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mtr1234 · 18 days

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KOLTC fans who do not like Fitz, this post is for you. Fitz fans who do not believe people have sound arguments about why they dislike Fitz, this post is also for you.

Disclaimer:

I will mention stuff that happened in Stellarlune, so if you are not caught up with the series you might not want to continue reading.

I will try to provide quotes, but I will likely just describe the scene and what book it is in when I provide my reasons.

Also, this post will be pretty long which may or may not be a good thing depending on who you are.

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Anyway, let’s get to the reasons why I dislike Fitz. I have broken them up into three main categories, and I will be talking about aspects of Fitz’s character that I think a lot of people overlook (not the reasons that people do tend to mention: him having anger issues and being boring)

I don’t know if you guys have noticed this, but Fitz is really shady, Iike really shady (and not in a good way like our favorite shade Tam)

He has eavesdropped on Sophie and Keefe’s conversations before which I find so weird

In Lodestar, when Sophie and Keefe were communicating telepathically in that slimy location that Keefe picked out, Fitz started listening in on their conversation without their knowledge. He said it was because he was worried since he heard Sophie gasp. Personally, I do not buy this excuse. He can literally see Sophie so he could easily determine that she is not in danger. At the very least, why did he not immediately announce that he was listening once he knew Sophie was okay? In my opinion, it just feels odd, and if I were Sophie or Keefe I would feel a bit uneasy.

In Flashback, Sophie and Keefe were talking in the healing center about starting weapons training, and Sophie asks Keefe if he is down to do that (or something along those lines). Fitz immediately shouts, “I’m in!” The shady thing about this was that he was sleeping in his cot when they were talking. Now, I’m not saying that he is expected to cover his ears while they have a private convo in the healing center. But the thing is, he pretended to be asleep to listen to more of their conversation which is creepy.

The next very shady thing was the gift he gave Sophie in Legacy which was a painting he asked Keefe to make.

I always thought this was shady because, for one thing, he completely stole Keefe’s idea for a gift. Come on, a painting with a heartfelt message on the back?! That was literally what Keefe gave Sophie in Nightfall. Here comes the actual shady part though: why did he not just go to Atlantis or somewhere and have someone paint it for him? He purposefully asked Keefe to paint the confession scene between him and Sophie when he knows that Keefe likes Sophie. That is so messed up. This is made even worse by the fact that he paid Keefe when literally every elf is born with an unlimited birth fund so it was essentially worthless.

This next example happened in Legacy. I feel like a lot of people forgot about this or kind of swept in under the rug, but I think it is actually very telling of the type of person Fitz is. I am talking about when Fitz decided to search Lord Cassius’s mind to learn anything about where Alvar might be after he got away in Flashback.

There are several shady things about what happened in this scene. First of all, Fitz decided to do this even though he knew that it would make Keefe uncomfortable (Fitz would see the abuse/trauma Keefe suffered at home). Secondly, Fitz did this without even asking Keefe first or even letting him know about it. If you recall, he literally just showed up at Keefe’s house without any warning. Lastly, he tried to lie about it too. He tried to say “I’m doing this for Keefe” and “whatever I find will be helpful for Keefe”. Give me a break, we all know he did not do this out of concern for Keefe and he was caught lying in the act by Keefe himself. *I find it funny how he tried to lie about it to Keefe, when Keefe is literally the strongest empath in their world and is literally so smart even though he does not get enough credit for it.

2. When he gets mad at Sophie, the first thing he does is belittle her or try to make her feel stupid:

This first example comes from Exile when Fitz was getting mad at Sophie about what happened to his dad. Now, a lot of people like to dismiss how Fitz acted in this situation because he was under a lot of stress, but I do not think this is right to do because it absolves Fitz of any guilt instead of addressing how his behavior was wrong. The specific scene I am referring to is when, I believe, Alvar suggests that maybe Sophie can help Alden and then Fitz responds with: “Please, she’s just a kid.” What I get from this statement is that he is making Sophie feel less than, and in the process he is putting himself above her “level”. Now, one can use the excuse that he wasn’t himself and that he was torn up with grief, but he says similar things to Sophie later on in the series (when his dad is not on his deathbed) which I mention below.

This next example happens towards the end of Legacy, just before Fitz and Sophie broke up. Sophie was defending her decision to search Lord Cassius’s mind for any important information even though Fitz was already doing that (she honestly didn’t even need to do this because everyone knew he was getting nowhere and that he would never have found anything useful). Anyway, Fitz responds with: “So you thought the Moonlark needed to swoop in and take over? The leader of Team Valiant? Lady Sophie Foster? The fact that he is trying to make her feel bad about her accomplishments is a major red flag in my opinion. As someone who supposedly cares about her more than anyone, he should feel the most proud of her successes.

This third example is from Stellarlune. It’s when Fitz and Sophie have their first telepathy session after the whole “Fitzphie’s not a thing!” debacle. So, Sophie is asking Tiergan what a Cognate Inquisition is and then here comes the interjection: “Better question,” Fitz jumped in using a smug tone that made [Sophie] wish one of the buttons on her telepathy chair would turn Fitz’s into an ejector seat and launch him out of the room. “Why were you hoping to spare us from it?” I just think this is unnecessary and uncalled for; why is he trying to embarrass/ one up her in front of their mentor? (Did he forget that he is the one who joined her session, not the other way around?)

3. The last major issue I have with Fitz is the fact that he guilt trips Sophie and Keefe a lot. And, just so everybody is aware, not about minor stuff. He tries to make them feel guilty about things that are completely out of their control, and as you are reading these examples I just want you to keep in mind that elves are not equipped to handle guilt. Their mind can literally shatter if they feel too much of it (like Alden), and that’s why I think it is so horrific every time Fitz does stuff like this:

Everybody knows this one, but I am still going to put it here because it is worth mentioning. In Exile, Fitz blamed Sophie for his dad’s mind shattering. I have seen a lot of people try to say it is justified because he was going through a lot at the time, but I disagree. I think we can all agree that just because someone is going through a tough time (no matter how tough it may be), it does not give them the right to bully an innocent person.

Moving on, in Flashback, towards the end of the book Fitz makes everyone search for Alvar because he thinks he is up to something shady. When they find Alvar and question him, Keefe says that he can tell that Alvar is telling the truth. Then Fitz retorts, “Like you could tell with your mom?” In this remark, he is referring to the fact that, before she revealed her betrayal, Keefe had no idea that his mom was evil. This made me so angry on Keefe’s behalf because everyone already knows that he blames himself for everything that his mom is doing. With every revelation about his mom’s plan he sees how much worse things truly are, and that sends him into a downward spiral of guilt. For his “best friend” to say this to him is so messed up.

This is not another example, just my own thoughts about what I said above so you can skip it if you would like. I never understood why people (namely the Councillors) expected Keefe to know that his mom was evil. For one thing, his parents are literally known for never showing any physical or emotional affection to him. So, how is he supposed to be able to read his mom’s emotions if he never is close to her? Secondly, I think people are forgetting that as an empath he can only read people’s emotions. He does not know the reason why they are feeling the way that they do unless he has context. Lastly, his mom was literally erasing his memories left and right so whatever information he could even manage to glean would be wiped from his mind. Meanwhile, Fitz is literally a telepath, and he had no idea his brother was evil (and I assume he must have read his brother’s mind at least one time) so I think he needs to lay off the judgment.

In Legacy, Gisela leaves a note for Sophie to bring Keefe to Loamnore during the “showdown” (or whatever you want to call it). Anyway, Sophie does not want to do this because it is obviously a trap, and Keefe gives in and agrees to stay behind. When he makes this decision, Fitz says, “Wow, you really hate Tam that much? Because he’s the one who’ll pay the price if you’re not there—you get that right?” Is it just me or does that not sound so condescending? All I can say to this is how does he have the nerve to blame Gisela’s actions on Keefe, especially when Keefe is one of the people working the hardest to stop her? Also, it is crazy that Fitz is guilt tripping Keefe for deciding not to be bait and leaving his life in the hands of his (crazy) mom. I’m sure it’s easy for Fitz to say that because he is not the one who is being targeted by an evil mastermind who wants to experiment on him.

This last example happened in Stellarlune, so it is is quite literally very recent. Fitz and Sophie are in the school cafeteria, and they are disagreeing about next steps to take to stop the Neverseen. In that conversation Fitz says, “But sometimes it feels like you don’t realize that it’s only a matter of time before something you do gets someone else killed?” In my opinion this is a completely unfair statement to make against Sophie. First of all, since the beginning of the series she never wanted her friends involved in the fight against the Neverseen because she wanted to keep them safe. However, her friends (including Fitz) would not take no for an answer and insisted on helping. Secondly, Sophie is always going above and beyond (risking her life) to save that of others. Both times when she almost died fixing her abilities, she endured it all for the sake of becoming stronger and protecting her friends, family, and her world. That is why I think the way Fitz is trying to make her feel guilty, and put the entire weight of people’s lives on her shoulders, is so unjustified. She is literally a young girl trying to do her best to save her world from crazy powerful villains, cut her some slack.

If you made it to the end, thanks for reading. Honestly, there are many more examples that could be brought up that I’m sure a lot of you are thinking about, but I am too lazy to write all of that. I just wanted to share my thoughts because I have been seeing some people say that Fitz has had good character development throughout the series (which I just have not seen) and does not deserve all the hate so I just wanted to share why I believe Fitz is viewed the way he is by a majority of the Keeper fandom.

#sokeefe #keefe sencen #sophie foster #fitz vacker #kotlc fandom #kotlc #kotlc stellarlune #stellarlune #shannon messenger

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lovethistoomuch · 2 years

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just finished the second book in the aubreyad and man, all these people are so very dear to me! <3 I don't know if it is because I haven't read anything lately but these books just grabbed my heart in a way few things ever have.

my personal highlights include:

regarding Jack:

the fucking patience he has with Stephen, I swear! I mean, they are on the run together because war has broken out with france while they were on vacation there and Jack is disguised in a bear fur, he is dying of heat and his feet are bleeding but when they reach their destination and Stephen sees a pack of wolves, Jack's all: "great for you Stephen, how very interesting! wolves, a pack of wolves, great!" and he is so earnest about it!

and when Stephen brings those bees on board, he is sooo gentle with Stephen and kind and even helps him relocate them even though he is fucking terrified of them!

