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athenaquinn · 4 years

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Fix Me Up || Ariana & Athena

TIMING: Somewhere between 1:30am and 2:30am, October 20th, after the birthday chatzies (x, x) LOCATION: Ariana’s apartment PARTIES: @letsbenditlikebennett and @athenaquinn SUMMARY: Soft™ CONTENT: Discussions of Emotional and Physical Abuse, discussions of death, panic attack

She had murdered her parents. Helped to, at least. Athena didn’t know what to do about that, she only knew that every time she closed her eyes she could see it, even though Nic had helped deal with the aftermath, somewhat. She only knew that she had to find somewhere to be so that she would be safe, so that she and Rio wouldn’t be the primary suspects. She knew that she had changed and she ran her fingers over the soft fabric of her sweater, against the cool feeling of her black jeans. Her hip ached where she had cut it against the marble countertop, but it was at least bandaged, and if push came to shove, she could wave it away as a soccer injury. Worse than any she’d gotten before - namely because it wasn’t a soccer injury, but it was an easy explanation. One that would also heal soon enough, she hoped. Her brother’s injury would be harder to explain, but she couldn’t focus on that right now. She had to believe that he was safe, and she had to find somewhere to go. Her mouth was dry and there were still times when she felt like she was going to pass out. It was too much to process, everything that had just happened, mere hours before. Was it hours? She didn’t know.

What she did know was that Ariana was the only person she could go to. Athena didn’t even think about what that meant about anything, only that she trusted Ariana more than just about anyone in the entire world. She drove her car on autopilot, grateful that she’d at least been by the other girl’s house before. She hadn’t brought much - too much would be suspicious, but too little would be just as odd. So she had pajamas, a change of clothes, a toothbrush, and all her schoolbooks. A favorite childhood photo of her and her brother was tucked into a copy of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, which she and Ariana were still in the middle of reading. It had been there beforehand, but Athena found herself glancing over to it repeatedly. She pulled up outside of Ariana’s apartment building and grabbed her things, nearly dropping her overnight bag onto the pavement as she did so. As if on autopilot, Athena made her way up to Ariana’s floor and to her door. She banged on the door a few times, and the second her friend opened it, she blurted out, “Can I please stay over? I - please?” Athena knew that her eyes must have still been wide with some variant of panic or worry, mixed with still not being quite there. She didn’t even remember much of what had happened, everything felt fuzzy and her body felt heavy and numb. Doing her best to level her breath, she offered a shaky smile to Ariana. “I know it’s very late - I - I’m sorry. I woke you up, didn’t I?”

Some time between throwing on Master Chef and getting in bed, Ariana had actually managed to fall asleep. She found it’d been harder to come by lately, but having Luna pressed up against her in bed made it easier somehow. A curt bark from Luna had actually pulled her out of a thankfully dreamless sleep and she slowly sat up in the bed, confused. She heard a banging sound on her door and quickly hopped out of her bed. It was dark out so it had to be late so if someone was showing up, it had to be an emergency. She could smell Athena before she even reached the door and her brows knit together in confusion. Recognition made her feet move more quickly toward the door and she carefully opened it to reveal Athena. She didn’t look good. By every indication, she seemed drained and almost detached in a way that felt familiar. “Come in,” she whispered and stepped aside giving her room to come in. The last person she expected on her doorstep this late was Athena which meant it had to be bad. “You’re always welcome here,” she assured and added, “Don’t worry, I’d probably get-- I haven’t been sleeping well. Just, you don’t have to be sorry.” She gestured toward the shelf by the couch, “You can set your stuff down over there. I’m going to get some water, okay? And tea, I have chamomile tea!”

While she had no idea what happened, it didn’t take a genius to figure out that Athena had just been through hell. Ariana knew she couldn’t make that completely go away, but she could help take care of her and give her a safe space. She stared blankly at the wall for a moment as she waited for the water in the kettle to come to a boil. The shock of seeing Athena had woken her up, but there was this tugging feeling in her that she was the last person who’d be able to really help. If Athena was in danger, it felt like she’d somehow just make it worse like she had for Ace. She felt a twang in her chest as the whistle of the kettle alerted her that the water was done. She quickly poured the water over the tea and brought it over to the coffee table along with some water bottles and crackers. “Here, drink this,” she said as she pushed the tea toward her friend. Immediately questioning her didn’t feel quite right, so she gave her a minute. She knew better than most that some things were too heavy to speak of freely and whatever Athena was carrying seemed to weigh her down. “Are you okay,” she asked with concern evident in her tone.

She wanted to collapse to the floor when Ariana opened the door. She didn’t. Athena moved inside, unsure of her movements. She was usually so sure, so precise. She knew exactly how to move her body - but not now. Though she was doing better than she had been even half an hour ago, she still felt dazed, still felt unsure and confused. She moved automatically, without thinking - a glance over to Ariana and a small nod before she went and dumped her luggage on the floor by the couch. “Thank you.” She pressed her tongue firmly against the roof of her mouth. She wanted to scream. “Okay.” She called out, just barely loud enough for Ariana to hear. Should she have come here? Was this implicating Ariana in what she’d done? Ariana didn’t deserve that. Didn’t deserve to be brought into this. If Athena was arrested - even brought into the precinct as a person of interest, would Ariana be in trouble too? Athena had to remind herself that she wasn’t technically a fugitive, and she collapsed onto the couch, elbows pressed into her thighs and hands pressed against her face. She wasn’t sure if she could even cry anymore.

Before she could let herself get too caught back up in her thoughts, Ariana had returned and Athena sat up, grabbing the mug of tea in her hands and relishing the warmth. She felt so cold. “I - can - do you have a blanket?” She wasn’t sure if she was in shock or not. She had been, undoubtedly, right after the fact. She wasn’t sure if it had worn off yet. She took a sip of the tea, letting it sit on her tongue. Took a deep breath. She wasn’t having a panic attack, not quite - but she did her best to count - what she could smell - the tea, Ariana’s shampoo. What she could taste. The chamomile tea. “Thank you.” She wasn’t sure she’d ever thanked someone quite so many times in such a short period of time, or ever. “No.” She swallowed her tea and put the mug down on the coffee table. “I - I need to have been here all night.” She shook her head. Toed her overnight bag. She could smell the soap on her own skin. Her hands were red. “You’d say I was, right? If someone asked you?” She pressed her palms against her thighs, tears threatening to fall again. No. She refused to cry for her parents again. They had taken far too much from her already, she wasn’t going to let them control her any longer. “I - I did something, Ariana.” She could see their bodies even without closing her eyes and she felt like she was going to be sick. “I can’t - I don’t know if -” She bit her lip sharply, just enough to feel something. “It was bad. I had to. But it - nobody can know.”

In that moment, Ariana would have given Athena just about anything she could have asked for. There was no hiding that her night had been rough and she felt a hint of sadness as she remembered it was her birthday merely hours ago. The birthday she shared with both Celeste and Rio-- the former wasn’t around to enjoy it so she’d held out hope that Athena and Rio had a nice evening. It was more than evident that it wasn’t and she was quick to retrieve the fuzzy blanket Nell had brought over a few weeks ago. “Here,” she said softly as she draped the blanket over her, “Is there anything else I can get you?” Would she want a pillow too? She wasn’t overflowing with pillows but she would gladly share what she had. The next thing Athena said made her freeze for a moment. She needed to have been here all night which meant something that could get her in trouble must have happened. This was something she understood well enough seeing as she had almost had some legal trouble herself after what happened with the Aquillas. “Understood,” she assured. Whatever happened, she wasn’t about to throw Athena under the bus. Not when she had just narrowly escaped being arrested herself. “I can do that. You were here with me all night. We planned a sleepover for your birthday. We watched Moana and a few episodes of Master Chef,” Ariana listed out the night’s events as if they actually happened. Still, she couldn’t shake the millions of questions that were rising off. Especially as she said she did something bad. She frowned slightly wondering just what that could have been. “Athena,” she spoke softly, “What happened? You can tell me. I won’t tell anyone or think any less of you. I just want to help.” She meant as much, no matter what the answer was. With how much she’d lost already, Ariana was holding those who were still alive and in her life extra near and dear. If Athena needed her support, even if it was something terrible that she’d done, she could provide it. Help her navigate through it the best she could. All she could hope is that it wasn’t too bad.

“Thank you.” The weight of the blanket was comforting, even if she still felt like she was going to start shivering. Athena shook her head. “No - this - this is enough.” She was supposed to have gone somewhere, but why was she bringing Ariana into this? She didn’t deserve this, didn’t deserve any of the potential fallout. Athena knew that she could have just as easily gone to her sorority house, it would’ve been easy to just claim she was there all night. However, something told her that Ariana was the only real option for this situation. “I know. I -” she bit her lip again. The confirmation that what she was saying at least made some sense was comforting. Not entirely, but given everything that had happened, she was willing to take anything she could get.

“I was. Master Chef sounds nice. I heard there’s a new season of the Great British Bake Off too.” Athena used a shaking hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. “We had too many snacks, but I ate all the carrots so you didn’t have to.” In any other situation, she would have laughed, made some sort of joke, but she couldn’t find it in her heart to do so. No matter how much she appreciated all that her friend was doing, all that she was saying. Athena found one of the corners of the blanket and picked at it, gaze intently focused there and not on Ariana. She couldn’t look at her. She owed her honesty. That was what the two of them did, and she didn’t regret any of it. “I killed my parents.” She was going to be sick. She could still see their bodies on the floor, she could smell the soap that made her hands red. She could smell her shampoo - from whenever it was that she last washed her hair. She - “They were going to kill my brother.” She bit her tongue. “They were going to kill us both. I - I had to.” Though her brother had certainly played at least an equal part, she couldn’t take him down with her. Whatever they’d said to one another back at their house, she wasn’t going to put blame on him. “They - it wasn’t because they are hunters.” She finally looked up at Ariana. “Were. Sorry. Were.” With another careful breath, she added, “it’s because of everything they did. Everything they did that I didn’t even know about. I’m supposed to be smart. How did I miss - how?” She grabbed the mug of tea and took another sip, letting it lay heavy on her tongue before she swallowed. “I killed them. I had to. I am supposed to protect the world, it is what I was born to do. I had to protect my brother. I can’t - I can’t live without him, I don’t think.” She took in the feeling of the blanket between her fingers. “That’s - that’s why I need to have been here. I wasn’t - I can’t - not at home.”

Under any other circumstance, Ariana would have found this exchange to be humorous, but given Athena’s current state it was hard to feel anything outside of worry. All she knew was that she would follow this story and do everything in her power to keep Athena safe. So much loss had hit in her the past few months, she’d do just about anything to protect the people she loved and somewhere along the line, despite everything, Athena became one of those people. When Athena answered her question, it took everything in her power to keep her jaw from dropping. Maybe it shouldn’t have come as a surprise considering what happened with Celeste’s parents, but she couldn’t imagine Athena and Rio also having to go through that. She reached her hand out before remembering the tension Athena radiated the last time she touched her. “Can I,” she asked softly. “I’m so sorry, Athena. I know-- That’s really shitty and so rough and neither you or Rio deserved to go through that. I know you were just trying to protect your brother.” The same way Celeste had just been trying to protect her. She hated this so much. From her own experiences, she knew well enough there was nothing she could say or do to make this better no matter how much she wanted to take her friend’s pain away. Sadness was present in her own eyes as she stayed there with her friend. “You don’t have to explain the why to me. I trust you wouldn’t have done that if it wasn’t absolutely necessary. Not realizing the things they did without telling you sooner doesn’t make you any less smart,” she tried to assure knowing nothing she possibly said or did in this moment would take away any of the pain Athena was feeling. “I know,” she responded, “You did what you had to do and if anyone asks, you’ve been here with me all night.”

Her parents would have wanted her to hate Ariana. Her parents would have wanted her to act on that hate, too - but she couldn’t. Athena had felt confused and nearly sick when she found out what Ariana was, and she knew that she was supposed to kill anyone who was supernatural, but the girl who was seated next to her on the couch was different. Always had been, she mused for a moment. “You can.” She didn’t want to flinch when people touched her. Her parents had hugged her, and been kind and gentle - usually. Except when they weren’t, though she’d never paid attention to that. It didn't matter, because it was all to better the world, to help train her to be her very best self. Ariana was good, and any help she offered would be genuine. Even though her side still ached - she was just grateful that she had quick enough healing that she wouldn’t need to go to the hospital. The hospital where her father worked - used to work. Still did, she supposed, since there hadn’t been any reports to the authorities yet. Unless one of their neighbors had already found their parents? She grabbed onto the corner of the blanket and pressed it against her mouth. She wasn’t going to scream. She could have screamed at home, but not here. She didn’t know how sound-proof Ariana’s walls were, but she doubted it was like at home. She had to be calm. She had to be rational. “I can’t live without him.” She finally managed to reply. “So I had to.” She felt a shiver run through her body and she squeezed her eyes shut for a moment. “I had to. There was no other way out. They were going to kill us.” She let her eyes flick open, the scene still too vivid in her mind. “I should’ve seen it, though. I - they -” she let her hand settle next to Ariana’s, “they’ve done this our whole lives. They made us who they wanted. Not even - I mean, of course with hunting, but I think - Ri said, implied, whatever - with everything?” She shook her head, her hair spilling over her shoulders. It felt heavy, and she dropped the edge of the blanket in favor of playing with her hair. “I - thank you. I really - this means more than I can say. I did what I had to do. What I needed to do. I was born to protect from threats, and they were that. I - I guess.” She cleared her throat. “Would - do you need to sleep? I don’t want to put you out anymore than I already have.” She wanted to hug her, she found herself realizing. She often flinched away from hugs, the only ones she really gave were superficial, more for putting on a front than anything else. She adjusted her body, shifting so that she wasn’t facing away quite as much as she had been before. Open if Ariana wanted to hug her, but she wouldn't force anything. Anyone. Not right now, at least. “The tea is just right.” She said, biting her lip.

