#young miss cuckoo

[evil-feather]

*drops young-Isabel-gay-panicking-over-alma fanart*

Basically Isabel in this fanfiction <3

Also I did just adapt the headcanon of Sam that Isabel dyed her hair blond first because yes queen

Perekoo tags whoop whoop: @sam1kath @vykanya @mmemalwa

[ohraicodoll]

Saw the prompt post. And your tags. So I'm dropping this in your lap and leaving the rest to your excellent discretion! Any fandom. Any characters.

“you’re so cool.”

Good luck! Have fun!

Thankuuuuu Cuckoo! (I was totally going to do Sandman and Dream but couldn't stop laughing over what his reaction would be without making it ooc. So more TLOU lol)

Hero Worship Joel Miller x f!Reader (Established Relationship) + Ellie The Last of Us 1k Words

“You pull it straight back until the string is almost kissing your lips,” she guided her, watching as Ellie pulled the bow string back with shaky arms, “Elbow in, not out like a chicken wing. And breathe, you’re fine.” The teen seemed to glare at the small target across the way in the makeshift target practice Jackson had crafted. She took a deep breath, released and flinched.

All three of them watched as the arrow hit the target on the edge of the hay bale. Joel chuckled. “That had to be the wind!” Ellie argued, glaring at the older man. “There hasn’t been a single breeze all damn day,” he smirked, looking up to meet her instructor’s eyes over the girl’s head. With an eye roll, she picked up her own bow and took Ellie’s spot to demonstrate, “You keep flinching. If you keep your arms straight how I showed you, the string isn’t going to smack you in the face. Look, just watch.” 

Purposefully, she slowed down her movements and pulled the string back, arrow notched. Joel was right, there was no breeze and the target wasn’t very far away. Much closer than when he’d let the girl practice shooting the rifle. 

Elbows in and stance proper, she released the arrow and watched it sail home to the center of the target. Bullseye. Ellie groaned. “Whatever, you both are show-offs,” she grumbled, glaring at them both now. “Mmmhmm, why don’t you go grab another set of arrows if you’re gonna run your mouth and be a sore loser,” Joel nodded towards the small shack a little bit away where one of the older men kept all the range supplies. With a grumble, they watched as she trudged away, bow practically dragging in her hand. “She’s getting better,” chewing on your lip, she leaned against the wooden fence that acted as a barrier between the shooting area and the danger zone. “Yeah she is, but you know her. Wants to be instantly good,” Joel chuckled and rested his arms beside her, knee raised to brace on the fence, “She’ll get there. Besides, I think she’d rather do this than be at the theater though I do miss the two hours we’d get on our own when she would go.” Raising a brow, she looked at him out of the corner of her eye with a smirk, “Yeah I’m sure you do. Ellie’s trying to persuade me to let her stay in the small house behind the property. She needs her space.” The excuse was almost laughable as only a week ago she had asked to stay in their shared room during a bad storm, blaming her window they had already fixed. His eyes burned into the side of her head, fingers adjusting against the fence until they grazed the skin of her elbow, “Wouldn’t be the worst idea.” She huffed out a full bellied laugh and turned her eyes to him, “Oh please. You’d be at that back window with the binoculars checking on her every second if you let her, Miller. Probably rope Tommy into it too.” He sighed and was the one to roll his eyes this time, “Yeah, yeah. Give it a couple more years of her going full teenager and we’ll see. She drives us nuts enough as is and I’m dreading the day she starts being interested in boys.”

She struggled to fight down a grin, not wanting to break it to him that it wasn’t the boys he was going to have to worry about. With a smirk, they both turned to look at the teen, watching as she talked to the attendant and then catching sight of the young boy very blatantly staring at her not even a foot away. The boy had to be roughly six or seven and stared at her behind large bottle glasses, eyes huge on his tiny face. His mouth hung open slightly, eyes transfixed. Nudging Joel with her elbow, she nodded at the kid and the stars in his eyes. Ellie, her arm full with a new quiver of arrows, turned and almost ran straight into the little boy who hadn’t moved an inch. She looked almost startled, brow furrowed in a way that was too similar to Joel, mouth turned down. It had taken her a bit to not be in full aggressive mode and instantly be on edge with every person that stared at them, but every now and then that tough attitude came out. She didn’t like to be stared at. The kid blinked. The two adults tried not to laugh. “What?” Ellie asked a little harshly, clearly uncomfortable. “You’re so cool,” the boy choked out with a look that was pure admiration. Joel turned his head into her arm and tried not to laugh out loud, pressing his mouth into the fabric of her coat. His shoulders shook with the effort. Ellie almost seemed taken back, unsure of what to do, false bravado gone. But then she grinned and that attitude slid back into place before she leaned towards the kid and seemed to whisper something. They couldn’t hear what she said, but could see her head turn to look at them and nod before pulling back and walking over. The boy’s face stared at all three of them star struck. They tried to act like they hadn’t been watching the interaction and went back to the lesson as normal, didn’t mention Ellie’s little fan or how her shooting got better afterwards as if she only needed a little bit of confidence. It was a moment they didn’t want to intrude on or make her embarrassed about. And a week later when she went to the girl’s room to drop off a newer pair of shoes, she didn’t bring up the kid drawing tucked between some book pages that was obviously from her admirer. All three of them were drawn in crayon, looking larger than life, with the words, “Ellie's family” scribbled at the top.

[feathered-mushrooms]

Scott Summers ahead Cannons

he is my favorite loser boy

Due to growing up on it, Scott tends to throw himself into the danger room whenever he feels an emotion more than fine. He does not know a limit, which his led to “Scott patrol”. Oh Scott hasn’t left the danger room for five hours? Rouge it’s your turn, I pulled him out last time. 

Scott can’t handle to much down time, or being bored. He constantly feels like there is something he should be doing, and therefore will constantly find something to do. 

Charles has done a number on him. He is the reason Scott is so high strung, why failure isn’t just a lesson to learn from but an entire judgement of his character, why he can’t just breathe. He needs to be the leader and the man everyone can count on, he needs to be everything Charles wants him to be. 

This is not a healthy way of thinking. 

Scott has a special interest in planes. It started when he was young and then had a pause after the plane crash that killed his parents. However he picked it up again and now can tell you the difference between a commercial flight and a jet. He also knows how to pilot seven different types of aircraft and even got official license for each.

He is Bi.

It took him frighteningly long to figure this out. 

Scott has issues with social skills(projecting). He can speak sarcasm just fine and makes many jokes in that medium. However he has a hard time figuring out people are being sarcastic, especially if the joke is around him. 

He would wear a dress. Not in public, but if Jean offered he would try one of her dresses on in the safety of a bed room. He would like it. 

Game nights were originally hidden from Scott who(due to the professors absurdly high expectations) does not handle losing well. He loves to point out the rules and technicality’s, and will not play Uno with any variations. He’s not a sore loser par say, it just gets depressing for everyone watching. 

When he was young he kept only one pair of ruby glasses and one visor. As he has aged(and been influenced by Emma) he know has a collection of ruby glasses in all types and styles. 

Star Wars is his comfort show/movie/universe

Pretty equal on cats and dogs but leans towards dogs. 

His chances of being a toddler dad had been pretty ruined but he thinks it would be nice to raise a kid alongside a dog. Maybe a golden retriever. 

He does not mind cats though. 

He often feels weird in his place as a parent. Nathan is his kid but some much time has been lost that Scott can’t help but yearn for the mile stones that were missed and lost to time. He misses everything he was promised as a father. The same is true for Rachel although it is a little weirder. Yes she is his, but from a future that will never happen. He often feels guilty because in the end he has two great kids, but he wishes he could raise a kid in a normal sense. 

He just wants to be a father. 

When he was their step father, Scott showed the Cuckoos Star Wars. He keeps checking in on them, even after he and Emma are no longer together. 

Scott’s type is a person who will be mean to him, and could probably kill him, but have a soft spot.

Even if that soft spot is very hidden. 

He can make a really good grilled cheese. There was a week in his teens were there was low x-men activities and not a lot to do in the mansion so he dedicated his days to perfecting the grilled cheese. He makes it anytime he thinks someone needs some comfort. 

He’s eyes are brown under the visor. 

Never played DnD but very interested in it. Researched it a whole lot and has watched a lot of play throughs. Has even mentioned it to the rest of the squad and most were down to try. However it was forgotten due to the next world ending event. Scott still thinks about it and the character he made. 

He is doing his best but often over exerts himself which leads to sick days. On these days he is forced to cuddle up in a blanket and watches either the Star Wars orignal movies or one of the shows. Most times someone will be designated to sit with him so he doesn’t try and get up and do work. 

On these days Logan often takes the job. 

That all for now!

[y-rhywbeth2]

I know we sickos all love the tragic memory of Durge killing their parents as a child, but honestly - as a lover of interpreting Durge as a tragic eldricht horror cuckoo/changeling creature - my favourite memory is baby Durge playing tag with the other children in a "time before Bhaal".

They're being gentle with their friends, but the narration explicitly describes them as hunting and compares them to a predator. If Durge pities their child self the narration just goes: "Mayhaps that child was already a murderer." "Oh, sorry, did you think this was a happy memory?" asks the game before it points and laughs at your naivete.

You pair that with the little cuckoo killing their foster parents and it's very much like somebody took in a baby predator. Sure, it hasn't grown into its claws and aggression but then we reach the starting point of puberty and suddenly the once cuddly baby is a danger to everyone around it.

Oh, except that apparently there's a chance that Durge was already killing things as a baby!

We know they were aware of Sceleritas following them around when they were young, occasionally talking to them as he does in the dead family memory - even if he hadn't presented himself yet. Even if he doesn't always speak, did Durge grow up seeing him out of the corner of their eye?

