#EVE IN DIFFERENT BUILDINGS THE SMELLS ARE THE SAME FOR THESE TYPES OF BUSINESSES

[solsnicks]

Me trying to figure out how to explain airport smell vs office smell vs hotel smell to someone else

#SERIOUSLY THEY ALL HAVE DISTINCT SMELLS #EVE IN DIFFERENT BUILDINGS THE SMELLS ARE THE SAME FOR THESE TYPES OF BUSINESSES #EVERYTIME I TRY TO EXPLAIN THIS TO MY FAMILY THEY GET REALLY CONFUSED AND DONT KNOW WHAT IM TALKINGG ABOUT #PLEASE does anyone else here know what I’m talking about???? #nic talks #eyestrain

[brockadoodles]

The CN Tower and Chocolate Chip Pancakes - w. nylander

AN: I swear before whipping this out I was complaining about no writing motivation and how I was going to finish my Christmas wips when this like came to me. So here’s a quick little story about one of our favorite blondies for @puckinghell​ and all of you. There is mention of losing a parent, which is something I closely relate to from losing one of mine recently, if that’s a trigger, I wouldn’t read this. It’s not an angst piece at all, I just think that warning is necessary. This also may or may not be self indulgent and based on an actual experience I had two years ago with a boy in NYC, but like, you didn’t hear that from me. Anyways, I hope you enjoy. 

Word Count: 3,337 

Warnings: Mentions of death of a parent 

Christmas was usually your favorite time of the year. You loved how the city lit up during December, the white lights twinkling from the streetlights and trees, the fresh snow that usually littered the city of Toronto, and the constant smell of gingerbread and spices whenever you entered a building were all things that brought you comfort. This year, however, was different. It was the first year without your mom, without a lot of the traditions that the two of you would do together as you grew up. 

You tried though. You went through all of the motions of the holiday. You decorated a tree, blue and silver just like she always loved. You went skating, an experience that was far less fun without your mom to laugh with you when you fell. You went to the Christmas Market, buying a new small knick-knack, like every other year you had done since you were five years old. All of it felt forced, but you were hopeful. You were hopeful that one last Christmas tradition would bring you the sense of comfort you had been searching for during the entire month of December. 

The fleeting feeling of comfort and your mom were how you found yourself spending nearly $60 to go up CN Tower on Christmas Eve. A tradition that was usually entirely reserved for tourists visiting the city, a romantic setting with the tower lit up for the holiday and the nighttime skyline view of the entire city providing a cinematic backdrop for people’s perfect holiday moments. You weren’t a tourist, you had grown up in Toronto for your entire life, but your mom had always believed in the idea that it wasn’t a bad thing to be a tourist in your own city, so every year on Christmas even she would bring you up here and the two of you would sit on the observation deck and make a Christmas wish. No matter how lost you felt, it was the one tradition that you didn’t think you could ever give up. 

You wandered around the observation deck, the dark beanie on your head keeping your ears warm and your hands were securely tucked in your wool coat pockets as you watched the various people scattered around. It was getting late, the families with children were long gone, probably at home tucked into their beds, and most people that were left were younger couples. You glanced to your right, spotting a boy on one knee holding a ring out for the girl standing in front of him with tears in her eyes. You watched them for a moment, finding yourself wrapped up slightly in how happy they both looked. It gave you an idea for your Christmas wish, and you found yourself smiling softly as you closed your eyes and wished. 

“I love you, mom, Merry Christmas.” You whispered as you opened your eyes, the feeling of comfort not quite sinking into your chest yet. As you walked the familiar route to the elevators, you decided that once last stop before heading home for pancakes certainly couldn’t hurt. 

You walked down the street with your eyes focussed on your phone as the snow was falling a bit harder than it had been previously. You were searching for anything that was open on Christmas Eve, your stomach growling a bit as you scanned through the search results. 

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” Someone exclaimed, grabbing your arm slightly to prevent you from falling into their chest. You looked up, seeing a boy that must have been around your age looking down at you with a concerned look in his blue eyes. You must have ran into him, too focussed on your phone to watch where you were walking properly enough. You studied his face for a minute, wondering if you had somehow met him before from the feeling of familiarity you were getting in your stomach. 

“Do I know you?” You blurted out, adverting your eyes a bit when you realized how rude you must have sounded to this boy immediately after quite literally bumping into him. It didn’t seem to phase him though, and he just smiled. 

“I think so? I’m William. You know Steph right? Steph LaChance?” And that’s when it hit you, you did know this boy, well sort of. You had met him maybe once before, at a mutual friend’s birthday party at least two years ago. 

“Ah, I do remember you. Wow, you look different, I mean, good.” You stumbled out. It was true, he did look a lot different than he did when you met him. His hair was longer, his face a bit rounder, and a short beard that definitely wasn’t there before. You felt your cheeks heat up in embarrassment a bit as he laughed softly at your statement.

“So do you. Hey, this may seem a bit forward but, are you busy right now?” He asked. Part of you wanted to tell him yes, that you were busy. That way you could just get on the train back to your apartment, curl up with a warm cup of tea and your slippers, and fall asleep to the snow falling outside of your winder. But the other part of you was dreading going home, the sinking feeling of your first Christmas without your mom settling into your stomach and making you not want to go home. Because if you went home to your empty apartment, you’d have to fully confront your reality. So instead, you nodded up at William, taking a chance on the stranger in front of you that wasn’t quite a stranger. 

“What did you have in mind?” You asked softly.

“Come on.” He smiled at you and held his hand out for you to take, your question going unanswered as you hesitantly wrapped your hand in his, letting him lead you in the opposite direction you had come from. 

The walk was short and quiet, and your stomach grumbled once more when you stopped in front of what appeared to be the destination he was leading you to. You glanced up at the neon pink sign, the diner clearly out of date and straight from the 1980’s. You smiled to yourself, appreciating that somehow this stranger that wasn’t quite a stranger had instinctively known exactly what you needed at the moment. 

“I hope you like pancakes,” He smiled as he opened the door for you, gesturing you ahead with his hand. The diner was relatively empty, just a few other patrons sitting in the various worn-out leather booths. There were decorations everywhere, garlands wrapped around the posts holding up the ceiling and a small Christmas tree lit up in the corner of the diner, multicolored lights strung throughout but no ornaments. 

You followed William to a booth in the corner and watched carefully as he smiled at the waitress, her saying hello to him by name. You wondered if this was a place he went to frequently enough to be on a first-name basis with the people that worked here, or if perhaps they were just Toronto Maple Leafs fans who happened to recognize him.

“I come here all the time, usually after bad games. I just really like the people here, and something about diner food is comforting after a loss.” He explained before you had the chance to ask. You nodded at him while you shrugged off your jacket and pulled off your beanie, fixing your hair slightly as William handed you a menu from the side of the table. You grabbed the menu and let your fingers brush lightly against his, causing you to pull your hand back quickly. 

“Why did you want to come here tonight?” You asked softly, hoping that your question wasn’t taken out of context or as too intrusive for him to answer. William didn’t seem phased by any of it, instead offering you what would have been the fourth or fifth reassuring smile so far that night, if you were keeping count. 

“Just didn’t want to be alone on Christmas Eve, I guess.” He admitted. You were almost taken aback by his honesty with you, finding yourself wondering if he had asked you the very same question that you asked him if you’d answer as bluntly as he did. You felt oddly settled with him though, there in that shitty diner looking at a worn-out menu that probably hadn’t been updated in fifteen years and you found yourself wanting to give him the same openness that he gave you. 

“Me neither, I guess.” You commented, holding back and giving him just enough that hopefully he understood that on some level you felt how he felt, even if you couldn’t entirely admit to him why. 

The two of you sat in comfortable silence for a few moments as you both scanned over the menu. The waitress came over, sliding two pale brown mugs filled with coffee in both of your directions and noting that she would be back in a minute to check if either of you wanted any food. You scanned over the pancakes and peeked over at William, his eyes also scanning the page with concentration and you found your mind wondering about him once more. You watched as he bit his lip softly and wondered if he was the type who liked pancakes with fruit on them, or chocolate, an inconsequential fact that most people wouldn’t be phased by but to you said everything you needed to know about a person. 

“You said you hoped I liked pancakes, right, William?” You asked, breaking the silence between you as you closed your menu in front of you. He looked over the menu in his own hands at you, raising an eyebrow quickly and smiling softly before looking back down at the pages. 

“You can call me Willy if you want, and yeah. I like most kinds, but if you try to tell me fruit on pancakes is better than chocolate, I might have to leave.” He teased as he closed his menu, now looking fully at you with a smirk on his face. For a moment you went wide-eyed, wondering if he somehow crept into your mind and heard exactly what you were thinking. You recovered quickly though, and folded your hands quickly on the table, sending your own smirk back to him. 

“I’m not going to argue with that, it’s obviously the correct answer.” Willy didn’t say anything, instead, he nodded at you before taking a sip of the diner coffee, seemingly not phased by its lack of strength or flavor. You grabbed your own mug and the two of you settled into a much more relaxed conversation as you waited for the waitress to come back. Nearly two hours of conversation passing through you without either of you realizing just how personal you were being with each other. 

“Usually this place is faster than this, I’m sorry.” The boy in front of you commented, his head tilting toward the large analog clock on the wall that had shown it was nearing midnight, nearing Christmas. You weren’t worried though, glancing around the small diner as the snow fell harshly outside. You smiled softly at William, 

“We haven’t even ordered yet, and I’ve got nothing but time tonight.” Willy just smiled back at you, nodding a bit and catching the eye of the waitress. 

“Sorry guys, been a long day. What can I get you?” She smiled apologetically. You nodded at Willy to go first. 

“No problem, Grace.” He started, referring to the older woman by her first name. He glanced at you quickly, taking a leap of his own as he spoke,

“Can we just grab two orders of chocolate chip pancakes and more coffee?” he asked. 

“Confident, what if I wanted strawberry?” You teased, raising an eyebrow quickly. Willy laughed, a genuine laugh that somehow hit you in your chest as comfort settled into your system, a soft smile lingering on your lips as he started leaning into his hand that was resting on the table. He looked at you at that moment like you were more than just a stranger who wasn’t really a stranger to him, and you would be lying to yourself if you tried to ignore the butterflies that it was giving you. Willy felt familiar in an unfamiliar yet exciting way. It didn’t feel like you had only met him once, instead, it felt like you had known him in passing forever, your comfort level and trust quickly rising in him in just a few short hours of really knowing him. 

“No chance, you said I was right about chocolate, and I pay attention.” He threw back at you. 

“Okay, tell me the real reason you’re alone on Christmas Eve.” Willy pressed as he set his fork down, scooting the nearly empty plate away from his body and toward the center of the table. It was nearly 2 am at this point, and you weren’t sure if it was the few hours you had spent with him giving or the tiredness weighing you down that gave you the false sense of closeness with him, but you found yourself giving in anyway, wanting to tell him everything about yourself in hopes that he would for some reason be taking notes to remember you by. 

“It’s my first Christmas without my mom, she uhm, passed away earlier this year and I spent the whole day doing things by myself that we used to do together. So, when you asked if I was busy, I said no, because going somewhere with you felt better than going home to my empty apartment and my thoughts.” It felt good to get it out and Willy’s reaction confirmed what you had already assumed about him, that he wouldn’t judge you for not wanting to spend Christmas Eve alone. After all, before you ran into him, he was set on being alone. 

“I’m sorry to hear that.” He frowned. You just shrugged, you were used to the apologies, no one really knew what it was like when a parent passed away unless they had dealt with it themselves. The apology was an expression of sympathy, and you didn’t mind it coming from Willy. 

“What about you? Have a sad story to tell me?” You inquired. Willy sighed and for a moment you wondered if you had pushed too hard if you had overstepped some boundary that he had put up between you that you missed. But the sigh came with a nod as he continued, opening his mouth to speak quietly as you looked at him with eyes that you hoped indicated your willingness to take in whatever he had to say without any judgment. 

“I guess I’ve just been having a rough year, I’m not sure how closely you follow hockey, but, a lot of people are doubting if I belong here. I guess with not being able to go home and see my family, it was getting to me. Didn’t even really have any plans until you ran into me and I just felt comfortable asking you to do something.” His voice wavered as he spoke and his eyes dodged your own a few times as he went through what you could only gather were insecurities he didn’t like to talk about. You reached out and put your hand on his wrist, running your thumb slowly across his skin and smiling softly at him. 

“You belong here, Willy. I’m not sure how much that means coming from a stranger, but you belong here.” He lit up at your words, turning his hand to grab yours. Your heart pounded in your chest as he laced your fingers together and gave your hand a soft squeeze before letting go, a silent thank you that didn’t need words. You knew what he was trying to say, you didn’t need him to verbally thank you for it. 

The two of you started putting your coats back on, the night coming to a close that you weren’t sure you were ready for. You hadn’t expected to have a good Christmas, and while it certainly couldn’t compare to the ones of your past, as you sat in that diner with Willy for hours you felt like you were soaking in the comfort you had spent the entire month trying to find. Each time he laughed at something you said you melted further into the old booth. 

Willy set some cash on the table, ignoring your protests as he paid for the meal, and grabbed your hand, once again lacing your fingers together as he tugged you out of the restaurant, this time not letting go once you stepped outside. 

“I’ll drive you home, I’m just parked a bit far. Is that okay?” He asked. You smiled and nodded in response, too focussed on the warmth of the feeling of his hand in yours and how it sent waves of feeling straight to your heart and butterflies to your stomach. 

The two of you walked in silence for about a block, his hand never wavering from yours until you were standing at a crosswalk. He stopped and looked around a bit. You were near the Christmas market, some of the lights were still on despite how late it was. The decorations were visible from where you were standing on the street, and the only light was coming from the reflection of the twinkling lights reflecting off of the snow. He turned to face you, squeezing your hand gently as he stumbled through his next few words,

“I know this is so abrupt and we just sort of met, and maybe it’s the over romanization of Christmas getting to my head but I really want to kiss you right now.” 

You looked up at him, his eyes were warm and the snow was settling into the hair sticking from his beanie. It might have been exactly what he said, the romanization of meeting someone outside of a shitty diner on Christmas Eve and somehow spending the whole night with them sharing things that you hadn’t even entirely shared with your closest friends. 

The more you thought about it the more you felt like it was a bad Christmas movie. But bad Christmas movies always ended in a kiss, and you weren’t about to stop the tradition now. So you grabbed him by the collar of his stupidly overpriced pea coat and crashed your lips to his before you could stop yourself. Willy settled into the kiss quickly, wrapping his hand around your waist and tugging your body into his chest. When you pulled apart, the puffs of cloudy air from your breath filled the space around you, and he smiled at you like you were the best thing he could have hoped for this Christmas, a feeling that was unspoken yet mutual. 

You buried your face into his chest, stomach in knots as you overthought exactly what had just happened and what it all meant. Willy took his hand and tilted your chin up so that your eyes were looking at his, smiling at you before leaning in to kiss you again, his lips brushing yours softly. 

“You never told me what you wished for.” He commented when you pulled apart. 

“You somehow gave it to me, Willy.” You smiled and kissed him again, tangling your hand with his once again. You didn’t need to elaborate, because Willy understood what you meant. He had given you comfort, a feeling of not being alone on the one holiday where no one should have to be alone. He didn’t know what the future held, or what this would mean to you by the time the enchantment of the holidays wore off, but he knew that right now you were what he wanted, and he could only hope that you felt the same as you kissed him for the third time that night in the snow.  

#8 weeks of christmas #william nylander #willy nylander #william nylander imagine #william nylander fic #leafs imagine #nhl imagine #nhl fic #william nylander x reader

[crookswithbooks]

Pay Attention To Me

Notes: Finally! Sorry this came out so late, I was busy with Christmas plans and other projects and everything just got so behind, but here it is at last. Merry several days late Christmas everyone, and Happy New Year’s Eve!

Day Twelve - Lestat is feeling overlooked so he goes out on the town to find his own entertainment. 

The world was covered in twilight. Trees became villains reaching out and the moon illuminated menacing shadows on the pavement. The air smelled of rain, and even then tiny droplets pattered against the ground. Slowly they melted the scattered patches of snow lingering on the rooftops of buildings and covering the cobbled streets. Inside their tiny house, Louis sat curled on the couch, a book held upright in his hands with his eyes roaming the pages absently. He toyed with a wineglass, twisting it between his fingers and occasionally lifting the glass to his lips. Mostly, though, he sat, and Lestat could not take it anymore.

“Louis.” There was no response, not even a tilt of the head as acknowledgment. “Louis? I know you can hear me and this little charade you are keeping up is ridiculous and childish.”

Louis sighed, a long and suffering sound that dragged on Lestat’s ears. “I can hear you fine. As you can see, I am otherwise occupied.” He held up the book in evidence and promptly returned to it.

Lestat watched him from his chair, an old chair he had found in one of the antique stores the modern era was so fond of. It reminded him of the old days when it was just the two of them and Claudia and they were happy. His sharp nails tapped against the wood impatiently, eyes narrowing at Louis’s continued dismissiveness.

Finally he could stand it no longer and stood up, stalking over to the brunet. He kneeled beside him, wrapping his arms around his shoulders and pressing his mouth to the nape of his neck. If Louis registered the movement he hid it well, not so much as blinking at the action. Lestat opened his mouth, softly suckling the sensitive skin contained there.

“Lestat.”

Lestat grinned against him. “Yes my love?”

“I know what you are doing and I am not in the mood. I would like to continue my reading in peace if you don’t mind.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Lestat replied innocently, gently digging in his teeth. He could feel the shudder run through Louis’s body, though he tried to repress it.

“Lestat,” he breathed and closed his eyes. He did not, Lestat noticed, try and stop him.

Lestat’s teeth dug in just a bit more until he had pierced skin and he could feel the warm sensation of blood coiling against his tongue. He savored the taste, gently sucking the liquid from his neck until finally Louis gasped and reached a hand back, gripping Lestat’s hair and pulling him back.

“That’s enough.”

“I don’t think it is.” Lestat moved to take more but Louis turned at last, dropping his book and grapping Lestat by the front of his jacket, pulling him close.

“I said,” Louis hissed, not breaking eye contact. “That’s enough.”

Lestat smiled deviously in a way that could not fail to provoke and raised an eyebrow. “And what will you do if I don’t?”

