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findafight · 1 year

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Why do you (personally) think so many Steve fans loathe the idea of him becoming a dad? becoming a parent is the only dream we know he has, but it's thrown in the trash in most fics. I keep reading about steve being childless by choice, because the party is enough for him, which I really don't get, they're only 4 years younger than him, their relationship is brotherly, not parental, and they have their own parents who raised them. I love found family, but it's not the same as raising children

Oooh. Anon you are so bold giving this to me, a person who has an elaborate studio era lavender marriage au where Steve and Robin just. Get adopted by children who break into their house AND one where Steve becomes brotherdad to his half sister. A person who clearly also doesn't know why people have future!Steve childless. Man attracts kids like the pied piper.

But let me try. I have some ideas.

First off there's less space between Steve and Dustin than me and my little sister, but more than me and my big brother, so I can for sure say, you definitely become more friends less caretakery with your siblings once you/they are not fourteen. Still protective though. Maybe many people writing those don't have close sibling relationships with moderate age gaps? Like, there's a point where you feel comfortable letting your little sibling do mostly whatever, because they're big, but you're not gonna let them get hurt if you can stop it. There's also never a point where you stop looking at your older sibling to help you. That doesn't mean my big brother is like my dad?? It's very different, and that's important!! The Party for sure has a sibling-like relationship with Steve, especially Dustin, and Max, and I'd say Lucas (he has a little sister, but no older sibling, and Steve and Erica are scoops troop bonded so. Bonus brother for Lucas!)(will and Mike have their own older siblings. El and Steve interaction WHEN!!!!) and they all have actual parents. So yeah. Steve has a gaggle of little siblings he'd fucking die for, and his kids are going to have so many uncles/aunts/non-binary sibling of parent (there is no good word for that)

So. I think it's possible that because a lot of people headcanon Steve as queer, that immediately makes "having kids" a bit more complicated given the state of things for queer folk in the 80's. That's fair.

With that, possibly people sort of...transfer Steve wanting kids and a big family to working with kids. Which isn't that big of a leap for Steve! He obviously does well with the Party and Erica, and he canonically worked as a lifeguard, which almost definitely means he taught swimming too! (Small pool def wanted duel certs. Trust me). He likes kids, works well with them, and wants them. These are three things that are separate, but blend well with each other.

However I don't really agree. Obviously being parents was harder for gay/queer people in the eighties, especially men. But it wasn't unheard-of! I think saying that because he's queer and in a relationship with a man in the eighties that he'd have to give up on his dream of being a dad is rude. There would be obstacles but, really, I think Steve would see it as totally worth it.

Another reason I think people don't want to give future Steve kids is. Listen it's been a while since I saw it but. His little speech was pretty embarrassing. Mostly because it was to Nancy. And that he followed up on the way to vecna and said he thought it would be her there too... Literally any other character would have made it not awkward, but because he and Nancy haven't talked about anything other than the upside down since season 2, it was awkward and bad. If it was ANYONE ELSE it would have been so cute (it still kinda is just. Ignore that they tried to give stancy development without actually giving them development) like if Robin was there? If Dustin or Max? Erica? Lucas? Were sitting in that seat, it'd be Steve sharing a dream of a big family he had, trying to lighten the mood, of opening up to people he cared about. They'd tease him, but the implication of him wanting them there as well would be clear and very cute. Adorable.

Because those are characters that don't have the same baggage in their relationship with Steve, but the six nuggets speech was made to Nancy so immediately it's already a bit off for people who want the characters to actually, y'know, talk about the past and move forward from it. Nancy and Steve's relationship is so messy and interesting and if they wanted me to get into actually rooting for it then maybe they should have an actual conversation about it!! And have Nancy break up with Jon before!! Not just half dreams of the future while her bf isn't there!

People also try to use it as saying Steve assumed Nancy would? Just be a Sahm? Or something? When that was never the implication? Maybe Nancy would have interpreted it that way, but I didn't. Steve wanted a big family who spent lots of quality time together having adventures. Six kids is a lot, but I betcha if Steve thought that much about having that many kids and road tripping to the ocean, he was probably imagining being the primary caretaker of those lil nuggs. He was daydreaming about first day of kindergarten and tearing up for real I know it.

Also I think people are cowards if they don't think Robin and Steve would get convenience married and adopt a couple kids even tho Robin is slightly terrified of toddlers (they are fast and they BITE) and Steve would be Robin's trophy husband who's a stay at home dad that wages physiological suburban warfare by being a Wife Guy and the envy of all early nineties housewives.

#stranger things #steve harrington #the party #steve and the party #steddie #stobin #also kinda sorta not actually but just to be safe #anti stancy #findaanswers #finda's rambles #anonasaurus #i love you anon i love you so much #should i readmore this or nah?#six little nuggets #steve just. accidentally acquiring children is actually my favourite thing. thats why it happens in two of the aus i love most lmao #also anon. my love. what fics are you reading there. bc usually i see steve getting to be a parent? or too young #but also have seen some where he isnt i guess. maybe most of the fics ive read are him being young so not ready for kids yet

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jeremygndr · 5 months

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jeremike family au if you care (old art) i’ve had this au since june of 2022 and her name is. well. June. she’s a bundle of joy i promise

#jeremike #fitzafton #artwork #fnaf #family au #jeremy and mike r t4t #also june is a parallel to CC in my storyline just thought i should throw that in #imagine accidentally killing your brother then your daughter looks like him #that’s gotta hurt buddy #they call her junebug and bumble bee #she has 3 parents but only jeremike are her bio parents #more info on my fnaf characters in the myart tag #i should stop talking here #my art

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munsonfamilyband · 1 year

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Part 5 of Different Meeting AU

This part is going to be very sappy, enjoy! The boys do imply a little bit more about their sex life so TW for this part: implied sexual content, discussion of torture, mentions of character death

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After Steve left the trailer park, he strapped the new bag of Eddie's things to his bike with the food, grabbed his backpack and started biking toward the lake. To stay out of sight he followed the train tracks, then split off from the woods when he reached Holland road. He pulled up to the house and hid his bike around the back, hurrying over to the boat house.

Steve carefully opened the door, peeking his head inside. "Eddie? I'm back, where are you?" At that, Eddie threw the tarp off and nearly ran to pull Steve into a hug. Steve could feel the anxiety thrumming off of Eddie like a physical thing and just held him tighter for a moment before finally pulling back to look him in the eyes. Eddie gave him a small smile, eyes still tight.

"Hey, did you get snacks?"