The fun thing about Durge is that we get to make our own character out of the scraps we're given, so all of it is up to us to decide for our own characters/playthroughs.

I interpret Durge as being like the Bhaalspawn we meet in Throne of Bhaal, Gavid, and the 3.5e tieflings - they've always known they were different. Always had dark urges and whispers in their mind, coming from the essence in their blood.

Kids have accidents around them, pets go missing. Maybe they have black outs, maybe they're aware but can't stop (small children aren't exactly masters of impulse control). We know from a later memory that Durge feels self-hatred regarding their urges, so presumably they learnt enough to know this is wrong and feel guilt. Do they still feel pain and nausea if they resist? I'm going to assume for my own take that since they got the Urge back then, they did.

I wonder if their family ever took them to wizards and clerics, trying to find out if their child was cursed?

Then that family dies. Violently. Graphically. Another tragic accident taking place around the twitchy weird kid who sees monsters and hears voices.

If you play paladin then the Oathbreaker Knight tells you that you've broken your oath multiple times, so I assume that these disasters didn't stop happening.

And judging from the fact that they showed uncharacteristic compassion to a homeless person at the peak of their "I'm such an evil bastard villains like Elder Brains and the God of Tyranny are impressed" era, I think that Durge ended up homeless themselves at some point between losing their parents and joining the temple (I'm also pretty sure that's the period of their life the cannibalism memory happened in).

And then they "came of age" (I recall the age of majority being 15 in the Realms at some point, but can't find that anywhere so don't take my word for it) and Sceleritas introduces himself, and it's time for a family history lesson that explains everything and Orin gets a sibling she absolutely never wanted, ever - put that thing back in the ditch it came from, so help me.

[thatawkwardmoth]

X-Men Mother's day things (No timeline just vibes):

Emma Frost thought the Cuckoos wouldn't get her anything, that their relationship wasn't that close despite her trying and them calling her mom. Imagine her surprise when she woke up to five blue roses sitting on the bedside table, a delicate diamond ring with her girls' initials engraved into the band. It's hidden but she knows it's there.

Jean Grey got flowers from her husband, fake ones that came with a joke about her not being able to kill these with her black thumb. She's playfully offended but she freezes when she realizes there are two presents on the dining table for her. Nathan (the old and young version both apparently, plans on plans on plans are a Summers thing) left her a bracelet, two charms for the versions of her boy. Two small teddy bears with one small yellow gem in one eye of both bears. It's nothing she'd wear on the regular, the note they leave says, but it's something to have of them when she misses them. The other is a card and box of chocolate from Rachel, it's a small thing but she appreciates it.

Madelyne Pryor wakes up grieving her boy and his absence. She's sitting on her throne, clutching the arms and glaring at nothing. But she is frozen when one demon approaches with a small giftwrapped box. It's a silly charm bracelet and pictures of Nathan when he's younger. 'To my mother' is all it says and all it needs to say. It's small but she loves it, unable to stop staring at the multitude of photos of her baby she never got to see grow up.

Erik Lehnsherr spends his mother's day in cemeteries. Placing flowers on his mother's gravestone, only to portal to a different one when he's done saying what he needs to her. This one holds Wanda and Pietro's mother and he's not surprised to find them there, his grandchildren and Lorna as well. He's silent as he grieves but Wanda just clears her throat and brushes the leaves away, saying a short prayer for her. It's melancholic but they're together and it's what both mothers would've wanted for their children.

Jubilee doesn't expect much for Mother's day. Her baby is just that. A baby. But she wakes up to a bunch of gifts from the Excaliburs, most of it not even baby related or even motherhood related. She appreciates it because she sometimes feels like she's losing her identity in being a mother. But she cries over it, the multiple gifts and the thought behind them all.

Hope Summers spends her mother's day finally leaving the Arbor Magna and the Quiet Council, spending it with her grandmother and then eventually her other grandmother. Jean and Madelyne accept her into the celebration with the energy that it took her this long to join in. Didn't she know she was family, adoption or not?

[antebunny]

a cuckoo in the nest pt.2

[part one] aka the fae!Tim idea i said i wouldn't write any more of. oops my hand slipped.

~

Tim clenches the Cliff granola bar tightly in his fist, inhales deeply, and steps through the fairy circle. His footsteps leave deep indents in the soft grass before vanishing completely. 

If one of the Waynes were to wander into the woods behind Wayne Manor and stumble upon this particular clearing, they would quickly notice the small footprints leading into a patch of dirt and never emerging out the other side. Fairy circles are subtle things, easily moved and created, but just as easily spotted if you know what to look for. 

Sweet grass, spices, something wild and dewy and the sick smell of cruelty. The fae realm is just as Tim remembered it. The Unseelie Queen, too, is just as Tim remembers her. She’s eternally young, after all. Her crown of thorns tips toward Tim as she bends down, gnarled hand reaching for Tim’s granola bar. He quickly shoves it behind his back, and the Unseelie Queen’s hand freezes. She cannot take that which is not freely given.

Long ago, a lifetime ago when Tim was nine years old and stupid, the Unseelie Queen used his naivete to get everything she wanted from him. She asked for his name and he gave it. She offered him fae food and he took it. She told him that the deal his parents made was unbreakable and he believed it. For an eternity, though now he knows it was three years, he believed her. 

He knows better now. That’s what made the Unseelie Queen strike a bargain with him in the first place. Tim cannot believe that it took him three years to realize that his parents had no right to sell him away. That he could’ve left the moment he’d arrived, if only he’d known to run. But by the time he figured it out, he’d eaten their food and given his name. Become fey enough for the Unseelie Queen to control, if not own.

Now the only question is whether he can outsmart her. Whether he, the twelve year old who just got his very first iPhone, can beat the Unseelie Queen at her own game.

“How wonderful to see you back in my domain.” The Unseelie Queen still looms over Tim as she greets him. “Though you reek of human.”

Tim lifts his chin. “Because I am one.”

A blood red smile stretches across thin lips. White teeth shine like stars. “That will be changed in time.”

She’s just trying to scare him because she knows that he can see through her lies now. Tim is not bound to the fae realm, not yet, anyways. She has no power over him. (Not yet). Not ever. 

“I’m just here to tell you that I’m winning,” Tim says, faking a confidence he very much does not feel. “Dick and Jason both said I’m their little brother. Alfred cares about me. Even Barbara likes me and they care about what she thinks.”

An infinite number of somethings dances in the Unseelie Queen’s dark, shining eyes. Tim does not dare name any one of them. She is not one to be defined by physical appearances. Sometimes she has four wings like large leaves, humming on her back. Sometimes she is a young girl with the voice of a thousand nightmares, other times an old woman faking good intentions. All Tim has learned regarding appearances is to not look into her abyss-like eyes for too long.

We must not look at goblin men, we must not buy their fruits.

“And what of Bruce Wayne?”

“I’m working on it,” Tim says stubbornly. “I have a month left.”

“Be careful, little one. Wayne men do not love easily.” The Unseelie Queen’s smile widens into a grotesque length. “Even when they should.”

Tim squeezes his granola bar until it bends in two. “That’s my problem.”

The Unseelie Queen laughs, like a murder of crows taking flight. “What spirit. Will you not consider staying to entertain my court? We so miss your colorful antics.”

“No,” Tim says firmly. He whirls around and marches back to the fairy circle. The plastic wrapping of his granola bar grows slick with cold sweat. 

“Stay,” the Unseelie Queen commands. The single word thunders, layered with the thousands of humans before Tim that have fallen prey to her. “Timothy Jackson Drake.”

Tim’s steps falter. One foot hesitates in the air too long, and he stumbles. In the human world he sometimes is weightless, a touch lighter than humans. In the fae realm Tim is weighed down by his humanness. His knees sting as he resumes his march. Not so long ago, such defiance would have cost him far more than stinging knees. He’s grown strong on Alfred’s cooking, movie nights with Dick and Jason, and Barbara buying him a phone and a subscription to Crunchyroll because “every boy needs one.” On human food and love. 

She doesn’t have this power over Tim. Not anymore, not yet. Not even with his full name.

A screech rattles around Tim’s brain. A claw curls around his neck. Tim freezes, heart battering at his ribcage. She cannot hurt him. She doesn’t own him (Not yet). 

“If you will not stay,” the Unseelie Queen concedes, “then please, won’t you take a gift with you?” 

Her hand retreats from his neck, scraping skin gently as it goes. In her palm it appears: red and dripping, or bone white, green like fireflies, purple like the sunset. Fae fruit. It hums in her hand, singing a song just for Tim. Even though he knows the cost now, the fae fruit calls to him, promises pure ecstasy and eternal love if only he takes a bite.

Tim shakes his head quickly, eyes shut. “No, thank you,” he whispers. “I brought food from home.”

So saying, he twists the Cliff bar wrapper in trembling hands and attempts to rip the plastic open. The truth is that he hates Cliff bars. They’re his least favorite snack of the many that Alfred has gotten him to try thus far. He brought it to the fae realm for such an occasion, selected out of his many options because he would not mind associating Cliff bars with the fae realm. He already hates them as it is.

It is a novelty, having opinions about human food. Preferences and dislikes. Dick has a tier list of vegetables that he and Jason argue about every once in a while. Jason also has strong opinions about food, but somehow he knew just what to do when Tim said helplessly that he didn’t have any, that he’d eat whatever he was given.

Before Tim can get the granola bar in his mouth, the Unseelie Queen pushes the fae fruit in his face. He retreats, and she pursues, arm outstretched, fruit still calling out to him. 

“Eat,” she insists. “Timothy Drake.”

