back from visiting the Space Needle.

"Well, we were a little distracted. Plus, we sort of saved a life at the Space Needle-"

"We diagnosed an asthma attack." You deadpanned as Leah chuckled, nodding as she realised it didn't really compare.

"Yeah, that's not as wild, but... Steph just texted me about a stomach full of worms?" Leah replied, showing you the text.

"Intestinal roundworm? That's different." You replied, chewing your lip as you weren't sure whether to be disgusted or intrigued by the fact something so rare had came into the ER.

"Do you think we could go in and watch-"

"Watch the surgery?" Leah finished your sentence, leaving the two of you to nod before getting ready to head to the hospital.

///

"Are those worms?" Warren's voice caught your attention, leading you to hurry towards the OR with Leah behind you.

"That's a lot of worms." You exclaimed as you and Leah slipped in behind Warren and Hannah. Your focus on the surgery to remove the worms meant that you didn't see how Hannah glanced between you and Leah.

"Are they taking pictures and measuring the worms?" Leah realised, leaving you to gasp.

"Yes! Steph's having fun too. Oh my god, do you think it could break a record? Ohh, god, yeah, that's- it's getting gross now... and Joey is missing this!" You retorted whilst Leah was grimacing at the amount of worms being removed from the patient's body.

///

"Josephine Wilson. Strong in ortho, plastics and not a bad head for neuro, actually. Her outcomes are excellent." Minnick announced after glancing over Jo's file.

"Yeah, she rallied. She had a tough year, personally." Webber added, leaving Minnick to admit she never would have known.

"Stephanie Edwards. She's expressed a clear interest and talent for neuro. She could write whatever ticket she wants. She's a superstar." Minnick continued, leaving Webber to nod.

"Very driven."

"She will make us proud." Bailey added to Webber's comment.

"Leah Murphy, very clear drive towards cardio." Minnick continued leaving Webber to nod.

"She's come a long way."

"Y/n S/n, an even split between ortho and cardio, outcomes are outstanding." Minnick stated, leaving Webber to nod.

"Torres knew back when S/n was an intern that she had a knack for orthopaedics."

"Benjamin Warren." Minnick began, passing Bailey the file.

"Well, say what you want to say." Bailey stated, realising that Minnick was holding back.

"Warren's a utility player, good anywhere you put him."

"That's true." Webber agreed, waiting for Minnick to continue.

"He tends to play it safe. He goes for the easy cases, easy diagnosis. He lays back. No risks."

"Ben Warren? Have you seen his file?" Webber asked, removing his glasses and putting them in his pocket as Bailey gave the file back to Minnick, arguing her husband has made risky moves before.

///

"You talk to Wilson a lot?" DeLuca asked Steph, leaving Steph to pause.

"Uh daily, but Y/n does more. Why?"

"She and Karev. Do you think they're back together?" DeLuca asked, leaving Steph to frown until she realised.

"Just do yourself a favour, that's all I'm saying. Maybe hang out with Y/n if you want to play it safe, too." Steph explained, leaving DeLuca to frown.

"Hang out with Y/n? She likes girls."

"You two are friends, right? That's important, Y/n doesn't really make friends easily, and it's healthier than pining after Jo." Steph replied, leaving DeLuca to look confused before remembering the task at hand, helping patients.

///

"Steph! Hey, Steph! Wait up!" You shouted, running past Minnick as you chased after Steph. The smashed tablet lay on the ground as you found Steph.

"Hey, hey, breathe, just take a breath." You instructed, leaving Steph to sigh as she pushed you away.

"I need to tell Bailey I wasn't aiming for his head." She stated before walking away, leaving you to sigh, your hands on your waist as you processed what had happened.

///

Joey: DeLuca was about to ask me out

Braces: what did you say?

Joey: I asked him not to say it

Braces: that explains the 'was about to'

Joey: are you at home tonight or the hospital?

Braces: hospital, I have two surgeries tomorrow morning with an hour between them

///

Steph: I have to go to counselling

Y/n: for what? Are you okay?

Steph: my privileges were revoked, can you get Brody to watch my patients?

Y/n: sure, anything you need.

///

Waking up at 5am to prep for day wasn't the easiest or funnest thing in the world.

Surprisingly, it wasn't awkward talking to Hannah about Steph's patients, but her asking about you and Leah? Deer in headlights, but she was glad you were happy, apparently.

Steph had messaged you after a week of counselling that she would talk to Webber about coming back too.

"Edwards is coming back?" DeLuca's voice had you almost drop the tablet you were holding, leaving you to whip around to greet him.

"Potentially." You brushed him off, saying you had to check the OR board as you spotted Jo.

"You doing okay?" You asked as you hurried over to the coffee cart, pausing as Jo put her coffee down, immediately launching herself the short distance to you. You were still for a moment before hugging her back, feeling the tension leave Jo's shoulders as she pressed her face into your shoulder.

"Better?" You murmured, kissing the crown of her head as she stirred from your arms.

"A bit... might need more hugs." Jo admitted, leaving you to nod.

"I have forty-five minutes before I have to scrub in on a valve replacement with Riggs, so I can hug you some more if you want." You replied, feeling Jo hum in response.

///

"People need to get busy where god intended. Parking lots, because it's flat." Bailey announced, leaving you to pause as Leah quirked a brow.

You were quick to shrug at her before realising you needed to scrub in soon.

"Gotta go scrub." You stated, feeling Leah's gaze on you as you hurried up to the OR.

///

You were exiting a patient's post-op room when Leah ran over to you.

"You are okay? Have you seen Steph?" Leah immediately asked, leaving you to frown.

"Not since I saw her wheeling a patient around-"

"The patient's a rapist, Steph's in danger and Avery can't find her." Leah explained, leaving your face to fall.

"Code orange, hospital will be going onto lockdown, we need to move!" You stated, immediately opening your phone to call Jo.

"Crap, it's voicemail! Joey, where are you? Steph's missing and so is the rapist, are you safe? Have you seen Steph? Call me back as soon as you get this, I'm safe with Leah, we're near the coffee cart, heading down to reception, please call me back!"

///

"Were those gun shots?" Leah startled, whilst you froze, recognising the sound.

"No, that's an explosion. Code red!" You exclaimed as the fire alarms began to go off.

"Doors are unlocked!"

"We have a multiple alarm fire on floors five and six, from the service elevators east. And we are concerned with structural damage on that floor." The firefight announced.

"We're diverting all incoming traumas." Webber added.

"Patients in immediate or impending danger need to be evacuated first. Unaffected areas: the ER, radiology, nursery, day-care - they stay put. We have to prioritise." Bailey explained, checking over her list.

"Firefighter Caroll here will be directing you to the most urgent areas." Webber instructed, leaving you and Leah to nod.

"Yeah, and, uh the woman with her arm in the air over there is Doctor Kepner. She is setting up a holding area?"

"Outside by Parking Lot 1." April explained as Bailey directed everyone's attention to her.

"By Parking Lot 1, take evacuated patients to her. She is in charge." Bailey finished

"And if your patients can walk, they can transport themselves." Meredith interjected.

"Thank you, Doctor Grey. Do not be a hero. Okay? If they can walk, let them walk, carry the rest. The elevators are not working, do not try and use them." Webber replied as Bailey told you all to work fast but work safe.

"Chief! Chief! I think Steph might be on the fire floor with the rapist." You hurried after Bailey, who immediately nodded.

"Lord, don't make me have to tell Katherine Avery I burnt her hospital to the ground." Bailey prayed before getting to work.

///

"My daughter, Erin, she's missing again!" Erin's father told Meredith.

"Leah, we've got a code pink too!" You murmured as you and Leah worked on evacuating patients whilst you waited for Jo to call you back.

///

"Hey, we have a missing child-"

"We have people looking for the missing eight year old girl-" The cop began, leaving you to almost glare.

"And a missing resident, Stephanie Edwards, last scene with the rapist before the lockdown and explosion." You stated, leaving the cop to nod and immediately start radioing and co-ordinating with the firefighters.

///

"Braces! You okay?" Jo shouted, running over as she spotted you helping a patient onto a gurney in the parking lot.

"I need a minute, it's smokey..." You wheezed, feeling Jo squeeze your shoulder before you looked around.

"Are you okay? Have you seen Steph? She's been missing since before the fire, along with the rapist." You replied, leaving Jo to freeze.

"I'm okay. I haven't seen Steph, did you tell the cops?"

"Yeah, yeah, I did." You answered, letting out a breath as you tried to ignore how much your lungs ached at the smoke you'd inhaled whilst evacuating, plus the running up and down flights of stars to evacuate patients.

///

"Chief, any word on Edwards? Nobody's seen her since the lockdown. I told Minnick to tell the cops." Jackson asked Bailey.

"Minnick, what did the cops say about Edwards-"

"Oh my god, I forgot-" Minnick realised, leaving Bailey's face to drop to shock.

"Cops are looking, I told one. They're looking for Steph and the missing eight year old." You informed Bailey, leaving her to almost hug you.

"Thank god you were here, S/n." Bailey replied, but you just shook off their praise, looking at Minnick with a 'wtf' look.

///

"S/n, with me!" April called you over, watching as you sprinted at the sight of a burned Stephanie Edwards on the gurney.

"Oh my god..." You murmured, setting up an IV line as Jackson and April began to look at the extent of her injuries.

"S/n, are you alright?" Maggie began, spotting the burn scars on your arm.

"Remember how I told you about the burning bus? It was Y/n and Jackson who ran to save the child, those are the burns Y/n got from it." April explained, leaving you to clear your throat nervously.

"Can I wait nearby for when Steph wakes up?"

///

"It'll be a while before you step into an OR..." Webber stated, leaving Steph to let out a whimper.

"Actually, about that. I've spent my whole life in hospitals. My whole life, and - I think I need to see everything that's not inside of a hospital. I need to travel, and explore, and hike, and, and breathe, and breathe, breathe real air. So deep, I need to breathe it all in. Away from the monitors and the blood, and the, and the sterile gowns, away from saving other people's lives. I want my own, it's time, it's time I live my own." Steph breathed in sharply, her body rushing with pain as the morphine hadn't been adjusted yet.

"You changed my life, Doctor Webber. You have. You, you taught me how..." Steph groaned before chuckling at the pain, "you taught me how to take my past and find my path. Thank you. Thank you. I think I found it." Steph thanked Webber with tears in her eyes.

"Which means?" Webber prompted, but deep down, he already knew.

"Which means I quit. Can you let Y/n in? She's clawing at the door like a cat." Steph requested, leaving Webber to nod to you.

"DeLuca, turn that morphine up, as high as it'll go please, Y/n, you better be quick." Steph chuckled, leaving you to pause.

"Well, you better keep in touch with me, y'know. I want to see all the photos from your travels, and your explorations and hikes. I'm going to miss you, Steph. Thank you for everything, you're a badass and the best resident in our class, don't tell Joey or Leah I said that, okay?" You bid your farewells to Steph as she shuddered through the pain, leaving you, Webber and DeLuca to wait as the morphine set in.

"Gonna miss, miss you too, Y/n. We'll call, okay?" Steph shuddered, leaving you to nod before shushing her, telling her to save her breath and focus on fighting through the pain.

///

Tags: @nnightskiess @emskisworld @multifandomlesbianic

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goggles-mcgee · 4 years ago

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Too Late: Tom & Sabine (Commission for miner249er)

This is a sequel to Revolt of the Akuma, also a commission from @miner249er this will be multichaptered!

Summary: Sequel to Revolt of the Akuma. How Paris and everyone there deals with Marinette’s akumatization and the many things born from it.

Previous Work Next Chapter

Business was slow but that somehow became the normal for Tom and Sabine, at first they resented it, they truly were busy bodies and they loved to work, needed to work, but then Marinette was akumatized and disappeared. Their baby girl was gone and it felt like there truly was nothing they could do about it. The worst part was they hadn’t even realized she was the akuma at first, they didn’t know things at school had been so bad that Hawkmoth was able to take advantage of their little Baguette’s emotions, and they hadn’t been there to help her through it. Their days seemed routine now, they would wake up at 3 AM instead of their regular 4 AM because of the guilt and the nightmares, they would prep the kitchen then Tom would start on the bread with his father Roland helping out since everything had taken its toll on Tom and he started to become forgetful in things to do with the bakery, even his timing was off. Meanwhile Sabine would attempt to do her morning meditation. The meditation was never successful nowadays because she truly could not clear her mind or calm her heart and memories of Marinette both good and bad would surface and she would be thrown into a fit of sobs that Gina tried her best to help calm.

Roland learned the hard way that he no longer could hum his and his son’s song while making bread as it had reminded his son too much of Marinette and the larger man would break down in tears if he even heard the slightest bit of the song. He would call out for his daughter while hugging whatever he had in his hands close to his chest. Roland had never been the most affectionate of father’s, he wasn’t even affectionate with his wife, but when he broke down like that, Roland felt the urge to just hold his boy and comfort him. It pained him to see his son in so much pain, but Tom and Sabine were strong people and they picked themselves up in order to get through the day.

Well, they tried their best and really that’s all anyone expected of the grieving parents. The day Marinette was akumatized and disappeared had been a normal day for them and maybe that’s what filled them with so much guilt. Their bakery was always busy and that was something they took pride in, before Marinette was born, the bakery had been their baby. They made it, helped and watched it grow, and they got to see it flourish. It was a lot of work and sometimes they would just get into this work zone where nothing else could grab their attention. Working with so many ovens and having to prepare so many things, there was only so much you could multitask before your brain felt full. Though those were only excuses, they had been neglecting their daughter and hadn’t realized it. Marinette knew how much they loved their bakery and how busy it could get and she always seemed to understand but now looking back on it maybe she had just pretended to be fine with it all. They tried their best to always ask how her day was when they would all have dinner together, but Tom would be the first to admit that sometimes even that just became routine rather than actual curiosity about their daughter’s day.

They had deluded themselves into believing that Marinette’s world was rose tinted, and they had taken comfort in the lie. Maybe they truly just wanted to believe that Marinette was their always smiling baby girl and she had no problems to worry about because it would be easier to deal with than the reality. When Marinette had become fascinated with fashion and that fascination grew, Sabine and Tom had been happy and supportive of their daughter, yes their hearts hurt a bit since they had hoped that maybe she would take over the bakery for them, but then they noticed how much time her designing took up. It hurt to think about now but Sabine could remember thinking that it was a blessing that Marinette was distracted and busy because it meant they had more time for the bakery. The more they remembered their shortcomings, the more they felt. They felt too much now after not being able to for so long because of Hawkmoth.

After having to shut down any and all negative emotions, finally being able to express them was like breaking a dam. Crying was never just a little tears, it was always these heart wrenching sobs and it could be for the littlest of things like a broken toy or missing a bus. Anger, now anger was the scariest in everyone's opinion, once someone started yelling it was like they couldn’t stop, they would break things, maybe hoping to see a butterfly, then there was the crying. Everything ended in tears. Anger came quickly nowadays, more so than sadness, though maybe they worked hand in hand now. Tom had found himself more on the depressed side of things, everything made him miss his little Baguette, sometimes he still expected to hear her footsteps racing down from her room and out the door with a shout because she was running late. Sabine on the other hand, everything just made her angry, every little thing. She would even snap at Tom but she would immediately apologize because she knew it wasn’t his fault. If anything she was angry at herself, angry at the school, at Hawkmoth, Hell, even at their bakery.

Some days she hated waking up to the work and the mingling, there were times where she was so close to just begging her husband to closing the shop for a while and taking a break or maybe closing it permanently. She hadn’t decided yet, but she just told herself to hold on, just hold on till their closing period or ‘vacation time’ as Marinette would say. Perhaps that was the reason why she wasn’t really giving it a serious thought, the whole giving up their boulangerie idea. It held memories, both good and heart-aching, of Marinette. Sabine would never talk about those memories with anyone but family now, but everytime she was working she couldn’t help but look over at their ‘Artisan Boulanger’ sticker at their storefront that was slightly crooked because Tom had been putting it on when Sabine had told him she was pregnant and he had slipped in shock and the sticker was forever a bit crooked. She couldn’t help the way her hands would clench over a box or bag when giving a customer their things, Marinette had designed them and each time she handed them over it felt like she was giving away a little piece of her daughter each time.

“Have a wonderful day.” Sabine muttered to the latest customer of the day not even caring that her voice came out monotone.

“You as well! Merci Madame.” The young boy who had come in thanked her but Sabine just watched impassively as he hurried over to his friend. “Dude can you believe it? We get to eat pastries that the Protector ate!”

“Correction, we get to eat pastries that Ladybug ate.” His friend responded.

“That hasn’t been proven yet. That’s all just speculation man.” The first boy laughed as they made their way to the door and Sabine had to take in a deep breath or else she might have thrown something. How dare they come into their shop and talk about their daughter as though she wasn’t a person. How dare they treat her akumatization as some spectacle for them to worship and admire. How dare them all.

“Speculation? You are sorely mistaken bro, look at all the evidence! I’ll send you all the links then you’ll see.”

“Yeah, whatever.” Sabine just stared at the young men even after they had left until she no longer could make them out. This. This was why she no longer wanted the bakery, it no longer held the same joy it had when Marinette was there and Sabine and Tom hadn’t even known it until she was gone.

“Bonjour Madame.” Sabine was ripped from her musings by another customer walking in, a regular in fact, Mlle Josephine Bernard. She had been coming to their boulangerie since they first opened and had always been very kind to Marinette. In fact, she commissioned Marinette a few times as well.

“Bonjour Joséphine." Sabine greeted with a small smile, the most she could manage.

“One rhubarb tart please and a pain de campagne. I’m making stew tonight and my fiance loves when I pair it with your bread.” Joséphine said with a kind smile as she took out her money and change and placed it on the saucer on the counter.

Sabine couldn’t help the soft chuckle that escaped, Joséphine always had exact change and honestly it was a welcome habit to Sabine. “Are you going to share the tart for dessert? It is small, are you certain you would like just one?”

“Oh no, that’s just for me. Our little secret okay?”

“Your secret is safe with me.” Sabine promised as she swiftly gathered Joséphine’s order, once she made her back to the counter to hand everything to the woman she was caught off guard when said woman placed her hand on top of Sabine’s.

“How are you holding up Sabine?”

First instincts were yelling at her to lie, to say everything was fine despite everyone knowing it was not, but another part of her was yearning for reassurance that wasn’t from her husband or his parents. “I...I’m trying. But it’s hard. It’s hard when people come in and talk about my daughter as if she’s this thing that is more than human, more than just a teenager. They don’t even say her name anymore. Tom and I have had to move and lock away her things because...because people have broken in and stolen her belongings in order to steal or collect them. The police have been no help on that front. They told us to just get better locks. As if it is our fault that people are breaking in.” Sabine took in a shaky breath before continuing, “We get people who leave “gifts” instead. They are letters to Tom and I, accusing us of abusing Marinette...of neglecting our baby. They seem to think we don’t care about what happened to her Joséphine. We’ve had to replace some windows after one incident with a rock and some spray paint.”

“Oh my goodness Sabine! I’m so sorry. You and Tom don’t deserve any of that.” Joséphine gasped out, but Sabine wanted to argue that maybe they did. “That is just cruel and disgusting. If you two ever need anything please don’t hesitate to ask, or if you just need to talk or get out of the house for awhile, call me okay? Things...things will get better.”

“Merci Joséphine...maybe I’ll take you up on that. Enjoy your treats and tell me how Stephan likes everything okay?” Sabine responded after a while.

“I will...I will keep you and Tom and Marinette in my prayers. Merci Madame.” Joséphine said before leaving.

Sabine’s movements felt robotic as she walked over to the door, locked it, and flipped the sign letting everyone know they would be closing for lunch. It was a small mercy that they were already at the middle of their day. Thankfully Roland and Gina would have lunch ready for them, they had been so helpful through everything but sometimes Sabine couldn’t help but feel like even they blamed Tom and Sabine for what happened to Marinette. Sabine knew how much Gina adored Marinette and she could see how much getting to know Marinette had meant to Roland, to have their granddaughter gone so all of a sudden, they too were grieving in the way they best knew how. They parented and distracted themselves with helping out Tom and Sabine as much as they could, that would be why they were staying with them. She knew how Roland was about them being late to lunch so Sabine made her way to the kitchen to see Tom baking but it looked like he was doing everything on autopilot, she wouldn’t be surprised if he hadn’t even heard Joséphine come in.

“Tom. Sweetheart. It’s lunchtime, let’s go eat with your parents.” She mumbled as she placed a soft hand on Tom’s shoulder stopping him from decorating the last of the cupcakes he had made.

“Oh...Lunchtime already?”

“Yeah. Here let me put those on display then we’ll head on up.” She took the tray of cupcakes gently from him and went out to the front again to put them on display where she saw several people looking in their shop. She decided to just ignore them...and the camera flashes, though maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to pull the security gates down just while they were upstairs for lunch. In fact that’s exactly what she did. “Ready to head up dear?”

“Hmm? Oh yeah, ready. Let’s go eat. It’s been a long morning.” Tom said with a small smile. She felt like it was more for her benefit but she still appreciated it all the same. Once they went upstairs they went through the motions of eating lunch and if someone asked Tom and Sabine what they had eaten, they wouldn’t have been able to answer, but they gave the obligatory remarks of, “This is so good thank you,” and,” So good. Maybe you can make it again sometime.” Maybe Roland and Gina saw through them, they probably had and the fact they made no comment about it truly was a blessing. As a way to avoid conversation if they needed to Sabine turned on the television and it just so happened to be the news.

“And as promised viewers video footage of The Protector in action. This footage was donated to us by an anonymous source who had happened upon The Protector out in the open when she was akumatized. I want to warn everybody, the footage may be shocking to some viewers. Roll the clip please.” Nobody spoke. How could they? Sure they knew people still had some weird fascination with their daughter and granddaughter’s akumatization but the news stations had stopped reporting on it or at least they thought they had. Nadja certainly hadn’t given them a heads up about this little ‘special’ of theirs like she had done previously, and yet here they were watching her and Alec talking about their daughter and they wouldn’t even say her name. She has a name. Sabine robotically pressed on the remote to see more info on the program and had to swallow back bile, ‘The Protector Really Paris’s Protector?’ that was the title and already Sabine could feel her anger rising. She didn’t bother reading the summary, she already knew what this special was about.

She watched as her daughter, her baby girl, bent down in a patch of butterfly bushes crying her eyes out, sobbing out her hurt for anyone and everyone to hear. Her baby, even in the distance of the camera, looked so angry, so torn, she should never had to have felt like that. The video continued on with this person slowly zooming in on Marinette and Sabine had to wonder why this person was recording at all. She could never understand people’s obsessions with filming akumas, at least many filmed from a distance other than Alya and sometimes Nadja but it was always after the fact the person was akumatized. Maybe that’s why this particular video was bothering her so much, this person, whoever they were, they were filming her daughter breaking down because they knew at any moment she would be akumatized or, and the idea made her sick to her stomach, they were hoping she would be akumatized. They were hoping for a chance to have a video go viral, maybe they weren’t but that’s the only thing that Sabine could rationalize why they would be filming her teenage daughter in the first place.

The video was a bit shaky as it seemed like the person filming didn’t want to be seen even though there was no one else there. Sabine hadn’t realized she started crying until she felt the tears hit her hand. She hated seeing Marinette in pain and her not being able to comfort her. She, her husband, and his parents watched with bated breath as they saw an akuma finally fly into frame and slowly make its way towards Marinette. Sabine wanted to shout out a warning, do something, but she knew it was pointless and that just made the tears fall more. Everyone watching could tell that Marinette hadn’t noticed the akuma at all as she was still sobbing and wailing, Sabine could feel Tom squeeze her hand and she squeezed his right back. Then the akuma landed and merged but that wasn’t the shocking part, they had to watch their daughter stare at nothing with too-wide eyes and the familiar symbol of Hawkmoth over her face sit there as dozens...no, maybe hundreds of butterflies, white butterflies surrounded Marinette and landed on her body.

Then a bright light flashed, it was so unlike any akumatization anyone had seen, the butterflies were gone but if you looked closely at the fading light surrounding Marinette you could see the faint flutter of wings. Then she stood up, the Protector stood up. Sabine sobbed and not for the first time cursed at her daughters classmates, they had been around Marinette the most, they knew her daughter, she did everything for them and yet they treated her like that. To the point of akumatization. Sabine prayed that her little girl wasn’t actually Ladybug like it was speculated, even if it made sense, because that would mean her daughter had been suffering through more than just everything going on at school and really, Sabine wasn’t ready to face all of that just yet.

“Now before we discuss everything in that video I will say we do have many more to share so stay tuned Paris!”

Next Chapter

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iphoenixrising · 3 years ago

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DickTimWeek2021 Day 2

** Day 2: Time Loop | Jealousy | Stray AU

Welp. Time to break some hearts.

They’re laughing like assholes as they climb through Timmy’s penthouse windows.

“Did you see that thug punch himself in the face?”

“That’s the right way to get out of an ass beating by the Batman.”

Tim, still in Red Robin, doesn’t even bother, just lets his knees buckle so he can slide down to the floor and laugh until tears are rolling down the dominio still plastered on his face.

He’s riding the concussion train with

(J)

Josephine and she’s not as bad as some of them are.

Dick at least tosses the gloves and gauntlets before hauling Timmy’s bruised ass up off the floor, throwing the arm around his shoulders.

“C’mon, you butt. Really Timmy, just laying here in your suit? Alfred would be appalled.”

“S’why I don’t go to the Manor much anymore.”

“Ooh, I’m telling. You’re going to be in so much trouble,” as he gets Tim down the hallway to the bathroom.

“Y-You can’t! You’re the oldest! Dami’s supposed to be the tattle-tale!”

“Nu-uh. As the oldest, I can do whatever the hell I want.”

And does he tell on Timmy? You bet your ass he does.

It’s nice when Alfred can look at someone else in the family with extreme disappointment.

Tim comes by the Manor the day Alfred video chats him, shuffles down to the Cave behind the butler and absolutely sticks his tongue out at Dick’s smarmy grin.

His apartment is a literal mess and Dick can’t be bothered to do much more than flop on the overstuffed couch with a groan.

Still in his uni from the day shift, he’s too bruised and battered and tired to even think of suiting up for the night. He’s been running himself ragged for two months, the day and night shifts blending together along with the usual bullshit of daily human life, and he desperately needs a night of terrible television, junk food, and snuggles.

Like he’d been reading the room, Timmy walks out of his bathroom, towel around his shoulder and hair just this side of damp.

“Hey, you made it home in one piece.” Tim’s long fingers in his hair literally pulls a noise out of Dick he can’t ever remember making.

“Yeah, I drove down because you looked like death warmed over when we talked last weekend. Luckily for you I went grocery shopping, did a few loads of your laundry, and cleaned up a little so you don’t have to worry about housework.”

“I love you. Have I told you that recently? Like, so, so much–” is muffled by the couch cushions, but he thinks Tim can probably still make it all out.

“Mmhm, I know,” and the gentle scratching against his scalp doesn’t stop, and Dick goes a little boneless with it. “I even brought my Roku so we can binge watch terrible television while you eat something more substantial than cereal. Alfred is going to be so proud of you.”

A pat to his head and Timmy is off, slinging his towel on the rack, turning on the shower again to make sure it’s nice and hot for all those bruises and contusions.

He’s no-nonsense about picking up his previous mentor and best friend, literally stripping him down and manhandling him in the shower after a low whistle at the span of blue/black across Dick’s chest and ribs, the scrapes across his back and shoulders.

The first aid kit tackle box makes an appearance because Tim plans for literally everything ever, and Dick finds himself sitting on his sink wearily while his injuries are meticulously treated.

He knows he eats something super tasty with meat and vegetables, his belly full, before Tim pulls him down on the couch and lets Dick lay against his chest, between his legs to sleepily float while watching God-awful B-movies.

It’s the most relaxing weekend he’s had in a while.

Dami sneers at Tim, arms crossed over his chest, the expression on his face begging Tim to try to deny it.

The third Robin however, is looking over at Dick with horror that the big secret is finally out in the open.

“Th-that isn’t– it’s not–” Tim fumbles desperately, “he’s been my big brother forever, that’s it!”

“Tt. Grayson may be painfully oblivious, Drake, but the rest of us are detectives. Even Todd knows of your feelings and he rarely even comes to the Manor!”

Tim’s soul literally leaves his body.

Dick blinks, completely taken back, mouth open without anything coming out.

Damian raises his eyes skyward and prays for patients dealing with these two. “What I am saying,” he tries, he really is trying here, “is that you two must cease and desist this pointless–” vague hand wave– “pining for one another. It is getting to the point of absurdity. I demand you two either discuss your need for one another or take this ridiculous mooning elsewhere. The rooftops of Gotham is no place for this,” another hand wave, “utter nonsense.”

Tim’s mouth goes dry, subtly backing away to be closer to the Ducati’s waiting for tonight’s ride. He’s pretty sure he has enough energy left in his shaky knees to hop on one and be the fuck out of the Cave before his face literally bursts into flames.

But, well. Dick was Batman.

His strategic retreat is stomped into the ground by acrobatic leaps and a very well done joint lock to keep him from immediately taking off.

Dami scoffs at them on his way up the winding staircase. He stops Pennyworth on the way and turns the butler to return back into the Manor proper, citing those two needed time to figure themselves out.

After several weeks under deep cover, Nightwing wearily hacks into Titan’s Tower and makes his way through the maze of hallways until he hits a hidden panel.

Tim is sleeping on his desk, only one empty coffee mug at his workstation. Even dead in his boots, Nightwing can take a second just to look, just to sigh, just to enjoy how much every inch of this boy is his.

He journeys down the hall, flips the bed covers up, carries his sleeping partner in and tucks the blankets around him, a quickly there kiss to the top of messy, too-long hair. A shower in Tim’s perch literally makes everything in life a little less awful and exhausting, not enough for him to do much more than crawl in bed against Tim’s warm body and snuggle up close.

He gets breakfast in bed and blue-violet eyes looking at him with fondness rather than awe, gets coffee flavored kisses and a slow-paced back rub that continues down to his thighs and calves and feet. Later, he gets a date night in a nice restaurant and a sweet San Fran club scene for dessert. He gets to let loose and hold Tim’s body against him, to play them both until the gazes are intense and the low key UST between them makes other people on the dance floor give them space.

Witty banter is a primary weapon against megalomaniacal bad guys of any flavor. For some former Robins, it’s an art form.

Over the years, they’ve cultivated their dip and distraction to bounce off one another like a well-oiled vigilante machine.

It should have been a standard take-down because it’s not one of their more dangerous, deadly villains. It’s not one of the Rogue Gallery baddies. It’s not one of the mobster families, not one of the super powered groups come to call. It’s not someone with hordes of thugs and deadly science waiting to take them down.

It’s a simple B&E, just Nightwing talking it up to draw gunfire while Red Robin is creeping up from behind to get the last laugh.

It’s one of a thousand times they’ve done this.

It’s a guaranteed win.

It’s the last hour of patrol before they get to go back to Red’s penthouse and snuggle together, eat and show, probably have some fantastic sex before passing out.

The .45 shell, however, cuts through the suit, between armored plates.

Going after the running baddies is automatic, taking them down, zip ties, and viola. They’re ready for GCPD to pick-up, all kinds of gift-wrapped.

When N finally realizes Red isn’t with him, isn’t answering comms, isn’t waiting for him on the roof, he goes back inside. He hits up B for a ride in the big car in case he missed –

– anything.

The pool of blood around Red Robin is more than he can afford to lose, and Nightwing has been in the vigilante life for over twenty years, has been official with Red Robin for a little over two, has personal experience on how his Baby Bird can take a mostly-fatal beating and still keep moving. He’s seen Tim come close with the Clench, with horrifying injuries, with any of the many bad guys they fight holding him hostage.

Nightwing has seen him perform literal miracles.