"Yeah, I grabbed you some clothes too. Went to see the guys, let them know what happened. I saw Wayne too, he was smart enough to hide anything illegal or incriminating before he called the cops this morning, so I have all of your drugs and my clothes from your place. He did leave the handcuffs and condoms though, probably figured they didn’t scream Homosexual too much." Steve quickly spoke up when he saw the almost feral grin on Eddie's face, "and I am glad he did, we do not need to be getting carried away while hiding from the cops." Eddie's grin dropped, practically pouting.

"Not even a little carried away? It’s not like we ever really use the condoms anymore."

"Eddie, we had sex like two days ago. And we don’t exactly have the ability to clean up around here.”

"Tell me about it, that's two whole days." Steve just rolled his eyes, ignoring the warmth he always feels in his chest whenever Eddie shows how much he wants him.

"C'mon, horndog, let's go into the house. We never cleaned up our picnic last weekend so all the blankets and pillows are still out. I brought our book too, so you can read to me tonight." Steve held out his hand, Eddie grabbing it quickly and pressing a kiss to the back of it as the head toward Steve's bike. They grab the bags and head into the house, setting them down on the kitchen table. "The food is in the duffle bag, can you put it away while I talk to Robin and let her know I'm back? I promised I would walkie to tell her." Eddie nodded, pressing a kiss to Steve's shoulder as he passed him to go put the food away.

Steve dug his walkie out of his backpack and tuned into the right channel. "Robin, are you there?"

"Steve! Did you get back to the lake okay?"

"Yeah, I just got back. I stopped by the trailer on the way here and saw Wayne, he had all my stuff packed up from the trailer, along with any incriminating items." Robin snorted through the walkie talkie.

"So he found all of Eddie's drugs and sex toys?"

"No!" Steve paused as he blushed. “We don’t leave that stuff at the trailer.” He only blushed more when Robin’s laugh came through the walkie.

“But he found all the drugs?”

"Shut up, Robs. Yes, Wayne found all of Eddie’s drugs. I just wanted to let you know I got back safe. Now can I get back to my boyfriend?”

"Good. Also, you're welcome, by the way. I managed to keep Dustin from outing you, I figured you would want to tell Nancy yourself." Steve sighed softly, so unbelievably grateful for his best friend.

"Thank you, Robbie. I'll have to find a time to tell he when we all meet up to plan, hopefully soon."

"Yeah, Nance actually was at the trailer park earlier. She said she had gone to investigate and ran into Eddie's uncle, he said something about Victor Creel? She said he was like a crazy murder from the 50s so I think we're planning on going to the library tomorrow to do some research."

"Alright, keep me posted on whatever you learn. I'm starving and I know Eddie must be too, so I'm going to go make us some food. Stay safe, Rob, over and out." Steve listened to her quick goodbye and pushed down the antenna of the walkie, setting it on the table before heading into the kitchen. "You hungry? I know I am." Eddie was sitting on the counter, flipping a butter knife in an attempt to look cool.

"I'm always hungry, and I have definitely missed your food this week." Steve smiled at him and got out the ingredients for quick goulash, knowing it was one of Eddie's favorites.

"I meant to tell you, Wayne wanted me to let you know that he never thought you were guilty." Glancing over at Eddie, Steve could see his shoulders visibly relax. Clearly, that had been weighing heavily on his mind.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, he knew you would be worried about him thinking you were like your dad, and he wanted you to know that he never did."

"I love that old man." Steve laughed, leaning his hip against Eddie's knee where he was still sitting on the counter.

"He loves you too." Steve cooked quickly, getting their food together so they could move into the living room to eat. Once their food was in bowl, he and Eddie went into the living room, sitting down on the blankets they left there.

After a few minutes of eating quietly, with only the sounds of the silverware and Eddie’s knee bouncing to fill the silence, Eddie finally spoke up. “So…. Tortured by Russians?” Steve sighed, setting his mostly empty bowl down on the floor. Without commenting first, Steve turned and grabbed the bag with his items in it, pulling it closer. He dig through the front zipper pouch and pulled out a small square box, opened it and pulled out a small blue piece of plastic that he carefully wrapped around his left ear. Steve saw the realization on Eddie’s face when he looked up, Eddie reaching a hand out to gently touch his left ear. “Sugar, why didn’t you say something?”

“I was scared, mostly. With the kids... I'm the one who keeps them safe, I didn't want to give them a reason to think I couldn't do that anymore." Steve looked at his hands as he spoke but was forced to look up when Eddie cupped both of his cheeks in his hands.

"Stevie, they are always going to need you around, it is okay to need help sometimes. So, from now on, you are going to promise that you will wear that hearing aid, understand?" Steve stared at Eddie for a moment before he nodded, placing his hands over Eddie's and just keeping him there. The moment was broken when a sharp pain radiated from behind Steve's left eye and he gasped, dropping Eddie's hands to push his palm into the eye socket in an attempt to stop the pain. "Migraine?"

"Fuck, yeah. Of course I didn't bring my good meds with me, shit it's bad." Steve squeezed his eyes shut to keep out the lights and he heard Eddie stand and walk away. Distantly Steve heard the stairs creak then footsteps on the second floor, before the stairs creaked again and Eddie was sitting in front of him once more.

"These aren't your good ones but I figured some motrin is as good as we can get right now. Here, give me your hand and I'll give you the pills." Keeping his eyes shut, Steve put out one of his hands and felt three pills be placed into it. After he popped them into his mouth, Eddie grabbed his hand and placed a glass of water in it so he could swallow the pills. "Good. Did something set it off? Normally you have a trigger."

"Well I would say I'm pretty stressed today so that would explain it." Eddie huffed a quiet laugh.

"Alright, that's fair. Let's lay down for a bit and once you're feeling a bit better we can keep talking." Steve let himself be guided to laying down and he curled himself against Eddie, using his chest to block out the light. Once the medicine kicked in Steve was able to shift backwards enough to look up at Eddie who was looking right back at him. "Meds doing their job, honey?"

"Yeah, you still want to hear about last summer?" Eddie nodded and Steve sighed, closing a fist around Eddie's shirt and gripping it tight. "Alright, well we told you about how we found out that the Russian's had a base under the mall but we didn't explain how we got into it. We had to drag Erica in, which I still feel so guilty for because she was only 10, and she went through the vents to get into this storage room they had on the loading dock. She opened the doors for us and we all went inside to investigate but the doors shut behind us and locked. Next thing I know the room is dropping because it was actually an elevator. We got stuck in that elevator for hours before some guards came to collect stuff from the room and we got out of there only to have to walk for miles. I think Erica actually knows how far we traveled but I wasn't there when she did the math so I don't know how far it was."