Louis considered him for a moment and then, to Lestat’s great disappointment, released his jacket and settled himself on the couch once more, picking back up his book. “I shall leave and then you’ll be alone, something I know you hate far more than boredom.”

Lestat snapped his teeth impatiently, rising to his full height. “You’re dreadfully boring, you know? I do all these nice things for you, build you this house, provide for you, fill our lives with fanciful wonders that most people only dream of, and the only thing I ask is that my lover pay even the slightest attention to me but you cannot do even that.”

Louis marked a page in his book, placing it besides him on the couch and turning a glare on his partner. “You bought this house, Lestat, from a shady man you met in an ad, and the entire thing is falling apart as it is.”

“It’s called an antique,” Lestat sniffed haughtily.

“I provide for myself, thank you very much, unless you mean the little boys you leave littered around the house like some kind of deranged cat, bleeding all over our carpet that I bought. And your fanciful wonders, as you call them, are nothing but meaningless trinkets you forget about the day after. For goodness sake Lestat, there is a boar’s head hanging on our wall!”

“Well excuse me for trying to bring something of the outside world into our home, or else you would never see it!” Lestat began to pace the room and Louis watched him with an expression of reluctant interest. “You spend all day cooped up in here, and I am tired of it! You need to live!”

“I already lived.”

“No,” Lestat corrected. “You were alive. There is a difference, in case you weren’t aware. You spend these centuries sulking like an insolent child and the only thing that excites you now is death. You dream of it, staring longingly at flames and daggers like a fool. Yet you never have the courage to go through with it, because in the end you are a coward. Scared of living, scared of dying. And I, for one, am sick of it.”

Lestat turned around, whirling out the doorway in a huff. Louis watched him for a moment, before picking back up his book and turning a page.

Lestat was enraged.

He found himself in a small town miles away from the house he had stormed out of. He was not entirely sure where he was, merely that it was somewhere where Louis was not which was enough for the time being. He strolled the cobbled streets, watching bundled humans hurry back to their houses for the night.

Lestat couldn’t believe him. He did everything he possibly could for Louis’s sake and still he found himself scorned in the end. He was willing to ignore all of Louis’s little rebellions, all the times he ran away from him, tried to kill him, replaced him with someone new—he was willing to ignore it all because that’s what you did when you loved someone. You forgave them. Unfortunately, it appeared that Louis had not received that message.

He wanted entertainment. The thought came to him seemingly on a whim, but as he examined it further he realized that the desire had been there all along. If Louis was going to continue to be obstinate and ignore him, than he would seek amusement elsewhere.

The scent of blood was heavy in the air. It always was during the wintertime, heat brought quickly to the surface as their frail human bodies fought to keep them alive. Lestat inhaled, his path following the particularly alluring smell of a dashing youth in his twenties with dark hair that curled in the most lovely fashion about his ears. He made sure to keep a decent amount of distance between him and the boy, twisting in and around patrons of the tiny city.

The boy appeared to be rushing somewhere, his steps hurried and anxious. He cast furtive glances to either side as he slipped into a small alleyway, disappearing into the darkness. Lestat narrowed his eyes, a predatory grin glinting on his features. He had always enjoyed the chase, far more than the others had.

He kept close to the wall, tracking the boy’s coattails carefully as they flapped in the hurtling breeze. He heard the murmur of voices and peered around the stairwell he had been clutching at. It was then that he realized that the boy was not alone.

A girl, maybe ten years older than him, smiled lovingly as the boy pulled out a bundle of flowers he had been concealing under his cloak. She had beautiful auburn hair that fell about her shoulders in wind-swept waves. As he watched her examine the flowers and then the boy with a critical eye, he recognized the same cold gestures that Louis often reserved for him, only more calculating than Louis’s bland apathy. She was toying with him. That much was obvious. It made sense, what with the age difference and shady rendezvous in back alleys.

“I picked these especially for you,” the boy explained in excited whispers, clutching her slender fingers in his own, wonderingly. “I thought you might like them. They’re red like your hair.”

Lestat had done much of the same thing once for Louis. A young man with the most beautiful green eyes, black hair slinking down to his chin, much the same as Louis himself, had been left in his bedroom as a gift. Louis had not taken kindly to it, to say the least.

The woman accepted the gift with disdainful eyes, but pressed them close to her heart. “Thank you. I will treasure them. Do you have the rest?”

There was a moment when the boy, so spellbound by the woman was he, did not take notice of her words. The next moment he blinked, snapping himself back into action, and reached inside his cloak again to pull out a bundle of herbs that Lestat recognized as a very rare type of medicine. “O-Of course! Here you are.”

The herbs were regarded with much more care than the flowers had been and she tucked it carefully into her bosom, far beyond the prying eyes of strangers. “Thank you. Father will be ecstatic to have these.”

“And now?” the boy asked anxiously, licking his lips. Lestat felt something inside him surge at the simple action, but he held back for now, desiring to see where this would go first. He had wanted to be entertained after all. “What you promised in return?”

“Of course.” The woman slipped her hands from the grip of the boy, placing them securely on his hips and tugging him closer. She leaned in till they were only inches away, his face flushed with expectation, their combined breath mingling. Silky lips met his and Lestat allowed himself to watch the spectacle for a couple seconds more before springing into action.

Lestat was fast in the way that shadows were fast, there one moment and gone the next. He held the woman tight in his grip, ripped cruelly away from their kiss. He held one arm around her waist, securing her to him, and the other hand tilted her head back firmly, revealing the pale expanse of her neck.

“Olivia!” the boy exclaimed, anger and panic mixing on his features. He turned on Lestat, taking a step forward. “What are you doing, sir?”

“Saving you from what is sure to be a nasty relationship,” Lestat answered, lowering his lips to her trembling skin, his own curls falling over her revealed shoulders. “She is quite the beauty, though, I will agree.”

“Let me go!” the woman cried impetuously, struggling against his hold. “You can’t do this!”

She stilled instantly as his lips were replaced by fangs, pressing sharply into the skin. “Oh but I believe I can.”

 Louis was not on the couch when he returned home. Lestat carefully placed both bodies on the sofa, taking a moment to trace a loving stroke down the unconscious boy’s cheek. “Louis? I’ve brought us dinner.”

He frowned at the lack of reply. He swept from the parlor room, searching the house for any sign of his undead lover. When he reached the bedroom finally and there was still no sign of him, he started to think that maybe he had gone out, angry as well after their fight. What he was instead met with was the sudden presence of a body pressed up against his own, their stance quite mirroring that of Lestat’s earlier in the alley. Lestat stiffened, a thrill of pleasure rushing down his spine.

“Hello Louis,” he said pleasantly, casting a glance back at him. “Finally come around, have you?”

“I have finished my book.”

Lestat closed his eyes as Louis peppered his shoulders and neck with gentle kisses. It was then that he remembered that he was mad at the latter and slipped out of his grip, turning around to glare at him with crossed arms. “And just why should I forgive you? You treated me horribly earlier, and now you expect me to come crawling back into your arms?”

“It’s Christmas,” Louis pointed out. His cheeks were flushed, evident of a recent kill, and his eyes sparkled with a lustful desire that always served to weaken Lestat.

“We’re heathens, Louis,” Lestat responded dryly.

Louis merely shrugged. “Okay. Well if you don’t want my company, I suppose I will go find something else to do. There is another book by this esteemed dead writer that I’ve been meaning to get to—”

Louis found himself pinned against the bed in the next instant, the bedframe rattling in protest. “You will be doing no such thing,” Lestat snarled, leaning down to press hungry, envious kisses against his lips. “You will stay here with me and if you’re lucky I might let you go in the morning.”

Louis smiled, the clear winner. There were would be other battles, but the round of that night belonged to him. “That’s what I thought. What about dinner.”

“Fuck dinner.”

“Gladly.”

“Git.”

Later Lestat would remember that he was mad at the other, but for right now he chose to exemplify it in the forming of violent sex, a love language they both understood well. 

Neither one of them could be really mad at the situation, in the end. 

#interview with a vampire #the vampire chronicles #louis x lestat #fanfiction #iwav #lestat de lioncourt #louis de pointe du lac #twelve days of ficmas #christmas

[klaus-goldstein]

Modern AU Snippet

This was originally supposed to be after Part 6 I believe?? After they got back from Christmas. It got cut and I went a different direction. It’s still a nice little date though. I haven’t touched this since June 2017, and it’s unedited. Don’t come for me lol. I may post more snippets.

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

A knock on the door echoed through the apartment. 

“Liz, could you get the door? The pizza delivery guy forgot our garlic bread and he’s supposed to be coming back with it.”

Liz finished piling her pizza onto her plate so she could rush to the door. She tripped over a pair of shoes in the hallway and almost dropped her pizza but managed to save it at the last minute. When she opened the door though it wasn’t the delivery guy.

“Hello,” Klaus smirked at her and Liz felt her heartbeat speed up. She and Klaus had both been busy since getting back to new york and they had seen very little of each other. She missed him more than she cared to admit. 

“Hel-” 

Her word was caught in her throat when Klaus leaned forward to kiss her suddenly. Liz deepened the kiss and tried to slide her plate of food onto the table in the entryway without moving away from the kiss. It was the most ungraceful thing that she had ever done but she wanted her hands free and she didn’t want to stop kissing him. She finally managed to set her plate down without untangling herself from Klaus and wrapped her arms around his waist. 

“Are you happy to see me?” Klaus asked when they finally separated. He pressed a kiss to her temple and Liz tightened her grip around his waist.

“I am. Although, I wasn’t expecting you when I opened the door. The pizza guy is bringing our garlic bread so unless you have any bread then I’m a little disappointed.” Liz grinned up at him.

Klaus shook his head in exasperation and gripped her hips. “What are you doing tomorrow night?”

“Hmm, tomorrow night? I don’t think I’m doing anything.” 

“We haven’t been on an official date yet and I want to take you out. Would you like to go on a date with me?”

Liz opened her mouth to answer and saw the delivery guy come around the corner. She pulled away from Klaus and took the forgotten bread from the man. 

“Thank you.” She turned to Klaus and winked at him. “You see this is the way to a woman's heart. You give her cheesy garlic bread. If,” Liz paused and looked at the guy's name tag. “If Jeff here were to ask me out then I would definitely say yes.”

“You would?” Jeff raised his eyebrows in surprise and Liz had to fight the urge to giggle. Jeff looked entirely too excited by the prospect of going on a date with Liz. She had just been kidding and she felt bad that he took it seriously.

“Bye Jeff.” Klaus fixed him with a look and Jeff glanced back and forth between the two of them. Liz finally handed him a tip and he scampered away quickly.

“You got his hopes up.” Klaus sighed. Liz covered her mouth with her hand in order to stifle her laughter. Klaus leaned forward and brushed his nose against hers before kissing her again. “I’ll pick you up at 7:30.”

He pulled away and Liz watched him walk down the hallway to his apartment. She couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face when he turned back to glance at her. Liz leaned against the doorframe and waved at him. Klaus laughed and finally turned to walk away from her.

Liz closed the door and turned around. She jumped when she saw Amelia behind her. Amelia had both of eyebrows raised in surprise and was watching Liz intently. Amelia leaned against the wall and smiled slowly at Liz.

“What?”

“You two are so cute it makes me sick. Hand over the goods. The movie is about to start.” Amelia snatched the bread from Liz and headed towards the living room. Liz stood in the hallway and she couldn’t stop grinning like an idiot. She fished her phone out of her pocket and tapped it against her chin as she thought. She opened her messages and began to type.

“I didn’t reply to you but the answer is yes...:

“I assumed it was yes. Unless, you would rather take Jeff?”

“ha ha you think you’re so funny. What should I wear?”

“Something nice. Kind of like what you wore on the fake date.”

“Looking forward to it. :) See you tomorrow.”

Liz smiled down at her phone for a minute before burying her face in her hands. She allowed herself one squeal of happiness and fought the urge to jump up and down. 

“Get a grip, Liz. It’s just a date.” She whispered.

She grabbed her pizza off of the table and went to join Amelia in the living room for movie night.

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

She hardly slept that night out of sheer excitement. The day dragged on until it was finally time for her to start getting ready. After spending an hour going through her closet she finally decided on an outfit. 

Liz touched up her lipstick in the bathroom mirror and surveyed herself. She had to admit she looked damn good. Her makeup was simple but for a pop of color, she had applied a dark red shade of lipstick. She wore a long-sleeved knit dress in black, the v neck gave it a hint of sexiness without being too over the top. She paired the dress with a pair of black over the knee boots. It was winter and she didn’t want her legs to freeze. The look had come together wonderfully and she was happy with the outcome. She felt confident in this outfit.

She grabbed her coat off of her bed and her scarf before leaving her room. Amelia and Luca were on the couch watching a movie and Luca whistled loudly when Liz walked into the room. Liz rolled her eyes and laughed when Amelia whistled too. 

“Wow.” Luca sat up and rested his head on the back of the couch so he could watch Liz. “Where are you going all dolled up?”

“She has a date with her new boyfriend.” Amelia grinned.

“New boyfriend? Anyone I know?”

“Nope.” Liz slipped on her coat about the same time someone knocked on the front door. She grabbed her purse and waved at Amelia and Luca over her shoulder. “Don’t wait up.”

“If you bring him back to the apartment then lock your door!” Amelia yelled after her.

Liz shook her head as she reached the door and opened it. Klaus was standing there and Liz smiled up at him. He froze at the sight of her and let his gaze traveled up her body. Klaus grabbed her hand and pulled her to him so he could kiss her.

Liz’s hands drifted under his coat and she wrapped her arms around his waist. Klaus pulled away from her after a minute but didn’t let her go. He took her hand again and spun her slowly. She laughed and indulged him as he looked her over.

“You look beautiful.” 

“Thank you.” Liz reached out and opened his coat. He was in a tailored gray suit and white dress shirt. He had forgone the tie and the top two buttons of his shirt were undone. Liz’s gaze focused on the column of his throat for a moment before she shook her head to clear her vision. “You don’t look so bad yourself.”

Klaus draped his arm over her shoulders and pulled her to his side as they began to walk down the hallway. He pressed the down button on the elevator and kissed the top of Liz’s head. The two of them stepped into the elevator and rode down to the ground floor. They walked outside into the cold and the wind whipped past them. 

That was one thing Liz hated about the city. When the wind blew in-between the tall buildings it always felt so much colder. She huddled against Klaus and sighed happily when he pulled her closer to his side. Being in his embrace was one small perk to the cold weather. He smelled like cologne and mint. She buried her nose in his shoulder for a second and inhaled. She liked it.

“What are we doing tonight?” Liz wondered.

“We’re going to dinner and then the rest is a surprise.” 

“Really? What is it?”

“Well, I can’t just tell you.” Klaus sighed.

He hailed a cab and the two of them slid into the warm car. Liz settled next to him and she laced their fingers together. Klaus squeezed their intertwined hands. He pressed a kiss to her palm before giving the driver an address. Klaus turned to Liz and gazed down at her.

“What have you been up to since we got back into town?” 

His thumb was brushing the back of her hand and it was distracting. Liz swallowed thickly and reached up to push his hair out of his face. Klaus fixed her with a look and Liz smiled at him. She was so happy to spend time with him.

“Not much. I’m enjoying my break and I’ve slept in almost every day. It’s very cold outside so Amelia and I have mainly just stayed at home. Although we did venture out to the movie theater the other night. It’s been relaxing. What about you?”

“Well, my friend Randy is in town and he’s staying with me so I’ve been spending time with him.”

Liz laughed at his tone. He didn’t sound that happy about it. “Do you not like to spend time with him?”

Klaus sighed at the question. “I do, really I do. We have a complicated relationship. He and I have known each other most of our lives so he’s basically like my brother. I already have two of those, I don’t need another one. We fight like siblings. I’m a grown man but when he’s around we just drive each other crazy for no reason other than to irritate each other. It has been like that for our whole friendship.”

“Why is he staying with you then?”

“Because I wouldn’t have him stay anywhere else. He travels a lot so it’s good to see him when he’s here regardless of my irritation. He usually stays with me for a week or two, then goes to Elaine and Sebastian's for a week, and then to my parent’s for a few weeks. Then he goes down to D.C. to visit Elias before flitting off to his next destination.”

“Is he close with your family?” Liz wondered.

“Very. My parents consider him like another son. He lived with my family while we were in middle school and high school so he got to know my parents and brothers very well. You’ll meet him at the new years eve party.”

“What happened to his family?” Liz asked.

Klaus looked like he was about to answer when he noticed where they were. “We’re here. We’ll continue this inside.” 

He paid the driver and the two of them stepped out onto the sidewalk. Klaus led her into a nice restaurant. It was romantically lit and cozy inside and Liz felt the cold slowly leave her fingers. The restaurant was decorated in dark woods and warm colors. There was just something intimate about it. The chatter of people was soothing and the food looked good.

Liz looked around as Klaus talked to the hostess about their reservation and their coats were taken. The hostess seated them immediately and Klaus pulled Liz’s chair out for her. After their wine orders were taken Liz opened her menu and started to look it over. She didn’t know what to choose because everything looked so wonderful. After they received their wine and placed their orders Liz reached across the table to grab Klaus’ hand. He smiled at the action and played with her fingers gently.

“Continue what you were saying. I promise we won’t spend the whole evening talking about your friend but now I’m curious.” 

“It’s fine,” Klaus shrugged. “Just so you know everything I’m about to tell you is common knowledge. I’m not about to betray his trust by telling you all this.”

“Okay...” Liz tilted her head in confusion.

“Randy’s father is a horrible man. When Randy was small it wasn’t so bad but the older Randy got the more and more he and his father grew apart. At first, it was due to the fact that his father was always busy but then when they did spend time together they just realized how different they were. Randy’s father didn’t really care for him and Randy didn’t like his father either. His mother was never at home and when she was home she avoided her son and her husband.” Klaus said.

“Randy and I went to the same private schools growing up and his family ran in the same circles my parents did so we saw a lot of each other. We were primarily academic rivals and I wouldn’t really have called us friends during that time. Randy might disagree though.” Klaus smiled.

“His home life got unbearable and he didn’t want to go home so he started staying with me at my parent's house on weekends. Then weekends turned into a few days a week and then he was living with my family full time. And his parents didn’t even care. They never checked to see where he was or to make sure he was safe. It made my mother so angry. So she and my father made sure to include him in all family gatherings and holidays. When I said he was practically my brother, I wasn’t kidding. My parents raised him through his middle school and high school years.”

