#you actively talk to tourists and wave at children

[invis-o-william]

Day 2: Wish

All Amity Parkers knew that “wish” was practically a forbidden word. Years of interactions with Desiree had all but guaranteed that. Younger children weren’t even taught the word anymore out of an abundance of caution, after all nobody wanted a repeat of the “Toddler Wish-mageddon” that had occurred just a year prior. The firemen had been cleaning chocolate syrup out of the streets for weeks afterwards. This left the naive and unassuming newcomers as targets for Desire’s power, many of whom didn’t quite believe the city moniker of “The Most Haunted Place on Earth” yet. One of those newcomers was Thomas Kincade, and one way or another he too would learn the consequences of the word “wish”.

. . .

Thomas had barely lived in Amity Park a week before his coworkers started messing with him. He had just been sitting down in the breakroom for lunch when Craig from accounting had sidled up in the next chair.

“Oh hey Tom,you’re new to town, right?” he asked while grabbing a bowl from his bag.

Thomas hummed an affirmative while digging through the box chock full of leftover lo mein that his wife had left him that morning. “Yeah, just moved from Springfield like a week and a half ago, why? Also, it's Thomas.”

Craig pointed a fork his way, “Well you should probably invest in a lunch bag or something. That box is a prime target for the Box Ghost you know. He’s usually pretty harmless, but he’ll definitely steal that thing in a heartbeat if he sees you with it man.” He accentuated his point by tapping on said box with his fork.

Thomas sighed. Although he’d only lived in the city for under two weeks, he’d already seen more than enough of the “ghost tourist trap” schtick. “You can give the “ghost” thing a rest Craig, I think I’ll be fine.” he said with a roll of his eyes.

Craig shrugged, “Alright Tommy, don’t say I didn’t warn you. You transplants never quite believe it at first anyway.”

“It’s Thomas.” Thomas said pointedly. Craig made a noncommittal noise before digging into his meal.

. . .

The next day it happened again. Thomas was working at his computer when his deskmate Maria leaned over the divider.

“Hey Tim, did you see the news this morning?” she asked excitedly.

Slightly irritated, Thomas looked up. “No, I didn’t. And it’s Thomas.”

Maria didn’t seem to hear him as she waved her hands around, “They got some footage of the fight between Phantom and that big metal ghost last night on the corner of Park Place and Amity Row! It looked so intense, and the big ghost is so cool looking!” She practically squealed the last words.

Thomas groaned and let his head fall back. “Look, I get it, you guys are pulling my leg, ‘ha-ha lets haze the newbie’ kind of stuff, but its getting old.”

Huffing, Maria crossed her arms. “How long have you been here now? Two weeks? You can’t tell me that you haven’t seen one of the ghosts yet! Hell, blob ghosts are so common I’m surprised one hasn’t popped into your yard yet” she said with a roll of her eyes. “Just hope you don’t encounter any big ones, you definitely don’t want to run into the Fenton’s with their tank-on-wheels.”

With a sigh and a shake of his head Thomas turned back to his work as Maria shrugged and did the same.

. . .

Thomas was getting fed up. Everyone kept talking about ghosts. “Phantom’s been seen here” and “The whisps have been really active lately” and all that crap. How long was everyone going to pull this? Not to mention that nobody wanted to call him anything but nicknames. Why was calling him Thomas so hard for them???

The last straw was his boss stopping by his desk an hour before quitting time.

“Hey Timbo, everyone on the floor is going to head over to the Mitty Boulevard Bistro after work for dinner, company’s treat. Want to join?” he said, leaning an arm on the desk divider.

Thomas’ eye twitched. “Yeah, sure that’s fine. And please. It’s Thomas.”

His boss smiled, “Great! Originally we were going to head over to the Mexican place on Park Place, but they’re closed for cleanup from that ghost fight last night.”

“Yeah! You can thank Phantom for that, honestly the Bistro is sooo good. I like Mexican food and all, but you gotta try the Bistro’s fries Tim!” Maria said, perking up from her seat.

Thomas had had it. “Ghosts this, ghosts that! I’m so sick of this! Just give it a rest already! And my name. Is. THOMAS. Not Tim, not Tommy, just Thomas!” he cried as he picked up his coat and lunch box. “If this is how all of you are going to treat me, then count me out of the dinner. Honestly I wish you guys would just cut it out already!”

Everyone in the office went deadly silent and stared at Thomas with wide eyes.

“Thomas,” began Maria, “you shouldn’t say that word. I’m sorry that we were teasing you so much about your name, but you really shouldn’t say that word.”

Thomas scoffed, “What word?”

Everyone looked around nervously, “The “w” word,” his boss said, “there’s a ghost who grants them, usually in the worst ways possible.”

Thomas threw his hands up in the air. “What, wish? Now you’re telling me that there’s a wish-granting ghost? If there was, I'd wish she’d make you all see sense right now because ghosts aren’t real!”

The office was deadly still and many held their breath. There was always a chance Desiree wasn’t around, but some still expected her to appear and grant the wish.

Instead the Box Ghost popped in out of nowhere, grabbed Thomas’ lunch box, shouted “BEWARE!”, and vanished.

Thomas could say he knew better now to pack his lunch in a bag.

[theonemyleejongsuk]

Reposting 01 April 2023

aRTICLe/iNTERVIEw sTANd🗞

(old&new)

Our #13YearsOfLeeJongSuk Special!

(Note: a rare interview with Jongsuk father Lee Han Kyu)

Read: The hidden charm of Lee Jong Suk, who is the 'trend' these days, as told by his father himself...

Go Nam-soon of KBS-2TV's Monday-Tuesday drama 'School 2013' and Park Soo-ha of SBS-TV's Wednesday-Thursday drama 'I Hear Your Voice' captivated the small screen, and there are as many as three films that are about to be released. At this point, it wouldn't be unreasonable to call this year 'Lee Jong-suk's year'. He met his father, Lee Han-gyu, who looked just like him, and heard about the hidden charm of Lee Jong-suk, who is a 'trend' these days.

On an exceptionally hot August day, I visited a pension run by Lee Han-Kyu (50), the father of actor Lee Jong-suk (24) . Cheoin-gu, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do. Y Pension, located not too far from the city center, was a medium-sized pension consisting of a total of 4 single buildings and 10 rooms. It is equipped with facilities such as a fairly large garden, swimming pool, and foot volleyball court, and there are tourist attractions such as Everland and Korean Folk Village nearby, so it seemed suitable for families and small groups to spend the day.

“What do I have to say? Dads are like that. I only worked outside. Jong Suk would be scolded by his mother... . The children were all raised by the family (laughs).”

If it weren't for his tall height and good-looking appearance, he might have believed the words of the employees who said, "The boss is out of town." Even after his true identity (?) was revealed, he was cautious that his words might harm his son. After running around avoiding and waving his hands saying he had nothing to say, after some time had passed, he said, “Isn’t it hot? Come here in the cool shade. Let's talk here,” he said, opening the door to his heart.

“This is how I feel that my son’s popularity has grown. heh heh heh like. What parent would hate to see their child do well? I'm just worried. My parents are in their 80s, but they still worry about me a lot. So, that child, I must be very sorry.”

Mr. Lee said that he had been running a pension here for 7 years. However, there was no trace of his son anywhere. The reporter's expectation that there would be at least one small picture hanging there, even if it was not explicitly advertised as 'Lee Jong-suk's father's pension', was wrong.

“As usual, the person who manages the homepage tries to trick me into meeting him by saying, 'Boss, let's just put a picture of my son!' Then I am. 'Don't talk nonsense, man (laughs)!' To be honest, when Jong-suk started modeling, he went around posting pictures of himself asking, “Who is my son?” When I go to a restaurant with acquaintances, 'This is a picture of my son. He said, “I’m going to grow up later, so hang it up” (laughs).

Also, when he first appeared in the drama, he coated all the autographs Jong-suk got from his mother. But once you become famous, that's what's going on again. Being proud of a child is something to be proud of, and I'm afraid that it will end up in gossip... . That's what a celebrity job is like. So these days, I only cheer for you in my heart. I'm not even going to go to an official place. But the neighborhood is so small that everyone knows. Also, people who don't know come to know... .” Lee Jong Suk, who grew up as the eldest son of 2 boys and 1 girl during

his introverted childhood, never had that common trouble when he was young.

He said that his seemingly quiet and introverted personality was rather a concern.

“He looks pretty, but he doesn’t speak well, and he doesn’t seem to get along well with his friends. Even now, they appear on TV and say they have 'attention phobia', what? Then, while doing boy scouting, I gained a bit of leadership and my personality changed a lot into an active kid.

Actually, since I got hurt while exercising and couldn’t do it, I wandered around for a while to see if that hurt me again, but how proud I am to have found my own path and lived alone in Seoul since my first year of high school (laughs).”

[Photo: A pension in Gyeonggi-do run by Lee Jong Suk's father, Lee Han-Kyu.]

As a middle school student, Lee Jong Suk sneaked backstage at a fashion show and was caught by designer Jang Kwang-hyo, and the following year he debuted as the youngest male model for the Seoul Collection. Although he was a newcomer with no experience on stage, he has grown into a promising model thanks to the strange coexistence of an innocent boy and a mature man.

However, he who dreamed of becoming an actor in the first place was always thirsty for acting. Before he became an actor, he chose the wrong agency and lived as an idol trainee. How must the parents' hearts have felt when they had to watch their son like that?

“I didn’t know because he never showed it, but his wife also suffered quite a lot. Was it during 'Secret Garden'? I cried out loud while watching the broadcast. It was really hard to watch my son suffer. I mean, Jewa, but when he first said he was going to be a celebrity, he was strongly against it. I heard that celebrities are the romance of Korean teenagers these days? One out of hundreds of thousands of people, it has to go well to survive, but how easy is that? . So I told them to exercise or study. But when I was in middle school, my son declared it first. Dad, I said I can't study (laughs). Well, it's great now. It’s to the point where even my friends, whom I hadn’t contacted in my life, know and call me.” Kim Woo-bin, an actor of the same age who became a 'best friend' through

the cold-hearted monitoring drama 'School 2013' of a pleasant father , refers to Lee Jong Suk as "a delicate and warm child.

He is pure, kind and caring. But he doesn't know where to bounce. He's not the right word, but he's a tomboy." What would the son the father looked for, what would the son the father hoped for look like?

“To be honest, I never said that it was difficult before, but these days I sometimes say, ‘Dad, aren’t you having a hard time? I send text messages saying, “I’m having a hard time too.” I know. how hard would that be I'm anxious again... . When that happens, I'm like, 'Yeah, isn't it hard? My father is also enduring hardships, so his son should work hard,” he patted me. I wish I could tell you more, but it's a pity that I don't have the time. There are not many things I want from Jong-suk. All I have to do is cherish the body that my parents gave me, and don't be greedy. That's what life is like. There can't always be only good things, and sometimes there are creaks.”

I watched the dramas and movies that his son starred in without skipping them, but he never gave a single compliment saying, “You did well.” He was afraid that his son might become conceited and fall into arrogance. However, after watching the recently ended 'I Hear Your Voice', Lee Han-gyu changed his mind. He also scored generously, saying, “It was pretty good.” Of course, there was a side that was sad to the son who was popular.

“Well, I am very busy. The last time I saw it was probably Seoul, right? At least, I watch it because it goes up occasionally. Oh, but that's the case. It was my birthday the other day, but he didn't even call me. Last year, he bought me dinner and went... . Although I understood, I was sad inside (laughs). But I'm not too tough. I've seen Jong-suk come out, but before that, I didn't say 'It's fun'. That part is cool again. I wonder if my daughter said, 'Dad, but my brother is in the show, so try bending her arm inside' (laughs). Still, 'You Trees' was very fun. I did not leave in front of the TV every Wednesday and Thursday. He seemed to have suffered a lot.”

At the end of the interview, Mr. Lee Han-Kyu, who brought a cool drink and said, “I’m sorry I couldn’t give you this,” finally asked for understanding that he would not take a picture of himself. He was in the process of constructing an extension of a pension directly based on his experience of working in construction, and the reason was that his appearance in a sweaty T-shirt was not clear and he was likely to cause a 'nuisance' to his son. Whether big or small, the sincerity and consideration of a deep-seated father who thinks and acts first for his son's position will make Lee Jong Suk's future bright as a wise son and a talented actor.

“These days, people keep saying 'I want to get married' on TV, so I asked my wife. does he have a girlfriend? He didn't even go to the military, so why are you talking about that? (Laughs) Then her wife said that. Ji will take care of it, she said. When she heard it, she was right again (laughs). Since Jong-suk started his social life earlier than his friends and earns more money, I'm worried that he might become careless. That's why I always ask you to 'don't be arrogant'. Jong-suk does that to his friends too. Don't praise my friend for being a celebrity right now, but ask him to run to you when you face an ordeal later. That's what it means to be a man. so everyone hates it since I always only talk about hard things, I (laughs).”

Source🔗https://lady.khan.co.kr/article/201308291705101

Posted 01 Sept 2013

Thank you for sharing🙏

My @jongsuk0206 #LeeJongSuk is life.

#TheOneMyLeeJongSuk

#이종석 #李鍾碩 #李钟硕

#อีจงซอก #イジョンソク

#Decibel #BigMouth

[idk-bruh-20]

"The Big Five"

(This is still related to the MCU I promise!)

A friend recently explained to me about the "Big Five" of Africa - basically the continent's five most iconic animals - and how apparently tourists often get a little obsessive about making sure they manage to see all of them while traveling there. Which can, you know, sometimes lead to stupid and dangerous situations. Given that it's not always a great idea to actively seek out, for example, motherfucking lions.

Anyway, this got me thinking about tourists in MCU New York and how you just know there's a "Big Five" list of heroes. And now I literally cannot stop picturing tourists wandering around NYC hoping to catch glimpses of all five in order to get the "true New York experience," inevitably bumbling themselves into danger on accident in their misguided attempts to collect hero sightings like Pokémon cards.

An entire media ecosystem would develop around things like where to look for each of the five heroes, city tours of those areas, safety tips when witnessing supervillain fights, and the griping of native New Yorkers.

(A sample of common complaints:

"Do they have to clog up the sidewalks though"

"Folks when you see a big blue beam into space do not go towards it??? Follow the evacuation protocol???"

"I don't get the hype about the big five, there are so many cooler heroes that are less mainstream."

"^ plus lots of heroes more challenging to find! I literally see Spider-Man at least twice a week just sitting on the hotdog stand"

"Love the scared shuffle the tour groups do through Hell's Kitchen, and they never even see anything. Come back at night y'all.")

Not to mention, discourse about who should be included in the "Big Five" list would be brutal.

Consider these bonus, objectively hilarious scenarios:

Tourists getting saved by heroes and then being disappointed that their saviors are not part of the Big Five (This actually happens! Tourists in Africa will see the coolest wildlife ever and still be bummed if they didn't get to check off their big five boxes)

Many of the official Avengers would not be included in the Big Five lmao (We said iconic New York superheroes.)

The pettiness, salt, and general bitchery about this. Top tier.

Hawkeye: "What do you mean Daredevil is one of the Big Five and I'm not??"

"Is there an extended ranking or something? Where do I place?"

Does Ironman get to be on the list? Or does California get to claim him?

Peter Parker's face when he learns that Spider-Man is one of the least disputed heroes in the Big Five

[redrobin-detective]

The 101 Deaths of Danny Phantom

AO3 link

One of the first things people learned about dealing with ghosts, other than not to try and date them, is to never asks about their death or obsessions. That doesn’t mean the citizens of Amity Park aren’t curious though, especially about their resident ghostly hero and the confusing and concerning comments he sometimes makes.

“Are you okay?” Phantom asked Maisie as she shook and tried to hold back tears after that car had almost slammed into her. She sometimes joked about getting hit crossing the street of her college campus to pay her obnoxious loans but it was another thing entirely to almost experience it herself. Maisie was nearly twenty, she shouldn’t be comforted by someone younger than her little step sister but here she was, shaking like a lead and leaning into Phantom’s comforting, chilly touch. 

“Sorry,” she stuttered, “thank you, I’m sorry I’m just-”

“Hey, it’s okay to be upset that was very scary. The thought of dying is very scary.” Through her adrenaline and her tears, she took in the ghost’s unnatural glow, his faded, barely visible appearance and the fact that he was floating a foot off the ground. Maisie knows this ghost, this boy, knows more than she ever could about death. 

“And getting run over by a car sure is a bad way to go,” the ghost kid chuckled awkwardly, taking his cold hand off her shoulder to scratch at the back of his neck. “You should see how my dad drives or my mom or my sister if she’s running late enough,” Phantom paused in thought. “No one in my family should have a license now that I think about it. Anyway,” he dismissed with a wave. 

“My sister and I were getting ready to head out to school and my dad was backing out of driveway too fast and didn’t see us and uh, luckily I got my sister out of the way in time haha,” Phantom trailed off awkwardly. Was it because of the uncomfortable conversation or because he noticed her dawning horror.

Her best friend ran the community college’s Phan club so Maisie was a member by default. Phantom’s death was sometimes talked about late at night, everything from wrongful murder to a freak accident. She never in her worst nightmares imagined being him being runover in front of his own house by parental ignorance. It was so normal, a quick mistake and a life lost.

“Oh my god,” he said with an adorable little green blush. “Why am I babbling about that? You almost got hit by a car, I’m probably retraumatizing you or something. I should probably go get the jerk who almost hit you,” he said before disappearing into thin air. 

“Tia is not going to believe this,” she whispered to no one. All she knew is that for the rest of her damned life she was going to look both ways when crossing the street. She’d seen first hand what a single moment of reckless driving could cause.

XxX

Matthew, not Matt or Matty or Hughie, Matthew shivered from the cold. He was only in his boxers with little Pacman on them. It had been fine when he’d gone to bed considering it was mid-August but Phantom and this stupid flaming mecha ghost had tussled outside the summer camp he was working at. He could see some of the kids snickering at his state of undress though he was just extremely glad they were alive enough to disrespect him like this.

“Oh man, I’m sorry,” the ghost kid said with big, sad eyes that looked so human despite the fact that they were literally glowing. He looked around at all the snow and ice left over from his fight. “Jeez you guys must be freezing, I wish I could warm you all up but all I can do is make things colder.”

“S’okay,” Matthew said through his chattering teeth. “Teaching the kids how to start a fire was supposed to be next week but we can get a jump on it.” That got a smile out of the ghost and within a half hour, the other counselors were distributing blankets and hot beverages to the kids clustered around multiple fires. They didn’t seem particularly upset by the potentially fatal attack, Matthew will breakdown about that at a later time when he was alone. For now, he just smiled as the children chattered happily with the ghost while he cleaned up as much of the damage as possible.

“So you spend all day fighting ghosts?” Zoe asked with stars in her eyes.

“A lot of the nights too,” Phantom nodded, “I do other stuff but yeah it seems ghost fighting takes up most of my time.”

“Where’d you learn those cool powers?” Zuri asked, miming a punch.

“Comes with being a ghost,” Phantom shrugged, “my ice powers came in later though so I still struggle a bit with them but I’m getting better every day.”