There was something about seeing Athena like this that tugged at her heartstrings. Ariana had always known Athena to be one of the most incredibly put together people she’d ever met. In so many ways, she seemed untouchable just because of the way she carried herself and she admired that about her. Ariana herself typically wore her heart on her sleeve and was not convincing when she tried to do things any other way. Athena’s current state didn’t change how she saw her in the slightest, it just gave her a new sense of sorrow and showed her just how strong Athena really was. At the indication it was okay to reach out to her and try and provide some comfort, she gave Athena’s shoulder a gentle and reassuring squeeze. “I’m here, okay? Whatever you need, I’m here. And you can stay here as long as you’d like,” she told her and the earnest look on her face conveyed just how much she meant it. Anger rose up within her, but none of it toward Athena. How could her parents want to hurt either her or Rio? Orion had been one of the kindest people she had the pleasure of calling her friend and in the same situation, she would have done whatever was necessary to defend him. “I know you did,” she agreed, “I would have done the same thing.” Maybe she needed to hear it, maybe she didn’t, but Ariana knew killing her parents had to come with some sort of guilt that would be hard to push down. Though it seemed to be stemming from not realizing just who her parents were. “Hey,” she soothed, “They were your parents. Of course you wanted to-- I don’t know, I think it makes sense you wanted to see the good in them, you know? What’s important is you realized they weren’t great before it was too late.” Not that she’d ever met the Quinns’ parents, but she did know she’d much prefer to see Rio and Athena alive over either of them, especially if they were shitty enough to try and kill their own children. At the mention of going back to sleep, Ariana shook her head. “I can stay up for a bit. I’ve been sleeping like shit anyway,” she answered with a shrug. As much had been true. Ever since Sammy died, her dreams had become even more haunted than they had been previously. Her subconscious seemed to love to remind her that she had gotten two people she loved dearly killed. Right now, she opted to give Athena her full attention. “I’m glad,” she responded. Tea wasn’t a cure all by any means, but she’d give Athena any comfort she was able to provide. Her body language seemed to indicate being open to touch so she wrapped her arms loosely around Athena, unsure of any injuries she may have sustained. Her hand gently stroked Athena’s long, blonde hair and she held her there for a moment. “You’re going to get through this, okay? You’re one of the strongest people I know and even though this probably hurts like hell right now, you’re not alone and things are going to get better.”

“Okay.” She nodded. “Okay.” She repeated, as if one time wasn’t enough. As if she had to say everything with greater certainty, because if she said it once it might not be real. It might have been something she just imagined. Athena couldn’t remember a single time in her life when she’d ever felt so uncertain. Not even on the first day of proper school - no, even then she’d marched up to the teacher, told them her name and spelled it out. Grabbed her brother by the hand and made sure he was all settled too. Now, though - now everything felt like it was seconds away from crumbling. She could still smell her mother’s gingerbread. Olfactory hallucinations certainly weren’t a good sign, but even in the midst of everything she understood that everything that was going on was overwhelming and that this was some sort of response to it; perhaps a failed attempt at comfort. A memory that was mostly good, that allowed her to see her family as good and normal. She wasn’t sure if she would be able to eat gingerbread again. Athena also knew that this was the absolute last thing that she should have been focusing on, but everything else was overwhelming and made her head spin. Ariana was grounding, though - she gave Athena something to focus on. “I know. It’s - we have to protect the people we care about, right?” She took in another deep breath. Counted back from ten before she spoke next. “I worshiped them. Their word is as good as divine. That was - well, they implied as much, and church certainly does, too.” Church. Another place where people would be asking questions. She was supposed to teach Sunday School this week. There was too much to focus on and she missed the second half of what Ariana was saying for a moment. “What? Oh - yes. I - I still realized quite late though. I guess it’s just - I’m supposed to know, I should’ve known before. They knew - they hide - hid - well. I should show you our family photos.” She felt her cheeks growing wet. “We look like a picture-perfect All-American family. We were, I thought.” She nodded. “Well, if you need help, a kid I used to babysit used to have nightmares and I know some good ways to get anyone to sleep.” Except myself. “Just not so great at self-application of that, I suppose. You know how Ri used to have to hold me when I was little and woke up from all sorts of nightmares? I - I don’t think of you like a kid, I just mean - well, I know some tips.”

Ariana wrapped her arms around her body and Athena practically felt her whole body relax. Not entirely, but far more than she had been previously. Ariana’s hands through her hair felt exceptionally nice. Gentle, but a firm reminder that they were both there, that Athena had someone who mattered to her and who she mattered to as well. “Okay.” She swallowed, letting her body relax. Willing it to permit relaxation. She was still more tense - more on edge - than she wished to be, but she was safe. Even if her parents were still alive (and they weren’t, she had checked their pulses, she had - she knew they weren’t), they didn’t know about Ariana, and certainly didn’t know where she lived. Which meant she was safe here. “I might need to stay here for a bit. I won’t intrude, and I can cook for you, and clean, and organize, and anything - but I - I don’t - can’t go back home. Not even sure if we’ll be allowed on the property. So - you said I could, right?” She bit her lip and looked up at Ariana. “I’m sorry for talking so much. I haven’t - I think I stopped, for a bit. But now - well, you’ve always been easy to talk to.”

All Ariana wanted was to take some of Athena’s pain away. There was no escaping this pain though, that much she knew. Grief and loss had been something she’d been entirely too familiar with as of late. Guilt even moreso, particularly when it came to Celeste and Ace, but right now was hardly about her. She could surmise some of what Athena was feeling and all she wanted to do was help carry some of it. There was no way of making any of this feel okay, but she could at the very least do what she could to bring her some small sense of comfort and safety in a time that likely felt uncertain and terrifying. Even now, she seemed to carry this better than most would, her strength somehow radiating even at what had to be her lowest point. Athena would get through this, she’d make sure of it in whatever way she could. Maybe she had failed others she loved before, but this she could do. She could be here. She could give her somewhere safe and comfortable to stay until things blew over. There was an air of uncertainty to Athena’s voice when she spoke and she stayed close. “We do,” she agreed, ignoring the own pit in her stomach as the thought of her own failure to protect people she loved. “Rio doesn’t-- He’s so good. You did the right thing, protecting him,” she said as soothingly as possible.

It was easier for Ariana to focus on helping Athena than her own guilt right now. “You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself. Even if there were signs, they were your parents. It had to be easy to see them as this all knowing force. You realized what they were before it was too late and you and Rio are both still here and alive.” She was dying to ask how Rio was doing, but it seemed like the worst possible time. She’d text him and Winston later. The story she told of her and Rio as kids would have been endearing had it been under any other circumstance. She didn’t even mind her using the same tactics she used to help with kids’ nightmares. “I didn’t think you thought I was. If it helps, I’d be okay to give it a try. That sounds really, sweet. If you need-- the sofa pulls out into a pretty comfortable bed, but if your own nightmares get bad, we can share mine. I used to share a bed with Celeste a lot, too. So much so that when we finally could afford two, it felt odd to sleep alone.” She looked down momentarily, trying to regather her thoughts before she added, “I just want you to feel safe and comfortable which I know may not be possible with what just happened, but anything at all I can do to help and I’ll do it.”

Ariana held Athena close to her knowing it was one of the few things she could do to help lighten the burden her friend now carried. She could feel some of the tension leaving Athena and held on just a little bit tighter to let her know that she had her through this and neither of them was alone. Maybe she needed this a little bit, too. The guilt of Ace’s death had still weighed heavily on her and she had no one but her idiotic self to blame. At least this, she could get right and Athena didn’t need her saving. Athena could save the day well enough without her, but even the strongest of people needed someone to rely on from time to time. Now was her time and she immediately responded, “Of course, I meant that. You’re always welcome here. You couldn’t possibly intrude. You don’t have to do any of that if you don’t want to, but I know you like cooking. We can take turns, but please don’t feel like you have to do anything. Being here for you is important to me.” Even though she had pulled away now, she gave Athena’s shoulder another gentle squeeze. “You never have to apologize for talking too much. I’ve always enjoyed listening to you and I think talking about things helps. I just want to be here for you in whatever way I can, okay?”

“I had to.” She answered again, still far too simply for the gravity of what had happened. Part of her wanted to tell Ariana everything that had happened, but Athena still couldn’t bring herself to cause her brother any sort of trouble. Even to someone like Ariana, who she knew she could trust implicitly, Athena just couldn’t bring herself to do so. “You - that means a lot.” She willed her breath to even out, to return to its resting rate. Instead of feeling entirely caught in her throat consistently. She knew that she could breathe, because she could talk and she could feel her breath, but it wasn’t anything close to what was normal. Yet the feeling of someone else near her, the feeling of Ariana’s body heat ensuring that she didn’t get too cold. She didn’t often run cold, but right now she couldn’t quite figure out just how she was feeling.

“I know. I-” Athena gulped in another breath of air. “It doesn’t mean that I don’t feel like some sort of idiot. I guess, well - I’ve never not known things, and this is one heck of a thing to not know, even if I can’t be blamed. Everyone wants to see the best in their parents.” She always had - no matter what. Even when there had been a subtle shift after her brother had left her home. Even when there had been signs before, now that she looked back on it. Long-buried nightmares, ones that she’d ignored and passed off for some manifestation of the fear of being killed by the supernatural. Which she’d had, even as a child, but Athena knew that there had been a small part of her that had been afraid of her parents. Being afraid and worshipping them all in one. “It’s handy, having techniques. And good. Because I’d never think of you as a kid. You’re a lot more than that to me.” She looked over to Ariana for a moment, a soft smile crossing her lips. “Sofa bed sounds alright, but I mean - if you want, staying in your bed could be good. I don’t really know how I’m going to sleep. I should be asleep already. It was just - birthday tradition, first of all, and then - well.” She grabbed her phone, looking at the time. “I think maybe the same bed. If you are really sure that you’d be okay with that. I don’t take up too much space, and you’re warm.” She grinned again, her body relaxing. “When I was little, sometimes my brother would have to come into my bed when I had bad dreams. You - well, I’d like that.” She nodded again. It would be good, and though she wasn’t sure she would sleep at all tonight or anytime soon, she did know that having Ariana around was something that made her relax without even having to think twice. “I appreciate that. You. I appreciate you.”

The pressure still felt good, it was still a solid reminder that they were both here, both present and real and safe. Athena sighed again, closing her eyes for a few moments. Willing herself to not see anything but darkness. That was all there was - seeing visions of what had happened weren’t going to do anyone any good. “I’d like to stay here very much, then. I’m not sure if I can go back, legally? I - the police. The police will go and it’s - well, it’s a crime scene.” She brushed her fingers against her nose. “I’d like to cook. I - I’ve been experimenting, and it’s nice. It’s even and logical and helps keep my mind off of things. So I’d be happy to cook. Or buy you take out, if you want.” She didn’t know how much money she had in her wallet, or if anything with her bank account would be frozen, but the offer was one she couldn’t help but mention. As Ariana pulled away, Athena gave her a nod as she squeezed her shoulder. “I think - I might not make a lot of sense, always - with all of this, I mean. But talking is good. Even if it doesn’t always follow my usual logic.” In any other situation, she would have winked at the other girl, but she couldn’t manage all of that just now.

As much as Ariana knew herself that Athena was anything but an idiot, she knew the feeling well. It was hard to not blame yourself in the wake of disaster, to go over every little thing you could have done differently, but hadn’t, that may have led to a different outcome. She’d done it herself with Celeste and Ace almost regularly since they had both died. How was she supposed to tell Athena not to do the same thing? Maybe it was all part of the grieving process, which she should have known by heart at this point, but still, every time it left her reeling. “I think it’s normal to feel that way. I have when… well, a lot of times. Like I should have seen things sooner,” Ariana started as she remembered something Morgan said, “I think maybe thinking of things we could have done differently makes it easier. Makes it feel like we have any sort of control over anything but ourselves. A friend told me that once. It makes sense, but it’s still hard to ignore that feeling. And it’s okay if you can’t. I’m still here, no matter what.”

While she never thought it was an issue, it was still good to hear that Athena didn’t think of her as a kid. Ariana considered them to be good friends at this point though their relationship did perplex her from time to time. Still, Athena wouldn’t be here right now if she hadn’t considered her to be someone she could trust. “I’m glad you don’t,” she answered easily, still staying close to her friend and ready to jump on anything she could possibly need. The sofa bed worked out fine if that's what she preferred, though toward the end of Athena’s statement, it sounded like she wanted to join her. She nodded slowly and assured, “Whatever is most comfortable for you. I’ll sleep just about the same either way.” Although probably even better with her there. Maybe the nightmares wouldn’t be so bad. “I can set it up out here still just in case you get uncomfortable or need some space. I know this stuff is… well, difficult to pinpoint how you’ll feel from one moment to the next.” The story of how Rio used to come sleep with her when she had nightmares did bring a small smile to her face. Celeste had always been a source of comfort for her, too. “Rio is pretty sweet like that, huh? I think maybe it’d help us both with nightmares, but please, don’t hesitate to use the sofa bed if that’s more comfortable for you, okay?” She was quick to add, “I appreciate you, too.”

Ariana hoped she wouldn’t have to turn to Jane for this one and that Athena and Rio could both get away with this without suspicion being cast their way. “That makes sense. The police would have it shut off. I really do mean it, you’re always welcome here, Athena,” she responded in a tone she could only hope was soothing. “You know I’ll never complain about you cooking, but please don’t feel like you have to, okay? I enjoy cooking, too.” The last thing Ariana was for Athena to feel obligated to her in any sort of way. So many had shown her kindness after Celeste and Winn had died. She hadn’t really told anyone about Ace just yet, but she was sure she’d still be met with warm and open arms that she didn’t deserve by too many people. The least she could do was show someone she cared for the same care others had given her. Hell, if even if she hadn’t been through the ringer, she was sure she’d still be willing to help Athena. The honesty they shared with each other was something she valued and Athena had shown on more than one occasion she cared for her as well. If only Ariana had been smart enough to accept her help back then, maybe Ace would still be alive today. That caused a lump to rise in her throat that she quickly swallowed back down. “You never have to worry about that with me. Shit like this is hard to make sense of. Some time to figure things out is normal. Even if your logic is never truly the same, that’s still okay, too.” Somehow, even seeing Athena like this, it felt better to have her here. She’d hardly left her apartment outside of class and work since Ace had died. She’d been avoiding mostly everyone and she hadn’t realized just how lonely that had become. “Come on,” she directed in the most gentle voice possible as she gestured toward the bedroom, “I think we could both probably use some sleep.”

“I’m sorry you ever had to feel this way.” It’s practically unbearable. It was the worst that Athena had ever felt in her entire life. She felt guilty, and she couldn’t remember when she last felt guilt. Not proper guilt, at least. “I guess I’m a bit blinder about some things than I could’ve ever thought. Would’ve ever.” She scrunched up her nose, moving around, doing her best to not start crying again. “It is hard to ignore. Whatever friend you have, they’re wise.” She adjusted her posture again, and took another sip of tea. It was getting colder now, but the flavor was still good, and it was more for the comfort of having something to do more than anything else, though the warmth had been good too. Being cold was uncomfortable, even though she’d lived in Maine her whole life. Like many things, she supposed that it should have been a comfort. She enjoyed the wintertime, but when she became too cold she found it at times to be inescapable.