“Which brings us to the last few years. Randy’s father reached out to him because he wanted to start grooming him to take over the family business. Randy didn’t really want to but his father and family are real estate moguls with millions of dollars in properties. Randy wanted to make sure their hard work was taken care of regardless of his relationship with his family. So he indulged his father and started training to someday take over the company. Then he found out his father was doing some illegal things within the company, neglecting employee rights and things like that.”

“He confronted his father and when the man refused to do anything about it, Randy hired my father and brother and took him to court.”

Liz gaped at him. “Did he win?”

“Oh absolutely. Not only was the evidence solid but my father and Sebastian used up years of pent up anger as motivation in the case. I’ve never seen them work a case that smoothly. Their court sessions might as well have been a tv court drama they were so good.” Klaus smiled coldly. “They wiped the floor with Randy’s father, took his company from him and put him in jail. After Randy took him to court a whole bunch of lawsuits regarding the employee neglect started coming through so the convictions just kind of piled up. The company was placed at Randy’s feet. He told the board to hire a new CEO and that he would be a silent presence. His family still owns the company in name but it’s run by the new CEO and board. Randy has very little involvement and he likes it that way.”

“Oh my god.” Liz shook her head. “I can’t believe that.”

Klaus nodded. “It was bad but Randy is in control now and he’s cut off contact with his father and mother. He’s happy and that is all that matters.”

“Okay, well enough about that. I want to know about you.”

Klaus smiled slowly and Liz could’ve sworn he looked a little uncomfortable. “What do you want to know?”

“Are you not accustomed to people asking questions about you?” Liz wondered.

“No, I’m not actually. I’m close to very few people and most of them have known me my whole life so they already know a lot about me.” Klaus shrugged. “Ask your questions.”

“It’s nothing scandalous.” Liz laughed. “What’s your favorite color?”

“Purple or blue.”

“Okay, what’s your favorite food?”

Klaus looked thoughtful. “I don’t know I don’t really have a favorite. I like chocolate and tea. I love oranges, or kiwi, or tomatoes. When I have a cold I like to eat chicken noodle soup or grilled cheese sandwiches.”

“Favorite movie?”

“Raiders of the Lost Ark.”

“Really?” Liz giggled. 

“Yes.” Klaus smiled at her giggle.

“It’s a good movie.” Liz agreed. “Least favorite movie?”

“Any of the Star Wars films.”

Liz gasped in outrage. “I think we might have to end this date now.”

Klaus rolled his eyes at her shock. “Look, they are excellent movies but when I was little Sebastian was obsessed with Star Wars. I think I’ve seen the original trilogy like a million times. So, while they are good movies, if I never see one again it’ll be too soon.”

“Aaron went through a star wars phase too but we only watched the movies once a year.”

“We watched one every day, Liz. Every day.”

“Okay, then you are forgiven for not liking Star Wars but just because I find you so cute.”

“Well then thank god for that.” Klaus smiled. Suddenly he frowned and reached into the breast pocket of his suit jacket. He glanced at his phone for a moment and Liz noticed that it was ringing. He ignored the call and placed the phone on the table. “Sorry about that. Continue.” 

“Have you ever broken a bone?” Liz asked.

“I broke my arm and collarbone when I was in fifth grade.”

“How?” 

“A hockey accident. I played when I was little. I stopped after that.” 

“What was the first job you ever had?” Liz wondered. She hoped he wasn’t annoyed by the questions. She just wanted to know everything about him.

“I worked in a library at age fifteen. I shelved books and worked my way up to desk clerk. I worked at that library until I graduated high school and went off to college.”

“When and who was your first kiss?” Liz grinned mischievously at the question.

Klaus scoffed and Liz could’ve sworn she saw him blush. “My first kiss happened when I was fourteen and her name was Margot. We had been friends most of our lives and she was over watching a movie with me and I kissed her. We’re still friends and see each other from time to time.”

“Okay.” Liz leaned forward. “While we’re on this train of questioning, when did you lose your virginity?”

“Is that a first date question?” Klaus laughed loudly.

“You don’t have to answer it. I’m just curious.” Liz smiled.

Klaus smirked at her and started playing with her fingers again. “We’ll come back to that. When and who was your first kiss?”

“I was fifteen and his name was Corey. We were at a birthday party and we were playing spin the bottle.”

“You played spin the bottle?” Klaus laughed.

“I did.”

Klaus’ phone vibrated on the table again and he frowned as he checked the caller id. He ignored the call again and turned his attention back to Liz.

“I had sex my junior year of high school and it was with my girlfriend at the time. I haven’t spoken to her in years.” Klaus answered Liz’s earlier question.

“Have you had any other girlfriends since then?”

“School kept me busy but I have had three others since then. I haven’t dated anyone in the last six months though. My schedule just didn’t allow it. Now that I’m not traveling as much it is easier and well, you make it worth it. Even if I was still busy I think I would try to date you.” 

Liz blushed at his words and tried to stamp down the fluttering in her chest. It was only their first date and she was falling for him so hard. 

Klaus surveyed her and raised an eyebrow in question. “What about you? Have you slept with anyone?”

“I have,” Liz answered slowly. “It was my senior year of high school and it was with Vincent. There hasn’t been any other boyfriends between him and you. A few dates, but no long-term relationships.”

Klaus’ phone rang again and he sighed in irritation as he looked at the caller id. “I need to take this. That is the fourth time in the last few minutes Elaine has called me and she never does this. I just need to make sure everything is okay. I’ll be right back.”

“Go ahead.” Liz smiled at him and Klaus kissed the back of her hand in apology. He got up from the table and walked out to the entrance of the restaurant. Liz saw him answer his phone and he looked irritated. He was listening to Elaine and he pinched the bridge of his nose before relaxing. He hung up the phone and gave Liz a small smile when he saw her watching him.

He came back inside and spoke to the hostess before coming back to the table. He kissed Liz as he passed her and Liz blinked up at him curiously. She wanted to know what was going on. Klaus sat back down and sighed.

“I’m going to have to cut our date short. Our food is almost ready so they are going to wrap it up for us.”

“Is everything okay?” Liz asked.

Klaus took a deep breath. “Everything is fine. Elaine is an OB/GYN. She’s not on call tonight but she has a high-risk patient that has gone into premature labor and the patient is scared and asking for her. Elaine is more than happy to go up to the hospital but she has Matthew at home with her. Sebastian is in a meeting and she can’t get a hold of him and my parents and her parents are at a benefit. She’s taking Matthew with her to the hospital and I’m going to meet her there and pick him up. He’ll come home with me until one of his parents can come get him. I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s fine.” Liz held his gaze. “I’m not about to get mad over something like this. I will never get mad at you for canceling plans if something is wrong. This is important. We can always go out another night.”

Klaus leaned across the table and kissed her suddenly. Liz smiled against his lips and touched his cheek when he pulled away.

“Thank you. I’ll take you home first and then I’ll go to the hospital.”

“Nonsense.” Liz waved her hand dismissively. “If you're taking him back to your apartment then it would be silly of you to make two trips to our building. I can just get a cab and go.”

“I feel really rude just putting you in a cab and sending you back to your apartment.”

“How about I just go with you, pick him up and then we can go back to our building? That way you won’t have to make unnecessary trips and I don’t have to leave you.”

“Are you sure?” 

“I’m sure. Let’s go.” 

Klaus settled the check and they got their food

#look who actually posted writing #wizardess heart #the modern au

[overheardatthecontinental]

I uploaded another chapter because the first was so short!  Please comment and make me feel validated.

John had always thought relationships were hard. Two people having to communicate and find common ground and connection. It just didn't seem worth the effort, especially in his world.

But Helen made it easy.

They fell quickly into a relationship, complete with shared meals and hand holding and pillow talk.

He learned that before Helen had coffee, she could barely form a coherent sentence. That she lived in high heels but tripped walking barefoot. That she had a handful of dainty tattoos that included a small daisy on her ankle, a sun on the inside of her middle finger, and a coffee bean just below her ear.

He learned that spring was her favorite season but she adored fall almost as much.

When he offered to take her apple picking, she had thrown her arms around him and kissed him nearly senseless. She made apple fritters and crisp and muffins for the cafe and he was given the privilege of helping and tasting.

That even after she showered, she still smelled vaguely of coffee.

And she had a collection of old books that rivaled his own.

Sometimes he imagined what it would be like to build more shelves in his personal library and mix their collections together the way her dresses and sweaters now hung with his suits.

It was too soon to discuss such things, however. The last thing he wanted to do was scare her off.

Not when he had her in his life and, most nights, in his bed.

What was most surprising, however, was her utter contentment in not knowing what he did for a living.

As far as her friends and employees knew, John was an independent contractor. Helen knew there was more to it. Her employees joked around calling him thr super spy but… even though they didn't talk about it, he knew that she knew there was more to it. 

On more than one occasion, he had shown up to dinner or to a date with unexplained cuts or bruises. Helen had said nothing of it but she began carrying around a first aid kit and kept it stocked with butterfly bandages and gauze.

She would assess him then tend to him, and then hold him.

And he loved her, wholly and completely.

He loved the way she favored cheap wine and how she fell asleep watching cooking shows. He loved that she insisted everything she serve either be local or fair trade. He loved the way she lit up when he picked her up off the ground. More than anything, he loved to earn her smile.

Hence why he spent half the morning, after Helen left for work, individually picking daisies at the flower shop down the street before heading to the shop.

He walked in, searching for Helen, but not seeing her behind the counter. So consumed in looking for her, he almost didn't notice the man walking in behind him with a wide, shit-eating grin.

"Hiya, John. Nice flowers."

John blinks, “Aurelio. What are you doing here?”

“Always notice you’re carrying the to-go cups from here. Figured I’d give it a try since you favor the joint so much. Now I’m wondering if it’s the coffee that’s bringing you here.”

He isn’t quite sure what to say to that but he isn’t able to say much because that’s when Aurelio spots it. The special board.

“What the hell is the Wick? John, do you have a coffee named after you?” Aurelio doesn’t leave him time to answer, narrowing his eyes and reading off, “Latte with dark chocolate and raspberry? Raspberry, John?”

John opens his mouth to respond just as Eve calls out loudly.

“Coffee’s ready, Super Spy.”

And John wishes he had been ten minutes earlier or ten minutes later and that Aurelio was not witnessing this.

Instead, John skips the line and grabs his coffee as Aurelio calls, “Super spy?”

John shoots him a look as he takes his coffee.

Eve sees the flowers and makes a loud, “Awww. Boss lady is out back dealing with a shipment. Let me go grab her.”

“If she’s busy, I’ll just put them in her office.” John says quickly.

“Nonsense! You know she’d want to see you.” And Eve disappears behind the counter.

John makes his way to the side so Jamie can finish taking the orders of the short queue and Aurelio steps out of line to follow him.

“What the hell is this place?” Aurelio asks, “Super spy?”

“I will give you a hundred coins if you leave right now and never mention this again.”

“Not on your life.” Aurelio says, completely in awe. He pulls out his cell phone and quickly snaps a shot of John with coffee and flowers.

“What the hell?” John hisses.

“I need photographic evidence of what is happening right now.”

“You don’t need shit.”

“I need an explanation.” Aurelio fires back, “I never see you without a coffee cup from this place so I decide to give it a try and find you here with flowers and a drink named after you? John, please, I will give you six new cars if you tell me what’s going on?”

And John is saved from needing to say anything as the door to the kitchen opens and Helen comes out.

Her dress today is a pale pink with sleeves that extend just to her elbow. Hours ago, it had been hiked up over her hips as he took her in the hallway before she left for work. Her hair is, as usual, held up by a pencil in a loose bun.

“Hi baby.” She greets, coming around the counter. Helen reaches up and wraps an arm around his neck and stands on her tiptoes to give him a kiss.

John hands her the flowers which she takes with a beaming smile and plants a kiss on his cheek. 

“You spoil me.” She says as John wraps an arm around her back. He is aware of Aurelio and the expressions his old ally is making but he has no idea what to say.

“And make the rest of us look bad.” Jamie calls over from where he’s making espresso. “I swear, Helen, we should get hazard pay for having to watch the two of you make eyes at each other all day. It’s so sweet, I swear it could make me sick.”

“I’ll take them being mushy over the months and months of pining any day.” Eve adds, “that was so much worse.”

And Aurelio is never going to let him live this down.

As he thinks it, Aurelio steps forward and offers a hand to Helen, “Hi, I’m John’s old friend Aurelio.”

And John could kill him. He had a lot of respect for Aurelio. He liked the man. He trusted the man, as much as he trusted anyone. But Aurelio finding Deja Brew might have been the worst thing that has ever happened to him, John muses. That includes dozens of stab wounds, gun shots, homeless years, and every other shitty thing that he has gone through.

Helen, being Helen, smiles and takes his hand, unwrapping her right arm from around John to shake Aurelio’s hand and the removal of her touch is enough to make John want to stab the mechanic.

But he doesn’t and he keeps his grip on Helen as she reaches forward.

“Hi, Aurelio. I’m Helen.”

“An absolute pleasure to meet you, Helen.” He looks over at Jamie, “And I would love to hear more about these months and months of pining.”

Helen rolls her eyes, “It wasn’t that bad--”

“Wasn’t that bad?” Jamie says, leaning forward, “I swear to christ, man, John came in for months before they started talking and we had to deal with months of them just staring at each other over the counters. Making eyes every damn day while Mister Tall, dark roast, and handsome would just--”

“I’m sorry,” Aurelio is grinning like a mad man. “Tall, dark roast, and handsome?”

“It’s one of the few nicknames for John that boss lady hasn’t vetoed. Other forbidden options included sugarless daddy,...”

“Jamie.” Helen warns.

“Aaaand, she signs my checks so I’m going to stop. But the magical day came when Helen got held up at gunpoint and John finally made a move so now life is good.”

John wonders if it’s possible to erase Aurelio’s mind of the past hour. Doc probably had some good meds somewhere that could do the trick. Or a bad concussion. Maybe an entire bottle of bourbon…

Aurelio looks like he’s about to say something and John can’t risk him saying anything. Quickly, he jumps in, “Weren’t you going to order a coffee, Aurelio?”

“I was.” Aurelio nods with a smile, “I was thinking about trying the Wick.”

Or maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to kill Aurelio. Sure, it was hard to find an honest mechanic but he’d gladly overpay for maintenance the rest of his life so long as he didn’t have to deal with this.

“Eve,” Helen says, “Get Aurelio a Wick and an apple muffin.” She turns to Aurelio with a smile, “John and I made the muffins on Saturday.”

And 聁urelio is beaming, utterly delighted at the timage of John Wick baking.

“Did you wear an apron?” Aurelio asks John, who promptly responds:

“I will kill you.”

Helen taps him on the chest, “Be nice!”

And he can’t deny her anything, even if it means playing nice with his asshole of a friend. Even as his friend is pushing every ounce of patience that John has to its limit.

Helen looks up at John, “I need to go finish moving the boxes into the deep freeze, but I’ll be out in just a few minutes.”

“I can help.”

“No, go sit down with your friend. It shouldn’t be more than five minutes.”

She reaches up and gives him a soft kiss that, even a month later, has his head reeling. And she turns back to the back, carrying her bouquet of daisies. 

“Wow.” Aurelio says.

John turns and walks to his usual table in the back. He sits down, coffee in hand, and Aurelio follows, taking the seat across from him.

“So, that’s your girl? She’s sweet.”

“She is.” John agrees.

“Not what I pictured you going for.”

“Oh?”

Aurelio shakes his head, “I always pictured you for the femme fatale type.”

And John snorts. Because there is nothing to say to that. Bad girls had never been his thing. He had too much in common with them, too many of the same weaknesses. But then, good girls had never been his thing either. Because he was far too different from them.

Helen was as good as it got and she probably certainly fell towards the good girl end of the spectrum, but she was so much more than that. She was kind and sparing in her judgement. She was sweet but not weak. 

Not too long ago, a fight nearly broke out in her shop when two patrons had each claimed that the other pushed them in line. There was some shoving and John was ready to stand up and interfere when Helen had marched in, got between them, and smiled.

He had never seen anything like her kindness but all it took was a smile and they were apologizing to one another and the rest of the patrons.

“I take it I’m wrong?” Aurelio says at John’s reaction.

John says nothing, noting that Eve is making her way around the counter with a cup of coffee and a small plate with a muffin. He waits until she drops it off and says a quick thank you to her.

“No problem, super spy.”

“Yes.” John says when Eve is back behind the counter, “You’re wrong.”

Aurelio nods, carefully, a smile on his face as he does so, “I gotta say, her staff are killing me with these nicknames. Sugarless Daddy? Super spy?”

“The latter came from the day Jamie referred to. It was just before closing and Helen and I were alone in the shop. Someone came in, with a gun, to rob her and I… interfered.”

“Meaning he’s six-feet-under?”

“He is now.”

Because, no, John hadn’t been willing to kill in front of Helen. She didn’t need to see that or experience that side of him. But he was going to be damned to let that man walk around after he made bail.

John had followed him home and used the man’s own gun to shoot him. The gun he had threatened Helen with after it was conveniently misfiled by Jimmy.

Of course, Helen did not know. Nor did he have any intention of telling her.

Aurelio nods and takes a bite of his apple muffin, “Damn, man! You made this?”

John shrugs, “I helped.”

Meaning he did exactly what Helen told him to do as they slowly turned his kitchen into Armageddon. He had been in war zones less chaotic then a kitchen when Helen was baking. 

He also found out that flour was not as easy to remove from hair as he had thought.

And that… he loved that about her. He loved that she was dominating in the kitchen and that, when he got in her way, she used her ingredients as projectiles.

He loved that she spiked her coffee with irish cream and her apple cider with bourbon on days when she didn’t work.

He loved that he now had six kinds of coffee in his kitchen and Helen would randomly spit out facts about their origin or the process used to roast the beans.

He loved that she made him taste everything, while looking at him to gauge for any and every reaction.

And he couldn’t lose any of it.

Not the slowly growing pile of heels in his bedroom or the vast amounts of sugar that now resided in his kitchen cabinets. 

Not Helen falling asleep on him watching ridiculous cooking shows or waking up with her completely tangled around him.

“You can’t tell anyone about her, Aurelio, I’m serious. I want to keep Helen as far away from that world as I can.”

“From our world, you mean? You live in that world, John. How do you expect to keep her away from it?”