“Why ice though?” Morris said with his cocked curiously to the side. “I see some ghosts use fire or shadows, why do you have ice?”

“Ah that’s a little personal,” Phantom chuckled but his posture was easy despite the invasive question. “Specialty powers like my ice require special circumstances and a certain uh connection to the ghost. Someone like me couldn’t use fire or electricity or plants, ice is in my soul, it’s who I am.”

Matthew paused in drinking his lukewarm coffee as a horrible thought came to mind. He’s been an outdoorsman all his life, practically from the time he could walk. He’d been a deep woods camping guide for a decade before switching to working at summer camps. But the years working in the relative comfort of a stable camp didn’t erase his knowledge of how unforgiving and deadly the woods in the winter could be. A grown man, much less a young teen, would freeze to death in 20 minutes if it was cold enough. 

It made sense for ghosts to develop powers related to their deaths. Had Phantom been one of the dozens of unfortunate kids he read about every year who ran away in the middle of winter only to found later as a frozen corpse. He eyed the boy’s snow white hair and frigid aura he exuded with mournful trepidation. God, what a horrible way to die. 

“I’d get chilly with ice powers,” Tabby said with a shudder, she held out her cup of cocoa. “You want some of my cocoa to warm you up?”

“No thanks,” Phantom said with a soft smile that was warm despite everything. “The cold hasn’t bothered me for a while.”

XxX

Ghost attacks may be the norm but, if there was one good thing that came out of whole mess it was the fact that violent human crimes went down drastically. So when the rare murder did happen, the shock and fear rippled through the whole town. 

Stanford Newton had only been sheriff of Amity Park for eight months after the last guy had gone gray overnight and moved to Florida the next day. It was a daunting position but one he bore proudly. This wouldn’t be his first murder investigation having initially cut his teeth as a beat cop in Chicago but it would be the first in Amity. And it certainly was the first in which the dead served in an active capacity.

“Amanda Chastain, 27. Officially she was a waitress down at Spengler’s Diner but she’s been picked up for prostitution twice in the last year,” Stan said calmly, ignoring the cold, angry presence over his shoulder. “History of polysubstance abuse as well, not that either of those things mean she deserved this.” Used, beaten to death and then dumped in the trash like yesterday’s paper. 

He wondered if she’d come back a ghost or if she’d finally get some peace this world hadn’t offered her. “We don’t have many leads right now, I’m afraid. Acting illegally as they are, there’s not a lot of resources these poor girls have to turn to.”

“I’ll find them,” The Phantom said with blazing conviction, his voice thick and sharp as ice. “I’ll find and bring them to justice and make sure no one else is hurt again.”

“I believe you,” Stan nodded, shutting his notebook as he finally turned to face the teenage superhero haunting his town. He can’t say he liked what he saw. The Phantom looked even less human than usual, his aura flaring and flickering like the foggy mist before a heavy snowstorm. His unnatural green eyes glowered, painting his too young face in a terrifying light. 

The kid looked furious, clearly taking this death to heart. He’d read the Fenton’s memos about obsessions and such but this seemed beyond that. “But don’t hurt anyone to do it, or yourself while you’re at it.”

“I won’t, I’ll make sure they’ll face human justice and don’t worry,” Phantom gave a snarling smile. “No mortal can hurt me, not like this,” he growled causing the hairs on Stan’s arms and neck to stand on end. He flew off after that, presumably to track down Amanda’s killer.

“Not like this,” Stan mumbled to him, pulling out his handkerchief and wiping his brow where a cold sweat had broken out. “Jesus Christ that poor kid.” Stan had seen plenty of murdered and mutilated bodies in his lifetime, some of them even kids. He just never got to talk to them after they’d had their life forcibly snatched away. It would explain the ghost’s near fanatical determination to save others, why he took a stranger’s murder so personally. 

“I hope your own murderer is behind bars,” Stan said as he tucked his handkerchief back into his coat pocket. “Or even six feet under, for killing a good kid like you.” Stan made his way back to his squad car so he could head back to the station and move forward with the official investigation. But he’d eat his hat if there wasn’t a stammering lowlife there by tomorrow ready to turn themselves in.

 Maybe after all this was settled down, he’d delve into some of the cold cases stacked in the cellar. Maybe in there he’ll find a picture of a smiling, carefree teen who’d disappeared and returned with the power now to ensure no one else suffered as he had.

XxX

“Yes, I know about the Phantom,” Luis Oliveira will say to anyone who so much as brings up the ghost kid. Locals know better by now but the tourists eat it up every time. He twists his finely combed mustache and gestures to the floor where his audience is standing. “He died right there oh ten or eleven years ago.”

Luis has worked his way all across the the United States since he emigrated from Brazil in the 70s. He finally settled in Amity Park about twelve years ago. He’d never intended to stay in the small Midwest town but the fatal shooting of a young customer kept his little corner market open.

“He was a nice kid, always said hi to me and paid in exact change. Was big fan of the snacks I made, would stop by after school and take half my inventory. He had big brown eyes and a crooked nose,” Luis would smile at the memory before closing his eyes and frowning sadly. “One day, he came late. His teacher made him stay after to go over a failed test, I remember he complained. He was pulling out his money when robber burst in, demanding my money. I fumbled for the register key, dropped it. I bent down to grab it and I hear shots going off. Two over my head, another right into the boy’s throat.”

Luis will hear the sound of that sweet boy’s guttural choking sounds as he drowned in his own blood until the day he himself died. The robber left after the shot, Luis called the police and held the young man’s hand as he died. The would be thief were never found and Luis never did learn anything about the boy who’d died on his floor for getting hungry after school.

“As soon as I saw Phantom on the TV,” Luis would say, perking up after his moment of somber grief, “I knew it was that boy come back. Those kind eyes, I’d recognize them anywhere. He’s never come here but one day he will and I will be able to pass on my regret on not being able to save his life that day.”

XxX

“I think he killed himself,” Mikey whispered to Lester during lunch period, angling his voice low. “The jocks may love Phantom for his powers but I just know he was one of us, an unwanted nerd. I’ve seen him chatting up a ghost I’m pretty sure is Poindexter, Casper’s suicide kid. They’re probably bonding over their similar deaths and the circumstances that led to it.”

“That’s pretty dark,” Lester whispered back. “I also get unpopular vibes from him but I don’t think he’s the time do uh do that to himself; he’s too stubborn and protective. But I bet he was the victim of a prank gone wrong. Dash locked Fenton in the Janitor’s closet last Wednesday, he got out okay somehow but maybe something like that happened to Phantom. He always looks kind of annoyed at the A-listers, maybe they remind him of old bullies.”

“Nuh-uh,” Clara said, pushing up her glasses with her middle finger. “The ghost kid totally got electrocuted or something. He was fighting that weather ghost and he sent lightning bolts his way and Phantom flinched. He fought the Ghost King and yet a little electricity scares him? It might not’ve even been a lightning strike but something manmade like a machine backfiring or something.”

“Get real,” Mikey scoffed, sipping his milk with an eyeroll. “I’m sure we’d have heard about some poor kid getting zapped to death; this town isn’t that big.”

“We’d have heard about a suicide too,” Lester noted with a wry grin.

“Shut up Mr. I base my theories around Fenton who’s a known weirdo”.

XxX

“I’m telling you, the ghost kid died of some debilitating illness,” Abbie McMillian, retired school teacher and three year reigning champ at the Tristate area’s Daylily Competition. She sipped her tea and spoke with as much confidence as she had back in the day wrangling Amity’s impressionable youths. “The superhero thing is clear wish childhood fulfillment, a chance to live and be free like he never got to in life. You see how happy and carefree that young man looks while flying? Clearly he spent his formative years sick and weak.”

“No way,” Greta von Martin frowned as she aggressively stirred her own tea to show her displeasure. “I worked in a hospital for close to 30 years and I know what chronically sick kids look like and Phantom doesn’t fit the bill. I will agree he’s carefree when he’s not battling spooks but he acts like a stupid teen. I’m telling you, the boy got into his parent’s liquor cabinet or took a few too many of whatever pill was going around his school. Tragic but something that happens every day.”

“Greta, dearie,” Abbie said with a pinched frown. “We’ve been friends since grade school and I love you like a sister but you are wrong and until you admit it, I won’t share anymore of my recipes.”

“You’re just being stubborn because you can’t see what’s right in front of you even after working with kids half of your life, Abbie, love,” Greta sniffed. “And you can kiss my grandson’s help weeding you garden goodbye until you relent.”

XxX

Perhaps one of the most human traits is curiosity, especially about what comes after death. Now the good people of Amity Park know a great deal about the dead so the lives before is what attracts their attention and none so more than the ghost boy. Maybe it’s because he’s their hero or maybe it’s because he’s so young. Or perhaps it’s because Phantom is such a mess of contradictions that it’s very hard to guess how the unfortunate boy met his end. But everyone has their own theories, from the mundane to the fantastic, some with evidence backing them up and others pure poppycock. 

But for all their curiosity, as much as it burns them to know, they’ll never ask. They don’t want to risk the powerful ghost’s wrath but, moreover, it seemed in poor taste. The boy risked his afterlife to keep them safe, they couldn’t ask what traumatic and miserable circumstances had led to this point.

And besides, it was so much more fun to look up at ghostly figure as he sped through the skies and wonder.

[beomcoups]

Your Name pt. 1

𝐏𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: Jung Hoseok (BTS) x reader

𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭: Walkin’ On Sunshine hosted by @kpopscape​

����𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: fluff, slight angst, summer love au, ice cream shop au

𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: PG-13

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: mentions of one night stands and friends with benefits (but nothing graphic)

𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬: 1.3k

𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: Love is not something that you're familiar with. But when a guy walks into your ice cream shop, you'll discovered how easy it is to develop feelings for someone, and how scary it can be to fall in love with them.

AN: Thank you so much to @sugasbabiie​ and @darknytemare​ for looking over this for me. Also thank you to @enha-woodzies​ for making this beautiful banner for me. 

Masterlist

 You saw him on a sunny Monday coming in with a group of kids who were screaming for ice cream. You were working behind the counter, make double and triple scoops on this scorching day to cool everyone down. He caught you off guard, his handsome face sculptured from the Greek Gods themselves.

“Close your mouth; you’re drooling,” your coworker Jennie teases, nudging your arm.

“I’m not drooling,” you pout, rolling your eyes. “I’m just observing, that’s all.” 

The handsome stranger rounded up the kids and started writing down orders on a small notepad. He wore a white v-neck shirt with fitted jeans and sneakers; his glasses were tucked into his shirt, his short hair clipped nicely in all the right areas. It wasn’t your first time seeing him; he’s been coming in for the past couple of weeks since the schools let out for the summer, sometimes by himself or with the kids, ready to divulge in the cold sweets that you have to offer. 

Today happened to be a busy day, but you push through and serve each customer with a smile. You sneak a look in his direction, and the butterflies in your stomach multiply the closer he gets to you. You don’t have any plans interacting with him outside of serving his ice cream, but you can’t help the way you feel when he looks at you with those beautiful brown eyes. You finish the customer before him, excusing yourself to change your gloves before returning, only to be stopped by your supervisor. 

“Go ahead and take your lunch,” he says, putting on his gloves to help your crush. 

‘No, it’s okay,” you insist. “I can take care of him before going to lunch.” 

You try not to show your desperation, but the tightened fists in your hands say otherwise. 

“I got it,” your supervisor waves you off, sending you to clock out. To say you are disappointed is an understatement, but you hide it well, not wanting to show your coworkers that you were upset. Instead, you grab your keys and go to your car, opting to hide from everyone until it was time to go back. 

You don’t see many people like him in this small town; you’re used to seeing the same faces you grew up with in this small-knit community. But what makes this place unique is the lake that has crystal clear waters surrounded by luscious forest trees that tell a rich history. The waters in the lake cover what used to be an active mining town. A massive flood happened over a hundred years ago and swept the city away in one night. If you swim down far enough, you can still see the buildings and cars left behind from the natural disaster. 

You have tourists from all over the world who come to see this local Atlantis as it’s dubbed, especially during the summer when the schools are out and the waters are cool. You’ve seen people come and go, but no one has ever stuck out to you, except for him: the perfect stranger. It’s not like you to develop a crush this easily, especially from someone you don’t know. You’ve never been in love before, never gone on a date; your only experiences are one night stands or friends with benefits as they have no emotional attachments. You wouldn’t know what love was if it hit you in the face; that’s why having these strange feelings for this person is—scary. 

As you sit in your car mulling over your thoughts, you spot that perfect guy and the gaggle of kids leaving the ice cream shop, piling into the van one by one. His golden skin beamed brighter than the sun, the gentle wind swaying his hair in a way that makes him look straight out of a fantasy novel. You stare at him longer, watching him get into the driver’s seat, ready to take off. A heavy sigh escapes your lips as the van pulls off and the alarm on your phone reminds you that your break is over. 

“Well, there goes that,” you mutter to yourself, getting out of your car. Your eyes glance over to the pavement, and you notice a charm attached to a wallet, shining bright enough to make you cover your eyes as you approach. You realize that it’s his wallet, and it must have fallen out of his back pocket as he was getting into the van. Your thumb rubs across the tough black leather, torn in different places, the tiny little folder having its own stories to tell. You slide the wallet in your back pocket as you walk back into your job.

“Hey,” you approach your supervisor after you clock back in. “The guy that was here with the kids, do you know where I can find him? He left his wallet in the parking lot.”

“He’s one of the new counselors at Camp Plato,” he mentions nonchalantly. “I can bring it to him after I leave here.”

“I can do it!” You shout a little louder than you expected, your face feeling hot from embarrassment. “The camp is on the way home; I can just drop it off when I’m done.”

“Okay…” your supervisor gives you a curious look, and you brush it off, washing your hands and putting your gloves back on. “Let me let them know that you are coming after work.”

You nod and resume your duties of making ice cream, trying your best to ignore the heavy pounding in your heart.

As night fell, the light blue haze of day lifted to reveal the stars and moon. You pulled into the campground, holding your breath as you clutch his wallet in your hands, making your way over to the cabins. The children are gathered around small fires, making smores and singing children tunes you know all so well. Your eyes gaze around, looking for the guy that you can’t keep your mind off of. 

“I heard you were looking for me.”

Your heart drops, and you quickly step back, turning around and facing the man you have been looking for. 

“Y-yeah,” your nerves get the better of you.  “Here’s your wallet. I found it in the parking lot.”

He thanks you before taking the wallet, and you are surprised that he didn’t check to see if anything was missing. His calm demeanor is intriguing to you, and you want to make small talk but don’t know what to say. 

“Well, I’m going to get going,” you announce, pointing towards your car. 

“Oh yeah, sure,” he clears his throat. “Thanks again for bringing this back to me.”

You nod and start walking towards your car, feeling satisfied that you could bring back his wallet. You wish you could’ve said more, but knowing yourself, you would have frozen, and you don’t need that kind of embarrassment. Just seeing him was enough. 

“Hey, wait,” you hear him call to you as you are about to enter the car. “I really appreciate you bringing this back to me. Let me take you out for lunch?”

“Oh no, it’s not necessary,” you interject, though your heart says otherwise. 

“I know,” he chuckles, raking his fingers through his hair. “But I would like to.” He bats his eyes in a jokingly manner that makes you giggle, the tension you were feeling slowly leaving your body. 

“You know what? I’ll take you up on your offer,” you decided, leaning against your car. “Does tomorrow at noon sound good?”

He agrees on the time, you exchange numbers, and you get in the car, letting your top back before you pull off. Thinking over everything that happened today, you realize you forgot one crucial thing. 

“I wanted to ask before I go… What’s your name?” 

He realizes the same thing as you and lets out a hearty laugh, his face reddening from embarrassment. 

“It’s Hoseok. My name is Hoseok.”

[undonefm]

there were no celebrations, parades, or commencements the day first elijah mcphearson was born. he was a regular guy born to a long line of fishers, most of whom lived right here in rose cove. luck had never truly been on any of the mchpearsons’ side, which anyone could tell from the meager means they always lived. they belonged to the part of the town who preferred the easy life, not giving too much thought to the other half who flaunted opulence at their fancy parties. elijah cared, though. he spent most of his youth watching them, wishing and wanting in silence and the darkness of his bedroom at first, but eventually griping and cursing them under his breath when he bore witness to their upper class lifestyles. 

in all honesty, we wouldn’t be here talking about elijah if he had followed the path that was laid out for him, but that wasn’t in his cards. instead of following in his family’s footsteps, he often catered events for the prosperous side of town. he wasn’t as an avid a fisher as the rest of his family, and as such he found himself picking up odd jobs to make ends meet. he grew a reputation for his hard work ethic, and eventually he came to know the members of their society, and their families, on a rather close basis. that much is all well known, but it’s the next part that seems fuzzy in comparison. somehow he went from the town noone to local hero overnight. some people say he rescued a group of children from drowning. others say he used wild horses to transport them away from a fire. there are even a few accounts of him using a small fishing vessel to save a capsized boat in a storm. with every rendition, the tale seemed to grow more fanatical. 

regardless of the truth, the rest of the story remains. his heroism launched him directly into the life he wanted so desperately. he moved into one of the richest neighborhoods, began attending the finest parties, and for two decades he enjoyed the decadence he sought in his youth. he married a beautiful woman, had children, and to the outside world, he seemed to live the dream most people spent theirs trying to attain. but with all things in rose cove, things were not exactly as they seemed. no one thought to question it until the day elijah met an untimely end. an air of mystery surrounds his death still to this day, much like the one that surrounds the recent disappearance of shannon harper. he was found floating in the water just off the north south of town, and his death was ruled accidental. in fact, no investigation was ever opened, but that only feeds into to the way the locals love making up their own versions of elijah mcphearson’s life. to commemorate his life and the act of bravery he committed, the town chose to honor him in a festival that highlighted the best parts of their small town. he became the beacon of what it meant to truly call rose cove home. 

this year’s mchpearson day festival is the 75th anniversary of the very first one. the town’s pride and joy event, people travel from all over to come and kick off summer with a week long event. because it is the crown jewel of entertainment in the ares, the utter tragedy of last year’s festival holds the town the town in a vice like vigor to set things right. there is a tension, an urgency of perfection floating in on the morning waves, but not receding when the sun dips back below the horizon. everyone in town knows they must get this one right, or else suffer another year of empty shops and lacking tourists filling their rental homes. everyone needs this to flourish. 

as always, there will be a plethora of activities for natives and newcomers to enjoy. local entrepreneurs fill booths that line every square inch of the town square, where you’ll find everything from art fixtures to decorate your homes to homemade sauces, jams, and vegetables to fill your cabinets. down by the boardwalk you will find an array of rides such as a ferris wheel, giant swings, a carousel, and many other carnival attractions. food vendors will line the beachfront parking, where you can stop through poppa wheelie’s for your snack favorites, sippin’ away for a caffeinated pick-me-up, or indulge in typical fair refreshments like cotton candy, corn dogs, freshly squeezed lemonade, and funnel cakes. take the kids back into the town square for face painting, and if you’re lucky no one will laugh if you choose to get a butterfly of your own done. 

all of these amenities will be available to the public starting saturday with the annual racing of the horses at sunrise on saturday morning, and it will conclude the following saturday night with the crowning of a new miss roses. because our crowned queen of 2021 cannot be there to present the winner, her alternate, virginia smyth will do the honors. they will be escorted by reid kent, and following the coronation ceremony will be a memorial video played in honor of shannon. 