“Never. You are so much more than that,” she offered a careful smile, “to me. To - well, to anyone I suppose, but especially to me.” It felt easier now, being open. Athena had always done her best to be as honest with Ariana as she possibly could, but with the knowledge that she didn’t have to worry about something getting back to her parents, despite everything else, the conversation felt easier, somehow. “I think that I’d sleep better in your bed.” She reached out, taking Ariana’s hand with her own, rubbing her thumb against the side of her hand. “I doubt I’ll be uncomfortable, but if you want to set something up out here too that’d be alright. I think I’d prefer to sleep knowing that you are right there, though.” She only hoped that she wouldn’t end up waking up screaming. Though Ariana would understand, and hopefully it wouldn't trouble her too much. “It is difficult to pinpoint. I - well, I’ve never had anything like this happen, so I can’t speak from experience, but what you say makes sense.” She gave a nod at Ariana’s mention of her brother. “Always there for me. Which is why I had to be there for him. I think it will do wonders for us both, but I understand. I won’t hesitate to switch things up, but I don’t think that’ll happen.” She nodded at Ariana’s remark, feeling grateful - not that she’d especially doubted her words but the confirmation was especially needed right now.

“Yes. Tape it off, investigate everything.” Would she ever be able to go back? She had so much at her house. She had almost all of her possessions. She couldn’t think about that right now. “Good. Good. I - well, I’m grateful.” Athena wrapped her hair around her fingers. “I don’t. I like cooking, so it doesn’t feel like I have to. You know, we could make some of those spicy green beans. Together.” A part of her wasn’t certain if she deserved Ariana’s kindness, if she was just being selfish in what she wanted. She pressed her hand against her mouth for a moment, a brief moment of panic seizing her. Focus. She could still smell the tea. She could feel Ariana’s legs pressed against hers. She could hear the faint shifting of the apartment. All houses did that, even nice ones. “Yeah. It makes more sense when you say it. I - even if I know that, I can’t bring myself to believe it always.” Right now she could focus on the present moment, she could ignore the world around her and just focus on Ariana. Her brother was safe, he had to be. For now. Her parents couldn’t hurt them. Ariana was alive. Ariana wasn’t going anywhere. “It’s okay if I don’t…” she blinked. “Even - I will…” I will be the same. If she closed her eyes she could see the same vision from her dream all those months ago. That dream with the fae, that dream with the fae and with a younger version of herself and her brother. Tied together, connected, all in their own world. They were like that again now, finally - she hoped. They would have confirmation soon, but right now she didn’t have to focus on that. Right now she could focus on Ariana, on the way her voice was soft and calming. On how soft her gaze was. Athena stood up, moving toward Ariana. “We will be safe here.” Her gaze flicked toward the bedroom. “Just lead the way.”

#wickedswriting #c ariana #chatzy #fix me up #emotional abuse mention #physical abuse mention #panic attack tw #death mention #// bless hannah for this i love her dearly #and ariana is the light of my life

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canyouhearthelight · 3 years

Text

The Miys, Ch. 151

This chapter has been one that I have been dying to write for a while. I was worried that @baelpenrose would resist the idea, but he very much thought it was hilarious. As always, his input and riffing on this chapter has very much made it better and better.

However, it also made the chapter longer, lol. But there is just no way to trim it down without losing something that makes it all work, so this week is nearly double my normal length... break everyone’s heart, right? ;)

“I don’t like these numbers,” Parvati grumbled - as much as she was capable of grumbling - as she scrolled through the final counts of approval ratings on her and Hannah’s inaugural Food Festival.

The statistics had been dropped into our inboxes that morning, in the static of about a thousand other notifications now that Derek had finished the stress-test. Also included were the results of the last three invasion-prep drills, which I was in the process of scanning over.

“How bad are they?” I asked, half listening for a number. The drills were trending better, which was a good sign that the moves were effective.

Dismissing her display with a gesture of disgust, she sighed. “Seventy-four percent approval rating.”

I arched a brow and glanced over. “Did you adjust for those who did not attend?”

The glare she sent me wasn’t seen so much as felt. “Of course I did. First thing I ran…”

“Are you filtering by the day the comments came in?”

“I -” Bingo. She huffed. “No! These are intended to be ratings for the entirety of the event!”

I started scrolling through my own statistics. “Chart them out by the date the ratings came in, filtering out everyone who didn’t actually attend.”

A pause. “Oh… Oh! It’s showing ninety-three-point-four now!”

“Et voila,” I murmured. Louder, I clarified, “People like to weigh in early, and those who object in general tend to speak first.”

“I see that… how’s it going over there?” she asked, smoothing her braid over her shoulder as she turned to look at me directly.

“We are improving with every drill, marked upticks since the relocations. Arthur should be here in about - “ I glanced at a clock, “Seven minutes to go over next steps.”

Alistair breezed over to swap my empty bulb of cold coffee for a fresh one of water. “The appointment is in fifteen minutes.”

Parvati beat me to the punch. “He is also compulsively early, meaning…. Six minutes now.”

He rolled his eyes hard enough that I wanted to giggle. “He doesn’t even have the decency to be fashionably late. Appalling.”

Surely enough, Arthur paged at the entrance - out of some sort of manners I accidentally instilled in him - exactly five minutes prior to our scheduled appointment. As he breezed into my office, he managed a half-assed glare at Alistair for abruptly turning away and focusing on my schedule rather than his usual tendency to get a beverage for any newcomers. “Okay, updated data on drills isn’t what I want it to be.”

I laughed. “You’re joking, right? Your team and Michael’s haven’t gotten past deck four by more than three percent in the last seven exercises.”

“Any percent above zero is unacceptable,” he grumbled. I chalked it up to the indignity of being forced to get his own tea from the console.

Almost as though to spite Arthur, Alistair made a point to set a refreshed water bulb in front of everyone except the professor. “There are guards on the other levels for a reason,” he suggested drily.

“And I would rather those guards be idle, thank you,” Arthur threw back in a near-venomous tone.

“Us guards would rather be prepared for any eventuality, which you may do well to plan for in your petty drills.”

I didn’t even try to intervene. Clearly there was some blatantly disagreement between my admin and my friend, and I was exhausted from trying to make them cooperate.

“If I’m doing my job, you should be so grateful as to be idle,” Arthur drawled.

Alistair scoffed. “As if being left to rest and get fatter than a Christmas goose is a blessing…”

“You’ll live longer!”

“And get lax in my duties, which I will not stand for!”

“Get fat! Get lazy! LIVE! I don’t care! I’m not going to be lax in my duties to allow you the opportunity of getting practice at fighting.” Standing, Arthur buried both hands in his hair, but it looked less like he was running his fingers through it than pulling on it. “Are we really discussing this when we are training to fight in living body condoms?”

“I need to defend the Archives!”

“And Michael and I need to defend everyone! Us doing our job means you don’t need to do yours.”

My neck snapped back at the vehemence in his tone. This wasn’t their normal sparring… they may have never truly gotten along, but even in the beginning it was never so vicious.

To my further alarm, Alistair took a long stride forward and stared down his nose at Arthur. “We both know that she - “ his hand flung out to point at me “is either the luckiest or unluckiest person in existence. You can’t really believe that, in an actual assault on this ship, that she won’t be in danger. Which will place Tyche, the Archives, Derek Okafor, and Samuel Richardson in equal danger. You aren’t an idiot, you know this.” The hand pointing toward me turned, and time seemed to slow down as he stabbed Arthur in the sternum with it, punctuating each of his next words. “Stop lying to yourself.”

“Poke me again, and the finger comes off.”

“I would dearly love to see you try.”

Hannah and Parvati had jumped to their feet when Alistair approached Arthur, but were now slowly moving around to my position, safely behind my desk. Hannah hissed at me through clenched teeth, “You had to tell them to fight it out.”

“I thought they would use a gym, not the damned office,” I hissed back.

Before she could respond, Alistair spoke again. “You aren’t the only one on the Ark who wants to protect everyone. You need to trust us to do our bloody jobs.”

“The last time I trusted anyone else to protect people, I lost fourteen students,” came the ground out response. “I’m not backing down on this.”

“You will, or I will sedate you and strap you to a medical berth for the next four months.” Alistair stepped back and crossed his arms with finality.

A trickle of nerves ran down my spine as I watched Arthur clench his fists and release them. “You think the solution to everything is to tie it up, I swear.”

“Stop changing the topic. I am deadly serious, Farro.”

Arthur turned away from him, waving him off. “Try something else, you would never just sedate me for months on end.” Before we could stop anything, Alistair leapt forward and put Arthur in a headlock, only to be immediately flipped over the other man’s shoulder and onto the table. “Tch. Sloppy. I know you can do better.”

“I thought you wanted me to get fat and lazy,” Alistair grunted as he sucker-punched Arthur in the stomach and rolled for the other side. Once on his feet, he eyed Arthur carefully as he circled the table. “You stubborn ass, you know I am right. You are putting everyone in the lower levels at risk by not running preparedness drills with them, because you don’t want to factor in the fact that one of the offensive teams could fail.”

“We don’t have the luxury of failing, so no. If we do our jobs correctly, everyone who matters will be safe at the other end of the Ark.”

They didn’t seem to be at each other’s throats anymore, but the arguing wasn’t getting anywhere. “Guys - “ I tried.

Both men turned and practically screamed at me with their glares to stop talking. Oookay. I held up my hands in surrender and decided to let them sort it out their way.

Damned if the console wasn’t on the other side of them, though. I couldn’t even get popcorn and a drink.

Alistair blew a harsh breath through his nose. “If you won’t include the lower decks in your drills, I will start sparring with Jokul.”

“He would kill you,” Arthur barked in the most miserable laugh I’ve ever heard.

“God forbid,” Alistair mocked. “If I were gone, who would make your tea in the morning.”

“The same person who picks up the socks that magically appear all over my quarters every day, obviously. Worthington, I’m serious, he could really hurt you. He has really hurt me. And Charly.”

That last part was dismissed with a wave. “Madam Charles the First put the fear of herself into him.”

“And you haven’t. He could kill you by accident, and he’d never forgive himself.”

“Maybe that wouldn’t be the case if you would let me train more!”

Arthur groaned and ran a hand down his face. “You are an adult, we’ve talked about this. Train all you want, with whoever you want - Charly, Sophia, Tyche… hell, train with Evan or Michael, I don’t care. Just, not Jokul.”

When did they talk about this? I wondered. It had to be during a sparring session or something, because it definitely wasn’t in my office during one of our meetings. A glance at Hannah showed she was watching everything unfold like it was the most riveting show she had ever seen, and Parvati’s squint of consideration wasn’t much better.

“As you said, I’m an adult. Perhaps I should take your advice, and train with Charly - “

“See - “

“- and Jokul. She will make sure I don’t get hurt.”

Arthur flung his hands up in frustration. “You are so stubborn, I swear!” Growling, he paced in a circle. “Fine! Train with Charly and Jokul. IN the bivouac suit, though! And I don’t want to hear a word when you end up confined in a med bay yourself.”

Alistair’s smug grin showed just how much he seemed to care. “At least I would be spared of picking up the trail of dishes that seem to follow you around.”

“For the love of - they are my quarters! Mine! And I don’t want to hear about it when your bloody socks are constantly getting lost behind my sofa!”

Oh. Oh no. Nonononononono.

“My socks can go wherever they fucking want to, when I am constantly cleaning your disgusting whiskers out of the sink!”

“You know what would fix you having to clean whiskers out of the sink? I could just stop shaving altogether. How about...that…” Arthur trailed off and very slowly turned toward the three of us behind my desk with a look of dawning horror.

And I tried. I really, really tried not to laugh. I could feel my face reddening, my chest aching with the effort of holding it in.

Hannah’s snort was my undoing. As soon as that tiny noise escaped her, all three of us erupted into hysterical, stomach-cramping, tearful laughter. I felt stabbing in my arm as Parvati dug her nails in, trying desperately not to fall. Unfortunately for her, Hannah grabbed me at the same time and all three of us toppled to the floor. The sight of Arthur rolling his eyes and crossing his arms only made me escalate from laughing to shrieking in hysterics and relief.

I couldn’t speak for the other two ladies, but I thought the two men were going to end up killing each other… At no point did I think they took the other option when I told them to either fight it out or….

I gasped for breath, trying to get myself under control. Wobbling to my feet with the help of my trusty desk and a couple yanks to free my shirt from Parvati’s desperate clutching, I pointed between them. “This… how long? Can’t believe… didn’t figure it out.”

“Not everyone is as… public… as you, Conor, and Maverick are,” Arthur snarked at me. “You know, private lives should be private and all that?”

“Must be for you,” I confided in Alistair’s direction, where he had turned his back to our fit. “He’s never not told me when he was dating someone. Or thinking of dating someone. Or potentially interested in seeing if he was interested in dating someone… Best friend privileges and all that.” While I waited for Alistair to respond, my mind whirled through all the things I had brushed off before but were very obvious in retrospect.

Glancing at Arthur for a hint yielded nothing but a flat stare that all but declared in flashing lights You Aren’t Stupid.

I tilted my head at that, and kept thinking. There had been genuine animosity on Alistair’s side in the beginning, and not a small amount of needling on Arthur’s. So I knew it wasn’t something that had always been going on. My mind came to a screeching halt, however, when I remembered something - the day Alistair, Tyche, and I decided that, when I vacated my position on the Council, they would vacate roles as well to leave behind a ‘clean slate’. “Four years, holy shit,” I gasped. “Four years!?”

Finally, Alistair moved. His back was still to us, but his arms went limp by his sides, and his head dropped down toward the floor. “It would be unseemly to have the new Councilor of Education in a relationship with the attache to the Councilor for Resources and Engagement. Or formerly in a relationship, should things not end well.”

“And since he won’t be taking his position until we are on Von,” I put together, “You are okay to serve out the rest of my term, just not Hannah’s or Parvati’s.”

“Correct.”

“Huh. That makes sense,” I admitted before hopping up to sit on my desk, the chair being a lost cause on the other side of two women who were still sniffling and giggling on the floor. “I learned a lot today.”

“Uh huh,” Arthur confirmed drily. “And it had better stay in this office.”

“What?” I managed a pretty convincing confused face before pretending to realize what he meant. “Oh! The relationship thing. Yeah, cool, whatever. That’s not what I was talking about, but you’re good.”

“Dare I even ask what you meant?” Alistair ventured, finally turning around so that he could give me a warning look.

“Uh, isn’t it obvious?” I asked, shaking my head and spreading my hands, palms up. When they both just stared at me, I finally broke and grinned. “Dude. You two are freaking slobs.”

The squeaking noises coming from the vicinity of my feet told me that no further work would be getting done for the rest of the day.

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#the miys #found family #humans are weird #science fiction #aliens #apocalypse #humans are space orcs #humans are space fae #earth is space australia #post apocalypse #post post apocalypse #original science fiction #original sci fi #original writing

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shintorikhazumi · 3 years

Text

(Diakko Week) There’s no way she- (2): “There’s no way she did that.”