The command takes root in Tim’s bones, peels him inside out until right is wrong and wrong is right. Against his will, Tim’s free hand reaches for the fruit that is magenta and lime green and coral pink and mushroom white. The texture is soft and a bit rubbery, the shape somewhat like a still-beating heart. Warm, wet, and just a little alive. Tim wishes he could throw it at her. Instead, he takes a bite. It tastes like–

Decay on the wind, petrichor and honeynut squash, spices and arrowroot, freshly overturned dirt still composting, dancing underneath moonlight-dappled branches around firelight, ancient tales told of stars, mirror-like water and water-like glass, lies and trickery and cruelty and brutal honesty–

It tastes like the fae. Seeping into the walls of his throat, leaving dark purple residue on his tongue, a sharp berry taste for him to remember it by. Making him just a little more fae, a little less human. His blue eyes a little brighter, his step a touch too light. It is not such a terrible thing, to be wild, to be fae. But Tim cannot bear the cost.

Tim squeezes the remaining fae fruit until the juice bursts from the skin, running down his fingers in wine red and shining green rivulets. The song dies. He licks his lips. Juice drips from his chin. The Unseelie Queen watches on in satisfaction.

“Thank you for the gift.” Even now, when Tim wishes for nothing more than the right to scream at her until he cries, it would not do to be impolite. One must respect the fae, to say nothing of the Unseelie Queen herself. 

Still, when Tim walks through the fairy circle, he thinks I hate her, I hate her, I hate her, until the words burn into the inside of his brain. 

We must not look at goblin men, we must not buy their fruits: Who knows upon what soils they fed their hungry, thirsty roots?

[eggtrolls]

The Downton blogging (circa S3E5) will continue until morale improves

Ice in the veins, Kobe of the social scene — Mary Crawley would not, could physically not miss a chance to be ruthless to Edith. She sees Edith from 100 feet away and it’s On Sight. Edith standing in the churchyard about to be married and Mary is like listen we WILL NOT like each other a jot more in the future but good luck I guess. Sybil is lying DEAD on a bed in front of them and Edith is like 🥺 oh Mary 🥺 do you think we might get along a little better in the future? 🥺😭 and Mary just says “I doubt it”. She is a supervillain and I support women’s wrongs.

My favourite half-drowned bear cub of a man, Robert is like ‘no I can’t kick out my tenants who can’t farm and haven’t paid rent since the Norman invasion because they’re OLD wtf do you think I’m MEAN or something????’ and then he turns around and is like ‘but fuck Catholics for real tho lmao am I right or am I right, archbishop of banterbury’

The scene right after Edith gets left at the altar and Robert and Matthew go outside to talk about Reggie Swire’s fortune and the shot is them as tiny ants in the shadow of Downton’s walls…….that’s the shit I like

Cora saying goodbye to Sybil’s corpse with an insanely placid smile and her right (my left) eye twitching the entire time. Again the reminders of Iphigenia vis-a-vis a young woman dying in the house as a sacrifice, thus casting Cora being Clytemnestra which is just deeeeeeeelicious

The only part of Sybil’s death/mourning that actually made me feel some kind of way was Maggie Smith struggling alone with her cane in the hall……how many women has she seen die in childbirth over the last 70 years. Is it even surprising anymore? Does it hurt more or less?

Tom is still busy being fucking useless because he has no real purpose other than being a vague socialist life-size cardboard cut out to eventually be whittled down as a foil to Matthew who is himself being whittled down as a foil to Robert.

Also re: Tom and the Drumgoole house burning, WHY was he surprised by this being upsetting LET ALONE that it happened? He’s like omg I can’t believe I was upset by seeing rich people crying when their house burnt down, but the same fucking guy years ago canonically said nothing bad would happen to the Tsar and his family? Bro? Tf? Did you even do the readings of this shit you’re actively living through, while as a journalist to boot?????

Also also tremendously weak ass shit for him to answer Sybil’s “you didn’t tell me you’d gone to those meetings” with “I didn’t say I hadn’t”. “You didn’t tell me you were part of the Oklahoma City bombings”/“well I didn’t say I wasn’t” ass logic. unsurprising Tom L

Anna’s character is wearing so thin. She really has fuckall personality besides being pert, blonde, and vaguely saintlike while saying mihstehhhh Beyyyyyyyhtś every five minutes like a cuckoo clock

O’Brien playing the long game of slowly nudging Thomas and Jimmy towards each other, knowing it will get Thomas fired if not jailed, is a master class in scheming. Spy novels where the payoff is averting nuclear war are written with less attention to detail than this.

I need Thomas to get a mean lesbian best friend as a counterpoint to season 1 Miss O’Brien but since female sexuality wasn’t discovered in England until the 1970s it’s unlikely to happen :(

Mr Molesley as the permanent straight man of the show is maybe a little stale but it does crack me up every time. Sorry bro

The conversation around Downton as sentient being who kills those who don’t belong (Lavinia, and ultimately, Matthew) or who stray from the fold (Sybil) or those who endangered the Family (Kemal Pamuk) is still super interesting as the later seasons really let Edith hit her stride. It’s pretty clear that the flow of the Downton True Heir is set up as Violet to Robert to Mary but what if not. Mary is the bloodline (via Matthew) and has the money (also via Matthew) and the beauty* but Edith is the care and the maintenance that is completely ESSENTIAL to maintaining a house like Downton: in the little things of arranging seatings for dinners to keep the peace, to bigger things like helping with the Drake’s farm because the estate does boost the house, to her entire arc during S2 with the war. Mary as the roof and Edith as the walls…..let me cook

Lastly:

Okay hear me out but Vera Bates……..….would

*Edith isn’t even actually UNattactive, she just has the combo curse of Too Much Nose and Teeth. Mary’s features are roughly as pretty individually but much better proportioned for her face.

[msunitedstatesjames]

Frances Hardinge is a criminally underrated author. If you've never heard of her, I'm not surprised. Even though I'm in several fantasy book groups on Facebook with thousands of members, I've only ever seen one or two other members post about her. And yet, since I first read one of her books in 2020, I've bought every book she's published and read most of them.

Frances Hardinge, for those who've missed out, writes fantasy young adult books. Her books are extremely well written, romance free, unfailingly unique, and somewhat dark, all of which are qualities I find to be more and more rare in today's YA fantasy market (not to hate on YA, I've read tons of it). If you need a comparison, I would say aspects of her books remind me of YA/middle grade books by T. Kingfisher or Neil Gaiman.

If I haven't convinced you yet, here's a little preview of some of her books that I've read:

A Face Like Glass (my personal favorite): A girl named Neverfell lives in a world where people have to be taught how to show emotion in their facial expressions. She has to wear a mask at all times because, mysteriously, she naturally shows facial expressions and if people found out they would freak. If that's not unique enough, this society is underground and produces magical artisinal goods, such as cheeses, wines, and perfumes that can do some wild things. If that still hasn't convinced you, the book critiques the privelege of the wealthy, as in this world only the rich can afford to hire Facesmiths to teach them expression, while the poor languish along with one or two facial expressions for their entire lives.

Fly by Night and Fly Trap (these might have different titles depending on where you are in the world): In a world where reading is illegal and seen as revolutionary activity, Mosca Mye escapes her awful life with her aunt and uncle by forcing an infamous conman (Eponymous Clent, this world has cool naming conventions) to take her under his wing. Joining them is Mosca's only friend, Saracen, the murderous goose. Yeah, you read that right. Highlights of the series include a heartwarming found family tale, an accidental revolution, a city that literally changes its population, personality, and shape when day changes to night, and, of course, an extremely violent goose. I mean, if you've read Pratchett, Saracen the goose is basically the Luggage. There's more than one scene in these books where all hope seems lost, and Mosca is like, "I guess it's up to you now Saracen," and she just straight up lobs her goose at the enemy and he utterly wrecks their shit. If I recall correctly, this happens once during a pitched river boat battle over an illegal printing press.

The Lie Tree: Faith's father, who refused to recognize her potential as a scientist, mysteriously dies. Faith discovers a tree he kept hidden that grows when you tell lies and reveals secrets in its fruit. The bigger the lie you tell the world, the bigger the secret that will be revealed. You can imagine the chaos that eventually ensues. This book critiques gender roles and discrimination, and tackles both the dangers and the necessity of telling lies.

Cuckoo Song: When Triss wakes up after apparently falling in a lake, everything seems wrong. She's missing memories, she has an insatiable hunger, dead leaves are mysteriously appearing in her room, and her sister claims she's a monster. Triss must piece together what's happening to her before it's too late. This book deals with the complexities of life with overbearing parents, siblings who've been pitted against one another, and families that have been torn apart by tragedy.

Verdigris Deep (another one that goes by different titles): A group of friends are cursed by a well witch after they take some coins from her well. She forces them to work for her by granting her wishes. Working with the witch gives them powers, but the wishes are getting increasingly complex. Does that guy really want a motorcycle or does he want to be someone else? And if he wants to be someone else, does that mean what he really wants is not to exist at all? This book deals with issues of self worth, power and control, and toxic friendships.

She has a bunch of other great books as well. So if you're looking for a unique fantasy story with adventure and no romance, definitely check some of Frances Hardinge's books out!

[dbgdbw]

569.Hyung & Noona & Dongsaeng

형과 누나와 동생

“Ah, and here I’d thought it'd be Noah!”

Liette exclaimed, seemingly surprised by the turn of events. Following the declaration, she cocked her head in an inquisitive gesture. 

“Had missing out on the opportunity to be matched up with that police chief been a bigger shame than I’d supposed, after all?”

Han Yoohyun regarded Liette in turn as well, impassive. The situation at hand was one he hadn’t accounted for either, in truth. He’d been expecting to be met with Han Yoojin, naturally. Or, barring that, if he were to be matched up with someone other than Han Yoojin, that it would perhaps be someone like Peace or Bak Yerim; but rather, the one who had appeared before him in the end, had turned out to be none other than Liette.