*** hello, and with this plot drop undone fm is open for interactions. muses are now allowed to have interactions up until friday in game. while the interactions do not have to be centered around the festival, this is an event that will affect everyone in town in some way or another. it would be a bad look for someone to not show up at the festival after the newspaper revealed law enforcement is looking into the case again, so keep that in mind. this event will take place AT LEAST one week in real time, but we may adjust that due to player wishes. 

[shawtynagito]

Aethers grand Halloween special! a wrath over the adults wallets! Pt 1 😩

"Trick or Treat!" Aether yelled, pounding at the door in front of him. The people of Liyue lacked the spirit for Halloween.

The door opened slowly as a grumpy looking boy peeked his head out of the door.

"... What're you doing at my house at this hour?" Xingqiu blinked, rubbing at his eyes. He was just like a big baby. "And what is the meaning behind your outfits?"

"It's Halloween!" You huffed. "Give us a treat or get tricked, that's how it works!" You explained. "And the outfits are for fun!"

"I have nothing." He spoke, quick to shut the door. "Please do trick me later."

Aether went back to pounding on the door. "You can join us, then! It'll be fun!" He announced.

The boy swung the door open this time, his eyebrow twitching. "You're going to wake up my father."

"Paimon promises your dad won't wake up if you join us." Paimon announced, a cheeky smile on her face.

The boy let out another sigh. Reluctantly stepping out of his house.

"You have no cool outfit." Aether pointed out before crossing his arms. "How disappointing."

"Paimon has to agree.."

"Do you think the Heir of the Guhua Clan walks around in his pajamas?" He sassed, furrowing his brows. "No. The answer is no." He answered before any of you could say something dumb.

"He's so grumpy when he's tired!" Paimon pointed out, eyes wide. "A.. Tired grumpy Guhua geek!"

"Your names are getting weak." You shook your head. Aether could only agree.

"Hey, why is he leading us? He won't know any good hotspots!" Paimon spoke, ignoring the insult as she pointed over toward the blue-haired boy.

"Heheheh, I am simply gathering new people to bother in the middle of the night." He explained, turning back to the three of you. "This is another Halloween tradition, right? Bothering others when they are trying to sleep?"

"... So petty! I'm getting shivers!" Aether shook, running his hands up and down his arms.

"Yeah, I could almost drown from all the pettiness!" You added.

"Wamin restaurant? Who are you going to fetch here? Pickup food?" Paimon questioned as Xingqiu made his way over.

"Have you never heard of Xiangling? I thought she was a world-class chef." Xingqiu sighed. Rapidly smashing the ringer at the front.

"Oooh! You know Xiangling?" Paimon blinked, "Paimon thought you were always busy reading some book!"

The boy fell silent for a moment before letting out a sigh. "I am human, as well. I need to eat."

"Oh, right." Paimon nodded.

It took Xiangling a moment to appear at the front, looking disheveled.

"I had to run over here! My ringer is connected to my clock at home, so I came as fast as I could-" the girl blinked as she processed the familiar faces in front of her. "Oh, what're you guys all doing here? A gathering?" She smiled, "I can make us some yummy Slime Parfaits!" She drooled.

"We are here to retrieve you for the night of tricking or treating others." Xingqiu interrupted with a smile.

"Trick or Treating others..?" The girl blinked. "I don't know what that means, but if I can find ingredients, I'll join!"

"Oh, you'll find some very sweet ingredients." Aether nodded, knowing her, she'd probably find a way to incorporate candy into her dishes.

"Sweet! I'll join you!" She smiled, skipping her way over toward the door, leaving her restaurant completely unattended to.

"The next place we're going may be to scary for thee flying dog, just a warning." Xingqiu warned with a smile, leading the group of you to a rundown cathedral. Much like the one in Mondstadt but in much... Worse condition.

"Paimon's not a dog!" Paimon protested, however, her words went unheard as she stopped herself right outside of the doors of the buildings.

"What's wrong, Paimon? Just a few more centimeters and you'll be inside." Aether encouraged.

Xiangling and Xingqiu pressed on further into the building without fear. As the three of you stayed back.

"No way Paimon's going in there! I'm staying right here!" The girl pouted, kicking her leg in the air.

"Should've left you to drown." Aether mumbled before walking further into the building.

"Hey! Stop being so mean to Paimon!" The girl chased after him in a flash of courage. You slowly joined them.

"Be banished from this world, and settle your soul to rest..." A new voice mumbled out, a random, yet long-lasting flash filling the air.

"Brrr, Paimons cold all of a sudden! What happened?!"

Xingqiu emerged from the shadows out of no where, a smile on his face. "Just a quick Exorcism." He explained. "Nothing to unordinary."

"Oh, just an exorcism..." Aether mumbled. "Just an exorcism?!?" He repeated, however more urgent.

A new boy appeared alongside Xiangling, clouds of cold radiating off the light-haired boy.

"Hello." He greeted. "I get a lot of reports of paranormal activities on Halloween. There's high waves of spiritual energy on this specific night..." The boy mumbled, "sorry for not getting to you sooner."

"No problem, it's only been a few seconds." You shrugged. Paimon frantically tugging at your spare coat.

"This should be my last job for the night. I suppose I can join you all." He offered.

With that, the six of you set off to the nearest, that you knew of- rich guy.

"Childe, open your door!" Aether commanded, pounding on said persons door. He knew a lot of people...

The door swung open, a brown-haired man standing at the doorway. "Heya. What brings you here- and all these other kids...?" He mumbled, his eyes combing through the number of children at his door.

"Trick or Treat!" The lot of you yelled.

Childe stood still for a moment before he let out a small laugh. "Haha... Trick or treat, right." He mumbled, slowly shutting the door.

"What's a trick or treat?" You could hear his muffled voice say.

You all stood outside of his door for a moment, waiting for the man to reemerge.

He returned to the door, with a smile.

"I don't have candy." He spoke. "Besides, why would you trust candy from a guy like me?" He hummed, eying the boy beside you.

"Just give us something." Aether spoke.

"Right, here." He nodded, handing Mora left and right. It was an overwhelming amount, actually. "Have a good night, don't get yourself into trouble." He warned before shutting his door.

"Sounds like he really wanted to get rid of us..." Paimon mumbled. "But now Paimon is stinkin' rich!"

"I was in need of Pocket Money for the night." Xingqiu hummed, causing everyone to glare at him.

"We get it, you're rich!" Paimon yelled.

"I would say we should stop at Zhonglis place, but he probably wont have a thing to give out..." Aether spoke, rubbing the back of his head as he walked down the trail.

"And Ningguang is to busy being her rich self." Xingqiu huffed, crossing his arms. Repeating something along the lines of 'dont talk badly of others'.

"Let's head to Mondstadt! They always have a lot of good stuff on Halloween!" You announced. "I grew up there, and the amount of stuff they give out is crazy! Plus, I know of a few people to bother!"

___________________

"Why does this place smell so badly of smoke?" Chongyun asked, his eyes scanning over the building he stood in front of.

"I don't know, but it's probably a good place to cook.." Xiangling drooled.

"Oh, that's just Bennett being Bennett." You grinned before approaching the door, knocking on it lightly. However, the door caved in, falling onto the floor.

What a flimsy door!

Everyone's thoughts behind you resonated.

A white-haired boy walked over to his door, simply picking it back up and placing it back into it's doorframe.

"Hey, [Firstname]!" The boy greeted with quite a big smile for someone who's door just broke. "I was waiting for you!" He grinned, leaning over to the right, picking up a classic pumpkin bucket.

"I like your hot dog costume!" He complimented.

"And I like your mummy costume." You smiled.

"Have you gotten anything good yet?" He asked, slapping on protection gear. His bad luck kicked in exponentially on Halloween.

"Some filthy rich guy gave us a crap ton of Mora!" You spoke, lifting up your bag so he could get a look. "You can have some." You offered, pouring a good amount of your share into his bucket.

"Thanks a bunch, [Firstname]!" He grinned, finally securing the last piece of equipment before he turned to the rest of the people accompanying you.

"Oh, are these new recruits?" He grinned, overwhelmed over the amount of new people around him. Usually, people avoided him like the plague.

"They're all people that're gonna trick-or-treat with us! Cause I'm forcing them!" Aether stepped up, hands on his hips. He looked quite proud.

"Paimon just goes wherever he goes because Paimon is bothersome like that." The fairy smiled, hands behind her back.

"Huh, alright, cool!" Bennett grinned. "Have to warn you though, my unluckiness might spread to you guys."

"Paimon isn't too concerned, I don't think anyone else is, either."

"Speak for yourself..." Chongyun sweatdropped. "I don't have a good feeling about this..."

Xingqiu let out a laughed as he shook his head. "Oh, dear Chongyun, what's there to be so scared of?" He asked, placing his hands on his hips.

Chongyun let out a groan of irritation before looking around the place. It took a while of walking to get here, so he might as well check the place out.

"Who are you guys?!" Amber's voice echoed throughout the place as she appeared out of no where. "You guys don't look like natives."

"Ever hear of tourists?" Chongyun sighed. "I was forced here by my friend... Who was forced here by your honorary knight."

"It's me, I'm the honorary knight." Aether spoke, making his way over to the both of them.

"Oh, I see.." She hummed, reaching into her pocket. "Take these." She spoke, offering some... Granola bars.

"Granola bars, deadass?" You deadpanned before turning away. "What a let down.. Last year you gave me a crapton of candy..."

"Well, this isn't last year! And I'm on a budget here!" She huffed, her lips settled on a pout.

"Whatever... I bet Diluc and Kaeya have a ton of candy and are competing on who has the most because of their undying sibling rivalry!" You grinned, hopping away from the rest of the group.

"Hold up, [Firstname]!" Bennett called out, rushing after you to only end up rolling down the stairs. Thank God for protection gear....

_____________

Diluc, of course, was attending the bar. Cause he never had anything better to do, and Kaeya was off in the corner, being kind of creepy...

"I forgot it was Halloween." Diluc sighed, crossing his arms at the sight of the children pouring into the room.

"Just like how you forgot about fathers legacy." Kaeya smiled, his voice loud so everyone in the damn place could hear it.

"Damn you.." Diluc seathed, furrowing his brows. "Did you remember what day it was today?" He asked.

"Of course I did." The man smiled, standing up from his seat. "I'm not quite the slacker you are." He boasted.

"Then hand us our candy." Aether demanded. Holding out his bag.

"Yeah!" Bennett grinned. "If you don't mind..." He added on sheepishly.

"Of course..." Kaeya coughed, looking around the area. Snatching a bag of candy someone had left behind while they went to the restroom.

"Here... Share it between all of you.." He smiled, pouring a generous amount into the bags being held in front of him.

"A witch, a mummy, a cat and a hot dog... How....." He looked off to the side, "original..."

Silence filled the air for a moment before he changed the subject. "And... Who are these three? What are their costumes?" He asked, attention on the three people forced to come over here.

"I am Xingqiu... And my costume is... Ready for bed." He bowed awkwardly.

"Chongyun... I'm a... Sumo wrestler..." The light-haired boy blinked sheepishly.

"I'm Xiangling and I'm... I'm..." She grumbled, scowering her brain for an idea. "I'm a pirate!"

Kaeyas uncovered eye widened. "A pirate...?" He asked quietly, analyzing the girls outfit.

"Uh oh.." Paimon sighed, "she's gonna get caught!"

"That's an interesting view on pirates you have..." Kaeya nodded, quickly placing the bag back down as the owner had made their way over.

"Have a nice night, children." He smiled, waving at the lot of you.

"You didn't remember Halloween for shit." Diluc coughed, causing Kaeya to look over at him.

"Of course I did."

________________

"Fischl? What are you doing out here, I thought you said you were going to stay indoors tonight?" Bennett asked the blonde girl as she walked down the steps from the Adventurers Guild.

"Haha... That was Oz, silly child." The girl lied, laughing into her hand.

"I'm right here," Oz spoke, his voice was pretty deep.

Fischl let out a puff of air as she crossed her arms. She was so close to committing animal cruelty right then and there.

"... That was a few hours ago... Now is now..." She explained with a cough. Looking to the side.

"So then... You can join us in trick-or-treating now?" Bennett asked.

"Hah! Trick-Or-Treating... Why would I do something so childish?" She scoffed.

"Yes, oh so childish of you to have a bag full of candy, right?" Xingqiu hummed, his gaze fixated on the bag she held.

"Oh, this?" She laughed, draping it over Oz in an instant. "He's a big fan of candy... To bad because I'm giving the candy out..." She lied.

"Oh, great! Can we have some?" Aether asked with a smile. Of course, he knew that she was lying, but like... He really wanted candy.

"Um, haha... Right..." She nodded, "only one for each person... Monstadt has... A lot of people..." She hummed, handing out a single piece to everyone.

"How generous." Xingqiu sighed, stuffing the thing into his pocket. "I hate smarties." He grumbled.

"I don't get a lot of free stuff, Halloween is the coolest!" Bennett smiled. "So is my birthday... But that comes every four years... If you think about it, I'm only like... Four years old..."

[petri808]

@thenaluarchive winter wonderland snow activities prompt. How about some sledding in Hawaii 🤗🏂🌨

For college student Lucy Heartfilia, if there was one thing she missed about home, it was the snowy winters. Being in Hawaii for the last 3 years, she enjoyed the beach days, of sun and fun, and all the new friends she’s made, but the autumn and winter months was such a different experience here. For starters, the leaves don’t change color in the Fall! Before she’d come to the University of Hawaii at Hilo, Lucy never realized how much she would miss such a trivial thing.

And that January was colder than the last one according to her roommate Levy McGarden. Honestly, Lucy couldn’t really tell the difference because to her cold was like 20 degrees Fahrenheit not 70. That first year was amusing to her as she walked around in a tank top and the locals in hoodies complaining about the chill in the air. But she had to agree with Levy as they sat in their rented house. That night was a bit chillier than most. Hawaiian winter storms were really just deluges of rain, and based on how much it was pouring outside, that’s exactly what hit that evening.

“Bet there’ll be snow on the mountain by morning,” Levy chirped from her blanket burrito. “Maybe enough to play in too.”

Lucy excitedly popped up from her textbook. “You guys get snow here?!”

“Yeah,” Levy chuckled. “I heard there’s even a skiing club on the island. When there’s a lot of snow people ski and snowboard up there.”

“Darn,” Lucy deflated in her seat, “if I’d have known, I would brought my board.”

“Tell ya what, if it turns out there’s snow I’ll get Gray to take us up in his truck.”

“But I don’t have my board.”

“Don’t worry,” Levy winked. “We’ll show you the island style.”

The storm lasted for two more days, so no one could really see what was going on above the clouds. But according to the observatory’s on top of Mauna Kea, snow was in fact building on the mountaintop. The question became how much? It was finally on the third day, that the sun came back and clouds disappeared, when Lucy got her first glimpse of snow in Hawaii. She could see the mountain clear as day from the third floor of the UCB building on campus.

“Natsu! Natsu!” Lucy ran up to him as he was existing his last class of the day. “Did you see?!” She squealed and pointed towards the mountain. “It’s covered!!” Natsu Dragneel was best friends with the girls other friend Gray Fullbuster. Lucy had met both men in classes at the university her Freshman year and since they were local to the area, they often took the girls to see places around the island.

He laughed with a smile. “Yeah, I saw it.”

“Levy said maybe Gray can take us in his truck?”

“I’ll ask him, probably could go tomorrow morning as long as the road is open.”

“They close the road?”

“Just until they can make sure it’s safe to drive it.”

“Yay!! I can’t wait!”

At 7 am the following morning, Lucy and Levy piled into Gray’s Toyota Tacoma truck along with Natsu and headed up the mountain. The drive would take about an hour to get to the visitor center, where they’ll be required to acclimate for an additional hour before moving onto the summit. When they arrived, Lucy was absolutely in aww, the snow had come all the way down to the center, blanketing the building in white fluff.

They got out of the truck and Lucy played the typical tourist, fawning over the gorgeous view. With a cloudless, light blue sky above them, they could see a great distance down the mountain and it was amazing! The parking lot was already half full of other park goers ready to take advantage of the snowy opportunity.

“Come on,” Natsu prompted Lucy into the center. “They’ve even got souvenirs if you’d like a memento.”

Lucy smiled, a light blush coating her wind swept cheeks. He knew her too well already. “Thanks.”

The hour passed by quickly at the center, with the friends eating a breakfast they’d packed along with purchases like hot chocolate at the center. And yes, Lucy purchased a couple of souvenirs, including a picture frame to commemorate the day. She really wished she had her snowboard, but just being able to hang out with her friends was enough for her. Maybe they could even have a snowball fight!

As they piled back into the truck for the last leg of the journey, Lucy noticed something in the bed of the truck. She laughed. “Boogie boards?! Are you serious?”

“I told you we do it Island style here,” Levy laughed too. “Sometimes we just bring inner tubes. Trust me, it’s just like sledding and fun.”

The last time Lucy had gone sledding she was 7 years old, but of course those sleds were built for snow and the children’s type had something to hang onto. These did not. Well, guess she’ll just have to trust they know what they’re doing. As for the drive, this portion of the road was both a little scary and amazing. It had been cleared but still icy, so everyone crawled along the skinny road, giving Lucy a chance to stare out the window and take pictures.

“Oh, wow theres some trippy rock formations,” she mumbled.

“Huh?” Natsu turned to see what Lucy was talking about. “Oh, yeah, that’s like layers of old lava rock or something.”

“The colors are beautiful.” Some had an oily sheen, brownish-reds and golds in horizontal waves along the rock faces. Yup, Lucy was definitely glad they brought her here.

Gray drove until he found a decent spot to park that was close to the heaviest snow areas, yet away from the majority of crowds. Families with children stayed closer to the scattered observatories or where the snow would not be as difficult for children to maneuver in. Lucy even noted some trucks were simply shoveling snow into their beds. She was told many took the snow back down the mountain for those who couldn’t make it up.

“Stay away from any pink or yellow spots in the snow,” Gray warned.

“Pink?” Lucy asked in confusion. Yellow she figured out but why pink?”

The man shrugged, “sometimes it looks pink up here.”

“Weird,” She laughed but carried on, helping to grab a boogie board. The guys had brought enough for each of them.

They climb up a decent sized hill, trudging through the snow. It wasn’t too deep, and actually it was a bit icier than Lucy was expecting but not too bad yet. She couldn’t lie that she’d hoped for powdery snow, but this was better than nothing. After a quick group selfie, Natsu started explaining how to use the boogie board.

“We hold onto the leash to steer and use our feet as brakes. Since it’s just a short hill, you probably won’t pick up too much speed where you won’t be able to stop yourself.”

“Okay, I think I got it...” Lucy gripped onto the edge of the board as she looked down the hill. Snowboarding never made her nervous, but this did. She wasn’t used to having such a short area to move in, and definitely didn’t wanna think about running out of snow to slide on.