And tells him so the entire time he’s got Red Robin up in his arms, carrying him through Gotham’s skyline to the waiting car, falling in with Red on his lap when the familiar hatch slides back, the tourniquet already applied before he even shot a grapple. The struggling pulse is enough of a concern to get it together.

And even if they all gather to strip off the suit, and now it’s on to get vitals back to an acceptable range. Even if the Bats cry overhead, even if the equipment is top notch in the Cave, even if Dick is still talking the whole time, and Alfred is keeping a cool head and Bruce is gripping a hand and Damian is standing at the ready to hand implements and Cass is biting her thumbnail while she hovers and Steph is moving from empty space to empty space around the gurney –

The consistent beep of the flatline cuts through it all.

The Titans make it for the service.

Each of them make a point to hug Dick for as long as possible, holding on tightly.

Bruce is silent and stoic, a little boy again when he has to watch someone else he loves being lowered into the cold, unforgiving ground. Another Robin taking a piece of his heart to the afterlife.

Steph is red-eyed, a ghost moving around to individual circles, listening to stories she might not have known.

Cass grips the coffin with bruised knuckles, her whole body wound tight as a string ready to snap. She doesn’t move the entire service, is already convinced leaving him to his own devices caused this whole thing. She doesn’t blame the thugs or Dick or Bruce. She blames the boy that never understood how much it all means.

Duke Thomas is back in Gotham, taking leave from the Outsiders to be here for the family that took him in after the Joker drove his parents insane. He hovers in the doorway to welcome mourners, direct them toward the book to sign-in, talks about Tim Drake with regular humans and other metas in disguise, accepts condolences with his throat tight and his eyes watery. He makes sure Dick has a bottle of water after the first hour, pats Damian’s shoulder, grips Bruce’s arm, weaves an arm around Cassandra’s back to give her a squeeze, obediently looks at the old pictures of Tim on Steph’s photo roll when she’s overcome and has to see that smile again.

In the back, Jason Todd wears dark shades and a clean black suit. Roy Harper is beside him, a hand on the broad back to keep him grounded, to keep the Pit rage at bay. If anyone knows how far Tim and Jason had come over the years, it’s the former Red Arrow. If anyone knows how much agony Jason is in at this moment, at another fallen brother, another Robin gone, if anyone had held the Red Hood while he screamed and cried and broke the utter fuck down, it’s Roy Harper.

Damian Wayne hovers right by Grayson’s side, silently supporting his first Batman, his first brother. Whenever Dick’s eyes start going hazy, glazing over, Damian gently grips a wrist to bring him back, allows fingers to lace through his own and tolerates the tight squeeze that obviously assists in grounding the oldest Robin.

(Later when the night is crowding grief-stricken Wayne Manor, Damian will be the one to open Grayson’s bedroom door, lift the covers to crawl in behind him, to wind both arms tightly. He will be the one to take the onslaught of grief, to be soaked in tears and snot, to listen to the broken, hoarse voice, to make soothing hums that ultimately mean nothing.)

Alfred Pennyworth quietly talks with the funeral director about the arrangements. Of course Master Timothy would want to be laid to rest with his parents, and the family appreciates all the support and ease of process as the deceased was an important part of the Wayne family.

When he gets a phone call, he firmly verifies the name on the tombstone is Timothy Jackson Drake-Wayne Grayson.

Exactly four days after the service, the Flash is staring at him helplessly, gripping Nightwing’s arm tight, “please, please, Dick, don’t do this. You can’t think this is the answer!”

He can barely hear Wally with the absolute destruction going on around them, the machine they’d inadvertently stumbled upon (which is a lie, Nightwing had been looking for it and the Flash basically caught him red handed).

“You know you aren’t going to be able to stop me.” Standing between the glowing portal and Wally, debris from overhead crashing down on them at intervals, Nightwing is at his peak stubborn, “no matter how fast you are.”

“You don’t understand what’s going to happen,” Wally yells desperately as the vacuum starts pulling at Nightwing’s other arm, pulling him into–

–the Speed Force.

“You don’t have the lightning, Dick, you won’t be able to get yourself out, and I won’t have any way of tracking you!”

The small smirk as the machine’s panel starts going haywire, lights blinking and readings off the charts, makes Wally’s heart clench hard in his chest, makes him try to dig in his heels, makes his stomach tremble.

“You have no idea how many times I’ve already done this, Wally. And I’ll do it as many times as it takes until I change everything.”

The pellet Nightwing palmed before the Flash grabbed his hand goes off the same time the machine hits the highest ratings and a low boom is followed up with an intense swirling suction, pulling the heroes closer to the portal’s surface.

The light grenade goes off without a hitch and the Flash has no choice but to let Nightwing go.

They’re laughing like assholes as they climb through Timmy’s penthouse windows.

#dicktimweek2021 #dicktim #dick grayson #tim drake #sad times #time loop #winter writes #my ficlet

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inkdemonapologist · 4 years ago

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Some of my doodles for Session Six of our Call of Cthulhu game!! We finally got back up with that potion-maker from Last Loop and tried to explain EVERYTHING to her, since she’s the one who seemed the most ready to believe us last time (Also, we saw her voluntarily possessed by a spirit at one point, so it seemed like it would be a good starting point to explain some of our problems).

This went.... chaotically, as there are 0 tells for who’s talking and everyone was very insistent on contributing to the conversation. The alive versions of Sammy and Joey mostly stayed out of this mess.

ALSO!! WE’VE PICKED UP SOME NEW INSANITIES! Henry has a mania that compels him to draw/document everything he learns (in case we lose memories or loop again), Sammy still has the mask thing, Joey’s picked up an obsession with symmetry after witnessing his body horrifically transformed by a corruption across half of it, and Sammy, after seeing the Star Pool lurker’s indescribably horrible non-ink-demon form, is filled with a terrified respect for it and has become strangely deferential. I DID NOT EXPECT SAMMY’S SANITY DROPS TO LINE UP SO PERFECTLY FOR CANON PROBLEMS,

Anyway, have some more out-of-context quotes!! Some of these are just conversation because imagining people trying to hold a conversation with three different voices coming out of “Henry” is my favourite thing now.

[Sammy is played by me, Joey is played by Boo (inkyvendingmachine), Henry is played by Maf (inkcryptid), and Thren (haunted-hijinxer) is our GM!]

[Sammy] *summarising* (So we're gonna run by Josephine and see if she has anything that maybe we should know, uh, based on our current predicament, which has gotten even more complicated than the previous time we talked to her, which hasn't happened yet!)

[Alive!Sammy] Is something wrong? [Henry] No! No, everything's fine. Let's go. [Alive!Joey] ...I don't think anything's been RIGHT for a while...

[Sammy] (Are we, as a, uh, unit -- do we have the mask on?)

[Ghost!Joey] There's... three of us in here? [Ghost!Sammy] Sure, that's a normal thing to say!

[GM] Josephine looks like she is trying to figure out what to say, but she is having... trouble. [Ghost!Joey] Have you ever had someone... hang out with you... during the festival? Like, kind of, possession? [GM] She raises an eyebrow, but nods, and says "Yes, that's part of my duty, as a leader of this religion." [Ghost!Sammy] Fantastic. That seems to be happening to us. [Ghost!Joey] We're not, exactly sure how we managed to get... in the past again... but we're -- *points with Henry's non-sketching hand over at the live ones* [Joey] Live!Joey just confusedly shrugs and sips his coffee. [GM] "...Uh, go back a minute."

[GM] "And you don't know how this happened?" [ghost!Joey] Not exactly? I -- [Henry] Sammy fell into a Star Pool, and Joey got killed, or, was a host for the cultists. [ghost!Joey] I don't know if I got killed, but, [Henry] Well, you looked goopy. [ghost!Sammy] I don't know what was going on with me, either; I still seemed to be running around. [Henry] Also very goopy.

[ghost!Joey] So, that's a confusing answer! Um. Let's pretend *points at alive!Joey* that he didn't listen to you, and he went up to the Star Pools anyway, without the potion, and then something happened up there that resulted in whatever is happening to us now, which included us losing our memories and waking up later as the same... entity, but we didn't know for a while, and.... uh... it looks like the last time we saw our bodies that weren't alive and human still, they looked... corrupted by the Star Pools. [ghost!Joey] Do you know what might've happened to cause all that? [GM] "...I think there's a lot to unpack there," she says.

[GM] And, indeed, one of them has turned up a pair of gloves! It's somewhat worn, but they don't have holes or anything. Though they might not match your ensemble. [Joey] As long as they match each other, that's fine! [GM] They do that. [Sammy] (I mean, Henry has-- not to rag on Henry's fashion sense, as a man who's worn nothing but the same shirt and suspenders for twenty years, but Henry doesn't have much of an ensemble going on, really.)

[chatting while Joey's player steps away for a moment] [Sammy] Sorry for making you guys deal with Alive!Sammy; Ghost!Sammy genuinely doesn't know how to argue for this. [Sammy] It's like, yeah I dunno! Sounds like a raw deal! [Henry] Henry also doesn't know how to argue for this, it's like, Hey! Do you want a whole bunch of awful, horrible, terrible memories? ....No? Oh. [Sammy] CANT IMAGINE WHY!! [Sammy] Like, please? I'd like my body back? ...it's your body, we'd be sharing it-- but not like this situation, uh, [Henry] Just please, take... I have... take Sammy back. [Sammy] Could you take this off of my hands, I'm really tired of dealing with it, [Henry] I love 'im. But I need a break. Please come take your lost.... self. [GM] Your wayward self. [Henry] Who's this sassy lost child. [Joey] *re-entering chat* Ah, we're talking about Sammy. [Sammy] OH MY GOSH.

[Henry] I ROLLED A ONE HUNDRED! [Sammy] Henry is VERY tired and distracted. [GM] Henry's sketching again. He was left unattended for a bit and he's sketching again. [Henry] Yup, [Sammy] *sputters* HE CAN'T BE LEFT UNATTENDED, WE'RE BOTH HERE [Joey] HE LITERALLY CAN'T!! [Sammy] THAT'S THE WHOLE PROBLEM!! SAMMY WOULD LOVE TO LEAVE HENRY UNATTENDED!!!

[Sammy] Is the voice familiar? [Joey] Is it the Lurker's? [GM] A bit...? [Henry] A bit familiar or a bit like the Lurker's? [GM] ...Yes.

[ghost!Sammy] Joey, what do you think it was? [ghost!Joey] I think it has something to do with our situation, and perhaps the fact that-- [ghost!Sammy] "OUR SITUATION" doesn't really clear anything up, that could be a LOT of things right now!

[Sammy] Sammy doesn't want to be back in the actual time we belong in! He's dead in that one!

[Sammy] I guess it's also Alive!Sammy's turn. I don't, uh, [Sammy] ...there's too many Sammys, [Joey] (Alive!Sammy just goes WHAT THE FUCK) [Sammy] Yeah, I don't think he's prepared, when he turns the corner, to find cultists with swords, and Henry immediately drawing a gun and screaming at them; I don't think he's prepared for any of this, or has a game plan for what to do in case this happens, other than just, yelling, “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” [GM] at Henry, or the cultists? [Sammy] ....BOTH????

[Joey] Does Joey know of any way to interrupt magic? [GM] Injuring someone is a good, classic way to do that.

[GM] So, you can do an attack, whether it's with the gun or with your fists! [Sammy] *flipping through character sheet* I mean, I feel like I'm probably not just shooting him, I-- wHEN DID YOU ADD "DUSTPAN" TO MY WEAPONS???

[Sammy] The idea of Joey just continuously accidentally killing people is REALLY funny to me.

[Sammy] This is going MUCH better than the last time that we fought anybody! [Joey] Apparently Joey just needs to be really angry, and then my dice are like, “yeah, you can kill people.”

[GM] *flipping through the rules* Here we go, "Disrupted spellcasting, for example, if they are shot!" Well, okay then-- [GM] ......ohhh. [Sammy] Uh, [Henry] "Oh?" [GM] HM! ........ let me get a d8. [Henry] Concern...???? [Sammy] It's probably fine. It's... it's probably fine. [GM] ........ [GM] Uh..... huh. Well. That's an 8. [Sammy] On the d8. [GM] Yyyeah,..... you disrupted his, casting,,, it's not a serious spell so most of this stuff is not extreme, but I rolled an 8, and that says, [GM] "A mythos monster is accidentally summoned." [Sammy] WHAT?? [Henry] WHAT??? [Sammy] WHAT???? [Joey] *dying of laughter in the background* [Sammy] I DIDN'T KNOW THAT WAS AN OPTION??? OKAY!!! [GM] I didn't think it was, at this level of spell!! [Sammy] Remember when I said that this was going well? I NEED TO STOP SAYING THINGS.

[Joey] How is Sammy putting on the mask? [Sammy] With his.... hands...? [Joey] No, like, how is it laying on his head, [Sammy] OH.

[Joey] Ghost!Joey would like to turn it so it's like, in the middle of his head. But like, on forehead, so that they can still see. [Henry] (A fancy visor!) [Sammy] (...you can still see if it’s on the side...) [Joey] (Joey would really like it if we, put it in the middle.) [Sammy] (...I FORGOT YOU HAVE A SYMMETRY THING)

[GM] You felt, when Sammy and the cult leader were both giving the Lurker commands, that there was a kind of tug-of-war going on there, and it seems like the cult leader won that round. [Henry] Wait, we can give the Lurker commands? [Joey] We're allies. [Sammy] Yeah, we're the host. [Henry] Oh, um, [Sammy] Sammy asked it for help! It didn't, uh... this is how things always go for Sammy, so, I feel like this is correct.

[Sammy] (...Henry pulls out a gun, someone tries to grab him and he just bashes that person over the head, Joey tries to help by shooting this cult leader to stop him from casting a spell, and this horrible weird bendy monster is unleashed, Henry IMMEDIATELY kneels to this creature, and it starts listening to him, and he grabs the amulet and starts directing it to murder people after pulling the mask down over his face, so, yeah!! I can see that being pRETTY UNSETTLING actually!!)

[Joey] And I've already accidentally summoned a demon, somehow! [GM] This is just how Joey rolls, he just aCCIDENTALLY SUMMONS DEMONS, apparently! Even when OTHER PEOPLE are casting spells, Joey finds a way to accidentally summon a demon!

[Sammy] We do need those; those ARE our bodies running away,

[Lurker, when asked if he can shapeshift] It depends on the host! I didn't do this. It's pretty awesome, though! I feel like this is actually something that was designed to be this way, for the first time I can remember! Deliberate, you know what I mean? [Henry] “Yeah!” Henry says, not knowing what he means.

[Sammy] We're very focused on getting out of here. [Henry] We're channeling Wally Franks! [Sammy] NO! Don't channel Wally Franks! He didn't get outta there he just YELLED ABOUT IT, which is what WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW!! LET'S ACTUALLY GET OUTTA HERE!

[GM] You guys go around a corner that at least obscures you from immediate sight, though it's good the Lurker is as, uh...... [GM] ........ [GM] ........ [GM] ...uh, for lack of a better word, bendy as he is, [players explode with laughter] [GM] I TRIED, I couldn't think of anything else! [Sammy] NO I SAW THE GEARS TURNING IN YOUR HEAD

[GM] You have a small Bendy. [GM] He's blinking. [Henry] Henry is.... is having, a moment,

[Sammy] We're honoured you're joining us, but we really should get moving?

[Henry] Just let him ride on his shoulders like a kid, that'd be adorable! [Henry] Henry's having SO many emotions right now. He wants to be respectful, but also, oh my god, that's so cute?? and also my OC???? Oh my god??????

[GM] I don't think the Lurker is familiar with the concept of piggyback rides. I mean if he's asked I'm sure he's down for whatever, but, [Henry] Henry's gonna ask the Lurker if he wants to climb on his shoulders and ride. [GM] The Lurker thinks this is a FANTASTIC idea, because nobody has ever carried the Lurker around before!

[Alive!Sammy] Sammy's very pale. [Alive!Joey] You have a... Bendy now, Henry...? [Henry] Uh, kinda! This is the Lurker. [Alive!Joey] “The Lurker”? [Henry] The giant monster? He's... small now, so he's not a giant monster.

[Alive!Sammy] Henry WHAT is going on? Or, whoever you are right now, [Henry] It is me; look, I've been letting the others talk because I have no idea what's going on. I don't know... I just want to get everyone out of here alive. [GM] (What a Henry thing to say) [Alive!Sammy] *snarking* Well, we're alive SO far! Maybe don't run at people with swords, in the future? Might help with that. [Henry] That was Sammy. That wasn't me. [Joey] (*laughing* "By the way, that thing you were lecturing me about? That wasn't me, THAT WAS YOU!")

[GM] The Lurker settles down when it is clear that the hug is not a threat.

[Henry] (I AM LOSING IT! I hope you know what you've done to me!) [GM] (I was not expecting this either but here we are!!) [Henry] (Maybe it was my idea. I can't believe I've done this.)

[Joey] Alive!Joey at some point shows Bendy how to hold the pencil. [GM] He says "Oh, hey, neat!" and has an easier time. [Henry] Oh my god, cute? [Sammy] (*losing it in the background*) [Joey] I was just thinking that if he's sitting next to Henry, and he watches the Lurker fumble with the pencil enough, he's going to just, reach up and-- [Sammy] (I LOST NINE SANITY TO THIS ASSHOLE!!!) [Henry] (But he's so cute!) [Joey] (Well now he's cute, maybe you get some sanity back!) [Henry] (Like petting a cat! You get sanity back from petting the Bendy.) [Sammy] (Yes, he is adorable, I will serve him faithfully.)

[GM] Make a navigate check. [Joey] *rolls terribly* Joey doesn't know where the fuck we're going. [Henry] I missed the navigate check too. [Sammy] Ohhhh boy, we better not get lost... [Joey] Sammy, do you remember where we're going? [Sammy] Oh, don't ask Sammy. Don't ask either Sammy. [Sammy] Alive!Sammy will eventually ask "You DO know where we're going, right?" [GM] You guys..... uh, get lost! Well, let me check one thing. [GM] *rolls* [GM] ... THE LURKER, APPARENTLY, CAN GET YOU BACK TO WHERE HE APPEARED,

[GM] What a useful pocket demon. [Henry] I love our pocket demon. [Joey] I love our son... [Sammy] Joey, [Joey] Firstborn... [Henry] Adopted from a cult! [Joey] We went to Haiti and adopted a son. [Sammy] Sammy's role as third wheel here is getting weirder and weirder.

[Sammy] I can't believe Binoculars is a Bendy fan.

[Joey] (Meanwhile, Ghost!Joey remembers something? There is an inscription on the floor between the laundry room, and Josephine's room, that does not allow the passage of evil spirits. I... don't think the Lurker is going to make it past that.) [Henry] (Ohhhhhhhhh) [Sammy] (Hmm. Also... BRINGING THE LURKER in to see Josephine feels, hostile???) [Henry] (OH... I didn't think about that; he's just my kid now!)

[Joey] (I have literally no idea for Joey.) [Sammy] (Gosh, what a thing to ask... I just have to appreciate, what a thing to ask a Type Three -- "Okay, what's YOU?") [Joey] (Joey looks down at the mask, feeling all of his inner masks,,,) [Sammy] ("I'M COMPOSED OF THINGS THAT MAKE OTHER PEOPLE THINK IM SUCCESSFUL,,,")

[Ghost!Sammy] After you. [Ghost!Joey] Actually, I would feel more comfortable if you went first, [Ghost!Sammy] ...Fine. Fantastic. [Joey] (This is-- I don't know if Sammy can feel it, but this is definitely out of, still thinking about the slight guilt that ran through him when Sammy was blaming EVERYTHING on him, and telling him to keep them out of this,) [Sammy] (I mean, Sammy just thinks this is risky and wanted Joey to be the guinea pig, so, that's nice that you were thinking of him!)

[Sammy] A quick kiss won't be enough time for Sammy to like, stop bluescreening in time to react to this? So, um, uh, he- he just, uh, needs, uh, a- a minute, but he, will be, blushing furiously. I think that's the only reaction! [Joey] Perfect~ [GM] The spirit lady probably flashes him a thumbs up. [Joey] *laughing* Sammy DIES. We did all of this to get him alive again, and he just DIES. [Sammy] SLAIN INSTANTLY.

#call of cthulu: haunted hijinx #when in doubt just keep drawing #sammy lawrence #joey drew #Henry Stein #I get way too much of a kick out of non-henry Henrys #i wanna draw so many of these convos but like ITS ALL JUST ONE GUY #TALKING TO HIMSELF

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mydrug-is-dragonage · 4 years ago

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Veda Adaar, Life after Bull

Victory. Triumph. Glory. Pride. What we usually feel when we win a battle. The quiet grief of cutting down lives, regardless of how worthy they are of death, but the warm joy, knowing we saved someone or something or everyone or everything from a grand or small evil.

Victory. We stood on the balcony, crowded together, together again for the first time in years. Thom and Sera, Divine Victoria’s watchful eyes, Cassandra and Varric’s constant disdainful flirting, Cole and Maryden’s quiet affection, Dorian and Vivienne both wine drunk trading insults, the quiet acknowledgement of a friendship that grew against both of their wills. Josephine and Cullen arguing, treating the terrace like battlements, more performative as they both know the end is closer than the beginning. Solas, our own personal god, long-gone into the eluvian. We’re all here, we’re all together. All of us, but Bull.

Triumph. The weeks have passed, a quick and effective rebuke from the Arishok, King Alistair and Empress Celene accept it quietly, no time for war with another battle floating above us in the air. Back at Skyhold, a skeleton crew, these days just Harding and me spend our time in the battle room, staring at maps; Leliana’s other protégés are always off on missions. Sera pops by every now and then to see Dagna with bees and trinkets and little things to remind me that she’s never really gone. The best day, or the worst depending on the audience, Sera and Dagna came up to my room, giggling, presented me with a crossbow for where my arm ought to be. “Widdle’s a wizard, yeah! You’ll be on rooftops sticking it to people too big for their breeches in no time!” I thanked them, and sent them away. This is love, at least for Sera. Her love is violence and showy maneuvers, dancing with both hands and feet shaking about.

Glory. Josephine writes me letters, telling me to eat, to ask Cullen to write back. After a few months, she finally pens, “I know I am no longer your formal ambassador, but as your informal friend I find it painful to admit what has been sung in the inns and halls. Bards have taken your loss and turned it into song. Unlike what Maryden had composed, these are unfortunately mocking in nature. People have taken the final act and written it as the whole narrative, my lady. A play premiered in Val Royeux putting you at the center of the conflict, as the one who allowed it to happen. If you desire, I can put an end to this. Divine Victoria recommended assassins, but I’ve temporarily dispelled her more primal desires. Likewise, Mr. Arainai also reached out, grateful for the assistance you had given him evading the Crows. I similarly told him no. Above all, regardless of what action we take, I want you to know I am sorry. You’ve lost much, suffered more than so many of us. I’m sorry, Veda. I love you.” It wasn’t unexpected, bards sing, playwrights write. They tell the tales people want to hear. Immortalizing betrayal has always turned them into legends.

Pride. A cold morning, one with little to be done, Charter and Rector off in Nevarra, the crows neither coming or going, Lace came into my room, “Sorry to bother you, V, we’ve got a vistor.”

“Avoidable?” I ask.

“What an impossibly rude question, darling.” I looked up from my desk and saw her horns pointing from the stairway.

“Oh, Vivienne, I wasn’t expecting you,” I said. I don’t stop the smile on my face. For all our differences, we’d become like sisters. On her best days, she’d fawn over me like a mother.

“That’s Grand Enchanter now, My Lady Inquisitor.”

“I’ll leave you to it,” Lace said, excusing herself. I waited to hear the door close, then the other. Vivienne stood, graceful and stoic as ever. A few more moments of silence, then she broke into a smile. She took off her hat, placed it on the sofa, and walked towards me, arms splayed.

“Oh, my dear, how I’ve missed you!” I stood up, robes draping and hiding me.

I leaned into her hug, resting my head on hers. “Grand Enchanter, really Viv?”

“One must keep appearances, darling. Besides, imagine if Bull heard you call me…” She heard it as it left her mouth. “Oh, my sweet, I’m so sorry. While we should have anticipated his betrayal, I know the loss must weigh on you heavily.” She nestled further into my chest. I breathed out, for a moment just Veda, not the Inquisitor, not the betrayed lover, not the important person forced upon me. I was mortal, Vashoth, tall and strong and being hugged by someone who loved me enough to allow me to be small and weak. We settled onto the couch. I pulled my legs in front of me

“You know better than anyone. I remember, I was there when you lost Bastien.”

“And I was there when you lost the Iron Bull,” she sighed. “We are sisters in grief, as well as sisters in victory. We’re sisters in success, although your’s has had its struggles as of late. I assume the Divine told you of the bards?”

“Josephine.”

“The Nightingale sending a gentler songbird. Wise.”

“I assumed it would happen. Charter brought back the lyrics and playbook from what she considered the more consumable tales,” I said.

“They’re vile, darling. I offered the services of the Circle. The Divine declined. I assumed she had sent assassins.”

“No, I turned down the offers.”

“You’re losing political capital, my dear. If you want to return to the world, recruit who you need to defeat Solas, you’ll need allies. New allies, old allies. It will require quite the force and connections. You know you have the Circle, as much as we can politically sacrifice in this turbulent time,” she said.

“It isn’t the first thing on my mind, at the moment,” I said.

“And why not darling? If you choose to remain in obscurity at some point it will no longer be a choice.”

It’s spring, it is the last night at Skyhold before we leave for the Exalted Council. Cullen and Josephine have been up bickering most the evening, finally put to rest. I settle into my room, sitting at my desk, twiddling my pen. My bag is packed, the horses are ready. The door creaks open. I don’t look up, I can smell him from here. Even after a bath he smells like home, smoky and warm. “Hey, Kadan.”

“Hey,” I say, “they finished?”

“Well, Cullen is now arguing with Cabot which gave me enough time to get the serving girls to feed Josephine. She wanted to get back to bickering, but I asked her if the itinerary had been checked. So I think they’re fine for now.”

“They’re just worried about tomorrow, the coming weeks. It’s normal,” I say,

“You’re the one who grew up with humans. They worry too much, but it makes them easy to work with. Like clay.” I smile and look back down at my papers. “Enough work, Kadan. You can’t do anything more today.”

“You don’t know that.”

“Yes, I do.”

“Are you going to make me?” I smirk.

“Oh, is this what we’re doing?”

“Oh you didn’t know?” I laugh. “I thought you knew it all, everything I needed, Ben-Hassrath training, remember?” He smiles and walks towards me, I slide back in my seat and he scoops me up.

In bed, his heart pumps slow and heavy in his chest. I trace his body with my hands, his arm around me. Our horns rub against each other, small grooves from the years of lying here together. “Better?” He asks.

“What do you think?”

“I know. I just want to know if you know.” I lean up and kiss him.

“Yes, better.” He smells better when he’s sweaty. Something about those early days, seeing him tear through crowds, watching his arms lift and push those heavy swords and axes. Long before, when the Chargers still existed, when he wasn’t just my man, but their man.

“What’s wrong?” He asks.

“I’m sorry, you know,” I say. For a moment, he’s silent, sitting in the grief.

“You made the right choice. You made the only choice. You led like a Qunari.”

“It shouldn’t have been my choice. I should have let you decide,” I say.

“No,” He says, clipped. “You are the Inquisitor. It was your decision, to keep the alliance or lose it. You made history. You stopped a batshit insane darkspawn from destroying the world.”

“I could have stopped him anyway,” I say.

“We don’t know that. The Tamassrans used to say, ‘When there are no right choices, the right decision is the one you make and the one you live with.’” I nestle into his chest.

“I’m happy the Qunari have kept you here.”

“Me too, Kadan.”

“I love you, Bull.” He pulls me closer into him. For a moment, I wonder if he’s crying.

“I don’t want you to be angry, Viv,” I said.

"Oh what now darling? First you go into solitude like a hermit, what’s next?” I put my legs down and pulled my robes back. “What’s this?” She looked, at first with curiosity, then her eyes widened. “Veda, oh Veda, are you?”

My eyes well, “Yeah, Viv. I am.”

She covers her mouth, the first time I’ve seen her truly shocked. “And is it…?” With that question, the tears fall. The heavy sobs wrack my chest and Vivienne crawls towards me, arms draped around my shoulders and I cry into her chest. “Oh darling, of course you’ve been distracted.” She rubs the back of my head, stroking my neck as I calm down. “Should I ask Harding for some tea? Juice? No wine, of course.” I shake my head. “Oh dear. Who all knows?”

I swallow and trap my tears in my chest. “So far you, Leliana, Thom, and Cassandra. Lace knows, and she’s kept questions from Charter and Rector to a minimum.”

“You haven’t told Josephine?”

“How could I? What could I possibly say, ‘Oh yes, enjoy your new career in Antiva! By the way, I’m carrying the betrayer’s child! Send my love to Yves and Yvette!’”

“I don’t think keeping it secret is much wiser, my dear. People will know, especially once the child is here. Do the Qunari know?” She asked.

“As far as Leliana’s sources know, no. Bull was loyal to the end, they had no reason to think he’d do this, especially when it hadn’t happened in the years before.”

“When did this happen?”

“Right before we left for the Exalted Council,” I said.

“Oh.”

“I know,” I said. “He must have known. I can’t decide if this was kindness or cruelty.”

“What’s that line he always said, darling? ‘When it’s a hostile target, you give them what they want. When it’s someone you care about, you give them what they need.’”

The tears well again. My hands slide to swollen belly. “It isn’t what I wanted. I had never even considered it. He was Qunari enough that I knew we’d never have a family.”

She reached a hand towards my belly, “May I?” I sniffed and nodded. She placed her hands on my stomach, on top of my own hands. “If this isn’t what you wanted, then it must have been what he thought you needed.”

“He couldn’t have known we’d win. He fought like he meant it. He struck me with his blade. He wasn’t fighting to lose.” The anger and grief mixed in my throat.

“He wasn’t, he never did, darling. But he knew you. He knew us. He knew you’d bring me and Cassandra. He knew what the Qunari could and couldn’t do. He believed in you, at the end. Just as he had at the beginning, my dear.” I took a hand from my belly and moved it to the outside of my horn, the groove still there from the years spent lying together.

“I’m not planning on bringing my child into the public life. We’ll have a few years, at least, presuming we aren’t all destroyed by Solas,” I said.

“Shh, no reason to worry about that right now, darling. We have today’s troubles and tomorrow’s troubles.” She sat back and blinked away her own tears. “I’ve never been an aunt before. I’ll of course send over a suite of clothes and supplies from Val Royeux.”

I wipe my eyes and smile, “Are you going to be an aunt or a Grandma’am?”

"Oh you miserable louse, how dare you?” She said, the tears finally pouring from her eyes.

#dragon age #dragon age inquisition #inquisitor #adaar x bull #iron bull #the iron bull #inquisitor x bull #da #dai #fanfic #dragon age adaar #bull x adaar #dragon age vivienne #madam de fer

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365days365movies · 4 years ago

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April 5, 2021: Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) (Recap: Part One)

Yeah, so...Spectrum exploded last night.

So, I'm unfortunately a little behind. BUT NEVER FEAR! I'll get back on time before you know it! So, uh...where were we last time? OH RIGHT! Let's talk about black comedy. And I don't mean black-and-white comedies, or comedies prominently featuring African-American culture and demographic. No, I mean dark comedies.

The "black comedy" functions off of macabre or taboo humor and jokes, and is often closely associated with biting satire and commentary in film. That definition is loose as hell, I know, but it's all about the subject matter. The most common subject matter for dark humor is death, of course, and related subjects to death. War, murder, strife, madness, and violence are also common topics here.

Some of the best comedies are black comedies, though. For example, Brazil (1985; dir. Terry Gilliam) focuses on themes of depression, dreams, terrorism, totalitarian governments, and madness. And it's GREAT. How about The Death of Stalin (2018; dir. Armando Iannucci)? The title ALONE should tell you everything you need to know about the tone and topic, AND YET...