Liette watched Han Yoohyun, who stood silent, through narrowed eyes. And then–짝!, she loudly clapped her hands together. 

“Right–this is fine too, since I’d wanted to have a chat with you, anyway!”

“Chat?”

Han Yoohyun murmured, as though to himself. ‘Liette’ and ‘conversing’ hardly seemed to be compatible concepts. This went for Han Yoohyun himself as well. Liette nodded her head emphatically. The onyx drop bar earring she wore jangled, 찰랑, with the movement. 

“Not that I fancy I’ve got a fair read on you or suchlike–but I get the feeling that we’re similar, you and I, broadly speaking. And so, how is it that you’ve got such a tight bond with your family member?”

“.......”

Han Yoohyun’s brows rose almost imperceptibly. ‘Family.’ She would have been referring to Han Yoojin, then.

“Your hyung, he’s even weaker than Noah, isn’t he. So, why did you let him live? Since he’s older, too, it wouldn’t have been because he was cute, unlike in Noah’s case.”

“Just because something is ‘younger’ doesn’t mean it’s ‘cute’.”

No, rather–‘cute’ was a concept that eluded him, to begin with. When Han Yoohyun had been young, ‘cute’ was something Han Yoojin had frequently called him. With no particular prompting, it seemed. Whether in relation to his routine, or out of the norm behaviors–they had all been declared ‘cute.’ And so, Han Yoohyun had come to associate the label of ‘cuteness’ as another way of expressing ‘like’. 

Now, in the present–intellectually, he understood that it possessed a different meaning; yet, he still found himself unable to discern a difference between that and ‘like’. This was why, accordingly, the only existence Han Yoohyun was able to find ‘cute’ was Han Yoojin. Though, since he was aware that Hyung would be less than pleased to hear this, he made certain to never vocalize the thought aloud.

“It’s not like I find anything that’s ‘younger’ to be ‘cute’ either, ya know. What’s ‘cute’ is what’s ‘cute,’ obviously. But in any case! You’ve never considered trying to rid yourself of him, before? I have. They’re obstacles, aren’t they. Particularly for us. Since the parents find us repulsive so.”

“If Hyung had rejected me.”

Han Yoohyun answered calmly.

“I probably would have deemed it more advantageous to be bereft of a sibling.”

Han Yoojin disappearing would have been a bigger boon to Han Yoohyun’s survival, then. ‘Genetic propagation’ and ‘childrearing’ were instinctual urges that appealed to biological drive. Even if it was an abhorrent child, the likelihood that you would then be incentivised to invest greater effort into its care was high. And so, if you were only left with a single child. If, of a set, one were to be lost, leaving only one remaining.

And so, if Han Yoojin had not loved Han Yoohyun. Like a cuckoo chick, Han Yoohyun would have pushed Han Yoojin outside of the nest. Without difficulty, framed as an accident, never having come under suspicion by virtue of his young age.

“Right? That’s normally how it goes.”(1)

For them. Like a snake egg that had chanced upon a small bird’s nest through happenstance. If it so happened to coincide that they had managed to mature in full prior to that point, then it became possible to show magnanimity; to refrain from laying hands on those weaker than they. However–for the juveniles that still required protection, for the prospect of their survival; to swallow the young in the nest without hesitation was only the natural course of things. 

“For me, it was particularly so, since I was the firstborn. It was clear as day that they would only see fit to raise the newborn child. If, one day, they’d suddenly decided to pack up and disappear, leaving me behind–well, it hardly would have been a surprise.”

Even as Liette’s parents had lived in fear of their young daughter, they’d been unable to throw her away. The physical façade of a child, as well as the psychological responsibility of parenthood, had kept them shackled in place. But the introduction of a new child would mean things would change.

A newborn infant; far younger, far frailer, and ‘ordinarily’ darling. The appearance of a new child meant, subsequently, Liette was no longer the youngest blood-related ward in the household. Rather–it had reframed her as a dangerous liability, one that might be capable of being incited to inflict harm on her dongsaeng.

The other child would need to be protected. The new child was smaller, and weaker. Liette had swiftly discerned the shift in paradigm; that the parents were now preparing to cast aside the responsibilities they ostensibly held towards her.

“So, I resolved to kill him~ But you saw too, right. Noah was so little, and dazzling, and charming. And it was my dongsaeng. It was mine.”

It was different from the feelings held towards the parents, who merely amounted to ‘useful guardians’ at best. Though it was useless, weak, and could only wriggle around helplessly. Something about it had appealed to her. Shifting her approach, Liette awkwardly attempted to take care of her dongsaeng. And the parents, practical, had been unable to bring themselves to discard the daughter who doted on her dongsaeng.

Though ultimately, unable to handle Liette as she continued to mature, they had ended up abandoning them both.

“Hyung was.”

Confronted by Liette’s gaze–asking him so why did you let him live, then–Han Yoohyun broke his silence. 

“Strange.”

“He’s oddly fearless, true. They’re usually afraid of me, y’know.”

“Hyung chose me, over his guardians.”

Han Yoohyun may have been young, back then, but he had instinctually grasped the dynamics at play. Human young were weak. It was impossible for them to continue living without the aid of an adult, and their maturation period lengthy, besides. Han Yoojin had been born before Han Yoohyun, but he had still been a far ways from adulthood.

And so, for Han Yoojin, the presence of mature adults–his parents–had been absolutely crucial for his survival. For such a young creature, it wouldn’t have been an exaggeration to call the parents–those adult humans–his entire world. Everything he required to persist was supplied to him by those matured versions, and they would have been necessary for the knowledge, values, and habits that would need to be instilled in him as well. 

“Even though it was something he never should have committed to.”

The greatest base instinct any living being possessed was the drive to live; and so, as a matter of course, Han Yoojin should have chosen his parents instead. Inevitably.

But Han Yoojin had turned his back on his world, and taken Han Yoohyun’s hand instead.

“It’s Hyung that’s strange.”

He was strange. And that had been a kind of seed planted. Han Yoohyun had felt Han Yoojin strange, and that had been the first emotion he’d ever experienced towards another. Because it was something that should’ve been unthinkable.

Han Yoojin had forsaken his world, and had opted to become Han Yoohyun’s world instead. And by doing so, slowly, painstakingly, he had begun to carve the emotion of ‘love’ into Han Yoohyun.

“Hyung’s the one that was strange.”

‘There’s no one I love more than Hyung,’ and ‘there’s no one who can love me as much as Hyung does.’ Han Yoohyun candidly stating he ‘could not have eyes for anyone other than Han Yoojin’ as fact, was also rooted in the ‘truth’ of that matter.

Who else would be willing to so wholly relinquish their world, so as to draw closer to him. It was doubtful whether such a phenomenon could ever be replicated, even from now until the end of all time. It may have only been feasible, perhaps, because both Han Yoojin and Han Yoohyun had both been children back then. Something that had only been made possible during that one point in time, between the two of them. 

“He really is strange, huh.”

Liette offered, blinking, consideringly. Having grown up in a similar environment, she was able to grasp his explanation even through the sparse few words he had put forth. Han Yoojin’s parents would have shunned Han Yoohyun. But Han Yoojin had resolutely clung onto Han Yoohyun, until the bitter end. And even now.

“Why do you think he did that? Your hyung.”

After a period of silence, Han Yoohyun replied awkwardly, haltingly. 

“Because I’m cute.”

That’s what Hyung had said. ‘My dongsaeng is so cute and lovely and sweet, that’s why.’ Liette nodded her head sagely, as though she understood.

“‘Cuteness’ really is a fascinating thing, hmm? But Noah’s cuter than you are, of course. You don’t glitter like he does, after all. With hair and eyes that are pitch black, besides.”

“Hyung said that I’m the absolute cutest.”

“That’s ‘cause he hadn’t seen Noah yet, then. You’re still that sooty black, while Noah sparkles brightly, hmm? If you asked him now, he’d probably say that Noah’s cuter, I’d bet?”

Han Yoohyun didn’t reply. He didn’t feel a need to respond, per se. Han Yoojin may have doted on Noah a fair amount, but he still fell short when compared to even Bak Yerim or Peace, after all. And invariably, the person Han Yoojin ceaselessly adored and looked after, was always Han Yoohyun. 

And so–instead of producing a reply to a pointless goad, he drew the Sovereign's Blade. Liette quickly pushed off the ground, leaping back a far distance. The heel of her boots scraped precariously against the edge of a steep drop downwards.

“My dongsaeng is the absolute cutest!”

“...Hyung thinks the same.”

Since that was Han Yoojin’s opinion, rather than Han Yoohyun’s own. As Han Yoojin would have most assuredly responded by asserting his dongsaeng’s superiority, Han Yoohyun deigned to respond in kind. Hearing his reply, Liette’s lips pursed slightly in a small pout. A longsword appeared in her hand as well.

“How did the two of you end up getting along so well? In my case–I protected my dongsaeng. And I forged him to be strong. I don’t think I was in the wrong for that, still. Since, now, his survival will be guaranteed!”

Because it was what she treasured above all, she had endeavored to reinforce it further. Death meant the end. No matter how cute or lovely he might be, all of that cuteness and loveliness would be lost, irrevocably, as a result.

Had her situation with Noah been inverted, Liette would have accepted it without question, having understood the need. Because for Liette, ‘becoming stronger’ was the pinnacle of what was ideal. It countered any threat posed to one’s life, and would allow one to live as they wished, besides.

And so, she had sought to endow on him the greatest gift she could. Even if Noah were to grow stronger than his noona, and then seek to kill her, Liette would have been pleased with that outcome. My darling dongsaeng–he should be capable of surviving for a long, long time now.

“So, what did you opt to do, then?”