“If you’re nervous, I could go with you till you feel more comfortable,” Natsu suggested.

That brought a new flutter and wave of heat back to her cheeks. The board could fit two people sitting on it, if she was practically on his lap!

“It was just an offer, you don’t have to—.”

“N-No, thank you. That might be a good idea, for at least the first time so you can show me what to do.”

Both Lucy and Natsu hadn’t noticed the silence coming from their friends who stood on the side whispering and snickering through the unfolding scene. Levy had even pulled out her phone ready to record the event. They watched the pair settle the board onto the snow, Natsu digging it in to keep it still a moment as he got on first, then directed Lucy to sit between his legs with her feet on the board for now. He then had her grab the leash where he was holding it, and placed his other arm around her waist for security.

“I got ya,” he whispered near her ear.

She swallowed thickly, his heat was radiating against her body and suddenly the cool air of the mountain had disappeared. “O-Okay.”

“All you gotta do is watch how I use my feet to break at the end and have fun. Ready?”

“R-Ready.”

Natsu used his feet to scoot them initially, then let gravity do the rest. The pair slide down the hill, picking up a decent rate of speed, not too fast, just right. Lucy screamed in elation, this was so much fun! It was only a short distance and Natsu easily dug his feet into the snow to bring them to a stop. Her heart was beating rapidly from the exhilarating ride and she was still giggling after they’d come to a full stop.

“Did you like that?” Natsu chuckled and got off, holding his hand out to help Lucy to her feet.

Lucy looked up and blushed, then took his hand. “Yes, a lot more than I’d expected to.”

Once she stood up the pair pause, breathing slowing, as they gazed into each other’s eyes. Natsu’s hold on Lucy’s hand tightens. Her heart fluttered, spellbound at the handsome smiling face, and rosy cheeks from wind burn. Natsu’s smile always captured her like a siren pulling her in. He brushed a stay lock of hair from her face, causing her to gasp lightly.

“Finally!”

“Just kiss her already!”

With the spell broken, the pair look up the hill to see their friends laughing, and Levy holding up her phone, pointing to it. Lucy giggled, they were totally busted, but a long time in the making. Who would have thought that a snow capped mountain in the middle of a tropical island would break the unrequited stalemate.

Natsu turned Lucy’s face back to him, tipped up her chin, and lowers to within an inch of her lips, “may I?”

“Yes, please...”

Bonus picture of a couple of kids on the mountain with boogie boards I found online. But yes, lol we have snow in Hawaii 🙃

[gwenbrightly]

Redwall Falls Chapter 2

“He’s looking at me...” Brome heard his sister whisper to herself. She was not so inconspicuously watching Martin, one of the Mystery Shack’s teenaged employees, while she cleaned bobbleheads made in the image of their Great Aunt (or Graunt) Polly. The siblings had been put to work helping out around the tourist trap as soon as they’d had some time to settle in.

“Why don’t you just, I don’t know, talk to him?” he suggested with an eye roll. Rose stared at him.

“After what happened last time?” she cringed. Yesterday, when they’d met him (and the handy-squirrel known as Feldoh), the mouse had introduced himself before saying something about a “rosty nose”, which had taken several minutes to decipher. Brome still wasn’t sure what that was about, but it had definitely been awkward.

“Well, he’s proven that he can speak coherently,” Brome observed, nodding his head at the customer Martin was currently ringing up, “so maybe this time you guys can make it through an entire conversation without crashing.”

“I... Don’t be so pushy, Brome. These things take time. And besides-” Rose’s protests were cut off by Graunt Polly’s appearance from the back room.

“All right, all right, look alive, everybeast. I need someone to go hang up these signs in the spooky part of the forest,” the mole announced, displaying several signs that had advertisements with question marks and directions to the Mystery Shack on them. Rose, Brome, Feldoh, and Martin all glanced at each other.

“Not it,” Rose said quickly.

“Not it,” Brome followed suit.

“Also not it. You needed me to switch out the lightbulbs upstairs, remember?” It was Feldoh, this time. Graunt Polly looked annoyed.

“Martin, go hang these signs.” She ordered. “Oh, I would, but it’s so far. And I just realized I never had my lunch break so...”

“I’d fire all of you if I could,” Polly complained, frowning at Martin’s lame excuse. Her statement didn’t seem to have the desired effect, for she looked rather disappointed when no one took the hint and volunteered as tribute.

“Fine, then. Guess we’re gonna have to do this the old-fashioned way,” she said, “let’s make it.. Eanie, meanie, minie… you,” she pointed a paw at Brome. He groaned in dismay.

“What? No. Graunt Polly, there’s something off about these woods… they’re creepy and I always feel like I’m being watched.”

“Noonvale doesn’t have much in the way of real forests, Brome. It’s gonna take some time for you to adjust to, well, the great outdoors,” Polly told him, giving his headfur a ruffle. He looked to Rose for backup, but she didn’t offer anything.

“I’m telling you – there’s something weird going on in this town. Homesickness can’t explain why the mosquito bites on my arm spell out ‘beware’.” Brome pointed out, rolling up his sleeve to show the others. Feldoh made a gagging noise. Rose raised an eyebrow and said,

“It looks more like ‘bewarb’ to me, and that’s really only if you squint.”

“Look, kid, that whole ‘monsters in the woods’ thing is just a local legend drummed up to attract more tourists,” Polly tried to assure him, but Brome wasn’t convinced. He had only been in Gravity falls for a day and he’d already seen bizarre glowing lights, heard strange noises, and been accosted by possibly radioactive mosquitos.

“But...” he protested as Graunt Polly plopped the signs into his reluctantly waiting arms.

“Stop being so paranoid and try to have some fun with this, eh, Brome?”

_______________

“No one believes anything I say,” Brome muttered to himself as he nailed a sign to a tree. It felt like he had been out in the forest for hours. All by himself. With no one to talk (complain) to. Was it even legal to send children out into the forest to perform manual labor without supervision? He’d have to check the local child labor laws once he got access to wifi – yet another thing the Mystery Shack seemed to be lacking in.

“Ugh!” he cried. “Stupid Mystery Shack! Stupid signs!”

Kathunk! Brome kicked the next tree he came to and immediately recoiled. He yelped in pain, then cocked his head. Trees didn’t make weird echoey noises… did they?

“Weird…” he commented, dropping the remaining sign on the ground so he could investigate further. Rapping gently on the tree – he didn’t want to hurt himself – Brome listened to the oddly metallic sound the tree made on impact. Something was definitely off about it. He took the sleeve of his sweatshirt and rubbed away at the trunk. Textured brown paint and a healthy coating of dirt and grime gave way to old metal. Ahah! The entire tree was fake. In full detective mode, now, Brome examined the tree until he spotted a small handle.

With slight apprehension, for there was always a chance his actions would activate an army of laser equipped robots, he grasped the lever with both paws and yanked it down. Nothing happened. No grand reveal. No explosion. Just the sound of birds chirping in the distance.

The young mouse huffed in disappointment and turned to leave, wishing he hadn’t gotten his hopes up. All his Sci-Fi TV shows and books had lied to him. Cool things never happened in real life. The world just didn’t work that way. But then, the creaking of a rusty hatch forcing its way open somewhere nearby caused him to stop in his tracks.

Brome circled the area, searching for the source of the sound. The switch must have done something, after all. He checked every nook and cranny, below each bush and on top of every rock and stump. His query remained elusive. Whatever the lever had opened was clearly well hidden.  Brome took a step backwards, hoping the action would give him a different view of this patch of forest.

In a way, he got exactly what he wanted; the fallen tree he tripped over certainly forced him to see the area from a different angle. But the unexpected fall wasn’t very pleasant and Brome couldn’t help but wonder how badly he’d have to hurt himself before his parents would let him come home. He lay on the ground for a moment, half tempted to sink into the dirt and become one with nature. Thankfully, such drastic actions did not end up being necessary.

It was no wonder Brome hadn’t noticed the bizarre hole the switch had uncovered. Half buried by the log and built from camouflaged materials, he would have missed it completely if not for the fact that he’d practically fallen right on top of it. He sat up, thoughtfully. Whoever had installed this hidden treasure trove obviously hadn’t wanted anyone to find it. How long had it been since someone sat where he now sat? Since somebeast had peered into the hole to examine its secrets? Brome gently removed an object wrapped in old newspapers, bursting into a fit of sneezes at the resulting cloud of dust that had floated into the air.

It was old. Old-old, as in more than just a few years old. The newspapers were from several decades ago. Their edges had curled with age, and some of the lettering was too faded to be legible. Fortunately, Brome had little interest in the newspaper; the item it protected was far more intriguing. A journal. And journals always had juicy secrets written in them – he’d learned that from snooping in Rose’s bedroom (though this journal would inevitably be much more interesting than his sister’s diary).

The journal’s design was simple enough. It was made of thick brown leather with the insignia of a paw print on the front cover. Brome wasn’t sure what kind of creature would have an entire extra toe. He also wasn’t sure he wanted to find out. What if the journal contained something bad? Something he wasn’t supposed to see?

It must have been hidden for a reason, after all. The young mouse sat for a moment, pondering his options. He could, of course, bury the journal and get back to work hanging Graunt Polly’s signs. He could also take his chances and open the book regardless of ancient curses or government Intel. It was a difficult choice.

“Alright, mystery beast. Let’s see what you’ve been hiding,” Brome muttered when his curiosity finally got the better of him. He hummed thoughtfully and flipped through the first few pages. They were covered with sketches of creatures he had never seen before. Detailed notes and memos accompanied many of the sketches.

“It's hard to believe it's been six years since I began studying the strange and wondrous secrets of Gravity Falls,” he read aloud from the page that had the most writing. Six years was a long time to be stuck in this place. The author must have had an awful lot of spare time on their paws to create such an elaborate journal. Flipping through the journal some more, Brome found himself growing more intrigued with each page he read.

Eventually, the writing and sketches grew increasingly erratic and less caretakingly organized. Notes that made no sense lined the margins in some places. One page in particular had the words Trust No One scrawled across its top in large lettering. Brome read the rest of the entry with bated breath, “Unfortunately, my suspicions have been confirmed. I'm being watched. I must hide this book before he finds it. Remember: in Gravity Falls there is no one you can trust." He paused, confused. That seemed… harsh. But if Gravity Falls really did have a dark side-

“Watcha doin?” someone said, sending Brome into a frenzied attempt to hide the journal behind his back. He groaned when he realized who it was. His sister gave him an awkward wave.

“Rose! Thanks for that. I really needed a heart attack today,” he stated flatly.

“I didn’t mean to scare you,” Rose told him, sitting down on the fallen tree, “Graunt Polly sent me to check on you.”

“Oh,” he said. He felt a little foolish for being so easily shaken. The journal’s tone was clearly getting to him.

“So… what were you reading that you didn’t notice me coming your way?” she asked.

“It’s nothing,” Brome said quickly. Rose hummed in response, clearly skeptical.

“Seems like pretty interesting nothingness. You were really invested in it.”

“Well… it’s not nothing nothing,” he admitted, “Just not something I should show you out here where anyone could happen to walk by. Let’s go somewhere more… private.”

“Alright. But now I’m curious. This better not be evidence of aliens, or I’m going to be very insulted that you didn’t show me right away,” Rose teased, ruffling his head fur. Brome winked at her and stood up. He waved the journal at her before taking off in the direction of the Mystery Shack as he said,

“You’ll just have to wait and see.”

After all, surely the book journal hadn’t meant sisters when it said trust no one… right?

[thedistrictsleepsalonetonight]

Always (or Dani, the collector of souls falls in love and Miles keeps passing out during the entire story)

If you were, hypothetically, of course, to visit a place in England called Bly Manor, you would most likely meet an odd group of people. You would see two children, one an absolute angel, the other a teenage, snarky brat of a boy, who are probably being supervised by a stern, yet extremely capable looking woman. You would probably be shown around the house by the sweetest housekeeper in the world, probably be offered lemon cakes by a tall man who looks at the aforementioned housekeeper with all the stars in his eyes. And maybe, just maybe in the middle of it all, you might glance outside and see a woman standing by herself in the garden. At first you would think she’s just moving casually, maybe dancing on her own; and then you would see that her movement has a pattern. It almost seems as though.... no, it couldn’t be.  

“Is that woman,” you would ask, hesitantly, not wishing to offend these people and some potential strange ritual of theirs, “talking to herself?”

The housekeeper (Hannah, you think she’s called) glances outside and chuckles. “Oh, that,” she says. “That’s just Jamie. Jaime’s the gardener. She’s just talking to her girlfriend.”

You would resist the urge to rub at your eyes. “Her.... her girlfriend?”

“Well, technically Dani hasn’t asked her yet,” the cook cuts in, smiling. “But it’s on the way, I assure you.”

You would look from the strange, solitary woman, to their frank, open faces, and then back to the solitary woman again, and you would think.

You would think Why, these people are absolutely fucking bonkers.

*****

(They’re really not)

*****

The first time Jamie saw the woman, it was from across the grounds, which is why it took her crossing halfway the distance to realize that she was breakdancing.

Then again, she had also got other things on her mind. Peter Fucking Quint had to go and fall off the parapet while attempting to rob the Wingraves of their old jewelry the night before last, and between helping Hannah communicate with the police, ensuring Owen received an adequate number of head pats every hour to calm him down, and offering Rebecca a listening ear for both murderous rants and angry tears, she had her hands completely full. And that wasn’t even including the kids, although they seemed to be doing fairly alright. Thankfully they had not seen the body. However, that didn’t deter Miles, who was currently going through a bit of a Hannibal phase, from popping up at random intervals to ask her what broken bones looked like, or if the blood had frozen overnight.

All in all, pretty exhausting.

Which is why the sight of the children standing in front of a breakdancing woman didn’t register at first. She was pulling out the weeds, sun high in the sky, sweat tracing an uncomfortable path down her back when something made her look up. One double take, and she was scrambling in their direction.

She reached them, panting, raised her head after her breath was a little more even and looked right at the woman, who was currently doing the robot. “Um,” she started, unsure of where to go from there. “Are — are you quite alright?”

The woman stopped abruptly, her mouth falling open. “You can see me?”

Okay, this woman was clearly mental. “Yes?”

The woman looked even more astounded. “You really can?” she turned to Flora next. “You too?”

Flora blinked. “Yes, we can.”

“But that’s impossible! You shouldn’t be able to see me. In fact—”

“Jaime, darling,” Miles cut in the middle of what seemed to be the beginning of a rapidly delivered monologue. “Could you escort this.... clearly insane lady outside?”

Jaime thwack-ed the side of his head gently. “Wanna try that again? Nicely?”

He looked sheepish. Not really a bad kid, that one, she thought. Just annoying.

“But you really shouldn’t be able to see me. By all calculations, it’s completely—”

“Well, why not?” Miles asked, now having warmed to the idea of possibly talking to someone who was crazy.

The woman brightened up. “Well, because,” she said, “this, I guess.”

And then she snapped her fingers, disappeared and reappeared on the other side of the lake, where she waved at them excitedly.

Flora is the only one who waved back. Jamie was too busy supporting the weight of a now-collapsed Miles.

*****

Jamie thought it was patently unfair that the reaper of souls was just so damn cute.

(They weren’t supposed to be cute! They were supposed to look gaunt and hollow, and angry and sad, not like sunshine wrapped up in a very human looking package. They weren’t supposed to be walking around with bright, blue, gorgeous eyes, and faces that seemed to have been sculpted by some divine power up there, and a voice that was sweet and soothing enough to put Jamie right to sleep.)

“It’s amazing how all of you can see me,” the reaper of souls, or Dani, as she had introduced herself, said, looking wide-eyed at all of them. Rebecca and a recently awakened Miles were the only ones who looked actively concerned, standing in the corner. Owen and Hannah were, as ever, polite and pleasant, if a little curious. Flora was already settled in next to Dani, asking her questions a mile a minute. And Jamie was—

(Very fucking annoyed at how pretty Dani was)

—completely alright.

“And you’re here to get Peter?” Owen asked her, with a sideways look in Rebecca’s direction.

“Oh yes,” Dani replied. “And boy, was that man a pain. Really whiny. Went all Boohoo I can’t be dead, I’m supposed to do so many things, I’m so cool and awesome and. Ugh. Annoying is what he was. I mean, the list says Peter Quint — died while trying to steal from Bly Manor; what am I supposed to do?”

They all nodded, a little dazed.

“And then I saw the kids and I was bored and I thought they couldn’t see me anyways so,” she continued, and then looked down, suddenly a little shy. “I really am sorry about the.... you know, breakdancing. I honestly thought nobody could see me.”

“It’s okay, it was cute,” Jamie found herself saying before she had time to process, and then wanted to stab herself with the fork lying on the table. If that didn’t work, bang her head on the surface until she bled to death. Or—

“Thank you,” Dani said, equally as quiet.

Jamie closed her eyes, willed her body to fall dead right then and there.

(It didn't work, unfortunately)

“Would you like to stay for supper?” he heard Owen ask their guest.

“Supper?” Dani asked. “Wait, is it already that late?”

Jamie looked up a moment later, when she heard everybody scream and then she opened her eyes to see a stranger standing right near the stove.

“Viola!” Dani said, alarmed. “I thought I sent a message I was gonna be late.”

The woman looked very haughty, very angry and (this is something she hated to admit, again, but) very fucking hot. Seriously. What was with these underworld people and ridiculously angelic skin? Her gaze moved past all of them, came to rest on Dani.

“I got your message alright,” she announced, blithely. “Just couldn’t figure out why you were still here.”

Dani chuckled, nervously. “So, funny story, but as it turns out — these people can — uh, see us?”

Viola tilted her head, regarded her. “Are you sure?”

“Hello,” Hannah said, ever the gracious host. “Welcome to Bly Manor.”

Viola looked flabbergasted now, doing a double take to look at all of them more carefully.

“They can see us?”

Dani nodded, gingerly.

“Seriously?”

Another nod.

“But that can’t be—”

“—Viola, I know, but—”

“—it simply cannot be allowed—”

“—absolutely not I know what you’re thinki—”

“—We have to end them!”

There was another whoosh right next to Jamie’s ear, and she took her time, turning around, only to see another pissed-off, hot woman, standing in the kitchen, her arms crossed.

“I didn’t even say kill!” Viola protested.

“You implied it!”

Their standoff was interrupted by a violent, abrupt thud. It seemed Miles had fainted again.

*****

Jamie walked into the greenhouse, paused and smiled.

“You cannot surprise me,” she said, aloud.

There was movement behind her, and then Dani walked into view.

“How do you always know I’m here?”

Jamie stayed quiet. There wasn’t a good, less-embarrassing way to say The air dances when you’re around, or I can feel your presence in the back of my neck, in the way my heart starts skipping steps on whatever treadmill it is currently running on.  

“Let me keep my secrets,” she answered.

Dani stayed beside her, as she started on the rose plants, a safe distance away, safe enough for Jamie to not feel like she would combust. “I got you something.”