"Wait, Erica just did the math for how long you guys traveled?"

"Yeah, Dustin said she did at least. That's why he calls her a nerd apparently. Anyway, we got to the center of the base and Erica spotted the comms room, I won a fight against a Russian guard and then we found the gate they were opening to the Upside Down. At that point, Dustin and I knew this was really really bad. Then the alarms went off and we all had to run. We got cornered in a supply closet and Rob and I held the door shut so the kids could get into the vents and escape."

"You didn't..."

"I did. I couldn't let them get ahold of Dustin and Erica and Rob wouldn't leave me behind so we got captured. I knew Robin would start talking if she had the chance because she was nervous so I decided... I decided I would just be louder and more annoying so she wouldn't be their main focus. It worked and we got taken to separate rooms where I-" Steve cut off, his throat closing up from the memories of what he experienced in that bunker. "I would rather not go into detail, but, uh, they kept asking who I worked for and I had nothing to say other than the truth which they didn't like. I got knocked out eventually and when I came to I was tied back to back with Robin in a different room. She was yelling about needing a doctor and she said that she thought I might have been dead because she couldn't see me breathing. I'm pretty sure that was the broken ribs though."

"Jesus H Christ, Stevie. They nearly beat you to death."

"After I came to they asked us more questions before deciding that the best thing to do next was to give us some truth serum or something. They grabbed these syringes full of blue stuff and stuck it right in our necks. That's why I'm so spooked by needles now."

"Shit, that- well, that explains so much. sweetheart. I cannot believe you went through that and are still willing to put yourself in more danger."

"Yeah, well, the kids would get involved no matter what, and you're involved now. There was no way I would leave you to deal with this alone. There, um. There is something else. I think now that you know everything, it’s probably a good time to mention it.” Steve tilted his head up so his chin was resting against Eddie’s sternum and felt Eddie push a hand under his shirt to rest against the small of his back, radiating heat and comfort.

“What’s up? I thought I knew everything at this point, do you have another head injury to tell me about?” Steve huffed out a laugh, he could tell Eddie was trying to lighten the mood for both of them. He was so glad that he didn’t have to hide things anymore, even if he was terrified about Eddie being involved in the Upside Down.

“So, uh, I’m pretty sure we mentioned how after Billy beat me up in ‘84 Hopper took me to the hospital, right?”

“Yeah, someone mentioned it.”

“Cool, um, the thing is that wasn’t just it. After-after the hospital figured out my parents weren’t coming, Hop stepped in as uh, he said in loco parentis, but basically he was acting as my parent since I was still 17. He ended up bringing me back to his cabin after they discharged me, the hospital didn’t want me to be alone since it was a grade 3 concussion and I had the cuts on my head from the plate.” He felt Eddie’s hand curl a little tighter around his waist at the mention of the head injury again and Steve pressed a kiss to Eddie’s chest. “I’m glad he stepped up, I didn’t have anyone else. But, after that, I don’t know how it happened, somehow I sort of got absorbed into their little family. El and I got really close and that’s why I’m close with Max, and Hop-“ Steve paused as his throat closed up, it had been so long since he had even talked about Hopper’s death and it still hurt. “He became the first real father figure I had ever had. But then, Starcourt happened and he-“ This time Eddie cut him off, pulling him close so Steve didn’t have to push himself to say it.

“I know, I saw the news. I’m so sorry, princess. I had no idea you were close to him.”

“It wasn’t a long time, just around 8 months but it was enough for me to get attached to both of them. And now-now he’s gone and El’s in California, which is the best place for her but it still hurts. It’s why I was so emotional about Wayne just… accepting me the way he did. Hop had just… it had only been a few weeks and Wayne was so much like him. He’s- Wayne has helped a lot with that healing, he and Hop would have gotten along really well, I think.”

Eddie paused, just holding Steve close and rubbing his back gently. “Yeah, I think you’re right.” He hummed gently before shifting them around so he was pressed up against Steve’s back. “Wayne really loves you. Sometimes I think he loves you more than me.” Steve just laughed, holding Eddie’s hands in his own.

“No way, you’re his son, Eds. He does care though which I appreciate.”

They lapse into silence, just holding each other before Steve suddenly snorts a laugh.

“I don’t think Hop would have liked you very much.” Eddie pauses for a moment and then starts laughing.

“Absolutely not, you’re totally right. I don’t think he would want a drug dealer hanging out with his kid. Much less dating that kid.”

“I saw how he was with Mike, and that was just because he thought Mike was annoying. I think you dodged a bullet, possibly literally.” Eddie just laughed and held Steve closer to him. "Eds?"

"Yeah?"

"How are you doing? With all of this stuff." He can hear and feel Eddie sigh against the back of his neck and Eddie squeezes Steve's hand.

"Honestly?... Shit, Stevie, I'm scared out of my mind. For me, for you, for Robbie, for those god damn kids. I was prepared to have a spring break full of alone time where we got laughably high and fucked on just about every surface in this house. Now? I'm potentially on the run for murder and there's an evil wizard from another dimension that can possess people and kill them without leaving any evidence. If you hadn't shown up in that boat house, I think I would have gone insane."

"Eddie, it's okay to be terrified, you know? The first time, hell, the second time too, that I did this I thought I was going crazy. I couldn't stand having the lights off and any time I saw a bulb flicker I jumped. Even last time, you know what I did to just be able to sleep. You're allowed to be scared. So you and I are just going to lean on each other and we can make it through this." Steve felt wetness on his neck and knew Eddie had been crying at some point, so he turned around to face him and he pressed a kiss to Eddie's nose. He was smiling but when they were able to see each other's faces Steve saw Eddie frown.

"Is your nose bleeding?" Eddie asked before Steve reached a hand up and wiped under his nose, finding blood on his fingers when he pulled them away.

"That hasn't happened in a while. Don't worry though, sometimes it happens with the headaches."

"Alright, if you're sure." Steve just curled back up against Eddie without further comment as Eddie's hand carded through his hair. "You want me to read a bit before we go to bed."

"Yes please." He felt Eddie twist to grab their book before a kiss was pressed to the top of his head and Eddie started to read.

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And that's it for this part. I had the part about Hopper written days ago but I wasn't sure how to work it in until today. I'm obsessed with Accidental Parent Hopper who stumbles into being a father for two kids.