Jack has such a heart of gold that when he gets robbed by a guy and hits him so hard, that he fears he has killed him, he brings him back to Stephen where they give him a bed and food and help him and pay him to write some posters. like... that guy wanted to kill you and you take him home like a lost dog? alright then!

and he doesn't even think when it comes to protecting his men. when one of them falls off the boat, he jumps after him and rescues him and later is like: "oh, that was nothing, I've done this 23 times or so, no big deal." and he actually means it! no false modesty here, only a big heart and I love him so much for it!

and then we come to Stephen, who might be one of the most glorious characters I've ever experienced!

firstly, I love his cute little diary! he just sits there and writes things like: I love Jack so much, I know he likes me too, I hope we will be friends for ever and nothing will ever come between us, I know he is a big idiot and doesn't hurt me on purpose etc.

and then, when someone asks him to practice with a sword on deck, he is worried that people might think he's eccentric.... girl, you're the most eccentric person on any ship, in any room, wherever you go people think you're eccentric as soon as they lay eyes on you!!!

when Jack gets an interim command on a ship with a crew that has been sailing with each other for years and are a sworn in community where Jack has to find his footing first and needs to gain the respect of the men, Stephen, as his guest, arrives in this weird, self designed monstrosity of a jacket and immediately brings a fucking bee hive on board??? and immediately lets them loose on the ship??? on purpose???

he is just so completely oblivious to his own craziness, it's just totally endearing.

I just love how every crew that meets him is incredibly sceptical at first but in the end loves him so much that they give him parting gifts of great value.

also, the old sophie's are so great! Killick and Bonden and all the rest who just come aboard Jack's ship because they love him and protect him against being arrested while on shore and tell the rest of the crew how great Jack and Stephen are.

Pullings is a fucking delight and so incredibly sweet when he is promoted! and so competent! I cannot wait for him to get the first mate position he has in the movie.

Sophie is an angel and waay too good for Jack! normally, I hate that phrase but here it is just plain truth. though I love Jack with all my heart, he is such an idiot and Sophie is too sweet! I love her friendship with Stephen, though.

We don't talk about Diana...

all in all, you really get the feeling that the story of these books is built on friendship and love. I think what I most love about Jack's and Stephen's friendship is that they go through so much emotionally together. I mean, they want to shoot each other in the middle of this book and then go back to being friends, except they never really stopped being friends in the first place. I just love how their love for each other overshadows everything. and it's not like they are harmonious in every way, they have pretty big problems and Stephen even tells other people that he doesn't know if they are really friends, except that they totally are!

I mean, they continuously choose each other. Jack takes Stephen with him onto every ship and every time it is Stephen's choice and every time he chooses to come with him! their loyalty and friendship to each other is just a constant, even when Jack mentions that he could have Stephen caught and shot if he deserts and they absolutely go there in their conversations, lettign their ideologies and principles clash and getting angry at each other but then, their love for each other makes all of this irrelevant.

for me, this must be one of the most beautiful friendships ever and I cannot wait to read more of them!

I thought I was prepared for what this series is after reading a few tumblr posts but nothing could have prepared me for the actual reality of super exciting but also batshit crazy that these novels are. though I really didn't care for the romance plot and all that drama, I am glad that I went through it with these characters and the final two battles were so fucking captivating, that I'll forgive all the rest.

also, Stephen is the best! Jack too. they continuously do things that make me smile and if I posted about every little, charming or baffling detail, I would never get through these books.

If you read all of this, I apologise XD and I recommend these books wholeheartedly!

#sorry for the long post #but i don't know ayone else who reads these books #and i have feelings #aubreyad #aubrey maturin series #jack aubrey #stephen maturin #post captain #ramble #long post

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forabeatofadrum · 1 year

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A Grimm Christmas (G, ~5K)

Summary: A continuation of Snow for Christmas.

Simon’s gone back to London and Baz has to go back in the closet. Or so he thinks. His sisters have a different plan.

Notes: What if we made Malcolm Grimm’s Christmas even more uncomfortable than before? That’s the question that was on my mind after I finished Snow for Christmas. Poor Malcolm thought he could go back to pretending queerness doesn’t exist, but his kids thought differently. This is a little story about the Grimm children and about how there’s always hope.

Jas @aroace-genderfluid-sheep came up with the title and they were kind enough to let me use it, because it is brilliant. Happy reading.

Read on AO3 or under the cut.

BAZ

I watch Simon get in Fiona’s car. He drives off and my heart already feels heavy. Call me a sap, but I miss him already and he’s not even out of our driveway. (The one to the hunting lodge is longer than the one in Hampshire, which is saying something since our Hampshire house had a huge driveway.)

There’s another reason I insist on watching Simon drive away.

I kissed him in front of my parents.

I don’t regret it, but Merlin, I wonder what will happen now. We’ve been politely un-homosexual during the entire day and now I ruined it at the very end. (Un-homosexual is a word Simon would use. He has that effect on me.)

It’s time to face the music. I compose myself and turn back to the house. As expected, it’s clear that they’re not all to pleased about it. My father has a frown on his face and Daphne has the same anxious look that she had at Fortum’s when she invited Simon over.

Luckily, all three of us are saved from acknowledging my queerness when Sophie appears between my parents.

“Is Simon gone?” she asks.

“Yes, dear,” I walk back to the porch. The moment I’m in reach, Sophie raises her arms. She wants me to pick her up and even though she’s getting too big, I cannot refuse her.

Besides, I am still very much a vampire. I could probably carry Mordelia if she wanted me to.

I hoist Sophie up and the two of us walk back inside. My parents step aside and I feel tense when I pass them. It’s as if my father is exuding his disappointment and that is exactly what I meant when I told Simon I didn’t like that I feel closeted.

My father closes the door and the four of us walk back to the living room and Sophie is talking my ears off, but I can’t concentrate. I hate that I feel bad for kissing the love of my life goodbye. I shouldn’t feel bad for that. I don’t regret it, really, but my father gives off the feeling that I should.

Yes, Simon could come along.

Yes, we had a great time all things considered.

No, we will not acknowledge why Simon is here in the first place.

At least, that’s what I thought, because Sophie keeps talking about Simon and how she’s sad that he left, because she likes his wings and she likes that he gave her gifts, and when I remind Sophie that Simon had to celebrate Christmas with his grandmother, Sophie is confused.

“Why didn’t you go with him?” she asks.

“Because Christmas is family time and I love you,” I answer.

Mordelia hears it through her headphones and she rolls her eyes. She’s such an angsty teen. Petra, on the other hand, beams when she hears it.

Sophie also nods as if I said something extremely profound.

“Yes, but you also love Simon,” she says with a frown.

“… I do,” I say cautiously.

“And since he’s your boyfriend, shouldn’t you go to his family too?”

The entire room goes silent. Mordelia even takes off her headphones. Petra and Swithin seem unbothered by what just happened, but I can hear that my father has stopped in his tracks. If turning back to see his reaction to me kissing Simon was nerve wracking, me turning back to see his reaction to Sophie calling Simon my boyfriend is torture.

I don’t reply and I put Sophie down on the lavish sofa, next to Petra. Then I sit down on her other side. I purposefully don’t look to my father.

“Well, yes, I do love him very much,” I say and I hate how the guilt weighs heavily. I hate that I know this guilt is wrong. I hate that I feel guilty in the first place while knowing that shouldn’t have to feel like this, but I still do. “But the same way I love you as my family, he also has a family he loves, and we decided that it is fine that we are apart for a little while.”

Once again, Sophie nods as if I told her the secret of the universe.

“I get that. Mum was gone for a long time too.”

I hear Daphne cough awkwardly and I glance over her. She’s poured herself a drink and it looks like she’s choked on it. (Well, she’s the one drinking in the morning.) (Is this because of this conversation?) (Although I don’t think it’s alcoholic.). I am still not ready to look at my father.

Well, mum joined a cult and that is a different situation, I think, but sure.

“Yes, true,” I say awkwardly.

Petra also hums in agreement.

“And you and Simon live together, right?” Petra adds fuel to this fire by saying that. Now I hear my father choke on his drink. “So you will see him a lot!”

“I will,” I say, still a bit cautious.

How do the twins know all of this?

I thought that my relationship was a big taboo in the house. Even Mordelia clearly knows this, because she’s watching this entire conversation unfold with a shocked look on her face. She keeps glancing towards our parents out of the corner of her eyes.

So it’s clear that my parents made it very aware to her that she can’t talk about it.

Which… well, which makes me seethe. I am not surprised, but the disappointment is still heavy.

But the twins have clearly missed the memo.

Of course it cannot last.

“That’s enough of that,” my father says sternly and I finally look at him. He’s gripping the base his glass and I’m surprised it hasn’t snapped in half yet. He looks extremely tense and uncomfortable and Daphne looks anxious again.

“But daddy-”

“Sophronia,” Daphne says with a clipped voice, “It’s Christmas.”

So what? I want to yell, but I have learnt to bite my tongue and hide my displeasure all my life, so I know what to do. It’s clear what she means. It’s not a great idea to talk about it, because it will make Malcolm Grimm unhappy and that will spoil Christmas.

Great.

“Makes sense,” Petra says, and all the hope that has been quietly building in my chest gets crushed in an instant.

Sophie hums in agreement.

Well, fuck.

“Yes, this Christmas, Simon needs to go home,” she says, “But maybe next year we can all have Christmas together!”

“… As in?” Mordelia prompts carefully.

“Our family and Simon’s family!” Sophie exclaims happily.

“Oh, yay!” Petra claps her hands happily, “Yes, because Simon and Baz are in love and people who are in love do that!”

“Girls, we agreed that it’s Christmas,” my father butts in.

Petra nods.

“Okay, we cannot talk about Simon being here because he is Baz’s boyfriend for this Christmas,” Petra says, “But daddy, we’re talking about next Christmas!”

She says it with an ‘isn’t it obvious?’ voice. She’s this close to dramatically rolling her eyes. It’s a family trait, one that Mordelia and I have perfected.

I have to hide a smile. Petra is right in a way. Even Mordelia cannot hide her amusement. Up until now she looked torn whether or not she should side with me or with our parents, but I think Petra is winning her over.

“Next Christmas! Yay, big Christmas with family! Oh, Baz,” Sophie’s eyes go wide with a sudden realisation, “If you two live together, and are in love, and celebrate Christmas together, does that mean you are getting married soon? Then we’re all family!”

My father, bless his stupid heart, breaks the glass.

“I can fix it for you, father,” I say with a pointed tone in my voice. I take out my wand and cast a quick I can fix it for you, Sonny. The spell is extra strong since it matches what I said before I cast it.

“Thanks Basilton,” he says shortly.

“You’re welcome.”

The two of us stare at each other and in that moment, I come to an epiphany.

My father has no power over the situation.

He might’ve been able to make Mordelia cautious about any mention of queerness, but the twins don’t see anything wrong with it. Kids are often more open-minded than adults, because they haven’t been taught hatred yet. I was too late with Mordelia, but I realise I can change it for my youngest siblings. I can show them - and I suppose also myself - that my love for Simon has a place in the world. (Simon would say the twins are like free real estate.)

I owe it to them to show them the way.

I owe it to my past self.

Fuck, I even owe it to my current self. I belong here.

And I realise this can go both ways. My father is clearly silently communicating to me to stop this, since he realises that he and Daphne aren’t able to do so, and yes I can do that and I can shove myself back to this closet.

Or I can no longer give a fuck.

And make my father super uncomfortable.

At Christmas.