“I exist in the underworld when I’m there. And when I’m not, I’m here.”

“You can’t walk in two worlds, John.”

He can’t leave the underworld but he would die before he left Helen.

“I don’t have much of a choice.” John says quietly. “I’m not letting her go. And I have to keep her safe, which means that you can’t go telling anyone about this. About her.”

Aurelio shifts uncomfortably. “It might be a little late for that.”

“Meaning what?”

“Meaning I already sent Marcus a picture of the drink board special and of you holding daisies, John.”

Of course he had. 

That meant that Aurelio knew about Helen and Marcus would soon guess that John had a woman. That John Wick, a man often compared to a priest for his lengths of celibacy, had fallen hard for a woman beyond his reach.

Helen emerges from the back at that moment and walks to the back. There are no extra chairs but Helen simply chose to perch herself on John’s lap, leaning against the back wall. She wraps an arm around his shoulders and gives him a gentle kiss on his cheek.

“All good?” John asks and she nods, her fingers rubbing his neck gently.

John relaxes under her touch and inhales the scent of sweet coffee.

And just like that, he is home.

#endlessly bitter #john wick #incorrect john wick #john x helen wick #helen x john wick #helen wick #helen wick deserved better #endlessly yours #overheard at the continental #john wick fanfic #john wick fanfiction

[2isted-chocol8]

Heeeey💓💓 do you have fic recs for zackray??

I do!! And like, a lot! So prepare yourself! Though not all are *explicit* Zackray, they all show their relationship in different ways! These are a lot of my favorites in no particular order:

Oneshots / few chapters

Last resort by sukikobold - Complete

Now that they’re out of the building and the cops have (mostly) given up chasing them, Zack and Ray discuss what they could do for income. Unfortunately, they have very different opinions on what is acceptable.

I like the characterization in this one, as well as their interactions. I had a few laughs, and the second chapter is quite sweet despite the circumstances.

Graveyard shift by reaperzack - Complete

Rachel is pretty sure the guy who always comes in around three in the morning to buy a large coffee with a triple-shot of espresso is a serial killer. He also tips ridiculously well, though, so she doesn’t really care about things that aren’t her business.

This one is hilarious and one of my favorites. I read it again from time to time, and had a good laugh. Is a simple au that works. 

Touch Starved by redawilo - Complete

Although it wasn’t too surprising when she thought about it, Zack had been oddly familiar with Ray ever since he rescued her from the rehab center. There was nothing indecent about it, of course, but she was starting to wonder if he was capable of not being in physical contact with her. Not that she minded.

If you want a good dose of fluff, this is your fic.

Worth a Thousand Words by sukikobold - Complete

Zack had a lot of fun playing with that camera on B3. He figured it might be even better now that there weren’t any more psychos trying to kill him. But there’s one thing he absolutely refuses to take a picture of.

This one is so short but so sweet! It explores a different face of Zack and I loved it so much.

Outcasts of the abyss by Gottemorto - Complete

“Teach me what it’s like to be human." Neither of them were human in the slightest - but out in that vast ocean where they were nothing but outcasts in the eyes of their own kind, a strange promise shall form between an apathetic mermaid and a monstrous land-dweller.

This is a mermaid AU that strangely works. Also the writing is A+

A Little White Christmas Lie by MarshmallowBirb - Complete

It’s Christmas Eve and Zack and Ray have a little bit of money to have their Christmas meal at a buffet. The catch is, they have to pretend to be married to get the best price.

I remember I laughed with this one, and it is really a fun situation to observe. Liked it!

That Which We Call A Rose by kiichandesu - Complete

“ Isaac Foster ”That’s the first name he’s ever given. He doesn’t know where it came from and what it means, but he quickly grows to hate it. A study of the many labels Zack is given, what he thinks of them, and how he lives with them.

I’m a sucker for this type of fics and this one delivers well. Really well.

Moondrop by Sasaria - Incomplete

“There have been sightings of pirate ships lately. Especially that pirate ship, the one that only appears on nights with a full blue moon. Have you heard of it? It’s called the Angel of Death…” Rachel Gardner’s never believed in fantastical pirate stories, but one stormy night, while aboard her parent’s cargo ship, she’s kidnapped by a sinister pirate named Zack. “I needed a token, a sacrifice,” he says with a glint in his eye. She can smell death on him as he touches the knife’s blade to her throat. “You fit the bill perfectly.”

It has only one chapter so far, but the writing is amazing and I’m a sucker for pirate au’s. 100% recommend.

After the Story Drabbles by Redawilo - Complete

A collection of drabbles that are more things I wanted to get out of my head than actual fics.

Four short chapters, sweet, and full of fluff. What more can you wish for?

I Love You by reicherufosuta - Complete

Zack can’t sleep. He thinks about the truth he could be unaware of.

Really short, really sweet, and completely worth the read.

Multichapters / Long fics

Between Silence and Sound by Sasaria- Incomplete, 23k words

Having escaped the strange building, Zack and Rachel steal a car and remain on the run for several months after. It’s on long stretches of road and under diamond-bright stars that they realize there are so many things to be discovered about one another. —「 Road Trip · Nonlinear Fic · Character Study 」

For the love of god read this fic. It is REALLY good and I love how the author makes the characters feel real, and the writing is AMAZING. Can’t recommend this one enough.

Quiet like a fight by shanatical - Incomplete, 70k words

The odyssey of Rachel Gardner, who isn’t actually as Quirkless as she once thought and has zero compunctions against using that to get what she wants. Being stuck in Japan is a bit more of a hurdle than a death sentence and a high-security institution, but she and Zack have dealt with steeper odds, she’s pretty sure. Plus Ultra, as they say.

Okay, this is not a Zackary fic, and is a my hero academia crossover. But it’s stupidly good, I’ve read it twice and since it’s my rec list I’m putting it here. The writing is really good and all the characters are amazingly written too. Go read it.

Scaring darkness away by LinkedSoul - Incomplete, 250k words

There’s a corpse into Zack’s dumpster - his usual hideout when he’s chased. And he’s chased, so no choice, he hides into the dumpster with the corpse. Who turns out to be a living girl called Rachel Gardner, who comes from a fucked up place like him. He should have killed her before, but he thought she was a corpse and now it’s too late: he’s already beginning to get attached to that brat. What a mistake. It might as well be Zack’s most beautiful mistake.

This one is pretty known and has a slow start, but I’ve been enjoying the latest chapters more and more. A really nice au that explores Zack’s and Ray’s relationship. Really good if you want a really long read!

NSFW (because of course) 

(I’m really picky with these lol)

A Perfect Life by MarshmallowBirb - Complete

After a night out, Zack attempts to take a bath. But Ray isn’t going to let him take it alone. 

Okay, I’m gonna be sincere- This one’s my favorite nsfw one. The characterization is amazing, the writing is really good, and I enjoy the way it’s handled. It’s one of those that I re-read from time to time, so, I really recommend it.

Ecstasy of the damned by Marshmallowbirb- Complete

Rachel Gardner has been the only one able to see a certain black-winged angel for as long as she could remember. When her parents shipped her off to a convent, she thought she’d never see him again. But she might have underestimated the lengths Zack would go to be reunited with her.

I’m really picky with explicit works, but this one did the trick for me. Also I’m a sucker for fallen angels au’s so there’s that.

Pillow Talk by ShipperTrsh - Complete

Their oath still replays in his head from time to time, he knows damn well he isn’t a liar, but he feels more at peace next to her. The timing never feels right. Zack wants to keep seeing more and more of her expressions. He doesn’t know where he’s going with this – whatever this is – with her, but he just keeps running with it for as long as he can. God he’s never felt so relieved and disorientated at the same time.

This one is sweet. Like really really sweet. So sweet it will give you diabetes. And you won’t regret it.

Authors with various Satsuten related works that I enjoy and u should definitely check and see if they have something of your liking

Sukikobold

Linkedsoul

Khymer

Reicherufosuta

Reaperzack

2isted_chocol8 (yes, I will shamelessly put myself in here because yes)

Anddddd I think those are most of them. Have a nice read!

#satsuriku no tenshi

[not-close-to-straight]

Poly, Jolly Christmas! (Final)

CHRISTMAS MASTERLIST HERE

Enjoy!

************************

“God I hate the mall.” Bruce dodged a group of teenage girls who were too busy giggling to notice they nearly ran him over. “If those girls were old enough to have wings I could have smothered just now.”

“Just do what Natasha does when she goes shopping.” Bucky scowled at a Beta who was unfortunate enough to stumble into his path. “What does Clint call it, her murder glare? Works for me, tend to keep people out of my way.”

“Okay but you—“ Bruce skirted another group and got back to Bucky's side. “You and Natasha both have natural frowns. My best annoyed face isn’t even close to enough to get people to move. Look at you, you’ve got a perimeter of six feet around you and you aren’t even waving those wings around.”

“I got a natural frown, Bruce?” Bucky frowned exaggeratedly. “Seems sorta mean to say.”

“You’ve got a good smile too, Buck.” Bruce leaned in to bump their shoulders, just a light touch before he moved away again. “But keep scowling anyway because we’re making great time through this crowd.”

“So. Thor.” Bucky flicked his wings out warningly when an Alpha looked at him for too long, drawn by the sweet scent of Omega and curious about the wingless one who accompanied him. “He’s been spending lots of time with you.”

“Some time.” Bruce hedged, the very tips of his ears turning pink. “Not as much as he spends with Tony and Steve though.” He sent the Omega a curious look. “How do you feel about that? About Tony being another Alpha, with Steve scenting like another Alpha?”

“M’alright.” Bucky scratched at his neck uncomfortably. “Since we’re bonded Stevie always scents like our Alpha so as long as I can scent that it’s okay. Same with Tony.”

“And your heightened emotions and sense of smell because of your changing condition?” Bruce kept the question clinical and Bucky appreciated it. “Has Thor being around affected that? Are you feeling more settled? More anxious?”

“More anxious.” Bucky turned with Bruce and headed towards a specialty gadget store before continuing. “You’re changing th’subject though. You seen the way that Alpha looks at you? Like he wants to wrap you up tight and never let you go.”

“An Alpha like Thor wants something I can’t give him.” Bruce picked up a gadget with enough buttons to make Bucky's head spin. “Eventually he won’t be fascinated by my science anymore and then he’ll realize I really can’t do—“ a vague motion. “— like the rest of the family does. Then he’ll stick with just Tony and Steve.”

“Tony didn’t.” Bucky was almost whispering now, not wanting to embarrass Bruce by talking about it for too long. “He loves ya even though you don’t do all that. He loved me even when I couldn’t do any of it. Why would Thor be different? Give him a chance.”

“I want to.” Bruce allowed himself the tiniest smile. “I like him.

Bucky moved closer then, slowly to give Bruce the chance to pull away, and pushed his forehead into Bruce’s in an affectionate gesture. “He likes you too.”

Later at lunch, after Bruce had bought some fancy science thing guaranteed to make their Alpha smile, he watched Bucky start in on his second sandwich and asked, “Right about eight weeks now?”

Bucky swallowed hard and shook his head, touching his stomach for a split second. “Ten and a half.”

“Tony hasn’t said anything about it to anyone, not even me when we talk in the lab.”

“I asked him not to.” Bucky put his sandwich down, wings drooping and blue eyes miserable. “I know everyone knows already, and I know our Alpha wants to celebrate but I just—“ he shook his head. “Not yet.”

“Why not?” Bruce prompted, thinking he already knew the answer. “Why can’t Tony celebrate it?”

“What if I’m broken from HYDRA?” Bucky whispered. “And something happens? It would break Tony’s heart. Would break my heart. I’d never be able to fix that.” 

“None of us are broken.” Bruce said firmly, almost angrily. “None of us are broken, least of all you. Not after all the healing you’ve done in the last year. And if you’re worried about anything happening, or anything going wrong, I’m the best doctor in the world, Bucky. I have seven PhDs and I will put all of them to use for you.” 

“You have seven PhD’s In science.” Bucky pointed out.

“But I’m brilliant in everything.” Bruce countered. “And if I can’t do it, our Alpha and I can build a machine that can. You have nothing to worry about.” It was rare for Bruce to initiate physical contact, but he did now, reaching out and taking Bucky's hand and holding tight until the Omega smiled again, black and silver wings lifting hopefully.

“Letting the family talk about it, letting our Alpha celebrate with you—“ he raised his eyebrows. “That will go a long way towards helping your anxiety. Being alone makes everything seem worse, you know? Trust me, I isolated myself for a long time.”

“You’re confident.” Bucky noted. “More so in the last few days.”

“Yes well, apparently in Asgard I’d be very highly sought after.” Bruce raised his drink in a faux cheers. “And you’re changing the subject.”

“Yeah, I know I am.” Bucky finished his food and stood up to throw the bag in the trash. “I’ll be right back, alright. Wait for me.”

Bruce waited for almost ten minutes, and Bucky finally reappeared, walking fast and carrying a tiny, yellow bag. The name of a prominent baby store was emblazoned on the front and it looked impossibly delicate clutched in Bucky’s metal fist. 

“You’ll make our Alpha cry with that.” was Bruce’s only comment, but he was smiling proudly. 

“So will the popsicle picture frame.” Bucky retorted. “Maybe you should buy him a box of tissues to go along with that fancy gadget of yours.” 

“That’s probably a good idea.”

*******************

*******************

“Pepper there are thirteen pages here.” Rhodey stared down at the notepad in disbelief. “Thirteen pages! This is thirteen pages of a color coded checklist to make sure that every present is beneath the tree according to certain color schematics because Tony needs everything in a pattern?” 

“Mm-hmm. That’s exactly what it is.” Unfazed by the size of the list, Pepper was already cataloging gifts and moving them under the tree. “Tony likes the presents to be a certain way, you know that.”

“Thirteen pages.” The Alphas royal blue wings flickered in annoyance. “Thirteen pages of gifts?”

“Oh, and this is the list of my presents.” Pepper dug out a sealed envelope from her purse. “I’m not allowed to organize these presents so you have to do it.”

“This is an entire page. Front and back.”

“He’s your best friend, James.” The pretty Omega teased. “Stage an intervention if you think his shopping is getting out of control!”

“Yes, he’s my best friend but he lives with a literal compound full of enablers!” The Colonel groaned and began sorting gifts to get to Pepper’s. “A literal compound full of enablers and you are the queen of them all.”

“Careful, Colonel Rhodes.” Pepper fluffed her wings out at him. “Asking me to tell our family to deny our Alpha the chance to spoil us is tantamount to mutiny of the highest order.”

“Mutiny of the highest order.” He repeated, and when Pepper giggled, he leaned over and kissed her cheek. “If you didn’t have me so tightly wound around your little finger I might take offense to that. You can’t accuse a Colonel of mutiny.”

“I won’t accuse you of things if you do your duty, soldier.” Pepper raised her eyebrows challengingly, and with a little more grumbling, Rhodey went back to his list.

“Thor’s changed the family dynamic, hasn’t he?” the Alpha asked after another minute. “With his interest in Tony and the others?”

“He has changed things, yes.” Pepper pushed an assortment of small boxes into Natasha’s pile. “But it all seems positive. “Tony has a new toy to play with--” Rhodey choked and she smothered another giggle. “--I haven’t seen Steve this smitten maybe ever, and Bruce is both shocked over Thor’s interest in him and flattered to death which has resulted in him blushing and smiling more than he ever has. Clint has someone else to tell his terrible jokes to, and Natasha got herself thoroughly thrashed the other day when she challenged our resident demi-god to a wrestling match.”

“That’s a good thing?”

“Well it took her down a notch or two.” Another package for Clint’s pile. “And then Thor rubbed her feet and sang her Asgardian lullabies when she fell asleep on the couch, it was really very sweet.”

“Hm.” Rhodey picked up a oddly shaped package with Pepper’s name on it and shook it curiously. “I spoke with Agent Coulson earlier this morning. He says Thor has a brother.”

Pepper’s green eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Oh he does, does he?”

“Apparently the most reliable descriptions feature a tall Omega with long hair and green eyes.” James waggled his eyebrows mischievously. “Sounds like Tony’s type. Tall, long hair and green eyes? An Omega? Maybe I’ll set up an introduction.”

“Colonel Rhodes, don’t you dare.” she warned. “My enabling of our Alpha stops at letting him buy Christmas presents, I refuse to let him acquire another demi-god, much less one that’s an Omega.”

“I don’t know Pep, two gods in the family, rampant polyamourous relationships, something of a harem of Omegas. That’s half the qualification to register as a religious organization, isn’t it? We should turn the upper living room into a chapel.”

Pepper’s squawk of outrage was covered by a kiss from the Alpha, his wings surrounding her in warmth for a long moment.

“Everyone teases me about us being a cult just so we can get the tax exemptions.” she murmured against his mouth. “None of you will be laughing when I make you take a vow of celibacy, hm?”

*******************

*******************

Christmas Eve, and the family was gathered in the common room to dance to the over loud music, eat as much food as they possibly could and drink literal gallons of Christmas punch, thoroughly spiked with enough alcohol to make even Steve’s eyes widen at the first taste.

Tony had flown the twins in from Sokovia, making sure their plane landed at the same time as Yinsens as he came from D.C., and for the first since Tony was rescued from Afghanistan, the entire family was under one roof.

Sam grabbed his Alpha and spun him out on the dance floor, showing off those famous Wilson dance moves while Tony whooped and cheered and tried to match him step for step. Clint took Natasha out as well, but their dance was much slower, wings mingling as they shared kisses and quiet words and laughed over Sam’s antics.

Bucky sat on the couch with Steve perched protectively nearby, his golden wings covering Bucky’s shoulders. This was their first real Christmas together since before the war, and they shared memories of getting oranges in their stockings as kids, the year Steve’s parents passed and he had moved in with the Barnes’ for the holiday before he and Bucky moved out to get their own place, of the year they had to burn the chairs just to stay warm.

“Missed a whole lotta Christmas’s together, didn’t we?” Bucky said sadly and Steve pressed a kiss first to Bucky’s temple, then his cheek, and when the other Omega looked up, square on the lips.

“Never gonna miss another one.” he whispered. “Our Alpha will make sure we’re always home for Christmas with each other. The entire family.” and Bucky smiled, leaning his head into Steve’s shoulder, his hand resting lightly on his still flat midsection.

“Bucky is...” Yinsen caught the movement and made a vague gesture over his own stomach. “Yes?”