Also, there is a good bit of foreshadowing in this chapter, both from the show and some of my own

Taglist

@messrs-weasley @y0urnewstepp4r3nt @eddie-munsons-lunchbox @live-the-fangirl-life @nburkhardt @inmoonywetrust @henderdads @vlada-elya @grtwdsmwhr @spectrum-sceptre @madamonsieur-silvrene @abookisproofofmagic @knitsforthetrail @imzadidragonfly @blackholegladiator @maya-custodios-dionach @phantypurple @booksandsience @formacoon @gregre369 @beeing-stuupid @imsociallyanxiousgetoverit

#steddie #steve harrington #stranger things #eddie munson #different meeting au #Jim Hopper accidentally adopts people and he complains about it constantly but refuses to stop being a parent #Eddie is obsessed with Steve and he witnessed the “tell me about it” moment between Steve and Nancy #he regularly shows Steve how much he loves him by using that line #i don't know if I said it but they're reading through LotR together -> adding to my dyslexic Steve agenda

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jessicas-pi · 1 year

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After several polls of coming in second or third or fourth or whateverth place, Bo-Katan's Obitine Flashbacks finally won!

Bo-Katan doesn’t know specifics, but she does know it hasn’t been more than a month.

She lowers her voice. “I’m sorry for your loss, Wren. I know you and the Jedi were… close…”

And Sabine Wren drops her face into her arms, bursting into tears and then apologizing through her hysterical sobs, which tells Bo-Katan exactly how close they were.

Bo-Katan is hit with a feeling of deja vu, like she’s done this before.

Wait.

No.

She has.

Ha ha. Fun.

This is just exactly what she needed right now, another woman brokenhearted over a Jedi.

And she thought the time with her sister had been awkward.

Wren is still rambling, half-incoherently as she rubs her eyes and tries to pull herself together, a mix of excuses and explanations and aching, soul-deep pain.

She says enough to give Bo-Katan another realization.

Unless Bo has entirely misheard—not only did Wren have feelings for the Jedi boy—not only did the Jedi boy have feelings for Wren in return—not only did they confess to each other—they also said the vows, which is, Bo is pretty sure, farther than Satine ever got with her Jedi, and then the thought of Satine and Kenobi gives Bo-Katan the most horrifying notion yet.

“Oh, my gods, are you pregnant?”

Sabine sits up, eyes huge, mouth hanging open in speechless bewilderment.

“Am I… no!”

Her answer is entirely sincere, and Bo-Katan slumps in relief.

Manda be praised. We don’t need more Korkies.

#bo katan is crying with relief on the inside #but bo. you have entirely forgotten to account for adoption.#this is a MANDALORIAN we're talking about sabine is perfectly capable of acquiring a force sensitive gremlin baby on her own #needless to say in the years that they are apart sabine and ezra both acquire children #and tell their kids stories about their respective missing parents and have very fairy tale wait for true love vibes #no that telling stories thing is not at all inspired by the bridge of long live by taylor swift why on EARTH would you think that #(but seriously Long Live has MAJOR rebels vibes)#anyway i got off topic. Where was I?#oh yeah.#accidental child acquisition.#it happens.#that's the point i was making #children are acquired.#accidentally.#(one of the accidentally acquired children may in fact possibly be The Legendary Pink Haired Gremlinchild Rune)#i just really like the word acquire. ok. it is a fun word to type #sabezra #the promises au

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bunnieswithknives · 1 year

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So, Lesley's somewhat of a better parent than Roy. But based on what we've seen so far... She's pretty fucked.

What has Roy done to be put on the bad parent list compared to Lesley?

Roy believed in making punishments related to whatever he was being punished for a better 'learning experience'

For example: if Roy asked David to clean his room and he refused, he would lock him in until he was done, even if he had to miss meals to do it, or if David broke something important to him he would get rid of something important to David. Some were worse than others, but Roy was strict on the fact that punishments wouldn't end until they were over, or until Lesley decided it was too far and forced him to stop.

#Roy tried to be better than his own dad and in many ways succeeded! unfortunately that didn't mean he was a good father...#Roy accidentally perpetuating the cycle of abuse because that's what he grew up with and doesn't know any other way to parent :(#There was an extended version of the 'david cleaning his room' story but it felt a bit dark so I cut it #I can uncut it if anyone wants tho #two of us AU #two of us!Roy #abuse tw

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mefiman · 7 months

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Shadow Young from my Accidental Parents AU drawn in Showdown style! Redesigned her outfit and drew her in her mid teens. Also gave her darker skin because of genetics in my AU (I won't give spoilers!)

Shadow is from Xiaolin Chronicles belonging to Christy Hui. The AU is my idea!

#xiaolin showdown #xiaolin chronicles #shadow young #accidental parents au #my art

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mythicandco · 1 year

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don't be codependent with the doppleganger of your dead best friend challenge (INSTANTLY FAILED)

#gmgp au #hail true body au #jingling sasha and mark around in my brain sooo violently #anne tries to shake hands with whoever loses an arm in htb but it's a little difficult because. yeah lmao #and then sasha and dave just walk DIRECTLY into each other and both faceplant. poor guys #sending cesar off to the ''traumatized dopplegangers with identity crises'' group therapy club with darcy #mark walks on stage right to see sasha desecrating a grave. she drops the shovel and SPRINTS outta there stage left #marcy and human!cesar are in the nonexistent afterlife listening to queen. don't ask how that works #adam and darcy make prolonged eye contact .neither blinks for over an hour #jonah and anne are just vibing out I think they'd get along pretty well #sarah and sasha get in a shouting match. don't ask who started it #mark ''I wish my parents were still alive'' heathcliff #and sasha ''I thiiink I might've accidentally had my parents killed and replaced w/ nicer ones'' waybright

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crimeronan · 1 year

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continuing to think about darius raine and eber going into princess/empress luz's mindscape to see what she's up to (and so darius can make sure hunter isn't in danger even though he'd NEVER admit it aloud) it's fucking HAUNTING me it's so good. it's so good!! anon's gettin' me got by making me think about my favorite disaster adults contending with the various horrors in this AU

i jst. god i cannot stop thinking about it . GOD

darius: okay. this girl is belos 2.0 and wants to own/destroy the world and has no qualms about hurting people to get what she wants. we have to move very cautiously. her inner self is likely extremely manipulative and dangerous and snakelike

inner luz, immediately: [pacing around in circles] [mumbling to herself] [anxiously flapping/rocking] [on the verge of tears] stupid stupid stupid you're just belos 2.0 what if you don't care about hurting people you're going to hurt hunter you're going to hurt everyone you can't do anything right you stupid idiot you'll never get rid of the empire if you can't get it together why can't you just stop being like this stupid STUPID

darius: ........hm.