@dianakko-week

A/N: BOY, OH BOY. I DIDN’T THINK THIS STORY WAS GONNA GO THIS WAY, BUT HERE WE ARE, I GUESS? Please do enjoy, I’m not sure about the quality of this chap, but I personally am enjoying this story so far an I hope you all do too!

Again, Enjoy?

~Shintori Khazumi

Day 2: Trust

“There’s no way she did that.”

Diana was seething at her desk, Hannah and Barbara desperately trying to calm down their long-time friend with a cup of tea and some rationality.

She wasn’t having it however. Not even the tea.

“There’s no way. There is just no. Possible. Way. That Akko would so such a thing!” Diana growled, head whipping in the direction of her poor friends-slash-secretaries-and-attendants. “Right?!”

Barbara nodded wordlessly, clearly unnerved by Diana’s foul mood while Hannah sighed, moving the teacup away from the clearly miffed Diana before any mishaps could occur.

“Yes, Diana. We think so too.”

Diana released a heated sigh, nostrils flaring as she slumped against her leather chair. Today just wasn’t her day.

Never mind it being only her second week of being chosen for the grand magical council and being harassed with much work simply because she was the youngest to enter at the tender age of twenty-three. That same council of old pricks were now interfering with her personal life by giving her a case that made her burn deep with rage.

They dared accuse Diana’s girlfriend of magical misconduct when Diana-for a fact- knew that Akko read the terms and conditions of being a traveling magician- yes, ALL the terms and conditions- back-to-back. Back-to-back to back-to-back. Diana had found it both unnecessary and incredibly endearing, and sweet Akko- oh, bless her sweet soul- had wanted nothing more than to be able to share the magic of dreaming to all sorts of people, gain experience as she traveled; and hoped to overall just help people along the way on her cross-country journey.

Sure, she had left her incredibly stable position as one of the council’s security personnel, and the job paid extremely well- especially for people who were relatively fresh from school. It really did. However, Diana knew Akko was far from happy with that job. In a somewhat similar position to Diana, she had been made a lackey by her seniors and superiors, and though she loved helping people through her job, it just wasn’t worth staying. She couldn’t even be assigned to Diana! Thus, Akko had resolved to go independent, under strict supervision and conditions.

That had been five months ago.

Sure, Diana had missed the other woman dearly and hadn’t seen her for all that time, but Diana knew this was what the other woman wanted to do- to make people smile. She loved making smiles blossom from one person to the other. Diana wanted to support her in her endeavor. She believed in Akko and in what she wanted to accomplish.

And anyway, Akko had always made it a habit to send one of her familiars to bring Diana little souvenirs of her travels, accompanied by the sweetest words on paper, reassuring her girlfriend that she was well and good, and living life to the fullest, and that she’d surely be back in a year.

She was coming back sooner than they’d both expected, and for reasons neither had desired.

Diana ran her fingers through her hair in frustration, massaging her scalp to nurse the quickly growing headache.

She hoped Akko would come home safe at the very least.

“Miss Diana Cavendish. Could you repeat those words to me one more time? I might have misheard.”

“I said. I refuse to vote against Atsuko Kagari’s innocence. I know her, and I know her well. She would never ever do such horrid things.”

Diana watched the council secretary bristle, eyes burning at her response.

“You can never know someone too well. You don’t know what people are capable of. They can cha-”

“And I trust that Akko only ever changes for the better.” Diana cut off, casting her own glare over the two high council members who held the papers and a sum of money in front of her. “I know nothing of what the inner circle of the council has been up to, but I can’t believe they would try something so terribly scandalous such as bribery and false report! Dare I assume you are hiding something worse-”

“One more word from you, and you will suffer the consequences. Not that you already haven’t.”

Diana would have lashed out had she not needed to remain calm for Akko’s sake as well.

“This is our final offer, Miss Cavendish. Push for her guiltiness, or lose your seat in the council.”

Diana’s eyes widened, fists clenching. These people-

“You have no authority over this matter!”

She shivered in repulsion at the grins that grew on their hideous faces.

“Oh, but we do.”

Kagari Atsuko, twenty-three years of age, stood at the podium in the courts of magic with steely eyes and a rigid frame. She dared not glare at the jury nor the judge, but she would like to at least show them her determination in proving her own innocence.

Chancing a glance at Diana who was sending her worried looks from the jury stands, Akko reassured her with a gesture that all was and would continue to be alright. Returning her attention to the presider of the meeting, Akko readied her words, carefully crafted by herself and her lawyer who ironically just so happened to be Amanda O’Neill. Akko tried her best to keep a grin from forming at the hilarity of that fact. She was, after all, still on trial. She had to keep things professional.

“Kagari Atsuko. What do you have to say for yourself?” The judge questioned after all her supposed ‘charges’ had been read out.

‘Magical misuse, abuse of title as a former council official, trafficking endangered species across borders, and exploiting my audience, huh... Honestly, what a bunch of-’

“Bullshit.”

Akko’s eyes widened, and so did everyone else’ at the accidental slip-up.

“I-I mean... I apologize, your honor. I didn’t mean to say that. Ehem. I’d like to plead not guilty of these accusations.”

With brows raised, the judge continued on with the ruling, the tension in the room not once lowering. Akko just hoped this would end smoothly, and end soon.

She didn’t know what the council got out of this, to be honest. To go so far as to forge evidence against her, what had she done against them? Honestly, this new council, with almost all-new members weren’t doing a good job in succeeding their predecessors.

If the whole jury hadn’t been bought out at this point, she really could only hope for the best.

“Thanks for driving me home, Amanda.” Akko bowed to her friend, clutching her suitcase.

“Hey, hey! None of that. C’mere.” Amanda pulled her shorter friend into a tight hug, patting her back firmly. “I’m just glad it all worked out in the end.” She sighed, running a hand through her hair after they pulled apart.

“No kidding.” Akko chuckled. “You’re the best, bud. Totally fit for this job.” She giggled, as Amanda rolled her eyes with a shrug.

“I know, right? Obviously knew this is what I wanted to do for a living all along.”

They shared a laugh before Amanda had to leave, having work to do the next day. Waving at the car until it had disappeared far beyond what her eyes could perceive, Akko turned to the porch, taking careful steps to the front of the door.

Facing that familiar wooden barrier, she took a deep breath before allowing her knuckles to meet with the hard material.

No sounds, no response. Not even the slightest shuffling could be heard from within. Akko’s brows furrowed, teeth biting her lower lip nervously. This was their house... This was the Cavendish manor... right? Amanda was above pranks as evil as this, especially after what had just happened, so there was no way that-

“Mrrmmhpphhggh! Mmrhg!”

Akko struggled against the hand covering her mouth, desperately trying to reach for her wand, however her assailant had already figured her out, catching her hand and holding it against her back...

-before releasing her completely.

“A-Akko?! I! I’m sor- wait, no time to explain, come.”

And Akko was dragged into the house by Diana herself who rushed her up the stairs and into their bedroom.

“Akko, do you have all your essentials in that suitcase you hold at the moment?”

“Huh? Diana, what is... why are you home already? Don’t you have a council meeting running until late-”

“Grab anything you’d like to bring with you. Hurry!”

“But Diana!”

Akko felt a duffle bag hit the back of her head, and she whipped her head around only to find her prepared glare fading at the sight of a scowling Hannah.

“Do what she says, idiot. And make it quick.”

Diana seemed as caught off-guard by the presence of Hannah and Barbara as much as Akko was.

“You two! I... You can’t be here. Go back to your home, and from this point forward, don’t come back to the manor. I’m relieving you of your duties as my-”

If Akko and Diana’s eyes could widen any more, they’d surely be the size of Diana’s large serving plates. Hannah had clapped her hands against both sides of Diana’s face, shaking her lightly.

“Are you truly going to just leave us?!” She hissed.

“Diana... we know we were wrong to snoop around, but... couldn’t you confide in us for something this important?” Barbara said, teary-eyed. “I know we can’t ever replace what Anna was to you, and when she... when she left, we didn’t know how else to help you after losing your only family. But we still wanted to be by your side.” She smiled, placing her hands on Hannah’s shoulders to rub them, getting her partner to calm down.

“Did you really think...” Hannah sniffed, wiping her tears off her sleeve. “That we wouldn’t make you take us with you?” She finished with a grin. “You are never getting rid of us, honestly.”

Barbara nodded, reaching forward to ruffle Diana’s hair before she was met with a deep frown because of the gesture.

“Sorry, always wanted to try that.” She said, not sorry at all. “To sum all this up, Diana. You are taking us. There will be no further argument.”

Diana couldn’t help the relieved smile breaking across her face, her two longest companions also sporting their own. Tears slipped from her eyes as she pulled them into a long embrace.

“Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.” She sobbed quietly, feeling arms rubbing her back from each side. “Thank you.”

“You better be thankful. We’ll never forgive you if we’re not the maids of honor at the wedding.” Hannah declared, half-joking.

“Wedding?” Diana parroted, pulling away as she wiped her remaining tears away. “Whose?”

Both girls simply rolled their eyes as Hannah walked over to Akko who felt seriously out of the loop. Barbara patted Diana’s shoulder, shaking her head, amused.

“Hannah? Barbara?”

She was promptly ignored from that point onward.

“Come on, idiot. Get packing. I’ll even graciously offer you my superb assistance.” Hannah said with a smirk, opening the closet she knew was designated for Akko’s belongings. “We don’t have all night.”

“I still... I still don’t understand what’s going on.” Akko stated, but began to do as she was instructed anyway. “What are we doing? Where are we going?”

“What part of ‘no time to explain’ don’t you understand?” Barbara quipped, before going over to assist the brunette pair. “I could’ve sworn we informed Amanda about this.”

“Even O’Neill knows?!” Diana continued to be ignored. “Okay, great. So who doesn’t know about this getaway?”

“Calm yourself, Diana. We only told our little circle of friends.” Barbara spoke over her shoulder as they finished closing Akko’s suitcases with a click. “Amanda and Constanze prepared as a cloaked little vehicle until we leave the country. You should be grateful.”

“Jasminka should be here to pick us up any minute now.” Hannah commented.

Diana remained slack-jawed, amazed at the follow-up her attendants had done.

“You didn’t think we’d just let you fly off on a broom in the middle of the night again, did you? Really Diana, we’ve been with you so long, your smarts should have rubbed off on us even the slightest bit.” She grinned. “The magical council really aren’t all that smart, huh? Look at their dullness contaminating our brilliant, Diana.” She shook her head in dismay.

“A shame indeed.” Barbara agreed as they began carrying their luggage out.

“No one’s still told me anything!” Akko announced, scratching the back of her head with her free hand as she followed Hannah and Barbara out with her own possessions.

She turned to Diana at the sound of a lock clicking in place, the former heiress running her hands over the grooves of the wood and the carvings.

Placing her things down momentarily, Akko walked over to wrap Diana in a hug from behind. “I hope we can come back one day. To the place where you began.” She whispered, placing loving kisses against Diana’s shoulders. “I’ll make sure we can.”

Akko’s heart cracked as Diana began to tremble in her arms, a hand going up to cover the sobs that were escaping her lips. All the memories of her family, her mother- they were probably much too painful for Diana to leave behind, but she had to. They had to.

Akko walked the mansion halls one last time with Diana as they locked each door one at a time, Diana embedding every room, every window, every banister into memory.

They finally came to the front door where Hannah and Barbara had awaited patiently, bags already loaded into their vehicle.

“No longer asking where we’re going, love?” Diana questioned Akko who had seemed to accept whatever was happening already.

“Do you trust me, love?” Akko responded with a question of her own, earning her Diana’s smile accompanied with raised brows.

“More than anyone and anything in the world.” Diana replied.

Akko gave her a chaste kiss as they all boarded the vehicle, watching the mansion disappear with an area cloaking spell that would hopefully keep it safe for as long as they were gone.

Squeezing Diana’s hand, Akko spoke. “Then know that I think the same. No matter where we go, how far away we are from here, and what we end up doing, just know... Just like those two dorks there,”

Akko laughed as the two snorted from the seats in front of them, knowing they were rolling their eyes at her.

God, she was thankful for them. For all her friends. For Diana.

Taking Diana’s hand in hers and entwining their fingers together, she placed a soft kiss on the back of her hand, laying all her worries to rest. They would figure things out. They all would- together.

“I trust you with all of my believing heart.”

A/N: WHAT’S GONNA HAPPEN NOW, WHERE ARE OUR BABIES GOING? OOOHHH. SEE YOU ON DAY 3!

~Shintori Khazumi

#dianakko week 2021 #happy dianakko week 2021?#diakko #fanfic #hanbara #diana cavendish #atsuko kagari #hannah england #barbara parker #amanda o'neill

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angelicichor · 4 years

Note

Hello happy 2020! How are ya? Can I request some Nsfw Thomas Hewitt content? I love him so much, ❤

I’m kinda okay, just very disorganized lately, too nervous about school stuff and all ♥ But always willing to write for big boi Tommy uwu

N//SF//W

MISSED YA

♥ It has been a goddamn week.

♥ A week with both you and Thomas running errands, his staying at home and yours?

♥ Well, you’ve been forced to stay in the middle of the road for GOD knows how long, trying to catch somebody’s, ANYBODY’S attention to bring them back home for dinner, but you were pretty sure that Hoyt just wanted you to wither and die out there, leaving you with only one big water bottle for the whole day, standing in the hot Texas sun, the sunscreen barely helping your skin not turn into bacon strips as you awaited another group of people to pass you, only to fool them into getting you home.

♥ And the sense that Hoyt could easily pull them over for no reason instead of you standing here, alone, didn’t help.

♥ It also didn’t help that you’ve been standing here, hungry, thirsty, sweating and bored out of your mind, your mind able to go only to a few places before coming back to Thomas, his adorable, expressive eyes, his strong, rough hands, his broad shoulders shifting underneath that shirt he always wore, though in this heat sometimes he’d bless the world with taking it off, revealing his beautiful chest and that monstrous bicep and… that brought you to your last problem.

♥ Being too horny for your own good.

♥ And there being no big-ass thick butcher man to fuck you into the ground.

♥ And yes, that was A HUGE PROBLEM.

♥ Your whole body was being too needy, only adding to your agitation and the need to choke Hoyt’s lights out for making you do this, but you couldn’t do anything about this, the family needed to eat.

♥ You sighed at the sky, eyes watching the moving sun and you guessed it was around 4 o’clock, the old bastard was bound to come for you any time now and maybe finally, FINALLY you could rest.