“He isn’t ready to talk about it.” Bruce said quietly, but he nodded in confirmation. “I am monitoring him very closely, making sure all is well and so far everything is perfectly normal, perfectly healthy.”

“That is good to hear.” Approvingly, the older Beta folding his hands as if in prayer. “After so much grief, he and his Alpha deserve good news. And the tall one?” A nod towards Thor. “Where did Tony find him?”

“Would you believe New Mexico?”

“After the things I have seen your Alpha do, I would believe anything.” Yinsen reached out and took a cup from eggnog from Pietro’s hand as he passed and the silver haired kid protested, “Ded, I am an adult! I am allowed to drink!”

“It’s not your age that’s a problem, brother.” Wanda flicked her brother on the ear as she passed, her odd wings snapping up and out in a gesture of respect to both Bruce and Yinsen. “You act like an asshole when you get the slightest bit tipsy.”

“Better than getting witchy and bossy!” He retorted, electric blue wings bursting from his shoulders and flaring out in annoyance. “Like you do!”

“Vnuchata.” Yinsen smiled broadly and brought them in for a hug, his wings reaching out to try and cover both of them. “I have missed you. Even your squabbles.”

“We’ve missed you, grandfather.” Wanda kissed both his cheeks. “So happy to be spending Christmas together with our family.”

“The children Maximoff-Barton-Stark!” Clint came over with Natasha to break up the moment and the twins both shouted in excitement, throwing arms and wings around the Omega and signing faster than they were even talking, speaking over each other to try and catch Clint up on everything that had happened since they had last been in the states.

“I have my hearing aids in.” Clint said/ signed with a loud laugh, but it didn’t stop the twins hands from moving at a near blur as they dragged him and Natasha over to the couch to talk and hug.

Yinsen took the chance to slip away to speak with Tony, wrapping his arms around the Alpha and pushing their foreheads together for a long moment, and while they were occupied, Thor took Yinsen’s place at Bruce’s side. He stood close but not too close, heavy wings spreading out enough for Bruce to feel the warmth but not be smothered.

Bruce didn’t say anything at all, but after almost a minute, he moved close enough that the very tips of Thor’s primaries brushed his back and Thor just smiled over it.

Bucky noticed of course, and elbowed Steve hard enough to hurt before inclining his head towards the pair. Clint saw it next and poked at Natasha so she would notice, and Sam saw it over Tony’s head, jostling his Alpha lightly so he would look and see.

“Do you ever get the feeling we’re being stared at?” Bruce asked and Thor shrugged, “Men like you and I should be used to being stared at. Why wouldn’t they stare at us?” 

Bruce laughed quietly, and inched a tiny bit closer.

*******************

*******************

It was nearly midnight before the party started to wind down, and Tony stood on the outskirts of the living room watching his family as they snuggled together.

Pietro was passed out with his head in Natasha’s lap, Wanda still signing and talking with Clint, sharing a cup of tea. Bucky was drowsy, tiring easily these days and needing extra cuddles so Sam was working his fingers through the Omega’s long hair and murmuring quietly to lull him to sleep. Steve was curled up on one side of Thor, pressed into the Alpha’s side and smiling at something Bruce said from the other side of Thor, nothing but their knees touching on that end. Pepper had exchanged her high heels for fuzzy slippers and sipped at hot chocolate as she finished up a few emails that had to be completed before Christmas day, pressing at the controls of the Compound to bring the lights and music all down to a more manageable level

“Tony.” Colonel Rhodes stepped into the living room and Tony opened his wings in welcome, the other Alpha’s dark blue feathers opening as well. “What are you doing out here, shouldn’t you be in there cuddled up with the family?”

“Sometimes it’s nice just to watch and see everyone so happy.” Tony folded his arms and leaned against the door jam. “I didn’t know if you’d make it tonight, how’s everything at the Pentagon? Will they survive without War Machine there to keep the riffraff away?” 

“The Pentagon is going to hell like it always is.” Rhodey shrugged out of his jacket and tossed it into a nearby chair. “And you know I wouldn’t miss Christmas Eve, Tony. We’ve been celebrating Christmas together since you were fourteen.”

“Yeah, I know.” Tony smiled at the memory. “I know.”

“You seem sad.” Rhodey peered a little closer at the Alpha. “Are you okay?” 

“Not sad.” Tony denied. “Maybe a little overwhelmed. There were a lot of years there that I thought you were my only family, Rhodey. Only person in the world that loved me after I lost my parents, only one who I was ever going to be able to count on.” he pressed a hand to the arc reactor and Rhodey frowned over the motion, hating the reminder of all his friend had been through. “And then Pepper came along and all the sudden I had twice as many people who loved me.”

“And now?” Tony stretched his wings out as if he were trying to encompass the entire room. “Now every year my family grows just a little bit more and every day I think I can’t get happier but what do you know?” his smile grew into a grin when he saw Pepper finally put down her phone and curl up next to Natasha, burrowing under the pretty Beta’s wings and closing her eyes. “Every day I get just a little bit happier.”

Rhodey slung an arm around his oldest friends shoulders, hauled Tony in close for a hug. “Merry Christmas Tones.”

Tony sounded a little choked up when he answered, “Merry Christmas, Rhodey.”

***********************

SAY SOMETHING ABOUT THE FIC!

#ncts fics #christmas #poly!avengers #polyamourous #tony stark #steve rogers #bucky barnes #clint barton #natasha romanov #pepper potts #james rhodes #bruce banner #thor #wanda maximoff #pietro maximoff #ho yinsen

[amp-age-blog]

Welcome to the ICE age

When the first electric cars started quietly and conveniently moving people from A to B about 130 years ago, who would have imagined that in 2018 we would be grappling with the challenge of having to find an alternative? Generations have become accustomed to driving battery electric vehicles (BEV) but today, as we run out of lithium, we are on the cusp of a dramatic transition with more and more people opting for cars powered by internal combustion engines (ICE).

In this article, I find out from the experts the real facts behind shifting from the AMPage – the era of BEV - to the ICEage – the advent of the internal combustion engine. What does this mean for us as consumers, for society, and for our planet?

Consumer acceptance To understand what the coming ICEage means for consumers, I spoke to Bob Thomson, the smartly-dressed and avuncular Director of Marketing for Anderson-Morrison Motors NZ .

“I have real concerns about consumer acceptance of ICE-age cars,” explains Bob in his office at the Moorhouse Avenue dealership of the global automative giant Anderson & Morrison Motors. “Are people going to want the smell and inconvenience of refuelling with volatile and potentially carcinogenic liquid fuel? We’re told the risk when refuelling is very low but still it’s a concern many people have.”

Bob goes on, “But it gets worse. I had a customer in the showroom last week and she wasn’t the first to ask me about the combustion gases from ICEage cars. I explained that it’s mostly harmless nitrogen, water and carbon dioxide. After all, nitrogen already makes up 78% of the air around us, we all exhale carbon dioxide, and we’re made up of more than 50% water already. But she’d done her homework and she asked me about carbon monoxide, nitrous oxide, hydrocarbons and particulates.”

Bob sighs, shifts in his seat uncomfortably and glances out of the window. “She’d read that these could be bad for your health and asked me where the gases were expelled from the car. ‘It’s fine’, I said, ‘they escape from a pipe at the back of the vehicle so you don’t breathe them in’. ‘What about the people in the car behind you?’ she asked.”

As our brief interview wraps up, Bob explains that after safety concerns, the next issue for customers considering buying an ICEage car is often the vibration. “As a manufacturer, AMM has put a lot of work into dampening the noise and shaking from the explosions and reciprocating metal parts that are an unavoidable part of this new technology. I’m sure that as ICEage cars become more common place people will get used to the unexpected noise at start-up and the cars will get quieter. For instance, in some of the premium models coming onto the market it’s still going to be possible to take a hands-free call while driving – just like you do today in your BEV. The sound proofing technology will trickle down to more budget models in time.”

As I left Bob he was taking a call from the dealership insurers, anxious to discuss the risk to customers and staff of carbon monoxide poisoning in the showroom.

Impact on your wallet To get a different take on the possible implications of consumers moving away from the conventional BEV fleet, I caught up with Sophie Matthews, Professor of Economics at Christchurch University in Canterbury. Sophie explains, “Like most working kiwi families, we budget for the big expense in owning an BEV: battery replacement. Battery degradation is now so well-understood and predictable that most households can budget for replacement years in advance. But we expect to see much more spent on unplanned maintenance of ICEage cars along with a much higher turnover of ICEage car ownership as reliability concerns kick-in once the warranty expires. Overall, our projections suggest that car ownership costs will climb steeply and, for some, this will cause real financial hardship.”

Another potential kicker for consumers is the degradation in efficiency of internal combustion engines over time. “Most new ICEage cars are guaranteed for up to 100,000km but there’s no escaping the fact that from the moment you drive off the car yard the efficiency and performance starts to decline. Today, consumers can easily follow the degradation of their BEV battery by just looking at the dashboard. But it’s much harder to measure efficiency loss in ICEage cars without the expense and complexity of a rolling road test rig. It’s like the boiling frog,” says Sophie, “if you heat the water slowly, the frog doesn’t notice and jump out. With ICEage cars, consumers will be buying more and more fuel and releasing more and more emissions just to travel the same distance but they probably won’t notice.”

Community considerations Sophie, who grew up in central Otago, has been modelling the likely economic impact of the ICEage on rural communities around New Zealand. “There will be winners and losers,” she explains. “Many small towns and settlements in New Zealand have grown up around their BEV charging points. In the early days of BEV, the relatively limited range meant that travellers had to stop and charge up quite frequently. That’s why we have the amazing network of awesome cafes and eateries distributed so evenly around our countryside that we enjoy today. People can - and do - stop just about anywhere to charge up their car and grab a coffee or lunch.”

Sophie’s research assistant hands us both a flat white before Sophie continues. “What many people haven’t realised yet is that you need a heck of a lot more capital to build a refuelling station for an ICEage car – large bunded tanks, pumps, safety gear. Most small communities won’t be able to afford one. Combine that with the fact that ICEage cars will have a longer range from the outset, and it seems highly likely that refuelling points will only be installed in areas of relatively high population density. Given the capital required, I think we’ll see a lot of ICEage refuelling points owned by the multi-national corporations that control the rest of the fuel supply chain and it’s hard to see how small businesses and communities won’t lose out. They’ll be bypassed in economic terms if not in terms of the environmental impacts of ICEage cars.”

Geopolitics in the ICEage We’re joined in Sophie’s sunny office by her colleague Tim Daniels, Professor of Geopolitics, and Jessie, his guide dog. Jessie settles quietly next to Tim as we exchange pleasantries about the weather and the state of the All Blacks squad. “ICEage cars are going to impact massively on global politics,” says Tim. “As the fleet of ICEage cars expands we’ll see exponential growth in demand for petroleum products derived from refining crude oil to fuel and lubricate them. Global reserves of crude oil are concentrated in some of the world’s most politically unstable regions such as the Middle East. Instead of having a transport system based on distributed energy generation, we’re going to become increasingly dependent on a small number of states that can supply global demand. We will see colossal shifts in the distribution of wealth and power.”

Grid anxiety Around the developed world, electricity generation and distribution has evolved in step with BEV. We take for granted the resilience that comes from a power grid that can draw from BEV batteries at times of peak demand and top them up again overnight when demand is lower. I talked to Gridworks Chief Operating Officer Juliet Mackenzie to find out more about the implications of our transport fleet shifting to ICEage vehicles.

With a high speed delivery Juliet explains, “Electricity demand is very spikey through the day and through the year. For decades now the electricity supply companies have offered consumers attractive deals to sell ‘surplus’ charge from EVs back in to the grid for example in the early evening after returning from work. Other people minimise their exposure to peak rate charges by drawing on spare charge in their BEV battery. Either way, we’ve become extremely adept at utilising the megawatts of distributed power sitting in BEV around the country to help smooth out the spikes.”

Juliet pauses and leads me across her office to a map of New Zealand’s proposed grid upgrade. “It may seem counterintuitive that the shift from BEV to ICEage cars is going to put more strain on the grid but that is the case,” says Juliet. “Although total annual demand for electricity will diminish, we’re going to have to invest in generation capacity and distribution infrastructure to manage the spikes. That means more power stations, more pylons and ultimately a less stable grid than we’ve enjoyed in the past. And to make matters worse, to reliably provide power for the spikes we’ll need generation capacity that is independent of weather and can come online rapidly. That means gas-fired power stations.”

The new energy distribution paradigm Over decades we’ve grown used to access to the power for our vehicles being distributed via the electricity grid to charging points at our shops, community centres, cafes and even our homes. With the advent of the ICEage, liquid petroleum products will become a much more siginficant part of the overall energy mix in New Zealand. To find out what this will mean in practice I headed to Hagley Park one frosty Christchurch morning to meet up with Brent Smith, the owner of a new petroleum start-up called Scottish Petrol and a keen early morning jogger. Brent was visiting New Zealand from his base in Inverness, where he has been raising capital for a new type of offshore installation for drilling for crude oil.

“Right now we’re in a wee bit of a chicken-and-egg situation,” says Brent. “No-one wants to invest in drilling technology until the refineries to process the crude oil are in place. The refineries won’t start springing up until the international super-tanker fleet – needed to shift crude from the oil fields to the refineries - has grown. Aye and once that’s all in place, we’ll need to see investment in the retail distribution network. Globally there are one or two countries looking at reticulated systems for distributing refined fuel but in most cases there’ll need to be fleets of road tankers. This is great for the emerging petroleum sector as these vehicles in themselves will create demand for fuel. It’s exciting times laddie.”

With that, Brent promptly stands up, shakes my hand and continues his morning jog around the park.

Climate change Much has been said about the potential impact of the arrival of the internal combustion engine on the planet. We know from use of jet-powered ships and aircraft that the gases produced from burning liquid fossil fuels can lead to increased greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and contribute to global warming. To find out the latest on this hot topic, I tracked down Dr Richard West in his laboratory at the New Zealand Insitute for Climate Science in Wellington.

Richard has been studying climate change for 30 years and has no doubt that burning fossil fuels is a major contributing factor. “We’ve been modelling climate change for decades now and have seen the effect of using fossil fuels in jet-engined planes and boats. If Joseph Etienne Lenoir and Nikolaus Otto had come up with the internal combustion engine before the likes of Robert Anderson and William Morrison got busy making BEV, we might all have been driving ICEage cars for the past 100 years. Thankfully that’s not the case or we’d have gigatonnes more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere than we already do today.”

Given that the world is running out of lithium, what alternatives are there except flipping the fleet to ICE? Richard explains, “People won’t give up their cars so we’re going to have to take this epic gamble that massively increasing use of fossil fuels isn’t going to have the impact that all our climate models say it will.”

Sadly, the impact of this seismic shift in our transport system won’t only effect the global climate system. At a local level, the air that we breathe will diminish in quality with a range of noxious gases and particulates likely to accumulate especially in urban areas. Rachel Goldstein – mother of lively 3 year old twins Erin and Alexi - lives in California, where state incentives for saving lithium by shifting to ICEage cars have been in place now for several years. I caught up with her by phone. “As more and more of my neighbours have ditched their BEV for ICEage cars the place has gotten way more noisy and polluted. From 5am every morning you can hear engines firing up and some days the smog by midday is unbearable.” Rachel tears-up as she goes on, “I don’t want my kids growing up with all these exhaust gases around them but what can you do? The authorities tell us the risks are small but I want to know why we can’t just find some more lithium and hang on to our BEV?”

Other environmental impacts “We’re going to have to dramatically increase exploration for oil deposits if we stand any chance of keeping up with projected demand for petrol.” I’m talking to Mandy Pringle, policy manager at Environment Wellington – a not-for-profit environmental charity. Sipping lattes on the waterfront on a chilly but unusually still Wellington morning, with the sun glinting off Lambton Harbour, it’s hard to grasp the magnitude of the the risks Mandy sees in ICEage cars.

She goes on, “That’s going to mean drilling in increasingly hazardous and environmentally fragile areas. A bit of a double-whammy as the risk of leaks and spills will increase in areas that are particularly poorly placed to cope with them. We’ll see new oil tanker routes opening up through sensitive areas and new coastal oil refineries along with a distribution network that serves a rapidly expanding retail market for fossil fuels. These all pose oil spill risks and we know how deterimental they are to the environment.”

Mandy takes another sip of her latte and adds, “And brake dust. I’m really worried about brake dust. You see, regenerative braking in BEV captures some of the ‘waste’ energy from decelerating and uses it to recharge the battery a bit. This results in less wear on the brakes. ICEage cars don’t do that. Instead, they rely mainly on friction between the brake linings and a rotors and turn the kinetic energy into heat. In the process, the linings and rotors wear down. The dust from worn brake linings can accumulate on the road network until you get a rain event and then it’s washed into the storm water system. Growing evidence points to the harm that the copper often used in brake linings can do to aquatic life. And then there’s the risk of oil leaking from the lubrication system of the ICEage cars and the question of what you do with the waste oil when it’s changed as part of routine servicing.”

Early adopter? To get a first hand experience of this new technology I rented an ICEage car for a week and tried to use it just as I use my BEV. Living in Canterbury and it being winter, the first thing I noticed was not being able to pre-warm the car in the garage. On a couple of particularly frigid mornings I was tempted to ignore the large sticker on the dashboard warning me of the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. In the end, I just shifted the car out of the garage and let it run on the drive to warm up for a bit.

A must for any ICEage early adopter, I downloaded the PumpIt app so I knew exactly where I could buy petrol. At present there aren’t many filling stations and they’re mostly located on gloomy industrial estates because no-one really wants to live next to a large tank of explosive liquid with cars coming and going 24 hours a day. Compared to plugging in at home it seemed a bit inconvenient having to go out of my way to fill up but the pumps looked very much like a fast charging station. One important difference is that the fuel will flow out regardless of whether the nozzle is ‘plugged in’. I think that, along with the flammability, is why you need to be over 16 years old to refuel.

When I handed the car back at the end of the week and drove away in my BEV I became aware of an annoying interior rattle that I hadn’t heard before. I was reflecting that I wouldn’t be able to hear it in an ICEage vehicle thanks to all the other noise going on when I realised it was the keys for the loan car – I’d forgotten to drop them off. I turned the BEV around, handed over the keys and said to the man behind the rental counter, “When they can make them as convenient and easy to use as an BEV I might consider buying one.”