Now, I’d like to believe I am a good man. I’ve reflected a lot on my past behaviour and there are things that I definitely regret, but I think I’ve grown. I am a reasonable and nice person.

But if there’s one flaw that I cannot let go of, it’s spitefulness.

Is it terrible of me to give my father the worst Christmas of his life? Yes, certainly. Am I excited to give him a taste of his own medicine, because I had to be the one to cower in discomfort all these past Christmases? Yes, totally.

So I give him a big smile and turn back to my adoring sisters.

“I am not getting married to him,” I say, “… yet.”

The twins gasp.

“Will you, Bazzy?” Petra sits up and her face is in awe. Petra loves weddings. She always makes her dolls get (heterosexually) married. “Will you?”

I laugh.

“That is also up to him, my dear,” I say.

“Does that make Simon a brother?” Sophie pouts, “I have enough brothers! You can’t marry him anymore. Swithin is enough!”

At that moment, Swithin giggles. He isn’t listening at all, he’s just playing with his toys underneath the opulent Christmas tree, but it is still fitting.

“It makes him our brother-in-law, Sophie!”

The three of us turn to Mordelia. She gives me a small smile. I see her glance towards our parents but I use one shoulder to shrug.

An understanding passes us. If I no longer have to care, then why should she?

“Brothers-in-law aren’t the same as brothers,” Mordelia continues her explanation with a bored tone, as if that silent conversation between us didn’t happen, “We’d be Simon’s sisters-in-law. Does that mean I get to bully Simon?”

“Nooooo!” the twins cry out.

“Girls-” poor Daphne makes another attempt, but it is futile.

My sisters talk about Simon and I sit back and I enjoy the show. I quickly look at my father again. He’s staring at his repaired glass and the discomfort is obvious, but at least he’s shutting up. Even Daphne looks exasperated and defeated.

I don’t think it’s bad of me to enjoy it. The schadenfreude is big.

The rest of the day, I talk about Simon. He’s arrived at his grandma and I am bombarded with photos of the many cakes that Lady Salisbury has baked. I show them to my siblings and they all oooh and aaaah at the sight of it.

“Tell Simon…”

“What is Simon doing now?”

“Send Simon a photo of…”

My siblings not only know that he is my boyfriend, but they also actively want to know more of him, since they understand it’s important to me.

It’s all so… normal. So nice. I am not used to being able to talk about Simon as my partner in my parents’ house. Heck, even Swithin has taken interest in Simon. I showed my siblings a photo with Simon with his wings on full display and now Swithin keeps reminding everyone that he wants the bird to come back.

Of course I told Simon, because I can do that. He finds it adorable.

“if ur parents are fine with it I can take the kids out for a flight” he texted me, which doesn’t sound like a great idea, but it’s still sweet of him to suggest it.

I feel great.

This is how it’s always supposed to be.

Sophie is even trying to convince Daphne to take her on a visit to the Hackney Wick flat. (Poor Daphne will have a heart attack when she sees the pink couch.) (Not necessarily because of the gay thing, but the pink is so bright that it doesn’t fit with the rest of the interior at all.) (And okay, also because of the gay thing.)

We have Christmas dinner and my fangs don’t pop out, but that’s partly because I am not focusing on my fangs in the first place. Instead I am answering Mordelia’s questions about living in London.

I haven’t felt this at ease in front of my family in ages.

Which, okay, it does make me a bit sad. It’s weird to think I could’ve had this all my life. My siblings are showing me that it is possible and I do not know what to do with the quiet anger that builds up every time I think of that.

Shit, maybe I need therapy after all.

After dinner, I help Daphne with washing up and the moment the two of us are alone, I brace myself for a lecture, but it doesn’t come. I suppose Daphne is still not talking about it. She doesn’t talk at all, even. She looks deep in thought, as if she’s contemplating something and I really hope she isn’t considering joining another cult.

Are we really not going to acknowledge what happened?

I was wrong, because after the washing up I pass my father in our lavish hallway and he stops me.

“Basilton,” he says.

“Father,” I reply calmly.

“We need to talk.”

“I think we do,” I say, “Talk, then.”

My father’s face is rigid and again and I revel in his discomfort. Yes, father. Talk. Say out loud what has been happening under your roof. Confirm why you look like you’re considering offing yourself.

“You’re setting a bad example for your siblings,” he says instead.

“Why?” I challenge him.

He really, really doesn’t want to say it, does he?

“You know why,” he says through gritted teeth.

“I genuinely don’t,” I say, and I’m not even playing dumb. I genuinely don’t see anything wrong with my siblings and I talking about my partner. The twins were right. When Simon and I get married, we will all be family. “I am having a lovely time, father. Now, if you excuse me-”

He puts his hand on my shoulder, stopping me again.

“Basilton,” he repeats.

“Father,” I match his serious tone in mock.

“You’re being immature, Basilton,” he says and I straighten my posture, “I invite Simon to this Christmas for you, and this is how you repay me?”

My head jerks towards him.

Did he really just say that?

“You invite Simon to this house under false pretences,” I say, trying not to show how angry I am, “You refuse to acknowledge that we are together. You try to ban my siblings from talking about it. You made me sleep on the sofa, instead of in the arms of the love of my life. You act as if me kissing him is a crime, and I am supposed to be grateful for all of that?”

“Bas-”

“You lost, father,” I cut him off, “Face it, you lost.”

My father turns red.

“You may have succeeded shutting up Daphne-” Although I unfortunately believe that Daphne harbours some of the same opinions “-and Mordelia. You created a sense of fear around the topic, but you lost. It’s too late. Unlike you, the twins don’t see anything wrong with what is happening and Swithin likes Simon too.”

“I am just trying to protect-”

“From what?” I press harder, “Who benefits from this? You can pretend that queerness doesn’t exist. You can talk around it in front of my siblings, but again, it is too late. Even if you make it certain that queerness will never be discussed under your roof, because it upsets you, my siblings will find an entire world out here. They will meet queer people, even of their own age. They will see queer people on the telly. They will read books with characters that have two dads or two mums, or parents of any gender identity. The twins can clearly clock that Simon and I are together, and I know it's not because you or mum told them so.”

My father looks around us, but no one is listening. Daphne and Mordelia are in the kitchen. The twins and Swithin are loudly playing with their new toys in the living room. It’s messed up that no one can hear this. It’s messed up that the moment he stepped inside the room yesterday, it went silent and everyone got uncomfortable and potentially scared.

If he has a problem, he should at least have the balls to say it out loud.

Still, my father lowers his voice.

“I am just trying my best here.”

I snort.

“Try harder,” I say coldly.

He looks pinched.

“Basilton, I am trying to protect you, not the twins,” he says and I know I said that dramatic eye rolls are the family trait, but I try not do to it, “Yes, the twins as well, but you too. You know I care about you. I want you to be happy and this gay thing will only come back to hurt you. I love you too much to let that happen, or to let a similar thing happen to the other kids.”

I know.

That makes everything worse.

If he didn’t love me, and if I didn’t love him back, then we wouldn’t be having this agonising conversation. Then we’d be no one to each other. But as I said to Petra, I come back for Christmas every damn year, despite knowing that I will be uncomfortable, because I love my family.

It would’ve been so much more easier if I could just cut him out of my life and be at peace with that, but that is not the truth.

I take a deep breath and I compose myself. I can’t afford to lose myself now. After years of pretending that it doesn’t exist, we’re finally talking about it. I am finally saying what’s been on my mind for years.

“I love you too, but you’re not helping anyone here,” I say calmly, “Wanting me to be happy is not an excuse to treat me and Simon the way you do, or to make everyone afraid of mentioning it.”

“If only you could just stop this,” my father sounds genuinely desperate, “I heard that Phillipa Stainton has rejoined the World of Mages. Now, she is not the most powerful, but her family-”

“There are a lot of reasons that this is a bad idea,” I cut him off. I can’t believe that he is still trying to set me up with a woman. Pippa Stainton of all women. “The main one being that I am gay.”

My father has a pained look on his face. I did it. I dropped the g-word.

“Basilton-”

“No matter how justified you feel with your intentions, it is still wrong,” I say back, “Do you think that I am not aware of the possible obstacles that being gay can create? I am very aware. Simon and I cannot hold hands without eliciting some kind of response. I know that, father, and yet I still choose to hold his hand because I love him.”

“But you can choose not to.”

“I can. But I won’t. Because I can choose how to act, but I cannot choose who I am,” I exclaim, “And no matter how much you try to deny it in this house, it doesn’t change the fact that I cannot control that I love men. One man in particular. You, on the other hand, can change your attitude and you refuse to, so don’t talk to me about not changing my ways of life, since you don’t even want to try to change.”

I just loaded all of that on him. All the pain and anger that I have pushed down for years just exploded out of me. I am surprised that I haven’t blown up in his face. (I suppose suppressing your emotions is good for this, at least. I can’t lose by being too emotional.)

“I am not a bad person. You still have a place in this house!” my father says, but he sounds different. Unsure. “Other people would’ve kicked you out.”

I let out a shallow laugh.

“I still have a place in this house, as long as I pretend to be someone I’m not, so this place in my house has been conditional all this time. And I love this family, but the twins were right. I also have Simon’s family now. They’ve only known me for half a year and they’ve showed me more acceptance in those six months than that you have in a decade. And since I am not leaving Simon, and you are presenting me with a choice, I might willingly loose my place in this house.”

The moment I said it, I realise a part of me still wants to take it back.

I want a place in this house.

I want to be with my family.

But another part of me realises there’s also some truth in those words. If he can’t change, it will be me who has to do the work, and I don’t think I can do that, especially now that the Salisbury’s have showed me that I don’t have to.

I hate this feeling of being semi-closeted.

I hate the conflicted feelings that it brings.

“Basilton-”

I hold up my hand.

“The Salisbury family is accepting. So are Mordelia and the twins. Again, you lost, father.”

I wait for him to say something back, but he doesn’t.

I look over his shoulder and I see Mordelia and Daphne standing there and I wonder how much they’ve heard. Based on Mordelia’s face, they certainly heard the end of my dramatic spiel.

“Bazzy!” we all hear.

Petra is running towards me with a sheet of paper.

“Look what I made!”

It’s a drawing of Simon’s wings.

I shoot my father a knowing look before turning my back to him. Petra leads me back to the living room and she talks about how she wishes she could fly.

My father drives me to the train station.

This is another chance for him.

After yesterday’s actions, we’ve been avoiding each other as much as possible, but Daphne isn’t comfortable driving and there are no busses that reach the hunting lodge, so now we’re stuck together in this awkward silence. I am on my phone, texting Simon my train information.

When we arrive, I wait for him.

“Have a nice trip,” he says.

“Alright.”

Alright.

I open the door to the car to get out, but he stops me again.

“Come back soon, will you?” he says, “With Simon, if you want to.”

“We’ll see.”

“Simon, your friend.”

“My friend, yes,” I resist the urge to roll your eyes. It’s an olive branch, I know that, but it is a rotten one. It is so fragile that it might snap the moment I take it.