It's HILARIOUS. And also informative! If you haven't seen it, I definitely recommend it. And again, that film is about, well...the death of Stalin, and the fallout of his disastrous and murderous regime. Dark, DARK topic, but very funny movie.

Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb is about war; Fargo is about murder in North Dakota; Heathers is about a toxic relationship and the death and murder of teenagers; Birdman, or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance is about an actor's existential crisis and complete mental breakdown; and Trainspotting is about the devastating effects of drug addiction and features a DEAD BABY FOR CHRIST'S SAKE...and yet they're all full of laughs! Except for the baby scene. Fuck me, the baby scene in Trainspotting.

So, yeah, these are a diverse group of films, that's for sure. But where does it all start? There's 1942's To Be or Not to Be (dir. Ernst Lubitsch), which is about a Polish theatre company who need to escape in the midst of...well, 1942 Poland. If you don't get why that's dark, you should probably look up some history, bud. Charlie Chaplin would dip into the role in 1947's Monsieur Verdoux, which I mentioned last time. And there's the seldom-talked-about Kind Hearts and Coronets (dir. Robert Hamer), a 1949 film about murder for status, essentially.

But it's hard to argue that the most prominent early black comedy is 1944's Cary Grant vehicle, Arsenic and Old Lace.

Directed by Frank Capra, this film was based on a 1941 stage play, and is about...well, we'll get to it. While its prominence as a black comedy is one reason I'm watching this movie, the other is...well, to be honest, this is a movie I heard about CONSTANTLY from my Mom, as this is one of her favorites. And yet, like Dirty Dancing, I've somehow never seen it! Let's remedy that.

So, without further ado, let's get into it! SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap (1/2)

The film starts off with a BANG, as a man calls me a “big simp” to my face! Actually, he’s screaming at a Brooklyn Dodgers game, where a massive fight breaks out. This fight quickly transitions to a city hall, where a line of people are waiting to file marriage licenses. Amongst the line is Mortimer Brewster (Cary Grant) and Elaine Harper (Priscilla Lane).

Brewster is hiding from the press, as he’s a famous reviewer, and author of the Bachelor’s Bible, and it would be quite the scandal for him to get married. And yet, he’s head over heels in love with Elaine. After going through an existential crisis about the whole thing, he gives into Elaine’s sweet demeanor, and the two file their marriage license officially.

It’s Halloween day, and we move from the city to the suburbs of Brooklyn, where two policemen, O’Hara (Jack Carson) and Sanders (John RIdgely) are on patrol. Sanders tells O’Hara of the kindly Brewster Sisters, the sweetest women on Earth, both of whom live in the neighborhood. Currently, they are being visited by Reverend Harper (Grant Mitchell), Elaine’s father. He’s speaking with Abby (Josephine Hull) and Martha Brewster (Jean Adair), the kindly aunts of Mortimer.

Also living there is Mortimer’s brother Teddy Brewster (John Alexander), who apparently believes that he’s Teddy Roosevelt, which is...hilarious. Dude is hilarious, seriously. The cops come over to visit the two, and collect some clothes and toys for local charity. Also, Teddy only leaves a room by screaming “CHAAAAARGE!!!”, and running up the stairs, and I love Teddy a lot.

Reverend Harper and the cops leave for the night, and the sisters settle down for the evening. Abby and Martha state that their plans for Elaine and Mortimer should go as scheduled, which is probably talking about their marriage. Abby also mentions that she’s done something while she was away, to Martha’s delight and surprise. They tell Teddy that he’ll soon be digging a new lock for the Panama Canal...whatever that means.

Martha’s about to go to the basement to see what Abby’s done, but she states that because she was all by herself, the surprise is in the window seat. As she’s about to look at the surprise, Elaine shows up in the window, and the two arrive to give the happy news that they’re married. Elaine goes to tell her father of the news, while Mortimer goes to tell his sweet aunts. Afterwards, the two will be on their honeymoon, going to Niagara Falls. And I should say, they’re quite a sweet couple.

After telling the news to his aunts, he asks them where his notes are for his new controversial book, Mind Over Matrimony. They go to look for it around the house, and Teddy comes downstairs, dressed up in attire to “go to Panama.” Aunt Abby comes across a childhood picture of Jonathan, Mortimer’s brother and apparently a violent sociopath or some sort. She goes to burn the picture (geez), and Mortimer continues to look for the notes. He goes to the window seat.

Yup! It’s a body! Looks like Abby and Martha’s sweet old lady act is a guise for some myurder! Which I know, just because it’s the most famous thing about the movie. However, Mortimer thinks the murderer is Teddy, and tells his sweet old aunts about the body, asking that he gets put into an asylum. But Abby notes that Teddy didn’t kill the man, and they already know about the body!

Which, yeah, surprises Mortimer, obviously.

Abby cheerfully admits that the man, Mr. Hoskins, was poisoned by a tainted glass of elderberry wine, and that they did so on purpose, hiding the body before the Reverend came for a visit. The whole thing isn’t a big deal; it’s just Abby and Martha’s little secret!

After they leave, and brush off the whole thing as easy as needlepoint or macramé as a hobby, Mortimer, is completely broken by the whole affair, and is partially convinced that he’s dreaming. All the while, Elaine’s trying to get Mortimer to come over and speak with her father. But Mortimer can’t exactly forget about this whole silly murder thing, and goes to confront his aunts about it. He learns that Teddy’s digging not a lock, but a grave in the cellar. As he’s done with 10 other bodies. Or maybe it’s 11 others?

After picking up a phone call from Elaine, then hanging up abruptly (and understandably), Mortimer finds out how this whole thing started. See, the two have a “Renters Wanted” sign in their front lawn, and the neighborhood thinks that it’s there so the two sweet old ladies can offer help to anyone in need, even though they aren’t actually renting to anyone. In reality...well, they do it for another reason.

See, an older gentleman stopped by a bit ago, and he had a heart attack right there in the living room. After seeing how peaceful he looked, the two decided to bring in other lonely old men and bring in the same kind of peace. And from there...well, yeah, you get the general idea. They’ve been poisoning them with arsenic, strychnine, and cyanide mixed in with elderberry wine. Apparently, Martha’s got the mixture just right so that it tastes delicious. With all this explained, they offer Mortimer a sip of wine. Which he’s understandably nervous about.

But with all of that done, Elaine comes over to check in on him. But he’s not able to tell her anything, which greatly (and understandably) confuses her. He basically kicks her out (which enrages her, once again understandably), and calls a judge with the intent to frame the whole affair on Teddy, who’s always been.unstable. Which, for the record, is not even SLIGHTLY going to solve the problem.

But as he’s on the phone, a man named Gibbs (Edward McWade) comes in to rent an apartment. He’s all alone in the world, with nobody to care for him. And of course, this leads to the women trying to poison him with the wine. It’s a funny yet tense moment as he stops just short of drinking the wine, distracted by Mortimer’s freakout over the phone. But Mortimer gets off the phone JUST in time to scare Gibbs away and stop him from drinking the wine. And it is...VERY funny, goddamn.

As Mortimer tries to tell the aunts exactly what’s wrong with what they’re doing, the phone rings. It’s a call from Witherspoon (Edward Everett Horton), who runs an asylum that Mortimer wants Teddy committed into. However, they don’t quite have room for him, as they have too many Theodore Roosevelts at present. However, they do need more Napoleon Bonapartes. I love this goddamn movie.

Still, Witherspoon agrees to take him in despite that, and Mortimer head out to get the paperwork done. However, he asks his aunts to not do anything until he gets back, and he also proises that he’ll attend the “services” for their latest victim. He leaves, and kinda steals a cabbie’s car in the process (I love this movie, I’m telling you), and Abby and Martha start shutting things down for the night. However, as they do, they get a mysterious knock on the door. They pretend not to be home...only for a man with an ominous scar to enter the room regardless.

Let’s pause here, shall we? See you in Part 2!

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midwinterblinder · 4 years ago

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This is me trying

Chapter 6: “So she’s back in New York then.”

Josephine leaves early the next morning. It had been nice to talk to Beth and the others the night before and with Benny on the other side of the group she didn’t have much interaction with him after the question he asked about her father. She stayed longer than she planned to, which means that she hasn’t slept all that much and she has a long trip ahead of her. Luckily she won’t be driving herself, but sitting in a bus for hours isn’t exactly her idea of fun either.

As she makes her way down to the lobby with her suitcase, she thinks back to the long car rides with Benny. If the trip was 12 hours or less they always drove instead of taking a plane. They would play chess and talk about everything and nothing in the car. When the elevator doors open she shakes her head with a sigh as she tries to shove the memories to the back of her mind.

When she steps into the lobby and starts to walk to the reception, she’s surprised to see Benny standing there. He seems to be checking out as well, which is strange because she’s not sure she has ever seen him leave a tournament this early in the morning.

Benny is just as surprised as Josephine when he sees her as he turns to walk away from the reception. “Leaving already?” He asks as his eyes move to her suitcase before coming back up to her face. When they were together they didn’t leave before 10 in the morning and it’s only 8 now. He was actually hoping to avoid seeing her by leaving early.

“Yeah.” Josephine nods. “I have a bus to catch.” She adds and her eyes find his. She’s not sure if she should keep the conversation going or if she should just go her own way. “I should check out.” She says after a moment of silence.

Benny nods and moves out of her way. “You don’t want to miss your bus.” He says casually as he swings his car keys around on his finger. “Have a safe trip.” He adds as he walks towards the exit.

*****

Josephine takes a deep breath of New York air when she finally gets off the bus. It was a long trip and she’s happy to be back in the city that has become her home once again. She grew up in New Jersey and moved to New York when she moved in with Benny. She had fallen in love with the city over the years that they lived there, but when she left Benny she also left New York.

She moved back a few months ago, but has so far carefully avoided any of the place she used to frequent with Benny. It’s not even that she doesn’t want to see him, it’s more about what will happen when they’re seen together, about what will happen when he hears she’s been seen around Benny.

Now is not the time to think about that though, so she gets her suitcase and heads in the direction of the subway to get to her apartment. New York is expensive so she shares an apartment with Gina, a girl she had met a became friends with when she first moved to New York with Benny. Gina was probably her only friend outside the chess world and Josephine is beyond grateful that she was willing to share an apartment with her. Gina had been begging Josephine to move back to the city and when her old flatmate moved out she offered the vacant room to Josephine.

Gina isn’t the one that greets her when she steps into the apartment though. There’s a man on the couch, a man she recognises instantly as Hilton Wexler. A decent chess player, but more importantly a good friend of Benny. “Jo, hey.” Hilton says when he sees her walk in. He looks uncomfortable, clearly unsure how to act around the ex of one of his closest friends. It never used to be this awkward between them. Hilton wasn’t just Benny’s friend, he used to be hers as well, but he had known Benny first so after the break up they didn’t speak anymore.

“Hi.” Josephine says as she places her suitcase down. “It’s been a long time, Hilton. How have you been?” She tries to sound casual, but everything comes out forced. What she really wants to asks is why he’s there in her apartment, but that really can’t be the first question she asks him in four years.

“I’m good.” He nods. “Just here to get Gina. We’re going out.” He gestures to one of the two bedrooms where Gina is probably getting ready. “She said you were out of town for a tournament. Does that mean you’re coming back?” He asks and she’s pretty sure she sees a hint of excitement on his face as he says it.

“I’m trying to.” She says as she takes off her coat and hangs it by the door. “I got my ass kicked by Beth Harmon in the final though.” She sighs as she walks further into the room and sits down on a chair as the awkwardness slowly seems to leave the room.

“You played Beth?” Hilton raises his eyebrows. “I would have loved to have seen that.” He mutters. “Wait if you were at the same tournament as Beth that means you saw-“ He trails off, not sure if he should same Benny’s name around her.

“Benny?” Josephine asks and Hilton nods as he sends her an apologetic smile. “You can say his name, Hilton. It’s fine.” She assures him with a smile of her own. “Yes, I saw him and we spoke. It was awkward, but not as bad as I expected it to be.” She tells him honestly.

Hilton seems to relax as he sees how she’s taking it. “That’s good.” He nods. “I mean, if you’re getting back into chess you’ll probably run into each other quite a bit so it’s good that it wasn’t too bad.” He expands and Josephine nods.

Any further chance at conversation is put to a stop when Gina steps out of her room. “Okay, I’m ready.” She smiles at Hilton, who gestures to the chair Josephine is sitting on. “Oh you’re back.” Gina says as she turns to face her flatmate. “Hilton and I were just going out.” Gina sends her an apologetic smile. “You can join us if you want.” She offers.

“No, no.” Josephine shakes her head. “Go out. I need to wash off the bus ride and then replay my last game so I can get mad at myself for every mistake I made.” She half jokes as she stands up and gives Gina a brief hug. “You have some explaining to do.” She whispers in Gina’s ear, because her flatmate had definitely neglected to tell her she was seeing Hilton. “It was nice seeing you again.” Josephine smiles at Hilton when she pulls away from Gina, who blushes slightly at Josephine’s earlier words.

*****

The next day Hilton is sitting across from Benny as they play a game of chess. He’s not sure if he should tell Benny about seeing Josephine or not and it’s not doing his chess any good. “Alright, what’s going on?” Benny asks when he has beaten Hilton for the fifth time in a row. “You’re distracted.” He adds as he leans back against the pillows in the corner of his apartment. He can tell something is bothering his friend just by the way he’s playing.

“It’s nothing.” Hilton tries to brush it off, but Benny raises his eyebrows at him and he gives in. “I saw Josephine yesterday.” He sighs. “She’s living with Gina.” He adds as he watches Benny’s face. Benny manages to keep his expression under control, but Hilton sees a flash of emotion pass behind his friend’s eyes.

“So she’s back in New York then.” Benny mutters more to himself than Hilton. Benny’s not sure how to feel about Josephine being back in the city. He was the one who introduced her to New York all those years ago. He showed her around and took he to all his favourite places and it just feels wrong that she’s in New York but not with him. It just doesn’t make sense that she could be walking the streets of his city right now without sharing a bed with him.

“Yeah.” Hilton nods slowly as he tries to gauge how Benny is feeling. “I wasn’t sure if I should tell you.” He says. “She said you saw each other this weekend and that it wasn’t that bad. Is that true or was she just saying that so things wouldn’t get awkward?” He asks.

“I’m not sure how she experienced it.” Benny shrugs. “I snapped at her though.” He admits to Hilton, who doesn’t look surprised. Benny had been bottling up all his feelings since she left, so it was bound to come out at some point. Hilton is just about to speak up, but Benny clearly wants to move on so he beats him to it. “So you and Gina, what’s going on there?”

#benny watts #benny watts imagine #benny watts fanfiction #the queen's gambit #the queens gambit imagine #the queen's gambit fanfiction

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historyofshipping · 4 years ago

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My massive Bellarke is epic and here’s proof from s5-7 rant.

Ok guys I cannot stress enough that I am drunk, this is long, it has strong language, and it’s a trip. I am putting it almost all under a cut because it is 20 f*ing pages on word.

For reference: this was on a discord chat and I am removing all names and a few other things but there will be absolutely no editing. Anything in straight text is me, anything in italics is someone else (there’s several different someone elses so people are separated by line breaks). On my page I think it appears as everything grey is someone else, everything black is me. I’m going to put the beginning on here and rest under the cut. If you’re still going through with this, I suggest some popcorn.

Guys... I'm trying to stay optimistic but I'm really worried that jroth is gonna make bellarke canon in a really disappointing way. Like for me infidelity is a huge no in ships and I hate that becho has gone on so long that there doesn't seem to be a lot of room left in the canon timeline for a becho breakup/end that doesn't ruin the start of Bellarke for me

WAIT I GOT YOU I CAN CALM YOU I THINK BUT FIRST I NEED TO EAT MY BREADSTICKS

Every moment Echo is on the screen I want to claw my eyes out because she's so boring please jroth let it fucking end, but the feminist in me doesn't want her to die or be disrespected just because she's a callous asshole who doesn't deserve him yknow

Eat your breadsticks babe I've been living with my dread for 2 seasons I can hang on a little longer I just wish the entire becho relationship had never happened it's a blight and it's gone on so long adenfkidsngksdgnksdgn

Kate will say it better than I will, but don't lose hope! Becho hasn't really been together on screen for very long. It's only been like a few weeks to a month since the beginning of S5. They've stretched it out over two seasons, but in canon not much time has passed. And most of that time had Bellamy either sacrificing almost 300 lives to save Clarke, poisoning his sister to save Clarke, or fucking off into the wilderness with Josephine to save Clarke. They've just straight up not had enough time for Bellamy to be like, "Hey Echo, I know I said things wouldn't change but that was before my wife was actually alive, so bye." Though to wishing Becho had just never happened. We got one good angst scene with Clarke seeing them kiss. But otherwise, I could have very much done without their whole relationship.

they gave me 2 dozen breadsticks. i ordered 6

You've been blessed by the breadstick goddess.

oh sorry i was misinformed. i only have 22. apparently one bag only had 4 OK SO BELLARKE BITCHES AM I GOING TO ANNOYINGLY DO THIS IN CAPS SO BUCKLE TF UP

I mean, I love the idea that they only got together in the sixth year on the ring when Bellamy totally lost hope but is that canon? I thought we had a 3 year range

ALL RIGHT

We ignore canon in this channel. lol They've been together for 3 months.

SO LET'S START AT THE BEGINNING OF BECHO ok caps off. i even annoyed myself

I'm so here for this.

https://tenor.com/view/murder-she-wrote-angela-lansbury-jessica-eats-popcorn-interested-gif-4594942

Damn, I was ready for caps.

OK WE'RE BACK TO CAPS

https://giphy.com/gifs/popcorn-go-on-keep-going-Zd1BUb0qs6nwjeMUBu

OK SO WE HAVE BECHO'S FIRST SCENE TOGETHER ANYONE REMEMBER WHAT BELLAMY SAID? ANYONE? THIS REQUIRES AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION

"Hey work with me so I can break everyone out of this mountain"? or something?

OH DAMN I MEANT WHEN THEY WERE CANONICALLY TOGETHER XP

"I'm a goddamn delight who's trying to save your life you ungrateful walnut so maybe don't spit in my face" is what I would have written

LMFAO OJN THE RING WHAT'S THE FIRST THING WE HEAR FROM THEM? THE FIRST IMPORTANT THING? ANYONE?

Unfortunately that scene was physically repulsive for me so I don't remember much except for "nothing will change on the ground and my sister totally didn't mean to murder you"

AHA! THERE YA GO NOTHING WILL CHANGE ON TEH GROUND BECAUSE WHAT IS HE EXPECTING ON THE GROUND? NOTHING TO CHANGE BECAUSE THE ONLY THING THAT COULD CHANGE IS -----

>"I'm a goddamn delight who's trying to save your life you ungrateful walnut so maybe don't spit in my face" is what I would have written I SPIT OUT MY DRINK I CANNOT

ANYONE? YUP

I'm behind. lol

CLARKE

AND THEN WE GOT TO THE GROUND, WHAT HAPPENED?

BEING ALIVE

His sister having more taste in his romantic partners than him?

WHAT WAS THE LITERAL ONE THING THAT COULD HAPPEN THAT WOULD CHANGE BELLAMY'S MIND DING DING DING CLARKE IS ALIVE

10 points to

AND WHAT DOES OUR BABY BOY DO?

SACRIFICE 300 PEEPS FOR HIS WIFE

Clarke with a gun AND a kid AND a rover AND bedtime storytelling practice like what more could he want that's all the things he loves

A LITTLE AHEAD BUT BANG

BABY BOY FOLLOWS CLARKS DAUGHTER FIRST, LEAVING ECHO IN THE LITERAL DUST (that's what he does before sacrificing lives)

WE WENT FROM "I WILL NOT TOUCH THESE PEOPLE BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO DO BETTER." TO "I WILL SLAUGHTER 283 PEOPLE WITHOUT RAISING AN EYEBROW" BECAUSE RANDOM CHILD SHOWS UP AND SAYS "CLARKE'S IN TROUBLE" RANDOM CHILD WHO HAS JUST KILLED A BUNCH OF HARDENED CRIMINALS

He had the dad mug tho, he had to help her

HE SAW HIMSELF IN HER HE KNEW

HIS SOUL KNEW

SO WE'RE THERE NOW BUT THEN BANG, WE'RE ON THE GROUND AND OH FUCK I FORGOT I HAD A GIRLFRIEND BUT BELLAMY IS LOYAL SO HE SURE AF ISN'T DOING ANYTHING UNTIL HE'S DONE WITH ECHO BUT

He's had 2 seasons!!!!!

CLARKE BASICALLY ACTS LIKE SHE DIDN'T CARE ABOUT THE SEPARATION THOU SHALT NOT POKE HOLES IN MY SHIT UNTIL I AM DONE

>He's had 2 seasons!!!!! But only like a few weeks in time.

BECAUSE THESE TWO FUCK HEADS CANNOT HAVE A CONVERSATION

Forgive me!

SO WE HAVE A GRAND TOTAL OF FEWER THAN 3 WEEKS THAT THEY'RE ON THE GROUND AND THEN IN THAT TIME WE HAD.... one sec pPLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO REVIEW THE TIMELINE https://historyofbellarke.tumblr.com/post/620425806742749184/season-5-7x03-so-far-timeline FOR SEASON 5 ALL RIGHT SO WE HAVE THEM TOGETHER FOR LESS THAN A WEEK BEFORE BELLAMY'S LIKE (FROM CLARKE'S PERSPECTIVE) "I DON'T GIVE A FUCK ABOUT YOUR KID, I HAVE TO SAVE MY FAMILY" SO THEN WE HAVE THEM SPEND THE NEXT 10 DAYS APART BECAUSE SHE LEFT HIM AFTER SLAPPING HIM AND SHE THOUGHT HE DIED BECAUSE THEY ARE FUCKING MORONS WHO CAN'T HAVE A CONVERSATION (YOU WILL NOTICE A RECURRING THEME) AND THEN, ECHO HAS LEARNED THAT NOT ONLY HAS CLARKE CARED ABOUT BELLAMY ALL THIS TIME BUT THAT SHE'S ONCE AGAIN READY TO PUT THE FATE OF HUAMNITIY ON THE LINE TO SAVE HIM "GO SAVE HIM. EVEN TAKE MURDER!DAUGHTER WITH YOU" BUT BELLAMY STILL DOESN'T KNOW THIS SO ANYWAY WE HAVE ANGST!BELLAMY GET PARENT TRAPPED BY MURDER!DAUGHTER are y'all still with me? AND THEN WHAT HAPPENED IMMEDIATELY AFTER MURDER!DAUGHTER'S INTERVENTION?

BELLARKE FORGIVENESS ™

YAS NOT ONLY THAT BUT SOFT!BELLARKE RETURNS WITH A VENGEANCE [side note: you can pry this theory from my cold dead hands but there was 100% a canon bellarke scene between forgiveness and 125 year wake up just in case they ended at season 5.]

[I need them to publish that scene when this is all over]

ALL RIGHT SO FUCKING MARPER - WHO SPENT A TOTAL OF LIKE 4 MONTHS WITH CLARKE BUT 6 YEARS WITH THEIR FAMILY- DECIDED TO WAKE UP BELLARKE TO TALK TO AND GIVE GUARDIANSHIP TO AND WHY DID THEY DO THAT?

THEY BEEN KNEW

I'LL ACCEPT IT

OK SO WE GET THIS PROMISING FUTURE TOGETHER ON THIS NEW PLANET RIGHT?

WRONG MURDER POLLEN

OK BUT TECHNICALLY BECHO IS STILL TOGETHER. NO PROBLEM - WE NEED TO FIGURE OUR SHIT OUT AND THEN WE'LL HAVE PLENTY OF TIME TO HAVE PEACE AND GET TOGETHER OK SO I'M JUST GOING TO START SAYING "CHORUS" WHEN I MEAN "BECAUSE THESE TWO DUMBASSES CAN'T TALK TO EACH OTHER" IS CHORUS THE RIGHT WORD? OR IS IT REFRAIN? WHATEVER ONE REPEATS - THAT ONE ALL RIGHT SO WE HAVE THEM GOING INTO THE VILLAGE AND EVERY TIME THERE IS DANGER, BELLAMY GOES IMMEDIATELY TO CLARKE WHEN IT'S PEACEFUL, OPE IT'S BACK TO ECHO

(like the husband he is)

I HAVE A WHOLE META ABOUT THAT IF YOU WANT IT BUT SO THEN THE FIRST TIME - LITERALLY THE FIRST TIME SINCE THE MARPER VIDEO - THAT THEY'RE ALONE, IT'S BECAUSE BELLAMY HAS SOUGHT HER OUT AND WHY DID BELLAMY SEEK HER OUT? Y'ALL I'M ONLY AT 6X01. I HAVE SO MUCH AMMUNITION BUT SOMEONE IS WELCOME TO SCREEN SHOT THIS SO THAT THE NEXT TIEM WE HAVE DOUBTS, I DON'T HAVE TO TYPE IT ALL OUT SO WHY DID BELLAMY SEEK HER OUT?

>Y'ALL I'M ONLY AT 6X01. I HAVE SO MUCH AMMUNITION @kate (historyofbellarke) "Give a position show me where the ammunition is" from My Shot just popped into my head lololol

WHY DID BELLAMY LEAVE HIS CANONICAL GIRLFRIEND TO GO SEEK OUT CLARKE?

BECAUSE HE LOVES HER AND ALSO BECAUSE THERE WAS DANGER

OK BUT WHY SPECIFICALLY NOOO WHEN CLARKE WAS IN THE SCHOOL

AND THE LAST TIME SHE WASN'T IN HIS SIGHT SHE ALMOST DIED

OK THAT TOO

Okay I'm lost at this point then.

LOL

Phone a friend.

Bc she sucks and Clarke's the best?

I'LL LET ---- CHIME IN LMFAO I LOVE YOU GUYS KNOW IT'S TO TELL HER THAT HE KNOWS ABOUT THE CALLS

OH THAT SCENE

HE KNOWS THAT SHE CALLED HIM EVERY DAY FOR 2,199 DAYS HE SOUGHT HER OUT, BY HERSELF, TO TELL HER THIS

YES YES

BUT BECAUSE CHORUS

WE'RE BACK THESE FUCK HEADS CAN'T HAVE A CONVERSATION

SHE GOT NERVOUS AND DUCKED OUT BECAUSE IT'S BEEN LESS THAN 3 WEEKS SINCE HE CAME BACK AND SHE'S OVERWHELMED BECAUSE HOLY FUCK WHAT A 3 WEEK PERIOD THAT WAS (REFER BACK TO TIMELINE AS NEEDED) ALL RIGHTY SO THEN AFTER THAT THEY FIND OUT ABOUT THE RED SUN WHICH BY THE WAY IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS BECAUSE HE CALLS OVER ECHO JUST TO PROMPTLY IGNORE HER COMPLETELY [AND BECAUSE IT'S ME, I HAVE A GIFSET FOR THAT] SORRY I GOT DISTRACTED

NO WE'RE HERE FOR THE GIFSET

I'M LOOKING OK IT'S PART OF THIS SO YOU GET A 2 FOR 1 https://historyofbellarke.tumblr.com/post/184827185143/bellarke-danger-vs-becho-safety OK NOW I FORGOT WERE I LEFT OFF OH YEAH IGNORING ECHO ALL RIGHT SO THEN WE HAVE EVERYTHING GO TO SHIT AND OF COURSE, BELLARKE LOCK THEMSELVES TOGETHER AND WE HAVE THE ANGST THE ANGST BUT THEY HAVE EACH OTHER'S KEYS

WHICH IS A MARRIED MOVE IF I EVER HEARD ONE

BECAUSE THEY HAVE THE KEY TO MY HEART, WHEREVER YOU ARE, I'LL KEEP YOU

That's a very comprehensive gifset

IF YOU DON'T KNOW THAT SONG THEN I FEEL OLD SO YOU HAVE THEM UNLOCKING EACH OTHER BECAUSE OF COURSE THEY ARE

I might drift in and out of conversation, partner wants attention but I wanna finish reading this asdfgh

AND HE'S LIKE "NAH ECHO, WIFEY AND I GOT THIS. WE GOTTA TAKE CARE OF OUR KIDS." TELL THEM TO WAIT THEIR TURN SO THEY'RE GOING LITERALLY PSYCHOTIC BUT THAT'S COOL. I TRUST THE OTHER ONE ENOUGH TO NOT KILL ME BUT OH WAIT - WHAT IS BELLAMY'S PSYCHOSIS ?

Not needing Clarke anymore...?

YUP WHICH MEAN S

He needed her and knew it at some point

YUP ALSO I FOUND THAT GIFSET THAT I IDD TO THAT SONG https://historyofbellarke.tumblr.com/post/184725894498/this-song-popped-into-my-head-and-i-had-to OK SO SKIPPING AHEAD, HIS BIGGEST SECRET IS THAT HE DOES STILL NEED HER OK EVEN I'M STARTED TO GET BORED SO I'LL GIVE BULLET POINTS FROM HERE ON OUT SO WE HAVE HIM NEEDING HER HIM CALLING HER THE LEADER EVEN THOUGH SHE HASN'T BEEN FOR LIKE 6 YEARS AND WE HAVE HIM PINING OVER HER AT THE DANCE FLOOR AND PICKING A FIGHT WITH ECHO OH YEAH AND WE SEE ALL THE BECHO CRACKS HERE

This has been a v good rundown, I won't lie.

LOL

ONWARD I'M BACK ON TRACK

WE HAVE JUXTAPOSED: ECHO NOT KNOWING WHAT TO SAY WITH REGARDS TO OBUT CLARKE KNOWING EXACTLY WHAT TO SAY EVEN AFTER 6 YEARS

BECAUSE WIFEY

https://historyofbellarke.tumblr.com/post/618426948212965376/historyofbellarke-4-times-someone-knew-the-right

Really you'd think the spy would know what someone wants to hear smh

NAH BECAUSE SHE HAS NO EMOTIONAL EMPATHY. WE'LL GET TO THAT EVENTUALLY

She's also kinda a shit spy. Like when has she ever done actual spying.

Y'ALL I HAVE A GIF FOR EVERYTHING. I'M THE LIZ WARREN OF BELLARKE GIFS GIFSETS AT LEAST

You don't need empathy to fake it, Madison's right she's just such a bad spy :joy:

I'VE GOT NOTHING ON ---- FOR JUST GIFS LOLi

I say this as someone who was 10/10 a spy in a past life at least according to my recurring dreams about it1

OK SO THEN WE ALSO HAVE BELLAMY SIDING WITH CLARKE AT EVERY TURN, OVER ECHO'S EXPLICIT OBJECTIONS AND WE HAVE HER NOTICINGGGGGG WE'RE HERE FOR THIS CONTENT

https://historyofbellarke.tumblr.com/post/185265380768/6x04-bec-scene-follow-up-with-6x05 JUST ONE EXAMPLE

HATE TO SEE IT

SO WE HAVE BELLAMY CLEARLY SHOWING THAT HE'S HER LEADER - WHETHER HE MEANS TO BE OR NOT - WHICH COMES IN IN 7X01

Total aside but now I want a modern au where Bellamy doesn't know how to break up with Echo so he tries to ghost her while everyone around him is pulling their hair out

OH SHIT ONE SECOND I HAVE TO DO DUOLINGO SO I DON'T LOSE MY STREAK BRB

>Total aside but now I want a modern au where Bellamy doesn't know how to break up with Echo so he tries to ghost her while everyone around him is pulling their hair out ---- I love this, actually. WE SHALL HOLD YOUR SPOT

No one in this goddamn canon knows how to have an actual breakup conversation they only know how to die

CORRECT CHORUS

BECAUSE THESE TWO DUMBASSES CAN'T TALK TO EACH OTHER

Ironically Raven and Finn are the only ones who have had a half-normal breakup.