쿵! Under the immense pressure exerted by her feet launching off the ground, part of the cliff face crumbled down. As Liette’s body barreled forward, a blade of energy sped out towards Han Yoohyun’s neck. The razor-sharp arc of force that had flickered across the gap almost instantaneously nearly reached its target before being met by an obsidian blade, dissipating. 

Immediately afterwards, Liette materialized before Han Yoohyun. 캉! Sword locked against sword.

“I.”

카가각– Metal screeched as the two blades scraped against one another. Liette’s sword was S-rank, but of high quality, and reinforced by a Skill besides. Yet, even then–까드득, the Sovereign’s Blade had nevertheless begun to shave away slight slivers of the other.

“Discarded myself. Because I needed to hollow out the room, to offer to Hyung.”

Whereas Han Yoojin had given up Han Yoojin in one fell blow, Han Yoohyun had been chipped away piece by piece. In order to adjust to the new World that had been bestowed upon him, he had slowly, steadily cast aside the components of his prior self.

화르륵, dark blue flames bloomed along the Sovereign's Blade’s length, creeping upwards. Liette hastily threw herself backwards, releasing a plume of venom. But the fire consumed the poison, burning it away.

“Hyung and I are different. That’s something that won’t ever change.”

뚝, 뚝, fire dripped down. Like drops of rain, it soaked into the ground. Mixed betwixt them was Irin, combined together as one.

“...we’re different too, Noah and I.”

Liette finally admitted, haltingly.

“And to be quite honest, I never saw fit to yield to him. Because my dongsaeng is weak, and I’m the one who’s strong! But you–you were fine with that, even though your hyung is weak? Is it alright to follow the lead of the weaker one, truly?”

“Hyung isn’t weak.”

“Yes, yes, I understand that Honey’s very impressive~ But it’s true that he’s weak, no.”

“If it were simply a matter of physical strength, perhaps. But Hyung is.”

Han Yoojin was. The corners of Han Yoohyun’s mouth rose slightly. Hyung was truly amazing. Han Yoohyun, too, had fretted over Han Yoojin at first, had tried to protect him. But now–at present, despite his continual lack of physical prowess, he trusted in Hyung.

“Hyung is strong.”

“That’s–eh?”

As she felt the heat radiating from below her feet, Liette hurriedly attempted to move her body out of the way. But before she could do so.

쿠르르릉!

The ledge of the cliff broke apart even faster. 와르르, while leaving approximately two paces around Han Yoohyun intact, the ground began to crumble apart, caving in on itself. The fire that had seeped into the floor had liquefied the floor, with the Fire Elemental acting as a detonator. As though a swath of the cliff had been scooped away by a giant shovel, the ground collapsed inwards, and began to slide away.

“Hot!”

Liette yelped, having been caught up in the avalanche of debris. Though she scrambled to use some of the falling hunks of rock as a foothold to jump back upwards, 물컹, they were summarily liquified as well, turning molten. And no matter how accomplished an S-rank Hunter she might be, it was impossible to push off of something liquid without a Skill being involved. Liette let loose a low growl and–

콰과광!

A heavy sound rumbled out from below. Han Yoohyun, standing on viridian willow leaves, glanced down towards the foot of the cliff. A huge black dragon, squatting half-entombed within a lavaized pile of dirt, looked back up at him. 툭, 툭, magmatized soil and and rocks bounced off of its scales. It was a dreadful, overwhelming heat; still, it was insufficient to melt the black dragon’s scales. 

- Everything else is great, really, but the lack of wings is a real drawback! Right, so then–you decided to live the way your hyung dictated, is that it? Like, ah, Noah? Though Noah was quite unhappy about it.

“I had–but Hyung accepted my original self.”

Viridian willow leaves drifted down from the sky, like flecks of snow. As they caught on fire, one by one, Liette’s vision began to be obscured. 

“He said that it would be fine, to live as myself.”

Saying that it was alright, to even the parts that any human would find difficult to comprehend, let alone accept. Liette’s features twisted in a scowl. The leaves enveloped in Han Yoohyun’s flames burned even hotter than the molten earth she’d been encased in.

- What does, that even mean?

“That it’s fine to acknowledge our differences, and to both make concessions for one another as a result. That neither of us–I, nor Hyung–were in the wrong.”

- …Noah, he’d.

Liette lapsed into silence. Her dongsaeng was sweet, cute, and lovely. But beyond that–Liette had paid little interest. Since he was younger and weaker, she’d simply come to the conclusion that having herself protect him and conditioning him to become stronger, was likely the best possible route.

- I think I know less about Noah, than I’d imagined.

That’s right. Noah had become stronger. Now, it seemed there was no impetus that dictated she must look after him. And so, the next step was. Would doing as he pleased, and enjoying life on his own terms, be that? Liette had found herself feeling caught somewhat off-balance, to which Kang Soyoung had offered, what about trying to grow a bit closer? ‘What kind of thing does Noah-ssi like? Whether it’s food, or hobbies.’ ‘Hmm, he did use to cook before, every so often. He’d mentioned wanting to handle the cooking himself.’

She’d brought him numerous gifts. He’d always expressed thanks, no matter what it had been. She’d called, written letters, and doted on him whenever they met.

- My dongsaeng was on the quieter side, y’see. But–maybe it was just that I hadn’t stopped to listen to him, perhaps.

‘My dongsaeng.’ It may have been only just that. Squirming within the cradle, weak, cute, and lovely.

- Is Noah, actually ‘Noah’? I still don’t think it was wrong, raising my dongsaeng to become strong. But.

Prior to that.

- ‘Because I don’t want you to die. Let’s aim to make you stronger.’ Should I have asked for his assent like so, before then?

“Who’s to know.”

Han Yoohyun responded dismissively. 

“Ask him directly.”

- Mm, yeah–I think I’ll do just that!

Liette answered; then.

콰아아앙!

Flames roared. The rest of the cliff face collapsed completely, atop the black dragon. And nor did the ground provide any reprieve. Every inch of surface underfoot turned molten, and columns of fire licked upwards. Even for a gargantuan dragon, without wings with which to take flight, it became impossible to move unencumbered. 

- Wow, amazing! Though I’d only lapsed in attention for a moment!

Despite her flustered state, Liette still marveled aloud. Her surroundings became dyed with hues of red, black, and cerulean. But even if it was difficult to maneuver in her colossal form, it wasn’t as though she could afford to transform back into her human state. While the reinforced dragon scales may have at least been able to endure the heat, reverting back to a humanoid form was guaranteed to result in severe burns.

The ground, slipping like quicksand below her feet, and the red-hot mounds of stone buffeting her body. Jets of flame erupted from between their gaps.

- Eh?

And then–Han Yoohyun vanished. Even with Liette’s keen senses, all traces of him had disappeared. The only thing she was capable of picking up was fire and flames, and fire. She was in danger. Grimly resigning herself to injury, Liette shifted back into her human form. The dragon’s body was far too large of a target.

“Kuhk!”

The instant she had steeled herself, in spite of the overwhelming heat, to press forward and scrabble up through the falling avalanche of rocks, any which way she could–.

“......!”

Han Yoohyun reappeared. A hand, transformed, shot out to grab hold of the blade that struck out at her. 카드드득, screeching against scales, the tip of his blade stilled right before it was about to pierce her throat. And just when it seemed that that was as far as it would go.

콰득!

The Sovereign's Blade ran through Liette’s neck. Liette gave a faint shrug, and subsequently faded away. It was a face that spoke of no regrets, if tinged with a trace of ruefulness at having let her guard down a touch more than intended.

The flames were reined back; the air slowly began to cool. Touching down on the solidifying ground, Han Yoohyun put away the Sovereign’s Blade. 

“...but Hyung’s.”

The pieces of Han Yoohyun that had been carved away–they had slowly begun to return; but as for Han Yoojin. A helpless expression akin to a lost child’s stole over Han Yoohyun’s face.

[ Victor: Han Yoohyun ] 

* * * 

The tips of Han Yoojin’s fingers made an aborted twitch. Initially suppressed, then clawing against the floor, before finally digging into the arm of the one strangling him. Han Yoojin bore down even harder. The sound of desperate choking reached his ears. He bore down even harder. 

- - - - -

(1) phrased differently to fit, but the wording in korean is the same as the one used by the ‘shade’ yj in ch568, when he says ‘frankly speaking, that’s the normal reaction to have, right’

(+Q&A)

Q) 안녕하세요!! <내가 키운 S급들>이라는 제목은 어떻게 지으셨는지 궁금합니다. 혹시 염두에 두셨던 다른 제목 후보들이 있는지도요..! A) 소설의 전체적인 내용을 그대로 담은 제목이라 짓는 데 오래 걸리진 않았습니다. 한유진이 주위 사람들, 주로 s급들과 엮이며 자기 자신을 성장시킨다는 부분을 담을까도 했지만 양육자라는 위치 자체가 피양육자와 상호 영향을 받을 수밖에 없기에 지금의 제목이 되었습니다^^

(+Q&A)

Q) while writing, i’m curious as to whose love author-nim liked the most A) ranking them in order of like is difficult, but as much as they’re the central focus of the story, i was the most attentive to han yoojin and han yoohyun’s relationship ^^

(+Q&A)

A) what han yoohyun did when he was younger was akin to ‘copying’ han yoojin. as his status as a being of fire at his core remained unchanged, rather than produce his own emotions, what occurred would be by ‘receiving’ the emotion from his World, han yoojin, he would then mimic it similarly himself. for han yoohyun, han yoojin is a difficult existence to understand from beginning to end, and the same applies to the emotions given to him by hyung. even so, han yoohyun accepted han yoojin, and began wanting to be with him. for a being of fire, that very moment can be defined as ‘the moment he fell in love’. it’s the moment that something originally impossible was accomplished, for the sake of another, after all^^ however, the general concept of ‘love’ is something that han yoohyun, even at the conclusion of the series, still finds difficult to comprehend.