“And maybe Petra was right,” he continues, “Maybe we can visit you and Simon in London. Where you live together. And have Christmas with the Salisbury’s, if they want that.”

I look over my shoulder. Now this is something. My father is still looking like he’d rather die than say those words, but it’s more than before.

“As a family,” I say.

“As a family,” he confirms, “Have a safe trip.”

Simon greets me at the train station. He’s come all the way to King’s Cross, although that wasn’t that hard since he stayed the night in Mayfair.

But now we’re taking the tube back to Hackney Wick. Home. Our home. We hold hands on the train and I don’t care if it bothers others.

Once we’ve arrived and we put away our stuff, I send a message to my family to tell them I’m home.

Simon comes in with tea and he talks my ears off about his Christmas with his grandmother and uncle. We sit on our pink sofa and I have a smile on my face. It makes me happy how Simon is bonding with his family. It’s still new, and Simon still calls them Lady Salisbury and Jamie out of habit, but it’s nice and he clearly likes them.

“They asked if you wanted to come over, but I kind of want a day with the two of us,” he says.

“Great minds think alike,” I say with a grin, “Besides, we can visit her soon.”

“Hm, yeah,” he says. He puts his cup on the table and he leans against me. “How was your Christmas? I loved the photo’s of your siblings’ drawings.”

“I told them you appreciate it.”

“Glad they like me.”

“Yeah,” I sigh, “Yeah, they do.”

Simon looks up when he hears the woeful tone.

“What is it, babe?”

“My parents don’t like you. I think.”

Simon frowns.

“I thought they warmed up to me after dinner? Your father certainly was less annoyed by my existence.”

“Yes, but that was before I kissed you goodbye in front of them and reminded them that we are as queer as a three dollar bill.”

“Oh.”

I let out another sigh before I tell Simon everything that has happened the past day. He listens attentively and he rubs my arm when I become more agitated when recounting what my father said to me.

But I also tell him that my father brought up the idea of visiting.

I drag my hand across my face.

“I don’t know what this means,” I say, “He still can’t accept it. He can’t even say it. But he does acknowledge that we live together. It’s as if we’re back to square one. What do I do with this?”

“Nothing,” Simon says after a beat of silence.

I look at him through my fingers.

“Nothing,” Simon repeats, “You don’t have to do anything that you don’t want to do.”

That’s rich coming from him, but maybe that’s why it hits me like a ton of bricks. If Simon, the person who’s blindly followed someone for the most formative years of his life, who was constantly under the belief that he had to act a certain way or do certain things, can say that I don’t have to do anything, then maybe I really don’t have to do anything.

“Again, maybe this is a beginning. Like in all those movies and TV shows. Things might get better, but I suppose it is up to your parents,” he says, “You did what you could do. I’m proud of you.”

And honestly, yeah, I am proud of myself as well.

I shouldn’t have to defend myself in the first place, but I did something great. It took my twin sisters’ open adoration for Simon to show me I could do it, and I did it.

“So, what now?”

Simon smiles.

“Now, we have a very nice Extra Christmas, just the two of us, where we can be as gay as we want!” he says and he kisses me.

A year later

“This is a mistake.”

I’m tying my tie, but I can see Simon looking at me in the reflection of our mirror. I raise an eyebrow. He pouts.

“Why is this a mistake, love?” I ask him as I finish up.

“There are so many reasons for this to be a mistake!” Simon says frantically and I agree, but it is happening. He almost puts a hand in his hair out of frustration, but then he remembers that he’s styled it. “We should never have agreed to this! Our place is the smallest!”

It is.

It’s going to be hard fitting both our families in our small Hackney Wick flat. Penny came over to help with the preparations, so we magicked most of our furniture to the side and Penny then spelled our dining table bigger. (She’s still such a fierce magician.)

Penny and Shepard won’t be there, which is maybe a good thing, because Simon is right. Even with the different interior, it’s hard to fit everyone in our flat. There’s eleven of us. Good thing Jamie didn’t invite his new girlfriend.

Fuck, I can’t believe I am willingly letting Nicodemus Petty in my home, but the whole point of this extended family Christmas is the extended family part.

“Lady Gran could fit so many people, so could your parents!” Simon says, sounding like a nervous wreck. He doesn’t even realise he said Lady Gran, which always amuses me. “Only Fiona’s flat is as shit as ours.”

“The twins want to see our place, love,” I say. I put on my suit jacket and I style my hair one more time and I think I’m done. I look stunning, if I may so, and I may. “And… my father didn’t fight the invitation. That is huge.”

It still took them a year to actually come down to London to visit me and Simon, but better late than never. Okay, we tried to do a summer meet-up, but then Lady Salisbury asked us to come along on a vacation to Italy and we couldn’t say no to that.

Simon’s shoulders slump when he remembers that.

“That’s right. Are you excited?” he asks.

The truth is that I am probably as nervous as Simon, but for different reasons. But I nod. I am okay. Things aren’t perfect. I’ve barely seen my family in the past year, mainly because my father and I didn’t know what to say.

But I did continue to talk to my sisters. Maybe the fact that this younger generation has phones has some perks. Simon and I send a lot of photo’s of our life together and in return they send silly messages about school and what not.

Merlin, Mordelia spends more time messaging Simon than messaging me. They’re bonding over shit cartoons.

It’s still my parents that are the issue here. Daphne still calls Simon my friend and I don’t talk about Simon with my father unless I have to. At least he congratulated me when Simon obtained his forklift certificate. (The twins told him.)

It’s not glamorous, but it’s a start.

“And if your father’s an ass, I’ll slice him with my sword!” Simon says excitedly and I snort.

“Sure.”

Simon wants to say something else, but he’s interrupted by our doorbell ringing. They’re early, whoever they are. Simon gives me a quick kiss before he goes to open the door.

A few seconds later I can hear Swithin yell “Bird!” and a small smile appears on my face. Swithin knows what dragons are by now, but he still insists on the bird thing.

It’s time to face the music. I check myself one last time in the mirror and I tell myself it will be fine. This is happening. My family is here at my home to celebrate Christmas with my boyfriend and his family. If only someone had told young Baz that one day this would happen.

Things aren’t perfect. The olive branch is still a bit rotten and fragile, but it’s there and I take it. And you know, if my father hasn’t fully changed his ways then that means that he’ll have a second uncomfortable Christmas in a row.

Merry Christmas to me.

#oneshot #snowbaz #scattered showers #simon snow series #holy fuck I wrote #2022

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bookwyrminspiration · 2 years

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thoughts on aromantic fitz?

I love him! So much! I'm like one of the canon focused people so please don't mind me about to make some canon thoughts and connections; headcanons are great they are just not my area!

I think it's fascinating to look at Fitz's relationship with Sophie from the perspective of him being aromantic. Because when people think of Fitz, he's very much the stereotype, he's the person everyone wants to date who everyone expects to have a traditional relationship and everything will be done right; he's the expectation, the example.

But! What if he's aromantic, and the reason he's like that is because he's trying to embody what he thinks romance is supposed to be, the idea of it he's developed? What if him being such an example is him trying to fit in and make up for what he thinks he's missing?

He wasn't good at giving gifts (e.g. the riddler in book one), but then Biana tells him it was a fail and so now he starts working at that. What if that's because he's aro and thinks you're supposed to give people personal gifts when you like them, so that's what he starts doing? That's not to say that he wouldn't give gifts if he wasn't trying to emulate romance, because I think he'd give gifts out a genuine want to do so, but I just think it's worth thinking about. You give gifts to your partner, so he does that and improves after someone else tells him he wasn't doing it well

Also! How much do Sophie and Fitz actually talk about their relationship? Not much. It's kind of an unspoken thing they fumble into--Fitz calls her his girlfriend before they'd even talked to each other to figure out if that's what they were to each other. We could interpret this as Fitz being nervous and not knowing about what to do/how to talk about it as an aro and instead trying to let it figure itself out on its own.

Or! You know that sort of quota some aro people have? Like the "I need a crush so it will be you. you are now my crush. checked off the list and moving on." That could be Fitz with Sophie and their relationship. People were talking about and having crushes and he wasn't there yet despite being older than everyone else, so he decides Sophie will be his person. Nice, friendly, talented friend of his? Perfect! Checked off the list. Same for their relationship. Why talk about it when he can just check it off the list and move on?

We can interpret his upset over things not going to plan (Sophie being unmatchable) as him not knowing how to handle it when the checklist he had of doing romance Right being thrown out the window. To be clear, not saying his aromanticism is bad because it influenced that; I think it's a neutral thing and in this instance it could've hindered him and acknowledging the multi-faceted nature is important.

This got longer than I intended for it to, but I'm sure no one's surprised at that. As someone who is aromantic (kind of. I don't use labels like that but if I did that would be one) and also adores Fitz, aro Fitz is very near and dear to my heart <2

#kotlc #keeper of the lost cities #fitz vacker #quil's queries #gay-otlc #love love love him #so so much #fitz is so precious to me. and giving him some of my own experiences is just like. woag #cherry on top!#i am holding him i'm holding him i'm holding him i'm holding him

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00katrinka00 · 11 months

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Landcaster Legacy Gen 7 Update #45

Dear Diary, So, I might not have won battle of the bands, but I did get invited to take a class in Del Sol Valley for young musicians. My mom said she isn't comfortable with letting me go to Del Sol Valley all by myself, I just have to convince her. -Violet

"It's my birthday!" Rosie exclaimed that morning after Mads had gotten her dresses. "It is, you need to stop growing," Mads pulled her into a hug. "Gonna be a big kid now!"

Later, while Mads was busy getting the cake ready, Violet came down to talk, "Mom, this is an amazing opportunity, I can't just decline." "I don't know if I want you in Del Sol Valley alone," Mads told her. "You haven't even read the course info yet!"

"Can you promise to read the course information?" Violet asked. "Then make a decision. I really want this." "Sure," Mads agreed. "I'll read the course information; I also want you to give Amelia Alden a call and see if she'd be willing to give us a tour of the facility." "Deal!"

Before the party started, Ethan had begun to get emotional over the fact that his oldest was about to be a young adult. "Dad," Leo said. "You really need to calm down, it's not that big of a deal, really." "To you, it's a huge deal for me!" Leo just pulled him into a hug.

"Lacy, look at my part dress," Rosie exclaimed. "It's pretty and pink. I'm going to be a big kid now, maybe you stop being mean." "Sorry kid," said Lacy. "You're still a bipedal rat." Rosie sighed, "mean Lacy."

And I made everyone pose for a family photo before Leo and Rosie aged up.

"Happy birthday!" Violet exclaimed. "What do you want?" "Why do you assume I need something?" "Because you rarely talk to me unless you do." "Okay, fine, can you help convince Mom to let me do that music class in Del Sol Valley." "We'll see."

As soon as the party started, Ethan and Mads both managed to pawn Alex and Sophie off to family and friends. Anything to get a small break.