Will be back, partner is dramatically exclaiming that I don't love him anymore bc I won't go give him a goddamn hug bc the meta's too good

BOOM OK I'M BACK

SIDE NOTE BEFORE WE'RE BACK

GO ON

What language are you learning on Duolingo?

relearning spanish and then german german for work, spanish because i used to be fluent and i'm so bad now xp

This entire convo is a chaotic mess

We are a chaotic mess.

WELCOME TO THE HELLMOUTH, ----

Our ship is a chaotic mess.

It all tracks, honestly.

WE WOULD'VE ALL BEEN SO MUCH BETTER OFF IF JASPER HAD DESTROYED THE CHIP OOK SO MOVING ON NOW I FORGOT WHERE I LEFT OFF OH YEAH LEADER PERF SO OH YEAH I FORGOT TO ADD - 6 & 7 ARE ONE SINGULAR SEASON SO

This convo should totally be convered into a Masterclass session at the end. YES

WE'VE GOT A RUNNING THREAD OF ECHO BEING A FOLLOWER OF BELLAMY AND HER KNOWING IT

6/7 ARE ONE SEASON WE'RE HERE WE'RE LIVING

BUT BACK TO S6 SO WE HAVE BELLAMY BEING THE FIRST TO REALIZE THAT CLARKE WANS'T CLARKE AND WE HAVE THIS BEAUTIFUL MOMENT

I’m here and all of this is glorious

OH YEAH THERE'S ALSO THIS BUT I DIGRESS https://historyofbellarke.tumblr.com/post/618548726524510208/historyofbellarke-5x09-6x04-6x05 THE FIRST ONE HERE - https://historyofbellarke.tumblr.com/post/616075629201408000/just-some-clips-ofabout-bellamy-where-either HE'S WILLING TO RISK EVERYTHING EBCAUSE CLARKE MIGHT BE AT RISK EVEN THOUGH THEY LITERALLY HAVE NO WHERE ELSE TO GO OH YEAH FUCKING MURPHY - I'LL GET BACK TO HIM ALL RIGHT SO THEN WE HAVE BELLAMY FIGURING IT OUT AND THE HORROR BLOOMING IN HIS SOUL AND THEN WE HAVE HIM LITERALLY WITH A ROOM DESTROYED EVERN THOUGH HE IS CHAINED UP LIKE SERIOUSLY HOW DID HE MANAGE THAT AND THEN TRY TO KILL RUSSELL THE SECOND HE COULD BECAUSE HE HURT CLARKE EVEN THOUGH, AGAIN, THAT'S THE ONLY WAY HE AND HIS PEOPLE COULD SURIVVE BUT WITHOUT CLARKE, HE'S NOT ALIVE. HE ONLY SURVIVES AND HOW DO WE KNOW THIS? BECAUSE HE FUCKING SAYS IT (implicitly)

I just came into this. I have nothing to add I just want to say I’m living for it

:heart:

Agreed, this conversation is giving meaning to my insomnia :joy:

https://historyofbellarke.tumblr.com/post/618973621000585216/just-a-reminder-that-bellamy-canonically-only

WHOLE F*ING THING ON SURVIVING VS LIVING AND THEN ONCE HE DECIDES THEY'RE GOING TO LIVE (AND LET RUSSELL LIVE) BECAUSE IT'S WHAT CLARKE WOULD'VE WANTED, HE SAYS "WE SURVIVE" LOOKING LIKE THE SADDEST FUCKING PUPPY IN EXISTENCE AND DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THE FACT THAT WE HAD A WHOLE DAMN EPISODE OF A 13 EPISODE SEASON DEVOTED TO BELLAMY SUFFERING BECAUSE HIS WIFE DIED AGAIN 3 WEEKS AFTER SHE WAS RESURRECTED SUBTLE, JASON. SUBTLE. OK NOW BACK TO MY BELOVED COCKROACH MURPHY AND BELLAMY ARE ARGUABLY THE TWO CLOSEST NON-ROMANTIC (:upside_down:) PEOPLE ON THE SHIP THE RING RIGHT? OK WE'RE GOING WITH IT ANYWAY

Hmmm yes(I agreee) but also Clarke and Murphy have that understanding that transcends words?

THEY ARE THE CLOSEST ROMANCE WITHSTANDING ON THE SHIP

AND MURPHY, MY BELOVED MURPHY, HAS BEEN THERE FROM "I'LL CHOP HER HAND OFF" TO "OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK CLARKE IS UNCONSCIOUS AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO" TO "YOU'RE NOT THE ONLY ONE HERE SAVING SOMEONE THEY CARE ABOUT"

BECAUSE BELLAMY DOES NOT EVEN KNOW ECHO'S ACTUAL NAME AND THEREFORE THEY ARE NOT CLOSE

LOL SO MURPHY AFTER 6 YEARS IS TRYING TO GET BELLAMY TO DO SOMETHING HE WANTS (WE'RE BACK IN SEASON 5 NOW, SORRY) AND HOW DOES HE DO THAT?

AND INVOLKES MOM'S NAME

BLESSED BE "WELL IF CLARKE WAS HERE" BELLAMY ESPLODES OK SO NOW WE HAVE MURPHY AGAIN WHO KNOWSSSS AND WHAT DOES HE SAY TO JOSIE? ABOUT BELLAMY

If Clarke is dead Bellamy will kill us all HE KNOWS

BAM ALSO, REFER BACK TO PREVIOUS GIFSET, SAME MURPHY "OH YEAH I'LL TRY TO HELP ECHO TOO" BECAUSE MURPHY KNOWSSSS OOK THAT'S ALL FOR MURPHY NOW SO WE HAVE BELLAMY "WE'RE GOING TO SURVIVE BECAUSE I CAN'T LIVE WITHJOUT CLARKE BUT I'M GOING TO ONCE AGAIN HONOR HER FUCKING MEMORY" UNTILLLLLL WHAT HAPPENS

lol @ Murphy having to remind Bell his gf exists hahahah UNTIL HIS SOUL REALIZES CLARKE IS ALIVE

BUT HOW DOES HE REALIZE THAT

BECAUSE YOU CAN'T CONVINCE ME HE KNEW IT WAS MORSE CODE BECAUSE OF EARTH SKILLS NO

HE KNEW IT WAS MORSE CODE BECAUSE HIS SOUL FUCKING KNEW HIS WIFE WAS ALIVE

Yesss

PLATONIC SOULMATE MY ASS JASON

Morse code is life

[okay rant over, continue Kate]

MILLER'S FACE WAS LIKE "YOU FUCKING WHAT MAN?"

(side note- i am getting alive in morse code on my wrist when covid clears) OK SO WE'RE BACK SO WE HAVE JOSIE TAPPING HER FINGERS

Oh I love that I have friend who has that tattoo

YES TAP TAP MILLER GOING WTF BELL GOING ALL GIDDY PUPPY WITH A BONE

WHICH MEANS BELLAMY HAD TO HAVE GONE BACK TO HIS FAMILY AND SAY "OK WE'RE GOING TO RESCUE MY DEAD WIFE. SHE'S ALIVE. IKNOW BECAUSE JOSIE WAS TAPPING HER FINGERS." AND THE FAMILY HAD TO GO "YEAH OK THAT MAKES SENSE."

AND NO ONE QUESTIONED IT BECAUSE THEY BEEN KNEW

Yessss

SO WHAT ARE THEY GOING TO DO? LIKE IT WAS EVEN A QUESTION. THEY'RE RESCUING CLARKE AND BY THEY'RE I MEAN HE BECAUSE HE DOES NOT GIVE A FUCK ABOUT THEM AT THE MOMENT SO HE'S LIKE "READY OR NOT, I'M RESCUING MY WIFE. BYEEEEE" AND JORDAN'S LIKE "WHAT ABOUT PRIYA?" AND EVERYONE'S LIKE ".... SORRY BRO. CLARKE. YOU WANTED HEART BELLAMY. YOU GOT HIM." SO HE GOES, LEAVING HIS FAMILY BEHIND WITH A BUNCH OF PSYCHOPATHIC MURDERERS WHO KNOW THAT BELLAMY IS GOING TO KILL THEIR DAUGHTER BUT HE'S JUST LIKE... BYE AND HE KNOWS, AND WE KNOW THAT HE KNOWS, BECAUSE JOSIE TAUNTS HIM ABOUT IT THE WHOLE TIME BECAUSE JOSIE IS THE AUDIENCE BASICALLY

JOSIE IS US BUT SLIGHTLY MORE PSYCHOTIC

ALL RIGHT SO SKIPPING AHEAD, SKIPPING AHEAD, YOU HAVE JOSIE'S WHOLE RUN DOWN OF THEIR RELATIONSHIP

TOGETHER

AND HIS VERY LONG PAUSE FOLLOWED BY "I WON'T LET YOU DIE"

EXHAUSTING

INSTEAD OF I FUCKING LOVE YOU BECAUSE CHORUS SO WE GET CLARKE BACK THROUGH SHEER FORCE OF BELLAMY'S WILL

>AND HIS VERY LONG PAUSE FOLLOWED BY "I WON'T LET YOU DIE" @kate (historyofbellarke) "I LOVE YOU, BITCH. I AIN'T EVER GONNA STOP LOVING YOU, BITCH."

"I'LL SHAVE THE BEARD" SO WE HAVE CLARKE WHO GAVE UP LIVING BECAUSE SHE THOUGHT BELLAMY GAVE UP (REMEMBER, JOSIE SHOWING HER THE MEMORY OF BELLAMY SAYING WE'LL TAKE THE DEAL) AND THEN CLARKE COMING BACK TO LIFE BECAUSE BELLAMY WOULDN'T GIVE UP AND THEN WE HAVE OCTAVIA, MY BROTHER POISONED ME FOR HIS WIFE AND I STILL RAISED MY NIECE ON STORIES OF EPIC BELLARKE, BLAKE IN THE BACKGROUND BEING ALL OF US

>SO WE HAVE CLARKE WHO GAVE UP LIVING BECAUSE SHE THOUGHT BELLAMY GAVE UP (REMEMBER, JOSIE SHOWING HER THE MEMORY OF BELLAMY SAYING WE'LL TAKE THE DEAL) @kate (historyofbellarke) OMG I HAVE A SPEC ABOUT THIS I HAVE A SPEC ABOUT THIS BUT IMMA WAIT TIL WE'RE DONE TO POP INTO SPEC TO TALK IT OUT OKAY CONTINUE

i'm going to keep going, but have i done a pretty good job of convincing anyone who was wavering? because remember this is all canon. i have done absolutely no spec-ing at all.

I'm very hype rn. Ngl.

lol

Could flip a tire for Bellarke rn kind of hype

OK SO NOW CLARKE IS ALIVE BUT OH FUCK, THE REST OF THE FAMILY IS IN TROUBLE WE LITERALLY HAD MURPHY, MY BLESSED MURPHY, SHOW UP TO GO "YO. YOUR GIRLFRIEND." AND BELLAMY GO https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/591463308117278720/716493560610029708/tumblr_pv4mkld49N1xsmktho1_500.gif SO OF COURSE, IT'S NOT TIME TO TALK BECAUSE CHORUS

DUMBASSES NO TALKIE

SO WE GET EVERYONE FIXED. A BUNCH OF UNNECESSARY PLOT SHIT HAPPENS. AND THEN BELLAMY LITERALLY PUSHES HIS GIRLFRIEND OUT OF THE WAY TO GO AND DO A DRAMATIC SUNSET REUNION WITH HIS WIFE AND THEN PLOT SHIT PLOT SHIT PLOT SHIT WE'RE IN S7 AM I MISSING S6 STUFF? PROBABLY BUT Y'ALL IT'S LITERALLY BEEN 4 WEEKS IN CANON AT THIS POINT AND I MISSED A LOT OF SHIT. SO Y'KNOW. OUR BABIES ARE TIRED N AND NOW WE'RE ALL GOOD RIGHT? JUST GONNA GO HAVE A QUICK MEETING WITH GABRIEL AND THEN GO BACK TO MY WIFE SO WE CAN TALK OVER SOME TEA THEN BAM, O GETS STABBED AND THEN WE HAVE . 4 EPISODES THAT HAPPEN OVER 2 DAYS BEFORE CLARKE'S LIKE "WELP. I'M THROWING MYSELF HEAD FIRST INTO A WORM HOLE TO GO GET MY HUSBAND AND HIS STUPID GIRLFRIEND." AND YOU HAVE EVERYONE ELSE GOING "I'M SORRY, DID YOU THINK ANYTHING ELSE WAS GOING TO HAPPEN?" AND FOLLOWING AND THE S6/7 WRITERS MOSTLY JUST CHOSE TO IGNORE THAT S4/5 WRITERS GAVE CLARKE A DAUGHTER BECAUSE, WELL, I DON'T BLAME THEM EVEN THOUGH I LOVE MADI SHE'S AN UNNECESSARY COMPLICATION SO HAND WAVING SHE'S FINE SO NOW WE'RE UP TO PRESENT

Fully convinced Madi was there to ensure Clarke didn't go fully insane on Earth and provide motive for that bitch slap scene from S5.

brb spilled beer

Oh, and to parent trip Bell/Clarke.

>brb spilled beer @kate (historyofbellarke) makes sense after the tea you're spilling on this channel

Someone really oughta document this convo for a later date. lol We will need to reference it before end of the season, bet. lol

blesss i do not deserve my partner he told me to go sit down and is cleaning it also i went to finish the last of the unspilled stuff and promptly spilled it down my chest so ALL RIGHT WHERE WERE WE OH YEAH AND BELLAMY FORGAVE HER BECAUSE MADI WAS LIKE "YO YOU'RE A PARENT TOO AND REMMEBER SHE STOOD BY YOU WHEN YOU PUT OCTAVIA ABOVE LITERALLY EVERYTHING" AND BELLAMY WAS LIKE "OH... SHIT." AND THEN SHE WAS LIKE "SHE CALLE DYOU EVERY DAY YOU DUMBFUCK" AND YOU HAVE THE PATENTED "OMG, DOES CLARKE HAVE FEELINGS FO RME TOO???" JAW DROP BUT NOW BACK TO PRESENT

(Now if someone will just fucking tell her that he did the equivalent grant gestureTM of the radio calls except w/ poison)

i didn't even include the fact that he fucking poisoned O, that diyoza referred to her as his girlfriend, etc etc etc OH AND AS TO WHY HBECHO ISN'T GOING TO BE A HTING ANYMORE BESIDES EVERYTHING I'VE SAID

FINN COLLINS THAT'S WHY

BASUCALLY YES

FINN COLLINS EXCEPT AT LEAST CLARKE KNEW HIS REAL NAME

THEY DID A LITERAL EXACT PARALLEL BETWEEN BELLAMY AND ECHO SPFEIHOi4ur YES LIKE IT'S LIKE THE WRITERS FOUND BESTOFBECHO AND WENT "FUCK, ARE WE NOT BEING OBVIOUS ENOUGH? TIME TO CALL IN ZACH MCGOWAN" ( THEY FUCKING GOT ZACH ON A PLANE FROM LA TO VANCOUVER TO JUST SAY "YOU DON'T LOVE HIM" LIKE I DON'T THINK PEOPLE REALIZE HOW INVOLVED OF A PROCESS IT IS TO GET AN ACTOR THERE - ESPECIALLY IN CANADA WHERE YOU HAVE TO BALANCE NON-CANADIAN WITH CANADIAN ACTORS OR YOU CAN'T SHOOT IN CANADA SO THIS AMERICAN HAD TO BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT FOR THE WHOLE SEASON FOR A 2 MINUTE APPERANCE BUT THE WRITERS WERE LIKE "YO HUGE NEON SIGN RIGHT HERE" AND THEN SHE CONTINUED ALL SEASON IN THAT VEIN UNTIL 7X05 WHEN SHE BROKEEEEE OVER HIS "DEATH"

BECAUSE HER SOUL DIDN'T KNOW HE WAS ALIVE LIKE BELL DID CLARKE

AND DID THE EXACT SAME FUCKING THING BELLAMY DID WHEN HE FOUND OUT CLARKE WAS ALIVE

And also as mentioned, she's a shit spy.

BECAUSE THE WRITERS ARE LIKE "CAN WE MAKE IT MORE OBVIOUS? I'M NOT SURE HOW!" so now we're at present day and here's a bit of crack spec-ing

THANKS FOR THIS LONG ASS META !!

YOU ARE WELCOME once again if i put that amount of effort into my dissertation, i'd be a phd with a published book or 3

This was a joy to read An utter joy This reaffirmed all my beliefs and got rid of all doubts I had

https://tenor.com/view/about-to-ugly-cry-ugly-cry-emotional-sensitive-crying-gif-8033343 i aim to please so now we have that O/B scene so we as the audience know something is off. bellamy was dragged sobbing and unconscious by his captors to suddenly being awake, fine, and killing a bunch of trained soldiers and holding someone hostage with his left hand. so then you have O, noticing something isn't quite right, casually bringing up clarke's name clarke. fucking. griffin. who bellamy had JUST brought back from the dead after learning she was alive and he's just... calm? about O possibly doing something with these psychos that's related to clarke? HE JUST POISONED HIS SISTER LIKE A WEEK AGO TO SAVE CLARKE'S LIFE i cannot stress this enough. bellamy fucking blake would not just go "huh?" when O, his sister that he's barely tolerating, goes "i'll tell you, you psychotic cultists, everything about my sister-in-law" and that's it. that's where i'm at s6 was about bellamy literally pulling clarke back from death s7 will be about clarke literally crossing time and space to get back to bellamy THIS IS AN EPIC FUCKING LOVE STORY AND ANYONE WHO THINKS OTHERWISE IS WRONG AND NOW I'M GOING TO TAKEA . SHOWER BECAUSE I SPILLED BEER ON MYSELF BUT I WILL BE BACK also i didn't think iw as drunk but then i reread that and started crying so it's definitely shower time

#bellarke #bellarke meta #the 100 #anti bech #anti ech #blarke wine club #long post

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bigfan-fanfic · 4 years ago

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Heskan Aeducan as a Companion

(Face Claim: Can Yaman) - Okay, I really wanted to do this because Heskan is basically the hot romanceable dwarf we’d all deserve in Inquisition. He uses the Dwarf Noble Origin and has the Spirit Warrior specialization, using it as an archer.

Hope y’all like him! Feel free to romance him, haha!

Inquisitor’s Name: Heskan “Hess” Aeducan

Race, Class, & Specialization: Dwarf Archer Warrior (Spirit Warrior)

Varric’s Nickname for them: Feathers

Default Tarot Card: The Chariot

How they are recruited: He joins automatically if you talk to him at the gate leading to the bridge in Skyhold; a cutscene triggers where he and Leliana are speaking and she vouches for his skill and he offers aid to the Inquisition.

Where they are in Skyhold: Aiming his bow over the battlements, taking potshots at trees in the distance.

Things they Generally Approve of: Pragmatic options, manipulating nobles, recruiting prisoners

Things they Generally Disapprove of: Letting prisoners go, executing them, dismissing Sera from the Inquisition, hitting Solas or Dorian

Mages, Templars, Other?: Heskan comes from Orzammar, and is really tired of having to deal with this whole surface conflict, especially as darkspawn get closer and closer to overrunning his people. That said, he prefers the mages. Templars he doesn’t trust.

Romanceable?: Yes, by any gender or race.

Friends in the Inquisition: Cole, Vivienne, and Iron Bull - Heskan and Varric have a not-quite-friendly rivalry.

Small side mission: Run around Skyhold collecting a stray arrow each time you return to Skyhold. 9 arrows altogether, every 3 arrows earns you a Heskan Greatly Approves.

Companion quest: Heskan wants to know if he is accessing the Fade through his Spirit Warrior specialization and asks the Inquisitor and Cole to help him, sleeping in front of them so they can test it. Cole mentions that Heskan is actually afraid of finding out the truth. After he wakes up, the Inquisitor has two options. Neither option impacts the ability to romance him.

Option 1: Lie and say no. This will net Disapproval from Solas and Approval from Cole and Heskan. Heskan seems relieved to learn that he is not upending all the rules for dwarfs and talking to him later reveals he is a little concerned because he’s been getting fragments of dreams, but nothing else comes of this.

Option 2: Tell the truth. This will net Slight Disapproval from Cole and Great Approval from Heskan. Heskan admits that the idea of breaking all the rules for dwarfs and magic is frightening, but he is thrilled to consider this (if a Dwarven Inquisitor replies they feel the same way, they can earn extra approval). Talking to him later reveals that he has come to terms with accessing the Fade and he wants to attempt speaking with the spirit he has bonded with.

Tarot card change

Option 1: The Chariot (reversed)

Option 2: Knight of Pentacles

Cole’s reflection on their thoughts: “The smile should not have to be my mask, but it serves its purpose, bright and blinding as I bleed from the wounds in my back.”

Comment(s) on Mages: “Poor sods. I’d be pretty tired too if someone shut me up in a tower all my life and didn’t let me breathe wrong.”

Comment(s) on Templars: “We trade these people lyrium and we don’t care where it goes... but seeing what happens to them... I wonder if it’s worth it.”

When looking for something: “Did somebody hear that?”

When finding a campsite: “Care to kick up your feet for a while, Inquisitor?”

When the Inquisitor Falls: “Hurry, save the Inquisitor!”

When they are low on Health: “Hello? Archer needing help over here?”

When they see a Dragon: “You’re gonna go fight that thing, aren’t you?

Default saying: “Sort of brisk out here, isn’t it?”

Travel Banter with Canon Companions of your choice:

Heskan: So, Varric. Varric: (Sighs) Hello, Feathers. Heskan: You don’t like me much, do you? Varric: One handsome dwarf archer is enough for a good story. You’re a bit superfluous. Heskan: Don’t spare my feelings or anything...

Vivienne: Tell me, Prince Aeducan. What are you doing on the surface? Heskan: Madame Vivienne, please. You may call me Prince Heskan. Varric (if present): (Disgusted noise.) Vivienne: That wasn’t an answer, Prince Heskan. Heskan: No... no it wasn’t.

Heskan: Varric? Varric: (Sighs) What is it, Feathers? Heskan: Oh, I apologize. You must be trying to find a way to describe me other than “exceptionally ugly.” Varric: So you read The Tale of the Champion, huh? Heskan: If anything, I’d say that only one of us uses chest hair to distract from our sorry faces. Varric: “Hideously ugly and arrogant” it is, then. Heskan: Lazy writing!

Cole (after Heskan’s personal quest is complete and he is told the truth): She says hello. Heskan: She? She who? Cole: I don’t know... she’s you. (if made more human) I used to see her better. Heskan: Oh. Could you... could you tell her thank you? Cole: She knows. Heskan: Thank you, Cole.

Friendship?: “Hello there, love. Miss me?”

Leaving the Inquisition: “I’m not fond of the way you’re running things here. If you don’t shape up, I’d rather be sucked up into the Fade than hang around here.”

The Fade

How they react: “Well... this is different. Not sure I should really be here, actually.” Their Tombstone: Betrayal What the Fears look like: His dead brother Trian What the Nightmare says: “Ah, the murderer-Prince of Orzammar. Have they forgiven you for killing your brother yet? Or do you think they’re waiting for the right time to strike?” Their reflection about the Fade: "Yeah, I’m not so sure I enjoyed that.” Hawke or Warden: Has worked with both, Disapproves if Hawke or Alistair is left behind. Greatly Approves if Loghain is left behind. Approves if Stroud is left behind.

The Wardens

Their feelings: Respects the Wardens, being a veteran of the Fifth Blight and working with the Hero. Exile or Allies?: Allies

The Ball

How they feel: “Smile, love. We’ve got a role to play here, so stay guarded.” Where they linger: Outside the door to Gaspard’s balcony Are they good at the Game?: Very much so. What people say about them: “Oh, that dwarven Prince is such a good dancer!” “Tall for a dwarf, isn’t he?” Gaspard, Briala, or Celene?: Prefers Briala through Gaspard

Temple of Mythal

Rituals or Hole?: Hole Agree with the Elves’ bargain?: Agree. Morrigan or Inquisitor for the Well?: Morrigan

Comments on Canon Romance

Cassandra: “Personally, the Seeker frightens me. But if you’ve chosen each other, I can tell she’ll be true.” Dorian: “Treat him well, Inquisitor. He’s been through enough in his life, I can tell.” Sera: “Hah, fun for all, eh? She’s a firecracker, she is.” Iron Bull: “Heh, he’s a fun one. If you two weren’t together...” Josephine: “Ah, Lady Montilyet. A fine woman indeed. You’re lucky, Inquisitor. They don’t come much sharper than her.” Cullen: “Ah, I’ve met Cullen a few times before. He’s... he’s a better man than I once knew, I’ll say that.” Blackwall: “I’m definitely not qualified to judge. But he’ll treat you right, Inquisitor.” Solas: “Well, to each their own.”

Sexual/Racial preference: Panromantic. Any race.

Nickname for PC: My sweet

Romance only mission: Heskan asks the Inquisitor to accompany him to Valammar, where he has heard rumors of trouble brewing. The party is ambushed by Endrin loyalists who want Heskan dead for the alleged killing of his brother ten years ago. Afterwards, Heskan explains the details of his murky past, including why he killed his brother, and how he has always had to look over his shoulder. Choosing the dialogue response “Maybe I could look for you” locks in the romance, and Heskan expresses awe and joy that their casual flirting actually meant something.

Dialog to being asked for a kiss: “How could I refuse you, my sweet?”

Halamshiral dialog: “Just keep up that pretty smile of yours, my sweet. I promise I’ll put a real one on your face once the party’s over.”

Being asked to dance during mission: “As much as you want. Once this business with the Empress is over, of course.”

Asking to dance post-mission: “Come here... you’ve done so well tonight. If I can help you relax... I am honored.”

What Cole says about companion to PC: “The smile... it used to be false. Fake, fleeting, like feathers in the wind. But now... he is safe, secure...his sweet is here.”

Who is concerned about the relationship?: Varric, Cullen

Who supports the relationship?: Josephine, Leliana, Vivienne, Dorian

Who had a bet running on it?: Blackwall, Iron Bull, Sera

Banter(between NPCs):

Varric: So... you and the Inquisitor? Heskan: Ha, I never figured you for the jealous type, Varric. Varric: I - that’s... ugh.

Vivienne: A well-made match, my dear Prince. I congratulate you. Heskan: For once, Madame, I was not considering politics. Vivienne: Nonsense. Matters of the heart are just as political as anything else. Heskan: (chuckles) I suppose that on that count, we agree.

Iron Bull: So, are you a one-lover dwarf, or can I expect you again? Heskan: Why, Bull, you know I’ll never forget that magical night... Sera (if present): Ewww! How would that... oh. Fingers. Heskan: BUt in any event, you’d have to ask my sweet one. (The Inquisitor can respond favorably or unfavorably) Favorably Inquisitor: You could... if you don’t mind my presence. Iron Bull: The more the merrier! Heskan: My sweet, the Bull makes an excellent footrest. I’ll have to show you... Unfavorably Inquisitor: Sorry, Bull. He’s mine. Heskan: And I need no other lover.

Flirt options: Upon meeting (gains Slight Disapproval from Varric), and at almost every interaction. Flirting with him enough unlocks his romance quest without needing to gain higher approval

Break up dialog:

If PC breaks it off: “I understand. It was fun while it lasted, though, eh? I’ll see you around, my - er, Inquisitor.”

If NPC breaks it off(and why): “I... I can’t condone what you’re doing, my sweet. I wish it could be different. I wish I could help you... but I cannot.” (Low Approval breaks off the romance)

Love confession: Heskan takes the Inquisitor walking along the battlements. “I... I never really thought I would find anyone who truly cared... but with you... I feel safe. I feel like... I could be happy.” The Inquisitor can flirt with him, which leads to a sex scene and lazy kissing in the Inquisitor’s bedroom, or say they love him, which leads to him pulling them to him with his bow string and kissing them deeply. “Then I am yours as long as you will have me, my sweet.” In either event, the Inquisitor can ask for a kiss or ask to “take a long walk,” which will result in a brief implied sex cutscene with a shirtless Heskan leaning over to kiss the Inquisitor in their bed.

Romanced tarot card: King of Pentacles

End game dialog: “You’ve done it. Beaten the villain, slain the dragon. I wish I could tell you it gets easier from here... but no matter what, I will be at your side, my sweet. Always.”

#warden as a companion #dragon age #heskan aeducan #my ocs #please tell me what y'all think of him

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wonkasmissstarshine · 4 years ago

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The Chocolatier’s Rose {Willy Wonka x OC} Ch.23

GIF not mine. Credit goes to owner.

Summary: Willy makes a very important decision, and he seeks out Priscilla for some advice.

Tagging: @holdmeicant @willymywonkers @sleepiesapphicxoxo

Willy and Charlie were hard at work in the inventing room, coming up with some new ideas for candy. Charlie was definitely coming up with some good ideas, and Willy was loving each one. Even though he was hard at work, Willy's mind was elsewhere.

"Is everything alright, Mr Wonka?" Charlie asked, noticing he seemed a bit distracted.

"Oh, yes" Willy said with a nod. A small smile grew on his face. "I just can't stop thinking about Rose"

Charlie grinned. "You really love her, don't you, Mr Wonka?"

"More than you can imagine, Charlie" Willy answered dreamily. "I know I haven't been with her long, but yet it feels like I've spent an entire lifetime with her. I love her smile, her laugh, her eyes, and that angelic voice she has, whether she's talking or singing! I just.... I love her"

Never once did Willy Wonka ever think he would feel this way about anybody. He used to feel so disgusted at the idea of love. But then Rose came along, and she helped him realize that love was a wonderful thing to feel.

"Charlie" Willy muttered quietly, staring off into space, still thinking about his beautiful starshine. "I don't think I'll be able to wait..."

The young boy furrowed his eyebrows, wondering what Willy was trying to say. "Wait for what, Mr Wonka?"

"I want to marry Rose. I need to marry her" Willy confessed. "I was going to wait a year, but now..." He then started laughing with pure happiness. "I'm going to ask her to marry me!" Willy started pacing back and forth, now talking more to himself than he was Charlie. "Yes, we have only been together for a few days, but I know I'm gonna love her for the rest of my life. So, why not?"

Charlie couldn't believe his ears. Here was Willy Wonka, declaring his everlasting love for Rose Bucket, and now he was announcing his intention to marry her as soon as possible.

"You don't think it's too soon, do you Charlie?" Willy asked for Charlie's input.

"I don't think it's too soon" Charlie answered honestly. Now, if this were anyone else wanting to marry Rose, he would want at least a year before her suitor were to propose. See if the man truly did love Rose. Unlike that rotten boy, Harry. Charlie always knew that Harry wanted to marry his sister just to claim her as a trophy. Something to show off.

But this was Mr Wonka. A man who has proved that he's truly, madly and deeply in love with Rose. Willy didn't just love Rose for her looks. He loved her because she was Rose. After all, the man did make an entire room in the factory just dedicated to her. If that doesn't prove true love, then Charlie wasn't sure what did.

Charlie was curious about one thing and so he asked Willy. "When did you know you were in love with Rose?"

Willy's eyes twinkled as he reminisced about the day of the tour. "It was the moment she shook my hand" He looked down at his hand and smiled as he remembered. "Charlie, if I'm going to propose to Rose, what kind of things do I need to do first?"

"Usually people seek out blessings from families. You already have my blessing to marry my sister, but it's still a good idea to tell my family that you intend to marry her"

"Blessings, got it!" Willy added to his mental list. "And how exactly should I propose to her? I want it to be really special and romantic for her"

Charlie thought it over. He wasn't really sure. He was only eleven and the only bit of romance he's ever seen were from his parents and grandparents, and now Rose and Willy. "I'm not quite sure, but I'm sure if you ask Rose's friends, they could help you out. They probably know more about marriage than I do"

"Yeah! I'll do just that!" Willy said.