raine: right. so. darius. about how i'm adopting this child,

#hello everyone. do you know how crazy i have become over the thought of raine semi-accidentally becoming princess luz's adoptive parent #in parallel to eda with canon luz #raine meeting up with eda again like so this is the empress who is definitely not my child. unless #i dont know if i have the energy to fic all of this BUT IT COMPELS ME DEEPLY #all the raine darius lilith and eda mess potential in this AU.... my four favorite disaster adults.... ooough god #toh #princess luz AU #darius deamonne #raine whispers #luz noceda

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wolfylch · 8 months

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Flint and Graham are going to have a baby in our AU! 💖

They're also going to commission a baby so they might end up being twins kinda

#Flint and Graham are married in our AU but they have an open relationship (not open to more romantic partners tho)#Graham is gay so Flint is the only one who's a partner to The Mingler #they're all close friends tho #Flint accidentally got The pregnant but she offered to keep the baby for them which they're excited about #she wouldn't have offered if she wasn't ok with it or being pregnant #she won't parent it tho as this is Graham and Flint's child not hers (she's not interested in having kids)#Flint and Graham are planning on commissioning a baby too so they can let their daughter have a friend #they're also hoping they're capable of raising 2 kids ; they wouldn't want twins if they didn't think they were ready #they're still nervous tho #Barbie is their daughter born by The Mingler ; Coal is their son they'll be commissioning (random commission by the commissionist)#ttcc #toontown corporate clash #toontown #toontown: corporate clash #oc #au #ttcc au #pacesetter #graham payser #graham ness payser #pyrobo anteater flint #flint bonpyre #the Mingler #fan kids #ttcc fankid #POG is going to be such a great older sibling lol - dumb doodle #cogs and toons can either have babies the “natural” way or by commissioning one through a commissions facility #this way opens an option for all families to have kids #this includes single parents just looking to commission a kid of their own to raise or an heir to a company

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dramioneasks · 13 days

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Mind the Bump - Soap1 - E, 28 chapters - Hermione Granger and her colleague (and, though she sometimes hates to admit it, her friend) Theo Nott, are busy at the Research Institute for the Alchemical Sciences, working together on an innovative, though secretive, project that more than one person might like to get their hands on. She doesn't have much time for dating, and certainly isn't ready to think about starting a family. But after an exciting, though unexpected, one-night stand, she finds herself pregnant. With Draco Malfoy's baby. As her research continues, as her pregnancy progresses, will she be able to make room for Draco in her life?

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cheerycherrycandy-resurrected · 8 days

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What You've Done, You Cannot Undo (Medieval AU)

Chapter 5

The pack discovers Dew is missing. Dew's journey begins, and he reflects on his past.

Rating: M Content: parental problems, trans dewdrop, accidental misgendering, self-hatred, gender dysphoria, dew makes decisions that hurt him mentally and physically, he's scared of rejection and also, potential starvation, found family, dew faces his past Words: 5105

Links to full fic: Tumblr | AO3

Quite a lore/backstory heavy one for Dew this week! I wanted to get a bit more plot in, but there's a fair bit of history and some other characters that need introducing first!

hi hi @revengeghoulette @everybodyshusband @rainsbasspick (an additional thank you for your advice on some basic horsey words haha!), as always tysssm for your interest in my silly little fic!!

Read below, or on AO3!

Dear Aether, Mountain, Swiss,

Don't wait for me, get out of here. Help Rain, but don't put yourselves in danger. They'll kill you too.

I'll be back when I can. I love you always.

Dewdrop.

“What does he mean?” cried Aether, “How can he just run off and leave like that?”

“I can't believe the selfish little bastard, after all we did for him!” Mountain growled, anger winning out over Aether's sadness at the fire ghoul's early departure.

"You don't mean that, Sprout.” Swiss tried to sooth him, wrapping warm arms around him from behind and pressing his warm nose in-between the taller ghoul's shoulder blades. His visions had stopped as Dew fled, the future too uncertain now even for his supernatural predictions. The numbness had caught him off guard leaving him feeling empty and hollow, stumbling outside to find his packmates. The sudden clarity felt sharp, like he had been doused in ice cold water.

They had discovered Dew's note soon after, propped up in the middle of the kitchen table. Aether had read it aloud, over and over until the words became noise in their ears and his voice disintegrated into choked-off sobs.

“I'll wring his scrawny neck when I catch him!” angry tears started to fall down Mountain's cheeks. “He's doomed Rain and doomed us all!”

“I thought we were pack...” Aether whimpered, clutching the note to his chest.

Swiss's head still reeling slightly from the sudden departure of his painful visions, he found himself the one in greatest control of his emotions. He tried to push some of his own quintessence into the room to calm the situation down. His visions having stopped so abruptly made him uneasy, and he knew they wouldn't return until they left the farmhouse where their fate was sealed if they stayed. They had no future here, that was clear to him.

“Dew's right,” he ventured, ignoring the slight growl from the earth ghoul in his arms, “we have to get out of here, we're all dead if we stay.”

Aether sniffed and nodded slowly. Mountain seemed like he wanted to resist further, but eventually huffed out a sigh, before turning to look at Swiss.

“So we leave then. Let the village destroy everything we've worked for, and hope it's not too late for Rain.”

Swiss nodded solemnly. “I don't see what else we can do. As long as we sit here, I see only nothingness ahead. We can camp out somewhere, and decide what to do from there.”

“We were wanderers before, we can do it again.” Aether whispered, getting to his feet. Swiss felt bad for pushing him when he seemed so close to cracking apart, but there was a clock ticking over their heads for as long as they stayed here.

“Let's pack up and leave, the sooner we get out of here the better, for us as well as Rain.”