"I'm glad you could make it!" Violet exclaimed when Sage showed up. "Of course," Sage pulled her into a hug. "You invited me."

When Nat arrived, Leo was quick to greet her. "Happy birthday," he smiled. "And happy birthday to you too," Nat grinned.

First up is Rosie, who got the outgoing trait, and I miss her little toddler face.

Next up was Leo who ended up with the perfectionist trait. He also got word that he did manage to achieve his goal of becoming valedictorian. Let's just hope the graduation appears on the calendar.

Lastly was Nat, and if I'm completely honest she wasn't a part of the household during the party, so I have no idea which trait she aged up with.

"And, here is part of your gift from your father and I," Mads handed Rosie her present "A BIKE!" she exclaimed "You dad and I can help teach you how to ride" "So cool" Rosie paused. "Wait, only part of my gift?" "Well we thought it'd be fun to build a treehouse with you out back"

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Rosie exclaimed. "You're welcome, sweetheart," Mads smiled down at her.

Then came time for Leo's gift. "We kind of had trouble figuring out what to get you," Ethan admitted. Leo opened his gift, "A check?" "We couldn't figure out what to get you, so we figured we'd pay for your first term at uni and then some." "Mom, Dad, thank you, it means a lot."

"No longer a bipedal rat," Rosie said confidently while sitting down next to Lacy. "Still a child," Lacy told her. "And children are gross." "What's it going to take for you to like me?" "Age up into a teen," Lacy said sarcastically. She didn't mean that.

"Time for the best gift ever," Violet said while handing Rosie her present. Rosie opened it excitedly, "It's a- uh, a violin," her voice fell. "So you can be just like your awesome big sister." "Haha, uh, yeah," Rosie said dryly.

#TheSims4Gameplay #TheSims4Legacy #TheSims4Community #TheSims4 #TheSims #LandcasterLegacy

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thehuntress-rose · 1 year

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Write your RPer Resolutions for 2023! (What are some goals for yourself as a writer? Improve descriptions? Plot with more members? Etc.

I really want to work on my consistency with replies. Outside of RP life has been chaotic for most of my time here and save for this past month, I saw a huge improvement since I moved! I just want to take the new year and continue with that momentum and be more involved in my plotting and reply schedule!

I want to write more self paras! I feel like my characters go through so much behind the scenes that only ever come out in passing dialogue or HCs but I definitely want to be able to flesh out their experiences more via one shots.

Cause an RP wide event, or at least be the driving force behind a big plot. I love to be involved in them, it brings me joy! But I want to have a character be the cause of something or just pioneer something that everyone can be a part of and craft a story that everyone can be excited to be a part of too. No ideas yet bestie ok.

Write at least one resolution, or “goal,” that you have as an RPer for your character(s)

Rose: Make more connections outside of her huntress connections. Normal friends! San: Same as above, BUT I also want her to start looking for her mom for realsies. This could def include a lot of people! Potentially a race to find her vs Gaston?? Kill the Beast! (Save the Wolf Goddess) Susan: Get her to a spot to do something I have wanted since I got her. She needs to find a better balance and acceptance for herself tho before she will let herself be happy. Maybe even tell someone that isn’t Jess about what she is! Dian: Get better about handling his vampirism. Relapse. Get Worse. Struggle. (Sorry bby) Being a vampire isn’t easy. Laurette: More magic stuff! I loved writing her farmer’s market thread with the fortune telling! Let her use her gift more! Amy: Do more with Foul! It is such a great concept and I feel like I don’t utilize it enough. Lilith: Begin her search for Merlin’s Objects to give to Belos! Also be that Cool, but Strict™ professor. Sophie: Pull her out of her shell and let people in more! She is still new so she has room to grow, but I’d like to see her make friends and potentially tell them what is going on with her.

Write at least one resolution IN CHARACTER for your characters. What do THEY want to accomplish or change in the New Year?

Rose: Visit Henry more often. Bury the Huntsgirl. Start her soft epilogue. San: Branch out more, humans aren’t so bad. Find her mother. Susan: Follow through with her campaign promises of making Swynlake safer for everyone. Help Magicks feel safer, no matter their kind. Dian: Get back to normal. Earn his family’s forgiveness. Laurette: Get passing grades, avoid drama! Maybefindaboyfriendtoookaybye. Amy: Find her fortune, hit some listener goals for Foul! Lilith: Gather Merlin’s Objects. Get her former protege back in line so that she doesn’t bring shame upon her good name. Sophie: Break her curse and go back home? Find true love??

List one or more characters you have never interacted with that you would like to do so

CLAYTON: I know you have a thing with Isa rn, but I will be ur wife pls

Genevieve: She’s so cool, be worsties with Rose. I think they’d be neat

Drakken: believe it or not I have not done a thread with him, also know u are with Vixey rn but I’LL BE UR ENDGAME BBY

Talk a bit about your plotting style – what plots are you most drawn to? Do you prefer to come with a fully-formed idea and plot off that, or throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks?

I feel like I kinda suck at plotting lol. I tend to take a backseat and I really do like to fill plot calls when I see them and I feel like I have something applicable. And people tend to do the same for me! BUT! I would say I am a throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks until we can sus out the vibes of a pairing. Then I just love vibing. One of my resolutions was to get better with doing bigger plots and maybe big plots aren’t the meat of the RP, but I feel like my best characterization writing comes from the ripples of those waves. I don’t feel like I am that forward with plotting like “hey I want x, y, and z to happen! Let’s use those as anchor points for the thread” but I WANT TO BE. New year, New Kit. I will only get better and more unhinged from here folks.

But as for plots I am drawn to, I wanna say I love a plethora. I love larger ones with lots of moving pieces, I just really like to be a player in a long game okay?!?! Like the shark week plot, the knights in elfhame, the fall of the order, Dian’s death at the Gala. Love big dramatic plotlines that make the town talk. But I also love messy relationships like with Tom and Rose and Laurette and Phineas. I think for realism, more people should break up. I love a good doomed relationship. It’s who I am.

Talk a bit about character relationships – what relationship are you most drawn to? How do you prefer to approach shipping (if at all!)? What, specifically, are you looking for right now for your character relationships?

I love love love characters who bond over shared experiences. Whether it be a trauma or a shared affliction, I just love bonds forged by understanding. Because we all seek to be understood in some way or another and I feel like those relationships tend to last the longest. I am drawn to families and friends who my characters can really bloom around and vice versa! I love a good ship, but I think most of mine have either been plotted out via “hey I want this vibe and for this long with this ending” or purely vibes. Sometimes characters are just meant to be organically and it feels so satisfying to let them have that!! But don’t get me wrong, I like to plan a terrible end lol.

As for relationships I am seeking now, I’d love for San to dip her toes into a human emotion she hasn’t felt before for a human (love) I just think it would be a beautiful and natural part of er character growth to have her find a human that she can feel as protective and soft over as she does her pack. I would love to see Claudette pop in, just to fill the current separation Laurette feels from Paulette since being in school. A sister closer in age might have a bit more understanding than the eldest in her eyes! And maybe some coworkers for Rose (work at Interpride!!) because she needs some work hijinks!

Talk about your dash reply style and your Discord reply style! (And if applicable, also your doc reply style). What do you like about each type of interaction? What is something you feel is difficult?

Dash: I feel like I can be so inconsistent with my dash replies. I went from literally not tracking them at all and digging through my reblogs to find threads when I started to actually tracking them in an excel sheet. So we are making progress. I might not have them all up to date, but PROGRESS. And I am actively trying to be better with my dash consistency, especially in the new year :))

Docs: These can go two ways for me; we can bang em out super fast or I will close the tab and forget to do it for days. (I hate having 30 tabs open, it stresses me out). But that being said, I do really like them because they allow you to keep a plot secret until you are ready to drop all of it. And it’s so much easier for 3 or more muns to collaborate because I feel like 3 way threads can get so messy and cluttered on the dash!

Discord: I love discord threads. I dunno why, but it feels like less pressure to have length or flowery prose (unless it’s an AU then I will go HARD for that shit). It’s quick and snappy and I think the event servers are always poppin and have great stuff happening in them.

Plotting Exercise! Pick one of the resolutions/goals in #3 and plan a rough guideline to how you could accomplish it. Here’s an example.

SUSAN hears about BRUCE wanting to start a support group and chats with him about what he would like it to consist of, she suggests an AA type forum for Magicks because she has wanted to make a change for that community for a while. SUSAN talks to SIMBA about the AA aspects and how they work, and the BOARD about the arrangements while BRUCE fills out the petition (backed by SUSAN of course).

SUSAN gives a speech at TOWN HALL about seeking community when you feel alone, how bonds are made with shared experiences and feelings, and how everyone deserves to feel that sense of community no matter who you are. She encourages Magicks to have trust in one another for this program to work.

The petition passes, a meeting room is reserved after TOWN HALL hours for discretion, SUSAN asks BRUCE to be the point person for MA (Magicks Anonymous)!

Step 5: Everyone prospers

#swynresolutions #swyntask #literally don't read this it is so long but look at the pretty graphic #oooooh aaaaahhh

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sophieebdaily · 1 year

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In new exclusive interview for Standard, Sophie opens up about the trip to Japan she was never meant to take which is at the heart of her seventh studio album. Read the article below:

Sophie Ellis-Bextor used new album as ‘an outlet to make sense of things’ following stepdad’s death.

Sophie says she turned to music to work through her grief after her stepdad died during lockdown.

The Take Me Home singer, 43, will release her seventh studio album next summer and although dealing with a rollercoaster of emotions while writing it with long-term collaborator Ed Harcourt, describes the record as ultimately “hopeful”.

Speaking to the Standard, she said: “It’s definitely a hopeful album, there’s lots of love and good stuff in there, but it’s nice to have music as an outlet to also make sense of things that have happened to you. I’ve always used music in that way.”

At the heart of the album was a poignant trip the mum-of-five took to Japan in February 2020, a place she had not been before and never been meant to.

She explained: “The trip was intended to be my step-dad John [Leach], my mum (former Blue Peter presenter Janet Ellis), plus, my eldest boy Sonny and in the end John was too ill to go, so I went in his place and he did an itinerary for us. Sadly he died in July, but he was kind of interwoven in it too.

“Because I hadn’t been before, I had lots of ideas about what [Japan] might be like. The [album’s] soundscape is like someone’s idea of what a place might be like before they get there. That trip also became significant in a wider sense because it was the last bit of travel I did before everything shut down.”

Japan exceeded the London-born star’s expectations, especially on the tech front.

The Spinning Plates podcast host said: “My husband [Richard Jones from band The Feeling] and I are quite geeky and we love our tech and I think because of that we have bred children who are also very into it. Also, it’s the modern way. I always say that I love living in the future. I just love that feeling of the pace of technology, how fast it’s going, but also so much of it is so flipping beautiful. There are so many things I wouldn’t want to go back from now.