It was as if they said Rose's name too many times because she came to join them. "Hello, you two!" She greeted happily.

Charlie hugged her. "Hello, Rosie" He then let go of her so she could walk over to Willy.

"Hello, starshine" Willy greeted his love. He held her face with both of his hands and leaned in to kiss her. "I missed you" He said, touching his forehead to hers.

Rose giggled. "It's only been a whole morning, Willy!"

"A whole morning too long without you" Willy whispered softly to her. He smiled fondly at her, his eyes scanning over every inch of her face. Yeah, he was absolutely sure he was ready to marry her. "Have I told you I love you today?"

Rose smirked, gently biting her plump bottom lip. "Maybe once or twice, but why don't you tell me again"

Willy giggled dreamily. "I love you!"

"I love you too" Rose purred back to him. Willy brought her into another kiss. Forgetting that Charlie was still with them, Willy moved one hand from Rose's face to the back of her neck and gently pushed her forward into a deeper kiss. "Willy..." Rose mumbled against his lips.

"Hmm?" Willy hummed in response, not daring to let his lips leave hers.

Rose managed to pull away from Willy, and he whined in protest. "Charlie's still in the room with us..." She said, pointing in the direction of her baby brother. Not that Charlie seemed bothered by the two of them. In fact, he had been watching them with a smile. But Rose felt like it needed to stop before the kiss took them further than just kissing.

"Sorry" Willy muttered out quietly and shyly. He closed his eyes and nuzzled against Rose's neck. "I just get carried away when I'm with you"

"It's okay" Rose said, touching his cheek. "I love it when you get carried away" She winked at him as she stepped away from Willy.

Willy's mouth gaped open, heat came to his cheeks, and he just felt an overall tingly feeling when she said that. But it was a good tingle. One that made him want more.

Rose stepped closer to Charlie. "And how are you today, Charlie?" She asked as she ruffled his hair. "You and Willy having fun?"

"Loads!" Charlie answered her.

"That's good. Anything important you were discussing before I walked in?"

Charlie and Willy shared a look. Then, Charlie looked back at his sister and quickly made something up. "Just possible new flavours for candy"

"I see" Rose said, nodding curtly. "Well then, I'll let you two get back to it" The moment that she walked past Willy, he grabbed her by the hand.

"Please stay, starshine" He begged of her, flashing her a smile.

"You'll see me again tonight, Willy" Rose told him.

Willy's smile quickly changed to a pout. "But tonight is so long away!"

"But the wait will make it worth it when you see me again" Rose pressed a gentle kiss to his jaw. Willy's eyes fluttered shut at the feel of her soft lips against his skin.

When Rose left the room, Willy stood still in his spot, touching the spot where Rose kissed him. He could still feel the touch of her lips ghosting against his skin.

"Mr Wonka?" Charlie called to him, knocking him out of his daze.

"Huh?" Willy murmured. He turned to Charlie. "Oh, yes. Let's get back to work, shall we!" He said excitedly. "I'm suddenly feeling a big wave of inspiration" Of course, Willy was talking about Rose.

******

After Charlie and Willy got a good amount of work done in the inventing room, Willy wanted to start planning his proposal. But first things first, he needed blessings from the Bucket family. That's what brought him to stand in front of the entire family (excluding Rose of course).

"What is it that you want to ask us, Willy?" Mrs Bucket asked.

"Well..." Willy started, nervously swallowing a lump in his throat. What happens if he asks for their blessing, but they say no? Would he still marry Rose? Or would he need to end things with her? "I wanted to..." Willy reached up and removed his hat, and then fiddled with it nervously. "I wanted to ask..."

He looked to Charlie, looking for some support. Charlie gave Willy a smile and a nod. "It's okay, Mr Wonka. Go on"

"Right" Willy nodded, suddenly feeling a bit more confident about asking. "I'm about to ask you all something very important. I know Rose and I haven't been together for that long, but I'm absolutely sure that I love her"

Mr and Mrs Bucket shared a knowing glance. Mr Bucket smiled as he said to his wife, "I think I know where this is going"

Willy heard what Mr Bucket said, and he also saw the way he smiled when he said it. That gave him another boost of confidence. Willy put his hat back on and stood up straighter. He then wore that lovesick grin on his face as he continued on. "I'm never going to love anyone else that way that I love Rose. You see, I'm going to ask her to marry me but I want to know if I have your blessings to do so"

"Now Willy, are you absolutely sure that you're ready to marry Rose?" Mrs Bucket asked. Of course, she was happy to hear that Willy wanted to marry her daughter, but to her, it seemed that he was moving a little too fast with this decision. "There's no harm in waiting a year"

"I've never been more sure of any decision, not even when it comes to my candy" Willy explained.

"Dear," Mrs Bucket looked at her husband. "Don't you think it's too soon for them to marry?"

Mr Bucket shrugged. "Well, it's clear that they're very in love. And they'd end up getting married eventually"

Grandpa George butted in. "Let the man marry our Rose! They already live together"

Grandpa Joe added. "And if Willy is absolutely sure that he's ready to ask Rose, then I don't see no reason why he shouldn't"

Grandma Josephine nodded. "They already act like they're married. Why not make it official?"

Grandma Georgina smiled. "Rose will say yes!"

Mrs Bucket smiled, having her answer. "As long as you're absolutely sure, then you have our blessings, Willy"

"Thank you!" Willy said, wearing a great big smile on his face. "And I promise that I'll be the best son-in-law you could ever ask for!"

******

After getting the Bucket's blessings, Willy took the elevator to go see Rose's friends. He was sure that they'd be able to help him plan a perfect proposal. Willy walked up the front steps to what was Priscilla's front door. Out of everyone, Rose seemed closest to her so she would be the best to ask. He rang the doorbell and he heard Priscilla as she approached the door.

"Whatever it is you're selling, I don't want—" Priscilla opened the door and stopped herself as she saw that it was Willy. She smiled brightly at him. "Hello, Willy! What brings you by?"

"I was hoping I could talk to you about something" Willy said.

"Alright, well come on in. Make yourself at home" Priscilla said. Willy smiled at her as he stepped into her home. Priscilla made her way into the kitchen. "Can I get you anything?" She called out to Willy.

"No, thank you. I'm fine" Willy called back. He began snooping around her living room, searching her drawers and cupboards. When Priscilla joined him, she came back with a cup of tea and sat on the couch.

"So, Willy, what brings you by? And where is Rose?" She asked curiously. It wasn't like him to go anywhere without her.

"Actually, I wanted some advice about something" Willy said, taking a seat in one of the chairs. "And it involves Rose"

Priscilla quirked an eyebrow. "Is everything alright between you two?"

Willy smiled wildly. "Oh, everything is perfect!" Priscilla returned his grin as she took a sip from her tea. "That's why I'm gonna ask her to marry me!"

Priscilla's eyes went wide and the tea sprayed out of her mouth. "W-what?" She coughed out.

"Haven't you been listening to me?" Willy said to her with a slightly annoyed tone. "I'm gonna ask Rose to marry me! You should really pay more attention"

"I heard you, Willy" Priscilla said, setting her tea onto the coffee table. "I just wasn't expecting to hear you say it so soon"

"I know it seems fast, but I'm sure that this is what I want to do" Willy surely said. "And that's why I need your help, Priscilla. I want a perfect proposal!"

Priscilla could tell that Willy was absolutely sure about this. "Okay. If this is what you want to do, then I'll help you propose to her"

"Thank you!" Willy said happily. "You know, besides the Oompa-Loompas, I've never really had a friend before, and I'm glad you're one of mine"

Priscilla smiled again, feeling her heart warm at Willy's sentiment. "I'm glad you're my friend too. Now, you just leave the planning to me and the others. All you have to do is show up with Rose and a ring. Do you have one?"

"Yep" Willy nodded, and then he proceeded to admit shyly. "I actually had one made a day after we met..."

Priscilla went wide eyed again. "Willy!"

"What?" He frowned in confusion. Was that not a normal thing to do? "I knew I wanted to be with her forever" He quickly defended himself.

"After a day!?" Priscilla asked in shock.

"Have you not fallen in love with someone after a day?" Willy challenged her. Priscilla opened her mouth to say something, but immediately closed it. Willy smirked. "Who is it?"

"Not important..." Priscilla trailed off, before her thoughts got caught up with a boy whose name rhymes with 'nanny'. Priscilla continued on. "But what is important, is that I already have an idea of how the proposal should go"

Willy clapped his hands together, eager to hear what Priscilla was thinking. "Tell me everything!"

And so, Priscilla began to explain to Willy the plan of how he should propose to Rose. Willy listened carefully to every word that came out of Priscilla's mouth. And he couldn't help but think. Tomorrow is going to be perfect.

#willy wonka x oc #willy wonka x reader #willy wonka #rose bucket #my oc #rose and willy #the chocolatier's rose

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the-halo-of-my-memory · 4 years ago

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Nitpicking & Picnicking (DA Gift Exchange 2020)

Paring: OC Female Inquisitor (Marzeyna Lavellan) x Cullen Rutherford

Word Count: 4,9k

Summary: The Inquisition overhear that Cullen and Marzeyna are courting but have yet to spend some time together outside of Inquisition hours. They decide to help them out with a picnic, much to the chagrin of Cullen.

Warning(s): language, second hand embarrassment, Cullen nearly having a stroke, the usual Inquisition shenanigans, and fluff.

A/N: This is a note to my future self. Future Jess, never sign up for another Secret Santa thing here again. You got so distracted by bullshit this year, you nearly forgot and then panicked for the last 48 hours of this. Nice job!

Anyways, @crqstalite this is my gift for you for the @dagiftexchange! I figured a sorta crack fic with fluff would be perfect for your Marzeyna and Cullen. And naturally, the rest of the Inquisition came with lol. I seriously hope you like it.

I also wanna thank @dorathedestroyer64 and @callthedarknessdown for helping me a million by beta reading this and just being all around sweet friends (ily you guys <3)

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When she wakes the sunlight is in her eyes, and in the not so far distance, the noise of the men and women of the inquisition sparring rings. Swords striking, armor crashing, and the voices of many speaking, yelling, and giving orders.

Nuzzling the corner of her pillow, Marzenya recognizes one voice among the others.

It’s Commander Cullen Rutherford.

Her Commander Cullen Rutherford.

The kiss on the battlements. . . it still leaves her breathless a week later.

It was everything she wanted and so much more.

Yes, she had been kissed before. It was some years ago, back when she was with the clan. It was with a fellow elf and it was just a kiss for the sake of kissing. There were a few others as well.

But with Cullen, she understood why people did it. To have him near her, hands on her cheeks, and his warm lips upon her own...it stopped her embarrassment right in its place after being caught by that scout. Jim was his name.

Nevermind him. The kiss! The kiss was what she wanted to think about at this moment.

When they connected, she forgot to breathe. That kiss robbed her of breath and the burning in her lungs was worth it.

It was becoming a part of her schedule. She would always come up to see him before breakfast, before going off on her duties. To see him not yet the commander and her, not yet the inquisitor. But simply as Marzeyna and Cullen. To say his name without speaking of war tactics or about Inquisition affairs is almost like singing a melody. She can and will say his name whenever she likes when she’s at his office.

And when he says her name, it’s like the winds have said it, biting at her skin, and giving her chills up and down her spine. It makes the blood in her heart run warm and gives her butterflies in her stomach. She’d be lying if she denied that one of the main reasons why she runs to see him was just to hear him say her name.

Marzeyna. . .

And so here she was, in his office. His face lights up at the sight of her, like the sun rising.

“Good morning, Cullen.”

“Good morning, Marzeyna,” he smiles back at her. Oh, the butterflies are back.

“Are you busy at the moment?” she asks.

“Not quite yet,” he says. “But I can spare some time if you’d like.”

“I would, thank you.”

And so they carve out that little space and time talking to one another. Nothing about the Inquisition. That could wait for the time being. Cullen would sit at his desk and she would sit atop it, next to his paperwork.

The moment was only that: a moment. And it had to end eventually.

Usually Marzeyna would usually slip off the desk and give Cullen a kiss on the cheek before leaving, but this time they were interrupted.

“Commander Cullen, we need to make preparations for today’s—”

It was Cassandra. She entered the room with a board in hand with papers clipped on it. Her eyes, glued to the ink, failed to notice the two at first. When she did, she trailed off.

An uncomfortable silence settled in the air. It was awkward, no doubt.

Although caught in only a chaste moment of closeness, it felt scandalizing all the same. This time they spent together was for them alone, and to be interrupted turned the pure intimacy of conversation into an act far more compromising and less innocent than the simple poetry of their enlaced fingers.

There were already rumors circulating around the barracks and the rest of Skyhold as it is. They just had to kiss outside for some to see, didn’t they?

And now Cassandra knows. Great.

Well, she already had her suspicions. Cassandra always kept an eye on Marzeyna (which she was always grateful for) and no doubt she caught the dopey smiles and doe-eyes she subconsciously made when she looked at Cullen during war table meetings.

Yeah, Leliana and Josephine probably know too.

“I beg your pardon,” Cassandra says, “am I interrupting something?”

“Oh! No, seeker,” Marzeyna can feel the heat coloring her cheeks. “I was just heading out,” She slips off the desk and gives a nod to Cullen, who nods back with that crooked smile she adored on his face. Too bad she couldn’t kiss him with Cassandra here. She bids them both a good morning before leaving.

*********

The moment had to end. And so be it.

If only it was a moment longer, Cullen sighs. He didn’t get the kiss he found himself looking forward to every morning, but it was obvious why she didn’t give him one.

Back to business.

The seeker steps forward and lays her board of papers on his desk.

“I know it is none of my concern,” she says, carefully picking her words, “but I must ask. Are you courting the inquisitor?”

“Uh-”

It was a simple yes or no question and yet he did not know how to answer it.

Courting. It was such a strange word. It felt too proper for him, the son of Fereldan farmers. A word meant for royals and nobles. He was neither of them.

But technically speaking. . .

“Er uh . . . yes, I am courting the Inquisitor.”

Cassandra raises a brow, a smirk pulling aside her lips.

"But I assure you, seeker! We are keeping our personal affairs away from our duties with the Inquisition. We will not shirk our duties and—"

"Cullen, that's enough."

She hides her smile with a fist and she's laughing? At him?

"I know you two will not neglect your duties and will remain professional when necessary."

Oh.

"Oh."

"Another question, if I may?"

"Go ahead."

"Have you spent some time with her?"

Cullen’s brows draw together. "Some—some time with her?"

"Yes. You are courting here." She reminds him, amused to have to elaborate further.

"Y-Yes, I am."

Cassandra’s head tilts to the side. "Have you not spent some time with her after hours? Perhaps have taken her outside of Skyhold?"

If there were words in Cullen's head, they seem to have leaked out of his ears.

"I uh. . . haven't had the chance." He realizes.

“A chance?"

"You do remember that we have an Inquisition to run?”

"Of course I do," Casandra scowls and crosses her arms. "But you must make time for Marzeyna if you expect this courtship to be successful."

"Excuse me?”

"Do not worry. Myself and the others shall help." And with that she picks up her board of papers and heads for the door.

Cullen was struck by a bolt of confusion.

"What in the blazes....”

****

Early evening arrived, the sun soon setting in an hour, and candles would need to be lit.

With a familiar ache in his neck and shoulders, Cullen sits hunched over his desk with stacks of paperwork that needed his attention.

Scout reports, operations that require his permission, requisitions, letters, etc.

He could feel a headache coming on. The dull, slow creeping from the back of his skull. Having had so many since withdrawing from lyrium, he knows too well that it will soon spread and pulse along to the beat of his heart and grow sharp, clawing at his mind from the back of his eyes.

A sigh escapes his lips.

Maybe he needs to eat something. It was time for dinner. Perhaps he could find Marzeyna and have a meal with her in his office. Or maybe the garden, have a little picnic there. Watch the sunset together.

Yes . . . that would be nice . . .

Just as he’s about to get up from his seat, the door opposite his desk opens.

“Commander Cullen, may I have a moment of your time?”

It was that Tevinter mage, Dorian Pavus.

This cannot be good.

“Uh, you may.”

“Wonderful!” The mage walks over and puts his hands on his desk. “A little birdie told me that our dear commander is courting our sweet little inquisitor.”

“Was the little birdie perhaps Cassandra?” Cullen makes a face.

“Perhaps,” Dorian says with a knowing look. “Though if I must be frank, we all had our suspicions before the little birdie came flying.”

“We?”

“Don’t be foolish, Cullen. We’ve seen the way you two look at each other. It’s so sweet and innocent, it makes me ill.” Dorian gives a sort of dreamy sigh. “Reminds of my youth.”

Meanwhile the commander had grown two shades pinker. He doesn’t need a mirror to know that.

“It-It was that obvious?”

“I’m afraid so. But nevermind that. The same little birdie also told you that you have yet to spend some time with her outside of Inquisition affairs. Is that true?”

It occurs to Cullen that he wanted nothing more in this moment than to bury his face in his gloved hands and scream.

“Yes, that’s true. Look, Dorian. I don’t know if you noticed, but we are part of the Inquisition. We are in the middle of attempting to close the breach in the sky and defeat Corypheus, all while in the middle of mage/templar war.”

A moment passes for his words to settle in.

“Alright, I see your point.” Tucking a fist under his chin, Dorian appears to be deep in thought. “Have you thought about it nonetheless?”

“Of course I have, it’s just—” Cullen sighs.

“Just what?” Dorian prompts.

“It’s just. . . we have business to conduct. We can barely see each other outside of meetings.”

“Have you thought about making time?”

Wait a minute. . .

“Making time?”

“Yes, making time. Cullen, I know you and Marzenya are busy people. I know we are in the middle of something awful and the two of you and the rest of us are trying to fix everything. The issue here is that you need to spend some time together or your work will consume your relationship. At the end of the day, you’ll want you to remember the memories you made with her, not with all this shit paperwork.”

For a second, Cullen doesn’t know what to say.

“Dorian, that was . . . incredibly touching of you to say.”

“I know it was. People think I like to talk just to hear the sound of my voice, which is true. I have a lovely voice. Now come on!”

By now, Dorian had walked over to the other side of the desk and was pulling the commander up and out of his seat by the arm.

“Where are we going?” Cullen asks.

“To make memories.”

“I can’t I have reports to-”

“What did I say about making memories?”

****

The magister ended up taking the commander to Skyhold’s own pub, the Herald's Rest. Inside, the pub was packed with familiar faces, all engaged in banter and drinks sloshing in their hands. The music was lively and there was not a sad soul in sight.

At least the morale was looking high, Cullen thought.

Dorian takes him near the back end of the pub where the Iron Bull and his Chargers sat and made their new home.

“Dorian! Commander! It’s nice to see you here! Come, take a seat!” Bull did look happy to see them. As Cullen takes a seat with the group, one of them, Krem, hands him a drink—though drinking is the last thing he wants to do while this headache continues to grow.

“So what brings you here?” Bull asks after taking a swig of his drink.

“I did,” says Dorian, “and you can thank me for that. And also, it turns out Cassandra was right. Our dear commander is courting our little inquisitor.”

The incredulous look on Bull’s face says it all.

“Shit, really?! Hey Cullen, congrats, man! Didn’t know you had it in you.” The “pat” on the shoulder he gave him nearly knocks him off balance in his chair.

“Er uh, thank you.”

As Bull is about to say something else, something across the room catches his attention.

“Varric! Blackwall! Get over here! We gotta talk.”

Oh, Maker take him.

The warden and the crossbow dwarf take with them, and Blackwall obliges to take a drink while Varric denies.

“Curly, it’s certainly a surprise to see you here.”

“I could say the same, commander. What brings you here?”

“Nevermind that,” interrupts an impatient Dorian. “What matters is this: the seeker was right. Cullen is courting Marzenya.”

The two men’s eyes go wide and turn to Cullen.

“I knew it!” Varric had a large smile on his face. “Who made the first move?”

The commander’s face felt as hot as a kiln.

“I-I guess it was technically I did-”

“Ha! You owe a sovereign, Tiny.”

Bull groans as he digs in his pockets. “Dammit. I was hoping Zey would be the one to grow balls.”

“I was thinking the same,” Dorian hands a sovereign of his own to Blackwall.

“Excuse me, have you all been making bets on my personal life?” Oh, that headache is coming along quite nicely.

“Relax, Cullen,” says Blackwall, putting a hand on his shoulder. “We mean no harm. It was just you two were quite the spectacle, even back in Haven.”

“He’s right,” Varric nods. “I know a romance in the making when I see it.”

“Alright now, this is the important thing. Cullen has yet to properly spend time with Marzeyna .”

“Oh yeah?”” Bull raises a brow.

Cullen sighs as he feels a blood vessel near his temple about to burst.

“There is a giant hole in the sky we need to worry about first.” He points out.

“That can wait.”

Now that blood vessel is really going to burst. The commander stands abruptly from his chair, nearly knocking it over. His mouth is open, ready to debate, when a hand lands on his shoulder and pulls him back down.

“Dorian’s right,” it was Blackwall. “This is more important.”

“How?!”

“This is a chance of love. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity and you can’t neglect that opportunity.”

“I don’t-”

Dorian interrupts him. “We need to come up with some ideas for him to spend some time with Zey, any suggestions?”

“Have you thought about having drinks with her here?” Varric asks.

“This isn’t the most romantic or intimate place for us,” Cullen rubs the back of his neck.

“Have thought about having dinner with her in her quarters?” gestures Blackwall.

The room is suddenly warming up.

“That’s far too intimate for the time being.”

“Mm!” Bull wipes his mouth after taking another swig of his drink with the back of his hand. “Have you thought about having sex with her?”

The room is now on fire.

“I-! We’ve barely started!” Cullen says through his teeth.

“No no, that’s a brilliant idea,” oh Blackwall, please no. “Sleeping with her will give you a good outlook on how your relationship is and will be.”

“Hell yeah!” Spilling his beer, Bull is adding fuel to the metaphorical fire. “Take those damn gloves off for once and show her a good time!”

Cullen knows his face is as red as apples and he blames the blood vessel that has surely now burst and his hemorrhaging underneath the surface of his skin.

“Knock it off, the both of you,” hisses Dorian. “You know damn well the two of them are not like that. They can barely kiss as it is. We need to keep coming up with ideas. Cullen, have you thought of any yourself?”

Rubbing his chin, the commander gives himself a moment to think.

“I was thinking about having a picnic with her in the gardens.” He divulges.

“Hey,” Varric crosses his arms, “that’s not a bad idea. A little fruit, cheese, and some wine and there you have it.”

“Now that,” Dorian puts a hand on Cullen’s shoulder, “we can do.”

“We?” That doesn’t sound good.

“Yes, we shall aid you in your romantic endeavors.”

“I don’t think-” Bull shuts him up with a wave of his hand.

“Please, it’s just a picnic. How hard can it be to set up?”

Dorian leans over in his chair toward the commander.

“Just ask her to have a picnic with you tomorrow morning and we’ll have everything set up by evening.”

It was honestly difficult to trust these men with personal affairs. Considering his schedule, to have everything set up tomorrow was a gift.

So he sighs and agrees.

****

It was barely mid-morning when Marzeyna’s heart burst out of her chest.

Alright, not literally, but still!

When she went to see Cullen, he had just asked her to have a picnic with him in Skyhold’s garden this evening.

Yes, they’ve shared a fair share of kisses and warm embraces. . . but everything was still so new and so precious, like a newborn babe. So full of love.

She is still in the state that she was in when they first talked at Haven, long before the kiss. Now, her affection is acknowledged by the weight of his own affection.

Marzeyna said yes to the picnic, of course.

Much still needs to be done today and the picnic lingers in her mind in the meantime.

She needs to seek some consultation. And she knows the perfect person.

****

“Oh Vivienne, I’m so glad you have the time to help me.”

“For you, my dear inquisitor, I’ll always clear my schedule.”

They were in Vivienne's room above the court near the library. Evening was in a few hours and Marzeyna wasn’t exactly calm about this.

It was just a picnic with Cullen. No big deal. Noooope.

Oh, there goes her imagination.

“I’ve never properly courted before. I’ve shared a few kisses back when I was with the clan, but nothing as serious as this. I’m afraid I’ll say or do something and he won’t be interested in me anymore.”

Vivienne chuckles as they take a seat on the settee together.

“Oh my dear, you’ve only just started. Do not worry about making mistakes. In fact, this is the perfect time to make mistakes. It shall aid you on how to improve both yourself and the relationship.”

“Really”

“Of course, really. Besides, I doubt a few ‘mistakes’ would deter the commander away.”

As the inquisitor spoke about her conversation with Cullen from earlier, their heads swiveled towards the sound of the door opening.

“Did you two really think you could make plans without us?”

It was Leliana, and behind her were Josephine and Cassandra. They walk over to them and take seats on Vivienne’s bed and a stool.

“What are you three doing here?” Marzeyna asks.

“We thought we’d come and help you with the picnic with the commander,” Josephine said with a smile.

“Help me? How do you all know?”

Cassandra clears her throat.

“We overheard Dorian speaking with Varric about the picnic and gathering things for Cullen. We three thought we would do the same for you.”

Marzeyna swears that though her heart has yet to burst from her chest and out her ribcage, it certainly swells right then and there.

“Oh, you lot are going to make me cry.”

The five of them start to converse and throw ideas of what to do.

“For starters,” Leliana speaks, “We need to figure out what you will wear.”

“Wear?” Marzeyna shakes her head. “This is just a picnic, not a ball. Isn’t what I’m wearing right now just fine?”

“Sure,” said Josephine, “but it doesn’t hurt to dress up for a small occasion like this. It will show the commander that you care and that you want to look good for him.”

“I guess. . .” Humans are a weird race sometimes but that line of reasoning doesn’t sound absurd.

Josephine continues.

“I think I might have some simple skirts in quarters you could try on if you like.”

“I believe I may have some blouses you borrow as well,” Cassandra smiles at her.

“I also have some jewelry if you’re interested,” Leliana said. “Something light like small earrings and a simple necklace. Maybe even a bracelet.”

“And I shall aid you with a little hair and makeup,” Vivienne already had compacts of face paint ready for her.

Okay, now she really is going to cry.

****

Cullen made his way to Skyhold’s garden as the sun was about to set. Soon the sky would turn to different shades of colors and the stars would make their way in the dark.

And to have Marzeyna with him when that happens would simply be a gift for him.

When he arrives, the gardens are eerily empty. Nobody is there except for Varric, who holds a small basket in his arms.

“Curly! I was wondering when you were going to show up. Got everything set up for you.”

Walking over to him, Cullen spots the display before the both of them.

On the grass lays a plain worn blanket, threading at one side. There’s a plate in the middle that holds fruits, cheeses, and sweets. Varric sets the basket down and reaches in and pulls out a bottle of wine and two glasses.

“There’s also candles and matches in here in case you want to stick around past sundown.”

For a moment, the commander loses his words.

“You alright there, Curly? We didn’t forget anything, did we?”

Cullen snaps back to reality.

“N-No. No, this is . . . perfect.”

“Good ‘cause it’s not gonna get any more perfect then this.”

As Cullen takes a closer look at the display, he expects Varric to walk away, giving him the much needed space and quiet he’d like to share with the inquisitor. Instead, the dwarf walks over to the ledge a couple feet away.

Just as Cullen is about to call out to him, he hears the sound of one of the doors opening.

“Dorian, what are you-”

“Oh, I’m just here to take in some fresh air,” the mage brushes off. “I’m also meeting Cassandra here for a game of chess. Don’t mind me.” He walks past him to the chess board where he once shared a game with the commander not far too long ago.

Again, why is he here? Cullen goes to open his mouth to say something when the door opens again.

“Good evening, Commander.”

“Er uh . . . good evening, Cassandra.”

The seeker walks past him to join Dorian at the chessboard. They speak in hushed tones that he cannot decipher.

And then the doors open again.

It’s Leliana and Josephine who also say “good evening” before rushing towards one of the garden benches and sitting themselves down.

And then Blackwall walks in and utters his good evening and joins Varric by the ledge.

And then another door opens, but it’s not from either entrance to the gardens. Instead, it’s from the upper level where the bedrooms are. There stood the tall forms of the Iron Bull and Vivienne in her headdress, arm and arm taking what appears to be...a stroll?

The blood vessel from last night suddenly wants revenge.

“What in the Maker’s name-!” he starts but then the door opens again.

Oh . . .

It’s her . . .

“Good evening, Cullen,” Marzeyna says, “I got your note.”

Oh, that's right. He left a note for her in his office that told her to come meet with him in the garden at her earliest convenience.

“Good evening, Marzeyna. . .” he breathes out. “You look beautiful tonight.”

It’s true. He rarely saw her outside of her armor and indoor inquisition clothes that she wore to look the part. But tonight, she wore something else. Her hair is done up with strands of wavy hair outlining her face, showing off the earrings with red gems adorning her ears. Her face itself is painted, her eyelids swept with a glittery yellow, almost gold dust, and her mouth painted a brilliant shade of red that complimented her vallaslin. Her blouse hugged her exposed shoulders and from her neck hangs a simple gold necklace. The sleeves are long and rolled up below the elbow. Below that is a long skirt that exposes her ankles, revealing bare feet half wrapped in cloth.

It wasn’t much, and yet it still steals his breath away.

“Thank you,” she says and walks closer to him.

Their hands meet and he leans over to her to give her a kiss.

Until that is when someone coughs and reminds him they aren’t alone.

Without speaking, Cullen gently pulls her over to their little picnic and sits themselves down on the blanket.

“I am sorry,” he says while pouring her a glass of wine. “But apparently the Inquisition wants to witness our little picnic.”

“Inquisition?” Marzeyna looks around, her eyes widening at every angle. “Oh hell, almost everyone is here. Why?”

“I don’t know,” Cullen rubs the back of neck. He’s seriously going to rub it raw one day. “I was about to tell everyone off when you arrived.”

“Oh shit,” she murmurs into her wine. “They expect some kind of show from this, like a play. Maybe if we just sit here and whisper they’ll eventually get bored and leave.”

“Let’s hope for it.”

Conversations were attempted, but just as they really get into the meat of it, someone whispers, someone coughs, someone giggles. A near dozen pair of eyes were on them and Cullen could feel them burning into him in all directions.

“They really are a persistent lot,” he mutters mostly to himself.

“I’m afraid so,” Marzeyna replies as she takes a bite from a sweet tart from the plate.

Time passes. It feels like an hour, but it’s really closer to twenty minutes.

“Any minute now,” she says, her smile waning away, “they will all pick up and leave and it’ll be just the two of us.”

They both sigh.

Another moment passes. Nothing happens. Cullen’s pretty sure now that Dorian and Cassandra have yet to even make the second move in their game. Varric and Blackwall pretend to be interested in both the sky and ground. Leliana and Josephine appear to lean against one another, ready to fall asleep. The Iron Bull and Vivienne have long since gave up pretending to walk up and down the balcony and now lean against it.

Cullen and Marzeyna no longer stare at each other as they space off into the distance, near tipsy on wine and full of fruit and sweets.

“Alright, I give up.” Marzeyna takes in the rest of her wine and stands up. Cullen joins her as well. “Have you lot gotten bored yet? Nothing’s gonna happen. I don’t even know what you all expected.”

“Honestly, neither did I,” says Dorian getting up from his seat to stretch his legs. “I’ll be off now.”

“Dammit Cullen, take the gloves off already!” Bull yells from the balcony while making obscene hand gestures that Vivienne does not approve of.

“I am not taking my gloves off!” Cullen yells back, his face quick to turn red.

“Prude!”

With that, everyone got up and made their way out, some laughing along the way.

When silence finally fell and the two of them were the only ones there, they sat back down with a sigh of relief.

The silence is broken when Marzeyna starts to laugh.

It starts off as a small giggle and then it builds up to a good chuckle and soon enough, she’s cackling like a child does at inappropriate jokes.