“You’ve already given me so many things,” Jamie told her, hand rubbing at the back of her neck. It was true. Every time Dani had dropped in the past month, she’d brought little trinkets from her travels all over the world.  

(Travels was an excellent way of describing the action of harvesting the grumpy souls of the dead)

One time there had been crepes from Paris, courtesy the tourist guide who passed of a heart attack in a café. Another time it was one of Cerberus’ treats, because Jamie was eternally curious as to what hell dogs actually ate. The bone had been framed and now lay on one of her shelves back at home. One day, she had gotten macarons that Owen had scarfed down before Dani could get around to telling him they were filled with the eternal cries of the dead.

(He’d spent the entire day walking around convinced he was going to die. The doctor said it was indigestion)

She opened the neatly wrapped box and picked up the pomegranate. Turned it around in her hand, examined it.

“Aren’t these supposed to tie me down to the Underworld forever?” she asked, only half-serious.

“Gosh, no,” Dani said, nervously chuckling. “These are not that kind.”

Jamie waited.

“Um, so these,” Dani went on, “these seeds are kind of multi-purpose things? So basically you can eat them, but these seeds, when planted, they can grow any plant in the world. Doesn’t matter what soil they’re on. I mean, I heard you mention that flower you’ve always wanted to grow, but England doesn’t have the climate suited to it and — well. This would work.”

If Jamie could speak, this is what she would have said: I don’t know how to thank you. I don’t know why you’re here, why you give me so much of your precious time, time that you could be walking around the whole world in. I don’t know what to do with myself when I’m around me, how to breathe, how to look, and I’m an utter godforsaken mess, but I’m eternally grateful you barged into our lives a while ago. I don’t know what I was doing before you came. I hope you never leave.

She would have said I know you collect souls, but there’s at least one heart lying in that bag of yours, and there’s a good chance it’s mine.

As it is, all she did was grab onto Dani’s hand, and squeeze.

*****

“You have got to stop doing that!” Owen gasped, hand on his heart.

Dani shrugged from on where she was now perched on top of the table, sitting directly in front of an open-mouthed Miles. “Hannah always knows when I’m here.”

“That’s because I really do have eyes everywhere,” Hannah turned around, smiled brightly at Dani. “Spaghetti?”

“I’ve been asking you for the past five minutes!” Jamie said, indignantly.

“Well, now we know who’s her favorite,” Dani shoots an infuriatingly smug grin in her direction, and pats the top of her head and—

Jamie would feel annoyed if her heart wasn’t racing and there wasn’t a blush fighting to make its way up her cheeks. This love thing was annoying.

(Not that it was love, of course. Certainly not)

“As charming as that sounds, Hannah darling,” Dani continued, “I actually came for a purpose.”

“Is it to set murderers on us again?”

“No, Miles,” Dani replied, patiently. “Plus, Viola and Perdita wouldn’t really have.... killed you. Maimed you, at best.”

Rebecca shuddered delicately on the other side of the table.

“Remember when you said you’d had a bit of a dinosaur phase when you were a kid?” Dani directed this towards Jamie.

“... yes?”

“Well,” Dani snapped her fingers, and to their extreme horror, a parrot sized creature appeared next to her, “meet Battery!”

“—completely house trained,” she heard Dani explaining to Hannah, while she extended a hand towards (what was he called? Right) Battery. He opened his mouth, stepped closer, licked the entire length of her finger with a long, slimy tongue, and then immediately nipped at her nail.

(Jamie may or may not be helplessly charmed)

Before she could say anything, however, Miles fell from his chair onto the kitchen floor.

Rebecca sighed, got up from her chair. “You guys know there’s going to be permanent brain damage if he keeps doing that.”

*****

About three things went wrong the day Jamie decided she was finally going to tell Dani she was in love with her.

The first thing was that she needed to get drunk, and decided to trust Owen and Hannah to deliver. The second was that Battery wasn’t adequately educated in the intricacies of human weirdness and tended to panic at the first sign of strange behavior. Third, lakes weren’t the most romantic places to confess your love, but apparently nobody had told Jamie this.

So when she found herself flailing for breath after having somehow made her way to the middle of the lake in a makeshift lifeboat and then having upturned it in the process, she only had herself to blame.

“What,” Dani started, looking absolutely furious, hair all over the place as she held Jamie up, “the fuck were you doing in the middle of the lake?”

“Hey!” Jamie sang, because the alcohol was making her feel very sing-song-y, “You shouldn’t be here yet! It’s not time!”

“Battery panicked and summoned me,” Dani explained. “Are — are you drunk?”

“No, she’s not!” Hannah called out from where she and Owen had just reached the lake. “We gave her loads of strong bitter soda and convinced her it was watered down whiskey.”

(Now that she was thinking about it, the whiskey had seemed pretty fizzy for her liking)

“Oh,” she Jamie, now sobered up. “But I was drowning.”

“Yeah, in about five feet of water.”

Well, that was anticlimactic.

*****

At midnight, she sat by the lake, covered in a warm, fuzzy blanket Dani had draped all over her. Dani sat beside her, Battery on her lap, smiling at her from time to time.

“You’re such an idiot,” she said, out of nowhere, and Jamie didn’t have the heart to disagree. “What am I even going to do with you?”

“You could,” Jamie started, ponderously, like she hadn’t spent three months of her life thinking this over, like her heart wasn’t an over-excited ping-pong in her chest right now, “you could always take me out on a date, you know?”

“Really?” Dani murmured. “Well, that’s a novel idea.”

“Isn’t it?”

“Depends. Would you be okay dating someone who is almost constantly grumpy from carrying around beleaguered souls all day?”  

Jamie pretended to think. “I think so, yes.”

“Someone who regularly hangs out with a murder-friendly woman?”

“.... maybe?”

“How about someone who may have to keep going away for lengths of time?”

Jamie turned to her. “Would that someone come back to me, though?”

Dani’s eyes were shiny and hopeful, and she felt her breath get stuck in her throat like a lovesick little fool. “Always,” Dani whispered.

“Well, then,” Jamie whispered back to her, and then leaned in for the most picture-perfect happy ending of all time.

[dragonrajafanfiction]

cus i decided not to be a predictable hoe anymore, im ganna say Chime, to be a slightly less predictable hoe🤩

A Mountain Village, Somewhere in Japan

The village was nestled deep in the folds of the rolling forested hills. It was guarded by a magnificent century old Torii gate. A white stone path led to neat rows of simple rustic housing. It looked more like a tourist museum piece with little updates to the architecture. People would often visit to pray at the shrine there, for a touch of the past. However, it was home to residents, a small orphanage and a high school. There was even a basketball team and a Kendo league.

Those extra curricular activities had little to do with you however. You woke up before the sun to sweep the walks where the monks would line up to pray in their robes. You were never given more than a simple plain blue yukata with a white obi. You had sandals but only wore them running through the back trails deep in the woods to search for snails, frogs and mushrooms.

Your other pieces of clothing were your school uniform. Most girls got leered at due to some men’s disgusting fetish. But there must have been something about your lanky legs with knobby knees dotted with thick scabs from where you’d fallen on the sharp karst along the streams that turned them away. You reminded them too much of the fact that you were a young child, wild and free.

Not that it mattered. You always ran to school. You never walked. So you couldn’t see their lecherous faces anyway. Your chores gave you little time to get dressed, scarf down a bowl of rice and sprint. So you always ended up late, at the back of the class, panting with your dark hair stuck to your forehead.

At some point the teacher stopped caring. You were a nobody and nobody expected anything of you. So long as the paths were swept and you appeared as required by law, people took no responsibility for anything you did. As soon as the teacher confirmed that she would have to take no action and turned to the blackboard to drone, your eyes shifted to the young man in the corner of the room.

The morning light caught his features. His skin was white and delicate. The sun struck him and he seemed to shine like a lotus. His hair was piled up on his head and tied. He seemed to be serious and studious, but there was a gloomy look to his eyes.

You take a piece of paper, write a brief note, fold it up into a neat triangle and balance it on one corner. Then you take aim.

With a flick, the piece of paper soars in a perfect arc towards his ear. As fast as lightning, that delicate hand snatches it from the air. Without looking, he puts it under the desk.

You frown. He didn’t look at it. You write another note, glance at the teacher, wait another moment and start folding it. Just before you can take aim, your head jerks back, pulled by your hair. You turn and look and the girls behind you all sit up straight and look forward.

“Kiko! Pay attention to the board! If I catch you chatting again, you’ll get paddled!” The teacher's sharp voice made you sit up and nod obediently. You stare straight ahead. Your heartbeats become painful and the light in your eyes dull. They pull your hair again, but this time you don’t react.

Did Chime see? You glance over. He’s looking at you. His eyes are worried. You stick your tongue out at him.

“Kiko!”

The teacher stomped right up to you, grabbed you by your ear and dragged you out of class. It didn’t matter if you were old enough to drive. You were Kiko and that meant you were expendable. You don’t even bother resisting when she grabbed you by the hair as the other children had done and brought the flat wooden bar against your backside three times in quick succession.

“That’s all this time. I don’t have time to deal with you. Classes are abbreviated for the Kendo finals.”

“Why do you even bother to go? You know Chisei’s going to win. Just give him the trophy at the beginning of the year and have the others compete among themselves.” You mutter in your heart.

She gives you a shove and ushers you back into class. As soon as she’s got her back turned, you turn back to Chime to stick your tongue out again, but his face is stiff and taut. He doesn’t look at you, instead, stays focused on the blackboard, still as a stone.

The Kendo building was fairly well maintained and had regular repairs, but still couldn’t fit the capacity of every teenage girl in the village. They all piled in, still in their uniforms, hoping to get a glance, and - if they were really lucky - a smile. They all enjoyed watching him practice, shirtless, shining with sweat, like some god-child brought to life. 

But the only bigger fan than them was Chime who got there early and somehow managed to find a seat in the front row to watch his brother while you stood hopping at the entryway to see if you could even get a glimpse of him.

The Kendo instructor waved his rag and dropped it. People squeezed in in a crush to see. With your view cut off, you decide to grab the tallest man’s shirt and climb up on his shoulders. The man snarled at first, but you lean forward and press your breasts against his back to keep him quiet. You try to ignore his fingers on your thighs and focus on the performance.

Even you had to admit that there was no stronger performer than Chisei. Those rock hard muscles were perfect, like someone had carved him out of the mountains they were standing on. Yet his motions were fluid and fast like the river. He could stand and murder people right on stage and yet the people here would have no choice but to applaud his form and the arc of his flashing blade. But there were no victims here. Just a row of bamboo stalks from the forest that you had collected for this very occasion.

The judge stepped forward and bowed. Even Chisei’s bow was perfect, the loosened strands of hair falling like a curtain in front of his eyes. The girls in front of you sighed in unison and you rolled your eyes. You looked at Chime and you’re shocked to see him enraptured. A huge grin from ear-to-ear his eyes full of unshed tears.

You sigh against the man’s back and feel him shiver. But as far as you were concerned this ride was over.  You slide off his back and run away.

Behind the shrine was a well kept cemetery. You often walked here, looking at the names on the stones, wondering if one day, you’d find the names of your parents who left you here. People called you Kiko, but no one knew your real name.

You weren’t the only one who haunted these tall monuments to the dead. Chime came here too. While his brother’s performances drove him to rapture for a moment, that moment would fade as soon as he looked in a mirror. He didn’t even need a mirror. His own thoughts drove him to sadness when thinking about himself.

You first saw it when some girls were passing by and giggling about how they’d stolen one of Chisei’s shoes and he’d found them out. They would do anything for his attention. They wailed about his elegant frowning brow. Chime had looked up at them from where he sat. You saw his chest draw in, his eyes fall. He seemed smaller than before, like a darkness had fallen over him. 

No one talked about Chime. No one noticed him. He was invisible most of the time. 

But that made him just like you.

The old cherry trees lining the edges of the cemetery were older than the village. Their jagged bark pattern made a perfect foothold and you had no trouble making your way up the tree to wait. Sure enough, Chime came, walking, head down. He was no longer in his school clothes, but in the purple yukata he’d started wearing since Christmas. You watch him approach your branch and prepare to jump down in front of him.

But he stops. “Not now, Kiko.”

“How did you know I was here?” Rather than drop down, you swing upside down by your knees facing him, your hair hanging. “You know they say, turn that frown upside down but even upside down, you’re still frowning.”

“I don’t feel like it.” He steps around you and continues on.

You let out a breath but then steel yourself in determination. You unfold your knees and crash to the ground.

You hear him gasp and hear his feet hurry near you. He turns you over but your eyes are closed. You stay limp and unmoving even as you hear his panicked breathing and his voice shaking.

“Kiko!  Kiko!”

You open your eyes and look at him with a false dazed look. Again, that stricken, pained expression on his face, like he could fall to tears at any time. It was so sad, but so beautiful. “Chime… Chime is that you? Did I die?”

Instantly, that beautiful delicate expression changes to one of flat anger. “No. Why are you always playing? You’re not even a girl!”

“And you’re not even a boy!” You immediately respond.

Chime draws in a breath, like an arrow had shot through him. Instantly you regret it as he lets you go. “I have to go.” He said. “Brother’s leaving today… I need to see him off.”

“Leaving? Chisei’s leaving?” You suddenly sit up, realizing you may have gone too far, but he’s already walking off in the other direction. “Are you leaving too? Chime!”

He doesn’t look at you. He doesn’t look back.

A motorcade of dozens of black cars have blocked the entrance to the village. When you arrive, you’re just in time to see Chisei climbing inside a gigantic SUV. Watching over him were men in black trench coats, flashing the Ukiyo-E pattern in the inner lining.

Yakuza!

You stop and duck behind a pole. Not that Yakuza would care about you, a nobody… but at the same time, a nobody like you would easily be crushed like an ant with no savior. Chime was nowhere to be found.

The next day, it was raining so there was no need to sweep the paths. You get to school early to wait for Chime, but he’s not there nor was he there the day after that. After school, you hurry to look for him, passing mourning girls who missed Chisei’s shining presence in their lives. No one cared that Chime was missing.

After searching all day, you decide to wait for him at the cemetery. It didn’t matter that you didn’t go home to eat. There was no one waiting for you anyway. You rested against the cherry tree to wait, with your knee against your chest. Never in a million years did you ever think that Chime would disappear from your life. Now your heart thudded in your chest to think of his chair empty at school. What would you do? Where would you bring your focus?

Tears burned at your eyes but you resisted crying. It was no use. You just had to wait. Eventually Chime would come… eventually.

Eventually, you fell asleep with your cheek against your knees because you woke up to a strange sound. It was an owl, right above your head. Then footsteps.

Walking up the path was someone you thought could have been a ghost, they were so pale, and thin. But it wasn’t a ghost, it was Chime. Still, he seemed a husk of his former self, head down, shuffling his feet. You couldn’t see his face because his hair was out of its tie and shielded it from you.

You heard about how in the city, people could become so sad that they took their own lives. Was Chime mourning his brother? Was his brother sold off to the Yakuza to relieve some sort of blood debt?

Was Chisei dead?

Chime didn’t stop at the tree, so he didn’t notice you. He kept going until the path disappeared into the forest surrounding the village. Your heart leaped into your throat. Chime was going to hang himself? No!

You scramble to your feet and you run after him, but you’re not wearing your sandals. A sharp thorn pierces the sole of your feet and you hop on one foot, hissing. Leaning against a tree you pluck it out and in that moment, you hear voices. It sounded like a man, talking. You move more cautiously now, up the mountain path. There in a clearing, next to a stream Chime and a man in a Kabuki mask sat on pillows. He was pouring him some sort of drink and passing it to him.

You gasp a bit. Who was this person? Was it actually a person? There were many tales of yokai monsters in these woods. But no, this didn’t look like a yokai. Your eyes grow hotter as you see Chime gulp down the drink. Even from this distance, you could smell the alcohol.

As a ‘nobody’ you got to understand a lot of things early. One of the things you understood was men could not be trusted. They were disgusting perverts who preyed on the young. This man was trying to entrap Chime, and you would have none of it. You lean over and pick up a rock and toss it. It knocks against a tree.

The man sits up, looking guarded. His hand moved to his waist. “Stay here.”

As the man moved away, Chime stayed frozen. You hiss at him. “Chime! Chime!”

But he stayed still as a stone, eyes wide, like a deer.

You try again. “Chime! Run! Ru-”

A hand is grasping your mouth, squeezing it. You feel like your skin will tear, that your jaw will break. You kick, hard, for the shins, but the man doesn’t react. You see the flash of a silver blade.

“No!” Chime was there, grabbing the man’s arm. “No! She’s from school! Leave her! It’s okay!”

The man turns to him, faceless behind the mask, you can imagine that his next move will be the gut Chime where he stood. The blade flickered in the moonlight, but made no aggressive movements. He was turning it, over and over in his hand.

“What’s her name?” Even his voice was an echoey noise behind the mask, like a demon’s.

“Kiko…” Chime said meekly.

“Kiko… the street sweeper girl?”

The fact that he even knew that sent terror through your heart. He was looking at you with that unblinking white mask. You can only stare back into it.

His grip on you slowly loosens but you don’t dare run away. “Kiko... “ He says. “My mistake.”

“Who are you?” You ask with a trembling voice. Chime comes and puts his hands on your shoulders to comfort you. You turn to him. “Why aren’t you scared? Why didn’t you run?” 

“He was just telling me that Chisei’s gone to become Clan Chief. I’m… going to be kept in reserve… in case he dies. As a replacement.” 

“Clan chief?” You whisper. Then you smile. “Of course. Of course he’s a prince.”

The creepy man watched this exchange without movement, but you give the feeling that he could kill you any second and just hasn’t yet. Like he’s trying to see if you will make a mistake, or he will get bored of you and kill you out of reflex. Like a coiled snake, he would strike and you would be dead.  You keep your eye on the turning blade. “Are you going to kill me?”

The blade stopped turning and he looked at it. Then he returned it to the hidden sheath in his wide sleeves. “Do you believe in spirits?” He asked.

“Are you… a yokai?” You ask him.

He started to chuckle, his shoulders bouncing. He doesn’t answer. You imagine that at any moment his mouth would open with hundreds of jagged teeth and swallow you both alive.

“Come, come… Why don’t you join us for a drink?”

For the first time, Chime seems to look at the man with fear. “Osho… maybe… I think she’s too young.”

“So are you…”

You feel your chest tighten. So this really is one of those evil men. But if Chime’s innocence could be preserved then… “It’s okay Chime… let me go with him.”

“Brave girl…” The man snarled low in his throat approvingly, staring at you. “What are you planning in your heart? Are you armed with a dagger like I am?”

The answer was no, but he didn’t know that. Lift your chin and glare and try to stop shaking.

“Yes…” He tilted his head this way and then that and then nodded, deciding. “Yes, you… come and have a drink.”

Your legs are like heavy lead weights as you follow him. Your ears are throbbing. Your face is red. He helps you over the stream to sit on the pillow. Chime follows at a distance. His eyes are on you but he doesn’t say anything.

Osho takes the small bottle as before and pours it into the small saucer and hands it to you. It was green, made of pure jade, like glass. You can see your reflection in the pool of red liquid. You raise it to your lips and tilt it.