(+Q&A)

Q) when yoohyunie was attending kindergarten or elementary school, did he ever come back home and show off the children’s songs or dances he’d learned to hyung and get praised, perhaps? A) around the time that he’d just entered kindergarten, only when han yoojin would asked him what he’d learned would he mechanically go through the motions in answer. he recognized that hyung liked it when he did such things, but he was unable to understand why it brought him delight, nor did he particularly care about seeing hyung be happy. later on–despite changing to have engaged in those behaviors to please hyung, as he grew older, he stopped in due course in accordance with societal conventions. currently, as a result of witnessing bak yerim engage in childishly proprietary behaviors* and aegyo even as a middle schooler, after contemplation and surveillance, he’s come to conclude that it seems to be acceptable, even as an adult; and, since then, with hyung at the focus of his endeavors, has been imitating her punctiliously. he’s also observed liette, who has a dongsaeng in noah, for potential use as reference material, but her status as an appropriate role model is still under deliberation.

(+Q&A)

Q) 어린 한형제는 주로 어떤 놀이를 했었나요? 유현이 특성 상 남들과 어울려서 놀았을 것 같진 않고 항상 유진이가 챙겨줬을 것 같아서요. 작 중에서 >둘 뿐이라 술래잡기는 못 했지만 숨바꼭질은 했다<는 언급이 있었는데 이 외에도 어떤 놀이들을 했었는지 궁금합니다! A) 어릴 때는 보호자가 동행하질 않아 집에 머무는 시간이 길었기에 숨바꼭질 외의 활동적인 놀이는 별로 하지 못했습니다. 주로 한유진의 옛날 장난감을 가지고 놀거나 한유진이 책을 읽어주곤 했죠. 한유현이 어느 정도 큰 뒤에는 놀이터에 가서 놀곤 했습니다.

(+Q&A)

Q) are hunters typically big eaters? A) the higher the rank, the more efficient their digestive abilities become–but as the amount of energy they consume increases proportionately as well, they tend to be big eaters, for the most part. but notably, high-ranked Hunters are capable of ‘absorbing energy’ via their magical energy as well. accordingly, the more advanced their control over magical energy, the less they need to eat. in addition, their idiosyncrasies vary depending on their respective ‘properties’. in han yoohyun’s case, by burning up something with fire, he is able to absorb the ‘energy’ imparted from it and is capable of forgoing eating altogether. had it not been for han yoojin, he would not have continued to consume any food following his Awakening. conversely, as song taewon must keep repressing the power of the Lunar Eclipse that continually compels him to swallow things down, even with outstanding control over his magical energy, the amount he eats is considerable. bak yerim possesses outstanding control as well, but as she enjoys the act of eating in itself, she eats heartily. that she had been unable to eat what she wanted, as much as she wanted, while living as an ‘imposition’ (at her relatives’) has a hand in this, in part. moon hyuna is of the opinion that, with remarkable digestive abilities and a full coinpurse, there’s no reason not to enjoy eating, and as kang soyoung enjoys eating as well, the three(yerim-mha-ksy) will gather to drink and dine together from time to time. liette isn’t picky about what she eats, but falls close to the aforementioned three. as for noah, he has outstanding control as well, but due to the trauma(shock) he received from liette’s cooking when he was younger, tends to be a light eater. sung hyunjae possesses outstanding control; but, owing to his status as a waxing moon, his body demands more energy–something he deliberately ignores.

(+Q&A)

A) han yoojin’s ‘optimization’ and ‘level-up’ Skill could only be obtained by leveling up the ‘caregiver’ class designation while fulfilling special conditions. the Teacher Skill was one of the aforementioned ‘level-up Skills that acted as a trigger condition’. it was also because the caregiver-class Skills’ rank was so high overall, that han yoojin’s rank-based prizes numbered fewer as well. noah Awakened alongside liette during a Dungeon break. immediately after Awakening, abruptly overcome with fear as the pressure given off by his born s-rank noona became exponentially amplified to his senses, he completely froze up and was almost caught and devoured by a monster. the harsh training liette put noah through was in part because of what transpired then ^^

(+Q&A)

Q) han yoojin’s fear resistance that appeared when he re-Awakened, it didn’t seem to have much to do with the king of curses and poisons, lauchitas; was it something the reprobates had deliberately given to him, or was it something that appeared in accordance with han yoojin’s situation at the time? A) his fear resistance is a Skill that appeared as a result of a convergence between the situation at hand + han yoojin’s personal attributes. the fortitude shown by an f-rank taking the lauchitas head-on, was multiplied by the resolve shown through his enduring devotion to a born s-rank, who he’d held no reservations with and had never given up on, even after their relationship grew strained. even aside from han yoohyun, it’s the accumulated experience from the times he’d stood his ground while faced with other high-rank Hunters, including sung hyunjae and song taewon, manifesting in the form of a Skill.

(+Q&A)

Q) s-ranks have immensely sturdy bodies, right… then, is their mental fortitude greater than that of an un-Awakened person as well? like they receive less stress, for example…. or don’t get depressed… that kind of thing. A) fortitude is included among the stats that level up corresponding to rank after Awakening. cases do exist where, due to an uneven distribution of stats, one may end up with particularly low fortitude values; but, typically, mid-ranked and higher Awakened tend to possess greater mental fortitude than most un-Awakened. as a result, unlike low-ranked Hunters, Hunters who are mid-ranked or above will generally adapt quickly even on their first foray into a Dungeon. during the story, bak yerim also displayed a distinct lack of fear when dealing with monsters. han yoojin, too, was also able to withstand the trauma of losing his keyword application target better than he normally would, while the buff to his mental fortitude stat applied by the Requital(보답) Skill was activated.

(+Q&A)

Q) i’m curious if han yoojin & the other s-ranks have been in a relationship before/have skinship* experience *’skinship’ refers to ‘physical affection’ and can range from innocuous (family/friends holding hands) → mature (sexual), depending on context A) han yoojin may not have dated, but he’s had a lot of skinship experience. it was simply that the situation wasn’t good(conducive), he’s generally the type to get attached first. bak yerim and moon hyuna are similar in that respect.  A) liette tends to go very much overboard, and noah is acclimated to long suffering under liette’s ministrations, but also doesn’t attempt to initiate first.

(+Q&A)

Q) is ‘luire’ riette’s surname as well? how is ‘riette’ spelled? A) as liette is disinterested in her parents, and, furthermore, thinks she’s not received anything of worth from them, she does not utilize a surname. that’s why noah was stuck with a completely new (nick)name as well. it is spelled ‘Liette.’ for foreign names, typically one from an existing figure will be utilized ^^

(+Q&A)

A) after earning her Title, liette’s condition shifted closer to a more wild(feral) state, so she typically catnaps. rather than sleeping regularly every day, she often waits and then sleeps for several days at a time. when she’s with noah, she tends to match her sleeping schedule to his, but she’ll also routinely wake him up and drag him outside with her when she gets bored.

(+Q&A)

Q) with liette’s appearance having changed as a result of her dragon-shifting ability (golden eyes,dark hair), has she ever been pleased with or disappointed by the change? and, did noah’s newly golden locks and scales from his transformation into a golden dragon appeal to her? A) while she was slightly disappointed that she and her dongsaeng had become so different, she’s pleased by the increase in her strength. the colossal and vicious appearance of her dragon form appealed to her as well. she liked that noah came to sparkle even more, but found it lamentable that his dragon form was so different from hers, and frail besides. it’s liette’s wish that her dongsaeng would grow even bigger and stronger^^

(+Q&A)

Q) if it so happens that liette utilizes accessory-type Items, does she prefer the kind that are adorned with ostentatious jewels? A) when it comes to simple ornamentation, she does possess a fondness for glitzy things, but as she finds it bothersome during combat, she probably wouldn’t prefer such a trait in an Item. while she knows how to use a blade, she prefers fighting with her own body, and enjoys brawling bare-handed the most. as even clothing will irritate her on occasion, she considers her dragon state to be quite liberating.

(+Q&A)

Q) i’m very curious about the episode where little noah cried because the food liette made was so bad that he said he couldn’t eat it, are there plans to release it later, perchance?? it’s so cute ㅠㅠ A) there are no plans to do so at present. for a very long period, noah held out through sheer force of will/desperation^^

(+Q&A)

Q) i was wondering whether the primary Skill or attribute of an individual would affect their body temperature as well; and, if so, what the average temperature for yoojinie and the s-ranks might be A) irrespective of their innate attributes, mid-ranked and higher Hunters tend to possess slightly higher than average temperatures for their species. there isn’t a particularly significant difference. when using their Skills, it may fluctuate based on the Skill. for example: while liette and noah are in their full dragon states, their body temperatures are lowered, according to the characteristics of their species. as han yoojin’s body temperature is on the average-to-slightly-low side, when they were young, he found it pleasant how his dongsaeng was so warm and toasty^^

(+Q&A)

Q) i would like to know the ideal type(s) of the sclass cast A) han yoojin’s has been answered in a comment further up. because han yoohyun is completely disinterested in interpersonal relations with anyone other than han yoojin, his ideal type as well, in every sense, is han yoojin in terms of presently wanting to emulate them; bak yerim’s is han yoohyun, moon hyuna, or sung hyunjae sung hyunjae’s is sung hyunjae. for people who aren’t quite at the level of ‘ideal type,’ but have still managed to catch his eye, at least, it’s han yoojin and song taewon moon hyuna also tries to focus more on herself than others, but likes the cute type that seems to be the complete opposite from herself for convoluted reasons, song taewon’s is sung hyunjae. from a post-series standpoint, for convoluted and hard-to-explain reasons, han yoojin can be included as well. yoo myungwoo isn’t interested in really involving himself with anyone. for him, it’s enough to simply have them involved in his life. liette considers herself to be the pinnacle already, but believes noah to be the cutest/prettiest noah is always looking towards his noona. though his field of vision would’ve expanded a bit by the series conclusion, probably.