And he laughs with her. They laugh hard and loud until Cullen can feel another headache off in the distance. One he won’t complain about too terribly much.

“I have to say, Cullen,” she speaks as she winds down, “this was the worst picnic I’ve ever had.”

“My apologies,” he replies, clearing his dried throat. “I had a much better idea in my head. It was much more romantic and intimate and not full of witnesses.” She scoots herself closer to him and puts a hand on his shoulder.

“It’s alright, it’s the thought that counts.”

The commander puts his hand over the Inquisitor’s and holds it closer to him so he can kiss the knuckles of her hand.

“I appreciate that very much.”

Marzeyna leans towards him and he wraps an arm around her shoulders and holds her other hand in his.

“Let me make it up to you,” she says. “Let’s have breakfast in my quarters tomorrow morning. Just me and you. How does that sound?”

Just me and her . . .

“Dearest, that sounds lovely. . .”

“Good, I prefer the sun rises than sunsets, to be honest.”

“And why is that?”

Marzeyna shrugs. “It's something I've always enjoyed since the clan. I like watching the world wake up with me. It’s a beautiful sight that reminds me I am alive and have a day ahead of me to live. And it reminds me of you, when I see you in the morning before breakfast. You are the first thing I think of when I wake up with the sun in my eyes.”

She’s robbing him of words and breath again. He can’t help himself.

Taking a hand to cup the side of her face, he leans in, closing his eyes, and catches her lips with his.

With her, everything is perfect. With her, everything he’s been through is almost worth it.

They part and she starts to laugh again.

“What is it?” He can’t wipe the dumb smile he knows he has on his face.

“Nothing,” she shakes her head. “It’s just that my lip paint is now all over your lips.”

“Is it now?”

“Yeah. Here, let me help you make it worse.”

And she kisses him again.

#this fic destroyed my back #was it worth it?#i hope so #seriously i hope you like it friend #marzeyna is a big cutie #i adore her #my writing #female inquisitor x cullen rutherford #marzeyna x cullen #marzeyna lavellen #cullen rutherford #dragon age #dragon age inquisition #da #dai

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missnxthingg · 4 years ago

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𝕗𝕝𝕒𝕨𝕝𝕖𝕤𝕤 • 𝕥𝕙𝕣𝕖𝕖

SUMMARY: There’s only one subject in school, Noel Kaim’s party. Tom and Harrison think it will be cool to show up, but (Y/N) has other plans.

Based on my one-shot, Flawless.

PAIRING: Rich!Tom Holland x Rich!Reader (Best Friends to Lovers AU)

WORDS: 7.8K

WARNINGS: Underage drink, a little smut.

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𝕥𝕙𝕣𝕖𝕖 • 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕞𝕠𝕣𝕟𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕒𝕗𝕥𝕖𝕣

Being in school was almost torture if you didn’t like Noel Kaim because everyone around seemed to be talking about one thing and one thing only, Noel’s party. They were excited about it because every year it got plenty of good gossips to feed everyone for a full month. Couples were made along with fights, drunk friendships and one night stands that everyone ended up knowing about, no matter how secretive they wanted to be about it.

(Y/N) saw those parties in a very different way. Guys were always trying to talk to her so maybe they could hit that and they were never the ones she wanted to be with, disrespectful most of the times. People were trying to befriend her so they could take advantage of it, with she only wanting to drink something and spend the whole night on the dancefloor, maybe flirting with a few guys when she felt like it. And to be honest, she was kind of sick of it, wanting nothing more to skip this year’s party.

Noel wasn’t thrilled with her decision and followed her around the whole week so he could convince her of tagging along, but she was still mad about him not talking to her during vacations and about him being aggressive with her the other day. And he was everywhere she went, on her apartment, the café before classes, her mother’s office when she was over for a photoshoot, even on Saks when she went out with Courtney and Stacy for shopping. It was pissing her off.

Also, he wasn’t happy about (Y/N)’s proximity to the new London boys, the ones that everyone in school were talking about along with his party. People were wondering how it would be like to party with them, who would they hook up with or if they were even going to show up. Noel was even afraid of them dethroning him as the most popular guy in school, not that they wanted such thing. Tom hated being the centre of attention, Harrison kind of liked the attention, but there’s no way he would do anything crazy to earn it. And seeing the boys with his precious little (Y/N) infuriated him.

(Y/N), on the other hand, was loving to hang out with the boys. The night out with Tom at Vertigo was surprisingly good, and she didn’t have to worry about whether it was a date or not, because it while she was facing him, it didn’t matter anymore. And after that night, they got to hang out even more. He’d meet her at the café before class to have some pastries and a tea, she’d hang out with him and Harrison in front of the St. Jude’s entrance, he’d drive her home after class. They got so close in so little time that it was weird for both of them, but they weren’t complaining, they kind of liked it.

Harrison and (Y/N) became friends too. Of course, nothing could beat his long time friendship with Tom and her instant connection with the boy, but they liked each other’s presence. They grew into a small friendship with Tom as a bridge to connect them, and they were hanging a lot together, but (Y/N) wasn’t as opened with Harrison as she was with Tom. Maybe they didn’t have the same kind of instant connection as she had with Tom, even though she adored Haz.

“Morning, my boys.” (Y/N) approached them sitting at the café and enjoying some tea. “You’re very early today. Did you fall out of bed?”

“Tom made me wake up earlier so we could all have breakfast together.” Harrison admitted, showing how moody he was as he hid his face behind the cup of tea. Tom smirked at his behaviour and shrugged.

“He stood up late because the girl that lives in his building had the parents out on a date and he spent the whole night awake with her.”

“How did you manage to get to her apartment?” She asked as she sat in front of the boys, hanging her bag on the chair she was about to sit.

“We live on the same side of the building, so I used the fire escape. Mom didn’t even notice.” He winked with a smirk and (Y/N) giggled as she signed Joey behind the counter to bring her order. He nodded and went back to his work. “Although, I think Charlotte heard something, but she doesn’t care.” Harrison shrugged and rested his cup back on the table.

“Did you sleep well, darling?” Tom asked her because he noticed that she was a little distracted.

“Yes! Best beauty sleep I had in a long time. I prepared the mood and everything. It was very romantic, except for the fact that I was alone.” She smirked and drank a little of her latte. “But I don’t care about that one detail, more space on the bed, right? I’m still trying to find something to do on the weekend, though.”

“Why don’t we go to Noel Kaim’s party?” Harrison suggested and (Y/N) groaned.

Why not go to Noel’s party? Well, she was still pretty mad about everything he did to her on the previous week and wasn’t ready to cave yet. But also, she was planning on spending the weekend at her dad’s. Last night, she ran into Garold wearing nothing but his underwear and his mother robe in the kitchen, which led her into a big fight with Josephine about boundaries and a decision to ask her dad to stay him on the weekend because she missed him. Also, she didn’t want to run into Garold and her mother having loud sex again after the Louis Vuitton Collection Release Party.

“I don’t know. I’m still mad at Noel.” She admitted.

“Come on. How do you even plan on spending your weekend?”

“I’ll call my dad, so maybe we could have brunch together and go to the movies.”

“Boring,” Tom said and received a death glare from her. “Sorry.”

“It’s the first party of the year, (Y/N). And we’re new. We could use it to make more friendships.” Harrison started, and Tom agreed with a nod. “Plus, we’re going rather you are or not. But it would be nice to have you with us.”

“Are you actually agreeing on going to this party?” She asked Tom, and he opened an embarrassing smile on his face.

“I mean, I don’t like Noel, but I love parties. I would love to get to know how this new school works with parties.” (Y/N) nodded and glanced down to her waffles. Spending time with the boys would be nice after all. Maybe she should consider going. But then again, she really wanted to visit her father.

“Yeah, I don’t know. I want to visit my dad because it’s been two months since we last saw each other and I miss him so much.”

“I get it. Don’t worry, darling. We won’t pressure you to go.” Tom rubbed his hand on her back, and she smiled at him.

“But Long Island. I have a few suggestions for you. Go there by train because by car is not worth it. And if you wanna crash there, sleep at this bed and breakfast close to Noel’s house. You won’t regret it.”

“Do you usually sleep there when he hosts parties in Long Island?” Harrison asked, and she smirked.

“I sleep in his bed, sweetie.” She winked, and the boys laughed. “But my friends do, and the first time I did too. It’s very nice and comfy.”

“Thanks for the tip, boss.” Tom said, and finally finished his tea. Harrison started to gather his things and some money to pay for his drink.

“I’m gonna go because I promised a girl I would meet her before class.” Harrison winked at (Y/N), who giggled with how pathetic that was. Tow different girls in a row. “I’ll see you in class, and I’ll see you after class.” He pointed at Tom and (Y/N) respectively. They waved at Harrison and watched him walk away.

“That’s a bummer. I wanted to know how it is to party with you.” Tom returned the conversation, and she pinched his stomach before getting back to her waffles.

“You’ll know it soon. I promise to take you to a better party.”

“I’ll be waiting for that.” Tom smiled and leaned back on his seat. “Oh, would you mind helping me pick something to wear for the party?”

“Are you kidding me? I would love it! And I already have the perfect outfit for you!” Tom frowned at her words. “My mom has this new collection that will look amazing on you. I’m going to bring something so you can try on.”

“Okay.” He giggled without even questioning her taste.

Picking outfits was (Y/N)’s favourite thing to do ever since she was a kid. She remembers when Courtney would come over for a play date, sleepover or a dinner party with their parents and they would spend the whole time dressing each other, testing makeups and reading fashion magazines. (Y/N) even learned and practised her reading with those magazines. That’s why she had a lot of fun at her mother’s office to pick some outfit for Tom and maybe find something nice for Harrison.

Luckily, Josephine had just launched a new collection that would be perfect for the boys. As (Y/N) walked through the many clothes in their archives, she pulled some beautiful outfits for both of them. They would look so hot on those, and she would love to see them all dressed up for once. But she talked to her dad, and they planned the perfect weekend over the phone.

“Are you sure you don’t wanna stay at home?” Josie asked in one of those rare nights where she would come home for dinner. “We could all go to the party and have a good time.”

“No, I miss dad. And we already arranged something nice for tomorrow night.” She stopped to eat some of her food before continuing. “Plus, if I stay here, that means I’ll have to go to Noel’s party, and I’m not in the mood.”

“You used to love his parties. You would gush about his big Long Island house for days after them.” (Y/N) giggled to remember how stupid she was to put Noel in a high place, maybe higher than hers. “Yeah, but you’re right. If you don’t spend some time with Vincent, he will start calling me a bitch that doesn’t let you see him.”

“Yeah, I wish it was something to blame you, but I can only blame him.”

“What’s that supposed to be? Blame me?” Josie frowned and (Y/N) rolled her eyes.

“Mom, we’re having a nice dinner, and I don’t wanna ruin that by starting an argument. I already said that is the wrong guy in this situation.”

“Okay. You’re right. Let’s just eat the freaking dinner.”

(Y/N) woke up on Friday with her spirits up. She was genuinely looking forward to spending the best weekend with her father. He promised her many things, dinner, movies, a walk around the park. She was all packed up and waiting for the night where he would pick her up, and they would go out on a fancy dinner. She even bought a pretty and sexy black dress so they could go out together and maybe use it on another occasion.

“Hello, boys.” (Y/N) greeted Tom and Harrison when she met them after class.

“Hey. Someone looks excited today.” She smiled at Harrison and fixed her skirt.

“I’m just excited for tonight.” She admitted and sat between Tom and Harrison. “Are my boys excited about their party?”

“Yeah. By the way, I looked so hot on that outfit you picked me.” Tom said as he pulled his phone out to show her a picture. “The striped pants? Genius!”

“Oh, that looks so good. I’m pretty fucking great.” (Y/N) praised as she analysed the photo in the smallest details. “You are so getting laid tonight.”

“I loved mine too.” Harrison said and showed her the pictures, just like Tom. “It looks fancy, but it’s… fresh, I don’t know how to explain.”

“Oh Harrison, this looks so good!” She commented again. “You’ll have to thank me for all the girls you get tonight.”

“They will fall for us, not for our outfits.” Tom said, and (Y/N) rolled her eyes. “Stop rolling your fucking eyes.”

“I know they will fall for you, silly.” She pinched his stomach again. It was becoming a habit between them, and Tom wasn’t complaining at all. He actually liked it because it felt intimate and would always send different sensations through his body. “We have to hang out on Monday so you can tell me all that happened at the party.”

“We could go to Vertigo’s.” Tom suggested, and she nodded excitedly, turning to Harrison, who had a frown on his face.

“What is Vertigo?”

“This awesome pub (Y/N) found that has amazing beer.” Tom threw his arms around (Y/N)’s shoulder, pulling her next to his body.

“Okay, I’m in.” Harrison said without questioning anything. “You said it has amazing beer and I haven’t had beer ever since we sat food in America.” Harrison said as he rushed to the car. (Y/N) giggled and rested her head on Tom’s shoulder.

“We have to go home, but I wish you the best weekend with your dad.” He kept his voice low, so only she could hear. “Because you deserve it. And you’re also going to tell me everything about it after.”

“Thank you, baby.” She looked up to him, and he kissed her forehead. It felt weirdly intimate, but they didn’t care at all.

“Come on. Let me take you home.” He pulled her to the car, and she stepped into the back seat.

It didn’t take long until Tom dropped her at home since she lived so close to school and she thanked the ride with a smack on their cheeks and rushed inside the apartment to get ready for her day. She did a beautiful makeup with orange tones and a lot of gloss on her lips. Her dress fit her so perfectly that she could spend the whole day looking at herself in the mirror. Just as the time for her dad to pick her up was arriving, he called her.

“Hey, daddy. Are you already downstairs?” She asked excitedly with a big smile on her face as she checked herself in her dress again.

“Sweetie. I got called for a last-minute trip to Boston.” He started, making her smile died instantly. “I’m sorry, but I have an important meeting with the Harvard people, and I can’t postpone it.”

“Oh.” She couldn’t find other words to say anything, too upset to do so. He was bailing on her, again. She shouldn’t be so surprised.

“But I promise to make it up to you soon.” He said, and by now, she wasn’t listening. She only concentrated on not letting the tears roll. “I gotta get the flight, but I’ll call you tomorrow.”

“Okay.” She forced out, and he soon hung up. Instead of letting everything go once she was alone, (Y/N) didn’t waste time before calling the one she wanted to talk the most. “Tom?”

“Hey, is everything okay?” His voice sounded concerned on the other side of the phone.

“Have you left Manhattan yet?” She asked, her voice slightly cracking in the end.

“No, we’re about to leave the house. My brother is driving us to the train station.”

“Can you pick me up? I wanna go to the party.” She said and cleaned some stubborn tears daring to fall.

“Of course. We’re going to grab something to eat before we go if you’re okay with that.”

“Yeah, whatever. I’ll wait in the lobby.” She finished, and they said their brief goodbyes. (Y/N) packed a small overnight bag so she could take to the party like everyone else along with some other essential things. Luckily, while she did it, she managed to stop crying and fix her makeup quickly. She didn’t wait long in the lobby until Tom came through those doors rushing to her sitting on a couch right next to her bag.

“Hey, are you okay?” He sat next to her, and she shrugged.

“Yeah. My dad bailed on me, but I’m okay.” She lied right to his face. What she wanted to do the most in cry right there and tell the world she was not fine, but she wouldn’t cave. “I’m starving, though. Can we go somewhere to eat?”

“Sure.” He frowned and helped her get up by taking her bag. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yes, Tom. Now stop bothering me.” She tried not to make eye contact with him as she walked away because eyes can always speak more than words.

She kept pretending to be alright for the next minutes. Greeted Harry with a big smile on her face, made jokes with Harrison along the way, but Tom wasn’t buying it. He could feel that there was something wrong with her because she was so excited earlier and now that everything fell apart, there was no way she would still be fine under all circumstances, even though she seemed fine, there was something hidden behind the words she was saying.

By the time they got to the train, Tom was sure that he needed to confront her and he got even luckier when Harrison decided to sit somewhere else to talk to someone on the phone. It was the perfect opportunity to talk about what happened without interruptions. Just the two of them, like all the times she opened up to him.

“Can you please tell me what’s going on?” Tom asked as they walked the aisle to find somewhere to sit.

“Tom, nothing is going on. I’m fine.” She whined, still not trusting herself to look him in the eyes, just kept looking ahead and twirling her tongue inside the mouth to prevent it from saying something stupid.

“You don’t seem fine.”

“But I am!” She suddenly stopped and turned to face him. “I’m sorry if you don’t believe me, but I’m telling you the truth.”

“You talked about your dad all week, and suddenly it all fell apart. I don’t believe that you’re fine.”

“But I am, okay? You don’t get to tell me how I’m feeling.” They stared at each other for some seconds before he pulled her into a hug. It took her a couple of seconds to cave and melt into his embrace, throwing her arms over his shoulder and letting him comfort her.

“Fine. You don’t wanna talk about it, but I’m still gonna give you this to show you my support.” He whispered in her ear, and she nodded.

“Thank you.” She whispered back, forgetting about the fact that they needed to sit before the train started to move. “It really means so much to me.”

“I got you, okay? Now let’s sit down.” He pulled her to sit by the window so they could watch the outside world and not talk about anything for some minutes, just be there for each other while Harrison didn’t join them to engage another conversation.

Long Island was utterly different from New York. Anyone could say such a thing about the suburbs. It was a calm and pleasant environment, no surprise for those who choose to spend their summer there. But Noel’s house wasn’t a lovely and peaceful place when he was hosting parties. Of course, (Y/N) saw it differently over the times she spent there. When it was just the two of them, the house seemed so luxurious that it was almost unreal, looking like a freaking castle on the inside. But there’s a funny thing about big fancy houses that people never notice; it’s always empty. Not empty of objects, but lifeless. It happens to (Y/N)’s expensive apartment on the Upper East Side, and it happens to Noel’s mansion.

But they couldn’t deny it was absolutely gorgeous. The big white house that glowed in yellow lights during the night was almost cinematographic. All the fancy cars parked in front of it, the perfect front garden, the water fountain was glowing in different colours. It could take anyone’s breath away if it weren’t taken by drunk teenagers and loud music echoing from the house. Tom and Harrison were impressed, but (Y/N) was tired of gushing all over Noel’s shit.

“Noel’s that rich?” Harrison asked as he pointed the house, eyebrows arched and mouth slightly opened.

“His father owns a great part of Brooklyn buildings.”

“Yeah, he’s that rich.” Tom finished and (Y/N) giggled with a shrug.

“The house is pretty impressive, yeah.” She pulled the boys to start walking and come inside before she gave up on her decision to come.

The party was being hosted on the back garden, but there were a lot of people inside the house making a mess of the fancy decoration Cordelia and George Kaim spent millions of dollars. The big marble stair on the centre of the living room was full of teenagers talking and sitting with cups on their hands. Alcoholic bottles almost hid the old and expensive furniture. But everything was drowned to the exterior, where everything was happening. (Y/N) pulled the boys to the stairs on the back that gave them a full view of the enormous backyard where the big party was happening.

People were taking full advantage of everything the house had. Pooling and ping pong tables, the big couches around the gas fireplace, the giant pool full of people jumping and splashing water all around, the tables settled on the garden and the place reserved for dancing, where the DJ was making his set to entertain. Tom and Harrison quickly got themselves a bottle of beer out of a cooler settled by the door, making (Y/N) giggle.

“You’re very fast.” She laughed, and Tom shrugged.

“We’ll find you a gin tonic.” He winked with a grin on his face.

“I’m up for a Cosmo tonight.”

She started to walk ahead of the boys, direction to one of the mini bars to get something to drink. She said hi to some people on her way and quickly had a pink drink on her hands. People seemed to be very fond of Tom and Harrison, which made (Y/N) very impressed with the number of people talking to them. The boys were already famous; maybe their good looks helped a lot.

“(Y/N)! I didn’t think you would come.” Courtney hugged the girl once she saw her from afar. She was wearing only an orange bikini set and no makeup, never more beautiful, even though she always says she doesn’t like herself without any makeup. Anyone could get hypnotised by her glowing skin, pretty deep eyes and voluminous curly hair.

“My dad cancelled, so I decided to come with Tom.”

“Oh, so you two are a thing now? I’ve seen you with him plenty of times for the past week.” She smirked and (Y/N) rolled her eyes as she sipped her drink.

“We’re just friends, Court. I swear to you.”

“I’ll pretend that I believe you.” Courtney tapped her friend’s shoulder and glanced back to the pool. “Lamar invited me to join him in the pool.”

“Dude, that’s amazing!” (Y/N) cheered.

“I know! I think I’ll try to make a move in there.” She fixed her hair and glanced down to her body. “How do I look?”

“Beautiful, as always.”

“I’m not wearing makeup, so I’m nervous.” She admitted with a nervous giggle. “I like him so much; I wanted this to be perfect.”

“Court, you’re gorgeous. Even more gorgeous with your natural looks. And Lamar…” (Y/N) glanced back to the boy playing with some friends by the pool. “He likes you too.”

“You think so?” She asked, hopeful. (Y/N) nodded with a big smile on her face. “Okay, I’ll go for it.”

“By the way, where’s Stacy?”

“Oh, there she is.” Courtney pointed behind (Y/N), and she turned around to find Stacy with her mouth too busy with another guy’s one. They were making out at the couch as she did her best not to drop her drink. The guy was wrinkling her yellow dress as he tried to reach her ass.

“Maybe I’ll talk to her later.”

“Yeah, probably not a good time.” Courtney winked before waving goodbye to meet Lamar by the pool. She searched for the boys again and found them by the pooling table with some other guys. Before she could even make her way to them, someone pulled her by the waist.

“Hey, gorgeous.” Noel said when (Y/N) turned to face him. He was dangerously close. So close that she could smell the whisky in his breath. She rested her hands on his chest as he folded his arms around her waist, not letting go of his cup.

“Hi, Noel. Pleased to see me?” She teased, and he smirked.

“Very pleased.” He kissed her jaw and trailed kisses down her neck. “What took you too long?”

“My wish to not be here tonight. I also took the train.”

“I thought you were going to spend the weekend with your dad.” He whispered in her ear, and she shrugged.

“Change of plans. It seems like Harvard is more important than his baby girl.”

“Uhm, wrong decision.” He pecked her lips, and she smiled.

“If you excuse me, I have to go back to my friends. They are waiting at the pooling table.” She walked away from him, and Noel rolled his eyes.

“Are you seriously trading me for those British twats?” He pointed at the boys with his cup, and it was (Y/N)’s turn to roll her eyes.

“They are my friends, and they’re much better than you, Noel.” She defended, and he did a bored face. “Fucking idiot.”

“If you go for them, I’m done with you.”

“Good.” She sent him the middle finger and marched back to where the boys were. Harrison was already playing pool with the boys, and Tom was watching from a stool. As she approached him, he involved her waist with his arm.

“Hey, you good?” He asked, and she shrugged.

“I’m gonna blow his face someday.” She was furious, but something about Tom’s touch on her waist eased her.

“You’re not gonna do anything, darling.” He sipped his drink before continuing. “Just stick with us, have a good time and forget about him.”

And that’s what she did. Harrison dared her to beat him at pool, which she found out later that was almost impossible. Tom pulled her to dance at some point. They gathered with a bunch of people to talk about some fun stuff and got extraordinarily drunk with the number of alcoholic choices they had. It was enough to make (Y/N) forget about everything that she was upset with, although it was still hanging on the back of her mind. That kind of stuff doesn’t simply go away with a few drinks.

Right now, they were all scattered on a couch by the pool, enjoying the lovely hot weather and a funny drunk conversation with a small group of people. By where (Y/N) was sitting, she could see Lamar and Courtney passionately kissing on the pool, which made her smile. But soon they broke the kiss, and Courtney rushed out of the pool to join the group.

“(Y/N). I was looking for you.” Courtney said as she sat on the floor right in front of her friend. “One of Lamar’s friends said that Noel is telling everyone that you’ll give in to his spell.”

Noel had been a tease all night. Every time their eyes met, he would send her a look, or a kiss, or a wink. Sometimes he’d make sure to bump on her to make her notice him. It was already pissing her off. But knowing he was saying such thing about her only made her even more pissed. It wasn’t a great night, and with those things getting on her way was making her even more upset.

“He what?” (Y/N) frowned and Courtney reassured her with a nod. “I’m going to deal with him later because right now, I think I can make Taylor and Minnie get with Tom and Haz.”

“Are you sure you want some other girl hooking up with Tom?” Court asked with some concern in her eyes.

“Why wouldn’t I?” (Y/N) frowned and Courtney shrugged.

“You seem very close. I thought you might want to hit that.”

“Me and Tom? I told you, we’re just friends.”

“But he’s really hot.”

“But no, okay?” She finished the subject, and Courtney threw her hands in the air before jumping back into the pool. (Y/N) took a couple of seconds to breath before asking Taylor and Minnie to join them by the couch. “Hey girls, long time no see.”

“Hey, (Y/N).” Taylor said as she sat with her on the couch, joined by her friend Minnie. Taylor was this pretty blonde tiny girl that was the impersonation of a rich spoiled kid, but guys and girls are always falling for her.

“I loved your dress.” Minnie commented. She was Taylor’s best friend, although she was much sweeter and shy, in the end, they were pretty much the same.

“Thank you; I loved yours too.” She sipped her Cosmo before continuing. “So, have you two met my friends Tom and Harrison?”

“No. We were hoping that maybe you could introduce us.” Taylor said, and Minnie nodded with a grin.

“Well, boys.” (Y/N) raised her boys to get their attention. They quickly made their way to where they were sitting and opened a smile to see the pretty girls, already flirting with them. God, they were quick. She got up to throw her hands around their shoulders to introduce them. “These are my friends Taylor and Minnie. Girls, my pretty boys here are going to take excellent care of you.” The boys glanced to each other and had a small conversation with their eyes.

“I’m Tom.” He said, directly looking at Taylor. Someone already knows who he wants.

“And I’m Harrison.”

“And I’m gone.” (Y/N) chuckled. “I need to take care of something. But you’re both in good hands.”

The girls giggled and (Y/N) walked away, not before throwing a victorious smile at them and catching a last glance of Tom watching her walk away before returning to his conversation with Taylor. It was all going well, although Harrison was quicker than his mate, soon pulling his girl to a private corner, leaving Taylor alone with Tom as they talked closely and he got even drunker with a mixture of alcohol he made during the whole party.

“So, it’s a pretty impressive house.” Tom started after the small talk they had for a couple of minutes, and Taylor shrugged.

“Yeah, not that impressive after the thousandth time you’ve been here.” She shrugged.

“You come here that much?”

“I’m Noel’s cousin.”

“Of course you are.” Tom giggled and threw his arm around her shoulder to get her even closer and comfortable with him. She started to play with some fingers on his jaw, talking very close to him. He wasn’t thinking much because of the alcohol, and she took advantage of that, starting to kiss his neck to start him.

“The perks of being part of the family is that I have a whole room for myself.” She said against his neck, and Tom moaned softly with her touches, already feeling some pressure on his pants. He was getting hard, and she noticed it, subtly rubbing her hands on his bulge, careful so no one could catch it. “I can show you.”

“You can?” He whispered against to her lips, and she nodded before sealing the kiss. “I’d like that.”

“Come on.” She pulled him up, and they swan through the sea of people to get to the second floor of the house.

Taylor took Tom to a beautiful bedroom that looked almost like a princess room, with every detail thought to look like it was pure royalty. But right now, Tom wasn’t concentrated on how beautiful the room looked; he only focused on the girl that was wrapped around his neck ever since they hit the second floor. When he got turned on, the world around him disappeared, and he turned into a completely different person filled with lust.

So right now the only thing that mattered was how sexy Taylor looked in her red lace underwear and the movements she did with her hips against his as he kissed down her chest, trying to find the place to open her bra to give him full access to her beautiful tits. As he finally found his way to her nipples, she moaned loudly, fully giving in to what he was doing to her body.

“Oh, Tom. Please.” She moaned as he worked on her left nipple and used his free hand to pinch the one left.

“What is it, angel?”

“I need you.” Tom started to train some kisses south and teased her a little with kisses on her tighs, not daring to get close to where she needed him the most. “Oh, just fuck me already, will you?”

“If you insist…”

While wonders were happening on the second floor between Tom and Taylor, (Y/N) marched through the house looking for Noel, her blood boiling under her skin. He had no right to go around, saying she would be his eventually and the alcohol in her head wasn’t helping her judgment. She found him by the dancefloor with his stupid whisky glass in hands, lonely dancing to a stupidly loud song. Noel smirked as he saw her approaching him, too drunk even to notice her pretty mad face.

“Noel, I swear to God that I’ll break your fucking face if you keep telling people that I’ll give in to your spells.” She said furiously, and he chuckled, pulling her by the waist to the dancefloor.

“Chill, baby.” He said in her ear, swaying her side to side to the sexy song that started to play. “I didn’t say any of that.”

“So now Courtney is a liar?”

“I just said you were going to make up with all the fighting that has been happening between us. I never said anything about spells.” He used his hands to softly brush her hair aside and start kissing her neck softly, making her chill and pretty much lose part of the control of her body.

“So why are you kissing my neck?”

“Because I know you like it.” He said close to her ear. The music was fast, but they were moving so slowly it almost didn’t make sense. He kept trailing his kisses on her neck, down to her collarbone, making her moan softly. “What was that you were mad about, again?”

“You being a fucking prick.” She hissed, and he giggled.

“There’s something wrong with you tonight. I’ve noticed it before.” He mentioned before turning her around, pressing her back on his stomach. “Something’s bothering you. Tell me.”

“My something wrong has a name.”

“Is it Tom?” He asked, and she shook her head no.

“It’s Vincent (Y/L/N).” She confessed as she sighed. “So you need to stop messing around with me because I’m so fucking upset tonight.”

“Baby, I swear to you that I didn’t say anything about you tonight.” She turned to face him and rested her hands on his chest. “Well, except for the fact that I gushed about how pretty you look tonight. As always.”

“Noel, stop flirting.” She smirked, and he shrugged with a grin.

“I can’t help it.” He leaned down and pecked her lips. “You’re so fucking beautiful.”

“Noel…” She mumbled against his lips, trying to break it, but giving up seconds later when he pulled her even closer by the waist as if it was even possible. Noel was taller than her, so she stepped on her tiptoes to reach him. Her being upset and drunk wasn’t helping her judgment at all, since she was going against everything she just said. Noel got what he wanted; (Y/N) wrapped around his finger. “Do you think we could use your room? I want to forget about my dad.”

“I’ll help you forget.” He said as he pulled away from the kiss. She nodded and followed him, linked by the hands, to the second floor where his room was located.

Noel’s bedroom in his Long Island house was very different from the whole house decoration at all, distancing from the fancy royal and approaching a modern look. He was just glad that at least it didn’t look like a princess decorated it. (Y/N) already spent plenty of time there over the years she has known him, and she knows it like the palm of her hand. Noel even has a robe waiting for her to come over during vacations, parties and weekends when they needed to get away from the city. There wasn’t anything new about it.

As soon as the door crashed close, Noel pressed her against the door and kissed her feverously, trailing his fingers to lock the door behind them so they wouldn’t be disturbed. She buried her fingers on his neck and pulled him down. He used his hands to unbutton her dress, revealing her sexy black lingerie that was probably more expensive than the dress itself.

“My God, your beautiful.” Noel moaned as he looked down to her body and she smiled before reinitiating the kiss, pulling him to bed. She tore his shirt off before lying down with him.

(Y/N) was familiar with everything. The bed, the boy and the lips. Probably, that’s why she let him help her forget. She knew the kind of effect he had on her after so many times she came looking after him when she was upset. Noel knew about that and always took advantage of her vulnerability, although she never noticed it, that’s why she kept coming back.