“Wait!” Chime dashes forward, but Osho catches him with his arm.

“You need to see…” Osho hisses, his eyes glittering behind the mask. “You need to see how very special you really are.”

You swallow but the liquid burns all the way down and bites into your stomach so hard you double over. It was as if someone had torn a hole deep in your gut. That intense pain started to flow outward into your limbs and pool in your chest. When you opened your eyes it was like the forest was on fire and its heat was too bright to see.

You hear someone screaming. Even in this hellish vision, you can see Chime, his face is hazy and distorted, having fallen to his knees, his eyes dull with sadness.

You reach for him, but your hands are covered in rigid white scales. You try to speak but what comes out sounds more like a baby’s hungry whimper. Your hair has grown long over your face.

“This is what happens when those not worthy of it drink what you do. They become worthless monsters. You however… you are something far more important.” The knife has reappeared in his hand and this time Osho approaches with deadly intent.

He grabs a fistful of your hair and pulls your head back, revealing your neck. “Thank you, Kiko…”

You wait. You wait for the cut of the blade, the splash of your blood. You wait for life to fade from your eyes. But that doesn’t happen. The pain is starting to subside, the firelight in your eyes dies down. You stop screaming.

Osho is staring, frozen. “Impossible.” He whispered. “You… Only one in 100,000 could...” 

He lets you go and rolls you over with his foot. He picks up one hand and examines it. 

You turn to Chime, finding your voice again. “Chime… run…” You manage to say.

Chime stands there, watching you. Both of you listen to Osho’s chuckle, now more gleeful than menacing. “What good Fortune. Even if my point is lost, I have even more gain!”

Osho picks you up from the forest floor. “I’m afraid our meeting will be cut short.”

“Where are you taking her?” You hear Chime say.

No… you can only cry out in your heart that this wasn’t supposed to happen. You and Chime were supposed to stay together! You don’t want to be separated from him!

“The medicine is very strong. She will need… special treatment in order to recover. Don’t worry. I will bring her back.”

“You promise?”

You feel him hold you tight, close to him. “I promise.”

That was the last you remember before waking up in the village again, this time in an unfamiliar bed. You don’t know how much time passed. All you know is Chime is there, standing over you, looking just as beautiful as before. But there’s a strange pressure, like a tightness around your head.

You reach up and feel bandages. Your hair has been cut and the bandages wrap around your head completely. “What happened?”

Chime held your hand in its gentle grip. “Osho said you had to have surgery… but… you’re alright now.”

You smile and stick your tongue out at him.

[arthurflecc]

A day at the beach

Summary: Your boyfriend Arthur had never been to the beach before. Sometimes he would see it on tv, but had never experienced it himself…until you decide to take him there.

Genre: fluff

Word count: 1,359

A/N: Not sure how distant the beach would be from where Arthur lives, but let’s suppose it’s a little distant for this fic’s sake. / Feedback would be appreciated ^^ / Requests are open!/ gif credit to @caryled​

In the cold and gray neighborhood Arthur lived in, he was used to the tall buildings, dirty alleys and loud cars. The warmth of the beach was something he could only dream of, so out of his reach. You, on the other hand, had lived by the sea most of your life. When Arthur told you he had never been to the beach before, you looked at him in disbelief. You insisted on taking him there and the excitement in his eyes was the most adorable thing you have ever seen. This is what Arthur loved the most about you and the reason why he was drawn to you. You were always up for a little adventure and turned his black and white life colorful and lively.

Some weeks later, you took the bus to the beach, leaving the excessive air and noise pollution behind. Although it was a public means of transportation, there was something very intimate about sitting together on the bus. The seats were small and you had your arms intertwined, as close as humanly possible. Arthur observed the streets for a while, pointing all the beautiful houses and trees to you along the way. You couldn't handle his cuteness and kissed him, slowly but deeply. It was so nice to kiss him like that – there was no rush and you could allow yourselves to feel at peace. Without mentioning, both of you remembered all the rides you've taken alone. The ones you cried because you felt lonely. The ones he laughed because he felt lonely. Both of your hearts felt lighter now, the kind of peace one can only find when they are at the place where they belong. And you belonged in each other’s arms.

Arriving there, Arthur had wonder all over his face. The smell of sea breeze was so different from the darkness of the smoke he was used to. The air felt fresh for the first time in forever and he took a deep breath, a rare calm moment in his rather miserable life. The water reflected the vivid blue of the sky and the sunlight drew thousands of sparks on it.

"It's like there are diamonds in it, isn't it?", you asked, excited to know his opinion about the beach.

"I have never seen anything quite this beautiful", he replied, astonished.

"I couldn't agree more", you said gazing at him. It wasn't the sea you were talking about.

In Gotham, Arthur's hair looked dark brown to you, but the sunlight painted his curls in shades of bronze there. His eyes were wide open, emerald green and bright gold, trying to absorb the newfound sight. You couldn't have possibly predicted how good it felt to be this in love with someone. You could have never predicted him.

"Look! Seashells!" He smiled at you and took you by your hand, holding it. There were some groups of friends and families in that area of the beach, and some children and tourists seemed to share his excitement about the shells.

"Why don't we pick some of them up to keep as memory?" You suggested and Arthur loved the idea. Both of you searched for the best-looking shells you could find and when you got tired, you asked Arthur to sit by the shore with you. The sun started to set and sky changed from light blue to pink and orange and it was a breathtaking view.

"Thank you." His voice was soft.

"For what?"

"For bringing me here. I don't think I'd have ever come by myself." Arthur had to do everything on his own ever since he was a teenager, but he avoided doing certain activities alone, the kind people usually do with their friends and family. He didn't need the reminder he didn't have either of those things. "I don't feel alone anymore. Does that make sense?"

"I understand what you mean." You really did. You smiled at each other with your eyes.

As the afternoon give way to the twilight, the sky looked pink and purple, and the moon started to show up. Arthur put his head on your shoulder, mesmerized by the colors. That was the calmest he had felt in years. He found a safe place in you, and indeed you'd protect him from any harm.

"Did you know the moon causes those waves?" You said, pointing at them with your free arm.

"No, really?" He sounded surprised.

"Well, that's an oversimplification but long short story, yes." The moon looked like a crystal ball, its round shape slowly getting clearer in the sky.

"Do you ever think there's life in other planets? I mean, human life?" You asked him and he felt so grateful you let him in. Nowhere else he'd be taken seriously enough to be asked such a deep question.

"I've never thought about that before." Sometimes you'd ask random things and catch him off guard, but he appreciated that you were curious about his opinions. "I guess so. It doesn't make sense for us to be the only people in the whole universe. At least I hope we aren't." He almost sounded like he was trying to comfort you by saying that. Like he wanted you to believe there were better places where people were kinder and everyone was treated and treated others equally and respectfully.

"What would you do if you saw an alien?" He laughed (a real laugh) and his reaction made you smile. There was literally nothing better in the world than seeing him happy, especially if you were the reason for that.

"You know what?" He said in a funny voice, moving his head from your shoulder and looking at you while rubbing your back, then putting his right arm around you and looking at the horizon again. "I'd run as fast as I could! I wouldn't let no damn alien catch me!"

Your laugh was music to his ears. You cupped his face with your hand and gave a long kiss on his cheek, then he kissed your forehead. You wished you could live in that moment forever.

The cozy bubble you were in was burst by a boy screaming at his siblings that their mom said it was time for them to leave.

"It's getting late." You sounded disappointed. You had completely forgotten about the time, the bus, the city.

"I don't want to go." He said more to himself than to you.

"Me neither." Well, that was a first. Before Arthur, all you wanted after a long day outside was to go back home for some alone time. Now, home was anywhere he was at.

“Why don’t we get closer to the water? Touch it with our feet?” Arthur suggested and you nodded in agreement, already taking off your shoes. He took his, you got up and held hands. You found the texture of the wet and cold sand gross, but Arthur didn’t seem to mind. When you got to the water and stepped in it at the same time, you felt as if you, Arthur, the sea, the moon, the sky and the sea breeze were all...one. You looked at him and he looked back at you, communicating with your eyes as you often did – you knew he felt the same. You closed your eyes and kissed, gently but firmly. Some things couldn’t be said with words.

-

You were neighbors and Arthur dropped you off before going to his apartment.  You got back home in the early morning, ready to take a shower and go straight to bed. On the bus, you ate sandwiches you had packed for the little trip so you weren’t hungry. When you were about to go your bedroom, you remembered the seashells were in your bag and you had completely forgotten to give them to Arthur. You took one of them and took to bed with you, holding it as if it were precious stone. You held it close to your ear, trying to listen to the sound of the ocean, but when you closed your eyes, all you could see was the reflection of the sun in his sweet eyes.

[allthebooksandcrannies]

Dana Has Enough- Chapter 2

Read on AO3

Read Ch 1 

Every once in a while, even the people you know best manage to surprise you. What Dana really ought to have remembered, however, was that no one ever said those surprises were always pleasant.  And it wasn’t just that Jack had forgotten his son’s birthday that really was so upsetting to Dana. No, the worst part was when Tim came down that morning and was obviously so unsurprised that his dad didn’t remember.

 Dana had worked so hard to give Jack the benefit of the doubt when he and Tim fought. She knew that Jack had been ashamed of not spending enough time with Tim when he was little. He had talked about it all the time during his physical therapy appointments after he woke up from the coma. Back thenm he had been so excited about all his plans to be a better father, and she had believed him. But at some point, they had grown complacent and fallen back into old patterns.

 Dana had been concerned about Tim and Jack for a while now but had stayed out of it because she wasn’t Tim’s mom. She wasn’t his parent, and it didn’t feel like her place to interfere in how Jack raised his son. But she would be damned if she let a child feel forgotten on his birthday.

Now, listening to Tim gush over some of the better photography exhibits he had seen at the museum before, but how he hadn’t had found time to see this one yet, Dana was really glad she had taken the time last night to do some last minute research into potential activities to do today.  It had been harder than she expected to find something she was confident Tim would like. She had realized she had almost no idea what Tim was interested in, what he did with his free time. It had been an embarrassing realization to come to about someone she lived with.  She had been almost ready to give up when she remembered the museum exhibit one of her college friends had posted about on Facebook the week before. She hadn’t even known that Tim had a camera like that when she decided to invite him, just remembering how obviously interested he was every time the news had anything to say about the Justice league or Gotham’s rotating roster of vigilantes.

 She needed to do better. This kid deserved it.

 She was almost disappointed when she finally pulled the car into the museum parking lot because she had never seen Tim this animated before.  He had moved on from past exhibits to some of his favorite photographers to explaining just why it was so hard to get good superhero photos, particularly of nocturnal vigilantes and why this exhibit was such a big deal, but he pulled himself up short when the car came to a stop. Dana was honestly surprised his teeth didn’t make an audible clicking sound, he shut his mouth so quickly. She turned to Tim in the passenger seat.

 “You okay, Tim?”

 He looked startled by the question, and a little sheepish too. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to talk your ear off like that.” Tim didn’t meet her eyes. That wasn’t going to work.

 “Don’t worry about it, kiddo.  I thought it was really interesting. I had no idea that so much work went into trying to photograph superheroes, especially as art.”

 “Oh, okay.” Dana didn’t think she was imagining the little smile on Tim’s face.

 “C’mon, let’s go inside.”

 ---

 Once inside the exhibit, it was like Tim forgot Dana was there, he was so focused on each piece. To Dana, they were just photos of superheroes. Really cool photos of superheroes, of course, but she was sure she was missing some deeper layers of meaning that were obvious to the more art savvy patrons around her.  She started wandering around the exhibit.

 She stopped in front of a large photo blown up in front on a massive canvas. It was obviously taken in Gotham, with a camera that probably had a great zoom feature if the subject matter was any indication.  Standing in the light of a burning building was a little girl, no more than five years old. But what really made this one standout was the man in a domino mask crouched down in front of her, a red helmet at his side and one hand offering a lollipop to the kid.

 Dana wasn’t sure what made her stand there so long.  Maybe it was how calm the child looked in front of a man that scared the majority of Gotham adults. Maybe it was the realization that the Red Hood didn’t look all that much older than Tim. Practically a child himself. Dana stood there, just staring at those two children until she heard a quiet click beside her.

 Startled, she looked to the side at the child next to her. Tim was focused on the camera screen, probably reviewing the photo he snuck, until he met her gaze with a crooked grin. “Sorry.” Something told Dana he wasn’t really that sorry. “I just really wanted to capture the look on your face.”

 Dana rolled her eyes playfully. “Well, on that not-at-all creepy note I’m going to go look at some other photos.” Tim acquiesced. And she left him focused on the Red Hood with a strange expression of his own on his face.

 Thinking she ought to let Tim enjoy the exhibit for a minute, she decided to swing by the giftshop. After all, at this point she could practically guarantee Jack hadn’t gotten the kid anything. Maybe they’d have something he’d like.  

 ---

 About five minutes later, Dana was incredibly frustrated. Why was everything so gimmicky? Almost everything in here was so obviously touristy, which, honestly, was patently ridiculous. What tourists were coming to Gotham. That’s what Metropolis was for.

 Then she saw it. Yes, that would be perfect.

 ---

 If Tim had questions about what was in the plastic bag with the GMA’s logo on it when Dana rejoined him, he didn’t ask them. Honestly, that was probably a symptom of a bigger problem, but Dana was going to leave that for another day.  

 Instead she just stood next to Tim as he examined the info tag next to a photo of Nightwing mid-backflip from one roof to another while Robin jumped after him with significantly less fanfare.

 ---

 We really should do this more often, Dana thought as she watched Tim wave his hands around, sweeping gestures helping him tell some story about his friend Cassie trying to walk him and two other boys through her mother’s brownie recipe and it going terribly, terribly wrong.  

 Tim was actually a pretty good story teller once you got him going, and he seemed to relish the opportunity to talk about his friends to someone who didn’t know them. She had already gotten a thirty minute lecture on what made each of them so great and so exasperating, and Dana had had to hide her smile in her burger when he spent more time than he had on both Bart and Cassie combined on describing this Connor. The obliviousness here was probably the universe’s way of balancing out Tim’s genius because wow was Dana realizing just how brilliant this kid was.  She had always known he was smart but it broke her heart to think that she had been missing so much of who this kid was for so long.

 She wondered whether playboy Bruce Wayne realized just how wonderful Tim was. If the Waynes had always known Tim better than his actual family. If the way Tim talked about them was any indication, they probably did.  She wondered if Tim would rather still be living with them. If he had ever let himself ask that question.

 But if he didn’t want to go there, Dana wasn’t going to make him.

 “So, were you able to get the mix off the ceiling?”

 Dana was quickly learning not to trust Tim’s “innocent” expression.

 “Of course we did,” he grinned, “just not before it dripped all in Dick’s hair.”  If Dick Grayson ever asked, Dana most certainly did not laugh so hard she choked on a french fry.

 ---

 When Tim tentatively asked if Dana would like to come to dinner at Wayne Manor with him as she dropped him off to meet up with his friends, she was far more hesitant to accept than she would have been even a day before.  On the one hand, it was Wayne Manor. No one got a private invitation to Wayne Manor, and she had been curious about these people that had taken Tim in for so long. But, she couldn’t help but feel like she’d be an intruder. Against her better judgment, she said yes.

 ---

 It was strange to go to dinner somewhere without Jack. She really needed to get out more, regardless of how Jack felt.  She tried to suppress the feeling of not belonging as she fiddled with the hem of her two-year-old blouse as she waited in front of the ornate wooden door. As she squeezed the painstakingly wrapped package in her arms, she tried to bring in a deep breath. This was fine. Everything was fine. Tim had asked her here, hadn’t he? Of course, he may have only been trying to be polite…

 She wasn’t able to go any farther down that path, however, before the door was unceremoniously yanked open to reveal Tim grinning straight at her. When did he get so tall?

 “Dana! You made it!” He didn’t ask where Jack was, which was good because Dana didn’t want to tell Tim his dad was sulking because Dana refused to try to comfort him in his guilt over forgetting his sons birthday again. Shaking unpleasant thoughts out of her head Dana grinned straight back, handing Tim the gift she had bought that afternoon.

 “Of course, I did! You didn’t think I’d miss Mr. Pennyworth’s cooking after hearing you talk it up all day?” Mentioning Alfred Pennyworth was apparently the right call because it clearly reminded Tim that he was supposed to step away from the door if he wanted her to be able to come in and he quickly backed up, present in hand.

 Dana followed him into the house, and then towards what could only be described as a cacophony of noise.  Several voices were busy talking over each other even though she couldn’t make out any of the words. Tim seemed quite amused by her trepidation to actually walk through the door to the dining room. Rude.

 ---

 The introductions hadn’t been nearly as awkward as she’d feared. Granted, she’d gotten appraising looks from just about everyone in the room and it had gotten a little tense, but everyone had been polite. Dana had been guided to a spot to the left of Mr. Wayne’s seat at the head of the table and directly across from Mr. Pennyworth, and she had to admit that neither of them had really been what she expected.  

 Pennyworth had waited to join them until after he had brought out the meal, and it was some of the best food she had ever tasted by far.  He was also hilarious, which was the unexpected bit. Dana had been prepared for a formal British gentleman, and he was that. But Dana had not been ready to watch him sass the richest man in Gotham twice in the first ten minutes of the meal. She now understood why Tim said Alfred was really the one in charge.

 Meanwhile, Mr. “Call me Bruce, Dana, I insist!” Wayne was unerringly polite, but there was a quiet sort of intensity about him that was not apparent in the stories told in the society pages. If there wasn’t so much blatant fondness on his face when he glanced at the playfully arguing kids at the other end of the table, she might’ve called him intimidating.

 The kids, on the other hand, were everything Tim had said they were, and Dana couldn’t be happier. Dick Grayson had been mercilessly teasing Tim and the other chattering kids, perfectly playing the embarrassing older brother while making sure that no one was left out or overly picked on. As for the other children, she had also been introduced to the infamous Cassie, Bart and Connor she’d heard so much about at lunch followed by a purple-clad blonde. Tim’s cheeks had been bright pink when he’d introduced Stephanie as his girlfriend. Interesting…

 Dana didn’t really know where she fit into the clearly well-established dynamic of the group, but that was okay. She was here to make sure that Tim had people in his life who understood just how special he was, and these people seemed to understand that even better than Dana. Again, today was one humbling experience after another.

 ---

 Dana was embarrassingly nervous when Tim picked up her gift last.  Everyone else’s gifts had seemed so meaningful, and there had been a plethora of inside jokes involved. Plus, she had the uncomfortable feeling that everyone was treating this as a sort of test, to see if she really deserved to be here, to be around someone like Tim, and were waiting to find her wanting. Maybe she was being ridiculous, but damn if her heart wasn’t pounding anyway.

 Tim opened the present slowly, to the consternation of the red-headed kid, Bart her mind supplied, who let out a comically loud groan of impatience.  Finally, Tim pealed the last of the tape back and unfolded the last of the paper, pulling out the book within.

 Dana felt the room go still as he opened it up to the middle, allowing the rest of the room to see the cover.  It seemed like everyone turned to look at her in perfect unison, and she was hit with the impression that she had made a serious mistake.