Afterthought The following sunny Sunday afternoon, accompanied by the quiet hum of my battery-powered lawn mower, I began to wonder whether internal combustion engines would one day be miniaturised and find their way into garden tools like mowers, hedge trimmers and weed eaters. But as my wife pointed out, it seems highly improbable that anyone – least of all the neighbours – would tolerate the noise pollution.

#electric vehicles #electric cars

[josephstoontown]

The Eve of the Eve of an Eve, Ch. I

Chapter I of "The Eve of the Eve of an Eve," a Joseph's ToonTown story. (Previously one-half of the story of the same name.)

More cute Joseph/Winnie stuff.  Because why not?

Word count: 4,042 – Character count: 24,246 Originally written: December 15th - 16th, 2016 Slightly revised: January 14th - 15th, 2017 Revised further: August 29th, 2017

It's two days before Valentine's Day but one lady is feeling unlucky in love.  So, what better way to cure heartache than with diner food with a friend?

Winnie Woodpecker, Woody Woodpecker, the Woody Woodpecker Show, and related characters and properties created by and © Walter Lantz Productions Penny Squirrel, Super-Secret Secret Squirrel, and related characters and properties created by Fred Seibert and © Hanna-Barbara J. Wellington Wimpy, Popeye, and related characters and properties created by and © E.C. Segar Foghorn Leghorn, Looney Tunes, and related characters and properties created by and © Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. Yellow Pinkie, Secret Squirrel, and related characters and properties created by and © Hanna Barbara Good golly, that's a lot of copyrights…

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    Another Saturday night in ToonTown.  The streets were bustling with activity and decorated for the upcoming Valentine’s Day celebrations.  Red streamers spiraled around the various street lights and lamp posts of the city while plastic hearts and flowers hung from windows, doors, mailboxes…  Basically, anywhere such decorations could legally be hung, there they were!  Even the town, itself, seemed a little more pink-and-red than usual!     The people out-and-about that night echoed the sentiment of romance in the air.  Couples were out in droves, taking a walk in the cool night air or heading to various locales where they could be together, whether publicly… or, privately.  Yes indeed, the sense of romance was great, even two nights before Valentine’s Day.  However, not everyone seemed to be in the mood for romance, that night…

    “I can’t believe he’d rather work than go on a Valentine’s Eve-Eve date with me!”     A little redheaded ‘toon woodpecker walked the streets of ToonTown, looking ready for a night on the town with her usual outfit exchanged for something a little more flashy.  Lime-green, heeled shoes covered her normally-bare feet and, rather than wear a plain skirt, she instead wore a cute, green, denim, pinafore-style dress with a bolero jacket made of thin, white-colored material.  She had also decorated herself in a little eye-shadow, some red lipstick, and just a spritz of some pleasant-smelling perfume.

    Walking alongside the woodpecker was an amber-hued fox standing roughly twice her height.  He didn’t seem dressed for anything particular, wearing a black hoodie with a t-shirt underneath, a pair of plain green jeans, and some black tennis shoes.  He had his hands in his hoodie pocket as he walked with the nice-dressed lady, just content to listen to her vent her frustrations – something he found she was doing more-and-more, the more they hung out.

    “I mean, overtime?  Really…?”     The woodpecker threw her hands down, making her up-curled hair bounce.     “Why?  Can’t he afford to take his girlfriend out for a good time?”     She waited for a moment… then, she looked up at the fox.     “Well?” she impatiently asked.  “Can’t he…?”     “No idea, Winnie…” was the fox’s reply.  “As long as he helps pay his share of the bills every month, I don’t really care what he does with his money.  He’s the same way with me, aside from occasionally teasing me about the things I buy.  Like, last month, I bought this neat-looking retro computer game called ‘Undertale’ and he–”     But, he found himself interrupted by a frustrated growl coming from his companion.     “I just can’t imagine that he would need to work as much overtime as he has been… especially at the time of the year where being with your significant other is so important!”     “Well, it’s traditional, at any rate,” her companion commented.  “And, it’s apparently a good way to make some money, for some people.  I mean, look over there.”

    The bird and fox looked in the direction he’d pointed.  Sat across the road from them was what looked to be a handmade, roadside stand which was advertising various heart-shaped and Valentine’s Day-related baked goods and confections.  They were also getting some decent business, seeing as the stand had a line that was at least twenty people long.

    “If that line wasn’t there,” the fox mused, “I’d buy you something nice.  Maybe somethin’ for me, too.  Those cupcakes look pretty good…”     “It’s fine, Joseph…” Winnie sighed.  “I’m just… so frustrated… with having a boyfriend that doesn’t pay any attention to me anymore!”     “I wouldn’t know…”  He grinned at his friend.  “I’ve never even had a boyfriend!”     That got a chuckle and a grin from the bird… which in-turn made him smile.

    “In any case,” he continued, “that’s why I’m taking you to Denny’s.  Remember?”     Winnie gave a hum…  “It’s not exactly the fanciest place in ToonTown… but, who am I to turn down a free meal with a good friend?”     “Exactly.  Incidentally, though…”  Joseph gave a smile.  “Sorry that I’m so underdressed, compared to you.  I wasn’t really expecting to go out, today, so…”     “Oh, it’s fine…” she said with a wave of her hand.  “Really, I’m probably overdressed, for a place like Denny’s!”     “Maybe…  But, on the bright side, you’ll probably be the best-dressed gal there!”     Winnie gave another chuckle at that.  “We’ll see…”     With that, the two continued along their way until finally reaching their destination.

    The Denny’s of ToonTown didn’t look particularly “cartoony,” aside from having a hand-drawn look about it.  The front of the structure had a tall, red panel rising from its roof which housed a typical, six-sided Denny's sign.  The building itself was wide enough for a few cars to park in front of it – of which, there were many – and there were plenty of lights on the brown-painted outside walls, the illumination of which cascaded off red awnings which hung over small windows that allowed the two to see into the restaurant itself.     Inside, plenty of people were seated at tables and booths, happily eating various types of foods ranging from typical dinner entreés to the locale’s often-advertised all-day breakfast menu.  They could also see more than a few non-‘toon customers seated near the windows.     “Looks busy…” Joseph commented.     “It’s always busy at Denny’s!” was his friend’s chipper response.  “It is ‘America’s Diner,’ after all!”     “Heh, yeah…  Well, anyway,” he said with a smile, “shall we?”     Winnie gave a nod and the two walked inside.

    As expected, Denny’s was atwitter with customers and clients, all happily eating and chatting away.  There were even a couple of people standing near the entryway, waiting to be seated… which, of course, meant that they had to wait, as well.     “I thought this place was a ‘diner?’” Joseph asked his bird friend as he pointed to a sign which read “Please wait to be seated.”     “I guess this place is one of those ‘up-scale’ Denny’s with seating,” Winnie explained.  “Sort of like IHOP.”     “‘IHOP?’”  The fox tilted his head.     “Here?  You really shouldn’t,” she replied with a grin.  “You might get strange looks.”     Joseph brought his hand to his face at that, shaking his head as she giggled.

    After a brief wait at the doorway, the hostess – an orange-brown squirrel girl about Winnie’s height – walked over to the duo.  She was built – or, rather, drawn – a bit differently than Winnie, her body showing simple shapes such as ovals and cylinders more obviously than the woodpecker’s.  Joseph internally noted, however, that she looked pretty cute all-the-same.     Her hair was styled in a basketball-sized bouffant while her bangs, done in a bob, crossed over her left eye and hid behind her head to the right, partly covering her small ears.  She also had a little, rectangular tooth hanging from her mouth, a soft, pink nose, and bright, circular eyes which were colored black, much like the work-issued polo shirt and dress slacks she wore.  Behind her, though, rose a very soft-looking tail which was roughly the side of her upper-body.

    “Welcome to Denny’s, ‘America’s Diner!’” she cheerfully greeted to the two.     “Told you,” Winnie said with a nudge and a grin.     “My name’s Penny and I’ll be your hostess, for the evening.  Table for two?”     “Yes, please,” was Joseph’s response.     “Would you prefer a table or a booth?” the squirrel continued, retrieving a pair of menus.     The fox differed to Winnie on that question.     “Either’s fine, really!” she said.     “Right this way, please!”

    The two followed along behind Penny as she led them to their table.  As they followed, something caught Joseph’s attention.     “Huh…”     Joseph scratched his head, causing Winnie to look his way.     “Remember what I said about being the best-dressed gal in Denny’s?”     The woodpecker raised an eyebrow.  “Yeees…?”     “Well…” he said, gesturing to a booth far-left window.  As Winnie looked in that direction, she realized what he was talking about.     Seated at a booth, as well as a nearby table, were a handful of ‘toons dressed in black tuxedos and, as she’d guessed, at least two of them were female.     “Why, Joseph,” Winnie started with a smirk, “I thought you liked woodpeckers, not penguins!”     “I can like both!” the fox said with a grin that betrayed his indignant tone.  Winnie just gave him another giggle in return.

    “Here are your seats,” Penny helpfully said as she gestured to a table in the back of the restaurant.  “Can I bring you anything, before you order?”     “You probably could,” Joseph said, “but, how would you know that’s what we’d wanted unless we ordered it?”     “I’m psychic that way,” was the squirrel’s response as she withdrew a note pad and pencil, grinning to the smart-alecky fox.  “Can I get you anything to drink?”     “Water is fine,” Winnie said as she sat at the table.     “I’d like a cola, please – whichever one you have.”     “Okay!  I’ll be back in a jiffy!”     And, true to her word, Penny left and came back with glasses of water and cola before departing a second time, leaving the duo to discuss Denny’s menu.

    “Oh, man…  Everything looks so good!” Joseph said, his tail wagging against the side of the table as he examined his food choices.  A bevy of breakfast, lunch, dinner, and anytime meal options lay before him with their nutrition information and prices listed nearby.     “It’s hard to believe this place is a ‘diner,’ with this kind of spread…”     “They call it a diner,” Winnie said from behind her own menu, “but, it’s really more of a full-fledged family restaurant.  I think it started out as a much smaller sort of place, though.  You know, the kind of place you’d take the kids after Sunday services.”     “‘Sunday services?’”  The fox gave a chuckle.  “How old-fashioned!”     She gave a chuckle as well.  “Well, I did grow up in ‘olden times…’”     “Heh, maybe you should order off the 55+ menu, then.”     Winnie went silent, at that.  After a few quiet moments, Joseph slowly tilted his menu down.  His ears were folded and his tail was hanging low…     “You… know I was kidding, right?”     Still, Winnie ignored him.  He wasn’t sure… but, he thought he may have crossed a line, with that joke about her age…

    “Hello, again!” Penny said as she returned after several moments.  “Are you folks ready to order?”     “I’ll, uh… I’d like the Sirloin Steak meal, please.”     “Great!” the squirrel chimed as she wrote that down.  “How would you like that cooked?”     “Medium-rare.”     “And what would you like for your sides?”     The fox hummed…  He really hadn’t thought that far ahead.     “Oh!” he exclaimed after a second.  “I haven’t had corn, for a while.  I’ll take some sweet, petite corn and… ooh, yes!  Some cheddar mashed potatoes, if you would!”     Penny took a moment to write that down before turning her attention toward Winnie.     “And, for you, miss?”     There was a slight pause before Winnie spoke.     “I’d like the tilapia with seasoned fries and dipping vegetables, please.”     “Alright!” Penny said as she wrote the order down straight-away.     “And… I would like to clarify…”     Winnie paused, lowered her menu.  It was then that Joseph noticed the look she was giving him…  Her eyes were half-closed and she had an almost spiteful sort of grin on her face.     “That’s the grilled tilapia from the 55+ menu.”     “Oh?”  The hostess tilted her head.  “If you don’t mind my saying, you don’t look that old…”     The woodpecker’s attitude immediately changed.  She gave a bright, friendly smile to their hostess, waving one gloved hand in dismissal.     “I’m young at-heart, dear.”     “If you say so!”

    The squirrel gave a bright smile as she put her note pad away.     “It should be about fifteen minutes or so since we’re so busy tonight.  Sorry about that.  If you need anything, in the meantime, don’t hesitate to ask!”     “Thank you very much!” was Winnie’s response.     “Thank you!” Penny echoed before heading out again, leaving the two alone, again.

    “Seriously,” Joseph said after a momentary pause.  He still looked a little guilty from his comments…  “You… do know I was kidding, right?”     “Oh, please, Joseph…” Winnie said with a grin and another hand-wave.  “I order off the senior citizen menu all the time!  Great food for a lower price?  Why not?”     “Because, you’re not a senior citizen?”     “You know how old I am, you goofball,” she giggled.     “Yeah, but… aren’t ‘toons kind of… ageless?”     “There’s a big difference between ‘ageless’ and ‘timeless,’ Joseph.  As timeless as we might be, I and other ‘toons still grow older, as time marches on, even if we don’t outwardly show it.  It’s true that, essentially, we can’t die from ‘old age,’ but the thing that truly keeps us looking so young is the idea that people are still enjoying our cartoons, to this day.  Older people… younger people… ‘boys and girls of all ages,’ as a carnival barker might say…”     She paused, giving the fox a warm smile.     “So long as we remain in the hearts of those who truly love us… we will always be there for them, should they need us.  For… any reason.”     The fox gave a blink, his ears perking.     “Winnie…  That was really poetic!” he said, genuinely surprised.     “Age is just a number, Joseph… a number between ‘10' and ‘25.’”  The woodpecker gave a sudden grin.  “Because, that’s the percentile of discount us ‘old folks’ deserve, dagnabit!”     “Et– eehhh…”  Joseph shook his head.  “Really, Winnie?”     “‘Rule of Funny,’ honey!” she said, giving the groaning fox a wink.

    Joseph and Winnie continued to converse as they waited for their food.  Current events, cartoons old and new, their present location, and a number of other things were talked about.  Eventually though…     “Sorry to keep you waiting!”     Penny came back, carrying a platter with the duo’s meals on it.  As she placed the plates down on their table, she continued to speak.     “Our kitchen is really busy tonight since both the Symphonic Silliness and Melodious Merriment Orchestras are dining in.”     “I thought I’d recognized those black-and-white ‘toons!” Winnie chimed.     “Yup!  It’s strange to see ‘em getting along so well, too…  Usually, by this time, they’d have already started a–”     “Food fiiiiight!!”     “Oh, no…”

    Right on-cue, someone had shouted from the booth Joseph pointed out, earlier.  In a heartbeat, every single one of those black-and-white ‘toons had risen, their gloved hands hurling various bits-and-pieces of foodstuff.  Joseph and Winnie were among the many spectators that watched a small group of similar-dressed individuals rise to meet their opponents from a booth across the way, hurling numerous pieces of their own dinners right back in retaliation.

    “I have to help take care of this,” Penny said, giving the two a concerned look.  “You might be on your own for a while… but, please, enjoy your meal and thanks for choosing America’s Diner!  Oh, gosh…!  I’ve gotta go!”

    The duo watched as Penny, as well as several more same-dressed Denny’s employees, ran over to the fray happening toward the front of the restaurant.  A great number of them seemed intent on blocking the projectiles with dinner trays while others were more concerned with relieving the participants of their makeshift ammunition.     Curiously, amidst the edible armaments stood one lone, round, whispy-mustachioed man.  Armed with nothing but a plate and an under-sized bowler hat, seemed perfectly content to walk through the crossfire and pluck seemingly random items from the air to add to his dish, somehow managing to avoid all other projectiles as he casually strolled along with closed eyes.

    “Is that man insane…?” Joseph asked as he stood up to stare.     “That’s J. Wellington Wimpy,” Winnie calmly stated as she started in on her fish.  “He’s the kind of guy who’d normally pay you on Tuesday for a hamburger, today… but, when it comes to situations like, they’re really his bread-and-butter!”     “I can see that,” the fox said as Wimpy retrieved a bread roll from the air, deftly took a butter knife to a flying stick of butter, and applied the smear to the roll before eating it.     “Sit,” the bird said with a smile.  “Eat your dinner.  The situation will work itself out.”     Winnie’s words did little to calm his apprehension… but, despite the ruckus, he decided to do as she’d instructed and just try and enjoy his meal.

    After about ten minutes of food fight shenanigans, there was finally a break.  The manager – a tall and somewhat intimidating rooster with a southern accent – had come out to help with negotiations.  Apparently, the entire fiasco had started when someone from the Merriment band said something discouraging about the Silliness band’s music.  In the end, though, the two groups had agreed to disagree, calling a truce for the remainder of their meals.     “Well, that’s that, then!” Winnie casually said as she dipped a baby carrot into some dressing.  “Told you it would work itself out.”     “You say that so calmly…” Joseph said before he nibbled on some bread.     “Welcome to ToonTown,” the bird offered with a smile, “the wacky place where antics like that only happen once every few seconds!”     “Heh.  Only…”

    The rest of the meal continued without interruption, both Joseph and Winnie greatly enjoying their food.  Winnie had ended up sharing her fries with Joseph, having just a little more than she could eat, but, by the end, they’d managed to finish their respective dinners.

    “Man, that was good…” Joseph contently sighed.  “I’m really glad we came out here.”     “It’s a bit of a walk from your place,” Winnie said with a smile, “but, it’s well worth it!”     “Ooh.  There’s that added bonus; the walk back will help burn off those calories.”     “Oh, super!  After all…”  The woodpecker gave a playful smile.  “I have to watch my girlish figure.”     “Heh.  If you don’t, I’m sure someone will.  It’s a pretty nice figure.”     She gave her face a rub, blushing a little and murmuring, “Not in public, Joseph…”     “What?”  He grinned at her reaction.  “What’s wrong with occasionally telling my gal-pal she looks nice?”     She squirmed, at that… but, she gave a giggle.     “Silly…”

    “So…”     The two stood in front of the cash register to the side of the entrance, ready to make their way out.  Behind it, Penny sat on a stool, putting her just under eye-level with Joseph as she rung up their bill.     “This s kind of awkward, but… I’m going to have to ask for some ID for that grilled tilapia, ma’am.  Restaurant policy – you understand,” she said to Winnie.     “Of course!” Winnie said, handing her a state-issued driver’s license from her purse.  The squirrel looked it over… then, looked back to Winnie… then, back to the license before speaking.     “I loved you in ‘Surf Crazy,’ Miss Woodpecker!”     “That was a fun one!” Winnie giggled.  Joseph didn’t know what they were talking about… but, he had to assume it was a cartoon his friend had been in.