After a little makeout session, Noel started to go down on her, knowing all the right things to make her see stars and feel good. Where to kiss, where to suck, where to bite. As he licked long stripes in her pussy, she moaned loudly, muffled by the sound of the loud music outside. No one would ever know they were there even if she was screaming his name. Every movement was crucial, and she got wetter every time his lips and tongue moved against her, building up a big orgasm, making loud moans escape her mouth.

The tiredness, the worries, the angst built up during the last two months were now on the back of her mind, not mattering right now. That’s what sex did to her. That’s what Noel did to her. And the more he gave her, the more she wanted to release everything out. After the guy under her did something write, she yelled out one last moan before letting it all go, cumming on his mouth.

“Was it alright, baby?” She simply nodded, still coming down from her high and too sensitive to say anything. Noel smirked and started to kiss her belly again. “Wanna feel something more?”

“Please.”

“Okay. Let me make you feel good.”

(...)

One of (Y/N)’s favourite things to do on weekends was sit down at the street table in her favourite brunch restaurant and watch New York’s early walk of shame, especially after big holiday dates like Halloween. She would watch many people walking home to their apartments with messed up clothes, some smudge makeup and sometimes crying. It was funny when it wasn’t herself doing the walk of shame.

It was early in the morning when she woke up with sun rays in her face. Noel was sleeping on his stomach on the contrary edge of the bed, the sheets only covering his naked butt. (Y/N) glanced down to herself and found her naked body as well. She carefully took a good look around the room, finding her clothes scattered across the floor along with Noel’s. She groaned internally and slipped out of bed to put them on so she could go out of the bedroom.

Luckily, she brought a change of clothes along with her, which allowed her to go into a bathroom and take a long shower and put on clean clothes. Maybe her walk of shame wouldn’t be so shameful after this. Still, she couldn’t help but think how stupid she was for sleeping with Noel again. She was mad at him, and they had some stuff to talk about. But she was madder at the whole world and whenever that happened, she would go looking for him.

As she walked down those beautiful marble stair, she could see the effect the party had. People were sleeping on the floor and the couch, some of them were missing a part of their clothes. There were dirty glasses and empty bottles all over the place. Some parts of the floor were wet because of the pool party and there was dirt everywhere. If Cordelia saw it, Noel would be dead in seconds. But again, he had the money to pay and clean the whole thing up before she even found out about the party.

She walked through the sea of sleeping people to the kitchen. Well, it was even messier than the rest of the house, with empty pizza boxes, opened bags of chips and more bottles. But something even stranger was found making tea over the counter. Tom was wearing different clothes from yesterday, something similar to gym clothes, but didn’t look as sloppy. He had a tired face on, but still looked clean and fresh, judging by his wet hair, he had a shower recently.

“What are you doing here?” She whispered, and he chuckled.

“Morning to you too.” He said and extended her a mug of tea. “I slept over with Taylor.”

“Of course, she’s…” She nodded, and she sat on a stool by the counter.

“Noel’s cousin.” Tom finished, and they fell into silence. “The question is, what are you doing here?”

“I slept with Noel.” She admitted quickly, almost in a whisper, but Tom heard and widened his eyes.

“You slept with Noel?” He pointed, and she nodded, taking almost half of her tea in one sip. “Great.”

“Can we please just drink this really fast and head back to the city? I need my bed to cry on, and I don’t wanna face Noel right now.”

“Of course.”

They drank the rest of the tea silently and rushed out of the house to get a cab to the train station. (Y/N) didn’t dare to say a word during the whole ride but Tom noticed that she was bothered, tired and ashamed. Maybe something happened, something serious, and just by imagining the possibilities, Tom got angry. Like so mad that his jaw clenched and he was tensed only by the thought of Noel touching one small finger on (Y/N) to hurt her.

“By the way, where’s Harrison?” That’s the only thing she dared to say after the ride.

“He’s at the B&B with Minnie. Said he was going to head back to the city later, that we should go ahead.” She nodded and crossed her arms to prevent herself from the chilly early morning wind. Tom noticed it and quickly slipped his striped jumper out of his backpack to give her. “Here, take my jumper.”

“There’s no need.”

"Come on, don't be silly." He took her bag out of her hand so he could hold it while she was busy.

"Thank you, Tom." She smiled weakly. "So, how was your night with Taylor?"

"It was alright, yeah." He smirked. "She didn't last long, though."

"So you're that good?" She frowned, and he giggled again.

"Maybe." He shrugged, leaning forward to see that train stopping at the station. "How was yours with Noel?"

"Can't say it was bad." She arched her eyebrows as they walked inside the train, searching for a place to sit. It was almost empty considering it was so early on a Saturday morning. Tom sat by the window, and she cuddled on his side.

"Why do you look so upset?" He asked, and she sighed and fixed the jumper she was wearing. It smelled like Tom and was very nice.

"I didn't want to do what I did last night."

"Did he force you to do something?" Tom stiffened, and she shook her head no.

"No. I did because I was upset and wanted to forget about everything. I tend to do that."

"You know we could have missed the party to go somewhere to vent and chill."

"But if we didn't come, you would miss all the fun with Taylor." She grinned as she unwrinkled his shirt with the tip of her fingers.

"I wouldn't mind. There would be other girls and other times to do that." She hugged his arm and rested her head on his shoulder. Her hands looked for his fingers, and she played with them before starting to speak again.

“You’re the sweetest, Tom.” She smiled and pulled her legs up to rest over his to get even comfier. “I only regret it because I’m upset with Noel too. We clearly have some stuff to talk about, and I caved and went to bed with him. I kinda hate myself right now.”

“Hey, don’t say that.” He entwined their fingers and started to rub circles of the back of her hand. “Uhm, but if you feel upset, you don’t have to go to him, okay? I’m here for you.”

“I know, thank you, Tom.” She pressed a kiss on his shoulder before cuddling even more into him. She yawned and rubbed her eyes.

“You’re tired.” He noticed, and she giggled.

“Very tired.”

“C’mere.”

He got out of her grip in his arm and invited her to rest on his chest by opening his arms, which she accepted in a matter of seconds. Tom involved her in a comfortable and warm hug and (Y/N) rested her head on his chest. His heartbeats were lulling her to sleep. He rested his chin on top of her head and just held her tightly as he watched the landscape outside the window. Soon he heard soft snores coming from (Y/N). She looked so peaceful and calm, and for Tom, that was better than watching her crying and upset.

“Much better.”

❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁

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saiilorstars · 4 years ago

Text

The Girl in the Forest

Chapter 24: All About Us

// Story Masterlist //

Fandom: The Originals

Pairings: Klaus Mikaelson x Female OC

Pronunciation of OC’s name: Ma-leh-nee

Requested tag: @queenmj10 @ocfairygodmother

~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~

Chapter Summary: Freya struggles to get Maleny and Klaus on her side. She's desperate to get them to hear her because she has a secret that'll change their lives forever.

Because Maleny has been switched bodies once again, her temporary face claim is Adriana Louvier.

Freya had her eyes trained on her anxious brother Finn as he stared out the window of the cathedral bell tower they were hiding in. She was leaned back on a table, her hands gipping its edges, wondering when their argument would continue.

"They're taking longer than I thought," Finn finally remarked to break the silence between them. He turned from the window and looked at his sister with a half-smile, "They're never patient, unless they have a plan."

"That could very well be," agreed Freya with a chalant nod.

"Now that i'm healed, I'll need power," Finn began to devise his defense strategy, "Now, our father's still in the tomb where I left him. I think it's time that I go back and I channel him."

At the idea of seeing her father, Freya couldn't help express her excitement, but even then she put her promise before it all, "Would this be before or after you hand over the body spell I've been nagging you about for days?"

Finn rolled his eyes, "Are we really going to discuss this again, sister?"

"Yes," Freya leaned off the table, pointing a finger at him, "because we have not finished this. Now I've been patient, and I've waited for some of your anger to fade but you still refuse to give me the spell."

"I don't understand what it is your deal with this woman," Finn couldn't understand why Freya had taken such an interest in Maleny if they hadn't even known each other, "You don't know her, Freya. Our concern is Dahlia whom you told me is already on her way."

"You do not know what my business is but rest assured I will see it finished - whether you want it to or not," Freya declared, leaving Finn confused.

"Freya, what are you up to?" he almost demanded of her, for the first time becoming suspicious of her.

"Nothing that will harm you," Freya assured, "I may not have jumped bodies like she has, but what I've lived through was similar to her life. My life was stolen by someone who wanted my power. I didn't have control of my sleep curse much like she didn't have a choice but to live within her curse's cycle. Give me the spell so I can return her to her body. Now."

Finn straightened up and faced his sister, much like he did with his younger brothers. Freya wasn't backing down from her requests as she took on the same stance as he had.

~ 0 ~

After discovering Finn's corpse had mysteriously disappeared from the morgue, Klaus and Hayley set out to plan capture him and even Freya once and for all. In the meantime they devised a plan, Elijah and Cami were tending to an attacked Rebekah across the Algiers.

"It's time to use our werewolf army. Finn and the woman who calls herself my sister are in this city. The wolves can help us pinpoint their location," Klaus was telling to Hayley, Jackson and Maleny.

Jackson stepped forwards and refused the plan, "No," he shook his head, "we need all hands on deck here with Hope,' Klaus turned to him, his eyes half-widening as if surprised, "Nik, you can compel humans to track your enemies."

"Do my ears deceive me or did you just give me an order in my own home?"

"This ain't about your ego, Klaus! It's about what's best for that little girl."

Klaus would let anything slide except for the remarks about his daughter, "How dare you question my intentions for my daughter!"

Maleny groaned and cut into the looming argument, "Can we not argue when we're all clearly on the same side?"

Hayley agreed with a nod of her head, "Look, Jack, Klaus is right. Finn's body disappeared from the morgue, which means that he's either powerful enough to heal from that explosion, or Freya's powerful enough to save him. Either way, we're not finding them unless we send our best people out there."

"I'm sure you and all your merry men will find them posthaste," Klaus then told Jackson with a hint of a patronizing tone.

"Just to be clear, I'm giving this order because Hayley is asking," Jackson warned him, "Don't think for one second that I take orders from you," with that statement, he left the room.

Maleny rose from her spot on the couch and cleared her throat, "Just to be clear, will there always be tension like this?"

Hayley crossed her arms and shot Klaus an annoyed look, "I don't know. Will there?"

Klaus saw nothing wrong with his behavior and turned away from the two women, "Talk to your husband, Hayley, and there shall be none."

Hayley rolled her eyes and turned her attention to Maleny, "Mal, talk to your boyfriend so there won't be tension."

"Oh, sure, leave this on me," Maleny raised her hands to show her separation of the problem. She backtracked to the threshold of the room, "And, by the way, I will go with Jackson and help him," and just as Klaus turned to her with an open mouth ready to disagree she cut him off, "and I promise it'll be okay. Alton's coming too."

"Oh, that's supposed to make this entire situation better," Klaus muttered under his breath but even then Maleny was able to hear him.

"Yes, actually, it is. I'll be fine," she assured went off to go find the others. On her way downstairs she met up with Amarrah who was just entering the courtyard.

"Hey, Mal! I think I have a new spell to try on you!" the French witch excitedly announced as Maleny came to a stop at the end of the stairs.

"Um…" Maleny was distracted in trying to find where Jackson had gone off to, "...can we try it later? Or maybe tomorrow?"

"What? Why?" Amarrah frowned, desperately trying to catch Maleny's gaze since the brunette was oh-so-focused on looking for Jackson.

"Because Jackson and the pack are going to go and try to catch Finn and I want to help."

"Woah, what?" Amarrah grabbed Maleny's head and forced her to look at her, "You actually want to go fight the man who did this to you?"

Maleny rolled her eyes and pushed Amarrah's hands off her head, "I have to help, Ams."

"No, you have to let me try and put you back in your body," Amarrah slowly said to the brunette for her to get the point.

"Yes, okay, but later tonight."

"Mal, what are you doing?"

"Nothing except finally realizing that this is a chance to actually help." Maleny shrugged. "I've been looking at this wrong, while you find a spell that can for sure work I can go and help the others."

Okay, well, I think I found one so let's go try it out!"

"Just not right now, okay?" Maleny persisted and patted Amarrah's cheek. "I really want to try at least once to help and not be babysat. Can we do that just once?"

Amarrah saw easily she would not win this argument and so gave in. "Fine. But be careful. In the meanwhile I'll go research more spells just in case."

"Yeah, after I get this done," Maleny patted Amarrah's cheek and tried going on her way but Amarrah latched onto her arm and stopped her.

"Mal, the main thing for you is to get back to your body and-"

"And once again be left to be babysat?" Maleny shook her head, "Absolutely not. I finally have an advtantage - I'm finally useful - and I'm gonna use it."

~ 0 ~

The fact Rebekah had been attacked by unknown witches was troubling enough but the fact that it had been Marcel to save her was putting Rebekah on edge. He apparently had figured out it was her soul inside the new body and he was quite content to have her back. To be truthful, only to herself though, it was nice to have a little flirting. It had been so long since any of that happened. But it didn't mean that was what she wanted to do back. So, when Elijah and Cami appeared at Marcel's loft she was a little relieved to have some of the attention off her.

Elijah ran straight for his sister on the couch, "Are you alright?"

"Barely," the woman sighed, not quite scared but very much annoyed with her attackers. She had tried to tell them she wasn't who they thought she was but apparently they were too eager to kill her to pay attention, "The attackers knew me, Elijah. Not me me, but…" she gestiured to her body, "this, her, whoever she is. And they want her dead."

"Then we find them," suggested Cami who looked over to Marcel, "make them see it's not really what they think."

"Nah," Marcel shook his head in refusal, "If you want answers we need to ask Josephine LaRue. She serves as matriarch to the covens outside the Quarter. She'll know who wants Rebekah dead."

Elijah turned back to him, suspicious, "How can you be sure?"

"She bankrolls Fauline Cottage. She'll know who you are and why you were locked up in there."

Rebekah nearly had a heart attack at the name, "And what if she wants to lock me right back up?" she looked up at Elijah, "I won't go back to that horrid place-"

Elijah assured her with a hand it wouldn't happen to her, "The two of you go and see what you can find about this body you now possess. We," he gestured to Cami and himself, "shall pay a visit to Josephine," but he gave a warning look to Rebekah before they left, "A warning to you. You are not who you once were. This body is all too vulnerable."

Rebekah rolled her eyes, "And now I guess I understand Maleny with the whole babysitting problem."

Marcel still wasn't quite on board with the plan and had to warn as well, "Elijah. Josephine is an eccentric old bat with no love for vampires. Your charms might not work as well as you think."

To that, Elijah replied back with a smirk, "My charms are quite adaptable, Marcellus, let me assure you," he motioned to Cami it was time to go.

"We should probably do some research on this woman," the blonde suggested as they left the loft, "See how we can get on her good side."

Elijah agreed with a nod, "That shouldn't be too hard…" he gave an encouraging smile back that was well received.

~ 0 ~

"What do you mean he's not there anymore?" Maleny was staring in almost awe as Jackson finished telling her, Alton and Aiden what some of the other wolves had discovered in the cemetery.

"As in...Finn has either released Mikael from the crypt or he can turn himself invisble now," Jackson repeated himself with a long sigh.

"Hey, the sass is my thing," Maleny warned him but sighed herself afterwards, "Okay, so, Mikael the terror is gone and...probably hunting us down as we speak."

"Meaning you gotta get out of here," Alton gripped her arm with urgency, his eyes pleaidng hers to take her leave.

"I don't think so!" Maleny waved him off with a hand and looked at Jackson once more, "Okay, so forget Finn for now - Mikael is the target."

"I thought the same thing," Jackson nodded, "we need to attack him before he does to us. I'll get the others rounded up."

"No," Aiden spoke up and made Jackson look back at him, "we should, um...we should spread out...you know...play it safer…"

Jackson shook his head, "No, man, we need to be together so we can take him down."

"But I just feel like it would be a better move," Aiden insisted. He knew if he told Jackson it was Klaus who had advised him with that tactic it would be shot down almost immediately. He had to make it work as his own.

"No," Jackson refused, "We're a pack and that's how we'll take him down," he declared before walking away from the trio.

Aiden couldn't follow that order, as much as he knew it was his obligation. He looked over at Maleny and Alton, practically begging them to help him.

For a long while it was silent, and then Maleny finally gave in and motioned for Aiden to speak up, "What's your idea, then?"

~ 0 ~

Inside Gia's apartment, Elijah was rather reluctant to follow through with Cami's apparent idea since it involved her new friend's ability. They'd done research on Josephine and apparently the woman had been a fanatic violinst player. Discovering that and a couple other things, Cami declared she had a good idea in mind.

"Why am I going to do this again?" Gia came out from the hallway with her violin case in arms.

"Because, I told you, Josephine was like a musical prodigy in her time," Cami rolled her eyes, hating to have to repeat something so simple, "So, I thought why not have you play her something."

Gia's eyes flickered over to Elijah, "And you're on board with this idea?" her question implied doubt.

"More or less," Elijah admitted with a small shrug.

"He's on board," Cami assured with a wide smile, "Will you please just do it? For me?"

Gia rolled her eyes at the dramatics of her friend and went to place her violin case over the glass table in her living room, "You know I will. It may not work but whatever. So," she glanced at the two, "what exactly is the plan here?"

Elijah stepped forwards and handed her a couple of music sheets for her to see, "Josephine would surely love to hear some of the music she adored in the past. Beethoven, "sonata number 9, opus 47."

Gia raised an eyebrow at the papers, "How about I bring my laptop, speakers, add a drumbeat?"

"Don't you dare," Cami warned her quickly, "Look, its your performance that will open the door for us with that woman. If we fail...Elijah's sister sort of…" she made a face that indicated the gravity of the situation.

Gia sighed, "Why don't you make both our lives easier and just compel someone from the symphony?"

"Because," Cami spoke before Elijah could, already knowing his disagreement with her plan, he just didn't understand it was a two-part plan, "You're far better than anyone from any local symphony. Besides, Josephine despises vampires, so we need to show her that our community can be classy and sophisticated."

"So I would assume I'd have to wear one of those fancy dresses, then?" Gia made a face at the idea.

"Absolutely," Cami winked, and grabbed Elijah's arm, "so we'll be leaving you to practice that in the meantime we set everything else up."

"Fine," Gia sighed as she took another look at the music sheets, "but I'm only doing this for you Cami - I could care less about stupid old witches."

"And I appreciate it," Cami assured and dragged Elijah for the door.

Elijah waited until they were out of full hearing range from Gia to express his disagreement with their choice, "Camille, are you sure your friend is capable of this? I admit she can definitely play but it's going to take a lot more years to master the needed skills for Josephine."

Cami mockingly sighed as they strode down the street, "Oh, Elijah, do you not trust me?"

"Of course I do," Elijah answered almost instantaneously.

"Then trust me when I tell you Gia is exactly what we need for this to work," the blonde laughed, "I know you're discouraged because of the style Gia usually plays but I assure you everything will work out fine."

"I do trust you," Elijah insisted but added his concern, "It's your friend that I have issues with."

"Then put them away," Cami mocked a warning finger at him, "cos we have a lot of work to do for tonight."

"Lead the way then, miss," Elijah gestured her to take lead, making her smirk as she strode off.

~ 0 ~

Near the bell tower where Finn was apparently taking refuge, Jackson had sent nearly all the pack to capture Mikael. Apparently there had been a sighting of the man and they weren't going to waste it. However, Aiden had taken his idea and set it to action with a good part of the pack, instructing them to stay scattered. In one of their hiding spots was Maleny, who stood behind a building overlooking the cathedral. While nervous, she felt confident enough to at least help put Mikael down. She took a step out of the hiding place and started to discreetly make way for the belltower when she felt a hand on her arm yank her into an alley.

"Hey!" Maleny cried as she was pushed to the wall. To her surprise, it was none other than Freya who stood in front of her, "You're…"

Freya gave a warm smile of greeting, "Think we established who I am, Maleny."

Maleny pushed herself off the wall and stepped away from Freya, on edge of what the blonde witch was plotting, "Quit acting like you know me - you don't know me."

"I assure you that I do," Freya said, and with the confidence in her tone Maleny doubted herself for a second. "I'm actually not here to hurt you."

"Funny, cos when people say that there's usually some pain afterwards," Maleny replied with her common sarcasm, "What do you want? Why do you keep coming to me? You do realize your siblings are in trouble right? Your niece!? What the hell is so bloody special about me?"

"So much," Freya said with a light smile. "And I do want to meet my siblings, believe me. But I made a very important promise to someone and because I love him I want to do this first."

"What, your boyfriend or something?"

"No," Freya shook her head, still maintaining an eerie, soft smile that made Maleny shift. "He's family. I'd like to start with the most recent meeting - that would be 1914 - and see how much you remember."

"Why?" Maleny arched an eyebrow.

"You and I were friends, don't you remember? As Maya."

Maleny's eyes widened. "Oh my God you were at the Christmas party! Weren't you the one that Rebekah said was on a date with Kol or something?"

"Yes, something like that! Back then you were Maya who was suffering some images in your head," Freya explained.

"I'm sorry but...some of my lives were lost after I transferred back into my original body," Maleny said, crossing her arms. "I remember lives just...not all of them."

"Understandable - they were plenty I assume. You can't possibly remember all of them. Maleny, you were my only friend in New Orleans for the entire year I lived."

"Year? What do you mean?"

"I'd like for you to listen to me, Maleny. I will tell you about me and why I want to help you."

"And what's the catch? You asking me to bring in Hope or something?" Maleny laughed and started turning away, "because if that's it then I'd rather stay in this body forever."

"Would you really take that deal?" Freya called out in honest wonder.

Maleny turned back, almost indignant the question had been asked, "Of course I would. That innocent child should have the chance to live and if I had a say in it I would make it so."

"Your care for my niece is extraordinary," Freya complimented and stepped towards her, only to have Maleny take the step back, "I suppose much of that affection comes from your own affections for my brother, Niklaus."

"My feelings for your brother have influenced them but separately I loved Hope even before she was born. And I will do anything it takes to keep her safe make no mistake. I didn't have the luxury of having a family so I will make sure that Klaus get to have his own with his daughter."

Freya was impressed as she heard the woman's words. She started walking for Maleny, ignoring the brunette's attempts to leave, "I want to talk with you, Maleny. Just talk. There are things that my family needs to know about," Maleny noticed the sudden anxious tone Freya had picked up on.

"Like?"

Freya had a glimpse of a smile on her lips, "You wouldn't believe me if I came straight out with it. You must first listen to my story to believe."

Maleny frowned, "I could really care less about your history. All I know is that you want Hope dead like Finn and Esther did."

"I assure you the last thing I want for that baby is her death. She does not need to die," Freya declared and grabbed Maleny's arms, "I want a chance to talk to my friend. Because if you trust me, then it will be easier for my siblings to do the same."

"So I'm like a pawn?"

"No, I really do want to talk to you. It's been a century since we've last seen each other."

"But why?" Maleny felt tired of asking this question. "What the hell is so damn special about me, Freya?"

"I have heard all about you for centuries - in a way you were family before I met you in 1914. Please, all I ask is that you listen to my story and then you and I can go to Niklaus himself where I will divulge very important information that needs to be known."

Maleny considered the deal shortly - she had come to accept Freya didn't want to hurt her. It was like she was told before, if Freya had wanted to hurt her she wouldn't have given back the body and much less let them leave.

~ 0 ~

Later that day, Josephine De was visited by the three vampires endeavoring to win her over. As Gia finished up her performance with her violin, Josephine decided to speak up, and calmly despite her words having a stingy tone to it.

"You are as calculating as I've heard, Mr. Mikaelson, having your companion play the very piece I once performed to great acclaim."

Gia looked over to Cami nervously, thinking perhaps she had messed up. However, Cami seemed at ease despite the old witch's words.

"Is it not also a piece that you enjoy?" Elijah asked her, also a bit nervous.

"It's best not to insult those more powerful than you," Josephine said, "which is the only reason I allowed you into my home. Now, if you will excuse me, I have many things to do."

"Wow," Cami raised her eyebrows as if she were surprised, "And here I thought we would have a more cordial greeting."

Josephine briefly sent the blonde a sharp look before addressing Elijah again, "Since your family has returned to this city, our Elders have been murdered, promising young witches have been inhabited against their will."

"And we can put an end to all of it," Elijah tried to say but Josephine cut him right off.

"With all due respect, I can believe that as much as I believe I will play my violin again someday…" she looked down at her shaking, swollen hands. Her fingers were stiff and almost pain looking, "... because, Mr. Mikaelson, beneath your formal attire, and behind the lovely Beethoven, you are all the same. Liars, monsters wearing the skins of humans. Good day to you both."

Elijah was startled to hear the woman, momentarily regretting following Cami's idea, "Ms. LaRue, we needn't be unpleasant!

"I hold no animosity, nor do I want to do you any favors," Josephine declared, "I simply want you to leave my home."

Gia had had enough and exclaimed, "Screw her, Elijah. I don't see a frigging crown on her head."

Josephine glanced her way, seemingly calm, "I beg your pardon?"

Cami silently watched the exchange happen with a half smirk.

"You're not the Queen of the Witches. You don't speak for all of them," Gia spat and sighed as she looked at her purple dress, "You know, I can't believe I dressed up and learned how to play Beethoven. I hate Beethoven. I only did it for my good friend over there," she nodded over to Cami, "whom you decided to be rude to for no reason."

Josephine looked more amused than anything else, "And so, what do you like, young lady? If not for Beethoven, then what?"

Instead of responding with words, Gia raised her violin again and began playing one of her more familiar sounds. Josephine became awed by the young woman's talent and allowed her to finish her piece.

"Eddie South. That makes you a true jazz girl!" the old witch exclaimed.

"You know Eddie South?" Gia gaped.

"At one time, I nearly eloped with a jazz musician. Um, my mother learned of my plans and, uh…" Josephine looked down at her hands, "Your candor is refreshing. I find most vampires more calculating…" with that, she glanced at Elijah, "No offense."

Cami spoke up before Elijah did, "Absolutely none taken. I love my friend's candor. But now, on more serious terms, won't you allow us to explain ourselves? Clearly we want no tension. We only want...answers. An hour, that's all we ask."

Josephine considered the deal for a minute then looked at Elijah with a polite smile, "I suppose I should just hear you out, Mr. Mikaelson."

That was like music to Elijah's ears. He nodded happily and at once began their story.

~ 0 ~

Freya had led Maleny far away from the cathedral, knowing her father - whom she had helped resurrect from Finn's channeling spell - was about. She didn't want her friend to get hurt. Instead, she walked the street with Maleny, seemingly heading for the cemetery. All the meanwhile she had explained to Maleny her basic history, beginning with Esther's deal with her sister, Dahlia, all the way to the present day.

"Honestly that's awful," Maleny sighed, but not at all surprised the eldest Mikaelson had been led to such a life cycle, "One year of life? That's all you get in a century?"

"Yes," Freya nodded, "It's been going on for many, many centuries and I fear it will never stop."

Maleny studied Freya from a sideways glance, "You don't look like a bad person," she concluded, "but your actions haven't been able to prove that. You helped Finn nearly kill Hope - your niece."

"I didn't know my brother's hatred would go to such an extent. I don't want to hurt my niece - I want to help her. She's in trouble," Freya honestly said, "But I cannot do that if my siblings don't allow me to."

"What's in it for you, though?" Maleny inquired suspiciously, "Because I assume if you go up against Dahlia it'll be like an act of treason for her. You could die."

"So could you," Freya pointed the detail out with a warm smile, "Yet you're still out there, hunting down one of the baddest vampires in history. Why do you do it, hm?" she gave Maleny along state but the brunette only fidgeted in response, "You do it for love," Freya continued on, "Love for my niece, love for my family, love for my brother."

Maleny weirdly looked over to the blonde witch, "Okay, it's really weird how you know stuff about me. Stop it."

Freya lightly chuckled, "I'm sorry. I cannot help it."

"That year…when we were friends..." Maleny became pensive as she tried her hardest to remember her apparent friend Freya, "...I mean, I can remember that life easier because it's only in the past century. But you…"

"You had a lot of people in your life," Freya tried to reason, "Plus, you had about four years more of life than I did after 1914 so I would assume you'd forget one friend you only saw for a year."

"Still...sorry," Maleny flashed a small, yet honest, smile Freya's way.

Freya had herself a good chuckle, "I can help you remember if you'd like," she announced.

At that, Maleny stopped and turned to the woman, "Really? How?"

Freya turned as well, gesturing to her hands, "It's like a memory jog spell. I can resurface our shared memories. It's easier when they're memories from recent times."

Maleny looked at Freya's hands with hesitance, "Will...will it hurt?"

Freya was quite pleased Maleny hadn't even stopped to question if it were a trick. It had to mean she was slowly believing in her. That would bode well for them in the future.

"No, it's only going to tickle at most. May I?" Freya gestured to her hands once more.

Maleny gave a nod and shuddered a breath as Freya stepped forwards and placed her fingers on her temples, soon beginning the spell. In a matter of moments Maleny was revisiting 1914. She could definitely see Freya, all the times the witch had helped her with her 'headaches' and even as simple as a shopping day. Freya told the truth - they had been friends for an entire year.

By the time Freya had shown Maleny all of 1914, Maleny was close to tears, "I...I can't believe I forgot all that," Maleny swallowed hard and blinked with wide eyes at Freya.

Freya stood in front of her with relieved face, glad to see she was entirely believed. If Maleny believed her about their friendship, then it would be a little more believable when she told her and the rest of her family the most important secret of all.

~ 0 ~

In the cemetery, Elijah and Klaus were busy bickering over the fate of a their brother Finn, who laid on the ground bleeding from an attack of Klaus. Elijah had just barely made it in time to stop Klaus from actually killing Finn but it seemed like convincing him altogether would be more difficult.

"Let him die, Elijah!" Klaus was in the middle of saying, agitated more as his brother seemed to be stuck on the defensive side.

"The witches want that body returned unharmed," Elijah continued to press. It was the deal he had made with Josephine and he was not going to let anything ruin that.

"And what else do they want? A parade? Free broomsticks for all?"

At that moment, Maleny and Freya appeared on the other side of the aisle. Freya had insisted they'd find Finn and Klaus, because no matter where one was the other would surely be there as well...trying to kill the other.

"As a witch, I take extreme offense to that," Maleny remarked, none too pleased with the sight before them.

Klaus would've remarked with his own sarcasm if it hadn't been for Freya standing beside her. The two women walked over to then, and at once Finn began to plead to Freya for assistance.

"Freya... Freya, help me."

Freya knelt down beside him, "Don't worry, brother. I won't let them hurt you," she pointed her blue pendant of her talisman towards him in order to cast a spell, "Yovara vimuna virael," as the spell was placed Finn screamed in agony as his body heard from his wounds.

When the spell finished 'Finn' sat upright with shock and looked about his environment with utter confusion, "Who are you?"

No one answered as Freya cast another spell, "Sleep," she ordered and now Vincent, the original owner of the body, fell asleep.

"What...did you do to him?" Maleny asked after deciding she was utterly confused.

Freya turned to her holding her necklace, "Finn is now safe from harm, and his hatred of you can no longer do damage to our cause."

"Our cause?" Elijah repeated, none too pleased to hear her act as if they were closer than ever.

"Yes. Ours. And now, if you two can stop arguing long enough, perhaps you'll allow your older sister to offer you a deal," Freya looked over to her brothers.

"What could you possibly offer us besides fairy tales and lies?" Klaus scoffed and glared at her.

"Whatever you may think of me, brother, know this... When I speak to you, it is the truth. If you have any doubts, remember that it was I who rescued Rebekah from the Fauline Cottage."

"And I trust her," Maleny added, surprising the two brothers. At their looks, she elaborated, "Look, it's weird, okay? But she was telling the truth. I know her, from 1914. She was my friend and the only thing she did was help me with my headaches."