♥ But your prayer was thrown in the gutter as the loud bass of a guitar rolled towards you, cutting the otherwise quiet ambiance of the drylands you’ve been forced to stay in. Your eyes did their best to tell what was coming, the waves of heat not helping your focus, your vision literally melting, but you could tell what it was just by it’s size, a big ol’ black jeep, full of teens in nothing but tank tops and t-shirts, rocking along in the vehicle to some loud music. Rock n’ roll, you could tell that much, but couldn’t tell what band, a shame, but maybe Hoyt would let you keep their discs with you after they’re fresh meat.

♥ Putting on your sweetest smile you started waving at them and noticed one girl pointing towards you, excited, it seemed, and sure enough once they stopped she was the first to run to you, a tall, dark skinned brunette, beautiful and just shining in this weather, it was really such a shame. “Hiya, babe! Whacha doing here lil’ thing?” She asked you, clearly enjoying some new company and eager to hear your story, and you weren’t gonna disappoint.

♥ “Ah, I live here, sweetie. Well not HERE, ya know, but in these here regions, but my dumbass of a daddy left my ass here so he could go grab some smokes from the city, while I wait here to faint in this damn heat and not tell ma’.” You scoffed and she gave you a long moan of worry, ruffling your hair. “Ah, baby, we’ll get ya home, don’tcha worry!” she cooed, before turning to the group of boy promptly starring at her ass. “Right, y’all?” she asked and they roared in confirmation.

♥ It was really a shame for those guys, but as you walked out towards the porch, catching the glimpse of Thomas’ hair in the window, all the guilt faded to the second plan. Trying to hide the haste in your voice you invited the 5 people inside, for dinner, something cold to drink and so the girl, Hannah, as you’ve learned, could scold your “papa”, something you were willing to see for sure, especially after crying to “mama” that “pa” had left you on the road to get smokes and Luda Mae slammed a tray of full glasses of water onto the table, shaking her head in disbelief, playing around with you. She did that rarely, but if it meant Hoyt getting an earful from a victim for no reason before they’re meat, then she’d be more into the idea. You both somehow loved Hoyt, but God, was he an asshole.

♥ There were no problems with the group, except for the boys getting rowdy with the tools in the shed, but Hanna told you she got them under control, you doubted that, but that let you slid into the basement, the chill of the room sending pleasant shivers down your spine, as did the rhythmic thuds of a cleaver cutting a block of meat clean off, once, again, and on repeat, as you leaned onto a wall, away from the pool of bloodied water right in front of the stairs, starring unashamedly at your dearly beloved’s arm tensing as he lifted the knife, only to lower it with enough power to create a small draft, making the metal tools above the bench clack against each other.

♥ ‘What a beast…’ you thought, a small smirk creeping onto your face, warning the world that you were up to no good.

♥ With another huff the cleaver stopped, getting locked into the wood and you saw his huge body shifting, slowly, cautiously, one brow cocking up at the sight of you, questioning why were you standing there like he didn’t notice you.

♥ His gaze made you shrink back, like a scolded child, but soon enough that deviousness took over, making you shuffle towards him, gently, shyly, coy, and straight away he knew - dangerous, but he stayed still, letting you have your fun. He could always tie you in the corner if things got too wild. He had work to do after all.

♥ With a tiny giggle you closed the distance, running your hand against the width of his covered back, before ducking to escape his grasp, instead jumping before him, your grabby hands clinging onto his apron in a light embrace, unable to circle him fully, joyful eyes focused on his expression, as his head bent slightly down, eyes squinting and brows furrowing with interest, the smirk on his lisp barely visible through the dark leather, asking - What are you doing?

♥ Your cheek nuzzled into his chest, eyes closing, with a happiness painting your face, comfort and he was about to hug you, realizing that you missed him.

♥ But you ducked again, leaving his hands to hang in the air, his head going even lower, air inflating his chest to flow out a second later in a longer, slightly frustrated breath. He had work, (Y/N).

♥ Your smug smile didn’t help his frustration. His hands rested on the workbench, gaze focused on you, watching you giggle and hide under his apron, confusing him completely.

♥ That is, until he felt your hand creep it’s way up from his tights to crotch, squeezing ever so lightly. Oh. OH.

♥ Thomas allowed his shoulders to relax, a warm chuckle rumbling through his body, his eyes closing to better feel your touch, feeling the lingering ghost of your fingers undoing his belt, listening to the small clack of the buckle, the small creak of pulled leather, then the clicking of the zipper coming undone in a slow motion, a deep breath moving through his lungs and out in a huff.

♥ He shuddered, feeling your breath on his boxers, your soft lips pressing onto his hardening length, welcoming it after a long time, trailing up, kiss by kiss, till it reached the tip, pressing a bit harder, a devious chuckle sounding underneath the man as he started breathing just a bit heavier, feeling his underwear becoming more and more uncomfortable.

♥ You let one of your hands slide under his balls, stroking them lightly, while your other worked him up and down, letting you feel his member’s growth and Thomas’ growl above you let you know that he was getting impatient with your teasing. It was a good thing he couldn’t see your eye roll or vicious grin, you’d certainly get in trouble for that.

♥ Deciding it was unwise to test him any further you pulled his boxers down, just enough to free his raging cock, already leaking some pre-cum. It was nice to know he missed you too.

♥ Your tongue trailed a long, slow line from his sack up to the tip, enveloping it with your soft lips and licking it gently, slowly making your way up and down, not taking him fully, while both of your hands trailed the muscle of his tights, firm and thick. The groan above you letting you know that he enjoyed the touch.

♥ Showing him mercy you pushed him down your throat, taking as much as you could, feeling the sting of his spread in your muscles and the slight reflex of his tip touching the back of your throat, then pulling back slowly, letting yourself calm down before setting a nice pace, feeling his body heat up, muscles twitch under your fingers, him trying to hold back, to lean into your touch instead of breaking your rhythm and his temperance lead out a moan from your lips when his tip hit your back again, the man sighing in pleasure as he felt the trail of your tongue pressing on his underside.

♥ With one of your hands massaging your heat now and the other stroking his balls, you knew the time for your control would be running short and Thomas’ hand pressing on the back of your head only confirmed your speculations.

♥ The pressure shifted from your head to you the nape of your neck, gripping around it tighter, a harsh shove, making you gag, the depths of your throat collapsing around him, letting him groan in pleasure before pulling away, and you were forced down in a coughing fit, but not for long as his arms surrounded you, lifting you up and onto his chest, his back bending slightly so your eyes could met his.

♥ With one hand still holding up he trailed the other one to your cheeks, wiping away a single tear that dared come out when your reflex struck.

♥ Gently he placed you atop his work bench, leaning in to allow you the reach to his mask, a silent question if it was okay to go without it and your fingers tangling against it assured him, that it was just fine. There was no worry as it was left on the wood.

♥ And gently your lips touched his, letting him taste the saltiness of your skin, mixed with the bitter taste that he left on them, and both of you were ready for the next part… Except you’d have to wait for that.

♥ “Thomas! Come here boy!” Luda Mae called from upstairs and you could hear the sound of a gunshot soon after, right, the people.

♥ You heard growl against your shoulder, where his head rested, his hands making the wood creak under his annoyed grip.

♥ “It’s fine, go get them, darling. I’ll be waiting.” you laughed, letting your finger trail the scars covering his jaw. He rolled his eyes, an unsatisfied pout crooking his disfigured lips. “Don’t give me that attitude. It wasn’t YOU who had to stand on the sun for a WEEK to get them here! Do your part, Hewitt.” you scolded him and his face was unimpressed to say the least, chest puffing up in an angry sigh, a tongue poking out from his lips to taunt you. And you gasp. “How rude! You kiss your mother with that mouth?!”

♥ He laughed, pressing a soft kiss on your lips - No, but you? Yes.

♥ You blushed at his boldness and watched as he picked up his chainsaw, the loud revving of it filling the otherwise silent basement.

♥ “Good luck.” you hummed and he nodded, leaving for his hunt.

#virgo writes #thomas hewitt x reader #leatherface x reader #slasher x reader #slashers x reader #thomas hewitt #tcm: the beginning #slasher community #I'm so sorry if this is messy I'm having problems focusing lately :'D #Needed to write some good ol' throatfucking with Tommy though... you know he needs the attention #hope that's fine #thank rammstein for this one bc I've been listening to them on repeat while writing this :'D

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openheartfanfics · 3 years

Text

And then they Broke Up...

Bryce x F!MC

Back To You - @fantasyoverreality98 🎭 MC and Bryce reunite after a brief period apart. Mentions of Ethan x MC

Blessing in Disguise - @loveellamae ☁ Casey is trying to get over her failed five year relationship and moves to Boston for her residency. A wedding invitation brings her face to face with her past.

Dearly Beloved - @checkurwindow 🎭 They broke up and now she’s crashing his wedding.

Falling - @fantasyoverreality98 🎭 Ethan reflects on his past relationship with MC and tries to come to terms with her new relationship with Bryce. Ethan POV

Falling - @utterlyinevitable 🛸 Implication and what if's upon Hannah's feelings towards one Bryce Lahela. Childhood Sweethearts AU

Happily Never After - @checkurwindow 🎭 Sometimes falling in love with your best friend doesn’t in a happily ever after. Feat. Bryce x MC x Ethan

I Don’t - @whenyourheartskipsabeat 🎭 At the very last moment, MC has a revelation.

I Object - @thanialis 🎭 Everyone is excited about the couple sharing a life together except one doctor who will have to come to terms that he missed his chance… or did he? Feat. Ethan x MC

I Will Always Remember You This Way - @anotherbeingsworld 🎭 MC watches as Bryce stands at the alter with someone else.

Lie to Me - @lahelalove 🎭 Bryce Lahela thought he knew pain, but nothing could compare to the feeling of wanting someone… only to find out they wanted someone else instead. Feat. Ethan x MC

Memories - @krsnlove 🎭 Bryce shows up at MC’s door in the middle of the night. Feat. Ethan x MC

Now and Forever - @kelseaaa🎭 Bryce helps MC before her big day. Feat. Ethan x MC

Since you walked out - @checkurwindow 🎭 MC has lost her chance with Bryce and as a desperate last attempt, she’s gone to his wedding uninvited. [Mentions of Christianity]

Start Again - @anotherbeingsworld ☁ In our lifetimes, people would always come and go. But, sometimes… fate brought them back into our lives once more as a chance to start over.

Untitled Prompt (Stuff Back) - @omgjasminesimone 🎭

Untitled Sentence Prompt (Whatever we were) - @omgjasminesimone 🎭

SUBMIT OPEN HEART FICS & WRITERS HERE

All fics should have a summary section and categorized as Angst, Fluff, Smut or part of a Series!

#bryce lahela #bryce x mc #bryce lahela x mc #open heart #open heart fanfic #open heart fanfiction #choices open heart #open heart fanfics #choices fanfic

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renee-writer · 3 years

Text

Your Fault Chapter 34 The Heughans

A/N Thanks to theartistsassanch aka Hannah for the picture that makes the moodboard and for @farmerscats for finding it❣️❣️❣️

AO3

They fly into the Isle of Skye with their cast members and family. A few close friends are flying in from around the world.

The details of their wedding are top secret. They will release wedding pictures after the fact but don’t want their wedding to become a publicity event.

She holds his hand the entire flight, not out of fear but out of the need to be as close as possible to her future husband.

He can’t keep his eyes off her. His bride. He is a truly blessed man to be marrying such a beautiful woman, inside and out.

Ron and Maril sit a few rows over. He still isn’t happy but is resigned. The fans seem okay with it. Only a few have commented negatively to their engagement announcement. He doesn’t yet know they wish to get pregnant right away.

“You are a beautiful bride Caitriona.” Her mum tells her. They stand in the cottage she and Sam have rented for their guests and to get ready in. Sam is doing the same on the other side.

“I never expected to be. Never saw myself marrying. Sam he changed that. Now I can’t see not joining my life to his.”

“It is a grand thing to do. He is a wonderful man who loves you dearly. You will make a lovely life together.”

Her dad comes to take her to him. She sees tears in his eyes when he sees her. “Don’t cry dad or I will.”

“You are just so beautiful. So grown up. A woman.”

“I have been for awhile now dad.”

“True but a wedding makes it clear you aren’t my colleen anymore.”

“I will always be daddy.”

They are doing it a bit different. Instead of her just being lead to him, they are being lead to each other. Her on her dad’s arm and his on his mam’s.

They smile at each other across the short distance between them. On one of the many cliffs that make up the Isle, they meet in the middle of it. Their parents place their hands in each other’s.

“Hi.” She softly says.

“Hey babe.”

The officiant smiles. “We are gathered her to join Sam and Caitriona in the bound of marriage. The couple are speaking their own vows to each other. Caitriona?”

“I never expected you. My life was exactly how I wanted it. I was living it on my terms. Free to be whoever I wanted. I didn’t know I was searching for you until we found each other. When I meet your eyes in that studio in LA, I knew I had found someone special. Within a short time, I knew it was home. That, no matter where I laid my head from that point on, home is in your arms. Today just makes official what we have known for awhile. I love you.

“I love you. So bloody much. You were a surprise also. Was searching for a co-star, a mate and found forever. You are my forever. My mate, my co-star, lover, companion, my everything. I was doing alright before you came but you completed parts of my I didn’t know where lacking before you. Now I am complete and completely yours. From this day until forever.”

They hear some in the crowd, sniffling but don’t turn their heads away from each other to see who it is. “Nice. Now Sam and Caitriona will exchange rings.”

“Caitriona, I give you this ring, not as a sign of ownership but partnership. As I promise to always be by your side, no matter what life brings us. As a small symbol of the love I feel for you.” He places it on her finger.

“Sam, my love, I give you this ring as a symbol of the commitment we have made, as a promise that we are now one and you will never be alone in this world. And,” she smiles knowing their guests and her groom will laugh, “so all the other women out there know you are taken. You are mine.” As she predicts, a giggle runs through their guests. Sam laughs aloud as she slips it on him.

“Yours indeed.”

“As they have claimed each other and vowed to join their lives together, it is an honor to present Sam and Caitriona Heughan. You two may, never mind.” They are already kissing.

#my writing #outlander fanfic #samcait fanfic #your fault #the heughans #outlander fandom

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jbbuckybarnes · 4 years

Note

For being so nice and cute, copy this to 10 other bloggers that you think are wonderful. Keep the GAME going and make others feel beautiful. ♡

Awwwww, thank you so much!

I hope tagging is alright too, cause I love so many people on here.

@marmariavel - my lovely brain cell co-parenting partner. An absolute Matt Murdock, Doctor Strange, and Steve Rogers lover. She writes me little imagines when I’m in a bad mood. The real MVP.

@elsatxx - She gets the brain cell to babysit it sometimes. I love her dearly and she needs to be protected at all cost! If y’all love MCU & SPN you should follow her hehe.