    “You’re all set!” the squirrel said as she returned the card to its owner.  “You might be surprised how many people try to take advantage of the 55+ menu when they aren’t 55-or-older!”     “Well, a girl’s only as young as she feels…” Winnie said as Joseph paid the hostess.     “I know what you mean!” Penny replied, giving Joseph change for his $25.00.  “Some days, I feel old enough to have been there, back when Secret was still fighting Yellow Pinkie!”     “Those old Secret Squirrel cartoons were pretty fun!”     “Oh, I didn’t mean the cartoons…”  Penny rubbed her arm, giving an awkward look.  “They actually didn’t like each other off-set, from what Pinkie told me.”     “Oh?  That’s too bad.”     “Then again, I don’t blame him.  I’d be pretty miffed at Secret, if he spread nasty rumors about me, too!”     “Oh, yeeaaah… like, that one rumor…  Wait, Secret was the one who…?”     The hostess gave a sad sort of nod.     “I’m really glad that one got dispelled,” the redhead said.  “Yellow Pinkie’s actually really nice, once you get to know him!  His laugh’s a bit creepy, though…”     “I think it’s kind of cool!” the squirrel replied with a bright smile.  “So… evil!”     Winnie gave an amused chuckle before excusing herself and her confused friend… who had been politely listening and waiting.  Penny gave a cheerful wave, escorting them out before greeting a new arrival – a pink mountain lion wearing cuffs, a collar, and not much else.

    “Rumor?” Joseph casually asked Winnie after they were a few steps from the eatery.     “Oh, yeah…” Winnie replied.  “There was a pretty mean rumor about Yellow Pinkie back-in-the-day… which, I guess, Secret Squirrel started, if what Penny told us was right.”     “What was the rumor?”     “That he was a homosexual…”  Winnie rubbed her arm.  “Yellow Pinkie got into a lot of trouble with Hanna-Barbara for it, too.  Of course, this was during a time where homosexuality was looked at like a disease instead of a walk-of-life.”     “Oh…”  The fox’s ears fell.  “Prejudice, huh?”     “Yeah…  The rumor cleared-up pretty quickly, though… but, aside from a cameo in a Scooby-Doo comic, Yellow Pinkie really didn’t find much work in ToonTown.”     “That’s too bad…”  Joseph smiled.  “You made him sound like a really nice guy.”     “Oh, he was!” Winnie said with a smile of her own.  “He was pretty tall and kind of round but he had a personality like Santa Claus; always smiling and laughing… hardly ever disagreeable…  He was just a joy, to be around!”

    “Now, you say ‘was…’” Joseph noted.  “Does that mean…?”     “Oh!  No, nothing like that,” she said, picking up on Joseph’s meaning.  The fox sighed in relief as she continued.     “We fell out of contact ages ago.  I’m not sure where he went but I don’t think he lives in ToonTown.  But, who knows?  He might pop back up when you least expect it!”     For some reason, Winnie immediately looked toward a car passing on the nearby road.  She seemed almost disappointed as it continued to drive by without so much as slowing down.     “Darn,” she said, snapping her fingers.  “I thought for sure that would work!”     Joseph smiled again.  “Only in the movies, eh?”     “Cartoons, too,” she said, returning the smile.     The two continued on their way a moment later.

    As the two made their way back toward Joseph and Woody’s apartments, they conversed about a few different topics.  After a few minutes of walking, however…     “Hang on a second.”     Winnie looked up at her fox friend, stopping as he stopped near a small complex.  It seemed like a fairly insubstantial place, wedged between a self-service Laundromat and a Chinese buffet.  A neon sign in the window identified the location as “Fred’s Video Shed.”     “I need to make a stop, here,” Joseph started.  “It’s the only place left in ToonTown which has old video stuff, like Betamax and VHS tapes, according to Woody.”     Winnie gave a blink.  “Okay?”     “Well, apparently, Woody and Fred go way back… so, Fred lets Woody borrow equipment from him pretty regularly.  Now… Fred also knows me… and, since he knows I’m a friend of Woody’s, I wonder if he’ll let me borrow something…”  The fox grinned down at Winnie.  “Woody tells me he has something pretty special…”     The woodpecker tilted her head at that.     “Wanna find out?”     She gave another blink.  “I suppose so?”     “Sweet.  C’mon.”

    Joseph walked up to the paved path, stopping at the door.  When he looked up, Winnie followed his line-of-sight.  He appeared to be looking at a security camera.     “Now, this place is usually open from 12 PM to 4 PM… but, Woody taught me something interesting, about Fred.”     The bird watched as Joseph raised a hand.  As she heard him rap on the door.     Tap, tap-tap-tap, tap…     A chill ran down her spine.     Shave-and-a-haircut? she thought.  The sound of the knock immediately reminded her of that old myth about no ‘toon being able to resist finishing the knock – a rumor started by the Hollywood version of Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, she recalled.     What a silly myth that was, she thought.  Of course, we can resist that.  What sort of ‘toon wouldn’t be able to resist?     Still, though… she couldn’t help but shiver whenever someone did it.  Who knows… maybe there was some truth to that urban legend.  It had to have come from somewhere…

#Joseph's ToonTown #The Eve of the Eve of an Eve #commercial characters #The Woody Woodpecker Show #Winnie Woodpecker #Super Secret Secret Squirrel #Penny Squirrel #Popeye #J. Wellington Wimpy #Looney Tunes #Foghorn Leghorn #original characters #Essence of Ragnarok #Joseph Lithius #comedy #slice of life

[nycfloodbasementtips-blog]

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[psychoticprettygirl]

On The Eve Of Death

A short story by me, Angel Harris :)

Summary: Cuz, like, nigga dead cracked and dipped and like, that’s foul cuz now she losing two niggas and like yo. -nesto

Preview:

“I find you more interesting than industrial psychology 3.”

And in his defense, I probably was. His face was almost sheepish but it was bullshit.

Pursing my lips, I sighed, “Is this the part where I’m supposed to get butterflies in my stomach because a man thinks I’m special?”

His eyes carefully trailed me. I wish it was in a creepy way but he just looked to be analyzing me, like I was something he could not figure out or like there was something he wished to say but couldn’t.

“You need help,” I turned away, continuing my rapid pace towards anywhere that was not this building. It gave me depressing vibrations and I had no signal to see if Lucy messaged me back yet.

“Is this your way of ignoring the attraction you feel for me?”

It had been a joking inquiry but I stopped not believing that someone could actually say shit like that, “I don’t-“

“Are we lying now?”

He never lies.

I did find him striking. Even on his ugly days, like that day, hair oily and slicked back into a high bun, in a black sweatshirt, black joggers and black fucking designer sneakers- he was still attractive with his piercing eyes and a jawline crafted by some omniscient being.

He was fine even if he was pasty.

His personality on the other hand was entirely another problem that required me to take a trip to a monastery to become one with my inner most peaceful thoughts.

“You look like you bite clits for pleasure?” I stepped around him.

His laugh was like a hoot before it turned boisterous. “Are you trying to find out?” he managed out. “You look like the type that likes it.”

Long legs were the devil I quickly found as he did not relent.

He was a friend of a friend. A friend of the friend I had not seen in a week.

Tall, slim, fine light hair, sophisticated grey eyes, disgustingly attractive, always around and an overall nuisance.

Though he feigned ignorance, he knew where Lucian was, and since I had questioned him outside of our class, he had decided to make himself comfortable in my life.

I had left “Lucy” alone for a week because alone time was important for my best friend, especially within the last couple of years for he usually ended up uttering words he really meant and acting without thought, both of which were thoroughly dangerous as the softest people tended to have the hardest bite.

“I’ll break your heart,” I finally said after chewing the head off of my Swedish Fish, grimacing later as the overly confident words slipped from between my teeth.

I didn’t even know if I meant them but it felt right to say in the moment.

Of course it was not though because his lips spread into a wicked smirk that could stun.

His look of arrogance made me want to hit the shit out of him but my eyes floated down to my book severing our gaze- Shakespeare had said no.

We were in the dull ugly library that smelled of stale books.

It was not congruent to learning in the least but I swore that he would not approach me there.

He had to have thought that we were friends, appearing at the most odd times, making me feel surrounded.

Maybe we were. I don’t know because he wasn’t uncomfortable to me. A lot? Sure. He was heavy, but only to me it seemed for he had the ability to give any room as much life as he could effortlessly take away with cutthroat honesty and lack of consideration.

I never understood how someone as kind as Lucian could stomach his condescension, to which Lucy would reply that we were the same; both insufferable know-it-alls with a disgusting affinity for knowledge and large quantities of curiosity.

Preferring his sanity intact, Lucian never tried to bring us together or ask us to chill at the same time but since he ghosted me, just the opposite of that seemed to happen.

It was my fault. I thought that he would tell me. He always knew- like a sort of bro code- mental connection thing that I did not have despite mine and my best friend’s decade long friendship.

“It’s already broken.” It was as if the asshole had purred the words, swiping a piece of candy, shaking me from my thoughts.

Smacking his hand away, I snorted in response, predicting his entire game before he spat it.

He sounded just like every other guy that tried to get at me and stupid as I was, like everyone is at some point in their life, I entertained his pseudo sob story.

“Who broke your heart?” I ignored the ringing in my ears that told me to just pack up my work and exit-, allowing myself to continue to put my foot in my mouth.

It was an inquiry that I may have been asked a dozen times- something about my frigid “bitch” demeanor people loved to tell me I had, though I never recalled asking for the input.

From under my lashes, I noticed his body shaking with light humor, wispy white hair falling into his eyes that were twinkling with mischief.

“Myself.”

I scoffed at his response, shuffling my books together.

In three days, I had a 46 page thesis paper due on passivity and human emotions. There had been no time for me to be his source of entertainment for however long he chose to be bored.

“Are you leaving so soon?” his voice sounded of a sweet innocence I knew not one bone in his body harbored.

“I am busy and you’re not only disrupting me, you’re disturbing me,” I bristled.

“I apologize-”

“Why? You’re not sorry. Don’t say things you don’t mean. You’ll end up breaking your own heart again,” I mimicked in his voice rather immaturely.

“You are different,” he remarked.

My eye roll was absolutely glamourous. I knew I wasn’t the same but the technicalities of individuality are a little elusive and narcissistic.

“Yeah.” I took my books and left.

It’s what I should’ve done but I didn’t. I would allow him to pull me into his stories, slowly unraveling my life right before his hard eyes.

He was charming with mystery and amusement; reserved, unashamed, and even ruthless at times.

“I don’t understand why you stay stuck in your head. Worry will get you absolutely nowhere besides in a dark room with a bottle of Advil avoiding the beautiful lights of life,” he spoke twirling his hands as if the dreadful room was the garden of Eden.

“You know what your problem is?” I leaned towards him, voice low but my green eyes carefully watching to see if his would wander down my shirt.

They didn’t. He looked straight towards me with contrived boredom even though I knew he liked me.

“No, but I’m sure you’ll tell me,” his voice was layered with irked exhaustion as I stood.

“You’re scared. You feel like there is always something better.”

He raised his left eyebrow which I thought was weird as most people tended to raise their right.

“Tell me more about myself.”

I fell into a second trap halting, simpering down.

I told him how he would always be miserable in life if he kept searching for the perfect destination or outcome. I went on about how life wasn’t about that, how it’s supposed to be a journey and the only peaceful end that is guaranteed is death.

I supposed in all of its poetry that it was beautiful- the concept of life and beyond.

“You fear death too,” I threw back at him as he raised to follow me.

“Go on, tell me about my tragic back story as well,” he teased with a harsh edge in his tone, pulling out a cigarette that he never lit. “Tell me that I’ve grown up either deprived or too overindulged.”

Rolling his eyes, he continued, keeping pace as we neared the entrance, “You can always figure a person out. There are always two options and both have bad to them because that’s life.”

He opening the door but leaned towards me before allowing me to completely pass, jerking his thumb back to the girl near the table we previously occupied, the ciggy perched in-between his index and middle finger. “You’re no smarter than Becky over there sweating profusely about polynomials.”

I gritted my teeth.

He would always find a way to switch it back to me so asked if I was wrong, knowing that he never lied. “I didn’t say that but when you speak so broadly, you’re never truly incorrect.”

“I never said I was fair,” I resumed my steps, pushing him out of the way, exiting out of the library.

“And I don’t fear death,” he added frowning, slipping the unlit stick past his lips, offended, though I didn’t understand why. Death was a common thing to fear.

“Why would I fear one of the only two gods we know exists?” he questioned me as if I was insane, grey eyes fluttering with a certain chaos I had never seen.

He seemed to recognize his emerging emotion and clamped down on them. As fast as any of his complexities appeared, they vanished.

Trying to pull it back because I am some sort of masochist, I probed, “What’s the other god you believe exists?”

He was not a religious person so I was confused. The idea of him believing in God or gods was comical with his lifestyle of booze, bitches and the occasional narcotic.

“Woman.”

“Excuse me,” I stopped, thinking he called me.

“I believe in only death and women,“ he clarified.

My face had bunched up in confusion after that and only broke once to laugh after he uttered, “Death is the only thing that is promised to me and I love promises.” .

Taking my amusement as encouragement, he continued with a thrilled charm, “And women carry life within them. I mean we help,” he pointed at himself, a male. “But it doesn’t sit inside of us. People always talk great shit about this god and how he created life but it’s harder to carry something, travel with it, let it render inside of you than to just produce it out of thin air. If you think morbidly- a child is like a parasite but the potential- females grow with life,” he paused, “I find that infinitely more taxing and beautiful.”

He shrugged easily, knowing he had caught me.

“Oh.”

“Oh,” he mimicked.

“You’re interesting,” I stated bitterly, mirroring his previous words.

“You know what’s even more interesting? I have mommy issues,” he whispered, laughing as my brows had furrowed.

Week Two and still no Lucian.

“What are you doing, stalker?” I questioned, rushing out of my literature classroom.

“Stalker? Really?” he made a face, sticking his hand out, motioning towards the parallel room, “I have a lecture right across the way.”

I did not know that and I didn’t care then.

Falling into line with my fast strides, he continued his verbal assault on my tranquility, “Saw you looking like you wanted to jump out of the window, thought I’d brighten up your day.”

“You thought wrong,” I replied, quick and snappy.

“I like you, Evie.”

I knew that.

Not bothering to look at him, I told him that his affection for me was personal thinking that he would fuck right off but he did not.

“Don’t you have class or something?” I turned around curtly, facing him and his abnormally tall form.

“I find you more interesting than industrial psychology 3.”

And in his defense, I probably was. His face was almost sheepish but it was bullshit.

Pursing my lips, I sighed, “Is this the part where I’m supposed to get butterflies in my stomach because a man thinks I’m special?”

His eyes carefully trailed me. I wish it was in a creepy way but he just looked to be analyzing me, like I was something he could not figure out or like there was something he wished to say but couldn’t.

“You need help,” I turned away, continuing my rapid pace towards anywhere that was not this building. It gave me depressing vibrations and I had no signal to see if Lucy messaged me back yet.

“Is this your way of ignoring the attraction you feel for me?”

It had been a joking inquiry but I stopped not believing that someone could actually say shit like that, “I don’t-“

“Are we lying now?”

He never lies.

I did find him striking. Even on his ugly days, like that day, hair oily and slicked back into a high bun, in a black sweatshirt, black joggers and black fucking designer sneakers- he was still attractive with his piercing eyes and a jawline crafted by some omniscient being.

He was fine even if he was pasty.

His personality on the other hand was entirely another problem that required me to take a trip to a monastery to become one with my inner most peaceful thoughts.

“You look like you bite clits for pleasure?” I stepped around him.

His laugh was like a hoot before it turned boisterous. “Are you trying to find out?” he managed out. “You look like the type that likes it.”

Long legs were the devil I quickly found as he did not relent.

“Back off, dusty,” I said firmly.

He stopped.

I never quite understood why those words made him go away or, I guess, which made him go away; the back off or the fact that I called him dusty.

Within the next two weeks, I saw him, perhaps, once, twice?

He never bothered to speak to me again in school.

I never thought I would be like one of those girls; those idiot heroines in every YA novel I had read when I was 15; frustrated because the guy I thought I hated stopped bothering me when I told him to go away.

So, of course, out of my gross inquisitiveness I peeked into his classroom- across the way.

When he caught me snooping, one side of his mouth curled upwards before he leaned back and pretended I did not exist.

I thought I lost my mind, I must have, actually, so instead of texting Lucy again, I went to his apartment with his favorite lentil soup and salty crackers from my job, convincing myself that he had to be sick after his depression hiatus because it was about to be a month and no word.

After 15 minutes of normal knocking, I assumed that he was asleep and started banging on his shit.

In retrospect, I probably shouldn’t have done that- it was a few minutes after midnight and the hallway was grimy.

30 minutes in, I started calling out his name like that would make him be home.

I don’t even remember if I was scared that he showed up like some forsaken demon.

I had completely forgotten that he ended up moving into the adjacent apartment until he opened the door, his hair in a disarray, pulling on a black tee before I got to see if his happy trail was darker than the mop on top of his head.

I had jumped to his attention when his voice hissed, “You don’t have the fucking key?”

Stunned that he even uttered a word to me, I shook my head.

He slammed the green industrial looking door in my face as I stepped forward, reappearing only moments after with a shiny silver key and another unlit cigarette in his mouth.

He stepped past me and I covered up the sting of betrayal at the fact he had a key and I did not. I focused on happiness for I wouldn’t have to go home with a tin of saltines and sudoku. But as I placed my stuff down, taking off my jacket, he grounded out, “You going to make yourself comfortable? What if he brings home a girl?”

I clamped my teeth together and stopped myself from saying that Lucian was not a slut like him but I didn’t actually know anymore- we had a don’t ask, don’t tell policy nowadays- so I ignored him.

Stomping my way towards Lucy’s bedroom, I pushed the door open to see the state of his life and it was pretty okay. Maybe he was bringing home a girl. Nothing was too out of place and his bed was made and I was okay until I saw empty pill bottles on his night stand.

I didn’t even look at the names before I stormed out of the bedroom and hauled them at him.

I missed because I have shitty aim but he still yelled at me, “What the fuck?!”

His face went red and puckered up as my eyes watered.

I didn’t even read the prescription- thinking they were some bullshit drug that they he gave my best friend for shits and giggles. I should have read them.