 “I just- You were talking about how hard it was to find good photos of the Gotham vigilantes, so…”

 When Dana had seen the book claiming to be a compilation of the best photos of all of the Bats, she had figured he might appreciate it. She’d seen the batman and robin pins on his backpack after all. But the way everyone was looking at her, she was beginning to wonder if she had made a mistake, that is until… 

“Well,” drawled Dick Grayson. “Timmy does love his Batman pictures.” And the room dissolved into laughter at a joke Dana didn’t understand. All of a sudden, everyone was talking over each other, telling various Tim stories, as the boy in question carefully paged through the book in silence. He paused for a long time on a recent image of Robin and Spoiler flying overhead.  

No, Dana thought with a smile, she might not understand all of the inside jokes, but she understood the silent thank you Tim sent over everyone else’s heads just fine, and that was enough for her.

[hs-devote]

14. O L D   M E M O R I E S 

Moodboard // Content // Masterlist

Disclaimer:

All characters and situation in this story are fictitious. Resemblance to any person living or dead is only God knows.

Previous chapter ;

“I’ve been received some unknown messages in the last few days.” Harry showed his phone to his lawyer, “And I’m sure its Dale. Who else if not him? He’s the one who currently starting a war with me. The messages always come from different numbers. I didn’t delete them. Every time I tried to call, it would pass through voice mail or the number is no longer active.”

14. OLD MEMORIES

“Is this the restaurant that they mean? We didn't get the wrong address, right?”

Brenda murmured, “Of course not, honey. They said a french restaurant in The Dorchester. And this is the only french in here.”

Calvin and Brenda, Y/N's parents, were in London to visit their daughter. Before they return to Swansea tomorrow, Harry invited them to a dinner at a fancy restaurant in Mayfair. It would be the first time they meet – especially for Calvin, and maybe get to know each other more closely. For the past three days they had stayed at Y/N's apartment, Harry didn't have the chance to meet them since he was busy with work.

“This looks so expensive,” Calvin murmured, his eyes looked around. The restaurant interior was dominated by silver and golden colour creating a rich impression. The glimmering dangling chandelier and crystal caught his attention, with the strains of the melodious violin, everything was lavish.

The waiters looked professionally with their uniform, back and forth serving their guests, making sure everything was served perfectly. The delicious aroma of food was very tempting, made them almost drool. Everything looked perfect. No wonder this restaurant collected Michelin stars.

“I know.” Brenda smiled, “Don't worry, I'm sure they will pay the bills if that's what you're worried about.”

“We can also have a nice lunch or dinner here but you won't get any gift for your birthday.”

Brenda just rolled her eyes, before pulling her husband's wrist looking for a private section. Since the couple told her their table was separated from the public one, Brenda had a little trouble to find them. Fortunately, a staff came approached them politely and offered help to escort them to the private area.

Harry was the first one who noticed their arrival. He rose from his chair to greet them first, and politely accepted a hug from his girlfriend's mother, before shaking Calvin's hand afterwards. Y/N introduced them all then let Harry pulled the chairs for both of her parents.

“You look handsome as always, Harry.” Brenda winked, “It's nice to meet you again.”

Harry smiled softly, “Thank you. I was ecstatic when I heard you and Mr Y/L/N would come to visit Y/N.”

“Calvin took his leave for a few days and I told him why we don't visit Y/N? And maybe visit her brother too. So, here we are.” Brenda waved her hand playfully, “This place is amazing, anyway.”

In the beginning, Calvin didn't talk much. He let his wife talk with his daughter's boyfriend. Meanwhile, Y/N was rather anxious because Calvin was pretty hard to start a conversation if people didn't know him well. Just like when she brought Elliott, her previous boyfriend, home and introduced them both.

It was obvious for everyone that Harry was charming and easy to talk to. And that was he used. Slowly but careful, he started having a conversation with Calvin. Looking for topics that could keep them in talk. Capturing a mother's heart was an easy task for him, but when it came to a father, he must be careful.

The conversation kept going until the waiters came to bring their dinner. From that time he knew the bond between his girlfriend and her parents was very strong and they had a healthy relationship. It's nice to see the parents were so supportive of their children. Harry was a little jealous for a slight moment because they both were so lovingly towards his lover, unlike him who was hated by his own biological father. But, he was grateful because that was the way it made him now. He wouldn't know if he would meet his Y/N if he wasn't a Styles.

While enjoying the food, Harry and her parents were more engaging in the conversation since Y/N allowed them to get to know Harry better. She knew her mother love him already, but it was a bit difficult when coming from her father.

She was quite surprised. Because in the end, her father seemed impressed with Harry.  She could tell from the first her father had a conversation with him. She didn't know why but Calvin always gave a hard impression when meeting his children's lovers and wasn't easy to impress him. And Harry was the first who could make him soft in one meeting. Not because he treated them in an expensive restaurant, her father wasn't that kind of person. She admitted Harry had the charisma and this charm that people easily melted with.

“I remember Brenda said that you're more handsome than me when I was young. And she never shut her mouth close for that.” Calvin said after sipping his wine, “And I can see, why.”

“You're embarrassing me.” Brenda laughed, “But, it's true! If you want to visit us someday, Harry. I'll show you a photo of him when he was a teenager!”

“I would love to.” Harry smiled, “I ber they’re lovely.”

“Swansea may not be as fancy as London but you'll love it. Trust me.” Calvin nodded, “Have you ever been to Wales before?”

“I've been there a couples time for business.” Harry answered, “Next time I'll try to visit as a tourist.”

Y/N couldn't remember the last time she had a long conversation with her parents. She loved the way Harry kept the conversation going among them. Being the person who easily started the talk, made her parents – especially Calvin, engaging effortlessly. They called it a day when she realised it was getting late and her parents had to leave early in the morning. Being the gentlemen he was, Harry offered a ride for them. There was no way he could take Y/N home while her parents left alone.

It was half the ride when Calvin had been watching Y/N sitting in the passenger seat next to Harry who was driving. Maybe the two of them forgot her parents were in the back and they were in their own conversation. Neither Calvin nor Brenda spoke, leaving the young couple preoccupied with themselves. Chuckles and giggles were here and there when Y/N played with Harry's free hand, spinning his rings there or tried to peeling Harry's coated nails. Calvin didn't even aware Harry was wearing nail polish during the dinner.

“They're so cute,” Brenda leaned in – whispering to her husband's ear, “I remember when we were young, so in love.”

“Do you think so?” he mumbled. His eyes sometimes looking in their direction. When Harry had just released his hand from the gear, Y/N had pulled them back to her. He could hear Harry saying what are you doing while wiggling his hand.

“Of course, they are! You can see from the way they're looking at each other.” She scoffed, “Your daughter has grown up.”

Despite he hated to admit it, Calvin could see it all clearly. When they were staring at each other, he saw the spark between them that was hard to explain, but he knew what it was. He was so preoccupied with his own thoughts that he didn't realise they had arrived in front of her daughter's apartment building.

“You guys can go in first. I want to talk with Harry for a bit.” Y/N said with head turning back to look at her parents. Both of Brenda and Calvin nodded, not forget to thank Harry before getting out of the car.

“Thank you for dinner. I could say that my parents really enjoyed it.” She continued after they were alone, “Connor texted me that he hated me because I didn't invite him tonight.”

Harry cackled, “Maybe one day we should treat him a nice lunch or dinner. I've never met him, anyway.”

“Sure. Or maybe we can surprise him by coming to his birthday. He always had a party with his friends.” Y/N frowned, “Usually in the club or he threw a small party at his apartment like a frat night. But, I never came because it was really a frat party.”

“Sounds fun,” he frowned, “I’m being curious.”

There was a pregnant pause before Harry grabbed her small hands to him, he didn't know what she wanted to talk about because at this time both of them didn't say anything.

His hands played with her dainty fingers, comparing their palms together. He laughed over how her hands were so small to his big one. His fingers pinching every tip of her fingers, his thumb running up and down her knuckles up and down.

“Didn't you say earlier you want to talk to me?” he hummed, “Why are your hands so small?”

Y/N rolled her eyes, “Because you're a giant. And no, I don't really want to talk about something. I just want to enjoy some time with you.”

“Ooh, my girlfriend misses me huh?” he teased, hands still playing with hers. “I'm always here, darling.”

“Yes, I do. Come here, give me a hug!”

Harry grinned before taking his girlfriend to his embrace, wrapping her body with his arms. He didn't know why Y/N had become clingy like this, yet he wasn't lying if he liked it.

“You're so warm,” she snuggled deeper into his neck, “and soft.”

“And you're so small.”

“Because you're a gigantic, H.” She snorted, “You're tall like a giraffe and big like an elephant.”

“Heyy!” he whined, “But, I'm your giraffe.”

Y/N chuckled while her hand gently scratched his ears softly, “Hmm, definitely.”

“Don't squeeze my earlobe!” he warned, his nose stuck to the top of her head, inhaling the remaining fragrance of her shampoo. One that he liked when being close to her was to smell her hair albeit it had been hours since she washed it; still smelt good like she just washed. Not to forget to say her hair and neck were his favourites spot to smell.

“Your hair is getting long.” She spoke while tucking his curls behind his ear, “It's very fluffy.”

“Should I get a haircut?”

Harry felt she was shaking her head, frowning when he didn't catch what Y/N was talking about because she talked in his neck. He could feel her lips move against his skin.

“Louder baby, I can't hear you when you muffled your voice in my neck.”

“It's your hair so it's your choice.” She shrugged, “But, don't trim your curls. I love it against my skin, so soft.”

“I know. You love a little hair touching you down there.”

“Harry!” she swatted his shoulder, detached her body from his. She snorted knowing Harry was holding back his laughter.

“I'm joking, baby.”

“Whatever,” she sighed, “Well, I should get inside before my parents get suspicious. I have to get up early tomorrow to take them to the Paddington.”

“Okay then. Good night, darling.” “Good night, H.”

Both of them leaned into sharing a quick kiss on the lips before Y/N climbed out of the car. Waving to her, Harry watched her get inside before turning the steering wheel to his penthouse. . . . .

It had been two weeks since his lawyer taking care of the unknown messages, and Harry still received the messages every day. Of course, he was pissed why his lawyer couldn't take care of it quickly. The reduction in clients also made his emotions unstable. If in the morning he was so sweet and nice, later in the afternoon he would change drastically. Even the directors were also being his aim if they reported something unpleasant to him. In the end, it was Y/N who tried to intercede for them.

“I'm sorry Maxwell.” Y/N smiled apologetically after one of their directors was scolded by Harry. The man just smiled understandably before excusing himself. She rolled her eyes while closing the door, and turned to face Harry who was staring at her.

She shook her head with her arms folded, “You can't just scold people like that. He did nothing wrong.”

Harry straightened his body, his head tilted to the side while his fingers interlocked on the desk. “I don't like what he just said earlier.”

“Still,” she shook her head, “This world isn't always whatever you like, Marcel.”

“Who?”

“Marcel. You're Marcel.”

Harry arched his eyebrow, “I don't know what you're talking about, darling.”

Y/N stepped closer and slowly pulled the vacant chair in front of Harry's desk. She ventured herself to look into the eyes that had been staring at her. The darker eyes which she didn't recognise, but she had to. She didn't find Harry there. Just someone she didn’t knew, was borrowing her boyfriend’s place and act up at will.

“Don't lie to me.” She deadpanned, “I can recognise you, Marcel.”

She had recognised him since Harry began to raise his tone and speaking much faster. At that moment, she was also aware that the eyes weren't bright like usual. From that moment, she knew that Marcel who was with her.

Harry, or Marcel smiled widely before shaking his head, hands clapping for her. He looked at the woman in front of him while leaning his back against the chair, “No wonder why Harry likes you. You're not easy to be fooled.”

“Well then, smart lady. Now, I'm here. What do you want?” he continued.

“Can you be more civil? No need to scold people if there are a few things you don't like. You make Harry look bad in the eyes of others.”

“But that makes him respected by people, right?” he frowned, his dark eyes stared straight to her. He grinned when Y/N didn't answer him.

“I know you both can't be separated. Does Harry ever bother you? So, please help him.” She sighed, “You can be angry with the right person. But, don't do that to innocent people.”

“Maybe Harry doesn't tell you, darling. But, I'm here to help him become a tougher person. He can't just give up. He can't.. and I won't let him being underestimated by everyone. I won't let people do that to me. You should know that.” Marcel scoffed, “It's enough for us to have a bad past. It's time for the future to bow to me.”

“I understand your feelings, Marcel.” Y/N whispered, “But, please... It won't end if you still like this.”

She flinched when Marcel hit the desk, made it shaking until some books fell. Y/N cursed herself for saying such things like that, and now her guts shrank. Carefully, she peeked at Marcel’s face. The man looked even more furious, his expression was so different. For a second, she couldn’t believe this man was Harry, yet it was the truth.

“Don't dare to talk if you don't know anything, Y/N.” He growled, “You're lucky you have Harry to protect you, if not, you're the one who I'll throw with a book to.”

Her shoulder slumped as she exhaled. With unsteady steps, she left Marcel who was still sitting on in his chair without saying any words. Her steps stopped when she opened the door. She looked back ��� staring at Marcel from her shoulder.

“Don't forget to take the medicine, Harry.” . . . .

Y/N began to worry because Marcel became more frequent. She had tried to talk with Harry, but it seemed that his emotions were all over the place making it difficult for him to balance himself. There had been small progress regarding the messages although Harry or Marcel was annoyed because the process wasn't fast as he wanted.

Now, seeing Harry bickering all day wasn't strange to her and the employees. They knew their clients were dropping like flies while Y/N  tried to keep Harry from yelling to all employees.

“What is he doing right now?!” he growled while staring at the few people in front of him with a distressed look. Harry was infuriated, but he kept his composure so Marcel wouldn't switch place with him right now. He couldn't let people see Marcel took over his place right in front of their eyes, enough for him to let Marcel use his body to release his anger.

Y/N who sat on his right side could only pinch her temple while shaking her head; exhausted with several cases that hit Erskine and Harry. Later that afternoon, she was told that both Harry's and Erskine's lawyers, would come to the office because there was new news surfaced, and the outcome would be far more critical.

“It’s not about Dale,”  Allen slowly shifting his iPad for Harry to look over the screen, “You won't like this, Harry. This just spread wide this morning. And some online news sites already contained the article.”

Flexing his jaw, his ringed finger taking the iPad unsurely. Exchanging the look with his lawyer, Harry began to look at the screen. First, he didn’t quite understand what was going to unfold before him. After a few seconds, his eyes widened, forehead frowning deeply. Meanwhile, Y/N kept watching Harry's expression while he saw something that she could say; terrible. His face turned pale with lips slightly parted. He quickly pushed back the iPad not long after, both his hands rubbing his face in wroth. He took a deep breath while biting his lips, he wanted to explode right now but he couldn't. Deep down inside his heart, he was trying to calm himself down if he didn't want Marcel yell at them.

“Who spread the video?”

“The Sun, BuzzFeed, and DailyMail so far.”

“Sue them.” Harry ordered after one of Erskine's legal team spoke, “Sue whoever spreads the video, no matter who. And find the woman in the video.”

Y/N furrowed her eyebrows when she heard the word woman came out from his mouth. What happened? What video was that?

“I'll call you later.” He said when both his lawyer and Erskine's said nothing. Both Mr Jones and Mr Darmot who were the legal team of Erskine nodded before excusing themselves. He promised them to send email regarding that matter.

“Is there any progress upon your investigation about the messages?”

“Your assumption is right, Harry. Dale Jespersen indeed is the culprit. We have gathered the evidence and will immediately report this to the police.” Allen answered, “But, he didn't do that alone.”

Harry scoffed, “Of course, he did. I also won't be surprised if he did that with an insider.”

“All right. I'll file the documents tomorrow and I'll tell you afterwards. But, I'm sure he will pay the fines instead of having to make this case running long.”

“Right then, I'll text you later regarding the video.”

Harry let out a huff of air after Allen leaving his office. His head tilted back with eyes looking at the ceiling, his thumb and index finger pinching his nose bridge. If he had aware, Y/N paid attention to every his gestures. She didn't know who was there. He looked calmer and had a balance to control his emotions.

“May I ask you something?”

He lowered his head, didn't aware that his girlfriend had been there the whole time. She made no sound during the meeting making him forget about her presence. Before he answered, he looked at her carefully. He read her facial expression; she looked confused yet curious.

“Why are you being formal like that?”

“Because I don't know who you are.”

Harry chuckled at that, “I'm Harry. Your Harry.”

She squinted her eyes, before pushing her chair closer to Harry. Now, only the two of them in the meeting room that had almost all the walls were glass. She must be careful if anyone passed by. Y/N grabbed his face with her palms, look closer at his face.

“Yes, you're H.” she hummed and let go of his face.

“I'm sorry if Marcel was too often here. I was mad and weak at the same time so he took the opportunity.” He shrugged, “So, what do you want to ask?”

“About what we talked earlier,” she started, “What video were you talking about? You were pale when you saw the video. But, I'm weird seeing you look calmer.”

“I don't know, honestly. I was furious, yes. But, there was a feeling I should try to be calmer. Maybe because I've rested a lot, so I could be stronger to defend myself from Marcel.”

She didn't want to go further than that, who knows Marcel will appear if she kept asking for him. This was quite surprising because it wasn't Marcel there, but Harry. Harry was the one who growled, not Marcel. She was glad, at least he could balance his temper earlier and not let his shadow be there. This was a good step for him, of course.

“You haven't answered my first question, H.” asked her, “What's wrong with the video?”

“Harry?” she demanded when he said nothing. Y/N was getting suspicious that there was something he didn't want to say. She might not ask, yet from the way he reacted earlier, it was something serious.

“I actually don't want to talk about this to you. Yet, I'm sure when you exit this room, you'll know the answer from the internet. And I don't want you to know from others.” He emitted a rough breath, reluctant to talk about this since it was a disgrace of his past.

“Is that.. That bad?”

“Very.”

“Should I be worry?”

“Of course.”

She frowned. What did happen? Was the situation getting worse?

“Allen and the Erskine's legal team came with a video that's now widely spread in the public. If you heard, some online media had to post the video and articles about that. The video happened a long time ago when I was in university for my bachelor's degree.” He sighed, “I don't know what to say at this moment. I'm ashamed and don't know what to do.”

Y/N thought with the worst possibility. What students would do when they were in university and chose to record it? Doing drugs? Made a racist comment? Insulting the government?

“Well, the video is a sex tape of me and my girlfriend at that moment. I think it was in our second year.”

“Pardon?” she frowned deeply when hearing his explanation. She didn't expect that kind of answer to come out from his mouth. A sex tape? Really?

“I know, I know it's bad.” He winced, “The video itself is bad, I admit. But, it's not like the videos in PornHub I swear.”

She was speechless – didn't know how to react. Her brain was thinking hard right now. Her eyes now shifted to the table in front of her, yet the stare was blank. She respired hardly while leaning her back against the leather chair. A sex tape should be personal documentation if they chose to record it, not be a public consumption. But who was spreading it out? Harry couldn't possibly keep that and he wouldn't be that careless. Could it be his ex-girlfriend?