“We have a very techy house. There is always a lot of stuff going on – there are seven of us in the house! Christmas is extra, we host so you have to double that and great broadband is essential.”

Giving an insight into what a typical Christmas at the Jones/Ellis-Bextor household is like, she said that there are a couple of traditions that they uphold which have been passed down from her grandparents.

She said: “I’ve realised my family are really quite quirky. I thought that everybody has odd things that their family do, but think the better half of my family have submitted more than most. One thing we do which I think we’ve only met one other person that does this, we have these little presents that we balance on the branches of the tree, they are called tree presents. And they are sort of cracker-type gifts, so like stocking fillers so they are something that are either quite fun to own or a little bit useful. It started from my maternal grandparents and you have to get everybody one. You open them up at Christmas dinner.

“The other one from my maternal grandparents is when we do the Christmas pudding, we set fire to it and then we form a sort of conga line and sing ‘here comes the Christmas pudding’ to the tune of For He’s A Jolly Good Fellow. I actually really love it, but it’s also really strange.”

Source.

0 notes

kelieah · 3 years

Note

Tom taking care of a tired and frustrated you, like him cuddling u or showering u with kisses or practically babying you n eventually u fall asleep in his lap with your head in his neck n he carries u to bed, just very fluffy fluffy!! 💙

just us (tom holland x reader)

word count: 1.3k

warnings: fluuffff, mentions of sex, language, tom being a div

edited: kind of a shitty ending, and kinda rushed agh, sorry

a/n: love this ideaaa, just going to somehow tie in the reader’s birthday into this hehe

tom holland masterlist

Last year, Tom planned a big birthday party for you, inviting your friends, his friends, coworkers, and family. It was crazy. Personally, you hated being in the spotlight so although you appreciated his efforts, you didn’t enjoy yourself as much as you wanted to. So this year, you’ve been trying hard to avoid the topic of plans for your birthday. You also really hoped no one would plan a surprise birthday party.

You wake up to the sight of Tom walking into your bedroom, with a stack of pancakes and a candle in the middle. His face is painted with excitement and warmth, and you couldn’t help but smile at the sight. “Happy birthday, sleepyhead,” he whispers and sits down next to you, leaning in to kiss your cheek.

You smile tiredly and look at the plate of food, tearing up at how cutely decorated it is. “Tommy,” you sniffle and pout at him.

“Oh, baby,” he laughs and places the plate aside, pulling you into his arms.

After he picked you up and brought you to the kitchen to eat breakfast, the two of you began to get ready for the day. You let out a quiet sigh as you smoothed down your dress against your body, your mind swirling with thoughts about whether or not you should be honest to Tom about the big parties and all.

“I heard that sigh,” you hear Tom come up from behind you and snake his arms around your waist. He rests his chin on your shoulder and glances at you in the mirror, “Are you okay?”

You nod and place your hands on top of his, swaying with him as he hugs you close. “Perfectly okay.”

“I’ve known you for how many years?” he asks rhetorically and raises an eyebrow for dramatic effect. Accepting your silence as an answer, he nods and confirms it himself, “Right, five years and you think I don’t know you well? I’m honestly offended love.”

“Shut up,” you groan and tilt your head back, looking up at him as he gazes down at you. “I’m just tired, that’s all.”

“I have a feeling I know what’s upsetting you,” he brings his hands down to your waist and squeezes it.

“Well, then what is it?” you huff.

“I actually didn’t know I was just bluffing to see if you’re really upset,” he admits sheepishly as you gape at him. “Now I know! Babe, what’s wrong?” he holds up his hands in defeat and lets go of you.

You grumble quietly at the loss of his touch and shrug, turning to face him. “I was joking. I’m just tired.”

“You slept for ten hours,” he points out.

You send him a glare, “Because you fucked me all day yesterday.”

“Valid point,” he nods and purses his lips, laughing as you groan loudly with frustration. He follows you as you rush off to your bedroom, “Darling, you know I’m only teasing. Come on, it’s your birthday. I want you to be able to do whatever you want to do. If you want to sleep all day, so be it.”

“Oh really?” you amuse and turn back around while plopping down onto your mattress.

“Yes, really,” he stands in front of you, holding out his hands for you to grasp.

Reluctantly, you hold his hands and look into his eyes, noticing how he is desperately trying to read you. “I’m sorry,” you bring your lips to the back of his hand. “I really am tired, but it’s no excuse to be a bitch.”

“You’re not being a bit—”

“In all honesty, I just really am not looking forward to having a big party.”

“Who said we’re doing that?” he interrupts causing you to give him a deadpanned stare.

“I know you well too. It’s not much of a surprise when I can hear you planning in the closet. You’re not that sly, Holland,” you feel a smirk grow onto your lips.

He scoffs, still trying to dismiss your accusations. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Honey, if you don’t wanna have a big party or a party at all, we don’t have to. Like I said, we can do whatever you want. Even if you just want the entire to yourself, just let me know,” he lifts you up and pulls you close to him.

You eye him suspiciously and drape your arms over his shoulders, “So, you’re basically telling me now that there’s no big surprise party being prepared this minute?”

“Nope,” he smiles at you confidently and tucks a hair behind your ear. “Your day is free.”

You feel all the weights lift off your shoulder and you let out a quiet satisfied sigh. You lean your forehead against his chest and press your lips together. “I just want to spend the day with you and you only. Well, maybe a bunch of food too, but you know. Just us.”

“Yeah, I know,” he chuckles lightly and presses a long, tender kiss on the top of your head. “That sounds perfect, how about we go for lunch or order in. Watch some movies, maybe go to the park and when the sun settles, we could cook a meal together? Then maybe take a bath together, drink some wine, have some fun, and then sleep?” he plans out the rest of the day in one sentence and you tear up at the thought.

“That sounds absolutely perfect. Thank you,” you bring your head back up to meet his face and peck his lips.

“Always, I’ll go grab the keys?” he smiles and kisses you a bit longer, cupping the side of your face.

“Mhm, lemme go grab my coat and stuff.”

And you two did exactly what he planned, all the way to have some fun that results in the both of you not sleeping, yet.

“So much for a bath,” you stifle a laugh, sitting down on the side of the tub as your legs tremble from the previous activities.

He grins and goes down on his knees, wiping you dry. “Hey, nothing wrong with having the fun a little bit earlier.”

“Mm, true. But now I’m really tired,” you slip on the pajamas he hands you.

He puts on his boxers and laughs in response, “I bet. Wanna be carried to bed?”

You nod eagerly and hold out your arms, “Yes, please.”

He kisses your forehead and swoops you up easily, bringing you towards the bed you both share. He places you down and slides in next to you, wrapping his arms around you to hold you close.

You shift around to get comfortable and soon drape your leg over his, your hand also resting on his bare chest. “Thank you, for today,” you murmur lazily, drawing gentle shapes into his skin. He hums quietly and caresses your skin as well, dragging his hand along your shoulders to your jaw.

“Always, just talk to me next time. Okay? Don’t want you wallowing in self-doubt and stuff,” he whispers and cups your face to kiss you all over repeatedly.

You giggle and nod in agreement, then turning around to become the smaller spoon. He smiles and inhales your addicting scent, feeling himself becoming drowsy and tired. He eventually falls asleep and before you could, you hear his phone go off on your bedside, the light brightening up the room a bit. You sit up slightly to glance over and make sure it’s nothing important, but your jaw drops once you see the messages from Harrison.

‘How was your day mate?’

‘We were able to cancel the reservation and tell everyone who was invited about the last minute change of plans’

‘All of her gifts are at my place though.... so figure that out too lol’

‘Pretty sure your busy ;)’

‘But seriously text or call me back when you can div, the caterers just dropped off all the food that was ordered at my place’

‘It’s like a bloody mall in here’

You let out a quiet gasp as you read the messages and eventually slide back into Tom’s embrace, knowing damn well you were right from the very beginning.

inbox link under the cut! thanks for reading ツ

leave a comment, give me some feedback pls! it’s greatly appreciated mwah

tagging some mutuals! @sunsetholland @peterssweetpea @ptersmj @evermoreholland @marvelouspeterparker @supremethunda @emmastarz @parkerpeter2469-blog @felicityparkers @spideyspeaches @hollandcrush @ms-misery @msmarvelsmain @heavenlyholland @veryholland @greenorangevioletgrass @spidey-sophie

#kelly's long reads #kelly's inbox #ms-misery #marvel #tom holland one shot #tom holland fanfiction #tom holland fic #tom holland fluff #tom holland smut #tom holland x reader #tom holland x you #tom holland x y/n #tom holland request

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amintyworld · 3 years

Text

Child of The Dome (SBI Rust Server)

Platonic Wilbur Soot x Reader and Tommyinnit x Reader. We got Dadbur and Big Broinnit... It’s all about the found family, folks!

A/N: *Gets a SBI Rust fic idea* *Looks up to see its not written and no one is interested in writing it* *Realizing YOU’RE the one who can write it into existence* As a reminder, this is all RP - THE RUST SERVER HAS LORE, GUYS GALS AND NONBINARY PALS! Also, reader is gender neutral. Enjoy! - Minty

TW: Murder, Major Character Death (Kind of, they can respawn?), Religious Themes, Cult-like behavior, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Cursing, child abuse (?), shooting/gun violence, sickness. (Let me know if I need to tag anything else!)

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Thunder and lightning roared outside of the Dome Church as Wilbur and Tommy sat inside, continuing their sermon to a few others despite the weather conditions. Just a few hours earlier, Sofa had objected when the rain began to leak through the roof, and was promptly locked outside as punishment, which seemed to quickly quiet a few complaints from the others. “Now, my people, you shall not live in fear of the storm for the Dome will protect all who preach and live its word!” Wilbur said, standing at the podium. “Persevere and the Dome will reward you!”

Murmurs of agreement seemed to sweep through the crowd as their feet shivered - bare, wet and cold. They rose to their feet slowly as Iamty began to play the piano and they hummed along with the tune, their spirits beginning to be lifted. Water seeped into their clothes and chills ran down their spine but nonetheless they stood as Seepeekay, the known Minister, began his prepared speech over the music. Tommy walked through the aisle, holding out a basket for donations as the churchgoers threw whatever they could think to offer inside.

Suddenly a loud knock came from the door - panicked and urgent.

Wilbur grumbled at the interruption, weaving his way through the crowd and opening the door. “Sofa, you have to relearn the Dome’s ways before you can-'' Words died on his lips as Sophie looked to Wilbur worried, a small bundle in her arms. The baby’s cries blended with the thunder and lightning from above, and Wilbur’s eyes scanned the child’s in curiosity.

“Wilbur, I found them outside near the Dome, they’re freezing cold I dunno what to-!” Wilbur’s mind whirred as it began to put the pieces together, frozen in place and not knowing exactly what to do next. Tommy rushed up next to Wilbur, asking what was going on until his gaze landed on the baby as well. “...Wilbur?”