Mountain reluctantly agreed, albeit with a scowl. “If Dew wants to take his chances on his own, he's welcome to.”

~~~~~~~

By the time Dew reached the nearest stables, his ankle was already screaming at him again in pain. Aether’s magic could only do so much, and Dew had pushed it past its limits. He had skirted round to the eastern edge of town, heading for the main path that led away from the village and up to the cold northern shores. The constant pounding of his footfalls against the dry and cracked earth made shooting pains lance up his calf with every step, and he cursed himself for pushing it so hard even once he was out of view of the farmhouse.

The sun was beginning to set, so Dew sat down under the leafy canopy of a tree to watch and wait until it was darker. The stables were old, leaning against a sandy-coloured stone building that looked as though it had been standing since humans first walked the earth. Still, it seemed cosy inside, the smell of dinner wafting out of the chimney alongside the curl of smoke from the fire. His stomach growled at him, the tempting aroma reminding him of how limited his own rations were. Dew saw the farmer emerge to call in his dog for supper and used the distraction to make a run for the stalls where the horses were kept.

Entering the lean-to building, the dark chestnut horse nearest the entrance looked over the half-door at Dew with curiosity in their dark eyes. Further into the outbuilding, a dappled grey horse bared their large teeth at him with a snort. Dew didn’t have a death wish, so he snatched a blanket and saddle from the wall and began tacking up the chestnut horse. The final hurdle was the thick chain connecting the horse’s halter to an iron ring in the wall which Dew easily melted through. The horse whinnied nervously at the smell of smouldering metal, but was easily placated by a gentle stroke to their nose. Dew grabbed a few more items he thought could be useful and filled the horse's saddlebags, stuffing his own knapsack in on top.

As quietly as he could with all the brass tack jangling, Dew led the horse outside. She, he deduced, waited patiently next to a mounting block for him to scramble inelegantly into the saddle. Checking over his shoulder that he hadn’t been spotted, he gently nudged the horse to begin walking out of the yard, back onto the road. She snorted anxiously at travelling in the near-dark, but Dew kept the pace slow and encouraged her gently, one step at a time.

He knew there was a river a few miles out from here, and shelter that was well hidden from the path. It was out here where Aether and Mountain had found him, after all. The deep green trees full of summer leaves formed a canopy overhead, and the path was soft underfoot from those leaves that had fallen early. In the twilight, Dew finally spotted the small clearing alongside the river that he was looking for, and the camouflaging greeery at the edge of it.

Dew encouraged the horse to drink from the stream, before retreating to the cover of the thick shrubbery. Looping a length of rope he had stolen around a tree trunk, Dew tethered the horse to it for the night. He emptied the fistfuls of hay he had also taken onto the grass in front of her, before settling down under the saddle blanket in the shadow of the bushes. Dew always rose with the sun, and then they would be on their way.

The next morning while the sky was still pale grey, Dew was on his way further north towards the only salvation for Rain and the pack that he could think of. The horse beneath him trotted along happily as he ate his meagre breakfast of dried meat and water in the saddle. He was making good pace, travelling with a well-bred horse and a slight knowledge of the paths. It was a stark difference from when he had made the same journey in reverse all those years before. Then, he had been on foot, exhausted, and any plan beyond survival had been long abandoned.

Dew thought back on his old life as they travelled, on the many previous chapters he had tried to supress. Back to his early life as a kit; unloved and used as a pawn in his mother's mind-games. He had never known his father, the water ghoul long gone by the time Dewdrop was old enough to walk and talk. Even his mother, a fire ghoul born to parents with strict views on elemental purity, had only known him superficially before he left.

An act of youthful rebellion, her brief romance with a water ghoul had ended shortly after Dew's birth when he fled back to his original clan. Ghouls inherited their elements from their mothers so the fire kit was raised amongst his own, but with a conspicuous water ghoul name that made him stand out as a target. As Dew had gotten older he had realised just how much resentment his mother had for him, and how he had ruined her young and flighty life. The realisation that his existence was merely a tool to further antagonise his grandparents had made his decision clear and Dewdrop had left his home clan as early as possible.

Life hadn't gotten much easier from there. A young ghoul, alone in the wilderness, Dew weakly struggled onwards following a faint mixed ghoulish scent towards what he hoped was a friendly clan. After several hungry and cold months of wandering, he had found himself outside a grand Abbey on the northern coast, the tall oak doors with carvings of the elemental symbols daring him to ring the brass bell nearby.

The tall air ghoulette who answered his call wore a warm face, in contrast with her militaristic uniform. She had led him inside by the hand, bringing him to a room brightly lit by candlelight, with a roaring fire in the hearth. She'd brought him food, water and a blanket, even offering to help brush the tangles out of his long hair. Dew had wondered if he was so exhausted that he was hallucinating; he'd never been shown this kind of care in his life. The gentle fingers on his scalp were sending him to sleep, when there was a quiet knock at the door.

“Come in Lus, we have a guest!” called the ghoulette softly, setting down the hairbrush.

Another ghoulette entered, wearing the same black uniform. Her white-blond hair bounced round her shoulders like a cloud, and she had the same caring smile.

“Hello!” she'd dimpled at him, “I heard of your arrival on the winds, what's your name?”

"Dewdrop, Ma’am.”

She pulled a face at the formality of his reply, her peal of laughter sounding like bells chiming in the wind. “That's quite enough of that! Call me Cumulus. I hope Cirrus is taking good care of you?”

Dewdrop nodded shyly, letting his hair fall in front of his face to hide from her inquisitive blue eyes.

“Great! I'll tell Copia that the new ghoulette is settling in well, he can't wait to meet you!” Before Dew had a chance to correct her, she'd spun around and flounced back out of the room.

Dew knew all too well what he looked like, knew what he smelled like to other ghouls, but it still stung. He hated what his physical vessel implied; especially after the months of malnutrition and living in the woods. His increasingly skinny, bird-like frame didn't exactly scream big tough ghoul, nor did the security curtain of long blond hair he hid behind. They had seen what they thought was a young ghoulette, alone and scared on their doorstep, and Dew had done nothing to correct them. Still, it hurt.

Dew bit his tongue for now – he was too grateful for the hot meal and promise of a warm bed after so long outside to jeopardize his place here, if ghouls weren't welcome. He had spent so many years of his earlier life denying who he was, and having received easy acceptance among his birth clan once he had told them, he had gone and thrown all of that away to go and starve in the woods. How selfish. Maybe he deserved to suffer a bit longer, he thought, for running off and being so utterly useless at life that he had become a burden, yet again.

Smelling the anxiety rolling off him, Cirrus started purring reassuringly and picked up the hairbrush again.

“Don't worry, Copia's no one to be afraid of. He probably just wants to see if he can recruit you into the choir!”

Dewdrop stayed quiet and let her calmly braid his hair with precise fingers. The warmth of the fire continued to seep into his bones, and he felt his strength returning. Soon, he could be on his way again and this would just be another in a strong of upsetting memories.