Hold on.

This would be a new problem not only for Harry, but for Erskine too. She couldn’t understand the few problems that he faced now. All started from his arrest some time ago. She hadn’t realised that she had been in reverie too long when Harry called her name several times.

“May I see the video?” her hoarse voice filled with uncertainty. She wanted to see the video but she doubted if she could bear to see it. She wasn’t sure of the request she had just said. Her mind was confused and bothered by the fact that her boyfriend once recorded his sexual activity. In all sudden, she remembered Victoria’s word.

The woman was right. He did record his intercourse with a former girlfriend, yet she didn’t know if he always used to do that. She couldn’t jump into conclusion yet, and she couldn’t prevent what had happened in the past. In his past.

“I don’t have them on me but I can ask Allen to send me right now.” He murmured, “But, are you sure? I can’t even let my eyes to watch them twice.”

Y/N knew his worries. He didn’t want that thing to ruin their relationship – again. Enough for her with Marcel, he didn’t want to drag her to his past problems. But, this was the consequences. If you’ve been dating someone, you would definitely also get into their past. Like it or not.

“I have to see it so I can anticipate the impact that will come, H. The public will know and so with the clients since it has published with some media. At least we have to plan something to overcome it.” She halted, “I won’t judge you, H. I’m not blaming you and your past over the sex tape, which I regret why your ex-girlfriend could be so careless to let it leak to the public.”

“Why do you believe she was the one who leaks it?”

“I just think one of you both kept it and I believe you’re not the one. It could be her, or maybe she shared the video with someone else. I don’t know.”

“And you’re accusing her.”

“Excuse me, Harry?” she stared him in disbelieve. Harry just pointed her of accusing his ex-girlfriend when she didn’t. She just talked about possibilities. She trusted Harry more than anyone. She only remembered the words of Victoria who began to eat her trust.

“First of all, I’m not accusing your ex-girlfriend. And the second, I don’t want to argue with you and make you angry so that Marcel who I’ll face – nope.” Y/N stressed her words, “Just let me watch your sex tape so I know what to do.”

“Because, H. I’m exhausted of Marcel so I want him not to take over your body again at this critical moment.”

Harry didn’t say anything, he just immediately called Allen to send the video. When they received the record, she asked him to watch it together even though Harry quickly refused in the beginning, He felt extremely embarrassed by his behaviour at the time. The tape was five minutes long and it was intense. Harry didn’t show his genital but the woman's bare chest was everywhere. Yes, their entire body wasn’t exposed but it still made her uncomfortable. They seemed to enjoy it very much and no doubt or worry was shown when the recording was made. She could clearly identify Harry right away and the lady was pretty. Y/N felt she had seen the woman somewhere but she couldn't put a finger on it. He was rocking the woman so hard made the headboard banging loudly against the wall. Their naked top was on display but the duvet covered them from his waist until down. They were so loud made she could feel their intensity. It all made sense when Allen muted the sound when Harry watched it because their moans were quite embarrassing. She shoved his mobile phone away when the tape reached its end.

“I don't know what to say.” She shook her head, “Delete that shit right away. We don’t know if someone can hack your phone and make it look like you own that.”

“I’m sorry if you feel uncomfortable. I promise to work it out.” He pledged, “But please don’t think another way on me. I’m already exhausted of all this shit and I want you by my side to support me.”

Harry was scared if she would leave him. Hell, he even worried if she would change the way she looked at him. He was reckless and naughty back in his younger year. He was just like any other teenager who liked to try new things but he hadn’t thought the consequences would go this far. He didn’t expect the sex tape would be a backfire for him.

“That shit is disgusting, I can’t lie.” She squinted her eyes, “It was your past that can’t be changed, H. What we can do is stop the video’s spreading and think of you, and Erskine. I just have this feeling in my guts tomorrow we’ll have some phone calls from the clients.” She paused, then looking at him with inexplicable gaze, “I’m sorry if I sound selfish – always talking about the company. But, that what we must do as soon as possible so all the possibilities that will maybe happen can be prevented. I want us to figure it out together instead of having a screaming Marcel.”

“I understand.” He sighed, “I know Marcel wouldn’t help for any situation like this. All he would do is yelling and blaming everyone.”

She nodded, “Okay then. What should I do?”

For a little awhile, Harry didn’t utter a word. Many things were spinning in his head right now. His soul and mind were torn apart, and it made him uncomfortable. He couldn’t stop thinking about everything. In the silence, he glanced a little at Y/N, seeing his lover seemed busy with her own daydream. Her face looked gloomy and burdened, the twinkle in her eyes dimmed. Harry was sad, it was all caused by him.

When Harry cursed his folly, Y/N was thinking. After all of this, then what would happen?

She won’t lie, she would be reminded of the tape every time she saw Harry albeit it was only a faint memory. She didn’t sure, would this make them stronger? Or?

Her boyfriend had a lot of unexpected things, and Y/N didn’t know if she’d always going to be up for it.

All she knew, her heart would always open to all the flaws that Harry had.

No matter what.

She hoped. . . Please excuse some errors Talk to me :)

[galaxyshine24-7]

Nellie Zumwalt🤠

(American)

Name: Nellie Beau Zumwalt

Age: 28

Languages: English, German, Spanish, etc

Job: The owner of Beauregard Ranch

Likes: Animals, Farm Life, The South, Music, Horse Riding, Radios, Guitars

Dislikes: Overconfident people, Snobs, Rudeness, Disrespect, Laziness, Bad Deeds

Pets: The Farm animals, has a Cow named Bessie, Takes in Strays

Height: 6’0

Beauregard Ranch

Beauregard Ranch was founded during the Wild West era. People traveling to and fro one day a man from Germany came from across the seas to establish a ranch of his own and get away from his troubled home life His name was Adalric Zumwalt . After he landed in America he traveled by train to a charming town in the south. However, unknowing to him a gang of outlaws called the White Pistol gang, planned on robbing the train, and robbed them they did. Adalric stood up to them and that impressed them greatly. They took the man and brought him to their leader. Magnolia Beauregard and runaway slave that has been sweeping the Wild West and making people cower in fear of her presents. Adalric amused her greatly and she took him on a Wild Ride through the West. A few years later he and Magnolia fell in love and then the gang settled in his small town in the south. The outlaws protected the citizens from forces with evil intent and in return they were offered protection and a place to settle down.

Magnolia and Adarlic built the ranch from the ground up and planted crops, owned animals, and bred horses. They named it Beauregard farms and spent their lives there having many children and overseeing the town.

But like all families they had their secrets. In the times when Magnolia was under a master she learned many things from that time. The master’s wife was a cruel woman to the slaves and it was always her master that calmed her down. Her master was an archaeologist and collected and sold many treasures, he taught her to read and write. One such treasure came with a great cost. Said to be taken from an ancient site in Mexico was the blade of death. Many stories have been made about this blade, but the master wasn’t one for superstitions.

And the night he brought it home and put it on display his wife killed him with it after he brought up divorce. Magnolia walked in seeing the body of him on the floor. The wife lunged at her screaming, letting out a viscous laughter at Magnolia who fought her to the death holding the blade in her hands. All bloody and bruised, she took the horses and the rest of the slaves with her, and took the prized white pistol of her former master’s home. That’s how it all started, but Magnolia knew the blade wasn’t something for her to use. She made sure to hide it under the floors of their Ranch home and told all her children the story and they told their children the story about how dangerous it is.

Decades later Velvet Beauregard, a descendant of Magnolia got married with a nice man and they settled on the Ranch, her being the heir. However before her marriage she cheated on her fiancé and hoped to cover it up and say the baby was her husband's child. It worked for a time but when the baby was born and started growing she could see the resemblance to the other man, and her guilt started to sink in heavily. With desperation she remembered the blade downstairs and where it was hidden and decided to stage an attack telling her husband they were going into town, but she stayed in the farm's wide crop fields slashing up her body and then killing her child stabbing her repeatedly. Unknowing to her these actions caused an uproar from the force at hand and Velvet paid for her crimes as her own life was taken in a bloody mess.

The town searched day and night when she didn’t return home. The cries of the child brought back to life were heard and Velvet’s former husband took in the child. While the remains of his cheating wife rotted in front of him and the blade laying right next to her.

Ever since then the family has been cursed, and the spirit of death chooses a member every 50 years to be a vessel and bring death upon the land.

Background:

Nellie Beauregard Zumwalt was born on a sunny day as the Magnolia’s bloomed. She was born in the house mansion by her father who was a doctor. She was the oldest out of five children and the heir to the Estate. Ever since she was young Nellie has always been strange, staring off into space or talking to people who aren't there. However it was never very concerning as she grew up so her parents left it alone.

Nellie grew up around a caring and close knit community who took care of each other, and did it without a second thought. The town grew popular with its charm and activities with its famous radios and house races. It's also home to good schools and a safe place to raise a family.

Nellie would stay in the town for most of her life becoming a popular figure with her horse riding trophies and her help around the town. She went to college for agriculture with a minor for the arts. It wasn’t until she turned 25 did something strange start to happen to her.

It was on a chilly day in October and the town was covered in autumn leaves. The town was getting ready for the biggest harvest yet. There were lots of tourists and haunted houses as the town got to work to collect the harvest before the winter. Nellie was in the field picking pumpkins with some of her nieces and nephews. She helped place them on the wheelbarrow as they walked through the fields looking over the crops getting collected, when they got to the house one of her brothers walked up to her.

“We got a few trouble makers on the tours and they destroyed a good patch of pumpkins.” He tells her. Now Nellie is good at handling her emotions; her temper is something she has been able to control for a long time. She told her nieces and nephews to get ready for dinner.

“Okay tell me what happened.” She asks once the children are gone. Her brothers explains how the troublemakers were just causing problems throughout the tours and then lead to one of Nellie’s sisters to punch one out that then resulted in the pumpkins getting crushed.

“We need to get them to pay for it.” Nellie suggests.

“They threw about a thousand dollars at us.” He shrugs. “Then went into town, probably causing even more trouble.” He rubs his temple. Something didn’t sit right with Nellie as she nodded. Great so rich pricks that think they can walk all over everyone. It only made her blood boil.

“Okay just keep an eye out so they don’t come back.” As she said that a wave of nausea watches over her and she imminently needs to go lay down. Her brother helps her to the master bedroom and tells the others to let her rest.

In the middle of the night she awoke with heightened senses and an itch to head downstairs. Her family had either gone home or were fast asleep as she glared through the mansion almost weightless. Entering the basement is when the feeling gets stronger as the blade was put on display under lock and key. Nellie would usually see it collecting dust, but it's cleaned and she can take in every detail about it. Black smoke fills the room only leaving her and the blade as a voice sounds in her mind.

“It is time to pay the debt, my child.” The display case holding the blade flies off breaking the locks as Nellie slowly takes it.

“Debt?” She was enchanted by the blade.

“Yes one from long ago, you are now to be a vessel and bring death by your hand.”

The black smoke covers Nellie as her eyelids grow heavy and her form changes. She appears as an outlaw from the old west dressed in all black with long fog-like hair wearing a coal colored cowboy hat with a silver string around it, and her face was replaced by a skull.

She takes a deep breath feeling the earth around her knowing what she has to do. The sounds of people running a muck in her farm drew her attention as she headed upstairs. Outside a large black horse with a black misty mane greets her. She hopes on the horse as it speeds towards the sound. It's the troublemakers from earlier carrying matches and gasoline in their hands and approaching the fields hoping to burn down the crops they worked so hard to harvest.

Her horse roared with anger as Nellie held out her blade watching it shape and morph into a curved edge much like a sickle as she slaughtered them in bloody heaps. Cutting off heads and ripping out their entrails as she throws her head back to let out a banshee-like scream.

The next morning Nellie sits in the living room of her mansion reading the newspaper and sipping tea by the window. No one knew what happened to them, and said it was a vicious animal attack. Nellie looks out at the morning sun over her ranch and all she can do is smile.

[leviblum]

↪ brief introduction to levi blum.

BASICS

full name: levi aksel blum. nickname(s): lev. age: twenty-nine. date of birth: 15 september 1992. zodiac sign: virgo. place of birth: san diego, california, united states. ethnicity: white, ashkenazi jewish.   nationality: american. gender: cis male. sexual orientation: pansexual. romantic orientation: panromantic. religion: levi grew up practicing judaism alongside his family and though he doesn’t practice as strictly as he did when he was younger he still tries to attend temple as often as he can, tries to keep a kosher diet, etc. education: bachelor’s of fine arts in photography from the university of southern california. occupation: he’s a professional surfer though he’s taking a break from the sport while he recovers from an injury; to make money outside of that he’s a freelance photographer. language(s) spoken: english, hebrew, yiddish.  accent: he definitely has what people might consider to be a “stereotypical” southern california accent– of the sort that surfers have on television but if you asked him he’d be fairly adamant that he doesn’t have an accent at all.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

face claim: logan lerman. hair color: dark brown. eye color: blue. height: 5′9″. weight: 159 lbs. build: athletic. tattoos: he has an ocean themed sleeve on his left arm ( here ) & a tattoo on his chest of a cresting wave ( here ). piercings: he has a septum piercing and two lobe piercings in his left ear. distinguishing characteristics: people tend to comment on his sleeve tattoo when he can wear clothes that show it off, his demeanor – he’s a relatively mellow person, how passionate he is about his work.

PERSONALITY

label: the thalassophile. positive traits: adventurous, affectionate, ambitious, compassionate, confident, creative, easy-going, empathetic, fearless, genuine, loyal, passionate, persistent, quick-witted, relaxed, sincere, thoughtful. negative traits: boastful, flippant, gullible, impatient, impulsive, irresponsible, jealous, opinionated, petty, possessive, sarcastic, shameless, stubborn.   goals/desires: to recover from his injury and get back to surfing, to make the best of the time he’s in providence peak, to be open to any new experiences life throws at him.  fears: that surfing won’t ever be the same after his injury, that he’ll never feel fulfilled doing anything else when his surfing career is over.  hobbies: screwing around editing in photoshop, listening to podcasts, skateboarding, hanging out with his dog, playing guitar, watching foreign films, watching old american films, going to temple, facetiming with his sisters, going out with his friends, drinking, surfing, learning new photography skills, people watching, sex, scrolling through dating apps when he’s bored, collecting skateboard decks, cooking, going to the beach, swimming, traveling, finding creative ways to keep a kosher diet, smoking pot.   quirks: he talks with his hands when he’s excited about something, he’ll invariably mention surfing at least once in any given conversation without thinking about it, he always seems to have some top 40 song or another stuck in his head, he chews on his fingernails when he’s anxious, he always seems just a little too relaxed in any given situation.  likes: visiting places he’s never been before, doing tourist-y stuff in new cities, meeting new people, talking about surfing, skateboarding, spending time with friends, dad jokes, hanging out with his cousin, good beer / good alcohol in general, mexican food, coffee, watching nature documentaries, true crime podcasts, cheesy action movies, foreign films, old hollywood films, the beach, adrenaline highs, sex, people he can be totally relaxed around.   dislikes: dealing with shitty people, anyone who wants to talk shit on what he’s chosen to do with his life, not being able to surf, physical therapy, missing temple, being away from the water for long periods of time, wine, anti-semites, not seeing his family for most lengths of time, bad pot. 

FAMILY

father: gabriel isaak blum. mother: astrid marie blum ( née bronson ). sibling(s): abigail, hannah & naomi blum. pet(s): he has a six month old husky puppy named kelly ( after kelly slater ). financial status: upper middle class.

BIOGRAPHY

When Astrid Bronson and Gabriel Blum met on a sunny afternoon in Los Angeles it seemed even to the friends who’d introduced them that something in the universe that had longed to settle down had finally clicked into place. Their backgrounds were wildly different– Astrid having grown up in Hollywood with family who had been involved in the both the entertainment industry on one side and the media in general on the other; and Gabriel hailing from a small community in the Sierra Nevada’s that had never been home to more than three hundred people during the length of his life there and still managed to be one of the most wonderful, accepting places he’d ever known. In Gavin’s mind it had been a waste of his first two weeks at UCLA to not have met Astrid any sooner than he’d managed to and it seemed to him to be a stroke of luck of the highest sort that Astrid was just as smitten with him as he was with her– to their friends it seemed that there wasn’t a more perfect match in the world for either of them and when they started dating no one batted an eye. By the time their respective degree programs were drawing to a close they were engaged and Astrid was pregnant with their first child— leaving behind the sprawling city for the suburbs of San Diego where they hoped to raise their family in an environment that would be well suited to anything their children might want to do with their lives.

In the end it would be the third Blum child who developed such an intense fascination with the ocean that Astrid and Gabriel made it a point to allow him to pursue any and all water based activities he wanted as he grew up and proved to be precocious and headstrong and passionate in all the same ways his parents were and then some. Levi, ultimately the only son the Blum’s would have out of their four children, was borderline obsessed with visiting the seaside whenever he could– begging his parents to take them on weekend trips as often as possible and, when he was seven, begging his uncle to teach him how to surf– something he’d wanted to do since he was a small child. Everything in his life seemed to click when he was on the water and Levi quickly developed a love for surfing that, to hear his family tell it, was matched only by the natural talent he seemed to possess for the sport. He spent endless hours surfing in La Jolla with his friends as he got older and though he was an equally gifted student he’d made it clear to his parents that surfing was all he wanted to do with his life and by the time he was fourteen he was competing in tournaments all over the world with his parents wholehearted support.

Levi finished school online to earn his GED at the age of sixteen and from that moment on threw all of his attention into competing– he racked up sponsors, magazine covers, and even at the junior level was expected to be a credit to the sport all around when he finally made it to the majors to surf with people he’d admired since he was a small child. It was only after a long conversation with his parents that he considered pursuing anything resembling a college degree after he’d been gifted a camera to honor his first tournament in the pros when he aged out of the juniors bracket. He wasn’t wholly convinced he could manage a full degree almost entirely remotely but after considerable conversation with professors in schools in California he’d considered attending, he enrolled at USC with the intention of earning his degree in photography while he continued to compete professionally. It was difficult on his best days but when he walked the stage to graduate four years later with a degree in something he was just as passionate about as surfing, well, Levi wasn’t sure he’d ever done anything in the world that made him prouder.

As the years passed Levi’s skill and passion for his career in surfing earned him a small handful of victories in major tournaments and even more in major opens and it seemed to him that nothing in his life could ever be better– at least until he blew out his knee in a tournament and found a season ending injury staring him in the face. It was devastating to him in more ways than he could count and rather than return to his home in San Diego he made the decision to seek out a place to live in Providence Peak at the behest of his cousin who had lived there for several years. There was no surfing to be done there but Levi hoped it would make it easier for him to focus on his rehab if there was nothing for him to do to exacerbate his injury– since his move to Providence Peak he has had surgery and is recovering from his injury, working as a photographer to keep himself busy in the mean time. It wasn’t the worst spot he’d ever found himself in but with months of recovery staring him in the face he still found his thoughts drifting towards the ocean and the sport he can’t wait to return to.