@brooklyn-boy - A talented writer with lots of great series and oneshots. I support her quest to write mainly poc / bpoc / roc characters from now on. She’s one of the few people on here that make me feel like it’s okay to state an opinion, even if it upsets someone that might be ignorant to a topic of just has a differing opinion.

@barnesrogersvstheworld - Also freaking talented and I inhaled so intense when I read that name on my Discord list! Great stories, please check all of them out! Especially since Tumblr search literally doesn’t show the entire blog when you search for it (at least for some people). Leave some extra love.

@kentuckybarnes - Hannah is probably annoyed by how much I mention her at this point LMAO. But she’s great and I do what I do on here because of her. I literally named a character in an upcoming story after her daughter cause she isn’t just the bread and taco bell queen, she also has the most adorable family ever!

@cake-writes - I went from finding her like two weeks ago to “Oh, she just joined my Discord community server and I wanna bombard her with my love!” literally yesterday. Please check out her smut! You won’t be disappointed. Quite the opposite, you might need to change your underwear.

@bucknasty-barnes - *insert anything positive I could EVER say about anyone here, cause I love her* Cait is great, I hope she felt the virtual hug! The first mutual that I have a vivid memory of becoming a mutual haha.

@hidden-behind-the-fourth-wall - Some people just click with you within seconds. This is one of those situations. I couldn’t be more grateful for someone joining my server. You’re just on the same wave-length.

@nasarogers - They are literally the funniest person ever. Like...talk about an iconic nickname. Here’s to many more of those late-night shenanigans with you and even better memes. #americasass

@sassy-pelican - A soft, supporting soul. I already thank the gods that Samantha exists. She also deserves the biggest virtual hug. Bless her soul! I made half of these friends in the last two days on my Discord server for the community, so I’m grateful, to say the least. You can join HERE if you want. No pressure.

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lastbluetardis · 5 years

Text

Family of Six (1/14)

Summary: After James and Rose bring their newborn twins home, they work to find a balance between all four of their children, and each other.

Ten x Rose AU, soulmates AU --- this chapter: teen, 5000 words

Ages of the Tyler-McCrimmons at the start of the chapter: James: 39, Rose: 33, Ainsley: 9, Sianin: 5, Twins: 2 days

If you like reading my stories, consider leaving me a tip? Or leave a reply on this post to tell me what you thought? And as always, reblogs are very much appreciated so more people can see this.

Chapters will be posted every other week.

AO3 | TSP | FF | Perfectly Matched Series

Ch1 | Ch2 | Ch3 | Ch4 | Ch5 | Ch6 | Ch7 | Ch8 | Ch9 | Ch10 | Ch11 | Ch12 | Ch13 | Ch14

“Morning, handsome.”

James blinked through scratchy, crusty eyes and saw Rose on her side, facing him. Her elbow was propped on her pillow, her cheek resting in her palm.

“Hi,” he murmured, his voice gruff. He hummed when she leaned down and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “How’re you feeling?”

“Great,” she said. “It barely feels like I squeezed two humans out of my vag two days ago.”

He snorted. His stomach clenched when he saw her wide, tongue-touched grin. Glancing over Rose’s shoulder, he saw their babies, Hannah and Madeline, sleeping contentedly in their bassinets.

“Wanna cuddle?” he asked. Rose nodded and wriggled into his waiting embrace. He sighed when her sleep-heated body pressed up to his; he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. “Love you.”

“Love you, too.”

Rose tilted her head up and pressed a light kiss to his jaw, then to his chin, before she strained higher to catch his lips between hers.

James exhaled through his nose and shifted so he could kiss his wife more easily. Her lips were dry and warm and felt so good skating across his. His heart thudded against his ribs as he twined his fingers through her hair to hold her in place while his other hand went to the small of her back.

The hand she wasn’t lying on lazily migrated up his torso. Her fingers skimmed his ribs, ghosted up his chest, until her palm cradled his jaw.

They snogged lazily in bed as the rest of the world faded away. There was nothing but them and the pleasure brought about by the slow, languorous motions of their mouths and the gentle caresses of their hands.

“You know you need to put the brakes on those activities for at least six weeks.”

James squeaked in surprise as he was jarred back to reality. Elizabeth smirked at them from the doorway of their recovery suite.

“I know! I wasn’t… we weren’t… I wasn’t gonna…”

Rose laughed at him; the sound soothed a tiny fraction of his mortification. She pressed a parting kiss to his cheek and patted his chest reassuringly before she sat up in bed. James followed suit, his cheeks still burning. It wasn’t as though he’d intended for the kiss to go any further; frankly, he wasn’t even close to being in the mood to go further. Perhaps it was the lingering adrenaline and endorphins from the birth of his two newest daughters, but kissing Rose these last few minutes had felt better than usual.

“How are you feeling?” Elizabeth asked, stepping fully into the room. She walked up to the two cots and smiled down at the babies within them. She stroked her fingers across their fat little cheeks, then focused on Rose.

“I’m fantastic,” Rose said, beaming.

James’s heart stuttered through a few beats as he beheld her smile. She was truly radiant. He thought she’d been glowing whilst pregnant, but this… She was more than glowing—she was shining.

He slid his hand across the mattress until he could cover her fingers with his.

“I’ve sent their cheek swabs away for testing,” Elizabeth said. “The results will come back in a couple weeks. I’ll give you a call when they do. My guess is it’s going to confirm they’re identical twins, but who knows. All newborns tend to look similar in my years of experience. Especially newborn siblings.”

They chatted for a few minutes, mostly about generic newborn care information that they already knew but appreciated nevertheless. After that, they were left alone to get dressed as Elizabeth went to retrieve the release papers.

While the suite they’d stayed in for the birth and recovery was beautiful and luxurious, James and Rose were itching to get back to the familiarity of their own home. They yearned for their own bed and a kitchen where they could make whatever they wanted whenever they wanted it.

With clean bills of health for Rose, Hannah, and Maddie, as well as a follow-up appointment scheduled, James and Rose bundled their girls up for the trip home. It had been years since he’d had to dress a floppy, fragile baby, but his hands took over immediately, remembering exactly how to position and support his baby’s body to wrestle her into the thick, fuzzy coat he’d selected for her.

“And we’re gonna put a hat on that teeny little head,” James whispered, sliding on the pale pink cap. “And then you’re going to hang out with Mummy and Maddie while Daddy goes to get the car.”

Assisted by a pair of nurses, James and Rose carried their new babies and suitcase to the main lobby of the birth center. With a parting kiss to her brow, James handed Hannah to his wife, then took their bag and walked outside.

The morning was cold and wet, and James ran through the pelting rain to their car. Damp and shivering, he put the heat on full blast and waited until it was blowing warm air so that his new babies wouldn’t be placed into a chilly car. He pulled up to the front of the building, underneath the protection of the overhang roof, and idled the car as he got out to make one last check that the car seats were appropriately installed, then to help Rose.

“Ready?” he asked, stepping forward to take a baby from her.

He cradled Hannah close to his chest, then leaned down to nuzzle his nose to her soft, fresh skin. A nurse, meanwhile, helped Rose stand and escorted them outside to their car, where they buckled the babies into their seats. The girls were dwarfed by their car seats; it looked as though both babies could fit inside one of them.

“There we are,” James cooed as he made sure all of the buckles and straps were fastened properly around Hannah while Rose did the same for Maddie. “Snug as a bug in a rug! Keeping you nice and safe. Though Daddy prays these straps will never be needed to keep you safe in the event of a car crash.”

“Way to be a downer.”

James stuck his tongue out at his wife, then brushed a kiss overtop Hannah’s knit cap and closed the door as quietly as he could. He then moved to Rose’s side of the car as she slid into the passenger’s seat.

“You gonna strap me in too?” she asked dryly.

“Could do,” he mused. He made a show of buckling her seat belt and tugging at the strap to test the security of it.

“You nutter,” she giggled.

“But your nutter! Forever.”

“I suppose you’ll do.”

James grinned and waggled his eyebrows at Rose before closing her door and moved to the driver’s seat.

He drove his family home, taking great care to not turn corners too quickly and avoiding potholes where he could. Twenty minutes later, they pulled into the driveway behind the multipurpose vehicle they’d purchased in anticipation of hauling their entire family of six at once. Their new vehicle seated eight people, providing them plenty of room for kids and kid-related supplies.

James had barely put the car in park before Robert and Jackie came out the front door, both of them holding umbrellas.

“Thank you,” he said as he slid out of the car and under the protection of the umbrella.

“We can’t have these precious sweethearts catching a cold already,” Jackie cooed, fussing over Hannah’s cap when she saw it was lopsided and half covering the baby’s eyes.

“You can’t get a cold from merely being cold,” James said, rolling his eyes.

“Oh, shut up and get my granddaughters inside.”

He shared an exasperated look with Rose across the car as she took Maddie from her seat.

“Shh, darling,” he murmured as Hannah woke up when he picked her up. “It’s just Daddy. I know it’s cold, but it’s only for a few seconds. I promise we’ll get you inside where it’s nice and warm.”

He cuddled her close, trying to give her as much warmth as he could. Jackie centered the umbrella over Hannah, leaving half of James’s body exposed to the icy rain.

“Oh, sure, you don’t worry about me catching a cold,” he grumbled, glancing over at Rose to make sure she was doing all right. His dad had her well taken care of.

“You can’t catch a cold from being cold,” Jackie parroted sweetly.

He heard Rose laughing at them, but he ignored her and instead walked to the ajar front door. The heat was a blessing as a chill rippled up James’s spine.

“See, I told you, Han,” he said to the child in his arms. “Nice and toasty in here.”

He turned as Rose and his father stepped through the front door, kicking off their wet shoes. Rose glanced at him and frowned.

“Mum, you really couldn’t keep him any drier than that?”

“I told you your mum still has it out for me,” he said gravely.

Jackie swatted at his soaked shoulder, but looked slightly apologetic.

“Here, I’ll take her. You get changed,” she said, holding out her arms.

“Aha! This was all a ploy so you could hold my darling daughter. Next time, just ask.”

But he gave Hannah to her grandmother and departed down the hall to get into dry clothes.

The afternoon passed by quickly and easily, with both babies napping contentedly in their cots or somebody’s arms when they weren't being fed.

When it came time to collect Ainsley and Sianin from school, Robert and Jackie volunteered.

Forty-five minutes later, the front door burst open and two sets of pattering feet raced towards them.

“Mummy! Daddy!”

Sianin launched herself onto the couch and into James’s lap while Ainsley rushed to Rose’s side.

James gathered Sianin close to his chest and held her tight, breathing her in. Though he’d seen his daughters only two afternoons ago, he’d missed them dearly. As he kissed the side of her head and kept her in his lap, he had a jarring moment of realization that Sianin wasn’t his baby anymore. She was his middle child, his second-eldest.

He looked over and saw Ainsley standing between Rose’s legs, peering down into Hannah’s face. The baby was awake and staring up with dark blue eyes, trying to focus on Ainsley. His heart throbbed to see his eldest cooing down at her baby sister and being so gentle as she pressed a feather-light kiss to Hannah’s forehead before she traced her fingertips across Hannah’s face.

“Gran said there was a surprise,” Sianin prompted, drawing him back to the child in his lap.

James furrowed his brow at Jackie as she shed her coat.

“Your mummy, daddy, and sisters being home is the surprise, sweetheart,” Jackie said. “Isn’t it so nice to have them home?”

Ainsley nodded vigorously, but Sianin looked a little put-out, though she snuggled deeper into James’s arms.

Jackie and Robert made a large dinner for the family, which they’d apparently been doing for the past few days, resulting in a fridge and freezer full of meals for James and Rose so they didn’t need to worry about cooking for a while.

While Robert departed back to his own home after dinner, Jackie stayed one more night. She would catch a train to London the following morning.

The first night with the twins went better than James and Rose expected. They’d worried that each twin would wake up at different times, essentially keeping them up every hour, too. And though the babies were in James and Rose’s bedroom—where they would remain until they were sleeping through the night and didn’t need to nurse every other hour—they worried the sound of crying would bother Ainsley and Sianin.

But the twins woke up together. Or, rather, Hannah woke them up every few hours, and they fed and changed Maddie during those times, too. Because she was still unaccustomed to nursing two newborns at once, James often aided Rose with the feedings, arranging pillows around her body so she was as comfortable and confident as possible.

“I really appreciate your help,” Rose murmured as she sat back against their headboard for the third feeding of the night. “I promise I’ll get better at juggling two of them.”

“I have no doubt,” he answered.

“I’m just nervous about dropping them right now,” Rose continued. “I’m used to having a spare hand and arm. And they’re so bloody fragile.”

“Rose, you don’t need to apologize or explain,” he said. “Since you’re the milk maid—” Rose snorted and rolled her eyes. James knew that if she’d had a free hand, she would’ve smacked him. “—it’s the least I can do to help finagle the kids around. I’m quite smitten with these two already; it’d be a shame for you to drop one.”

Rose cackled and fondly told him to shut up.

When morning came, with no dropped newborns and two slightly sleep-deprived parents, James and Rose pulled themselves out of bed to get their other two kids ready for the day.

Ainsley was in the living room, sitting on a nest of blankets and watching cartoons with Jackie as she cradled a bowl of half-eaten cereal. Sianin, on the other hand, was still dead asleep when James crept into her room.

“Sianin,” he softly crooned to the blanketed lump of his daughter.

She didn’t even stir. He crouched beside her bed and took a moment to look at this perfect little human he’d helped make. Even though her hair was a tangled mess, dried drool crusted around her mouth and chin, and pillow lines creased her cheeks, she was beautiful.

The peacefulness of the moment disappeared as he began trying to rouse her. He stroked her hair away from her face, taking care not to get his fingers caught in any of the numerous knots. Sianin let out a whining moan, tucking her face into her pillow and pulling her blankets over her head for good measure.

“Time to wake up,” he said, rubbing her back and simultaneously tugging her blankets off her head.

“Hmph,” she grumbled, cracking open one bleary eye.

He spent the next few minutes gradually waking her up, not leaving the room until she was physically out of bed and moving to the loo lest she fall back to sleep.

They got through the morning routine quickly, glad that the presence of the twins hadn’t caused any unexpected delays. Ainsley was already dressed for school and sitting at the kitchen table, chatting with Rose and Jackie while the twins slept in the portable bassinets Rose must have moved into the kitchen.

Sianin joined them a few minutes later, drowsy and still in her pajamas. Her hair was a matted nest, but she didn’t seem to care as she clambered onto a kitchen chair, awaiting her breakfast.

“Oatmeal okay, Sian?” Rose asked, standing from the table.

“Mhm,” she said through a yawn.

“How did you two sleep?” James asked, working around Rose to put the coffee on. “Did you hear your sisters last night? Did their crying wake you?”