From that day forward, the pair of air ghoulettes had treated Dew like one of their own. They showed him to a small room, sparse but cosy, and told him he could stay as long as he liked. Over the coming weeks as he recovered – slower than he would have liked – Dew had discovered that the Abbey was a safe haven for those without pack or clan, those persecuted by the humans they walked amongst, and even just those who wanted to learn about and spread the Dark Lord's word. Run by a distinctly ghoulish-scented human, who Dewdrop suspected might be more similar to him that the man realised, they spread His message through song, and housed the largest library of unholy texts Dew had ever seen.

Eventually, he'd found there were other ghouls around, not only ghoulettes, although they were fewer in number. Every day, Dew thought about correcting them, telling the air ghoulettes that he was actually a fire ghoul, but every day something stopped him. They’d done so much for him since he had arrived; from the start they had treated him like pack, and he knew deep down they would most likely take the information well. Dewdrop felt like he’d gained two older sisters to watch over him and guide him in this new life, and he couldn’t stand the thought of admitting that he’d been lying to them the whole time. The voices in his head telling him he was pathetic for not managing life outside without starving were the same ones that screamed him how he would be betraying their trust, having waited so long now to say anything.

Living at the Abbey could be wonderful, he would be stupid not to see that: if he could just come clean and inform them that he was actually a ghoul, and not a ghoulette, he knew he could make a good life here. He sang with their choir, the euphoric feeling of praising Him with music nothing like he’d ever experienced before. The library too, was a new discovery to him. The librarian, a water ghoulette called Mist, had taken a shine to him and helped him decipher some of the oldest texts. Dew had never felt such a kinship with a water ghoul before, and his curiosity about her, and by extension what his own father may have been like drew him closer to her.

With Mist’s help, Dew learned a great deal from the library. From some basic knowledge about what plants he could forage and how to set traps for small animals, he had progressed to reading ancient tomes on ghouls and their nature. He learned how to adjust his scent and mask his more ghoulette-like features; how to craft the changes to his form he so desperately wanted. He studied hard until he was able to bind them to him, much like the chosen glamour all ghouls wore around humans. Mist directed him through the maze of bookshelves with practiced ease, and recommended texts with a confidence that he thought could only have come from prior experience.

Despite Cumulus, Cirrus and Mist’s unwavering care and support, Dew felt himself nearing a breaking point. The longer he stayed, the more he felt like his lies were swirling endlessly around him. The spiral descent into self-loathing felt unstoppable, like the easier option was to just leave and take his lies with him. It became clear to him that he would not be able to stay here, and stay sane. Although he was still weakened from his previous attempt at a solo wandering lifestyle, Dew trusted in his new-found knowledge to keep him safe.

He could not have been more wrong. Dew had told no one he was leaving, simply slipping out the main gate into the early morning fog. He’d walked for miles, the freshly-healed blisters on his feet ripping back open and the damp air penetrating every fold of his clothes, sapping the infernal heat from his body. Even with his painstakingly copied diagrams, his traps failed. He’d read pages and pages on edible plants, but recognised next to none amongst the flora that grew along his path. Try with all his might, Dew hadn’t succeeded in catching a single fish.

A few weeks into his slow and painful trudge south, Dewdrop found himself following a river. He’d come across a few human encampments along the way, stealing food from them when he could, making tea from leaves and bark to fill his stomach, but was empty-handed and starving again by the time he reached a small clearing edged by tall shrubs and trees. He sat behind the bushes, watching the road. Dew had no strength left to hunt, so he curled up to desperately hope a foolish traveller would make a camp he could steal from in the clearing in front of him.

There was no other way out for him now; he’d waited too long and travelled too far to make it back to the Abbey with his tail between his legs, either he would steal food for one more day, or he would starve. Dew didn’t want to be returned to the pit like that: he had heard of it happening, ghouls who failed to take care of themselves being pulled back to His realms, but he was scared. He only knew life on the surface and, as painful as it was, it was home.

Dew hugged his knees to his chest and tried not to cry. He’d failed at everything; thrown his best chance at life away and for what? To starve alone in the woods. As his sniffed back tears, he felt a strange scent tickle the back of his throat. It was sharp like the air before a thunderstorm, yet calming like lavender and chamomile. He took a deeper breath. There it was again, and behind it the deep, earthy smell of damp forest floors, cut through with the lively, resinous scent of pine sap. Dew felt the hairs stand up along the back of his neck, and a tingling in the base of his glamoured horns. Could it be… other ghouls?

He stumbled to his feet, using the last of his energy to force out a submissive, non-threatening scent. Dew started tracking the scent, following it down to the river’s edge where he could smell it drifting downwind from the north. Had they been following him? He hunkered down in a defensive couch, in case the ghoul, or ghouls, were hostile. Dew heard them before he saw them, a pair of male voices carried towards him on the breeze. He locked on to the sound like it was a lifeline. They sounded casual, relaxed.

Two tall ghouls came into view, although they looked distinctly human with their glamours in place. They paused at the edge of the clearing, going silent as they clearly smelled Dew before they spotted him. Dew huddled to the ground suppressing a shiver, from cold or fear he wasn't sure. Quiet voices drifted towards him,

“Is that a ghoul?”

"Maybe a kit? They look tiny...”

Dew tried to keep his eyes glued to their feet as they cautiously moved closer, not wanting to look like he was challenging the much larger ghouls. An involuntary hiss escaped his lips at their approach making the pair pause slightly and look at each other, having some kind of unspoken conversation.

“He's all skin and bones, look at him he's terrified!” The slightly shorter of the two, a quintessence ghoul, exclaimed and broke away to move even closer with his hands outstretched, palms up like approaching a wild animal. Dew raised his eyes to take in more of the ghoul, and was struck by the kindness he saw in his facial expression.

Warm violet eyes crinkled down at him in concern, the only ghoulish feature on his disguised, yet weathered face. Dew made no move to stand; his legs felt disconnected from his body. The quintessence ghoul offered him a smile, as he joined Dew in a crouch on the ground.

“You’re not a kit, are you.” he stated. “But you do look like you need some help. I’m Aether, and this is Mountain,” he gestured at the earth ghoul who was still hovering awkwardly a few paces back, “what’s your name?”

“Dewdrop.” His voice cracked with disuse, ripping its way out of his throat.

“Well Dewdrop, let’s start by getting some food into you, shall we?”

Dew nodded guardedly, hardly believing the pair were real. The odds of meeting other ghouls, and friendly ones at that, were minuscule compared to the likelihood that they were merely the hallucinations of his desperate brain. With some more coaxing and a pair of strong arms, Aether helped him to his unsteady feet. The earth ghoul, Mountain, fished around in his pack and produced some rations for him to eat, while Aether unfolded a blanket from his own to wrap around Dew’s shoulders. He thanked them in a whisper.

“We live close by, if you’ll let us take you there?” Aether asked. Dew looked at him warily, before answering haltingly,

“I- I don’t know how much further I can walk.” he admitted. Everything about the pair seemed trustworthy so far, but they were still strangers, and could probably overpower him with a single finger in his current state.