I grabbed my bag, quickly, leaving the food and him.

“You can’t save everyone, Evie. Especially those that don’t want help,” I heard him call out.

Four days later, Lucian sat down in front of me.

We were in one of the nicer corridors, ones with windows and it was bright.

“Hey,” he smiled and it reached his eyes but he still looked tired. I could tell because his shirt was wrinkled and his beanie was full of lint.

I didn’t respond so he nudged me and apologized.

I didn’t accept.

“I wasn’t out fucking bitches,” he tried to laugh but ended up scrunching his face in pain.

My resolve crumbled. I leaned forward to place a hand on him as if my touch would tell me what was wrong.

“Pulled a muscle and I’ve just been out of it- I- Don’t let him get to you by the way. He told me that-”

I just held my hand up for him to stop speaking. I didn’t care about that anymore.

Lucy slapped my hand away. “I love you, you know that right?”

I remember trying really hard to stay mad at him but his amber eyes reeked of the only home I had known since I was 11 and his smile- it was toothy, lined with so much sneakiness that I felt my somberness leave my body and giddiness enter.

I missed him and instead of answering questions, my best friend told me to pick up Twizzlers and to meet him at his place at 7pm to watch a new anime.

I never saw him leave because I did first, for class, and on my way I saw him.

He was sketching something and I tried to turn my nosiness off but he stopped me with his long ass leg.

“You’re welcome.”

I stepped over his black denim clad limb and kept going but I eventually saw him there that night too.

The arguing over videogames and the show adaptation of Violet Evergarden was foreplay apparently because that was the first night we fucked.

I remember sitting on the sofa next to Lucian as he scrolled through Netflix. I shouted every time I thought he passed something interesting and he would tell me that it was wack and kept going until Lucy took the remote from him.

I also remember him telling me that all the ends of the ones I were picking were the same- thought they weren’t.

He looked at me and said that they all ended, they were over, discontinued, cancelled- whatever.

Lucy then took the remote and found an ongoing one while shoving a big ass spoon of orange sherbet in my mouth.

“She needs something larger in her mouth if you are ever going to get her to shut the fuck up.”

I remember rolling my eyes and reaching for a anything to throw at him but Lucy threw a pillow as if it was going to do the damage I wanted.

We ended up watching ancient aliens, because we couldn’t agree on anything else, until Lucian fell asleep.

I know I dozed at one point and woke up to him on the floor, staring up at the ceiling as the dude with spikey hair was saying “it had to be aliens.”

I played with Lucy’s oddly thin curls until he arose and walked to the counter that held our Thai food from earlier.

I remember stumbling after him into his apartment, arguing that he wasn’t allowed to take my spring rolls.

I swung on him, and he backed me into the door and told me I was a stupid progressive and that I should be thankful that he was him because another guy would have swung back.

He wasn’t wrong but everything he was saying seemed to be invalid for he stalked me like I was his prey after that. He moved in close step with me, eyes stony, and lips in a tight line. His breath was too hot on my face, his fingers too cold around my fist and though he didn’t look it, he was strong because he was able to pin me against the entrance with just his hips.

I found a way to wiggle myself out and shove him away and that must have started the resistance because we were fighting, I remember yelling at him, maybe about Lucian, perhaps about how disgustingly clean his place was or maybe even how perfectly out of place his hair was, I don’t remember.

I just know that we were fighting and then were fucking and that he did not bite clits and that his happy trail was indeed darker than the hair on his head.

In life you always have to do things you don’t want.

I told him that in the midst an argument in Lucy’s apartment.

We had gotten frighteningly more hostile despite the fact that every time our best friend fell asleep, we would tiptoe into his apartment and his teeth would mark my neck while his fingers would play in between my thighs.

We fell into a routine.

“Who says?” he asked me as if I was wrong.

“It is just how it is,” I snapped at him while Lucy waved us off and went to get something from his room.

He repeated his inquiry and I got annoyed because shit happens in life.

“And in death?”

I ignored him because sometimes you just have to do shit, like go to church with your grandparents on Easter Sunday or take a test for a class but then again, I had never heard of him having to do any of that.

He seemed to just be able to float by in class and like Lucian and I, his family was virtually non-existent.

“Is this your white privilege asking?” I threw at him, hoping that he would shut the fuck up with his breeze of a life as some of us had to work our asses off to get by.

“Is this your racial ambiguity discoursing?” he motioned towards my poof of red frizzy hair, tan skin and emerald eyes.

“Enough enough,” Lucy drawled out watching my jaw clench in frustration.

After this conversation, I realized that he never did anything that didn’t please him.

If he did not feel like going to class, he didn’t. If he did not wish to work, he called out without care. If he felt like crossing the street during a greenlight, he would play frogger as if the whole world answered to him.

He did not lie to please or appeal to anyone. He just acted.

One night, he called me, and I had questioned as to why and the response was as simple as everything in his life. He wanted to.

Not that he missed me, or thought about me. None of the romantic shit, he just wanted to call me.

I never wanted to admit it to myself but it did feel nice.

*

Four months later, Lucian died. The last time I saw my best friend, the three of us sat down on his sofa watching Life and he cried and I never understood why. Not until later.

The hospital said that he had a terminal illness. I don’t know how long he had it for but when I asked him if he knew, he just shrugged and inquired, “You didn’t?”

I was too sad to feel betrayed again or to question why he never told me.

I think he had it for the last two years because he knew.

Every morning I woke up, my eyes were bleary and even as the day continued, the world seemed to fog away.

People floated past me, colors began to blur together. I didn’t have much perception of direction either. I had supposed that this was what depression felt like.

The only thing that was clear was him; his unflinching stare, his minty aftershave, and his shower clean soap. It was all so familiar and I had spent hours trying to work out how he had become a reoccurrence and then all of sudden he wasn’t there.

In the beginning he had been Lucy’s friend who I always saw flirting with Jennifer from Art History then Bianca from Sculpting I and whoever the hell else was on campus. Then in a quick moment, we had been fighting about how unabashed he always and how much he liked me.

I had been asking him about Lucy’s whereabout all while he had been knowing that our best friend had a incurable illness.

He had been chasing me down the halls and sucking on my tits all while our friend was dying. He had been curling into my side and then, now, he stopped coming around.

Well, he still did but he never stayed long but maybe it was me, maybe I was becoming too needy after Lucy passed.

I don’t know but I felt alone.

“I’m so stupid,” I mumbled aloud, sitting up in his bed.

“Why is that?” he tugged at the light sheet, watching it inch off of my body.

“If I left right now, and told you to never speak to me again, what would you do?”

He stopped tugging at the sheet, turned over and lit the cigarette.

“Tell you goodnight and to get home safe.” He never lies.

On the eve of death, he was there. If I were to retell this story I would say that this was the time a part of me died.

I might have fallen for death.

Lucy was gone and he was death personified.

Always there, cold inside and out, never changing and decaying with pale skin, hard eyes and had no qualms about saying goodbye.

“You wouldn’t even ask why?”

“You’re a clever girl, Eves, temporarily blinded but I know.”

I stiffened at the nickname and let the sheet drift off of me completely and then turned to leave.

“What’s the matter, love? Are you walking away from me?” He was taunting me again, and I needed him to not do that.

I hated him in that moment because Lucy was gone, I was alone and he was alone. He was all I felt I had and he didn’t feel anything.

“I wouldn’t be able to, even if I tried, right?”

He chuckled while I just stared at him, the smell of smoke drifting up my nose while tears threatened to spill down my cheek.

He had been a friend of a friend.

No. We shared the same best friend, whom of which we would never see again.

#writing community #short fiction #fiction writing #my work #mine: short fiction #mine

[misguidedleopard]

Dear all,

Hello to everyone from France, and a Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Happy Bloody Holidays to all you slackers! I hope you enjoy your holidays, your sunshine and your beach. I will enjoy my non-holidays, my dismal grey sky and rain and zero degrees and my non-beach. Have I mentioned that it’s cold?! Well, here’s the next chapter of the France saga, it’s a longun, I’ve been having fun, very sorry.

Possibly the worst photo of me in the history of all photos of me. But I still wear my Noel a Strasbourg christmas hat every year :)

So anyways, I don’t even know where to start to tell you all about my Christmas, Strasbourg and what my New Year’s Eve will be! It’s been such a fantastic week, I can’t imagine going back to school on January 2nd! That’s not even enough time to recover from New Year’s Eve!

Well, I guess let’s start with Strasbourg :) Last Tuesday I got up nice and early at 6 am to get to the train station, to change the tickets because the ticket man had gotten them wrong, to get on the train at 8 am. Two hours to Paris (Gare d’Austerlitz), change train stations via the metro (I love the Parisian metro!) to Gare de l’Est (the Eastern Train Station). Jump on the train very quickly and try and find our seats. I assured my companion that they were in car number 111, but no: “That’s first class it can’t be there!” So after two or three tours of the entire train looking for our American friend who was already on the train I began to think perhaps we were on the WRONG train, which wouldn’t really be a problem until the ticket collector came (never mind that we could be heading to a completely different destination…) (See how blasé I was by this point! I think this was truly the time I really started to settle into France. There’s a point when you tip over from translating your thoughts from English to French, to just thinking in French in the first place. It took a few months, but I was definitely thinking in French by Christmas. The next turning point is dreaming in French. By then, you’re practically a native. It’s a remarkable experience!).  Eventually we found our American companion in car 111, and voila, we were at least on the right train! (Tip 11: Your seat on the train becomes fair game if you don’t take it. Seating on a train is kind of like seating in a cinema – if you don’t get into your seat quickly enough, someone else will take it because somebody else has already taken their seats too. And so it goes.). We arrived in Strasbourg at about 3pm, and walked directly to the hostel to drop off our heavy bags. When we saw the hostel we were amazed. I knew that it would be 20.50 euros a night and thought that the place might be a bit of a dump because for that price that’s about what you normally get – and a lot of hostels aren’t exactly comfortable. But the place was spotless, new, with brilliant facilities – a bar, a restaurant, downstairs there was a baggage room and tv room, there was an elevator (essential since we were on the third floor and we all had luggage) and our room was bright, open, spacious and clean! Needless to say we were incredibly impressed. The price of the room also included breakfast – which we were only up early enough for one morning!

So we had just left the hostel to see the sights when we got a call from another American assistant from Paris. He is a friend of a Mexican assistant in Châteauroux with us. She has gone to Spain and Morocco for the holidays, but her friends were going to be in Strasbourg at about the same time we were, so she had told them to look us up. So we arranged for them to find a café while we looked around the Christmas market (Kristkindelmarik), just a wander through them really to see what it was about. When we got directions to the café it was already about 6 o’clock. So we gets to the café and there’s not one, but four young gentlemen waiting for us – three Americans and a Mexican.

One of the many stalls at one of the many Christmas Markets in Strasbourg

So, Strasbourg was a blast: the party scene was cool and the company was just superb – we couldn’t have asked to meet anyone better! After meeting the boys on Monday at the café, we bought some alcohol and snacks, found their car after a long walk in the opposite direction, crammed all seven of us into the very small 1989 volkswagon, and found the hostel on the other side of town without getting pulled over by the police. So then we took all four guys up to our room, brought out the snacks and alcohol and got down to the business of just sitting around chatting, drinking and eating until midnight when the wine and whisky had run out. At that stage we decided that it was imperative to go out to a bar or buy some more alcohol – OR, a much more enticing option: go to GERMANY. That, though, would require the car and since we had all been drinking, we decided that seven in the car was not a very good idea for crossing the border. You can just imagine the German police pulling over this pissy little volkswagon loaded to the teeth with drunken, foreign 20 somethings! Well… one thing led to another, and five of us ended up loading into the car and skipping across the border!!! I’VE BEEN TO GERMANY!!! We crossed the bridge and went to the first bar we saw – a pokey little one-roomer with the bar itself and about five tables, which was practically empty except for us. We had such an amazing time, the boys were those ‘matey, blokey, funny’ type of guys, with TERRIBLE French accents insistent on speaking drunken French (in Germany). Crawled into bed at 2am.

I should point out that the boys were staying in a dorm room for one person – it was the ‘uni hall’ type room of a friend who had vacated it for the holidays, so one boy had the bed each night while the others had a piece of cold, hard concrete floor each night. So… one of the guys may have stayed over in our room… and the staff said nothing.

Wednesday night the boys got back into Strasbourg late, nearly midnight. They had gone to a roman bath in Germany and were supposed to spend the night at a friend’s but it had snowed the night before, the roads were iced over, they were in the mountains – you can guess what happened: they hit a patch of ice and ended up in the wall. Luckily there were no injuries. By then they had already taken several wrong turns anyway, and they decided to call it a day and come back to Strasbourg to spend the night with ‘les filles’, after stopping to buy alcohol in Germany because nothing’s open in France. At 2am several of us ducked out once again to find a bar in the freezing night on the other side of town – walking of course. We eventually found a nice bar, with a cute barman (2 cute barmen in fact). Michel was my favourite. Samuel liked the American among us. Anyways, we left when they closed at 4 am, with the promise of coming back Thursday night, which we did. That night, two of the gentlemen stayed over, and once again the staff said nothing. We love that hostel and those staff!

I did see things in Strasbourg, I promise! Here’s the vieux Strasbourg with the quaint timber-clad houses backing straight onto the canals.

Thursday night was supposed to be an early night, since we had to leave the room by 9 am the next morning. The boys had left early on Thursday morning after two hours sleep, so us girls returned to our bar and had a bit of a more quiet night (3.30am that is). We had to be up at 7.30am to leave the room and have breakfast! Needless to say we were exhausted Friday when we had to wait for the train with our bags!

The intrepid travellers who made my trip to Strasbourg so memorable :) Love them to bits :)

So, moving on from our party life… The huge ttraction for us in Strasbourg was the huge Christmas market. We quickly found out that it’s not so much one huge market, but like five or six little markets in little places, or squares as we Aussies would say. The Christmas markets are made up of little villages of wooden ‘houses’, all selling from their open fronts little figures of Père Noël (Father Christmas), nativity scenes, animals, the usual trinkets, candles, toys, Christmas hats (bonnets de noel), waffles, crepes, chichis and the Strasbourgian favourite: spiced hot wine (vin chaud). This was my first taste of heated spiced wine and it basically lived up to its name – it’s hot, it’s wine and it’s spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg and other Christmasy stuff like that. It takes your breathe away even before you drink it. It’s got a super-sweet smell, and it really warms you up on a freezing cold day. It wasn’t disgusting, not at all, but just far too rich and sweet for me.

  The little village underneath the biggest sapin de Noel (Christmas Tree) you could ever imagine. 

I absolutely loved the Christmas markets, tinsel and decorations and hanging ornaments and Father Christmases everywhere, every sort of Christmas tree decoration and every set of lights you can imagine – so many beautiful, sparkling sights to see.

  And outside of the markets themselves, an enormous Christmas tree that blots out the sky, and each restaurant, shop, house, museum, and other sort of building that exists is brilliantly decorated, giving the entire city a glittering festive look even though it’s one degree in the middle of the day! The enormous cathedral towers over the city, an enormous grey gothic mass of towers and statues – you have to look straight up from the base of it and you still can’t fit all of it in the photo!

The gros sapin de noel at night

Le cathédrale énorme

The front of the cathedral, with the Christmas Market at its base

We took a tour of the Kronenbourg brewery while we were there – it’s amazing what you can learn about beer from something like that! Did you know there are three types of beer – white, amber and brown. And they come from different types of wheat or mead or even corn! And did you know that Kronenbourg is now owned by a Scottish company which also owns Foster’s which would be why I can find Foster’s over here, but not decent Australian beer. We got two free drinks as well, which was really cool.

We also took a boat tour of the river for an hour. It was picturesque and extremely interesting. It seems that Strasbourg is the capital of the world. La Marseillaise, the national anthem of France, was written by a soldier in Strasbourg; the Gutenberg Press was invented in Strasbourg; the European Union Constitution was written, signed and ratified, or whatever, in Strasbourg; the headquarters of the European Commission are located in Strasbourg… If I could live anywhere in France, Strasbourg would be the city to choose, for sure.

Donc, restez assuré que je me suis bien amusée à Strasbourg, et que j’adore cette ville! Je voudrais bien y retourner un jour, et si je pouvais faire une année en plus comme assistante de langue, je choisirais fortement Strasbourg comme ville, c’est une ville merveilleuse ! Pour finir, sachez que je suis absolument fou de Strasbourg et aussi de France, je m’amuse bien ici et je pouvais rester ici pendant longtemps, tres contentement.

  For Christmas itself, rest assured that I wasn’t alone. I invited the remaining two assistants in Châteauroux (my South African bestie, and the same young Mexican lady I toured Strasbourg with) chez moi for Christmas dinner, on Christmas Eve. In France Christmas is celebrated on Christmas Eve. It was a fantastic multi-cultural affair. I made my family’s famous potato bake as well as coq au vin (a traditional Alsacian dish of chicken breasts in a mushroom and white wine sauce). The Mexican assistant made spaghetti with a light tomato and basil dressing. The South African looked after the fruit salad and ice cream. That girl knows how to choose ice cream! We ate and drank and danced around and looked at some photos and started watching a movie but were so exhausted that we all fell asleep just after it started! Christmas Day was a day of much the same as Christmas Eve with the South African, relaxing, eating, drinking, dancing, watching movies, and not at all lonely or sad.

Anyways, since I don’t know what I’m doing for New Year’s Eve and I have to prepare classes for next term and all of that boring stuff – the work that gets in the way of life – I should keep going and let you all keep going on your holidays.

So here is the end of this heavy tome, cheers to all and enjoy your holidays and your summer and your sunshine.

My footprints in the snow

A lovely light white blanket greeted me the next morning

PS: I’m adding this note onto this letter on Wednesday 28th because I have some incredibly, fantastical, superbly, marvellously, magnificently, fabulously, trop cool news for you! IT’S SNOWING!!! I’ve already been outside, taken photo after photo after photo, made snowballs, but there’s no one to have a snowball fight with! It’s so beautiful, it’s really light, it’s like powdered ice, tiny little square flakes of thin, frosty ice, it’s so beautiful! I love snow! It’s all white and fun and it’s really really cool! TROP COOL!

Love to all, cheers,

Karen.

Letters from France: Chapter 11 (Christmas in Strasbourg) Dear all, Hello to everyone from France, and a Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Happy Bloody Holidays to all you slackers!