Ainsley and Sianin shook their heads.

The family finished up their breakfast, then Sianin and James got dressed for the day. James threw on a comfy pair of jeans and a hoodie, then knocked on Sianin’s open bedroom door. She was pulling on her jumper and hadn’t even begun to tackle her hair.

“Want me to fix your hair?” he asked as she rooted around her room for her shoes.

“Sure,” she said.

“In the mood for anything special?” he asked, finding a brush.

“Hmm… Piggy-tails?”

James smiled and sat on the floor behind his daughter to work on taming her silken locks. She sat still for him as he unknotted her hair as gently as he could; he murmured apologies when the brush caught in a snarl.

Moments like this, where it was just him and his daughter doing the most mundane of tasks, were one of James’s favorite parts of fatherhood. He knew men who would never trouble themselves with doing their daughters’ hair, and he felt sorry for them; it was such a simple, easy bonding moment between him and his child.

“How are Elena and Juliette?” James asked when he saw Sianin was clumsily writing on her forearm.

“They’re good. They wanna know the babies’ names. How do I spell ‘Hannah’ and ‘Maddie’?”

“How would you spell them?” James prompted.

Sianin was silent for a few seconds, then said, “H-A-N-A and… er… M-A-D-E?”

“Close,” he said. “Those were good tries, though.”

He then spelled her sisters’ names for her—including the full spelling for Madeline—and watched her copy them onto her arm.

“Your handwriting is getting much better,” James said.

He caught Sianin’s reflection in the floor-length mirror on her closed closet door; her face had lit up in a toothy grin.

“Thanks, Daddy!”

“I’m just about done,” he said, parting her hair down the middle and gathering one half into his fist. “High piggy-tails or low ones?”

“Hmm… high. Please,” she tacked on. “Ooh, and can you put a bow on them?”

“Anything for you, my darling.”

He made quick work of smoothing out her hair and fastening each side with a hairband. Now that it wasn’t one giant, frizzy knot, her hair was curling in soft ringlets.

“Pick which bows you want,” he said, pushing himself to his feet with a grunt.

She hopped up and went to the basket on her dresser. She returned a minute later with two mismatched bows. James shrugged and dutifully clipped them into her hair.

“Grab your shoes,” James said.

When they joined the rest of their family, Ainsley was ready to go. She’d finished zipping up her coat and grabbed her bag from where it was hanging on the coat rack.

Jackie’s suitcase was sitting by the front door and James heard her and Rose talking in the kitchen. She was fussing over Rose and the twins.

“I’m fine, Mum,” Rose said, an exasperated edge to her voice. “I’ve been through this more times than you have.”

“Oh, so that means you’re above needin’ a bit of help or advice?” Jackie snipped.

James winced at the sharp tone, and when he heard Rose’s groan of frustration, he stepped into the kitchen to intervene. Cheerfully, he said, “All right, time to go.”

Jackie shoulders hunched as she strode past him. He watched her exit, then turned to his wife.

“You gonna be all right while I’m out?” he asked quietly.

“Not you too. I’m fine. I know how to take care of my own children.”

James raised his hands defensively. “I wasn’t trying to imply you couldn’t. But you’re still only three days post-birth. Your body needs loads of rest. One baby is exhausting to care for, but we’ve got two.”

Rose sighed. “I know. Sorry. It’s just… Mum always makes me feel like I’m doing something wrong, y’know?”

He frowned. “What did she say?”

“Nothing. It’s… I must’ve missed a button on Maddie’s onesie, ‘cos it was all askew and twisted in the front. Mum noticed a second before I did and went right up to Maddie and started talking to her about how that must’ve been so uncomfortable but Gran’s got her and will make it all better. It’s not like I bloody well tried to button it up wrong.” Rose rubbed the heel of her hand into her forehead. “Am I overreacting?”

“I think Jackie could’ve said something different,” James replied. Then he stepped up to his wife and pressed a kiss to her cheek.

Rose caught him in a hug, and when her face was tucked into his neck, she whispered, “Why did we have to get into it right when she’s leaving?”

“I’m sorry, love,” he said, holding her tight. “Give yourself the day to cool down, then talk to your mum. Maybe tell her that you didn’t appreciate what she said. Or how she said it, if that was more the issue.”

“That’ll go over well,” Rose muttered. “She’ll just get offended again.”

James didn’t know what to say, so he said nothing and instead swayed with Rose for another minute.

“I’ve gotta go,” he said, kissing her forehead. “Need anything while I’m out?”

“Don’t think so,” she said. “I’ll let you know if I do. Thanks for taking Mum to the train station.”

“Anything for you,” he replied.

Jackie was helping Sianin fasten the buttons of her coat when he went to the front door.

“I can do it myself, Gran,” Sianin whined.

“I just figured I’d help speed up the process is all,” Jackie said, continuing to do up the buttons for Sianin.

James peeked over at Rose and saw her roll her eyes. He, too, wanted to tell Jackie that Sianin would only get better at fastening buttons if she was allowed to do it herself. But James knew that Jackie was fussing because she cared; it couldn’t be easy for her to leave behind her child and grandchildren after having spent nearly a full week with them. So he held his tongue and ushered everyone out the door.

After James dropped the girls off at school, he drove across town to the train station. Like the good son-in-law he was, he carried her suitcase for her and walked her into the station.

“Right, so we’ll see you for Sianin’s birthday in a few weeks?” James confirmed, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

“If Rose still wants me to come,” Jackie grumbled.

“Of course she does,” James answered. Jackie cocked an eyebrow, so he tacked on, “And more importantly, Sianin wants you there.”

Jackie deflated a little. “It’s hard being away from you lot all the time.”

“I know,” James said softly. “But that makes the time with you even more special.”

Jackie sighed. “It’s been so nice staying with Ainsley and Sianin for these last several days. And spending time with the babies yesterday. But the next I’ll see them, they’ll be nearly a month old.”

Jackie sighed again, and for the second time that morning, James didn’t know what to say. Instead, he stepped up to her to give her a brief hug and a kiss on the cheek.

“Safe travels, Jackie. Let us know when you get home.”

He handed her bags to her and watched his mother-in-law disappear into the throng of people milling about the station.

When he got home, the house was blissfully silent. The twins were asleep in their bassinets, which had been set up in the living room, and Rose was nowhere to be seen.

He poked his head into the kitchen and took note that all of the dishes had been done and the table and countertops wiped clean.

“Rose?” he asked, furrowing his brow.

“In here.”

“Where’s ‘here’?” he muttered, heading down the hall towards her voice.

He found her in the laundry room, bending over the dryer to put the clean clothes in the basket.

“Everything go all right with Mum and the kids?” Rose asked, continuing to reach into the dryer.

“Yep. Your mum was a bit sad to go, but we already knew that. What are you doing?”

Rose straightened, resting a hand on her lower back as she did so. “Laundry.”

“Yes, yes, I see that. Why? You should be resting.”

She rolled her eyes, shut the door to the dryer, then hefted the laundry basket onto her hip. “I’m not an invalid, James.”

“I know, but you literally pushed two human beings out of your body three days ago,” he said.

“I know. I was there,” she teased, grinning.

“Bloody hell,” he mumbled to himself. He stepped up to her and brushed a strand of hair away from her face before trailing tiny kisses across her cheek and temple. He used the closeness to pry the laundry basket away from her. “You’re amazing, you know that? Absolutely amazing. But just… try to rest? Please? It would make me feel better.”

“You worry too much,” she said gently. “I’m fine.”

“It’s my job to worry,” he said. “You can help sort the socks as long as you sit on the bed to do it.”

Rose shook her head in mock exasperation, but followed him into their bedroom where they worked together to fold the laundry.

They spent the rest of the day relaxing with their new babies and each other. All four of them cuddled on the couch with a romcom playing in the background. James barely paid attention to the film; he was too distracted with his babies and his wife, who he spent most of the day simply talking to.

“I’m really happy to see you doing so well,” James said when Rose decided she absolutely had to do an impromptu photoshoot of the twins and James.

She beamed behind her camera, then instructed him to adjust his grip slightly to get a better view of the twins’ faces. She took at least a hundred photographs in every pose known to man. Sitting, standing, reclining, laying down, with his shirt on and off. James assumed the latter was more for Rose than anything—still, he puffed up at the knowledge his wife thought he was sexy even after all the years they’d been together.

“All right, enough of me,” James said. “Your turn.” When Rose tried to protest, he said, “Nope, come on. Turnabout’s fair play.”

Rose grudgingly handed over her camera, and James spent the next twenty minutes giving her a photoshoot. The photos weren’t as nice as they would’ve been if a real photographer had taken them, but he tried his best, and knew Rose could touch them up and crop them to make them look much better than his amateur attempts.

They resumed the photoshoot when Ainsley and Sianin got home from school. James and Rose took turns behind the camera to document each other with their children.

“Can I take some of you and Dad?” Ainsley asked after a while.

“That’d be great,” Rose said, her face soft. “Be very careful with the camera. It’s delicate.”

Rose spent the next minute showing Ainsley how to use it, practicing on Sianin, who was making silly faces.

When Rose was certain Ainsley had the hang of it, she joined James on the couch and took one of the twins from him. James wrapped his arm around her, anchoring her to his side. Once the traditional ‘smile for the camera’ photos were done, they began making silly faces too. James had even pulled her in for a long snog, to the exaggerated disgust of their kids. Ainsley snapped the photo though, and it ended up being one of the best ones she’d taken.

“Hopefully that’s not a sign she’s going to try her hand at erotic photography when she’s older,” James murmured into Rose’s ear when they saw the series of photos of them kissing.

Rose smacked his chest but laughed loudly.

“What’s so funny?” Ainsley asked, frowning. She stepped up behind them to look at the photos. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No, no, love,” Rose assured. “These are absolutely beautiful. Your dad was just being his usual ridiculous self.”

“You did a really great job, Ainsley,” James praised, which made Ainsley flush with pride.

“I wanna try!” Sianin said, clambering onto the couch.

While Rose showed their five-year-old how to use the camera, James wrapped his arms around Ainsley and tucked her into his lap. She still fit comfortably, small as she was, despite being nine years old.

“Are you excited about being a big sister again?” he asked, absently rocking them from side to side. “Do you like it?”

“Yeah,” she said, beaming. “Do you like being a dad?”

“It’s all right, I suppose,” he said nonchalantly. He nuzzled his cheek against hers, scraping his day-old stubble across her soft, smooth skin. She squirmed in his lap, pushing his face away. He relented with a kiss to her cheek. “Being a dad is the best part of my life.”

Ainsley relaxed back into his arms, content to sit in his lap while Rose continued talking Sianin through basic functions on the camera.

“Let’s get one of Daddy and Ainsley,” Rose whispered.

“Why do you like taking pictures?” Sianin asked.

“It’s fun,” Rose answered, shrugging. “Like how you enjoy playing with your cars, I enjoy taking photos. This camera is basically an adult toy.”

James choked down a laugh, earning him a stern look from his wife, but he saw the mirth dancing in her eyes.

After first smiling at the camera, he and Ainsley turned their attention to the television; James knew Rose adored getting profile and candid shots.

Sianin spent a few more minutes taking photos before she got bored and handed the camera back to Rose. She then slid to the floor and asked Ainsley to play with her.

With their two eldest children occupied and their two youngest children asleep, James and Rose went off to sift through the photos they’d taken that day. Together, they compiled their absolute favorites, and after some minor touch-ups from Rose, she printed them out on her specialized photograph printer.

After everything was printed and dinner was in the oven, James and Rose settled at their kitchen table to update everyone’s photo albums. Barring several ultrasound photos and the hospital-issued birth photo, these were the first pictures to go in the twins’ albums.

James and Rose updated Ainsley’s and Sianin’s latest albums, as well as the family album.

“A bit saucy for a family album, innit?” James teased when she pasted in the photo Ainsley had taken of them kissing.

“Oh shut it. It’s not like we put screenshots from a sex video in here,” Rose said, flicking his arm.

“Well, now you mention it…”

Rose smacked him this time, and James giggled before he dutifully continued taping photographs of his beautiful family into the book.

If you’ve made it to the end, consider leaving a comment or reblogging? I’d love to know what you thought of this.

#ficandchips #doctorroseprompts #dwfic #doctor who #ten x rose #ten x rose au #james x rose #soulmates #soulmates au #soulmates verse #perfectly matched series #family of six #baby fic #kid fic #family #my fic

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johnny-and-dora · 5 years

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creator tag meme 2019

i was tagged like a million years ago by the absolutely lovely maddie @alljustrunaways and the equally darling hannah @nevermindthewind! thanks babes! sorry this took me so long christmas kinda got in the way haha

Rules: It’s time to love yourselves! Choose your 5 favorite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc!) and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you brought into the world in 2018. Tag as many writers/artists/etc as you want (fan or original!) so we can spread the love and link each other to awesome works!

holding back the flood

i love this fic, you guys. writing dialogue has never been my strongest suite and it was kind of a challenge seeing as i’d never written rosa before but i’m so happy with how it turned out! a true ode to the sleuth sisters (and also jake peralta, super husband)

every storm that comes, also comes to an end

i love the whole coral palms saga so dearly and i really loved writing this little scene post coral palms pt.3 and giving these two the proper reunion that they deserve. writing sappy and drowsy jake’s pov for this one was especially fun and i’m really proud of this fic <3

i’m electric, a romantic cliche

i’ve always loved the mattress and just early relationship peraltiago in general so it was really fun to write amy gushing about jake so early on. i love writing for the both of them but i really do adore amy’s internal monologues and this is full of her just being soft about this huge dork that she’s just maybe starting to fall in love with. write what you want to read i guess haha

tell me everything’s okay

this got a little lost bc i posted it the day before b99 got cancelled and the apocalypse happened haha but i’m still pretty proud of it! i rarely write angst but show me going - more specifically, jake’s character development (which is one of the things i love most about the show) - really inspired me - don’t worry though, i’m physically incapable of writing something that doesn’t have a happy ending.

you do know me

this fic is pure unadulterated self-indulgent fluff and honestly i find it a little too cheesy but. i don’t care. because who doesn’t love a fic that could basically be lifted straight out of every rom-com ever? this one also reminds me how much my writing skills have subtly improved since i wrote it at the start of the year which makes me more proud of what i’m writing now :)

i’m 99% sure that every single b99 fic writer on this hellsite has done this tag by now so i’ll leave it up to you - instead i’m going to use this space to thank every single b99 fic writer for blessing us with their wonderful wonderful writing (but specifically @startofamoment, @amyscascadingtabs & @fourdrinkamy bc they’ve been very nice to me and encouraged me to keep writing whether they know it or not haha) <333 thank you!