At this, Wilbur’s body quickly snapped to attention, taking the child from Sophie and turning, closing the door shut behind him and keeping Sophie outside. The baby’s eyes glimmered in the light of the torches, their hair a matted and muddy mess padded flat in a circular shape - a dome like shape, if you will. Slowly, he raised his hand to caress the child’s cheek, a fondness beginning to grow in his heart as their cries slowed to a stop, looking up to him in wonder. A loving smile stretched across his face as he booped their nose, sending them into a fit of laughter. Wilbur’s heart couldn’t help but begin to melt at the baby’s smile. He held them close, his own body warmth beginning to warm their small freezing body.

“The storm! It’s stopping!” Pebble shouted as he looked outside, noticing the sun begin to poke through the clouds as the raindrops began to slow.

“Messiah, I believe I have witnessed a miracle today.” Wilbur called as everyone turned to look at him. “This child… this child has stopped the storm, they have stopped the storm for they are a child of the Dome itself. The Dome has spared us for helping one of its own.” Wilbur held up the baby for the congregation to see. “This baby is a miracle and a blessing, a gift of the Dome to us, a gift we must not take lightly.”

“What are we going to do with it?” Scott asked. “Can we- should we just... take them back to the Dome?”

Wilbur couldn’t help the pang of selfishness that came over him at the suggestion. “Take the child back? Slop, the great Dome does not make a mistake. It has given us great gifts and now it’s given us this baby, and you want to rid yourself of them? Shameful! We shall embrace this opportunity, this gift. We’ll make them part of our great family.” Wilbur said, going back to the podium and cradling the child close in his arms. “Since I found them, I’ll look after them.” He moved to press his forehead against the baby’s as the rest of the church looked on in interest. “I dub thee… Dirt.” Wilbur smiled as the congregation erupted in applause.

----------------------------------------

Tommy at first objected to adding another person in their already cramped house, but eventually, though he wouldn’t admit it, he became attached to the kid as the months passed. On a particular cold winter day, your crib was stationed by the fireplace, Wilbur out gathering food and supplies. Tommy had one mission and one mission only - to teach you your first swear.

“Come on, it’s not hard. Just say ‘fuck’. You can do it.” Tommy encouraged as you sat in your crib and looked at him, head tilted slightly in confusion. Your small hands reached out toward him.

“Twoh-towh!” You babbled with a smile, and Tommy’s heart melted at the nickname as he sighed fondly.

“Yeah, Tom-Tom.” He agreed, as you reached toward him, wanting to be let out as he carefully picked you up and held you in his arms. Your hands found their way into his hair as they pulled and played with it, squealing happily. “You really like my hair, don’t you?” He asked, amused until you pulled a bit too hard, making the teenager wince in pain, quickly bringing you back down to sit in his lap. “Okay, you played with my hair for a little while, can you say ‘fuck’ now?” You looked confused, moving to pick up a small pebble on the ground instead. “Dirt, I know you can do it, okay?” He moved you so you sat facing him again, and you huffed slightly at the loss of your pebble. “Say ‘fuck’. Like this: ‘ffff-uck’.” He said slower, as if that could possibly do anything to help. Your head tilted again, confused at why Tommy looked so disgruntled at his wasted efforts. He sighed in defeat, moving to put you back in your crib again.

Anger bubbled inside your chest - you didn’t want to be put back in the crib, you wanted to play. “F...FWOA!” You shouted, making Tommy’s eyes glimmer with hope.

“That’s closer, come on, you can do it, Dirt-!” He said, pausing and holding you in mid-air.

Beginning to put the pieces together, you realized that saying the word will keep you from being put back in the crib. Determined, your mind whirred as it looked to Tommy in curiosity. “Fwok…?”

“Almost there, you almost got it…” Tommy encouraged. “Say ‘fuck’.”

“Fffwok, Fuok… fuck!” You managed after a few tries, and Tommy’s eyes brightened with glee.

“Yes, Dirt. Fuck.”

“Fuck!” You repeated, smiling as Tommy once again smiled, bringing you back to the floor. “Fuck.”

The excitement of the exchange slowly made you grow tired as Tommy shifted, leaning against the wall as you began to drift off against his chest, a tiny fistful of his shirt in your hand. Snow began to fall outside, quickly turning into a snowstorm. Feeling tired and not wanting to disturb the sleeping being on his stomach, Tommy slowly began to drift off, leaning against the wall. Only an hour later Wilbur burst into the scene, firmly closing the door behind himself and carrying three large bundles of wood. He looked around, pulling off the scarf around his face and internally awwing at the sight - Big Brother Tommy, who would have thought? Tommy’s hands never moved from supporting you against his chest, worried about you falling over. Not wanting to disturb the siblings, he quietly shed his snow-covered gear, grabbing a blanket and pulling it up around Tommy’s sleeping form, ruffling his hair slightly and carefully talking you from Tommy’s grasp. Your Dad quickly settled you back in your crib, giving your forehead a soft kiss.

“Goodnight, you two.”

----------------------------------------

You slowly awoke in the warm arms of someone, outside in the snow, and your three-year-old body shivered. Where was Dad? Dad always was there, if not Tommy, so where was he? You looked up to see a hooded figure with jet black hair and blue eyes. Whoever it was, that was not Dad or Tom-Tom, and you began to cry, getting scared and wanting to see them again. Tears ran down your cheeks as the hooded teenager looked panicked. “Shh, shh… please, you’ve gotta be quiet-”

“WA-BA!” You cried, failing your body as you wailed, crying more.

“Uh, I…” He said, not exactly knowing how to handle the situation. “It’s okay, it’s okay! I know Wilbur, I know your Dad, okay? I’m… I’m taking you right to him, just please stop crying…” He begged. Your body shivered as you sniffled, and let out a sneeze. “Dammit, I told you to stop crying…” He cursed, pulling you closer to his cloak to keep you warm. “Just hold tight, we’re almost there.”

“Wa-ba... “ You sniffed, and the teen’s face shifted into one of… guilt?

“Fucking christ Wilbur what are you doing with a kid-?!” He mumbled to himself, frustrated. “All I wanted to do was check inside and leave, but no.. of fucking course you have a kid-!” You quickly approached a large house of sorts as your captor took a deep breath in front of the door, looking down at you. “Hey, it’s okay. If it goes well, you won’t feel any pain.” He nervously smiled, before looking into your eyes as the smile quickly fell. “Don’t look at me like that, okay? It’s not exactly like I have much of a choice here. If I didn’t return with you, they’d…” He trailed off, before slightly shaking his head of thoughts, pushing the door open and stepping inside. After a few tries, he firmly pulled the door shut, carrying you closer inside and next to a small fireplace that dimly lit the room. “Guys, I’m back. I got the kid.”

Your eyes filled with fear as two figures seemingly appeared from the shadows, smiling and wide-eyed. You quickly drove your face to hide in your captor’s cloak. One with blonde hair and brown eyes reached out toward you slowly, making you retreat further into your captor’s cloaked embrace. “I can’t believe the rumors are true.” The other spoke - much shorter than the other two members, with brown hair and chocolate brown eyes, sporting a green poncho. “The famous ‘Child of the Dome’.” He turned to your cloaked captor. “Much trouble with the wall, Krinios?”

“No, that special ax you gave me worked like a charm,” Krinios replied. Your eyes were fixated on the shorter man’s, noticing how similar to Tommy he looked - they were probably the same age - but something wasn’t right with his eyes. They looked cold and inviting, the light went from where it once had brought warmth and life to the teen - different from the curious scheming brightness of Tommy’s, or how your Dad’s eyes seemed to fill with laughter and love all the time. You didn’t like any of this one bit, you wanted to be back home in Wilbur’s embrace as he’d hum a lullaby, rocking you back and forth to get you to sleep. Not in this room filled with hungry stares and eyes locked onto your body like a wolf’s.

“Come on, little one… I just want to play a game.” The blond one ushered, and you shook your head ‘no’ violently, clinging onto Krinios’s arm tightly, not daring to let go.

“What’s… what’s going on here?” The shorter one asked, gesturing to the scene. “Did they imprint on you or something?”

“Look - I dunno Tubbo,” Krinios admitted, holding up his hands in a sort of surrender. “Maybe they got sick in the cold, they were crying a lot.”

“And you didn’t stuff a sock in their mouth?” The blonde one’s eyes stared down at Krinios’s intently. “I told you we needed the little shit quiet, what if someone heard you?!”

“It’s a baby, Hycei!” Krinios snapped, and Hycei’s mouth turned into a thin line.

“Good god, you feel sympathetic for it…” The blonde groaned before snatching you up forcefully as you let out a wail, grabbing for Krinios desperately. “This is the only way to send a clear message to that freak of a cult that calls itself a church, not to mention Wilbur. We show them what happens when they decide to fuck with us. If we don’t get even now they’ll just keep thinking they can get away with doing whatever they want to us because we won’t fight back.”

“It’s an eye for an eye, Krinios - for all the times they’ve killed us, taken our stuff… they’re bullies, Krinios. Bullies that won’t stop unless we fight back, and Fort Kickass isn’t cowards. Sometimes when you’re the bad guy, Krinios, the only way to fight fire is with fire. Besides,” Tubbo asked, his lips curling in a smile as he unsheathed his knife. “You wanted to try flesh right off the bone, right?” As Tubbo came toward you, you squirmed and tried to wail before Hycei clapped a hand over your mouth to muffle your sound.

“Wait… wait wait wait!” Krinios snapped to action as he thickly swallowed, getting between you and the knife. “What if the kid’s so sick, it affects the flesh? What if we get sick from it?” Tubbo’s cold eyes shifted from his friend’s to the knife in his hand. “I think we should just give it a day or two, you know… maybe this one isn’t the one to try out the new style of flesh thing. Maybe we shouldn’t change perfection, you know what I’m saying?”

“We’ve eaten rotten flesh, I think we’ll be immune to whatever they might have.” Tubbo responded, rolling his eyes. “Don’t forget that those Dome People killed you in cold blood.”

“Aren’t we doing the same thing?” He asked, as the other two’s faces filled with irritation, getting annoyed.

“We’re surviving, Krinios. If you haven’t noticed because of our ‘reputation’ on this server I haven’t eaten in days. I’m hungry.” Hycei said coldly. “Now isn’t the time to be taking the moral high road - do you want to not starve to death?!”

As Krinios hesitated, Tubbo shoved him aside as he approached. “We don’t have time for this.” He huffed, pulling your arm roughly and looking to Hycei. “Hold ‘em still.” You became hysterical, tears flowing freely down your face in panic and wanting to be as far away from that sharp object as possible. As it pressed down and began to cut you let out a shriek in agony as blood and pain overwhelmed your senses, and you bit down on Hycei’s hand, making them retract it and nearly drop you in the process.