“Nonsense,” Aether cracked an encouraging smile, “Mount can carry you!” The aforementioned ghoul made a show of flexing his arms as Dew turned to him, sceptical. Following them was one thing, but being willingly carried off to their den?

“Don’t look at me like that, little one,” the earth ghoul smirked, “my pack weighs more than you!”

That was precisely what Dew was worried about. Still, he didn't think he had many other options in his current state, and at least with the small amount of bread now in his stomach he might now have the strength to burn them with his element if he found himself in danger.

The journey in Mountain’s strong arms went by in a blur, as Dew tried not to think how pathetic he had become, to need to be carried like a kit. Dew saw them pass a stables, and then a montage of farmhouses and hedgerows that all blended into one as the gentle rocking motion began to lull him into unconsciousness. The earth ghoul was warm, warmer than he should have felt to Dew as a fire ghoul, but he slowly felt his own temperature recovering as they travelled. For the first time in a long while, Dew found himself beginning to feel almost safe.

The pair had brought him into their own farmhouse, a place that was sparsely occupied yet homely, in the way only long-time dwellings could be. Quintessence and – especially – earth ghouls were known to be solitary and nomadic beings, yet these two had clearly absorbed the best of the human creature comforts available to them. They soon had Dew warming up under a pile of plush furs and blankets in front of a roaring fire, recharging his dwindling internal heat. Fire ghouls were greatly valued for their ability to keep themselves and others warm in even the harshest conditions, providing they were healthy themselves, yet as soon as they became hungry or tired their internal fire was the first thing to suffer and could be challenging to reignite.

Mountain had brought him a bowl of warming soup, the light broth gentle on his stomach, while Aether sat nearby funnelling healing magic into Dew’s weak frame. In spite of their gentle care and kind actions, Dew found himself growing suspicious of how willing they had been to help him and invite him into their den and let him remain there. In his experience, lone ghouls never let a stranger encroach on their space without a reason: dens were for pack, potential mates, and prey. Then again, the ghouls seemed to go against every other expectation Dew held, by travelling together despite clearly not being mates and living in such close proximity to humans and their civilisation. Dew resolved to stay alert, and see what ulterior motive the ghouls had, if any.

Over the following weeks, things began to settle into a routine. Dew was feeling much stronger, and had moved into an empty room within the ghouls' farmhouse. He had to admit, they seemed to have a nice life out here. He'd seen the way they intermingled with the human population of the nearby village, how they had gained their trust. As far as Dew's desire for a fresh start was concerned, he seemed to be doing well. Neither Mountain or Aether had asked any questions about his past or why he had come to be starving and alone in the woods, and it didn't seem like it mattered to them.

Dew had learned that they had found him while returning from a week-long hunting trip. They had both been solitary ghouls for many years before meeting each other, and had bonded initially through a more transactional relationship as lookouts and allies before later becoming friends. For the moment, they had paused their transient lifestyle to see how a more settled existence would suit them, while still striving to keep their own survival and hunting skills fresh should they decide to move on. Mountain and Aether were clearly both more pack-oriented than usual for their elemental types, yet they were still independent, strong ghouls.

A month in however, they were still treating Dew with kid gloves. He knew he was perfectly capable of many things and was a quick learner despite his apparent ineptitude with survival skills, and it irked him that he was barely left alone with his thoughts. After Aether had insisted on joining him on his walk for the umpteenth time that week Dew had become snippy, reminding him that he wasn't a kit and could easily pace a lap of the field without his hand being held. Dew knew that his hot-and-cold attitude hadn't helped his integration into their lives, and Mountain especially had been suspicious of him for several more months. They were just trying to help a fellow ghoul – and a young one at that – not get returned to the pit due to their own incompetence, and Dew seemed to be plain ungrateful at times.

Dew wondered what they must think of him now; as he rode as hard as he could northwards and away from the village. He had to come alone, that was clear to him, and the others would have never let him go by himself if he had stuck around longer to tell them his plan. They must think he had abandoned them, selfishly escaping and leaving them to face Rain's fate and the village's wrath alone. They must be cursing his name; agreeing on what a pathetic excuse for a packmate he was, leaving their youngest hung out to dry in his time of need. Dew had never been the perfect packmate, he knew that, and at every step he'd let them down.

Mountain and Aether had bonded so quickly with Swiss when he arrived; rolling into the tavern one night, and into their lives and house the next, and then again with Rain when he arrived. With Swiss it was understandable that he would have a closer kinship with the older ghouls as they all had experience with the outdoor travelling lifestyle, and had a greater shared history of experiences. With Rain however, he and Dew had arrived in almost identical circumstances. Both were young and unused to the harshness of the world, both having been weakened by it. Aether had clearly tried to push them together, seeing the opportunity for both of the relatively withdrawn and private ghouls to find a meaningful bond with each other. Dew had never given Rain a chance however and had pushed him away, once again leaving Aether and Mountain to pick up the slack of introducing a new ghoul to their unique way of living.

Dew only hoped that he wasn’t too late to make amends, and wouldn’t be too late to save Rain. Only now, with the threat of losing them hanging over his head, did Dew realize exactly what was at stake and how much his pack meant to him. He hadn’t had a detailed plan when he took off towards the Abbey and was no closer to forming one now, but if anyone could help him find a way out of this mess for Rain, it was Copia and the ghoulettes. With knowledge well beyond his human years, perhaps he would know of an extra powerful incantation, one which could smite the village while leaving the ghouls intact. Maybe Mist could help them locate such a spell in the library, or a way for Rain to cheat death despite the mob’s murderous intentions? Dew was certain the five of them, regardless of their magic, wouldn’t stand a chance at saving Rain and escaping with an entire village baying for blood otherwise.

On the evening of the second hard day of travel, both Dew and the horse were tired and hungry. Dew had stolen food and hay when he could, but they were both beginning to flag. As they turned a bend in the road, the curling spire of the Abbey rose from the darkening treetops in front of them. It drew closer and closer, and Dew felt his heart threatening to beat out of his chest. He was scared of returning after so long, scared of the reception he would receive after the way he left. The Dewdrop of before had been too proud to ask for help and yet too desperate to assert himself, he had allowed himself to be squeezed into the box of their expectations to the detriment of his very identity and his happiness.

This time however, Dew was a different ghoul. He had grown in confidence through the kindness of his pack, and would allow himself to take up space. Most importantly, Dew had something which had been so sorely lacking in his life before: purpose. He had a pack to save, a reason to face his fears, and the determination to right the mistakes of his past.

As the horse skidded to a halt outside the imposing oak doors of the Abbey that he had sworn never to see again, he was finally prepared to do something he had never done in his life before. Dewdrop was going to ask for help.

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