#this is basically just a shameless masterpost of the fics i'm most proud of #so go give them a read/re-read if that's what you're into!#oh and everyone who has ever liked reblogged kudosed or commented on any one of my fics #i love you and you're going to the good place :)#my writing #shut up sian #<3

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birger-wuvs-elsa · 6 years

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Frozen OC Exchange

@wintryspice I got yours, and decided to focus on Hannah with mentions of Charlotte. I was very nervous about this, as I usually am when writing...literally any character at all I didn’t make myself, lol. I cheated a little, called in the good ass himself for backup; but he’s in disguise in a human rendition, so it’s okay. =P

Modern AU, because why not? X3 I hope you like it... (=^w^=)>”

P.S. Birger has a soft spot for literally any OC who’s Elsa’s kid, so I’m not surprised at all he made this easier to write, lol.

“You need to go visit him, Hannah; whether you want to is beside the point.”

Hannah stubbornly refused respond, or to meet her mother’s eyes. Though the reflection of her mother, Elsa, in the mirror before her certainly made that tricky. The young girl, with blonde hair a shade or two darker than her mother’s, decided to focus instead on her hands folded upon her lap. Despite the many words a part of her wanted to say that churned deep inside, Hannah kept them at bay. They would help matters…not with how complicated they’d become.

Not after losing her dad, only to find out she’d had an estranged uncle she never knew the whole time.

A man who’d apparently, despite his supposed “great love” for his younger sister, distanced himself thoroughly due to his personal loathing of her father. Because of this, and how her uncle had purposefully avoided his own family, Hannah wasn’t sure she wanted anything to do with him. He didn’t attend the ceremony of her parents’ marriage, had moved away not long afterwards, and she’d never heard tale of him until just a few days ago.

Her uncle had made it clear he hadn’t been willing to stay close, so shouldn’t he be the one who reached out to her?

Before she’d even noticed Elsa had finished brushing her hair, she felt a hand lay gently on her shoulder. Against her previously stubborn wishes, Hannah couldn’t help but look up and meet her mother’s eyes through the mirror. Though her own eyes were a tad greener than her mother’s, they still held a similar spark as they met through the glass.

“I know that learning of his avoidance of us because of your father hurt you, and you have every right to feel that way. But these are mistakes of the past made long before you were born that you’re judging him for. It’s not as if he absolutely abandoned us, anyway.”

Hannah’s eyebrows shot up, and her eyes widened. “How do you mean, mother?”

Elsa smiled a soft, bittersweet smile. “Dear Hannah, how did you think all of those gifts you and your siblings received without a From filled out came about? Or that college fund that mysteriously showed up when you came of age to use them, with others awaiting your siblings to be old enough?”

Her mother paused to give Hannah a moment to process this revelation, and process she did. Many of her (secretly) favorite gifts had been those mystery gifts with no From name, and the college fund reserved for her had been a great boon for her pursuing a medical degree. These blessings that she simply thought were subtle gifts from her parents, or family or friends that she knew and loved dearly…had come from him?

“In fact, if I’m being honest…the only reason I had the idea to get you Misha, is because Branko suggested it.”

A soft gasped escaped from Hannah, but she was all too in shock to care. Misha? Misha? Her precious husky, who currently laid curled in a fluffy, adorable mass on her dog bed in the corner of the room, snoring away, was also from him? The dear dog whom she shared with little Charlotte…

“B-but…” Hannah started, hesitant, the walls she’d built around her uncle slowly beginning to crack.

Elsa, patient as ever, began to tie her daughter’s hair in a loose French Braid as she gave Hannah time to continue. Not only did her daughter like this style, but it was one that Elsa commonly used herself. As such, the lighter blonde had sly motivations for tying Hannah’s hair this way for today. What better way to visually help her older brother to feel more comfortable around the niece he never meant, than to show how much like her mother she was?

Elsa only hoped it worked that way, and that it didn’t instead remind Branko of what he’d lost…

“But mother, if…if he cared that much about us, about you, then why?” Hannah implored as she stared at the reflection of her mother’s face, and ignored the pinpricks at her eyes that forewarned tears. “If he loved us why would he stay away?”

Elsa took in a deep breath through the nose, and sighed. “It’s both simple and complex, sweetheart. Branko was so terribly conflicted, he was not at all alright with my and Hans’ relationship. For reasons I’ll not disclose right now, suffice it to say those two did not have the most amenable relation. That would be even harder to explain, honestly, but Branko let us be because, in the end…he didn’t want to jeopardize our happiness, even if he didn’t like half of the involved party.”

“As for why he stayed away from you, the twins, and Charlotte? It was pretty much the same reasoning, really, but a tad different. Branko was scared to death of ruining what he had, he didn’t want to risk us having issues that would never have happened had he remained uninvolved. To put matters simply?”

Elsa gripped Hannah’s shoulders and squeezed gently. “Your uncle was afraid his very presence would ruin our happiness, and sacrificed getting to see you all grow up to ensure you grew up happy.”

Hannah took a shuddering breath before she turned to meet her mother’s eyes directly. “But, that means…did he also stay away from you?”

The young woman didn’t miss how her mother gulped, and how her eyes grew unfocused as she sighed. “Indeed, he did…it pained him as much as it had me, it seemed, from his letters.”

Hannah sat up in attention, “Letters? When did he send you letters?” She then frowned. “Who even sends letters anymore, these days?”

Elsa actually laughed, a hand coming to cover it before she spoke. “Branko is about as stubborn as you are, plus he loves the feel of paper beneath his hand and under a pencil. As for when, he always sent them along with the gifts. Other times as well, sure, but typically along with a package of some sort.”

Hannah let her eyes drift down as she sighed. This was a lot more revelations about her estranged uncle than she expected, and they certainly changed things more than she thought they would. She was initially more than willing to keep Branko at arm’s length, since he’d seemed content to do the same for decades. But of course, the situation just couldn’t be that clear cut, could it? No, of course not…black and white would make it too easy, of course there’d be grey.

The hands that were still on her shoulders squeezed gently once more, and Hannah looked back up at her mother.

Elsa smiled gently as she brought up one hand to caress her daughter’s temple. “Please, go see him, I know for a fact he’s equal parts eager and scared to meet you.”

With a gulp and a tentative nod, Hannah Marie agreed.

A few hours later…

Hannah nervously entered the high-end bar where her mother had dropped her off to finally meet her uncle. While Elsa herself remained outside in the car, to be there for Hannah for whatever she needed, the younger woman had entered alone. The bar was by no means a shoddy establishment, and certainly had its fair share of wealthy patrons. Whatever it was her uncle did for a living, between the presents he’d sent and the college funds he’d set up—and the bar he chose for them to meet at—Branko clearly did not have much to want for.

Despite knowing what her uncle looked like, Hannah still took her time to search for him. Mostly because she was still terribly nervous to see him, let alone meet him, but partially because of the many strangers in the bar. It wasn’t a busy crowd at all, exactly, and was hardly bustling. But it was a greater number of strangers in one place than Hannah liked, that was for sure.

“Just focus on why you’re there, find your uncle, and stay close to him. He will protect you, I swear it.”

Her mother had told her because Hannah had exited the car, along with a reminder she’d be just out in the car if needed. Knowing that she had two points of safety greatly comforted her, even if one of those points were technically foreign. But if even half of what Elsa had said was true, then Branko had loved his nieces and nephew without even having met them.

On the drive over, Hannah’s mother had shared many tales of her and Anna’s childhood growing up with their elder brother. They’d been lovely and sweet stories indeed, and certainly helped to give Hannah a better impression of who her uncle was. Apparently, upon the respective births of his younger sisters, Branko had sworn to keep them safe—even at what was a young age, having been only four when Elsa had been born. That protective only grew stronger with him, even if the events caused those urges to be shaken and called into question.

But now, as Hannah slowly strode through the bar and searched for shaggy hair the color of her aunt’s but styled like her mother’s, the young girl hoped that same protection still counted for her now.

Especially when Hannah felt an unwelcomed touch on her shoulder from behind.

“What’s a small thing like you doing here, milady?”

The voice was far too high and scratchy to be her uncle’s, and so fear quickly rooted itself in Hannah’s stomach. Elsa had described even Branko’s voice, a comforting baritone that seemed like it could suit a noble dragon. This voice sounded more like it suited a snake, and Hannah was afraid that comparison would become all the truer.

She slowly turned around, and indeed, the man who loomed over her did not seem overly compassionate. His black hair was too thick with product, thin smile too fake, green eyes too lit with a sheen that all but made Hannah sick. The fact he was tall enough that she had to look up to meet his eyes didn’t help; he was probably a whole half-a-foot taller!

Hannah gulped as she struggled to remain calm. “I’m looking for someone, sir. If you’ll excuse me, I don’t wish to be late.”

As she tried to pull away, to Hannah’s mounting horror, the man’s grip only tightened. “Now now, whoever they are can wait a tick. ‘Sides, they can’t be all that great if they left a pretty thing like you all alone.”

Hannah’s eyes narrowed. “They didn’t leave me alone, I am here to meet them. Please, sir, he’ll be worried if I don’t find him.”

She tried to pull away again, but the grip just tightened more. The growing pressure caused Hannah to suppress a wince; either against the pain of the grip itself, her fear, or the pain in her chest…Hannah wasn’t sure anymore.

“Don’t be in such a hurry to leave a nice man, missy! You’re lucky I’m even–“

“Pray tell, why is she lucky, Gerald?!”

Hannah’s eyes widened at the voice that shouted out, and the fear melted as hope warmed her chest. That voice sounded almost exactly how she imagined it would. It had to be him, oh please, please, let it be him!

Both Hannah and the man, Gerald, looked up to where she’d initially been headed to see a beast of a man approach. The eyes of both widened, for different reasons; awe and fear, respectively. Hannah couldn’t help but be amazed that this man was the brother of her mother and aunt. He was so tall! Taller even than Gerald, and with a muscular frame that put every man in the bar to shame.

His auburn hair was loose and wavy, not unlike Elsa’s own blonde hair behaved, but was trimmed where it would’ve fallen into his sharp blue eyes. Those he certainly shared with his big little sister, though he’s all but burned as he glared at the man who now shrank away from Hannah. As he got closer, the young woman noted how the auburn hairs were accented by dusting of blonde, almost like how grey hair was, but…this was less grey and more platinum blonde, startingly similar to Elsa’s hair. They even both had dark eyebrows…

Hannah wasn’t sure if this strange mixture of red and blonde hair was natural, or, given how the colors mixed, if Branko’s hair was naturally blonde and it’d just been awhile since he re-dyed it red. Either way, it harkened to both of his little sisters, and the familiarity eased Hannah’s fragile heart. As Branko all but snarled at the man who was getting farther and farther from her, Hannah noted the blonde goatee and beard combo that encompassed almost all of her uncle’s face.

None of the facial hair had hints of red; perhaps, then, he had once dyed his head red?

That mystery was irrelevant, though, as Branko protectively got in-between Hannah and Gerald, the latter all but relieving himself before the greater man.

“I-I just meant, er, um–nothing! No reason, Branko, I swear! I was just, uh, helping her! Yeah! The little lady was just looking for someone, and I–”

Branko cut him off with a dismissive wave and a growl, the former action further likening him to Elsa in Hannah’s eyes.

“Don’t even bother, Gerald! That was the laziest bloody attempt at fabricating and excuse I’ve ever heard. Now, get your skinny, useless ass out of here, before I show you the meaning of my own personal definition of gobsmacked!”

Without another word, Gerald scurried out of the bar, his metaphorical tail all but one with his legs.

The crowd, strangely enough, had paid no heed to the show beyond a few scattered chuckles. Apparently, this was normal, and ended how everyone expected. With the sorry man taken care of, Branko sighed, only to mysterious stiffen as Hannah watched. His back was still to her, and just now the blonde noticed he was dressed far more causally than most of the bar’s patrons. While most all of them wore suits, Branko was clad in fine black jeans, a dark blue long-sleeved collared shirt—the sleeves of which were rolled up, its collar pressed down—and a deep red ascot.

When Branko made no move to turn around, for reasons Hannah could easily guess, she decided to make the first move. She carefully approached him, and raised a hand to gently touch his strong forearm. The man all but startled at her touch, but didn’t whirl around suddenly. Rather, he slowly, oh so slowly, turned his head to glance at her other a broad shoulder. As their eyes met, his eyes to very blue compared to her greenish blue ones, and Hannah’s heart melted at what she saw in his.

He almost seemed afraid…but she could swear she saw hope somewhere.

Hannah took a deep breath and smiled her gentlest smile. “Hi…I’m Hannah Marie…A-Anderson.”

Branko sucked in a sharp breath, and held it for so long Hannah feared he was going to pass out. But then he slowly let it out, and smiled wide a she did so. Finally her turned to properly face her, and to Hannah’s surprise he bowed, so not terribly deeply.

“Branko Kasun Anderson, always at your service.” As he rose from his bow, his smile wavered. “If you’ll have me, that is…”

Without wasting a moment, Hannah leapt forward to hug the strong, barrel chest of her long-lost uncle.

“Only if you’ll forgive me for trying to hate you…” She whispered softly, fearfully, pleadingly against his shirt.

To her great relief, she felt strong arms gently shelter her as she clung ever tighter.

“Forgive me for letting my pride keep me away, and for daring to wait till now to meet you, and you have a deal, my little princess.”

Thanks to the stories Elsa’d shared in the car, Hannah knew immediately the source of the pet-name. Growing up, the trio of Branko, Anna, and Elsa had played games of royals when they were young. No doubt, Branko now saw Elsa as a queen to the princess she’d been when they were kids. Now, Hannah was his princess…a title she never knew she wanted till now.

An idea came to the blonde, and she excitedly pulled back and looked up at Branko’s face. “Good sir! Your service is needed outside, this instant!”

A big, almost smug grin arose on her uncle’s bearded face. “Lead the way, your highness.”

Hannah watched happily from the passenger seat as she had her own private viewing of a reunion long in the making. The sight of her mother clinging desperately but oh so happily to her dearly missed brother all but made Hannah cry herself. Yes, her mother was crying; but they were tears of relief and joy, shed as well by the brother who held her tight. As she watched the precious reunion, it occurred to Hannah…she was the only one of her siblings who yet knew of their uncle. Rynar, Eira, and Charlotte had yet to be told…she only knew because she’d picked up hints of Branko’s existence, and asked.

But Hannah knew which of her siblings would most love to meet their reclaimed uncle.

I can’t wait to tell Charlotte…

#Frozen OC Exchange #Frozen OC #Birger #Hannah Marie #Elsa #Elsa X Birger #because there's a little bit of it so I ish tagging it so #I had an easier time writing this then I thought I would #I imagine Elsa and Birger just held my hands and dragged me lol #they are my muses and my tormentors #bee escreve historias

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