He looked pissed. “Why you little-!” Within seconds, pain once again blossomed in your head, your vision swimming with tears. You wanted Dad, you wanted Tom-Tom, you wanted the pain to go away… Whimpering in pain, you curled in on yourself. Your prayers seemed to be quickly answered as the door burst open with two very ticked-off family members you recognized instantly. Wilbur pointed his gun directly at Tubbo’s head as the room began to build with tension, the two leaders just staring at each other.

“Wilbur.” Tubbo said cooly, putting his bloodied knife back in its sheath.

“Tubbo.” Wilbur growled through his teeth. “Where are they? Where’s Dirt?!”

“Oh, is that what you decided to call them?” Tubbo asked, crossing his arms. “Or did your Dome God decide on it?”

“You’ve crossed the fucking line, Tubbo.” Tommy growled, his ax at the ready. “Dirt didn’t do jack shit to you.”

“Oh, I disagree.” Tubbo spat. “Being a part of your sick cult is enough for me. Even so, you can’t blame a leader trying to feed his people, can you? That’s all this is - survival of the fittest. Getting revenge on both of you, well… that’s just a bonus.”

“You’re a sick freak.”

“You’re a scamming cultist.” Tubbo retorted, moving to take you from Hycei’s arms. “Question is, who’s worse?”

“Wa-Ba…” You sniffled as Wilbur moved closer, before Tubbo quickly pressed his knife up against your throat.

“Not another step.” Seeing this, Tubbo pointed his gun at Tubbo’s head, though the cannibal leader seemed unphased. “Kill me and I’ll kill them as soon as the bullet leaves the muzzle.”

“Bulllshit.” Tommy angrily shouted, moving forward next to Wil.

“Do you really want to take that risk?”

Wilbur breathed as his mind whirred to try to think of some kind of solution, his gun trained on Tubbo. “Tommy, get ready.”

“What’s it gonna be, Wilbur Soot?”

Quickly, he shot Tubbo in the leg, making him fall and lose his grip on you as Tommy rushed forward, snatching you up and kicking Tubbo in the face as he tried to grab you back. Hycei, on the other hand, rushed toward Wilbur, as the two fought and eventually Wilbur shot him in the arm, then quickly turned to train his gun at Krinios who held up his hands in surrender. When Tommy saw your injuries it broke his heart as he ripped off a bit of cloth and wrapped it around your arm wound temporarily, wrapping your body in warm blankets. He dried your tears as he rushed back towards Wilbur. “It’s okay, it’s okay…”

“You got what you wanted, just leave.” Krinios begged as Wilbur’s gun stayed trained on him. Wilbur, keeping his eyes on the man in front of him, handed the gun to Tommy as Tommy handed you off to your Dad, who carefully ran his hand through your hair, bringing you close and not planning on letting you out of his arms any time soon.

“You scared me, oh god I thought I lost you…” Wilbur whispered. “It’s okay, it’s all okay now, I’m right here, I’m right here. Shh…” Your hands gripped his shirt and you buried your face in it, feeling comforted by his familiar scent of pine and burnt oak. Your body shook with fear as Wilbur ran his hand along your back in comfort as he turned toward the door. His gentle voice turned cold as he looked toward Tommy, his gun still trained on Krinios. Anger and sadness overwhelmed his heart as he looked upon the one who took you away from him, who tried to take you to your death. Vengeance never tasted so sweet. “Kill him.”

Krinios’s eyes widened. “Wait, wait wait let’s talk about this-!”

Tommy didn’t hesitate as Krinios’s body slumped to the floor as the two made their way back toward the entrance of Fort Kickass. Tubbo sat against the wall, breathing heavily from the pain, glaring at both of them. “This isn’t over.”

“You said you wanted to feed your people, I believe I just provided you with food.” Wilbur shot behind him as he walked toward the entrance. “As for Dirt, if you so much as lay a finger on them I won’t hesitate to take all of you out for good. I wonder who will revive you then.” His eyes glanced over the cannibal leader, making sure Tubbo knew he wasn’t bluffing. “Goodbye, Tubbo.”

264 notes · View notes

canyouhearthelight · 3 years

Text

The Miys, Ch. 146

Whew, on a roll with queuing these up! Kind of proud of myself.

Speaking of proud... So many familiar names in the notes this week! Y’all are giving me a huge smile during a super busy week/month. Work has been bananas, weekends have been insane, and knowing that all of you are reading and enjoying the story gives me the encouragement I need to keep writing and to make the effort to keep the quality as consistent as possible.

All of you literally encourage me to take care of myself :) Thank you so much.

And, always, thank you to @baelpenrose, @charlylimph-blog, and @the-raven-fae, for everything you do, from beta-reading, to giving me stuff to read, to just keeping me reasonably sane.

I huffed as I put down the box of blankets in our new quarters. With our expected drop from hyperspace getting closer, we had finally been assigned quarters closer to the Archives. Xiomara and Tyche had both told me I was being ‘too nice’ by having Maverick put in the transfer request rather than doing it myself, but I still didn’t think it was fair to use my unwilling position on the Council as leverage to get bumped to the front of the line. After all, we had a few months to go, and with everything else going on, it wasn’t like I was in a hurry.

“Conor, be careful!” Maverick scolded as a box of dishes landed on the regrettably-smaller counter. “You’ll break them!”

“Mav, I love you to pieces,” Conor grunted and stretched his back. “But I want to point out again that we can just recycle broken ones and request new ones.” Completely contradictory to his own words, he wrapped the other man in a crushing hug and whispered something in his ear.

When Maverick gave him a skeptical look, Conor opened the box and pulled out a chipped plate. “The ones on the bottom are the ones with no chips, cracks, or stains. Promise.”

Hang on. “You let Conor pack the dishes, but you only let me pack the blankets?!” I was honestly hurt.

Maverick kicked the floor gently, his way of showing embarrassment. “I was worried I would break them, and you know how attached I am to the chipped plates, and I knew he wouldn’t get rid of them….”

“Baby,” I whispered. “Babe. It’s okay. I like the chipped ones, too. I would never get rid of those…” I held out a hand to see if he was receptive to a hug. When he tugged my hand, I squished his waist the best I could.

“You’re so particular with the clothes, though…”

“Because I despise pills against my skin.” I shuddered at the thought. “They feel… dirty.”

I could feel him shudder in agreement. “They do, don’t they?”

Conor gave us both a squish and shook his head, chin rubbing against us both. “Just leave my shirts alone, yeah?”

Maverick’s agreement with my philosophy nearly vibrated my soul. He never notices when we replace the pit-stained ones, it’s all okay. We both casually replaced the never-ceasing rotation of Conor’s white shirts when they were dirty past the point of laundering, but made a point to leave the permanently grungy coveralls until they either gained enough sentience to run away or fell apart in despair.

“Your shirts and Brenda, promise,” I tried to swear as solemnly as possible. ‘Brenda’ was the tilandsia xerographica that he had gifted me that first Insert Winter Holiday. She was currently twelve inches, and was the third love of Conor’s life.

He nodded before releasing us. “Mav, the silverware is still by the door so you can make sure everything is in the right place. Sophia, I’ll put up the clothes if you’ll sort where you want the blankets.” Without another word, he palmed the thermostat control and adjusted it to the agreed-upon settings we had maintained for years in our shared quarters. “Head’s up, once I get the clothes sorted, I gotta go help Sam and Derek move.”

My neck cramped from the speed I whipped around to look at him. “Derek and Sam are moving?”

Maverick nodded, his chin against my scalp. “They mutually requested relocation to stay in similar proximity to our quarters… specifically to Mac.”

I rolled my eyes. “It is absolutely to be close to Mac. Not my blanket, not soup on tap, not Conor’s plants - “

“They’re your plants, love.”

“Tell the plants that,” I joked. “You keep them alive.”

He muttered something that sounded distinctly like ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about’ as he gently set a box under Brenda’s stand and started unpacking spritz bottles, fertilizers, and the world’s tiniest pruning shears.

I can honestly say I did not laugh. With the exception of the shears, all six spray bottles, the soaking tub, and the three different fertilizers had actually lived with me longer than he had. “The point is that I’m sure they aren’t just moving to be closer to Mac… he roams the entire Ark, so it’s a pretty lame excuse.”

Maverick and Conor both shrugged before the former spoke. “Sam likes how you cook his produce. And it’s a long walk from our previous quarters.”

“I am not going to apologize that his strawberries go better in ketchup, or that his tomatoes make amazing ice cream,” I waved off. “I know it’s a side effect of using the known composition of Von’s soil and light, but… the strawberries are orange. Like a bell pepper.”

“But the tomato soup from his tomatoes is amazing,” Conor granted. “None of us even like tomato soup.” I opened my mouth to argue, but he cut me off. “The one recipe you like, Sophie, proves my point, it’s not an argument. It’s the only recipe you don’t….” He gestured vaguely. “You know.”

“Zhuzh,” I provided. “I don’t zhuzh it.”

Somewhat out of nowhere, Maverick sat down in the new but familiar armchair and asked, “Is it expected to have a housewarming when you live in the same… building… ship… thingie… but moved quarters?”

“I - “ Gaping, I turned to them both. “I’m not sure. I mean… we celebrated when you two moved into my quarters, but that was more a… wedding-slash-engagement thing. Have we been invited to any for just moving?”

Conor shrugged. “All the moves were done in the first few years to settle down. Nothing like this.”

I tapped my chin before pulling up my datapad. “I’m seeing that a total of fifty people - fifty, really? - have been relocated, just to be closer to the Archives.” I took a couple of deep breaths. “I know it’s the furthest Protection Zone from the rest of the ship, but there are only fifteen people sheltering there, not counting Tyche and Alistair.”

Maverick gaped at me before waving both hands widely. “You moved, so a total of five people relocated down here, which we were just discussing, and you don’t understand how fifteen people turned into fifty?” He scowled. “Sophie, I know you can do math.”

I glared at him. “Given the nature of relationships on the Ark, I thought it would be higher, smartass.” I leaned over to kiss his chin. “But that also makes me think… block party? Take the pressure off of us?”

Conor looked thoughtfully at both of us. “I think we should put up curtains, or - you know, soft barriers, something visible but easy to navigate - for the apartments where folks can duck and cover from being wound up too much?”

He had a good point. “Just to be clear,” I ventured, “you just mean the apartments that people already know they can duck into?”

Conor’s enthusiastic nod dropped mine and Mav’s shoulders by a solid two inches. “Yeah, color code them or put proximity alerts on them, something. I don’t think anyone overstimmed wants to wander into a room full of strangers, right? Derek would know he can walk in here, straight to our bed, pile up under the blankets, and he’s fine, but… what if he walks into another person’s bedroom? Fuck all, I’ll kill someone.”

He had a point. I hated that he had a point, but he was right.

“We’re purple, right?”

Conor and Maverick collectively rolled their eyes hard enough to make my head cramp. “Duh,” was the only response Maverick gave, while Conor just shook his head.

It was only a week later that they had the door to our old quarters repainted and retextured, and had the doors to our new quarters painted screaming purple with green and black stripes. Just to be clear, apparently.

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mtr1234 · 2 months