"You seem to forget she was the one who led Finn on his vile mission to take Hope's life," Klaus turned his glare momentarily to Maleny.

Before Maleny said anything back, Freya cut in, "The threat to Hope came from Finn, not me. The brother I knew would never have stooped to threaten a child...you, everything she touched."

Klaus was horrified and grew even more angry at the declaration, "Do not speak as though we are familiars. We know nothing of you."

To give proof, Freya cast a spell allowing him and Elijah to see the moment she was taken by Dahlia as a young child. But even that was not enough to convince Klaus.

"That proves nothing but your ability to conjure illusions," he declared.

Freya grew more desperate. "If you would just listen to me you would learn that-"

"I don't bloody care what you have to say!" snapped Klaus. "I don't want to listen and I won't."

"That's mature," Maleny declared, earning further points against him.

Elijah seemed to have better patience than either of the pair and so asked Freya, "I suppose you come with the knowledge of Dahlia?"

"Yes," Freya nodded, "And before you dismiss me, you should know this: if I've woken from my slumber, Dahlia has as well. It'd be only a matter of time until she finds us."

"That's quite convenient, isn't it? You show up in the nick of time to help us kill the woman with whom you've spent a thousand years with!" Klaus couldn't help but blurt right after, offending Freya.

"You have no idea what it took to escape her or what I lost in the trying. Her punishment will be profound."

Elijah seemed more willing to listen, "And you know how to stop her?"

Freya nodded, "Given the proper materials, yes. I've sent Father to procure them."

That was the final straw for Klaus, "You put the life of my child in the hands of Mikael?" he stormed away but was called by Maleny, who was more frustrated.

"Are you kidding me? This woman has knowledge of the threat we now face and is willing to share that information and you're just going to walk away?"

"Well, you'll excuse me, if I'm not inclined to trust the mysterious sister we only just met-"

"I know her-"

"You knew her for one bloody year, Maleny!" he cut her right off, "That's not enough!"

"There's really something you need to know-" Freya interjected the disagreement, but it only seemed to infuriate her brother more.

"There is nothing I want to hear from you!" he almost shouted at her. His eyes flickered to Maleny, "You should have better judgement in people, Mal - I thought you would've learned that after Riley Dawson."

It was now Maleny who was nearing a whole new type of fury, and after that comment it was only a matter of seconds before she shouted, "Do not bring that man into this!" she moved towards him but stopped after a couple steps, "I have learned from my mistakes and I can assure you your own sister isn't here to hurt you nor Hope. I've been with her all day and-"

"All day?" Klaus stopped her after that foul revelation. For a minute it seemed like Maleny regretted mentioning it, "Are you telling me that you not only went after Finn on your own but that you also spent hours with that woman?" he harshly pointed over to Freya.

"I know it sounds bad but-"

"No, you're right, it's awful!" he then fully shouted, his anger having reached the maximum level, "I should have known better than to let you go fight on your own with that Alton man who can't even keep an eye on you!"

"We're getting off track, here," Maleny pursed her lips together, forcing herself not to shout back like he was.

Freya decided to once again try and make her point, "I would really like to speak to the two of you-"

"Not now Freya," this time it was Maleny who interrupted. She was facing Klaus, and upholding the same glare he had on. "Just because you're mad, Klaus, doesn't mean you get to shout at me."

"If I could just talk-"

"NOT NOW!" both Maleny and Klaus bellowed to Freya, making her flinch and silencing her once and for all. Beside her, Elijah just rubbed his forehead.

Meanwhile, the pair had their stare down.

"I'm not backing down," warned Maleny as if she were reading Klaus' thoughts. "We have to look at the bigger picture here. Freya can help us-"

"She will do no such thing," Klaus declared with a shake of his head, "I will not listen to her, but by all means, if you wish to entertain this idiocy, have at it."

Angrily, Maleny watched him speed away from them. With a huff, she turned back to Elijah and Freya, "I hate your brother sometimes. But if he thinks he can get away with this by just speeding away - ha! He's got another thing coming - that stupid hybrid!" She stomped after him.

With a deep sigh, Elijah turned to face Freya with a face that basically read 'this is actually normal for us'. Freya wasn't paying attention very much. She was biting her lip anxiously, staring after her friend and brother and berating herself for not being more assertive and finally telling them the truth. At this rate, she would never be able to!

~ 0 ~

"Okay, so that's the last of it," Cami put down the last of Josephine's boxes on the floor of Marcel's loft. Elijah and her had manage to get Josephine to relinquish information on Eva Sinclair for Rebekah to read. While Elijah went to stop Klaus from hurting Vincent's body, she and Gia had taken the boxes to Marcel and Rebekah.

Rebekah was staring at the files she held with a big frown, "I'd rather not read anymore," she sighed.

Cami looked up from the box near her and raised an eyebrow, "Why? Something bad in there?"

"The easier question would be if I can find anything good about her," Rebekah put down the file, "This woman is...awful. The worst of the worst."

Cami looked concern and walked to the couch to take a seat beside Rebekah. She took the file and skimmed a couple lines, which was more than enough needed to get an idea of who Eva Sinclair was, "Oh my God…" making a face, she looked at Rebekah, "Maybe it's a good thing you took this woman's body - it's like a public service."

While amused of the joke, Rebekah was still guilty, "It doesn't matter what she's done. I've still appropriated her body without her consent."

Cami gave her a look but didn't get to say anything when Elijah came into the loft. The two women turned their attention to him as he walked towards them with a grim look.

"I take it Klaus wasn't too pleased he wasn't able to hurt Finn?" Cami assumed with slight amusement.

"He's not pleased but it's not entirely our fault," Elijah replied with minimal desire, "Freya has made an appearance," he looked to Rebekah, "and she wants to make a deal. She spoke to Maleny and has her on her side already, something Niklaus isn't too fond of."

"Well, maybe Mal saw what I saw," Rebekah shrugged, "our sister seems honest and if she wants to help us, then so be it."

"Still, it's best to have a close eye on Freya."

"So, that means we're going to let her help us, then?" inquired Cami. She'd yet to meet Freya but she knew if Maleny had decided to trust the witch then she couldn't be evil.

"We'll see," Elijah ended the conversation as he took Cami's hand to make her stand, "In the meantime, Rebekah you will stay away from the marketry and out of trouble," he warned his sister who rolled her eyes in annoyance at him, "I mean it."

"Yeah, yeah," Rebekah dismissed him with a wave of her hand, "I have a ton of reading to do as you can see," she gestured to the other boxes Cami had placed near the couch, "I'm sure Marcel wouldn't mind having me as a guest for the night. You two go on - and give your friend, Gia, a thank you from my part, Cami."

Cami nodded and lightly smiled, "Of course. Now please, let's go home," she looked to Elijah beside her, "I want to change out of this stupid dress," she looked down at her orange, formal dress she hadn't been able to change out of due to the moving of boxes.

Elijah just smirked in response as they turned and walked to leave. Cami noticed the look and concluded it was his 'I have an idea' face which made her curious.

"What are you planning?" she asked after they'd left the loft, "And don't waste time by telling me it's nothing because it damn well is something."

Elijah had a small chuckle as he responded, "I was merely going to ask if you wanted to have dinner together."

"Oh…" and while the idea was surprising, it didn't mean Cami would forget about the truth of their reality, "But we don't even need actual food, Elijah. Did you have two blood bags in mind or…?"

"Alright, so the dinner was an excuse," Elijah admitted, "I have never gotten the chance to thank you for helping me at the safe house, nor for your plan today. We may not need it, but I'd like to take you to a restaurant to talk and eat food we don't even need."

Cami tried her best to maintain her heartbeats at a normal pace as she felt like the air was leaving her lungs. That sounded like a date, no? That was a date - their second date? Did he mean for it to be a date? Could she even ask him if it were a date?

Elijah nervously smiled at the blonde as he pointed, "So, do you think you can put off changing out of your beautiful dress?"

Though nearly all her vocabulary was evading her mind, Cami remembered the basic words usable and nodded, "...yes, um, yes…" she flashed a smile afterwards that indicated for them to get going.

Their 'maybe second date' was about to begin.

~ 0 ~

"So, are you finally going to drop the childish behavior and talk to me in a calm manner?" Maleny stood across the lounge room where Klaus had taken refuge in the bourbon stock of the family.

"Is this really how you wish to start a conversation?" Klaus lowered his glass to send her a brief sharp look.

"I don't know," Maleny let her arms fall to her side as she went to sit at the couch, "because when you're in one of your temper-moods there's no clear way to begin. You should make a guide book for me, you know."

"Sure thing, right after I make you one on how to judge people correctly."

"Are you seriously going to do that again?"

"Are you seriously going to trust Freya?"

"Oh my God, stop that!" Maleny exclaimed, "We sound like kids, do you know that? Let's not forget we're on the same side here. We just want to protect Hope and maybe Freya has the way. Do you not trust me? Do you think I would let someone hurt Hope?"

"I trust you," Klaus clarified with a pointed finger at her, "But Freya is powerful as we have seen and she can manipulate you against your own will."

"It's not happening," Maleny declared with certainty, "She was an old friend of mine, Klaus. I remember her and all she used to do was help me and be a true friend. The proof is in my mind if you want to see it," she stood up and walked up to him at the bar counter, "My mind is yours to see through. Look and see that Freya is telling the truth," she took his glass from him and put it on the counter. She grabbed his hands and placed them on either side of her head, "Look!" she ordered him.

It appeared Klaus was considering the idea. He'd never actually done that to her if he remembered correctly - there was never a need to.

~ 0 ~

"So this is my present for coming up with a good plan?" Cami laughed as she took a sip of her red wine, "I gotta say, you Mikaelsons' can be what you want but your rewards are oh-so-good."

Elijah, who sat across their table, smiled in satisfaction to see her having a good moment with him, "I was proud of you today, Camille. You devised this entire plan to perfection."

"Well," Cami put her glass back on the table, "it was a little easy to, honestly. I knew if Josephine acted like the old bat Marcel made her to be then Gia would react the way she did today."

"And did you also know Josephine was a rebel in her days as well?" Elijah raised an eyebrow.

"So and so," Cami gave a light shrug, "I saw something about jazz in her information and I knew then that Gia would make the perfect violinist for us."

"Well done," Elijah gave a faint clap with his hands and made Cami laugh once more, "I look forward to seeing more of your brilliant plans."

"Right," Cami raised her eyebrows as she made a face, "because those come to me often. This was more like a one-hit-wonder."

"I doubt it," Elijah clarified and surprised her with the mild certainty he had in his tone, "You're smart," Elijah explained, "and you're a people person. Those plans will never stop."

Not knowing what else to say to that, Cami raised her wine glass again and the two shared a clink between their glasses before they drank. The next voice that spoke was a startling one, but not at all unfamiliar to Elijah.

"Elijah," Freya stood only a couple feet away from their table, and the look on her face was that of urgency and fear.

Cami studied the features of the witch and soon came to the conclusion it was Freya Mikaelson, "Wow…" was the first thing she said. She did share some resemblance to Rebekah, Cami thought first.

Elijah stood out of his seat and went to his sister, confused, "What are you doing here?"

Freya ignored the question and went straight to what she came for, "I'm truly sorry but I fear Niklaus is not ready to hear me and we don't have time to waste. I already talked to Maleny but she too didn't give me the opportunity to explain-"

"Explain what?" demanded Elijah impatiently.

"To prove it to you I have to show you," Freya took in a breath. "Because a secret like this is one you will not believe with just words."

"Elijah, what is she talking about?" Cami was getting out of her chair.

"Allow me to show you," Freya held her hands to Elijah, "Please. You'd know how to tell this to Klaus better than I would. Please?"

Elijah could see the deep urgency settled in her eyes and taking the chance, he gave his approval in a nod. Freya then placed her fingers on his temples and the two closed their eyes as they shared an important memory of Freya's. Cami could only shoot the other customers of the restaurant apologetic smiles as the siblings saw each other's minds. What she would give to see what Elijah was seeing at the moment.

When Freya was finished with the memory, Elijah was left stunned. Cami didn't think she'd ever seen such a look on his face which only made her fear for the worse.

"Elijah...what is it…?" she meekly asked, "What did you see?" But Elijah was left staring at his sister with his mouth hanging open.

~ 0 ~

Maleny and Klaus had take a seat on the lounge's couch, both now with bourbon glasses in their hands – the atmosphere far less tensed than earlier.

"You realize this is the last time you go out with Hayley's pack, right?" Klaus was giving a hard look to Maleny as the brunette swallowed her drink.

Maleny rolled her eyes, "Oh, okay, so you trust me enough not to look through my head but going out is something else?"

"Glad we're on the same page, love," Klaus mocked a toast before he drank his drink.

Maleny gave a light sigh but didn't push. He had decided not to look through her mind for what she claimed was evidence Freya was not against them. That was a huge win for the estranged sister and Maleny was not going to ruin it.

"I won't be left in this compound anymore, though," she did have to warn, "I can do things now. I just have a tendency to split from the group…"

"Always," Klaus made sure to add, making her roll her eyes once more.

"I'm an explorer," she sarcastically said before chuckling, "Yeah, that was a lame excuse. But, I do mean what I said. At least let me come with you when you guys head out. You wanna keep an eye on me, here's your golden opportunity."

"You always do strike good deals I like," Klaus held his glass to hers for a peace making.

Maleny smirked and leaned towards him, "I figured you like having your eyes on me so everyone wins," she clinked her glass with his and laughed while he mockingly glared at her.

However there was no more time for responses as Elijah, Cami and Freya made an appearance in the room.

"Brother, we need to talk," Elijah came forwards first. Maleny was busy looking at the women behind him and knew instantly there was something wrong.

"I know I agreed to allow Freya to help but this is fast," Klaus looked at Maleny in irritation, believing her to have called the three.

"Klaus, just listen," Cami urged and it was then that Maleny knew something horrendous was happening or was going to happen or maybe had happened.

"What is it?" Maleny wearily questioned.

Elijah looked back at Freya who was near tears. She was unable to talk at the moment. Klaus rolled his eyes at the spectacle before them and rose to his feet, "Someone better speak in the next minute," he warned them all.

Freya took a breath before she forced herself to speak up, "You think Dahlia is coming for Hope to complete the deal Esther made long ago. And yes, she is coming, and she's probably on her way as we speak-"

Maleny frowned, "But-"

This time Freya was not accepting any interruptions. She spoke louder and more urgent, "You misunderstand the reason Dahlia is coming for Hope. She's coming for Hope not as payment...but for revenge for what the previous Mikaelson first-borns did to her. I'm the first born of our generation-" she threw a look at Elijah for example, "But..." she then laid eyes on both Maleny and Klaus, "Hope is not the first born of her generation."

#ocappreciation #dailyreblogs #the originals #klaus mikaelson #the originals fics #klaus mikaelson fics #the originals imagines #klaus mikaelson imagines #tvd fics #oc: Maleny Rowan #fic: the girl in the forest

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winryofresembool · 4 years ago

Text

Things We Lost in the Fire, ch 2

Aka Caleo uni AU

Fic summary: Calypso starts studying at a new university, but to her annoyance her new flatmate is a loud mouthed mechanic who also likes to sneak his dog in whenever. But as she learns to know him better, she realizes they might have more in common than what she first thought. Eventually, even the darkest secrets come out...

Chapter summary: Leo visits his new family.

A/N: This chapter was a lot of fun to write because of Leo's pov! For those who may not have read The Dark Prophecy, Jo and Emmie basically adopt Leo and Calypso and Leo even says Jo reminds him of his mom at one point so I wanted to include that to this story! Also, to be clear about this, Leo still lives in the same town with them but wanted some independence once he started uni so he moved into a flat a year before the events of this story.

Thanks to Cris again for helping me out when I needed it the most! Now, please enjoy this chapter and remember that feedback would really be loved because otherwise it's hard to motivate myself to continue this story!

Words: 1400+

Genre: gen (this ch), romance & hurt/comfort in the future

Warnings: none

previous chapter / next chapter / AO3

...

Festus barked happily as he and his owner drove to the familiar yard of Waystation. For 4 years, Leo had had the honor of calling this place his home, and even now that he was already 19, he was still as happy to go there as in the first time after finding out that the two wonderful ladies living there would be adopting him. For the first time in 7 years he had felt he belonged somewhere. He had never met his biological father, and after his mother’s death (about which he still did not want to talk) he had been going from foster home to foster home, occasionally running away and living in the streets because the families did /not/ understand him. Not even his own relatives had accepted him.

Finally, his road had brought him to Indianapolis where he had sort of by accident met a family of two elderly women, Josephine and Hemethea (or as Leo knew them, Jo and Emmie), and their adopted daughter Georgina. It had been the happiest accident of his life; somehow the women knew exactly how to handle a troubled and traumatized 15-year-old. As an added bonus, Josephine was just as interested in mechanics as he was, and she had taught him a lot. The now 10-year-old Georgina called Leo her brother and when he was home, she followed him everywhere. Festus, whom Leo had gotten as an 18th birthday present, liked Waystation too: it offered him way more space to run around than the student flat in New York.

The brown haired girl was already waiting for Leo by the door when he got there, and even though she was almost as tall as Leo was (Leo claimed he had gotten his short genes from his nonexistent father), he scooped her into his arms and swung her around a few times. The girl giggled excitedly until she wanted to get back on the ground to pet Festus. Leo complied and soon he was surrounded by his adoptive mothers, both gray haired and strong built for their age. They were worried about whether Leo remembered to eat now that he was living on his own because he was so skinny (“I’m an excellent cook, Jo! Stop worrying!”), but secretly he was happy about the attention he got.

Eventually the family settled down and started asking Leo questions about how things were going in his uni town. He told them everything from his most recent mechanic job to his upcoming courses in the mechanical engineering program, but conveniently he avoided mentioning his new flatmate. Of course his mothers noticed that and looked at each other significantly before asking:

“So, it’s been a while since Jason moved away. Any word on a new flatmate yet?”

Leo did not know what force made him blush (he liked to think he did not blush often), but he did. The thought of his infuriating, annoying, rude… beautiful (he quickly pushed that thought away) flatmate seemed to cause that kind of reaction a little too often for his liking. They had known each other only for a few days and already she was driving him nuts in more than one way. She was arrogant. She seemed to think she was better than him (which, mind you, Leo was not disagreeing with because his self loathing still occasionally got the better of him despite the therapy and his mothers’ attempts to talk to him). She managed to make an argument about the smallest of things and good gods, that girl was still angry about the desk even though he had offered to fix it. What could he do in a situation like that?

But the years as a runaway had also taught Leo to interpret people pretty well, and he sensed that there was something much more under that hard cover that Calypso was holding up. Something fragile and soft that he simply couldn’t reach yet. When she thought Leo didn’t notice, there was a hint of sadness in her eyes that felt very familiar to him even though he couldn’t put a name on it. And damn it if she wasn’t the prettiest girl he had seen at the university campus with that caramel colored hair and dark mysterious eyes. Not that he’d admit that to her. Ever.

He was so distracted by his thoughts he only realized he still hadn’t answered to the question until he felt the burning gazes directed at him.

“Uh… yeah! I do have a new flatmate now,” he finally admitted. The blush seemed to persistently stay on his cheeks.

Instead of asking directly who that mysterious person was, Emmie decided to take a different approach. “Oh… That’s nice, isn’t it? To have someone to remind you to actually go to your lectures and not work 24/7?” There was a hint of warning in her tone; she did know that Leo was still processing a lot in his head, and when things got particularly overwhelming, he tended to drown his feelings into his work and forget to rest. Which, Emmie supposed, was still better than the experiments he had done as a 15-year-old before they finally managed to help him, but at this rate he might burn out some day. There was a lot of fire inside him, she knew, but if he didn’t remember to turn it off, he wouldn’t last long.

Leo didn’t agree with her. “It’s… she’s not that kind of person. She doesn’t really talk to me a lot anyway.”

“She?” Jo asked curiously. Among other things, she was aware of Leo’s soft spot for pretty girls. That would certainly explain why he was blushing and acting grumpy when asked questions about her.

“Focus on the relevant things, Josephine.” Leo usually called Josephine and Hemethea with their nicknames instead of ‘mother’ or ‘mom’ because he wanted to save that word for his dead mother. But when he wanted to let his adoptive mothers know he was unhappy with them, he sometimes used the full name. “I was gonna say that when she does talk to me she usually likes to argue, and it’s super frustrating.”

“Alright, spit it out,” Jo said in her direct manner. “What did you do to the poor girl to madden her so?”

“Hey!” Leo protested, offended that she would think it was all his fault. “Who said I did anything? I didn’t! Well…” he finally gave in, “Festus did… but it wasn’t his fault, the desk was flimsy!”

“Flimsy desk? Please elaborate.”

“We carried Calypso’s desk,” Leo swallowed, realizing he said her name aloud for the first time, and it tasted weirdly good in his mouth. Even though he was mad at her. Which he definitely was. “… into our flat but I left my door unlocked for a moment so Festus got out of my room and… he may have jumped on it,” he finished sheepishly.

“Oh,” Emmie said understandingly. “But you’re a handy young man; did you not offer to fix it?”

“I did!” Leo grunted. “But she didn’t accept my offer!”

Emmie looked at him thoughtfully. “I don’t know her but maybe she was simply too proud to accept your help. She doesn’t know you yet so she doesn’t know how good you are at fixing and tuning things. But trust me; I’m sure she’ll be more than happy when she sees what Leo Valdez is capable of.”

Leo had to admit that the older woman had pulled from exactly the right strings. That was how you encouraged him to do something.

“Fine,” he nodded finally. “I’ll see what I can do when I go back.”

“Anyway,” Jo smirked slyly. “Tell us more about this Calypso! What does she study? What does she look like?”

“She’s a history nerd and she smells like some spice you often put into your bakings… hold on… cinnamon! But…”

Leo saw his mothers’ expressions and immediately stopped when he realized he had said too much. “That’s it, tía Jo, I know what you’re thinking and I’m saying no. Georgie, Festus, let’s go to play or something. These two seem to have gotten some weird ideas…” He shook his head as he gestured the two to follow him.

When the trio had left the room, the elderly couple burst into laughter. It would definitely be interesting to see what Leo’s story with his new flatmate would develop into, they concluded.

#caleo #leo valdez #calypso #heroes of olympus #percy jackson and the olympians #trials of apollo #my fics #caleo uni au

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heistmaster69 · 4 years ago

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pariet lilium (5)

pariet lilium chapter five by @heistmaster69

warnings: a little self deprecation, blaise and theo making fools of themselves, otherwise none.

A/N: we are now in GOBLET OF FIRE1!!!11!!1!!!11! I have been waiting to get here, i wanted to start my story here but i thought i’d give some background before we get JUICY. enjoy loves!

a very nice and good and lovely 1.8k words

chapter one / chapter two / chapter three / chapter four

gif by @basicamenteno

It was the same thing, every time. The same nightmare Frankie always had, ever since the second to last week of her second year. A third year boy, tall, with kind blue eyes, floppy brown hair and a smile that could give you butterflies. His name was Spencer, but everyone called him Spence. He was a Gryffindor, with strong shoulders and stronger bravery, playing as a Chaser on the team. Frankie met him in the Library, the sunset was shining through the windows-he looked like he was glowing.

“What are you reading?” Frankie looked up and her stomach fluttered.

“I-uh,” She laughed. “Um, it’s a book on the spiritual plane.”

“Advanced stuff for a second year.” He nodded towards the chair across from Frankie. “Can I sit here? The rest are full.”

“Hey!” She scoffed “I’m the same age as you, I just started late. My parents didn’t want me to be the youngest in the class, or something.”

“August birthday, huh? Still, spiritual stuff is fifth or sixth year-you’re an overachiever.” He smiled, sliding her copy of Magic and Spirits: A Guide across the table, looking into the page Frankie was reading.

“I’m Spencer.”

“Is it weird to say I know?” They shared a chuckle, before she added; “I’ve seen you play Quidditch, of course. I’m Frankie.”

“Is it weird to say I know too? You’ve thrown one too many bludgers at my face,” He slid the book back to her. “You’re good.” Spencer winked.

But after that, his smile gets distorted, twisted, sickeningly into a wicked grin. The butterflies, the fluttering, changes instantaneously into nausea. Heat rolls over Frankie, and she feels like she’s choking, not in the good way, either.

“Spence?” Her eyes were glossed over, sore.

“What is it, doll?” He leaned against the stone of the Hogwarts corridor.

“Spencer, are you messing with me?” Frankie couldn’t meet his eyes. “I heard you. I heard you talking to Cedric.”

“He’s my best friend, I talk to him every day.”

“Did you ask me to Hogsmeade on a dare?”

“I-what?”

“Don’t lie to me, Spencer, please, I heard you.”

“I’m sorry Reed, they told me to.” He didn’t even care, his eyes were cold, barely the smallest glint of remorse.

“I trusted you. I hope the galleon is worth it.”

August 31, 1994. 15 years ago today, Francesca Josephine Reed was brought into the world at St. Mungo’s hospital by her mother and her father. Since that day, the two ‘parents’ have been waiting to ship their only daughter to a wealthy, pureblooded heir to a notable family name and fortune. They cursed Francesca for being a girl and spent every waking hour ignoring her existence, wishing she would be 18 already so they could try for a son, free of any distractions. But of course, no one could know of their contempt for their daughter, so, yearly on the last day of August, the day before students return to Hogwarts, her parents throw Frankie a ‘party’, which is just an excuse to show everyone how well they raised their kid. Only, they didn’t raise Frankie. Kendra did.

Kendra, her tutor. Kendra, the kind woman with sad chestnut eyes that sparkled in the sun. Kendra, the one who taught Frankie everything she knew. Kendra, the one who acted like her mother when her birth mom pretended she didn’t exist. And Kendra is gone. Died in her sleep from Dragon Pox. The only family Frankie had, gone in her sleep, like she never existed. Her mother had insisted that Francesca was; “Better off without the blood traitor.” And Frankie had to bite her tongue, tasting metal and seeing red, while those who were supposed to love her most showed that they, truly, didn’t know her at all.

This ‘party’ was more like a stuffy ball for uptight pricks with wallets bigger than their brains. A ‘show and tell’, per say, for those who had surnames worth showing. Her parents got a chance to play dress up with their favorite doll, spewing distasteful comments about everything they didn’t find up to par.

“This should be flattering, I guess,” She started, laying out an emerald green gown with long, translucent bell sleeves and a sweetheart neckline. It was gorgeous, but due to the way her mother had worded it, Frankie didn’t want to wear it. Yet, if Frankie refused, her mother would make her life hell. “Do you want to wear it?” As if I have a choice. If I say no, yikes.

“Yeah! Thanks.” Frankie ran her fingers over the soft fabric. A silk bodice with a flowing, sheer, skirt. She would look like a princess. “I’ll see you downstairs?”

Her mother was already out the door.

The clinking of champagne glasses and the sounds of hushed conversations echoed into Frankie’s room. She laid on the bed, hands intertwined, unwilling to go greet the guests downstairs.

“I feel like I’m watching a muggle movie. A princess sprawled across her bed just to look cool.” Frankie sat up, seeing Cher and her smiling dark eyes, wearing a golden satin gown, contoured to her body. “You look amazing. The only thing missing is your tiara.” She cocked her head and outstretched her arms. “I missed you, Frankster.”

“Cher, you whore, I missed you!” Frankie slid off the four poster bed and tripped into her friend’s arms. “You sexy beast, you get more gorgeous every time I see you-that includes when I blink.”

“Well I could say the same to you. The curves on you are unreal.” Cher poked Frankie’s hip. “But you know why I’m here. It’s because you’re not down there.”

“I know, I know. The longer I wait the more annoyed she gets. Every year.”

“Let’s go, Frankie. Happy Birthday!” Cher held out her arm and linked it through Frankie’s.

The estate had an exterior of brick, with white trims and pillars making it swallow the appearance of anyone approaching it. A tall fence encased in forest green hedges, locking the Reeds away, keeping them ‘safe’ from everyone and everything else. The interior was cold. Always cold. The long hallways and staircases were so dark. Wooden floors would creak below her footsteps and she was lonely. Always alone in the cold, dark house that felt too big and too small all the time.

But tonight? Tonight she wasn’t alone. The first day all summer that she saw her best friends. She felt the fog leave her head as she saw them one by one. Cher, next to her, Daphne at the bottom of the staircase, standing next to Pansy. Theo and Blaise talking to a pair of French girls in silver dresses, and Draco.

Oh, Draco. How could he get more attractive? Frankie had hoped the lack of contact over the summer would etch away her feelings, but they remained, ever as persistent.

His eyes lit up when he saw her, but they shifted quickly away from Frankie. Cher. She had to make sure her smile didn’t falter, so as to keep the perfect daughter facade from slipping.

“Happy B-Day, Frankster!” Pansy crushed Frankie in a hug as soon as they reached the ground. “We missed you, as usual.”

“I missed her more!” Daphne wrapped her arms around her in a more gentle way, giving her a tight hug that felt like home. “Theo and Blaise better pull themselves away from those girls soon, I give them fifteen seconds before they find out they’re dating.”

“I want some love. Where can I get something like that?” Cher whined.

Daphne placed a hand on her shoulder. “Baby don’t worry about it, you’ll get that.”

“Yeah, but at least in Wizarding France people can marry who they want. If only Bartemius Crouch Senior wasn’t a bigoted prick-”

“He’s on his way out anyway. His denial of You-Know-Who is going to give him the boot. We can just hope whoever comes in next will support us. If not, living in France it is.” The girls shared a sigh, looking over their shoulders to catch the end of Theo and Blaise’s conversation with the ladies, it appeared to have ended with an awkward handshake and a brisk walk away. Draco was caught up in a boring discussion with Torquil Travers and and a Carrow. Seemed to be very dull, as he kept sending glances towards the group of teens near the stairs. He was swirling a glass full of something dark, family ring adorning his hand.

“I feel really bad, you guys.” Theo said, rubbing the back of his neck. “We were talking to them for like, ten minutes, I bet they think we’re creeps.”

“No, Theodore, the way that conversation was going, they probably thought we were dating.” Blaise wrapped an arm around Theo’s shoulder. “I don’t blame them. Sometimes I wish I could be in love with this sexy beast.”

Theo patted Blaise’s arm. “I feel the same way.”

“With that, my loves, I must go forth and mingle, or face the silent wrath of my mother. Happy birthday to me!” Frankie hugged Blaise and Theo, then moved throughout the room, having boring conversations about politics, how school is going, what profession she should choose, or just small talk to pass the time. She had an alright time, sipping chilled butterbeer and having quick, fun conversations with her friends in between long, drawn out ones with tired purebloods. Draco didn’t have the time to talk to Frankie.

After the party it was quiet. Quickly hugging her friends and returning to her room to check her trunks for her return to school. Frankie knew she didn’t foget anything, but she couldn’t seem to calm her mind enough to be tired. She also couldn’t unzip this dress to save her life, so she came to terms with the fact that Frankie would be sleeping in this elegant ballgown tonight.

Her room was her safe place, smelling like lemon and vanilla, with candles on her desk giving it a calm, orange glow. Plush pillows on a four-poster bed, silk sheets and a velvet throw. It was luxurious. Too luxurious. She sometimes felt like an impostor in her own home, undeserving of the riches her family name allowed her. Sitting on the edge, Frankie pulled her journal out from her pillowcase. She outstretched her arm and opened her hand, palm towards the ceiling.

“Pariet lilium.” It came out as a whisper, but immediately, deep red rose petals materialized from her palm, unfurling into a beautiful bud, then into a flower. Frankie could feel the satiny touch of the petals on her skin and watched as the stem emerged from the bottom of the flower. It was beautiful.

Frankie lifted the rose to her nose, inhaling the floral scent and beginning to relax from the long day.

She was just about to lie down when there was a knock on her bedroom door.

“Chess?”

TAGLIST I FORGOT PEOPLE LIKE MY WRITING OOF: @chaotic-good-gemini ily

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