(+Q&A)

Q) 노아가 빌딩사람들과는 다르게 유진이를 계속 유진씨로 부르고 , 작중에서 이 부분을 유진이가 언급하기도 하는데 형이라고 부르게 되는 날도 올까요?  A) 노아는 리에트의 존재 때문에 리에트 외의 사람을 가족적인 호칭으로 부르기 꺼려했습니다. 리에트와의 사이가 변화한 후에도 전과 다른 이유로 타인에게 굳이 형이나 누나의 호칭을 쓰진 않으려 할 거예요. 그래도 예전과 달리 단발성으로 가볍게 쓸 수는 있을 겁니다.

[blorbocedes]

hiya! I've recently returned back to tumblr and somehow seemed to have remembered your name. I've dearly missed you!!! The last time i was on here, the zendaya throuple movie had been released, and I remember you writing the most magnificent lewis and nico fic, which was so gut-wrenching and honestly so tantalisingly hot. I no longer dabble in ao3 but was wondering if you had any published book suggestions/reading recs of similar writing style. Your writing had been (still is if you're currently writing) so so so mesmerising, so my thought process is that you must've read a tonne of books to get to such a wonderfully expressive and creative writing style.

If it isn't too much of an ask, do you by any chance have book recommendations? Preferably women centric or anything in general.

Thank you!! Hugs and kisses are being sent your way. I'm so happy I've rediscovered you again!! AND ALSO MAX VERSTAPPEN IS A 4 TIME WORLD CHAMPION

💞💞💞

(apologies for any spelling error 😅)

hiii first of all thank you so much for the kind message 🥹🥹🥹 welcome back!

secondly unfortunately all I do is read nonfiction that's related to my degree.

HOWEVER. I asked two women @karlmarxverstappen and @gayferrari who DO read and I trust their taste implicitly, and I asked them for reccs on women centric books that are fun and fucked up because that's how I'd describe my style and here's the reccs:

Tampa by alissa nutting, bunny by mona awad, all is well by mona awad, casandra at the wedding by Dorothy Baker, animal by lisa Tadeo, big swiss by jen beagin, boy parts by Eliza clarke

Young adult cosy read about creepy faeries — <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18298890-cuckoo-song>

victorian England version of The Handmaiden (book it's based on) <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8913370-fingersmith>

LESBIAN NECROMANCERS IN SPACE <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52057544-gideon-the-ninth>

thriller by the author of gone girl which I also rec <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18045891-sharp-objects>

not fucked up but a women centric comfort read <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32075853-erotic-stories-for-punjabi-widows>

creepy novelette :3 <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/89724.We_Have_Always_Lived_in_the_Castle>

English Victorian missionaries bring jesus christ to the fae world it goes badly also there's (spoiler) ||incest|| <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34643773-under-the-pendulum-sun>

girl tries to get a MFA and it's a literal horror show <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42732512-bunny>

my best friend's exorcism <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41015038-my-best-friend-s-exorcism>

straight up horror but very well written I LOVE the protag <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55713043-my-heart-is-a-chainsaw>

also if u do romance this is my romance entry point, it's not fucked up but the main character is over 30 which is very rare in romance <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51589631-last-tang-standing>

[evil-feather]

!AI GENERATED CONTENT!

It's entirely @minha-xuh 's fault that I threw Perekoo into the bing image creator. And now I'm even more obsessed with them, help 😭

[theo-raeken-appreciation]

IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN TELL US ABOUT THE CHANGELING AU????

AHHHHH THE CHANGELING AU JUST. I THINK ABOUT IT A LOT (and sadly have done more thinking than writing lollll) but okay--so i do want to address tara. and what her relationship with theo could have been like.

idk what the situation would be. all I know is, is that i read this book, and I don’t know the name, or the author or even what the book was about. It was years ago. But there was this kid and he was a changeling, and he was beautiful. And he met these other changelings and saw they were frightful and scary looking—rotting, almost. And he didn’t understand why he was different, until one changeling told him it was because a changeling is fae, particularly dying fae, and then given to a human family in the hopes that they would survive and become stronger through the exchange. Maybe strong enough to come back to Faerie if they want to. But most changelings don’t make it—the rot kills them.

The reason the changelings are given to the humans is because of—actually, I don’t even remember the reason, I don’t even remember the plot.

but I remember that there was a component of the changelings appearance. the main character was told he wasn’t dying of rot and that the reason be physically was beautiful the way other fae are (bewitching and otherworldly) was “because his human parents loved him.” the other changelings were not loved (human host families were unwanting of the changeling children who were seen as impostors or cuckoos in a nest) and therefore were physically sickly looking—im talking skin hardening to rotting bark, blood slogging to muck, hair falling like decaying leaves, that kind of stuff.

BUT THE REASON I BRING THIS UP- is because the mc’s human host parents didn’t love him at all. They were indifferent- they didn’t want him, they ignored him and made it clear they would have preferred and missed their real child who he was switched with. He was a monster to them.

and there was a scene where he, when he was a baby, placed in the original child’s crib, the human family’s older daughter was in the room. And she knew right away that he was a changeling. And while her parents screamed and grieved and wished to get rid of him, she slid her fingers through the bars of the crib and reached for him—only for him to latch onto her finger with sharp teeth and draw blood. her first action—to reach for him. His first action—biting her, causing pain however inadvertently. She loved him anyways.

and there’s another scene where she said, you are so beautiful, and I am not. And he said, a changeling is only as beautiful as he is loved. Mom and dad didn’t love me. All this is from you. You are so beautiful, and you shared that with me.

i don't know exactly yet, whether or not theo's parents knew he was a changeling. tara certainly did not. but there will be a moment, where theo does find out--and he finds out from the doctors, after tara's death, after her heart rests in his chest--that he is a changeling. and he can never actually truly confront this fact, never really sit back and think about what that means, because he's young and malleable and doesn't even know what a changeling is.

but he spends time with the doctors, he is more involved with the supernatural world than not, and he comes to understand what it means.

and he still cant accept it.

but eventually he has to. after hell, during monroe and her attack on BH and the supernatural community, where theo is going on solo missions looking for his OWN heart, sealed and preserved and hidden by the DD, he has to face it. he has to look at himself in the mirror, and see that he is beautiful and that it was not his parents, but tara that made it so. he was loved. he is loved.

[of-time-and-space-itself]

Ive been wondering for a bit now but how does the timeline of events work in this AU? Cuz sometimes we see Snatcher as The Prince and other times we see him as a ghost and Hat Kid is present for both versions of him

Does he die after he Hat Kid befriends him? Is it a curse? Shapeshifting shenanigans? I'm really curious!

Ooo! Good question!

This one is a little hard to explain, but I'll do my best! (Reference the ugly little timeline I made at the bottom that might help this make more sense.) Also, I apologize for how long-winded this may be! I'll try to omit details, hopefully that doesn't make things more complicated.

(For all the people who don't wanna read all that - spoilers, he's a Shapeshifter. Also, this is just a run down of events.)

Okay, so there are three(technically 4?) main events/Eras that determine which version of Snatcher you're seeing!

Era 1 is what I like to call "The Monarchy/Vanessa Era".

Events in this Era go as follows!(extremely summarized, of course):

The Prince and Vanessa marry and create history by divorcing sometime after.

The Kingdom is left queen-less for a little while.

The Prince re-marries and all is well.

Oh! And Hat Kid has just been born.

Everything pertaining to this Era is all prince! Specifically, It's The Prince that's wearing red and gold.

Era 1½ - "Snatcher "Breaks/Vanessa Banishment"

Events in this Era go as follows:

The New Queen Passes away(I'm sure there was no foul play)

The Prince goes a little Cuckoo for Cocoa puffs and banishes Vanessa from The Kingdom of Time.

Vanessa goes back to the Kingdom of Space - Space revolt begins. Mu is too young to do anything at this point.

The two Kingdoms are no longer unionized.

While still technically The Prince(Red&Gold), this era is the turning point in which he begins his transition into Snatcher. This is because of something I haven't really touched on yet, a thing only known as "breaking"(clever, I know).

The short of it is that it's a state exclusive to people of Time and it's immensely rare. People of time are often able to take A LOT. And I mean A LOT. But sometimes, they'll just kinda snap and that's it. It's such a rare thing, that it's barely been researched and everyone that has ever "broke" seemingly vanish into thin air, never to be seen again.

I guess in that way it's kinda like a curse.

Era 2 - "Long Lost Princess"

Events in this Era go as follows:

One day, someone decides to check on The King, only to find him missing.

Snatcher has fled to the forest, child in his arms - no longer a man, but a crazed beast of horrid display.

For sometime, The Kingdom of time remains isolated.

During this period the old King is presumed "dead".

The Kingdom decides they have no other choice, but to refer to the "Backup" Lineage and Timmy is nominated to become heir of the throne.

before any such thing can happen, however, the Kingdom of Time is notified of a child that the king kept secret. And so Hat kid receives her rightful place on the throne. Sorry, Timmy.

While all this is happening - The Kingdom of Space has STILL been protesting Vanessa's position of power. They've had no external help from the Kingdom of time, and have been left to their own devices. everyone has been way too scared to actually cross Vanessa though.

Except Mu, who's decided she's had about enough of all the ruckus and forcefully locks Vanessa out of the Kingdom and into the uncharted forest. She's given the title, "The Rebel of Space", and is nominated into a position of power herself.

And thus begins the main plot events! In which, a lot is put at stake. And that includes the end of the world!

This Entire Era is Snatcher! Hat kid really meets Snatcher sometime after she receives the throne. He becomes her "Lawyer", And from then on she entrusts him to take care of all the complicated things that she doesn't understand.

Era 3 - "Post-End of the World"

Events in this Era go as-

Well actually, there isn't much to note. At least, not in the same way as the other Eras. instead, there's one really specific event that matters for Snatcher.

Just before "Post-End"- unattached to the main end, Snatcher has a bit of a...Crisis? A remembrance, if you will. Y'know the whole "near death experience" thing? That's really important(for multiple reasons but also-), because it sends Snatcher to seek out Hat kid, - whereas prior, he would have refused to leave his little forest home(for reasons I will omit because this is long).

By the time that Snatcher has met up with her, he has unintentionally shifted into The Prince and now is probably a really good time to mention that Snatcher never actually died.

And if he never "died" and he wasn't cursed, then the only conclusion is that he is, in fact, a shapeshifter!

Anyway, whenever you see The Prince in purple&gold, that's post-story Snatcher. He can shift back and forth, however he'll only do so if absolutely necessary.

Does this make sense? I hope it does! honestly, my brain goes to so many different places, I wouldn't be surprised if this is very unorganized! If there's anything you don't understand, just let me know and i'll do my best to explain!

[arrumiekookie]

— Your lips, my lips... Apocalypse.

More doodles + edits with botched anatomy.

You ever think about the fact that Quentin Quire [Kid Omega] ran away from Idie because he was scared of their possible future? She could become Death... She could kill him; they could kill Evan [Kid Apocalypse]... That should be looked into more.

I know they were young, but that has nothing to do with their different timelines, universes and futures... or how his powers connected him to Idie [ Oya | Temper ] in X-Force during Krakoa events to save Logan [ Wolverine ] while he had already broken up with Phoebe Cuckoo.

They truly have something so special.

I miss Evan Sabanhur as well, but he is so hard to draw too... I will keep practicing, thou.

[thatawkwardmoth]

Tasty little Scemma (Scott x Emma) idea. So, in the universe where everything is perfect, Emma is married to Scott and is a child psychologist (Canon, I'll add citations later). So that's something established prior to this idea. So...au? Modern day, no powers, slice of life shit.

Scott just lost Jean or maybe just divorced her, I don't know. But anyway, he has Nathan and Rachel to care for and it's obvious that they're not handling it well. They're grieving, lashing out, lost. They're young too, Rachel's like 7, Nathan's barely 5, they miss the constant presence of their mom.

So Scott finds a therapist, does for his kids what he should've done himself or what someone should've done for him. It's Emma, high praised child psychologist, apparently very well with kids and helping them through their issues.

And Scott, at first, isn't interested at all in finding love again. He's guarded and almost cold to Emma when they first meet. But he melts around Rachel and Nathan, is just so soft to his two little ones.

Emma finds him attractive immediately but focuses on her patients, not her feelings. She makes good progress on the kids, getting them to open up and giving them coping mechanisms, bringing Scott's attention to some things he could do to help them. And after almost a few years, she barely sees the kids in her office but her and Scott have been in contact a lot, she asks him out on a date.

It's perfect, a little awkward, a little stilted, but she enjoys it. She even is honest with him about why she chose to be a psychologist and not a teacher like she dreamed. She has five little girls at home, her quintuplets, that she had almost 4 years ago. She and their dad didn't have a good relationship and she doesn't want Scott to think he has to be their dad. But she's honest about her life, about being a former stripper, deciding to leave her family's wealth behind. She's really in love with this guy.

Scott is scared. He's not been in love since Jean. And he's worried about his kids, about what they might think or the setbacks it might cause to see him moving on. But he listens to his friends and accepts the date. He laughs for the first time in a while, not something related to his kids. He jokes and quips. He's a gentleman. He doesn't judge but he doesn't open up all the way yet. He tells her about losing his parents, about his brother getting adopted and not him, about finding out his dad was alive and had another son. About loving Jean with everything. He tells her about being scared to move on. And she understands.

The kids are fine with it. The quintuplets are a bit miffed at the playdate they have to introduce the kids. They prefer each other, not new playmates. But after a while, Esme and Sophie are playing with Nathan. Celeste and Irma are clinging to Scott, laughing as he lifts them both with one arm. Phoebe is sitting beside Rachel, just watching her color and maybe helping once and a while.

It's not perfect. It's not a seamless transition. They fight. The kids fight. They feel too much change, too many emotions. The Cuckoos want to be alone with each other again, not wanting to split their mother's time. Rachel doesn't want a new mom. Nathan doesn't want more sisters.

But eventually it mellows out. And it's almost paradise. It's Emma's perfect world. Successful and helping kids. Married in a beautiful gown to a man who doesn't focus on her body, on her almost exposed cleavage, but instead on her feet in her heels, offering to take them off because they might be hurting her feet.

And, like lunatics, they have another kid. Well into the future. The kids are all almost grown, in high school. They have Megan. And that's enough for them. Some joke they might have twins or maybe more. But Emma is happy. She's content with this life. Watching her girls bond with Megan, watching Rachel encourage her to walk, watching Nathan rant about his day to a toddler just wanting to color.

It's her perfect reality.

[palmofafreezinghand]

an early morning vignette

a regular morning in the Cullen-Masen-Hale household in 1934. or rosalie sees a functioning relationship. on ao3 here.

1934: 

Seldom had the house been this serene since the newest member of the group had unwillingly been introduced. The early morning breeze filtering in through the open windows was crisp, the smell of dew on freshly cut grass. 

Edward had spent the last hour working through a new jigsaw puzzle, one Esme had made for him for his birthday, the image more detailed and challenging to put together than the ones bought in department stores. Rosalie was disassembling an antique cuckoo clock that had recently stopped working. Esme was sitting on the front porch swing, her most recent knitting project in her lap, waiting for her husband to return from work. 

A half hour passed, not a word spoken, when the familiar rumble of a Ford engine fine-tuned to perfection came down the gravel driveway. Rosalie listened as the engine died, the driver door softly opening and closing, patent leather shoes walking a touch too fast to the front porch. 

“Good morning,” Carlisle said. 

“Welcome home,” Esme smiled, setting her knitting needles on her lap and offering Carlisle her hand, which he took. 

Rosalie watched the scene through the picture window, trying to hide behind the lace curtains. 

Carlisle set his leather medical bag down on the bottom stair, leaning down to tuck an unruly curl behind Esme’s ear with his now free hand. 

“How was your night?” Esme asked. Carlisle took a seat on the step next to her, never dropping her hand. 

“Better now,” Carlisle smiled. The two spoke softly. “What are you making?” He asked, motioning to the project in her lap. “A sock?” 

Esme sighed, dropping his hand to pick up the yarn. “A sweater,” she said defeatedly, holding up the lopsided, tiny square. 

“It’s a beautiful sweater,” Carlisle said, the corner of his mouth twitching, betraying his lie. 

“Hush,” Esme laughed, swatting at his chest gently. 

“I mean it. You will make a squirrel very happy.” 

Esme frowned, turning back to her ‘sweater.’ She stared at the stitches for a moment before frogging the entire square. She handed the needles and ball of yarn to Carlisle who, without question, began to wind the now crimped yarn back into a spool. He tucked the spool into the outside pocket of his work bag. 

The two sat on the porch, leaning into each other’s sides, attention focused on nothing in particular, hands interlocked. Minutes passed as they sat there, 

“May I have a kiss?” Carlisle asked in no more than a whisper, almost sheepishly. As if he hadn’t been kissing her for over a decade. 

“For rewinding my yarn?” Esme scoffed. “It’ll take a little more than that, Mister.” 

“No, I know it takes more than that to charm you. I just missed you.” 

“Just one kiss?” Esme asked, holding up her pinky. 

“One,” Carlisle smiled, lips quirking in a way that made him look barely twenty-three. He linked his pinky around hers, leaning in for the one kiss he had negotiated for. 

Rosalie looked back to her half disassembled cuckoo clock. 

“That was two, Doctor,” Esme chided after a few moments.   

“Apologies,” Carlisle smirked. “I’ll return one.” 

Rosalie looked away again. 

“You think you’re quite charming,” Esme laughed quietly on the front porch, getting up from the stairs. She pulled Carlisle up behind her. 

“You used to,” he grinned, wrapping his arm loosely around her shoulders. 

“I was young then,” Esme said wistfully as they started towards the treelines. 

“You? Young? I don’t believe it.” 

“Oh, you’re one to talk.” Their fond bickering faded into the distances. 

Rosalie looked away from the window, in the corner of her eye she caught Edward looking at her. ‘Stop it,’ she thought. 

“You’re the only one allowed to eavesdrop?” Edward asked, turning back to his puzzle. 

“I was not eavesdropping, their conversation was too loud.” 

Edward scoffed loudly. They fell back into silence as they worked on their respective projects. After a few minutes Edward opened his mouth. “To answer your question, yes.” 

“What question?” Rosalie asked, she hadn’t spoken, and if she had she certainly wouldn’t have asked him a question. 

“Yes, it has always been that way for them. And yes, they both thought it never would be.” 

“I didn’t ask.” 

“I’m only saying —” 

“Edward.” 

“Although your personality poses an obstacle.” 

“Edward.” 

Edward smiled, an almost goofy, an almost endearing lopsided grin, returning his attention once more to the puzzle he hadn’t made any progress on in the past three days. Rosalie looked back to the clock which she didn’t particularly care about but was determined to fix. Her thoughts were in a hypothetical world she rarely allowed herself to think of, indulging in the glimmer of hope which had been buried for a long, long time.